I enjoy reading, but usually not fantasy. Several of my friends have recommended the Wheel of Time series. Do you think it would be worth reading even if the only fantasy books you like are by JRR Tolkien?
i heard they are good…
i recommend you try The Riftwar Saga by Raymond E. Feist
If you don’t mind reading through the first several chapters of boredom, the entire series becomes somewhat addictive. If you like Tolkien, like i do, and have read them all, including the Silmarillion which was so boring,
you’ll like the Wheel of Time. It’s pretty lengthy, and it’s not finished yet, and i get this feeling it might go on for too long too. Try it, it’s worth the shot.
You might also like Terry Brooks Shannarra series. It’s got a Tolkien type of charm to it.
And, David Eddings books, The Mallorean, The Belgariad, you might like those, they fall into the same field.
GL, enjoy.
Read anything by Guy Gavriel Kay. I’d start with ‘Tigana.’
If you like Tolkien, then you’ll probably like the WoT books, but in general, I’d stay away from most series, unless you’ve got some strong recommendations from people you trust.
I tried to read the Wheel of Time books. I crapped out about 300 pages (i.e. about a third) into the first book. Each book runs ~900-1000 pages, and current indications are that there will be 9 books, IIRC. Oh, and the author takes a long time between books, so it might be a substantial lag before you can read the later installments. A friend of mine, who really likes the series, says he’s going to wait for ALL of the books to be out, then go back and read the whole thing from the start.
I’d recommend the WoT, but only if you have a whole lot of spare time. I tried to read the first book, but gave up after a couple chapters. A couple months later, I was desperate to read something new, and picked it up again. This time I got completely addicted. There are a lot of faults with the series, especially the most recent books, which are pretty forgettable, but on the whole, I’ve gotten a lot of enjoyment out of them.
Also recommend Eddings (light and funny) and Kay (Tigana has already been mentioned, A Song for Arbonne and The Lions of Al-Rassan are also excellent), Tad Williams, Terry Goodkind (has some “adult” themes, and is awfully bloody), Feist, George R.R. Martin (where bad things happen to good people), and more that I can’t think of off the top of my head.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone…as soon as I’m done with the books I’ve got checked out I guess I’ll start on some of those.
If you want a relatively short series, try Dan Simmons’ Hyperion/Endymion series. Just 4 books, but a really great read. If you’re Catholic, you’ll get a kick out of the fact that the pope runs the entire galaxy in the 31st century.
As has already been mentioned, I’d go with The Riftwar Saga, by Fiest.
I found The WoT to be incredably boring. I made it through the first three or four books, and was ready to drop them off a ten story building onto the author’s head. They just never stop!
Elizabeth Moon wrote and excellent fantasy series: The Deed of Paksenarion. You can find it in a one book collection (It was originally a trilogy).
The Baker’s Boy trilogy is very good, but I can’t remember who wrote it. 
A Game Of Thrones by George Martin. Very good, especially if you like cynical stories of backstabbing, incest, warfare, the undead, and the return of dragons. There are two books in the series so far (I think it’s a trilogy), and it has rocked so far.
If you prefer something lighter, try Terry Pratchett’s Diskworld series. You don’t even have to read the books in order.
James Morrow has his “Corpus Dei” trilogy (though only two books are out so far – “Towing Jehovah” and “Blameless in Abbadon”). (His “Only Begotten Daughter” is thematically realated). Great for both humor and very serious speculation about the nature of God.
I agree on Simmon’s series.
As far as Jordan is concerned – I haven’t read it, but I understand that the big problem is that he’s gone millions of pages and there is no end in sight. 
Actually, as I understand it, it was originally going to be a quartet, and now it’s planned as a six-volume series.
Another series I haven’t seen mentioned but highly recommend are Fritz Leiber’s Lankhmar books.
I’d go with Dave Duncan. Not many people have heard of him, but he rocks! A Man Of His Word series, followed by A Handful Of Men. Excellent characters and humour mixed in with a kick-arse story.
