Major props for being able to speak on all of those books and rank them - it was interesting to see at a glance how you felt about all of them. Nice work!
I've tried multiple times to get into Malazan, and I just find the writing so extremely boring... and I can't pin down why. I got throught the first two, and it was such a slog I gave up half way through the third. For some reason, I feel no attachment to any character, they seem like they could be interesting but some time later I can barely remember a single name except Whiskeyjack, whereas First Law, Elderlings, Mistborn, Gemmell... so many characters have marked me for life. Can anyone give me some more tips on what is so good about Malazan? Maybe what to look for, what you enjoy most...? And by the way Matt, I notice you have no David Gemmell on this list - are you not familiar with him or are you just concentrating on more recent authors? Because so many of his books are serious S tier!
Malazan just works for some people and doesn't work for others. If you find the characters boring halfway into the third - it just isn't for you and that's totally fine. I actually am planning on reading The Drenai Saga in 2023. Just hadn't got around to it yet, but REALLY looking forward to it.
I completely agree with this recommendation. I've been surprised that I haven't encountered another person who had mentioned reading Gemmell before now. I'm on my second read through of the drenai saga right now, having just started the second to last one. I originally read it between fifteen and twenty years ago and read it in the published order. This was when I was starting getting into fantasy and I really enjoyed them. I recently decided to reread them and see if I felt that they held up over time. This time I'm reading them in the chronological order of events within the world. Both have their merits and I won't suggest one over the other. However, I will say that if you decide to read them in the order of the chronology of events you should be aware that in at least two places (both epilogues if I remember correctly) within the stories with Druss there will be spoilers for his upcoming adventure(s). I hope to see a video from you in the future about them.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Ah well, maybe I'll just give Malazan a few more years before trying again, perhaps it'll work better (or not :D). I definitely recommend the Drenai saga in publication order over chronological order, to see the world grow and also how Gemmell evolves as a writer, becoming ever more engrossing, complex and yet concise. He's introduced characters who are there for two pages who are more fleshed out than most POV characters in the average fantasy novel! Big up to the Waylander trilogy (part of Drenai) on that level. Also, the Rigante (especially the first two) and all four standalone novels are phenomenal, and his final work, the Troy trilogy, is just so damn good The world really lost a great author when he died so young, the mastery displayed in the trojan books just makes you wonder what amazing stuff we would have got if he'd been able to continue writing. Definitely agree with @Andrew Dove-Buck above about enjoying them when I was young, and re-reading them as an adult and enjoying them even more!
I was scared going in that you wouldn’t like malazan because it has such a special place in my heart. I’m glad we agree, one of the greatest pieces of fantasy ever put to page
I was SO excited to see how highly you spoke of Deadhouse Gates. That is also my favorite of the series (so far, I'm not finished), and I think it gets overshadowed so often by Memories of Ice. Deadhouse Gates put me in a book hangover for days, and I love it so much. It's been hugely influential on my reading and writing journey. :)
I am just reading Malice (490 out of 770 pages - Polish edition) and unfortunately I cannot comprehend why this book gets this much praise. To me everything about it is very mediocre and uninspired - worldbuilding, prose, characters etc. I kind of see the potential but the execution is mid-tier at best. I am waiting for a moment when it starts to be good but no luck so far :/ Maybe it gets better with the next books, I don't know. I have been reading some Ambercombie, Hobb and Eames this year so maybe I've got spoiled.
At the end of the day, enjoyment in books is entirely subjective. If I were you I would finish out Malice (which ends very good in my opinion), and if you aren't enjoying it I would just stop reading the series.
I first watched your video of top 10 most overrated fantasy books - and whilst some I disagreed with or were skeptical about I’ve got to respect the honesty - enjoying the channel :)
Im looking for the name of a book I read when I was younger but cant remember author or title where main character quests for magical gauntlets. an 80s or 90s fantasy book series..any help much appreciated
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Thanks very much I will take a look at those. Not sure. Main character finds one gaunlet first book and second gauntlet in book two...not much to go on.
Also, how do you have the time and focus to read all these in the span of less than 3 years?! 💔 i think it would take me 2 lifetimes to read all these.. whats wrong with me
Yeah what really helped was I just don't watch TV anymore outside of the random show with my wife. It was surprising how much time I was watching TV that I never even realized before.
Matt not too long ago you added me on goodreads and I have just found your youtube channel recently, have you ever heard of Garth Nix? He is an australian fantasy author and has written the Old Kingdom/Abhorsen series which is my absolute favourite series of all time, it has a wonderful magic system and story and I think there is a lot in it that you would enjoy :)
I really don't watch TV, so that helps. In general, I read one hour when I wake up, one hour at lunch, and one hour before bed. Then I listen to audiobooks while driving.
Interesting list. A couple of the Malazan books might be in a different order for me but lots of similar scores, like yourself I thought the Lies of Locke Lamora was the best of that trilogy and above the other books Just and addition on the Crack'd Pot Trail, I know what you mean about being a difficult read, however as the book goes on, the clear manipulation of the rest of the party by one of the story-tellers starts to become more apparent and ultimately the final outcome of the book is probably the outcome of the story he was telling...they just finished it for him and he survives as a result. It is a clever book BUT..its not an easy read and I get why you didn't finish it, but if at some point you go back to it you might feel differently with the ending apparent. Some of the characters then carry on in to the Fiends of Nightmaria
Yeah you are now the 2nd person who has said that about Crack'd Pot Trail. I definitely need to make sure I give it another go at some point - thank you!
