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Hello! I recently read the Raven's Shadow books and followed them up with the Emperor's Blade trilogy. Really loved them both! Having some trouble finding a new book/series to get into. Was hoping someone would have some suggestions. Some other books I have really enjoyed were the Warrior of Rome series and the Emperor Series. As you can see I am very much a fan of ancient warfare/historical fiction, but do enjoy the hero element and do not mind some fantasy. Can anyone provide some direction for me, it would be much appreciated!!

Hmmmm... Karl Edward Wagner’s Kane novels like Bloodstone comes to mind.... maybe Rypel’s Gonji series... or Cook’s Black Company

Also maybe Thomas Harlan's Oath of Empire series (four books beginning with The Shadow of Ararat), which take place in an alternate history 8th Century or so in which Rome never fell, and also magic works. Plenty of large-scale armies and battle magic.

Or for straight historical fiction, I'm currently reading Nicholas Guild's The Assyrian (and sequel The Blood Star), set in, yes, the Assyrian empire shortly after Sargon's time.

S.E. wrote: "Hmmmm... Karl Edward Wagner’s Kane novels like Bloodstone comes to mind.... maybe Rypel’s Gonji series... or Cook’s Black Company"

Thank you, Seth, for the thoughtful recommendation. I hope some new readers continue to wander into Gonji territory. Gonji was, in fact, influenced by Wagner in some ways, including my handling of language tone.

I've been largely off the grid lately, as I've been dealing with a cause-indeterminate dizziness syndrome that's affected my quality of life, including energy and enthusiasm for the tough tasks of promoting and continuing a re-issued series of books. So it's a welcome sight to find Gonji referenced by friends and colleagues who know their way around adventure-fantasy. Of late, I've been wistfully watching myself turn to vapor on the vast landscape of fantasy fiction.

Thanks mightily...

Jack wrote: "I second S.E.'s recommendation of Rypel's Gonji series. Highly recommended.

This recommendation shows my issue with ebooks: I ponder my stack of print books wondering what to read next or, in thi..."

Thank you, too, Jack, for the recommendation. I hope the Deathwind Trilogy (you now have the first two segments) holds up for you.

Truly, the place to start in the series, now that it's out, though, is the most recent book, DARK VENTURES, which contains two novellas and the definitive series creation/publication history. Everything a new reader needs to find out whether Gonji is a pleasing read---and it's also the shortest book, by far.

Hope to hear from you again, for better or worse.

Domo arigato!

Barry Sadler's Casca books are available with kindle unlimited. I second Jack's recommendation.

Thank you to all on the thread who either recommend my GONJI series or follow up on the recommendation. You can find some excellent critiques of the books at Black Gate e-zine.


I strongly urge anyone coming in cold to try DARK VENTURES first. It's the shortest, it's quite typical of the storytelling in the novels, and it provides a solid grounding in what the ambitious series is about, with its definitive essay that harks back to the beginnings of the concept and the strange odyssey it's been through since original publisher Zebra Books tried to position it as mainstream Asian adventure---causing the books to sell well but to miss their intended fantasy readership almost entirely.

Thank you everyone! I will start diving into these recommendations. You have all been very helpful!

I’ll second (or third!) the recommendation for Ted’s Gonji-great stuff!
I’ll also highly recommend Scott Oden. He has some straight historical adventure with Men of Bronze and Memnon, and Historical S&S with Lion of Cairo and A Gathering of Ravens. Scott is a huge fan of Robert E Howard, and it shows in his excellent battle scenes and eye for details.

The Oathsworn Series by Robert Low and Swords of Good Men by Snorri Christiansen if you fancy Vikings.
The Tales of Valdur by Clifford Beal - fantasy naval battles from the gunpowder age

I should have mentioned this initially, but I am mainly looking for books that have audio versions because I spend a lot of time in the car and my two year old doesn't allow me much time to read peacefully:)

That being said, I am trying to decide which to start next; the "Iron Age" books by Angus Watson, the "Kingkiller Chronicles" by Patrick Rothfuss, or "The Way of Kings" (Stormlight Archive Series) by Brandon Sanderson. Does anyone have a recommendation for one or the other? I think I am leaning Sanderson after reading reviews....

Angus Watson's Iron Age is complete, I would start there. The other two series mentioned aren't finished as of yet...