Fantasy Book Recs?

Which five series have you been stuck rereading? Which authors of darker fantasy do you enjoy already? What do you mean by dark fantasy? Fantasy that's close to horror, or the fantasy that's sometimes called "grimdark," or simply fantasy that's a not more realistic in that it doesn't feature flawless protagonists or take place in a stereotyped fairy tale world? I don't know what you've already read, so (omitting GRRM's books and Stephen King's Dark Tower series, since I'm sure you've read or heard of those) some authors I know of who write what I consider darker fantasy include:

Joe Abercrombie
Mark Lawrence ( if you like stuff that focuses on the goals and actions of a very evil protagonist)
Scott Lynch
Kameron Hurley's Mirror Empire series (very unusual, out-there world building and with feminist themes, but very dark)
Anne Bishop
Brent Weeks
Jacqueline Carey
Glen Cook
Clive Barker
Ashley J. Barnard
Richard K Morgan
CJ Cherryh's fantasy. I wouldn't call it classic dark, but most of her books (both SF and F) are morally very complex, have characters who tend to be quite gray (and visit their own hearts of darkness), and she doesn't don't tie everything up in a neat bow at the end. I recommend the Morgaine and Vanyel books, which are *really* SF, but read like S&S fantasy.

And for some older fantasy series and authors with dark heroes and/or themes:

Michael Moorcock's Elric books (a must read for anyone who thinks that dark heroes and themes are a new thing in fantasy).
Fritz Leiber's Fafherd and Gray Mouser stories (these are older S&S, with lots of dark humor, and the protagonists and themes are not shiny sweet).
HP Lovecraft (of course)
Stephen Donaldson's Thomas Covenant books.
Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis.

These are just ones I've read or heard of from via online interviews or friends who enjoy Dark fantasy. I've read and enjoyed some of these books but not others personally. I enjoy a touch of darkness in my fantasy, but generally I want there to be some optimism and narrative justice too (that's the escapist element for me).

If you haven't tried George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series yet, that's an obvious choice. Grim and bloody, but very good and very intricate.

Assuming you like it really dark, my favourite bloodthirsty reads are Kameron Hurley's Mirror Empire series (two books are out; I believe it's supposed to be a trilogy), Richard K. Morgan's A Land Fit for Heroes series, and Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire trilogy, all of which Roxxsmom already recommended.

If you're willing to try some urban fantasy, you might also try Kate Griffin's Blue Electric Angels series, which is melancholy, lovely, and very well-written, while still being quite a lot of fun to read. (It's also not spurting blood and guts everywhere like the aforementioned books do. ) Another excellent urban fantasy is London Falling, by Paul Cornell, which is dark and disturbing, but again manages to do that without much actual violence.

I have come to trust Goodreads more in the past year. As you add more books to your read list, and rate them, it will begin to populate a list that fits you well. I have found, anyway.

On this forum is a "what we're reading" post. I find it invaluable in selecting new reads and authors. I've been exposed to so many fantastic stories I never would have found otherwise as a result of other forum user's contributions to the thread.

I find darkness in most things I read. How dark? I'd also like to hear what series you are recycling.

In addition to those already mentioned John Gwynne's series is dark and epic. a

And I have a book in my sig line which is old-school adventure fantasy and you might enjoy it.

Robin Hobb? Not exactly dark maybe, but she certainly doesn't shy away from pouring more and more shit on poor old Fitz's plate.

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson is a personal favorite series of mine. It manages to subvert and play with a lot of the tropes of high/epic fantasy while delivering a great story on its own. Series is ongoing, with 6 books currently.

JimmyB27 said:

Robin Hobb? Not exactly dark maybe, but she certainly doesn't shy away from pouring more and more shit on poor old Fitz's plate.

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This is true. She doesn't have a lot of swearing (beyond the occasional "damn") or graphic descriptions of gore, but terrible things do happen to good people in her stories, and she's not adverse to killing sympathetic characters off. And there are some intriguing characters who aren't exactly "good" too, and even the "good" characters end up having to do some pretty dark things to survive. And yes, pretty much every terrible thing that can happen does happen to her protagonist in her three Fitz and Fool trilogies. There's only one thing that drives me kind of nuts about her books and it's (spoiler) every female character aching to have children and regarding it as a major tragedy if they can't for one reason or another, sometimes even if they've already had a kid or kids and want still more .

The most recent series I loved was Lynn Flewelling's Tamir trilogy (start with The Bone Doll's Twin).

Dark fantasy - try Barbara Hambly. Lots of pain and effort. Magic is difficult. Well written, though. Sometimes darker than I'd like.

I'm a big fan of R. Scott Bakker, who's perhaps the bleakest and squickiest fantasy author's I've read. Usually I'm on the fence when it comes to oppressive darkness and acts of degradation, but him I like. Big fan of Ken Liu too, far lighter but still gritty. Rachael Neumeier's Mountain of Kept Memory, if it's out yet, is an amazingly awesome standalone fantasy, not at all grimdark but good and realistic, HIGHLY rec'd to all you fine people. Black Company isn't for everyone, but I enjoy it well enough for what it is.

Oh, yeah, and KJ Parker. If you like your fantasy literary and difficult, as well as dark and downer-ish.

You could always try David Gemmell, who didn't so much write a series of books as much as many books all connection through time.

I also write that sort of epic fantasy, but I only have one book out so far so I don't think you'd be able to get lost in it.

I'd recommend some classics, like the Fagles translation of The Iliad and The Odyssey. Gods, monsters, magic items, demigods, heroes; great stuff. From a later era of history, there's Beowulf, Seamus Heaney translation. All three of these books are fantasies, and all three are action-oriented. Plenty of fighting and violence. Plus, all three are proven crowd-pleasers.