Need a book recommendation
Ok, so I have hit a wall in regards to finding a new series to read, I’ve read quite a few and am looking for some recommendations.
Series I’ve read:
Wheel of Time
ASOIF
Name of the Wind + Wise Man’s Fear
The Belgariad
Night Angel Trilogy + Black Prism
LoTR
Codex Alera
Farseer Trilogy
Warded Man+Desert Spear
The Shannara Series
Sword of Truth Series
The Earthsea Cycle
Mistborn + The Way of Kings
The Kingdom of Thorn and Bone
Looking for recommendations along the lines of these series, Thanks.
Hmmm… Looks like you prefer epic fantasy, multi-volumes. Everything on there is ‘high magic’ except for ASOIF.
If you want me to pin down specific suggestions, I’ll need to know what you like/don’t. In general terms. Do you prefer the ‘high magic’ sorts of books, or did you find GRRM fresh and want something more like it? Did you prefer the more light-hearted, old-school fantasy like Eddings and Shannara? Did you prefer WoT’s slow and careful pacing or Codex Alera’s breakneck speeds?
Single-character dramas like Rothfuss and Farseer, or ensemble casts like Way of Kings ? Quest narratives or political intrigue? Humor or romance?
Anyway, not knowing any of that, the closest I can come are the following:
Old School: Melanie Rawn, Sunrunner books.
Barbara Hambly, Darwarth series.
More like Wot:
Recluse books, Lee Modesitt
More like GRRM: Joe Abercrombie (as has been mentioned.)
New school: Steven Erickson’s Malazan books. (Warning, he throws you right in, and it can take a little time to get your feet underneath you.)
Something different: Daniel Abraham (nice political intrigue fantasy series of four books.)
That is a tricky question.
Yes I prefer high magic as opposed to books like ASOIF.
No real preference between single character or ensemble casts as long as it is well written.
As far as style of fantasy I enjoyed Eddings and Brooks but I wouldn’t put them on a top 5 of things Ive read, I prefer the books I read to have a society that I can come to understand, and in the cases of many of these series that is a magic based society. So on a scale of 1-10, 1 being “YOU SHALL NOT PASS” magic and 10 being Sanderson style magic where it is very logical within its own rules, I would put myself at a 9.
The pacing doesn’t really matter that much to me, the only series I can think of that bothered me with its pacing was Codex Alera, I had to put down the book several times for me to digest what had just happened because I knew I would be hit with something else 10 pages later.
More Writing Excuses please, they are fun to listen to even if I don’t write. Its nice to see what goes on behind the scene.
Okay, some stronger suggestions then.
1) Malazan. Lots of good magic floating around, and a challenging series with epic scope. HOWEVER the warning I gave you before holds. The first book throws you into the middle of a battle where people are dying, then flashes back to those same characters and gets you to the battle.
He doesn’t really explain who they are or what’s going on in the battle itself. The second book takes place (as I remember) on a different continent than the first, and features mostly different characters. That sort of thing can make the series difficult to get into. But the writing is rich and vibrant, and the scope fascinating.
2) Melanie Rawn’s Sunrunner books. I mention them because it’s less likely that you’d have read them, as they’re about 20 years old now. They are wonderful epic fantasy novels that should still be available as they were quite popular in their day. They’re a bit more on the romantic side—meaning relationships become more important than battles, for the most part. However, the series has real depth and and a magic system that is purely awesome.
I’ll see if I can dredge up something else from the back of my mind. I do think the Abraham books might appeal to you, but remember, they are somewhat sparse when it comes to action.
I’m wondering if you have an opinion/critique on the ‘The Deed of Paksenarrion’ series that I’m shamelessly pimping every time it seems like it would fit the reader?
/Dan
I’m quite fond of it. I usually forget to mention it in conversations like these as my mind has it as military fantasy, along the lines of David Gemmell, and I sometimes forget that at its heart it’s also a really great epic coming of age story.
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