Unfortunately I couldn’t get a physical copy of the book (Euro zone) without likely incurring a big Portuguese customs duty (Amazon Spain only had it via a UK reseller, and Germany’s Amazon wouldn’t ship it here...) so I got the Kindle version via Amazon Canada. All I could think was, “the Machine doesn’t care...” - it all rather underlined the necessity of understanding our times. Started reading it last evening and am thoroughly enjoying it!
Lord of the Rings is, maybe predictably, up on top. I also loved The Children of Hurin, though it’s tragic. In terms of later fantasy, I have waded into George R.R. Martin (vivid but too graphic for me), Brandon Sanderson (flat writing but great worldbuilding), and Robert Jordan (very good but I still haven’t finished Wheel of Time – the scenes can drag a bit). There’s other fantasy I’ve dipped into, and science fiction as well; Dune is one of my favorites, but also Ender’s Game and Speaker for the Dead. The Road by Cormac McCarthy is flat out remarkable. I was really engaged by Paul Kingsnorth’s The Wake for its style, language, and feel, though the protagonist drove me crazy. That Hideous Strength was good too, and prophetic, though I haven’t read the others in that trilogy. Michael O’Brien’s Voyage to Alpha Centauri is a good example of Catholic (or Christian) science fiction that works – and it’s not preachy.
Those are just a few. If you have any sci-fi or fantasy recommendations let me know.
Lots of common likes. LoTR of course! Really enjoy Sanderson’s stuff and Wheel of Time. Love Dune, I’ve read it three times now. My favorite series of all, with some of my absolute favorite characters, is The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. A lot of people stumble at the first book, Gardens of the Moon, as it can be a bit disorienting with no real info dump to setup the story elements. Still a good book, but if you can make it through it, the series takes off. I’ve read it twice and a partial 3rd pass on Audible (great narrator for the first 3 books)
Also, while not fantasy, love the book “Byzantium” by Stephen Lawhead - a Christian author. Story follows an Irish monk taking a copy of the book of Kells to the Emperor but gets there by a winding and adventurous route.
Unfortunately I couldn’t get a physical copy of the book (Euro zone) without likely incurring a big Portuguese customs duty (Amazon Spain only had it via a UK reseller, and Germany’s Amazon wouldn’t ship it here...) so I got the Kindle version via Amazon Canada. All I could think was, “the Machine doesn’t care...” - it all rather underlined the necessity of understanding our times. Started reading it last evening and am thoroughly enjoying it!
A great interview, thanks for sharing. I'd be curious to hear some of your favorite fantasy books/series/authors.
Lord of the Rings is, maybe predictably, up on top. I also loved The Children of Hurin, though it’s tragic. In terms of later fantasy, I have waded into George R.R. Martin (vivid but too graphic for me), Brandon Sanderson (flat writing but great worldbuilding), and Robert Jordan (very good but I still haven’t finished Wheel of Time – the scenes can drag a bit). There’s other fantasy I’ve dipped into, and science fiction as well; Dune is one of my favorites, but also Ender’s Game and Speaker for the Dead. The Road by Cormac McCarthy is flat out remarkable. I was really engaged by Paul Kingsnorth’s The Wake for its style, language, and feel, though the protagonist drove me crazy. That Hideous Strength was good too, and prophetic, though I haven’t read the others in that trilogy. Michael O’Brien’s Voyage to Alpha Centauri is a good example of Catholic (or Christian) science fiction that works – and it’s not preachy.
Those are just a few. If you have any sci-fi or fantasy recommendations let me know.
Lots of common likes. LoTR of course! Really enjoy Sanderson’s stuff and Wheel of Time. Love Dune, I’ve read it three times now. My favorite series of all, with some of my absolute favorite characters, is The Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. A lot of people stumble at the first book, Gardens of the Moon, as it can be a bit disorienting with no real info dump to setup the story elements. Still a good book, but if you can make it through it, the series takes off. I’ve read it twice and a partial 3rd pass on Audible (great narrator for the first 3 books)
Also, while not fantasy, love the book “Byzantium” by Stephen Lawhead - a Christian author. Story follows an Irish monk taking a copy of the book of Kells to the Emperor but gets there by a winding and adventurous route.
Thanks for all these!
Just bought Exogenesis for my Kindle and will read it next!