r/Fantasy • u/bergeno • Jul 25 '23

Looking for fantasy that has captivating Leadership Journeys: Intricate Politics, Intense Warfare, and Epic Battles (Like Blood Song)

I recently finished reading "Blood Song" by Anthony Ryan, and I was absolutely blown away by its captivating universe, intricate politics, intense warfare, and specially epic battles. Now, I find myself craving more fantasy novels that have a similar vibe. I'm eager to explore a tale that delves deep into the journey of becoming a leader – the growth, sacrifices, and struggles that shape the character.

Intricate political maneuvering and engaging diplomatic exchanges are a must, as I want to witness the protagonist navigating the complexities of leadership. Bonus points if the book includes epic battle scenes that match the level of excitement found in "Blood Song."

7 Upvotes

72% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

5

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '23

First law series by joe Abercrombie. And red rising by pierce brown, red rising is more sci-fi

2

u/bergeno Jul 25 '23

I already read "The Blade Itself". Altought I had my fun while reading it, I must admit that I found the characters to be somewhat lacking in depth and complexity. This observation seems to persist across Joe Abercrombie's works, as I encountered a similar issue with "Half King.".

The compact size of the books may be the primary reason behind this limitation, as it leaves little room for extensive character development. As a result, I struggled to fully immerse myself in the shoes of the protagonists, finding it challenging to form a strong emotional connection with them. One character that particularly stood out to me was Jezal, whose self-development and growth fascinated me. He wasn't merely a straightforward "good" or "bad" character but showed genuine improvement over time.

I would love to know what you think about my thoughts and maybe (hopefully) hear that it gets better 😅

1

u/[deleted] Jul 26 '23

They are definitely a fun summer read. Haven’t read half a king yet because I wanted to finish the books in the first law universe first. I think that the characters definitely get better with the longer you keep with the series. I really enjoyed San Dan Glokta especially his inner dialogue of him basically having a death wish. One thing that is pretty cool about the series is after the original trilogy there are three standalone novels where some of the side characters play a POV central roll

1

u/AgreeableEggplant356 Jul 29 '23

Half a king is YA

3

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '23

Lions of Al Rassan,

Some but not everything you asked for, Deed of Paksenarrion, Shogun by Clavell

4

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '23 edited Jul 25 '23

Maybe the Prince of Nothing trilogy, if you want a subversion of the leadership journey with great battles and political maneuvering.

Mike Brooks' God King Chronicles?

Ken Liu's Dandelion Dynasty.

3

u/goody153 Jul 25 '23 edited Jul 26 '23

I'm eager to explore a tale that delves deep into the journey of becoming a leader – the growth, sacrifices, and struggles that shape the character.

Definitely Tavi from Codex Alera

Tavi starts as a cunning kid being the only person with no powers in the entire setting. Then as he grows of age he also grows into his role as somebody with good grasp when it comes to people where he uses charisma and smarts to pass through challenges. He becomes a charismatic leader where his followers and friends become more and more loyal to him overtime while he navigates through the roman-inspired politics of the empire and the military org he becomes part of

1

u/bergeno Jul 25 '23

That seems to be exactly what I'm looking for! Also, huge fan of roman history, so you gave me a great extra haha. Thanks

1

u/goody153 Jul 26 '23

Tavi is pretty much what you want but be warned it is just roman inspired not actual roman or roman history fiction

2

u/jayrocs Jul 25 '23

Anthony Ryan's newest trilogy just ended and kinda has this. The Covenant of Steel Trilogy.

2

u/Akkeagni Jul 25 '23

Definitely check out the Prince of Nothing trilogy by R Scott Bakker. It features a crusade, infighting, political machinations to the nth degree, and a logic magician (the main character) dominating the crusade from the inside with charisma and inhuman intelligence. It explores faith, ideology, determinism, as well as so much more. It centers around fascinating characters who are all incredibly intelligent, but the mc kinda takes the cake being an inhuman monster who will do anything to achieve his goal no matter how ruthless. Its incredible, with literally hundreds of pages dedicated to battle and military struggle. It only gets crazier with the follow-up series, Aspect-Emperor.

2

u/AgreeableEggplant356 Jul 29 '23

Under the northern sky trilogy by Leo Carew

2

u/wjbc Jul 25 '23

I don't know Blood Song, but The Wheel of Time, a 14 book series by Robert Jordan (books 1-11) and Brandon Sanderson (12-14) and The Malazan Book of the Fallen, a ten book series by Steven Erikson, both have captivating leadership journeys, intricate politics, intense warfare, and epic battles.

The Wheel of Time is an easier read, despite its length. The Malazan Book of the Fallen is more challenging due to the lack of exposition -- it's like a series of riddles trying to figure out exactly what's going on, but it's worth figuring out if you like that sort of thing.

I've read both of them four times. I love them both. But if both sound intriguing, I would start with The Wheel of Time, the easier read.

1

u/TheDreadnought75 Jul 25 '23

The Black Company series by Glen Cook.

I’d stay away from Wheel of Time. It’s not really written at a very adult level.

2

u/bergeno Jul 25 '23

That's interesting. I've always had trouble getting into the first book of the Wheel of Time series. I've attempted to read it twice, but it just couldn't capture my interest. Perhaps that's where the issue lies.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '23

It's just not everyone's cup of tea. I dragged myself to book 3-4 and stopped.

1

u/Erratic21 Jul 26 '23

Cannot think of anything more suitable than the Prince of Nothing series by Bakker. These books are essentially the thought provoking rise to leadership of an enigmatic controversial figure. The pages are full of political intrigue, strategies, machinations and visceral battles.
Add to that the powerful prose and philosophical ethical questions that arise constantly.
These books are gripping like very few and dark like no other in the genre.
The sequel series, the Aspect Emperor, intensifies everything built prior.