Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with fantasy

I read it for the economics and the unicorns

nicebookrack — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:10:55 -0800

What are some good scifi / fantasy / horror novels about economics? Based on this post and previous discussion, I am looking for genre (scifi/fantasy/horror) novels that feature economics as a major, significant theme. Comics are also fine. You can squeeze in movies or TV shows if they're extremely good examples, please.

I do not seek "any book in which characters ever use / need / want / have / discuss money," because that includes basically all books. To simplify things since the definition of economics is subject to debate, I'll mark as "best" only answers that include some brief note on why they're really about economics and/or books that at least 2 people here confirm "Yes, Title Here is totally about economics."

Thank you!

Essay on fantasy fiction, economics and trade

maudlin — Tue, 07 May 2013 14:26:11 -0800

Many years ago I read an essay that was pretty critical of the way so much fantasy fiction could not build believable societies with plausible economic underpinnings. The author was fairly concise and snarky, arguing that (I'm paraphrasing here) she could suspend disbelief about dragons and magic, but that she couldn't slog her way through a book where not the least bit of thought had been given to how all these characters and their associates could make a living, grow or acquire food, and otherwise acquire money and engage in trade. I think it was an essay by Joanna Russ in Fantasy & Science Fiction in the 70s, when she had a regular book review column there, but I could be conflating like mad.

French SF/Fantasy Novels (in the original)

serelliya — Tue, 07 May 2013 09:50:42 -0800

I recently discovered an awesome local bookstore in France, hence I'd like to pick up a French-language SF/F novel that isn't a translation and would be difficult to find in the US. Suggestions? (Subgenre preferences below the jump) My favorite English-language authors are Guy Gavriel Kay and Ellen Kushner. I like complex political fantasy, philosopical-epic rather than swords-and-sorcery-epic, fantasy of manners, stories that explore class and ethnicity and gender. I am less well-read in science fiction, but generally tend towards character-driven "soft" SF or well-written space opera (going back to the philosophical epic idea) or SF romance à la Catherine Asaro.

Ideally--because I have limited luggage space and only want to buy one more book--this would be a standalone, contemporary novel that isn't too long (let's say <500 pages) because I read French much, much slower than English. I've already acquired several of my favorite books in French translation, but would like to try someone new. I prefer contemporary authors to the older classics, generally. Bonus points if it hasn't yet been translated into English!

I need to read some grown-up books. With unicorns, preferably.

PhoBWanKenobi — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:39:22 -0800

After spending several years reading largely YA, I'd like to read some grown-up secondary world fantasy novels. Persnickety tastes below the fold. My tastes run a bit girly. As a teenager, I loved Mercedes Lackey, Anne McCaffrey, and Jennifer Roberson's Sword-Dancer series. I also loved stealth science fiction or fantasy that felt like it; most compelling to me about Lackey's Valdemar books was the mystery behind the companions. Modern fantasy that I've enjoyed includes Lev Grossman's The Magicians and The Magician King (especially the parts set in Fillory), and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (encyclopedic! But with a wry sense of humor underlying it), but both of those titles are right on the line for my tolerance of clever vs. story. I like stuff best when it has strong characters, breezing pacing, nice romance, but more rigorous worldbuilding than a lot of YA fantasy (Graceling, for example, was too simplistic for me). Feminist themes and queer characters are great too. I hate rapey, grim-dark stuff.

I want to read the grown-up, recently published equivalent of Seraphina, I guess. Suggestions?

The perils of listening to your readers

fearfulsymmetry — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 09:00:25 -0800

A while ago I read an essay/article/rant online re a fantasy author / series and I'd like to read it again but google is failing me because I can't remember any specifics. Anyway I'm fairly sure I remember that it had originally been on usenet but someone had copied it onto a website somewhere. The gist of it was the problems a writer had run into with a fantasy series. He had been interacting with this fans online and taking on board too many of their suggestions ('the X's are cool! we want more of those!') Consequentially the series was spiralling out of control because he kept adding more and more elements - especially more and more villains / big bads and it was becoming increasingly obvious that it would be very hard / next to impossible to finish the series by concluding all the mushrooming complications. Unfortunately I can't remember the name of the series or the author but I think it was a High Fantasy tolkienesque type of thing (I'm pretty certain it wasn't Game of Thrones because I'm reading that now)

I hope rings some bells for someone.

