/lit/ - Literature

Future Tense Fiction: Stories of Tomorrow (2019)

Mother of Invention - Nnedi Okorafor (2018)
Possibly inspired by the The Scarlet Letter. Reads like an infomercial, PSA, and smart home apologia.
Blah

No Me Dejes - Mark Oshiro (2018)
A new technology allows for transferring memories. To mitigate being forgotten those near death transfer their memories to relatives. Family melodrama ensues when secrets are revealed.
Blah

When Robot and Crow Saved East St. Louis - Annalee Newitz (2018)
An autonomous and sentient drone wants all humans to be happy and healthy. After an unauthorized natural language learning update, it learns how to talk to crows who help the humans as well because they're far smarter than humans believe. Now that all healthcare has been fully privatized, including completely defunding the CDC, it's up to a rogue researcher at Amazon Health to help the drone prevent a flu outbreak! I wonder how many readers realize the significance of choosing East St. Louis. I've been there. It's all very unfortunate.
Blah

When We Were Patched - Deji Bryce Olukotun (2018)
An AI referee for a future version of Tennis has various disagreements with the human referee.
Blah

Domestic Violence - Madeline Ashby (2018)
A husband weaponizes their smart home against his wife. The wife's HR manager at work took that personally. Time for revenge. Here's a joke from it: "You work in venture capital. We all know that's way worse than murder."
Blah

A Brief and Fearful Star - Carmen Maria Machado (2018)
Sentimental nonsense on a prairie. I admit I don't care enough to try to make sense of what it's obscuring.
Blah

Safe Surrender - Meg Elison (2018)
A hybrid human-alien, which only 10% of people can tell the difference between them and standard humans, was abandoned by his parents. He now seeks to find out who they were.
Blah

The Minnesota Diet - Charlie Jane Anders (2018)
A super trendy augmented reality carbon-neutral grown city for educated workers who couldn't afford to live in the major tech centers suffers severe supply chain problems, but no one can really leave because all their vehicles are geofenced. So, The Minnesota Diet it is until they can think of a better solution.
Blah

Mr. Thursday - Emily St. John Mandel (2017)
Three POVs and time traveling in a short story. Maybe it's tangentially related to her novel that releases next month. I don't know what this was meant to be, but it's far too compressed to work well as a short story. It may have been enjoyable if not for that.
Meh

Lions and Gazelles - Hannu Rajaniemi (2018)
Biotech start-ups show off their human bioengineering tech in an ultrarunning competition hunting down robot goats.
Ok

>>20111472
The Starfish Girl - Maureen F. McHugh (2018)
A young female gymnast breaks her spine from the neck down. Her spine is healed from editing starfish DNA into her DNA through CRISPR. The International Olympics Committee must now rule on whether this has given her an unfair advantage.
Enjoyable

Burned Over Territory - Lee Konstantinou (2018)
This short story is almost 100% politics. At first I had a lot of concerns about it, but by the end I was entirely won over. A group of creatives, almost all of whom are NEETs, drop out of the labor market and pool their collective basic income together to live a minimal lifestyle together. All earned income is given to the Federation, which is implied to be based on Ursula Le Guin's The Dispossessed. However, this ambiguous utopia has many problems of its own.
Highly Enjoyable

Mika Model - Paolo Bacigalupi (2016)
Once again I'm reminded of why Bacigalupi is one of my favorite short fiction authors. This story is such a tease though. It reminds me much more of Detroit: Become Human (2018) than Westworld (2016) or Blade Runner 2049 (2017). An organic AI sex doll murders her owner and tries to convince a police officer to save her.
Highly Enjoyable

Overvalued - Mark Stasenko (2018)
The prospects of one's life are determined by their IPO. High potential individuals can negotiate surrendering only 10% of their lifetime earnings for investment. Low potential individuals may have to give up 60% of their lifetime pretax earnings, on top of government taxes, to secure funding. Of course, to the investors, that's their own fault for being low potential. Why would people do this? In this economy, they can't afford not to. The protagonist is a human derivatives trader that focuses on finding overvalued human stocks, shorting them, then publicly disclosing their vulnerabilities to crash their price.
This isn't the first work where I've read this idea. It exists, but as far as I know hasn't been successful at all, though it's been some years since I last looked and there's doubtlessly been various more attempts at doing so. In this case it's a satire, but it's one of stories where a problem is created seemingly for the express purpose of angering people. I was extremely angered for a while at the the least anyway, which happens every time I read stories that are similar. Stories like these that are entirely emotionally and ideological driven depend more on individual preferences than most other stories, which is a risky proposition. Though for me, after I calmed down, I realized that I very much enjoyed it. Affirmation of outrage can have that effect.
Highly Enjoyable

Just finished reading pic and I'm not sure I get the thing with the calliope and carousel at the end. Is that an Anton LeVey allegory, Zerchin hallucinating, peak clown world, or ...?

Pretty decent book btw. 3.5/5* Not the best Catholic fiction I've read and the first 2 parts are almost pure filler, but the ending carries it.

>>20111495
I just love this premise and world so much.

I often daydream about visiting a future monastery and trying to explain electronics and 20th century English while learning Latin and attending divine offices.

Are there any good, recent, pulpy sword and sorcery?

>>20111562
The most recent I could enjoy was from 70s by Karl Edward Wagner.
>Kane

>>20111444
I read this as recommended by anon. It was alright. Kept my attention.

Cage of Souls is dying earth in the vein of Viriconium and BotNS with bits of Vance and others. However it feels significantly more mundane than those mentioned. There's mystery of course, but what little of it there is doesn't invite speculation or dazzle with its weirdness. The world is small (it really is just two locations) and the sense of deep time is actively sabotaged with stuff like spelling out the origin of a certain character.

As for characters, they are the meat of the book. While they aren't quite stereotypes, heavily exaggerated and archetypical nonetheless. The author desperately wants to have strong women characters, but struggles at it. There's the literally strong female, who is so fat she can beat three explicitly muscular men in a fight. There's a powerful literal witch with no redeeming traits, not even competence when it would have counted. And there's also a clever slut, who's redeeming feature is that she avoids being consistently annoying. However, there's several women implied to be powerless victims. who get absolutely zero "screen time" or humanisation. I rank Cage of Souls "objects to post-natal contraception" out of "global gynocide" on the woman-hater scale.

Conversely, several of the male characters get to be total bros, even when they are otherwise power-mad monsters.

Whatever plot there is actually happens outside the point of view. I think the book is trying to do a thing with the unreliable narration a la Wolfe, but there is no discernable meaningful bias or reason for the narrator to be untruthful. In fact, only near the end does the text reveal itself as a chronicle of events the narrator never saw, but why did he then spent the lengthy book mostly describing his own life? Is the take that he was a huge narcissist all along? Are the overlong descriptions of characters' personalities actually due to the narrators magic powers? Who knows, and more importantly who cares?

The book is too long. The abundant and drawn out fight scenes do it no favours. The action has a cartoony edge, especially when certain anime donut steal is around.

Speaking of the edgetard (who was actually rather likeable for half of the book), the reveal that the Weapon had been used would have been a much better climax than the generic "everyone fights the unbeatable bad guy until deus ex machina". Disappointing, really.

I don't know, who to recommend this book. It's probably best appreciated for its weirdness by those who haven't read in the dying earth genre. But I definitely wouldn't recommend reading this before its betters. Perhaps, if you really like the genre and want more competent material, then this might scratch the itch.

>>20111642
Always nice to see anons writing up what they've read.

