| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 21 Mar 2012 : 19:20:12
*This thread is similar to the recently resurrected 1001 Books thread
If you were asked to recommend 5 fantasy books to someone who had never read the genre before, but was interested in getting started in it, what would you recommend? Recommendations could include ANY type of fantasy: Series like the Realms, Epic, Urban, Dark, etc.
I guess you could also reword this to say: What are your top 5 favorite fantasy books.  |
| 30 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Dennis |
Posted - 01 Apr 2012 : 05:00:50
quote:
Originally posted by Quale
RE Feist - Magician: Master
Actually, that's just half of the book/story. Magician: Apprentice is the first half. Together, they make the split edition of Magician, the first book of the Riftwar Trilogy. |
| Quale |
Posted - 30 Mar 2012 : 08:14:09
Joe Abercrombie - The First Law (or The Heroes)
Gene Wolfe - Solar cycle (Short Sun is my favorite)
GRRM - ASoIaF (first 3)
Jack Vance - Lyonesse (Dying Earth is second best, or The Face)
China Mieville - Bas-Lag (The Scar is the best)
other notable
Steven Erikson - Malazan (House of Chains is my favourite)
Brandon Sanderson - The Way of Kings
Clark Ashton Smith - Zothique
Italo Calvino - Invisible Cities
R Scott Bakker - Prince of Nothing
Steve Aylett - Fain the Sorcerer
Matthew Stover - Heroes Die
Jeff VanderMeer - Ambergris
Patrick Rothfuss - The Wise Man's Fear
RE Feist - Magician: Master
HP Lovecraft - The Shadow out of Time
John Crowley - Little, Big
Peter Beagle - The Last Unicorn
Michael Moorcock - Stormbringer
Poul Anderson - The King of Ys
Robert Holdstock - Lavondyss
JRRT - Silmarillion |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 29 Mar 2012 : 20:48:06
quote:
Of course, by that time, my son will prolly be old enough to read them -- and he's still shy of his 1st birthday!
Sadly, this is probably very true. I believe Martin is in his mid-60's, so i really hope he is able to finish the series. It's sad what happened with the Wheel of Time. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 29 Mar 2012 : 19:09:38
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Well, one-time is better than nothing, right?
True, and I have actually only read the first 4 books once myself, but am considering re-reading them when the 5th comes out in paperback.
Usually, when a series is ongoing, I re-read all of the prior books shortly before the new one comes out. But the Fire & Ice books are going to be an exception to this rule... I'll not re-read them until all 7 books are out.
Of course, by that time, my son will prolly be old enough to read them -- and he's still shy of his 1st birthday! |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 29 Mar 2012 : 18:05:31
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Well, one-time is better than nothing, right?
True, and I have actually only read the first 4 books once myself, but am considering re-reading them when the 5th comes out in paperback. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 29 Mar 2012 : 17:01:32
Well, one-time is better than nothing, right? |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 29 Mar 2012 : 16:39:41
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Most of Martin's novels are good for one-time read only, for me.
 Blasphemy! |
| Dennis |
Posted - 29 Mar 2012 : 16:30:22
Most of Martin's novels are good for one-time read only, for me. |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 25 Mar 2012 : 20:45:05
quote:
Originally posted by sleyvas
Hmmm, 40 years of reading, which were my favorites.... most were groupings, so I'll list those
Dragonlance Chronicles - I may be looking at it through rose-colored glasses, but I truly believe this was a good series that could stand the test of time.
The Deryni Series by Katherine Kurtz (mostly the earlier works)
Song of Fire & Ice series by George R.R. Martin
Elfshadow and other books by Elaine Cunningham
and I'll leave the 5th open, because well, there's so many, I don't know how I'd rank one above the others. I could say the Lord of the Rings... I could say Conan... I could say the Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold... I wish I had my bookshelf standing right now.
No wait... I know where the 5th would fall... the "Thieve's World" short stories collections. One of the first shared worlds out there. The authors shared each other's characters. Granted, there were discrepancies, and the plots did start to get a little weird, but it was really great to see. |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 25 Mar 2012 : 20:37:52
Hmmm, 40 years of reading, which were my favorites.... most were groupings, so I'll list those
Dragonlance Chronicles - I may be looking at it through rose-colored glasses, but I truly believe this was a good series that could stand the test of time.
