The Most Criminally Overlooked or Underrated Writers Ever List

[maarsen]

There are so many authors who are overlooked and underrated, sadly.

For my money, some of the best are:

Anna Tambour - her last novel was Crandolin. It was put out by Chomu Press.

Brendan Connell - his latest book is the Metanatural Adventures of Dr. Black, put out by PS Publishing. Easily his best book, but he has a few from other independents like Chomu and Eidonvale, if I remember right.

I suspect a lot of you would kinda dig Andrew Macrae's novel Trucksong, which is a dystopian SF book about AI trucks in the Australian landscape. It's got a Mad Max vibe for those of you who are looking for an easy connection. He's a musician out of Victoria - plays in a band called the Television Sky, and wrote a soundtrack for it, which is actually pretty cool. You can download it or stream it out of www.trucksong.com.au/

I also reckon Avram Davidson is pretty under read and under appreciated (he was when he was alive, as well, I suspect). It's hard to find his books now, but there's a collection of his Limekiller stories out by Old Earth Press, and some retrospective collections. The old novels have these sweet sixties/seventies covers if you can find them.

Likewise, I tend to think that Fritz Lieber is as well nowadays. I suspect he has a decent following in places like this, but still.

Anyhow, y'know, I could go on forever on these things. Sadly.

Avram Davidson. Wow, that's going back. Even back in the 60's and 70's, he never had a lot of output. I guess that is why he never got a bigger following. Here is a name of one of the real unsung greats that I wish people would discover: R.A. Lafferty. Nobody wrote like he did and he was one of my favourites for his wonderfully quirky style of writing. Even now, while writing posts on this board, I try to imitate his style, however badly it may come across.

[benpeek]

Avram Davidson. Wow, that's going back. Even back in the 60's and 70's, he never had a lot of output. I guess that is why he never got a bigger following. Here is a name of one of the real unsung greats that I wish people would discover: R.A. Lafferty. Nobody wrote like he did and he was one of my favourites for his wonderfully quirky style of writing. Even now, while writing posts on this board, I try to imitate his style, however badly it may come across.

He didn't have a lot of output in terms of novels, when you consider the length of his career. A whole bunch were released in the middle of the 60s, and then a few in he 70s and 80s. It's a shame, though that they're not better known - he could write.

Rafferty is definately one of those authors who isn't as popular as perhaps he should be. Perhaps the curse of having a strong short story output - I think he released as many short story collections as he did novels, or close to it.

[Larry of the Lawn]

William Forrester. Sure, everyone knows him for "you're the man now, dog" but really that was just the tip of the iceberg.

[TheGoodShipAlbion]

For me Irvine Welsh is very underrated, except from here in Scotland. The simply incredible way he grasps the essence of the underclass puts him up there with Bukowski. He shows the darker elements of human nature in such a realistic and humourous way in novels such as Trainspotting, Glue, Porno and Skagboys, he really is up there with the best novelists in recent years (in my humble opinion). Would highly recommend.

[Jo498]

I managed to get through "Trainspotting" and "Filth". It's not that I regret having read them, but it's certainly enough... Too disgusting for me and also not friendly for readers with English as a second or third language and no knowledge of Scottish underclass slang.

I mentioned him in another thread, but one of my candidates is an early master of phantastic realism and historical novels with a slightly phantastic twist, the Jewish/Austrian/Bohemian writer Leo Perutz. He used to be very famous in the 1920s in Germany and Austria, but although he lived until the 1950s, the disruptions of the Nazi regime and the war (he emigrated to Palestine in time) were not easily overcome and he never became a mainstream staple.

Some of his books (usually short novels of 200-300 pages)

The Third Bullet (Conquest of Mexico)

The master of the day of judgement (shortly before World war I)

The Swedish Cavalier (Central Europe around 1700), this is my favorite

The Marquis of Bolibar (Napoleonic Wars)

Turlupin (17th century France)

Leonardo's Judas (Italy around 1500)

[peterbound]

For me Irvine Welsh is very underrated, except from here in Scotland. The simply incredible way he grasps the essence of the underclass puts him up there with Bukowski. He shows the darker elements of human nature in such a realistic and humourous way in novels such as Trainspotting, Glue, Porno and Skagboys, he really is up there with the best novelists in recent years (in my humble opinion). Would highly recommend.

Again, we apparently have a different definition of overlooked. Two major motion pictures, one a modern classic, based on his work is hardly overlooked.

[Errant Bard]

Again, we apparently have a different definition of overlooked. Two major motion pictures, one a modern classic, based on his work is hardly overlooked.

While we are in Scottish territory, did Ian Banks ever get a movie out of what he wrote, or any recognition outside of the literari sphere? If not, if Welsh is underrated, I guess Banks is too. (and by extension about every single genre author)

[Darth Richard II]

Banks non sci fi was very popular, particularly in the UK.

