Adventure Books like The Da Vinci Code and Eragon

Try these books if you're looking for:

• adventure books
• books that read like The Da Vinci Code  and Eragon

The Rule of Four 
By Ian Caldwell
F CALDWELL
The diary researches Sullivan and Harris obtain just might contain the key to the code that will help solve an ancient mathematical labyrinth. But then there are the murders and disappearances. As the diary pulls them into a web of intrigue they begin to realize just how dangerous the book actually is.

The Tourist 
By Olen Steinhaurer
F STEINHAU
Milo Weaver, former CIA “tourist”, is content with his past 6 years working a desk job for the CIA. When an international hit man is arrested, his former world and new one collide. This is a fast paced espionage thriller.

Ex-Libris 
By Ross King
F KING
This book has all the key elements for a literary thriller, mystery, history and religion. In 1660 London, bookseller Isaac Inchbold gets drawn into the dark world of ciphers, smugglers and forgeries while searching for a lost manuscript.

The Warrior Heir 
By Cinda Williams Chima
YA CHIMA Heir #1
Jack believed he was normal until that fateful day he forgets to take his medicine. His life quickly turns chaotic as he tries to sort out just who or what he has become.

Character-Strong Fiction

Try these books if you're looking for:

• fiction with great characterization
• stories that transport you to a different time or place
• focus on characters, relationships, story, action, events

The Little Lady Agency 
By Hester Browne
F BROWNE Little L #1
Reviled by her snobby family but adored by her friends, unemployed etiquette expert Melissa Romney-Jones reinvents herself as Honey, and goes into business as a matchmaker for inept bachelors. I love the characters in this one. The second book is my least favorite in the series, but the third book is worth the wait.

Terrier 
By Tamora Pierce
YAF PIERCE Beka Coo #1
When sixteen-year-old Beka becomes “Puppy” to a pair of “Dogs,” as the Provost’s Guards are called, she uses her police training, natural abilities, and a touch of magic to help them solve the case of a murdered baby in Tortall’s Lower City. I’m generally not much of a fantasy reader, but this one gripped me from the beginning. The characters are a lot of fun and the plot is intense and gripping. I was sad when I finished the last book. The audio for these are excellent.

Forgotten 
By Catherine McKenzie
F MCKENZIE
Emma Tupper goes on an African vacation but falls ill and is stranded there for six months. In the meantime everyone back home thinks she’s died and her apartment has been leased to a handsome photographer. Throwing herself into her work, Emma struggles to reconnect with her friends and rebuild her life. I loved the way this book made me think about what I would do in her situation. It created a lot of natural empathy.

The Eyre Affair 
By Jasper Fforde
SCI-FI FFORDE Thursday #1
In a world where one can literally get lost in literature, Thursday Next, a Special Operative in literary detection, tries to stop the world’s Third Most Wanted criminal from kidnapping characters, including Jane Eyre, from works of literature. The synopsis doesn’t really do the book justice, but it is exceptionally hard to describe. Jasper Fforde can be trusted to take you on a wild, witty, and often bizarre ride that is both fun and extremely intelligent. Also try his YA series, The Last Dragonslayer.

Popular Adult and YA Fiction

Try these books if you're looking for:

• popular fiction
• adult fiction
• young adult fiction

Sundays at Tiffany's 
By James Patterson
F PATTERSO
Whether writing edge-of-one's seat novels of hard-edged suspense or heartwarming tales of romance and relationships, James Patterson captivates male and female readers alike with sympathetic characters, short chapters, and compelling, labyrinthine plots.

Lake News 
By Barbara Delinsky
F DELINSKY
Many people who love Danielle Steel also love Barbara Delinsky. She’s known for writing fiction focused on contemporary women and their lives and relationships. Delinsky's skillfully developed characters are central to her stories, as they struggle to resolve difficulties in their lives.

Cuckoo’s Calling 
By Robert Galbraith
F GALBRAIT
Robert Galbraith is actually a pseudonym for J. K. Rowling, the author of Harry Potter. In this mystery, Rowling writes about a hard-boiled private investigator, Cormoran Strike. The forgiving temp, Robin, quickly proves useful when they get a case: a famous young model supposedly jumped from the top of her penthouse apartment, but her brother believes she was murdered. Entering the realm of the mega-rich, Strike and Robin question celebrities and fashionistas, trying to uncover the truth.

