Fantasy Book Club discussion
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Introductions - tell us a little about yourself
Fiona wrote: "Hello, I'm Fiona and I'm not a major fantasy fan... wait let me explain before you throw eggs at me!I like fantasy, mostly YA fantasy actually that being the genre really like. I'd like definitel..."
Fiona - I think you'll enjoy being in this group. I have always enjoyed Fantasy lit but found it difficult to find good, fantasy literature. Being in this group has helped me find some wonderful books and I'm now reading 2x a much Fantasy as before.
Fiona wrote: "Hello, I'm Fiona and I'm not a major fantasy fan... wait let me explain before you throw eggs at me!I like fantasy, mostly YA fantasy actually that being the genre really like. I'd like definitel..."
Fiona - I think you'll enjoy being in this group. I have always enjoyed Fantasy lit but found it difficult to find good, fantasy literature. Being in this group has helped me find some wonderful books and I'm now reading 2x as much Fantasy as before.
Fiona wrote: "Hello, I'm Fiona and I'm not a major fantasy fan... wait let me explain before you throw eggs at me!I like fantasy, mostly YA fantasy actually that being the genre really like. I'd like definitel..."
oh. you're here now? :)
Fiona wrote: "Hello, I'm Fiona and I'm not a major fantasy fan... wait let me explain before you throw eggs at me!I like fantasy, mostly YA fantasy actually that being the genre really like. I'd like definitel..."
Hi Fiona - besides the others mentioned, have you tried Mary Gentle, or Patricia C. Wrede or Jane Yolen for readable YA fantasy? Jane's work, in particular, predated some of the more popular concepts in Harry Potter.
welcome, have you read any of the other Diana Wynne Jones books? persay the Chrestomanci books those I have read over and over, you finish the last book and you want to read them again. also one of my top favorites is Patricia A McKillip she has written alot of really great books...
I also second the Chrestomanci series, though I think some are definitely better than others. They don't have to be read in order, per se, and they're all pretty much stand-alone, which is nice.Here are some of my favorite YA novels/series (sort of in age order):
* The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (it was worth getting in hardback *grins* (tho I'm interested in getting the UK version for the different art))
* Keys to the Kingdom series, starting with Mister Monday by Garth Nix (younger age group than the Abhorsen trilogy - which I assume you'll read as you've read Sabriel already)
* The Ranger's Apprentice series, starting with The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
* The Black Tattoo by Sam Enthoven
* Modern Faerie Tale series, starting with Tithe A Modern Faerie Tale by Holly Black
* Wicked Lovely (first of series) by Melissa Marr
blackrose wrote: "The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (it was worth getting in hardback *grins* I was pretty certain this was a safe recommendation - ;-) glad you enjoyed it! I really hope we see more of Bod
Me too. I worry about poor Bod out in the world. I also hope we see more of Silas.
Welcome to the group, Nicola. Seeing so many Gaiman fans makes me all warm and fuzzy inside :-D.
Nicola wrote: "Hi folks! I'm Nicki, from southern England. I'm new to the group, and sort of new to Goodreads -- signed up a while ago, but finally decided that adding my whole book collection would be far too ov..."Hi Nicola - there are many enthusiasts of your favorite authors, here, you should find yourself in great company.
Hi Fiona! Welcome to the group! I have a couple of suggestions for YA fantasy, have you read the Roswell series of books by Melinda Metz, based on the TV show? I like them.I liked the show too until the last few ones which I did not like. Also, you might like the Dragon Lance series. I like it.
Good reading.
Bobbie :)
Fiona wrote: "That's good to hear Libby. I have always been a bit daunted with Fantasy, there is so much and often I pick things up and you never know!
I picked up Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time and zoomed throu..."
Hi everyone,I've been in the group for a couple of weeks now, quietly lurking and enjoying the discussions. I thought I'd finally jump in and introduce myself, now I'm reading The Curse of the Mistwraith by Janny Wurts. I'm only about 200 pages in, but looking forward to joining the discussion soon. Both book and discussion are excellent so far.
About me: 36 years old (for a few more weeks at least), live in San Diego since 2004 - before then New York, and earlier still Belgium. I read equal parts science fiction and fantasy, with the occasional non-genre fiction and non-fiction book sprinkled in. Favorite fantasy authors include Guy Gavriel Kay, Robin Hobb, Steven Brust, but I could easily post a longer list. I also admire C. J. Cherryh and L. E. Modesitt Jr, but with both of them I prefer their SF over their fantasy. I average about 5 books per month lately, and if I were granted one wish, it would be to have an additional handful of hours in the day to spend reading.
