#and i Have to rec yoon ha lee any time i recommend books because i love the machineries of empire

[spacecravat]

Book recs for the year: (featuring terrible blurbs)

The Unspoken Name/The Thousand Eyes by A.K. Larkwood: sword lesbian meets nerd lesbian meets dragon meets necromancy meets shitty snake featuring (accidental?) child acquisition

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke: a fun little amnesia adventure in a very fucked up house Sunshine by Robin McKinley: bake some pastries and find self discovery and be horny for vampires Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher: fairytale about how to eliminate shitty husbands

Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand: monster girls WILL fuck up your music career

The Machineries of Empire series by Yoon Ha Lee: it’s just this with LGBT people in space

[manic-intent]

Hi there! About five years ago, you provided reading recommendations for me in the “weird western” genre. It took me on a journey that exposed me to many incredible, diverse authors and reignited my love of reading. Would you be willing to share some more book recommendations? Doesn’t have to be weird western - I like your taste and am always happy to expand my horizons.

Thank you so much for your time and I hope you’re doing well!

Hello!

I haven't been reading that many English novels lately... I fell into the hole of reading Chinese danmei novels and with all its popcorn bloody drama it's been hard to turn back. If you're willing to try danmei, I rec:

Qiang Jin Jiu (officially licensed, or you can look up the English fan translation). Probably my fave danmei of all time and my fave book of the year from a couple of years back. Incredible read. Alt history novel.

Scum Villain's Self Saving System (same as above)

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (same as above). Has been adapted into an animation and a tv show that is on Netflix (The Untamed).

Devil Venerable Also Wants to Know (x)

The Demon Venerable's Wistful Desire (x)

Peerless (x)

Books by priest (Guardian, Mo Du, etc). For priest if you're unfamiliar with her work I rec starting with the tv adaptation of Tian Ya Ke (Word of Honour) that is on Netflix

For English/English Translated novels, I've always loved:

Jin Yong (The Legend of the Condor Heroes is deservedly one of the most-read books in the world. I grew up with this, as did many people across the Chinese diaspora. On the official translation it's billed as the "Chinese Lord of the Rings", but it's nothing like Lord of the Rings--it's wuxia. Hell, it's probably more read than Lord of the Rings by sheer reader volume. tbh the official English translation annoys me because of the random name translations, so I rec the fan translation here)

NK Jemisin (Fifth Season series etc, incredible books, fantasy)

Liu Cixin (Three Body Problem etc: now adapted into several tv shows, including one on Netflix. I haven't watched any of them yet but you can try those first if you don't want to commit to the books)

Claire G Coleman (Terra Nullius, The Old Lie)

Saad Z Hossain (The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday etc)

Nnedi Okorafor (Akata Witch etc)

Yoon Ha Lee (Ninefox Gambit etc)

Nahoko Uehashi (Moribito, Beast Player etc)

SA Chakraborty (City of Brass etc)

Stephen Graham Jones (The Only Good Indians etc)

... and more :) Hope that helps as a starting point!

[neuxue]

A few days ago I finished my buddy read of the Riddle-master Trilogy, and I’m left unsure what to say. I finally got around to reading it, after your numerous recommendations in your wot liveblog and I guess I want to thank you(?). It felt like discovering a new favourite and I have the deepest gratitude towards your for making me know her words. Do you have any recommendations which book to follow up with?

Anon, you have made my day. Maybe my week. Possibly my month. I love being rewarded for pushing this trilogy on everyone at every opportunity because I think the people I know who have read it remain in the single digits and yet lines from it have haunted my waking hours since I read it well over a decade ago, so. I am delighted that you not only read it but loved it - you're very welcome for the rec, and also please talk to me about Riddlemaster any time.

As far as recommendations! My next favourite of McKillip's works is Alphabet of Thorn, which is a beautiful story about a girl, a library, an ancient powerful sorceror/king loyalty situation, and the concept of translation given vague sentience and less vague power. If you enjoyed her writing in Riddlemaster, give this one a try! I also have a particular soft spot for The Book of Atrix Wolfe for the way it plays with identity, agency, desperation and its consequences, and the particular grief of living with yourself. Or you could try any of her other works; you'll find she revisits certain themes that are found in Riddlemaster, and her prose is always lovely.

Outside of McKillip... I sort of struggle to recommend something as an 'if you liked Riddlemaster, try this next' because while I can think of stories that are similar to specific aspects of it, I don't think I've ever come across something that hits in precisely the same way.

