Sounds like we all have similar taste. I loved Foucault's Pendulum, and China Mieville has a great style; I really enjoy his books.
I just started Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and it seems like it will be a lot of fun. I have World War Z on my book shelf, just begging to be re-read, but I have to go to the in-laws in a month and a half to show off the baby, so I am saving it to entertain myself on that arduous journey.
I just finished the book "The Sad Tale of the Brothers Grossbart" — a first novel by a new author — and while I didn't love it, I can't stop thinking about it. It's like a Grimm's Fairy Tale in the time of the plague about these two a**shole brothers who think they're heroes, but who destroy the lives of everyone they touch. It's a combination of humor, fantasy, and horror that was oddly compelling.
Apparently, Eco says that the first 50-100 pages is where he weeds out readers that are not the "right" kind of readers.
That kind of comment deserves not only avoidance of his books, but a good hard whap upside the head.
EDIT: For clarity: Eco's comment, not ducki's. 
If you like dense fantasy, especially if you end up liking Cook's Black Company, you should check out Steven Erikson's Malazan books. Erikson cites Cook as a primary influence on his writing and the scope and quality of Erikson's writing is pretty staggering.
I just started 'Daemon' by Daniel Suarez a few days ago and it's really good so far. I figure that if I find myself taking a few moments here and there to dive back into a book, that's a good sign and I've been doing that a lot with 'Daemon'. You can definitely tell that the author knows his IT stuff and doesn't dumb down any of the computer related elements (so far, anyway). There are a few times that I found myself thinking 'that's pretty clever' regarding how computer systems are used in this book. I'm about 100 pages and I'm really enjoying it.
Tigana, and Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay.
EVERYTHING by Guy Gavriel Kay.
There, fixed that for you.
NSMike wrote:EVERYTHING by Guy Gavriel Kay.
There, fixed that for you.
Well, I was only recommending what I've read. 
I finished up the Hyperion/Endymion series by Dan Simmons. So without getting too spoilery, here are my thoughts: The first book was fantastic. All these sub-stories, woven together so well. The second book is not quite as focused and not quite as good a story. Book three has a large time gap, some really "huh?" moments, starts introducing some really bizarre concepts you wouldn't have guessed from the first 2 books, and begins retconning things. Book four wraps most things up but definitely leaves some big questions unanswered, and has some pretty way-out-there concepts.
So I'll recommend then under the qualifier that you keep in mind the last 2 books get a little weird.
I just started Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and it seems like it will be a lot of fun.
Let me know if it continues to be fun. I bought it as soon as I heard about it, as it did seem like a lot of fun, but made it about halfway before I couldn't take it anymore. It's a great idea, I like P&P, I like zombies, but the author just couldn't pull it off. I think he failed to marry the two premises together, so instead of interweaving English manners and zombie action together, the book just abruptly lurches from the one tone to the other: conversation in the drawing room‐zombie fight—walk in the park—fight with ninjas. Maybe it gets better, but wasn't deft or well-crafted enough for me to keep at it to find out. Not going to bother with Sense & Sensibility & Sea Monsters.
I'm reading my last unread Kay book now, "A Song for Arbonne."
Absolutely love it. It's a similar style to GRRM's "A Song of Ice and Fire," but one book instead of five. Lots of political intrigue, detailed, well-drawn interesting characters, and a great well-written story.
NSMike you really should read the rest of his catalog. It's all great reading.
I'm kind of sad I'm coming to the end of Kay's catalog.
I've really enjoyed his books.
I am going to throw in a plug for Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos stories. His other stuff is pretty great as well, Brokedown Palace, To Reign in Hell, and Agyar.
I'm reading my last unread Kay book now, "A Song for Arbonne."
Absolutely love it. It's a similar style to GRRM's "A Song of Ice and Fire," but one book instead of five. Lots of political intrigue, detailed, well-drawn interesting characters, and a great well-written story.NSMike you really should read the rest of his catalog. It's all great reading.
I'm kind of sad I'm coming to the end of Kay's catalog.
I've really enjoyed his books.
