[AnemicOak]

I'll nominate A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin...

Product Description
A Game of Thrones is a contemporary masterpiece of fantasy. The cold is returning to Winterfell, where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime. A time of conflict has arisen in the Stark family, as they are pulled from the safety of their home into a whirlpool of tragedy, betrayal, assassination, plots and counterplots. Each decision and action carries with it the potential for conflict as several prominent families, comprised of lords, ladies, soldiers, sorcerers, assassins and bastards, are pulled together in the most deadly game of all--the game of thrones.
From the Publisher
"The major fantasy of the decade . . . compulsively readable."
--The Denver Post

"We have been invited to a grand feast and pageant: George R.R. Martin has unveiled for us an intensely realized, romantic but realistic world."
--Chicago Sun-Times

"A Best Book of 1996: Martin makes a triumphant return to high fantasy . . . [with] superbly developed characters, accomplished prose, and sheer bloodymindedness."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"A splendid saga . . . . Inventive and intricately plotted."
--BookPage

"Magic . . . George R.R.Martin's first fantasy epic [is set] well above the norms of the genre."
--Locus

"Such a splendid tale and such a fantasticorical! I read my eyes out and couldn't stop 'til I finished and it was dawn."
--Anne McCaffrey

Locus Award Winner: Best Fantasy Novel