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A Song of Ice and Fire / Other Topics / Recommended Reading III

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Oder
User ID: 9070813 Aug 17th 2:40 PM
Well this is the third one after what Ran posted.

Ran:
Hey Thanks for informing me which book to read. I read Song Of Arabbone (I forgot the spelling)and I really enjoyed it. Currently I am reading Tigana and borrowed Lions of Alrassan from the library.
Say In LOA who the heck is the main character and main villain? Is it Ammar or Ser Rodrigo???

Well since you found the great book for me I hope you or anybody now help me find other book for my desire:

1) once again NO "cross overs"

2) again MEDIVAL, more knights!!

3) NO Matriarch world!!!! (very important)

4) Warfare

5) Balanced (which means Magic power has to be = with physical strength) Cause I really hate to see Too many magicians have power over the knights

6)some quest is good (like some knight goes on quest to look for other knights or magicians to make him/her join their liege)

optional: well here I like three types on this. One is that main character is a noble birth (leader of some army or sort) or great fighter, one is fighter who serves lord then becomes important character and last is that nobody (peasant or sort) becomes powerful.

Once again I am asking alot but you and other fellow readers know fantasy book more than I do (well cause I began to read Fantasy books since 1998)

I would recommand:
in return I recommand anybody this book. If anybody likes sword-obsessed and is Asian epics, I recommand to read MUSASHI. it is epic story in Japan where swords men meet each other and dice each other. But I say that here there is no warfare (but samurai and ronin meet each other and becomes either frineds or enemies) But quest. It is really good book. and this is more realistic (which means 0% MAGIC and 45% romance 15% sex).

Finally So far I read these books all my life (fantasy ones):

Peter Telep's squire series

ASOIF (so obvious)by Martin

SImon Hawke's Iron throne

Kate Elliott's Crown star series

Kay's Song of Arabonne

and MUSASHI (i forgot the author)

Ran
User ID: 0283314 Aug 17th 4:26 PM
Glad you liked Kay, Oder. :)

In Lions ... well, the main characters are Rodrigo, Ammar, Jehane, and Alvar. Are there any villains? Well ...

That's the beauty of Lions. Unlike _A Song for Arbonne_, _Tigana_, The Fionavar Tapestry, and even _Sailing to Sarantium_ .... there really isn't a villain. I suppose an argument can be made for Amalik to be one, but he's trying to be a king and doing what a king does. Certainly, he has a distinctly medieval view of how people should be used (which isn't tolerably well), but you have to accept him by his standards. After all, Rodrigo admits that he's done terrible things in his martial career -- but he is most certainly not evil.

Or perhaps Yazir and the deseert tribesmen -- unrefined, cruel, zealots. And yet even Ammar speaks eloquently that there's something to be said for uncultured directness and honest. Al-Rassan will teach them the finer things. So ... they may not be nice to us, but they have their own standards. They're intolerant, but in some things they might be in the right.

So ... no real villain, unless it's war itself.

Really beautiful work.

Ser Gary
User ID: 9279843 Aug 17th 6:22 PM
I have a confession to make: I'm branching out. I just finished a historical fiction book entitled The Snowblind Moon, by John Byrne Cooke. It's set in the western U.S. of 1875, when the government was launching its campaign against the Sioux and Cheyenne nations. Cooke presents the various perspectives on the upcoming war. The campaign itself is disgusting, but this is an intelligent account of the events leading up to the demise of these peoples' pure and selfless way of life. I was enthralled and, in the end, enlightened. Great book!!!

Zelticar
User ID: 9328513 Aug 17th 10:04 PM
I am recently engaged so i am trying to save money and reread some books I already read. I am reading The Seer trilogy by Chris Bunch - The Seer King, The Demon King, and The Warrior King. Great series full of warfare, sex and fast paced. I highly recomend it and if anyone has read it I would like to hear some thoughts and opinions...
I like it even better the second time around.

Ser Benjen
User ID: 1195644 Aug 18th 7:10 AM
Ser Gary, I'm about 150 pages into Otherland II. It's got some serious momentum now. Have you found it yet?

