What non-Tolkien 📔book is like Lord of the Rings, and should be read?

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

Arguing with some of his premises, I mean. It's been many years for me too, but I seem to recall a kind of "even when you're right, you can be wrong" message in the books.

 

[Radaghast]

Arguing with some of his premises, I mean. It's been many years for me too, but I seem to recall a kind of "even when you're right, you can be wrong" message in the books.

Hm. Interesting. Any examples?

Reading one of the reviews on Goodreads, I think the premise of The War of the Flowers reminds me more of The Fionavar Tapestry (which I DNF and would not recommend; only read the first book and scanned summaries of the other two. Ugh).

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

Hm. Interesting. Any examples?

You're really trying to force me into a reread, aren't you? 😄

It's been a long time since War of the Flowers too, but it reminded me of LeGuin's "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas", where the well-being of a society depends on the continual torture of a child, on a greatly expanded scale.

 

[Erurávennë]

I'd say #1 is Thomas Malory + Le Morte D'Arthur. It's romance, epic in scale, Tolkien would've read it, it's a foundational text in many ways for plenty of other literature. I'd say easily as important as The Lord of the Rings.
An Oxford Uni Press book which is fun for fans of romance is Reynard the Fox by Anne Louise Avery.
Both are more continental in tone and inspiration than LR, which is more Northern. You could continue with stories of Charlemagne.
From native Britain:
3 William Morris books: The Wood Beyond the World (heavy on landscape), The House of the Wolfings (set in Mirkwood) and The Story of the Glittering Plain (his others probably too I've only got those 3) + some George MacDonald and it's all on JRRT's trail.
TBH I find Thomas Hardy has some affinity in the nature aspects and mode of writing

That's good to hear. I myself was considering Le Morte D'Arthur after seeing it mentioned in Seven Pillars of Wisdom.

 

[Ithilethiel]

I’m way late to the party and for those who have known me I have been somewhere time out of mind but I would feel I was committing an injustice if I didn’t share my opinion here. For varied reasons my time of late is rarely my own, Children tend to do that to one’s free time. But I am able occasionally to steal away a few uninterrupted moments to read for pleasure and there’s an author I haven’t seen mentioned who should be and one who has totally captivated me.

I’m speaking of Patricia McKillip. I haven’t yet read many of her books but I have a number of them on my reading list. Her “Forgotten Beasts of Eld” is a classic, written over 50 years ago. Within in she creates a fantastical world inhabited by unforgettable characters and unique circumstances. And just as you think you’ve got it somehow figured out she manages to twist you around in a way you never saw coming all while being true to the agency of her characters. She is true craftsman and word/world builder. At times I felt that I was not just reading about her worlds but inhabiting them.

Now I’ll probably be mocked for my choice, told McKillip is a chick’s author but if she is then so is Tolkien. I’m currently reading her “Ring-Master” trilogy and am just as entranced. Next up, “The Cygnet and The Firebird.” So, for what it’s worth that’s my two cents on the topic.

Hail to all my old friends. It’s wonderful to see you all are doing well.
Aiya

 

[Keva]

I have tried Eye of the World - The Wheel of Time series.
Both the name and the cover attracted me greatly.
It seemed captivating and had a better name than the Lord of the Rings.

I gave up after hundreth pages.
Too much copy of a Tolkien's Lord of the Rings.
It is even a good writing compare to an average Stephen King writing but lame to Tolkien - if it wasnt so much of a copy maybe it would iritate me less and I would continue. The way it's done just makes me draw comparisment and then it's bad.

 

[Deimos]

I have tried Eye of the World - The Wheel of Time series.
Both the name and the cover attracted me greatly.
It seemed captivating and had a better name than the Lord of the Rings.

I gave up after hundreth pages.
Too much copy of a Tolkien's Lord of the Rings.
It is even a good writing compare to an average Stephen King writing but lame to Tolkien - if it wasnt so much of a copy maybe it would iritate me less and I would continue. The way it's done just makes me draw comparisment and then it's bad.

Robert Jordan has his followers (even on this forum).
Full disclosure: I am not one of them, but I have friends who swear by him...they love his books.
As for the similarities to LOTR Jordan himself stated that he "consciously intended the early chapters of The Eye of the World to evoke the Shire of Middle-earth in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings."
I don't know that I would read something so closely modeled on the Shire ... I mean, if that's what you want, why not just read JRRT?
But, as I said, there are others who feel differently.

 

[Vardarianna]

I’m way late to the party and for those who have known me I have been somewhere time out of mind but I would feel I was committing an injustice if I didn’t share my opinion here. For varied reasons my time of late is rarely my own, Children tend to do that to one’s free time. But I am able occasionally to steal away a few uninterrupted moments to read for pleasure and there’s an author I haven’t seen mentioned who should be and one who has totally captivated me.

I’m speaking of Patricia McKillip. I haven’t yet read many of her books but I have a number of them on my reading list. Her “Forgotten Beasts of Eld” is a classic, written over 50 years ago. Within in she creates a fantastical world inhabited by unforgettable characters and unique circumstances. And just as you think you’ve got it somehow figured out she manages to twist you around in a way you never saw coming all while being true to the agency of her characters. She is true craftsman and word/world builder. At times I felt that I was not just reading about her worlds but inhabiting them.