What are some YA novels with feminist antagonists?

Mezentian — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 06:03:47 -0800

A friend and I were talking, and she was saying that there aren't any feminist heroes in YA fantasy. I countered with Ursula Le Guin. There must be others, but being a guy who mostly reads male authors I can't think of any others, but they must exist. If front-page titles were used in Ask.Meta this would have been called "Help me, PhoBWanKenobi, you are my only hope".

A broad definition of fantasy is okay, but tending towards dragons and stuff.
Novels preferred, short stories okay too.

Suggestions for haunted/quirky/mystical/woo-woo/mythic places in Spain?

apostrophe — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 14:53:23 -0800

Tell me about the weirdest, most magical, fantastical places in Spain. Places that have ghostly apparitions, spirit-sightings, woo-woo lines of crystal power or tombs of mad saints. Spooky forests, castles, places hippies flock to. Places where the guide books start the descriptions with "legend has it..." Fairy tale towns. Roman ruins. You get the idea. Places in Portugal welcomed as well. (Going for two weeks at the end of May. Delicious food & scenery is great, but I'm really looking to spark my imagination.)

Stories about academics discovering the supernatural/weird

zoetrope — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:35:31 -0800

Can you recommend books, movies, or short stories that involve academics in supernatural peril? There is a particular type of story that I love. In it, a historian or other academic investigates a topic. Then, they realize in the course of conducting research on their topic that some sort of supernatural entity/critter/weirdness exists in the world. Think Elizabeth Kostova's "The Historian" or Caitlin Kiernan's "As Red as Red." Or even "Dracula." I especially like it when the authors have created or incorporated other texts into their stories: newspaper articles, history books, diary entries, etc.

What I like about these stories is that I learn a little twisted bit of real-world history (Vlad Ţepeş! New England consumptives as vampires!), but underlying that is the sense that "Oh, man, we've been wrong all along, there really are things that go bump in the night!"

My examples involve vampires, but answers do not need to be about vampires.

I am in need of Urban Wizardry!

Lipstick Thespian — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 17:24:31 -0800

I am querying the Mefiverse for any solid, literary-leaning fiction with an urban wizard setting. Hopefully not YA fiction, and definitely not Potter. Release the hounds!

Suggest Sc-iFi/Fantasy Books for a brand new High School elective

ThaBombShelterSmith — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 18:01:50 -0800

Sci-Fi/FantasyFilter: I've just been told that I get to be the first one to teach a brand new Science Fiction & Fantasy elective at my High School. I am building this class from scratch and since the students will be responsible for getting the books themselves, I have pretty much free-reign for my book choices. Great, right? Absolutely! However, I want to expand my initial book search so I wanted to enlist the Hive Mind to help with this initial salvo. More details below the fold. This class is an elective for 10, 11, and 12 and meets 2 or 3 times a week. I haven't even begun the process of planning the structure of the class, but I'm thinking of doing about a novel every 3 weeks or so plus one choice novel a quarter. This is a semester course and I'm thinking of doing a quarter of fantasy and a quarter of science fiction.

My wheelhouse is primarily epic, series based, high fantasy (Malazan, Recluce, Pern, SoT). I'm not that familiar with standalone fantasy novels, and since this is a short class, I would like to probably focus on single novels (or maybe individual novels of a series that can stand alone).

I'm also much more familiar with the classic Sci-Fi canon (Asimov, Bradbury, Dick, Bova) but I'm not really well versed in current Sci-Fi.

I also am not very up-to-date on YA Sci-fi/Fantasy, so any suggestions along those lines would be greatly appreciated.

