/lit/ - Literature

recommendation for space pirate? preferably with adult content like rape and pillaging planets, and with an anti-hero protag, but I'll settle for just a good story if that isn't available. I'd also like a lot of detail on the ships and tech and weapons the pirates use if possible

sandercunt

>>13001447
>What are you reading?
Assail by Ian Esslemont.
>When was the last time you went to a library?
Yesterday.
>Do we still need libarires
Always.

>>13001447
>What are you reading?
A Fire Upon the Deep. Almost done with it, too
>when was the last time you went to a library?
Hasn't been since at least high school, so probably 10 years ago?
>Do we still need libraries?
I think we do, though I don't have any coherent arguments as to why

>What are you reading?
No SFF currently, might pick up a Clarke over the weekend
>When was the last time you went to the library?
Tuesday
>Do we still need libraries?
Yes, they're useful as a free public space and digitally distributing books to everyone is not really feasible. Reading should be available to absolutely everyone, not just those that can afford ereaders

>>13001447
>>What are you reading?
disciples of the horned one by james e wisher
pretty decent. typical coming of age wizarding story. but with a touch of humor and adventures. mc is in love the the spirit that lives in his dads sword.
pic related but trilogy is a bit misleading. since theres a fifth book now.
>>When was the last time you went to a library?
like a decade or so ago.
>>Do we still need libraries in this day and age?
of course. if we didnt have libraries we wouldnt have libgen.

Download found in the OP. Less than a week left on this one, get ready to discuss Taylor series! (It's quite a fast read, there's still time to join.)

According to the poll results next month will be Gene Wolfe month. I don't feel like we need to do nominations since there's not that many books to pick from. Does anyone feel like any other book need to be added to the following list?
>Peace
>The Devil in a Forest
>The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories and Other Stories (short stories)
>There Are Doors
>Innocents Aboard (short stories)
>The Land Across
>A Borrowed Man

I've purposely excluded BotNS, Urth, BotLS, BotSS, Latro and Wizard Knight since they're already (very) well known in the thread.

Is it true GRRM has completed his first draft of the winds of winter???

>>13001494
i would like to nominate book 1 of the asian saga by james clavell. its standalone and based on an actual historical figure. ive enjoyed it greatly but never seen it discussed anywhere save for a passing mention. the main character of ni-oh is based on that historical figure.

>>13001457
Just read some literotica if you want rape kino. I'm sure there's plenty set in pirate times.

>>13001494
Fifth Head of Cerberus maybe?

>>13001447
>What are you reading?
Finishing the monthly reading book.
>When was the last time you went to a library?
Last autumn, I usually go a couple of times each year.
>Do we still need libraries in this day and age?
While the internet and piracy kinda perform the classic role of libraries better than actual libraries I have a soft spot for physical books and I enjoy going to the library. I do however think they need to evolve and maybe become more commercially feasible. Do workshops etc.

>>13001515
that was the book for February

>>13001510
na, dont want that shit
fine, take out the rape. I just want space pirates being assholes

>>13001508
Last thread we decided to read a book by Gene Wolfe next month. You'll have to wait until the June nominations.

>>13001515
The book was literally monthly reading two months ago.

>>13001517
>>13001521
Well excuuuuuuuuse me, princess.

>>13001232
A lot of Greg Bears early books are excellent -

Blood Music
Eon (the sequels aren't bad but don't add anything much new)
Queen of Angels
The Forge of God / Anvil of Stars
Moving Mars

However after those he's not really written anything noteworthy apart from Darwin's Radio

>>13001508
Based Clavell poster. Read the other books of his asian saga, specifically Tai Pan, King Ray and NOBLE house.

>>13001494
I nominate Live Free Live. Something outside the usual Wolfe spectrum, while remaining just /sffg/ enough to pass.

>>12999999
What are you talking about? It doesn't make a difference. If you changed it, it would affect everything that comes after. >>13000000 kind of has the right idea. Both parties would be affected by the outcome, and the novel would come to a standstill.

>>13001760
Good 4channing, buddy. Way to go.

>>13001525
hehe. You got powned

>blitz through Death Angel's Shadow, Night Winds and The Book of Kane in 2 days
>there isn't any more
What the FUCK Wagner

Fantasy with this aesthetic?

>>13001942
What are you talking about? There's "Darkness Weaves", "Bloodstone" and "Dark Crusade", all collected as "Gods in Darkness".

Libraries, you say?
Yes, I knew an old librarian once.
He had many an interesting tale about the older days of earth.
We passed the time while stacking returned volumes back onto their shelves with him telling and I listening.

>>13001447
I am currently reading a non-SF novel, Ross Mcdonalds Lew Archer novel The Far Side of the Dollar
Before that I read Alastair Reynolds Shadow Captain the new sequel to his future-retro space opera Revenger
It is somewhat Wolfian in that the details of the strange world that is seemingly antiquated are slowly revealed over time by the process of interaction rather than just telling the reading,
and the seemingly archaic nature of the technology reveals itself to not be archaic but merely using such terms as analogy

I last went to the library to borrow Spin and Hominids. I was finding them a bit dubious quality and interest wise and was not disappointed so that saved me the cost of the books lol

Yes of course libraries are needed

>>13001457
Alastair Reynolds books Revenger and Shadow Captain

>>13001970
Gene Wolfes The Wizard Knight
Poul Andersons The Broken Sword and Three Hearts & Three Lions

Why does Samwise keep holding Frodo's hand in RotK? Seems VERY gay

>>13002049
>he doesnt know about the hobbit fuckparties where the women are chained to poles and have to watch but cant touch

>>13001972
Not him but it sucks that after that Gods in Darkness you're left just a few short stories, I still need to read the one where the Eyrie daughter is an adult

>>13001970
Heretics praying and submitting to the false god?

