SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

Alex wrote: "Hey, I'm Alex, but some of my friends call me AlleyKat. I got reccommended for this group by Eric, a few posts above. I suggested he join the site, and he suggested I join this group. I've got two ..."


Welcome Alex! Always glad to see new people. :)

Actually, I was exploring the Community Tab on Good Reads and had a question about the Creative Writing category there. It's the first time I've seen it and being a reader of fanfiction on the A03 site, I just wanted to know if anyone could use the Creative Writing tool or if it was only for professional writers to use? I couldn't find a general place to post this question, so I figured perhaps someone here might know?

Alex wrote: "Hey, I'm Alex, but some of my friends call me AlleyKat. I got reccommended for this group by Eric, a few posts above. I suggested he join the site, and he suggested I join this group. I've got two ..."

Welcome Alex! Always great to see more readers around. :)

I forgot to add, I also have a LiveJournal site where I post on what I'm reading that I used before really looking at good Reads:

https://scifantasylover.livejournal.com/

I was born in Cape Town, South Africa but now live in Southern California (since 1989).

I've read just about every Sci-Fi and Fantasy author--most all of their books at that. My favorites are Kurt Vonnegut, A. E. Van Gogt and Frank Herbert.

Recently, I took to reading Game of Thrones #1 and Harry Potter #1 as I'd only watched the TV series or movies. Good stuff eh?

I've kinda gone retro of late and am re-reading what I've read before. Look forward in interacting here with those who love Sci-Fi and Fantasy.

Lawrence.

Hi Lawrence!

Hot diggity! Every sci-fi and fantasy author? Be honest now, are you an immortal supernatural being? I'm pretty sure you have to tell me--it's one of the rules, right? ;-)

Welcome! Looking forward to your thoughts.

Allison wrote: "Hi Lawrence!

Hot diggity! Every sci-fi and fantasy author? Be honest now, are you an immortal supernatural being? I'm pretty sure you have to tell me--it's one of the rules, right? ;-)

Welcome! L..."

Well now! That would be giving away too much. Though I did go a little cautious with the 'about every' hoping no one would realize and ask the exact question you did. I'll answer it but only in about 100 years from today's date and time :)

Lawrence wrote: "Allison wrote: "Hi Lawrence!

Hot diggity! Every sci-fi and fantasy author? Be honest now, are you an immortal supernatural being? I'm pretty sure you have to tell me--it's one of the rules, right?..."

Haha! Drat! Foiled by my incomplete question-framing again!

Hi everyone,
My name is Sarah, I'm from Toronto, Canada, and I'm currently in the middle of a nursing degree. I've always loved fantasy, though I haven't read a lot of SciFi (my reading of SciFi pretty much begins and ends with Ender's Game). Recently I have been wanting to get into SciFi, but haven't really known where to start. I stumbled across this group one day while browsing Goodreads, and thought it might be a good place to discover some new authors.

Hi Sarah! New authors, you say? Oh yes, we have those! This group is pretty good for selecting interesting new works and helping people find good recommendations, so if you're unsure where to start, there's always the polls, the monthly reads and re-reads, the buddy reads, or if all else fails, the Lost Books & Recommendations folder! Good luck finding good books and with your degree!

Greetings, my name is Mike and I was born, raised, and continue to work in the Bay Area. (I don't get around much, apparently.) In High School, I was very much into the fantasy genre, but 500 years later, I lean more towards science fiction now.

I'm somewhat horrible at reading, and never dedicate as much time to it as I think I should. Since joining GoodReads, my best year was 2004, where I accomplished 14 whole books in one year. (Mostly Star Trek: New Frontier novels...dang that Peter David is a fun read.) Since then, my average is about 2-4 per year.

Anyway, my good friend Anthony Rapp, from Star Trek: Discovery, plugged this group so I thought I'd join and see if I can get my average up. (I say "good friend" in that he doesn't have a clue who I am but I follow him on Twitter.) If I could accomplish the monthly sci-fi book, that'd be at least 12 books a year for more. Well y'know...starting next year I guess.

I'm currently, or maybe for the last YEARS (gah) have been trying to accomplish the original Fleming Bond. I'm up to book #7. Also I'll occasionally throw in an autobiography, usually of a musician.

Haha!

Welcome, Michael! We do have some pretty good sci fi reads coming up, I hope they are to your liking! And good for you for plugging along regardless!

We're nominating our October sci-fi read now, you should pop over :)

Hello,

My name is Lee Friend, from London, England / UK.

I work in IT for a religious organisation. I'm 44 years old, married, no children. Hobbies include playing guitar, music, a bit of a gig goer and cinemagoer, and love traveling.

I've joined for I don't read as much as I would like to. So joining this group will get me involved.

Do you count James Herbert or Dean Koontz books as Fantasy?

