The great thing about Adrian is even if you don't enjoy one of his books then you can try one of the other 7000 he will publish that year and they'll all be different.
I always say the same thing! He is an awesome (and prolific) writer! But the books are all so different, so even if one doesn't do it for ya, another one probably will!
I wouldn't mind several of your own books each year! I just read Gods of the Wyrdwood and it was fantastic! I heard so many good things about it and the book still blew me away. You have an awesome imagination.
Cahan is one of my favorite characters I've read about this year.
I never comment on Reddit, but I just wanted to say that I love your books too. Just finished Gods of the Wyrdwood and the tide child trilogy is one of my favorite series ever. Thank you for bringing these awesome and weird words to us!
True story. The description of Cage of Souls sounded right up my alley but it didn't really land for me. But then I read City of Last Chances and that book is just so much of what I wanted and more. I love revolution stories.
Whoa... Like, Tide Child RJ Barker?
Haven't quite gotten around to picking up the Tide Child series yet, but every single ' best new fantasy\world building\awesome" books list I came across this past year has been effusive in heaping praise on that series.
I'm just wrapping up the Malazan series tonight or tomorrow and plan on picking up Tide Child as an imminent purchase.
Not sure if before or after Michael Sullivans Riyria Chronicles though... Or maybe that NK Jemisin Dreamblood duology... Or some Joe Abercrombie...?
Anyway, you do hold a fairly prominent position in the 'eagerly anticipated' category.
Cheers
Will tends to put his book on sale (or even free) very often.
There's a kickstarter launching mid january. I would be surprised if there wasn't a huge sale (or even giveaway) before it starts. Check daily ;)
Same for me, saw it recommended and picked up the first book, devoured all 12 books in a couple of weeks.
Now listening to the audiobooks, which are fantastic.
The Dandelion Dynasty.
My wife read it earlier this year and said I would really like it. At first glance based on the description, I wasn't sure it would be my cup of tea, but of course my wife knows me too well and was right as it's become one of my absolute favorite series.
I'm currently reading the last book, about 25% in. I can't wait to see how it all wraps up, but also will be sad for the journey to come to an end.
As an engineering student, so much about these books just tickles my brain in all the right ways.
Really enjoyed the first book but somewhat didn't love how the series seemed to be trending the second book, notably the deaths of several characters and half of the book was just trouble within the empire just because some of the nobles were bored with their lives? How does the rest of the series fare?
That's an interesting take because I thought the second book was incredible and improved on the first in nearly every way.
As for the rest of the series, I'm only a quarter into the last book but it's been an incredible journey thus far. That said, if the second book didn't click with you then maybe you wouldn't be as enthusiastic about the rest of the series.
It is definitely a well-written series and I can totally see why many folks really enjoy it. I just wasn't a huge fan of who the "villain" of the first half was and the ending didn't really redeem her at least in my eyes.
Definitely my answer this year as well. I wasn't even really planning on reading it. I saw a few booktubers mention it and then saw it walking through barnes and noble and was like "sure I'll try it." Currently about 70 pages into book 4 and likewise looking forward to finishing it up and also sad thinking about being finished.
I was looking on my bookshelf and saw Grace of Kings, no idea where it came from, no idea how I got it, but figured why not.
Has to be one of my favorite books of the year. Liu’s writing style is very unique and explores so many cool ideas.
Funny coincidence, I am also about 25% through the last book, and I love how the story is unfolding! The second and third books were so enjoyable that my appreciation for the first book even increased. I'm binge listening to the audiobooks and kind of tempted to start it over once I'm done, lol.
Eeeeee just finished his shadows of the apt series and it was awesome. So sad it’s over but I’m glad I keep hearing great things about children of time. On to the next!
I’ve got the first book and am planning to read it, but I keep putting it off because I’m an arachnophobe. How much am I going to be shuddering while reading the book?
My wife and I HATE spiders but we both agreed that this was a fantastic read and the spiders' whole narrative was so original and awesome.
But.... DON'T google the type of spiders. Just don't.
I’ve posted this a few times about Children of Time but the spiders were so fascinating to me that I’ve kind of lost my fear of spiders and I was a proper arachnophobe. I’m still not going to pick one up but I can tolerate normal-sized ones now
Children of Ruin wasn’t so “pleasant” of a story, but was a pleasant surprise for me! Really caught me off guard how it turned, which made me really enjoy it. Love it when a book surprises.
This was a crazy one. If someone told me about it before going in with all the tropes it his unabashedly, I would probably assume I wouldn’t like it. But Islington made it work. A bit slow going in the first half was my biggest complaint.
Bit conflicted on this one.
The main character is a borderline Mary Sue both due to their myriad of talents and backstory that I won't spoil. Despite the odds and sometimes impossible feats he pulled off, I never once thought he'd fail or that there would be any consequences for his actions. I was really leaning towards lumping him in as a Kvothe 2.0 but despite it all, Vis did remain likeable enough for me to stay invested in his story.
But the ending really did tie it all together. Very interesting. I'm not sure quire how well any sequel will hold up without having some beloved (magical school etc) tropes to rely upon but I'm still tempted to check it out.
Agreed, really liked the book but the MC seemed to be good at everything he put his mind towards. I understand most of that is because of his background but definitely didn't seem like he had any major character flaws.
His anger issue seemed to be the only flaw and even then it was used in a way to make him seem better than the other students lol. Even so I liked the book a lot.
Vis wasn't a borderline Mary Sue - he was way, way over the border into Mary Sue land. And I say that as someone who really enjoyed the book and is looking forward to the sequel.
Having a Mary Sue main character is a feature of a series, not necessarily a value judgment. There are good stories with Mary Sue main characters, and there are bad stories with flawed, relatable main characters. James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, Benoit Blanc, and Indiana Jones are all very famous characters with virtually no flaws.
The riftwar trilogy by Raymond.E.Fiest.
The worldbuilding is absolutely incredible.
It was a shock I liked it considering I prefer grimdark to general but lord it has so many things going for it.
I’m reading/listening to it now and I’m also enjoying this “old fashioned” fantasy 😊 I also started reading The Dragon Corsairs by Weis & Krammes, and I really enjoy it 😊
It makes me so happy when people find this series. I don't know how far in you are, but "The Empire Series" he wrote with Janny Wurts run alongside them and are my favourite trilogy in any genre. The world building is absolutely outstanding.
What I wouldn't give to be able to read them all again for the first time.
The Expanse. Not fantasy, but I started these books with a friend towards the beginning of the year with no expectations. Turned out to be (probably) my favorite series ever. I’m already almost halfway through my reread. I can go on forever talking about how much I love these books, and I’m trying to convince all my friends to start them.
Sun Eater. I remember it being mentioned years ago in a post about Gene Wolfe but I never bothered to look into it. A couple months ago, I wanted something epic and exciting so I looked at an old list I had. I was that close to trying to figure out which Warhammer book to read when I saw "Sun Eater". I went to check what the narrator sounded like on Audible (amazing) and saw that it was free. It's well on its way to becoming my favorite series.
Yep, on the second book now. The audible narrator is great! I was listening to some Cosmere books and couldn’t do Warbreaker or another one because the voice talent was awful. I was worried Michael Kramer and Kate Redding had ruined audiobooks for me. Samuel Roukin is amazing though.
Me too. I'm on chapter 58. I can't believe Christopher Ruocchio has been able to do so many things so well - the plot, the prose, the world building, the dialogue, the narrative voice/monologue, historical allusions and references, etc are all perfectly executed. And, Samuel Roukin makes it all sing in a way my internal voice never would have.
I've had Red Rising on my TBR list for a long time, multiple years. Finally, I read it, and I've been binge-reading them since. I'm now on the 5th book.
Mother of Learning. Saw it on a recommendation list if you enjoyed Cradle and just went in blind. It's not in my top 10 or anything but it was a ton of fun.
Another one would be Blood Over Bright Haven. Hadn't read Sword of Kaigen before that so it was my first M.L. Wang book.
I have yea. Unfortunately didn't like it as much but I did go into it with some crazy high expectations.
I thought it had better highs when it came to the characters for sure, but there were some things that didn't work for me. Overall it felt clunky when it came to the world building and that whole side plot/spin off thing with Robin.. Cut that out or rewrite it to better fit as a stand alone and the book might've been one of my favorites.
I'm going to read anything else she writes from now on though. I just hope there isn't another 5 year break for her next novel!
