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From: Amy Sheldon <
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Subject: Recommended Fantasy Authors List - Part 1/5
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Date: 19 Dec 1998 14:02:09 GMT
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Summary: Listing of fantasy authors recommended by readers of
the alt.fan.eddings newsgroup. Contains descriptive
listings on nearly 100 authors, forthcoming titles,
book news, and numbers of recommendations.
X-Last-Updated: 1998/03/03
Originator:
[email protected]
Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu alt.fan.eddings:41951 rec.arts.sf.written:358290 alt.answers:38701 rec.answers:46011 news.answers:146875
Archive-name: fantasy/recommended-authors/part1
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-modified: 1998/03/01
URL:
http://www.sff.net/people/Amy.Sheldon/listcont.htm
Version: 3.0
THE RECOMMENDED FANTASY AUTHORS LIST - ver. 3.0
Part 1 of 5
NOTICE OF MAJOR CHANGE TO LIST
Beginning with the March, 1998 posting, only those authors with
six or more recommendations will have detailed listings. THE
FULL LIST, WITH TITLES AND COMMENTS ON *ALL* RECOMMENDED
AUTHORS, is available at the list web site:
http://www.sff.net/people/Amy.Sheldon/listcont.htm
Unfortunately, the Recommended Fantasy Author List has just
gotten too large to continue posting the entire thing.
CONTENTS:
Introduction Part 1
THE LIST (A-C) Part 1
THE LIST (D-K) Part 2
THE LIST (L-Q) Part 3
THE LIST (R-Z) Part 4
Total Recommendation Counts Part 5
Finding These Books Part 5
About the List Part 5
Downloading the List Part 5
Credits Part 5
INTRODUCTION
The Recommended Fantasy Author List originated in April 1994 in
the alt.fan.eddings newsgroup. It was intended to be a quick
compilation of a few favorite fantasy authors of some a.f.e.
regulars. After more than 150 recommendation lists, it ended up
being a bit more than that. The List has maintained ONE of its
original attributes - all of the participants share a fondness
for the fantasy of David Eddings. Other than that, recommended
authors run the gamut from Stephen Donaldson to Terry Pratchett,
Mervyn Peake to Lloyd Alexander, and Peter Beagle to Piers
Anthony (the last pair is my "sublime to the ridiculous"
combination).
The list is alphabetic by author. In the case of authors with
multiple series, I've attempted to list their works in order of
publication. Note that the operative word in the preceding
sentence is "attempted." Series are listed with a series title
followed by the individual books in the series. The listing will
indicate if the titles are part of an on-going series or a
limited series (trilogies, tetralogies, and the like), and if
the books within the series stand alone. If the series has gone
beyond 10 books, the first several books will be listed, and
maybe a few others of particular interest.
THIS LISTING DOES NOT PRETEND TO LIST EVERY WORK BY EVERY AUTHOR
LISTED, nor is it intended to do so. In several cases, only
specific books by an author are recommended (although that is
generally noted in the comments). Authors who write both science
fiction AND fantasy (or books in other genres) only have their
fantasy titles listed.
You can find many _complete_ author lists, created by the
indomitable John Wenn, at the following ftp site:
sflovers.rutgers.edu
in the directory: /pub/sf-lovers/bibliographies/authorlists
The value-enhanced html version of this list resides at:
http://www.sff.net/people/Amy.Sheldon/listcont.htm
It includes everything found in the posted version plus all of
the authors with less than seven recommendations, links to
individual author sites and more detailed comments on the
individual authors and titles.
Series titles are enclosed within quotation marks, and book
titles within series are separated a semicolon. Comments, if
any, follow the listing. Authors/series listed by 10% of the
recommenders are marked with an "*". Two "**" means that 20% or
more have endorsed the author. The total number of
recommendations per author follows the List.
Lloyd Alexander (b. 1924)
"Prydain Chronicles" - The Book of Three; The Black
Cauldron; The Castle of Llyr; Taran Wanderer; The High
King
_Who cares if you have to get them from the
children's section of your library - these are
great. A young boy of unknown heritage becomes
involved in a clash between the forces of good and
evil. Loosely based on the Welsh Mabinogin. There
are also two or three short story collections out
featuring tales about the characters from the
Chronicles. Classic series, the concluding volume
won the Newbery medal._
"Westmark Trilogy" - Westmark; The Kestrel; The Beggar
Queen
_Less fantasy than the Prydain Chronicles. _The
Kestrel_ in particular brings up the issue of
personal morality in war situations, and it doesn't
give any easy answers._
"Vesper Holly series" - The Illyrian Adventure; The El
Dorado Adventure; The Drackenberg Adventure; The Jedera
Adventure; The Philadelphia Adventure
_Young adult adventure series set in an alternate
world during Victorian times. The hero is a teen-
aged female version of Indiana Jones, and the series
is great fun._
*Piers Anthony (b. 1934)
"Kelvin of Rud" - Dragon's Gold; Serpent's Silver;
Chimaera's Copper; Orc's Opal; Mouvar's Magic
_Straight adventure-fantasy._
"Xanth" - A Spell for Chameleon; The Source of Magic;
Castle Roogna; etc. etc. etc.
