Fantasy written by women

[penmage]

On my Thursday commute home, when I reached my stop, I saw a guy in a yarmulke getting off at my stop, and putting away his book: one of the Wheel of Time books. He looked vaguely familiar, and he was reading epic fantasy, so I started a conversaton about Jordan, and then we went our seperate ways.

On Friday, when I put my book away to get off at my stop, I looked up and saw him getting off, too. So this time I started up a conversation with him, introduced myself. Turns out he's friends with N, and married to a friend of my friends.

Anyway, we were waiting for the bus and talking about fantasy, and he was listing fantasy books that I likes, and he said that, aside from Robin Hobb, he doesn't think that fantasy (particularly epic fantasy, but fantasy in general) written by women is as good as fantasy written by men.

So I told him to read Naomi Novick, and now I am wracking my brain to think of more excellent fantasy, both epic and not, written by women. Because obviously as soon as I try to think of some, it all flees.

So help me out, people, because that is an unacceptable prejudice.

Comments

[rosaleendhu.livejournal.com]

Jennifer Fallon's series that incluse Harshini.

Possibly Mercedes Lackey, but maybe not. Her recent stuff is very formulaic, and seems to target teenaged girls.

Diana Wynne Jones, on the other hand, might be YA, but she's brilliant.

And... the other ones I can think of are either SF writers or inconsistent.

[crowley.livejournal.com]

That is actually an excellent question. I'm thinking, and looking through my books and I don't think I've ever read/owned any...

Wait, Ursula Le Guin. How could I forget?

[nleseul.livejournal.com]

Anything by Jacqueline Carey.

[janni.livejournal.com]

Patricia McKillip
Patricia Bray
Robin McKinley
Emma Bull
Judith Tarr
Sharon Shinn

(This is making me realize how little adult stuff I read these days, though. Even half the authors here I know better for their YA than their adult work.)

[g33kgrrl]

Sarah Monette, for sure.
And I'm just waiting for mistful's books to be published - I'm sure they'll be right up there.

Agreed on Diana Wynne Jones and Ursula K. Le Guin.

Madeliene L'Engle.
Susan Cooper (you should have thought of that one!).
Hope Mirrlees's Lud-In-The-Mist.
Does Holly Black count, or is that too magical realism/not fantasy?
Ditto Kelly Link? Although I believe some of Link's short stories are straight-up fantasy, too.
Pamela Dean's Secret Country books are amazing.
Victoria Walker.
Oh gosh, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, by Susanna Clarke.
And, um, the most popular fantasy series since LOTR was written by a woman - Ms. JK Rowling?

I've heard good things about Ellen Kushner's Swordspoint books but haven't read them yet.
Same with Tanith Lee's books (although one is sitting in my bedroom waiting for me!).

Caitlin R. Kiernan - horror or fantasy? Kind of both.

Ok, that's all I could find for now. But I can probably find more if you'd like. :)

[esc-key.livejournal.com]

Ursula Le Guin! Damnit!!
Jacqueline Carrey is good
Lois McMaster Bujold (Curse of the Chalion, I recommend)
Ellen Kushner (Guys don't like that because of teh gay though)
Barbara Hambly
JK Rowling :p
Maybe early Anne McCaffery?

[ricardienne.livejournal.com]

Rats -- other people have mentioned most of the ones I had (Definitely Bujold, Susanna Clarke, Rowling, DWJ). So…

Katherine Kurtz, maybe: the early-middle ones are good, anyway (her most recent, not so much).

[maleficently.livejournal.com]

Older Mercedes Lackey, her more recent stuff is, as said above, has a very sort of cookie cutter feel to it, which is a shame, because her books are what got me INTO fantasy. I started out reading female authors, so some of these might be slanted towards a younger audience, but I still enjoy them.
Andre Norton (especially the Elvenbane series she wrote with Lackey, that's still a favorite of mine)
Melanie Rawn, Dragon Prince trilogy
Kirsten Britain, Green Rider series
Joanne Bertin, although I despair at this point of her ever finishing her trilogy.
Elizabeth Haydon, Symphony of Ages series
Margaret Weis, anything NOT Dragonlance. (Not that I don't LIKE the Dragonlance books,I just like her other titles better)

[paradoxicalme.livejournal.com]

Madeleine L'Engle and Melanie Rawn were the first two that came to mind - a friend of mine who loves fantasy also recommended Juliet Marillier.

