The latest Robert Jordan book, The Gathering Storm, arrived yesterday on pre-order from Amazon.It's another big book!Hopefully I will start reading it in the next week or so.
Not a book i thought i would enjoy, but Marion Zimmer Bradley's Mists of Avalon was a cracking read.
Mary Stewarts Merlin was also good
But mainly another vote for George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series. Events like the "Red Wedding" in A Storm of Swords, left me in shock!
I agree with you on G RR Martin, for sure, I just have a feeling all of his fans are going to be left disappointed.I wonder if he's just struggling with the whole thing rather than being a "perfectionist".
Robin Hobb is also one of my favourites - as you say Soldier Son is her worst effort, although I still did enjoy it....vaguely data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
I really struggled with Erickson (first book), I just didn't care for the characters and I didn't like the concept - it was simply too vast and I couldn't get to grips with the whole "black thing" in the sky, and scenarios in which characters seemed rather powerless.Maybe it was coming off the back of Martin and hobb, who's writing is epic in every sense but with a real intimate feel.I just didn't get that with Erickson.Is that a fair description, or do I need to read more?The whole deus ex machina syndrome bugs the crap out of me (lazy writing) amd I've heard this comes across in many of his books....
my 0.2c for recommendations:
Steph Swainston - Castle series
The Year Of Our WarNo Present Like TimeThe Modern World
I've read 'Priestess of the White' - really didn't like it so haven't tried any of her other books, so maybe I not the best person to judge.
I would definitely recommend you start with Ian C Esselmont's books then. These books are a prequel to the Steven Erikson books and you will find them much easier to understand and get into. Stick with them. Trust me they are awesome.
Some of the stuff I have enjoyed over the many years
Fritz Lieber- Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser
Fred Saberhagen-Books of Swords, Books of lost Swords
Katherine Kurtz - The Chronicles of the Deryni
Jack Vance - anything is good, Dying Earth Series recommended
Michael Moorcok - Elric, The Eternal Champion
R E Howard - Conan
Shadowrun series - Magic / Sci fi mix
Gene Wolfe - Book of the new Sun
R. A. MacAvoy - The Damiano series
Garth Nix - easy reading
Plus many of the others mentioned above
Well my brother has plonked the whole GRR Martin Fire and Ice saga in my lap. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Just over half way through Game of Thrones and enjoying it. Some really nasty characters,in fact there are not too many good guys at all. Definitely no black and white good and bad guys, causes some intrigue and suprises for the reader.data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
This (Game of Thrones) is next on my list and hearing more good things about it, just finishing White Wolf by David Gemmell.
Some old school stuff..
Roger Zelazny, TheAmber series (but only the first 5, the second set aren't good).
Creatures of Light and Darkness, you'll never forget once you read it.
Also Lord of Light and Jack of Shadows (which spins a wonderful fantasy world).
If you can find him these days, anything by Edmund Cooper. A truly great British author whose books are out of print because his wife and ex wife have been arguing for years about who should get the rights to his work after he passed...
New stuff.Urban fantasy, there's Jim Butcher and Simon R Green who between them invented the theme.
Don't get your hopes up about reading the entire epic though, still no sign of the next one in the series data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7(2 more to go after the next before he finishes it apparently data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
What's the White Wolf like?I read Gemmell's troy trilogy and thought it was superb data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7