Is "A Song of Ice and Fire" the best epic fantasy since "The Lord of the Rings"?

[drothgery]

Certainly not. Even if I had a high opinion of the series to date, incomplete, tightly bound series (books you can't reasonably read out of order, and don't really stand on their own) just aren't elligible for "best series of all time" votes.

 

[Lazybones]

I think the best Epic fantasy series is Steven Erikson's Malazan Books of the Fallen.
This is hands down the best fantasy series out there.

I tried it, I really did, but I could only get about 1/2 way through the first book before it lost me.

I'm really getting disillusioned about "epic" fantasy series. Jordan self-destructed well before the crap-fest that was his latest update, and Goodkind, which started out as snuff porn in Book I, evolved into right-wing propaganda by book VI (oooh, communism bad!) and then started throwing out new (and less interesting) characters as he seemed to get tired of kicking Richard in the junk and b-slapping Kahlen with each new novel. I enjoy the Recluse series by Modesitt, but it wanders so much chronologically it can barely be called that. Ditto with Brooks's Shannara ad infinitum: same themes, different characters. I do like GRRM, although he shows signs of Jordanism; i.e. stretching the story out into book after book of development. That's what I like about LotR; it's long, but it has a decisive beginning, middle, and ending.

Part of the problem is that it seems to be getting harder to find good short series that have solid endings.

 

[Mystery Man]

Part of the problem is that it seems to be getting harder to find good short series that have solid endings.

Tad Williams - Memory Sorrow and Thorn. He wrote 3 and then he was done. Great series.

 

[Lazybones]

Tad Williams - Memory Sorrow and Thorn. He wrote 3 and then he was done. Great series.

Thanks, I did try that one and just couldn't get into the main character. Maybe read too many "urchin-turned-hero" in a row.

 

[Dakkareth]

I voted No, because while the ASoIaF books are good, they aren't the best there is. There's for example J.V. Jones Sword of Shadows books, which look like a knock-off from ASoIaF but are on equa footing at least.

And of course, there's Steven Erikson's A Tale of the Malazan Book of the Fallen, which are the best fantasy books I've ever read and as epic as it gets. With a vast backdrop of 300k years of history, that comes to light book for book, conflicts spanning over several continents and into the realms of the gods, beings of divine power clashing with mere mortals with the mortals (in some cases) coming out on top and battles deciding over more than just the rise and fall of great empires, it is hard to imagine something that is more epic. But it's more than just George R.R. Martin' SoIaF meets Glen Cook's Black Company. There's a balance between the big picture and the picture of the individual fate. And even if it wasn't for all these factors, Erikson could still write incredibly well.

Granted, the complexity that appeals to some could have the opposite effect on others, but I can't help but praise, when the topic comes up .

 

[GSHamster]

No. We need to see how it ends. In many ways the climax is the crucial part of the series, and I really fail to see how we can fairly judge the work without seeing it.

Even without seeing the end, I'm going to lean towards No. I have the feeling that a lot of what we've spent time on so far will be irrelevant, that disaster will sweep out of the north and pretty much relegate most of the early intriguing to pointlessness.

I also don't think he's really established a deep, resonant theme that echoes throughout the work (I don't think "everyone dies" counts ). I think a strong theme is necessary for it to match LotR.

 

[Umbran]

I'm not actually sure that SoFaI is epic in the same sense that LotR is either.

I agree here. SoIaF is darned good, and I love it, but so far it has not been epic in the same sense as LotR is epic.

For "best thing in the same line as Tolkien", I'd vote for Tad Williams' Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn. It was written in three volumes, but new readers should note that in paperback it comes in four volumes.

 

[ASH]

I actually did not vote. The series is not done and its very hard to comare it to a series that is done. LotR's best parts are close to then end or the end, as it may be in ASoIaF. I cant judge it honestly until its done. So far, I like it better than any thing else I have ever read... I would say if it stays on course and stays as good as it has been if not better, yes it will be the best i have read since the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I have not read a lot of fantasy out there, but I find it to be one of the best. Jordan cant hold a candle... And the Chronicals of Narnia are good, but not aimed at me...it being religious and for younger adults... me being somewhat agnostic and in my 20's. That does not mean I did not enjoy them, i did, just not as much as Martin's books.

So, I did not vote, but hypothetically speaking, i would judged yes.

 

[Faraer]

Since LotR I don't think anything in this vein has been better than Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun.

 

[Wombat]

I guess it depends on how you define "epic" and "fantasy".

The Book of the New Sun may not fantasy, but it is a far better epic.

Earthsea may not be a true epic, but it is far better fantasy.

Just two contenders from my shelves