Playing hooky from Hogwarts? Join the club. After J.K. Rowling aired her unfortunate transphobic bias, former Harry Potter fans fled from the series in droves. Now on the hunt for a new magical alma mater, scholastic fantasy fans are scrambling to submit their applications elsewhere. But what other arcane institutions are open for enrollment? Other fantasy authors have given us options. These are 10 fantasy books with magical schools that aren’t Harry Potter, so you can shut the Gryffin-door on that series for good.
A Wizard of Earthsea
Ursula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea features the original fantasy wizard academy – popularizing the idea of magical schools. The story takes place in the globe spanning archipelago of Earthsea, where the young magic adept Ged leaves behind a budding career as a goatherd to pursue the arcane arts. After accompanying an old wizard for a while, Ged turns his back on his master in order to attend The School of Wizardry on Roke Island – to pursue power in direct opposition to his former mentor’s teachings. As Uncle Ben once said, power comes with responsibility – and while Ged has natural aptitude for the former, he sorely lacks a sense for the latter. After attempting a dangerous spell to impress a rival, Ged ends up summoning a dark spirit to the world of Earthsea – a Jungian shadow self that he will be forced to spend the rest of his youth attempting to banish. Harry Potter never had to confront inner demons now, did he?
Check out the latest price for A Wizard of Earthsea on Amazon here.
The Kingkiller Chronicles
Patrick Rothfuss’ The Kingkiller Chronicles tells the tale of Kvothe, the greatest bard who ever lived. Using his ability to call the secret names of things, Kvothe solidifies his reputation as a skilled warrior, cunning magician, and potential murderer. Before he made a career out of allegedly knocking off royals, Kvothe once studied magic at The University – an institute so prestigious it styles itself as the only one of its kind. It was there that Kvothe first learned to call the name of the wind, which was the first step on his journey to becoming the formidable magician he is today. While the novel jumps around in time, we spend plenty of it following Kvothe on his Wizard of Earthsea style magical eduction. After all, the mages of Earthsea devote their lives to studying the true names of things as well.
Check out the latest price for The Kingkiller Chronicles on Amazon here.
A Deadly Education
A hallmark of fantasy dark academia, the school in Naomi Novik’s A Deadly Education is similar to Hogwarts in that lethal threats are a part of the everyday curriculum. In an institution that weeds out the weak through mortal means, Galadriel “El” Higgins must attempt to survive the perils of magical higher education. Though the school’s halls are haunted by horrifying creatures, El herself harbors a secret just as monstrous as anything that lurks in the dark. El has a natural talent for using malia, magic that draws power from unwilling beings. Determined not to go down the dark path that was prophesied for her, El attempts to keep her moral compass pointing at Chaotic Good, and ends up walking a Chaotic Neutral path toward academic excellence. In a school that pits both students against monsters and one another, you do the best you can morals-wise.
Check out the latest price for A Deadly Education on Amazon here.
Babel
A historical fantasy, R.F. Kuang’s Babel is the story of a young orphan from Canton, who was adopted by a traveling British scholar and trained in the art of languages. To mould his young mind into an academic machine, the scholar renames the boy Robin Swift and tutors him ceaselessly, all so that he might one day be accepted into Oxford’s Royal Institute of Translation – also known as “Babel.” After being accepted into the institution, Robin realizes with horror that like the builders of the biblical tower of legend, Babel’s scholars are attempting to dominate the world. Using the latent magic of untranslatable words, Babel aims to aid the British Empire in its expansionist endeavors, and Swift has become an unwitting perpetrator of colonial rule. A medication on how higher education is used as a means to establish social hierarchy, Babel tells us what can be done to tear the tower down.
Check out the latest price for Babel on Amazon here.
