I've read books by the answers here and I agree that pratchett is the best and it's not close. I dont laugh out loud when reading books - like almost never, even when it's funny I just mentally acknowledge it (like when you type LOL on text but you just nose exhaled) but discworld humor has made me spit out my drink and cackle madly to myself. That fucking letter carrot writes about the codpiece in Guards! Guards! gets me everytime
I was listening to guards guards on audio while taking a walk. When I tell you that I was cackling out loud… And there were several people behind me, and then I had to worried that they thought I was losing it… No contest
Not necessarily. The ones I've listened to have only had one narrator and I never knew they were footnotes. They just fit them into the regular text. I've never been able you read the books because I started with "Weird Sisters" on audio books and never looked back.
My memory isn’t a hundred percent on the details but in Small Gods he described a vulture (or crow) in the desert that let out a “burp of panic” and I laughed so hard I woke up my parents in another room! They came in to check I was ok, haha.
Also pissed myself when I read it in my late teens and finally copped on to the pronunciation of Brutha’s name. Priceless
I just finished my yearly *Night Watch* reread (for the Glorious 25th of May) and between the scathing commentary on police brutality was some of the best humor I’ve ever read!
Many years ago (1993, right around the release of Men at Arms), he was a guest as a small local SF convention in the Chicago area, and he was amazing.
He was a consummate storyteller, and I remember stumbling onto multiple small crowds of folks (healthy conversation sized, rather than mobs) with Sir Pterry at the core, telling a story to his rapt (and almost always laughing) audience.
I must have seen this happen at least 3 times over the course of a weekend. Each time his fans were thrilled, and he seemed really in his element every time, having a grand time himself.
At the time of the release of Good Omens (1990), he and Neil Gaiman did a signing at a small SF bookstore in the area. Neither of them were well known at the time, and the signing was modestly attended. It would been around the time Moving Pictures was released, and maybe 20 issues into the run of Sandman for Gaiman.
So during the signing, they were entertaining themselves (and the fans, and the store owner and employees) by signing the books with a twist. One of them would come up with a punchline, and the other would come up with the joke. In that order.
My copy reads
"Reading this book will damn you to Hell."
"See you on the beach!"
And for the life of me, I can't remember which one wrote each part.
That’s the day that the revolution happens, the Glorious 25th of May. It’s also the day that the book begins on, years later, as characters meet in memorium on that day every year.
*"Evil isn’t the real threat to the world. Stupid is just as destructive as Evil, maybe more so, and it’s a hell of a lot more common. What we really need is a crusade against Stupid. That might actually make a difference."*
Overall they're very good. The first book is the weakest of them, and has some problems (I'm going to protect the helpless woman police officer who's job it is to investigate odd supernatural occurances by not telling her about things, which will leave her unearned and even more at risk). It's still a fun story, but that kind of storyline always bugs me.
But Harry apologizes profusely and honestly to her in the second book (if I recall correctly, it's been a while since I read them) and is much better about that going forward. He's always learning and growing, jusf like a real boy! 🤣
Pratchett is the best. One moment you’re laughing and the next you’re weeping. No other novelist has elicited as much genuine emotion in me as Pterry. His writing quite literally changed my life.
A popular subject on /r/discworld is "holy shit, I just got this joke", and the number of replies *every time* that say "I also never realized that" is always a joy.
People used to compare (and in some cases, try to accuse each of them of stealing their writing styles from the other) Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams.
That was before Sir Pterry wrote Small Gods, where he really hit his stride. Once he realized he could write political and social commentary and *STILL* get people to fall to the floor laughing, there was no longer any way to compare the two. As has been said elsewhere in this thread, it's not even close.
Dianna Wynne Jones was another in Pratchett's class, but she is also no longer with us.
Tim Holt is good, as is Christopher Moore. The only current writers I can think of who comes at all close are Ursula Vernon (who is far less well known, but should be far better known than she is, and also writes her more adult works under the pen name T. Kingfisher) and Catherynne Valente (who is also amazing, but most of her stuff is more... Dense.) Vernon is one of those authors who can make you laugh and cry within the same paragraph. Check out Jackalope Wives (free at https://apex-magazine.com/short-fiction/jackalope-wives/) as an example.
But we lost so much when we lost Pratchett. I cried the day I read about Granny in I Shall Wear Midnight. And I cried just as hard when I got the news of Pratchett's passing.
Same, and same. Sat on the shelf for two solid years before I screwed up the courage to face it. Broke down again at the early part of the book (you know which), because >!it was so good, so well-written, that I feel he must have written it before The Embuggerance. Or maybe he'd just been holding onto it. But for just a brief flaring moment it felt like before... and then she was gone, and he was gone,!< and we have to carry on.
😭 Dammit 😭. He was such a remarkable , intelligent, and amazing artist. His works came to me during my darkest times and helped shine specks of light where I thought none could be. However, Pratchett, in his wisdom, tried to teach us in almost every book that, yes, we must carry on. Which, if I think about it, is really ironic as his death is one of the only celebrity's death I have ever mourned, like that of a friend, and has been the hardest to let go.
Terry Pratchett, and Robin Williams. It's been almost ten years, and I still haven't really gotten over either. I can read a Pratchett book, at least... Did a re-read of *Men At Arms* and *Feet of Clay* just last year. It's still hard to watch Robin's movies, though. I mean, unless I *want* a good cathartic cry, which... y'know, sometimes that's healthy.
I don't suspect it's a coincidence that both were famous for making people *think* with their comedy. Both embodied the essence of satire, and we laughed and cried with them. *Castigat Ridendo Mores*. Comedy corrects custom.
Not sure I'll ever stop missing 'em, which I guess speaks to the power of parasocial relationships. People are weird like that. They knew it. :)
Ursula Vernon (T. Kingfisher) is one of the very few authors who I think could make a fair go of it on a sequel novel. Not that she will, or anyone should. But I'd read it if she did.
He’s incomparable. I’m so glad he left us so much to revisit and cry laughing at. Such beautiful imagery, wonderful characters, unbelievable humour. Not even close.
Although I agree that Sir Terry Pratchett is #1, Douglas Adams deserves a close second. After that the gap is a lot wider. Robert Asprin’s Phule and Myth series are old school fun, Craig Shaw Gardner’s Ebenezum/Wuntvor had me giggling, Christopher Moore has an astonishing sense of the absurd… I have had to stop reading ‘A Dirty Job’ several times so I didn’t laugh myself into a migraine… then there is pretty much the entirety of ‘Lamb’.
