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  • I like books with unreliable narrators.
    Unfortunately, I can't speak for either of the books you mentioned. But given this, you should check out anything by Gene Wolfe.
  • American Psycho was pretty good if you don't mind the violence.
  • edited March 2008
    Unfortunately, I can't speak for either of the books you mentioned. But given this, you should check out anything by Gene Wolfe.
    What's his best novel?
    American Psychowas pretty good if you don't mind the violence.
    I'm cool with the violence. My main problem is if it has too much graphic sex. House of Leaves was right on the edge with the amount of sex it had, but when it got to like the fifth sex scene, I was getting pretty sick and tired of it.
    Post edited by whatever on
  • I'm cool with the violence. My main problem is if it has too much graphic sex. House of Leaves was right on the edge with the amount of sex it had, but when it got to like the fifth sex scene, I was getting pretty sick and tired of it.
    There's lots and lots of sex in American Psycho.
  • edited March 2008
    There's lots and lots of sex inAmerican Psycho.
    Is it written to be erotic (as was the case in House of Leaves), or is it clinical and dark?
    Post edited by whatever on
  • It's mostly part of the violence.
  • What's his best novel?
    Look for Shadow and Claw, or failing that Latro in the Mist. Both are actually collections of the first two books in series, but the actual first books (Shadow of the Torturer and Soldier in the Mist respectively) appear to be out of print.

    You asked which is his "best", but for me it's too closely tied between those two. Shadow might be the better written, but it's extremely dense, and Soldier happens to mine Greek mythology in a way that particularly tickles my fancy.
  • I took a chance one day and picked up a book randomly.
    Rolled and got a natural 20.

    Henry Tumour - Anthony McGowan

    And then there's the Artemis Fowl Series by Eoin Colfer.
  • edited March 2008
    Look forShadow and Claw, or failing thatLatro in the Mist. Both are actually collections of the first two books in series, but the actual first books (Shadow of the TorturerandSoldier in the Mistrespectively) appear to be out of print.

    You asked which is his "best", but for me it's too closely tied between those two.Shadowmight be the better written, but it's extremely dense, andSoldierhappens to mine Greek mythology in a way that particularly tickles my fancy.
    Which of his best is the shortest? I hate most long books.
    Post edited by whatever on
  • The Pendragon Series is really good.
  • Which of his best is the shortest? I hate most long books.
    You want Soldier in the Mist, then.
  • Works by Charles Stross.
    Halting State is an interesting look at the future Scotland, with an MMO bank robbery as the opening event.

    The Atrocity Archives and The Jennifer Morgue are interesting takes on the Cthulhu mythos. PDA Necronomicons for the win!
  • edited April 2008
    I am currently reading Only Revolutions by Dark Z. Danielewski, and it is fantastic. It's really abstract and nothing like House of Leaves. I still need to get The Fifty Year Sword.
    Post edited by whatever on
  • And then there's theArtemisFowlSeriesbyEoinColfer.
    Ah, man. I remember reading those. Artemis is awesome, and the books were great.
  • I highly Recommend "Geek Mafia" and "Geek Mafia: Mile Zero" by Rick Dakan.
    You can Buy it, but It is also available for a free download under creative commons.
  • Ah, man. I remember reading those. Artemis is awesome, and the books were great.
    Yeah I got to finish that new one.
  • Does anyone know any good avant-garde, experimental novels besides Danielewski's work?
  • I finished reading The Alchemist a couple of weeks ago. It is what awesome is made of.
  • Dracula by Bram Stoker

    So much more than the money grubbing, bastardizing, media makes it out to be.
  • I just read the Enginneer Trilogy by K J Parker. Has anyone else here read it? I would be interested in your opinion.

    I think it might have been too long for how good it was. It was definitely enjoyable at some points and it wasn't unpleasant at any point during the reading, but it was spread thinly throughout the some-thousand-odd pages that compose it.
  • I don't know if it's been mentioned before, but the Arthur books by Bernard Cornwell - The Winter King, Enemy of God and Excalibur - are very good, and not really what you'd expect for books about the Arthurian legends.
  • Today I got an email asking about my Top 5 Favourite Science Fiction Novels of all time. I think it is sort of relevant to this thread, so I'll stick it here:
    Luke,

    So I stumbled on your podcasts this morning and became instantly addicted. Great presentation. Excellent breakdown of the literary merits of the books. Articulate. Really great stuff man.

    I'm an aspiring writer in his late thirties who has just read strictly literary stuff for the past ten years. I'm looking to get back into science fiction, but I've lost touch with the genre, so I've spent the last few days scouring the net trying to compile a list of the first five books I should start with.

    Can you tell me your top five all-time favorites?

