The next genre my book club is reading is fantasy. I familiar only with Piers Anthony. Suggestions?
The next genre my book club is reading is fantasy. That is one area that I am not very familiar with, beyond Piers Anthony. I am at a loss. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Temeraire by Naomi Novik is currently my favorite series of books. It’s what I consider as low fantasy because it doesn’t really have magic, but it does have dragons. And I love dragons.
First book is His Majesty’s Dragon. It’s the Napoleonic Wars, with dragons. Really fun series.
Connie Willis writes wonderful stories. “To Say Nothing of the Dog” is fun.
Princess Bride. Stardust by Gaiman. Hobbit.
Inheritance Series by Christopher Paolini – Dragons, Riders, Elves, Dwarves. Heavy influences from LoTR I feel.
Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan – Magic, wars, yin and yang. Rich and expansive world, characters, and story.
The Dark Tower by Stephen King- Wild west, alternate realities and it links back to a lot of other Stephen King novels if you are a fan.
The Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson- Gods, mages, humans, dragons, and all manner of creatures. Every character is lovable and the storytelling is out of this world!
and the obvious ones – LoTR by Tollkien, Harry Potter by Rowling and A Song of Ice and Fire by GRR Martin
I really like the Malazan series and it is excellent, but it is not one I suggest to a casual or newcomer to fantasy.
Could be, but I keep wishing someone had suggested this series to me when I started reading fantasy and hence. 🙂
Ursula le Guin,especially The Left Hand of Darkness and The Dispossessed.
Tad Williams The DragonBone Chair.
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The Broken Earth series by N K Jemisin is the one I’m suggesting to everyone right now. The Gentlemen Bastards series by Scott Lynch is great. The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss is also great (and you’ll desperately wait for the third/final novel like the rest of us).
American Gods by Neil Gaimen or The Talisman by Stephen King
Robin McKinley has written a number of relatively short, but wonderful, fantasies. I believe they are all stand alone ones too. Not in a series. Another good choice woutd be most anything by Patricia McKillip.
I loved The Blue Sword.
Me too! <3
Beauty by Robin McKInley would be a good book club read.
Anne McCaffrey is my favorite. I started with the Harper Hall trio, then the entire Dragonriders of Pern series. I loved them through adolescence and still return to them as an adult for comfort reads.
I agree. Those are a good place to start too. The Harper Hall ones were really cute. 🙂
These are wonderful and timeless.
The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro
Beauty by Robin McKinley
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
The Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. LeGuin
Eye of the world by Robert Jordan
It’s rather long for a regular club read though. I’ve read it it multiple times.
Uprooted by Naomi Novik
It is legit one of the best fantasy books ever
pretty good book
This one sounds really good.
The Chalion series by Lois McMaster Bujold. I particularly liked the 2nd in the trilogy, Paladin of Souls, which was the first one I read. A strong, middle-aged woman is the leading character – a retired, and ostensibly mad, queen. A good deal of theology, a romance, magic, and an engaging world.
I suggest The Library on Mount Char. It’s not part of a series and is very well written. It would make a good book club discussion book.
I looked it up, and I want to read it myself, but my book club made a rule to not discuss religion.
@Gwendolyn It’s not really about religion.
I put it on my short list because it sounds really good.
@Gwendolyn I hope you like it. Let me know what you think.
I am not that familiar with this genre. However one of my favorite series of books is the Gormenghast trilogy by Mervyn Peake. It would come under this genre’s definition of “unrealistic settings &/or magic”. The three titles follow on from each other. It has a gothic setting, beautifully written and very witty. His strength is in the bizarre and amusing characters he has created.
Rebel of the Sands Series by Alwyn Hamilton. Desert, Djin, Magic, Love. All you need 😀
The Tearling series
Robert asprin myth series. Jody Lynn nye’s mythology series
The Bear and the Nightingale. It was published not too long ago so it may be new to everyone in your club.
Loved this book.
I just read and enjoyed the 2nd in the series (The Girl in the Tower).
@Leslie I liked it, but not as well as the first. Third one comes out this summer!
I agree.
Green Rider, by Kristen Britain!
The Circle Trilogy – Ted Dekker
Terry Pratchett.
Robin Hobb
Tad Williams is one of the best fantasy writers out there, check out his books
Kingkiller series
Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clark.
I have this an e-book format how did you like it
@Natalia I liked it a lot. If I remember correctly it does drag a bit at some point, but overall I highly recommend it. There’s also a book of short stories she wrote called The Ladies of Grace Adieu that is set in the same world.
@Karla awesome thnk you!
The Once and Future King, T.H. White
The Owl Service by Alan Garner, a great book. Summon the Keeper by Tanya Huff is very entertaining.
Brand new book out today, getting great reviews and I like the author’s other books. It is called. The Armored Saint by Myke Cole. I look forward to reading it, again so many good early reviews. If you are new to fantasy, it may be one you should check out.
Fantasy is my fav!
Watched a movie last night, Inkspot, was a good fantasy. I don’t know if it is a kids book or adults.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inkheart_trilogy
The Wheel of Time Series by Robert @Jordan
Still listening to All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr … halfway through a 15 hour book!
Patrick Rothfruss’ “The Name of the Wind”! It’s a group pleaser. I gave it to five different people for Christmas. They all loved it. I think it has a slowish start, but after that it’s amazing!
Charles De Lint has quite few good stand alone books and books of short stories.
Lev Grossman – The Magicians series – loved this series!
This series is seriously awesome.
I read the first one, and I’m not sure my book club would appreciate it. I liked the first three-quarters, and then it got tedious.
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley.
Besides the obvious LOTR trilogy and the Harry Potter books which I both love, the Riftward Saga by Raymond E. Feist was good(4 books). Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafron and The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle were both really good too. Right now I’m reading The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova and I’m loving it!
Kindred
*I LOVE Piers Anthony*
THANK you!! Lately, I’ve been hearing complaints about his work, and it makes me sad.
I was LITERALLY the only girl who read him growing up (I’m not *that* old) and I was always told ‘science fiction was for boys’ – which is utterly ridiculous.
@Gwendolyn! JD Robb is how I got my hubby to ‘read’ in the car! I love her!
Yep. Love love JD Robb.
Mortal Instruments
I think I may have read the first one . . . sounds familiar.
@Gwendolyn – it’s a good series
Mortal Instruments series!
Lots of good suggestions here – Anne McCaffrey is sort of a sci-fi/fantasy combo, but a fave. Robin McKinley is great and short books for a book club – The Hero and The Crown, The Blue Sword, Beauty, Deerskin, Chalice. Robin Hobb- Assassin’s Apprentice. The Bear and The Nightingale was great. Naomi Novik is a favorite. The Chalion books by Bujold.
I just really enjoyed Elizabeth Bear’s Eternal Sky trilogy, which started with Range of Ghosts.
Okay, thank you, everyone! I researched everything you guys recommended so far, and made a short list of 8 books to look into further.
Which 8? Curious – looking to start a SF/F club.
Well, it can’t be overly long or have religion as a theme. It also has to appeal to adult men and women of all ages. So I narrowed my list down to:
Stardust by Neil Gaiman
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin
Uprooted by Naomi Novik
The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins
Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
Summon the Keeper by Tanya Huff
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
And some other members will bring suggestions, too.
@Gwendolyn FYI, Name of the Wind is 722 pages.
Oh, heck, it sounded so good I put it on there.
Not a fantasy fan but i liked The Sparrow.