Timewaster's Guide Archive
Local Authors => Brandon Sanderson => Topic started by: demon on December 11, 2007, 01:41:20 AM
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Brandon, and other forum members,
First off i would liek to say that th mistborn series is amazing. about four months ago my then girlfriend, now fiance had gotten me interested in reading again. so i picked up a few books one by an author named Patrick Rothfuss. after reading his novel i went to take a look on his website to see if he had anymore. Well on one of his blogs he said he was reading a book called mistborn by yourself. he also had a link to your site. i checked out the siteand your books and read the firts chapter of mistborn , at first i actually was not impressed but decided to buy it anyway because i did find it interesting.
i picked up Mistborn and it completely chanegd how i look at writing i read it in two weeks, taking it in stride. it fascinates me. when the first description of vin came into my mind, it was a perfect description of my fiance. i could not believe myself. through the whole book i imagined my fiance as vin... especially when she met elend, because his description also fits me, which amazed me even further. but what really got me and changed our lives was The Well of Ascension.
heres why. SPOILERS
vin and elends relationship is not unlike my fiance and myself. we had been having troubles trusting and figuring out eachother for the longest time ( we have been toghether for two years) there is a paragraph on PG.236 that took my breath away
"how much she's changed since i first met her,Elend thought, smiling. Almost two years had passed. the she had been a youth,albeit one with the life experiances of someone far older. now she was a woman-- a very dangerous woman but one who still looked up at him with eyes that were just a bit uncertain, just a bit insecure."
this sums up our life toghether, and after i read this i had her read it... and it made us understand our veiws on each other . i dont know how i could ever thank you. after i read mistborn 2 i had her read it, and with all of the relationship element sin this book, it has braught us closer to each other than ever.i cannot wait for mistborn 3 to come out already the anticipation is killing me.
i just wanted to thank you and mayeb get some feedback as i am a brand new user on here. thank you for reading this and thank you for your time.
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And again, Mistborn changes the life of someone else as well.
Ha - I will now be forever known as the girl who reads alot.
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over the summer a lady at church referred to me as an 'avid reader.' I'm still stunned by that, I like to read (alot) but that was a first for me. I know what you mean.
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well i never expected a book to have such a profound effect on a life.
but as fo reading, i read mistborn 1 in 2 months. i read mistborn 2 in 3 days. read 400 in a day then deciding i needed to pace myself better.
does anyone know of any authros who write similar to brandons style? im looking for somehting ot hold me over until mistborn 3 comes out.
and i am reading the warbreaker e book also.
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In light of todays news, I think recommending the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan would be appropriate. The first book is The Eye of the World.
http://www.amazon.com/Eye-World-Wheel-Time-Book/dp/0812511816/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197341668&sr=8-2
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That'd sure hold you over! :o since you've got you know 11 books to get through. (and theirs always book 10 which can take a bit ;))
I myself like.... hmmm, nope can't think of any ;)
Seriously though, Brandon, IMO is in a class of his own. You could always read Princess Bride, that's a good one. My husband was really pleased with Dracula, so if you haven't read that one maybe try it (I actually haven't read it but he seemed to enjoy it)
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I'm going to go ahead ahd DIS-recommend anything by Robert Jordon. It's an unpopular positioin, but he's tedious. Of course, if you really obsess and need to read all 10 billion pages of the series before book 12 (by Sanderson) comes out, be my guest. I have better things to do.
You might try Barbara Hambly, Dragonsbane, which turned Brandon on to fantasy in the first place, and it's a really good book I read in my teen years as well. Also George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows are epic level fantasy, though less thoroughly permeated with magic, of a very high quality.
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Is this where I say what I gave to people after they were done reading Sanderson's works?
