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[GasProblem]

As been said before, The First Law Trilogy.

 

[Duane Cunningham]

Start with Eye of the World, New Spring will spoil the first few books of the series.

Alright, sounds good. I'm starting today. I'm going in with literally zero knowledge of anything about Wheel of Time beyond its general genre.

 

[Dawg]

As been said before, The First Law Trilogy.

Goddamnit, this looks awesome. Now I want to buy that bundle too.

 

[OfWhiteSkinOnRedLeather]

Abraham writes "the expanse" along with another author under the pen name of "James S.A. Corey." it's freaking spectacular. AMAZING series. I think it's been picked up for either a movie or TV series.

Awesome. I'll check it out then. Between The Long Price Quartet and The Dagger and the Coin, it can break up the fantasy overload. Thanks.

 

[Dawg]

I think my final list will be:

First Law Trilogy
Wheel of Time book 1
Leviathan Awakes
Dune
The way of kings (part one + two)

 

[CrudeDiatribe]

If you want more spacey science fiction, I'd get some Banks.

 

[woodland]

I think my final list will be:

The way of kings (part one + two)

Book 2 comes out in March? I think. Just letting you know if you don't. Also, make sure to read Malazan in the future, it's too good to pass up.

 

[radios shipping overview]

Also consider Gene Wolfe's 'Book of the New Sun' series. It mixes Sci fi and fantasy and is unlike ANYTHING you've ever read. Just be warned that it is a very difficult read. You'll either love or hate the authors style of writing but even if you love it it's still difficult to read. (Literally makes up his own English).

I like to read before bed so often times the last 15% or so I read a night is done in a very drowsy state. I can't count how many times I had to reread chapters from the might before because I wasn't able to give it my full attention. For me it ended up being equal love and gate with the series. Its wonderfully told and immensely creative. I just wish the author dumbed it down a little for us Cro-Magnons.

Yes, came in to recommend this. Read Book of the New Sun and Urth of the New Sun. The amount of detail and sense of history in Wolfe's world meets or exceeds Martin's work. Plus, large amounts of the backstory are told through inference and hints, and I've been surprised at how little discussion is dedicated to pulling apart this series and its story online. It's got a reasonably unreliable narrator to boot. But the series is an absolute treat if you like hard sci-fi, detailed worlds, philosophical themes, and complex characters. There's plenty of swashbuckling adventure in the series, too (unlike certain POVs in GRRM's books).

 

[Seanspeed]

Tried out the Amazon preview function and I must say, I'm really liking the first few pages. Might just order this one along or maybe instead of Hyperion.

I would really recommend that change. Its extremely entertaining stuff.

I liked Hyperion, but its a different sort of sci-fi story. A bit strange, more cerebral and eclectic. Worth reading at some point, but for a somebody who likes sci-fi movies and is new to the sci-fi book genre, I cant imagine a better way to start than Leviathan Wakes.

 

[dan2026]

Just looked up Leviathan Wakes and it seems very interesting.

Might try it next.

 

[Pau]

Am I the only person who doesn't get the love for Gardens of the Moon, as series I like the mazalan books (I don't really get the overwhelming love for them, there's a lack of depth in a fair few of the character, and he changes the rules quite a lot throughout the books, nevermind the tendency for stuff just to happen because), but that book especially on first reading is almost torture. It's fundamentally a better book on a re-read half way through the series, but as a 'series' opener it's doesn't really do the job terribly well.

The Author's foreward on the Kindle version is also one of the most pompous bits of self-aggrandising I've read in a bit.

I couldn't get past Gardens of the Moon. I think that's when I realized a lot of fantasy just wasn't for me.

 

[krishian]

I couldn't get past Gardens of the Moon. I think that's when I realized a lot of fantasy just wasn't for me.

He wrote GotM a long time before the second book, I thought there was a big jump in quality with Deadhouse Gates.

 

[zon]

The Deed of Paksenarrion. My favorite epic fantasy series.

Yeah Paksenarrion is good reading. Definitely worth giving the books a chance.

 

[Trojita]

Thats not the big problem. The big problem is his predictable mary sue of a protagonist and his equally cliched love interest. Never have I waited to read a book hoping to see the main character fail as spectactularly as I hope Kvothe does.