My request is the following: Please suggest books that would be great to use in a High School elective. At this point I'm not really concerned about Lexile scores so much as I am about quality and length. While I would love have the kids read a book like Reamde or Name of the Wind, those 1000 page tomes are a bit out of reach for my purposes.

Thanks in advance!

Post-Valentine's Day Reading

WidgetAlley — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 10:10:12 -0800

Just too late for Valentine's Day, recommend me some awesome fantasy novels with satisfying romances. I love fantasy, and I love romances, and I would like to indulge both of these loves at the same time. You know the type: great world-building, interesting politics, and the kind of long, slow-burn, frequently bicker-y romance that ends in a Slap Slap Kiss (although I'm flexible on that point.) Shouldn't be too hard to find, right?

However, there's something in fantasy that happens a lot that makes me writhe in dissatisfaction. Character romances tend to be one-sided or... just... boring. Either the characters are mismatched in some way, or once they fall in love they become strangely neutered and bland as the romance takes a completely formulaic tour of sugary love-yous to a final completion. For an example of how things frequently go wrong, I just read Maria Snyder's Poison Study. Initially I was all, "Yeah! Poison taster and assassin! Awesome!" but all the potential cool is sucked away down a well of, "It will all be okay because we're together now." Where is the difficulty? Where is the conflict? Where are the hard choices and the total badassery and the tandem fight scenes, dangit?

I've seen this question, but unlike that Asker, I don't explicitly need sex scenes. I do explicitly need romances that are between serious, badass characters who can both hold their own. Romance doesn't have to be a main plot point, necessarily, but I would like it at least to be happening in the background on a noticeable level that scratches that shipping itch. Bonus points for female characters who are not broken women "elevated" by their male partners.*

Things I've read and loved:
Megan Whalen Turner's Attolia series (fantastic romance, but the screwed-up stuff in the couple's past is not swept under the rug and creates fulfilling dynamics.)
Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel series (the romantic leads are both hardcore awesome in completely different ways and their relationship never castrated their interesting characters.)
Dorothy Dunnett's The Chronicles of Lymond series (not fantasy, but great historical fiction and once again, the characters involved actually seem worthy of one another and stay interesting.)
Ellen Kushner's Swordspoint and companion novels (another set of excellent examples of believable affection, totally ballsed-up personal dynamics, odd characters, and tragedy.)

*Fantasy romance heroines seem frequently to fall in love with their teachers, mentors, protectors, etc. I'm okay with that, but in my ideal fantasy book there is a woman who is already awesome without a man and then an awesome man finds her. Or vice-versa.

Thanks for fleshing out my reading list!

Books of my youth filter

latkes — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 17:41:54 -0800

Name that young adult fantasy novel: Two boys who are enemies at school are transported to some magical scenario where they have to work together. One boy is a slight, artsy (or maybe nerdy?) sensitive type, the other is physically bigger and a bully. By they end they learn some kind of valuable lesson about cooperation. But I loved it and don't remember it as as so cheesy as I'm describing.

I remember they had a magic bowl where they could ask for any food and have a bowl full of it. I believe one of the boys requested chili con carne. They also had some kind of magical fire-starting materials.

Would like to get this book from the library for my kid - what the heck was it?!

Thank you fellow nerds!

World class fantasy / sci fi miniseries?

jalitt — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 10:31:34 -0800

Last night I watched "World on a wire," and I was completely blown away. Are there any other foreign world class scifi / fantasy miniseries of exceptional quality? I have honestly never seen a film like "World on a wire." Its blend of hard scifi, psychology, noir, and philosophy, is unique. In addition, the quality of its direction / production rival much higher budget films. Are there other foreign films or miniseries of similar quality?

I absolutely love Neverwhere. Gormenghast and the Kingdom are already on my radar. Anything else out there I might be missing?

