Best fiction trillogies of all time?

[Nazgul35]

For me...it would depend on the genre...

Fantasy:

1) Lord of the Rings
2) Merlin Trilogy by Mary Stewart
3) White Gold Wielder

Sci-Fi:

1) Dune
2) Foundation
3) Dragon Riders of Pern (or would this be fantasy?)

discuss amongst yourself....

[roguevalley]

1. Agreed on the choices.

Its good to live a while in another world, this one is so stupid sometimes. How nuts is that?

[amlouden]

2. for sci fi

i would have said star wars, except now they've made 2 more and a 3rd on the way, so i guess it's not really a trilogy any more

[THUNDER HANDS]

3. mine

1. LOTR
2. Godfather
3. Indiana Jones

[wickerwoman]

4. How strict are we being about the term "trilogy"?

Does it have to be three books or is a series enough?

It's been a while but I love:

Fantasy:
1.) Lord of the Rings
2.) David Eddings' Belgariad
3.) Stephen King's The Dark Tower series (another Sci-Fi crossover)

Sci-Fi:
1.) Octavia Butler's Xenogenesis series
2.) Dune
3.) Orson Scott Card's Ender books

[DisgustipatedinCA]

5. American Trilogy--John Dos Pasos

Another trilogy that's gotten much acclaim but that I have not read is The Gulag Archipelligo.

[TopesJunkie]

15. Yes, indeed.

Dos Passos' trilogy is absolutely incredible. Gulag ain't bad, either.

[Political_Junkie]

6. hmmm...

I'm afraid I can't remember reading any trilogies other than Lord of the Rings... I'm a tolkien nut!
Never finished the Merlin trilogy.

[BigMcLargehuge]

7. My choices

Since I can't stand fantasy I have no entries in that catagory.

Scifi however:

1. Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive (William Gibson)
2. Virtual Light, Idoru, All Tomorrow's Parties (William Gibson)
3. Dreams of Flesh and Sand, Dreams of Gods and Men, Singularities (W.T. Quick)

[Supply Side Jesus]

18. Bling on Gibson

funny thing for me, first one I read of his was All Tomorrow's Party's and the other 2 in reverse. Made it interesting to say the least.
At least I got the cyberpunk trilogy right. Awsome stuff.

[Speck Tater]

8. The Heechee series, but I think it's more than 3 books.

[mr_hat]

9. Gormenghast trilogy >

Titus Groan, Gormenghast, Titus Alone, by Mervyn Peake.

[markus]

21. Man, I tried to get through that set

but just couldn't keep moving. I feel like its one of those books I'm destined to read, but will take a long while to get through.

Off of SF/Fantasy, the Deptford Trilogy rocks.

Most of my favorite series are longer than trilogies.

[Diego360]

10. Good stuff.

Also:
His Dark Materials Trilogy: The Golden Compass / The Subtle Knife / The Amber Spyglass

[MoonAndSun]

11. Lord of the Rings, definitely.

and I love the Mary Stewart books.

[RichardRay]

12. Spangle

Gary Jennings's books about a circus in the years following the Civil War. It moves from the US to Europe as the circus gets involved with all kinds of social and political issues and movements of the time. A friend of mine who was a tightwire artist in a modern circus says it's very accurate about circus culture.

The Spangle Trilogy
----------------------
The Road Show
The Center Ring
The Grand Promenade

Aside from that, I have always been deeply sad that there aren't dragons in our skies as there are in the skies of Pern.

[greendog]

13. The New Mexico Trilogy by Jonh Nichols

1. The Milagro Beanfield War

2. The Majic Journey

3. The Nirvana Blues

[RichardRay]

14. COOL!

I actually didn't KNOW there were two more books after Milagro Beanfield War. I'm headed for a bookstore NOW.

[DemoTex]

16. Faulkner's "Snopes" trilogy

The Hamlet
The Town
The Mansion

[DemoTex]

17. And my second choice is Paul Auster's "New York Trilogy"

Auster is awesome. But not as awesome as Faulkner!

