/lit/ - Literature

King of /sffg/.

Simple as

>>19851365
After researching dozens of different fantasy novels, The Black Company is the only one that really interests me

Discuss

>>19851365
What science fiction or fantasy discusses pic related?

>MFW when Ben has to stake Susan to death in Salems Lot
What are your favorite deaths in SFF

>>19851481
>The postmachine
Isn't that some jewish visual representation of some religious thing? Why post such garbage on /sffg/ and 4 chan?

>>19851399
I'll eventually go through making derogatory comments about them as I did with your previous charts.

>>19851513
That looks like some pseudo religious shit, but it also looks hard science fiction, which I would never accuse religion of trying to be, so I am confused.

Bakker bros, I just finished the warrior prophet when does this series get good? There was some good parts like the trapper with Kellhus at the beginning but the majority of it is just the consult fucking esmenet or kellhus fucking esmenet or akka fucking esmenet. Does this shit do a 180 in the last book? I don’t want to read another 600 pages about some whore. For all the talk of misogyny the first two books felt like it was mostly about esmenet and her feelings.

>>19851857
>when does this series get good?
It gets really good when it gets to the gay sex scenes, such graphic buttfucking, bakker must've been full mast writing that shit.

>>19851370
This got so boring so fast.
The damn thing isn't goal driven at all, it's just lets keep on going until the author stops writing.
The second he splits with the ice girl there's nothing going on at all.

>>19851399
Is this a joke list or a real thing? The names i recognize and read were all trash. If the rest of the real books are grouped with them they must all be garbage.

>>19851399
Might want to scrap the Magicians after the TV series has come out. People who have seen it will instantly discredit the list.

>>19851950
The book is better than the show though. And the show wasn't bad.

>the thotness that cooms before

>>19851370
Post passage.

>>19851950
>People who have seen it will instantly discredit the list.
Judging a book by it's cover is already pretty bad, but judging a book by it's film adaptation? Anyone that retarded probably can't read the books anyway.

Always judge a book by its cover.

>>19852464
Judge it.

Do you read science fiction magazines? What are some good science fiction magazines?

>>19851365
HOW THE FUCK do I make elven races interesting without deviating from a Black and White thematic? I often find myself delineating into contemporary Gray-on-Gray moral faggotry whenever I add nuance or context. I don't want a tolkien-esque depiction, but there are few inspirations for elves that still manage to capture a sense of nobility without being debased in purity.

>>19852680
Fuck off to /wg/ >>19841034

>>19852537
looks quaint

>>19851365
I read 17 about novel-length books in January. That's a lot more than I thought I would. I have no doubt that it'll be far less this month.

>>19852799
but say, _ out of 10?

>>19852858
Fuck off

Remember when Orson Scott Card wrote a book about a weaponized autistic Chinese princess who would follow the grain in wood floors?

The fuck was that about?

>>19852881
I see a wizard hat silhouette so it's at least 6/10
But if that was a town in America it's a 2/10.

>>19853021
no hedging your bets, you said judge a book by it's cover, put your foot down on it and own it.

>>19851399
Where Thomas Covenant?

>>19853029
It's a 6/10.
I'm merely saying if those silhouettes weren't there and all I saw was fields and houses in that paint style I would guarantee I'd be in for a fucking boring growing up story that some jerkoff thought was special.

>>19852192
Nah, the claim that "the book is completely different" is a disingenuous lie nearly 100% of the time. Quite frankly I'm surprised you're literate.
There could be nothing more accurate to judge a book upon besides the book itself.

>>19853041
>6/10
This is why we don't judge books based on their covers

>>19853053
>There could be nothing more accurate to judge a book upon besides the book itself.
Starship Troopers.
>drops mic

>>19853064
It's hard not to. I think it's obvious but writers need to be careful for their book art.
LotR would be better off with no art at all. Even any still from the movie would make it look bad and campy.
Sci-fi works better. You just draw a cool spaceship. The Hyperion alien is great on the cover. But when you draw the land you're supposed to be imagining, it's hard to turn off that image that's on the cover.

>>19853064
But you covered 40% of the cover

>>19853103
>LotR would be better off with no art at all.
One of the niche things I actually like about the lord of the rings is that it's one of those series that has seen so many printings that you can track down one that suits your own tastes.
So my argument is that a wide variety in printings is best, no single standard.
for people that like slipcovers on their hardcovers that's a way to have both worlds or just multiple arts, but I cannot stand slip covers and remove them all so I have a lot of no art monocolor covers with embossed metallic lettering.

>>19853127
I covered the title only, the title covers 40% of the cover.
You're just put off by the contrast difference of a bold black square vs the subtler gold, cream and red of what's there.

>>19853134
The title is part of the cover

>>19853140
If you don't understand what I was doing there, I am content to laugh as it flies over your head.

>>19853146
You're hiding selective parts of the cover.

>>19853159
>whoosh

>>19853167
>jokes on you I'm retarded

>>19853131
I agree. That would be better. In an ideal place if you wanted someone to see the book that you love, you'd have all covers there.
Literally 50 LotR:TFotR lined up side by side so you see them all and go, "Wow!" and pick your favorite.
But with little resale stores, libraries, mass printings, grandpa's books, Barnes & Noble, etc, it's impossible to do that. Obviously not all versions were made in the same years.

For me though, as long as it's not THAT version with that style of painting. I don't know what you call it, but I hate the washed out colors, round trees, modern looking houses, it's in a claustrophobic valley even though we're zoomed way the hell back.
I'm looking at a lot of the early ones and I don't like them. It's too simplistic and childish.

tl;dr Just don't use fucking watercolor for your epic fantasy novel cover art.

