I appreciate all the posts on my previous thread and I'm curious to know the differences amongst these three authors. How similar(or not)are their epics and which would you say comes closest to the LOTR, Shanarra series, and Rift/Serpent War epics?
Differences between Jordan, Goodkind, and Martin?
- Thread starter Medellon
- Start date
XMan
Lifer
- Oct 9, 1999
- 12,513
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Martin is the most realistic of the group. He has no qualms about allowing his characters to enter situations in which they can't escape - and they don't. His books have the least amount of "magic" in them, making them almost a medieval history tale rather than a fantasy series.
Goodkind is the most idealistic. Every book has a tangible beginning, middle, and end. When you finish a book in the series, you are satisfied, but ready for the next one. He does have a habit of placing his characters . . . well, mainly the main character . . . in seemingly unescapable situations, and always provides a deus ex machina for him to get out of the jam. But it works, and as of late, Goodkind has been less loath to show the very real human consequences of a massive war, killing several important sub-characters.
Jordan suffers from, as Stephen King so aptly put it, "diahrea of the word processor." He can't get to the damn point. There's been one major plot point resolution in the last 4 books of his 10-book monstrosity, and I've washed my hands of it. I'm waiting until he kicks the bucket and Tor hires a ghost writer to wrap things up, or until he finally takes some Mylanta and gets down to business.
Goodkind is the most idealistic. Every book has a tangible beginning, middle, and end. When you finish a book in the series, you are satisfied, but ready for the next one. He does have a habit of placing his characters . . . well, mainly the main character . . . in seemingly unescapable situations, and always provides a deus ex machina for him to get out of the jam. But it works, and as of late, Goodkind has been less loath to show the very real human consequences of a massive war, killing several important sub-characters.
Jordan suffers from, as Stephen King so aptly put it, "diahrea of the word processor." He can't get to the damn point. There's been one major plot point resolution in the last 4 books of his 10-book monstrosity, and I've washed my hands of it. I'm waiting until he kicks the bucket and Tor hires a ghost writer to wrap things up, or until he finally takes some Mylanta and gets down to business.
i thought all two were quite unique.
how exactly would you determine similarity?? the fact that they had similar plots? riftwar had Pug as the hero, nowhere near Frodo. I'm not as familiar with the serpent series. if i've read it, it's been a while.
i really enjoyed the riftwar saga tho.
how exactly would you determine similarity?? the fact that they had similar plots? riftwar had Pug as the hero, nowhere near Frodo. I'm not as familiar with the serpent series. if i've read it, it's been a while.
i really enjoyed the riftwar saga tho.
X-man gave a good account IMO. I haven't read any goodkind, but the differences between Jordan and Martin can be summed up like this: Martin is a better Jordan.
RJ was initially celebrated for created a huge world and huge, intricate story. He did a good job of showing both large scale conflicts and intimate character details. Then came book 6 and everything went to hell. I could barely read the 10th one and have decided not to read any more of his books until he finishes the fscking thing.
Martin on the other hand...I love that guy. His books have a lot of the same elements as RJ, but they are simply better. Martin's characters feel like real people, instead of some demi-gods. His world feels real, because he doesn't sugar coat it, he shows both the good and the bad (whores, desease, hunger, poverty etc). His plot is the perhaps the best thing out there. it twists and turns and you never know where its gonna go. Finally, Martin's books get better as the series progresses! The third book was amazing and the fourth one will probably kick ass too.
RJ was initially celebrated for created a huge world and huge, intricate story. He did a good job of showing both large scale conflicts and intimate character details. Then came book 6 and everything went to hell. I could barely read the 10th one and have decided not to read any more of his books until he finishes the fscking thing.
Martin on the other hand...I love that guy. His books have a lot of the same elements as RJ, but they are simply better. Martin's characters feel like real people, instead of some demi-gods. His world feels real, because he doesn't sugar coat it, he shows both the good and the bad (whores, desease, hunger, poverty etc). His plot is the perhaps the best thing out there. it twists and turns and you never know where its gonna go. Finally, Martin's books get better as the series progresses! The third book was amazing and the fourth one will probably kick ass too.
DAYUM, now i remember RJ. WOAH. it's long but it's not good.
Riftwar is my favorite of the three.
Riftwar is my favorite of the three.
Yes... the world is fantastic, but the way he writes the characters seems so real. When a battle occurs, it's not some plastic fight scene that others have, but you can almost feel how dirty fighting really is. He really understands how life is... how political and personal things can get. There isn't a whole lot of magic or monsters in the stories... because other fantasies require that to capture people's imagination. But Martin uses simple, down to earth things, yet they capture you in the moment. That's what people mean when they say real. Magic, monsters, etc, doesn't drive the story... the people and their motives do. Magic and monsters are in the story, but they're the backdrop.
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