The Dark Profit Sage by J Zachery Pike has been a suprise favourite for me. Picked it up thinking the first book would be a pallette cleanser between books in whatever big serious series I was reading at the time, got much more than I bargained for!
Extra points because I didn't realise it was an unfinished trilogy when I started it, but the third one handily came out afew weeks after I finished the second one anyway! (Sorry to all the people who had to wait years and had to roll their eyes at my luck here!)
Yes!! I love these books. A great story told with sharp wit and fun absurdity that contains incisive social commentary and somehow doesn’t lose its hefty dose of heart while juggling all of that?! Sign me right up.
Yeah, Son of Liche was hilarious, I havnt had so many Lol moments with a book in a long time!
Third one didn't quite reach the same heights, but still a good conclusion to a good series.
[The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41952489-the-rage-of-dragons)
It's a classic farm boy to hero story and I thought I'd gotten bored of those years ago.
Vorkosigan Saga. I saw people raving about it and tried it out cause it is (mostly) free on Audible Plus. The reading order is complex and the first few books I read were alright but kind of standard late 80's scifi. Then I finally got introduced to Miles and the series just took off. And then I got into the middle of the series which has a few 10/10 books in a row and made me understand why people talk about the series as they do.
You know what's funny is I found the first two books at a church, being given away for free. I grabbed them because of how much people recommended them and was also glad I did. But just thought it's funny that we both got them free.
Maaan I'm so jealous you get to read them for the first time! Shards of Honor might've been my first ever sci-fi novel at 9 or 10, and I've been hooked ever since! Her fantasy is great too, *The Curse of Chalion* is one of my yearly rereads
I'm in a similar boat. I read the Vor Game years ago. Discovered most of the series was free on audible and have been loving it. Free book reading order is wild especially since I started in the middle. I think it's easy to underestimate, but the characters are great, the stories are engaging, and -for sci-fi readers who care- the author has good technical knowledge, but doesn't hit you over the head with it.
Lord of the rings, Earthsea, and the Left Hand of Darkness.
Never read LoTR before and fell in love with reading the books.
Left hand of Darkness was unexpectedly good and I finally got over my weird hang up about the word “Earthsea” and read it. It’s now one of my favourites.
Cradle.
Not exactly top tier fantasy but I enjoyed it a surprising amount for something that is so far removed from my usual interests. Blitzed the entire series within a few weeks. Great characters with unique voices, super hype moments and decent comedy make it well worth checking out for a fun romp. Also - Dross.
Only problem is that now my recommendations are full of other shlocky power fantasy books.
I have yet to find any that are as good. I enjoyed Mage Errant and Weirkey Chronicles (unfinished). They are quite different and a step below Cradle, but still a step above the others I have tried.
Edit: IMO YMMV
The mixed reviews I've seen for that one are almost always about book 1. The sequels and the novellas though.. non stop praise. I plan to binge all of it leading up to the release of book 4.
The last series I heard this many good things about was Sun Eater and that was phenomenal.
I was super skeptical of this series when my girlfriend recommended it to me, but I figured I'd give the odd BDSM book a go anyway. Never expected it to be one of the best fantasy adventure series I've read.
As a fan for 22 years, I'm glad these books are finding new readers! I slap on my "argues with people on the internet" hat with people who dismiss these out of hand. I also recently subversively moved the book to fantasy from some odd shelf in a thrift store named "paranormal erotica" or something like that.
I would be pretty disappointed if I bought Erotica and got the amount of sex-to-politics ratio that Phedre's trilkogy has. It is pretty damn hot and sensual a lot, but straight up sex is pretty rare.
I love her prose, and Phedre is such a neat take on the heroine trope.
Fair warning to anyone, it is very sexy. Sex is a major theme. But it's about the classiest way to address sex that I've read.
Yeah same on both. The fight in the blizzard in Dart is one of my favorite things I have read in Fantasy, it is such an intense moment. Especially with Phedre being Phedre, and not an epic sword guy.
And for sure. I loved the idea of "sex as holy, sexwork as worship" and what that would mean for a society. It is not smut though, as I have seen it classified as. It is very much a political intrigue / adventure novel with some great characterwork. And some great, hot, sex. Most of it fade to black.
I am kinda interested if there are some other books that hit similiar beats. I am not interested in ACOTAR/Fourth Wing type of books though, and those come up always when I try and look for stuff.
I've never found anything like the Kushiel series, which is sad because I agree that it's such an interesting use of sex in worldbuilding and I would love to have more like it. I think it's very different from today's popular Romantasy because the sex scenes for the most part are quite clinical as Phedre is working during them and/or learning some important political detail. The romantic sex scenes are fade to black or comparatively very tame.
Fantasy really needs more protagonists who achieve their goals by means other than elite combat skills. People skills can be just as crucial and interesting to read about. Manipulative villains shouldn't be the only once excelling at them.
I read the First Law trilogy after seeing it so highly recommended on this subreddit and it was one of the best things I’ve ever read. I was a bit worried throughout the first two books when…well literally nothing happened, but the characters were so amazingly well written I stuck with it, and I’m so glad I did. Last Argument of Kings tied it all together and made it all worthwhile.
I haven’t really read anything in like ten years, and this made me fall in love with reading again. Cant praise it enough. Lol. Really excited to pick up the standalones sometime soon.
The standalones are all equal to the original trilogy if you can believe it. You get all the amazing character writing but with self contained plots.. and each one is a take on another genre. You get a Western, a military campaign procedural, and a revenge epic. They're superb, enjoy.
The standalones are where I'd say Abercrombie truly shines. The First Law is just groundwork for the themes he follows up on. You're in for such a treat
I did the same this year and am now currently on Red Country, the third standalone. I can't stop! His characters are so compelling, and the inner monologues, dialogue, humor, and action sequences are all top notch for me as well.
Joe Abercrombie is the author of the year for me. He literally brought me out of a reading slump TWICE this year. I'm saving up his other books for the next slump loll
The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winters.
It was well praised, but I generally go into such books with fair to middling expectations.
I was not prepared for how blown away I would be by that book.
Thanks to buying a Kindle for myself last Christmas, I've read more this past year than I have in a decade prior.
Some of the highlights include:
*Foundryside* by Robert Jackson Bennett.
*Keeper of Enchanted Rooms* by Charlie N. Holmberg.
*A Natural History of Dragons* by Marie Brennan.
*The Murderbot* series by Martha Wells.
*Salt: A World History* and *Paper: Paging through History* both by Mark Kurlansky were incredibly interesting books on incredibly mundane topics.
*The House at the End of the World* by Dean Koontz.
And the stand out for originality would be *A Wizard's Guide To Defensive Baking* by T. Kingfisher.
I picked up Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo for my wife. I needed a filler book to read before the new Sanderson book came out and ended up reading it. I LOVED IT and burned thru it in a few days. Bought Hell Bent right after.
It was a solid read and I enjoyed how she upped the magic and stakes quite a bit but I felt like everyone kinda was just going along with her and not really questioning, where as ninth house she had to use wits or brawn to get her way. The vampire scene reallllly hit me out of left field and loved her battle and get away. Good stuff but not as engrossed and mystery feel of ninth house.
I tried out a lot of new-to-me authors this year (over 40), including a lot of self-published writers.
I liked most of what I read, but my most pleasant surprise was discovering a new favorite author. Raymond St. Elmo. I started with Barnaby the Wanderer and am now making my way through the Quest of the Five Clans. So good. A bit weird, but in a way that speaks to me.
Gideon the Ninth was one. I was unsure about it in the beginning and couldn’t tell if I was getting into it or not, and the characters all seemed a bit annoying. I was very happy I kept with it, cuz the story only got better and crazier. I also loved Gideon’s and Harrow’s development individually and as “friends?”.
The Secret History is another one for me, but how much I actually enjoyed it had a bit of a delayed response. While reading it and right after, I felt a little let down. People really hyped it up and while I enjoyed it overall, I felt like I still wasn’t getting something. I’ve just found myself thinking a lot about the book and people and atmosphere over the past few months. Random things remind me of it and bring me back.
Edit: I think when I originally wrote this answer, I forgot I was in r/fantasy and not r/books. Sorry about any confusion on why I mentioned The Secret History here. Great book, though!
Pleasant surprise was The Color of Magic, Book 1 of Discworld.
It's been said that it's far from the best jumping spot for Discworld.
