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[Blake]

Hello. As displayed above my name is Blake. I was looking for a good group for discussion and suggestions of entertaining reads (good reads I suppose). Im 35, live way down in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The same Baton Rouge that has unfortunately been in the news lately.

Im dyslexic so as a child I was a slow reader. But lucky for me my parents and a friends dad would not accept that and tutored me until I caught up with my peers. That combined with my love of a good story turn me into the reading addict i am today. Although im managing a book or more a week habit i still mostly manage to function in normal society and keep the bills payed.

I co owned ran a medium size business for about 8 years then eventually went into residential home repairs and rental property. Im currently self employed still doing home repairs/minor remodeling.

I enjoy both sci-fi and Fantasy though i probably end up reading more fantasy.
A few of my favorites are:

Neverwhere by Neil G. and most of his others as well.
The first law series by Joe Abercombie
The Broken Empire by Mark Laurence
The King Henry Tapes by Richard Raley
Diamond age by Neil Stephens (and the rest of is early books)
The Deed of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon
The legend of Zero by Sara King.
Plus most of the good household-name authors.

[Lorraine]

Hello, I'm fascinated with fantasy and sci-fi. I love moves, books & best of all writing them. I'm joining the group because I want to meet some fellow fans of the ya genre. I can't wait to meet some new people & maybe even discover some new favourite books for my shelf. :)

[Melissa]

Hi, I'm Melissa. I'm into novels, mainly, of a variety of types. Long-time Victorianist, actually. I do like steampunk and neo-victorian. Those definitely get science-y from time to time.
I think I'm more into scifi than fantasy, but the real truth is more that I haven't read as much fantasy.
Probably my absolute favorite is scifi horror. In space, no one can hear you scream. :)

[Shelly]

Hi, I'm Shelly, a retired librarian in New York City. I read more science fiction than fantasy, but I do enjoy some fantasy, such as The Song of Ice and Fire, an occasional urban fantasy.... I also love historical fiction, mystery/suspense, and literary fiction, including magical realism. For science fiction, I'll read most anything, but time travel and alternate histories are particular favorites. Also, the weirder the better.

[Alan]

Shelly wrote: "Also, the weirder the better. ..."
Given that statement and your former profession, I assume you have come across Terry Pratchett's L-space concept (and his Librarian!) ?

[Johan]

For science fiction, I'll read most anything, but time travel and alternate histories are particular favorites. Also, the weirder the better."

The book I'm reading right now fits this descriptions really well. A really weird and surreal alternative history. It was released this week.

The Last Days of New Paris

[Robin]

Hi I'm Robin. I'm new to this group and I'm an author. I was born in 98 and was raised by my mum (due to a divorce). I've always loved to write and this year, I delved into the self publishing world. I'll like some pointers on where to promote my books here in this group as I've looked without success. I don't want to break any rules so I'm just asking nicely. If you know where, please point me in the right direction. Thanks.

[Sarah]

There's a folder called Goodreads Authors Discussions for self-promotion. If you read the Authors Must Read thread it will give you the necessary guidelines. Good luck.

[Graeme]

Hi All, my name is Graeme Rodaughan from Australia, I've been a mad keen science fiction and fantasy reader since I was a child. Looking forward to getting involved with this group.

[G.]

Greetings, all. I'm Dave, a fantasy and sci-fi author/reader from SW Missouri in the U.S. I've got one trilogy out and working on a couple more books at the moment. I'd love to do that full-time, but it's not there yet. Been away from GR for a while, trying to get back into the flow. Favorite series is the Thomas Covenant books by Stephen R. Donaldson, although I also enjoy a little Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy too, ;-) along with lots of stuff in between. Nice to meet you.

[Dalton]

Hey guys, my name's Dalton I'm 22 years old, live in central PA with my fiancee. I'm a huge sci-fi/fantasy enthusiast, and books are just one (admittidley my preferred) method of enjoying the worlds and universes people create. I'm also big on comic books, video games, and movies. I love it all.

I'm also an author, and love writing fantasy/sci-fi. In compliance with the rules, I won't promote my stuff, but writing is just as important to me as reading.

This year so far I've managed to knock out the first two entries in "A Song Of Ice And Fire" and I'm absolutely loving it. Can't wait to start book three.

