Fantasy Advisory

Fantasy – Adventure - Hallmarks of the fantasy/adventure genre are sword-and-sorcery magic wrapped up in a world of myth and magic.  They sometimes feature dragons or other mystical creatures.

Lloyd Alexander

Joy Chant

C.J. Cherryh

Kara Dalkey

David Drake

David Duncan – Kings Balde series

Robin Hobb

Mercedes Lackey

Fritz Leiber

Morgan Llywelyn

Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman – Dragonlance series

R.A. Salvatore

Jack Vance

Evangeline Walton

Roger Zelazny

Piers Anthony

Robert Aspirin

James Blish

Jerry Jay Carroll

L. Sprague de Camp

Paul Di Filippo

Eric Flint

Neil Gaiman

Tom Holt

Craig Shaw Gardner

Terry Pratchett

Mark E. Rogers

Christopher Stasheff

Fantasy – The Struggle Between Good and Evil - In this genre, the battle between darkness and light is the focus.

Marion Zimmer Bradley – Light series

Stephen R. Donaldson – Thomas Covenant Chronicles

Deborah Turner Harris

Katherine Kurtz

Dark Fantasy - The dark fantasy genre has a gothic aesthetic, and generally sits on the border between horror and traditional fantasy.

Anne Bishop

Lynn Flewelling

Laurell K. Hamilton

Stephen King – Dark Tower series

Tanith Lee

Juliet Marillier

Fantasy – Epic Sagas - These epic works of fantasy emphasize world history and legends, often comprising several hefty volumes.

David Eddings

Raymond E. Feist

Terry Goodkind

Robert Jordan

Guy Gavriel Kay

Katherine Kerr

George R. R. Martin

L. E. Modesitt – Recluse Saga

J. R. R. Tolkien

Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman – Death Gate cycle

Tad Williams – Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series

Urban Fantasy/Mythic Reality - Urban fantasy is gritty, dangerous, and not a bit comforting.  Drugs, racism, gangs and other unpleasantries run rampant, often in the setting of a rift between the contemporary world and the fantasy one.

Emma Bull

Pamela Dean

Charles de Lint

Neil Gaiman

Nini Kiriki Hoffman

Guy Gavriel Kay

Tim Powers

Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

Will Shetterly

Terri Windling

Fantasy – Legends of the British Isles - This genre includes tales of legendary characters, such as King Arthur, Tristan and Isolde, and Merlin.

T. A. Barron

Marion Zimmer Bradley – Avalon series

Gillian Bradshaw

Bernard Cornwell

David Drake – Lord of the Isles series

Helen Hollick

Courtway Jones

Richard Monaco

Patricia Kennealy-Morrison

Stephen R. Lawhead

Morgan Llywelyn

Gerald Morris

H. Warner Munn

Sharan Newman

Diana L. Paxson

Nancy Springer

Mary Stewart – Merlin trilogy

Nikolai Tolstoi

Elizabeth Wein

T. H. White

Persia Woolley