Book recommendation game

[AonEne he/him]

On 6/26/2020 at 10:26 AM, Frustration said:

Ene this is beautiful, just finished Spirit Thief, man that was good.

YES, A CONVERT! Would you be interested in telling me your thoughts over here? I promise I won't spoil the rest of the series for you.

 

[Friendshipspren he/him]

On 6/6/2020 at 10:20 AM, Lunamor said:

I would like a hard sci fi book that also has an emphasis on characters.

Not a novel. But the short stories by Greg Egan , Michael Swanswick and ted Chiang. Swanswick and Chiang tend to move to fantasy sometimes so be warned. 

Also the " we are legion " trilogy by Dennis Taylor. 

On 6/6/2020 at 3:54 PM, AonEne said:

Someone give me a good romance with lots of fluff, no angst. I need something pure and wholesome. 

Have you read Flipped ? It's got a bit of angst in the later half but the first half is pure fluff . Lovely lovely fluff ❤️. It's really wholesome all in all

On 6/6/2020 at 8:09 PM, Truthless of Shinovar said:

 

Ok, I need a book that’s novel (pun intended) and really just drops my jaw in terms of the the world, plot, characters, magic (if applicable). Adventure is a must have as well.

I think you might love " the library at Mount char " and perhaps the anthologies titled "rogues " and " dangerous women " .

On 6/15/2020 at 9:09 AM, Hentient said:

I'm looking for a good Dystopian, but something a little more complex and undiscovered then, for example, the giver. Any suggestions? 

Cell by Stephen king maybe (it's more a sudden sudden apocalypse thing I guess ) and the "MaddAdam" trilogy by Margaret Atwood. 

On 6/15/2020 at 6:23 AM, hoiditthroughthegrapevine said:

I would like a good mystery series, like Sherlock Holmes, Raymond Chandler, and Nero Wolfe, good action, good mysteries and possibly solvable while you're reading them.

The Millenium trilogy by Steig Larsson. 

 

Okk. So does anyone have any Utopian novels or shorts ?

Something Futuristic and optimistic. It can overlap with other genres , mystery, horror , romance , ya , what have you, but it shouldn't be a dystopia. Just an overall amazing , optimistic , better world than ours today. Even though small packets of it might be nightmarish or horrible. But these packets must be autonomous , and have little influence on the ,overall awesomeness of the world 

Edited July 15, 2020 by PrinceGenocide
A little polishing

[Frustration]

8 minutes ago, PrinceGenocide said:

Okk. So does anyone have any Utopian novels or shorts ?

Something Futuristic and optimistic. It can overlap with other genres , mystery, horror , romance , ya , what have you, but it shouldn't be a dystopia. Just an overall amazing , optimistic , better world than ours today. Even though small packers of it might be as bad as today or yesterday. 

Ooh that's a hard one, I can name several that end that way but the whole way through..... not so much, I might have to read whatever ends up getting recommended to you that is something I want to read now.

[Friendshipspren he/him]

22 minutes ago, Frustration said:

Ooh that's a hard one, I can name several that end that way but the whole way through..... not so much, I might have to read whatever ends up getting recommended to you that is something I want to read now.

Hmmm kek. That's good , we could discuss it perhaps. Also could u list those too pls. . The ones that almost meet the specifications 

[Frustration]

7 minutes ago, PrinceGenocide said:

Hmmm kek. That's good , we could discuss it perhaps. Also could u list those too pls. . The ones that almost meet the specifications 

Well there are a only a couple that actually stay that way, because sequels, but I mean they are at the very end like 'oh, things are better now because they couldn't get worse'

1. Beyonders by Brandon Mull, it ends with a good yay, everything is better epilogue.
2. Adventurers wanted, it's unfortunately not what the series was intended to be because the Author had a stroke before he finished and had to wrap up the next three books worth of plot lines in one book but it still gets the checks
3. Harry Potter, for as much as I bash this series it does have a decent ending
4. Lord of the Rings the ending hurts but it does give a things are better than they were before, but the world will never fully recover sort of feel that makes it bittersweet.

It does make me wonder is there a book that starts after a big world saving event and goes to show the full aftermath? I really want that now.

Edited July 15, 2020 by Frustration

[dannnex male]

Ummm the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov is kinda like that. It shows a utopia at the beginning and it falls into chaos. I haven’t finished it yet (honestly I got kinda bored, the language and politicking is heavy at points) but I assume it gets somewhat utopian again at the end? So utopia-anarchy-utopia kinda. Not really what you’re looking for but it’s the best I can think of. 

