There exists a peculiar sort of magic in books that refuse to grow old. Not the magic of fairies and flying boys (though we shall come to that presently), but rather the quiet enchantment of stories so splendidly told that they lodge themselves in the hearts of readers for generations to come. These are the modern classics—tales penned in our own era yet destined to stand shoulder to shoulder with the beloved volumes of centuries past.
What makes a book a modern classic, you might well ask? It is a question worth pondering whilst settled in one’s favourite chair. Perhaps it is the quality of prose that lingers like a particularly pleasant dream. Perhaps it is characters who feel as real as one’s own acquaintances. Or perhaps it is simply that ineffable something that makes a reader close the final page and immediately wish to begin again.
Here, then, are fourteen such volumes—books that shall delight readers in 2025, 2026, and for many splendid years thereafter.
1. The Wendy by Erin Michelle Sky and Steven Brown
If one were to imagine what might occur should a Peter Pan retelling be written with the wit of the original and the sensibilities of a thoroughly modern adventure, one would arrive at something rather like The Wendy. Here is Wendy Darling reimagined as an orphan in 1780s England, a young woman of extraordinary determination who dreams not of nurseries and thimbles, but of commanding her own ship upon the high seas.
What distinguishes this tale—and shall distinguish it for years to come—is its remarkably clever narrative voice. The prose reads like a story being told by a particularly witty friend, with observations so droll that readers report laughing aloud in most inappropriate places. Wendy herself possesses the most expressive eyebrows in all of literature, and a secret kiss hiding in the corner of her mouth that appears (or does not) depending upon her mood.
The familiar faces appear in wonderfully unexpected ways: Peter Pan with wings like a bird, Captain Hook as a complex adversary rather than a mere villain, and Tinker Bell as a shape-shifting innisfay. Yet this is unmistakably Wendy’s story—a tale of a young woman who refuses to accept the limitations her society would place upon her. Readers have called it “a classic in its own right” and “better than the original,” which is saying rather a lot. The complete trilogy is now available for those who cannot bear to leave this world once they have found it.
2. Circe by Madeline Miller
In the halls of mythology, certain figures have long waited in the shadows for someone to tell their story properly. Circe, the witch of Aiaia, waited thousands of years, and her patience has been rewarded most handsomely. This reimagining of the famous sorceress transforms her from a footnote in Odysseus’s journey into a fully realised woman of remarkable depth.
The daughter of the sun god Helios, Circe discovers she possesses the power of witchcraft—a gift that frightens the gods themselves. Banished to a lonely island, she encounters heroes and monsters, developing her powers whilst navigating the complicated politics of immortality. The prose is luminous, the storytelling assured, and the feminist themes woven throughout with extraordinary grace.
3. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
There exists, perhaps only in dreams, a circus that arrives without warning and opens only at night. Le Cirque des Rêves—the Circus of Dreams—contains tents of wonder beyond description: clouds that can be climbed, gardens made of ice, and illusions that defy the laws of both physics and imagination.
Behind the spectacle, two young magicians engage in a competition neither fully understands, their contest expressed through increasingly magnificent feats of magic. That they fall tumbling into love only complicates matters considerably. This is a novel to be savoured slowly, like an exquisite dessert, its atmospheric prose creating a world so vivid that readers often report dreaming of it long after the final page.
4. Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
In a House of infinite halls and endless corridors, where an ocean crashes through marble rooms and statues line every wall, there lives a man called Piranesi. He knows every statue, charts the tides, and believes himself to be quite content—until evidence emerges that suggests his world may not be quite what he believes it to be.
This slim volume contains mysteries within mysteries, each revelation more astonishing than the last. Clarke has created something entirely original: part puzzle box, part philosophical meditation, and wholly enchanting. The prose possesses a luminous quality perfectly suited to its dreamlike setting.
5. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
When Count Alexander Rostov is sentenced by a Bolshevik tribunal to spend the remainder of his life confined to Moscow’s Metropol Hotel, one might expect a tale of tragedy. Instead, what unfolds over the subsequent decades is a story of extraordinary warmth, wit, and wisdom.
The Count, a man of impeccable manners and inexhaustible curiosity, discovers that even within the confines of a single building, a life of remarkable richness remains possible. His relationships with the hotel’s staff and guests create a world as intimate as it is engaging. This is a novel about making the very best of one’s circumstances, whatever they may be.
6. The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
Linus Baker is a caseworker for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, a man whose life consists entirely of rules, regulations, and the proper filing of paperwork. When he is sent to evaluate an orphanage housing six dangerous magical children—including, it must be noted, the Antichrist—his orderly existence is thoroughly upended.
What follows is a story of extraordinary heart, examining what it means to be a family and challenging readers to question their assumptions about those deemed “different.” The prose wraps around one like a warm blanket, and the characters—both human and otherwise—are quite impossible not to love.
