I'm looking for good fantasy novels. Suggestions?

Question

I've read and enjoyed the following: The Drenai Saga books by David Gemmell, The Inhumans Trilogy by John Marco (ie - The Eyes of God, etc.), The Dragonlance books (only those by Weis and Hickman), The Lord of the Rings & The Hobbit, The Princess Bride, Le Morte D'Arthur, and The Eaters of the Dead.

I have read R.A. Salvatore, but I'm not a fan. I don't care for Harry Potter or Eragon either. There are also a ton of other fantasy books I've read that were simply mediocre (Chronicles of Narnia).

I'm about to start reading the Briar King by Greg Keyes.

If you have any suggestions to other, possibly not so well known, fantasy (NOT Sci-Fi) books or series, please leave the title, author and a little blurb on how it was.

Answer 1

I have read some of the books you listed (and I agree with you on Eragon!) and I really like all of these:
The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks (similar to LOTR)
The Belgariad series by David Eddings
Lord Valentine's Castle by Robert Silverberg
The Magic of Recluce by L.E. Modesitt

If you like Weis and Hickman, try The Death Gate Cycle series.

Piers Anthony has some good series, it's a little more on the 'humorous' side you could say, the Xanth books are especially 'punny'. The Apprentice Adept , Incarnations of Immortality, and the Mode series are good.

You might give Anne McCaffrey's Pern books a try and also Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover books are good. They are 'border-line' sci fi/fantasy, although I never really thought of them as s/f until I read someplace that they were. lol

Answer 2

You should look into the Song of the Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce. The first book is called Alanna: The First Adventure. It's about a girl who disguises herself as a boy in order to be trained as a knight. She must also learn to use her healing and other magical powers. There are several other series that continue after this one, my personal favorite being the next one, The Immortals series, which begins with Wild Magic. In my book store, it is found in the teen fiction section, so it really has no adult content, and I don't recall any inappropriate language. There are also many enjoyable books by Robin McKinley. I love The Hero and the Crown, The Blue Sword, and Spindle's End the most. Diana Wynne Jones write really good fantasy as well, though I have only read Howl's Moving Castle and Castle in the Air so far.

Answer 3

Since you've read Tolkien's major works, have you ever tried The Silmarillion, The History of Middle-Earth (I think it's nine or ten books), or Unfinished Tales? These are all great; but, if you're not that into Middle-Earth, you might want to pass.
You could try some Medieval works, which are the cornerstone of modern fantasy, like Beowulf or Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. (For Beowulf, DON'T get the Seamus Heaney translation. It's not true to the story but a generalization). Morte Darthur is another good one (the oldest collection of King Arthur tales.)
Finally, what about The Once & Future King? Always a classic!

Answer 4

The Time Machine by H.G. Wells is so good, it's a short novel.
It's about a man who travels in time with a time machine of his own making and ends up in the future where humanity has sort of become something completely different.

What makes it so interesting as that Wells lived during the second industrial revolution when America was dramatically divided into the upper and lower class. There were those who lived with all of life's luxuries and didn't do much in the way of work, basically avoiding the lower class. On the other hand were those who spent their lives toiling away in factories for the benefit of the upper class.

Wells basically widens this rift to the extent of being two different species, very much reflecting the time when he wrote it.

I thought it was so interesting. I'm so glad I spent my time reading it. It was short and will definitely be worth your while.

Answer 5

The Dark is Rising sequence, by Susan Cooper.

Books, in order of publication:

1. Over Sea, Under Stone
2. The Dark Is Rising
3. Greenwitch
4. The Grey King
5. Silver on the Tree

Good vs Evil for the fate of the World--but not nearly so simple. Very complex story, based on ancient Gaelic and English beliefs.

Answer 6

I've heard of a book called Luthiel's Song by Robert Fanney which isn't too widely known but has gotten great reviews by Lord of the Rings fans. Not personally a huge LOTR fan myself (unless you count the movies) I haven't read it myself. You could check that one out.

Also, I didn't see Terry Brooks Sword of Shannara books on your list or the Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. These are books I read back in high school (though they are not "high school" fantasy stories) which I think you would really enjoy.

Answer 7

Trickster's Choice and Trickster's Queen by Tamora Pierce are two good ones. Inkheart and Inkspell by Cornelia Funke are wonderful. They're about a girl who can read herself and other people into books. There is also "A Wrinkle in Time". Many people love this one but it didn't really catch my attention. Lastly there is the Giver and Gathering Blue both by Lois Lowery. It takes place in an alternate universe where everything is assigned and no one gets to make their own choices.

Answer 8

INKHEART and INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke. In this book, the main character can bring characters from the book to life by reading outloud. It is a trilogy.
THE THIEF LORD by Cornelia Funke. It is a story of a group of homeless children living together and found a magical merry-go-round that can make grown-ups out of children and children out of grown-ups.
DRAGON RIDER by Cornelia Funke (again ;) I'm a great fan) It is about a dragon, a brownie, a homunculus, and a little homeless boy searching for the Grim of Heaven--The only one place dragons can live peacefully without the disruption of humans.
THE BARTIMAEUS TRILOGY by Jonathan Stroud. It is about a wizard apprentice who called on the help of Bartimaeus the djinni to take revenge on his enemy.
THE RANGER'S APPRENTICE by John Flanagan. Will was chosen to be the apprentice to the Ranger. From there he became the country's hero by saving them from the hideous monsters. That is the first book of the series.

I have read all these books and they are great. I gave them all 10 out of 10. I am a great fantasy fan you know.

Answer 9

I enjoyed the Earthsea Quartet by Ursula Le Guin also The Song of Fire and Ice series by George R R Martin.

Answer 10

The first two of the Gormenghast trilogy by Mervyn Peake: "Titus Groan," "Gormenghast," and "Titus Alone." There was an attempt to finish the series with a short story called "Boy in Darkness." That almost worked.