I love a Durfee list. I love that you include nostalgia reads like Dragonlance. I love that you appreciate 'older' books, but also throw exciting new finds in (Neither a curmudgeon who thinks it was better 'back in the day', nor someone who thinks old means outdated/passe.) And, I love how many female fantasy authors show up on your lists. The depth of your reading knowledge is always impressive. And, considering how many of my favorite things show up here (Dragonlance, Hobb, Feist, Eddings, CS Friedman, Tolkein), I'm looking forward to finding more great books in your recs!
100% agreed. I'm a bit flabbergasted at some of the ranking choices (like Silverthorn above The Dragon Reborn or Robin Hobb's books for example), but i just love the breadth of the top 100 and the variety of authors and books.
Should maybe put one or two of the qualifiers in the title, like 100 Greatest "High" Fantasy Novels or whatever term(s) the kids are using these days ;)
@@Rhand007, why flabbergasted? He's not creating some definitive best of all time list, it's a personal love/like list. We all have different tastes, and sometimes our preferences don't line up with what might be "better' from a literary merit or popularity or sales perspective. FWIW, Silverthorn definitely beats The Dragon Reborn on ANY list! 😉
I started reading fanasty in 2018 and I have yet to know of or read a Tad Williams book. Your enthusiasm definitely put him high on to my must read list and I am excited to dive into his work.
so glad that Melanie Rawn gets some love. She's underrated and it seems that most book tubers these days haven't even read her stuff. what a shame. Also wanted to say that Dragonlance and Shanara probably launched my love of fantasy as a teenager in the late 80s.
unfortunately, most booktubers will only read what will give them clicks and engagement so they stick to modern popular fantasy. It sucks because there are decades of great fantasy novels being forgotten as a result. I get it though. Trying to make money doing booktube requires such things.
This is a perfect list for me to return to fantasy books. Way back in the day my favorite series were the Belgariad, Dragonlance (mainly Legends I believe, the one Raistlin was plotting to become a god), LOTR, and Drizzt books. You have obviously similar tastes since you included most of these, which means I have a lot of suggestions I will doubtless enjoy a lot, thanks!
Thank You for putting a Terry Goodkind book in your Top 100 list…IMHO he gets unfairly prejudiced against in fantasy BookTube and from reviewers on Goodreads…I don’t think you can talk classic fantasy without his Sword of Truth series…So again Thank You for doing that…As for me Tad Williams and GGK are not only two of the best fantasy authors of all time but top authors of any genre IMHO…But in fantasy you list Tad Williams, GGK, GRRM and Brandon Sanderson and you have yourself the makings of a very strong and legitimate top 10 fantasy authors list…Tad Williams and his Memory, Sorrow and Thorn is where I cut my teeth in fantasy and remains one of my All Time Favorites…I am glad to see him so well respected and represented on this list taking the number 1 position…Well deserved indeed
I love the Sword of Truth series also! I have a lot of books to read still but have read a lot of fantasy and the characters in SoT are still the best I've read! And Stone of Tears is also my favorite book of the series and my #1 favorite book of all time. At least so far. I still have a lot to read!!
David Eddings "The Belgariad" and "The Mallorean" series are among my favourite fantasy novels, as is Terry Goodkind's "Sword of Truth" series, (I was hooked from book one: "Wizard's First Rule") and both Jennifer Roberson's "Tiger and Del" and "The Chronicles of Cheysuli" series.
I would rank Lord Fouls Bane as #1 but that’s mainly due to nostalgia from reading it as a teenager. Have read many on your list and have many on my to read list based on your recommendations. I would definitely include Forgetting Moon in my top 100! Looking forward to reading your other 2.
MY GUY! just thought you should know i am SO excited to read YOUR books. I am reading them over several other big titles that are considered the best in the genre....but there is something about your books that makes me want to read them. Cant wait to dive into them and i hope you continue to write! I love the energy you bring man. Cheers.
Loved the video. Awesome picks. I remember getting Sword of Shanara for my birthday and sitting outside reading it. I had finished reading Lord of the Rings and was thirsting for more fantasy. I had the trade paperback with the illustrations...so fun to read. I am looking forward to reading Tad Williams!
Great list. Here's my critique. Best Anne McCafrey book, hands down, is the first in that Pern series, Dragonflight. I did read the whole series until her son took over. I thought you might not be into absurdist fantasy, but you did have Aspirin on your list. Given that, I would have expected a nod to Terry Pratchett and some Piers Anthony. The Xanth series got me into reading in high school in the 80's. I don't read grim dark unless my favorite series, Mistborn counts so I have more room. 3 notable absent titles that I would have put in as well: A Wrinkle in Time, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelansky. I give you props for high rankings for both McCafrey and Brooks, widely forgotten or underrated in the booktube community.
