(Part 3) Best fantasy action & adventure books according to redditors
We found 4,529 Reddit comments discussing the best fantasy action & adventure books. We ranked the 1,144 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 41-60. You can also go back to the previous section.
Pretty unrepresentative choice of reviews to display. A Storm of Swords had a 4.5 star rating on Amazon in November 2006. (link)
Brian's book is just one of the novels in the Orbit Cyber Monday sale. All are $2.99 and a list of the fantasy titles is provided here:
Title|Author|Book #|Series|Rating | # Ratings
:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:
The Fifth Season | N.K. Jemisin | 1 | Broken Earth | 4.31 | 34,271
The Black Prism | Brent Weeks | 1 | Lightbringer | 4.24 | 68,494
The Last Wish | Andrzej Sapkowski | 1 | Introducing the Witcher | 4.20 | 58,433
Blood of Elves | Andrzej Sapkowski | 1 | The Witcher | 4.23 | 32,039
The Shadow of What Was Lost | James Islington | 1 | Licanius Trilogy | 4.16 | 9,656
Sins of Empire | Brian McClellan | 1 | Gods of Blood and Powder | 4.47 | 3,727
Promise of Blood | Brian McClellan | 1 | Powder Mage| 4.16| 26,245
The Blade Itself | Joe Abercrombie | 1 | First Law | 4.14| 111,811
Theft of Swords^1 | Michael J. Sullivan | 1 | Riyria Revelations | 4.21 | 38,525
The City Stained Red | Sam Sykes | 1 | Bring Down Heaven | 3.68 | 1,088
The Red Knight | Miles Cameron | 1 | Traitor Son Cycle | 4.12 | 10,607
Skyborn | David Dalglish | 1 | Seraphim | 3.92 | 1,010
--------
^1 In full disclosure - this is a book that I wrote.
Well this is the news I didn't expect.
​
Also, there are a series of books that already act as the sequels.
You can buy the bigger size (paperback vs mass market paperback) of the Last Wish. It was released this past July.
Still waiting to hear if Blood of Elves is going to be released by itself or just only in the box set, coming out in October
Book 1: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
Book 2: The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
Book 3: The Doors of Stone by Patrick Rothfuss
I would recommend:
Patrick Rothfuss's Name of the Wind
Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series, or his newest series The Way of Kings (The Stormlight Archive).
If you made it all the way through Sword of Truth series, you probably will enjoy Jordan's Wheel of Time.
Scott Lynch's Lies of Locke Lamora is also very enjoyable.
If you are looking for another big one, enjoy the gritty and dark elements from Martin, Stephen Erikson's Malazan series might be up your alley. The first book is a little difficult to get through, but it picks up after that.
This is the Amazon link from the article:
https://www.amazon.com/Waterdeep-Dragon-Heist-HC-Adventure/dp/0786966254/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=sl1&tag=polygonopt-20&linkId=a9fc4e6f1487d7dd6d0bea1b547cccf2&language=en_US
Does the writer or site point out that they get a cut of the sale to Amazon? It's shady he doesn't mention that when referencing the link.
In Acts of Caine sprites are terrifying; their almost-invisibility power means one moment you're fine and the next a knitting-needle sized lance is stabbed somewhere vulnerable. Defensive emplacements set up sprite netting to avoid this, to block the ways sprites can approach to give soldiers a chance of handling them.
(Also, it's excellent series with absolutely brutal combat; the protagonist specifically sets out to make combats entertaining because he's a reality TV actor who crosses dimensions to be an assassin while everything he experiences is broadcast live to viewers back on earth.)
Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen series. Fantastic stuff. The final book is scheduled for next March. Starts with Gardens of the Moon
storm of swords by George R. R. Martin. The greatest book from the greatest series in my opinion.
Riyria Revelations. A good sci-fi one that's more cerebral is Jean le Flambeur. Those are both thief types. For a great one that's more assassin oriented with tons of action is this sci-fi/fantasy crossover: The Acts of Caine.
I can't believe I'm the first person to suggest this, but you probably want Sufficiently Advanced Magic by Andrew Rowe. The kid is not an overly powerful mage, but has to traverse the tower of death traps using his wits and clever ways no one has thought of before with his magic. Feel is sort of a D&D campaign/ dungeon crawl but with LitRPG overtones and protagonist who might just be on the spectrum.
Will Wight's Cradle series is a more Asian inspired take on magic with the protag again being considered deficient magically and having to think his way around the situations in unconventional ways to gain strength. Even by the middle of the third book, he's still not brimming with power.
Brent Week's Lightbringerhas some VERY powerful characters in it (in fact one of the POVs is the most powerful man alive), but one of the POVs is a kid just getting his feet under him. Good series, but probably the least similar to what you're asking for here.
The Nightwatch series by Sergei Lukyanenko: Urban Russian tetralogy.
The Chronicles of Amber
Lord Demon
This Immortal
The Iron Druid series is about an immortal druid.
Incarnations of Immortality series though the main characters aren't strictly immortal.
Steven Erikson - Malazan Book of the Fallen
Brandon Sanderson - Mistborn
Brandon Sanderson - The Stormlight Archive
Peter Brett - The Demon Cycle
R. Scott Bakker - The Second Apocalypse
Joe Abercrombie - The First Law
Scott Lynch - The Gentleman Bastard
Patrick Rothfuss - The Kingkiller Chronicle
All excellent. Some slightly more excellent than others.
Gandalf is a straight up badass. I would encourage you to go back and read [The Silmarillion] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Silmarillion-J-R-R-Tolkien/dp/0618391118/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373920830&sr=8-1&keywords=silmarillion) as well as the [History of Middle Earth Volumes] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes/dp/0345466454/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1373920796&sr=8-1&keywords=the+history+of+middle+earth) to get a better understanding of the background of the entire world. It's by no means easy reading, and it's very in-depth and very dense, but it gives you a deeper understanding and appreciation for the world which Tolkien had created.
The Secret Texts by Holly Lisle has a system that sounds like what you're looking for. If I remember correctly, the practitioners use blood to power their magic, and there are 3 types of practitioners.
The first group (the Falcons) are secretive and only use their own blood to power their magic. Their power is the weakest of the three, but they receive minimal downsides from using their magic (aside from blood loss) and are the only group who's magic is silent to other practitioners.
The second type (the Wolves) use a ritual circle to power their magic, using the blood of others. It loses any sort of stealth that the Falcons have (other practitioners know when they use it), but becomes more powerful as a result. It also carries a side effect: the practitioners spontaneously mutate at random, gaining monstrous patchwork appearances (claws, scales, fur etc over various parts of their bodies). Practitioners become marked for life.
I remember less of the third group (the Dragons), except that they are all dead at the start of the story. While not stealthy like the Falcons, their magic is the most potent. Users require no ritual circle like the Wolves do in order to use the blood of non-consenting victims. I don't remember the downsides to their magic though.
---
Another good series that includes a price on magic is the Lightbringer Trilogy by Brent Weeks. Practitioners bend the different colors of light into magical substances with properties dependent on the type of light they were cast from. Blue is hard/smooth, green is springy, red is supa-flamable, ultraviolet is lightweight and invisible, etc. Not all users can use all the colors of the light, so the light they use must refracted from useless white light. Are you trapped in a blue box but can only use red light? Sucks to be you.
The main downside though is that the users have only a limited amount of color they can cast before a critical amount of substance builds up in their eyes. Once it fills their irises, they fall unconscious and wake up dangerous and very much insane. Since the government makes hunting down these insane users a top priority, practitioners have very short lifespans (usually about ~30 years if I remember correctly).
Eh, hope I helped.
Edit: Formatting and hyperlinks.
I read a lot of smaller name authors from Amazon and /r/Fantasy.
Finished the third book in the Weapon of Flesh trilogy, Weapon of Vengance and started on the first of the Powder Mage trilogy, The Promise of Blood.
I'm super excited for Will Wight's new trilogy-of-twos to come out - Of Sea and Shadow / Of Shadow and Sea
The Histories of Middle Earth, Volumes 1-5 https://www.amazon.com/dp/0345466454/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_hp7lDbP1VNEHM
Have I got news for you
And also this
https://www.amazon.com/Guildmasters-Guide-Ravnica-HC/dp/0786966599
[The Black Prism]
[Summoner Series]
[Sorcery Ascendant Sequence]
The Powder Mage Trilogy:
Promise of Blood begins with a coup by Field Marshal Tamas, who sends his king and the nobility to the guillotine in order to save the starving, mistreated commoners. The trilogy follows the consequences of that coup--war, internal power struggles, personal sacrifices, and even the return of the gods themselves.
