Until two years ago, I would never have thought that I would ever read fantasy. That was when I accidentally read the Chapter one excerpt of Gardens of the Moon on Amazon. I don't think I realized it was fantasy until after starting the excerpt. I was hooked after the second paragraph. I had no idea fantasy could be written like this and this well. I bought the book and by the time I got half way through Gardens, I decided to buy the entire series. Took me 14 months and Malazan was the only books I read. I was now hooked on fantasy and have only read fantasy ever since finishing Malazan. Makes me wish I had discovered fantasy 40 years ago.
That's an incredible story, Thomas! Thank you for sharing that with me. I do understand the feeling of having missing out on so many books, but I'll also say it's never too late to discover our passion for something! I never expected to love reading fantasy novels until 5 years ago myself! :)
@@jeffreykaufmann2867 The first book is considered the hardest to understand/most difficult in the series, as the author kind of throws you in without explanation. I powered through it, and now starting book 9, it was worth the effort. I would say go for it, and don't expect to understand everything. It will all start making sense soon after.
@@jeffreykaufmann2867 sounds like a solid plan. Many rank the second very highly and the third as one of the best. So if you can't get in to those, probably best to just cut your losses. And don't be afraid to read up on stuff like the magic system or races to get a bearing
Do you spot some of your favorite series here? Don't let me be the only one to add books to your TBR, let me know what's YOUR favorite completed fantasy series!? 😃
I love so many of these that I have read. Another series I loved was Artemis fowl which is for a slightly younger audience and the moontide quartet which I haven't completely finished but is soo good❤️
My top 1 is 100% the Godblind trilogy by Anna Stephens. I finished the last book at the begining of the year and it left me in pieces. Can't wait for her new book !
hey petrik. just wanted to let you know that you are amazing. you got e back into reading seriously and your story of depression and overcoming it is awe inspiring. you're a great inspiration and you have helped me through the tests. when i heard you were making this video i was so excited and I've been waiting. now its out and i can watch it. thank you for being a legend. keep doing you. i can't wait to see where you'll go next. you deserve millions of subscribers!
Hey! Thank you for such a lovely comment! I'm very pleased that my story managed to get you back into reading! 😁 And just to clarify, I don't think I've ever mentioned I had depression; what I said was I was in a very bad place and I'm not sure whether I'm depressed or not. I do honestly think people with mental health issues are a much stronger person than I am. 😊
Excellent list. Some real surprises. I did my version last April and feel like it already needs an update. I'll be starting Kings of Paradise after I finish Rhythm of War. Oh, and, uh...TRUTH AND COURAGE!
Thank you, brother! I've seen that video, and I definitely look forward to watching your updated version! Btw, I really don't see any possibility of you disliking Kings of Paradise and the entire series. I hope I'm not wrong! TRUTH AND COURAGE!!! 😊
@@PetrikLeo I've heard Richard Nell is about as close to Abercrombie as you're going to get without Lord Grimdark himself writing it, so my excitement is high.
This was a very unique list. I read the Farseer trilogy for the first time this month and I am blown away. I can't believe her books are so underrated on Booktube. Her writing is beautiful and her character work is perfection. Can't wait to read the other books in the series.🤩
Thank you so much, Crystal! Oh if you love Farseer that much already, you're in for some unforgettable adventure with the rest of the series!! Enjoy! 🤩
I always learn of a new series when watching videos like these. Thank you for the time and effort, My reading journey will never be finished, TBR extends into eternity.
I have looked at a ton of booktubers on RUclips and have only cared about two of them enough to subscribe to, Mike's book reviews and you good Sir. You guys are the best out there, by far, it my opinion. Thanks Petrik. I'll keep watching.
Ah thank you so much, Alvin! It means a lot to me to hear you say that, especially because I'm still relatively new at this! I'll keep on doing my best! 😊
The only ones I’ve read here are Poppy War and Mistborn and loved both of them. Thanks for the recommendations man. It’s also very refreshing to see a list like this without lord of the rings or wheel of time hogging the top spots 😅
@@nightmarishcompositions4536 please come back to this thread when you have . If you have audible Steven pacey is a god and it puts voices to the characters.
I've had Paternus on my shelf for over a year and you're glowing recommendation is making me want to read this right away. Thanks! I have not heard of a lot of these, so I will be picking up some of them.
I’m delighted to see some of my favorites on your list (Lawrence, Abercrombie, Hobb, Erikson), and I’m equally happy to learn from you about some series I need to try! I’ll be reading Gwynne’s Malice soon. Thanks so much!
I'm having such a hard time getting into it. I've put it aside to work on other books. I only got through like 9 chapters after 2 months. That's terrible for me.
Man you just expanded my TBR. Kings of Paradise and City of Stairs were climbing up my TBR and now may be at the top. Love your perspective and insight. You've been 10/10 on recommendations for me. While I thought Poppy War was just okay I agree Kuang leveled up massively in Dragon Republic and if that's continues in Burning God then I'd say this series will go way up in my ranks. Petrik book reviewer great is now becoming one of the best booktubers! Cheers!
Ah thank you so much, bro! I'm very curious on your opinion on Kings of Paradise and City of Stairs; I think they're incredible. For The Poppy War, yeah, I have to admit that although I loved the first book very much, my history and race played a huge part on why the first book worked so well for me. In terms of writing and storytelling quality, the second and third book technically outshone the first book! Hahaha, that's too kind of you! 😂 Cheers!!
I’ve just picked up Theft of Swords, I haven’t read many books in the fantasy genre, but I’m definitely going to read other series that you’ve recommended. You seem to recommend series that other booktubers aren’t suggesting! It’s refreshing! Your channel is by far my favourite!
I started reading "Malice" by John Gwynne after watching your video. This book was not at all on my radar. Now I am completely hooked to it after just a few pages! Awesome recommendation!
You've added (yet again) more books to my tbr Petrik! I just finished The Burning God last night and I'm anxious to see what everyone thinks when it gets published!
OMG so glad you have Winnowing Flame on here, just finished the Ninth Rain and it's already a new all time favorite for me! Seriously how is no one talking about this series?!
Yeahhhh! One of the best trilogy I've read! Honestly crazy how few people are talking abouy this series. The first and the third book in the trilogy in particular were sooooo good! 😁
Since I've never heard of any of the books mentioned, I thought I'll start my journey one by one. Completed Riyria Revelations and thoroughly enjoyed the journey. Thank you😄 On to the next one now!
Congrats for the video Petrik, BEST tierlist video I have ever seen. I mean, there's so much emotion, passion and love for the series you talked that I could feel It tío and now want to read them all. Keep going.
Wow, thank you so much for the kind words, Marco! I REALLY love these series; ranking them actually hurts me a bit. I'm not sure I want to do that again in the future! 😂
Stoked to see Realm of the Elderlings ranked so high. I absolutely love this series! "Wolves have no Kings" "This is our last hunt, old wolf. And as we have always done, we go to it together.”
I am on Assassins Quest right now with about 150 pages left. I went ahead and got all the series in Elderlings based on the first two books. Solid series so far
@@civoreb it only gets better! Though I feel compelled to warn you that assassin’s quest may be the weakest book in the entire series (for me and many others it was) so please don’t let assassin’s quest deter you from reading the rest. Robin Hobb really shines in Fitz’s second and third trilogies, as does Fitz himself since by then he is an older and more experienced protagonist.
@@civoreb i pretty much seconded what Davis Tran said. Assassin's Quest, for me on my first read, was one of the weakest book of the entire saga. That and Rain Wild Chronicles. Other than those? Phenomenal series!
You're that guy in goodreads! I had read a lot of your reviews about Malazan Book of the Fallen series. I have four books and still searching for the remaining. Good stuff keep it coming!
I’m so happy to discover your channel because of how much you highlight self-published and independent books. Would love a video showcasing how you find them!
Thank you so much, Nico! I hope you'll enjoy your time on this channel! I love both traditionally published and self-published books! 😍 That's actually a really good video idea. I'm thinking of slipping in how I do that on my future "favorite self-published books" video, but if I'm not able to, I'll definitely keep that in mind!
Love it! Yes, you have increased my TBR or at least have peaked my interest enough to further look into some of these series. I did noticed that there weren’t any older completed series on this list but this is a GREAT list for older people like myself who are curious about modern fantasy. I look forward to your favorites of series that have not been completed by the author yet.
