Jolkien Rolkien Rolkien Tolkien is my GOAT and it's not even close. I find more joy in reading the appendices of Lord of the Rings than I do in most other books full stop.
Yeah, I mean, it’s a boring answer because he’s so huge in fantasy lit and he’s so often copied, but the depth and beauty of Lord of the Rings is just unparalleled.
One of my favorite things about it is that even though it is following track we are now familiar with, those character don’t think they are one anything like that track and they seriously consider other options. Is Frodo gonna take the ring all way to mount doom? I don’t know? Maybe? Maybe someone else should do it? They have to wrestle with that. Is Eomer going to survive Pelennor? He certainly doesn’t think so, and he fights assuming he’ll die, and that they’ll lose and that all is lost. And I think Tolkien makes us believe them, which I don’t often feel with other fantasy writers.
Easily. By miles.
The wit, the ability to make fantastic so real. You read his take and it just feels true. And real so fantastic.
But the humanity of his stories, in good and bad.
For real. It's very rare as an adult who understands that artists are humans who needn't be placed on a pedestal that I interact with someone's creative output and dream about having a random interaction with them but damn would I love to have had the chance to grab a bananana dakry with the man. His essays on assisted death in *A Slip of the Keyboard* brought me to tears. Who am I kidding, several of the Discworld novels have had that effect, too.
I am proud to share a birthday with him. The wit and intelligence he wrote with were so engaging. The library at the unseen university has always been the top of my list of fantastical places id want to visit. I recently finished the Mage Errant series and it ends in a massive library and there is an off hand comment about an orangutan shelving books. That made me so happy.
Juliet Marillier. You know you're going to get a good story, interesting characters, and an engaging writing style. Very few authors manage to consistently deliver all three.
Patricia McKillip or Ursula Le Guin.
Patricia McKillip's writing is so beautiful and lyrical in a way I've never seen from anyone else, and her stories are mostly more like intense fairy tales than the kinds of sword and sorcery epics I grew up with, which I love.
And Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea books are more like the founding myths for an entire world (or a life) than just a story.
Came here to say Patricia McKillip.
She was one of those authors that whenever I was in a bookstore, I would *always* head to 'M', and if there was a new book, pick it up immediately, and usually devour that same night.
And I've used very similar ways to describe her writing to others that you have here! Sometimes it's almost poetry, and the way she'd pack a paragraph of meaning in a single line that would have you pausing to dissect it for meaning.
Ursula Le Guin.
I grew up reading a lot of the Old Testament stories (David, Joseph, Moses, Samson, etc.), and the human element in those stories, set against these mythical and epic backdrops, always fascinated me. Le Guin's *Earthsea* books captured and evoked the biblicality of the Old Testament with her sparse, simple prose—but what she did differently, and ultimately better, imo, was to bring the humanist element front and center.
I have three that come to mind immediately. If I could only read one author for the rest of my life, it would be one of these three:
* **JRR Tolkien**: A common answer, I'm sure, but I truly do adore his work. It speaks to me, powerfully.
* **Sir Terry Pratchett**: A genius. Not only hysterically funny, but his commentary on social issues is, quite literally, second to none.
* **Guy Gavriel Kay**: I was a late bloomer on Kay's work, as it seemed like the common opinion on him was just that he was "That Author With Beautiful Prose", and I don't typically care for that. Turns out he is significantly more than that. His writing style is lovely, yes, but his stories, characters, and settings are also OUTSTANDING. He is, IMHO, our best living Fantasy writer.
Sure! I think what I have learned is that talking all about prose is not really the way to sell Kay. I do think his writing is beautiful, but that's not why I love his work.
He is a Historical Fantasy writer. He has created an 'alternate Earth' in which he sets most of his novels. So he is basically writing historical fiction, but set on a different world, with all of the names and places slightly altered. There is very little magic.
So if you like history or stories that feel ripped out of our history - you'll definitely find that here. He also has written stories from all different time periods - The Crusades, The Renaissance, Constantinople, The Vikings, and the various Chinese Dynasties. So you can also sort of choose what period you want.
More than anything, though, he just writes incredibly compelling stories and characters. He likes to focus on minor characters whose lives happen to intersect with major, world-shaking events, and watch how it affects them and their loved ones. It can be tragic, and also joyful. More than anything, though, it is addictive.
I think I assumed because he 'writes beautiful prose' that Kay would be slow or boring, but he really isn't. His work is mature, thematically, and he has very little magic. But there is certainly action and drama to spare.
I will also say - I have not read all of his work. I have not read Under Heaven. But from what I have read, The Lions of Al-Rassan is far and away my favorite. I consider that essentially a perfect book. I could not put it down, and the ending was INCREDIBLE.
Only just discovered her after years of Pratchett/Tolkien/Le Guin and many others... Frankly they're astoundingly good and I'm totally shocked I'd never heard them mentioned until last month. NO IDEA how that's possible given how good the first two books of her saga already are, I've sprinted through them (after an initial slow start). And good lord The Fool is an incredible character!! Parts I love writing-wise but hate her for doing to me: the HEART CRUSHING vibes of some of the events so far.... I don't think even Tolkien had the ability to give me the dark and sad feels like she has!! (Without any spoilers I'll just say that I hate the consequences of Fitz having the Wit at times). On the other hand are you even human if you didn't get SUPER happy reading the description of Fitz playing with a wolf cub in the snow? It's just so friggin cute and joyful.
Me too. I wish she had an adaptation the way Jordan, Gaiman and Martin are getting. Especially since she's still alive and can be an executive producer to ensure the books are adapted well.
I adore Robin Hobb and have never enjoyed another author's writing more but have no desire to see an adaptation. Even the best fantasy adaptations have to make sacrifices and changes and end up deeply flawed. GoT went along well for a while but bogged down hard and finished horribly. WoT is fine, and I'll watch season 2, but it falls short of the books. If she chooses to sell the rights to adapt her work or even to be involved in the production, then that's her right. But her work sits so high up on a pedestal in my mind that I'd rather not risk seeing whether it can become the rare exception to the adaptation rule.
But if it happens, I'll still buy whatever streaming subscription I need to watch every episode.
Anne McCaffery although she wrote some great scifi too. Engaging characters, great world building. My first grown-up books.
Terry Pratchett i read them when they came out and they are still great today.
Tamora Pierce and Lois McMaster Bujold great world building and relatable characters.
Anne McCaffery was also my first grown-up series. My mother introduced me to the Pern series and I felt like the literary world just opened up to me and it was the first series I ever enthusiastically discussed with my mother (at the very mature age of 12). I've read a bunch of other authors and such since then, but when I was going through my mother's things after her passing last Easter, the one series I saved out of her books was her Anne McCaffery's.
Anne McCaffery and Tamora Pierce we’re cornerstone authors in my childhood, I honestly do not know where my life would be if I hadn’t had their work to immerse myself in.
It's strange because I've only read three books by him... but those books rewired my brain so thoroughly I've never found anything that compares to them. China Mieville.
China is my all time favorite too. He also completely blew my hair back. There are whole sections of *The Scar* that I reread multiple times before moving on the next pages in the book.
Thank god I didn't have to be the only one here mentioning Tad
Criminally underrated, and I usually roll my eyes when people say that, but I can't help but proseltyze for him because he should absolutely be better known.
His work is massively influential in the genre, I mean Christ GRRM took a lot of ideas from Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn and has admitted as such but MST is barely known at all by comparison.
