Timewaster's Guide Archive

As has been said, Brandon Sanderson doesn't write like other authors. It's one of the reasons I enjoy his books; they take fantasy and literary clichés and flip them around.

However, I do have a number of books that I can recommend.

David Eddings: Okay, first of all, to clarify, I mean his older series. I've been disappointed with his newer series, to be honest. The Belgariad series, which starts with 'Pawn of Prophecy' and the sequel series The Mallorean, plus accompanying books, are probably the best he's ever written, followed by The Elenium and The Tamuli. Eddings is not a philosophical writer; his books are purely enjoyable, straighforward fantasy. They're the kind of books you want to read when you don't want to analyse, you just want a book to lose yourself in and enjoy. His strength is his characters, not his plotlines.

Kristen Britain: If you don't mind a female heroine, the Green Rider series is very, very good. It's got a certain realism to it; the protagonist, Karigan, is a very brave hero, but she's also a very believable one. Her bravery is driven by fear for herself and for others; while she has some heroic qualities, they're driven by realistic reasons that have the reader being able to relate on a personal level, rather than put her on a pedestal. Magic in this series is subdued and not entirely understood due to events that happened pre-series, but it's still weaved in very well. You also get the chance to see a lot of the geography; a Green Rider, as an occupation, involves carrying messages for the King across the country. The one problem with this series is that it isn't finished yet and the author likes to take her time with each novel; it's quite a cliffhanger. The books are Green Rider, First Rider's Call, and The High King's Tomb which just came out in November.

I'm at work right now; these are a couple I can think off the top of my head. Let me think on it a bit and get back to you. I've got tons I can name!

Okay, so I don't have enough posts to play, but this should be fun anyways!

Congratulations!

I read up until about book 9 or so a few years ago and never got around to finishing the newer books; I liked them, but I'm not a diehard WoT fan.

Opposite to what so many are saying, I may just end up reading the rest of WoT because of Brandon Sanderson. I know, that's not what his intentions are - from what I've gathered, EUOL seems the type to want someone to read the books for Jordan's sake. I do respect Robert Jordan and his writing. However, I will say that my attention has been re-focused on reading the rest of WoT because of this announcement.

[I hope this isn't too old to reply to - if so, my apologies! I think this could be an interesting thread.]

I'm a little old fashioned. I still like buying CDs. The last few ones that I bought (outside of Christmas) were, in order from newest to oldest:

The Beatles - One [As a cheap way to get a few of my favourites; I just moved out on my own and need to build myself a Beatles collection!]
Big Sugar - Greatest Hits
Brandi Carlile - The Story
When Irish Eyes are Smilin' - A collection of irish folk music

I find the idea rather interesting. Will they be taking Western fantasy and science-fiction stories to make Japanese manga, as well as distributing Japanese titles?

To be honest, I prefer text; better chance to use your own imagination right? I don't think I'm the only one to do this, but when I read, I like to imagine what I'm seeing and I use the imagery in the book to create that picture in my mind. However, my younger sister used to be a big fan of Japanese manga and they can be a lot of fun to read sometimes. I'm a little divided! I like a lot of Tor books, but I'm unsure if I'd want to read them in Manga form.