Best fantasy/science fiction titles part IV
16. Sandman series, Neil Gaiman. The story of Dream, who according to his sister Death is "utterly the stupidest, most self-centered, appalingest excuse for an anthropomorphic personification on this or any other plane." What happens when the father of stories finds himself trapped in his own tale? Impossible to describe, it's simply the best comic series ever.
17. Shattered Chain Trilogy, Marian Zimmer Bradley. I think the entire Darkover series belongs on this list as a perfect example of science fantasy, but this trilogy in particular holds a special place in my heart. It explores the different roles women play on Darkover - noblewoman, mercenary, captive, anthropologist, ex-wife, hero, villain, reluctant sorceress, lover, aunt... This trilogy was my introduction to Darkover when I was around 11 years old, and yes, I did take the renunciate's oath.
18. Snow Queen, Joan D. Vinge. The first of a trilogy, it's one of the finest examples of space opera I've ever read. The story centers around the Winter Queen of a planet, granted power and longevity with the understanding that she will be sacrificed after (I believe) 100 years. This Snow Queen does not intend to relinquish her life or rule so easily, and has illegally created a clone of herself to grow up to become the next Summer Queen. But the summer maiden has a mind of her own... I loved the diverse cultures on and among the various planets, and the interlocking stories of an ensemble of three dimensional characters. The musical duel to the death has stayed with me all these years.
19. The Stand, Stephen King. A character-driven post-apocolyptic tale. I've read a very few post-apocalypse novels that are better than The Stand, and some that aren't as good, but The Stand remains the standard by which I measure post-apocalypse fiction.
20. Watership Down, Richard Adams. A rag-tag band of rabbits must work together after their warren is destroyed to find a new home and must contend with human-collaborating rabbit assassins, evil rabbit overlords, and rabbit resistance movements. Anyone wishing to write stories about elves, aliens, robots or vampires should study this book as an example of how to write non-human characters. My favorite character is Fiver, a brilliant, tortured rabbit so intelligent he learns to read human road signs, only to be driven mad by the knowledge that no rabbit was meant to have. In an odd way, it could be said that The Stand is Watership Down with humans in place of rabbits.
17. Shattered Chain Trilogy, Marian Zimmer Bradley. I think the entire Darkover series belongs on this list as a perfect example of science fantasy, but this trilogy in particular holds a special place in my heart. It explores the different roles women play on Darkover - noblewoman, mercenary, captive, anthropologist, ex-wife, hero, villain, reluctant sorceress, lover, aunt... This trilogy was my introduction to Darkover when I was around 11 years old, and yes, I did take the renunciate's oath.
18. Snow Queen, Joan D. Vinge. The first of a trilogy, it's one of the finest examples of space opera I've ever read. The story centers around the Winter Queen of a planet, granted power and longevity with the understanding that she will be sacrificed after (I believe) 100 years. This Snow Queen does not intend to relinquish her life or rule so easily, and has illegally created a clone of herself to grow up to become the next Summer Queen. But the summer maiden has a mind of her own... I loved the diverse cultures on and among the various planets, and the interlocking stories of an ensemble of three dimensional characters. The musical duel to the death has stayed with me all these years.
19. The Stand, Stephen King. A character-driven post-apocolyptic tale. I've read a very few post-apocalypse novels that are better than The Stand, and some that aren't as good, but The Stand remains the standard by which I measure post-apocalypse fiction.
20. Watership Down, Richard Adams. A rag-tag band of rabbits must work together after their warren is destroyed to find a new home and must contend with human-collaborating rabbit assassins, evil rabbit overlords, and rabbit resistance movements. Anyone wishing to write stories about elves, aliens, robots or vampires should study this book as an example of how to write non-human characters. My favorite character is Fiver, a brilliant, tortured rabbit so intelligent he learns to read human road signs, only to be driven mad by the knowledge that no rabbit was meant to have. In an odd way, it could be said that The Stand is Watership Down with humans in place of rabbits.