SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

I've been an avid fantasy reader for years, and I really feel as though I'm running out of good books to read. Seriously, I've had to resort to reading cheap, poorly edited books hoping to perhaps find something original, some kind of diamond in the rough. Instead, I keep finding recycled stories with characters straight out of a D&D adventure (not that such characters are always bad, but if I have to read one more book where a group of companions consisting of bland elves, humans, and dwarves traveling to defeat some random Sauron knock-off I'm gonna go ballistic). To give you an idea of the kinds of books I like, these are some of my favorite fantasy books-

Carol Berg's Lighthouse duet and Restoration trilogy
Lois Bujold's The Curse of Chalion
Mostly anything by Jim Butcher
The first two books of the Ancient Blades trilogy
Princess of Mars series (old, but gold)
The Gods Within series by JL Doty
John Flanagan's books (YA, but great storylines and characters)
Robin Hobb's Farseer, Tawny Man, and Soldier Son trilogies
Among Thieves by Douglass Hulick
Michael Sullivan's Riyria Revelations
Mark Lawrence's Prince/King of Thorns
Scott Lynch's Locke Lamora books
Melina Marchetta's Finnikin of the Rock/Froi of the Exiles
MR Merrick's Exiled series
Toby Neighbor's Wizard Rising (kinda)
The Hungering Saga
Patrick Rothfus' Name of the Wind and Wise Man's Fears (NotW is probably my favorite of this entire list)
Brent Week' Night Angel trilogy

I prefer books with one primary protagonist (POV doesn't really matter). Don't care if it's a coming of age story, just want something good. Would prefer something perhaps a bit darker, but its not that important.

Also, you may have noticed that I am sorely lacking in the sci-fi genre. I have read some of the Dune books (only really liked the first, to be honest). If anyone could suggest a sci-fi book that is adventure themed, with preferably a touch of romance, that would be great.

If you bothered to read through all that, thank you very much. Any help is appreciated, I'm literally starving for a new fantasy/sci-fi novel that doesn't outright suck. Really, any help is appreciated.

Have you tried Julian May - there's the Pliocene Exile's series which begins with The Many-Coloured Land and has a prequel series beginning with Intervention. They've been round a while, and I really enjoyed them, and they're still holding up well on rereads.

Or perhaps Janny Wurts' Cycle of Fire series, which is YA Speculative Fiction (combines Fantasy elements with Sci-fi. It begins with Stormwarden.

C.S. Lewis Sci-fi trilogy which begins with Out of the Silent Planet, which is not everyone's taste, but I loved.

Hope these are helpful.

A few suggestions you might find interesting (if you haven't tried them already):

The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie (if you want something darker)
Magician: Apprentice and Daughter of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist
The Witches of Eileanan by Kate Forsyth
The Aware by Glenda Larke
Dragon Prince by Melanie Rawn

If you don't mind dark fantasy, try The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever. They do have one POV character, they're great fantasy, but they are dark.

For science fiction, you might like John Scalzi's Old Man's War series, Dan Simmons' Hyperion, David Brin's Startide Rising, or The Legacy of Heorot.

I am currently in the midst of a massive book hangover. So, I feel your pain! Keep reading the first chapter here and the first chapter there. Nothing works. :D I will be looking into your list . . .

Some you might find interesting:

Lois McMaster Bujold's Miles Vorkosigan - space opera at its finest.
Debra Doyle, James D. MacDonald's Mageworlds series. This is an oldie but one of my personal faves. Magic in a futuristic setting.
Philippa Ballantine's The Books of the Order series (final book due out shortly)
David Weber's War God series. This is an overlooked gem. His Honor Harrington series is good, but, to me, unwieldy. Also really enjoyed his Dahak series. Not a lot of romance here though.
You might like Sarah Hoyt's DarkShip Thieves

Ga! I am sure there are so many more, but these are all that currently come to mind.

Good luck.

Have you read this months fantasy pick?

How about Dave Duncan's King's Blade books starting with The Gilded Chain or his Alchemist's Apprentice books (The Alchemist's Apprentice)?

"sci-fi book that is adventure themed, with preferably a touch of romance, that would be great."

I would recommend almost anything by Anne McCaffrey.Anne McCaffrey
In particular the Crsytal Singer series - which starts with the title - Crystal Singer

You might also like the Acorna series - Acorna: The Unicorn Girl

Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern is another good one as is The Rowan All the books I've suggested are good stand alone books which match your requirements and also are part of different series if you decide you want to read more in that vein.

