/lit/ - Literature

Rothfuss is anime and sanderson is gary stu

t-thanks for 40 pages of the basics on game theory and chinese rooms, real interesting

dropped

>>9809846
Chinese room is the most retarded theory in the world

Any good werewolf fantasy?

>>9809824
Any good books like The Forever War and Starship Troopers? Can't seem to read them enough

Any fantasy books about someone climbing the ladder of an army/military to the top? Preferably not through a single event

>>9809854
>good books
>like starship troopers
No, there are no good books like starsship troopers, including starship troopers. I bet you read The Art of Manliness

>>9809851
It's not a theory, it's a thought experiment to illuminate the idea that meaning is not inherent to syntax. Sounds like you're the retarded one. I'm probably talking to a Chinese room right now.

>>9809868
Please leave, tumblr.

>>9809868
I admit starship troopers was a bit of a let down . Was one of those 'movie was better' kind of books . But god help you if you think The Forever War was bad.

>>9809907
The prooblem is that it doesn't prove what the thought experiment is created to illustrate. There is no proof that syntax is different from meaning, it's entirely an emotional appeal.

>>9809913
Please leave, r/asianmasculinity

I want to try Lovecraft.

Which of his books should I start with, and why?

Any good books similar to Berserk?

>>9809969
The divine comedy

Just finished, literally within the last five minutes, the last book of this series.

Wool was compelling and interesting if not the most inspiring writing. I remember feeling annoyed at what I thought were plot-holes and the unsatisfying ending of the book. I had trouble visualizing exactly the size and scale of the Silo (especially how narrow the spiral staircase is) until at least halfway through the book, but once I finally got it I felt like it had an excellent sense of place.

Shift was frustrating and annoying at first. The initial main character was almost intolerable but I suppose that the author was making a point. I wish it had been more of a pleasure to read those parts of the book though. Once it got to the meat of its story, I was eventually won over by the eeriness of the setting. Very otherworldly. I thought the comparison to the afterlife was heavy-handed but probably only because it fit so perfectly.
I didn't care much about Jimmy's story but I understand why the author thought it needed to be told.
I did really appreciate how well the author was able to construct such a radically different setting that still fit exactly into the world he'd already created.

Dust I just finished, still forming opinions. Finally got all the storylines put back together which was satisfying after the frustration of the last two books. By this point I got really tired of the way the author kept setting up "obvious" or "inevitable" deaths to establish a sense of urgency, but then drawing them out as long as he liked. It felt manipulative especially after having put up with the same shit in the last two books. I enjoyed the very sensible resolution to most of my "plot holes" from the first book.

Overall the series was compelling but frustrating at times. I appreciate how the author set out to write a story as ambitious as any grand-scale space opera sci-fi, but confined to just a tiny corner of the Earth. He made me feel awe and wonder about a subject that might've seemed uninteresting. The entire conceit relied on only one or two pieces of imaginary sci-fi technology (albeit big ones). I wonder if the author intended the series to be a grand metaphor for the dreams of sci-fi readers, if he imagined pulling the wool from our eyes with a simulacrum of the Fermi Paradox. If you've read it you probably know what I'm referring to. I don't know if that was the theory behind the design of the books or just a side-thought that he could work in nicely.

I feel like there were some loose ends, but maybe just things I haven't figured out yet:
What happened to Silo 40 and their friends? In the very end of the last book servers 40 and 38 are still running incredibly hot even after Silo 1 bombed them.
Is the reader to believe that they came so close but didn't quite make it, didn't quite solve the mystery?
How do the oil wells work? The silos are are too close together for them to have independent wells.

>>9809969
To Kill A God

>>9809999
That looks terrible. Is that your book?

>>9810017
I wish I was that good of a writer

Where do I start with Asimov?

>>9810069
You don't

How far along are you guys?

>>9809860
Kaladin's story in Stormlight Archive's first two books is kinda like that. He has ups in downs as a soldier, going from ordinary enlisted to slave to high ranking officer over the course of two books, then after that his military rank kinda stops mattering.

>>9809860
First couple Legend of the Galactic Heroes novels

>>9810069
Find a book with his name on it and then read it.

>>9810098
I don't have a good reads. I have actual, physical shelves that I can look at if I want to remember what books I've read or want to read.

>>9809949
Stories: Dagon: it's one of his first.

Call of Cthulhu: it's his easiest to read.

The Nameless City: a good example of his style.

As for physical books, grab any old anthology. They're all good

>>9810114
Are they any good?

>>9810069
Foundation trilogy.

>>9810123
What a shitty way to try to act superior. You're not even good at it.

>>9809949
The Mound, because it's very relevant today.

>>9810181
I wasn't acting superior, I was stating a fact. I have actual shelves, I don't need virtual ones. I figured that's what goodreads is for, people who don't have physical books.

>>9809917

Stupidest post I've read in awhile.

>>9810153
I liked them. I don't know how high your standards are, especially for translated novels.

>>9810094
>>9810117
>>9810178
thanks guys

Sanderson.

What are some expansive and interesting fantasy worlds?

>>9810295
Hyboria
Earthsea

>>9810295

>>9810196
Yeah, a thought experiment is not meant to be a proof. It's meant to be an illustration of a concept that might be hard to understand if all you had to think about were a dry proof.

I don't want to talk out of my ass but I think I can remember reading that Gödel did prove that point anyway.

Is Analog a good magazine?

>>9809914

>>9809854
Undying Mercenaries
Galaxy's Edge
The Revelations Cycle

>>9809854
There is the Falkenberg's Legion set by Jerry Pournelle. (The omnibus goes by the name the prince if I remember right).

how the hell do you decide on what to read next

>>9809995
Haven't read it. It sounded interesting back when the hype was heavy around it but I never got around to picking it up.

>>9810380
Hell yes. I just wish Smylie hadn't fumblefucked his way out of ownership of his own creation. We'll probably never see the end of Beseiged or the follow up to the Barrow now

>>9809921
Not the dude you're replying to but kek that was specific

>>9810670
I just look at blurbs on Goodreads or Wikipedia or whatever until I feel curious enough to start reading something, and then I download it. If it's any good I keep reading it.
I do build up a backlog but I don't often pick my next book from there. It's not as much fun to read something as an "assignment," I prefer to just pick up whatever I'm interested in right there in that moment. Makes it easier to get started.

>>9809824
I usually just read /lit/ approved material but recently I pirated perdido street station and I think I'm enjoying it. Cactus people are fucking stupid though. Feels like WoW.

>>9810829
Good good.

What's the best near future scifi book that has come out in the past 5 years? I want to read something like gravity's rainbow.

>>9809854
'Armor' by John Steakly is okay. It does the 'Rogue Moon' thing though where the cool science-fiction premise is just a backdrop for character study. Steakly isn't as good a writer as Budrys IMO but lots of army-faggots supposedly like Steakly.

>>9810880
I'll never understand why when a book is written is used as a criteria for anything.

>>9810195
Answer the question and tell us how many you've read this year then.

>>9810670
Random choice from the unread pile.

>>9810098
My finished pile for the year looks to be 54.

>>9809914
>>9810525
It makes sense if you've served in the military as it's basically the ideal world if you create a government based off the ideals of the military. If not the concepts of duty of honor fall a bit flat because you haven't been in a environment where they're highly prized.

