The Sword and Laser discussion

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Introduction and welcome thread!

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message 4351: by Vasili (new)

Vasili Mitsi | 2 comments Hi, I’m Billy. I actually was a member here before when we were reading “Name of the Wind” by Patrick Rothfuss years ago. I am basically an avid reader aching to rekindle my lost relationship with the genres this group (Sword and Laser) focuses on. I never did an intro so here I am, reading and posting; nice to meet you all.


message 4352: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Billy


message 4353: by Chewable Orb (new)

Chewable Orb | 3 comments Hi, my name is Chris and I have enjoyed reading for as long as I can remember. I am currently trying to challenge myself and read even more. Any advice on a great book is welcome😁


message 4354: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Chris.

If you're looking for some recommendations there are already a few past threads with some great stuff. Alternatively you can start your own thread and provide a bit more detail on what kinds of books you're looking to read.


message 4355: by Tim (new)

Tim Hello everyone!!! Im Tim from Kentucky. I have always loved reading but never found a good group to join and discuss what I’m reading. I also am horrible about picking my next read. Glad to find a good sci-fi/fantasy book club!! Im currently reading Book 1 of the Sword of Truth series. Took me a while to pick this one up but really glad I did. Last book I read was Rabbits by Terry Miles. Amazing is all I can say. Good to meet you all and can’t wait to get started.
One question before I go. Where do I find the book for the month?


message 4356: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Tim!


message 4357: by Seth (new)

Seth | 786 comments Tim wrote: "One question before I go. Where do I find the book for the month?"

Hey Tim. It's always posted at the top of the main Sword and Laser discussion page here on Goodreads, and now that you've joined up you should get a note near the end of each month to let you know what's coming up for the next month. This month it's How High We Go in the Dark.

Or, if your question is where to get your own copy of the book, well, that's mostly up to your preference. I usually try my local library first.


message 4358: by Basil (new)

Basil Godevenos (basilgodevenos) Rejoined after a long hiatus with an aim to read more of the picked books. I'm more active on Discord (as bamugo) than Goodreads, so you'll probably see more of me there.


message 4359: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome back


message 4360: by Unknown Orbits (new)

Unknown Orbits | 2 comments Hello!
My name is Patrick and I am one half of the Unknown Orbits podcast. We are actively reading and reviewing Golden Age science fiction (1926-1966). Always looking for suggestions on stories or novels to review.


message 4361: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Patrick


message 4362: by Ibrahim (new)

Ibrahim Ismail | 10 comments Hello sword and laser , I am a shadow listener for more than 5 months (currently on ep 370) don’t know if i should skip ahead and actually listen to the new episodes so i could be more active or keep working on the backlog 😂.
I read around 70-100 fantasy books a year (#teambelmont #sorrytom ) and I really want to join in on the bookclub challenge and be more active but don’t know how.
Please help 🫥🫥


message 4363: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome!

To join the book club challenges you can head over to the challenges page: https://www.goodreads.com/challenges/...

Then click on the challenge you want. It sounds like maybe you want to join the fantasy one?. So you'd want our Sword challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/challenges/...

Fill out the form with the number of books you want to include from this year and the name of a shelf. I personally have shelves called sl-sword and sl-laser

Then in order for your books to count you have to make sure:

1) they have a read date between 1/1/2022 and 12/31/2022
2) they are tagged with the shelf name you picked.

You can use a shelf you already have (so if you tag your books with fantasy you could use that. I personally like a different shelf since I don't count everything for the challenge.

Hope that helps!


message 4364: by Ibrahim (new)

Ibrahim Ismail | 10 comments It did, thank you so much rob 🙏🏼🙏🏼


message 4365: by Kathryn (new)

Kathryn | 2 comments Hi Sword and Laser,
I'm usually a lurker and have been listening for a few months to past episodes discussing books I've already read. I decided to finally break my silence to participate in March Madness and talk to more people about SFF!


message 4366: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome to the madness!


message 4367: by Norbert (new)

Norbert Zsivicz (author_norbert_zsivicz) | 1 comments Hi everyone!
My name is Norbert. I'm relatively new in the Goodreads community. I was usually just reading, but never posting in forums. The Sword and Laser looks like a fun group and I want to be a part of it! :)

I'm a huge SFF fan on every levels. I read, play, watch almost anything whats comes to my horizon.
I can't really choose a favorite, but here is some examples of my taste: D&D, Dune, Witcher, GoT, LoToR, Expanse, Mass Effect, Matrix.

