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[Il Palazzo]

Yeah, just that. Have you stumbled upon some obscure masterpiece recently(or not so recently)? Have you been refusing to read some obvious pop-choice-book only to finally grab it and realize it's pretty awesome? Did you find some accidental choice amusing or otherwise worth recommending?
Any suggestions will be appreciated. It'd be great if you provided a short statement on why do you think it's good.
I'm a rather jaded bookworm, so try to skip the most obvious ones(LOTR etc). Also, don't tempt me with praises of stuff that is not available in english(or polish).
Thanks in advance.

[Jackrabbit]

Magician by Ramond E Fiest (although I think you may have read this)

Huge series, great fantisy action and a new take on an old genre- interstellar medieval battles. Also, characters you actualy like. Follows a child, captured and taken to another planet enterly and another child, chosen by a sorcerer in a plan spanning thousands of years as they grow up during the most destructive war of there time.

Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Adam Douglas (I think you probably know this one too)

Follow the adventures of Arthur Dent recent citizen of Earth, Trillian, also of earth, Ford Prefect of a small planet near Beetleguise, Zafod Beetlebrox of the same area and recent president of the galaxy and Marvin, a manicaly depressed robot.

Earth was recently destroyed to make way for an intergalactic bypass, coincidentaly on the same day Arthurs house was destroyed to make way for a regular bypass. His friend, Ford, who he is shocked to learn that he is not, in actual fact, from earth, but from a small planet near beetleguise helps him to escape with the help of Ford and ends up on the Heart of Gold, one of the best ships in the galaxy and recently stolen by Zafod Beedlebrox, who picked up Trillian, aquaintance of Arthur's from a party 4 years ago, where she was picked up from Zafod. Arthur quckly learns that not only is the Universe stupifingly large, but that most of it is supremly unfair.

Thats I'll do right now. Good? I actually didn't steal that from a blurb or review.

[A_Fey_Dwarf]

A great book that I have read recently is The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks. It was really the first Sci-fi that I really enjoyed (not including Hitchhikers guide if you count that as sci-fi). I can't really be bothered writing much about it as I am sure you can find much more competent reviewers else where on the internet.

[Il Palazzo]

Jackrabbit:
This

Follow the adventures of Arthur Dent recent citizen of Earth, Trillian, also of earth, Ford Prefect of a small planet near Beetleguise, Zafod Beetlebrox of the same area and recent president of the galaxy and Marvin, a manicaly depressed robot.

would have sold me the book, if I hadn't read it already(it's Douglas Adams, actually). Of R.E.Feist(those typos, eh?) I know only 'Betrayal at Krondor'(game=brilliant, book=mediocre). I understand that the magician Pug in both books is the same person? Anyway, I can't get myself to read lenghty series only to realize after flipping last page, that it was the same old story I read dozens of times, with only the setting being different. I read them and next month I forget them. Something in particular makes it stand out from the crowd?

A_Fey_Dwarf: The Algebraist's setting sounds promising, however, after reading Banks' 'Look to windward', I'm expecting it to be a dry stuff with godlike characters, that are ultimately just a background for showing off a cool hard-sf vision of the future.

[Hawkfrost]

Bartimaeus Trilogy

Its about demons and magic, murder, betrayal and evil.
In other words, pretty damn good.

Its rather hard to describe it.

[Il Palazzo]

Bartimaeus Trilogy

Checked the wiki, got interested. Might just as well try it.

[stummel]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fyodor_Dostoevsky

especially this one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notes_from_Underground. but be aware, those arne't the easiest books to read. just stay on it, never give up.

i could recommend any of his books i read, but the mentioned one has been the hardest to get into. you can guess, the reward is worth it.

[Cthulhu]

You know Moin mentioned the Bartimaeus Trilogy during his trolling right?

   
rekhyt a egyptain bird?
i got it fromn a book called bartimuas trilogeys.

Book of Moin, 13:6

[Heavy Flak]

Read James Clavell's entire Asian Saga.  They span roughly 400 years (give or take).  I read them in Story Chronological Order (instead of the order he actually wrote them) and it was fantastic.  He drops references throughout the entire book, and the settings just feel so alive.  They're a series of historical fiction set in Japan and Hong Kong and eventually Iran, and are just great.  They're full of political intrigue, and shady dealings, and lots of well-done research into those time periods.

This is the order I read them in (list grabbed off of Wikipedia):
Shogun: Set in feudal Japan, 1600
Tai-Pan: Set in Hong Kong, 1841
Gai-Jin: Set in Japan, 1862
King Rat: Set in a Japanese POW camp, 1945
Noble House: Set in Hong Kong, 1963
Whirlwind: Set in Iran, 1979

Also - Stummel is right.  Dosteovsky's The Brothers Karamazov is considered one of the greatest books ever written, and a perfect example of everything human

[bartavelle]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Black_Company

[Duke 2.0]

 I know a lot of people have some issues with Stephen King, and some people would contest the greatness of this book.  Keep in mind this is my opinion, not some trope-namers opinion.

 Stephen Kings 'The Talisman'.

 Jack Sawyer is sent on an epic quest across the good 'ol US of A to find the Talisman, something that could save his mother from dying of cancer. After meeting up with Speedy Parker and drinking some 'magic juice' things get freaky. He can travel to a land called the Territories, which is a land of innate goodness that houses horrors beyond horrors. It is there his quests starts, and where his quest ends.

 It's like an alternate traditional high fantasy set in low fantasy. I didn't care much for the sequel though.

[DJ]

Dan Simmons - Hyperion/Endimion series
David Brin - Uplift series

Both series feature some of the most developed universes I have encountered in SF, and I've read more than my fair share of SF.

Hyperion borrows elements from classical literature (for example, the first book's form is nearly identical to that of Canterbury Tales) with great success, yet manages to be quite modern. It intertwines many themes (man vs machine, corruption of religion, ...) without becoming burdensome or confusing.

Uplift has a bit more simple story, but it develops it to incredible detail. Never have I read a book where alien personalities seemed so real. Be warned, the series starts a bit average, but every book in it is several degrees of magnitude better than the previous. I do recommend you start at the start, though. Also, I'm not sure if this series is finished. I've only read the first five books (in one week, which should tell you something about the quality) because my local library only had those.

[Fishersalwaysdie]

This The Warhound and The World's Pain thing by Michael Moorcock was pretty good, bought it because I wanted to get Elric references, didn't contain it, but I loved the book anyways.
The storyline after that continues with other books, but the book is quite complete itself so you won't be cliffhangered into buying a huge bunch of other books. (Song of Ice and Fire, I'm looking at you.)

[Rooster]

I read A LOT of forgotten realms. try R.A. Salvatore and Ed Greenwood

[Fishersalwaysdie]