Here is the thing, Brandon doesn't really write like other authors, so it's hard to say, "get this, it's like his stuff." However, that being said, here are the books I recommend people read:
1) Steven Erikson - He is always my #1 (sorry Brandon), but he has the steepest learning curve of any author I have read (with the exception of R Scott Bakker - see below). He has the complexity of a Martin world, but with an extreme amount of magic. The first book is Gardens of the Moon
2) Jim Butcher - Dresden Files - Reading about the only Wizard in Chicago's phone book never disappoints. Fun, fast reads that have managed to get better with each novel, as well as getting more complex with each novel. The first book is Storm Front
3) George R R Martin - Already mentioned, but worth it again. The one drawback is some fairly explicit material at times, and his tendency to kill off characters faster than he introduces them, and it takes him forever to publish the next volumes. However, this is an amazingly well told story that he miraculously pulls off some how from 43985748937938763 view-points.
4) Robin Hobb - Great stuff told from First Person. On of Brandon's favorite authors. Cover quoted him for Mistborn 1. The book to start with of her's is Assassin's Apprentice.
5) John Scalzi - SCALZIIIII!!!!!!! Beat out Brandon's Elantris for the Campbell Award in '06. Good stuff. Fun SF. First book is Old Man's War.
6) Scott Lynch - Along with Brandon, lost to Namoi Novikfor the '07 Campbell Award. The main character in his stuff is a con-artist. Awesomely put-together. First book is The Lies of Locke Lamora.
7) R Scott Bakker - I love this guy, but I rarely recommend him. He's really really deep, and pretty graphic. His story, however, is amazing. The first book is The Darkness that Comes Before.
8) David Farland - Way cool ideas. Brandon took the writing class he currently teaches from Dave back in the day. Dave is also one of the classiest guys I have met from signings. First book to read is Runelords.
9)My last favorite is James Clemens. The Wit'ch series is great dark fantasy. His new series is getting great reviews also. He also writes fun fiction under the name of James Rollins (Map of Bones).
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thank you all for recomending these books im really interested in looking a some of them. i have to get back to work now before the boos comes and see sme on here.
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Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. This is the book that kept me sane while I was sequestered in Germany over the summer. Very fun and readable book by a first time author. Rothfuss has also spoken very highly of the Mistborn books.
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i read that, rothfuss recommended mistborn to me actually
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Hey Not Bookstore Guy - I would very much like to engage you in a respectful discussion of the merits (or complete lack thereof) of George RR Martin's series, "A Song of Ice and Fire".
Not to denigrate your opinion but I could not disagree more with your assessment. I had no trouble with the explicit nature of the writing - what I could not stomach were the inconsistencies - to me his world changes whenever he needs to have something different in the story. Three things stood out -
(I put down book 3 half way through and I have never done that before - it was about a year ago so I am going by memory here)
1 - Language - the first inconsistency - the world introduced to us is one where knights refer to each other using the ancient Ser not even Sir. And then they swear in the modern vernacular - f-bombs and other modern swear words in a ancient setting? Utterly ruined the consistency of the world - for me :)
2 - Undead - the second inconsistency - the mother who died and then came back as undead - two complete books and NO MENTION of undead or anything like that and then suddenly, a character comes back from the dead. And interacts with the live characters - in something like Wheel Of Time, the dark lord from the very first book is referred to as the lord of the grave and a number of references to him being able to reach the dead and bring them back allow for the return of a couple of bad guys much later in the series without disturbing the continuity of the world.
3 - Religion - the third inconsistency - the system of beliefs presented has no mention of heaven or hell - there is no reference to an afterlife or anything like that - the belief system is based in the current living world - and yet certain characters tell others to, "Go to hell" - perhaps this ties in with the first inconsistency but I isolated this as it refers to a system of religious beliefs that is not part of the world.
For those reasons, I put down George RR Martin in favor of other authors....
May I suggest Neil Gaiman?
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I couldn't even get through Shaman's Crosssing. I guess that goes to show the.... everyone likes different books for different reasons.
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As has been said, Brandon Sanderson doesn't write like other authors. It's one of the reasons I enjoy his books; they take fantasy and literary clichés and flip them around.
However, I do have a number of books that I can recommend.