[Sarah]

Freddy and Brock, please feel free to open threads in the Goodreads Authors Discussions folder. This is not the appropriate place for self-promotion.

[Alan]

Hi, My name is Alan VanMeter. I'm a Goodreads author and sci-fi fanatic. I haven't read any books lately, because I've been too busy writing them. My favorite authors of old are Arthur C. Clarke, and Larry Niven. I think it is fascinating to see many of the things that were once mere fictional ideas actually become reality. I'm waiting for the big one though; star travel! I don't think it will be long now though, especially with the super fluidity of time space finally understood.

[Corben]

How do,

Today I heard news that the solar system next door – Proxima Centauri - has an Earth-like planet. So I’ve joined the SFF Book Club to find out how to get there. It’s only 4 light years away. If I don’t find the answer here where will I find it?

My name is Corben Duke. I was born in Yorkshire, England. Yorkshire is the centre of the known universe … that’s what my gran used to tell me and I believe her.

I’ve added next month’s review books to my ‘to read’ list so I’m good to go. I like tight writing, not too much description, plenty of lively dialogue, a fantastically imaginative story , weird characters, humour and a swift pace to the story. I’m not asking for too much am I?

Laters.

[Lilly]

Hi everyone!

I´m Lilly. I like reading, painting, photography, and most of all dancing.
I´ve thought about joining a Fantasy group for a while (I mostly read Fantasy and only the odd book of Scifi now and then) - and having found some nice suggestions on your bookshelves, I thought I might as well try this one;)

I´m currently reading Robert Jordan´s "The Dragon Reborn". This was actually the first book I read in the "Wheel of Time" series, now 16 years ago. I´ve never read it since, although I always restart on one or some other of the volumes (I never read them chronologically). Now it´s finally back to my personal "first volume" ^^.

La, my list says that I only read 9 of your books - though I´d say i´ve read quite a bit of Fantasy. But then, who would want to join a book Club where they´ve read every book - that would take all the fun of discovering new ones ... :D :D

[Cathy]

Hello everybody! I read a lot of UF and have gotten very tired wit this subgenre. I have started reading more fantasy again and I plan to slowly work my way through the Locus Award winners for SciFi.

I used to read a lot of fantasy as a teenager and then delved into sci-fi, especially hard sci-fi, as a tween. It was fun and I want to get back into it.

It's always more fun to read a book with buddies and as some of my friends are in your group, I thought I'd give it a try. I am not sure yet, how active I'll be. At the moment I am a bit overwhelmed by your discussion boards and rules... ;-)

Ops, and... My name is Cathy, I'm 47 and live in Germany... My second passion after reading is Scotch. No, not an alcoholic, just a fan...

[Kali]

Hi, my name is Kali, I'm 25 and read quite a bit of sci fi. My next read is going to be Snow Crash. I here for recommendations and hopefully meet some new people with the same interests. Most of my life dedicated to my kids. One of them is a dog. The other is a small humans person. The rest of it is pc gaming and reading. Can't wait to see what kinds of discussions happen here. :]

[Trike]

Greetings, new peeps. Jump on in, the water's fine. (Although full of krakens and merpeople.)

[Sarah]

Welcome everyone! I'm going to pretend Trike didn't just call me a kraken... ;)

It's a fun group and I hope you guys enjoy it.

[Trike]

Sarah Anne wrote: "Welcome everyone! I'm going to pretend Trike didn't just call me a kraken... ;)

It's a fun group and I hope you guys enjoy it."

More like a kraken wrangler.

Yee-haw!

[Sarah]

Good one :) That's certainly how I feel sometimes.

[Vignesh]

23, living in India and a Product Designer by training.
I have been reading all my life, but sadly, it wasn't much fiction. I hope to probably scratch the SF surface and I love the direction its taking my mind. I am currently reading :
1) Sapiens - Yuval Noah Harari
2) The View from the Cheap Seats - Neil Gaiman

Cheers.

[Graeme]

Hi Vignesh, I kinda envy you for having so much reading joy in front of you.

Mind you, all good books are like old friends - you don't tire of them.

[Graeme]

A thunderous voice shatters the sky, 'Unleash the Kraken!'

