Recommend me some fantasy!

android415 · Aug 26, 2010

(Or books with fantastical elements, but aren't necessarily genre fantasy).

I really haven't read many good books lately, and I'm starting to hunger for some, but I don't know where to start. On Amazon, I followed some reviewers who liked books I liked, but unfortunately, they led me terribly astray.

Stipulations:

-Must have happy ending. (The characters can go through hell and back, but in the end, they've achieved their goals, and the future is bright. No main characters that are savagely and abruptly killed off)

Chris P · Aug 26, 2010

I got started on Dennis L McKiernan back in my teens, specifically his Mithgar series. The books were written out of order from when they took place, but you can find a chronology on his website. He's not the most popular fantasy author, but since he's the first one I encountered I have a soft spot for him.

Torgo · Aug 26, 2010

Righto!

First off, Jack Vance's LYONESSE trilogy, probably my favourite work of fantasy ever. There are some real tragedies (well, one big one) in the series, but I think it ticks the happy ending box.

Robin Hobb's two FARSEER trilogies, beginning with ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE, are extremely good.

I recently read Raymond Feist's Riftwar books - starting with MAGICIAN - which are very generic but extremely professionally put together and solidly enjoyable.

Patrick Rothfuss' THE NAME OF THE WIND came out recently and is excellent.

Scott Lynch's two Gentlemen Bastards books - THE LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA and RED SEAS UNDER RED SKIES - are terrific and witty caper thrillers set in an interesting fantasy world.

Greg Keyes' quadrilogy beginning with THE BRIAR KING is very decent, although it suffers from diminishing returns.

And of course George R R Martin's SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, but I fear you might already have encountered this series and not liked it, if I'm reading between the lines of your stipulation correctly...

android415 · Aug 26, 2010

Torgo said:
Righto!

First off, Jack Vance's LYONESSE trilogy, probably my favourite work of fantasy ever. There are some real tragedies (well, one big one) in the series, but I think it ticks the happy ending box.

Robin Hobb's two FARSEER trilogies, beginning with ASSASSIN'S APPRENTICE, are extremely good.

I recently read Raymond Feist's Riftwar books - starting with MAGICIAN - which are very generic but extremely professionally put together and solidly enjoyable.

Patrick Rothfuss' THE NAME OF THE WIND came out recently and is excellent.

Scott Lynch's two Gentlemen Bastards books - THE LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA and RED SEAS UNDER RED SKIES - are terrific and witty caper thrillers set in an interesting fantasy world.

Greg Keyes' quadrilogy beginning with THE BRIAR KING is very decent, although it suffers from diminishing returns.

And of course George R R Martin's SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, but I fear you might already have encountered this series and not liked it, if I'm reading between the lines of your stipulation correctly...

Thanks for the recommendations!

And yes, I have stumbled across George R R Martin. It was good, but I was...upset, to say the least.

I'm pretty emotional on a regular basis, but at this time in my life, I've developed a preference for the happy endings.

TheMindKiller · Aug 26, 2010

If you can fight through it, The Merlin Chronicles is a large volume of books Arthurian in nature told from the perspective of the wizard Merlin and follows him from childhood discovering his powers to growing help and helping Arthur. It is very emotional, both happy and sad. Very in depth, too. ("King Arthur" isn't even born at the end of the first book and doesn't become king until the end of the 2nd)

The Wicked Day is the last book. Don't read that one if you like happy endings. But it is one of the best takes on Mordred I've ever read, turning him into a tragedy instead of a villain.

Some of my favorite fantasy books.

PivotalSyntax · Aug 30, 2010

The Malacia Tapestry by Brian Aldiss

Wow, you must read this. In my opinion one of the best fantasy novels ever written. It follows Perian De Chirolo who's a poverty-stricken actor. Many of his exploits are driven by the desire to win over women. I can never explain books well. But I do know that this sets the standard for originality in fantasy.

Shadow_Ferret · Aug 30, 2010

Robert E. Howard.
Robert E. Howard.
Robert E. Howard.
Robert E. Howard.

Mr Flibble · Aug 30, 2010

Shadow_Ferret said:
Robert E. Howard.
Robert E. Howard.
Robert E. Howard.
Robert E. Howard.

I second that emotion.