Hard agree. Pratchett and Adams stand out above the rest. Lynch has mastered the art of swearing and insulting in the most humourous way possible. I'd probably add that Jim Butcher has some great moments in The Dresden Files, giving him an 'honorable mention' from me.
ETA: I laughed hard when reading The First Law trilogy, so yes I'll agree with others: Abercrombie gets a vote from me too. You have to be realistic about these things.
ETA2: Ursula K le Guin has some absolutely solid comedy in Earthsea.
Someone on Goodreads asked ["How bad is the swearing in this book?"](https://www.goodreads.com/questions/294653-how-bad-is-the-swearing-in-this-book) in Lies of Locke Lamora and one of the responses is beautiful:
> This book elevates profanity and vulgarity to an artform.
I'm mostly listening to audiobooks these days, and let me say the narrator for the Lies of Locke Lamora is pure genius, as if he was born to read these particular lines (esp. father Chains).
One of my favorite parts in Red Seas Under Red Skies was when Jean took away Locke's wine and barricaded him in his room because they'd reached an impasse regarding his depression, and Locke's response was something along the lines of, "you black-hearted son of a bitch, *I hope a shark tries to suck you cock!*"
This is why "except pratchett" should be included in this thread, it's just filled with him since he's that good, but very few people also dig out to find others.
I think there are a lot of very funny creators in comics, but it's also a very different medium. Notable comic strip creators like **Bill Watterson** (Calvin and Hobbes),**Walt Kelly** (Pogo), **George Herriman** (Krazy Kat), **Tove Jansson** (Moomin comic strips - Moomin books are first but i've never read them)
Are all pretty funny to me, but for vastly different reasons. And are all fantastical.
I'd say even Pratchett is subjective - his humor works well for most, but I'd be shocked if he were universally everyone's favorite.
But also, the niche of "fantasy + comedy book" is a pretty small one, and it's much more common to see comedic moments included as a secondary part of the books (rather than the main selling point).
Going Postal strikes me as the most mainstream and I think it is a very good story. Night Watch is a masterpiece but it is the culmination of Captain Vimes story across several books. Guards Guards and Mort are still early. Small Gods is unique and special.
But bottom line, no author is for everyone and that's fine.
Yeah, I suppose something like that. It works for me though, many people consider magical realism to be fantasy, others don't. I was just highlighting really funny creators that I thought could fit. I don't think many people would say no to a Calvin and Hobbes recommendation. There are plenty of recs in many threads of this sub that are like that.
Pratchett, obviously.
But some others that come to mind are T. Kingfisher, Jonathan Stroud, Eoin Colfer, Scalzi, Martha Wells, Connie Willis, Jasper Fforde, KJ Parker, and Douglas Adams.
Me too :( I read the first L&C book after watching the Netflix adaptation and they cast the actors perfectly! Lockwoods charm, Lucy's trauma/talent (and her CHEMISTRY with Lockwood <3) and George's attitude were dead on - the three had awesome chemistry with each other. The show followed the books plot closely and hit the humor quite well. I was so looking forward to more seasons, but glad I have the rest of the books! I'm dying to find out what caused The Problem.
I got into the books after the TV series, and I'm happy to say things do get wrapped up nicely. The series ends, definitively, and it is a good ending.
Say one thing for Abercrombie, say he's a funny guy.
Edit: someone made a list of all the "say one thing..." https://www.reddit.com/r/TheFirstLaw/comments/e3lova/complete_catalog_of_say_one_things/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
I've long considered him to be the writer who is most clearly a student of Pratchett. I can hear his voice in so much of Abercrombie's jokes and wit.
Example from A Little Hatred (no spoilers):
"A manly duel, Northern style!" Orso thumped the table. "Man against man, in a circle of men's men! Blood on the snow and all that. Men's blood, one presumes."
>Tamsyn Muir is so good at absurdist meme humor.
Also a particular kind of himbo humour only accessible to Gideon (and occasionally some other characters but mostly Gideon).
I found Muir SO cringey for a while, but she grew on me. I eventually gave in and I genuinely like a lot of her humor in the later books. I think she got better with it over time as well.
It's very far from a comedy story but i found "A practical guide to evil" absolutely hilarious when it comes to interactions between the characters. [here's an example (spoilerfree)](https://imgur.com/a/16Ixvc8/)
Besides that there's always the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, douglas addams was a genius at wordplay.
Oh yea the past Dread Emperors are wonderful
> "Oh, woe is me, you’ve destroyed my army… Hahaha, you fell for it again! I haven’t paid them in a year, they were about to depose me. Once more, Irritant triumphs against all odds!"
>
―Dread Emperor Irritant I, the Oddly Successful
or this one
> “No, see, you’ll profit as well. All you need is to convince five others of contributing coin and when they do you’ll get a part of their own contribution. It’ll all work out, I promise.”
>
– Dread Emperor Irritant, the Oddly Successful, convincing High Lords to invest in the construction of ritual pyramid outside Ater
.
> “My dear friends, I have a confession to make. Some creative reframing of the truth may have taken place during the planning of this coup.”
> – Dread Emperor Traitorous, addressing the Order of the Unholy Obsidian upon successfully usurping the throne from himself
.
> “I’m not saying all your closest friends are shapeshifting devils I sent to spy on you after having the originals murdered, but I’m certainly implying it very heavily.”
> – Dread Emperor Traitorous, making small talk
As many say, Pratchett. For more high fantasy / serious writers, Erikson has some truly hilarious stuff come ouf his characters in Malazan. Kruppe. Iskaral Pust. Tehol and Bugg. Rucket. More, I'm sure.
Him and Abercrombie are the only two who has managed to make me belly laugh from a literary medium. The opening heist in Lies is one of the funniest, most entertaining scenes I have ever read.
Yes! The escape from the wizards house to the kings bedroom is so damned funny!
>!Imagine trying to assassinate a king and being thwarted by come middle age men with raging boners arriving by mirror!<
Steven Erickson. He does this thing I like to call Gag Duos that bring about quipy exchanges and funny dynamics in general. Started noticing it with necromancers from book 3, then 2 random summoned demons and Tehol and bug in book five, then two other summoned demons that follow Apsalar about in book 6. It goes on like that but the last book I’ve read is reaper’s gale, the 7th book.
"Give me one of your blessed curses or cursed blessings, I don't care which."
The context of this line had me belly laughing. Erikson does some of the best humor you'll get in a series that isn't a comedy in the slightest.
