A Fantasy Novel YOU would recommend - Page 8

mklynds · 05-30-2009, 02:19 PM

I'll second the Starman trilogy by Sara Douglass. Well worth a read and quite original as well.

BlackVoid · 06-01-2009, 03:45 PM

I second Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy.

It is really way above the standard fantasy fare. It is not by any means a long fairy tale and contains a lot of violence (quite graphic). The characters are really unique and very well done. The story is TOTALLY unpredictable as well. Lots of dark humor too.

Another trilogy which is VERY, VERY GOOD is the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. It contains a unique magic system that is transparent to the reader all the way. No handy spells saving the hero in the last moment, no surprise spells. Despite this the book itself is unpredictable and each book contains a good story on its own.

astra · 06-01-2009, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackVoid

I second Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy.

It is really way above the standard fantasy fare. It is not by any means a long fairy tale and contains a lot of violence (quite graphic). The characters are really unique and very well done. The story is TOTALLY unpredictable as well. Lots of dark humor too.

Almost finished Before They are Hanged.
Gritty one and some nice dark humour

ErwinOtten · 06-01-2009, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackVoid

I second Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy.

It is really way above the standard fantasy fare. It is not by any means a long fairy tale and contains a lot of violence (quite graphic). The characters are really unique and very well done. The story is TOTALLY unpredictable as well. Lots of dark humor too.

I'll third this one....

I got them from the dark net since they weren't available as legal ebooks (shame on me...). But it seems they will be released in the coming weeks so maybe I'll redeem myself

Hmmm seems his new book will be out as ebook immediately. No better way to pay for my former weakness than to buy the new stuff

Raduz · 06-08-2009, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mklynds

Dr. Drib,

I found the entire trilogy to be extremely well composed. The story flows well from page one to the final page of book 3. It is also one of the mosts "real" fantasy books I have read in a long time. I use the word real quite out of place. The characters are more recognizable by their flaws then there qualities. Joe Abercrombie also seemed to take how to write fantasy 101 and flip it on it's head. I really strongly recommend this book to anyone who's interest in fantasy has waned or has gotten off on the wrong foot. I recommend this to anyone actually. I will however renew my WARNING this book is "real" characters think what you would think. It is not for the delicate soul.

hope that helps.
Mike

My feeling about this trilogy are somewhat mixed. I loved it, really loved it and I recommend it to all my friends, but to be honest, it has it's flaws. It has FANTASTIC main characters (and trust me, those bold caps are very well deserved), but despite this, it's extremely plot driven. All those great characters are manipulated all the time, pushed to do things they didn't intend to do, but very seldom are those thing direct result of their action. They simply...happen to them. There is the big mover, the pusher, the manipulator, of course, but you never get to hear what does HE think-only what he says.

Despite this, I have ordered Best Served Cold (currently available only as pbook, as far as I know) in hardback, and I'm really looking forward to it, so my bit of criticism doesn't change nothing about a fact that it really is a great trilogy, I like it very much and I would recommend it to anybody :-)

KevisHendrickson · 06-11-2009, 10:48 AM

I just finished reading an awesome YA fantasy book called "Persephane Pendrake and the Cimaruta" by Lady Ellen. It's definitely cut from the same cloth as Harry Potter, except it's not a cheap knock off. The major difference between the two series is that the author of this book more intimately knowledgeable about wicca and witchcraft than Rowlings. The book is hysterically funny at times, but very dark in others. Lot's of magic, adventure, and time-traveling going on. But most importantly, it's got that epic sweep that all timeless fantasy books possess.

I think this is going to be a terrific series. It's a shame most people are not going to give it a chance because of the sub-par cover. However, for those readers that don't judge books by the exterior, they're going to find a highly polished and magical book waiting for them.

chlorine · 06-20-2009, 08:48 AM

I think no one mentioned Marion Zimmer Bradley's The mists of Avalon.
It is a revisiting of the legends of king Arthur and the knights of the round table, seen from the women's point of view. Morgane, Arthur's sister, is a priestress of Avalon, and her magic and religion are progressively being replaced by the christian religion.
The book is very well written, the characters very well developed, and I found the revisiting of the legend, presenting the same events as we know but with different motivations, very interesting.

astra · 06-20-2009, 08:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chlorine

I think no one mentioned Marion Zimmer Bradley's The mists of Avalon.

On my TBR. I loved the movie.

BinaryTB · 06-20-2009, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astra

On my TBR. I loved the movie.

I think I'm the complete opposite, I was not a fan of the miniseries so won't be checking out the book. I watched it many years ago, but I remember thinking it was Margulies' acting that put me off. It wasn't terrible, but around Houston and Joan Allen it was more of a "great, they picked Margulies cause ER is a famous TV show this year". So a sour taste throughout the whole thing.

queentess · 06-23-2009, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KevisHendrickson

I just finished reading an awesome YA fantasy book called "Persephane Pendrake and the Cimaruta" by Lady Ellen.[...]

It's a shame most people are not going to give it a chance because of the sub-par cover. However, for those readers that don't judge books by the exterior, they're going to find a highly polished and magical book waiting for them.

I actually don't mind the cover on this, though I am very particular about my cover artwork. If anything looks at first glance like a romance or Piers Anthony book, I usually stay far away. (And I even enjoy some "Xanthony" every once in a while, but those types of covers usually spell bad news.) It's my easy way to stereotype books and dismiss them so I can move on to what I really want to read

On your recommendation I just got the Kindle sample. If I like what I see, I'll buy the whole thing and leave a review.

