Overall, a good group of books, but the story development takes too much time (you have to wait until the third book, before the main character even finds the magical abilities that you can tell he has and should be developing).

The strongest part of David and Leigh Eddings' writing is their character portrayal. I feel I'd know what any of their characters would do in any situation, and because of this I feel involved in the stories. I feel that their fantasy is not for those who prefer emphasis on the accoutrements of the genre rather than people and events. I have been reading and rereading the Belgariad and Mallorean every year since the mid-eighties and still laugh or have a lump in my throat each time.

Eddings' writing style is very dry. He tried to create a new universe and it was virtually identical to his 1st universe. That's not the hallmark of a great writer. His books are ok reads with solid well put together plots, but if that makes him one of the best fantasy writers of all time we need a serious injection of new talent into this genre.

 In my opinion, Eddings got it just right with The Belgariad/Mallorean, even better with the Sparhawk series, ok on Athalus, but by the time you get to The Elder gods, you are re-reading the same old jokes, cliches and shallow one demensional characters all over again. Not only have we met each and every character before in a previous incarnation (mostly belgarion's buddies) but when they meet each other, they persist in re telling  the same  tired information we learned 5 chapters ago (and every chapter since), repeating weak jokes and generally taking the story no where new until the final chapter when the gods convenently intervene, in a way they easily could have done with out any outside help.

There is a lot to be said for sticking with a winning formula, but this is such a transparent rehashing of the authors previous works, that having got as far as book three, I have no intention of ever bothering with the fourth and final installment.

Disappointing.

Read the collections 10-yrs ago, and re-read again 6-mths ago, and it still blew me away ...

Great series to start with if you just got intrested in the fantasy genre.  The  stories are usually light, entertaining and engaging and the charachters likeable, funny and lovable but not overly complex. There is a certain sense of innocence to the world that the Eddings create which makes the reading sort of realaxing and satisfying  for people who love a good adventure with a happy endings.  With the Eddings you usually get what you expect to get.

AWESOME!!!

Love his books, currently on his First book of he second series!

Truly a complex read, with a grasp of strategic writing that involves the reader in the books themselves. Though it has been a while since I have read David Eddings, I am still left with a great impression of this author. Though he is not often recognized by the public and other greater authors dwarf him, his books are not one to be tangled with. He is just as great as Salvatore and Goodkind, though not as famous with his smaller sets. In my opinion, people in their High School years are ready for his novels, though younger (not-so-avid) readers should consider McCaffery or Terry Brooks, both of which are just as good, or better, with their series.

Thought that the Mallorean and Belgariad were his best works. His recent series I found poor.

Great fantasy author, he knows how to make you laugh or cry. His characters are extremely likable, his style is unique and wonderful and his worlds are fascinating. Possibly the best fantasy author.

How do you write a fantasy series? Well, you start by drawing a map, and then you make up a story where the people have to visit every place on the map. Don't forget to throw in every cliché you can think of. Make sure none of the people you write about is even slightly like a real person. How do you write another fantasy series? Use the first series again, just change the names around a little. How do you write *good* fantasy? Oh, don't follow the advice above, that's just for Eddings and his followers.

More engaging than Brooks, and less of a Tolkien rip-off, but still not much.

David Eddings is the reason I started reading, I have now demolished his entire library.

bRILLIAMT author. The Belgariad rules, but the third set of books isn't as good.

Excellent author - Mr. Eddings has created some of the best-developed, complex - most human -characters in Fantasy.

Childish pap, sophomorically written.