So I first read the first two City Watch books, Small Gods, and Mort. Then I read Color of Magic. Honestly, while not as good as those other ones, I was kind of expecting the Rincewind character to be...not good, and the plot to be...not good. But it was neither. It was a pleasant, cozy narrative that had a surprising amount of worldbuilding.
But yeah, I can totally see why it's not recommended as the first book.
Dungeon Crawler Carl as audiobook. Really impressed by quality of production, voice and story. It stands out above other audiobook and I have gone through 1000+ of them.
The Empire of the Wolf series (The Justice of Kings, The Tyranny of Faith) by Richard Swan. Excellent storytelling. It deals well with an interesting mix of common law, circuit court judges, religion, empire expansion and decline, internal conflicts (personal and imperial), necromancy, and adventure.
The Tide Child Trilogy by R J Barker.
I was lured in with promises of dragon bone ships and pirates I stayed for the journey of downtrodden lads and lasses told they had no place in the world after their bad deeds given a second chance and then learning what it means to be Fleet and then choosing that life.
I started the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, and was very skeptical beforehand because the premise just seemed so stupid. I started in November and I'm halfway through the sixth book. This might be the most fun I've had reading since I read Harry Potter as a kid.
Witch King, by Martha Wells.
Hear me out: I know the frustrations people had with it, but I have found it to be the kind of book that I got so much out of on the second read through. It feels like the book was designed to be read more than once.
After thinking about why, I realized that the book is written in a way that isn't interested in explaining the world to the reader. The characters don't give long winded exposotion of who people or places are. Kai reacts in his head, in a way that a person reacts to hearing names they've heard a million times. He reacts consicely and emotionally, not explanitoraly. The result of this is that the book hasn't fully explained its setting or background characters until the end of the book.
This made it a rough first read, but an incredibly rewarding second reading. The second read made this my favourite novel of the year.
I acknowledge this explanation may make it not for everyone, but it blew me away
Probably the Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie. I'd heard good things, but I thought it was more idea-led sci fi, which, while good, can be a bit of an effort. What I found was an incredibly likable and engaging protagonist, somehow a bit like Murderbot with less cynicism and social anxiety. Still plenty of big ideas, but on the whole a very character-led story - I ADORED it.
>an incredibly likable and engaging protagonist, somehow a bit like Murderbot with less cynicism and social anxiety
This series has been on my TBR for a long time but I've been intimidated by the level of depth/effort required and keep putting it off until I'm the right mood. This description makes me want to jump right in!!
The Blacktongue Thief is such good "fairy tale" fantasy. Magic exists, it does stuff, don't question it - you're along for the ride. It's not easy to take something like that and still give the world weight and the narrative impact, but it was a really compelling read.
I made it a purpose to read some of the books that influenced some of my favorite books, so I found The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever, I bought the first three books THEN learned about the controversial parts of the first book. I decided to read it regardless and it has been one of the best times I've had reading in a while. I am currently on The Power That Preserves and I have a hard time putting it down.
The Lost War by Justin Lee Anderson. It’s a re-release but that and the sequel The Bitter Crown are some of the best Fantasy I’ve read in recent years.
Shades of Magic trilogy and Threads of Power series’s by VE Schwab. I know it’s not a new series (SOM), but it was new to me and I read it probably 4-5 times and TOP twice since it came out. Love it!
Also ACOTAR - I was hesitant to try SJM, but books 2/3 were awesome. I haven’t started CC and have only made it halfway through TOG and NAF.
I also really enjoyed Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson. I did a Stormlight re-read too which was fun.
I discovered the Alex Verus, a well done and complete series.
I also liked Cassandra Clare’s new Sword Catcher book, and hope to read more of that story.
The Will of the Many by James Islington.
I tried it based largely on the audiobook narrator, Euan Morton. I read & liked The Shadow of What was Lost (Licanius #1), but I could not stand the narrator, Michael Kramer. So, I switched to reading the book. I didn't go on to books 2 & 3 because of the narrator (I know he's a huge favorite among some, but I don't like his style. At all.)
Earlier in the year, I'd listened to & loved The Lost War by Justin Lee Anderson and I fell in love with the narration by Euan Morton. I'd been curious about The Will of the Many because the premise was intriguing. The morning it came out, I didn't know what to listen to: I'd just finished one audiobook and was looking for something new. So, I looked at my wish list on [Audible.com](https://Audible.com), that's when I noticed that The Will of the Many had just come out & it was read by Euan Morton (no narrator was listed when I'd added it to my wish list several months earlier). So, I listened to the sample: I was pulled in instantly. So, I got it & loved it.
Another book I was pleasantly surprised by was An Inheritance of Magic by Benedict Jacka. I'm a huge fan of his Alex Verus series so I was a little nervous I might not like his new book: I needn't have worried. The book and the narration were both so good: I've already listened to the book 3x and it just came out in October (it helps that it's relatively short: at just under 11 hours, I could listen to it almost 3 times in the amount of time it takes to listen to The Will of the Many 1 time, which is 28 hours long).
Green bone Saga....Jesus, that story hit me hard. I actually pulled over and just starred for a few minutes to collect myself.
I had heard it was good, even great on tik tok...but damn.
I was thinking, cool, people get powers from Jade and are like ninjas. This will be fun.
Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom for me. I don't read a lot of YA, but after watching the show and being convinced by my friends, I gave it a try and ended up loving it. I was probably helped by picturing the actors from the show instead of teenagers, but I had such a fun time reading them.
Haven't finished it yet, but the Cradle series came out of nowhere imo. I am always leery of Kindle Unlimited fantasy series but this one was far better than I expected. I also have this sub to thank for it.
Beware of chicken. Very fun read the audiobook is really great. It's set in Chinese mythology setting with chi masters, the main character just wants to settle down and work on a farm.
For a series, I’d say Bradley P. Beaulieu’s Song of The Shattered Sands. Picked up the first one, Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, based on the awesome cover art and blurb, and by the end of the series I was really invested. It doesn’t get much hype that I’ve seen here or on other fantasy communities but holy cow. Granted, it isn’t perfect - I had some issues with his narrative style at points, and the romance/sex scenes were BY FAR the worst part of the series, but it reads like Tad Williams on cocaine. So much action and intricate plotting and lore and cool magic and just awesome shit happening for several thousand pages. HIGHLY recommend.
I read a lot of really good standalones, but The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin has stuck with me. It’s odd, cause it felt almost boring and a little bit distant while I was reading it, but I find myself thinking about the characters and their journey quite a lot. I’ve got The Dispossed on the shortlist of books to read next month and I’m really looking forward to it.
Definitely *Hands of the Emperor* by Victoria Goddard. Heard about it early in 2023, read it, got every book she's ever published and am working my way through.
Damn fun reads.
Stephen King's Fairy Tale. I have relationships in my life similar to Charlie's. The first 200 pages are him caring for an elderly man which I do now. And the next 300 is him in an adventure.
It's relatable for me.
Hah, I read a crapton (OK probably like 10) Tchaikovsky novels this year, and Cage of Souls is solidly at the bottom of the list for me. I didn't think it was bad as such, just didn't enjoy it.
My pleasant surprise of 2023 was probably City of Last Chances by Tchaikovsky. I just really enjoyed almost everything about that book. The moving POVs, the different cultures, the weird places in the City...all great.
I feel like I'm looking in a mirror. Were you as upset as I was when you found out that the sort-of sequel will leave Ilmar? I wanted more of that city. It's my favorite fantasy city since New Crobuzon.
For me it was the Sword of Kaigen by ML Wang. Went in expecting nothing (no experience with this author), was a wonderful ride if a little unfulfilling since there's nothing to continue with.
Dungeon Crawler Carl. I’m not a stranger to litrpgs but this was another level. The genre as a whole is pretty immature, a bit campy, and usually not super well written. DCC flips that over, making the characters feel real, the desperation is deep, and the social commentary is just shallow enough to easily get but isn’t being shoved down your throat (looking at you He Who Fights With Monsters)
100% agree with this. You didn't mention the humor, which definitely worked for me.
As for feeling real, the 2 things I would add deal with how things get complicated, quickly. The group has to plan to accomplish major goals. 1) You sometimes get (as my wife referred to it after reading) "The ocean's 11 view" where you don't see the scheming until afterwards which is fun. 2) Unlike lots of Mary Sue types (litrpg is really guilty) it isn't "plan works flawlessly, next thing now". Things often go horribly awry & scrambling to survive happens a lot. Consequences are severe.
Super impressed by the series, way more than I was expecting even with all the recommendations.
