/lit/ - Literature

Anyone read Ada Palmers work? How is it? I'm looking for a new sci-fi series to read (3-4 books)

first for malazan

>>13148771
Based

>>13148771
If it's any consolation, you had about as much success with your post as Erikson had with writing good books.

So I remember in one of these threads there was an OP pic that stirred my imagination so I saved it, but my phone died and I lost the pic.

It was some girl in short shorts standing at the edge of the field and there was like a massive monolith structure in the distance, looks like it had a plateau on top of it. Anyone know what that was?

>>13148766
i know ada palmer irl and she is one of the most unpleasant people you could ever meet

>>13148800
I make most of the threads but it's not ringing any bells.
Doesn't fit your description exactly but this is the best I got.
You can look up all the old threads here:
>>/lit/?task=search2&ghost=&search_text=&search_subject=%2Fsffg%2F&search_username=&search_tripcode=&search_email=&search_filename=&search_datefrom=&search_dateto=&search_op=op&search_del=dontcare&search_int=dontcare&search_ord=new&search_capcode=all&search_res=post

>"My almost-gf recommended Name of the Wind, should I read it?"

This happened to me and I read it, and also read the second book. Kind of underwhelming but depends on the third book.

So my stupid question is What should I read now between Wheel of Time, Stormlight Archive, Malazan and Book of the new sun?

>>13148818
Oh gods I'm not searching through all the threads. This had to have been about a year, maybe two years ago.

Anyway it the girl was in modern-looking clothes, and the monolith was tall and thin, looked naturally-formed. Perhaps I will bump across it again one day.

>>13148766
Hi, I'm a massive Palmer shill. Her books are incredibly stylised and from the reception here and elsewhere I think the stylistic choices can turn a few readers away. It's written in a rather absurd 17th-century Enlightenment-esc prose, so before buying any of them I recommend maybe trying a free kindle sample or getting a download and skimming the first chapter. It's second-person, and if you don't enjoy the protagonist taking time to chat to you leisurely in the middle of crucial plot points, then it might be a turn-off.

That said... I think they're phenomenal. Some of the best far near-future (2400s) sci-fi I've ever read, and it's so refreshingly Utopian and positive. The world is colourful and warm, and despite the writing peculiarity I just mentioned, Palmer has an absolute gift for painting characters and locations. I don't like throwing this word around, but the worldbuilding is excellent. It almost made me feel like a kid, I wanted it to be real and I wanted to live there. It's simultaneously a history lesson, and while it's author-wank for every author in the enlightenment, the charm and wit of the dialogue between characters as well as the second person passages directed at you the reader redeem it all in my eyes.

I know some people here get pissed off about gender themes, and yes there's some liberties taken here - but I promise it's not just hamfisted in (like Anne Leckies work) and actually serves a plot purpose. Even if you're super opposed to gender sci-fi I think if you want to have your expectations challenged, this is the series for you.

Anyway that's my very biased opinion.

>>13148816
what's she like

>>13146743
The audiobooks are very well done, much more enjoyable than reading it.

>>13148866
>audiobooks

>>13148823
Read Bakker

>>13148735
Where do I start? Tolkien and Asimov?

>>13148766
I've read the two first Terra Ignota books and among everything I have read they are without a doubt the best books written the last 30 years.

>>13148816
Based, write a juicy pasta about her.

>>13148823
>So my stupid question is What should I read now between Wheel of Time, Stormlight Archive, Malazan and Book of the new sun?
BotNS, then forget that the others even exist and read something else.

Now that the dust has settled, is it fair to call

>Rake
>Kalam
>Whiskeyjack
>Dassem
>shadowthrone
>Tehol

mary sues? especially shadowthrone, you JUST KNOW he was Eriksons PC

>>13148823
Malazan if you aren't dumb, stormlight is pretty decent, like the MCU of fantasy

>>13148902
>Tolkien and Asimov?
Yeah, they're both good starters. I personally don't think Asimov have aged that well however, but others like him.

>>13148879
>reading 4,228 pages of GRRM
life is too short

>>13148911
Are the others I mentioned bad?

>>13148934
They’re fun but /sffg/ hates fun because they can’t be pseuds about it.

>>13148928
I'll give you that.
>tfw actually considering listening to the audiobooks when at work or driving so I can dedicate my normal reading time to actual literature but I will just space out and not absorb even half of what I hear anyway

What's some good weird fantasy /lit/? The more barely lucid and cocaine fueled the better.

>>13148782
based scene

>>13149016
Book of the New Sun

>>13148839
Thanks. Sounds great, i'm going to get the first one.

>>13148823
Wheel of Time is a HUGE investment and Robert Jordan is a very dense, descriptive writer so the books kind of drag on a bit. The Audiobooks are really well done though and they actually do help get through some of it a bit better. If you're gonna tackle Wheel of Time you're going to end up reading Sanderson anyways.

If you go ahead and go to Stormlight I'd recommend reading it in this order:
The Way of Kings
Warbreaker (separate novel on a separate world in the same universe -- a few of its characters show up in Stormlight later and end up playing some key roles, so it's nice to have some context)
Words of Radiance
Edgedancer
Oathbringer

>>13148735
>"Is Sanderson actually a good writer"

SANDERFAG A FUCKING HACK

What was the name of that guy that wrote devastating reviews of popular fantasy books?

>>13149341
Help a retard out i wanna know who wrote this epic line and Google isn't helping.

>>13148837
The Second Foundation cover by Whelan comes to mind. His covers were used as OP images several times a while back.

I've already read Starship troopers and armor, what are some other books about dudes in power armor?

any sci fi stories about vampires that isn't blindsight

>>13149016

The Moderan works are pretty interesting if you're into a hyper criticism of Vietnam era America

>>13149410
That's the one! Thanks, anon.

