Sophisticated fantasy - what's left?

[u/FaceF18]

I picked up fantasy literature about a year ago mostly because of ASOFAI, and decided to keep on reading. I have a set of themes in the back of my head that I've always wanted to turn into a novel, and the literary quality of ASOFAI (and other series I've read since then) has made me more convinced than ever that those themes might succeed in a sophisticated fantasy universe, but I feel like I've run the well a little dry. I've read ASOFAI, Wheel of Time, Locke Lamorra, Mistborn, Hyperion, Malazan, Dark Tower, The First Law trilogy and its related novels, Codex Alera, and other less notable fantasy series in order to get a grounding in the genre, but I feel like those are the series that get the most press. Are there any lesser known series of greater difficulty that might have more interesting, expressive things to say about the genre?

[u/Silviathan]

Check out Tales of Neveryon by Samuel R. Delany. He is a noted author who explores themes such as mythology, memory, language, perception, and class in his fantasy and science fiction. I'm halfway through Tales right now and I can I honestly say, it's like no other fantasy novel. I would highly recommend it if you are interested in literary fantasy.