The series is flintlock epic fantasy, with a premise that asks what happens when a medieval fantasy world with it's mighty magics has an industrial revolution. Promise of Blood was blurbed by Brandon Sanderson, Brent Weeks, Peter V. Brett, Django Wexler, and Sam Sykes, and is the winner of the Gemmell Morningstar Award for Best Debut Fantasy in 2013.
Physical copies of Promise of Blood are being delayed by Amazon (in the US) due to the Hachette/Amazon kerfluffle, but you can get signed copies of all three books straight from my website.
Whole lotta reading recommendations in this thread. May as well throw my two cents in.
The First Law series by Joe Abercrombie. If you're into Guts' introspective-man-of-violence-looking-for-his-place-in-the-world-thing I'd think you find Logen Ninefingers to be an interesting character. If you're into audiobooks then I highly recommend checking out the audiobook versions. The guy reading them is practically a voice-actor.
The original trilogy:
The standalone novels (available as a single volume in The Great Leveller):
And the most recent Sharp Ends (short story collection).
The Witcher books by Andrezj Sapkowski. Already spawned a popular video game franchise (I've only played the third one and enjoyed it tremendously, but still prefer the books). They're planning to adapt the books into a Netflix series within the next few years.
Short story collections:
The novels:
If anyone wants to start reading The Witcher novels I made a guide over on the "Featured Character" comment section that I'll repost here:
Short stories:
Novels:
Overall:
The short stories are a must-read before the novels because they introduce many characters and plot points for the main saga. There is also a prequel story called Season of Storms which hasn't been officially translated into English yet, but there are fan translations if you can't wait. I haven't read it myself, but I hear that it is best read after the others. If you want to know more about The Witcher lore there is always The World of the Witcher^UK which will give you more backstory and details.
I'll tell you what I did and, hopefully, it'll work out for you, too.
(I'm in the US, so your results may vary.)
Books 1 - 5 were readily available in paperback and are fairly cheap here (about $6 each).
Books 6 - 8 are often called The History of the Lord of the Rings and I got mine in a bundled set. Amazon currently has them separate and about $11 each. But BEWARE the fourth book in the bundle, titled Sauron Defeated. That's only the first part of Book 9.
Books 9 - 12 are nearly unavailable in the US. I found some on ebay years ago for $50 and more each. That's when I discovered Amazon.co.uk. Yes. Looking there now, I see them at about $12 each right now and they're worth it. Very lovely covers ... I almost wish I got all of mine from there. (There was also a 13th book, an index for all twelve volumes. I got it, too)
I did some quick math and it looks like you could them all for between $100 and $130, depending on if you can find that LOTR bundle or just buy them separately.
Or you could spend $164 and just buy this complete set and save the effort.
I also would recommend The History of The Hobbit, a two-volume set from John Rateliff (since Christopher Tolkien didn't include the details in the History). Here's the first one, Mr. Baggins from the Amazon UK site, just $12. The set is about $50 on the US Amazon site.
The "Night Watch" series by Sergei Lukyanenko would be my recommendation.
Night Watch
Day Watch
Twilight Watch
Last Watch
I know Baba Yaga shows up in either the second-to-last or last one.
https://www.amazon.com/Witcher-Boxed-Set-Contempt-Baptism/dp/0316438979/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&linkCode=sl1&tag=reddiscount-20&linkId=e769753a30c1da3c8c43b3d50f3bcac0
The actual link so you don't have to make a pit stop at someone's tweet
The $1800 set is a "collectors hard cover edition" (archival quality, acid-free paper that won't yellow or deteriorate, etc).
Other "complete sets" that you will find on ebay and such are generally first edition hard cover.
What you want to do -- for reading purposes -- is pick up the first five in a paperback boxed set, and then start shopping the used bookstores for the remaining volumes (they've been published in various formats, hard cover, paperback, mass-market paperback, etc.) -- and single volumes are typically pretty cheap (especially the paperback editions), and often they are in pretty good shape, because most people really don't read the things.
Also, if you have NOT already purchased AND read BOTH "The Silmarillion" and "Unfinished Tales", you need to get and read those first... because if you've only read LoTR and/or The Hobbit... well, HoME is probably just going to be almost incomprehensible and "crazy shit" to you. (Ignibus is correct, HoME is not everyone's "cup of tea", and a good indicator is whether you really LOVE Silmarillion/Unfinished Tales -- if you don't think they are GRRRREAATT! then you're probably not going to like HoME.)
You might like the Iron Druid Chronicles. Effectively immortal main character + bonus Irish wolfhound in a modern setting. The first one is Hounded.
For novel readers and fantasy lovers out there, Guy Gavriel Kay has a new book, Children of Earth and Sky coming out next week.
If you're unfamiliar with GGK, he is one of my favourite living authors today (easily my favourite Canadian author), and I cannot recommend his works highly enough. Don't let the term 'fantasy' turn you away, Kay's works read very differently from most other works in the genre (excepting his three rather mediocre works from the 1980's). There are no dwarves or elves or white walkers, and very little magic or fantastical events (some books more than others). In fact, most of his works are as much historical fiction as they are fantasy, as Kay's settings often parallel historical settings and time-periods, from medieval Spain, Constantinople and dynastic China, and many of his characters and important plot points draw from major historical figures and events. To the extent that his works are fantasy, Kay allows himself greater freedom than other works of historical fiction, making the characters his own, adapting the setting and events to suit his own purposes, and dabbling just occasionally with magic when it suits the story. This gives the best of both worlds, combining the realism of history with the freedom of speculative fiction.
More importantly, Kay's works are not particularly plot-driven (unlike most fantasy works), but have a tremendous emotional impact through development of his characters and settings. His characters are all nuanced and eminently relatable, and Kay knows how to make his reader sympathize with everyone, including antagonists and minor side characters. His settings are simply a labour of love, and his wonderful writing enables readers to visualize them perfectly in their mind. The emotional impact comes from him putting these characters and settings through one or two major events, and because of the connection that he forms with the reader they bring an inexplicably moving response from the reader. If any of this interests you, I recommend checking out either Tigana (if you don't mind a bit more fantasy elements), or A Song for Arbonne (very little fantasy) to start.
P.S. No I'm not his publicist, just a fan of the author :)
If you liked Song of Ice and fire you might really like Erikson:
Malazan Book of the Fallen is a 10 book series, might take you a bit to get into in the beginning but once it gets going I was not able to put it down. It's extremely gritty and has a lot of characters and plot lines, but they are all done extremely well, it gets to a point that you just start following the bigger picture of what is happening even as you read the events that each character is involved in. (I highly recommend this series to anyone that likes fantasy in shades of gray)
Another great book I read recently was Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay
Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson is a very good page turner, had a couple of late nights not being able to put it down. The "magic" (don't know what else to call it really) in the books is really creatively done, his writing style keeps you reading late into the night.
And off the top of my head I also liked Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks. This one is a fun read, not as involved as the others mentioned above.
I think they already fused those cosmologies when they released the MTG DnD supplements. https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Guildmasters-Guide-Ravnica/dp/0786966599
> Completely mucking up MTG's lore (and D&D's, I assume)...
You mean like this?
https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Guildmasters-Guide-Ravnica/dp/0786966599/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=ravnica+D%26D&qid=1561995505&s=gateway&sr=8-1
Meanwhile, how would it "muck up" MtG's lore?
Having a plane that happened to also have iconic D&D stuff wouldn't effect the main MtG storyline any more than both games having dragons, goblins, elves, and so on. I don't think anyone's making the case that we start adaping Raveloft and Dragonlance to MtG sets...but there's be absolutely nothing wrong with a plane that happened to be populated by Beholders, Gelatinous Cubes, Mindflayers and so on.
D&D would be perfect to adapt, as it's not like it's disparate worlds are necessarily interconnected anyways, which is why you can have something like a Ravnica D&D set in the first place.
Seriously...if you're going to bring up an objection, immediately, to the "god I hope not" level, I'd really like to know what you're so afraid of.
Perhaps a change of pace? I suggest the Night Watch books...
http://www.amazon.com/Night-Watch-Book/dp/1401359795
I had asked a request that may help, link.
This is the version that I got: Lord Of The Rings Deluxe Edition
It contains the most recent and accurate version of the text. I like that it is all contained in the same volume, because I like to consult the Appendices as I read. The book is also bound in leather, and is very durable. It's thick, but small enough to be carried around for on the go reading.
For reading I really like this one It's made of a more flexible type of material than a hardback but is sturdier and put together better than a paperback. There are a lot of nicer editions but many of them are quite expensive.
A lot of people don't know this but this actually got a book sequel, I've heard it's awful.
https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Moon-Chronicles-War-Book/dp/0553572857/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8
Try the Malazan Book of the Fallen. First book is Gardens of the Moon The best fantasy series I've ever read.
