The Sword of Truth is a fantasy series written by Terry Goodkind consisting of 11 novels.
The story of The Sword of Truth is a familiar one: a boy turns out to be legendary hero, destined to face evil enemies with incredible powers and of course he gets help from an old wizard and a beautiful girl.
However, as most of the well-known and influential fantasy series, The Sword of Truth is well written and has quite a few innovative ideas and angles to it.
Story
Richard Cypher is a boy growing up the Westland, where no magic exists due to a barrier with the Midlands created long ago. But Richard turns out to be the Seeker of Truth, a champion of good with a great destiny. He is found by the Confessor Kahlan and aided by the wizard Zeddicus Zu’l Zorander, who has watched over him all of life.
Over the course of the series, Richard discovers his powers and falls in love with Kahlan, who by then has become the Mother Confessor. He first takes on the evil Darken Rahl, ruler of D’Hara. Richard discovers that Darken Rahl is father and, after killing him, becomes ruler of D’Hara. Then a new foe arises and Richard Rahl has to face the dream walker Emperor Jagang of the Old World who intends to take over the New World.
Theme and Setting
The novels of The Sword of Truth contain clear cut stories of good versus evil with a strong focus on morality. Each of the novels in the series are constructed around a wizard’s rule, which is a moral lesson to be heeded if one wants to be a good wizard or human being in general. This is in line with the focus on the growth of the characters, especially those of Richard and Kahlan. Combined with the epic fight against evil, this makes the series as a clear example of high fantasy with heroic elements.
The overall story and underlying themes and plots will therefore often sound somewhat familiar and repetitive but they are well written. Also, Terry Goodkind has been able to include original (fantasy) elements in his books.
Criticism
Some love the series, some hate it: let’s say that The Sword of Truth is not exactly my cup of tea. The first couple of books were pretty good but I have to admit that I stopped reading after 5the Soul of the Fire. The story became a bit too romantic and tedious for my taste. I can handle a bit of romance and morality in a series but it is not the main thing I am looking for when reading fantasy. On the other hand, millions have read Terry Goodkinds books and it is one of the few fantasy series that has been turned in a television series.
The Books
1994 – Wizard’s First Rule
1996 – Stone of Tears
1997 – Blood of the Fold
1998 – Temple of the Winds
1999 – Soul of the Fire
2001 – Faith of the Fallen
2002 – The Pillars of Creation
2003 – Naked Empire
2005 – Chainfire
2005 – Phantom
2007 – Confessor
Robert Jordan was the pseudonym of James Oliver Rigney Jr., the author of the world famous Wheel of Time series. Sadly, he passed away 2007 and was unable to finish this series before his death.
Life and Death
Robert Jordan was born in South Carolina in 1948. He did two tours in the Vietnam was and, after getting his degree in physics, became a nuclear engineer. It took till 1977 before he started writing. Jordan married Harriet McDougal, who would also become his editor. Jordan was a Christian and a Freemason, which showed in the themes he used in his books.
Having announced being ill in 2006, Robert Jordan died of Cardiac amyloidosis (“stiff heart syndrome”) on September 16, 2007.
The Wheel of Time
Robert Jordan has written several other books (the Fallon series and Conan stories) but by writing the Wheel of Time series, he has created a landmark in the fantasy genre. The Wheel of Time is a great and influential series with the cliché story of a simple boy who turns out to be the great hero. The series is well written with original ideas and approaches, both when it comes to story telling and in relation to the use of magic.
I hope that Brandon Sanderson will honor him by writing a fitting end to the series through The Gathering Storm, Towers of Midnight, and A Memory of Light.
Official blog of Robert Jordan.
The Farseer Trilogy is fantasy series written by Robin Hobb, one of the few successful female fantasy authors. It consists of the novels Assassin’s Apprentice, Royal Assassin, and Assassin’s Quest.
It is a pretty classic story with a hero who at first is quite insignificant and becomes more and more important but it is written well and has original elements, which is why it is in my list of favorite fantasy series.
Story
The series tells the tale of a nameless, young boy, the bastard son of Prince Chivalry, who gets the name Fitz (or FitzChivalry). He makes a pact with his grandfather, king Shrewd, to get shelter and safety in turn for absolute loyalty.
Fitz is taught the ways of an assassin and puts his telepathic Skills to use by defending the kingdom of the Six Duchies throughout the three novels against the Red-Ship Raiders and political ploys at the court.
Style & Themes
Robin Hobb, perhaps because she is a woman, puts a lot of emotion in her writing and the main characters in her books really come to life and develop themselves throughout the series. I believe this is one of the main reasons why her books are that popular and why she is on the list of best fantasy authors.