_Humorous. First couple of books are recommended,
but it has descended into terminal cuteness and
virtual unreadability. Denis managed to enjoy the
first 15, but even he admits that it's getting
pretty bad now. Series is nearing the 20-book mark._
"Apprentice Adept" - Split Infinity; The Blue Adept;
Juxtaposition
_Takes place in two different universes, one magic
and one not. Anthony returned to this world with a
second trilogy that is NOT recommended._
"Incarnations of Immortality" - On a Pale Horse; Bearing an
Hourglass; With a Tangled Skein; Wielding a Red Sword;
Being a Green Mother; For Love of Evil; And Eternity
_There is a general, overall theme, but each book
does stand on its own. NOT humorous. Recommenders
agree that the first book, _On a Pale Horse,_ is the
best (the usual state of affairs in a series written
by Piers Anthony)._
*Robert Asprin (b. 1946)
"Myth series" - Another Fine Myth; Myth Conceptions; Myth
Directions; Hit or Myth; Myth-ing Persons; Little Myth
Marker; M.Y.T.H. Inc. Link; Myth-nomers and
Impervections; M.Y.T.H. Inc. in Action; Sweet Myth-tery
of Life; Something M.Y.T.H. Inc. (forthcoming someday,
but don't expect it any time soon)
_Humorous. Lotsa puns, lotsa slapstick. Like most
long-running series, the recent offerings have been
pretty weak. He also has an SF series, "Phule's
Company," which also runs along the punny/humor
line._
"Thieves World" - Thieves World; Tales From the Vulgar
Unicorn; Shadows of Sanctuary; Storm Season; The Face
of Chaos; Wings of Omen; many others
_Shared World series with various authors, Asprin is
originator. Notable as the first series created
specifically to be a Shared World. Most of the
stories aim for a feeling of gritty realism
(translation: dark and depressing). The series seems
to have topped out at 12 books._
Peter S. Beagle (b. 1939)
A Fine and Private Place
_An early work. It's a love story with (and between)
ghosts. Jim says "it is well worth reading" and your
FAQmaker agrees._
The Last Unicorn
_One of the top ten fantasies of all time. Read
this. Bittersweet story of the last unicorn's quest
to find out what happened to her fellow unicorns._
The Folk of the Air
_Published in the mid 80s, contemporary fantasy set
in a city resembling Berkeley, California and
featuring a group very like the Society for Creative
Anachronism. One of his weaker works. Still, even
weak Beagle is worth reading._
The Innkeeper's Song
_Beagle returns to fantasy after far too long an
absence. Story told through multiple viewpoints,
grittier and a bit darker than his early work._
The Unicorn Sonata
_25 years after _The Last Unicorn_, Beagle returns
with a new fantasy that is initially set in
contemporary Los Angeles before moving on to a
faerie land of Shei'rah. This is really only a
novelette, but the pictures are pretty..._
Ray Bradbury (b. 1920)
Something Wicked This Way Comes
_Everything Bradbury writes is Wonderful (do we
detect a teeny bit of bias on the part of our
FAQmaker here?) Most of his fantasy is in short
story form, but this novel features an unusual (and
nasty) carnival that comes to town._
*Marion Zimmer Bradley (b. 1930)
"Avalon books" - The Mists of Avalon; The Forest House; The
Lady of Avalon (co-author Diana Paxson)
_Each of these stands alone. _Mists_ was one of the
first books to tell the Arthur story from the female
characters' points of view, and, boy, was it
successful. _Forest House_ is a prequel to _Mists_,
taking place during the Roman invasion of Britain,
and _Lady_ takes place between the two._
The Firebrand
_Cassandra of Troy gets her turn in the spotlight._
"Witchlight series" - Ghostlight; Witchlight; Gravelight;
Heartlight (forthcoming Sept. '98)
_New series featuring psychic heroine Truth
Jourdemayne. eluki bes shahar will be co-authoring
the forthcoming books._
"Darkover series" - Stormqueen; Hawkmistress; The Forbidden
Tower; The Heirs of Hammerfell; many many others
_THIS IS SF, NOT FANTASY. But, hey, McCaffrey's Pern
books made it onto the list, so why not MZB's
Darkover? Generally, the books that take place after
the lost colony of Darkover has been rediscovered by
Earth are more SF in tone, the ones that take place
during Darkover's long isolation have a more
'fantasy' feel. I've listed a few of the titles I'm
personally familiar with, and consider fantasy-ish
