SFFWorld’s Favorite Books of 2007

SFFWorld’s readers have voted for their favorite books of 2007, and we’re thrilled that Before They Are Hangedtops the list (this refers to the UK edition, as the US edition was just released). What’s more, Joe Abercrombie appears twice, with The Blade Itselftying with the wonderful Scott Lynch’s The Lies of Locke Lamora at # 5. Here’s the full list:

1. Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie (105 points)
2. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss (96 points)
3. Reaper’s Gale by Steven Erikson (63 points)
4. Renegade’s Magic by Robin Hobb (54 points)
5. The Lies of Locke Lamora* by S. Lynch & The Blade Itself* by J. Abercrombie (41 points)
6. The Children of Húrin by J.R.R. Tolkien (32 points)
7. Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch (31 points)
8. The Thousandfold Thought* by R. Scott Bakker (28 points)
9. The Orphan’s Tales: In the Cities of Coin and Spice by Catherynne M. Valente

Also delighted to see that The Devil’s Right Hand author Lilith Saintcrow praises The Blade Itself on her blog, Writer on the Dark Side: “This is fantasy, sword-and-sorcery, but without the complete lack of verite most fantasy is infected with… There’s wizards, mythology, kings, princes, a self-absorbed nobleman, ancient legends, fencing–all written so well I was grinding my teeth with envy whenever I HAD to put the book down. This is a fantastic start to a trilogy, and I can’t wait to get the next two books so I can see what happens next. There are some tropes, true, but they’re handled so deftly and characterised so beautifully they take on the status of old friends instead of worn-out archetypes. In short, I can’t say enough good things about this book, and I highly recommend it.”

Thank you, Lilith. Wait till you get to book two!