>>13002167
DEUS VULT INFIDEL

>>13001504
Where did you hear this?

Probably not.

>>13002152
Is that "At First Just Ghostly"? I've got the issue of "Weird Tales" that it first appeared in.

>>13002224
It is yeah, also nice, I wish I had kept all of my old mags desu

Anyone reading "We"? I've just started and am looking forward to the discussion.

>>13001459

>This desperate

>>13002261
ill start tomorrow didnt have time to read anything really this month. work sucks. i wish i could quit and live of neetbux.

>>13002261
I started two days ago and will finish today or tomorrow.

>>13002270
Surely by now in life you know no such thing is possible. Why don't you work your way into prosperity instead?

>>13001494
Pirate Freedom is a good read, though the writing is different than most of Wolfe's.

>>13002299
i live fairly comfortable. its just i dont like my work.
i could probably just buy a few apartments and rent them out to never lift a finger in my life again but people are catching on that renting is for suckers and the property market, at least here in yurop, is shit right now.

>>13001447
>>What are you reading?
The Long Tomorrow. Not to be confused with a comic sharing that same.

>>When was the last time you went to a library?
Until about two years ago I basically had a semi regular yearly pass and then I got my Kindle and everything changed.

>>Do we still need libraries in this day and age? Discuss
Why not? I mean, libraries have branched out from just offering books these days and your average person sure as hell won't jump through hoops.

>>13002373
>The Long Tomorrow
Is it good? I've been thinking about reading it for a while.

>reading
Hunger by Knut Hamsun
>Last time at a library
An hour ago, when I picked up this copy of Hunger by Knut Hamsun
>Do we still need libraries?
Yes. How else would I get a free copy of Hunger by Knut Hamsun

>>13002384
Seems alright. I'm like 80% in and it's definitely more about the journey than actual finale. Hell, protagonist kinda gets that spelled out for him.

>>13002150
Wat

>>13002496
Happens all the time down at Chuck's.

Please recommend me some Spanish sci-fi or fantasy (ideally relatively exciting) that's not especially difficult to read. I want to improve my grasp of the language.

For reference, my favorite SFF as of right now is Vurt, the Magicians trilogy, and the Black Company.

>pick up scifi short story collection
>4 stories in
>they're all vignettes on the plight of woman
>not even the plight of woman in a theoretical future society that doesn't value some attribute of womanhood any longer, just feminist angst in the here and now
>one second person pov so far
Kill me

>>13001447
>What are you reading?
Runeforged, about to finish it at around 90%. I downloaded SO MUCH FUCKING borderline wuxia shit last night FUCK I don't even know where to begin next.
>When was the last time you went to a library?
Last week when I was presenting my master's thesis data at a student conference, it was fun and anyone doing research was invited to attend.
>Do we still need libraries in this day and age? Absolutely, knowledge--or our semblance of how accessible it is--should be open to all.

>>13001447
>What are you reading?
Urth of the New Sun. Finding it weirdly comical.
>When was the last time you went to a library?
I have no idea. I prefer digital books and it's easier to pirate them. I'd go if I could think of a reason.
>Do we still need libraries in this day and age?
I don't. But I'd much rather we have public libraries than not.

>>13002674
>>pick up scifi short story collection
Which one?

>>13002949
This one

>>13002213
His Twitter.

>>13003198
Dumb memer. He’s talking about the NFL draft not WoW draft. Everyone knows the fat man does not write. All he wants to do is blog about the >jest and the >gnats.

>>13002526
Now it's called Sneed's
>>13002556
Kalpa Imperial by Angélica Gorodischer (Ursula LeGuin translated it)

>started powder mage
>multi povs
>all seem interesting
wtf this never happens

>>13002391
>How else would I get a free copy of Hunger by Knut Hamsun
http://download.library1.org/main/539000/864d975a84449a3fa9738dc68de00f17/Knut%20Hamsun%20-%20Hunger-Farrar%2C%20Straus%20and%20Giroux%20%281890%29.epub

>>13003310
The series starts well enough but it falters in the next two books. The novellas in between are fantastic though, make sure you read them after the first book.
The sequel series, if you can last that long is also top notch and the wiring improves drastically, not that it's shabby in Powder Mage but the jump in quality is still noticeable.

>>13003310
They do dip in quality every now and then, but it’s more or less consistent. That said, Taniel best boy and best PoV.

>>13003342
cheers wouldn't have bothered with the novellas otherwise

>>13003310
>muh women are just as good at as men
Hate this meme

>>13003402
yeah women are actually better

>>13003385
Check out the GR series page and read them in chronological order, you'll enjoy them that much more.

>>13003402
As a woman hater myself, I can agree with another woman hater.

>>12999727
I got you senpai.
'Saga de los Confines' by Liliana Bodoc, first book is called 'Los días del venado' (Days of the Deer). If you're into LGTBQ fantasy shit then you could try 'La compañía amable' by Rocío Vega (The Gentle Company). Also, it's not fantasy, but maybe the Alatriste series by Pérez-Reverte.

>>13003402
>reading first law
>does anything with ferro
>always a few lines of 'wow she is so much cooler than everybody else here'

What are some sci-fi novels like The Road Not Taken, but longer

>>13003572
penis woman or woman woman?

About to hit up a booksale at a big library to see what I can find. Any recommendations for overlooked items that may be good to read? I've spent time tracking down most of the popular stuff from here.