>>13148735

What SFF novels that aren't Wasteland/poorly written smut stuff have the best catgirl romances?

>>13149421
Nothing gets better than Armor. What a goddam book. From what I remember Count to a Trillion has some good power armour stuff (although it's probably a fairly minor segment considering the series length), and it's not grunt armour but the Jean Flambeur series has some excellent advanced combat. I also think Revelation Space has some power suits at the very end? My memory fails me, apologies.

Someone rec me sci-fi books with a super soldier MC.

Bonus if it's mil sci-fi with enlistment, training and the MC progressing from being an average joe into a killing machine.

Pic related

>>13148948
You mean the lit outsiders and rebbit tourists can't pretend.
Sffg was built to read fun things. Outer lit used to hound anything genre fiction back in the day.

>>13148954
Audiobooks helps you train your brain and concentration.

>>13149459

>>13149474
Ask catfag. I usually give him the catgirl books I come across. He can make an educated recommendation based on his years of study on the subject.

>>13149577
I'd be willing to give it a shot, anon. In recent years, I've taken to listening to podcasts, but end up hardly remembering finer details from them. I'm the same way with watching political talkshows. I'd consider digesting the rest of ASoIaF in audiobook form, but not at the expense of the pleasure I get from reading the descriptions of the world.

>>13148839
I had no knowledge of Ada Palmer until this post, and your shilling has piqued my interest
thanks, shill-kun

So me & my brother decided to invent our own fantasy universe. We decided to start with the map of the world and just note any interesting ideas for now. Any tips for what we should watch out for or book recommendations for world building? Ive read all major tolkien ones (Lotr, hobbit, silmarillion etc) some grrm so id say im familiar with the basics.

>>13149618
I use nothing but audiobooks. The best thing to do, would be to jot down notes and your thoughts of what you reading. It helps make stuff stick.

>>13149624
He used to shill too like the meme years ago, he just cooled down. When the final book comes out he will go crazy.

>>13149626
Best advice, throw Tolkien out the window. Using Tolkien as a baseline is the worst thing you could do.

>>13149626
Don't start with a map, start with a story and build the map as you go.

>>13149532
I was kind of interesting in your pic related a while back, but it slipped my mind and I never got back to it. Do you reccomend it and it's sequels?

>>13149016
They do the same things different

it's short stories, really easy to read. some of the stories are better than others, some are a bit too abstract to my taste, but overall i enjoyed it a lot. some of the weirder stories unironically made me think

>>13149635
But let's be honest, anon. The only time I would listen to an audio book would be when I'm at work, or when I'm driving, both times where I'd not be likely to be free to jot things down. If I had the comfort to fully dedicate to it, I would just read instead.

The only people I know who listen to audiobooks are people who are "too busy" or people who don't actually read.

>>13149659
Im not using him as a baseline for my work. Im trying to avoid repeating his ideas that are totally cliche today (although some i might use). What i meant was how he structured the world history or talked about it. iirc theres an interview where he says that its always better to alude to other stories instead of giving out flat explanations for everything. Stuff like that.
>>13149661
Why in that order? Id reason that seeing the land makes thinking of the people that would evolve to live there and thus the conflicts that arise more natural since its what happens in the real world too.

>>13149662
Yes, I liked them. Skip book 4 and jump to 5 after 3 though if you get that far, you won't miss anything.

>>13149468
No problem :3
>>13149474
>>13149616
I don't have a lotta good romances. While I'd love to read piles of catgirl books it just doesn't seem in the cards and all the other stuff I read makes my recollection fuzzy sometimes.
Anyway
Godsfire by Felice: Sexy slaveowner catgirl protagonist. Lot's of tension.
Hestia by Cherryh: Indigenous feral catgirl and newcomer engineer protagonist.
Chanur's Legacy by Cherryh: Young catman protag suddenly thrust into all catgirl spaceship crew (crews normally all female).
Firebird by Harness: Catfolk couple escapes on a spaceship.
Those are my gotos that are easily remembered. Enjoy :3

>>13148839
How would you compare it to BotNS? I've heard people say Palmer's the new gold standard for weird sci-fi, and BotNS is my current gold standard. I'll probably be reading it soon regardless; I just want to know what to expect.

>>13149626
>book recommendations for world building
The Knight Wizard, by Gene Wolf. maybe i'm a pleb but it surprised me greatly, how it mixes usual tolkien-like settings with more abstract things, and an underlying philosophical themes built into the world and how people move in it and so on. i can't really explain it but i liked it a lot, in any case it was a great story specially the first half

>>13149532
The Fall of Reach is ok, good if you like the Halo series

>>13149618
For what purpose?
I mean that literally. Do you want to write a book, video game, tabletop game, or what? Just making a world is pointless and no one will care. Also it will never be done, because you can always just add more autistic details to another empty area of map or another historical event.

>>13149733
>Cherryh
based and hanipilled

>>13149745
Think you quoted the wrong person there.

>>13149733

You do good work

>>13149754
You are correct.

>>13149710
>Im trying to avoid repeating his ideas that are totally cliche today
Just stop. "subverting expectations" has become a trope by now, and a far worse one than the classic tropes. Go back to the basics and just put your own spin on things.

>>13148735
>STUPID QUESTIONS EDITION
What is the Berserk of Fantasy books?

>>13149826
>What is the Berserk of Fantasy books?

I mean literally Second Apocalypse my dudes

>>13148934
They're not bad all the way through but there's enough bad there that I don't feel like it's worth wasting however long time it takes you to read 10+ door stoppers.

>>13149837
Why is the Berserk of Fantasy books?

>>13149341
>>13149380
bravestofthelamps or something like that

some high effort shitposter from somethingawful, now permabanned

>>13149886
Because it's shit just like Berserk.