>Sunset found her squatting in the grass, groaning. Every stool was looser than the one before, and smelled fouler. By the time the moon came up she was shitting brown water. The more she drank, the more she shat, but the more she shat, the thirstier she grew, and her thirst sent her crawling to the stream to suck up more water.
>And suddenly his cock was out, jutting upward from his breeches like a fat pink mast.
>She was sopping wet when he entered her. “Damn you,” she said. “Damn you damn you damn you.” He sucked her nipples till she cried out half in pain and half in pleasure. Her cunt became the world.
>Rain lashed at his face, blinding him. His mouth was full of blood again. The ship groaned and growled beneath him like a constipated fat man straining to shit.
>Ser Alliser Thorne walked from the room so stiffly it looked as though he had a dagger up his butt.
>The three men were erect. The sight of their arousal was arousing.
>"Men call me Darkstar, and I am of the night."
>"Ten thousand of your children perished in my palm, Your Grace. Whilst you snored, I would lick your sons of my face and fingers one by one, al those pale sticky princes. You claimed your rights, my lord, but in the darkness I would eat your heirs."
>Tyrion reflected on the men who had been Hand before him, who had proved no match for his sister’s wiles. How could they be? Men like that... too honest to live, too noble to shit, Cersei devours such fools every morning when she breaks her fast.
>Her loins ached from the urgency of his love making. It was a good ache.
>It was pink and hard and when he sucked on it, her milk filled his mouth, mingling with the taste of rum, and he had never tasted anything so fine and sweet and good.
>The rain stopped and started again and stopped once more and started, but they had good cloaks to keep the water off.
>“Had there ever been a woman with nipples so large, so brown, or so responsive?"

>>20111587
Based, I try and shill Kane every few threads but don’t have much luck. He’s like an evil, immortal Kull.

>>20111722
so... Elric?

>>20107264
Repost my answer so that anon may see it.
I’d recommend Kull if you haven’t read it and the Red Sonja series by Richard Tierney and David Smith. Smith and Tierney aren’t quite as good as Howard but the books are very comfy.
Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser are also good, but closer to more traditional fantasy than Kull, Kane, or Sonja.

>>20111731
I don’t know anon, haven’t read any Elric yet.

>>20111562

Schuyler Hernstrom put out some good stuff, read Thune's Vision

>>20111703
jfc, these authorial self-inserts just gotta stop

>>20111703
Aside from the a cunt becoming the world, there's nothing wrong with any of these. Comparing a keening ship to a fat dude taking a shit is kind of brilliant, actually.

*stomps on the head of an anime enjoyer*

>>20111703
How did she know about spermatozoa and the biological processes involved in conception beyond "dick goes in, baby comes out"?

>>20111903
>Comparing a keening ship to a fat dude taking a shit is kind of brilliant, actually.
How much do you weigh anon?

>>20111918
Maesters with microscopes

>>20111562
The Kormak stories might be up your alley, they're by William King.

>>20111642
Yeah, the author can't simply write compelling female characters.

>>20112014
That implies the sort of scientific frame of mind and understanding, which would result in practical applications of microbiology after only a few new discoveries. That's of course not supposed to be the case.

This ties to a consistent problem with Grum. He can write entertaining enough characters, but he lacks the breadth of knowledge to write people with a world view that his fundamentally separated from his. You can see how in ASOIAF very few characters (especially not the "clever" ones) act in a way that doesn't indicate a fundamentally post-modern cynical agnostic view of reality. As an glaring example, the "good guys" practice new age spiritualism with concrete magic powers in place of a religion.

I need a druid fantasy recommendation. Shapeshifting or plant bending, possibly. I dont like urban fantasy. Anyone help an anon out?

>>20112130
You could try the Bridei Chronicles. It's a mixed bag really, but it's historical fantasy based on Pictish mythologies which features a whole lot of Druidism.

will this thread be better than the last one?

I have been reading select passages of Esmenet's Chapters from The Second Apocalypse of R.S Bakker to various Escorts, Prostitutes, and Massage Parlour workers around town and they all universally agree that she is the best written sex worker they have ever encountered and strongly relate to her experience.

Just another amazing example of the deeply penetrating insight Bakker has in to the human condition. Terence may have said "Homo sum, humani nihil a me alienum puto", but with Bakker you can believe it.

>>20112123
>>20111918
Nothing in that quote indicates knowledge of microbiology you autist. If anything it indicates the woman's ignorance to the fact that females contribute half of their DNA to a child, and betrays a deeply medieval belief that women are mere vessels through which men continue themselves. White peepee liquid maek babies is not fucking rocket science, do you think people 500 years ago believed that procreation happens magically with God's blessing and stork delivery?

>>20112308
Yes it does. You are wrong.

>>20112225
Esme is a classic archetype of a virtuous whore. Despite spending her whole life sucking dick she's extremely intelligent, emotionally deep, caring, and kind, unafraid to take risks and follow her destiny, somehow rises up to the rank of an Empress, and has a bunch of kids with the chadliest of chads in the world. Her image would be very flattering to gutter trash. Serwe is a more realistic sex worker character - dumb slut with nothing of value to say.

What is the most supreme fantasy author in your opinion?

for me its Bakker

>>20112357
For me its myself.

>>20111722
>another kane appreciator
based

>>20112357
GRRM, naturally

Any recs for a fantasy book with a shamanism/ animism theme?

>>20111642
i recommended this 3-4 generals ago and i was in turn influenced by someone recommending this earlier still. It is okay, certainly in contemporary terms, tchaikovsky is one of the few who writes on experimental mores such as dying earth; his children of time is also supposed to follow this trope though i have read it yet.
In terms of dying earth proper, i think some elements of grrm's earlier stories and vance's space opera should be counted as well; particularly dying of the light and windhaven by grrm, and the planets of adventure and araminta station by vance adhere to this theme (mostly).

>>20112881
*have not read it yet

give me a fantasy novel about a man who enters a relationship with a succubus or otherwise demonic entity

>>20111444
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNiImDNtLpQ
Listen to good tunes whilst reading sci fi...

Any sci fi in Esperanto?

>>20112913
https://youtu.be/hTuVpbyDTTI

>>20112958
Nice.

>>20111562
My S&S stories that got rejected by fantasy magazines desu

>>20112985
post them here lad

>>20112804
Animorphs

>Start reading Black Sun Rising
>Main character is comically Chad, immediately forced to read through him flirting with some store clerk chick while the prose fellates his qualities.
Feels like I'm reading one of those pulpy sci-fi series where humans are super cool galactic warriors skateboarding into interstellar meetings with shades on and doing nose-grinds around the conference table and none of them can disapprove because damn they get results.
Anyway—is it actually worth reading beyond that

>>20113042
You've already decided that it isn't.

>>20112308
>>20112350
Even thousands of years ago this was known. The Bible expresses addresses it. No doubt it was known far before that as well.

I imagine every character but Rock as Caucasian and the Parshendi as black Africans. Basically the Alethi are Byzantine. I never got the impression that it was otherwise. Where in this book does it really talk much about skin tone? Apparently Sanderson is canonizing what they look like outside the book in interviews. How do you feel about this?

Thoughts?

>>20113180
Early descriptions of Alethi describe them as largely darker-skinned. The Parshendi aren't really that comparable to human, they're more often solid marble white or deep black. Only the Shin are really Caucasian as we'd think of them. Shallan has some mild Horneater ancestry, which have Parshendi ancestry, so she's a pale redhead, etc.

>>20113195
But you are pulling most of that from the fans and sanderson interviews. There really isn't much description in the books. I'm almost finished with book 2. Nor does it matter. They can all be white and have darker skin in someone's mind. This is my problem. Sanderson is making up real world descriptions in interviews to please his fans.

