A Treasured Trope — Why We Adore Found Families in Fantasy

Whilst the quests may be epic and the magic utterly mesmerising, it’s often the friendships that blossom and the found families that form that makes a story feel truly unforgettable. 💜

Seeing the paths of unlikely companions cross, where characters from different walks of life continue to grow closer until one day they would die for one another, really does strike an emotional chord. This unbreakable bond, whether it’s between a ragtag group of misfits planning a heist, a gang of rebels resisting a corrupt empire, or survivors united in the face of adversity, is what drives us through a story. We will laugh with them, cry with them, and most of all, root for them.

Keep reading as we dive deeper into the treasured trope of found families and give some recommendations of the fantasy stories we think do it best. ✨

Sense of Belonging and Unconditional Love

One of the most wholesome elements of the found family trope is the sense of belonging it brings. These books often show outcasts who have spent their lives being misunderstood and isolated, finally finding a group of friends who welcome them exactly as they are. Seeing these found families form on the page is incredibly healing to witness and gives validity to the idea that the family we are born into isn’t the only family out there for us. And for younger readers who perhaps haven’t found their own found family quite yet, these narratives can be extremely hopeful.

Earned Trust and Loyalty

Usually thrown together in the midst of an adventure, the characters often have to prove themselves, showing just how far they would go for one another. When faced with dangerous situations or on the cusp of a life-or-death sacrifice, their actions drive home the fact their loyalty is earned, tested, and freely given. It’s comforting to watch characters choose each other out of unconditional love, rather than kindred obligation. Sometimes, the strongest ties have nothing to do with blood.

Relatability and Resonation

Perhaps what makes found families so resonant in fantasy is the humanity of it. Whether through circumstance or shared strife, they support each other through thick and thin, standing together through whatever their world throws at them. Their dynamic makes even the most epic fantasies feel real, adding relatability to everyone from assassins and fae to witches and knights.

Humour and Comedic Relief

For all the heartache and heartfelt moments, found family stories often have a way of making us laugh out loud, too. With a mix of personalities together, you can expect witty remarks, playful teasing, and plenty of sass! Starting from uncertainty but soon coming to stem from affection, this banter highlights a fun dynamic between different character types even during the darkest of plots.

🔥 Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole

In a mortal world colonised by the gods and ruled over by the Descended, Diem Bellator has always yearned to escape the insular life of her poor village. When her mother suddenly disappears, she has the opportunity to do just that. She enters the dark world of Descended royalty to unlock the web of mysteries her mother left behind. Whilst navigating the court and its politics, Diem befriends a loyal inner circle.

You can pre-order the FairyLoot Exclusive Edition of Spark of the Everflame, along with the two following books in The Kindred’s Curse Saga, here.

🐦‍⬛ The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself usually never sees them, but this year, Gansey, a private school boy, speaks directly to her. Blue is drawn to Gansey, for he has it all—family money, good looks, and devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest with three other boys, and Blue’s life soon becomes caught up in their strange and sinister world.

🏰 Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Ketterdam is a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price, and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone…

☕ Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, battle-weary orc Viv hangs up her sword for the last time in favour of opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success, and if Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won’t be able to go it alone for the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travellers she meets along the way.

You can purchase the FairyLoot Exclusive Edition of Legends & Lattes’ sequel, Brigands & Breadknives, here.

🩵 The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

For a thousand years the ash fell, no flowers bloomed, and the Skaa were slaved in misery whilst the Lord Ruler reigned with absolute power and ultimate terror. Hope was so long lost that not even its memory remained, until a terribly scarred, heart-broken half-Skaa rediscovered it in the depths of the Lord Ruler’s most hellish prison. Kelsier finds in himself the powers of a Mistborn, and recruits the underworld’s elite to not just achieve the greatest heist in history, but also the downfall of the divine despot.

☠️ City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Clary is only fifteen when she first meets the Shadowhunters — warriors covered with strange tattoos who are dedicated to ridding the world of demons. Within twenty-four hours, Clary is pulled into this new world with a vengeance when her mother disappears and she herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know…

You can purchase part 2 of the FairyLoot Exclusive Editions of The Mortal Instruments series here.

💜 The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

Like the other foundling girls who traded a decade of service for a home in the great cathedral, Sybil is a Diviner. In her dreams she receives visions from six unearthly figures known as Omens, and from them, she can predict terrible things before they occur. But just as she and her sister Diviners near the end of their service, they begin to vanish one by one, and Sybil has no choice but to seek the help from a peculiar gargoyle, an ignoble knight, and his friends.

🌊 The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune

Linus Barker is a Case Worker at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. One day he’s given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Not only does Linus discover the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps, he also discovers the wonder of finding unlikely family in the most unexpected places.