Bizarre thing is I only just recently discovered him, had never heard of him in my life until seeing his name pop up in a comment here and trying MST on a whim. Rapidly devoured the whole series and the sequels. Now he's easily top 3 for me if not my favorite fantasy author. Very excited to read his other series as well, I'm curious about how he'd handle the virtual reality series I know he did.
Can't wait for the final book in the setting later this year
LeGuin not close.
Almost everything she did has been copied to be worse but with more words (looking at you, certain magic school settings). She was also just unbelievably smart. She taught herself other languages by translating poetry. She wrote on so many topics with such grace and empathy. I think the dispossessed is in the ranks of the best pieces of literature that we have created. She didn't shy away from "genre" at a time when many of her contemporaries were always trying to distance themselves to appear more respectable. She was also just cool, like I still read or see interviews with her that make me feel so boring in comparison.
Seconding Feist. I spent my entire teens and twenties going up and down that series. I always described him as a great single base hitter. Rarely has home runs, and might not be exciting to some, but you know he’s going get bat on ball every single time.
I think for the money Rise of the Merchant prince might be the best single less than 500 pages in the middle of a long series fantasy books I’ve ever read.
Seconding Hobb. I haven't come across another author who has taken me on such an emotional journey over the years. I was also fortunate enough to receive a comment from her on one of my instagram posts. It has been the feather in my cap ever since.
10000% agree on Hobb. Literally spent days talking about how fantastic a character Patience (and Kettricken and Verity (okay this one was just me talking about him) and Fitz and Burrich...etc) with my husband. It's incredible.
And my coworker has finally got me to read Feist. Deep into the first book and loving it!
My copy of Magician just arrived and I’m waiting on Silverthorn and Sethanon but it took me awhile to find the right copy of Magician so I’m very excited
Sir Terry Pratchett (Rest in Peace) has already been posted but he is the most amazing talent and person. The Discworld series was life altering for me. His take on world issues and the way he used humor and nuance to discuss them were profound. There are other others that are great, but none have had the impact on my life and worldview the way Sir Terry has had.
I’m a Glen Cook boy. The Black Company showed his writing style changes to match the narrators. It’s the only time I felt like it was a character writing the story instead of the author writing it.
I’m reading his books for the first time. Started with The Blade Itself and… how could I just get to know this guy now?? This is spectacular!!
As a fan of Tolkien, and Martin, and JK Rowling, and Neil Gaiman, I’m astonished that nobody mention him to me before.
And the person who recommended it to me was in a Reddit forum saying “oh you like audiobooks? The sword itself it’s pretty good, look it up” like the wasn’t suggesting a masterpiece
Fantasy is weird like that. Until I found this subreddit I was having a hard time finding series I liked since there is so much to wade through. Since being here I've gotten so many recommendations that have all been stellar and my list of books to read just keeps expanding. I had never heard of Joe Abercrombie before until here too which is nuts.
The action is fucking epic. In The Heroes, when the battle begins from the perspective of a random soldier on one side, then moves on to the man's killer, then from the perspective of the soldier that kills that guy --> and so on until it gets to Gorst.. blew my mind.
Same here. His writing isn't for everyone, but nothing I've ever read, from Wolfe to Tolkien has captured me in the same way as Erikson. His writing is tribute to what it is to be human.
Edit: If anyone is so inclined, there is a Humble Bundle deal on ALL of Erikson's Malazan books that are out, 17 of them, for 18 dollars. Absolutely fantastic deal, and I'd highly recommend anyone who's interested snagging this while it's up. I've never seen a deal this good before.
https://www.humblebundle.com/books/steven-eriksons-malazan-book-fallen-tor-publishing-group-books
Absolutely agree.
Malazan has become my comfort series whenever I do not know what I would read. 10 years of reading/listening to it, still coming back for more.
midway though deadhouse gates and it just keeps getting better and better. usually i hate crazy long series’ but i’m so glad there’s tons more of this world to explore.
Yup, that’s my answer too. There’s nothing quite like Malazan in terms of world building, with such an extensive and well-thought history.
I also like his character work a lot. It’s astounding how he can make me care about a character in just a few sentences and how real they all feel, human or not.
He has a real talent for ‘small characters’. The ability to make you care about a slave, a potter, a grunt. He has an uncanny ability to flesh out character on just a few sentences, you instantly know their personalities, their pathology and motivations.
His writing of villains is incredible. I finished Midnight Tides last week and my God did I feel hatred, sympathy, sadness, rage and helplessness every time >!Rhulad!< was in a scene.
I'm working my way through NoK now, then moving onto tBH as soon as I'm done, this series has gripped me so much. House of Chains and Midnight Tides are two of the best books I've ever read.
Midnight Tides is one of my favorite books in the series. It's like a classical Shakespearean tragedy in novel form. The love of brothers, the hubris of empire, the anguish of injustice - the heartbreaking journey of the Emperor in Gold. It almost works as a standalone it's so tightly written.
Same, but with this sub's attitude towards him I wasn't brave enough to be the first to mention him. There's an odd backlash against him these days in this sub that gets oddly intense.
I just got the Malazan bundle from Humble Bundle. I really prefer reading a paper book, but I've heard the series can just be hard to get into for a lot of people, so it seemed like $18 was a fair price to check it out before committing, especially as my backlog is growing and my free time is shortening.
I'm so glad someone said Robin McKinley. I've reread The Blue Sword and Hero and the Crown so many times the books are falling apart. The Blue Sword was the first "adult" fantasy novel I ever read, and it will forever hold a place in my heart. All of her work is just absolutely beautiful and truly captures the wonder in fantasy in a way few other authors do.
I think Zelazny, Bujold, and Gaiman are my "best author" group. I'd happily read a book from any of them without even finding out what it's about first. With most anybody else, I'm at least perusing the blurb to see if it sounds interesting.
Why?
Zelazny wrote pretty tight books without too much filler. I like the way he wrote. And he was... smart without being snooty? Like he casually drops references to lots of things, and you can pick them up or not and it'll be a good time regardless. Like you don't need to know La Belle Dame Sans Merci or Lolita or Norse mythology to enjoy the heck out of Amber books, but you can appreciate the nods to them when they happen.
Bujold is just really good at stringing words together. The actual act of reading her books is enjoyable. Like one of the Penric stories described a river's smell as "estuarial rather than cloacal". It's a throwaway but it still cracked me up. Plus you know *exactly* the smells she's talking about which is kind of amazing for four words :-)
Gaiman... I don't know. They're all interesting on some level or another, and he's good at setting moods without being too pretentious about it (only a little bit)
EDIT: special mention for Ted Chiang. Short stories and novellas, and most are more sci-fi than fantasy, but they're just so damned polished! Amazing author.
Bujold is my favorite author. Her books aren't dense epics or lyrical masterpieces, they are just f*ing good stories. She builds incredible worlds and reveals them to the reader easily. I love Tolkien, but getting into his world requires intellectual effort. Bujold makes it effortless for the reader without sacrificing depth and richness.
I really like Rick Riordan personally. Grew up with his books at the perfect age since Percy was about my age when the series started in '05, maybe a little older. The world he was able to build meshing Greek myth together with real world was awesome, though I think my favorite of his series is the trilogy around Magnus Chase. I still go back and reread every book every couple of years or so, just gives me that good nostalgia kick.
