/lit/ - Literature

What's some good epic fantasy from recent years? I haven't been keeping up and want to scratch my itch. Perfect if standalone, if not - definitely has to be a completed series.
I'm looking for something brief and decently written, but not too cerebral.
Is Red Sister any good? Something like Broken Empire fits the bill perfectly but I was really disappointed by Prince of Fools.

Just saw some asoiaf theory on youtube that says Andals are just Ghiscari who conceal it via media control (maesters and the faith of the seven).
Not sure if it's batshit, but it fits into the themes grrm likes.

>>13394552
When centuries pass you don't need media control to conceal your origin. I belong to an ethnicity with an unknown origin. There are many excellent guesses, and propaganda has swayed the public opinion one way, but even with modern historiography, we don't actually know.
What would it matter if they were Ghiscari anyway?

>>13394515
First Law if you haven't already read it

>>13394596
It's a bit on the long side. Does the first book have an ending that gets you pumped up?

>>13394581
>T. Pukko Kalaminainen

>>13394605
No, way more obscure.

Working on a scene where the main character disguises itself in another guy's dead wife and lies to him and is given false hope about revival technology in order to hustle a secret out of him. They have sex and that's where the guy discovers he has been played in this utterly perverse game for the gain of other parties.
It's supposed to be a really disturbing scene at the relative beginning of the book (first quarter or so) and it's at this point that the reader finally puts the pieces together and realizes how a fucked up society is there, as well as more clues about the greater plot.
It's not all shock value though, and it serves to signify the MCs lack of human moral values, and put the MCs skills into actual action where it's only been mostly talk up until now.

How would normies respond to such a scene though?

>>13394688
Forgot my avatar teehee:3

If you couldn't get through The Forever War, you ______ Old Man's War.

Buy my book

Thanks to the basedboy that recommended this. I'm a quarter way through and it's been great, though it's written by a woman so I'm afraid the Princess is going to continue to be absolutely perfect, her brother will be incompetent or evil and she'll replace him and smash the patriarchy.
But that hasn't happened yet so it's still great.

>>13394619
>t. Cornwall

sanderfag a hack

>>13394731
I unironically want to buy his book because the guy is genuine and comfy as fuck. I'm sure he's able to satisfy my EPIC fantasy hunger. Getting pretty tired of this whole "fantasy but not really fantasy" that we see lately.
Unfortunately I live at the ass end of the world and I'm 100% I can't buy it here.

Started Foundation trilogy. Is it really this bad all up to the end or does it get better when the Mule makes it into the story? Everyone I talked to said to just grind until the Mule then it all gets times better.

>>13394773
kindle?

>>13394755
Based Cazarils book. Watch out for the rare perspectives in which we see the MC through the eyes of others. They add a new dimension to the book.

Almost forgot. Monthly anon is off having surgery to get rid of some unfortunate growths I'll be posting in his stead.
We're reading Library at Mount Char this month, so yeah go read it.
Don't be a faggot and whine like you always do
"waah, why can't we read something good." "why do you always select shit books, waaah."

>>13394515
Red Sister is meme Lawrence's best book by far but that's not really hard since Broken Empire sucks balls. It's basically ninja nuns going to nun Hogwarts with Arya Stark as the protagonist.
If you like dark shit like Broken Empire but want something good instead, try Prince of Nothing.

>>13394817
>Watch out for the rare perspectives in which we see the MC through the eyes of others.
Are there other povs?

>>13394731
>shad m
nope

>>13394923
They're very rare and quite short. I can't recall exactly how many, might even be only once or twice but they're quite good because we get to see the stark difference between how Cazaril sees himself and how others view him.

>anyone's face when finding out Lindon is a Blackflame Underlord

>>13394830
I got memed into reading this book and really enjoyed it. It has a unique and interesting flavor, with a kind of loose, spitbally presentation that contrasts nicely with the bean-counting autism found in a lot of fantasy. Some will hate it but it's really worth a try.

>>13394996
Are you talking about the upcoming august book? I was pretty sure he only made True Gold at the end of the current material. Did he make Underlord already?

>>13394956
I read it recently, I don't remember any other PoVs except his, unless you mean someone else speaking about him.

>>13395159
both made underlord.

>>13394996
All the monarchs already know. I want there to be some interaction between lindon and northstrider. I don't remember exactly but ghostwater bumped him up a lot and he just happened to stumble on the exact thing northstrider was trying to create.

>>13395159
Lad, did you miss Underlord completely or something?

>>13395226
Will Wight seems to have read a lot of bad wuxias, he's picked up some worrying habits.

In the good ones the mc's usually progress by going through a shit ton of battles and overcoming obstacles, in the bad ones they pop pills, eat fruit and luck into fortuitous encounters that give them a huge boost, Skysworn was basically that. There's no consistency in Lindon's progression and nowhere near enough battles or good villains so far. The villain in Underlord was a fucking moron straight out of the discount store for underlords.

Not a fan of an AI in his head doing everything for him either, that's straight out of trash wuxias like Warlock Magus which has the laziest of lazy writing. There's a fight? Let the AI plan the battle for you (Which kind of is already being used in Cradle), need a potion? Let the AI calculate and brew it for you and ta-da it's more potent than anyone else can make it!

>>13394830
this book sucks

>>13395164
It's been a while since I've read it, maybe I'm misremembering but I swear I thought there was at least one minor pov. Maybe you're right and it was just someone else talking about him.

>Hell Divers series
>4/5 star reviews on most sites ''OH GOSH GOLLY BEST SHIT EVER''
shit taste or the books are actually decent?

I'm reading The Ghost Brigades, book 2 of The Old Man's War series. Went on a bit of a John Scalzi binge these past 2 weeks and finished Consuming Fire, Old Man's War, and Red Shirts.
I was reading New York 2140 but getting through it was such a drag that I dropped it about a quarter of the way in. Some characters were fun to read, others I couldn't stand.

>>13395330
Screen the top reviewers, if they have no profile pics or they ugly motherfuckers then it's good. If the top reviewers are 16 year old girls with gifs in their reviews, it means the book is shit.