I don't remember my copies of LOTR having any pictures on the cover. The Hobbit I read was from my elementary school library and was iirc big and gold.

>>19853200
>I agree. That would be better. In an ideal place if you wanted someone to see the book that you love, you'd have all covers there.
>Literally 50 LotR:TFotR lined up side by side so you see them all and go, "Wow!" and pick your favorite.
I fucking WISH such a bookstore existed, but..
>But with little resale stores, libraries, mass printings, grandpa's books, Barnes & Noble, etc, it's impossible to do that. Obviously not all versions were made in the same years.
I enjoy the hunt and I enjoy the randomness, discovering an art I hadn't seen before on a chance stroll through a secondhand, etc...
>For me though, as long as it's not THAT version with that style of painting. I don't know what you call it, but I hate the washed out colors, round trees, modern looking houses, it's in a claustrophobic valley even though we're zoomed way the hell back.
I'm looking at a lot of the early ones and I don't like them. It's too simplistic and childish.
What drew me to this box collection of the hobbit and lotr was that it was an older printing in poor condition, very well handled, the two towers has become unglued from the spine and all the pages scatter if you pick it up loosely.
It gave this copy a character that I just like a lot, it's ragged and battered but still complete and with it's box in great condition, a survivor with it's own story to tell.

>>19852631
Bump

>>19853219
I'm glad you enjoy it. And you clearly do this as a sort of hobby. As for me I can't get appearances out of my head. If some bastard at Penguin makes the cover art some self portrait by an artist and the book is "The Count of Monte Cristo" then by god that's Edmund Dantes.
Leonardo DiCaprio is Jay Gatsby and the like.

>>19853234
>If some bastard at Penguin makes the cover art some self portrait by an artist and the book is "The Count of Monte Cristo" then by god that's Edmund Dantes.
!!! I get this one like you would probably believe with ease.

>>19853234
Also
>And you clearly do this as a sort of hobby
I've never really thought of it that way, just that when I want a physical copy of a book I know there tends to be options and I look around at them.

>>19853260
Ah. If I ever get the spare cash to get physical copies then I too would look for the covers that I liked best.
I'd even do what you did if I like how it looks. I don't mind wear if it adds the right character. I can't even help but grab the milk that's been dropped on it's side and you can't really fit your fingers in the handle anymore.

>>19853167
That would be r/whoosh to you, kind sir!

>>19852631
Do those even exist anymore? For that matter, do any pulp magazines exist? I always figured serialized novels went extinct decades ago.

>>19853342
Don't know but the old magazines still exist. It's also short stories.
http://www.luminist.org/archives/SF/

So i watched the foundation series on apple tv plus
How close are they to the books?

>>19851057
I'm reading it now and enjoying it well enough. I've also read the first two books of Mask of the Template ages ago and didn't realize it was the same author. That one isn't very good.

Knowledge is unseen.
Ignorance demands attention.

>>19853459
not very

>>19853064
The Alan Lee illustrations are absolutely kino and based. Had a huge hardcover edition of the The Hobbit by him and always regretted never getting the LOTR with his illustrations. I think Peter Jackson used a lot of them for reference, such as how Minas Tirith looks in the films

>>19851857
if you didn't like the warrior prophet just drop the series

King of /sffg/.

Simple as

>>19851365
I've been reading a bunch of the little science fiction paperbacks that Penguin is releasing and I love them. Is there a fantasy equivalent?

How do Wheel of Time fans doing now that the show was an abomination and they will never get a real adaptation?

You are awesome guys

>>19851399
Why isn't Three Hearts and Three Lions on this?

>>19853806
Adaptations don't matter for readers

>>19853064
you are right anon I should have sticked to my 2/10 prediction

>>19853967
Obviously.

>>19852680
>>19852686
Could also work as a thread on /tg/ if you mask it as: "I'm trying to build a setting and HOW THE FUCK..."

>>19853069
It still captured the overarching theme of the novel, just expressed through a postmodern lens for an audience of a different time and genre (and even then half of them misinterpreted it).

>>19851499
Aillas chucking Father Umphred into the Atlantic put a smile on my face

>>19854308
>open pic
>just some vapid whore with her tits out
cumbrain

>>19851365
Still reading this after seeing review anon sugguest it and quite enjoying it. Setting seems southeast asian inspired, magic is mystical and characters feel very grounded. Feels like mystical ancient Thai Intrigue.

>>19854316
>It still captured the overarching theme of the novel
>(and even then half of them misinterpreted it).
So it DIDN'T

>>19853064
Put a effing plastic jacket arounds your book, anons. It prevents 90% of your paperbacks from looking a beat as this.

>>19854636
>plastic jacket
>paperback
You know those don't go together, right?
You have held physical books in your life, right?

>>19853064
Your shit opinion is why we have shit covers today I suppose because that cover is kino

>>19854384
>whore with her tits out
ew I hate tits

>>19852537
>Comfy adventure between a fellowship composed of a wizard, an archer, 2 men and 4 halflings in a pseudo-Swiss Valley

10/10 book
10/10 movie

>>19852537
>village visited by woke sjw nomads that will sissfy them and make them suck orc cock

0/10

>The progenitors called it the Illumination. The age that saw the Tekne become their faith, the idol they raised above all others. They turned their back on their old Gods, their old temples, and raised new ones, great houses dedicated to unravelling the wellsprings of existence. Cause became their one and only God. For through it, they believed they could overcome the darkness preceding all things, and so become Gods.

