Getting in on the ground floor (Fantasy)

[Liam]

I'm looking for a fantasy series to read, as I got into The Game Of Thrones, and have also dipped into various other fantasy series. Indeed, I believe I might have even started a topic here before about series that would be worth checking out.

 

The issue I'm having is that I don't often have a huge amount of time to read, and feel that starting the first of a series of 7/10/14 books tends to put me off, and make me more inclined to put the first book down.

 

I was wondering if anyone could recommend a newer series - a series with maybe one or two books that has shown promise, and would be worth investing a little bit of time in. Even better would be a series where there has already been a suggested commitment to future novels - getting in on the ground floor, so to speak.

 

Thanks

[supremebve]

A couple recommendations I could give are Joe Abercrombie's "The First Law" trilogy and Scott Lynch's "Gentleman's Bastards" trilogy is pretty good, though I'm only halfway through the third book. 

[Matt D]

First Law is probably a very good choice for you. It's well written, only three books, complete, done by an author prolific enough that he has more stuff written, both within and outside of the world in the books. It's a great cross section of fantasy tropes merged together in an interesting way. It is very, very bleak though. There's dark humor but it is not a pretty world by any means. I found it cynical enough that I haven't read more of his works but not so much so that I didn't enjoy it at the time.

 

Another possibility is The Warded Man by Peter Brett. I've only read the first two books in the cycle but the third is out as well and it's supposed to be 5. I think. It's been a few years now but I remember it being good.

 

Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn trilogy is another solid one if you want something that's already done. If you like Sanderson he's extremely prolific, writing one or two books a year in a number of different settings. He's a stickler for magic systems and the actual construction of writing and has a great website with annotations.

 

The problem with Lynch is that he's had a mental breakdown before so it's still iffy on whether he'll be able to complete his series in any length of time. Lies of Locke Lamora is a great standalone book but after that things are more tied together in books 2 and 3.

[JRGoldman]

I'm sure other people will make the same recommendation, but  Patrick Rothfuss has two enjoyable books in a trilogy, but I think many of his readers are already preparing to hate the third book. 

[Basara]

I came here to post Joe Abercrombie's First Law and Branondon Sanderson's Mistborn too but seem to have been beaten too it. I asked the exact same question a couple of years ago when i finished the Thrones books and they were the first 2 series i read.

 

Each of the books in The First Law trilogy are shorter than any of the books in ASOIF so you don't have to worry about it taking a long time to finish. And if you do enjoy them there are 3 other stand alone novels set in the same world.

 

As for Brandon Sanderson. You can be one and done with the Mistbon trilogy. Or if its something you like, the majority of Sandersons work takes place in the same universe just on different planets. None of the books have anything directly to do with each other but there are small hints in the different novels linking to a bigger story going on in the background. Perfect if you want something 'epic' but don't want to commit to years of waiting for a conclusion.

[assfax]

Yeah, Lies of Locke Lamora is sitting on my shelf waiting for the stars to align.  Another book I'm interested in is Heroes Die.

[Matt D]

Heroes Die is awesome. 

[Liam]

Cheers guys for your suggestions - to be fair, a lot of them are ones I'm already aware of (Mistborn), or have started reading before (The First Law).

 

The Warded Man and Heroes Die are new to me though, so will be worth a look.

 

Keep them coming peeps!

[Brisco]

I haven't read these books yet but based on hype alone anything by Brandon Sanderson is worth a read. I have read The Stormlight Archive series is supposed to be 10 books (with only 2 currently out) and the Mistborn series still has more books yet to be released.

The aforementioned Scott Lynch is another author on my 2015 reading bucket list. The Gentlemen Bastards series also has more books yet to be released, including a prequel.

Steve Eirkison's Malazan Book of the Fallen series (which I believe is complete) was highly highly recommended to me from a friend who knows his SFF. This is yet another series I have the first book in but yet to start. I have a lot of work to do in 2015.

[RIPPA]

I'm sure other people will make the same recommendation, but  Patrick Rothfuss has two enjoyable books in a trilogy, but I think many of his readers are already preparing to hate the third book. 

 

Only reason I didn't say this already is because of the size of the books.

 

Mainly since it seemed like Liam was looking for something that might be an "easier" read

 

And technically there is that third book already - which is just set in the universe (and is only really a novella)

[OSJ]

Has anyone mentioned Alan Campbell's Deepgate Codex as of yet? I'm not sure exactly what to call it other than "a great read". So happens I have an extra set of the first editions in hardcover (mint of course). $40.00 to anyone what would like them. That's less than half price. PM me for paypal info.

[Matt D]

I also want to say that John turned me on to both Erikson and Rothfuss way before they hit the geek-o-sphere or whatever, so credit where credit's due there.

[Liam]

I read the first half of the first Malazan Empire book, and then got sidetracked. I'm sure it gets better, just didn't really grab me.

[Liam]

For someone who has read Mistborn, Stormlight Archive and the Patrick Rothfuss books - any particular leanings one way or the other?

[OSJ]

Actually, I can't take credit for Rothfuss... But allow me to pimp Malazan just a bit more... A lot, and I mean really a lot of people have told me that they didn't dig the first book at all. This puzzles me a little as I found the world-building and character development fascinating, but then, I'm reading it as a professional writer/editor and may well be jazzed by some things that other folks ignore. I will say that from a plotting and pacing standpoint, the series really kicks into gear with the second volume. Maybe it's like reading the Silmarillion before LOTR (not that I know anyone who actually did that), and it's more of a data dump than a self-contained novel, which I can see some folks finding off-putting. Let's face it, Erickson is no Fritz Leiber or Jack Vance, he's good, but Gardens was a first novel and had a titanic job to do of setting everything up. Everyone I know who persevered found the journey through the rest of the series rewarding. As for the Esslemont books, he still has a ways to go before I'll call him a 'good" writer, but he does have a hell of an imagination and feel for Malazan. 

