/lit/ - Literature

Who is the best fantasy author? Just curious.

>>20349541
Tolkien it's not even close

>>20349541
Depends on the criteria, which should of course be what I happen to like the most at the moment.

>>20349541
Bakker if you want a book that sucks you in, makes you exult in the victories of the holy war, weep in joy and terror with his amazing prose in the heat of battle.

>>20349533
Should fantasy protagonists be sex havers or celibate?

>>20349541
Me.

>>20349568

>>20349541
Herbert, Tolkien, Wolfe take your pick
Le Guin, Lewis, Peake if you want more options

>>20349582
>If I post this picture, it'll undermine everything Bakker has every writter, despite his talent as a genre fiction writer.

>>20349541
We asked that once in /sffg/, this was the result.

What should I have for breakfast? I'm thinking....

>>20349533
Currently reading To Green Angel Tower. Very good shit, long as hell. Weird book name but it makes you intrigued about where the characters will end up eventually.

Overall, Memory, Sorrow and Thorn is quickly becoming one of my favorite series. Don't regret finding The Dragonbone Chair back in 2017 in a rundown bookstore and keeping that series in the back of my mind.

>>20349690
>proxypoll

>>20349592
I just think it's super funny he literally lived the story in that comic

>>20349541
Tolkien and it's not even close.

>>20349533
What is cooler in your opinions for an MC, an albino zombie with a scared face? Or a homunculus inhabiting an ancient suit of armor?

>>20349919
homunculus inhabiting an ancient suit of armo

>>20349919
Latter.

jolenta booba moving in such a motion to convey to severian she was ready for sexual pleasure upon the skiff

Does this ever become an actual adventure story or is it just "look at all the scientific mumbo jumbo I can spout off"

>>20349541
Poul Anderson

>>20349933
kek you didn't learn from the martian?

>>20349930
What's some good fantasy with rapist protagonists who are not condemned for it?

>>20349941
This is my first Andy Weir book

>>20349921
>>20349927
Thanks!

Welp I've read the first ~35ch of ISSTH, amongst my other xianxia, and
>exploding butts!
The fuck do you niggers have me reading

>>20349947
Are you familiar with the lord and saviour, Bakker?

>>20350047
I laughed out loud

>>20349947
A lot of gay cultivation novels.

What's the biggest drop in quality in a sequel or second book from an author
pic related for me

>>20349533
Speculative Japan 4 (2018)

Genesis: Dark Birth – Shining Death - Asamatsu Ken (2001)
This is the preface to a novel. I'm baffled to why it was included because it doesn't stand on its own at all. A ninja enters The Inner Realm where there are statues of many mythical beings and things go very wrong.
Excerpts are Unrated

Prototype No. 3 - Kobayashi Yasumi (2008)
I was amused by this because it's so utterly filled with tropes to the point of being self-parodying. It starts with infodumps where another character begs them to stop but the infodumper just continues doing so. Various reversals occur. The initial character isn't the protagonist, assuming usage of "I" means the protagonist. It also plays a bit with reader by not revealing critical information. I don't know whether it's self-aware. For someone who isn't familiar with the relevant tropes this would probably read as even more absurd.
Ok

Nightfall - Suzuki Miekichi (Early 1900s)
Some kind of ambiguous horror story involving spiders, suicide, identity, and lovers.
Blah

Pearls For Mia - Kajio Shinji (1971)
Aki volunteers to be a human time capsule. Mia has a lifelong obsession with him. What a dreadful "romance".
Blah

Dancing Babylon - Makino Osamu (1999)
A surrealist mortification fantasy. A human becomes the pupil of a literal furniture-human hybrid who wants him to become an assault appliance that would live in the Garden of Discipline on the Top Floor. To unlock the human's potential he must undergo increasingly painful religious mortification rituals. Why? Because Michel Foucault's Discipline and Punish said so. That's what one of the numerous in-text linked notes said anyway.
Ok

Last Words - Inoue Masahiko (1994)
Two people in the mountains are about to die of hypothermia but he's determined to write until death. I don't know, maybe some people would find this emotionally moving, but I didn't at all.
Meh

The Burning House - Tsukimura Ryoe (2010)
Apparently a side story to a novel which seems to have required reading the novel to appreciate. It says this special police force uses 3.5 meter tall battlesuits, but this is entirely a discussion with a man on his deathbed about events of the past and it didn't even do that well. Maybe the novel is better.
Meh

Vermilion - Ueda Sayuri (2008)
A weird urban fantasy postcyberpunk. A man has a five year old girl stolen from him by a magical being, which have become common in the area, and hires another magical being to find her. It doesn't say it is, but it reads like the introduction to something and seems entirely incomplete on its own.
Meh

Morceaux - Minagawa Hiroko (1998)
Oviparous water serially crystalizes people who are then split in two, polished, and sold. The last paragraph was especially cryptic. I didn't know what I was reading.
Blah

>>20350075
Encounters on the Solar Wind - Hori Akira (1996)
The first story in the author's Xenoarchelogy series. As ordered by his superiors, a lone man travels to a distant observation station that orbits the star 110 Herculis to assess the functioning of the biological computer based on his deceased wife-to-be who has reported detecting a mysterious signal.
Enjoyable

The Ebb and Flow of the Aurora Sea - Mase Junko (2012)
A lovecraftian mythos story with a grotesque sex ritual.
Meh

The Sparrow Valley - Hanmura Ryo (1987)
The entire story is a one-sided dialogue. Sparrow Valley is a graveyard that very few know about and it's meant to be that way.
Meh

Matsui Seimon on the Case - Yamada Masaki (2013)
A samurai seeks to kill the governor of a province, but comes across a friend he thought dead. The vast majority of the story is a flashback to a mission where they slew zombies and another monster.
Enjoyable

The Fish in Chryse - Azuma Hiroki (2010)
Mars has been colonized for centuries and peace has reigned between all of Earth's colonies. Alien technology has been discovered that will allow for instantaneous travel between gateways, which threatens their independence. Several years earlier, an 11 year old boy falls in love with a 16 year old girl. This is their story.
I have no idea how much more I enjoyed than the average reader would, but I really did. It's a shame that it isn't a novel and that that author has few of his fiction works translated to English. I also have to wonder how much I enjoyed it was due to the translator. I may have to read some other works she's translated for the sole purpose of finding out, assuming I'd even be able to.
Highly Enjoyable

Communion - Takahashi Takako (1966)
The included biographical notes state this was 5 years before the death of her husband and 9 years before her conversion to Catholicism. Considering the title, the year, the circumstances, and the content of the story, it could be allegorical for many different ideals.
Meh

>>20350071
I reading this book RIGHT NOW (60% through), directly following the 1st book which I read last week.

I don't know what to say... I really like both. Maybe I got brain damage. Or my contrarian nature subconsciously acting up.
Then again, I'm a SciFi-guy, so I enjoy the space opera elements that are being expanded upon.
I already got all the feels from the 1st book in the back of my mind, so I'm not missing my heartstrings being tugged on yet.

>>20350089
Ya I was expecting a more artistic ending, rather then all the epic opera stuff. I was interested in the characters but I didn't care for them so I wanted a more poetic ending for them.

