"Heavy" Reading.

[Zvendels]

I just finished the first four books of ASOIAF. And WOW I'm impressed!

I the only books I had read so far were realms and dragonlance books.
And quite frankly ASOIAF toatally blew me away and got me thinking, "why on
earth was I reading those Drizzt books?"

But I have a small problem, there are no real fantasy bookstores in Iceland, so
I'd have to order via amazon.co.uk, and that kinda blows since it's "harder" to
find books that way.

So now I ask you good folks of the playground, what can I buy thats half as good as ASOIAF?

Thanks!

[Shadow of the Sun]

Have you read the Kalevala?

If not, do so.

The same goes for Dante's Divine Comedy.

[Vespe Ratavo]

Despite not being "fantasy," I would really recommend buying the Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy. In fact, if you can, I would really recommend buying a book that has more than one of the Hitchhiker books in it.

I don't know too much 'bout fantasy (despite loving it), sorry. :smallfrown:

[Zvendels]

Despite not being "fantasy," I would really recommend buying the Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy. In fact, if you can, I would really recommend buying a book that has more than one of the Hitchhiker books in it.


Funny, I actually bought it yesterday just to have something to read :smallsmile:

[tetsubo]

The Black Company by Glen Cook

and

The Malazan book of the Fallen series by Stepehn Erickson.

Both are a good series BC is done and the malazon books are on 7 of 10. and unlike GRRM who can't seem to finish Dance of Dragons. Erickson can consistanly get his books out 1 a year.

[Deckmaster]

What the heck is ASOIAF?

Edit: No, wait. Got it. A Song of Ice and Fire. Abbreviations can be annoying.

[Dan Bell]

Hi Zvendels,
First time GitP forum poster, longtime GRRM/ASOIAF fan here.

If you haven't read the "Dunk & Egg" short stories, that would be first on my list. They are set about 80 years before the start of a Game of Thrones.
ASOIAF Short story 1: The Hedge Knight
ASOIAF Short story 2: The Sworn Sword
I also really liked Martin's other non-ASOIAF novels, esp. "Fevre Dream" and "Dying of the Light".

[Dr._Weird]

and unlike GRRM who can't seem to finish Dance of Dragons.

How long are this guys books? Are they the same amazing quality as ASOIAF? What about the characters? Compelling? Complex? Better quality is gonna take longer to write.

Also, I'll have you know ADWD was mostly finished- until he split it in two because it was ridiculous in length. Ideally, AFFC and ADWD should be read at the same time, because half the characters chapters are in either book.

I'm really hoping ADWD and AFFC are re-released in one volume- this is my favorite series, and I would like to know what the experience would be like to hear the whole story told there like it was supposed to be.

Plus having a book that size will surely establish me as King Nerd at my school. :smallamused:

[tetsubo]

How long are this guys books? Are they the same amazing quality as ASOIAF? What about the characters? Compelling? Complex? Better quality is gonna take longer to write.

Also, I'll have you know ADWD was mostly finished- until he split it in two because it was ridiculous in length. Ideally, AFFC and ADWD should be read at the same time, because half the characters chapters are in either book.

I'm really hoping ADWD and AFFC are re-released in one volume- this is my favorite series, and I would like to know what the experience would be like to hear the whole story told there like it was supposed to be.

Plus having a book that size will surely establish me as King Nerd at my school. :smallamused:


How long are this guys books? Are they the same amazing quality as ASOIAF? What about the characters? Compelling? Complex? Better quality is gonna take longer to write.

The latest one that just came out is just over 900 pages long, in hard cover, and with the exception of the first one the other 6 are comparable in size. As for quality and complexity I defenitly belive so. Its on a different scale but it is most certainly there. ASOIAF is more or less limited to one kindom MBotF Is a much grander scale. Same goes for characters. There is many more priciple players some are more complex then others (but the same could be said for any series including ASOIAF).


Also, I'll have you know ADWD was mostly finished- until he split it in two because it was ridiculous in length. Ideally, AFFC and ADWD should be read at the same time, because half the characters chapters are in either book.