>>20113214
Give Way of Kings a read again, you'll see all of the major Alethi characters described as 'typically Alethi' which, with Kaladin, is indicated to be "somewhat dark to quite dark skin and black hair", with Adolin being a notable pale exception. Sanderson's apparently generally of the mind that you can imagine the characters however the descriptions put them together for you, but he did have his own image of what they all looked like when writing them, so there is a "canon" depiction.

>>20113224
Prove it. Give me a passage.

>>20113231
From the prologue, page 10, a guard that stops Szeth is described as having "tan Alethi skin". It's glossed over, admittedly, but given that most people look pretty similar in Alethkar, you're not going to call much attention to skin colour. Szeth is the odd one out there for being so pale in comparison. Some are described as darker-skinned, which presumably means closer to 'black', but for the most part they have tan skin.

>>20113195
You have no idea what you're talking about. Parshendi aren't even human and first contact had only recently been made.

>>20113277
The ancient Singers/Listeners/Parshendi intermingled with humans somewhat, because they can interbreed, and the result was eventually Horneaters, Herdazians and some others.

>>20113264
See, you're trying hard and it's difficult to support the evidence of real world race. When I do google search, I get forums and reddit mostly citing Brandon Sanderson's interview. A northern European would probably say a Mediterranean has dark skin. The description isn't very conclusive.

https://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/55723-human-races-on-roshar-a-brief-guide-ver10/

>>20113288
They're generally based on Mongolians, the Alethkar, so make of that what you will.

What would you recommend to someone who just read 10 books from PK. Dick in the span of a month and wants more Dick. His whole insanity/false reality themes really do it for me.

>>20113309
Read the Exegesis then

>>20113292
Mongolians? There is not a single MOngolian thing about the Alethkar. Their culture is not nomadic.

>>20113291
All their evidence is from Brandon Sanderson quotes. Those are not book quotes.

>>20113224
>somewhat dark to quite dark skin and black hair
I mean, that's literally how nords would describe greeks or italians to other nords

>>20113347
Sure, but they're often described as tan whenever the narration goes more objective (which isn't often, it's usually anchored to somebody), so the general idea I have is varying degrees of tan, Renarin and Adolin at the upper end of paleness looking like "slightly tanned white guys" whereas Dalinar and Kaladin are on the lower end of paleness. Middle east-ish.

>>20113359
When they describe Renarin, he's a scholar with glasses. When they describe Adolin he's a Chad with blonde hair. Every image about these people invokes a European like culture west of the Don River at the very least. I think you are pulling these shades of shit of of your ass. No offense.

>>20112804
5th Head of Cerberus. Specifically, A Story by John V. Marsch.

>>20113471
Hope Gu + Cope Gu.

are there any fun space adventure books with lots of planet hopping?

>>20113517
Dilate Gu

>>20113180
Sigzil is explicitly African black iirc. Lopen is clearly Mexican, which is hilarious.

Yeah, other Anon is right. Alethi are tan, I imagined them as having an East Mediterranean complexion. Vedens are more explicitly Caucasian, and I've been imaging Azir as Middle Eastern?

Pic related is how I imagine the Alethi btw

>>20113746
The Veden are apparently more Asiatic, but have more white hair colours going around.

>>20112130
>>20112140
Any other recommendations?

>>20112780

>>20113399
Your fixation on this is missing the point. We can deduce right away that phenotypes work differently in Roshar. Pure Alethi have light eyes, tan skin, and jet black hair. And Adolin is not totally blond, he has mixed blond and black hair, and even Rock has bronze skin with red hair.

Just accept that there's no 1:1 analogue to real world race and move on. Seriously how autistic are you?

>>20112140
>>20113444
>>20113037

Why is it whenever this sort of fantasy line is brought up the only books that can be found for the subject are either urban fantasy or weird little Jane Austen esque family ties kinda books that have their animism as metaphorical?

>>20113787
Roshar generally is an oddball in the Cosmere for how different the people there are. The people of Scadrial that we're around for most of Mistborn are pretty comfortably just European-esque, which goes even further when you get into Era 2. Taldain's Daysiders are almost quite pale despite living in eternal daylight, and the Darksiders are black despite living in the dark, but they're generally recognisably close to real-world phenotypes of those.

>Irulan is wondering what it would be like to mate with the guild envoy
What a slut

>>20111495
I enjoyed the first two parts way more than the last. Felt a little too heavy handed.

Winds of Winter or No-God, which one of these neverevers will come out first?

>>20114151
Martin is busy with other projects and drowning in fame and money. Bakker is just eccentric. I'll take the latter.

>>20114151
If you get a recognized Publisher to print Bakker's books, he would write again.

He isn't writing because he doesn't believe in self publishing, and his publisher dropped him.

what is the pinnacle of [/spoiler]lit-rpg?

>>20114151
>implying that fat fuck will ever finish winds of winter
topkek

>>20114178

>>20114162
why

>check jim butcher's twitter every day to see if he finished the book he said was almost done 7 months ago
>finally see a new tweet
>heart rate increases
>this is it
>its just him shilling his son's book
fuck OFF

>>20111703
>>She was sopping wet when he entered her. “Damn you,” she said. “Damn you damn you damn you.” He sucked her nipples till she cried out half in pain and half in pleasure. Her cunt became the world.
what scene is this?

>>20114350
Asha sex scene in ADWD

Reminder not to read books written by Mormons.

>tfw you will never make a cunt become the world

>>20113665
The reimagining of The Prisoner of Zenda that will never leave my imagination.
There were a fair few planets in The Witches of Karres, from what I remember. That was definitely a fun space adventure. There are a few planets in Space Viking but that's a little grim. The Trouble Twisters is more a collection of novellas but I think it's part of a series that likes hopping around all sorts of planets and cultures.
Writing this post has reminded me I really need to read more scifi from the 60s.

>>20111444
Any good fantasy that prominently features rape of princess knights?

>>20113665
Literally any star wars novel.

>>20114228
His books, and his personality, aren’t exactly suited to the masses, now are they? And publishers’ primary (read:only) motive is to make money. Bakker made himself unprofitable as an author due to his autistic insistence on doing everything exactly how he (and, apparently, Madness1, his notorious volunteer editor) desired.

>>20114151
Winds of Winter, because that one is guaranteed to be published after the fat man bites it. That day can't be too far off in the future, even given the fat man's ability to buy the most advanced medical care in the world.

>>20115350
I wonder what his poison of choice is. McDonald’s, Burger King, Arby’s… Long John Silver’s?

Waylander gets good in the second half. Gemmell always does this, he drags out the start of his books and then the second half has to sprint but I'm not sure how to fix it because by the second half the speed of the thing works.

>>20115393
kfc

>>20115484
>their cunts became the world

>>20115484
This man is 5’6”

What do you think is in store for Ser Barristan?

>>20115776
Either deserting for Fake Aegon or dying for Dany later in Westeros, I don't really see the old man doing anything else really

>>20112932
There was a whole revue/periodical of sci-fi in Esperanto, but I can't remember its name.

>>20115795
I don’t think he would desert for fake Aegon unless he proves to be a better ruler, he sought out Danny because she was the only good monarch between her, Joffrey, Renly, and Stannis

>>20115484
>tfw you will never have a harem of chocolate queens
Why live?

>>20115776
He'll unceremoniously die from a heart attack, because he's too old for this shit.

>>20115913
Are you looking at the same picture I am? Only one of them is definitely a woman IMO, and at least 2 of them are definitely men.