Two that you've probably seen me talk about recently: if you liked music-as-power, watching a character become immensely powerful at the cost of something that was once an intrinsic part of their identity, and a love story that focuses on seeing and being seen for who you are, you could try 《魔道祖师》 / Mo Dao Zu Shi, usually referred to MDZS or The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation in its English translation (or its TV series adaptation 《陈情令》 / The Untamed). It's not the same vibe, but there are elements. Or, by the same author, 《天官赐福》 / TGCF / Heaven Official's Blessing, which has arguably fewer parallels but a slightly more similar vibe. Maybe. Still quite different but... hey, I liked both, and I feel like dissimilar as they are they sometimes hit some of the same things I want out of a reading experience.

Or, if part of what really did it for you with Riddlemaster was the exquisite agony of it all, and the infinitely fine line between love and betrayal, and the feeling of being held gently even as you were being stabbed in the heart, and you just want more of that no matter the genre or story it's in, you could take my hand and trust me and give something like Machineries of Empire, The Traitor Baru Cormorant (bonus points for lovely prose), possibly one of Robin Hobb's books, or maaaaybe even Doctrine of Labyrinths a try. Fair warning, all of those do feel darker (and Machineries of Empire in particular is weirder, though does have a fairly close Erlenstar parallel if you look for it), but for me they do hit some of those same deep-seated buttons in the id. Also for what it's worth, I know that Yoon Ha Lee (author of Machineries of Empire) has read and claimed to enjoy Riddlemaster; I think Seth Dickinson (author of The Traitor Baru Cormorant) might have as well, but I could be misremembering.

And if anyone else reading this has 'if you liked Riddlemaster, try ___' recs, please toss them anon's (and my!) way.

[lqtraintracks]

hey!! do you have any good queer books recs? (preferably mlm or transmasc but anything will do!!)

Oh my yes, but a) I'm lazy and I'm not going to link them here, and b) everybody's tastes are wildly different and what I may love you might hate and such. With that in mind:

Less by Andrew Sean Greer (my actual heart! I cried tears of joy at the end. It won the Pulitzer in 2018, is beautifully written, often hilarious, gorgeously touching; I've read it three times).

Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman (obviously a lot of readers consider this somewhat problematic since Elio is 17, although that's above the age of consent in Italy, which is where the novel is set; that aside, this is utterly gorgeous, heart-rending, stunning).

*also by Aciman, I highly recommend Enigma Variations for being bisexual af.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas is YA and transmasc, and though I haven't yet read it myself, I've heard excellent things.

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin is classic queer lit by a queer Black man who is arguably one of the best to ever sit down and write.

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara will rip your heart out, throw it on the ground, set fire to it, and then stomp that fire out with a steel-toed boot. That said, it's also beautiful. (Lots of trigger warnings for the content in here, so go in knowing that or feel free to spoil yourself if need be.)

Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston is a contemporary m/m romance that I liked very much. Others loved it more than I did, so I'm including it here because I think I'm the weirdo who had less strong feelings about it.

The Captive Prince trilogy by C.S. Pacat. Listen. These books are the hill that I will die on. That said, it's not for everyone. There is sexual slavery, for instance. There is off-screen sexual abusive of children (which is dealt with thematically and in the plot, but it's there). It's hardcore enemies-to-lovers with a slow fucking burn. I read this series once a year. I ship Damen x Laurent with all my being. I want to live in it.

Dark Rise is the first book in a new YA series by C.S. Pacat, and I highly recommend this one too! Nobody does enemies-to-lovers like them. I was on the edge of my seat.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune is absolutely lovely and will fill your heart with feelings.

The Last Herald-Mage trilogy by Mercedes Lackey, old school fantasy series with a queer male lead who I would fucking die for.

Honorable Mentions:

Carry On (and its sequels) by Rainbow Rowell

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee

Anything by Yoon Ha Lee or Becky Chambers

And:

Even though you're asking for mlm and transmasc, I would be remiss in not throwing in The Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir. Gideon is just such a badass very butch lesbian. I feel like any lover of queer fiction will fall for her.

I'll stop there! I hope this list finds you well and happy and ready for the new year! Thanks for the ask! I looooove queer books!

