500 Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Books You Should Read Before You Die - Members' Version

[Trollheart]

Since we're all -rightly - complaining about how these lists are compiled, why not do our own? Add as you see fit with as many or as few books as you want. Just stick to the numbering system, ie if the poster in front of you has done Books 3-10, makes yours 11 and so on. In order that it be easy to ensure there are no duplicates, I'll keep a link to a master list here, but as edit dies after an hour it'll have to be on a Google Docs file which I'll link access to for anyone who wants to check.

I suggest trilogies, series etc could be treated as one choice (ASOIAF, Foundation, Necroscope, Gormenghast, LOTR etc), unless you guys think each book should be a separate entry? Or maybe you want to represent a series/trilogy by one book? Whichever, I don't mind. They don't have to be books you've read, but ideally they should. If not, you probably should know a little about them. A quick one or two-line summary, or a reason why you think they should be included on the list would also be helpful.

ADMIN EDIT: Please post suggestions to this thread rather than the original spreadsheet file linked to.

 

[nixie]

I'll start

1. Malazan book of the Fallen; Steven Erikson.
My favourite series of all time, book three Memories of Ice is the best book I've ever read.

2. The first three books in Raymond E Feist's Riftwar Saga.
My introduction to fantasy and my go to books when I need a pick me up.

3. Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy,
What can I say, it blurs the edges of good and evil, Glokta is one of the best characters I've ever read.

4. Stephen King's Dark Tower,
That opening line in the first book draws you right in.

Will add more later, apart from the first two they aren't listed in preferences. I find it difficult to say this book is better than that one it really does come down to mood.

 

[Trollheart]

Thanks Nixie. Like I say, it's not a ranking system, and nobody says book 10 is better than book 90 or whatever. It simply goes in numerical order. Can you confirm if (4) is the whole series or just the one book, and for my own information what the books are in the other two trilogies you mention? Thanks.

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

Why do we need the numbers at all? It's very likely that two people will be typing at the same time. Especially with the one- or two-line description requirement, this may take a while, so they will end up using the same numbers, and everything will be thrown into confusion.

 

[Trollheart]

We need the numbers so we know when we reach 500.
All you have to do is check the masterlist to see what number we're on, then make yours the next in sequence. I think that's easy enough, is it not?

If it helps I can keep a running total here (we're up to 100 now or whatever)

 

[nixie]

Thanks Nixie. Like I say, it's not a ranking system, and nobody says book 10 is better than book 90 or whatever. It simply goes in numerical order. Can you confirm if (4) is the whole series or just the one book, and for my own information what the books are in the other two trilogies you mention? Thanks.

Its the whole series.

Malazan book of the Fallen is 10 books.
Riftwar is Magician, Silverthorn and Darkness at Sethanon.
The Abercrombie's are The Blade Itself, Before they are Hanged and Last Argument of Kings.

I will normally consider a series a continuation of the first book and will nominate the whole series.

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

5. M. John Harrison, Viriconium

6. M. John Harrison, The Course of the Heart

7. Brian Aldiss, Barefoot in the Head

8. Brian Aldiss, The Malacia Tapestry

9. Norman Spinrad, The Void Captain's Tale

10. Norman Spinrad, Child of Fortune

11. Norman Spinrad, The Iron Dream

12. Cordwainer Smith, The Rediscovery of Man / Norstrillia

13. Mervyn Peake, Gormenghast trilogy

14. J.G. Ballard, The Atrocity Exhibition

15. Samuel R. Delany, The Einstein Intersection

16. Stanislaw Lem, Solaris

17. Stanislaw Lem, The Cyberiad

 

[tegeus-Cromis]

We need the numbers so we know when we reach 500.
All you have to do is check the masterlist to see what number we're on, then make yours the next in sequence. I think that's easy enough, is it not?

If it helps I can keep a running total here (we're up to 100 now or whatever)

I was just saying that two people may be posting at the same time, so using the same numbers.

 

[dask]

18. The Lost World by Arthur Conan Doyle. The epitome of adventure and excitement.

 

[nixie]

19. Brandon Sanderon's Words of Radiance.
20. Stephen King's The Stand.
21. Scott R Bakker's The Darkness that comes Before.
Mark Lawrence Book of the Ancestors ( Red Sister, Grey Sister, Holy Sister)
22. James Herbert's Fluke
23. Hope Mirrlees, Lud-in-the-Mist.