>The Tekne so transformed the problems faced by the progenitors that all the old ways became impossible. It raised them from their traditions, struck the shackles of custom from their intellects, until only their common animality constrained them. They worshipped themselves as the measure of all significance, gave themselves over to wanton gluttony. Nothing was forbidden them, short the obstruction of others and their desires. Justice became the calculation of competing appetites. Logos became the principle of their entire civilization.

>By imperceptible increments, the Tekne unfettered their desires, allowed them to plumb ever deeper perversions. They began moulding themselves the way potters mould clay.

>They stood upon the very brink of the Absolute. It pricked their fingers, it was so near!
>There was only one riddle they could not solve, one ancient enigma the Tekne could not fathom … The soul.

>It became their Mystery of Mysteries, the focus of their most cunning intellects. And when the soul at last yielded its secrets to their scrutiny … They discovered their entire race damned.

is Titus Groan good? I'm on the mood for something a little strange and depressing; but not "in your face".

I read The Demolished Man. It was good. Now reading Rite Of Passage. Going to read either Kindred or Neuromancer next. Just getting into scifi

Time Enough for Love: is it worth a read?

Recommend good short stories or novelettes.
I just read X Marks The Pedwalk, a weird story about a war between pedestrians and motorists.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/52776/52776-h/52776-h.htm

Anyone got that little graph of "four ways to defeat the heat death/end of the universe"? Like one of them was extend (perception of) time to infinity, another was carrying on information to the next universe, etc.

Not much feedback on magazines. Anyway I think I'll read a few.
http://www.luminist.org/archives/SF/GAL.htm

>>19851399
Are those books at least entertaining in a shit way? Will I feel like a loser reading some of them? Can I read them for fun as a guilty pleasure?
What's the deal with those books?

>>19851399
Are those books at least entertaining in a based way? Will I feel like an SJW reading some of them? Can I read them for reigning as a non-pozzed supreme?
What's the deal with those books?

Are there any good fantasy books with no magic at all? Like a medieval world, with no magic. I want to see if it can work.

>>19855591
I don't remember any magic in Titus Groan.

>>19854983
It can be macabre but it is also quite funny.

Any radiation creatures in fiction? Looking for concepts.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kCnhBcwnP50
I just watched this. Was planning to maybe read the short story it's based on. But I don't think I will. Some science fiction is thought-provoking but some is just dumb. This seemed just dumb to me.

>>19851941
But it is, after the split his blessed land gets damaged and therefore he has to go north to get the special gu.

>>19851399
Where the FUCK is Mushoku Tensei? It's unironically one of the best Isekai novels and yet you don't even have it on the chart. How can a novel with fantastic worldbuilding, memorable characters, and fantastic foreshadowing + payoff not even make the list?

>>19855964
If it's anything like anime then it is garbage

>>19855964
That's because it's the opinions of a single person who mostly reads self-published Western works.

>>19853035
It's shit. Even the most shit book on that list is better than Thomas Covenant the repeater ad nauseam.

>>19853064
That book is shit though. So a shit cover for a shit book. I don't see the problem here.

>>19853531
>>19851057
Did you read his Mountain King series?

>>19855591
Yes there are fantasy books without magic, they are all shit.

>>19855591
Why not just read historical fiction? What emotion/reader reaction are tou looking for?

>>19851365
Any recommendations for books set in the ruins of older/alien civilisations where finding out what happened to those civilisations is part of the plot?

>>19856781
Kind of something like that in Foundation by Asimov. Scientists sent into outer space where barbaric civilizations exist or whatever.

>>19856781
Maybe the sequels to A Talent For War? I never read them, but the first book is about a guy reading books in libraries.

>>19856781
Stormlight Archive has some of that, it is by Brandon Sanderson though, you've been warned. Also, isn't it like one of the biggest fantasy tropes?

>>19856781
Bloodstone by Karl Edward Wagner.

>>19856781
Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds

>>19851365
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/augur-magazine/tales-and-feathers-a-pro-slice-of-life-fantasy-magazine

>>19856877
i think something like it plays a role in lots of works but very few are centered around it

>>19856913

Which of the popular modern fantasy series do you think are very overrated and don't deserve to be read unless you're desperate?
For example Wheel of Time, Stormlight Archive, Kingkiller, Discworld, A Song of Ice and Fire, Black Company, Malazan, etc
Which of series like these should I absolutely read? Which should I try and which should I avoid?

>>19857012
I think Discworld is overrated.

Reposting my questions from >>19845304

Can anyone recommend me a book that's similar to TV show Sense8?

I watched that and I really liked the premise of 8 people connected mentally, sharing skills an knowledge, supporting each other (maybe even sharing magic?). I think this has so much potential, and I want to see it explored more. But the show didn't handle it too well, and of course, Netflix canned it.

The only book that I found that seemed similar was More Than Human by Theodore Sturgeon, but that book is weird as fuck, and really shows it's age, and I couldn't really get into it.

If there isn't one out there, I'm seriously tempted to try my hand at writing this book...

>>19854799
>my opinion
Follow the comment chain you total fucking retard.

>>19856836
>>19856872
>>19856877
>>19856885
>>19856894
Thanks anons, I’ll have a look

>>19857109
No. Now fuck off.