7. Life of Pi by Yann Martel
A boy. A boat. A Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. Two hundred twenty-seven days adrift upon the Pacific Ocean. From such simple elements, Yann Martel constructed one of the most extraordinary survival stories ever written—and something considerably more profound besides.
Pi Patel’s journey raises questions about faith, storytelling, and the nature of truth itself. Is the tale he tells literally true, or is it the story he needed to survive? The reader must decide, and in deciding, confronts the very purpose of narrative. It is a book that haunts the imagination long after reading.
8. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
What if, in the midst of the Napoleonic Wars, magic returned to England? Two magicians emerge to answer this question: the fussy, scholarly Mr Norrell and his brilliant, impetuous student Jonathan Strange. Their complicated relationship drives a novel of astonishing scope and imagination.
Clarke writes with the style of a nineteenth-century author, complete with footnotes detailing the history of English magic. The result is immersive in a manner few novels achieve. It demands patience—the volume is considerable—but rewards the investment with riches beyond measure.
9. Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
In a winter kingdom drawn from Eastern European folklore, a moneylender’s daughter named Miryem is so skilled at her trade that rumours spread she can turn silver into gold. When the King of Winter hears these rumours, he arrives to claim her talents—and her person—for himself.
This reimagining of Rumpelstiltskin weaves together multiple narratives with the skill of the finest tapestry. The prose is rich with the cold beauty of its setting, and its examination of the politics of money and marriage feels both timeless and timely.
10. Stardust by Neil Gaiman
In the village of Wall, there exists—as you may have guessed—a wall. Beyond it lies Faerie, and into Faerie ventures young Tristran Thorn to retrieve a fallen star for the woman he believes he loves. The star, it transpires, is a rather irritated young woman named Yvaine, and their journey home is complicated by witches, princes, and various other murderous parties.
This is Gaiman at his most purely delightful, crafting a fairy tale that feels ancient despite its modern origin. The prose possesses the lilting quality of stories told by firelight, and the darkness within only makes the light shine brighter.
11. The Princess Bride by William Goldman
As you wish. With those three words, farm boy Westley declares his undying love for Buttercup, setting in motion an adventure involving pirates, giants, sword fights, torture, revenge, miracles, and quite a lot of running. Goldman’s novel pretends to be an abridgement of a longer work, and his running commentary adds layers of humour to an already delightful tale.
The book gave us Inigo Montoya, the Dread Pirate Roberts, and the concept of “true love”—while simultaneously poking gentle fun at every trope it employs. It is simultaneously a perfect adventure story and a loving satire of adventure stories.
12. Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
When young Sophie Hatter is cursed by the Witch of the Waste and transformed into an old woman, she does what any sensible person would: she strikes a bargain with a fire demon and moves into a wizard’s castle. The wizard in question is Howl, who is vain, dramatic, and considerably more complicated than he first appears.
Jones subverts fairy tale expectations at every turn whilst creating something that feels, paradoxically, like the purest form of fairy tale. Her wit sparkles throughout, and her understanding of how stories work gives the novel a meta quality that rewards multiple readings.
13. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
At Hailsham, students receive an excellent education in art and literature, carefully sheltered from the outside world. Only gradually do they—and the reader—come to understand the true nature of their existence and the devastating purpose for which they have been raised.
Ishiguro tells this tale with his characteristic restraint, allowing horror to creep in around the edges rather than announcing itself boldly. The result is heartbreaking and unforgettable, a novel that raises profound questions about what it means to be human.
14. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
Zachary Ezra Rawlins discovers a mysterious book in his university library—a book that contains a story from his own childhood, though he has never told it to anyone. His investigation leads him to a labyrinthine underground sanctuary filled with stories, where keys unlock doors to wonder and bees guide lost readers through the stacks.
Morgenstern’s second novel is even more ambitious than her first, a love letter to stories themselves and to those who love them. The narrative structure is unconventional, the imagery extraordinary, and the whole effect is rather like dreaming whilst awake.
Finding Your Next Modern Classic
The books gathered here share certain qualities: prose of distinction, characters of depth, and that indefinable magic that makes a reader fall wholly into another world. Whether you begin with witty adventure, mythological reimagining, or quiet mystery, each offers pleasures that shall not diminish with time.
For those who love tales of determined young women defying expectations, The Wendy awaits with its charming narrative voice and swashbuckling spirit. For those drawn to atmospheric wonder, The Night Circus and The Starless Sea offer worlds to lose oneself within. And for those who cherish the intersection of history and fantasy, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell provides riches enough for months of reading.
These are the books that shall be pressed into grandchildren’s hands decades hence, accompanied by the words: “You simply must read this.” And so they shall—and so shall their grandchildren after them, in that endless golden chain of readers discovering magic upon the page.