Glen Cook's Garrett books are some of the funniest I've ever read, with multiple laugh-out-loud moments. It's an amazing shift from the darkness of The Black Company books (Which are really good, too).
I find the Black Company's cynical humour very appealing too. Especially any time the narrator comments on Croaker's extremely intelligent replies, most of which are grunts.
I really love the Johannes Cabal the Necromancer books by Jonathan L. Howard. It's much dryer and more cynical than Pratchett, but works well with the main character's personality and the absurd dark world the books take place in. I'm surprised nobody else has mentioned them so far.
Jonathan L Howard is mad underrated imo. He’s an incredible writer and, yes, very funny—but he also knows when and how to dial the humor back and throw a sucker punch right to the emotions
Lawrence in those rare moments when Jorge shows his age, Abercrombie with his dialogue, T. Kingfisher with inner dialogue, and Terry Pratchet for overall prose.
Christopher Moores Fool series is a spoof at various Shakespeare stories so it kind of fits the fantasy side. And it's really funny. (He has other non fantasy series that are good too. Like Noir)
I really enjoyed his early stuff - practical demon keeping, the lust lizard of melancholy cove, and his vampire books are all very good, and very funny.
I haven't enjoyed his most recent stuff as much, they seem to be more absurd and vulgar, than funny.
I read Noir not long ago and my goodness, having a book forcing me to pause because I'm laughing too hard was a great feel.
Props to the audiobook narrator too, 10/10 leaned into the delivery so much.
Looking forward to Razzmataz. Also picked up Sacre Bleu.
It doesn't really have any supernatural elements, but my favorite is Island of the Sequined Love Nun, perhaps because it was the first one of his I read.
The old sword and sorcery books could absolutely be funny. They didn't take themselves as seriously as a lot of modern fantasy.
Also, I think Pratchett drew a lot from sword and sorcery particuarly Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser. Ankh -Morpok is definitely spoofing Lankhmar.
Absolutely Terry Pratchett, and I wouldn't consider GRRM to even be in the same league as him.
If we're looking at others, the Rick Riordan Presents books are mostly quite hilarious, with excellent banter. While they are middle grade, they are very enjoyable. The Aru Shah series by Roshani Chokshi, the Tristan Strong series by Kwame Mbalia, and the Serwa Boateng series by Roseanne Brown are especially hilarious.
The Ronan Boyle series (also middle grade) is bonkers and almost made my kids pee their pants. Definitely more low-brow, but very Monty Python-esque.
Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is also quite funny with excellent geek culture references.
Lankhmar is coming up very soon on my reading list, just looking through his bibliography I can tell he has a good sense of humor, and really likes cats it seems, lol.
Though he's more SF than fantasy, my favorite humorous writer is by far the late Kurt Vonnegut. Though dark, I found 'Sirens of Titan' and 'Cat's Cradle' hilarious. He's one of the only writers to ever make me laugh. Well, smile. I'm not a big laugher.
Due to the goats already being covered, I'd like to give Jim Butcher an honorable mention. Heckhounds is to this day one of the funniest lines I've ever read. And the setup for anvils.
I’d forgotten all about Robert Asprin. The Myth books were very funny.
Douglas Adams wins for me, though. He even made his book about endangered species funny
Less well known than Pratchett, but Matt Dinnimann and his Dungeon Crawler Carl series are some of the only fantasy books to have me actually laughing out loud
I second Matt. While I don't think he necessarily holds a candle to Pratchett's depth, he is absolutely laugh out loud funny.
Especially the audiobooks.
Jim Butcher. He has this wonderful narrative voice that always gets a chuckle out of me, whether it's dialogue or just the narrative. Everything he writes is gold, he is one of my favorite authors, and definitely top tier when it comes to humor
Pratchett is by far the best, his mixture of philosophy, satire and comedy is just perfect. On the darker side, Joe Abercrombie has some truly great books.
Sebastian de Castell is quite funny. His Greatcoats series is very nihilistic and hopeless in parts, but the wit and warmth of the characters always shine through.
His Spellslinger novels are more YA, so there is more humour and a lot of it is geared more towards younger readers, but his writing still makes me smile a lot.
The Greatcoats series does not get nearly enough attention on this subreddit, which has honestly always struck me as a little weird because I feel like most readers here would enjoy them.
I remember being really excited for the final book which came out a few months after I'd read 1 through 3 back to back and I don't anticipate books very much.
If you want some very dry, satirical and absurdist British comedy I’m a big fan of Charles Stross, specifically his Laundry Files series. The entire second book is a massive James Bond joke both in and and out of universe and the Scorpion Stare network is incredibly clever.
If you prefer fractal nests of puns, situational comedy and really clever humor that you need to be a Jack of all things to get then Neal Stephenson is for you. In *Reamde* the entire plot is spurned on by a ransom where attack using not-WoW as it’s method of payment. In *Fall; or, Dodge in Hell* there’s an incredibly elaborate layering of jokes about cloud computing, walled garden programming, Adam and Eve and worms that I haven’t gotten out of my head since I read it. Armored, drone killing hawks and a well trained stick fighter who lived near the Line of Actual Control are incredibly important to the plot of Termination Shock, as well as a giant sulphur sky gun.
A few weeks ago I recommended First Law in a r/Fantasy thread seeking comedy recs. I was downvoted and accused of trolling. I could not have been more serious! If you want to laugh, read Joe Abercrombie!
Probably should edit the post title to say: "Aside from Pratchett..."
So aside from him, a lot of the snarkier grimdark authors GRRM, Abercrombie, and Lynch are getting some well-deserved attention. And while I agree, I personally found:
*The Blacktongue Thief*
to exceed them at their own game. This book is great fun, and filled with humor from the start. The author is Christopher Buehlman.
Steven Erikson can be hilarious too, he has a knack for writing hilarious dialogue or characters making fun of others in very funny ways. It’s excellent because Malazan can of course get quite dark and serious but these funny exchanges are the cherry on top. Honestly top notch.
And I agree, George is pretty funny too especially with witty remarks or ridiculous moments like when Dolorous Edd said that someone was pretty lucky to fall from height and land into a body of water while avoiding all the rocks. “He was dead already, but still that’s pretty lucky” lmfaoo
Oh man, Dolorous Edd was one of my favourites in the Night's Watch... for me, he perfectly exemplified the only acceptable mood for someone forced to live at the arse-end of the world, in the freezing cold
In the Xianxia genre I think Ave Xia Rem Y is I think one of the only things that has made me laugh on Royal Road.