>>9810930
I think 6? I don't write down when I read them, but I read about 1 book a month on average so if I had to guess it would be 6 books finished this year. Why do you track them by year and not month? Month seems a better gauge of how fast you read.

>>9811007
I don't write them down either, but I try and keep ones I've read in a separate pile. Goodreads is fairly popular here (for tracking) and anons frequently post about the yearly challenge it has, so I started making a new finished pile on January 1st.

>>9810670
Top Priority:
>other books by authors I like
>books recommended to me by people whose taste I trust (only 2 people fit this criteria)

Middle Priority:
>books recommended by authors I like on their personal blogs
>books recommended to me by people I talk to about books a lot (mostly family in this category)

Lower Priority:
>books I pick up off the shelf at a book store because they look interesting (there's a whole process for this too, I don't just grab one at random)
>books that are talked about a lot in /sffg/

Lowest Priority:
>everything else

>>9811034
I just put them on the shelf when I'm done. I have a stack on my bedside table of "to read" books, but once I've read them they get shelved until I want to reread, then they get added to the stack again.

>Goodreads is fairly popular here (for tracking) and anons frequently post about the yearly challenge it has
I don't really understand the point of it. I'd rather just read what I want, when I want, instead of trying to force myself to meet some goal. That turns it into a chore.

>>9811048
>I just put them on the shelf when I'm done. I have a stack on my bedside table of "to read" books, but once I've read them they get shelved until I want to reread, then they get added to the stack again.
That's how I did it before I started buying books like a madperson.
>I'd rather just read what I want, when I want, instead of trying to force myself to meet some goal.
I personally don't have a goal. It's just kinda cool to be able to look back at the end of the year and say "Wow, I read over a hundred books this year." instead of just "I read a lot".

>>9810914
Because it's sci-fi. I want to see a realistic depiction of the future, that's why I asked for something like Gravity's rainbow.

>>9811163
>realistic depiction of the future
Not sure if you're in the right place then. Maybe you'd find political blogs or something like that more interesting. Not memeing.

>>9810986
What do you make of Myke Cole and his books?

>>9811069
Library-in-boxes anon. That you? How your container sex dungeon- i mean library coming along?

>>9811163
First tell us how many books in total you read. Only this would tell us if we dain bive you our help.

>>9811302
Dude i don't keep track, maybe 5-7 a year? I know it's not much but whatever

GRRM and Neil Gaiman are doing a kickstarter to make a No Mans Scam/Scam Citizen with Neil deGrasse Tyson.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/neil-degrasse-tyson-talks-joining-forces-with-george-rr-martin-on-a-space-video-game
>Space Odyssey, which describes itself as “an awe-inspiring gaming experience of galactic exploration and colonization” in which users can “explore space, colonize planets, and create and mod in real time,” has quite the team behind it. In addition to Tyson, who is serving as the game’s scientific expert, there are the concept artists behind games like God of War and Final Fantasy, as well as a few people you may know by the names of Bill Nye, Neil Gaiman, and George R.R. Martin, the architect of Game of Thrones, who are aiding in the creation of several of the game’s galaxies.

The developer, Big Red Button, is perhaps better known for SONIC BOOM: RISE OF LYRIC for the Nintendo WiiU

>>9810986
No. There's a difference between having been immersed in a culture and respecting it. His military ideals are incredibly juvenile, it feels like he wrote it based off his g.i. Joe play sessions.

>>9810848
anything with a female protagonist that gets raped?

>>9811447
>Hey guys I need some porn
You are too dumb to live.

>>9811468
you are too rude to post.

Yeeah, the 2nd Locke Lamora book really does go to absolute shit. Might be the most baffling plot structure I've ever seen, it's like the writer just got bored half way in and decided to drop every non-main character, every plot thread and just start writing random pirate shit out of nowhere. Not even fun pirates but some noble strong womyn trash, had decent female characters in the first part unlike this Rothfuss sex ninja tier hamfisted shit, it's like he got lobotomized half way into the second book, him and Rothfuss must have been copying the same fanfiction.net story.

Also it's been half the trilogy and I'm not sure this Sabetha actually exists. Fuck it it's not worth it, I'll get my tomboy fix elsewhere.

>>9810153
The translations are kinda dry, but definitely readable. You can also watch the anime instead, if you're not repulsed by chinese cartoons.

>>9809824
TUC question.

When the No God whirs up and everyone starts losing their shit, why didn't Akka and friends just start zapping it with magic? It had no chorae attached at the time.

>>9811378
>IDEAS GUYS: THE LUDO
video games going mainstream was a mistake

>>9811378
Games take even bigger scribts than books, how are they gonna oversee that while writing asoiaf? Good book writers doesn't translate to good game writers anyways.

Just finished The Shadow of what was Lost due to a recommendation by someone in here and it was a decent read.

Started the Lightbringer books right after and after a few hours of the audiobook it hasn't hooked me yet. Does it take a while? The whole light as powers thing has been really poorly introduced so far.

>>9811639
Dream PTSD? Bad writing?

>>9811706
>He thinks gurm still works on Winds

>>9811741
It just seems stupid. Sonic boom team? They're genuinely terrible. Tyson? He's such a fuckng anti artistic pseud. A gaiman game with some help from people like Avellonne would be great. As it stands it seems like they're almost intentionally doing a shitty project

>>9811378
Well, the concept is good and no one have managed to pull it off yet so I'm glad people keep on trying. However,
>implying I'll give them my money before they show me a playable game

Another nail in the coffin for ASoIaF, I'd be mad if I had not already given up hope long ago.

>>9811757
It's an edutainment 4X game, the pop-science nigger just wanted some celeb names to stick beside his own. They'll likely write small scraps of flavour text that could fit on post-it notes.

>>9811767
Whether someone has managed to pull it off is arguable. Eve is great. And since there are so many writers they're probably not going for pure simulation, and there are great space rpgs out there.
Also you shouldn't be too afraid of funding kickstarters if you know what you're doing. But you shouldn't fund this, obviously

Codex Alera any good?

>>9811767
>no one have managed to pull it off yet

>>9811778
>Eve
Eve doesn't really (to me, that is) feel like the same kind of game. This feel more like, the quite specific, kind of game NMS tried to be. A RPG but without a fixed storyline, unlike KoToR for example.

>you shouldn't be too afraid of funding kickstarters
I'm not impossible to convince, I've supported 3 or 4 Kickstarters over the years. A very big dose of skepticism is healthy when it comes to Kickstarter.

>>9811790
Let me specify. No one have yet managed to make a good visually striking, open world space exploration RPG. And that's just my opinion.

>>9811447
The Diamond Age

>>9809860
first book of deed of paksenarrion (after that it's more traditional fantasy)

My vacation is coming up soon and I'm trying to find some books to enjoy myself with. I was hoping someone here could help me decide what I should go for.

I've been thinking about taking up the rest of the Hyperion Cantos. I've read the first two and enjoyed them (actually still need 50-ish pages in Fall of Hyperion), but the time skip to Endymion doesn't sound appealing to me. Should I continue or is it best to let it be?
Alternatively I've been considering Niven's Ringworld, it sounds intriguing enough. Is it any good?

But really I would love some sci fi recommendations. I love the grand settings, like Hyperion and Foundation, but I don't have much time to read outside of holidays and thus have a hard time picking something out, because I don't want to waste my time/money. Any help or recs are appreciated.