>>13149735
Hmm I'm also a big fan/nerd about BotNS. I think the distinction is that while BotNS and Too Like the Lightning (the first of Palmer's series) are both written very weirdly, Palmer's writing (while possessing a lot more artistic flourish) isn't as dense as Wolfe's. I greatly enjoyed my second reading of TLtL and it's sequels, but it wasn't as required as the second reading of BotNS is. However, going into TLtL with a "unreliable narrator" perspective does make things interesting, but like I said it isn't as mandatory as in BotNS.

Also I don't think Palmer is that weird, outside of the writing style. The sci-fi elements are pretty tight and there's lots of references to mundane yet exciting economic and political conflict - although there's also a religious angle to TLtL that might elevate it to weirdness (although the philosophical references almost make it feel like hard sci-fi religion? It's a lot higher level than "it's a miracle..."). It's definitely less weird than the alien/time travel/universe resetting elements of BotNS though.

In my personal standing I would rate the TLtL series (Terra Ignota) a little over BotNS (I haven't read much else Wolfe, I confess), but that's because I'm not as huge a fan of Dying Earth or generally fantasy-esc settings.

>>13149886
Bleak suffering world with horrific monsters and shitty people who betray their friends. Also lots of rape

>>13148735
>>13149197
>SANDERFAG A FUCKING HACK
And Breeks a fucking shit

>>13150068
Wow so many words lol

>>13150062
>>13150084
But who is the Berserk of Fantasy books?
I just wanted to do that shitty meme. Do either of Bakker's series have a boat arc? I heard something about some books being stretched last thread.

>>13150062
Berserk is pretty alright though, it has some good ideas and they are executed well, considering it's manga.

>>13150116
I haven't posted on /lit/ in literally about 6 months desu. I'm just exam procrastinating & I think I saw the word "Palmer" and got excited. Banging books tho

>>13149674
I read over 2000 audiobooks. Are you saying I don't actually read? When I can argue with you over the books I read (like I do in the general)?
>The only people I know who listen to audiobooks are people who are "too busy" or people who don't actually read.
Are you saying blind people don't read, because they use touch instead of their eyes? What's the difference with seeing the written word, and listening to it? Didn't your parents read bedtime stories to you as a kid?

Don't you daydreamed agaim about writing your own sucessfull fantasy book series and giving interviews about it, right anon?

>>13150147
Honey, you didn't read. Someone told you a bedtime story.

Blind people still have to actively scan their finger and interpret symbols. They are more actively analyzing the text than you.

>>13150158
I daydream about /lit/ being free of frogposters.

>>13150158
I daydream about writing my own sucessful fantasy series and giving an interview, I guess. Rather, about going ingonito and ducking into wherever said interview is taking place some time before the thing itself, and having a decent conversation with the qt who's going to interview me, maybe try and find some common ground before leaving. Then, later, when she comes in to talk to the reclusive, hermetic bestseller guy, she gets a surpise.
Thus begins my sad little whirldwind romance.

>>13150120
They got split due to length and publishing greed. Bakker actually finished his series though, so there isn’t a boat arc.

>I read audiobooks

Lol

>>13150162
>They are more actively analyzing the text than you.
Ah. So you admit you're a purist.

Audiobook anons, how do you find the time commitment? I've tried audiobooks, but I find them too... slow, I guess. I like to devour my books, not eat them daintily.

>>13150206
ikr?

>>13150183
Pepe was fun, before pol got their hands on him... Now he is a registered hate symbol, and normies think I'm a nazi if I post him anywhere other than 4chan.

>>13150224
Audiobooks are perfect for when you can't actively read, like when you're driving, in the gym or doing your chores etc.
But yeah, I don't get people who prefer listening to audiobooks when they can just read a book.

>>13148771
I've been trying to get through the first book and all the dialogue is cringe, I don't know if I can keep going

>>13150256
I found the first book to be a real slog, but it's worth it for the rest of the series
It's the worst part, imo
it was also written a fair bit earlier than the rest, and is a bit of an outlier

>>13150224
Better than text. I devour over a hundred books a year. Most text fags can't even pull 20. With audiobooks you can "read" your book while cooking, washing dishes, cleaning, or doing other chores which requires you to use your hands and eyes. It takes a while to adjust from reading with your eyes, to listening with your ears, but when you are done acclimating it digests easily.

>>13150147
>Are you saying I don't actually read?
Yes what the fuck, you're listening.

I've never listened to audiobooks, how do they usually work? Does the narrator do different voices for different characters? Do they use an actress for female characters? Are there sound effects or something like that?

>>13150236
>posting anywhere other than 4chan

>>13150256
>I don't know if I can keep going
Just force yourself through it and then the commitment you've already made will force you through the rest. Then you can pretend to like the series and shill it to others.

>>13150400
Yea it’s actually awful, imagine listening to some retard with a lisp read a book out loud lol

>>13150398
I bet I can write more essays from listening, than you can from reading.

>>13149818
>subverting for subversions sake
Thats also what im avoiding lmao. Trust me j don’t appreciate what TLJ and GoT do. Im not trying to “le subvert” things I just don’t want my elves or dwarfs to be copy paste yknow? Some similarities are fine by me as long as theres a good in universe explanation.

>>13150413
xD funneh

>>13150440
Better yet, don't use elves or dwarves. Also don't get autistic when the word dragon is mentioned like other beta male writers. I hate when authors make a big deal about overgrown komodo / iguanas.

>>13150277
Whatever you say, boyo.