>>13003402
>>13003593
give me some examples of actual strong (as in mentally resilient and capable in some way, within reason) female characters

>>13001447
>Libraries
Better watch out for that big, dumb monk-

>>13003402
>>>/r/braincel

>>13003318
>link has library in it

>>13001464
How would you compare Esslemont's novels to Erikson's? I'm halfway through the Crippled God and I was wondering if ICE's novels had improved since I've already skimmed through Return of the Crimson Guard and couldn't really appreciate it. It lacked the epicness I was used to in MBotF imo

>>13001494
Just read the fucking book already, jesus.
Re-reading Gilden-Fire.

Anybody got any recommendations for short audiobooks? I'm driving home from uni monday and I don't have anything to listen to. It's a ~3 hour drive, so short works are best, but if its between 3-6 hours its fine. Also doesn't have to be SF&F as long as its good, but I prefer fiction.

Where do I go when
>mobilism
>bibliotik
>b-ok
>lib gen
all fail me?

>>13004082
I'd say irc but if it's not on the others it probably wont be there if its a new book

So, I've had my web serial on RoyalRoad for three weeks now and got 261 pages. Compared to Inkitt and Webnovel, I am getting way more feedback, but still have no reviews. And I'm not pulling many people either. Most of the reviews on any platform is just "5/5 stars, best novel ever" even if it was written by a dyslexic 13-year old ADHD Naruto-Fanboy
So I looked at Wattpad and considered publishing on there. or maybe it's just because I'm another unimportant spec screaming against the huge sea of really REALLY badly written shit.
Any pointers, tips on how to land a review by someone people actually read?

>>13004100
I actually forgot about IRC but don't currently have any IRC-related client installed. I guess I can try that out though. It isn't a new book.

>>13004139
tell me what it is and I'll grab it if it's on #ebooks

>>13004144
It was just some Amazontrash. Thanks for reminding me IRC exists. I grabbed it.

>>13003963
>>link has library in it
>it's free and you didn't have to leave your house and go into a library to get it

>>13003655
That is not the list.
Masters of Rome is not an suggested book. It's not sffg.

>>13004172
>too embarrassed to tell us what the amazon trash was

This reminds me of Mass Effect

>>13004347
https://www.amazon.com/Downfall-Rise-Challengers-Call-Book-ebook/dp/B07FFDY22C
Do you want a list of the other shit I downloaded too?

>>13004422
Yeah, I post about it in ME threads every once in a blue moon. Fucking Bioware and their thievery.

>>13004428
Fun book. I keep laughing at all the m’lady fedora tipping he does. Author has no idea how to write a romance.

>>13004422
lol I've avoided this purely because the cover made me think it was boring serious/realistic scifi

>>13004117
Try not writing utter ass mate

>>13004465
I'm finishing https://www.amazon.com/Ascension-Complete-Trilogy-Justin-DePaoli-ebook/dp/B07J5RBM8P and it does romance well; very unintrusive, limited to a few sentences or maybe a paragraph here and there, and back to the main plot. I am very surprised, does it better than Mistborn despite being not!Mistborn.

>>13004422
you better love the journey, cuz the ending is complete trash the evil space ships get BTFO offscreen, in the *epilogue*, by a newly introduced alien race

>>13004422
Mass Effect took lots of stuff from books.

>>13004528
The entire galaxy gets fucked at the end of the RS-story universe.

Sorry, no sci-fi or fantasy reading right now, I just finished Anathem and need a break. Reading Technopoly by Neil Postman now (muh technology).

I live near a university and go there all the time to read. It's huge. I think they're great.

>>13004332
Alright buddy just append a pic unrelated to that post if you have to. I just posted an image I had saved to bring more attention to the post.

>>13004493
what a qualified and insightful bit of feedback

>>13004332
Seething

>>13002011
>Alastair Reynolds books Revenger and Shadow Captain
>teenage girl protags
hmmmm idk about this

give me the low down on prince of thorns and black company
are they good?

>>13001942
Have you read Wagner's Conan and Bran Mak Morn pastiches yet?

>>13005386
Black company is good, prince of thorns is not

>>13005528
whats wrong with Pot? too edgy?

>>13005792
haha dude #420blazeit right? if you need to smoke while you read your an idiot

I read some Lem, Strugatzki and Philip K. Dick as teenager by pure chance because my local library was ridiculously outdated. Then I completely lost interest for 10 years or so thinking sci-fi was all about exploding spaceships anymore (curse my local bookstore).

Then recently I read Three Body Problem (which was fine) and Blindsight (which blew me away). Where should I go from here?
Any suggestions would be very much appreciated.

>>13004082

>>13005310
Its not YA
Look at the other stuff he has written

>>13005310
Its a little bit more twee than what he usually does, but its just as dark and serious as his other works like Revelation Space
And capable of evoking the same Lovecraftian Horror in space as Revelation, what they find in the bowls of the planetoid at the start of the second book sent chills down my spine

>>13005310
It's a scifi novel by Reynolds.

I haven't read it but I've read enough books by him, that it means that it has a 99% chance of being a super hard scifi novel featuring lots of largely emotionless characters who are varying shades of sociopathic (even the females), whilst some wonderfully creepy eldritch horror is lurking around in the background. At some point in the novel, a main character will probably torture someone in the worst way possible or condone it and think nothing further of it.

He hasn't let me down yet.

>To the open-handed warriors money was only a means to wine and weapons, to cherish it for itself was a symptom of the malady that afflicted the Jewish camp followers.
Ohhhhhhhhhhh shit. Based historical fiction from a hundred years ago droppin' those redpills.

>>13005987
>super hard scifi
lightsails are treated just like sailing ships
>featuring lots of largely emotionless characters who are varying shades of sociopathic
Not really this time, just a few
>(even the females)
Yes
>whilst some wonderfully creepy eldritch horror is lurking around in the background
Yes
>a main character will probably torture someone in the worst way possible or condone it and think nothing further of it.
Yes first book no second book.

