I'm in.

I've just finished Memories of Ice.

It'll take me a month or so to pick up reading... it's heavy stuff and I need time to think about what I've read.

 

Sure. I've just finished Midnight Tides (probably the second best so far, behind Deadhouse Gates), and the way each book slots together is hurting my head a little. It strikes me as a series that I'll enjoy even more once I can read through the whole thing in one go.

 

I don't know if this has been in here yet, but her you go. The Samuil Petrovich Trilogy by Simon Morden.

From Amazon:
Samuil Petrovitch is a survivor.

He survived the nuclear fallout in St. Petersburg and hid in the London Metrozone - the last city in England. He's lived this long because he's a man of rules and logic.

For example, getting involved = a bad idea.

But when he stumbles into a kidnapping in progress, he acts without even thinking. Before he can stop himself, he's saved the daughter of the most dangerous man in London.

And clearly saving the girl = getting involved.

Now, the equation of Petrovitch's life is looking increasingly complex.

Russian mobsters + Yakuza + something called the New Machine Jihad = one dead Petrovitch.

But Petrovitch has a plan - he always has a plan - he's just not sure it's a good one.

This the summary for the first book, Equations of Life, of the series, which is already complete. The characters and setting are interesting, the actions is cool and the character development, especially for Petrovich, interesting to watch. Although, there were some issues with first book not really explaining how the world got to where it is in the book, since it was set up in a separate series of short stories. Though its mostly negligible in the first book, and by the second you've learned it. Ultimately, the trilogy ended with a pretty damn satisfying ending. Some of the things you can expect are corporate samurai, nuns that work as bodyguards, Russian mafia, some cool science, shit hitting the fan on a monumental scale, and Petrovich cursing and snarking the whole way. The series isn't very long so it also makes perfect reading for trips.

Also, Petrovich stabs a guy to death. With his finger.

 

I'm looking to read some good full-on alien invasion book. Does anyone have any recs?

 

The War Against the Chtorr is fairly good, though it's not an alien invasion story in the traditional sense. The invader in this case is an entire alien ecosystem that may or may not have a hive mind.

 

I started reading the Tapestry series on account of it being in this thread. I figured it would just be a little time waster, but then I got to the second book. Goddamn, I wasn't expecting it to be so dark. I don't think I've ever read a YA fiction where the good guys have so thoroughly lost. It came as a real surprise to me, I kept expecting something to happen to save them and beat back the bad guys.

I also really like the two main characters. Max and David, they both bring something to the team that the other one lacks. It's a really nice thing, their friendship is also really swell. I really enjoyed the part at the end where David tells Max that whatever comes, they will face it together. It's a nice thing to see bonds like this.

 

Well.. Thanks for using the spoiler tags mate

 

Hey guys,

Been on a fantasy binge lately and I'm pulling at my hair in frustration...

I just can't seem to find a book in which I actually admire the main characters, and that, for me, is even more important than the plot itself.

I don't want to put in any spoilers, but some of the ones I've read lately that have left me immensely dissatisfied (and they came pretty effing highly recommended...)

The Blade Itself
Prince of Thorns (first time in which I threw away the book within the hour and almost punched the person that recc'd it to me in the face)
Lies of Locke Lamora (1 and 2, but mostly 2)

I don't really want to say why these books didn't do it for me for fear of spoilers, but those who have read them should understand even from an objective standpoint.

I want a fantasy in which the protagonist(s) are at the LEAST competent while hopefully bad-ass. That doesn't mean someone going Achilles on everyone either. A character that is cleverer than everyone else and doesn't have to fight because of that is probably even more pleasing to read about than super warriors.

I want a fantasy in which the protagonist(s) are bloody likable. More often than not they're either c*nts, dense as a brick, continuously wallowing in self-pity or c*nts.

And I certainly don't want a fantasy in which the protagonist(s) are a bloody combination of incompetent AND unlikable.

I read The Way of Kings recently and I really enjoyed that (pissed off it's the only book I read recently in which it hasn't had the second published yet and, naturally, it's my favourite). Great protags with the right amount of angst to overcome and a good amount of competent and clever.

Basically, I'm looking for books with extremely enjoyable protags and I'd really appreciate a heads up with a few titles.

I see the Malazan series gets lots of thumbs up in this threat. I'm a bit leery though in that it seems to be another GoT. Definitely good, great even, but so large in scope that it gets away from itself, and when people say 'It takes a few books to get into it', to me, that's a failing on the author's part. Another reason why I'm leery.

At this point though, just having finished red seas under red skies, I really, really need a fantasy 'pick-me-up'.

I'm currently reading 'The Name of the Wind'. Another book recommended to me.

Fingers crossed.

 

The Percy Jackson series feature a badass and very likeable protagonist and hero who kicks plenty of ass, doesn't wallow much in self pity without being thoughtless and faultless and is awesome while he is at it. Five books for the first series, which is completed, and three books for the second, with two more or so to come, which is, unfortunately, not as good since it drops Percy as the sole pov character and introduces a fuckton more, most of which are not nearly as cool and likeable as Percy is. Fantasy set in this era with the premise that the Greek gods are real and still existing and have a bunch of kids, demigods, who have adventures and shit, since they are modern greek heroes.

