/lit/ - Literature

>>21704462
The Night Land is actually not bad at all - just keep in mind that you should skip the first two chapters. It goes from unreadable to interesting in a really abrupt sort of way. For some reason he frames it as a diary of an English aristocrat, only to forget it in both writing style and plot, outside of having that one woman he likes in another pyramid.

Any good recent modern dark fantasy books from the last couple of years?

I read the Bloodsworn Saga recently and found that pretty good. Not sure when the 3rd book is coming but probably not until late this year at the earliest.

Want something set in a dark fantasy world with demons, evil creatures, witches, other mythical beings, dark magic and that sort of thing.

>>21704504
>Want something set in a dark fantasy world with demons, evil creatures, witches, other mythical beings, dark magic and that sort of thing.

R. Scott Bakker - KING

>Rewrite technically finished. Book is going to be released soon.
TWI sisters, rejoice

>>21704504
this series starts off ya-ish, but by the end of book 2, the mc is blood-torturing people to obtain more power, the author has openly stated that it is a rise of a dark character, the third book is out due soon

the other is the fall by ryan cahill, i found the first to be very similar to john gwynne's malice so i did not continue, another would be the black tongue thief

>>21704540
lord of the kinos

>>21704540
>>21704556
Thanks, will take a look.

>>21704556
Read couple of reviews and they seem fine, but that doesn't mean much these days, tell me how cucked is this? Author is harvard graduate and this was released by (((traditional))) publisher so I find hard to believe this isn't some modern garbage

>>21704504
The blacktongue thief

>>21704589
>modern garbage
>old LE GOOD
>new LE BAD

>>21704599
le usually yes

>>21704602
No you are just brainwashed by /sffg/

>>21704599
So is it cucked or is it not cucked? Just answer the question

Lord of Mysteries Book 2: Circle of Inevitability, will be available on March 4th.

>>21704605
Prove it.

>>21704589
the series starts off ya-ish, i do not deny, master of sorrows has a ya feel to it, but the author improves a lot by the end of master artificer

the mc is a male, orphan and crippled
he starts off with your usual rule breaking to save his friends from bullies and teachers, positing that it is justified in his mind

by end of book 2, he is actively torturing people to obtain their blood talents without remorse

saying more would spoil the series, so will desist, there are some pretty good, vivid ideas especially in book2, no pozzing elements, of all the "modern" sff books (after 2016), i am excited only about this series

>>21704556
I'll add this to my list

>Fantasy book looks cool
>Highly rated
>Check the tags on goodreads
>LGBT, Queer

>>21704599
Thank you for this insightful post, 2014+ /v/ crossboarder.

>>21704605
Not him but I've had little luck with modern writers. I liked John C. Wright for absolute banger pulp, but nothing higher than that.

>>21704616
All I want is no female mc and outer god horror kino

>>21704616
you mean it starts, no? isn't this a webnovel?

>>21705110
No, Justice should become MC

>>21704907
What's wrong with that chuddy?

I wonder, is there a fantasy story where a wizard is able to split the atom, or cause a nuclear explosion, but they hide it under a mystical terminology?

>>21704555
Where did you hear it?

>>21704907
Sometimes that just means the main character is a thirsty lesbian who spends a few paragraphs staring at the other girls' asses. Pretty based if you ask me.

Finished the original First Law trilogy the other day. Logen's Bloody Nine episodes were great, but he sustains so many injuries with no recovery in between that it's hard to take anything involving him seriously. What's his deal? Is it demonic possession (explains how he can communicate with spirits, maybe even the rapid healing), or is he just a schizophrenic psychopath with plot armor?

>>21705321
He has an origin story in Sharp Ends.

>>21704504

>>21704540
>>21704616
>the lead in sends me to sleep.
>>21705247
Gay is gay anon.

>The main characters weapon of preference is a dagger with a 'stealth' skill set.
Into the YA trash pile it goes.

>>21705353
I'll get to it eventually. I'll read the three standalone books next.

>>21704462
Nemesis Games, The Expanse #5 - James S.A. Corey (2015)

This was definitely better than the third or fourth books, and may even be right ahead of or just behind the second in terms of my enjoyment. Others reasonably consider the best of the series thus far. The POVs this time are the crew of the Rocinante, who finally each have their own perspective. Holden is tied for the least chapters of the four. He's avoiding trying to understand himself as an individual, rather than as someone defined those who he's with. He has problems with boundaries, which is why he shares everything, but he's also been becoming increasingly Miller-like, which can't possibly be worrisome for his longevity. Alex tries to come to terms with his past, which may be a midlife crisis, and to accept himself for who he is. Amos returns to his past to verify whether a life was amicably resolved, and if not, to ensure a summary resolution for all involved. Naomi faces the past she sacrificed so much to break away from and may have to sacrifice even more get away from again. I liked Naomi's the least because I feel like there's something off about both how the book and TV series characterize her. I don't quite know what it is though.

As compared to the previous book, which was plot focused, this one is much more character focused. Everyone must face the consequences of their past. Although it is about each individual character it's also about who they are together and realizing that when they're together they compensate for the dysfunctions of each other. They're not functionally whole when they're apart. These struggles are also represented at an interplanetary level. The reactions to new discoveries bring multigenerational grievances to the fore and the costs may be beyond imagining. A reckoning for oppression is at hand, but do the oppressed seek liberation or annihilation?

The relative shallowness and ambiguity of anything in the background of The Expanse is definitely one of its greatest weaknesses for me, but I think it's mostly covered up well and keeps the reader distracted from it. None of it holds up well under scrutiny, which is disappointing, but as I've written more than a few times, when possible it may be better to turn a blind eye to some flaws for the sake of own's enjoyment. Even so, this weakness is what holds me back from rating this series any higher than I already have.

As the middle book in the series with four behind it and four yet to come, I've started to consider its overall trajectory. It may never be what I want it to be, but that's alright. As long as what it is, is enjoyable enough, that's all that really matters. The previous book was a misstep, though its footing was regained with this one. The next book covers the rest of what I know, and may be similarly enjoyable, though considering the shortened final season it could well also have a considerable amount that I don't know.

