Thread 24483972

Recommended reading charts. (Look here before asking for vague recs)
https://mega.nz/folder/kj5hWI6J#0cyw0-ZdvZKOJW3fPI6RfQ/folder/4rAmSZxb

>Archive:
https://warosu.org/lit/?task=search2&search_subject=sffg

>Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/1029811-sffg

>Previous:
>>24475636

>Thread Question:
What were your biggest surprise series continuations you thought were definitely finished or left for dead?

>>24483972 (OP)
copying from the previous thread because I know there are watts fans here

>>24482451
>new Watts story in the Blindopraxia 'verse.
https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/the-twenty-one-second-god/

Why is Sanderson's dialogue so bad?

>>24484007
Please be patient he has autism

>>24484009
It's crazy. He can do all those lectures and talk to hundreds of people about writing, but when you read his books, the way everyone talks gives you the impression that he's never had a conversation with actual humans before.

the fact that BOTNS just keeps going into Long and Short Sun is neat tho I have not read yet

>>24484020
the fact that people think he's qualified to lecture only shows the decay of the audience. He writes well enough to convince stupid people who forget what they wrote the second it's over.

>>24484071
>He writes well enough to convince stupid people who forget what they wrote the second it's over.
as long as they buy the books, anon

>>24484039
This is some Todd McFarlane cape physics

>>24484128
Meant to look more statue-esque than realitsic I think, despite the background evoking motion.

>>24484158
Just saying it looks like Spawn

>>24483976
Any good?

>>24484007
He isnt a good writer and you shouldnt waste your time reading his slop.

>>24484071
people dont think he is qualifed to lecture, its just americans think that.

Lysander will win

>>24484007
fr i'm reading mistborn rn and I want to gauge my eyes out

I liked The Way of Kings and Words of Radiance
I probably would have liked Skyward if I was 10 years younger
Other than that I don't touch Sanderson

>>24484383
Try reading better authors, give Tad Williams and Jack Vance a try.

I read 130 something pages of Sphere by Michael Crichton last night before I fell asleep. My favorite character is the ornery and sassy black mathematician. Going to finish reading it later today/tonight and then prob start the 2nd book in the mad ship trilogy. That or I'll read the 37th out of 39th drizzt books. I really need to finish that series.

>>24484442
>be Tad Williams
>write Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn
>writes a sequel trilogy after 20 years

>>24484462
he was played by samuel l jackson in the movie. one of the few goos things about that weak movie

>>24484462
There could be a 40th or more in time. You think you've finished, but it continues on anyway regardless.

>>24484465
>sequel is actually even better than the original
How does he do it?

>>24484646
he's a solid author, even his Shadowmarch series is pretty good.

What was that site where you had an author appear and then other similar authors would appear and you click on their names to find more authors you might like kind of like this >

>>24484478
I never understood the ending.

>>24484462
Look for Waves by M. A. Foster. It's a similar, better book.

>>24484773
How I found it:
1. I thought to myself, "This is a mapping of authors who write literature".
2. I searched for: literature map
3. There it was.

It never ceases to amaze me how little so many attempt before asking to be spoonfed. Surely you could've asked one of the AI as well.

The quality of a fantasy series should be determined by the thiccness of its women, discuss.

>>24484836
I disagree that anything ought to be determined by the quality of its fetish. Yes, anything, there are always more important considerations. Only those who hold it to be of singular importance disagree, which causes low quality fetish material to be the the vast majority due to the fetishists' non-existent standards.

Unpaid shill here, Philip Chase's new book While Darkness Gathers came out today.

>>24484901
how is this dude shitting out new books? he came out of nowhere with a youtube channel and trilogy just waiting to be published, and now this.

I'm a few books into Demon Princes. Real good shit. Love this old style of sci fi. I thought his older stuff would be rougher but this man never disappoints.

>>24484968
Return to Edan came out 2 years ago, two years is plenty of time to write a new book.

>>24484971
I don't like his SF novels. They're mostly adventure or noir set in space and nothing else, and the quotes are there just because.
>there's a two-page long quote in The Star King
Eat your heart out, Frank Herbert.

>>24484995
I kind of prefer that. Every modern sci fi book spends 25 pages explaining to me why their warp drive is 100% scientifically plausible when really I don't give a fuck I just want a good story.

>>24483972 (OP)
You fuckers doing any readalongs? GR group has been going trough Rendezvous with Rama for June.

>>24484971
turns out a good writer can make anything work

This book was excellent, highly recommend it.

>>24484007
Because he's a mormon.

>>24484995
>They're mostly adventure or noir set in space and nothing else
Imagine thinking this is a bad thing.

>>24485092
I've seen it recommend multiple times very recently. Is there something special about it?

>>24484901
How was Edan?

>>24485092
>sequel gets released 22 years later
jesus christ

>>24485165
The first two books were pretty bog-standard, 3/5 fantasy fare with the young hero leaving his little village and being the chose one, meeting the funny dwarf and cute magical girl and fighting against the evil church, but then the third book gets really interesting when Dayraven is just a completely different kind of character after achieving enlightenment, I'd give Return to Edan a 4/5

>>24484836
200 year old hag

>>24484971
The great thing about the Demon Prince series is that each book is better than the last. The Book of Dreams is one of his best stories.

>>24485168
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sterling_E._Lanier#Bibliography

>>24485155
One of those posts was likely me, it's just a really good cyberpunk space opera with a writing style that reminds me of Frank Herbert and a neat world with cool characters and ideas.

>>24485150
Noir shit is exceedingly cringe. It's in the same vein as steampunk for me. Just super fucking lame.

>>24485422
Not only are you wrong about Noir, but you're also gay.