Also, Brent Weeks' Night Angel trilogy (Loved the first, but the second wasn't for me), Jim Butcher's Dresden Files series, Terry Pratchett, China Meiville, Lois Mcmaster Bujold (The Curse of Chalion is excellent), George RR Martin (not so much on happy endings though in his big series though). Um, me

A lot will depend on what sort of fantasy you like. Urban, epic, high, low, mediaeval, new weird...Give us a clue?

Camilla Delvalle · Aug 30, 2010

I wonder why everyone on all forums say that many characters die in GRR Martin's series. There has not been many POV character deaths as far as I have read. (Not going into detail to not spoil.)

And I'm sure there will be a happy ending. There will be a big deus ex machina. Everyone will have a huge beach party, and the hero and the heroine will ride towards the sunset on a dragon.

Makyelin · Sep 2, 2010

Try Robert Jordan's Wheel of time books. Not only are they excellent, but theyre incredibly long, and there's lots of them. Which means they'll keep you occupied for a long time. And they're really good, despite their length.

Hallen · Sep 3, 2010

Camilla Delvalle said:
I wonder why everyone on all forums say that many characters die in GRR Martin's series. There has not been many POV character deaths as far as I have read. (Not going into detail to not spoil.)

And I'm sure there will be a happy ending. There will be a big deus ex machina. Everyone will have a huge beach party, and the hero and the heroine will ride towards the sunset on a dragon.

Are you kidding? I don't want to say numbers, but even one main POV character dying is unusual in fantasy. GRRM kills off people and POV characters like he can just make new ones --- errrr, wait...

Jordan, Hobbs, Sanderson, JV Jones, you mostly can't go wrong with these authors. Hobbs' Soldier Son trilogy isn't her best and it is a bit of a let-down in the end, but it's still extremely creative and original. Her trilogy of trilogies, Assassin's Apprentice, Live Ship Traders, and Tawny Man are outstanding (except the Tawny Man title, it makes sense when you read the books, but what a sucky title)

Parametric · Sep 3, 2010

I just wanted to say, you people who recommended George RR Martin and Scott Lynch to someone who asked for a "happy ending" and "no main characters that are savagely and abruptly killed off" ... you are cruel, cruel people. :tongue

Camilla Delvalle · Sep 4, 2010

Parametric said:
I just wanted to say, you people who recommended George RR Martin and Scott Lynch to someone who asked for a "happy ending" and "no main characters that are savagely and abruptly killed off" ... you are cruel, cruel people.

Yes, I know. That's why I wanted to read GRR Martin. Because people said he killed many POV characters. But he didn't, and I felt cheated. :e2violin:

RangerSG · Sep 4, 2010

The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.

Not strictly fantasy, but Neal Stephenson's genre-defying The Baroque Cycle is worth a read (and there's certainly fantastical elements IN it, you just don't expect them, which makes them more jaw-dropping when they happen).

David Gemmell's Trojan War series, and Legend, of course.

G.G Kay's Tigana is a good story.

I'd recommend Erikson and Cook above all these, but they fall in the same category as Martin and Lynch. You might not want to touch these when you're feeling down. Though Cook's The Instrumentalities of the Night is not nearly as dark as most of his earlier works.

L.E. Modesitt's Recluse books are an oft-overlooked non-connected series worth reading.

I'm not as big a Robin Hobb fan as others. But I'll keep my mouth shut on that one. Other than to say if you want action, you should probably look elsewhere, the pace is rather slow, IMHO.

Camilla Delvalle · Sep 4, 2010

Stardust, Neil Gaiman
The Darkangel, Meredith Ann Pierce
The Dream Quest for Unknown Kadath, H.P. Lovecraft (Although I recommend to read all his other works first, because this is kind of the summit of everything he wrote.)

Today I read The Darkness that Comes Before by Bakker. I guess it wouldn't fit in this thread. :evil

NoGuessing · Sep 7, 2010

Tolkien is always a decent starting point, then there's your Potter et al but you may have read them already.

If you like happy endings, don't read Martin. Jordan might even be a bridge too far, because I suspect in the end the MC will not have a happy ending.

Brandon Sanderson is a gun author as well.

Rebekkamaria · Sep 7, 2010

David Gemmell's Dark Moon, one of my favourite books of all time.

seun · Sep 16, 2010

Just off the top of my head:

Mythago Wood
Piers Anthony's Incarnations series.
Anything by Neil Gaiman
Anything by Robert Rankin

SPMiller · Sep 16, 2010

Hallen said:
GRRM kills off people and POV characters like he can just make new ones

Nope.

