If you loved how The Dragon Waiting reimagines European history with secretive magic and subtle manipulations, you'll be enchanted by Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Clarke’s novel immerses you in an alternate Regency England where magic is real, elusive, and tightly woven into the fates of nations. The way Norrell and Strange’s magical ambitions ripple through the Napoleonic Wars and transform society echoes the cunning, shadowy world of Ford’s Byzantium and Plantagenets.

If you were drawn to Cynthia, Gregory, Hywel, and Dmitri’s shifting alliances and conflicted loyalties in The Dragon Waiting, you’ll be captivated by the tapestry of characters in The Lions of Al-Rassan. Kay’s story weaves together the destinies of artists, warriors, and rulers across a landscape inspired by medieval Spain, where personal desires and political ambitions collide with heartbreaking consequences.

If the courtly machinations and deadly schemes in Ford’s alternate fifteenth century thrilled you, A Song for Arbonne will keep you enthralled. Kay’s novel is filled with shifting alliances, secret plots, and power struggles set against a backdrop of rival kingdoms and religious conflict—perfect for readers who relish clever stratagems and political secrets.

If you appreciated the conflicted ethics and hard choices faced by Ford’s protagonists, you’ll find a kindred spirit in Cazaril, the weary and cunning hero of The Curse of Chalion. Bujold crafts a world where loyalty, faith, and survival demand compromise, and heroes must act in shades of gray to triumph over fate and treachery.

If you enjoyed how The Dragon Waiting layers secret histories and magical conspiracies within real historical events, you’ll be riveted by Declare. Powers blends Cold War spycraft with supernatural intrigue, as British agent Andrew Hale uncovers mystical forces lurking behind twentieth-century power struggles. The result is a gripping, cerebral adventure full of twists and revelations.