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What fiction should I read next? (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 5 months ago by to c/books@lemmy.world
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I have taken almost a year long break from reading fiction to focus on non-fiction. I am ready to start reading fiction again, but after such a long break I have no idea where to start.

Here are some books I have enjoyed in the past:

  • Dragon's Egg (Robert L. Forward)
  • The Damned Trilogy (Alan Dean Foster)
  • Mage Errant series (John Bierce)
  • Cradle series (Will Wight)
  • Gods of Blood and Powder (Brian Mckellan)
  • The Spiral Wars (Joel Shepard)
  • Basically everything Brandon Sanderson has written
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[–] 7 points 5 months ago (17 children)

Robin Hobb's Realm of the Elderlings series. It's right up there with Sanderson IMO.

Reading order is the Farseer trilogy, Liveship Traders trilogy, Tawny Man trilogy, the Rain Wild Chronicles and finally the Fitz and the Fool trilogy. IMO they're all absolute page turners from start to finish. I've read the whole lot twice, some of them more.

It's not quite as daunting as it looks as the Liveship Traders trilogy and the Rain Wild Chronicles follow a different cast of characters from the other 3 trilogies albeit set in the same world and with some crossover.

The one thing that sets it above Sanderson's work for me is that it's complete with no loose threads. Hopefully he gets there one day too!

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 4 months ago (13 children)

    Finishing up the Assassin's Apprentice today and I just love the writing style. It's so refreshing how easily the author can cycle between telling of the Macro and Micro.

    Very refreshing read and I am excited to read the rest.

    Great recommendation! Thank you.

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  • [–] 2 points 4 months ago (12 children)

    Fantastic, glad you're enjoying it!

    As far as the rest goes, you ain't seen nothing yet xD

    No other book series has made me so emotional.

    Enjoy!

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 3 months ago* (11 children)

    Finished the Assassin's trilogy, now I am on the first book of the ship series.

    Not as much of a fan of a lot of the characters in the ship series. I kind of hate them all, with maybe the exception of Althea and the serpents. I am rooting for the serpents in this trilogy.

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  • [–] 1 point 3 months ago (10 children)

    Awesome :D

    I can't really say much without spoilers but yeah, I feel you. Some of them will grow on you probably and the world building is an absolute necessity for the rest of the books (kinda like ARR in FF14 if you've played that).

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 3 months ago* (9 children)

    Is Amber the Fool? It seems obvious.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 months ago (8 children)

    Maybe xD

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 3 months ago (7 children)

    I am hoping I missed something and this isn't just a glaring plot hole... But do you know how the Rain Wild Traders originally got to the rain wild lands? Supposedly the only way is up the river with a live ship, but live ships only existed because of the logs from the Rain Wilds. Seems like a chicken and the egg situation.

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  • [–] 2 points 3 months ago (6 children)

    I have no idea if this is a spoiler or not...

    spoilerbut I'm pretty sure people were living in The Rain Wilds before the river turned acidic.

    It has been a while since I read them though. I will say I don't remember feeling perturbed about any plot holes when I finished so I assume it is explained at some point.

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 3 months ago

    My other guess was maybe the first voyage they took they got lucky and the river never ran white during the voyage. They would have gotten to the rain wilds with damaged ships, but probably could have made it up there before sinking.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 2 months ago (4 children)

    So now I am on the City of Dragons, so quite a ways into this elderling world... Does it ever come together? It seems so disjointed when you jump to the Six Duchies back to Bingtown between each trilogy. One place dragons, one place magic. Does the magic ever come to the traders? The Wit isn't even mentioned south of Chalced.

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  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago (3 children)

    Hey! Glad to hear you're still at it :D

    I can't say because spoilers, but trust me, it all comes together in the end with nary a loose end in site.

    I wish I could read it all for the first time again!

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 2 months ago (2 children)

    Finished! It was good, but I still feel like "The Wit" is a loose end. It makes the world feel disjointed that no one south of Chalced is mentioned using that magic. It's never explained where it comes from, I feel like that aspect of the books could be more polished. Maybe she is planning on more Bee books?

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  • [–] 1 point 2 months ago (1 child)

    I think there's some good answers here.

    My own take on it was that the Six Duchies were the focus of most of the books, and given the taboo nature of the wit, the characters there may just have not known about it elsewhere as it wasn't something to be studied and discussed. That said, it does seem that both the skill and the wit came from the Elderlings and are two sides of the same coin.

    It's been a couple of years since I read the series again and I'm kinda hazy on some details though! I mostly just remember how satisfyingly the series concluded despite it being incredibly bittersweet (I clearly remember wondering WTF to do with myself next after finishing xD).

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 2 months ago

    I did enjoy the link, but I feel like that link just further proves my point. There wouldn't be a bunch of wild fan theories about it if it were more polished. I feel like it wasn't something meant to be left a mystery, but it is. There are so many other mysteries to ponder at the end of the book. For example, will the new elderlings turn into Others? How is Skill worked into magic? What is dragon Nighteyes goal and when does he turn back into stone?

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