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Forgive me if this has been suggested already but have none of you guys read the Polity books by Neal Asher? The best one start off with is The Skinner (Spatterjay 1), then read through the Ian Cormac series, then go back to the rest of the Spatterjay books. Avoid Hilldiggers until you have read everything else. The good thing is, if you have never read any of them you can pick almost all of them for next to nothing. It has a cursory similarity to the Banks' Culture, except with more memorable characters, very little socialism despite being sort-of post-scarcity but with money, with the best  xenomonsters, they are very well written.Asher is one of the leading lights of British Space Opera. From his blog: quote:Neal, Seconding the suggestions for Stross, Morgan, and Reynolds. I gave Peter F. Hamilton one last chance with the Evolutionary Void, as almost all of his previous books are riven with wish fulfilment orgies and unnecessary sex between unlikely Adonises and Athenae, and hurray! He has dispensed with the gratuitous, and mostly cringe worthy sex which would normally take up a significant proportion of the narrative, yet add nothing to it. Perhaps he has found his mature style? Sorry if my grammar and spelling is dreadful but I just can't get my #1 proofreader to parse the crap I sperg on forums.
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| # ? Oct 9, 2010 20:43 |
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| # ? May 21, 2013 23:19 |
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Asher is almost impossible to find in bookstores in the US. I have Brass Man and Gridlinked, but I've never seen any of the others in print; it's probably the main reason he's not more well known.
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| # ? Oct 9, 2010 22:04 |
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Vampirehobo posted:The Name Of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss is probably the best new fantasy book I've read in the past five years. It's supposed to be part of a series as well. Probably my favorite book of all time, definitely recommend picking this up.
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| # ? Oct 9, 2010 23:46 |
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I second anything by Diana Wynne Jones. Howl's Moving Castle and its sequels are great (though the third one is a bit...young). The Chrestomanci Chronicles are good, but they're more children books, so I don't know if you'd like that. But she's written a lot of stand-alone books that are meant for older readers, and her kids books are great. If you haven't read them, I suggest the Lloyd Alexander books. I also second Ender's Game and its sequels. Try Frank Herbert's Dune. Also, Douglas Adam's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is good.
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| # ? Oct 10, 2010 01:29 |
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The Warded Man by Peter Brett. First book in a series, the second book has been published. I liked it because it had lots of backstory and an interesting use of magic. It wasn't the same song and dance you find in a lot of fantasy. Island in the Sea of Time by S.M. Stirling. The island of Nantucket and the Coast Guard Clipper ship, Eagle, end up in the bronze age. Almost everyone works for the better good except for one SOB who realizes, "I have a zippo. I am god in this time!" which adds some extra drama. Stirling has another series set in the Pacific Northwest where three different factions in the same situation battle it out. Raymond Feist's Riftwar Saga starts with Magician: Apprentice A fantasy series broken up into smaller series, so you don't have to wait a decade for a plot to end. I like that Feist doesn't stick with the same characters all the time. Empire From the Ashes by David Weber. The moon isn't a moon, it's a spaceship, and it needs a captain. This is a compendium of the trilogy, which is convenient. Someone mentioned The Mote in God's Eye by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. I would second that, along with the other books in the CoDominium series. Mote is actually one of the last books in the series. I think many of them are available on the Baen free library. Their other collaborations are great too. John Varley's Titan is the beginning of a wonderful trilogy. Explorers in the year 2025 go to Saturn and find a satellite that turns out to be a hollow sphere that is alive.
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| # ? Oct 10, 2010 08:08 |
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BookBimbo posted:The Warded Man by Peter Brett. First book in a series, the second book has been published. I liked it because it had lots of backstory and an interesting use of magic. It wasn't the same song and dance you find in a lot of fantasy. This book is good up until you meet the Krasians, then it becomes kind of shocking.
