Introductions - tell us a little about yourself Showing 1,051-1,100 of 3,618

[Janny]

Tara wrote: "Kate wrote: "Ellen wrote: "Hey Everyone! I'm Ellen. So glad to stumble onto GoodReads and this fantasy group. I'm down here in Alabama, though I grew up in Illinois and left my heart in the Pacific..."

You've already discovered Kay, who was influenced; the other I know of (for certain) would be Ellen Kushner - try her first, Swordspoint, orThomas the Rhymer.

I'd suggest also, Carol Berg's Lighthouse duet has complexity and confounded plotting and delivery that is, if not Dunnett, quite high quality. That two book series starts with Flesh and Spirit.

Historicals that I've enjoyed with characters with complexity:

The Heaven Tree Trilogy: The Heaven Tree, the Green Branch, the Scarlet Seed and Joseph Kessel's The Horsemen.

These are among my toplist reads, and not suggested lightly as books a Dunnett enthusiast might enjoy.

[[deleted user]]

Janny wrote: "Tara wrote: "Kate wrote: "Ellen wrote: "Hey Everyone! I'm Ellen. So glad to stumble onto GoodReads and this fantasy group. I'm down here in Alabama, though I grew up in Illinois and left my heart i..."

Thanks Janny. The Heaven Tree Trilogy looks great! *TBR pile starts listing dangerously*

[Ellen]

Janny wrote: "Tara wrote: "Kate wrote: "Ellen wrote: "Hey Everyone! I'm Ellen. So glad to stumble onto GoodReads and this fantasy group. I'm down here in Alabama, though I grew up in Illinois and left my heart i..."

Thanks, Tara, for asking the question I hadn't formed yet but was very interested in knowing. Thanks, Janny, for your recommendations. Thanks everyone for a warm welcome and confirmation that I'm going to enjoy it here!

[Danielle]

Hello, everyone!

I'm Danielle Bourdon. I'm new around here and I've been trying to have a look around at all the discussions and links.

There's so many cool things going on, it's hard to know where to start!

I write more fantasy than I read, ironically, but am usually drawn into stories with emotionally driven characters and a lot of suspense/tension.

One of these days, I want to sit down with Lord of the Rings and give it a go. I've seen the movie a million times but haven't ever done more than glance through the first few pages of the book.

I've gotten some pretty good ideas from this thread for new fantasy to check out though and can tell my TBR pile is going to grow very long indeed.

Glad to be a part of the group!

Cheers!

Danielle

[Mary]

Hi everyone! I've been keeping an eye on discussions for a while but neglected to introduce myself. I'm a writer living in Wellington, NZ, and an avid reader of everything from literary classics to science fiction, fantasy and philosophy. I have only one gripe about life: I'd like there to be four of me, so that at least two versions can be occupied with full-time reading.

Love Goodreads and listening in on all you good folks.

[Amanda]

Hello, I'm Amanda and I am new to this site. I've been ready fantasty for as long as I can remember starting with the Narnia books. I'm an avid reader and read a variety of genres but my favorite fantasty authors are J.R.R. Tolkein, C.S. Lewis, Sherwood Smith, Anne Bishop, Robin McKinley, Patricia Wrede and Philip Pullman. I am always looking for good recommendations and good discussions although there never seems to be enough time to read all the books I'd like to!

[Kevin]

Hello all, I am relatively new to new to the site and to reading in general :) Until the past year I had never been much of a reader but have suddenly got the bug! So please go easy as I'm a novice!

I have always loved fantasy in movies and found that this has crossed over into my reading preferences. Books I have read include: The Lord of the Rings, The First Law Trilogy (onto the 3rd now), The Eye of the World, and currently working my way through The Dark Tower (The Waste Lands).

I look forward to indulging my new found passion and will hopefully get some great recommendations here!

[Aubrey]

Hi Danielle, Mary, Amanda and Kevin. There’s no shortage of recommendations for good books from everyone here. My TBR list has grown by leaps and bounds since I joined a short while ago :) Welcome to the group!

[K.C.]

