Recommend me a fantasy book

[IronStorm9]

Hello, fellow Escapists.

So, I've been reading a lot more books lately and I was wondering if anyone could recommend me a good fantasy book/series. I've already read the first Game of Thrones book and have read all of the books in the Wheel of Time series, as well as the Mistborn trilogy. Thank you for your suggestions.

 

[Kahunaburger]

Perdido Street Station, by China Meiville. Excellent book, kind of steampunk-ish. Also Latro in the Mist if you don't mind getting a little historical fiction in your fantasy.

 

[Lord Beautiful]

Read the Kingkiller books by Patrick Rothfuss. They're the closest things to perfection I have read in the entirety of my life.

 

[Vakz]

Malazan Book of the Fallen has a somewhat different storytelling than most other books I've read, but I'm still growing to like it (I'm sorta in the middle of the second book).

 

[dfphetteplace]

The Icewind Dale Trilogy and the Darkwalker on Moonshae Trilogy, both got my into fantasy fiction.

 

[Gladiateher]

I'm a big fan of Tamora Pierce's Beka Cooper series. It's not nearly as hardcore as the wheel of time or anything but it has an interesting format and setting, that I thought, made it quite refreshing.

 

[Caffeine Rage]

Without going too in-depth on each series, mostly because I would end up writing a novel myself.

I would suggest you look at the Dresden Files and Codex Alera series, both by Jim Butcher.

Also, look into Robin Hobb's works. I highly recommend her Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies. The Tawny Man trilogy is a continuation of the story from the Farseer Trilogy. I won't say more for fear of spoiling details.

She has another trilogy which bridges the two, which I skipped because I wanted to see where the story went and not the bridge between the two. While the bridge isn't necessary, it does provide some back story for the final three books. Just, be careful. She can pull your heart strings at a moment's notice.

 

[AdmanUK]

The Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster is a cracking read, with sharp humour and charming characters.

Also the soldier son trilogy by Robin Hobb is insomnia-inducingly addictive.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

The Dragon Riders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey
Riftwar series by Raymond Fiest

The two above are pretty detailed, you'll never run out of books to read...
If you want something shorter but still good try

The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks

Lots of action in that one

 

[ElectroJosh]

Perdido Street Station, by China Meiville. Excellent book, kind of steampunk-ish.

Seconding this one and, if you enjoy it, try The Scar and the Iron Council (both set in the same world).

Also, look into Robin Hobb's works. I highly recommend her Farseer Trilogy and Tawny Man Trilogy. The Tawny Man Trilogy is a continuation of the story from the Farseer Trilogy. I won't say more for fear of spoiling details.

She has another trilogy which bridges the two, which I skipped because I wanted to see where the story went and not the bridge between the two. While the bridge isn't necessary, it does provide some back story for the final three books. Just, be careful. She can pull your heart strings at a moment's notice.

I would actually reccommend reading the trilogies in this order: Farseer, Liveship Traders, and then Tawny Man. Mostly because things that happen in the Liveship Traders would be spoiled if you read the Tawny Man first. She is also currenly writing another series in the same world which takes place afer Tawny Man.

Since you are a fan of Jordan and Martin I think Hobb is you best bet here as most her writings are popular with the other lot.

I know some people are recommending D n' D based novels and David Gemmel but, as you are already reading Martin, you might find them a bit "teenagery" - Hey I read tons when I was younger and loved them but when I tried to pick them up again years later I ended up rolling my eyes at the stories.

 

[Sammaul]

The Prince Of Nothing series by R. Scott Bakker, marvelous read.
Has a very disturbing Evil faction.

 

[JET1971]

Silmarilion by Tolkien. then after read The Hobbit and lord of the rings.

 

[II2]

Try "Pawn of Prophecy" the first book (of 5) of the David Edding's "Belgariad" and then the 5 part sequel series "The Mallorean".

Some hardcore fantasy fans don't like it, but I enjoyed it quite a bit and found it a fun, accessible page turner.

Does a good job of straddling the line between a well cultivated mythology and universe while remaining very "Human" and easy to relate to.

A lot of Robert Jordan fans enjoy it, for what it's worth. Of course, there's a LOT of Robert Jordan fans and the hardcore ones tend to find it 'too light for an "epic"'.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44659.Pawn_of_Prophecy

 

[Mr Thin]

Lot of excellent recommendations so far; I especially support the three trilogies by Robin Hobb [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_hobb]. Some of the best books I've ever read, they are.

Raymond E. Feist [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_E._Feist] has written a bajillion books, all of them good, great or fantastic. That link is to his wikipedia page, where you can see the many series he has written. I recommend every single one of them.

Clive Barker is awesome, his books are most certainly not for children. I see you're my age, you should enjoy them just fine.

Now for a recommmendation of my own.

The Sword of Truth [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_sword_of_truth] series by Terry Goodkind. These, books, are, FANTASTIC. Read them. That is all.

 

[Rumbler_Man]

The Amber Chronicles y Roger Zelazny is good

 

[TheKruzdawg]

The Spellsinger series by Alan Dean Foster is a cracking read, with sharp humour and charming characters.

At first I thought that was a different series called the Spellsong Cycle. I highly recommend it. Picture a fantasy world where magic is governed and elicited through the use of music. I personally love it.

Silmarilion by Tolkien. then after read The Hobbit and lord of the rings.

I've tried reading the Silmarillion a few times now and for a variety of reasons, I haven't been able to get through it. Sometimes it was school related but other times I just found it a very dry read. I felt like I was reading the book of Genesis. I really wanted to be interested but it was really hard to stay interested. I want to get back to it someday, but I wouldn't recommend starting there in the series.

OT: I highly recommend the Heralds of Valdemar series by Mercedes Lackey. Not exactly your typical fantasy, no elves or dwarves and magic is handled a little different. It's mostly mind magic, ie telekinesis, pyrokinesis, telepathy. A great place to start in that series would either be at The Black Gryphon or Magic's Pawn. Magic's Pawn is actually the first book in the series but The Black Gryphon provides more history for the series as it takes place prior in the timeline. If you start this series, be prepared for a long one. It's mostly set up in trilogies and there are at least 10 of those. I'm still working through them all and it's been a few years since I started but it's totally worth it.

 

[purpleflamingo]

Dark materials trilogy by Philip Pullman

Northern Lights - Subtle Knife - Amber Spyglass

Really good, dont be put off by the absolutely WOEFULL movie that got made... It in no way resembles the first book.

Also, in the advent of Inheritance coming out soon, I would recomend the Inheritance cycle

Eragon - Brisingr - Eldest - Inheritance

Again, disregard the movie of Eragon. I seriously have no idea what they were smoking when they wrote the screenplay, because it doesnt even follow the story correctly...

EDIT: Ooh! I almost forgot. The Chrysalids (think it was called Re-Birth in the US tho) by John Wyndham. Amazing story.

 

[Dominic Burchnall]

The Discworld series by Sir Terry Pratchett. It'll take you a while, there's more than 40, but they are brilliant books.