    Keep up the good work and good luck in life.

    Jack
    My reply:

    Hi Jack,

    I'm glad you enjoy the podcast. How did you find it, by the way?

    As for my top 5 list, I'm really not that good at placing art above other art. One place to start is see the star ratings of the books I've reviewed on the podcast so far: http://www.sfbrp.com/wiki/index.php?title=Star_ratings

    I'm more of a favourite author kind of guy myself. So in that case (picked off that list above):

    More modern:
    Iain M Banks - all of his scifi is amazing. Start with his Culture novels. Player of Games is a good place to start, and probably would make my top ten book list.
    Vernor Vinge - Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the Sky are two of the most memorable books I've read.
    Peter F Hamilton - space opera goodness, lots of people shooting each other with lasers and shit.
    Alastair Reynolds - another author who doesn't put a foot wrong. Or not too wrong.
    Hmmmm.... writer number five...
    Maybe Richard Morgan, but only for a few books.
    David Brin - see Sundiver and other Uplift War novels.

    I see this list is pretty British writer heavy.

    Older/classic authors:
    H G Wells - The Time Machine and The War of The Worlds define science fiction.
    John Wyndham - Day of the Triffids, etc.
    Isaac Asimov - For the foundation series and his robot series, one of the best short story authors ever. A good place to start novel wise is The Caves of Steel.
    Robert A Heinlein - Have Spacesuit, Will Travel is one of his best "juvenile" novels, which in my opinion were his more interesting books.
    Frank Herbert - Dune, of course. The rest of the books in the Dune series suffer from sequel fatige, but the first three followups are worth reading. FRANK Herbert, mind you, not Brian.

    Between the above categories are a whole raft of authors like Frederick Pohl, Larry Niven, Kim Stanley Robinson, David Zindell, Greg Bear... loads more who put out lots of work.

    Writing this email has made me remember a lot of book, so here is a tentative top five list, but not in order:

    H G Wells - War of the Worlds
    Robert A Heinlien - Have Spacesuit, Will Travel
    Iain M Banks - Player of Games
    David Zindell - Neverness
    Vernor Vinge - Fire Upon The Deep

    Tomorrow this list will change, but you'll get a good range of styles and eras of scifi literature with those ones. I've read all of these 5 at least two or three or more times each, and would be happy to read them all again tomorrow if I had to.

    Luke
  • Day of the Triffids was one of the first books I ever read, and it's just as good today as it was back then. I tell it as my standard "Make kids sleep so the adults can keep drinking" story, usually during scouting events.

    Also, Night of the triffids isn't too bad, but some of the later sections of the book are a little poor. I haven't read this one nearly as much, I don't exactly recall, but I'm pretty sure that Night of the Triffids ended badly because it was trying too hard to set up a sequel book.
  • edited February 2009
    A book that has held up for me since I was a child is A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle (the author of The Last Unicorn). I re-read it every few years and it continually delivers. It is a beautiful work.

    I also recommend Dying Inside by Robert Silverberg and Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny.
    Post edited by Kate Monster on
  • I just finished a book called Hood, by Stephen R. Lawhead. It's a re-telling of Robin Hood's story that recasts him as a Welsh freedom fighter. I picked it up while shopping for a friend, started to read it, and couldn't put it down, much less give it away. It's the first book in a trilogy, and a portion of my tax return will be put towards buying the other two books.
  • I like books with unreliable narrators.

    So, forumites, have any of you read either one of these books and, if so, are they worth checking out?
    I know you posted this a long while back but nobody suggested The Great Gatsby and I felt I must recommend it.

    I've been reading a lot of non-fiction recently and won't bore you all with it, but I will recommend Robert A Heinlien's The Moon is a Harsh Mistress which I read a few years back and it was fantastic (incidentally I think that this should appear on the GeekNights book club at some point), its a piece of speculative fiction and quite well written.
  • The Great Gatsby.... yuck...
  • Last month, I read The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. The book is about a young, orphaned German girl and her foster parents before and during World War II. However, the book is narrated by the Grim Reaper, who is a very interesting character. The book describes itself as being about: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

    The book is long, but alternately funny, awesome, haunting, and sad. I strongly recommend it.
  • "How to Read a Book "is most enlightening.
  • Last month, I readThe Book Thiefby Markus Zusak. The book is about a young, orphaned German girl and her foster parents before and during World War II. However, the book is narrated by the Grim Reaper, who is a very interesting character. The book describes itself as being about: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist-fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. . . .

    The book is long, but alternately funny, awesome, haunting, and sad. I strongly recommend it.
    Ever since I read a bunch of the discworld books, any time Death is a character in a book, I imagine death with a voice like two slabs of lead being smacked together.
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