>>13394755
I was memed into reading this last week, it's consistently great

>>13395295
I feel like he's setting lindon up to fail horribly before some redemption arc. Over the course of the books lindon has been greedily popping pills and taking shortcut after shortcut. At first you felt it was deserved since he got screwed over but he just got greedier and greedier.

>>13395295
>Will Wight seems to have read a lot of bad wuxias
cradle is xanxia not wuxia.

>>13395340
Now read Vorkosigan Saga also by LMB, a comfy af space opera, for a book written by a lefty in the 80's and has great female characters.
The difference in writing quality between her writing and sjw hack authors of today will blow your mind even though both broach similar topics.

>>13395377
I'm extremely tempted after Chalion. Pretty exhausted though, had to spend that entire book with Cazaril on chemo.

>>13395358
It's xianxia not xanxia and themes of progression are largely similar between both genres. Disregarding dao, it's the world setting and power levels that mainly differ, one is low fantasy the other is high, one is break a tree level while the other is break a planet level.
Yes Cradle is technically closer to xianxia but my point still stands.

>>13395352
Everyone’s telling him there’s a point where you can’t cheat anymore and he keeps cheating and cheating. That’s why he lost his arm.

>>13395295
>implying the villain in under lord was a villain
The real villain of the book was Charity. That poor prince didn’t do anything wrong.

>>13395385
>chemo
Did you get memed into reading Brent Weeks.
Unfortunate mate, happens to the best of us. Hope you get better soon.

>>13395352
>>13395439
I mean, I think it's just fan service at this point, no disrespect to Will Wight but that's not a level of writing I expect to see from him.
I'll be happy to be proven wrong but I don't think there will ever be any real "consequences" to him taking shortcuts and cheating.
Even the arm he had to replace will eventually end up giving him a huge power spike, it's already been set up for exactly that.

>>13395448
Probably setting it up so his psycho little brother becomes a villain later on. Also I'm curious how being stronger affects aging. Pretty sure charity and malice were both described as young looking but other strong characters were old. So is it just altering your appearance to look younger or can they de age themselves

Bought G Willow Wilson's The Bird King lads.

I should have listened to the reviews and waited for the Sharkhai book tomorrow. I'm only a few pages in and it already sucks

>>13395385
I'll confirm many of the Miles books are great. Yes, it is Hornblower in Space, but the female touch adds just a bit of soap opera so it reads more like Patrick O'brian. Some times she goes to far and eventually it ran out of gas for me, but even given that the overall experience is a thousand to one in favor of reading it anyway. Filled with sharp little smart and funny character meets action moments. Many satisfying books.

>when he says he reads Sword & Sorcery

>>13394421
>dragons with books edition

>>13394755
Sequel is comfy too.

Jesus christ how much anime does Brandon Sanderson watch

Alright, bros. Gonna finally start reading WE WUZ CONANZ N' SHEEIT tonight. Hopefully I wasn't meme'd into reading this simply because the writer and protag are black and it turns out to be some solid S&S in a DINDU NUFFIN setting.

>a therapist called me back today
>$400 a session

what the fuck?

>>13396166
>anime is a bad thing
can we stop with this meme? It's getting old and it was never really a meaningful insult to begin with.

>>13396201
Plenty of anons here would therape you for free

>>13396195
I enjoyed as much of it as I read

>>13396224
I'm enjoying it so far. And I love this nigga for using the word "thews" unironically.

>>13396276
Sincerity as thick and unbreakable as Imaro's abs.

/sffg/ have you ever read a food description that got so stuck in your head you just had to taste it?

I got that from Mistborn of all things. There's this tiny little throwaway scene in the beginning where Kelsier compliments some cupcakes with red frosting and my mind automatically constructed an image of dark, chocolaty cupcakes with swirls of hot cinnamon icing on top. To this day I can't let the image go.

>>13396201
Depending on what your issues are, FUCK therapy, just get a psychiatrist and get them to prescribe you some sweet sweet meds
Meds do wonders

I'm on book 11 of wheel of Time, Ive read the whole of Brandon sandersons cosmere and all of sword of Truth by Terry goodkind
Along with king killer chronicle (book 3 when)
What would be a good recommendation next
>I prefer series
>Fantasy
>A really good standalone would work

>>13396343
KJ Parker, The Color in the Steel

>>13395295
Do people enjoy Cradle? I couldn't get past first couple chapters of the first book awhile back. It felt like regurgitated xianxia tropes thrown together--not enjoyable at all. Then again, the only xianxia I like is Maoni, and he is more xuanhuan with daoist elements, I suppose

>>13396341
I'm on meds. I've been on a double-regiment of meds and therapy since I was nine

>>13396337
There's a throwaway line in The Caves of Steel that references "zymoveal" a a cheap artificial foodstuff, and something about the name really stuck with me. Even though it was supposed to be low-class food I always imagined it as something delicious with the consistency of beef tongue.

>>13396353
Gay, sorry senpai
Therapy didn't do shit for my depression so I just do meds and I'm fine now

>>13396348
I'll check it out

You know what writers need to use more of? Exclamation points. It's baffling to me why so many writers don't use these for action scenes. Just putting an exclamation point at the end of a sentence describing some great action adds a bit more excitement to it and makes the scene pop off the page more.

>>13396366
Have you guys tried exercise and/or probiotics?

>>13396378
this sentence is exciting!
this sentence is exciting.
I think the prose should do the work. Using punctuation to denote excitement is like the signs that tell sitcom audiences when to laugh.

>>13396378
Eh, I don't know. I prefer changes in sentence structure more, staccato sentences and such. Exclamations have a bit of a cheap feel to them.

>>13396378
Exclamations marks aren't used in typical prose because they're associated with the use of character voice. The voice of prose defaults to being neutral and nonjudgmental, and thus unable to express excitement. When that voice starts adding exclamation points, it starts making judgements on what is exciting and what isn't, and it thus becomes a character in the story. Most writers avoid this unless the narrator is indeed a character, because otherwise just adds complication to what is supposed to just be superstructure. You will find a fair amount of exclamation marks in prose, but mainly with first-person or third-person-limited stories, where the expressions of excitement are explicitly the judgement of a character within the story. Mostly the same applies to question marks.