Thank you, Gianni! Yeah, I just realized it myself yesterday that I don't have many older completed series here. I think I enjoyed plenty of pre-90's series but they didn't fully align with my reading taste. I'm glad this list can help you! I'll try to do a favorite ongoing series next month! 🙂
Well that was a big surprise ending for me! I just stumbled on your top 15 list today and after Malazan, (I took a break mid HoC), I did not expect Mr Gwynne would be your #1. I would also put him there. I have turned numerous friends on to him and I hope, as you do, that he takes off and gets all the attention his novels deserve!! The most fun I've had reading in a long time! Oh, you also liked the Licanius trilogy! I stopped reading book one a year or so ago, I picked it back up and was glad I did! Going to read the final book soon. I like to read different authors in between series so I don't burn out on them. That's what happened with Malazan. I did read the Faithful and the Fallen series in one shot though, I had to!!!!
Thank you so much, Mike! Haha, I honestly can't decide which one I loved more between Malazan Book of the Fallen, Realm of the Elderlings, and Banished Lands Saga. Depending on my mood, either one of them could by my number 1 spot. Licanius is amazing, and I wish it weren't so underrated!
Petrik! I’ve got a bone to pick with you! I read The Wounded Kingdom trilogy because of your recommendation in this video, and now I am so wrung out and sad!! The trilogy was amazing - absolutely phenomenal. But I was not prepared for that ending!! I’ve been in a funk for the last few days, and I’m struggling to pick up any other books, because all I want to do is spend more time with Girton. It’s all your fault! 😛 And yes, I am back here to see what other series you recommended. I’m a glutton for punishment, I guess.
Every single book you mentioned I have either read or is on my tbr list already! ☺️ I completely agree with you. I just finished the 4th John Gwynne book and the first part of this series is probably one of my favorite series ever too. I am so excited to read the second part!
Great video sir, thanks very much. Also as I was listening to you describe why you like Mr. Gwynne's work I thought 'I'm surprised Ice and Fire isn't up here too!'...then realized 'oh right...finished'... Sadness...
Thank you, nemesis. I loved A Song of Ice and Fire, but I really didn't like the fourth and fifth book of the main series. I will reread them again when Winds of Winter comes out, whenever that is... 🙂
Thank-you Petrik, this was an incredible journey into fantasy series that one should try out. I have tried out a few already, but your recommendations have given me so . . . much more to look into. thanks again for this channel.
I have all the series on list except for Paternus...I trust you so much that I ordered the whole series. Thanks for the recommendation. Can’t wait for your next video!
Such a great list, Petrik. I love majority of these, just kept nodding through your video. Pleasantly surprised by Ash and Sand trilogy inclusion, Ruka is truly a magnificent bastard.
Used my audible credit on the complete Paternus trilogy because of this video. You sold me on urban fantasy and epic fantasy with gods. Never heard of it before.
Yes!! That's great. I hope you're going to enjoy it. The first half of the first book can be a bit weak but after that, ooohh boy everything gets better and better, especially the final book! 😊
I was actually really surprised that Mistborn is not in your top 3 man haha. Fantastic list! Mistborn, Riyria, Faithful and the Fallen, Realm of the Elderlings, and Wounded Kingdom would all be on my list as well!
Man, these are some interesting recommendations, it's awesome that this isn't a Top 15 most popular series. I expected the list of books I want to read to get smaller this year, but it is only getting bigger and bigger.
Thank you! haha I didn't intend it to be that way, whether these are popular or not, they are indeed my favorites. You're quite right, though, I've seen so many lists which consists only of the same popular books/series spoken by different booktubers! Can't fault them, it's their favorites after all, but yeah there's so much more underrated series with quality that matches (or even better) some of the most popular series!
I am so happy to see that you have many of my favourites on your list especially Steven Erikson and surprisingly John Gwynne. I don’t think that I have seen his books on anyone else’s list. I totally agree with your summary of his 2 series, which I have personally read twice. There is another author that does similar work. If you haven’t read him yet, maybe give Miles Cameron a try. His Traitor Son series is very dark and is basically a running battle over several years. Thanks for your insight, I find your posts very insightful as well as helpful in terms of identifying series that I should consider. I will definitely stay tuned!
Thank you so much, Marianne!! Gwynne's books will always be on the top of my list. Moving forward, expect to see me talk about his books frequently on this channel! xD I've read Traitor's Son Cycle by Miles Cameron, but unfortunately it didn't really click for me. I will still try some of his books in the future, though. Several readers have mentioned that historical fiction is his main forte, so I'm looking forward to those!!
So happy you talked about the Wounded Kingdom trilogy ! This is such an underrated series but the last two books blew me away so much that it entered my top 10 almost immediately. Also happy you mentioned Paternus as I've been eyeing that series for a while now but was afraid I wasn't gonna get into it because of the Urban Fantasy aspect. Knowing you liked it so much and our tastes being so similar, I'll definitely give it a try now 😊
I know right!?? I loved what Barker has done with the trilogy. I thought I was going to dislike Paternus, too, at first, and for almost the first half of the first book I did think that way. But then the second half of the first book and the rest of the series pretty much made me in love with the series! 🙂
Really Good List , please plan for more ! It's really nice to see other authors being mentioned for a change. Works of authors like John Gwynn , Jen Williams , Anna Stephens deserve more praise online !
Thank you so much! Yeah, there's an incredibly huge number of underrated authors as good (or even better) as the most popular authors in the genre. And I definitely will plan for more! I hope to release a "favorite ongoing series" in November, wish me luck! 😁
Thanks for the recommendations picked up a ton from your video. Decided to read Paternus that was sooo good I bought them all! Can’t wait for your video on ongoing series!!!! Thank you
You're welcome, Chris! Paternus trilogy is sooooo good! The third book is hands down one of my favorite books! Right on time that you said that 😂 my video on favorite ongoing series should be uploaded within next week!
You're the only booktuber I've seen talk about the Divine Cities. Its truly great. Sigrid (can't remember if I'm spelling that right) was amazing. Also, I read Faithful and the Fallen because of Mike's Book Reviews and I think you recommended it to him and its tied for my favorite series with First Law so I'm grateful to you for introducing it to Mike and then me
Love Divine Cities, I hope I can reread the series one day!! Sigrud was an amazing character. Also, what goes around comes around, I'm glad Mike's video got you to reading The Faithful and the Fallen! 😊
I am pretty new to fantasy genre read Sanderson, first law, lotr and A Song of Ice and Fire and immensely enjoy all these books, i love you channel and your recommendations, despite 9 to 5 i love coming back to books after work
Could have predicted number 1! I am just getting into John Gwynne and on valour. With what you have said I am so excited especially to try to catch up before his new release next year. ❤️
Thanks for this ... I am looking forward to trying some of these.You have sold me on them! I just finished Malice, and WOW! I am going to start Valour tonight. Can't wait. I liked it so much that I am going to delay reading Rhythm of War. Great channel ... I love hearing you talk about these books.
Thank you so much! And also you're welcome, Alex! If you have loved Malice already, I guarantee you that the rest of the series will make you love the series even more! I totally understand why you'd delay reading Rhythm of War for it! Truth and Courage!🙂
@@alexfrederick3404 Wow! 9 hours of reading!? Well done! Corban and co would be proud of you! 😄 Onwards to Ruin. Truth and Courage! So pleased to hear another new reader enjoying this series! 😁
I enjoy your reviews on Goodreads. Now I look forward to your videos. I’m reading Malice now and loving it. I wish I could read as fast as you. So many books!
Oh Petrick, I love watching your uploads but every time my tbr keeps growing. I tried with Paternus, bit didn't get into it. I might give it another go at some point. Of course, I do need to sleep at some point. The one thing that surprised me with JA was the humour of the first law. I didn't expect to laugh so much to be honest, but i did.
Yeah, that's kinda what makes Abercrombie so amazing. His grimdark books are also some of the most hilarious books I've read! 🙂 Too bad Paternus didn't work for you, I do admit that the first half of Paternus isn't a good gauge of the rest of the series, though!
Thank you for this list and THANK YOU for putting up the books so I can write them down. Some people move the books around so much that I struggle to write to them. I am really looking forward to reading these.
Great list, withme being an older reader, there are a few new authors and series that you mentioned that I'd never heard of, much appreciated. A few series that left an impression on me were, The Thomas Covenant Chronicles, a dense and heavy going (and somewhat contraversial) but ultimately very rewarding series. Another awesome old school series is The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny, such a fun series. One more recommendation is The Book of the New Sun quadrilogy by Gene Wolfe, beautifuly written and immersive worldbuilding.
Plus - I really enjoyed your reviews of all these series - Lots of exciting new reading ahead for me I think as many of them I haven't yet read. Thank you
Props on the mistborn trilogy as well! It was my first deep dive into fantasy, and had to message my friend in the middle of the night to thank him for recommending it. I didnt see the finale coming and I had a tear in my eye reading and re-reading the last chapter
i just discovered you today, and your review inspired me to pick up mistborn today! i also wanted to say you have a very soothing voice that is nice to have on in the background. (sorry if that’s weird!)
