My parents leave for the U.S tomorrow and I'm giving them a list of books to bring around and show to whatever bookstore they run into. Here's my list so far.

Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb
Mad Ship by Robin Hobb
Ship of Destiny by Robin Hobb

Fool’s Errand by Robin Hobb
Golden Fool by Robin Hobb
Fool’s Fate by Robin Hobb

The Hedge Knight by George R R Martin

Fletch by Gregory Mcdonald
Confess, Fletch by Gregory Mcdonald

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson
Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erikson
Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson
House of Chains by Steven Erikson
Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson

Annihilation by Philip Athans

Autumn Bridge by Takashi Matsuoka

Any book by Terry Pratchett (I don't have any except Good Omens :( )

Based on what you guys see (from which you can derive [I hate that word :mad: ] my interests) am I missing anything?

No "hardcover only" novel suggestions please, my parents will only carry it back if its paperback, lazy boneses :D

If you dont have anything from David Gemmel yet, i warmly recommend his books.

Legend's a great book to start with.

If you already have a few of his books, there's no real need to have all of them. I bought a whole bunch of them (whole drenai and a few more) and i must admit they are too similar character-wise.

Why would you want to actually "buy" all those books? They are mostly great books, but why not just get them for free from the library? :confused:

Also, why do you have to get them from USA? Don't they have books where you are from?

Lastly, don't expect to find much Steven Erikson in USA as from what I have heard, he is virtually unknown there.

1. Libraries in the US and UK might have them, but you'll be hard-pressed to find these books in libraries of any non-English-speaking countries. The only (legitimate) option for many of us is buying these books.

2. They're nowhere cheaper than in the US.

That's a shame. I've just checked my local library's online catalogue and all of those books are available there.

I found Erikson in English in my Swedish library, was how I discovered him. Our libraries have really understood the need for a big fantasy department and that the books being in English is no problem.

I actually think that it might be a tad difficult to find most of those books in your average American bookstore. Pratchett is available everywhere but for Hobb and Martin I think it might be harder. If they go to one of the bigger Barnes and Nobles they ought to have them though. Not Erikson however, I think only hte first two or three have been released there.

There is a lot to recommend but you have covered all the really good stuff already on your list. I dont remember if you have said you had read Jordan but even if the series lose an incredible amount of pace in the last 3-4 books it is still a series more than worthwhile for any fantasy fan.

Hyperion - Dan Simmons
Fall of Hyperion
Endymion
Rise of Endymion

Probably the best scifi series I've read.

Kushiel's Dart - Jacqueline Carey
Kushiel's Chosen
Kushiel's Avatar

Every bit as good as Hobb, Martin, and Erickson. Only caveat is that the main character is a courtesan, and as such it is erotic fantasy. If that bothers you, give it a miss, otherwise get the trilogy.

Might want to think about Stephen Donaldson, if you haven't read him. He's very good.

@joacquin

i have friends that can lend me jordan's WoT and King's Dark Tower series, so I didn't order them anymore.

@HB

Why would you want to actually "buy" all those books? They are mostly great books, but why not just get them for free from the library? [Confused] I'm curious to see your libraries, over here the only ones that are any good are in the Universities, and Fantasy isn't exactly prioritized :rolleyes:

I'm also looking for a video of Starchaser: the Legend of Orin (1985) but I cant find it anywhere :(

You seem to like 'epic' series, so I'd recomend the Deverry series by Katharine Kerr. The Dagger-, Dawn-, Dark- and Dragonspell books, then come the Time of Exile, -Omens, -War and -Justice an finally The Red Wyvern, The Black Raven and a couple of others named after different couloured flying beasts, wich I haven't read yet. They are all good once you get into them.

Raymond E. Feist also has a ton of books, all in the world of Midkemia. The first trilogy is The Riftwarsaga: Magician, Silverthorn, A Darkness at Sethanon; there are also The Serpentwar (4 books), The Empire (trilogy), Krondor (trilogy) and the newest one, The Conclave of Shadows (2 published and one in the making?), plus many more. Great books! :D

@Gothmog

A friend recommended Gemmel's Dark Moon but I haven't had any time to check it out. Is it any good? Also, I've been thinking about picking up his Drenai series, but just how many novels are there in that series?

