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Brainamp posted:Looking for a decent Sci-fi novel. Preferably something recent. Catch is that it has to have an audiobook version. Altered Carbon - 500 years from now you have an implant that effectively makes you immortal. Noirish tough guy investigates what seems a pointless suicide. One of my all time favorites. By Richard K. Morgan The Skinner - thousands of years from now on an extremely weird planet extremely weird stuff goes on. Another one of my all time favorites. Many other books set in The Polity Universe precede and follow. By Neal Asher. The Disappeared - Police procedural set on the moon, which is Earth's gateway to the dozens of alien races, complete with unfathomable legal agreements, a Space Traffic Cop makes some interesting decisions. 7 more books follow in The Retrieval Artist series. By Kathryn Rusch. Avogadro Corp. Email program gets a little too smart for its own good. By William Hertling. Jennifer Government. Imagine the Citizens United victory taken a few steps further. Corporations rule. You can call 911 but it ain't free. Also Lexicon, if words could kill....Both by Max Barry. Apocalypse A-Go-Go. The power of boobies after the fall. By Victor Gischler. God's War (followed by Rapture and Infidel) is book one of The Bel Dame Apocrypha. . Umayama is not a fun place to live. Nor is life easy for disgraced Bel Dames (Government Assassins). Another top favorite. By Kameron Hurley. I own the print/Kindle versions and audio versions of all the above.
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May 10, 2014 03:55
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I want Robert E Howard in space! Closest I can think of is maybe Dune and... Warhammer 40k. No hard-sci fi, please. I want pulp, absurd scale and a sense of myth. Hell, the movie Chronicles of Riddick satisfies my requirements pretty well. I'm just kinda hoping for something... better.
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May 10, 2014 15:40
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DirtyRobot posted:I want Robert E Howard in space! Closest I can think of is maybe Dune and... Warhammer 40k. No hard-sci fi, please. I want pulp, absurd scale and a sense of myth. Since "good" wasn't one of your qualifications, I recommend Piers Anthony - Bio of a Space Tyrant (don't actually read this)
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May 10, 2014 15:55
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DirtyRobot posted:I want Robert E Howard in space! Closest I can think of is maybe Dune and... Warhammer 40k. No hard-sci fi, please. I want pulp, absurd scale and a sense of myth. Hell, the movie Chronicles of Riddick satisfies my requirements pretty well. I'm just kinda hoping for something... better. If you can stand semi-racist pulp scifi from the 1920's-1930's , Doc EE Smith's lensmen series or Skylark of space series are epic. Planets & suns are used like bullets around the 3rd book of skylark series, and the series ends with turning a entire galaxy into a mega-galaxy-supernova for REASONS. The Lensmen series has similar galactic weapon ideas, but is more focused on different generations of basically proto-Green Lanterns. Just be aware that EE Smith was heavily into nudism, and genetic purity. And I wasn't kidding about anything I just wrote.
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May 10, 2014 16:02
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DirtyRobot posted:I want Robert E Howard in space! Closest I can think of is maybe Dune and... Warhammer 40k. No hard-sci fi, please. I want pulp, absurd scale and a sense of myth. Hell, the movie Chronicles of Riddick satisfies my requirements pretty well. I'm just kinda hoping for something... better. Ben Bova's Orion series might suit.
