03-27-2007, 02:24 PM
Quote:Heh, my first thought when seeing this list was "anything but Salvatore".
Well, I was only like 10 or so when I was reading his stuff, but my cousin who liked them as starter books is 26, and just about to finish law school. She was not a reader at all before though, so her experience was limited. I only mentioned it since it seemed relavent, but I haven't read any of his more recent books.
Quote:See, I liked the depth, as I was pleasantly surprised to find that many fantasy/scifi books were as well written as some of the books from the "other side" of the bookstore. If I'd have started with something simpler, I might not have picked up a second book.
I've seen many people who are not regular readers be put down by the size of most of the complex, epic fantasy that I read nowadays. Often I like to read or reread a book from David Gemmel, just for the sake of a quick enjoyable read, but the books I enjoy most are those I can sink my teeth into, such as George R. R. Martin's current work. A beginner may be more willing to start with a quick trilogy, with satisfactory conclusions, then read something such as the Wheel of Time, or Tad Williams works.