(Also love George RR Martin) Am also a big fan of Raymond Feist. Non-Fiction, Mr. Brightside, I would look at "The Nine" by Jeffrey Toobin. It's a great book on the Supreme Court.
Some non fantasy stuff I read in the past year and liked: The Prestige The Diamond Age World War Z The Stand Another good series (fantasy) that is light on the swords and magic that's really good is The Black Company series by Glen Cook. He's a Vietnam Vet and the entire thing reads like a squad based war book with some magic and swords splashed in. If you like the Erikson books, you should read this- Erikson says that these books were a big inspiration to him. I plan on reading 'The Road' by the same guy who wrote No Country for Old Men. It's about a father and son surviving after some apocalypse happens. Martin is an excellent writer, and I would recommend him to any writer. You should at least pick up some of his other books. Fevre Dream is a fantastic book about some supernatural stuff happening on a Steamboat in the 1800s. Good luck on your book and series!
Thanks. I've got one book out already (not from the series), The Ghost Hunters, but writing a proper multi-book series is a whole different animal in scope. It's challenging, but I really like where my current novel is going.
Just read The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, and I would highly recommend this book. It's a bit dark and violent at parts, but it was a very addictive read. It's the first of a 7 book series, and I just ordered the sequel Red Seas under Red Skies. The first book, at least, was a very self-contained book, and it didn't leave major plot threads hanging like other series.
