Book Recommendation... Please.

[Exit]

So here I am about three quarters of the way through this book (The Girl with All the Gifts) and I'm thinking that once I finish... I'll have nothing else to read.

I haven't been reading much of anything for years, I mean a book. I've been here and In a way that counts but I need a book. So the other day I went into Barnes & Nobles and I realized that I have a serious issue. I mean, I felt like I was standing at the edge of my bed and my girl was waiting and-

The same thing. There are books everywhere. I don't know where to start. How to start. What the hell I'm looking for. Took me maybe three hours to find the book I'm reading now and that's only because I cheated. Did I cheat? I looked up a list of top new dystopian books and a book with my name came up. Very happy I did by the way. I love it so far.

I feel like I should know right off the bat what I'm looking for but I don't. So I thought I'd ask all of you since everyone here is literature inclined. What's a good book? Maybe we could turn this into a thread of sorts but for now just help ME!

What could I possibly be looking for?
Fantasy - Always good.
Science Fiction - Space stuff? yes.
Romance - Possibly with a strong female character and not some damsel in distress shet. Unless its good then tell me to shut up and give me that book.
Dystopian - Really like this theme. Do a lot of roleplay work here.
I dont know.
All of these wrapped up into one.
Something that will eat up all my free time.

I'm a male. I don't know if that matters but I'll throw it out there just in case.

[HeySeuss]

RPGN has a new feature called "Share the Experience" which has a book listed that I highly recommend.

[GodOfWar]

either FANGIRL, which is slightly damsel in distress, but interesting none-the-less.

Or the DIVERGENCE series, it's amazing if you haven't already read it.

[Exit]

@HeySeuss So I've never read the "Forever War" even though I've heard of it. Definitely adding it to my list and putting it at the top since its... empty. Might have to read "On Fairy Stories" too. Love writing fantasy and I think this would help.

@GodOfWar I'll take a look at Fangirl. I actually saw that at Barnes & Nobles but didn't think anything of it. As far as the Divergent series go, unfortunately I've already watched the first film. Usually the book is better but since I saw the film first I'm going to finish out the series and then go back. If I start reading the books, it'll ruin the movies for me. So far, the series is enjoyable even though I don't really have anyone to compare the two mediums.

[Mr_pink]

Greatest book ever written.

[Ashes]

Brandon Mull (Author) I've read two of his series Fablehaven and Five Kingdoms, Amazing books. Up there with Harry Potter, and the Eragon Series.

[Exit]

@Mr_pink Hm. Wasn't entirely in one of the genres but still interesting. I don't think I've ready anything about the Vietnam War to be honest whether it be autobiographical or not, except for the texts shoved in my face back in high school. Don't think I've watched the film adapted from it either...

Think I must be living under a rock.

@Ashes Looking these up because like everything else in this thread, I haven't heard of them. I'm reading nothing but good things so I'll have to check these out too. Their series too so they'll keep me occupied for some time.

[OfficerHeadbutt]

The Gone series by Michael Grant is one of my favourite book series. It's about a beach town in California where everyone over the age of 15 disappears, and a sphere of energy covers the town so no one can get in or out. Some of the kids start developing powers, and things get out of hand. Obviously none of the above is realistic but I find it realistic in how it portrays what would happen, there's kids who are playing for power, there's the problem of food running out, kids drinking, smoking, taking drugs, sex, pregnancy, plenty of gruesome deaths, mental health issues, etc. The books have a glowing endorsement from Stephen King on the back, so that's always something.

[Tsar Gatto]

Books I have read over and over, in my opinion books of gods:

Pearl Saga by Eric Van Lustbader. Pure win if you can get your head around everything. A fantasy wrapped in a sci-fi sprinkled with mature elements that explore some very interesting concepts. Once I finally got my head around the content and into the world I could not put these books down.

Pear Saga

The series centers on Kundala, a planet conquered by the V'ornn, a race of aristocratic, militaristic humanoids; themselves ruled by the Gyrgon, a cabal of mysterious androgynous technomages. The main character is Riane, a prophesied redeemer known as the Dar Sala-at, born at both ends of the cosmos.

Dragonmaster Trilogy - Fantasy spliced with warfare. Solid good read, not so complex.

Dragonmaster

Dragonmaster is an action trilogy following the life and exploits of Hal Kailas, a peasant who left home at an early age. During his early years Hal must work as a casual laborer. His dream is to fly dragons, so he joins a traveling troupe who give rides on dragons as entertainment from town to town. Hal is away from his home country and his king, Asir. When war breaks out, he is drafted into the army an as unwilling soldier. However, he does his best and works his way through the ranks of the army and society with his heroic exploits. Dragons are mainly wild and untamed creatures that are brought into the war, while Hal and others devise new and more damaging ways to use the dragons against their enemies. This tale is told in the first two books, which contain bloody action throughout. The third book covers life after the war, the difficulties ex-soldiers face, and how Hal deals with it.