Rating: 4/5

Nokstella in Elden Ring is underground, and the 'stars' above it are actually the glimmering sides of the gigantic cavern that it's located in. It's melancholy because it looks like it's close to the stars but is, in reality, as far away from the sky as you can get.
Kind of a weird request, but are there any SF/fantasy books with that similar theme? Where something seems a certain way, but is actually the total opposite?

Having read an ungodly amount of popular fantasy, I've come to realize that the only reason its popular is because it offers an escape with no moral challenge or critical thinking on the readers part.
Kinda sad to be honest.

>>21705546
Most people have far more than enough challenge in their daily lives and don't want to punish themselves with more in their entertainment.

Opinion on Blake Crouch

>>21705651
Pop technothriller enjoyed by the masses

>>21705651
I enjoyed Dark Matter. Got his latest book Upgrade but haven't read it yet.

His books are like decent sci-fi movies.

>>21704487
>first poster
>writes as if continuing a conversation explaining why book isn't actually bad
Meds

>>21704504
Lords of Dyscrasia

My local library provides access to half of the Halo novels on audio so I've listened to like three in the past month whilst wagecucking

Halo is probably the most American setting Ive ever experienced. The good guys are secular, multicultural fascists led by a shadow government, the bad guy are religious aliens and liberal rebels, and the ancient precursor race that seeded the galaxy was basically subjected to eternal torment in an alien hivemind just for not sucking humanity's dick hard enough

It's like 40k but made for fedoras and without any grandiose characters to make it work, everybody is either an alien or some kind of shill for this world's version of NATO/ZOG

What does /sffg/ think of Snow Crash?

>>21705958
Enjoyable if you can withstand the cringe.

>>21705958
Warosu.

>>21705232
>Where did you hear it?
The author took an entire week to finish up the rewrite with the help of a professional industry editor. We'll be getting the information about release any day now. Fingers crossed for a physical release.

>>21705463
Out of curiosity, have you watched the TV show? I watched the first season and found it mediocre, now I'm considering reading the books. Are they better?

>>21705974
So you were making shit up? I knew pirate was on break to work on Vol 1.

>>21704504
Raven's Mark by Ed McDonald

>>21705978
Seconding this. I only watched the first season but it wasn't really good. If the books are better I'd give them a try

>>21706006
Got that one shortlisted, that is the sort of thing I'm looking for. Also Gunmetal Gods.

>>21706014
>Gunmetal Gods
I remember looking at that because I thought the name was cool and then the blurb just kind of put me off entirely and I don't remember why.

>>21705958
Cringekino

>>21705978
>>21706009
I'd say the books are better, but the TV show did some characters way better than the books. Please note that the first 3 seasons from the show are weirdly inconsistent if you compare them to the books:
>season 1 + season 2 EP 01-05 covers book 1
>season 2 EP 06-13 + season 3 EP 01-06 covers book 2
>season 3 EP 07-13 covers book 3
So there are a lot of content missing especially from book 3.
Season 4-6 follows the books with major changes to characters.

>>21705978
>>21706009
I've said I have watched the TV series since what I wrote about the first book. Overall I've liked the books better, but if you don't like the show it's more likely than not that you won't like the books.

>>21706077
This is accurate.

>>21705887
I only recommend the Halo books written by Eric Nylund and Joe Staten, the rest of them are pretty bad and not worth reading, especially the 343 era ones

>>21706143
I actually own two books by Nylund that I read when I was a kid, the Fall of Reach and First Strike. I remember liking the former much more than the latter

>>21706169
Yeah I think the background of the spartans is more interesting, also First Strike is a bit more constrained because it has to be between Halo 1 and 2
I believe Eric Nylund wrote one more book which is Ghosts of Onyx which sort of ties up that arc after Halsey flees in First Strike and some other short story about Admiral Cole, which I thought were decent.

Read The Wandering Inn, Read Mother of Learning, Read I Shall Seal the Heavens.

Also read The Prince of Nothing, Neuromancer, Cradle, A Song of Ice and Fire, Hyperion, Between Two Fires, The Poppy War.

>>21706253
Cool. Which ones you liked the best?

>>21705571
No debating that the masses are psychologically challenged or that's why its popular. Just lamenting the retardation of my fellow man.

>>21706264
>Cultivationfag gives opinions of 'quality works' in other genres and an anon falls for it.
Truly these are the end times.

>>21706298
Ritualposter is a samefagging ESL.

>>21706264
Mother of Learning > ASOIAF > Hyperion > Wandering Inn >the rest are on par in terms of how much i like it

>>21706302
take ur meds

>>21706264
dont reply to him you fucking idioto

>>21706316

>>21706315
I'll take 'What is a proxy' for 10,000 spirit essence.

>>21706334
lmao, just kys boomer

Read The Wandering Inn, Read Mother of Learning, Read I Shall Seal the Heavens.

Also read The Prince of Nothing, Neuromancer, Cradle, A Song of Ice and Fire, Hyperion, Between Two Fires, The Poppy War.

>>21706253
>>21706343
ladies and gentlemen this is the eastoid at the height of its mental faculties. What it lacks in quality it attempts to make up for in quantity.

https://static.lib.umn.edu/pdf/clrc/hess/Frank%20Reade%20-%201.pdf

This may interest you guys.

>>21706343
Want to read my fantasy book too?

>>21706560
nice AI cover

>>21706585
Thanks! Fuck paying $200 for someone else's AI cover.

>>21706591
based. it unironically looks better than most "professionally" made covers nowadays.

>>21706560
idk bro, the art is good, but I think you could optimize the text placement more. It gives a weird wibe.

>>21706560
Writefag OUT!

>>21706600
Someone has to create more fantasy stories and it may as well be me.

>>21706560
link? what is it about? I'll read it if it looks interesting

>>21706600

>Reason for deletion: Rule 2.4 You may not promote another story in your review, or discourage readers from reading this fiction by comparing it to another.
RoyalRoad is niggerbrain garbage.

>>21706600
>>21706560

>>21706647
>Someone has to create more fantasy stories and it may as well be me.
We have enough fantasy stories, but not enough good harem stories with believable characters, good storylines and interesting concepts. Hit the market where it needs you.

