Favorite Fantasy Novels?

EDIT: Frigga, I posted this in the wrong place. Can this be moved, please?

I like the ones in the book section. :/

Wrong forum, but I've little doubt it'll be moved while/soon after I'm done posting this, so no harm.


So, a year back I wouldn't have had an answer, really. I'd essentially grown out of "serious" fantasy.

Now? Mistborn.

No question.

A simply excellent trilogy.

It has excellent characters and a wonderful magic system. It's also scrupulously honest. You know everything the characters do (with a couple of exceptions, but those are always from non-viewpoint characters) and can sometimes figure out what's going on before they do, though you have to be paying attention.

What's more, the magic systems are consistent. The rules are laid out early, and are followed from then on. You can use your knowledge of them to figure out neat things they can do, and odds are those things will be done.

The world building is good, though not amazing. There are cliches aplenty in the basic setup, but it works pretty well.

The plots are an interesting blend of cliche and original ideas. Nothing is going to make you (well, make me) jump up going "How original!", and quite a few things are common tropes of the genre. But it still manages to be engrossing and surprising, in part because of the way it encourages you to figure out for yourself what's going on.

All-in-all highly recommended. Everyone needs to give at least the first one (The Final Empire) a try.

Sufficed to say, I expect great things from Brandon Sanderson (the author) in the future. Who knows? Perhaps he can turn the final Wheel of Time book into something readable (he's been hired to finish the series.)



Next on my list comes The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It's another good one. Solid characters, a magic system that also seems consistent (hard to say, with only one book of at least three out), some interesting world-building, a masterful ability to make you feel for characters makes it a very good read.

Finally, but by no means last, comes Terry Pratchett. I own all the "main" Discworld books and Good Omens, and adore (almost) all of them. One of the best humourous writers in recent time, who just keeps getting better as time goes on.


And, confession time, I cannot stand Lord of the Rings. The plot is good, but the characters are rather flat, and the world building, while thorough, is handled poorly.

All Tolkien (duh) and Abarat.
I guess Abarat could be considered fantasy. Anyway it is a great, engaging, exciting book series. Everyone should read them.
But fantasy is my favorite genre of book, so I have many favorites.

The entire Dragonlance series. The best ones are with the original authers : Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. They are magnificent authors. You should really check out their books.

Dragonlance is alright. Not bad, by any means, but not outstanding, either.

They're just too...generic to really stand out.

What would seperate typical fiction from fantasy? Because I don't think I read much "fantasy".

TBH, the only fantasy books I've read were Tolkien ones. Oh, and Harry Potter if that counts. Other than that, I usually get my dose of fantasy through video games and movies.

I'd be interested in reading Terry Pratchett, though.

Originally Posted by Forte

What would seperate typical fiction from fantasy? Because I don't think I read much "fantasy".

The only real criteria I can think of is that Fantasy involves magic in some way. (Fantastic creatures, such as Dragons, count as magic.)

Within the fantasy genre there's a whole bunch of sub-genres, hence the vagueness of the definition.

About the only similarity between a cynical Urban Fantasy story (such as Nightwatch) and an idealistic high-fantasy world-builder (like Lord of the Rings) is that there are, well, magical elements. (Lord of the Rings is actually pretty light on the magic.)

Then you add in things like the first Mistborn book (Ocean's 11, only with magic!) or Conan the Barbarian, or the Discworld books, or Dragonriders of Pern, or...

Lots of fantasy is set in medieval-esque places, but just as much isn't.
Lots of it is very idealistic, almost like a fairy tale or one of the nicer sorts of epic poems. Then you read A Song of Ice and Fire, say.
Lots have "chosen one" heroes, lots don't.

Perhaps fantasy just means "events that could not happen in the world as we know it." Intentionally so, mind you, impossible things caused by bad writing don't count.

Mind you, that doubles as a pretty good definition of magic, too. Which brings us back to the start.

Though it isn't my favourite, 'The Sword of Shannara' deserves a special place in my heart for it's numerous imperfections and it blatantly, whether intentionally or not, ripping off 'Lord of the Rings'.