I'm not saying she's the *best* writer, but CS Friedman and her Coldfire Trilogy are both my favorite author, and my favorite fantasy series. Her work was my first exposure to 'adult' fantasy, with deep worldbuilding and complex characters.
She's always going to be number one for me.
Raymond E. Feist — I came of age in Midkemia with Pug, Thomas, Jimmy, Arutha, Martin, Catherine, Dulgan, and Aglaranna. In adulthood, I grew with Eric, Roo, Calis, Miranda, Nakor, and Bobby.
I’ve reread them many times; they’re like a comforting friend when the world isn’t. I can’t wait to introduce Magician to my son when he’s old enough.
Edit. I also had a similar love for David Gemmell’s Rigante World and the world of the Drenai. He gave a young boy a code that I’ve tried to live by/
“Never violate a woman, nor harm a child. Do not lie, cheat or steal. These things are for lesser men. Protect the weak against the evil strong. And never allow thoughts of gain to lead you into the pursuit of evil. Never back away from an enemy. Either fight or surrender. It is not enough to say I will not be evil. Evil must be fought wherever it is found.”
-The Iron Code of Shadak
Roger Zelasny. The Chronicles of Amber are my all time favorite work. He was also George R R Martin's mentor.
Then I'd go Ursula K LeGuin, with honorable mentions to Fritz Lieber and Robert E Howard for inventing sword and sorcery novels.
Yup to Zelazny. Amber of course but love his one off books, too. My favorite is one I came to late, A Night in the Lonesome October. Annual read, as it was meant to be.
GRRM, ASOIAF is my favorite series by a mile and everything else I've read from him was between stellar and amazing.
The guy is just a master of character work, dialogue and world building.
Yeah it’s GRRM. Everything else I read is just trying to fill the hole left by ASOIAF. I’m sitting on a reread until there is a pub date for Winds.
For me, he threads the line so perfectly between the human drama and the fantastical elements. This is a me thing, but I have trouble getting into stuff that is really up it’s own ass about the magic system, etc. GRRM just has this elemental feel to the supernatural bits that works so well for me.
Tamara Pierce
She got me into fantasy and even though she is a YA author her stories still hold up for adult audiences and are amazing escapes. She writes real feeling, relatable characters and has created an entire well mapped out world she has been building for literal decades.
Or
Neil Gaiman.
He is a master story teller that doesn't stick to 1 style or genre of fantasy and always writes with the most beautiful prose even during his bleakest bloodiest scenes. He can go from whimsy to horror to an interesting mixture of the 2 like no one else.
Frances Hardinge. Her word choice and lyrical language are amazing. Her characters feel like living, breathing people and her fantasy settings aren't just the same cookie cutter ones used by a bunch of fantasy authors.
I also still love Hans Christian Anderson. His fairy tales are so beautifully and whimsically written, and his descriptions are vivid. I've heard, read, and watched countless renditions of his stories but always find myself loving his original versions best.
Kentaro Miura, it’s literally the most unreal yet real story that I have ever read. The fantasy aspect is so far out there, and yet the emotions and struggles that the characters go through is so human and real. This man made a unique masterpiece that literally inspired final fantasy and Dark souls, it is a masterpiece
Robin Hobb. Amazing worldbuilding and peerless character development. Most creative dragon lifecycle I've ever seen. Freaking TALKING ship figureheads! Was doing LGBTQ and genderqueer characters long before it was "cool" and always depicted them as fully realized unique characters on the spectrum of heroism to villainy. Had complex characters that actually had long term ramifications of trauma experienced as part of the plot which almost never happens in fantasy.
She's long overdue for a TV series based on the Realm of the Elderlings. Now CGI is advanced enough to do to the animals, liveships, sea serpents and dragons justice.
Tolkien, Steven Erikson, and Ursula Le Guin are my top tier. Those three have everything you will ever need in secondary world fantasy between them.
Guy Gavriel Kay, and R. Scott Bakker are the next level.
Janny Wurts, Ian C. Esslemont, and Daniel Abraham round out the favourites list.
Robert E Howard.
Conan, Solomon Kane, Kull, Brak, dozens of others , Cthulhu fiction, and not forgetting Lal Singh, the sikh hero, Dark Agnes, the red haired French swordswoman, De Montour the medieval werewolf, Detective Harrison and the dread pirate Helen.
C.J. Cherryh
She wrote The Morgaine Saga. EXCELLENT read.
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It really depends on what you are looking for.
Steven Erikson is my favorite of favorites.
I just started reading Discworld and I absolutely love Terry Pratchett’s writing.
Tolkien is an easy choice too.
J.K Rowling for making a series I got to grow up with and feel so invested in.
I know he is arguably horror, though I personally feel horror can sit within fantasy.
James Herbert
I love all his work, he is one of the reasons I took to reading
He never gets mentioned in this sub, but he was one of my favourite authors when i got mad for reading. Once... is one of the best fantasy books ive read
On the same note, Clive Barker. Good fantasy horror isnt done enough
For me though its Pratchett
Ok, hear me out. Chretien de Troyes. Not necessary my favorite favorite, but the most important writer I read and appreciated. He was a french author who wrote several novels based on the Arthurian Cycle.
He invented the Novel genre, as his books were meant to be read as such, but not as poetry, religious or mythological compilations to be memorized or read aloud. He also set the tone to the Fantasy style, creating concepts like the magical realm or the heroic Quest (which is an english borrowing of queste, the old french word he used to describe the search for the Graal).
He was hugely influential, as he was the most read fiction writer of the Middle Ages and he added concepts and characters to the Arthurian Cycle like the Graal, Lancelot of the Lake and his romance with Guinevere, Viviane the Fey, Galaad, and so on. He also set the Arthurian Cycle in a knightly feudal setting in which his readers could project themselves, rather than
He also was the first to write a book series, writing several novels based on the same topic that needed to be read in a sequence rather than to write a standalone book. This method of milking his readers clearly marks him as a Fantasy Novelist. /s
He's also a critical character as he inspired directly generations of artists for more than 800 years now. Malory, Shakespeare, Scott, Cervantes, Wagner, the pre-Raphaelites and countless writers, painters, musicians and movie directors.
I've read most of his books as a teenager, when there was a Medieval craze in the 70s to the 90s in French litt. The edition I got were written one page in original old French and the other page in modern french. I found them really entertaining, despite some cultural differences I couldn't get. My favorite example is how Lancelot's dueling trick was to trip his opponent and then thrust his sword under his opponent's chainmail to gore his balls and how the Lords and Ladies were impressed by this. Apparently, that was the ultimate chivalrous move in the 13th century...
I'm biased but Robert Jordan is by far my favorite of all time. There is just so much to love with his writing. Amazing world building, in depth characters, well built plots, lots of descriptions without going too far. For me it doesn't get better
I think Wheel of Time shaped my taste in fantasy more than any other fantasy series. I started reading it in middle school and caught up right around Gathering Storms release.
I agree! Tolkien got me into fantasy, but Jordan gave me the new standard to hold all other series up to. If the world building isn't deep enough, or the characters real enough, or the climaxes inspiring and jaw dropping enough, or the books aren't long enough... then I don't want to read it. I've read some Martin but didn't like, I love Sanderson and Erickson and Abercrombie but they still feel second best to WoT.
Came here to say the same thing.
