Aye Dan Brown has a formula and he sticks to it. Does alot of research but doesn't push the boundaries when writing his adventures. William Gibson has been poor for ages now, living on past glories I'd say. American Gods is fantastic but divides everyone.
Really depends on what you're looking for in terms of a reading experience? If you're after sci-fi with plenty of action then John Scalzi or the amazing Richard Morgan are good places to start. If you're looking to get into a new fantasy series which has plenty of books left to be released then Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lomara is very, very good. I quite liked Alan Campbell's Scar Night, and he was involved with the GTA series before becoming an author.
Steph Swainston has a really enjoyable series of books about fallen gods, addiction and fighting the insect menace that curses the world in which it is set. Also recommend Liz Williams who has a really enjoyable series of books under the Detective Inspector Chen banner, starting with Snake Agent. Features hell, demons and an inspector who has to regulate both worlds in modern day China. Also some of the best sleeve art I've seen of late, but its published by an American firm but I have seen the odd copy in Waterstones.
Similar vein is Mike Carey's Felix Castor paperbacks, you'll probably have heard of him as he's been involved with Marvel before doing a series himself. Actually, I note there is a third book out now, one for my list.
The rising star of horror is Joe Hill (son of you known who) and his outstanding series of short stories called 20th Century Ghosts, amazing imagination and twists. He's just released his first full length called Heart Shaped Box, about a rockstar who buys a ghost on Ebay. Good first stab but not his best work.