Where did the Game of Thrones "What's everyone reading?" anon go?

>>20350132
I'm here, I've been busy prepping the Dragon (my term for getting ready for House of the Dragon) and putting all this nonsense about House Valeryon's ethnicity to rest. It's finally GOT season again :)

>>20349690
>10 people
>that delusional about their by-the-numbers YA

>>20350159
i don't understand how people can get hype after the last few seasons
did they all collectively forget about it?

>>20350169
They're dumb Godless normies.

>>20350169
The issue was the creative team seemed to just give up. It's not an inherent problem with the GoT universe. HBO is normally quite good, so as long as the writers are up to the normal HBO standard it should be a decent show. The production quality certainly puts to shame all the other fantasy shows of late.

>>20350047
Classic

Anyone knows where the literary trope, or whatever to call it, that is being used in Hyperion originates from?
I'm referring to the setup of a group of strangers being confined to each others company and telling the (implausibly detailed) stories of their past.

I just realized, I've seen this in a whole bunch of books. Most recently, Hamilton's Saints of Salvation series. It even directly borrows the the idea of revealing the information, that one of the strangers is a "spy". That gotta be a homage, right?
John C. Wright, did something similar, I'm sure I could dredge up a bunch of similar setups.


Is this something really old? Or just a naturally continent way to tell a story, I can figure it evolving independently
Or is there some grand old book that invented this?

>>20349533
What are you reading and what are you planning to read?

>>20350200
It's at least as old as the Renaissance in literature (The Decameron)

>>20350215
urth
not sure yet

>>20350215
I'm rereading Urth too.

It's understandable due to being published as a sequel, but the way the narrator keeps reminding the audience (i.e himself) about the events of BotNS feels he's succumbing to dementia.

Thinking about writing an urban fantasy story about a NEET who unwittingly becomes a witch's apprentice based on this post, think it's a dumb idea or no?

>>20349541
Plato

>>20349933
It is for the most part alough I'm only 75% the way through

There was 2 chapters I read last night which take place after something major happens on the ship that were literally just a bunch of maths and science which bought the story to a standstill.

I really like the book but it's clear he likes to pad stories out with overly detailed math and science.

Which on should I start with. I stopped listening to audiobooks for a while but kept my account and got a bunch of books. I now have time to listen at work again. What should I go with?

I'm about 70% into Oathbringer. The 3rd book of the Stormlight Archive. And I have to admit. It's actually pretty good.

>>20309553
>>20309665
To those who said I was warned that the 3rd book would be bad, you're so so wrong. This is better than the second book, which in turn was better than the first book.
It fixes the problems I had with the first book. Where book 1 was lacking big character changing events, book 3 delivers that. And Sanderson actually managed to surprise me a few times. I'm used to being underwhelmed by his reveals, because he normally foreshadows too hard. But he actually surprised me.

The last two books feel like they were just setting up for this one. Oathbringer is just development after development. Pay off after pay off. You guys didn't give it enough time. Though, I kind of understand if you fell in love with Kaladin, and now you feel let down. Because the amount of PoV time he has is greatly diminished. However, his story is still developing in an interesting way, imo.

With still roughly 30% left, I'm already satisfied. I doubt Sanderson can write anything so stupid in the end to make me change my mind on the book now.

>>20350295

>>20350243
sounds based

>>20350295
if you have chronic amnesia and completely forgot book 1 and 2 I can see why you would think part 3 has character development

>>20350281
Robin Hobb is shit start with The Black Company .

>>20350281
Shadow or Black Company if you want something long and dense with good prose, Farseer if you want more traditional fantasy, Darkness that Comes Before if you want to jerk off to rape scenes, and Hyperion if you want sci-fi with a strong character focus. Haven't read anything else there, but you basically can't go wrong. Personally I'd recommend BotNS because it's my all time favorite story but I know how sick of shills people are.

>>20350308
How far did you get into book 3? Because everyone told me they couldn't finish it. So I have to wonder if you guys didn't drop it early on.

>>20350330
finished it. I thought about dropping it but powered through. instead of dropping the book I just dropped the series

>>20350281
Don't listen to the other anons. Farseer is not traditional fantasy, and it's good. It's Depression kino, is what it is.

>>20350342
Robin Hobb gets off on the main character suffering.

>>20350330
I finished it. I thought it was awful all the way through. It was plodding, bland, repetitive, full of cameos to other series like some sort of MCU film... Even the much acclaimed climax did absolutely nothing for me.
It was so bad, I completely dropped the series despite the fact that I enjoyed the first two books. Hell, I haven't even read a Sanderson book since.

>>20350348
Yeah, true. And because of that, she explores fantasy in a way that no one else does. If you can't relate to the characters, then it's likely you never knew real depression, or you want to escape from yours.

>>20350342
Personally I didn't find it that depressing of a story but I was reading it coming off The First Law trilogy so my barometer for tragedy may have been a bit out of sync. Honestly I'm really tired of "le subverted your expectations of a happy ending haha aren't I so clever" stories.

>>20350281
I really wouldn't recommend listening to either Shadow of the Torturer or Darkness the Comes Before. Both are fairly complex (doubly so in the case of Shadow) and I could see someone easily getting lost while listening to an audiobook while at work.

>>20350364
Depression in fantasy is immersion breaking. It wouldn't exist in those settings because they spend too much time working outside and hiking around and fighting. If anything it would be called melancholy.

>>20349541
Objectively speaking, J.R.R. Tolkien. In fact his talent and contribution to the genre is so monumentally above and beyond any creator before or sense that he can rightly be considered the "God" of fantasy, the Unmoved Mover, the Creator from which all fantasy of the past century has sprung, and as such is utterly unapproachable, and all lesser creators are (unfairly) judged against him.

A better question to ask is "Who is the best fantasy author that isn't Tolkien?" You might get more helpful and varied answers there. For example, I personally find David Eddings to be among the best fantasy authors I've ever read.

>>20349710
I was phenomenally disappointed by this series. It's hardly the worst shit I've ever read but a 3000 page shaggy dog story that could have been accomplished in the space of about 600 pages is not my idea of a good time. So much padding to such a bland, soulless, hokey, and unfulfilling story makes me dread any attempt at starting Wheel of Time.

>>20350358
>>20350339
I don't know what to tell you then. I guess you won't mind reading these spoilers then.
Shallan loses herself in her own lies, becoming an amalgam of personalities, losing a grip on herself. She's so far gone, that she wanders the alleys as a nude shapeshifting creature. She's also forced to address her arrogance at thinking she could pretend to be others without their experience. As her actions led to the torture and killing of innocents when she unintentionally caught the attention of a gang.

Dalinar finally regains his memories, remembering that he's every bit of the monster people think he is. He committed such crimes that he can't forgive himself. Destroying a whole city, men women children and all. Getting his own wife killed in the process. And yet, the Stormfather lacking the ability to empathize with humans still thought of those events as a worthy thing, because Dalinar kept his oaths.