The Deryni Series by Katherine Kurtz (mostly the earlier works)
Song of Fire & Ice series by George R.R. Martin
Elfshadow and other books by Elaine Cunningham
and I'll leave the 5th open, because well, there's so many, I don't know how I'd rank one above the others. I could say the Lord of the Rings... I could say Conan... I could say the Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold... I wish I had my bookshelf standing right now. |
| Mournblade |
Posted - 25 Mar 2012 : 18:11:13
1. The elric saga hands down
2. Various conan
3. Stone of Tears (Terry Goodkind)
4. Various Drizzt books
5. Lord of the Rings + the hobbit |
| Thauranil |
Posted - 25 Mar 2012 : 10:25:04
My top five-
Lord of the Rings by Tolkien
Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erickson
Game of Thrones by George R Martin
The Twilight War Trilogy By Paul S Kemp
Iron Council by China Mieville
|
| The Sage |
Posted - 24 Mar 2012 : 01:08:35
quote:
Originally posted by Kajehase
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
Perdido Street Station -- China Miéville
Interesting that you picked that one - I kinda feel that while it's still a cracking good read, Miéville wasn't quite fully developed yet when he wrote Perdido Street Station, there's the occasional use of non-standard nouns that seem to be more to say "look at the big words I know" rather than to establishing the weird mood, and the plot is rather more regular (well, as regular as a plot involving trans-dimensional spider-thingies can get) than his later work.
Actually, I felt that The Scar and his other New Crobuzon novels were the better reads, because the setting and characters were a great deal more established.
But Perdido Street Station occupies that special place in my mind, simply because it was, and is, still, in fact, such a departure from anything else in terms of speculative fiction. It really embraces the roots of the genre, and takes it into an entirely new area of narrative exploration.
I think my decision was also based on the fact that I was working a lot on a very elaborate Sigil-based campaign at the time of my reading of the book. And the noted comparisons between the City of Doors and New Crobuzon that I made in my notes, often swung and danced together in unusual combinations in my mind. So I've fond memories of that time. |
| Kajehase |
Posted - 23 Mar 2012 : 06:20:22
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
Perdido Street Station -- China Miéville
Interesting that you picked that one - I kinda feel that while it's still a cracking good read, Miéville wasn't quite fully developed yet when he wrote Perdido Street Station, there's the occasional use of non-standard nouns that seem to be more to say "look at the big words I know" rather than to establishing the weird mood, and the plot is rather more regular (well, as regular as a plot involving trans-dimensional spider-thingies can get) than his later work. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 23 Mar 2012 : 03:35:29
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Fellfire
One of my personal favorites of all time is the Coldfire trilogy by C.S. Friedman.
on my "To Read" list 
It's a good one. The only thing I didn't like about it is that in some parts, it became too 'chatty.' So many monologues that at some point reminded me of Samuel Becket's (absurd) Waiting for Godot (that I was forced to read back in college). Other than that, it's quite enjoyable. The villains are as interesting as the protagonists.
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
In no particular order:-
Viriconium -- M. John Harrison
Perdido Street Station -- China Miéville
Doom of the Darksword -- Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Invisible Cities -- Italo Calvino
Stardust -- Neil Gaiman
Loved Stardust. I can't believe I didn't write that down earlier. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 23 Mar 2012 : 02:03:06
Brooks' Druids are night and day compared to the druids from D&D, but I love his setting and writing. |
| The Sage |
Posted - 23 Mar 2012 : 01:27:51
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by LastStand
1. The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien
2. Pawn of Prophecy - Eddings (Actually the whole Belgariad series)
3. Magician - Feist
4. Elfstones of Shannara - Brooks
5. Shadowrealm - Kemp
It's great to see another Terry Brooks fan out there! Sometimes i feel all alone
I've enjoyed some of his books, though Sword of Shannara was just a retold Lord of the Rings... And there's an assumption made by the characters in there that just bugs the crap out of me, because their assumption and what the shade of Bremen actually said aren't even close to each other.
I've still have to get around to reading Brooks' "Druid" books. From what Kuje, Dennis, and a number of other fellow scribes have told me about them, it's likely that I'll find them worthwhile reading. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 18:21:54
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by LastStand
1. The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien
2. Pawn of Prophecy - Eddings (Actually the whole Belgariad series)
3. Magician - Feist
4. Elfstones of Shannara - Brooks
5. Shadowrealm - Kemp
It's great to see another Terry Brooks fan out there! Sometimes i feel all alone
I've enjoyed some of his books, though Sword of Shannara was just a retold Lord of the Rings... And there's an assumption made by the characters in there that just bugs the crap out of me, because their assumption and what the shade of Bremen actually said aren't even close to each other. |
| The Sage |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 14:07:17
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
I'm assuming the two you haven't heard of are Viriconium and Invisible Cities?