>been staying up til 5am reading stuff lately
god, I hate myself

>>13150236
Normies dont think pepe is racist, anyone with at least some normal internet exposure knows hes just a frog drawing. People whos minds are corrupted by identity politics think hes racist and theyre not the majority

>>13150454
Well i havent settled yet but one thing i came up with is a sort of humanoid species that’s completely mute. They have like a weird third arm/appendage growing out of their back that lets them communicates telepathically. The inspo is basically “organic inbuilt cell phones” these species would also built structures to amplify the “signal” like radio towers and follow certain paths bc the coverage was better kind of like trams have to stay connected to a power grid

>>13150470
Are you a NEET?

>>13148735
>posts the questions every thread gets spammed of but not the answers
geeze. Don't you guys even dare complain next time we get shitted up by those questions.

Just finished the first farseer trilogy and i've got to say that as an exploration of cuckoldery it was quite an exquisite experience. With MC's mentor raising MC's daughter but also fucking MC's waifu and all MC can do is watch with telepathy from afar and MC's king switching bodies with him to fuck his wife because he became impotent and MC's heir being basically the new king it was quite something. Other than that I enjoyed main protagonist and his interactions but there is a ton of stuff that is beyond bullshit in the whole thing. Still a pleasant comfy experience overall, will continue after consuming something less retarded.
>>13150400
Yeah usually it's one guy who does voices, as you can imagine narration will make or break the experience. In my experience the only major downside of audiobooks is that at times narrators will overreact in certain situations or go with a tone you may not agree with while doing a scene (like being overtly dramatic or comedic when scene doesn't really justify that). Then again at other times they can pull of some great acting that enhances the experience and that happens far more often

>>13149410
>tfw no cute arkady daughter

How's Jennifer Fallons Wolfblade trilogy?

>>13150552
>that spoiler

>gardens of the moon starts out with pages of listing a tonne of characters
what am i in for

>>13150639
A great adventure

>>13150432
>muh dick measuring contest
You're physically listening. The person you're listening to is reading. How is this even something you can "argue" about?

>>13150639
Some nerds D&D campaign stretched into 10 fat ass books.

Are the books better than the tv show? I honestly haven't read anything in years but I feel empty now that the show is over and so sad about how it ended

>>13149532
Legion of the Damned by William C Dietz
Cobra by Timothy Zahn
>>13150552
Fitz mom a Cute

>>13150710
>10 books
They are like 20+ books if you count the Esslemont ones,and erikson is writing a sequel

>>13150760
books are always better than tv shows anon

>>13150692
It's being read to me, and I'm consuming it by proxy.
Are you actually watching a movie if you aren't physically sitting in the theatre and watching it on a projection screen?

>>13150897
>Are you actually watching a movie if you aren't physically sitting in the theatre and watching it on a projection screen?
I actually agree with your other point but this is a terrible comparison and it doesn't help your argument.

>>13148735
>Master, the fat man has resumed writing. He's going to finish the book.
>"He cannot be allowed to finish. The HBO ending shall be the only ending. Kill him, then burn the manuscripts."

>>13150820
not 100% true, more like 90% true

>>13150137
based

>>13150639
>An amazing second book then it's all downhill from there
>An interesting world with boring characters
>non human races that are edgelords or downright ridiculous e.g k'chain che'malle and Forkrul Assail

Is it acceptable to post your own work here for others to read and critique?

>>13151054
No

>>13151054
You seeing any guards around to stop you?

>>13151054
Post a passage so we can shit on you

>>13151109
I need to edit it first as it's very rough, just finished a short story about a guy coming into possession of a magical book and he uses it to make his estranged wife love him again, but it backfires and he ends up murdering her.

>>13151054
You will trigger an autist or two but yeah, go for it.
Some people might offer actual criticism instead of just "IT'S SHIT" , who knows?

>>13151167
Thanks bud, maybe I will.

It upsets me a great deal that so many people consider ASOIAF to be the greatest fantasy series ever. Probably not a coincidence that the vast majority of these people have barely read any other fantasy (if any at all besides ASOIAF) or flat out didn't even like fantasy before reading ASOIAF. It was a series created solely just to subvert expectations and nothing more. That's the ONLY reason Martin started writing it. The funny thing is though if he actually does manage to finish the series I guarantee the ending will actually be fairly traditional and predictable given the backlash to the TV show's last season which carried on the GOTTA SUBVERT DEM EXPECTATIONS from every other season. I think it proves that at the end of the day fans actually DON'T want an entire story to be nothing but expectations being subverted.

Writing a female pov is actually pretty tough. It doesn't help that one of her character arcs focuses on infidelity because I automatically feel bad for her husband even though he's a minor character.

>>13151193
The TV show is getting backlash because it didn't fulfill peoples narcissistic projections. Their expectations we're delusional.

Harshly critiquing high budget, high volume costume dramas and speculative entertainment for not mapping onto your specific real world political ideology is pointless and boring. If people are triggered that their liberal feminist projections didn’t play out via the storyline of a self-ordained dragon queen with nuclear weapons, they should stick to SNL recaps.

I agree it's not the greatest fantasy series ever (I don't even think it's good) but these peoples criticisms aren't valid.

>read Demon Accords
>first book is about pure vampire waifu
>second book has her (obviously mind controlled) kiss another vampire and MC gets to feel NTR'd for a while
>third book has him run into her being kissed by her uncle while being manipulated by some witches

Please tell me this shit doesn't keep happening over and over with her being the NTR bait or damsel in distress.

>>13150944
I was drawing a parable between books being created to be viewed by the eyes, and evolving to "reviewed" by the ears.
And movies being created to be viewed in a theatre, and evolving to be viewed in your house.

Both things were made to follow a certain path, but evolved over time to become something different, while remaining similar.

>>13151239
>The TV show is getting backlash because it didn't fulfill peoples narcissistic projections. Their expectations we're delusional.
Of course that's one aspect of the backlash and the loudest, but plenty of fans who AREN'T lunatics also didn't care for this season. My point being you can't make a story be nothing but a giant subversion which is probably the reason why GRRM has stalled out on finishing the series and why he might never actually finish it: he has no idea how to actually wrap this story up in a satisfying way without more subversion that will probably piss his readers off.

