About Santa Lucia Expertise I am a lover of fantasy turned on to the genre by my older sister and have read series by Mercedes Lackey, MZBradley, Melanie Rawn, Jennifer Roberson, Kate Elliott, Ursula LeGuin, Andre Norton, Robin Hobb, Elizabeth Lynn, Piers Anthony, Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, Elizabeth Moon, and many others. I love talking about books and getting suggestions on what to take on next!
Experience I have read and written a multitude of stories and when I was fourteen bought over 300 fantasy novels in one year. I have read almost all of them by now and am constantly acquiring more.
Expert: Santa Lucia Date: 7/9/2006 Subject: Fantasy books
Question HI,
i really love fantasy and was wondering if you could suggest some. i don't like space alien stuff but anything mysterious or romantic will do. Oh and please if you even suggest anything can you make it long i usually read 100 page books in a day.
Hope you can help,
Tori (of course)
Answer Hi Tori!
Glad you asked! I am very happy to give suggestions on things to read. You mentioned not being too keen on aliens, but liking mysterious or romantic. I must say, I am not much of a fan of alien or space books, although there are some that catch my interest.
A few ideas:
I am really fond of Kate Elliott's Crown of Stars series, which has other creatures, kindda like elves and things, and has magic. I love the fact that the characters are really well developed (although I hated some of the characters!) and that some of them can be traced back to actual historical figures. However, if that isn't your cup of tea, it isn't very prominent, so it can be overlooked. It is beautifully written.
Michelle West's Sun Sword series was one I found it almost impossible to put down at times. There is a lot to follow in those books, but I looked the different cultures, social interactions, and different worlds in the story. The characters are wonderful and I fell in love with some of them. It is set during a war time, with demons trying to take over, so there is a lot of that, but in a good way. If that makes sense. Technically, her Hunter's Oath and Hunter's Death books come first, but while it is better to read them first, it is not necessary. Keep in mind, these books are really complex and can be really hard to follow. I loved that about them.
One of my favourite trilogies of all is Melanie Rawn's Dragon Prince. The story is beautiful, so well-written, and incredible to read. She is a great author, and one I greatly recommend. Unfortunately, I wasn't so fond of the second trilogy in the series, Dragon Star, because I just did not like the main character. In Dragon Prince, it was as if I had known the characters my whole life. They were so real. The only reason I am reluctant to recommend her Exiles trilogy is because the last book, even after 12 years, isn't out yet. I am very eager to read it because the series is incredible, but there has been no news. Thus, putting it off until there is _some_ news would be a good idea....
These books all have at least 400 pages each and are parts of a series, so they should hold you over. Other favourites are:
Elizabeth Lynn's Chronicles of Tornor, which are short and beautiful to read. There is no magic or anything that would not have been present in medieval europe, but are incredible. I reread these three regularly.
Elizabeth Moon's Paks series is entertaining, with magic, elves and others, and lots of war. I haven't reread them recently, but I remember liking them.
On top of that, I recommend just about anything by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Mercedes Lackey, Jennifer Roberson, and Robin Hobb.
I hope that this wasn't too long and involved and that it helps you find something interesting. Best of luck to you and good reading!
Lucia
