For all you bookworms out there.
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[–] Squirrels4Sale 0 points 8 points 8 points (+8|-0) ago
His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman is a pretty good series. It's young adult, but the story is pretty good and I think anyone can get something out of it.
[–] BluCheez 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
The characters really pulled at my heart strings in this series... almost a little too much
[–] Squirrels4Sale 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
That ending with the two of them on the bench, yet they couldn't see each other :'(
[–] Podapati 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
YES! It is a fantastic trilogy. I still go back and re-read it once a year!
[–] Squirrels4Sale 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
It's too bad the movie adaptation of the first book was such a disappointment. They censored the content way too much.
[–] Literarywhore 0 points 7 points 7 points (+7|-0) ago
I have two favorites. The first is the Dark Tower series by Stephen King. The second is A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones for the show watchers). I have read both series several times.
[–] Podapati 0 points 9 points 9 points (+9|-0) ago
I know that I'm going to be downvoted (if anyone can even downvote, that is), but I'm really not a fan of GoT. I got so depressed after every character that I started to like... got killed off. I feel like the series is pornographic in its love of killing characters and crushing readers' hearts everywhere.
[–] IFBH 0 points 10 points 10 points (+10|-0) ago
I'll try to explain something to you and I hope it changes your mind about the books.
GRRM has created the least cliche, least trope-filled universe I've ever encountered. Each character makes choices, and those choices have repercussions. In real life, the ones you love will still die and many are taken before their time. We are all cogs in a much bigger story that has yet to be written, and everything we do affects the outcome. He has introduced us to a world where your favorite character can overstep his bounds and die for it. He has shown us how to learn to love characters we once hated after they have gone through much more than many people deserve.
I, for one, hated when Robb died. It wasn't until I realized that this would happen in real life that I truly understood what GRRM was trying to show us. Characters and stories should never be black and white, and though it is easier to see the lines between good and bad that way, the often muddled characterizations show a much more accurate depiction of what our lives are truly about and how we really can change.
Good things happen to bad people, bad things happen to good people, and he has encapsulated that perfectly in this story. There is no clear hero, and even those who seemed to be the villain have found redemption and bettered themselves for what they love.
[–] Squirrels4Sale 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
I see no need to downvote (I also can't). You backed up your opinion. I agree that the stories are pretty grim, but the people who love that series appreciate the departure from the typical white hats/black hats structure you see in many other fantasy novels. At least that's what I enjoy about them. I also have never been so upset over a wedding in my life.
Maybe you need to be a little masochistic to enjoy the books?
[–] Literarywhore 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
But there are so many more to die!!!!!!
[–] natre 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
I agree, its a bit gloomy at times.
[–] Relm 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
Long days and pleasant nights, sai.
[–] cstoli ago
Love the username :)
[–] Literarywhore ago
HAHA thanks!
[–] l-emmerdeur 0 points 6 points 6 points (+6|-0) ago (edited ago)
The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson
It is a magnum opus.
Edit: Why it's great: 1st of all, Stephenson's prose is grand. The dude is just an amazing wordsmith. 2ndly, the scope of the series is grand. It's about the English civil war (kinda), the glorious revolution (kinda), the founding of calculus (kinda) and the resulting feud between Newton and Liebniz, the founding of the royal society and the general shift towards a more skeptic society and system of the world in general, the abolition of the alchemic way of thought.
and C, motherfuckin half-cock Jack Shaftoe.
[–] kontroll 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Oh man, I'm looking forward to that one! I loved the shit out of Cryptonomicon, and while The Baroque Cycle is on my list it's kinda fallen behind a bunch of other books for no good reason.
[–] srgmpdns ago (edited ago)
Stephenson reminds mo of a quote about Wagner:
Some scenes he's written have really stuck with me- the digressions about wootz and the manufacture of phosphorus for example- but I can't really say can recall the plots or any vivid characters of any of his novels.
[–] examors ago
I started reading this, and got about 1/3 of the way into the second book, but I ended up quitting. It wasn't that I thought it was bad -- far from it -- but it was just too dense and vast and complex for me at the time, to the extent that it just felt like a slog. There were many great moments though, and I plan to try to tackle it again to the end some time in the future when I feel like it.
Also: relevant username!
[–] l-emmerdeur ago
Even in places where the story ~maybe~ drags, which I found few of, I think Stephenson's knack for amazing prose helps keep interest. My god does he've a way with words.
