The Sword and Laser discussion

Hi to anyone who cares to read this. I am still very new to the world of Sci fi and fantasy novels. I was wondering if anyone could recommend some more books for me. I am looking for quick reads, as A Game of Thrones is busy killing me right now...and I just don't have that much time available. Following Sword and Laser has helped, but I'm not always sure if the books they talk about are what I am looking for.

I also get pretty quickly burned on long series, so I would love to know what good stand alone books are out there. I am a woman so romance is welcome, and the only books in this genre I grew up reading was the Star Wars sagas. So I really do not know any books outside of Star Wars.

I would really appreciate any recommendations you have.

Based on your shelf, it's hard for me to say what you'd like. My top 3 personal picks for stand alone are all sci-if since most fantasy I favor is at minimum a trilogy.

I will give The Hobbit honorable mention though. You can read/enjoy it without the lord of the Rings books.

1) Ender's Game
2) Ready Player One
3) Snow Crash

You can take a look at the group's bookself to find books that you would be interested in reading.

I would also add in Warbreaker for stand alones, because everything that Brandon Sanderson writes is amazing and the man can do no wrong.

How do you feel about YA fiction? Scott Westerfeld writes some very entertaining stuff, and it definitely won't weigh you down like Ice and Fire. Peeps, Uglies, and Leviathan are all smart, enjoyable, fast reads... even if they each start a short series.

Try the Vaginal Fantasy Hangout (romance combined with fantasy/SF) if you like romance as part of your books. Most books have sexytimes, but not all; you can check the forum to get an idea how particular books feel.

http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/6...

John Scalzi's books (sci-fi) are all pretty quick reads, and a lot of fun.

The Dresden Files are really fun also, and while there are a lot of books in the series-each book is pretty fast paced. I tend to read them in between the really long ones to break things up.

I would second Serendi's recommendation of the Vaginal Fantasy group. It's not my cup of tea, but you might like it. I also second the recommendation of Peeps by Scott Westerfeld.

That said, here are a few books you might like:

Wild Seed by Octavia Butler. It's like a literate, smart version of X-Men.

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman. A classic for a reason, also short.

Old Man's War by John Scalzi. If you like Star Wars, you'll probably like this. Similar to Forever War.

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs. The first in s series, but it's a stand-alone. Werewolves, tough female protagonist (who's a shapeshifter), a bit of rough romance.

Also, shout out to Jo'burg. Stayed there a couple days when I was in South Africa. Loved the restaurant Mezepoli. So much so we ate there 3 times in two days.

http://www.dining-out.co.za/md/Mezepo...

Some (relatively) quick stand alone reads I really enjoyed:

The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold Engrossing character driven epic fantasy of a broken man looking for redemption. One of the best uses of (fictional) gods and religion I've found in fantasy. One of my all time favorites.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline A fun dystopic/cyberpunkish romp of " young guy (and friends) takes on evil corporation" and also a stroll through sci-fi geek culture and history.

Among Others by Jo Walton Lots of people call this "Magical Realism" instead of fantasy but: meh, tomàto-tomáto. An introspective tale of a girl growing up in a boarding school in England after suffering a trauma, with fairies. Also a love letter to reading and genre.

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman Neil Gaiman shows what good Urban Fantasy should be.

Jumper by Steven Gould
A fun, character driven story of a boy/young man (he grows) who discovers he can teleport. If you've seen the atrocious film that was based on this book: Completely erase it from your mind. This is totally different and much, much better.

The Reapers Are the Angels by Alden Bell Very atmospheric and bleak post-zombie-apocalypse literary tale of a young woman, her charge and the man who hunts them. One of my all time favorites.

I made an effort to pick books completely different from each other from all across the sci-fi fantasy spectrum. So if you don't like one, you can try another and get something completely different.

While they are all part of a series with a developing world and growing cast of characters pretty much all of the Discowrld books by Terry Pratchett can be read standalone and they cover so many topics/themes/genres that you should be able to find one that is good for your tastes. If you don't want to leap into that then Good Omens is good too.

I would second suggestions like Ready Player One and Neverwhere and add in World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War.

Also, while I have only read one of his books so far Cory Doctorow makes his books available for free on his website so that is a good way to expand your reading without costing anything.

My recommendation, if you are a novice, would be anything from Marion Zimmer Bradley. There are a few catch, tho.

The Mists of Avalon is great for beginners. However, it is a series. But it is light, easy read. It is pretty much King Arthur's legend by the viewpoint of women.

The Darkover series is quite interesting. Marion made a point that all books should be readable as a standalone novel (not exactly true for the ones released after her death, but 100% correct for the ones before it). The books are either femalecentric, or have strong female characters. I highly recommend all of them (well, almost all of them, since Two to Conquer is kind of a snore). Those are 70% Fantasy, 30% Scifi, so always a good fit.

If you enjoy urban fantasy, Patricia Briggs (already mentioned above) is a good choice with both her Mercy series (Moon Called is the first) and the Alpha and Omega series (same universe). Also, Kim Harrison is a very good choice. However, Kim's books are very serialized, so not reading them in order would give you hell.

If you have the time, Frank Herbert's Dune series is a must read for any Scifi fan. They are, again, extremely serialized (absolutely must be read in order), and some people might find them a bit on the heavier side, specially as you progress in the series. However, they are absolutely worth your time.

And you have, of course, to consider some classics. Brave New World and 1984 are books you must read sometimes. Again, neither are light reads. On that same dystopian line, we have to add Blindness by the Literature Nobel Prize laureate José Saramago, although I would rate this last one as the heaviest reading of them all.

Oh, and if you are also a Star Trek fan, besides Star Wars, don't miss out on Redshirts.

So, there you go. That should cover the whole spectrum and provide you with a few months worth of recommendations.

Thank you to everyone. You all have given me so many wonderful recommendations. I will definitely be checking out these books, now I have a reason to finally finish my current book.

This Group is wonderful!

The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle is a beautifully written book. Not quite a romance.

Lavinia is a retelling of the founding of Rome from the point of view of a minor female character in Vergil. Since it is by LeGuin it has wonderful prose.

The World's Desire is a mythic tale by H. Rider Haggard. My favorite book by him. He also wrote She and King Solomon's Mines which are more famous.

William Morris writes in a bit abtuse style but his stories are intriguing. Lord Dunsany wrote short stories with great style. Tolkien. +1 for Marion Zimmer Bradley.

Susan Cooper's The Dark Is Rising series of 5 books is excellent.

Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis is much better than his more famouse Narnia stories. A retelling of the Cupid and Psyche myth.

Wow! Thank you all for the additional recommendations. There are a few books that I have been meaning to get out of the way first. But I definitely have my eye on Mists of Avalon, World War Z and Redshirts for my first proper dive into 'Sword and Laser' :)