Fantasy Reading List Requested?

Hi. I've been lurking for a while, particularly stalking Uncle Jim's writing tips. Wonderful stuff.
I've been writing, or editing, for a living for my entire adult life but have only ventured into fiction in the last two years. I have written mostly literary fiction. Each novel attempt ended up in a musty corner of my C drive after 30 pages or so.
A couple of months ago I decided to go with my instinct and write fantasy fiction, the stuff that fired my imagination as a child and teenager through the 70s and 80s.
Voila. Writer's block vanished. I'm well on my way to finishing my first novel.
The problem: my fantasy reading education ended in the mid-1980s after Terry Brooks, Tolkien and a handful of others.
I'm now reading Pratchett (I just moved to London and entire shelves in all bookstores are creaking with his novels) and a rewrite of THE MAGICIAN by Raymond E. Feist.
Can anybody suggest another bunch of books to help me catch up? I'm looking for a thorough representative sample of the genre. I am far behind but have always read a book or three a week and can probably catch up fairly fast.
Finally, are Tolkienesque novels (with dwarfs, elves and all the medieval English trappings) more or less difficult to sell now within the genre? I am sure the movies have helped revive interest but, in the fantasy sections of my nearest bookstores, I see mainly novels about contemporary wizards, genies, demons and others which are removed from the staple of my younger years. I also see lots of spoofs of Tolkienesque stuff.
Anyone have any pointers?

Hi Adam. We have a SF/Fantasy board a little further down the Cooler, in the genre section. I'm going to copy your post to that board too. It will likely generate a better response there.

Adam, :welc

Hi yah. What a great question. Personally, I don't think anyone has surpassed (at least in the last two decades) the writing of George R.R. Martin. His series "A song of Ice and Fire" is, again in my humble opinion, one of the greatest fantasy series ever written. Period. Here's his website www.georgerrmartin.com/ I cannot recommend Martin enough. I adore great fantasy, but deplore bad fantasy. Martin is vivid, mature, and thought provoking. He has a cast of hundreds, and somehow, someway (if I figure out how he does this I'll be rich I tell ya'... rich!) he makes every single one of them interesting and engrossing. :hail

Also, I've always been a huge fan of Michael Moorcock. Try his series, Elric of Melnibone. It's actually what got me into fantasy when I was teenager, and also, what influenced me to write my first novel.

Kevin
www.kevacho.com

"Write to Live. Live to Write."

"Coffee... mmm... mmmm... good":coffee

Hi, Adam!

I also write fantasy (as well as sci-fi) and try to read as much as possible. Tolkien and Terry Brooks are really great! I second the recommendation of Michael Moorcock.

Other fantasy authors I read are: Marion Zimmer Bradley (her Darkover series), Anne McCaffrey (Dragonriders of Pern) , C.J. Cherryh, and Mercedes Lackey (The Heralds of Valdemar Series and the Free Bards Trilogy). For an interesting blend of genres, see Glen Cook's "Garrett P.I." series (fantasy and hard-boiled private eye).

Annie

Hi, Adam.

I bumped the other rec thread for you to look at.

>>Finally, are Tolkienesque novels (with dwarfs, elves and all the medieval English trappings) more or less difficult to sell now within the genre?<<

If you're talking about Terry Brooks-style Tolkienesque, then I'd say more difficult. That has really been done to death. People who are doing the medieval elves-trolls-dwarves thing are often doing it with a twist. For instance Jacqueline Carey has a Tolkienesque fantasy out this month called Banewreaker--the twist is that the protagonist is the Dark Lord. Or James Barclay's fantasies, where Orcs are the heroes.

There's still a good bit of traditional epic-style fantasy being published, but it tends to eschews the European medieval settings and the familiar fantasy creatures and races, or else focuses on darker, more complex stories and characters where good and evil aren't easily defined. One example is Chris Wooding's Braided Path series, which has plenty of sword and sorcery and magical creatures, but is set in an Asian-style world. George R. R. Martin, who Kevin recommended, is another example of the new-style epic--high fantasy with a very gritty, realistic edge, told in shades of gray.