[ladyalicent]

damn you keep reblogging media i'm not familiar with but looks amazing. do you have any book recommendations? books you absolutely love? thanks so much and also love your url <3

aw thank you! i have bucketloads of book recs, actually, so i will try not to go absolutely overboard, but here they are — mostly sci fi and fantasy, because thats a huge chunk of what i read, but i'll include some general fiction as well

adult sff

the fifth season, n.k. jemisin

ancillary justice, ann leckie

kindred, octavia butler

ninefox gambit, yoon ha lee

jade city, fonda lee

sorcerer to the crown, zen cho

the ten thousand doors of january, alix e. harrow

queen of the conquered, kacen callender

the traitor baru cormorant, seth dickinson

troubled waters, sharon shinn (this is ambiguously ya but w/e)

the border keeper, kerstin hall

gideon the ninth, tamsyn muir

realm of ash, tasha suri (i like this better than the other novel set in the same world and they stand alone)

city of lies, sam hawke

the poppy war, r.f. kuang

the midnight bargain, c.l. polk

ninth house, leigh bardugo

mexican gothic, silvia moreno-garcia

gods of jade and shadow, silvia moreno-garcia

vita nostra, sergey and marina dyachenko

all systems red, martha wells

a memory called empire, arkady martine

annihilation, jeff vandermeer

the left hand of darkness, ursula k le guin

magic for liars, sarah gailey

among others, jo walton

this is how you lose the time war, amal el-mohtar and max gladstone

the ghost bride, yangsze choo

the wolf of oren-yaro, k.s. villoso

spinning silver, naomi novik (she's on thin ice but...)

misc adult fiction

severance, ling ma (dystopian)

her body and other parties, carmen maria machado (horror/magical realism/speculative short stories)

the third hotel, laura van den berg (speculative)

luster, raven leilani (realistic fiction)

such a fun age, kiley reid (realistic fiction)

in the dream house, carmen maria machado (experimental memoiry things)

in the woods, tana french (suspense)

writers and lovers, lily king (realistic fiction)

the golden state, lydia kiesling (realistic fiction)

my sister, the serial killer, oyinkan braithwaite (realistic fiction...ish lol)

the kiss quotient, helen hoang (romance)

nothing to see here, kevin wilson (speculative)

ya

firekeeper's daughter, angeline boulley (mystery)

legendborn, tracy deonn (contemporary fantasy)

the midnight lie, marie rutkoski (fantasy)

the rise of kyoshi, f.c. yee (fantasy)

these violent delights, chloe gong (historical fantasy)

the thief, megan whalen turner (fantasy)

sadie, courtney summers (mystery)

seraphina, rachel hartman (fantasy)

truthwitch, susan dennard (fantasy)

for a muse of fire, heidi heilig (fantasy)

wintersong, s. jae-jones (historical fantasy)

white cat, holly black (contemporary fantasy)

a conspiracy of stars, olivia a. cole (sci-fi)

descendant of the crane, joan he (fantasy)

the dark days club, alison goodman (historical fantasy)

code name verity, elizabeth wein (historical)

[wiltkingart]

Your colors are so good, your brush strokes so.. Chunky. Really good stuff. Got any Sci fi books you'd recommend?

art is food for the heart and im just doing what i can to provide. thank you. these are my favorite scifi books at the moment:

the dark side by anthony o'neill - sort of a silly space noir story about a killer android on the moon. overall just a really fun read

starfish by peter watts - a story about PTSD and earthquakes aboard a deepsea facility inhabited by humans who have been given the ability to breathe underwater. also AI. theres a lot going on in this book but i loved the setting and found a lot of enjoyment in it all. the sequel was a bit difficult to digest - too much science for my art brain - but i respect it nonetheless.

ninefox gambit by yoon ha lee - space scifi written by a trans man. this one also challenges the brain and your imagination but god i loved every bit of it. very cool space battles, and a super unique approach to space tech. theres nothing i didnt like about it. its ambitious, its colorful, there’s swords in space which you must know is my favorite thing ever. im one chapter into the sequel and am delighted to say it features a trans male main character so i wont be shutting up about this series for a long time.

i have a list on goodreads if you want more titles but there’s not a lot there because im very picky. if anyone wants to share their recs with me i’d love to hear it!

