Bronson Posted May 5, 2013 Share Posted May 5, 2013 Earth Abides by George R Stewart . This is one the greatest end of civilization science fiction novel of al time. :cool4: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearbert Dondarrion Posted May 6, 2013 Share Posted May 6, 2013 Replay by Ken GrimmwoodJust a brilliant book. How does it feel to live your life time and time again? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pocket Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Errantry: Strange Stories by Elizabeth HandAll of the short stories in the book are wonderful, but my favorite was "Near Zennor."Part of the story's appeal to me is that it hints at a nightmare fuel version of Narnia (and I love nightmare fuel versions of Narnia; Lev Grossman can just take all of my money ALL OF IT). Another part of the appeal of the story is that it features the creepytimes adventures of a group of adolescent girls from an adult perspective, sort of like a gender-swapped version of Stephen King's IT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JuicyM Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 "Children of Hurin" by J. R. R. Tolkiennot as well known as "the Lord of the Rings" or "The Hobbit" but really good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tormund's Posted July 18, 2013 Share Posted July 18, 2013 Susanna Clarke Jonathan Strange & Mr NorrellAt the dawn of the nineteenth century, two very different magicians emerge to change England's history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolverine Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 Susanna Clarke Jonathan Strange & Mr NorrellAt the dawn of the nineteenth century, two very different magicians emerge to change England's history.Careful with this one, which is definitely not for everyone. It has a very dry meticulous style and main characters that some don't find very engaging. One of the few books I left unfinished, ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushroomshirt Posted August 31, 2013 Share Posted August 31, 2013 Careful with this one, which is definitely not for everyone. It has a very dry meticulous style and main characters that some don't find very engaging. One of the few books I left unfinished, ever.I agree I started but couldn't finish it either. Perhaps a very good book but it was too much work for me. Sort of written like Gulliver's travels, first person diary style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beathag Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 I may get shouted down for this, But Dune by Frank Herbert is the best stand-alone SF ever. The ending makes it clear it was never meant to have sequels. And I am sorry they were written. For those who have not read it, an old empire family arrives on Dune (Arrakis) to take over from a rival family. Dune is the only source for spice (read oil) in the Empire, and needed by many for different reason. The patriarch is killed, and Paul Atrides and his mother head for the hills, where Paul is recognized by the true natives (Fremen) as the foretold deliverer. War, sex, magic and treachery, all there. Characters you love and mourn. Characters who are vile, and you love to hate. I argue it was meant to end there. The other Dune books cannot live up to the first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First of My Name Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 I may get shouted down for this, But Dune by Frank Herbert is the best stand-alone SF ever. The ending makes it clear it was never meant to have sequels. And I am sorry they were written. For those who have not read it, an old empire family arrives on Dune (Arrakis) to take over from a rival family. Dune is the only source for spice (read oil) in the Empire, and needed by many for different reason. The patriarch is killed, and Paul Atrides and his mother head for the hills, where Paul is recognized by the true natives (Fremen) as the foretold deliverer. War, sex, magic and treachery, all there. Characters you love and mourn. Characters who are vile, and you love to hate. I argue it was meant to end there. The other Dune books cannot live up to the first. I read Dune some months ago. I liked it, but I didn't love it the way some readers seem too. But afterwards, I felt no compulsion to read the sequel, so I agree with you there. Besides Paul's possible jihad there was nothing left hanging that made me curious for more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arakan Posted October 27, 2013 Share Posted October 27, 2013 I am not sure if already mentioned but "The Mote in God's Eye" by Niven & Pournelle is IMHO one of the best stand-alone Sci-Fi novels out there, a true classic of the genre (yes there was a sequel 19 years later but forget about that...