TWErvin2
Auror
Ravana has two of my favorites among her top five:
Roger Zelazny's Amber series: A fun and unique read--a story that builds. I prefer the first five novels in the series, and Guns of Avalon would be my favorite among those.
Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos series. Snappy dialogue and memorable characters. Some of his novels are better than others, but Dragon and Jhereg and Yendi are my favorites.
Stephen R. Donaldson's Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever series, especially the first trilogy, although the second is close. It's a world and storyline that I believe rivals JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy. Great characters and creatures, and it's definitely not a rip off of Tolkien.
Michael Moorcock's Elric Saga. An interesting read that has its twists and turns, and a relentlessly evil sword.
Fred Saberhagen's Books of Swords. 12 Unique swords created and spread among the mortals by the gods for a great game--that in the end gets out of hand... The Song of Swords is an interesting aspect that hints at the swords' strengths, uses and drawbacks.
Who holds Coinspinner knows good odds,
Whichever move he make,
But the Sword of Chance, to please the gods,
Slips from him like a snake.
The Sword of Justice balances the pans
Of right and wrong, and foul and fair,
Eye for an eye, Doomgiver scans
The fate of all folk everywhere.
Dragonslicer, Dragonslicer, how d'you slay?
Reaching for the heart in behind the scales,
Dragonslicer, Dragonslicer, where do you stay?
In the belly of the giant that my Blade impales.
Farslayer howls across the world
For thy heart! For thy heart! who hast wronged me,
Vengeance is his who casts the Blade,
Yet he will, in the end, no triumph see.
Whose flesh the Sword of Mercy hurts has drawn no breath,
Whose soul its heals has wandered in the night,
Has paid the summing of all debts in death,
Has turned to see returning light.
The Mindsword spun in the dawn's grey light,
And men and demons knelt down before,
The Mindsword flashed in the midday bright,
Gods joined the dance, and the march to war,
It spun in the twilight dim as well,
And gods and men marched off to hell.
I shatter Swords and splinter spears,
None stands to Shieldbreaker;
My point's the fount of orphan's tears,
My edge the widowmaker.
The Sword of Stealth is given
To one lonely and despised;
Sightblinder's gifts: his eyes are keen,
His nature is disguised.
The Tyrant's Blade hath no blood spilled
But doth the spirit carve,
Soulcutter hath no body killed,
But many left to starve.
The Sword of Siege struck a hammer's blow
With a crash, and a smash, and a tumbled wall,
Stonecutter laid a castle low
With a groan, and a roar, and a tower's fall.
Long roads the Sword of Fury makes,
Hard walls it builds around the soft,
The fighter who Townsaver takes
Can bid farewell to home and croft.
Who holds Wayfinder finds good roads,
Its master's step is brisk;
The Sword of Wisdom lightens loads
But adds unto their risk.
A fast-paced, fun read filled with adventure and more than a few twists.
Guess that's it for me Maybe some day our novels will be making such lists!
Roger Zelazny's Amber series: A fun and unique read--a story that builds. I prefer the first five novels in the series, and Guns of Avalon would be my favorite among those.
Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos series. Snappy dialogue and memorable characters. Some of his novels are better than others, but Dragon and Jhereg and Yendi are my favorites.
Stephen R. Donaldson's Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever series, especially the first trilogy, although the second is close. It's a world and storyline that I believe rivals JRR Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy. Great characters and creatures, and it's definitely not a rip off of Tolkien.
Michael Moorcock's Elric Saga. An interesting read that has its twists and turns, and a relentlessly evil sword.
Fred Saberhagen's Books of Swords. 12 Unique swords created and spread among the mortals by the gods for a great game--that in the end gets out of hand... The Song of Swords is an interesting aspect that hints at the swords' strengths, uses and drawbacks.
Who holds Coinspinner knows good odds,
Whichever move he make,
But the Sword of Chance, to please the gods,
Slips from him like a snake.
The Sword of Justice balances the pans
Of right and wrong, and foul and fair,
Eye for an eye, Doomgiver scans
The fate of all folk everywhere.
Dragonslicer, Dragonslicer, how d'you slay?
Reaching for the heart in behind the scales,
Dragonslicer, Dragonslicer, where do you stay?
In the belly of the giant that my Blade impales.
Farslayer howls across the world
For thy heart! For thy heart! who hast wronged me,
Vengeance is his who casts the Blade,
Yet he will, in the end, no triumph see.
Whose flesh the Sword of Mercy hurts has drawn no breath,
Whose soul its heals has wandered in the night,
Has paid the summing of all debts in death,
Has turned to see returning light.
The Mindsword spun in the dawn's grey light,
And men and demons knelt down before,
The Mindsword flashed in the midday bright,
Gods joined the dance, and the march to war,
It spun in the twilight dim as well,
And gods and men marched off to hell.
I shatter Swords and splinter spears,
None stands to Shieldbreaker;
My point's the fount of orphan's tears,
My edge the widowmaker.
The Sword of Stealth is given
To one lonely and despised;
Sightblinder's gifts: his eyes are keen,
His nature is disguised.
The Tyrant's Blade hath no blood spilled
But doth the spirit carve,
Soulcutter hath no body killed,
But many left to starve.
The Sword of Siege struck a hammer's blow
With a crash, and a smash, and a tumbled wall,
Stonecutter laid a castle low
With a groan, and a roar, and a tower's fall.
Long roads the Sword of Fury makes,
Hard walls it builds around the soft,
The fighter who Townsaver takes
Can bid farewell to home and croft.
Who holds Wayfinder finds good roads,
Its master's step is brisk;
The Sword of Wisdom lightens loads
But adds unto their risk.
A fast-paced, fun read filled with adventure and more than a few twists.
Guess that's it for me Maybe some day our novels will be making such lists!