Books like GoT and Belgariad...

[aThenian]

I've been asked to recommend books for an eighteen year old boy who loved GoT and the Belgariad. Think he has also read the other David Eddings series. Can anyone help me out with some suggestions?

 

[HareBrain]

Those two are quite different in tone, I think. The Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series by Tad Williams (starts with The Dragonbone Chair) fits quite nicely between them. I fiercely loved those books when I was that age.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive series immediately comes to mind as one that's very popular and might especially suit a teenager.

 

[svalbard]

Harry Turtledove's Legion of Videssos cycle and Feist's Riftwar Saga might suit. I read both series as a teenager into my early 20s and loved them.

 

[BAYLOR]

Karl Edward Wagner's Kane the Mystic Swordsman Series is an excellent series there are 5 books in this series

1. Bloodstone
2. Darkness Weaves
3. Dark Crusade
4. Death Angels Shadow
5. Night winds

The Empire of the East by Fred Saberhagen
Morlock Night by K W Jeter
The High House by James Stoddard
The False House by James Stoddard
The Broken Sword by Poul Anderson
Conan Hour of the Dragon by Robert E Howard
The City of the Signing Flame and it sequel story Beyond the Singing Flame by Clark Ashton Smith
The House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson
The Star Rover by Jack London
The Eternal Champion Saga by Michael Moorcock
Tales from The Dying Earth by Jack Vance
The Forgotten Beast of Eld by Patricia McKillip
Magus Rex by Jack Lovejoy.
Lest Darkness Falls By L Sprague de Camp
Jhreg by Steven Brust
The Ship of Ishtar by Abrham Merritt
The Dark World by Henry Kuttner
Black God's Kiss by C L Moore

 

[aThenian]

@BAYLOR - that will keep him busy!

Thanks guys, will see how he gets on.

 

[vanye]

Karl Edward Wagner's Kane the Mystic Swordsman Series is an excellent series there are 5 books in this series

1. Bloodstone
2. Darkness Weaves
3. Dark Crusade
4. Death Angels Shadow
5. Night winds

The Empire of the East by Fred Saberhagen
Morlock Night by K W Jeter
The High House by James Stoddard
The False House by James Stoddard
The Broken Sword by Poul Anderson
Conan Hour of the Dragon by Robert E Howard
The City of the Signing Flame and it sequel story Beyond the Singing Flame by Clark Ashton Smith
The House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson
The Star Rover by Jack London
The Eternal Champion Saga by Michael Moorcock
Tales from The Dying Earth by Jack Vance
The Forgotten Beast of Eld by Patricia McKillip
Magus Rex by Jack Lovejoy.
Lest Darkness Falls By L Sprague de Camp
Jhreg by Steven Brust
The Ship of Ishtar by Abrham Merritt
The Dark World by Henry Kuttner
Black God's Kiss by C L Moore

But these are very different from The Belgariad and GoT which are both modern-voiced. Stuff like Conan feels dated and stilted in comparison.

 

[Brian G Turner]

@BAYLOR - have you actually read either the Belgariad or Game of Thrones? Simply that all your recommended books seem to be at least 40 years old! Haven't you read any modern fantasy you've enjoyed?

 

[vanye]

As recommendations I would add Katharine Kerr's Deverry series and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time. And of course I second the recommendation of The Stormlight Archive. Looking forward to the third installment coming soon.

There's lots more that come to mind, but the above should keep a young reader busy for a while.

 

[The Big Peat]

When I was that age, along with the Belgariad, I was chewing through Jordan's Wheel of Time, Kerr's Deverry, Gemmell's Drenai Chronicles, Feist's Riftwar and Lackey's Heralds of Valdemar and would recommend all of them. I was also reading a lot of Discworld, but that's very different in tone. I did also read Brooks' Shannara stuff, but while that's similar in tone, my recommendation would be lukewarm. Others may disagree though, so I put the name out there.

More modern, but fits nicely enough in the general style, would be Butcher's Codex Alera.

 

[Tsynn]

I found a copy of Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie and I enjoyed it a lot. It is violent and ruthless like GOT (haven't read the Belgariad), and very character driven. I actually didn't realize it was part of a series, and it was fine as a stand-alone read.