Claidhaim
User ID: 9544623 Aug 18th 8:56 AM
I would just like to echo a recommendation from the last thread, and that is "Gates of Fire" by Pressfield. His other book was about golf and was truly a terrible piece of work, but this one is absolutely fantastic. You would probably like it Oder, along with the Arthurian trilogy by Bernard Cornwell.

Mike, since you asked for more recommendation from other genres than SF/F, I will give you some. Just let me know what you may be interested in, and I can probably come up with three or four good books. I read all kinds of stuff from magic flinging crap to "shoot 'em up, BANG" books to great pieces of classic literature. Just give me an idea.

Ser Gary
User ID: 8068153 Aug 18th 10:47 AM
Ser Benjen, I've got Otherland II and it's next on my reading list. I expect to get underway this weekend. We should discuss it later via e-mail.

Dirjj
User ID: 9990163 Aug 18th 2:19 PM
Well, Oder, I'm not about to go look up all the other posts to see if these are here, but if you want a good fight, quest, story, and no minimall chicks, here's the tales for you:

1. Sword of Shannara - Terry Brooks
2. Elfstones of Shannara - Terry Brooks
3. Riftwar Saga - Raymond Feist
4. Memory, Sorrow, & Thorn trilogy - Tad Williams

I know there's more that I've read, but I don't have my notes with me.

ab

Oder
User ID: 1028194 Aug 18th 2:29 PM

Ser Gary:

hmm bernard Cornwell. Well. I read something about him... It was when Cornwell wrote something bad about queen guenaviere (HECK I don't know the spelling on her) and lancelot and that story is told by one of former lord who served aruthor.

NOte: I don't like someone keepsaying "I" this and I that. cause that story kept saying "I knew that my lord author loves Quanavere" it sound like I am listening from him and it sort of ruins my imagination.

In matter of fact I read some part in library but it ruined my imagination and I put the book away. I like Authorian legends but can you find me which people don't tell story by monologue (which means NO I this and I that.

I don't know which kinds of book any of you like but I like the things kept in medival ages. Also I really I mean REALLY hate "cross overs" where medival guys carry around laser gun and zap each other! it just don't make sense and I am not a Science fiction kind of guy (I call it Nerd's fiction)

Ran:
well you are right about it. what good is great military leader if he had not done things so horrible? I mean the very thing made him great war leader (i did not read this yet but some).

Telisiane
User ID: 2233684 Aug 18th 3:01 PM
Here's what I do to find new authors/new books:

I find the latest "Year's Best Fantasy/Horror Short Stories Anthology" (Ellen Datlow/Terri Windling) and read the introductions in a nice comfy chair at the local Barnes & Noble. The editors provide a nice rundown of the best fantasy and horror novels of the year by category, which I use to select the books that I end up buying. (I've actually purchased a few of the anthologies too, but there are SO many stories!)

This is how I found AGOT, which Datlow/Windling recommended highly. Somehow Robert Jordan never seems to make their list. ;0)

They also lead me to J. Gregory Keyes, Sean Russell, Sean Stewart, and Robin Hobb.

One series I haven't seen discussed here is Donaldson's "Mirror of her Dreams" books (only 2), which I liked a lot. I really hated the Covenant stuff and didn't make it through the first book, but liked this series a lot.

If you like fairy-tale-type fantasy, Robin McKinley writes some wonderful stuff.Her young adult book "The Blue Sword" is a favorite of mine.

I also wholeheartedly support recommendations for Robin Hobb, Guy Gavriel Kay (esp. Lions), Tad Williams, and Dan Simmons. And I loved the "Daughter of the Empire" series by Warts/Feist, but dislike the stuff they do on their own.

And does anyone besides me like Stephen King's Dark Tower books?

Jeff
User ID: 0227464 Aug 18th 3:32 PM
Claidhaim, ever read the Hammer and the Cross, by Harry Harrison? Its an alternative history set in England during the viking invasions of the mid 9th century. I though it was extremely well done with a great sense of authenticity.