Regards
Lee

Hey all,

I'm new here, reading The Silmarillion, well attempting to - I've been meaning to read this for so long, and now that I am, wow brill but complicated (for me).

I've dabbled in this genre but never as much as I wanted to. So, I look forward to discovering other sci-fi & fantasy books and chatting with you all

Best

Welcome, Lee and Inkspill! Sorry, this weekend's been a bit bonkers for me, didn't mean to miss your posts. Glad you could join!

I think both those authors could be considered at least occasional SFF writers, for sure!

Inkspill, you're a braver person than I. I never finished Silmarillion, because as John suggests, note taking was heavily encouraged and that's a lot for a book, even a brilliant one. I hope you get a lot out of it!

John wrote: "Inkspill wrote: "Hey all,

I'm new here, reading The Silmarillion, well attempting to - I've been meaning to read this for so long, and now that I am, wow brill but complicated (for me..."

Hi John & Thanks.

Yeah, I've read the other 2 and once I finish this hope to read LOTR again. I'm reading this for the first time - I've put it off for too long

I didn't realise Silmarillion is the sequel to The Hobbit. It was suggested to me that I should read this next - but neat that I did this now.

I'm just starting again - this time making notes as I'm going along, that's really helping. (not sure what happened, just noticed following diseappered when posting:) I can see why you suggets to do this - it's the names and unfamiliar words - I was just seeing stars - but making notes makes it less intimidating, so I think I'm understanding it better - nit sure if that makes sense

Audio is a good tip and I'll keep it in mind, thanks

Allison wrote: "Welcome, Lee and Inkspill! Sorry, this weekend's been a bit bonkers for me, didn't mean to miss your posts. Glad you could join!

I think both those authors could be considered at least occasional ..."

Hi Allison, no worries, I know those bonker weekends :)

I'm enjoying reading this one, yeah it might be tough - but I always think the best things usually are

Hi, I'm new here, Julianna from Berlin. I have loved sci-fi for decades now, starting with reruns of Star Trek in the 1970s. I know it sounds melodramatic, but books, my cat, music and Spock and Bones got me through highschool. I am still a huge trekker, but love to read character driven harder sci-fi like Iain M Banks's Culture novels. I am not into dystopian stories as I want that bright, inclusive future. You know, the one where we get past our own greed and fear..

Look forward to following these threads, cheers!

Welcome, Julianna!

I hear you on the bleackness of dystopias. Have you read The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet? Despite the title, it's the book people keep telling me to read for the happiest, most inclusive sci-fi in space.

Hey!
I'm Mareike from Germany.
I work at an American Literature and Culture department at a mid-sized university so it's fair to say that I....uh....read. A lot.

I have been toying with the idea of joining a book club for a while and I've loved SciFi and Fantasy since I was a kid, so I guess here I am. (I remember wanting to watch re-runs of Star Trek as a very small kid and my Mum very categorically deciding that I was too young. Well, I turned into a massive nerd anyway. (Seriously, I'm the only nerd in my family and we all wonder how that happened. Colossal luck, I say.))

I especially enjoy dystopias and works that are more on the "speculative" end of the spectrum (i.e. "soft" SciFi), but I'm always happy to try new books/authors whose work I haven't read before.

I did read it, but must confess to not loving it. It was well written, but I didn't find it engaging.

Welcome, Mareike! You're in great, nerdy company here! I also enjoy soft sci fi, can't wait to see what you find :)

Ah, that's a shame, Julianna! But it's bound to happen. Better luck on other reads ^^

Hi all! I’m a reader of multiple subgenres of fantasy and a writer of mythological urban fantasy. Some of my favorite fantasy authors are Paula Volsky, Juliet Marillier, Melanie Rawn, and Sergei Lukyanenko. I’m reading (and writing) more romance lately, but I’m always on the lookout for unusual fantasy stories with strong female characters.

Welcome, Darinne! Always happy to find another Marillier fan :)

Hi all,
My name is Mia, I'm from Norway and I absolutly love fantasy and science fiction. I can't go anywhere without a book in my bag or a new audiobook on my phone. I work in a comicbook/book shop, so every day I'm striving towards getting people their next favorite book :)

I've read a lot of different books over the years, but lately it's been mostly fantasy. I just re-read Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames and it's so funny and well made.
And I just picked up Michael J. Sullivans books, The Riyara Chronicles, which I also adore, the characters are so lovable.

My favorite authors are Nnedi Okorafor, Neil Gaiman, Andrzej Sapkowski and ofcourse, Nicholas Eames.

Lately I've really developed a liking to books with Slavic mythology, like Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden and Bone Mother by David Demchuk, and also bonechilling horror. My favorites so far is Strange Weather by Joe Hill and Silent Companions by Laura Purcell.

I'm always looking for new books to read, and I look forward to see what you guys recommend :)

Cheers!