>>13151054
>>13151124
>>13151181

>>13148839
>refreshingly utopian and positive
So it has no basis in reality, gotcha

>>13148735
What should I read to get the bad taste of GoT out of my mouth? Should I just kill myself?

>>13151266
Probably right. Even his whole gimmick of "characters will actually die" became a formula and it's effects were dulled quickly.

I think we'll get TWOW but we'll never see ADOS.

>>13151279
Yes

>>13151243
Nope. The author does retroactively change the power level later. Which pisses me off.

>>13151276
That's obvious with the magic boy

>>13151289
So she keeps being (almost) raped over and over again? Should I just drop it while I am still seething from this fucking uncle scene?

>>13151230
Just imagine a man, and remove from him reason and accountability and you're set.

Some anon mentioned this book a few weeks ago and I actually got around to reading it all. It's extremely edgy in the beginning, but it improves very quickly and reaches a satisfying ending. It's quite a unique book for epic fantasy as horror is a large component. It's about a bunch of fucked up people going on a journey to loot the tomb of an ancient necromancer.

>>13151230
How about not writing about bitches and whores?

>>13151335
Not him, but you can't exclude half the population.

>>13151335
Adachi, pls go

>>13151343
Fair (sex) enough.

>>13151353
Just try to write women realistically, i.e. not make them super human bad asses that can kill 10 men alone. Make them use subterfuge, sex, and femininity.

>>13151359
I would rather write them as housewives who stay in the kitchen.

>>13151193
>It upsets me a great deal that so many people consider ASOIAF to be the greatest fantasy series ever...
Why? These people don't read anything else except, maybe YA garbage.

>It was a series created solely just to subvert expectations and nothing more
This is a bit uncharitable -- I think GRRM really saw what he was doing as a natural evolution of the genre in addition to making some of his own statements.

>I guarantee the ending will actually be fairly traditional and predictable
Assuming the fat fuck manages to write anything else, I believe that the basic facts will be pretty similar but they will be better executed. Daenerys for instance will absolutely go nuts and end up being put down, but he won't make it come out of absolutely nowhere.

>>13151368
Even a house wife in the kitchen could use subterfuge, sex, and femininity to achieve some goals.

When will this retard stop shitposting on his blog and write another book?

>>13151376
Now that would be a damn good sandwich, I bet.

>>13151193
The 3 first books are pretty well rounded. Nothing groundbreaking but solid. 4 and 5 are mediocre. I don't want to sound like a contrarian but tuf voyaging is pretty good

>>13151335
She's one of the vehicles that moves the plot forward. And ironically it's because she can't control herself despite touting herself as a disciplined woman and fucks someone she's not supposed to that shit starts going down.

>>13151389
Do you have any female characters that aren't disgusting pieces of shit in your story?

>>13151401
Of course. Like I said this one is a minor character who exists to move the plot forward. The actual important female character is a tomboyish alchemist who is the love interest of the main character. There is zero cuckshit or NTR involved with her, just a pure wholesome romance.

>>13151419
How about writing her POV instead of that unfaithful bitch's?

>>13151447
Not him, but that would be boring.

>>13151279
Read
>>13151315

Just finished reading the warlord trilogy. What did you guys think of it?

>>13151303
The nope was for the continued ntr.
I think the blatant difference between books will piss you off more than the ntr.
when chris gets his power up no one wants to fuck with him anymore.
They books are quick. I did 10 in a week.

Hey guys, thanks for recommending me The Broken Empire, the trilogy was a blast (The third book not so much, there was some good shit but I feel there could has been a fourth book and a better ending but oh well)
God I am gonna miss Jorg and his road brothers.

Anyways, I am back in the us so I can buy books again, you guys recommended me the queen war trilogy but it seems while I was away the guy made 4 whole new books, would you recommend them?

>>13151731
I thought /lit/ hated those books and its author

>>13151737
That was like a year ago and a half.

Also I just checked the flowchart, why is house of spirits recommended instead of 100 years of solitude? Specially when the first one is a literal copy of the second one.

>>13151737
Depends on which posters respond really.

>>13151279
Prince of Thorns

Fantasy is shite
Prove me wrong

>>13151766
(You)

just want to die lads

>>13149826
book of the new sun hands down. do you like a big guy in a dark cloak with a giant sword on his back making his way through a dark and fantastical world? read book of the new sun

>>13151793
dont we all

Is Cradle the only Western xianxia going on?

I WROTE A PAGE OF MANUSCRIPT BOYS

>>13151988
emerialia guy is writing one. its called the ten realms. havent read it mostly people are positive on it though. though people say as of now its more wuxia than xanxia.

>>13151888
more like book of the boring sun. nothing happens

so when's the best place to drop the Dune books, if at all? I started the first a while back and got distracted but there are so many sequels and prequels and writer-hopping, it's hard to judge if it's even worth it.

>>13152079
Third or fourth book, depending on your current degree of enthusiasm

>>13152079

>>13149421
Joe Haldeman - Forever War

>>13151888
I've read that and I loved it, but I was thinking more like a soldier or group of mercenaries fighting horrific creatures.

Any thoughts on this?
Just started it and a little turned off by how Mary Sue-ish Asho is

>>13152438
That's literally just a pretty version of Geralt.

>>13152463
Who is literally just an ugly version of Elric.

>>13152438
Don't know but I used to see them on recommended list when I browsed amazon but something always turned me away. Maybe it was the synopsis or some of the reviews or the terrible cover art but I never read them. Let me know how they are

About to read Ships Log by Lawrence P. White.
What am i in for?

