[EN World Book Club] Suggestions & Selectors

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Cthulhu's Librarian said:
I just wanted to second this. Not that I won't read another sword/sorcery fantasy novel for the group, but a change of pace would be nice.

How about Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle? ISBN 0449208133 for $6.99; it's a little old but a great read IMO. I haven't read it in quite a few years (10+), a lot of my close friends got me to read it because they loved it.
 

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Alaric_Prympax said:
How about Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle? ISBN 0449208133 for $6.99; it's a little old but a great read IMO. I haven't read it in quite a few years (10+), a lot of my close friends got me to read it because they loved it.

Lucifers Hammer is great. So is Footfall, another book by that duo.

And a fair number of the books on the list are not sword and sorcery...

Neverwhere, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Enders Game, Shogun, Neuromancer, just to name a few I remember.
 

Tsyr said:
So is Footfall, another book by that duo.

Those same friends said the same about Footfall. I should have put that one down instead because after all these years I still have not read it and since I loved Lucifer's Hammer I have a feeling I'd love Footfall too.
 

nHammer said:
For variety's sake, I'm hoping the third book selected for the bookclub will NOT be sword/sorcery fantasy.

Here's some I've enjoyed, that are neither sword-n-sorcery nor wildly off-topic. Forgive me if any've already been suggested:

- King Rat, by China Mieville
- Guilty Pleasures, by Laurell K. Hamilton
- Bones of the Earth, by Michael Swanwick
- Slow River, by Nicola Griffith
- Ammonite, by Nicola Griffith
- Making History, by Stephen Fry
- Choke, by Chuck Palahniuk
- Sewer, Gas & Electric: The Public Works Trilogy, by Matt Ruff (it's not actually a trilogy, that's just the title of the book)
- I Am Legend, by Richard Matheson
- Vampire$, by John Steakley

- and I just bought Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, although I haven't read it yet.
 

Tsyr said:
Lucifers Hammer is great. So is Footfall, another book by that duo.
I also liked The Mote in God's Eye, by the same pair, who, oddly enough, my mother used to hang out with, along with David Brin.

It sucks when my mom's about a million times cooler than I am. :D
 

Just a little *bump*, and a thought.

I'm really enjoying Tigana, but haven't finished it yet.

But, as I was reading it, I thought that there were several aspects of the book that I would like to see written in D&D term (not that this doesn't happen to me for every book I read, and many movies too).

So, I wonder - how about making this book club a little more on-topic for ENWorld, and when we discuss the book, we make suggestions of the characters and events in D&D terms.

Eg "well, obviously Fred was a fighter - he even used his power attack feat on pg xx"
or " I think that was a magic missile spell"

what do you guys think?

Duncan
 

Duncan Haldane said:
So, I wonder - how about making this book club a little more on-topic for ENWorld, and when we discuss the book, we make suggestions of the characters and events in D&D terms.

Eg "well, obviously Fred was a fighter - he even used his power attack feat on pg xx"
or " I think that was a magic missile spell"

what do you guys think?
I'd rather not, at least not until we are done with the regular book discussion. When I read, I try NOT to think of characters and events in D&D terms. There have been plenty of books where my enjoyment of the novel was decreased because I thought of things in D&D terms, and then something wouldn't fit, and I was disappointed. I try to take every book I read on its own terms and merits, and trying to pigeon hiole characters and things would only hurt the book, not help it.

If this is something that others feel would be an enjoyable thing to do, could we keep it until after the discussion, or maybe have a parallel thread going for "D&Difying" the books?
 

I agree with the parallel thread suggestion, for pretty much the same reasons.

Trying to force a novel into a particular game's rules set is usually frustrating. While it can be a fun exercise, it is very disimilar to simply discussing the merits of the book itself.

Like Duncan, I often find myself thinking in D&D terms when I read or watch a movie, but the best fiction forces me out of that mindset, and requires that I accept the world and characters for what they are, rather than how they fit into D&D.

I can safely say that Tigana is doing that for me, and (until now!) I have not even attempted to think of any of the characters in D&D terms.

But please understand, I certainly would not be opposed to a parallel thread on this topic, and would find it interesting. Plus, anything that raises the profile of the EN World Book Club is a good thing.
 

Cthulhu's Librarian said:
I'd rather not, at least not until we are done with the regular book discussion. When I read, I try NOT to think of characters and events in D&D terms. There have been plenty of books where my enjoyment of the novel was decreased because I thought of things in D&D terms, and then something wouldn't fit, and I was disappointed. I try to take every book I read on its own terms and merits, and trying to pigeon hiole characters and things would only hurt the book, not help it.

If this is something that others feel would be an enjoyable thing to do, could we keep it until after the discussion, or maybe have a parallel thread going for "D&Difying" the books?

Fair enough - I wouldn't mind it in another thread - it might get very few posts anyway. It's not like I've thought about it alot in Tigana, but I did wonder about the spell which gave the book it's name.

Duncan
 

I've been biding my time when it comes to replying to this, because I had no wish to come across as pertentious (hope I spelled it right, I don't have access to my word processor at the moment).

I strongly recommend Outlanders, by James Axler.

First and formost, James Axler is a house name owned by Gold Eagle. It's used on both Outlanders and the horribly written Deathlands.

Why do I recommend it? Several reasons. First, I've been friends with the main author, creator for over 6 years. Mark Ellis is a master wordsmith and a hell of a guy too boot. He has been able to weave a series that mixes in mythology, hard science, and fiction into an intriguing and catching storyline.

Second reason: As I stated above, the writing is exceptional, the characters are believable, and likeable, and they not only change as the series progressed, but they adapted, and became better. They didn't stay stagnant like what happens in a lot of series.

Third reason: Sure, the series has stand alone stories, but like any good series, we have long term story arcs (one which won't be completed until about 2005), they have adventures that take the main characters all over the globe, and even off world, and to alternate realities, and back in time. The main charactes have saved the world on several occasions, to boot.

Forth reason: I have contributed to the series as well. My book, Black Sphinx, comes out next August.

Currently, there are twenty five volumns in the series. and the main author has been contracted out for another six, which means that it will carry the series into no less than two more years.

Now, to the basic premise: The series takes place 200 years after a global holocaust wipes out civilization as we know it. Out of the Anarchy that ruled the planet, especially the states for over 100 years rose a new order. 9 God-King like hybrids. These new rulers have a death-grip on the former United States. Their will is enforced by a group of elite Police-Soldier force known as the Magistrates.

The main characters Kane and Grant are former magistrates who were forced into exile after learning too much about the truth behind the holocaust and the barons they serve.

Joined by Brigid Baptiste, Domi and Lakesh, they fight the barons, using lost technology, striking out from a hidden base.

Through their adventures, they have discovered far more than they ever dreamed possible, and have hurt the barons in ways that can't be fixed.

A great deal of humanities myth's have been explained, as well as the hidden history.

It may be set in a post holocaust environment, but it is far from that. It's a science fiction adventure, that is really worth picking up and reading.

And, I can tell you this, there is a hell of a change coming up in the series, which will shake it to it's foundations.

Please, give it a shot, you won't be disappointed. But, if you are willing to try it out, read the two current novels: Talon and Fang and the sequel Sea of Plague.

The upcoming novel Awakening wasn't written by Mark. It was written by another writer, Victor Milan. His main claim to fame is the old Guardians series from the 80's.

It wouldn't be a good place to pick the series up.

Anyhow, sorry for the long winded post...

Chris
 

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