100 epic fantasy novels, wow! I have read your complete trilogy and it would most definitely make my top 10 epic fantasy series. I don't see the Gwynne comparison personally, for me I see the analogies to ASOIAF and Shadowmarch (especially the epigraphs which I am rather fond of). And it makes sense that I think when you did a top 40 video earlier ASOIAF and MS&T were #3 and #2 respectively. You put Tolkien at #12, #8, #3 aww. 🥺 For me Tolkien is #1 always. 😄 It's close enough to the previous one, JRR Tolkien, Martin and Williams in top 3 still. Great video.
Great that you’ve included so many older books which don’t get a lot of attention on booktube. Dragonlance was also my first foray into fantasy. Surprised that none of the Narnia books made the cut though 🤔
GREAT to see some love for the Melanie Rawn Dragon Prince books! After Tolkien, they were my second foray into fantasy and when I was young and I've always loved them.
My first time watching one of your videos. You have SO MANY MORE female fantasy writers on your list than other book tubers. Although, I guess I'd have to admit I've never seen a list limited to sword/dragon/fantasy. I love your list! I've got lots of new (old) books to look for! Thanks so much for sharing!
You got a lot of gold here, I personally just started reading books about a couple months ago. I can;t wait to dive into your list, but who knows when that is going to be as I already got a huge back log of stuff I wanna read. Thanks for the list :)
I really appreciate your channel. You've turned me on to so many authors I never would have read and even different genres ( who knew I'd like westerns). I always check out your channel before I go book shopping
The Elfstones of Shannara is the BEST of that trilogy. High fantasy rarely makes me cry. The ending of that book broke me so hard I couldn't get into the 3rd book at all.
Thank you for all these recommendations! I am getting back into reading and fantasy has always been my favorite. While my back account does not thank you, I really appreciate you suggesting such a wide variety of novels and series!
Im so happy that you included Brandon Sanderson in your list. I havent read that many epic fantasy books, besides Talkien's Lord of the Rings and Silmarillon . However the day I discovered Sanderson's books I started to fall in love with the genre.
Good to see that Coe novel on the list. I bought all five of Winds of the Forelands a few months ago because I liked the covers. I might put it on my TBR list for 2024.
I’m currently reading The Dragonbone Chair and am LOVING it! So to hear you say To Green Angel Tower is the best epic fantasy book ever written in your opinion has me so amped to continue the story. Great list!
Literally yesterday was thinking i wanted some good older fantasy recommendations. Back to the simpler stories where it was a little more black and white, good vs evil. I'm sure many on your list fit the bill. Also, i loved your trilogy. Saw you at Dragonsteel 2022. Thanks for being awesome.
Great video with an amazing collection of many types and styles of epic fantasy through the last 4 decades (plus some 70s and Tolkien of course). But what really messed me up was that pile on the floor at the end of the video. For 25 mins I watched those gorgeous hardcovers and other rare books flash on my screen and make me jealous... and then I see them all on the floor on top of each other! Whaaaat! I don't know how to feel about that really. It will push us to our limits but I think we (might, just might) still love you after this... :D
Really appreciate your listing, for reasons others have said -- shows a much wider range of fantasy (old and new) than many of the fantasy book-tubers, most of whom talk about the same set of books. Also have to give a shout out to your mention of CS Friedman since just the other day I was trying to remember the name of that series. I can't fault any list that puts "To Green Angel Tower" at the top - Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn is still one of the best fantasy epics ever (can't wait for "The Navigator's Children" to drop later this month). I personally would have included less grimdark and more light/humorous fantasy (like Asprin's Myth series, Craig Shaw Gardner's books, or Alan Dean Foster's Spellsinger series), though I guess it's arguable if any of that counts as "epic". I also would have included JV Jones' "Sword of Shadows" and Rawn's "Exiles" series, even if they're unfinished
Really good list Brian! You are well-versed in many of the ‘classic’ titles and authors (Rawn, Kay, Brooks, Goodkind, etc.) that most of your BT contemporaries tend to overlook… I think I just called both of us old 😅 Tad is the best, especially MS&T. Yes! Here’s a few that would slip into my list: Mists of Avalon (MZ Bradley), Heir of Fire (Book 3 of Throne of Glass by SJ Maas) and Malice (J Gwynne’s debut)… all 5* reads for me. Your Pile of Fame shot at the end earned a grimdark chuckle… oh how the pressures of Booktubing can cause such neglect and abuse! 😮😂
I have two favorites: 1. The Dragon and the George by L. Sprague DeCamp and River of the Dancing Gods by Jack L. Chalker! I too was devastated by the death at the end of Dragonlance book Dragon's of Winter Night. In fact, I have only been brought to tears twice by a book in all my 67 years. Dragons of Winter Night's death and the death of Beth in Little Women.