>>13006345
sauce?

>>13006618
Wolf of the Steppes

i might have an issue with being addicted to listening to audiobooks.

>>13005792
Too edgy, characters are flat, protag destroys suspension of disbelief every time he talks

>>13005819
Hyperion, Lord of Light and then BotNS.

>>13007096
what audio book player is that?

>>13007260
its fubar2000.
there aint no good audioplayer on windows. so i just use it like that.
the most important feature though is it opens up .m4b files properly and plays them correctly.
pic related. you can just drag and drop a file in. it also remembers position of playback if you turn on the option like in >>13007096

there are a ton of dedicated audiobook players but they are all shit for windows atleast.
for my phone i use voice: https://github.com/PaulWoitaschek/Voice

>>13007236
Disgusting.

I asked a while back and got no satisfying answers, so I'll ask again. What are some stories where the screws the hot villainess? I don't mean revenge rape or anything like that, I mean consensual sex in the missionary position for the purpose of procreation.
There's got to be some, right?

>>13007792
Just read erotica if you're going to read with your dick.

>>13007797
No you fag, I'm not after the sex itself, I want a story about fighting evil and converting the hot villainess to good with the power of love and shit.

>>13007792
>>13007802
The History of Runestaff has something like that.

>>13007236
Is this a joke?

Kane fags give me the best reading order for the books.
According to Goodreads, the omnibus edition Gods in Darkness consists of books 2,5,7 and Midnight Sun consists of 1,3,4,6.
Can I read them in that order, or should I go by numbers sequentially? Or is there some other order the books are best read in?

>>13008129
Order doesn't really matter, but you should read Night Winds first since it has the best Kane short stories then read Darkness Weaves since it's the best full length novel.

>>13007288
>sitting down in front of the computer
>listening to audiobooks

aren't they for people on the go?

>>13008215
i usually do it while working or playing games. lets say im playing some game where i have to grind a for something, its nice having something to listen to while doing said grind.
also depending on your work you can listen to a lot of stuff. audiobooks are big with truckers and night guards. also programmers and people that do data entry.

>>13008129
>>13008147
And don't skimp on reading Wagner's Conan and Bran Mak Morn pastiches, but if you read his Bran Mark Morn story you should read Worms of the Earth by Howard beforehand.

Looking for decent historical fiction or fantasy that has both good writing and captures the atmosphere of knightly warfare.So much military hisfic/fantasy is just bad.

>>13008229
>playing grinding games above the age of 12

Wew lad, just pick up a book

>>13008423
Harold Lamb
Bernard Cornwell
Steven Pressfield

>open fantasy novel
>there's a map

>>13008488
With the exception of the LotR, has anyone ever actually referred back to the map at the front of the book to get a sense where the hero is? Usually when the author writes: "Logar set off from his home in Maloport to Hurnsway, a journey of two weeks on foot, unless he took the Deathly Pass, which would shave three days off his travels..." I feel like the author wants me to double-check his work, but it's like 'okay nigger I trust you.'

>>13001457
It has nothing of what you prefer but I'd still say read Space Viking

Anything where the villain is the mc's wife/gf?

You disgusting, no-good, dirty, rotten pieces of shit have got me reading COILING DRAGON. I'm not very far, just past the Saint-level Warrior vs Saint-level Magus (I think of the Gold Knights of the Zodiac when I read 'Saint-level'). I notice some repetition, e.g., Linley's thoughts, babby explanations of qi, but does that eventually go away? It's an easy skim regardless so I can't complain too much although I feel it will be the reason why this story is so fucking long but I seem to have a low tolerance for reading material so I'll likely read the full thing.
I read the first 20% of The Darkest Revenge but it feels mundane and while the obligatory 'bad thing happens to kick off main plot' finally happened, it is still slow going. I will get back to it eventually. I read the first 5% of The Rage of Dragons and the writing feels uninteresting. I read the first little bit of Downfall and Rise and maybe it'll go in a good direction but the writing makes me feel awkward. (Anon who said he can't write romance was right, his discussion with the girl in the lunchroom was bad but at least he got women nailed down). I'll go back at some point.

>>13008627
I like maps so I do it all the time. I do it reading history, too. I have maps all over my walls and stare at them regularly.

>>13008488
>open fantasy novel
>there's a map
>drawn by the author who is also a cartographer

>>13008627
I did when I read physical books.

>Anything where the villain is the mc's mom?

>>13009286
bonus points for incest

>>13008488
>>13008627
>>13009210
They probably feel compelled to provide a map and try to stay faithful to it since LotR set that precedent.
>mfw they include a map but don't even try to coordinate the distances between places and it's a 5 day journey over a map-inch of swamps and 8 days across half an inch of open plain

>>13009178

>what if Indiana Jones got Isekai'd to ocean Barsoom and romanced an evil space princess

I'm still not sure why this book doesn't come up more

I started reading recently, and I can't seem to get over the misguided belief that reading is a chore. Even books that I've enjoyed thoroughly, I felt the same thing I feel when I have to study or go to the gym until I picked them up, and only upon starting to read would that feeling wither. Now I'm guessing this is normal since reading is definitely more active that watching movies or playing games, but is there a way to get rid or this. Or is it just read more until it subsides? Anyone else have this issue?

>>13009356
Looks nice

Is Wheel of Time worth reading

>>13009500
no

>>13009500
Yes

>>13009500
maybe

>>13009500
Hero's journey stretched out over a lot of books.

>>13009500
who knows

>>13009500
Could you repeat the question?

