High fantasy, high fantasy, low fantasy, high fantasy, rabbits ...

Tad Williams is brilliant, he does some sci fi as well, though its sort of mixed in. Like the War of the Flowers which has fairies living in skyscrapers.

Joe Abercombie is a good author if you like the realism mixed with fantasy of things like A Song of Ice and Fire (which I also highly recommend).

James Barclay is a mixed bag, some stuff is good, but he's also one of the few authors who I've had to give up on a book by due to annoyance at pacing and plot.

Trudi Canavan is always good, plus it works for any age from teen up.

Neil Gaiman is of course a wonderful writer, I particularly suggest American Gods.

J. V. Jones isn't that well know, but I like her stuff for the political and action elements.

Katherine Kerr writes epic, not quite Celtic, stuff. It takes a bit of time to get all the reincarnations straight and there's about a million really fat books, but I love it.

Jasper Fforde mixes a love of books with a great sense of humour, as well as being an awesome guy to fans. (or at least from the couple of times he's dome signings near where I live.)

Steven Erikson writes well, as long as you don't mind having a billion and two characters and settings to figure out and that's before the reincarnation really sets in.

Jim Butcher's Dresden Files is a good example of supernatural elements in a World One like setting. I can't speak for any of his other works.

Hope this is helpful MAX.

I'll echo those before me who recommended Tolkien, Douglas Adam's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy trilogy, Discworld, Neil Gaiman, Hunger Games, Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy, Artemis Fowl, Chronicles of Narnia, The Giver, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, Michael Crichton (especially Jurassic Park and the Lost World), The Dresden Files and the Inkheart trilogy by Cornelia Funke.

I would also go on to suggest The Thief Lord also by Cornelia Funke. I would say The Princess Bride is a fun read, probably even more so for fans of the movie. If you're into dinosaurs my favorite book is Raptor Red by Robert T. Bakker. It's a look at the prehistoric world through the eyes of a Utahraptor. If you're looking for fantasy Angie Sage's Magyk/Septimus Heap series is a good read as well as the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede, the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull, The Stolen Child by Keith Donohue which is about changelings, and is written from both perspectives (the changeling and the changed for child) and if you don't shy away from Christian themes the Dragons in our Midst, Oracles of Fire and Children of the Bard series by Bryan Davis are very good.

Frank Peretti is also a very good Christian author, I particularly enjoy The Oath and the pair This Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness. Angela Elwell Hunt has several very good semi-romance historical fiction series, also written from a Christian perspective. Her Heirs of Cahira O’Connor series follows an Irish family through several hundred years of history highlighting females who have broken traditional roles, the first book is set in the 1400's and is about a female knight, the second in the 1600's and follows a female artist aboard a ship, the third is set in the Civil War and the fourth switches between modern day and during the Norman invasion of Ireland. She also wrote a series about the early days of the colonies starting with Roanoke. And a trilogy about Joseph's dreams and his time in Egypt, as well as a book about the women in Moses' life (his Egyptian mother, his sister and his wife) that was really interesting.

I also enjoyed Dan Brown's books about the Da Vinci/church conspiracies I guess you'd call it, and his other two stand alone books, Digital Fortress and Deception Point, I've not had the chance to read The Lost Symbol or Inferno by him yet though. Tamar Myers is another good author if you like murder mysteries. She has two series, one set in Amish country Pennsylvania at a bed and breakfast and the other in Charleston South Carolina at an antique shop, which amuse me vastly because all the titles are puns. Also you get some good/fun recipes from her Penn Dutch series! I doubt you'd call it superb literature, however another one I read recently, Carpe Demon, about a suburban mom demon hunter did really well with plot twists. I had it figured out several times, and the author kept throwing me for a loop. It was kind of a pleasant change to being able to figure the thing out. XD

Anyway, hope I didn't add to badly to the overwhemance of literature suggestions. :)

If you're looking for something that's paced particularly well for good writing examples, 'Great Gatsby' and 'Fahrenheit 451' are really great in my opinion.
Not sure if you'll enjoy them, though. The writing's great, but 'Great Gatsby' is basically 'Desperate Housewives' from the 1920's and Fahrenheit is confusing as ----.
Books that are truly classics in my mind? 'The Giver' (or any book in that series) and 'Marley and Me'. I've read both at least ten times and every time they make me cry. They are beautiful pieces of writing, greatly paced, and they are so thought provoking. Especially if you have a pet.
Are you on goodreads? If you join a book group on there, they might have some pretty good recommendations, too. Or even looking at lists or what friends are reading.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, LOTR, Discworld, His Dark Materials... trying to think of something that hasn't been mentioned already... Kate DiCamillo's stuff is good. As is the Graceling trilogy, which deserves to be known far better than it is. A Wrinkle in Time (really anything by Madeleine L'Engle) is also a must-read.
I second Rick Riordan's books and the Hunger Games, although the second and third weren't really my cup of tea. Neil Gaiman is great (I loved The Graveyard Book), Tamora Pierce.. and John Green. Everything by John Green. Gorgeous stuff.
I'm not sure if I'd call the Dragonriders of Pern series great in terms of writing, but it's complex and interesting and makes for a good read. The writing in Redwall is not always great, and it abounds with Canon Sues, but I seem to have an absurd fondness for it anyway. Maybe it's just because I like cute fluffy animals.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, LOTR, Series of Unfortunate Events, and His Dark Materials (I need to reread these...). I also recommend the Hunger Games, and any of Rick Riordan's mythology based books: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Heroes of Olympus, and the Kane Chronicles. The first two are connected, and you have to read Percy Jackson first. Those are Greek and Roman mythology while Kane Chronicles is Egyptian. Both are hysterical. Also, the 39 Clues and spinoff Cahills vs. Vespers. Not sure how to describe it, but very good. All of these are YA, but that certainly doesn't mean that they are low quality or not entertaining, as evidenced by my next recommendation - the Oz books. Yes, they are children's books, but they are so fun and well-written. Not great for continuity, though.

