Over the past few years, I’ve enjoyed a lot of new fantasy authors. It occurred to me that a list of the best might be appreciated by those who are just starting to read the genre. Among the following you will find two male, three female, and one husband and wife team. I can highly recommend all of these tales.
Ilona Andrews
Ilona Andrews is actually a husband and wife team. Together, they have produced some of the best fantasy novels I’ve had the pleasure of reading.
We’ll start with the Kate Daniels series. Currently, there are eight novels available.
The chronological order of the series, including Kate Daniels World:
- MAGIC BITES
- MAGIC BURNS
- MAGIC STRIKES
- Magic Mourns (Raphael and Andrea novella)
- MAGIC BLEEDS
- Magic Dreams (Jim and Dali novella)
- MAGIC SLAYS
- GUNMETAL MAGIC (and Magic Gifts) – Andrea’s book – Kate Daniels World #1
They just released the last of four books in The Edge series. This is a truly classic fantasy adventure with many memorable characters. The Edge is not a place most would care to live, but it is a place that you’ll feel you’ve been there upon reading the books.
- On the Edge
- Bayou Moon
- Fate’s Edge
- Steel’s Edge
Their website not only includes a blog, appearance schedule, and news articles, but also has the first couple of chapters of each tale. An added bonus is an ongoing free weekly serial that when finished, they have promised to release as an ebook.
Treat yourself to a visit.
Kim Harrison
The best thing I can say about The Hollows series of books is that I consider the characters to be old friends and would love to meet them for real. Of secondary interest is how each book seems to surprise the reader with a little more insight. All the characters grow and change from their experiences.
- Dead Witch Walking
- The Good, The Bad, and the Undead
- Every Which Way But Dead
- A Fistful of Charms
- For A Few Demons More
- The Outlaw Demon Wails
- White Witch, Black Curse
- Black Magic Sanction
- Pale Demon
- A Perfect Blood
- Ever After
Patricia Briggs
Although the tropes of vampires, werewolves, fae, and others have been overdone in recent years, this series has a refreshing new feel to it with memorable characters.
Merchy Thompson is a female German auto mechanic. She drives older Volkswagon models that she has rebuilt herself.
Both the Mercy Thompson series and Alpha and Omega series take place in the same corner of the multiverse. Like most serials, I would read them in sequence.
Mercy Thompson Series
- Moon Called
- Blood Bound
- Iron Kissed
- Bone Crossed
- Silver Borne
- River Marked
- Frost Burned
Alpha and Omega Series
On The Prowl [short story]
- Cry Wolf
- Hunting Ground
- Fair Game
http://www.patriciabriggs.com/
Kelly Armstrong
This is another series that should be read in sequence. The characters of Kelly Armstrong’s Otherworld will become friends and the reader will get sucked into the overall storyline.
- Bitten
- Stolen
- Dime Store Magic
- Industrial Magic
- Haunted
- Broken
- No Humans Involved
- Personal Demon
- Living with the Dead
- Frostbitten
- Waking the Witch
- Spell Bound
- Thirteen
- Werewolves
- Spellcasters
Men of the Otherworld (Anthology)
Tales of the Otherworld (Anthology)
http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/
J.A. Pitts
More than a few authors have paid homage to the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). J.A. Pitts has managed a whole new viewpoint on Dragons and the Fae while wrapping an adventure tale around an unusual love story. Our heroine is a hiding-in-the-closet lesbian, trying to make a living as a blacksmith and prop manager for a movie production company. Anyone who has spent any time with SCAdians will recognize the cast of characters.
- Black Blade Blues
- Honeyed Words
- Forged in Fire
John Ringo
I think prolific sums it up. Since 2000, he has written or co-written with David Weber, Michael Z. Williamson, Julie Cochrane, Linda Evans, Travis Taylor, and Tom Kratman thirty three novels. These tales run the gamut from hard-core military science fiction to urban fantasy. Since this article is focused on fantasy, I’ll only point out two of his series that I believe qualify.
Special Circumstances Series
- Princess of Wands
- Queen of Wands
Council Wars Series
- There Will be Dragons
- Emerald Sea
- Against the Tide
- East of the Sun, West of the Moon
Tanya Huff
She has written many, many novels, but these two gems stand out as something truly different.
http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Tanya%20Huff
Enchantment Emporium
The Wild Ways
It is interesting to note that Tanya Huff is the only popular author I’m aware of that does not have her own webpage. You can find plenty of interviews and reviews of her work, but even when the Canadian Broadcasting Company turned her vampire books into a TV series called “Blood Ties”, she managed to avoid the limelight.
There you have it. Fifty six novels that if you’ve not read them, you really should add to your TBR pile.
Be sure to share your reviews after perusing each one.
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