That's another generic one.

He improves upon it with the later Shannara books, becoming steadily less formulaic, though just as, well, unmemorable.

It's a shame, there are good ideas, and generally interesting characters, but the books have just never...clicked with me. Voyage of the Jerle Shannara had so much going for it, and in many ways worked, but in the end just wasn't anywhere near as good as it should've been.

Same with his..."Demonhunter" trillogy. Lots of potential there, failed implementation, somehow.

Harry Potter, The Hobbit, and the Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

Scott Bakker's Second Apocalypse topped my list last year; the first time I've had a definitive "fav" since Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire and Williams' Otherland began competing with the classics for my shelf space.

There's plenty good to be said about Bakker's series (currently at four books of a planned eight); the writing, plotting, and characterization far outpace par for the genre - though they may not quite reach Martin - but I was really endeared to the books by a personal resonance. Somehow Bakker's choices of direction and theme satisfy my hopes for the characters and curiosities about the world far more often than other writers. Its almost a guilty pleasure.

I believe that Tad Williams has the best imagination in the business, as evidenced both by his spectacular world-building and enormously diverse casts... and his unparalleled ability to wax on elegantly about utterly trivial BS for chapter after chapter. Its delicious. George R. R. Martin is George R. R. Martin. If you would not be willing to sell multiple organs to have ASOIAF properly finished tomorrow, you're not a real fantasy fan.

Funnily enough these three would be near the bottom of any recommendation list I might provide a fantasy newb. Bakker is a squick-fest, Williams is a slog, and Martin will take 15 years to finish the 'Song. I'd certainly echo John's lauds for Sanderson as an entry point to fantasy, or a first read after the forced LotR/Earthsea surveys of middle school, and I'd similarly suggest Abercrombie's The First Law for anyone who "outgrew" Jordan, Eddings, and Salvatore and would like to see what's changed. In both cases the prose is casual but accessible, the narrative runs like clockwork, and a whole story is covered in a mere 1500 pages ().

On the other side of the the Brooks/Lucas divide, I've always had trouble finding truly enjoyable material. I seem to have read Tolkien, Donaldson, and Le Guin long before would have been proper, and coming back to them seven years later I find that however much I respect the novels, they fail to absorb me.

... Also, i luvs me my Harry Potter

I actually haven't read that much fantasy, but I used to (and in all honesty, probably still do) love the Redwall books. Which I guess count. Though really they are a bit... repetitive in their way.

I'm a big fan of this book called Talion: Revenant by Michael A. Stackpole (famous for his Star Wars novels). I've read it more times than I can count. For some reason I just really enjoy it. Since (like the Redwall books) I read it first when I was younger, it's probably more about nostalgia than it actually being a really good fantasy book or anything.

But I do know for a fact that Fables kicks ass in a big bad way.

'The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant' was alright. Nice ideas. Buut, in the end I got sick of having to go search through a dictionary every sentence due to the authors excessive use of a thesaurus (I assume) and of the generic fantasy plot elements.

But all up 'Lord of the Rings' is by far my favourite. I really should finish reading 'The Silmarillion'.

The Old Kingdom Trilogy by Garth Nix (Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen) is a very worthy read, as is His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman.

Also, a fantasy series I've read recently that I can highly recommend is Robin Hobbs' Farseer Trilogy. However, her most recent series, Soldier Son, I didn't like quite as much.

War of the Flowers by Tad Williams is a very good standalone fantasy novel.

Originally Posted by nolan

I actually haven't read that much fantasy, but I used to (and in all honesty, probably still do) love the Redwall books. Which I guess count. Though really they are a bit... repetitive in their way.

I loved the Redwall series as a kid, although I think Brian Jacques is seriously in need of a good editor. Did you notice that he managed to change a couple of the characters' genders in between books?

Gonna have to say 'The Looking Glass Wars'

Always was a fan of Alice in Wonderland as a kid, and this book just gave it a dark and twisted edge that really gave the impression 'Wonderland' is supposed to be a creepy and dangerous place.

Okay, I admit it is not written well, but the concept more than makes up for that