>>13396408
Except your own examples prove your point wrong. And yes it depends on the context: not every sentence describing action should end with an exclamation point. Also you say the prose should do the work and I would argue the vast majority of writers do not have interesting enough prose for that to work alone in getting the excitement across in an action scene. An exclamation point here and there would work wonders in that regard.

>>13396426
>Exclamations marks aren't used in typical prose because they're associated with the use of character voice. The voice of prose defaults to being neutral and nonjudgmental, and thus unable to express excitement.
lol I'm sorry, but this is a load of bullshit. I've read so many stories written decades ago when the quality of prose writing was much higher that used exclamation points for third-person narratives and it works just fine. There is no rule in writing that claims what you claim.

>>13396378
Read some Xianxia and you'll get enough interrogation marks to last a lifetime in the first five paragraphs.

>>13396421
It's not an either/or situation. And read my post here >>13396427 about most writers not being talented enough to make their action scenes as exciting as they could be without using an exclamation point here and there.

>>13396385
I avoid any strenuous exercise. The main reason I was in therapy at age 9 was that I got horrible panic attacks that ruined my early life. Anything that gets my heart rate up feels too much like a panic attack. Add to that the fact that I've got flat feet and lack both flexibility and coordination, and you end up with my only viable form of exercise being long walks over flat terrain.

As for probiotics, I'm 99% certain those only work for digestive issues and any other medicinal use is debunked

>>13396432
As I mentioned, third-person-limited narration freely makes use of exclamation marks. Most examples you're considering are presumably of this type.

>>13396432
The narrator was more of a character in those. Modern writing tends to use more deep POV, where the "camera" follows one character at a time but very closely, and it would be jarring to shift from this cold, academic tone to the narrator nudging up to you and winking or shouting.

>>13396443
>I'm 99% certain those only work for digestive issues
yeah, the broscience is that depression is (can be) a digestive issue, as the gut sends a lot of signals to the brain.

>>13396440
I definitely agree to an extent, exclamations just don't feel very powerful, though. Compared to changes in spacing/sentence structure, they just feel cheap. Not that I think they can't be used or anything, but surely it's as easy to use them improperly as it is to omit them improperly. As it stands, I can't say I notice exclamations, and that feels like the right amount. But, it depends on what we've been reading, eh?

>>13396452
doubled checked it. According to Harvard, it's being researched but so far there have been no case studies with a suitably large sample size and the results they've found are mixed. The bro science sounds reasonable based on what I know about the digestive tract, but I'm going to need actual evidence before I back it.

In the mean time, my options are either look for a therapist, or wait for my mood swings to swing me in the right direction

>>13396454
As I said: it depends on the context. Too many exclamation points and it will feel like you're reading a comic book from the 60s written for children. Just the right amount for the right scenes make them pop more. I've read too many modern books with action scenes that feel like a tired college professor is describing them because they lack that extra pop of excitement and an exclamation point here and there would at least add SOMETHING to that action; regardless if you or anyone else believe their use to be "cheap." Yes if a writer has fantastic prose he really wouldn't need to use them or at least use them all that much, but I'm sure we're all in agreement that great prose writers are few and far between for modern fiction.

>>13396469
I figure it's cheap and yogurt won't hurt me. I feel like I get a positive effect from it for situational depression, maybe it's just a placebo effect but that's better than nothing.

>>13396472
Yeah, but I disagree that proper use is going to even somewhat elevate otherwise bad writing. It's too much a finesse rather than substance. I feel if the writer can't just write better, increasing their exclamation quota will just result in the 60s comic book vibe that you describe.

Just got in to reading again.

Have read:
Lotr
1984
asoiaf
DUNE

What are som other essential Fantasy and Sci-fi Books?

>>13394731
gib dl link for dis

>>13397051
Foundation
Neuromancer

I have Iain M. Banks's The Player of Games on paper. Do you need to read the first book, before it?

>>13397184
No. You can read that book without having read any of the other Culture novels.

>>13396201
Anime is cringe and turns people into trannies

It took me 6 years to reach book 10 of malazan. Its great but it fucking drags. My edition of book 9 is nearly 1300 pages.

Have there been any decent sword and sorcery in recent years? I've got a soft spot for all of those old Conan and Fafhrd and Grey Mouser stories. I've read all the usual classic recommendations, but most modern fantasy is all multi-book "epic" fantasy trying to cash in on that Game of Thrones money.

>>13397051
Read some classic short stories.
- Burning Chrome. It's a collection of short stories. Probably William Gibson's best work.
http://project.cyberpunk.ru/lib/burning_chrome/
- The Color Out of Space by Lovecraft. A SF/horror classic. http://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/fiction/cs.aspx
- The Dandelion Girl by Robert F. Young if you like sentimental stories. https://infinitemirai.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/young-robert-f-the-dandelion-girl.pdf
- —All You Zombies— by Robert A. Heinlein, which shouldn't be spoiled. https://web.archive.org/web/20041228202049/http://ieng9.ucsd.edu/~mfedder/zombies.html
- It's a Good Life by Jerome Bixby. You may know it from The Twilight Zone. http://ciscohouston.com/docs/docs/greats/its_a_good_life.html

>>13397234
The first two, and then books 5 and 6, are really great. It really starts to drag on with Reaper's Gale and Toll the Hounds, and well into Dust of Dreams. The last book is good though.

>>13394421
is it any good? I'm planning on reading it

>>13397211
Thanks.

What's your guilty pleasure series, /sffg/? Pic very related.

>>13397244
I actually really enjoyed book 7 and 8. They could be boring at times but the plots converging at the end made it wlrth it.

>>13397264
Song of ice and fire

>>13394779
actually I stopped reading around when the mule comes in, but I loved he story up till then...

