Some of the Most Underrated Fantasy Books.

Hi everyone! Today's video is about some of the most underrated fantasy books I've read. I planned to post this video last month, but life got in the way. The term underrated is now often analyzed as underhyped as well. But for this video, whether the book is popular or not, will be strictly about books that I think deserve a higher average rating than it currently has. There are so many underrated fantasy books, and for this video, I'm going to mention 6, from the top of my head, underrated fantasy books. After that, I'm going to mention the 6 most frequently mentioned underrated fantasy books according to you in my community tab or Twitter account. Let me know what you think about these books if you've read them! :)
I need to emphasize that these are opinions, not facts. Just because a book is underrated doesn't immediately means that it's horrible, or that we're wrong for liking it. As usual, it all just means we have a different reading taste.
0:00 Intro & Rules
1:40 The Children of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien: www.goodreads.com/review/show...
2:41 We Ride the Storm by Devin Madson: www.goodreads.com/review/show...
3:41 The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss: www.goodreads.com/review/show...
4:57 The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan: www.goodreads.com/review/show...
5:47 The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu: • Super Underrated Fanta...
6:57 The Bard's Blade by Brian D. Anderson: www.goodreads.com/review/show...
8:09 The Curse of the Mistwraith by Janny Wurts
9:26 Empire in Black and Gold by Adrian Tchaikovsky
10:21 The Wolf of Oren-Yaro by K.S. Villoso: www.goodreads.com/review/show...
11:16 Acacia by David Anthony Durham
11:46 Perdido Street Station by China Mieville
12:54 The Darkness that Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker
Support my reviews and channel:
Patreon: / petrikleo
Ko-fi: ko-fi.com/petrikleo
Buy books from Blackwells (Free International Shipping) using my affiliate link: www.blackwells.co.uk/?a_aid=p...
Follow me on:
Goodreads: / petrik
Twitter: / petrikreads
Instagram: / petrikleo
Blog: novelnotions.net

[@Johanna_reads]

Wow, I need to read Children of Hurin! Happy to see the praise for Janny Wurts and look forward to reading Ken Liu's Dandelion Dynasty. I love what you said about the Slow Regard of Silent Things and how positive your reread experience was compared to your first read-through. It just shows how much expectation can alter our experience. Wonderful video!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you, Johanna! I think you'll love Dandelion Dynasty, too. It makes me happy to see more love for Ken Liu's books on Booktube. And I think both of us will enjoy Wars of Light and Shadow when we get to reading them!

[@PhilipChaseTheBestofFantasy]

Thank you for this video, Petrik! Great to see some Tolkien here. I enjoyed The Slow Regard of Silent Things -- Auri is a compelling character to me. I intend to start reading some Ken Liu in the future, if not this year, then early next. I'll be reading The Curse of the Mistwraith, and all the books in the Wars of Light and Shadow, very soon! The Darkness that Comes Before is on my shelf waiting to be read this summer, and I hope to read Perdido Street Station perhaps late this year or early next. I enjoyed hearing about the others you mentioned too. Fantastic list, my friend!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, my friend! I'm glad to hear you loved The Slow Regard of Silent Things. I think you will love Ken Liu's books. Well-written, compelling, and a lot of food for thoughts! It seems like you'll be reading Prince of Nothing and Wars of Light and Shadow ahead of me. Enjoy your time with it! I will catch ip! 😄

[@esmayrosalyne]

Thank you so much for putting out this video Petrik, I really enjoyed it!! I am always on the hunt for hidden gems, so I am excited to check some of these out! 🤩 The Wolf of Oren-Yaro, The Gutter Prayer and We Ride the Storm have been on my TBR for ages, so seems like it's about time I get to them!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much for watching, Esmay! I'm glad the video is helpful to you. Make sure to check those three books out! :)

[@juliangomez3662]

I can't wait to see your reviews for the Prince of Nothing and Second Apocalypse series. Yes, the grimmest, darkest series ever, but the sheer scope of the epic battles is worth it.

[@PetrikLeo]

It will still be a while, I plan to read the first trilogy next year, but it shall be read!! 😁

[@HistoritorJimaldus]

@@PetrikLeomy favourite book series ever - can’t wait for you to get to these :)

[@BookishChas]

What an awesome video Petrik! I’m so glad you brought up Kingkiller, and especially Slow Regard. I loved it on my very first read. Auri is one of my favorite characters. I DNFd Perdido Street Station lol.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Chas! The Slow Regard of Silent Things is beautiful. I didn't like it on my first read but ended up loving it so much on my second read! I think knowing truly what you're getting into definitely helped me! :)

[@tibbarasden]

I have been seeing Ken Liu mentioned more often. Definitely an author I want to try. Also planning on reading Adrian Tchaikovsky later this year. I have The Tiger and the Wolf which I haven't heard great things about. But his other works have good reviews so I will try more and will keep the one you mentioned in mind. Great video.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! It's good that Ken Liu is gaining traction. He's such a great author, and not many people talk about his books! I will have to read more Tchaikovsky's books, too! :)

[@drakhir]

Glad you liked the Slow Regard... Petrik. I absolutely loved it. It felt exquisitely crafted, with every word chosen carefully. And to get into the head of such an interesting and idiosyncratic character as Auri is some incredible writing. It's possibly the most beautiful book i've ever read.

