Try "A College of Magics" and "A Scholar of Magics" by Caroline Stevermer? The setting is historical and it's not as "fun" as Harry Potter, but it has some similar elements (a boarding school for magic at which the protagonist must survive, then use her magic talents against real evil later).
Caroline Stevermer and Patricia Wrede have co-written some others in similar sorts of worlds, and have individual YA novels as well that might be of interest.
Have you tried Rick Riorden novels?
Maybe "Beauty" by Robin McKinley? Scholastic lists the "interest level" as grade 5, but I feel like the complexity of the text is higher than that. A retelling of Beauty and the Beast.
Last edited by Aufilia; 05/16/14 10:36 AM.