>>19856913
>Kerry C. Byrne is the digital-marketing, speculative fiction-writing Publisher of Augur Magazine. They are non-binary genderfluid, queer, and autistic. In pub life, they have worked the literary agency, small publisher, and literary festival circuit, and now spends their daytime hours working SAAS marketing. They love nothing better than finding gorgeous new stories to share with the world.

>>19857065
Discworld is lighthearted funny stories with quirky characters. It delivers exactly that, it's not high literature.

>>19857012
Abeecrombie's First Law series too.

>>19857440
>They are non-binary genderfluid, queer, and autistic
Next!

>>19857469
Yeah that's one I forgot
I'm confused though, are you saying it's a popular series that I should have added to my list or are you saying it's a popular series and that it's also overrated in your opinion?

Bakker is... Bakker.... he's a homosexual, isn't he?

Bakkerchad Thread

>>19857362

>>19857490
why are you stuttering like a woke sjw who ran out of soi?

>>19856781
Gateway or "The Heechee Saga" is exactly what you're looking for

>>19857494
>Responds with ad-hominum-nums

Like pottery. Ebin, simply ebin.

>>19857491
Yeah! This board absolutely needs a homo-erotic containment thread!

>>19857481
The former. I liked it, it's an easy read. His most recent trilogy is creeping toward commie ideas but maybe it'll get better.

>>19857522
I second this

>>19857440
>They
Next!

>>19857522
Soon all threads will be Bakker, this is a Bakker Board

I love how Bakker works is not only epic and grim, but it Blasphemes all the trash by other woke writers like Sanderson, sandersoi fans couldn't handle reading Bakker because its so blasphemous to them.

>>19857522
Hear-hear!

>>19857550
>>19857673
But only if the jannies move all bakker posts to it.

>>19851399
>Matthew Peed

>>19857710
Bucket head?

>>19857012
>Kingkiller, Discworld, Malazan
Trash
>ASoIaF
Decent, but fatfuck will never finish it and it doesn't broadly diverge from the TV series until about book 3.
>Stormlight
The Way of Kings was decent, but I have no desire to continue the series.
>Black Company
Good if you can deal with Glen Cook's slapdash writing style. I'm a huge fan and can't be objective.

Since we're calling 80s 'modern' you may as well throw Lyonesse in the pile, because it's the best book in this post by a large margin. Abercrombie's First Law and Bakker's 2nd Apocalypse are pretty good too.

>>19851365
Are there any good books that are like Goblin Slayer? I need some wholesome genocidal fantasy adventure

>>19857894
>Are there any good books that are like Goblin Slayer?
What do you mean, the first episode, or the anime that came after it I had already seen a hundred times over?

>>19857894
>>19857900
2/2 In the first case I suggest R.A.Salvatore, specfifically "The Two Swords", "The Lone Drow" and "The Thousand Orcs".
For the second case I suggest his "Icewind Dale Trilogy".

>>19857440
Are they a hive mind?

>>19857012
None of those are really worth reading. I guess maybe ASoIaF, but its been so long since I read them I can't really remember. I've read all or at least some of each of the others, and you aren't losing anything by ignoring them.

>It's a "guy has sex with an alien while explaining daoism to his two students" chapter
well all right then

>>19858197
What do you think is worth reading?

>>19855964
>One of the best isekais
Dropped it chapter 5

>>19854777
Uh, yeah they do anon. I put clear plastic covers on my paperbacks for years. They've held out so well because of it.

>>19858366
>I put clear plastic covers on my paperbacks for years. They've held out so well because of it.
I find that entirely unnecessary, paperbacks I buy in good condition have remained all but perfect for decades, I've never heard of anyone doing this, do you mean you laminate them? Or do you mean cellophane like comic books?
Also, perhaps you missed that I purchased this one as pre-damaged goods?

>Uppers bad
>Ganja good

>>19858463
Everything in moderation. That's the secret.

>>19857496
Haven't read the rest of them but Gateway is barely about ancient ayys. And that's a good thing

>>19851499
Galen getting btfod by Verity

>>19853064
that cover is SOUL

>>19852680
This guy’s review of the Dragon Crown elf statue also includes an excellent analysis on what makes eves unique.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=p8fDhdmmDYg

Do you read short stories?

>>19853781
Ace Publishing (who is actually owned by Penguin) released some fun fantasy books like Thieve’s World. My personal favorite is the Red Sonja series.
Comfy reading anon, I love an easy paperback.
>>19856885
That’s similar to Darkness Weaves as well.
>>19853064
I think that’s a great cover anon.

>>19858197
All of them are worth reading. If you read regularly, you'll blast through that list in a couple months.

>>19859298
>Ace Publishing (who is actually owned by Penguin)
Like most of the publishing industry it seems. I'll check them out, thanks.

>>19851365
>Eragon is listed as Shit Tier in one of the charts
I haven't read it in a good few years, I vaguely remember the ending though (BBEG was given super powers by hundreds of dragon eggs?)
Has anyone read it recently or at least remember enough of it to share their thoughts?

>>19859716
It's a hyper-basic hero's journey arc, which honestly after years of reading neckbeards trying to subvert expectations in fantasy reads like a breath of fresh air.

Speaking of which, I need more fresh air. What are some good hero's journey stories written in the past 15 years?

Does anyone here have any good examples of Sinic world inspired fantasy?
I remember reading some book a decade ago that was maybe by Raymond E Feist which took inspiration from Japan and it was awful
I wish I could be the Chinese Tolkien or at least he existed

>>19859734
I should give it a read again then, if I still remember it after all these years then obviously I liked something about it.
I guess I'm just having a craving for books I've read many years ago in general, I really want to read Inkheart again too, and the Percy Jackson series for funsies maybe.
I would definitely recommend you give Inkheart a shot if you haven't already.

