10 Awesome Authors Every Game of Thrones Fan Needs to Read
3. Jim Butcher
Probably better known for his urban fantasy series the Dresden Files, Butcher is also the author of the Codex Alera, a quintet based on Pokemon and the Lost Roman Legion myth. Wait! Dont click through yet. Butcher wrote these in response to a bet that he couldnt write a good story based on a lame idea, and Jim countered that he could do it based on two. He didnt end up with a good story. He ended up with an awesome story. The books are based around a Roman-esque society living in a land populated by thousands of elementals or furies. Each citizen has mastery of one or more of these furies, with the High Lords controlling hundreds of the most powerful. Tavi, the main protagonist, is the only one who has none. He has to use his ingenuity to get by and ends up at the centre of a struggle firstly to save his homeland, and later the entire realm. The series is full of desperate battles and political intrigue but what I love most is that Butcher throws seemingly insurmountable problems and overwhelmingly powerful enemies at his heroes and they overcome them with quick wit and resourcefulness, as opposed to brute force, luck, or deus ex machina like a less skilled writer would. Thats not to say there arent some good fights, along the way there are some great battles with the legions augmented with elemental magic taking on some monstrous threats to the realm, and the final showdown is absolutely titanic. But the core of the story is that brains and courage will always beat brawn. This series is absolutely compelling.