Fantasy Novels

Yuno Gasai

Queen of Yandere
Nov 6, 2010
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Yopaz said:
You're lucky you never get to experience what us older fans had to... 2007 getting the news that Robert Jordan died as he was writing the final book was pretty devastating. The series is complete now and I really encourage you to go on, the series is quite brilliant, but it has its slow moments.
I've actually heard about that, and also about the cynicism of the fans when they realized that the last book would be written anyway. Apparently Robert Jordan left very extensive notes on what he had planned to do with the final book, but some fans were still dubious about anyone else taking over from his writing.

The series does seem to be pretty slow, but I'm actually okay with the pace, because I find the world itself (and some of its lore) really intriguing/fascinating. Wanting to know more about that means I'm willing to be patient in terms of what's actually happening in the story.

[small]Plus the women seem to be pretty badass so far, and that makes a welcome change from the 'damsel in distress' model the fantasy genre used to love so much.[/small]
 

gewata

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Mar 21, 2009
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I'm not sure if it counts as sci-fi per se, But I really enjoy an old series called "Amtrak Wars" (or "The Talisman Prophecy"). Its a six book series about a war set 1000 years after the nuclear holocaust, with 3 factions: The Amtrak Federation, who have modern levels of technology but basically no freedom (think 1984 reduced vocabulary); the Sons of Ne-issan, the oriental faction with steam engines and a crippling fear of electricity, and the Plainfolk mutes, who are primitive savages with no technology to speak of, but they have magic instead, and who worship the goddess Mo-Town, and belong to the bloodlines like She-kargo, D'Troit, C'natti etc and have names like Cadillac, Motor-Head and Boston-Bruin. The plot is... difficult to explain, in all honestly, because theres so much backstabbing and treachery it gets really convoluted, really quickly. I think by the 5th book one of the main characters ends up stabbing himself in the back.

Also "the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever" are good, if only because the titular main character isn't a general do-gooder and hero to the masses, but a conflicted guilt-ridden arshehole, and is surprisingly easy to relate to. And for a lot of the books its unclear whether or not the story is real or just a metaphor for his inner struggle with his own sense of self-destruction.
 

ellers07

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Feb 24, 2013
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Yopaz said:
Ahri said:
OT: The first Mistborn trilogy is quite good and it's also completed, there's also a branch to connect the first trilogy to the second called Alloy of Law which is not getting any sequels.
Absolutely give the Mistborn Trilogy a read at some point. I had gotten tired of the fantasy stuff for a while, but this series brought me back. I couldn't put them down. The Alloy of Law is good too, though it is a little more light hearted and a shorter read, but still fun.
 

Aeriath

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Sep 10, 2009
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I'd like to throw in another recommendation of Terry Pratchett's Discworld books. The first few are a little rough but once he hits his stride they are awesome. It's not a finished series but the Discworld is pretty open ended and deals with multiple characters and story arcs. Just pick one that sounds interesting and see how it goes.

A few people have recommended The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, but no one has yet recommended his actual fantasy series, Codex Alera, so let me do that. Six books in total and it's complete. It was written because someone in a discussion with Jim said that he there were some ideas that just can't make a decent story. The person then bet Jim that he couldn't make one of these ideas into a decent story. He went and took two of them (the lost Roman Legion and Pokemon) and created the Codex Alera series. Don't let the mention of Pokemon put you off, most of what he took from it were the Shinto myths that inspired Pokemon to begin with.
 

Yopaz

Sarcastic overlord
Jun 3, 2009
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Ahri said:
Yopaz said:
You're lucky you never get to experience what us older fans had to... 2007 getting the news that Robert Jordan died as he was writing the final book was pretty devastating. The series is complete now and I really encourage you to go on, the series is quite brilliant, but it has its slow moments.
I've actually heard about that, and also about the cynicism of the fans when they realized that the last book would be written anyway. Apparently Robert Jordan left very extensive notes on what he had planned to do with the final book, but some fans were still dubious about anyone else taking over from his writing.

The series does seem to be pretty slow, but I'm actually okay with the pace, because I find the world itself (and some of its lore) really intriguing/fascinating. Wanting to know more about that means I'm willing to be patient in terms of what's actually happening in the story.

[small]Plus the women seem to be pretty badass so far, and that makes a welcome change from the 'damsel in distress' model the fantasy genre used to love so much.[/small]
I wont go into the details about how the books go in terms of pacing or the overall quality and let you decide that for yourself. I have rewritten this post several times in order to keep from giving away my opinions so I'll just wish you good luck with the series.