>>13151793
Based Thomas Covenant poster

>>13151193
He said the show ending is 95% accurate to his ending they just didn’t have enough time to flesh out detail

>>13152438
comes with the territory, I think. Mary Sues work for me as long as they earn it. GRRM's little trick of starting the story a book early comes to mind

>>13152100
>>13152159
thanks boys

now what spice do I smoke for maximum engrossment

>>13152438
Didn't know Elric had a son

Are there any fantasy books with a female main character that aren't terrible?

>>13152976
Sabriel
The magician books by trudi canavan
the Mistress of Empire series.

The magician ones are YA and Mistress of empire is only decent but certainly not terrible imo. Sabriel is extremely based, although technically YA, one of the comfiest series around and even though its pretty old now the ideas still feel fresh and interesting.

good books with a female main character written by a woman though? No.

>>13151193
You have so obviously not read ASOIAF

>It was a series created solely just to subvert expectations and nothing more
Why are you making shit up?

>>13151239
Sort of. The backlash isn't over the major character conclusions (bar Jaime), rather it's the incredibly rushed pacing to the end.

This whole time we thought Dany was bringing democracy, but really it was fascism. That's interesting. What should've been a great arc was reduced down to a shocking moment, all internal logic thrown out the window to suffice the overall narrative's new breakneck speed. Suddenly the giant curtain GRRM put up to hide how traditional his story really has fallen flat because we simply didn't have enough time to care.

I think most people are fine with Dany being the Big Bad, with Jon killing her, with Bran being the new elected King. Or, they will be. What has made them so angry is that this show clearly needed another season to build up to this.

Season 8 should've been the White Walker season. Then the twist that Dany is the real threat would have felt earned.

>>13151383
>The 3 first books are pretty well rounded. Nothing groundbreaking
This is just untrue. It's easy to forget GoT came out in the 90's. It was indeed groundbreaking for it's time just for it's willingness to include not only genre taboos but general creative writing taboos like having multiple characters with the same names.

>4 and 5 are mediocre
Fair enough, I feel personally that they suffer mostly from structural and pacing problems than actual plot or character issues.

>>13152474
>Geralt
>Ugly
Go play with your catamite, you ridiculous boy-lover.

This thread came in perfect time: I have a very stupid question. Is it worth it reading only 'A Feast for Crows' exclusively because of Euron Greyjoy? I've never had any interest in reading the books but reading/hearing about Euron's actual character in the books made me interested.

>>13152986
>The magician books by trudi canavan
>good books with a female main character written by a woman though? No.

>>13152976
2nd Thomas Covenant Series
Empire Trilogy
Hollows Series
Red Sister

>>13153027
The magician books arent terrible but I wouldnt call them good either

>>13153025
You might as well read some wiki articles.

>>13152976
Wolfblade by Jennifer Fallon

>>13151193
>GoT is subverisve

It's really not.
>bastard who is secretly king is the chosen one
>evil dragon queen
>Children of the Forest are essentially Elves
>Soulless Ancient Evil need stopping
>Self-fuflilling prophecies
I could go on. The trick GRRM is pulling off with ASOIAF is making people think his narrative is all twists and subversions when it's anything but that at all. All he does is change the PoV of certain tropes so we see them in a different light, and his drip-drip slow as fuck pacing helps, too. In reality, though, what GRRM did for the genre was inject some IRL History into it.

You're essentially criticizing ASOIAF fan-fiction like it's the actual thing. There's plotlines and character that the show doesn't have or fucked up beyond recognition (Dorne, Euron).

>>13152438
You think Asho is the Mary Sue, but he actually struggles and develops. Bu the end you realize the real Mary Sue is the fat guy with the cat

>>13153025
I don't know, that's a weird question. I'd just read AGoT and go right through to Feast. The first season of the show is extremely faithful, everything after is pretty fast and loose with the plot and sequence of events.

The third season, for example, is only the first half of the third book.

I wonder if Tolkein would've botched his ending, if he ever got to do it.

>>13152976
Howl's Moving Castle
The Bear and the Nightingale
The Mists of Avalon
The Emperor's Soul
Equal Rites and the following Discworld books about Witches
Liveship Traders series

>>13152986
Stop saying YA like it's a disease. YA is perfectly fine and many books are just marketed as YA to reach a broader audience.

>>13152906
It's almost like detail is important in storytelling or something

I guess no one told DB

What's a decent fantasy series for a self-admitted dumb consumerist faggot like myself that literally never reads and now wants to read fantasy because the ending of GoT was so profoundly rancid that I want something actually decent to cleanse my palette? Length isn't a concern. I was looking into The First Law trilogy but I'm not sure what the consensus on it is.

>>13153007
Are you talking about the Geralt in the games or the one in the books? Because only the first game portrayed Geralt properly, and it was mostly because the graphics in the first Witcher were kinda bad, comparatively anyway.
Geralt was never meant to be handsome, especially not after chugging some potions.

>>13153087
The Coldfire Trilogy

>>13153087
Well, since ASOIAF is off-the-table for you (even though I'd still recommend it honestly), starting with LOTR or The Hobbit is probably the way most of us got inatiated into this.

If you want something a little more different but still as behemoth sized, Wheel of Time is another foundational series. Be warned, though, endings and fantasy/sci-fi don't exactly have a great history.

>>13150104
Ian McShane just exudes pure class.

>>13153092
i'd still hit it

>>13153117
How about now?

>>13153107
I'm not opposed to ASOIAF, enough seems to be different in terms of characters, plot, and just tone in general compared to the show, but I refuse to read it until the final book(s) have a set release date. I should've mentioned that I have read The Hobbit and LOTR, and those are literally the only fantasy books I've ever read. I've heard plenty about The Wheel of Time, I'll add that to my very short list.

>>13153099
Thanks, I'll look into it.

