[Findarato]

What about H.P. Lovecraft (although it is neither fantasy nor SF in the traditional meaning)? I liked them years ago and started to read them again now.

I second Glen Cook, Friedman, George Martin (Don't need any more vampire stories since I've read Fevre Dream)
Lukianenko I also second.

Might not impress or interest anyone, but I also like the world of Krynn (Dragonlance), although the quality of the stories are varying extremely - from awesome to horrible. But I have read almost all of them.

This post has been edited by Findarato: 24 June 2010 - 01:34 PM

[Salt-Man Z]

Stephen R. Donaldson's Gap Cycle. Amazing 5-book sci-fi sequence based loosely on Wagner's Ring Cycle.

Seconding:

The Acts of Caine by Matthew Stover
The Black Company by Glen Cook
The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe
The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen R. Donaldson (opinion on them is pretty divided, but they are an important piece of epic fantasy history)
The Ender Quartet by Orson Scott Card (just the first 4 books; skip everything else)
Robert E. Howard's Conan stories (get the new collected editions that feature Howard's unedited texts)

As for the greatest prose, my vote goes to Richard Adams. He never wrote a series, but his Shardik and Watership Down are amazing.

[NikitaDarkstar]

Findarato, on 24 June 2010 - 01:33 PM, said:

Might not impress or interest anyone, but I also like the world of Krynn (Dragonlance), although the quality of the stories are varying extremely - from awesome to horrible. But I have read almost all of them.

I've read the Weis and Hickman stuff, and well they're decent reads (keeps you entertained for a day or two atleast) but they honestly don't stand out enough for me to recommend them to anyone. And compared to the MbotF it's very bland, and you'd most likely be very dissapointed. But they're decent enough for a lazy read in the sun I suppose. (I'm a fan of them I really am. But I wouldn't consider Dragonlance good enough litterature to recommend to people, unless they're huge Dungeons & Dragon fans.)

[McLovin]

Gotta plug Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast books again...

[Furion]

Regarding Dragonlance, I already read most of the books, only skipping the minotaur stuff. I loved it at the time, but after being exposed to Martin and Erikson, I don't think I could go back.

But wow, I'm going to be playing catchup as far as reading goes, all year. Thanks for all the feedback so far. I'll be bookmarking this thread and I'll keep checking back to see any new posts.

[Salt-Man Z]

McLovin, on 24 June 2010 - 05:20 PM, said:

Gotta plug Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast books again...

I meant to include this. And actually, I should probably give "best prose" to Peake for his ridiculously lush text.

[Thelomen Toblerone]

I can't believe no-one's mentioned the Riverworld series by Philip Jose Farmer. It's hilariously mental, you gotta read it.

[Abyss]

Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. Many excellent suggestions upthread but this one will rock you. Each book is like a Hollywood blockbuster in 3-400 pages and while the first ones' okay, the second is better, the third is awesome and it only gets better.

[maro]

Salt-Man Z, on 24 June 2010 - 02:33 PM, said:

Stephen R. Donaldson's Gap Cycle. Amazing 5-book sci-fi sequence based loosely on Wagner's Ring Cycle.

I love his Gap series but can't stand his Covenant books.

Weird

[worry]

Yah, with the Dresden books I was hooked by the second book. Handling all those different kinds of werewolves really showed an above-average dedication to handling supernatural lore with enthusiasm and ambition. And he manages to keep the stakes high while maintaining variety and inventive action.

One stand alone fantasy I forgot to mention was Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. It's a long, strange Victorian style novel that's part fairy tale part alternate history. If you're a pretty patient reader, and enjoy the style of the writing, it really pays off.

[Findarato]

NikitaDarkstar, on 24 June 2010 - 02:40 PM, said:

Findarato, on 24 June 2010 - 01:33 PM, said:

Might not impress or interest anyone, but I also like the world of Krynn (Dragonlance), although the quality of the stories are varying extremely - from awesome to horrible. But I have read almost all of them.

I've read the Weis and Hickman stuff, and well they're decent reads (keeps you entertained for a day or two atleast) but they honestly don't stand out enough for me to recommend them to anyone. And compared to the MbotF it's very bland, and you'd most likely be very dissapointed. But they're decent enough for a lazy read in the sun I suppose. (I'm a fan of them I really am. But I wouldn't consider Dragonlance good enough litterature to recommend to people, unless they're huge Dungeons & Dragon fans.)

well, I know and agree they are no match for GRRM and SE of course, but just like you said, I enjoy reading them (at least they are better than other D&D books.) I also enjoyed Lynn Flewelling's Nightrunner Series. Also nothing compared to MbotF, but a good read. I also read the Painted Man (Peter Brett) and the sequel to it, liked it and recommend it but it's not so special to my mind. It seems I am spoiled to fantasy by SE's books.
And it seems no one has metioned Abercrombie's First Law trilogy yet in this thread. This I would recommend as well.