>Having people invent or find out things in prehistorik fantasy

Please don't
Ever

>>9811984
Why not?

>>9811992
People don't invent the wheel and invent writing in the span of a week

>>9811997
>People don't invent the wheel and invent writing in the span of a week
That's just bad writing, not an argument against the concept of inviting the wheel in fiction.

>>9810098
I think I'm on 36 for the year going off of what I've added to Calibre in 2017

Not too bad considering I didn't read everything for several months

About to read this, what am I in for?

>>9809824
>>What are you reading
Fevre Dream.
Two-thirds done. The steamboat stuff is comfy and the vampire stuff is interesting.

>>Book last Read
Promise of Blood (Powder Mage, #1)
Enjoyable enough, not the smartest book but kept me entertained. I like that the book begins just after the oppressive king and his wizards have been usurped and killed. The different types of magic as well as the fect that they are not always understandable are interesting, though the constant reminders that "a powder mage can give a man a telepathic handjob at two-hundred yards just by burning powder" and whatnot got old really fast.
How are the sequels?

>>9811978
If you're fine with modern sci-fi I'd recommend The Three Body Problem series. It's "only" 3 books and the setting is grand enough.

Planet of Adventure was better than Demon Princes, but not as good as the Caldwel Chronicles, and on par with Big Planet and Vance's pulp stories. If you read the first book and didn't like it, it doesn't get any more exciting. Read Caldwel instead.

>>9810098
11/18, one book ahead of schedule apparently. Setting the bar pretty low because I only recently began reading for pleasure.

>>9811447
Black Jewels Trilogy
Let the right one in

>>9811506
His wife dumped his and took him for everything he was worth. That is why the second book, and books after went to shit. That is why Locke pines over Sabetha continuously.

>>9811447
>Wanting to read about little girls getting raped

Fucking disgusting

>>9811709
You usually read Lightbringer after Night Angel, by then you're hyped up for anything he writes.

>>9811984
>>9811997
W... Why do I have the feeling that itage of swords you are talking about?

>>9812548
I also tried to get into Night Angel but couldn't. I only do audiobooks so and the narrator was kinda bad.

>>9812559
Your feelings are true

>>9812061
>any sufficiently advanced technologies is indistinguishable from magic
>any sufficiently advanced magics is indistinguishable from technology

>>9812563
Then get the graphic audio version you earlet.

>>9812571
That is some of ths shit that pissed me off in the first. I will read the second, but will probably drop the series afterwards.

>>9812061
Gay sex.
Seriously

>>9812595
Everything about how the '''inventions''' happen is forced as fuck and just really shit to read and get through
The author should just stop trying to make it work, it's fucking horrible

>>9811297
Yeah, I'm still here. 110+F weather really discourages one from working inside a metal box. My enthusiasm is at a low ebb.

>>9811447
Malazan has a few female PoV characters that get raped.

>>9812604
>Everything about how the '''inventions''' happen is forced as fuck and just really shit to read
Well in the Riyria books it was explained that she invented modern life, now that he is writing a back story he has to follow through and make it true.
>should just stop trying to make it work,
Can't. Book series is already completed. So he can't edit after his readers give him reviews. You're stuck with it if you plan to complete the series.

>>9812619
Does it snow in your part of the world? Throw some solar panels on top of you container, install an AC (one that works with solar) and your good to go. Install some dehumidifiers to protect your investment.

>>9812669
>Can't. Book series is already completed. So he can't edit after his readers give him reviews.
He addressed that in the author's note in the 2nd book beginning, the books are written, but not complete, he still changes things

>>9812703
I think the mystery of Nevron was more interesting than the actuality of him. It's explained that his walking onahole was the brains while he took the credit. But how Sullivan is showing it so far it's not working. Maybe I'll feel different when I check book 2. I'll have to look for my notes on the first book to jog my memory on all the shit that pissed me off.

>>9812683
>Does it snow in your part of the world?
Not really, no.
>Throw some solar panels on top of you container, install an AC (one that works with solar) and your good to go. Install some dehumidifiers to protect your investment.
I've already got buried mains conduit/cable all the way to the main junction box and an old AC unit appropriately sized for the space. Suffering from indecision over the internal wiring right now. Don't think I need dehumidifiers as this is a desert, but appreciate the advice.

>>9812703
I just peeped my notes. And remembered it's a power grab series with brainwashing and manipulation.
Can't we have fantasy with cynical persons instead of yes men? I'm cynical and have a job. It's possible to be cynical and survive. This shit that the protagonist has to be an optimistic cunt who looks for the best in people is tiring. Also Sullivan needed more GRI. When her husband was killed she should have been forced to sleep with someone.

>>9812757
I was looking at the AC fucking up the books, not your climate.

Is Jewls Vern worth reading?
Anyone have any experience with him?

>>9812792
Oh, I thought swamp coolers increased humidity and refrigerated ones decreased it?

Just finished Book of the Long Sun. Easily the best characterization I've ever seen in a big /sffg/ story.

>>9812757
Also use thick electrical cables and trunshun boxes to hide them, and install a fly back circuit breaker in the container, and make sure to ground everything it's a fucking metal box. Keep at least two chemical /foam fire extinguishers in there. Paper catches pretty quick.

>>9812810
Glad you enjoyed it. How did you like the Christianity?

>>9810098
63 out of however many I can fit in in a year. My job has long hours of nothing, so I can read 2 to 3 books a week.

>>9812811
>Also use thick electrical cables
I think I'm using standard residential cable inside, and the external cable used to power a trailer.
>and trunshun boxes to hide them
I don't know what this is, but I did standard 2x4 framing on the inside with insulation. Ran wiring in the walls to normal outlet boxes.
>and install a fly back circuit breaker in the container
I don't know what a fly back is, but I have a breaker box with breakers in it
>and make sure to ground everything it's a fucking metal box.
Yeah, I hope not to mess that up. I've got one of those copper grounding poles that I still need to pound in.
>Keep at least two chemical /foam fire extinguishers in there. Paper catches pretty quick.
That's probably a good idea.

>>9812820
Postponed my suicide by at least another week. Silk is a real hero and a real human bean. Even though the story wasn't as personal as New Sun I think that it was at least as moving if not more so. It had so many high points.

>>9811757
>>9811775
And Gaiman, much as I love his writing, will add his name to anything as long as anyone asks.

>>9811783
It's pretty good.

I get bored of books easily. What should I read? Would like to find somebody modern because I've read so much 40's-70's pulp already. Much more interested in cool guys having adventures than thought experiments and high literature.

>>9813123
Riyria

>>9813123
>Much more interested in cool guys having adventures
Ah, then you've come at the right time, for I am here with actual recomendations.
First, do you want fantasy, sci-fi, urban fantasy or superheroes?

>>9812820
Absolute Aram. Did you ever show Wolfe this pic? What was his response?

>>9812867
>I don't know what this is,
It's those cable management boxes that you run yards of networking cable through without drilling holes.

>>9813176
Sci fi > fantasy > urban fantasy (?) >>>>>capeshit

>>9813268

Americans will never be able to read Jean-Philippe Jaworski works...
Poor people. All of them.

>>9810196
The ruse with the chinese room experiment is that people identify with the person in the room, and then they think "hey, this person doesn't speak chinese, the argument is correct!"
But in actuality, the room as a whole (including the dude and the rulebook) does have an understanding of chinese, and therefore can be said to have a mind (or whatever it even is that the argument is trying to disprove).

