Best fantasy trilogy?

HStallion · Feb 10, 2020

China Mieville's trilogy of novels taking place in the world of Bas Lag aka some of the, if not the best pieces of fantasy/weird fiction of the last 20 years from an author who totally eschews nearly all the usual fantasy tropes and trappings. No elves or dwarves, no stereotypical magic, no good and evil. What there is there is an absolutely wonderful mix of fantasy, scifi, cosmic horror and of course a heavy dose of socialism. They're all very loosely related novels that often deal with certain places and people but have very different focuses, casts and narratives.

ara · Feb 10, 2020

HStallion said:
China Mieville's trilogy of novels taking place in the world of Bas Lag aka some of the, if not the best pieces of fantasy/weird fiction of the last 20 years from an author who totally eschews nearly all the usual fantasy tropes and trappings. No elves or dwarves, no stereotypical magic, no good and evil. What there is there is an absolutely wonderful mix of fantasy, scifi, cosmic horror and of course a heavy dose of socialism. They're all very loosely related novels that often deal with certain places and people but have very different focuses, casts and narratives.

Minor thread hijack I suppose, but are these easy to read... Like, at all? I've read a bit of The City and The City which, while certainly very intriguing, was a bit much with its High Fucking Concept (tm) premise for a non-native English speaker such as myself. Willing to admit that I felt like it was flying way over my head.

HStallion · Feb 10, 2020

ara said:
Minor thread hijack I suppose, but are these easy to read... Like, at all? I've read a bit of The City and The City which, while certainly very intriguing, was a bit much with its High Fucking Concept (tm) premise for a non-native English speaker such as myself. Willing to admit that I felt like it was flying way over my head.

The entire concept behind The City and The City is very obtuse and weird plus you're dropped into the story without any real explanation and just have to figure it out as you go along. That said the author is known for having some purple prose which I think works wonderfully for describing scenes and setting the mood but it might be hard for a foreign reader to parse together. The Bas Lag novels however tend to be a bit more straight forward than The City and The City but still have a lot of very high concept ideas.

Deleted member 52442 · Feb 10, 2020

posting in this thread for later... guess i need to check out abercrombie

Lucas M. Thomas · Feb 10, 2020

LOL at Rothfuss being in this poll. It's been NINE YEARS since Book 2 came out. I could've written the third one myself by now.

ara · Feb 10, 2020

HStallion said:
The entire concept behind The City and The City is very obtuse and weird plus you're dropped into the story without any real explanation and just have to figure it out as you go along. That said the author is known for having some purple prose which I think works wonderfully for describing scenes and setting the mood but it might be hard for a foreign reader to parse together. The Bas Lag novels however tend to be a bit more straight forward than The City and The City but still have a lot of very high concept ideas.

Got it. Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Might as well give the first book a try.

Dec · Feb 10, 2020

HStallion said:
The entire concept behind The City and The City is very obtuse and weird plus you're dropped into the story without any real explanation and just have to figure it out as you go along.

This is definitely what bugged me about it. From what I read of it I was bugged by how much the mystery was dragged down by obtuse stuff that is only mentioned by name and what it is can only be inferred. I take the blame because I went in wanting a mystery and felt it just got so bogged down by the state of the world and government. I just did not care at all. No strong characters, only world building; and I don't really give a fuck about world building.

I will still try Perdido at some point.

HStallion · Feb 10, 2020

Dec said:
This is definitely what bugged me about it. From what I read of it I was bugged by how much the mystery was dragged down by obtuse stuff that is only mentioned by name and what it is can only be inferred. I take the blame because I went in wanting a mystery and felt it just got so bogged down by the state of the world and government. I just did not care at all. No strong characters, only world building; and I don't really give a fuck about world building.

I will still try Perdido at some point.

The City & The City is not his best work, not bad by any means but I think his Bas Lag novels are his strongest stuff by and far while also being a lot more approachable than some of his crazier and obtuse works like Embassytown. Perdido Street Station deals with some truly bizarre concepts as do the rest of the novels but the narratives are often more direct and less confusing. They also have an amazing cast of characters that are all very well written and are also quite diverse with the main character of the first novel being a brilliant black scientist.