[MTS]

Abyss, on 25 June 2010 - 04:57 AM, said:

Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. Many excellent suggestions upthread but this one will rock you. Each book is like a Hollywood blockbuster in 3-400 pages and while the first ones' okay, the second is better, the third is awesome and it only gets better.

worrywort, on 25 June 2010 - 07:26 AM, said:

Yah, with the Dresden books I was hooked by the second book. Handling all those different kinds of werewolves really showed an above-average dedication to handling supernatural lore with enthusiasm and ambition. And he manages to keep the stakes high while maintaining variety and inventive action.

One stand alone fantasy I forgot to mention was Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. It's a long, strange Victorian style novel that's part fairy tale part alternate history. If you're a pretty patient reader, and enjoy the style of the writing, it really pays off.

I recently read Grave Peril (just finished Dead Beat) and I personally didn't find it all that thrilling. To me it was weaker than Storm Front even. Crucify me for my blasphemy if you must, but there was a lot of 'if only I'd acted faster' whining from Harry, the 'villain' wasn't nearly as interesting or as good a mystery as the mad sorcerer manipulating the weather or the rampaging super werewolf we'd seen previously (by this I mean the Nightmare, not the one pulling the strings), and it wasn't nearly as funny as the first two. In a lot of the interaction Harry was just being a dick to the 'bad guys' (such as Ferrovax), getting the crap kicked out of him and feeling sorry for himself. Thankfully though, the awesome factor cranks up a notch after that.

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is a really good book, made better by the fact it's standalone. However, I think a lot of people would be put off by the style - sort of like the 18th century 'comedy of manners' type of novels (such as Austen). Plus it takes a long time to get going, and Norrell is just a egomaniacal dick in the beginning, so it's hard to relate. The footnotes really make you want to meet Jonathan Strange as well, so it was frustrating that it took a couple hundred pages for him to even make an appearance (even though he's even more of a dick than Norrell ). Still, marvellous book if you are a patient reader.

Now, more must reads...

Steven King's The Dark Tower

Sean Russell's The Swan's War (most probably haven't heard of it, but vastly underrated series in my mind)

Guy Gavriel Kay's Sarantine Mosaic

Tim Powers' Anubis Gates

Jim Butcher's Codex Alera

Alan Campbell's Deepgate Codex

Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials

Matthew Woodring Stover's Heroes Die (and to a slightly lesser extent the rest of the Acts of Caine novels)

Roger Zelazny's Amber Chronicles

Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn/Elantris

Anne Mccaffrey's Pern novels (although perhaps a bit stale by now)

Robert Holdstock's Mythago Cycle?

Any of Fritz Lieber's stuff is also fantastic.

Wow, that's a sizeable chunk of my fantasy reading. Got a bit carried away there.

[Ain't_It_Just_]

MTS, on 25 June 2010 - 09:44 AM, said:

I recently read Grave Peril (just finished Dead Beat) and I personally didn't find it all that thrilling. To me it was weaker than Storm Front even. Crucify me for my blasphemy if you must, but there was a lot of 'if only I'd acted faster' whining from Harry, the 'villain' wasn't nearly as interesting or as good a mystery as the mad sorcerer manipulating the weather or the rampaging super werewolf we'd seen previously (by this I mean the Nightmare, not the one pulling the strings), and it wasn't nearly as funny as the first two. In a lot of the interaction Harry was just being a dick to the 'bad guys' (such as Ferrovax), getting the crap kicked out of him and feeling sorry for himself. Thankfully though, the awesome factor cranks up a notch after that.

I personally liked Grave Peril. The addition of Michael was great, and Bianca's party was pretty interesting. But yeah, the previous 2 were better.

[Thelomen Toblerone]

This thread confirms that I really need to get my act together and read some Black Company stuff.

[champ]

Thelomen Toblerone, on 25 June 2010 - 10:44 AM, said:

This thread confirms that I really need to get my act together and read some Black Company stuff.

I read tales from the north and loved it, just not possible to hate it if you like SE, can see so many similarities between writing styles/characters etc

[MTS]

I think it's possible to hate Cook if you like SE. While there are similarities there are also stark differences. You are more likely to enjoy it because of those similarities, true, but Black Company has its own unique pieces of awesomeness.

Oh, other fantastic books include Paul Kearney's Monarchies of God and Patrick Tilley's The Amtrack Wars.

[Abyss]

Ain, on 25 June 2010 - 10:13 AM, said:

MTS, on 25 June 2010 - 09:44 AM, said:

I recently read Grave Peril (just finished Dead Beat) and I personally didn't find it all that thrilling. ...