>>21706725
I want a tentacle monster story

>>21706560
I'd like to talk shit about it, but I can't find it anywhere you faggot. I feel major YA feMC faggotry from this cover.

>>21706714
Like I can SORT of get the first point, but the second point feels weird. I guess they just want you to be broad and vague with "I've seen this done in other stories better", instead of "this specific story did it better" for... I dunno why, actually.

>>21706736
Read like two stories like that last year.

>>21706736
>I want a tentacle monster story
I highly recommond Blue Core. Very well written sex, and the story is quite compelling (if you are into autistic breaking the hell out of a rule system for power)

Favorite sci-fi/horror novel?

>>21706647
There isn't a shortage of content, just a shortage of curation. I spend much longer looking for things I want to consoom than I spend consooming.

>>21706748
I haven't posted it yet.

>>21706762
When will the next books be released on audio? Seems the author is focusing on his paranoid protagonist recently.

>>21706585
AI art ain't so bad

>>21706647
We don't need more trash. We need more well written books that have a good story and competent protags.

>>21706807
man.... I want a thick white milf that I can cum buckets in...

AI art

>>21706817
More like AI SHART.

>>21706817
Is this actually related to To Sleep in a Sea of Stars btw?

>>21706749
I was proud of my dissertation that would crush the author's dreams, then they do this shit. I should just find one of the RR janny doxes and pelt bricks through their windows.

>>21706814
Any books for that feel?

>>21706777
There isn't a shortage of curation. There's a shortage of curation that appeals to your personal taste which is an unreasonable expectation.

>>21706837
>There's a shortage of curation that appeals to your personal taste
Yes. Now fix it.

>>21706810
Those sound like code words meaning something else entirely.

>>21706840
It's not possible to fix you.

>>21704487
>first poster
>writes as if continuing a conversation explaining why book isn't actually bad
Take your meds

>>21706762
It is decent but it has like.. 5-6 sex scenes only.

>>21706560
>>21706817
>AI "art"
Cringe

>>21706647
I warned you.
When the time comes and you ask why.
This is why.

>>21706714
>>21706822
What story?
>If its shit i will destroy.

>>21706810
>competent protags
But I want incompetent protags that think their competent

>>21707174
Reborn as a Demonic Tree

>>21706560
>>21706817
>"AI" art

If I can’t find an author willing to make a Judge Holden isekai, then I’ll have to do it myself.

>Read CAS’ hyperborean cycle
>Takes place before the Ice Age
>Executioner mentions having knowledge of aliens and planets
>A character travels to Saturn through usage of a portal
>Astronomy and maths are key parts to magic, the rest is making deals with gods and devils
The more old pulp fantasy I read, the more similar I find things posited on /x/ to be to many of the concepts found within these stories.

>>21707242
eh that one is one of the more OK xianxia, not that its good, just best of the worst type deal. Besides the reason your review got deleted while probably outside of the rules was more to do with the fact that the guys got a glued on following of mindless pay pigs. So if you call his work bad then it will get instantly downvoted and reported for no other reason then you said it was bad.

>>21707099
>It is decent but it has like.. 5-6 sex scenes only.
I've read many harem and erotica books (60+) since reading Blue Core and I still consider Blue Core's sex scenes of making it up for quantity in quality.

>>21707352
>The more old pulp fantasy I read, the more similar I find things posited on /x/ to be to many of the concepts found within these stories.

Before the internet people were mostly copying esotiric stuff and folklore, not to mention twisting science fiction into fantasy equivalent. Since the advent of internet and modern publishing industry people have degenerated into hardcore copying from each other, people no longer read actual souce texts, instead just reading a story that uses said sources, resulting in a spiral of half-understood, uninspired usage of concepts. Not that it didn't happen decades ago, but in the extreme it does now.

Modern fantasy is near absolutely self-referential.

>>21706560
>>21706560
https://pastebin.com/MukRVgYS
https://pastebin.com/f7epZiuR

Her'es my first two chapters. I don't think it's good enough though. I think I need more world building in Chapter 1 to make the readers care more about the jobs of the characters

>>21707295
Looking forward to read it!

>>21706591
I can excuse it since you're simply a writer basically just using it to have some sort of cover for the book, however I do think you should've edited that sun. with an insignia like that, the asymmetry and lack of a clearly defined/designed symbol is obvious and cheapens the entire image. one would generally attribute a sort of recognizable value to a symbol like that, so when it is obviously random mindless gibberish that's no good.
AI is great as a quick gap filler, but an insignia that floats surrounded by beams of of light atop the (presumably) main character's head isn't merely some negligible gap.

>>21707582
>have shitty AI thing ruin hands
>incorporate it into the story
>Now my hero is a cripple.
Would that work?

>>21707377
>OK xianxia
Not really, the demonic sect's internal struggles are fucking retarded. Half the fucking sect kills itself in a civil war just 20 chapters in over some spirit stone mines (garbage). A demonic sect is supposed to be cultivating a cowardly, egoist dao, that is the equivalent of sigma grindset memes. What we have instead are idiotic barbarian sect leaders killing each other over useless garbage. Honestly, if you're doing a parody, do it right. It irks me when someone who barely understands the genre starts writing a book about it.

The system is retarded too, it pulls out completely random shit - whatever author needs on the spot. Both these issues are actually linked, the author ass pulls the sect conflict just like he ass pulls the system. Sect conflict's only purpose is just to kill off a family so that the female protag can have a fellow orphan friend that can teach her cultivator magic.

>>21707832
>rewrite everything just to fit AI cover art.
DO IT!

recommendations for AI doomer scifi? i tried reading avogadro corporation based on a twitter recommendation and it sucked.
recommendations pertaining to other quadrants in the pic are also welcome but i am particularly looking for AGI doomer fiction for my next read.

>>21706821
It's an upcoming prequel

>>21707899
Then write that in your review and seeing as it's coherent and makes sense i'll up vote it. But as i pointed out before it wont do much good because his zealots will instantly downvote it because their refuse to entertain the idea that they wasted mommy and daddy's credit card on derivative shit.

I mean it was pointed out earlier in the thread that people don't want challenge or consistent world lore and rules. They just want Mary Sues or Gary Stews who always make the right decision to produce the optimal outcome. Which as a result brings them infantile comfort to make their shitty lives not seem so bad.