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May 10, 2014 16:23
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tuluk posted:If you can stand semi-racist pulp scifi from the 1920's-1930's , Doc EE Smith's lensmen series or Skylark of space series are epic. Selachian posted:Ben Bova's Orion series might suit. DirtyRobot fucked around with this message at 17:04 on May 10, 2014 |
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May 10, 2014 17:01
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DirtyRobot posted:I want Robert E Howard in space! Closest I can think of is maybe Dune and... Warhammer 40k. No hard-sci fi, please. I want pulp, absurd scale and a sense of myth. Hell, the movie Chronicles of Riddick satisfies my requirements pretty well. I'm just kinda hoping for something... better. Robert E. Howard in space was almost literally the John Carter of Mars series by Edgar Rice Burroughs (same guy who wrote Tarzan). The same caveats about 30's racism apply. Burroughs was trying so hard not to be racist! He was always certain to make sure there was at least one Good Black Martian, Good Green Martian, etc.!See, John Carter is a confederate soldier and swordsman from Earth, and so on Mars, he has super-strength due to the lower gravity . . . If you saw the recent John Carter movie it's pretty much that, on the page. It's a shame the film flopped, but all the best scenes got used in star wars, so audiences have seen it all before a hundred times by now (you know the big fight in the space arena? Burroughs invented that). Hieronymous Alloy fucked around with this message at 17:46 on May 10, 2014 |
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May 10, 2014 17:40
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I'm looking for modern murder-mysteries. I've read a lot of older noir (Raymond Chandler etc) but I'd like to find some stuff that's a little more contemporary. Somebody gets killed, somebody else tries to figure out who killed them. Don't need to be well written: it's for analysis more than pleasure. I wouldn't object to an Urban-Fantasy twist (I liked London Falling) but I'd prefer stuff that's just straightforward policework.
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May 11, 2014 09:42
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Robert E. Howard in space was almost literally the John Carter of Mars series by Edgar Rice Burroughs (same guy who wrote Tarzan). Your mentioning Star Wars is interesting, because it's a perfect example of exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for, I suppose becuase it's obviously such a loving homage to what I'm looking for. And yet I didn't even think of it when I made my post, because in my weirdo brain (the same one that conflates Howard and Burroughs occasionally) Star Wars gets its own category. (Also, I'm Star Wars'd out.)
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May 11, 2014 13:09
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DirtyRobot posted:Okay, cool. In my head I actually almost conflate Burroughs and Howard, and yet I'd dismissed John Carter of Mars for some reason--I'll check it out. You're probably remembering the literal ripoff of the first John Carter book that Robert Howard did called Almuric.
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May 11, 2014 13:49
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SurreptitiousMuffin posted:I'm looking for modern murder-mysteries. I've read a lot of older noir (Raymond Chandler etc) but I'd like to find some stuff that's a little more contemporary. Somebody gets killed, somebody else tries to figure out who killed them. Don't need to be well written: it's for analysis more than pleasure. Maybe try the Charlie Parker books by John Connolly? They're incredibly dark mysteries with just a taste of the supernatural. The series starts with Every Dead Thing.
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May 11, 2014 15:00
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SurreptitiousMuffin posted:I'm looking for modern murder-mysteries. I've read a lot of older noir (Raymond Chandler etc) but I'd like to find some stuff that's a little more contemporary. Somebody gets killed, somebody else tries to figure out who killed them. Don't need to be well written: it's for analysis more than pleasure. Ed McBain's 87th Precinct books? There are a ton of them, they're generally good reads, and they're written in a very simple, just-the-facts style. Although McBain was leaning pretty heavily on formula characters near the end of his life.
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May 11, 2014 15:23
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I love spy novels with John Le Carre being my favorite. Any recommendations for non-fiction which goes deeper into espionage tradecraft? Dead drops, James Bond hair on the door frame, etc...?
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May 11, 2014 19:45
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punissuer posted:I love spy novels with John Le Carre being my favorite. Any recommendations for non-fiction which goes deeper into espionage tradecraft? Dead drops, James Bond hair on the door frame, etc...? Spycatcher is pretty much that, though the veracity is disputed. There's a book that's sort of a layman's field guide, called something like Guide to the Secret War, and I liked it, but I can't remember the actual title.
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May 11, 2014 21:08
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funkybottoms posted:Josh Bazell's Beat the Reaper, Don Winslow's Savages, Charles Stross' Laundry Files series and The Android's Dream, Simon Morden's Petrovich books, Mike Carey's Felix Castor series, Joe Lansdale's Hap and Leonard books, maybe Scott Sigler's Infected series Thanks for the advice! Picked up "Beat the Reaper" And loving it so far.