EDIT: I feel I should say more...coming from ASOIAF, it'll be an adjustment. You have to be halfway through the 2nd book before you're hooked. The first book isn't like any others in the series. It was written a decade before book 2, and you can tell the difference. Good rule of thumb, if you finish Deadhouse Gates, and you're not absolutely hooked, you can safely put the series down. Anyway, the adjustment is that ASOIAF is politically inclined low fantasy, MBotF is dark high fantasy. There are some EXTREMELY powerful beings in the books. Gods can (and sometimes are) viewpoint characters. It has just as large (actually probably a bit larger) of a cast as ASOIAF, and "main" characters also die in it, but it is the overall power level that is such a huge adjustment. I hope you give it a try. If you do, feel free to join us over in r/malazan.
Also, Steven Erikson gave an awesome AMA just a couple weeks ago.
I strongly suggest picking up either the starter set, or Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, and running that. Both are campaigns that cover levels 1-5 and can be used as a launching point for whatever campaign you want to run after that.
Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn is the first of The Tales of the Otori series. These are some excellent books and likely exactly what you are looking for. I really hope you enjoy these as much as I did.
Promise of Blood by Brian McClellan.
I don't remember how I came across it. I think it may have been on a thread here and it was on sale/free. I was really impressed. Great characters (the main antagonist was my favorite character), well developed world for a first book, and a good political backdrop.
That reminds me I need to pick up the second book...
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison. A gentle young man exiled from birth for his mixed blood finds himself through misfortune placed in a position at the center of power, where he is forced to deal with prejudice, strange protocols, and adults who would like to influence, usurp or depose him. Throughout all, he remains steadfast to his personal code of conduct, and slowly comes to win the admiration and loyalty of those around him.
I really enjoyed a book called Orcs. It's about a band of Orcs (and one Dwarf) sent by an evil sorceress Queen to retrieve a magical stone which is part of a set. They decide to screw the Queen and go get the other ones themselves instead. It reads very much like a DnD adventure where the Orc band is the party.
Oh god yes!!!
You've grabbed my attention now slowly tease me with small releases of critical information and I will sit awake at night convincing myself I only need to read one more page, then one more chapter to sate my appetite before going to sleep.
It would set up mystery and intrigue and make the reader (certainly me as a reader) want to find out more on why the main characters are being attacked and who is attacking them. One of my favourite books Orcs starts with a battle and the group of main characters fighting up a hill.
If I know the history before hand I kinda of go "meh" they are being attacked because XYZ and lose interest quicker.
Read all of them. Just started reading Last Wish and I'm loving it. Usually it's hard for me stick with books related to video games but these have done a great job.
The order is:
The Last Wish
The Sword of Destiny
Saga:
Blood of Elves
Time of Contempt
Baptism of Fire
Tower of Swallows
Lady of the Lake
They have a box set of the first 3 from the saga.
Also another book is releasing (it's been out since 2013 but now the english translation is being released here May 22nd) called Season of Storms (hard cover only until November
If ya need help finding anything else let us know ^_^
its not greek mythology its mostly celtic mythology and a blend of others myths/folk tales, the iron druid chronicles. its really good. probably a more adult then percy jackson, but equally as good
The 50th anniversary editions (paperback or hardback) are very good choices, with the best text available; there's also a recent "deluxe" edition in a semi-paperback that's a good value.
I remember seeing this version on Amazon. Was considering getting it before deciding to get a split up version for more comfortable reading. It was a hard choice tho...looks beautiful.
And here’s a video of it in action!
Got mine off amazon, it says 1216. http://www.amazon.com/Storm-Swords-Song-Fire-Book/dp/055357342X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1311560561&sr=8-1
My bad.
The Wise Man's Fear. I've been sucked into this series right proper.
They talk about going to the library. Somebody in Nun yesterday (sorry don't remember who) suggested that a book has Chronicle in the title:
http://smile.amazon.com/The-Wise-Mans-Fear-Kingkiller/dp/0756407915
Amazon lists Gardens at an average of 3.7 and GoT at 4.3. Goodreads lists GoT at 4.4 and Gardens at 3.8. Are you saying only fanboys use two of the biggest book sites on the internet?
I admit I have judged Erikson purely on the first book in the Malazan series. IMO anybody who finishes that book and wants to read another book from him is likely to be overly charitable regarding the sequels. The numbers back you up though, Memories of Ice clocks at 4.4 on Goodreads, which is higher than Feast's 4 or Dance's 4.1, but a hair lower than the score for Storm of Swords.
EDIT 2: Release date seems to be confirmed, mousing over where it says "Oathbringer (Stormlight 3) third draft" shows the release date (thanks /u/Torrieltar)
I saw that also, but I didn't easily see the release date on Brandon Sanderson's website, so I didn't want to include that in case it was incorrect.I'm guessing that the date is there since that's what's listed on Amazon, but again, couldn't confirm it on Sanderson's website.Edit: Also note that while it is listed on Amazon, Amazon does often list incorrect release dates and then change them as more information becomes available, so until there's confirmation from someone on the Sanderson team, I'd not pay it much mind.Just a heads up to people complaining that the book is not worth $50 due the maps' quality: If you don't mind waiting until September 18 (literally less than a week), you can get it here for ~$30. You are not paying WotC $50 for their book, you are paying them $30 for the book and $20 for their pockets. Don't ever buy directly from WotC.
Here's a price history on the book from CamelCamelCamel. 40% off isn't unusual for Amazon. The subreddit doesn't have a rule against it, but I'm not comfortable with encouraging affiliate links here, especially to products at about their normal price.
There's always the Other Night Watch series :-) Also, have you read China's The City and The City?
Night Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko, would be my top suggestion. It is my favorite book series.
I would also suggest, though this is more parallel reality fantasy, City of Saints and Madmen by Jeff VanderMeer.
The Night Watch books by Sergei Lukyanenko. I guess it's popular in the original Russian, but I've only met a couple people in America who've read it in English (one of who I lent the books to!). It's an urban fantasy series that sort of explores the dividing line between Dark and Light, and how fuzzy that line can be. Dark Others are defined by their emphasis on personal freedom, while Light Others want to do good for people, but they all draw their power from normal people. Both sides have agreed to a treaty that keeps them from making war and destroying the world (since they need humans for their power), but they keep trying to get ahead, so you've got these great intrigues with plans and counter-plans laid by the leaders of each side, and the pawns/actors in their schemes trying to figure out what's actually going on.
I haven't read these two, but I've seen them in the fantasy aisle:
Paper Mage - Leah R. Cutter
Thirteen Orphans - Jane Lindskold
I've read some other of Lindskold's stuff and I liked them, but I don't know how she does chinese-based fantasy.
If you are looking for Asian in general, Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hearn was pretty good, I thought. But it is based on Japan not China.
Heroes Die is good
I love the Kingkiller Chronicles! Have you read The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson? If you're looking for something to keep you occupied, it's a long book and the beginning of his Stormlight Archive series. The second book just came out Tuesday, and I'm hoping to begin it soon! Another series by Sanderson that I like is the Mistborn trilogy. I also like the Lightbringer series by Brent Weeks. In terms of things I've read recently that weren't epic fantasy, I liked The Golem and the Jinni by Helen Wecker, The MaddAddam Trilogy by Margaret Atwood, NOS4A2 by Joe Hill, and everything by Neil Gaiman.
I'm reading The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel right now, but I'm not loving it.
Promise of Blood (Powder Mage Trilogy) by Brian McClellan.
It is a Flintlock and Sorcery series that is heavily inspired by the American Revolution.
You may want to read the Powder Mage trilogy by Brian McClellan, it starts with Promise of Blood
Like /u/eferoth said, some books by Gregory Maguire might work for you. Elphaba in Wicked is quite concerned with logic and education, and Iris in Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister might fit to a certain extent, though she lacks the education.
A faster read with an intelligent, rational main character would be the Artemis Fowl books about a 12-year old evil genius who hatches a plan to ransom a fairy. The first four hold up for me as an adult.
Maia, in The Goblin Emperor, has a slow, deliberate approach to figuring out his new situation, which could count as rational and intelligent.
I have one called Orcs. It's not Tolkien though. Nothing to do with Middle Earth. Interesting read.
If you're down for a swords and sorcery-style fantasy adventure, my favorite has always been the Dragonlance Chronicles. Another good one, for a grim/gritty medieval fantasy world is Orcs(btw, it's about orcs). That's the kind of reading I like to do, anyways. [3]
After listening to the adventure zone I decided to make a subset of goblins that arnt evil. In fact they are more of traders and farmers, more along the lines of halflings. I call them Gerblins, after the adventure zone. If you read this book, it doesn't portray the orcs as super evil.