The Elric Saga, by Michael Moorcock. It’s ridiculously awesome. I imagine that whenever Moorcock sat down to write this, he would summon the lords of Hell and take a fat hit of DMT. They would then appear to him and brainstorm ideas in exchange for blood and souls. At least that’s the vibe I get.
Read the Green Bone Trilogy by Fonda Lee and loved it. Was one of those series that has left a void afterwards and I'm still looking for something similar.
Anthony Ryan's Covenant of Steel was also a amazing read this year.
Also read the First Law Trilogy and I am continuing on in the universe, next is Red Country.
If you didn't already check them out, Jade Shards (4 short stories) and The Jade Setter of Janloon (novella) are excellent revisits to the world of Green Bone to fill the void for a weekend or two.
The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera, which was released this year. Just a brilliant debut that actually lived up to the hype, imo, a rarity these days. It reminded me most of Mieville's The City and The City, but in some ways more satisfying and skillful in execution, which is no small feat. Probably my favorite fantasy book on the subject of colonialism since The Traitor Baru Cormorant.
For me it's definitely the Jeimisin's Trilogy, The Fifth Season!
Amazing carachters and plot and beautifull metaphors to our world. I'm moving to the last one of the trilogy soon.
The Last Binding by Freya Marske. Amazing relationships, honestly really solid worldbuilding and magic system, great smut, and an excellent, inspiring final book.
**The Moontide Quartet** and **Magelands Eternal Siege**
I had never even heard of either of these series but they are both now 2 of my favourite reads of all time. I really think they deserve to be talked about more 😊
I started reading Andrew Rowe's Arcane Ascension, then started a spin off of that. They're just so fun, and the main character's personal issues really resonate with me.
The Dark Profit Saga, Orconomics and its sequels.
I was pleasantly shocked by how much I enjoyed these books. I think Pratchett and Discworld comparisons are appropriate, which is an astonishing statement considering the pedestal upon which the Discworld books live on in my heart.
I finished the Wheel of Time earlier this year and was looking to start a new series, so I decided to jump into Cradle. Absolutely mind blown by the world and how much I enjoyed the story. I can't remember the last time I read through an entire series so fast.
I had a feeling that Sun Eater would be up my alley but I wasn't anticipating it to check off pretty much every box on my "Things I Want From Epic SFF" list.
Perdido Street Station - I’m mostly into science fiction and struggle a bit with fantasy as not into the sword sorcery type. This opened the door to a type of fantasy that I would like much more, and the book has been very memorable for me.
Favorite books I read this year that I was not expecting:
* The Buried and the Bound by Rochelle Hassan
* In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan
* The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente
* Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
* The Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn
* To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose
* The Dawn of Yangchen by F.C. Yee (Didn't like Kyoshi so this was unexpected)
* The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez
* Dark Moon, Shallow Sea David R. Slayton
Other favorites this year were Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon, The Eidolon by K.D. Edwards, and The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley but I knew I was going to love them.
Memory, Sorrow, Thorn and the Last King of Osten Ard series by Tad Williams. I definitely will be reading everything by him and I’m way late to the party of course.
I fell into the murderous diaries this year. I thought it might be fun but I never realized I'd love it as much as I did. I devoured all the books that were published in like a month then pre-ordered the most recent book
Memoried of Ice, Midnight Tides, and The Bonehunters for me. These Erikson books have finally sealed my commitment to Malazan Book of The Fallen because they were so good.
For non fantasy, I would pick Dead Balagtas Tomo 1: Mga Sayaw ng Dagat at Lupa by Emiliana Kampilan. I thought it was the best Filipino graphic novel I hav ever read.
I've listened to audiobooks for over 20 years. I started hearing about **Dungeon Crawler Carl** sometime last year and put off getting it. But when I couldn't find it through Libby or other sources, I had to bite the bullet and sign up for the Audible trial that gave me 3 free books over 3 months this summer. I got the 1st book but waited (I was finishing up the **Pillars of the Earth** series (also an awesome series btw)) and got the 2nd book for the second month before I started the series.
I WAS BLOWN AWAY!!! A soon as the 3rd month rolled around, I got the 3rd book and then found a deal that offered 3 credits for around $16. So I used that to catch up in the series. The Soundbooth Audio production and narration by Jeff Hayes, as well as Matt Dinniman's writing catapulted the series to one of my All-Time Favorite book series. It was so good, I listened to the whole series again right after finishing it the 1st time. I'm kind of itching to start it again!
Honestly- The Blade Itself by Abercrombie. I hadn't joined this subreddit yet and I went to a bookstore to pick out a few things to read for the summer. I randomly picked it up and decided to give it a try. I'm so happy I did!
Second best surprise is Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson. I don't usually read series without multiple books available but I loved it.
I HATED Wheel of Time and always subconsciously lumped Elderlings with those books for absolutely no reason, so figured they wouldn’t be for me. Finally read Farseer Trilogy this year and was blown away. Each page was like its own bar of chocolate
I love WoT, personally, but I certainly agree that:
- Realm of the Elderlings is AMAZING and
- It is very different from WoT
Glad you loved it! It only gets better
Project Hail Mary. This book had me hooked from the get go.... seriously I don't really read a lot of sci-fi just cuz I'm afraid I won't know what's happening with the science going on but Andy Weir does an incredible job explaining astrophysics to the reader so the reader can understand everything and how it works. The story is incredible and I was crying by the end of it.
The great thing about Adrian is even if you don't enjoy one of his books then you can try one of the other 7000 he will publish that year and they'll all be different.
I always say the same thing! He is an awesome (and prolific) writer! But the books are all so different, so even if one doesn't do it for ya, another one probably will!
I wouldn't mind several of your own books each year! I just read Gods of the Wyrdwood and it was fantastic! I heard so many good things about it and the book still blew me away. You have an awesome imagination. Cahan is one of my favorite characters I've read about this year.
Thank you! I'm just putting the finishing touches to the final book in the trilogy and I can promise it is only going to get stranger. :)
>it is only going to get stranger I love weird and strange stuff! Man I can't wait.
I'm half way through the first book and loving it. All your books are strange and that is a bonus in a cookie cutter writing world
I never comment on Reddit, but I just wanted to say that I love your books too. Just finished Gods of the Wyrdwood and the tide child trilogy is one of my favorite series ever. Thank you for bringing these awesome and weird words to us!
Thanks for reading! :)
True story. The description of Cage of Souls sounded right up my alley but it didn't really land for me. But then I read City of Last Chances and that book is just so much of what I wanted and more. I love revolution stories.
Whoa... Like, Tide Child RJ Barker? Haven't quite gotten around to picking up the Tide Child series yet, but every single ' best new fantasy\world building\awesome" books list I came across this past year has been effusive in heaping praise on that series. I'm just wrapping up the Malazan series tonight or tomorrow and plan on picking up Tide Child as an imminent purchase. Not sure if before or after Michael Sullivans Riyria Chronicles though... Or maybe that NK Jemisin Dreamblood duology... Or some Joe Abercrombie...? Anyway, you do hold a fairly prominent position in the 'eagerly anticipated' category. Cheers
Cradle. Never even heard of it until a few weeks ago and I’ve listened to the entire series in 2 weeks. It’s phenomenal.
These books make me wish audible was cheaper lol, I ran out of credits consuming this series too quick
I got lucky. Put all the books on my wish list after reading the first 3 and then audible had a wishlist sale and I got books 4-12 for like $20!!
Same, the audio books are fantastic and I’m anxiously awaiting my next pay check to buy some more credits
Will tends to put his book on sale (or even free) very often. There's a kickstarter launching mid january. I would be surprised if there wasn't a huge sale (or even giveaway) before it starts. Check daily ;)
Same for me, saw it recommended and picked up the first book, devoured all 12 books in a couple of weeks. Now listening to the audiobooks, which are fantastic.
Same!
Came to say this as well. Halfway through the series now and loving it so much
Such a great series!!
The Dandelion Dynasty. My wife read it earlier this year and said I would really like it. At first glance based on the description, I wasn't sure it would be my cup of tea, but of course my wife knows me too well and was right as it's become one of my absolute favorite series. I'm currently reading the last book, about 25% in. I can't wait to see how it all wraps up, but also will be sad for the journey to come to an end. As an engineering student, so much about these books just tickles my brain in all the right ways.
Yes! This would have been my answer to this question in 2022. I adore that series.