when i first started reading bout 4 years ago i couldnt read.. but then i picked up a david eddings book.. i dunno what it was called but it had a nice picture... and it called out to me.. readdddd meeeee... reeeeaddddd me. so i did... andi loved it.. andi feel in love.... david eddings has made me whole.. now im not that old but please.. listen to me when i say... read it up.. cuz he rocks.. and he should rule the world.. thank you my friends.. i also wanna say that i do make cheese in my hometown of Adgaha in algeria andi do exports so for the small fee of 44.50 in lira i will you send you my finest swiss and a few rats too so you can breed then your secret labs like all good poeple on this site have and then make billions by sellign it on the black market and singing to chiuftanms you cazn reach nirvana. ... trust me when i say this.. it happens.. like a flash and bang and then a new screensaver.. tis nice my friends.. just live the dream.. live it.... stand up and shout out make me dream again.. let me become a salamander and make my own slime instead of having to restock it every 2-3 days. (cuz that stuff is hard to get in algeria ya know,.. i mean sheesh.. theres only so much. i make less than american minimum wage and i make it in roman bills.. seriously/// what the hell are those... but alas my friends... you dont have to listen to me,... what do i know.. im sitting here partially nude eating a box of vintage crackerjacks.... i could be an author with all the time i have.. but im not... cuz i must make the cheese and help my fajah and sister raise my lone sheepers Bakumako which in latin means Buffalo shaped goat. All this time im sure you are laughing and thinking to yourself.. hwo can this guy continue to write... well... ill tell you my litle secret... i have no feet.. yes i feel your pitious eyes glancing over me.. but mock me not! for someday you will eat my cheese and htne you will laugh becuase it is 1434.4 best in the world... yes my friends... i miss my old life.. .swinging my sword and hacking through the brush of the wild algerian bush... now i can just sit here with my poor Bakumako and give the world a little taste of me... noit a big one though since i have already lost my foot but a little piece of flesh... ah i wish i could see the world but i only have freaking dial up in the middle of a desert.. what can i do... please.. send your bills money checks and provisions to 23349 Little Sahara Way 789.265 Adgaha, Algeria. Thank you.. you all mean so much to me... i want ot love you and caress you.. but im getting ahead of myself.. first i must control your mind because surely you could not make love to me without my feet.. you would look at my hideousness and fly away from me.. the world is so shallow.. i am nice.. i liek peopel... why cant they understand me... o why o why... i sit here on my families lone precious rug and i wonder why the world is so cruel.. in fact.....

When I first read David Eddings stories, I was so boggled by the complexity of them, that I had to read them again. So, I did. To this day, I still enjoy reading them. But considering there's such a hot conversation going on, I think I'll add my two cents. David Eddings knows what he's doing when he writes books. he knows what people like to read. he know's how to make a plotline work correctly, and describe characters on a very high level. Props to you, David. You're doing good.

i luv him!!! i want him.... write me stories

shut up ulath.. they can have their opinions and can sure as hell write a better comment than you ever could! so you suck it!!!

Suck it people. David Eddings can write books. Let's see you write a book and get a better rating on it.

The Belgariad is one of the first fantasy series I read. Good reading!

Simply the best. Amazing storyteller, creator of likable characters and wonderful worlds.

Somewhat amusing, sort of on the level of a monkey island game. Every character is a trite stereotype, as are the plots. The jokes are unoriginal. Blah. I can read a little bit and enjoy it, but not much at all.

I wasn't really sure how to go about rating David Eddings. The stories themselves aren't revolutionary or even slightly creative; Eddings pretty much admits to this in the "Rivan Codex". This trend of Plot By Numbers seems to bother a lot of people who read a lot of fantasy. I suppose this is to be expected given the stories that are the most well-regarded are mostly plot driven. Because Tolkein set the standard for the fantasy genre (a supremely fantastic world inhabited by shallow archetypes) I think that most people evaluate all subsequent endeavors by the same measuring stick. In short, I think that the people who look harshly on his works are evaluating them by a set of conventions that the author has chosen to ignore. Eddings seems to pay only slight attention to his world building and plots and focuses mostly on his characters, how they interact with one another and the actual art of storytelling. I don't think they're worse but rather just constricted with a different purpose. I believe he understands where his strengths are as an author and plays them for all they're worth, which I think is quite a hefty sum. I don't really think he rates a "5" but he definately outstrips some of the authors who are rated ahead of him on this list so I thought I'd give him a bump. =)

David Eddings is a great author for creating light enjoyable novels. They are a great escape from the hectic, busy day, when all you want to do is read, and let your imagination wander.

Not for the adult

Dave Eddings is, I think, the best author in the genre. He creates interesting worlds, full with magic and adventure. His characters are close to the reader. More, he has a unique sense of humour. Of course, he is helped by his wife Leigh.

Eddings can't be beat. Criticize the plot all you want, he takes epic fantasy and succeeds where others fail; he makes it funny and sharp, where others plod.

There is no real plot in his stories. His characters and dialogue are semi-interesting, but the conflicts are too one-sided. The good guys are intelligent, strong, brave, loyal and plain lucky. The bad guys are pitiful, cowardly, dishounarable and just plain stupid. There is no tention, no real meat in the plots. Strict mind-candy

David Eddings is great God Mother F******!