Sure, a couple notes while I'm downloading BaW :)
The book order is thus:
The Last Wish
Sword of Destiny
Blood of Elves
The Time of Contempt
Baptism of Fire
The Tower of the Swallows
The Lady of the Lake
There's no official english translation of the last book yet, but the one I've linked is the best fan translation I've found. It's the one I read, and I honestly would have had no idea it wasn't a "real" edition if I didn't know better. Fantastic work.
There's also A Season of Storms, which is sort of a midquel for the series. But it was written in the last two years, has no bearing on any of the game's canon, and contain some minor potential spoilers for later books since he expected his readers had finished the series at this point. I recommend you ignore it for now, and if you decide you want to read it down the road pick it up after the series.
The first two books are a short story collections. The series is in chronological order, but the actual novel arc doesn't begin until the third book. Definitely don't skip the first two though, they set up important characters and events in Geralt's life prior to the novel arc beginning.
Lastly, if you really can't be bothered to spend a bit on the amazon paperbacks here's a link to all of them in epub format. I can't vouch for the quality of the fan translations in this pack, nor do I recommend this format. Buying the books supports the author and reading a book is still easier than reading on a tablet in my opinion.
Good luck on your journey into the Witcher!
P.S. - Oh, here is the Witcher 1 recap video I mentioned. DO NOT WATCH THIS until after you finish the books. It will spoil the climax of the series and ruin your reading. You can buy the game dirt cheap if you can handle a playthrough on PC, but you really won't miss a ton of important info if you skip it. I don't want to spoil the end of the books either, but essentially the second and third game don't rely on the first one at all aside from knowing cursory details of the first game.
Then read them in English? Assuming you're American:
http://www.amazon.com/Last-Wish-Introducing-Witcher/dp/0316029181/
http://www.amazon.com/Sword-Destiny-Witcher-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0316389706/
http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Elves-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/031602919X/
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Contempt-Witcher-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0316219134/
http://www.amazon.com/Baptism-Fire-Witcher-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0316219185/
http://www.amazon.com/Tower-Swallows-Witcher-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0316273716/
Or
http://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/The-Last-Wish-Audiobook/B00HWBTIFI/ etc.
They are fan translated, but as of May we've gotten Tower of Swallows.
I got it not long ago, but it's in my backlog of reading material currently. And the final book translation/audiobook has a vague 2017 date by the same company.
http://www.amazon.ca/Tower-Swallows-Andrzej-Sapkowski/dp/0316273716/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1453231383&sr=8-1&keywords=tower+of+swallows
There it says may 17th 2016
And a box set of the next three books (Blood of Elves, The Time of Contempt, Baptism of Fire) is $23.99
https://www.amazon.com/Witcher-Boxed-Set-Contempt-Baptism/dp/0316438979/ref=pd_sbs_14_1/130-3894871-8117435?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0316438979&pd_rd_r=022a3740-166d-432c-8a68-4162c4e5a0d5&pd_rd_w=l7xvR&pd_rd_wg=o2VdH&pf_rd_p=588939de-d3f8-42f1-a3d8-d556eae5797d&pf_rd_r=BC7WQRMB3F9SH225EHVC&psc=1&refRID=BC7WQRMB3F9SH225EHVC
If you end up giving up the series length requirement, I'm currently reading The Witcher series, and it's been pretty enjoyable. But I think it's like 7 books long. The first 3 come in one boxed set though! (Be prepared to have to look up a good bit of medieval terminology if you read them) https://www.amazon.com/Witcher-Boxed-Set-Contempt-Baptism/dp/0316438979?crid=XBA341DZ0LT2&keywords=witcher+books&qid=1537493661&sprefix=witcher&sr=8-1&ref=mp_s_a_1_1
This has exactly what you're asking for...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Witcher-Boxed-Set-Contempt-Baptism/dp/0316438979/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1521242780&sr=1-10&keywords=andrzej+sapkowski
It looks like there's an upcoming release of the first three books that has them in all in the taller size.
http://www.amazon.com/Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes-1-5/dp/0345466454
I will second The Lies of Locke Lamora (part of the Gentleman Bastard series) as an excellent choice.
If you like Percy Jackson because it is fantasy mixed with the real world (i.e. urban fantasy genre) you might like The Dresden Files or the Iron Druid Chronicles
You might also look at branching into historical fiction, maybe? There are a lot of books using real historical military campaigns as backgrounds that are very entertaining - if that is of any interest to you, start with The Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield.
For inspiration, you could read Guy Gavriel Kay's Tigana. It's a story that includes intrigue, war, assassination, and tragedy -- but, also, the main characters are part of a travelling music group.
Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay is an awesome book.
Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay. Available on [Amazon](Tigana: Anniversary Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/0451457765/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_PcCqxb9Z7FGJR)
"He carried, like baggage, like a cart yoked to his shoulders, like a round stone in his heart, images of his people, their world destroyed, their name obliterated. Truly obliterated: a sound that was drifting, year by year, further away from the shores of the world of men, like some tide withdrawing in the grey hour of a winter dawn. Very like such a tide, but different as well, because tides came back."
After the sorcerer Brandin's son is killed in a battle, he uses his power not only to crush and conquer the people of Tigana but to erase all memory of even the country's name from history. Allesan, last prince of Tigana, plots to destroy Brandin's empire with unlikely allies.
The story of Tigana breaks my heart and I read it yearly. By Guy Gavriel Kay.
The ISBN information on the US version of that particular version of LotR is.
Amazon, BookDepository, B&N, BAM, as a few retailer links.
this it?
https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Moon-Chronicles-War-Book/dp/0553572857/ref=pd_sim_14_1/134-9370006-9010038?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0553572857&pd_rd_r=59298f10-6d14-11e9-a246-0ddaba5d67f8&pd_rd_w=lassF&pd_rd_wg=tSl1x&pf_rd_p=90485860-83e9-4fd9-b838-b28a9b7fda30&pf_rd_r=VD3TVFQ67S1A2C2HZ5RQ&psc=1&refRID=VD3TVFQ67S1A2C2HZ5RQ
it just doesnt mention willow in the desc which is why i am confused.
Check out the reviews on Amazon.
Highlights:
>Most Helpful Customer Reviews
>
>28 of 28 people found the following review helpful
>
>1.0 out of 5 stars
>
>Strangely Tedious--a Disappointment
and the top 3 comments:
> “ No big climax, nothing to make you want to read ahead to the next book. ”
15 reviewers made a similar statement
> “ It seems that I'm not the only one that thinks this book was slow in developing and that the descriptions were way too long. ”
14 reviewers made a similar statement
> * “ This is by far the worst book I have ever read. ”
5 reviewers made a similar statement
Shadow Moon by Chris Claremont?
Do you remember the book Willow ? Of course you do. Did you love it ? Of course your did!
So in that case, try reading the Chronicles of the Shadow War series. Shadow Moon is the first book.
Basically, the continuing story of Elora Danan and Willow. Really delves into the world and the magic in it.
I don't know how much shipping would be, since I can only see the prime price. xD; But here!
You shouldn't gift me because I HAVEN'T MADE MY BED IN AGES. Like I want anything from YOU.
Edit: FIXED!
Currently reading A Storm of Swords by George RR Martin
Trying to get through all the books before April
Another classic example: "Why is the Maer looking at hairy balls?"
I used to hate it when authors and instructors say "Show, don't tell." I hated it because most of the time, they didn't tell me how to show. I'll try my best to help you do that with this critique.
Showing is simply describing a thing as it exists, or as it happens.
Your telling, in particular, comes out through fancy language and excessive blocking.
I like where you began with your story. When a character committed some great crime, beginning the story in a prison cell is usually a good place to start from. The reader will forgive the exposition, because prisoners kept in solitary confinement have nothing but time to contemplate how they ended up there. That said, exposition from a lonely prisoner has to be interesting, and it has to sound like something they'd think to themselves in the dreary solitude.
There are elements to keep me interested, but MC isn't an interesting person. You are trying to make him interesting, and it isn't working because you're falling into the trap that ensnares fantasy writers in the early drafts. That fancy language, and the painstaking description. Don't worry, We all do it. I do it. But it's a habit you need to break, as it will yank the reader right out of your story.
I want to know more about your story, but it reads like stage directions from an aspiring English Ph.D student.
Used properly, lengthy blocking and florid descriptions can make a scene pop. For example, in The Wise Man's Fear, Patrick Rothfuss describes his character on the business end of a bitch-slap that seemed to call all of time, space, and gravity into knocking him on his ass:
> "If I say she slapped me, you will take the wrong impression. This wasn't the dramatic slap of the sort you see on a stage. Neither was it the offended stinging slap a lady-in-waiting makes against the smooth skin of a too-familiar nobleman...