I did know that although I think it was closer to a little over halfway through dragons when he decided to split it. That however was not my point. My main point was that SoS came out in 2000 feast came out in 2005 and dance well hopefully that comes out this year but it looks less and less likely. So argueably its taken at least 8 years to write one book. If it takes another 3 years to get it done and get it done right I will be more the unhappy to wait that long to get my hands on it as I want to know more about what happens up north on the wall. Which by judging by your avatar you would agree with :smallbiggrin: . I was just pointing out that the malazan books already number 7 and come out fairly regularly so there is no long wait between fixes.

As for combing the 2 it probaly will happen at some point but it probably would not be mixed together it would be just like any other omnibus Feast then dance. Personaly I am waiting for Green Ronin to put out the new RPG They do amazing work and I would like to see how it differs from what was put by gaurdians of order

[Timberwolf]

The Commonwealth saga by Peter F hamilton is good, just finished it.

[Cyrano]

Fionivar Tapestry, a trilogy by Guy Gavriel Kay. It included violence, death, violence AND death, sex, sex with death, and rape, so I would not suggest it for light reading. It is, however, a masterpiece.

Fevre Dream is excellent George R. R. Martin.

The Aces series of short stories ain't heavy, but it's long, fun, sometimes serious and edited by Georgey himself.

[Jaguira]

The Once and Future King by T.H. White is excellent, and probably pretty easy to find too. You just cannot go wrong with good, solid, Arthurian literature <3

[BlackStaticWolf]

I highly recommend "Off Armageddon Reef" by David Weber. It's a very interesting blend of sci-fi and fantasy.

[Don Beegles]

I second Jaquira; Read The Once and Future King. Not only is it an excellent, well-told story, but it's got a great point about kingship and power. I very much recommend it.

[bosssmiley]

The Commonwealth saga by Peter F hamilton is good, just finished it.

aka the "Night's Dawn" trilogy. I'll second that. Not heavy reading, but takes a while to chew through the 3500 pages. Read the short story collection "Second Chance at Eden" if you get a chance. It basically tells a lot of the backstories referred to in the Night's Dawn books.

Heavy reading that will keep you busy for weeks? Neal Stephenson. "Cryptonomicon", then that 3 books of his "Baroque Cycle". You will come away with head full of knowledge + the urge to press these fantastic stories on your friends.

Final shot of the "Cryptonomicon" movie: Randy Waterhouse, the geek hero of the piece, standing on an island amid a slow-flowing river of molten gold he has just melted out of a mountain so the bad guys can't steal it off the locals.
Teh awesum!

[Telonius]

The Book of the New Sun series by Gene Wolfe is an excellent read. Very heavy stuff, but worth it. There are aspects of his style I don't like (some of his transitions are really confusing), but he's one of the best writers out there. His Book of the Long Sun series is another good one. I didn't really like Knight and Wizard, but otherwise he's pretty solid.

[Don Beegles]

I don't, Boss, I didn't really like the Cryptonomicon. I mean, all of the nerdy math and code cracking stuff was excellent - I particulaly liked the family possession divvying and Lawrence Waterhouse's graph of his attention in relation to Tmasturbation - but the plot seemed really contrived. It might have been worth it for the extras, but on story it didn't cut it for me.

[Jorkens]

I don't, Boss, I didn't really like the Cryptonomicon. I mean, all of the nerdy math and code cracking stuff was excellent - I particulaly liked the family possession divvying and Lawrence Waterhouse's graph of his attention in relation to Tmasturbation - but the plot seemed really contrived. It might have been worth it for the extras, but on story it didn't cut it for me.
Yeah, that was pretty much exactly what I thought. Although it didn't help that I read Gravity's Rainbow immediately afterwards which kind of blew it out of the water. (Now that's heavy reading. Although V. is actually pretty readable in a strange way.)

A random recommendation, but has anyone read Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell? It's not really fantasy, more slightly postmodern Literature that plays around with a range of other genres (including detective thrillers and soft sci fi for instance), but it seems to fall into quite a fantasy-esque atmosphere. Pretty readable, some Big Ideas treated fairly subtly, quite funny in places.

[The Demented One]

House of Leaves.

[Shadow of the Sun]

The Dark Tower series is also very good, if you can stomach Stephen King's writing style.

