The Wheel of Time — Robert Jordan / Brandon Sanderson

Robert Jordan's 14-novel Wheel of Time series (1990-2013, completed by Brandon Sanderson after Jordan's death) is the most ambitious world-building project in contemporary fantasy: a fully realised world with multiple civilisations, 2,782 named characters, 15,000 pages, and a complete mythology. Its Netflix adaptation in 2021 introduced a new generation to one of fantasy's most meticulously constructed universes.