|
All of the series listed are great for very different reasons.
Tolkien....yep, grandpa Jones of epic fantasy...but a very tough read. He set out to create a language and ended up making Peter Jackson a rich man!!
Brooks...I have a special place in my heart for the Shannarra series, simply because I read SoS when I was 13 years old and never looked back. Terry Brooks' specialty is his visceral descriptions of the environment and how it plays on the characters and plotline. The funny thing about this series, when I first read it, I thought I was dealing with some type of post-apocalyptic society where mutants were labeled with names from fantasy...such was the mind of an 13-year old weened on Ted Rockson and the Doomsday Warrior series.
Jordan...this man is the devil. I started reading TWoT when it first came out in '90 (or '91...I can't keep track). I went so far as to design a tattoo to add to my Celtic work that was based on the Wheel....Jordan's world is Tolkein on Horse Steroids It is so massive and cumbersome, I pray to all that is holy that he can pull it off with some modicum of finality.
Side Note-picked up Knife of Dreams yesterday...but am afraid to open it, knowing I won't see #12 for 3 more years.
Goodkind...talk about political and philosophical debate while lopping the heads off your enemies! The Sword of Truth started out with a disturbing likeness to Jordan's TWoT...all female M-User society (Sisters of the Light)trying to "educate" the male M-Users so that they are not a harm to those around them, (well, no Red Ajah, but some pretty nasty Dark Sisters). But then it evolved. Goodkind developed some twisted ideology, but pulled it off in extended dialogue sequences that made alot of sense. Not to mention the fact that Richard has only Kahlan to love, while Rand has to deal with a trifecta of lovelies. BTW "Phantom" will be out in 2006 and will conslude the SoT series.
RA Salvatore...Bruenor BattleHammer lives!!! Icewind Dale came out when I was deep into fantasy gaming and reading any piece of pulp put out by Tor or Baen. Drizz't was an interesting character, but I wal all about the brutal attacks of Wulfgar and Bruenor. Now I find variations of Drizz't's name in World of Warcraft, complete with scimitars that give off an eerie glow...an enchant that is 7g by the way).
Margaret Weiss and Tracey Hickman...Dragonlance should be a primer for any would-be GM/DM who wants to run epic fantasy. Next to WoT, this is the series I would most like to see have the Peter Jackson treatment at the movies.
JK Rowling....The books made me want to be Harry Potter...the movies made me want to go to Hogwarts...talk about thunder and lightning, Rowling got it all right in one series. Harry earns our empathy and sympathy in the first few books....by then we were hooked on the crackpipe and needed a new fix. Then Chris Columbus came along and made that tinkley tune synonymous with Christmas....now there is one book left and the Goblet of Fire, though edited beyind belief, is the darkest outing yet for the movies.
But there are other authors that are must reads...
Raymond E. Feist...if you haven't picked up the Riftwar Saga, do so now!! You can get the whole thing at Half-Priced Books for about 25 bucks and I am talking about 8 or 10 books of high fantasy that will leave you begging for more. His book "Rise of the Merchant Prince", should be required reading for any Economics major or Entrepeneur
George R.R. Martin...Game of Thrones series...pick it up, it will knock you on your ass. The Wars of the Roses on crack and mixed with dragons and magic.
Christopher Paolini....say what you will about this teenager....I was engrossed in Eragon and have Eldest next up in the queue after KoD
Glenn Cook...The Black Company series...mercenary adventure with magic and demons....a bit heavy handed sometimes but a good read for those who like military fantasy and military sci-fi.
David Eddings....another crafter that took my hard earned ducets. The Belgariad and Elenium and Mallorian series are books I revisit like old friends. The dialogue is spot-on and humorous and the plotlines are varied and layered. Perfect rainy day reading.
There are so many past authors that get it right...the problem is that so few current authors get it wrong or hash the job, the market is glutted with pulp-fantasy and pop-sci-fi that dilute the genre to the point of absurdity....
Where's my damn Axe!! I need to maim something....
__________________
|