The story does contain action and magic but is also very much focused at political ploys and intrigues. The focus on character building and the relatively minor role of magic clearly makes The Farseer Trilogy as a more low fantasy series than a high fantasy one.
Conclusion
The Farseer series may not be very action-oriented, but it is well written, has great story lines and plot twists and very solid character building. Hobb has written several other major series like The Liveship Traders Trilogy and The Tawny Man Trilogy but The Farseer Trilogy remains my favorite.
A lot of Malazan news these days. Bantam Press has announced the release dates for the last novel in Steven Erikson‘s The Malazan Book of the Fallen series. It will be available on February 15, 2011 in the US and on February 21, 2011 in the UK and in Europe.
I cannot wait!
Synopsis
Savaged by the K’Chain Nah’Ruk, the Bonehunters march for Kolanse, where waits an unknown fate. Tormented by questions, the army totters on the edge of mutiny, but Adjunct Tavore will not relent. One final act remains, if it is in her power, if she can hold her army together, if the shaky allegiances she has forged can survive all that is to come. A woman with no gifts of magic, deemed plain, unprepossessing, displaying nothing to instill loyalty or confidence, Tavore Paran of House Paran means to challenge the gods — if her own troops don’t kill her first.
Awaiting Tavore and her allies are the Forkrul Assail, the final arbiters of humanity. Drawing upon an alien power terrible in its magnitude, they seek to cleanse the world, to annihilate every human, every civilization, in order to begin anew. They welcome the coming conflagration of slaughter, for it shall be of their own devising, and it pleases them to know that, in the midst of the enemies gathering against them, there shall be betrayal. In the realm of Kurald Galain, home to the long lost city of Kharkanas, a mass of refugees stand upon the First Shore. Commanded by Yedan Derryg, the Watch, they await the breaching of Lightfall, and the coming of the Tiste Liosan. This is a war they cannot win, and they will die in the name of an empty city and a queen with no subjects.
Elsewhere, the three Elder Gods, Kilmandaros, Errastas and Sechul Lath, work to shatter the chains binding Korabas, the Otataral Dragon, and release her from her eternal prison. Once freed, she will be a force of utter devastation, and against her no mortal can stand. At the Gates of Starvald Demelain, the Azath House sealing the portal is dying. Soon will come the Eleint, and once more, there will be dragons in the world. And so, in a far away land and beneath indifferent skies, the final cataclysmic chapter in the extraordinary ‘Malazan Book of the Fallen’ begins.
Source: Amazon
Stonewielder, the new Malazan novel by Ian Cameron Esslemont, is on its way to the stores and will be available soon!
In this latest novel, set in the work Esslemont created together with Steven Erikson, we will learn more about the legendary Greymane and the Empire’s Korelri campaign.
Personally, I thought that Esslemont’s previous novels, Night of Knives and Return of the Crimson Guard, were not yet completely at the same level as Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen series but I thorougly enjoyed the books and he is getting there so I am really looking forward to his latest work.
Stonewielder will be published by Bantam Books on December 28, 2010.
Synopsis
Greymane believed he’d outrun his past. With his school for swordsmanship in Falar, he was looking forward to a quiet life, although his colleague Kyle wasn’t as enamoured with life outside the mercenary company, the Crimson Guard. However, it seems it is not so easy for an ex-Fist of the Malazan Empire to disappear, especially one under sentence of death from that same Empire. For there is a new Emperor on the throne of Malaz, and he is dwelling on the ignominy that is the Empire’s failed invasion of the Korel subcontinent. In the vaults beneath Unta, the Imperial capital, lie the answers to that disaster. And out of this buried history surfaces the name Stonewielder. In Korel, Lord Protector Hiam, commander of the Stormguard, faces the potential annihilation of all that he holds dear. With few remaining men and a crumbling stone wall that has seen better days, he confronts an ancient enemy: the sea-borne Stormriders have returned. Religious war also threatens these lands. The cult of the Blessed Lady, which had stood firm against the Riders for millennia, now seeks to eradicate its rivals. And as chaos looms, a local magistrate investigating a series of murders suddenly finds himself at the heart of a far more ancient and terrifying crime – one that has tainted an entire land…”Stonewielder” is an enthralling new chapter in the epic story of a thrillingly imagined world.
Source: Amazon
I would not go as far as qualifying him as a genius but Raymond E. Feist has written many, many fantasy books and most of his series are a must-read for fantasy fans. As his great books introduced me to the fantasy genre, Feist has definitely deserved his spot in the list of best fantasy authors.