in tone. The books are generally supposed to be
standalones, but familiarity with Darkover is needed
to make lesser offerings more enjoyable._
**Terry Brooks (b. 1944)
"Shannara" - Sword of Shannara; Elfstones of Shannara;
Wishsong of Shannara
_The fantasy genre owes Brooks a lot - whether that
debt is good or bad depends upon how you feel about
the current state of the market. These books were
bestsellers when they came out in the early 80's,
and they finally proved that Tolkien's popularity
wasn't just an aberration, and that fantasy could be
much more than a niche market. This is an enjoyable
group of books, although the Tolkienesque borrowings
of the first book of the first trilogy are even more
blatant than most._
"Heritage of Shannara" - Scions of Shannara; Druid of
Shannara; Elf Queen of Shannara; Talismans of Shannara
_Onward ever onward with the world of Shannara. This
group of books is straightforward fantasy
quest/adventure._
"Yet Another Shannara Book" - First King of Shannara
_Prequel set 500 years before the events of _Sword
of Shannara_._
"Kingdom of Landover" - Magic Kingdom For Sale-Sold; The
Black Unicorn; Wizard At Large; The Tangle Box; Witches
Brew
_Open-ended adventure/humor series. Not connected to
the Shannara books._
"Trolltown series" - Running With the Demon; A Knight of
the Word (forthcoming Aug. '98)
_Brooks' first fantasies set in the contemporary
world. Good and evil vie for the soul of a young
Illinois girl. The first book does include an elf,
a demon and a Knight of the Word as characters, so
it shouldn't be too much of a shock to his fans._
*Steven Brust (b. 1955)
"Vlad Taltos series" - Jhereg; Yendi; Teckla; Taltos;
Phoenix; Athyra; Orca; Dragon (forthcoming Nov. '98)
_Featuring the assassin Vlad Taltos. Open-ended
action/adventure series taking place in a well-
defined, interesting world. Each book is a stand-
alone, and the published order (listed above) does
NOT follow the internal chronology (despite that,
you should try to read them in the published order.
Vlad's growth as a character is best traced by
reading the books in the order Brust has written
them)._
"Khaavren Romances" - The Phoenix Guards; Five Hundred
Years After; The Paths of the Dead (coming sometime in
1999 maybe); The Enchantress of Dzur Mountain
(forthcoming); The Lord of Castle Black (forthcoming)
_Set in the same world as the Vlad Taltos books,
just earlier in its history. These are written in
the style of Dumas (remember _The Three
Musketeers_?) and are quite enjoyable._
Brokedown Palace
_A standalone that takes place in the eastern
(human) region of Vlad Taltos' world. It was
reprinted by Ace in August, 1996._
Agyar
_Dark fantasy told from the title character's point
of view. Kate sez, 'Part of the fun is figuring out
who and what he is.'_
The Sun, the Moon, and the Stars
_Part of the Ace 'Fairy Tale' series (now being
published by Tor), which invited various authors to
retell a fairy tale for a contemporary adult
audience. Very well-regarded, books from the series
by Wrede, de Lint & Dean are also on this list. It
came back into print in May '96 from Tor._
Freedom and Necessity (co-author Emma Bull)
_This is an epistolary fantasy (i.e., the story is
told in the form of letters) that is unrelated to
any series by either of the co-authors. It is set in
1849 and has garnered some very nice reviews._
Orson Scott Card (b. 1951)
Hart's Hope
_Early stand-alone fantasy_
"Alvin Maker" - Seventh Son; Red Prophet; Prentice Alvin;
Alvin Journeyman; The Crystal City (forthcoming 1998);
Master Alvin (forthcoming)
_I'm told that _Master Alvin_ will complete this
series. The majority of Card's writing falls firmly
into SF, but this is an interesting alternate-
history fantasy, taking place in 19th century U.S._
Lewis Carroll (1832-1898)
"The Alice Duology" - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland;
Through the Looking Glass
_Human from the "real world" crosses over into a
fantasy land...Sound familiar? The first and still
the best, you should read the Alice books as a fine
source of sig quotes if nothing else._
C.J. Cherryh (b. 1942)
"Morgaine" - Gate of Ivrel; Well of Shiun; Fires of
Azeroth; Exile's Gate
_Early work from Cherryh (except for _Exile's Gate_,
which was published a decade after the others).