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah! I disliked it on my first read. But on second visit, it felt so beautifully written and I could appreciate it much more. I love Auri. Such a relatable character. 😄

[@TealandTattered]

Thank you for a great list!! I’ve added most of them to my TBR 😊 hope to get to We Ride the Storm and Grace of Kings soon!

[@PetrikLeo]

You're welcome! Thank you for watching. And yesss, please give both We Ride the Storm and Grace of Kings a read!! 😄

[@ellynbarclay3121]

Great list! Many of these have been on my tbr for so long. The wolf of Oren yaro and Devin Madson are the ones I would like to get to the most I think. I tried the prince of nothing recently and didn't get far but might give it another shot. Happy reading! ❤️

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Ellyn! I hope you'll love We Ride the Storm and Wolf of Oren Yaro. Happy reading to you, too! 😄

[@anniecochrane3359]

Well, on hearing you talk of The Children of Hurin, I went straight to my local digital library and it was available!! So I've taken it out. I've been a huge Tolkien fan for all of my long life, and I have never read this book. So thank you for bringing it to our attention. I liked 'The Slow Regard of Silent Things' a lot. Something about it that touches different places in the reader's comprehension.

[@PetrikLeo]

I hope you'll love it! I think Children of Hurin is Tolkien's darkest story. I wish he was able to tell the story of Dagor Dagorath in full... 🥲 And I agree so much regarding The Slow Regard of Silent Things!

[@dinocollins720]

Great video!!! Thanks Petrik!!!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Dino! 😄

[@hollysreadingrambles5490]

I can’t wait to check out some of these. Great video, Petrik🥰

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much!! 😁

[@L.L.MacRae]

The Gutter Prayerrrrrr!! One of my favourite reads and I never see anyone talking about it!! Another fab video Petrik! :D

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much! Yeah, I think The Gutter Prayer deserves more love and hype! 😄

[@MichaelSmith-zx5lw]

Is it really good? I actually have a copy on my shelf.

[@joshuacornelissen5546]

Great video as always! I love The Lord of the Rings and while I've read The Silmarillion multiple times I've never read The Children of Hurin. I'm doing a Tolkien reread this summer before the new show this Fall so I will have to work Children of Hurin in. Thanks for the recommendation!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Joshua! I think some parts of The Children of Hurin are in Silmarillion already, but the novel offers more details and also an explanation by Christopher Tolkien. :)

[@Isaiah_McIntosh]

Just read Curse of the mistwraith this week, 3.76 is an excessively low score. However, I can see how a lot of people could bounce off of her writing, especially due to the prose. She uses a lot of long, complex sentences with a lot of clauses and rich description, particularly metaphorical descriptions, which can make some scenes difficult to follow, particularly large scale magic scenes where it may be difficult at a casual reading to distinguish between actual magical effect and poetic or metaphorical description. If you're in the mindset for somewhat older denser prose, and as you get used to wurts' particular quirks, there's a cadence that creates a really encouraging flow to action, description, and dialogue. Then, once you're bought in, Wurts is really able to manipulate tone and atmosphere to imply the mental state of characters into the description in a way that's truly elite and brings to mind some of the surreal feeling Wolfe sometimes captures, though the most striking example from curse of the mistwraith was a concussion in the middle of a battle. Apart from the prose, I'm fairly certain that's the biggest sticking point for some, there could be the usual sticking blocks of soft magic and a fairly high learning curve as far as names of persons and factions, though steps are taken to ease this I can see it being an issue for certain readers. Also there's a bit of a back loading of intense action which could lose some readers; it's not quite the convergence style of Erickson, Sanderson or Jordan but the second half certainly holds most of the riveting action set pieces. In retrospect it's clear what this first book focus on but I can see some fans being mislead by assumptions of traditional tropes since jany does code the surface layer of the narrative in stable epic fantasy tradition, then eschew certain narrative expectations. So, assuming you're prepared for the demands of her style, it ought to be easy enough to follow and you can dig into the characters and worldbuilding which are truly stellar. If you're not prepared for her style then it may seem needlessly obfuscatory which may explain particularly low scores. As the series gains word of mouth and people are prepared for it like they are for book of the new sun or Malazan, it wasn't close to the difficulty of either of those books to be fair but it's the expectation that matters, I'd imagine the general scores will improve. For now I'd definitely say it's very underrated but I can understand why this has occurred.

[@PetrikLeo]

This is actually an amazing review on Curse of the Mistwraith. Well done on that! I haven't read the book yet, but from reading To Ride Hell's Chasm I can understand what you mean. As you said, it is underrated right now but quite likely also understandable for the reasons you mentioned. Several readers have mentioned the same thing, just not as well written. Thank you for your comment! 😊

[@electrichorseman7158]

Just found your channel..like how you talk about books and show rating of it but it doesn’t discouraged from reading it and still give your thoughts on it ..thank you

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much! That's really the aim. I'm confident that every book has its audience! :)

[@afantasybabble6222]

Great Video. Can't wait until more people start talking about Wars of Light and Shadow

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much! I hope more people will talk about Janny Wurts books!

[@flashgordon6510]

I loved R Scott Bakker’s trilogy. A bit uneven, but with moments of pure perfection writing-wise.

[@PetrikLeo]

I look forward to reading them for the first time next year! 😃

[@danbe6280]

From your list I have "The slow regard of silent things" in my tbr and now I'm interested in "We ride the storm" I have read good things about that book (I didn't know it was a tetralogy) that + your good words about it in this video may push me to take the plunge.