Kaladin finally comes to a point where we can't maintain the "us versus them" facade anymore, and completely botches the infiltration mission. Unable to choose a side, he watches as everyone he wants to protect die on both sides, including King Elhokar. Elhokar, who was finally done in by Moash's spear.

And finally where I left off: The gang get trapped in Shadesmar. Finally bringing Kaladin into this space. And I suspect that the upcoming chapters will be them exploring more of this world than I've seen before. Adolin finally gets to see the higher Spren. And he's making a connection with his sword spren. So I speculate that he'll find a way to either revive her or at least bond the broken spren, so she doesn't hurt anymore. Something that not even the Stormfather thought possible.

>>20350114
Be gone, chinese demon. The Wanderin Inn rules supreme here.

>>20350524
Ok? Not sure what your point with all those spoilers is. Sure, a few interesting things happen in the book, but it's never justifies the massive length of the book. It's horrendously bloated. And honestly, those spoilers aren't particularly compelling anyway.
Shallan's arc is just ridiculous and goofy. Kaladin grapples with depression yet again... Yay.
BTW, Shadesmar is probably the worst part of the book.

>>20350378
Not every sad story is attempting to subvert your expectations. The reason everything goes wrong in the book, is because Fitz is a depressed addict. His secrets, his lies, his avoidance, his substance dependence. He is never in control of his own emotional state at any time in the book. And because of this, he's always fumbling in some way.

>>20350395
Depression does not care how much hiking you do.

>>20350534
Shiller supreme.

>>20350567
I was actually thinking about the First Law when I wrote that. Honestly I thought the Assassin's Apprentice series was decent, the only real gripe I had with it was that the ending felt like a bit of an anticlimax when Fritz just kind of stumbles upon the solution to awaken the statues.

>>20350575
>Shiller supreme.
No other webnovel is worth so much shilling as TWI. People deserve to be aware of its superiority to all stories on the internet. If I died without being aware of TWI, I'd be mad as fuck in the Afterlife.

>>20350563
>Ok? Not sure what your point with all those spoilers is.
Well one of you said: "if you have chronic amnesia and completely forgot book 1 and 2 I can see why you would think part 3 has character development"
So I'm displaying what developed during this book.

>but it's never justifies the massive length of the book
A lot of it is comfy character and world building. Nothing wrong with that, so long as it's actually moving along. I'm usually critical of Sanderson's ability to bloat his works. But that's not the case this time. Book 3 changes PoV enough times that you get fresh perspectives from new characters. You get to see how *others* view Kaladin this time. Rather than always being stuck in his head. And it's doing a good job at making Bridge Four feel like a real team. You understand that despite the hardships each member goes through, they're all looking out for each other, and they all respect their captain. You need those moments, so that when these characters come together later, you feel a connection to them. You get excited for them. You root for their success, and mourn their failures.

>Shallan's arc is just ridiculous and goofy
It's fun to see the idea of someone who wraps themselves in lives get taken as far as it has. Sanderson could have just kept it tame. He could have allowed it to remain only a surface level problem. But he's twisting the character all the way down to her core, to the point where the reader isn't sure if she'll ever recover from those depths. Even if she does mellow out somewhat, she's still going to end up being scarred by these events.

>Kaladin grapples with depression yet again...
Uh huh... that's a really reductive way to describe what just happened.(where I left off) This thin rope that was holding up his entire moral structure just snapped. This entire time, he was relying on that "us versus them" mentality to keep him going. To justify his killing. And now what? How can he justify his continued actions in this war?

>>20350295
My biggest complaint with this series is the books are too long. I don't mind that they are a bit cheesy and dialog falls flat. But having 400-500 pages of filler sucks. Like>>20350308 says reading about kaladan coming to terms with depression or shallon having bad for the hundredth time gets old.

>>20350649
Soon...

>>20350657
>point by point breakdown
I've no interest in such an exhaustive discussion. This will be my last post on the matter. Suffice it to say, I disagree with you on every point.
Characters are just retreading similar arcs; I'd not call that compelling development.
Spending hundreds of pages on borderline irrelevant side characters and world building is pretty much the very definition of bloat (in books). I'd say the massive expansion in scope is arguably the biggest issue with OB. The series worked best when Sanderson really only had 3 POVs. He's just not talented enough to create a ton of compelling characters and plotlines.
It's not fun. It's stupid.
Because ultimately it just leads to more Kaladin moping.

>>20349533
which hobbit is the one standing with his arm crossed?
what the fuck is his problem?

>>20350749
Agree with all your points. Oathbringer filtered me hard. If I ever read another Sanderson book it will probably be the last Era 2 book because they are short and to the point with less cringe characters... so far.

>>20350749
I don't blame you for not wanting a point for point discussion. But I think you're wrong about everything too. These characters are who they are, so they respond how they respond. It's called consistency. A persona can change and grow without completely changing who they are. Kaladin is a brooding type of guy. But he finds new reasons to brood. His reasons in book 1 are different than those in book 3. He managed to grow and take on more responsibility. But the new responsibility created new challenges, which forces him to go through new stresses.

>>20350792
Probably Frodo

>>20350674
I disagree, honestly.
The filler is what makes the world building work.
I wish these books were longer.

>>20350047
Is there a way to search Goodreads for books most frequently called sexist or problematic? I feel that this may be a new avenue to explore for recommendations.

I did find schizo shallen to be a bit overdone, but the payoff was worth i think

Anyone read this?

I want to read a fantasy book next and I'm thinking of reading this.

>>20350534
Fuck off

>>20350567
>Depression does not c - ACK!

>>20350114

Why is there so much weebs hit in this thread?

>>20350909
ESLs who see no difference between literary prose and MTL shite

Why is such a massive portion of fantasy works done on medieval settings

>>20350909
They're all chinkfags. And they were probably driven out of /a/ and now infest these threads.

>>20350919
Depends on the sub-genre, urban fantasy exists.

>>20350919
It provides an advanced society with mechanics allowing for characters to become prominent, but not too advanced, so you don't need to deal with modern bullshit. Too primitive societies are not enough to explore moral and philosphical concepts, too advanced ones seem all too similar to our own, thus reducing the distance mind acquired by telling the story in medieval context, removed from modern sensibilities and expectations.

>>20350919
because 99% of other settings are fucking cringe

>>20350047
Wish it was as based as it sounds
I read the darkness that comes before and I'm convinced this general only worships bakker because they're hipsters
that book isn't anything special, the only difference with the average fantasy book is that it's very obtuse and you need patience to get crumbs of context hundreds of pages after something is first mentioned
so it gives hipsters a sense of accomplishment for enduring so many pages and finally finding out what's going on, then they keep talking about the books to show how special they are for being fans of a series that most people don't want to bother reading

>>20350534
>shilling a **man "author"

>>20349533
Judging Eye has a fucking awesome ending. I don't care if it's tropy, it was incredibly enjoyable and I hope the series continues on this trajectory.

Bakkerfags is this the better series as opposed to the first?

I will probably only read Stormlight 5 to discuss it in this thread with you fags.