William Dietz's Runner and Logos Run
These are excellent sci-fi adventure quest novels. (A two-book series.)
Also, anything by Andre Norton.

Sunny wrote: "I've been an avid fantasy reader for years, and I really feel as though I'm running out of good books to read."

I've not read most of the books you listed, but noticed that Lois Bujold's "Curse of Chalion" was high on the list and it is one of my favorite series and she is definitely one of my favorite authors. I'm sure you've probably read the book that follows this "Paladin of Souls" but if you haven't, that is definitely another of my favorites.

For science-fiction, I can also recommend her "Vorkosigan" series, a very extensive series but no cliffhanger endings. The first two books are actually about Miles Vorkosigan's mother, Shards of Honour and Barrayar and the Miles Vorkosigan series about Miles himself starts with The Warrior's Apprentice

In general, my favorites are probably going to be lighter than you prefer but you might like Robin McKinley's Deerskin. Several of her books are on my re-read shelves, Beauty, Hero and the Crown and The Blue Sword but they are lighter. Deerskin is darker but equally well written and you may prefer that.

Oh yes the Vorkosigan series is fantastic.

If you like 'end of the world' kinds of things (without the vampire and zombie elements) you may like the trilogy that starts with Dies the Fire. That is one of my all-time favorite apocalypse series except that the final book is little too 'dark' for me but again, probably wouldn't be a problem for you.

If you're open to fairy-tale type fantasy, try anything by George MacDonald.

I'd also recommend another book I read recently, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness. It's a bit off-beat, kind of like if Mark Twain wrote a fantasy novel.

I would suggest Monster Hunter International by Larry Correia and The Accidental Sorcerer by K.E. Mills

Oh, yes ... MHI is great!

Thanks a lot guys! Some of the suggestions seem really interesting!

The Iron Dragon's Daughter by Michael Swannick is a fantastic, dark urban take on the realm of Faerie. I'd also recommend Janny Wurts' Wars of Light and Shadow series, which begins with The Curse of the Mistwraith, and for the first in a series that tackles racial bigotry against a a traditional fantasy backdrop, try Griffin's Daughter by Leslie Ann Moore. Her elves are far from bland; in fact, they're refreshingly "human".

For the Vorkosigan series, do you recommend jumping straight in to the story with the second book or reading the first before? Is the first more like a prequel to the main series?

I actually started with the first of the Miles Vorkosigan books, The Warrior's Apprentice, and never looked back.

However, if I'd known about the two previous books about his mother, I'd have read those first, as they do give some background that is only hinted at in the series about Miles himself ... and truly, I enjoyed her as a character.

Low Town is a good easy read; I liked it.

If you're interested in expanding your sci-fi, you might try some of the extended Star Wars universe. I particularly enjoy the Hand of Thrawn/Heir to the Empire trilogy by Timothy Zahn.

I agree, the Zahn trilogy is exceptional.
I've always liked Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain, beginning with The Book of Three, as well.

Hi Sunny,

I'm a massive Sci-Fi fan too. I'm a new author with Trident Media Group in NYC, and have just released my first Sci-Fi eBook exclusive to Amazon. If you are interested in reading it, I'll send you a free copy. It is a futuristic dystopian thriller set in Athens, where the ability to dream has become a recessive gene due to the devolution of society's values. I wrote it in Greece. It is titled The End of Athens.

I'll check out the Zahn books, always wanted to get into the Star Wars universe but never knew where to start. I'll also read the first two of the Miles Vorkosigan books before I start the main series, as I like to have some background knowledge on characters. And that would be nice Anthony, I'd be happy to check it out. Once again, thank you all for your suggestions, you guys are life savers, hopefully these books will last me past the summer, haha

The Miles series alone should keep you busy. I also love the Honorverse by David Weber but I have to admit I skip the long technological descriptions. is a nice start although its one of his more recent books in the series. It's YA so it has less of the long technical details and it predates much of the series focusing on an earlier generation and the discovery of tree cats who are major players throughout Honorverse.

Hannah wrote: "Terry Pratchett is an author i have recently just started looking into and he does a number of fantasy books.

I have only read two so far but I found them to be very entertaining and there are so..."

I'll second the books by Terry Pratchett. I've read and reread his Discworld novels several times. I am yet to find anything quite as enjoyable. It is all a matter of taste, of course. I saw someone else recommend "On Basilisk Station" by David Weber, which I found dreadful.