Somehow, I'm always hungry for more great stories and worlds to explore, and lost in. Maybe that's the reason why I wrote my own book series, but that's for another time and topic :)


message 4368: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Norbert


message 4369: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Dagmar


message 4370: by Tamahome (new)

Tamahome | 7215 comments psst there's a discord too https://discord.com/channels/54897414...


message 4371: by Mike (new)

Mike Connelly (michael_and_jello) Hello Everyone!

My name is Mike, but I'm going by my pen name, Jerome MacEvoy.

I'm a writer, gamer, traveler, and proud nerd. I want to read books from every genre, but I always come back to fantasy and fiction. Some of my favorites are Dune, Gideon the Ninth, 1984, The Hobbit, and Dracula.

I have a few of my own books going, and I hope to publish my first one by May of this year. Reach out if you want to know more!


message 4372: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Mike (Jerome). There is a section of the forums for author promotion if you're so inclined.


message 4373: by JasonReads (new)

JasonReads | 16 comments Hi, I'm Jason. Big fan of SFF, mainly backlist stuff from the 80s to early 00s. John Scalzi, Lois McMaster Bujold, Elizabeth Moon, Mike Shepherd, Jim Butcher, and Raymond E. Feist are some of my favorite SFF writers.


message 4374: by Trike (new)

Trike | 11190 comments Greetings Jason. 🤠


message 4375: by Rachel (new)

Rachel B | 1 comments Hi, I'm Rachel. Looking to get back into reading after stopping in like 2016... any recs for fantasy & scifi with action/adventure and or mystery subplots? The last thing I read was Dragons and Pern and I loved it. :)


message 4376: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Rachel. If you like mystery and more modern fantasy, the urban fantasy sub genre with a lot of mystery. Dresden Files is a favorite of mine, although the first few books aren't as strong as the later books.

Another favorite of mine is called The Shadow of the Wind

I'm sure other members will load you up with recommendations.


message 4377: by Cameron (new)

Cameron (misterpilcrow) | 1 comments Hi all! I'm Cameron. Lifelong SFF reader here. Also a longtime off-and-on S&L listener, but now that I work at a library (as a page) I'm reading a lot more, so I'm jumping in for realsies this time. :)


message 4378: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Cameron


message 4379: by Fergus (last edited Oct 03, 2023 05:57AM) (new)

Fergus Deffely | 1 comments Hey, I'm Fergus.

I've always been fascinated by the imagination. I'm just returning to fiction after a few years away. Just after recently reading American Gods, some Lilith's Brood and Ted Chiang.

Also, I write.


message 4380: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Fergus.


message 4381: by Ted (new)

Ted Henkle | 12 comments Welcome, Fergus!


message 4382: by Matthew (new)

Matthew Polk | 2 comments Greetings everyone! I'm thrilled to be here, and I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself. I'm Matthew, new author, venturing into the realms of self-help and science fiction. Born and raised in Hobbs, NM, my journey into writing has been inspired by a deep passion for positive transformation and the fascinating landscapes of sci-fi.

As an sci-fi enthusiast, I recently took on the exciting challenge of crafting my own narrative. The allure of exploring uncharted territories, both within ourselves and in the vast expanse of the universe, has always deeply fascinated me.

I believe in the power of storytelling to inspire, uplift, and transport us to new dimensions of thought. If you're interested in learning more, feel free to explore my author page for more info.

I'm excited to join this community and contribute with other readers and authors, apologies if I rambled too much!


message 4383: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Matthew


message 4384: by Ted (new)

Ted Henkle | 12 comments Welcome, Matthew!


message 4385: by Zac (new)

Zac | 4 comments Hello, I'm Zac. I've been listening to this podcast for a long time, but I wanted to get into the goodreads chats. I love the podcast and hope to get to know you all better :)


message 4386: by Alex (new)

Alex | 3 comments Hi S&L people!

I'm Alex, I'm a writer and ex-physicist turned dark side developer (AI). I love SF in almost any format. I've been switching to 50% audiobook and 50% hardcopy. I recently got Penguins anthology of science fiction and read through the REALLY old classics. I didn't realise SO many of them would be from the 50s but still they were great, and a few modern ones really picked it up.