>>24484901
I would like to read him, because he is more knowledgeable in literary theory than an average popular slop author, but I'm not interested in his themes ("the young hero leaving his little village and being the chose one") at all. Maybe these new books will be different.

>>24484971
Looking forward to this after I finish Lyonesse. We're lucky that Jack was so prolific.

>>24485521
Man, the Lyonesse Trilogy is one of my favourite fantasy series.

>>24484784
> Waves by M. A. Foster
Good luck finding a copy in good shape.

>>24484995
i bet you like Peter Watts and other autistic authors.

>>24484795
because you're bringing a fresh perspective to things, anon. that's why this sort of things works

other anon probably had a half-remembered idea of the name and they kept using permutations of that to find it. you don't so your mind went to a different place that just so happened to be the right one.

you ever ask your wife where the remote is and she finds it in 2 seconds when it's taken you 5 minutes? same thing. now imagine if your wife got mad that she had to "spoonfeed" you the location, lol

anyway, hope this helps.

>>24484836
is the thicc girl somehow hiding behind this milquetoast one of average proportions?

>>24485691
She's THICC, anon. Not an American landwhale.

>>24485496
It's pretty hard to be wrong about an opinion kiddo

>>24484971
The JD Vance memes have fried my brain. I can't discuss this guy without getting mentally flashbanged.

>>24485689
Searching "similar authors" also had it a the first result, which is part of the post. Tons of other terms would've worked.

>>24485576
I prefer Dick ;)

>>24485150
We already had pulp for that.

>>24485027
Hard SF sucks, that's true. But using the same template for ever genre doesn't help either.

>>24485168
Surely the author didn't intend to write one when he was writing the first book?

>>24485691
Actually yes. The Tattersail in the book is described as being significantly fatter than that image depicts. Erikson likes 'em real big.

The only thing I've read and enjoyed this year was Pale Lights. Got any recs for me?

>>24485566
Sell me on it

this is a fun book
it's split focus on human empire politics and ancient alien lore is how i wish most space opera went

>>24485368
How pozzed is it?

>>24486043
The first book is a slog. The series picks up in the second.

>>24486077
I haven't found it to be a slog. It's slower-paced for sure, and soaks in moments too long, but that's not a big sin. a lot is happening.
its greatest problem imo is that it does the subversion thing a lot, but instead of going somewhere unexpected, the subversion is that nothing happens
a daring escape to the autism school... ah, nm
a bold plan to purchase a spaceship... ah, nm
a clever idea to shame a priest without resorting to... ah, i see
you must hide your identity at all costs, who knows what could happen if... oh, nm
and so on. i guess it's trying to be realistic, but the framing device is that this guy has lived hundreds of years and this is his big autobiography, you'd think he'd skip the details that don't go anywhere

>>24484836
>discuss.
there's nothing to discuss, any SFF series with thick female characters is a 10/10 for me
>that pic
Way too skinny to be tattersail, i always imagine her looking like Mia Dior or Mylie Moore

>>24486014
NTA but It has a wonderfully whimsical feel to it while also having dark and tragic moments, it's also beautifully written and has an amazing Celtic/Arthurian setting.

Any road-tripish urban fantasy besides American Gods?

>>24486194
>urban fantasy
or weird fiction.

>>24485092
>>24485368
i didn't know it was cyberpunk, i know it deals with mental illness in a unique way like PKD or New Wave authors used to do, or so i read in some reviews.
i've found a hardcover of it for cheap, maybe i should buy it, always wanted to give Friedman a try.

Wasn't sure what to expect from The Stars My Destination, but it was a wild ride. They don't make science fiction like this anymore. It has a strange hopefulness and belief in the common man that you don't see anywhere in fiction. Though looking around today, it feels like Bester's hope was misplaced.

I've finally bit the bullet and am getting the Del Rey conan books. Never read Conan before, hoping it's fun.

>>24486225
By Howard, I hope.

>>24486227
Yeah

>>24486169
What do you think of Love Randalin?

>Human death far enough from Earth triggers the next event in the universal simulation.
>All dark matter calculated to exist in the galaxy was actually obscured interstellar civilizations

Tell me how bad this idea is

>>24486253
she has a great body but her content is very boring.

>>24486253
>love randalin
Holy shit I havent heard that name in so many years

>>24486043
this shit was so mid man. I'm hoping Howling Dark is better.

>>24486087
>and so on. i guess it's trying to be realistic, but the framing device is that this guy has lived hundreds of years and this is his big autobiography, you'd think he'd skip the details that don't go anywhere
also it's so lame how he spoiled his entire series

I should just stop Dark Age now while I'm still early and just wait for Red God to be closer to release. I know I'm going to be very upset if I was to finish the next 2 books and then have to wait years for the next one.

>>24486307
We think Red God is about a year out based on what Pierce has said/implied on social media. Do with that information as you will.

>>24486307
>>24486320
tik tok rumormill says june 2026

also to the first anon, i'd finish dark age and save lightbringer for a day closer to red god

>>24486225
Based. Get the Solomon Kane collection too.

>>24486287
It is. I liked Empire of Silence but Howling Dark is excellent, Ruocchio finds his groove there. It's a seamless merge of epic fantasy, space opera, and cosmic horror.

>>24484264
>>24485582
Lysander will use the eidmi, have a crisis of conscience, and then get a redemption arc by killing Atalantia

>>24486225
Pulp stories are a mixed bag but Howard is the most consistently fun. Check out Kull too, I liked the one where Kull purged the lizard people from his government

>>24484971
I did not care for Demon Princes.

>>24486426
I would only accept this if he dies too

>>24486225
>>24486227
YIKES

This didn't age well.

