Authors Like Rick Riordan
Rick Riordan turned a generation of reluctant readers into obsessives with a simple, irresistible formula: drop an ordinary kid into a world where ancient mythology is secretly real, give them a wry first-person voice and a demigod-sized problem, then never let the pace drop. From Percy Jackson's Greek gods to the Egyptian, Norse, and Hindu pantheons of his later series, the appeal stays consistent — fast, funny, myth-soaked middle-grade adventure where humor and heart carry as much weight as the quests.
So “authors like Rick Riordan” can mean a few different things. Are you chasing more myth-made-modern, where old gods walk through the present day? The wisecracking underdog hero? The propulsive, one-quest-after-another momentum? Or simply a big, bingeable series to disappear into? The authors below are ranked by how closely they capture those qualities — including two writers Riordan personally publishes through his own imprint, whose books are the closest thing to more Riordan there is.
Authors to read if you love Rick Riordan
Roshani Chokshi
92%Start with Aru Shah and the End of Time (2018)
Publishes through Rick Riordan Presents, and it shows: Aru Shah pulls a wisecracking Indian-American heroine into Hindu mythology with the exact humor-meets-heart formula Percy fans love. The closest thing to more Riordan there is.
Rebecca Roanhorse
90%Start with Race to the Sun (2019)
Another Rick Riordan Presents author. Race to the Sun sends a Navajo girl on a monster-hunting quest rooted in Diné mythology — the same modern-kid-meets-ancient-gods engine, drawing on a tradition Percy never touched.
Brandon Mull
89%Start with Fablehaven (2006)
The go-to next stop for Percy Jackson fans. Fablehaven trades gods for a secret preserve of magical creatures, but keeps the fast, funny, sibling-driven adventure and escalating stakes across a long, bingeable series.
Eoin Colfer
87%Start with Artemis Fowl (2001)
If Percy's snark is the draw, meet Artemis Fowl — a twelve-year-old criminal mastermind up against an underground world of fairies and tech. Sharper and more mischievous, but the witty voice and breakneck plotting are pure Riordan territory.
Jennifer A. Nielsen
84%Start with The False Prince (2012)
For the plucky-underdog-with-a-secret side of Riordan. The False Prince is a twisty medieval con where an orphan is groomed to impersonate a dead prince — less mythology, same clever, propulsive hero's journey.
Chris Colfer
82%Start with The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell (2012)
The Land of Stories drops two modern kids inside a world where fairy tales are real — the same “ordinary kid, extraordinary mythic world” hook Riordan runs on, aimed squarely at the same age group.
Soman Chainani
80%Start with The School for Good and Evil (2013)
The School for Good and Evil takes the magic-school premise somewhere darker and fairy-tale-twisted. More gothic and romance-tinged than Percy, but it delivers the same immersive world and binge-ready series length.
Ransom Riggs
78%Start with Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2011)
A step older and eerier. Miss Peregrine's is a time-loop adventure about “peculiar” children with strange powers and a monster hunting them — quest-driven and imaginative, but skewing YA and atmospheric rather than funny.
Lloyd Alexander
76%Start with The Book of Three (1964)
The grandfather of the genre. The Chronicles of Prydain (start with The Book of Three) is the classic myth-rooted coming-of-age quest that authors like Riordan grew up on — a bit more formal in voice, but foundational and deeply rewarding.
At a glance
These aren't matched by genre label alone. For Riordan, the qualities that matter are mythology reimagined in the modern world, a funny underdog voice, and relentless quest-driven pacing — so a classic 1960s fantasy and a 2019 Navajo-mythology adventure can both belong here for different reasons.
| Author | Start with | Best for | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roshani Chokshi | Aru Shah and the End of Time (2018) | Mythology, Middle Grade, Fantasy | 92% |
| Rebecca Roanhorse | Race to the Sun (2019) | Mythology, Middle Grade, Adventure | 90% |
| Brandon Mull | Fablehaven (2006) | Fantasy, Middle Grade, Adventure | 89% |
| Eoin Colfer | Artemis Fowl (2001) | Fantasy, Adventure, Humor | 87% |
| Jennifer A. Nielsen | The False Prince (2012) | Fantasy, Adventure, Middle Grade | 84% |
| Chris Colfer | The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell (2012) | Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Middle Grade | 82% |
| Soman Chainani | The School for Good and Evil (2013) | Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Middle Grade | 80% |
| Ransom Riggs | Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2011) | Fantasy, Young Adult, Adventure | 78% |
| Lloyd Alexander | The Book of Three (1964) | Fantasy, Middle Grade, Classic | 76% |
About Rick Riordan
Rick Riordan is the American author behind Percy Jackson and the Olympians, the Heroes of Olympus, the Kane Chronicles, Magnus Chase, and the Trials of Apollo — more than 190 million copies sold worldwide. A former middle-school teacher, he first invented the Percy Jackson stories for his own son, and now runs Rick Riordan Presents, an imprint spotlighting authors who tell mythology-based stories from cultures around the world.
Frequently asked questions
Who should I read after Rick Riordan?+
Start with Roshani Chokshi's Aru Shah and Rebecca Roanhorse's Race to the Sun — both are published by Rick Riordan's own imprint and use the same modern-kid-meets-mythology formula. Brandon Mull's Fablehaven and Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl are the other classic next steps.
What author is most like Rick Riordan?+
For the closest match, look to the Rick Riordan Presents imprint — Roshani Chokshi and Rebecca Roanhorse write mythology-based middle-grade adventures in exactly Riordan's mold, just drawing on Hindu and Navajo traditions rather than Greek.
Are there authors like Rick Riordan for older readers?+
Yes — Ransom Riggs (Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children) skews young adult with an eerier, more atmospheric tone, while still delivering the quest-driven, imaginative adventure Riordan fans want.
What makes Rick Riordan's books so popular?+
He reimagines ancient mythology in the modern world, narrates through funny, relatable underdog heroes, and keeps the pace relentless — a formula that hooks even reluctant readers and sustains long, bingeable series.
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