>>13009500
On a related note, how do I stop imagining Nynaeve as a blonde blue-eyed loli tsundere?

>>13008488
I need a map to get my bearings. Once i have scanned over a map i generally dont need to go back to it but without a map i feel lost

>>13009500
> Is the most famous fantasy series of the last 30 years worth reading
Hmm, let me think ...

>>13008488
>open fantasy novel
>theres no map
>look up a map
>there is a high quality map online
>look at my computer whenever any location is mentioned

Can someone reccomends some easy to read italian sci-fi or fantasy?

>>13009356
>Leigh Brackett
Based

Any of you read this?

>>13008627
I checked the map a couple times while reading A Wizard of Earthsea

>>13009942
Yes. It's good overall, the sequels are not.

However the use of the same pronoun for everyones gender is an interesting idea but after two pages simply becomes annoying as fuck.

>>13009500
I'm on book four, and, honestly, considering how late it was written I'm a little shocked by how mundane it is, how "tropey"

Read it if you want a straight-up fantasy story that ticks all the boxes; if you want swords, sorcery, epic stakes, and a clear-cut evil versus good dichotomy then go for it, but don't expect anything substantial or mind-blowing

that's my impression four books in, at least

>>13003593
Your first mistake there, anon, is reading Abercrombie.

>>13001447
just finished empire of bones saga by terry mixon, its nothing special, but its ok to pass time

>>13005386
I thoroughly enjoyed Prince of Thorns/King of Thorns; Jorg as the edgiest protagonist of all time, but he makes for interesting reading

>>13010238
abercrombie is based

>>13007802
The Stainless Steel Rat probably counts, at least the initial trilogy.

>>13008627
Of course I do.
I love those maps.

>>13007802
I like the sound of this, now I also want to know

>be very casual sci-fi reader
>pick up Starship Troopers
>barely any action and a bunch of militaristic propaganda and philosophy
Honestly way over expectation, I loved this book

>>13009633
By imagining her as a brunette 18 year old looking tsundere? Her appearance does get brought up a lot, nothing wrong with it if that isn't distracting for you, never tried imagining characters as too far from what they were described.

>>13010782
nicebobs

>>13009210
>>drawn by the author who is also a cartographer
which book
please, I NEED to know

>>13001548
Blood Music is amazing if you take the time to really visualize the body horror

Anybody here read this shlocky looking Cold War submarine vampire book?

>>13010782
>bestgirl.png
Finally a man of taste

Any good horror short stories or books with the catacombs of Paris as the backdrop?

Holy shit how did I not hear about BV Larson before this? Undying Mercenaries is fantastic.

>see fantasy or scifi that looks interesting
>author is a woman
>instantly lose interest

>>13010990
have sex

>>13007792
Write what you want to read

>>13009435
cultivate a meditative mindset while reading, lose track of time and just be

>>13009435
are you forcing yourself to read even when you dont really want to? usually this feeling goes away once I'm a few chapters in and get to the meat of the book

>>13010937
One of the stories in The King in Yellow is about the Prussians laying siege to Paris.

>>13010947
Larson writes about Captain Kirks banging women and sticking it to aliens and robots. His universes are worth reading for the decent world building and space strategy, but youll never escape the grizzled white dude banging women who fight over him

he scratches the boyish fantasy itch

>>13010947
Because you are a new fag. I shill him and Neal Asher all the time.

>>13001447
>What are you reading?
The Quantum Magician. Good version of quantum hard science and a world that doesnt vomit exposition in the first ten pages. The puppets are trippy.
>When was the last time you went to a library?
Yesterday, but havent gone to read for years
>Do we still need libraries in this day and age? Discuss
Yes, because of all of the technical tomes that no one wants to scan

I read 2 stories in dying earth. tarjum and the one about the guy who shrinks tarjum. didn't care for either one, 5/10 at best. does it get better?

What is some tolerable/well-written straight-up POWER FANTASY wuxia/xianxia-esque garbage? ala The Punisher, that sort of shit, MC delivers justice and fucks up evil

Finally finished the wandering inn
What a ride, two weeks of non-stop reading.
I hope the author has a long life because I want more.

>>13010990
Leigh Brackett and CL Moore are worth reading.

Since theres new covers coming out for the Dune Chronicles in June, would it be better to donate my mass market paperbacks to a University library or should I give them to a friend?

>>13010990
an incel posted this

>>13010990
Why are you such an insecure faggot?

>>13012449
>>13012463
Calm down, samefag. That anon is correct to lose interest when seeing it's a female writer since 99% of them are terrible.

>>13001548
>Greg bear
>not mentioning his last trilogy taking back mars
Why you do this

>>13009184
please respond or give me any feedback i don't know it's friday night what are you even doing with your lives /lit/
>sonic friday night alone? pathetic.jpg

>>13003664
Ellen Ripley

>>13009942
Ignore this man >>13009973. The pronoun thing legitimately made me return the book it was so bad

Are the foundation books outside of the core trilogy (foundation, foundation and empire, second foundation) worth reading? I read the trilogy years ago as a teen and enjoyed them, but I never knew others existed. It just seems to bizzare to somehow continue a story after an ending as great as second foundation had.

I just started Black Company. Did I download a bad file or is there just a shit ton of typos. like 1 or 2 every page

the fuck does aragorn chose arwen over eowyn? I can't fathom this selection lads

>>13010527
Yeah, no.

>>13012773
Clearly a bad file dingus

>>13012964
>Half elven goddess vs some scrawny horse loving bitch
Clearly a monumentally hard choice to make.

books with this aesthetic?