[coppervale.livejournal.com]

Jennifer Roberson.

[npkedit.livejournal.com]

Hmmm. I read more sci-fi and suspense than fantasy, but a close friend of mine, whose judgment I trust, is friends with Kate Elliott (who was once a Nebula nominee) and recommended her work to me.

[arib.livejournal.com]

Madelaine L'Engle comes to mind

[puzzledance.livejournal.com]

The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon.

[lnbw.livejournal.com]

For epic fantasy I'd second the Jacqueline Carey recommendation, but it doesn't appeal to all tastes. Naomi Kritzer and Michelle Sagara are good ones, and both notably break out of stereotypical milieus. I love Ellen Kushner. Jo Walton? I haven't read Rosemary Kirstein yet but she's been highly recommended. Oh, and Jane Lindskold, who I'm not wild about, but someone who reads Jordan would probably be the right audience.

I really like Cherie Priest and Emma Bull, but they both write contemporary and/or historical fantasy. Juliet Marillier and Sharon Shinn are relatively girly but good (though my favorite of Shinn's is actually SF, not fantasy). Robin McKinley does a lot of different things; I like many of them.

Deliberately avoiding YA fantasy because that's a whole 'nother list. :)

[kosher-jenny.livejournal.com]

All my picks have been mentioned already, but I would like to say that I've encountered this attitude before, and it never fails to depress me. I had a friend (female) who refused to read books by female authors period. This was some years ago, so hopefully she's grown out of it by now.

[octoberdreaming.livejournal.com]

-- Ursula LeGuin (sooo, sooo much.)
-- Louis McMasters Bujold - her "Curse of Chalion" is one of the best fantasy books I ever, ever read. Her science fiction kicks butt, too.
-- Louise Marley
-- Jane Yolen
-- Andre Norton
-- Madeleine L'Engle
-- Pamela Dean
-- Terri Windling
-- Patricia Wrede
-- Patricia McKillup
-- Anne McCaffrey

[octoberdreaming.livejournal.com]

Oops, I mispelled Bujold's name - It's Lois, not Louis. Doh.

[aethereal-girl.livejournal.com]

Immediately springing to mind:

Jo Walton
P.C. Hodgell (If you haven't read her books, do, do, do.)
Kara Dalkey (most familiar with her silly YA stuff, but as silly YA books, they're excellent)

After a quick scan of my shelves:

Joan Aiken (children's to YA but less silly)
Juliette McKenna (not my cup of tea but might be good for someone who likes Jordan and Hobb)
Mary Gentle

In addition to what everyone's said already.

[fireriven.livejournal.com]

The only ones I can think of off the top of my head that haven't been mentioned are Sherri S. Tepper and Joan D. Vinge... they're a mix of sci-fi and fantasy for the most part, though. But Joan D. Vinge's Snow Queen/Summer Queen duology is brilliant. And Sherri S. Tepper always has something very absorbing and thought-provoking to say with her stories.

[vass]

Marion Zimmer Bradley.
Pamela Dean.
Naomi Novik.
Tamora Pierce.
Diane Duane.
Ellen Kushner.
Delia Sherman.

[dhole.livejournal.com]

Thing is, if someone likes Jordan and Martin and suchlike, I'm not sure that they'll necessarily be a fan of Le Guin or L'Engle. And, the truth is, there aren't that many women writing in that particular vein. If you're looking to make recommendations, it's probably worth finding out how the fellow feels about gay sex in his fantasy -- there's a certain amount of it in what the younger generation of female authors are writing today.

C.J. Cherryh is very good, but s somewhat hit or miss -- there are some people who absolutely can't stand her.

What Leigh Brackett wrote is often termed Science Fiction, but it's a lot closer to fantasy of the two fisted adventure type. She also did the Empire Strikes Back screenplay.

C.L. Moore wrote some similar stuff, but for my money it's not quite as good.

Lynn Abbey's Thieves World stuff isn't bad; the same applies to the Merovingian stuff.

Mary Stewart and Evangeline Walton might also be good choices.

[fire-and-a-rose.livejournal.com]

Tanith Lee. Seriously, Tanith Lee. I am always bewildered that more people don't love her.

Robin McKinley, especially Sunshine.

Madeleine L'Engle--yeah, YA, but it's still lovely.

I may post more later.

[thunderemerald.livejournal.com]

Jaysus. I can't believe you're the first to mention JKR. :)