I’m reading Age of Assassins right now I’m having so much fun with it and I TOTALLY feel the Farseer trilogy vibe reading this too. My reading friend loved Hobb as much as I do and I told him to read this one because The Wounded Kingdom is so similar
Right!? I think Age of Assassins definitely got that Assassin's Apprentice feel. The second and third book starts to differ more from it but it's still a great series on its own. I hope you and your friend will continue to love it! I think it's such an underrated trilogy! :)
I'm so glad I watched this. I read Theft of Swords earlier this year and was really struggling to decide how I felt about it, so the encouragement that the series gets better with each book definitely helps my desire to keep going. I like the idea of it, I just felt like the prose was clumsy and "did you see what I did there?" in a lot of sections. I loved Myron the Monk though. XD He's one of my favorite characters of the year.
You're welcome! And yeah, you're not the only one who felt that about Theft of Swords. I was the same on my first read. I even thought it felt like a book written for teenagers... xD That said, I just did a reread of the series this year, after getting attached to the characters from finishing the trilogy and reading the Riyria Chronicles, I LOVE the series even more now. Theft of Swords improved so much on reread. I definitely have to update my ranking! :)
@@PetrikLeo that’s exactly how I felt about it! The characters were great but the prose felt very amateur YA in some spots. I look forward to seeing the progression.
Yes! Realm of the Elderlings is my greatest fictional passion in life🥰 I cannot describe my love for it. Robin Hobb is AMAZING. Thanks for some recommendations that I have never heard of 😁
I've only completed a few children's fantasy when I was young. The Deptford mice trilogy by Robin Jarvis The Dark is Rising and The Borrowers. Currently reading through The Wheel of Time
Curse you Petrik. I’m pretty sure you just tripled my TBR with one video! The only completed series I’ve read is Inheritance Cycle and Mistborn. I’ve read all the Cosmere books so far. I’ll check back with you in 30 years about where those lie on my favorites list.
I've just subscribed to your channel. I value your reviews on Goodreads because I've found that if you recommend a book then it's generally something I'll enjoy. I'm currently almost finished the last book in The Faithful & The Fallen series thanks to you and have to agree that it is one of the best fantasy series I've read. I'll definitely be moving on to the Blood & Bone series in the near future!
Ah thank you so much, Ellie! That's very kind of you. I'm so happy to hear that my reviews can help you! The Faithful and the Fallen is SO AMAZING right!? It always makes my day when someone tells me they love Gwynne's books! Of Blood and Bone is pretty incredible, too!! 😃
Yaaay, finally some Winnowing Flame love!! I knew from the first half of The Ninth Rain that it will be a fave series, Jen Williams deserves more love and recognition 🏅 All other series you mentioned I either read, have started reading or is on my TBR. So, our tastes allign pretty much exactly. My fave, however, is not on the list - The Witcher! I realise it's not everyone's cup of tea, but it holds such a special place in my heart ❤️
The Winnowing Flame is such an incredible series, Anya. I totally agree that it deserves more love and recognition! As for The Witcher, I've read The Last Wish a longgg time ago, I'm going to reread it and the rest of the series is still on my series to read; hopefully next year! 🙂
What a brilliant video! You give a pretty perfect amount of information to get me interested in the book, while leaving all the mystery and excitement of a new story waiting to be enjoyed. And such a great list, I haven't heard of half of these and i'm so grateful they're on my radar now. Thanks so much for making this video! :D
Thank you so much, Louis! This video is more than a year old already, and I'm glad it's still helpful for several readers! I tried my best to talk about them as spoiler-free as possible, and I'm happy to hear it worked for you. I hope you'll enjoy the series you decided to try from this list! :)
Great video, Petrik. I still need to get to several of these, many of which are already sitting on my shelves. I've been reading a lot of horror lately, but this video has got me itching to get back to some fantasy! Malazan would still be number one for me, but I haven't read Gwynne yet.
Thank you, Dustin!! I totally understand that. As I said in the video, i think the top 3 series I mentioned here are pretty much at the number 1 spot together! :D
Phenomenal video! I will be checking all of these out, we have similar taste I love Michael J Sullivan and Paternus took me by surprise, I loved Rise Of Gods so much.
Very, very informative, it really shows your love, I might not be as enamored with your list, but the authors are some of the best of the modern times(give or take 2000 till 2020), again I would like you to try some of the older ones, Lord of the Rings was never anything for me, except as a sleeping pill, but Dragonlance novels, Raymond Feist's, David Eddings, those were some of the best, even better than some of the newer authors, although Brandon Stevenson and Steven Erikson just epitomizes the word "EPIC" from word to worlds, again so happy for your youtube videos, they are really worth the wait!!!! Keep on reading!!!
Thank you! No worries, none of our list will ever be the same anyway. As for the books you mention, I have Feist to read next year. Can't say I'm too intrigued by Dragonlance and Eddings books, though; I've tried them both and got so bored. I'll probably try them again one day, but not anytime soon! 😅
We have some pretty similar tastes! First Law, Book of the Ancestor, RotE, Mistborn and Poppy War are all some of my favs as well :) I love your story about Mistborn. I read it when I was 14 and it got me back into reading after years of nothing (and also is why I discovered Booktube). Ooo I don't know why but I didn't expect The Banished Land Saga to get number 1! Malice is at the top of my TBR after I finish RotE!
Aww thank you for reading my story, Ashlyn! And I'm glad the same series got you back into reading! The Realm of the Elderlings is amazing, I hope you will love Gwynne's books, too! 😊
Fantastic list, I'll have to consider what are the best series that I've actually managed to finish. I have so many going right now, I should probably finish. Mistborn is definitely up there, as well as Red Rising. Mistborn felt like an anime/manga to me and every battle scene I pictured anime being the way to bring it to life.
Thank you very much, bro! I haven't counted how many ongoing series I'm in right now; I'm terrified... HEY, you're one of the few people I know who actually mentioned Mistborn being very anime/manga-like; that's a HUGE reason why I loved it! I think the scene in this series is very easily imaginable to me because of that! 🤩
Petrik, thank you so much for this video and recommendations. I really appreciate it, I have finished a book recently and had no idea what to start next, but you've given me a lot to think about. I hope you're having a great week and once again thank you so much.
I always dread editing because I'm so slow with it, but every time I post, everyone's lovely comment and responses made it worth the trouble! 😊 Thank you for watching, Anna!
Fantastic list! Some of my personal favorites here, especially the Malice Trilogy. I am just finishing up The Light of All That Falls then will tackle the Of Blood and Bone Trilogy, can't wait. Have attempted Malazan twice... will give it another go soon. Some other interesting ones I have now added to my TBR. First time viewer, instant subscribe for your excellent taste. Keep up the good work :)
Hey thank you so much, Chris! I'll do my best! That's very kind of you. The Light of All That Falls and Of Blood and Bone trilogy are both amazing. Enjoy! 😁
@@PetrikLeo have you read the Powder Mage Trilogy by Brian McClellan, The Shadow Campaigns by Django Wexler, or the Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks? All firm favourites for me also.
@@pppmchris1986 not yet for Night Angel but already did for the rest you mentioned! Shadow Campaigns is criminally underrated, imo. Such a great series!
Probably the longest awaited video for long!! Great list my friend, I’m saving all of those suggestions and was very intrigued by the trilogy with the character that is as good as the Bloody Nine 🤩 I really loved the Shadow Campaigns to add but it seems like I have a lot other great choices to catch up on!
Thank you so much, my friend!! OH, you have to give Ash and Sand trilogy a try! I have a good feeling you will love it! I'm not kidding when I say the character will remind of you of the Bloody Nine! 🤩
Great list Petrik! Most of these books are on my radar! I've been reading your reviews on GR for a while and I always check to see if you've written a review for a book I'm contemplating on because I highly value your opinion. Glad to see you've made a booktube channel, take care!
