Read these 15 epic fantasy series about dragons

Dragons have long had a grip on the human imagination. Want to get lost in an epic story about these fire-breathing beasts? We’ve got you covered.

When it comes to fantasy, it’s hard to find a more popular made-up creature than the dragon. For almost as long as mankind has been writing down myths, these winged lizards have been cropping up in the collective dreamings of storytellers. Whether it’s the power of their great wings beating against the sky or the ferocity of their nigh-unstoppable breath, there’s just something about dragons that captures the imagination.

Thanks in no small part to Game of Thrones, we’re currently seeing a boom in fantasy TV, and it’s likely we’ll be seeing more dragons than ever in the coming years. But these beasts have been a staple of fantasy book series for years already. And while TV might be doing a pretty amazing job of catching up, page-bound dragons have an allure all their own, since books can take us inside the experience of being around dragons (or even being dragons) like little else.

There’s no shortage of dragon stories to pick from if that’s what you’re after — if we tried to look at every one ever made, we would be here until we were old and decrepit. So we’ve narrowed it down a bit. Here follows some of the best dragon stories ever set down in science fiction and fantasy books. Some are old staples; some feature dragons as the main heroes. Some are newer stories that carry on the grand tradition of memorable wyrms like J.R.R. Tolkien’s Smaug.

So come and take a look. But make sure to keep a cold drink at the ready, cause these lizards are hot! (Yes, I made that joke…and yes, I’m somewhat mortified you had to read it.)