A request...

[prisoner_24601]

Since I seem to be stuck in a reading rut, I thought I'd ask you all to recommend some books for me. At the moment, I'm having a rather difficult time finding books that look interesting enough to bother reading. I'm right in the middle of reading Jingo by Terry Pratchett and The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold, and while I love both of these authors to death (Bujold is one of my all time favorites for her Vorkosigan series), these two particular books aren't doing a hell of a lot for me. I'm kind of stalled out reading them (I've taken to re-reading both the Dresdon Files books and the Miles Vorkosigan books instead of finishing them), but every time I go to the bookstore and browse I can't seem to find anything that captures my attention.

So I'm turning to you all for help. Recommend a couple of books for me (and when you do so, tell me why you like the book). I'm pretty open to any genre or style, although I do admit that while I'm a sucker for a good romance, I detest 99% of romance novels out there. I also am not a big fan of most fantasy books (because seriously, if it has hot elves in it, I instantly tune out), but have enjoyed the occasional fantasy novel. Non fiction is also fair game, even though I tend not to read much, but I suspect that there are some seriously interesting books out there. Comic books are also fair game as well, although I like to read things in the trade paperback format and finished story arcs.

I very much like books that are *different* from the norm, or take an old, worn out idea and do something new with it.

Comments

With my luck you've read both.

[miakun.livejournal.com]

In comic books I'd recommend Fray, Kos turned me on to it. It's only one trade and is all done and is pretty awesome. Plus it's Joss Whedon. You don't need to have knowledge of the Buffyverse for it either, because it's set in the future. I really liked the style and the art is really cool.

As for books, I'd rec The Farseer Trilogy starting with Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb, it's a fantasy book without elves and daises and all the annoying let's over describe the surroundings. It has more of a realistic medieval feel with some slight magic thrown in. And you will a very special love hate relationship with the main character. It's first person, as a warning, but it's probably the best first person I've ever read.

I enjoyed it, because the narrated didn't know everything, but there were clues around him to show the reader what was going on even if he was clueless.

[plutospawn.livejournal.com]

A friend kept pushing the comic series, Dangergirl on me last semester. It's about this international group of spies, that are all very attractive women. It's very cliche, with names like Johnny Barracuda, but knows it's cliche and runs with it. So you'll either giggle or be like, "This sucks. I throw it against the wall."

And The Diaries of Adam and Eve by Mark Twain is short and can be finished in less than a night. Twain at his best, Adam writes stuff like not knowing what baby Abel is, so he chucks him in a pond to see if he's a fish. I've reread that one a few times, until I lost my copy, but I'll be honest in that I've skipped over Eve after the first read through.

[winterfox.livejournal.com]

China Mieville. I can't gush (http://winterfox.livejournal.com/45918.html) about him enough, and as fantasy goes, his books are nothing if not different.

[midnight-hawk.livejournal.com]

In addition to the Farseer books I'd rec anything by Gregory Maguire, Angela Carter, Kate Atkinson, Murakami (especially Nowegian Wood and Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World) and Tanith Lee (her best books are out of print, but she writes the best weird sex scenes).

[xenzen.livejournal.com]

I can understand your feelings about Hallowed Hunt, it's one of the more... grotesque/visceral books I think Bujold's ever written. Not surprising, maybe, when the main god in that book is of war and the hunt, neither of which is for the squeamish. Great (if bloody) imagery, though.

I know these're by Pratchett, but it's a totally different theme/voice sorta thing from the Discworld series. Try Only You Can Save Mankind (set in our world, 21st century) and the Wee Free Men series (Discworld), which starts with Wee Free Men and has a second book called A Hat Full of Sky.

There're prolly excerpts on the Harper Collins website. They're more children's/young adult books, so there's little of the usual Vimes cynicism/innuendos/satire you may be tiring of in Jingo. Pratchett pokes all sorts of fun into the old 'wicked witch'/fairy tales theme in the Wee Free Men series, and the gaming industry in the Johnny book. I found them a refreshing change, anyway. Maybe when Eric grows up, you'll be reading these to him. :)

The Deed of Paksenarrion (omnibus that collects the trilogy) by Elizabeth Moon is one of my favorite books. Okay, it does have elves (and dwarves) in it, but not the cutesy-wutesy ones with wings types. Mostly it's about a sheepfarmer's daughter who doesn't exhibit OMG sparkleponyprincess unicorn healing touch powers right at the get-go. Not to say she does (or doesn't) do this later, but it's quite believable as she progresses through life as a common soldier recruit, battle against pretty ordinary foes, etc. You have no trouble believing this, an ordinary person, can overcome life's obstacles. If you don't want to spring for the omnibus, flip through the first book, maybe, at the bookstore (Sheepfarmer's Daughter).

[athenaprime.livejournal.com]

These are a few years old, so you may have to scrounge at the library for them, but Anita Diamant's "The Red Tent" is one I found un-put-downable. I started thumbing through in a Waterstone's in the airport, didn't have the money for it, then tore Milwaukee apart looking for a B&N that had it when my plane landed. It's historical fiction, the tale of Dineh, who's a footnote in the Old Testament, but an absolutely fascinating read of the Ancient Near East.

And if you're in the mood for Southern-Fried, there's always Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, which goes fast for the sheer period-ness of the deep south through the latter half of the 20th century. It also makes you feel good to be a girl and is much better than the movie. :D

I'm only now reading Jim Butcher's Dresden Files (I was writing something similar and didn't want to unduly influence myself), but I also hear from others who like Dresden and Buffy-type tales that LA Banks' "Vampire Huntress Legend" series (the first one is "Minion" but I can't remember offhand the rest--there are four or five) is good reading, too. The protagonist is a hip-hop diva and vampire hunter.

[kosiah.livejournal.com]

George RR Martin, I think I bugged you about this before... it's not so much fantasy as a an epic viable world with tons of sympathetic villians and plot twists. Also, it's long...

I recently really enjoyed "Devil Wears Prada" and "Nanny Diaries", but I think that's just an indication that my brain has turned into mush. "Other Bolelyn Girl" and all the other historical fiction from Phillipa Gregory is also fun. "Kite Runner" is teh sad. "Middlesex" is cool, if you haven't read it, and it's set in Detroit.

Comics: Runaways and Y: The Last Man. But I think you're reading those already?

And see the HBO series "Rome" if you havent. Also "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" -- I know you said books, but... both of these shows are a ton of fun.

Forgot One

[athenaprime.livejournal.com]

And this is probably one I shoulda remembered, given the community...Timothy Zahn's Outbound Flight. If you haven't read the Heir to the Empire trilogy, you should, but you don't strictly have to in order to really enjoy Outbound Flight. It's the story of a Jedi experiment in long-range spacefaring that takes place just before the rise of the empire, and Zahn's portrayal of the time period makes it truly understandable as to why the Empire became the success it did. And he's probably the most sophisticated dark sided Jedi I've ever come across. It's very easy to imagine a DS Revan like this guy.

And Zahn's the best SW writer out there, IMHO. His plots are dense and complex, his people are engaging, and his villains are smart.