I intend to read all of his stuff eventually... Just coming off the Fionavar Tapestry very recently. I've noticed Kay has a problem (or maybe it's my problem) with starting things off. He likes starting things in medias res, and it can take some time for me get a grip on the particulars. After reading three of his books like that one after the other, I needed a break, even though I ADORED Tigana, and really enjoyed Fionavar. I'll pick another one up sometime in the near future, but I think my brain needs some crap reading right now.
Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files is really good reading. The 12th book in the series is coming out in a couple months, and it is probably the only series of that length that I am glad is still going. Each book is stand alone (but builds on the last), self contained, and very entertaining. Great stuff. It is about a wizard detective in Chicago - very good stuff.
I'll throw out an invite to my book club of sorts. It's my reading list for my Fantasy and Horror Lit class. You may find some classics to read. We just finished Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Next week is Susan Hill's The Woman in Black, which I am assured will be damn scary.
Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges is brilliant from beginning to end. Borges is one of the truly great writers of the twentieth century.
I am going to throw in a plug for Steven Brust's Vlad Taltos stories. His other stuff is pretty great as well, Brokedown Palace, To Reign in Hell, and Agyar.
Stylistically, I really recommend The Phoenix Guard and Five Hundred Years Later. It's fantasy adventure (same world and rough timeline and the Vlad Taltos books) done as Victorian novel, complete with all the flower and ornamentation you could ask for. Really well done, IMO, and very entertaining.
NSMike wrote:EVERYTHING by Guy Gavriel Kay.
There, fixed that for you.
For what it's worth, I had two big problems with Fionavar Tapestry, which might be worth mentioning to someone thinking of reading the series.
One is that the story involves college kids from the Real World being pulled into an Alternate World, which is a huge turn-off for me. (Two-fold — young kids saving the world, and also the whole 'pulled into another world' shtick. And yes, I love the Thomas Covenant books and I can't explain why I give them a pass.)
The other is that it is very very heavily "influenced" by Tolkien — to the point where at times I felt like I was reading a warmed-over LOTR. (Kay did help edit The Silmarillion, which may help explain it. Also, I believe these were his first books, which also probably goes a long way to explaining his heavy borrowing.)
But I loves me some Tigana. I should probably read more Kay, come think of it...
SallyNasty wrote:I just started Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and it seems like it will be a lot of fun.
Let me know if it continues to be fun. I bought it as soon as I heard about it, as it did seem like a lot of fun, but made it about halfway before I couldn't take it anymore. It's a great idea, I like P&P, I like zombies, but the author just couldn't pull it off. I think he failed to marry the two premises together, so instead of interweaving English manners and zombie action together, the book just abruptly lurches from the one tone to the other: conversation in the drawing room‐zombie fight—walk in the park—fight with ninjas. Maybe it gets better, but wasn't deft or well-crafted enough for me to keep at it to find out. Not going to bother with Sense & Sensibility & Sea Monsters.
Go and start reading right now. If you've already read the source material, then I can garauntee that you'll love it. It stays consistantly hilarious throughout. The only reason I'm not re-reading it is because I loaned it out.
If you like dense fantasy, especially if you end up liking Cook's Black Company, you should check out Steven Erikson's Malazan books. Erikson cites Cook as a primary influence on his writing and the scope and quality of Erikson's writing is pretty staggering.
The one caveat with Erikson's Malazan books is that Gardens of the Moon, the first one, is incredibly dense, and does not even attempt to ease you into Erikson and Esslemont's world. I liked it, and went on to love the rest of the series, but YMMV.
garion333 wrote:If you like dense fantasy, especially if you end up liking Cook's Black Company, you should check out Steven Erikson's Malazan books. Erikson cites Cook as a primary influence on his writing and the scope and quality of Erikson's writing is pretty staggering.
The one caveat with Erikson's Malazan books is that Gardens of the Moon, the first one, is incredibly dense, and does not even attempt to ease you into Erikson and Esslemont's world. I liked it, and went on to love the rest of the series, but YMMV.
I have tried to read the Malazan books, and no - they do not attempt to ease you in. I got about a hundred pages, and quit, certain that there must have been a prequel.