I've been listening to Adrian Tchiacovsky's series on audio, good stuff.


message 4387: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Alex


message 4388: by Alex (new)

Alex | 3 comments Rob wrote: "Welcome Alex" Thanks! Today, I am spending all my money on new books. Checking out the reviews section to find what to take a punt on :)


message 4389: by M (new)

M F Alfrey | 4 comments Hi everyone,
I'm Marek. Avid SFF fan since I was a kid. Now I write and edit science fiction and fantasy. Always looking to grow my knowledge in the genres and discover. That's why I'm here.


message 4390: by Rob, Roberator (new)

Rob (robzak) | 7204 comments Mod
Welcome Marek


message 4391: by Eric (new)

Eric | 3 comments Hello everyone,

I'm Eric. I have always loved both sci-fi and fantasy, but I'd have to say that my current favorite genre is post-apocalyptic science-fantasy. (For those who may not be familiar: I like books where an apocalypse hit so hard that it knock a culture back through a dark age, then as they rebuild they find bits and pieces that seem magical. Examples include A Canticle for Lebowitz orPrince of Thorns)

Always looking for more recommendations or books that are close to it.


message 4392: by Tassie Dave, S&L Historian (last edited Feb 13, 2024 01:10AM) (new)

Tassie Dave | 4076 comments Mod
Hi Eric. Welcome to Sword and Laser. 😎

We read A Canticle for Leibowitz back in 2015 for Sword and Laser.

We also read Shadow & Claw by Gene Wolfe in 2011 which also fits your genre description.

Both books I enjoyed and, I seem to remember, were well received by most in the group.

We have read a few other post apocalyptic books as well. Though not quite fitting your description. Some were dystopian and grim, some were a little more hopeful.

One thing we are good at here is recommending books.

Terry Brooks' Shannara fantasy series is set in a post-apocalyptic North America. The characters occasionally come across old technology and abandoned cities/towns from our time. We did read The Sword of Shannara for S&L.

Terry did write a prequel that is set in present day America that does, very loosely, tie in to the other Shannara series. It is the same universe.


message 4393: by Eric (new)

Eric | 3 comments Thank you for your warm welcome.

I haven’t yet read Shadow and Claw, but I know the Shannara series. I guess I’ll need to go through the old posts and podcasts.


message 4394: by Clair (new)

Clair (chigh) | 3 comments Hello! I'm Clair and this is the first book club type thing I've ever participated in. I'm from Atlanta, but currently in Toronto.

Reading hadn't been easy for me--ADHD has made it quite difficult. However, I seemed to have unlocked a new skill after picking up an e-reader at the beginning of March, and now I can't seem to stop.

Prior, I gravitated towards SciFi and Fantasy, but more the former. And now, I'm going to dive into this month's read.


message 4395: by Mikemayou (new)

Mikemayou | 6 comments Welcome


message 4396: by Chewable Orb (new)

Chewable Orb | 3 comments Welcome


message 4397: by Stewart (new)

Stewart Brennan | 2 comments Hi, I’m Stewart, a new author from Montreal, Quebec. I enjoy SciFi, fantasy, dystopian thrillers and have read most of the classics. I love seeing the enthusiasm writers initiate in their audiences through the creative spark. Makes me think of campfires and story telling.

I stumbled upon the Sword and Laser Podcast while researching online for Sci Fi book reviews. I’m finding that it’s the best place to learn what I’ve missed, and what’s new while it’s good to hear what interest’s others. AND this group has also provided me with gift ideas for family members.


message 4398: by Clair (new)

Clair (chigh) | 3 comments Hi Stewart! Welcome!


message 4399: by Caitlin (new)

Caitlin | 358 comments I doubt anyone will remember me, but I'm back! I retreated inwards during COVID and I didn't have the attention span to read much, but I finally feel like me again and have returned.


message 4400: by Gaines (last edited Jul 12, 2024 03:38PM) (new)

Gaines Post (gainespost) | 206 comments Caitlin wrote: "I doubt anyone will remember me, but I'm back! I retreated inwards during COVID and I didn't have the attention span to read much, but I finally feel like me again and have returned."

I think I remember seeing your name :-) Welcome back. Given attention span challenges, what about audiobooks?


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