Hi y'all! What a nice, big group. I'm KC May and I've only recently discovered Goodreads. I'm a writer of SF and fantasy, and reader of SF, fantasy, mystery, horror, thrillers and sometimes romance. My favorite fantasy authors are:

Robin Hobb
George R.R. Martin
Lois McMaster Bujold
Charles de Lint
Brandon Sanderson
Brent Weeks
Piers Anthony
Ursula K. Le Guin

I'm currently reading Lincoln's Sword and enjoying it so far.

Glad to meet y'all!

KC

[Greg]

Hello, I'm Greg Hamerton and I'm a Goodreads fantasy author. I'm here to surround myself with like-minded people who share my love for a magical world. I've just released the second book in my Tale of the Lifesong series, and have a busy little website for those who are interested in sampling a new fantasy series. I have huge respect for Robin Hobb, Stephen Donaldson, Charles de Lint, Terry Pratchett and Richard Bach, and I hope something of their wisdom has seeped through into my writing style.

[Barbm1020]

Hi Greg and K.C. Hope you will like Goodreads as much as I do. K.C. I am happy to see another Ursula LeGuin reader here. I heard her speak when she had just published Always Coming Home and was sooo impressed. The idea of that book has stayed with me ever since. Greg, will look for your book. "Lifesong" makes me think of Brian Aldiss' nomads who sang as they roamed, in his Heliconia books.

[Christopher]

Howdy!

I am Christopher Dunbar, and I am an author in the dark fantasy / historical fiction genre currently living near Houston, Texas. I have a Goodreads profile if anyone wants to look me up.

I am a big fan of the Forgotten Realms series... been reading it since Pools of Radiance was released in 1989. R.A. Salvatore and Neil Gaiman are two of my favorite authors, as is J.R.R. Tolkien.

Cheers!

Christopher Dunbar

[Sensitivemuse]

hi guys!

first thanks for the invite (Viktoria) and am glad to be here. :)

I've been reading fantasy since I was a kid. I actually started reading Dragonlance (which got me into fantasy) I still have those three books (Dragonlance Chronicles, and the rest of them) but the Chronicles are my absolute favorite. I must have reread those about more than a dozen times ;)

I do like a lot of other types of novels..but fantasy does rank pretty high up there in priority :)

anyway! I'm happy to be here and looking forward to discussing fantasy with all of you!

[Sashana]

Hey my name is Sashana. I love reading (obviously!) but I’m a bit new to the Fantasy genre. I’ve read a few fantasy books and I enjoyed them very much so I decided to join this group to what everyone else was reading. Can anyone give me some good fantasy book recommendation? Please and thank you.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Welcome folks! I'm just another reader here, but I'm always glad to meet more fantasy readers!.

[Sashana]

Thanks Mike. Any recommendations?

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Feel free to peruse the books on my list at my profile. My favorite fantasy books? Well, Lord of the Rings (I suppose that might be an "of course" LOL), The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon is among my favorite books of all time. There are the Harry Dresden Books by Jim Butcher, Roger Zelazny's Amber series (especially the first series), The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks... I could go on and on :), but I'll have mercy on you. I'm always ready to recommend books and hear someone else's recommendations.

Even if I do have more books waiting to be read than I might ever get to. :)

[Sashana]

Thanks Mike :) I'll take a look at your books too.

[[deleted user]]

Welcome Christopher and Sensitivemuse (great to see a friend of Foxy join).

Sasha check out our folder for Recommendations etc or make a request there for suggestions.

[Krisztina]

Hi, I'm Christina. I've been on goodreads a while and this group, but I haven't really commented on here much. Fantasy has always been one of my favorite genres, and I'm working on an urban fantasy book right now. I'm a big sci-fi geek too!

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Me to I think, but I'm never sure of the difference in a "geek" and a "nerd".

[Sashana]

Thanks JJ :)

[Janny]

Mike wrote: "Me to I think, but I'm never sure of the difference in a "geek" and a "nerd"."



Mike: technically?