Enjoyed the video thanks for making it 😊 I have a worn pb copy of The Dragonbone Chair that I picked up at a charity shop last week. Thanks to you I'm reading it next right after I finish Needful Things. I've also never read Tad Williams before.....
Love the list, also love all the paperbacks. I have a thing for those yellow pages, those frayed spines and those flimsy covers packing beautiful retro fantasy illustrations.
So pleased to see CS Friedman make the list. She is so underappreciated. Also, one of my favorites that no one reads anymore: Mirror of her Dreams by Donaldson. Such a fun duology.
R. R. Verdi stands a good chance of being a great fantasy author. He has the mandatory "R. R." initials, like J. R. R. Tolkien and George R. R. Martin. Also, An R&R is one of the terms in the publishing industry that frequently has writers drawing a blank…or devolving into sheer panic. Simply put, an R&R stands for Revise and Resubmit.
Hey another great video. I’ve been watching a lot of your stuff recently and have discovered some great books that I never would have found on my own, just wanted to say thanks and keep up the good work.
# 96: :"Rules of Ascension" by David B. Coe...can we get a review on this??? There are almost NO REVIEWS on this book on RU-vid. I grabbed the whole series on a book haul but im not sure where to place it on my TBR list. If you like it, it must be good though.
My list changes year to year Sword of shannarra was my first epic fantasy in 1987 especially loved the cover Happy to see coldfire trilogy on the list I didn't care for Friedman's sci-fi so much but I would love to see the coldfire trilogy on screen with a budget
We must be around the same age, the peak of my fantasy reading include David Eddings, Raymond E Feist, Terry Goodkind, Tad Williams, the Dragon Lance series by Weis & Hickman, yes Tolkien started my fantasy with The Hobbit, it was really Magician by Feist that really got me hooked on reading fantasy.
12:50 60 - Slog of Slogs! 13:04 59 - so good, so well written, and so funny with so manyu in jokes 14:00 Melanie Rawn very underrated 14:12 - The great Brandon! 15:25 Name of the Wind is SO GOOD. Beautifully written with amazing world building. It's such a shame the series remains unfinished. 16:03 New Sun books are bonkers. They melt your brain, but they are excellent. 16:40 Completely agree with you. Dragonlance WAS Fantasy back in the day. The Twins trilogy is better written though imo. 17:27 ELRIC! 19:14 Conan is so good. Even reading it now it has so much energy. 21:47 fantastic. Brought so muny fantasy tropes into RPGing and the main steam. '2nd story work' etc. Love the book. 23:51 Game of Throne Iconic. 24:08 Memory, sorrow, and thorn. So influential a series. More people need to read this.
Interesting list, though there are too many I haven’t read or tried to read. Many of these books would be on my list. You didn’t include a few that I would have included. I really like Feist’s Serpent War Saga for example, and you included some that I just couldn’t get into: like George RR Martin and Joe Abercrombie. I couldn’t get thru the first Martin book, as for Abercrombie, the writing was top notch, but mid way through the second book I realized I didn’t care what happened in the story, or to any of the characters. You included a lot of my favorites from authors who might not be considered great writers, but they produce engaging stories. Edding’s is a perfect example. I’ve read his Sparhawk trilogies numerous times. The writing is average to poor, and yet I love the stories and keep rereading them. Glad you included some Alexander, Dragonlance, Weeks, and Gemmell. The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander is why I can read. I was barely reading by fourth grade and then my older sister suggested my Mom read it to me. I couldn’t wait for a chapter each night with the other 4 books in the series and slooooowly read them myself. I found a love of fantasy and science fiction novels. Within two years I was reading Tolkien. I completely agree with your list, because it is yours, and am happy to see so much crossover with my favorites.
Since you admit to excluding the Chronicles of Amber series due to it is not strictly an epic, sword and sorcery type fantasy, why was Anne McCaffrey’s The White Dragon (your #79) included? Her Dragonriders series was almost strictly a scientific scenario stretching from the other planetary “threads” (which served as the main protagonist) where the only “sorcery” is the genetically induced telepathy between dragons and humans. It is a fantastic series, and The White Dragon is a great pick, but definitely not a swords and sorcery one. Amber had a plethora of actual swords and sorceries, especially as the narrative got closer and closer to Amber itself.