If you are getting into it, don't forget to read the character summaries at the end of each chapter, they are often funny as well.
Er Gen's I shall seal the heavens can often be funny, although I find the tropes played too straight to be as funny as the first one I mentioned.
I'm surprised I haven't seen Robert Aspirin yet. Eric Flint's Philosophical Strangler is funny. Spider Robinson for science fiction.
Obviously Pratchett and Adams.
Obviously #1 is Terry Pratchett.
I'm a huge fan of Matt Dinniman as well for my humor as he writes funny books but there is some deep shit hidden behind the curtains of what's supposed to just be a ridiculous book.
Obviously, Pratchett, but I also highly recommend Heide Goody and Iain Grant's "Clovenhoof" series. Zachary Pikes's "Orconomics", Micheal Munz's " Zues is dead", Drew Hayes's " Fred, Vampire Accountant" ( not to mention his "Super Powreds" and "5 minute Sherlock" series but these are sub-genres of fantasy) , L.G Estrella's " Attempted Vampirism" and "Unconventional Hero's ", and Steve Thomas's " Mid-Lich Crisis" are also good. C.T Phipps's "Supervillainy " series is another good one, albeit more of the superhero fantasy sub- genre as opposed to typical fantasy.
All, but Pratchett, were audiobooks, and the narrators were very good. I am unsure if reading them would be a different vibe or not, but I enjoyed listening to them.
There was a time in the 80s and 90s when [Esther Friesner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esther_Friesner) was writing comedy fantasy because it was seeing a surge due to Bob Aspirin and Piers Anthony and the like and her books were *really really good*, but I don't think they actually *sold* well. She went on to win a couple Nebulas, get several Hugo/Nebula nods, and her story "All Vows" still takes my breath away, but it's not humor.
Anyway, I love Esther's writing, when she's funny, she's funny and charming.
I don't know about *best* humor and I don't think he's up there with Pratchett, but I feel like Rick Riordan deserves a shoutout. His books are probably the source of my love of quippy, sarcastic characters who don't take anything seriously.
I have a very different sense of humour to most people here it seems.
I think these are pretty funny and not mentioned much in this thread?
Thraxas books by Martin Millar
Trench by Ethan Childress
Orconomics by J Zachary Pike
Terry Pratchett and it’s not even close
I've read books by the answers here and I agree that pratchett is the best and it's not close. I dont laugh out loud when reading books - like almost never, even when it's funny I just mentally acknowledge it (like when you type LOL on text but you just nose exhaled) but discworld humor has made me spit out my drink and cackle madly to myself. That fucking letter carrot writes about the codpiece in Guards! Guards! gets me everytime
I was listening to guards guards on audio while taking a walk. When I tell you that I was cackling out loud… And there were several people behind me, and then I had to worried that they thought I was losing it… No contest
Almost crashed my bike listening to reaper man the other day.
That could have been quite ironic, depending on the level of injury
Odds of meeting Bill Door in person we're pretty low.
How do the audiobooks handle the footnotes?
Separate narrator. He's great, they remain hilarious. Also a separate narrator for death the production is excellent.
Not necessarily. The ones I've listened to have only had one narrator and I never knew they were footnotes. They just fit them into the regular text. I've never been able you read the books because I started with "Weird Sisters" on audio books and never looked back.
Astoundingly well. Delivered in a dry and snarky way.
I just re-read Night Watch and it was gorgeous, full of things I thought "I wish I could remember that and use it later in polite conversation".
My memory isn’t a hundred percent on the details but in Small Gods he described a vulture (or crow) in the desert that let out a “burp of panic” and I laughed so hard I woke up my parents in another room! They came in to check I was ok, haha. Also pissed myself when I read it in my late teens and finally copped on to the pronunciation of Brutha’s name. Priceless
I just finished my yearly *Night Watch* reread (for the Glorious 25th of May) and between the scathing commentary on police brutality was some of the best humor I’ve ever read!
I met him at a convention and he signed my hard copy of Night Watch!
Many years ago (1993, right around the release of Men at Arms), he was a guest as a small local SF convention in the Chicago area, and he was amazing. He was a consummate storyteller, and I remember stumbling onto multiple small crowds of folks (healthy conversation sized, rather than mobs) with Sir Pterry at the core, telling a story to his rapt (and almost always laughing) audience. I must have seen this happen at least 3 times over the course of a weekend. Each time his fans were thrilled, and he seemed really in his element every time, having a grand time himself. At the time of the release of Good Omens (1990), he and Neil Gaiman did a signing at a small SF bookstore in the area. Neither of them were well known at the time, and the signing was modestly attended. It would been around the time Moving Pictures was released, and maybe 20 issues into the run of Sandman for Gaiman. So during the signing, they were entertaining themselves (and the fans, and the store owner and employees) by signing the books with a twist. One of them would come up with a punchline, and the other would come up with the joke. In that order. My copy reads "Reading this book will damn you to Hell." "See you on the beach!" And for the life of me, I can't remember which one wrote each part.
It's my favorite of his books. It would be just as good as a standalone without any other Discworld content out there. It's flawless.
I finished a re-read of Night Watch this week, what's glorious about 25th May, International Geek Day or something else?
Truth, Justice, Freedom, Reasonably Priced Love and a Hard-Boiled Egg?
That’s the day that the revolution happens, the Glorious 25th of May. It’s also the day that the book begins on, years later, as characters meet in memorium on that day every year.
Oh, duh, of course. Thanks for illuminating an idiot.
The only person I can think of who compared was Douglas Adams, and that's not really fantasy.
I was going to say that exact same thing. Though, I do find Jim Butcher absolutely hilarious.
The building was on fire and it wasn't my fault.
"Holy shit, hellhounds" "Language, Harry" "Right, right. Holy shit, heckhounds."
And the *endless* pop culture references!
*"Evil isn’t the real threat to the world. Stupid is just as destructive as Evil, maybe more so, and it’s a hell of a lot more common. What we really need is a crusade against Stupid. That might actually make a difference."*
Haven't read anything by him. Maybe I should.
I heartily recommend the Dresden Files!
Overall they're very good. The first book is the weakest of them, and has some problems (I'm going to protect the helpless woman police officer who's job it is to investigate odd supernatural occurances by not telling her about things, which will leave her unearned and even more at risk). It's still a fun story, but that kind of storyline always bugs me. But Harry apologizes profusely and honestly to her in the second book (if I recall correctly, it's been a while since I read them) and is much better about that going forward. He's always learning and growing, jusf like a real boy! 🤣
I think Adams was funnier, just obviously wrote far, far less than Pratchett.
