Here in Gloucestershire, England we are in full Lockdown again. I’m lucky enough to have a large garden which kept me sane and occupied during the long stretches of 2020 when I couldn’t go anywhere. A winter Lockdown is harder but luckily imaginary worlds are not subject to Covid Rules. Nothing has made me happier than allowing myself to reread Tolkien’s `The Hobbit’ and `The Lord of the Rings’. If you want to escape from current restrictions by immersing yourself in an invented world, here are few suggestions:

Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric novellas about a young man who accidentally becomes a sorcerer when he is possessed by a demon and the personalities of all her previous female hosts.

Megan Whalen Turner’s six volume `Queen’s Thief’ series with its Ancient Greece-inspired setting.

Kate Elliott’s epic multi-character seven volume `Crown of Stars’ sequence.

Robin Hobb’s dragon-dominated `Liveship Traders’ trilogy and `The Rain Wild Chronicles’.

Garth Nix’s  zombie-haunted Old Kingdom novels and short stories.