Are you talking about Denna? Cocktease Extraordinaire? The girl Bast said he didn't understand why Kvothe was so enamored with?

Literally his reaction to Denna was

 

[Brick]

Thats not the big problem. The big problem is his predictable mary sue of a protagonist and his equally cliched love interest. Never have I waited to read a book hoping to see the main character fail as spectactularly as I hope Kvothe does.

Name of the Wind was really quite good. I guess that's why I was so disappointed in The Wise Man's Fear. Kvothe becomes an incredibly unlikable character that doesn't come across a problems that isn't immediately be solved by his vast intelligence, glossing over it completely (pirates, anyone?), or just straight up sexing it right (because, you know, no one can resist a 15 year old drifter). There is almost nothing that is a challenge to this character, which isn't interesting to me at all. It's a real shame, because the first book was so good, and all of the Adult Kvothe stuff is great. It almost seems like Wise Man's Fear was written by a different author. I completely agree with you in that I just want Kvothe to fail completely so that the story can get interesting again.

 

[f0rk]

Wolf Hall + Bring Up the Bodies. Actual history is often better than all these epic gritty fantasy stories

 

[Dawg]

Wolf Hall + Bring Up the Bodies. Actual history is often better than all these epic gritty fantasy stories

I was looking at these but a lot of the events in those books were probably in the TV-series The Tudors, no? I know they changed a lot of stuff from the books in that series, but I always have a hard time reading something I have already seen before.

Started with the GoT books and I had a hard time with the first two books since I started reading after S2. I find reading not that interesting if you already know the main plotline. I prefer books where I know nothing at all about the events and story that will take place.

That's probably why I like ASOIAF a lot. They feel like historical books (minus the magic) instead of the usual fantasy. If you forget about the dragons and all, you have a story that is pretty realistic. I like how it's bloody and I like how people get raped, murdered and other stuff. You don't even have real vilains since you can root for just about anyone. It's not just good vs evil.

 

[Jeff-DSA]

Oh were you reading one of the old editions? yeah they had some of those in there, the newer editions have been..."edited" a bit

Its a good book. But its sequel is one of the best works of sci-fi ever published. And you kind of need the first for the context of the second.

Speaker for the Dead is downright amazing. I'll fight anybody who says it isn't.

 

[kmag]

I couldn't get past Gardens of the Moon. I think that's when I realized a lot of fantasy just wasn't for me.

Gardens of the Moon isn't a great book. In the context of the information you get further into the series when you figure out how most of this shit works (when the author isn't changing it you know because) it's ok, but on first read I'd go so far to say it's pretty awful. Dull characters (lots of them) doing stuff without context and without explanation. You can piece most of it together by the end of the book but honestly you're still piecing together aspects of it 3 or 4 books into the series, and I'm not just talking about the plot or backstory, I'm talking about fundamental aspects of the world and magic system (which is all over the place btw; one minute people are describing one thing as OMG unbelievably powerful and the next it's getting one shotted by the next OMG!! unbelievably powerful being which happens to walkby).

I know a lot of people and, judging by his ibrahimovic tier arrogance in the GOTM foreword, the author himself love the slow drip feed of information and the left to yourself world building of the series, but early on in the series it's not a strength in my opinion, too much stuff just happens without any seeming boundaries being set on what is and isn't possible, and this isn't a 'real' world we're not bringing any of our own real world knowledge into the book to fill in the gaps (when people are making shit explode with their minds the onus is on the author to set the rules of that utterly alien behaviour). There's no cipher to make it more understandable, and at certain points you're reading without any real understanding which works well in other genres but less so in science fiction and fantasy. It's rewarding when you do piece it together (in GOTM I've found most people who are going to get it, 'get it' about 150-200 pages in) but I'm not sure it's ultimately worth the aggravation when you get there, i.e does the story itself stand on its own without the 'no explanation and little exposition' device.

 

[sazabirules]

I've read the first few Malazan books but I want to restart from the beginning since I don't remember much. I can't name the specific example but I hated how he has certain characters who were hinted at being super important but he never revealed their identities.

 

[Lautaro]

Speaker for the Dead is downright amazing. I'll fight anybody who says it isn't.

Swords or pistols?

It just "kind of good" in my opinion.