The Magicians
The Magicians by Lev Grossman is Harry Potter after graduation, if Harry and friends were all college-educated burnouts. Quentin Coldwater is a brilliant young student with all the cynicism of an undergrad philosophy major – dissatisfied with life before ever even experiencing it. After being accepted to an elite magical institution, Quentin learns that not even the arcane arts can lift his soul-crushing ennui. After graduation, the burned out Quentin’s internal fire is lit again after he hears a rumor that Fillory, the Narnia-esque world from his favorite childhood book series, might actually be real. This book is about what happens when not even literal magic can bring back the magic of life, and characters are tasked with making meaning for themselves.
Check out the latest price for The Magicians on Amazon here.
Mother of Learning
Mother of Learning by Domagoj Kurmaić is the lovechild of Harry Potter and Groundhog Day. A progression fantasy about young wizard who gets stronger by the minute, Zorian Kazinski has a distinct advantage over his classmates due to the fact that he’s stuck reliving the same 43,200 minutes over and over again. On the night of his magic school’s summer festival, Zorian is murdered, and finds himself magically transported back to the beginning of the month. Stuck in a 30 day murder loop, Zorian will have to improve his magic and his mind if he wants to make it to the next semester alive. Repetition might be the mother of learning, but I’m sure this poor teenager could use a hug from his actual mother instead.
Check out the latest price for Mother of Learning on Amazon here.
The Black Magician Trilogy
The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan does’t involve a magical school per se – but the Magician’s Guild is the next best thing! “Best” is a matter of opinion, considering most of the most of Imardin’s magicians devote their time to being the absolute worst. Every year, the city’s sorcerer’s gather together to purge the poor from the streets, but after a young girl hurls a rock through a supposedly impenetrable magical barrier, the Magicians Guild realizes that their worst fears have come true: magic has spread to the uninitiated. If these wizards don’t find and train (or kill) this budding young sorcerer soon, her unfettered magical abilities could cause the destruction of the entire city. If Harry Potter was a walking nuclear bomb instead of a cupboard dwelling kid, you’d have this story.
Check out the latest price for The Black Magician Trilogy on Amazon here.
Naruto
Genre purists might turn up their noses, but I smell “magic school” all over Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto. Outcasted by his village for the demon sealed in his chest, young Naruto vows to go to ninja school in order to become the greatest hokage – basically the ninja president. In this world, humans are able to manipulate chakra, an internal bodily energy source that lets them perform all sorts of magical feats. Running on water, breathing fireballs, turning yourself into a harem of sexy clones – it’s all fair game. In order to defeat the many threats that face the Hidden Leaf Village, Naruto will have to give his education his all, or like many other failures to graduate, die trying.
Check out the latest price for Naruto on Amazon here.
Carry On
Rainbow Rowell’s Carry On is the story of Simon Snow, a soon-to-be graduate of the Watford School of magic – if he can make it through his final year. Considering that half the time Simon can’t get his wand to function, it’s a wonder that he’s made it this far. It’s ironic, considering that Simon was once prophesied to become the greatest mage who ever lived, the only person capable of defeating a magic stealing monster known as the Insidious Humdrum. With a little help from his ex-girlfriend Agatha and his vampire nemesis/roommate Baz, he might still be able to pull it off. If you’re looking for scholastic sorcery where the real magic is in the relationships (and the ensuing romantic drama) then Carry On is sure to leave you spellbound.
Check out the latest price for Carry On on Amazon here.
The Atlas Six
Olivia Blake’s The Atlas Six is a story about the one of the most stressful aspects of higher education: the admission process. When you’re competing for acceptance in a secret magical society, you’d have a better shot at a full ride to Harvard. The Alexandrian Society is the most prestigious order of mages in the world, responsible for safeguarding the most ancient arcane knowledge. In order to gain entrance to the society (and the life of riches and prestige that comes with it) an applicant must compete against five other mages for a single slot. Enter The Atlas Six: a sextet of sorcerers from all walks of life – each a master of their own particular brand of magic. The candidates are informed they will have one year to prove they are Alexandrian Society material by stomping out the competition. If you’re looking for dark academia wizard PvP, you’re playing the right game.
Check out the latest price for The Atlas Six on Amazon here.
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