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Question

I'm interested in fiction only. I'm not one for military stories, and I think romance is alright (but i'll try it, if you have one.) I enjoy mystery, fantasy, sci fi, and horror.

Also, if you could give a short summary of it without giving away clues or the ending that would be helpful.

Answer 1

Robert Jordan's WHEEL OF TIME series is very good, aside from the plot getting bogged down in details around the fifth or sixth book. Even then, it's still kind of fun. Some of these books are about as long as publishers can handle in a mass market paperback.

Robin Hobb wrote a nine-book series that is composed of three trilogies: FARSEER, LIVESHIP TRADERS, and TAWNY MAN. Each of the nine books is rather long, but they are also very good.

David Eddings did well with Belgariad and Malloreon, both pentologies with medium sized books, and with the post-written prequels about Belgarath and Polgara.

If you like short books, try Steven Brust's "Vlad Taltos" series. It's pretty good.

Raymond E. Feist's books set in Midkemia, beginning with the Riftwar series, are super good. The books are of medium length, and there are about 20 of them so far published.

If you're a teenager, you might enjoy the books in the DRAGONLANCE universe. Older readers usually don't get a lot out of them, unless they had previously read them as a teenager. I read "The Dragonlance Chronicles" and judged the effort to have been a waste of time. But that doesn't mean you won't like the books better than I did.

Also mainly for teenagers, but good even for older people, are the FORGOTTEN REALMS books by Ed Greenwood and R.A. Salvatore.

I hesitate to recommend Guy Gavriel Kay. He's highly praised by in reviews by some big-name fantasy authors; however, I'm reading THE FIONAVAR TAPESTRY right now, and Kay does not seem to live up to his billing. Maybe his other work will be better; I dunno.

Another series that I found to be okay, though not as good as it's said to be, is C.S. Lewis' CHRONICLES OF NARNIA. There's nothing particularly wrong with it, other than being aimed apparently at teenage readers, but it's not first-rank stuff, either, despite some people's apparent effort to talk it into classic status.

I liked L.E. Modesitt's RECLUCE SAGA series. Thirteen books in all; each of them is medium-long. Try "The Magic of Recluce" to see if you like his stuff.

If you want a blend of fantasy and horror, try Barbara Hambly's DARWATH series, the first book of which is "Time of the Dark." Hambly's pretty good.

J.R.R. Tolkien is good, of course. The best standalone novel ever written is still "The Hobbit," though LOTR has been surpassed as a series by several others, in my opinion.

I used to like Andre Norton's science fiction, but I haven't read any of it since I was a boy, and so I don't know if the grown up me will like her books as much as the younger me did. I used to read Asimov and Heinlein to try to catch them making mistakes with their physics.

Asimov could write a nice, complex tale, but you sort of had to like complexity... Liking Asimov takes about the same taste as it takes to like mystery stories.

Heinlein seems to have enjoyed challenging conventional social norms in his stories. My high school librarian called him a dirty old man, but he wasn't always so. At his best, Heinlein had no equal as a science fiction writer. The problem is, he didn't always do his best. A few of his books are actually dull, or, rather, they're average for the genre, which is to say they're dull compared to his better stuff. My favorite Heinlein books are "The Rolling Stones" and "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress."

Clifford Simak is a great writer of science fiction standalone novels. His most fun book to read is THE GOBLIN RESERVATION. My next favorite of his is PROJECT POPE.

I've read all of the above. I haven't yet read, but plan to read, certain other series that have been recommended highly. (These are the names of the series, not the names of the books in the series!)

SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, by George R.R. Martin.
THE PRINCE OF NOTHING, by R. Scott Bakker.
EARTH'S CHILDREN, by Jean M. Auel.
BLACK JEWELS, by Anne Bishop.
DARKOVER, by Marion Zimmer Bradley.
THE VORKOSIGAN ADVENTURE, by Lois McMaster Bujold.
KUSHIEL'S LEGACY, by Jacqueline Carey.
THE BLACK COMPANY, by Glen Cook - note that this is a military fantasy series.
THOMAS COVENANT, by Stephen R. Donaldson.
CROWN OF STARS, by Kate Elliott.
DEVERRY, by Katharine Kerr.
MALAZAN BOOK OF THE FALLEN, by Steven Erikson.
SWORD OF SHADOWS and THE BOOK OF WORDS, by J.V. Jones.

There's lots more series that I've heard about, but I'm tired of writing.

Answer 2

Jenab6 listed quite a lot, but I want to mention a few.

Just for a new experience (it fts into fantasy, perhaps, or maybe ghost stories), you might try Kitchen, by Banana Yoshimoto.

The Vorkosigan novels by Lois McMaster Bujold are, quite possibly, the greatest Space Opera ever written. The first two novels in that series, Shards of Honor and Barrayar, are incredibly well written page turners. They are thoughtful, exciting, and hard to put down. Ms. Bujold won 4 Hugo awards with these novels, equaling the awards of Robert Heinlein, the only other Author to be so honored.

I grew up liking Heinlein, Asimov, and Clarke. Of the three, Clarke is the most poetic Writer, and his "2001 - A Space Odyssey" is a well written treat. You might try it.

Asimov is the easiest to read, with a smooth rhetorical stance and easy prose. He is also the most thoughtful of the three, and his Robot novels, his Foundation series, and his early stories anticipated much of modern Science Fiction. If the Foundation Trilogy looks daunting, pick up Caves of Steel, or especially good, The Currents of Space.

Heinlein is the true novelist of the Group. But he is also a true believer, and put a lot of politics into his books. If you want to try some really great reads, you might check out:

Farmer in the Sky
Tunnel in the Sky
Time for the Stars
Citizen of the Galaxy
Podkayne of Mars
The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

These are all great yarns, and deal with things we all face, and overcome, if we survive to adulthood. The libertarian streak is strong in them, but they do present life and its messy conundrums in interesting ways. Especially Tunnel in the Sky, what do you really do when civilization returns?

Good Luck, Good Reading, and good hunting.

Answer 3

Here's a recap of my latest novel, a sci-fi adventure:
"Pusuit of the Phoenix"
Avery Bergman has somehow lived to be 150 years old and lies dying in a holler in rural West Virginia. As his family awaits his passing and left alone for only a few minutes, he amazingly vanishes into the winter night. Meanwhile, in New York, four wealthy, elderly men meet to play poker every Thursday. They call themselves the December Club. Days later, Bergman reappears in a younger body. As rumors of the miraculous transformation reach New York, the ruthless men decide that this mysterious man holds the key to the fountain of youth. With all the money and resources at their disposal, they attempt to snare the man they nickname the “Phoenix.” A cross-country adventure unfolds as he attempts to elude the Club’s detective. Then finally, with nowhere left to hide, the Phoenix is forced to take a defiant stand against the aging millionaires.
It's on amazon at: http://www.amazon.com

Answer 4

My Starchild novel won't be ready for 2 more years.

E-book release for this 1,281 page novel is slated for January 16th, 2009. The limited print version won't be available until 2010-2011.

But this adult fiction novel should satiate all your needs as reader of fantasy and sci-fi.

It's been a 10 year love affair for me to get this book done right, and I've enjoyed every minute of it! lol

Answer 5

My son recently wrote and published a book, "The Demon Within" under a pen-name. It is a short spy-assassin thriller about a woman who travels around the world killing those who have harmed her and her family. Personally, I only read Science Fiction and Fantasy. I hope his next book is one of either category.

Answer 6

Twighlight by Stephenie Meyer!

Bella Swan is a high school girl who recently moved to Forks, Washington. There she meets a group of people with supernatural beauty, pale skin and a taste for blood...

Answer 7

A Riddle of Roses. Its about a girl who goes on a quest to become a bard. I really liked it.