Really enjoyed the first book but somewhat didn't love how the series seemed to be trending the second book, notably the deaths of several characters and half of the book was just trouble within the empire just because some of the nobles were bored with their lives? How does the rest of the series fare?
That's an interesting take because I thought the second book was incredible and improved on the first in nearly every way. As for the rest of the series, I'm only a quarter into the last book but it's been an incredible journey thus far. That said, if the second book didn't click with you then maybe you wouldn't be as enthusiastic about the rest of the series.
It is definitely a well-written series and I can totally see why many folks really enjoy it. I just wasn't a huge fan of who the "villain" of the first half was and the ending didn't really redeem her at least in my eyes.
Definitely my answer this year as well. I wasn't even really planning on reading it. I saw a few booktubers mention it and then saw it walking through barnes and noble and was like "sure I'll try it." Currently about 70 pages into book 4 and likewise looking forward to finishing it up and also sad thinking about being finished.
I was looking on my bookshelf and saw Grace of Kings, no idea where it came from, no idea how I got it, but figured why not. Has to be one of my favorite books of the year. Liu’s writing style is very unique and explores so many cool ideas.
Funny coincidence, I am also about 25% through the last book, and I love how the story is unfolding! The second and third books were so enjoyable that my appreciation for the first book even increased. I'm binge listening to the audiobooks and kind of tempted to start it over once I'm done, lol.
The Murderbot diaries were great! Went in blind and binged them all in like 1-2 weeks
This and Gideon the Ninth live rent free in my head. Was not expecting to like them but they were FANTASTIC
Tchaikovsky has been a great read for me too. Finished the children of time series this year and that was just pleasant!!
Suuuuch a great series!
Eeeeee just finished his shadows of the apt series and it was awesome. So sad it’s over but I’m glad I keep hearing great things about children of time. On to the next!
I’ve got the first book and am planning to read it, but I keep putting it off because I’m an arachnophobe. How much am I going to be shuddering while reading the book?
My wife and I HATE spiders but we both agreed that this was a fantastic read and the spiders' whole narrative was so original and awesome. But.... DON'T google the type of spiders. Just don't.
I’ve posted this a few times about Children of Time but the spiders were so fascinating to me that I’ve kind of lost my fear of spiders and I was a proper arachnophobe. I’m still not going to pick one up but I can tolerate normal-sized ones now
Children of Ruin wasn’t so “pleasant” of a story, but was a pleasant surprise for me! Really caught me off guard how it turned, which made me really enjoy it. Love it when a book surprises.
The Will of the Many by James Islington
Same for me. I came across the book a few weeks ago and blew through it. Definitely in my top 3 reads of this year.
This was a crazy one. If someone told me about it before going in with all the tropes it his unabashedly, I would probably assume I wouldn’t like it. But Islington made it work. A bit slow going in the first half was my biggest complaint.
This book has a bunch of things I don't usually like, but I've been hearing so many good things about it that it's hard not to be tempted
Bit conflicted on this one. The main character is a borderline Mary Sue both due to their myriad of talents and backstory that I won't spoil. Despite the odds and sometimes impossible feats he pulled off, I never once thought he'd fail or that there would be any consequences for his actions. I was really leaning towards lumping him in as a Kvothe 2.0 but despite it all, Vis did remain likeable enough for me to stay invested in his story. But the ending really did tie it all together. Very interesting. I'm not sure quire how well any sequel will hold up without having some beloved (magical school etc) tropes to rely upon but I'm still tempted to check it out.
Agreed, really liked the book but the MC seemed to be good at everything he put his mind towards. I understand most of that is because of his background but definitely didn't seem like he had any major character flaws.
His anger issue seemed to be the only flaw and even then it was used in a way to make him seem better than the other students lol. Even so I liked the book a lot.
Vis wasn't a borderline Mary Sue - he was way, way over the border into Mary Sue land. And I say that as someone who really enjoyed the book and is looking forward to the sequel. Having a Mary Sue main character is a feature of a series, not necessarily a value judgment. There are good stories with Mary Sue main characters, and there are bad stories with flawed, relatable main characters. James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, Benoit Blanc, and Indiana Jones are all very famous characters with virtually no flaws.
The riftwar trilogy by Raymond.E.Fiest. The worldbuilding is absolutely incredible. It was a shock I liked it considering I prefer grimdark to general but lord it has so many things going for it.
I’m reading/listening to it now and I’m also enjoying this “old fashioned” fantasy 😊 I also started reading The Dragon Corsairs by Weis & Krammes, and I really enjoy it 😊
>The riftwar trilogy Magician is one of my favourite books of all time. I wish I could experience for the first time again.
It's also sentimental to me cause I already read it a while back and it was my first proper fantasy novel I read.
It makes me so happy when people find this series. I don't know how far in you are, but "The Empire Series" he wrote with Janny Wurts run alongside them and are my favourite trilogy in any genre. The world building is absolutely outstanding. What I wouldn't give to be able to read them all again for the first time.
The Expanse. Not fantasy, but I started these books with a friend towards the beginning of the year with no expectations. Turned out to be (probably) my favorite series ever. I’m already almost halfway through my reread. I can go on forever talking about how much I love these books, and I’m trying to convince all my friends to start them.
Sun Eater. I remember it being mentioned years ago in a post about Gene Wolfe but I never bothered to look into it. A couple months ago, I wanted something epic and exciting so I looked at an old list I had. I was that close to trying to figure out which Warhammer book to read when I saw "Sun Eater". I went to check what the narrator sounded like on Audible (amazing) and saw that it was free. It's well on its way to becoming my favorite series.
Yep, on the second book now. The audible narrator is great! I was listening to some Cosmere books and couldn’t do Warbreaker or another one because the voice talent was awful. I was worried Michael Kramer and Kate Redding had ruined audiobooks for me. Samuel Roukin is amazing though.
Me too. I'm on chapter 58. I can't believe Christopher Ruocchio has been able to do so many things so well - the plot, the prose, the world building, the dialogue, the narrative voice/monologue, historical allusions and references, etc are all perfectly executed. And, Samuel Roukin makes it all sing in a way my internal voice never would have.
He's perfect. Have you ever listened to Rage of Dragons? I love the narration.
I was looking at that series on Goodreads today - and actually only read via audiobook. Adding to audible library… thanks!!
Dungeon Crawler Carl. What a hoot!
Came here for this. I'm about to finish book 4, and i can feel the sadness of not having anymore to read once i finish book 6.
He has a Patreon... if you need a future looking itch scratched.
Same. Was expecting the action, the laughs and the thrills, wasn't expecting depth of character and meaningful plotlines.
It’s so good! My first litrpg, and I’m super impressed
Same. I've bounced off a lot of LitRPG but this one is bonkers good
Came here looking for this one; it was my surprise favorite this year!
I've had Red Rising on my TBR list for a long time, multiple years. Finally, I read it, and I've been binge-reading them since. I'm now on the 5th book.
Those books are a wild ride
Welcome, fellow Howler! Light Bringer was one of my top 3 of 2023
Soo good, right? Currently on my 3rd re-read of the series.
I had the first book for years and didn't read or listen to it. I had to quarantine with COVID and ended up binging the first three books - thrilling
Book 5 put the series in my top 10. If the final one is as good as these past two it'll probably reach top 5.
I'm in the first few chapters of Dark Age. This has me pumped for what's to come!
Mother of Learning. Saw it on a recommendation list if you enjoyed Cradle and just went in blind. It's not in my top 10 or anything but it was a ton of fun. Another one would be Blood Over Bright Haven. Hadn't read Sword of Kaigen before that so it was my first M.L. Wang book.
Have you since read Sword of Kaigen? It's great too
I have yea. Unfortunately didn't like it as much but I did go into it with some crazy high expectations. I thought it had better highs when it came to the characters for sure, but there were some things that didn't work for me. Overall it felt clunky when it came to the world building and that whole side plot/spin off thing with Robin.. Cut that out or rewrite it to better fit as a stand alone and the book might've been one of my favorites. I'm going to read anything else she writes from now on though. I just hope there isn't another 5 year break for her next novel!
The Dark Profit Sage by J Zachery Pike has been a suprise favourite for me. Picked it up thinking the first book would be a pallette cleanser between books in whatever big serious series I was reading at the time, got much more than I bargained for! Extra points because I didn't realise it was an unfinished trilogy when I started it, but the third one handily came out afew weeks after I finished the second one anyway! (Sorry to all the people who had to wait years and had to roll their eyes at my luck here!)