[@PetrikLeo]

Here's hoping you'll love both of them! They're very different kind of books from each other, but they clicked with me! 😁

[@yanivrosenfeld-cohen7517]

Thank you for this video Petrick, some great gems here and I also want to read Jenny wurts!

[@PetrikLeo]

You're welcome! glad you found the video helpful! :)

[@safinan8008]

Thank you for this video! interesting video about all these under rated books! Happy reading to you!! 🦋📝🎼

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Safina! 😄

[@MaedBetweenthePages]

I’ve wanted to read The Gutter Prayer for ages!! Good to hear that it’s still worth it to have it on my TBR. The Dandelion Dynasty is so criminally underrated and one of my all time favorites also. TOP TIER fantasy 🙌🏼 I CANNOT WAIT for Speaking Bones 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 I’ve heard a lot about The Shadows of the Apt after the Broken Binding released their special edition and I’m now veryyyy intrigued 👀 I’m planning to buddy read Bakker’s books with Steve over on Steve Talks Books so hopefully I can fit them into my tbrs somehow 😂

[@PetrikLeo]

It will be great to hear your thoughts on The Gutter Prayer, Taylor. It's such a great and different from the usual fantasy books. And I agree so much regarding The Dandelion Dynasty. What an incredible series, and I'll be reading The Veiled Throne next month! Speaking Bones comes out in a few days, not long now! Buddy reading Bakker's books is a big commitment, I wish you the best of luck. I'll be reading the series someday, too! :)

[@MaedBetweenthePages]

@@PetrikLeo I could use something different :) Yes! So happy to have you as part of the fan base now. I'm very interested to hear what you think about The Veiled Throne as the first and second half have very different vibes. It was still a 5 star for me, but excited to hear about your experience! I'm not prepared for the emotional pain Speaking Bones is going to bring me... Ahaha well "hopefully" was the key word there...we'll see what the reality ends up being 😂

[@RekindledReader]

Ooh might need to give some of these a shot, thanks! Although, GoK is high on my list already

[@PetrikLeo]

Please do! Especially Grace of Kings! :)

[@LimeymanZero]

3:41 I love The Slow Regard of Silent Things so much! I don't know why people complain about it, Pat says right at the start that the book probably isn't for you and he's right but it was for me and I'm glad it was for you too! That chapter that just says "On the third day, Auri wept." was such a mood! So much said and so much unsaid, just perfect! And the audiobook was done by Pat himself, what more could you ask for?

[@PetrikLeo]

From my perspective, when I first read it, I think I undeniably wanted to find out about the world of Temerant more. Even knowing it would be a different kind of book didn't help. But on my second read, I took my time to appreciate every page, and wow... So impressed with it! :)

[@chibipoe]

Great to see you've enjoyed the Empire trilogy and To Ride Hell's Chasm! Wars of Light and Shadow is an amazing epic that more need to partake of and enjoy!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! It's one of my big goals to finish WoLaS this year, but at the same time I have to make sure I'm in the right reading mood for it! Either way, I will definitely start the series either this year or next year! 😄

[@talkamardesh7562]

Where would you consider Jenny Warts on the scale of ‘horrible prose’ to ‘purple prose’.. I read To Ride Hells Chasm and the first half of the book was amazing. But as soon as they left the city, it went downhill FAST.

[@chibipoe]

@@talkamardesh7562 I can't say that I've ever found her prose to be horrible or purple. Mind you, I did start on her works with one of her standalones, Master of Whitestorm and since, have read all of her stuff, so the Empire Trilogy, Cycle of Fire, Sorceror's Legacy, To Ride Hell's Chasm, Wars of Light and Shadow, various short stories such as her collection in That Way Lies Camelot. So at the time I picked up Wars of Light and Shadow in the 90s and cracked it open, I was hooked. Her prose is fantastic and captivating, imo. That being said, one complaint that you will see often(especially where WoLaS is concerned) is that her prose is extremely dense and often you'll see complaints that she is too expressive and wordy. I prefer to think of it as painting with words, myself. I will concede if you aren't used to the style and go into WoLaS expecting a quick and easy 'bust it out in an afternoon' read, that you could bounce off because it most certainly isn't that. It is(and she has said this herself too) meant to slow you down and get you thinking about what's happening. As for To Ride Hell's Chasm? It's been a little while since I last re-read it, but I don't recall anything in the prose that displeased me or I thought was particularly egregious. I enjoyed it front to back. (Again, I preface with being a 30+ year follower of her writing, so I can't say I've personally ever found anything she's written to have horrible or purple prose, etc. I enjoy it wholeheartedly. I can take one of her books into a crowded and busy place, sit down at a table(such as a food court or restaurant) and start reading and I'm just gone from there immediately, swept off to the world of Kelewan, or Athera, or the kingdom of Sessalie, etc. In comparison to say, Erikson, there's something of a similar style, but I feel Erikson's story doesn't focus on character to the same extent. Wurts is exceptional at character writing. Despite the scope of the story being told in WoLaS, the cast is honestly fairly small and the story tightly focused. Even so, even background characters serve a purpose, building and embellishing the setting. Erikson, by contrast(and while I did not finish Malazan, I went 8 books in before I moved in 2014 and never got around to finding copies of the last two), his story sprawls out and(again, my opinion only) sprawled out and felt like it meandered aimlessly. I lost track of where or what was going on far too often for my own tastes. It would shift back to someone I recognized every now and then, which kept me going but I never gained the liking for it for the reasons I stated. Back to Janny's stuff. I could keep talking but this is already kind of huge, so I hope it helps a little and if someone else reads this and wants to give her a try? So much the better!