[mikeshanlon]

hello! i was wondering if you had any books rec please? cause i’m pretty bored lately and in need of new books to read. so if you could make me some recs (can be fantastic, "real world", mystery, basically everything that is distracting/really good!). it would be awesome if you could 💞✨

*suddenly forgets every book i’ve ever read* LKRGNNGR jk. 

illuminae by amie kaufman and jay kristoff so this is a YA sci-fi novel following our protagonists Kady and Ezra after their planet is attacked and the surviving colonists get rescued by another fleet. however, this fleet is not as safe as they hoped, because not only is a deadly plague spreading, but the ships AI is also going rogue. The really cool and exciting aspect of this book is that it’s told through case files-- a.k.a records of chat logs, transcriptions of surveillance footage, the AI coding itself, etc. The format really makes you feel like ur an agent uncovering the mystery alongside our heroes. It’s beautiful (as in like the page spreads but also the story) and fun/funny and fast paced. (it’s also the first in a trilogy and in in the middle of gemina and wow. it’s wild but in a good way. Warning’s that there’s a lot of death and it can be kinda creepy/dark)

the gentleman’s guide to vice and virtue by mackenzie lee this is pretty much like a road trip, friends to lovers, bed sharing, dumbassery au if that au was set in 1700′s with a dash of magical elements. GODDD this books is so funny and beautiful like. phew! We follow our chaotic disaster bi Monty as he goes on a grand tour of europe for a year before he has to get his act together, alongside his intelligent and iconic sister Felicity (who is aro/ace and i believe that’s explored further in a companion novel), and his long time best friend Percy (who is black and disabled) who he just so happens to be like. Super in love with. As a chaotic disaster bi, Monty does a lot of dumbass shit and shenanigans that eventually derails their Grand Tour! (Warning for like period typical homophobia, racism, sexism, and ableism, though i think it’s handled really well and still a fun book).

truly devious by maureen johnson: now this isn’t like. OH MY GOD I LOVE THIS SERIES but i found it to be a really fun YA mystery trilogy (the final book has yet to be released tho)with a great atmosphere/setting. This takes place at Ellingham Academy, a private school that helps exemplary students pursue education that can’t be offered by public schools. Stevie Bell is one of those new students, a girl with a passion for true crime, her favorite unsolved case in particular actually took place at Ellingham Academy. Stevie wants to solve the case of who Truly Devious is-- the person who captured the founder’s wife and daughter in the 1930′s, but while she’s attending, a new crime unfolds. I absolutely loved the setting, and the mystery (though i think it gets more interesting/better done in the second novel). Stevie has anxiety and I really enjoyed how it was written, and her friends are iconic (one of her friends is lesbian and has a nb partner also). The romance is kinda meh but it’s not like unbearable and i liked it a little better in the second novel!

the devouring gray by christine lynn herman: this book has been described as a mix of the raven cycle, stranger things, and riverdale and honestly like. yeah. (though if you’re a trc stan like me don’t expect TRC iconicness, and for the riverdale aspect it’s more of the the things that make the show interesting aka small town with deep secrets, long standing family feuds, etc.) The descendants of the four town founders are in charge of protecting the town from the Gray (aka p much the upside down from stranger things relgnerg), and each family has their own type of power (for instance death or fire, and each descendant has their own special type of power to do with death, etc). This book has some mixed reviews but i would definitely try it out if you’re interested bc i found it to be fun and i think the next books are gonna have a lot of potential. There’s a really nice theme of grief, and also 2 of the mains are bisexual and use actually use that label as well as some other side characters so like. i like that elrkgnerg. 

the sun is also a star by nicoola yoon: okay i realized there were no stand alones except like maybe gentleman’s guide if you don’t wanna read the companion novel erkgnerg sooooo. This is a contemporary novel set in a single day following two povs. Natasha, who’s family is going to be deported to Jamaica that night, so she’s trying to do everything she can to make sure her family can stay; and Daniel, a Korean-American boy who has an interview with a Yale alum, but doesn’t truly want to attend Yale, he wants to become a poet despite the wishes of his family. We follow them as they meet and begin to grow closer and explore topics like the racism both of them face, their beliefs, etc. There’s also chapters from the pov of people the run into throughout the day, like security guards, or the subway driver etc. This book is like p insta-love but as someone who hates insta love i actually thought this was done pretty well and i enjoyed their romance. Mostly because it’s a high-stakes day coming of age type atmosphere, Daniel and Natasha really open up to one another, and they have great chemistry. This book is really beautiful and I finished it in less a day. (also it’s own voices for Natasha’s character)

also i mean im not gonna go hella in depth with these bc they’re super popular and this is already hella long but i will always recommend the raven cycle by maggie steifvater and six of crows duology by leigh bardugo bc like. god i love those books. 