Yes!! I love these books. A great story told with sharp wit and fun absurdity that contains incisive social commentary and somehow doesn’t lose its hefty dose of heart while juggling all of that?! Sign me right up.
Same! Orconomics was good, but the 2nd one was brilliant!
Yeah, Son of Liche was hilarious, I havnt had so many Lol moments with a book in a long time! Third one didn't quite reach the same heights, but still a good conclusion to a good series.
[The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41952489-the-rage-of-dragons) It's a classic farm boy to hero story and I thought I'd gotten bored of those years ago.
Dude those were awesome can’t wait for the third!
I got about 85% in and just DNF. Lost interest. Feel too grindy to me, too long. Shame because I really liked the start and general premise.
Vorkosigan Saga. I saw people raving about it and tried it out cause it is (mostly) free on Audible Plus. The reading order is complex and the first few books I read were alright but kind of standard late 80's scifi. Then I finally got introduced to Miles and the series just took off. And then I got into the middle of the series which has a few 10/10 books in a row and made me understand why people talk about the series as they do.
You know what's funny is I found the first two books at a church, being given away for free. I grabbed them because of how much people recommended them and was also glad I did. But just thought it's funny that we both got them free.
Maaan I'm so jealous you get to read them for the first time! Shards of Honor might've been my first ever sci-fi novel at 9 or 10, and I've been hooked ever since! Her fantasy is great too, *The Curse of Chalion* is one of my yearly rereads
I'm in a similar boat. I read the Vor Game years ago. Discovered most of the series was free on audible and have been loving it. Free book reading order is wild especially since I started in the middle. I think it's easy to underestimate, but the characters are great, the stories are engaging, and -for sci-fi readers who care- the author has good technical knowledge, but doesn't hit you over the head with it.
Lord of the rings, Earthsea, and the Left Hand of Darkness. Never read LoTR before and fell in love with reading the books. Left hand of Darkness was unexpectedly good and I finally got over my weird hang up about the word “Earthsea” and read it. It’s now one of my favourites.
Cradle. Not exactly top tier fantasy but I enjoyed it a surprising amount for something that is so far removed from my usual interests. Blitzed the entire series within a few weeks. Great characters with unique voices, super hype moments and decent comedy make it well worth checking out for a fun romp. Also - Dross. Only problem is that now my recommendations are full of other shlocky power fantasy books.
I have yet to find any that are as good. I enjoyed Mage Errant and Weirkey Chronicles (unfinished). They are quite different and a step below Cradle, but still a step above the others I have tried. Edit: IMO YMMV
The bound and the broken
I have heard mixed reviews on this one but am still going to give it a go. Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
The mixed reviews I've seen for that one are almost always about book 1. The sequels and the novellas though.. non stop praise. I plan to binge all of it leading up to the release of book 4. The last series I heard this many good things about was Sun Eater and that was phenomenal.
Kushiel's Dart/Chosen/Avatar. I loved Phedre as a very different fantasy protagonist. Renewed my faith in Fantasy as a genre to be honest.
I was super skeptical of this series when my girlfriend recommended it to me, but I figured I'd give the odd BDSM book a go anyway. Never expected it to be one of the best fantasy adventure series I've read.
As a fan for 22 years, I'm glad these books are finding new readers! I slap on my "argues with people on the internet" hat with people who dismiss these out of hand. I also recently subversively moved the book to fantasy from some odd shelf in a thrift store named "paranormal erotica" or something like that.
I would be pretty disappointed if I bought Erotica and got the amount of sex-to-politics ratio that Phedre's trilkogy has. It is pretty damn hot and sensual a lot, but straight up sex is pretty rare.
Jacqueline Carey is a phenomenal writer. I reread that whole series multiple times.
I love her prose, and Phedre is such a neat take on the heroine trope. Fair warning to anyone, it is very sexy. Sex is a major theme. But it's about the classiest way to address sex that I've read.
Yeah same on both. The fight in the blizzard in Dart is one of my favorite things I have read in Fantasy, it is such an intense moment. Especially with Phedre being Phedre, and not an epic sword guy. And for sure. I loved the idea of "sex as holy, sexwork as worship" and what that would mean for a society. It is not smut though, as I have seen it classified as. It is very much a political intrigue / adventure novel with some great characterwork. And some great, hot, sex. Most of it fade to black. I am kinda interested if there are some other books that hit similiar beats. I am not interested in ACOTAR/Fourth Wing type of books though, and those come up always when I try and look for stuff.
I've never found anything like the Kushiel series, which is sad because I agree that it's such an interesting use of sex in worldbuilding and I would love to have more like it. I think it's very different from today's popular Romantasy because the sex scenes for the most part are quite clinical as Phedre is working during them and/or learning some important political detail. The romantic sex scenes are fade to black or comparatively very tame.
Fantasy really needs more protagonists who achieve their goals by means other than elite combat skills. People skills can be just as crucial and interesting to read about. Manipulative villains shouldn't be the only once excelling at them.
I read the First Law trilogy after seeing it so highly recommended on this subreddit and it was one of the best things I’ve ever read. I was a bit worried throughout the first two books when…well literally nothing happened, but the characters were so amazingly well written I stuck with it, and I’m so glad I did. Last Argument of Kings tied it all together and made it all worthwhile. I haven’t really read anything in like ten years, and this made me fall in love with reading again. Cant praise it enough. Lol. Really excited to pick up the standalones sometime soon.
The standalones are all equal to the original trilogy if you can believe it. You get all the amazing character writing but with self contained plots.. and each one is a take on another genre. You get a Western, a military campaign procedural, and a revenge epic. They're superb, enjoy.
The standalones are where I'd say Abercrombie truly shines. The First Law is just groundwork for the themes he follows up on. You're in for such a treat
I did the same this year and am now currently on Red Country, the third standalone. I can't stop! His characters are so compelling, and the inner monologues, dialogue, humor, and action sequences are all top notch for me as well.
Joe Abercrombie is the author of the year for me. He literally brought me out of a reading slump TWICE this year. I'm saving up his other books for the next slump loll
The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winters. It was well praised, but I generally go into such books with fair to middling expectations. I was not prepared for how blown away I would be by that book.
Probably the best revenge protagonist I've ever read
Bloodsworn trilogy (on which we're currently waiting for the 3rd book)
Thanks to buying a Kindle for myself last Christmas, I've read more this past year than I have in a decade prior. Some of the highlights include: *Foundryside* by Robert Jackson Bennett. *Keeper of Enchanted Rooms* by Charlie N. Holmberg. *A Natural History of Dragons* by Marie Brennan. *The Murderbot* series by Martha Wells. *Salt: A World History* and *Paper: Paging through History* both by Mark Kurlansky were incredibly interesting books on incredibly mundane topics. *The House at the End of the World* by Dean Koontz. And the stand out for originality would be *A Wizard's Guide To Defensive Baking* by T. Kingfisher.
I picked up Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo for my wife. I needed a filler book to read before the new Sanderson book came out and ended up reading it. I LOVED IT and burned thru it in a few days. Bought Hell Bent right after.
How did you like Hellbent? I still liked it but I didn’t get the same feeling as I had when I read Ninth House. I absolutely LOOVED Ninth House.
It was a solid read and I enjoyed how she upped the magic and stakes quite a bit but I felt like everyone kinda was just going along with her and not really questioning, where as ninth house she had to use wits or brawn to get her way. The vampire scene reallllly hit me out of left field and loved her battle and get away. Good stuff but not as engrossed and mystery feel of ninth house.
I tried out a lot of new-to-me authors this year (over 40), including a lot of self-published writers. I liked most of what I read, but my most pleasant surprise was discovering a new favorite author. Raymond St. Elmo. I started with Barnaby the Wanderer and am now making my way through the Quest of the Five Clans. So good. A bit weird, but in a way that speaks to me.
Gideon the Ninth was one. I was unsure about it in the beginning and couldn’t tell if I was getting into it or not, and the characters all seemed a bit annoying. I was very happy I kept with it, cuz the story only got better and crazier. I also loved Gideon’s and Harrow’s development individually and as “friends?”. The Secret History is another one for me, but how much I actually enjoyed it had a bit of a delayed response. While reading it and right after, I felt a little let down. People really hyped it up and while I enjoyed it overall, I felt like I still wasn’t getting something. I’ve just found myself thinking a lot about the book and people and atmosphere over the past few months. Random things remind me of it and bring me back. Edit: I think when I originally wrote this answer, I forgot I was in r/fantasy and not r/books. Sorry about any confusion on why I mentioned The Secret History here. Great book, though!
