Re-read Until I Die
These are the books I want my family and carers to read to me should I live in a nursing home or lapse into a coma
Title: The Traveller
Author: John Katzenbach
Genre: crime thriller
Qualities: The characters are rich enough to overshadow the plethora of similar casting in TV. Intriguing plot. The killer's methods and reasoning are fascinating. Knowing who is who and their relationship from the start enhances the story rather than lessening the impact. Brotherly affection and sacrifice underly cause, chase, delay and redemption (♥ redemption fic). The guilt is never undermined - both murderer and pursuer acknowledge that this response to childhood trauma is horribly wrong. Using the Pulitzer prize winning photos for the reveal is GENIUS. In the end it's about letting go of the past and each other. I cry for them both, every time.
Warnings/content: serial killings, graphic and deeply emotional content, references to past child assault, pov changes between brothers and the murderer's Boswell, main character death.
Title: Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul
Author: Douglas Adams
Genre: crack fantasy mystery
Qualities: Asks "What happens to Gods when people stop believing in them?" then answers that question with irreverence, holistic detective Dirk Gently, Thor transforming people who piss him off into vending machines, violence, Valhalla, Odin choosing to live in an experimental nuthouse because he's addicted to clean sheets etc. Clever and ridiculous. Laugh until you wet yourself or die
Warnings/content: see qualities
Series: Crown of Stars
Author: Kate Elliott
Genre: epic quest fantasy
Titles in series: 7 (King's Dragon; Prince of Dogs; the Burning Stone; the Gathering Storm; In the Ruins; Crown of Stars)
Qualities: Theologies reflective of ancient Celtic, Christian and Native American societies combine with sorcery and astronomy to drive an ensemble cast of characters through passion, sorrow and destiny. Armies and individuals use stone crowns to travel across the land, even to a nation cast from the earth into the ether. Passage feels like moments but can take anything from days to years, turning lives inside out. Far more than an earthly crown is at stake. The relationships between characters are meticulously drawn. The villains are truly toxic, made more terrible by their humanity. The heroes are naturally flawed by lust for knowledge or each other. If they make this into TV series or movie franchise I will watch until my eyes bleed.
Warnings/content: violence, non-explicit sexual content (het, bi and gay), patriarchal vs matriarchal, feudal system, dub-con, non-con, changing POV, supernatural/human coupling, spirituality
Series: Stone Dance of the Chameleon
Author: Ricardo Pinto
Genre: epic quest fantasy
Titles in series: 3 (the Chosen, the Standing Dead, the Third God)
Qualities: Truly unique and multicultural universe. One young man's journey through the world proves how sheltered he has been. One selfish, lustful decision brings every culture in this world to the brink of extinction. The intimacies are delicately described with focus on the emotional states of each character. It's heart-wrenching and although I found myself hating the protagonist for becoming blind to his role in his lover's destruction, there are genuinely emotional moments where they face that what was can never be and eventually seek the other's redemption as well as their own, so I forgive him. The internal and external dangers of a 'supreme race' are illustrated from the perspective of one of The Chosen. Twists are believable - hints along the way are subtle enough to keep it surprising.
Warnings/content: explicit violence, sexual references (gay, bi and het), incest (accidental and deliberate), mind-bendingly complex societies, mutilation, cannibalism, dub and non-con references, underage (in some cultures - not in early human civilisations reflected here), living human sacrifice, maggots (oh yeah, these ones deserve a warning), deep emotional and spiritual turmoil
Series: Riftwar and Serpentwar Sagas
Author: Raymond E. Feist
Genre: EPIC fantasy (trust me, caps warranted)
Titles in series: fuckton and counting but damn it be worth it
Qualities: Magicians, street urchin becomes king, intrigue, travel between worlds via rifts, Oliver Twist meets Gandalf and sentient aliens. Too much of everything awesome to describe. There's sex, corruption, love, magic, Victorian era tech, strong characters with believeable weaknesses. This is proper grown up fiction baby. Disney, Fox and Warner Brothers would explode trying to make this. Love the world, love the characters, fall in and get lost.
Lighter reading:Series: Belgariad and Mallorean
Authors: David and Leigh Eddings
Genre: quest fantasy
Titles in series: 14 + 2 companion books
Qualities: delightfully fluffy in places without being twee while incorporating the usual blends of sorcery, destiny, theology and different cultures working together against a common foe who lurks in shadow for most of the first series. Husband and wife tag-team make characters of both genders believable. Polgara the Sorceress deserved her own novel and the Eddings' delivered. Predates Harry Potter, Crown of Stars and Stone Dance and forms a terrific bridge between young adult and adult fantasy. My first son enjoyed me reading it to him until he discovered Rowan of Rin, Deltora Quest and Harry Potter while my Dad still revisits these.
