More Recommended Reading
- Thread starter Apok
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Chaldfont
First Post
Check out Garth Nix's Sabriel, Lirael and Abhorsen (though I haven't read this last one yet). These books feature a world of necromancers who send the undead back to the land of the dead as well as the type of necromancers we D&D players normally think of.
Its not fantasy and only barely Sci-Fi, but check out Kage Baker's Sky Coyote. Its the second in a series (though I think its a good one to get you interested). This book takes place in a world where time travel (only to the past) and immortality (but only for young children) allow a company to produce a group of immortals in the past who, over the years of history, collect lost artifacts and extinct cultures and species. They safeguard these finds until they "arrive" in the future.
Its not fantasy and only barely Sci-Fi, but check out Kage Baker's Sky Coyote. Its the second in a series (though I think its a good one to get you interested). This book takes place in a world where time travel (only to the past) and immortality (but only for young children) allow a company to produce a group of immortals in the past who, over the years of history, collect lost artifacts and extinct cultures and species. They safeguard these finds until they "arrive" in the future.
Apok
First Post
Okay, time for an update...
After reading the first book of the Thomas Covenant series, my overall reaction was "meh."
I really didn't care much for the main character, finding him somewhat whiny and ineffectual. I also didn't like the fact that Donaldson is seemingly emulating Tolkien in his descriptions of the world and in the way the various cultures are explained and differentiated. Overall, it seemed to be rather boring and I just couldn't get over the many parallels to LotR. Don't think I'm going to pick up the rest of that series.
Although I haven't finished yet, the Book of the New Sun shows a great deal of promise. I like the fact that the setting is, apparently, Earth only many millenia in the future and things have fallen into decay. I only wish that Wolfe would provide some kind of map or even an abbreviated history of Urth, since it gets damn frustrating when you see tantalizing hints of Earth's past but they are never fully realized or explained. Also, Wolfe seems to delight in using antequated terminology to name certain things in the books, but they are rarely if ever explained. While not a major issue, it does make visualising the world of Urth extremely difficult at times.
The last issue I have with the book is that the concept of the past, the present, and dreams seem to flow together at times. Just as an example, at the end of "The Shadow of the Torturer," Severian apparently becomes separated from Dorcas and the performers. This fact is not clearly explained, however, until midway through the second book. One minute, they are walking out of the massive gate of Nessus and alot of last-minute confusion occurs (Wolfe's writing style isn't always terribly clear, almost as though he doesn't like to explain things clearly and enjoys confusion). By the opening of "The Claw of the Concilitator," he's in some town with Jonas doing an execution. No explanation is given as to why he is there, how he got there or where the rest of his companions are.
Other than that, it's an excellent series and I can't wait to finish it.
After reading the first book of the Thomas Covenant series, my overall reaction was "meh."
I really didn't care much for the main character, finding him somewhat whiny and ineffectual. I also didn't like the fact that Donaldson is seemingly emulating Tolkien in his descriptions of the world and in the way the various cultures are explained and differentiated. Overall, it seemed to be rather boring and I just couldn't get over the many parallels to LotR. Don't think I'm going to pick up the rest of that series.
Although I haven't finished yet, the Book of the New Sun shows a great deal of promise. I like the fact that the setting is, apparently, Earth only many millenia in the future and things have fallen into decay. I only wish that Wolfe would provide some kind of map or even an abbreviated history of Urth, since it gets damn frustrating when you see tantalizing hints of Earth's past but they are never fully realized or explained. Also, Wolfe seems to delight in using antequated terminology to name certain things in the books, but they are rarely if ever explained. While not a major issue, it does make visualising the world of Urth extremely difficult at times.
The last issue I have with the book is that the concept of the past, the present, and dreams seem to flow together at times. Just as an example, at the end of "The Shadow of the Torturer," Severian apparently becomes separated from Dorcas and the performers. This fact is not clearly explained, however, until midway through the second book. One minute, they are walking out of the massive gate of Nessus and alot of last-minute confusion occurs (Wolfe's writing style isn't always terribly clear, almost as though he doesn't like to explain things clearly and enjoys confusion). By the opening of "The Claw of the Concilitator," he's in some town with Jonas doing an execution. No explanation is given as to why he is there, how he got there or where the rest of his companions are.
Other than that, it's an excellent series and I can't wait to finish it.
Apok said:
Wow, most people despise Covenant by the end of the first book. You're more tolerant that most
It more like eons, perhaps longer. The sun is farther along its life-cycle; red and massive.
