Who do you consider a Great Author of the last 50 years or so (first well-known work after 1970)? I'd like to get a feel for who's who in modern literature. Any language/culture. Fiction only.
Bonus points for any books you believe are classics from that time period. Any language, but only fiction please.
Ken Follet: Pillars of the Earth. Historical fiction. You're transported back to the 1200s. Cathedral building with raunchy politics, a bit of HBO Game of Thrones mixed in. It was extremely visual... and fondly memorable for me.
Not to mention the two sequels World without End and A Column of Fire, set in the 1400s and 1600s, respectively, and the prequel Kingsbridge set around the year 1000.
Then there's the century trilogy which takes place in the 20th century, and a whole lot of smaller works like A Dangerous Fortune, which manages to make you care for some bankers in 19th century London.