Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion

Sorry I'm a bit remiss in not getting this started on time.

Carry over from Jan
The Crimson Campaign
The Shadow Of What Was Lost

Group reads
The Bear and the Nightingale
Dust of Dreams
The Autumn Republic
The Lions of Al-Rassan

I'm not sure what I'll fill the rest of the month in with yet.

Buddy reading The Bear and the Nightingale. Reading Promise of Blood with my real life book club, and finishing up The Hero of Ages.

Buddy reading The Autumn Republic and The Bear and the Nightingale maybe The Lions of Al-Rassan.
depends on if i have time. I might read one of these The Thousand Names, The Way of Kings or The Invisible Library

Hero of Ages is a great ending to era 1.

The Thousand Names is a great book but The Way of Kings is top five all time.

Planning on joining for The Bear and the Nightingale and just started Roadside Picnic. And starting Red Sister after that.

I will be reading:

Royal Assassin
Assassin's Quest
The Bear and the Nightingale
Philosophy As a Way of Life: Spiritual Exercises from Socrates to Foucault

If I have time I will continue the HP series as I never read them (curently at #3)

Also if I have time, continue RA Salvatore's series. I recently finished Icewind Dale Trilogy and itching for more

Even though I didn't get through most of my January picks (people were especially slow returning things to the library this month), I still have a full list of titles I'm hoping to get through in February:

Assassin's Fate – Robin Hobb
Skin Deep – Brandon Sanderson
Magic Strikes – Ilona Andrews
The Warded Man – Peter Brett [buddy read]
The Voyage of the Basilisk – Marie Brennan
Naamah's Kiss – Jacqueline Carey
Ivory and Bone – Julie Eshbaugh
Cress – Marissa Meyers
Sideswiped – Kim Harrison
The Drafter – Kim Harrison

I am most looking forward to Assassin's Fate – Robin Hobb is my fave!

I just finished Warbreaker and I'm currently reading The Stand.

I'd like to read:
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Parts 1 & 2
Deadhouse Gates
Elantris

Listening to: The Blade Itself, then The Bear and the Nightingale, then Son of the Shadows

Reading: Industrial magic, the Black Lung Captain, The Curse of the Mistwraith

lots of people have added six of crows. Would anybody be interested in a buddy read for it? Or was it already done?

Laura wrote: "lots of people have added six of crows. Would anybody be interested in a buddy read for it? Or was it already done?"

I dont think it has already done, you can start thread on it if you want. AS LONG AS IT ISNT NEXT MONTH!

Laura wrote: "lots of people have added six of crows. Would anybody be interested in a buddy read for it? Or was it already done?"

I've already read it, but still need to read the second book.

Laura wrote: "lots of people have added six of crows. Would anybody be interested in a buddy read for it? Or was it already done?"

It hasn't been done, but that wouldn't matter - as long as there is interest, a reread is always possible :)

I wouldn't mind that one, but I think I'm booked until may lol.

I'm reading:
Fool's Assassin - Robin Hobb
Fool's Quest - Robin Hobb
And then onto try Gardens of the Moon for what feels like the fiftieth time.

I read the Farseer trilogy way back in the early 2000s followed by Liveship traders and then the last trilogy. I thought Fitz's story was done and never got into the rain wild drago books of Robin Hobbs. I'm ashamed with myself for only discovering this new trilogy exists now!

Rain wild books tie into the saga as a whole, as do the live ship trilogy (which should be read first). I highly recommend those two before continuing with fitz in fool's assassin- so good! :)

what about Soldier's Son? Is that trilogy supposed to be read independently or does it have a place in the Robin Hobb books reading order? I'd like to read that also this year.

and does Fitz come also in the Rain Wilds?

Soldiers son is separate. And fitz isn't part of liveship or rainwilds, but things that happen in his tales affect those books and vice versa. The further you get in the series, the more they converge. I'd recommend assassins, liveship, Tawny man, rain wilds, then fitz and the fool, for maximum chronology. :)

Niki Hawkes wrote: "Soldiers son is separate. And fitz isn't part of liveship or rainwilds, but things that happen in his tales affect those books and vice versa. The further you get in the series, the more they conve..."

Literally just imported all of this yesterday because of a Valentine discount at my local store and now I'm super broke :'D

I'm still waiting for your thoughts on the last book the Elderlings Niki. Just whether it's a fantastic conclusion or not though, I don't want to know about anything else :D

I finished Avempartha and have yet to finish The Warded Man, The Crimson Campaign, The Lie Tree and Beyond the Deepwoods this month.

