Topic: Books, Books, Books!

In this, the age of flat characters, predictable plots, and cliched symbolism that is the bottom-feeding piles of garbage such as *shudder* Twilight, there still remain rare treasure troves of proper, noteworthy literature. If you've recently discovered a work worth noting as superior to whatever happens to be the bandwagon's most recent favourite piece of @#$%, let me know so I can check it out!

One novel I have come to enjoy immensely over the past few months is The Pillars of the Earth, by Ken Follett. It's set in the middle of the 12th century, primarily during the Anarchy, between the sinking of the White Ship and the murder of the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1170. It tells the story of the the construction of a cathedral in the fictional city of Kingsbridge, England, and how the project affects the lives and fortunes of the citizens of Kingsbridge as well as those of their enemies. The story is told primarily from three different points of view: Tom Builder, a noble but impoverished mason who dreams of building the most magnificent cathedral in England; Philip of Gwynedd, a dedicated yet worldly Monk who yearns to restore the downtrodden priory of Kingsbridge to greatness; and Lady Aliena, the daughter of a traitorous Earl struggling to fulfill an an ill-considered vow to her dying father that she would help her brother regain the earldom.

The two primary villains, who spend their lives attempting to thwart the ambitions of the people of Kingsbridge, are William Hamleigh, who lives for power revenge but is mortally afraid of Hell; and the cunning and deceitful Waleran Bigod, a morally bankrupt yet devout priest willing to do anything for the sake of his own ambition.

All the characters are beautifully crafted and incredibly real; the prose is well tailored, without being excessive; and the plot is incredibly intricate, full of murder, arson, betrayal, torture, love, hate, and lust. Definitely my all-time favourite book, and for sure one I'd recommend to anyone here who has any kind of appreciation for proper story-telling.

Does anyone else have any book suggestions? Try to give a somewhat decent plot overview, as opposed to just giving the name of a book and its author.

Just a little note: if anyone here tries to suggest Twilight, its sequels, or anything else written by Stephanie Meyers, they will be reported for spam. Because that's all anything promoting Twilight can be, is spam, since Twilight has absolutely no substance in any facet of its inane prose, Mary Sue characters, or mockery of anything and everything to do with real Vampires. Don't mention it, and you won't be incessantly flamed by yours truly.

Re: Books, Books, Books!

nice dude. i haven't read a recently published book in a while. I've read a lot of classics, like Dickens, Tolkien, Dumas, Hugo, etc.

I Am Jedi
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Re: Books, Books, Books!

That's pretty cool, Doctor.  big_smile  B)

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

That sounds like a good book to look up.

The only book reccomendations I'd have are my vague list of favourites. Such as The Pellinor Series, Moon Riders, Harry Potter and the His Dark Materials series. There's also the Cadfael series, which were a little odd, but something must've made me read all of them.

Hobby writer, here's my sci-fi;
https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/36579/endeavour

Re: Books, Books, Books!

I have heard of the Moon Raiders and read the back of it and I thought it sounded pretty cool.

Was it any good?

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

I liked it.

It's been a while since I read them - like five years or so -, but from what I remember most of the history and cultural stuff is kept to pretty well. Though I remember there was an author's note at either the beginning or end explaining her choice to allow certain interpretations which shows she did research it.

Also the storyline was good, and there's some good character development stuff as well. But apart from that I can't remember a lot about the detail.

Hobby writer, here's my sci-fi;
https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/36579/endeavour

Re: Books, Books, Books!

They do sound good and I will have to check them out.

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

The Pellinor series is wonderful, I just need the last book, I got about half-way through it before I lost the book sad

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

That sucks that you lost the book. Do you like Star Wars books and ifo which ones?

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

Haven't read many honestly.

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

The only Star Wars book that I have read is Darth Bane where it tells you how he was picked to join the Sith and how and why he got the name Darth Bane. It is a really good book and if you get a chance to read it I think you would like it too.

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

Good, good. I have read one about Boba Fett. Right after Jango dies. idr what the rest is about

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

Nice, That sounds like it would be a good read.

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Re: Books, Books, Books!

I have another series of books to add to my collection of favourites.

The series is called Sword of Truth, and so far the three books I've finished are an interesting mix of magic, violence, really strong & individual characters and an interesting examination of how and why the beliefs in the book come about.
And in true idiot fashion it was the last three in the series that I've read, and have only just made a start on the first. However it is proving very interesting to see how the author introduces all his characters and develops the scene.

However, so far, they've all been really enjoyable reads.

Hobby writer, here's my sci-fi;
https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/36579/endeavour

Re: Books, Books, Books!

I will have to look for them and check them out.

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