Terry Pratchet was a prodigious author. You could do a lot worse than then 41 Discworld novels. Whether you begin at the beginning, with The Colour of Magic or pick up from Mort or Equal Rites, or just dive in anywhere because its more a composite of characters dancing around a magical universe than a linear narrative of fiction, you won't be disappointed.

If you want something to seriously chew on, Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson are also notoriously prodigious. "The Eye of the World" can be read as a stand alone for a brilliant piece of high fantasy or as the intro to a 13,000 page epic. Meanwhile, Sanderson's "Mistborn" series is a solid, but not exhausting, read with a great opening heist as a hook and a strong payoff at the end of the trilogy.

If you're going for another classic, though, try "Redwall". Brian Jacques is a fantastic writer and his first work is arguably his best (although I've got a special place in my heart for the prequel, Martin the Warrior). Asimov's "I, Robot" is a fantastic anthology of mini-SciFi thrillers. Joe Abecrombie's "Best Served Cold" is a fantastic medieval era revenge thriller. "Redshirts" is a clever little Star Trek inspired comedy that likely inspired the "Lower Decks" franchise. "John Dies At The End" is a comedy-horror that finds a delightful spot right in between J.D. Salinger's Catcher In the Rye and H.P. Lovecraft's The Shadow over Innsmouth.

Don't feel sad your story has ended. Feel glad a new one is just around the corner.

[–] Honytawk@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 day ago

For Terry Pratchett, I can recommend watching the Colour of Magic movies. They are free on Youtube. That should get you into the spirit of the Discworld.

And when going for the DEATH books, I'd recommend starting with Reaper Man instead of Mort. A much more fun book. Mort can be read afterwards.

[–] Siethron@lemmy.world 1 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

Be cautious getting into the wheel of time series. Robert Jordan was great at build ups but terrible at climaxes and overly descriptive of things that didn't really need that much description.

Also books 6 through 10 exist. Loving fans refer to these books as the slough.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 points 22 hours ago

overly descriptive of things that didn’t really need that much description

I mean, I never really liked this critique of his work. Jordan's world building was beautiful. The description added depth and color to every scene.

Also books 6 through 10 exist. Loving fans refer to these books as the slough.

Again, agree to disagree. The political intrigues between the Aes Sedai and Asha'man and the Aiel all pay off in the end. Winter's Heart was the only book that felt like it dragged, and mostly because it had been two years since I'd finished the prior entry.

If anything Book Three - Dragon Reborn - was the worst in the series, as it felt like a retread of the first two. By the time he was on The Shadow Rising, Jordan knew he was in it for the long haul and was ready to really flesh out all the nocks and cranies of this massive setting.

[–] TheKingBombOmbKiller@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 day ago

Tress of the Emerald Sea is the most Good Omens like book Brandon Sanderson has written (he cited it as an inspiration), and is a good jumping on point for the Cosmere.

[–] UniversalBasicJustice@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Tossing Malazan Book of the Fallen into the "chewy" pile!

Also seconding Redwall, Brandon Sanderson and Terry Pratchett. Robert Jordan likes to tug braids for chapters at a time but there's still good nuggets throughout.

[–] UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Malazan Book of the Fallen

Flipping through the synopsis and my interest is definitely piqued. Idk if I can do ten big volumes any time soon, but I'll try to remember this if I ever have enormous free time on my hands.

[–] UniversalBasicJustice@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 day ago

Its definitely worth the time investment. World building is amazing, very wide variety of character perspectives and motivations. I'll admit, I've never actually finished the series either. I made it to book 8 twice before falling off because you're right, ten massive books is a lot. I do have book 8 on order now, going to start from there this time.

Also if you or anyone reading this comment likes black metal check out Caladan Brood. The project is named after a Malazan character and all the songs on their single album are rooted in various plots from the series.