A (original meaning) 'geek' was the sideshow guy at the carnival who was nuts enough to eat anything - including ground glass, live rats - whatever raised the most sensation. Honest. Look it up.

A nerd - a techno jock.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Hi Janny, yes I was aware of the sideshow use of "geek" as the man who bit the heads off chickens etc... But as in modern parlance a "game geek" or a "science fiction nerd"... they tend to be used interchangeably. I rib people about it as even of you look up definitions in "modern slang guides" they don't agree.

So... a joke.

[Janny]

Mike wrote: "Hi Janny, yes I was aware of the sideshow use of "geek" as the man who bit the heads off chickens etc... But as in modern parlance a "game geek" or a "science fiction nerd"... they tend to be used ..."

Yes, grin they do tend to be used interchangeably, now. I still wince. I had a landlord who once worked in a sideshow (he was an author, too). He wrote a book about his experiences there - and - well I still wince.

The book is titled Memoires of a Sword Swallower, if you find the hardback, or Step Right Up, if you find the paperback. (Sorry these titles are not searchable on GoodReads) The author was Daniel P. Mannix

[Mike (the Paladin)]

I remember visiting carnivals when I was a kid, (1950s and 60s) and was always "fascinated" by the barkers at the "side-shows". Times have changed a bit since then.

[Alvin]

Hi everyone! My name is Al and I just recently joined GoodReads. As part of my self-improvement kick, I had two resolutions: (1) lose weight, and (2) read more. So far I've been pretty good on both fronts - I've almost reached my target weight, and I'm up to reading a book a month. GoodReads is great for helping me find my next book to read!

I do enjoy the fantasy and sci-fi genre, but more importantly the story simply has to be good. You all impress me very much with your insights, and hopefully I can do the same down the line.

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Hopefully I can profit from your good influence and lose a little weight. :)

Glad always to see new readers.

[Elvet]

Hi everyone! I read mostly fantasy, but am just starting to branch out a bit into SF.
My favorite fantasy writers are:
Michelle Sagara West
Guy Gavriel Kay
Steven Erikson
Joe Abercrombie
Neal Stephenson
and the guy who started me off on fantasy - Tolkien, J.R.R. :-)
I particularly like themes where a present day person enters a fantasy world (eg. Thomas Covenant, Fionavar Tapestry, Age of Misrule), so any suggestions would be welcome. I actually started a list called Modern day character meets Fantasyland
http://www.goodreads.com/list/user_vo...
I joined Goodreads with a group from an Adventure gaming site (Just Adventure +), and am also a member of the Fantasy/SF book site Chronicles UK. My main hobbies are adventure games (eg. Myst, Riven, Rhem)and reading.

[Janny]

Elvet wrote: "Hi everyone! I read mostly fantasy, but am just starting to branch out a bit into SF.
My favorite fantasy writers are:
Michelle Sagara West
Guy Gavriel Kay
..."</i>

Hi Elvet - welcome.

For your real world character meets fantasy world wish list, [book:The Time of the Dark by Barbara Hambly springs to mind immediately. If you have never read her, she writes as beautifully as Kay, very well done characters, and she knows how to end a tale with panache. This book has two sequels and is an excellent read.

[Elvet]

Thanks, Janny. I added it to my list.

[Janny]

Elvet wrote: "Thanks, Janny. I added it to my list."

You're welcome. Saw you are reading Karavans - I loved that duology.

[Christopher]

JJ wrote: "Welcome Christopher and Sensitivemuse (great to see a friend of Foxy join).

Sasha check out our folder for Recommendations etc or make a request there for suggestions."

Thanks, JJ! Glad to be here!