[@wethefoxen4402]

The Darkness That Comes Before is pretty heavy (both physically and content-wise). There are some slow bits but it's a lot of exposition to get through and there are some truly genius moments.

[@PetrikLeo]

Based on what I've heard, it seems like those truly genius moments stick forever!

[@Auron200004]

This is literally the first I've ever heard of Acacia, but the description sounds pretty dang cool

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeahhh! I'll have to look into it someday. The TBR pile never end! 😂

[@booksbahareh7209]

I do agree with you about the children of Hurin.I've read it in The Silmarilion and I can't emphasize enough how much I love this story.In my opinion, it was the best among the stories of The Silmarilion .

[@PetrikLeo]

I completely agree with you! The impact I had on finishing it was insane. It definitely sit with me. 🥲

[@carrie437]

I just picked up a copy of The Curse of the Mist Wraith yesterday and can't wait to start reading it!

[@PetrikLeo]

I hope you'll love it, Carrie!! :)

[@AJayRisen]

I soooo can't wait for Broken Binding's edition of Adrian Tchaikovsky's debut series next month! It's gonna look so good.

[@PetrikLeo]

Imagine having ten of them on your bookshelf! It will look so good! 😄

[@krummb]

Great idea for a video! I agree 100% with the Slow Regard of Silent Things. It really surprised me when Mark Lawrence gave it three stars. ****possible spoilers**** I'm the main series here is a character you think may have some kind of mental illness but when you read Slow Regard you find out she may be the best listener in the entire series. It's not very often I call a book beautiful, but this I've certainly was.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! And yeah, I disagree with his rating on it. Not surprising, though. I've given plenty of mixed ratings towards his books, too. xD

[@Red21Viper]

Bakker. The true emperor deep in the shadows. Cant wait for you to try him. His prose is magnificent and his story and concepts so uncompromising

[@PetrikLeo]

I will finally read his books for the first time in 2024!

[@noobgaming6793]

Great video Petrik. Have you read Stormcaller by Tom Lloyd?

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! I haven't. I'll check it out!

[@civoreb]

I have made a few comments for Acacia trilogy on your channel. I am sure others have as well but it is as if George Martin wrote a series on the Stark children. So a Game of Thrones light is a proper description. Very quick and easy reads imo. Hope you can get to it and enjoy it!

[@PetrikLeo]

I think my brain just skipped or forgot you mentioning it, somehow. I get a LOT of recommendations on this channel hahaha. That actually sounds like a great description of the series, though. I will remember it this time! :)

[@kimmurray8628]

WoLaS is definitely underrated ! Great world building, beautiful prose and characters you fall in love with. Good time to start with the final book due out soon ! (Janny has finished the book, going through publishing process).

[@PetrikLeo]

From what I've read in Riftwar Empire trilogy and To Ride Hell's Chasm, I have a good feeling I'll love WoLaS very much! Hopefully there will be news of book 11 soon! :)

[@benja6902]

Acacia! I read book 1 years ago and thought it was great. I'm looking to re-read it soon. I never read the sequels, but I always look for them when I visit a used bookstore. Another highly underated quintet/pentalogy is The Winds of the Forelands by David B. Coe. I can't wait to re-read that series as well.

[@PetrikLeo]

I've never heard about Acacia before I made this video. Quite surprising to see the average ratings and how many people deeply loved it. I haven't heard of The Winds of Forelands, too! I'll check it out!

[@Roondawg_Valhalla]

Nice, glad to see u mention Coe. I have the 1st 3 books in the forelands series. Have not heard much about them though. Did you enjoy all the books in the series, because I may have to eventually get the rest.

[@fjuran1]

Great list of books. I have mostly all of these on my TBR, other than K.S. Villoso. I read We Ride the Storm, a solid 3.5 star book, have not read the second volume. Have read Curse of the Mistwraith, excellent, very complex, as I have heard the rest of the series is the same. Tchaikovsky, I have now read two books, and he just is not for me for some reason, Shards of earth jumped around much to much for me, and didn't give the characters enough development, although there are to be two more volumes. Arcdia and Bakker have been on my TBR forever, and would loove to get to both series, although I hear that Bakker is a tough read as well. China Mieville is another excellent and very different writer.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you, Frank! Glad you loved the Curse of the Mistwraith, and unfortunate Tchaikovsky isn't an author for you. I haven't read Shards of Earth, here's hoping I'll have better luck with it than you! And I'm the same as you regarding Bakker being in my TBR for a long time now! xD

[@RedFuryBooks]

I read the three "Great Tales of Middle Earth" last month and really enjoyed all three. I might not be as high on Children of Hurin as you are, but it's definitely underrated. I found Turin very compelling, because I don't recall seeing many unlikeable protagonists in fantasy at this time.