>>9811978
Galactic Center series by Gregory Benford
Uplift series by David Brin
Anything by Greg Egan set in the Amalgam universe.

>>9813411
So your conclusion is that a phrasebook and a room has a mind? Isn't that much more ridiculous and unbelievable than concluding that syntax could be separate from meaning?

I don't see why you would be more inclined to think that a book can "think" and have meaningful intentions as opposed to thinking that maybe grammatical Chinese sentences could be nonsense in some cases.

>>9813432
>So your conclusion is that a phrasebook and a room has a mind?
If the room performs equivalent computations to those a human native speaker would, then it's functionally equivalent to such a human's brain, and therefore has a mind (if we assume that the human has a mind).
>Isn't that much more ridiculous and unbelievable than concluding that syntax could be separate from meaning?
I don't think it's about syntax vs. meaning at all, it's about whether a computer could be conscious the way I understand it.
>I don't see why you would be more inclined to think that a book can "think" and have meaningful intentions as opposed to thinking that maybe grammatical Chinese sentences could be nonsense in some cases.
The point is that the room can carry on a meaningful conversation with another human, not just produce grammatically correct sentences.

The original conception (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_room#Chinese_room_thought_experiment)) posits a computer program in book-form which is executed by a human. It also (if wikipedia is to be believed) quite literally performs the ruse I outlined above:
>However, Searle would not be able to understand the conversation. ("I don't speak a word of Chinese,"[9] he points out.)

>>9813481
>>9813432
>>9813411
You're overlooking the REAL slight of hand. The Chinese Room thought experiment requires that it's possible to imitate a native Chinese speaker with a man following an algorithm. Putting aside that requirement, you can imagine the Chinese Box, a sealed box which you put in letters written in Chinese and get replies perfectly imitating a native Chinese speaker. Now the idea of the box having a mind makes perfect sense, afterall for all we know there's just a Chinese guy in there with a pen.

The question isn't "is syntax different than meaning?" and it's not "can something static be alive?" Basically the virus argument again. The Box/Room has no method of acting or communicating without outside assistance, otherwise it's merely inert matter, but WITH outside help it's fully capable of action and self replication. Is it alive? Is a rotary lathe alive because it can be used to reproduce itself? is the universe alive because it contains living creatures? What is "alive"?

The answer is that there isn't one. Or yes, the only thing that is definitely wrong is that nothing is alive. Other than that, what does it even matter?

>>9813607
>he Chinese Room thought experiment requires that it's possible to imitate a native Chinese speaker with a man following an algorithm.
I really see no problem with this, unless you're holding some dualist view of the mind (in which case you've got that pesky little interaction problem to solve).
I'm not at all clear on what the rest of your post is getting at.
The Chinese room thought experiment is about whether an artificial intelligence can be conscious, whether you like it or not.

>>9813268
Sci-fi is the one I have least, but let's see
Zero World by Jason M Hough has a superspy in the future going to a parallel world.
Alex Hughes Mindspace Investigations series is about an ex-junkie telepath working with the police to solve crimes.
Brandon Sandersons Legion is a short book about a detective type who has multiple halucinations/multiple personalities each one a specialist in a field of study
... I need to put more new sci-fi on my to read list.

Fantasy is more my area.
Brent Weeks Night Angel trilogy, about a strret orphan becoming a badass mage assassin.
Jim Butchers Codex Alera series, has romans with elemental superpowers fighting wolfman with blood magic and later the Zerg. It's pretty awesome.
Anthony Ryans Draconis Memoriam series is about people hunting dragons to extract their blood, because drinking dragons blood gives you superpowers.
Peter V.Brett Painted Man series is about a world where demons pop up from the ground every night to hunt people, until one guy goes crazy and decides to find a way to kill demons.
Michael Sullivans Riyria is about two thieves who get framed by a conspuracy and decide to survive even if it means saving the kingdom.
Brian McClellans Powder Mage trilogy sounds dumb, but it's actually about GUNPowder Mages. If that's not enough to make a man interested then he is not a man.
Will Wights Cradle series is more Xianxia, or martial arts chinese style fanasy. /sffg/ says he writes anime, and I agree with that. But it's good anime.

Urban Fantasy is when it's our world but with vampires, werewolves and magic, usually hidden. Think Constantine or Hellboy.
Half of it is romance where women make harems of vampires for themselves, the good half is adventure and mistery with paranormal investigators stoppig the apocalypse every book. This second half includes
Jim Butcher Dresden Files, about a wizard trying to make a living as private investigator. Then things escalate. At one point he rides a zombie dinosaur.
Simon R Green has the Nightside and Secret Histories series, the first about a private detective in a pocket dimension outside the rule of Heaven and Hell, where it's always 3AM and everything can be bought, sold put for rent or pawned. The second is about a rogue secret agent for the secret family that protects the world from all the other conspiacies and world threats.
Ben Aaronovitch has the Rivers of London series, about a cop trying to deal with the magic side of London and becoming a wizard. More focused on the police procedural side of things.
Larry Correia Monster Hunter International is about a mercenary company of badasses whose profession is hunting monsters.

what are some heist, con, assasination, thieverybthemed books other than lamora and taltos series?

>>9813673
Riyra
Night Angel

>>9813673
and are there porter equavalent series for fantasy and sci fi?

>>9813692
i mean parker, fuck.

>>9813634
Oh, and If you get bored easily maybe anthologies are more to your speed? Bunch of writers each with a shot story on a theme?
If you can find it, I recommend Mean Streets, Shdowed Souls, Powers of Detection and Dark and Stormy Knights. All anthologies of Urban Fantasy detectives.
Kaiju Rising focusing on stories about giant monsters Godzila style is cool.
George RR Martin put a few togheteher more focused on fantasy, like Warriors, Rogues, and Dangerous Women.
I've got recently got one called Straight Outta Tombstone, about weird things happening in the Wild West. It's pretty neat.

>>9813632
There's a very important matter of computational complexity. What if the simplest possible Chinese Room algorithm involves simulating an entire Chinese Man from the subatomic structure up? What if it takes 10 million years of calculation per response? In order to reason about an "AI" we have to define it in a sane way. I'll start with defining the Chines Room AI as: an algorithm capable of imitating human level intelligence, without directly simulating or containing any part of a human, save for it's sole operator, and which can, being operated by a human, produce a response within one month of receiving an input.

Now I think that's reasonable, and it also might be impossible.
There are also some big cheats that are easy, like making the program induce a hypnotic state in the operator, brainwash him to think he's a chinaman, teach him chinese, make him respond to the letter, and then make him forget any of that happened. Is an induced alternative personality an AI?
In order to avoid that, we'll replace the operator with a computer. And we're back at "might be physically impossible".

reading Malazan right now. Please tell me Tavore dies

>>9813634
I like the Rivers of London series as well, but I'll admit that I struggle to shrug off the casual abuse of police/state powers.

>>9813673
first mistborn

Has anyone else read this, and have you read anything else like it?

>>9813737
[Spoiler]I don't know[/spoiler]

>>9813692
>>9813697
What's Parker?

