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In no particular order:

 

1) BOOK: "I Will Fear No Evil"

AUTHOR: Robert A. Heinlein

Other Works Of Note: "Stranger in a Strange Land, Starship Troopers"

Genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Rating: "R" (not for little ones)

Premise: In the near future, a very wealthy but dirty old man invests in creating a technology that will alllow his brain to be removed from his dying body and put in the body of a freshly deceased younger male. When unexpected complications speed up the old man's demise, the doctors are forced to transplant the dirty old man's brain into the first available donor: A 21 year old recently deceased beautiful woman. To top things off, an echo of her consciousness is still inside her head, making the old man go schizoid.

Comments: I read this a few years ago, and it just blew my mind. Not for all tastes, but it'll leave you thinking about it after you've put it down or finished it.

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2) BOOK: "On A Pale Horse"

AUTHOR: Piers Anthony

Other Works Of Note: "Xanth Series, Ogre Ogre"

Genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Rating: "R" (not for little ones)

Premise: This is book 1 of a 7 book series called The Incarnations of Immortality. The basic premise of all 7 books is that concepts like Death are actually jobs held by normal people. In Book 1, a new Death is appointed by the name of Zane, and he must learn his new job of collecting souls on the fly. He gets a cool flying horse that can turn into a car too. During his crash course training, he encounters Satan who tries to interfere with his new job any chance possible. All seven books are interconnected so read carefully for continuity. Last I heard, Disney's studio that makes films for older audiences bought the rights to this. Don't know if or when the movie is coming."

Comments: Great storytelling. When you get thru all 7 books, you realize how much of a genius the author is. Here is the list of all 7 books and the officeholders they involve:

I - On A Pale Horse = Death

II - Bearing An Hourglass = Time (he lives backwards!!!)

III - With A Tangled Skein = Fate (3 women take up this job)

IV - Wielding A Red Sword = War

V - Being A Green Mother = Nature

VI - For Love Of Evil = Satan

VII - ...And Eternity = God (3 person job)

if you don't get offended easily, this is a very good series...

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3) BOOK: "Battlefield Earth"

AUTHOR: L. Ron Hubbard

Other Works Of Note: "Mission Earth Series, Dianetics"

Genre: Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Rating: "PG-13" (not for little ones)

Premise: In the late 1990's, a race of aliens called the Psychlos came to mine the Earth and leave it barren. Earth fought back with nuclear weapons (Hmm wonder where ID4 got its ideas from since this book was written in early 80's). The aliens repelled the bombs and mankind pretty much obliterated itself with only small pockets of humans scattered all over the world. Move ahead to 3000: the Psychlos have taken over the Earth, and one Psychlo has decided to use human survivors as trained labor. Big mistake: One human uses Psychlo technology to educate himself (information is burned directly into the brain at a very quick rate) and then escapes with the technology and educates the remaining humans. The result: Revolution. Humans versus Psychos for the planet Earth.

Comments: I read this in junior high and it was a very fun read. Over 1,000 pages but it reads like a screenplay. Forget the movie, it was horrible and not even close to what the book was about.

Thanks. I love sci-fi/fantasy novels.

 

I have a few suggestions too, actually:

 

"The Dark Elf Trilogy"

R.A. Salvatore.

 

This three-part series introduces the now-famed Drizzt Do'Urden into the fantasy genre. A story about the drow elf's upbringing, and harsh conditions in the city of Menzoberranzan--domain to the evil drow. Follow him from birth as he finds out the truths and reality of his violent society. A must read for those who thirst action sequences and Lord of the Rings-type epics.

 

Also by R.A. Salvatore (all these are connected through the characters, in one very long storyline):

 

"Icewind Dale" (Actually written before 'Dark Elf Trilogy', but Drizzt's success in teh novel spawned the prequel)

"The Legend of the Drow"

"Paths to Darkness"

 

 

Also, I've heard that "His Dark Materials" is a very well-written fantasy novel...Froget the name of the author.

This is one of my very favorite books I've read a few times:

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/074350640...283155&v=glance

 

The Blue Nowhere (2001)

 

When a sadistic hacker, code-named Phate, sets his sights on Silicon Valley, his victims never know what hit them. He infiltrates their computers, invades their lives, and lures them to their deaths. To Phate, each murder is like a big, challenging computer hack: every time he succeeds, he must challenge himself anew— by taking his methodology to a higher level, and aiming at bigger targets.

 

Desperate, the head of The California State Police Computer Crimes Division frees Wyatt Gillette, imprisoned for hacking, to aid the investigation — against the loud protests of the rest of the division. With an obsession emblematic of hackers, Gillette fervently attempts to trace Phate's insidious computer virus back to its source. Then Phate delivers a huge blow, murdering one of the division's own — a "wizard" who had pioneered the Internet — and the search takes on a zealous intensity.

 

Gillette and Detective Frank Bishop — an old-school homicide cop who's accustomed to forensic sleuthing — make an uneasy team. But with a merciless and brilliant killer like Phate in their cross hairs, and his twisted game reaching a fever pitch, they must utilize every ounce of their disparate talents to stop him.

I'll have to check out the Heinlein since I was a big fan of both Starship Troopers and Stranger in a Strange Land. I'd been meaning to pick up another of his books, actually.

I have been reading fantasy/sci fi novels for 19 years now. Since I was just a kid, some good fantasy writers I always loved included Terry brooks (sword of shannara, elfstone of shannara), Margret Weis and tracy Hickman for Dragonlance (first few books of the series were great then got blah over time), Even Eddings wasnt too bad and tolkein is a stalwart if you can get by his over colorization. But, the best novels I have ever read, the most detailed world and most interesting series is George RR Martin, Song of Ice and Fire.

 

 

http://georgerrmartin.com/

 

I recommend them to every single person I know and I have never gotten a poor review. If you like Fantasy you will love them. If you like Mystery you will love them. If you love romance, horror, everything that are in one. It is the most complete and best written novel series of the modern era.

 

Simply beautiful

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The Shannara books (and there are quite a few) by Terry Brooks and the first 2 Dragonlance trilogies I remember were very good

Band of Brothers is an awesome read

 

So is Airborne by Tom Clancy

  • Author

Just finished watching my dad's DVD box set of Band of Brothers...Very grueling and graphic...If the book is anywhere close to the series, it should be a good read...

Just finished watching my dad's DVD box set of Band of Brothers...Very grueling and graphic...If the book is anywhere close to the series, it should be a good read...

 

 

The book and tv series both have their stregnths and weaknesses...the book goes more in depth with the characters and is an awesome read. And Airborne, the other book I mentioned, gives an overall look at the history of Airborne forces.

If you haven't all the Hitchhiker's series by Douglas Adams, you should go out and purchase The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide right now. Don't be discouraged by the movie, the book is nothing like it and is infinitly better.

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Last one I read a long time ago was Mostly Harmless (Book 5 of Hitchhiker's Guide), are there any more after that one?

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