>>24484264
I'm barely into Dark Age(Darrow just unleashed the storms on Mercury during the Golds' Rain) and I have no idea what happens in the rest of this book or Lightbringer but with the info I have right now if that pixie little cocksucker wins then Piece Brown deserves some very bad things to happen to him.

>>24484383
>I liked The Way of Kings and Words of Radiance
Me too.
Too bad the series goes to shit in Oathbringer. It was so heavy-handed in the way every character starts to feel like some mouthpiece for every kind of mental health issue you can think of so people can feel heckin valid. Had absolutely no interest in moving on to Rhythm of War after I finished it.

>>24486553
I enjoyed Lysander's chapters in Iron Gold, but I soon realized it was just mainly because of Cassius and the opportunity to worldbuild by shining light on the Rim. He's literally carried by the characters around him. Him by himself is awful.

>>24486183
I wanted so badly to like it. I love Vance, I love Arthurian legend, and I *really* love the idea that "all our fairy tales were real, they just all happened over there on the islands that disappeared one day"

but it's just so damn uneven. at times it's fantastical and fae, then it's overly real and almost grimdark. There are moments so goofy and weird they feel right out of Cugel's book, then it tries to be serious and dramatic.

I'm sure much is deliberate, that Vance is merely trying to mimic the style of those sorts of stories. But it falls flat because that's not the type of writer Vance is, and mostly it feels like it was stitched together - like many of his works - from a bunch of different writings and the stich-job wasn't very elegant

also the rapes. i don't really care about rape, but there are at least a dozen rapes or attempted rapes in the book. a major plot point involves a fae cursed to be chained to a tree until she is raped 3 separate times, the last of which is by a troll with all that implies. it's weird and gross.

>>24486523
He'll either die or Mustang will use a psychoSpike on him and he'll regain the conscience he was born with, be horrified at himself, become the last knight of House Arcos in honor of Alexandar and Cassius.

>>24486534
Matt is peak midwit. Smart enough to know nu-Sanderson sucks, but too dumb and cucked to appreciate Blood Meridian or Conan. If anything I'd give Conan 4/5, one star deducted for not enough lascivious descriptions of imperiled women.

>>24486593
Not bad. Not bad. But if he were really horrified, he'd Roque himself.

>>24486596
>Roque himself
I read that as "rope himself," which I guess is appropriate
Thanks for reading my fanfiction

>>24486600
You should write some sff, anon

>>24486614
Thanks for the encouragement, anon. I've written two fantasy novels, am working on my third, and have dozens of short stories and novellas but agents have spurned me so far

>>24486592
>at times it's fantastical and fae, then it's overly real and almost grimdark

That's actually one of the reasons I like It a lot, lol. That, and the way It feels like a "fix-up" of different stories like the Cugel books. It give the novel a more unique feeling (in a good way IMO) for me.
But I can see why It may not be everyone's cup of tea.

>>24486618
Godspeed, anon.

>>24486629
o7

>>24484971
Kirth Gersen btw

>>24483972 (OP)
Why does /sffg/ not like Joe Abercrombie?
I haven't read him and I like the idea of Dark Fantasy in manga so I'm now going through the manga->book pipeline and I was searching for recs and he gets rec'd a lot, but I've noticed some of the rec images advise to avoid him.

>>24486714
>Why does /sffg/ not like Joe Abercrombie?
Is that realy the case, though? It's more that the Devils disappointed.

>>24485508
Anon I don't think you know what a "theme" is. That's not a theme. The themes in Edan are about personal spirituality vs organized religious dogma and stuff like that

>>24486077
I'm about halfway through Howling Dark and it keeps pissing me off how Ruocchio just lifts things from Gene Wolfe without making any effort to make them his own. Like the waiting room at Vorgossos is literally the same as it was in the Autarch's palace, people waiting for years and living off of tea and pastries.
I hate it when he does that. It instantly takes me out of the book and makes me want to go read Wolfe instead.

>>24486194
Strange Toys by Patricia Geary
maybe Pollen by Jeff Noon but you should probably read Vurt first

>>24483972 (OP)
I need some good fucking epic fantasy with the badass characters. Not necessarily 10/10, 8/10 will do fine.
Have read LotR, WoT, Memory Sorrow and Thorn, Malazan, SA, Riftwar Saga, The Second Apocalypse, enjoyed Malazan and MST the most.

>>24484039
What is so nice about the fantasy with the sci-fi elements weaved in? Vague aliens implications, ancient civilization being more progressive than the current ones, artifacts of the past vaguely looking like something hi-tech.
There is something about that that catches me more than the classic fantasy.

>>24486755
If you've read MST and liked it, why not read the sequel series and the two smaller novels that came out between them?

>>24486723
I've seen an infograph in the mega not recommending one of the The First Law series books

Am I allowed to discuss 40k novels in this thread?

Is this accurate

>>24486797
Morningstar is more emo so MCR would be better suited in that.

>>24486790
Yes

>>24486798
I have Welcome to the Black Parade first because of the chorus and Eo. It's like it wsa written with RR in mind.

>We'll carry on, we'll carry on
>And though you're dead and gone, believe me
>Your memory will carry on, we'll carry on
>And in my heart, I can't contain it
>The anthem won't explain it

>Your weary widow marches on

>Do or die, you'll never make me
>Because the world will never take my heart
>Go and try, you'll never break me
>We want it all, we wanna play this part

>I'm unashamed, I'm gonna show my scar

>>24486790
Just got around to finishing Fulgrim The Perfect Son. Took me a minute to get through for how bad it was.

>>24484836
As an amateur writer I know that urge to make you MC self insert fall into your fetish for fun.
Paran just getting into fatties for a book and then be done with it never stopped to be funny as fuck.