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| # ? Oct 10, 2010 09:10 |
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BookBimbo posted:Raymond Feist's Riftwar Saga starts with Magician: Apprentice A fantasy series broken up into smaller series, so you don't have to wait a decade for a plot to end. I like that Feist doesn't stick with the same characters all the time. Was going to post this. I'm currently around half-way (total is 29 books) and besides his flaws*, I really enjoy Feist putting up multi-generation storylines. I also enjoy how the described cultures give this vibe of like-Earth-but-not-Earth. However, because of the large amount of books in the series it is inevitable some are rather inferior compared to the others. The first set (Magician, Silverthorn and A Darkness at Sethanon) is definitely solid though. *One of the flaws that sticks out to me is that literally every single romance is initiated by a very sexually aggressive woman/girl. This might sound minor but after 15 books it starts to grind on you.
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| # ? Oct 10, 2010 13:28 |
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Namarrgon posted:However, because of the large amount of books in the series it is inevitable some are rather inferior compared to the others. The first set (Magician, Silverthorn and A Darkness at Sethanon) is definitely solid though. On top of that, the Empire sub-series he co-wrote with a female author (Janny Wurts from memory, but I could be wrong there?) was cool. I read it before I read Magician, which gave me a somewhat skewered view of the series as a whole really. Worked well enough though. I'd say I preferred it to the first set. haven't read the later books, because I heard they didn't really compare.
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| # ? Oct 10, 2010 17:46 |
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Masonity posted:On top of that, the Empire sub-series he co-wrote with a female author (Janny Wurts from memory, but I could be wrong there?) was cool. I read it before I read Magician, which gave me a somewhat skewered view of the series as a whole really. Worked well enough though. The two in Krondor's Sons are pretty fun. Riftwar Legacy is so far the weakest of the lot. By far. Let's say I noticed something was off when reading them and later on found out that #1 and #3 (The Betrayal and Tear of the Gods) were essentially novelizations of video games. Good novelizations, but it still shows. That said they are still OK books, even though they don't seem to really add much to the overarcing story anyway. The Conclave of Shadows series is pretty fun, but it suffers from protagonist is good at everything. The last one of that part (Exile's Return) is very fun though.
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| # ? Oct 10, 2010 18:31 |
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So far this thread constitutes a very good list - if you read everything here you'd be very entertained. Regarding CJ Cherryh she has written fantasy as well as the aforementioned sci fi. She's really excellent, I think she self publishes these days so just google her site and buy direct. Chronicles of Morgaine are quite wonderful - picture a female Elric. Regarding Elizabeth Moon I found it very bizarre to read the Deed of Paksenarrion (sp?) and discover about two thirds of the way through that I was in Hommlet, the old AD&D module. She very clearly lifted a setting directly from her game. The characters are highly recognisable if you ever GMed the module. I think these days if you are looking for good sci fi and fantasy it's worth looking at series tie-ins. I've just finished Tempest by Troy Denning. It's a Star Wars Expanded Universe novel. I've read Denning before as an AD&D author but he's outgrown his origins and it's a really good read. Jacqueline Carey is another author I was surprised by recently. Tense low fantasy political drama with a strong element of sexual tension. The one I read is called Kushiel's Scion which is from the middle of her story arc. Two old favourites: Katherine Kerr has just finished her Deverry series which has been coming out for over twenty years. High fantasy celtic based and political. She is noteworthy for the quality of her linguistic and historical research from which she builds her fantasy world. Karl Edward Wagner wrote a brutal series of books about an antihero called Kane. Based on the biblical Cain who killed Abel, his hero is a treacherous power-hungry warrior and sorceror who contests with enemies even more unpleasant than he is. Strong Lovecraft and Howard influences. The books are quite hard to find these days but are quite wonderful - he was a forerunner of Abercrombie. Good reading! StabbedUp fucked around with this message at Oct 10, 2010 around 19:48 |
| # ? Oct 10, 2010 19:44 |
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StabbedUp posted:Regarding CJ Cherryh she has written fantasy as well as the aforementioned sci fi. She's really excellent, I think she self publishes these days so just google her site and buy direct. Chronicles of Morgaine are quite wonderful - picture a female Elric. Ya Morgaine is so awesome, vorpal sword ehehe. A few weeks back I read an unrelated low fantasy book called The Paladin, set in a medieval asian land. It's pretty cool, recommended if you like her other stuff.
