Quote:
Originally Posted by crossi
Loius Bujold's Vorkosiggan Books starting with Warrior's Apprentice.
David Eddings Belgarrion series (paper only in the US).
Elizabeth Moon's The Deed of Paksenarrion.
Tamorra Pierces Protector of the Small series, Trickster series, Lioness series.
Francis Burnett's A Little Princess, Little Lord Fauntleroy, The Secret Garden (I've been rereading them since childhood).
|
Just to clarify, I can't read any of these books right now. Warrior's Apprentice includes 3 major injuries, death of a main character, the aftermath of rape and psychotic breaks, massive stress on the main character and a treason trial. It's funny, but is in no way 'light' or 'fluffy'. A Civil Campaign is closer, but Bujold doesn't really write anything light or fluffy.
Deed of Paksenarrion hits the stress and angst pretty quickly (attempted rape and a trial), then goes through campaigns against dictators, multiple rounds of torture and major emotional drama. It's not light-hearted at all.
Ditto for Tamora Pierce and Francis Burnett - the writing level is aimed at kids or teenagers, but the subject matter is usually very serious (treason, death of family, child abuse, adult relationships, major illness, just to name a few) and is usually portrayed seriously.
Roald Dahl also deals with serious stuff, but he adds in a bunch of fantastical elements and everything has unambiguously happy endings, so I might try him.