Top 5 Favorite Authors!!

[Pug of Crydee17]

Quite hard...but here goes...

1. Raymond E Feist- Magician is in my opinion the greatest book out there and flight of the nighthawks was fantastic

2.JRR Tolkien- LOTR put fantasy on the map in my opinion.

3.David Eddings- So simple but fantastic and easy to read.

4.Kim Hunter-I was really hooked on knights dawn and wizards funeral, about to start Scabbards song.

5.Robert Jordan- Needs to return to form. Books one to four of WoT were great, but it is currently going downhill. Too many characters and im beginning to dislike the 3 taveren.

 

[Monty Mike]

Here are my 5 favourite authors in no order:

Roger Zelazny
Gene Wolfe
Mervyn Peake
J. R. R. Tolkien
Raymond E. Feist

Not as hard as top 10 sci-fi books.

 

[Amaunette]

Aumanette, which Williams work do you rate the highest and for what reason?

IMHO I rate Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn very highly. I was also very enraptured with the war of the Flowers. I started Otherland way back six years ago or something and didn't get anywhere, but I'm hoping to have another go at it at some point in my life.

I rated Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn highly because it seemed to me to be the typical coming-of-age sort of fantasy, but in such a way that the characters were presented with actual flaws, and there was so much detail in the way the world worked. It's also the only book that I've really enjoyed a non-natural character (like not human, but not a recognizable animal either). I felt that it was an impressive work.

War of the Flowers, on the other hand, was fantasy with a twist. I always get a kick out of mixing modern themes with fantasy themes, and I felt that it was done very well here. It was also funny, which never fails to raise my estimation of a good book. Therefore, Williams made the list because he can read the story I want to read (the traditional sort of epic fantasy) and the story I never knew I wanted to read (the nontraditional work).

Mostly there's just something in Williams' writing that I think is what I look for everywhere, so that's why I listed it.

 

[Mithfânion]

It's also the only book that I've really enjoyed a non-natural character (like not human, but not a recognizable animal either). I

You mean like Binabik? Or Jiriki?

 

[Mogget1]

Because everyone has been waiting for my say... here are my favourites:

1. Garth Nix
2. Kenneth Oppel
3. Tolkien
4. Guy Gaveriel Kay
5. Brian Jacques

 

[Acei]

In order

1. Jordan
2. Martin
3. Hobb
4. Erickson
5. Lackey

Honorable mentions

Lloyd Alexander and RA Salvator for fascinating me when I was quite young and setting me on a fantasy path that will last the rest of my life.

How about a scoring update.

 

[Acei]

1. Jordan - I don't care how long this series gets. I love the world and the characters. Quite frankly, I don't want it to end and would be perfectly content if it rent on for 30 books.

2. GRR Martin - What can I say about this fabulous author that hasn't already been said by others?

3. Robin Hobb - Fabulous world. Great characterizations. What's not to like?

4. Stephen Erikson - I'm only halfway through the first book, but he's quickly made his way into my top 5.

5. Mercades Lackey - I've not read much of her stuff, but I'm really enjoying her current series (Onsidean Trilogy). I can't wait for book three. I also can't believe that I haven't seen more praise for this series here.

Honorable Mentions:
Lloyd Alexander - For setting the path for me when I was quite young. I still enjoy his stories when I'm in the mood for some light fantasy.
RA Salvator - His classic Forgotten Realms novels will always have a place in my library.

By the way, these are in order. How about a scoring update.

 

[Chemcat]

There are so many that are so very, very good but my favorites are:

1. Robin Hobb
2. G.R.R. Martin
3. R. Scott Bakker
4. Raymond E. Feist
5. Barry Hughart

 

[Severn]

Hard. Very hard.

At the moment it stands, in a vague order I suppose, as:

1: Hobb (excluding her Megan Lindholm works as I didn't respond to those so much). No need to elaborate on why - it's been talked about at great length.

2: Guy Gavriel Kay. Sigh.

3: Steven Erikson. Personally, I think his writing is astounding.

4: Jacqueline Carey. She made it to this list with her Kushiel's Dart series. Banewreaker is due to arrive from Amazon soon, so we'll see how that goes.

5: Sarah Zettel. Based on one trilogy alone - The Isavalta trilogy. I love this lady's prose, and her world building, her characters, her plots, everything. She has written the first two books in an Arthurian series, which I haven't read because I have no interest in Arthurian rewrites. They leave me cold. Still, given how much I love her writing, one day perhaps.

K

 

[Burrich]

1. Robin Hobb. Farseer/Liveship/Tawny Man.
No one that I’ve read writes deeper characters than Hobb. I went through withdrawals after reading these series, wishing there were more.
2. G. G. Kay. Fionavar Tapestry.
Very emotionally charged, it kind of chugs along at first but turns into a runaway freight train before long.
3. Roger Zelazny. The Chronicals of Amber.
Fast paced action set in a wonderfuly magical world.
4. Juliet Marillier. The Sevenwaters Trilogy
Rich celtic folklore, strong Irish heroines that tug at your heart.
5. G. R.R. Martin. A Song of Ice and Fire.
6. Tad Williams. Memory, Sorrow and Thorn.
The beginning is slow, but it gets very enjoyable later.

 

[Evil Agent]

I just read Fionavar, my first attempt with Kay, and had very mixed feelings. It was more annoying than anything else, and despite a few good characters and scenes, I ended up feeling rather disappointed in the end.

I'm really hoping I enjoy his later works more, because I bought almost all of them and was quite excited to read them.