I look forward to participating more actively in the group!
Stefan
Hi Stefan, nice to see you here, and wonderful, too, to note Steven Brust among your list of authors, which includes many of my memorable favorites. That author's work is mentioned too little - I remember when Jhereg first came out, with that splendid cover by Steven Hickman. (I've tagged that edition for anyone curious). A very original dragon book.
OMG Fiona is here - there goes the neighborhood!!Wave Fiona ;-)
Hello to all you newcomers! Stefan, San Diego is my mom's hometown. I've been making the drive down from L.A. since childhood--visiting Grandma and various other relatives. I used to think it was far too sleepy a town for me to ever want to live there permanently, but it's grown quite a bit since I've been a kid. I'd totally live there now, if I could. And hey, it's the home of Comicon!
Hello everyone! I am a 17 (male, name can throw some off) and currently live in Southern California (Claremont). I had always loved reading books - but I want to take it to the next level. Currently I am in summer with no job, and only have Trig (summer school) to take up my time and once I finish up my work I have nothing to do!
I love fantasy, and am really just beginning my long journey of books. I am not into the whole elves/RP thing, but if an author knows how to write a story I could care less!
My favorite book trilogy so far is Black, Red, and White by Ted Dekker. I believe they classify this as a "Thriller" but I was enthralled with his world that was set in the future (but felt like a past time) when there was a horde, good and evil, all the great aspects of fantasy that I've been reading about.
Right now I am reading The Magic of Recluse, and after I finish that I will probably either start the current BotM or just wait until next month. If you guys enjoyed the current BotM then I will probably have to read that too haha.
Like I said, I am just starting my journey. I would like to know what books you guys think are "mandatory" for fantasy lovers - I'm not really into the plots of Martin though. Kings, all of that, not my cup of tea. I enjoy hero's who are of the lesser kind, and rise up.
Page wrote: "I would like to know what books you guys think are "mandatory" for fantasy lovers - I'm not really into the plots of Martin though. Kings, all of that, not my cup of tea. I enjoy hero's who are of the lesser kind, and rise up."I'm not sure there are any books that are 'mandatory' for fantasy lovers. While a lot of the book recommendations here are the same--Martin, Feist, Jordan, Kay, Eddings, etc.--there are some of us who don't like or aren't interested in those and recommend others. Given your stated preferences, you might like Eddings, but I would recommend Dave Duncan's Seventh Sword trilogy instead, or his book Cursed, simply because no one else is likely to. I think Curse of Chalion is the best fantasy novel of the last decade, and you'd probably like it. But at base, don't let me or anyone else tell you what you 'have to read', read what you like. I'm always asking my customers (I became a bookseller when my first novel was published, since no other bookseller carries it) "What do you like to read?" I would like you to read my book, sure, but if it's not your cup of tea I'll gladly recommend others that I think are worth the time, just read back through this thread.
The hero of my first two novels, by the way, is in the service of the gods directly, so his social status tends to be between outcast and pariah, with occasional bursts of 'thank the Gods you're here!' Not sure if that counts as 'rising up' or not.
Hey Marc, thanks for the comment,Sometimes I have a bit of trouble getting my message across, so some things are scattered. I do enjoy a wide variety of plots if the author writes well, like I said.
I did not mean mandatory as in "you must read this!" but more-so in what books rise up beyond the many in this genre, if that makes sense.
I will be sure to check your recommendations, and also your books.
Page wrote: "Hey Marc, thanks for the comment,Sometimes I have a bit of trouble getting my message across, so some things are scattered. I do enjoy a wide variety of plots if the author writes well, like I s..."
Page - always helps, for recommendations, to know where a reader comes from - "if the author writes well" is so general it's hard to know what you consider "well" - some people like very quick modern language, others like mostly dialogue, still others want a poetic use of words. Some prefer gritty and cynical, some like it funny, others want a romance.
Some books are romps and reads for relaxing, some books make you think beyond the journey.
I am not familiar with the books you have listed; I am familiar with the authors Marc mentioned to you, though.
So many times it is hard to tag a reader's preference - and such posts don't get the response they might from the community, had the person asking for a steer given a little more information about what thrills their palate.
And it can make all the difference, for your satisfaction, later.
There is a lot of knowledge to draw on here, since everyone enjoys sharing what they love.