Thanks so much! I'm so glad that I found out about John Gwynne, but also sad that I'm already caught up on his books. Can't wait to devour the next one!
Wheel of Time I consider the most flawed fantasy series after Sword of Truth ranks so high for you 😅 Either way, great list and I subscribed to your channel!
Just stumbled upon your channel. I read many of the books you've listed here and I must say that I quite agree with your ratings. Also, check out Anthony Ryan and his Raven's Shadow Trilogy and The Draconis Memoria Trilogy. I really enjoyed his writing style. Also, also I have to mention Andrzej Sapkowski and his Witcher Saga.
Yeah, I came here too because of your overrated books and agreed with most of what you had on that list. Super appreciate you sharing your ratings! Helps my whole family out!!
I am two thirds into the video and already gasped a few times in disbelief. However, agree with most Hobb's books places. You have a great memory and quick pace of reading. I really appreciate it and this mammoth tier ranking too.
I've read all the Dresden Files books, and while I personally enjoyed them, I get why people dont like it. I actually like the Dresden Character but he does get a bit cringe. And the story isn't super impressive... its very episodic. But, they were fun for me. I wouldn't rate them higher than Stormlight or anything, though. They are a solid mid to high tier fantasy series for me. I would give them a high B overall. Some of them were boring. Some of them were tons of fun. The constant objectification of Molly's body was a bit cringe to me. It felt like the author really wanted them to bone but knew the fan base and critics would eat him alive if he did. These books were good though. Definitely nowhere close to my favorite series. But I will continue to read his books because his writing style is good for coffee and sunshine.
Just read through the farseer series (love it though I agree assasin's quest does drag a bit), would you recommend me to start ship of magic asap or read something else and come back to robin hobb later when I really need a good book?
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Just finished watching. Loved the video! The only thing I am shocked about is that you have never read Harry Potter?! I find that crazy if true. Sure, the first 3 or 4 books are YA(not cringe YA though), but books 5-7 things start to really get dark.
Thank you! Awesome video and really shows where you are at in terms of style of books. I also highly rate a lot of what I read. I feel spoiled in many ways because I really got into fantasy at the start of 2020. Which allowed my to go through the greatest hits of what has been published. Prior to that I was reading business related books.
I read those books before I created my spreadsheet that I use to track fantasy books, and I forgot to include it. The first 3 books are "S". The next two are "A"
Great tier list and kudos for being able to differentiate among so many books at the same time. As far as Tolkien, I'd say that Tolkien himself wouldn't mind the perception some people have, that of the books not holding up in terms of story and the plot. Watching some of his interviews and his biopic, I got the impression that he didn't have much faith in his stories by themselves, but merely wanted to write something as best he could, in order to utilize the lore and mythos he wanted to put out there (the ones that were supposed to fill the holes in the old English and Celtic histories and myths. He was more concerned with the misinterpretations people might have in the elements surrounding it. I'll surely reread The Lord of the Rings many times for the nostalgia and for the things I missed from the 1st 2 reads, keeping in mind that it's all one big allegory, which is perfectly fine with me. Yours and mine Discworld ratings match for the most part. For me, The Fifth Elephant might be a misunderstood and underappreciated book. Having read 8 or 9 Discworld by that point, I believe 5th 🐘was Terry Pratchett's more serious and deep take on international politics and family bonds. It's not as witty as some of the other books and the chase and carriage scenes could've been trimmed down just a bit, but It's a serious contender for my top Discworld book. Currently it's firmly in the top 3. Can't wait to begin The First Law (next on my TBR) and the John Gwynne and Robin Hobb books I'm still collecting and will be equally, if not more psyched up when I dive into those. Though I've read LoTR and ASoIaF before that, I also got back into fantasy around 2 and a half years ago with Discworld and now I'm finishing up the Wheel of Time. So much interesting concepts and stories to uncover, I can't wait. Cheers from Croatia! ✌
I didn't know that about Tolkien, but that's very interesting insight! Yeah I really need to give Fifth Elephant another shot, it will be fun to do it with your info in the back of my mind. I hope you love First Law, Gwynne, and Hobb as much as I do!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews yeah, it took Tolkien years to put a story together, while he already had dozens of drawings and concept art and the languages all made while he was still an university student. His wife basically told him straightforwardly (paraphrasing): you need to get the story out soon because it’s driving you crazy. Thanks for the reply and I hope that the Fifth Elephant ckicks better for you this time.
I listened while cleaning and rearranging my bookshelves. However, if you can't be a Murder Bot or Jim Butcher fan...I don't know...(lol) I love listening to your reviews and rankings. I'm glad I discovered you. But as I just started Ship of Magic by Hobb, you redeemed yourself with your Hobb reviews and I've read most of her books BTW.
lol, thanks and I'm glad I redeemed myself. I would still say that I am a fan of Murderbot, and will continue reading them - I just wish it was going in a bit different of a direction that it has recently.
