Fantasy Discussion

[sdmf_from_hell]

Comments, suggestions, rants welcome.

:horse:

My readings.

So i'm currently reading Mr Martins 'A Song of Fire and Ice' series and totally digging it.. almost finished the 1st Storm Of Swords book (3rd in the series).

I'm pretty new to the fantasy genre and i'm wondering who else has read a part of this series and how it compares to other fantasy novels, novellas or series.

I've also read the Dark Tower series (King) and have never been so entranced while reading and i feel i'll be chasing that immersion for quite some time (Just like an addicts first heroin rush).

As you may tell, i like the longer stories and enjoy seeing characters grow over the length of multiple books.

So, children of Zok from the line of &t, what fantasy book/s are you reading? Whats your all time favourite?

[Dionysus]

I liked fantasy books between age 10-14. I really don't dig them anymore but back in the day I liked some good ol fashion Tolkien. Looking back I honeslty cant figure out what their appeal was to me, but then again I am basicly a totally different person from what I was at 14.

[sdmf_from_hell]

yeah that's fair enough.

I like fantasy for the same reason i like drugs - complete escapism of modern and logical life. By day working away, and come night: anywhere the medium takes me (whether it be book or intoxicant).

Out of curiosity, what type of reading are you into?

[Dionysus]

Beat novels, Historical Non-Fiction, Crime Novels, Some kinds of Sci Fi and war novels, depending on the book. Whatever tickles my fancy…

[Ford Prefect]

Other than Tolkien, this has got to be the greatest Fantasy trilogy of all time:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memory,_Sorrow,_and_Thorn




FUCK man, haven't read Fantasy for a bit, but if those three novels didn't have three thousand pages between them'd read em again in a second.

Personally I haven't read Fantasy for quite some time because it seems to have become an exceedingly generic genre. Fantasy writers have found a formula that works (tokiens...) and just rolled with it. Very little in the way of innovation.

Don't get me wrong, there's some great Fantasy but fuck... it's hard to keep a twelve part series of 500+ page novels fresh. Robert Jordan (RIP...) is a mothafuckin' asshole for even trying.

EDIT:

It did provide me great escape as a youth. Now I like sci fi for the similar reasons. Escape, but it also blows your mind. :)

EDIT EDIT:

Thinking back, I read a LOT of fantasy. More suggestion:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_Gate_Cycle

um... Wizard of Earthsea! Fo fucking sho!

The Phantom Tollbooth, Sabriel, Artemis Fowl and Redwall for the younguns...


Watership Down

THE NEVERENDING STORY (so fucking good.)


The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is semi-fantasic.



And a bit kidish, but I definitely dug Forgotten Realms when I was a lad.


EDIT EDIT EDIT: Sorry, stoned/excited. :)

[kellie-marie]

Wizards first rule is pretty cool. =D

[Lao Tzu]

Haha Neverending Story.
Nostalgia.

[sdmf_from_hell]

EDIT EDIT EDIT: Sorry, stoned/excited. :)

Not at all. it was for people like you that this thread was created.

What are some great Sci Fi reads you guys could suggest?

I see Sci Fi as being a sub-part of the Fantasy genre... also since its in the same section in shops anyway.

Anything comparable to Dark Tower in that it's surreal yet you see references to it in everyday life and think for a second "holy shit, could it be real?"

EDIT: Death Gate Cycle looks brilliant, thanks for the suggestion.

[Mister B]

I love the Sword of Truth series. I've read the first four Dark Tower books and they were really good.

[Euda]

The Farseer Saga (Anything by Robin Hobb AKA Megan Lindholm)

These books have are written with an excellent style. If you haven't picked one up, try it on for size.

The Wheel of Time

Epic, the last book is still being written; it's book 12. It does fall apart a little, but there's still a chance that things will be wrapped up in a neat little package.

Anything by T.H. White

He influenced so many of the best fantasy writers out there and J.K. Rowling.

A Song of Fire and Ice

This is shaping up to be a truly fantastic series.

The Sword of Truth

The first handful of books are top notch, then it begins to fall apart a bit. The author wanted to close the series, but was held to contract.