>>19859734
>It's a hyper-basic hero's journey arc,
Didn't a 15 year old write it or something?

Bakker is Kang

>>19859734
>after years of reading neckbeards trying to subvert expectations in fantasy reads like a breath of fresh air.
I know how you feel, this is why I like the wheel of time

>reading reviews of fantasy books on Goodreads
>one star reviews mention Harry Potter
>immediately stop reading

>>19859799
He first published at 19. Early 30s when he finished the series.

Is this what passes for good SF these days?

>>19860060
if you think about it it's perfectly representative - soft sf where author doesn't know much about science, but rather focuses on how characters feel. dumb ending really got me, though.

>>19857065
reee

>>19857812
I had a wierd experience with Kingkiller, loved the first one, read some other stuff, then when I got around to the second I couldn't stand knowitall skillmonkey Kvothe or is dumb lute anymore for some reason. Dudes got good prose but the fact he was in college for 12 years tells you all you need to know about that series ever finishing.
My recommendation would be read Name, then pretend the inn burns to the ground after Kote sweeps up.

>>19856577
No, because it sounds like LitRPG garbage.

>>19860060
The question is always, "for whom?".

>>19858241
Depends on what you're into. The books I've enjoyed most are lotr, three musketeers, sharpe, flashman, and most recently Bakker's stuff.

>>19857012
>Wheel of Time
First 3 or so books are solid but it turns into shit, it kills me to say it but I can't recommend it in good faith to anyone
>Stormlight Archive
Unreadable. 4 fucking prologues and it just felt very YA to me, and I found nothing intriguing about the setting
>A Song of Ice and Fire
The meteoric rise and fall of GRRMs popularity has been staggering. They're great books and each is satisfying on its own, but go in knowing you'll likely get an ending in about 10 years ghost written by Brando Sando after Martin is found facedown dead in his sauna.

TL;DR I think epic fantasy might be a meme pushed my publishers/marketing that I fell for.

>>19861051
At least you know now how gullible you are.

>>19859119
>>19859298
I agree, but I am also objectively aware that (currently at least) the popular opinion of art of this sort is "meh" at best. It's not photoshooped, it has no booba, there are no bold flashy colors and sharp distinct contrasts, etc...
It's "boring" to the average media consoomer.

>>19859818
Bakker is Kang
The based one sang

fucking Kino. This book is brilliant.

>>19861229
>when he is so much of a closet fag he has to hire craigslist tier hookers to take pictures with him.

>>19861235
>Author of the third book in this very series.
What?
Also agree, probably my favorite modern fantasy novel. I like that it's self contained so even if Scott never gets over his goddamn muh anxiety and muh depression that book can stand alone.

>>19861297
It's hard to believe that a writer so talented would drop off. I'm almost done with the first book. Not sure if I'll continue a series that is incomplete but what a joy and inspiration to read this one so far. The dude knows a lot about history and has a very very good vocabulary. His prose are beautiful and roll off the tongue in a very romantic language tree sort of way.

>>19861297
Also I was wondering, do you think this book was a competitor to Mistborn in 2006? They both have similar settings. This is a far superior book that blows the fuck out of mistborn even though they shape up to be drastically different stories. In terms of setting and a heist being a focal point of the plot, I wonder if Sanderson watched this one as a competitor?

>>19861358
You should, they both cold open some months after the events of the previous one and while there is overarching plot stuff each book is in a new city so again they're rather self sufficient on their own if you're familiar with Locke and Jean. Neither quite captures the lightning in a bottle like Lies did but I thoroughly enjoyed them.
The Eldren and their constructs are probably my favorite "mysterious forerunner race that left wonders and peaced the fuck out" race in fantasy.

>>19861390
Havent touched Mistborn, I'm not really a huge fan of Sando and thanks to the Fat Men (Martin and Rothfuss) I'll rarely ever start a series that isn't finished. Except in cases where the author actually works at putting books out regularly and doesn't bloat his series with a dozen books before the shit actually goes down. I thought Locke was a trilogy when I started it.

>>19861423
That sounds good anon, I'll need a new book for work by tomorrow anyway. Glad that they are somewhat self contained. I think overarching plots ultimately ruin fantasy unless someone can keep it as well contained as Tolkien within an appropriate amount of books and words.
>>19861448
You should read Mistborn 1. It will be hard to stop there but book 1 can be decent a stand alone. By book 3 Sanderson even tries build up this canal city with Venice vibes as well. In book 1 you have a the the thieving crews. I aware both authors played final fantasy 9 and wanted to do a fantasy heist.

I hate how much I judge a book by its cover. How do I get past that, since SFF covers still leave a lot to be desired?

>>19861577
when you hate a front cover maybe read the back cover to make sure you are not missing out

Anyone else like to watch TV series episodes and then read the short story it was based on? I'm doing this with The Twilight Zone. Right now I'm reading Shatterday by Harlan Ellison after having watched the episode by the same name. I also watched To See the Invisible Man and Nightcrawlers and read a few pages of the short stories they are based on, To See the Invisible Man by Robert Silverberg, and Nightcrawlers by Robert McCammon.

I think I have my list of books for the next few months picked out based on my own tastes and a couple recommendations from this thread.
>Inkheart
>The Lies of Locke Lamora
>The Cold Dish (Walt Longmire)
>The Book of the New Sun
>The Eye of the World
And I might just pick up the first couple Percy Jackson books to reread for fun.