Dragonlance chronicles - Fantasy, classic, great books. Similar fantasy world to D&D. Timeless and definitely worth a read at some point.

D Chron

A group of old friends and new companions meet and begin their journeys to become the Heroes of the Lance. So much content and so many stories....

[Alina]

Hi, @Exit.

Here are some of my favorite recent reads that you might like...

* Angelfall by Susan Ee.
* These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.
* Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor.
* The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken.

I hope you like the sound of those and happy reading too!

[Dinh AaronMk]

Colin Well's Sailing From Byzantium

[Vilageidiotx]

It is pretty popular so you probably have heard of it, but I still feel I should recommend the Dune series by Frank Herbert. I haven't read his kid's stuff because people told me they sucked, but the original series pretty sweet. I think i'm just a sucker for all the waxing philisophical tbh.

[gaudi]

Dystopian novels. So hot right now.

For YA (which is what you seem to be reading currently), definitely check out the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld. It's part of a series and has to do with body/mind alteration stuff (from what I remember). Also, strong(er) female protagonist.

In a similar vein, check out Feed by MT Anderson, which is considered a dystopian classic but is more somber. More sci-fi.

Other YA dystopian novels you should check out include The Maze Runner and The Forest of Hands and Teeth (zombies!),

Want weird/intense/shocking? Try Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess if you haven't already. Written partially in a fictional slang language, 'nadsat', it's full of intensely emotional, violent scenes and has a lot of artistic/cultural references.

Want strange/out-of-body/cool narration? Try out some of Vonnegut's novels, including Galapagos, which is about the 'rebirth of humanity' of sorts after the world's economy collapses. It's told from the eternal spirit/ghost of some sci-fi writer's son. It's a lot of fun! I also recommend Breakfast of Champions, which sort of breaks the fourth wall and plays with themes of free will. The characters are also hilarious.

You mentioned space stuff. And sci-fi. And dystopias. Check out Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, which is very accessible and apparently has a sweet film adaptation.

[mindpalace]

Check out the Looking Glass Wars series! It's a really interesting take on Alice in wonderland. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern is AMAZING. And Ice Station by Matthew Riley, a book I'm reading right now. Hope you like them ^_^

[tsukune]

Dystopian huh - if you've read The Hunger Games trilogy, then you should give Battle Royale by Koushun Takami a shot. I highly recommend this novel - you won't see this genre the same way after that book.

And I actually read that when I was only 10, talk about burning my childhood innocence with that...

[MelonHead]

Interesting mix of Dystopian and Fantasy (little dark, as a warning) check out the Broken Empire series by Mark Lawrence, starting with Prince of Thorns.

[aryianna]

Have you ever read anything by Laurell K Hamilton? I really enjoy the Anita Blake series which is a strong female lead. I've never read any of the Merry Gentry series or anything else she's done. Here is a link to her website to see if anything appeals to you. http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/book-series/

[Sypherkhode822]

Oooooh dear. If I was alone in a library with you.. Rarr.

Anyways, I tend to drift towards older SF&F (60s-70s) because I'm a hopeless elitist and the moment I realized that other kids liked reading YA in middle school, I scorned that shit so fast it actually caused a sonic boom in the library section I left.

I do read more contemporary stuff of course, but it tends to be a bit more obscure. I actually regret not finding and reading GoT before HBO made the show, because I'm now deprived of boasting that I found before others did.

Anyways. If you want something short and sweet and a little thought provoking from a modern perspective,: Elizabeth Bear is currently my darling because of her prose and how she does a delightful fantastical realism.

And if you want to read something that is so venerable that it shaped D&D itself, yet is still so relevant that people are writing about it now 60's years after it's original publication, (with a recent collection of fanfics written by esteemed writers such as Gaiman and Martin) I entreat you to read Tales of a dying earth. It is honestly one of my favorite book series of all times. They published an omnibus recently, so you get all of them in one place.

Watership Down is also another one of my favorites, it's prose is phenomenal and it is so powerful that you forget it's about bunnies, really.

[Gelatinous Cube]

The Gentleman Bastards series by Scott Lynch.
I am in complete adoration of this series right now. Each sequence is as memorable and gripping as the last, and it's so beautifully written. They dialogue is impeccable and the plot...don't even try to guess where it's heading because it has about a thousand carpets to pull out from under your feet. Just go along for the ride, because you won't regret it.

[Extinct]

My Fight, Your Fight by Ronda Rousey.

Autobiography of the UFC MMA Female Champion.

A real and strong woman, what more could you want?