Novels of Dragons

Caduceus — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:54:46 -0800

Please recommend to me books prominently featuring dragons that will meet my rather high (and specific) standards. Lots of details to calibrate your suggestions inside. I have always loved the fantasy genre, and I have also always loved dragons, but seldom have the twain met--dragons, it seems to me, are pretty low hanging fruit, and people who like dragons will read not very good books as long as they have dragons in them. Some authors have based their entire careers around this. I also find it harder, as I have gotten older and found myself with less and less free time, to find novels that I find fun or interesting enough to devote the time investment required to read them. After all, I could be spending time with my fiance, playing a video game, or reading Metafilter instead.

Further, I like only certain depictions of dragons. I don't like dragons that are dumb beasts, and I don't like dragons that don't feel very much like, you know, Dragons with a capital D. I want big, powerful, smart, fire-breathing monsters. Many books I've tried that feature dragons basically feature human minds with the bodies of dragon. Smaug is basically the best dragon villain that I have encountered in literature. Other than Smaug, my favorite version/depiction of dragons are those in the Shadowrun roleplaying game setting--smart, devious, dangerous creatures with both personality and mystery, though note I've never managed to get through a Shadowrun novel.

I don't need dragons to necessarily be the protagonists, but they do need to feature fairly prominently. I like fantasy set on Earth, particularly modern Earth, more than I like fantasy set on other worlds, but other worlds are fine if the book is good. I tend to favor more modern writing, but I certainly won't turn down older books, as long as they're not too dry or difficult to read. To help calibrate your suggestions, here are some books I do and do not like.

Like:
-The Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher: one of my very favorite series of novels, maybe my very favorite simply based on the fact that there is more of it than any of the others. This is the ideal thing I'm looking for, action packed, fun, not too heavy, and reasonably well written.
-The Enchanted Forest Chronicles, by Patricia C. Wrede: basically my favorite series of novels featuring dragons. The dragons are a little on the human side, personality wise, but they still feel enough like dragons to be satisfying to read about.
-The Dark Tower series by Stephen King: I like a lot of King's stuff, though I attempted to reread a few things that I loved the first time through recently (Needful Things and It) and found myself wishing someone would get the man an editor who would stand up to him and actually cut some shit. And that's his older books. I have not read the most recent Dark Tower, but I have read the rest of the series three times and enjoyed them.
-The Kingkiller Chronicles (?) by Patrick Rothfuss: fuck this dude can write. Don't love his dragons, though. Seriously, there's crazy weird fae and murderous demon dudes, but dragons are just big dumb lizards?
-Early Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter novels, by Laurell K Hamilton: I really enjoyed the first... six? Before they started getting too terribly sex heavy and she started losing control of her story lines. She writes great action scenes. I found the Dresden Files searching for a replacement for this. I have yet to find other "urban fantasy" that I like as much as those two.
-Harry Potter: Potter is great. Don't dig the beast type dragons, though.
-Neil Gaiman: I love everything by Neil Gaiman.

At One Point I Liked:
-The Dragonlance Chronicles and The Death Gate Cycle by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman: I loved both these series when I was a teenager (partially because of the dragons) when I was a teenager. I have tried to reread them both in the past five years or so and just lost interest early on.
-The Wheel of Time by Jordan et al: Again, when I was a teenager, and had approximately the same maturity level as the male protagonists, I really dug this series. I tried to reread the first book two or three years ago, and it was a real bummer. The writing was not what I remembered, and the gender dynamics were just the pits.
-The Word and the Void trilogy, by Terry Brooks: Pretty good. A little darker, but good modern earth fantasy with some pretty good action. I used to really love them, but have not revisited them recently.

Fine, don't love them:
-Anything by Terry Pratchett: He's a very good writer. He does not write books I love to read, though Thief of Time is an exception to that; I remember really loving that one, though I have not revisited it. I have not read more of his books than I have read; I think I got through about ten before I decided I had gotten it. Note: Please do not answer if your goal is to get me to reconsider Pratchett. Though I will certainly consider any Pratchett novels prominently featuring dragons that I may have missed.
-Temeraire, by Naomi Novak: I enjoyed the first... two(?) of these, and then simply didn't get around to reading anymore. So I guess I didn't love them. They are fun and I will probably get around to the rest of them eventually, but I'm not a huge fan of novels where the humans have the dominant position in the human-dragon relationship dynamic. See also that one series by Harry Turtledove, which I read all of for some reason, even though the dragons were dumb beasts and it was basically exactly the same as all his other books except he replaced the rifles with magic sticks.
-The Hobbit: Pretty easy read, pretty fun, pretty old fashioned. And Smaug is totally great. Just the epitome of evil dragon.

