Book Lists: Fantasy

In continuation of the Book Lists series I am adding one on the Fantasy genre. It is possible that several of these names are quite obvious to readers of this genre. To the academically inclined this genre is all fluff, but if you are one of those people whose love affair with reading started with the stories they heard/ read in their childhood, then this is the genre for you.  As a genre this is one which allows you to get lost in a new world every time you pick up a book. Most books in this genre are tomes and most series are built up several of these tomes. For the value oriented, nothing gives you more bang for your buck then a long Fantasy series. For a writer, nothing gives you the creative liberty that a fantasy book does.

Sr. no.	Book Series	Author	Brief Review
1	Lord of the Rings	JRR Tolkien	If you have seen the movies and felt they were great and wondered where they came from, get the books. If the movies were great, the books are even better.  The writing itself is perfect, broken intermittently with beautiful poetry. Find here the real dark lord and the original elves and dwarves whose echoes are felt through the whole of the fantasy genre. If you truly dig the world, there are several recent additions made to it exclusively out of Tolkiens notes. These books are worthy successors namely The Hobbit, the Children of Hurin and The Silmarrilon
2.	The Wheel of Time	Robert Jordon	The Wheel of time is in many ways an ode to LOTR and starts off in a similar fashion. However, in this series of more than 13 books, Robert Jordan creates a world and characters unparalleled in its/ their sheer complexity and scale. If you start this today, you have the benefit of not having to undergo the agonising   wait for successive books, as earlier readers had to after coming to know of the heart breaking terminal illness Jordan had before he could complete the finale. The work was later completed by Brandon Sanderson, hand-picked by the author himself. Anyone working on a TV series here?
3.	The Game of thrones (though that was merely the name of the 1st book in the series)	George RR Martin	Again if you have fallen for the HBO TV series, then it is advisable to pick up this yet incomplete fantasy series. You will get all the details that the episodes miss out on.  In terms of sub genre, find in the Game of Thrones, the ruthless politics of the world George RR Martin has created.  Magic itself takes a back seat in this series and forms a mere shadow that looms on its characters who display all the failings of normal humans viz. greed, anger, violence, ruthlessness, treachery and foolhardiness. The latest book has been some time in coming and expect a longer hiatus in the TV series too after the latest season hits the screens this April.
4	The Harry Potter series	JK Rowling	A series which starts out all bright and sunny for children ultimately turns darker and enthralls adults to reach the finale. It seems the dark lord from LOTR survived to modern day England. If you haven’t seen the movies and read these books, which planet were you on?
5	The Mistborn Trilogy	Brandon Sanderson	If you ever wondered what made Robert Jordan pick Brandon Sanderson to write the WOT finale, you need to read this. What sets this series apart is the refreshing pace of the series, the 3 Dimensional action and that the central character is the heroine who kicks some serious a**. Suffice to say a band of thieves and revolutionaries made me pick up the books and I didn't regret it.
6	The Kingkiller Chronicles	Patrick Rothfuss	This yet incomplete series is set apart by the masterful writing of Patrick Rothfuss and the multi hued and amazing character of the protagonist “Kvothe”. If you go into this expecting a Harry Potter rehash with an orphan and a magic school, you will be both severely disappointed and genuinely surprised with the originality. Mr. Rothfuss if you are reading this, my (invisible) hats off to your writing prowess. I hope you do not delay the last book further and we expect you to be much more prolific in your career.
7	The Chronicles of Narnia	CS Lewis	This classic, which has been turned into movies is a must read. Find in the Chronicles the echoes of the World War II, in the backdrop of which, this series was created. A classical story with morals at the end of each book and deeper echoes of the WWII in the characters and the situations, if you can trace them.
8	The Storm light Archives	Brandon Sanderson	Another mammoth series in the making. If you have read the Mistborn Series and the WOT, and wonder what would happen if the best of both was mixed masterfully, you need to get the Stormlight Archive. The unmistakable skill Mr. Sanderson displays in creating 3 dimensional action sequences on paper combined with the sheer scale and complexity of a world such as the Wheel of Time, is on display in this mammoth 10 book series of tomes. Warning: Only 2 of these books are out yet and be ready for agonizing waits in between for the rest.
9	The Farseer Trilohy	Robin Hobb	A well crafted trilogy and amongst the better books in the Fantasy genre of recent origin. The world of Fitz Chivalry is vivid and identifiable. The central character is an assassin, a scripter, a prince in waiting, has a bond with animals and suffers from a romance lost with the tide of time.  If you hear echoes of the Kingkiller chronicles, then it is only because of the extra ordinary diverse skills of the central character
10	The Bartimeaus Trilogy	Jonathon Stroud	A dark mirror version of the Wizard led England (especially if potter reigns in your consciousness) with a witty sarcastic insolent   genie, This series is a breath of fresh air into the otherwise formal self important world of fantasy with chosen one heroes who have destiny to defeat the evil dark lord.
11	The Ryria Series	Michael Sullivan	An interesting trilogy of two thieves with some well known fantasy and sci-fi elements thrown in. In some ways the only thing new about this series is the two interesting characters and easy to read prose. If you dig the genre and would like something interesting and worth your time, this one is the one to pick up

The book lists that I intend to publish in successive blog posts are what I think is what you would like to read if you want to take a plunge into the particular genre. By their very nature, they would include more of the acclaimed and famous works in the genre. I shall reserve the detailed reviews for the lesser known ones.