Doubt there will be one on here I've not heard of, but it's always great to see how others rank them! So glad to see Michael Sullivan on here. 🥰 Red Sister is awesome too. Live Licanius series SO MUCH! John Gwynne is a master.💪 I've tried to read Malazan 3 times. 😑 Whoa, never heard of Jen Williams! 👌
Thank you so much, Hillary! Glad you loved many of these, too. Licanius trilogy is sooooo good, and Gwynne is one of my top favorite authors! Don't worry about Malazan Book of the Fallen, if it's not for you no need to push it. Jen Williams is so worth the read, though! 😊
Fantastic selection - from what we have read on your list we agree these are superb choice - particularly The Wounded Kingdom.. criminally underrated we certainly agree :)
Straightaway I noticed a common denominator in series you like: trilogies. They're tough to beat because they're almost always written by architects not gardeners. These writers plan their story sequence out before breaking ground instead of making it up as they go along. Occasionally that can be fun for authors but leads to diminishing returns for readers. Planned writing lends itself to controlled, purposeful narratives, enabling succinct storytelling that doesn't meander into boredom and delivers bigger surprises and more satisfying pay-offs in the end. Writers who ramble along like the Jordans and Martins of fantasy, willing to explore every rabbit hole and side road along the way, create more problematic blind alleys for themselves than they can logically write their way out of. Superfluous characters and imprecise plotlines bog a series down like a runaway train trying to pull too many cars, driving their plot right off the rails. Cheers from your newest subscriber!
Thanks for subscribing! I do think trilogies or a quartet, in general, has a better chance of succeeding compared to let's say, 5 books or more series. Not saying it's not possible at all, as you can see my top three favorite series here are long series. But I do think longer series tend to be riskier as they can feel overwritten and drawn out more than necessary. Plus, yes, although many authors are (understandably) proud of their work as gardeners, I seem to have more of a liking for the architect type of writer. I believe every author is on some level a mix of both, but those who lean towards the architect type seem to have a better outline, structure, and fewer plot holes in their story compared to gardeners. At least from my experience anyway! :)
@@PetrikLeo 'preciate the reply. May I recommend a trilogy right up your alley still in print after 40+ years: Eric Lustbader's The Sunset Warrior, Shallows of Night & Dai-San. The hero refuses to align himself with any of the daiymo-type warlords in a vast cylindrical subterranean city of people who follow a Bushidō-like code, hence his name Ronin (Frank Miller swiped the name for a hero of his years later). Men and women alike practice combat daily with edged weapons like steel fans and swords. Trouble ensues (of course) to thicken the plot and the first book concludes with an O. Henry one-two punch I never saw coming. Ronin and another character decide to blow that pop stand on the last page and set off across a sea of ice. Shallows of Night begins with their 40-page trek. This journey is no description-laden snooze fest like Robert Jordan belaboring the details of the draperies, rugs and furniture in a Tar Valon lavatory. Ronin winds up in another warrior culture in an Edo/Shanghai amalgam under the shadow of sorcery. The martial arts hand-to-hand combat and sword fighting by Lustbader exceeds the excitement it's supposed to evoke moreso than any writer I've ever read. The original trilogy with superb Don Maitz covers are still available on ebay and elsewhere. Maitz also did new covers for the 1991 threesome reprint, they too stellar. Years later a fourth book about a minor character made the trilogy a tetralogy and almost 20 years after that a fifth, again about the minor player, enlarged the series to a pentalogy. The secondary not-a-duology are detached standalones having nothing to do with Ronin, who isn't even in them. They're disposable honestly---the trilogy arc is THE MONEY. And always a rewarding reread.
Until two years ago, I would never have thought that I would ever read fantasy. That was when I accidentally read the Chapter one excerpt of Gardens of the Moon on Amazon. I don't think I realized it was fantasy until after starting the excerpt.
I was hooked after the second paragraph. I had no idea fantasy could be written like this and this well. I bought the book and by the time I got half way through Gardens, I decided to buy the entire series.
Took me 14 months and Malazan was the only books I read.
I was now hooked on fantasy and have only read fantasy ever since finishing Malazan. Makes me wish I had discovered fantasy 40 years ago.
That's an incredible story, Thomas! Thank you for sharing that with me. I do understand the feeling of having missing out on so many books, but I'll also say it's never too late to discover our passion for something! I never expected to love reading fantasy novels until 5 years ago myself! :)
@@PetrikLeo I tried to read the first few chapters of Gardens of the Moon but it was too difficult to understand.
@@jeffreykaufmann2867 The first book is considered the hardest to understand/most difficult in the series, as the author kind of throws you in without explanation. I powered through it, and now starting book 9, it was worth the effort. I would say go for it, and don't expect to understand everything. It will all start making sense soon after.
@@chungusdisciple9917 l'll just read the Plot on Wikipedia for the 1st Book.
@@jeffreykaufmann2867 sounds like a solid plan. Many rank the second very highly and the third as one of the best. So if you can't get in to those, probably best to just cut your losses. And don't be afraid to read up on stuff like the magic system or races to get a bearing
Do you spot some of your favorite series here? Don't let me be the only one to add books to your TBR, let me know what's YOUR favorite completed fantasy series!? 😃
I love so many of these that I have read. Another series I loved was Artemis fowl which is for a slightly younger audience and the moontide quartet which I haven't completely finished but is soo good❤️
My top 1 is 100% the Godblind trilogy by Anna Stephens. I finished the last book at the begining of the year and it left me in pieces. Can't wait for her new book !
The Abhorsen series by Garth Nix. The original trilogy is just so good!
Loved the new video Petrik.. Could you add series names in the description or in pinned comment. I feel it will be easy to access that way. Thank You.
I read most of your top but I can add one serie at least the night angel trilogy by Brent weeks , a wonderful tale about assassin.
hey petrik. just wanted to let you know that you are amazing. you got e back into reading seriously and your story of depression and overcoming it is awe inspiring. you're a great inspiration and you have helped me through the tests. when i heard you were making this video i was so excited and I've been waiting. now its out and i can watch it. thank you for being a legend. keep doing you. i can't wait to see where you'll go next. you deserve millions of subscribers!
Hey! Thank you for such a lovely comment! I'm very pleased that my story managed to get you back into reading! 😁
And just to clarify, I don't think I've ever mentioned I had depression; what I said was I was in a very bad place and I'm not sure whether I'm depressed or not. I do honestly think people with mental health issues are a much stronger person than I am. 😊
@@PetrikLeo thank you for replying! i think even if you didn't have depression you still have a very empowering story :)
@@alhasanalalawi9495 Cheers! You keep on fighting the good fight, okay? Whatever you're going through. Don't give up! 😁
Excellent list. Some real surprises. I did my version last April and feel like it already needs an update. I'll be starting Kings of Paradise after I finish Rhythm of War.
Oh, and, uh...TRUTH AND COURAGE!
You could do an updated version of the list Mike xD
You know these list vids do well. Hehe.
@@VicRibeiro777 I'll probably update it next year after I'm into Malazan a bit. See if it can crack in.
Thank you, brother! I've seen that video, and I definitely look forward to watching your updated version! Btw, I really don't see any possibility of you disliking Kings of Paradise and the entire series. I hope I'm not wrong! TRUTH AND COURAGE!!! 😊
@@PetrikLeo I've heard Richard Nell is about as close to Abercrombie as you're going to get without Lord Grimdark himself writing it, so my excitement is high.
As a fellow grimdark enthusiast I can vouch for Richard Nell! His writing alone make it worthwhile
This was a very unique list. I read the Farseer trilogy for the first time this month and I am blown away. I can't believe her books are so underrated on Booktube. Her writing is beautiful and her character work is perfection. Can't wait to read the other books in the series.🤩
Thank you so much, Crystal! Oh if you love Farseer that much already, you're in for some unforgettable adventure with the rest of the series!! Enjoy! 🤩
I always learn of a new series when watching videos like these. Thank you for the time and effort, My reading journey will never be finished, TBR extends into eternity.
You and me both, Melcus. You and me both. Doubtful I can finish every book I want to read! xD
I have looked at a ton of booktubers on RUclips and have only cared about two of them enough to subscribe to,
Mike's book reviews and you good Sir.
You guys are the best out there, by far, it my opinion. Thanks Petrik. I'll keep watching.
Ah thank you so much, Alvin! It means a lot to me to hear you say that, especially because I'm still relatively new at this! I'll keep on doing my best! 😊
Oh wow, I've never heard of Age of Assassins but any comparison to Robin Hobb and I am sold!
Thanks, Aaron! Don't expect Hobb's writing style, though. But the premise and execution of the first book is similar! 😊
Unbelievable! Such a wonderful video, but super honored and amazed to be included with all these amazing authors. Thank you Petrik!
Of course, Dyrk! Thank you for writing such a great series for me to read! 🙂
@@PetrikLeo My great pleasure, sir 😊
Hobb is one of my favorite authors! I’m going to be starting Malazan along with Mike’s Book Reviews in January and I’m looking forward to it!