Do Not Like:
-Pern: those aren't dragons, they're genetically engineered teleporting fire-breathing lizards, and also there's even more sex than Anita Blake. No thanks.
-A Song of Fire and Ice: Just a total bummer. Did nothing but make me sad, until I gave up a third of the way through the first book. I'll probably give the show a shot at some point when it's easy to access.
-Earthsea: Just... very dry and slow. I tried real hard, and just gave up after a while.
-Mercedes Lackey and Andre Norton: I think I read some of each when I was a teenager, and probably finished but did not love their books even then.
-Everything else by Terry Brooks: He just had to go and connect his one good series, The Word and the Void, to fucking Shannara. Good grief.
-The Lord of the Rings: It took me six months to read the Two Towers because it was real, real boring, and then I got to the literally hundreds of pages of Hobbits walking through a wasteland in Return of the King. Man oh man.
-China Meiville: He's like the shitty, pretentious Neil Gaiman.

Hopefully that is enough to give you something to go on. Thank you very much in advance, sorry this is so long just for book recommendations.

This book! Book of my youth!

kafziel — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 02:23:28 -0800

I have vague memories of two fantasy/scifi novels I read back when I was a child in the early-mid 90s, and I wish to seek them out again on the basis of these memories. But I can't remember enough to be able to find them. Help me? Book 1: This read like some sort of tribal myth fiction, in prose form. I only remember three things about this book: first, it starred a youth named Torak; second, at some point a horse with a really long name is involved; third, it's not the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series, because I read it long before 2004. Everything I search for related to "Torak" is either Eddings or Paver, and neither of those are right, but I'm about 99% sure that was the name of the main character, because I was an Eddings fan from a young age and the name struck me as odd.

Book 2: This was a science-fiction thing my dad had somewhere. Some guy goes around different universes, is kept by a woman and in one scene explains to her that she has essentially introduced prostitution into her world, and the last line of it was something like "You got any dragons that need slaying?". This is ... all I know. It sounds trashy and it probably was trashy, but my lack of memory is really digging at me on this. Given when my dad was assembling his scifi collection, this probably dates back to the 70s or earlier. Possibly it was a Zelazny?

Where should I go once I leave Discworld?

ocherdraco — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 20:26:42 -0800

I'm almost done with the Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett. They've been perfect companions for the past nine months or so, and I need something to take their place. What series, with wit and a world to get lost in, should I read next?

Sci fi/fantasy anthology book stumper

Vaike — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 20:47:59 -0800

My first name that book question. It will be a stumper. All I remember is that it was a sci fi or fantasy anthology, I read it in the 1990s (so it might have been older, but not newer), and in one story a woman walked behind the village/city town, between two mountains/hills to a Lake of Tears and cried there for some sort of loss. This is a ridiculously small amount of information, I know, but it haunts me.

Spooky images glimpsed through open doors

PhoBWanKenobi — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 18:46:09 -0800

What was this genre novel about a maze full of gruesome tableaux vivants? Thanks to metafilter's enthusiastic recommendation, I saw Sleep No More last night (and adored it). In fact, it reminded me of a novel I read in the mid-to-late nineties that I would love to find again.

It was shelved in the genre section of my local library. It was probably horror or fantasy but may have even (somehow) been science fiction. In it, I think there was some sort of charismatic patron of the arts (?) who built an enormous maze or structure filled with tableaux vivants, which became increasingly gruesome as one walked from room to room. I suspect this structure had been abandoned. I think this structure hinted at some deeper science or philosophy but I don't remember the details. The book scared the living crap out of me when I read it as a teenager.