>
> ...A slap is made with the fingers or the palm. it stings or startles. Vashet struck me with her open hand, but behind that was the strength of her arm. Behind that was her shoulder. Behind that was the complex machinery of her pivoting hips, her strong legs braced against the ground, and the ground itself beneath her. It was like the whole of creation striking me through the flat of her hand, and the only reason it didn't cripple me is that even in the middle of her fury, Vashet was always perfectly in control..."
There's so much description happening, but it's happening in the service of describing the power and control of a skilled martial artist who's just slapped a man silly. This also came after pages and pages of tension-building between these two characters.
Now here's your description of a man taking your MC by the chin:
> "Minar stepped close and reached out toward him with one hand. His wrist twisted as it passed the metal rods separating them and he stroked Narius under the chin with one finger, pausing just before it slipped off. Narius was forced to tilt his head back as Minar lifted his hand slightly. They locked eyes. Minar moved in closer. He smelled like pine sap and Narius clenched his teeth, responding to the uncomfortable advance and the fading memory of the outdoors. Minar’s finger curled and his thumb rested on the point of Narius’ chin. He opened his mouth slightly and broke his stare, instead casting his eyes downward."
You see the difference? there's a lot happening, but what, exactly? And why?
Reading through your draft, I get the impression you're building tension between these two characters by swinging the balance of power. Narius, confident and clever, has the upper hand in his own mind. But Minar has news that will annihilate Narius's confidence. The scene begins with Narius having the upper hand, and ends with him crumbling into a hollow and pathetic shell. This is great! Psychological intrigue is as essential to a good fantasy story as politics, battles between armies, and wizarding duels. But you're spoiling the intrigue in this scene in the following ways:
1) Leaving nothing in your MC's mind to our imagination, thereby preventing us from identifying with him:
> Narius’ wide eyes fixed themselves where a rod flawlessly met the floor. What felt like hours passed, though Narius knew better than to assume they would leave him unguarded for more than ten minutes. It was difficult for the prisoner to comprehend anything beyond his own swirling emotions. He felt his exposed fingers and toes become numb from the cold. Every so often, he saw wisps of ghostly mist swirl from the corner of his eye, catching firelight.
2) Occasionally describing him in a way he hasn't described himself (i.e. "The prisoner")
3) Describing every last detail of where every thing is, and how the characters interact with those things:
> Two thin shadows blocked sections of the sparse light that leaked under the heavy metal door. Through the wall of bars to his left, Narius watched the entrance and heard the latch snap as it released. Minar, captain of the guard at the high security prison where Narius was held, knocked twice before barging in. Narius wished he wouldn’t knock. The metallic ring resounded off the barren walls of the near empty room and lingered in his sound sensitive ears.
> Minar’s smile died as his gaze fell upon a rickety desk in the corner diagonal to Narius’ cot. Atop it rested a wooden tray. Cold steamed vegetables, a stale roll, and diced meat smothered in a gravy-like sauce lay largely untouched.
4) In addition to being painstakingly described, sometimes your description of the things isn't even consistent with how your main character feels about them:
> He placed to stool before the bars and sat. He was careful to mind his outrageously long, brown horns, which grew at a sharp backward angle from the top of his head. They cascaded in a gently arced fashion vertically down his back and stopped hear his hip bones, the ends curving slightly away from his body. Narius thought they were garish.
I won't repeat the critiques that have already been made about structure. But getting back to what I was saying about florid language, you seem to dip in and out of that mode of storytelling, and I get the sense you aren't completely at ease with it. That's fine, as long as you pare down your language so the reader can understand you. For example, this sentence reads like you are putting on a show of Narius's carelessness for the reader:
> “Is that a promise?” Narius carelessly dropped the roll on the floor, strode back across the cell, and sat once again on the cot, mirroring Minar with his own legs.
But this sentence reads like Narius is putting on a show of carelessness for Minar:
> "Is that a promise?" Narius tossed the roll to the grimy floor and sat on the cot, mirroring Minar's cross-legged pose.
Be yourself. High fantasy doesn't become high fantasy by trying to imitate the writing styles of Tolkien and Brooks and Martin. You have to let your ideas take it there, and you have to get your language out of the way.
I've gone through your draft and made suggestions throughout. I'm happy to answer any more questions you might have, either in this thread, or over PM.
The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss (and The Name of the Wind, the first in the trilogy, is also good). I only came across them a year ago or so, but they are absolutely fantastic and beautiful books. It takes restrain to read other books rather than these two over and over again.
Malazan, Book of the Fallen
If you're looking for a "massive big world" you should read Gardens of the Moon (Malazan).
It's not for everyone, but I liked it a lot.
Book six? You're stronger than me - I got through the first three before giving up. I've not heard anything that makes me want to go back and try again. A couple of other fantasy series suggestions (with links to the first books):
Photoshop? Because I just went to the same book (here if anyone is interested) and the ebook version is 7.99, not the 11.66 you have in your screen shot.
Yes, you can get it here.
ಠ_ಠ
/cc /u/mistborn
October 3rd will be a good day for you, then.
Edit: My bad. November 14th is the day you're looking for.
Buy some dice.
Buy some books.
Honestly, it depends what kind of game you want to play. I think here you're going to get a lot of weird niche games suggested but for starters you're better off sticking with the a more 'traditional' experience. D&D is an excellent starting point if you want to play a fantasy game, you can even pick up one of their adventures if you don't want to write your own material.
If you're unsure about spending that much just to get started you can pick up this starter set that will include the basic rules, a set of dice, some pregenerated characters, and a short adventure. From there, if you like the game, you can pick up the full rulebooks and some more dice and whatever else you like. Alternatively you can try out the free basic rules by downloading them from the Wizards of the Coast website. All you'll need is a set of dice to get started.
If you don't like or don't want to play D&D you can check out a bunch of other systems that will let you play other games or settings. [Edge of the Empire] (https://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-Edge-Empire-Rulebook/dp/1616616571/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=edge+of+the+empire&qid=1563883870&s=gateway&sr=8-1) is a really cool Star Wars game, but it requires custom dice. My personal favourite sci-fi rpg is Traveller though, and it has the advantage of only requiring six sided dice.
A lot of people really like Savage Worlds, it's fun, it's cheap, and it's generic enough that you can run almost any setting you like with it. Unfortunately there's a new edition due out really soon so take that in to consideration. If you want a more in depth generic system then I can recommend GURPS, although you'll also need the Campaigns book. This system is absolutely not beginner friendly, it slaps you in the face with tables and rules for all sorts of scenarios, but I adore it and it's not really all that hard to figure out.
If you want an alternative to D&D Green Ronin has the "Age" series of games, starting with Fantasy Age, continuing with Modern Age, and the recently released The Expanse RPG covers Sci-Fi. I will admit that I've not actually had a chance to play any of these games, but I've read the rules and like the system.
Honestly you can find a game to cover practically any genre you want, whether it's Grimdark Fantasy, Martial Arts, Space Exploration, Lovecraftian Horror, Anime Cyberpunk Space Opera, or almost any other thing you can think of.
Don't fall in to the trap of playing a game because someone suggests it's 'easy', play something that really grabs your interest and inspires your imagination.
Check out https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com if you're going to be running in the default setting. If one your players want an urban campaign, WotC just finished releasing 2 campaign books that take place in the city of Waterdeep. Dragon Heist can take them from levels 1-5, and it ends >!with players making 500,000 gp!<. If they don't feel like leaving the city you can run Dungeon of the Mad Mage until level 20 while taking breaks from the mega-dungeon to run their tavern or do any other adventures you feel like making up.
If you're not that into reading wikis I sometimes watch this guy Jorphdan's videos who just explains forgotten realms lore.
Lastly, if neither of those adventures sound cool to you check out adventure lookup's selection of adventures that take place in cities. Unfortunately I can't link you directly to the results, but just check "City/Urban" under the "Environments" tab on the left.
Hope that helps!
>stranger Things box set
I can't find what you mean by this? Are you on about the actual TV series?
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In regards to the books though...
https://www.amazon.com/Waterdeep-Dragon-Heist-HC-Adventure/dp/0786966254
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Waterdeep-Dragon-Heist-Hc-Adventure/dp/0786966254
Waterdeep heist is $30 in the US (£23) and £30k in the UK.
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If you generally look most stuff is sold for similiar prices in terms of actual numbers.
MK 11 UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mortal-Kombat-Special-Amazon-Exclusive/dp/B07NGTX1BW £44
MK 11 US: https://www.amazon.com/Mortal-Kombat-11-PS4-playstation-4/dp/B07L75HNK1/ $46
There's a specific term for it that I can't recall where things are priced at the same/similar number.