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May 11, 2014 22:33
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I'd really like a good urban fantasy series that doesn't involve a detective type as a lead character. I loved The Dresden Files & liked the Southern Vampire Mysteries, but would like something with a bit less "there's a supernatural serial killer afoot!" stuff.
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May 11, 2014 23:34
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Captain Mog posted:I'd really like a good urban fantasy series that doesn't involve a detective type as a lead character. I loved The Dresden Files & liked the Southern Vampire Mysteries, but would like something with a bit less "there's a supernatural serial killer afoot!" stuff. They're not precisely a series, but you might enjoy Charles De Lint's Ottawa books (Moonheart, Spiritwalk, Jack of Kinrowan, Yarrow et al).
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May 11, 2014 23:57
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regulargonzalez posted:I guess Wheel of Time would be a pretty good fit, although it follows the pov of more characters. But for world building and a sense of exploring and discovering the world with the main character(s), it'd be tough to do better. And there are lots of "little clue" type things but they tend to be a bit more subtle than in Kingkiller Chronicles and, given the scope of the Wheel of Time series, often don't have a payoff for several books. Really late response but I honestly forgot I had posted her a while back. I'll pick it up! When I don't have a book to read it kind of feels like I'm wasting my time, so anything is better than nothing. I've had a few RL friends recommend the Wheel of Time as well so I suppose now's better than never.
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May 12, 2014 05:55
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So I recently decided to do some reading about Rasputin. Obviously he's a very contentious figure so there's a hell of a lot of misinformation about him. What would be a good book, or a good pairing to get the full story? Obviously the sensational demonisation makes for entertaining reading but I'd also like to know about him as an actual person.
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May 12, 2014 18:25
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Ddraig posted:So I recently decided to do some reading about Rasputin. Obviously he's a very contentious figure so there's a hell of a lot of misinformation about him. What would be a good book, or a good pairing to get the full story? Obviously the sensational demonisation makes for entertaining reading but I'd also like to know about him as an actual person. I read The Rasputin File by Edvard Radzinsky a few years ago. Here's what I said about it at the time. quote:A biography of the eponymous monk. The file in question refers to documents compiled by investigators instigated by the provisional government following the revolution, intended to show how debauched the last tsar's regime had become (thereby justifying the revolution post hoc). The author's quest for this file spanned decades, and was valuable for containing what was unavailable from any other source: testimony of followers and friends of Rasputin, who was at the time of his death the most hated man in Russia.
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May 12, 2014 18:36
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I was looking at that but unfortunately my library doesn't have it and I'm strapped for cash at the moment. They do have Rasputin: The Last Word, though. It's by the same author. Is it just an alternate title or a different work?
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May 12, 2014 18:43
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I believe "Last Word" is the alternate English title.
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May 12, 2014 19:01
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Ddraig posted:I was looking at that but unfortunately my library doesn't have it and I'm strapped for cash at the moment. I guess it is the same book according to dokmo—but for the future, you might want to see if your library does interlibrary loans. That way, even if they don't have the book you're looking for, they may be able to borrow it from another library.
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May 12, 2014 19:04
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Adib posted:I guess it is the same book according to dokmo—but for the future, you might want to see if your library does interlibrary loans. That way, even if they don't have the book you're looking for, they may be able to borrow it from another library. Yeah they do interlibrary loans, I did a search for it on their website which crosslinks all their libraries. I'll go for Last Word, then. Thanks for the recommendation people.
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May 12, 2014 19:15
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Just a general tip here, interlibrary loan is the best thing in the world.
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May 12, 2014 20:09
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Libraries are pretty much the best things ever, but interlibrary loans are the icing on the cake. Ever since my laptop blew the gently caress up I'm pretty much on first name terms with the staff of at least two libraries nearby.
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May 12, 2014 21:08
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But library books have those annoying covers and then I can't keep it on my shelf forever when I'm done
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May 12, 2014 23:05
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I spent thousands on crappy scifi paperbacks when I was younger and didn't even end up reading half of them. Nowadays I'm content not paying for any books except for history and reference books I might need to use again and again, and occasionally genre short fiction anthologies, when they're 1˘ plus shipping on Amazon.