That's pretty much all I remember. Any suggestions gladly welcome!

Interesting scifi / glam rock makeup looks?

lemoncakeisalie — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 20:55:32 -0800

Can you point me to some (non-prosthetic) scifi/fantasy makeup looks? I've landed a volunteer position as a makeup designer for a production of a beautifully campy show. For a few of the characters, who are aliens, the director wants a glam rock look, something like Alice Cooper meets Ziggy Stardust.

I'd like to mix it up a bit further by looking at designs from science fiction / fantasy TV and film, glam rock, fashion / modeling / photo shoots, and theatre of all sorts.

I'd especially like to see campy designs for aliens, like from Star Trek: The Original Series or from old scifi films. I don't have access to prosthetics, and I don't want to, say, paint someone completely green or something.

I've already looked through all of www.themakeupgallery.info and gathered some inspiration from the scifi series Farscape. Can people offer further resources, photos, links, or suggestions?

Thank you!

What was this cheesy fantasy film where the antagonist rips his own face off?

johnofjack — Tue, 01 Jan 2013 18:26:17 -0800

Another "what movie was this?" question: a fantasy/horror film set at least partially in a castle, where the villain deliberately rips his own face off. I saw this film probably sometime between 1983 and 1990 and have tried finding it several times in the last few years, even though I suspect it's not very good, but I haven't had any luck.

The film was a fantasy; it was in color; there were scenes in a castle; it might have been set in fantasy-medieval times; there was a scene where the hero swung from one place to another (off a chandelier? I don't remember); there was a love interest; the hero defeats the villain and <cliché>rescues the damsel in distress</cliché>; and as they're kissing in the foreground, in the background the villain rises up, tears his own face off, and laughs at them through the blood and gore. And then there was a second climactic fight.

I definitely saw the movie on HBO, though I don't imagine that's much help in finding it.

And that's all I can remember about it.

I'm not having any luck finding the movie's title through various searches or even through reading TV Tropes' page on works where someone rips his or her face off.

Horror of Dracula isn't listed at the TV Tropes page, but it's also not that one.

Do you have any idea what film this was?

Details, details, details...and then BAM!

batmonkey — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 13:11:50 -0800

As a reader of fiction (especially if you're a devotee of speculative fiction), how much do you like detailed descriptions and/or lists as part of the story? What if the story switches between detail and expediency? Feel free to answer the question as asked or explore any of the expanded pondering for more targeted responses.

In moving mental obstacles out of the way of a story I've been writing for a long time, I've realised that some of what I need involves getting outside of my head more [previously: 1, 2]. In this (hopefully last) question of the series, I crave input on how much detail is actually comfortable for readers AND if my custom of switching between approaches is potentially discombobulating.

One of my tendencies when writing is to be extremely detailed, as I want to build a vibrant, tangible impression of what is being encountered or experienced. But I don't use this inexorably - there are parts where flow of events would be hideously stymied and I switch to a more action-oriented, fill-in-the-blanks-yourself style.

Examples: I find the lists in Brian Jacques's Redwall books endearing and sometimes amusing. I originally liked the incredible details in Ill-Made Mute by Cecilia Dart-Thornton, but she seemed to abandon the more artful approach to it in the jump to the other books and it became tiresome. Martha Wells used description to great advantaqe in The Bone Palace. Most know Bradbury's knack for loving and chilling details, and those are certainly part of my concept of the iconic ideal.

But getting through action and complex exchanges seems weighed down by such detail, so I move away from that. Maybe not so far as Hemingway, but certainly along the lines of Jack London. Thereabouts, anyway.

To boil it down:
Details/lists - like or dislike? Is there an ideal that encapsulates your preference? Are there exceptions to your personal rules?

Mixing it up to further the story - preferable or disorienting? Is there anyone who does this particularly well? Especially poorly?

Thanks to bongo_x for the comment that helped me summarise!