OMG! Can't believe i've stayed till the end! Great video in a lot of senses. Really liked because I could get myself some new reading options. Sorry for the english, its not my native language, but maybe if I read all of this even this proficiency of mine will be better. Wonderful contents as ever, Matt!
dark age is one of the most grim dark books I've ever read. It's WELL worth your time. There are 2 more books coming next year. Highly highly recommend reading dark age at least, you'll probably love it, then want to read the last two books
Iron gold had a burden on its shoulders, trying to introduce new characters, and ahe up the characters/story a decade or so. It took me a while to get into the new characters, but by the end I loved Ephraim so much, and the others characters. Lysander especially, the whole plot with him and Cassius was incredibly well done, IMHO. Dark age is exactly that, fucking DARK. It does not relent. I suggest you get into it
Hi Matt- Just found your channel and am already a huge fan! Can you make a video on how you score your reads? I noticed you had a book rated as a 4.83 so I am interested in how you are scoring books as I love knowing the different nuances reviewers look for in books. Thanks and I suspect before too long you will have 10k subs no problem.
I don't think I'll make a video just on that but I can explain my process. So I score every book 1-5 using a traditional method, with the only oddity being that I only give a "1" if I didn't finish it. If I finished it and absolutely hated it I will give it a 1.5 or 2. You probably saw me give a 4.83 in reference to a series. I keep an excel spreadsheet that automatically combines scores for an entire series and gives me a series score that averages the score. Here's a little glimpse at the relevant part of the spreadsheet (Wandering Inn is highlighted because I'm actively reading it right now) i.imgur.com/IguGSfL.png
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Nice. I also found the spreadsheet and noticed you have a word count? Where are you finding word count for books these days? I know there used to be a trick on Amazon, but I don't know a good site that has a good word count estimate. Thanks again for the info and adding your videos to receive instant notifications!
@@SINW A variety of ways. I use this reddit thread for some of the big ones: www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/hsl0o8/fantasy_word_counts_an_overhaul_of_many_of_the/ I google it if I don't see it there, and it often comes up. Or failing all that, I just use my average word count per page on my spreadsheet and multiply it by the number of pages.
Great tier list! You have inspired me to read Malazan after finishing ASOIAF! I read Sanderson’s SA up till Oathbringer, and I just could not read past the middle part, the characters have changed so much by that point in the series, I couldn’t connect to them any more. I loved the first two books though, amazing!
Great video, thank you, so many S, totally agree with the John Gwynne books but I disagree with the Black Company (I liked at first, but by the end I was bored and annoyed with the characters interactions) and Mistborn (9 of every 10 times I don't enjoy YA and this series is more YA than A in my opinion, I still have to read book 3 and I'm really hoping it will get better as I already bought everything in the Cosmere because as far as critics goes Sanderson's writing and stories are only comparable with the 2nd coming of Christ, so far I liked Elantris the most, Warbreaker and book 1 & 2 from the cosmere have been good/meh for me, Sanderson's writing style has been extremely redundant saying the same things over and over again, I love when a character trait is showed and the reader can infer about his/her personality but Sanderson lack a little on that IMO, he loves to tell once and again how a character is and/or how a character is feeling.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Not yet, it's in my tbr, this week I'll finish the 3rd book of era 1 and by the end of the year I'll read the whole era 2, Stormlight Archive I'll be reading it the next year, as I said before, I already bought the whole cosmere available until now, I'll read it all, I never dnf a book, in fact if I dislike a book I usually read it faster to just end it, so far aside from Elantris (which I liked the most) has been ok, not bad but not great either.
What an epic vid! I'm gonna have to do one of these myself at some point for sure. We have a ton of overlaps but some healthy disagreement too (I'm less of a progression fantasy person in general so most of Cradle didn't land as well for me, and I'm a much bigger Dresden fan). I really have to get around to trying the Black Company, Liveship and the rest of the RotE, Discworld, and Path to Ascendancy! Totally agree that "the slog" starting with Path of Daggers is absurd, and that Blood and Bone was close to unreadable. We had very similar thoughts about Riyria Revelations and Chronicles, so I'm not very enthusiastic to try the other prequel series to say the least. Also I have the Fifth Season and Three Parts Dead ready to go on the shelf so I hope those go better for me than they did for you! The big fantasy series I've read that's not on here that I think would be a huge hit with you is Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky -- this is a must must read for you I think.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews oh sorry I didn't even realize I commented in the wrong account but you probably figured out who it was. Shadows of the Apt is just an awesome epic fantasy series with Sanderson style accessible prose, incredible creative worldbuilding and lore, and tons of tense military action in a very cool WW1/WW2 style geopolitical climate
Too bad you didn't like N.K. Jemison's Broken Earth trilogy. I haven't read it yet but I loved her Inheritance trilogy. It's got politics galore, empire building, gods as slaves, mythology, great characters and an epic quality, with some LGBTQ elements that's just one aspect of the story (a love-hate relationship between two male gods who both loved the third, a goddess, in their tripartite pantheon.) The ending is perfect. I love stories with class systems in which one group of people are oppressed or marginalized by the powerful and then they fight for or attain their liberation/freedom.
