[Thinlómien]

I have yet to read Atwood in a large scale (only read The Handmaid's Tale and The Penelopiad this far), but I believe she might be one of the authors we're looking for.

And even though she writes fantasy, I just have to nominate Ursula Le Guin, because she's so much more than your average fantasy writer. Her books are full of wisdom, and there is a certain simplicity in her work which reminds me of Tolkien. And she has, of course, written other stuff than fantasy as well - very critical science fiction for example, and her newest (?) piece of fiction, Lavinia, is a historical novel and homage to Vergil's Aeneis, but also a very intriguing and beautiful read for someone who has not waddled through the original epic (like me!). I liked it very much.