About Raymond E. Feist
Raymond E. Feist is an American fantasy author born in Los Angelos and currently living in San Diego. After publishing Magician in 1982, he became a full time author, which resulted in a long list of novels taking place in his fantasy universe of Midkemia (and Kelewan).
His works & style
The books of Feist are high fantasy, with elements of heroic fantasy as the development a young hero, encountering dangerous situations all the time, is of the center of the story.
Feist has written many fantasy series so far, most of them taking place in one fantasy realm with one overarching theme. The fantasy series and books are known as the Riftwar Cycle.
The first series in this fantasy universe was The Riftwar Saga, which started out with the famous book Magician.
Another one of series that I really enjoyed is The Empire Trilogy, which Feist wrote together with Janny Wurts. The series is set on Kelewan, the world on the other side of the rift. Instead of focusing on battle, this series has more eye for political intrigues.
Several other well-known Riftwar series are The Serpent War, Krondor;s Sons, Conclave of Shadows, Darkwar Saga, Demonwar Saga and, still in progress, Chaoswar Saga.
Conclusion
You know what you will get when you start out with a novel of Feist; the stories are creative and well-written but don’t expect anything extraordinary or far-fetched.
As mentioned, Feist introduced me to the genre of fantasy and I thank him for that. He is not my favorite author but keeps writing great and easy to read fantasy books and by doing so he is a valuable asset for the genre.
The Dark Tower is the well-known fantasy series by the highly acclaimed “horror author” Stephen King. It is fantasy topped off with a spaghetti western sauce in such a way that some will not like but keeps me asking for more.
Story
The gunslinger Roland is on a quest to find the Dark Tower. He lives in a world, Mid-World, resembling somewhat the dark ages with aspects of the American wild west. However, there is also magic in this world and signs of a past technological civilization. Along the way Roland picks up several friends who together with him form the Ka-tet of the Nineteen and Ninety-nine. These friends have issues of their own but share in Rolands destiny and through many amazing, strange adventures, both on different worlds, including our own, and in different times, Ronald step by step gets nearer to The Dark Tower.
Themes & Styles
The Dark Tower contains both contemporary and dark fantasy elements. It is definitely somewhat of an odd one out on this website. The Dark Tower is not at all the typical high fantasy that characterizes the rest of the series in my list of best fantasy series. However, the story does contain magic and happens partially on imaginary worlds. Besides, it is so good that I simply couldn’t leave out and within this specific subgenre of fantasy it is by far the best ever made. On the other hand I have to admit that it is a difficult read which will cause many to put away the books.
Books
The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger (1982)
The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987)
The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991)
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997)
The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003)
The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004)
The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004)
Written by the legendary Stephen King, The Dark Tower is dark, mysterious, and disturbing: what more could you wish for?
Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author who has written novels mainly related to the horror and fantasy genre. King is known for novels like It, The Shining, The Stand and the series The Dark Tower and has been awarded many times and is seen as one of the greatest authors of our time. Several of his novels have also been made into movies.
Life
Stephen King started writing while still in school with already an interest in and focus on the horror genre. After the success of the novel Carrie and conquering his drinking problem in the seventies, King became more and more successful and well-known in the eighties. King has struggled with addictions in the late eighties but with help of family and friend overcame these and continued to write many great works. He was in a severe car incident in 1999. He recoverd but doesn’t write that much anymore these days.
Works
King has written too many important works to name all. Well known novels are Carrie, It, The Knowing, The Shining, The Storm and Misery. Many of his books have also been adapted for screen and made into movies so further establishing name. Although best-known among the general public as a horror author, King has also written several fantasy stories with the series The Dark Tower as his biggest and, in my opinion, best work.
The Dark Tower
The Dark Tower is a fantasy series consisting of seven novels, which King wrote over a period of 27 years. As it is written by King, the series is not at all typical fantasy. It is modern fantasy with dark, mysterious, and disturbing elements and therefore high in my list of best fantasy series. A new novel in the series has been announced by King.
Concluding: Stephen King is definitely not an author of high fantasy like many other authors that are discussed on this website but he simply is one of the greatest writers ever and most of his books have fantasy elements, with The Dark Tower as the best example.
The Ten Thousand is a fantasy novel written by Paul Kearney, an Irish fantasy author.