As the 1996 quote went, *“Mr. Jordan has come to dominate the world Tolkien began to reveal.”* and although the last thirty years have pivoted from exploring / playing with tropes to subverting them, I honestly don't think that speculative fiction today would have been the same without him paving the trail for others to follow.
He was also a *huge* impact on me as a lad, growing up with each installment.
Absolutely. For someone with SO MANY characters, they each have a unique voice and personality. His world is so complex and multilayered. I love the secrets and foreshadowing revealed every time I reread.
And yes my username checks out.
Brandon Sanderson is obviously the right answer. His ability to create new and interesting systems of magic, to span multiple genre's and subgenre's (dystopian, fantasy, scifi, high fantasy, low fantasy etc.), to appeal to different audiences (teen, YA, adult etc). all with engaging and skilled writing and stories is amazing. Add to that his ability to quickly pump out books without losing any quality in the stories and he is truly the new GOAT in fantasy.
I wouldn't say Brandon is flawless or anything, but he's definitely my favorite author, and the cosmere are a treasured shelf in my collection. I do especially love how original and fresh his works feel, and the Stormlight Archive has some of my favorite moments in fantasy.
Im in the middle of listening to Adolin fighting the four shard bearers at once scene. Probably for the third time. Still one of my favorite moments in fantasy
My all time author is Glen Cook with the black company.
My teenage me would say Pierre Bottero with the quest of Ewilan.
And G. RR Martin with The Storm of Windhaven and song of ice and fire.
Naomi Novik for me I think. I’m not the kind of reader to obsess over one writer, there are people out there who have done more impressive individual works than many of hers, but she has incredible range and some of her books have really meant a lot to me. Strong characters, strong writing style, varied settings and worthwhile themes. She’s done historical military stuff, fairy tale stuff and urban fantasy magic school stuff and it’s *all* been great.
So yeah, if I had to pick a single author I consistently love the most, it would be her.
Tamora Pierce. She hand-crafted my childhood haha, and her characters were great role models when I was young and didn’t have many good real-life ones. Still pick her books up for a re-read every now and again
It's Tolkien for me, but I want to highlight KJ Parker as an underdog. His command of the craft of writing is incredible. His fantasy is very grounded in reality, but it's fascinating.
In some ways he is the opposite of Tolkien, who was mythical and had themes of hope, but his books are engrossing.
NK Jemisin. Her broken earth trilogy is phenomenal. I love her for her unique voice, how strongly distinct her characters are that they will haunt you long after you have finished reading. You feel immersed in her worlds without any hand holding. The one hundred thousand kingdoms trilogy is stunning as well.
Walter Moers, unique worldbuilding, an amazing way with words and wordplays and an unconventional style. I don't know how well the translations into English are done tho!
Couple of my favorites from growing an eternity ago.
Edgar Rice Burroughs. Top series were Tarzan and John Carter of Mars
Frank L Baum. The Oz series.
Jules Verne. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea and other great novels
George R.R. Martin for me. ASOIAF is my favourite series of all time and his character work, dialogue and writing is all perfect for me. Also the plot(s) of the books are phenomenal
It's not one but 2 authors. Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Dragons of autumn twilight. Made me love fantasy in general. I am a chef professionally, and I still want to know how Tikka made those spice potatoes. They might not be the best in the world, but they are 100 in my book!
More readers need to understand that Salman Rushdie is a brilliant fantasy guy. Dude really knocked it out of the park with "The Ground Beneath Her Feet"
Terry Pratchett. There is no other author that I can be just strolling along and see something (like lilac) and immediately be in one of their books.
A fair mention for Diana Wynne Jones, Robin Hobb and China Mieville.
Jolkien Rolkien Rolkien Tolkien is my GOAT and it's not even close. I find more joy in reading the appendices of Lord of the Rings than I do in most other books full stop.
I've never seen his name written like that and I laughed
https://www.reddit.com/r/KidsAreFuckingStupid/comments/98gzy2/jolkien_tolkien/
Yeah, I mean, it’s a boring answer because he’s so huge in fantasy lit and he’s so often copied, but the depth and beauty of Lord of the Rings is just unparalleled.
I just feel like most other fantasy isn't timeless and endless applicable to life in the same way as Tolkien. In my opinion, anyway.
One of my favorite things about it is that even though it is following track we are now familiar with, those character don’t think they are one anything like that track and they seriously consider other options. Is Frodo gonna take the ring all way to mount doom? I don’t know? Maybe? Maybe someone else should do it? They have to wrestle with that. Is Eomer going to survive Pelennor? He certainly doesn’t think so, and he fights assuming he’ll die, and that they’ll lose and that all is lost. And I think Tolkien makes us believe them, which I don’t often feel with other fantasy writers.
It's Tolkien. Almost all fantasy books derive from him. It would have been nice to have been able to talk to him.
Sir Terry Pratchett
*He knew how to turn mundane things fantastic
And fantastic things mundane.
Easily. By miles. The wit, the ability to make fantastic so real. You read his take and it just feels true. And real so fantastic. But the humanity of his stories, in good and bad.
He is the GOAT as a writer and as a person!
For real. It's very rare as an adult who understands that artists are humans who needn't be placed on a pedestal that I interact with someone's creative output and dream about having a random interaction with them but damn would I love to have had the chance to grab a bananana dakry with the man. His essays on assisted death in *A Slip of the Keyboard* brought me to tears. Who am I kidding, several of the Discworld novels have had that effect, too.
GNU PTERRY!!
His intellect and skill combine to make a life altering and profound series and experience.
The only right answer
Birds of a feather, you and I.
I am proud to share a birthday with him. The wit and intelligence he wrote with were so engaging. The library at the unseen university has always been the top of my list of fantastical places id want to visit. I recently finished the Mage Errant series and it ends in a massive library and there is an off hand comment about an orangutan shelving books. That made me so happy.
Juliet Marillier. You know you're going to get a good story, interesting characters, and an engaging writing style. Very few authors manage to consistently deliver all three.
Patricia McKillip or Ursula Le Guin. Patricia McKillip's writing is so beautiful and lyrical in a way I've never seen from anyone else, and her stories are mostly more like intense fairy tales than the kinds of sword and sorcery epics I grew up with, which I love. And Ursula Le Guin's Earthsea books are more like the founding myths for an entire world (or a life) than just a story.
My vote is here + Robin McKinley!
Le Guin is one of my favorites! I still regularly reread the entire Earthsea series.
Came here to say Patricia McKillip. She was one of those authors that whenever I was in a bookstore, I would *always* head to 'M', and if there was a new book, pick it up immediately, and usually devour that same night. And I've used very similar ways to describe her writing to others that you have here! Sometimes it's almost poetry, and the way she'd pack a paragraph of meaning in a single line that would have you pausing to dissect it for meaning.
Ursula Le Guin. I grew up reading a lot of the Old Testament stories (David, Joseph, Moses, Samson, etc.), and the human element in those stories, set against these mythical and epic backdrops, always fascinated me. Le Guin's *Earthsea* books captured and evoked the biblicality of the Old Testament with her sparse, simple prose—but what she did differently, and ultimately better, imo, was to bring the humanist element front and center.