As for the fans of the series, don't bother. Robert Jordan knew he was dying and prepared well for the event. The final part of the series is entirely him and I'm going to be honest that I cried when I was finished with it. Not so much for the events of the book, but because it was the last thing Robert Jordan got to write.
Edit: I would have preferred to see it finished by Robert Jordan though, it was his life work and it's sad he didn't get to see it complete.

ellers07 said:
Yopaz said:
Ahri said:
OT: The first Mistborn trilogy is quite good and it's also completed, there's also a branch to connect the first trilogy to the second called Alloy of Law which is not getting any sequels.
Absolutely give the Mistborn Trilogy a read at some point. I had gotten tired of the fantasy stuff for a while, but this series brought me back. I couldn't put them down. The Alloy of Law is good too, though it is a little more light hearted and a shorter read, but still fun.
Yeah, The Mistborn trilogy offers a new experience to fantasy. I also love how the three trilogies are going to show three different eras in time giving us a sense that the world isn't static. Past, present and future in three trilogies. I can't wait.
 

SonOfVoorhees

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Aug 3, 2011
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I would say try some Clive Barker novels. Weave World, The Great and Secret show (and sequel Everville) and my favourite book being Imajica. Its more darker, and no goblins and elves etc I think you may like them.
 

Hawkmoon269

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Apr 14, 2011
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The Prince of Thorns, by Mark Lawrence. A deliciously dark book about a traumatised prince using cunning and barbarity to work his way to the top of the feudal food chain. It's told in the first person, for added connection to the protagonist, and isn't a massive tome of a book, which I liked.

The Mistborn Series, by Brandon Sanderson. An original take on the fantasy trope of good guys vs dark lord. Mistborn's magic is original too, with "Mistborn" characters ingesting and then "burning" various types of metals to unlock different powers.

Plus, if you like the Mistborn series, Sanderson has a TON of books out, and writes really quickly, so you never have to wait for long.
 

amuasyeas

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Apr 9, 2013
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The Malazan books are probably one of the best High Fantasy novels, as it does not become seriously attached to extraneous details as the later Wheel of Time books fell into. Very, very complicated and detailed. One of my favorite books to read, along with Gravity's Rainbow.
 

Ferdy Hoefakker

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Mar 4, 2012
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I really need to recommend Winds of the Forelands by David B. Coe. It's my favorite series. Basically, it's about the Eandi (humans) and Qirsi (sorcerers). Nine hundred years ago, the Qirsi tried to invade the Forelands, but failed. Now, they live among the Eandi but are basically second rate citizens. Due to the racism and distrust of their kind, some Qirsi are trying to overthrow the Eandi courts and finish what their ancestors couldn't: conquer the Forelands.
 

DreadedTuesday

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Apr 15, 2009
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I highly recommend a book called 'The Witch Watch' by one of the escapist contributors, Shamus Young.

http://www.shamusyoung.com/twentysidedtale/?page_id=16523
 

Anachronism

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Apr 9, 2009
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You definitely need to read some of Guy Gavriel Kay's work. He helped Christopher Tolkien edit The Silmarillion way back when, so he definitely knows what he's doing when it comes to fantasy. He has a new one out soon called River of Stars, a sort-of sequel to Under Heaven, and Under Heaven would probably be on my shortlist of favourite fantasy novels. His books are basically historical novels with a fantastical bent: for example, Under Heaven's world is heavily based on Tang Dynasty China, but with supernatural stuff around the edges. It does a great job of making the world feel grounded and real, and making the fantasy stuff actually feel fantastical because it's so strange to the characters.

David Gemmell's books are worth a look too. Much more straightforward heroic fantasy than Kay's, but they're still very entertaining reads. His first novel, Legend, is generally considered a classic of the genre, and it's definitely worth your time. It's relatively short as well, which can be a plus considering how monstrous most fantasy novels can be.
 

wolf thing

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Nov 18, 2009
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Durgiun said:
The Painted Man, also The Witcher: The Last Wish.
i second the last wish, i would also recommended blood of elves, the sequel which not only has more from geralt and yennefer but also some of the best writter dialog i have read in a book.
 