I personally liked Grave Peril. The addition of Michael was great, and Bianca's party was pretty interesting. But yeah, the previous 2 were better.

fair enough, in fact i'd say on second thought that #4 SUMMER NIGHT is where Butcher REALLY raises his game, but Grave Peril starts with Dresden and Michael, a genuine Knight of God, driving a beat-to-crap VW in a race to save babies from a homicidal ghost before sunset and features dialogue like...

""Oh hell, we are truly fucked now."
"You know i don't like it when you swear."
"Sorry. Oh heck, we are truly fucked now."

and

"Oh Jesus Christ, can this get any worse!?!"
"He didn't mean it, Lord!"

...and sort of sets the standard for the wild and crazy starts of most of the books, so i feel love.

MTS, on 25 June 2010 - 12:45 PM, said:

I think it's possible to hate Cook if you like SE. ...

Hate is a strong word but i'm comfortable saying that while i liked Black Co. well enough, it was nowhere near SE for me and the latter half of the series has been resting in my TRP for a while now.


For sheer 'this is different' i'd suggest Bakker's PRINCE OF NOTHING series. Not everyone's cup of hallucinogen-laced-blood but damn if it isn't original and i for one really enjoyed it. In terms of scope and style Bakker is the closest i've found to SE.

[murphy72]

The Acacia trilogy by David Anthony Durham. I can't write a review to save my life, but look at this one:

http://www.graemesfa...id-anthony.html

[Tarcanus]

I agree with most of this thread. My only warning is for Brandon Sanderson and Brent Weeks - these guys don't seem to know prose if it bit them in the ass and Week's books are definitely popcorn fantasy - fun to read but nothing spectacular. I'm hoping beyond hope that Sanderson's prose improves in The Way of Kings - when he tried it in the Mistborn tril, it was so bad that it jarred me out of the story.

Plus more love for Glen Cook! His instrumentalities series isn't finished yet, but it's also spectacular if you're okay with having a world thrown at you with no explanation and enjoy wading into the wonderful plot.

[D'rek]

NikitaDarkstar, on 24 June 2010 - 02:40 PM, said:

Findarato, on 24 June 2010 - 01:33 PM, said:

Might not impress or interest anyone, but I also like the world of Krynn (Dragonlance), although the quality of the stories are varying extremely - from awesome to horrible. But I have read almost all of them.

I've read the Weis and Hickman stuff, and well they're decent reads (keeps you entertained for a day or two atleast) but they honestly don't stand out enough for me to recommend them to anyone. And compared to the MbotF it's very bland, and you'd most likely be very dissapointed. But they're decent enough for a lazy read in the sun I suppose. (I'm a fan of them I really am. But I wouldn't consider Dragonlance good enough litterature to recommend to people, unless they're huge Dungeons & Dragon fans.)

Furion, on 24 June 2010 - 05:41 PM, said:

Regarding Dragonlance, I already read most of the books, only skipping the minotaur stuff. I loved it at the time, but after being exposed to Martin and Erikson, I don't think I could go back.

But wow, I'm going to be playing catchup as far as reading goes, all year. Thanks for all the feedback so far. I'll be bookmarking this thread and I'll keep checking back to see any new posts.

The Weis/Hickman dragonlance stuff is fairly good, was better back in the early 80s when it was released (not that I was alive or reading then). I quite liked the Legends (Twins) trilogy because while the world is still very High Fantasy, the plot wasn't.

Plus the series has hundreds of canon books now, which you have to acknowledge as impressive. There's one guy (don't remember the name) who writes gnome-related short stories for lots of the anthologies and they are some of the most amusing short stories I've ever read.

Abyss, on 25 June 2010 - 03:11 PM, said:

MTS, on 25 June 2010 - 12:45 PM, said:

I think it's possible to hate Cook if you like SE. ...

Hate is a strong word but i'm comfortable saying that while i liked Black Co. well enough, it was nowhere near SE for me and the latter half of the series has been resting in my TRP for a while now.

I think you're bound to dislike Black Company if you try to read it like SE. The tone is similar, the crazy soldier characters are similar, the moral ambiguity is similar, but the narrative is totally different.

SE writes a bunch of plot lines about a vast array of characters with seemingly unrelated stories that eventually wind up together at the end. Along the way there are tons of history tidbits, side stories and loose threads.

Cook on the other hand has one storyline or conflict, and though you might get PoVs of opposite sides, all the characters are wrapped around a single storyline (there's a little deviation from this in Dreams of Steel). Cook doesn't expound upon the world and its history nearly as much, and mostly when he does its in dialogue. Biggest difference of all though, is that Cook jumps forward in time. A lot. And until you get used to it it can be pretty jarring, as the whole Company suddenly goes from a little raid in the north to being with the main army a hundred leagues to the south retreating.

They're both great, but Cook ain't SE so try not to read him like it, despite the similarities.