Cradle by Will Wight is a popular magic and sci-fi fantasy series with eleven books. This series takes place in a world where people have an energy inside themselves called Mudra, and each person has an affinity for what they call Paths. Paths let you learn different abilities. One path can focus on strength-related attacks, and another can focus on illusions. They test children to see what they have an affinity for and train them accordingly.
For fans of the ‘Cradle’ series, the craving for more is as insatiable as the hunger for advancement of the series’ protagonist, Lindon. ‘Cradle’ has captivated us with its thrilling blend of martial arts, magical advancement, and a richly crafted world. In this post, we’re exploring realms that echo similar themes – worlds where characters grow from underdogs to powerhouses, where magic systems are intricate and well-defined, and where epic adventures promise to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Whether you’re drawn to the mystical allure, the complex character development, or the high-stakes action, our selection promises to transport you to universes that parallel the captivating experience of ‘Cradle.’ Join us as we go on this literary adventure, discovering new tales that satisfy that craving for fantastical worlds and awe-inspiring journeys.
7 Books Like Cradle (Progression Fantasy Books)
‘Cradle’ is filled with intense action and martial arts scenes, appealing to those who enjoy fast-paced, action-driven narratives. It shows us the magic system with a science fiction plot. So this series goes crazy and keeps advancing. The protagonists are extremely hardworking and dedicated. But the idea of this book is you should work hard to find your path.
This is known for its progression fantasy aspect, where character development is closely tied to advancing their skills or powers. Readers who enjoy seeing a character’s growth from weak to powerful seek similar stories.
I will talk about seven magical sci-fi progression fantasy novels like Cradle. They provide a similar sense of excitement and engagement for fans of the ‘Cradle’ series, making them sought after by readers eager to immerse themselves in new but familiar worlds. Let’s begin!
| Name | Key Focus | Tropes |
|---|---|---|
| Sufficiently Advanced Magic by Andrew Rowe | A fantasy adventure where a young protagonist explores a mysterious tower to uncover magical secrets and find his missing brother. | Magical academy, dungeon crawling, detailed magic system, coming of age, quest, puzzle-solving, LGBT characters, monster battles, intricate world-building, hidden powers, teamwork, political intrigue. |
| The Black Prism by Brent Weeks | An epic fantasy tale of political intrigue and magical battles, centered around a powerful ‘Prism’ who can control light and colors, and a young man discovering his own extraordinary abilities. | Color-based magic system, complex political landscapes, secret identities, moral ambiguity, war and conflict, intricate world-building, family drama, hidden powers, antihero, rebellion, mentor-student dynamics, plot twists. |
| The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter | A gripping fantasy set in a world inspired by African mythology, where a young warrior seeks vengeance amidst a brutal caste system and an endless war. | Revenge plot, military fantasy, dragon summoning, caste system, underdog story, intense combat scenes, personal growth, magical abilities, ancestral spirits, betrayal, societal revolution, complex protagonist. |
| All Systems Red by Martha Wells | A sci-fi narrative follows a self-aware security android, nicknamed Murderbot, as it seeks autonomy while protecting a group of human researchers on a distant planet. | Artificial intelligence, space exploration, corporate intrigue, identity crisis, rogue AI, dry humor, action-packed, self-discovery, antihero, human-android interaction, suspenseful adventure, autonomy vs. programming. |
| Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton | A thrilling adventure where a theme park filled with genetically engineered dinosaurs becomes a nightmare for its visitors after a security breakdown. | Genetic engineering, man vs. nature, survival thriller, science gone wrong, ethical dilemmas, corporate greed, adventure, dinosaur chaos, island isolation, technological hubris, suspense, disaster scenario. |
| An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green | A contemporary sci-fi novel about a young woman who becomes an overnight celebrity after discovering and filming a mysterious alien robot in New York City. | Social media fame, alien mystery, modern adventure, identity exploration, first contact, internet culture, fame and its consequences, young adult protagonist, global crisis, collaboration and conflict, human-alien interaction, societal commentary. |
| Axiom’s End by Lindsay Ellis | A science fiction tale set in the early 2000s, where a young woman uncovers earth-shattering secrets about government cover-ups and alien contact. | Government conspiracy, alien contact, whistleblower, secret history, moral ambiguity, first contact, family dynamics, cover-up investigations, alien-human interaction, 2000s setting, cultural commentary, personal growth amidst chaos. |
1. Sufficiently Advanced Magic (Arcane Ascension)
The main characters are fairly young. In many ways, it is a coming of age, not your typical coming of age, but the bracket of self-discovery. Our main character, Corin Cadence, and his brother entered a tower five years ago. When this tower is a place of ever-changing rooms, each room has different obstacles and monsters to face. If you get to the top of the tower, you get a specific blessing from the goddess. Corin Cadence’s brother entered five years ago and never came out.
So Corin is going in, and he’s on a mission to reach the goddess to learn how to save his brother if he is still alive. In Cradle, we see Lindon as a struggler like Corin. This author’s writing style is accessible and easy to fly through the book.
Also, it is one of the fastest fantasy books I have ever read. Usually, I read fantasy books fairly slowly because I’m wrapping my head around a new world and magic system. There’s a lot to wrap your head around, and this is probably the fastest. Even though the magic is fairly complex, much is happening in this book. The plot is very straightforward, well-written, and easy to dive into.
