Nominations are Open for Next Series Read

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

We will finish our group read of a Science Fiction series (Old Man's War series by John Scalzi) in mid-October, so it is time to think about our next group series read! We generally alternate fantasy and SF series, so I am opening up nominations now for a Fantasy series.

A couple guidelines:
The series should be complete, as far as you can tell. I realize authors sometimes revisit a series years later, but as much as possible, we are looking to read a completed series.
The series should be one we have not read and discussed as a group. Click here for a list of the past series we have read together.

Nominations will be open through September 16, which gives you all plenty of time to come up with some great ideas. We will have a preliminary round of polling to narrow the field and then a final round to determine the winner. The series read itself will start November 15, giving us a "month off" between our current series read and the next one.

Please post nominations in this thread (Nominations are Open for Next Series Read) on the group page, not by responding to the broadcast message sent to your Goodreads inbox.

Nominations so far:
The Quest of the Riddlemaster trilogy by Patricia A. McKillip, starting with The Riddle-Master of Hed
The Laundry Files series (9 books) by Charles Stross, starting with The Atrocity Archives
The Witcher series (8 books) by Andrzej Sapkowski, starting with The Last Wish
The Dark Tower series (7 or 8 books) by Stephen King, starting with The Gunslinger
The Deryni series (16 books) by Katherine Kurtz, starting with Deryni Rising (publication order) or Camber of Culdi (historical chronological order)
The Lightbringer series (5 books) by Brent Weeks, starting with The Black Prism
The Promethean Age series (5 books) by Elizabeth Bear, starting with Blood and Iron
The Sevenwaters series (6 books) by Juliet Marillier, starting with Daughter of the Forest
The Khaavren Romances series (6 books) by Steven Brust, starting with The Phoenix Guards
The Estcarp Cycle of the Witch World Series (10 books) by Andre Norton, starting with Witch World

Nominated by disqualified:
The Lensmen series (6 books) by E.E. "Doc" Smith, disqualified because it’s SF, not Fantasy
The Dune series (original books by Frank Herbert and related series by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson), disqualified because it’s SF, not fantasy

[Gabi]

Do short series count as well?

The Quest of the Riddlemaster by Patricia A. McKillip has only 3 books and I wanted to read it for ages.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Gabi wrote: "Do short series count as well?

The Quest of the Riddlemaster by Patricia A. McKillip has only 3 books and I wanted to read it for ages."

Yes. Would you like to nominate this series?

[Gabi]

Yes, I'd like to!

[Renee]

I have wanted to read it also.. II will second it

[Random]

Dang it, I wanted to nominate The Launcdery Files by Charles Stross.

Its sounds very Urban Fantasy to me, but Goodreads users seem to be undecided if its Fantasy or Science Fiction.

Of course these are the same users who classified City of Golden Shadow as Fantasy so I have little trust in their understanding anymore. :D

Can I get mod feedback on my potential nomination?

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Random wrote: "Dang it, I wanted to nominate The Launcdery Files by Charles Stross.

Its sounds very Urban Fantasy to me, but Goodreads users seem to be undecided if its Fantasy or Science Fiction.

Of course the..."

It’s a really mixed bag—these books are mostly shelved as horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Amazon tags them as as horror, hard science fiction, and fantasy.

The mods will confer...

[Kateblue]

I would like to read The Laundry Files also.

[Christopher]

I would like to nominate The Witcher series by Andrzej Sapkowski. From what I gather online, the best order to read the books is:

-The Last Wish
-Season of Storms
-Sword of Destiny
-Blood of Elves
-The Time of Contempt
-Baptism of Fire
-The Tower of the Swallow
-The Lady of the Lake

[Shel, Moderator]

How about a classic that I read forever ago, loved, barely remember, have wanted to reread and I feel like there’s a lot to talk about: the Dark Tower Series by Stephen King? I’m on my phone right now but I’ll come back and link properly when I get to a computer later.

[Christopher]

Shel wrote: "How about a classic that I read forever ago, loved, barely remember, have wanted to reread and I feel like there’s a lot to talk about: the Dark Tower Series by Stephen King? I’m on my phone right ..."

