What should I read next?

[GOLLUM]

I heard it was going to be 5 books for Sword of Shadows. Waiting does suck, but oh well.

That's my understanding too. The current series is far superior to Book Of Words trilogy.

 

[Shingetsu]

I'm on the third book, there good so far. Though I honestly thought Raif and Ash would have been back together by now fighting things and adventure. But barely anything has happend to Ash anymore, havn't even made it the Heart Fires or whatever of Sull. Though she turned into a whore for a stranger, unless it was a dream or something, though didn't sound that way. Chapter ended there though, so don't know what happends next yet. I didn't expect that though, figured she might be kept fresh for Raif since J. V. Jones didn't let the sept rape her or anything else, but oh well. I'm starting to think Raif and Ash's stories will stay seperate with how it's been so far. Almost half way through the book, but doesn't look like they'll be back together in this one either.

 

[shadow9d9]

Scott Bakker's PoN trilogy beats out the possibly never being finished Asofai and Erikson's excellent series, imo. Lies of Locke is overhyped cliched trash imo.

So, PoN, then Malazan, then Asofai imo. Bujold's Vorkosigan series is amazing as well.

 

[Connavar]

I remember I had the same problem a loooooooooong time ago: what should I read? I was about 12. I was in a little sci-fi/fantasy/horror book/game shop. The owner recommended Dune, Ringworld, and Elric of Melnibone. I would have to say that the Elric series is the best fantasy I have ever read, with The Book of the New Sun a close second...only becuase it is sort of a sf/fantasy crossover. So Elric of Melnibone is what you should read next. Short and sweet, not some big overblown epic that's exactly the same as LOTR, such as "Shannara".

Its so refereshing to see someone recommend different kind of Fantasy and not just all these Epic Fantasy like they are the only kind of fantasy that is worth reading.

I like that kind of fantasy that blends SF or some other genre or subgenre and has something different to tell.


Im reading Michael Moorcok for the first time now with Corum books. Like it more enough to read Elric afterwards.


If you like MM,Wolfe i recommend Jack Vance's Dying Earth Tales which Wolfe actually said inspired his The Book of the New Sun.

 

[Pyan]

That's my understanding too. The current series is far superior to Book Of Words trilogy.

Gods, I hope so...I've just finished the BoW trilogy, and though there were one or two bright moments, it was generally somewhat turgid.
I hope that SoS lives up to all the recommendations....

Lies of Locke is overhyped cliched trash

I appreciate that's your opinion, shadow, but a few reasons for such an aggressive statement would be interesting to read.

 

[murphy]

I agree with Gollum on the great difference between the Baker's Boy trilogy and the Sword of Shadows series. It's like she finally came into her writing style with the latter books. Although, The Barbed Coil was a very good read also.

 

[Pyan]

Barbed Coil was published between Book of Words and Sword of Shadows, so you'd expect it to be an improvement on BoW. In fact, I thought that Master and Fool was a lot better than The Baker's Boy...

 

[shadow9d9]

Gods, I hope so...I've just finished the BoW trilogy, and though there were one or two bright moments, it was generally somewhat turgid.
I hope that SoS lives up to all the recommendations....




I appreciate that's your opinion, shadow, but a few reasons for such an aggressive statement would be interesting to read.

Well over-hyped is self explanatory. Thieves and assassins in fantasy books have been done absolutely to death-cliched. How many books and series on assassins/thieves do we need to read before people will get bored of it? Apparently some people eat up the cliched.

Neither my wife nor I enjoyed the book. Too much useless description, and a completely cliched character/backstory. Wow, a genius child thief! What a unique story! At 100 pages in we both were incredibly bored and unimpressed(and we read it at different times).

Some people love to read the same fantasy cliches over and over again... some people want unique and complex stories...

 

[Shingetsu]

I finished the third book, atleast at the end it says J. V. Jones is working on the 4th book. Good series, too bad I have to wait like always. I think I'll probably read The Gunslinger by Stephen Kind since I have it already and would take less then a day to read the first book. If I like it, then I'll pick up the rest. Otherwise have to choose what to read next. Maybe Crossroads by Kate Elliott. Deciding is a difficult process for me now for some reason.