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But either way things are going to be cheaper in the US as D&D is way more popular in the US (at least in my experience the majority of players I find are American)
Plus I don't think the cost is unreasonable really for what you get.
For the first time ever (I believe), Wizards recently released an MTG adventure book based on the DnD ruleset set within Ravnica. Not exactly the plane you're looking for, but everything's provided for you guys to jump into an RPG system/setting.
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https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Guildmasters-Guide-Ravnica/dp/0786966599
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What this book does (taken from an Amazon review):
- Explains the world of Ravnica and its backstory; especially dives into the backstory for the races, places, and guilds of Ravnica. This is 80% of the book.
- Provides gameplay details for the races of Ravnica.
- Provides 2 new subclass options (Cleric: Order Domain & Druid: Circle of Spores).
- Provides gameplay details for the guilds of Ravnica (treated as backgrounds).
- Provides lots of information about how to craft a D&D adventure within Ravnica.
- Provides some Ravnica inspired treasure/magic items.
- Provides stat blocks for the creatures/people of Ravnica.
If you're interested in some Russian fiction, and a bit of fantasy. Nightwatch has served me well for those needs. Enjoy!
Sorry I meant to link the movies... but yea movie.
They are. And they are quite good, but very different. That said, Night Watch is the title of quite a few books, so I'll leave this here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_Watch_%28Lukyanenko_novel%29
http://www.amazon.com/Night-Watch-Sergei-Lukyanenko/dp/1401359795/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1375474897&amp;sr=8-4&amp;keywords=night+watch
IMO Tales of the Otori , i’ve read and reread multiple times
Across the Nightingale Floor (Tales of the Otori, Book 1) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1573223328/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_21pWBbA7X13M4
Two book series that come to mind immediately (both of which came out around 10 years ago and I remember absolutely loving) that I didn't see mentioned anywhere in the thread:
Across the Nightingale Floor by Lian Hern
Prince of Shadow by Curt Benjamin
Tales of the Otori I don't believe I have ever seen it mentioned, but I loved the series.
Welp, go read it. Those books more than live up to their premise.
The main character is also the most brutally badass person I know of in fantasy.
Edit: more precisely, the setup is that there is a corporate dystopian future earth that has the ability to record actors' first person experiences, including thoughts and emotions, to be viewed in vr as entertainment. They have discovered a secondary fantasy world, and they send actors through to it to have 'adventures', thereby fucking everything up. The main character is a superstar TV personality or an extremely deadly assassin/fighter depending on who you ask. The book blurb says it better. https://www.amazon.com/Heroes-Die-Acts-Caine-Book-ebook/dp/B001MYA38W
Heroes Die is currently $0.99. Excellent deal for a great book!
Amazon Link
Heroes Die -- a really good book. It's about entertainers who transport themselves from the modern world to a fantasy world to have adventures and stream them to their fans. The MC is an assassin who is the most famous streamer, basically trying to extricate their ex-girlfriend from a difficult and likely lethal situation (especially since it's such a good story for the viewers). There are no stats or skills or level ups, which is why I feel it misses out on technically being considered litRPG.
Do you like fantasy? If so, I'd recommend the Jhereg series by Steven Brust. It has an awesome assassin protagonist, and it's written from a first-person perspective. He rationalizes his actions, but he's essentially a mafia boss in a fantasy setting.
You may also like the Acts of Caine, which also involve an assassin, but in a future setting crossed over with a fantasy one.
Ma'elKoth from Heroes Die
[Edit] You have to read all three books to find out Ma'elKoth's true back story and what his reasons are.
You're welcome! If you're curious about more in depth reviews I would check them out here:
Heroes Die
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001MYA38W?cache=214b96e6bb0303b211d60770e71c3bca&amp;qid=1412089263&amp;sr=8-1#ref=mp_s_a_1_1
And
Night Angel Trilogy
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0316201286?cache=214b96e6bb0303b211d60770e71c3bca&amp;pi=SY200_QL40&amp;qid=1412089345&amp;sr=8-2#ref=mp_s_a_1_2
Enjoy man! I really do hope you like them!
Did anyone just get a big flashback of The Black Prism?
Tuf Voyaging by George RR Martin.
To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis.
The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison.
Into the Storm by Taylor Anderson.
Read the "Look Inside" previews to see if any of these is right for you.
https://www.amazon.com/Goblin-Emperor-Katherine-Addison-ebook/dp/B00FO6NPIO
Reminds me of The Goblin Emporer. Great book. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00FO6NPIO/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1498338338&amp;sr=8-1&amp;pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&amp;keywords=goblin+emperor
tangentally related: http://www.amazon.com/Orcs-Stan-Nicholls/dp/0316033707
The Orcs Omnibus, here: https://www.amazon.com/Orcs-Stan-Nicholls/dp/0316033707
Seconded! Stan Nicholls did an an awesome job with all three books.
Orcs, by Stan Nicholls. I just finished it. It's a good inspiration for building an anti-hero campaign.
There were a few plot points that were too convenient, but it was generally a good read.
Malazan Book of the Fallen, hands down. Doesn't really count since it's a series, but holy fuck is it good.
Singular book? Probably have to go with Orcs. Nice subversion of trope, well-written, easy to follow without being inane, well-built world, just an honestly fun read overall.
You need to read more, mate! May I suggest the morally gray stories about The Witcher?
Yep! 4th in the saga translated into English, The Tower of Swallows
If you're interested, here's the chronollogical order of the books (with links to buy them on Amazon):
--------
Season of Storms is an upcoming book set in between the short stories of The Last Wish. It will be released in English on March 2018.
Got them individually off of Amazon Prime:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316029181/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316219185/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316219134/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/031602919X/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316273716/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316389706/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
I believe you need to buy the set and then the other two separately. The set is here and then the other two are here and here.
Maybe some of the Witcher stuff -
https://www.amazon.com/Witcher-Boxed-Set-Contempt-Baptism/dp/0316438979/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1523391039&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=the+witcher+books
Amazon has them. Here's the first book. As you can see, there are various edition options: Kindle, Audible, Hardcover, Paperback, Mass Market Paperback, Audio CD... the one you want is the one that says just "Paperback". Then buy the other seven books the same way - though you can also buy Blood of Elves, Time of Contempt and Baptism of Fire as a boxed set that has the three in the Paperback size.
Alternately, there's a set that has all eight, Paperback size, though these are the UK editions, not the US ones. The only difference is the covers; the contents are exactly the same.
Yet this bundle exist, I am puzzled.
https://www.amazon.ca/Witcher-Boxed-Set-Contempt-Baptism/dp/0316438979/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1503519670&amp;sr=8-8&amp;keywords=witcher
There is also a US set that has [volumes 1-5] (https://www.amazon.com/Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes-1-5/dp/0345466454)
I've never owned it so can't attest to its quality.
It's the 1-5 Box Set and the rest don't follow the same design. I know it seems really picky but I'd prefer an entire similar set. Thanks.
I ordered them off Amazon. They've been getting published for years, and while I don't have a complete list handy, I'm sure you could find one. I can't honestly say I've read them all cover-to-cover, and what I have read was years ago. I just used to collect them when I was really into it. Here are the first five:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes/dp/0345466454/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1413760287&amp;sr=8-8&amp;keywords=tolkien
I got them in a store here. But I was able to find these on Amazon. (I dont know if these are deliverable to you or how reliable this is though.)
https://www.amazon.com/Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes-1-5/dp/0345466454
https://www.amazon.com/gp/bookseries/B00CKD5AXW/ref=dp_st_0395498635
There's this http://www.amazon.com/Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes-Paperback/dp/B004CZ5VNU/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1419192408&amp;sr=8-4&amp;keywords=history+of+middle+earth+box+set
but this seems to be more popular http://www.amazon.com/Histories-Middle-Earth-Volumes-1-5/dp/0345466454/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1419192408&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=history+of+middle+earth+box+set
Nice collection! My own modest collection has managed to take a couple feet of shelf space and I have been considering building a separate shelf for Tolkien.
I do have a question that I hope you could answer...
I've heard that the mass market paperback edition of Volumes I-V are riddled with errors and am currently seeking to replace those. Do you know if the hardback editions of Volumes VI-IX are better than the current paperback ones (ie. these)?
Afternoon, all!
QOTD: Probably the Iron Druid series or the Breakthrough series.
The Dresden Files Book 1
The Iron Druid Chronicles Book 1
I have lots more, just ask for a genre.
If you want another Dresden-like book series, check out the Iron Druid series by Kevin Hearne. I'd say they are almost sue-ably similar. Main character is flippant and sarcastic, but also honorable and relies heavily on improvisation. I think these would be exactly what you're looking for.
I can also second the suggestion for Weeks' new Lightbringer series.