>Eowyn will never ride you like she rode windfola into the battle at the pelennor

>>13013032
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/scorpion-king-level-2-max-allan-collins/1100840266/2674824372049?st=PLA&sid=BNB_ADL+Marketplace+Generic+Used+Books+-+Desktop+Medium&sourceId=PLAGoNA&dpid=tdtve346c&2sid=Google_c&gclid=Cj0KCQjw2IrmBRCJARIsAJZDdxBdV9auK1VGKK71hD0E7iZeJ3T1F0dY2Jj9Kn2sDWpBpGKMJjqZtMwaAib6EALw_wcB

>>13013345
no ty

What languages other than English have the best SF&F?

>>13009500
You could read a TON of better books in the time it will take you to finish Wheel of Time.

>>13010662
you should also check out armor

>>13010662
>>13013505
Also this.

>>13004422
>>13004528
RS was a good series, even if some of the books do feel like Reynolds was told to shorten them by 100+ pages and he just did that by cutting off the ending.

It's so strange to me that he went on to write absolutely dogshit like Revenger and Blue Remembered Earth.

>>13005987
>He hasn't let me down yet.
He will.
Sorry, buddy.

I read steel world and most of dust world and I'm disgusted at myself for sitting through it as long as I did. It seems like the best scifi is the ones with the least science and that it is much better when the writing has a mystic edge rather than the author using ham fisted reddit tier pseudo science to write themselves into a corner. Is this what science fantasy is meant to be?

any books with thicc shieldmaiden type characters?

>>13013787
It's what science fiction was until the hard SF fags and propagandists took over many decades ago. Undying Mercenaries is basically modern pulp; the focus is on action, adventure, and entertainment.

>>13013505
>>13013515
Seconding this recomendation

>>13011738
So you're a psychopath who is using a thin veil to hide your fetish?

>>13013542
>posting simpsons like anyone other than their cult will get the references
I don't know what that pic is saying.

>>13013515
Forever war is gay as fuck.
Very disapointing

Any recs for interesting takes on psychic powers/psionics/telekinetic/etc? Ever since I saw Scanners as a kid I've been fascinated with the subject but have found very few books that don't just have it used as "lol mutant power"

>>13002049
If you can think of a better way to exchange protein strands I'd like to hear about it

>>13014202
Try A Soldier's Duty.

It's military scifi with a female protagonist that has a bunch of psychic powers, the strongest of which is the ability to see time lines or the past and future if you will, Basically a prophet on steroids, as she can see all the possibilities.

She foresees that in the current timeline her galaxy will be wiped out in a couple of hundred years by an invading enemy so she dedicates her life to altering and guiding events in a way so that the galaxy can survive even after she's long gone. She starts by joining the military and working her way up the ranks.

Ignore the god awful covers, the author is known for her other romance novels so the publisher was aiming for her already existing fanbase with the covers. They are not representative of the books which are hard military sci-fi.

Overall I wouldn't say the series is fantastic but it's pretty decent and may scratch your itch for psychic MC's.

>>13014202
I read an interesting story on storiesonline or something, about a teenager that killed himself but instead of dying had his mind transferred to a parallel universe where he failed his suicide. The parallel mind remained and they could talk to each other and shit. Anyway i think eventually he gets telekinesis idk it was a long time ago. Think there was some incest as well

>brainlets fight over arwen vs Eowyn
>braniacs ship them

>>13014270
>exchange protein strands
You what?

What happened to chuck tingle? He used to be memed in lit for years, then when he got the hugo nomination we never heard from him again.
was he the one spamming the books all those years, and when he got the international notoriety from a nomination stopped?

>>13014698
hes still releasing things.
but nowadays he makes more money from merch on his website.
his last book was released earlier this month i think.

Why is it that in books (and real life) rape is worse than murder?
There are people that killed scores of people walking around and no one pays attention, but let you be accused of rape, decades later they still remember your name. Never understood society. Is a vagina more precious than a human life?
Is this why so many men are dressing up like a gril to get the easy train?

>>13014847

>>13014847
Can’t tell if trolling or astronomically retarded.

>>13014873
So vagina is worth more than a human life?

>>13014906
>vagina

>>13014847
in fantasy death really is the least of the bad things that can happen to you. it can even be the best thing that can happen to you.

>>13014935
That's a thing that always bothered me with some tabletop settings where they go as far as to catalog who goes to which afterlife by alignment as a widely known thing, why the fuck would you not try to gloriously suicide in a d&d setting for some cause as soon as possible instead of risking some lich or whatever shit eating your soul on the material plane? Shit is retarded, I avoid the badly made religious aspect like the plague when DMing pathfinder. Not as stupid as that in most fantasy books at least unless you're reading forgotten realms or some shit. If it's the same as pathfinder in that, don't have as much experience with actual d&d.

>>13014847
The same reason why the international conventions on warfare would rather you quickly kill enemy soldiers than inflict survivable but lifelong suffering on them. The net unhappiness generated by living with serious trauma is greater than if the victim dies (as their suffering ends.)

Well folks, I just finished Dune. Wew what a ride. I very much liked it though I felt the ending was a bit rushed. Should I bother with the sequels?

>>13015202
As you liked it very much, yes. They get worse, but not that quickly.

>>13009942
Yes, didnt like it. Really didnt like the language, not recommeded.

>>13015259
Is it alright if I stop at God Emperor of Dune? Or does it leave you at a cliffhanger?

>>13015050
So raping and killing is better than raping and leaving alone?

>>13015020
>pathfinder

>>13015783
>implying replies

started seveneves again and i do not remember being this depressed

>>13014847

do you force yourself to finish books you aren't really enjoying? i hate stopping halfway through a book

>>13016062
No but I might try again in the future. That happened to me with The Cycle Arawn which got really good reviews on amazon and checked all the boxes I was looking for but holy shit I was so bored reading the first 5 chapters I gave up.