Malazan is the by far best series I ever read only problem is I never got trough it at the time I could have finished it the german translation which I was reading was lagging very far behind so I stalled at some point roughly bone hunters I think (they go 2 german books for one of the english ones). I then got some of the english books, and started reading first from one book back I am not even sure where I ended up in my farthest attempt. Tried a long time later to start again but just couldn't go anywhere. don't even want to get back into reading overall I just wanna know finish that one series I was writing this comment and upon hearing you talk of the later books I haven't read: fuck it I am ordering the ones I am missing now (or on my next paycheck rather) and I am gonna do something to finish them. The ADHD Diagnosis and treatment I am seeking might end up helping in this endevaor
Yeah it's SO good. It used to be my favorite but a few others have taken it over - but it's definitely a top 5 for me and could keep moving up if the books keep on being awesome.
Gonna have to pick up stormlight archive after this. It's been on my radar for a while, but watching you rank it up there with Lies of Locke Lamora and Hunger of the Gods. I'll also need to pick up more of Robin Hobbs books. I have Assassin's Apprentice, but haven't gotten around to reading it yet.
Happy to see so many books in S and A!! Personally, I enjoyed Well of Ascension more than Hero of Ages, but I could see why you didn't enjoy it as much, it does get pretty long at times.
Yeah I think I liked a lot of parts of Well of Ascension more, but I thought the ending of Hero of Ages was much better. And I'm a sucker for good endings.
Wow! The dedication to make this video is incredicle, hats off to you Matt!
Thanks so much!
Just what I was thinking. Ridiculous amounts of work, but so worth it
@@harrycorbiniv Yeah the prep time was the hardest. Getting all the pictures and getting them in the right order was a BIG pain!
Major props for being able to speak on all of those books and rank them - it was interesting to see at a glance how you felt about all of them. Nice work!
Thanks so much!
I've tried multiple times to get into Malazan, and I just find the writing so extremely boring... and I can't pin down why. I got throught the first two, and it was such a slog I gave up half way through the third. For some reason, I feel no attachment to any character, they seem like they could be interesting but some time later I can barely remember a single name except Whiskeyjack, whereas First Law, Elderlings, Mistborn, Gemmell... so many characters have marked me for life.
Can anyone give me some more tips on what is so good about Malazan? Maybe what to look for, what you enjoy most...?
And by the way Matt, I notice you have no David Gemmell on this list - are you not familiar with him or are you just concentrating on more recent authors? Because so many of his books are serious S tier!
Malazan just works for some people and doesn't work for others. If you find the characters boring halfway into the third - it just isn't for you and that's totally fine.
I actually am planning on reading The Drenai Saga in 2023. Just hadn't got around to it yet, but REALLY looking forward to it.
I completely agree with this recommendation. I've been surprised that I haven't encountered another person who had mentioned reading Gemmell before now. I'm on my second read through of the drenai saga right now, having just started the second to last one. I originally read it between fifteen and twenty years ago and read it in the published order. This was when I was starting getting into fantasy and I really enjoyed them. I recently decided to reread them and see if I felt that they held up over time. This time I'm reading them in the chronological order of events within the world. Both have their merits and I won't suggest one over the other. However, I will say that if you decide to read them in the order of the chronology of events you should be aware that in at least two places (both epilogues if I remember correctly) within the stories with Druss there will be spoilers for his upcoming adventure(s). I hope to see a video from you in the future about them.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Ah well, maybe I'll just give Malazan a few more years before trying again, perhaps it'll work better (or not :D).
I definitely recommend the Drenai saga in publication order over chronological order, to see the world grow and also how Gemmell evolves as a writer, becoming ever more engrossing, complex and yet concise. He's introduced characters who are there for two pages who are more fleshed out than most POV characters in the average fantasy novel! Big up to the Waylander trilogy (part of Drenai) on that level. Also, the Rigante (especially the first two) and all four standalone novels are phenomenal, and his final work, the Troy trilogy, is just so damn good The world really lost a great author when he died so young, the mastery displayed in the trojan books just makes you wonder what amazing stuff we would have got if he'd been able to continue writing.
Definitely agree with @Andrew Dove-Buck above about enjoying them when I was young, and re-reading them as an adult and enjoying them even more!
I was scared going in that you wouldn’t like malazan because it has such a special place in my heart. I’m glad we agree, one of the greatest pieces of fantasy ever put to page
So glad others agree! I can't wait to re-read the series someday.
That's a lotta books
Yeah I think it's over 230 in total.
Typing this comment at 20 seconds in to say I AM HYPED
Lol, thanks Michael!
I was SO excited to see how highly you spoke of Deadhouse Gates. That is also my favorite of the series (so far, I'm not finished), and I think it gets overshadowed so often by Memories of Ice. Deadhouse Gates put me in a book hangover for days, and I love it so much. It's been hugely influential on my reading and writing journey. :)
Thanks, and yeah I think I like the book even more after I finished the series due to how unique it was for the series. I can't wait to re-read it!