>>20351060
I was bored with the series but the way the last book ended has me a bit interested to see how it plays out

>>20351114
it's been a while since I finished Rhythm of War but why did they agree to have a duel between champions or something at all? Wasn't Odium already winning anyways? I thought he would just win in the long term

>>20351028
>this general worships bakker
if even 3 different people were posting this shit i'd be surprised

>>20350919
because fantasy is a genera that is defined by an expectation of certain clichés

>>20351144
He initially agreed to the champion thing because he was confident he could make Dalinar his champion. That didn't work out, but he'd already agreed and Shards can't break oaths like that, so he basically screwed himself into having to deal with the combat by champion thing, and he also never let the terms be settled so he had to accept SOMETHING, leaving Dalinar a lot more room to negotiate.

>>20351057
For me, the first is the most supreme, but I understand if you like the second one more.

>>20351208
This looks gay

>>20351195
ah ok, sounds familiar. So, is the entire fifth book just dedicated to the duel? I forgot what everyone else was up to

>>20350649
aware that it's utter shit?
Yeah.

>>20351214
You hate masculinity, but we embrace it, you want art to be soft, we like it hard and vicious.

>>20350224
>>20350236
Absolutely loved Book of the New Sun, but I still haven't jumped into Urth. Wolfe has so much stuff, though, it's tough to justify just doing another New Sun book.

>>20351218
The fourth book is mostly Odium realising there was never a due date for the duel, so he instead just wages war. Fifth book isn't out yet. But Taravangian killed Odium and took his Shard so who knows what the fuck now.

>>20351195
>>20351144
Yeah but then taravangian uses nightblood to kill odium then become the new odium. Then he erases part of wit's memory after wit realizes something is wrong. He appears to still be going through with the dual but also seems far more clever and careful than the last odium.

>>20351236
Yep, gay as fuck.

>>20351257
I don't care, still supreme.

Why don't you faggots make a Bakker circle jerk general?

You chinkshit fags can do the same.

>>20351214
What did you expect from a dogfucking weedsmoking atheist canadian meninist?

>>20351195
I don't get it. Wouldn't Dalinar be a fairly shit champion? His powers aren't useful for combat.

>>20351239
Why? Urth brings everything together.

>>20351266
You envy the supremacy of Bakker, you know that he is based and he makes the feminists rage and scream, and you also know that he makes their pussy cream at the same time, because he knows what women love, a supreme man that doesn't care about non-supreme things, also you will never understand the complexity of Bakker, because your brain is too brainwashed by the SJW feminist propaganda machine, so brainwashed you call him "meninist", you probably read sandersoi and have a dedicated shelf for only sandersoi, this is the misery of the sandersoi reader.

>>20351268
He'd prolly be juiced up on odium

>>20351214
homoerotic*

>>20350159
cuckold

>>20351268

>>20351263
Speaking of generals that should exist but won't because /lit/ is a shit board. A >>20351344 Three Kingdoms general would be great. A mix of /his/ and /lit/.

>>20351268
He really should have just named nightblood his champion since it is sentiant.

>>20351263
Why? It is all fantasy and belong in /sffg/

>>20349541
tolkien

>>20350848
Haven't read it but I heard it's shaping up to be better than his first series, The Faithful and the Fallen or some shit

>>20350909
They are celebrating Asian American and Pacific Islander Month.

>>20351385
how is that series?

>>20351465
I liked it. It's fairly tropey, but I don't mind tropes.

>>20351493
That doesn't really tell me very much. What's the gist of the story and characters and setting? How's the writing? What's the tone?

>>20351501
I'm not going to give you a full review/summary anon. Especially since I read it years ago so my memory is hazy. Give it a try yourself if your interested.

>>20350200
Apparently it's called a 'Frame story', it got a Wikipedia article and everything.
Idea old as dirt.

Wonder about the trick of declaring that one of the story tellers are unreliable / not to be trusted (the "spy"),.
That was a really clever way to get some tension. Kinda marvel at how simple and effective it was.

Was that Hyperion being brilliant, or is that idea also originating from something else? Hmmm.

>>20351028
>attempts to psychologize the readers instead of engaging with the text

many such cases

>>20350919
Because hitting things with swords make a lot of sense to our monkey brains. The medieval world is one that is "lived in". Lacking modern conveniences, the character actions feel more "tactile". There's a difference between saying someone drove 10 miles, and then saying they hiked 10 miles. You feel the distance. It was a labor. Your body understands labor. Your body understand that it was difficult. And so, you feel the distance both intellectually, and physically in your bones.

What about science fiction, who's the best author?

>>20351554
Wolfe, no contest.

>>20351604
A known peasant, named after jackals.

>>20351554
Elon Musk

>>20351623
Cave Canem

>>20351623
trying way too hard dude

>>20351273
Just haven't gotten around to it yet. Read Fifth Head of Cerberus immediately after Cidatel and felt like I should take a slight break from the Wolfeman after that. Do plan on getting to it at some point, though.
>>20351554
I would say from what I read Wolfe. Need to look at more Asimov, though.

>>20351554
Alan Dean Foster desu

>>20350919
Because Tolkien codified the generic fantasy setting by inspiring an untold number of copycats. Tolkien's shadow is so incredibly long that even motherfucking Japan defaults to faux European middle ages rather than their own equivalent period. At some point the medieval fantasy setting gained a momentum of its own. Don't underestimate the power of familiarity. It's why brands work and corporations blow obscene amounts of money on marketing. People are so familiar with medieval fantasy that the setting is comforting by itself. And it's self-sustaining. The fantasy writers of tomorrow will recruit themselves mostly from the fantasy readers of today. Being so very familiar with the ubiquitous medieval fantasy novels inevitably makes them more comfortable to write another one for the pile themselves instead of taking a less traveled path.

Tell me some fantasy with lots of fighting/fast pacing, i mostly like reading wuxia/xianxia because of that, but i want something different from cultivation

>>20352151
Will Wight does a lot of fights, but Traveler's Gate is the most fight-heavy. Even Cradle has a lot of time set aside for character moments and training.

>>20352151
How much is "lots"?

>>20352162
I consider cradle cultivation and I have finished all 10 books last year
Im reading i shall seal the heavens right now

wanted something that wasn't so "Asian", cultivation / power levels / ranks that type of shit

>>20352172
Well, Traveler's Gate isn't really Asian apart from the big swords being basically nodachis, so give it a go maybe.

>>20352151
I'm a fellow chingfag and I've been reading Vlad Taltos by Steven Brust. The first book had really solid pacing, haven't finished the second one yet but it's a bit slower in comparison.
Although unlike chinkshit it's less non-stop action but more build up to the action. But the pace is still really good.

>>20352186
yeah i really like chinkshit because of the non-stop action, i will take a look ty bro

>>20352175
I had already taken a look at the book in the store after finishing cradle but it didn't catch my attention, I'll read it the book later ty anon

>>20352167
I didn't think of a quantity, but I don't want >at the moment< to read for example fantasy where the character spends 700 pages in a single book discussing politics, I want entertainment

>>20352214
First book of Traveler's Gate is admittedly fairly mediocre, but it IS his first published work. It gets... I'd say better-paced at least, the plot actually exists.