>>20115962
What the fuck are you talking about?

>>20115962
>every other woman is actually a tranny I swear
Take note, this is what /pol/ does to your brain.

>>20115997
No, that is just the logical result of making that particular form of mutilation commonplace.

>>20112911
Good Intentions by Eliot Kay

>>20115913
>harem of chocolate queens
I'd read a sci-fi or fantasy book about that.

>>20111444
checked, OP maker

are comics allowed here? I'm not a huge comic/graphic novel guy but I'm digging the shit out of Saga, anyone else like it? it's kinda sci-fi but with some fantasy/fantastical elements, but it's pretty witty and a tad woke

>>20116049

yeah....no.

>>20111495
>Not the best Catholic fiction I've read

gun to my loved ones head - Canticle is probably my favorite book ever. I'm curious what Catholic fiction you like, can you recommend some?

>>20114237
he's gonna take as long as gurm

>>20112985
Were you rejected by bluehair gatekeepers? Also please do share them here.

Is The Witcher worth reading?

>>20116060
Pic rel is heavily underrated and easily mogs later Dystopian books like 1984 and Brave New World. This is because the book was so damn prophetic in predicting the possibility of world wars and the general usage of aircraft.

It’s marketed as Sci-fi but time has said otherwise.

>>20116102
The first book is a collection of vignettes, and is ok. Everything after is bad.

>>20116049
>Saga
good art wasted on a shit comic. you're better of going to /co/ though if you want to talk about comics.

>>20116106
thanks anon this sounds very good. pic related is on my list, have you or anyone else read it? not /sffg/ per se, but it is /catholicfiction/

>>20116049
The Esperanto in it is bad machine translations. At some point what's clearly meant to be "right back" is "pravi dorso", i.e. "to be correct, back (part of the body)".

I respect someone who speaks Valyrian more than someone who speaks esp*ranto

>>20116060
GK Chesterton, The Man Who Was Thursday and The Innocence of Father Brown. A lot of his stuff should be on Gutenberg. Miller is trying to ape Chesterton so hard it hurts. Also Umberto Eco books like >>20116144 and Baudolino.

>>20116195
At least there's actually anything written in Esperanto lmao

>>20116202
>The Innocence of Father Brown
I love the TV show.. thanks..will have to read the books. talk about comfy.

>>20116060
The Wizard Knight by Gene Wolfe comes to mind, as he's the only explicitly Catholic author I know of that I've read, besides Tolkien of course.
Prince of Foxes by Samuel Shellabarger has Catholic themes in it, and not just because it's set in Renaissance Italy.
The author John Broughton writes a large amount of fiction centered around England during the Dark Ages, and most of the main characters are, or interact with, Catholic perspectives.
Wayne Barlowe's Inferno novels "God's Demon" and "The Heart of Hell", despite taking place in literally in Hell, and the author himself being as far as I can determine an agnostic atheist, seem to take a highly Catholic perspective of God and redemption/forgiveness/repentance despite the definitive absence of anything explicitly germane to Christianity or Judaism in the novels.
Stephen Lawhead writes allegorical quasi-historical fantasy that imposes a Christian (I'm not sure whether or not he's Catholic) worldview onto archetypically pagan structures in a very similar manner to Gene Wolfe.

>>20111495
I genuinely enjoyed the sequel more.

>>20116284
really? I'll have to give it a try, reviews have suggested it's a pretty average book

Are these Dragonlance books good? I just want something dumb and old school. Also I am curious because one of the writers created the setting.

>>20116527
I just read the first trilogy through and while it reads well, I wouldn't really recommend it unless you are into pure brainless schlock. The plots move and are presented like someone's Dungeons and Dragons campaign (which makes sense, because it's literally a module for DND) and rather overtly exists for the primary purpose of marketing the setting for other people to make their own stories in it. I'm also convinced it's almost singularly responsible for every negative stereotype of high fantasy tropes in popular consciousness.
It's nowhere near the worst stuff I've ever read, but I wouldn't venture back into the setting again unless someone paid me to read further.

Is this a Martin general now?

>>20116527
If you are 14 and living in the 80's it probably rocks.

>>20116641
Yeah that's a really good way of putting it. It's great if you're new to the fantasy genre (or for that matter, reading for fun in the first place) and want an easy read. To people who've been around the block a few times, it's not really satisfying.

Brandon Sanderson abused me. What does he have in common with Ted Bundy? They were both baptised by the LDS church and both have a penchant for strangling, abducting, torturing, raping, and killing young women. I was lucky to get out of the grasps of this so-called "epic Fantasy writer" who tried to drag me into his window-tinted van and pound me with his makeshift weapon, which seemed to have been an improvised weapon from a foam LARP sword and a bunch of nails. I was bloodied and had to kick Sanderson in his nuts with my heels to get him to get off me, but he kept slobbering all over me and bit me occasionally in an animalistic frenzy. I ran out of the van and he chased me with a chain swinging high above his head, making sounds I couldn't imagine a human making. His pockets were swelling with money he had gotten from Patreon, but he didn't care that it was falling onto the street.

>>20112679
Danke anon, wish more people brought him up. I honestly think Wagner offers something close to Howard when it comes to Sword and Sorcery.

>>20116060
In addition to The Fifth Head of Cerberus, The Book of the New Sun also by Gene Wolfe. You could argue most of Tolkien’s works are Catholic with how much his religion influenced him.

>>20115350
GRRM has plans to destroy Winds of Winter notes in the case he dies. It's in his will to destroy any extant works that haven't been published yet.

Finally about to read Moon Witch, Spider King by Marlon James, I got it right when it came out but was reading a few other things. Hopefully it's as good as I've heard it was. Got a dark historical fantasy that takes place during the plague that I'm probably reading after that then probably some sci-fi to switch things up a bit. Hopefully that keeps me busy for a while. Always looking to see if anything new looks good but the only prospect is what I'm about to read now.

>Shadowthrone…uh…my worthy Lord of Shadow…is thinking. Yes! Thinking furiously! Such is the vastness of his genius that he can outwit even himself!
I love the schizo priest so much.
Where do the current lords of a "house" or warren go once ascendants replace them?
Is ascendency in itself a fight to determine who deserves the throne?
Did shadow only form when kellanved and dancer ascended?
Quick Ben was a high priest of shadow in a temple for several years, before joining the malazan empire, so when the emperor wasn't a god.
Mappo recalls not having encountered the shadow hounds in ALL his travels with Icarium, which probably last thousands of years, not 9. yet Shadow is a "relatively new house". I took it to mean less than a hundred years, but in the context of the 94 thousand years of the known history of Icarium so far, perhaps it means more.

>>20116871
Kafka instructed his publisher to destroy any and all unpublished works left behind too. Yet his wish was ignored, despite him being a nobody at the time. Gurm's publisher will do the same, arguing that his will is null and void because of his contractual obligations. They'll salvage whatever they can.

I'm really fascinated with the greywater watch idk why
I wish george had taken the books more slowly, not everything is about PLOT PLOT PLOT

>>20117030
asoiaf would be cooler if it were about anything but the actual plot, GRRM agrees and that's why he worked on dunk and egg

Yup, its over, this is a Martin general now, its fucking over.

What would Japanese xianxia be like? There was certainly a time they were influenced by Daoism, especially regarding magic (iirc at one time there was an official Minister of Magic that was basically just the smartest chinese educated bullshitter in the court), but is there much from Shinto or Buddhism that could be interesting?