That would be correct. 
Haven't heard of those two either, but i have heard great things about China's book
I'll admit that Viriconium isn't an "easy" book to read. And by that, I mean that Harrison's narrative is just so engrossing. The reader is so thoroughly drawn into these tales of civilisation at the end of all time, that it actually took me two complete readings before I could convincingly say that I understood just half of what Viriconium was about.
|
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 13:14:43
quote:
Originally posted by LastStand
1. The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien
2. Pawn of Prophecy - Eddings (Actually the whole Belgariad series)
3. Magician - Feist
4. Elfstones of Shannara - Brooks
5. Shadowrealm - Kemp
It's great to see another Terry Brooks fan out there! Sometimes i feel all alone |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 13:13:08
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
I'm assuming the two you haven't heard of are Viriconium and Invisible Cities?
That would be correct.
Haven't heard of those two either, but i have heard great things about China's book |
| Dennis |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 11:26:29
1. The Riftwar Trilogy by Raymond E. Feist
In no particular order:
-The Return of the Archwizards Trilogy by Troy Denning
-The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan
-The Haunted Lands Trilogy by Richard Lee Byers
-The Demonwar Saga by Raymond E. Feist
-Test of Metal by Matthew Stover
-Agents of Artifice by Ari Marmell
-The Twilight War Trilogy by Paul S. Kemp
-The Nightrunner Series by Lynn Flewelling (new book coming this May)
-Counterpoint by Rachel Haimowitz
-The Darkwar Saga by Raymond E. Feist
-Dangerous Games by Clayton Emery
-The Summoner by Gail Z. Martin
-Stardust by Neil Gaiman
-Blight of Mages by Karen Miller
-The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks |
| LastStand |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 10:30:27
1. The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien
2. Pawn of Prophecy - Eddings (Actually the whole Belgariad series)
3. Magician - Feist
4. Elfstones of Shannara - Brooks
5. Shadowrealm - Kemp |
| Jorkens |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 09:56:18
This is a cruel and impossible question. I will therefore cheat and choose anthologies and series here. And make it ten just to make it a bit easier on myself.
In no particular order.
Jack Vance - Dying Earth.
Lin Carter - Worlds end series.
Tim Powers - The Anubis Gates.
Robert E Howard- Conan stories.
Lord Dunsanys fantasy tales
Tolkien - The Hobbit.
Michael Moorcock - Hawkmoon books.
C.L Moore Jirel of Joiry/ Northwest Smith
M. John Harrison - Viriconium
Philip Jose Farmer - World of Tiers.
And Now I don't have room for Alan Garner, E.R. Eddison, Brackett, Sprague DeCamp or Gordon R. Dickson. And I frgot Crowleys Little Big and Leibers Newhon books. I give up.
|
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 09:46:39
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
I'm assuming the two you haven't heard of are Viriconium and Invisible Cities?
That would be correct. |
| The Sage |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 06:08:05
I'm assuming the two you haven't heard of are Viriconium and Invisible Cities?
|
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 04:26:17
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
In no particular order:-
Viriconium -- M. John Harrison
Perdido Street Station -- China Miéville
Doom of the Darksword -- Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Invisible Cities -- Italo Calvino
Stardust -- Neil Gaiman
I've only read two of those books, and two I've not even heard of...
I'm looking forward to reading Stardust to my son when he's old enough. It is very much a fairy tale. |
| The Sage |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 03:54:23
In no particular order:-
Viriconium -- M. John Harrison
Perdido Street Station -- China Miéville
Doom of the Darksword -- Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Invisible Cities -- Italo Calvino
Stardust -- Neil Gaiman |
| skychrome |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 03:00:20
1) The Hobbit
2) Lord of the Rings
3) Erevis Cale Trilogy
4) Conan series
5) Fighting Fantasy book series / Steve Jackson, Ian Livingston, especially City of Thieves and Citadel of Chaos |
| scererar |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 02:03:12
Song of Ice and Fire series is up there for me. I recently read the Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher, which was excellent and places Butcher in my top 10 favorite authors. |