>>19861563
I'll check out the first few based on your recommendation, thanks anon. I needed some new books to listen to at work.

>my dad dropped bakker
Only read two-thirds of the first book too. What a faggot.

>>19857667
Literally my hairline desu

>>19862508
Well he's your father so he obviously slept with a woman at some point (not hardgay) so I can see why Bakker may not be to his taste.

>>19861080
>how gullible you are
I was as a teen, but no longer. Now I have zero author loyalty and it's freeing to just drop anything after a 2 chapter grace period.

Shadow of the Torturer made me not want to read the next book. Filtered. From my backlog.

>>19854983
The books one third slapstick comedy, one third poetry, one third gothic horror

The writing quality's all over the place and the Ongent plot twist is too obvious. Not sure I even want to read the rest of the trilogy.

>>19851365
https://locusmag.com/2022/02/2021-recommended-reading-list/

>>19857812
>Stormlight
>decent
Can't be objective about a lot of things, it seems

>oh nice a bunch of necromancy/ghoul themed short stories
>almost all of them are softcore corpse fucking

>>19863053
ewww what a sicko
You wouldn't happen to know where they are available by chance? So I can avoid them, won't support places that sell this. Do you know if their is an ebook available?

>>19863053
Another book I single-handedly introduced to this awful general.

>>19861728
>The Lies of Locke Lamora
Based. Top tier fantasy, just don't have high hopes for the sequels
>And I might just pick up the first couple Percy Jackson books to reread for fun.
I was planning on doing the same, though because I wanted to watch the musical

>>19863346
Cringe.

Can I use the term "lasgun" to describe laser guns in my book without Herbert or worse, games workshop, breathing down my neck in the 1% chance anyone reads it? I have thought of alternatives and but I sort of like the homage. I can't think of a better made up word to describe something that is, in fact, a laser gun.

>>19863466
Call it a lazgun

In the book Driving Ms Daisy, does Hoke poke Miss Daisy's Artichoke when no one's home?

Nothing hotter than grannies getting dicked.

>>19863466
Why don't you just call it a laser gun or laser weapon? I mean it is just a description, you will describe the general concept once or twice, after that just use simple generic gun/rifle/cannon or invent or use current brands and makes (my trusty and reliable beretta 9000 or something like that) depending on what the character is carrying or using that moment

I've just finished The Fall of Hyperion and tomorrow I'm starting Endymion. I have SEVERAL questions about the tombs, the Shrike, Moneta and the UI war. Am I just retarded or those topics will get addressed in a clear manner in Endymion?

>protag gets a new ability
>shua
>tests it on a towering tree that's grown in place for centuries and sheltered generations of disciples

Fuck off authors

Why is 2+5 meters of diving described to be such a near death effort? I used to do 40 meters as a kid.

>>19859279
Can I get some fucking replies. Shit thread.

>>19863612
No. Now fuck off.

>>19859279
No.

>>19863612
I read short stories, yes

>>19863575
I didn't see you for a few years, tree anon, you doing okay?

>>19863485
>>19863534
thanks anons.

>>19859279
Yes they are called /lit/ threads

>>19862971
>Gareth Hanrahan
any relation to Peter?

Well I did it. I finished the Malazan series. At least the main Book of The Fallen. Dunno how to feel about it. I don't regret reading it, but I'd be hard pressed to say it ended in a satisfactory manner. Unless I missed an explanation, I'm still not sure why The Crippled God was chained and what makes him foreign relative to the myriad other gods populating the setting. Nor why what happened was supposed to fix things. Was he meant to be freed, then chained of his own volition? Did he die when Cotillion stabbed him? Was he meant to chain Korabas? The whole thing didn't seem clear to me. I feel like Erikson needs to release a cliff notes version of the series.

>>19863567
Do yourself a favor and just stop at Fall. Endymion and Rise explain a few things, but it's wrapped in so much shit it's not worth it.

>>19863567
just skip Endymion anon, unless you want to read the story of a man grooming a child mary sue. it's pretty awful

>>19863737
Yeah I had the same impression on finishing Malazan. I feel like things got a bit too convoluted as the books progressed and I'd rather not read the side works after finishing 10 books

Any scifi with silmilar athmosphere to hyperion or blindsight?

>>19863764
I mean I don't necessarily mind diving into the side stuff, but I definitely need a break from the setting. Especially since, speaking of side stuff, it felt like Erikson kept introducing plot points and characters with the expressed purpose of creating spinoffs. There were those Crimson Blade characters or whatever hanging out in Lether that just kinda show up, then disappear. Those necromancers back in Memories of Ice. The whole thing with The Shake defending against Lightfall and the Tiste Civil War. Karsa's subplot. Icarium's fate. Just too much stuff kinda left hanging almost to the point of feeling like sequel bait.

>>19863748
>>19863760
Yeah, everyone tells me to stop at Fall, but it hurts to leave so much things unaddressed. I think I'm gonna struggle through the last two books, and then probably stop at Fall in future re-reads.

As I'm reading Gardens of the Moon I'm imagining Ganoes Paran as Garen from League of Legends. Is this incorrect?

>>19861235
>>19861297
It's fun sure. But the whole setting felt thin and was just one fantastical description taped onto the next. It never felt well-grounded.

>>19863884
I don't know anything about the character to verify if the comparison is apt, but lookswise it fits enough. Aside from the giant pauldrons.

>>19863958
Garen spins to win.