Amazing. A lot of effort to come up with a hundred books AND rank them. It would be great if you could do a Top X standalone fantasy books. I'm trying to entice young readers to try more fantasy. The trilogies and long series are something they will immediately dismiss. Later they may reconsider.
Thanks. This could have been a best fantasy series of all time list. What are your thoughts on game books? Lone Wolf series never gets mention. But I think it was unique enough in that it had a consistant narrative that followed a single main character across the span of 20 books. From the age of 15 to 50. All the while choosing to level his skills and attributes. The world building was very good. Unique beasts, races, languages. And geography was great too. Very different to the typical game books of Fighting Fantasy or Sorcery. Very young adult but truly got me locked into the Fantasy genre for life.
One of The best video of The day, i was afraid you put One of Game of Thrones saga by Martin, but at last with Tad Williams’s Green Angel Tower i was surprised, very Good;) Thank you so much si;)
Have read quite a few of those on I would have in my list that I would recommend if you haven't read it is Riddle Master of Hed by Patricia A. Mckillips from 1976 read it in junior high around 1981 and could never find the second and third book until several years ago and got the series and re-read it and it was still a great read, hope you haven't read it and you get to discover a new (old) author. Also just subbed and look forward to viewing more of your vids.
Great list, I must have 90% of the books on there, and have read most of them. I really enjoy the older ones, as I remember picking those up when I first started reading fantasy.
Fun list. So many I haven't read since I wasn't reading in the 90s and 2000s 😜 Classics I would wiggle A Spell for Cameleon in somewhere and mu current recent favorites are Blood of an Exile and Of Sea and Shadow. I'm currently listening to Malazan Book 1 🙌🏼
See the thing is I’m really struggling to get into fantasy books, tried the Black Company, tried Mistborn and Priory of the Orange tree and just didn’t connect with the magic systems, but I love fantasy epic movies such as Lord of the rings and medieval epic movies like kingdom of heaven and Troy etc. Really trying to figure out what kind of epics I like in book form hopefully this video can help
Try the Faithful and the Fallen, David Gemmel books, LOTR, and ASOIAF. Also, try reading Historical fiction. I love fantasy as well, but I'm often mostly drawn by the medieval setting. Historical fiction is the better option if you especially like the settings. Some greats are Bernard Cornwell and Ben Kane.
@@FrancT- thanks for the recommendations! I had a look at Malice and ordered it straight away after reading a brief description and also discovering it’s more of a low fantasy setting that gives that epic fantasy movie vibe. Started the first Dark Tower book too so will definitely be checking out Malice after that. And with the Game of thrones books I’m super reluctant to start those because I’m very inexperienced when it comes to fantasy novels and jumping head first into a massive series like that seems daunting. Think I’m less of a fan of the focus on things like prose and hard magic systems and definitely more into plot and characters and that feeling that this is genuinely a massive world with kingdoms with large battles. Will check out Bernard Cornwell too tho that seems interesting. Thanks friend.
I had the same problem with Mistborn and Priory of the orange tree. I found them VERY easy to put down and have never finished either. The powder Mage trilogy by Brian McClellan is brilliant. I really enjoyed them along with Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding. Tom Holt books I could never get into, but his Engineer series written as KJ Parker are really good. Dark, but good.
Black company in my opinion could probably make a universal on average top 10 list of fantasy series readers started but never finished from readers who adore it and respect the books yet somehow never gets around to it.
Good list. I've read many of them, got tons more to read. A few notes: A. You broke your own rule by including Wolfe's Book of the New Sun, which is technically science fiction, not fantasy. (And frankly I didn't like it and see it as very over-rated.) Instead I would have listed Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber. B. McKiernan doesn't get talked about enough, I thoroughly enjoy his books. Eye of the Hunter is equal to Dragondoom. C. Glad to see some Steven Brust on the list. I agree that Jhereg is among the best. His writing is uneven but I give him props for willing to experiment. D. Never read Dragonlance but I did try to play the AD&D campaign back in the 80s. Unfortunately I found the modules to be poorly written and near unplayable. Highly over-rated. E. Also glad to see some David Eddings in the list. I find it odd no booktubers ever talk about his series which were quite popular in the 90s. F. Raymond Feist is also sadly ignored. G. Interesting that no one talks about E.R. Eddison's The Worm Ouroborous. Quite early and influential fantasy. It is dry though, perhaps that's why.
Same here about Gene Wolfe's books. Urth of the New Sun. That was the first series I bought which guaranteed I will never buy a set again. Did not like it at all and simply left it at Goodwill.