[featherquillpen]

Canon Polyamory Recs

For this month’s Polyshipping Day, I thought I might rec some canons that have canon polyships. I don’t just mean strong subtext, or things that could be interpreted as poly, but actual explicit nonmonogamous relationships. I love non-canon polyships as much as the next person but I thought some folks might like to try out some canon ones!

The Magicians on SyFy

This has the best polyamory rep I’ve seen on television, period. The Magicians is a show about students at magic grad school. It started out with minor characters, showing us one student’s parents in a triad relationship with another magician. Then it brought polyamory into the foreground with a main character, Eliot, who is a king in an alternate reality where it is custom for royals to have both a husband and a wife. The show’s exploration of Eliot’s complicated emotional life is an absolute delight to watch.

The Broken Earth Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin

This is one of the best fantasy book series of all time, in my opinion. It’s an epic set in a secondary world where a brutally oppressed class of geomancers are the only buffer against a tectonically active planet hostile to life. One of these geomancers, Syenite, and her friend and mentor Alabaster, enter into a long-term V relationship with a charming pirate named Innon (who is the hinge of the V.) I love the books’ loving, tender depiction of the metamour relationship between Syenite and Alabaster, who are so important to each other, and united by their love for the same man.

The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Rosemary, a human woman from Mars, and Sissix, a female lizard alien called an Aandrisk, end up in a committed open relationship by the end of the book. Aandrisks as a species are non-monogamous by default, and an important part of their relationship is Rosemary accepting that Sissix does not love her any less because she goes off to join Aandrisk orgies sometimes. Their romance is very sweet.

The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Vorkosigan Saga is an epic space opera centered on Barrayar, a planet that was cut off from the galaxy and regressed technologically, and was recently reintegrated into the galactic fold. It begins with a dramatic romance between Aral, a Barrayaran, and Cordelia, who basically comes from Space California. In the latest installment of the series, Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen, we learn that Aral and Cordelia were secretly in a committed V relationship (with Aral as the hinge) with Oliver Jole, Aral’s secretary. I liked how this newest book explores the metamour relationship between Cordelia and Oliver.

Stars in My Pocket Like Grains of Sand by Samuel Delany

This book is centered around an epic romance between two men from different planets and radically different backgrounds. Korga is an ex-slave who went through hell to get where he is in life, while Marq is wealthy, respectable, and surrounded by a family that loves him. They end up in a committed open relationship. There is a scene where they go to a public bathhouse together and fuck a dragon. I don’t know what else you want from a book, honestly.

The Books of the Raksura by Martha Wells

These books explore a culture of dragon-people who live in colonies much like social insects. The worldbuilding is very interesting. In this culture, polyamory is normalized, and the main character is in a committed relationship with the queen of his dragon-hive, and later on a lower-ranked man of his hive as well.

The Red Threads of Fortune by J.Y. Yang

Set in a fantastical historical China, this book is centered on Sanao Mokoya, a magician on the run from her mother’s tyrannical regime. She is in an open marriage with a monk named Thennjay, and over the course of the book she falls in love with a mysterious naga-rider, who goes only by Rider, who she isn’t sure she can trust. Mokoya and Thennjay have a difficult marriage, but for reasons that have nothing to do with Mokoya’s lover. This book and its companion novel The Black Tides of Heaven are great new releases.

Edits: 21 June 2019

First of all, I want to rescind or at the very least qualify my rec of The Magicians; after I made this post, the show got deep into some toxic Bury Your Gays bullshit, and I can’t in good conscience fully recommend it anymore.

I also want to add some new recs.

Sense8 on Netflix

Definitely now the best polyamorous rep on television. It has not one, but two, canon polyamorous triads. Both of them are extremely sweet and good. 

Friends at the Table: Seasons of Hieron (podcast)

Friends at the Table is an actual play podcast where each season they tell a beautiful story by playing indie tabletop RPGs. One of their story arcs, Seasons of Hieron (consisting of Autumn in Hieron, Marielda, Winter in Hieron, and Spring in Hieron) now has an absolutely beautiful slow burn polyamorous V relationship between three women. 

Strange Grace by Tessa Gratton

A new YA fantasy book, set in a fairytale village on the edge of a deep, dark, terrifying forest, to which they regularly sacrifice boys to maintain their prosperity and harmony with the land. The daughter of the village witch gets into a polyamorous triad with two boys as they discover the forest’s dark secrets.