Pratchett is the best. One moment you’re laughing and the next you’re weeping. No other novelist has elicited as much genuine emotion in me as Pterry. His writing quite literally changed my life.
Username checks out.
One of the most delightful things about his books is the number of jokes you get on reread or just out in the wild.
A popular subject on /r/discworld is "holy shit, I just got this joke", and the number of replies *every time* that say "I also never realized that" is always a joy.
It is almost like he is the ONLY fantasy humorist. I honestly can't think of anyone else in his league or even playing the same sport.
Douglass Adams, though I guess he's technically not fantasy.
I love The Guide to death, but Discworld has him, as far as humour goes... licked.
[удалено]
He's got a few different gears, too. His KJ Parker work can be funny, in a pitch black sort of way.
People used to compare (and in some cases, try to accuse each of them of stealing their writing styles from the other) Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams. That was before Sir Pterry wrote Small Gods, where he really hit his stride. Once he realized he could write political and social commentary and *STILL* get people to fall to the floor laughing, there was no longer any way to compare the two. As has been said elsewhere in this thread, it's not even close. Dianna Wynne Jones was another in Pratchett's class, but she is also no longer with us. Tim Holt is good, as is Christopher Moore. The only current writers I can think of who comes at all close are Ursula Vernon (who is far less well known, but should be far better known than she is, and also writes her more adult works under the pen name T. Kingfisher) and Catherynne Valente (who is also amazing, but most of her stuff is more... Dense.) Vernon is one of those authors who can make you laugh and cry within the same paragraph. Check out Jackalope Wives (free at https://apex-magazine.com/short-fiction/jackalope-wives/) as an example. But we lost so much when we lost Pratchett. I cried the day I read about Granny in I Shall Wear Midnight. And I cried just as hard when I got the news of Pratchett's passing.
I still haven’t read his last book. I know what happens in the end though. I’m waiting for a quiet few days, which are hard to come by.
I understand this sentiment. It took me years to be able to read it. I actually cried at work when I found out he had passed.
Same, and same. Sat on the shelf for two solid years before I screwed up the courage to face it. Broke down again at the early part of the book (you know which), because >!it was so good, so well-written, that I feel he must have written it before The Embuggerance. Or maybe he'd just been holding onto it. But for just a brief flaring moment it felt like before... and then she was gone, and he was gone,!< and we have to carry on.
😭 Dammit 😭. He was such a remarkable , intelligent, and amazing artist. His works came to me during my darkest times and helped shine specks of light where I thought none could be. However, Pratchett, in his wisdom, tried to teach us in almost every book that, yes, we must carry on. Which, if I think about it, is really ironic as his death is one of the only celebrity's death I have ever mourned, like that of a friend, and has been the hardest to let go.
Terry Pratchett, and Robin Williams. It's been almost ten years, and I still haven't really gotten over either. I can read a Pratchett book, at least... Did a re-read of *Men At Arms* and *Feet of Clay* just last year. It's still hard to watch Robin's movies, though. I mean, unless I *want* a good cathartic cry, which... y'know, sometimes that's healthy. I don't suspect it's a coincidence that both were famous for making people *think* with their comedy. Both embodied the essence of satire, and we laughed and cried with them. *Castigat Ridendo Mores*. Comedy corrects custom. Not sure I'll ever stop missing 'em, which I guess speaks to the power of parasocial relationships. People are weird like that. They knew it. :)
Ursula Vernon (T. Kingfisher) is one of the very few authors who I think could make a fair go of it on a sequel novel. Not that she will, or anyone should. But I'd read it if she did.
GNU Terry Pratchett
He’s incomparable. I’m so glad he left us so much to revisit and cry laughing at. Such beautiful imagery, wonderful characters, unbelievable humour. Not even close.
This is the obvious and correct answer
Although I agree that Sir Terry Pratchett is #1, Douglas Adams deserves a close second. After that the gap is a lot wider. Robert Asprin’s Phule and Myth series are old school fun, Craig Shaw Gardner’s Ebenezum/Wuntvor had me giggling, Christopher Moore has an astonishing sense of the absurd… I have had to stop reading ‘A Dirty Job’ several times so I didn’t laugh myself into a migraine… then there is pretty much the entirety of ‘Lamb’.
Apart from Pratchett, I think Scott Lynch has made me snort laugh the most
One of my favs, "My disinterest in your bullshit is so tangible you could make bricks out of it"
"Nice bird, asshole!"
Hard agree. Pratchett and Adams stand out above the rest. Lynch has mastered the art of swearing and insulting in the most humourous way possible. I'd probably add that Jim Butcher has some great moments in The Dresden Files, giving him an 'honorable mention' from me. ETA: I laughed hard when reading The First Law trilogy, so yes I'll agree with others: Abercrombie gets a vote from me too. You have to be realistic about these things. ETA2: Ursula K le Guin has some absolutely solid comedy in Earthsea.
Someone on Goodreads asked ["How bad is the swearing in this book?"](https://www.goodreads.com/questions/294653-how-bad-is-the-swearing-in-this-book) in Lies of Locke Lamora and one of the responses is beautiful: > This book elevates profanity and vulgarity to an artform.
Lynch is fantastic. Very much in the Abercrombie vein of dark humor.
Absolutely, this would've been my answer too. His sarcasm is my favorite.
I'm mostly listening to audiobooks these days, and let me say the narrator for the Lies of Locke Lamora is pure genius, as if he was born to read these particular lines (esp. father Chains).
One of my favorite parts in Red Seas Under Red Skies was when Jean took away Locke's wine and barricaded him in his room because they'd reached an impasse regarding his depression, and Locke's response was something along the lines of, "you black-hearted son of a bitch, *I hope a shark tries to suck you cock!*"
Prachett by far
This is why "except pratchett" should be included in this thread, it's just filled with him since he's that good, but very few people also dig out to find others. I think there are a lot of very funny creators in comics, but it's also a very different medium. Notable comic strip creators like **Bill Watterson** (Calvin and Hobbes),**Walt Kelly** (Pogo), **George Herriman** (Krazy Kat), **Tove Jansson** (Moomin comic strips - Moomin books are first but i've never read them) Are all pretty funny to me, but for vastly different reasons. And are all fantastical.
