RIP David Eddings

I know this news is a bit old by now but I wanted to write about it anyway. For those of you who don't know, David Eddings was an epic fantasy author. You can read a bit about him in this wonderful post from Tor.com. It includes excerpts from several of his books and explains why he was such a fantastic author - it is very much worth reading.

I've written about Eddings before in this post where I talked about my favorite books from childhood. His first series, The Belgariad, came out in the early 1980s when I was in elementary school. My dad had introduced me to Tolkien at age 6 and by 8 or 9 I was ready for something new so he gave one of Eddings's new books. I devoured it. Years later I reread the books and they were just as good as I remembered. To this day Polgara, one of the main female characters, is still one of my all-time favorites from any book ever.

Here's a list of all the Eddings books that I've read along with the years they were published:

The Belgariad series

• Pawn of Prophecy (1982)
• Queen of Sorcery (1982)
• Magician's Gambit (1983)
• Castle of Wizardry (1984)
• Enchanters' End Game (1984)
  

The Malloreon series

• Guardians of the West (1987)
• King of the Murgos (1988)
• Demon Lord of Karanda (1988)
• Sorceress of Darshiva (1989)
• The Seeress of Kell (1991)
  

Books related to The Belgariad and The Malloreon

• Belgarath the Sorcerer (1995) (Prequel) with Leigh Eddings
• Polgara the Sorceress (1997) (Prequel) with Leigh Eddings
• The Rivan Codex (1998) with Leigh Eddings

The Elenium series

• The Diamond Throne (1989)
• The Ruby Knight (1990)
• The Sapphire Rose (1991)

The Tamuli series

• Domes of Fire (1992)
• The Shining Ones (1993)
• The Hidden City (1994)

I read most of these books shortly after they came out. I can't believe it's been so long ...

If you have read Eddings then you know how much he'll be missed. If you have not, I strongly recommend that you pick up PAWN OF PROPHECY. The Belgariad is a fantastic series, one that is not to be missed.

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I'm posting this today (versus another day this week) in honor of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Day.
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(Just a reminder that I'm currently enjoying my visit to Disney World and will respond to all comments when I return.)