New Series Suggestions

[Smittyphi]

Try out Jim Butchers Codex Alera and Dresden Files

[Six4]

the dark tower series by stephen king

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dark_Tower_(series)

[Stitched up by a postie]

Forgot A Wizard of Earthsea, definitely with a look for the first two books in the series. Patrick Tilley's Amtrak Wars is more science-fiction, but has magic as well.

[Whizbang]

+1 for

Wheel of Time Robert Jordan

Belgariad/Mallorean series David Eddings

Sword of truth series Terry Goodkind

Game of thrones George Martin

Magic of recluse series L.E. Modesitt jr

Hobbit/lord of rings Tolkein

Enders Game by Orson Scott card

 

 

I am a huge fan of The Death Gate Cycle by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Much better, IMO, than the Dragonlance series (though those are worth a read too).

 

Others to consider:

Sunrunner series by Melanie Rawn

Necromancer series by Gail Z Martin

The Black Magician series by Trudi Canavan

Tiger and Del series by Jennifer Robinson

Shanara series by Terry Brooks

 

Some independant authors found cheap on Kindle that I enjoy:

Dragon Prince Trilogy by Aaron Pogue

The Oldest Living Vampire series by Rod Redux

The Spellmonger Series by Terry Mancour

Demonsouled by Jonathan Moeller

The Awakened series by Jason Tesar

[Hallow]

The Malazan books are probably my favourite Fantasy books (shocker, right?)

[Suttree]

The Malazan books are probably my favourite Fantasy books (shocker, right?)

 

What did you think of that latest Erikson release Hallow?

[Hallow]

The Malazan books are probably my favourite Fantasy books (shocker, right?)

 

What did you think of that latest Erikson release Hallow?

 

Actually haven't read it yet, I was knee deep in the Thorns series and the Black Company Series when it released, so I want to be all done with those before I start. it's sitting on my shelf though :D

[LavenderDog]

I woul recommend some of Garth Nix's stuff :)

Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen

Terry Pratchett's Discworld series ( - all 39!)

Inheritance Cycle

And, just, you know, to have it there, because no-one seems to have mentioned it, Harry Potter :D

Only because it wasn't already there.

[Tensai0211]

I really enjoyed Eriksons Deadhouse Gates, Memories of Ice and House of Chains but found my interest waning after that because his characters started becoming too difficult to tell apart, all these Malazan soldiers with basically the same voice. I finished the series but didn't find the ending to be very satisfactory - he does have some very interesting characters though, just a great number of boring ones too especially later in the series.

 

Something you might enjoy is The Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud, its a Young adult series so when my wife bought it for me i was like "how old do you think i am??" but i have to admit its a very good read, i enjoyed it quite a bit.

 

Also my guilty pleasure - anything by David Gemmell - Waylander, Druss, Skilgannon, Jon Shannow, pretty much everything he wrote i found to be enjoyable light reading.

[Rand the Plumber]

Hello!

 

It has just occurred to me that by mid-January I will have finished The Wheel of Time.  I'm almost through my pre-aMoL re-read, so I'm not going to re-read it again for a year or two at least.  I have loved the series for some of the reasons that many people dislike it: I love the endless politicking and attention to trivial detail.

 

I love GRRM similarly for its politicking and gritty realism within a fantasy setting, although I'm oddly less impressed with his magic systems.

Katharine Kerr is a favourite author and I think that the Deverry saga is a masterpiece in almost every way.

I love Tolkien's works for their depth, and also because they introduced me to the fantastic genre

Katherine Kurtz I blow hot and cold on.  Loved the Deryni series, less keen on the others.

Trudi Canavan, I can't put down (well, I had to after the court order), although her dialogue grates a little.

 

Curiously, R Scott Bakker is one of the very few authors of any genre that I have abandoned. Odd, really, given my predilection for politicking, but I find him unbearably pompous and I couldn't bring myself to care about any of his characters.  I know lots of people who have enjoyed his work but it just doesn't do it for me.

 

So, if you were me, what would you be looking for next? Who is the fantasy author you absolutely insist that I read?

