2006-09-26 01:44:04 · 25 answers · asked by poeticjustice 6 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
Fantasy is my obsession and has been for nigh on a decade now, and thus I have many loves in it which constantly change. (Shout out to Tamora Pierce, Juliet Marillier, Anne Bishop, Jane Lindskold, Garth Nix, etc., etc., etc.) However, a series that I began reading only last month has truly revolutionized the way I look at the entire genre.
George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series has forever changed how the genre will be written from now on (at least I fervently hope so!). "A Game of Thrones" introduces us to Westeros, a country/continent about to descend into a bloody civil war. Martin does a superb job in creating extremely vivid, realistic characters that are truly human: they have their flaws as well as their strengths, and aren't simply paragons of virtue or cesspools of immorality. In effect, the line between good and evil, for the first time in any fantasy I have ever read, has been blurred.
This is an ENORMOUS step forward for the genre- a step that will save it from itself. Tolkien will always have the honor of creating the genre. Most fantasists keep trying to *re*create it. Tolkien is obviously quite worthy of imitation, but one can only examine the Battle between Good and Evil for so long.
Which is why I am so in love with "A Song of Ice and Fire". It's hard, and dark, and gritty. It has blood, religious fanaticism, political maneuverings, and moral ambiguity. In short, it makes you think.
2006-09-26 08:26:09 · answer #1 · answered by dragonheartsong 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Harry Potter. I'm a big reader and I like fantasy very much. This answer may seem almost generic, but as I thought about the question I realized that this is honestly my favorite fantasy series I have ever read. I was reluctant to read the books even with all the pleading and praze by my younger brother until he offered that he would read Ender's Game if I read Harry Potter. I was caught after the first book and couldn't stop. I care less and less for the movies. Each one is definately better than the last, but the books get better with each one that the movies do less and less justice for each respective book. If you haven't read them yet, I'd highly suggest it. Also, my runner up for fantasy would be The Lost Years of Merlin, followed closely by The Ancient One.
2006-09-26 02:01:11 · answer #2 · answered by Locke 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Harry Potter!!! It's the best! I also love Dean Koontz and some Steven King like that book... I have it but I can't remember the name, it talks about the end of the world kind of, a virus that escapes a military base, and (the devil) walking in his cowboy boots, and some are naturally immune and some aren't, anyway, I read it a long time ago it was good. Now I am gonna have to pull it out of the closet! Some of his stuff is too sci fi like the long walk, and the running man ( as Richard Bachman ) I think that other book is
The Stand.
2006-09-26 05:32:43 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Lord of the Rings. But there are so many others that are also good. I noticed "A Wrinkle in Time" was mentioned; that's an excellent book. Also, with all the hype about the Chronicles of Narnia, how many people know the other series C.S. Lewis wrote: The Perlandra Trilogy? Might, by courtesy, be labeled science fiction, but the distinction between science fiction and fantasy has blurred considerably in the last 30 years.
2006-09-26 02:12:33 · answer #4 · answered by auntb93again 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I've read hundreds, but one of the best is the ring trilogy. Why I like any book is is the way the author presents it. If I pick up a book and in the first few pages, I feel like i"m right there observing the story as it unfolds, I have found a Good author and will go out of my way to find more books by him or her. that is the case of the ring trilogy. I have read them 4 times and seen the movies two times. I've also read the fourth book called The Hobbits.
2006-09-26 01:59:00 · answer #5 · answered by Rudy 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Lynn Flewelling's Nightrunner series (Luck in the Shadows, Stalking Darkness and Traitor's Moon). Not for the easily grossed out. It has the typical fantasy plot, but it's presented in such an intersting, unique way that you don't even notice until you're finished reading them. Her other series is pretty good, too (The Bone Doll's Twin, Hidden Warrior and Oracle's Queen).
2006-09-26 11:36:08 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
besides the glaring answer (Harry Potter), I fell in love with The inheritor Chronicles sequence with the help of Cinda Williams Chima. it extremely is a three-section sequence inclusive of: The Warrior inheritor, The Wizard inheritor and The Dragon inheritor. the author is likewise going to function 2 greater books to the sequence; The Sorcerer inheritor and The Enchanter inheritor. the 1st 2 books are better half novels so the memories are quite stand alones, yet in e book 3 the two memories come mutually so I propose you examine all 3 and you examine them so as, because of the fact even in spite of the indisputable fact that they are better half novels there ARE spoilers in them. the 1st e book is a pair of boy named Jack who takes on a regular basis medicine, yet sooner or later he forgets and he without notice has great human stregnth and he comes to a decision by no skill to take his meds lower back, the story progresses from there. the 2d e book is a pair of boy named Seph (or Joseph) who's an orphaned boy and continually has magical mishaps take place around the him. with the aid of out the e book, he learns approximately his historic past and the thank you to regulate his wizard powers. The 0.33 e book is approximately characters from e book one million and e book 2 coming mutually and occurring a experience to locate an significant dragon stone to make particular it would not get into the incorrect palms. magnificent books.
2016-10-01 09:19:53 · answer #7 · answered by elidia 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I love both Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia. Fantasy fans should be aware of a new book which celebrates both in an unique way: Here There Be Dragons by James A. Owen.
http://www.heretherebedragons.net/
2006-09-26 03:02:29 · answer #8 · answered by laney_po 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susannah Clarke. It's dry, witty, and matter-of-fact, and manages to present an incredibly engaging story couched in a made-up history--but a history that's so real and factual, with real people involved, it's hard for a few days after reading it to remember that there *isn't* a longstanding tradition of magic in England.
2006-09-26 02:31:10 · answer #9 · answered by angk 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Talisman, by Stephen King and Peter Straub. I liked it because it combined elements of terror with a quest to save a young boy's mother that spanned two worlds in which the boy encountered the alters of people in his own world, including himself!
2006-09-26 01:59:32 · answer #10 · answered by Chris 5 · 4⤊ 0⤋