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	sockpuppeteer 2009-10-20 07:34 am UTC (link)
	Tigerheart by Peter David (Reply to this)(Thread)

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kaen, 2009-10-20 07:46 am UTC

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sockpuppeteer, 2009-10-20 10:15 am UTC

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mister_terrific, 2009-10-20 06:38 pm UTC

	sepiamagpie 2009-10-20 07:41 am UTC (link)
	Hm. Is she okay with kids as the main characters? If so, I rec Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, any of the Chrestomanci books by Diana Wynne Jones, and adult wise, American Gods by Neil Gaiman. Same about the Pratchett! That stuff's good at not bringing you down. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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sepiamagpie, 2009-10-20 07:41 am UTC

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kaen, 2009-10-20 08:02 am UTC

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sepiamagpie, 2009-10-20 08:06 am UTC

stimutacs
2009-10-20 08:17 am UTC (link)

Well, since Gaiman is out of the running and most of the books I have are bleak with an extra dollop of depressing, how about Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse novels? Mind, I've only read the first two but they're slightly spooky and very amusing. And there's also Heinlein's Have Space Suit - Will Travel, as the rest of his stuff that I've read is out there~ with large amounts of unfunny treatment of women.

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pariforma, 2009-10-20 02:22 pm UTC

	ldymusyc 2009-10-20 08:39 am UTC (link)
	Tanya Huff's "Summoning" trilogy. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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bitca, 2009-10-20 04:37 pm UTC

	fools_game 2009-10-20 09:16 am UTC (link)
	China Mieville's "UnLunDun" and Kristin Cashore's "Graceling" are my two absolute favourites right now for their fabulously wonderful, competent heroines and gorgeous world-building. (Reply to this)

	jaseroque 2009-10-20 10:06 am UTC (link)
	Since she likes Diana Wynn Jones (a personal favourite) I'll suggest my other favourite young adult author, Tamora Pierce. People seem to really vary on which of her books they like, but I'm particularly fond of the Song Of the Lioness quartet and the Immortals quartet. Solid, enjoyable fun. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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sockpuppeteer, 2009-10-20 10:14 am UTC

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jaseroque, 2009-10-20 10:17 am UTC

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sablemouse, 2009-10-20 01:01 pm UTC

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sablemouse, 2009-10-20 01:02 pm UTC

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jaseroque, 2009-10-20 01:10 pm UTC

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sablemouse, 2009-10-20 01:42 pm UTC

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jaseroque, 2009-10-20 02:02 pm UTC

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sablemouse, 2009-10-20 02:17 pm UTC

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jaseroque, 2009-10-21 10:59 am UTC

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sablemouse, 2009-10-21 12:41 pm UTC

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jaseroque, 2009-10-21 12:43 pm UTC

	stinksap 2009-10-20 11:17 am UTC (link)
	Diane Duanes Young Wizards series might be a good one- great series, and overall hopeful, but one of the books deals with one of the main protagonists losing her mother. (Serious stuff, but well handled.) The accompanying-but-written-for-adults series about the feline wizards might be a good bet. Lists here- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diane_Duane (Reply to this)

cat_mcdougall
2009-10-20 11:39 am UTC (link)

Jim Hines - He writes "Fantasy: We take ourselves too seriously!" His Goblin books are hilarious (a blind, runty goblin as a hero) and his two princess books are gold. (Imagine Sleeping Beauty as an assassin, Snow White as a sorceress, and Cinderella as the new princess they have to protect. Also? Short excerpt:

Cinderella: "Was Red Riding Hood murdered by wolves seeking revenge for the death of their kin?"

Sleeping Beauty: "No, Red survived. But that kind of thing changes a woman."

Cinderella: "Changes her how?"

Snow: "The Lady of the Red Hood is one of the most feared Assassins this side of Adenkar.")

Umm. I'd also recc Matthew Reilly. It's not fantasy, and not really light-hearted, but his Scarecrow books? They fish hook your navel and drag you along for 200 pages.

I think that's all I got... Oh! The Pendragon books by DJ MacHale. I really liked them, and they are YA, and quick reads, but engaging and fun.