The Bartimeaus Sequence is another, but not, at the same time. Bartimaeus, one of the two/three main characters, is wicked awesome and extremely entertaining but Nathaniel is pretty much everything you don't like rolled into one but he does get better (marginally) and Bartimaeus does balance him out and the third character is again awesome. Three books and a stand alone. Set in an alternative reality where magicians summon and bind djinn and other such spirits to them to do their bidding and one such djinn and the wizard who summons him, Nathaniel, are the main characters.

(Finished the series by the way and the Ring of Solomon and it didn't end the way I thought it would Spoiler, by the way :

Spoiler

Was it me or was the "djinn are slaves thing" dropped entirely at the conclusion. At least Kitty should have brought it up, seeing she came to realize it even in book 2. If she had become entirely catatonic, it would have been at least believable why she doesn't stick up for it (and tragic) but like this, it was very out of character and inconsistent.

Ring of Solomon was awesome, though)

Dresden Files is another one that is just as enjoyable, if not more so, with a competent and likeable main character who uses brains and brawns to deal with his problems. Also set in this time but every myth, monster and religion is real and kicking and the main char is an awesome wizard. Great magic system and implementation of lore. 14 or so books? There will be 25, so, we are half-way through.

Think the Discworld books are a must read for any fan of books, fantasy especially but they aren't fantasy the way you would expect. More satire but still, very fantasy-ish. Dunno how many, 20-30?

The Mistborn series, also by Brandon Sanderson (same as way of the king), although, I have only read the first one. Different fantasy setting with interesting magic and worldbuilding. Main characters are rather likeable and are competent. Going to read the second one next. Trilogy and a standalone, I think.

Lastly "The Once And Future King" by T. H. White. Rather interesting take on the King Arthur mythology, Camelot and his knights. This and Mallory's interpretation are the two versions which are mostly used by many fantasy authors when they draw stuff from the Arthurian legends. One long book that is itself split into four volumes. (The Sword in the Stone, The Queen of Air and Darkness, The Ill-Made Knight and The Candle in the Wind) All included in " The Once And Future King" book, though,.

 

Malazan is awesome, but the protagonists do vary wildly in terms of likeablity, although I'd say it's better at keeping you interested despite that than, say, GoT.

Another series I'd recommend is the Belgariad, by David Eddings. I've just finished, and it's really good fun. It's not as in-depth as a lot of fantasy, especially the works of Brandon Sanderson, but it's got a lot of cool characters, it doesn't wallow in misery for 90% of its length, and...yeah, it's basically just great fun. Don't expect too much in the way of originality or rigourous magical rules, and you'll probably enjoy it.

Speaking of Brandon Sanderson, you might try The Alloy of Law; strictly speaking, it's a continuation of his Mistborn series, but it's about five hundred years later, so you don't really need to know anything about the earlier books. It's a steam-punk fantasy western, and it's awesome. His first book, Elantris, is less polished but still pretty good, and certainly fits the bill of likeable characters, many of whom are pretty awesome in addition.

 

Thanks for replies!

I've been meaning to give Dresden a go for a while now, especially since I obviously frequent this site. I think the only thing stopping me was UBAR POWERFUL vampires and fae. I suppose if Dresden is clever and outwits them despite that I certainly will enjoy it. I've read my fair share of FF in this category, may as well cement my knowledge...

I might also give PJ series one a go to. I remember reading somewhere that he's ten in the book though? That's a real stickler for me to back from my Pokemon worshiping days (lol, as if past tense). I know ten year olds, they're barely competent enough to clean their rooms let alone save world sand do battle. It makes getting into it hard for me.

The Bartimeaus Sequence is another one of those I see mentioned here a lot. The Djinn does sound badass, but I'll probably leave it a little later if only to get over my rage at Locke Lamora and Captain Luthar from my previous two reads. It'll make the little toerag more bearable.

I think I'll stick with Sanderson for now and move on to Dresden Files and some of the other books you guys recc'd. Thanks!

 

Well, Percy is 11 or 12 in the first book but he gets older each book. Think he is 16 in the last one of the first series. Dunno if that changes things for you.

Have fun, anyway.

 

For fantasy, I'll rec the series: A Man of his Word by Dave Duncan. It is kinda the old style of fantasy though, much like Memory, Sorrow and Thorn.

A pretty good read.

Also, pretty sure TwoK's second installment is out sometime in November this year.

 

Hugplx, hope you're still around! I have basically the same tastes when it comes to protagonists, so here are some reviews of series I enjoyed that point out how they might appeal to you. Any info I mention is usually discovered within the first chapter or two or is otherwise unimportant, so don't worry about spoilers.

Everyone else, I recommend a couple of new series at the bottom of this post, so skip to that if you don't want my opinions on some of the stuff already mentioned.