Malazan - 1, Sally - 0
You just have to keep going, unfortunately. They're amazing books imho, but certainly not for everyone. Cook eases you in a bit more. Erikson just slaps you into it. I didn't really like Gardens of the Moon until the last third or so. Up until then my head hurt much too often.
I still find I can't do more than two hours with Erikson. They're so dense they require a bit more attention than I'm willing to sustain for hours on end. That's fine, because not everything is meant to be eaten in one sitting.
Another good (better!) entry point into the Malazan books are Erikson's three comedic novellas set in the same world. They're collected in an omnibus called "Bauchelain and Korbal Broach". I haven't read them yet, but I've heard that they have a very different, and more accessible pace.
Tanglebones wrote:garion333 wrote:If you like dense fantasy, especially if you end up liking Cook's Black Company, you should check out Steven Erikson's Malazan books. Erikson cites Cook as a primary influence on his writing and the scope and quality of Erikson's writing is pretty staggering.
The one caveat with Erikson's Malazan books is that Gardens of the Moon, the first one, is incredibly dense, and does not even attempt to ease you into Erikson and Esslemont's world. I liked it, and went on to love the rest of the series, but YMMV.
I have tried to read the Malazan books, and no - they do not attempt to ease you in. I got about a hundred pages, and quit, certain that there must have been a prequel.
Malazan - 1, Sally - 0
I think that this is a trend in current fantasy, and I like it. You have to pay more attention, and it makes things seem more foreign and fantastical. Gene Wolfe, Steven Erikson, and China Meiville all do this to different degrees and I think it really adds to the flavor of the books.
Give this thread its official status. Rename it Recommend a Book, Entertain Me. You'll love the way it looks. I guarantee it.
Apparently, Eco says that the first 50-100 pages is where he weeds out readers that are not the "right" kind of readers.
I managed to get to the "found document" bit where they tell you the history of the world, but I just could not make it through it. Loved The Name of the Rose, though.
I finished up the Hyperion/Endymion series by Dan Simmons. So without getting too spoilery, here are my thoughts: The first book was fantastic. All these sub-stories, woven together so well. The second book is not quite as focused and not quite as good a story. Book three has a large time gap, some really "huh?" moments, starts introducing some really bizarre concepts you wouldn't have guessed from the first 2 books, and begins retconning things. Book four wraps most things up but definitely leaves some big questions unanswered, and has some pretty way-out-there concepts.
So I'll recommend then under the qualifier that you keep in mind the last 2 books get a little weird.
Have you read his Ilium and Olympos yet? It's got that Dan Simmons tone in a wonderfully convoluted post-apocolyptic / post-singularity (yes, both) world.
On the mystery front, I've been working my way through Elizabeth George's Inspector Lynley series. I was very annoyed to end up spoiling myself as to part of the overarching plot arc by reading the back cover of one of the later novels. I'm only up to book six of seventeen so far.
I finished up the Hyperion/Endymion series by Dan Simmons. So without getting too spoilery, here are my thoughts: The first book was fantastic. All these sub-stories, woven together so well. The second book is not quite as focused and not quite as good a story. Book three has a large time gap, some really "huh?" moments, starts introducing some really bizarre concepts you wouldn't have guessed from the first 2 books, and begins retconning things. Book four wraps most things up but definitely leaves some big questions unanswered, and has some pretty way-out-there concepts.
So I'll recommend then under the qualifier that you keep in mind the last 2 books get a little weird.
Are they related to the poems?
Have you read his Ilium and Olympos yet? It's got that Dan Simmons tone in a wonderfully convoluted post-apocolyptic / post-singularity (yes, both) world.
I have not.
Are they related to the poems?
I don't know, I haven't read them. When I mentioned to a humanities major I RPG with that Simmons had a hard-on for Keats, he was all, "What's wrong with Keats?!?!" I had to explain that I had no opinion one way or the other on Keats, as I hadn't read any of his stuff.
I don't know, I haven't read them.
Hating you wouldn't be novel, but I have lost respect for you.
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