Brothers and sisters, am I insane for thinking fight scenes are, like, inherently bad? Everything good about fight scenes is not about fights. Banter is nice, cool and epic abilities are, well, epic. But actually reading battles is a fucking slog that makes my eyes bleed. I don't need to read two pages of two people pirueting, whirling, jumping, sliping behind someone's guard, etc. Seriously think about it, everything that's good about fight scenes is not about fight scenes themselves. A fight scene only works if it's a normal scene that's about fight, but doesn't concern itself with describing actual moves unless it's really important.

Feel free to provide me a good fight scene to prove me wrong, whatever literary medium.

>>20352231
I can picture any scene perfectly in any book I read, so fight scenes are fun for me.

But I think what I like the most is when a scene makes me laugh, genuine laughter, not a comedy book, but reading something and with the context and characters I can laugh, it's about those little moments.

>>20352231
>>20352251
>I can picture any scene perfectly in any book I read, so fight scenes are fun for me.
Pretty much this. Cradle has many enjoyable fight scenes off the top of my head. Ghostwater, Wintersteel, and Blackflame all have very memorable fights I can replay in my mind as though it were a movie thanks to the narrated choreography.

>>20352293
I think Uncrowned has my personal favourite so far. Will Wight writes fights right, though. Even Elder Empire, as toned-down as its action scenarios were in physicality (with the exception of two characters, most people fight like just people with some occasional magic aid), still had a good sense of scale and placement.

>>20352231
I agree for personal combat. It's totally boring. But battles and even small unit fighting can be good.

>>20352231
It's for the movie adaptation pimp

>>20352330
Wight really constructs his fights more as a puzzle, honestly, which makes them more bearable. Like for example against Kiro in Underlord, where the victory condition was to push him into the dream madra display. Rather than being a head to head fight, Wight likes to make the win condition for each character something tangential to the action rather than just Punch Harder.

>>20352225
David Eddings' Belgariad/Malloreon and Elenium/Tamuli series have, by that definition, a lot of action. Eddings novels are broadly similar to Tolkien but "streamlined" you might say of Tolkien's deliberate antiquarianism and archaicisms, but are still quite hefty.
Edgar Rice Burroughs' Barsoom novels (John Carter of Mars, etc) are basically nonstop action with almost no time for rest of introspection at all, let alone serious discussion of politics.
Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian stories are pretty similar, though slightly more "intelligent" than Barsoom I might say.
I'm currently reading a series by Mercedes Lackey called "The Obsidian Trilogy" which is so far pretty good (I'm halfway through the second book), has a similar pacing to the Eddings' novels I mentioned, with a good balance between action and introspection.
What's your opinion on "children's" literature? The Chronicles of Prydain are pretty action-packed for the most part, though to far less graphic standards than most popular series, excepting the 4th book which is designed explicitly to be a rest from the almost nonstop action of the rest of the series.

I'm on book 8 of Wheel of Time and I'm still enjoying it. When is the slog?

>>20352507
You're entering it. Books 1 to 7 are fine. Jordan gets increasingly sidetracked and bogged down afterwards. 12 to 14 are just a mess bordering on fanfiction courtesy of Sanderson, but some will say at least you get some closure.

>>20352532
>>20352507
Sanderson's books aren't so bad in hindsight. Especially now that we know just how bad official fanfiction can be. He'll never be forgiven for completely forgetting about Dobraine and Sulin though. That fuck.

>>20352507
Most say it begins around either book 7 or 8.

>>20352507
I gave up chapter 1 of book 4

Any recs for fantasy books that got female characters who have that slutty unabashedly feminine zoomer girl vibe?

I wish that there was more fantasy out there worth reading beyond George RR Martin and Tolkien
Sadly it's just a fact that fantasy is a garbage genre full of shit Tolkien imitators who missed the entire point of LOTR and schlocky Conan shit

>>20352624
library at mount char

>>20352507
Books 9-10 is the worst of it, unless you're a massive Perrin stan.

>>20350186
>The issue was the creative team seemed to just give up.
If you’ve ever watched more than one HBO series you’d know that this is the case for the majority of their shows

>>20350047
I can sort of understand why you might not like some of those, but why would you not believe in meritocracy?

>>20352644
Try Brandon Sanderson. He really breathed life into the genre and is basically the modern Tolkien. Although his stuff is quite a bit more complex and thoughtful.

>>20352644
>Grr they're immitating Tolkien!
>But they're not like Tolkien at all, gah!
Meds.

>>20352665
I'm not reading Mormon filth anon
>>20352667
Yep

>>20352644
you're dumb as hell and gay too desu

>>20352162
This book is written quite poorly. It also has Lindon's character arc from books 1-9 of Cradle jammed into a few hundred pages.

>>20350919
Because giant monsters and wizards aren’t all that scary when you can turn them into pink mist with artillery.

>>20352676
Well I'm an MtF and I'm attracted to men but I don't think I'm stupid
Anyway A Feast for Crows was the best ASOIAF book besides A Storm of Swords

>>20350919
Realistically few of them are. Unless by medieval you mean there are swords and wizards.

What are some fantasy books based on the late roman/early middle ages

>>20352688
A Feast for Crows really is the biggest retard filter. So many fun new storylines. Brienne wandering in the riverlands was the coziest part of the story so far.

>>20350848
>2/3 protagonists are female
Gay

>>20352644
You should read N. K. Jemisin, she has reinvented the genre and received many awards for it, more than GRRM even :)

>>20352688
Do you pass?

>>20352709
Agreed
Idk why people hate that part of the story
I liked seeing Brienne and Podrick travelling together and Nimble Dick was fun, as well as the other people she met on the way
Idk why George had to give Nimble Dick such a brutal death though

>>20352661
I've watched a handful and, at least from the ones I saw, that wasn't the case.

>>20352688
>I'm MTF but I don't think I'm stupid
lel

>>20352720
I don't know why that would matter
>>20352714
She's the one who harassed the 'I Sexually Identify as an Attack Helicopter' author without having read her story
No thanks

>>20352709
No, the biggest retard filter is Dance. People keep memeing about Dany's shitting scene without even noticing that Gurm foreshadowed King Bran right then and there.

>>20352231
I think the only series where I enjoyed the fights was Red Rising. A lot of short fights where named motherfuckers are getting their heads chopped off every two sentences. Felt like a samurai duels where the winner is decided in like two moves.

>>20352782
What's the point of smashing Spain into France when Scandinavia is a dead giveaway regardless?

>everybody complains about bakkerfag
>nobody says a word about AsoIaF is the best thing ever fag
sasuga
wish altchans werent fucking dead so a place to discuss books without normalfags existed

What are the best western progression fantasy works? Amateurs preferred, I really felt like writing my own but I realized that there was no point in trying to emulate chinchongs who get paid by the word.

>>20352833
The one's I see most talked about are;
Cradle
Mage Errant
Arcane Acension
Mother of Leearning
Bastion
Irone Prince

>>20352851
Mage Errant and Arcane Ascension suck.

I just got my copies of the Wizard Knight by Wolfe and the Earthsea series by Le Guin any recommendations which I should start with?

>>20352888
Are you really that much of an indecisive bitch that you can't choice on your own?