I've just found-and fallen in love with-Frank Tuttle's Markhat files, starting with The Mister Trophy. I saw one review described it as "Sam Vines (from Pratchett) crossed with Harry Dresden." I am so surprised he isn't more widely read, and think he would appeal to Pratchett fans/Garrett PI fans and likely Dresdenites.

If you'll forgive the self-promo, I have a scifi book out, I think you'll enjoy. It's very-adventure themed, and should meet the criteria you're looking for. 3024AD: Short Stories Series One

Hope you enjoy it!

Dean

DES wrote: "If you'll forgive the self-promo"

No.

One thing I've noticed is if an author promotes their books in a discussion or suggest it as a book of the month it tends to turn me off. It's something I've quickly learned not to do once I finish writing my books. Many groups have promotion folders but even there one should be sure to be an active member and not a drive by promotion author.

If you like Dresden Files, try The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne. They're light and breezy but fun. The first one is Hounded.

For something a little darker, there's The Apocalypse Door by James D. Macdonald.

Superheroes are always fun. I like both Paul Tobin's
Prepare to Die! and Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines.

Trike wrote: "If you like Dresden Files, try The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne. They're light and breezy but fun. The first one is Hounded.

For something a little darker, the..."
Funny thing is, I've actually bought Hounded, just haven't gotten around to reading it. I'll check it out. The Apocalypse Door also looks pretty interesting. Thanks for the suggestions!

If you want to stay in the fantasy genre, I would suggest Robin McKinley and Guy Gavriel Kay. Orson Scott Card is good for both sci-fi and fantasy. I got started in sci-fi with Arthur C Clarke, but I prefer his older books; his newer novels seem to fizzle out a bit on the endings.

Have you read Sarah Ash Lord of Snow and Shadows? It definitely darker, but very good. Katherine Kerr is another good one if you want fantasy that's a bit different Daggerspell is, I believe, the first book in the series.

Second vote for Orson Scott Card, you may like Michael Moorcock as far as Dark Fantasy goes, strange as it may seem, one of my favourite fantasy novels is Will Self's The Book of Dave: A Revelation of the Recent Past and the Distant Future which is also a great way to get in to a great author. There are so many books and so little time.

D.L. wrote: "Second vote for Orson Scott Card, you may like Michael Moorcock as far as Dark Fantasy goes, strange as it may seem, one of my favourite fantasy novels is Will Self's The Book of Dave: A Revelatio..."

I heard about the Elric Saga but never actually looked into it...Looks interesting. I have read Ender's Game and Speaker for the Dead, but couldn't bring myself to finish the rest of Orson Scott Card's quintet.

Yeah, Card isn't that good. His writing doesn't live up to the hype and, as we've come to find out, he's a loathsome human being.

For gritty sci-fi you can't go wrong with cyberpunk. Neuromancer by William Gibson, Synners by Pat Cadigan, and Hardwired by Walter Jon Williams. Newer books along those lines would be the duology Daemon and Freedom (TM) by Daniel Suarez.

For Fantasy, have you read the Demon Cycle by Peter V. Brett? There are three books in the series so far and I've thoroughly enjoyed the first two. Really brutal and well-written. He does have a couple different shifts of POV, but the titular Warded Man is the main character.

The Warded Man
The Desert Spear
The Daylight War

Edit: I should note the Warded Man starts off with the protagonist as a boy who grows into becoming the Warded Man. So it's a coming-of-age story to begin with. Then it becomes epic.

Wow, I really need to get the next book. I just talked myself into buying yet another book!

Trike wrote: "Yeah, Card isn't that good. His writing doesn't live up to the hype and, as we've come to find out, he's a loathsome human being.

For gritty sci-fi you can't go wrong with cyberpunk. Neuromancer b..."

Cyberpunk is a genre I've been thinking of getting into. I read one or two novels and found them interesting, so I'm gonna check out the novels you suggested. And I read the first book of the Warded Man series, started Desert Spear but didn't really like it too much so I stopped. Maybe I'll pick it up again.

Trike wrote: "Yeah, Card isn't that good. His writing doesn't live up to the hype and, as we've come to find out, he's a loathsome human being.

For gritty sci-fi you can't go wrong with cyberpunk. Neuromancer b..."

Ironic that Card does not really enjoy cyberpunk as it all has become too similar.