I will start The Autumn Republic and Nyphron Rising this month.

Niki Hawkes wrote: "Rain wild books tie into the saga as a whole, as do the live ship trilogy (which should be read first). I highly recommend those two before continuing with fitz in fool's assassin- so good! :)"

I have them all sitting on my bookshelf and I've read the first rain wilds. I might try and go back to re-read them if this Gardens of the Moon goes no where again. :)

Carly wrote: "Niki Hawkes wrote: "Rain wild books tie into the saga as a whole, as do the live ship trilogy (which should be read first). I highly recommend those two before continuing with fitz in fool's assass..."

Good luck! I started 4 times before I got thru it (even with using the web site Scott recommended with Chapter summaries). I ended up enjoying the story and not worrying about "who was who" and "who was good vs evil". I will re-read (someday) before I move on to Deadhouse Gates, but I need some pleasure stress-free reading (Brandon Sanderson) first.

Petrik wrote: "Niki Hawkes wrote: "Soldiers son is separate. And fitz isn't part of liveship or rainwilds, but things that happen in his tales affect those books and vice versa. The further you get in the series,..."

haha I promise I wont divulge a single detail other than a vague overall impression. I honestly cant imagine not loving the shit out of it. I'm about 1/4 of the way through and savoring every moment. It will take me a while. But I am so excited to hear you got them all!!! Totally worth going broke for lol.

Hahaha that's great to hear Niki!! I only heard fantastic things about this series. I'll be waiting for your thoughts! :)

Laura wrote: "what about Soldier's Son? Is that trilogy supposed to be read independently or does it have a place in the Robin Hobb books reading order? I'd like to read that also this year."

Laura, I have the Soldier's Son trilogy sitting on my bookshelves, so if you'd like to read it this year I'd be happy to join you (can't fit it in until late April, though!).

late April for Soldier Son is good for me. And May beginning would be even better.

If you'd prefer May, that's fine by me; let me know what works best for you.

late April or may is all the same for me. I had forgotten about 2 buddy reads on the first of May. you choose whichever time you'd like to read the trilogy and I'll adjust. I'm happy you agreed to read it with me.

I'm reading A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab right now. Just added it to my kindle on Monday. And then it'll be Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency set. I watched the Netflix series on it and I want to see if they followed the books or not.

I'm trying to find a series to read, but nothing's really grabbed me in awhile so I just troll the kindle store looking for cheap books that sound interesting. I prefer actual books, but the kindle made my transatlantic flights easier and more entertaining.

Andria I can really recommend the Powder Mage trilogy if you're into military fantasy (although it's not that heavily infused with military stuff as this may sound). It's not a series that spends much time on worldbuilding; you find things out in almost a matter of fact way. But its greatest strength is definitely that it's really fast-paced and packed with action.

I must admit, I haven't read book 3 of this trilogy yet but I'd be REALLY surprised if the last book won't be on par with the other two.

Dani wrote: "Andria I can really recommend the Powder Mage trilogy if you're into military fantasy (although it's not that heavily infused with military stuff as this may sound). It's not a series that spends m..."

I just finished book one and I recommend it too!

I'm not 100% sure what military fantasy is. :)
I just read Sing Down the Stars, is that along the same vein?

Andria wrote: "I'm not 100% sure what military fantasy is. :)
I just read Sing Down the Stars, is that along the same vein?"

Military fantasy has a lot of military strategy, battles that kind of thing. The Powder Mage trilogy has a bit of that in it, but it's light. The Powder Mage is also a flintlock fantasy, which is a fantasy in an industrial revolution type setting with guns.

I love Flintlock Fantasy :)

Tammie wrote:
Military fantasy has a lot of military strategy, battles that kind of t..."

Ah, right. More like the battles in Lord of the Rings then?

I get why you would think this but that's not what I would compare it to, no. This series doesn't have much of a LOTR feel because a/there's no use of any type of guns in any LOTR battle and b/ in the Powder Mage series (book 1 and 2 at any rate) there's ONLY humans, Gods and regular animals running around, so no magical creatures like orcs, trolls, dwarves, elves etc.
I wouldn't know what other fantasy books/series to compare it to but if I'd have to describe this series to you in real simple terms, I'd say this: an American Civil War setting with surprising magic and lots of guns/gunpowder. Never a dull moment to be sure.

