Poll
Hello FBR members! The Goodreads blog has requested our help for Sci-fi Fantasy Week. They want one recommendation so I thought we could work together to choose one. You can write in a book if it is not on the poll already and if you also want to add why you love that book in the comments, that's a great addition. Please keep it limited to fantasy even though it is sci-fi and fantasy week since we are a fantasy book club.
The Way of Kings
(write-in)
The Name of the Wind
(write-in)
A Game of Thrones
(write-in)
The Waking Fire
(write-in)
The Fifth Season
(write-in)
The Dispossessed
(write-in)
The Eye of the World
(write-in)
The Shadow of the Torturer
(write-in)
Gods of Color
(write-in)
The Thousand Names
(write-in)
The Blade Itself
(write-in)
Age of Myth
(write-in)
Kings of the Wyld
(write-in)
Kushiel's Dart
(write-in)
Storm Front
(write-in)
Beyond Redemption
(write-in)
The Black Company
(write-in)
City of Bones
(write-in)
The Black Prism
(write-in)
Poll added by: Jenna
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Drew
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Jul 13, 2017 10:44PM
Per the instructions I wrote in The Way of Kings. The reason I love The Way of Kings is because it was the first epic fantasy book that truly enveloped my every waking thought while reading it. It was kind of a milestone because it revealed how much bigger the payoff is when you've read a really excellent long book. Prior to that I usually capped my willingness to read single novels at 800ish pages. What could possibly be worth reading that's 1200+ pages long?? Well, Sanderson cured me of that false thinking because it still stands as one of the most life-altering reading experiences of my life.
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I choose way of kings. This book captured my attention the whole way through. I love the chatacters and the world.
I added The Thousand Names - at least, I hope I did. I was also considering adding Promise of Blood and Prince of Fools but I am just a little more in love with The Thousand Names.
Django Wexler just knocked it out of the park and the series is almost complete - with books one better than the other.
I also wanted to give more visibility to "less" known fantasy authors - this is an important platform for us also to help authors to emerge. Just my 2 cents!
I added mistborn the final empire. My favorite series. Everything about it is amazing. World building, character delevopment, life lessons, character connections, and not to mention the emotional roller coaster it puts you through.
I added "The Dispossessed" from Ursula K.LeGuin. and maybe I should add "The Earthsea". Ursula LeGuin is a great author. All of her books should be read. but The Dispossed is a very special novel. “You cannot take what you have not given, and you must give yourself. You cannot buy the Revolution. You cannot make the Revolution. You can only be the Revolution. It is in your spirit, or it is nowhere.”
I added Eye of the World- Robert Jordan's (and Brandon Sanderson's although i'm not that far yet) Wheel of Time series is quickly rising through my series rankings- while I doubt it will ever top Lord of the Rings and related works of Arda, it is the first I've read since that evoked similar feelings of expansiveness, tangibility, and (most importantly) age for the world. Sanderson's works are fantastic (honestly can't go wrong with either Mistborn or Way of Kings) and he is rightly credited with world building prowess... but, they lack a depth of age- they "feel" new and what history there is seems elusive and ethereal. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series seeks to do the same thing; but... well, I'll just say Martin's work is the one exception I give to "book is better than adaptation" maxim. (If this doesn't get traction I change vote to Fellowship)
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I know when groups have book club reads, after a while, people tend to vote for the ones leading even if they don't really like that one the most. Remember it's for recommendations, not for our book club read (unless you want to start a buddy read) so you're not being forced to read the top book or anything.
The Lies of Locke Lamora Memorable characters, dialog that has you in splits and woldbuilding that is so immersive that Camorr feels like a real place.
This book is flawless and doesn't leave you with a cliffhanger, so the book can be treated in its own merits and pass as a standalone.
Trista wrote: "I added mistborn the final empire. My favorite series. Everything about it is amazing. World building, character delevopment, life lessons, character connections, and not to mention the emotional r..."I second this!
I was reading through the comments and wanted to ditto with everything you guys just said here.Anyway, I chose The Way of the Kings as it pretty shook my whole world of Fantasy. However, it was really difficult to choose only one ://
I just wanted to add my two-cents because to me, my favourite will always be enduring:The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss.
If you haven't read it, don't waste time with anything else. It is a gift to the literary world.
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The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss.
If you haven't read it, don't waste time with anything else. It is..."
Add it to the poll!
I added The Shadow of the Torturer, as it begins one of the most imaginative tales I have read. The writing and world-building is amazing, with a ton of information hidden in plain sight. I could spend all day raving about Gene Wolfe's writing, but I'll just insist that anyone who hasn't read it already go add it to their list!
Aravind wrote: "The Lies of Locke Lamora Memorable characters, dialog that has you in splits and woldbuilding that is so immersive that Camorr feels like a real place.
This book is flawless and doesn't leave you..."
Reading it right now and it's amazing!!!! I adore the characters and the overall grand scheme of things!!!
But I voted for Wizard's First Rule which was a book I really enjoyed, loved how badass the female characters are in that series!
It is so exciting to see so many different suggestions here! And to partially sidetrack, I recently read a comment that highlighted how all the fantasy books are the same. I genuinely think this thread shows how that is an incorrect statement. One genre can be not appealing but it cannot be said it is all the same.
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BOOYA!!
I voted for The Fellowship of the Ring. I know it's common to vote for what's new and trendy, but this is the book. along with the original Earthsea trilogy, that got me hooked on fantasy, and it's the one that I'll read again and again.The epic quest, the reluctant, unlikely hero, the missing heir - all the familiar tropes originated here, in Tolkien's wonderful prose that created one of the first fully fledged fantasy worlds.
Without Lord of the Rings, the genre would be a lot smaller and sadder than it is today.