[Marc]

Elvet wrote: "I particularly like themes where a present day person enters a fantasy world (eg. Thomas Covenant, Fionavar Tapestry, Age of Misrule), so any suggestions would be welcome. "

One of my favorites in this category is Dave Duncan's The Seventh Sword trilogy, in which American chemist Wallie Smith suddenly finds himself not in a hospital bed but in the body of Shonsu, swordsman of the Seventh rank, with a mission from the gods. Others in this vein are Joel Rosenberg's Sword and Chain series, in which some role-players get transported into the game they're playing, and his Keepers of the Hidden Ways books. Gordon Dickson did this with The Dragon and the George and its sequels. Terry Brooks did this in The Magic Kingdom of Landover Volume 1: Magic Kingdom For Sale SOLD! - The Black Unicorn - Wizard at Large

[Christopher]

Michael wrote: "Greetings and salivations!
My name is Michael (duh). I have been a SW fanatic since the movies came out in 1977. I discovered LotR about 20 years ago, and for the last 10 years I have re-read LotR ..."

Welcome aboard, Michael! I am also a big fan of any of RA Salvatore's stories with Drizzt in them. In fact, he has been one of my strongest inspirations for writing.

Anyway, I know there are lots of good books out there, and I am sure lots of folks here can recommend some good reads (pun intended).

Cheers!

Christopher Dunbar

[Christopher]

Chris wrote: "Hi all, I'm Chris from Scotland and new to Goodreads. Been reading as long as I can remember all starting with The Wind in the Willows after that I read pretty much anything I could get..."

Cheers Chris! Nice to meet up with a Chris from Scotland. (despite the kilt in my picture, I am only a Scot by ancestry.) From where do you hail? I am located in what is commonly known as the Greater Houston Area. Anyway, I see we have a favorite author in common, R.A. Salvatore. Well enjoy being a part of the group.

Cheers!

Christopher Dunbar

[Aubrey]

Hi Chris and Michael, welcome to the group! I'm the same way about devouring books in days. Luckily, I've picked up so many new books from everyone's lists here that I definitely don't have to worry about running out of books soon. I highly recommend it as the way to find your hands full of more books than hours in the day!

[Christopher]

Chris wrote: "Christopher wrote: "Chris wrote: "Thank you for the welcome, I hail from Fife on the east coast and I've got to say I could've sworn you were Scottish with such an excellent picture!"
Chris, I suppose you know a few MacDuff's seeing as how you are in Fife. I never did get to go across the Firth of Forth when last my wife and I were touring Scotland. Stayed Linlithgow for a few nights and took the train to Edinburgh, and spent most of our time further south and west.

Anyway, the tartan is Ancient Hunting MacIntyre, my wife's clan. It is sometimes good to wear green and blue when my other choice is the Christmas Tartan... aka Modern Dunbar. I love that tartan, don't get me wrong, but I sometimes need a different sett to wrap around me.

Any road, I have some leather tooling to be doing, so I'll be off.

Cheers!

Christopher Dunbar

[Cobalt_Cin]

Hi fellow readers!

My name is Stacey and I'm a uni student in Auckland, New Zealand. I have a real love of history, animals romance and world issues/politics.

I'm a lover of books and reading, I also write as a hobby. Some of the fantasy or sci-fi authors I love include David Eddings (RIP), Raymond E Fiest, Anne McCaffery, Mercedes Lackey, Maggie Furey, Jacqueline Carey, Robin Hobb, Anne Bishop, Neil Gaiman, Jim Butcher, Garth Nix, Yasmine Galenorn, Juliet Mariller, Jacqueline Carey and Tamara Pierce.

I am always on the look out for new fantasy authors. I am particuarly interested in anything with dragons, historical fanasty, the fae or mythology, I'll read urban and traditinal fantasy.

I just finised Naomi Novak's Temeraire series - what do people think? I liked them up to the 4th book I just finished but I'm loosing interest.

[Lindsey]

Hi everyone!

I'm Lindsey. I enjoy all sorts of reading: history, science, psychology, personal finance. But you can usually find me curled up with a sci-fi or fantasy novel, as evidenced by my Goodreads bookshelves. I also used to work as a children's bookseller (and I was once a kid myself!), so there are lots of great kids books on my shelves.