>>13016062
I force myself and i start skipping entire paragraphs until something happens

>>13015924
I'm slightly less broad than that, but it's mostly muscle (he looks 80 fat). I don't use glasses, and I'm a tax paying member of society aka I have a job. So I don't think I'm an incel, especially when I deny women access to my pants (they just want my money anyways).

>>13016062
Yes. I even took it a step further and read the other books in the series. I had completionist syndrome for a while. It took years for me to break the habit.
Now i finish the first book and drop the series if I didn't like it. I'm slowly building myself up to drop books mid-read if they are absolute trash. Will take some time, but there are literally millions of books out there to read. Why lock yourself in with utter trash that you aren't enjoying? It's why I never picked up wheel of time. I heard from too many people (even the fanboys) that it was shit for decades. If I picked it up I would have been compelled to finish it, and that could not do.

>birdboi posting detailed population statistics of all his countries
Oh, oh my.

>>13014329
So basically diet God Emperor of Dune?

>>13016062
definitely not
my brain is where the book plays itself out and if that grey and white fucker isnt on board then the book will be shit regardless of how good it may or may not be

>>13014138
The same words your mother used.

>>13016062
Of course.
I defeat every book.

>>13003310
Powder Mage is pretty great, it surprised me too

>>13017089
Is it too much like Sanderson? Like, autistic magic system, bland characters, poor attempts at witty dialogue?

>>13015050
Preeeeeeeeetty sure the vast majority of rape victims are more than happy their rapist didn't murder them as well.

I cant get into dying earth, bros. it feels like everything is rushed. the character motivations, their development, the tension. like when the twin vat sisters meet and the evil one just decides to become good for no reason

>>13017510
That's because you're used to reading boring shit that spends way too much time on pointless crap.
>and the evil one just decides to become good for no reason
It wasn't for no reason. She met her literal twin who was the complete opposite of her in that she loves life and she started realize maybe she was the one who was wrong about how awful existence is.

>>13017510
It's a shit book for a reason.
But you wanted to believe the decrepit dinos here that it was good. So since you made your bed, sleep in it.

>>13017538
>she started realize maybe she was the one who was wrong about how awful existence is.
but why? why not the good twin realize that life is shit? or, more believably, neither of their minds change because its hard as fuck to change someones mind. wouldn't you agree that corrupting good is generally easier than rectifying evil?

>>13017632
She didn't change her mind because it was literally impossible to change her mind, but the bad twin decided to TRY to be more like her good twin because she realized she was the only one who hated life compared to everyone else she has met.

>>13017622
>It's a shit book for a reason.
>But you wanted to believe the decrepit dinos here that it was good. So since you made your bed, sleep in it.

>>13017622
so whats a good book?
>>13017711
I still think it happens too quickly, and the dialog leading up to it wasn't convincing.

>>13017728
No it doesn't happen too quickly. You've been brainwashed into thinking stories need to last 30 books and be filled with almost nothing but inane dialogue scenes. The bad twin meeting and talking with a good twin of herself was simply a catalyst for the bad twin to TRY to find goodness in existence. It didn't completely change her; she still hated existence, but she thought if this exact twin of herself can find goodness in life then maybe she can too if she tries. That didn't need to be stretched out hundreds of pages since it was simply a catalyst, not a bloated philosophical debate that takes up the entire story.

>>13017761
>The bad twin meeting and talking with a good twin of herself was simply a catalyst for the bad twin to TRY to find goodness in existence
exactly. it was "simply" a catalyst. rather than feeling like an important event shaping a characters worldview, it was relegated to a incredibly simple page long conversation that exists simply to set up a future story. I'm not on the other extreme where I feel like a whole book or whatever needs to be dedicated for a character to change, I just dont buy into it happening so quickly is all. maybe I'm just not a fan of short story format. idk.

>>13017791
>rather than feeling like an important event shaping a characters worldview
It didn't shape her worldview. She still very much hated existence, but the SHOCK of meeting her twin who loved existence and talking to her was enough of a catalyst to make her TRY to love existence as well. Meeting her twin is what fast-tracked her to wanting to see if she could love existence as well since it was a shock to her system.

>>13017818
fair enough

i'm reading the left hand of darkness and all the kemmering stuff makes me feel really uncomfortable

good space western?

i read all of this. can i please have some more recommended self published books? i think I'm running out of good books.

>>13018066
how about you do me a solid and tell me which of those were really worth reading? some of those covers look fun

Despite looking nothing like how Leto is described I seriously am in awe of how perfect this cover art is.

Are there any books that take classic fantasy races and get both detailed and creative about their biology?

I did a thing a few months to a year ago where I took a bunch of fantasy races and started analyzing how they could exist in real life, and here's some stuff I came up with

>Dwarven beards aren't made of hair. Like the noses of star-nosed moles, dwarven beards are fleshy sensory organs designed to pick up minute vibrations in the earth as they dig through it on their bellies using powerful claws
>Elves, being arboreal primates have long arms designed to be their primary form of locomotion, and prehensile feet for grasping. They also have short muzzles instead of flatter human faces as a result of their seed and fruit-heavy diet. As a result, elves look more like beautiful monkeys than beautiful humans.
>Merfolk are neither fish, nor mammals, they're amphibains with a large amount of neoteny. Merfolk remain tadpoles for most of their lives and don't undergo metamorphosis until after their child-bearing years at which point their tail vanishes and legs grow. The merfolk's croaking isn't as beautiful as legends say, but it doesn't have to be beautiful to drown sailors. Really, it just needs to sound like a ship's hull grinding against a reef.
>That goblins are sometimes clever and sometimes savage isn't an inconsistency. Goblins are brood parasites that evolved to resemble infant orcs in order to benefit from their protection. The benefit is mutual as goblins bring in goods and technology orcs couldn't otherwise get their hands on
>Dragons don't have four legs and two wings, they have two legs and four wings. The overlapping forewings work like bat wings on the ground, but in the air they trap and funnel air currents downwards to produce a profound amount of lift

>>13018132
what about humans

>>13003342
>The sequel series, if you can last that long is also top notch and the wiring improves drastically, not that it's shabby in Powder Mage but the jump in quality is still noticeable.
Agreed, I'm actually pretty hyped for Blood of Empire, will be a good Christmas present for myself.

