David Eddings

David Eddings (7 July 1931 to 2 June 2009) was an American fantasy novelist, best known for The Belgariad, the five-book epic he wrote with his wife Leigh Eddings.

Born in Spokane, Washington, he studied at Reed College and the University of Washington. His first published book was not fantasy but High Hunt, a contemporary novel about four young men on a deer hunt, issued by G. P. Putnam's Sons in early 1972. He turned to fantasy with The Belgariad, published by Del Rey Books from 1982 to 1984: Pawn of Prophecy (April 1982), Queen of Sorcery, Magician's Gambit, Castle of Wizardry and Enchanters' End Game. The sequence was followed by The Malloreon (1987 to 1991), The Elenium (1989 to 1991) and The Tamuli (1992 to 1994), plus the companion novels Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress. From 1995 his books carried Leigh's name as co-author; he said she had worked with him from the start. Leigh died in 2007, and he died in Carson City, Nevada, leaving 18 million dollars to Reed College.

For collectors

Collectors look first for Pawn of Prophecy, which began The Belgariad as a Del Rey book in April 1982, and for High Hunt (Putnam, 1972), his first book and the only one from before his fantasy career. Reviewing The Rivan Codex in 1998, Publishers Weekly counted The Belgariad among the founding sagas of modern English-language fantasy.