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lady_ganesh, 2009-10-21 07:14 pm UTC

	midnight_hawk 2009-10-20 12:00 pm UTC (link)
	Since Tamora Pierce has already been mentioned, I'll just recommend Patrica C. Wrede's Enchanted Forest Chronicles. They are about a spirited princess who decides to become a dragon's servant rather than marrying a boring prince. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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tofuknight, 2009-10-20 01:27 pm UTC

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wtf, 2009-10-20 04:54 pm UTC

waitwut
2009-10-20 12:01 pm UTC (link)

I hope your mom is okay! I'm home until maybe Thanksgiving, recovering from surgery, so I feel for you.

Here's my list (in no order):

Sorcery and Cecelia or the enchanted chocolate pot by Patricia Wrede - alternate history-ish setting where magicians do exist. Set in Europe, around the early 20th century. It's the first of three, with the other two being The Grand Tour and The mislaid magician

Graceling by Kristin Cashore - about a girl, who has special powers that her uncle abuses. My mom, as a YA librarian, recs this one a LOT.

Thirteenth Child by Patricia Wrede - another altnerate history fantasy story, but this time in the US

The Hollow Kingdom by Clare B Dunkle - it's the first in a trilogy, but this was definitely the best book.

Anyway, that's a start. It's mostly YA fluff fantasy but that's my preferred poison!

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bitca, 2009-10-20 04:38 pm UTC

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waitwut, 2009-10-20 04:41 pm UTC

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keri, 2009-10-20 07:24 pm UTC

sparkysrevenge
2009-10-20 12:24 pm UTC (link)

I totally loved and adored The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde. (Murder mystery! Featuring nursery rhyme characters!) I started reading its sequel, The Fourth Bear, but it just wasn't clicking with me like The Big Over Easy.

Shame she doesn't like Gaiman/Pratchett, as Good Omens is the funniest book I've ever read. (I personally find Gaiman hit-or-miss, and I've not read any Pratchett aside from GO)

The Princess Bride has made me laugh every time I've re-read it. I know the movie is close to the book a lot, but there are some definite funny parts in the book that aren't in the movie. It's pretty good at knocking pretension in writing, too.

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purple_smurf, 2009-10-20 12:28 pm UTC

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sparkysrevenge, 2009-10-20 08:56 pm UTC

	purple_smurf 2009-10-20 12:25 pm UTC (link)
	Jasper Fforde is good, except for one part I can't even remember which book, but on the whole avoids the maiming thing, is amusing, and extra fun. In terms of YA, Emily Rodda's Rondo books are very Narnia-esque and loads of fun. And I think most of everything else I'd rec has already been mentioned, so I'll just send "get well soon!" wishes for your mother. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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notjo, 2009-10-20 12:38 pm UTC

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purple_smurf, 2009-10-20 12:54 pm UTC

	caffeine_fairy 2009-10-20 12:59 pm UTC (link)
	Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart. Possibly not the best novel ever but the best ending. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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ldymusyc, 2009-10-20 04:42 pm UTC

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wankismyfandom, 2009-10-20 11:47 pm UTC

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ldymusyc, 2009-10-20 11:55 pm UTC

spacelogic
2009-10-20 01:13 pm UTC (link)

Only thing I'm coming up with off the top of my head is the profoundly weird Tiger's Apprentice series by Laurence Yep, which are sort of magical reality set in San Francisco's Chinatown, with oodles of Chinese mythological creatures ranging from the well-known to the obscure. Those are profoundly weird. Also YA. Yep mostly does historical fiction, otherwise, which is excellent but often more depressing (he wrote a novel about the Rock Springs Massacre, for instance.)

And for some reason my brain's now doing Chinese settings, so Lloyd Alexander's The Remarkable Journey of Prince Jen is the next thing I thought of. Alexander in general is pretty good, though the Westmark series is an extreme downer (and also a fairly well-known classic.) If she hasn't read them, the Chronicles of Prydain (sort of like LotR, but less wordy and I think slightly more positive) are super-classic.