Andria wrote: "I'm reading A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab right now. Just added it to my kindle on Monday. And then it'll be Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency set. I watched the Netflix series on it a..."

I have been wanting to read books by her, but I haven't had the chance to yet. I am planning on reading This Savage Song by her after I finish The Alchemists of Loom by Elisa Kova.

I've now started Marked in Flesh by Anne Bishop and The Lions of Al-Rassan. Looking forward to both.

Just finished non fantasy book Boundary Waters. If you are into mystery books, Cork O'Connor is a great contemporary mystery series.

Dani wrote: "I get why you would think this but that's not what I would compare it to, no. This series doesn't have much of a LOTR feel because a/there's no use of any type of guns in any LOTR battle and b/ in ..."

*grins* Sorry, I wasn't super clear was I?
I wasn't comparing the actual modes of battle (melee weapons vs guns), just that there were a lot of battle scenes that were highly descriptive and take up a good chunk of the book.

Cause if that's the actual case... It's probably not my style. I disliked the Lord of the Rings for that. I much preferred The Hobbit, but I did power through the trilogy, because they are classics and dangnabbit it. I was not going to give up!

I can't say I really read any novels with huge, descriptive, long battles. Kushiel's Legacy, The Riddle Master trilogy by McKillip, Monstrous Regiment by Pratchett, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress by Heinlein, the Wheel of Time series by Jordan, or The Sword of Truth series by Goodkind. I mean, there's warfare and battle, but it's not meat of the story.

Oh we're having a bit of miscommunication :-)
Well, if there's one thing I can say with certainty, it's that McClellan's writing style is anything but highly descriptive. And bonus: very accessible to get into. He has a way of drawing you into the action without things getting too detailed or drawn out.

And for what it's worth, I am someone who practically hates huge amounts of description, when it takes you out of the flow of the story or prevents you from getting into it, so I quite agree with you about the LOTR being... shall we say 'challenging' in that regard. But as you say, it's a classic and ultimately a story well worth putting the effort in for so good for you that you persevered!

And if you don't like drawn out battle scene description - stay away from Joe Abercrombie.

Haha, got to love it! It's so easy to do when you're writing!

I will definitely look into McClellan then! I actually enjoy reading a good description, but I don't want it to actually take away from the story, if that makes any sense? Details make things real for me. :)
And LOTR was a huge challenge. I was honestly bored in chunks of it just waiting to get back to something 'interesting'. haha. Well, I was about 14 when I read it, possibly younger. I don't have any real memory points other than it was summer and I was either in middle school or first year of high school. Up until a few years ago there was only 1 book I didn't read to completion. Walk to Moons by Sharon Creech. haha.

And bummer about Abercrombie. They sounded really interesting and I've always been tempted to pick his first book up!

Andria we are doing another buddy read of The Powder Mage series by McClellan in May if you want to join us :).

I don't remember Abercrombie's First Law trilogy being very battle based. The Shattered Sea trilogy had some, but not enough to take away from the good stuff.

I just listened to the first book and there was hardly any battle scenes. Haven't read the second yet though.

Shattered sea had a fair amount though

Margret wrote: "I just listened to the first book and there was hardly any battle scenes. Haven't read the second yet though.

Shattered sea had a fair amount though"

The first book is very empty with battle, even the 2nd book only contained some. The 3rd book though oh my god, pretty sure it;s 300-400 pages of battle

I have been wanting to give a try to First Law trilogy for a long time now but I kept backing off because I don't really like overly described battle scenes. LOTR was a challenge in that for me also. The Wheel of Time also has battles and wars throughout it but they were not enough to put me off and I still found the series great. I heard Abercrombie is a fantastic writer but also that his books are full of battle gore. I'd like to give them a try if the battle scenes are not extremely extensive. Should I, what would you advise?

I personally really like the series Laura, I have read quite a lot of fantasy and I think First Law is still one of my favorite. Abercrombie's writing is really easy to get into, I hate battle scenes where the writings is full of complicated and 'trying to hard' for beautiful and unknown words. This doesn't happened with his work, but yeah there are a bit of gore.

It doesn't bothered me at all though. I think you should give the first book a try to see how you feel about it first, the first book is just a dive into the characters to see whether you're going to love them or not, there aren't a lot of battle scenes there

Hmm not bad for battle gore, but heavy torture for sure.
One of the MC's was brutally tortured, then becomes a torturer (this is not a spoiler). Very in depth teeth and eyeball stuff to be specific.