If you have lately turned the final page of Atticus O’Sullivan’s extraordinary adventures and find yourself quite bereft—as one does when bidding farewell to a two-thousand-year-old Druid and his delightfully sausage-obsessed wolfhound—then pray, do not despair. For there exist in this marvellous world of ours other tales equally enchanting, where ancient magic tangles with modern life in the most wonderful of ways.
Come, let us discover them together, shall we?
The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
Here is a wizard who hangs his shingle in Chicago, of all places, advertising his services in the Yellow Pages for anyone clever enough to look. Harry Dresden is his name, and solving supernatural mysteries is his rather peculiar trade. Much like our beloved Atticus, Harry possesses a wit sharp enough to cut glass and a talent for finding himself in the most dreadful predicaments.
The series spans eighteen books of noir-flavoured fantasy, blending hard-boiled detective work with battles against vampires, faeries, and things considerably worse. One must note that the early volumes may feel somewhat rough around the edges—rather like a young bird learning to fly—but by the third installment, the story soars magnificently. (As well it must, for we are now up to number 18.)
Kate Daniels Series by Ilona Andrews
Picture, if you will, an Atlanta transformed—a city where magic rises and falls like the tide, where technology sputters and dies when the mystical forces grow strong. In this remarkable world prowls Kate Daniels, a sword-wielding mercenary with secrets buried deep in her blood.
Written by the husband-and-wife team known as Ilona Andrews, this series crackles with the same irreverent humour that makes Atticus such delightful company. Kate herself is wonderfully sharp-tongued, and her adventures among werewolves, vampires, and feuding magical factions have earned devoted readers worldwide. The sixth book even debuted atop the New York Times bestseller list.
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
Across the pond we venture now, to London town, where a young police constable named Peter Grant discovers that ghosts are quite real when he interviews one at a crime scene. Before he can say “extraordinary circumstances,” he finds himself apprenticed to the last wizard in England.
This series has been described as the perfect blend of Harry Potter and CSI, which strikes me as rather apt. The dry British humour will charm you utterly, and the magical underworld of London—complete with river goddesses and haunted theatres—unfolds with marvellous intricacy. A television adaptation is currently in the works.
Mercy Thompson Series by Patricia Briggs
Mercedes Thompson—Mercy to her friends—is no ordinary mechanic. She is a skinwalker of Native American heritage, capable of shifting into a coyote, and she was raised among werewolves in Washington State. Her adventures blend supernatural intrigue with deeply personal stakes.
For those who loved how Atticus navigates the dangerous politics of various supernatural factions, Mercy’s world offers similar delights. She tangles with vampires, bargains with the fae, and maintains complicated relationships with the local werewolf pack—all while running her Volkswagen repair shop. The series carries a more serious tone than the Iron Druid Chronicles but rewards readers richly.
Alex Verus Series by Benedict Jacka
In Camden Town, London, there exists a magic shop run by a most unusual proprietor. Alex Verus is a diviner—his magic allows him to see the branching possibilities of the future, which makes him exceptionally difficult to surprise but rather less useful in a direct fight.
Completed in twelve volumes, this series explores a hidden world of Light and Dark mages with a protagonist who must rely on cleverness rather than raw power. The premise echoes Dresden’s adventures wonderfully, and Alex’s moral complexity—he was once apprenticed to a Dark mage—adds fascinating depth to his character.
October Daye Series by Seanan McGuire
October “Toby” Daye is a changeling, half-fae and half-mortal, working as a private investigator in San Francisco. Her gift is blood magic—she can read the memories carried within a single crimson drop—and her cases take her deep into the hidden courts of Faerie.
This series has earned multiple Hugo Award nominations, and for good reason. McGuire’s faerie realm is beautiful and terrible in equal measure, populated by creatures both wondrous and deadly. For readers who delighted in Atticus’s encounters with the Tuatha Dé Danann, Toby’s adventures among the fae will feel wonderfully familiar.
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Though not a series but a single magnificent novel, American Gods deserves mention for those who savoured the Iron Druid’s mythological encounters. Here, the old gods—Odin, Anansi, and countless others—walk among us in modern America, diminished but not destroyed, preparing for war against the new gods of technology, media, and credit cards.
Winner of both Hugo and Nebula Awards, this book explores what happens when belief fades and divinity grows hungry. Shadow, our protagonist, stumbles into a conflict as old as immigration itself. If you loved how Kevin Hearne wove mythology into modernity, Gaiman’s vision will enchant you utterly.
Jane Yellowrock Series by Faith Hunter
Another skinwalker graces our list—Jane Yellowrock, the last of her Cherokee kind, who shares her consciousness with a beast spirit and hunts vampires for a living. When she arrives in New Orleans to track a rogue vampire, she discovers far more than she bargained for.
Spanning fifteen books, this series offers action aplenty and a heroine who stands among urban fantasy’s finest. Jane’s mysterious past—she has no memory of her childhood—unfolds gradually across the novels, adding layers of intrigue to her vampire-hunting adventures.
The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman
For something delightfully different, consider Irene, a spy-librarian who travels between alternate realities to collect rare and dangerous books for the mysterious Library that exists outside of time. Each world she visits operates under different rules, and she must navigate politics, dragons, and Sherlock Holmes analogues with equal aplomb.
This eight-book series offers a romp through dimensions and genres, combining heist elements with fantasy adventure. The author’s background in role-playing games shines through in the clever worldbuilding, and Irene’s adventures have drawn comparisons to Doctor Who for their boundless imagination.
Sunshine by Robin McKinley
Sometimes one desires a single, perfect book rather than committing to a lengthy series. Robin McKinley’s Sunshine is precisely that treasure. Rae Seddon works in her family’s coffeehouse, making cinnamon rolls and minding her own business, until vampires kidnap her and chain her beside another prisoner of their kind.
Neil Gaiman called this book “pretty much perfect,” and he speaks truly. The vampires here are genuinely monstrous—not a sparkling romantic interest among them—yet the relationship between Sunshine and the vampire Constantine unfolds with remarkable complexity. It won the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and remains a touchstone of urban fantasy.
Jhereg by Steven Brust
We conclude with something slightly different—Vlad Taltos, a human assassin in a world dominated by the Dragaeran Empire, whose wit cuts as sharply as his weapons. Accompanied by his small dragon-like familiar, Jhereg, Vlad navigates a society where humans are second-class citizens.
The Vlad Taltos series began in 1983 and continues today, offering readers a deep well of adventures to explore. For those who loved Atticus’s sarcastic observations and complicated relationships with power, Vlad’s world provides similar pleasures in a secondary-world setting.
Finding Your Next Adventure
Each of these recommendations captures something essential about what makes the Iron Druid Chronicles so beloved—whether it’s the irreverent humour, the collision of ancient mythology with modern life, or protagonists who navigate supernatural politics with wit and courage.
The world of urban fantasy grows richer each year, and readers who mourned the conclusion of Atticus’s tale need never want for magical adventures. These books await, patient and inviting, ready to sweep you away into realms where the extraordinary hides just beneath the humdrum facade of daily life.
Now then—which shall you choose first?
