Shitty shitty life ours in 3 world countries. But that series really piqued my interest. Gonna see if I can find it. Now that I'm living in the second largest city of the country, it's easier to find books. I hope. I'm now reading Iron Druid. After a slow start I'm really growing attached to Atticus. But for the life of only him and the widow. Both Oberon and Granuille can't make me feel anything, specially Oberon, he is almost annoying sometimes, even crossing the line.

 

Iron Druid seems like the stupid bits of Dresden maxed out. It has the whole absolutely every female is incredibly beautiful and wants to have sex with the author- wait, no, I mean Atticus. Except that in Iron Druid they actually do have sex.

So far it has the 'everything that matters is suddenly happening within 10 miles of the main character'. Why are so many characters turning up where he lives?

And he seems both so incredibly badass and all-knowing, but at the same time incredibly stupid about what is going on.

I'm still going to read the rest of them, but kicking myself all the time.

 

I read the first Skulduggery Pleasant book a few years ago, and it was fun but fairly forgettable; from what I've heard it's picked up quite a bit with the subsequent books in the series though, so it might be worth a read.

Perdido Street Station is without question outstanding, and I'd say it's more than borderline urban fantasy. True, it's not like any real world city, and it's perhaps bigger in scope than most urban fantasy, but in some ways, it's more about the city of New Crobozun than the actual characters.

Less questionable is Mievelle's The City and the City; it's set in a fictional Eastern European city, which is sat on top of a parallel dimension version of the same city, and revolves around a murder which may have breached dimensions. It's well worth a read.

With Gaiman, Neverwhere is absolutely urban fantasy, and a great little book. I'd also say (possibly) The Graveyard Book.

 

Two series spring to mind, both from the YA area of fiction (though as HP has shown us, this matters little): Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan, and a book I once read titled 'Hold Me Closer, Necromancer' by Lish McBride.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Book 1, The Lightning Thief

A series I highly recommend. There is a vague Dresden-esque sense to some of the humor, in the sense of an incongruous detail ruining the drama of a moment or in how the main character will mouth off to someone vastly more powerful than him despite their strength over his. There are five books to the main series which is completed, and three books to the sequel series which involves the Roman aspects of the gods. The author also has another series which involves the Egyptian gods, with new protagonists and exists within the same universe.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer

This is a bit more YMMV. I read this once a while back when it was on display in my local library, and am only now coming back to re-read once I can find it again.

From what I can remember, it does involve necromancy and it is a bit more...older teen than Harry Potter or Percy Jackson (the author does not ignore what two hormonal teenagers stuck in a cage who believe they are about to die would choose to do, although it is not explicit). That being said, the necromancy is not standard Dungeons and Dragons/Army of Darkness skeletons and rotting corpses and mold and what-have-you, but more of souls and warding off death and returning the dead to how they were in life (wonder how Keith Richards is still alive?). It is an interesting light read if you have the time and inclination, but as far as I can remember from two to three years ago it is nothing heavy or long and it has only two books out as far as I am aware.

 

I'll second the Matthew Swift series, by Kate Griffin.

China Mielville's Perdido Street Station bored the heck out of me. I read the first hundred or so pages and couldn't stop yawning and then stopped reading.

I'm looking for books that are urban science fantasy. I'm not sure if the genre exists but they're worlds in which technology (esp. future tech) and magic interact in urban settings and one does not necessitate the other not working right. Anyone read or seen something like that?

 

Yes, Magitek is what I was looking and it's "gritty realism" cousin Dungeon Punk seems kind of interesting.

 

I've read two amateur storys that I liked a lot, Path of The Necromancer and Art Deco, and even more suprising, one of them was in a ero lit site. I didn't felt like reading after that expecting something akin to HP fics, but it was nice, buut the other story by the same was author was so bad I wanted to shoot myself.

Now, having read most of the Iron Druid series, i can say it comes of as a weaker, less intelligent and fun cousin of Dresden Files, it seem like the author wants to build Atticus to be equal or more badass then Harry, but he just can't. But I like Atticus, not even close how much I like both Harry's, but he grew on me. But I strongly dislike Oberon, insanely and cheaply apellative, annoying and dumb are what comes to mind. And then, there's Granuaile, shallow and Mary Sue are the defining words here.

I've already read PJ when I was younger, a little infantile, but I ended up liking all of the main characters, and that's very important to me.

Edit: Finished reading the 5th book of Iron Druid, and I hated. Basically Granuaile is a goddesss and at least as good as the 2000 years old Atticus, and she still is the aim of that old cliche hide my loved ones. Well fuck that, I refuse to read the 6th book. If you don't like Mary Sues, nor very heavy thrashy pop culture references (by a 2000 years old Druid and a dog) then don't read it.

 

When it comes to Iron Druid I couldn't even get pass the awful cover. I know, I know, don't judge a book yadda yadda, but seriously what is it with fantasy books and repulsive cover art anyway? Then the name of the series itself didn't appeal to me. Last of all, guys around here didn't seem to like it much either so I didn't even try to get into it.

I, also, forgot to second Matthew Swift series. Read the first book few months ago and I liked it. Characters and their interaction are nothing to write home about but the plot is solid and the whole magic system is one of the most original I stumbled upon.

 

I prefer the Artemis Fowl series over Percy Jackson. I'm not sure why but I never felt compelled to keep going with the PJ series.

With Artemis Fowl, I like all the characters and also the way magic\tech work together.