I would second this nomination as well. I read the first two books in the series and I have been meaning to get into the third. I just haven't found the right time to do so.

[Shel, Moderator]

Here's the series info for The Dark Tower.

[DivaDiane]

How about the Deryni series by Katherine Kurtz? There are 16 novels in all (5 trilogies and a stand alone), starting with Deryni Rising. A historical fantasy with lots of politics, intrigue and forbidden magic.

[Ryan]

The Lightbringer series by Brent Weeks.

I've also been wanting to read the Dresden Files, but it's incomplete and also quite long.

[Mary]

I'm not nominating anything because I want Riddlemaster to win. 0:)

[Paul]

Random wrote: "Dang it, I wanted to nominate The Launcdery Files by Charles Stross.

Its sounds very Urban Fantasy to me, but Goodreads users seem to be undecided if its Fantasy or Science Fiction.

Of course the..."


They're Lovecraftian Cosmic Horror - in a modern espionage setting - so technically science fiction. I love the ones I've read but seem to have fallen rather behind on the series so would definitely be in support of this.



(There is also an excellent tabletop roleplaying game based on it, for those of that bent)

[Gabi]

Christopher wrote: "I would like to nominate The Witcher series by Andrzej Sapkowski. From what I gather online, the best order to read the books is:

-The Last Wish
-[book:Season of St..."

Ah, that's a good idea, as well. I've bought all of the books some years ago and never got around reading them.

[Renee]

I am now torn between Riddle Master and Dark Tower.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

I will nominate the Promethean Age series by Elizabeth Bear, a 5 book series starting with starting with Blood and Iron. The series combines historical characters with fantasy. I have liked other things I’ve read by this author.

[Leticia]

Have you read the Witch World series by Andre Norton?

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Leticia wrote: "Have you read the Witch World series by Andre Norton?"

We have not. There are over 25 books in the series, not counting the anthologies, of which there are 5. If you plan to nominate this series, please be clear if you are nominating all of it or just one of the “cycles”—Estcarp, High Halleck, The Turning. Thanks.

[Leticia]

I would have to start from the beginning which I think is The Estcarp Cycle. I would try the first three books and then reevaluate if I would go on reading the rest.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Leticia wrote: "I would have to start from the beginning which I think is The Estcarp Cycle. I would try the first three books and then reevaluate if I would go on reading the rest."

So are you nominating the Witch World/Estcarp series? Thanks.

[Kateblue]

OK, I found an old Goodreads discussion much more easily than I thought I would. Here is the order to read Witch World in, maybe.

Sorry this is so long. The discussion is with a Norton aficionado I met 2 1/2 years ago, and since then I've never read any of them anyway!

______________________

Kateblue--I've always felt that the correct order to read the books is:

Witch World
Web of the Witch World
Three Against the Witch World
Warlock of the Witch World
Sorceress of the Witch World

All of the events in all of the books happen in like a 20 or 30 year time on the World , but what happens when depends on if you are in Estcarp, the Dales, Escore, the Aerie, or any of the border states that I haven't named. And there is even some time dilation going on, since at least some of the characters get thrown out of the World and time passes differently in other worlds. (And Andre Norton decided to handle the age old author's problem of handling time passing much faster in the "real world" than it can/should in the stories by using that time dilation. There was almost 50 years difference between the publishing of the first book and the last book, so she handled having people from our world thrown into Witch World by means of the time in Witch World passing at a much slower rate than time in our world.)

These 5 books really set up a good bit of the rest of the series. After these, there really isn't any real order to read, except maybe chronologically. Although I will say that Year of the Unicorn kind of ruins the Dales part of the series, since it's set at the end of the War between the Dales and the Hounds. Although it really is a bit confusing, but that's mainly because, except for the location (i.e. Witch World itself) there really isn't a lot of cohesion between the various series, or even when they happen, until you get to the very last 3 books in the series. And, well, they are the last and should be read in order.