>>13153126
Yes but I'd need to be a little drunk

>>13153140
The Dark Tower doesn't get mentioned a lot but I very much enjoyed the first two books (haven't read the others yet)

>>13153092
He never seemed to have too much trouble getting ladies. He certainly wasn't the clean cut kind of handsome, but there was a certain ruggedness to him. So perhaps not "handsome" but certainly "attractive" to some people at least. To everyone else, he'd look a little too "off", especially after drinking a potion, to ever be considered good-looking.

>>13153126
is that steve buscemi

>>13150517
sadly, yes
it's not a good habit to get into, desu

>>13150573
just about to start it myself, so will let you goys know
am positive, though

>>13150983
>not liking the giant rapist barbarian

http://georgerrmartin.com/notablog/2019/05/20/an-ending/

>And me? I’m still here, and I’m still busy. As a producer, I’ve got five shows in development at HBO (some having nothing whatsoever to do with the world of Westeros), two at Hulu, one on the History Channel. I’m involved with a number of feature projects, some based upon my own stories and books, some on material created by others. There are these short films I am hoping to make, adaptations of classic stories by one of the most brilliant, quirky, and original writers our genre has ever produced. I’ve consulted on a video game out of Japan. And then there’s Meow Wolf…

hahahah, this shit ain't ever coming out.

>>13152986
Never read Sabriel, though I have read Lirael and Abbhorsen (aren't there another two or three books?)
Empire is neat, desu (the first two books more so than the third, imo)
Haven't read the Magician books in... maybe ten years, and I tend to wear rose-tinted glasses when it comes to pre-2012, so I dunno how they are in reality

>Garth Nix
>Australian
>Jennifer Fallon
>Australian
>Trudi Canavan
>Australian
So this thread has taught me that based Australians know how to write not-shit women

>>13148771
Fucking based. Erikson still reigns supreme. Only female dislike Malazan.

Does anyone have the image "Instead of reading game of thrones you could read: a list of classics"?

>>13153402
wtf I'm female now

>>13153445

>>13153487
those covers alone are enough to put me off reading them
imagine how embarrassing it would be to pull one of those throne of glass books out in public

>>13153505
I did it and the pussy came rolling in.

>>13151737
I honestly loved that edgy little shit Jorg and his monologues were my favorite part of the books

>>13148735
>>"H-hey guys I just finished watching Game of Thrones and hated it, does George Martins do a better job with the books?>"Is Wheel of Time worth reading?">"I'm new to fantasy and I loved A Song of Ice and Fire guys can you recommend similar books, should I try First Law by Joey Abercrumbs?>"Is Sanderson actually a good writer?">"My almost-gf recommended Name of the Wind, should I read it?"
well?

>>13153530
Yes.
Sure.
Why not.
Okay.
No.

>fantasy

>>13153549
I sometimes wonder if these long series readers praise the series no matter what because they don't want to admit to having wasted so much time


like being in scientology

>>13153552
dont come in this thread then

>>13153552
so is that a yes on sci fi or

>>13153552
So, fantasy is port wine and you're a cretin with a stick up your ass that can't enjoy the finer things in life.

>3552
>not liking port

>tfw I have this sudden want of sitting in a fancy armchair, drinking port and reading some dinosaur fantasy

>>13151193
>It upsets me a great deal that so many people consider ASOIAF to be the greatest fantasy series ever.
Why would it?
Most of the time the opinions of people who say this can simply be disregarded, because, as you correctly pointed out, comes from a perspective of limited experience.
It's like someone telling you that some generic superhero movie was his favorite, or that some CoD is his favorite game.

>>13153559
the people who continue long series are self selected. people who don't like the series tend to not complete it, unless they want to do masochistic reviews

>>13151193
>It was a series created solely just to subvert expectations and nothing more. That's the ONLY reason Martin started writing it

Tolkien created Middle Earth for the sole purpose of having a place for his languages to live. There is no 'correct' reason to start writing fiction.

>>13153691
I'm certain a generation of writers is going to come of the awful GoT TV finale and likely the ASoIaF finale just because of their own distaste for it, and one of those might be the entry-level fantasy bait for people twenty years from now.

>>13153657
>Sitting in a fancy armchair, drinking port as you read by candlelight and the rain falls outside
>MFW I know this feel

>>13153731
I wonder what the next phase of fantasy will be, after this grimdark era.

>>13153814
Gender fantasy.

>>13153814
Snarky, post-modern, critical deconstructionist.

>>13153294
Look forward to hearing, I need a new trilogy.

>>13153107
>starting with LOTR or The Hobbit is probably the way most of us got inatiated into this.
Naw. It was hardy boys and Robinson Crusoe that got me into enjoying fiction.
Then shivers(knock off goosebumps), then hairy patter.
Didn't read Tolkien till I was 9-10. Hobbit was great, lotr was utter trash.

>>13153487
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell worth reading?

Need a good Audio book for my 2 hour daily drive. Any good recommendations in the vein of Mistborn? I'm already crunching through his books, so I need something for when I can't read.

I just want a decent female protagonist adventure story. Romance is a plus. They seem annoyingly difficult to find, and I actually want some adult themes, not the usual teenage stuff that acts like the reader is 10.

>>13153552

>>13153899
>You want something similar to Mistborne, with a female protagonist and romance
>But you don't want YA

You're sneding mixed messages here.

>>13153907
I don't mind young adult as long as it at least pretends to be for adults.

I'm hoping for something more adult than mistborn, if that wasn't obvious.

>>13153814
It was litrpg, then that i-word(japanese portal fantasy), the next thing is going to be power levels wuxia and xinina

>>13153921
Garbage Isekai stories by western authors are already popping up on Amazon. A lot of them are blatant 1:1 plagiarism of Japanese isekai.
I hate it. Isekai garbage is awful, there's only 1 that's halfway decent, and half if its appeal is titties.