David Eddings: Okay, first of all, to clarify, I mean his older series. I've been disappointed with his newer series, to be honest. The Belgariad series, which starts with 'Pawn of Prophecy' and the sequel series The Mallorean, plus accompanying books, are probably the best he's ever written, followed by The Elenium and The Tamuli. Eddings is not a philosophical writer; his books are purely enjoyable, straighforward fantasy. They're the kind of books you want to read when you don't want to analyse, you just want a book to lose yourself in and enjoy. His strength is his characters, not his plotlines.
Kristen Britain: If you don't mind a female heroine, the Green Rider series is very, very good. It's got a certain realism to it; the protagonist, Karigan, is a very brave hero, but she's also a very believable one. Her bravery is driven by fear for herself and for others; while she has some heroic qualities, they're driven by realistic reasons that have the reader being able to relate on a personal level, rather than put her on a pedestal. Magic in this series is subdued and not entirely understood due to events that happened pre-series, but it's still weaved in very well. You also get the chance to see a lot of the geography; a Green Rider, as an occupation, involves carrying messages for the King across the country. The one problem with this series is that it isn't finished yet and the author likes to take her time with each novel; it's quite a cliffhanger. The books are Green Rider, First Rider's Call, and The High King's Tomb which just came out in November.
I'm at work right now; these are a couple I can think off the top of my head. Let me think on it a bit and get back to you. I've got tons I can name!
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those all sound great thank you guys so much for the reccomendations, i am requesting some of them as christmas presents
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I couldn't even get through Shaman's Crosssing. I guess that goes to show the.... everyone likes different books for different reasons.
I thought Shaman's Crossing was definitely Hobb's weakest book so far, with the possible exception of the third Assassin book. I made it all the way though (S's C), but didn't care about anyone.
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Cant compare things to Brandon, sorry havent read him yet, but we all love fantasy so here are some of my favorites.
Elizabeth Hayden: Rhapsody is the first great series with music based magic. And our hero is a Heroine YAY!!!. Some time travel and lots of different unique "species"
Jaqueline Carey: Kushiel's Dart is book 1. You can really see her writing mature as you go on, again female Heroine. However there is a lot of sexual content and this is not for the young readers.
Ed Greenwood: Band of hero novels... This is the basis of D&D and much of what we have in fantasy today. It wreaks of the RPG games of past and present. Good fast fun reads. I love his humor.
Larry Niven : specifically "The magic goes away" Good luck finding it. Its a short and its VERY short. But it is a good look at a world with failing magic. Niven has written lots of sci-fi fantasy and his thoughts and concepts are unique.
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I actually liked Shaman's Crossing, but couldn't finish Forest Mage.
My favorites...
Terry Brooks: definately one of my favorite authors. His first book, Sword of Shannara is a rehash of Lord of the Rings, but his succeeding books of that world are definately worth reading the first. His series, Word and the Void, is perhaps is best to date: a dark, urban fantasy.
Greg Keyes: His series Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone is awesome!! It's set in a fantasy world that has a tie to our's. It is well written with engaging characters and a unique form of "magic". When I mention him to others, people always look at my like, "Who?"
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Yeah.. I loved the Shannara books as they are what got me into the fantasy genre.. read The Hobbit after them. But the Word and the Void was also good.
I read any book that catches my interest really.
Fiona McIntosch - The Quickening Trilogy was pretty good. The first book is Myrren's Gift (http://books.google.com/books?id=VxZe1Qn0UDQC&dq=myrren%27s+gift&pg=PP1&ots=sW0A3woWlp&sig=Wx1nOs96xski2ma2q68ET7X1XP0&hl=en&prev=http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&channel=s&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&hs=rNr&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=Myrren%27s+Gift&spell=1&oi=print&ct=title&cad=one-book-with-thumbnail#PPP10,M1).