Those 3 are: The Key of the Keplian then The Magestone and finally The Warding of Witch World Those 3 books do need to be read last, and they bring back some of the characters (evil and good) and civilizations from all the previous books. This is especially true of the last book, where we see a bunch of them get together in this book to handle a huge quest, that is done all over the World.

Have I confused you even more? :o) But it's a series that I have loved since about 1970 or so (which is when I was introduced to the first book) until now. Some I like more than others, but I've gone back and re-read a number of them time and again. (And, on that, I'm confusing MYSELF now.) 
reply | flag *


Apr 04, 2018 05:01PM MY CONFUSED REPLY DELETED

Apr 04, 2018 05:31PM

Like I said--they are kind of scattered all over. But really, after you've read the first 5 that I suggested, read whichever sounds interesting to you. 

The High Halleck ones were sometimes called the Dales (because the people there call where the live, XX Dale of High Halleck. Muy confusing, yes?) 

If I were recommending based on which books I loved the most, I'd go:

The first 5 that I listed. Then I'd go Year of the Unicorn, Crystal Gryphon, Gryphon in Glory, Jargoon Pard, Gryphon's Eyrie. (These tie into each other as a sub-series.) Then I'd read Gate of the Cat, Ciara's Song and The Duke's Ballad (the last 2 should be read in that order, since they are a 2 book sub-series.) 

The collections of stories can be read at any time in there, and I have to admit, some of those I wasn't as fond of as others. And while there were books published after the 3 that I said were the "ending" of the series, they are set before those 3. 

REST OF POSTS DELETED

[Random]

Paul wrote: "They're Lovecraftian Cosmic Horror - in a modern espionage setting - so technically science fiction. I love the ones I've read but seem to have fallen rather behind on the series so would definitely be in support of this..."


I would never call Lovecraftian Horror Science Fiction. :)

[Paul]

Random wrote: "I would never call Lovecraftian Horror Science Fiction. :)"


Lovecraft and his contemporaries considered it to be so - don't forget, the entities were aliens who had come to Earth aeons ago - and it is accepted as such in the historical context of science fiction - but of course there wasn't really any such thing as "hard science fiction" at this time. This was the very early days of the genre. Very little that was written before the 1960s would pass muster as science fiction today - Edgar Rice Burroughs had John Carter wishing himself to Mars and even in 50s you still had writers such as E.E. "Doc" Smith who basically wrote Westerns or naval adventures in space. After Jules Verne, science didn't really come back into science fiction until remarkably recently.


Also, I did say "technically" :D

[Kari]

Juliet Marillier's Sevenwaters series, starting with Daughter of the Forest? I've read the first book and enjoyed it; I'd love to continue.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Kateblue wrote: "OK, I found an old Goodreads discussion much more easily than I thought I would. Here is the order to read Witch World in, maybe.

Sorry this is so long. The discussion is with a Norton aficionado..."

Thanks for all that info. I have a number of these books and will save this as reference.
Leticia has clarified her nomination, so I will go with that. Thanks.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Kari wrote: "Juliet Marillier's Sevenwaters series, starting with Daughter of the Forest? I've read the first book and enjoyed it; I'd love to continue."

Could you clarify which you are nominating, the Sevenwaters trilogy or the 6 book Sevenwaters series? Thanks!

[Leticia]

Kathi wrote: "So are you nominating the Witch World/Estcarp series? Thanks..."

Yes :-) I'm not a Norton expert so I don't know if these are the best to start with. I'll read other books if they are considered a better way to start with the series.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Leticia wrote: "Kathi wrote: "So are you nominating the Witch World/Estcarp series? Thanks..."

Yes :-)"

Sorry to keep bugging you, but are you nominating all 10 books that Goodreads lists in the Estcarp Cycle, or just the first 3, or the 5 as listed in Kateblue’s post?

[Kari]

The 6 book Sevenwaters series, of that works! Thank you!

[Mike]

I nominate the 6 book Lensmen series by Edward E. Smith beginning with Triplanetary Triplanetary. This series was a 1966 finalist for a Hugo award for All-Time best series.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Mike wrote: "I nominate the 6 book Lensmen series by Edward E. Smith beginning with Triplanetary Triplanetary. This series was a 1966 finalist for a Hugo award for All-Time best s..."