@sticker

I have Feist's "Faerie Tale" and found it quite good. Does he have any other stand-alone novels? There're too many books in the Krondor series for me to get it.

Legends of the Riftwar is a collection stand-alone books, Murder in LaMutt and Honuored Enemy were ok, but not as good as The Riftwar or The Serpentwar sagas. I've seen one about Jimmy the Hand, haven't read it but he's a great character so it's probably good ;) . I'd still recomend Magician (Riftwar, book 1) as it sets the stage for the world and introduces some of the most powerful characters in it. Of course you don't have to read all the books in chronological order, I didn't, but it helps.

Edit: Oh and, Magician: Apprentice + Magician: Master = Magician

ah, sorry, I don't think I was clear enough, I meant does Feist have any books that aren't in a series? like Faerie Tale.

Faerie Tale is the only non-Midkemia book that Feist has published. It is kind of a shame actually, I found Faerie Tale to be a much better book than most of the later Midkemia ones.

ah, okay thanks for clearing that up JSBB. Is there anything that you'd recommend aside from the stuff that's already been mentioned? I'm more into fantasy than science fiction itself and it'd be a big plus if the novel was a stand-alone one like Faerie Tale or if it's a a close-ended series. I've learned from picking up ASoIaF that I shouldn't break my own rules by buying a series that hasn't been ended yet :mad:

I could probably come up with a few more ideas by looking through my library at home but I think that most of the series that I have read are either still open or not good enough that I would recommend them.

The Deed of Paksennarion by Elizabeth Moon would be a good choice - it is a trade paperback collecting all three books in the trilogy.

Tad William's Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy would be another one worth reading. It is available in four paperbacks - they split the last book in two for paperback purposes (The Dragonbone Chair, Stone of Farewell, and To Green Angel Tower books 1 & 2).

Yeah, BTA suggested that series (Memory, Sorrow and Thorn) to me in another thread too. I liked the 2 novels of his that I've read so I'm definitely going to give those a shot. I can find those here though so they're no problem.

Does anyone know of any writers that do historical fiction well? I thought Steven Pressfield's Gates of Fire was awesome. Then I read Tides of War and decided to pass on Virtues of War before it destroyed the impression of him that Gates of Fire gave :sick:

I've heard some good stuff about Valerio Massimo Manfredi, have you read any of his work? I can get his stuff any time but I'm kinda reluctant to try it out because it's kinda pricey.

I would also recommend the Death Gate cycle, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's by far best work. Really interesting and good series.

I would not recommend Gemmel or Feist, if you are a fan of Hobb and Martin it will be hard to appreciate the simplistic entertainment of those two writers. One Gemmel book can be worth reading though, doesnt matter which cause they are all pretty much the same but to read one can be a bit rewarding as the main characters are always supercool supertough superheroes and now and then it is nice to read about unbeatable characters.

I was thinking about recommending the Deathgate Cycle but I couldn't because I felt that after the excellent first three books the series went steadily down hill from there. I find there to be nothing more annoying than a series that starts so strongly and then limps into the finish line.

I'm curious to see your libraries, over here the only ones that are any good are in the Universities, and Fantasy isn't exactly prioritized
I always thought our libraries were just normal, i.e. they are full of the sorts of books that people like to borrow and read.

I'm also looking for a video of Starchaser: the Legend of Orin (1985) but I cant find it anywhere E-bay?

I think I have it in VHS but it would take forever to dig it up, and it might be difficult to get it to you...

@el timor

yeah, it probably would..

i just checked on amazon though and they're going to release a dvd version in 3 months, so im gonna wait for that :)

How many books are in the Death Gate Cycle? The only Weis and Hickman book that I've read is Dragons of a Vanished Moon and I didn't really like that one :/

Which is why you should read the Deathgate Cycle, lightyears better than their dragonlance crap. I think there are five or six books in the series.

There are seven books in the Deathgate Cycle - Dragon Wing, Elven Star, Fire Sea, Serpent Mage, The Hand of Chaos, Into the Labrynth, and The Seventh Gate.