Telisiane, I liked the Dark Tower books but the reappearence of "Randall Flagg" was a _huge_ turnoff for me.

Ser Gary
User ID: 8068153 Aug 18th 3:33 PM
Oder, where did you get this Bernard Cornwell stuff? That isn't the name I gave as the author of my western. It was John Byrne Cooke. Who is Bernard Cornwell anyway?

Carol
User ID: 9405543 Aug 18th 5:31 PM
Oder, Raymond Feist's "Riftwar Saga" fits your specs and is one of the best I've read. DO NOT, however, attempt the Feist/Wurts "Empire" series. I liked it better than Riftwar, but the entire trilogy focuses around a *very* strong woman, and that doesn't seem like something you could handle.

Zelticgar
User ID: 9328513 Aug 18th 6:33 PM
I disagree- the Riftwar series kicked #$% on the Empire series. Carol if you are into books with a strong women protagonist check out Doomsday Book by Connie Willis.

Professor Dirjj
User ID: 0094674 Aug 19th 0:40 AM
Strong Woman Protagonist, and Doomsday Book. Hmmm, why do those two go together so well. Whoa ducks an elbow from Emily.

ab

Claidhaim
User ID: 9544623 Aug 19th 2:34 PM
Bernard Cornwell was my suggestion, Ser Gary. He wrote an Authurian trilogy "The Winter King", "Enemy of God", and "Excalibur" which are told from the first person. I really enjoyed them, as far as Arthurian stories go, it was better than Lawhead's.

Jeff, I haven't read "The Hammer and the Cross", but I will now. I also enjoy the occasional 'pulp' books and the Clancy-esque Military thrillers (Tom Clancy, Harold Coyle, Stephen Coonts, etc.) as well as the Military fiction of W.E.B. Griffin. I really just like to read and don't really care what genre it's in as long as it; a) grabs my attention, b) tells a good story, and c) makes me want to read other books by the same author.

Jeff
User ID: 0227464 Aug 19th 2:59 PM
Amen to that, Claidhaim! I'm currently sort of reading materials and I'm pretty open minded as well. What's your recommendation? Old or new, doesn't matter as long as its good.

Ser Gary
User ID: 8068153 Aug 19th 3:23 PM
Jeff, Claid, as you can tell from some of my previous posts, I feel the same way.

Oder
User ID: 2866974 Aug 19th 3:23 PM
OOPS I meant to Claidhaim. Yes the "excalibur" it was told by some lord who became monk in service of lady. Yes it was told by his back ground about author. I love Arthurian legends (I read original of morte di arthur by sir mellory and I loved it) and the MDA fitted perfectly on my catergory where Sir Garath brings many knights on service to author. But Excalibur it was monolougue which person kept saying "I" this and "I" that. I read some part of "excalibur" but "I" this and that ruinied my imagination and I hated it. SO can you find Arthurian legend which is NOT told by first person? cause I like he/she this and that better. which means NO author telling the story by I this and that.

Carol:
The empire series that you said "very strong" is it Matriarch world? which means that males are just there to become soldier and serve "pleasure" for female rulers and warriors? please tell me so and I won't even bother tor read that.

IF that is so then I recommand which NOT to read:
don't read Musashi unless you are in sort of samurai fight (heck there are lot of fight in that book). But this book is a tale from Japan where ladies well...sort of treated like a weaklings (no offense to any ladies here) and oftenly they are in trouble (such as rapes or sorts). Exept person named Osugi who is a mother of samurai who try to kill musashi (infact mother of musashi's old friend).

Dirji:
Yeah it would be great. but warfare??? does it exist? cause In second part of RR, I said some quest and I like warfare more than quest to find evil or sort. But waging warfare with many men/women. does any of your recommandation have any war fare? if it does then you made my day.

Jeff
User ID: 0227464 Aug 19th 3:28 PM
Um, that was supposed to be _short_ of reading materials. As some of you may have guessed, I _never_ proofread my posts, which is why some of them are unitelligible even to me. :)

Oder, do you happen to be from New Jersey?