 

[BAYLOR]

But these are very different from The Belgariad and GoT which are both modern-voiced. Stuff like Conan feels dated and stilted in comparison.

How many of those writers have you read if I may ask?

@BAYLOR - have you actually read either the Belgariad or Game of Thrones? Simply that all your recommended books seem to be at least 40 years old! Haven't you read any modern fantasy you've enjoyed?

Ive read both of those , others I've read , Glen Cook, Tim Powers , Steven Erikson , Steven Brust and many others who would considered Modern of which I've enjoyed and I do recommend them.

The reason that I recommend so many of these older writers is because they're being forgotten and they should not be. They're great writers sand have written great books and they deserve to be remembered and enjoyed by future generations. Im doing my bit to keep them alive . I know that ultimately this is losing battle but it's all I can do.

 

[vanye]

@BAYLOR

Fair enough. However, the question was not to list books you think are worth reading but to name reads similar to The Belgariad and GoT. I've read enough of the ones you enumerated to know they are not.

But yes, I also read those early works of Fantasy every now and then because I like the perspective it gives me on the genre. Nevertheless, I do not find them as enjoyable as the more modern stuff on an emotional level.

 

[Mark Robson]

My Darkweaver Legacy series had several big nods to Eddings (who was probably my favourite writer at the time I wrote it) - hadn't read GOT at the time. (Love it now, of course) I do tip my hat at Gemmell as well, though. Liked his stuff a lot. If you're looking for an (effectively YA) series of books with a similar sarcastic style of humour throughout like the Belgariad, however, I would highly recommend the Skulduggery Pleasant books by Derek Landy.

 

[Pedro Del Mar]

I'd agree with Gemmell, Erikson, Jordan and Abercrombie. All similar to what the OP is looking for and all well recommended

 

[Gonk the Insane]

John Gwynne's The Faithful and the Fallen series would probably be another series he might like. It begins with Malice.

 

[Randy M.]

@BAYLOR - have you actually read either the Belgariad or Game of Thrones? Simply that all your recommended books seem to be at least 40 years old! Haven't you read any modern fantasy you've enjoyed?

So ... how is 40-years-old not modern?

If I were still 40 I might be offended.

There's American Gods by Neil Gaiman, if you think he'd read fantasy set in ... *ahem* ... modern times (there's also Coraline and The Graveyard Book; though they are YA, they are good fun). Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susannah Clarke (with the warning that it's not an action/adventure book)? Maybe a somewhat easier reading level, Tamsin by Peter Beagle.

How about something fun like The Stupidest Angel by Christopher Moore? (Probably his other work, too -- I'm still trying to catch up.) Or We Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory? (There's a follow up, Harrison Squared I hope to get to this summer.)


Randy M.

 

[Gonk the Insane]

So ... how is 40-years-old not modern?

Well, in terms of human history (or literature in general) it is modern, but in terms of SFF history I'd argue not so much. Even if you take something like David Lindsay's Voyage to Arcturus as being around the dawn of SF, that was published around 1920, I believe, which would make 40 years nearly half of SF's entire history. Considering how the SFF genres have continued to change over recent decades in terms of style etc, I'd argue that "modern" SFF encompasses far fewer than 40 years. Perhaps contemporary might be a better description than modern in this scenario?

Another suggestion I've thought of is Miles Cameron's Traitor Son Cycle series, beginning with The Red Sword. There are 5 books in total, I think.

 

[The Bluestocking]

Robin Hobb's LIVESHIP series and Naomi Novik's TEMARAIRE series might fit the bill.

 

[The Big Peat]

How is 40 years ago modern in a genre like this?

That said, I wouldn't consider the belgariad modern either these days. But it's a lot more modern than Baylor's list in terms of stereotype use and writing style. Maybe the kid would like them, maybe he wouldn't, but they're a lot less like the original examples than other modern fantasy - hence the objections.

Anyways.

Faithful and the fallen loses a lot of readers on the first book from all I've heard, it certainly lost me. Red knight is very soiaf esque.

If he has a Kindle and doesn't mind self published, Lindsay burokers the emperors edge reminded me very strongly of eddings in tone.