We usually talk about series/trilogies etc when it comes to fantasy but let’s go one step beyond that. If you had to pick just one single book as the best fantasy novel you’ve ever read, which one would it be? It could be part of a series, or a standalone, or a novella or whatever else.

My pick would be GRRM’s A Storm of Swords (ASOIAF Book #3)

Hello, all. I am genuinely happy to be back here doing an AMA. I’ve enjoyed all of my visits before and … it HAS been 3 years. We’ve timed this one very nicely as Written on the Dark was just released 2 days ago in Canada and the USA, and today is publication day in the UK. It’ll still be new for most readers, so for those who got a ARC or read it quickly (thank you) let’s be careful about spoilers, as we chat? Pour yourself a drink and let’s settle in…

I’m supposed to re-introduce myself. I’m Guy Gavriel Kay, I’m Canadian, I love Negronis, Martinis, and single malt scotch. I make puns too often and I adore good limericks and baseball. And this is my 16th novel. It has been a long run, and I feel deeply grateful to readers worldwide for that. *The Fionavar Tapestry* appeared 40+ years ago now. I’m aware, more than ever these days, of being one of the lucky writers.

This AMA is open now for questions and I’ll be back here at 8 PM EDT to type replies for a couple of hours. Let’s see …

Writer Peter David passed away last night following a long struggle with various illnesses. He was best known for his comics work (long runs on X-Factor, The Incredible Hulk, Aquaman, Young Justice, and Supergirl), his Star Trek novels, TV work such as Space Cases and Babylon 5, and a number of original novels, such as Howling Mad, Knight Life, Sir Apropos of Nothing, and more. Condolences to his wife, Kathleen O’Shea David and his family. If you can help his family out with the medical expenses, please do so. https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-peter-david

I am just curious about what books did people finish but hated. Recently I had a free audible trial after not using it for many years. I decided trying “He Who Fights With Monsters” since I recently read Dungeon Crawler Carl and wanted to give another litrpg book a try. The only reason I finished it was because I just love the high fantasy setting. But it is without a doubt the worst book I have read. There is no way I could have read it if it wasn’t an audio book.

So what is the worst book you’ve ever read?

Edit: Reading through the comments, the book I see mentioned the most is Fourth Wing. I haven’t read it, but from what I hear of the… “contents” of the book I can understand why.

I also see a lot of ACOTAR, Robin Hobb books, and the Poppy War.

Edit 2: The late up and comer has been Ready Player 1, a book I DNFed so agreed.

It’s been a couple of months since I finished reading the fifth Stormlight Archive book, and I’ve mulled it over long enough to conclude where I think things went wrong. There are two main issues, one of pacing and one of depth. There’s also a note I’d like to make about audience, which is smaller but I think the most important.

So, pacing. Here’s my issue with the book: It doesn’t really have a plot. Most stories have, you know, inciting incident A which leads to event B, which leads to event C, and so on until a natural conclusion. Wind and Truth doesn’t have that. We have a starting point, with the main characters each being assigned a task, and we have an endpoint, Dalinar having a contest of champions with Odium, and… that’s it. Every character is given a task and then we are literally just killing time until the end of Day 10 arrives.

For example, Adolin is holding a siege in Azir for ten days. In the end, he succeeds with a clever trick at the last moment. This was told over …

What was the book that made you a fan of the genre,and would you recommend it to get teens nowadays or not.Reasoning for what exactly got you hooked are appreciated

The letter, also signed by Jeanette Winterson, Irvine Welsh, Kate Mosse and Elif Shafak, describes Israel’s military campaign in the territory as “genocidal”.

The writers urge people to join them in “ending our collective silence and inaction in the face of horror”.

When I read War and Peace (inspired by the r/ayearofwarandpeace sub), I really enjoyed listening to Ander Louis’ Bogan translations of the initial chapters alongside my reading. War and Peace is much funnier than I anticipated (at times) and I actually think those translations helped me to notice that quicker than I might have otherwise.

While I totally get it (we aren’t exactly talking about a quick job), I still admit that it was pretty disappointing when I found that he’d only got so far and that it didn’t look like there would be any more Bogan War and Peace any time soon. Hopefully with the increased attention the project seems to be getting, we might see a bit more coming out in future - I’d love to see how he tackles Epilogue 2! If anyone can make that read bearable, they’ve done something pretty special…

Think about all the sci-fi novels you’ve read over the years. If someone were to ask you, gun to your head, to pick just the one that you would absolutely consider to be the best, which one would it be? No subgenres need to be considered, it just needs to broadly fall under the sf umbrella.

For me, probably a pretty popular choice, but it would be Hyperion. Completely blew me away and I haven’t read that good since in the genre.

I came across a recommendation for this short story in this subreddit. Loved the philosophical and existential tone. So wanted to make a short comic on the story and share with you guys. Hope you enjoy

I’m interested in whether there’s any good NEW Military Scifi out in the last few years.

