Revomaze Book Club

[smiteo]

Perhaps we should start a book thread given the high level of interest in this thread.

2 well written fantasy series;
Wheel of time series (Robert Jordan)
Malazan Book of the Fallen (Steven Erikson & Ian Cameron Esslemont)

2 well written science fiction series;
Night's Dawn Trilogy (Peter F Hamilton)
Culture Series (Iain M Banks)

A book thread is a good idea... I got tired of the Jordan books around book 7 or so... now that he's passed away and Brandon Sanderson is finishing them off, I might revisit... Sanderson is a pretty decent fantasy writer - the Mistborn series was a lot of fun.
Haven't heard of the others, except for Banks...

[Gdamatov77]

This is a very active post.

I was circling the off topic forums, saw this, and brought it back to life because I had a feeling we would start talking about books after it hit the top of the list again.

The 'Dark Materials' series is essentially about the loss of trust/innocence and journey to adulthood this theme progresses through each of the three books.

I shall take a look into those

As for 'Harry Potter' all I'll say is look at each page in any book compare the word count and level of conversion with other better written fantasy/science fiction authors of note. This series is a commercial not a literary phenomenon.

Who cares, it is a good series. I loved it. I read it not for how well it was written, but for the sake of having an interesting storyline.

Perhaps we should start a book thread given the high level of interest in this thread.

This is a good idea.

2 well written fantasy series;
Wheel of time series (Robert Jordan)
Malazan Book of the Fallen (Steven Erikson & Ian Cameron Esslemont)

2 well written science fiction series;
Night's Dawn Trilogy (Peter F Hamilton)
Culture Series (Iain M Banks)

I will think about taking a look into those 4 books.

[Bunny_Whabbit]

Perhaps we should start a book thread given the high level of interest in this thread.

2 well written fantasy series;
Wheel of time series (Robert Jordan)
Malazan Book of the Fallen (Steven Erikson & Ian Cameron Esslemont)

2 well written science fiction series;
Night's Dawn Trilogy (Peter F Hamilton)
Culture Series (Iain M Banks)

A book thread. know thats an idea, I do need more book recommendations for when I start mass reading again. =)

Robert Jordan? Seriously? Maybe a serious story but not actually a good read, the same with some Stephen King books, it's ok to take time but seriously.
Though I'm not gonna complain too much, I have only read a few chapters from his books. =/

I myself prefer fantasy from authors as Terry Pratchett and Lloyd Alexander.
Simple but brilliant, I highly recommend these two.

// M

[Rachel K]

As for 'Harry Potter' all I'll say is look at each page in any book compare the word count and level of conversion with other better written fantasy/science fiction authors of note. This series is a commercial not a literary phenomenon.

I read the first 3 of the HPs when I was quite young (before they were "big") and I loved them as children's books. When the later ones came out I read them mostly as a teenager so I still really enjoyed them. I think if they were just being introduced now I wouldn't want to read the first 3 so I probably wouldn't be into them.

I was not a particularly normal child... Whilst my friends had crazy computer games I collected Enid Blyton books I started collecting them when I was about 6 an I had... have... hundreds!

Now my favorite author is Diana Gabaldon but as a girls girl I will always like Jane Austen.

Also enjoyed Magician by Raymond E Feist but never got around to reading his others.

[Stigy]

I was not a particularly normal child...

Well if you weren't at least a bit weird you wouldn't have ended up working with Revomazes

[Rachel K]

Very true!!

[smiteo]

other good fantasy recommendations:

Scott Lynch's Gentleman b*****d series - starting w/ Lies of Locke Lamora
Patrick Rothfuss' Name of the Wind
Robin Hobb's first three series (read them in the order she wrote them...)
Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's series (a bit on the risque side, but decent)

As far as young adult stuff goes, I'm 44 and I still read YA fiction.
The Hunger Games is a great series. Percy Jackson and the Olympians, while a bit derivative of the HP series, is quite good. Scott Westerfeld has some great books....

And I'd be lax not to recommend all the books by Christopher Moore. while not great fiction, they are a hell of a lot of fun!

[mhuti]

I also enjoy;
Scott Lynch's 'Gentleman b*****d' series, George RR Martin's 'A Song of Ice and Fire' series (both series ongoing) and Peter F Hamilton's 'Void Trilogy' (recently completed).

Response to Bunny_Whabbit;
Yes really Robert Jordan, the books are well written and were never meant to be light reading. Perhaps you should read a few of the books before consigning the whole series in the bin. I also enjoy Terry Pratchett's books because they are light reading.
If you don't like Jordan don't bother with Peter F Hamilton, Iain M Banks, George RR Martin, Steven Erikson & Ian Cameron Esslemont. All of these authors write complex plotted epic stories with a large cast of characters and often jump around in the story. If you like it light look elsewhere, this is why I did not criticise Harry Potter directly, just because I don't particularly rate the series does not mean it's bad, just not to my taste.
Like you I also have a problem with Stephen King books, I really enjoy his short stories and some of the novellas but struggle with some of the heavier tomes (not all of them). Check out his son's (Joe Hill) first 3 books these are more accessable and very good, particularly 'Heart Shaped Box' and 'Horns'.

To the rest of you who is going to start the book thread...

[smiteo]

or just rename this thread "the book thread"!

[03SVTCobra]

I think im going to pick this book up it sounds interesting.