(no subject)

[darchildre]

Friends, I am in the mood for reading some epic fantasy. Would you like to recommend some epic fantasy?

Here are things I like:
- Glossaries. If your book has a glossary in the back, I am halfway to loving it already.
- Religion. Interacting with the gods = cool. Characters with coherent religions actually shown practicing their faith = cooler.
- Fantasy lands that aren't just England. I mean, England is cool and I love me some fantasy!Vikings, but it's nice to go other places as well.
- Nifty and coherent magical systems, if we're doing that kind of magic.
- Kickass ladies.
- Interesting villains. Interesting villains with interesting motivations who don't lose just because they suddenly caught the Idiot Ball on page 500.
- And if said interesting villain just happens to have an even vaguely interesting minion, well...that would be a definite plus for me.
- Happy endings. I don't mind if there's suffering to get there, but I'm not in the market for bleak right now.


And things I don't like:
- Stories that aren't finished. I am not up for another George R R Martin right now.
- On that note, I'd really prefer to avoid sexual violence, if at all possible. Or graphic violence in general, though that's more negotiable.

Anybody have any recs?

Comments

[nicki]

(I think these are all still in print, but IDK for sure)

If you like door stops:

Michelle West. There is some implication of sexual violence in several situations, but none is on the page. There is complex religion and a complicated interweave of characters and cultures across several very long books. She has 3 intertwined series, but enjoyment of the 1st 2 series isn't dependent on her 3rd (the 6th book of the 3rd series will be out next month, and it should be either the second or third to the last in that series). If you do read her, I recommend starting with the hunterborn duology and then reading the sunsword books.

The two dragon prince trilogies by Melanie Rawn. As far as I can remember, no actual sexual violence, but there is the threat of it at one point. Basically no religion at all, which I've always thought was kind of weird. (her third series set in a different world will never be finished, so don't even bother to start the exiles books. They're really good, but, again, no ending which is really frustrating and has been for about the last 15 years)

Tamora Pierce, the Tortall books. Technically they are YA, but they aren't really except in length for a couple (the Lioness series is basically the equivilent of one door stop that her editor had her cut into 4 parts). I wasn't a huge fan of the Daine series or the trickster one, but the Protector of the small books were really really good. Little sexual violence, but a lot of sexual politics re women in a "man's field". They are kind of England in a fantasy world thought.

Robin Hobb is pretty good. I read her first two series and liked them, but I bounced off the third like it was a trampoline.

LE Modesitt- His protagonists are mostly male, but a lot of great women as secondary characters and a couple of his books do feature women protagonists (the spell-song series wasn't my favorite however). The magic systems in his various fantasy series are unusual.

Jane Lindskold's firekeeper series (I haven't read the last two though).

[darchildre]

Very cool - thanks very much!