For your Night Angel fix, I recently read and loved Blood Song. The author is fairly new, but the book is absolutely solid and wonderful.
Another good book series is the Kingkiller Chronicles.
I'll stop the list there before I get carried away. But I think Iron Druid and Blood Song will be spot on as far as similarity. The other two are books I think you'll really enjoy, but aren't necessarily as similar.
I'm a fan of both the Monster Hunter series and the Iron Druid Chronicles.
Both help me get my Modern Fantasy fix while waiting for more Dresden Files.
It was actually a work of fiction that opened my eyes to heathenry and the idea of old gods existing. The series is called The Iron Druid Chronicles. Not sure if it's what you're looking for, but if it is and you don't mind a bit of poetic license (obviously)...
It's an urban fantasy series taking place in modern times and features a 2,100 year old shape-shifting, plane-walking druid, a hilarious talking dog, several pantheons (obviously as a Druid the Celtic pantheon is featured the most, but the Norse are also featured heavily), and lots of other adventurous things you'd expect in a fantasy series.
If you want to check it out I actually suggest going the audiobook route instead of the book route because the narration is fantastic. I've both listened and read but the narration just brought everything to life more than my imagination could. http://www.amazon.com/Hounded-Druid-Chronicles-Kevin-Hearne/dp/0345522478
Tigana!
How about the Fionavar Tapestry books by Guy Gavriel Kay? They fit the themes you're looking for, and they're pretty well regarded (although personally, I have to say I preferred Tigana, which is a book he wrote about revenge and magic in a renaissance-influenced world).
I'm sure you've heard of Robert Jordan then, and after reading the latest in the series, I'm confident the new writer will give it a proper finish. It's at around 10,000 pages now, which is a bit of a commitment.
edit: Almost forgot - Guy Gavriel Kay's writing and themes are a cut above. Tigana is a single volume epic and a great place to start.
Ever read Tigana? The setting is a peninsula in the vague shape of a hand with two fingers missing. (And the local sorcerers have to remove those two fingers from one hand to fully unlock their powers.)
They're all going to be complete versions. As long as it's the 50th anniversary text it'll be the most updated, but they'll all suffice. It really just depends on what he likes aesthetically. My favorites are the Alan Lee hardback illustrated editions. A lot of people also like the 3 volume 60th anniversary editions, because it uses Tolkien's original unused dust jackets.
There's also single volumes. I'm currently reading this one. The Lord of the Rings Deluxe Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/0544273443/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_AbOlDb3T8NW54
It doesn't have any illustrations or anything, but it's great for a reading copy.
After a bit of searching, i found that this book is still available and seems to be what youre looking for: http://www.amazon.com/Lord-Rings-Deluxe/dp/0544273443%3FSubscriptionId%3DAKIAJZ5SU5JGUOVM6FVA%26tag%3Dihandysoft-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0544273443
If you want something that is current and easy to carry around then this one is probably a good choice.
I have this one and like it very much: http://smile.amazon.com/The-Lord-Rings-Deluxe-Edition/dp/0544273443
it is the paperback deluxe edition
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0544273443/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&amp;psc=1
In case you're interested, there are three sequels beginning with: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Moon-Chronicles-War-Book/dp/0553572857
Just FYI, there was a novel series of sequels to Willow, story by George Lucas and written by Chris Claremont (of XMen comics).
For anyone who doesn't know, there is a trilogy of novels that comes after Willow.
https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Moon-Chronicles-War-Book/dp/0553572857
Chronicles of the Shadow War book 1
"Well, unfortunately, any kind of exposure indirectly helps ratings. Of course, nothing will boost ratings more than the show itself being good, but the more people that can be attracted to it, the better chance there is of their ratings staying high or (I'm sure) even increasing."
Well, I don't know anyone who would start watching/reading because they saw a direwolf iphone skin, but since your so doggedly determined that keychains are going to sell the show more effectively than something legitimate like word of mouth, I take it that's how you became a fan. You can have that one, I suppose.
"It sounds like you're still stubbornly defending the idea that he "sold out" without offering enough support for that claim. If you can somehow demonstrate that the literary quality sharply decreased after he shared his writing with other types of ventures, I'll believe it."
I understand you're a newbie to the ASoIaF world, and therefore a little late to the party. I've been there for the 8 years of blog posts about the Giants and Wildcards and of him hocking his latest piece of craphenalia in real time. You haven't. I don't get into this "I've been reading since before it was cool, so I'm better than you" rhetoric alot of the old guard seem to - that's silly - but it does give me better insight to the things we are discussing here than someone who just discovered these were books last summer.
I'm not going to sit here and go through with you every piece of merchandise until you are satisfied. In fact, I won't go through any of them with you other than the things I've already mentioned. It is apparent that you can only find your way to HBO.com
Uh, AGoT ACoK ASoS AFfC ADwD
I don't really have the inclination to get too involved in this so I just gave you the Amazon links. There's a star rating near the book titles. These ratings summarize the quality of the product listed. As you can see the first three books of the series have exceptional ratings: 4.5+ stars, but then starting with Feast and continuing through Dance (current) you see these drop down to 3 stars. There's your demonstration. I'm not going to continue to take you by the hand and point to things as obvious as this.
"There's the Cyanide's track record, which is mostly just a bunch of cycling-related games, and it's pretty clear from the post you linked that GRRM declined Cyanide at the time because he basically felt they were too amateur a studio to be able to do a good job on the game. Years later, (years!) this little company is still determined to do it, especially now that they've opened up another studio and hired enough people to pull the game off"
That's pretty bold to pass that off as fact based on the information in the blog post. We'll go ahead and chalk that up in the "good faith" and "benefit of the doubt" column.
"I think AFfC and ADWD should be considered special cases given what it took to write them."
I don't know exactly what you're intending with this, but no. It shouldn't.
Working on A Storm of Swords and Unlocking the Kingdom right now.
$0-$5
$5-$10
$10-$20
$20-$50
If I win, I really want it to be in the $10-$20 category, because I got that pen as a gift last christmas, loved it, then lost it at school. I miss that pen.
I think the most important thing to call out in this video is that Hai is reading one of my favorite books, Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss. You can barely see it at 16:44.
I read in The Wise Man's Fear that civilization literally means "no one shits in the well", and I've never thought it more applicable than right here.
The Name of the wind and The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss based on your fantasy preferences
For you: this and this
Together they are just under $25. I see you're a GoT fan and you will 100% enjoy these books.
For me: This
Just above $25 but it's the only thing I have on there that's in that range.
Here i am speaking of this:
https://www.amazon.de/dp/076532637X/ref=sxbs_sxwds-stvp_1?pf_rd_m=A3JWKAKR8XB7XF&amp;pf_rd_p=1566153307&amp;pd_rd_wg=xw184&amp;pf_rd_r=DQBG5ACXG9Z3CNB1BA8H&amp;pf_rd_s=desktop-sx-bottom-slot&amp;pf_rd_t=301&amp;pd_rd_i=076532637X&amp;pd_rd_w=WQKMN&amp;pf_rd_i=oathbringer&amp;pd_rd_r=7ac812c4-6910-477e-9461-e05d0a6af4bb&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1510513886&amp;sr=1
I could buy there in hardcover or paperback(US Version).
The paperback looks to be the International edition, non - intl ed seems to be the only hardcover which is what is being sold in Canada (stores).
Hi thanks for your post
I dont know I just ordered here:
https://www.amazon.com/Oathbringer-Book-Three-Stormlight-Archive/dp/076532637X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=1511203586&amp;sr=8-1
the hardcover edition
Here: https://www.amazon.it/gp/product/076532637X/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Despite the guilt I feel for not supporting local booksellers, I usually buy my books from Amazon, sometimes for Kindle, sometimes hard copy. For both WoK and WoR, the "pre-order price guarantee" gave me the best price available before publication, which ended up being ~$18. Oathbringer has been going up and down, but at one point last month it dropped to $21, so if you pre-ordered before then, your order was locked in to that price (unless it drops even lower). The same guarantee functions on the kindle versions, but in my experience those prices fluctuate less.
So if you are concerned about value, the hardcover and the kindle version are very close to the same price point and I recommend getting "more" for your money by buying the physical book. With all the artwork in the SA books, there really is a good reason to buy the dead-tree version. (Yes, the art is available on Brandon's site, but it's not the same.)
On the other hand, and Brandon has talked about this before, printing the book is not the bulk of the cost behind making a book. Yes, it's a chunk (especially shipping) but the author, artists, editors, and marketing folks all do the same work for the final product. So the cost of printing a book vs. transmitting a data file is a poor metric for determining the appropriate sale price.
(I realize this doesn't address your point about kindle vs. paperback. I'm not sure how pricing decisions change once the book is no longer a new release. Maybe they are competing against a stronger library/used book alternative? Not sure.)