Author: Andrew Rowe
Average Rating: 4.4/5
Category: Epic Fantasy
Number Of Pages: 621
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Kindle
2. The Black Prism (Lightbringer)
We follow several main characters, but one of those main characters is a teenage boy (Kip). So it’s an adult book, but one of the perspectives is a kid. Kip is insecure, and he has a coming-of-age arc. He is in a school setting for certain parts of the books. The series as a whole has some pretty mixed reviews. Many people don’t like certain things that the book does, which is sexism.
There’s a lot of discussion on if it’s misogynistic, if it’s sexist, and if it’s not. I don’t want to go into that here, but many people say it is, and they don’t like it for that purpose. Many readers don’t think it’s a valid criticism. Like the Cradle series, the book has one of the coolest magic systems I’ve ever read. It is the type of story in which there will be a lot of questions and a lot of open threads, and you’re not going to get answers anytime soon. So if that’s cool with you, go for it.
Author: Brent Weeks
Average Rating: 4.6/5
Category: Historical Fantasy
Number Of Pages: 629
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle
3. The Rage of Dragons (The Burning)
This occurs in a world where one in every thousand women can call down dragons. They can transform into this fighting, killing machine. They live in a kingdom, in an area where they are constantly at war and they’re constantly being attacked. So these battle things are pretty necessary. We follow Tau, who is lesser. Due to circumstances, he is in a different position in his life. He’s out for revenge. That’s what’s going on with him.
We get some wonderful dynamics between the Sword brothers. There are a lot of training battle scenes, and Tau is an incredibly driven, focused person who does whatever it takes to get to his end goal, which is revenge. Evan Winter’s writing style is very accessible.
So, the plot is familiar enough with revenge plot battle sequences similar to Cradle. It’s familiar enough that it will not be difficult for people. There are such great relationships that will make it easy to latch onto. But it also does a lot of stuff that’s familiar enough that it’ll be easy to fall into a rhythm.
Author: Evan Winter
Average Rating: 4.6/5
Category: Dragon & Mythical Creatures Fantasy
Number Of Pages: 544
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Audio CD
4. All Systems Red (The Murderbot Diaries)
This is the first novella in a bundle of novellas that lead up to a novel called The Murderbot Diaries. It follows a robot who is a Murderbot. Also, it doesn’t care about its job. All day, it wants to sit around and watch operas. The murder part is sarcastic, dry, witty, ambivalent, layered, and emotional. This robot is incredibly relatable, funny, and easy to love. Also, it’s super short, so you’re fine.
This novella series focuses on who the murdered robot is and getting attached to it. Then, the following novellas will focus more on world-building side characters with a murder plot as the primary focus. But then we start focusing on other things. So, you fall in love with the main lead before you are assaulted with many scientific terminologies. You can see many themes similar to Cradle and compare Lindon with Muderbot.
Author: Martha Wells
Average Rating: 4.5/5
Category: Hard Science Fiction
Number Of Pages: 144
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Audio CD
5. Jurassic Park
Jurassic Park is the book that the first movie was based on. The movie resembles the book so you won’t be in for a new story. But I think the book was better because it starts very slowly. You need to start much of the scientific stuff without being an info dump or overly complex.
This book is engaging because the author takes his time when things escalate. Moreover, this is an immersive book and a great starting point for sci-fi, whose struggling vibe is similar to Cradle.
Author: Michael Crichton
Average Rating: 4.8/5
Category: Action Thriller & Suspense Fiction
Number Of Pages: 466
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Mass Market Paperback
6. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing (The Carls)
This first-contact story follows a girl (Andy) in the right place at the right time. Here, a giant statue like a robot has been placed near her, and she takes a video in front of it, and it goes viral. It turns out that this thing is extraterrestrial, and there are these things worldwide. Like Cradle’s Lindon, Andy is important in discovering what’s happening.
Author Hank did an amazing job of making his lead character feel real and very human. Andy has very distinct flaws, and those flaws are so honest. Her instant fame was reflective of his instant fame. Also, her flaws reflect many of his flaws when he first went through his instant fame, which shows that she feels genuine. While reading it, you forget you’re reading because you feel like you’re there.
Author: Hank Green
Average Rating: 4.6/5
Category: Coming of Age Fantasy
Number Of Pages: 343
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle | Audio CD
7. Axiom’s End (Noumena)
We’re following a character named Cora, who’s trying to live her life. She’s trying to stay out of the spotlight and wants people to leave her alone. An alien has decided to make her a communication device. The story’s first half is standard first contact, government conspiracy type, and then the second half veers off and does its own thing.
Lindsay’s work in the alien hierarchy and social systems describes how far society will go, all interesting and philosophical. Cora is a more passive character and less active as far as I like. The plot jerks her around. She doesn’t want to do anything that’s happening. So she goes with it and doesn’t forge her path, and you can relate her to Cradle’s Lindon. Overall, this book is getting pretty mixed reviews so far, so go with it however you want.
Author: Lindsay Ellis
Average Rating: 4.4/5
Category: Alternate History Science Fiction
Number Of Pages: 384
Available: Audiobook | Paperback | Hardcover | Kindle
Each book offers its unique blend of magic, growth, and adventure, reminiscent of the elements that make ‘Cradle’ a standout series. These books not only promise to fill the void left after finishing the latest ‘Cradle’ installment but also offer new worlds to explore, new characters to befriend, and new journeys to undertake.
May the books listed in this post enrich your reading experience, opening doors to worlds where wonder never ceases, and the thrill of discovery is a constant companion. As you turn each page, let the magic of these stories ignite your imagination and transport you to places where anything is possible. Happy reading, fellow adventurers – may your journey through these worlds be as enchanting and exhilarating as the universe of ‘Cradle.’
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