Fantasy novels featuring talking cats, telepathic cats, sentient cats, intelligent cats, etc.?

Jacqueline — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 06:27:20 -0800

Please recommend to me some fantasy novels that feature talking, telepathic, or otherwise sentient cats. Ideally with human companions, but a society entirely composed of intelligent cats could be cool too. Thanks!

Goldilocks ISO juuuuuust-right fantasy novel

taz — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 04:09:55 -0800

I'm just finishing up the third book in Ben Aaronovitch's "Rivers of London" series, and I've really enjoyed these books. What fantasy book(s) should I read next to suit my current mood? I'd like something relatively lighthearted but not silly; light romance elements okay but probably not interested in any big love/sex focus, and definitely not interested in the sexy vampires / sexy werewolves genre; well written is a must; would prefer some sort of novelty over tired tropes; probably not interested in the swords and dragons kind of thing; not too dark or bloody; not sexist or racist. Wry is nice. Eccentric/unusual is very nice. I dig character development, and am not so fond of Mary Sue-ish archetypal heroes/heroines.

What I've enjoyed about the "Rivers of London" books: the magic is fun, but not usually overdone (with a couple of exceptions); I like the London setting and the fact that the city is intrinsic to the characters and plots; I love that the protagonist is mixed race, a little dorky, not OMG POWERFUL WIZARD (he's still learning, and tends to occasionally fuck up), and that the books don't make me wince at racist/sexist stereotypes (greatly appreciated). I like the police "procedural" aspect combined with the magical, and that it sort of gently pokes fun at pretty much everything, without trying be zany comedy (which is usually pretty tiresome to me). I like that there are various interesting female characters who could each as easily be the main character in a different book. (And I say "female," because some of them are not exactly human women.) Obviously, the next book is not going to duplicate all these aspects, but this should give an idea of atmosphere, I guess.

I have read most of Christopher Fowler's "Bryant and May" and Jasper Fforde's "Thursday Next" books, btw; I have read "Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell," and a whole bunch of Neil Gaiman and Connie Willis; love Victor LaValle's "Big Machine," and have the rest of his books in my stack. If there is a genre label for these sorts of books, I'd love to know what it is.

How much fantasy speculative fiction is there out there?

Evilspork — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 23:49:40 -0800

How much fantasy speculative fiction is there out there? At least speculative fiction is I think what I'm looking for, anyway. My favorite genre is science fiction, because it often deals with the possibilities the future holds. William Gibson and Charlie Stross are good examples of what I love.

What I'm curious about is if there's traditional fantasy (swords and sorcery) that deals with the same concepts of futurosity. Modern-day settings would count - Magic Bites or the post-apocalypse Sunrise Lands. A good example would probably be the Discworld books dealing with modernizing Ankh-Morpork, though I don't know if that's cheating since it's a commentary on the present.

Is there anything like this or are the two concepts mutually exclusive?

Kushiel's Shadowknife

Anonymous — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 14:28:07 -0800

I am on a quest for awesome, intelligent, erotic fantasy romance novels. What do I want to read next? I love:
Kushiel's Legacy by Jacqueline Carey
The Sharing Knife by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Fever series by Karen Marie Moning
The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon

I am super, super picky. My favorite reading experiences are series mainly about the lovin', but the world building and other plots are nonetheless tight and interesting and definitely not an afterthought. The series I love most take themselves seriously; these stories are intelligent and sexy, and even though they have funny moments and graphic sex scenes, they don't lose themselves in heaving bosoms or witty one-liners. I'm not interested in historical or contemporary romance.

Paranormal romance, I've found, is generally too contrived/gimmicky/poorly written/poorly plotted for my purposes. Well-done urban fantasy tends to check the box for world building and plot but leave me wanting for more romance. I'm also not interested in fantasies with romantic subplots, no matter how spectacularly written the story is; I want a romance that is central and big and definitely not sub- anything. I like these genres a lot, but there's a time and a place, and this ain't it.

So, has Jacqueline Carey ruined me forever or is there hope? Thanks.