Fast-Paced Adventure with Teenage Male Protagonist

Try these books if you're looking for:

• fast-paced plot
• adventure
• teen male protagonist

Middleworld 
By Jon Voelkel
YA F VOELKEL
When Max Murphy discovers that his archaeologist parents have mysteriously disappeared while excavating an ancient Mayan site in Central America, he sets off in search of them, with the assistance of a Mayan girl named Lola.

The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp 
By Richard Yancey
YA F YANCEY Alfred_K #1
Through a series of dangerous and violent misadventures, teenage loser Alfred Kropp rescues King Arthur's legendary sword Excalibur from the forces of evil.

Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians 
By Brandon Sanderson
YA F SANDERSO Alcatraz #1
On his thirteenth birthday, foster child Alcatraz Smedry receives a bag of sand which is immediately stolen by the evil Librarians who are trying to take over the world, and Alcatraz is introduced to his grandfather and his own special talent, and told that he must use it to save civilization.

SilverFin: A James Bond Adventure 
By Charles Higson
YA F HIGSON Young Bo #1
Prequel to the adventures of James Bond, 007, introduces the young James when he is just starting boarding school in England and is about to become involved in his first adventure.

Fantasy Books with Complex Worlds

Try these books if you're looking for:

• fantasy books with complex worlds
• well-written
• focus on story, action, or events
• reads like Brandon Sanderson, Robin McKinley, Anne Bishop, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Patricia Wrede, and J.K. Rowling.

The Iron Tower 
 By Dennis L. McKiernan
SCI-FI MCKIERNA Iron Tow #1-3
Tuck Underbank is a Warrow--think a hobbit with shoes and “large jewel-like eyes” -- living in the peaceful Boskydells. When an unnaturally cold winter strikes and the evil Modru threatens the world, he and a number of his fellow Thornwalkers go to the High King's aid. But a vast expanse of lightless blizzard called the Dimmendark (sounds bad, doesn't it?) is spreading over the land, and Tuck soon finds that the “dark tide” is going to swamp them all. Despite the fact that they're tiny and temperamental, the Warrows get included in the military forces. But the High King doesn't have enough warriors to hold off the horde of slobbering monsters who are coming to attack. And the battle goes horribly wrong, separating the friends from one another and possibly dooming them all.

Mystic and Rider 
By Sharon Shinn
SCI-FI SHINN Twelve #1
The Mystic woman Senneth, accompanied by a team of Shapeshifters and Riders, is sent by the king into the land of Gillengaria to investigate reports of retaliation against those who use magic.

Theft of Swords 
By Michael J. Sullivan
SCI-FI SULLIVAN Riyria #1
Royce Melborn, a skilled thief, and his mercenary partner, Hadrian Blackwater, are running for their lives when they're framed for the death of the king. Trapped in a conspiracy that goes beyond the overthrow of a tiny kingdom, their only hope is unraveling an ancient mystery before it's too late.

The Demon King 
By Cinda Williams Chima
YA F CHIMA Seven Re #1
Relates the intertwining fates of former street gang leader Han Alister and headstrong Princess Raisa, as Han takes possession of an amulet that once belonged to an evil wizard and Raisa uncovers a conspiracy in the Grey Wolf Court.

Clean Historical Romance

Try these books if you're looking for:

• romance
• historical fiction
• strong female characters
• clean read

The Blue Castle 
By L.M. Montgomery
YA F MONTGOME
When Valancy Stirling is diagnosed with a heart condition, she decides to throw aside her family’s overbearing standards and live exactly as she likes, much to her staid family’s dismay. But it’s when her rebellion puts her in contact with Barney Snaith, the town pariah, that Valancy’s new life truly begins.

Snobbery With Violence 
By Marion Chesney
MYSTERY CHESNEY Edwardia #1
When a marriage proposal appears imminent for the beautiful--if rebellious--Lady Rose Summer, her father wants to know if her suitor's intentions are honorable. He calls on Captain Harry Cathcart to do some intelligence work. But when Harry suspects a murder has been committed, he must seek help from Superintendent Kerridge of the Scotland Yard and Lady Rose herself.

Courting Miss Lancaster 
By Sarah Eden
ROMANCE EDEN
Harry Windover knows he can never make an offer for his adored Athena Lancaster, but when her brother asks him to help find a suitable suitor for Athena, Harry concocts a plot to help her see his own sterling qualities against a backdrop of alarming suitors.

Replica 
By Jenna Black
YA F BLACK
Sixteen-year-old Nadia lives a privileged life in the Corporate States, formerly the United States of America, but when her betrothed is killed and then wakes up in the replication tanks, the pair sets out to find a killer while keeping the secrets of human replication technology from the dangerous people who run their world.