The New and Improved Recommendation - Fantasy / Horror

[dax]

I'm new here. I like a lot of different stuff to read. Right now I rotate between Jim Butcher's Dresden Files and Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth Series. I gotta recommend the Dresden Files for the entertainment value and the ease of reading.

After these I'm gonna take a look at something like Malazan. I've read all the available books in the Song of Fire and Ice and I love them dearly. My disappointment is growing with the constant delay of A Dance With Dragons (I know, join the club). I've read the Silmarillion 3 times along with the Hobbitt and the Lord of the Rings (yes, all 3 times). Took a while to try something new. I've read the Dune series and it was great.

Look forward to reading more of the recommendations on this site.

[Acton]

Hey guys, well I've been reading the series "A Song of Fire and Ice", by George R. R. Martin and while I enjoy the story thoroughly I'm having a hard time refocusing with the changes of POV from one chapter to the next. For instance I'm really drawn to the characters Jon Snow, Eddard Stark, Tyrion Lanister, Robb Stark, and to a lesser extent Bran Stark, and Arya Stark. I can't stand reading Catelyn Stark, Sansa Stark, and Daenerys (some of her POV chapters I get into but meh) I keep finding myself wanting to skip over the chapters to continue the story through the eyes of say Jon, but then I find that I'm clueless about certain parts of whats going on and I need to go back and read the chapters that I skipped over. I made that mistake a lot in the first book, "A Game of Thrones." It didn't ruin the experience for me, I just realized that I needed to be a better reader.

So lately with each new POV I'll just put the book down for ten minutes then come back to it. Do you guys have any comments on this? I've always hated changes in POV, but by far this book has the most changes in POV, I've only dealt with books that maybe changed POV once or twice, and usually stuck with the main character.

[Loerwyn]

Acton, are you loving the book or just liking it?

I would, personally, go away and read some other books and improve your ability to read before tackling it again. It's what I'm doing before I tackle Wheel of Time and ASoIaF.

[Dirvani]

I like PoV changes. It allows the author to build suspense better. I enjoyed reading all of the PoV's in aSoIaF, though certain ones much more than others. Catelyn and Sansa were probably the worst, but some interesting stuff does eventually happen in their PoV's. Daenerys was one of my favorites.

You might want to read something else in-between each book to take a break from all of the PoV changes. There are a lot of great multi-PoV books though, so you may want to grow accustomed to the style.

[Queen Aurora]

Could you recommend me a book or 2?

I have the most awful of memories and can hardly remember some of authors and titles to the books I have read. But can remember some I really did like.

I like more gory, and more twisted side of fantasy, like anything that has a war in it.
I enjoy Chris Bunch books, Storm Constantine (think its the sex side of these that holds my attentions) and most Warhammer books have just read and enjoyed the 1st Malus Darkblade book and read Malekith also.

Any suggestions would be great,
Thankyou,
Amy

[HeclaBull]

I'm a big fan of dark and gritty fantasy with adult themes and characters. While I like all types of fantasy, this style is my favorite. I love Martin, Erikson, Abercrombie, Hobb, and Bakker; so if you have tastes similar to mine maybe you'll find these recommendations useful.
I'm currently reading "Swords and Dark Magic", an anthology featuring Steven Erikson, Glenn Cook, Joe Abercrombie, Gene Wolfe and many other authors. So far, I have read the short stories by Erikson, Abercrombie, Cook and James Enge. While some are better than others, I have enjoyed them all. This anthology has many names I recognize and you should look it up online, as it's bound to have some authors you have read and enjoyed.
I read Brent Weeks' "The Way of Shadows" last week. It started out well but as I got deeper into the book it fell apart for me. The first major fault I noticed was the dialogue. It seemed pretty wooden and childish to me, it pulled me right out of my immersion in the story and made me start to notice other faults in the book. If I had read this when I was younger I would have enjoyed it. I can see a lot of fantasy fans enjoying this but it was not for me.

[Roy Ryders]

Could you recommend me a book or 2?

I have the most awful of memories and can hardly remember some of authors and titles to the books I have read. But can remember some I really did like.

I like more gory, and more twisted side of fantasy, like anything that has a war in it.
I enjoy Chris Bunch books, Storm Constantine (think its the sex side of these that holds my attentions) and most Warhammer books have just read and enjoyed the 1st Malus Darkblade book and read Malekith also.

Any suggestions would be great,
Thankyou,
Amy

Malazan, it's got lots of cool stuff, like warhammer with swords and magic and kick-assery!

