J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise has stayed so culturally significant because readers never wanted to leave its world. Hogwarts is a magical, comfortable place that feels lived-in, with lessons, rivalries, traditions, hidden rooms, and small details that make it feel real rather than simply invented for the plot. Recreating that feeling is incredibly difficult, but a handful of modern fantasy books have managed it in their own ways.
These modern fantasy books may not be Harry Potter, but they understand exactly why readers fell in love with it in the first place. Collider has rounded up eight series that rival the Potter franchise’s magic.
Nevermoor and the Cozy Feeling
Jessica Townsend’s Nevermoor series follows Morrigan Crow, a girl born on an unlucky day blamed for every misfortune around her. She is expected to die on her eleventh birthday, but the eccentric Jupiter North rescues her at the last moment and takes her to Nevermoor — a hidden city with impossible hotels, strange creatures, secret societies, and magic that operates by its own rules. Morrigan competes for a place in the prestigious Wundrous Society, proving a talent nobody can identify.
The setup invites Harry Potter comparisons, but Nevermoor carves out its own space. Townsend captures the same sentiment Rowling did, then develops enough imagination, mystery, and personality to stand apart.
Orïsha and Magic Restored
Tomi Adeyemi’s Legacy of Orïsha trilogy opens in a world where magic has been taken away. The story begins with Zélie Adebola, whose mother died in King Saran’s violent campaign against the maji of Orïsha. Years later, a chance encounter with runaway princess Amari lets Zélie restore that magic, sending the two across Orïsha while Crown Prince Inan hunts them down.
The first book ties the world’s magic to ancestry, identity, and power, rooting Zélie’s fight in something real. The trilogy expands with Children of Virtue and Vengeance and Children of Anguish and Anarchy, building on the same world with West African mythology and Yoruba-inspired culture.
Supernatural Investigations and the Bureau
B.B. Alston’s Supernatural Investigations series starts with Amari Peters searching for her missing older brother, Quinton. She finds a hidden briefcase, joins the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs, and discovers a summer training program. Her supernatural ability is dangerous, and she stands out for all the wrong reasons.
The series grows through Amari and the Great Game, Amari and the Despicable Wonders, and Amari and the Metalwork Menace, which brings a new threat turning people into machines. The Bureau is full of strange departments, hidden rules, rival students, and magical creatures that keep the world from feeling simple.
The School for Good and Evil
Soman Chainani’s The School for Good and Evil follows best friends Sophie and Agatha, taken from their village to a school where children train to become heroes and villains of fairy tales. Sophie believes she belongs in the School for Good, while Agatha seems like an obvious fit for Evil. They end up in the opposite schools, trying to prove they belong somewhere else.
The labels of “good” and “evil” drive the entire story, and the series builds its mythology around those opposing camps.
Why These Series Work
Each of these series succeeds because they build rich, lived-in worlds through detailed mythology, character-driven stakes, and a sense of place that rivals Hogwarts without copying it. The comparison to Harry Potter is natural, but these books earn their own space.
All four are worth reading for anyone who loved Harry Potter and wants something new with the same sense of wonder.
Key Facts
- Nevermoor: 2017–2025
- Legacy of Orïsha: 2018–2024
- Supernatural Investigations: 2021–2026
- School for Good and Evil: 2013–2023
Source material: “8 Modern Fantasy Book Series That Rival Harry Potter,” Collider.
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