The Machineries of Empire by Yoon Ha Lee

I should be upfront that much of the polyamory in this series is not remotely happy or healthy, but deeply twisted, including incest and dubious consent. But whether it’s the two bloodthirsty gay immortals who share beautiful helpless young men over the centuries, or the boss general lady who just loves her wives a lot, polyamory is ubiquitous and deeply normalized in the fictional space fantasy society of the Machineries of Empire series. 

[rivensbane]

Any recommendations for a good sci fi book or series?

Ooo, I do! I do tend to read more fantasy than scifi (something I’m trying to fix this year, actually), but I have some recs for you, nonnie! I’ll stick them under the cut because I feel like this post is gonna be Big. ALSO I’ll give descriptions where I can, but I’ll also link to the goodread pages for these books so you can check out the blurbs - they do a better job of explaining than I do lmao

The Expanse by James S.A. Corey:

Interplanetary space opera series that also has an amazing tv adaptation. Full of diversity, compelling characters and really interesting plots - both overarching across the series and self-contained within each book. I’m up to book 4 (Cibola Burn) and the eighth book comes out towards the end of this year - it has an amazing cover btw, 10/10 title, too!

The Southern Reach Trilogy by Jeff Vandermeer:

This one is definitely science fiction, but with a generous sprinkling of mystery/horror over the top. There’s also a screen adaptation for this and the film is great, but the first book Annihilation is an experience. It’s trippy and unsettling and you’re never 100% sure what’s happening but it sticks with you. I still think about the ending of the final book. Also has some really gorgeous covers!

Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant:

This one is a standalone (as of right now) scifi horror novel focusing on mermaids in the Mariana Trench. I read it back in March and really enjoyed it tbh. Features a bi protagonist and a wlw romance, which is always great.

The Illuminae Files by Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff:

Young adult scifi trilogy. The story is told through messages, interview transcripts, journal entries, with sections from the perspective of an AI. It’s not the most amazing or ground-breaking series and I’ve yet to read the final book (Obsidio), but the books are quick and easy to read and enjoyable enough.

Descender Series by Jeff Lemire (writer) and Dustin Nguyen (illustrator):

This one is a graphic novel series featuring androids, robots, AI etc. etc. I’ve only read the first volume so far, but I enjoyed it and the art style is absolutely gorgeous. If you’re looking for a scifi graphic novel series, I’d highly recommend Descender!

Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany:

One of the few classic scifi novels I’ve read that I actually enjoyed. Linguistics and language are at the core of this novel and it’s a really fascinating read even if you’re not all that interested in either of those things. I think my only issue with the book was that I wanted it to be longer, but that’s probably just personal preference.

Embassytown by China Miéville:

Another scifi standalone with a focus on language. Honestly, this one was a really strange read, but I enjoyed it a lot because of that. Interesting worldbuilding and an interesting take on just how different aliens and alien culture probably would be in reality. I own a few of the author’s other scifi works (Perdido Street Station and The Scar), so I’m curious to see how I find those ones. Also: another gorgeous cover.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley:

My favourite classic tbh! Don’t think I really need to go into detail about it considering its popularity and how well known it is, but… Yeah, I love this novel. Victor Frankenstein is a giant dickhead and the Monster deserved better.                 

                                                                      —-

The rest of these are books that I a) own, b) have heard amazing things about and c) am super excited to read about. I can’t personally vouch for them since I haven’t read them yet, but as I just said, I’ve heard nothing but amazing things and I can’t wait to get to them all!

Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky:

All I know about this is that it features remnants of the human race desperately trying to find a new home to settle on. They find one (and it’s perfect, all terraformed and ready for them to live on), but things aren’t what they seem and things go downhill from there. I think. It has won a heap of awards and has pretty amazing reviews so I’m super pumped to get to it!

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers:

More character-driven scifi, from what I can tell, though the worldbuilding doesn’t seem to suffer because of it. I’ve had the first two books in the Wayfarers series on my shelves for so long but I still haven’t managed to get around to reading them. Features wlw romance which was a part of what initially drew me to it. Apparently it’s a really charming, lovely read, so… Again, really excited to get to it when I can!

Imperial Radch Series by Ann Leckie:

I honestly don’t know how to describe this trilogy, but again, heard nothing but great things from people I trust and I have the first book (Ancillary Justice) waiting for me! What I do know is that it’s space opera, it’s apparently very different and gritty and all around a good time.