>>20117284
It's called Battle Shonen, and it's historically been one of the best selling genres of manga. It's a bit out of vogue now though because it's old fashioned.
Also, how could you actually make that post without Dragonball popping into your head?

>>20117303
I'm not talking about anime, I'm talking about something like Virtuous Sons but in Japan

>>20117310
You said Japanese xianxia, which is literally what Dragonball is. It's even based on Journey to the West. I have no idea what virtuous sons is, but your question is stupid, Xianxia is just chink battle shonen.

>>20117316
xianxia is fantasy that is based in daoist religious ideas, including philosophy, practices of internal alchemy, and general folklore

>>20117356
It's chink battle shonen, deal with it.

>>20117284
Because new generation don't care about japanese traditions and religious beliefs, this why hero academy (literally fucking western concept just based in japan) and various isekai shit is so popular and anything to do with traditions, ninjas and in general japanese past is not.

Should write a xianxia where a master in daoist immortality arts becomes super powerful and dedicates his entire life to it in the mountains and shit and then he goes to europe and gets into a fight with a peasant and the peasant crushes him with an axe and his mutilated body starts spasming
Peasants spits and pisses on him and the daoist master is too shocked to understand whats happening and then he dies and the peasant says 'dies like the rest of us, heh' and then goes home to fuck his daughter

>>20116851
https://thedarkcrusade.wordpress.com/tag/reflections-for-the-winter-of-my-soul/

:-D One of my all Time ... Havent found anything realy comparable

>>20117748
>another dark crusade listener
nice
wagners horror stories are just as good as his kane stories (they went to shit after he became an alcoholic though)

>>20118055

>>20118060
Damn
Look at those torpedo titties

>>20118060

>>20113787
No, you are fixated on appropriating books with non-whites when the book doesn't include it. Found the reddit poster.

>>20117481
No. What you should write is this daoist immortal coming to a world, make it Medieval Europe if you want, and finding himself without powers. Now he faces certain death and the question then becomes: how is he going to face his inevitable death with honor, how is he going to find meaning in life?

Write that and get back to me.

I think I found a pretty clear contradiction in early TGO, esmenent when she first finds theliopa and hugs her thinks that she smells girlish
and then later kelmomas is near hear and he thinks she smells manly. I guess it could just be a pov difference

>>20116926
shadow was around for ages but vacant iirc, tiste andii used to have it.

i believe there are ascendants who aren't members of a house but don't quote me on that

>>20116144
>worshipping mary
>calling priests father
come on bro

>>20114162
this was debunked

I liked it until everyone became a superhero and by the end of the book we are already in supernatural endgame mode. How does making Dalinar a radiant for no reason or foreshadowing make him more interesting? This book turned all the characters into the Avengers in the end. I have absolutely zero interest going into oathbringer. This is following the same route as Mistborn. The Final Empire and somewhat Wells of Ascension were good to me because the world felt sort of large with lot's of human conflict. Then by Heroes of Ages it all becomes a boring struggle against the mist. Nothing is more boring than supernatural enemies. This is why a series like A Song of Ice and Fire is more compelling to me. It retains a struggle between humanity. If A Song of Ice and Fire was just a war against white walkers, it would be boring. It suddenly shrinks the world into a boring small small place. If that makes sense.

>>20118290
That's kind of what the story's been billed as, so I dunno why you're that surprised. You like what you like, but that's not what the series ever really said it was gonna be.

>>20111444
How is it?

>>20113665
The Dumarest books by E C Tubb
Demon Princes by Jack Vance

>>20118290
everything goes off the cliff in oathbringer anyway

Here's your contemporary scifi bro

>"Fire of the Dark Triad" is a dark and compelling futurist tale of power lust, betrayal, and obsession. The Dark Triads, a malevolent group of humans born with DNA that makes them dangerous have wreaked havoc on Earth for centuries and nearly destroyed it. Its rulers tried to purify humans by removing these genes from future generations. But the civilization faltered without the creative fire of the Dark Triads. Earth recruited an elite group known as Headhunters to recruit Dark Triads from its intergalactic colonies back to Earth. Nick, the best of the Headhunters, on a routine mission, becomes entangled with a secret conspiracy that could change the human race forever. As fighting forces on two planets, he risks his life to prevent disaster and save the woman he loves.

>>20118339
I didn't have any idea what the story was billed as. The way of kings and words of radiance are intriguing from a political and military perspective. The parshendi were an interesting enemy in the first book then in book 2 he threw them away and changed them into a demonic army of baddies. The parshendi pov chapters were so cringe and awful. The parshendi shardbearer has no character. There was no point to the mutual warrior respect you are shown in way of kings. They are written so terribly. The assassin turned into a one deminsional villain. He completely threw away a lot of interesting mystery from the first book.

>>20118538
>>20118290
Sanderson writes awful capeshit-tier schlock that even redditors are disgusted by. We tried to warn you, anon.

>>20118479
that's why you don't let women write scifi

>If need be, I'll find another father for my child. I'll cuckold you and dare you to expose me
Jesus Christ Irulan

>>20112123
Clever people throughout all of history have always figured out the world is a brutal place where cynicism is warranted and that if there are gods they ain't doing shit

>>20113309
My favorite Dicks are Game Players of Titan and Transmigration of Timothy Archer so read those if you haven't

Ice by Anna Kaven is fantastic. The intro to it, I believe by the author of The Prestige, introduced me to the concept of the "slipstream" genre, which I would argue connect it with Dick.

>>20118710
>slipstream genre
I desire to know more.

>>20118479
>>20118670
Compared to the sorry state of most modern scifi, especially by women authors, that hardly sounds too terrible. Or is it secretly hiding an gay communist muslim feminist narrative in there? Usually - and fortunately for most people smart enough to want to avoid it - they stick that garbage right in the marketing blurb as a big aposematic warning sign to the sane.

Thread 404'd before I could respond.

>>20115563
From TWOIAF:
> “Braavos was founded by fugitives from a large convoy of slave ships on its way from Valyria to a newly established colony in Sothoryos, who rose in a bloody rebellion, seized control of the ships on which they were being transported, and fled to “the far ends of the earth” to escape their erstwhile masters. Knowing they could be hunted, the salves turned away from their intended destination and sailed north instead of south, seeking a refuge as far from Valyria and her vengeance as could be found”
>“For a long while, however, Braavosi merchant ships carried false charts and practiced an artful deceit when questioned about their home port. Thus, for more than a century, Braavos was known as the Secret City”

and also from TWOIAF:
>Traders and a ship sent by the Night's Watch to investigate reported only nightmarish devastation where Hardhome had stood, a landscape of charred trees and burned bones, waters choked with swollen corpses and blood-chilling shrieks echoing from the cave mouths that pock the great cliff that looms above the settlement, a cliff where no living man or woman could be found.
>After that Hardhome was shunned. The wildlings never settled the site again, and rangers roaming north of the Wall told tales of the overgrown ruins of Hardhome being haunted by ghouls, demons, and burning ghosts with an unhealthy taste for blood."

Hardhome was probably burnt to the ground by dragonriders from Valyria because they thought it was actually Braavos. The other theory is that it actually WAS Braavos, and the survivors of the attack moved to Essos and refounded the "secret city" where it is now.

>Skaa
>Sranc
>Kellhus
>Kelsier

>>20118937
These don't sound or describe the same things at all? Do you suffer from some kind of verbal variant of facial blindness?
Not to mention TDTCB was published before Mistborn

>>20118968
you do realise I was only pretending to be retarded right?
Jokes on you.

>>20118290
>>20118538
This late in the game you have no one but yourself to blame. Sanderson has done fuck all but write exclusively capeshit-style YA schlock for years now. There's zero depth and his characters suck ass.

