[Suzerain of Sheol]

I somewhat doubt it, as these sort of books seem to be rather unpopular (not without reason, I think), but they're the only kind of fantasy I can tolerate anymore.

I am just so tired of the tropes and the slavish adherence to the classic hero-story mold. I like it when an author does something unexpected, turns a cliche on its head, makes you think they're going in a well-worn direction, only to surprise you with something refreshing. This... doesn't tend to happen in the fantasy genre, though this problem seems to finally be getting addressed by some more current authors. And it is about time.

If anyone's looking for recommendations in this vein,

The Malazan Book of the Fallen, Steven Erikson. 10,000 pages of taking everything good about the genre and killing the rest with fire.

The Prince of Nothing and Aspect-Emperor trilogies by R. Scott Bakker. Set in a world based on the First Crusade where religious belief affects reality. The main character is a sociopathic genius monk who is this world's Anti-Christ.

The Black Company series by Glen Cook. A fast-paced-, gritty 1st-person tale about a company of a jaded mercenaries put through hell again and again.

The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Stephen R. Donaldson. A writer with leprosy is hit by a police car and wakes up in a dreamworld that seems to be shaped by his subconscious, where he does everything he can to avoid all manner of responsibility, all the while refusing to belief any of it is real.

I don't classify GRRM's A Song of Ice and Fire in this category, he's very much telling a classic sort of fantasy story, just telling it very well and in a much more mature way than a lot of what came before.

On my list are Joe Abercrombie's books, and the upcoming Prince of Thorns looks interesting as well.

And of course, if anyone has any to add to the above, I'd love to hear about them. I'm always looking for books that take the genre to places it hasn't been before.

[Mizeria]

Anti-Fantasy Fantasy Books?
Sounds... weird.
I would love to find some and read them. You're right. The well worn path that fantasy books lead us down is something I wish to get away from. I wouldn't mind stumbling through the forest trying to find the way out.

Honestly I'm starting to get sick of happy endings too. I know we all get attached to the characters in our books but come on. Every once and a while something bad has to happen. Nothing is perfect. Life sure isn't. Every once and a while I just want something to go wrong. Something that messes with that happily ever after concept that everyone seems to love.

[Suzerain of Sheol]

Call it post-modern fantasy, if you prefer. :p

And you make a good point about happy endings and immortal good guys (*cough* Drizzt *cough*). In a story that's at least partially supposed to hinge on a sense of action and danger, the effect is smothered if the characters prevail time and again.

That also reminds me, a pattern in the books I mentioned above is that they all tend to be rather "dark" (though that's a vague description, I know.) The characters are nearly all painted in shades of gray and the plots can't reduced to anything as simplistic as Good vs. Evil.

To add to what I mentioned above, for the action/adventure type fantasy fan a bit tired with predictable plots, Malazan and the Black Company both fill that void nicely.

And for those looking for something a bit more cerebral, with meatier characters and pronounced psychological and philosophical elements, Thomas Covenant and the Prince of Nothing are both really rewarding on that level.

[Quiet Man Cometh]

Don't know if I'd call myself an anti-fantasy person, but the books I'm looking into now are starting to lean in that direction simply for lack of anything that I'm interested in on the traditionaly marketable end.

Have Donaldson, gave up on Game of Thrones but not Martin, and am trying out GG Kay now with Ysabel. It's pretty standard so far with the young boy who has wierd powers he didn't know he had, but it is leaning more towards folklore than fantasy. One of the things I've noticed is that I'm really not sure at this point whether or not certain characters fall into the category of good or evil. For instance, one of the 'persons of interest' appears to be working against some sinister figure, or something that seems sinister, but also admits freely that he will, and has, killed children in his life because they got in his way. He says this to teh 15 year old main character in the manner of standard fact than in trying to get any emotional reaction it seems. Really not sure what to make of him and others so far, and I'm interested in reading more of the book just to see more of the people.

[Suzerain of Sheol]

I've never read Kay, but I've heard good things about him. (And he has a cool name.)

Some other authors I've heard mentioned as being good for something beyond the norm are Scott Lynch and Gene Wolfe, but I haven't read either of them, either.

[Quiet Man Cometh]

I picked up Ysabel in particular because it won the world fantasy award and I've read another book that won that award and I liked it. When I see books or movies have won particular accolades I like to check them out and see how my own opinions match up with the awards so I know whether or not it's something I should look out for.

[Suzerain of Sheol]

I don't put much stock in awards. My opinion is divergent enough from the norm, usually, that I find it isn't worth my time. Most of the stuff I like is relatively unpopular, and conversely, I tend not to like books that are. (I'm lukewarm on Mr. Martin. I think I know too much about him as a person, thanks to all the drama around A Dance With Dragons, to really enjoy his writing.)

[Quiet Man Cometh]

Well, like I said, I like to investigate such things because it does make picking somthing new a little easier than throwing darts at the bookstores shelves.

I have my Martin book of short stories with me but I still haven't read it. Haven't read anything. Bad me. I'd go back to Lord Foul's Bane but at the moment I think I need to finish a few of the books I'm reading before moving on earnestly in that and a few others I started in on.

[Suzerain of Sheol]

Lord Foul's Bane is very much a product of its time. It was written as a direct response to LotR and as such, borrows a lot of elements from it, in order to twist and subvert them. The story becomes much broader and more original in the later books. One thing to be said about Donaldson, he knows how to write a good sequel.

[Saiyouri]

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(｡◕‿◕｡) I used to be anti fantasy but
my husband told me about these books by
David Eddings and I actually tried one out
and love it instantly. Even before the first
paragraph was over.



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[Suzerain of Sheol]

David Eddings is one of the reasons I'm anti-fantasy... :p

And don't mistake me, the books I mentioned above are all fantasy books, they just try hard to get away from the cliches and do something new.

[Saiyouri]

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(｡◕‿◕｡) Wow, why are you anit fantasy because of him?



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[Suzerain of Sheol]

Well, not just because of him, but a large group of authors who write a story with the following plot:

Young protagonist is sheltered and ignorant about the world. Something exciting happens to force him/her into the world. He/She gains a wise mentor along the way, as well as a group of eclectic companions. He/She finds out he/she is the Chosen One and must defeat the Great Evil. He/She finds true love whose fate is tied to victory over the Great Evil. Big battle is fought and protagonist is victorious, marries love interest. The end.

I'm just sick of reading the same story over and over. I'm sick of good vs. evil and I'm sick of invincible heroes who can do no wrong.

Granted, I liked his books when I read them,, when I was 11 or 12, but that was ten years ago and my tastes have changed. At least Eddings was up-front about how shamelessly cliche his story is. Other authors don't seem to realize that fact.

[Saiyouri]

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(｡◕‿◕｡) Ah that makes sense. I just started reading
fantasy books so that kind of storyline
doesn't bother me that much. If I keep
reading them all the time then it might.



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[Suzerain of Sheol]

Yep, I've been at it all my life. Gets tiring after a while.

...T.V. Tropes might have ruined my life, also. :|

[Saiyouri]

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(｡◕‿◕｡) 0.o Seems like nothing is going well for you
hehe.



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