Welcome, Mia! How fun that you've found so many newer reads to love! Joe Hill is great, we have a lot of fans around here.

Glad to have you, hope you find many new favorites with us! :-)

Hi, my name is Kirsten and I'm from eastern Washington State. My favorite sci-fi/fantasy is space opera. But I like a good fantasy too.

I recently was reading Fool's Assassin and was amazed at just how good the character's were. Then I realized it wasn't the first in the series and have no decided to go back and see where it all begins.

Hiya, Kirsten! I love me a good space opera, too :) I hope you enjoy your Robin Hobb exploration and many more to come!!

I like to periodically remind folks here that there's lots of ways we do stuff together.

There's regular discussion threads where we chat about whatever we feel like, book or genre-related! There's the two group reads (The Changeling and Parable of the Sower this month) that we read, along with 2 monthly re-reads, and as many buddy reads as people can make happen!

Don't worry if it's a lot, none of it is mandatory or anything. But it does mean there's lots of ways to find great books and better discussions, if that's how you'd like to spend time with us!

Greetings everyone! I'm 59 and reluctantly live in Missouri. I was the geeky girl in junior high who was reading Lord of the Rings and the Foundation books and Stranger in a Strange Land and the Out of the Silent Planet trilogy... I've never slowed down in my love for SciFi and Fantasy, including all the series of Star Trek, Babylon 5, The Expanse and more on TV and Close Encounters, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and more at the cinema as well as books. Anthony Rapp, who plays Paul Stamets on Star Trek: Discovery, mentioned this group on twitter and I was thrilled to find out about it.

Personal life: I was a dog trainer for over 30 years and am now retired from that. I have a Beauceron (dog) and four cats at home. I spent a lot of time traveling around the world when I was younger, and the home of my heart is the UK. I have three grown kids and a wonderfully bizarre granddaughter. I often go to the Las Vegas Star Trek conventions in August (no cosplay though). I love SciFact as much as SciFi; Carlo Rovelli's books, Lawrence Krauss, Sean Carroll, any many more. Other loves are Liverpool FC, British history and literature, Noel Gallagher's High-Flying Birds, and animals of all kinds.

I look forward to being part of this group and discovering new books and authors.

Hola, Dixie!

We love our new influx of trekkies :) Welcome, be merry! I'm very eager to hear your thoughts on what you're reading, and hope you'll join in some of our group or buddy reads!

Thanks, Allison!

Dixie - Beaucerons are such gorgeous dogs!!

Darinne wrote: "Thanks, Allison!

Dixie - Beaucerons are such gorgeous dogs!!"

I have to agree! :D

Hi everyone,

My name is Mike, 44, and I’m from the Isle of Man (which is a very small island that’s part of Great Britain). I’ve recently got back into reading in a big way and so I’m currently catching up with all the great new books that I’ve missed over the past few years. I’ve particularly enjoyed The Broken Earth books by N K Jemisin, I’ve read the first two and am going to read The Stone Sky shortly.

Welcome, Trekker and Mike! Glad to have you both!

Trekker, i'm a big epic fantasy fan, too :) hopefully you find some new loves with us.

Ahhh, Mike, Broken Earth is so, so good, I can't wait to hear what you think of Stone Sky!

Thanks Allison - I’ll be sure to!

Hello,

My name is Alysia, 26.

This is the first book club I've ever been in, so excuse me fumbling around. I've always loved to read, especially sci-fi and fantasy genres. However, I've always had more excuses to not read (work, school, friends, etc.) and I hope having people to be excited about books with will encourage me to read more.

Few books I've read "recently" are The Martian, The Forever War, Old Man's War, The Book of Lost Things, and Queen of the Tearling.

I am so excited to increase my reading and to talk to others who love to read as well.

Hello!

My name is Kiryn and I've been reading full-length novels since I was 8 years old. First generation Northern Californian (my parents were from Kansas) and my dad had a huge library of sci-fi books so I got a lot of exposure early on.

When I was a teenager back in the 90s I read every single Forgotten Realms book and everything written by Piers Anthony (even the out of print stuff you could only get online) but after my collections were destroyed by a major house fire I've mostly just been dabbling in different authors here and there on recommendations from friends.

Recently, my most favorite authors have been Brandon Sanderson and Naomi Novik, but I'm open to pretty much anything. I've watched every episode of Star Trek, and while I don't often read the books, I am enough of a fan to have named my daughter after an extremely obscure character from Next Generation. =)

Welcome, Kiryn! Sanderson's a big favorite of mine, too. So sorry to hear about the fire! But glad you're finding new things to like and share with your family :)

We're preparing to read The Calculating Stars and The Poppy War, maybe one or both of those will sound good to you?

Hey, Alysia! Wow, The Forever War! Great book. haven't thought about it in a long while.
Agree with Kiryn and Allison: Sanderson's cool!

