# Which epic fantasy saga to read next? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 8, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679 "2011-04-08T16:36:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2011, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/41 "2011-04-09T18:07:18Z")
Oh, hey - nobody has mentioned Jack Vance’s _Lyonesse Trilogy_ yet. Set on islands in the Bay of Biscay in a quasi-historical ( emphasis on the quasi- ) Europe, heavy on the fae. Good stuff. ---
**Author:** ![MHaye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bbe5ce/32.png) [@MHaye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MHaye)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2011, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/42 "2011-04-09T19:37:46Z")
> [@bucketybuck](#): > > I very much recommend the recently finished ten book epic “Malazan book of the Fallen”, by Steven Erikson. Agreed. I finished the last book earlier this evening. I’ve probably forgotten half the events in the series. I haven’t bought many books lately (and read these courtesy of the local library) but if I had the money I’d pick them up in paperback. > [@](#): > > Also, anything by David Gemmell is well worth a read. Start at the start with him, and “Legend”. Also agreed, although I can only speak for the earlier Drenai novels, and Knights of Dark Renown. I see the Belgariad has been mentioned, but not The Elenium / The Tamuli. Try reading The Diamond Throne (the first in the Elenium) and see whether you like it. Katherine Kerr wrote a seventeen-book cycle - most of the books being moderate length - with a lot of intertwining threads. A large part of each book is a sequence of flashbacks that tell the backstory behind the main narrative. ---
**Author:** ![Brainiac4](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brainiac4/32/3534_2.png) [@Brainiac4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brainiac4)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/43 "2011-04-10T19:33:27Z")
Some noted above, but bear repeating: Glen Cook’s _Black Company_ series (his new _Instrumentality of the Night_ series is not as good, but Black Company sets an incredibly high bar). Dark, gritty fantasy novels, about a band of bad men making the right choice when given the opportunity to decide between two evils. Steven Erikson’s _Malazan Book of the Fallen_ series. Sprawling, epic fantasy series with multiple interlocking plotlines and great characters. Patrick Rothfuss’ _Kingkiller_ series. Just getting started, but very well written and engaging. Scott Lynch’s _Gentleman Bastard_ series. Intricately plotted and highly engaging. Brian Daley’s _Coramonde_ books (Doomfarers of Coramonde and Starfollowers of Coramonde). I can’t tell you the reasons I love these books without spoiling them. Just know that I’ve bought both of them at least twice times and re-read them at least four times. Lin Carter’s _Gondwane Epic_. Another series I’ve purchased more than once and read many times. Science fantasy rather than straight fantasy, but with immortal sorcerors, flying castles and tiger-men. Awesome. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/44 "2011-04-10T20:19:27Z")
Most of Barbara Hambly’s fantasy is enjoyable. My daughter and I especially loved the Windrose chronicles (starts with The Silent Tower). Dragonsbane is wonderful. But don’t read the sequels to it. Hambly was going through a very bad time when she wrote those sequels. If you want to read Eddings, you might as well read the Belgariad quintet, and then stop there. Eddings said everything that he really had to say in that quintet, and then he starts repeating himself. Anne McCaffrey also said about everything she had to say quite a few books ago, but fans WILL keep offering her money to keep writing, so she does. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/45 "2011-04-10T20:28:25Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Anne McCaffrey also said about everything she had to say quite a few books ago, but fans WILL keep offering her money to keep writing, so she does. The great bulk of her stuff is explicitly not fantasy, including the assorted dragon books. I know a lot of folks lump the Dragonriders stories with fantasy, but even the first couple ( before the sf elements started becoming more and more overt ) don’t scan like traditional fantasy to me, other than in the quasi-medieval setting, and, you know, the dragons ;). ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/46 "2011-04-10T20:39:39Z")
Raymond Feist’s books are really not the greatest fantasy series in the world, but I enjoyed them. ---
