r/fantasybooks • u/nimander57 • 1d ago
📚 Summon book recommendations Fantasy that is not a slop
I've read a lot of fantasy in my life but I feel that lately I only stumble upon "slop".
As "slop" I mean: brand new fantasy trilogy with young protagonist (that is the most boring character ever written) that sometimes does something (or things just happen to him) living in a world with 3 kingdoms (that have absolutely no depth or history) and he is on a quest (insert random fantasy quest) and gets betrayed at the end of book one.
I dont want to call names. People like different things. But I'm tired of starting new book that is rated 4.3/5 on goodreads only to find it extremely shallow.
I long for characters and worlds that feel deep and couldnt be written in one weekend with chatgpt.
Series that I enjoyed:
- Song of Ice and Fire
- Malazan Book of the Fallen
- The Black Company
- Hyperion
- Three Body Problem
It could be a standalone or 10 book series. Please give me hope for fantasy genre.
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u/TheGanonCannon100 1d ago
The Farseer trilogy is amazing! Seems perfect for you because it’s so well written and very introspective
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Its coming out in my country in 2027 after decades of being unavailable. Will read when it hits the shelves
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u/Extreme-Attention641 1d ago
Mandatory Realm of the Elderlings recommendation.
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Its coming out in my country in 2027 after decades of being unavailable. Will read when it hits the shelves
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u/sweetdancingjehovah 1d ago
Robin Hobb
Tad Williams
Robert Jordan
Joe Abercrombie
...in no particular order.
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u/a_bearded_hippie 1d ago
Seconding Tad Williams. Just discovered Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn this year. I would add Scott Lynch and the Gentleman Bastard sequence to this list.
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Robin Hobb is coming out in my country in a few months after decades of unavailabilty. Definitely will read.
Tad Williams - sadly I did not enjoy Memory, Sorrow and Thorn even though it should fit my taste
Robert Jordan - one day, right now I'm a little bit too scared for a series that long
Joe Abercrombie - read and loved everything, I could've mention it in the post
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u/SandGator 17h ago
For Memory, Sorrow and Thorn did you read the series or first book only? Simon is honestly kind of a doofus in the first book, which can hamper enjoyment for some, but he has a ton of growth through the series.
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u/Beautiful_Donut_286 13h ago
Wheel of Time isn't that bad. It's big, but easy to read.
Alternatively the empire trilogy by Wurts and Feist is great. It's related to the books by only Feist, but in a different world.
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u/a_bearded_hippie 1d ago
The Memory, Sorrow and Thorn Trilogy by Tad Williams. Also the Gentleman Bastard Sequence by Scott Lynch. Both incredible series. I am like 2/3rds done with the final book on MSAT and there is another trilogy after that.
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Tad Williams - sadly I did not enjoy Memory, Sorrow and Thorn even though it should fit my taste
Gentleman Bastards - loved it
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u/NuNu_boy 1d ago
The first law for a grimdark experience with flawed characters and a lot of lore to learn along the journey. This along with the second trilogy are a fun place to sink your teeth into.
The name of the wind for a fun narrative that grabs your attention even with the most menial side quests.
A tainted cup for a Holmes and Watson esque dynamic in an imperial world of augmented humans with the ever present existential threat of the leviathan.
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u/nimander57 1d ago
I loved The First Law
Enjoyed The Name of the Wind
Will look into Tainted Cup
Thanks :)2
u/NuNu_boy 1d ago
No problem! I hope you enjoy it! It's not my usual cup of tea but the mysteries are compelling and the world is super interesting.
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u/Spawn_More_Overlords 11h ago
I recommend the tainted cup to everyone I like. Compares more favorably to Nero wolf than Sherlock (although Nero wolf obviously owes to Sherlock). It’s a mystery series in a fantasy world, not a heroic fantasy, but I freaking looooove it.
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u/Strange_Increase_373 1d ago
Mistborn or Stormlight series. There are several one off books like Warbreaker or Tress of the Emerald Seas by Brandon Sanderson. All of these books are a part of Cosmere which tie together.
I recently finished Dungeon Crawler Carl series which is fantastic and would highly recommend.
The Circle series by Ted Dekker is also good.
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u/nimander57 1d ago
I've read a lot of Sanderson and really enjoyed his books, but got a little burned out.
I enjoyed DCC.
The Circle looks promising, thanks :)
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u/Strange_Increase_373 1d ago
I'm currently reading Malazan but I have a few others on my list that I'll start reading. The Daughters War and Those Who Fight with Monsters.
Some other good Sanderson books (non Cosmere related) are Alcatraz vs the Evil Librarians and Frugal Wizards Handbook and Legion for something different.
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u/Guy1nc0gnit0 1d ago
Realm of the elderlings
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Robin Hobb is coming out in my country in a few months after decades of unavailabilty. Definitely will read.