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ok so heres what i got for christmas... R scott bakker the darkness that comes before... and robin hobbs assassins apprentice... im going to start those as soon as i complete Mass Effect on my xbox , oh and find a job because i was fired last friday... nice ot be fired before xmas
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I just thought I'd reply with hearty agreements all around. Demon, I'm thrilled to see what an amazing impact Brandon's books have had on your life. Sometimes it's just amazing.
Since NBGA has yet to make an appearance, I also thought I'd make a few remarks on George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series--remarks which could probably be applied to a couple of the other suggestions made throughout this post. Granted, Insomnius, I'm not Bookstore Guy, though he and I have had this conversation before . . . but I might be able to make some suggestions as to why he suggested the series.
First, I'm impressed you set the series aside. Not because of the series, but because of the genre. It says a lot. It says that you know what you like, and I'm always thrilled to find other readers like that. Readers don't have to suffer through crap we don't like . . . Hell, Tolkien and Lewis wrote their works because they couldn't find anything they wanted out there (granted, Tolkien wanted a LOT, but we're grateful for it.) So I'm in your camp there. It doesn't surprise me that it was Martin either . . . people either love him or hate him.
That said, you should know that Bookstore Guy didn't suggest Martin because of the language, whether it's vulgarity or its anachronisities . . . though I have to confess: they aren't that anachronistic. Most of the profanity has been around since about the 1400's . . . heck, the OED has a reference for SOB that dates back to 1330. Granted that doesn't exactly mean that these words were common place back then, but they DID exist and there are recorded uses. Since Martin has based much of the setting of ASoIF on the War of the Roses, which started in the mid-1400's, the language isn't exactly out of place . . . though the profanity is probably used more in Martin's series than it would have been back then. I say you've got a good point though in this: no reader should have to put up with distractions. If it distracts you, then it's not your type of book.
Your second point can definately be applied to Martin . . . He's got a cast of thousands, and there is a lot about his world he just doesn't reveal. It makes many of the events in the books seem very coincidental, or convenient, or inconsistent. That section where Catelyn Stark returns from the grave as undead made me drop the book. I hadn't had any preparation for that. Part of me loves it, and part of me doesn't. However, just because something hasn't happened in the series doesn't mean that it can't. Returning from the dead isn't exactly an unfamiliar occurance in fantasy . . . and let's face it: we had no warning that Gandalf would come back. We just sort of take it for granted (decades after the book was first released) that this is how the book needed to be. All that we know is that Eru (God) sent him back . . . Similarly, there are many things in Jordan's Wheel of Time which we are told are impossible, but managed to be overcome. I remember thinking certain characters were done for after they were stilled or gentled . . . it had been clear that not even in the Age of Legend had that been curable. Convenient that the characters find out how to do it here.
This, however, is more of a direct address to why BookstoreGuy suggested Martin . . . and why the series is so loved and hated. It is different in many ways. Much of the fantasy liguistical aspects are pretty plain and straight forward; much of the relationships and situations are basic (bastard son of the king, people seeking the crown, dragons, etc.); and the characters, the thousands of characters, don't stand out as uniquely as they do in most fantasies. What people love is how these elements combine in unexpected ways. It's the fact that there really IS no congruity. *SPOILERS BEWARE* Our "hero" dies at the end of book, a boy is left seriously crippled, the best swordsman's HAND is cut off (why no bad guys ever thought of that before, i DON'T know), and we've only seen people come back to life with BAD effects. *END OF SPOILERS* It's unexpected, and instead of the thrill of anticipating a foretold event, we anticipate an explanation. The characters may not stand out (there's no elf, no dwarf--wait. Scratch that last one.), but that's because they aren't as cookie cutter as we expect them to be. It takes more investment, but we enjoy characters because their choices describe them, not their quirks. It's a harsh way of writing, and it's risky. Just about as many foibles in Martin's style as there are fortes . . . it isn't for everyone. Hell, it isn't for MOST people. But others should be made aware that it is there.
