I have recently been rereading Ursula Le Guin and my god she's just about as good as you can be. I could almost say it beats Tolkien. *gasp*
Other than that, I've recently read the two new
Rain Wild Chronicles novels by Robin Hobb (guaranteed delightful Hobb quality) and (although it's sf not fantasy)
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis. I wonder if anyone else has read it? I've read it as a kid and reread it now and it was just as impressive as back then...