>>21705470
There's a lot of this in BOTNS. Lord of Light would also be worth considering

>>21705470
Lord of the Mysteries

>>21708026
speak english, please

>>21707464
there's already too much info dumping and not enough story

>>21708530
i would like to read written science fiction novels or short stories with the general theme of AI futurism. specific to this genre i am hoping to get recommendations of works of AI futurist fiction where the AI becomes a dominant force in the direction of human civilization without "our" consent, although any fiction featuring a runaway AI is welcome. please prove titles and authors who write shit like this

Are there any fantasy books that feature romance that doesn't feel like it's written by an incel/ it feels like the author's jerk off material?

>>21705958
I still like it

>>21708627
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Curse of Chalion by Lois Bujold

>>21708627
Depends on what you mean. Cradle has a romance between Lindon and Yerrin and the only thing it feels like is perfunctory.

>>21708627
>Are there any fantasy books that feature romance that doesn't feel like it's written by an incel/ it feels like the author's jerk off material?
Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb.

>The Utemot chieftain wiped a bare forearm aross his mouth and nose. He spat blood. "A prince of nothing," he said
Bravo, Bakker.

>>21708687
roll credits

No let Bomo beat Frogger score.

>>21708687
It's kino desu

Okay I'm 1/3 into this audiobook and the narrator sounds like he wants to blow his brains out. Does the physical prose sound like it was written by a 15 y/o too?

>>21708784
I've tried reading it a couple of times but to me it seems the translation just isn't right. The sentence structure is strange and the use of certain words seem out of place.

>>21708791
Yeah I abandoned it
Looking forward palate cleanser after reading The Expanse series.
I've not watched Yahtzee for maybe a decade but always hit my sense of humour

Reading is active, requires you to do the thinking. With reading, you can stop at any point to ponder on the meanings. You can even take any step backwards to check past pages. Reading is the highest form of acquiring information. You will remember everything better and your brain will develop much better compared to other forms—the video or the audio, which are at their center, passive forms of entertainment. The narrator chooses the pace, and you are at their mercy. Listening to audiobooks can not be compared to reading books. In fact, most people I know that listen to audiobooks, shudder at the thought of actually reading books. They simply don't have the necessary patience and powers of concentration to actually do their own active thinking to really process the text.

>>21708784
it's a shitty translation but the original is likely soulless bug fic

>>21708806
If you're thinking of reading Will Save The Galaxy for Food I don't recommend it

>>21708791
>The sentence structure is strange
it just reads extremely asian. like you know there's a constant debate on the localized vs translated approach in video games and VNs where one side argues to translate content so it reads well and makes sense for the target language and the other side wants an almost clinical 1:1 translation where you have to factor in context yourself. 3pb is just a case of the latter

I saw the translation of Return of Condor Heroes at my grocery store in the clearance bin, the translation that says "fuck it I'm naming Xiaolongnu Lotus Blossom" or some shit.

>finally finished book of the short sun
>return to the whorl is deeply emotionally moving when the author finally gets out of dorp and actually starts getting home
>silk ends up one of my favorite characters in fiction by the end
>holy shit it's severian
>hmmmm I know I missed a bunch let me look online at some of what people say about what's going on behind the scenes
>theories are some of the most insane schizoposting I've ever seen about a book
>my face

>>21708954
It's time travel? I'm not sure what specifically you think needs explaining

>>21708975
I caught that dreaming your way to other planets was probably time travel too. Also I didn't feel like understanding that Horn dies and his spirit is sent into Silk was too hard to understand either, with the narrator being entirely Silk by the end, though he has Horn's memories. Talking more about the theories about the Neighbors being future humans that have turned themselves into trees that now only have bodies when they dream travel, or how a lot of people see how in Long and Short Sun Wolfe will skip over a big scene and you figure out what happened by the conversations characters have after the fact, and lots of his fans use this to blatantly make shit up based on a single line of dialogue that's pretty clearly meant to be a metaphor and is also four books later. I don't even think it's prevalent among most fans, just the loudest ones who have podcasts or books published about Wolfe and therefore get paraded around as experts.

>dad bought me a $150 gift card for the old ssf book store in our capital
>we don't go out much but when we do it always involves that book store
>i rarely buy anything because i get all my books used and dirt cheap from amazon
>now i can get maybe ten new books for $150
was about to blow them on an expensive anime figure, this is really stupid waste of money

>>21708998
I thought that Horn was actually fully replaced only when parting with Pig. Was it just his memories being transferred via the ring, having enough impact to prevent Silk's suicide?

>>21706591
>$200
That's lowballing it as fuck. Probably closer to $400 if you want something that's not totally generic.

>>21709041
It's hard to say, since Silk/Horn doesn't really understand the process himself. I read it as a deliberate return to Severian/Thecla's dynamic after the alzabo, albeit one in which Horn fades over time. By my reckoning:
>Horn is dying on Green
>Silk is dying from slitting his wrists when Hyacinth dies
>Nieghbor sends Horn's spirit to Silk's body so they won't die
>Silk definitely has Horn's memories and seems to have his personality partially too
>Silk hates himself because he thinks he failed as calde and Hyacinth is now dead
>unsure when Horn's spirit is gone, leaving only his memories, since Silk doesn't want to be Silk and is deluding himself into thinking he's Horn, all the way until the last line of the book
AFAIK Pig just has the fragment of Silk's personality that got uploaded to Mainframe to merge with Pas, and really doesn't have anything to give back to Silk the person, though Silk gives Pig one of his eyes so that fragment can go back into Mainframe and coordinate repairing the Whorl for a new launch

>>21709159
$400 is for actual art and CAD usage. $200 is some pajeet running their own AI generated art. Like those Fivvers that run an edit through grammarly and call it a day.

There's going to be a swing in the pendulum where writers like in the 1800's revise shit 30x over

Rise of Endymion killed my love of reading.

>>21709285
>Rise of Endymion killed my love of reading.
Your fault, should have read a sequel to a shit book.

>>21709417
Two first books were okay. It's only the two next ones where Dan Simmons decided writing well was out of fashion.

Good fantasy books published this decade?