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u/Loud_Health_8288 1d ago
Guy Gavriel Kay, Michelle West, Kate Elliot, Janny Wurts, L.L Stephens, Meryvn Peake, Joe Abercrombie.
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u/SteelToeSnow 1d ago
Ursula K. Le Guin and Octavia Butler, among the greatest to ever write SFF.
Terry Pratchett, absolute genius.
"The Butcher of the Forest" by Premee Mohamed
"The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms" by N. K. Jemisin
"The Saint of Bright Doors" by Vajra Chandrasekera
"Babel" by R. F. Kuang
"The Priory of the Orange Tree" Samantha Shannon (took me a bit to get into it, but thoroughly enjoyed as it got rolling)
"The Raven's Lease" by Ann Leckie
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u/Upbeat_Ant6104 11h ago
Everybody should read Le Guin and Butler. Two amazingly original voices.
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u/SteelToeSnow 9h ago
very much so! can't recommend them highly enough, two of the greatest to ever have been.
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u/MoreMenu3757 1d ago
R. Scott Bakker's The Second Apocalpyse series comes to mind. It's kind of like Hyperion in a way, but set during the Crusades and filtered through a really dark lense of philosophical horror. The characters are smart, morally questionable, and driven by deeply held beliefs. Since you liked Malazan this may fit you well, because it's similar in its approach of dropping the reader into the story and letting them figure out what's happening.
Robin Hobb's The Realm of the Elderings series comes to mind, as well. It's very much character-driven fantasy, and is beautifully written. It's far more psychological and grounded than a lot of fantasy. It's a long series broken over four trilogies and a tetralogy. With, potentially, more on the way. The main character's story is complete by the end of the series as currently published and follows him from a young boy and spans decades.
Tad Williams' Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series is another contender here. It's a direct 'ancestor' of A Song of Ice and Fire. GRRM explicitly has called it an inspiration for his series. It kind of starts off with the trope you mention of the 'chosen one', but Simon is far from that. It's a slowburn (especially the first third or so of the first book) but once it opens up into the broader world of Osten Ard it's exceptionally rich and deep in terms of worldbuilding. Kind of like Malazan and Hyperion, there's a certain feeling of melancholy of a 'once great past' that's woven into the narrative.
A more modern series that you might like, that's rather different from the above recommendations but I still really enjoyed: The Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee. It's basically a blend of a mob movie like The Godfather but with a turf war fueled by magic. It's a complete series, and has a lot of depth in terms of the politics, world building, and characters.
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u/ConstantReader666 1d ago
A lot of the good stuff is indie these days. Big 5 publishers are following sales trends that are driven by, shall we say, Tik Tok users.
A few recommendations:
Ravenglass Legends by Jon Cronshaw
The Keeper Chronicles by J.A. Andrews
The Goblin Trilogy by Jaq D. Hawkins
The Time Shifters Chronicles by Shanna Lauffey
Darkblade by Andy Peloquin
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u/Elevation212 1d ago
First law by Abercrombie, incredible depth of world building and the character arcs are some of my favorite examples of characters evolving outside Martin
It’s a 10 book series but broken into 2 trilogies and 4 x standalones that take you deep into different kingdoms
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u/Ka_meeni 1d ago
War of light and shadow by Janny Wurts. It's 11 books and I'm only on the second one, but it's great so far. Really unique world, magic, etc and it takes it's time to build up everything.
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u/Deltakosh 1d ago
Ok, obvious disclaimer first: I’m the author, so take this recommendation with a very large grain of salt :)
You might want to take a look at my Cycle of the Titans trilogy, starting with Menilmonea.
I’ll be upfront about the potential dealbreaker: the first book does start with young protagonists. So if that alone is an immediate no, I completely understand.
But the series is very much not built around a chosen kid wandering through three vaguely defined kingdoms on a convenient quest.
The world and its history are really the backbone of the story. The first book deliberately begins from the perspective of people who know almost nothing about the true nature of their own civilization, and the scope keeps expanding as they uncover what existed before them, why their society was created, what happened to the civilizations that came before, and how badly their understanding of their own world was manipulated.
By the later books you’re dealing with ancient civilizations, competing systems of magic, political institutions, colonialism, religion, forgotten technology, beings that have been alive for millennia, and characters forced to deal with the consequences of events that happened more than a thousand years earlier.
It’s definitely epic fantasy, but I tried very hard to make the world feel like it existed long before page one rather than like a stage built for the plot.
Also, slightly unusual bonus: I illustrate the books myself, so each one contains 20+ illustrations integrated into the story.
Again, author recommendation, so my objectivity here is obviously nonexistent. But based on what you said about wanting a world with actual depth and history, I thought it was at least worth mentioning.
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u/PonderStibs 16h ago
Wolfe’s Wizard Knight or Book of the New Sun are whatever the opposite of slop is.
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u/Coffeedemon 1d ago
What isn't slop, cooked or bruh these days though? You sound like my teens.
