Books

[Hopeyouguess62]

Re: Books

Don't worry about it, sometimes I forget how easy it is to look up stuff on the internet. It's Bernard Cornwell, and he has enough books to keep me busy for a couple years probably.

I like the Bachman books, and the short stories by Stephen King. The longer novels by him are the ones I can't read. The Dark Tower series is good though, I'm on either 6 or 7 now can't remember since I finished the last one a month ago, and don't have the next one yet.

I very recently finished this series and I have mixed feelings. Part of me is wowed and part of me is pissed, and it's impossible to explain that to anybody who hasn't actually finished the seventh book. Let me know when you finish it.

Apart from that I've lately been reading Greek literature (The Republic, The Iliad and now on The Odyssey), naval history (vocational reading), flight manuals (vocational reading) and the Harry Potter series (just finished Goblet of Fire, NOT vocational reading).

Has anyone else here read The Kite Runner and/or A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini? If not, I'd highly recommend them but be warned. These stories are fictions based on the lives and conditions of Afghans living in the vastly changing political climates of the past few decades. They don't go too deep into political rhetoric, but they do show the plight of citizens forced to live in oppressive regimes. Both books are rather brutal at times. If you're somewhat easily moved you may want to keep a box of tissues on hand.

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Books

I've thought about reading the rite runner and its companion book, but I figured since I'll pretty much be living through it for six months, and there's plenty of other stuff I'd much rather read, I passed on them.

Has anyone heard of the book 'The Traveler" by Hank (or maybe John) Twelve Hawks. I finished it not too long ago, really enjoyed it, and am wondering what the sequel is.

 

[dmronny]

Re: Books

Sin: The second book after The Traveler is The Dark River followed by The Golden City all by John twelve Hawks. I haven't read Dark River yet, but I also enjoyed the first one.

Hope: I wouldn't wait for me to finish, it could be years for me to finally read the last book. I have to build up to reading Stephen King or I get bored and lose interest. You won't ruin it for me or anything, my mom already did that.

 

[Twisted]

Re: Books

Why the hell hasn't anyone mentioned H.P. Lovecraft, for Cthulhu's sake? Nyalarthotep damn you all to the sunken depths of R'lyeh!
Edit: I am mistaken.

Also, a couple of book series I enjoyed are The Shadow Children Sequence (Among the...) by Margarette Peterson Haddix, which is basically a story about a future where the world is overpopulated, and its illegal to have a third child, and each of the characters for each book is a third child. The thing I really like about it is that it changes characters for each book but it keeps a solid timeline.

Also, the Deltora Quest series by... Emily Rodda. Fantasy series, I haven't read the second or third set of books, or seen the anime, but I loved the first series.

 

[Bartnum]

Re: Books

I just finished Battle Royale by Koushun Takami. Truly an epic book. My other favourite book is Fire Warrior by Simon Spurrier. They're both based around War and fighting, but I'd recommend them even to people who aren't into that style.

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Books

@ Bartnum: That wouldn't be the "fire warrior" book set in the 40k universe would it? I've been looking for that one and its been a bitch to find.

 

[Bartnum]

Re: Books

Yes, it would be.

I remember on the old board I was going to type it up and upload each chapter, but I decided against it becasue it would take forever.

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Books

Raising this thread from the dead, cause I'm not starting it over again.

Just read a book called "Valour's Choice" by Tanya Huff. One of the few female authors that I've read, and I really enjoyed the story. It is a military sci-fi, in a world where humans and a few other aggressive races have been brought into a Galactic Confederation to be soldiers for the older races who do not know how to properly fight. The aggressive races find themselves fighting against another alliance known as "the others". That's the background of the Valour series. This particular one was about a diplomatic mission that goes bad.

The background kind of reminds me of the Posleen war series by John Ringo. That's another author I also recommend for military sci-fi buffs.

 

[Newbie]

Re: Books

The best sci-fi military book I ever read, and I can't remember the title. But the basic plot is as follows:
People be gambling on stuff, and then decide to wager on the military abilities of people long past. They go back in time, kidnap Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan, drop them on opposite ends of a planet full of primitives, and let their instincts to conquer decide the match. I don't remember who won, as I read this about six years ago and promptly lent the book out, to never have it return.

 

[Shrike7]

Re: Books

I don't know if it technically qualifies as military sci-fi, but I recommend Orson Scott Card's 'Enders Game' anyway. A race of insectiod aliens has nearly wiped out humanity twice, so the military starts taking children and training them to be military commanders. Its not too much on the high strategy and space dogfighting, etcetera etcetera, but a great read nonetheless

 

[Hentaispider]

Re: Books

I recently reread Dune. It's still awesome. Now I just have to get the next parts from somewhere.

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Books

I've heard good things about Dune and Ender's Game. I'll have to read them both someday.

Also Newbie, too bad you can't remember the title. I'll keep an eye out but it'll be hard.

 

[Copper]

Re: Books

Newbie...is it

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or maybe

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[Newbie]

Re: Books

No it wasn't nut I think I might've read the first one, or at least one with a similar cover.

 

[Copper]

Re: Books

Allright. Well, those are the top two choices that come up when you put in "science fiction alexander ghengis khan war time travel" into Google, if you're so inclined to use the powers of the interweb.

 

[Newbie]

Re: Books

Well, I may be forgetting specifics and making stuff up to fill it's place, but it sounded right to me. In any case, Amazon has too many results for time travel, and after about twenty pages I yielded. Still, Time's Eye works on a similar story, and I remember reading that one too, so maybe I've combined two stories in my brain..

 

[Sinfulwolf]

Re: Books

Don't you hate it when you do that Newbie?

Also, for those interested in military life, I've been reading "Shoot to Kill" by Michael Asher. Good documentation on what it was like to go through British Basic training for the Para regiment in 1972, and then a tour in Northern Ireland. That's as far as I've gotten so far.

Michael Asher was the one that wrote the Real Bravo Two Zero, claiming Andy McNab made events up in his book.

 

[Host]

Re: Books

For those of you who don't mind reading stories aimed at children/young teen, I'd like to recommend Enchanted Forest Chronicles and Animals of Farthing Wood. (Alternately, watch Farthing Wood on TV. That version's better, my favourite characters survive.)

Enchanted Forest Chronicles' first book is about a princess who runs of to a dragon and does not want to be rescued - it may sound like a simple and boring concept, but trust me, it's better than I make it sound. (and if I say too much else, I may ruin the story.) The later books are only slightly worse than the first - at least, in my opinion.

Farthing Wood... I can't really describe it, beyond "a children's story for adults". Seriously, watch/read it.

 

[Goldstein]

Re: Books

Right now, I'm reading through a transcription/analysis of Blake's

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. I recently finished Milton's

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. The reason I picked those two up is that I had read through Pullman's

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trilogy.

Oh, if you enjoy sci-fi and/or dystopic literature, read Zamyatin's

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. It's basically what inspired both Orwell and Huxley to write their novels. Additionally, I'd also recommend Lindqvest's

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. It's a... um... vampire novel. And a coming of age story. And a romance. And (arguably) a dystopic novel. It's set in Sweden, in the 80s, and is about a vampire and a human, both 12(ish). It's also creepy and sweet and very well written. And not at all like Twilight.

 

[wallpaper]

Re: Books

I love books that can successfully combine genres like that! Thanks for the suggestions... I'm going to have to see if I can hunt down copies in the flesh.