Recommend me some epic fantasy

Seren_ said:
I add my voice for the Black Company by Glen Cook.

I was unable to stop once I started reading.

It is essentially a war told from the point of view of footmen rather than from the usual lords/marshalls/heirs to the throne...
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And it is not like Croaker is entirely honest either.
 
How could I forget The Lies of Locke Lamora? Scott Lynch kicks serious ass. The sequel, Red Seas Under Red Skies, is just as good. Can't wait for the next volume.

ponderingturtle said:
Try the Malazan book of the Fallen. At least as Dark and the black company but writen like ASoIaF and these books actualy come out!
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Well, I heard lots of praise for it, but that's the first time I hear that it's "Written like ASoIaF". From what I can tell, most of the characters are munchkins kicking each others' arses... meh. I have the first tome and I'll get to read it eventually but I'm not getting my hopes up.
 
Morrigan said:
Well, I heard lots of praise for it, but that's the first time I hear that it's "Written like ASoIaF". From what I can tell, most of the characters are munchkins kicking each others' arses... meh. I have the first tome and I'll get to read it eventually but I'm not getting my hopes up.
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You could say that about a lot of the books on the list here. Black Company, Amber and so on. It dirrectly involves gods on many occasions, and characters with god like powers. But why is that a bad thing?

There are a lot of powerful characters and a lot of low powered characters. The first book is different than most of the rest, it was written long before them. The second and third books are much better.

I compare him to ASoIaF because it has a similarly complex plot, and the way he structures the plot feel similar to me
 
Man, there are lots of recommendations on here. If "90% of everything is BS", then it's no wonder that the few fantasy books I have read did nothing to pique my interest. Still, I'll stick with the harder SF genre.
 
Lots of stuff here...many have recommended The Lies of Locke Lamora, which is good because I bought that book recently and I plan on reading it soon.
 
Another option which isn't quite fantasy but most fantasy fans I know love it anyway is Bernard Cornwell, especially the Grail Quest trilogy (Harlequin, Vagabond and Heretic) and the current series. It is historical fiction but amazingly well told and not at all dry.
 
If you've not read them, I'd recommend The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander. The series is apparently based on Welsh legends, and while it was supposedly aimed at a younger audience, I never felt the books were "kiddie fiction". I also felt as though Alexander handled the notion of a prophecy better than David Eddings. In Alexander's works, I felt that the results as prophesied were more natural; Eddings' characters were beaten over the head with it.
 
Jack Vance's Lyonesse trilogy: Suldrun's Garden, The Green Pearl and *ahem* Madouc
 
Madouc said:
Jack Vance's Lyonesse trilogy: Suldrun's Garden, The Green Pearl and *ahem* Madouc
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Well, if Lyonesse fits into "Epic Fantasy", then surely Tales of the Dying Earth does as well. Especially Rhialto is great.

Otherwise, Ouroboros is a great book, as is Gormenghast. I used to like Feist's Empire series as well, until I reread it last year, and realised that the American they import from Midkemia sort of destroys the entire feeling and goodness of the story, which is sad, as so much of the books circle around him.

The Mabinogion by Evangeline Walton is nice, but I have no idea if anyone would count it as epic.
 
Ginarley said:
Another option which isn't quite fantasy but most fantasy fans I know love it anyway is Bernard Cornwell, especially the Grail Quest trilogy (Harlequin, Vagabond and Heretic) and the current series. It is historical fiction but amazingly well told and not at all dry.
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The problem with Cornwell's work where it involves archery (eg the Grail trilogy, Azincourt) is that it presents a completely unrealistic image of the accuracy of the longbow. Still, they make very entertaining reading, which is what it's all about.

(PS I don't believe Robert Hardy either)
 
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Morrigan said:
And whatever you do, avoid Terry Goodkind. I mean, avoid like the plague. You won't thank me since you won't know why, but that's okay.
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I agree! *shudders* I read the whole series... My other half likes him, and I was really bored....
 
Marion Zimmer Bradley, the Darkover series.

Darkover was discovered at the end of the 21st century by a lost spaceship. This ship was forced to make an emergency landing. As it was impossible to repair, and despite the fact Darkover was not the planet they intended to colonize, the settlers decided to try to install themselves on this inhospitable world.

Darkover is the story of the civilization build by the settlers, it plays out in a semi medieval society (due to lack of technology). The novels can be read out of order (actually they were written out of order) and span about 3000 years.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darkover_series
 
Oh, and Saberhagan's Empire Of the East (Ardnah Trilogy). And second the Belgariad and the Mallorian!
 
Alareth said:
I recommend some Eddings. The Belgariad and the Mallorean, then follow up with the Elenium and the Tamuli
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You have to be kidding. I'd recommend one series, but only one as the different series are all the same. He recycles all the characters and plots and puts different names on them.

It's a good story, but there's only one story that he writes over and over.
 
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