Looking for something really "epic"

[Carrie (Care)]

I would love it if they did a hardcover box set with these covers. Just so they could sit on my shelf and look pretty. :D

[colleen the convivial curmudgeon]

Kevin wrote: "The Wheel of Times is the number one biggest and bestselling fantasy series out there. Each book since 98 has been #1 bestsellers."

I'm not getting involved in the debate, being as I've never read WoT and have no interest to start - but I just wanted to comment that being a bestseller doesn't equate to being "good", per se.

[Kevin]

Well, the books has the biggest fan base of any fantasy series, which then does equal getting on the bestsellers list. Also I guess you know that Sanderson started to write fantasy because WOT.

[Kevin]

Carrie (Care) wrote: "Kevin wrote: "I only have read the first Paksenarrion, thought it was predictable. On a different note, I love Wheel of Times just for Darrel K. Sweet's cover art, my favorite cover artist of all t..."

Hey, to me covers are everything, the UK covers of WoT just does not do it for me. I especially how they binded and the fronts on books in the U.K.

[Dawn]

Hey, you know what other book was a best seller with a huge fan base???

Haha, nevermind, not even going to go there.

[colleen the convivial curmudgeon]

Which still doesn't equate to it necessarily being the best thing ever.

Afterall, NotW has a large fan base and has also been on the bestsellers list, and we all know what you think about that...

[Carrie (Care)]

I am the biggest WoT fan, and I know there are a lot of us die hard fans. But I also know that there are a lot of die hard fans of other series. If we all liked the same things the world would be pretty boring. What I think is great somebody else could think is terrible and vise-versa.

[Kevin]

You all know what I mean, do the main character go and win the SUVUDU cage match, which back in March did a sweet 16 of hero from fantasy and science fiction, Rand won them all. Then back in the fall then did villains too, then last month matched Rand with the villain, won that too. Also people go out and cosplay of the characters. I mean I am not the biggest fan of the series, but you got to look around out there. I will definitely admit that this is TOO much HYPE for this series. I know some will still hated after the fact. I will stop there and try not to make this all about the Wheel of Times.

[Captain Sir Roddy, R.N. (Ret.)]

Carrie (Care) wrote: "I am the biggest WoT fan, and I know there are a lot of us die hard fans. But I also know that there are a lot of die hard fans of other series. If we all liked the same things the world would be p..."

Carrie, you absolutely nailed my feelings on this. And count me in the group with the WoT being one of the best fantasy series ever, but I totally get why others don't like it and that's just fine. I am ever so glad that we all have our favorite books/series, and that we are enthusiastic enough to talk 'em up and share 'em with each other. I am very glad that we have different likes and dislikes, as I've found some really great reads due to all of you here on GR. Cheers!

[Jim]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "...Jim, I agree about Fiest, I've been thinking of digging out my Rift War books, at least the early ones. I just have so many "to be reads" waiting LOL. I also want to get to the Death Stalker books and Green's Secret History series is also one I want to get to...."

I have a few re-reads I'd like to get to as well, but I also have a huge TBR pile. Mine is at the foot of my bed precariously perched in a double row & some piles. If I don't knock it down soon, it might eat me one night! (Or the Boss might get upset. Not sure which is the worst fate.)
;-)

[Mike (the Paladin)]

I want you all to know that I'm showing great restraint not to make some....great jokes about the SUVUDU cage match. Among other "participants" there were, Drizzt, Conan, and Cthulhu, just to mention a few. Come on, come on... just a little giggle, really????

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Hi Jim... I also have several books I've started and are waiting to be finished because another stack came in from the library. I have no will power.

[colleen the convivial curmudgeon]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "I want you all to know that I'm showing great restraint not to make some....great jokes about the SUVUDU cage match. Among other "participants" there were, Drizzt, Conan, and Cthulhu, just to menti..."

Cthulhu would just eat everyone and call it a day.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

That was what I thought, but I didn't read the details on how the decided...

[Carrie (Care)]

People go and vote. I never have, but I always see it on twitter and such.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Not a Twitter person. :)

[Kevin]

Mike (the Paladin) wrote: "I want you all to know that I'm showing great restraint not to make some....great jokes about the SUVUDU cage match. Among other "participants" there were, Drizzt, Conan, and Cthulhu, just to menti..."

Good point, like how stupid it was Dumbledore won a match just because someone went to a Harry Potter fan site to tell fans to go vote 20 minutes before the polls closed.

[Carrie (Care)]

That is true, but I bet it happens with all of them. Some just have bigger fan bases, more rabid fans, or more online fans.

[Naithin]

I like WoT as a whole, but I have to say from books 5-6 the slow crawling pace was beginning to be introduced. Book 8 was perhaps the longest I've spent with one book since I very first picked up Lord of the Rings.

Even so, I'm glad I continued with the series, and I feel as well that books 10 and 11 picked up the pace again nicely. It seems perhaps Jordan lost his way a bit with the slower books, or maybe his editor (which I believe to be his wife, Harriet?) didn't want to argue it too harshly, particularly if RJ was getting sick by that point.

I should point out that the above is 100% speculation, I don't know the timelines of RJ's illness in relation to the books release or anything else to even remotely correspond to what I said. Could be complete poppycock, and likely is.

Still, I feel something was going on with those books that was in the process of coming right for the latter volumes.

I've now picked up both of Sanderson's efforts for the series, but haven't started reading them yet. I have a lot on my reading plate at the moment, just finished The Name of the Wind, and started on Peter F. Hamilton's Evolutionary Void, the final in that trilogy which I've been waiting on for some time.

After this, I dunno. The Mistborn books should've been delivered to me by then, so I may hit those first. xD

It would not surprise me if I end up not reading the last WoT books until the final one is released. I'm also contemplating a complete re-read of the series before I start the, and if I decide to do this, I'll certainly want to get through at least my current batch of new books that I want to read first.

[Kevin]

I would recommend you go and get Legends and Legends II to read and find out which author in there that you like. Those books are the best way to not wast a whole book, and read something extra that most people do not, even if both book as six authors overlap. The first book is in trade paperback, but the second is only in a digital format, now it is out of print.

[Erica]

What about The Darkness That Comes Before? The Prince of Nothing series is very epic.

[Jonathan]

A page turner that's fairly epic in scope is Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn trilogy. They are very easy reads and very satisfying.

[Jordon]

Try reading Trail of Deceit by Ken Enderby and Greg Rickards. It's just amazing - an epic fantasy and an incredible mystery. I've never read a fantasy that had such strong elements of mystery before - and I really love mystery stories. This book really got me in.

There's also a real life mystery relating to the death of one of the authors (Rickards). It's discussed in an interview with the other author (Enderby) on the website (www.lastsafeseasons.com). It's really worth a read.

Just out of interest, the answer to the mystery is not at all what I was expecting. These two authors really know how to keep you guessing.