>>24486824
I don't like putting any of my fetishes in my books. It makes me feel naked.

>>24486856
You will never be as based as Chris Claremont, who stuffed his femdom fetishes all over the X-Men decades

>>24486857
I believe in the separation of art and goon

>>24486824
The Paran/Tattersail thing felt rushed and weird as fuck and then by the time of memories of Ice it’s even weirder and awkward with Silverfox

>>24486790
I won't ever understand asking for permission when you're anonymous. Why ask? Just do.

Other series with similar comfy atmosphere as Earthsea?

>>24483972 (OP)
What does /sffg/ think about Jed Herne?

>>24486933
Is that the youtuber who tries to tell people what to do or not to do when writing fantasy?

>>24486971
Yeah, I've noticed he's quite the bullshitter when it comes to his videos when he expressed clear favoritism for lame unoriginal magic systems which remind him of his childhood.

>>24486901
Comfy? When I was a kid the shadow creature hunting Sparrowhawk gave me nightmares

>>24486824
Well, Erikson and Esslemont played tabletops and then made Malazan, so I can see how Erikson didn't mind to have fun while writing Gardens of the Moon.
He probably didn't take it that serious at the very beginning.

>>24486883
I liked him and Sorrow in the Bonehunters.

>>24486790
no

>>24486790
Maybe.

>>24486901
The Tawny Man trilogy by Robin Hobb.

>>24486215
SF unfortunately had an expiration date. Just like the future itself.

>>24486620
I hate fix-ups so much.

>>24486790
I don't know

>>24486790
Where did you find the time to read 40,000 novels?

>>24487230
Problem with SF is it largely stopped being written by engineers.

>>24487387
So it became fun and intellectual.

verga de moro

>>24487449
Felipe Parecido Pito

>>24487236
I just wish they weren't so obvious about it.

I can appreciate the fact that making stories connect after the fact is harder than writing them that way in the first place, but they often miss basic shit

eg., people are talking about 40K and one of the most rec'd entries is Gaunt's Ghosts. But the first two books are fix-ups of stories he originally wrote serially, and because the cast is somewhat large he's constantly reintroducing characters. makes sense for a magazine, but he left those in the book. you get to hear why a character is named "Try Again" and that the major is a dick and the sniper is crazy and the colonel has a bushy beard, all as if it's the first time, over and over and over. psycho shit.

>>24487489
Larkin staying sane by just looking at the little world through his scope and closing everything else out is kino

This was fucking awful. It seemed like the author took a much less fantastical story and then slapped fantasy elements on it without much thought. Why does blood trickle down someone’s leg when they’re underwater? Why does a girl who grew up on a pirate ship in the 1700’s want to eat pizza? I’m tempted to try something from that Sarah Maas chick, since she’s a best seller, but I suspect it’s also retarded. Any good modern female fantasy writers?

>>24486660
You sold me on it.

>>24486761
same. Started as a kid getting a ps1 mega man legends disc. Then I found dying earth genre. I wonder why it's so prevalent among japanese games/anime.

>>24486729
>pisses me off
>I hate it
>It instantly takes me out of the book
Stop reading, then.

>>24486288
The series is about the journey, not the destination.

>>24486534
>>24486595
Matt is a faggot. Anyone who gives his opinion any credence is, himself, also a faggot.

>>24487620
>if you have any criticism of a book, you need to instantly disengage with it
Nice try Ruocchio, but you'll be getting a very strongly worded goodreads review whether you want it or not

New red rising book??

https://www.hazardbedlam.com/discord-1

>>24487645
Why are you wasting your time reading something you're clearly not enjoying?

>>24487651
This reads like retarded Reddit speak.

As shit as the writing is, the narration is so fucking good. God bless Steven Pacey

>>24487651
>more info on August
Wonder if we’ll get red god release date then

>>24483972 (OP)
This book is a gem written by an astrophysicist about the possibility of life in neutron stars, I was mindblown when I read it which means you'll be mindblown as well. There's a tad bit of theology too here and there which adds to the experience.

Oh no Darrow was a retard again...
Who could have guessed that somebody that was recently brutally tortured and referred to the common people as rats couldn't be trusted?

>>24487387
I think you're right on some level, but there's also a reason why classic SF is basically unreadable to people today. You REALLY had to like flat characters who were just mouthpieces for author's ideas and concepts.

>>24487387
I'm an engineer who hates his job so I'd rather write about the exact opposite: pastoral poetic fantasy. Sorry to disappoint.

>>24487664
I don't listen to audiobooks really, but they generally add to most books. You have to remember earliest human storytelling was oral. And narration was reveal just how well written the book is since it's just a massive version of "read your lines out loud to see how they flow".

>>24487652
You didn't hear this from me but it's actually pretty good most of the time

>>24487681
Another suggestion, pretty much anything Greg Egan writes is brilliant. This book is no exception and it's surprisingly relevant for the current time we live in. I wouldn't be surprised if we see a energy/computation based monetary system in this century.

I've been reading Wandering Inn and just got done with the witch arc, completely killed any will I had to continue reading this shit

Give me Science Fiction that explores how a realistic future human society could look. Not on a tech level, but societal structure and values.

>>24487664
I wish I could get into audiobooks but I just get too distracted and then I realise so much stuff has happened that I didn't even notice because I was watching a bird out the window or something

>>24487769
Brave New World
Stand on Zanzibar

>>24487765
which arc?

>>24486901
Has any author in the past three decades managed to capture that classic mythological "voice" in the way Le Guin and Tolkein did? Popular fantasy nowadays just doesn't have the same style.