Next 20 Messages Newest Messages

Oder User ID: 9070813	Aug 17th 2:40 PM Well this is the third one after what Ran posted. Ran: Hey Thanks for informing me which book to read. I read Song Of Arabbone (I forgot the spelling)and I really enjoyed it. Currently I am reading Tigana and borrowed Lions of Alrassan from the library. Say In LOA who the heck is the main character and main villain? Is it Ammar or Ser Rodrigo??? Well since you found the great book for me I hope you or anybody now help me find other book for my desire: 1) once again NO "cross overs" 2) again MEDIVAL, more knights!! 3) NO Matriarch world!!!! (very important) 4) Warfare 5) Balanced (which means Magic power has to be = with physical strength) Cause I really hate to see Too many magicians have power over the knights 6)some quest is good (like some knight goes on quest to look for other knights or magicians to make him/her join their liege) optional: well here I like three types on this. One is that main character is a noble birth (leader of some army or sort) or great fighter, one is fighter who serves lord then becomes important character and last is that nobody (peasant or sort) becomes powerful. Once again I am asking alot but you and other fellow readers know fantasy book more than I do (well cause I began to read Fantasy books since 1998) I would recommand: in return I recommand anybody this book. If anybody likes sword-obsessed and is Asian epics, I recommand to read MUSASHI. it is epic story in Japan where swords men meet each other and dice each other. But I say that here there is no warfare (but samurai and ronin meet each other and becomes either frineds or enemies) But quest. It is really good book. and this is more realistic (which means 0% MAGIC and 45% romance 15% sex). Finally So far I read these books all my life (fantasy ones): Peter Telep's squire series ASOIF (so obvious)by Martin SImon Hawke's Iron throne Kate Elliott's Crown star series Kay's Song of Arabonne and MUSASHI (i forgot the author)
Ran User ID: 0283314	Aug 17th 4:26 PM Glad you liked Kay, Oder. :) In Lions ... well, the main characters are Rodrigo, Ammar, Jehane, and Alvar. Are there any villains? Well ... That's the beauty of Lions. Unlike _A Song for Arbonne_, _Tigana_, The Fionavar Tapestry, and even _Sailing to Sarantium_ .... there really isn't a villain. I suppose an argument can be made for Amalik to be one, but he's trying to be a king and doing what a king does. Certainly, he has a distinctly medieval view of how people should be used (which isn't tolerably well), but you have to accept him by his standards. After all, Rodrigo admits that he's done terrible things in his martial career -- but he is most certainly not evil. Or perhaps Yazir and the deseert tribesmen -- unrefined, cruel, zealots. And yet even Ammar speaks eloquently that there's something to be said for uncultured directness and honest. Al-Rassan will teach them the finer things. So ... they may not be nice to us, but they have their own standards. They're intolerant, but in some things they might be in the right. So ... no real villain, unless it's war itself. Really beautiful work.
Ser Gary User ID: 9279843	Aug 17th 6:22 PM I have a confession to make: I'm branching out. I just finished a historical fiction book entitled The Snowblind Moon, by John Byrne Cooke. It's set in the western U.S. of 1875, when the government was launching its campaign against the Sioux and Cheyenne nations. Cooke presents the various perspectives on the upcoming war. The campaign itself is disgusting, but this is an intelligent account of the events leading up to the demise of these peoples' pure and selfless way of life. I was enthralled and, in the end, enlightened. Great book!!!
Zelticar User ID: 9328513	Aug 17th 10:04 PM I am recently engaged so i am trying to save money and reread some books I already read. I am reading The Seer trilogy by Chris Bunch - The Seer King, The Demon King, and The Warrior King. Great series full of warfare, sex and fast paced. I highly recomend it and if anyone has read it I would like to hear some thoughts and opinions... I like it even better the second time around.