[Toastkart]

For heavy reading I would recommend:

The Saga of the Pliocene Exiles by Julian May. Very good books that sort of mixes scifi and fantasy. I think four or five books in the saga, but I don't remember for sure.

The Book of Morgaine by C.H. Cherryh. I read the first three as a single volume and I was told there was a fourth, but I haven't read it yet. This one also mixes scifi and fantasy, but more heavily the fantasy, whereas Pliocene exiles was pretty even.

Not quite as heavy reading as song of ice and fire, but often close- the Firekeeper Saga by Jane Lindskold.

I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned yet this thread: the Dune Saga by Frank Herbert. Incredible complexity (plots within plots within plots) and wonderfully deep insights.

[Kitya]

Hmmm... apparently I read fluff. *chuckles* But it's GOOD fluff! *laffs* I would read these others that have been suggested, but I'm one of those annoying people who likes to own, and have read, all the books in series that I'm working on, before branching out into other series. And I'm still working on Mercedes Lackey, Pratchett, McCaffrey, and Heinlein. *laffs* The never ending quest I think. At the moment, I'm re-reading Witch and Wombat by Caroline Cushman. Gotta love the idea of gamers being brought into a real fairytale world, thinking that it's a computer generated game. *chuckles*

[downthetimehole]

Lets see good fantasy books...

I'm going to start with saying anything by Robin Hobb is golden. Her best trilogy in my opinion has been the Farseer Trilogy, (Assassins Apprentice, Royal Assassin, Assassin’s Quest) Those are some pretty "heavy" books.

The Abhorsen Trilogy (Sabriel, Liarel, Abhorsen) by Garth Nix is also worth looking at.

The Temeraire series (His Majesty's Dragon, Throne of Jade, Black p\Powder War) by Naomi Novik

And for easy urban fantasy I'm going to have to say The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher.

[MrEdwardNigma]

I'm one of those annoying people who likes to own, and have read, all the books in series that I'm working on, before branching out into other series. And I'm still working on Mercedes Lackey, Pratchett, McCaffrey, and Heinlein.
Well, you're probably gonna be working a while on Pratchett (don't know about the others). I mean, his books read really fast, but how many has the guy written?!! And he just keeps on writing them, really bloody fast!

[Setra]

I dunno what is considered "Heavy Reading" but might I recommend the "Obsidian Chronicles", by Lawrence Watt-Evans?

Ps. It's a Trilogy

Dragon Weather, The Dragon Society, and Dragon Venom

[Dr._Weird]

Read Ender's Game. It's one of my favorites, and, well, I think we might share a certain taste...

Try Neil Gaimans stuff too. American Gods and Neverwhere are particularly good.

[KuReshtin]

Stephen Donaldson's "Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever"

I found those very heavy going when I read them. They're filled with a ton of self loathing by the main character, and I just found that really hard to read through.

[Mr Croup]

I just finished the first four books of ASOIAF. And WOW I'm impressed!

I the only books I had read so far were realms and dragonlance books.
And quite frankly ASOIAF toatally blew me away and got me thinking, "why on
earth was I reading those Drizzt books?"

But I have a small problem, there are no real fantasy bookstores in Iceland, so
I'd have to order via amazon.co.uk, and that kinda blows since it's "harder" to
find books that way.

So now I ask you good folks of the playground, what can I buy thats half as good as ASOIAF?

Thanks!

Well, it's definitely quite different from ASOIAF, but Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell is a fantastic book. It's not typical fantasy, in that it's set during the English Regency period, in an alternate history where magic and faeries were once a dominant part of English culture, but have since disappeared. The story itself focus on the "rebirth" of magic in the persons of the two title characters. I absolutely adore the book, and can't recommend it highly enough. It is written in period language, which some might find off putting, but I think it really adds to the book. It is available in paperback now, and weighs in at a little over 1000 pages, I believe. Definitely worth picking up, in my opinion.


Try Neil Gaimans stuff too. American Gods and Neverwhere are particularly good.
I absolutely second this suggestion. Gaiman is probably my favorite current author. I don't think you can really go wrong with any of his books or collections of stories.