>>9813673
I second >>9813682 those are good.
The Elder Empire - Shadow by Will Wight is about an assassin, trying to stop the old eldritch horrors from returning to her world. A fun gimmick is that her main human opponent (a pirate/navy captain) has his own series of books Elder Empire - Sea where she is the main antagonist. You can read only one side but reading both explains a lot more about the eldritch horrors and the magic of the setting.
The everything Box by Richard Kadrey, about a magic thief trying to steal a magic box. More of a comedic take, tho.
Robin Hobbs Assassin Trilogy has the intial assassin training and a couple of missions but quiclky leaves it aside for a plot about war, magic and suffering. Lots and lots of suffering.

>>9813751
Haven't read, but the cover and the blurb on good reads got me interested. Is it good?

>>9809853
>dude bitten by werewolf
>turns
>likes being werewolf until required to kill someone important too him
>kills alpha wolf
>turns back
>the end

>bonus round, mc is still a werewolf and now leads the pack as an alpha.

There. That's every werewolf book or movie ever.

>>9813801
I liked it a lot. I've never really found anything like it, and was basically hoping someone could tell me if Mieville is similar or not

>>9809969
The first law series appear to be so. I haven't read them tho.

>>9813737
No she survives

>>9813673
That one Dresden Files novel where they have to steal something from Hades himself if I'm remembering correctly.

>>9810069
Read Foundation if you must, but Asmiov is drier than a nun's minge tbph.

>>9810829
>Perdido Street Station
just couldn't get into it, got about half way.
shocking how a novel with such a creative setting could turn out to be so dull

>>9810848
>no Book of the New Sun
delete this

>>9813776
donalt westlake's series by pseudoname richard stark.

its about a hardcore thief parker. pretty gritty stuff. i love it.

>>9809824
Probably the best SciFi of the century so far.

>>9813743
Rivers of London is pretty good, I'm surprised it's not mentioned on here more often. Although the last two have been pretty underwhelming, Broken Homes is the current peak.

>>9814136
I immediately distrust anything that is related to the Hugos

>>9813751
>>9813801
>>9813809
Haven't read it but you might want to try the Wolfhound Century series by Peter Higgins. It's this weird Mythic Russia setting that's become industrialized, so there are clashing elements of the old world with the new.

>>9814174
If you notice it didn't actually win.

>>9814261
Nominations are political all the way down. And I'm talking both sides.

Is anything Vox Day is involved with any good or is he just amazing at self-marketting?

>>9814283
Neither? He's just got a bunch of sycophants who say his stuff is good because they agree with his politics.

What's a good sci-fi novel or novella with a theme of desolation, loneliness and a feeling of "smallness" and impotence in the universe?

>>9814329
you seem in a cheery mood

>>9814329
H.P. Lovecraft.

Especially At The Mountains of Madness and The Shadow Out of Time.

>>9814329
>>9814348
Already read him, should have mentioned in my post. I like him a lot, looking for something in that vein

>>9814264
So are the Oscars but I still like one or two of the nominated films.

>>9814264
Not all good genre books are hugo nominees and not all hugo nominees are good books, but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of really good books that also happened to be nominated for a hugo. Even if it's a broken award, seeing it mentioned shouldn't prejudice you against a book. Judge it on its own merits.

>>9814356
Hmmm...
1984 (obviously) and IMO Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (although it's not very depressing). That's all that comes to mind.

Also, look up Cthulhu Mythos books. You might find something interesting if you like Lovecraft.

>>9814403
I'm not saying it's definitely bad, just that I'm suspicious. I would argue that most Hugo nominees actually are bad.

>>9814283
Is there some other guy named Vox Day I don't know about who somehow excels at either writing or promotion, or are you talking about Theodore "batshit insane" Beale?

So lads. I've just ordered Bakker's The Unholy Consult. Should get it in a week. Is it good? Am I in for disappointment? How does it compare to the rest of the series?

>>9814408
Finished Hitchhiker's recently. Really loved the fourth book, it was gratifying to see Arthur finally get some payoff for all the shit he's been through. Plus the end was sad.

>>9814329
Both of the Walter Tevis books I read dealt with lonliness as one of their main themes. The Man Who Fell To Earth (alien disguises self as human, tries to become rich in order to save his race from extinction, 'goes native' [becoming alcoholic.]) Mockingbird, meanwhile, is a Brave New World-esque dystopia where robots run the show, but the most senior robot who wants to kill himself and experience love. Both of these books have SF settings, but are more about the character development than anything.

You might consider Walter Miller's A Canticle For Leibowitz if you want a post-apoc/collapse novel. There's desolation but not much about being alone because there's some cheeky monk hijinx and banter. Miller has a rep for being a miserable so-and so due to his biography but I often find his dialogues offbeat and quirky. See also his novella Dark Benediction.

I feel like I should recommend PKD, because loneliness is a common strand of his books, but I can only think of his Flow My Tears The Policeman Said for something that writes about loneliness as more than a subtopic. I'd say it's a desolate and grim book, because it's about a celebrity who loses his celebrity status (everyone collectively forgets who he is due to a mysterious factor) and is thrown among the rest of the hopeless populations in a grim fascist surveillance state.

I'm sorry but TUC was fucking shit

>almost 300 fucking pages of sodomy, cannibalism, murder, necrophilia, incest and extremely piss poor philosophizing in almost ludicrous detail
>(seriously I wasn't really affected by anything in the series before but this book was just fucking disgusting and excessive)
>200 page battle which poorly ties up 6 book long mysteries and kills off the major antagonists like nothing
>LITERAL deus ex machina ending

I also think that the writing got worse. Like, not that Bakker was at all good before this, and maybe it's because it's been over a year since I read the other books, but it was just terrible.

A 5/10 at best.

I seriously can't even think of any really hype moments like in TGO, which was god-tier.

And fucking Sorweel, seriously? He was building up to be in my top 3 favorites, and seemed like he was going to have a huge role, and just, nope? What the fuck was with that shit?

>>9814329
>a theme of desolation, loneliness and a feeling of "smallness" and impotence in the universe?

The Hydrogen Sonata by Iain M Banks.

It's actually one of my least favourite Banks Culture novels because it made me feel really depressed afterwards, I was left feeling desolated, like my actions don't matter. An inevitability about events that you can't stop even if you're powerful and good willed and want to help, it doesn't make any difference at the end of the day.

I just felt kind of empty when I finally read the last page of this book.

But it matches exactly with what you're after, so I strongly recommend this, I think you'll get what you want.

What should I read for my first ever Pratchett? I hear Guards! Guards! and Night Shift are good.

>>9815175
Going Postal

>>9815189
thx

I just finished the lightbringer series. They were my first fantasy books ever. I enjoyed them quite a bit and am thinking of going next to the night angel series but im not really sure. Is that a good idea? Should i move to a different author? Did i just read complete garbage and enjoy it?

>>9814283
John C. Wright continues to produce highly creative works but the editing has taken a hit since he joined up with Vox. Vox Day's own fantasy novels are good enough to stand on their own merits to the point I think they would be more popular if they were written by someone else.

>>9815365
Once you enjoy what you read don't bother with lit, they are elitists. Read Night Angel Trilogy then look at my chart and see what catches your eye.

>>9815310
You can move onto Small Gods after that.

>>9815488
>recommending Pratchett's least interesting book
why tho

>>9815490
Turtles.

>>9815476
Just before i started the series i was reading babbit and blood meridian. I've also been reading sci-fi for ages (chalker is the best). This was just my first fantasy series. I've read melville, tolstoy, pynchon etc. and the iliad is my favorite book, ive read four seperate translations of it. I dont think their elitism is going to bother me. I also don't think ive only just started enjoying reading. Thank you.