 

 

[DanielTobiasBarkowitz]

I particularly enjoyed the Stephen King The Dark Tower series; now I am an SK fan, so I was inclined already toward the series, but it is very different than much of his other work, and I loved it for the scope and vision.

 

Two series that are in the early cycles, but definitely worthwhile:

 

1.  Lev Grossman's Magicians series - the first two books are The Magicians and The Magician King -- sort of a "Harry Potter in college" meets "Chronicles of Narnia all-grown up" with drinking, sex and rock n roll all thrown in.  Great read!

 

2.  I recently enjoyed the first two books in Deborah Harkness' series (it begins with "A Discovery of Witches").  I thought it was a great near-world fantasy and tackles time travel, vampirism, magic, and demonic presence in a (dare I say) fairly realistic manner.

 

I'll offer more as i think of others...

[Luke/Isam]

I also recommend the Dark Tower series. All the books in the Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) series were good, and since you said you enjoy books with politics in them, the fourth and fifth books in the series would probably be your favorites. The series Tom Clancy wrote that started with Patriot Games also has some politics (which is why I couldn't stand Executive Orders).

[Rand the Plumber]

Thanks for the suggestions, chaps.

 

I've read bits of A Discovery of Witches and have been toying with the idea of buying it.  I didn't realise that it had a sequel.  I don't generally like "real world" fantasy, and there's only a certain amount of vampire I can stomach before I go off my black pudding.  But on your recommendation, I think I'll add it to my shopping list.

 

Also like the synopses of the Lev Grossman books. Also added to the list.  Thanks!

 

I've got quite a few Tom Clancy novels, and I think I've read most of them.  Good, meaty reads, but at the same time you can pick them up, read a couple of pages, and put them down again without losing the plot.  This is important in my profession, as I frequently don't get as much time as I'd like for quality reading.

 

I love A Song of Ice and Fire, and am impatiently waiting for the next book.

[Werthead]

At this stage, it looks like Steven Erikson should be a must. The first book in his Malazan series is Gardens of the Moon. Given he has ten books in that series, a prequel trilogy that he's now in the middle of writing (the first book is out already) and his colleague and co-creator Ian Esslemont has just published his fifth novel in the same world, there's quite a lot of material to get through as well :)

 

For something more straightforward, I heavily recommend Guy Gavriel Kay's stand-alone fantasies, most notably Tigana, A Song for Arbonne, The Lions of Al-Rassan and Under Heaven. He has that 'real history mixed with fantasy' thing that GRRM does so well, but is much more concise.

 

For something inbetween, try Joe Abercrombie. He has a trilogy (The First Law Trilogy - The Blade Itself, Before They Are Hanged and Last Argument of Kings) and three stand-alones in the same world (Best Served Cold, The Heroes and Red Country). He's been inspired by a mixture of GRRM, Westerns, Mafia movies and war stories and has really great characters. It's also a bit grim and depressing (though he has a very dark sense of humour as well), but not as much as GRRM so you should be okay.

 

Alternately there's Chris Woodings' excellent Ketty Jay series, which is set in a fantasy world but with airships and some steampunk/magic elements. There's four books in the series, starting with Retribution Falls (the last one, The Ace of Skulls, is out next year). Enormous swashbuckling fun, particularly if you're a fan of Firefly.

[Ozzie_aiel]

You could try the Obernewtyn series by Isabelle Carmody. Shes an Australian author, and I don't know if they available from amazon. Its a fantasy style series set in a Post-apocalyptic version of our future. Can be rough going sometimes but still enjoyable.

 

Of Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett, they're all funny as hell and often make fun of our modern life

[Hallow]

I second the Malazan books.

 

Also give the Farseer/Liveship/Tawny Man trilogies by Robin Hobb a look.

[Rand the Plumber]

More good suggestions.  Thanks folks :)  Am going to start aMoL on Friday evening, so I'll be off to Amazon sometime next week I would hope.

[Whizbang]

Try the Riftwar Saga, by Raymond E. Fiest (first book is "Magician: Apprentice".

 

Also, try the "Death Gate Cycle" series by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Truly, an underrated series. Most people focus on their Dragonlance stuff, and this gets forgotten.