I sort of picked up The Circle Trilogy/The Lost Books Trilogy by Dekker by accident one day. I did think the action adventure part was very well done, and I found the inter-weaving of the two realities to be very interesting. I wouldn't have through of it as a thriller, more just an action-adventure, but I guess I can see where that comes from. My only problem with the trilogy is that, towards the end, I thought it got a little too preachy. It being a Christian fantasy book, I suppose this is understandable to a degree. (This is what I meant by picking it up by accident *grins*). The Christian mythos and message was woven well in the first two books, but in the last book I felt that the message was over-writing the plot. I felt the same way about His Dark Materials, too, actually - tho, overall, I thought the Dekker books were better written. I know that's nigh blasphemous, but I thought Pullman's books were kinda boring.
Anyway - the first book which comes to mind in a similar vein as the Dekker books is The Black Tattoo by Sam Enthoven. Also action-adventure with Judeo-Christian mythos - but from the opposite direction. Well, not opposite... but let's just say that some Christian readers on amazon didn't *like the portrayal of* the less than omnipotent God in it... I don't know if you're religious or not, or if you just liked the story of the Dekker books, but, if you are, The Black Tattoo is a bit, um... heretical. But it's a real fun book with lots of dark humor, otherwise.
Also, Dekker has other books which are related to the Books of History. The Lost Histories and the Paradise Series. I think they're all related, but not directly. I've never read them, so I'm not sure how they are.
The Other Books that come to mind off-hand are the Quantum Gravity books by Justina Robson, starting with Keeping It Real. Also very much action-adventure with a blending of sci-fi and fantasy. In it there are alternate dimensions - human, faery, demon, and some others I can't think of right now - but these realms don't quite match up with normal expectations of them. (The Demon realm is not a realm of evil but a realm of hedonism, we'll say.) The protagonist is a cyborg woman who tries to maintain her humanity while being disgusted with what she was made into. Lots of inner turmoil stuff, but also lots of action.
The last one I can think of, and a must-read as far as I'm concerned, is an adventure story with no alternate dimensions of any kind, but a simpler, pseudo-medieval story called the Ranger's Apprentice series by John Flanagan and starting with The Ruins of Gorlan. It's a YA series, very light and quick reading, and lots of fun. I guess it's low fantasy 'cause there's not really magic, but there are orc-like creatures, sort of, and the whole good vs evil thing. The first book is excellent. The second not as good, the third a bit slow - both are cliffhangers - but they wrap up in an excellent fourth. There's also others in the series coming out with the same characters, but not a direct continuation of the same arc of the first four. The protagonist of this is a young boy who is in training to become a Ranger, obviously enough. *grins* It's sort of a coming-of-age as well as adventure story, and is one of those series that I read over and over again.
Those are the first few that come to mind. As I'm writing I can think of more, but I'll leave it at that for now. Should probably toddle off and do some work. :>
blackrose wrote: "I sort of picked up The Circle Trilogy/The Lost Books Trilogy by Dekker by accident one day. I did think the action adventure part was very well done, and I found the inter-weaving of the two real..."Thanks for the recommendations. I am not religious at all, so that does not matter to me. Will definitely check out the books you mentioned.
Janny wrote: "Page wrote: "Hey Marc, thanks for the comment,
Sometimes I have a bit of trouble getting my message across, so some things are scattered. I do enjoy a wide variety of plots if the author writes w..."
Yes I'm sorry - as I said I have trouble getting words across especially in the morning :). I like modern language, and dialogue especially. Books that talk about the environment more are too slow for me most of the time, I like to just get a general idea of the environment and then visualize the rest myself. Not a fan of the poetic use of words.
Thanks for all the responses so far everyone.
Yikes, I seem to have fallen behind. Welcome to the group, Page. I see everyone's already given you a lot of recommendations, so I won't add to the pile :-).
Paige - for light fun, fast pace, adventure, modern language and a bright thread of humor, try The Crown Conspiracy. It has a classic cast, with some nice plot twists.For wit and humor, modern dialogue, but much more gore, Scott Lynch's books may be a good bet.
Welcome to the new people....like John, I've fallen behind...
Hello there.... My Name is Ranjit and I work for a bank in Edinburgh, Scotland. I love fantasy. Robert Jordan, Anne McCaffrey , Christopher Paolini, Katharine Kerr are my favorite authors. I joined this group to discover more books to read.
Ranjit1george wrote: "Hello there.... My Name is Ranjit and I work for a bank in Edinburgh, Scotland. I love fantasy. Robert Jordan, Anne McCaffrey , Christopher Paolini, Katharine Kerr are my favorite authors. I joine..."