>>20118670
Why was my
"that's why you don't let women write scifi"
post deleted?

>>20119061
Janny deleted a post I made about Mormon writers also. He's quite the faggot.

>>20116527
Good? I wouldn't go that far. Charming? Definitely.

If you want to read DnD books, just read R. A. Salvatore's Drizzt standalone books.

Are the 40K books actually good?

>>20118810
Who knows, read it and report back. I just saw a bunch of shit grammar in the blurb and thought the concept sounded boring.

>>20117316
xianxia os battle shonen with well-defined realms (or levels) of power

>>20119061
You done hecking sexism chud, repent

>>20119088
Some are. The problem is that the 40K universe is a monotonous trash that inhibits any creative writing.

Does the Library in a container anon still come here?

Did he finish making his library in the desert?

>read wheel of time
>male mary sue protagonist, unbearable male-female dialogues, unnecessarily long
>read name of the wind
>literally twilight for fat incel retards
>read malazan
>story is told through a million different POVS of characters that I do not give a fuck about
is there even any good fantasy besides Lotr and Got

Janny deleted my post calling him a faggot too. What a shock.

Man things sure happened in this.

>>20119174
I'm reading excerpts from these books' openings and they are dripping with more cheese than the burrito I just ate. Are they worth reading anyhow?

>>20119165
What's your opinion on lesbians?

>>20119191
find them pretty gross after quitting porn (nofap pilled here)

>>20119165
Need I say it?

>>20119197
I was going to suggest Gideon the Ninth but the protag(s) are lesbians so probably not for you.

Idunno... read Dresden Files or something?

>>20119190
It's silly and not the most original concept ever but they're kinda fun, the narrator admits to being very overdramatic and every once in a while I got caught up in it too. Have noticed he overuses the word "cyclopean" though.

>>20119165
Anything by Wolfe if you can take christcuck shit
Chronicles of Amber if you can handle "marketable" prose
Harry Potter if you want to learn to write for kids
Narnia if you're fine with all of the above

Someone will eventually tell you Earthsea is good but it's not

Seething faggot lol

>>20119248
Earthsea is great if you headcanon Ged as white and ignore all the novels with Tenar in them

>>20119274
They're not compelling stories

>>20119280
He says after recommending Harry Potter and fucking Narnia. Might as well have thrown in Eragon while you're at it. You're free to have an opinion, but where you draw the line baffles me

>>20119300
Learning to write for kids from Earthsea or Eragon would be a terrible idea, which was the use case for the stories I mentioned, as described in the post you initially responded to

>>20113471
The story of Ren Zu (if I remember the name correctly, the first man) and how the plot actually reflects the mythology is kino as fuck. To bad it won't ever be finished

>>20119410
The progression system and how it is tied to plot is kino as fuck.

>>20119410
>>20119451
Fang Yuan's phallus at the end of 3 kings arc, described in vivid Bakker prose, is the true masterpiece that could have been.

>>20119451
>progression system
Isn't it just generic cultivation.

>>20118731
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slipstream_genre

My favorite take on it:
"cognitive dissonance is at the heart of slipstream, and it is not so much a genre as a literary effect, like horror or comedy"

I can't think of too much fiction that qualifies beyond Dick and Anna Kavan. House of Leaves like stuff I guess qualifies too.

I think the works of David Lynch are pretty steeped in it. The game Disco Elysium has vibes of it.

But yeah, I too hunger for more

>>20119088
If you want good 40k books just for Dan Abnett. There's good stuff outside of him but he really is the best and even his weaker novels are better than 90% of everything else.
If you want war stories check out First & Only
If you want horror detective check out Xenos
If you want an intro to the background lore check out Horus Rising
If you want bolter porn check out Brothers of the Snake

>>20119165
Assassin's Apprentice, Gormenghast, Bridge of Birds, Neverwhere, Elric, Corum, Conan and Red Leopard Black Wolf

That's about all the top tier fantasy I think I've read besides Tolkein and grrm

>>20119165
>>read name of the wind
>>literally twilight for fat incel retards
How you moron?

>>20119232
>Have noticed he overuses the word "cyclopean" though.
A certain Canadian tobacco farmer would like a word.

>>20119538
Try Bleeding Edge by Old Mr. Pinchy

>>20119562
>Elric
>top tier
Jesus christ no

>>20119519
>Jade light flashed, and a man appeared on the mountain peak.

>This man was completely naked, his left forearm had a hole as blood flowed out of it. His youthful body, was strong and muscular, giving off the aura of a veteran expert who had undergone countless battles.

>“Brother?!” Fang Zheng was shocked, slipping and falling down the cliff.

>The ten Gu Immortals were shocked. Who, who is this naked man?!

>Feng Jin Huang raised her snow-white neck, looking at Fang Yuan from his feet, stunned and watching with her eyes wide open like a statue.

>Fang Yuan’s body was muscular, the

>giant monster

>on his lower body entered Feng Jin Huang’s vision without any doubt.

>>20119531
I have read several other xanxia novels, progression in RI is not really standard chinese cultivation and the addition of gu worms makes it quite unique

>>20119629
That entire post is bait

>>20119629
>>20119636
Just my opinion bros. I'm not super well read in the genre tho, I'm only now reading Darkness that Comes Before

What are y'all's top tier lists?

>>20119635
It has a good mix of reaching the dao and actual power and magic with the gu worms. The storyworld is also one of the big selling points, as any fantasy thrives when it explores the world and the secrets thereof. Add to that a Dunyain-like protagonist and you got a good read.

Janny lost his dilator again, I see

>>20119586
Who is this Canadian tobacco farmer? You know they grow excellent Bright Virginia up there?

>>20119165
literally anything by David Eddings, it's a miracle that he's not more culturally relevant considering how wildly popular his books were throughout the 80s and 90s, but I guess when you put in your will "NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO MAKE MOVIES OR DISNEY CARTOONS OR NINTENDOS OUT OF MY STORIES EVER" and have enough money to ensure the lawyers stick to it after you die, then you kind of hobble your legacy

I'm thinking of trying Heinlein. What can I expect from Stranger in a Strange Land, Starship Troopers, and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress?

>>20119783
I've only read Starship Troopers (liked it a lot and made me think about the concepts it presented) and Stranger in a Strange Land (dropped it a third way in because I somehow was grossed out)

>>20119783
>Stranger in a Strange Land
Even Heinlein was embarrased by that one, it gets very weirdly lecture-y. Even if you agree with the views being put forth, they way they're put forth feels very skeezy.

>>20119805
>>20119810
Care to elaborate?

>>20119815
The story is about a human raised on Mars coming back to Earth and the first half is fairly interesting, looking at this weird future Earth through the eyes of a man completely un-used to all the weird shit people do, and then he starts a polyamorous (though STRICTLY heterosexual) free love sex cult with cannibalism while using his vast psychic powers to just vanish literally anybody who opposes him all the while the narration basically outright does everything it can to ensure us no this is the good guy really, also Heinlein's ability to write a female character begins and ends with "woman who likes men".

After reading the excerpts from secret project 4 I'm awestruck by what Sanderson is trying to do with his fiction. And it's only gonna take about 20 years to get there...

I need some Deus Vult fiction, preferably without
>religion bad
Crusaders crusading. Pic related.

>>20119893
you have to be over 18 to post here

>>20119761
>"NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO MAKE MOVIES OR DISNEY CARTOONS OR NINTENDOS OUT OF MY STORIES EVER"
not the worst decision

>>20119893
The High Crusade is pretty close to that. i think it's pretty good actually, although it's hard to take it as seriously as other books because the plot sounds so silly

>>20119898
Don't you have some more Bakker posts to spam?