Mike, this time around we are doing a fantasy series, not science fiction, and the Lensmen series is SF. So I’m going to ask you to save this nomination for when we do a science fiction series read. Thanks!

[Ken]

I nominate The Khaavren Romances by Steven Brust
They are written in the same vein and Dumas Musketeers
There are six books
The Phoenix Guards (1991)

Five Hundred Years After (1994)

The Viscount of Adrilankha, published in three volumes:
The Paths of the Dead (2002)
The Lord of Castle Black (2003)
Sethra Lavode (2004)

The Baron of Magister Valley (2020)

[Shel, Moderator]

The Khaavren Romances are good fun! I wonder if they'd be better appreciated in the context of the related Vlad Taltos books, though? I almost proposed the Vlad series, except that it's not finished yet.

[Philip]

I re-read the original Dune series by Frank Herbert then started in on the new series by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, but have only finished the first three. I intend to keep reading the expanded Dune series and would love some company.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Philip wrote: "I re-read the original Dune series by Frank Herbert then started in on the new series by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, but have only finished the first three. I intend to keep reading the ex..."

Thanks for your suggestion. However, this time around we are reading a Fantasy series, so the Dune books would not qualify. Maybe keep that idea for next time when we will again be reading a science fiction series. Thanks!

[Leticia]

Philip wrote: "I re-read the original Dune series by Frank Herbert then started in on the new series by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson, but have only finished the first three. I intend to keep reading the ex..."

How do both series compare? I read the original series until Chapterhouse: Dune but that was quite enough Dune for me at the time, since the series seemed to have less plot with each new book. I would go on in this story world only if more would be added. What I liked about Chapterhouse: Dune was that it talked more about the Bene Gesserit but the end seemed quite final and it didn't seem like more would be added on them. Dune for me was a very interesting world in all aspects but it always got stunted endings in a direction I didn't like somehow...

[Leticia]

Kathi wrote: "Leticia wrote: "Kathi wrote: "So are you nominating the Witch World/Estcarp series? Thanks..."

Yes :-)"

Sorry to keep bugging you, but are you nominating all 10 books that Goodreads lists in the ..."

The first three. But if people feel like reading more books I might tag along if I enjoy the series enough for that.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Leticia wrote: "The first three. But if people feel like reading more books I might tag along if I enjoy the series enough for that."

Thanks for your reply. I went ahead and listed the Estcarp Cycle of the Witch World series as 10 books. Readers can certainly opt in for some or all the books if this series wins in the polls.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Only a couple more days to make your nominations!!

[Ken]

Shel wrote: "The Khaavren Romances are good fun! I wonder if they'd be better appreciated in the context of the related Vlad Taltos books, though? I almost proposed the Vlad series, except that it's not finishe..."
Almost nothing from Vlad, it takes place 1000 years or more in the past. There are call backs to Vlad but they dont interfere with the books

[Ken]

Leticia wrote: "How do both series compare? I read the original series until Chapterhouse: Dune but that was quite enough Dune for me at the time

Not a fan, it was really the two books they wrote to conclude the whole series and the final book was awful. They say they wrote it with notes from Frank but I find it very hard to beleive.
The other books were ok. Anderson and Herbert books are easy reads.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Last day for series nominations!

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Nominations are CLOSED.
Preliminary poll will be open soon.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

OK, preliminary polls are open, and will remain open through September 23.
Vote here: Preliminary Poll for the SERIES read

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Apparently the link I sent in the broadcast message to all members didn't work, and neither did the link in this topic thread. I will send a new link, and I fixed the one in this thread.
Thanks to Diane for the heads up about the faulty link.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Tomorrow, September 23, is the last day to vote in the preliminary poll for our next series, so if you haven’t voted yet or want to change your vote, you’d better do it soon!

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Final round of polling for our next series is open, and will remain open through the end of the month. Please vote!

Final Poll for Series Read