[@PetrikLeo]

It's such a great story! Lord of the Rings is timeless, but the tragic story of Turin Turambar left a scar in me. 🥲

[@MagusMarquillin]

Hey, I read those three great tales last month also (along with the Silmarillion as part of a read-along since February)! I agree, it's hard to be "high" on COH, but maybe it is the most _haunting_ - I don't know if I'd want to approach it without having the fuller history to support it with a little bit of hope. I think Turin's likable enough - at least he's valorous - though I often wanted to smack him on the head and tell him to check in with his family, and not just when the Dragon provokes you to! Beren and Luthian is probably my favorite, but the fuller text of the Fall of Gondolin is a rollicking exciting siege! BTW, the poetic versions of B&L and COH are really good experiences - even if you think you have no aptitude for poems, Tolkien's rhyming couplets are quite readable (especially if you already know the story!)!

[@curtjarrell9710]

Looking forward to reading Perdido Street Station at some point.

[@PetrikLeo]

Same here, Curt! 😄

[@MattonBooks]

I flew through The Gutter Prayer, and absolutely loved it. Started The Shadow Saint this weekend, and to be honest, I’m struggling a bit so far. TGP threw us into action on page 1, whereas TSS seems to be doing a hell of a lot of setup. I’ll definitely be finishing it - Guerdon and the world around it is just too damned fascinating - but I’m missing the rollercoaster ride of the first book. It does pick up eventually, doesn’t it?

[@PetrikLeo]

You're not the only one who felt that, Matt. I was the same, too. And yes, The Shadow Saint get so much better later on! 😄

[@MattonBooks]

@@PetrikLeo I’ve come to trust your opinion, so I’ll definitely be pushing on. Thanks mate!

[@MattonBooks]

@@PetrikLeo I’ve had a very slow reading week because life, but last night I hit the middle of the book, and yeah, things are picking up again. 😉

[@ChasingForever]

I 100% agree with your opinion of "The Grace of Kings," and I am loving "The Wall of Storms." Based on your feelings about "Wall of Storms," you would definitely love K.J. Parker's "The Folding Knife." I love to read about brilliant characters without the author telling me how smart they are. Liu and Parker accomplish this in their respective books.

[@PetrikLeo]

Glad you're enjoying The Dandelion Dynasty! And that's interesting. I haven't read any books by K.J. Parker, but he's another author whose works I've been meaning to check for a while! :)

[@Ausluc007]

I can account for Acacia being really good. I read the first two but the third one had not come out yet, and by the time it did come out I forgot lots of details. I need to restart it and wanna finish it. An author I really liked I never see mention about is Carol Berg and her Transformation series. The cover is cheesy, but the books were so good.

[@PetrikLeo]

Good to know regarding Acacia! Also, you're right. Carol Berg's Transformation series (especially the first book) has an awful cover art. xD

[@TMH713]

Phew, Second Apocalypse is beautifully written and got me right in the heart. But it is so unrelentingly bleak that I can never go back to it. I didn’t dislike it at all, but in what leisure time I do have I don’t want to be bombarded with so much misery. Malazan has so much horrific stuff in it too but there is always that gleam of hope, friendship, and compassion to balance it. That is missing from Second Apocalypse.

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeahh, that's pretty much what I keep on hearing about the series. I mean, that's usually something I'd love to read. But lately, life has been super tiring and I don't think I can get a maximum enjoyment from reading Second Apocalypse right now. As you said, Malazan is grim but there's that gleam of hope and compassion! :)

[@MrCreed-ss2ve]

Great channel. Bud, have you read OF DEMONS & MEN by C.E.OCHEJA? I think you'd like it. I've read it so many times. It's an African Epic Fantasy. 👍🏿

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! I haven't heard of that one before. I'll check it out!

[@mariareadsssf]

Coming back to thus video and hoping that the special editions from The Broken Binding will encurage more readers to try "The Dandelion Dynasty" and "New Crobuzon" (especcialy "Perdido Street Station" and "The Scar").

[@PetrikLeo]

I hope so too! Dandelion Dynasty is amazing. And I look forward to reading New Crobuzon! :)

[@tannersturgeon2448]

Ah Petrik! Perdido Street Station and Grace of Kings in the same video!? Two of my absolute favorites. I’m worried you won’t like PSS though. It’s very hit or miss.

[@PetrikLeo]

Can't know for certain until I give it a try, right!? I look forward to it! At least I know we both loved The Grace of Kings, Tanner! :)

[@angelamccollister]

I don't know if you've seen but Philip Chase had Janny Wurts on a live show last weekend to discuss To Ride Hell's Chasm. It was so interesting. I love Adrian Tchaikovsky. I haven't yet read all of the Shadows of the Apt series but am really enjoying it. I need to get back to it. I have that trilogy by David Anthony Durham but haven't yet read it. The Prince of Nothing trilogy is really good. Very dark. I'm feeling a bit of FOMO with everyone in this corner of booktube talking about it even though I've already read it. Makes me want to reread it except I no longer have the books. Lol

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah!! I didn't check out the live show yet, though. Speaking of FOMO, I know what you mean so much. Like the example of To Ride Hell's Chasm, I feel a bit left out, too, that I'm not invited to the conversation (or many other conversations) even though it's on books I've read; most likely because of my time zone. But we can't join every discussion. And I certainly feel like I still have SO MANY books I want to read, like Prince of Nothing and Shadows of the Apt! Maybe when the time comes, you can re-read the series again and talk about them with us! :)

[@owned008]

Really liked the Children of Hurin too, was actually quite surprised, when I read it, that it wasn't better known

[@PetrikLeo]

People still talk about LotR and Hobbit, but comparatively, not many talk about Children of Hurin. 😅

[@owned008]

@@PetrikLeo Well videos like yours let people know about it at least :)

[@NmDPlm31]

Children of Hurin is fantastic. I love it. Also enjoyed Acacia way back when it came out. And I’m a big fan of China Mieville. Perdido is fantastic, but The City and The City remains my favorite from him.

