here are a few of my favorites
Oryx and Crake
The Lathe of Heaven
Some great books there, that reminds me I need to read some Susanna Clark.
Piranesi is a real gem!
A Short History of Chinese Philosophy by Fung Yu-Lan. I spent pretty much all of my time off work reading it. I found it insanely interesting since I knew almost nothing about Chinese philosophy, and the book is written specifically for people like that. The way their schools of thought developed through the ages and were influenced by each other constantly as one became dominant was very fascinating.
I scrolled all the down the comments and didn't see Discworld by Terry Pratchett. Don't listen to anyone and just start reading it. There's no right or wrong way to do it.
Maybe the wrong way is to start with Book 1. I'd say try 'Witches' first, as I found the first book a bit offputting.
Guards and CoM are great starts!
Not sure if your into light novels, recently I've been addicted to Acendence of A Bookworm.
I read almost exclusively fantasy and sci fi. Here's a few favourites.
Sci fi: Red Rising Trilogy Bobiverse The Martian and Project Hail Mary
Fantasy: The First Law Trilogy (my absolute favourite of everything I've read) Brandon Sanderson (literally any of his stuff. If you're looking for a trilogy, start with Mistborn and if a stand alone, Warbreaker). Don't be overwhelmed by his Cosmere world, if you only read mistborn era 1 it wraps up in a nice bow. Robin Hobbs first trilogy is a nice introduction to her series. If you don't love it it wraps up nicely after the first trilogy.
Dystopian: Unwound by Neal Schusterman Arc of the Scythe by Neal Schusterman
A few books that kept me captivated recently
Hyperion. And that book was fucking heavy.
The expanse. I'm on book 8 right now and it's been going fast. The world building is so good. It makes you wish you were there with them. If you're into hard scifi, then you'll love this series
The Kingkiller Chronicles is a series by Patrick Rothfuss. The first book is The Name of the Wind. Definitely one of my absolute favorites
Here's some I have even reread.
Love the Murderbot series too.
My two favorites so far this year are Babel by RF Kuang and The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings
Seconding Babel. Such a powerful read for me as I grew up in a former British colony. Some of the parallels to the real world colonial system and how it affects locals are so relatable, even today!
I'd add Artemis too, or really anything Andy Weir writes.
It's probably been said, and is not exactly a hidden gem, but 1984 is something special. I read an excerpt of the first chapter and was hooked.
Every time I buy the new Alex Delaware novel written by Jonathan Kellerman I read it straight through in one seating. I own the entire collection in hardback.
Here's some I have even reread.
Love the Murderbot series too.
End of the World running club. As someone the UK the concept of a massive apocalyptic event set in the uk was intriguing. I loved the book.
Also Sphere by Michael Crichton. In my own head canon, I seem to recall reading this in one sitting over a single night I was doing an all nighter. It was just super gripping!
Bobiverse series (science fiction).
Here's some I have even reread.
Love the Murderbot series too.
Here's some I have even reread.
Love the Murderbot series too.
FWIW I am a 29 yo man who has read alot of scifi/fantasy including WoT, Malazan, Cosmere, Lotr, Dune, etc.. but back when Brandon Sanderson released his YA book (now trilogy? series?) "Skyward", I read the whole thing in 2 sittings. I was enthralled. Haven't experienced a total immersion like it since.
Oh interesting. Good to know! I dug The Stormlight Archives (still need to read the latest one…), but couldn’t get into Mistborn at all. Maybe I’ll give Skyward a go. If it’s YA it should be a fast read and I’ve heard good things!
I think it's like 500 pages but it's a pretty quick read. Definitely feels YA at times but overall I enjoyed it immensely. If you do read it, let me know what you think!
For sure, I’ll check in with you after I get around to finishing it!
Hyperion Cantos -Dan Simmons Cryptonomicon - Neal Stephenson A deepness in the sly - Vernor Vinge Insane City - Dave Barry Where Eagles Dare by Alistair MacLean.
I feel like I have read quite a few books that I felt that way about, but it's always hard to bring them to mind when someone asks. That said, the first few that popped into my head:
The Bobiverse (series)
4th book was such a disappointment.
Overall message too, somehow went from "we are the avantgarde of transhumanism and the universe is our playground" straight up to something like "i wish 50's back". Every single Bob turned to either flat meme or boomer.
Haha yeah, I really enjoyed the first few books, and the last one just fell flat.
If you love The Martian, you are going to love Project Hail Mary. The audiobook is really good as well.
Camino by Anya Niewierra. She's Dutch so I'm not sure if the book also exists in English.
Before that, Ready Player One. Later on I heard there is some criticism/toxicity around genders, right elitism and the like, but I never noticed that when reading it.
The Anthropocene Reviewed is the coziest book I’ve ever listened to. John Green reads it himself for the audio book and you can really feel his emotions and charm through it.
Already mentioned, but Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. I’m not sure if I read it in one sitting or two.
Lilith by george mc donald
Gibson's sprawl trilogy when I read them back in '89. The fact that it had many short chapters made it easy to consume in quick bursts of reading
Imajica by Clive Barker.
Weaveworld is another great one! Actually any Clive Barker book is great to me. Mister B. Gone it's probably my favorite quick read by him.
Yes another great book that seems so bizarre when you read the summary but is just so well written and believable!
Reading this right now, and a little over halfway through. Enjoying it, but it took a long time for me to really sink my teeth into it. It's a very long book and a slow burn.
It’s so intricate and intimate - I just disappeared into the book and isn’t that what we need sometimes?
I actually read it in 2 weeks. It gripped me in a way that any free time, I was reading it. Every meal, break and bathroom trip 🤪 I sometimes struggle with fantasy stories because it's hard for me to picture the world they are set in. Clive has a way of creating worlds that when you're done reading the book, it takes a while for me to process that world doesn't actually exist somewhere.
The Midnight Library and The Words We Keep. Missed bus stops multiple times because of reading the books, well worth it.
@Evolone The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells and the Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers (anything by Becky Chambers, really). Also anything by Gail Carriger.
The Mote in God's Eye
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