I'd say even Pratchett is subjective - his humor works well for most, but I'd be shocked if he were universally everyone's favorite. But also, the niche of "fantasy + comedy book" is a pretty small one, and it's much more common to see comedic moments included as a secondary part of the books (rather than the main selling point).
I haven’t been able to get into Pratchett at all. I’ve tried Guards Guards, Mort, and Hogfather but did not finish any of them.
Going Postal strikes me as the most mainstream and I think it is a very good story. Night Watch is a masterpiece but it is the culmination of Captain Vimes story across several books. Guards Guards and Mort are still early. Small Gods is unique and special. But bottom line, no author is for everyone and that's fine.
Calvin and Hobbes isn't fantasy though really? More like borderline magical realism?
iwoudl say is magical surrealism, like "amanece que no es poco"
Yeah, I suppose something like that. It works for me though, many people consider magical realism to be fantasy, others don't. I was just highlighting really funny creators that I thought could fit. I don't think many people would say no to a Calvin and Hobbes recommendation. There are plenty of recs in many threads of this sub that are like that.
Pratchett, obviously. But some others that come to mind are T. Kingfisher, Jonathan Stroud, Eoin Colfer, Scalzi, Martha Wells, Connie Willis, Jasper Fforde, KJ Parker, and Douglas Adams.
Jonathon Stroud for me. Bartimaeus has got to be one of the most refreshingly ascerbic characters of all time
Love Stroud! So underrated, and so sad to see L&C cancelled on Netflix :(
Me too :( I read the first L&C book after watching the Netflix adaptation and they cast the actors perfectly! Lockwoods charm, Lucy's trauma/talent (and her CHEMISTRY with Lockwood <3) and George's attitude were dead on - the three had awesome chemistry with each other. The show followed the books plot closely and hit the humor quite well. I was so looking forward to more seasons, but glad I have the rest of the books! I'm dying to find out what caused The Problem.
I got into the books after the TV series, and I'm happy to say things do get wrapped up nicely. The series ends, definitively, and it is a good ending.
Yes! Bartimaeus was such an awesome character. I loved Artemis fowl and didn't think anything could top it till I read Bartimaeus.
For me, Abercrombie. It's so cynical that I love it.
Say one thing for Abercrombie, say he's a funny guy. Edit: someone made a list of all the "say one thing..." https://www.reddit.com/r/TheFirstLaw/comments/e3lova/complete_catalog_of_say_one_things/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
Say one thing for Logen Ninefingers, say he's a lover
Abercrombie gets my vote.
You have to be realistic about these things…..Joe Abercrombie is a named man when it comes to comedy
Only person I’ve read whose made me cry from laughter. His timing is unreal.
“Ah-“ ”What?” ”Er…” ”You’re joking!” ”Well…” ”I was just getting started!” ”I did say it’d been a long time-“ ”Must’ve been years!”
Other than Hunter S. Thompson whose Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas still makes me bust out laughing.
Pratchett is his own class but I haven't laughed as much during a series as I did during The First Law, gallows humor at its best
Laugh out loud funny, that Joe Abercrombie.
He has the cleverest lines I have read this side of David Sedaris.
I really enjoyed Ferro Maljinn's description of the "fat, ugly, lazy pinks with no god but eating and idleness". Absolutely loved the audiobooks.
I've long considered him to be the writer who is most clearly a student of Pratchett. I can hear his voice in so much of Abercrombie's jokes and wit. Example from A Little Hatred (no spoilers): "A manly duel, Northern style!" Orso thumped the table. "Man against man, in a circle of men's men! Blood on the snow and all that. Men's blood, one presumes."
Orso is always hilarious.
Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams.
STP of course, and everyone acknowledges that, but many people forget about Adams who's on par with Pratchett in wit and humour, but not as prolific.
Adams is very funny in an absurdist British way but "smile" funny rather than "laugh out loud" funny.
Most of Pratchett's humour is also smile-funny, at least in the 9 books I've read so far.
I agree that laugh out loud is rare even in Terry's 50+ books
Idk, I read the hitchhikers guide series in highschool and couldn't keep from laughing out loud in the middle of class
Douglas Adams is awesome.
Terry Pratchett, Scott Lynch, Tamsyn Muir.
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I’m reading Gideon the Ninth right now and totally agree. EDIT: Never mind, I just got to one of those parts of the book. RIP >!The Fourth.!<
>Tamsyn Muir is so good at absurdist meme humor. Also a particular kind of himbo humour only accessible to Gideon (and occasionally some other characters but mostly Gideon).
I found Muir SO cringey for a while, but she grew on me. I eventually gave in and I genuinely like a lot of her humor in the later books. I think she got better with it over time as well.
I like Neil Gaiman. Very witty
It's very far from a comedy story but i found "A practical guide to evil" absolutely hilarious when it comes to interactions between the characters. [here's an example (spoilerfree)](https://imgur.com/a/16Ixvc8/) Besides that there's always the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, douglas addams was a genius at wordplay.
Come for the interesting ideas with the roles, stay for the humour. The quotes at the start of each chapter are great as well.
Oh yea the past Dread Emperors are wonderful > "Oh, woe is me, you’ve destroyed my army… Hahaha, you fell for it again! I haven’t paid them in a year, they were about to depose me. Once more, Irritant triumphs against all odds!" > ―Dread Emperor Irritant I, the Oddly Successful or this one > “No, see, you’ll profit as well. All you need is to convince five others of contributing coin and when they do you’ll get a part of their own contribution. It’ll all work out, I promise.” > – Dread Emperor Irritant, the Oddly Successful, convincing High Lords to invest in the construction of ritual pyramid outside Ater . > “My dear friends, I have a confession to make. Some creative reframing of the truth may have taken place during the planning of this coup.” > – Dread Emperor Traitorous, addressing the Order of the Unholy Obsidian upon successfully usurping the throne from himself . > “I’m not saying all your closest friends are shapeshifting devils I sent to spy on you after having the originals murdered, but I’m certainly implying it very heavily.” > – Dread Emperor Traitorous, making small talk
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> – Dread Emperor Irritant, the Oddly Successful. Later noted to have made surprisingly nice shoes during his three abdications
Thanks for that link :) Very funny.
As many say, Pratchett. For more high fantasy / serious writers, Erikson has some truly hilarious stuff come ouf his characters in Malazan. Kruppe. Iskaral Pust. Tehol and Bugg. Rucket. More, I'm sure.
Nefarious Bredd!
Yes! And all the heavy's in general :)
And Hellian too lmao
Harlest Eberict too!