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| # ? Oct 11, 2010 03:18 |
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Dramatika posted:The Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson is really good, lots of action, interesting magic system, dark tone. When I read the first book, I ended up canceling my plans and reading the entire trilogy in one weekend. Seconding this. I'm in the middle of the second book, and the series is really drat good. Dramatika posted:The Way of Kings, also by Brandon Sanderson, is the first of a planned ten book series called The Stormlight Archive. It was just released a week ago, and I really really enjoyed it, flew through it in 3 days, which is saying a lot considering it's a 1000 page book. Now I have to wait a year or so for book 2 Sweet, looks like I have another series to start. Thanks!
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| # ? Oct 14, 2010 19:45 |
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Skellen posted:Please tell me this is tongue in cheek. I read the first book, it was absolute trash. Also I would recommend avoiding anything by Eddings. This is based solely off of the first book, which was ridiculously cookie cutter nonsense. I don't think you 'get' Eddings. Most of what is 'cookie cutter nonsense' is so because he deliberately set out to write the archetypal fantasy story, and the same general tropes he used have been heavily abused in the fantasy genre since. The plot isn't going to terribly shock anyone, but the real draw is that he writes very good characters and clever dialogue that are worth overlooking the intentionally predictable plot. Blog Free or Die posted:A few weeks back I read an unrelated low fantasy book called The Paladin, set in a medieval asian land. It's pretty cool, recommended if you like her other stuff. The Paladin really is pretty excellent. I think Cherryh set out to see how many kung-fu movie tropes she could use in a fantasy story and still get it to blend, and it works out marvelously.
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| # ? Oct 14, 2010 20:19 |
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Masonity posted:On top of that, the Empire sub-series he co-wrote with a female author (Janny Wurts from memory, but I could be wrong there?) was cool. I read it before I read Magician, which gave me a somewhat skewered view of the series as a whole really. Worked well enough though. I read the first 4 books of the Riftwar saga before the Empire trilogy, but to this day enjoy that trilogy the most out of all the other subsets of Feist's books. Something about it is just less 'cookie-cutter' than his Midkemia-based novels.
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| # ? Oct 14, 2010 23:50 |
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I'm not sure if this has been posted already but I did use the forum search function and it didn't turn anything up. I want to recommend Empire from The Ashes by David Weber If you're into SciFi/Semi-Military style, you'll love this book. I recommend it to any SciFi reader. This is my favorite book of all time and have it about 4 times now haha Empire From the Ashes [Wiki]  Empire from The Ashes is a collection of the 3 books in the Dahak Series by David Weber in order: 1. Mutineers Moon [Wiki]  2. The Armageddon Inheritance [Wiki]  3. Heirs of Empire [Wiki]  Hope you take the recommendation and enjoy! Pan Et Circenses posted:
I second this! Anything Zelazny is absolutely wonderful. Book of Amber is my favorite from him. A definite must read. productINSERT fucked around with this message at Oct 15, 2010 around 09:16 |
| # ? Oct 15, 2010 08:42 |
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Just FYI, his last name is spelled with one 'b' i.e. Weber. Which may help you in future searches. I second the recommendation for Empire from the Ashes, though. It has a lot of the things people like about the Harrington books, but it's a trilogy, full-stop, so it can't keep going forever and getting steadily more absurd like Harrington has.