>>13397279
this

I probably spent more time just reading asoiaf theories than reading most other fantasy series

>>13397226
wtf did I just read... This kid is literally retarded

>>13396195
*when you try your hardest to fit in on 4chan*

I want to read something. I'm most interested in either one of these
>a vampire book
No sci-fi vampires, please.
>a female protagonist
Must be a good character, ideally a young slut with a personality.
>a good betrayal story
Horus Heresy is a good example even if most of the books are shit. Just something about brother against brother, a civil war, whatever.
>an edgy story
Something that starts off normally, but then only awful, awful things happen to the main characters. Super high points if the deaths are creative and nightmare-inducing

>>13397550
'I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream' fits the edgy story. It's a short story though so it will only last you a few minutes

>>13397586
I've read that and played the game. Pretty good. But yeah, I was hoping about something longer. It's so easy to find manga that's basically torture-porn, but somehow, even though writing is way less effort, it's super rare to find edgy books. At most you'll just get a completely average book into which some neckbeard inserts his weird fetish at times.

>>13397484
Dis nigga trigga'd lol

Is there anyone here over 25 that still enjoys fiction as much as they did when they were kids? I want to learn this skill.

>>13397714
You can come back to it again after you've been completely disappointed by adult life.

>>13397750
I already am disappointed by both.

>>13397714
Stop reading kids books.

>>13397768
So all fiction is for kids?

>>13395610
>or can they de age themselves
This. Women love looking young. And when you reach a certain point, you can remake your body how you wish.

>>13397594
The unattractive vampire, kinda.

>>13394515
Is Mark Lawrence really any good? I only read Prince of Fools and shit reads like a marvel movie in book format

>>13394731
I've read the first 3 or so chapters and upon FIRST GLANCE, I wasn't even particularly looking for anything of the sort, I can safely say that Shad's style is distinctly Sandersonesque. My God almighty, it's basically Stormlight archive in another setting. The colorful culture, the balls to the wall fantasy elements, the names, the dialogue, the humor.
Shad even God damn looks like Sanderson.
Not to complain though, I am excited to read it, the premise alone is interesting enough for me, and psst I actually like Sanderson, Mistborn is in my too 5 books of all time

Cradle needs more vicious slaughtering of enemies also tearing weeds up by the roots

>>13398171
shadnerson

>>13394421
Why do you guys like this book?

>>13398271
Bare Severian feet

About half way through this and it's been pretty dank so far. Have no idea why Saunders didn't become a big name in fantasy considering he's the first black writer to ever write Sword & Sorcery. And he's still writing to this day. I guess because his fantasy wasn't 'woke' garbage? Who knows. Either way I'm digging this book.

>>13398271
Because it's a series that is better the more you reread it.

>>13398335
Probably a few reasons. Sword and sorcery is seen, for whatever reason, as "safe." Maybe there's blood and gore and evil spells but look at that black man with a black woman on the cover, not controversial at all. Delaney, though, Delaney's going to give you some messed up stuff, and the academy will SURELY accept SFF as literature with him!

>>13397184
Culture novels are in a non-chronological sequence and almost none of them share characters or even events.
You can read them in pretty much any order you want

If I press not interested on literally everything will goodreads start reccing me different books?

Almost everything I've read of late is contemporary and it keeps recommending shitty adventure/romance scifi from the 80s that nobody ever paid attention to

>>13398560
also after going through some books that did seem interesting like half the stuff it's reccing is stealth gay erotica lol

>>13397714
I enjoy it more than I did at 18, at least. My taste for fiction all but disappeared in my late teens and came back in my late 20s.

>>13398576
Maybe their AI is trying to tell you something.

Are the Three Body sequels any better than the first book? It seemed like Golden Age scifi, and not in a good way. It's enough of a phenomenon for me to be inclined to keep reading but I'm wondering if there's a positive change in quality.

>>13397051
Hyperion and Fall of Hyperion.

>>13397226
Damn,John Cusack looks like THAT?

>>13394421
my thread isn't getting attention so I'll ask here. I just finished this. what are you thoughts of this work?

>>13398271
It's baby's first non-mainstream fantasy adventure

>>13398682
this is a joke meme book. hyperion is the worst Sci fi book/series I've ever read and I've read star wars books before

>>13398775
Why do you say that? The books can be pretentious and the author has way too much of a hard-on for John Keats, but overall they present unique and interesting ideas well. Endymion is shit tho

>>13397264
Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance novels.

>send a girl a lotr meme
>"i don't get it"
>she's a fan of got and played wow
How the fuck did you not see lotr?

>>13397264
My self made fantasy novels from my time as a GM.

>>13398752
Why did you happen to choose to read that?

>>13398171
I bet Sanderson doesn't have realistic and/or authentic medieval torches or doorsteps

Genuine question here lads, but why does everyone love Sanderson? Everyone outside of this board won't shout about him but his prose, dialogue, characters and pacing is all off.
I got meme'd into reading Mistborn (just the first 3 thankfully) and the only praise I can give it is the magic was well worked out. Not particularly interesting but no major asspulls with it that I can remember. So, why do people like him so much? Is this his worst series and I should try another or is he a living meme?

>>13398908
He's casual friendly and his books read like a vydia gaem.

Reddit thinks they've made a spreadsheet to help people avoid rapey SF/F, when in fact they have created a potential goldmine for discovering GRI degeneracy:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1hQi6C2RQvjGzjSoXU0D063fCFcz1wCHXFUe7PfEsGrk/htmlview#

Slightly less useful than it could be because they use such a broad definition that even Harry Potter gets some rape-points on its scorecard.

>>13398576
>>13398560
This is how you use goodreads to your advantage.
List all the genre you likes, then list books you like and dislike. The ones you like give them 5 stars, the ones you don't give them one.
Go to books you like and read reviews. If someone matches how you feel about a book, go to their profile and compare books. If you see they read and liked books you read and liked, follow or befriend them. You can read the other books they read and see if you like those. Follow people that update regularly with books you like, and read those.
Remember, if you put you like graphic novels, you will get those recs. Sort out your category.

Don't like young adult books. Don't befriend people with pictures of gifs in their reviews, nor pictures of the book at the beach or on a table in some artsy photoshot. Don't befriend people that talk about female representation, or complains a lot about rape. I know it would seem productive to find the books these female representation anti-rapists would dislike and read it, but it ends up counterintuitive.
Follow these and you should be swimming in recs.