My favorite authors include:
Anne Bishop, Michael Stackpole, David Weber, Brandon Sanderson, Isaac Asimov, C. S. Friedman, Orson Scott Card, Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein, Karen Traviss, Kate Forsyth, Kate Elliott... well, the list could go on, but that's what my bookshelves are for. :-)

I'm currently working through Robin Hobb's Farseer trilogy and Neal Stephenson's Anathem and enjoying every minute of both. Like most people on here, I'm always interested in new recommendations and am constantly updating my "to read" list because of them.

There are some great, mature dialogs happening in this group and I've really enjoyed reading them and taking part!

[Mike (the Paladin)]

Someday I aspire to be mature... but not too soon. :)

Glad always to see new folks. Of course, I don't need more people with more books I'll want to read. (LOL)

[Annika]

Hello, I'm a young Australian author due to have my first novel published next year. I enjoy books with fantastical elements that are otherwise difficult to categorise. My favourite authors are Neil Gaiman, Mervyn Peake and Isabel Allende.

[Christopher]

Annika wrote: "Hello, I'm a young Australian author due to have my first novel published next year. I enjoy books with fantastical elements that are otherwise difficult to categorise. My favourite authors are Nei..."

Welcome, Annika! Is there content about your new book on-line? Have you added it to Goodreads? Have you also set up an author profile on Goodreads? I am sure you will find some folks here who would love to look into you and your book, even before it is released.

Cheers!

Christopher Dunbar

[Annika]

M.R, I haven't heard of her, but I'll keep an eye out. As for my book, it's still in the editing phase, but hopefully in the next few months I'll be able to have a Goodreads author profile hehe.

[Joshua]

Hey, all! Joshua Palmatier here. I'm a mathematics professor at SUNY--College at Oneonta, living in Binghamton, NY. I also teach spin classes and happen to be a published author myself. I have four books out from DAW Books--The Skewed Throne, The Cracked Throne, The Vacant Throne, and the recently released Well of Sorrows (written under the pseudonym Benjamin Tate)--along with a short story in Close Encounters of the Urban Kind from APEX. In order to be a fantasy writer though, you have to read lots of fantasy by other people, so that's why I'm here. I've just finished reading Mira Grant's (AKA Seanan McGuire's) FEED, and have just started Mindy Klasky's THE GLASSWRIGHTS' APPRENTICE.

[Cobalt_Cin]

Hi Joshua, Welcome. Wow thats pretty interesting. I think I have read Well of Sorrows, name sounds very familair to me. I too am a writer, mostly stuff I keep to myself or put on the net. But am working towards writing and completing my first book, which will likely be fantasy.

What authors do u like? I have read the Glasswrights Apprentice too. Not bad. I tend to like alot of fantasy where the characters are non-humans, ie Anne McCaffrey, Maggie Furey, Mercedes Lackey, Joanne Bertin. I also like the authors like David Eddings (my entry into fantasy and still a beloved author), Raymond E Feist, Jacqueline Carey, Juliet Mariller, Karen Marie Moning.

[Annika]

Christopher wrote: "Annika wrote: "M.R, I haven't heard of her, but I'll keep an eye out. As for my book, it's still in the editing phase, but hopefully in the next few months I'll be able to have a Goodreads author p..."

Thanks for the advice Chris. Right now the title of my book is undergoing changes. But as soon as that is sorted I'll look in to setting up a proper page.

[Robert]

Welcome Joshua! Look forward to seeing your thoughts, suggestions, and writing too!

[Joshua]

Thanks for the welcome guys!

@Cobalt_Cin: Favorite authors would probably be Tad Williams, Guy Gavriel Kay, and a bunch of others. I've probably read more than half of the authors in your list. Good luck with the writing!

@Wilbert: Thanks for pushing The Skewed Throne! I'm glad you enjoyed it, and hope a good chunk of customers did too.

[Jared]

Hey everyone :), I'm Jared. Born in 1987 which makes me 23. I'm currently living in San Diego until I leave for UC Irvine in a few weeks. Some of my favorite authors are: Steven Erikson, Patrick Rothfuss, Brandon Sanderson, Peter V. Brett and Brent Weeks. I'm open to any and all recommendations as I'm always searching for the that next good read.