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beathag Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Susanna Clarke Jonathan Strange & Mr NorrellAt the dawn of the nineteenth century, two very different magicians emerge to change England's history. Loved, loved, loved it. Especially the Footnotes. I laughed out loud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterbound Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 I may get shouted down for this, But Dune by Frank Herbert is the best stand-alone SF ever. The ending makes it clear it was never meant to have sequels. And I am sorry they were written. For those who have not read it, an old empire family arrives on Dune (Arrakis) to take over from a rival family. Dune is the only source for spice (read oil) in the Empire, and needed by many for different reason. The patriarch is killed, and Paul Atrides and his mother head for the hills, where Paul is recognized by the true natives (Fremen) as the foretold deliverer. War, sex, magic and treachery, all there. Characters you love and mourn. Characters who are vile, and you love to hate. I argue it was meant to end there. The other Dune books cannot live up to the first. Move this to the series thread. Your inability to understand, or appreciate the Herbert books do not change the fact it was a series. Many folks on here may not be as well read as you or I, and this is a place to recommend 'Stand Alone's'. They may not realize that your silly fucking stand on the quality of the succeeding books does not actually, in the eyes of the world or publishing community, make 'Dune' a stand alone novel. MODS: I know you nuked the last rant on this, yet you let this stand? Why even have the sub threads if people aren't going to follow the freaking intent? Just have a general 'rec' thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InfernalManiac Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Mort by Terry Pratchett - comedy fantasy, laughed my arse off :'DA Fall of Moondust by Arthur C. Clarke - one pretty intense sci-fi novelCall of Cthulhu by H.P. Lovecraft - a must for anyone who's into Poe-ish stuff (mysticism, dark fantasy) :read: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First of My Name Posted November 15, 2013 Share Posted November 15, 2013 Guys I want to read The Hedge Knight so I'm asking for a recommendation here. It's collected in both 'Legends' and 'Dreamsongs II'. Which of those two anthologies is better? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendan Moody Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Melanie Lamaga's debut collection The Evolution of Reptilian Handbags and Other Stories is quite good. Mythic/magical realist fantasy, some of it dark enough to pass as horror, all concerned with the pleasures and perils of the desire for something more than mundane human life. It has a blurb by Elizabeth Hand, who compares it to Kelly Link, if that gives you some idea of what literary territory Lamaga inhabits. My own review is here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aceluby Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Carrion Comfort by Dan Simmons. Story about a small population of people who can control others through their minds. Characters range from regular people to religious leaders to politicians. Tons of action, lots of political intrigue, and I'm a big fan of his writing style. Another by Dan Simmons is Hollow Man. Reads more like a series of short stories with the same protagonist. About a man who can read other people's thoughts while wallowing in depression. He reads LOTS of crazy thoughts that lead him into many wierd situations. Short read that is still one of my favorite books. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
First of My Name Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay. Beautifully written, it's about a fictional country based on medieval Italy that suffers under two tyrants that are at war with one another. After one of the country's nine provinces, Tigana, rose up against one of the tyrants, it's name and people were utterly destroyed, andnow not even Tigana's name can be spoken or remembered. However, twenty years later, the survivors of Tigana rise up once again, in an attempt to drive out the two invaders and reclaim their homeland.I recommend it to those who enjoy good prose, good characters, good world-building and a good ending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidrun Posted February 28, 2014 Share Posted February 28, 2014 Adding plugs for Stepahn Grundy's Attila's Treasure and Rhinegold both stand-alones with ties in to one another and both are based on Norse mythology and Germanic/Norse epics: Nibelungenlied, Volsunga Saga, Waldere, Theodoric's Saga He also wrote one based on Gilgamesh, but I'm not certain of the title Though not fantasy or sci-fi, I would strongly recommend the late Gary Jennings to fans of ASOIF and GRRM as Jennings writes realistic and wonderfully researched historical fiction. Detail, detail, detail. Not to mention lots of food porn, sex and violence.Aztec- Takes place in the Aztec empire from c. 1450-Spanish conquestJourneyer- Fictional account of Marco PoloSpangle- A Confederate American Circus travels throughout Europe in the 1860s-70sRaptor- A hermaphrodite becomes a retainer to Theodoric the Great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SerArthurHeath Posted May 3, 2014 Share Posted May 3, 2014 The City and The City. Not really one or the other but Spec Fic of a sort. Utterly magnificent. Crime and Punishment meets some incredible ideas and for me one of the best books ever Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgambino Posted June 4, 2014 Share Posted June 4, 2014 Can anyone recommend anything similar to Nick Harkaway? Didn't want to start a new thread and get flooded with Stanek recommendations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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