Specifically stuff about ordinary men and women fighting in space, or other other planets. No magic, no 9 foot demigods, NO “God-like AIs”, no LitRPG. None of that nonsense.

Just humans in space fighting aliens, or other humans, in space. With all the drama and heroism and sacrifice that might entail.

New stuff only. Not Starship Troopers or Dune or Armor or anything from past decades.

Stuff similar to:

Expeditionary Force by Craig Alanson

Galaxy’s Edge by Jason Anspach

The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley

Frontlines by Marko Kloos

The Divide by J.S. Dewes

But new.

Any new stuff like this that’s come out after 2020?

Locus is an industry magazine for science fiction, fantasy, and speculative fiction. They are a great resource for reviews, information on forthcoming books, and interviews with authors. They also run the Locus Awards, and prepare the annual Locus Recommended Reading List.

They are a nonprofit, and rely on contributions in addition to their subscriptions. Today is the last day of their fund drive, and they have a pretty substantial gap to reach their goal. They have some good perks for donating, including signed books, online chats with authors, and bundles of issues. Please consider making a donation or, alternately, subscribing to the magazine. They are a valuable resource for the genre.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/locus-mag-science-fiction-fantasy-horror-2025#/

I think you all know the kind I mean. Liu’s Three Body Problem, Tchaikovsky’s Children of Time series, Foundation (and most of Asimov tbh). Where the main focus is really just on the concept, not to say these books didn’t also have some good characters. Be interested to hear about any other books in this style

I just finished The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi, and looking forward to continuing with the rest of the series.

It is tough to get into. While the world building is detailed and well-thought out, it does require some thought and research by the reader to understand what is going on. It mostly avoids the dreaded infodump, which I appreciate. By doing so, however, Mr. Rajaniemi assigns a fair amount of homework to the reader. But IMO it is worth the effort, and the bit of time spent on research is well rewarded.

To anyone interested in compelling and challenging scifi, I can definitely recommend. I’ll also admit that I had two false starts before committing to making the effort and completing the book.

If anyone has attempted a reading, but then become discouraged, I’d like to hear your views on The Quantum Thief.

The popular (and very good) series The Last of Us just wrapped up its second season. Seven episodes. The third season is expected in 2027.

I think back to a series like LOST. A groundbreaking, TV landscape changing series (often considered one of the greatest of all time). 20+ episode seasons EVERY year for 5 of its six seasons (one year was 14 episodes because of a writers strike). I’d argue that the first three seasons achieved (and maintained) a level of mystery and suspense never before seen on TV.

Of course there were lots of other quality shows that consistently delivered 20+ episode seasons year after year. 24, Blindspot, Alias, the Blacklist, Northern Exposure, and the list goes on.

Audiences today are getting ripped off. It’s not about maintaining quality, it’s about lazy/spoiled writers and producers and a broken delivery system.

3 years between seasons of Stranger Things? Nearly the same for Westworld? By the time a new season arrives a lot of viewers …

Edit 1: So far I’ve seen literally ever suggestion so far. Ive spent most of my time in the last 10 years being really sick. Ive been hospitalized countless times so ive had an incredible amount of free time on my hands. I started this post because I couldn’t think of anymore movies to watch that fit this bill.

Edit 2: People don’t really appreciate the amount of time being sick gives. Im asking this question in this post because ive already watched every popular movie or TV show from the past 30+ years. Most people can only carve out enough time to watch one or two movies a week, i have enough time to watch 5-7 movies a day. Being hospitalized as often as me, plus being sick outside of the hospital leaves you with to much free time. Honestly, it sucks. Again, im not asking htis because im lost and i need my next movie or show, im asking this because ive literally run out of movies and shows.

To be honest, this post is a bit depressing, i appreciate the immense …

Source for the fact about The Martian: https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-man-behind-the-martian/

But the movie changed how long the crew spent on the planet for a funny reason. In the book they left after sol six, but in the movie they leave after sol 18. Ridley wanted Mark to stir a nice big bucket of shit when he was creating the fertilizer for the crops. Ridley said, after only six days of six people shitting that’s 36 packets. He wanted them to stay longer, so that the bucket of shit could be full.

The one that pops to my mind is from 1984: “Blame It On Rio”, where middle-aged Michael Caine has a sexual relationship with his co-worker’s teenage daughter while on vacation in Brazil.

In fact, most of the late-70s to mid-80s teenage sex comedies couldn’t be made today due to hightened sensibilities about exploitation.

Any others?

EDIT: Jesus F C this blew up

EDIT 2: People, these have been covered to death:

Blazing Saddles

Tropic Thunder

Revenge Of The Nerds

Birth Of A Nation

Song Of The South

Ace Ventura