>>20352897
>you can't choice on your own
Sup ESL

>>20352897
I'd just like to hear peoples opinions you retard, Both will be read one way or another I'm just interested in the thoughts of others.

>>20352709
Cersie chapters are my fave in all of asoif.

>>20352888
Decide on your own, anon. Be a man for once in your life.

>>20352888
Earthsea

>>20352888
Wizard Knight

>>20352784
Darrow beating Cassius because of "muh secret training" was such an asspull, but damn was it hype. Also Victra is best girl and doesn't deserve to go through the suffering she goes through in the sequel series.

>>20352888
I've only read the Hainish books by Le Guin and found whatever story was in them to be crushed beneath a series of lectures on gender ideology. Haven't read Eathsea.

Wizard Knight has a deep and fascinating cosmology layered alongside a deceptively simple coming of age story.

>>20352833
Cradle and Zombie Knight Saga. I wouldn't call ZKS a progression novel per se, but it's close enough and the setting and powers are pretty cool.

>>20352914
It's great because you see the hints of him apprenticing under Lorn all the way back to the Drafting in Red Rising. Darrow did give off a hell of an impression, especially with how horny Lorn was for the whole "muh Iron Gold"

What novels do magic used within a battlefield well? I'm talking like massive spells cast by battle-mages, Incantations spoken by warrior-priests - huge explosions that make your average soldier run for cover.

>>20352940
Quite unironically Bakker

>>20352644
>Conan
>schlock
You haven't even read any, that much is painfully obvious.

>>20352922
How does Zombie Kight compare to other webnovels?

>>20352940
The Powder Mage series

>>20352940
I don't read a lot like that but I thought malazan did it well.

>>20349541
the anons who wrote the Bible

>>20352988
>referring to a spell as "the spell"
How lazy can you fucking get? Terrible writing.

>>20352980
It's one of the best webnovels out there imo. It starts slow and the MC is kinda pathetic in the beginning, but his development is one of the best things about the novels alongside the power system.

>>20351028
You're insecure. It's very easy to follow. No one thinks they're cool because it's hard or whatever (it isn't). Fantasy in general is terrible so it stands out a little bit for various reasons.

I don't know who is memeing it but I suppose it originally started because Bakker makes normalfags seethe and spout nonsense that indicates they've never even read the books, like that goodreads pic. e.g. All of the depictions of women in the first series are somewhat heavyhanded pretexts to Bakker's attempts at feminist lamentations and damning male-led, fundamentalist religious societies. He depicts women very accurately but always sympathetically and ultimately righteous. This is very obvious and clearcut. Yet the social ideology that grips our societies is so sensitive and belligerent that it doesn't matter.

The second series has no negative depiction of women and instead the usual depiction of there essentially not being much difference between men and women, except that women are ultimately better and worth more, thankfully largely excluding the psychopathic girlboss shit that usually passes for a female character. Bakker clearly went more neutral when he realised fantasy readers are too dumb to get obvious shit and the social ideology is too far gone.

>>20352664
I suppose he thinks it's a slur because it's discriminatory. However, nothing in it is meritocratic really, I mean the caste system is constantly references, so as I said, it's really just a slur he threw in.

>>20352940
I'll second Pwder Mage. You have typical Wizards that can level battlefields, and Powder Mages who specialize in sniping those Wizards from outside their range using what is essentially psychokinesis to guide their bullets well beyond the range they're normally capable of. This in turn leads to other tactics like the wizards sitting in armored boxes using mirrors and periscopes to aim.

>>20352151
It’s been awhile but powdermage had a lot of fighting. One of the MCs becomes powerful enough to take on armies single handed. 2nd series becomes a slog tho I skimmed the last book.

>>20353111
The lengths the """"privileged"""" go to in order to not get instagibbed by the Powder CHADS in those books is fucking hilarious

>>20352940
You're describing The Black Company.

>>20352644
You cannot complete this list without reading jack vance first, after that there are slim pickings though, a simmons here, a bakker there

>>20352865
Any of the other ones good? I love cradle and have been trying to find something comparable

>>20350919
It developed out of medieval literature traditions.

>>20353158
Mother of Learning is great. I wouldn't call it progression fantasy in the same sense that Cradle, Bastion and Iron Prince are, although it does belong in the genre. I wouldn't even call Mage Errant progression fantasy as the kids all went from scared of the school bully to engaging in mass murder off screen between books.

>>20350071
Wait till you try Endymion

In fact no, just don't try Endymion

>>20353158
There are plenty xianxia/wuxia inspired western novels theses days, but none are as good as cradle nor the novels they're trying to crib. I suggest going to the source if you don't mind awkward translations.

>>20353193
Thanks I’m not big on time loop premises but I’ll give it a try

>>20350200
It's Canterbury Tales. Hyperion is Canterbury Tales and so is everything else.

>>20352919
You thought the Hain books were heavy handed? I think they're pretty fair and balanced, I value that in them

The Word For World Is Forest, now there's an extremely thinly veiled essay on her thoughts about the Vietnam war, without any spectre of nuance or subtlety. But I'm not sure if that's a Hain book.

>>20353147
Well I've read Dying Earth and thought it was terrible
Maybe Lyonesse will be different

>>20350919
Because medieval romanticism is the embodiment of western heroism and valor. Nothing is more romantic than a chud in full plate armor, on a quest and sworn to a chivalric code of honor.

>>20352714
I liked Inheritance for being trashy incest porn with Super Saiyan fights. Dreamblood was just okay. Broken Earth had fun worldbuilding in book one, but book two and three weeks a boring pretentious drag. Great Cities is wank.

Shiny best boy.

For the past few weeks I've just been pulling random sci-fi by nobodies of mobilism and it's actually been very enjoyable.

>>20353249
>chud

Right now an event similar to the crisis of the 17th century is occurring. The king of O'eda Grion of Soorina Hasov has plans to send an army to their lands in the Ingomet of Algio. There are rumors circulating in the Algian court that the minister of war has plans to reconquer the land as a means of raising revenue to prevent the barbarians (the Frooqie) to the west from raiding. In the east, the Cathrian Empire is experiencing internal turmoil as after a long line of kings acting more as puppets of the nobles as well as the Tumol mercenaries being very fond of choosing their very own king the empire is beginning to feel civil strife. Ultimately the empire will fall at the end of the century due to Tumol uprisings because of a lack of pay, a Veranian invasion into their heartland, and the people viewing themselves less as Cathrian and more of their own ethnic group

>>20353250
Dilate

>>20353275
Huh?

>>20353275
lol you forgot to change the North African coast

>>20353275
Cathar chads rise up

>>20353280
>>20353287
what

>>20353280
What's huh? He explained the situation in detail, with a map.

>>20352940
Bakker.
One of the first chapters of the first book has a really well done scene describing the horror which the arrival of the mages brings about on an opposing army.

>>20353242
I had the same reaction to Dying Earth but Lyonesse is fantastic.

>>20352330
>Will Wight writes fights right
say that 3 times fast

I saw the book Dangerous Women, hardcover and great condition for $2 at a local charity store but I decided not to buy it because I didn't realise that the story that George wrote was in the ASOIAF universe
I'm kicking myself so fucking much now

>>20353298
CAEDITE EOS

>>20353242
That's because you're retarded, anon.