Edit:

ohohoh, Star Trek. Star Trek is very happy and optimistic and utopian. All about exploration and the seeking of knowledge and stuff. Post-Materialistic society and all that. I know the shows are good (at least, TNG is) but I have little exposure to the books so I can’t vouch for their quality.  

Edited July 15, 2020 by Danex

[Friendshipspren he/him]

1 hour ago, Frustration said:

Well there are a only a couple that actually stay that way, because sequels, but I mean they are at the very end like 'oh, things are better now because they couldn't get worse'

1. Beyonders by Brandon Mull, it ends with a good yay, everything is better epilogue.
2. Adventurers wanted, it's unfortunately not what the series was intended to be because the Author had a stroke before he finished and had to wrap up the next three books worth of plot lines in one book but it still gets the checks
3. Harry Potter, for as much as I bash this series it does have a decent ending
4. Lord of the Rings the ending hurts but it does give a things are better than they were before, but the world will never fully recover sort of feel that makes it bittersweet.

It does make me wonder is there a book that starts after a big world saving event and goes to show the full aftermath? I really want that now.

Harry Potter and lotr are utopias . Hmmm okkk , i see but I guess it's my fault 

 

I meant more like real world sci fi utopias. Like utopian earth in the 22nd century. Or a Earthian colony planet or O'Neil cylinder or Dyson sphere

Sorry I thought utopia was synonymous with tech growth and the future of earth. 

 

Hmm are the other two u recced like that ?

Also for the full aftermath after world saving event , I recommend the Mistborn Hexalogy 

Kk. Sorry. But hmmm ' the library at Mount char' does have some elements of it 

48 minutes ago, Danex said:

Ummm the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov is kinda like that. It shows a utopia at the beginning and it falls into chaos. I haven’t finished it yet (honestly I got kinda bored, the language and politicking is heavy at points) but I assume it gets somewhat utopian again at the end? So utopia-anarchy-utopia kinda. Not really what you’re looking for but it’s the best I can think of. 

Edit:

ohohoh, Star Trek. Star Trek 

Oh yeah . The  Foundation series foots the specs mostly I guess. Asimov's shorts definitely do. 

Hmmm there are star trek books. Kek will check out. 

 

I never did like the non interventionist prime directive tho. They should be out there uplifting every sapient species if u ask me. Why cause so much needless suffering ?

Edited July 15, 2020 by PrinceGenocide
A little polishing

[dannnex male]

I mean, the only time they ever mention the Prime Directive is when they’re about to break it in order to prevent needless suffering

 

I just realized the word “needless” is just the word “needles” with another “s” and I’m mildly freaking out

Edited July 15, 2020 by Danex

[+Hoiditthroughthegrapevine he/him]

13 hours ago, PrinceGenocide said:

Something Futuristic and optimistic. It can overlap with other genres , mystery, horror , romance , ya , what have you, but it shouldn't be a dystopia. Just an overall amazing , optimistic , better world than ours today. Even though small packets of it might be nightmarish or horrible. But these packets must be autonomous , and have little influence on the ,overall awesomeness of the world 

The problem with Utopian novels, and the reason they are so rare, is that it's much harder to agree on what is perfect than to point out what's wrong. One person's Utopia is another person's dystopia. But, if you want to read a book that is incredibly positive and can help you see the wonder in the world that is all around you, I would suggest Konrad Lorenz's book, King Solomon's Ring. 

Lorenz was a scientist that studied the behavior of animals, but more than that he observed the animal world with a desire to understand things on their level. He lived with a lot of the animals that he studied, and approached his subjects with empathy and a true desire to understand them. 

One of the best things I've ever done was follow his advice to scoop up samples of pond water, and with a hand lens look at the incredible variety and multiplicity of life that exists in just a small jar of water. The world looks different when you take the time to observe the other beings you share it with, and this is totally an activity that you can do in the times of the Covid.

[Ishar]

On 6/6/2020 at 7:39 AM, Truthless of Shinovar said:

Ok, I need a book that’s novel (pun intended) and really just drops my jaw in terms of the the world, plot, characters, magic (if applicable). Adventure is a must have as well.

Setting the bar a bit high. The best book I can think of to fit this (outside of Sanderson) is probably the Kingkiller Chronicles, but knowing a lot of people on the shard have already read that, here's a few other good books:

Legend by Marie Lu

Scythe by Neal Shusterman

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima

On 6/6/2020 at 8:55 AM, SirWolfe said:

I want a fantasy book/series that covers a particularly slow burn romance that develops gradually and consistently, even after the two get together, rather than a "I just confessed that love you and we shall begin planning our marriage" situation. If possible, the fantasy system shouldn't rely on introducing new powers whenever the plot demands in order to solve problems. 