Belgariad
​

I read this series (5 books) in high school about ten years ago and enjoyed it, but looking back, it has an incredibly formulaic plot and very cookie cutter characters (thief, old and wise wizard, giant bruiser who's a nice guy, farmboy protagonist with hidden potential, etc.). But as shinysavage said, if you go into it recognizing that it's not going to be groundbreaking writing it's a fun read. No angst, it's a typical quest story.

There's a sequel series with the same characters called The Mallorean, which is also 5 books long. Two side books centering on earlier adventures of two magic users from the Belgariad and the Mallorean are also available, titled Belgarath the Sorceror and Polgara the Sorceress. Never read those, so I can't give a good review of them, but if you do like the Belgariad you'll have a lot of material to read.
The wiki page so you know what order the books are in.

Dresden
​

I like this series a great deal. It's urban fantasy, so Dresden's case-of-the-book usually involves him enough that there isn't any extended emotional drudgery. He's a funny protagonist who describes wizards as being able to combat nearly any threat if they have the time to prepare for it. As to his competence, he's generally described as being powerful but too young (thirty-ish) compared to other magical beings to be in their league, so he usually has several prepared items on hand to help him level the playing field. He often uses his brain rather than brawn.

14 novels so far - Note on extra material: There are a bunch of short stories and novellas that you can read in pretty much any order, and they aren't really relevant to the main story. The two exceptions to this are the novellas Aftermath & Backup and the short story "It's My Birthday, Too". Aftermath takes place after the novel Changes and should be read after that, as it has a rather huge spoiler concerning the main plot. Backup and "It's My Birthday, Too" can be read anytime after Blood Rites, though they aren't really important to the overall series plot in the way Aftermath is.

Libriomancer
​

It's recommended in this post, so you can read a proper review there, but I'll add that the main character's particular brand of magic requires some forethought and planning on his part, and he's smarter than the average bear in that regard.

Alex Verus
​

Verus' ability to divine the future is incredibly useful and dangerous if applied correctly, but in the series' universe having that ability means a wizard is unable to apply magic in any practical and physical way. Virtually every other magic user can do things like offensive magic or teleportation that Verus can't because his talents are focused on divining the future. Verus spends his adventures trying to avoid physical confrontations and outwit his opponents. I found both Verus and several of the secondary characters (especially Arachne) to be very enjoyable.
Three books so far.

Iron Druid
​

The main character is similar to Verus in that he's magically talented, but the nature of his magic (druidry) means he can't throw down with everything he comes across. You quickly find out that he is rather more competent and knowledgeable than the average magic user, though, and he in fact actively works to compensate for any weaknesses he recognizes in himself. Despite cracking jokes now and again he's a rather mature character. I ended up reading the first four books in two days.

5 books so far - Extra short stories are generally read when you like with the exception of "Two Ravens and One Crow", which takes place after book 4 and ties up a few minor loose threads from that book.


tl;dr - Besides the Belgariad, which is high fantasy, each of the above series is an urban fantasy centering on a fairly emotionally stable protagonist who knows that despite his formidable skills he isn't the biggest fish in the pond and acts accordingly.



It's rather late and this is longer than I thought so I'll edit in the new series recs tomorrow.

 

Thanks for the tips, I'll give them a quick look over once I'm done with Name of the wind

 

Fair's fair, this was entirely deliberate on Eddings' part, from what I understand; he wanted to write a series that had all the usual fantasy tropes, but still managed to be entertaining - and he succeeds, I'd say. Still arguably a negative point to bear in mind though.

On another recommendation, or at least partly, there's always the Codex Alera, by the same writer as Dresden. I personally wouldn't say the plot or the writing is anything special, or even as good as Dresden, but what cannot be denied is that the main character is a very smart badass, so they might be worth checking out.

 

Thanks for the Percy Jackson rec, Nemrut. I'd been meaning to read it but your post pushed me to actually see what the fuss was about and I was not disappointed. Feels like it's been a long time since I read an "kid goes on adventures" type story.

 

I loved Codex Alera, but it kind of went off the deep end towards the end. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but those who've read it should know what I'm talking about. The high point of the books by far was that one where they had the battle on the bridge (vague memories here), it went super downhill from there.

Tavi was way cooler without furies

 

The battle on the bridge was in Cursor's Fury, my favourite as well. I think because it was focused on the military and the Canim, the two coolest parts of Codex Alera in a single book.

 

Tavi in Cursor's fury before and during the battle of the bridge is one of the coolest characters I've read. He still has plenty of kickass moments in the books after that.
A couple I remember:

Spoiler

- Breaking Varg(sp?) out of jail
- Going to Canim was cool
- The ice boats were towards the end of the series
- Not Tavi, but Araris Valerian(sp?) going full metal jacket at the end was fairly badass

I wouldn't say the series went downhill. Certain character developments forced him into roles that he previously didn't have, and the books changed focus because of that. They weren't bad, just different. But I agree, the books should have ended before SPOILER.

Spoiler

he got his furies back.