>>13398872
Because women are a meme

>>13398662
Three meme problem is shit. They chinks are trying to recover from their trade war, so no shills(all Chinese btw) will come out to expound on it's greatness.

>>13398752
Remember to ignore Vance shills and others.

Reading Gor should be mandatory in every single country.

>>13398908
Outside of this board only fags, kids and women read fantasy. And fags, kids and women are all fucking stupid.

I am having trouble deciding on which Wolfe to keep in the chart, as I want it to have only one book per author.
Vote here: https://www.strawpoll.me/18260452

>>13398908
What a lot of readers take for granted these days are readily available books.
When Sanderson came out years ago the Kindle and self publishing wasn't a game changer like it is today. You had to rely on publishing houses to get your fix. And there were some shitty shitty books being published. It's why Sanderson, Brent Weeks, Rothfuss, Abercrombie, etc blew up like they did. Readers were fed up of the old shit and asspull magic that were used for decades. These new authors brought fresh air. Now with self publishing you get even more books.
For people who read all the popular old shit, these new guys were amazing. It doesn't hurt that Sanderson is an Mormon A.I. deep think project. He releases multiple books every year. It's why self published is so successful now. No one wants to wait multiple years for one book of 400 pages, when you can have at least 2 300 page books every year.

>>13398947
Make it into a macro. This is an image board. Not opening any google link.

>>13399044
Why don't you have a kys option in your strawpoll?

>>13397264
Polgara a cute.
>>13397550
>a female protagonist
The Deed Paksenarrion
Dragonsbane
Ironhand's Daughter by Gemmel and Ash by Mary Gentle if you want a slut (ash is historical fantasy tho)
>a good betrayal story
The Seer King Trilogy this one is kinda edgy too

>>13399008
What a scumsucking shitter chart.

>>13399066
You make this general a better place by posting pointless nonsense.

>>13396348
>KJ Parker
Redpill me on him

>>13398662
Yeah, they're much better. Go from this "psyche science was actually BETTER than we thought and the aliens were holding us back" to how we actually prepare for the invasion, why after hearing nothing from other intelligent life in the entire universe we found it in the star next door, and then some crazy stuff in the third book.

PLEASE HELP

I'm 20 y/o and have only read 2 real books in my whole life. Can someone recommend me a book that is good yet simple and easy to get into? Also my reading-speed is tragically slow so not i can't read 800+ page books. :)

>>13399130
The Phantom Tollbooth

>>13398662
Yeah the sequels are great desu
I enjoyed each more and more, feels much less generic as it goes on
Has some genuinely interesting ways of looking at society and solving problems

>>13399104
>fantasy euro setting but the euro is researched and the fantasy is muted
>magic is mostly "the Principle" that you can study all your life but you need to be a prodigy to use, and it mostly messes with people's luck and destiny (mostly for the worse)
>comfy siege engineering SoL segments
>family drama that kicks you in the gut, how on earth can these people be so nasty to each other, it just keeps happening, I thought we hit rock bottom two books ago
>no maps

>>13399130
Not a book but read the short story The Last Question

>>13399130
Finnegan's Wake. It's about a guy who dies and gets reincarnated by having vinegar sprinkled on him. A very easy, comedic read. Don't read the synopsis because some of them spoil the book. Just pirate it.

>>13399008
lol

>>13397240
the short story format is great for sci fi. philip k. dick and isaac asimov both have a lot of great short stories, and the machine stops by e.m. forster is unironically the best piece of dystopian fiction ever written

>>13399148
>>magic is mostly "the Principle" that you can study all your life but you need to be a prodigy to use, and it mostly messes with people's luck and destiny (mostly for the worse)
Sounds bretty gud. Where do I start?

>>13399170
I started with The Color in the Steel, some cool mongol action in there.

>>13399130
Sabriel

>>13399130
The Hobbit

>>13398878
because it's fantasy written by Jack Vance. I just found out somehow that he wrote a big fantasy novel and almost immediately got on the internet and ordered it. it's very good. the only thing I can think to complain about is that I didn't like about half of the character names

How do I into Dune? I’ve been trying to read the first book but Herbert’s prose style is so fucking weird

>>13398947
>book
>off screen
do these redditors think of books as movies in their heads? lol

>>13399176
Thanks. Gonna try it sometime soon.

>>13398947
Oh yeah that's hot
>>13399008
Have sex
>>13399053
Cringe

>>13398271
People like to read it and pretend it makes sense, then say "look how smart I am for reading this book"

>>13394731
get an audio book first. also I give you Corvis Rebaine 1 : The Conqueror’s Shadow by Ari Marmell

>In the realm of Imphallion, there once was a nightmare—a living nightmare known only as the Terror of the East. Nigh invulnerable in his magical black armor and aided by unholy minions, he laid waste to all in his path on his all-consuming quest to bring order to the land. His order.

>Then, at what should have been his moment of triumph, his will failed. And his army fell. Taking a young noblewoman as hostage, he escaped, vanishing into darkest memory.

>Years later, Corvis Rebaine is a simple man, content with his loving wife and children. The terrible deeds and glories of his past life are dead and buried along with his former name and its monstrous legacy—until his daughter is taken by fiends under a maniacal young warlord looking to complete the Terror’s conquest.

>>13395330
The genre itself is shit.

>>13399190
You endure the brittle, unstimulating prose, dry expository dialogue and stay with it for the marvellously unique world and weird, albeit fun power games of the story. Sorry, theres not really any other way. Keep at it. The next books are even stranger.

>>13399190
Check the last chart or the thread before that for the dune chart.

>>13398335
>sword and soul

>>13399224
Kys

>>13399190
get an audio book. Its like a movie with nothing but narration. In the end I was so tired of dune that I did not pick up the second book.

Reading Children of Dune after reading Dune and Dune Messiah in two weeks each. I'm really enjoying the series so far. God Emperor has me excited to get to that one.