Tolkien = Vance > Wolke > Peake > Bakker > all other worthless fantasy authors

>>20349049
>Your time zone is the only time zone people live in.

Why do Americans think this way?

>>20353715
Go shitpost somewhere else, you chink fuck.

>>20350200
>Two frenemies take turns answering each others questions. You get a question, I get a question, you get a question, I get a question...

I will hunt down the next author that does this and I will break their fingers.

>>20350324
>Darkness that Comes Before
Thanks M8

>>20350534

I like the chinese books, but the wandering inn I like more. Both are just nice to listen to while sleeping. They give my dreams interesting flavors.

>>20349541
Gotta be Tolkien.

>>20352172
There was this one where a couple gary stew American soldier buddies get transported to a cultivation shell world setup and make their own city in a dungeon while they keep going deeper to reach peak cultivation. It was full of guns and typical cultivation tropes with protagonists that are about as morally complicated as a potato. I don't remember what it was called. I think I read like six books in before I dropped it.

I'm sure someone knows it's name, It might be the sort of shit you like.

Half way into Ember book 3, oh no the ghosts will get out and the gins will take over and the scholars will all die blah blah blah. I thought I was going to get real grim dark, I thought I would get a pov from the torturer or rapist. Instead I get a slow slog of a couple people realizing that slavery is bad.

Give me some dark recommendations. Where a skilled author really puts you in the mind of someone evil as he does evil deeds.

>>20353802
Reverend Insanity.

>>20353826
no results on amazon

An epic tale of medieval horror

>>20353847
Fang Yuan is so evil it's literally illegal and his story got banned from publication.

>>20353847
It’s a terrible Chinese webnovel not worth reading. He’s just trying to trick you into reading it. Just ignore him.

>>20353849
Might be time to read this after I finish Green Bone, I liked Blacktongue Thief

Finishing Of Shadow And Sea and getting back to Calder in Dawn and Darkness was a relief

>>20352851
>Great
>Overall decent, has a problem with creep
>Enjoyable, but some of the author's weakest characterisation
>Haven't read
>Solid enough, but definitely too long
>Not good at all why the fuck do people like Iron Prince it's so bland

>>20352678
I think the first book is pretty bland, yeah. The second and third don't really improve Simon's characterisation (I still can't tell you a single personality trait besides "maybe grumpy") but they're better paced, and the third book has one of my favourite fight scenes.

I just finished I shall seal the heavens book 3, although several sentences are repeated that I'm almost sure it's the translation's fault, the alchemy saga and the end of the book was very good

>>20354025
sounds cool

>>20353242
What didn’t you like about dying earth? It’s a bunch of fun episodic stories and the book itself is short. Did you give Eyes of the Overworld a shot?

>>20353849
Best looking cover ever

>>20353802
A Practical Guide to Evil. It's a free webnovel that just finish around February of this year.

>>20353826
You keep shilling this shitty as story, but no one is ever going to read it.

>>20351942
i like what sanderson is doing
the progressive ages though mistborn and the tech leaps through stormlight archives, along with other worlds in cosmere being further ahead or behind in tech

>>20350534
Read The Flying Inn.

>>20354089
>the progressive ages though mistborn and the tech leaps through stormlight archives, along with other worlds in cosmere being further ahead or behind in tech
Sounds like a nice fresh of breath air when compared to the stasis of other fantasies.

>>20350295
Glad, you’re enjoying binge reading, anon.

Fuck I'm so happy reading A Dance with Dragons
I can't wait for TWOW to come out and then I'll be happy reading that too
I love reading books

>>20354172
>Fuck I'm so happy reading A Dance with Dragons
Surprised you weren't filtered like the rest of /sffg/.

>>20354176
Why?
I'm only 1/4 the way through, does it get bad?
I just feel really good and am very immersed atm

>>20354178
>does it get bad?
No, but /sffg/ hates it for some stupid reason.

>>20354178
/sffg/ hates a feast for crows and dance with dragons despite them being good books.

>>20354178
>Why?
Nobody knows. A feast of crows is overall great once I read it for myself and didn’t understood the complaints it got here. Same with a Dance of Dragons. Overall, I just think people here expected something different. Brienne’s chapters were my favorite. As well with Cersei.

>>20354172
>I can't wait for TWOW to come out
Oh you sweet summer child...

>>20354234
It's coming out, you idiot.

>>20354244
Pretty much this. I doubt the last book ever will.

>>20354244
Sure it will. Just two more months. Trust the plan!

>>20354294
Kek, imagine seething over a fantasy series.

>>20354295
>seething
I'm laughing, sweetie, about people who are honest to God retarded enough to still let themselves get stringed along by the fat man in the year of our Lord 2022.

>>20354304
Grow up, anon.

>>20354304
Whatever you say, anon. Nothing wrong with waiting for a series you like.

>>20354178
Which chapters are your favorite? Jon, Davos, and Asha were my favorite.

>>20354323
>>20354311
>>20354310
>>20354304
>>20354295
>>20354294
>>20354252
>>20354244
>>20354234
>>20354225
>>20354194
>>20354186
>>20354178
>>20354176
>>20354172
wow who cares

>>20354339
People who read the series?

>>20354323
Ironborn chapters are my favorite. I really wish we gotten more of them in the earlier books.

>>20354339
Why are you here if you hate discussion?

>>20354346
>Ironborn chapters are my favorite
Same. Something about them just makes me enjoy them. Especially Victorian. Hope his plans works out.

>>20354370
I just want to see where Euron's crazy plans heads to. Especially with him fucking Daenerys in her dreams

>>20354378
Isn't he trying to summon a pod of Krakens or some shit? I remember reading that in lore they're attracted by blood, hence the fleet battle

Reminder that Gurm is a complete sellout who defends the butchering of his work at the hands of Dumb and Dumber to this day.
Reminder that Gurm let House Velaryon be turned into niggers because he cares more about his paycheck than about artistic integrity.
Reminder that Gurm is taking so long with Winds of Winter because he's busy rewriting his whole planned story to appease the woke crowd.

>>20354384
>Isn't he trying to summon a pod of Krakens or some shit?
Yeah, he's doing that, but he's also fucking with Daenerys, if her chapters are anything to go by, especially when she thinks about her dreams.

>>20354388
You can always leave if you hate discussions about books.

>>20354401
Not an argument, Gurmtranny

>>20354384
>>20354392
I thought he wanted Dragons. Isn’t that why he sent Euron to find her?

>>20354414
I was talking about TWoW chapters where he's leading a fleet against Hightower or something and he's got a bunch of human sacrifices lined up on his ships including a girl pregnant with his child or something.

>>20354418
Ah, I never got around to reading those chapters. My bad.

>>20354418
>TWoW chapters where he's leading a fleet against Hightower or something and he's got a bunch of human sacrifices lined up on his ships including a girl pregnant with his child or something.
I still think its a feint. I think Euron wants to summon an eldritch apocalypse with him being the new God-King.