>>13017930
The Demon Princes.

>>13018079
Arand/Darren stuff is good if you can tolerate harems.
Everybody loves large chests is fantastic. Author is caving to sjw pressure though with how boxxy acts. boxxy is a monster. the readers want him to act more human and do less cruel things.
Waldo Rabit is great. Its quite humerous and on the whole a real great series so far. it subverts a few of the standard fantasy tropes just enough so that it feels like something new.
Demons of astlan is great but falls off as it goes on in terms of pacing.
We are legion can be great, but theres like 15+ pov's over the course of the series. Many dislike it because of so many different viewpoints. The writing though is great.
Can't comment on the others but i heard good things about Trysmoon and House of blades.

Will Wight and William d. Arand seem to be indie darlings everywhere.

>>13017300
It is sort of like that. If I wasn't into Napoleonic history, I'd have probably dropped it.

>>13015776
Arguably yes.
>>13017434
But they're still generating less happiness than they would be if they'd been left unmolested. The pale shade of enjoyment that they have left for life does not offset the net suffering they're generating.

Also I don't necessarily believe these things, I'm just making the utilitarian argument (which is the logic on which most of these ideas are predicated.)

>>13017434
I dont think soldiers are raping their enemies on the battlefield

>>13017434
Are you retarded?

>>13018352
lol this is pretty much the same argument PETA puts forth when they murder animals.
>IT'S BETTER THEY BE DEAD THAN LIVE AS A PET
And yet damn near everyone is in agreement that PETA is monstrous for killing animals for their very fucked up reason that them being dead is better.
But we all know it's bullshit rhetoric anyways. Feminists want rape to be seen as the worst thing that could happen to a woman when it isn't.

>>13018408
>Are you retarded?

>>13018413
Would you rather blow out your brains on a epik livestream on /r9k/ and get a CONGRATULATIONS or would you rather get raped and have a faceless old man shove his dick up your ass and use you as a toilet and then shove a few nails down your urethra?

How is this even a question?

>>13008129
The fuck is this and why can’t I find any ebooks

>>13018504
It's the omnibus for Night Winds, Book of Kane and Death Angel's Shadow.
Hardcover only, there's no ebook.

>>13018323
is this really a space western?

>>13018449
It's okay man, we're here for you.

>>13018680
Sure why not

>>13018362
You don't know your history, do you?

Any of the Xeelee books worth reading? I like the premise.

>>13013994
Thank you for dropping by to let us all know you're too cool to get a reference.
The Revelation Space books have several doomsday devices at the centre of the story, and also a character named Scorpio who wants to get them.
Again, thank you.

>>13018066
Have you read Wool? I thought that was pretty good.
https://www.amazon.com/Wool-Hugh-Howey/dp/1476733953

>>13018126
0.50 cents on a streetsale yesterday.
Is it shit? I dont care.
I only read the 1st.

>>13018126

>>13019071
They're all worth reading. Very good science fiction.
Some of the physics was a little hard for me to wrap my head around, if I'm being honest, but there's nothing bad about a book that challenges you.

>>13001457
Space Viking
No rape. But it's a good revenge story and planet's do get raided see
>>13008687
Guess I'm not the only one that thought this

>>13013505
>>13013515
Both of these are great as is Starship Troopers. Any other really great military sci fi?

>>13019133
This.

>>13018203
>Whites are human/alien hybrids
>Negros are human/primitive ape hybrids
>Asian Chinese are a genetically engineered hivemind worker race made by the Dragon Emperors (aliens)
>jews are human/alien hybrids, but the seed is reptilian instead of nordic. Also a higher dose of neanderthal primal essence.
>Japs are Chinese mixed with mystery factor.
>Aboriginals are humans mixed with Denisovan type
>Polynesians are another mystery, with high skills in sea-faring and wayfinding, possibly are a lost tribe of a now lost Euro/mid east people.
>Peruvian big brained red haired coneheads:
Human + nordic + serpentine

>>13019106
Tags have it as sci-fi. How hard sci-fi is it? I enjoy the scifi books in that recommended pic because it wasn't hard.

>>13019169
Not hard at all. It's post apocalyptic/dystopian with a few sci-fi elements.

>>13018312
Yeah, me too. I'm actually a little sad because he said he's done with the Powder Mage universe for now. He's peaking as a writer and he's only written 6 books in the universe which still has a LOT of potential, would have loved to see him write some more.
It would a huge waste of potential if he moved over to writing UF.

>>13018312
>"Just plain awesome" - Brandon Sanderson
That's an eternal OOF from me.

I need space opera with geopolitics

>>13019733
Vorkosigan Saga

Incels stay out if you don't want to be triggered into orbit.

>>13019880
>>13019880
>>13019880
>>13019880
>>13019880

>>13011738
In Seeking the Flying Sword Path the guy righteously kills demons that invade his world and slaughter his people and he does it more often than any other protag that I can remember.