Warnings/content: pre-teen to teen romantic angst, ships are all het (although if you're inclined there is ripe potential for male assassin/eunuch and femslash), follow hero from boyhood to adult, chapters open with relevant theological/historical summaries which can be skipped on subsequent reads
Title: The Traveller
Author: John Katzenbach
Genre: crime thriller
Qualities: The characters are rich enough to overshadow the plethora of similar casting in TV. Intriguing plot. The killer's methods and reasoning are fascinating. Knowing who is who and their relationship from the start enhances the story rather than lessening the impact. Brotherly affection and sacrifice underly cause, chase, delay and redemption (♥ redemption fic). The guilt is never undermined - both murderer and pursuer acknowledge that this response to childhood trauma is horribly wrong. Using the Pulitzer prize winning photos for the reveal is GENIUS. In the end it's about letting go of the past and each other. I cry for them both, every time.
Warnings/content: serial killings, graphic and deeply emotional content, references to past child assault, pov changes between brothers and the murderer's Boswell, main character death.
Title: Long Dark Tea-time of the Soul
Author: Douglas Adams
Genre: crack fantasy mystery
Qualities: Asks "What happens to Gods when people stop believing in them?" then answers that question with irreverence, holistic detective Dirk Gently, Thor transforming people who piss him off into vending machines, violence, Valhalla, Odin choosing to live in an experimental nuthouse because he's addicted to clean sheets etc. Clever and ridiculous. Laugh until you wet yourself or die
Warnings/content: see qualities
Series: Crown of Stars
Author: Kate Elliott
Genre: epic quest fantasy
Titles in series: 7 (King's Dragon; Prince of Dogs; the Burning Stone; the Gathering Storm; In the Ruins; Crown of Stars)
Qualities: Theologies reflective of ancient Celtic, Christian and Native American societies combine with sorcery and astronomy to drive an ensemble cast of characters through passion, sorrow and destiny. Armies and individuals use stone crowns to travel across the land, even to a nation cast from the earth into the ether. Passage feels like moments but can take anything from days to years, turning lives inside out. Far more than an earthly crown is at stake. The relationships between characters are meticulously drawn. The villains are truly toxic, made more terrible by their humanity. The heroes are naturally flawed by lust for knowledge or each other. If they make this into TV series or movie franchise I will watch until my eyes bleed.
Warnings/content: violence, non-explicit sexual content (het, bi and gay), patriarchal vs matriarchal, feudal system, dub-con, non-con, changing POV, supernatural/human coupling, spirituality
Series: Stone Dance of the Chameleon
Author: Ricardo Pinto
Genre: epic quest fantasy
Titles in series: 3 (the Chosen, the Standing Dead, the Third God)
Qualities: Truly unique and multicultural universe. One young man's journey through the world proves how sheltered he has been. One selfish, lustful decision brings every culture in this world to the brink of extinction. The intimacies are delicately described with focus on the emotional states of each character. It's heart-wrenching and although I found myself hating the protagonist for becoming blind to his role in his lover's destruction, there are genuinely emotional moments where they face that what was can never be and eventually seek the other's redemption as well as their own, so I forgive him. The internal and external dangers of a 'supreme race' are illustrated from the perspective of one of The Chosen. Twists are believable - hints along the way are subtle enough to keep it surprising.
Warnings/content: explicit violence, sexual references (gay, bi and het), incest (accidental and deliberate), mind-bendingly complex societies, mutilation, cannibalism, dub and non-con references, underage (in some cultures - not in early human civilisations reflected here), living human sacrifice, maggots (oh yeah, these ones deserve a warning), deep emotional and spiritual turmoil
Series: Riftwar and Serpentwar Sagas
Author: Raymond E. Feist
Genre: EPIC fantasy (trust me, caps warranted)
Titles in series: fuckton and counting but damn it be worth it
Qualities: Magicians, street urchin becomes king, intrigue, travel between worlds via rifts, Oliver Twist meets Gandalf and sentient aliens. Too much of everything awesome to describe. There's sex, corruption, love, magic, Victorian era tech, strong characters with believeable weaknesses. This is proper grown up fiction baby. Disney, Fox and Warner Brothers would explode trying to make this. Love the world, love the characters, fall in and get lost.
Lighter reading:Series: Belgariad and Mallorean
Authors: David and Leigh Eddings
Genre: quest fantasy
Titles in series: 14 + 2 companion books
Qualities: delightfully fluffy in places without being twee while incorporating the usual blends of sorcery, destiny, theology and different cultures working together against a common foe who lurks in shadow for most of the first series. Husband and wife tag-team make characters of both genders believable. Polgara the Sorceress deserved her own novel and the Eddings' delivered. Predates Harry Potter, Crown of Stars and Stone Dance and forms a terrific bridge between young adult and adult fantasy. My first son enjoyed me reading it to him until he discovered Rowan of Rin, Deltora Quest and Harry Potter while my Dad still revisits these.
Warnings/content: pre-teen to teen romantic angst, ships are all het (although if you're inclined there is ripe potential for male assassin/eunuch and femslash), follow hero from boyhood to adult, chapters open with relevant theological/historical summaries which can be skipped on subsequent reads