[@PetrikLeo]

It amazed me in every possible way. There's a mythical quality to it that really stay with me, too. I think I own The City and the City, too. I have to check it out someday! :)

[@TallGuyReads]

The Children of Hurin is fantastic! I read it when it first came out years and years ago so definitely do for a reread. I recently picked up We Ride the Storm the other week and really excited to read it as ive heard great things about this book, but totally agree with you that’s it’s not talked about a lot. You already know my opinion on The Grace of Kings and I totally agree with you on how incredible that book is. I can’t wait to read some Janny Wurts. I will probably start with To Ride Hell’s Chasm, but definitely want to read Wars of Light and Shadow in the future. Great video man!

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you so much, Alex! Glad you loved Children of Hurin, too. I think you'll enjoy We Ride the Storm as well! Hey, if our reading schedule match, let's read through Wars of Light and Shadow together! Do read To Ride Hell's Chasm first to see how you fare with the writing, though! 😄

[@MichaelSmith-zx5lw]

Janny Wurts is amazing, I have her big series on my reread list.

[@jamesrocheftw]

I loved children of hurin!

[@EmmaraeEmpowered]

I'm currently reading Perdido Street Station! It unlike anything I've ever read. I'm only about 150 pages in but im enjoying the writing. There are so many things that are described so vividly and quite nasty. I'm just sitting there like "what is going on in this authors mind??" 😄lol. Definitely excited to see where this story goes!

[@PetrikLeo]

That sounds incredible and that's exactly what I often hear about the book. I hope you continue to enjoy it, and I look forward to reading it myself! 😄

[@ashvinparameswaran]

I've read all of the new crobozun series. The scar - second book in this universe - is the best. Even better than Perdido Street station. It's like urban, weird fantasy on the high seas. Definitely worth a read.

[@farhad_s]

Not fantasy, but I just found out that apart from Jurassic Park, every other Michael Crichton book is rated below 4 on Goodreads.

[@PetrikLeo]

Oh really? I haven't read anything by him yet! 😂

[@ladyvampire1496]

I read Acacia a few years ago, and I have to say that while it's not a perfect series, it's pretty good. There is a love story in the book with one of the original characters that surprised me a lot and I really think it made the story more complex. There is mention of a different culture where people tattoo their skins with images of animals and put piercings if I'm not mistaken, I loved that part too. In a way the series reminded me of The Game Of Thrones but in a light way, however I think it has the same premise, a family that is betrayed and the separated brothers who seek to later rebuild the family name. It's not a great series, but I think it's really worth it and I think if you read it, you'll like Petrik.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you for your input, Katarina! I don't know when yet, but I definitely will put Acacia on my list of LONG TBR pile! xD

[@ladyvampire1496]

@@PetrikLeo Great, I'll love to heard your thoughts on the series.

[@JoelAdamson]

My favorite underappreciated series are Mordant's Need by Stephen R. Donaldson (Mirror of Her Dreams and A Man Rides Through) and the Sevenwaters series by Juliet Marillier.

[@PetrikLeo]

I have to give these two series a try. I've heard so many great things about Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier! 😄

[@maggythestray6869]

We Ride the Storm is my favourite series of all time ! I love it so much!

[@PetrikLeo]

That's great! I've read the first two books and I enjoyed them very much! 😄

[@drakhir]

Loving Tchaikovsky. He's so eclectic - he covers so many genres, and i'm loving almost all of it. Strangely enough Children of Time almost put me off him - as it seemed to be his most hyped, but to me it was great to start, with the world-building, but the ending felt a bit rushed and arbitrary. It was not helped by me starting the sequel, and it seemed to be exactly the same... But otherwise, he/'s great. Yes, loved Gates of Eden.

[@PetrikLeo]

He is very versatile. I certainly look forward to reading Guns of the Dawn this year. Doors of Eden is still my favorite work by him until then! 😃

[@giancarlopavan7938]

Omg! Just a few minutes in and someone who agrees with me about The Children of Hurin!! In the words of Daisy Buchanan “You’re a Rose! An absolute Rose!”

[@PetrikLeo]

The Children of Hurin is such an amazing book. It should be talked about as often as The Lord of the Rings. :)

[@drakhir]

So, have you read The Darkness the Comes Before yet, Petrik? It's one of my favourite series of all time, so I hope you like it.