Semiosis by Sue Burke:

I don’t actually know much about this one tbh, it was an impulse buy while there was a sale at Dymocks a few weeks back. All I know is that there’s a sentient planet and a group of human colonists/scientists trying to explore and survive it. Was enough to hook me in lmao - that and its gorgeous cover. I’ve read this since posting this ask and unfortunately wasn’t the biggest fan. It had an interesting premise, but the execution was kinda disappointing and underwhelming.

The Machineries of Empire Series by Yoon Ha Lee:

I’ve read the first 100-odd pages of Ninefox Gambit and the prequel novella Extracurricular Activities and I can tell that this series is gonna be unlike anything else I’ve read. It’s admittedly quite confusing at first because of how intricate and complicated the worldbuilding is, but I really like what I’ve read so far and can’t wait to get back to it.

                                                                     —

I could try to recommend some classic scifi for you but to be honest, I haven’t enjoyed much of what I’ve read so far. I can appreciate that classic scifi is where it all began, but a lot of it is drenched in sexism and homophobia so it’s hard to enjoy. Just my opinion tho!!

If you’d like any more recommendations, let me know!! 💖

[theherocomplex]

hi!! i wanted to get into space opera and science fiction books since i think it's one of the genres i haven't read much about, do you have some recs? what are your favourites?

Do I! :D This list may be fairly long, so I will skip summaries for the moment. If there’s any book you want specific triggers for, please let me know! 

The Expanse series by James S.A. Corey: I am ride or die for The Expanse, the basis of which is “let’s see how much it would suck to have a real-life paladin in your party”. The answer: a lot (there are currently seven books out, and a number of novellas – you can get away with just reading the books, but I highly recommend reading the Strange Dogs novella between Nemesis Games and Persepolis Rising, the sixth and seventh books). 

The Machineries of Empire by Yoon Ha Lee: Holy cats I don’t think I could summarize these books if I tried (the first two, Ninefox Gambit and Raven Stratagem are already out, and Revenant Gun will be out later this year). The story takes place in a universe where esoteric technology (”exotic”, in-universe) is powered by shared belief in a calendar system (that periodically requires human sacrifice, because of course it does). A military captain is attached – rather literally – to an undead traitor in order to root out heretics, but far more is going on than either of them comprehend. Mind-bending, gorgeously-written, and utterly, completely bugshit. 

The Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie: No list is complete without this trilogy – it explores personhood, grief, found family, tea, and quests for revenge, as a former soldier seeks to punish the one responsible for killing their commander. Sort of. Also there are spaceships. Really cool spaceships. 

The Honorverse by David Weber: This is basically a retelling of Lord Nelson’s life IN SPACE, if Lord Nelson were a woman with a telempathic treecat for a companion (it makes sense in context), but it’s also a delightful exploration of Honor Harrington’s rise through the Star Kingdom of Manticore. Weber is clearly very much in love with his main character, and it’s a bit info-dumpy at times, but the supporting casts are always ridiculously fun, and Weber knows how to write a wham line (”Oops.”). There are approximately seven thousand books in this series now, and just as many in the subseries, but if you stick with the first five or six books, you’ll be all set. 

The Forever War by Joe Haldeman: This is a bit older than the other books I’ve listed, but it’s an absolute classic (and has aged much better than many other early works in this subgenre). In brief: super-soldiers fighting a never-ending war against relativity and the aliens Taurans. For best results, read in close conjunction with John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War (which is also excellent).

The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley: Transgressive, gross, and absolutely ferocious (basically what you should expect from Kameron Hurley). Do not read this book while eating, and be prepared to shower after every chapter. This book will be hit-or-miss for a lot of people, but I adored it. A woman named Zan wakes up with a misshapen arm and a lot of missing memory, and is sent to invade a decaying, organic spaceship – all while fighting the feeling she’s done this before. Fair warning: the first line is a very good indication of where the rest of the book is going. 

Witch World by Andre Norton: One of the early, codifying works in the subgenre. Andre Norton should be required reading for any science-fiction fan, along with Octavia E. Butler and Ursula K. Le Guin, and I don’t want to give too much away about this series – but there are witches, and evil forces, and just please give it a try! 

The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold: I’ve only read the first three books in this series, but it all starts with Cordelia Naismith, captain of an exploratory mission, landing waist-deep in a war with the planet Barrayar, and being forced to team up with Aral Vorkosigan – an alleged war criminal – in order to survive. It’s wry and fun and Cordelia is a fantastic character. 

Behind the Throne by K.B. Wagers: I’ve only read the first book in this series (The Indranan War), but it was really enjoyable! A princess-turned-smuggler is called back home when both of her sisters are murdered, and she’s left as the only heir to her mother’s empire. Lots of political intrigue, a great heroine, and lots of snark. 