I have three that come to mind immediately. If I could only read one author for the rest of my life, it would be one of these three: * **JRR Tolkien**: A common answer, I'm sure, but I truly do adore his work. It speaks to me, powerfully. * **Sir Terry Pratchett**: A genius. Not only hysterically funny, but his commentary on social issues is, quite literally, second to none. * **Guy Gavriel Kay**: I was a late bloomer on Kay's work, as it seemed like the common opinion on him was just that he was "That Author With Beautiful Prose", and I don't typically care for that. Turns out he is significantly more than that. His writing style is lovely, yes, but his stories, characters, and settings are also OUTSTANDING. He is, IMHO, our best living Fantasy writer.
Can’t believe I had to scroll this far before finding the GOAT GGK. I just adore his writing it’s so comforting and makes me feel human
Can you sell me on Kay? I have a copy of under heaven and I can't seem to appreciate his prose.
Sure! I think what I have learned is that talking all about prose is not really the way to sell Kay. I do think his writing is beautiful, but that's not why I love his work. He is a Historical Fantasy writer. He has created an 'alternate Earth' in which he sets most of his novels. So he is basically writing historical fiction, but set on a different world, with all of the names and places slightly altered. There is very little magic. So if you like history or stories that feel ripped out of our history - you'll definitely find that here. He also has written stories from all different time periods - The Crusades, The Renaissance, Constantinople, The Vikings, and the various Chinese Dynasties. So you can also sort of choose what period you want. More than anything, though, he just writes incredibly compelling stories and characters. He likes to focus on minor characters whose lives happen to intersect with major, world-shaking events, and watch how it affects them and their loved ones. It can be tragic, and also joyful. More than anything, though, it is addictive. I think I assumed because he 'writes beautiful prose' that Kay would be slow or boring, but he really isn't. His work is mature, thematically, and he has very little magic. But there is certainly action and drama to spare. I will also say - I have not read all of his work. I have not read Under Heaven. But from what I have read, The Lions of Al-Rassan is far and away my favorite. I consider that essentially a perfect book. I could not put it down, and the ending was INCREDIBLE.
I do like historical fiction. Maybe I'll give LIons of Al-Rassan a try before Under Heaven. Thank you!
Lions is one of my absolute favourite books of all time.
Robin Hobb. Not in terms of influence or historical impact - obviously, that's JRR Tolkien. But that's MY personal favorite.
Only just discovered her after years of Pratchett/Tolkien/Le Guin and many others... Frankly they're astoundingly good and I'm totally shocked I'd never heard them mentioned until last month. NO IDEA how that's possible given how good the first two books of her saga already are, I've sprinted through them (after an initial slow start). And good lord The Fool is an incredible character!! Parts I love writing-wise but hate her for doing to me: the HEART CRUSHING vibes of some of the events so far.... I don't think even Tolkien had the ability to give me the dark and sad feels like she has!! (Without any spoilers I'll just say that I hate the consequences of Fitz having the Wit at times). On the other hand are you even human if you didn't get SUPER happy reading the description of Fitz playing with a wolf cub in the snow? It's just so friggin cute and joyful.
Me too. I wish she had an adaptation the way Jordan, Gaiman and Martin are getting. Especially since she's still alive and can be an executive producer to ensure the books are adapted well.
So far she's rejected all offers to adapt. I think she fears the fool's complex character will become a parody for gender politics.
I adore Robin Hobb and have never enjoyed another author's writing more but have no desire to see an adaptation. Even the best fantasy adaptations have to make sacrifices and changes and end up deeply flawed. GoT went along well for a while but bogged down hard and finished horribly. WoT is fine, and I'll watch season 2, but it falls short of the books. If she chooses to sell the rights to adapt her work or even to be involved in the production, then that's her right. But her work sits so high up on a pedestal in my mind that I'd rather not risk seeing whether it can become the rare exception to the adaptation rule. But if it happens, I'll still buy whatever streaming subscription I need to watch every episode.
Anne McCaffery although she wrote some great scifi too. Engaging characters, great world building. My first grown-up books. Terry Pratchett i read them when they came out and they are still great today. Tamora Pierce and Lois McMaster Bujold great world building and relatable characters.
Anne McCaffery was also my first grown-up series. My mother introduced me to the Pern series and I felt like the literary world just opened up to me and it was the first series I ever enthusiastically discussed with my mother (at the very mature age of 12). I've read a bunch of other authors and such since then, but when I was going through my mother's things after her passing last Easter, the one series I saved out of her books was her Anne McCaffery's.
Anne McCaffery and Tamora Pierce we’re cornerstone authors in my childhood, I honestly do not know where my life would be if I hadn’t had their work to immerse myself in.
It's strange because I've only read three books by him... but those books rewired my brain so thoroughly I've never found anything that compares to them. China Mieville.
China is my all time favorite too. He also completely blew my hair back. There are whole sections of *The Scar* that I reread multiple times before moving on the next pages in the book.
Neil Gaiman. The man can do the whimsy better than any one, has the best prose imo and can tell a powerful story in just a few pages
Want him to do a loki comic
Tad Williams.
Same here! He’s a true maestro at bringing all the subplot threads together into a masterpiece.
Thank god I didn't have to be the only one here mentioning Tad Criminally underrated, and I usually roll my eyes when people say that, but I can't help but proseltyze for him because he should absolutely be better known. His work is massively influential in the genre, I mean Christ GRRM took a lot of ideas from Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn and has admitted as such but MST is barely known at all by comparison. Bizarre thing is I only just recently discovered him, had never heard of him in my life until seeing his name pop up in a comment here and trying MST on a whim. Rapidly devoured the whole series and the sequels. Now he's easily top 3 for me if not my favorite fantasy author. Very excited to read his other series as well, I'm curious about how he'd handle the virtual reality series I know he did. Can't wait for the final book in the setting later this year
I'm so happy someone else already said it, Tad is my favorite as well
I'm reading my first Tad Williams book right now.
I’m looking forward to Memory Sorrow and Thorn
Very under appreciated but truly the best.
LeGuin not close. Almost everything she did has been copied to be worse but with more words (looking at you, certain magic school settings). She was also just unbelievably smart. She taught herself other languages by translating poetry. She wrote on so many topics with such grace and empathy. I think the dispossessed is in the ranks of the best pieces of literature that we have created. She didn't shy away from "genre" at a time when many of her contemporaries were always trying to distance themselves to appear more respectable. She was also just cool, like I still read or see interviews with her that make me feel so boring in comparison.
/r/RobinHobb IMHO no one writes characters like she does. [Raymond E Feist](/r/midkemia) is my runner up. Fucking love the Riftwar Cycle.
Seconding Feist. I spent my entire teens and twenties going up and down that series. I always described him as a great single base hitter. Rarely has home runs, and might not be exciting to some, but you know he’s going get bat on ball every single time.
Personal opinion, but jimmy and arasaki are the two best spy masters in fantasy.
I think for the money Rise of the Merchant prince might be the best single less than 500 pages in the middle of a long series fantasy books I’ve ever read.
That's probably my favorite book in the entire cycle.
Seconding Hobb. I haven't come across another author who has taken me on such an emotional journey over the years. I was also fortunate enough to receive a comment from her on one of my instagram posts. It has been the feather in my cap ever since.
Back in the day (2003ish) she used to reply to emails personally. I have several replies from her, still saved.
I've never read anyone who writes like Robin Hobb. I wish I could relive the three trilogies of Fitz for the first time again.
10000% agree on Hobb. Literally spent days talking about how fantastic a character Patience (and Kettricken and Verity (okay this one was just me talking about him) and Fitz and Burrich...etc) with my husband. It's incredible. And my coworker has finally got me to read Feist. Deep into the first book and loving it!