Hi Ranjit, given your list, I'd try David Eddings Belgeriad series, Tad Williams Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series, or if you want titles that stand alone better, anything at all by David Gemmell.
Janny wrote: "Ranjit1george wrote: "Hello there.... My Name is Ranjit and I work for a bank in Edinburgh, Scotland. I love fantasy. Robert Jordan, Anne McCaffrey , Christopher Paolini, Katharine Kerr are my fav..."
Thanks a lot Janny. I actually have read almost all David Gemmell books. Unforgivable that I have forgotten to mention it! I will try David Eddings and Tad Williams. Thanks Again.
Welcome to the group, Ranjit. If you're looking for recommendations, we have them here in spades :-). Terry Brooks is another one I would suggest (both the Shannara and Magic Kingdom series), and I'll go with my usual standby: George R.R. Martin.
John wrote: "Welcome to the group, Ranjit. If you're looking for recommendations, we have them here in spades :-). Terry Brooks is another one I would suggest (both the Shannara and Magic Kingdom series), and I..."Thank you John. I went and got myself George R.R. Martin's "A Game of Thrones" - The first book of A Song of Ice and Fire series. I have also got David Eddings Pawn - of Prophecy.
Good reading!
Hello- My name is Valerie. I am from Missouri. I mainly read children/teen fantasy fiction. I am working on my Masters in Library Science and hope to be a childrens librarian someday soon. I would have to say LOTR is my all time favorite. I actually just read them this year and loved them. I am currently reading the Rangers apprentice series. I have not delved much into the world of general fantasy fiction... Many of the adult books are too sexual for my tastes. I really would welcome some recommendations as there are only so many childrens books one can read!
Val wrote: "Hello- My name is Valerie. I am from Missouri. I mainly read children/teen fantasy fiction. I am working on my Masters in Library Science and hope to be a childrens librarian someday soon. I woul..."
Hi Valerie,
I'm Carmen, originally from Spain, now living in Pennsylvania.
I'm glad to have you in the group as I also read mainly children/YA fantasy fiction.
For my recommendation you can see my reviews at
http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/...
Also, two young adult fantasy books are nominated in the ongoing polls in this group (September/October Book Club). They are Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier for the general fantasy list and my own Two Moon Princess by Carmen Ferreiro-Esteban for the Goodread Authors list.
I hope you find something of your liking in my list.
Val wrote: "Hello- My name is Valerie. I am from Missouri. I mainly read children/teen fantasy fiction. I am working on my Masters in Library Science and hope to be a childrens librarian someday soon. I woul..."
Hello Val,
I also basically read YA fantasy if havent already read them I think anything by Diana Wyyne Jones is wonderful with Howl's Moving Castle and Dalemark, also my favorites of hers which are the Chrestomanci books......
Val wrote: "Hello- My name is Valerie. I am from Missouri. I mainly read children/teen fantasy fiction. I am working on my Masters in Library Science and hope to be a childrens librarian someday soon. I woul..."
Val - while there's been a massive, flooding trend toward romance (read sexual), of late, there is quite a bit of choice fantasy available for mature readers that has no explicit sexual content, or stories that do not focus on X rated themes, or if there is a romantic element, it is handled with quiet taste.
Many here are widely read in the YA shelves, you won't lack for recommendations.
But if you want a list of other very high quality writers who are not part of the trend, there are plenty to list who don't the the seamy or the steamy stuff.
Thank you so much for the welcome and the recommendations. Carmen- I just read "Wildwood dancing". Loved it.
I am looking forward to some new reads. I will be scanning through the lists.
Hey Ranji, I hope you enjoy Martin. I've never been a big fan of Eddings, but he's certainly popular. Look forward to hearing your thoughts on both.Welcome to Katie and Val, too. Nice to have you here.
I'm Xiaolu, from China. Working on a global IT company, really like epic fantasy. Door blocker is my favorite...
Welcome to the group Ranjit, Val, Kate, Xiaolu.....more and more each day it seems
A hearty welcome to Ranjit, Val, Kate, and Xiaolu. Hope you enjoy your time spent here amongst so many enthusiastic and knowledgeable readers. Seize the day!
Val wrote: "Thank you so much for the welcome and the recommendations. Carmen- I just read "Wildwood dancing". Loved it.
I am looking forward to some new reads. I will be scanning through the lists. "
Val, I just requested Wildwood Dancing from the library. Let you know how I liked it when I read it.