That PC Guy

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Sep 28, 2011
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Oh my, fantasy books. There's tons of 'em out there and many of them are utter crap or at best mediocre:

I'll concur with these titles already recommended:
- Patrick Rothfuss' Kingkiller Chronicles(Name of the Wind, Wise Man's Fear, Book 3 in the making)
- Jim Butchers Codex Alera-Series and of course The Dresden Files(Urban Fantasy). The DF is one of those rare long series(14 books now, I believe), where it starts out good and only gets better with every following book
- Wheel of Time Series. If you can deal with a lot of unnecessary and meandering plotlines and sluggish pace covering, say, the middle 8 books, you might enjoy this series.
- Brandon Sanderson. I don't know how he does it (maybe it's the magic mormon underwear) but besides finishing up Robert Jordans Wheel of Time series, he managed to publish a metric fuckton of his own work in the last few years and at a rather high level of quality i might add.
- Joe Abercrombie. Simply brilliant if you like a bunch of broken anti-heroes and vicious bastards as your books main protagonists. That goes for his First Law Trilogy as well as the following books "Best served cold", "The Heroes", and "Red Country".
- Steven Eriksons Series "Malazan Book of the Fallen". Fantastic 10 book High Fantasy series that might come off as somewhat weird and confusing but will grow on you fast.
- Terry Pratchett if you like fantasy severly poking fun at it's genre. Not all of the nearly 40 books are smashing brilliant, as some people have told me but nearly all of those i've read heavily tickled my funny bone.

Others:
- Bernard Cornwell. Not exactly a fantasy writer, more historical fiction. Saxon Chronicles, Arthur & Grail Series, Agincourt or even the Sharpe Series. Highly recommended if you like the real world historical background.
- Gail Carriger. "The Parasol Protectorate" (5 books) and her new Young Adult Series "Etiquette and Espionage" (1 book so far). Steampunk fantasy in Victorian Britain. Rather hilarious(in the good sense) writing style.
- Daniel Abraham. "The Long Price Quartet" and the first two books of his new series "The Dagger and the Coin"
- Scott Lynch. The Gentlemen Bastard Sequence: "The Lies of Locke Lamora" and "Red Seas under Red Skies"

Recommended highly to me, but haven't had the time to read yet:
- Guy Gavriel Kay
- China Miéville
- Naomi Novik
- Cherie Priest

Not recommended(I mention this since it was recommended by someone in this thread):
- Terry Goodkinds Sword of Truth series. Starts off okayish but soon devolves into an ever repeating nonsensical bog of violence porn. Also, if you don't like having libertarian ideology/objectivist philosophy shoved down your throat for pages at a time preacher style, you might want to miss out.

This is all off the top of my hat. I'm sure i missed something.
 

RandV80

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Oct 1, 2009
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For epic length series that you can pick up now and read start to finish I'll second some recommendations for Eriksson's Malazan series, Robert Jordan/Brandon Sanderson's Wheel of Time, and someone mentioned Raymond E. Feists Riftwar series which is perhaps the best among the older stuff. The latter two both tend to drag in the middle, while Malazan comes with a big disclaimer. Picture joining in on a new pen & paper RPG, and the GM gives you a high level character and throws you right in mid-campaign without bothering to explain the rules/setting/story... and that's basically how Eriksson treats you with his series. But if you can look past knowing how all the little (and some big!) details work and just go with it, then you're in for a treat. This is probably the best series for avoiding that almost guaranteed mid-series drag. The theme always revolves around convergence, where he'll start the books with a hundred or so characters in different groups following different story lines, which will all tie together by the end in one big climax.

For newer authors, Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfus seem to be the best of the best. Sanderson of course was chosen to finish Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, has a couple stand a alone books, a medium-sized trilogy, and 1 book finished out of what he plans to be his mega epic series starting with The Way of Kings. He made the wise decision of starting small, making a standalone fantasy book then doing a great trilogy (which got him the recognition to carry on for Jordan), and then starting on the big epic series he had in his head for the past 10 years. Some people had criticisms of it, but personally for a first book The Way of Kings may have gotten me hooked more than GRRM's A Game of Thrones did.

And for something that's paced a little differently there's Rothfus. Only two books out at the moment in his King Killer Chronicle, but if you want a breather from all these big mega epics his series focus' on only a single character. It starts in an Inn in some backwater village where a chronicler tracks down the inn keeper as a legendary/infamous man and gets him to tell his story, separating the truth from the legends, starting from his humble beginning. And that's where the bulk of the story is, occasionally cutting back to present day at the inn where not everything is at seems. It's all extremely well done, and really earns it's praise. Only negative is Rothfus isn't capable of writing at the same pace that Sanderson does, so expect there to be a number of years between books.