>>21709023
did you come out to dad yet?

>>21709617
Bloodsworn saga
Empire of the Vampire

>>21709617
None and every book because what is "good" anyway?

>>21709815
>good
wolfe
bakker
cook
erikson

>>21708998
The Neighbors are ghosts of aliens that lived there before., the idea that Green is Urth in the future is just Aramini's headcanon. Blue and Green aren't Lune and Verthandi either. they're Sainte Croix and Sainte Anne. Whorl did not travel in a circle, that doesn't make any fucking sense.

>>21709617
What are your criteria for "good"? I've read plenty of good books published within the last 10 years, but they aren't exactly to the taste of everyone.

Are there any books about a male pov character who is in a subordinate position to a woman who eventually becomes a love interest (by which I mean something like a slave, butler, bodyguard, apprentice, whatever, not some sex thing) that doesn't involve worldwide gender role reversal like A Brother's Price?

>>21710071
Doesn't Black Company have a bit of that?

Any sci-fi novels that have good characters who aren't there simply as tools for exploring sci-fi concepts?

>>21710182
The Dispossessed

>>21710182
The Stars My Destination

>>21710205
>>21710215
Thanks

I don't get it. Shadows of the Gods is hailed as a fantasy classic but I don't even know what's going on and I'm already 200pages in. Help me sffg. I'm too much of a brainlet to understand the story.

>>21710293
Warosu.

>>21710293
It's a slow burn, been while since I read it but I think at 200 pages in you are at the part where Orka returns to her house after the meeting in the village with the Queen?

>>21710205
>>21710215
These guys are trolling you dude >>21710182

>>21710215
>>21710277
Thanks (not)

I'm getting nervous Cradle bros... Waybound better be good but Will Wight's already starting another series.

>>21710473
I mean he wrote other stuff while also writing Cradle too, so it's not that weird.

Hollow Simon would have fucked Yerin up at the tournament.

Oh the cradle posters have left their cots to post again.

>>21708687
“I am Cnaiur urs Skiötha, breaker-of-horses-and-men!",
"I am Cnaiür urs Skiötha, most violent of all men!
I bear your fathers and brothers upon my arms!”

Fucking kino.

>>21710182
Book of the New Sun, Book of the Long Sun and Book of the Short Sun.

>>21710293
Orka best girl

>>21710473
Dreadgod was trash, i liked, but it was trash
I hope Waybound its good, cant believe this mf will ruin the end of the series just like that

also will posted playing harry potter and some trannies were mad af, based

Is there any torrent with a good compilation of good sci fi/fantasy short stories?

>>21711060
I don't know if you quite know what you're asking for. How would that be different from the existing torrent which has magazines, anthologies, collections, and similar?

>>21704556
I thought Book 2 was a stretched out let down after 1 promised a solid series that would break open once it left the initial setting.

>>21706014
Raven's Marks is great. On the other hand I did the Gunmetal Gods on audio and couldn't wait to be done with it.

Looking for books with Jesters/clowns/fools as characters. I heard only recently that GoT series has a jester character and they never had him in the show. That is gay and I am mad.

>>21711280
David Eddings' Malloreon sequel series to the Belgariad has a jester character as a major plot point

>>21711314
>David and Leigh Eddings adopted one boy in 1966, Scott David, then two months old.[9][10] They adopted a younger girl between 1966 and 1969.[10] In 1970 the couple lost custody of both children and were each sentenced to a year in jail in separate trials after pleading guilty to 11 counts of physical child abuse.[11] According to the Black Hills Weekly, February 11, 1970, the couple's four year old adopted child was found in the pitch-black basement of their home, locked in a cage, wearing nothing but a tee-shirt. The child had been physically abused with a heavily swollen and disabled hand with scrapes, and heavy bruising about his body, as well as evidence of prior beatings. Investigators during the trial noted that there were restraints on the walls, no lighting, and the strong smell of cat urine in the basement. Though the abuse, the trial, and the sentencing were all extensively reported in South Dakota newspapers at the time, these details did not resurface in media coverage of the couple during their successful joint career as authors, only returning to public attention several years after both had died.
I will now read his books

Looking for power fantasies that makes the reader feel good. Strong warriors, fast pace, beautiful women and violence a plenty. Addicted to Conan and now I want more.

>>21711382
Here's some xia-
>Fast pace
never mind

>>21711382
David Gemmell might scratch this itch for you. His books very much feel like watching a classic 80s-90s action film, and i would say he draws as much inspiration from Conan as from LotR (if not more).

>>21711382
The precursor to Conan ft. nude chicks on Mars.

Any books with a feel like Fallout? I have already read The Postman and plan to start A Canticle for Leibowitz.

>>21709668
>Look up Empire of the Vampire
>It's illustrated
Holy based

>>21711382
Fritz Leiber
Amber
Sky Hernstrom

>>21711671
>Amber
the presence of this on your recommendations for "feel-good" fantasy suggests you're trolling and the other two are just as wretched

>>21711566
Jerusalem Man trilogy

>>21711566
Maybe the Metro books which inspired the Metro games.

>>21711820
Maybe roadside picnic which inspired the STALKER movie and stalker games which inspired the metro books which inspired the metro games and then inspired the Annihilation book which inspired the Annihilation movie which stole the Alzabo idea from Gene Wolfe

>>21711830
>soviet existentialism with slight paranormal elements is fallout
um no sweetie

>>21711566
>paleo fallout
Starship Troopers
>hebrew fallout
City of Illusions
>goyslop fallout
I am Legend
>pone fallout

>>21711960
>City of Illusions takes place on Earth, also known as Terra
>Terra

>>21711969
That's the correct name for the planet, Chang.

>>21711982
Every sci fi book has future earth named Terra. Their money is called credits, and everyone is gay

Correct Names: Sol, Luna, Terra
Incorrect Names: Sun, Moon, Earth

>>21711990
I honestly prefer "so far in the future Earth is just a distant history" so the names are all kinds of weird.

>>21711990
>why did he call it hebrew fallout

>>21711990
Would you prefer euro-dollars or nuyen?

>>21712089
i would prefer a cyberpunk story where the main antagonist is literally summoning demons and performing black magic instead of the 1980’s idea of pseudo-hacking we usually get.

