Michael Moorcocks Elric of Melnibone’ series takes some beating, plus some of his other fantasy series(but not IMO the Jerry Cornelius books).
Also Terry Pratchetts Discworld books are truly excellent but unfortunately seriously habit forming.
I played in the Malazan mafia game over on idlemafia boards.
What’s the series like? Are the characters good? Is the complex storyline discouraging?
What do you think of Tad Williams’ Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn?
I can vouch for the last trilogy in the set, though I’d hesitate to call them “simple”. I’d say that her works have a different thrust than classic fantasy, focused more on the psychological than on the physical.
Her next trilogy, the “Soldier’s Son” trilogy begins with “Shaman’s Crossing” and is also a great series.
I find her work to be non-derivative: I don’t feel like I’ve encountered her worlds, premises, or “magics” in any other author’s work.
I’d recommend the Dennis L. McKiernan Mithgar stuff (except Dragondoom, just didn’t like that one). Everything in those books just works from beginning to end. Even more, the man eventually wrote a book (Red Slippers) that answered pretty much every unanswered question from the series.
The Iron Tower Trilogy is very much a Lord of the Rings do-over, but this is one by a man that can actually write a story and make it interesting - something at which Tolkien failed miserably.
Try “Tales of Mithgar”. It’s a short story collection that nicely demonstrates what the books are like.
I also like Steven Erikson’s “Malazan Book of the Fallen” series, which starts with “Gardens of the Moon”. Fair warning, the books are a BITCH to read.
The third time in the first two books that Simon was alone, lost, and starving in some maze/forest I gave up. I believe at one point he even comments to himself about how “this is just like last time!”.
Didn’t like them.
-Joe
The Dies the Fire series is pretty decent.
It’s about a world that loses all electricity, use of gunpowder, steam power, etc. Pretty much sending the world back to the medieval era.
I loved the first book and enjoyed the second two. There’s a second 4 books, three of which have been released about dealing with the children of the characters in the first series. I don’t like it nearly as much because I hate fantasy, but because that’s what you’re looking for it might be up your alley.
I liked it, though I thought it stretched on a biiiit too long.
I’m only partway through it, but, so far, I do like it. Paks is a fairly minor character in it so far; the focus is more on Kieri Phelan (a pretty good character in his own right).
And a third. I really liked the Farseer trilogy; I think she’s an excellent storyteller. I bogged down partway through the Liveship trilogy, but that’s my own fault, I think (though those books, as I recall, feature a lot of maritime terminology – either Hobb did a lot of research, or she’s a sailor IRL).
Seconded. Or, on review, thirded. I think the series ended in a way as to leave a follow-up an option, and if so, I’d like to see it.
As other’s have mentioned there’s a bit too much of ‘I’m lost and crazy…again!’ in the series but it’s solid overall.
I see people recommending Robin Hobb and I have to say I accidently read The Tawny Man series not knowing it was a sequel series in the world and it was painfully dull. The references to the first series were more interesting then the series I was reading. People would say things like “remember that thing with the dragons? Wasn’t that awesome? Oh back to tracking a boy or whatever crap we’re doing now”. So…yeah don’t be an idiot and read the wrong series if you pick up these books. (pointless advice I know).
David Gemmel is a real burger and fries fantasy author. Powerful heroes defying impossible odds! They’re fun and easy to read. Also most of his villains are given reasonable motivations which makes it stand out against alot of fantasy fiction. The only annoying thing is that he only knows how to write about four characters so if you pick up too many books you’ll realize that they’re all the same guys over and over. I really preferred the Dranei books over the other worlds he built.
My recommendation would be Kingdoms of Thorn & Bone by Greg Keyes. One of the best series I’ve ever read and one of the few that keeps you guessing as to what is really going on. The biggest flaw is the prologue of the first book. It’s really poorly thought out and totally unneeded. Just skip it you won’t really miss anything that’s not explained later.
Edited in case I gave away a minor spoiler.
I’ll add my vote to the Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson. I’ve summed up a lot of my thoughts about it in the first post in this thread.
My vote also comes with the typical warning about the series: From page one, Erikson repeatedly throws you into the middle of a group of characters with little to no exposition and trusts you to figure things out as you read. It’s a great series, though, if you don’t mind being lost for a page or two while you try to get your bearings every chapter. The chapters are long, the books are doorstops, the cast is huge, the cultures number in the dozens, the world is immense…and very little is handed to you. The first book itself is hard to get through due to all it has to introduce.
About a third of the action centers around everyday soldiers and squads in the Malazan army. The rest of it involves gods, demigods, an innovative magic system, ancient races of superhumanoids, dragons, demons, undead, assassins, thieves, romance, politics, battles, wars, duels…this series has it all 
How about Katharine Kerr’s ***Deverry ***series- 15 books I think. Very complete world of Celtic folklore and magic.
We’ve discussed the Emberverse books before on the Board. I loved the first three and the second series are growing on me but there is no way I’d describe them as fantasy - however many references to LoTR they contain 
Do you mean Deryni?
I love Barbara Hambly. She’s written some great books.
I do have to warn you…she wrote Dragonsbane, which was a fantastic stand alone book. Then she wrote some sequels to it, after her soul mate/ex-husband died…and they are very, very grim.
However, most of her fantasies are really good, but you do need to read them in order.
Deryni. You mean Deryni. And they are full of Christian magic/folklore, with some Celtic seasoning. I’ve read three of them, on the recommendations of others, and I found them to be quite tedious.
Katherine Kerr (Deverry) =/= Katherine Kurtz (Dernyi)
:smack:
I ALWAYS get those two mixed up.
ETA: Kurtz and Kerr, I mean. I don’t think I’ve ever even read the Deverry books.
Lots of people seem to like it. I ended up quitting after Book 3. Most of the characters are fairly one-dimensional, I thought the dialog was pretty stilted, Erikson’s “romance” subplots are laughable, and you can’t seem to walk ten feet in the series without running into a multi-souled-warrior/wizard/assassin-demigod. Now some people might find that awesome, but I thought that the series tends to lose all tension when the main characters can just conjure up an epic deus-ex-machina to resolve whatever situation they’re in. Erikson’s world-building is pretty cool though.