Is
The World of Ice & Fire
Fire and Blood
Worth buying? How boring is Fire and Blood?

>>20354440
It expands the world.

I was at Target today and what did I see but /ourgal/? I'm going to have to read these books.

>>20354440
"The World of Ice and Fire" is just a shameless cashgrab targeting whales. Barely one step above "The Wits and Wisdom of Tyrion Lannister."
"Fire and Blood" is fake history assembled by a fake historian. Has its appeal but is a very different beast from the main series or "Dunk and Egg."

>>20354451
>fake history assembled by a fake historian.
You basically describe every fantasy.

>>20354455
Touche. But this goes a step further, because it's presented as the research of a maester who tried to write a historical account of the early Targaryen reign by delving into primary sources. The TV show will have a completely different tone to it.

>>20354473
>But this goes a step further
It doesn’t.

>>20354480
If you say so.

>>20349541
Tolkien. This isn't up for debate.

>>20354178
The Theon chapters in Dance are legitimately the best writing in the series.

>>20354440
>buying books
Anon, I...

>>20354538
Not a poorfag.

I am so annoyed. I've seen multiple people recommending Super Sales on Super Heroes and I thought it will be a good smut book. So, I've started reading and at first I was blown away! A character having a power that enchances other people? Able to customize everything? That was dope as hell, I was fascinated how will the author explore it. Instead I've got the most dissapointing experience in a while. I don't think a single person in book felt real, acting like actual human beings. I expected a smut, but I wouldn't mind if the author just teased if the book was good in other areas. Instead, the book had the audacity of doing sexual teasing and not giving a single sex scene. Sorry, but in a book that appears to be smut I can only take that as false advertising, so it's a flaw to me.

But okay, maybe instead of coom stuff the book is good in other areas? No. It appears to at the first glance, but it gets worse by the moment. The protagonist is an absolute idiot who despite living years with his powers didn't think of basic things, nor explored it in any meaningful way. He literally acts as if he had gotten it yesterday. If you hope for some smart and interesting using of the power, stop right here. You're only going to be satisfied if you are a retard or have incredibly low standards. The protagonist also seemed interesting at first. Indifferent, proffesional, goal oriented. I'm a sucker for competent Main Characters. But no, he's basically just a dumb psychopath, and so are many other characters in the story. I don't believe it was the author intention to write him like that, or the other characters. The author is probably an alien who'd learned how humans work through the internet, because he sure as hell doesn't know.

It's jsut so fucking dissapoiting. I didn't expect a rational story, I'd just check rat sphere if I wanted one, but this book was stupid it hurt. A decent idea squashed by the most shallow, dumb and lightining fast power fantasy. A person could write an entire series for events that took only in this book, and do it much better and more fleshed out.

4/10, competently written trash that makes me not read any other book from the author. By the way, I've just read that William D. Arand is apparently Randi Darren, the other popular smut author? I honestly already confused them because of similar names, but I assume under William he writes semi-smut that only teases, while under Randi he writes actual smut. Interesting choice, but I feel tricked nonetheless.

I don't recommend this if you have braincells or want to maintain them in good health. Again, what a fucking dissapointment.

>>20351028
> this general only worships bakker because they're hipsters
Yes, and?

>>20351028
It’s just one fag who spams endlessly. Whenever he gets ban, no one mentions that author.

>>20354546
>But no, he's basically just a dumb psychopath, and so are many other characters in the story. I don't believe it was the author intention to write him like that, or the other characters. The author is probably an alien who'd learned how humans work through the internet, because he sure as hell doesn't know.
So, this book is /lit/ approved then?

>>20354546
Arand is one of those authors who goes super hard on base building autism. I don't get why people are interested in it. It's sim city roleplay, it's utterly uninteresting.
If you want Superhero+Smut I'd recommend Saving Supervillains. It's basically about a (retired) villain getting recruited into a superhero organization as a manager/coach after he helps a super whose power was going haywire.
Another series you might like is T.A.P by Cebelius. This one is much more original than most superhero stories, in that the protagonist isn't really a superhero at all. In fact, he's a cripple. But he can awaken electronic devices. When he turns them on, they become sentient. Can't use anything connected to the Internet, because anything with access to twitter becomes a complete legbeard. The Superhero in this series is his childhood friend turned psychopathic stalker who is the Big Bad villain of the setting. He is aided by his car, who can turn into a 9 foot tall titty goddess with a racing stripe.

>check thread first time in almost half a day
>chunks cluttered with asoiaf normalfags
oh god I didnt mean to inadvertently beetlejuice them I didnt know how bad things could really get

>>20353237
Maybe they were fine for the time but today I can't buy a cup of coffee without an accompanying lecture on gender identity. It's enough. I don't want to hear what anyone else has to say about the topic, balanced or no.

>>20354585
>I can't buy a cup of coffee without an accompanying lecture on gender identity.
Anon, you should stop being in the internet and Twitter and touch grass because this never happens.

>>20354595
I live in New York City.

>>20354567
>If you want Superhero+Smut I'd recommend Saving Supervillains. It's basically about a (retired) villain getting recruited into a superhero organization as a manager/coach after he helps a super whose power was going haywire.
>Another series you might like is T.A.P by Cebelius.
Thanks for the write-up Anon, will definitely add those to the list.

>>20354598
I'm so sorry

Feel so alone and just want to die lads

>>20354682
Just take refuge in porn fantasy.

>>20354682
Just end it, anon.

>dad got filtered by Peake
First Bakker, now this. Why does my father keep asking me for recommendations?

>>20354761
Bakker is a shit recommendation, I can’t fault him for it. Sorry about Peake. Try Vance.

New thread
>>20354784

Is Clan of the Cavebear worth trying?

>>20354785
And the grimdark spammer is back after his 3 days ban.

>>20354806
Just report him for spamming. He’s already doing it.

>>20354794

Ehhh, give it a shot. On the upshot, it's very authentic about its setting. There's HUGE tracts of exposition about the tundras and steppes. You want to know how the characters create a dugout canoe? We'll you're going to fucking find out.
The downside is that the Protagonist Ayla is essentially the definition of a Mary Sue. She's the smartest, toughest, most brilliantest smoking hot babe that were was and she gets a boyfriend who is a 6'6 aryan gigachad who left home and travelled across the world because he could never find a woman who was capable of taking his 15 incher balls deep. Then she spends the entire third book cucking him with a nigger.
There's also a stupendous amount of graphic sex. It's full blown fem coomer material, it's got a content to smut ratio similar to the coomlit we talk about here. Similar in the sense that the coomlit we talk about has ALMOST as much sex

>>20354761
I'd be glad if my father actually appreciated fantasy books. Sorry your dad is a filteré though

>>20354172
>can't wait for TWOW to come out
I hope this is b8

>>20354851
No it's not
I'm very excited

>>20354244
>It's coming out
Anon, it has been 11 years since A Dance With Dragons. There are two books after TWoW, he doesn't have that much life left, not before he becomes a cabbage anyway.

>>20354854
It's not coming out. Not ever. Just shut the fuck up about it.

>>20352851
Thanks, Mother of Learning looks like it fits my criteria. The rest are already published so they're no good.