Satori1977 · Sep 16, 2010

I read mostly UF, but here goes...
Love the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, only read a few though.
The Scent of the Zodiac Series by Vicki Pettersson. Not all the books have real happy endings, but it is a series and I expect it to end well.
Anything by Piers Anthony. Just don't take the Xanth series too seriously, but it is a lot of fun to read. Also the Adept series, and the Mode series are good.
Robert J. Sawyer has some great books, but they are sci-fi/fantasy, not straight fantasy.

Mr. Anonymous · Sep 16, 2010

Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Shadow of the Wind. Set in mid-twentieth century barcelona, it's an historical mystery, with beautifully drawn characters, wonderful writing, and some fantastical elements in the background.

Booklist said,

"In post-World War II Barcelona, young Daniel is taken by his bookseller father to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a massive sanctuary where books are guarded from oblivion. Told to choose one book to protect, he selects The Shadow of the Wind, by Julian Carax. He reads it, loves it, and soon learns it is both very valuable and very much in danger because someone is determinedly burning every copy of every book written by the obscure Carax. To call this book--Zafon's Shadow of the Wind-- old-fashioned is to mean it in the best way. It's big, chock-full of unusual characters, and strong in its sense of place. Daniel's initiation into the mysteries of adulthood is given the same weight as the mystery of the book-burner. And the setting--Spain under Franco--injects an air of sobriety into some plot elements that might otherwise seem soap operatic. Part detective story, part boy's adventure, part romance, fantasy, and gothic horror, the intricate plot is urged on by extravagant foreshadowing and nail-nibbling tension. This is rich, lavish storytelling, very much in the tradition of Ross King's Ex Libris"

"Wondrous... masterful... The Shadow of the Wind is ultimately a love letter to literature…" -- Entertainment Weekly, A, Editor’s Choice

"…rush right out to the nearest bookstore and pick up The Shadow of the Wind." -- Michael Dirda, The Washington Post

"‘Gabriel García Márquez meets Umberto Eco meets Jorge Luis Borges’ for a sprawling magic show." -- Richard Eder, The New York Times Book Review

JoeEkaitis · Sep 16, 2010

Here. Read this.

AlexPiper · Sep 16, 2010

Torgo said:
Scott Lynch's two Gentlemen Bastards books - THE LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA and RED SEAS UNDER RED SKIES - are terrific and witty caper thrillers set in an interesting fantasy world.

However, as a warning, RED SEAS ends on a horrible cliffhanger, and we've been waiting more than three years for the third book. And there are supposed to be a total of... what, seven? Nine? Something like that. A lot of them, anyway. They're good, but I'd almost wait for the third before reading the first two, just to avoid the annoying cliffhanger ending.

I would add D.M. Cornish's undeservedly little-known Foundling trilogy: MONSTER BLOOD TATTOO, LAMPLIGHTER and FACTOTUM. Aside from having a book with possibly the best title ever ('Monster Blood Tattoo'), the series has a very interesting feel to the prose. The third and final book is just about to come out, also, so in theory the books could be picked up and Rossamund's story read all in one chunk.

AlexPiper · Sep 16, 2010

Hallen said:
Hobbs' Soldier Son trilogy isn't her best and it is a bit of a let-down in the end, but it's still extremely creative and original. Her trilogy of trilogies, Assassin's Apprentice, Live Ship Traders, and Tawny Man are outstanding (except the Tawny Man title, it makes sense when you read the books, but what a sucky title)

She's also writing in that world again, continuing the Rain Wilds stories (begun in the Liveship Traders books and touched on in the Tawny Man stories) with the new Rain Wilds Chronicles. The first two of the Chronicles -- Dragon Keeper and Dragon Haven -- are already out.

Hallen · Sep 16, 2010

AlexPiper said:
She's also writing in that world again, continuing the Rain Wilds stories (begun in the Liveship Traders books and touched on in the Tawny Man stories) with the new Rain Wilds Chronicles. The first two of the Chronicles -- Dragon Keeper and Dragon Haven -- are already out.

Yep, I've read Dragon Keeper. I haven't ordered Dragon Haven yet. I'm hemming and hawing, (a technical term) deciding if I really liked Dragon Keeper or not. She's hooked me for sure, but I'm not sure I fully liked it or not.

Recommend me some fantasy!

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