Woohooo!! Enjoy the EPIC adventure! 🙂
The only ones I’ve read here are Poppy War and Mistborn and loved both of them. Thanks for the recommendations man. It’s also very refreshing to see a list like this without lord of the rings or wheel of time hogging the top spots 😅
You're welcome! I enjoyed The Wheel of Time and Lotd of the Rings, but not enough to earn a place in my top spots yet. 😅
First law my number one , Logen and Glokta are so funny ,dark,lovable and dislikable all at once .
@@amshia0121 I’ve heard a lot of great things about First Law, can’t wait to check it out!
@@nightmarishcompositions4536 you will love them book 4 is one of the best books iv ever read .
@@nightmarishcompositions4536 please come back to this thread when you have . If you have audible Steven pacey is a god and it puts voices to the characters.
I've had Paternus on my shelf for over a year and you're glowing recommendation is making me want to read this right away. Thanks! I have not heard of a lot of these, so I will be picking up some of them.
You're welcome! Oh Paternus trilogy is amazing! A feast for those who love fantasy and mythology! 😊
I’m delighted to see some of my favorites on your list (Lawrence, Abercrombie, Hobb, Erikson), and I’m equally happy to learn from you about some series I need to try! I’ll be reading Gwynne’s Malice soon. Thanks so much!
Oh yessss! I hope you'll love Malice and the entire series. I treasure this series so much!!! 😊
I'm having such a hard time getting into it. I've put it aside to work on other books. I only got through like 9 chapters after 2 months. That's terrible for me.
Such a great list! Was refreshing to see some unique titles. Definitely a boon to my endless TBR. ☺️
Thank you, Saraubs! Endless TBR demands to be feed... xD
Man you just expanded my TBR.
Kings of Paradise and City of Stairs were climbing up my TBR and now may be at the top. Love your perspective and insight. You've been 10/10 on recommendations for me.
While I thought Poppy War was just okay I agree Kuang leveled up massively in Dragon Republic and if that's continues in Burning God then I'd say this series will go way up in my ranks.
Petrik book reviewer great is now becoming one of the best booktubers! Cheers!
Ah thank you so much, bro! I'm very curious on your opinion on Kings of Paradise and City of Stairs; I think they're incredible.
For The Poppy War, yeah, I have to admit that although I loved the first book very much, my history and race played a huge part on why the first book worked so well for me. In terms of writing and storytelling quality, the second and third book technically outshone the first book!
Hahaha, that's too kind of you! 😂 Cheers!!
I’ve just picked up Theft of Swords, I haven’t read many books in the fantasy genre, but I’m definitely going to read other series that you’ve recommended. You seem to recommend series that other booktubers aren’t suggesting! It’s refreshing! Your channel is by far my favourite!
Thank you so much, Michelle! Theft of Swords is a solid choice for newcomer to fantasy genre! 😊 Enjoy!!
I started reading "Malice" by John Gwynne after watching your video. This book was not at all on my radar. Now I am completely hooked to it after just a few pages! Awesome recommendation!
Oh yes!! Believe me, if you're hooked already, the rest of the series just constantly gets better and better! Enjoy! 😀
So many great reads!
Hobb has a special place in my top 10. Hobb has the ability to conjure up so many emotions in a reader.
Thank you! And so true... i miss her books, I really have to make time to reread her series again! 😊
The only bad thing about Hobb is that I haven't found anything close to what her books are like...still searching but I'm not sure I ever will
@@pau5781 i probably will never find another long series like hers again. Though I guess that's also what makes her books special. :')
You've added (yet again) more books to my tbr Petrik! I just finished The Burning God last night and I'm anxious to see what everyone thinks when it gets published!
Yayyy! So good to hear that! Ah yeah, that ending was so fitting; such an amazing book! Can't wait to hear everyone's thoughts on it, too!!
OMG so glad you have Winnowing Flame on here, just finished the Ninth Rain and it's already a new all time favorite for me! Seriously how is no one talking about this series?!
Yeahhhh! One of the best trilogy I've read! Honestly crazy how few people are talking abouy this series. The first and the third book in the trilogy in particular were sooooo good! 😁
Since I've never heard of any of the books mentioned, I thought I'll start my journey one by one. Completed Riyria Revelations and thoroughly enjoyed the journey. Thank you😄 On to the next one now!
Oh wow! That's awesome. This means you have many amazing series to read! Take your time, and enjoy! :)
@@PetrikLeo Thank you!
Congrats for the video Petrik, BEST tierlist video I have ever seen. I mean, there's so much emotion, passion and love for the series you talked that I could feel It tío and now want to read them all.
Keep going.
Wow, thank you so much for the kind words, Marco! I REALLY love these series; ranking them actually hurts me a bit. I'm not sure I want to do that again in the future! 😂
Stoked to see Realm of the Elderlings ranked so high. I absolutely love this series!
"Wolves have no Kings"
"This is our last hunt, old wolf. And as we have always done, we go to it together.”
Of course! I HAVE to reread this series. Also, those quotes.... my heart. 😢
I am on Assassins Quest right now with about 150 pages left. I went ahead and got all the series in Elderlings based on the first two books. Solid series so far
@@civoreb it only gets better! Though I feel compelled to warn you that assassin’s quest may be the weakest book in the entire series (for me and many others it was) so please don’t let assassin’s quest deter you from reading the rest. Robin Hobb really shines in Fitz’s second and third trilogies, as does Fitz himself since by then he is an older and more experienced protagonist.
@@civoreb i pretty much seconded what Davis Tran said. Assassin's Quest, for me on my first read, was one of the weakest book of the entire saga. That and Rain Wild Chronicles. Other than those? Phenomenal series!
You're that guy in goodreads! I had read a lot of your reviews about Malazan Book of the Fallen series. I have four books and still searching for the remaining. Good stuff keep it coming!
Hahaha I guess I am. 😅 Thank you, I'll do my best! And I hope you'l lfind the remaining Malazan books soon!
I’m so happy to discover your channel because of how much you highlight self-published and independent books. Would love a video showcasing how you find them!
Thank you so much, Nico! I hope you'll enjoy your time on this channel! I love both traditionally published and self-published books! 😍 That's actually a really good video idea. I'm thinking of slipping in how I do that on my future "favorite self-published books" video, but if I'm not able to, I'll definitely keep that in mind!
@@PetrikLeo yes that’s perfect! Looking forward to all your future content!
Love it! Yes, you have increased my TBR or at least have peaked my interest enough to further look into some of these series. I did noticed that there weren’t any older completed series on this list but this is a GREAT list for older people like myself who are curious about modern fantasy. I look forward to your favorites of series that have not been completed by the author yet.
Thank you, Gianni! Yeah, I just realized it myself yesterday that I don't have many older completed series here. I think I enjoyed plenty of pre-90's series but they didn't fully align with my reading taste. I'm glad this list can help you! I'll try to do a favorite ongoing series next month! 🙂
Well that was a big surprise ending for me! I just stumbled on your top 15 list today and after Malazan, (I took a break mid HoC), I did not expect Mr Gwynne would be your #1. I would also put him there. I have turned numerous friends on to him and I hope, as you do, that he takes off and gets all the attention his novels deserve!! The most fun I've had reading in a long time! Oh, you also liked the Licanius trilogy! I stopped reading book one a year or so ago, I picked it back up and was glad I did! Going to read the final book soon. I like to read different authors in between series so I don't burn out on them. That's what happened with Malazan. I did read the Faithful and the Fallen series in one shot though, I had to!!!!
Oh, my point was, I subscribed because your book taste is great and I'm looking forward to review's in the future!!
Thank you so much, Mike! Haha, I honestly can't decide which one I loved more between Malazan Book of the Fallen, Realm of the Elderlings, and Banished Lands Saga. Depending on my mood, either one of them could by my number 1 spot. Licanius is amazing, and I wish it weren't so underrated!
Petrik! I’ve got a bone to pick with you! I read The Wounded Kingdom trilogy because of your recommendation in this video, and now I am so wrung out and sad!! The trilogy was amazing - absolutely phenomenal. But I was not prepared for that ending!! I’ve been in a funk for the last few days, and I’m struggling to pick up any other books, because all I want to do is spend more time with Girton. It’s all your fault! 😛
And yes, I am back here to see what other series you recommended. I’m a glutton for punishment, I guess.
Hahaha! You're welcome. I am happy to be blame for this. Wounded Kingdom trilogy is so damn underrated. The ending was so good!
Every single book you mentioned I have either read or is on my tbr list already! ☺️ I completely agree with you. I just finished the 4th John Gwynne book and the first part of this series is probably one of my favorite series ever too. I am so excited to read the second part!