[@PetrikLeo]

This year for sure! One of my priorities! 😄

[@aysseralwan]

Shadows of the Apt is great! I've currently read 5 of the 10 books and I gave I think 3 or 4 of them 4 or more stars.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thanks for letting me know! No idea when yet, but I look forward to reading it someday! 😄

[@aysseralwan]

@@PetrikLeo it's also unique and interesting with bug people and giant insects & bugs! And fantasy on top of steam punk elements. It's really a mix of all sorts of fun & epicness

[@wilsonguillory490]

My late submission for an underrated books I read in the past year would be The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley. It has some of the most unique and interesting fantasy worldbuilding and magic I’ve ever read, and a cast full of flawed characters. Unfortunately a lot of people (including me the first time I read it in 2015) seemed to bounce off the characters and the series never got very popular, I think it has below 3.5 stars and about 5k ratings on GR. It deserves better. Another one I can think of is One Word Kill by Mark Lawrence. Like most of what he writes it appears to have sold well but its rating is so weirdly low for what I consider one of his tightest and best novels. I wouldn’t call Perdido Street Station or The Darkness That Comes Before underrated… I haven’t read the former but both authors have a reputation for combining literary writing with grimdark and that can put a lot of readers off. Regardless, both authors have sold a lot of books and are widely praised within the genre, especially Miéville (PSS is regarded as his best work). I think the perception of underratedness here comes from the idiosyncrasies of Goodreads and its community, personally.

[@Roondawg_Valhalla]

I’m glad to see someone mention Hurleys Mirror Empire. I recently picked up the trilogy not knowing what to expect.

[@PetrikLeo]

I still have Mirror Empire and One Word Kill on my TBR. You're right, though, that they're both not too well received among relatively many readers. At least from the average ratings! I think many people on Booktube also agreed that Perdido and R. Scott Bakker still deserves more recognition despite the sales they had already. Probably, at least, in the form of more people talking about them more than the ratings for their books. 😄

[@tathagatabanerjee50]

Hi Patrick Can u say where I can get new indie epic fantasy book recommendation ?

[@PetrikLeo]

Following authors on Twitter might be the best option. Browsing through Amazon and Goodreads help, too, if you've read some self pub fantasy books.

[@tathagatabanerjee50]

@@PetrikLeo oh thanks

[@antejelic5992]

The Children of Hurin is also my favourite Tolkien book, and favourite book in general, so much good stuff in it, so much things that went arigh, so many moments of defying certain loss and the ending... Well who red it knows😅

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah! I absolutely LOVE Children of Hurin. The book gets better and better with the passing of time. I need to reread it soon!

[@devlyn873]

Perdido Street Station is on my to read soon list as well. I've enjoyed the other things I've read by China Miéville

[@PetrikLeo]

I really have to read his books. I haven't read any of them yet!

[@cynthiawiley5228]

Lol I have all the 6 underrated books from your viewers. Acacia and Perdido Street Station has been on my bookshelf for I want to say 15 years give or take. Sadly, I have not read them yet.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you, Cynthia! I'm interested in giving Acacia and Perdido a try, too, someday! :)

[@readingwithrebeccanicole]

Acacia sounds interesting *adds to tbr*

[@PetrikLeo]

Hope you'll enjoy it!!

[@angelaholmes8888]

Both the wolf of oren yaro and the grace of kings are definitely underrated 💯

[@PetrikLeo]

I definitely agree on The Grace of Kings! I have to reread Wolf of Oren Yaro again someday! 😄

[@killacure]

Booooold statement to open with. I’m adding a re-read of Children of Hurin in August to just check your sanity 😆

[@PetrikLeo]

But... but... TURIN TURAMBAR!!! 😆 Hey, if you think I'm insane, wouldn't that fit the tone of the book? 🤣

[@killacure]

@@PetrikLeo can you blame him? Especially after Beleg 😭 I do prefer the story of Eol. He is such an interesting character.

[@PetrikLeo]

@@killacure noooooo. Beleg!! 😭

[@davereese6614]

YES! I've read Children of Hurin several times and I agree that it is even superior to LOTR. Wonderful book.

[@PetrikLeo]

Thank you! Glad to find someone who agree with me on this! 😄

[@antejelic5992]

Hail Worm of Morgoth! Well met again! Die now and the darkness have you! Thus is Turin son of Hurin avenged! When i came to this damn what satisfaction it was

[@thatsci-firogue]

The Second Apocalypse is PEAK Grimdark. So underrated. Especially on booktube.

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah, I've heard more or less only 5 booktubers talked about it. 😂

[@houseofthegoldenflower3534]

Any book written by David Gemmell

[@PetrikLeo]

I seriously have to read more of his books. Which one do you think i should start first? Rigante or Druss? 😄

[@houseofthegoldenflower3534]

@@PetrikLeo there’s a couple of really good stand alone books called Knights of Dark Renown and Morning Star read them first.They are Drenai tales,then I’d start with the Drenai Saga Waylander and Waylander II and Waylander III.That’s the chronological order to start with.

[@caitlinl2750]

Have you read we ride the storm since this?😮

[@PetrikLeo]

Not yet. I'm so behind on rereading it. 😅

[@vajs6312]

I guess I wasn't in the right headspace while reading Children of Hurin. I didn't like it and could remember the style was so drab and it felt like it was a retelling of a retelling. It might just be because it was the 1st Tolkien book I read in about 12 years. I've begun collecting Alan Lee illustrated hardcovers, so I'll definitely give it another spin when I decide to dive into Tolkien again, after collecting all of them.

[@PetrikLeo]

Sometimes that happens! I hope your next try will be better. And I'm jealous you have the hardcover with Alan Lee illustrations. Mine are all paperbacks, maybe it's time to upgrade them... 😄

[@vajs6312]

@@PetrikLeo So far I only have The Hobbit and the LoTR 3-part set, but I am planning on getting everything eventually. Yours are nice, if I wasn’t so determined on getting the hardcovers because of the illustrations and the high quality paper and print, I’d definitely go for the editions you have. Thanks and a belated congratulations on getting married! 🙂 Cheers!