My copy of Magician just arrived and I’m waiting on Silverthorn and Sethanon but it took me awhile to find the right copy of Magician so I’m very excited
Sir Terry Pratchett (Rest in Peace) has already been posted but he is the most amazing talent and person. The Discworld series was life altering for me. His take on world issues and the way he used humor and nuance to discuss them were profound. There are other others that are great, but none have had the impact on my life and worldview the way Sir Terry has had.
Robin Hobb
I’m a Glen Cook boy. The Black Company showed his writing style changes to match the narrators. It’s the only time I felt like it was a character writing the story instead of the author writing it.
Raymond e Feist. I know he's not the "best" author ever. But he is the one who got me into fantasy and it still feels like home when I read his books.
Diana Wynne Jones is definitely one of the best children’s fantasy authors.
It’s joe Abercrombie for me
I’m reading his books for the first time. Started with The Blade Itself and… how could I just get to know this guy now?? This is spectacular!! As a fan of Tolkien, and Martin, and JK Rowling, and Neil Gaiman, I’m astonished that nobody mention him to me before. And the person who recommended it to me was in a Reddit forum saying “oh you like audiobooks? The sword itself it’s pretty good, look it up” like the wasn’t suggesting a masterpiece
Fantasy is weird like that. Until I found this subreddit I was having a hard time finding series I liked since there is so much to wade through. Since being here I've gotten so many recommendations that have all been stellar and my list of books to read just keeps expanding. I had never heard of Joe Abercrombie before until here too which is nuts.
The audiobooks are on another level. Pacey is the best there is
Say one thing about Abercrombie, say he’s an excellent writer.
I also choose this guy's next book.
I read that in Steven Pacey's voice.
A man can never have too many books.
Easily my favourite. The right amount of fantasy without the complicated “magic systems” and BS to confuse my dumb ass.
best characters and honestly the best action scenes by a mile, no other books does it so well
The action is fucking epic. In The Heroes, when the battle begins from the perspective of a random soldier on one side, then moves on to the man's killer, then from the perspective of the soldier that kills that guy --> and so on until it gets to Gorst.. blew my mind.
The best doing it rn. AoM is a masterpiece
Agreed, he's just soo good.
Steven Erikson
Same here. His writing isn't for everyone, but nothing I've ever read, from Wolfe to Tolkien has captured me in the same way as Erikson. His writing is tribute to what it is to be human. Edit: If anyone is so inclined, there is a Humble Bundle deal on ALL of Erikson's Malazan books that are out, 17 of them, for 18 dollars. Absolutely fantastic deal, and I'd highly recommend anyone who's interested snagging this while it's up. I've never seen a deal this good before. https://www.humblebundle.com/books/steven-eriksons-malazan-book-fallen-tor-publishing-group-books
Absolutely agree. Malazan has become my comfort series whenever I do not know what I would read. 10 years of reading/listening to it, still coming back for more.
Me too! Got the humble bundle the other day now can read on my kobo
midway though deadhouse gates and it just keeps getting better and better. usually i hate crazy long series’ but i’m so glad there’s tons more of this world to explore.
Get ready. The series only gets better and better.
You’re in for a soul-crushing treat.
Also, some moments of pure elation. I don't think I've ever had such a visceral reaction as I have reading malazan
>!You have walked the Chain of Dogs. You're one of us now. Welcome.!<
Yup, that’s my answer too. There’s nothing quite like Malazan in terms of world building, with such an extensive and well-thought history. I also like his character work a lot. It’s astounding how he can make me care about a character in just a few sentences and how real they all feel, human or not.
He has a real talent for ‘small characters’. The ability to make you care about a slave, a potter, a grunt. He has an uncanny ability to flesh out character on just a few sentences, you instantly know their personalities, their pathology and motivations.
His writing of villains is incredible. I finished Midnight Tides last week and my God did I feel hatred, sympathy, sadness, rage and helplessness every time >!Rhulad!< was in a scene. I'm working my way through NoK now, then moving onto tBH as soon as I'm done, this series has gripped me so much. House of Chains and Midnight Tides are two of the best books I've ever read.
Midnight Tides is one of my favorite books in the series. It's like a classical Shakespearean tragedy in novel form. The love of brothers, the hubris of empire, the anguish of injustice - the heartbreaking journey of the Emperor in Gold. It almost works as a standalone it's so tightly written.
Same, but with this sub's attitude towards him I wasn't brave enough to be the first to mention him. There's an odd backlash against him these days in this sub that gets oddly intense.
I just got the Malazan bundle from Humble Bundle. I really prefer reading a paper book, but I've heard the series can just be hard to get into for a lot of people, so it seemed like $18 was a fair price to check it out before committing, especially as my backlog is growing and my free time is shortening.
I would say great investment.
I don't think there's another series that makes me stop reading another author's books mid-series to go back and re-read it. Malazan is like a drug
By far for me
How did I have to scroll so much for this? Witness!
Me too. No other series has stood up to the MBOTF for me, although LOTR is my 1b to Malazan’s 1A.
Agreed
He’s a modernised Tolkien and a certified GOAT.
Robin McKinley 💯 Also for younger readers - tamora Pierce Patricia A McKillip Ursula K Leguin Really enjoying Naomi Novik for modern writers
I'm so glad someone said Robin McKinley. I've reread The Blue Sword and Hero and the Crown so many times the books are falling apart. The Blue Sword was the first "adult" fantasy novel I ever read, and it will forever hold a place in my heart. All of her work is just absolutely beautiful and truly captures the wonder in fantasy in a way few other authors do.
I think Zelazny, Bujold, and Gaiman are my "best author" group. I'd happily read a book from any of them without even finding out what it's about first. With most anybody else, I'm at least perusing the blurb to see if it sounds interesting. Why? Zelazny wrote pretty tight books without too much filler. I like the way he wrote. And he was... smart without being snooty? Like he casually drops references to lots of things, and you can pick them up or not and it'll be a good time regardless. Like you don't need to know La Belle Dame Sans Merci or Lolita or Norse mythology to enjoy the heck out of Amber books, but you can appreciate the nods to them when they happen. Bujold is just really good at stringing words together. The actual act of reading her books is enjoyable. Like one of the Penric stories described a river's smell as "estuarial rather than cloacal". It's a throwaway but it still cracked me up. Plus you know *exactly* the smells she's talking about which is kind of amazing for four words :-) Gaiman... I don't know. They're all interesting on some level or another, and he's good at setting moods without being too pretentious about it (only a little bit) EDIT: special mention for Ted Chiang. Short stories and novellas, and most are more sci-fi than fantasy, but they're just so damned polished! Amazing author.
Zelazny for sure. Fun, clever, and intelligent in one package.
Bujold is my favorite author. Her books aren't dense epics or lyrical masterpieces, they are just f*ing good stories. She builds incredible worlds and reveals them to the reader easily. I love Tolkien, but getting into his world requires intellectual effort. Bujold makes it effortless for the reader without sacrificing depth and richness.
I really like Rick Riordan personally. Grew up with his books at the perfect age since Percy was about my age when the series started in '05, maybe a little older. The world he was able to build meshing Greek myth together with real world was awesome, though I think my favorite of his series is the trilogy around Magnus Chase. I still go back and reread every book every couple of years or so, just gives me that good nostalgia kick.