The new books for Waterdeep is literally about planning a heist, Waterdeep: Dragon Heist
Don't forget the official "Guilds of Ravnica" D&D content
Ravnica D&D Manual
They are releasing a D&D 5th Edition sourcebook. If you preorder the D&D book on Amazon now, you get 40% off, though I always encourage buying locally instead.
Now looking at your username, is this just guerrilla marketing, dropping a hint that'll get a bunch of people to recommend the book.
Just to clarify, you know they printed official 5e rules for Magic stuff, right?
June 28th to be exact, was about to walk dog earlier.
Have you ever tried Tales of the Otori? It's a trilogy that starts with Across the Nightingale Floor
The Otori Clan: http://www.amazon.com/Across-Nightingale-Floor-Tales-Otori/dp/1573223328/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1465244787&amp;sr=1-5&amp;keywords=the+otori+clan
You might be interested in the novel Across the Nightingale Floor, in which a ninja must learn to silently cross a wooden floor, which was designed to be extra noisy to alert the guards. It's basically pseudo-Japan Mission Impossible.
There's also a fantasy series based on feudal Japan called Tales of the Otori that was excellent (and supports your point about fantasy being based on certain historical realities).
Tales of the Otori is immediately what I thought of when I saw this post. Absolutely amazing books. You should pick it up sometime.
Across the Nightingale Floor (Tales of the Otori, Book 1)
Link for OP
Split the difference and read Heroes Die by Matthew strover!
(..... although I wouldn't actually want to live in either place the way things go)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001MYA38W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_h--PBbV00GZSR
The Way of Shadows By Brent Weeks is excellent too. I read this series when it first came out years ago (I was working at a book store) and I loved it. It's his debut series so it's a little clunky at times, but I thought it was fantastic. He has another really good series out too now The Lightbringer Series. I've read the first book in this series and was not disappointed.
Glad I could help!
What about the The Black Prism ? Pretty political centered and you couldn’t ask for better character building, although it is a bit more fantasy heavy than game of thrones. Promise of blood is super good but also has more fantasy than GOT.
The Black Prism. It's the first in an amazing series! I also really love The Night Angel Trilogy but it is really dark so I usually don't recommend it to people I don't know personally. The description:
>For Durzo Blint, assassination is an art-and he is the city's most accomplished artist.
For Azoth, survival is precarious. Something you never take for granted. As a guild rat, he's grown up in the slums, and learned to judge people quickly - and to take risks. Risks like apprenticing himself to Durzo Blint.
But to be accepted, Azoth must turn his back on his old life and embrace a new identity and name. As Kylar Stern, he must learn to navigate the assassins' world of dangerous politics and strange magics - and cultivate a flair for death.
I cannot recommend enough the Powder Mage Trilogy by Brian McClellan. Mainly follows 3 protagonists POV, but has additional support characters it examines from time to time. First book is Promise of Blood.
Well you see, you gots some French Rev style revolt, throw in some military tactics, a sprinkle of mage factions, some excellent cooking, and a PI with a perfect memory and you get this book. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0092XHPIG/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_QKHiDbNYVVYK8
Shit is on sale for $3 as a Kindle read. That's some stonks right there. Audio books are also excellent if you like reading on the hour long drive to work like I do.
Not sure what you guys are discussing in terms of an official push to get more activity but the ones of us who are here actively could get some stuff we find interesting started up.
Is this the book? [http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Blood-Powder-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B0092XHPIG/ref=tmm_kin_title_0] (http://www.amazon.com/Promise-Blood-Powder-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B0092XHPIG/ref=tmm_kin_title_0). It seems interesting. I might put it next on my list after I'm done with my "illustrated Mahabharata" borrowed from a friend.
The Goblin Emperor has some fighting in it, but it's certainly not the main thrust of the book, nor is the main character good at it.
Haxan by Kenneth Mark Hoover is a pretty good Weird Western that needs more love/reviews. Also give these a try:
The Goblin Emperor
The Library on Mount Char
Academic Exercises - ($2,99 right now!)
Uprooted
The Golem & The Jinni
The Incorruptibles
That's one reason why it's important to have more than just one character any given race--you have less issues of stereotyping if you commit to a world with multiple black characters, for example, because then any given character type doesn't fall back on the worst stereotypes. (Thankfully, in terms of the NPCs, Carey already has a very diverse cast.)
For example, if you made Magnus black instead of Merle, you fall into the trap of the "fighters are black, because black dudes are tough and not smart." So now you've just swapped one black stereotype for another.
(aside: I don't really think of Merle as being a stoner or a druggie. I'm not sure where you're getting that from? He has an affinity for plants but not really drug related plants? o.O?)
I think someone else mentioned the Taako example but yeah, if you made him Hispanic, definitely I would expect more commitment to his being hispanic than "because Tacos." Like, that's the thing about swapping someone's ethnicity--I feel like you have to actually do research and fucking care and not just be lazy about it, which is what palette swapping is. Ultimately, I feel like palette swapping functions as a kind of colorblind racism in a way--"everyone's experiences can just be leveled and applied in the same way." You're just doing it in a fictionalized space instead of being "colorblind" in the real world.
of course, if you were really worried about someone's culture reflecting a stereotype by reflecting their real world cultures in some way (and to be clear, I don't mean stereotypes, I mean actually researching real world cultures, not just slapping stereotypes on characters' personalities), you could also make fantasy races have made-up ethnic and cultural characters and assign them racial features that have nothing to do with what we consider "relevant" racial features. The Goblin Emperor is a great example of this--Goblins and Elves have racial characteristics and distinct cultures, but those racial characteristics and cultures have nothing to do with actual real life cultures and racial characteristics. (They aren't all white-skinned, though, either, and the main character has dark skin and curly hair, so it's also not whitewashing. It breaks outside of our concepts of culture and avoids making everyone white.)
Or you can "take a third option" and use real human racial characteristics but layered on completely made up fantasy cultures. So for example, maybe black people in your world have a set of made-up cultural characteristics that you've created. That's also not stereotyping, but it's committing to the idea that people of different backgrounds have different cultures.
I just think it's lazy to take a completely westernized fantasy world and just palette swap it. That isn't really cultural representation either, it's taking a very americanized/western view of racialization and what "cures" it and slapping it onto your (still completely normatively western european) fantasy world. People in your imaginary world might not even have the concept of race. Maybe that's a reason to palette swap, but it's a reason you have to grapple with in your fictional world, not just layer on your concepts of what a progressive society look like. (And there are other ways where your fantasy world might be totally backwards from others, but in a different way that you're used to thinking about--like the hyena people in Digger, for example.)
It’s on sale for Amazon Kindles right now for $1.99
The Goblin Emperor
https://www.amazon.com/Waterdeep-Dragon-Heist-HC-Adventure/dp/0786966254/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1536353784&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=waterdeep+dragon+heist
http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/dragonheist
Roll20, DnD Beyond, and FG are not the actual book. Yes those are out today.
Ravinca is 100% confirmed. It's on Amazon right now
https://www.amazon.com/Dungeons-Dragons-Guildmasters-Guide-Ravnica/dp/0786966599/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1543266949&amp;sr=8-2-spons&amp;pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&amp;keywords=guildmasters+guide+to+ravnica&amp;psc=1
Here's how the Jaime/Cersei scene should have gone:
http://www.amazon.com/Storm-Swords-Song-Fire-Book/dp/055357342X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1398364588&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=A+Storm+of+Swords
Night Watch
Day Watch
Twilight Watch
The Last Watch
hmm... thats only 4.... And I hope they serve beer in hell
Yea, you can if you want. But the thousands of other people who read his books say otherwise. http://www.amazon.com/The-Black-Prism-Brent-Weeks-ebook/dp/B003JTHY76
All of his books together average at 9/10.
I don't read enough books to know where to look for reviews, but I'll do my best. I got like 200 pages into ADWD before no longer caring, whereas with the first 3 I finished them all in days. It's like he looked at the last books and thought "hmm, people like seeing bad things happen to the characters. I'll just keep throwing bad things at them over and over again and they'll be so shocked they love it!"
AGOT - 4.5 stars. Top reviews are all of praise.
ACOK - 4.5 stars. Most of the top reviews are praise, some notice a dip in quality. I agree, though still a great book.
ASOS - 4.6 stars. Top reviews are praising it, much deserved.
AFFC - 3.8 stars. Top reviews say "it's okay, but..."
ADWD - 4.0 stars. Top reviews are even worse, despite the higher score.
Good books? Maybe, but they're not on the quality level of the Harry Potter books and the first 3 asoiaf books, which was what most people were expecting again.
That's weird book 3 is on amazon here!