Now I’ll probably be mocked for my choice, told McKillip is a chick’s author but if she is then so is Tolkien. I’m currently reading her “Ring-Master” trilogy and am just as entranced.

I have acquired these books but have yet to read them. I may take a break from the Malazan books and read these next.

 

[Ithilethiel]

I have acquired these books but have yet to read them. I may take a break from the Malazan books and read these next.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I have.

 

[Halasían]

Hail to all my old friends. It’s wonderful to see you all are doing well.
Aiya

Do my old eyes deceive me? Ithilethiel! Good to see you again!

I may take a break from the Malazan books and read these next.

The Malazan Books of the Fallen is quite the world-build. You kind of need a spreadsheet to keep track of the characters and storyline offshoots though. I wouldn't say the series is 'like Tolkien', but more 'like Glen Cook' and his Black Company series, only maybe better written.

 

[Ithilethiel]

Do my old eyes deceive me? Ithilethiel! Good to see you again!

It's wonderful to see you my dear friend. I hope the years have been good to you and yours. 💌

 

[Ricardo]

I would recommend the wheel of time, like Tolkien's world, it's a completely imaginary world, what fantasy places, races, a lot of magic.

A word of warning though, it's 14 books and the thematic is quite complex, some times it feels very slow, but if you love fantasy you will enjoy it.

 

[Erestor Arcamen]

Robert Jordan has his followers (even on this forum).
Full disclosure: I am not one of them, but I have friends who swear by him...they love his books.
As for the similarities to LOTR Jordan himself stated that he "consciously intended the early chapters of The Eye of the World to evoke the Shire of Middle-earth in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings."
I don't know that I would read something so closely modeled on the Shire ... I mean, if that's what you want, why not just read JRRT?
But, as I said, there are others who feel differently.

I'm on book 3 of the series and it's not bad. Slow at parts but the world building is excellent.

Another series I can recommend is the Starlight Archive. Brandon Sanderson is an awesome author and his world building is also top notch.

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

One problem with Jordan: he kept introducing new characters and plot lines to the point that later books seemed to slow to a crawl.

 

[Keva]

I stopped reading after Jordan even named his early charcater Perrin (friend of main character) to make it sound like Merry.
Was there any Handalf later?

 

[Squint-eyed Southerner]

Closer to Peregrin, I'd think.

 

[Keva]

Closer to Peregrin, I'd think.

To me it had Merry echo... perry merry... that killed it for me.
The first trolloc attack to me revealed a lack of idea, and I just couldn't read after that...

.

 

[Radaghast]

I gave up with Book 7. Story was taking its sweet damned time.

 

[WatcherWraith]

Title says it all.
Every few year I wish to repeat the experience of reading the Lord of the Rings with some new book I never heard off, but everything stops at start as there is no decent suggestion. Only once did I find something that was like LOTR, and it wasn't even the same genre, but it had the same vibe. Now Im again in this mood and I'm looking for something new but can't find anything.
That's kind of weird because in my mind even writers like Stephen King where inspired to write Dark Tower series (in my mind they were kind of catching that vibe) to copy Tolkien, but I find nothing satisfying in that sense.
Would like to hear your thoughts and suggestions. I'm not here every day but will surely come back for your thoughts.

Recently I found and read a book called Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrel. I don't know if it's been suggested on here before now, I just saw your original post. But, as a lover of Middle-earth and an extensive reader, I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

My copy is 1006 pages long. Set between the years of 1806-1817 AD in England, the book explores themes of magic, English identity, and the communion between the Englishman and the land of his birth. It contains strange and wonderful magic, amoral fairies, and intelligent characters. One never feels let down by the story, nor does anything feel contrived. It is a tale spun by an author who took great pains to get the language and setting just right, who loved her native land and wove that love through every scene, creating vivid descriptions and enthralling personalities. Not a scene is wasted. No filler is to be found here, every moment takes another step towards the final climax of the book.

I have already read this book three times, and will continue reading it again and again and again. I hope it will appeal to you as well. I hope it appeals to many, many people.

 

[Duguay]

Just passing by and visiting. I assumed that Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time would have been the kind of series the OP would be looking for...although I haven't tried it myself, I would like to. Someone else mentioned Malazan; I like the Malazan books I've read, however tonally they are rough play, compare to TLotR, in terms of vulgarity, violence, gore, and other extreme content. I've read Shannara and that's kind of a bland but safe option for non-Tolkien stories somewhat like LotR.

Someone earlier in the thread gave a shout out to The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander, that's my vote. I would say The Prydain Chronicles was exactly what I wanted from classsic, traditional fantasy stories when I read it in middle school. LotR is actually slightly offset from that inner standard of being exactly what I was looking for; technically LotR is almost exactly what I was looking for when I first read it. Prydain seems very similar to LotR to me, but with enough differences to feel unique and have it's own identity. It is for younger readers, though.