Book Recommendation

[CraigDolphin]

Well, I'm a complete scifi-fantasy junkie so I'll limit this to some authors not previously mentioned. There's some great stuff mentioned previously, and some stuff I got bored with pretty quickly.

Genre: SciFi

Lois McMaster Bujold - Vorkosigan Saga Essentially a 'space opera' series. One of my favorites, and has a great sense of humour. Literally had me crying with laughter in some scenes.

Genre: Pure Fantasy

Robin Hobb: Farseer trilogy. Evil author Poor Fitz.
George RR Martin: Ice and Fire series (not yet complete though).

Genre: Alternate Historical/Fantasy

Guy Gavriel Kay: Anything he writes is gold IMO. Generally writes one-book stories, but has one duology (Sailing to Sarantium and Lord of Emporers). He also has one high-fantasy trilogy. I would highly recommend the Lions of Al Rassan, or Tigana. The only author whose work I re-read with regularity.

Naomi Novik: Temeraire series. Essentially Napoleonic times, reimagined to include dragons and aerial corps being part of the war between Napoleon and ...well, everybody else. It's something of a cross between Master and Commander, and the dragonriders of Pern.

Genre Mystery/Fantasy

Jim Butcher: The Dresden Files. Real page turners featuring a wizard trying to make a living in modern day chicago by helping the chicago PD solve unusual cases.

I could go on, but you only have 30 minutes a day and you've already got enough recommendations for many years at that rate

 

[Banana]

Craig touched on Alternative History genre... While not sci-fi at all, I have to say I enjoyed Harry Turtledove's works, especially on his Balance series and The Two Georges.

 

[wazz]

i read all of ayn rand's stuff when i was a teen. i couldn't put it down. eventually it got a bit repetitive though. i found her through one of the bands i listened to: Rush. some of their early stuff was lyrically influenced by her writing. they even have a song called "Anthem" (the title of one of her books).

recent reads:
- The Wind-up Bird Chronicle (1994-5 (in three volumes)) – Haruki Murakami
- Beyond the Sky and the Earth. A Journey Into Bhutan. (1999) – Jamie Zeppa

murakami's not sci-fi but he sends you places!

 

[oumahexi]

Erm... *looking up the series on wiki*

The Elenium and The Tamuli are a separate universe from Belgarath and Mallorean series, so as long you've read the B & M, you're OK to read the Belgarath the Socerer and Polgara the Sorceress.

Ah ha! Socerer and Soceress - now we're talking! All sounds very Welsh as well, even better!

Please, don't anyone come back with Harry P. I know a lot of adults have read them, but I draw the line...

 

[Banana]

Can I ask why the line at JK Rowling?

 

[oumahexi]

I don't see too much difference between Harry Potter and Buffy, except they may be of opposit genders.

 

[Rabbie]

Can I ask why the line at JK Rowling?

In my case because I don't think they are very good

 

[Banana]

Oh no worries, oumahexi & Rabbie-

It's just rare for me to meet someone who wasn't all that crazy over Rowling (I haven't read the books as the whole thing just didn't appeal to me for some reason) and was curious what you felt to be missing in her stories.

 

[MSAccessRookie]

Oh no worries, oumahexi & Rabbie-

It's just rare for me to meet someone who wasn't all that crazy over Rowling (I haven't read the books as the whole thing just didn't appeal to me for some reason) and was curious what you felt to be missing in her stories.

I have read all Seven books and seen all 5 Movies so far (I have four children that are fans), leaving me with these observations:

1. The books were well written and the storylines carried through with little confusion. I like this kind of fantasy, and enjoyed these books as well.
2. The movies were nowhere as good as the books (in fact most of them really have not done justice to the books that they were based on).
3. Most importantly, I did not assume that oumahexi would be interested in them, since they are not really science fiction as much as they are fantasy, and I thought she was looking for science fiction.

 

[oumahexi]

I have read all Seven books and seen all 5 Movies so far (I have four children that are fans), leaving me with these observations:

1. The books were well written and the storylines carried through with little confusion. I like this kind of fantasy, and enjoyed these books as well.

1. I have heard so, not read the books but seen the movies (I have three grandchildren). My initial reaction was one of worry because the eldest, being 11, showed a great deal of interest in magic, and not the Paul Daniels type.
   

   [*]The movies were nowhere as good as the books (in fact most of them really have not done justice to the books that they were based on).

   Most movies are the same. They can rarely capture the same feelings that the books do.
   

   [*]Most importantly, I did not assume that oumahexi would be interested in them, since they are not really science fiction as much as they are fantasy, and I thought she was looking for science fiction.

My main preference is for science fantasy, science fiction running a very close second and any type of fantasy after that. Probably I'd only really rule out categories such as love stories, most war, and western.

Someone mentioned historic novels. I once read a whole series of books on Scottish history by Nigel Tranter - amazing.

I am currently open to suggestions, I just need to get back into the swing of reading for fun again.

Thanks for your suggestions. I can see myself getting a whole new library out of this thread

 

[Mile-O]

they even have a song called "Anthem" (the title of one of her books).

Which is an objectivist retelling of Yevgeny Zemyatin's wonderfully dystopic We, the inspiration for Orwell's Nineteen Eight-Four and, though he denied it, Aldous Huxley's Brave New World.

 

[gemma-the-husky]

used to read a lot of SF - 20 yrs ago or so

at that time I was very impressed by James Tiptree Jr, who turned out to be a lady (really complex and interesting short stories), and Joe Haldeman (The Forever War)
Most Philip K Dick stuff is worth reading as well.

 

[Rich]

The movies were nowhere as good as the books (in fact most of them really have not done justice to the books that they were based on).

When has a film ever done justice to the book it was based on?

 

[redneckgeek]

I'm about halfway through "Dies The Fire" by S.M. Sirling
I guess it falls into SF, but it's really just post-apocalypse.
Not too bad so far, although it's 3 parrallel story lines.
Two of them are good, and the third is so boring that I just skim those chapters.