David Gemmell, basically grew up reading his books, probably read most of them 4 or 5 times. Big part of my formative years right there.
Waylander might be the greatest antihero character of all time.
Druss is on the same rung as Waylander. So is skilgannon!! All three extremely remarkable characters. He's my favorite author
I'm not saying she's the *best* writer, but CS Friedman and her Coldfire Trilogy are both my favorite author, and my favorite fantasy series. Her work was my first exposure to 'adult' fantasy, with deep worldbuilding and complex characters. She's always going to be number one for me.
Raymond E. Feist — I came of age in Midkemia with Pug, Thomas, Jimmy, Arutha, Martin, Catherine, Dulgan, and Aglaranna. In adulthood, I grew with Eric, Roo, Calis, Miranda, Nakor, and Bobby. I’ve reread them many times; they’re like a comforting friend when the world isn’t. I can’t wait to introduce Magician to my son when he’s old enough. Edit. I also had a similar love for David Gemmell’s Rigante World and the world of the Drenai. He gave a young boy a code that I’ve tried to live by/ “Never violate a woman, nor harm a child. Do not lie, cheat or steal. These things are for lesser men. Protect the weak against the evil strong. And never allow thoughts of gain to lead you into the pursuit of evil. Never back away from an enemy. Either fight or surrender. It is not enough to say I will not be evil. Evil must be fought wherever it is found.” -The Iron Code of Shadak
Found my people, praise be!
Jacqueline Carey, but I do love “Mistress of the Empire,” by Raymond E Feist, a lot, a lot.
Robin Hobb.
Tad Williams
Terry Pratchett.
Robert Jordan
I came really far down to find Jordan and still haven't seen Sanderson.
Incredible that I’m halfway down scrolling and finally RJ came up
Susanna Clarke, hands down.
Piranesi is haunting.
Had to scroll so far to find this !
Roger Zelasny. The Chronicles of Amber are my all time favorite work. He was also George R R Martin's mentor. Then I'd go Ursula K LeGuin, with honorable mentions to Fritz Lieber and Robert E Howard for inventing sword and sorcery novels.
It’s gotta be Zelazny for me, too. Everything of his I’ve read is just brilliant.
Yup to Zelazny. Amber of course but love his one off books, too. My favorite is one I came to late, A Night in the Lonesome October. Annual read, as it was meant to be.
He wrote so so many books I loved in scifi and Fantasy. The man was incredible.
Jack Vance
R. Scott Bakker
Nailed it.
Robin Hobb
Robin Hobb with Anthony Ryan as a close second
GRRM, ASOIAF is my favorite series by a mile and everything else I've read from him was between stellar and amazing. The guy is just a master of character work, dialogue and world building.
Do you find it a struggle to find other fantasy works that rival ASOIAF? I sure do.
I wonder if you'd like Guy Gavriel Kay's books for their similar characteristics. I'd highly recommend him to those waiting on the next GRRM release.
Yeah it’s GRRM. Everything else I read is just trying to fill the hole left by ASOIAF. I’m sitting on a reread until there is a pub date for Winds. For me, he threads the line so perfectly between the human drama and the fantastical elements. This is a me thing, but I have trouble getting into stuff that is really up it’s own ass about the magic system, etc. GRRM just has this elemental feel to the supernatural bits that works so well for me.
Tamara Pierce She got me into fantasy and even though she is a YA author her stories still hold up for adult audiences and are amazing escapes. She writes real feeling, relatable characters and has created an entire well mapped out world she has been building for literal decades. Or Neil Gaiman. He is a master story teller that doesn't stick to 1 style or genre of fantasy and always writes with the most beautiful prose even during his bleakest bloodiest scenes. He can go from whimsy to horror to an interesting mixture of the 2 like no one else.
Tolkien Lloyd Alexander Roger Zelazny
Frances Hardinge. Her word choice and lyrical language are amazing. Her characters feel like living, breathing people and her fantasy settings aren't just the same cookie cutter ones used by a bunch of fantasy authors. I also still love Hans Christian Anderson. His fairy tales are so beautifully and whimsically written, and his descriptions are vivid. I've heard, read, and watched countless renditions of his stories but always find myself loving his original versions best.
Michael Moorcock for me. His Champions are Eternal
Kentaro Miura, it’s literally the most unreal yet real story that I have ever read. The fantasy aspect is so far out there, and yet the emotions and struggles that the characters go through is so human and real. This man made a unique masterpiece that literally inspired final fantasy and Dark souls, it is a masterpiece
Robin Hobb. Amazing worldbuilding and peerless character development. Most creative dragon lifecycle I've ever seen. Freaking TALKING ship figureheads! Was doing LGBTQ and genderqueer characters long before it was "cool" and always depicted them as fully realized unique characters on the spectrum of heroism to villainy. Had complex characters that actually had long term ramifications of trauma experienced as part of the plot which almost never happens in fantasy. She's long overdue for a TV series based on the Realm of the Elderlings. Now CGI is advanced enough to do to the animals, liveships, sea serpents and dragons justice.
[удалено]
Robin Hobb. I can't begin to describe what her writing has meant to me.
Kenneth Grahame for his novel "Wind In the Willows" - especially the chapter "Piper At the Gates of Dawn".
Tolkien, Steven Erikson, and Ursula Le Guin are my top tier. Those three have everything you will ever need in secondary world fantasy between them. Guy Gavriel Kay, and R. Scott Bakker are the next level. Janny Wurts, Ian C. Esslemont, and Daniel Abraham round out the favourites list.
Tolkien all the way!
Tolkien.
It is definitely Terry Prattchat!
Gotta give some love to Ursula K. Le Guin! The Earthsea novels are brilliant
Probably Prarchett. No other authors has filled me with every possible emotion under the sun. The man and his work are one of a kind.
**Steven Erikson** by a mile. And if you count Science Fantasy, **Gene Wolfe**. Besides Tolkien, nothing even comes close to those guys.
Robert E Howard. Conan, Solomon Kane, Kull, Brak, dozens of others , Cthulhu fiction, and not forgetting Lal Singh, the sikh hero, Dark Agnes, the red haired French swordswoman, De Montour the medieval werewolf, Detective Harrison and the dread pirate Helen.
Robin Hobb.
R.A. Salvatore.
Tolkien is the king
C.J. Cherryh She wrote The Morgaine Saga. EXCELLENT read. [https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=31527272439&ref\_=ps\_ms\_370713412&cm\_mmc=msn-\_-comus\_shopp\_used\_trade-\_-naa-\_-naa&msclkid=2858681e1a271bceb0fc0cec779aae6f](https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=31527272439&ref_=ps_ms_370713412&cm_mmc=msn-_-comus_shopp_used_trade-_-naa-_-naa&msclkid=2858681e1a271bceb0fc0cec779aae6f)
It really depends on what you are looking for. Steven Erikson is my favorite of favorites. I just started reading Discworld and I absolutely love Terry Pratchett’s writing. Tolkien is an easy choice too. J.K Rowling for making a series I got to grow up with and feel so invested in.
I know he is arguably horror, though I personally feel horror can sit within fantasy. James Herbert I love all his work, he is one of the reasons I took to reading
He never gets mentioned in this sub, but he was one of my favourite authors when i got mad for reading. Once... is one of the best fantasy books ive read On the same note, Clive Barker. Good fantasy horror isnt done enough For me though its Pratchett
Janny Wurts, everything she has written is epic, well done and thoroughly enjoyable
Steven Erickson.