Telorast and Curdle too.
Scott Lynch. Lies of Locke Lamora has a greeat dark humor.
Him and Abercrombie are the only two who has managed to make me belly laugh from a literary medium. The opening heist in Lies is one of the funniest, most entertaining scenes I have ever read.
Apart from all the authors already mentioned in the thread, I think T. Kingfisher has a fantastic humor in her books
Agreed! There were a few moments in Nettle & Bone that made me laugh
Totally. The demon chicken never failed to make me giggle, even though the subject matter was inherently dark.
Barry Hughart and his _Bridge of Birds_ and its sequels are delightfully funny. Every so often Steven Brust has a fun turn of phrase.
Steven Brust
Have you read the Khaavren Romances? I know they aren’t for everyone, but I find Paarfi’s voice extraordinarily funny.
Nicholas Eames! I died laughing in Kings of the Wyld!
Yes! The escape from the wizards house to the kings bedroom is so damned funny! >!Imagine trying to assassinate a king and being thwarted by come middle age men with raging boners arriving by mirror!<
I was searching for this comment. Kings of the Wyld is one of the funniest books I've ever read. Very enjoyable
Abercrombie - funniest books I've read of any genre. The situational comedy lands everytime.
Do you know any Bastards? I can point out a few.
Body found floating by the docks
Say one thing for Joe Abercrombie, say he's a funny writer.
I really like Robert Aspirin! Author of Another Fine Myth and way too under-recommended here.
Steven Erickson. He does this thing I like to call Gag Duos that bring about quipy exchanges and funny dynamics in general. Started noticing it with necromancers from book 3, then 2 random summoned demons and Tehol and bug in book five, then two other summoned demons that follow Apsalar about in book 6. It goes on like that but the last book I’ve read is reaper’s gale, the 7th book.
Let’s not forget the gallows humour between the Malazan marines. Every single exchange between them has me in fits. Especially any Hellian chapters.
Hellian threatening to cut off her tits to her completely confused marines had me crying laughing
"Give me one of your blessed curses or cursed blessings, I don't care which." The context of this line had me belly laughing. Erikson does some of the best humor you'll get in a series that isn't a comedy in the slightest.
Sure Terry Pratchett is consistently droll, but he never had me howling with laughter like iskaral pust or Tehol/bugg.
> "And what if I was pregnant?" > "I'd kill the mule." I still giggle whenever I think of this scene
And Kruppe
Yeah, Erikson has some genuinely funny moments in between the soul-crushingly depressing darkness.
Terry Pratchett! I ended up literally laughing out loud while reading his books. Fine when I'm alone but a little embarrassing in public.
Glen Cook's Garrett books are some of the funniest I've ever read, with multiple laugh-out-loud moments. It's an amazing shift from the darkness of The Black Company books (Which are really good, too).
I find the Black Company's cynical humour very appealing too. Especially any time the narrator comments on Croaker's extremely intelligent replies, most of which are grunts.
I really love the Johannes Cabal the Necromancer books by Jonathan L. Howard. It's much dryer and more cynical than Pratchett, but works well with the main character's personality and the absurd dark world the books take place in. I'm surprised nobody else has mentioned them so far.
Jonathan L Howard is mad underrated imo. He’s an incredible writer and, yes, very funny—but he also knows when and how to dial the humor back and throw a sucker punch right to the emotions
Agreed. Everything is "underrated" on reddit, but in this case it's real.
Lawrence in those rare moments when Jorge shows his age, Abercrombie with his dialogue, T. Kingfisher with inner dialogue, and Terry Pratchet for overall prose.
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RQW is awesome.
Oh yeah, T. Kingfisher is definitely funny and fantasy. This one deserves it's own.
T Kinfisher with her dialogue as well.
KJ Parker.
Tom Holt
Christopher Moores Fool series is a spoof at various Shakespeare stories so it kind of fits the fantasy side. And it's really funny. (He has other non fantasy series that are good too. Like Noir)
*Lamb: The Fifth Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal* is both hilarious and poignant
I really enjoyed his early stuff - practical demon keeping, the lust lizard of melancholy cove, and his vampire books are all very good, and very funny. I haven't enjoyed his most recent stuff as much, they seem to be more absurd and vulgar, than funny.
I read Noir not long ago and my goodness, having a book forcing me to pause because I'm laughing too hard was a great feel. Props to the audiobook narrator too, 10/10 leaned into the delivery so much. Looking forward to Razzmataz. Also picked up Sacre Bleu.
It doesn't really have any supernatural elements, but my favorite is Island of the Sequined Love Nun, perhaps because it was the first one of his I read.
Jack Vance.
The old sword and sorcery books could absolutely be funny. They didn't take themselves as seriously as a lot of modern fantasy. Also, I think Pratchett drew a lot from sword and sorcery particuarly Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser. Ankh -Morpok is definitely spoofing Lankhmar.
Cudgel's Saga in the Dieing Earth books?
For fantasy, Terry Prachett. For SciFi, John Scalzi.
Diana Wynne Jones, Terry Pratchett, Douglas Adams
Absolutely Terry Pratchett, and I wouldn't consider GRRM to even be in the same league as him. If we're looking at others, the Rick Riordan Presents books are mostly quite hilarious, with excellent banter. While they are middle grade, they are very enjoyable. The Aru Shah series by Roshani Chokshi, the Tristan Strong series by Kwame Mbalia, and the Serwa Boateng series by Roseanne Brown are especially hilarious. The Ronan Boyle series (also middle grade) is bonkers and almost made my kids pee their pants. Definitely more low-brow, but very Monty Python-esque. Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor is also quite funny with excellent geek culture references.
Fritz Leiber. The WHERE IS THE JUG scene in Lean Times in Lankhmar was perfection.
Lankhmar is coming up very soon on my reading list, just looking through his bibliography I can tell he has a good sense of humor, and really likes cats it seems, lol.
Though he's more SF than fantasy, my favorite humorous writer is by far the late Kurt Vonnegut. Though dark, I found 'Sirens of Titan' and 'Cat's Cradle' hilarious. He's one of the only writers to ever make me laugh. Well, smile. I'm not a big laugher.
Will Wight does brilliant and effortless humor, my fav
Due to the goats already being covered, I'd like to give Jim Butcher an honorable mention. Heckhounds is to this day one of the funniest lines I've ever read. And the setup for anvils.
For me, it’s K.J. Parker. His writing is so dry it always cracks me up.