I wanna pick this up at a half price books, what do you all think of it?

>>9815573
It's not overrated. It's actually very good. If you enjoy it read the sequel.

There's a lot of older SciFi that's just fantastic.

Vernor Vinge is one of my favorite scifi authors. I can't reccomend his Realtime Trilogy and his Qeng Ho novels enough.

>>9814767
The writing was definitely worse. For the first time I found myself skimming. The thing is that TUC is EXTREMELY repetitive! Like he wrote a 100 page book and then just copy pasted each paragraph four times. Barely anything happened, plot threads were abandoned completely or sloppily wrapped up, a fucking severed head got more character development and focus than the main characters!
Feels like he ran out of interest, ideas, or time and rushed the ending just to be done with it.

Also, GOD are you UNDERSTATING the sheer amount of gay sex in that book. It's fucking unbelievable, did Bakker have a psychotic break? Or is it just a clue to where his NEW interests are taking him? Is his next project going to be a retelling of Brokeback Mountain in the post-apocalypse? Oh wait, that was this one!

>>9815632
Speaking of sodomy, cannibalism, murder, and necrophilia, this was surprisingly good.

It's free, too.

http://localroger.com/prime-intellect/

>>9814891
Will check it out; thanks, anon!

>>9815632
Yeah, when Zsoronga raped Sorweel it was way too much, like that was probably the moment my tolerance for the sheer amount of GRI was at an end.

And yeah Malowebi got more screentime, but even that was repetitive. It was just "May Likaro burn in the Hells" x100 + "I can't believe what's happening"

Even the fight between Serwa and the Wracu just seemed so forced, like he was trying to make a hype moment but just fell flat with it. And the entire assault on Golgotterath just felt like a pale imitation of the battles from tPoN. I just didn't care, I wanted to know what the fuck was going to happen. Plus the whole Dunyain taking over the Consult was expected, but still annoying as fuck. The best fucking PART of the series was its cool synthesis of sci-fi and fantasy, and the mystery of the Consult. Then they get ass raped by Dunyain? It makes sense but the fact that the Dunyain are the main antagonists now is so fucked. Plus Kellhus' death was retarded.

>>9815573
I gave it 5 out of dead dino heads.

>>9810702
>fumblefucked his way out of ownership of his own creation
wait, what? the fuck?

>>9815703
Is this a meme I'm not aware of

>>9815841
You're a meme.

>>9815919
Thanks desu

>>9815953
No problem sempai. Here, this rec is on the house.

>>9810295

>>9815841
Sffg has it's own memes.

>>9815659
>random circuit diagram made to look like a butterfly

AY YO HOL' UP

Best fantasyboi.

>>9810295

>started writing a novel 2 years ago
>it was basically sburb meets kekkai sensen
>all the characters sucked and I had no idea of how to get them together

>2 years later
>all the characters are intricate and have complex interactions
>the plot has degenerated to percy jackson meets mirai nikki

jesus fucking christ how did it all go so wrong

>>9816380
For a brief moment I mixed up mirai nikki with yume nikki, and thought you were onto something

>>9816380
2 years is a long time to nurse a story. It's like with children, if you baby them too long they just get spoiled rotten and never turn out properly.

>>9816391
I can't give up these characters or the formless mass of pure concept

>>9816380

>>9816380
At least you're not Ligotti meets Sanderson like me.

>>9816478

Are the Dark Tower books worth checking out? I'm trying to decide between either the first one of those or the first witcher book for my free Audible book.

>>9816746
I've read dark tower, and from what I've heard about the Witcher series, I'm going to go ahead and say if you like action with almost nil character development go for the Dark Tower. If you think the Witcher books are anything like the games, you're going to be disappointed. My personal recommendation is neither, if you're looking for an accessible fun romp you might as well go for Sanderson or Rothfuss

>>9814329
The Revelation Space series. Those feelings seem to apply to humanity in those books. It starts with a universe where faster than light travel is not possible, and the slow expanding human civilization that has encountered no other intelligent race, only ruins. And life in human civilization isn't that flowers and sunshine either.

>>9815175
Guards is good. But Going Postal has a 4-hour movie adaptation.

I'm trying to get into writing scifi/fantasy but I have a general question, I just want a couple of answers.

How would you write a scene like having your main character rocket from the ground into the air about a hundred feet and fly off breaking the sound barrier? I mean without it sounding boring.

And how do you do this and keep it fresh after multiple occasions where a similar scene plays out?

>>9816882
By being good at writing. More specifically, just write it and see if it's good. If not, write it again. Keep going until it is good.

>>9810380
>trade route just goes straight through the desert
Shit map.

>>9817019
The Silk Road literally went STRAIGHT through the fucking Taklemakan, dude.

>>9815678
>Even the fight between Serwa and the Wracu just seemed so forced

Seriously. This seemed like fucking satire.

>>9815365
I liked the Night Angel trilogy, and the ending kind of ruined me for some weeks though I don't know why.
It's an easy and quick read anyway, so you might as well give it a shot. Think I read the third book in less than a week, and I'm a slow reader.

>>9815365
Night Angel was enjoyable when I was a teenager

>>9817032
The Silk Road went through several cities along the way and Taklemakan isn't that big (something 200 miles of desert to cross), that route is 1600 miles through an empty desert.

>>9809969

You could give Sandman Slim a shot.

Though he's turning into an SJW somehow.

>>9811506

Sabetha comes up in the next one.

Scott Lynch is a huge full on peg me savagely SJW. And to be fair, Republic of Thieves was very much a "set up" book. It's the book that's meant to set up for the next 4 where things get real.

That said he turns Locke into a huge cuck and generally just....I don't know. I remember he started Queen of Iron Sands and I was interested but he had big rants about how awful and evil and colonial pulp fiction was and he was gonna do it right with progressiveism. It's like the guy from Sexy Losers/Thin H Line. Got eaten by depression and became an SJW. It's almost like it's the perfect ideology for white males who hate themselves.

>>9817168
I just want a standalone Jean Tannen book, he's too good for Locke.

>>9815678
>sorweel rape

lmao is that fucking true? Holy shit. Glad I dropped him after The Great Ordeal

Whatever happened to Akka and his second-hand Esme, and Cnainur? Fucking lol this shits a trip

Inirlatas is probably the best character in Aspect Emperor

>>9816391
Not really, you just have to trim the fat and figure what you really want out of them at the end of the day. Kill your darlings and all that shit.

Some people are quick to learn that, some arent, but I wouldnt rush out a book just so you don't feel like you're overcooking it.

>>9817093
Are you being a wise ass?

>>9817246
No.

Finally caught 'em all. All 8 hardcover volumes of Stephenson door-stoppers. Wew.

>>9817453
Nice. I only have 4 of them

>>9817453
They look sweet, I'm just on the last part of Snow Crash ATM. It's been a fucking ridiculous time but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have fun

anyone know where i can get

Rough Magick (GnomeSaga, #1) by Kenny Soward

>>9817453
>the Witcher
>WeedzMan

lmao

>pressured into becoming a trap. can this happen in space?

>>9817473
http://forum.mobilism.org/viewtopic.php?f=1293&t=904400

>>9817557
thanks for trying neither of the file host links worked though

>>9817531
There's no pressure in space :3

>>9817586
ah that sucks

>>9817586
http://audiobookbay.la/audio-books/gnomesaga-01-rough-magick-kenny-soward/

>>9817598
What are you reading right now, Canada?