[Terence]

Hi all

I'm a native of the UK. Born in 1956. My first SF book was Invader from Space by Patrick Moore (long time astronomer) which I won in junior school for good work. The closest think I'd read to SF before then was CS Lewis's Narnia books. It was then I discovered the library was stocked with works by Andre Norton, Robert Heinlein, John Wyndham and others. If it was there I read it: Philip E High, Keith Laumer, John Christopher, Poul Anderson, Piers Anthony, John Brunner, James Blish Ray Bradbury, Michael G Coney... My tastes have changed over the years - favourites changed from Ursula K LeGuin to Philip Jose Farmer then Samuel R Delaney, Philip K Dick, Roger Zelazny - they all had something going for them. The field has broadened immensely since then and there's plenty more authors to mention, just not the space. :-)

Themes. I like themes set in space - galactic civilisations, rockets, ray guns, aliens, xeno-biology, colonisation, conquest. And inner space, that's also good.

[Graeme]

Hi Terence, nice to meet you. Interesting comment.

[Don]

Welcome Terence

[Alex]

Hallo! I'm a lover of science fiction and fantasy novels, and I look forward to participating and contributing here. Hallo everyone!

[wisp]

Hey there, my name is Kerri. I just recently joined goodreads about a month ago.

I was in a huge reading slump for a little over a year and I've just started back up around June of this year. I figured I have to join a group at some point, so why not join one focused around my favorite genre? I'm mainly just looking for a community to gain some friends and get some book recommendations.

I love browsing other user's to-read and favorites for read ideas. Feel free to add me. Nice to meet you all.

Currently reading: Uprooted by Naomi Novik

So far this year I've read:
A Shade of Vampire by Bella Forest
A Shade of Blood by Bella Forest (Not a fan of this series)
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

[Damien]

Hello!

I'm Damien Black, indie author and lover of fantasy, mythology and history... In fact for me the three often overlap!

I love the concept of exploring the human condition in a parallel universe that is at once reminiscent of and different to our own... I think mythology is a powerful tool that we can use to balance ourselves out (don't take my word for it, Professor Jung advanced this theory more than a century ago!).

As such, I genuinely believe it is no coincidence that the fantasy genre is going from strength to strength in an era when we are becoming increasingly materialistic and technology-driven. So keep reading and writing those modern-day myths, folks - they're good for us ;)

I'll leave it there as I just wanted to say hello - but I look forward to having many interesting discussions on this and other threads!

[Alan]

Damien wrote: "As such, I genuinely believe it is no coincidence that the fantasy genre is going from strength to strength..."
"strength to strength" - agreed. But I am less sure about a direct link. There are MANY other factors to consider - not least, the sudden rise of self-publishing, mostly electronic. That opens the way for lots of authors who would otherwise not have got past the gatekeepers of the publishing world, and many of those new authors write Fantasy.
What worries me is the rise of the 'Grimdark' style, showing the worst of the various dark sides of human nature, and the fading of simple 'escapist' style, set in a more idealised world, with good triumphant and evil punished. This style is being restricted to the YA field, and is being crowded out even there.
What happened to simple escapism?

[Joanne]

Hi,
My name is Joanne. I am 54. I am member of lots of clubs including Japanese Literature and Japanese light novel. I like a lot of different genres. I don't like a lot of violence or sexual content. I can handle a little bit when it contributes to the story.

I was reading on Kindle but lately I have been trying to lean more toward print books. I think especially toward bedtime, it helps me to get away from computer screens.

[Richard]

Hi everyone, my name is Richard, but y'all can call me Rick. I was born in 58 and grew up in the suburbs of D.C. Reading offered me an escape from the racial tensions of the late sixties, early seventies.

I've been a lifelong reader since I was laid up with a bout of polio when I was seven. I served in the peacetime military where long bouts of boredom were interspersed with brief periods of even greater boredom. It was a good place to read and during my five years I probably devoured on average of three or four books a week.

My reading interests have ranged from Horror to Westerns, to Space Operas, to Thrillers and everything in between. Probably the only genre I haven't read yet is Romance and quite honestly I don't see myself falling into that well any time soon. Nothing personal, just not my cup of tea.

I will warn you I'm also a writer who has self published several novels and novellas and such. I liken the marketing of my books to being a door to door salesman in hell, so you won't have to worry about me spamming the forums. Any time soon.