Okay, Kiryn, I've gotta know - what did you name your daughter?

Kiryn wrote: "Hello!

My name is Kiryn and I've been reading full-length novels since I was 8 years old. First generation Northern Californian (my parents were from Kansas) and my dad had a huge library of sci-f..."

Hello new friends!

My name is Andra, and I'm here because a friend of mine suggested I'd like it, and so far I'd have to agree!

Personal stuff: I live in Toronto, but spent 9 years in Scotland, so have lots of ties there as well. I work for a tech company, and love doing theatre, board games, and lifting weights when I'm not reading.

Reading stuff: I have always enjoyed fantasy as a genre, but really dove in in my teen years. Wheel of Time is definitely my favourite, and have recently dove into Brandon Sanderson as a result. Have also read lots of Robin Hobb, and enjoy Guy Gavriel Kay's work. My favourite book of all time is The Giver by Lois Lowry, and Philip Pullman and Garth Nix are two authors that I will always read and enjoy.

It's so great to be here and have found some other people to geek out with! Thanks for having me :)

Welcome, Andra!!

Andra wrote: "Hello new friends!

My name is Andra, and I'm here because a friend of mine suggested I'd like it, and so far I'd have to agree!

Personal stuff: I live in Toronto, but spent 9 years in Scotland, s..."
Welcome, Andra. Almost all of the authors you mentioned are some of my favorites too. You will find lots of good things to read here, and plenty of people who love to talk about the kind of books you like.

Hmm...my comment seems to have disappeared. But glad to have you, Andra!

There's an ongoing Wheel of Time buddy read and an upcoming Tigana buddy read that might interest you, among just way too many others :D

Hope to see you in discussion!!

Hello everyone,

My name is Ravi. Am here coz Goodreads took at look at my reading lists and suggested I would like this group. I completely agree with the Goodreads.

I am originally from India, but currently living in Wisconsin. Love traveling, different cuisines, watching TV shows, philately and technology.

Have always been into Science Fiction (actually took a course in college) and Fantasy, but my pace of reading dropped over the last few years on account of familial increments. Over the last year though, I have been finally able to spend the kind of time I would like to in front of books.

The restart began with the amazing Broken Earth series by N.K. Jamisin. Over the next few months, I strated a bunch of series including the Malazan books, the Gentlemen Bastards, Discworld, Kingkiller chronicles and the Stormlight archive along with a re-read of a bunch of Brandon Sanderson.

It is great to see such an amazing group sharing similar reading preferences. Looking forward to picking up more recommendations. Suddenly it feel like there are so many books and so little time to read them.

Welcome, Ravi!

Glad you found time to get back to books! You've really chosen a great few series to start back up with :) Hope you find many more with us!

John wrote: "Inkspill wrote: "Hey all,

I'm new here, reading The Silmarillion, well attempting to - I've been meaning to read this for so long, and now that I am, wow brill but complicated (for me..."

Welcome, Inkspill. I recommend getting the audiobook of The Silmarillion it helps a lot with the pronunciation of many of the words...

Hi Inkspill, I'm also reading The Silmarillion. It's a reread for me, I considered going with audio this time but couldn't get it from the library. (I get almost all my audiobooks from the library.) Someday I'd like to try listening to it (and The Children of Húrin, which the library doesn't have in audio either).

It's complicated for *everyone,* even on rereads, I think.

Hi! I’m Amanda and I work as a data engineer based out of Portland, OR. My main genre is Sci-fi/fantasy, but I also love historical fiction, non-fiction, classics (I majored in these bad boys), and even enjoy the occasional “trashy lit” (whatever that means 🙄).

I’m looking to make some more nerdy book friends, so please add me/message me/whatever me!!

Thanks y’all!

Welcome Amanda! You've found a whole pack of nerdy book friends :D Hope we get to hear what you're reading soon! ^^

Hello, hello,

I'm Jemina (Ye-me-na - not like the pancake aunt) although in a group of this nature, I'd almost like to go by the second name, which I usually try my hardest to keep obscured: Ursula (I gather it'd resonate warmly here).

Hail from Turku, Finland.

Near complete novice to reading fiction, outside graphic novels back in my teens. Preferred an encyclopedia as a kid. Lean towards things grounded to reality. Sci-Fi rather than fantasy, I'd guess, but who cares of labels, if a story works.

And Moomins - those I've read and know well enough. Life long Moomin enthusiast.

I'm here in hopes of doing one more thing I've managed to avoid till now, on grounds that I wouldn't have the time / have better things to do (neither true). And to stop this nagging voice in my head: "how do you know you wouldn't enjoy a book?".

Oh, 33 just rolled around about a week ago. A novice in life too in many ways. Reading would only be the beginning of things on a to-do list, it feels - if there was a defined one.

Graphic design and illustration have so far been the connecting thread throughout life.

Looking forward to following discussions here o/