Edit:If it's not possible to have both details, then a book with just one would be fine.  

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima has a great romance (although it is pretty obvious who is going to fall in love with who) that develops really well over the course of all four books. In regard to introducing new powers, as long as you don't read the sequel series (which is good, just not as good as the originals) random new powers is not an issue. 

On 6/9/2020 at 9:51 AM, xinoehp512 said:

I'm looking for an adult fantasy without egregious 'adult' content (i.e. nothing worse than Brandon). Wheel of Time would fit, but I've read that already.  

All 3 of the books I listed for Truthless of Shinovar are very good fantasy, which although I think they are all categorized as teen fantasy, seemed fine for adults to me (although I am a teenager).

On 6/14/2020 at 9:28 PM, Spren of Kindness said:

I'd like a good sci-fi, good characters and world building, no language/explicit content worse then a Sanderson.  Preferably no love triangle.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman is really good Utopia/Dystopia sci-fi book. It is pretty violent at times (although not graphic), probably on par with the most violent part of Oathbringer (If you read Oathbringer, you know what I am referring to). 

Legend is also very good, especially the characters, although world building is limited by the fact that it takes place on Earth roughly 50 to 100 years or so in the future

 

20 hours ago, PrinceGenocide said:

Okk. So does anyone have any Utopian novels or shorts ?

Something Futuristic and optimistic. It can overlap with other genres , mystery, horror , romance , ya , what have you, but it shouldn't be a dystopia. Just an overall amazing , optimistic , better world than ours today. Even though small packets of it might be nightmarish or horrible. But these packets must be autonomous , and have little influence on the ,overall awesomeness of the world 

18 hours ago, PrinceGenocide said:

I meant more like real world sci fi utopias. Like utopian earth in the 22nd century. Or a Earthian colony planet or O'Neil cylinder or Dyson sphere

Sorry I thought utopia was synonymous with tech growth and the future of earth. 

The closest I can think of to this is Scythe by Neal Shusterman, again, it can be pretty violent, but most of the world is pretty good. Of course, there are some "nightmarish or horrible" packets that drive the plot, but it does have a pretty good ending (Of all the books I have read, I consider this to have the second most complete/best ending of any book series, with the first Mistborn Trilogy being the first).

Legend is a good dystopia in terms of high tech futuristic, but is also really depressing (definitely a dystopia), so probably not what you are looking for. 

 

 

I am looking for a good sci-fi/fantasy series that isn't overly complicated or long (I.E. Skyward size, not Stormlight size). Preferably something that is somewhat fast paced as well.

 

Note: Sorry for the double post, it wouldn't let me add quotes to the edit... If a mod or something wants to delete it, please do.

 

[Friendshipspren he/him]

11 hours ago, Danex said:

I mean, the only time they ever mention the Prime Directive is when they’re about to break it in order to prevent needless suffering

 

I just realized the word “needless” is just the word “needles” with another “s” and I’m mildly freaking out

True. But the fact that they have a directive anyway means other ships follow it. Also they only break it if there's an apocalyptic , extinction level event occuring. 

I think they should be straight out communicating , trading and exchanging knowledge. 

Having to grow urself is such chulldung. I mean look at us , we didn't invent math or language from the ground up but we are good with it . I mean that's how science works. Newton invented calculus cause he didn't have invent arithmetic from scratch , he just learned what others before him had discovered .

Very few people understand how stuff like refrigeration or vaccines or anything else we ubiquitously use Actually work , most scientists don't know how car engines work ( not in detail atleast ) and most car engineers don't understand general relativity but  but we still make overall progress. 

It's ridiculous to be smug and say wait that species is made of savages.  Yeah let's let go through another few thousand yrs of war , famine , superstition , crime, etc before helping them. 

 

And damnation that needles is crazy. Also I was reading the word manslaughter a few days ago and realized it could be read as man's laughter. Lol. 

Imagine this :

Judge :  I sentence this man 10 yrs in prison for manslaughter.

Me : Now come on mam , my laughter is annoying yes but it doesn't warrant such serious measures .  

1 hour ago, Ishar said:

 

Scythe by Neal Shusterman is really good Utopia/Dystopia sci-fi book. It is pretty violent at times (although not graphic), probably on par with the most violent part of Oathbringer (If you read Oathbringer, you know what I am referring to). 

