Fantasy Summer Reading

[Philip Overby]

I noticed there were some initiatives to encourage reading this summer, so I thought it would be good to offer some summer reading recommendations for everyone.

What will you be reading this summer?

 

[Benjamin Clayborne]

Embarrassingly, I've been reading nothing but SF lately, as that's what my wife tends to buy on our Kindle account. To that end, I can definitely recommend John Scalzi's Fuzzy Nation and Charles Stross's The Fuller Memorandum.

 

[Fluffypoodel]

I've been reading Dune by Frank Herbert. its really good so far and I would suggest it to any fantasy novelist even though it is scifi

 

[Steerpike]

Currently reading:

Victory, by Joseph Conrad
The Way of Shadows, by Brent Weeks
Under Heave, by Guy Gavriel Kay
2000 Years of Maya Literature, by Dennis Tedlock

 

[Lorna]

Currently reading:

Glossing the Spoils by Charlotte Hussey

'Each poem from Glossing the Spoils works like an intricate time machine, carrying the reader back to the beginnings of Western European literature... Anchored at one end in the deep past and the other in the turbulent present, they explore interconnections between historical, personal, psychological and mythic states. Plundering their opening passages from such early texts as Beowulf, The Mabinogion and The Tain, these glosa address the eternal themes of love and war,while giving voice to the surreal potency of the Western European Imagination.'

Not fantasy, but very mythic.

 

[Jess A]

I've been re-reading Robin Hobb's Farseer series. I also read The Little Princess - I found a copy here in Shanghai and remembered reading it when I was a kid. I may continue with Hobb's books and then move onto something non-fantasy - depends on my mood!

 

[Philip Overby]

I keep seeing Farseer pop up. Can someone tell me a little bit about it? I started reading Hobb's Assassin's Apprentice, but I never finished it.

 

[Jess A]

I keep seeing Farseer pop up. Can someone tell me a little bit about it? I started reading Hobb's Assassin's Apprentice, but I never finished it.

It starts off a little slow, because it focuses on the MC's life. Others may find it odd because it is in first person, but I love it. The story grips me now even as it did ten years ago. It's about a royal bastard who learns to become an assassin for his King (who is also his grandfather). Later, there is more action, and another trilogy followed the first. There are some good twists in the tale, too. Hobb brings a whole world to life in my mind. She torments her MC, though, and you go through his tragedies and failures with him.

You could also try her Liveship Traders stories. Those are likewise fantastic. Both are set in the same world. The Liveship Traders series focuses on ships, serpents and dragons more so than the other series, and her universe is just fantastic. She continued in that world with another trilogy recently - Dragon Keeper, I think it is called, and one of her dragon characters and some of her Liveship Trader characters feature in that story (but far less prominently). I was less enthralled by the third one in that newer trilogy, but I intend to finish it.

 

[Elder the Dwarf]

Currently reading A Dance with Dragons and The Black Company (I think it is the first 3 books together). So far this summer I've read mainly recommendations from this site. American Gods, The Name of the Wind, Before they are Hanged, The Last Argument of Kings, and a couple others I am probably forgetting. I started The Way of Kings but didn't get very far, hopefully I will finish it sometime. I also reread David Gemmel's Troy trilogy. I would recommend pretty much anything on that list. I'm also planning to read Best Served Cold, The Heroes, Gardens of the Moon, and the Well of Ascension. Hopefully I can get through those before I leave in two weeks.

 

[Ireth]

Recently finished Brian Jacques' The Angel's Command again, and started rereading Terry Pratchett's The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents. Both great books by great authors.

 

[Varamyrr]

I'm currently reading Winterbirth by Brian Ruckley, so far so good. Especially since I dropped Elizabeth's Moon's Oath of Fealty. Boy, was that a major letdown. Weird phrases, slow pace, hardly any action. And in all honesty, a littke bit of too much magic. She just isn't able in capturing me in her world...

 

[Benjamin Clayborne]

I'm currently reading Winterbirth by Brian Ruckley, so far so good. Especially since I dropped Elizabeth's Moon's Oath of Fealty. Boy, was that a major letdown. Weird phrases, slow pace, hardly any action. And in all honesty, a littke bit of too much magic. She just isn't able in capturing me in her world...

You know, I read and sort of enjoyed the original Paksenarrion trilogy (although I thought its structure was weird, and there were a couple of parts that felt like I was listening to an AD&D adventure). Oath of Fealty was just boring; everything got resolved too easily, and I just sort of didn't care about the characters.

Which is too bad, because I've enjoyed a lot of Moon's work, especially the Serrano/Suiza books. I did also like the Vatta series except for some reason I couldn't finish the last book.

 

[charleshudgen]

I am currently reading The Silmarillion and it was written by J.R.R. Tolkien. It was the epic history of the elves in The Lord of the Rings. It overwhelms the reader when they have the book of Prince of Fantasists Tolkien.

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[Jess A]

Finished the Robin Hobb one. It's now ruined - old cover, too. After being delayed in Hong Kong for 25 hours, it was a final blow to find my suitcase had been saturated along with everyone else's. Book is wrecked

I had also taken Raymond Feist's Krondor - Assassins (or something) with me to China. It's kind of crap and it reads like fan fiction. So I am going to go onto more Robin Hobb because that is the mood I am in. I'm home now so I have a wide range of books to pick from!