Some good fantasy series (books)?

Surfer · 23 Mar 2008 at 10:01

ohh i forgot Guardians of the Flame? Rosenberg. Aint bad... not up there with Belgariad, Dragonlance canon, Riftwar/Serpentwar but good nonetheless.

Anne McCaffrey? Dragonriders of Pern? (havent read them myself - my brother recommends them)

Gilly · 23 Mar 2008 at 10:33

loopstah said:
Now that's something I didn't know about.

Are they as good as the first two chronicles?

I found them so.

They aren't finished yet, still waiting for the last one.

Hostile_18 · 23 Mar 2008 at 10:44

My favorite fantasy books are the Otherland books by Tad Williams. A massive read (around 4000 pages total) but well worth it.. they are books dieing to be made into movies. They aren't for everyone but If you like Stephen King style story telling I think you'll like them!

Bubo · 23 Mar 2008 at 10:50

Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster is well worth a read. 6 books in the main arc. Has comedic elements akin to Prachett but not as surreal, unless a cameo appearance by a gay unicorn counts as such.

Bubo · 23 Mar 2008 at 10:56

Gilly said:
I found them so.

They aren't finished yet, still waiting for the last one.

There are actually two more books in the series, and you're looking at 4 years before the last one

Got it from the horses mouth last novemeber when he was touring the country promoting Fatal Revenant.

OP might aslo want to checkout Mordants Need by SRD also.

Gilly · 23 Mar 2008 at 11:12

There's 4 books in the last series? Why?

cleanbluesky · 23 Mar 2008 at 11:16

XPE said:
Dark tower ?

DARK TOWER

MikeTimbers · 23 Mar 2008 at 11:21

The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams? Worth a look.

The newest Thomas Covenants are really good but incredibly confusing and frustrating. I hate reading series that aren't complete. *cough* Bloody Jordan *cough*

William James' Sunfall Trilogy is kind of a crossover but only in the beginning.

Bubo · 23 Mar 2008 at 11:24

Gilly said:
There's 4 books in the last series? Why?

He basically said there is so much more story to tell before the end that it would either be one collassal 3500 page volume and wait 4 years for it to be finished, or split it into two and get one every two years. Basically he said it takes him much longer to write these days due to age. He also said that he has had what happens in the final book in his mind from when he wrote the very first one in the first trilogy.

Gilly · 23 Mar 2008 at 11:32

Gah

Ah well, thats another present sorted for my Dad anyway.

loopstah · 23 Mar 2008 at 11:43

fornowagain said:
I see you've read Riftwar/Serpentwar, have you read the recent Darkwar or Conclave series? I've just finished 'Wrath of a Mad God', loved it.

I'd heard that the newer books weren't as good as his previous ones so I avoided them. Might be worth checking out though.

Meridian said:
The Fionavar Tapestry trilogy by Guy Gavriel Kay. Don't know that got missed out as he's probably the most consistently able writer of fantasy out there. His later books are fantasy versions of real historical events, but this set is pure fantasy.

I have the Fionavar Tapestry. Absolutely fantastic story.

Meridian said:
The Winter of the World trilogy by Mike Scott Rohan. Probably out of print.

I've got Castle of the Winds which I enjoyed but for some reason never looked for the rest of the books.

Meridian said:
Lyonesse (originally published as three books, now usually a single volume) by Jack Vance.

Omnibuses are good, more book less money.

Surfer said:
Anne McCaffrey? Dragonriders of Pern? (havent read them myself - my brother recommends them)

Pern is excellent and I've read all of them. Some of the books aren't quite up to the quality of the best in the series but overall it's a great read.

Bubo said:
Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster is well worth a read. 6 books in the main arc. Has comedic elements akin to Prachett but not as surreal, unless a cameo appearance by a gay unicorn counts as such.

Old but good, also read them all.

Surfer · 23 Mar 2008 at 13:37

Would love to see epic films of the Belgariad or the first Shannara trilogy.

slight sidetrack here but anyone know when Colour of Magic is on SKY?

loopstah · 23 Mar 2008 at 16:06

Surfer said:
Would love to see epic films of the Belgariad or the first Shannara trilogy.

slight sidetrack here but anyone know when Colour of Magic is on SKY?

6pm tonight SKY ONE and the second part is tomorrow.

finga · 23 Mar 2008 at 17:56

edit, youve read

Surfer · 23 Mar 2008 at 18:12

loopstah said:
6pm tonight SKY ONE and the second part is tomorrow.

bugger :/ at work i'll have to wait for a repeat of it sometime

Bubo · 23 Mar 2008 at 19:47

Surfer said:
Would love to see epic films of the Belgariad or the first Shannara trilogy.

Apparently a film based on the Shannara books is on the cards, but is inexplicably placed in a post apocalyptic future of decaying skyscrapers :confused:

leezer3 · 23 Mar 2008 at 20:00

Bubo said:
Apparently a film based on the Shannara books is on the cards, but is inexplicably placed in a post apocalyptic future of decaying skyscrapers

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't a lot of the Shannara world based around this sort of thing, albeit very loosely?
Read the Jerle Shannara series- One of the main themes was about looking for an old-world weapon thingy ('The' Antrax if I remember rightly?)

The pointers are there, just don't think the world was explicitly described in these precise terms.

Cheers

-Leezer-

loopstah · 23 Mar 2008 at 20:31

Bubo said:
Apparently a film based on the Shannara books is on the cards, but is inexplicably placed in a post apocalyptic future of decaying skyscrapers

Considering the Shannara books are set in a post-apocalyptic future Earth then I guess that's a good reason to feature a post apocalyptical future setting with decaying skyscrapers.

They visit the pre-apocalyptic city of Eldwist in the "Druid of Shannara" and a pre-apocalyptic city on Parkasia in "Antrax".

He's currently releasing the Genesis of Shannara trilogy which covers the transition from the post-apocalyptic modern world to the world of the Shannara books.

subzero · 24 Mar 2008 at 07:12

I have just read the last in James Barclay's The Chronicles of the Raven DemonStorm,Also all 3 books in the series The Legends of the Raven,i loved them all 3 books in each series and it seems we have similar tastes.

He was very good friends with David Gemmell and reading his books i see similarities in his writing style.If you havent tried them they are an exellent trilogy.

Meridian · 24 Mar 2008 at 11:53

I'd also add the series just started by Scott Lynch. Currently only two are out:

The Lies of Locke Lamora
Red Seas under Red Skies

but I believe that there will eventually be seven in the series.

It's worth trying C J Cherryh: she writes both SF and fantasy. Best place to start is probably "Ealdwood" - another case of a book originally published in more than one volume (two in this case).

The fantasies of Lois McMasters Bujold (she's mainly an SF writer) are good too: Start with "The Curse of Challion" and "Paladin of Souls".

Gene Wolfe. Technically his books are far future SF, but effectively they are fantasy. This Book of the New Sun (originally four books starting with "The Shadow of the Torturer") is essential reading.

For a hoot, the books of Simon R Green. They're so far over the top that they're out of sight, but they are fun - something rare in fantasy. They are also surprisingly gripping.

I've never read Fritz Leiber's "Ffahrad (sp?) and the Grey Mouser" stories (and they are out of print again), but they are very highly regarded by the fantasy writers themselves. Scott Lynch, above, has pinched his main plot premise from those books - and I doubt he makes any secret of it.

Give me a bit longer and I'm sure I'll think of a few more.

BTW, do not bother with the books of Fiona MacIntosh. The first trilogy was a good idea let down by bad writing, and the second trilogy was a bad idea allied to very bad writing.

M