Legend is also very good, especially the characters, although world building is limited by the fact that it takes place on Earth roughly 50 to 100 years or so in the future

 

The closest I can think of to this is Scythe by Neal Shusterman, again, it can be pretty violent, but most of the world is pretty good. Of course, there are some "nightmarish or horrible" packets that drive the plot, but it does have a pretty good ending (Of all the books I have read, I consider this to have the second most complete/best ending of any book series, with the first Mistborn Trilogy being the first).

Legend is a good dystopia in terms of high tech futuristic, but is also really depressing (definitely a dystopia), so probably not what you are looking for. 

I am looking for a good sci-fi/fantasy series that isn't overly complicated or long (I.E. Skyward size, not Stormlight size). Preferably something that is somewhat fast paced as well.

 

Ok will check those out. 

I would like to recommend  " the library at Mount char " ( fantasy ) 

John dies at the end (sci fi/slight horror/comedy /kinda NSFW / a bit wierd )

The portal in the forest (cosmic horror/sci-fi) The author has an entire collection of interconnected creepypastas at wolf.nexus.net actually..

8 hours ago, hoiditthroughthegrapevine said:

The problem with Utopian novels, and the reason they are so rare, is that it's much harder to agree on what is perfect than to point out what's wrong. One person's Utopia is another person's dystopia. But, if you want to read a book that is incredibly positive and can help you see the wonder in the world that is all around you, I would suggest Konrad Lorenz's book, King Solomon's Ring. 

 

One of the best things I've ever done was follow his advice to scoop up samples of pond water, and with a hand lens look at the incredible variety and multiplicity of life that exists in just a small jar of water. The world looks different when you take the time to observe the other beings you share it with, and this is totally an activity that you can do in the times of the Covid.

Kek. Will try. Don't know if I have a lens with enough magnification but let's see 

Edited July 16, 2020 by PrinceGenocide
A little polishing

[AonEne he/him]

On 7/14/2020 at 8:53 PM, PrinceGenocide said:

Have you read Flipped ?

Yeah, I have, it was pretty good. 

On 7/15/2020 at 6:05 PM, Ishar said:

I am looking for a good sci-fi/fantasy series that isn't overly complicated or long (I.E. Skyward size, not Stormlight size). Preferably something that is somewhat fast paced as well. 

Wings of Fire, great fantasy with short books and a quick pace. 

Dog books in the same vein as A Dog’s Purpose, anyone? 

[Frustration]

4 hours ago, AonEne said:

Dog books in the same vein as A Dog’s Purpose, anyone? 

Whatever anyone else tells you never read a Dog's tale by Mark Twain if you want to have happiness, or hope in humanity again.

Also I checked out the full book for Eli Monpress and am getting into book two.

[Ishar]

4 hours ago, AonEne said:

Wings of Fire, great fantasy with short books and a quick pace. 

I've seen this one around before, and I know it is categorized as a children's book, and I have reached a point where I find that the style/level of writing in most children's book is just not at a high enough level for me to get through them (I am absolutely not trying to insult or put down the book in any way). For example, when I first read the Unwanteds by Lisa McMann in third grade, I loved them, but if I tried reading them now I would never get through them. I have the same issue with Brandon Mull's Dragonwatch, I read and loved Fablehaven, but 5 years later I was unable to get into Dragonwatch. My impression of WoF is that I will have a similar issue. Do you think that I might be right, or is my impression completely off?

[Frustration]

9 hours ago, Ishar said:

I've seen this one around before, and I know it is categorized as a children's book, and I have reached a point where I find that the style/level of writing in most children's book is just not at a high enough level for me to get through them (I am absolutely not trying to insult or put down the book in any way). For example, when I first read the Unwanteds by Lisa McMann in third grade, I loved them, but if I tried reading them now I would never get through them. I have the same issue with Brandon Mull's Dragonwatch, I read and loved Fablehaven, but 5 years later I was unable to get into Dragonwatch. My impression of WoF is that I will have a similar issue. Do you think that I might be right, or is my impression completely off?

It might be, depends on what exactly your problem with that style of writing is. If you need something else, you did say you've already read some Brandon Mull, his Five kingdoms series was in my opinion way more interesting and it's magic more fully explored. His Beyonders series though was in my opinion the most complex thing he's done, and the foreshadowing is in point.

[AonEne he/him]

21 hours ago, Frustration said:

Whatever anyone else tells you never read a Dog's tale by Mark Twain if you want to have happiness, or hope in humanity again.

Also I checked out the full book for Eli Monpress and am getting into book two.

Noted, and yay! Who’s your favorite character so far? 

21 hours ago, Ishar said:

My impression of WoF is that I will have a similar issue. Do you think that I might be right, or is my impression completely off? 

