Well, I haven't read, or written, in too far long of a time. I'm not really sure why. But I think having a new book to read would stimulate my creative juices. Here are some of my favorite books, and ones that I've read. Any suggestions for some new ones? -Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, A Song of Ice and Fire, Wheel of Time, Death Gate Cycle, Bartimaeus Trilogy, Ender books, Farseer Trilogy (read the first, the other two are on my Christmas list), Dragonlance, Forgotten Realms, Acacia, The Name of the Wind, Tales of the Otori, Interview with the Vampire, American Gods, Neverwhere, Narnia, Good Omens. Books I've read part of but couldn't get into/disliked (so don't suggest them): Malazan Book of the Fallen, His Dark Materials, Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. Thanks.
Well, you and me have similar tastes in books actually. I hated His Dark Materials and thought Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell took way too long to actually get anywhere. I also loved The Name of the Wind and Tales of the Otori. So, I feel pretty confident in reccomending The River into Darkness Series by Sean Russell, as well as The First Law Series by Joe Abercrombie.
I loved Ender's Shadow/Ender's Game, and I've read all the rest of the Bean books, but none of the Ender ones. Are they good? Also, what about Dune? I've tried reading it, but it was confusing. I really want to try to get into it however. I'm normally into only fantasy, but I'm trying to branch out, maybe into sci-fi, horror, etc...
The Dark Tower series is excellent (up until book 5 but I'll leave my whining somewhere else) and well worth a read! I'd also recommend Shadow on the Glass by Ian Irvine (I wasn't a huge fan but people that like R.Jordan seem to lap it up) Got friends that read similar things and love Joe Abercrombie's Before they are hanged and The Blade itself (they're a series but can't remember which order they go in). William Gibson does some good cyber punk which is quite entertaining and... I always recommend the Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake to everyone because it was one of those books (or collection of) that really did change everything for my reading and my writing. So, hope you find something that tickles your fancy! Ooh also - Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora for some awesome fantasy, dark humour adventure!!
I'd recommend something different from what you've read in the past. Of course if you normally only stick to fanatsy, starting there to get you back into it is a fair way to keep you focused. To branch out a little more, but somewhat stick to the same area, I'd suggest Briar Rose, by Jane Yolen.