 

[Rodders]

24. The Player Of Games by Iain M. Banks

25. Revelation Space by Alistair Reynolds.

26. The Forge Of God by Greg Bear.

27. Dogs of a War by Adrian Tchaikovsky

 

[Elckerlyc]

28. Durdane - Jack Vance

29. Books of the New Sun - Gene Wolfe

30. Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell - Suzanna Clarke

31. Doomsday Book - Connie Willis

32. Peace - Gene Wolfe

33. Hyperion Cantos - Dan Simmons

34. Dune - Frank Herbert

35. Declare - Tim Powers

36. Diamond Age - Neal Stephenson

37. Anathem - Neal Stephenson

38. This Immortal - Roger Zelazny

39. Thessaly - Jo Walton

40, The Mote in Gods Eye - Niven & Pournelle

41. The Dispossessed - Ursula Le Guin

 

[Vince W]

42. The Sprawl Trilogy by William Gibson

43. Schismatrix by Bruce Sterling

44. Hardwired by Walter Jon Williams

45. The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov

46. Nova by Samuel Delany

47. The Centauri Device by M. John Harrison

48. Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein

49. The Forever War by Joe Haldeman

50. Ringworld by Larry Niven

51. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

52. The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury

53. Gateway by Frederick Pohl

54. Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson

55. The Stars My Destination (Tiger! Tiger!) by Alfred Bester

56. The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester

 

[dask]

57. Demon Princes by Jack Vance (Five books, some of Vance‘s best storytelling.)

 

[Trollheart]

I was just saying that two people may be posting at the same time, so using the same numbers.

Yeah I understand what you're saying, but the chances of two people posting in the same thread at exactly the same moment are probably small, and anyone who is posting (as can be seen by the posts so far) can just check what number we're up to. Worst comes to worst, I can always amend the masterlist if someone uses the same number twice, and advise here.

Over 50 already! Not bad...

Its the whole series.

Malazan book of the Fallen is 10 books.
Riftwar is Magician, Silverthorn and Darkness at Sethanon.
The Abercrombie's are The Blade Itself, Before they are Hanged and Last Argument of Kings.

I will normally consider a series a continuation of the first book and will nominate the whole series.

Yeah I should have just gone checked instead of being a lazy git. But I like being a lazy git!
Anyway, I've updated the list, other than King, and will do that now.

 

[M. Robert Gibson]

Well, since no one else has listed them (although Trollheart did mention them in the OP)

58 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien

59 The Lord Of The Rings - JRR Tolkien

60 The Silmarillion - JRR Tolkien

61 A Song Of Ice and Fire - GRR Martin

And since I complained about their omission from the other lists

62 Conan - Robert E Howard (Including L. Sprague de Camp, and Lin Carter)

63 Elric of Melniboné - Michael Moorcock (and all the other eternal champions, particularly Corum and Dorian Hawkmoon)

 

[Trollheart]

Nixie, you neglected to number the Mark Lawrence books, so for handiness' sake, rather than change all the other numbers after that I've added it in as number 64.

 

[nixie]

Nixie, you neglected to number the Mark Lawrence books, so for handiness' sake, rather than change all the other numbers after that I've added it in as number 64.

 

[Extollager]

I suggest trilogies, series etc could be treated as one choice (ASOIAF, Foundation, Necroscope, Gormenghast, LOTR etc)

Forgive me if I sound pedantic, but could we straighten out what a "trilogy" is?

The Lord of the Rings is not a trilogy, but a single romance published in three volumes. On the other hand, the three Gormenghast books are a trilogy. I'd prefer that those three books -- Titus Groan, Gormenghast, and Titus Alone -- be listed as separate novels, which they are. This allows one to identify which, if any, of these three books belong on the list. I doubt that I would include Titus Alone on a list like this. It was written when Mervyn Peake's premature senility had affected his creativity, or so I understand -- it is over 40 years since I read it. We should be able to vote for A Wizard of Earthsea, and/or The Tombs of Atuan. and/or The Farthest Shore, and/or Tehanu, and/or the other two Earthsea books. My impression is that Le Guin so radically changed Earthsea that it is quite possible for someone to prize the first three and have little taste for the other three.

I haven't read more than two of the Vorkosigan books, but surely the individual volumes should be identified, rather than the whole set of books lumped together, right?

But I can't speak about very many of these series books, since I avoid them.

 

[nixie]

65. David Gemmell, Legend
66. Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials
67. Lord Dunsay, The King of Elflands Daughter.
68. Stephen Donaldson The First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant
69. Ian C Esslemont, Path to Ascendancy
70. James Herbert , Magic Cottage.
71. Patrick Rothfuss, Name of the Wind.
72. Scott Lynch, The Lies of Lock Lamora.

Sorry @Extollager, probably my fault being a fan of long drawn out series Its easier to lump them altogether.
Now if anyone wants to tell me to take a hike feel free, seem to be monopolising the list.