Well, your entire S- and A tier is now my TBR. This might take a while... 😅
See you in a year or two, lol!
I am just reading Malice (490 out of 770 pages - Polish edition) and unfortunately I cannot comprehend why this book gets this much praise. To me everything about it is very mediocre and uninspired - worldbuilding, prose, characters etc. I kind of see the potential but the execution is mid-tier at best. I am waiting for a moment when it starts to be good but no luck so far :/ Maybe it gets better with the next books, I don't know.
I have been reading some Ambercombie, Hobb and Eames this year so maybe I've got spoiled.
At the end of the day, enjoyment in books is entirely subjective. If I were you I would finish out Malice (which ends very good in my opinion), and if you aren't enjoying it I would just stop reading the series.
I first watched your video of top 10 most overrated fantasy books - and whilst some I disagreed with or were skeptical about I’ve got to respect the honesty - enjoying the channel :)
Thanks so much for the kind words!
couldn't disagree more on Red Rising. first book is Meh, but Golden Son is top of S tier for me
Yeah I think I'm learning that sci-fi just isn't my thing.
A fantasy worlds (world building and map) tier list would be awesome if you do it! Your background of fantasy books it's admirable. Great vídeo Matt!
Yeah I like that, good idea!
What do you think about The Dark Tower?
Haven't read it yet - but I'm scheduled to read it early 2023.
Im looking for the name of a book I read when I was younger but cant remember author or title where main character quests for magical gauntlets. an 80s or 90s fantasy book series..any help much appreciated
Was it Mithgar? Or Winter of the World?
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Thanks very much I will take a look at those. Not sure. Main character finds one gaunlet first book and second gauntlet in book two...not much to go on.
Legendary video! Well done Matt!!
Thanks so much!
What an awesome tier list! A legendary video if there ever was one!
Thanks so much!
THAT takes dedication, cool man
Thank you!
I want to see a malazan ascendent/god tier list
Yeah, that would be fun to make!
Gaiman only wrote one thing ~ Sandman
I haven't tried it yet.
Also, how do you have the time and focus to read all these in the span of less than 3 years?! 💔 i think it would take me 2 lifetimes to read all these.. whats wrong with me
LOL. I make sure to read 3+ hours a day, mostly because I commute and listen to audiobooks and also don't really watch any TV.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews wow, i hope i can do this one day. I have too many hobbies and interests lmao.
@@GroovyKid94 Yeah I hear that!
You pick Malazan S ok i Can pick Like
Lol, thanks!
I’ve read the Malazan series and I’m so sad I can’t find anything like it in length and scope.
Malazan Malazan Malazan!
YEA!
You read all these books in 2 years? Dude you are a machine ! God tier reading level
Yeah what really helped was I just don't watch TV anymore outside of the random show with my wife. It was surprising how much time I was watching TV that I never even realized before.
This video was a bold choice! Really liked seeing you talk through so many books
Thank you so much!
Bro i dropped crack'd pot trail like 20% in. twice. but then the third time's a charm and it really was. it was brilliant
Oh that's good to hear. I'll give it another shot at some point!
Here are my top 5 favorites
1) A Storm of Swords
2) Reapers Gale
3) Toll the Hounds
4) The Dragonbone Chair
5) Imajica
Wonderful top 3. I've actually never even heard of Imajica, I'll have to look into it!
Matt not too long ago you added me on goodreads and I have just found your youtube channel recently, have you ever heard of Garth Nix? He is an australian fantasy author and has written the Old Kingdom/Abhorsen series which is my absolute favourite series of all time, it has a wonderful magic system and story and I think there is a lot in it that you would enjoy :)
I haven't, but I will definitely add it to my TBR, thanks!
Just started this video and I already like it for "D'ing" American Gods. DNFed it 2 years ago. Only DNF I got in fantasy.
Thank you!
This is what I aspire my reading Resume to look like, like seriously dude! Like where do you find the time to read this much?
I really don't watch TV, so that helps.
In general, I read one hour when I wake up, one hour at lunch, and one hour before bed. Then I listen to audiobooks while driving.
Great video, new subscriber!
Thank you so much!
Fun fact about the Malazan world... It was made over time during a Gurps and D&D homebrew fantasy campaign.
Yeah, I find that super cool. And I love their dedication to this world that has been building for literally decades!
Interesting list. A couple of the Malazan books might be in a different order for me but lots of similar scores, like yourself I thought the Lies of Locke Lamora was the best of that trilogy and above the other books
Just and addition on the Crack'd Pot Trail, I know what you mean about being a difficult read, however as the book goes on, the clear manipulation of the rest of the party by one of the story-tellers starts to become more apparent and ultimately the final outcome of the book is probably the outcome of the story he was telling...they just finished it for him and he survives as a result. It is a clever book BUT..its not an easy read and I get why you didn't finish it, but if at some point you go back to it you might feel differently with the ending apparent. Some of the characters then carry on in to the Fiends of Nightmaria
Yeah you are now the 2nd person who has said that about Crack'd Pot Trail. I definitely need to make sure I give it another go at some point - thank you!
Awesome to see a layout of all these fantasy books! Awesome that you loved a lot of Realm of the Elderlings, and of course John Gwynne books!