Tad Williams' Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series is also high fantasy, with a lot of traditional elements but a very different feel from Tolkien. Dave Duncan would also be a good one to try--I like his The Great Game series, and though I haven't read any of his King's Blades books, I hear they're good. He tends to have a somewhat comic edge. I also liked Jude Fisher's Fools Gold series, which is still in progress. Oh, and Sean Russell's The Swans War series, the last book of which is due this month--again, many traditional elements but a lyrical, elegaic feel and a lot of ambiguity between heroes and villains.

Other books I've liked recently--I'm pretty sure all these have been pubbed in the UK:

- Scott Bakker's The Darkness That Comes Before and The Warrior-Prophet--epic fantasy that's full of magic and strange events, yet reads like real history. These books aren't light reading (the author has a PhD in philosophy) but they're really gripping.

- Ian MacLeod's The Light Ages--dark, dreamy fantasy set in a Victorian-style world.

- Tad Williams' The War of the Flowers--a gritty contemporary reinterpretation of the world of Faerie.

- Kage Baker's The Anvil of the World--the Arabian Nights meets Saki.

- Nina Kiriki Hoffman's A Fistful of Sky--character-focused contemporary fantasy.

I do book reviews for various publications, and there are a lot of reviews of fantasy (and science fiction) at my website: www.sff.net/people/victor...views.html

The above isn't terribly representative, because there are subgenres of fantasy I don't really like and so rarely read: Celtic fantasy, urban fantasy, New Weird, romantic fantasy, probably others I'm not calling to mind right now. There is so much going on in fantasy now, it's impossible to keep track of it all. I'd suggest you subscribe to one of the magazines that covers the field--it's the best way to have at least a glancing acquaintance with what's being published.

- Victoria

I would second Kevacho's nomination of George Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire" as one of the best fantasy series out there right now. Martin has combined political intrigue, historical depth, interpersonal conflicts and epic adventure into an amazing story. It's a fat book, but I found myself unable to put it down. And best of all: no elves.

Whether you love them or you hate them (I tend towards the latter), the likes of Terry Goodkind, Robert Jordan and Stephen Donaldson have had a big impact on the fantasy genre. But the comment about the wane of epic fantasy is pretty dead-on, I think.

Don't get me wrong, I love epic fantasy, but for some alternatives to that sub-genre, you could take a look at:

Jeff Vandermeer's "Veniss Underground"
K.J. Bishop's "The Etched City"
China Mieville's "Perdido Street Station"

Each of the above are often classified as "New Weird." China Mieville coined the term, but I haven't personally liked his stuff as much as Vandermeer's or Bishop's. Very dark, surreal fantasy without any of the trappings familiar to Tolkien and his imitators.

Gene Wolfe is another love 'im or hate 'im kind of writer, but his "Book of the New Sun" series won some award (I can't remember which...can anybody help out here?). It combined the anti-hero with extremely-far-future fantasy in some interesting ways, although I think it ran out of steam after book one.

Some of the more influential urban fantasists would include:

Charles DeLint
Neil Gaiman
Tim Powers

I would suggest

The Herald-Mage trilogy by Mercedes Lackey
The Vitner's Luck by Elizabeth Knox

Tad Williams' Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series....

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Aaauuugh!

Wow! What a great bunch of replies. I'll soon be off to the bookstore with a printout under my arms. A day of surfing for the names and titles mentioned here has been illuminating in itself. Nice to know the genre has advanced and widened so much. Thanks

I guess you need to try and get a taste of a lot of the new trends too. Like slipstream, or even steampunk?

Over in Writing Novels, you asked:

The `Tolkienesque' fiction that I am writing may not fit fairly under that title. I've been a foreign correspondent since 1991, until recently covering wars, social strife, extreme poverty and similar issues in more than 30 countries. I'm trying to inject as much of that as possible into my fantasy fiction. I've started my fantasy novel on a version of a real leper colony I spent time on in Brazil some years back. The novel has the trappings of the much-spoofed traditional fantasy. Much grittier I hope though. Anyway, I want to sugar-coat a bitter taste. Dwarves and elves (my childhood flames) denied a magical cure for a grave illness really seems to do that better than, say, an unread contemporary novel about the struggle of AIDs-inflicted miners in South Africa. Is there any sub-genre like this? Is this a mix that would turn off an editor or agent?

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I'm not entirely sure what your novel's premise is from this description, so I couldn't say. But gritty and dark is certainly a very common element of a lot of fantasy; less so, sadly, is concerns of social justice, but I think if done in the service of the story, could be refreshing.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned Charles DeLint. He writes Celtic fantasy and urban fantasy. My favorite of his is Memory and Dream.

