I had a similar problem but on the other end. I tried to read through The Black Company but couldn't get through book 1. I plan to go back to them at some point and try again. One of the things I like about the Garrett books is that there are 2 stories going on if you read through more of the books. There is the story that Garrett is going through and then there is the story of the city-state of TunFaire and the social impact of the changes the city goes through; and how Garrett and friends adapt to them. Also, I've pulled some of the story plots from the books into my D&D games.As much as I like Cook I picked up the first Garrett book but couldn't finish it. I'll give it another go soon.

(Dungeons & Dragons)
Rulebook featuring "high magic" options, including a host of new spells.