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| # ? Oct 15, 2010 09:09 |
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wheatpuppy posted:Just FYI, his last name is spelled with one 'b' i.e. Weber. Which may help you in future searches. oh christ... DUH. Thanks man *fixed lol I'm also waiting for Webers next book in the Dahak series dammit! I hear he's trying to work on it but it's been years I'm losing hope heh
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| # ? Oct 15, 2010 09:15 |
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wheatpuppy posted:Just FYI, his last name is spelled with one 'b' i.e. Weber. Which may help you in future searches. Eh, I like the Harrington series, and I don't think the weapons have grown too outrageous. They have grown a bit fast narrative wise, as Manticore and Haven tend to have a new weapon or three to beat each other with every second or third book, but time wise it's not so bad. Honestly, but weapons and technology can grow by leaps and bounds in war and the books are often a year or two apart due to the anti-aging technology. Also, I'm curious how long it will take the Sollies to figure out that sending anything of theirs against Manticore or Haven after they spent over a decade toughening each other up is like sticking your arm in a wood chipper. Anyways, thirding the Empire from the Ashes trilogy. The only problem with the trilogy is the fact that it's early Weber, and the man has maybe four plot ideas bouncing around in his head. The over-arching plot from the first two books (alien race regularly sweeps the galaxy clean of any intelligent life) and one of the plot lines in the second book were basically mashed together to create the Safehold series. Also, I highly recommend anything by anyone that Weber co-authors with, such as Eric Flint and John Ringo. Eric Flint writes some good (if groan worthy) "Historical Sci Fi". Basically, knowledge and/or people from the future find themselves in the past. The Bellisarious series is short, and completed, and well written and can basically be summed up as "If the Byzantine Empire was given gun powder". John Ringo has his "Emperium of man" series which is basically a spoiled brat prince finds himself and his small army of bodyguards stranded on a planet that is basically hell (figuratively, not literally) due to sabotage. The prince have to grow up and the bodyguards have to keep him alive and everyone has to keep from being eaten by giant moth larva the size of snakes with venom that will cause your internal organs to melt.
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| # ? Oct 17, 2010 06:38 |
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Alkydere posted:John Ringo has his "Emperium of man" series which is basically a spoiled brat prince finds himself and his small army of bodyguards stranded on a planet that is basically hell (figuratively, not literally) due to sabotage. The prince have to grow up and the bodyguards have to keep him alive and everyone has to keep from being eaten by giant moth larva the size of snakes with venom that will cause your internal organs to melt. I personally loved this series too, at least for the first three books. The fourth was ok but not as enthralling for me. I guess my formula for enjoyment is Space Marines + plasma guns + overwhelming alien armies = happy wheatpuppy. This is also why I loved Tanya Huff's Valor series, and Ringo's more recent Looking Glass series with Travis Taylor. In general, Ringo can be kind of overwhelming when he writes by himself, but his rhetoric is toned down more when he writes in tandem. Still very much "if Tom Clancy wrote sci-fi" but that's not necessarily a bad thing, if that's your bag.
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| # ? Oct 18, 2010 06:33 |
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Dramatika posted:The Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson is really good, lots of action, interesting magic system, dark tone. When I read the first book, I ended up canceling my plans and reading the entire trilogy in one weekend. I just finished these and they were awesome, I'm recommending them to all my friends, and probably going to go out and get some of Sanderson's other stuff. Elantris (a standalone book, which is cool, not a lot of those in fantasy) and The Way of Kings (first book of like ten or something.) Also had The Lies of Locke Namora by Scott Lynch recommended to me by a few people lately, will probably pick that up too.
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| # ? Oct 18, 2010 08:36 |
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Collateral posted:Forgive me if this has been suggested already but have none of you guys read the Polity books by Neal Asher? I looked into e-book availability in the states for these guys, and it turns out that while Barnesandnoble.com doesn't have 'em, Amazon does. So I grabbed the Kindle editions and have been reading them on my laptop; I'm going to get one of the Kindle or Nook with holiday sales, but for now it's a decent interim solution. (I'm getting a bit sick of the sci-fi/fantasy trend toward hardcover only for a year+, especially when so many covers are atrocious, so going $15 for an ebook edition is nice, if a bit less convenient without the actual readers. And for Asher and other poorly-distributed authors in the states, it's this or order the physical books from Amazon). Anyway, having read now the first 3 and a half Polity books, I do like Asher. The setting is interesting, and while similar to the Culture on the surface, it's a lot more fallable. I do get a bit sick of the repetitive description of the xenotech stuff, but that might just be my own science-y background. Also, on the Fantasy front, for those who are interested, the next Thomas Covenant book is coming out tomorrow: Against All things Ending. Velius fucked around with this message at Oct 18, 2010 around 14:13 |
| # ? Oct 18, 2010 13:54 |
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Lzn64 posted:I just finished these and they were awesome, I'm recommending them to all my friends, and probably going to go out and get some of Sanderson's other stuff. Elantris (a standalone book, which is cool, not a lot of those in fantasy) and The Way of Kings (first book of like ten or something.) A quick word of warning. Elantris is Sanderson's first published book, and it shows. It's not bad by any means, and it's definitely worth a read, but it's noticeably rougher than his later books. Be sure to pick up Warbreaker, too, or download it for free off of his site. As far as Locke Lamora goes, it's really entertaining, but you probably shouldn't expect the third book to be out any time soon. The author's had a lot of personal issues cropping up lately, so he's been really stressed out.
