(no subject)

[wellinghall]

[Poll #1181318]

Comments

[king-pellinor.livejournal.com]

I interpret "Fan of" weakly, meaning just "like their writings".

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

That's vaguely what I had intended. I don't expect you to queue all night to get first place in a signing queue, or collect locks of their hair, or anything.

[emily-shore.livejournal.com]

Modern SFF books that have been popular with Taruithorn and OUSFG:

"The Lies of Locke Lamora" Scott Lynch
"Perdido Street Station" China Mieville
"Revelation Space" Alastair Reynolds
"Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell" Susannah Clarke

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Thanks for those. I've tried the fourth, and couldn't really get into it; I haven't tried the others. I'll look out for them.

[king-pellinor.livejournal.com]

Try Fritz Leiber and Robert Howard, too. Good fun fantasy stuff.

You can sample them at Wightfrag, if you like.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

I've moderately enjoyed the bits of FL that I've read. I don't think I've ever tried RH, though.

[king-pellinor.livejournal.com]

Robert Rankin, too. At least his early ones, the first few of the Brentford Trilogy, for example.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Not tried him either.

[colinbj.livejournal.com]

Joe Haldeman's new 'The Accidental Time Machine' is IMHO pretty good.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

I hadn't come across that - thanks.

[bunn.livejournal.com]

I also wasn't sure about 'fan of'. Of the list, probably JRRT is the only one I am 'fan of' although I own all the detective works of DLS and have read them more than once, and likewise, I think I have all the fantasy works of Pratchett and have read them more than once. But I am not sure 'fan of' is quite the word for that.

After that, I have read and enjoyed some books by CS Lewis, Lois McMaster Bujold, Larry Niven, Asimov, Heinlein, Novik and Davis, but have not read everything by them and don't automatically buy everything they bring out.

If you like Lindsey Davis, you might try David Wishart's Corvinus series of Roman whodunnits. And if you like those, you'll probably like I Claudius, only you've probably read that...

I recommended Diana Wynne Jones, again, dunno if you've read her stuff anyway, but if not, then Deep Secret might be a good place to start for you, it's a fantasy book set at a science fiction* convention...

* unless you want to read it as a science fiction book set at a fantasy fiction convention, which you could do.

I can't remember if you've read any Ursula Le Guin, but if you haven't, you should. I believe the world would be a better place if everyone read some ULG.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Some ULG I enjoy a lot, some not so much - but it is a while since I've read anything new by her.

I've read Deep Secret, but not much else by DWJ - I'm sure Creatrix has some somewhere.

[bookwormsarah.livejournal.com]

If you like detective fiction with a current setting, try Peter Robinson. I started reading them a year ago and the most recent is amazing, but only if you've read the earlier ones. I also like Sue Grafton, Sara Paretsky and Val McDermid, and have recently started reading Rebus. More into detectives than SciFi/Fantasy...

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

I've moderately enjoyed the couple of Rebus novels I've read, but no more than that. Vaguely heard of SP, but not the others. I'll look out for them.

Bugger. I cannot believe that I left off -

[wemyss.livejournal.com]

- Harold Lamb, currently being reprinted.

Also, if Falco, why not Judge Dee (Robt v Gulik)?

Re: Bugger. I cannot believe that I left off -

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Ta

[tree_and_leaf]

CJ Samson's reformation-era crime novels? Lots of skullduggery and interesting methods of murder...

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Sounds interesting.

[the-marquis.livejournal.com]

Some people I'd suggest have already been mentioned (Rankin & Leiber), DWJ is very good and there are some good intro ones that don't require previous novels - Howl's Moving Castle is good. Na'Lon and Jane_Somebody are big fans.

I didn't tick Heinlein and Clarke as I have read much of their stuff.

Have you considered the Mars novels by the chap who wrote Tarzan? Or if you like humour and a good plot Jasper Fforde and Tom Holt do some very good books

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Never actually read any ERB. Fforde I don't like, Holt so-so.

[philmophlegm.livejournal.com]

Current fantasy worth checking out:
George R.R. Martin's 'Song of Ice and Fire' series
Joe Abercrombie's 'Book of the First Law' series

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Thanks for those.

[chris-maslen.livejournal.com]

I'll second both Vernor Vinge (no one writes such alien aliens) and Neil Gaiman (the Sandman graphic novels are particularly good).

Iain M Banks is just the god of modern british Sci-Fi.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Thanks for those. I've recently tried bits of Gaiman, with some success.

How are you feeling now, BTW?

[tovaglia.livejournal.com]

OK this is not technically fantasy or SF but one of my favourite books: Austerlitz by WG Sebald. You might enjoy it, or you might hate it, but it's different, anyway.

[wellinghall.livejournal.com]

Thanks - I'll look out for it.

[enismirdal.livejournal.com]

I'm not going to suggest anything since my current method of choosing fantasy is "look for the cheesiest and most cliched plot summary on the blurb you can find", and that appears to be what I like best. And I don't really read SciFi at all any more.

I'm currently reading James Barclay's Raven series and absolutely love it, but since even I can see flaws in the writing, I suspect it wouldn't suit more discerning readers!

[lynn-maudlin.livejournal.com]

I recommend Tim Powers and Connie Willis; I enjoy (to various degrees of course) everything both of them have published.

I'm not reading as much SF as I used to... reading too many other things these days. A lot of nonfiction, *sigh*...

[phoebesmum.livejournal.com]

I'm assuming those aren't the only writers you've ever read and enjoyed, so you probably already know everyone I might suggest. But anyway ... Guy Gavriel Kay, Ursula LeGuin, Diana Wynne Jones, Joan D Vinge, Patricia A McKillip, C J Cherryh; and, on the crime front, Barbara Vine/Ruth Rendell, Josephine Tey, Elizabeth Peters/Barbara Michaels, Hilda Lawrence ... I could go on, and oftentimes do.

[mrkinch.livejournal.com]

My definition of fan is very broad. Just mentioned that for a difference.*g*

[emperor]

Read Tim Powers.