[–] Noodlesjackson 0 points 5 points 5 points (+5|-0) ago
Probably not the most popular opinion but my favorite is the Dresden files. A wizard and a detective...awesome. The detective part kind of fell away but I was already hooked
[–] BluCheez 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Butcher is just a badass writer. Action plus characters... Just gotta love it.
[–] lackonius 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
Definitely worth a read. There are quite a few authors playing in the modern paranormal sondbox, but Butcher is one of the best. Solid characters, loved it when each book exposed different cultures approaches to magic. The later books have fallen off a tiny bit, but I think that's just because he's getting a bit burned out with the series.
Hopefully his new series gives him some time off of Dresden and a chance to recharge a bit. Always look forward to whatever new novel he comes out with.
[–] Teknikal ago
I enjoy them as well, every time a new Dresden book appears I put whatever I was reading on hold and I would usually read the entire new book that same day.
[–] Magician8 0 points 3 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago
Asimov's Robot series. Great character development and great sci-fi mystery stories.
[–] trollers 0 points 3 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago
I truly enjoy the first two books in the Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss. I've found it's a true challenge for a fantasy writer to be both descriptive and engaging, yet Rothfuss does so flawlessly. The only downside is waiting for the third book to be released.
[–] lackonius 0 points 2 points 2 points (+2|-0) ago
The Kingkiller Chronicles are pretty good. I agree with the waiting though, too bad quality takes time :/ He's a great story teller and has a lot of content I can't wait to see develop further.
[–] deviantdreamer 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
If you ever get a chance, go see him speak in person. It's rather epic. His writing is hands down some of my favorite.
[–] RayLomas 0 points 3 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago
Hard to decide. I'm leaning towards Dune series by Frank Herbert (definitely not continuations by his son, Brian). It's great, but requires a lot of focus and attention.
God Emperor Of Dune is my favourite of the series, although, it takes time to like it. The first book - Dune is probably the most accessible.
[–] cstoli 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago
I've tried Dune three times now. I've never been able to make it more than about 50 pages deep. What am I missing? Do I just need to push through to get to better storyline?
[–] RayLomas ago
First 50 pages are merely an introduction, to get you to start grasping the universe where the whole thing is taking place. Dune actually has a lot of action, which unfolds quickly, once the "intro" part is over, but you need to get to at least 60% of the book before you start to see amazing things.
I remember that when I was ~18 I struggled with Dune, and dropped it. Later started once again when I was 25, and in one month binge-reading episode I've finished the whole series (6 books, ~2-2.5k pages) during less than 1 month.
It's a pretty similar thing to what I remember from the Lord Of The Rings... first pages about Hobbiton, Bilbo, Bilbo's party is boring as hell, but serve a great purpose of introducing you to the completely alien universe. Unlike LOTR, though, I would advise you not to try to make sense of everything you read, not to memorize terms and characters - it's pointless and distracts you from bigger concepts. Dune universe is very strange (hell... sci-fi, space flight and interplanetary wars without computers, who'd think of that in any sci-fi?) so it's perfectly fine to not understand a lot of things. Later, either after rereading, or getting a "woah!" moment when thinking about during a shower, it'll start to fall into place.
Another reason to read and love it, is that this whole book serves a great motivating purpose, at least for me. Some of my favourite quotes:
[–] BobTheTomato 0 points 3 points 3 points (+3|-0) ago
The Lord of the Rings series has always been a favorite of mine!
[–] SuperMam ago
Loved it the first time I read it. I tried to re-read it about 5-6 years ago and just couldn't get through it.
[–] anglosamurai ago
Agree. Anything by Tolkien I'll read. Good thing another of his short stories (not of Middle Earth) will be published soon.
[–] mr_mellow3 ago
After watching the extended version of the films for the first time I've gotten really into the lore and stories/characters that were left out. Is there a specific order in which you'd recommend one read all the books (naturally The Hobbit happens first chronologically, but what about the Silmarillion and other works?)?
[–] BobTheTomato 0 points 1 point 1 point (+1|-0) ago (edited ago)
In my opinion. I would read them in chronological order.
The Hobbit
The Silmarillion (which was intended to be a sequel to the Hobbit)
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Two Towers
The Return of the King
There is also Unfinished Tales and The History of Middle-earth which doesn't directly connect to the trilogy but has some similar themes.