>>21704555
Why are you hyped for the rewrite? Wasn't volume 1 perfectly serviceable?

>>21712164
Read the Fiddleback trilogy and Shadowrun novels, one of the villains of one of the SR books was a dragon lmao.

Is War and Peace by Tolstoy better than Everybody Loves Large Chests by Exterminatus?

>>21712315
Is effortposting better than shitposting?

>>21712339
Word spam isn't effort, strip it down to <200 pages and it might be coherent. And I don't give a fuck if Russians spoke French, translated it inline, don't put the translation in a footnote.

>>21711951
Anons just post whatever they want to promote regardless of its suitability or relevance.

>>21712089
Euro-dollars

>>21712315
ELLC.
War and Piece is 900 pages of "philosophy" that he doesn't even follow himself, while also steelmanning his philosophy and strawmanning others at every point. The book is a meme and there is simply no way in hell most people read it or care about his philosophy of historiography.
At least ELLC might make someone cum and has at least 2 twists.

>>21712390
>>21712315
I read the 1200 page Barnes and Noble paperback (unabridged) Constance Garnett translation. I rather liked it (all French quotations were translated in footnotes), but there was one element I didn't like that ruined the whole experience for me: Tolstoy periodically launches into 50-page long political harangues about how much he fucking hates Napoleon and how Napoleon is a cringe memelord who doesn't matter while Russians are based and redpilled. These screeds increase in length and intensity until the story is "finished" and then there's 200 solid fucking pages of this bitchiness. If you excised all that obnoxious crap from the book (presumably, this is what is removed from "abridged" versions) it'd be a pretty damn good novel, similar to The Count of Monte Cristo, though perhaps not so exciting. It'd also be about 400 or 500 pages shorter. I really don't get all the fuss about "hurr this isn't a REAL novel" just because Atlas Shrugged-tier philosophical wank gets crammed in at inappropriate places in between the actual segments of the story.

Also watch the 2016 BBC miniseries. Classic Paul Dano.

>>21711566
The Boy and His Dog (the closest one to the original Fallout concept)
Dinner at Deviant's Palace (the closest one in a post-apocalyptic adventure in California feel)
Lucifer's Hammer
Dr. Bloodmoney

>>21711830
You are a cringe faggot, just want to put it out there

>>21704556
>600 reviews
Stop shilling your shit here Justin

Just finished picrel and it was pretty good. A bit immature and edgy at times but pretty decent grimdark power fantasy. Anyone else read this?

>>21712167
>Why are you hyped for the rewrite? Wasn't volume 1 perfectly serviceable?
It was, but I hope it will be made better. Not to mention a better point of entry for new-comers. Of course, I also dread that the author is plagued by his writing flaws, making the rewrite possibly worse than the original. But I have hope.

>>21704556
>not by Justin T Ime
You had one fucking job...

Any good fantasy books where protagonist is the bad guy? I don't mean morally grey bad, I mean absolutely morally reprehensible people. Bonus points if they are a magic user.

>>21708254
>>21708309
Thanks anons.

>>21713287
>Any good fantasy books where protagonist is the bad guy? I don't mean morally grey bad, I mean absolutely morally reprehensible people. Bonus points if they are a magic user.
Prince of Thorns, I guess. It's not a great story, but good enough and very popular. Other than that, Reverend Insanity has a protagonist with an entire world-view that opposes social structure and moral behaviour, utterly sociopathic and ruthless.

>>21713351
Okay thanks. I have heard of Prince of Thorns so I might give it a try. I don't really care if it's good or not I'm just bitter at the world right now and want something edgy.

>finish my reread of DCC 5
>start Feersum Endjinn
>was a source of inspiration for BLAME!
neat. hope it's a good book

What to read after Atomic Heart.

>>21713405
Noon: XXII Century

>A cut scarred where a caress faded away. In this simple fact lay the tragic and catastrophic truth of the Nonmen. Mekeritrig had lived a hundred lifetimes—more! What would it be like, Achamian wondered, to have every redeeming memory—be it a lover’s touch or a child’s warm squeal—blotted out by the accumulation of anguish, terror, and hate?

>To understand the soul of a Nonman, the philosopher Gotagga had once written, one need only bare the back of an old and arrogant slave. Scars. Scars upon scars. This was what made them mad. All of them.
Bros....

what are the best scifi novels with time travel?

>>21713657
The Man Who Folded Himself

>>21713668
Thanks! Looks like a short read too. I'm gonna check it out.

>>21713657
The Gone World. Not so much time travel but travelling to different timelines.

>>21713048
A few members of /sffg/ read it together sometime ago. I didn't like it. The anon who proposed the book did though.

>>21713048
i'll give it a try but if it's another MC thats pants on head retarded and emo about it, so help me anon i'll burn this general to the ground.

>>21713351
>Prince of Thorns
>had the opportunity to nuke the entire world and chose not to
At least he got cunny, etc.

>>21713889
ok carl

Just finished the Gormenghast books. Don't think I've ever read anything quite like that. Almost felt like an early Disney movie where they'd be mostly eccentric whimsical characters doing silly things seriously with some parts that'd give the four year old you nightmares, but more like if Don Bluth launched a Don Coup and designed the scary parts to freak out the adults as well. Third book felt like uncle Ted's British nightmare but I think the authors brain was melting at that point, and it was still quite good.

>>21711566
Deus Irae by PKD and Robert Zelazny.
Its protagonist probably inspired Fallout's antagonist.

>>21714148
shouldn't it be Deus Iratus?

>>21713287
Kane series by Karl Edward Wagner.

when I was around 10 years old, my school teacher made me read a really shitty scifi book about some post-nuclear wasteland about a family surviving on their own but slowly dwindling away from radiation poisoning or some shit until only the teenaged/young adult daughter is around, and she's all lonely, and then some hazmat suit wearing guy wanders in and requires assistance and then that guy grows attracted to her and tries to take advantage but she's having none of it
I can't remember exactly how it ended but I want to find out the name of this book so I can make sure to avoid it in the future when trawling through silver age SF

>>21714205
Maybe so, but the title of the book means 'God of Wrath', who's the guy that pushed the big red button.

