What are you reading in 2026?

Reynard · 2026-03-19T12:41:32+0000

Well, I finally did it. I got the fist volume of Dungeon Crawler Carl on audio. I started it last night on the way home from work (about an hour and a half) and I am not sure yet whether it was a good decision.

I will say this: the voice work by the narrator is top notch.

Ralif Redhammer · 2026-03-19T14:46:22+0000

Autumnal said:
It makes a neat duo with John Varley’s novella “Press Enter”. There’s an entering subgenre of stories about the Singularity coming early and unobtrusively, until an eruption happens. Wil McCarthy’s Bloom seems like a probable outcome for many such worlds - grey goo has consumed th inner solar system, with humanity surviving on moons far away enough from the sun. Not as cheery as John Varley’s Eight Worlds, but with a fascinating complication.

Never heard of Press Enter before, but it sounds interesting. Looks like it's pretty easy to find copies of its original appearance in Analog.

Reynard · 2026-03-19T22:02:51+0000

Dungeon Crawler Carl: This book would be MUCH better with out the LitRPG nonsense. I don't mean not having the premise. that's cool. But holy crap is the "explaining the rules" stuff absolutely boring.

dragoner · 2026-03-19T22:37:11+0000

Just finished Twilight at the Well of Souls, and am going to reread All Tomorrow's Parties. Sad that the Twilight at the Well of Souls is falling apart, and could be the last time it is ever read.

gnarlygninja · 2026-03-19T22:40:52+0000

Reynard said:
Dungeon Crawler Carl: This book would be MUCH better with out the LitRPG nonsense. I don't mean not having the premise. that's cool. But holy crap is the "explaining the rules" stuff absolutely boring.

I can see this being a downside of listening to the audiobooks, when the rules stuff goes on a little too long in the books you can just skip to the next paragraph.

Eyes of Nine · 2026-03-20T01:45:57+0000

trappedslider said:
those old vintage covers before photoshop/digital was created

Agree so hard

dragoner said:
Just finished Twilight at the Well of Souls, and am going to reread All Tomorrow's Parties. Sad that the Twilight at the Well of Souls is falling apart, and could be the last time it is ever read.

I've managed to find most of Nathan Brazils used. Once I've got them all, I'm excited to dive back in.
AD Foster's Flinx / Humanx novel same thing.

Did anyone ever do an official Well of Souls RPG? I'm pretty sure someone linked me to a fan version here on ENWorld or elseweb at some point in the 'tween/'teens.

dragoner · 2026-03-20T02:53:46+0000

Eyes of Nine said:
Did anyone ever do an official Well of Souls RPG? I'm pretty sure someone linked me to a fan version here on ENWorld or elseweb at some point in the 'tween/'teens.

As far as I know, there is not an official one.

Pale Violet Light · 2026-03-20T04:36:57+0000

Reynard said:
Dungeon Crawler Carl: This book would be MUCH better with out the LitRPG nonsense. I don't mean not having the premise. that's cool. But holy crap is the "explaining the rules" stuff absolutely boring.

It’s what’s made me leery of the series so far: I like to keep my RPGs and my fantasy shows well separated: or at least I want the mechanics to be more or less invisible. It’s very common in anime and drives me bonkers there too, as we take a break from the narrative to carefully explain the protagonist’s new power and exactly how cool it is, its power level, and how it interacts with existing powers.