As for your final point, I must concede here. Martin is VERY quiet about how these religions work. I personally wish there were more information about that. It's a very fine line between ambiuity and TMI, and I personally think you're on the ball here. He's ambiguous, and I'm not sure if the value of religion will ever be clarified in the series. The War of the Roses was a very gritty, harsh thing. Religion can be incredibly impotent concerning the matter of succession. That seems to be what Martin's series is about . . . an issue of struggle. Not of Good versus Evil, but struggle between people in general. My feeling is that if a religion has power, then it should have a purpose for that power (reasons behind it, and goals before it) . . . but then again, I'm not choosing how the book is written. Just whether I read it.
Hopefully you can see that BookstoreGuy recommended the series, not because it was perfect or for everyone, but just that it has a strong track record. He and I both find issue with some aspects of Martin's writing . . . but mostly were just damn jealous, and just wish we could write that well and have so few issues ourselves.
Merit-wise in general, however. I'm not going to touch that one. The world itself could argue about what stories have merit and which don't, and the discussion would last until the end of time. Merit is one thing to one person, and another to the next. Martin just so happens to fall into the category of authors for whom there isn't much middle ground. Either way, Excellent points, and I'm interested in hearing what alternatives to Martin you might recommend.
EDIT: Other than Gaiman. He's fabulous, but I've read just about all that he's done.
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I like philosophical writers who mix philosophy with a bit of Scifi/fantasy. Now I detest Goodkind (I like philosophy, I don't like being repeatedly hit over the head with it). I like large books, and long series'. While I did not find Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time overly philosophical I also did not find its 8,00 -8,500 page length at all bothersome. With those caveats in mind, who would you guys recommend?
P.S. I have read most of the "Great White Male" authors that some of us oldsters believe are stll essential reading to be considered "educated", so authors being a littlke tedious or long winded is not a problem for me, lack of quality is.
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Sorry for the delay in responding. I've been on vacation and sick, so I've been a bit under-the-radar.
This is basically to respond to Insomnius. Sorry for not replying sooner. I usually respond better. In fact, the only reason I am responding right now is because Im all hopped up on cold medicine...
Anyways, with regards to the vulgarity in Martin's work. I actually had this same problem until a little ways back. Scott Lynch does the same thing in his fantasy novel. After thinking about it for a good while, however, I changed my mind. You see, if this book were actually on our earth, in that time period, then maybe I would still have that problem - disregarding the fact that most of what they said (vulgarities included) was different from how we say things now (In fact, if every fantasy novel was written using grammar from that time period, I doubt it would sell at all due to how tiresome it would be to read.).
But these novels are written in a fantasy world. Not ours.
How can you prove an inconsistancy of swear words in a world you've never been to? Errent made some very good points about those words exisiting back in an older time, but really, none of that matters (no offense man, those WERE good points though!). Martin created the 'Fire and Ice' world, so he makes the rules. If the people swear like that in HIS world, then that's how it goes. The mistake that many of us are guilty of (myself included) is comparing author's works to our own real world that we live in. However, after stopping this comparison, I myself began to be less bothered by it. That's just how people talk in that FANTASY world. Also, you can't prove an inconsistacy between that and the use of the word Ser in a world you've never lived in. Martin made this world, and that's how they talk in his made-up world. That's why this doesnt bother me anymore.
The undead thing kinda catches you by surprise, no doubt about it. However, the question I ask myself is, In a world where the magic is subtle and unexpected and not even the characters understand it - how can we completely understand it? Now, I would like there to have been more foreshadowing and such, but like Errent said, thats what draws a lot of people to this series - the unexpectedness of everything.
I agree with religions, I would like them to be a bit more fleshed out. Personally (and no offense intended), I think that the issue with telling someone to "go to hell" and there not being mentions of heaven or hell in the religious area is kinda nit-picking. I could very well argue that since in this particular fantasy world a person tells another to "go to hell", that this implies a belief that there is a hell to go to, and thus there is no need to fully elaborate. But like i said, I pretty much agree that a bit more fleshing out of religions would be great in his stuff.
