This is one of my favorite books...haqving said that I think the person compiling this list has been hit in the head a few too many times, almost as if he or she hadnt even read the book or series just got a review from someone who had overheard another person's conversation about the book,

Read a quarter of the first book in this trilogy, and regrettably could read no more. The writing is horrible in so many vulking (yes, this is a profanity borrowed from the book) ways. At first I thought the writing just seemed weak because I had recently read Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun (nearly all writing will pale in comparison to it), but eventually I could no longer stand it. Call me a literary snob but this is series should not be on this list.

The first book is amazing. The second book is good. The third book is merely ok.

This site has been extremely helpful, and I've found the recommendations and user comments invaluable in helping me choose my reading list. I couldn't stand this one, though. I thought the writing was simply terrible. I rarely stop reading a book before I've finished it, but I couldn't stand the idea of reading multiple books of this. Maybe the ideas are good, and maybe it gets better, but the writing just did not do it for me at all.

I enjoyed this series much more than Wheel of Time, or Lord of the Rings. I'd rate it #3 right under Malazan Book of the Fallen, and Game of Ice and Fire. Great dark horror fantasy fiction. Not really "epic" in scale, but that is not a requirement for me to enjoy it.

while most of the books/authors recommended on this site (whom i have tried) are more than worthwhile....this one was dissapointing....the main review on the website was so enticing i could not wait for it....in the end was a damp squib....neither the hero nor gerald tarrant are worth the trouble

I am constantly telling people that this series is one of my favourite reads of all time. That's how I remember it. Unfortunately, I was in my very early teens when I read them, so after reading other's comments, I wonder if they would hold up.

Regardless, they obviously they left an amazing impression on me. I remember hoping Mazrim Taim (remember him?) would turn into another Tarrant-esk character in WOT.

If you know a young, male adult who might enjoy getting into fantasy, these are likely great books to kick him off. I highly doubt a Robin Hobb recommendation would go over near so well.

P.S. If you did like this, the Magister Trilogy by Friedman is quite good too for it's imaginativeness.

You know, I had a great deal of respect for this list until these books were added to it. There is no character development. There is very little real plot, and the writing itself is excruciating. Save yourself some time and skip over this series.

i read book one and was, especially after the lauding of the series by the moderator, distinctly underwhelmed. the writing was mediocre to, at times, downright clumsy: the author REALLY liked her dark and profound adjectives; i think i read "utterly" about 4 times on two pages. the characters were staid and boring, no one developed and became more than the sum of their descriptions on paper. the hunter seemed like "ooooh scary" before you met him and then lost all sense of forbidding and danger once he actually joined the little walking party. the fae turned out to be more interesting in concept than in execution. functionally it served as just one more "magic system" that, like all others, presented some difficulties for those that used it. overall the experience was a 5 our of 10 for me- profoundly better than jordan but no where close to prince of nothing. i only finished it because i needed something to read when i was taking a shit and i won't be picking up the second installment.

I read these books, and the plot had potential, but all the characters aren't very interesting, except Gerald Tarrant, who at first seems immensely powerful but has an obvious weakness which causes he to be mostly useless through half the book.

I also thought the ending to book #3 was pretty corny (If you've read it, then think about it) and left me feeling disappointed about the whole thing.

Well, I was actually dissapointed with this series, first one ever where I felt no desire to read the second book, maybe im just too tired after work etc but seriously, Damien was so boring, just couldnt get away with him, didnt care for him in the slightest. Infact all three of the main characters didnt do it for me, Ciani was totally selfish and boring and senzei I also found hard work, I found myself reading the second half purely for the Hunter.

Its really a shame, the idea of the Fae is absolutley brilliant and the Hunter could possibly be one of the best characters of all time anywhere, ever. The Demon Calesta was also brilliant as with the Keeper, all the 'baddys' were great, the rakh annoyed me aload but I loved the soul eaters so mixed feelings i guess.

Was well written, good story, good plot just the 3 main characters and the rakh were a let down, in my oppinion of course!

Its one of the few series I know that tackles the mutually symbiotic relationship between religion and the religious, how the religion provides a comfort to the soul of the individual which in this world fuels their strength of will. It shows the religious, not as mindless fantastics, but as pensive deep-thinking people who struggle with the greater meaning of their faith on a regular basis, and sometimes don't even agree with their own priests. Add in a character whose very life is a testament to the strength of evil in this world and it makes for a powerful and moving piece of character interaction that often takes the form of very cerebral and civil conversations between two characters who, in a lesser author's hands, would be at each other's throats all the time.

I was a huge fan of Friedman's first novel, "In Conquest Born". She has never delivered on the promise of that first novel and this series, which I am half way through, is not very good at all. For whatever reason, I just don't buy into the premise and aside from that, there is simply nothing new here. How in the world this is better than Jack Vance is a mystery for the ages as his "Lyonesse" trilogy and Overworld series are some of the most remarkable works of fantasy ever written. Vance has forgotten more than Friedman has learned.

The book was very richly detailed, the characters were all people you could root for but I found parts to be pretty corny. For instance I had a hard time not slapping the book shut in frustration after reading "his eyes, they were so dark" for the 30th time in as many pages.

Glad it made it on the list. Great charachter interactions and growth. Tied everything together so well at the end I clapped when i finished. Well done Friedman!

Glad to see you updated your list to include this and Mistborn. I always thought the Coldfire Tilogy deserves more attention than it gets, as it's definitely one of the most unique, well written, and intense fantasy series ever written.