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May 12, 2014 23:12
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SurreptitiousMuffin posted:I'm looking for modern murder-mysteries. I've read a lot of older noir (Raymond Chandler etc) but I'd like to find some stuff that's a little more contemporary. Somebody gets killed, somebody else tries to figure out who killed them. Don't need to be well written: it's for analysis more than pleasure. The Last Policeman by Ben Winter and The Retrieval Artist series by Kathryn Rusch might be appropriate. Book 1 of The Retrieval Artist (The Disappeared) is not a murder mystery but book 2, Extremes, is, and so are many of the other books in this rather good series. http://smile.amazon.com/Last-Police...+last+policeman http://smile.amazon.com/Disappeared...etreival+artist http://smile.amazon.com/Extremes-Re...=extremes+rusch
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May 13, 2014 01:44
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nvm
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May 13, 2014 01:53
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I just finished reading William Gibson's Neuromancer and really liked it. I'm trying to decide if I should continue next on to the other two books in the trilogy or skip them and check out one of his other two trilogies OR if that was considered his best offering move on to something else in the cyberpunk genre.
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May 13, 2014 20:30
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StickFigs posted:I just finished reading William Gibson's Neuromancer and really liked it. I'm trying to decide if I should continue next on to the other two books in the trilogy or skip them and check out one of his other two trilogies OR if that was considered his best offering move on to something else in the cyberpunk genre. They're both pretty fun (although the sprawl trilogy may read a bit dated). The bridge trilogy is better but if you enjoyed Neuromancer there's no reason not to keep going. Gibson is at his best obsessively contemplating objects of craft/trash/art/tech and you get good moments in both series. Just don't expect to meet any people you'll remember.
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May 14, 2014 00:45
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I'm trying to improve my third person prose and was wondering if you guys would recommend any good third person books. Classics are nice but I would prefer something more modern and something that you think is beautifully written. The genre doesn't matter.
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May 15, 2014 07:09
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Recommend a third person book? Seriously? You might as well ask for a recommendation for a book with words. Do you read at all?
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May 15, 2014 13:53
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Raspberry Bang posted:I'm trying to improve my third person prose and was wondering if you guys would recommend any good third person books. Classics are nice but I would prefer something more modern and something that you think is beautifully written. The genre doesn't matter. Havw you tried GRAVITY'S RAINBOW by THOMAS PYNCHON?
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May 15, 2014 14:30
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Raspberry Bang posted:I'm trying to improve my third person prose and was wondering if you guys would recommend any good third person books. Classics are nice but I would prefer something more modern and something that you think is beautifully written. The genre doesn't matter. Have you read anything?
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May 15, 2014 14:54
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Raspberry Bang posted:I'm trying to improve my third person prose and was wondering if you guys would recommend any good third person books. Classics are nice but I would prefer something more modern and something that you think is beautifully written. The genre doesn't matter. Have you tried Clarissa by Samuel Richardson?
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May 15, 2014 18:01
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Get a huge short story anthology or omnibus and read every story, especially if the book has "Best American Short Stories" or "Best African American Short Stories" or "Best Whatever" in the title. Even if a particular story is written in the first person or second person or whatever. Read them. Then get another omnibus and do it again. Then read every book you might have gotten told to read for high school. Keep doing this for a decade, and write every chance you get in the meantime. After a decade burn everything you wrote and keep reading. Your prose should improve.
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May 15, 2014 18:10
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Brainamp posted:Looking for a decent Sci-fi novel. Preferably something recent. Catch is that it has to have an audiobook version. On Basilisk Station by David Weber is pretty awesome. If you go through audible for your audiobooks you can pickup the Ebook for free and get the audiobook for like 1.99.
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May 15, 2014 18:17
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Here are some good third-person books. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon The Once and Future King by T.H. White East of Eden by John Steinbeck Stoner by John Williams Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy They're all fiction. They're also my go-to recommendations for anyone who wants good prose. The Awful Book of the Month this month, One Hundred Years of Solitude, is also a brilliant book written in third-person.
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May 15, 2014 18:31
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