Will
Thanks so much! I'm so glad that I found out about John Gwynne, but also sad that I'm already caught up on his books. Can't wait to devour the next one!
Lol... Dresden ranked where it was and the Robin Hobb books ranked where they were... obviously someone who I will never agree with.
lol yeah I'm a sucker for epic fantasy.
Wheel of Time I consider the most flawed fantasy series after Sword of Truth ranks so high for you 😅
Either way, great list and I subscribed to your channel!
lol, I haven't read Sword of Truth but my guess is I would hate it.
Thanks for the sub!
Blood Song by Anthony Ryan?
Never read it, I'll have to check it out!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Do It. 👍
Just stumbled upon your channel. I read many of the books you've listed here and I must say that I quite agree with your ratings. Also, check out Anthony Ryan and his Raven's Shadow Trilogy and The Draconis Memoria Trilogy. I really enjoyed his writing style. Also, also I have to mention Andrzej Sapkowski and his Witcher Saga.
Thanks for the recommendations, I'll add them to my long term TBR!
You said it once before. Deadhouse Gates has Fiddler, Kalam, Sorry and Crokus/Cutter. And there’s a cameo by Quick Ben.
Yeah you're right. Thanks for the catch.
Yeah, I came here too because of your overrated books and agreed with most of what you had on that list. Super appreciate you sharing your ratings! Helps my whole family out!!
You are most welcome, thanks for the kind comment!
I am two thirds into the video and already gasped a few times in disbelief. However, agree with most Hobb's books places. You have a great memory and quick pace of reading. I really appreciate it and this mammoth tier ranking too.
Lol yeah I imagine if I saw someone do a similar style video I would gasp many times! Thanks for the kind words.
I've read all the Dresden Files books, and while I personally enjoyed them, I get why people dont like it. I actually like the Dresden Character but he does get a bit cringe. And the story isn't super impressive... its very episodic. But, they were fun for me. I wouldn't rate them higher than Stormlight or anything, though. They are a solid mid to high tier fantasy series for me. I would give them a high B overall. Some of them were boring. Some of them were tons of fun. The constant objectification of Molly's body was a bit cringe to me. It felt like the author really wanted them to bone but knew the fan base and critics would eat him alive if he did. These books were good though. Definitely nowhere close to my favorite series. But I will continue to read his books because his writing style is good for coffee and sunshine.
Yeah that's a good perspective!
Just read through the farseer series (love it though I agree assasin's quest does drag a bit), would you recommend me to start ship of magic asap or read something else and come back to robin hobb later when I really need a good book?
Personally I'm a huge fan of mixing in books so you don't get burned out. So I would say read a few other books then come back to Liveship.
Incredible video!!! Wow! You’re giving us awesome videos!
Thank you!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Just finished watching. Loved the video! The only thing I am shocked about is that you have never read Harry Potter?! I find that crazy if true. Sure, the first 3 or 4 books are YA(not cringe YA though), but books 5-7 things start to really get dark.
@@ahill6858 Yeah I never did. But that's changing soon because I am slowly reading it to my daughter.
Very...very slowly.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews That's great! I am thinking about doing this with my son.
Say one think for Matt. Say he makes a damn fine tier list video.
Yeah I was a little nervous to make it, but I figured that once you've got a task to do, it's better to do it than live with the fear of it.
Thank you! Awesome video and really shows where you are at in terms of style of books. I also highly rate a lot of what I read. I feel spoiled in many ways because I really got into fantasy at the start of 2020. Which allowed my to go through the greatest hits of what has been published. Prior to that I was reading business related books.
Yeah I feel the exact same way. I'm still working through the greatest hits.
Where is A song of ice and fire?
I read those books before I created my spreadsheet that I use to track fantasy books, and I forgot to include it.
The first 3 books are "S". The next two are "A"
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews ok nice!Thanks! And thank you for this video i enjoyed it and enjoy your content. Keep at it!
@@GroovyKid94 Thank you!
Oh boy, those were a lot of books. Maybe it could help to have more tiers to rank them. Keep up the good work
Yeah that's a good idea for whenever I do an update here.
Great tier list and kudos for being able to differentiate among so many books at the same time. As far as Tolkien, I'd say that Tolkien himself wouldn't mind the perception some people have, that of the books not holding up in terms of story and the plot. Watching some of his interviews and his biopic, I got the impression that he didn't have much faith in his stories by themselves, but merely wanted to write something as best he could, in order to utilize the lore and mythos he wanted to put out there (the ones that were supposed to fill the holes in the old English and Celtic histories and myths. He was more concerned with the misinterpretations people might have in the elements surrounding it. I'll surely reread The Lord of the Rings many times for the nostalgia and for the things I missed from the 1st 2 reads, keeping in mind that it's all one big allegory, which is perfectly fine with me.
Yours and mine Discworld ratings match for the most part. For me, The Fifth Elephant might be a misunderstood and underappreciated book. Having read 8 or 9 Discworld by that point, I believe 5th 🐘was Terry Pratchett's more serious and deep take on international politics and family bonds. It's not as witty as some of the other books and the chase and carriage scenes could've been trimmed down just a bit, but It's a serious contender for my top Discworld book. Currently it's firmly in the top 3.
