Top Ten Picks: Book Series

I found this new meme at Rose City Reader.  Each week will be a different kind of Top 10 pick.  It's sponsored by Jillian at Random Ramblings and I think it's a great idea.  She has a really nice blog, too, that is new to me so bonus!

In any event, this week's Top 10 is series and I do love them.  Here, in no particular order, are my favorite series:

1. The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkein - read and re-read so many times I've lost count.
2. The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis - also re-read bunches
3. The Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander - my first ever big girl read, re-read and reviewed last year - The Book of Three, The Black Cauldron, The Castle of Llyr, Taran Wanderer, and The High King - these books made me love fairy tales and mythology and inspired me to read The Mabinogion
4. The Dark is Rising Sequence by Susan Cooper - another childhood favorite that I re-read last year - Over Sea, Under Stone; The Dark is Rising, The Greenwitch, The Grey King, Silver on the Tree
5. The Sun Sword Series and House Wars by Michelle West - a huge favorite that I think everyone should read.  The world building is wonderful, the writing is wonderful, the characterization is rich, and the storytelling is exceptional.
6. The Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay - re-reading these now so reviews are coming, suffice it to say this series is just excellent.
7. James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux mysteries - no one, and I do mean no one, writes place like James Lee Burke.  If you have read any of these you are really missing out.  Start with The Neon Rain
8. John Connolly's Charlie Parker mysteries - another incredible series that transcends genre in a unique and utterly compelling way.  My review of The Lovers is here.  Start with Every Dead Thing, but my favorite continues to be Dark Hollow.  They're all exceptionally good.
9. A Song of Ice and Fire by George RR Martin - this is an incredibly difficult series to list.  On the one hand it's one of the best of its kind ever written.  Period.  Martin is an amazing writer with an ability to keep large, complex plots and interesting characterizations moving.  The other hand is that the time between books is incredibly slow - the last update on the latest book was in January 2008.  It makes it very difficult to be a fan, but I know I'll pre-order when the next book comes out.
10. Kushiel's Legacy by Jacqueline Carey - Just an enchanting, interesting series - good storytelling and one of my favorite female characters in fantasy ever - Phedre.

Wow.  It's hard to limit myself to just 10!  What are your favorites?