>>20119928
bakkerfags are exactly the type to make posts like >>20119893

>>20119932
Bakkerfags are also exactly the type to "muh adult fiction" in a thread dedicated to books for children.

>>20119932
why are they called bakkerfags then, i thought he didn't write things like that

>>20119940
where did I mention "muh adult fiction"? for a general ostensibly about reading books your reading comprehension is sorely lacking

>>20119963
>you have to be over 18 to post here
>in response to a fiction recommendation request
Yours must be even worse if you can't comprehend your own posts.

>>20119975
nobody over 16 cares about le epic deus vult crusaids

>>20119980
Who said I needed your permission, faggot? Go back

>>20119990
it's a global rule dude

>>20119996
It's a global rule not to like crusaders?

>>20120002
you gotta be over 18, not my call

>>20119990
>imagine doxing your underage b& status

>>20120005
>>20120006
If crusaders are for children, what books do you like? Besides Bakker, I mean.

>>20120015
i like tchaikovsky

>>20120020
>tchaikovsky
Then why are you in /sffg/? Shouldn't you be in one of the dozens of faggy pretentious philosophy threads, lauding socialism and huffing your own farts?

>>20120034
leaving this thread before i lose my sides for real

>>20120020
retards baiting each other like this is the best part of this general

>>20120039
>hurr durr he didnt know tchaikovsky is a composer
your jokes are only funny to you

>>20120054
>doesn't know fantasy authors
>asking someone else why they're in the genre general
PLEASE stop posting

>>20120061
What autistic dope knows every fantasy author that ever exists? How derpshit retarded do you have to be to try and gatekeep children's books?

>>20120061
Just stop replying to the shitter already.

>>20120061
no

>>20120083
I cant stop, he has to know this is a /Bakker/ thread and it always will be

>>20119893
The crusades are in my blood.
That being said: Religion is bad.

>>20120079
>How derpshit retarded
He's a bakkerfag, just ignore him. This is just another attempt by him to shit on the thread.

>>20120020
>>20120034
this was just beautiful

>>20119893
The Swords Quartet by Harold Lamb

>>20119893
Tannhauser Trilogy

>>20119893
Three Hearts and Three Lions, but the crusade is against the Wild Hunt and not Muslims
That's the only fantasy novel I know of to deal with the subject as explicitly as possible without also turning it into
>browns good, whites bad
There's also David Eddings' Elenium trilogy, which has some subplots concerned more with the aftereffects of a crusader state already installed than the crusade itself.

>>20119190
Gay POC cuckold series, avoid

>>20119165
Every book you get when you Google 'pre-tolkien fantasy', Lyonesse, the first 3 Earthsea books

>>20119783
>Starship Troopers
good
>Stranger in a Strange Land
cuck jesus
>Moon is a Harsh Mistress
cucks in spaaaaace, awful ai plot

Why does this man make jannies seethe so hard? Every post with him in it gets deleted. It’s almost as if they fear his writing prowess

>>20120458
I think it's probably some guy ban evading but who knows, see >>20112208 for last thread's count

>>20120470
Anon, that's the person who's ban evading.

I've never read LOTR, should I also get the Silmarillion and Hobbit along with the LOTR books?

>>20120458
>It’s almost as if they fear his writing prowess
>"...The more she drank the more she shat, but the more she shat, the thirstier she grew." and all that
what an author indeed

>>20120470
>>20120474
I’ve never been banned from here, I’ve only posted GRRM a few times and my posts were deleted twice. I think it’s because the janny is a bakkercuck and can’t stand superior authors being posted

Is the whole Wheel of Time series worth reading?

>>20120490
I liked it early on but couldn't bear it as it ground to a halt mid-series. I never picked up Brando's completion but I haven't ruled it out. I would say that's a middle position - some stuck with it and love it still, others gave it up even earlier and don't miss it. It's one of those things that happens in genre fiction - author loses the plot.

>>20120490
For you? Who knows. It depends on many factors. For many others, yes. Do they regret doing so? Sometimes. It's not like you have to commit to the entire series before you even begin reading, unless you're of the sort who has to compulsively finish anything started in any way. If you don't like the first book then you simply don't like it and that's just how it is.

>>20120541
Would you say it's better than Malazan was? I finished reading it and desu it didn't really feel like it lived up to the hype and felt quite a bit convoluted. My favourite out of Malazan was the Chain of Dogs plot with Coltaine in Deadhouse Gates if that matters

>>20120476
Yeah you absolutely should anon
I hope you love Tolkien

>>20120558
I haven't read either series and don't have interest in doing so. I'm speaking in general terms and based on what I've seen.

>>20120541
But it's not the first book that's the problem. There are a bunch of good books, then it just dies.

>>20120558
I've only read Malazan, but from what I've heard epic fantasy has two camps: Malazan and Wheel of Time, and there is very little overlap between the two groups.

So maybe you'll fall into the WoT camp. Only one way to find out.

>>20120490
So I look back on it and I can remember a lot of parts I liked and a lot of parts I thought were unironically epic, but then I remember that my memory probably blocked out all the boring parts. I liked the first two books, and I do think the final three suffered from the Branderson treatment, but it's much better than being unfinished.

>>20120597
Maybe I'll at least read the first few books for Wheel of Time then. I did enjoy asoiaf and Prince of Nothing/Second Apocalypse as well

>>20120580
If someone doesn't like the first book they probably aren't going to like what come afterwards whether or not the first one is the problem. It's not a sure thing that everyone would like the first book.

>>20120597
Congrats on making up something so very dumb on the fly.

>>20120613
Well, that's true. The good books in the series are the ones that build on the first.

>>20120616
I didn't make that up

>>20120490
I loved it and didn't regret spending two months of the covid lockdown on reading the whole thing.

>>20120558
Isn't Malazan post-modern cynical "grey" fantasy that takes place over millennia with little connection between the characters of one book to another?
Whereas WOT is just a giant fucking epic fantasy with clearly defined good and evil and the hero beats the bad guy at the end and they have a happy ending?
At least that's the perspective I've gotten, but I haven't read them myself

>>20120637
source: dude just trust me

>>20120597
Sounds like bullshit. The /wot/ threads on /tv/ were full of people who enjoyed both series. Malazan was discussed pretty commonly when the show ended and the threads ran out of steam.

>>20120646
I don't how people can spend so much time continuously on the same series. I know I can't. It's probably more common than not though. I've seen some they'll only read a single series for the entire year.

>>20120659
Pray tell how dost one determine the type of defecation by sound?

>>20120720
I've often done this thing where I'll read an author's entire body of work (if it's small enough) in a couple months lately. Incredibly high-output authors like Sanderson I don't quite do that for, I more just select what appeals from their body of work (or I just slowly read them all like with Pratchett). I never stop and start a series, though, unless the series is incomplete or some such.

>>20120490
I dropped the series at book 4 or 5. If there was an edition with all the unnecessarily detailed descriptions of environments and 99% of dialogue between different sexes cut out, I would probably finish them

>>20120734
I rarely more than one book from a series before reading something else and coming back to it. I also only ever read one book at a time. Differences abound between readers.

>>20120650
>let me comment on the books I haven't read
never change /sffg/

>>20120720
I actually tried to read other series in between the books to break it up a little but constant high-octane endings kept making me want to immediately dive into the next book to see what happened next. I don't have any issues when I catch up to an ongoing series but for completed stuff like that where the next entry is available I can't help myself.