I added Age of Myth. I chose it because, as with all of Michael J Sullivan's books, the characters are amazing. The writing is simple, yet epic at the same time. It was one of those books that, after I began reading it, I couldn't put down.
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Great addition! I haven't chosen what I will vote for yet, but this might win my vote.
I thought maybe you guys can read the Electric Empire Series. It's both Fantasy and Sci Fi. If it's want you want, though. I thought that it's interesting, because I love the series. The way that the author use plot twists, just wow! Trust me, it's worth reading.
Fazilat wrote: "Aravind wrote: "The Lies of Locke Lamora Memorable characters, dialog that has you in splits and woldbuilding that is so immersive that Camorr feels like a real place.
This book is flawless and d..."
Oh that's great! I'm reading the third book of the series now and so far it's really good. I'll check out your candidate, sounds cool.
I literally couldn't pick anything other than Way of Kings. That book changed my life and my perspective on literature, and completely revived my love for fantasy when I read it. It'll always be my favorite, I think.
I also picked The Way of Kings. Three wonderful characters developed (especially the prisoner leading the bridge crew). I may be dead before the series finishes (in my early 60s), but I just absolutely love this book.
I voted for The Night Circus. It is one of the most unique books I have ever read. It includes both fantasy and romance. Plus, there is so much wonderful imagery that it just dazzles the reader as only a circus can. My second choice would be The Paper Magician. Again, a very imaginative book! So much you can do with paper that you never even thought you could do!
Joanne wrote: "I voted for The Night Circus. It is one of the most unique books I have ever read. It includes both fantasy and romance. Plus, there is so much wonderful imagery that it just dazzles..."OMG! Since when was that an option? I love that book!!!!
Aelys_Althea wrote: "I just wanted to add my two-cents because to me, my favourite will always be enduring:The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss.
If you haven't read it, don't waste time with anything else. It is..."
I agree. That series is amazing but the fact I don't think it'll ever be completed knocked it down a little for me. *le sigh
I added the Black Company. I am a great fan of military fantasy, and this is great example! The world building and detail is insane, and its always to read a book where the main characters are part of the "Bad guys."
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s always to read a book where the main characters are par..."
I'm not sure it worked - it's not on the list. I will add it, but you'll have to vote for it again if you want it to have your vote.
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I am going to give a second recommendation just in case another group/user has already recommended the first one. The second recommendation will be a book that is randomly selected (picked out of a hat) from this list and has at least one comment supporting it.
I just decided this so sorry for not letting all of you know before. I was just worried that perhaps the first place winner will be a book that is already recommended. The second recommendation will likely not be featured, but in case it is, this is your chance to support the lesser-known fantasy you love and expose it to a larger potential readership.
I added Beyond Redemption by Michael R. Fletcher. I read this and its sequel this year and was blown away at how imaginative it is.
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Patrick wrote: "I added the Black Company. I am a great fan of military fantasy, and this is great example! The world building and detail is insane, and its always to read a book where the main characters are par..."
I liked the Black Company but I thought his Dread Empire series was a lot better... if you haven't, I suggest reading it!
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For the random selection (with at least one comment supporting it), the winner is The Waking Fire.
I have passed along both recommendations to the Goodreads blog people.
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For the random selection (with at least one comment supporting it), the winner is The Waking Fire.
I have pa..."
Yaaaaaasssssssssss!!!!! OMG the two best, IMO. :D
Thanks for the number of book recommendations!
Ok who else voted for The Shadow of the Torturer? We need to be friends :)
Have read all the books at the top, but I see some titles at the bottom that I want to read. Interesting that someone voted for Wizard's First Rule. That has a special place in my heart because it was the first fantasy novel I ever read. It was recommended to me but sat on my shelf for two years because I wasn't about to read some book about wizards!
Once I got around to reading it, I tore through in a few days then went directly for the second book in the series and tore through it in equally rapid fashion. Never read any more in that series, but I am forever indebted to the guy who recommended it because it introduced me to Fantasy (the greatest of genres😉).
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Interesting that someone voted for Wizard's First Rule. That has a special place in my heart because i..."
I had a similar experience with Wizard's First Rule. My Aunt handed it to me, and I almost didn't read it because of the cheesy cover at the time. Very enjoyable books! :)
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I didn't get back around to Wheel of Time until college around 2005-2006
Iain wrote: "I actually read Wizard's First Rule as well... I think it was after my first failed attempt at Wheel of Time (I never made it out of the starting town)... around 1998... picked it up at the library..."Yeah, Wheel of Time is so cumbersome.. Wizard's First Rule is an interesting gateway book. I read the first 4 in Wheel of Time... Only enjoyed the first two really. 3 and 4 were rough.
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At the time they were cheap entertainment that lasted m awhile...
I may revisit Wheel of Time at some point. I would only be doing it to get to the Sanderson books. But honestly, Jordan's style is so grating and there are so many books on my list that it is highly unlikely. More likely I would just skip the Jordan titles and read the Sandersons.
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I couldn't agree more with everything you just said haha. Sanderson's are my sole motivation too and I just can't seem to find the motivation to read the others over everything else atm.
Niki Hawkes wrote: "Andrew wrote: "I may revisit Wheel of Time at some point. I would only be doing it to get to the Sanderson books. But honestly, Jordan's style is so grating and there are so many books on my list t..."Ha, I'm glad to hear it. Sometimes I wonder if I'm going to get blackballed for speaking my mind about The Heel of Time.
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From what I remember, those books just involve a lot of spreading characters all over the continent in plotlines that take books and books to resolve... and the Forsaken being slowly taken out only to be brought back as someone else until VERY late in the series..
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Blasphemy!!!!! Lol
