So I need something to read

[nerd killer247]

a few suggestions:

song of dragons by Daniel Arenson
(Blood of Requiem Tears of Requiem Light of Requiem)

Shadowmagic by John Lenahan

Shapeshifter series by Ali sparks

The Inheritance cycle by Christopher Paolini

Blood Feud (Fire and Ice) by Jakie Andrew

The cornerstone by Nick Spalding

 

[Lewg999]

Any of the Skulduggery Pleasant series by Derek Landy ( though its best to start from the first one ) are worth a read as well as a book called Ready Player One by Ernie Cline which is the best self referential geek culture novel that still stands up as a novel I've ever read.

If you want something that's non fiction but still a great read then I'd suggest Everything Is Going To Kill Everybody : The Terrifyingly Real Ways The World Wants You Dead by Robert Brockway , you'll never have more fun reading about the worlds eventual doom!

 

[Loki J]

If you want something really long, really dense and really epic (in the words most purest form), you should read Malazan Book of the Fallen. As of right now, the main series is finished at 10 books! But the author is filling out intriguing side-stories with a prologue trilogy and a trilogy following a certain character after the events of the main series.

When people ask me why they should read it, I usually say it's a mix of the best from Tolkien (magnificent world-building), George R.R. Martin (Great characters and a cold brutal world where no one is safe) and the badassery of anime (Characters that makes you go F*CK yeah in the dozens.)

Be warned though, the author is not one to lead you by the hand and the first book just drops you straight into the story without bothering to tell you any backstory. There is almost no exposition and you are just meant to catch things as you go along. As an anthropologist and an archeologist, you can be damn sure the author knows how to build his world so finding out things about the world is a wonder onto itself.

The books are fairly philosophical at times as well and I truly believe the books changed, or at the very least, influenced my way of viewing the world.

I'm 2/3rds through the last book in this series and I recommend it highly.
Another good series is to look for Joe Abercrombie's The First Law trilogy and sequels.

 

[Johnny Impact]

Jim Butcher - The Dresden Files
Terry Pratchett - Discworld series
Lois McMaster Bujold - The Vorkosigan Saga, Chalion books
Brandon Sanderson - Mistborn trilogy, Warbreaker, Elantris, The Way of Kings
Brent Weeks - Night Angel trilogy
Scott Lynch - Locke Lamora books
Roger Zelazny - Amber series
David Weber - Honor Harrington saga
Steven Brust - Vlad Taltos series
John Ringo - Posleen series
Robert Jordan - Wheel of Time series
Sharon Lee & Steve Miller - Liaden series
JRR Tolkien - Lord of the Rings
Douglas Adams - Hitchhiker series

 

[RedDeadFred]

But if you must have something else you should probably read Lord of the Rings but start with The Hobbit because it's short and you might decide that Tolkien's writing style isn't for you. I will also recommend the Hitchhiker's Trilogy. It's pretty funny and very interesting. Although I didn't really like the ending...

I would actually recommend against judging whether you would like Lord of The Rings based on The Hobbit, as the two stories are written in two different styles with two different goals. The Hobbit is written in the style of a classic fable, with obstacles being mostly anthropomorphised, and a lesser focus on characters than setting and task. Lord of The Rings on the other hand bears greater resemblance to ancient tales of heroism and bravery, a la Beowulf or Argonautica, albeit adapted and fleshed out for a book setting. LoTR spends more time talking about characters, feelings, and history than it does with simply journeying. It's also set on a much grander scale, with the play and counter play of people and events making the story especially gripping.

Also and unrelatedly, DNA died before he could make a sixth book, but there was one written by Eoin Colfer based on DNA's notes and drafts. I found it intriguing and entertaining but lacking in the style and spirit of the original Five Book Trilogy. Give it a look if your interested.

What I meant by same style is that he's very heavy on the descriptions. This can really bore some people. This is less in the Hobbit than in LOTR which is why I suggested he start there because if he doesn't like how heavily descriptive The Hobbit is, he certainly won't like LOTR.

Does the sixth book have a less depressing end?

 

[Vicarious Reality]

I am reading Dune (almost done, can not find time dammit) and the River God which i only read a hundred or so pages from
Mostly science fiction horror
Here are some more books i like

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_God
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Damnation_Game_%28novel%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dune_%28novel%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desperation_%28novel%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twenty_Thousand_Leagues_Under_the_Sea
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metro_2033_%28novel%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shadow_Out_of_Time
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lion,_the_Witch_and_the_Wardrobe
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intensity_%28novel%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurassic_Park_%28novel%29
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Who_Goes_There%3F

I remember some book about an insectoid extraterrestrial hive which has a human visiting or something
Anyone know anything like that? It was very fun

 

[Jolly Co-operator]

As a few others have said, the Dresden Files is an excellent series. I highly recommend it. I can't even go into specifics of why I love it so much, or else I'll just start gushing for an hour. Trust me, and the others who have recommended it, and just read it.