Twstr709 · Feb 10, 2020

I'm currently reading the first book in Fitz and the Fool and I can't put it down. It's slow, but Fitz has turned into my favorite fantasy protagonist. I voted Stormlight since I already read those books and they are great.

PeskyToaster · Feb 10, 2020

There's three infamously unfinished series in fantasy circles.

A Song of Ice and Fire, Kingkiller Chronicles, and Gentlemen Bastards. I have Locke Lamora on my shelf unread because I don't want to start it unless it's fairly standalone.

My rec is just Lord of the Rings.

rickyson33 · Feb 10, 2020

PeskyToaster said:
There's three infamously unfinished series in fantasy circles.

A Song of Ice and Fire, Kingkiller Chronicles, and Gentlemen Bastards. I have Locke Lamora on my shelf unread because I don't want to start it unless it's fairly standalone.

My rec is just Lord of the Rings.

all the gentleman bastard books are pretty standalone to be honest

not to say there aren't character and world threads between them but the overall plot of the individual books are generally pretty self contained

PeskyToaster · Feb 10, 2020

rickyson33 said:
all the gentleman bastard books are pretty standalone to be honest

not to say there aren't character and world threads between them but the overall plot of the individual books are generally pretty self contained

Maybe I'll just read Lies then. I was just kind of wary of getting invested in a narrative with no ending. I've forgotten what has happened in Kingkiller it's been so long. I think Winds might be the one most likely to come out out of the three I mentioned.

iapetus · Feb 10, 2020

StaffyManasse said:
Well...it's definitely not from 2000-2020 but why not start with The Lords of the Rings and see what the fuzz is about?

Because it's badly structured and in places quite painful to read? Any of the suggested trilogies would be an easier entry to the world of fantasy, as great as Tolkien might have been.

BebopCola · Feb 10, 2020

The First Law trilogy was pretty fantastic, and I loved "Heroes" as a great individual follow-up for a lot of the minor characters in the trilogy.

ZiZ · Feb 10, 2020

Out of the choices I'd choose Mistborn but only because I haven't read Stormlight yet. I hate reading incomplete stories so I'll wait.
I remember starting the first law but for some reason I stopped early on. Maybe I should give it another try.
I recently read the Lightbringer pentalogy, and loved it.

Jag · Feb 10, 2020

PeskyToaster said:
Maybe I'll just read Lies then. I was just kind of wary of getting invested in a narrative with no ending. I've forgotten what has happened in Kingkiller it's been so long. I think Winds might be the one most likely to come out out of the three I mentioned.

Read Lies and stop. It's great as a stand alone book. You can finish the others if and when Lynch finishes the series.

I'm also going to mention the Powder Mage Trilogy by Brian McClellan. It's a flintlock fantasy, but does the rare job of combing worldbuilding, character development and an interesting magic system. He just finished the second and final trilogy in the series.

ryseing · Feb 10, 2020

The thing about Mistborn is the second era (Western/Steampunk) is better than the first. IMO you could read it standalone without missing TOO much. The structure isn't really a trilogy though- the first two are novella length, the third is a proper book, and the fourth should be the same.

But if you're just going with one trilogy, First Law is the move. Can't wait for the second book in the new trilogy, and as mentioned there's a trilogy of quite good spinoffs. Loved Best Served Cold.

Goldenroad · Feb 10, 2020

Stormlight is probably the best fantasy I've read outside of Tolkien (and I'm only halfway through Words of Radiance). It's an investment though. If it weren't for Whispersync, I don't know if I'd ever have time to get through it all. I'm taking a break right now though to read Warbreaker, since the library finally had it available.

Sephzilla · Feb 10, 2020

>Best Fantasy Trilogy
>Kingkiller Chronicles

djinn · Feb 10, 2020

Kingkiller isn't even a trilogy yet.
Stormlight Archive will be 10+ books.
Why are they both on the poll?
Where's LOTR?

Deleted member 18400 · Feb 10, 2020

Kingkiller is going to require you to wait a long time. Rothfuss and Martin are in that group of writers who think it's their god given right to take 10 years to publish a book. Which it is, but it's also my right to not buy their fucking books anymore.

Mistborn is a great read, can't go wrong.