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| # ? Oct 18, 2010 18:20 |
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Kreeblah posted:A quick word of warning. Elantris is Sanderson's first published book, and it shows. It's not bad by any means, and it's definitely worth a read, but it's noticeably rougher than his later books. Be sure to pick up Warbreaker, too, or download it for free off of his site. Which is a terrible shame what with the horrible blue balls situation the 2nd book ended in.
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| # ? Oct 19, 2010 04:44 |
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Kreeblah posted:As far as Locke Lamora goes, it's really entertaining, but you probably shouldn't expect the third book to be out any time soon. The author's had a lot of personal issues cropping up lately, so he's been really stressed out. Luckily, according to news tidbits here and there, he did submit a manuscript and edits for the book, and it should be on track for later spring sometime (probably after the 2nd Rothfuss book). :hearsay: Also, reading this thread reminds me of how either young people or nerds have a high tolerance for bullshit writing when it comes to genre. Anything descended from the pulps tends to have this 'it's okay if it reads like it was written in grade 10, it's got cool ideas' sort of legacy among fans. As if the tropes and expectations are also what hinders people from writing a sentence or dialogue that doesn't equate to a b-movie experience. I understand that series' tend to be written more for action and plot, but not all of them. That said, nth-ing recommendations for Scalzi, Lynch, Martin, Bear, Mieville, and even Rothfuss (nerd wish-fulfillment as it is, for the new breed. Everyone else is p schlocky and retreading the same ground, though. Oh, and for older authors, whoever mentioned Gene Wolfe is on the fuckin' money. Him and Kay, but the latter doesn't really write in series.
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| # ? Oct 19, 2010 06:29 |
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SaviourX posted:Kay [...] doesn't really write in series. Assuming it's Guy Gavriel Kay you're talking about, I'd second (third, whatever) the recommendation, and note that there are a couple of exceptions to that -- notably his debut work where he got the TRILOGY out of his system (the Fionavar Tapestry, which is kind of amazing for having ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING on the fantasy cliché setlist shoved into it without quite bursting at the seams, and without sucking). And also he's done a two-parter (the Sarantine Mosaic) later on. The rest of his stuff is more or less standalone, though.
