A few days ago a question was raised, on the thread devoted to favorite sci-fi written by a woman, as to why we don't similarly recognize the contribution of female writers to fantasy. So, I thought I'd start a parallel thread devoted to that genre.

Who's your favorite female author of fantasy? Mine has to be Patricia C. Wrede (pronounced "Reedy"). I love her Enchanted Forest Chronicles series; and I also highly recommend The Book of Enchantments (which showcases her mastery of the short story) and Caught in Crystal.

That's a tall order, Werner. There are a lot of good ones out there & fantasy flows across a lot of sub-genres for me.

Anne McCaffrey is one of the first & best I ever read. Her romance/SF fantasy Restoree was an early one I read & then I really liked her Pern books, which are SF/Fantasy.

Laurell K. Hamilton's early Anita Blake series are among my favorites in the Paranormal Romances, but I may like Patricia Briggs's Mercy Thompson even better.

Patricia A. McKillip Riddle Master trilogy might be my favorite straight fantasy, at least the one that I think of off the top of my head.

A few of my favs:


Mercedes Lackey

Melanie Rawn

Jennifer Roberson

Marion Zimmer Bradley

Kate Elliott

Andre Norton

That's just off the top of my head...but there are many many more. Actually I've found that in the fantasy genre most of my favorite authors are women.

Besides the ones listed above:

Jacqueline Carey
Robin Hobb
Tanya Huff
Gillian Bradshaw
Katharine Kerr
Ursula K. Le Guin
Diana Gabaldon
Barbara Hambly
Tamara Siler Jones
Trudi Canavan
C.J. Cherryh
Sharon Green
Katherine Kurtz
Mary Stewart
Judith Tarr
Jo Walton
Sheri S. Tepper
Michelle Sagara West
Jane Yolen

I am a huge fan of Patricia Kennealy-Morrison. The Keliad books are some of the best fantasy I've ever read.

Kristine wrote: "I am a huge fan of Patricia Kennealy-Morrison. The Keliad books are some of the best fantasy I've ever read."

Yes - the Keltiad is by far one of my all-time favorite series. I read them once a year or so. I recently messaged Patricia via MySpace almost begging her to publish something (anything) about Aeron or Keltia soon. She agreed that she needs to return to the universe.

Kristine wrote: "I am a huge fan of Patricia Kennealy-Morrison. The Keliad books are some of the best fantasy I've ever read."

Wasn't she married to Jim Morrison? Interesting....

A few I see that aren't on this list:

Carrie Vaughn
Leslie Ann Moore
Elizabeth Moon
Elizabeth Haydon
Maria V. Snyder

I would add

Juliet Marillier
Jules Watson
Susanna Clarke
Fiona Patton
J. K. Rowling
Sarah Monette
Morgan Llywelyn

I'll have to agree with many of these authors. I just finished the Assassin's Apprentice trilogy by Robin Hobb and was blown away by the last book. I also love Jacqueline Carey--her Sundering books are some of the best fantasy I've ever read. I've only read a short story or two by Tanith Lee, what are everyone's thoughts on her? How does she compare with the the fine authors listed here in this thread?

RE; Tanith Lee, I read her back in the '80s and do not really remember the books, though the fact I read all of "Paradys" and "Tales from the Flat Earth" indicates I enjoyed them.

Time for a re-read perhaps, if I can ever get all my books unpacked!

maybe i'll put her on my to-read list then. I enjoyed her story in Wizards: Magical Tales From the Masters of Modern Fantasy

There are probably quite a few other group members here who are more familiar with Lee's work than I am; I've read all but one story in her Red as Blood collection (which is on my currently-reading shelf), as well as her "Into Gold" in the excellent Modern Classics of Fantasy anthology, but so far that's all. That said, though, I would say that her skills as a prose stylist are equal to those of any of the ladies mentioned above that I've read, and she's good at evoking an emotional response to her stories. Like Wrede, she often re-imagines traditional folk/fairy tales; but she tends more often towards dark fantasy than Wrede does. Quite frequently, she sets her tales in actual historical times and places, like the fringe of the waning Roman Empire in "Into Gold," but evokes them essentially as fantasy worlds; and she often uses ideas and deities (usually somewhat re-interpreted) from a variety of religions as literary conceits, without literally endorsing any of them.

they're already listed, but i sooo love Marion Zimmer Bradley and Sheri S Tepper that i had to mention them again!

others not already on the list:
Elizabeth Ann Scarborough (wrote some great ones with anne mccaffrey)
Tamora Pierce (young-adult)
Marge Piercy
Lois McMaster Bujold
Diane Paxton
Octavia E. Butler (though some might argue she's more sci-fi than fantasy)
Sharon Shinn

i agree with jim that fantasy crosses a lot of genres. i think that's one of it's best qualities, as well as being a little unique. and a majority of my favorite fantasy authors are female!

the fantasy genre has been incredibly welcoming to female authors, in large part thanks to the amazing pioneers: Ursula K Le Guin, marion zimmer bradley, Octavia Butler, Andre Norton, and Mercedes Lackey (among others).