Ser Benjen User ID: 1195644	Aug 18th 7:10 AM Ser Gary, I'm about 150 pages into Otherland II. It's got some serious momentum now. Have you found it yet?
Claidhaim User ID: 9544623	Aug 18th 8:56 AM I would just like to echo a recommendation from the last thread, and that is "Gates of Fire" by Pressfield. His other book was about golf and was truly a terrible piece of work, but this one is absolutely fantastic. You would probably like it Oder, along with the Arthurian trilogy by Bernard Cornwell. Mike, since you asked for more recommendation from other genres than SF/F, I will give you some. Just let me know what you may be interested in, and I can probably come up with three or four good books. I read all kinds of stuff from magic flinging crap to "shoot 'em up, BANG" books to great pieces of classic literature. Just give me an idea.
Ser Gary User ID: 8068153	Aug 18th 10:47 AM Ser Benjen, I've got Otherland II and it's next on my reading list. I expect to get underway this weekend. We should discuss it later via e-mail.
Dirjj User ID: 9990163	Aug 18th 2:19 PM Well, Oder, I'm not about to go look up all the other posts to see if these are here, but if you want a good fight, quest, story, and no minimall chicks, here's the tales for you: 1. Sword of Shannara - Terry Brooks 2. Elfstones of Shannara - Terry Brooks 3. Riftwar Saga - Raymond Feist 4. Memory, Sorrow, & Thorn trilogy - Tad Williams I know there's more that I've read, but I don't have my notes with me. ab
Oder User ID: 1028194	Aug 18th 2:29 PM Ser Gary: hmm bernard Cornwell. Well. I read something about him... It was when Cornwell wrote something bad about queen guenaviere (HECK I don't know the spelling on her) and lancelot and that story is told by one of former lord who served aruthor. NOte: I don't like someone keepsaying "I" this and I that. cause that story kept saying "I knew that my lord author loves Quanavere" it sound like I am listening from him and it sort of ruins my imagination. In matter of fact I read some part in library but it ruined my imagination and I put the book away. I like Authorian legends but can you find me which people don't tell story by monologue (which means NO I this and I that. I don't know which kinds of book any of you like but I like the things kept in medival ages. Also I really I mean REALLY hate "cross overs" where medival guys carry around laser gun and zap each other! it just don't make sense and I am not a Science fiction kind of guy (I call it Nerd's fiction) Ran: well you are right about it. what good is great military leader if he had not done things so horrible? I mean the very thing made him great war leader (i did not read this yet but some).
Telisiane User ID: 2233684	Aug 18th 3:01 PM Here's what I do to find new authors/new books: I find the latest "Year's Best Fantasy/Horror Short Stories Anthology" (Ellen Datlow/Terri Windling) and read the introductions in a nice comfy chair at the local Barnes & Noble. The editors provide a nice rundown of the best fantasy and horror novels of the year by category, which I use to select the books that I end up buying. (I've actually purchased a few of the anthologies too, but there are SO many stories!) This is how I found AGOT, which Datlow/Windling recommended highly. Somehow Robert Jordan never seems to make their list. ;0) They also lead me to J. Gregory Keyes, Sean Russell, Sean Stewart, and Robin Hobb. One series I haven't seen discussed here is Donaldson's "Mirror of her Dreams" books (only 2), which I liked a lot. I really hated the Covenant stuff and didn't make it through the first book, but liked this series a lot. If you like fairy-tale-type fantasy, Robin McKinley writes some wonderful stuff.Her young adult book "The Blue Sword" is a favorite of mine. I also wholeheartedly support recommendations for Robin Hobb, Guy Gavriel Kay (esp. Lions), Tad Williams, and Dan Simmons. And I loved the "Daughter of the Empire" series by Warts/Feist, but dislike the stuff they do on their own. And does anyone besides me like Stephen King's Dark Tower books?