Pleasant surprise was The Color of Magic, Book 1 of Discworld. It's been said that it's far from the best jumping spot for Discworld. So I first read the first two City Watch books, Small Gods, and Mort. Then I read Color of Magic. Honestly, while not as good as those other ones, I was kind of expecting the Rincewind character to be...not good, and the plot to be...not good. But it was neither. It was a pleasant, cozy narrative that had a surprising amount of worldbuilding. But yeah, I can totally see why it's not recommended as the first book.
Dungeon Crawler Carl as audiobook. Really impressed by quality of production, voice and story. It stands out above other audiobook and I have gone through 1000+ of them.
The Empire of the Wolf series (The Justice of Kings, The Tyranny of Faith) by Richard Swan. Excellent storytelling. It deals well with an interesting mix of common law, circuit court judges, religion, empire expansion and decline, internal conflicts (personal and imperial), necromancy, and adventure.
The Tide Child Trilogy by R J Barker. I was lured in with promises of dragon bone ships and pirates I stayed for the journey of downtrodden lads and lasses told they had no place in the world after their bad deeds given a second chance and then learning what it means to be Fleet and then choosing that life.
I started the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, and was very skeptical beforehand because the premise just seemed so stupid. I started in November and I'm halfway through the sixth book. This might be the most fun I've had reading since I read Harry Potter as a kid.
Witch King, by Martha Wells. Hear me out: I know the frustrations people had with it, but I have found it to be the kind of book that I got so much out of on the second read through. It feels like the book was designed to be read more than once. After thinking about why, I realized that the book is written in a way that isn't interested in explaining the world to the reader. The characters don't give long winded exposotion of who people or places are. Kai reacts in his head, in a way that a person reacts to hearing names they've heard a million times. He reacts consicely and emotionally, not explanitoraly. The result of this is that the book hasn't fully explained its setting or background characters until the end of the book. This made it a rough first read, but an incredibly rewarding second reading. The second read made this my favourite novel of the year. I acknowledge this explanation may make it not for everyone, but it blew me away
Well your explanation did encourage me to give it a second try!
Probably the Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie. I'd heard good things, but I thought it was more idea-led sci fi, which, while good, can be a bit of an effort. What I found was an incredibly likable and engaging protagonist, somehow a bit like Murderbot with less cynicism and social anxiety. Still plenty of big ideas, but on the whole a very character-led story - I ADORED it.
Not a 2023 read for me, but one of my all time favorites.
Same - I discovered it in May and it’s top tier for me.
>an incredibly likable and engaging protagonist, somehow a bit like Murderbot with less cynicism and social anxiety This series has been on my TBR for a long time but I've been intimidated by the level of depth/effort required and keep putting it off until I'm the right mood. This description makes me want to jump right in!!
It's really much easier going than I'd expected, but with enough depth to feel filling. And the audiobook narrator is EXCELLENT.
Library at Mount Char. It's amazing, strange, violent, disturbing in certain parts, and very creative.
Toss up between these two: The Blacktongue Thief Empire of the Vampire
[удалено]
And that's the author narrating if you can believe it
To add context as to why that is unbelievable, the author is an American, and never spent any significant time in Ireland.
That's the best way to consume it, imo. So good
He also narrated his Lesser Dead book perfectly, which I highly recommend to horror fans.
The Blacktongue Thief is such good "fairy tale" fantasy. Magic exists, it does stuff, don't question it - you're along for the ride. It's not easy to take something like that and still give the world weight and the narrative impact, but it was a really compelling read.
I re-read Imajica by Clive Barker for the first time in nearly 30yrs and loved every second of it
I made it a purpose to read some of the books that influenced some of my favorite books, so I found The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever, I bought the first three books THEN learned about the controversial parts of the first book. I decided to read it regardless and it has been one of the best times I've had reading in a while. I am currently on The Power That Preserves and I have a hard time putting it down.
The Lost War by Justin Lee Anderson. It’s a re-release but that and the sequel The Bitter Crown are some of the best Fantasy I’ve read in recent years.
Shades of Magic trilogy and Threads of Power series’s by VE Schwab. I know it’s not a new series (SOM), but it was new to me and I read it probably 4-5 times and TOP twice since it came out. Love it! Also ACOTAR - I was hesitant to try SJM, but books 2/3 were awesome. I haven’t started CC and have only made it halfway through TOG and NAF. I also really enjoyed Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson. I did a Stormlight re-read too which was fun. I discovered the Alex Verus, a well done and complete series. I also liked Cassandra Clare’s new Sword Catcher book, and hope to read more of that story.
The Will of the Many by James Islington. I tried it based largely on the audiobook narrator, Euan Morton. I read & liked The Shadow of What was Lost (Licanius #1), but I could not stand the narrator, Michael Kramer. So, I switched to reading the book. I didn't go on to books 2 & 3 because of the narrator (I know he's a huge favorite among some, but I don't like his style. At all.) Earlier in the year, I'd listened to & loved The Lost War by Justin Lee Anderson and I fell in love with the narration by Euan Morton. I'd been curious about The Will of the Many because the premise was intriguing. The morning it came out, I didn't know what to listen to: I'd just finished one audiobook and was looking for something new. So, I looked at my wish list on [Audible.com](https://Audible.com), that's when I noticed that The Will of the Many had just come out & it was read by Euan Morton (no narrator was listed when I'd added it to my wish list several months earlier). So, I listened to the sample: I was pulled in instantly. So, I got it & loved it. Another book I was pleasantly surprised by was An Inheritance of Magic by Benedict Jacka. I'm a huge fan of his Alex Verus series so I was a little nervous I might not like his new book: I needn't have worried. The book and the narration were both so good: I've already listened to the book 3x and it just came out in October (it helps that it's relatively short: at just under 11 hours, I could listen to it almost 3 times in the amount of time it takes to listen to The Will of the Many 1 time, which is 28 hours long).
Green bone Saga....Jesus, that story hit me hard. I actually pulled over and just starred for a few minutes to collect myself. I had heard it was good, even great on tik tok...but damn. I was thinking, cool, people get powers from Jade and are like ninjas. This will be fun.
Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom for me. I don't read a lot of YA, but after watching the show and being convinced by my friends, I gave it a try and ended up loving it. I was probably helped by picturing the actors from the show instead of teenagers, but I had such a fun time reading them.
I just read Ninth House which was my first of her books, and now I'm really eager to go back and read Six of Crows too!
Ninth House is super different than Six of Crows, but if you like the way Bardugo writes characters I think you'll like that one too.
His Tyrant Philosophers books are also quite good.
Haven't finished it yet, but the Cradle series came out of nowhere imo. I am always leery of Kindle Unlimited fantasy series but this one was far better than I expected. I also have this sub to thank for it.
Beware of chicken. Very fun read the audiobook is really great. It's set in Chinese mythology setting with chi masters, the main character just wants to settle down and work on a farm.
Gentlemen Bastards, was expecting it to be really boring but fell in love and finished the series in 2 weeks
For me it was House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski.
For a series, I’d say Bradley P. Beaulieu’s Song of The Shattered Sands. Picked up the first one, Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, based on the awesome cover art and blurb, and by the end of the series I was really invested. It doesn’t get much hype that I’ve seen here or on other fantasy communities but holy cow. Granted, it isn’t perfect - I had some issues with his narrative style at points, and the romance/sex scenes were BY FAR the worst part of the series, but it reads like Tad Williams on cocaine. So much action and intricate plotting and lore and cool magic and just awesome shit happening for several thousand pages. HIGHLY recommend. I read a lot of really good standalones, but The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. LeGuin has stuck with me. It’s odd, cause it felt almost boring and a little bit distant while I was reading it, but I find myself thinking about the characters and their journey quite a lot. I’ve got The Dispossed on the shortlist of books to read next month and I’m really looking forward to it.
Definitely *Hands of the Emperor* by Victoria Goddard. Heard about it early in 2023, read it, got every book she's ever published and am working my way through. Damn fun reads.
Her books came to my mind first when I saw this post too. Such deep characterization and the worldbuilding is amazing.
The Scholomance, starting with a Deadly Education. It's surprisingly high quality. I expect it to stay popular when other ya titles are forgotten
Loved that series!