That’s understandable, I’ve started having that problem with some books too. To me the series is still highly enjoyable; the writing style is pretty distinct throughout. I’d say give it a try - “it gets better” is common but not helpful for people just starting, I know. If you do have complaints, my hope is that the characters and plot are enough to carry it through. Personally, I don’t have trouble getting through WOF. 

[Frustration]

1 hour ago, AonEne said:

Noted, and yay! Who’s your favorite character so far? 

Uh, Eli, why would it be any different. Joshef is fine as well, also I'm about 2/3 done with book three!

[Ishar]

12 hours ago, Frustration said:

It might be, depends on what exactly your problem with that style of writing is. If you need something else, you did say you've already read some Brandon Mull, his Five kingdoms series was in my opinion way more interesting and it's magic more fully explored. His Beyonders series though was in my opinion the most complex thing he's done, and the foreshadowing is in point.

Both Five Kingdoms and Beyonders are some of my favorite all-time books (I have contemplated re-reading Beyonders a couple of times, but I usually don't have the patience for rereads), so while they are great books, unfortunately I have already read them. 

 

1 hour ago, AonEne said:

That’s understandable, I’ve started having that problem with some books too. To me the series is still highly enjoyable; the writing style is pretty distinct throughout. I’d say give it a try - “it gets better” is common but not helpful for people just starting, I know. If you do have complaints, my hope is that the characters and plot are enough to carry it through. Personally, I don’t have trouble getting through WOF. 

I likely will have complaints (I almost always have complaints), just the hope is that I actual read the entire book. I will definitely look into getting a copy of WOF. Recently I did order a couple of books (Otaku and The Ruin of Kings, anybody heard of/read them?), and am waiting for them to arrive. 

[AonEne he/him]

21 hours ago, Frustration said:

Uh, Eli, why would it be any different. Joshef is fine as well, also I'm about 2/3 done with book three!

If you have any other thoughts, would you want to talk about them here? I’m so starved for talking about this series  

On 7/4/2020 at 8:00 PM, AonEne said:

YES, A CONVERT! Would you be interested in telling me your thoughts over here? I promise I won't spoil the rest of the series for you.

 

 

Edited July 19, 2020 by AonEne

[dannnex male]

On 7/16/2020 at 10:13 PM, Ishar said:

I have the same issue with Brandon Mull's Dragonwatch, I read and loved Fablehaven, but 5 years later I was unable to get into Dragonwatch.

20 hours ago, Ishar said:

Both Five Kingdoms and Beyonders are some of my favorite all-time books

That happened to me in the middle of Five Kingdoms. I read each book as it came out but around halfway through book 3 or maybe 4 I just couldn’t finish it, even though I had devoured books 1 and 2 just a year or so earlier. Never ended up finishing the series. I never even tried Dragonwatch. I loved Beyonders and I think that it’s the only one of Mull’s series that I’d consider rereading even still. 

[DramaQueen she/he/neopronouns]

Ok, so I need a fantasy novel with a good amount of fluffy warm romance. Not so much that the plot is focused around the romance but enough to keep my inner romanticist happy.

[dannnex male]

2 minutes ago, DramaQueen said:

Ok, so I need a fantasy novel with a good amount of fluffy warm romance. Not so much that the plot is focused around the romance but enough to keep my inner romanticist happy.

Well, there’s this really great series called the Stormlight Archive and....... I’m just joking. 
 

The Kingkiller Chronicles has some fluffy romance, but I think it’s rather awkwardly written and it’s pretty angsty at times. It’s actually my favorite series of all time, but I consider the romance to be the worst part. It’s not horrible, just kinda....awkward imo. 

[DramaQueen she/he/neopronouns]

5 minutes ago, Danex said:

Well, there’s this really great series called the Stormlight Archive and....... I’m just joking. 
 

The Kingkiller Chronicles has some fluffy romance, but I think it’s rather awkwardly written and it’s pretty angsty at times. It’s actually my favorite series of all time, but I consider the romance to be the worst part. It’s not horrible, just kinda....awkward imo. 

Nnnnnnot really looking for awkward fluff. Just cute fluff.

[dannnex male]

1 minute ago, DramaQueen said:

Nnnnnnot really looking for awkward fluff. Just cute fluff.

I think the romance just by itself would be considered cute, but in context with the rest of the story it’s mildly awkward. Like when the main character is trying to flirt and stuff it kinda seems like he’s just a different character. I’m sure someone else who’s read the books could give you a better analysis of the romance. 

[Frustration]

1 hour ago, AonEne said:

If you have any other thoughts, would you want to talk about them here? I’m so starved for talking about this series  

 

I'll try soon, I finished book 3, when I have everything I'll but my voice in.