>>24487769
and or any brave new world/orwell

>>24487809
>published in the US as Darkening Island
hahaha

>>24487664
it's because it was written with the express idea of being adapted. i don't even mean this in a cruel way - Abercrombie deserves it more than most - but it being a novel is almost incidental

>>24487795
not in the last three decades but this one may do the trick (Haven't read it yet, but it seems like a lost gem)

>>24487795
Le Guin also recommends Kenneth Morris

dying earth kino
the great prophecy for toppling the evil empire of wizards is shaping up to be finding and driving a working tank and that is epic as hell

>>24486592
> also the rapes. i don't really care about rape, but there are at least a dozen rapes or attempted rapes in the book
You will never be a woman.

>>24487917
well that's a relief, i enjoy putting my penis into my wife

when i'm not reading sff i'm playing VNs so i'm very familiar with rape. it can be hot or impactful when done right. this was not done right.

cnaiur chapters are uninteresting.

>>24487945
I enjoy putting my penis into your wife as well.

>>24487902
is Saberhagen's book of swords trilogy any good?

Is first or third person better? Especially with the new generation, there seems to be a shift more towards first lately.

>>24488371
I've never read it, but yes it is.

>>24488381
Third for me. I find first clunky for some reason

How high do we rate the spice level?

>>24484901
Should I read edan just because I find Philip Chase cute (not gay btw)

>>24488394
Is there anything that Isn't a SAGA or a CHRONICLE or CYCLE? Whatever happened to stand alone novels.

>>24488394
"Heechee" sounds like a word made up to critique made up scifi names

I have a plot device in what I'm working in that serves as a larger MacGuffin of sorts where people are endowed with powers that are referred to more so as curses that precondition them to certain machinations of fate that the people who are "cursed" have to deal with. Powers specific to one thing (one character gets nature like powers but they also have to take care of themselves like they're made out of soil). I feel like it worked a lot better in my head because as I try to put it into motion it falls apart.

Is there a good place that has fantasy book pdfs? I'm only missing the final book for a series I want to start, but the place I've been using doesn't have it.

>>24487795
Stefan Platteau, but i don't think any of his books have been translated to english.

>>24488492
why would you want pdfs instead of normal ebook files? They're just worse

>>24483972 (OP)
What would /sffg/ recommend me for a dark fantasy book? Here are some requirements as to avoid it being vague:
>mixing religion and mythology (but more of the eldritch, otherworldly, sacrificial type) for magic with modernity and modern science and medicine
>omniscient narration: simple omniscience is fine; however, the ideal would be something like the narrator is the God of the universe of sorts and other "gods" are either just old, conscious concepts, eldritch gods who have an at most partial understanding or fragments of either
>

>>24488459
Today, this series might have been published as a door stopper. Back then, books were shorter and a large story would be split across books. A publisher just wants people to know it's a series.

>>24487750
>Greg Egan
I really wish someone would post a real picture of this guy so he can stop acting like a smug bastard.

>>24488498
It could be either, the file format is irrelevant to me. The text being readable is all that matters.

>>24488519
then go to typical book piracy sites like libgen or anna's archive
all the links are here
https://open-slum.org/

>>24488514
I doubt this is even his real name, my guess is that he's an academic writing under a pseudonym.

>>24488545
Thanks, I was able to find it from there.

>>24488484
Maybe try to simplify it.

>>24488381
Third is better and will always be better. I don't care what publishers think zoomers want.

>>24488554
He's also published an academic article under that name.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10569-017-9803-7
Has his location and email as well. He's on social media, so it's not like he's hiding.

>>24488394
>>24488459
Please just ignore the sequels. Your life will be better and therefore longer.

>>24488863
Still an autist.

>>24487809
Funny that no one criticised him for such a racist novel in the days when he became famous.

>>24487681
baxter wrote a story about "life in neutron stars" decades ago, a book called Flux.
>>24487750
quarantine is another great egan novel.

>>24488917
I prefer Egan's short stories.

>>24488944
yeah i enjoyed his 'axiomatic' and 'luminous' collections
i read his orthogonal trilogy but it took me two attempts, much of it went above my head, and the ending was rushed

I'm 38 pages into Poul Anderson's Conan The Rebel and it's fucking awesome. What a great job at writing in Howard's style. Fuck yeah

>get into book series
>most of its art is fucking ass
>no one says anything
>someone makes AI art of a character that looks great
>"BOOOOOO AI SLOP!!!!"
No one would have to do this if the artists in the community weren't fucking awful

>>24489013
no art is better than bad art, and bad art is better than shit art
not hard

>>24487281
Can't tell if this is a joke?
Most 40k novels are only 250-300pgs. Usually read within a week.

>>24489040
Yep, there was a joke you didn't see. Too many bad books will do that to you, anon.

I clapped when Darrow met the Gamma helldiver from the first book in Dark Age.

Callback I didn't know I'd appreciate. Truth be told I forgot about that fucker.

>>24489040
>Can't tell if this is a joke?
:|

Which translation version of LoTM should I read, bros?
>Painful! How painful! My head hurts so badly!
or
>Ouch! It hurts so much! My head is killing me!
I downloaded both.

>>24487795
Does Tad Williams count?
Memory Sorrow and Thorn is a given, but his latest trilogy is very good at it as well.

>>24487664
Didn't Cameron acquire the rights to adapt it. I think if he would have directed it, it would have elevated the source material.

>>24489218
I guess Ouch! is from the recent Yen Press release? They only have that one volume out so far though so you'd have to go back to the Webnovel tl for the rest of it regardless.

>>24488456
It's okay to find him cute, anon. He's got that silver fox thing going.