>>13398947
>Harry Potter gets some rape-points on its scorecard.
yeah. looked to Winternight Trilogy then read the description and it was the most banal thing ever. reminds me of how tvtropes people "extrapolate" pages worth of characterization from 1 line.

>>13399058
It's too big to be a convenient image. Just open it in a pornmode/incognito tab.
>>13399196
Apparently yes.

Anyone read A Planet Called Treason? I picked it up hoping it would be full on sci fi but it's got a fantasy setting and, while so far it isn't bad, I can't help but feel a little let down by the expectations I had. I forgot where I was going with this. I guess what I wanna ask is, is it gud?

>>13399411
>it's got a fantasy setting
No it doesn't, unless A Planet Called Treason is that different from Treason. It is pretty good, hero gets to go around and find out what all these elites that got exiled here made their descendants git gud at, my favorite were the slutty Polynesian philosophy grads that could control time.

>>13399196
yes. In fact thats graphicaudio's tag line.
>>13399058
save your time
>rape
>exists in the setting, won't happen
Does not rape exist in any setting where all the characters are not kept from rape by all powerful magic or no one has sex of any kind?

>>13397264
Narnia. The Horse and His Boy and Dawn Treader in particular are the ones i enjoyed the most.

NK Jemisin?

NK Jemisin

>>13398947
>Red Rising
>lots of violence towards women
? Is not it set in a military academy where they all fight each other?

>>13399196
Anon, I...

>>13398947
> Other uncomfortable material note: There is a rape accusation that later turns out to be false.
I thank you for this comedy. I needed this

>>13399503
this is fucking retarded why would anybody imagine something besides 5 or 6

>>13399503

>>13399500
They mean sexual violence, prob the part where Titus takes over and starts having captives raped.

>>13398947
How do those people live?

>>13398947
>Reddit being based.
We should be thankful for them gathering the data, truly based.

>>13399524
I tried to imagine the number of people that died from communism

>>13398752
Awful book. No plot or grand narrative, just characters stumbling into banal adventures.

>>13399555
Unfortunately their redditness poisons it because of how broad their definitions are. Still, some of the specific categories are useful.

>>13399555
we would be if the data was accurate and descriptive.

@13399460
No (You)s for you today.

>>13399555
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScnevsCJ5fjcDZMfp7uRjadufvlWRIRXmPAD8aeUdSCuIp-nA/viewform

There doesn't seem to be any demand for actual page numbers, their factchecking seems lax as fuck.

>>13399566
there is very clearly a single plot throughout the book even if you ignore the king arthor reimagining that it is. the prophecy with sudrun and the kings desire to take over the isles and jip the prophecy. it runs though the entire bookand begins and ends on it.

I need a book that is a good example for an aspiring writer.

Reading Shadow of the Torturer, but I'm not sure how it will help me. Read Fahrenheit 451, and I guess it can help with my imagery use.
I'm looking for a modern day book that has good balance between events/plot and worldbuilding.

Hey could you guys check out my story and let me know if you like it?

https://justpaste dot it/425go

Consider Phlebas was better than most make it out to be. On to Player of Games next. What is your favorite Culture novel?

>>13399759
It's fine but still inferior to the rest.

>>13399696
Yeah here is a plot but its only purpose is to serve as a context for the banal adventures. It's a bland, empty story.

>>13397264
Why is there a shadow mask on every book?

>>13399503
I don't imagine none of those. Stars aren't 5 sided.

What is /lit/'s opinion on this

>>13399924
advanced guide to cuckoldry

>>13399924
Check the archives. You have hundreds of thousands of words of opinions of it over the past 5+ years.

>>13398133
He's terrible, I regret spending time and money on his broken empire.

>>13399924
This should answer all your questions.

>>13399183
I haven't read it but it's been on my radar for some time, anon

>Tfw no hyper intelligent mouse bro who will drink beer, eat pretzels and watch Yankee games while being my wingman for art hoes

Where do I get a mouse bro like Algernon?

>>13399979
how to describe yourself as the world's biggest faggot

>>13399390
Children was really the weakest in my opinion. God emperor is obviously good, but the best book is Heretics followed by Chapterhouse.

>>13399130
read the parker books or stainless steel rate they're both short very fun pulp series

>>13399104
KJ Parker's gimmick is basically "what if grimdark/gritty tragifantasy had a good writer"

>>13398752
Does the cute girl from the cover dies?

>>13399924
I honestly thought Name of the wind was alright, very meandering and overly in love with itself but it was a fun read.
Everything I remembering hating about the series was in the second book but it was so bad that I think it retroactively ruined the first for me and highlighted all of the flaws I'd happily ignored the first time.

>>13400468
It was good when i read it at 15 having only read harry potter and a few other books

>>13394755
I was skeptical because the author has won so many (((awards))), but started last night because of this thread. Pretty good so far

>>13400009
Uh oh, watch out with the f-word, tranny jannies might ban you

>>13398947
Why are leftists such fucking snowflakes?

>>13394830
Mt char is shit tho

any lads read 20s-30s scifi?

Is it worth touching, /sffg/?

>>13400682
No. Its very bad. Neither smut nor enough story. Its a weird mix of both where neither is the focus and they muddle with each other.

Are there any really, really long series that retain a consistent narrative, remain cohesive, don't drag too much. and most importantly, have a satisfying conclusion?
I guess I'm looking for something I can read and go on an adventure for a few months.

Finished this today and I enjoyed it even when it felt like the pacing was all over the place, definedly one of my favourite first books by an author. Any other good "coming-of-age" low magic fantasy settings out there in mature perspective? Also, I have been looking for good fantasy/sci-fi settings in deserts or other harsh environments like in Dune.

For the love of god don't read this until the sequel comes out.
It's good even if it does suffer from being a multi-pov book where one pov is the clear protagonist
But the entire book is basically worldbuilding and setup with an ending that is just further setup, so it's an utter cocktease to read with a year or so to wait for a sequel and try to not forget what happened in it.

>>13394421
OK it's the time of my life to start knocking out Conan. where do I start? do I avoid anything?

>>13399008
>t. seething brainlet who can't appreciate good prose
Wowie Zowie!