[Liam]

As I got halfway through the first book, would you suggest perseverance?

[OSJ]

WTF??? The first editions of the three Rothfuss books are over $1000!!! How the fuck did I miss this? Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! There goes my royalty check for the German edition of Goon... Damn it.

 

Don't become bibliophiles, kids; nothing good come of it except a really cool library. ;-) Still, please note how the thoughts of buying cheap paperbacks or (God forbid) going to the library never even occurred to me.

[OSJ]

As I got halfway through the first book, would you suggest perseverance?

 

Yes, and I think you'll thank me for it down the line. Or, if you're of a collector mind-set and want signed firsts of the whole shebang, you might curse me for eternity...

[Matt D]

You know, now that you mention it; it wasn't Rothfuss. I think it was LYNCH and Malazan. It all blurs together sometimes.

 

As for Malazan, you really get out what you put into it. Reading shouldn't be work and once you hit the middle of book 3 or so, it stops being work, and no force in the world will stop you from reading them, but it's an investment in a fictional world with a wonderful payoff relative to such investments in other similar worlds. I didn't really think that's what the OP was looking for though.

[Liam]

I veer between feeling like investing serious time into a series, or dipping into something shorter. It is hard to find the time to read around work though, so a bigger commitment is sometimes difficult. That, and I tend to buy even more books as I'm reading them, so end up with a bigger backlog >_>

[Basara]

n/m double post

[Basara]

I haven't read these books yet but based on hype alone anything by Brandon Sanderson is worth a read. I have read The Stormlight Archive series is supposed to be 10 books (with only 2 currently out) and the Mistborn series still has more books yet to be released.

 

 

The Stormlight Archive is set for 10 books, split into 2 5 book arcs. As for Mistborn, the first trilogy is complete. It was originally set for 2 more trilogies, each further in the future (the 2nd is to be around the present time and the 3rd in space) But after releasing a shorter standalone novel set a few 100 years after the originals that now has 2 more books planned. So yeah, 12 books total. But its not like you're hanging on for an ending. The first 3 books tell a complete story.

 

For someone who has read Mistborn, Stormlight Archive and the Patrick Rothfuss books - any particular leanings one way or the other?

 

I've not read any Patrick Rothfuss. Between Stormlight and Mistborn i'd definitely go for Mistborn. Its finished and a lot shorter. There are only 2 books out for Stormlight so far and each is a hefty 1000 or so pages. If you're looking for something reasonably sized to read you cant go wrong with Mistborn.

[OSJ]

Okay, this pretty much answers my question I posed. Sounds like a worthy investment, looks like I can snag signed 1sts of all three Mistborn for under $300 and that fourth book is pretty cheap, even signed.

[Basara]

Okay, this pretty much answers my question I posed. Sounds like a worthy investment, looks like I can snag signed 1sts of all three Mistborn for under $300 and that fourth book is pretty cheap, even signed.

I just saw your other post. All of Brandon Sanderson's novels are available to purchase on his website, all signed, and several are still first editions. Sadly they are out of first editions for the Mistborn trilogy but you can request first editions for a lot of his other novels if you enjoy Mistborn and want to add to your collection. I've never read Wheel of Time so i cant tell you how the 3 books Sanderson wrote in the series compare to Robert Jordan or his own work.

 

If you like Mistborn i'd definitely recommend The Stormlight Archive. I enjoyed the 2 volumes so far more than Mistborn, but i can certainly see a planned 10 book series where only 2 are out to be a turn off. On the plus side, he doesn't seem to waist time, and while there was a big gap between book 1 and 2 he released several novels from other series during that period, including finishing off The Wheel of Time.

[OSJ]

Thanks for further clarification! While I have no problem investing in a series that has yet to be written, I'm figuring based on what you and some other folks have said that Mistborn seems a good place to start. I will definitely check out ordering books direct from the author, because I always enjoy it when folks buy books directly from me (not that I get the same kind of money as Sanderson does). I've already (between abebooks.com and eBay) locked down the trilogy. I have two John Blackburns, and one each Cornell Woolrich and Fredric Brown novels that I HAVE to read in order to write intros for new editions, but that's a matter of a couple or three days, so by the time Mistborn gets here, I should be all set to dive in.

 

At this point I have to wonder, is Brandon Sanderson really this prolific or is he fronting a fiction factory? (By that I mean plotting and approving things that are written by a stable of other writers, much as Robert Vardeman used to do... (I hope I didn't destroy any illusions there, but there are damn few people capable of cranking out thirty-forty books a year, which is what Vardeman was doing in the 1980s.)

 

 

Okay, this pretty much answers my question I posed. Sounds like a worthy investment, looks like I can snag signed 1sts of all three Mistborn for under $300 and that fourth book is pretty cheap, even signed.

I just saw your other post. All of Brandon Sanderson's novels are available to purchase on his website, all signed, and several are still first editions. Sadly they are out of first editions for the Mistborn trilogy but you can request first editions for a lot of his other novels if you enjoy Mistborn and want to add to your collection. I've never read Wheel of Time so i cant tell you how the 3 books Sanderson wrote in the series compare to Robert Jordan or his own work.

 

If you like Mistborn i'd definitely recommend The Stormlight Archive. I enjoyed the 2 volumes so far more than Mistborn, but i can certainly see a planned 10 book series where only 2 are out to be a turn off. On the plus side, he doesn't seem to waist time, and while there was a big gap between book 1 and 2 he released several novels from other series during that period, including finishing off The Wheel of Time.