Magician
by Raymond E. Feist
broken up into two books called:
Magician: Apprentice and Magician: Master

These two books are the beginning of a very large series written by Feist. Four books (as noted below) make up the Riftwar Saga. With later series that flesh out his world. Magician is classic high fantasy, filled with elves, dwarves, wizards and warriors. I highly recommend these first two books to anyone who enjoys fantasy or genre fiction. The books chronicle the adventures of two major characters Pug, a young magician struggling to learn his craft and come to grips with magical power he doesn't understand and his adopted brother Thomas. Thomas begins to train as a warrior, serving his duke in the Dutchy of Crydee. Pug and Thomas are soon whisked off into the greater world, interacting with powerful world figures and heroes of all races.

The story has a quick pace throughout and never feels bogged down. The world while in many ways a typical fantasy world, has complexities that show themselves as the books and later series progress. The books are such an enjoyable read that I come back to them every couple of years with renewed enthusiasm and I can't wait to get to later chapters where Thomas is with the dwarves or Pug is studying powerful magics (I'm trying to be careful with spoilers!).

I love how Feist is able to take the old standards; elves and their fae magics, dwarves in their dark tunnels and even an ancient and powerful dragon, and make all of it feel new and fresh. The 'hero's journey' of both Pug and Thomas are wonderful and it’s always a challenge for me to say whose story I like more. The side characters are fleshed out and many of them show up in later books with their own storylines. The one drawback for the series as a whole is that some of the more recent books don't have the similar verve or excitement to them that this first book (or couple of books) had for me. If you really love the books though there are many and more to keep you reading for months. Many of the characters from the Rift War Saga make appearances or are main characters in later series.