Hi, folks. I love reading and writing fantasy and have since I was in elementary school and actually have a book published that came out this summer. Of course, back when I started reading sf&f it was simply not "literary" and looked down on. Now that I teach literature at a university, I sneak in a fantasy or science fiction novel onto the reading list to inform my students and get revenge on my former professors. Have any of you gone to any of the sf&f conferences? What are the best ones?
Greetings and welcome to all our latest members!Laura, do tell us the title of your book! Part of the fun of being in this group is discovering new authors. Don't be afraid to toot your own horn a bit here in the general thread.
However, for big announcements concerning your work as a writer, let me invite you to post on our special Author Promotions thread, of which I am the moderator. Come over and take a peek at the rules, which are simple and fair, then post as much as you want about your work. We'd all love to know more.
As for sf&f conferences, I've been to WorldCon when it was here in So Cal, and I've attended and been a guest panelist for the last 3 years at the Los Angeles Science Fiction and Fantasy Con, aka LosCon. I'm partial to LosCon because it's my local con and I can get together and be geeky with my 'peeps' for an entire weekend and not have to spend a huge amount of money, but it's a relatively small con compared to WorldCon or DragonCon. Still, we get some pretty big names at LosCon because there are many big name writers who live in the area. It's always very good fun.
Hello! Just joined this group. My name's Jenna and I'm from the Central Coast of California. Some of my favorite fantasy authors are Sharon Shinn, Lois McMaster Bujold, Kristen Britain, Moira J. Moore, Sherwood Smith to name a few. I'm an aspiring fantasy author and currently have my book available on lulu.com. I also have a website that has all the info about the book, including an excerpt and illustrations: The Legend of Oescienne - The Finding
Glad to be part of this group and happy reading!
-Jenna
Thanks, Leslie, for the welcome and the invitation and the information about WorldCon and LosCon. I'm trying to decide what to spend travel money on. First, I need to explain that my writing name is Dene Low--my middle name and maiden name and what I went by as a kid. My book is young YA and is the first in a series. The second one is just about ready to go to the editor. If you want something off the wall and fresh, you'll like this one. It is a historical fantasy romp set in London in 1903. Think Oscar Wilde, P.G. Wodehouse, Sherlock Holmes, and Kafka. Do not read if bug eating makes you queasy. Publisher is Houghton Mifflin.
The title is Petronella Saves Nearly Everyone in the series The Entomological Tales of Augustus T. Percival. The next in the series is Petronella Saves Several More. The reviews have been good. Some of the Goodreads reviews are really great (4.0 average) and the bloggers' reviews have been very good.
After reading several posts, I feel I should also say I've lived lots of places, too: Minnesota, California, Kentucky, Texas, Colorado, Austria, and Germany. I currently live in Utah--gorgeous mountains!
Someone mentioned Oz--I gobbled up all the Oz books as a kid. My aunt had them from the 1930s, beautifully illustrated. Someday I will catch up on Goodreads with more of the books I've read. I read two to three novels a week. When I was a kid, my teacher wanted us to write book reports, but I was too busy reading, so I only had 2 gold stars for the reports, but I had read hundreds of books. Sometimes I am at a loss to know what to read next, so thanks for all the suggestions. There are a few I have not read.
Laura
Welcome to our newest member/authors, Jenna and Laura
Welcome to the group, Jenna and Laura. Nice to have you with us.
Nicola wrote: "Laura wrote: "When I was a kid, my teacher wanted us to write book reports, but I was too busy reading, so I only had 2 gold stars for the reports, but I had read hundreds of books."I have to say..."
It's so fun to be among people who understand about the fascination of reading. My dream vacation would be to be dropped off on the beach of a tropical island with unobtrusive servants, a magnificent chef, a beach chair and umbrella, and stacks and stacks of fantastic books.
It's ironic that I make my living writing and teaching about writing.
Laura
Welcome to the group Laura and Jenna. It is good to see aspiring authors join our group. Speaking of reading books on the beach, there is a new thread in this topic that may interest you Laura 'NPR Poll Open - 100 Best Beach Books'. Maybe the ideal writing location is also on a island, Colleen McCullough did live on Norfolk Island for awhile.
If living on an island means producing a mega-blockbuster, I'm all for it.
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Fantasy Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Michael J. Sullivan (other topics)Robin Hobb (other topics)
Patrick Rothfuss (other topics)
Daniel Abraham (other topics)
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Fiona, if you prefer YA fantasy, have you tried Susan Cooper and Lloyd Alexander?