I read interviews with Wolfe, and delight is fairly accurate. I recall him being very proud of the fact that all of the exotic terminology, down to personal names, were taken from real world cultures spanning the centuries. And many were symbolic/allegorical. They're really daunting books, intricately constructed, if you want to take the time to parse out all the details {I haven't, and they're still some of my all time favorite books}
For better or worse, that's intentional. Time is integral to the story, specifically to who Severian is. It is confusing, thought...
Glad you like them Apok. While I also enjoyed --if that's the right word-- the Covenenat books, The Book of the New Sun is in a whole other league....
CCamfield
First Post
I second the recommendation for Erickson. If you like Martin and Cook then he's definitely worth checking out.
The first five books of Amber are super, the second set (as others have said) not so hot. Zelazny wrote some other great books too - Lord of Light, which combines science fiction with Hindu mythology, and Creatures of Light & Darkness, which does the same with Egyptian. Because of the mythic elements it does feel like, well, "science fantasy" I suppose.
Oh, one thing - I would like to provide a warning about the "Big Book of Amber" with all 10 books in one. If you're on a budget, I guess it's good because it's much cheaper than buying 10 paperbacks. But, it's so big that it's clumsy and feels like it has a weak spine that might break.
I've always had a hard time reading Wolfe. I've read the Severian books but remember almost nothing about them. I've also read the Soldier of the Mists/Arete books (2 of them), which are also very confusing, as the author has a brain injury causing him to lose his memory when he sleeps, so the book is supposed to be his diaries written to help him remember things. However he loses his previous diaries, people lie to him, etc.
Lankhmar is pretty pulpy - well it's traditional swords & sorcery fantasy. It's fun stuff and the books tend to be fairly light reads. I used to have a bunch of the stories in paperback back in the late 80s, and wish they hadn't been lost.
The Earthsea books are well worth reading, too. Book #4 is in some ways a refutation of the previous books which makes it difficult to read and enjoy, but the subsequent stories (a fifth novel, plus a collection of short stories) are quite good, so I think it's worth reading them all.
Oh, since you mention Brust - if you're prowling used bookstores in RL or online, keep an eye out for Glen Cook's Garrett P.I. stories. The reason I say used is that the first book or books aren't available any more (WHY? WHY???) but there is an omnibus hardcover called The Garrett Files with the first three novels. These combine a lot of your typical fantasy elements - sometimes with a twist - with the hardboiled detective novel.
(Such as, in the first book the hero and his buddies run into a pack of unicorns. These are really nasty beasts, very unlike the traditional fairy-nicey-nicey unicorns of fantasy.)
The first five books of Amber are super, the second set (as others have said) not so hot. Zelazny wrote some other great books too - Lord of Light, which combines science fiction with Hindu mythology, and Creatures of Light & Darkness, which does the same with Egyptian. Because of the mythic elements it does feel like, well, "science fantasy" I suppose.
Oh, one thing - I would like to provide a warning about the "Big Book of Amber" with all 10 books in one. If you're on a budget, I guess it's good because it's much cheaper than buying 10 paperbacks. But, it's so big that it's clumsy and feels like it has a weak spine that might break.
I've always had a hard time reading Wolfe. I've read the Severian books but remember almost nothing about them. I've also read the Soldier of the Mists/Arete books (2 of them), which are also very confusing, as the author has a brain injury causing him to lose his memory when he sleeps, so the book is supposed to be his diaries written to help him remember things. However he loses his previous diaries, people lie to him, etc.
Lankhmar is pretty pulpy - well it's traditional swords & sorcery fantasy. It's fun stuff and the books tend to be fairly light reads. I used to have a bunch of the stories in paperback back in the late 80s, and wish they hadn't been lost.
The Earthsea books are well worth reading, too. Book #4 is in some ways a refutation of the previous books which makes it difficult to read and enjoy, but the subsequent stories (a fifth novel, plus a collection of short stories) are quite good, so I think it's worth reading them all.
Oh, since you mention Brust - if you're prowling used bookstores in RL or online, keep an eye out for Glen Cook's Garrett P.I. stories. The reason I say used is that the first book or books aren't available any more (WHY? WHY???) but there is an omnibus hardcover called The Garrett Files with the first three novels. These combine a lot of your typical fantasy elements - sometimes with a twist - with the hardboiled detective novel.
(Such as, in the first book the hero and his buddies run into a pack of unicorns. These are really nasty beasts, very unlike the traditional fairy-nicey-nicey unicorns of fantasy.)
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