>>21714205
Also it's a reference to Dies Irae
>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dies_irae

>>21705958
vagina dentata

Recommendations for books like X-Files or Delta Green? Focused on members of a government agency dedicated to dealing with the supernatural and/or aliens.

>>21714399
Much more low stakes and comfy Mark Twain style are the Silver John books. He roams around the country and confronts supernatural forces, sometimes government folk are sent in to assist but it's more so about the main character and him dealing with the situation. Probably not what you're looking for at all but I just wanted to put it out there. Might be as interesting to someone else as they are to me.

>>21707464
Not the worst thing I've ever read, but it's not great either. This isn't /wg/ so I won't go into autistic detail over your writing, but as a general rule try not to use the same word more than once in the same paragraph.

>>21714283
My ex read that book and told me about it, its called Z is for Zacariah or something like that.

>>21714521
Yep that must be it, just checked the plot on wikipedia. I hate that fucking junk. Can't believe that was written by the same guy who did Secret of NIMH.

>>21713657
Replay

>>21714504
thank you it means a lot to hear it's not the worst thing ever.
>as a general rule try not to use the same word more than once in the same paragraph.
Must have slipped because I did make an effort to avoid this.

>>21714698
She was reading it when we lived together and was telling me how good it was and explained the plot and I was just like.... that sounds retarded. lol

>>21711382
Anyone read the new Conan book

I need a cultivation story with like a 1000 chapters and a lot of FUCKING because I need to COOM please provide recs ty sirs.

Should I read Crescent City or the Forgetting Moon next

Just finished the whole Lyonesse trilogy by Jack Vance. What a treat! What a unique and magical journey this saga was! Convoluted, a total mess, at times frustrating. But brilliant.
It is a pity we didn't get more books about the Elder Isles. I will really miss this world.
4.5/5

Title: The Dragon's Bride
Author: Katee Robert

For a change, something from a female writer for the ladies.

It's a very standard story. A middle-aged woman is abused by the husband and runs away, then is offered a deal by a literal demon. 7 years of service and she can return to Earth. The deal includes the clause that she cannot be mistreated in any way, of course.

Then she gets sold to a big humanoid dragon who takes her as a wife. He's sensitive, has two cocks, she loves being pounded by him. That's basically it. I won't even anything about the actual plot, because it kinda doesn't have one.

Funny thing, I noticed how in-between the lines you could read the protagonist's (ex)husband was a chad that could easily charm any woman. He mistread her, yet she stayed with him for over a decade.

Yep, a standard power fantasy for women: Getting sold to a big, powerful and rich man, then get dicked hard (respectfuly, of course). I'm not the intended audience by any means, but the low rating is the result of it barely even being a story, not the result of it not catering to my tastes.

Rating: 4.5/10

>>21715800
>He mistread her, yet she stayed with him for over a decade.
>Getting sold to a big, powerful and rich man, then get dicked hard (respectfuly, of course).
Into the thrash
>Main character is a a middle-aged woman
I Will now read your book

>>21715800
WHY IS IT NEVER A TWINKY HUMAN BOY AND A GIANT MONSTER GIRL

>>21715875
>WHY IS IT NEVER A TWINKY HUMAN BOY AND A GIANT MONSTER GIRL

What? There are many books like that. For a human male and strong monster girl try stories written by Snekguy, he wrote several like that. They even have decent plots!
I believe all his work is available on his page, though I believe he published some of that? Dunno. He's a very prolific author, though.
https://snekguy.com/stories/pinwheel/pinwheel/

Snekguy is really inspiring, I myself cosnidered writing some monster girl smut after reading his work. Maybe one day.

Optionally, you can also try Hellcats series (it's pure porn, though). Or 'Elise: Would You Love A Monster Girl' and other popular books from the author series, it's got a decent popularity.
Also, fun fact about Romance genre: In Romance stories written by women, basically NO male leads have ever gone below 6 feet of height. Like, 99.9% is at least 6 feet. There was an actual research about this. Fucking lmao.

>>21715320
>new Conan book
>Conan book
>new
the author of Conan died over 80 years ago. everything published after has been fanfiction

>>21715958
But are they milfs? This is important

You people read a lot of dumb bullshit

>>21715983
>But are they milfs? This is important
Uh, dunno if Monster Girl + Milf combination is popular, it's very niche. If you want just MILF erotica, try Anya Merchant, especially her 'Domestic Decay' series.

>>21716012
>Anya Merchant
Thanks

>>21715992
>You people read a lot of dumb bullshit
Well, I enjoy it. Which seems to be a lot more than most of the people visiting this thread.

>>21716034
I will now buy your book

Anons, BOTNS makes me feel like I'm not having enough sex (haven't sexed since 2013)

DAMN, he's good.

>>21716136
I havnt had sex is 3 weeks I know the feeling bro lol

I'm harder than steel.

>get caught up to DCC
>releases around 2-3 chapters a week
>chapters will release more often soon!
>two chapters the next week
>one chapter the week after
>0 chapters in 2 1/2 weeks now
oof

Anyone got read any good recent hard sci-fi? Just read through all of Peter Watts books (great, esp freeze frame revolution) and the children of time series.

Pic unrelated but a great lighter read i have not seen recommended here yet

>>21716505
recent? No. 1995 The Killing Star

>>21705463
Well, I think it’s time for me to just buy the expanse books and read the. Thanks for the review. Don’t know if you read the previous works or not, but Inwould be interested in reading them if you did.

>>21713405
Whatever you want

>>21713405
Friday by Robert Heinlein

>>21716617
You can usually find his other reviews on warosu, its in the OP.
>>/lit/?task=search2&ghost=yes&search_text=&search_subject=&search_username=&search_tripcode=sffg&search_email=&search_filename=&search_datefrom=&search_dateto=&search_op=all&search_del=dontcare&search_int=dontcare&search_ord=new&search_capcode=all&search_res=post

>>21716683
Thank you, I’ll check his other reviews when I get home. Thanks again.

>>21716695
>I’ll check his other reviews when I get home
You definitely should, he's the only one in the general that does in-depth reviews about books he reads and he doesn't hold anything back.

