I have read all of Fiest's novels, but I have read the Rift War Saga 8 times. The first three books are amazing and I have been searching for the same feelings I got from reading them for years. I don't think I will ever find another series that I love nearly as much. The rest of his books are just okay. The characters get old and you feel bad because you know who they once were...

I suggest reading the first 3 books. They aren't a technical writing accomplishment by any means, but they are extremely fun to read.

jimmy the hand has got to be one of the best characters in the series and worth reading just for him and his sons

I read this book when it was loaned to me by a friend, i gave it back 6 months later after i had gotten maybe a third of the way in, put it down and forgot about it for 4 of those months. I was not complled to finish it at all, and would not reccommend it, excpet perhaps to people starting in the genre.

Magician was awesome! I thought Serpentwar Saga and conclave of shadows were good as well and anything after that is skipable. The The Darkwar Saga should have been one single book and it just felt like he was churning them out each year for $$$ rather than making a great story. the goods ones actually made me have a connection with the character now i just dont care about them. the only original character left has become very very depressing and boring.

I read Feist when I was much younger, and then later authors like Robert Jordan, George R. R. Martin, Robin Hobb, Brandon Sanderson, etc. There's a vast disparity in writing styles and story styles that make a lot of the above posts into poorly conceived apples to oranges comparisons.

Feist has a simpler style that gets more complex as his books continue on. I wouldn't say that his prose is the most elegant among fantasy authors, but the most important component (the stories) still stands as strong and tall as the others.

It's a traditional fantasy with a twist in its lore and mythology that makes it interesting to read. It's not a gritty world, where a protagonist dies every other chapter. It's a book in which the heroes are mostly infallible and they go on to save the day. If that's not your cup of tea, then Feist is not for you. I actually enjoy all of the above authors. I like stories in which no one is safe, but I also like stories in which the good guys win.

One of the best things that I can say is that Feist does a good job balancing story arcs between those of normal and mortal characters with those of world-shakingly powerful ones, In the same book, he can draw both into compelling story arcs without diminishing one for the sake of the other.

Outside of Magician, I really struggled with Feist's style and indicisive lack of direction. I felt that the Empire Trilogy (when read concurrent with the Magician book) provided one of the best thought out trilogies I have read;and deserves more than just an honorable mention. I think that trilogy in itself deserves a much higher rank than the rest of Feist's work, which drags it down.

His first stuff is good, specially Empire Trilogy which is AMAZING, but after that all of his stuff goes from bad to worse to downright unreadable.

This was the first fantasy series i ever read and it completely turned me onto fantasy. I will say that the enjoyable aspect of this series is the story and world, not the writing. Feist fails when it comes to capturing an audience through writing ( as say Butcher does with The Dresden Files).
The thing that is best about this series is that it spans a large amount of time in his world. It is interesting to see how successive generations view the events which occurred in the earlier works.
Finally, the series is getting better now that he is killing characters off. They seem to age and become fatigued as the series goes.
Overall i'd say it's worth reading and is a perfect intro to fantasy.

Having read most of the books I would rate Feist's first book 9/10, his first six a 7/10 and his later works 2/10.

As real life time has passed it seems Feist has lost track of what he's even doing. Parts of his novels don't even match up.

The main hero's become tired and boring. Feist has a problem with building up a hero only to later let them get old and retire/die while he keep stringing along his band of SUPER hero's that never go away.

His theme of a biger than life villan's with an otherworldly god as a leader, meh can only eat that so many times.

Some of it is a decent read but this is not top 25 material overall. Ive also heard he writes his books in a few weeks with little thought put into them anymore. (which might help explain the low scores I give the further along in his career you read)

Just because you can follow a recipe doesn't mean you're a good cook!!There are so many people out there following the traditional "fantasy" recipe, and do it horrendously, the fact is that Feist does it well. I love the difference in style between Riftwar and Empire trilogy, and how he provides you with two sides of the same story. There are heaps of underlying themes and politics etc, that if you do want to look into it more deaply you can, and on the otherhand if you just want a good yarn then you can get that too. That's what makes him a fantastic writer - there's something for everyone.

