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Suggestions on Books to Read

colton said:
Wheel of Time is awesome, although the action really dragged in some of the middle books. If the overall series were about 2/3 the actual length it would be perfect.
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I spent the summer of 1996 reading the first seven books and loved them. Kept reading through book 10, where for some reason I stopped. I want to finish, but obviously it has been a long time and I'd need to start over. Just haven't figured out how to make that kind of time now (there's sooo many books I want to read).

I agree with the 2/3 comment.
 
For anyone interested in books about race - I've just started listening to Trevor Noah's "Born a Crime." He's the successor to Jon Stewart on The Daily Show if you are not familiar with him. He grew up in South Africa at a time when it was illegal for a white person and a black person to have "relations," much less a child. It is fascinating! It helps that he is a comedian which brings some fun into such a serious topic.
 
Siro said:
Only read two Haldeman book, and both were utter ****.

Do you read hard sci-fi? If so, check out Dragon's Egg by Robert Forward. It is marvelous.
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Sure. Actually, I just checked out the Wikipedia page for the book and it sounds familiar. I think I probably read it when I was in high school (late 80's). But I'll consider re-reading it.
 
JazzGal said:
I spent the summer of 1996 reading the first seven books and loved them. Kept reading through book 10, where for some reason I stopped. I want to finish, but obviously it has been a long time and I'd need to start over. Just haven't figured out how to make that kind of time now (there's sooo many books I want to read).

I agree with the 2/3 comment.
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Book 11 was also slow moving (basically books 8-11 all were), but the Sanderson books (12-14) were all really good. Frankly I didn't have high hopes even though I had read and liked some other Sanderson books by then. Just seemed like it was doomed to fail, to have on author finish another author's series. But it worked. And book 14 in particular, the finale, was simply amazing. In fact, that reminds me that I should re-read it sometime before too long.
 
colton said:
For what it's worth I've read literally thousands of fantasy books, and I'd put Wheel of Time up there with the very best. So, different strokes.
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Yes, but you're a guy who likes the good guys to be good, the bad guys to be bad, and not much middle ground. I think that's the WOT series. I prefer a bit more ambiguity. Make me think, evaluate my life kind of stuff.
 
colton said:
I know the OP wasn't necessarily restricted to fantasy, but that's what a lot of discussion has been. So I'll put this out there--my favorite current fantasy writer by far is Brandon Sanderson. I've read all his adult books and liked them all A LOT (except for Elantris, which I liked a little less than the others). But the Mistborn trilogy is truly outstanding, probably just below Lord of the Rings for my favorite fantasy work of all time.
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I skipped the last couple of mistborn. His Stormlight archive so far is amazing and at the top of my list.
 
If you want just plain fun reading, I highly suggest both the Dresden Files and the Iron Druid Chronicles.
 
colton said:
Book 11 was also slow moving (basically books 8-11 all were), but the Sanderson books (12-14) were all really good. Frankly I didn't have high hopes even though I had read and liked some other Sanderson books by then. Just seemed like it was doomed to fail, to have on author finish another author's series. But it worked. And book 14 in particular, the finale, was simply amazing. In fact, that reminds me that I should re-read it sometime before too long.
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Someday I'll have to set aside everything else and just do it. And maybe try out Mistborn as well.

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gandalfe said:
If you want just plain fun reading, I highly suggest both the Dresden Files and the Iron Druid Chronicles.
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A really fun read is the Jack Daniels series. 11 book (I think) series that is really funny, exciting, will written, and quite gripping.
 
I am desperate to find a single good high fantasy series. Something like GoT. Sophisticated and interesting for the adult reader. Is there such a thing? After the colossal disappointment that was Wheel of Time, a friend whose opinion I value recommended Kingkiller Chronicles. Unfortunately, that one suffered from much of the same ****. A 15 year old boy who's the best at everything. He's the best singer ever, he's the strongest at magic, he's unmatched in his intellect, and he's just so beautiful. Rulers world wide summon him to help them find wives and manage their lives! What nonsense.

[MENTION=14]colton[/MENTION] perhaps? Anyone?
 
Siro said:
I am desperate to find a single good high fantasy series. Something like GoT. Sophisticated and interesting for the adult reader. Is there such a thing? After the colossal disappointment that was Wheel of Time, a friend whose opinion I value recommended Kingkiller Chronicles. Unfortunately, that one suffered from much of the same ****. A 15 year old boy who's the best at everything. He's the best singer ever, he's the strongest at magic, he's unmatched in his intellect, and he's just so beautiful. Rulers world wide summon him to help them find wives and manage their lives! What nonsense.

[MENTION=14]colton[/MENTION] perhaps? Anyone?
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Seconded.
 
fiction: 1984 , the road, american gods, outlander series, and the strain



non fiction: lets not go into that becaus epeople will tell me i am derailing the thread
 
Siro said:
I am desperate to find a single good high fantasy series. Something like GoT. Sophisticated and interesting for the adult reader. Is there such a thing? After the colossal disappointment that was Wheel of Time, a friend whose opinion I value recommended Kingkiller Chronicles. Unfortunately, that one suffered from much of the same ****. A 15 year old boy who's the best at everything. He's the best singer ever, he's the strongest at magic, he's unmatched in his intellect, and he's just so beautiful. Rulers world wide summon him to help them find wives and manage their lives! What nonsense.

[MENTION=14]colton[/MENTION] perhaps? Anyone?
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You are missing the main point in kingkiller chronicles, and it is a point of 2 parts. The first part is the it is being told by the protagonist, so it will of necessity go through 2 lenses: the lens of the teller (Kvothe himself) and the lens of Chronicler. The second part is that the guy telling it, the "present" Kvothe, is obviously a very very broken man, having presumably paid the price for his hubris, which we have yet to discover in the 3rd book. I think it has a lot more depth than might be otherwise obvious.

Now if only he will finish the mother****ing last book for hell's sake. ****!
 
LogGrad98 said:
You are missing the main point in kingkiller chronicles, and it is a point of 2 parts. The first part is the it is being told by the protagonist, so it will of necessity go through 2 lenses: the lens of the teller (Kvothe himself) and the lens of Chronicler. The second part is that the guy telling it, the "present" Kvothe, is obviously a very very broken man, having presumably paid the price for his hubris, which we have yet to discover in the 3rd book. I think it has a lot more depth than might be otherwise obvious.

Now if only he will finish the mother****ing last book for hell's sake. ****!
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Not sure how that relates to what I said. I find the story ridiculous, and I consider the core of it the same YA escapism and wish fulfillment that seem to permeate fantasy literature.

It's cool if you like it. But I am looking for a story in a high fantasy setting that is nuanced and sophisticated. Not another one that revolves around a teenager who starts with nothing but turns out to be one of the most significant people in the world.
 
One fantasy series with a ton of depth that breaks the mold is Book of the New Sun.

Only one I can think of. And it's not high fantasy.
 
I wouldn't say it breaks the mold. And the english translation seems sub-par(or may be the writing is) but I liked the folklore of the Witcher series. Likeable characters.
 
Hekate said:
I wouldn't say it breaks the mold. And the english translation seems sub-par(or may be the writing is) but I liked the folklore of the Witcher series. Likeable characters.
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Love those games. Didn't know they had novels. Sucks to hear that the translation is sub-par, but I'll give em a look.
 
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