I can't speak to Abercrombie, but Kay writes fantasy history.
Nate Send a noteboard - 24/01/2010 09:15:05 AM
I'm getting names but I'm trying to figure out the themes, the ideas and the style...I really should have framed my original question better.
Or historical fantasy, either way you want to say it. He sets up made-up worlds with some historical or mythological similarities to periods of Earth history, and then writes touching, careful, powerful stories within those frames.
His first trilogy, The Fionavar Tapestry, is pretty much his effort to prove that high fantasy in the Tolkien vein can still be done powerfully without looking derivative. It's about modern real world people who are taken to a fantasy land filled with myth and history and conflict, where they each discover their different destinies. In terms of emotional impact and epic quality, by the time the series is over it's competing with if not surpassing Lord of the Rings. But it requires a pretty broad suspension of disbelief to get past the initial sections, and the story takes a little bit to get going. Once it gets going, it's one of the best quality high fantasies I've read, and makes all the other Tolkien clones look like children playing with tools they don't understand. There are multiple sections of such epic density that I couldn't tear my eyes from the page. It's a story about finding a place in the world, about duty and sacrifice, about defying evil and living with the consequences of your mistakes. It's got Christian mythology, King Arthur mythology, and probably others but it's been a good ten years since I read it.
After that he goes on to write quieter historical fantasies, but still powerful ones. Tigana is the only other one I've read, and it is excellent. A history of family and lovers within a fantasy war, illustrating powerfully the terrible costs that war exacts on them all. Good book.
Warder to starry_nite
Chapterfish — Nate's Writing Blog
http://chapterfish.wordpress.com
Chapterfish — Nate's Writing Blog
http://chapterfish.wordpress.com
Recommendations for a fantasy series
22/01/2010 03:27:38 AM
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Has she read Erikson/would war-based fantasy put her off?
22/01/2010 03:30:36 AM
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What she liked about Martin was the political intrigue and realism.
24/01/2010 03:07:34 AM
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The trilogy of Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn by Tad Williams.
22/01/2010 04:07:26 AM
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What is the basic idea of the trilogy, if you don't mind my asking?
24/01/2010 03:08:12 AM
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It's a mix of quest fantasy and political intrigue.
24/01/2010 04:28:03 AM
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If she doesn't like all the fantasy races and all much, though...
24/01/2010 11:58:45 AM
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Otherland is also good, but it meanders a lot more than MS&T. Also, it's more sci-fi than fantasy. *NM*
24/01/2010 05:11:16 PM
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thats one of the most beautifully written fantasies I've ever read
24/01/2010 09:49:40 PM
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Scott Lynch, though the series is no wheres near complete, the Lies of Locke Lamora is damn good. *NM*
22/01/2010 05:13:14 AM
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^ This.
23/01/2010 04:16:53 PM
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If the series isn't done she won't read it.
24/01/2010 03:09:02 AM
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It's not so much a series as a "oh, people liked my book, I'll start writing sequels".
24/01/2010 11:55:47 AM
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i've been digging the hell out of the incarnations of immortality series by piers anthony
22/01/2010 05:26:07 AM
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thats one of Anthony's series I actually think is good
24/01/2010 09:54:55 PM
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I think you're right about a new Incarnations book; I seem to recall seeing something in passing.
25/01/2010 10:55:36 AM
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The Empire series by Feist and Wurtz?
22/01/2010 12:47:50 PM
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This is getting to be information overload
24/01/2010 03:11:18 AM
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well, in this section of the thread, I'd say Empire series, but for the other sections:
24/01/2010 09:59:42 PM
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Abercrombie or maybe Guy Gavriel Kay. *NM*
22/01/2010 03:14:03 PM
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Seconded
22/01/2010 09:07:44 PM
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Can you give me a bit more insight (either of you) ?
24/01/2010 03:12:23 AM
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I can't speak to Abercrombie, but Kay writes fantasy history.
24/01/2010 09:15:05 AM
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I'd suggest Stephen King's Dark Tower series. *NM*
22/01/2010 03:21:12 PM
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She wouldn't like it. I'm sure of that. *NM*
24/01/2010 03:12:43 AM
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Well that sucks. It's a great series. Even The Gun Slinger has its good parts. *NM*
24/01/2010 03:50:20 AM
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Melanie Rawn's Dragon Prince and Dragon Star Trilogies
22/01/2010 04:29:43 PM
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The heavy emphasis on the word "Dragon" in both series makes me wary
24/01/2010 03:15:52 AM
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Series are hard.
22/01/2010 08:10:30 PM
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Sapkowski is translated into Russian (Polish to Russian almost doesn't require thought)
24/01/2010 03:18:37 AM
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Latro in the Mist or the two omnibi that comprise The Book of the New Sun
24/01/2010 03:33:39 AM
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Yes, what he said. Avoid the Wizard/Knight books if faeries are off limits, though. *NM*
24/01/2010 06:09:02 PM
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Does she like Lovecraft any?
23/01/2010 12:06:48 AM
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Carol Berg's Transformation, C.S. Friedman's Feast of Souls
23/01/2010 01:27:53 AM
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Dark Fantasy may be good.
24/01/2010 03:23:31 AM
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I don't remember thinking of Transformation as dark fantasy...I am not sure that everybody is
24/01/2010 04:26:31 AM
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Jennifer Fallon - Second Sons
23/01/2010 12:59:10 PM
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I haven't read that one but the Demon Child series sure was a fun ride. *NM*
24/01/2010 04:29:37 AM
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What else has she enjoyed and how long has she been reading fantasy? *NM*
24/01/2010 04:30:21 AM
- 354 Views