I've read allmost everything of George Martin, Robert Jordan, Robin Hobb, Tolkien etc, but the world Feist created still wins in my opinion. Magician still is the best book I ever read. The serpentwarsaga is great as well if you enjoyed the RiftwarSaga.

Magician started me reading fantasy novels. My friend lent me it one day and i stayed up till 6am and finished it. I just couldn't put it down. Since then I have read all Feist's books and have been very satisfied with them. In my opinion there one of the best fantasy novels i have read. If u plan on reading them i suggest starting from the first books and working your way up to the darkwar saga. As these books always relate back to something that happened in the earlier books. Also you must read the books that are a seperate story's such as Legends of the riftwar, which is set when the Tsurani first come to Midkemia and is about the Tsurani and kindom soldiers having to band together to fight the dark moredhrel. Also read Jimmy the Hand another story on its own. I rate 10/10 a must read

I loved these series. Mostly the Riftwar Saga and the Empire Trilogy although the others still attract my attention. It isn't as a heavy a read as some of the new fantasy books out there now and the hero here is more clear cut. I do agree that it's the typical plot of a nobody to a hero story but what a story! It's a fun read where you grow up with the characters. I also liked the fact that as the series went on, good guys also die whether of old age or by some other means (although with some of the new fantasy books out there now, this has become something of the norm). Even as a common theme among fantasy novels, I don't think I will ever tire of it as long as it's like these books.

I started reading this then just gave up. For me it wasn't as mature as other fantasy books, in plot depth/development and writing. The writing was just too simple.

I used to be one of those "You read! Fag" people. Then my buddy got me to read Magian Apprentice. Now i'm hooked I've read every single one of feist's books. Now i'm waiting for his next. Now i'm reading a few others. Robbin Hobbs was alright... The other authors I never finished the series. I'm just starting A Game of Thrones and am not impressed. Nothing can compare to the Feist Books. They are the most exciting books I have ever read. There are time when I get so into it. I need to set the book down and walk around. Just to calm down.

The descriptions of how this book is the old-fashioned fantasy story are accurate. However, I would like to point out that some fantasy readers like to mix up their diet. I personally don't like to get stuck in a rut of realism, anti-hero, or following the newest trends. I can get that from the newspaper each day. I find it refreshing to bounce between the different types of fantasy so I'll never get burned out on the good old magician or good guys win stories. I started with the Conclave of Shadows series and have read each book since then. They are all well-written, endearing characters, a terrible villain, murder, intrigue, multiple worlds, monsters, gods, another dimension, and so much more. It may be cliche but you can't get bored with a story-line that goes so many places. Besides, there are a few anti-heroes and good guys that turn bad during the series. I would say that these are books that belong in any fantasy collection.

Hi, it depends on how much you like Feist. If you really enjoy his magician books, then yes, you may want to read the serpant war books. I will say that the only books I feel are really good are his Riftwar books (especially the first two) and the Empire Books. All his other books are mediocre except for Talon of the Silverhawk. People are saying is newest trilogy (Mad God or something) is regaining some of the old magic, but I can't personally verify that.

So, in short, it depends on how much you like his world.

For a more involved discussion of Feist's books and their quality, check out the Best Fantasy Forum thread:

www.bestfantasybooks.com

I've noticed that the Serpentwar saga has 4 books and you only listed 3 here. The one that is missed out in the saga is Rise of a merchant prince. Is that worth the read?

You're right about not getting anything new here. I liked how Feist started, but these books were filled with too many cliches and too many "good guys." There wasn't nearly enough emotional conflict. It was an entertaining series, but not a page-turner. I'd give it a 5/10.

You're right about not getting anything new here. I liked how Feist started, but these books were filled with too many cliches and too many "good guys." There wasn't nearly enough emotional conflict. It was an entertaining series, but not a page-turner. I'd give it a 5/10.