>>24489024
and AI art is better than no art
Artists aren't entitled to be courtiers.

>>24489267
Use your imagination.

>>24487902
THE ELEPHANT
>>24488371
yes, very fun.

>>24489267
>and AI art is better than no art
No it's not.

>>24489013
Is it First Law? I haven't seen a single good piece of art of that

>>24489434
sounds more like red rising. All red rising art, minus one cassius one, looks terrible.

>>24489013
>>24489267
AI art is pointless because you can always do better just using your imagination, and if you dont have one, then you should develop it.

Art is about sharing whats in your imagination with other people, its pointless to generate images for yourself because you can always just do better in your mind, and to generate AI art just so other people can see it is literally pointless.

>>24487765
Why
I love my autistic witch wife Wiskeria

The Two Towers is the best Lord of the Rings book.

It's pure fantasy adventure kino.

>>24489561
based??

>>24486790
My personal favorites are:
Elemental Council
Alpharius: Head of the Hydra
The Emperor's Legion and Regent's Shadow
Master of Mankind
Shroud of Night

>>24487682
Orion was right

Thoughts on the Rifers series by Peter Watts? Currently on the second book, enjoying but a little sad he seems to have dropped the underwater theme.

Ever since I've taken psychedelic drugs my mental visualization during reading has improved. Would recommend.

>>24489226
Damn, that's a shame.
I read the first few chapters of both versions, and the new one is a lot less stiff IMO.

>>24489594
No. I’d rather not be a druggie degenerate

>>24485689
I didn't even try, I just came straight to the thread to make someone else do it for me.

>>24488863
>>He's also published an academic article under that name.
You do know academics and researchers can still publish under a pseudonym, right?

>What did you read last?
The Old Testament
>What are you reading?
The New Testament
>What will you read next?
The Book of the New Sun

>>24489267
>and AI art is better than no art
you fundamentally don't understand art then. which is fine, a lot of people don't, it's just unusual to find you in a topic about art
think about your favorite series that was either left unfinished (like ASOIAF) or ended poorly. would you instead read AI versions of those books?

>>24489863
No

>>24489013
AI "artists" need to be publicly executed for shitting up my search results.

>>24488917
>Baxter
I have Raft in my to-read list. I hope it's good, these British space operas usually disappoint me.

>>24489421
The worst AI art is better than whatever the fuck this is
>>24489434
>>24489497
it is red rising

>>24489863
Ai art =/= ai writing

>>24489902
i think there just needs to be a way to filter the shit

>>24489905
Raft is a standalone story and while technically part of it, it does not even take place within the main universe of the Xeelee Sequence. If you want to start with Xeelee read Vacuum Diagrams and if you want more then start with Timelike Infinity -> Ring -> go from there.

>>24489560
The witches were alright, but the whole thing went on for too long. A town with couple thousand citizens don't even try to kill the drake seems dumb, and the last twist felt very cheap. The whole arc felt kind of cheap and convenient from a writing perspective. A lot of the characters didn't really seem like themselves

>>24489936
Bayne?

>>24489921
>it does not even take place within the main universe of the Xeelee
Thanks for the info. Maybe it's better this way.

>>24489918
they're identical in every way. objectively so.

>>24489919
This will never happen. Teachers already have problems with students writing essays with an AI while students who submit real essays get accused of using an AI because of teachers using an AI to filter out non-AI. This clownfest will continue and society will continue do walk into the AI apocalypose where nothing is real and everything is fake.

>>24489956
It's literally an alternate universe with something like x100 gravity and the story revolves around living in that 'verse. A huge plot point of the Xeelee Sequence includes the Xeelee building a gigantic ring for them + other species to escape into other universes. Just start with Vacuum Diagrams. It's a collection of short stories.

>>24489936
someone should make an AI art cover for this to show that AI art can still be better than shitty art

>>24489972
Teachers that design lesson plans cater to AI because they're shit teachers

Give an a.i. data, quotes, etc and it'll fumble their response every time. The key is
"Based on this specific quote" how does x reflect the data given?

>>24489586
I only read the first book. It was good but I feel like it said everything it had to say, so I never felt compelled to pick up the sequels.

>>24490013
Nobody cared about the cover until the newer 3D renders.

>>24490013
they can't because that's an impossible ask

Wait, so the meteor shower just randomly happened for no reason?
That's some terrible timing

>>24489973
>some years ago
>Margaret Atwood disses on SF again, says that it's about talking whales in space and such
>Stephen Baxter includes one in his Xeelee series
Thanks Margie!

>>24490128
Wyndham is so overrated.

>>24490144
>talking whales in space
I instantly thought of Hitchhiker's Guide and the whale who fell to his death
>Hello, ground!

>>24490166
Adams also rejected the science fiction genre. He said the Hitchhiker series was comedy that happened to use SF tropes.

>>24489946
Mr Bayne, I am SWORD.

>>24490166
hitchhiker isn't the best example.

>>24486194
nine princes in amber. the first book is really good but i'd probably skip the rest

Any books for the BLAME! feel

>>24489379
>>24489537
It doesn't surprise me this board doesn't understand economics outside those who post about Hoppe and Rothbard.

>>24489863
>think about your favorite series that was either left unfinished (like ASOIAF) or ended poorly. would you instead read AI versions of those books?
I'm on the side of stuff with a good value/price ratio. As of right now, AI art can be made in a performant way when it comes to simple stuff, whereas the more complex art that requires correct fine details should be left to the human artist.
AI doesn't replace the artists who are already courtiers, but it does refuse to feed into the delusions of the simple-minded.

>>24489421
It absolutely is. The right question to ask ourselves is not whether not or AI art should be used, but if it shouldn't be used in some minority of circumstances at most.