Like Jordan, I will give Eddings a good comment. Not because he does a great job with making differentiating story lines, but rather for his skill at making the "boring" side of fantasy more humorous. I think that some authors are too stuffy in the fantasy genre and forget about the wit, sarcasm, and humor that Eddings brings to his books. I will accredit Piers Anthony with such skill as well. However, Eddings is weakest with plot. After the Mallorean and the Belgariad, I will agree that I thought his works were duplicates of eachother. The stand alone books of Polgara the Sorceress, Belgarath and The Redemption of Althalus seems to be where he has the most strength, but this could because he is collaborating with his wife. Either way, he is good, but like I said he cannot be the absolute best. His books are good reads for those that like wit and humor with their fantasy. But for readers craving detail and intriguing story lines, you may have to go elsewhere.

I think he lost his way (deliberate journey inference). Enjoyed the first few, but the variations on a theme get tired after a while. I did enjoy 'Polgara the Sorceress' and humbly suggest it for those jaded by his other writings.

Sure, his plots are similar, but that doesn't mean they aren't fun too read- as for being too young...are you sure those 8th graders that you're giving the book to understand the meaning of defenistrated? (Do you really want them to???) His books are fun to read and gave me extensive knowledge of the feudal system (This helped out in European history courses!)

Jeez! - somebody put this guy out of his misery! Just read The Belgariad & The Mallorean because the rest of his books are exactly the same, just the characters have different names. Plus most of those characters are so unrealistic that they barely qualify as one-dimensional, never mind three! Some of the dialogue is entertaining but it gets rehashed so many times, even that starts to grate after a while. Pap.

good books. needs more detail and more in one book. he should condense the 5 books into a trelogy because 6.99 is too much for some 240 og. book that is totally inconclusive. Overall however it is a good plotline and wonderful for beginning fantasy readers

Eddings is a talented hack -- and he knows it. Certainly, fans of low-quality "epic" fantasy (Brooks, Anthony, Jordan, Hobb, and others come to mind) will find much to love about him, although he'll probably seem painfully derivative to anyone who's read any fantasy at all before. This is at least partially deliberate; Eddings seems to have set out to take the traditional fantasy plot -- assemble a mixed bag including at least one forgotten heir, march through a map, retrieve a magic jewel, and destroy an evil god/wizard -- and add to it snappy dialogue, clever repartee, and genuine moments of amusement. His series are light reading, but they're certainly of a higher quality than, say, anything Brooks or Jordan have managed to write. In particular, "The Belgariad" and "The Malloreon" are fun ways to spend a weekend. However, Eddings -- like a teen pop musician -- seems only able to sing in one key. He's got the one plot down cold, but EVERY SINGLE SERIES is exactly the same; if you've read one, the only point in reading the others is to pick up on the tiny, often very subtle variations that he throws in. In fact, it's almost possible to play a David Eddings drinking game: every time a blue jewel shows up, or a party member is discovered to be a god, or someone finds out that they've got a birthmark entitling them to be king, or a dapper and smart-alecky rogue shows up and flirts, take a drink. Every time someone gets married at the end of a book, take a drink. Every time....You get the idea, right? And you haven't even had to read the books yet.

pulp fantasy trash

hack

Robin hobb is better

Good books to start with but after having read some other authors I can't say that hes one of the best.

Eddings writes some great stories and has shown to be adept with the pen. His stories don't pack much meat in them, however, and he seems to write variations of the same story in all of his worlds (so far). He is still great storyteller and I enjoy reading his novels as a good diversion to everyday life.

The best fantasy book for kids

great books and all , but not tolkien

Worse than Tolkein! Eddings writes the easiest fantasy ever. Each character has no mystery to his or her background. I guessed every plot turn at least fifty pages before it happened. I would recommend this author for an 8-year-old.

Love the series Belgariad & the Mallorean. Read them for the first time when I was 11, and have read them numerous times since.

I can't believe Eddings and Williams are so low on this list, though I guess it's and honor to even be on here; but still! c'mon peoples, haven't you experienced the Belgaraid and the Mallorean? While not the humonguos epic fantasy like Jordan's Wheel is turning out to be, it still is an enthralling and great set of series. How a person could read those books and not be sad that they ended is beyond me.

The best of the best. NO doubt, may not be the philosopher that Heinlan and LeGuin are, or the descriptor like Jordan and Goodkind, but unquestionably, he tells the best story.

Good series, but doesn't compare to Robert Jordan