>>13400880
First, read Kull. Then read Howard's Conan using the Joe Marek chronology. Then read Bran Mak Morn.

>>13400899
>read Howard's Conan using the Joe Marek chronology

what the fuck does this mean you troglodyte?

Any of you guys use this?
http://unsong.libsyn.com/
Is unsong good?

What are some random sci-fi books you came across that aren't wildly popular but that you enjoyed? Pic related, it's C. S. Lewis's Space Trilogy.

>>13400880
Download or buy the Del Rey collections and read ONLY those and not just for Conan, but for Howard's other characters as well if you're interested in his other creations. They collected the stories in the order they were WRITTEN.

>>13401013
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conan_chronologies
Are you retarded, anon?

>>13401171
>publication order
Top cringe

>Howard's Conan
>Chronology
Stop it. There is no chronology.

>>13401169
Just reread That Hideous Strength last month, it's so good but you have to reeeally love Lewis.

I'd say Gerard Klein, I've tried to meme him a couple times but didn't see any traction. Overlords of War has these super-advanced knights riding time-traveling beasts escaping the hell-dimension aliens put us in to teach us manners.

>>13401213
>There is no chronology
But there is. Why would you read Conan as a jumbled, disconnected mess when you could read it as a sprawling epic and watch him grow from barbarian to thief to general to king? Pub order isn't the order the Conan stories were written in either. It's just the order REH was able to sell them in, you absolute autist

>>13401274
>Why would you read Conan as a jumbled, disconnected mess when you could read it as a sprawling epic and watch him grow from barbarian to thief to general to king?
Why would you try to attach a story curve to Conan's life and ruin the surprise of Conan being a king all of a sudden here and a penniless bravo again there?

>>13401206
The order they were WRITTEN, you fucking retard. Not published.
>>13401274
You are very stupid and should probably die soon.

What do yall use to get author's preview from subscribestar?

>>13400591
They only ban when you pol cunts use the n word. They don't ban for saying faggot, unless you go into the lgbt board and say it.

>>13401300
>Why would you attach a story curve to Conan's life
>Attach
I'm not tacking anything on, anon. It's right there in the stories. Have you actually read them? It's almost like reading them by publication order causes you to miss something...
>>13401318
Hahaha cry some more, faggot

>>13401403
Please die.

>>13401300
>surprise of Conan being a king all of a sudden here and a penniless bravo again there?
That doesn't happen bruh. Conan is old in the ones where he's king and young in the ones where he's burgling and pirating. It's in the text

>>13400676
im tryina get some of that. sup

>>13401432
yes, but you don't know whether to expect old king conan or young bix nood conan

>>13400676
E.E. Doc Smith. Pretty much created space opera.

>>13400676
>>13401434
Clark Ashton Smith is the shit. Pure Venusian jungle kino right der

>>13400682
Is it just me or are these fantasy smuts for men become more and more popular?

/sffg/, some autistic part of me wants to insert 'mon shit into my novel. What do I do?

>>13401459
You don't look at Amazon kindle new releases.

I want to read. But theres so much music and classic film to watch. Idk man. Does this reading thing just latch on at some point? Because it feels forced 9/10 times for me. Really enjoyed A Scanner Darkly though for the monthly book. But I just finished it last night...

>>13394755
Vorkosigan is fun as well.

Sffg help. I can't enjoy traditional published books anymore. While reading publishing houses books I'm thinking of litrpg, wuxia, xinana, isekia, etc. Halp.

>>13397065
Just about halfway through my first read of Foundation, it’s pretty good so far. >>13397051
Read Dune Messiah, I personally see it as the fourth part of Dune rather than the second book in the series. A new paperback edition was released in June.

>>13401609
Get graphic audio books. They are like a movie, and they contain a musical score. So it would be you combining 3 hobbies. Music, cinematic effects, and a novel.

>>13401618
Take a break from reading. Let your brain reset. You gotta compartmentalize better

>>13401403
seethe more basedboy

>>13401626
>A new paperback edition was released in June.
>i work for a publishing house guises
>buy this dead author's book so I can get my commission
>$0.10 has been deposited into your account

>>13400676
Sometimes,i've read some Olaf Stapledon and Gertrude Bennet/Francis Stevens,they are pretty cool

>>13401630
If I take a break I will neck myself. I'm reading to keep myself from doing the midair jig.

What if I like the undead?

>>13401618
So? Just read what you want. I think the best 'cure' for such novels is just to read more of em, they get old eventually and then you can lament that there are no genuinely good novels in those genres.

>>13397264
Elric of Melnibone, and so far I think the Foundation Trilogy will be my sci-fi guilty pleasure once I finish it.

>>13401646
That's cool I guess.

Ok, I really want to read more about the culture and the war, but it seems Mr. Banks's primary interest is to try to make me wince or barf at his increasingly elaborate displays of human depravity.
I this book just not for me? Is the whole series like this?

>>13401674
I just finished this book and posted up above. I liked it, though yes, it was a bit of a slog (especially the Eaters). Upon finishing it Banks seems to be a teeny bit nihilistic, or.. he's at least trying to put a spin on the average The Gang Has a Space Adventure.

I think the other books deal with what the Culture is like much more than Phlebas.

>>13401674
It’s all communism in a nut shell
Humans are pets of ai’s who will just act like old time nobles

>>13401674
Dude get over it, you think the future is going to be full of nerveless bores who don't fuck or do drugs

Anyone here also listen to black metal?

I want a book that gives me that kind of vibe. But I'm not asking for grimdark, if that makes sense...

Thanks.

>>13401686
thanks. I guess I'll stick with it.
>>13401694
exactly! Sounds wonderful.
>>13401697
I really don't mind sex or drugs, the content in this book is significantly more disturbing that that.