[Hellequin]

Thanks to this site I've found and read many great books.

I started with Butcher's Codex Alera and from there I was hooked

I've read Brent Weeks Night Angel
Abercrombie's series - loved it
Gemmel's books
Brandon Sanderson Mistborn series - fantastic

going to start soon on James Barclay's books

looking for other recommendations along these lines

[mshnd06]

Anything out there akin to Stephen King's the Dark Tower?
Same question for Roger Zelazny's Amber.

Thanks in advance

[Rob B]

I'm a big fan of dark and gritty fantasy with adult themes and characters. While I like all types of fantasy, this style is my favorite. I love Martin, Erikson, Abercrombie, Hobb, and Bakker; so if you have tastes similar to mine maybe you'll find these recommendations useful.
I'm currently reading "Swords and Dark Magic", an anthology featuring Steven Erikson, Glenn Cook, Joe Abercrombie, Gene Wolfe and many other authors. So far, I have read the short stories by Erikson, Abercrombie, Cook and James Enge. While some are better than others, I have enjoyed them all. This anthology has many names I recognize and you should look it up online, as it's bound to have some authors you have read and enjoyed.
I read Brent Weeks' "The Way of Shadows" last week. It started out well but as I got deeper into the book it fell apart for me. The first major fault I noticed was the dialogue. It seemed pretty wooden and childish to me, it pulled me right out of my immersion in the story and made me start to notice other faults in the book. If I had read this when I was younger I would have enjoyed it. I can see a lot of fantasy fans enjoying this but it was not for me.

It sounds like you haven't gotten to Scott Lynch's entry in the anthology, which was one of the strongest. His novels are just as good and quite entertaining. Do a search in our forums on him and you'll see a lot of discussion.

Paul S. Kemp's Erevis Cale novels are quite entertaining and though the level of magic is higher in them, fit nicely against those books you liked.

John Marco's Tyrants and Kings trilogy was very good, the first book is The Jackal of Nar

...and of course there's Michael Moorcock's Elric novels.

I started with Butcher's Codex Alera and from there I was hooked

I've read Brent Weeks Night Angel
Abercrombie's series - loved it
Gemmel's books
Brandon Sanderson Mistborn series - fantastic

going to start soon on James Barclay's books

looking for other recommendations along these lines

Give Brent Weeks's Night Angel Trilogy a shot, Scott Lynch's novels (The Lies of Locke Lamora & Red Seas Under Red Skies) and Glen Cook, either The Black Company or The Dread Empire-both series are available in omnibus volumes.

Anything out there akin to Stephen King's the Dark Tower?
Same question for Roger Zelazny's Amber.

Give Moocock's Eternal Champion cycle a try, including Hawkmoon, Corum, and Elric. Sean Williams Books of Change reminded me of DT, start with The Crooked Letter.

Dax, your list is a bit broad, so I'll suggest the following:
Mistborn by Brandon Sanders
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The Black Company by Glen Cook

[Johnny B]

John Marco's Tyrants and Kings trilogy was very good, the first book is The Jackal of Nar

How do you feel about Marco's The Eyes of God? I picked that up on a whim a couple of weeks ago. I think I've read both good and bad things about it but it looked interesting and well written enough for a paperback purchase. I'm only a few pages in so I have no opinion as of yet.

[Heather Myst]

Johnny B,

I really like John Marco and I thought his Eyes of God series was pretty good. Like Rob B I would recommend the Tyrants and Kings trilogy as Marco's best work.

[Johnny B]

Johnny B,

I really like John Marco and I thought his Eyes of God series was pretty good. Like Rob B I would recommend the Tyrants and Kings trilogy as Marco's best work.

Thanks Heather! I'm a bit further into it and am enjoying it. I have read an excerpt from The Jackal of Nar and found it intriguing. It looks like all of his books are available at my local Barnes and Noble so I'll definitely be checking them out.

[alcanalz]

Hrm, looking for a new book / series to read. Just finished Sanderson's Mistborn trilogy, and while I did very much like it, I felt it was too light at times. Not that it was YA or anything, but I'm looking for something geared for a more mature crowd, something grittier and darker perhaps. Have already read Abercrombie's First Law Trilogy, ASoIaF, Black Company, and am a huge Malazan fan. Any help would be appreciated.

[Heather Myst]

alcanalz,

Here are a few darker fantasy suggestions.

Anne Bishop Black Jewels series.
Fiona McIntosh Quickening,Percheron, or Valisar series
Carol Berg Rai-Kirah series