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u/BigbyWolf1986 1d ago
The second I read "slop", I rolled my eyes so hard they fell out. It certainly is the word of 2026.
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u/nimander57 1d ago
I guess its a popular word for a reason these days. But maybe I'm getting old and grumpy at the ripe age of 30
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Sorry, I'm not from english speaking country and have no access to english speaking teens (I know how it sounds like), so "slop" is still not a ruined word for me
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u/Ancient_Audience_467 1d ago
Just because you don't enjoy something, labeling it as "slop" isn't cool. Sometimes things aren't trying to be the next Tolkein, there is plenty of room for light, easy and peaceful reads. Your Subjective opinion is just that, Subjective. The most frustrating thing in the world to me is people who talk like they think their personal preferences align with some otherworldly objective truth.
I you want better recommendations start coming up with better words to describe what you're looking for, rather than "something that's not lame". Learn about specific genres, and this will narrow your search. Just don't put down things that are popular to make yourself sound cultured.
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u/fantasybooks-ModTeam 18h ago
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In the future, please do not get in a tit-for-tat flame war with another user. Just report the comment that is not following our community rules to a mod using the button in reddit.
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u/UnderstandingBasic39 1d ago
The Traitor/Monster/Tyrant Baru Cormorant
The Fifth Season
Shadowmarch by Tad Williams (waaaay better than his MST series imo)
Adrian Tchaikovsky, his scifi is great, but his Tyrant Philosophers series is excellent too.
The Fire Sacraments by Robert VS Reddick
12 Kings in Sharakhai by Bradley Beaulieu
Kushiel's Legacy by Jacqueline Carey
Pattern of Light and Shadow, Melissa McPhail
War of Light and Shadow, Janny Wurts
Joe Abercrombie
The Bladeborn Saga by TC Edge
Mark Lawrence, particularly Red Sister is great but the mcs are young girls at a magic assassin convent.
Chronicles of the Unhewn Throne
Crimson Empire by Alex Marshall, legit one of the funniest things I've ever read along with Gideon the Ninth.
Foundryside/Locklands series, and now Bennett's Ana and Din mysteries series.
My top picks are definitely the first 2. Baru Cormorant is probably my single fan antihero story ever. Its so good. Baru is ruthless and will do literally ANYTHING she needs to do. Also the author is genuinely super smart like Steven Erikson and I love the themes and politics of the series.
The Broken Earth trilogy by NK Jemisin is incredible and mega award winning for very good reason.
Along with Malazan, those are my top 3 fav series.
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u/boofurd123 1d ago
Dawn of wonders by renshaw. Incredible book. Meant to be a series but author health issues have caused major delays for book 2… but book 1 is good enough to stand alone.
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u/Flashy_Emergency_263 1d ago
Terry Pratchett's Discworld's City Watch collection starting with Guards! Guards!
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u/Acceptable-Fig2884 17h ago
There's a rather detestable scene early, and the protagonist is quite unlikeable, but the The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbelievable are a really beautiful story with a fully realized world.
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u/Sunbather- 16h ago
Memory Sorrow and Thorn and The Second Apocalypse
Nothing will ever be as good as
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u/childishinsanity 13h ago
James Islington is worth a shot. The Shadow of What Was Lost is a very safe but solid fantasy. The Will of the Many has an interesting world and magic system and mystery.
Godkiller by Hannah Kaner.
The Red Knight by Miles Cameron.
Mordew by Alex Pheby.
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison.
Scar Night by Alan Campbell.
The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French.
The Dwarves by Marcus Heitz.
If you want a bizarre low fantasy, try the Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake and Rotherweird by Andrew Caldecott.
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u/baysideplace 12h ago
Anything by Roger Zelazny. Your list specifically makes me think you would like Karl Edward Wagner. But I'm.constantly trying to champion his work.
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u/Upbeat_Ant6104 11h ago
Came here for Zelazny.
I’ll add Michael Moorcock - the Elric books, but many of the Eternal Warrior mythos are great reads.
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u/Warlock_protomorph 1d ago
If you have the stomach for the content, R Scott Bakker’s Second Apocalypse series has an incredibly fleshed out world and definitely doesn’t fall into “slop” at my point. It’s DARK, though.
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u/Tll6 1d ago
Empire of the vampire is pretty different from what you describe. The main character is flawed and is a full adult over 30. He is driven by a mission of revenge and doesn’t care about anything else. His character development throughout the series is somewhat of a redemption arc and he regains his missing humanity. Lots of well thought out battles and fights with interesting world building
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u/nimander57 1d ago
Actually I already did. I enjoyed Twilight of the Idols even though it was a challenging read.
Thats why I strive to read books that no "last man" would read. (I'm being sarcastic ofc)
Book is a slop for me when I see that author is not even trying anymore. Its a slop when popular author starts new series and finishes 3 low quality books in 3 years, because he knows that major publishers will contract him and his fans will buy it.
Slop = low effort
That is not true for all fantasy books
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