David Eddings
The Belgariad and the Mallorean are some of my favorite books, I tend to re-read them every other year or so, and they are just as enjoyable the 10th time as the first. The difference between these books, and others that would be classified as High Fantasy is that David Eddings sticks to humans and Gods--no elves or dwarves or anything like that, which gives these books a different flavor than others. I love his characters, and his dialogue truly makes the books, each character has a distinct personality, which is what sets these books apart from the masses of fantasy books published each year. He has a new series out, but since he tends to write a minimum of 3 books per series,
I'll wait until he completes the series before starting to read it. I really hate getting into a series, and then having to wait a year or more to find out what happens.
Books by David Eddings:
The Belgariad Pawn of the Prophecy (1982), Queen of Sorcery (1982), Magician's Gambit (1983), Castle of Wizardry (1984), Enchanter's End Game (1984)
The Malloreon Guardian of the West (1987), King of the Murgos (1988), Demon Lord of Karanda (1988), Sorceress of Darshiva (1989), The Seeress of Kell (1991)
Belgarath the Sorcerer (1995), Polgara the Sorceress (1997) and The Rivan Codex (1998)
The Elenium : The Diamond Throne (1989), The Ruby Knight (1990), The Sapphire Rose (1991)
The Tamuli : Domes of Fire (1992), The Shining Ones (1993), The Hidden City (1994)
I also recommend this Del Rey site for Polgara the Sorceress.