 

[Severn]

I just read Fionavar, my first attempt with Kay, and had very mixed feelings. It was more annoying than anything else, and despite a few good characters and scenes, I ended up feeling rather disappointed in the end.

I'm really hoping I enjoy his later works more, because I bought almost all of them and was quite excited to read them.

Hey EA...I promise his later works are better. I promise, I promise, I promise lol. I myself have not yet been able to read Fionavar because of the glaring difference of quality I have perceived between those and his later works.

K

 

[JIF]

1. George R.R. Martin
2. J.V. Jones
3. Guy Gavriel Kay
4. Robin Hobb
5. Robert Jordan

 

[grechzoo]

EDIT

Look below a few post for the updated list.

 

[Evil Agent]

1. JRR Tolkien
2. George R. R. Martin
3. Robin Hobb
4. Steven Erikson
5. Guy Gavriel Kay

That's my latest list. Despite a rough start with Kay, the last couple books I've read have put him firmly in my top 5.


Runners-Up:

6. R. Scott Bakker
7. Tad Williams
8. Stephen Donaldson
9. Robert Jordan (early WoT books)

Its cool to see that 3 of my top 6 authors are Canadians.

 

[allanon]

1 David Eddings
The best in my opinion, he gives the reader interesting adventures, cool characters, great magic and very nice sense of humour.
2 Raymond E. Feist
Very good author, very good. His world is so alive...
3 J.K.Rowling
Hey, "Harry Potter" rules!
4 Terry Brooks
Classic. "Shannara" is great!
5 Robert Jordan
...but with his first books.

I must update my list because Jordan and even feist has disappointed me severely recently, and I'm not that impressed with Eddings recent series either. My current top 5 is:
1 Eddings (still)
2 Brooks
3 Rowling
4 Paolini
5 Salvatore

 

[Beleg]

Hmm.

1. Martin
2. Tolkien
3. Kay
4. Zelazny
5. Beagle

 

[grechzoo]

Since I haven't contributed anything to the board since I joined. I thought i would recompile the overall results. Of course i am not guarenteeing maximum accuracy but I doubt there will be many mistakes.

George R.R. Martin 59
J.R.R. Tolkien 51
Robin Hobb 46
Guy Gavriel Kay 23
Tad Williams 22
Raymond Feist 22
Steven Erikson 19
Stephen Donaldson 17
Robert Jordan 16
David Eddings 16
Neil Gaiman 15
Gene Wolfe 13


Matthew Woodring Stover 10
David Gemmell 10

J.K. Rowling 9
Ursula LeGuin 9
Terry Brooks 9
Michael Moorcock 9
Stephen King 9

R. Scott Bakker 7
RA Salvatore 7
Roger Zelazny 7
Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman 7

Robert E. Howard 6
Terry Goodkind 6
China Mieville 6

Terry Pratchett 5
Mervyn Peake 5
Jacqueline Carey 5

Melanie Rawn 4
E.R. Eddison 4
Phillip Pullman 4
Jeffrey Ford 4
Lord Dunsany 4
M. John Harrison 4
J.V. Jones 4
LE Modestitt 4
Patricia McKillip 4

Orson Scott Card 3
Jon Carroll and Pat O'Leary 3
Luis McMaster Bujold 3
Peter Beagle 3
Lynn Flewelling 3
Steven Brust 3

ritz Lieber 2
Enid Blyton 2
John Crowley 2
Sara Douglass 2
Edward Whittemore 2
Tim Powers 2
John Marco 2
CJ Cherryh 2
Janny Wurts 2
Frank Herbert 2
Philip Dick 2
James Barclay 3
Greg Keyes 2
Jeff Vandemeer 2
Dave Duncan 2
Juliet Marillier 2
Garth Nix 2
Jeff VanderMeer 2
Ian MacLeod 2

Katherine Kurtz 1
Russell Hoban 1
Gabriel Garcia Marquez 1
Bernard Cornwall 1
Lois de Benaires 1
H. P. Lovecraft 1
Fiona McIntosh 1
Lackey 1
Sarah Zettel 1
Jorge Luis Borges 1
Kate Elliott 1
Robert Holdstock 1
Lucius Shepard 1
Philip Jose Farmer 1
Clark Ashton Smith 1
Nancy Springer 1
Tom Arden 1
Samuel Delaney 1
Neal Stepehnson 1
Andreas Bull-Hanson 1
Jonathan Stroud 1
Jonathan Carroll 1
William Morris 1
Charles de Lint 1
Ms L Cusack 1
Sherri S. Tepper 1
Fred Saberhagen 1
Wolfgang Hohlbein 1
David Drake 1
Brian Jacques 1
Kenneth Oppel 1
Karl Edward Wagner 1
David Farland 1
Clive Barker 1
Jack Vance 1
Pierre Bordage 1
Graham Joyce 1
Barry Hughart 1
Robert Silverberg 1
Gary Jennings 1
Robert Stanek 1
Angela Carter 1
Tanith Lee 1
Lloyd Alexander 1
D. Wynne Jones 1
PC Hodgell 1
Carol Berg 1
Kurt Busiek 1
Mary Gentle 1
Paul Kearney 1
Paolini 1
CS Friedman 1
Ian M Banks 1
Kim Hunter 1
Eric Neilson 1
Mickey Zucher Reichart 1
Dennis McKiernan 1
Michael Chabon 1
C S Lewis 1
Alan Garner 1
Kerr 1
Alan Moore 1
Jasper Fforde 1
Marcus Herniman 1

 

[Evil Agent]

Cool! Nice contribution, grechzoo.

 

[Rhaegar]

Nice to see my that favorite author, George R.R. Martin, is the favorite of a great many others on this board...