**Author:** ![DeptfordX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DeptfordX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeptfordX)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/47 "2011-04-10T20:48:30Z")
I believe the advice often given for the Dresden books is to start with book 3 _Grave Peril_ and then come back to the first two when you’re hooked. I also _loved_ the audiobook versions of those books. Another vote for Joe Abercrombie as well. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/48 "2011-04-10T20:54:18Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I’m also a long-time fan of Tad Williams’ _Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn_ trilogy. Very Tolkein-esque, but written in a more accessible language. The protagonist does spend an inordinate amount of time lost in various forests, though. If someone had just given that boy a compass, the series would be about half as long. I’ll second this recommendation (just finished myself). Honestly, I recommend _anything_ by Tad Williams. My best friend gave me a copy of one of Williams’ rare standalone novels, _War of the Flowers_, and I was immediately hooked on this guy’s stuff. He rapidly became my favorite current author. _Otherland_ is another good series from him, though it’s mainly science fiction but with a healthy dose of fantasy thrown in. John C. Wright’s _The Chronicles of Chaos_ trilogy (_Orphans of Chaos, Fugitives of Chaos_, and _Titans of Chaos_) is a fun modern-day fantasy. Kat Richardson’s _Greywalker_ series is another excellent modern-day fantasy set in Seattle, with an extremely likable female protagonist. ETA: I guess the Greywalker books are more a blend of mystery (the main character is a private investigator) and the supernatural, but thoroughly enjoyed by this fantasy fan. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/49 "2011-04-10T20:57:19Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > The great bulk of her stuff is explicitly not fantasy, including the assorted dragon books. I know a lot of folks lump the Dragonriders stories with fantasy, but even the first couple ( before the sf elements started becoming more and more overt ) don’t scan like traditional fantasy to me, other than in the quasi-medieval setting, and, you know, the dragons ;). I consider the Dragonriders to be fantasy, not just because of the setting, but because of the society. From the start, it’s clear that there are nobles and then there are peasants, for instance, with very little upward mobility. While McCaffrey tried to retcon her original story (novella/novelette, I forget which) into SF, it was written as a fantasy. I think it was a mistake for her to try to force her original idea into a SF mold, because if you have telepathy and dragons and that setting, just making up a SF backstory isn’t going to make it SF. ---
**Author:** ![Kilmore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a6a055/32.png) [@Kilmore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilmore)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/50 "2011-04-11T06:28:47Z")
The original Conan stories by RE Howard. The Conan Chronicles books have everything you need. Make sure they’re by Howard! A lot of people wrote Conan stories, but only one of them was RE Howard! ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/51 "2011-04-11T09:14:51Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I consider the Dragonriders to be fantasy, not just because of the setting, but because of the society. From the start, it’s clear that there are nobles and then there are peasants, for instance, with very little upward mobility. While McCaffrey tried to retcon her original story (novella/novelette, I forget which) into SF, it was written as a fantasy. I think it was a mistake for her to try to force her original idea into a SF mold, because if you have telepathy and dragons and that setting, just making up a SF backstory isn’t going to make it SF. Telepathy and neofeudalism are fairly common in SF, and dragons occasionally appear too. And to be realistic, if someone were to find or create a bunch of flying fire breathing critters on another planet, naming them “dragons” would be a natural thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/838e76/32.png) [@One\_And\_Only\_Wanderers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/One_And_Only_Wanderers)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/52 "2011-04-11T09:50:55Z")
Seconding Malazan, and Robin Hobb suggestions. I will throw in the Recluce series by L Modesitt Jr ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/53 "2011-04-11T11:16:43Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Telepathy and neofeudalism are fairly common in SF, and dragons occasionally appear too. And to be realistic, if someone were to find or create a bunch of flying fire breathing critters on another planet, naming them “dragons” would be a natural thing to do. I’ll grant you this…but the feel of the stories is definitely fantasy to me. The telepathy and bonding are more magic than psionic. And the themes seem to be more fantasy than SF. It’s been a while since I’ve read any of the books, but the first half of the first book is basically “hidden/deposed royalty comes back into its own”. The ONLY SF elements that I remember are the Terran origins and the genetic engineering of the firelizards into dragons, and it’s always seemed to me that McCaffrey originally intended to write the stories as fantasy, but changed to SF. McCaffrey also has a lot of romantic subplot going on in her books, which is traditionally more fantasy than SF, although there are exceptions. Think of it, a lot of the stories focus on romantic/sexual relationships, and the first book, at least, is full of “male and female misunderstand each other, even though they are meant for each other” stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/54 "2011-04-11T11:22:00Z")