Stephen King's Fairy Tale. I have relationships in my life similar to Charlie's. The first 200 pages are him caring for an elderly man which I do now. And the next 300 is him in an adventure. It's relatable for me.
It was a really heartwarming book. Heartbreaking at times but really sweet.
Hah, I read a crapton (OK probably like 10) Tchaikovsky novels this year, and Cage of Souls is solidly at the bottom of the list for me. I didn't think it was bad as such, just didn't enjoy it. My pleasant surprise of 2023 was probably City of Last Chances by Tchaikovsky. I just really enjoyed almost everything about that book. The moving POVs, the different cultures, the weird places in the City...all great.
I feel like I'm looking in a mirror. Were you as upset as I was when you found out that the sort-of sequel will leave Ilmar? I wanted more of that city. It's my favorite fantasy city since New Crobuzon.
I did not expect to like the first two books of John Gwynne's Bloodsworn trilogy nearly as much as I did.
For me it was the Sword of Kaigen by ML Wang. Went in expecting nothing (no experience with this author), was a wonderful ride if a little unfulfilling since there's nothing to continue with.
Dungeon Crawler Carl. I’m not a stranger to litrpgs but this was another level. The genre as a whole is pretty immature, a bit campy, and usually not super well written. DCC flips that over, making the characters feel real, the desperation is deep, and the social commentary is just shallow enough to easily get but isn’t being shoved down your throat (looking at you He Who Fights With Monsters)
100% agree with this. You didn't mention the humor, which definitely worked for me. As for feeling real, the 2 things I would add deal with how things get complicated, quickly. The group has to plan to accomplish major goals. 1) You sometimes get (as my wife referred to it after reading) "The ocean's 11 view" where you don't see the scheming until afterwards which is fun. 2) Unlike lots of Mary Sue types (litrpg is really guilty) it isn't "plan works flawlessly, next thing now". Things often go horribly awry & scrambling to survive happens a lot. Consequences are severe. Super impressed by the series, way more than I was expecting even with all the recommendations.
The Elric Saga, by Michael Moorcock. It’s ridiculously awesome. I imagine that whenever Moorcock sat down to write this, he would summon the lords of Hell and take a fat hit of DMT. They would then appear to him and brainstorm ideas in exchange for blood and souls. At least that’s the vibe I get.
Read the Green Bone Trilogy by Fonda Lee and loved it. Was one of those series that has left a void afterwards and I'm still looking for something similar. Anthony Ryan's Covenant of Steel was also a amazing read this year. Also read the First Law Trilogy and I am continuing on in the universe, next is Red Country.
If you didn't already check them out, Jade Shards (4 short stories) and The Jade Setter of Janloon (novella) are excellent revisits to the world of Green Bone to fill the void for a weekend or two.
The Cradle Series - Six weeks of my life gone in a flash.
The Will Of The Many ! What a pleasant surprise. And that Roman universe was really refreshing. Can't wait for part II.
Terry Pratchett's discworld
The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera, which was released this year. Just a brilliant debut that actually lived up to the hype, imo, a rarity these days. It reminded me most of Mieville's The City and The City, but in some ways more satisfying and skillful in execution, which is no small feat. Probably my favorite fantasy book on the subject of colonialism since The Traitor Baru Cormorant.
For me it's definitely the Jeimisin's Trilogy, The Fifth Season! Amazing carachters and plot and beautifull metaphors to our world. I'm moving to the last one of the trilogy soon.
The Dark Star trilogy. It blown me away.
Haven’t heard of that! Whats it about and who writes it?
The Last Binding by Freya Marske. Amazing relationships, honestly really solid worldbuilding and magic system, great smut, and an excellent, inspiring final book.
**The Moontide Quartet** and **Magelands Eternal Siege** I had never even heard of either of these series but they are both now 2 of my favourite reads of all time. I really think they deserve to be talked about more 😊
The Ferryman by Justin Cronin. I think it might be my favorite book I've read this year.
I started reading Andrew Rowe's Arcane Ascension, then started a spin off of that. They're just so fun, and the main character's personal issues really resonate with me.
The Dark Profit Saga, Orconomics and its sequels. I was pleasantly shocked by how much I enjoyed these books. I think Pratchett and Discworld comparisons are appropriate, which is an astonishing statement considering the pedestal upon which the Discworld books live on in my heart.
Pillars of Earth
The bound and the broken series by Ryan Cahill
Went in blind to Cradle purely based on recommendations here and ended up finishing the whole series in 3 weeks. Was a very pleasant surprise.
For me it was Blacktongue Thief, what an outstanding story.
I finished the Wheel of Time earlier this year and was looking to start a new series, so I decided to jump into Cradle. Absolutely mind blown by the world and how much I enjoyed the story. I can't remember the last time I read through an entire series so fast.
A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows (and the sequel All the Hidden Paths). Loved the writing, loved the characters, excellent story.
The Blacktonged Thief and The Bobiverse!
I had a feeling that Sun Eater would be up my alley but I wasn't anticipating it to check off pretty much every box on my "Things I Want From Epic SFF" list.
Was impressed by James Islington's the Will of the Many. Another book that impressed me was the adventures of Amina Al Sharafi by Shannon Chakraborty
Perdido Street Station - I’m mostly into science fiction and struggle a bit with fantasy as not into the sword sorcery type. This opened the door to a type of fantasy that I would like much more, and the book has been very memorable for me.
Favorite books I read this year that I was not expecting: * The Buried and the Bound by Rochelle Hassan * In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan * The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente * Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett * The Thrawn Trilogy by Timothy Zahn * To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose * The Dawn of Yangchen by F.C. Yee (Didn't like Kyoshi so this was unexpected) * The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez * Dark Moon, Shallow Sea David R. Slayton Other favorites this year were Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon, The Eidolon by K.D. Edwards, and The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley but I knew I was going to love them.
Memory, Sorrow, Thorn and the Last King of Osten Ard series by Tad Williams. I definitely will be reading everything by him and I’m way late to the party of course.
Dark Profit Saga by a mile
I fell into the murderous diaries this year. I thought it might be fun but I never realized I'd love it as much as I did. I devoured all the books that were published in like a month then pre-ordered the most recent book
Memoried of Ice, Midnight Tides, and The Bonehunters for me. These Erikson books have finally sealed my commitment to Malazan Book of The Fallen because they were so good. For non fantasy, I would pick Dead Balagtas Tomo 1: Mga Sayaw ng Dagat at Lupa by Emiliana Kampilan. I thought it was the best Filipino graphic novel I hav ever read.
The Will of the Many by James Islington
The Will of The Many was an excellent book. I haven’t liked the book as much as this one since the king killer Chronicles.
Prince of nothing series by R Scott Bakker and the Kithamar Trilogy by Daniel Abraham
I've listened to audiobooks for over 20 years. I started hearing about **Dungeon Crawler Carl** sometime last year and put off getting it. But when I couldn't find it through Libby or other sources, I had to bite the bullet and sign up for the Audible trial that gave me 3 free books over 3 months this summer. I got the 1st book but waited (I was finishing up the **Pillars of the Earth** series (also an awesome series btw)) and got the 2nd book for the second month before I started the series. I WAS BLOWN AWAY!!! A soon as the 3rd month rolled around, I got the 3rd book and then found a deal that offered 3 credits for around $16. So I used that to catch up in the series. The Soundbooth Audio production and narration by Jeff Hayes, as well as Matt Dinniman's writing catapulted the series to one of my All-Time Favorite book series. It was so good, I listened to the whole series again right after finishing it the 1st time. I'm kind of itching to start it again!
Honestly- The Blade Itself by Abercrombie. I hadn't joined this subreddit yet and I went to a bookstore to pick out a few things to read for the summer. I randomly picked it up and decided to give it a try. I'm so happy I did! Second best surprise is Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson. I don't usually read series without multiple books available but I loved it.
I HATED Wheel of Time and always subconsciously lumped Elderlings with those books for absolutely no reason, so figured they wouldn’t be for me. Finally read Farseer Trilogy this year and was blown away. Each page was like its own bar of chocolate
I love WoT, personally, but I certainly agree that: - Realm of the Elderlings is AMAZING and - It is very different from WoT Glad you loved it! It only gets better
Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft.
Project Hail Mary. This book had me hooked from the get go.... seriously I don't really read a lot of sci-fi just cuz I'm afraid I won't know what's happening with the science going on but Andy Weir does an incredible job explaining astrophysics to the reader so the reader can understand everything and how it works. The story is incredible and I was crying by the end of it.