My reading had fallen into a rut lately, you know what I mean the same writers and ideals over and over again. I'm looking to broaden my horizons a bit more.

So how's everybody else doing?

[J.S.]

Hi there! I'm Jessica: reader, writer, collector-of-eggs and weeder-of-gardens. Like Richard, I've fallen into a reading rut and am looking for recommendations and discussion.

Looking forward to getting to know my way around here.

[Jennifer]

Hey ya'll! Jenn here. Let's see, I'm a 35 yo mom of 2 boys in Indiana. My background is in business & education. BS in education from Taylor U., MS in business management from IWU, & Doctorate of education from Capella. Wrapped up my dissertation a couple years ago, and now want to write for fun! I have a blog at www.DrJenn.coffee to keep me entertained. I am mostly focusing on homeschooling my boys at the moment. We've been traveling a lot & seeing all the things! We are all reading as much as possible. I'm only on my 43rd book of the year, my 8 yo is on his 75th, and my 11 yo his 46th. They are winning, but to be fair....I'm working through the 4th GoT & those take a minute! Also currently reading the latest Harry Potter, Jewel's autobio, and about 16 others bc I'm literature add. Anyway, happy to be here!

[Don]

Welcome Jennifer

[Graeme]

Wow, away for a moment and everyone arrives.

Welcome to Damien, Kerri, Alex, Joanne, Richard, jessica and Jennifer.

This is a very active group with lots of interesting conversations going on. Looking forward to seeing y'all on the threads.

[Miloš]

Hi everybody, I'm Miloš, 38. I'm a married chemist from Novi Sad, Serbia, currently finishing my very late PhD in biochem. No kids yet. One dog, though. Besides books (obviously), I really love table tennis and music (of which a lot can be fit in a square of HC punk/alternative/metal/pop), as well as combinations of those three, meaning books about table tennis & books about music.
Still, genre-wise, I'm mostly a casual, lightweight SF&F fan, so no cosplay, Cons, nor RPG board games for me. Furthermore, I've read an embarrassingly small number-to-none of the works by genre's forefathers such as Wells, Asimov, Clarke or Verne. Actually, I've read Space Odysseys but found them, well, dry (sorry). I don't know which is worse, not reading or not liking Clarke (and admitting it publicly). In my defense, I did quite enjoy The Songs Of Distant Earth as well as a hefty amount of books by Le Guin, Tolkien, Martin, Gaiman and Bakker. I'm also a newly converted Abercrombie zealot, but still haven't found the time to delve into Shattered Sea. It's on my waiting list though, and will be taken care of pretty soon.
I also enthusiastically follow several SF&F comic series, mostly the ones published by Image, such as "Copperhead", "Rumble", "Birthright" and "Saga".
My 5 favorite SF books of all time as of Saturday, 2016-09-10 are:
The Left Hand of Darkness
A Canticle for Leibowitz
Lord of Light
More Than Human
Ender's Game/Speaker for the Dead (I haven't read the other sequels yet)
As for fantasy, well, I think the names mentioned above would fare fairly well on my best of list.
So there you go, I suppose that's more than enough for the introductions, see you at the discussions.
Oh, and that beard in the photo is, well, was, real.

[Liz]

Hello, my name is Liz. I'm an Adult Services Librarian in Missouri. I read a lot of fantasy and a bit of sci fi. I would love to be able to read more sci fi and hope this group will inspire to pick some up. I'm also hoping to get some ideas for a sci fi/fantasy book club we're starting at my library.

Some of my favorite fantasy/sci fi books:

Goblin Wars series- Kersten Hamilton
Station Eleven- Emily St. John Mandel
Kindred- Octavia Butler
Graceling Realm series- Kristin Cashore
American Gods- Neil Gaiman
Daughter of Smoke and Bone series- Laini Taylor
The Time Traveler's Wife- Audrey Niffenegger

[James]

Hello to all.
I’m James M. Corkill, a Veteran, and retired Federal Firefighter from Washington State, USA. I was an electronic technician and studied mechanical engineering in my spare time before eventually becoming a firefighter for 32-years and retiring.
I’ve loved sci-fi since I read my first Vince Flynn novel in, well, let’s just say it was a very long time ago.

[Graeme]

Hi Milos, Hope, Liz and James.