To get back to the OP, I’ve always enjoyed [Patricia Briggs’](http://www.patriciabriggs.com/books/) stories. I would definitely read Raven’s Shadow and Raven’s Strike as two volumes of a single book, though. I was quite upset at the end of Raven’s Shadow because I felt that a major plot point hadn’t been dealt with. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/55 "2011-04-11T12:19:35Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I’ll grant you this…but the feel of the stories is definitely fantasy to me. The telepathy and bonding are more magic than psionic. And the themes seem to be more fantasy than SF. It’s been a while since I’ve read any of the books, but the first half of the first book is basically “hidden/deposed royalty comes back into its own”. The ONLY SF elements that I remember are the Terran origins and the genetic engineering of the firelizards into dragons, and it’s always seemed to me that McCaffrey originally intended to write the stories as fantasy, but changed to SF. On the other hand, I always got a sci-fi feel from them. The Masterharper and more progressive craftsmen rediscovering and reinventing everything from telegraphs to flamethrowers. The promulgation of knowledge to the common people being regarded as a good thing. The more ancient tunnels being carved without the marks of hand tools. Lessa finding metal carved with [“Arrhenius? Eureka! Mycorrhiza”](http://pern.srellim.org/eureka.htm). And time travel; while time travel isn’t unknown in fantasy, it’s a lot rarer than in sci-fi. ---
**Author:** ![Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a88e4f/32.png) [@Eleanor\_of\_Aquitaine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleanor_of_Aquitaine)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/56 "2011-04-11T13:35:08Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > To get back to the OP, I’ve always enjoyed [Patricia Briggs’](http://www.patriciabriggs.com/books/) stories. I would definitely read Raven’s Shadow and Raven’s Strike as two volumes of a single book, though. I was quite upset at the end of Raven’s Shadow because I felt that a major plot point hadn’t been dealt with. I really liked her _Dragon Bones_/_Dragon Blood_ duology. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/57 "2011-04-11T15:43:14Z")
BTW: If you want to read **about** epic fantasy in addition to reading epic fantasy, I highly recommend [_Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers,_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Literary_Swordsmen_and_Sorcerers) by L. Sprague de Camp. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/58 "2011-04-11T21:16:47Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > John C. Wright’s _The Chronicles of Chaos_ trilogy (_Orphans of Chaos, Fugitives of Chaos_, and _Titans of Chaos_) is a fun modern-day fantasy. You think it’s impossible for a story about magical British orphans to be even remotely original, right? You’re wrong. > [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > To get back to the OP, I’ve always enjoyed [Patricia Briggs’](http://www.patriciabriggs.com/books/) stories. I would definitely read Raven’s Shadow and Raven’s Strike as two volumes of a single book, though. I was quite upset at the end of Raven’s Shadow because I felt that a major plot point hadn’t been dealt with. Indeed. They should have been released as one volume. Book One is an utterly standard fantasy story, with good guys, crazy evil cultists, and a protagonist named Raven. Right out of the generic fantasy mold. They live happily ever after. Book Two it turns out that happily ever after wasn’t, at least not yet. And the evil cultists might not have been that crazy after all. And everything you thought you knew from the first book was wrong, or incomplete, or 180 degrees backwards. And it is very much _not_ a standard fantasy story. I bought both books at the same time, so I read them both. But if I’d only had _Raven’s Shadow_, I don’t think I would have bothered getting _Raven’s Strike_. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/59 "2011-04-11T22:04:30Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > You think it’s impossible for a story about magical British orphans to be even remotely original, right? You’re wrong. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Dancer\_Flight](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dancer_flight/32/7601_2.png) [@Dancer\_Flight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dancer_Flight)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679/60 "2011-04-11T22:24:58Z")
You might want to give Elizabeth Moon’s _Deed of Paksenarion_ a try. It’s a trilogy focusing on the journey and growth of a sheep farmer’s daughter into a competent member of a mercenary company and beyond. There were three books in the original series, with a sort of prequel duo (under the omnibus title, _Legacy of Gird_) which paints a fairly detailed picture of life as a peasant with a nifty little peasant revolt against magic wielding overlords thrown in for fun. Moon’s two books into a follow up trilogy(?) to Paksenarion’s story. Cheers, -DF [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-epic-fantasy-saga-to-read-next/577679.md?page=4)