I read way too much, so forgive me if the list gets out of hand.
For just plain wonderful writing, I'd suggest anything by Holly Black (I love Holly Black. I love her so much I am going to cry) and certain books by Jerry Spinelli. The Young Wizards series by Diane Duane is also simply amazing (and mixes in Biblical symbolism without going over-the-top, if you're into that kind of thing). Then there's the Uglies series by Scott Westerfield, the His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman, anything by Neil Gaiman (I particularly enjoyed American Gods, but that might just be because I have a huge soft spot for mythology in general), and every single thing John Green has ever written. Also, Holes by Louis Sachar is a really great book that you should definitely read, no matter what. Oh, and I'd also suggest A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket (the dark comedy in this series is astoundingly amazing), most books by Tamora Pierce, and Flora Segunda by Ysabeu S. Wilce (not quite as made of pure amazingness as the other ones on this list, but it definitely needs more recognition in the world). Also, I know you didn't ask for comics, but even so I'd suggest Castle Waiting by Linda Medley. The plot is clever and fun, and it reads more like a fairy tale which just happens to be in comic format, rather than a pure comic.
Oh, and I'd also suggest that you check out The Order of Odd-Fish by James Kennedy! The tone of it reminds me quite a bit of the PPC...

As has been said, LotR, Discworld and Neil Gaiman stuff, definitely. I'd also recommend the Recluce series and the Spellsong Cycle, both by L.E. Modesitt jr, for good magic systems. (Manipulating the "order" and "chaos" that make up everything in the former, and song-magic in the latter, with plausible-sounding explanations how it works.)

If you want to learn how to write good descriptions, symbolism, and foreshadowing (as well as simply beautiful prose), read anything by Thomas Hardy. Far from the Madding Crowd is a good one to start with. So is Tess of the d'Urbervilles, but it will break your heart.
Not the same kind of thing as everyone else is recommending, or anything that has a "fandom," exactly, but I promise it will help your writing.

Seconding all the standard PPCer fare: LotR, Discworld, Neil Gaiman, etc. Also the Pern books, though looking at them now I don't know if I'd hold Anne McCaffrey's writing up as really great; for world-building, though, she indisputably rocks.

To throw in some new names, I recommend anything by Greg Bear for science fiction, Charles de Lint for urban fantasy, and Sherri S. Tepper for... uh... I guess science fiction is the closest? Mostly sci-fi, with elements of fantasy/the supernatural, religious myth, and feminism/gender issues in various degrees depending on the book. Anyway, they're all awesome at what they do and will give you a great ride with lots to think about.

~Neshomeh

Discworld - all of the Discworld. Along with the Dresden Files recommendations, I'd add Codex Alera, also by Jim Butcher. Anything by Neil Gaiman is good, but I especially recommend his short stories (Fragile Things in particular). They're good if you don't have a lot of time on hand, but still want to read something brilliant. Guy Kay's stuff is good: Tigana, The Last Light of the Sun, Lions of Al-Rassan... The Fionavar Tapestry gets good reviews, but I'm not personally a fan. If you haven't read The Chronicles of Narnia and A Series of Unfortunate Events, those are also great. You might like Animorpgs, too - some of this is YA, but it's good stuff.

Good luck, Max!

Discworld - all of the Discworld. Along with the Dresden Files recommendations, I'd add Codex Alera, also by Jim Butcher. Anything by Neil Gaiman is good, but I especially recommend his short stories (Fragile Things in particular). They're good if you don't have a lot of time on hand, but still want to read something brilliant. Guy Kay's stuff is good: Tigana, The Last Light of the Sun, Lions of Al-Rassan... The Fionavar Tapestry gets good reviews, but I'm not personally a fan. If you haven't read The Chronicles of Narnia and A Series of Unfortunate Events, those are also great. You might like Animorpgs, too - some of this is YA, but it's good stuff.

Good luck, Max!

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. Buy yourself a towel for maximum immersion.

The Redwall series by Brian Jacques is also a worthy read.

I second Des' suggestion of the Dune series. It's nothing short of fantastic!

If you're in the mood for fantasy, the Gentleman Bastards sequence is fantastic. The first book is Lies of Locke Lamora, and it's an absurdly fun read.

Seconding Lord of the Rings and Snow Crash. I also recommend, from the top of my head:
Iain M. Banks' The Culture series;
The Bartimaeus Trilogy;
Dune;
Dragonriders of Pern;
The Tawny Man Trilogy;
and Roger Zelazny's Lord of Light.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Inkheart, Inkspell and Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke

Moby-Dick by Herman Melville

anything written by William Shakespeare

any short stories by Stephen King (novels are good too, but his short stories are boss)

Boy's Life by Robert R. McCammon

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

Well, Lord of the Rings, if you haven't already read that, definitely throw in some Phantastes (George MacDonald), Jurassic Park (some discretion might be advised depending on your age)- and to mention some of my personal favorites (I find them well written, but I may be prejudiced) anything by Lois Lowry, especially 'Autumn Street', Artemis Fowl, The Keys To the Kingdom (Garth Nix), anything by Garth Nix, and for those wonderful explanations of scientifically impossible things, Michael Crichton (discretion, again). Hope this helped!

For starters, everything by Corey Doctorow.

And then, I have a little list:
The Dresden Files
Jack Campbell's stuff
The Mars Trilogy
Snow Crash