oh, and here are a few fantasy books written by female authors that work more in other genres:
The Fifth Sacred Thing by starhawk
Impossible by nancy werlin

Some will repeat what others have said.
My top three are: Mercedes Lackey (her Arrows of the Queen is my favorite trilogy ever), Elizabeth Moon (also writes great SF), and
Katherine Kurtz (Deryni books but especially those with Kelson in them).
Anne McCaffrey (her Pern books read a lot like fantasy).
Lois McMaster Bujold (her SF is better though).
J.V. Jones--The Baker's Boy series is wonderful!
Robin Hobb--the Assassin and Fool series.
Sharon Shinn--Castle Auburn is a particular favorite
Kristine Kathryn Rusch--the Fey series (it is out of print, but you should be able to find it in used book stories or the library).
Marion Zimmer Bradley--Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series (Darkover is SF but has a fantasy feel to it).

For urban fantasy or paranormal,
Kim Harrison--Rachel Morgan series,
Kelley Anderson--Women of Otherworld,
Carrie Vaughn--Kitty series.

Tanith Lee is one of the authors impossible to pigeonhole. She slips all over the border between science fiction, fantasy, and horror. If one of her books doesn't fit your mood, try something else. "Biting the Sun" (which collects two novellas) is a personal favorite. Try daughterofthenight.com to see an incredible bibliography of Lee's work from 1968 to present.

If you like Robin Hobb, try her earlier works as Megan Lindholm too. Wizard of Pigeons is an amazing novel and pretty good tour through a now gone downtown Seattle.

I'm also very fond of Rachel Caine, both her Weather Warden series and the Morganville books.

I'd add:

Sarah Zettel and Carol Berg - if you liked Marillier, McKillip, Bujold, on those lines, these two are worth a look.

And Terri Windling if you like the mythic, placed in a modern setting.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Roberta wrote: "Some will repeat what others have said.
My top three are: Mercedes Lackey (her Arrows of the Queen is my favorite trilogy ever), Elizabeth Moon (also writes great SF), and
Katherine Kurtz (Deryni b..."

Ursula Le Guin
Ursula Le Guin
Ursula Le Guin
and
Kathering Kerr

I'm suprised no one has mentioned C.S. Friedman. My husband doesn't like fantasy and even he loved her Coldfire series. I'm eagerly awaiting the third novel in her new Magister series and personally I think its even better than Coldfire.

I also have a soft spot for Diane Duane. Her Young Wizards series might be properly classified as YA fantasy, but even now I'm pushing 40 I really enjoy those books. I read the first book back before I even knew there was such a thing as YA books. I can't count the times I read the Wizard's Oath wishing so hard that it could really be true. :)

I've not read any of the Fastasy offerings from Elizabeth Moon or Lois McMaster Bujold, but they are both excellent authors.

And of course I couldn't talk about women in Fantasy without mentioning LeGuin.

@C.S. Friedman - I too enjoyed Coldfire, but did not realize CS Friedman was female until I just googled her!! The probs with using initials. :-)

@Diane Duane - I have tried to get into Young Wizards, but have not found book 1 compelling. They are still in my to be read bookcase, though. I usually enjoy so-called YA novels (who rates these things anyway... many are deeper than a superficial read). Besides, I consider a Young Adult to be someone between 18 and 40 in general with great individual variations.

@Ursula Le Guin - I have enjoyed Earthsea (I have only read the 1° trilogy), but do not consider it one of the great epic Fantasies. at least not superior like "The Left Hand of Darkness". I think of her more as a SciFI author.

Sadly, that's the exact reason a lot of female authors listed their names w/ initials--publishers didn't think people would read female authors.

Kernos wrote: "@C.S. Friedman - I too enjoyed Coldfire, but did not realize CS Friedman was female until I just googled her!! The probs with using initials. :-)

For high fantasy, I love Robin Hobb's work.

For either fantasy or science fiction, definitely Ursula K. Le Guin.

For the darker, and stranger, side of things, I always turn to Caitlin R. Keirnan.

These are definitely my top three women fantasy writers.

My fav's are Laurell K. Hamilton, Melanie Rawn, Louise Cooper, and Jennifer Roberson.

Janny Wurts - "The Curse of the Mistwraith" has just been re-released.

J.V. Jones - Book of Words series - starting with Baker's Boy...

Robin Hobb - Assassin and Liveship series

Mercedes Lackey - early Valdemar series books are the best

J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter

Mary Stewart - Merlin Trilogy

Marion Zimmer Bradley - The Mists of Avalon

Hey, how could I forget J.K. Rowling?

God! (smacks himself on the head really hard with a Harry Potter book).

Rowling has been mentioned a few times in this thread. I didn't mention her in my original post, because I define fantasy as something set in a different world than ours, so it excludes supernatural fiction set in this world (I know, I'm ridiculously nitty-picky! :-)) But I was enthralled by the Harry Potter series, and I'm sure that most fans of dark fantasy would also enjoy it. (True, it's set in England --but mostly in parts of England where us "Muggles" can't go! :-))

Strangely perhaps, I don't differentiate. I can frequently read a book and not even realise it's by a woman. As long as it's a good book, I don't care.