So there you have it. Errent basically said why I like Martin's stuff for me, so I wont go there. This was just responding to Insomnius' points. Hopefully my points made some sense amid my cold medicine.
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soryr i havent written back to any one, thanks again for the wonderful suggestions all of these books sound faboulus, unfortunatly i wont be able to do much ready for the next 15 weeks. i enlisted into the U.S. army and i am to be shipped out on january 15th. i am half way through assassins apprentice, im enjoying it although not as much as i enjoyed brandons works.
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Good luck to you, demon. Hope you enjoy Assassins Aprentice.
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Hello all. NBGA and Errent I very much appreciate your responses. And there was no offense taken by anything :D
I guess it just boils down to personal taste. (I cannot tell you how I taste - you'll just have to take a bite....ewwwww)
For me, Martin's unexpectedness of everything comes across as either immature or panicky. Either way, again in my own humble opinion, I find it detracts from the experience of immersing myself in the world.
This is of course something that varies from individual to individual - my reading style is that I cannot read more than one book at a time. (Also the same for listening to music - I tend to latch on to something I like and immerse myself in it for a while then I don't listen to it for months). So, for me, when something interferes with my ability to completely lose myself in a world, I get frustrated and distracted with the eventual end that I do not end up reading the rest of the book.
It's writers like Neil Gaiman, Douglas Adams, and Ray Bradbury whose worlds I use as yarsticks by which I measure other writers' worlds. These are the writers who shaped my understanding of fantasy (along with Tolkien and CS Lewis but that was from childhood where I was much less discerning).
I like the young Stark boy who ran into the forest as a warg. I was deeply hurt when Ed Stark was beheaded. I truly cared about the world in the first two novels. The third just did not measure up to the yardstick in my mind and I got lost....
And then the next installment of WoT came out (at the time it was Crossroads of Twilight) and there was no reason for me to continue slogging through the Martin book.
Anywho - thank you for the respectful and thoughtful responses - it is greatly appreciated :)
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does it have to be a bite? or can we just lick?
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Ew, ew, ew. Let's not continue that conversation.
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But it could open all sorts of possible conversations....
Ew, ew, ew. Let's not continue that conversation.
But it could open up all sorts of possible conversations.... ;D
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I was sitting here laughing at the responses when my boss (who sits at the adjoining cubicle) pokes his head over to look at me bizarrely.
I welcome licks, bites, nibbles and nips but slobbering, slurping, sneezing and burping is verbotten.
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what about blowing my nose on your shirt sleeve?
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what about blowing my nose on your shirt sleeve?
as enjoyable and as endearing as that sounds, I'm quite certain that I will respectfully decline that most appetizing of offers.
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Getting back on track.
I like to read just about anything, but kind myself coming back to the old tried and true.
RA Salvatore: His novels about a drow ranger named Drizzt really got me hooked (if you don't know the series, shame on you ;D). His Cleric Quintet series and others are fantastic as well. Don't forget his other series too.
David Eddings: All his early stuff is great, I even enjoyed his newest series The Dreamers but not as much. He has started to recycle characters even more than usual (he's a great author but don't get me started on this topic).
Orson Scott Card: My Favorite author (sorry Brandon). He writes fantasy and but mostly sci-fi, even his short stories are awesome (for sure read Maps in a Mirror). Pick up any of his books and be amazed. His stories are awesome but his characters are unmatched anywhere. Try Hart's Hope, Ender's Game (of course) and Enchantment to get a start, then finish off the rest because you will be hooked.
Robert Heinlein: Sci-fi author extrodinaire. Starship troopers and Stranger in a Strange Land are where to start, but others are great too. He tends to be more than a little sexist (sign of the times when they were written) but he still has some great female characters (try Friday on for size).
Ben Bova: Pure Sci-fi, but our universe and not too distant future. Good stuff.
Patrick Rothfuss: I have to add my vote of confidence to this 1st time author, simply couldn't put The Name of the Wind down.
Ted Bell: He has a great series about a billionaire playboy spy that is great.