The First Law is one of the best book trilogies I have ever read. The characters are fucking amazing, and this would be my obvious recommendation if you haven't read it yet. Plus their is a new trilogy starting right now and he has some stand alone books.

Robin Hobb has a unique way of writing and I am not a super fan of it. She tells stories in a kind of round about way and I made it pretty far into her world (the talking ships?) before I just couldn't anymore. (I never read Fitz etc)

Sir Garbageman · Feb 10, 2020

I love both Abercrombie and Sanderson. Go with Abercrombie if you prefer more character focus and trope subversion, Sanderson for crazy world building and magic systems.

bigf00t · Feb 10, 2020

Chocolate & Vanilla said:
However, my real recommendation is this: why settle for a mere trilogy when you can have a decalogy - The Malazan Book of the Fallen. It'll take over your life but it's worth it

I'd never been a huge fantasy reader, but The Malazan Book of the Fallen series ruined most other fantasy for me. It's that good.

That said, I'm just finishing the second Stormlight Archives book right now. I'm really enjoying it, but it's hard not to compare it to Malazan...

Rothfuss was a decent read when I was younger, doubt it holds up. Abercrombie was good, but I like a little more involved worldbuilding than his books offered. I've never read any Hobb.

I'll second the mention of Perdido Street Station. That book, and The Scar, totally blew my mind when I first read them.

ScoobsJoestar · Feb 10, 2020

Stormlight is not a trilogy but it's my favorite out of those.

Waxy · Feb 10, 2020

Smoothcb said:
The Licanius trilogy is great. Like a condensed Wheel of Time and it's finished!

I'm currently about halfway through the 3rd book and this. It's a great trilogy and once it gets its hooks in you (which is early on imo) it's tough to put down

Brick · Feb 10, 2020

Controversial opinion ahoy: I've never hated a sequel more than I hated Wise Man's Fear. The Name of the Wind is a fantastic book, but the sequel is just...

there is no problem that isn't immediately solved by Kvothe immediately outwitting it or by sexing it right, including a literal sex goddess, to whom, of course, he teaches a thing or two. Also none of the mysteries from the first book are ever even addressed.

I hated the book so much. Read The Name of the Wind and stop there. It's a fantastic book.

My real answer to your question though is Stormlight Archive, even though it's not done yet. I love Sanderson's characters and world building.

Deleted member 8861 · Feb 10, 2020

I can't really get into fantasy, but A Wizard of Earthsea is my favorite book. I hope that speaks for itself. It's six books, but they're all quite shorter than your average trilogy book (~200 pages each as I recall).

Gigglepoo · Feb 10, 2020

Catvoca said:
Robin Hobb has written 4 trilogies and a quadrilogy in that world, but they are amazing. Haven't quite finished them yet as I have been deliberately trying to make them last.

Which is the best? I've never read anything by her.

Of the ones listed, I like Kingkiller the most (but who knows when it will be done). First Law was really good, too. Stormlight was great but it gets less interesting as the series goes along. The characters get so powerful that any sense of personal drama is lost.

Thac0 · Feb 10, 2020

PintSizedSlasher said:
Lyonesse Trilogy by Jack Vance.

Man, I didn't expect to see this trilogy come up in this thread considering it's much less popular than the others discussed here but it is really good and definitely deserves to be up there in the conversation. Big Jack Vance fan.

Werd · Feb 10, 2020

I've read three of those, First Law, Mistborn and Stormlight.

- Mistborn I liked the first book of, but once it opens up into a more epic scale with fantasy creatures armies and half the characters are all powerful... just wasn't clicking as well for me. Still enjoyable enough to finish though.
- I really liked the descriptive writing style of Abercrombie, great characters and the narrator of the audiobook does a great job bringing them to life. Pretty consistent quality throughout the three books. One nitpick would be that I found some of the plot twists a bit convoluted. Like it a lot, second place. Need to start the new trilogy.
- Stormlight is my favorite of these. The writing isn't as good as Abercrombie, but the world building and scope is on another level. The climactic sequences of 1&2 are some of the most page turning sections of any fiction I've read, and on a book this size those are very lengthy sections. Has some clunky dialog at times though, particularly the characters meant to be clever. Had some of the same feelings with Oathbringer as I did with later Mistborn, but being more invested in the characters this time didn't matter as much.