>>9817635
Still reading the Federalist Papers. What about you _:3__?

I went to a thrift store a few weeks ago and found the entirety of Malazan Book of the Fallen covered in dust in the book department.

Living in the Netherlands, it's extremely rare to find fantasy books in English in thrift stores, most of the times I just find dutch translations. I was very happily surprised to find all 10 books in English. Got to buy them for €10,- total! Including some of the Esslemont books. Also found some Asimov books gathering dust.

Just started on the Crippled God. Although it has it flaws, I haven't read a more immersive fantasy series in my life. Personal favourites: Deadhouse Gates & Toll the Hounds.

Any recommendations for when finished?

>GOTM is missing in picture, friend borrowed it. TCG is elsewhere

>>9817623
Thanks brah but its asking for a sign up

wont let me dl the torrent

>>9817678
you don't need to sign up. Google: audiobookbay bugmenot

try the accounts you find there

>>9814767
>>9815632
>>9815678
>>9817185
>Millenials made uncomfortable by Bakker
Everything working as intended. Just stay with Sanderson and young adult novels, friends.

>>9817653
Sure it's not 2312?

>>9817677
Welcome to the fold brother. Also
>friend borrowed it.
You ain't getting that back bro.

>>9817810
Oh darn. It always sucks when you want to read a book and then find out you already have.

>>9817742
Been in to Bakker before you ever heard of him, chump.

Anyone can see his quality in terms of prose and characterization fell off after the first trilogy. Some vast swathes of TGO felt like a fucking first draft.

>>9817677
>Any recommendations for when finished?
Reread tbH. I know I will, after finishing the ICE novels. Currently at the end of book 1 in Orb Sceptre Throne.

>>9817677
That's a really nice find, you're lucky to get them so cheap. I spent probably upwards of $100 on all my Malazan books. In regards to your question though, I haven't found anything that's really like Malazan, but if you don't mind something different I personally enjoy Tad Williams and don't see him talked about here at all (except when I bring him up). I'd recommend Shadowmarch tetrology as a starting point for him if you're up to it.

>>9817818
Noice one, any more shit malaz memes?

To be fair, I borrowed the first two books from a friend as well and didnt give them back until I bought these ones.

>>9817890
I'm aiming to reread using the TOR reread as a guide. Anxious to see what I missed.

How are the ICE novels? I'm not expecting the exact same thing, but does it fit the malaz world well?

>>9817891
Thanks for the recommendation anon, I'll look into those. First really want to finish TCG and hopefully get some answers.

I'd honestly pay €100 for a brand new set of the MBOTF series. My find didn't come with the Kharkanas trilogy, might shell out for that one.

Does anyone have any good recs for contemporary sci-fi authors with interesting concept material set in harder science? I have difficulty figuring out which authors deal with this kind of thing that weren't writing at least 30-40 years ago.

>>9817920
>Noice one, any more shit malaz memes?
I've been kicking around another one of those spurdos using Malick Rel, but I'll need to find a good base image to use or somebody to find it for me.

>>9817920
I actually have the first Kharkanas book on my shelf, haven't read it yet. I wanted a break after finishing Book of the Fallen, but I'm almost out of books to read so I'll probably be cracking it open before too long and get sucked back into this setting.

>>9817939
Try Revelation Space by Alastair Reynolds. The guy's an astronomer and you can see it in his writing.

>>9817920
>>9817957
Actually thought I'd share my Malazan collection since you shared yours. Sorta got them piecemeal, might one day get a nice uniform collection. Can see Kharkanas over there on the right side with a bookmark in the prologue.

>>9817453
>8
I meant 7, wtf, DODO isn't even out here yet
>>9817516
Try pronouncing this, m8

>>9817840
You got to admit though ___--Vince---___ comes to these threads. He is reading too many things that coincide with what we discuss.

>>9818016
>Christ Og-nee-yah

>>9817975
Like your collection, I have the exact same GOTM book, it looks ridiculous on my bookshelfs compared to the other paperback editions. Got any luck finding hardcovers?

>>9817962
Taking a break seems like a good idea. Someone described Feist as a perfect antidote for 10 SE novels

>>9818131
Anon, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but when someone is so paranoid to think that Canada is hiding beneath every rock, they're probably right. You have my sympathies.

>>9817920
>How are the ICE novels? I'm not expecting the exact same thing, but does it fit the malaz world well?
Story-wise, they're good, but they're a lot harder to read because he doesn't write as good as Erikson, primarily because he tries to write in the style of Erikson (I hear his Dancer's Lament is far better than these Novels of the Malazan Empire).
NoK was an okay read because the setting was interesting, but it was hard to follow and read, so I spent ages reading it.
RotCG was somewhat better written and I found the story great and convergence awesome.
Stonewielder was another (minor) step up in writing, but I didn't really like the ending for whatever reason.
Orb Sceptre Throne is yet another (minor) step up in writing, and the story is interesting as we wrap up things in Darujhistan and learn more of the Seguleh.
Overall, if you're interested in the Malazan world and happenings, I'd say give them a try.
Would attach pic of the collection, but I can't. It's the common pocket releases anyway. I find them of rather poor quality, as pages come off and I had to repurchase DG because pages around 70-100 fell out.

>>9818204
>Orb Sceptre Throne is yet another (minor) step up in writing, and the story is interesting as we wrap up things in Darujhistan and learn more of the Seguleh.Overall, if you're interested in the Malazan world and happenings, I'd say give them a try.

You had me at Seguleh. Thanks for the detailed analysis, don't have much to respond with. But I'll give them a try. Can't be worse than RG which I really hated
>tfw my copy of DG also had pages falling out

I think around 600 pages is the maximum reasonable size for a mass market style paperback. I wouldn't have bothered with Malazan if I hadn't scored a full set (well, I'm still missing Bonehunters) of hardbacks.

>about ~20% through first book in the Orthogonal trilogy
I don't even know WHAT the fuck is going on.

I read book two of Jack Vance's Demon Princes, The Killing Machine. Another revenge plot wherein the protag seeks to kill an arch-criminal who killed his kin. More traveling, foreign worlds with unusual customs. Gersen is as cunning and single-minded as Cugel from Dying Earth, but far more suave and with a sense of wider morality. This book is distinguished from the previous by its different villain. It seems to me these books are all about the antagonists, who are well worked out characters with interesting peculiarities and psychologies (more interesting than the taciturn protag; his villains are nonpareil). The one here is a supposedly immortal man who has an aesthetic appreciation for fear. Highlights of this book include a giant mechanical centipede and its aggrieved inventor, a money forging scam, and machinations at an institution for brokering kidnap ransoms. Better than the first book, 4/5 dinos.

What is the fantasy book equivalent of a baby falling asleep in her mother's embrace?

>>9818338
From the perspective of the baby or the mother?

>>9818350
The mother. I will accept the other way around tho.

>>9818360
I'm gonna say The Man Who was Thursday

>>9818368
That looks great, but isit really fantasy?

>>9818395
It's an allegory, and goes full out at the end. It's not genre fiction, but I would say that it should be considered fantasy.

>>9818220
I never really got into the Edur/Lether story, but I was still left in awe by the end of RG.