ErwinOtten · 06-23-2009, 04:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ErwinOtten

I'll third this one....

I got them from the dark net since they weren't available as legal ebooks (shame on me...). But it seems they will be released in the coming weeks so maybe I'll redeem myself

Hmmm seems his new book will be out as ebook immediately. No better way to pay for my former weakness than to buy the new stuff

It seems there won't be ebooks at all any time soon from Joe Abercrombie. Orion pulled all the references from it's site.

A shame, to say the least

queentess · 06-23-2009, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ErwinOtten

It seems there won't be ebooks at all any time soon from Joe Abercrombie. Orion pulled all the references from it's site.

A shame, to say the least

Yeah, I just noticed this today. I sent an email to Mr. Abercrombie to see if there are any ebooks in the plans. I'll let you know if I hear anything back.

ErwinOtten · 06-30-2009, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by queentess

Yeah, I just noticed this today. I sent an email to Mr. Abercrombie to see if there are any ebooks in the plans. I'll let you know if I hear anything back.

IT'S THERE........

buy at Waterstones

Only in Epub though

bummer.............

And another bummer...... Ebook £10.17, Hardback £8.57 Are they joking???? The ebook 2 pounds more than the hardback?????

PREPOSTEROUS

pdurrant · 06-30-2009, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ErwinOtten

I
And another bummer...... Ebook £10.17, Hardback £8.57 Are they joking???? The ebook 2 pounds more than the hardback?????

PREPOSTEROUS

Well, isn't it obvious? The ebook costs are much higher, after all they must store the book in a warehouse, retrieve and pack the book, pay to get the book delivered, and pay HMRC their VAT cut (£1.33).

Hmm... you know, I suspect that the other costs might just about match the VAT costs. I guess they're just losing money on the 40% off they're doing on the paper version. [yeah, right!]

ErwinOtten · 06-30-2009, 03:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Well, isn't it obvious? The ebook costs are much higher, after all they must store the book in a warehouse, retrieve and pack the book, pay to get the book delivered, and pay HMRC their VAT cut (£1.33).

Hmm... you know, I suspect that the other costs might just about match the VAT costs. I guess they're just losing money on the 40% off they're doing on the paper version. [yeah, right!]

Well I've sent Waterstones an angry e-mail........We'll see if they respond...

Their reaction is a standard one. Then again I'm glad they took the time to react:

Dear Erwin,

Thank you for your email.

I am sorry to hear that you are unhappy with the price difference between
ebooks and other formats online.

There are a number of reasons why the prices are different online but as
this is an exclusive product prices may vary, I would like to inform you
that in the future there will be reductions and promotions as the item
becomes more popular.

I do apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Kind regards,

Kaomi Tohma
Customer Service Team
Waterstones.com

06-11-2009, 10:48 AM	#111
KevisHendrickson Zealot Posts: 100 Karma: 200000 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Miami, Fl Device: Kindle	I just finished reading an awesome YA fantasy book called "Persephane Pendrake and the Cimaruta" by Lady Ellen. It's definitely cut from the same cloth as Harry Potter, except it's not a cheap knock off. The major difference between the two series is that the author of this book more intimately knowledgeable about wicca and witchcraft than Rowlings. The book is hysterically funny at times, but very dark in others. Lot's of magic, adventure, and time-traveling going on. But most importantly, it's got that epic sweep that all timeless fantasy books possess. I think this is going to be a terrific series. It's a shame most people are not going to give it a chance because of the sub-par cover. However, for those readers that don't judge books by the exterior, they're going to find a highly polished and magical book waiting for them. Last edited by KevisHendrickson; 06-11-2009 at 10:58 AM.

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05-30-2009, 02:19 PM	#106
mklynds That guy, no not that guy Posts: 337 Karma: 2846 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Alberta, Canada Device: PRS600 Red	I'll second the Starman trilogy by Sara Douglass. Well worth a read and quite original as well.

06-01-2009, 03:45 PM	#107
BlackVoid Evangelist Posts: 415 Karma: 510423 Join Date: Nov 2006 Device: Sony PRS-505	I second Joe Abercrombie's First Law trilogy. It is really way above the standard fantasy fare. It is not by any means a long fairy tale and contains a lot of violence (quite graphic). The characters are really unique and very well done. The story is TOTALLY unpredictable as well. Lots of dark humor too. Another trilogy which is VERY, VERY GOOD is the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson. It contains a unique magic system that is transparent to the reader all the way. No handy spells saving the hero in the last moment, no surprise spells. Despite this the book itself is unpredictable and each book contains a good story on its own.

06-20-2009, 08:48 AM	#112
chlorine Addict Posts: 276 Karma: 100000 Join Date: Jan 2009 Device: Kindle paperwhite 2	I think no one mentioned Marion Zimmer Bradley's The mists of Avalon. It is a revisiting of the legends of king Arthur and the knights of the round table, seen from the women's point of view. Morgane, Arthur's sister, is a priestress of Avalon, and her magic and religion are progressively being replaced by the christian religion. The book is very well written, the characters very well developed, and I found the revisiting of the legend, presenting the same events as we know but with different motivations, very interesting.