You might like Peter F. Hamilton’s work. He specializes in big sprawling SF epics with dozens of characters. Check out Pandora’s Star and Judas Unchained for an example.
Yeah, this, definitely.
How about the Malazan Empire books? I’ve yet to finish them, but someday . . .
Maybe Robin Hobb’s Farseer/Liveships/Rain Wilds?
And Gene Wolfe’s New Sun books?
Oh, my goodness, yes. That lady can write!
Katharine Kerr’s Deverry series remains a favorite - multiple viewpoints, politics, magic, dragons!
Hey, these are the exact same novels you guys recommended in MY thread where I asked for recommended good SF reads! I’m on to you guys!
I’ve been reading the Company Wars books by C.J. Cherryh, and they may fit the bill.
Start with Downbelow Station. It takes place on a space station during a war. It’s told from multiple perspectives. Characters are fleshed out rather than caricatures.
The books in the series are told from different perspective characters and cover different periods.
Red Mars, Green Mars & Blue Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson.
ETA: in case it’s not clear, those are three books, each a doorstop in its own right 
If you want epic space opera filled with terrible people doing horrible things to each other, you can’t go wrong with Stephen R. Donaldson’s Gap novels. It’s loosely based off Wagner’s Ring Cycle. Start with The Real Story and go from there. The villain of the first book is Angus Thermopyle, a pirate, murderer, thief, and rapist. By the fifth book, you’ll be rooting for him.
How about S.M. Stirling’s Emberverse series?
Neo-Medieval, endless battles, and strange clans spring from a common American origin. The Emberverse is amazingly constructed.
Two words. Warhammer 40k.
Well, this is what I’m came here to say. Well, and the Baroque Cycle. Snaked on two accounts.
So…most anything by Peter F. Hamilton.
Yeah! In terms of misery per page, it’s a much more apt comparison to A Song of Ice and Fire than anything Peter F. Hamiliton wrote. More entertaining too. Nuts to people who come down on Donaldson.
Is there anything in that universe that doesn’t just suck?
Joe Abercrombie’s First Law Trilogy.
It’s going to be a little harder to find than some of these recommendations, but there is also Chronicles of an Age of Darknessby Hugh Cook. The first book was published in the U.S. under the title *Wizard War *and I see it in used book stores on a regular basis.
- Sprawling? check.
- Told from several viewpoints? check. (note: different viewpoints in different novels, not interlaced chapters)
- People, faced by an implacable, non-human foe capable of destroying the world, squabble for minor gains? check.
- Characters you like die horribly? check.
The series has a major scene shift after the first 4 or 5 books, but those are great and very non-romantic (in the old sense of a Romance novel).
I see from Wiki that Hugh Cook has passed away, so another likely comparison to Game of Thrones is that it never really reaches a reasonable end point. However, unlike Game of Thrones, each book is pretty much an independent, complete, stand-alone story.
I strongly recommend these books.
I’ve just been rereading Mercedes Lakey’s Valdemarr universe
Spoilered to keep the post from being huge
Valdemar universe:
The Mage Wars
The Black Gryphon (1994) with Larry Dixon
The White Gryphon (1995) with Larry Dixon
The Silver Gryphon (1996) with Larry Dixon
The Last Herald Mage Trilogy
Magic’s Pawn (1989)
Magic’s Promise (1990)
Magic’s Price (1990)
The Last Herald Mage (1990 - omnibus)
The Collegium Chronicles
Foundation (2008)
Intrigues (2010)
Changes (2011)
Redoubt (2012)
Bastion (2013)
Brightly Burning (2000)
Vows & Honor
The Oathbound (1988)
Oathbreakers (1989)
Oathblood (1998)
Vows and Honor (1993 - omnibus)
Exile’s Honor (2002)
Exile’s Valor (2003)
Take a Thief (2001)
Kerowyn’s Tale
By the Sword (1991)
Heralds of Valdemar
Arrows of the Queen (1987)
Arrow’s Flight (1987)
Arrow’s Fall (1988)
Queen’s Own (1987 - omnibus)
Heralds of Valdemar (1990 - omnibus)
The Mage Winds Trilogy
Winds of Fate (1991)
Winds of Change (1992)
Winds of Fury (1993)
The Mage Storms Trilogy
Storm Warning (1994)
Storm Rising (1995)
Storm Breaking (1996)
The Owl Mage Trilogy
Owlflight (1997) with Larry Dixon
Owlsight (1998) with Larry Dixon
Owlknight (1999) with Larry Dixon
Valdemar Short Story Collections
Sword of Ice (1997)
Sun in Glory (2003)
Crossroads (2005)
Moving Targets (2008)
Changing the World (2009)
Finding the Way (2010)
Under the Vale (2011)
Valdemar Companion (1990) with John Helfers
Each group of books stands fairly well on it’s own but they also integrate well. You don’t feel like you’re left hanging after a trilogy but it’s always good to see a new set coming. They were written out of chronolgical order so you can choose to read in either publication order or world order, both work quite well.