Can't wait to begin The First Law (next on my TBR) and the John Gwynne and Robin Hobb books I'm still collecting and will be equally, if not more psyched up when I dive into those.
Though I've read LoTR and ASoIaF before that, I also got back into fantasy around 2 and a half years ago with Discworld and now I'm finishing up the Wheel of Time. So much interesting concepts and stories to uncover, I can't wait.
Cheers from Croatia! ✌
I didn't know that about Tolkien, but that's very interesting insight!
Yeah I really need to give Fifth Elephant another shot, it will be fun to do it with your info in the back of my mind.
I hope you love First Law, Gwynne, and Hobb as much as I do!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews yeah, it took Tolkien years to put a story together, while he already had dozens of drawings and concept art and the languages all made while he was still an university student. His wife basically told him straightforwardly (paraphrasing): you need to get the story out soon because it’s driving you crazy.
Thanks for the reply and I hope that the Fifth Elephant ckicks better for you this time.
Finishing RWC and moving onto the final trilogy soon. So glad to see you are enjoying at least the first two books in Fitz and the Fool.
Yeah it's super good, and I have every belief the final book is going to be outstanding!
I listened while cleaning and rearranging my bookshelves. However, if you can't be a Murder Bot or Jim Butcher fan...I don't know...(lol) I love listening to your reviews and rankings. I'm glad I discovered you. But as I just started Ship of Magic by Hobb, you redeemed yourself with your Hobb reviews and I've read most of her books BTW.
lol, thanks and I'm glad I redeemed myself.
I would still say that I am a fan of Murderbot, and will continue reading them - I just wish it was going in a bit different of a direction that it has recently.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews I have to say I listened to the audio of the books. The narrator was great, so I really enjoyed the snarkyness.
Great list, great video. I’m hyped to read some of the books you praised so much.
Glad I could help! Thanks for the kind words.
OMG! Can't believe i've stayed till the end! Great video in a lot of senses. Really liked because I could get myself some new reading options. Sorry for the english, its not my native language, but maybe if I read all of this even this proficiency of mine will be better. Wonderful contents as ever, Matt!
Thanks so much, and your English is really good! What is your native language?
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Its portuguese actually. And we have a new generation o fantasy writters that I wish one day could see in your channel.
dark age is one of the most grim dark books I've ever read. It's WELL worth your time. There are 2 more books coming next year. Highly highly recommend reading dark age at least, you'll probably love it, then want to read the last two books
I may give it a chance at some point. I keep hearing that but the last RR book I read I just really didn't enjoy.
Iron gold had a burden on its shoulders, trying to introduce new characters, and ahe up the characters/story a decade or so. It took me a while to get into the new characters, but by the end I loved Ephraim so much, and the others characters. Lysander especially, the whole plot with him and Cassius was incredibly well done, IMHO.
Dark age is exactly that, fucking DARK. It does not relent. I suggest you get into it
I think the trouble with peace might be the best fantasy book ever
Yeah it's certainly up there. It's so good!
Where do I go to create my own tier ranking like this?
Tiermaker.com
How did you read so all these books in such a short time
I read ~175 pages a day - so it adds up over time.
Hi Matt- Just found your channel and am already a huge fan! Can you make a video on how you score your reads? I noticed you had a book rated as a 4.83 so I am interested in how you are scoring books as I love knowing the different nuances reviewers look for in books. Thanks and I suspect before too long you will have 10k subs no problem.
I don't think I'll make a video just on that but I can explain my process.
So I score every book 1-5 using a traditional method, with the only oddity being that I only give a "1" if I didn't finish it. If I finished it and absolutely hated it I will give it a 1.5 or 2.
You probably saw me give a 4.83 in reference to a series. I keep an excel spreadsheet that automatically combines scores for an entire series and gives me a series score that averages the score. Here's a little glimpse at the relevant part of the spreadsheet (Wandering Inn is highlighted because I'm actively reading it right now)
i.imgur.com/IguGSfL.png
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Nice. I also found the spreadsheet and noticed you have a word count? Where are you finding word count for books these days? I know there used to be a trick on Amazon, but I don't know a good site that has a good word count estimate. Thanks again for the info and adding your videos to receive instant notifications!
@@SINW A variety of ways. I use this reddit thread for some of the big ones: www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/hsl0o8/fantasy_word_counts_an_overhaul_of_many_of_the/
I google it if I don't see it there, and it often comes up.
Or failing all that, I just use my average word count per page on my spreadsheet and multiply it by the number of pages.
Great tier list! You have inspired me to read Malazan after finishing ASOIAF!
I read Sanderson’s SA up till Oathbringer, and I just could not read past the middle part, the characters have changed so much by that point in the series, I couldn’t connect to them any more. I loved the first two books though, amazing!
Yeah it's definitely not for everyone. If you felt disconnected at that point you definitely shouldn't continue.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews For sure! Maybe I’ll come back to them at a later point in time :). Regardless, keep up the good work, I love your videos!