That's all from what I've read. I probably have a few gaps in my list, some guys I still need to catch up on like Joe Abercrombie.
 

RJ Dalton

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Aug 13, 2009
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I'll vouch for The Dark Tower series. It's some of Stephen King's best work. Kinda runs out of steam towards the end of the last book in the series, but I'd still say it's worth a read overall.
Also approving the suggestion of Terry Pratchett. Can't go wrong with him.
 

2clueless

Clueless since 2003
Apr 11, 2012
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Anachronism said:
You definitely need to read some of Guy Gavriel Kay's work.
Seconded, though I wouldn't exactly classify it as high fantasy. There are certainly magical elements and supernatural happenings, but the focus is definitely on characters and story telling. His world building is awesome as well. Guy's varied stories also tend to be heavily influenced by a specific time period: Greek/Roman, Chinese, Norse, etc.

'The Sarantine Mosaic' is a favorite duology of mine, but they are all enjoyable reads.

Elizabeth Moon's, 'The Deeds of Paksenarrion' is another good one. A trilogy, the first novel is a little.. clipped, I would say. Short and concise, militaristic, but Moon grows Paksenarrion over the latter half of the frist book and over the next two very nicely. Moon's writing also starts to really flow as she gets more comfortable with her story. Excellent story all around. It isn;t evident for the first while, but there is much magic here, wizards, paladins, good and evil gods.

As a note, she has started writing again in the universe, after a.. what, 10 - 15 year hiatus? If you are wrorried about waiting for books, just read her original Pakse trilogy.

I've seen a couple people suggest Sword of Truth.. I find Terry Goodkind's writing and word building very erratic. On the whole the series is okay. I find each novel polarizing; I either loved it, or thought it a complete filler/trash. Favorites would be the First and Second novel, the Sixth, and the last two. Everything else just seemed too drawn out or disconnected.

Scott R Bakkar, 'The Prince of Nothing Trilogy'. Deep, dense, convoluted, thought provoking, love every single page from this writer. He is writing a second trilogy in the same universe, but I prefer the first by far.

Scott Lynch, 'The Lies of Lock Lamorra'. Danger here if you do not like unfinished series. He wrote two books in rather quick succession. But have been waiting for the third for YEARS. But, excellent stories, love it all. He isn't afraid to get bloody and kill characters, which is sad, but refreshing.

Quote and ask questions if you'd like anything more specific.
 

Swiergot007

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Feb 22, 2011
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Like the people before me i would highly recommend "The Malazan book of the fallen".
Some things not mentioned yet : "The Night Angel Trilogy" and "The Lightbringer Series" by Brent Weeks
"Demon Cycle Series" (First book is "The Painted Man") by Peter V. Brett
And if Steampunk is also your cup of tea then "Burton & Swinburne" by Mark Hodder is a good read.
 

Retsam19

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Dec 6, 2010
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Yopaz said:
Ahri said:
I'm reading through the first book in the Wheel of Time series right now.
OT: The first Mistborn trilogy is quite good and it's also completed, there's also a branch to connect the first trilogy to the second called Alloy of Law which is not getting any sequels.

I'd recommend waiting with The Stormlight Archives since there are 9 books yet to be released before that is done.
In the last two years, I've become a big fan of all things Brandon Sanderson; so I also recommend the Mistborn trilogy, but I'd also say read The Stormlight Archive. Yeah, only one book is out, but that book is possibly my single favorite book that I've read. There's nothing wrong with reading as series as it comes out; yeah you have to wait, but you also get to predict and speculate. (And waiting builds patience; which is a good practice in itself)
I realize the OP said they don't want to wait, but I do feel I should put an argument in against depriving yourself of an excellent series (or at least, an excellent book) for the next decade or so just because you don't want to wait. (And hey, there are other people reading this, too)


Also, Alloy of Law -is- getting a sequel, though all that is known is that the name of it is Shadows of Self, and it's not being written right now. 2014 seems to be the best guess of when it'll be out. (Oh, and it already has a rating of 4.12 on goodreads, if that makes any sense)

On another note, Wheel of Time is long, but it's fantastic. (And as of January, finished)
 

plugav

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Mar 2, 2011
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I definitely recommend The Witcher saga by Andrzej Sapkowski, which includes two short story collections and five novels (although Wikipedia tells me only two of the books have official English editions). Sapkowski set a new standard for fantasy here in Poland and I don't think the games do his work justice.

Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea cycle (five relatively short novels, one collection of short stories) is also worthwhile. I've only had a chance to read the first book and last one, but the latter (The Other Wind) is probably the best fantasy novel I've ever read.
 

BloatedGuppy

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Feb 3, 2010
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That PC Guy said:
Oh my, fantasy books. There's tons of 'em out there and many of them are utter crap or at best mediocre:

I'll concur with these titles already recommended:
- Patrick Rothfuss' Kingkiller Chronicles(Name of the Wind, Wise Man's Fear, Book 3 in the making)
- Jim Butchers Codex Alera-Series and of course The Dresden Files(Urban Fantasy). The DF is one of those rare long series(14 books now, I believe), where it starts out good and only gets better with every following book
- Wheel of Time Series. If you can deal with a lot of unnecessary and meandering plotlines and sluggish pace covering, say, the middle 8 books, you might enjoy this series.
- Brandon Sanderson. I don't know how he does it (maybe it's the magic mormon underwear) but besides finishing up Robert Jordans Wheel of Time series, he managed to publish a metric fuckton of his own work in the last few years and at a rather high level of quality i might add.
- Joe Abercrombie. Simply brilliant if you like a bunch of broken anti-heroes and vicious bastards as your books main protagonists. That goes for his First Law Trilogy as well as the following books "Best served cold", "The Heroes", and "Red Country".
- Steven Eriksons Series "Malazan Book of the Fallen". Fantastic 10 book High Fantasy series that might come off as somewhat weird and confusing but will grow on you fast.
- Terry Pratchett if you like fantasy severly poking fun at it's genre. Not all of the nearly 40 books are smashing brilliant, as some people have told me but nearly all of those i've read heavily tickled my funny bone.

Others:
- Bernard Cornwell. Not exactly a fantasy writer, more historical fiction. Saxon Chronicles, Arthur & Grail Series, Agincourt or even the Sharpe Series. Highly recommended if you like the real world historical background.
- Gail Carriger. "The Parasol Protectorate" (5 books) and her new Young Adult Series "Etiquette and Espionage" (1 book so far). Steampunk fantasy in Victorian Britain. Rather hilarious(in the good sense) writing style.
- Daniel Abraham. "The Long Price Quartet" and the first two books of his new series "The Dagger and the Coin"
- Scott Lynch. The Gentlemen Bastard Sequence: "The Lies of Locke Lamora" and "Red Seas under Red Skies"

Recommended highly to me, but haven't had the time to read yet:
- Guy Gavriel Kay
- China Miéville
- Naomi Novik
- Cherie Priest

Not recommended(I mention this since it was recommended by someone in this thread):
- Terry Goodkinds Sword of Truth series. Starts off okayish but soon devolves into an ever repeating nonsensical bog of violence porn. Also, if you don't like having libertarian ideology/objectivist philosophy shoved down your throat for pages at a time preacher style, you might want to miss out.

This is all off the top of my hat. I'm sure i missed something.
I'll endorse the vast majority of this excellent list, particularly Abercrombie, Rothfuss, Erikson and Lynch. I have to admit I really enjoyed Butcher's Dresden Files as well, even though they're profoundly silly/pulpy and about as far from great literature as you can get.

I'd add the caveat that I really didn't care for the Mistborn trilogy. Started strong, eventually turned to the incredibly tedious. The shallow characterizations and obsessively fussy magic system didn't help. Brace for long passages of "He pushed on a coin, and pulled on a nail, and then he pushed and he pulled, and then pushed, and then pulled, and then pushed again, and then pulled again. And then he pushed on the door frame, and he pulled on a torch bracket. And he pushed and he pulled and he pushed and he pulled and he pushed and he pulled and he pushed and he pulled."

Okay Sanderson, we get it.

RandV80 said:
That's all from what I've read. I probably have a few gaps in my list, some guys I still need to catch up on like Joe Abercrombie.
I think you'll really like him. His writing has improved by leaps and bounds over the course of his 6 books. I'd put him amongst the best of the dour/edgy "post-Martin" fantasy writer crowd. Rothfuss probably has the best prose, but Abercrombie has the best pacing and wit.