Sunny wrote: "Trike wrote: "Yeah, Card isn't that good. His writing doesn't live up to the hype and, as we've come to find out, he's a loathsome human being.

For gritty sci-fi you can't go wrong with cyberpunk...."

Snow Crash and Neuromancer are good places to start with cyberpunk.

Sad to hear about Orson Card's seeming descent into right wing looney-ville, always assumed he was a fairly liberal chap. Such is life, I still enjoyed his stuff though - unfortunately authors are as prone to believing nonsense as anyone else.

Trike- I thought "Daylight War" was just as good as the first two. Great book. At first a little skeptical due to the fact that it mainly sheds light on Inevera, but I thought it was also superbly done. I am very surprised at the mixed reviews tough. it seems most either loved it or hated it as compared to the previous books in the series. I can't quite understand why some really disliked it. I'm kinda baffled. lol. Let me know what you think when you read it.

Lots of good suggestions already, but to add to your
"check out" list:
These are fantasy the lst 2 especially fabulous :
O'Malley, Daniel The Rook
Downum, Amanda The Drowning City
Brust Steven The Lord of Castle Black
Gaiman Neil American Gods
Green, Simon R Something from the Nightside
Hanover, MLN Unclean Spirits
Sturges, Matthew Midwinter
Moore, Christopher The Stupidest Angel
Novik, Naomi His Majesty's Dragon
Tregillis, Ian Bitter Seeds
Williams, Liz The Snake Agent

Sci Fi:
Baker, Kage In the Garden of Iden
Bear, Elizabeth Carnival
McMullen, Sean Souls in the Great Machine
Morgan, Richard K Thirteen (Black Man)
Rosen, Selina Queen of Denial
Rusch, Kristine Kathryn Disappeared
Sinclair Linnea Gabriel's Ghost (some romance)
Suarez, Daniel Daemon
Viehl, Lynn Blade Dancer
Willis, Connie To Say Nothing of the Dog
Wilson, F. Paul Legacies
Dietz, William C Legion of the Damned (military SF)
Huff Tanya Valor (military SF with female heroine)
Aguirre, Ann Grimspace (some romance)

urban fantasy,
Acevedo, Mario Nymphos of Rocky Flats
Armintrout, Jennifer The Turning: Book1:Blood Ties Series
Baker, Nancy The Night Inside aka Kiss of the Vampire
Bowen, Gary Diary of a Vampire
Collins Nancy A Sunglasses After Dark
Davidson MaryJanice Undead and Unwed (for laughs)
Frost, Jeaniene Halfway to the Grave
Huff Tanya Blood Price
Huston, Charlie Already Dead (very gritty)
Lewis, J F Staked
Newman, Kim Anno-Dracula (literary, alt history, fab)
Rardin, Jennifer Once Bitten, Twice Shy
Harrison Kim Dead Witch Walking
Chance Karen Touch the Dark
Kittredge, Caitlin Night Life
Arthur, Keri Full Moon Rising (sex & romance)
Andrews, Ilona Magic Bites
Briggs Patricia Moon Called
Vaughn, Carrie Kitty and the Midnight Hour,
Pratt T A (Tim) Blood Engines
Black, Jenna The Devil Inside
Carey, Mike The Devil You Know
Connolly, Harry Child of Fire
Rowland, Diana Mark of the Demon
Saintcrow Lilith Working for the Devil
Aaronovitch, Ben Midnight Riot
Jacka, Benedict Fated

Finished Blood Song a few weeks hack and find myself constantly recommending it. Fabulous book, but it does have a bit of a coming of age story. Still, probably the best book I've read in recent memory.

Author self promos? Well, if you have a gas station on the other side of the hill on the same desert I ran out of gas in....I hope you'd tell me.

Some great reads mentioned so far. (I'm a big Bujold fan) Make sure to also check out her stand-alone: The Spirit Ring, if you haven't already.

You might also like Barbara Hambly. The The Time of the Dark, The Ladies of Mandrigyn, The Silent Tower or Dragonsbane (All first books of series).

I second Mike's recommendation of Blood Song. I read it when it was still a self-pubbed book, but it is now out by one of the big guys. Good stuff.

Give The Farseer by Robin Hobbs a try. Also The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson.

Ender's ShadowChildren of the MindEnder's Game also Exodus: Leaving Home

Go get anything by Marion Zimmer Bradley.

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