But will you actually finish that hole series
Great video, thank you, so many S, totally agree with the John Gwynne books but I disagree with the Black Company (I liked at first, but by the end I was bored and annoyed with the characters interactions) and Mistborn (9 of every 10 times I don't enjoy YA and this series is more YA than A in my opinion, I still have to read book 3 and I'm really hoping it will get better as I already bought everything in the Cosmere because as far as critics goes Sanderson's writing and stories are only comparable with the 2nd coming of Christ, so far I liked Elantris the most, Warbreaker and book 1 & 2 from the cosmere have been good/meh for me, Sanderson's writing style has been extremely redundant saying the same things over and over again, I love when a character trait is showed and the reader can infer about his/her personality but Sanderson lack a little on that IMO, he loves to tell once and again how a character is and/or how a character is feeling.
Have you read any stormlight archive yet?
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Not yet, it's in my tbr, this week I'll finish the 3rd book of era 1 and by the end of the year I'll read the whole era 2, Stormlight Archive I'll be reading it the next year, as I said before, I already bought the whole cosmere available until now, I'll read it all, I never dnf a book, in fact if I dislike a book I usually read it faster to just end it, so far aside from Elantris (which I liked the most) has been ok, not bad but not great either.
@@danbe6280 LOL - I feel you on the reading books faster when you don't like them.
What an epic vid! I'm gonna have to do one of these myself at some point for sure. We have a ton of overlaps but some healthy disagreement too (I'm less of a progression fantasy person in general so most of Cradle didn't land as well for me, and I'm a much bigger Dresden fan). I really have to get around to trying the Black Company, Liveship and the rest of the RotE, Discworld, and Path to Ascendancy!
Totally agree that "the slog" starting with Path of Daggers is absurd, and that Blood and Bone was close to unreadable. We had very similar thoughts about Riyria Revelations and Chronicles, so I'm not very enthusiastic to try the other prequel series to say the least. Also I have the Fifth Season and Three Parts Dead ready to go on the shelf so I hope those go better for me than they did for you!
The big fantasy series I've read that's not on here that I think would be a huge hit with you is Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky -- this is a must must read for you I think.
Thanks, I would love to watch your version!
I'll have to give Shadows of the Apt a try, I've never even heard of it!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews oh sorry I didn't even realize I commented in the wrong account but you probably figured out who it was. Shadows of the Apt is just an awesome epic fantasy series with Sanderson style accessible prose, incredible creative worldbuilding and lore, and tons of tense military action in a very cool WW1/WW2 style geopolitical climate
@@BooksWithBenghisKahn Yeah I knew it was you. And the book sounds awesome!
It’s shocking how much we agree
Nice!
Too bad you didn't like N.K. Jemison's Broken Earth trilogy. I haven't read it yet but I loved her Inheritance trilogy. It's got politics galore, empire building, gods as slaves, mythology, great characters and an epic quality, with some LGBTQ elements that's just one aspect of the story (a love-hate relationship between two male gods who both loved the third, a goddess, in their tripartite pantheon.) The ending is perfect. I love stories with class systems in which one group of people are oppressed or marginalized by the powerful and then they fight for or attain their liberation/freedom.
I might give her a chance on the Inheritance trilogy, thanks for the suggestion!
Malazan is the by far best series I ever read only problem is I never got trough it at the time I could have finished it the german translation which I was reading was lagging very far behind so I stalled at some point roughly bone hunters I think (they go 2 german books for one of the english ones). I then got some of the english books, and started reading first from one book back I am not even sure where I ended up in my farthest attempt. Tried a long time later to start again but just couldn't go anywhere.
don't even want to get back into reading overall I just wanna know finish that one series
I was writing this comment and upon hearing you talk of the later books I haven't read: fuck it I am ordering the ones I am missing now (or on my next paycheck rather) and I am gonna do something to finish them. The ADHD Diagnosis and treatment I am seeking might end up helping in this endevaor
So glad I could help inspire you! I hope you love them as much as I do.
Stormlight Archive is an absolute banger of a series, favorite book series ever tbh.
Yeah it's SO good. It used to be my favorite but a few others have taken it over - but it's definitely a top 5 for me and could keep moving up if the books keep on being awesome.
Gonna have to pick up stormlight archive after this. It's been on my radar for a while, but watching you rank it up there with Lies of Locke Lamora and Hunger of the Gods. I'll also need to pick up more of Robin Hobbs books. I have Assassin's Apprentice, but haven't gotten around to reading it yet.
Oh yeah definitely pickup Stormlight - it's extremely wonderful.
Stormlight, Mistborn, and Realm of the Elderlings are all something very special, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!
@@jadewolf1024 Those are all 3 series in my top 10 favorite of all time!
Wow.Nice 🙂
I wonder where u put a song of ice and fire volumes 😭😭😭
The first 3 in S in reverse order, with ASOS in the top 10. The last 2 in A in regular order.
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Nice. 😁
Happy to see so many books in S and A!! Personally, I enjoyed Well of Ascension more than Hero of Ages, but I could see why you didn't enjoy it as much, it does get pretty long at times.
Yeah I think I liked a lot of parts of Well of Ascension more, but I thought the ending of Hero of Ages was much better. And I'm a sucker for good endings.