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| # ? Oct 19, 2010 11:41 |
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 11:24 |
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kcroy posted:That one was pretty good. I really like the world concept, with the calorie companies and genetically engineered agriculture plagues.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 13:29 |
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kcroy posted:Dont strain yourself giving a description or anything.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 15:45 |
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Mr.48 posted:Dont strain yourself giving a description or anything. OK, the gist is that in the future, oil has run out and now calories get everything done. Power is provided by feeding food to animals that process calories efficently, and then walk around tightening springs that store energy. American calorie companies have genetically engineered plagues that kill regular agriculture, and release sterilized seeds so that pretty much the entire world is dependent on them, and send agents to every corner of the world to see if anyone has made their own crops that still grow, so that they can engineer a new plague to kill them and maintain dependence on the calorie companies. Thailand is one of these countries, and they are extremely xenophobic (rightfully). There's also genetically engineered almost humans, called wind-ups, who are illegal in Thailand. That's pretty much the world, the plot focuses on a calorie company executive, an illegal windup girl sex slave, a Thai customs inspector, and a Chinese immigrant who runs a spring factory.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 16:12 |
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Dramatika posted:OK, the gist is that in the future, oil has run out and now calories get everything done. Power is provided by feeding food to animals that process calories efficently, and then walk around tightening springs that store energy. Thats the dumbest and least efficient method of power generation since the "people batteries" in The Matrix. I wish that people who dont know jack poo poo about biology would stop trying to write books that depend on it for their plot/world-building. Edit: Spelling Mr.48 fucked around with this message at Oct 22, 2010 around 16:26 |
| # ? Oct 22, 2010 16:23 |
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Mr.48 posted:Thats the dumbest and least efficient method of power generation since the "people batteries" in The Matrix. I wish that people who dont know jack poo poo about biology would stop trying to write books that depend on it for their plot/world-building. Well, they're pretty much genetically engineered elephants, and it actually does make sense in context of the book. I enjoyed the book. If you don't like the description I guess now you don't have to read it 
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 16:35 |
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Dramatika posted:Well, they're pretty much genetically engineered elephants, and it actually does make sense in context of the book. I enjoyed the book. If you don't like the description I guess now you don't have to read it He's pretty much right regarding the science, though; just straight up burning biomass peaks at around 20% efficiency for electricity generation; other forms of generation get up to 30%. Even magic genetically engineered elephants, assuming they need to survive, are unlikely to get to that efficiency, far when for actually turning mechanical springs (with massive concomitant losses to friction). That doesn't mean the story isn't good (I haven't read it, my first glance for whatever reason suggested it was young adult-y), but hey, it's a sci-fi/fantasy thread, so we need a little 'sperging.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 16:52 |
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Velius posted:He's pretty much right regarding the science, though; just straight up burning biomass peaks at around 20% efficiency for electricity generation; other forms of generation get up to 30%. Even magic genetically engineered elephants, assuming they need to survive, are unlikely to get to that efficiency, far when for actually turning mechanical springs (with massive concomitant losses to friction). That doesn't mean the story isn't good (I haven't read it, my first glance for whatever reason suggested it was young adult-y), but hey, it's a sci-fi/fantasy thread, so we need a little 'sperging. I wouldn't put it anywhere near young adult, there's a fair bit of surprise sex going on throughout the book, though probably not to GRRM levels. But without fossil fuels and without enough landmass to set up windfarms or solarfarms, I don't know how else you'd get power. I guess they could use water power, but I think there's some reason I can't remember that it doesn't work. I don't know, I'm willing to put aside wondering whether it would really be like this is real life when I read sci-fi/fantasy books. It's not the best book I've read recently, but it was entertaining. To each their own I guess.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 16:58 |
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The Collapsium series by Wil McCarthy is fantastic in terms of hard science sci-fi. He manages making the actual science understandable to an average reader without pandering at the same time. Oh yeah he's also literally a rocket scientist and invented the concept of programmable matter. The series ultimately deals with the social and philosophical ramifications of teleportation tech that doesn't so much teleport as much as it just disassembles whatever's being transmitted, and reassembles it on the other side, people included. Easily one of my favorites.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 18:04 |
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Dramatika posted:I don't know, I'm willing to put aside wondering whether it would really be like this is real life when I read sci-fi/fantasy books. It's not the best book I've read recently, but it was entertaining. To each their own I guess. I can ignore technical silliness when I'm reading science fiction, but not when those silly parts are fundamental parts of the world/story.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 18:11 |