>>19863381
Is lies of locke lamora pozzed?

>>19863772
Revelation space maybe?

Recommend short stories, or good sites for short stories. I found this site which has a lot of magazines which have short stories in them. Don't know if they're good.
http://www.luminist.org/archives/SF/

>>19864028
I have already read it. Now that I think about it it did kind a have that omnious mysterious feel to it.

>>19863466
Does it have to be a light laser? Call it a graser if it's plausible that gamma ray lasers can function as weapons in your world, that way you avoid the issue entirely.

Yeah, the more google about the mysteries of Hyperion and Fall of Hyperion, the more questions and inconsistencies I find. It's a mess, it's all a huge mess...

>>19863772
>>19864028
I'm curious too. I loved Blindsight's hostile atmosphere, where the protagonists were completely outclassed and knew almost nothing about their enemy. Revelation Space was decent as well.

>>19864190
In the end they didn't even have Silenus reunite with Sad King Billy. They just suggest that the people that suffered in the Tree of Pain were transported to Old Earth for some reason. When Silenus is asked if he wished to go there, he basically answers: nah, fuck Old Earth.

>>19864017
Not in the slightest

>>19863381
>Percy Jackson has a musical
Pretty neat, although I'm skeptical of the execution being good

>>19864316
I know precisely one song from it, and the song sounds neat, so I'm curious.

>>19858434
No, I just cut out clear plastic, measure them to be slightly larger than the book and wrap them around it. Simple as.

Orion's Arm is horrible and the vast majority of its content is as far from hard-sf as can be.

>>19863884
I dont understand this shit. Garen has the body of a titan and fists the size of cars and the tiniest fucking head. Only neckbeards play garen btw

Just finished Shatterday by Harlan Ellison

>>19863884
>>>/v/
Imagine playing League of Legends

>>19864524
Emoji alert

>>19859663
>(You)
Kek, you’re right about Penguin anon. Hope you like them if you check them out, my favorite Sword and Sorcery outside of Howard.
>>19859279
I do but it’s mostly Robert E. Howard. I, generally, prefer novels.

>>19864261
I mean... the MC is somewhat of a cuck. But he does smash, so it cancels out?

>>19864678
The MC is not a cuck you clearly have not read this book.

>>19864709
He's literally unable to fuck other woman because of how much he loves Sabetha, who is out in the world fucking other guys, as stated in the 3rd book
That seems pretty cuckish to me, and makes me question if YOU read the books anon

>>19851499
In Book of the the New Sun when Severian slaps that bitch Typhon to death in The Sword of the Lictor.
>>19862924
I felt the same way and kept reading and ended up loving it. I can’t promise you’ll feel the same way but it was worth it for me.

How is this the novel.

>>19864791
Read it and find out.

>>19864817
If you don't know just say so.

>>19864791
>>19864820
The time you could be wasting on these posts could have been better wasted on reading the first few chapters of the book.

>>19864824
Are they like 2 pages long?
Why are you upset about someone asking for opinions on a discussion thread, anyway? What's the general for, facts you could google?

On behalf of the rest of the board, I would again like to thank you people for reliably keeping your childish genre trash confined to this thread so that it can safely be avoided by us thinking men who shitpost about French philosophers without actually reading them. Kind regards, The Rest of /lit/

>>19864723
Have only read the first book, thanks alot anon.

>>19864833
Catalog is full of low-effort threads though?

>>19864842
I'm mostly joking though, he's not that much of a cuck. After all, he does smash Sabetha, both past and future, so he's not just simping over someone who doesn't give a shit about him. And sabetha is less "fucking around" and more "using her body as a tool in her own scams". So it's less bad?
I do recommend you keep reading if you really enjoyed the first book, even if the following books are worse. I even found the thrid book to be good, just not as good as the first one. Second book is harder to defend, but it isn't THAT bad really

>>19864846
He was unironically being ironic. no cap.

>>19864856
I'm going to dodge that spoiler text, but it's all good anon. I did some image searches and saw some gay anime fan art and I got a little bit nervous. I really like the first book and I got defensive because for once a book that is comfy without any of that garbage.

>>19864871
>I'm going to dodge that spoiler text
Np, hope that means you're reading the books then.
> I did some image searches and saw some gay anime fan art and I got a little bit nervous.
I didn't see that, but I don't recall anything in books 2 or 3 that would warrant that, so it's probably just anime fans being anime fans (aka brain damaged)
> I got defensive because for once a book that is comfy without any of that garbage.
Completely understandable. I also really like the book (probably my favorite single fantasy book) so I'd also be defensive if I saw someone shitposting

Imagine investing your personal identity in a book to where you feel personally offended if anyone criticizes it.

>>19859734
Read Cradle.

>>19864938
literature is very personal anon

Be honest. Does his Catholicism and generally shallow, antiquated morality (like what GRRM talks about) drag down the work and make them impenetrable for modern readers?

>>19864990
The simple good and evil morality is not an issue for me. I consider the time period in which a book is written and it's audience. Also he stated he did not wish to tell that kind of a story. He went for a campy feel good optimistic approach like anyone from that generation in the aftermath of the war. What brings it down for me is how simple it is. I've seen the story done so many times. That's the problem when you are famously one of the first of your kind. Everything else to follow will remind you of it.

>>19864968
Just ignore the shitposter.

>>19864990
What the fuck are you on about? Just enjoy his stories. Who gives a fuck what other people thinks.

>>19865282
>Who gives a fuck what other people thinks.
Zoomers are the type of people who need validation from other people. It's why he ask such a question to begin with.

