Recommended Reading
- Thread starter Archon
- Start date
It's really astonishing how trendy the fantasy genre can be. If you go to a local used book store and go to the fantasy section you'll see almost an entirely different selection than you would in Borders/Barnes. I thought I'd look at this list and agree with at least half of your picks but tbh I only recognized two or three (shame, I know) despite the fact that I have like 3 book cases crowded with these pulpy monsters.
A few good suggestions that I may eventually get around to. I have not made time to ready any of the Earthsea set but the few films and at least one anime that I know of, based on the world have gotten me really fired up. (But then I get lost in the works of Glen Cook.)
I will say that when I have a dire need for high fantasy Terry Goodkind and the Sword of Truth series can't go wrong. (Poor taste on my part but I even think the TV series Legend of The Seeker isn't bad.)
@Archon I think at one point you mentioned you were reading the Black Company set. How did you cope with the set pieces offered up in those books? Did any find their way into your DMing?
I will say that when I have a dire need for high fantasy Terry Goodkind and the Sword of Truth series can't go wrong. (Poor taste on my part but I even think the TV series Legend of The Seeker isn't bad.)
@Archon I think at one point you mentioned you were reading the Black Company set. How did you cope with the set pieces offered up in those books? Did any find their way into your DMing?
Quite by chance I read Three Hearts and Three Lions whilst I was having a bit of a Danish phase. The novel lead to me thumbing through old books on the Hundred Years War, the Black Prince, which lead to Arthur Conan Doyle's The White Company (a glorious historical-fiction piece; real "boy's own" stuff) which lead to me fishing out Medieval Total War which took me back to thumbing through books on the Crusades and the Siege of Malta.
Yep, before 'gamification' there were fantasy novels; leading us to all sorts of places.
Yep, before 'gamification' there were fantasy novels; leading us to all sorts of places.
Listen: I LOVEs me some Eragon. I have really enjoyed that series so far!tg851 said:
But! (Keep in mind that I have not read half of what´s on this list...)
I feel that Robert Jordans "Wheel of Time" should be mentioned before Eragon...
I'm there with you for Anderson, LeGuin, Moorcock, Tolkein and Vance. The others are OK, just not formative for me. I do seem to be missing Roger Zelazny though. Dilvish the Damned, Lord Of Light, the Amber books... can't leave Zelazny out 
*edit* Oh, and if we want to add more recent authors, don't leave out David Eddings and Glen Cook.
*edit* Oh, and if we want to add more recent authors, don't leave out David Eddings and Glen Cook.
Hello! thanks for the feedback..
I enjoyed Amber, but the books were not hugely influential on my gaming, so I didn't include them.r_Chance said:I'm there with you for Anderson, LeGuin, Moorcock, Tolkein and Vance. The others are OK, just not formative for me. I do seem to be missing Roger Zelazny though. Dilvish the Damned, Lord Of Light, the Amber books... can't leave Zelazny out
I've got Glen Cook on the list. I didn't include David Eddings, or Robert Jordan, or R.A. Salvatore, for the same reason I didn't include Zelazny; they weren't inspirational to me. (At one time I'd have included Jordan on the list but he lost my fandom around book 5.)
Sorry you didn't dig it!Zom-B said:
For me, Zelazny's best fantasy is Dilvish the Damned. Excellent DM material, especially the short stories (although the Changing Land novel was excellent as well). If you haven't read them, there is a lot of inspiration to be had. The Amber books were fun, but Dilvish is superb. I missed Cook? Sorry. The Black Company books were sxcellent but the Garrett novels are a great read for urban fantasy noire. As for Eddings the Diamond Throne trilogy. Sparhawk. Excellent characterization. Jordan was fairly good (although I agree it was stretched out too far), I never really got into Salvatore. He was OK, but not a great read or inspiration for me.Archon said:
*edit* Good list btw. Be interesting to see a science fiction list...
Really like this list, I've been looking for some good Fantasy novels and this is just what I needed.
Moorcock's multiverse and cross-referencing already comes into play in the second book, "Sailor on the Seas of Fate," where it is heavily featured in the first half of the book.Jenx said:
"Elric of Melnibone," the first book, is good as a standalone and a starting place.
As for series I'd mention Glen Cook's "The Black Company," a grim and gritty book with a similar point of view as the adventuring party.
While Christopher Stasheff's series "The Rogue Wizard" is not exactly exemplary fantasy material, with science fictional undertones, is a worthwhile read for those who are interested in worldbuilding, DM's mainly.
I think that there are 2 significant things missing from the list. The first is Beowulf, the granddaddy of them all, not only the earliest piece of Anglo Saxon literature but the first appearance of trolls and dragons as part of the written word in proto-english. In short no Beowulf, no Tolkien.
The second is Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory, the canon work for Arthurian legend. Ok its a collation of existing stories but its the bench mark for the high romance style that heavily influenced everyone since. His Arthur could easily fit into Moorcock's multiverse.
However, I recognize that its the the works that influenced you, rather than me but if you haven't read them take a look.
On the Adventurer Conquerer King front,I hope all goes well. Could report back to us all the how things went at Gen Con. I would be interested to see how your ideas evolve after letting the general pubic at them. Also, as wild stab in the dark is the title influenced by Argrath's saga form runequest?
The second is Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory, the canon work for Arthurian legend. Ok its a collation of existing stories but its the bench mark for the high romance style that heavily influenced everyone since. His Arthur could easily fit into Moorcock's multiverse.
However, I recognize that its the the works that influenced you, rather than me but if you haven't read them take a look.
On the Adventurer Conquerer King front,I hope all goes well. Could report back to us all the how things went at Gen Con. I would be interested to see how your ideas evolve after letting the general pubic at them. Also, as wild stab in the dark is the title influenced by Argrath's saga form runequest?
Albino, I totally agree with you! And those works did influence me. However, I didn't include any legendary, mythic, or historic sources in my list. If I did, these would be others I'd add:albino boo said:
Robin Lane Fox - Alexander the Great
Seamus Heaney - Beowulf: A New Translation
Homer - The Iliad
Polybius - Rise of the Roman Empire
Mary Renault - Fire from Heaven, Funeral Games, et. al
No, I'm not familiar with Argrath's saga form runequest, I'm afraid. The title was influenced by Conan - "Conan the Adventurer," "Conan the Conqueror" and "King Conan".
Great list. Can't wait to see the science fiction selections.
Personally, I'll throw my recommendation in for Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun series. He definitely took Vance as a starting point, but tossed out the pulp magazine sensibility for something far weirder. Weird extends not only to the flora and fauna, but to the basic mindset of the characters who convincingly embody the mores of a society alien to our present and Western European past. Wolfe also does some interesting things with narrative.
I think for the purpose of an RPG Vance is enough, and I was glad to see him on this list. Still, I felt like mentioning that Wolfe forced me to reconsider the literary value of speculative fiction, and I'm glad I did.
Personally, I'll throw my recommendation in for Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun series. He definitely took Vance as a starting point, but tossed out the pulp magazine sensibility for something far weirder. Weird extends not only to the flora and fauna, but to the basic mindset of the characters who convincingly embody the mores of a society alien to our present and Western European past. Wolfe also does some interesting things with narrative.
I think for the purpose of an RPG Vance is enough, and I was glad to see him on this list. Still, I felt like mentioning that Wolfe forced me to reconsider the literary value of speculative fiction, and I'm glad I did.
