[Lidora]

i would NOT recommend goodlkind as your first exposure to fantasy. his novels are fairly cliche and i personally was not a fan when i picked up his first novel.


robin hobb is excellent. even if you don't get through the entire series, her first novel "assasin's apprentice" has enough closure at the end to be satisfying. i personally feel however that her liveship traders series is her best. i would, of course, recommend reading her novels in the order they were written to get the full experience of the all encompassing story arch.


george r.r. martin is also great, but his books are long and he has yet to put out the 4th. none of the first three provide much closure so you're left with a cliff hanger unresolved.

one nice, long, wonderful book is mists of avalon by marion zimmer bradley. it's an arthurian story told from the perspective of women. an excellent novel that i would recommend to all readers.


keep in mind that authors that shy away from the tolkein races generally are the more creative of the fantasy genre and may i say the more interesting. i always enjoy more when someone can come up with a really innovative idea in the world of magic.