>>19851399
Do recommend Shirtaloons' He Who Fights with Monsters. Good fun read, for me anyway. Also highly recommend Beware of Chicken by Casual Farmer.

>>19865329
>Beware of Chicken by Casual Farmer.
I keep seeing this here. Isn’t that just western Xianxia but with a slice of life bent to it?

>>19865338
Not him, but yes. It’s a nice change of pace compared to other stories. Give it a try.

>>19865338
I tried, it was awful
Only royalroad shit I liked was chrysalis and tree of aeons

>>19865375
When we’re talking about change of pace, it isn’t one of those subversive stories? Because I’m just tired of reading them.

>>19865405
What made it awful in your opinion?

>>19864958
I changed my identity to australian to get reaper early and finished it before it was out in america

what now

>>19865437
Everything was cringe and his cheat was overpowered.

>>19862994
>mfw genre literature in 2020+
I'm afraid to click that link.

>start reading Great Ordeal
>instantly hit by high velocity kino
There is a head on a pole behind you.
A single page mogs Tolkien's entire existence, it's crazy

>>19865489
I checked it. Just basic bitch modern recommendations.

>>19865501
Reading sff nonfiction is basic? Intriguing. Though no doubt you'd say the same of it all, with your cursory glance of a few seconds, which was unneeded because you had already pre-decided before opening the link.

>>19865514
Ah yes, how could we forget Jewish Science Fiction and Fantasy Through 1945: Immigrants in the Golden Age, or Chinese Science Fiction during the Post-Mao Cultural Thaw.

>>19865514
>open link
>female names, nonwhite names
>close tab

>>19865514
Try getting better bait, or better yet, just fuck off already. It’s getting tiresome.

>>19864535
I accept your concession.

>>19864524
Jesus Christ, I hate zoomers so fucking much.

>>19865672
>Low effort response.
Didn’t expect much from you zoomers but I’m still disappointed.

>>19865514
Most of the list seems to be from Amazon self-publish.

>>19865764
*Most of the books

>>19865764
Just ignore him, he was just trying to stir up shit.

>>19864374
shouldn't you measure before cutting

>>19865798
It's what he did. Read his post.

>>19865711
>Plays LoL
>Calls other Zoomers
Some jokes write themselves.

>>19863575
Sound based. What author.

>>19864990
Paying any attention to the perspective of someone like GRRM, a man that spouses the most bland, flimsy atheistic humanism, that reinforces the worst stereotypes about an historical period throught his works, whose literally value can be summarized to shock value in the form of gore and tits, and whose idea of criticism is attacking a work for something that it didn't tried to be in the first place (urr urr orc babies), is both funny and offensive in equal measure.

About to start this. Thoughts?

>>19865863
Read it and find out.

Is there anything comparable in terms of narrative structure to Gaunt's Ghosts from Abnett? What I mean is, sort of a series with a unit of soldiers/whatever and over time they take attrition and faces actually die as opposed to Goku resurrection bullshit? One thing I'm loving about the Ghosts series is that people die, even dudes I thought he'd keep in out of fan factor

>>19865884
Black company by Glen cook.

>>19865863
I've read "Elder Race" by him:
it wasn't bad but all the characters but the mage and the princess (only at the beginning, and before she went to fight) felt like completely empty shells, only being there to have more characters. All the places except the "tower" of the cover felt completely soulless, I don't remember anything about them.
A decent read in the end, brought down by wanting to make it a single contained story.

>>19865884
Black Company and, to a lesser extent, Malazan.

>>19865863
I liked em, haven't read the last three yet as I got distracted by other stuff but I dig the bug people world. Industrial revolution vs. Old ways is kind of played out at this point but they're decent fun reads even if a couple of characters act retarded occasionally because plot.

>>19865900
That's Tchaikovsky in a nutshell. No idea why so many people like him.

Anyone have thoughts on Abercrombie's Age of Madness trilogy as far as how they hold up to the First Law and the three standalone books? I basically just want to see what Glokta is up to while running shit for Big B.

>>19865888
Checked. This is something that's been mentioned before and something I've been told about. You rate it as pretty good?
>>19865904
Never heard of Malazan, whats your take?

>>19865926
Check the archives for reviews.

New thread
>>19865945

>>19865408
OP here, not sure what you mean by subversive but basically in Xianxia a guy gets the shit kicked out of him and dies, the second he does a guy from our world gets shoved in, he retains his memories and later is able to talk with him. He quits the sect hes in and becomes a farmer. Then somehow becomes uber powerful but doesn't use it/think hes overpowered. Majority of it is slice of life and wholesome (gets married)

>>19863567
read illium instead
you will be disappointed at endymion

>>19857128
:(

>>19854024
>adaptations dont matter for readers
I smell some “Copium” here!

>>19854390
>mystical ancient Thai intrigue
>covers shows a random Greek statue
They could’ve at least made the cover more Asian themed.

>>19865798
Damn, you’re reading comprehension is quite low, anon.

>>19866931
**your. Curses!

>>19851365
anyone read this shit, I can't understand it

>>19865937
Malazan is for people who look at GRRM's books and go: fucking amateur

Reading Malazan is genuine work, but not because it's bad but because Erikons gives absolutely zero shit about his readers and whether they can keep all the threads straight in their head. There is absolutely no hand holding in Malazan books.

There are two kinds of people in this world. Chads who have read Malazan Book of the Fallen and filthy subhumans who don't know who Anomander Rake is.