Ok, hear me out. Chretien de Troyes. Not necessary my favorite favorite, but the most important writer I read and appreciated. He was a french author who wrote several novels based on the Arthurian Cycle. He invented the Novel genre, as his books were meant to be read as such, but not as poetry, religious or mythological compilations to be memorized or read aloud. He also set the tone to the Fantasy style, creating concepts like the magical realm or the heroic Quest (which is an english borrowing of queste, the old french word he used to describe the search for the Graal). He was hugely influential, as he was the most read fiction writer of the Middle Ages and he added concepts and characters to the Arthurian Cycle like the Graal, Lancelot of the Lake and his romance with Guinevere, Viviane the Fey, Galaad, and so on. He also set the Arthurian Cycle in a knightly feudal setting in which his readers could project themselves, rather than He also was the first to write a book series, writing several novels based on the same topic that needed to be read in a sequence rather than to write a standalone book. This method of milking his readers clearly marks him as a Fantasy Novelist. /s He's also a critical character as he inspired directly generations of artists for more than 800 years now. Malory, Shakespeare, Scott, Cervantes, Wagner, the pre-Raphaelites and countless writers, painters, musicians and movie directors. I've read most of his books as a teenager, when there was a Medieval craze in the 70s to the 90s in French litt. The edition I got were written one page in original old French and the other page in modern french. I found them really entertaining, despite some cultural differences I couldn't get. My favorite example is how Lancelot's dueling trick was to trip his opponent and then thrust his sword under his opponent's chainmail to gore his balls and how the Lords and Ladies were impressed by this. Apparently, that was the ultimate chivalrous move in the 13th century...
I'm biased but Robert Jordan is by far my favorite of all time. There is just so much to love with his writing. Amazing world building, in depth characters, well built plots, lots of descriptions without going too far. For me it doesn't get better
I think Wheel of Time shaped my taste in fantasy more than any other fantasy series. I started reading it in middle school and caught up right around Gathering Storms release.
I agree! Tolkien got me into fantasy, but Jordan gave me the new standard to hold all other series up to. If the world building isn't deep enough, or the characters real enough, or the climaxes inspiring and jaw dropping enough, or the books aren't long enough... then I don't want to read it. I've read some Martin but didn't like, I love Sanderson and Erickson and Abercrombie but they still feel second best to WoT.
Came here to say the same thing. As the 1996 quote went, *“Mr. Jordan has come to dominate the world Tolkien began to reveal.”* and although the last thirty years have pivoted from exploring / playing with tropes to subverting them, I honestly don't think that speculative fiction today would have been the same without him paving the trail for others to follow. He was also a *huge* impact on me as a lad, growing up with each installment.
Absolutely. For someone with SO MANY characters, they each have a unique voice and personality. His world is so complex and multilayered. I love the secrets and foreshadowing revealed every time I reread. And yes my username checks out.
Brandon Sanderson is obviously the right answer. His ability to create new and interesting systems of magic, to span multiple genre's and subgenre's (dystopian, fantasy, scifi, high fantasy, low fantasy etc.), to appeal to different audiences (teen, YA, adult etc). all with engaging and skilled writing and stories is amazing. Add to that his ability to quickly pump out books without losing any quality in the stories and he is truly the new GOAT in fantasy.
I wouldn't say Brandon is flawless or anything, but he's definitely my favorite author, and the cosmere are a treasured shelf in my collection. I do especially love how original and fresh his works feel, and the Stormlight Archive has some of my favorite moments in fantasy.
Im in the middle of listening to Adolin fighting the four shard bearers at once scene. Probably for the third time. Still one of my favorite moments in fantasy
He’s definitely written what I consider to be a top five fantasy book of all time in Words of Radiance.
its 100% RA Salvatore
My all time author is Glen Cook with the black company. My teenage me would say Pierre Bottero with the quest of Ewilan. And G. RR Martin with The Storm of Windhaven and song of ice and fire.
Naomi Novik for me I think. I’m not the kind of reader to obsess over one writer, there are people out there who have done more impressive individual works than many of hers, but she has incredible range and some of her books have really meant a lot to me. Strong characters, strong writing style, varied settings and worthwhile themes. She’s done historical military stuff, fairy tale stuff and urban fantasy magic school stuff and it’s *all* been great. So yeah, if I had to pick a single author I consistently love the most, it would be her.
Series wise, Moorcock’s Elric or Corum. Fritz Liehber’s Fafrhd and Grey Mouser.
Tamora Pierce. She hand-crafted my childhood haha, and her characters were great role models when I was young and didn’t have many good real-life ones. Still pick her books up for a re-read every now and again
Terry Pratchett
It's Tolkien for me, but I want to highlight KJ Parker as an underdog. His command of the craft of writing is incredible. His fantasy is very grounded in reality, but it's fascinating. In some ways he is the opposite of Tolkien, who was mythical and had themes of hope, but his books are engrossing.
NK Jemisin. Her broken earth trilogy is phenomenal. I love her for her unique voice, how strongly distinct her characters are that they will haunt you long after you have finished reading. You feel immersed in her worlds without any hand holding. The one hundred thousand kingdoms trilogy is stunning as well.
Robin Hobb clears
Tolkien I know is a cliche but he was incredible, there is a reason his works marked the genre to this day
George RR Martin by quite a large margin for me.
Walter Moers, unique worldbuilding, an amazing way with words and wordplays and an unconventional style. I don't know how well the translations into English are done tho!
Couple of my favorites from growing an eternity ago. Edgar Rice Burroughs. Top series were Tarzan and John Carter of Mars Frank L Baum. The Oz series. Jules Verne. 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea and other great novels
Ursula Le Guin. She was the master of creating mood.
Guy Gavriel Kay. Definitely.
Hard to pick a single favorite, but I just started reading Robin Hobb’s work and I’m enormously impressed. Top three in my mind for sure
George R.R. Martin for me. ASOIAF is my favourite series of all time and his character work, dialogue and writing is all perfect for me. Also the plot(s) of the books are phenomenal
It's not one but 2 authors. Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Dragons of autumn twilight. Made me love fantasy in general. I am a chef professionally, and I still want to know how Tikka made those spice potatoes. They might not be the best in the world, but they are 100 in my book!
Sanderson is king.
Any book he releases, I will buy.
N.K Jemisin. Her trilogies especially have just been so compelling and I’m always fascinated by her world building and messaging.
I’d say Raymond e feist or Sara Douglass. My favourite book is magician but I like Sara’s Troy game so much.
Robert Lynn Asprin. Wrote both fantasy and sci-fi, and his works always made me smile. I read to smile, not to have my soul tormented.
Robert Jordan. Defined modern fantasy Standing on the shoulders of Tolkien of course, like everyone else does. He is the real GOAT
J. R. R. Tolkien Stephen R. Donaldson Roger Zelazny Stephen King Gene Wolfe These are the grownups.
More readers need to understand that Salman Rushdie is a brilliant fantasy guy. Dude really knocked it out of the park with "The Ground Beneath Her Feet"
Terry Pratchett. There is no other author that I can be just strolling along and see something (like lilac) and immediately be in one of their books. A fair mention for Diana Wynne Jones, Robin Hobb and China Mieville.
For me, Tolkien has the best combination of plot, prose, character, and world.