Yesssss! A new member of Gwynne's war band! So glad you loved the series that much! The second part is amazing as well! 🙂
Great video sir, thanks very much. Also as I was listening to you describe why you like Mr. Gwynne's work I thought 'I'm surprised Ice and Fire isn't up here too!'...then realized 'oh right...finished'... Sadness...
Thank you, nemesis. I loved A Song of Ice and Fire, but I really didn't like the fourth and fifth book of the main series. I will reread them again when Winds of Winter comes out, whenever that is... 🙂
Thank-you Petrik, this was an incredible journey into fantasy series that one should try out. I have tried out a few already, but your recommendations have given me so . . . much more to look into. thanks again for this channel.
You're so welcome, Brad! Very pleased that this list is helpful. I will be making an updated list to this at the end of this year! 😄
I have all the series on list except for Paternus...I trust you so much that I ordered the whole series. Thanks for the recommendation. Can’t wait for your next video!
Awww! Thank you for your trust in my reading taste!! I hope you'll enjoy reading them all!! :D
Such a great list, Petrik. I love majority of these, just kept nodding through your video. Pleasantly surprised by Ash and Sand trilogy inclusion, Ruka is truly a magnificent bastard.
Thank you, Lila! Ash and Sand trilogy, for Ruka alone, kinda deserves more readership. One of the most well-written character! 🙂
Used my audible credit on the complete Paternus trilogy because of this video. You sold me on urban fantasy and epic fantasy with gods. Never heard of it before.
Yes!! That's great. I hope you're going to enjoy it. The first half of the first book can be a bit weak but after that, ooohh boy everything gets better and better, especially the final book! 😊
I was actually really surprised that Mistborn is not in your top 3 man haha. Fantastic list! Mistborn, Riyria, Faithful and the Fallen, Realm of the Elderlings, and Wounded Kingdom would all be on my list as well!
Thank you, David! Mistborn was VERY close to being in the top 3, but these top 3 are too good to beat! 😅 Ranking these series aren't easy!!
@@PetrikLeo lol totally fair! I really need to catch up on RotE. I've only read farseer and 1 tawny man so far
@@davids2735 YOU HAVE TO! The Liveship Traders is a must-read, too. That's my second favorite series in RotE!
@@PetrikLeo I plan to haha. Cassidee and I are gonna do a buddy read of Liveship sometime soon-ish!
You are getting far more confident in those videos! Also, my tbr just increased, again!
Thank you, Sam! That's sooooo great to hear! 😊
Man, these are some interesting recommendations, it's awesome that this isn't a Top 15 most popular series. I expected the list of books I want to read to get smaller this year, but it is only getting bigger and bigger.
Thank you! haha I didn't intend it to be that way, whether these are popular or not, they are indeed my favorites. You're quite right, though, I've seen so many lists which consists only of the same popular books/series spoken by different booktubers! Can't fault them, it's their favorites after all, but yeah there's so much more underrated series with quality that matches (or even better) some of the most popular series!
I am so happy to see that you have many of my favourites on your list especially Steven Erikson and surprisingly John Gwynne. I don’t think that I have seen his books on anyone else’s list. I totally agree with your summary of his 2 series, which I have personally read twice. There is another author that does similar work. If you haven’t read him yet, maybe give Miles Cameron a try. His Traitor Son series is very dark and is basically a running battle over several years.
Thanks for your insight, I find your posts very insightful as well as helpful in terms of identifying series that I should consider. I will definitely stay tuned!
Thank you so much, Marianne!! Gwynne's books will always be on the top of my list. Moving forward, expect to see me talk about his books frequently on this channel! xD
I've read Traitor's Son Cycle by Miles Cameron, but unfortunately it didn't really click for me. I will still try some of his books in the future, though. Several readers have mentioned that historical fiction is his main forte, so I'm looking forward to those!!
So happy you talked about the Wounded Kingdom trilogy ! This is such an underrated series but the last two books blew me away so much that it entered my top 10 almost immediately. Also happy you mentioned Paternus as I've been eyeing that series for a while now but was afraid I wasn't gonna get into it because of the Urban Fantasy aspect. Knowing you liked it so much and our tastes being so similar, I'll definitely give it a try now 😊
I know right!?? I loved what Barker has done with the trilogy. I thought I was going to dislike Paternus, too, at first, and for almost the first half of the first book I did think that way. But then the second half of the first book and the rest of the series pretty much made me in love with the series! 🙂
Really Good List , please plan for more ! It's really nice to see other authors being mentioned for a change. Works of authors like John Gwynn , Jen Williams , Anna Stephens deserve more praise online !
Thank you so much! Yeah, there's an incredibly huge number of underrated authors as good (or even better) as the most popular authors in the genre. And I definitely will plan for more! I hope to release a "favorite ongoing series" in November, wish me luck! 😁
Absolutely! Looking forward to them 👍
Thanks for the recommendations picked up a ton from your video. Decided to read Paternus that was sooo good I bought them all! Can’t wait for your video on ongoing series!!!! Thank you
You're welcome, Chris! Paternus trilogy is sooooo good! The third book is hands down one of my favorite books! Right on time that you said that 😂 my video on favorite ongoing series should be uploaded within next week!
I just read robin hobbs books of the elderling is one of my favourite storys of all times
Totally understandable! I miss reading her books. Will do a reread one day! 😄
You're the only booktuber I've seen talk about the Divine Cities. Its truly great. Sigrid (can't remember if I'm spelling that right) was amazing. Also, I read Faithful and the Fallen because of Mike's Book Reviews and I think you recommended it to him and its tied for my favorite series with First Law so I'm grateful to you for introducing it to Mike and then me
Love Divine Cities, I hope I can reread the series one day!! Sigrud was an amazing character. Also, what goes around comes around, I'm glad Mike's video got you to reading The Faithful and the Fallen! 😊
I am pretty new to fantasy genre read
Sanderson, first law, lotr and A Song of Ice and Fire and immensely enjoy all these books, i love you channel and your recommendations, despite 9 to 5 i love coming back to books after work
Thank you, Priyanka! I'm glad you enjoyed all these books. Always good to read great books after coming back from work! 😃
You have added more books to my TBR. I always enjoy your videos.
Yay, thank you, Kenny! Glad to hear that! :)
Could have predicted number 1! I am just getting into John Gwynne and on valour. With what you have said I am so excited especially to try to catch up before his new release next year. ❤️
Guess my top 3 isn't a surprise! 🤣 I talked about them a LOT! I hope you'll continue to enjoy Gwynne's books!! 😊
And...here we go again. Me adding to my TBR. I must say, the Paternus trilogy has me really intrigued
That series is amazing! You won't regret adding it to your TBR!
Thanks for this ... I am looking forward to trying some of these.You have sold me on them! I just finished Malice, and WOW! I am going to start Valour tonight. Can't wait. I liked it so much that I am going to delay reading Rhythm of War. Great channel ... I love hearing you talk about these books.
Thank you so much! And also you're welcome, Alex! If you have loved Malice already, I guarantee you that the rest of the series will make you love the series even more! I totally understand why you'd delay reading Rhythm of War for it! Truth and Courage!🙂
@@PetrikLeo You're right, I read for nine hours last Sunday to finish Valour. Incredible and impossible to put down. IRON ON IRON ... on to Ruin.
@@alexfrederick3404 Wow! 9 hours of reading!? Well done! Corban and co would be proud of you! 😄 Onwards to Ruin. Truth and Courage! So pleased to hear another new reader enjoying this series! 😁
I just got book 3 in faithful and the fallen today. I’m loving this series
Awesome!! Book 3 and 4 are amazing. Well the entire series is... 😄 Happy reading!!
I enjoy your reviews on Goodreads. Now I look forward to your videos. I’m reading Malice now and loving it.
I wish I could read as fast as you. So many books!
Thank you, Heather! Haha I try my best to read whenever I have the time! Enjoy Malice! 😁
I recently found that u have a channel and AM GLAD... I used to follow ur GR from so long and your reviews.. :) Love from India...
Thank you so much! I hope this channel will be useful to you, too! :)
Oh Petrick, I love watching your uploads but every time my tbr keeps growing. I tried with Paternus, bit didn't get into it. I might give it another go at some point. Of course, I do need to sleep at some point.
The one thing that surprised me with JA was the humour of the first law. I didn't expect to laugh so much to be honest, but i did.
Yeah, that's kinda what makes Abercrombie so amazing. His grimdark books are also some of the most hilarious books I've read! 🙂 Too bad Paternus didn't work for you, I do admit that the first half of Paternus isn't a good gauge of the rest of the series, though!
I have heard just good thinks about you and how good your reviews are. I am a proud subscriber now.