Thinking back, I have read works by: Anne McCaffrey, Ursula K LeGuin, Andre Norton (see, I thought she was a man), Lois McMaster Bujold, Mary Stewart and Tanith Lee. Most were Ok, some were excellent. LeGuin nd Norton I particularly like.

Werner wrote: "... I define fantasy as something set in a different world than ours..."

How do you categorize Fantasy books that do take place in our world?

I do subcategorize Fantasy into Tolkienian, non-Tolkienian and Historical/Mythological Fantasy.

Paul wrote: "Strangely perhaps, I don't differentiate. I can frequently read a book and not even realise it's by a woman. As long as it's a good book, I don't care ..."

I absolutely agree. In general the author's gender is irrelevant to me. I do, however have problems with books that obviously have a radical-feminist agenda, mainly because I have trouble identifying with the protagonist.

Kernos, good question! (The first answer that comes to mind is that I don't have that problem, because if it's set in our world, it isn't fantasy; but of course that's circular reasoning, and I do know what you mean. :-)) For practical purposes, I classify a book with magic as fantasy if it's set at least partly in another world, like Feist's Faerie Tale, though much of it may be set in this world. Also, I classify something with magic as fantasy if it's set in an invented remote past, like the Lord of the Rings saga or Howard's Conan stories, or an invented remote future, like Brooks' Shannara series. Even if these are technically set on "Earth," it's not an Earth that resembles the actual one that we know. (And even though "urban fantasy" like de Lint's Newford books are set in this world, I defer to the popular "fantasy" classification in those cases.) Otherwise, I put the supernatural stories set in this world, like Rowling's, in the genre of "supernatural fiction" (a more accurate term that I like better than "horror.")

Elizabeth Bear (Amsterdam; All the Windwracked Stars)

C.E. Murphy (Urban Shaman, Thunderbird Falls, etc)

Kat Richardson (Greywalker; Underground)

Anne Bishop (Black Jewels books; Tir Alainn trilogy; Ephemera books)

Laura Anne Gilman - Retrievers series

T.A. Pratt (Marla Mason books: Blood Engines; Poison Sleep, etc)

Emma Bull - War for the Oaks

"War for the Oaks" was great fun for me because it took place in the city I lived in at the time.

Esther Friesner edited a series of fantasy short stories (the Chicks in Chainmail series) that had great short fantasy stories by many of the top women authors you have all listed.
I consider all my paranormal books (romance or not) to be fantasy, so I would include such authors as Sherrilyn Kenyon, Charlaine Harris, MaryJanice Davidson, Lori Handeland, Rebecca York, Patricia Briggs, Yasmine Galenorn, L.A. Banks, Deborah Cooke, Nalini Singh, Christine Feehan, Lynsay Sands, Katie MacAlister, and Maggie Shayne all good additions to the lists.
My two all-time favorites remain Andre Norton and Anne MacCaffrey.

rebecca j wrote: "I consider all my paranormal books (romance or not) to be fantasy..."

I agree!

Looking back I really haven't read too much fantasy by women. No particular reason at all, either.

I'd like to add Lynn Flewelling. Her Tamir trilogy, starting with The Bone Doll's Twin was excellent.

Yes, as Werner says Patricia Wrede is a really great writer and I love the fact that she can write across styles - I am thinking of the Cecilia books vs the Enchanted Forest Chronicles. I also like Caroline Stevemeyer.

Although not as 'powerful' as a writer as Le Guin or Butler, Margaret Weis is a notable author.

In the 'Authors mentioned in this topic', I didn't see Janny Wurts listed. She should be. I'm reading The Master of Whitestorm right now & it's fantastic. One of those books that makes me wish for a lot more reading time - NOW! Also, I really like her art work. She did the cover art for a lot of her books. She has them on her web site:
http://www.paravia.com/JannyWurts/websit...
Well worth browsing through.

I'll second Anne Bishop very enthusiastically! She's my favorite author of all time! I absolutely adore her Black Jewels Trilogy.

I also enjoyed a lot of the authors listed above, and would like to add:
Donna Gillespie (more historical fantasy - amazing!)
Anne Lesley Groell (Anvil of the Sun, etc)
Joanne Bertin (The Last Dragonlord)
Robin McKinley (more young adult than adult, but good)
Elizabeth Kerner (Song in the Silence)

I love Patricia Wrede's books. Her children's series on dragons was one I particularly enjoyed.

Catherynne M. Valente's The Orphan's Tales are 2 of my favorite works of fantasy.

Emma Bull's Territory is as good as it gets.

Martha Wells has a bunch of excellent novels.

Lois McMaster Bujold has been mentioned before but she bears repeating.

Ursula K. Le Guin naturally, though her sci-fi is where I think she really shines.

Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is also excellent.