>>24490259
Short term personal profit is the highest good. - Modern Economic Thought

>The grizzled horseman's scowl remained unchanged as he glared at Duiker. After a moment he shook his head and swelled his chest.
>"I remember an unarmed man. The lack of weapons in his hands turned my lance at the last moment. I remember Dujek's sword that stole my beauty even as my horse bit his arm crushing bone. I remember that Dujek lost that arm to the surgeons, fouled as it was with my horse's breath. Between us, I lost the exchange, for the loss of an arm did nothing to damage Dujek's glorious career, while the loss of my beauty left me with but the one wife that I already had."
>"And was she not your sister, Bult?"
>"She was, Coltaine. And blind."
>Both Wickans fell silent, the one frowning and the other scowling.
Fucking lmao. This whole exchange took me completely off guard.

>>24483976
If you could still manually add books on Goodreads I would add this separate from the magazine itself.

>>24485582
Is this series worth reading past morningstar? I tend to disregard anything written after what seems like a tidy conclusion to the original story.

>>24490258
>Great Sky River by Gregory Albert Benford (Cibo)
>Feersum Endjin by Ian Banks (Netsphere)
>Busou Shimada Souko and Ad-Bird by Shiina, Matoko (Garbage storage, Tetsu, Zulu)
>Dead boys and Dead Girls by Richard Calder (Ivy and Maeve)
>Kirinyaga by Mike Resnick (Mensaab)
>Greg Bear's New Collection by Gregory Dale Bear
>Permutation City by Greg Egan
>Hyperion, The Fall of Hyperion, Endymion, and The Rise of Endymion by Dan Simmons
>Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive, and Burning Chrome by William Gibson
>Steel Beach, The Ophiuchi Hotline, Millenium, Titan, Wizard, The Persistence of Vision, Blue Champagne, and The Barbie Murders(Picnic on Nearside) by John Varley
>Billenium by James Graham Ballard

>>24490360
>Feersum Endjinn by Ian Banks
His best SF novel. Not only for being short but for proving he could do something better than boring space operas.

>>24490259
you ok, anon?

>>24490259
>AI doesn't replace the artists who are already courtiers, but it does refuse to feed into the delusions of the simple-minded
Probably the most defining feature of AI is that it 100% feeds into the delusions of the simple minded. Also lmao at "courtiers", what's with the cohort of people that have a chip on their shoulder over artists?

I still don't get the appeal

>>24489933
Yeah that's fair
>A lot of the characters didn't really seem like themselves
I felt the same way when I read it too, funnily enough with Wiskeria being the worst offender

>>24490259
>It absolutely is.
No it's not.

>>24490446
It's a bunch of retarded children who can't draw stick figures getting upset that someone told them they can't cheat it.

>>24488098
YOU are uninteresting

Why do people say Red Rising is young adult when I just read about Darrow being seconds away from being gang raped and having his dick cut off and fed to him? It was pretty fucked up. Don't remember stuff quite that graphic on young adult shit I read when I was a kid.

>>24490527
It's alright background noise, you can completely zone out for minutes at a time and still have a good idea of what is going on.

>>24490669
YA is now NA and for millennials who are used to having their dicks cut off

>>24489405
adding it to my bucket list then

>>24490669
YA isn't about being le edgy/sex/swearing
it's about complexity and prose. Simplify prose and you get YA. Take Harry potter or the tripod trilogy for example. Both good for the reason that it's easier to digest for smaller minds. This is why women love harry potter and romanceslop. Bakker is not adult because of his edginess. He is adult because of his above average complex philosophy and prose. More so with something like gene wolfe. You think 14 year olds are reading that? Red Rising is YA because of its simple prose. Jack Vance's Dragon Masters, though lowbrow sci fi world of 80s style laser dinosaurs, is not YA because of its complexity in story and prose.

>>24490695
Where's my review wigger? Promises were made

>>24488982
Update: it was fucking good. Knocked it out in like 3 or 4 hours. Wish Poul Anderson would have wrote more Conan. He comes closest to Howard's style that so many have tried to emulate.

>>24490736
I admire you willingness to spoon feed information to someone who has already displayed they are too retarded to understand such a simple concept. You ole' masochist, you.

>>24490527
Adding nothing new to the discussion. Just wanted to reiterate that I have read for a minimum of 1 hours a day for 21 years and this is hands down the worst book I've ever tried to read. I understand everyone likes what they like but I also feel that people who like these books are huge weiner lovers.

>>24490736
>lowbrow sci fi world of 80s style laser dinosaurs
you have my attention

>>24490992
If you ever find these dinosaur laser books, let me know. I too, would like to read about men riding laser weidling saurians into battle.

Characters for my dinosaur laser wars book

Shen - Samurai Armor, laser whip ring like in Johnny Mnemonic. He has a glaive as his weapon.
Carl's Saurian Mount - Ankylosaurus with a steel cased tail club. his head armor has 3 energy weapon mounting points. Currently has medium pulse lasers attached.

Ok someone make the next character/mount combo. We need four in total.

>>24490672
so you don't "read" this series?

>>24490736
finally, a non retarded post in /sffg/

>>24483972 (OP)
>What were your biggest surprise series continuations you thought were definitely finished or left for dead?
Daniel Keys Moran's Tales of the Continuing Time series had its last book in the fucking 90s.
Most recent book came out in 2023 apparently.

>>24490527
The characterization.