>>13148919

Anomander Rake could flex on almost anyone but for ages he presided ineffectually over the Tiste Andii as their civilization slowly collapsed. In desperation he eventually resorted to a "sink or swim" mentality where he sought conflicts and threw depressed andii into battle where they got themselves killed. Of course all this was happening with birth rates that would make Shinzo Abe blush. Even Rake didn't know what to do without Mommy Dark.

Whiskeyjack's autism got him a lifetime of hardship campaigning in horrible places like Blackdog swamp and as Tattersail put it, was being crushed under the weight of his own legend in how people joined the Bridgeburners only for them to be thrown against bullshit like Moon's Spawn.

Tehol lived in abject poverty and married used goods.

>>13153911

>>13153945
>married used goods
????

>>13153972
It's an incel thing, don't worry.

>>13153899
>In the vein of Mistborn
>Fem MC
>Romance
>But not YA
So you need something that is like a YA book and have YA tropes but shouldn't be YA

>>13154002
Cringe

>>13153958
This is the second worst chart on this general, nobody fall for this faggots lies.

About to finish this and loved it. What Wolfe's should I read next? Also, any other good Dying Earth narratives, besides Vance and The Night Land?

>>13153958
I don't understand how people can like Canavan; Magician's Guild was drier than a woman at a MTG tournament.

Anyone know any fantasy books that DONT pass the bechdel test ? The wheel of Time has left a bad taste in my mouth in regards to female characters.

>>13153958
>modern
>includes golden age SF

hmmm

>>13153402
he can't write though

>>13153882
yes
that's all

>>13154043
the other Sun books, bby

>>13154087
It's a chart about books that can be enjoyed by modern people.

>>13153911
>>13153899
Library at mount char or something more than night.

>>13154035
Breeks anon, just stop.

>>13153937
>half decent isekai
Do tell

>>13151193
You haven't really read ASOIAF, have you?

So, breeks anon, pitch your stuff.

>>13151731
Any opinions on red queen war and book of prophecies?

Or any other fantasy book for the matter.

why do all Erikson's characters talk like they are in a cutscene of a video game?

>>13154194
enojyed Red Queen's War, though it can be a bit dumb, especially near the end

>>13153882
Short answer: Yes

>>13154157
Shinju no Nectar
>This is your dwarven princess for the night
It's set in basically a fantasy counterpart India during the colonial era, main character gets essentially drafted into the Not!East India Company, because humans are rare as shit and the only ones who can accept a God Curse which they get by sucking titties.

>>13154196
Because Malazan is a D&D game turned into a terrible book series so it makes sense the characters sound like they're in a game.

>>13154029
Only because YA tends to used for books intended for 15 year olds, which is not fucking adult.

>>13154203
So exactly the same as emperor of thorns

>>13154194
Red queen is shit. Do not read.

>>13154316
i always say malazan would make a much better video game setting than a book

>>13154382
haven't read the Thorn series, though Jorgy-boy does make a cameo

>>13153382
don't forget Emily Rodda, childrens books but still

>>13154405
an HBO adaptation would be true kino

What's your favourite Black Company book, anons?
Silver Spi- no, can't do it
White Rose for me

Just bought an omnibus of The Forever War with the two sequels. Already read The Forever War before but I've never bothered with the other two books, worth a read?

>>13154489
would they keep the children of the dead seed in for TV?

>>13154043
Clarke Ashton Smith's Zothique stories.

>>13154129
I was about to say that the other Sun books, while good, aren't in a Dying Earth setting but Long Sun sort of is and Short Sun is...a post-Dying Earth setting?

>>13154043
>Night Land
Based, also be sure to check out John C. Wright's Awake in the Night Land.

>>13154043
Matthew Hughes wrote several "Majestrum" books that are basically set in Vance's Dying Earth but an "age" or two earlier. I haven't read them but they're still in print after all these years so I guess there's something to them.

>>13154043
What the FUCK is Severian problem

>>13153559
No one knows you've read the series unless you tell them. I don't know why you think long series are such a big investment.

Aramini's cogent analysis of There Are Doors https://pastebin.com/cPiyiLHD Convincing in that North is a self harmer who's first words are "mama" when Green is the one with mama problems. Also, Campbell's "hero with a thousand faces" turned into a literal hero with many personalities trying to be a man after being emasculated by modernity and circumstance, where feminized society and single motherhood kill and cause psychological breaks in search of manhood that becomes really toxic.

>>13154977
destiny and not being a modern effete cuck? I dunno.

>>13154082
I know a lot of women in real life who can't pass the Bechdel test.

>>13154977
he was written by a burger.

>>13154082
Read Bakker

>>13155148
Bechdel was a lesbian who charitably was projecting her personal pathologies onto women as a whole and uncharitably was resentful of the hold men had over the women she wanted to carpet-munch.

https://www.foliosociety.com/uk/the-book-of-the-new-sun.html
Holy shit.

Hurry with the new thread, or it will be a amazon self published thread.

Are the Witcher series books confirmed /litty/?
I bought The Last Wish since I've been playing the games. I've heard before that the prose is very good in Polish. I'm half-way in and I like the stories so far, although there are lots of semi-circles.

>>13155644
This is /sffg/, not /lit/
If you want literature go there. >>>/lit/

New home for all the special kids

>>13155700
>>13155700
>>13155700
>>13155700
>>13155700

>>13155148
Lotta people can't pass the Voigt-Kampf

>>13148934i eagerly await the rest if stormlight archive, and thought wheel of time was great. Ignore these fags that dont like fun, I dont know why they dont get enjoyment out of anything

>>13150236
>normies think I'm a nazi if I post him anywhere other than 4chan
>frog posting on social media
>caring in the first place
you are the normies