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Alkydere posted:
Eh, while the techno-porn is undoubtedly fun, and the writing is quite competent, some of the storytelling falls a bit short. None of the characters have identifying characteristics except "brilliant in his field! and also another field as well, surprisingly!", so when they die, who really gives a crap? They get replaced by another brilliant professional in the next book anyway. Honor herself is cartoonishly heroic and noble and full of integrity; compare with Hornblower who ends up being awesome despite his flaws - his marriage of convenience, his seasickness, his internal cowardice. He's human, she's a silhouette. Never mind the power curve; Honor's character sheet starts out with: eternal youth, super-strength, space karate, natural charisma, extra unconventionally beautiful, improved metabolism, super skills with guns and swords, Piloting +20.. and I'm probably forgetting something. She sucks at two things: 4-D math, and self-esteem (but not in any way that affects the plot). But wait, there's more! By book 5 or so, Honor ends up all sorts of awesome with: psychic powers, cyborg eyes, is an admiral in one navy and a planetary-second-in-command in another. Oh, and also a billionaire with a retinue of super-bodyguards. . The only thing she's missing is midichlorians, for gently caress's sake. If that's supposed to be Hornblower, all I can say is that he missed, wildly. And don't get me started on the treecats. Why Weber thought making his protagonist a loving cat lady was a good idea, I'll never know. She even carries the thing around when she's running around in her spaceship - perched on her shoulder. Try picturing that for a second without laughing. There are also a number of scenes when she's described as spacing out right in the middle of an important conversation, eyes closed, having an internal conversation and petting her cat. If that happened while you were talking to your cousin, you'd be sending a worried email to your uncle the same afternoon - but nobody in the Honorverse even notices. Finally from a political viewpoint the book is.. well, it's got quite a libertarian bent, and it's not subtle. Let's just leave it at that because bad as it is (and it's bad), I'd be willing to overlook it. Man, it's good to vent. Anyway, there're usually at least a couple of well written space pew pew battles in each book, so it's worth reading if you're into this. It's just a shame that he decided to take that remarkably boring approach to the main character.
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 21:13 |
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aendarasi posted:Man, it's good to vent. With that in mind, could I suggest you try out Bujold's Vorkosigan books? Not as many pew pew space battles, but far more likable yet flawed characters. Miles...well let's let the author describe him: Lois McMaster Bujold posted:But Miles, as he developed, is in some ways very much a space opera counter-hero, or critique of the original genre, and indeed, of the whole male-adventure genre including James Bond and the like. (The term "anti-hero" has another meaning, which does not apply to Miles.) Pick a heroic attribute, and Miles will be the opposite–tall, lantern-jawed, strong, handsome? Nope. Try short, fragile-boned, and odd-looking. A grandly tragic orphan, a loner, free of the cloying obligations of family? Nope--Miles has a plethora of living relatives to show up and annoy him. Goes through women like tissue paper? Nope–Miles's old girlfriends tend to hang around, still alive, stubbornly being themselves. Unselfconsciously heroic? Not Miles. He's a post-modern hero, and can't help being conscious of just about everything. And while there is space politics present, it's generally only there to serve as a backdrop for intrigue and drama and not as a personal soapbox for the author. Honestly they are great books, and it's strange to see them so underrepresented here, especially with all the other sci-fi that gets recommended. (and yes, writing this post felt weirdly self-aggrandizing  )
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| # ? Oct 22, 2010 22:19 |
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Mr.48 posted:Thats the dumbest and least efficient method of power generation since the "people batteries" in The Matrix. I wish that people who dont know jack poo poo about biology would stop trying to write books that depend on it for their plot/world-building. I bought it, and I'm usually a stickler for science stuff in books. You're basically just converting sunlight into potential energy through a very inefficient process. Not to say that there aren't obviously better methods, since bakers in medieval times didn't have slaves moving their windmills, but it's a matter of location.
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| # ? Oct 23, 2010 00:15 |
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Miles Vorkosigan posted:With that in mind, could I suggest you try out Bujold's Vorkosigan books? Not as many pew pew space battles, but far more likable yet flawed characters. Miles...well let's let the author describe him: I cannot echo this sentiment highly enough. The Vorkosigan series is fantastic. It's extremely well written (Lois McMaster Bujold, the author, is a multiple recipient of the Hugo and Nebula awards). I introduced the series to my mother and she told me she "fell in love" with Miles Vorkosigan in the first book.
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| # ? Oct 26, 2010 20:53 |
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Death Hamster posted:I cannot echo this sentiment highly enough. The Vorkosigan series is fantastic. It's extremely well written (Lois McMaster Bujold, the author, is a multiple recipient of the Hugo and Nebula awards). I introduced the series to my mother and she told me she "fell in love" with Miles Vorkosigan in the first book.
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| # ? Oct 27, 2010 00:11 |
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