>>9817742
>muh millenial ad hominem
Please explain to me how Sorweel getting blacked by the big Zeumi dick is justified.

Please explain to me why an ancient dragon screaming "WE LIKE CUNNY" justified.

I am a fan of Bakker's but this book just felt hollow and excessive, not only in prose (which is just becoming utterly abysmal to be honest), but in edge. Fine, you can say this is the edgiest of the GRI edgefests but 300 pages of cannibalism (on irradiated countrymen no less), necrophilia, gorefests?

More edge does not a good book make. We fully realize by this point that Earwa is a fucked up place. I wished he had cut out 200 pages of the shit with the Ordeal and spent more of it writing a satisfying ending and not KILLING one of the main antagonists offscreen.

>>9817185
Yes, Sorweel does get raped by Zsoronga but he's okay with it. Like Sorweel tried to kind of pry loose but Zsoronga pulled out the cock and started pounding that ass and they become lovers. This is right after Serwa x Sorweel finally happens, btw. Then Zsoronga gets executed by Kellhus and Sorweel gets killed by Kelmomas while trying to assassinate Kellhus. All midway through the book and never discussed again.
Akka and Mimara make it to the Ordeal and reunite with Esmenet; Esme is pissed obviously since her ex-lover impregnated her/his (?) daughter; Kellhus is just like k; Mimara starts giving birth and Akka and Mimara help her; Mimara gives birth to a son and the other kid is stillborn; Apocalypse starts, Mimara throws away her chorae so that she, Esmenet, and Akka can escape. That's it. No using the Judging Eye to look at Kellhus. So 3 fucking books for nothing pretty much.
Moenghus gets captured by Cnaiur and basically becomes Scylvendi, Cnaiur burns the Ordeal's camp and has a cute convo with Proyas (who's dying) and then is gives Moenghus kingship of the Utemot and then becomes Ajokli.

It's shit.

>>9818338
Maybe this?
I found it kinda boring, but I think it might fit the aesthetic you seek.

>>9818472
lol such a waste of Sorweel, the other shit sounds like a bunch of nothing just like you said.

Good lord is this the best fantasy has to offer these days?

Do elves ever actually get the BOC outside of erotica?

>>9818511
They do IRL in Europe currently thanks to the half elven queen Merkel.

>>9818628
You realize there are way way more orcs in the american realms, right?

>>9818672
Difference is we're taking care of our orc problem while you yurosplodes are importing orcs at astronomical rates.

Reading WoT right now. Only one very important question.

Is Moiraine a virgin?

>>9818703
I would have answered you if you didn't lie about it being important

>>9818703
RAFO

>>9818422
>>9818220
Also, this scene from the beginning gave me goosebumps.

>>9814767
>I'm sorry but TUC was fucking shit
>I seriously can't even think of any really hype moments like in TGO, which was god-tier.

TUC and TGO used to be the same book, but his publisher made him cut it in half and pad out the remainder. Ishterebinth, Dagliash, Momemn, and Ishual were supposed to be the respective climaxes (since they all happened at the same time) while the siege at the end was supposed to be the denouement. It's exactly why the philosophical rambling at the beginning of TUC felt like so much untrimmed fat.

Would have easily been a 10/10 if he had just released it as it had been planned instead of listening to his Jew publisher.

>>9819143
Also, I can't forgive Bakker for making Cnaiur a jobber.

All he did was burn some empty tents and die.

>>9819143
I suppose that's why it felt like it was a book that could've easily been done in 250 pages extended to 500+.

The philosophical ramblings have always been my least favorite part of the series but in this they just got to be so ridiculous. Sometimes it was seriously fucking gibberish. And I swear if I hear "Ever are Men (x)" again I will gladly aid the Dunyain.

It's just so annoying that the world is so interesting but it's in the hands of a writer who has his head thoroughly shoved up his own ass.

I want to write dinocore, how does one start? Are there books on this matter? The thing that it seems the dino writers have in common are rich lives and interests outside of literature. Do I basically just git gud at life and I won't write garbage like Rothfus? What's the essence of dinocore? Higher values, higher education and higher thoughts? The emulation of traditional myth and folklore? A lack or irony and inbreeding of ideas?

Please help me out.

>>9819207
Be interesting. Don't be uninteresting. If these fail, get a new hobby like pogs or fantasy football.

>>9819207
I read a lot of dinos. You might think an interesting personal life is necessary, but consider that Robert Howard wrote his Conan stories while living with his mother, and HP
Lovecraft wrote cosmic horror while rarely venturing from New England.

Of course life experience would have helped the likes of Jack Vance (Merchant marine after what appears to be a Gersen-like fiddle of the eye test) Gene Wolfe (Korean war vet.) Many of us recall also the photograph of Asimov, Heinlein and Decamp in a Philadelphia shipyard during ww2.

Regardless of life experience, all of these had commitment to the craft in common, and wrote whenever and wherever they could. They also had an awareness of the classics and mythology, particularly Greek.

I'd say just absorb as much Lovecraft, Leiber, Vance, Brackett and early Heinlein as possible - as well as Homer's Iliad + Odyssey and mythical wikipedia entries.

The essence of dino-core is being a crowd pleaser without being shitty. These people had to learn to write stories that the plumber or infantryman could read in their short story magazines + digests. This means avoiding ponderous beginnings, and including things like fights, bare chested Venusian concubines, and other exotic, glamorous, or adventurous details.

God damn. Why is Icarium literally the best character in all of fantasy?
Got goosebumps whenever I read passages about him.

>>9819168
>The philosophical ramblings have always been my least favorite part of the series but in this they just got to be so ridiculous.
well fuck you. they're my favorite part of the series. if it wasn't for that and his writing style, i feel like i would be reading any number of generic grimdark fantasies.

>>9818472
what do you mean by justified? It's supposed to cement Sorweel's transition into the white-luck warrior. His getting blacked is analogous to ancient greek warrior culture such as with the theban sacred band and spartans.

And I agree with the other poster that TUC was clearly the wind-down of a greater combined book with TGO. That easily explains the march across agongorea. The "edge" is supposed to be more horrorific in a epistemological sense than gore for the sake of it. i legitimately don't understand how you've gotten this far if you hate the prose and think everything is edgy for the sake of it.

Sounds like someone could pretty easily make a fan edit that combines TGO and TUC into one book without losing much of value.

I LOVE Icarium.

>>9817586
You are supposed to get a mobilism account and PM the uploader

>>9818154
I haven't really looked at hardcovers, but they did a reprint of the series using new covers in the last few years and that's why it's hard to find good complete sets now.

>>9819377
go home Mappo

>finally ascend
>Virgin of High House Death

>>9818292
>in-depth theoretical physics infodump every other chapter
ara ara

>>9819556
>>9819556
>>9819556
fresh bread so we can eat when page 10 comes again

>>9819539
So you're a necrophiliac?

>>9817453
Is that a Gene Wolfe on the left? If so which is it? Also why does your language look like it was constructed to look as awkward as possible?

>>9819207
The biggest problem with most science-fiction and fantasy writers is that they have no appreciation of tradition, storytelling or craftwise. Read the classics (Greeks and Dinosaurs) and then learn how to construct a good sentence (you don't have to read Ezra Pound, but make sure you at least know better than to unironically write something like 'cut-flower sound').

>>9819509
:'(

Should I read Mistborn or start the Stormlight Archive next?