I've had King killer Book 1 and the Assassin's Apprentice (different trilogy I know) in my Audible library for years but haven't gottten to them yet.

Deleted member 11413 · Feb 10, 2020

N.K. Jemisin's Shattered Earth Trilogy is better than any in the poll. Writing and character work is superb, it does interesting things with POV and telling a narrative out of chronological order, and is very diverse.

cvltclassic · Feb 10, 2020

If you want to check out Robin Hobb, I would recommend starting with the Farseer Trilogy since that is the first set of books in her overarching world.

I agree with everyone mentioning Abercrombie. He is definitely my favorite author at the moment. The entire First Law trilogy and the 3 standalone books are incredible. I got attached to a lot of the characters that he wrote. Every character I created in Diablo 3 is named after one of them haha

Chocolate & Vanilla said:
However, my real recommendation is this: why settle for a mere trilogy when you can have a decalogy - The Malazan Book of the Fallen. It'll take over your life but it's worth it

I just started this! I'm almost done with Gardens of the Moon. I can definitely understand people's criticisms of being dropped in the middle of a world without knowing anything about what's going on, but the intrigue hooked me immediately. It also gets straight into the action fairly quickly, which I enjoyed. Not sure how the rest of the series pans out, but if it stays consistent with the first book, then this is also a great recommendation.

Bigwombat · Feb 10, 2020

Really like Sanderson but you should read the first law trilogy first. Lots of memorable distinct characters as chapters do the pov style like game of thrones. There's a distinct end too of the trilogy;I say this as some one who hasn't read the follow up books yet. It's a satisfying ending is maybe the better way to put it

TheXbox · Feb 10, 2020

Not a trilogy recommendation but check out Guy Gavriel Kay if you're looking for some standalone, lowkey fantasy. All of his novels are set in magical facsimiles of societies from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. He's also the only fantasy author who regularly moves me to tears.

DJGolfClap · Feb 10, 2020

TheXbox said:
Not a trilogy recommendation but check out Guy Gavriel Kay if you're looking for some standalone, lowkey fantasy. All of his novels are set in magical facsimiles of societies from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. He's also the only fantasy author who regularly moves me to tears.

He also has an excellent fantasy trilogy, however!

The Fionovar Tapestry:

The Summer Tree
The Wandering Fire
The Darkest Road

crimilde · Feb 11, 2020

Brick said:
Controversial opinion ahoy: I've never hated a sequel more than I hated Wise Man's Fear. The Name of the Wind is a fantastic book, but the sequel is just...

there is no problem that isn't immediately solved by Kvothe immediately outwitting it or by sexing it right, including a literal sex goddess, to whom, of course, he teaches a thing or two. Also none of the mysteries from the first book are ever even addressed.

I hated the book so much. Read The Name of the Wind and stop there. It's a fantastic book.

My real answer to your question though is Stormlight Archive, even though it's not done yet. I love Sanderson's characters and world building.

And he was also a virgin IIRC which is incredibly funny.

I have a friend who really adores Kingkiller but personally I just found them to be generic wish fulfilment fantasy with pretty writing.

Paertan · Feb 11, 2020

Robin Hobb is my favorite. But her Fitz and The fool is a part of a bigger series. First Law is more standalone trilogy though there are more books. Also they are damn amazing. So for this they get my vote.

Kingkiller is not done. I have not read any of them. Will wait until done. Mistborn and Stormligt is both good but Sanderson is not as good as Hobb or Abercrombie when it comes to characters. Sandersons strength is creating amazing worlds but characters are more important to me.

Deleted member 31104 · Feb 11, 2020

Lord of Ostia said:
N.K. Jemisin's Shattered Earth Trilogy is better than any in the poll. Writing and character work is superb, it does interesting things with POV and telling a narrative out of chronological order, and is very diverse.

I'd agree with this, has the strengths of some of Hobbs work (snapper and better written) and the strengths of some of Abercrombie but without Abercrombie's incessant bleakness and casual disregard for his characters (honestly as much as I like the First Law, it's W40k in it's bleakness)

Deleted member 46948 · Feb 11, 2020

Brick said:
Controversial opinion ahoy: I've never hated a sequel more than I hated Wise Man's Fear. The Name of the Wind is a fantastic book, but the sequel is just...

there is no problem that isn't immediately solved by Kvothe immediately outwitting it or by sexing it right, including a literal sex goddess, to whom, of course, he teaches a thing or two. Also none of the mysteries from the first book are ever even addressed.