I also recommend the Dark Tower series, but be warned, it's a little bit more of a flawed gem. Stephen King writes the characters very well, and builds an incredible world, but as you go through the books, you'll likely start feeling like he was just making up a lot of things as he went along (That feeling is exacerbated when you look at the long dates between the publishing of most of the books). Despite that, it also gets a high recommendation

I also recommend the one I'm currently reading: The Wheel of Time. Be warned, it is a VERY long series. Hell, it's not even finished yet (I believe the final book is being published in January). I'm only about halfway through book six, and when the series is finished, it'll be 15 books long, counting the prequel novel. Speaking of the prequel; if you decide to get into this series, do NOT read the prequel first. It was published between books 10 and 11, and I've been told that it reveals plot points that were supposed to be a mystery up until that point in the series.

 

[Furbyz]

Alright, here comes the part where I pimp that obscure book I love so much like I do in every Recommend me a book thread.

Rock Zombie is the hysterical tale of a man who controls dead through the sheer power of Rock n Roll, and has been forced into confronting what appears to be a group bent on reclaiming the old glory of the Soviet Union, with their Giant Communist Robots and weaponized Moose. The humor is extremely dry, but gawd, do things get silly. I can't recommend this book enough.

Here's a live reading of the first chapter.

Spoiler

Information on how to obtain it and a summary are on the youtube page.

 

[KoudelkaMorgan]

Anything by

Robin Hobb (Farseer*, Liveship Traders*, Tawny Man*, River Wilds*, Soldier Son*)
C.S. Friedman (Coldfire*, Magister*, This Alien Shore)
Elizabeth Haydon (Symphony of Ages*, Ven Polypheme*)
Lloyd Alexander (Prydain Chronicles*)
Brent Weeks (Night Angel*, Lightbringer*)
H.P. Lovecraft (At the Mountains of Madness, The Strange Case of Charles Dexter ward, The Thing on the Doorstep, Dreams in the Witch House, The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath, etc.)

Also, The Last Unicorn and The Princess Bride. Good books, and better movies both.

*denotes a series

"They're masterworks all, you can't go wrong"

Series I wouldn't reccomend
The Inheritance (Eragon) series. Go watch the movie, and realize it depicts the only interesting part of the story.
Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) but you are already reading it.
The Deathgate Cycle, or any Dragonlance books. They aren't terrible, but they aren't good either. They are about as generic as you can get, owing to the fact that they are ancient by modern standards. Darksword holds up pretty well however.
The Sword of Truth series after book 4. The first 2 being vastly superior to the rest of them. It goes downhill in a big way, and keeps going for like 6+ more books. The TV show was actually pretty good.

 

[MorganL4]

I feel like a broken record at this point because whenever this question comes up I say the same damned thing:

Read Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe series.

 

[Yopaz]

Have you tried the Phillip Pullman 'His Dark Materials' trilogy?

First one is the Golden Compass, which is probably the most well known one. I read them a few years ago and really like them.

actually it's funny you should mention that I've had all three of those books for YEARS, and I completely forgot I had them until you mentioned it, I've had them at least 6 years

EDIT: wait the Golden Compass. I thought it was The Northern Lights?

The name changed due to a mistake made by the American publishing company. The book has a picture of the alethometer on its front page so the publishers automatically thought of a golden compass thus renaming it. For some reason this also changed the naming in other countries. I also recommend the series a lot.

OT: the Wheel of Time. Start with The Eye of the World as soon as you can. The final book is released in a month and 6 days, if you're a quick reader you can read through the 13 first books in the series before that. No need to get prequel New Spring, it doesn't offer much.

Also Mogworld is a great book, so far I am liking that more than Jam.

The Way of Kings is pretty good and The Power of Five.

Here's some links for ya:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wheel_of_Time
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Way_of_Kings
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Five

 

[SpAc3man]

I am currently reading my way through all the Tolkien books. Finished the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings a while ago and I am currently going through Unfinished Tales before I get out the Silmarillion and the Children of Hurin.

The lore of Tolkien's world is some of the most in-depth and detailed you can hope to come across. Very rewarding if you can cope with the slow pace and attention to detail.

 

[Ytomyth]

any recommendations would be great

4 words (and a url):

Shadows of the Apt.

http://shadowsoftheapt.com/

No, I'm not gonna describe what it is and give you lots of spoilers already. Part of the awesomeness is the exploration of that world. Just go take a (small) look and if it might seem okay; start with Empire in Black and Gold.

 

[DefunctTheory]

The Dresden files. Can't recommend this series enough. It's at either 13 or 14 right now and I'm pretty much on pins and needles waiting for the next ones. Might pick up the other series he's writing (Codex Alera I believe)

What the fuck is wrong with me? How could I forget Harry Dresden? My second favorite series of all time!

The most recent book was crazy. Figuring out the chain of events was extremely satisfying (if not a little bittersweet concerning you know who)

I'm going to have to third this one. I started reading the Dresden files about 3 weeks ago, and I'm on the newest book right now (14 books all together, if you include the short story collection).

Spoiler

There's a book where someone rides into battle on a Zombie T-Rex.

Frankly, if that doesn't make you run out and grab a copy, I'm not sure you're the kind of person I want to give book advise to.

 

[TIMESWORDSMAN]

Does the sixth book have a less depressing end?

Marginally. Nothing seriously upsetting happens but it does end on something of a cliffhanger.

 

[RedDeadFred]

Does the sixth book have a less depressing end?

Marginally. Nothing seriously upsetting happens but it does end on something of a cliffhanger.

Ah I may have to check it out then. I felt like Douglas didn't know how he wanted to end the book so he just decided

Spoiler

"fuck it, lets kill them all."