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tofuknight, 2009-10-20 01:29 pm UTC

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lyrangalia, 2009-10-20 06:36 pm UTC

sablemouse
2009-10-20 01:25 pm UTC (link)

David Eddings, the Belgariad and the Malloreon series. Knowingly uses lots of tropes, and the characters are quite funny in their own right.

More YA authors (who are Australian yay!), Isobelle Carmody (Obernewtyn Chronicles), and Garth Nix (The Seventh Tower, Keys to the Kingdom) are quite good. Carmody's series haven't finished yet, so the endings aren't yet HEAs. Garth Nix's Old Kingdom trilogy (Sabriel, Lirael, Abhorsen) is about death and necromancy, but it's not depressing as much as deep. His other series are quite action packed, which can make your mother forget about being stuck in a room, or make her restless about stuck in a room.

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susannah Clarke is one of the most interesting books I've read. It's full of fictional historical footnotes, and it's written in a Regency period style. It's really thick too, so it'll keep your mum occupied for a while.

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youngcurmudgeon, 2009-10-20 03:36 pm UTC

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sablemouse, 2009-10-21 12:44 pm UTC

snacky
2009-10-20 02:11 pm UTC (link)

Well, The Princess Bride is awesome, and I know it's not fantasy, but how about The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, etc.? I agree with others who recced Jasper Fforde.

These are not fantasy but: I like Christopher Moore (Lamb, and Bloodsucking Fiends) and I love Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City books. I have a friend who swears by Carl Hiassen's mysteries for funny stuff. And Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum mysteries are quick, breezy reads. Also, you can find some pretty funny and well-written chicklit books - I like Jennifer Cruisie, Meg Cabot, and especially Marian Keyes, but her books often have serious stuff going on in them too, so ... use your judgement.

Good trashy novels can be fun too - outrageous and over the top - think Judith Krantz, Olivia Goldsmith, Sidney Sheldon, those kind of classic trashy beach reads.

Funny non-fiction: David Sedaris, Joe Queenan, Laurie Notaro.

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jat_sapphire, 2009-10-21 02:27 am UTC

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mydruthers, 2009-10-21 07:44 pm UTC

	beachlass 2009-10-20 02:48 pm UTC (link)
	Anathem by Neil Stephenson To Say Nothing of the Dog or Bellwether by Connie Willis Always Coming Home - Ursula K. LeGuin Sailing to Sarantium, Lord of Emperors by Guy Gavriel Kay The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert V.S. Redick I hope her hospital stay goes well. (Reply to this)

youngcurmudgeon
2009-10-20 03:27 pm UTC (link)

Seconding Jasper Fforde, Tamora Pierce, Patricia C. Wrede, Diane Duane, and basically everyone else on this list. (I'm rereading the Enchanted Forest Chronicles right now and they give me the warm fuzzies -- you might also like the Book of Enchantments, which is short stories by Wrede.) I also recommend George MacDonald, especially The Light Princess. Oh, and Madeleine L'Engle.

Also in YA, Lloyd Alexander's Prydain might be a little dark, but I like curling up in them. (I also second the Adventures of Prince Jen and recommend the Arkadians, which is a little lighter than Prydain.)

These might all be a little young, but they're funny and if your mom likes fairy tale parodies, she might like these. There's a book version of the Fractured Fairy Tales from Rocky and Bullwinkle that, as a fan of the show, I really enjoyed. There's also Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, Newfangled Fairy Tales volume one and volume two by Bruce Lansky (Cinderella and her fairy godfather put on a fashion show for charity!), and the many works of Jon Scieszka.

In non-fantasy: Kristin Gore wrote a book called Sammy's Hill (and a sequel, Sammy's House), and they're the funniest chick lit I've ever read. Story of a young Congressional staffer and her escapades, and all that -- very light and fluffy. There is a point where she goes to the hospital when she gets sick on the campaign trail, but it's not too serious.

