We’ve been seeing a lot of fantasy novels getting movies and TV series adaptations lately - and there is no shortage of books that deserve a screen adaptation by any means, but a lot of extremely good fantasy novels are often overlooked if they don’t have a massive fan base. Here are 10 that I think would not only translate well into a movie or TV series, but are also fantastic books to spend a chunk of time reading as well.

10. Darren Shan’s "Demonata" series

The name might sound familiar. Shan is also the author of the "Cirque Du Freak" series, but a lot of people don’t know he wrote another series called the "Demonata" series. The series centers around three protagonists: Grubitsch "Grubbs" Grady, Cornelius "Kernel" Fleck and Bec MacConn. Although they meet each other at various points, they are from separate times; Grubbs lives in the present day, Kernel in the 1970s and Bec in around 450 A.D. The books detail their fight against the evil demon master Lord Loss, his many demon familiars and the mysterious Shadow, who promises to destroy the human universe and to even stop death. Together with The Disciples, the main characters thwart the Demonata's attempts at world destruction multiple times. Not only do the books steadily climb toward a fantastic climax at the end, there are enough details and twists and turns in the plot that it would make for a fantastic TV show that would keep people watching this gruesome, terrifying and dark series.

9. "Death Troopers" by Joe Schreiber

There are a lot of "Star Wars" spinoffs in the form of movies and TV shows, but the books deserve some love too, especially this one. "Death Troopers" is a horror/sci-fi "Star Wars" novel that chronicles the adventures of the crew aboard the Imperial prison ship, the Purge. They find an abandoned Star Destroyer and board it to find that all but a select few people are still alive on the ship. The rest have been infected and destroyed in hideous, bloody and gruesome ways. However, that isn’t the worst. The rest are rising - unstoppable, undead and always hungry. It's fast-paced and horrifyingly intense with twists all along the way. Zombie movies are a hot commodity nowadays and I think this one would make an amazing zombie movie.

8. Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon’s "Serrated Edge" series

Pretty much any series by Mercedes Lackey is worthy of a screen adaptation, but I think this one is interesting enough to win out. This series is an odd (but satisfying) mix of fantasy and modern times with racecar driving elves. It’s the typical good versus evil you find in fantasy stories. Only this time, the evil elves run a kiddie porn and snuff-film ring along with drug trafficking. The good elves, intrigued by cars and racing, build their own cars that then help them chase down the evil elves rings and save the abused children. Each book in the series is a wild page-turner that really draws you into the plot of each one and each one in never the same.

7. "Eragon" by Christopher Paolini

Yes, I know that I’m cheating a little with this one. It already has a film adaptation, but, to be honest, the movie was not even close to doing this amazing series justice. The "Eragon" series is a deep, rich, fully realized world of dragons and magic that, admittedly, is a little bit of a lengthy undertaking if you want to read all four books, but is completely worth it. It follows Eragon and the dragon he stumbled upon, hatched and raised named Saphira as they are driven from their hometown by the evil Galbatorix, who attempts to capture them. After realizing that both boy and dragon can cooperate, Saphira accepts Eragon as her Dragon Rider and together they set off to destroy Galbatorix’s evil rule with the help of a group of rebels named the Varden. It isn’t hard to read, it’s packed with action and magic and it’s a page-turner that will keep you reading long into the night.

6. "Dragon Rider" by Cornelia Funke

This is a whimsical German children’s novel written in 1997 that is both parts adorable and exciting. It follows Firedrake the dragon, a Brownie named Sorrel and a human boy named Ben as they search for the mythical realm of the Himalayas called the Rim of Heaven. Along the way, they encounter good and bad and trek through land, sea and sky in search of the place. It’s whimsical, well-written and just exciting enough to stir the imaginations of both children and adults alike.

5. "The Demon Cycle" series by Peter V. Brett

"The Demon Cycle" series follows three protagonists, Arlen, Leesha and Rojer, as they embark upon their “hero’s journey.” They inhabit a world ravaged by demons called corelings that rise from the planet’s core every night to feast on humans and have managed to crush humanity from an advanced state of technology to the “dark ages.” The three must rally the humans and turn the tide against the corelings to save humanity. The series doesn’t have a very big following, but it more than deserves one. Brett manages to go past the stereotypical fantasy story and delve into the nature of fear and why people react how they do to it. The series is elaborately crafted, beautifully detailed and drags the reader into the series quickly and keeps them there.

4. The "Abarat" trilogy by Clive Barker

Barker’s epic "Abarat" trilogy is a little known series that is both beautiful and almost tragic in its storytelling. This is one of my absolute favorite series because, not only is the world fully imagined, but every character, their motivations and the reasons behind those motivations are deeply fleshed out. The series follows the main protagonist Candy as she stumbles upon and through the world of Abarat. She begins the series by simply trying to get home, but after meeting colorful creatures of all alignments, she realizes that she is the only one who can save Abarat from Christopher Carrion and his mother, Mater Motley, who want to cover the whole world in Absolute Midnight. The story is dark, exciting and thought provoking all at the same time. Barker takes a fantasy story and combines it with a little philosophy to not only keep you reading, but also to make you look at the nature of what’s really good or evil.

3. "House" by Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker

I did not realize until I finished this list that this actually did get a film adaptation already, but since I started it, I guess I’ll finish my rave. Ted Dekker and Frank Peretti are fantastic horror/suspense writers whose books are all intense and all-consuming until the very last twist of the plot, but "House" is by far one of either of their best works. It watches Jack and Stephanie as they become stranded in an old hotel with another couple. Originally, they believe themselves safe enough to wait for help until they are forced to play a game of life and death with a crazed murderer who claims to have “slain God.” The house is filled with unimaginable horror in the form of other crazed beings in the house to the own couples’ inner demons taken flesh. The story is deliriously fast-paced and disturbing with twists and turns until you can’t even imagine what the horrific outcome could be.

2. "The Katurran Odyssey" by Terryl Whitlatch and David Michael Wieger

"The Katurran Odyssey" is a stunningly beautiful epic of faith, hope and selfless heroism that creates a mythic world of transcendent imagination. Katook the lemur and his family live on the island of Bohibba, but “The Long Winter” has made food scarce and the community is starving to death. Not even the priest’s offerings to their god, The Fossah, can lift the desolation. After being cursed and shunned for alleged sacrilege, Katook journeys to try and find some way to lift the curse and return to his family. Along the way he encounters magic, science, tyranny and finally comes to realize what his purpose for being cursed was all along in a story filled with beauty, adventure and profound tests of trust and friendship. The illustrations that accompany the tale are just as beautiful and colorful as the characters that leap off the pages and make this as much a part of fantasy culture as Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.

1. "Brave Story" by Miyuki Miyabe

As one of my favorite books I’ve ever read, "Brave Story" is an amazing literary work that, most of all, deserves much recognition. "Brave Story" was originally a Japanese young adult novel by the same name that details the adventures of fifth grader Wataru Mitani as he stumbles upon the world of “Vision” after his parents’ divorce and his mother’s attempted suicide. As the portal to the world is only open for 90 days every 10 years, Wataru must quickly trek through a massive world to collect five gemstones representing charity, grace, faith and the power of light and darkness to save himself and his mother and change his destiny. He encounters friends and foes and, ultimately, must come to terms with who he is in order to return home. The story is engaging and compelling; there isn’t a dull moment or character in this story that reads like an RPG in book form. The book has since recently spawned actual RPG video games and manga as well, but no film adaptations as of yet, but it is long overdue.