Ursula K LeGuin: The Earthsea Trilogy, need I say more except don't forget about the 3 or 4 new books written about earthsea.
Neil Gaiman: Neverwhere blew my mind and American Gods did it again. Stardust was just fun, and Coraline is a great book for older children.
Larry Niven: The Ringworld series was awesome as was Beowulf's Children (no not that Beowulf) and Destiny's Road.
I also read alot of Dean R Koontz. He has some great stories and characters and comes out with like 2-3 books a year, so there is always some thing new on tap.
I find it best to look for new authors at the library. Used bookstores and Goodwill, etc are good places to go too. You won't (usually) pay a lot for them so you aren't really out much if you pick a real stinker of a book/author. Plus you can always just redonate or trade/sell the book again.
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1 - Language - the first inconsistency - the world introduced to us is one where knights refer to each other using the ancient Ser not even Sir. And then they swear in the modern vernacular - f-bombs and other modern swear words in a ancient setting? Utterly ruined the consistency of the world - for me :)
I suppose this comes down to a matter of preference. I don't really mind this at all, and I don't really see why you take issue with it. What's to say that in this world the word "Ser" just stayed in use longer, while the rest of language progressed. Knights, etc, seem very traditional, but there are also very modern aspects to the world. It's also quite apparent in the books that human civilization has existed for tens of thousands of years, so it's not unlikely at all that many things have changed, yet others, while being held more sacred, did not.
2 - Undead - the second inconsistency - the mother who died and then came back as undead - two complete books and NO MENTION of undead or anything like that and then suddenly, a character comes back from the dead. And interacts with the live characters - in something like Wheel Of Time, the dark lord from the very first book is referred to as the lord of the grave and a number of references to him being able to reach the dead and bring them back allow for the return of a couple of bad guys much later in the series without disturbing the continuity of the world.
Uh, the prologue of book 1 involves undead. The Night's Watch guardsmen are killed by the Others, and they come back from the dead to kill the one companion who had lived until the end of the chapter. Throughout the series, the Jon storyline involves dealing with the Others and their dead, converted minions. Jon saves the Lord Commander one night because he sets the wight on fire. Dany and her unborn child are also involved with necromancy (Albeit gone wrong) very shortly into the story. Beric Dondarrion is referred to as having been killed many times, though I believe Martin intended for the reader to just assume that it was a legend. However, it turned out to be the truth, and Dondarrion gives his life for Catelyn to be ressurected. If you believe that there was no mention of the undead until that point, you really misread quite a bit of the series. I would say it is the only consistently present magic in the entire series
3 - Religion - the third inconsistency - the system of beliefs presented has no mention of heaven or hell - there is no reference to an afterlife or anything like that - the belief system is based in the current living world - and yet certain characters tell others to, "Go to hell" - perhaps this ties in with the first inconsistency but I isolated this as it refers to a system of religious beliefs that is not part of the world.
There are quite a few various religions in the world. The most common is worship of The Seven, and then there are the Gods of the North, and the gods of the Dothraki, whatever god it is that Stannis Baratheon's witch lady and Thoros of Myr follow, etc. I'm not certain any of them exclude the thought of heaven or hell, but I would find it extremely unlikely that none of them do. I wouldn't say that this is out of the ordinary at all.
May I suggest Neil Gaiman?
Neil Gaiman is an excellent author. American Gods is one of my favorite novels.
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I couldn't even get through Shaman's Crosssing. I guess that goes to show the.... everyone likes different books for different reasons.
You couldn't get through it because it sucks :P Read some of the earlier stuff.
I'm stunned that someone didn't like GRRM's work. I'd be hard pressed to find better fantasy. I've read... well a lot, and I have to say that A Song of Ice and Fire is the most wellcrafted epic fantasy ever written.
As to something you would probably like (to original poster): I think Terry Goodkind's "Wizard's First Rule" would be to your liking. Fast paced, very tight, great characters. Books 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6 are wonderful in my opinion. The series is called "Sword of Truth".