Help me find a book...

[coyote6]

Second on Lies of Locke Lamorra and Name of the Wind. Lamorra has a sequel (Red Seas Under Red Skies, IIRC), and both have followups due out next year.

Glen Cook's Garrett Files are good, too, as far as I've read (which isn't far -- book 3 or 4). There's a war, but it's entirely off-screen. Garrett (the first-person narrator) is a fantasy P.I., and gets involved in the typical noir-ish P.I. kinds of cases.

(BTW, if Lynch, Rothfuss, and GRRM all manage to get their sequels out next year, 2010 is going to be a great year to read fantasy novels.)

 

[Hand of Evil]

Karl Wagner's Kane books if you can find them. Kind of surprised we have not seen them re-published.

David Gemmell is another author with some great books out, the Troy books his last group are excellent.

 

[Ebon Shar]

Second on Lies of Locke Lamorra and Name of the Wind. Lamorra has a sequel (Red Seas Under Red Skies, IIRC), and both have followups due out next year.

Glen Cook's Garrett Files are good, too, as far as I've read (which isn't far -- book 3 or 4). There's a war, but it's entirely off-screen. Garrett (the first-person narrator) is a fantasy P.I., and gets involved in the typical noir-ish P.I. kinds of cases.

(BTW, if Lynch, Rothfuss, and GRRM all manage to get their sequels out next year, 2010 is going to be a great year to read fantasy novels.)

How about Cook's Black Company books? Very much in the same "Grim and Gritty" mold as Abercrombie's trilogy.

As for Rothfuss, I loved the first half of his book, but I thought it lost its focus when the female protagonist was introduced. It should have been edited to keep its pacing and focus and it would have been excellent.

 

[Thunderfoot]

I like Brandon Sanderson, who was tapped to finish writing the Wheel of Time series:
<SNIP>

And doing an admirable job, I might add. Not sure if he could have pulled off the whole series, but interpreting Jordan's notes, he's apparently right on target.

 

[Rackhir]

Another vote here for Glen Cook's Garret books. Terrific books.

There's Diskworld of course.

David Webber's "Blahzell" series is terrific for the first two books ("Oath of Swords" and "War God's Own"), third one is merely okay.

 

[ewalden]

Try The Chosen Soul by Heather Killough-Walden.

As one of the reviews says:

"This story is truly born of a rich imagination. The characters are beautifully detailed and otherworldly, and the plot is haunting and magical. Yet I had no problem placing myself alongside the main heroine as her world of fantasy, and many times horror, unfolds before her. Raven is unlike any character you have ever read; yet her inherent innocence makes her someone you can identify with, and thus engage deeply in her story.

This novel has something for every reader- Intrigue, suspense, fantasy, murder, mystery, romance, lust, and a magical setting that is rich in detail and beauty. "