Books - What are you reading?

They've been talking about this on 6 music. Don't know anything About him really so if would be an interesting read

I find him as a person interesting and his performances very entertaining.

Well worth searching his work on YouTube to get a flavour of what he's about.

My reading has more or less ground to a halt recently but I'm really enjoying Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer. It sort of reads like a mix between Kurt Vonnegut and Bohumil Hrabal. Very funny whilst being incredibly melancholic. It's the first I've read of his but will definitely seek out more.

The Shipping Forecast was good, although not her best work.
Annihilation was ok, but i dont think i will bother with any of the sequels
Currently on Semiosis by Sue Burke, enjoying it a lot so far
Next up some Brian Aldiss or Bill Buford

Huge range in Aldiss's work, from great stuff like the Helliconia Trilogy or Hothouse to utter shite like Dracula Unbound.

I have part 1 of helliconia, it looks a bit dated, but we will see

the first I've read of his but will definitely seek out more.

I went from 'Everything...' to his next novel where he does some kind of schtick by writing himself as a fictional person traveling back to his grandparent's home village in Ukraine. Was quite disappointed.

@moocher
What are the best Proulx books? I have Shipping Forecast on my to-do list, but would be happy to re-shuffle my priorities a bit.

I liked Postcards and then Accordion Crimes from her novels, and Wyoming Stories from her short stories. The latter includes Brokeback Mountain.

tbh all the Proulx are good, I'd just read all of them!

I'm getting through this at the moment:

Its great. beautifully written.

Any suggestions for decent fantasy novels? Joe Abercrombie, Brandon Sanderson, David Gemmell, David Eddings style of thing. (Not Glen Cook which is often recommended but I didn't really like for some reason.)

This seems to be an area which is just full of shit on Amazon now. New authors with glowing reviews, from what I assume are their mates, but read like they were done by a child.

Currently on Semiosis by Sue Burke, enjoying it a lot so far

Ive been recommending this to anyone who'll listen recently. Really enjoyed both books - hope you do too!

Heliconia is fantastic IMO. Certainly some dated bits, but the scope is mind-boggling.

There is a new Abercrombie series, 2nd one's just come out I think.

Have you read Ruin of Kings by jenn Lyons? That was pretty good.

I'm guessing you've also ticked off Name of Wind and Wise Man's fear by Patrick rothfuss?

Last thing that pops to mind, Earthsea Quartet by Ursela Le Guin.

As an absolute wild card, Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell is excellent, if a slow start for most people.

Raymond Feist Magician?

N. K. Jemisin - The Fifth Season
The whole series is ace in my opinion. Not sure it fits in with those you have listed but still worth a google to see if the reviews sound tempting.

Im now going to see about adding something from your list of authors to my 'to read' pile. As I agree most fantasy is terribly written, so always looking out for recommendations.

N. K. Jemisin - The Fifth Season

Really enjoyed this series. Very absorbing

I second the Earthsea books. Fantastic
I also really enjoyed Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell a lot.

Another vote for NK Jemisin. Also read The Malazan Book of the Fallen if you want a seriously meaty series of books, Erikson is unmatched in imagination and world-building IMO.

I also think it's worth reading all the Conan stories, but maybe I'm in the minority there.

Second the Norrell and Strangd suggestion, beast of a book. Have a signed copy of her follow up as next to read.

The Earthsea books are fucking amazing.

Gormenghast is essential (the first two books anyway, don’t bother with the third). Glacially paced but absolutely incredible.

The Vorrh, by Brian Catling. Initially offputting prose style but that calms down after the first few chapters and makes way for a genuinely original vision.

M. John Harrison has written a lot of good stuff (e.g. the Viriconium series) and is still going strong. Robert Holdstock's Mythago Wood series pretty intense (not at all like the authors in your list).

Another vote for Earthsea but only the original trilogy. Great stories, although strongly criticised in some quarters for internalised misogyny ("weak as women's magic, wicked as women's magic" isn't the half of it). So later on she went back to try and correct the very traditionally patriarchal tone of the originals but unfortunately wrote a shit book to do it.

Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire trilogy (first book Prince of Thorns) and Red Queen's War trilogy (first book Prince of Fools) are superb. Fast paced, funny, clever, don't talk down to the reader, try to avoid cliches. They take place contemporaneously in the same universe and reference each other which is nicely meta. (although both stand alone if you have't read the other).

then I tried to read his Red Sister trilogy, which is the latest, and couldn't get past page 5. So your mileage may vary

EDIT have you read the Abercormbie YA trilogy? just as good as his adult work and to be honest I couldn't see much of a difference. The book of short stories is good as well, the one where two different parties met on a bridge is hilarious.

M. John Harrison

Climbers is one of my all-time favourite books. (Although not fantasy)

I've read an M John Harrison, but cant remember which one despite looking at his bibliography. Climbers sounds good though, ordered a copy.

it looks a bit dated

All of his stuff is. "Dracula Unbound" reads like it was written in 1950, not 1990. The Helliconia trilogy feels to me the least dated of his work, managing some character development and complex interpersonal relationships that his other work mostly lacks. And the scope that @AlexD refers to is much more ambitious (and successful) than the kind of "Big SF" done by Arthur C. Clarke or Greg Bear (who mostly just do "Hey, look! I'm describing something really fucking big!").

I loved 'Everything's is Illuminated' but didn't read anything else by him apart from the email thread the Natalie Portman, which was illuminating...