Well, Melody, I'd have to say that I will always be partial to the guys I call the patriarchs of Christian fantasy: Tolkien and Lewis. I love their command of language and their uncompromising dedication to the struggle of good against evil.
That being said, though, I'm trying to read more "modern Christian fantasy," because I feel it's important to stay abreast of publishing trends so that I can know what makes it into print. Lately, I've been following Jill Williamson, who has written two books in her Blood of Kings series:
By Darkness Hid and
To Darkness Fled. (I just reviewed the latter on my blog.) I admit, part of my interest in reading her is that I would love for my books to make it into print with Marcher Lord Press, so knowing what they are publishing is research I need to do. (There's a long story there about my situation with why my manuscript isn't sitting at MLP right now, but I won't get into it unless somebody asks.) But outside of the research aspect, Ms. Williamson has produced a couple of very interesting books with engaging characters.
I've also read a bit of Karen Hancock, although I'm still trying to sort out if I will read more, since she's not afraid to put the sin of the characters on the page. She writes an engaging tale, though, so I might just put my waders on an keep working through her Legends of the Guardian King series. At least I can get it through the library!
Hmmm. Who else? I've only read one of Donita K. Paul's books, and it didn't grab me particularly, but I'm told that's my fault because I chose a book from the middle of the series and it was the one told from Bardon's perspective. People assured me that I would adore her if I had started with any book but that one.
Beyond those fiction writers, the rest of my time is spent in craft books. Orson Scott Card, Jeff Gerke, Renni Brown/Dave King, etc. I try to alternate--fiction, craft book, fiction, craft book.
Well enough rambling from me. I know how people feel when they see a post that they have to scroll to read.
