David Eddings, 1931-2009
Quite a surprise to read about this.
I remember picking up a copy of "The Diamond Throne" when I was traveling, many years ago. My sister had already been reading "The Belgariad," but I hadn't ever borrowed it. Got to it eventually, of course. I adored his first serieses (if there is such a word), and found myself annoyed by the tendency to rewrite the same story twice for each set of characters-- which didn't mean that the worlds weren't fun to revisit. I loved the characters, and the banter between them. It's hard to think of a favorite moment, although there are many that still make me smile to think of them.