Dark, moody science fantasy. Open-ended_
"Arafel's Saga" - The Dreamstone; The Tree of Swords and
Jewels
_Out of print (although they still turn up in
bookstores occasionally). Fantasy in the
Celtic/Welsh vein. Cherryh has revised these two
books, and they are scheduled to be reprinted in an
omnibus edition from DAW, titled 'The Dreaming
Tree.'_
"Russian series" - Rusalka; Chernevog; Yvgenie
_Dark fairy tale using Russian traditions. Cherryh
is a very highly regarded SF author, and if you like
her fantasy, you should check out her other works._
The Paladin
_Good stand-alone story with a samurai flavor_
The Goblin Mirror
_Stand-alone fantasy with an Eastern European
background._
Faery in Shadow
_Stand-alone celtic fantasy about a young man who
makes a bargain with the Sidhe._
"Tristan series" - Fortress in the Eye of Time; Fortress of
Eagles; Fortress of Owls (forthcoming); Fortress of
Dragons (forthcoming)
_This starts out slowly. Tristen's quest goes on far
too long, and the maneuverings that lead to the
final battle are pretty routine. Still, even
substandard Cherryh is worthwhile, just don't let
this be the first of her books that you try._
Glen Cook (b. 1944)
"The Chronicles of the Black Company" - The Black Company;
Shadows Linger; The White Rose
_Fantasy from the foot soldier's point of view.
Gritty and hard-edged, these are not Fantasy Lite_
The Silver Spike
_Takes place in the world of the Black Company. It's
not about them, but some familiar characters
appear._
"Book of the South" - Shadow Games; Dreams of Steel
_More of the chronicles of the Black Company_
"The Glittering Stone Tetralogy" - Bleak Seasons; She Is
The Darkness; 2 more books forthcoming
_The long-awaited continuation of the adventures of
the Black Company. The final book of what was
originally announced as a trilogy ended up being
split in two._
"Garrett, P.I. series" - Sweet Silver Blues; Bitter Gold
Hearts; Cold Copper Tears; Old Tin Sorrows; Dread Brass
Shadows; Red Iron Nights; Deadly Quicksilver Lies; Petty
Pewter Gods
_The hard-boiled detective in a world full of elves,
trolls, and magic. Raymond Chandler fans take note.
Open-ended series. There is some slight reference to
events that take place in previous books, but all
books are basically stand-alone. Roc publishing
recently bought 2 more in this series from Cook.
This is beginning to suffer from Continuing Series
Syndrome, but the books haven't fallen off badly
enough to make me stop buying._
"The Dread Empire series" - A Shadow of All Night Falling;
October's Baby; All Darkness Met; The Fire in His Hands;
With Mercy Toward None; Reap the East Wind; An Ill Fate
Marshalling
_Listed for completists - none of the recommenders
mentioned this series. The darkest (and least
commercially popular) of Cook's three continuing
series._
Hugh Cook (b. 1956)
"Chronicles of an Age of Darkness" - The Wizards and the
Warriors; The Wordsmiths and Warguild; The Woman and the
Warlords; The Walrus and the Warwolf; The Wicked and the
Witless; The Wishstone and the Wonderworkers; The Wazir
and the Witch; The Werewolf and the Wormlord; The
Worshippers and Way; The Witchlord and the Weaponmaster
_These are the titles from the English editions.
Only the first couple have been published in the
U.S., and they were released under different titles.
Excellent series! Books vary radically in tone,
ranging from your standard heroes on a fantasy quest
to humor/adventure to great events seen through
ordinary (or seemingly ordinary) eyes._
Louise Cooper (b. 1952)
"Time Master Trilogy" - Initiate; Outcast; Master
_The forces of Order and Chaos face off again.
However, in Cooper's universe, neither side is
unrelievedly good or evil - Chaos and Order are "two
sides of the same coin," in the words of the
author._
"Chaos Gate Trilogy" - The Pretender; The Deceiver; The
Avenger
_Set in the same world as the "Time Master" trilogy.
It takes place about 60-80 years after the events of
the first trilogy._
"Indigo series" - Nemesis; Inferno; Infanta; Nocturne;
Troika; Avatar; Revenant; Aisling
_The recommender of the "Indigo" series would like
to point out that the quality of the books in the
series is uneven - some are much better than others_
"Star Shadow trilogy" - Star Ascendant; Eclipse; Moonset
(forthcoming)
__Moonset_ is already out in the U.K. This is a
prequel to the Time Master Trilogy._
*Susan Cooper (b. 1935)
"The Dark is Rising" - Over Sea and Under Stone; The Dark
is Rising; Greenwitch; The Grey King; Silver on the Tree
_Another one that you'll find in the children's
section. Arthurian elements, and very good. _Grey
King_ took the Newbery Award._