Anything by Tad Williams

The imagination and creativity in this author's works is beyond par.

Anything by David Eddings

These are a simple classic. An easy read with a fun story.

Anything by Frank Herbert (Dune Series in Particular)

This is a staple and anybody with an interest in fantasy should read it; it has more levels than most authors ever consider.

Anything by Raymond Feist (Riftwar Saga)

Good stuff; I really don't remember much about it.

The Darksword Trilogy

I like this one. It has a bit of grit to it, while still being more than a little silly.

The Death Gate Cycle

The scope of this series is wonderful.

Sword of Shannara

A masterpiece, as are most of Terry Brooks works.

Rose of the Prophet

Just keep reading past the dry beginning. It gets better. Honest.

Anything by Michael Moorcock

Amazing books; maybe my favourite fantasy.

Incarnations of Immortality Series

An interesting meld of science fiction, fantasy, and just plain strangeness.

Anything by Steven Brust

Flying lizards and lots of knives? How can you go wrong?

Anything by Tolkien

The books speak for themselves and now the movies speak for the books.

Stephen King's Dark Tower

He definitely pushed his boundaries with this one and wasn't afraid of where the writing took him. They're a ride.

I'm not sure if there's much else out there that's truly worth the read. There's that series with the leper, but the name doesn't spring to mind. Thomas Covenant, maybe. The last fantasy I read was by Terry Brooks. I've got confidence in that guy's writing abilities and he didn't disappoint; it was the Word & Void series.

[Psionicist]

That's a fairly comprehensive post up there. A few of my favorites -

- Raymond Fiest (riftwar saga, serpentwar saga, and others). It's the realism of it that i like the most, i think. you don't see as much of that "lol i'm an invincible central character *runs off and kills 800 men without breaking a sweat". His series are a continuation of the same world, so you get to see characters age, have children, die, ect. overall, very well written and i'd recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy.

- Tolkien (lotr and other stuff) I doubt there are many people in this thread who haven't read something by him. personally, i'd suggest The Hobbit, All three LoTR books, and The Silmarillion, in that order.

- Naomi Novik (Temeraire series) Basically, the Napoleonic wars, with dragons integrated into the military on both sides, as air superiority fighters/recon units. Unique new idea with fantasy, badass writing style.

- War of the Spider Queen (various authors, forgotten realms). Written by a large number of fantasy authors in the Forgotten realms universe, a story about a party of r.a. salvatore's dark elves. if his godmodding put you off to forgotten realms, give this a try. they're not afraid to kill off a central character or ten.

I'll come back and post a few more later, but that's a good chunk of my favorite fantasy series.

[nevermind]

Other than Tolkien, this has got to be the greatest Fantasy trilogy of all time:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memory,_Sorrow,_and_Thorn




FUCK man, haven't read Fantasy for a bit, but if those three novels didn't have three thousand pages between them'd read em again in a second.




Thanks for finding me a new book to read, just ordered it off Amazon. Been looking for a new book for a while, im quite a picky reader so hope its good!

My favourite series was a fairly new one, by Joe Abercrombie, called the Blade Itself. 3 Very good books
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blade_Itself
reccomended reading :)

[Spier1200]

i'd have to say all time favourite fantasy series is the Farseer Saga by Robin Hobb... you won't want to put them down.. i remember devouring them all in two days..
Also by Robin Hobb, the Liveship Traders Trilogy... i really liked this one because unlike most fantasy it was set at sea... and as always her language is fantastic... you should definately try reading this one if you get the chance...

[RavenKnight]

I would to throw out Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere and American Gods, both were awesome, plus Good Omens was decent too. ive been on a apocalyptic kick lately and S.M. Stirling's The Change series are really good too. Stories about everything run on electrical and combustion failing and pretty much sending everyone back into the middle ages. Really, really good. Though i dont know how hes going to wrap up the story in his last book unless its like 700 pages.

[Euda]

Gaiman has written a handful of quality fantasy. I enjoyed Anansi Boys while I was on a bus ride.

[kyleinwuhan]

I'm currently reading Ender's Game.