[@PetrikLeo]

@@vajs6312 You're welcome! And thank you for the kind congratulations! It's never too late! :)

[@EricMcLuen]

Despite PoN having gratuitous sex, violence and then some more sex, it is grimdark in the original sense of the term as it applies to the 40k universe. It is the mental side of things which make the series so bleak and that the characters don't know it. I am really enjoying Hells Chasm at the moment. The prose does take a little getting used to comparwd to more recent authors, have not read any WoLaS to compare, but it is her use of archaic terms that can be difficult.

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah, I definitely will keep that in mind as I dive into Prince of Nothing! And that's exactly why I feel it's necessary for readers to try Hell's Chasm first before reading WoLaS. The author has mentioned that Hell's Chasm is a great appetizer and tester before diving into WoLaS, which will be heavier and more difficult to tackle! :)

[@grimbroom83]

Bakker's Second Apocalypse is the G.O.A.T.

[@PetrikLeo]

Great to hear! I've heard the same thing from many readers!

[@drakhir]

I'm glad i read Perdido Street Station, but i found it a bity meh. Some great ideas, but the characters didn't really engage me, despite their complexities, and the story felt inconsequential to the characters and setting.

[@PetrikLeo]

Ah okay! I still have to read it. Here's hoping I will love it more. 😁

[@drakhir]

It's the favourite book of a one of my friends, and I know a lot of people love it. Just not for me.

[@leopercara3477]

The most underrated fantasy book is the Damiano trilogy by Roberta Ann Macavoy.

[@PetrikLeo]

I haven't even heard of this one before. Thanks for the recommendation!

[@macrosense]

You might enjoy Barry hughart

[@PetrikLeo]

I have his books on my TBR! :)

[@Tinahgirl83]

I feel like the vast majority of fantasy is underrated. So many things don’t get talked about on Booktube. It’s all Rothfuss, Martin, Sanderson, Gwynne, Jordan, Abercrombie, Lee, And Kuang. The only older series that gets talked about with any regularity is LOTR. And while it’s one of my favorite series of all time, there’s a ton of stuff that gets no love.

[@Roondawg_Valhalla]

Brian lee durphy covers a ton of great fantasy series, new and old.

[@PetrikLeo]

Booktube from years ago tends to only cover popular fantasy books/series. I think things are getting better on this aspect, though. At least from my perspective anyway. There was a time when NO ONE ever talked about Gwynne's books on Booktube, and now the fact that you and other readers consider him to be popular is amazing. You're right, though, that there is a lot of underrated series, and even more, underhyped series! :)

[@Roondawg_Valhalla]

@@PetrikLeo awesome video, and I agree! I’ve learned of many series from you and others on here.

[@PetrikLeo]

@@Roondawg_Valhalla thank you! I'm happy to hear that! 😁

[@Roondawg_Valhalla]

@@PetrikLeo seriously, I never even heard of booktube before 2020, and now it has become my favorite source of entertainment, and my best guide as what to check out next . This community is awesome and u are 1 of it’s pioneers. Thanks Petrik 🙏

[@cilliansands6166]

Empire of Black and Gold was underwhelming, IMO. But I heard the series only get better and even though I didn't like the first book that much, I can still see the author's potential. The concept is amazing, though. When it comes to points for originality Adrian gets them all. Acacia, though? Oh my god. That was SO BAD it had to be read to be believed. I read it with a GR friend and we almost threw the towel a few times. It was bad; really bad. It deserved the low ratings.

[@PetrikLeo]

Seems like you agree that both of them deserves a lower rating then. 😂 But well, many other readers would disagree with you. I haven't read both of them, so let's see which opinion I'll agree with later on!

[@matthewbeaty4344]

I didn't know a rating between 3 and 4 was a bad rating.

[@PetrikLeo]

It's not. But it is considered by many to be a negative rating. I've had a few author actually mocked me for giving their books a 3 stars rating, so it's not only the reader's fault. But more importantly, the purpose of this video is just to show that these books deserve a higher rating regardless of whether 3-4 stars are bad rating or not.

[@moviefiendz]

100th comment! Woooo

[@PetrikLeo]

Well done! 😄

[@bunnygirlerika9489]

To many people absolutely trash things and call it bad sinply hecause they themselves dont like it.

[@PetrikLeo]

Exactly. Won't be a hypocrite I've done it myself, too. 😅

[@talkamardesh7562]

Janny Wurts is the definition of purple prose

[@PetrikLeo]

Yeah that's true. It's not a bad thing if it's nailed well, though.

[@talkamardesh7562]

@@PetrikLeo Grace of kings arrives on Saturday, I’m awfully excited Petrik. You did me well with John Gwynne and James Islington, I can’t wait to see what this one holds 😎

[@khomo12]

👍👍👍📚🤖🚀🐲

[@Jaeno311]

you ever notice you talk with your hands a lot? lol

[@PetrikLeo]

I do. I tried not to move my hands. I looked like a stupid robot. So come what may... xD

[@Jaeno311]

@@PetrikLeo :)

[@johnmglen]

Slow regard is sooo bad. Overrated if anything.

[@PetrikLeo]

Eh I loved it. Understandable if it's considered bad by many readers, though.