[mitchum]

24. That's it! I don't understand how anyone could consider...

anything else

[Forkboy]

19. The Mars Trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson

Red Mars
Green Mars
Blue Mars

[shimmergal]

20. My no.1 choice:

Joan Vinge's The Snow Queen, World's End, The Summer Queen.

It's good to see other Pern admirers here. That series has gone far beyond 3 books of course. So has Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover series, another top choice of mine.

I also like the already-mentioned Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson. And the Venus trilogy by Pamela Sargent.

[northofdenali]

22. Fantasy lovers have got to read Robin Hobb

Two trilogies and a third almost complete:

1. The Farseer Trilogy: Assassin's Apprentice, Royal Assassin and Assassin's Quest.

2. The Liveship Traders Trilogy: Ship of Magic, Mad Ship, Ship of Destiny.

3. The Tawny Man: Fool's Errand, Golden Fool

Her writing is literally magical; lyrical, haunting characters, most flawed, many quite mysterious. Fantasy readers will fall for her books within the first few pages.

[nuxvomica]

23. The Deptford Trilogy by Robertson Davies is a fun read

But I read it so long ago, I don't remember the details. I should dig them up again.
Of the ones you mentioned, I've read LOTR twice and the first few of Dune and Foundation. Asimov confused me with the Foundation and Robots series. They merged somehow.
This is all ancient history for me and a strain on my memory. I should start reading fiction again beyond Harry Potter.

[marigold20]

25. Mutiny on the Bounty

Years ago, I plowed through the three books, let's see, Mutiny on the Bounty, Men Against the Sea (maybe that isn't the title, can't remember)and Pitcairn's Island. I thought it was just great. Of course, I then read LOTR and liked it so much better.

[mac56]

26. I can't believe no one has mentioned "The Hitchhiker's Guide..

To The Galaxy".

Greatest four-part trilogy ever written.

[nuxvomica]

28. I can't believe I didn't mention it either

A great series.

[morningglory]

27. William Faulkner's Snopes trilogy: The Hamlet, The Town, and

The Mansion. There is a piece in there called Spotted Ponies that makes you laugh your brains out.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

29. The Piers Anthony "Manta" trilogy

Consisting of "Omnivore", "Orn", and "0X" (that's ZERO X). Classic under-acknowledged science fiction at its best.

Then there's the Lary Niven Ringworld series.

Going beyond the trilogy concept, the best SERIES include The Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Tom Swift, The Stainless Steel Rat, and best of all, Doc Savage.

And let us not forget the Doug Adams stuff-- The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy.

[Nazgul35]

30. Philip Jose Farmer anyone....

Riverworld series....good old Mark Twain and Sir Richard Burton trying to find the source of the river....

and for more fantasy we must include Fafard and the Grey Mouser...

[spunky]

31. In sci fi. . .

Philip K. Dick's VALIS trilogy:
VALIS/The Transmigration of Timothy Archer/The Divine Invasion

[jobycom]

32. Gene Wolf and Elizabeth Scarborough

Wolf's are usually four book trilogies, but his "Shadow of the Torturer" and his "Book of the Long Sun" series are great. He has a two book series "The Book of the Short Sun." Well written, though at times a little too chatty. Some of the best imagined worlds, creatures and characters I've ever seen.

Elizabeth Scarborough's "The Deed of Paksenarrion" (I think it was a trilogy, though when I read it all three books were bound in one volume). A soldier in a Tolken-esque universe. Great detail.

And of course, Harry Potter, maybe the greatest fiction series since Tolkein, especially in terms of cultural impact.

Piers Anthony's Xanth series, if you cut it off at book three.

[jobycom]

33. Oh yeah, and literary-- Henry Miller's Tropics

Tropic of Cancer, Tropic of Capricorn, Black Spring-- The most honest, energetic and funny writing I've ever read.

In fact, read Tropic of Cancer again, see how much of it sounds familiar.