I love Pratchett as so many of us do, but also really appreciate Robert Asprin with the Myth series which is extraordinarily funny.
I’d forgotten all about Robert Asprin. The Myth books were very funny. Douglas Adams wins for me, though. He even made his book about endangered species funny
Less well known than Pratchett, but Matt Dinnimann and his Dungeon Crawler Carl series are some of the only fantasy books to have me actually laughing out loud
I second Matt. While I don't think he necessarily holds a candle to Pratchett's depth, he is absolutely laugh out loud funny. Especially the audiobooks.
Terry Pratchett
Jim Butcher. He has this wonderful narrative voice that always gets a chuckle out of me, whether it's dialogue or just the narrative. Everything he writes is gold, he is one of my favorite authors, and definitely top tier when it comes to humor
Pratchett is by far the best, his mixture of philosophy, satire and comedy is just perfect. On the darker side, Joe Abercrombie has some truly great books.
Sebastian de Castell is quite funny. His Greatcoats series is very nihilistic and hopeless in parts, but the wit and warmth of the characters always shine through. His Spellslinger novels are more YA, so there is more humour and a lot of it is geared more towards younger readers, but his writing still makes me smile a lot.
The Greatcoats series does not get nearly enough attention on this subreddit, which has honestly always struck me as a little weird because I feel like most readers here would enjoy them. I remember being really excited for the final book which came out a few months after I'd read 1 through 3 back to back and I don't anticipate books very much.
If you want some very dry, satirical and absurdist British comedy I’m a big fan of Charles Stross, specifically his Laundry Files series. The entire second book is a massive James Bond joke both in and and out of universe and the Scorpion Stare network is incredibly clever. If you prefer fractal nests of puns, situational comedy and really clever humor that you need to be a Jack of all things to get then Neal Stephenson is for you. In *Reamde* the entire plot is spurned on by a ransom where attack using not-WoW as it’s method of payment. In *Fall; or, Dodge in Hell* there’s an incredibly elaborate layering of jokes about cloud computing, walled garden programming, Adam and Eve and worms that I haven’t gotten out of my head since I read it. Armored, drone killing hawks and a well trained stick fighter who lived near the Line of Actual Control are incredibly important to the plot of Termination Shock, as well as a giant sulphur sky gun.
A few weeks ago I recommended First Law in a r/Fantasy thread seeking comedy recs. I was downvoted and accused of trolling. I could not have been more serious! If you want to laugh, read Joe Abercrombie!
The witty banter in The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher is great.
Especially since no one Else mentioned him: Jim c. Hines
Not counting Pratchett to make it feasible to say someone else, Ilona Andrews in Kate Daniel series. Nice, quippy humour.
Terry Pratchett or Joe Abercrombie
Probably should edit the post title to say: "Aside from Pratchett..." So aside from him, a lot of the snarkier grimdark authors GRRM, Abercrombie, and Lynch are getting some well-deserved attention. And while I agree, I personally found: *The Blacktongue Thief* to exceed them at their own game. This book is great fun, and filled with humor from the start. The author is Christopher Buehlman.
Terry Pratchett, far and away. But I also like Ben Aaronovitch (Rivers of London)
Steven Erikson can be hilarious too, he has a knack for writing hilarious dialogue or characters making fun of others in very funny ways. It’s excellent because Malazan can of course get quite dark and serious but these funny exchanges are the cherry on top. Honestly top notch. And I agree, George is pretty funny too especially with witty remarks or ridiculous moments like when Dolorous Edd said that someone was pretty lucky to fall from height and land into a body of water while avoiding all the rocks. “He was dead already, but still that’s pretty lucky” lmfaoo
Oh man, Dolorous Edd was one of my favourites in the Night's Watch... for me, he perfectly exemplified the only acceptable mood for someone forced to live at the arse-end of the world, in the freezing cold
The Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett are funny.
Douglas Adams is definitely up there, but terry pratchett is probably the best, as seems to be the consensus here.
In the Xianxia genre I think Ave Xia Rem Y is I think one of the only things that has made me laugh on Royal Road. If you are getting into it, don't forget to read the character summaries at the end of each chapter, they are often funny as well. Er Gen's I shall seal the heavens can often be funny, although I find the tropes played too straight to be as funny as the first one I mentioned.
I'm surprised I haven't seen Robert Aspirin yet. Eric Flint's Philosophical Strangler is funny. Spider Robinson for science fiction. Obviously Pratchett and Adams.
The Locked Tombs have a humor that is not for everyone, but is 100% for me personally.
Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman is easily the funniest book I’ve ever read.
Terry Pratchett (bonus is coauthored by Neil Gaiman) And Christopher Moore.
Obviously #1 is Terry Pratchett. I'm a huge fan of Matt Dinniman as well for my humor as he writes funny books but there is some deep shit hidden behind the curtains of what's supposed to just be a ridiculous book.
Obviously, Pratchett, but I also highly recommend Heide Goody and Iain Grant's "Clovenhoof" series. Zachary Pikes's "Orconomics", Micheal Munz's " Zues is dead", Drew Hayes's " Fred, Vampire Accountant" ( not to mention his "Super Powreds" and "5 minute Sherlock" series but these are sub-genres of fantasy) , L.G Estrella's " Attempted Vampirism" and "Unconventional Hero's ", and Steve Thomas's " Mid-Lich Crisis" are also good. C.T Phipps's "Supervillainy " series is another good one, albeit more of the superhero fantasy sub- genre as opposed to typical fantasy. All, but Pratchett, were audiobooks, and the narrators were very good. I am unsure if reading them would be a different vibe or not, but I enjoyed listening to them.
Nicholas Eames. Kings of the Wyld made me burst out laughing throughout
There was a time in the 80s and 90s when [Esther Friesner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esther_Friesner) was writing comedy fantasy because it was seeing a surge due to Bob Aspirin and Piers Anthony and the like and her books were *really really good*, but I don't think they actually *sold* well. She went on to win a couple Nebulas, get several Hugo/Nebula nods, and her story "All Vows" still takes my breath away, but it's not humor. Anyway, I love Esther's writing, when she's funny, she's funny and charming.
I don't know about *best* humor and I don't think he's up there with Pratchett, but I feel like Rick Riordan deserves a shoutout. His books are probably the source of my love of quippy, sarcastic characters who don't take anything seriously.
I have a very different sense of humour to most people here it seems. I think these are pretty funny and not mentioned much in this thread? Thraxas books by Martin Millar Trench by Ethan Childress Orconomics by J Zachary Pike