SciFi/Fantasy Book recommendations

[radius]

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

Ah, but it is important to keep in mind that your viewpoint is your viewpoint. What you find interesting, others might find pretentious or boring. As for reflecting the state of SF today, considering they are one of the more successful publishers at the moment, I would suggest they do represent at least part of the state of SF today.

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Bill

Hi Bill,

I like Baen (more for Pournelle and David Drake than Eric Flint and John Ringo) but I'm curious what you think their ideas are? Baen's target market seems to me to be sci-fi for jocks and not really the literature of geeks

[tompe]

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

Ah, but it is important to keep in mind that your viewpoint is your viewpoint. What you find interesting, others might find pretentious or boring. As for reflecting the state of SF today, considering they are one of the more successful publishers at the moment, I would suggest they do represent at least part of the state of SF today.

Well, I visit a lot of science fiction conventions and it is a very common opinion that Baen mostly publish a certain kind of sf and it is not the sf that usually win prices.

[Lemurion]

I agree that Baen books rarely win awards, but at the same time I like a lot of their books better than a number of Hugo and Nebula-winning stories. Different strokes for different folks.

[bill_mchale]

Originally Posted by tompe

Well, I visit a lot of science fiction conventions and it is a very common opinion that Baen mostly publish a certain kind of sf and it is not the sf that usually win prices.

Well, I would point out that they are the publisher of most of Lois McMaster Bujold's works and she has won quite a few of the major prizes.

That being said, prizes, I think, often reflect more the people giving the prizes than the actual quality of the work that is awarded a prize.

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Bill

[Penforhire]

About Baen, that is a generalization but I think Tompe is more right than wrong. While I enjoy many of their offerings, fewer of them make me think hard or blow my mind.

[kaas]

if you like high fantasy, try: http://sennadar.plebian.net/
I have already recommended the series and think the author did a great job of weaving together sorcery, gods, an interesting plot, and a shorttempered main hero

have fun!

kaas

p.s.: the first series is five books long!

p.p.s.: i forgot to mention that it is completely free...

[tompe]

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

Well, I would point out that they are the publisher of most of Lois McMaster Bujold's works and she has won quite a few of the major prizes.

Yes, I know. And she is a favorite author. But if you look at the surface plot in her books they fit very well with the typical Baen book.

Baen was created specaializing in military sf and space opera. A typical Baen book is usually very easy to read and a good adventure story.

I like to read space opera and some military sf and I like a good story. The reason I commented was that I think people on this forum is describing the books so they seem much better or much more important then they are. If people want to know about the sf field today you cannot just look at Baen.

[bill_mchale]

Originally Posted by tompe

Yes, I know. And she is a favorite author. But if you look at the surface plot in her books they fit very well with the typical Baen book.

Baen was created specaializing in military sf and space opera. A typical Baen book is usually very easy to read and a good adventure story.

I like to read space opera and some military sf and I like a good story. The reason I commented was that I think people on this forum is describing the books so they seem much better or much more important then they are. If people want to know about the sf field today you cannot just look at Baen.

Oh I agree that you can't just look at Baen... nor at Tor nor any of the other major publishing houses in isolation. I will say this; you can't look at Baen to get a picture of the state of SF today, but you can't get a picture of SF today without looking at Baen.

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Bill

[Andybaby]

Originally Posted by bill_mchale

Oh I agree that you can't just look at Baen... nor at Tor nor any of the other major publishing houses in isolation. I will say this; you can't look at Baen to get a picture of the state of SF today, but you can't get a picture of SF today without looking at Baen.

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Bill

Then What is the State of Scifi today?

I do tend to like a broad spectrum of Scifi. for example, Scifi Pioneering. I never thought I would like it, and i groaned outloud when i read about that part in Time Enough for Love by Heinlein, but i actually enjoyed it the most of the book.

im always open to new ideas.