Two things: First, the Silmarillion is not boring, but you might want to gloss over the Ainulindalë and the Valaquenta at the beginning. Secondly, don’t expect anyone to be Tolkien… There are many good fantasy authors, but none with the same feel to them. The closest I’ve seen is actually Beowulf, which is not surprising, seeing as Tolkien’s vocation was Old English scholar. With that said, you might (or might not) also like the Chronicles of Prydain series by Lloyd Alexander. The first book is The Book of Three. They’re on a fourth-grade level or so, and they’re pretty short, but good nonetheless.
Tolkein is the master. On top. All bow down.
I enjoyed David Eddings’ series when I was in junior high. Now I find them irritating.
Jordan is in between the two. All the critcisms that have been raised are valid. It started off well, but seems to have gotten severely bogged down. However, I still think there is enormous potential in the story. I give him two more books to write a seriously kick-ass fight scene that actually advances the plot before I give up on him.
The George R.R. Martin series is one of the best in recent memory. I’ve really enjoyed the first two. My dad thought they were too dark, but I liked the fact that the story was very unpredictable. Just when you think someone is integral to the plot and will serve as the series’ main character, he gets offed. If you begin this series, don’t get too attached to anybody.
As my third cent, my vote for worst author goes to L. Ron Hubbard. I’m just finishing his excruciatingly bad Mission Earth series/ordeal. I can’t believe I’ve actually read all 10 - that’s right, 10 - books. To be perfectly fair, the last book and a half get slightly more interesting than the rest. But please don’t start.
The Wheel of Time had the potential to be one of the greatest fantasy series of all time. I fell in love with it not just because of the storyline (though that is seriously strong in itself) but because of the culture it created. The societal structure was ver well-developed and it didn’t negelct the social interactions particularly from the gender side of things. It’s all subtle but the different perceptions of males and females are constantly explored both directly and within the context of a society that fears men with magic. The haughtiness and arrogance of the Aes Sedai (pardon spelling of I’m wrong - it’s been a few years since I read any of them) and their belittling of men. The I Know Better Attitude displayed by the independant women. The confusion of the young males particularly to the motives of the aforementioned females. And all this is just the background!!
Having said that I was bitterly disappointed when the seventh book came out. Originally the series was to be seven books long and they were certainly well-poised at the end of the sixth novel to wrap it up dramatically. But then it was decided (by the publishers apparently) to make it ten books long instead (probably a mere money grabbing opportunity). And it showed. In book seven hardly anything happened. It just dragged on with very little actual substance. It’s as if he was was just writing filler. Apparently book eight is the same (couldn’t bring myself to read it after 7). Maybe when they’re all out… sigh
Such wasted potential.
p.s. GaunoLad: I’m with you. Dave Duncan is a serious butt kicker (in the author sense of course) but strangely unknown
I don’t really have an opinion on the gender issues in WoT, although I truly cannot understand the logic of some characters’ behavior supposedly based on gender. However, I totally disagree with you on the culture aspect. Every country has one tiny thing that separates it from the others. In Illian they have silly accents. In Tear they use goofy fish metaphors. In Tarabon they wear veils. Not really all that convincing when creating a rich cultural background for a series. I think basically all fantasy books fail in this respect, however, so I’m not really surprised (I might be a little picky, though, my degree is in anthropology).
Oh I agree - he definitely overdid the stereotypes and this became much more pronounced as the series progressed. While different areas do need different idiosyncrocies, Jordan tended to unnecessarily exagerate them.
But when I referred to societal structure I was more interested in the interactions based on status and gender than regional habits.
Have you read Crown of Stars set by Kate Elliot? I’m only reading the second book at the moment but her portrayal of a heavily-religious culture that is shared throughout a land is more subtle and interesting. Having said that it’s heavy shadowing of Christianity is both a strength and a weakness.