Ah that's too kind of you, thank you so much! I'm humbled 😊
Loving the Licanius love. One of my absolute favorites. I added several series to my wishlist from your list. Thanks.
You're welcome, Angela! And I absolutely LOVED Licanius trilogy! Deserves so much more readership, imo! 😃
Just read Ash and Sand Trilogy. It was amazing. Thanks for the recommendation
You're so welcome. Glad you loved Ash and Sand trilogy! Super underrated trilogy!
I agree with everything you said about the series that i've read from your list. So it looks like I have about 10 more series on my TBR now!
Hahaha that's amazing! Enjoy them all! xD
Thank you for this list and THANK YOU for putting up the books so I can write them down. Some people move the books around so much that I struggle to write to them. I am really looking forward to reading these.
You're welcome, Melissa! 😊 Thank you for watching, and happy reading to you! Many amazing books here! 😁
Highly agree with u on the first law trilogy. This character glokta still stays in my head. Hope to go thro the other books u recommend as wellll
Logen and Glokta are some of my all-time favorite characters! I hope you'll enjoy the rest of the books you check out! :)
Great list, withme being an older reader, there are a few new authors and series that you mentioned that I'd never heard of, much appreciated.
A few series that left an impression on me were, The Thomas Covenant Chronicles, a dense and heavy going (and somewhat contraversial) but ultimately very rewarding series. Another awesome old school series is The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny, such a fun series. One more recommendation is The Book of the New Sun quadrilogy by Gene Wolfe, beautifuly written and immersive worldbuilding.
Thank you, Terry! And those are superb recommendations. I'm going to be reading Book of the New Sun for the first time this year! :)
Plus - I really enjoyed your reviews of all these series - Lots of exciting new reading ahead for me I think as many of them I haven't yet read. Thank you
You're welcome, Annie! 😊 I hope you'll enjoy these new adventures! 😄
Great choice!! Added some books to my tbr list. Thanks for the video.
Thank you so much, and you're welcome! I hope you'll enjoy reading them! 😊
Props on the mistborn trilogy as well! It was my first deep dive into fantasy, and had to message my friend in the middle of the night to thank him for recommending it. I didnt see the finale coming and I had a tear in my eye reading and re-reading the last chapter
Mistborn trilogy on first read was certainly an unforgettable experience!! That finale was so damn good! 😊
i just discovered you today, and your review inspired me to pick up mistborn today! i also wanted to say you have a very soothing voice that is nice to have on in the background. (sorry if that’s weird!)
That's awesome. I hope you'll love Mistborn! And that's not weird at all. Thank you! I truly appreciate it. 😊
Love your list bro! Love your Halloween colored shirt too!
Thank you, bro! Hahaha I didn't think of that, but you're right! 😂
I’m reading Age of Assassins right now I’m having so much fun with it and I TOTALLY feel the Farseer trilogy vibe reading this too. My reading friend loved Hobb as much as I do and I told him to read this one because The Wounded Kingdom is so similar
Right!? I think Age of Assassins definitely got that Assassin's Apprentice feel. The second and third book starts to differ more from it but it's still a great series on its own. I hope you and your friend will continue to love it! I think it's such an underrated trilogy! :)
Great video Petrik. You should do a bookshelf tour someday. I can only imagine all the amazing books you have
You actually just predicted my next video. My bookshelf tour is scheduled next week! 😃
@@PetrikLeo Can’t wait!
I'm so glad I watched this. I read Theft of Swords earlier this year and was really struggling to decide how I felt about it, so the encouragement that the series gets better with each book definitely helps my desire to keep going. I like the idea of it, I just felt like the prose was clumsy and "did you see what I did there?" in a lot of sections. I loved Myron the Monk though. XD He's one of my favorite characters of the year.
You're welcome! And yeah, you're not the only one who felt that about Theft of Swords. I was the same on my first read. I even thought it felt like a book written for teenagers... xD
That said, I just did a reread of the series this year, after getting attached to the characters from finishing the trilogy and reading the Riyria Chronicles, I LOVE the series even more now. Theft of Swords improved so much on reread. I definitely have to update my ranking! :)
@@PetrikLeo that’s exactly how I felt about it! The characters were great but the prose felt very amateur YA in some spots. I look forward to seeing the progression.
This is a very well done video. Some of these I've never heard of. Damn you for increasing my TBR list
Thank you so much! Hahaha oops! xD
Yes! Realm of the Elderlings is my greatest fictional passion in life🥰 I cannot describe my love for it. Robin Hobb is AMAZING. Thanks for some recommendations that I have never heard of 😁
You're welcome, Lily! Argh, I want to reread Realm of the Elderlings! It's been 3 years since I finished the series and I miss the characters!! 🥲
Reading it now
I've only completed a few children's fantasy when I was young. The Deptford mice trilogy by Robin Jarvis The Dark is Rising and The Borrowers. Currently reading through The Wheel of Time
Nothing wrong with that! This just means you have more adventure waiting for you! I hope you'll enjoy The Wheel of Time! 🙂
Curse you Petrik. I’m pretty sure you just tripled my TBR with one video! The only completed series I’ve read is Inheritance Cycle and Mistborn. I’ve read all the Cosmere books so far. I’ll check back with you in 30 years about where those lie on my favorites list.
Hahaha, I'm glad to hear that this video has increased your TBR that much!! 😂
I've just subscribed to your channel. I value your reviews on Goodreads because I've found that if you recommend a book then it's generally something I'll enjoy. I'm currently almost finished the last book in The Faithful & The Fallen series thanks to you and have to agree that it is one of the best fantasy series I've read. I'll definitely be moving on to the Blood & Bone series in the near future!
Ah thank you so much, Ellie! That's very kind of you. I'm so happy to hear that my reviews can help you!
The Faithful and the Fallen is SO AMAZING right!? It always makes my day when someone tells me they love Gwynne's books! Of Blood and Bone is pretty incredible, too!! 😃
Yaaay, finally some Winnowing Flame love!! I knew from the first half of The Ninth Rain that it will be a fave series, Jen Williams deserves more love and recognition 🏅
All other series you mentioned I either read, have started reading or is on my TBR. So, our tastes allign pretty much exactly.
My fave, however, is not on the list - The Witcher! I realise it's not everyone's cup of tea, but it holds such a special place in my heart ❤️
The Winnowing Flame is such an incredible series, Anya. I totally agree that it deserves more love and recognition! As for The Witcher, I've read The Last Wish a longgg time ago, I'm going to reread it and the rest of the series is still on my series to read; hopefully next year! 🙂
What a brilliant video! You give a pretty perfect amount of information to get me interested in the book, while leaving all the mystery and excitement of a new story waiting to be enjoyed. And such a great list, I haven't heard of half of these and i'm so grateful they're on my radar now. Thanks so much for making this video! :D
Thank you so much, Louis! This video is more than a year old already, and I'm glad it's still helpful for several readers! I tried my best to talk about them as spoiler-free as possible, and I'm happy to hear it worked for you. I hope you'll enjoy the series you decided to try from this list! :)
Great options, look forward to picking some of these up
Thank you so much, Matthew! 😁
Great video, Petrik. I still need to get to several of these, many of which are already sitting on my shelves. I've been reading a lot of horror lately, but this video has got me itching to get back to some fantasy! Malazan would still be number one for me, but I haven't read Gwynne yet.
Thank you, Dustin!! I totally understand that. As I said in the video, i think the top 3 series I mentioned here are pretty much at the number 1 spot together! :D
Phenomenal video! I will be checking all of these out, we have similar taste
I love Michael J Sullivan and Paternus took me by surprise, I loved Rise Of Gods so much.
Awesome! Ahh so glad to hear you loved Paternus! The rest of the series keeps on getting stronger, I hope you'll agree with me! :)
Very, very informative, it really shows your love, I might not be
as enamored with your list, but the authors are some of the best of the modern times(give or take 2000 till 2020), again I would like you to try some of the older ones, Lord of the Rings was never anything for me, except as a sleeping pill, but Dragonlance novels, Raymond Feist's, David Eddings, those were some of the best, even better than some of the newer authors, although Brandon Stevenson and Steven Erikson just epitomizes the word "EPIC" from word to worlds, again so happy for your youtube videos, they are really worth the wait!!!! Keep on reading!!!
Thank you! No worries, none of our list will ever be the same anyway. As for the books you mention, I have Feist to read next year. Can't say I'm too intrigued by Dragonlance and Eddings books, though; I've tried them both and got so bored. I'll probably try them again one day, but not anytime soon! 😅
Yep this video definitely increased my tbr...great video as always
Thank you, Gemma! So pleased to hear it increased your TBR! 😄
You have read so many greats, thanks for the recommendations!!
