suggestions please...

[deemarie]

Hello people. I'm new here, having recently re-read the Belgariad, which I first discovered when I was in my teens. Far too many years later, I found a dog-eared copy of Pawn of Prophecy lying around and picked it up. The inevitable happened and I had to revisit the lot. Now I'm suffering that awful post-Mallorean malaise, and am looking for suggestions from you much more experienced readers on what else I might enjoy - I've read all the Eddings stuff, and I'm looking for something similar, ie an author who creates likeable characters, has a sense of humour (but not the ridiculous) and basically makes you feel as at-home in their world as you are in yours. Sometimes, tragic to say, even more so!

 

[Winters_Sorrow]

Feist's Riftwar stuff (Magician, Silverthorn, Darkness at Sethanon) and Empire (Daughter of, Servant of, Mistress of) stuff is pretty good and easy to get into.

I'll also throw my hat in for George R R Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series which begins with "A Game of Thrones" - superb stuff.

Plenty of other guys around with more, I'm sure. Welcome to the forums deemarie

 

[deemarie]

Thanks for that. I've also been referred to Robin Hobb and Robert Jordan, so I feel a book buying frenzy coming on...always tricky, you don't want to waste money on buying a trilogy to find you hate the first one; but if you love it, you'd have to wait for the next to arrive instead of staying awake for 32 hours flat!

 

[Winters_Sorrow]

Well I warn you that the Robert Jordan series is twelve books!

Robin Hobb I haven't read much of, but her's are conventional trilogies.

 

[j d worthington]

Deemarie: I've posted this also on another thread but, just so you get the message: Welcome aboard! I don't have any recommendations at the moment (once I know your tastes better, they'll come, I'm sure), but you'll find plenty here to help you with any such you may want. Have fun, and I look forward to seeing you around.

 

[williamjm]

To change genre slightly, Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkoskigan Saga seems to match what you were asking for (likeable characters, sense of humour). It is Science Fiction/Space Opera rather than fantasy and I'd considering it to be fairly 'light reading' [1] in the same way that Eddings or Feist are for fantasy.

[1] Describing something a 'light reading' almost sounds like a criticism but it certainly isn't intended as one.

 

[Brys]

Try Jack Vance's Tales of the Dying Earth - particularly Eyes of the Overworld, Cujel's Saga and Rhialto the Marvellous. You might also want to try Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser series.For more modern epic fantasy, I'd go with George RR Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, R Scott Bakker's the Prince of Nothing, or Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen - I'm not quite sure if they're your taste (they are all a lot darker than Eddings), but Erikson's probably the closest stylistically. (Before other Erikson fans kill me for that, I mean that he has a high magic setting and draws from many of the same influences as lighter fantasists like Eddings and Feist).I'd be careful with Robert Jordan - he's writing a 12 book series, and while they might start off similar to Eddings, after a few books it becomes incredibly slow paced.

 

[deemarie]

Thanks again. I realise now that specifying 'light reading' runs the risk of making me sound like an airhead - but to be honest I don't care; free time is too precious to waste, and I was mentally scarred for years by some of the exceedingly heavy fantasy works I tried years ago!

 

[Chrystelia]

Well if you want light fantasy, maybe George Martin is not the one.

 

[Rosemary]

Jennifer Fallon I would class as a light fantasy author, deemarie (welcome by the way!).

Her first series the Demon Child Trilogy has some humour, magic, battles that are not too blood thirsty and some rather witty deities! I really enjoyed that series.
There is a second series called The Second Sons Trilogy. I didn't find it as good as the previous series though.
Her latest series, The Hythrun Chronicles follows on from the first one and so far I am once again enjoying her stories.

 

[Abbot]

I think u sould try the Dark Magician trilogy by Trudi Canarven
The old kingdom Trilogy by Garth Nix ( a must read series)
and maybe Mercedies Lackey (she specialises in Gay main caracters so that could be worth readig if ur up for a big change)

Easy readers sould try out the rowan of rin and deltora quests seiers I loved them and still do.
Oh I know how bout the Book of Lies by James Maloney I found that world to die for.
I know some more the series after wat im thinking is called Rhiannons ride if u can find that seiries the pequal series to that by the same author is a must read too.

 

[sayn]

The Iron Tower
It's a compilation of three books by Dennis L. McKiernan. I love those books. You should read his other tales of Mithgar. I haven't gotten around to all of them but I'm sure they're as good as the first three I've read.

 

[Harleyquin]

Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan

Nice easy books to get into, ery little in the way of overcomplication in story (simmilar to eddings) and the female charachters are very rch also (female author). She's follwed this up by a second trilogy called the Age of 5 which was a decent read also - she's definately an author thats gone on my "myst buy" list.

 

[Abbot]

shes also writing a sequal to the dark magician trilogy.

 

[Abbot]

srry i realised i wrote dark...my mistack

 

[d66]

Terry Pratchett discworld series (except the first 2 books)