Favorite Epic Fantasy Authors

[Mirai Gen]

Originally Posted by walkertexasdruid

Sorry about not mentioning Tolkein, I read the Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and they were great. Loved the movies too.

There was a time in high school where I read Tolkein and disliked it due to the sluggish pace and choppy pseudo-oral language. But that was during my literary/film snob phase so I need to look it up again, cause I'll probably like it.

[Odjn]

Steven Brust and Roger Zelazny are awesome dudes I cannot believe I forgot to mention them.

[krogothwolf]

David Gemmell was sweet. Druss the Legend! The Rigante! Huzzah! A Shame he passed away. I actually really enjoyed his Troy Series. David Eddings is also one of my Favs. I'm currently like Steven Erikson Series "Malazan Book of the Fallen"

[walkertexasdruid]

Another good one I forgot to mention was David B. Coe. His Winds of the Forelands series is great. If you are looking for fast-paced action, assasinations, and so much political intrigue that Machiavelli would wet himself if he read it, this is definately series for you.

I also read The Pheonix Unchained by Mercedes Lackey, which was a great read. The villain is a very sympathetic figure this time around, which is different than what you usually get in this genre.

[Magus]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

Also, although they're referred to often as children's fiction (and admittingly, deservedly so, the material is not adult-oriented or dense) I strongly recommend the Prydain Chronicles, which actually do fit into the realm of 'epic fantasy.' The dialogue between Taran and Eilonwy remains my favorite pseudo-romantic dialogue between male and female leads in all of fantasy, and it was written for kids. Nonetheless the characters are all memorable and delightful and they all have those little flaws and idosyncrasies that make them fun to follow. If you can stomach the occasional plot-twist-geared-for-eleven-year-old-audiences, you'll enjoy Prydain.

Another Lloyd Alexander fantasy series worth checking out is the Westmark (Westmark, The Kestrel, The Beggar Queen) trilogy, which isn't exactly epic fantasy but it has political intrigue and a fantasy setting, and starting with the second book, The Kestrel, delved into the main character fearing he is losing his humanity through the acts of violence he is forced to commit in his command of the army. All in all it seemed a bit more adult than The Chronicles of Prydain, though in all seriousness I thought Prydain wasn't just your run of the mill fairy tale fantasy for kids either, it just seemed like light fantasy as opposed to "childish", which are very different things.

Also it technically turns out to be Sci-Fi but John Christopher's The Sword of the Spirits trilogy (The Prince in Waiting, Beyond the Burning Lands, The Sword of the Spirits) has all the trappings of epic fantasy and is pretty awesome to boot (all in all I'd say it's steampunkish at its "worst").

Really, something being "young adult" shouldn't really turn adults away from a series, especially if done with the maturity many writers put into their works. Heck, adults read Harry Potter, after all, and I can say that either of those two trilogies I mentioned are probably arguably much more "adult" than Harry Potter.

[BitVyper]

Originally Posted by Mirai Gen

There was a time in high school where I read Tolkein and disliked it due to the sluggish pace and choppy pseudo-oral language. But that was during my literary/film snob phase so I need to look it up again, cause I'll probably like it.

It helps you appreciate exactly what Tolkein did if you're familiar with his sources and middle English literature in general. Even then, it's not something you would generally read just for leisure when you're bored. It's like how you don't just pop in Schindler's List some random evening.

[walkertexasdruid]

Christopher Paolini's Inheritance Series is very good. I also read young adult series from time to time. Go Eragon and Saphira!

Harry Potter is great as well, and I looking forward to The Hallfblood Prince in July.

[Magus]

Yeah, people seem to like Eragon--I'm assuming the movie didn't do it justice (as usual).

Regarding Tolkein, while it is even harder to read than the regular series, when I finally got into The Silmarillion I thought it was the best thing ever. Really great book. I wouldn't mind reading The Children of Hurin sometime (I forget exactly who Hurin is or what wasn't covered in The Silmarillion about his children but I'll probably remember when I get around to reading it).

[GARUD]

Eddings' first works were some of his best in my opinion, but both the Belgariad and the Mallorean were great series. The Ellenian and Tamuli, not so much, but were entertaining none-the-less.

I liked Raymond E Feist also, he had an interesting series of books, although I disliked his need to pair everyone up.

Kate Forsythe had decent series, just can't remember what it's called.

[RickZarber]

Originally Posted by Magus

Regarding Tolkein, while it is even harder to read than the regular series, when I finally got into The Silmarillion I thought it was the best thing ever. Really great book. I wouldn't mind reading The Children of Hurin sometime (I forget exactly who Hurin is or what wasn't covered in The Silmarillion about his children but I'll probably remember when I get around to reading it).

Yeah, the book does a pretty good job of setting things up for you, even going so far as to list in brief some of the differences between the two versions of the story and why, in fact, they exist as such. And even though I don't generally like them, I highly recommend the audio book for Children of Húrin. It's read by Christopher Lee, and Christopher Tolkien reads the intro!

Originally Posted by BitVyper

Even then, [Lord of the Rings is] not something you would generally read just for leisure when you're bored.

Speak for yourself! :p I managed to memorize almost 200 lines from the Lay of Leithian last month! (For those who don't know what that is, and of those, for the tiny percent who might possibly care.)