Recommend me something!

[Johnny Cosmo]

I'm looking for some fantasy, with some explanations as to what makes it so good.

• Low-magic, realistic setting (but not Earth)
• Gritty tone (but not exactly dark)
• Morally grey, very three dimensional characters
• Anything from a standalone to a trilogy (I'm not prepared to invest time in to a larger series at the moment)
• Novellas and novelette recommendations welcome also!

Anyone?

 

[Philip Overby]

Sounds like you have similar tastes to me.

What are some books you've read so I'm not covering anything you haven't read already? You probably would like Robert E. Howard's stuff. It ranges from Conan to Kane to other morally grey characters. Fritz Lieber, one of the prevalent sword and sorcery guys (seems low on magic). R. Scott Bakker is good, although magic exists, its not necessarily at the forefront of the story. His writing is rather dense so that may put people off. Joe Abercrombie has great stories. A trilogy and some stand alone ones. I hear Glen Cook is in this vein and would probably be up your alley. I've read some of James Enge, although his character is some sort of magic-user, it's gritty and sometimes humorous. If I think of any others I'll post again.

 

[Johnny Cosmo]

Well at the minute I'm enjoying A Song of Ice and Fire and Tigana. Although Tigana has magic, it's not at the forefront of the story, though I prefer a Song of Ice and Fire because, even though there are magical elements, people don't really know or use it.

Conan isn't my thing, I'm more into Norse inspired settings right now, and I've already been looking at Joe Abercrombie's stuff with an intention to buy his trilogy, or 'the Heroes'. If you recommend it I will go ahead, but I hear the standalone novels are set in the same universe, so I'd like to know if I will miss or ruin something if I read that first...?

 

[Philip Overby]

Yeah, you should read The Blade Itself (the first in the trilogy) first. Don't read the stand alone ones first because it will spoil lots of stuff for you. I figured you'd like Conan since what you described is exactly what Conan is.

If you like Martin, there's a writer named David Anthony Durham who is writing a series, the first is called Acacia. It's very similar in theme and style.

I highly recommend The First Law Trilogy (Abercrombie). I don't want to over-hype it too much, but it's an excellent series. If you like Norse inspired settings, maybe you would like Brian Ruckley's Godless World series. It's setting is sort of like Vikings I guess? Reviews are sort of mixed on it, but it could be worth a look. A lot of people like the Gentleman Bastard series by Scott Lynch as well. It's different, that's for sure. Reminds me of Oliver Twist for some reason, but is gritty with thieves and the like.

I haven't read Tigana but I have The Lions of Al-Rassad, which is supposed to be one of Kay's better ones. I like Kay, but it takes a while for his style to click with me.

 

[Johnny Cosmo]

Well when I came to choose a Kay novel, it was either Lions, Tigana, or Arbonne - and Tigana has not disappointed so far, so I will probably buy the other two in time. As for Conan, it really is only because I'm after a certain type of culture and mythology at the moment that I'm not interested in it, but I might visit it later. And I would have preferred standalones because it feels like lighter, easier reading, but if I'm being honest, I'd say I'll probably enjoy trilogies more.

I've really been looking into The First Law series, so I might go for that. Acacia sounds like my bag, from reading Amazon reviews, so I might just have to try that out soon. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[Ravana]

Can't do ya low magic, unfortunately... the only ones I know that fit the remaining criteria (and that haven't already been mentioned) are fairly magic-heavy: specifically, Glen Cook's Black Company series. It's easy enough to start with the first trilogy (Annals of the Black Company), or even just the first book (The Black Company); while it's obvious there's more to come after the first one, each of the first three (actually, first four) books is self-contained, in the sense that it comes to an end, rather than being one-third of a single story. Just don't read them out of order: they do form an epic in that sense. (By the way, though I keep mentioning those specifically, he has written considerably more than that; I just haven't been able to afford....)

Uh, hold that thought--there is one stand-alone of his: Tower of Fear... which is low-magic. And it's tailor-made to your other requirements.

Karl Edward Wagner's Kane books are moderately "low" magic... in that there isn't much of it, though it tends to be pretty "big" magic when it shows up. They're difficult to find, however, since they're out of print in inexpensive versions. On the other hand, the fact that there are people willing to pay well over $100 for a collected edition of three novels might give you a good notion of how enjoyable they are. Check Amazon for used paperbacks, and/or lurk on ebay, until something in your price range comes around. (Much as I love them, I wouldn't be willing to drop a C-note on them.... )

(By the way: the "Kane" of Robert E. Howard that Phil mentioned is Solomon Kane, no relation... which is important, considering that Wagner's name appears on a lot of editions of Howard books as the editor. Don't get confused... though if you like sword-and-sorcery pulp style, you're hardly likely to be disappointed even if you do get them mixed up.)

(And for you pulp lovers: the other Cook stand-alone I have read is a fantasy pastiche of Doc Savage. I'd have to look up its name, though; can't recall it off the top of my head.)

 

[Johnny Cosmo]

The Black Company interested me a while back, so I might add that to my reading list too. I've read some 'ok' reviews for Tower of Fear, but the consensus seems to be that it's nothing like his best, so I might skip that for now. As for the others, I'll look into them when I get the chance.

Thanks.

 

[Ravana]

I'd say it's less "nothing like his best" and more "doesn't closely resemble the rest of what he's done." It's far more intricate and sociologically-driven than his usual work. I have to admit that my first time through, I wasn't particularly impressed, but in hindsight that had more to do with expectations of greater "entertainment" based on his other work. I've reread it twice since then, and have enjoyed it more each time--to the point where I'd say it may well be his "best" work, especially if approached from a literary standpoint. (Which, of course, isn't what most fantasy readers are after.) But no reason to rush out and get it... you can always check it out after you've fallen in love with him.

 

[Misusscarlet]

How about Garth Nix's Abhorsen series. It's a trilogy. I thought it was very good because it was a lot different than other writer's ideas. I also thought it was awesome because the main character was a woman, which you don't often find in male author novels. It was edgy and morally grey with a story so intricate you'd have to read it a bunch of times just to full understand it all. There's is some low magic and gritty tone to it. If you read it let me know!

 

[Misusscarlet]

Another good series is the Farsala trilogy by Hilari Bell, her first book is Fall of a Kingdom. It is dark, gritty, morally grey with very well composed characters with very low magic. They're a bit long in the reading department, but well worth it

 

[Johnny Cosmo]

I think I'm going to go for The Blade Itself next. Then perhaps The Black Company or Tower of Fear. Keep the recommendations coming though!

 

[iskavele]

"The Warded Man" and its sequel "The Desert Spear" are pretty good. It has magic and demons in it, but in my opinion still worth a read.