>>24490691
YA/NA readers are overwhelmingly female (women) who have long hit the wall

>>24490446
>what's with the cohort of people that have a chip on their shoulder over artists? Personally I just found every time I had to work with them incredibly foul.
Only pilots have as much of a superiority complex, only terminal stoners are as unreliable and only line cooks have as many poorly resolved mental issues.
I don't think they should be replaced but I won't fault anyone who thinks otherwise because they're the second worst aspect of any creative endeavor after the CEO.

I'm reading Forging the Darksword and the mc's adopted mother is a hot femcel who hates men that likes to walk barefoot, that is all.

>fall into a book hole
>try reading some short, dirty, power fantasy self insert trash to tide me over
>end up just wishing I was reading an actual well written novel
>try reading an acclaimed series and just wish I was reading something fun and simple
>end up reading nothing

>>24490669
Wasnt The Hunger Games an American version of Battle Royale? I dont know how graphic it was but it had kids fighting to the death, right?

>>24491272
The Hunger Games author said she never heard of Battle Royale and it had literally nothing to do with it.

>>24489969
it don't care if a drawing has soul or not so long as it looks good. meanwhile a story without soul loses every single bit of its appeal. It ruins the rest like a cancer.

>>24490344
It absolutely is. I'd even say that the "sequel" books are better.

>>24490672
>listening to books

>>24490736
From Iron Gold on, Pierce's prose has actually gotten much better and is quite good. The only thing working against it is the present tense shit. But you cannot put it in the same category as shit like Harry Potter and Hunger Games.

>>24491327
Audio is the perfect medium for genre fiction. You can clock in several hours a day while completing mundane tasks.

>>24491341
There's just no way you're enjoying that.

>>24490880
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bv_s6CuFZBQ

>>24491272
Other than both being about a death game they have very few similarities, and it's not like Battle Royale invented death games.

>>24491392
jokes aside, I'll finish it by next thread

>>24490990
Thank you for your review.

>>24491405
Thanks, friend.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGKNaIXtBZQ

What does GRI mean?

>>24491247
read the jeruselum man trilogy. You're welcome.

>>24491578
>>24491625
samefag
don't try to revive this dead forced maymay

>>24491629
Nay sir, you're mistaken. I am but a humble spoonfeeder of the wretchedly ignorant and oblivious, both new and old.

>>24491629
wasn't me.

>>24491639
>>24491653
>nobody mentioned GRI before these posts
Genuine. I believe you.

>>24491666
I did three months ago. Nobody answered.

Is it just me or does pedophila come up a lot in Glen Cook's books?

>>24491709
><12
>omg this is disgusting and awful
what poor reading comprehension. are you american? funny thing is how 12 year olds are developed like 16+ nowadays

>>24489218
>>24489226
>chinese webnovel
>protag is completely out of his depth and in a strange situation
>immediately default to pretend being a powerful and mysterious master of whatever
who the fuck reads this shit?

>>24489847
basado

>>24491603
Another Brit who wants to be American.

>>24491731
xianxia is funny that way. too bad LotM is cheap isekai instead!

>>24491736
Can't blame him.

>>24491755
>People have no rights in the USA
I can.

>>24491825
I can criticize my government without going to jail, Brits can't.

>>24491737
I love the absurdity of this shit.

2025 in The United Kingdom
>The police are making more than 30 arrests a day over offensive posts on social media and other platforms.

>Custody data shows that officers are making about 12,000 arrests a year under section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988.

>>24491724
Except for their brains. They're all dumb and easy to take advantage of by people too cowardly to engage with someone their own age.

>>24490527
Anti-corpo ludo with great characters and worldbuilding

>>24491852
>>24491941
>t.

>>24490990
The series has the MC go sans pants and shoes because of the AI's fetish. I'd be surprised if there aren't any cock lovers in the famdom, closeted or otherwise.

>>24492340
If you take the feet thing seriously and not as the joke it's ment to be then yeah , u gay....

...or you know the lore implications with Scolopendra loving killing things with their thousands of insect legs.

>>24490527
>Princess Donut
XD EPIC

>>24492511
I bet you name your pets "Bob" and "Stacy" , loser

>>24492511
This. A book made by and made for Redditors.

>>24492417
I understand its attempts at humor.
I simply do not find them entertaining

>>24492608
>this isn't funny
>IT MUST BE GAY THEN

>>24492636
When your humor involves making the MC barefoot in his undies to the point where there's a "joke" about him stepping on things, yeah, I do wonder.

>>24491709
it was different times
fantasy writers used fantasy to fullfill their dreams on paper and got some pocket money, readers werent onions to be touchy about the sex

>>24491724
>could not have been more than 12

Running gag, or the writer's fetish, call it.

>>24490527
I still don't get the appeal and I am going to respond in bad faith to everybody who replies.

>>24490990
Have you tried He Who Fights with Monsters ?

>>24492703
There is no appeal. Nobody has actually read them.

>>24490527
Number goes up.
Earth humans get revenge on an intergalactic civilization by fucking their shit up.
Number goes up again.
Looking forward to you making the same shitpost in the next thread.

>>24492711
>>24492722
Simply epic.

Guys I'm really liking the cradle series. Is that okay?

New thread:
>>24492743

>>24492741
Yes. What's not ok is your need for seeking approval from anonymous posters.

>>24492745
Uoh don't touch my penis desu.

>>24492741
Goes to shit after Underlord.

>>24492751
wdym by goes to shit?

>>24492722
>Number goes up.
honestly people underrate the "number go up" dopamine phenomena when garbage like Solo Leveling is considered the zenith of Korean comics. I couldn't keep my eyes off that garbage.

>>24491852
>>24491941
You cannot criticize your Israeli masters though.

>>24492920
We can, actually.

>>24491709
Besides that and old man paedo in The Silver Spike, I can't think of any

>>24492965
Heh, see you in jail for antisemitism.