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	mercutia 2009-10-20 03:27 pm UTC (link)
	The Folk Keeper by Franny Billingsley is an especial favorite of mine. Happy ending, although kind of edge-of-your-seat long the way. Maybe for when she's a bit further along in the recovery process. (Reply to this)

	keleri 2009-10-20 03:55 pm UTC (link)
	Pratchett can be hard to get into, but his YA novels tend to be easier. See if she'll bite on the Wee Free Men. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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otoselkie, 2009-10-20 05:37 pm UTC

	jkefka 2009-10-20 04:30 pm UTC (link)
	Best wishes to your mum. For my feel-good fantasy (and I haven't looked closely so this may have been mentioned), I would hunt down Patrician C. Wrede's Dragons series. It's reasonably lighthearted and sweet but also just straight-up good fantasy. The only problem is I'm not sure it's still in print. (Reply to this)(Thread)

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sepiamagpie, 2009-10-20 05:20 pm UTC

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jkefka, 2009-10-20 08:16 pm UTC

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sepiamagpie, 2009-10-20 09:01 pm UTC

	otoselkie 2009-10-20 05:39 pm UTC (link)
	If she's not adverse to YA fantasy novels, the Theodosia Throckmorton books are quite good – about a young girl whose parents are Egyptologists, and she gets to thwart unpleasant occult beasties. (Reply to this)

	lyrangalia 2009-10-20 06:39 pm UTC (link)
	The Percy Jackson YA novels by Rick Riordan are wonderfully upbeat (and hysterical) and great fantasy fluff. Lois McMaster Bujold's Curse of Chalion and Paladin of Souls also end happily. I also really enjoy Tad Williams' War of the Flowers as a fun (albeit long) fantasy/urban fantasy read. (Reply to this)

adverb
2009-10-20 07:36 pm UTC (link)

If you can find it, Lady in Gil by Rebecca Bradley was a pretty fun book - although now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure the ending is a slight downer. So... Oh! How about Robin McKinley's Damar books? The Blue Sword especially, I love that book.

And Christopher Stasheff's books are generally pretty fluffy (at least early in the series). For outright farce, I suggest Robert Aspirin's MYTH series and Piers Anthony's Xanth series - they get repetitive, but the first handful is still good.

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singe, 2009-10-21 06:05 pm UTC

keri
2009-10-20 07:40 pm UTC (link)

I mostly read YA, so...

Try the Bloody Jack series for a different kind of fantasy. I mean, there's no magic or unicorns or whatever, but I shelve it with my fantasy books because it's so over the top and unrealistic in places. It's about a girl (Jacky) who was orphaned and lived in the streets of Cheapside, London, until she was eleven or twelve, at which point she dressed up as a boy and got herself a position as ship's boy for the Royal Navy, and then lots and lots of things happen. It takes place between 1802 and 1806 so far, but Meyer takes lots and lots of liberties with history (usually because it makes a scene more dramatic or funnier or more accessible to modern readers). Eventually Jacky has to learn to be a Real Lady, but she runs away and accidentally becomes a pirate, and then she heads south on the Mississippi with Mike Fink, and then the British intelligence sends her to France, where she winds up being a messenger for Napoleon, only that doesn't quite work out and in the most recent book, she's diving for treasure off Key West.

It's a LOT of fun to read.

Also, more "true" fantasy: the Stavaganza series by Mary Hoffman. There's three books (I pretend the fourth doesn't exist) about London teenagers who "stravagate" to an alternate universe Renaissance Italy where there's magic and stuff. It's like everything developed slightly differently, so silver is more prized than gold and names are different - Venice is Bellezza, the Doge is a Duchess, the Medici family is instead the Chemici family, and so on. Each of the three books has a different pov character, and also a different city location (I can't remember the Talia-universe names, but other than Venice, one is Padua and the other is, I think, Milan, maybe Florence? they're all cities that folks make pilgrimages to for the art and architecture, at any rate).

The Stravaganza titles are City of Masks, City of Flowers, and City of Stars.

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undomielregina, 2009-10-20 08:44 pm UTC

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keri, 2009-10-20 08:52 pm UTC

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ahiru, 2009-10-21 12:32 am UTC

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otoselkie, 2009-10-21 02:16 pm UTC

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