I hated the book so much. Read The Name of the Wind and stop there. It's a fantastic book.

Can't argue with this.
Rothfuss went pretty far into the juvenile fanfic territory in the 2nd book.

noob-noob · Feb 11, 2020

Nil'giccas said:
Abercrombie definitely stands out from the ones on the list. I cannot stand Sanderson's writing personally.

I voted other though with R. Scott Bakker's Prince of Nothing trilogy in mind. It is definitely not for everyone, but still it deserves much more praise and exposure than it usually gets.

Fantasy is one of my favorite genres and I want to second this recommendation, there's just nothing out there that approaches the genre from Bakker's unique perspective. The prose is like reading a Shakespearean epic and the philosophy deep and layered. Not an easy read but a rewarding one

Other than that if you want more standard fantasy fare with an easier reading style I'd echo stormlight like many others have. I'd also say to at least read the first 3 books of ASOIF as it is considered by some the epitome of writing in the fantasy genre.

Deleted member 2834 · Feb 11, 2020

Lmao at including Kingkiller. I loved both books but I'm not sure we'll ever get a third. I've read all "trilogies" in the OP other than The First Law and would probably pick Stormlight.

Deleted member 31133 · Feb 11, 2020

King killer shouldn't be on the list as it's not finished yet.

Anyway, Lord of the Rings is the correct answer.

But for series released since 2000, I'd go for mistborn.

Smoothcb · Feb 11, 2020

Waxy said:
I'm currently about halfway through the 3rd book and this. It's a great trilogy and once it gets its hooks in you (which is early on imo) it's tough to put down

Yep. It really took off in the first book for me at

Deilannis

At that point now in my re read of the first 2 to freshen my mind for the conclusion.

sir_crocodile · Feb 11, 2020

Don't read Kingkiller Chronicle until the final book comes out....if it comes out.

mhayes86 · Feb 11, 2020

I might need to give Robin Hobb another go. I took a break from Wheel of Time a few months ago and read through Assassin's Apprentice. I enjoyed it for the most part, but constantly thought about how much I would rather be reading WoT.

I enjoyed Kingkiller, but don't feel like it's a good choice since the third book still isn't out. It's also a bit frustrating that Kvothe is pretty much an infallible character that suffers no consequences.

Ralemont · Feb 11, 2020

Lord of Ostia said:
N.K. Jemisin's Shattered Earth Trilogy is better than any in the poll. Writing and character work is superb, it does interesting things with POV and telling a narrative out of chronological order, and is very diverse.

Just to reiterate, N.K. Jemisin was the first author to ever win the Hugo Award for best novel three years in a row for this trilogy. It's fantastic and my pick.

*Broken Earth trilogy tho

Deleted member 17207 · Feb 11, 2020

Lucas M. Thomas said:
LOL at Rothfuss being in this poll. It's been NINE YEARS since Book 2 came out. I could've written the third one myself by now.

Wow - I did NOT realize it'd been that long...

Yeah that's a joke lol.

Belladonna · Feb 11, 2020

I know it's mid 90s but The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb. It's more like several trilogies that are either directly or indirectly connected but 1st two are standalone.

Deleted member 11413 · Feb 11, 2020

Ralemont said:
Just to reiterate, N.K. Jemisin was the first author to ever win the Hugo Award for best novel three years in a row for this trilogy. It's fantastic and my pick.

*Broken Earth trilogy tho

Ah thanks for the correction. She's fantastic.

Jag · Feb 11, 2020

Lord of Ostia said:
N.K. Jemisin's Shattered Earth Trilogy is better than any in the poll.

The series was just ok, but she's nowhere close to Sanderson, Hobb or Abercrombie.

Best fantasy trilogy?

Best trilogy out there

The King killer Chronicle (Patrick Rothfuss)

Mistborn (Brandon Sanderson)

The Stormlight Archive (Brandon Sanderson)

The First Law (Joe Abercrombie)

The Fitz and the Fool Trilogy (Robin Hobb)

Other

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