You're welcome, Hayden! Enjoy the one you haven't read! 😄
We have some pretty similar tastes! First Law, Book of the Ancestor, RotE, Mistborn and Poppy War are all some of my favs as well :)
I love your story about Mistborn. I read it when I was 14 and it got me back into reading after years of nothing (and also is why I discovered Booktube).
Ooo I don't know why but I didn't expect The Banished Land Saga to get number 1! Malice is at the top of my TBR after I finish RotE!
Aww thank you for reading my story, Ashlyn! And I'm glad the same series got you back into reading! The Realm of the Elderlings is amazing, I hope you will love Gwynne's books, too! 😊
Really happy about this list, because 'Malice' arrives tomorrow. Thanks for raising my expectations of it once again :D
Oh no the pressure! 🤣 Nahh, I hope you'll love it! 😁
Fantastic list, I'll have to consider what are the best series that I've actually managed to finish. I have so many going right now, I should probably finish. Mistborn is definitely up there, as well as Red Rising. Mistborn felt like an anime/manga to me and every battle scene I pictured anime being the way to bring it to life.
Thank you very much, bro! I haven't counted how many ongoing series I'm in right now; I'm terrified... HEY, you're one of the few people I know who actually mentioned Mistborn being very anime/manga-like; that's a HUGE reason why I loved it! I think the scene in this series is very easily imaginable to me because of that! 🤩
Great video Petrik!!!The moment I saw the video, I knew my TBR list just got longer. XD
Hahaha yay! That's so good to hear!! 😃
Petrik, thank you so much for this video and recommendations. I really appreciate it, I have finished a book recently and had no idea what to start next, but you've given me a lot to think about. I hope you're having a great week and once again thank you so much.
You're so welcome! I hope you'll love the books you end choosing to read! 😊
This would be so much work and research! But, it sounds like you enjoyed compiling it. Thanks for sharing!
I always dread editing because I'm so slow with it, but every time I post, everyone's lovely comment and responses made it worth the trouble! 😊 Thank you for watching, Anna!
This was such a fantastic list Petrik!! I can’t wait to get to ALLLL of these! 🤩
Thank you so much, Jessie! I hope you'll love them all!!! 😊
Fantastic list! Some of my personal favorites here, especially the Malice Trilogy. I am just finishing up The Light of All That Falls then will tackle the Of Blood and Bone Trilogy, can't wait.
Have attempted Malazan twice... will give it another go soon. Some other interesting ones I have now added to my TBR.
First time viewer, instant subscribe for your excellent taste. Keep up the good work :)
Hey thank you so much, Chris! I'll do my best! That's very kind of you. The Light of All That Falls and Of Blood and Bone trilogy are both amazing. Enjoy! 😁
@@PetrikLeo have you read the Powder Mage Trilogy by Brian McClellan, The Shadow Campaigns by Django Wexler, or the Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks?
All firm favourites for me also.
@@pppmchris1986 not yet for Night Angel but already did for the rest you mentioned! Shadow Campaigns is criminally underrated, imo. Such a great series!
@@PetrikLeo make sure to add Night Angel to your list, I promise it is worthwhile :)
Probably the longest awaited video for long!! Great list my friend, I’m saving all of those suggestions and was very intrigued by the trilogy with the character that is as good as the Bloody Nine 🤩 I really loved the Shadow Campaigns to add but it seems like I have a lot other great choices to catch up on!
Thank you so much, my friend!! OH, you have to give Ash and Sand trilogy a try! I have a good feeling you will love it! I'm not kidding when I say the character will remind of you of the Bloody Nine! 🤩
@@PetrikLeo Haha awesome will definitely do then! If you have ever find someone like Glokta please sound all the alerts!! :D
@@PianoLibra Absolutely!! It will be hard to find, but I will! 😂
And so continues the game of adding to my ever growing TBR!! Thank you for the great recs! ❤️
The never ending game of our life! You're welcome, Jenn. Thank you so much for checking my video out! 😊
Great list Petrik! Most of these books are on my radar! I've been reading your reviews on GR for a while and I always check to see if you've written a review for a book I'm contemplating on because I highly value your opinion. Glad to see you've made a booktube channel, take care!
Thank you so much, Matthew! I'm glad that you took my reviews into account when you're going to read a book! 🙂
Doubt there will be one on here I've not heard of, but it's always great to see how others rank them!
So glad to see Michael Sullivan on here. 🥰 Red Sister is awesome too. Live Licanius series SO MUCH! John Gwynne is a master.💪
I've tried to read Malazan 3 times. 😑
Whoa, never heard of Jen Williams! 👌
Thank you so much, Hillary! Glad you loved many of these, too. Licanius trilogy is sooooo good, and Gwynne is one of my top favorite authors!
Don't worry about Malazan Book of the Fallen, if it's not for you no need to push it. Jen Williams is so worth the read, though! 😊
Great to see some Winnowing Flame trilogy love! Such an underrated series
I know right? It deserves so much more readership! 😊
Fantastic selection - from what we have read on your list we agree these are superb choice - particularly The Wounded Kingdom.. criminally underrated we certainly agree :)
Thank you so much! 😊 Yeah, it's ridiculous how underrated that trilogy is! More people really should give it a try!
Such a great list!! My TBR is definitely bursting now
Thank you, Olga! Enjoy them all! 😊
Hey , I have had you on my good reads for a while and just saw a link to your RUclips so I subscribed. Great vids
Thank you so much, Justin! I appreciate it! 😊
Just finished Nevernight trilogy. I DEVOURED it! I *really* enjoyed it. I was sad for it to end!
Oh yeah!! It was really good. Glad you loved it!! 😊
Straightaway I noticed a common denominator in series you like: trilogies. They're tough to beat because they're almost always written by architects not gardeners. These writers plan their story sequence out before breaking ground instead of making it up as they go along. Occasionally that can be fun for authors but leads to diminishing returns for readers. Planned writing lends itself to controlled, purposeful narratives, enabling succinct storytelling that doesn't meander into boredom and delivers bigger surprises and more satisfying pay-offs in the end. Writers who ramble along like the Jordans and Martins of fantasy, willing to explore every rabbit hole and side road along the way, create more problematic blind alleys for themselves than they can logically write their way out of. Superfluous characters and imprecise plotlines bog a series down like a runaway train trying to pull too many cars, driving their plot right off the rails. Cheers from your newest subscriber!
Thanks for subscribing! I do think trilogies or a quartet, in general, has a better chance of succeeding compared to let's say, 5 books or more series. Not saying it's not possible at all, as you can see my top three favorite series here are long series. But I do think longer series tend to be riskier as they can feel overwritten and drawn out more than necessary. Plus, yes, although many authors are (understandably) proud of their work as gardeners, I seem to have more of a liking for the architect type of writer. I believe every author is on some level a mix of both, but those who lean towards the architect type seem to have a better outline, structure, and fewer plot holes in their story compared to gardeners. At least from my experience anyway! :)
@@PetrikLeo 'preciate the reply. May I recommend a trilogy right up your alley still in print after 40+ years: Eric Lustbader's The Sunset Warrior, Shallows of Night & Dai-San. The hero refuses to align himself with any of the daiymo-type warlords in a vast cylindrical subterranean city of people who follow a Bushidō-like code, hence his name Ronin (Frank Miller swiped the name for a hero of his years later). Men and women alike practice combat daily with edged weapons like steel fans and swords. Trouble ensues (of course) to thicken the plot and the first book concludes with an O. Henry one-two punch I never saw coming. Ronin and another character decide to blow that pop stand on the last page and set off across a sea of ice. Shallows of Night begins with their 40-page trek. This journey is no description-laden snooze fest like Robert Jordan belaboring the details of the draperies, rugs and furniture in a Tar Valon lavatory. Ronin winds up in another warrior culture in an Edo/Shanghai amalgam under the shadow of sorcery. The martial arts hand-to-hand combat and sword fighting by Lustbader exceeds the excitement it's supposed to evoke moreso than any writer I've ever read. The original trilogy with superb Don Maitz covers are still available on ebay and elsewhere. Maitz also did new covers for the 1991 threesome reprint, they too stellar. Years later a fourth book about a minor character made the trilogy a tetralogy and almost 20 years after that a fifth, again about the minor player, enlarged the series to a pentalogy. The secondary not-a-duology are detached standalones having nothing to do with Ronin, who isn't even in them. They're disposable honestly---the trilogy arc is THE MONEY. And always a rewarding reread.
Mistborn was my gateway too. It’s my standard for fantasy in general
It's an amazing series that could work so well for both newcomer and veteran fantasy readers! 😄