Also read Guy Gavriel Kay (or is it Kaye?). Tigana is excellent. And one of my favorite authors is Alan Garner: Weirdstone of Brisingamen and Moon of Gomrath. Contemporary Celtic fantasy set in England.

Lloyd Alexander: the Prydain series. (Starts with The Black Cauldron.)

I don't know if you can get this anymore. It was pubbed a long time ago, but I always liked it. Red Moon and Black Mountain by Joy Chant.

And if you haven't already, read Harry Potter of course, if for no other reason then to see what current fantasy is like.

Tad Williams is a favorite of mine, but he's already been mentioned. I liked Tanya Huff's Summoning series (OK, mainly for the cat).

I hope you have a blank check written out to Amazon.com. :coffee

Lloyd Alexander: the Prydain series. (Starts with The Black Cauldron.)

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Actually, The Black Cauldron is the second book in the series. The first is The Book of Three.

Currently reading HIDDEN STARS by Madeline Howard.

Also, Teresa Edgerton has some great works out, including her Green Lion Trilogy and her Goblin books.

Someone has already mentioned Tad Williams and George R. R. Martin (I love THE HEDGE KNIGHT myself).

Barbara Hambly has a whole host of good ones too.

:coffee

One writer I recently discovered, and I cannot wait to read more of her books: Holly Lisle.

Just contributing where I can

There was a prequel to Joy Chant's Red Moon and Black Mountain, called The Grey Mane of Morning. But it's many years since I've seen either book.

I don't think anyone's mentioned Ursula le Guin's Earthsea series yet. Originally a trilogy, now a trilogy in five parts (or whatever). I like the original books best, but it's all good stuff.

I'm woefully behind in reading recent fantasy, but one author I've got into lately is Mary Gentle, who writes a mixture of soft SF, alternative history and more traditional fantasy, as well as some things that don't really fit in anywhere. I haven't yet read her latest novel, Ash, though, which is supposed to be half a million words. I think I'll need a deep breath first.

David Eddings' elenian and tamuli.

the books have strained plots which mostly cosist of an urgent need for the characters to visist every kingdom on the map. the writing is unremakable, or at least, i don't remember loving or hating it.

but the characters are hilarious. it's not really a spoof or a comedy, though it is light-hearted, but the characters are certainly amusing, and a good break from the typical grim-faced heroes.

anything bu L.E. Modesitt, Jr.

his magic of recluse series (beginning with the book of the same name) is worth reading purely for the extremely logical and philosophically sound handling of magic.

those books, and many of those recommended so far (that i've read), are more traditional fantasy epics, and in that sense tolkienesque. there is also room for more modern-feeling, practical worlds in fantasy


the Pern books contain clearly fantastic elements, but the feel is much closer to sci-fi. there's no feeling of magic or wonder. no magical trappings. just dragons with warp drives.


Modesitt again, this time with his Spellsinger series, which trats magic in a very matter of fact way, and addresses the military consequences of powerful magic- the powerful sorcererecesses can slaughter armies of troops with their spells, which changes the dynamics of comabt, but armies still exist because they are need to conquer and hold territory.

A different opinion:

Eddings writes the same plot over and over again, and creates characters by mashing together national and sexual stereotypes.

Modesitt's Recluse series has some nice bits about working in a craft and can be good comfort reads, but his prose is clunky and his onomatopoeia drives many nuts.

McCaffrey's Pern books romanticize rape.

How about John Ringo (There Will Be Dragons or Emerald Sea) or Holly Lisle's Glenraven, or almost anything by Mercedes Lackey (whose stuff you can sample, along with other authors, in entire books at Baen Publishing for free!)

In fact, if you can get your hands on a hardbound copy of Lackey's This Scepter'd Isle, it has a CD-ROM in the back that is chock full of entire books by Baen authors, and they encourage you to copy and distribute it! That's where I read There Will Be Dragons for the first time.

I also like Anne McCaffrey's Brain/Brawn books and her psionic talent books. I've read her Dragonrider series, too, and liked the Dragonsinger offshoots best.

And anything by Robin McKinley (with the exception of Deerskin and possibly Sunshine - jury still out on that one) is worth a read.