>>21705463
I wish more people read and did reviews like you, then, at least, /sffg/ would be worth looking at, than the one minute scroll.

>>21705463
>Rating: 4/5
Glad to know you liked it more than Cibola Burn. Probably helped since it was more character focus, which you like.

>>21716718
The only consistent threadly reviewer, yes.

>>21716809
The only review, yes, I know what I said.

>>21716818
Okay I hope he sucks your dick for fellating him.

>>21716821
I mean, he’s telling the truth, don’t know why that angers you that much. He basically leaves a review every thread. Which is more than can be said about others.

>>21712167
>>21704555
i always thought it was a weird thing to do. i doubt i'll reread it unless it's really good.

anyone got a recommendation for insane or on the verge of sanity protagonists? I read The Stars My Destination and loved the main character, and Rand being on the verge of insanity kept me reading through Wheel of Time.

>>21716868
Pretty sure people hate that reviewer for actually reading books and such.

>>21716875
Try using a search engine to help you look.

>>21716881
That’s dumb.

>>21716875
Try google or the charts in the Op.

>>21716821
Why are you getting angry over a fact?

>>21716617
He has and you can find them on Warosu.

>>21714399
>Focused on members of a government agency dedicated to dealing with the supernatural and/or aliens
X-Files

>>21711382
Conan

>>21716505
Have you check the charts? Pretty there’s one for hard sci-fi.

Has anyone been successful with writing a fantasy story with magic and wands set in the current time, without it being compared to HP and the likes? Did Rowling seemingly monopolize an entire genre?

>>21717052
Sounds like you're talking about Urban Fantasy.

>>21717052
Go to the writing general, dumbass.

>>21717052
Wrong general. Ask the /wg/ instead. >>21711586

>>21716617
The other Expanse books I've wrote about can be seen here specifically, or on my Goodreads profile
>>/lit/?task=search2&ghost=yes&search_text=expanse+corey&search_subject=&search_username=&search_tripcode=sffg&search_email=&search_filename=&search_datefrom=&search_dateto=&search_op=all&search_del=dontcare&search_int=dontcare&search_ord=old&search_capcode=all&search_res=post


>>21716766
Others do, they just don't post them in the thread. Probably mostly because they aren't ever in the thread. There seems to be a lot of tenuous associations, churn, and few regulars.
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/21679684-sffg-reviewers
I updated this at the beginning of the year. It's how many reviews that the top 20 reviewers by quantity rather than quality have.

Reviews
763
658
536 !SFFG.n1h7M
457
322
256
240
230
196
185
168
159
155
131
129
124
118
117
110
109

Then there are the anons, such as >>21715800 who consistently post some write-ups about what they've read here but not to their Goodreads account. There are a few others who do the same.

>>21716778
Yes, I tend to like more character focused, but other ways are nice as well. Idea focused books can be enjoyable as well. I probably like plot based generally less. On a related note, I tried reading Wild Massive today on a whim to see if it's low score and what had been written about it were deserved. I only read a fifth before I decided it was indeed a strange book that didn't seem to be really focused on anything in particular. Probably won't write anything about it though. I rarely do for anything I don't finish. I also gave an honest attempt recently at trying to read Africa Risen, an anthology of African writers, as the token book for the month but that didn't work out. Oh well.

>>21716718
I hold a lot back to fit into the arbitrary 3,000 character limit, which is fine by me otherwise I'd be spending too long writing them and they'd become too long. Though, it's also relatively recent that I decided to even fill out the character limit entirely every time.

>>21716809
>>21716868
It's rather a lot to expect anyone to be consistent in the threads, especially when there's a lot of spam and thus a new thread every other day or so. Even when it's 3 days per thread it can be difficult to keep up, so I don't. I'm also not always reading either. Next thread is Babylon's Ashes, Expanse #6. I don't have anything else to post after that for now. I haven't decided yet, but I'll probably read Endymion, Hyperion Cantos #3, and see if it lives up to its infamous reputation, as some others have. By the time I start it'll be 3 months since I finished the 2nd book, which seems about a right amount of time.
Every time I see the charts mentioned, whether as a troll or sincerely, I think that I really ought to get around to updating the mega again, but it seems that I never do. Maybe someday, eventually, I will, hopefully anyway.

>>21717052
Why don’t you ask the writing general?

>>21717087
Thanks for replying, didn't expect you would, but its nice to see that you did.

>>21717065
>>21717071
>>21717124
Not quite getting how the question is related to /wg/. It's not like I'm writing anything and it's related to fantasy. But oh well...

>>21717087
>It's rather a lot to expect anyone to be consistent in the threads, especially when there's a lot of spam and thus a new thread every other day or so.
Yeah, shame about the shitposters that’s spamming the general, really makes this thread unable to last for more than a day. You don’t need to force yourself to leave a review every thread but it is nice to see your reviews.

>>21717011
That's a tv show.

>>21717139
Read Wizard of the Pigeons

>>21717026
Did you not read his posts? He already read Conan.

>>21717159
Then he should reread it.

>>21717087
>Next thread is Babylon's Ashes, Expanse #6. I don't have anything else to post after that for now. I haven't decided yet, but I'll probably read Endymion, Hyperion Cantos #3,
Nice. I’ll be waiting for them then.

>>21717149
This thread was better than most, but that's not saying much.

>>21717157
No

>>21717153
It still answers what he wants.

>>21717177
Yeah, but it’s still something worth saying.

>>21717052
Last Call by Tim Powers. No wands exactly but it deals with tarot magic

>>21717052
People usually compare arbitrary works to the most popular works simply it's all they know.

>>21716136
I didn't have sex in 5 years, but severian probably made up some of the sex scenes. The little fellow was 14 during the events of BotNS.
>>21716668
Is it any good?
>>21716875
Book of the Short Sun. Too bad you have to read at least 4 novels before it.

>>21717338
>Is it any good?
Read it and find out.

>>21717338
late Heinlein isn't as good as early/mid Heinlein

Nothing in BotNS happened. It was all a dream.

>>21715992
>I only read sophisticated books for sophisticated people such as myself
Enlighten us with your sophistication anon

>>21717338
>Too bad you have to read at least 4 novels before it.
>too bad
Long Sun is great

New thread
>>21717855