[williamjm]

While we are in Scottish territory, did Ian Banks ever get a movie out of what he wrote, or any recognition outside of the literari sphere? If not, if Welsh is underrated, I guess Banks is too. (and by extension about every single genre author)

There was a BBC TV series of The Crow Road and a film version of Complicity, although nothing for his SF work. At least in the UK I'd say he was probably comparable in profile to Irvine Welsh.

[peterbound]

You know who is criminally under read around these parts? Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos books. There is never any threads on the guy. I'm going to start one.

[The Reckoner]

Currently, maybe Michael Moorcock? I only discovered him back in 2009 through the Del Rey reprints of his Elric series, and have since tracked down his Eternal Champion cycle (White Wolf's run of the series). They, along with Robert Howard, are something I'd recommend to anyone interested in the fantasy genre. Take the much maligned boogeyman, the ever looming Grimdark, and read the first Corum trilogy. It is a fairly concise trilogy of elements typically associated with "Grimdark." The weak, brooding sorcerer anti-hero? No, not Raistlin--look into Elric first. While the EC cycle as a whole isn't as strong as Elric or Von Bek, it is of historical significance to the fantasy genre, I think. Same goes for Robert Howard's Conan; some of these actually bridge the gap between Lovecraft's horror and the sword and sorcery genre.

[beniowa]

Monument by Ian Graham is one of the better Fantasy books I have read and is not very well known as far as I recall.

This is his only published works as far as I can tell.

I'm not sure someone can be criminally overlooked if they've only written one book. The premise rather implies that there is a body of work being produced that no one is reading.

You know who is criminally under read around these parts? Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos books. There is never any threads on the guy. I'm going to start one.

Taltos? Really? Steven Brust has over 86,000 ratings on Goodreads and 8,000 ratings for Jhereg alone. He doesn't get discussed much here, but he does elsewhere and his work is recommended a lot. He's not underread, trust me.

A thread just for Taltos is more than fair though.

[peterbound]

I'm not sure someone can be criminally overlooked if they've only written one book. The premise rather implies that there is a body of work being produced that no one is reading.

Taltos? Really? Steven Brust has over 86,000 ratings on Goodreads and 8,000 ratings for Jhereg alone. He doesn't get discussed much here, but he does elsewhere and his work is recommended a lot. He's not underread, trust me.

A thread just for Taltos is more than fair though.

I did qualify my statement with 'here' right?

I'm aware of his standing, I was specifically referring to this site.

Yup. Thought I did: 'you know who is criminally under read around these parts'

[Darth Richard II]

Fuck Elric. Emo bastard.

[Darth Richard II]

Brust is definitely overlooked on this board. Someone finally yelled at me enough to get me to start reading them last year and I think I'm oh 2/3 of the way through(publication order dammit) and those books are fucking GOLD. New one just came last week too.

Come to think of it I think it may have been you peterbound who finally convinced me to give them a go. I forgets.

[The Reckoner]

What does "emo" mean? Do we have a new "grimdark" on our hands? I have an omnibus of the first three Taltos books. I really need to dive back into them.

[Darth Richard II]

...

Holy shit I hope you are joking. Or at least English is not your first language.

[Calibandar]

There are so many authors who are overlooked and underrated, sadly.

For my money, some of the best are:

Anna Tambour - her last novel was Crandolin. It was put out by Chomu Press.

Brendan Connell - his latest book is the Metanatural Adventures of Dr. Black, put out by PS Publishing. Easily his best book, but he has a few from other independents like Chomu and Eidonvale, if I remember right.

I suspect a lot of you would kinda dig Andrew Macrae's novel Trucksong, which is a dystopian SF book about AI trucks in the Australian landscape. It's got a Mad Max vibe for those of you who are looking for an easy connection. He's a musician out of Victoria - plays in a band called the Television Sky, and wrote a soundtrack for it, which is actually pretty cool. You can download it or stream it out of www.trucksong.com.au/

I checked it out on Amazon because I really liked the premise, but I have to say I found the accent very off putting ad simply didn't want to read more than the sample they had.

[buff daddy]

I don't know about most overlooked or underated ever, but a sci-fi author that is currently both those(and I hope that changes so its worthwhile for him to keep writing awesome novels) is T.C. McCarthy. Anyone that's a fan of sci-fi, or just good books in general, should check him out.

[benpeek]

I checked it out on Amazon because I really liked the premise, but I have to say I found the accent very off putting ad simply didn't want to read more than the sample they had.

It's a book where that either works for you or it doesn't, I'm afraid. I tend to think of it as a strongly Australian one, and I liked it for that, but in fairness, I'm well placed for it.

I also tend to like books with a stylised voice - A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, TRUE HISTORY OF THE KELLY GANG, VOICE OF THE FIRE, there is a long list.