Jeff User ID: 0227464	Aug 18th 3:32 PM Claidhaim, ever read the Hammer and the Cross, by Harry Harrison? Its an alternative history set in England during the viking invasions of the mid 9th century. I though it was extremely well done with a great sense of authenticity. Telisiane, I liked the Dark Tower books but the reappearence of "Randall Flagg" was a _huge_ turnoff for me.
Ser Gary User ID: 8068153	Aug 18th 3:33 PM Oder, where did you get this Bernard Cornwell stuff? That isn't the name I gave as the author of my western. It was John Byrne Cooke. Who is Bernard Cornwell anyway?
Carol User ID: 9405543	Aug 18th 5:31 PM Oder, Raymond Feist's "Riftwar Saga" fits your specs and is one of the best I've read. DO NOT, however, attempt the Feist/Wurts "Empire" series. I liked it better than Riftwar, but the entire trilogy focuses around a very strong woman, and that doesn't seem like something you could handle.
Zelticgar User ID: 9328513	Aug 18th 6:33 PM I disagree- the Riftwar series kicked #$% on the Empire series. Carol if you are into books with a strong women protagonist check out Doomsday Book by Connie Willis.
Professor Dirjj User ID: 0094674	Aug 19th 0:40 AM Strong Woman Protagonist, and Doomsday Book. Hmmm, why do those two go together so well. Whoa ducks an elbow from Emily. ab
Claidhaim User ID: 9544623	Aug 19th 2:34 PM Bernard Cornwell was my suggestion, Ser Gary. He wrote an Authurian trilogy "The Winter King", "Enemy of God", and "Excalibur" which are told from the first person. I really enjoyed them, as far as Arthurian stories go, it was better than Lawhead's. Jeff, I haven't read "The Hammer and the Cross", but I will now. I also enjoy the occasional 'pulp' books and the Clancy-esque Military thrillers (Tom Clancy, Harold Coyle, Stephen Coonts, etc.) as well as the Military fiction of W.E.B. Griffin. I really just like to read and don't really care what genre it's in as long as it; a) grabs my attention, b) tells a good story, and c) makes me want to read other books by the same author.
Jeff User ID: 0227464	Aug 19th 2:59 PM Amen to that, Claidhaim! I'm currently sort of reading materials and I'm pretty open minded as well. What's your recommendation? Old or new, doesn't matter as long as its good.
Ser Gary User ID: 8068153	Aug 19th 3:23 PM Jeff, Claid, as you can tell from some of my previous posts, I feel the same way.
Oder User ID: 2866974	Aug 19th 3:23 PM OOPS I meant to Claidhaim. Yes the "excalibur" it was told by some lord who became monk in service of lady. Yes it was told by his back ground about author. I love Arthurian legends (I read original of morte di arthur by sir mellory and I loved it) and the MDA fitted perfectly on my catergory where Sir Garath brings many knights on service to author. But Excalibur it was monolougue which person kept saying "I" this and "I" that. I read some part of "excalibur" but "I" this and that ruinied my imagination and I hated it. SO can you find Arthurian legend which is NOT told by first person? cause I like he/she this and that better. which means NO author telling the story by I this and that. Carol: The empire series that you said "very strong" is it Matriarch world? which means that males are just there to become soldier and serve "pleasure" for female rulers and warriors? please tell me so and I won't even bother tor read that. IF that is so then I recommand which NOT to read: don't read Musashi unless you are in sort of samurai fight (heck there are lot of fight in that book). But this book is a tale from Japan where ladies well...sort of treated like a weaklings (no offense to any ladies here) and oftenly they are in trouble (such as rapes or sorts). Exept person named Osugi who is a mother of samurai who try to kill musashi (infact mother of musashi's old friend). Dirji: Yeah it would be great. but warfare??? does it exist? cause In second part of RR, I said some quest and I like warfare more than quest to find evil or sort. But waging warfare with many men/women. does any of your recommandation have any war fare? if it does then you made my day.
Jeff User ID: 0227464	Aug 19th 3:28 PM Um, that was supposed to be _short_ of reading materials. As some of you may have guessed, I _never_ proofread my posts, which is why some of them are unitelligible even to me. :) Oder, do you happen to be from New Jersey?