Welcome to the group, there is plenty going on here. Lots of interesting conversations and book readings.

[Leonie]

Hi James :)

[ash]

Hi all, my name is Ashley, and I just joined the group. I'm an undergrad studying Psychology in Singapore. About 80% of all the things I read are scifi. I've always been interested in the universe and concepts of time and space and things like that since I was young, and when I was older I realise I can enjoy them in novels and films, and it all went from there.

Some of my favourite scifi books are The Southern Reach Trilogy by Jeff VanderMeer, Station Eleven by Emily Mandel, All Clear 1 & 2 and just about everything else by Connie Willis, 11/22/63 and The Dune by Stephen King.

[Leonie]

Hi Ashley! Welcome :-)

[Joseph]

Hello all. My name is Joe, and I've been a GR andSciFi member for a while, but today I decided to stop skulking in the shadows and introduce myself. I'm a physician and writer outside of Boston. My favorite authors span the oldies (Asimov, Bradbury, Heinlein) to the new (Sawyer, Scalzi, Corey). Throw in some Neil Gaiman and Stephen King and I'm all set. I'm currently waiting patiently for my agented novel, LITTLE GREEN MEN, to find a publisher. (Don't worry, I will not go spam crazy on this site when it does)
I'm looking forward to finding some new books to read and sharing some of my favorites with you all.

[Graeme]

Hi Ashley and Joseph.

Welcome to the group. It's a very cool group.

[Juan]

Hello to everyone. My name is Juan, and I am from Bogotá, Colombia (I read in english but my writing skills aren´t as good). Born in '86, I never was a good reader until I was 16 when I discovered the pleasure of reading. Nevertherless, the first book I ever read and that i remember that I enjoyed in school was Martin Chronicles from Bradbury.
I like reading many books genres, but Sci-Fi has always been one that I kept retourning to. I joined this group in order to discover new books an author's.

Already bought The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet for my Kindle so I can join the club.

[iman]

Hi, my name is Iman, joined this group since loooooong time ago but never introduced myself before. English is not my first language, but i only read fantasy and scifi books in english (really hate translated books ).

Some of my favorite books :
A Song of Ice and Fire series by you-know-who
Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss
Reckoners series by Brandon Sanderson
Broken Empire and Red Queen's War series by Mark Lawrence
Bridge of Birds by Barry Hughart
Gentleman Bastards series by Scott Lynch
Shadow Ops by Myke Cole (cheesy but i like it)
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Stephen King's Books

Any recommendation in this genre will be much appreciated !

[Angie]

Hi all! My name is Angela and I was born in 1991. I joined this group because I have always been interested by Science Fiction but I haven't read many Sci-Fi books. I'm hoping that by joining this group I'll be introduced to new books and a community that I can learn from.

If you have any suggestions on where to begin with this genre let me know!

[William]

I am William F Rayer, Author, Composer, Musician, Artist,
Member Cleveland Composers Guild, ITG and ASCAP
We dream to write and we write to dream

I am is a composer, trumpet player, author, and painter. I am a member of the Cleveland Composers Guild, ASCAP, and the International Trumpet Guild. My undergraduate degree is a B.A. in Music Education from Kent State University. I have a Master of Arts degree in Music Composition from Cleveland State University. I have written many compositions which have been performed by area orchestras and bands including the Ohio Chamber Orchestra, Lakeland Civic Band, Lakeland Civic Orchestra, Lorain Civic Orchestra as well as local high schools and junior high schools. In the spring of 2007 the Lakeland Civic Orchestra premiered my work “Pluto, Requiem For A Dead Planet” which was inspired by a Newsweek article of the same name. In 2012 I was commissioned to write a work called Celebration Overture for Symphony West Orchestra commemorating the Symphony’s 50th anniversary. In early 2015 I had a trumpet solo premiered in Paris, France. I perform regularly as the principle trumpet of the Lorain Civic Orchestra, the Broadale Brass Sextet and the Vermilion Civic Band. I has completed two novels called The Reach Beyond Tomorrow and The Legacy of Pnomos.

I enjoy writing, both music and stories. My favorite authors are Ben Bova, Jules Verne, Orson Scott card, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke, Stephen Baxter, well the list goes on.

I look forward to finding members here with the same interests that I have.

Nice to meet you all!

Bill