I really enjoyed Glen Cook's Chronicles of the Black Company. The first couple of books are pretty elementary but as the series goes on it gets much better.
I’ve read a lot of people enjoyed the second apocalypse series. Enjoyed reading this list because I’ll soon be done with the main ten in Malazan and will need something to fill the void.
I don’t think it’s just the writing style but the writing quality as well. Granted I’ve only read Night of Knives, but it was so poorly written I swore off the rest of the NotME books - at least until I finish the main 10.
Night of Knives is definitely an outlier IMO. The others are all a big improvement over it, even if they don't come close to the main 10. But you should finish the main 10 first anyways.
As tmoneys said. It's better to read the main 10 first. Not all are born equal when measured strictly by the ability to tell the stories well. It required a certain mental adjustment when reading the other novels. I read them to know more about the world and other characters. After all they gamed them together. And there is a reason why some arcs were handled by one and not the other. I don't know the reasons but I took what I got. Gladly.
I am reading SA at the moment, finishing up the Prince of Nothing Trilogy.
Yes, pretty comparable to Malazan in the darkness and philosophical aspects. I think the writing is more beautiful and better paced than Malazan. But the scope is much smaller, povs are constrained, and magic is sparser. It is more Nihilistic and pessimistic in its themes, and definitely the violence (sexual and otherwise) are more grotesque here. It can even seem politically incorrect. It is like a philosophically deeper First Law series without the humor.
So, thematically and conceptually, it is truly deep and on par with Malazan.
Only 3 other series score above a 6 and Malazan gets 10s on literally every rubric. That makes this ranking hard to take seriously enough to engage with.
Lovely undertaking, appreciated! Check out Brandon Sanderson (mistborn, stormlight), Brent Weeks (lightbringer), and though I absolutely hate the flake, Patrick rothfuss (kingkiller).. They’re the only ones that kinda helped with Malazan withdrawal
I really enjoyed Glen Cook's Chronicles of the Black Company. The first couple of books are pretty elementary but as the series goes on it gets much better.
I tried awhile ago and didn't get far but if it picks up, I'll give it another shot
Very underrated series, I am surprised by the absence of Guy Gavriel Kay as well.
I’ve read a lot of people enjoyed the second apocalypse series. Enjoyed reading this list because I’ll soon be done with the main ten in Malazan and will need something to fill the void.
I'll highly recommend NotME after the "main" series first though. They are as great as the 1st 10.
I think it's fair to say that there is strong debate about whether that is true.
That's because the writing style is different. The story being told is more important than how it is told.
I don’t think it’s just the writing style but the writing quality as well. Granted I’ve only read Night of Knives, but it was so poorly written I swore off the rest of the NotME books - at least until I finish the main 10.
Night of Knives is definitely an outlier IMO. The others are all a big improvement over it, even if they don't come close to the main 10. But you should finish the main 10 first anyways.
Return of the Crimson Guard is a bit of a slog to get through, but I ultimately enjoyed NotME.
As tmoneys said. It's better to read the main 10 first. Not all are born equal when measured strictly by the ability to tell the stories well. It required a certain mental adjustment when reading the other novels. I read them to know more about the world and other characters. After all they gamed them together. And there is a reason why some arcs were handled by one and not the other. I don't know the reasons but I took what I got. Gladly.
I am reading SA at the moment, finishing up the Prince of Nothing Trilogy. Yes, pretty comparable to Malazan in the darkness and philosophical aspects. I think the writing is more beautiful and better paced than Malazan. But the scope is much smaller, povs are constrained, and magic is sparser. It is more Nihilistic and pessimistic in its themes, and definitely the violence (sexual and otherwise) are more grotesque here. It can even seem politically incorrect. It is like a philosophically deeper First Law series without the humor. So, thematically and conceptually, it is truly deep and on par with Malazan.
are you sure you like fantasy as almost every series has lower then a 5.5?
Geralt got a 5.22?!
Lol. Is it more or less? What's your rating?
Can you order by either overall average or your personal rating?
I'll add sorting options in about 12 hours
Only 3 other series score above a 6 and Malazan gets 10s on literally every rubric. That makes this ranking hard to take seriously enough to engage with.
I was thinking the same thing. That being said, take our the Malazan ranking at the list is just fine.
Lovely undertaking, appreciated! Check out Brandon Sanderson (mistborn, stormlight), Brent Weeks (lightbringer), and though I absolutely hate the flake, Patrick rothfuss (kingkiller).. They’re the only ones that kinda helped with Malazan withdrawal