>>20120745
If I stop reading a series, that means I've dropped it, or I've finished what's available of it. I just never really start something without finishing it or saying it's not worth my time, I find, because if it IS worth my time, I'm invested in the story and characters so I wanna see where it goes instead of letting myself forget too much.

>>20120765
One difference may be the amount of time between, yeah. I've been mostly keeping it down to a month between books that are in long running series. Usually closer to a week or two weeks and I'll have read a few books in between.

>>20120791
I'm generally a pretty fast reader, at minimum I'm reading a couple hours a day, often more, so I tend to get through books pretty fast and I'll get through a series in maybe a month. Something chunkier like Wheel of Time I have no idea how long it'd take me (I'm still reluctant to really try to start that, even if it does interest me, just because of the apparent slog of books 7-10) but I'm confident I could read them all over maybe three months.

Had anyone bought the elric of melnibone hardcover omnibuses that started coming out last month ?
i can't find any reviews and was gonna preorder the remaining two alongside the first.
are they good quality and worth the $100 I'll be putting down ?

>>20120823
How much is $100 to you?
That's all that really matters.

>>20120836
enough for me to want to know whether the books are good quality

>>20120863
If you're buying them just to display, then all that really matters is whether you like aesthetics.

>>20120872
I JUST WANT TO KNOW IF THEY ARE 'GOOD' UGH

>>20120878
Then buy them and read them to find out.

>>20120878
Well I think the Elric books are dogshit but if you're buying $100 hardcovers I assume you've read enough of them to disagree

>>20120878
If assumed you meant the quality of the physical manufacture, not the content of the books. No, paying $100 for something you have no idea about doesn't seem financially advisable.

>>20120896
It would probably be better if you got like a book or two extremely cheap or borrowed or pirated, or whatever first to see if you'd even like it. Maybe just read free online excerpts even.

>>20120746
I'm literally asking a question as to whether these preconceptions I've acquired are in any way correct or if they are in fact complete misconceptions

>>20120941
Sure, that's close enough.

>>20120896
yeah, precisely what i meant.
there are literally no pictures i can find of the inside contents and the few reviews don't mention anything about physical quality.

>>20120049
Sad if true

>>20119562
Did you define "top tier" as "stuff I personally liked"?

>>20119274
Does this power of imagination extend to the visual as well?

If Tolkien wrote a sword and sorcery novel what do you think it would be like?

>>20119128
That was from like 2016.

I'm convinced that most times when anons ask if something is good it's just them trying to veil their attempt in keeping the books in the minds of others.

>>20121017
I think it'd be something you'd be disappointed in and complain about.

>>20121022
I don’t see the reason for this unless they were the author. But it would make sense that they’re looking for other people to validate the books that they like

>>20121036
The reason is "you should like what I like and I'll keep posting it until you like it."
Sakurafish

>>20113471
>>20121041
>>/lit/image/vivHV6CBOjSIc8sQB1sHcQ

>>20119761
The real pro move is to release all your shit into the public domain. Then whoever can make the best adaptation gets the spoils, and no corporation can fall back on copyright to monopolize the "canon" of how people are allowed to imagine it. This is why Lovecraft will endure beyond maybe any other 20th century fiction writer (srs)

>>20121066
Oh, you poor fool. Once it goes into public domain, Disney will adapt it and then claim it.

>>20121066
Oh, you poor fool. Once it goes into public domain, Disney will adapt it and then claim it. If not them, then others, the monopolies cannot be stopped. SLAPPs wins.

>>20121022
i literally explained why i was asking in my original post.

>>20121066
Found the commie scum

>>20121094
It's okay, I'm sure you're one of the good ones.

NEW THREAD WHEN?

23 deleted posts this thread

>>20121022
Same.

>>20121099
Why do so many "anti-communists" support government-granted monopolies? That's what "intellectual property" is- it's not property in the sense that property proper is. Property proper deals with things that you can can't take from someone without depriving them of, but you can copy information all you like without depriving anyone of it.

>>20121111
Why does it matter so much to you?

>>20121113
Why do you keep doing this? All this does is makr the bakkerfaggot to continue.

>>20121121
So, he can shitpost in it.

You guys should really try Patricia McKillip.

>>20121139
First people here need to read, which I doubt will ever happen.

>>20121148
People read, it’s just the shitters who don’t. Ignore them.

>>20121186
With how Le Guin is treated, I doubt that.

A lot of anons have very strange ideas that have no basis in reality.

>>20121017
he did, it was called The Children of Hurin

>>20121260
In what way?

>>20121355
The most common is confusing their personal feelings as the consensus.

>>20121117
capitalism was a strawman created by communists so they had control over both sides of the "debate"

>>20121369
I mean when its multiple people saying they won't read an author because they're female its more than a feeling at this point.

>>20121450
So what if it is? They are vastly outnumbered.

>>20121450
You're on 4chan.

>>20121458
so what if they are? there are still people who won't read a book because of a female author

>>20121474
And there's people who won't read any book bigger than 300 pages. So what?

>>20121474
It's just how it is. There's no sense worrying about their silliness.

I didn't like the farseer trilogy at all but I really enjoyed these.

>>20121494
Isn't that the Nautical fantasy?

>>20121498
Yeah the concept of a live ship is a really cool idea as well. They're like ships that are made with special wood with human looking mastheads that quickens and come to life after three generations of captains have died on the ship.

>>20121498
>Ship
>Ship of
>Ship of
>The Ship that Shipped
>Shippity Shipship of Ships

I wonder

>>20121503
I see, I'm debating on reading that soon.

>>20121504
Some titles are misleading.

>>20121504
>Clash of kings,
>No kings ever clash
He’s right to be skeptical.

>>20121383
What the fuck are you talking about? Private ownership of capital and leveraging thereof to acquire more capital is absolutely a thing.

>>20121002
I try to be a little objective but if something rules it rules what can I tell ya

The only one I might say is not actually top tier in that list is Elric. Corum's Swords Trilogy is just better on all fronts.
Bridge of Birds is quite sloppily written but it's just so fun and great that it's just fuckin top tier.

The rest all balance amazing fantasy adventure with good to great prose and character. All solidly top tier to me.

Would like to hear other people's since everyone feels so superior about it

>>20121494
I'm on the last one. I loved Farseer and have liked these so far. I think I would have loved them too if they were about 100 pages shorter a piece, they kind of start to feel a slog.

>>20119621
I enjoyed it. Loved Lot 49. Those are the only two Pynch I've read so far. I suppose they are a bit slipstream.

>>20119621
>>20121591
Also, what do you think the dwarf in the hallways under Ice's house was?
That shit was wild.

>>20121494
Why do people shit on Hobb?

>>20121494
>Robin Hood at home

>>20121647
misery porn + cuckolding + nothing happens + other bad stuff

>>20121692
Sounds deep. What's wrong with it?

>>20121702
Nothing it's amazing

>>20121647
I felt the farseer trilogy was way too long and just kind of incoherent. I found the ending pretty unsatisfying. I'm not shitting on her though, reading LST was me taking another look and I really enjoyed them. Farseer was her first trilogy and if traders is anything to go by i'll probably continue with the realm of the elderlings books.

>>20121702
feels bad man

New thread
>>20121746

>>20121113
No additional posts have been deleted.

>>20121772
Anon, stop. All you’re doing is givi g the bakkerfaggot a reason to shitpost.

>>20121757
Damn, that bakkerfag is shitting up the new thread.

>>20121450
almost all of those are trolling retard, because you or others keep getting baited every time