 

You may also like the "Chronicles of the Necromancer" by Gail Z Martin.

[Rand the Plumber]

Try the Riftwar Saga, by Raymond E. Fiest (first book is "Magician: Apprentice".

 

Also, try the "Death Gate Cycle" series by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Truly, an underrated series. Most people focus on their Dragonlance stuff, and this gets forgotten.

 

You may also like the "Chronicles of the Necromancer" by Gail Z Martin.

 

Read all the Riftwar Saga, several times.  Same with Weis and Hickman (Dragonlance and Deathgate).

 

Not read anything by Gail Z Martin, though.  She has been recommended by others, so I'll bump her up the list.

 

Hmm... may need to launch a hostile takeover of some of OH's bookshelves. :)

[Rob B]

For something inbetween, try Joe Abercrombie. He has a trilogy (The First Law Trilogy - The Blade Itself, Before They Are Hanged and Last Argument of Kings) and three stand-alones in the same world (Best Served Cold, The Heroes and Red Country). He's been inspired by a mixture of GRRM, Westerns, Mafia movies and war stories and has really great characters. It's also a bit grim and depressing (though he has a very dark sense of humour as well), but not as much as GRRM so you should be okay.

This, to the 10th degree.

[DanielTobiasBarkowitz]

Have you read the Jim Butcher series(es)?  I like the Harry Dresden books just fine, but I frankly think the Codex Alera series is much better...  His concept of Furies and magic is fascinating and would make a good read to follow tWoT...

 

Wiki is at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex_Alera

 

I love this quote from the Wikipedia site - "The inspiration for the series came from a bet Jim was challenged to by a member of the Delray Online Writer’s Workshop. The challenger bet that Jim could not write a good story based on a lame idea, and Jim countered that he could do it using two lame ideas of the challenger’s choosing. The “lame” ideas given were “Lost Roman Legion", and “Pokémon"."  -- I never knew that while reading but it explains much!!

 

More to follow I am sure...

[Ozzie_aiel]

If you don't mind some scifi try out the Vorkosigan books by Lois Bujold McMasters

[Smittyphi]

Have you read the Jim Butcher series(es)?  I like the Harry Dresden books just fine, but I frankly think the Codex Alera series is much better...  His concept of Furies and magic is fascinating and would make a good read to follow tWoT...

 

Wiki is at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex_Alera

 

I love this quote from the Wikipedia site - "The inspiration for the series came from a bet Jim was challenged to by a member of the Delray Online Writer’s Workshop. The challenger bet that Jim could not write a good story based on a lame idea, and Jim countered that he could do it using two lame ideas of the challenger’s choosing. The “lame” ideas given were “Lost Roman Legion", and “Pokémon"."  -- I never knew that while reading but it explains much!!

 

More to follow I am sure...

 

I endorse this.  

[Rand the Plumber]

Lots more interesting thoughts here.  Thanks!

 

I like some sci-fi, but I've not yet determined what is the common thread that runs through Dune, Asimov's Foundation novels and Blake's 7.

[Jhirrad]

While I agree with everyone recommending Malazan for it's sheer awesomeness and how full of win it is, be warned. The books are a little slow. If you didn't like Bakker (who I personally love) then you might not enjoy Malazan. I'm not knocking it, because I love those books as well, just a warning.

 

If you haven't read Pat Rothfuss, you need to do so. The Name of the Wind and Wise Man's Fear are the two he has out so far, with the third expected soon-ish (I don't think we'll have a Martin-esque wait for it).

 

Also, if you haven't read any of Brandon Sanderson's other books, I highly recommend them as well. The Mistborn Trilogy was excellent, I like Elantris and Mistborn a lot as stand-alone novels, and The Way of Kings, the first book in his Stormlight Archive, is awesome.

 

Jim Butcher is a must read in my opinion. I love both the Dresden books as well as his Codex Alera series.

 

If you're looking more on the sci-fi side of the fence, Scalzi's Old Man's War books are great reads. Anything by Heinlein should be required reading IMNSHO, though I accept there is a lot of criticism leveled at him, some of which is probably deserved.