Tolkien's Lord of the Rings became the genetic code of fantasy. Every fantasy author since either builds on it or deliberately subverts it, making the book the central reference point that shapes the entire genre.
What's different about Lord of the Rings? Lord of the Rings is different in that it is so somehow universal. And I think almost all fantasy authors, especially in sort of the Western lexicon, are in conversation with Lord of the Rings in some way. Either they're trying to build on it or they're trying to subvert it. There is something about this story that is in the genetic code of so much that has come after it.