>>13401634
>Y-you too
HAHAHAHA! The stage you're at now is called bargaining. Next comes dilation
>>13397264
Stormlight. The writing is shit tier repetitive nufantasy, but there's a few good non reddit jokes per book and dem fights are pretty good

If you people want depravity read the Gap Cycle
There's a scene in which a stripper cuts off her own tits for entertainment
It's also chock full of rape and denigration

>>13401710
Gallow/Fateguard. More realistic than grim. Fantasy viking dude axes fools for revenge and profit

>>13401710
I listened to The Ruins of Beverast pretty much exclusively while reading the Prince of Nothing series and thought it was a great fit. Sorry, though, it's grimdark. But damn it's good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQQD1UjiqEc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzFBAB3SzA4

>>13401636
Couldn’t be the only guy who thought the old cover was the shitty mashup between a “coming soon to dvd” preview and a college textbook. No need to be so hasty, anon.

>>13401697
Here's to hoping we're immortal and can play torture games with each other.

>>13401636
>tfw 1st ed. Dune was published by Chilton's
>tfw they have zero incentive to shill for it since they otherwise just publish car maintenance books

>>13401788
I dig ROB. I had that series on my list. I was just sort of avoiding it because I know its pretty long. Their newest album Exhuvia or however you spell it really grew on me, I dig it.

Grimdark is fine, I was just saying I wasn't exclusively asking for it.

>>13401739
Ill check it out anon. Its got pretty mixed reviews. But I'll try it,

>>13401739
What does he axe them?

>>13399999
Nice get

>>13401811
I only read the first book and a half. It was good but not amazing. Had a metal vibe to it
>>13401820
Why alligators is so ornery

/sffg/, how can I make my MC (or the whole cast) into a pokemon trainer without it immediately setting off warning bells?

I was thinking the characters would have familiars, which works with my plot and themes, but I don't know how to introduce it without it seeming cringeworthy

>>13401968
Introduce it in a big confusing action scene where none of the characters or stakes are important to the audience yet.

just downloaded all of wheel of time to travel to. is the prequel book intended to be read first?

>>13401171
>>13402086
Eh, I'd read the first book before the prequel story to avoid spoiling the feel of the beginning. Then delete the rest of the books and read Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn instead

>>13402086
zoomed out, I thought the dog had no legs and an open mouth

Thread about to die but,
Babby tier cosmere spoiler ahead: Is Mistborn worth it? I've read 1, 2, and am on 3 of the stormlight archive. It was enough to realize just how fucking much I hate this man's writing style but also I am now sucked into the fucking cosmere lore. I literally just want to see Hoid in a bunch of different books now.

>>13402171
I forgot to add, if forced to choose between the two, would you go with mistborn or warbreaker? This question is for sanderfags only.

>>13402086
Just read the first three,they have semiconclusions,if you read after book 6 it's just a constant "to be continued" until book 14

THREAD SLAAAAAAAAAAAAAVE

>>13402171
Honestly, mistborn's world is pretty self-contained. I'm not sure why it's considered part of a shared universe. If you don't like sanderson's style then don't bother with mistborn.

>>13402247
we still on page 2

>>13398271
It's the book that took me the longest time to read out of all the books I've EVER read. I think I dropped it and started it back up again like 4 times. In general, I found it unbearable. Gene's characters are boring as fuck, and his prose isn't nearly fun enough to merit the entry for me. And I feel like it's one of those things where you get memed into going the full way
>read the first chapter and say you don't like it
>>bruh, you gotta read at least a quarter
>read a quarter and say you don't like it
>>bruh, just read at least until the midway point and get past the intro
>read over halfway
>>BRUH, YOU'RE SO CLOSE, JUST FINISH THE FIRST BOOK
>finish the first book and don't like it
>>well, bro, you gotta at least read the second, the first is just an introduction
And so on and so on. I am absolutely certain it will end in me reading them all, disliking them, and then the whole conversation ending with
>LOL YOU'RE JUST TOO STUPID TO GET IT LMAO
The only series I've ever read that I only started to like near the end was the original Prince of Nothing trilogy, as everything fell into place in the Thousandfold Thought. That's about it. An Bakker's prose is pretty magnificent outside of the absurd Herodotus tier monster scenes and the cringy fetish cuck shit and monster rape.

>>13402497
It's okay to be a brainlet, anon. You don't have to sperg out like this.

>the whole conversation ending with
>LOL YOU'RE JUST TOO STUPID TO GET IT LMAO
No. The whole conversation ends with
>You just have to read it again. The true value of BotNS is upon rereading.

I kid, BotNS is my favorite book. I unironically read it whole over 9 times. But it's true that there are many memes about it

>>13402635
What's the appeal?

>>13401697
>Dude get over it, you think the future is going to be full of nerveless bores who don't fuck or do drugs

But it is. Citizens of the Culture aren't even physically capable of either.

As about their pets, it is no more interesting to read about them than about lower castes in Brave New World.

>>13402685
My man it literally talks about how Culture people have modified genitalia to have amazing sex and glands in their head to manufacture any drug they wa-
Oh, I see what you did there

>>13402671
I don't know. I just like the book overall. I started reading it during one of the best summers of my life. I suppose I associate the book with the comfy.
All in all I just love it. It's my favorite book of all time.

>>13401274
Writing order =/= publication order.

Conan should e read in order the stories were written.

Are short stories dead? I was just trying to read Witcher recently and it's incredible how much the quality drops once it goes from short story into novel form. So sad. I'm tired of all this bloat.

>>13402803
>Are short stories dead?
No; they're just not popular anymore. There's still indie writers writing short stories and novellas.

>>13402566
He spergs out in every thread tho

>>13402755
>Samefagging this hard
Jeepers creepers!

>>13402859
Lol an a tool.

>>13397264
Dresden files. It's such cliched bullshit, and Harry always does those gay monologues about the human spirit, but I still read them.

>>13401450
Doc Smith books are a lot of fun. Here, though, I bet they would be labeled anime.

NEW AND SHINY

>>13402997
>>13402997
>>13402997
>>13402997
>>13402997
>>13402997

>>13401674
I hated that book and never read another one.

>>13399224
>Have sex
transcend

Last post

@13403129
>implying I will give you a (you)
>implying you will be last

Last post

>making you work for it
Rent free

Last post

>trying so hard
What are you 12? Seething

>>13404023
Ok, you get last post this time.

Just stop and know that you have failed