Based on ancient Greek myths, he tells the story of 10.000 Macht mercenaries, soldiers from a warrior-orientated human society, who are employed by a Kefren prince who intends to overthrow his brother’s rule and become Great King of Kuf. The Macht display their superior fighting skills but things go not as planned and the Macht become stranded on a strange and hostile continent.
The story is an combination of epic and low fantasy as it describes massive battles in a world other than our own and different races but does not include no magic (except for the mysterious and somewhat magical black armor that some of the Macht wear). The Macht are humans resembling ancient Greeks. Several other races like the Kefren and the Juthan are described but, although having different traits, no race seems to have any special abilities.
The Ten Thousand is a good book but not a great one. The story is interesting, although it is definitely not revolutionary and plot changes can often are often predictable.
Besides the somewhat predictable story, a major downside of the novel are the shallow characters. I had a hard time connecting to them as they remain either good or bad characters without many complexities and with a predictable and lineair development.
Nonetheless, I was fascinated by the story which is also partly due to the fact that Paul Kearney is a good writer who managed to keep my attention which a colorful but not too elaborative style of writing.
Conclusion: The Ten Thousand is a good read but not one you will remember when you are grey and old. Kearney has planned to write at least two more novels revolving around the Macht. They will not be among the first on my “books I need to read” list but I think I will pick them up in due time.
The Riftwar series was the first of many fantasy series to be written by author Raymond E. Feist and easily one of the best and most influential fantasy series ever.
Through magical means a rift is opened between the two worlds Midkemia and Kelewan. The home world of the orphan Pug, Midkemia, is invaded by the Tsurani. Pug, who is thought to have minor magical abilities, is transported to Kelewan and becomes a great magician.
As the series continues the rift is closed but it turns out that Midkemia faces a far greater enemy: the moredhel led by the evil Murmandamus. Together with his friend Tomas, who becomes a great warrior during the series, and prince Arutha of Krondor, Pug has to stop Murmandamus from taking an ancient artifact that will make him all-powerful.
Books in the series
1982 Magician
1985 Silverthorn
1986 A Darkness at Sethanon
The Riftwar saga is high fantasy as it should be. Magician, the first book of the Riftwar series, was my introduction to the fantasy genre and just for that the Riftwar saga has earned a spot in this list. The story is not too complicated and characters are not that developed but Raymond E. Feist has an easy writing style and the series has more than enough interesting, new ideas to make it a great read. Besides the Riftwar series, Feist has written several other fantasy series set in the same universe which are also definitely worth reading.
British author Terry Pratchett has written a large number of fantasy stories all set in a world called Discworld. Over the last few decades these Discworld novels together have formed a great fantasy series that is uncomparable to any other.
Not only are the stories brilliantly thought up and extremely funny, sir Pratchett has also written them very well. It is classic humorous fantasy as it combines high-class comedy in a world that is almost too fantastical too believe. It is fantasy making fun of fantasy: simply hilarious. Discworld itself is carried on the backs of four elephants, standing on the back of a turtle… need I say more.
Characters and themes
The stories are not all connected, although many characters and groups of characters feature in more than one story. Well-known examples of recurring (groups) of characters are Rincewind, the Wizards, the Witches, the City watch, Tiffany Aching and Death.
Many different topics and themes are discussed in the Discworld novels, from political to religious to business issues but always they are looked at from a humoristic point of view.
Novels and other works
Pratchett has written close to fourty Discworld novels so far but also many short stories and related works, like The Science of Discworld. Several of the Discworld novels, e.g. Hogfather and Going Postal, have been made into television movies.
Terry Pratchett has been diagnosed with Alzheimer but let’s hope he has many more fantastic novels to write!
Overview of the novels
1983 The Colour of Magic
1986 The Light Fantastic
1987 Equal Rites
1987 Mort
1988 Sourcery
1988 Wyrd Sisters
1989 Pyramids
1989 Guards! Guards!
1990 Eric
1990 Moving Pictures
1991 Reaper Man
1991 Witches Abroad
1992 Small Gods
1992 Lords and Ladies
1993 Men at Arms
1994 Soul Music
1994 Interesting Times
1995 Maskerade
1996 Feet of Clay
1996 Hogfather
1997 Jingo
1998 The Last Continent
1998 Carpe Jugulum
1999 The Fifth Elephant
2000 The Truth
2001 Thief of Time
2001 The Last Hero
2001 The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents
2002 Night Watch
2003 The Wee Free Men
2003 Monstrous Regiment
2004 A Hat Full of Sky
2004 Going Postal
2005 Thud!
2006 Wintersmith
2007 Making Money
2009 Unseen Academicals
2010 I Shall Wear Midnight
