D&D 5E D&D-ish novels?

[Mouseferatu]

Since I'm not able to game as much as I would like right now, and since other novel deadlines mean I can't currently write my own, I'm looking for fantasy fiction to scratch the D&D itch. Specifically, I'm looking for fantasy novels that really feel D&D-esque, but aren't actually D&D (or related games, like Pathfinder) tie-ins. (Not because I dislike those tie-ins, but because I've already got a list of those I'm interested in.)

(However, I absolutely do not want "real world person is transported to other setting" books. Really not a fan of those.)

Obviously, what "feels D&D" is going to vary by person, but whatever you think really reads as though it could be tweaked easily into a D&D novel is probably helpful.

Any thoughts?

 

[Wik]

Thieves' World. At least the first four. I never read past there, but what I have is absolute gold.

Mind you, they're totally 70s style fantasy (probably because they were written in the 70s). So some of the story threads can be a bit... icky. But on the whole, it's a pretty awesome old-school D&D vibe. There's a cleric who has a rivalry with his god, an assassin with a huge ego, and criminals galore. Not to mention Lythande, which reminds me of the bard character played by, well, every single high school girlfriend I ever had. Plus, the great magician of the city of Sanctuary (Enas Yorl? Something like that) is one of my all-time favourites for unusual mages.

Failing that, they're not really novels, but dig up the Dark Horse Conan graphic novels. They're AMAZING, and totally satisfy my D&D craving. I love the old Marvel Conan comics, too, but the Dark Horse ones blow Marvel out of the water.

 

[Zardnaar]

The Raymond E Feist novels are heavily influenced by D&D as the world of Midkemia was his groups AD&D campaign. The 1st book is called Magician followed by Silverthorn and a Darkness at Sethanon.

 

[Raith5]

I am reading the witcher series Andrzej Sapkowski and they feel very D&D to me. They are pulpy but in a good way. Glen Cook's Black Company series are not the best written books but feel a bit like D&D as well.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Nothing feels more like D&D than Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser, not even the real D&D novels.

 

[discosoc]

Shogun. Obviously has an oriental flavor to it, and not exactly high fantasy, but the writing and political intrigue is top-notch.

 

[Bluenose]

The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon. To some extent the others she's written in the same setting too. Probably easiest to get it with that title, though it was originally a trilogy.

 

[Jester David]

Name of the Wind
The magic system is different, but a retired adventurer as an innkeeper is pretty D&D.

 

[Sacrosanct]

The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon. To some extent the others she's written in the same setting too. Probably easiest to get it with that title, though it was originally a trilogy.

Best books to read if want that paladin/knight vibe. I second this.

Name of the Wind
The magic system is different, but a retired adventurer as an innkeeper is pretty D&D.

Ugh...I know a lot of people like those books, but Kvothe is such a Gary Stu it was almost offputting. I also disagree with the D&D feel. For 90% of the books, he's the only one who ever does anything important. D&D is all about the party, not having one PC do everything while everyone else just sits around and watches.


For a D&D feel, I'd also suggest the Shannara books. Any of them, really, since they're all your typical party of adventurers on a quest. Another is the Dragonbone Chair series from Tad Williams.

 

[Jester David]

Ugh...I know a lot of people like those books, but Kvothe is such a Gary Stu it was almost offputting. I also disagree with the D&D feel. For 90% of the books, he's the only one who ever does anything important. D&D is all about the party, not having one PC do everything while everyone else just sits around and watches.

That was a little odd, but he is meant to be this big mythic hero. The guy who becomes a legend in his own lifetime. The effect of stories and distortion of what is true from what people say is a big part of the books, so the theme kinda requires a hero with some level of competence. It's the story of a Hercules or King Arthur.