Those are my favorite space operas, just off the top of my head – I’m sure I’ll remember about ten more once I hit post! If you’re curious about early examples of space opera, you could give E. E. Smith’s Lensman series a try. Its scope is absolutely incredible, but it has…not aged well (the first book came out in 1948, if that gives you an idea). As far as codifying the subgenre, though, Lensman is pretty central. Anne McCaffrey (whose issues are legion) also wrote The Ship Who… series, which is an interesting read, if I had to clench my teeth through a lot of it. 

Alastair Reynolds’ Revelation Space series is also good, but a bit dry (in my opinion) – his worldbuilding is great, and definitely worth a try (Mass Effect fans will get a kick out of the Big Bad, for sure); you may also enjoy Iain M. Banks’ Culture series, which is full of cool spaceships and weird aliens and what life in a post-scarcity, uh, culture, would be like. 

I would also recommend watching The Last Starfighter (warnings for scifi violence, death, and light body horror), which is one of my key formative influences – yes, it’s a very derivative 80s scifi movie, but it’s derivative in all the right ways: a teenage boy growing up in a trailer park obsessively plays a video game that just happens to be a testing instrument for Starfighters, protectors of the galaxy. And now he’s the only thing standing between Xur and the Kodan Armada. It’s absolutely wonderful, and has possibly the best theme music outside of Star Wars, ever. As far as examples of space opera go, The Last Starfighter is pretty key. 

I’m sorry this took me so long to reply to, but I hope you find something to enjoy out of this list! Thank you for asking such a great question.

[ginkamon]

questions tag

tagged by @profilerrynn 💕💕 thank you! :D

my questions!

1. favorite villain? why? 2. a character that you disliked at first but gradually came to care about a lot? 3. ost from a drama (kdrama/jdrama/cdrama) that makes you sad? 4. favorite scene from your favorite drama? 5. favorite animated movie? or just favorite movie if you’re not into animation? 6. a movie or show you love but wouldn’t necessarily recommend to others? 7. an actor/actress you got into recently? what made you get into them (show/movie/variety show/etc)? 8. your favorite artist/band? or just favorite genre? 9. a drama that had a lot of potential but failed to live up to it?

i think i’m supposed to put 10 but i honestly couldn’t think of any more.

tagging: @hattiehargrove @youholdthewater @banghae @scarsbecomearmor @evil-writer ok idk if any of you have done this yet so ignore if you have >.>

favourite actor/actress that you consider underrated?

if this were a few months ago i’d say kim jae wook, but i think with voice he finally started getting the recognition he deserves :’)

also yoo in na? she gets a lot of second lead roles and they’re usually kind of similar? so i don’t think a lot of people get to see that she can do a lot more. (ahem please watch the master piece that is queen in hyun’s man) lee el as well, since she usually gets minor roles but she’s always so great to watch :’)

first kdrama & kmovie you watched?

first kdrama was playful kiss. and first kmovie was love me not. i grew out of the kver of playful kiss but i still really like love me not.

favourite books? (so i can have more book recs hihi)

a tree grows in brooklyn - betty smith

the uglies series - scott westerfeld

and then there were none - agatha christie

the book thief - markus zusak

kindred - octavia e. butler

yotsuba&! - kiyohiko azuma (ok its a manga but still it’s really great!!!!)

an actor/actress you think deserves a main lead? (coz yknow always gets casted as a supporting char and stuff)

kim seul gi! she’s been the lead in two webdramas, but i’d love to see her as the lead in a full length one. she’s so good and she deserves it :’’)

also choi yeo jin!

favourite screenwriter you wished would produce dramas/movies more?

hmm i don’t think i have a favorite screenwriter. tbh i’m just waiting for the liar game writer to make their comeback with s2

favourite otp or dream otp?

favorite otps are boong do and hee jin from queen in hyun’s man and yi suk and hong do from heart to heart.

for a dream otp i would love love love to see kang ha neul and kim seulgi do a drama together. ever since that happy together ep i’ve been waiting

if you have a chance to produce your own drama/movie, who would you cast?

tbh i want to get song yoon ah and ji chang wook together again for a good slow burn melo! their chemistry in the k2 was just Too Good

favourite actor/actress that you would want to see in real life?

I think I’d like to meet kim seul gi the most because she seems really fun and chill to hang out with. I’d love to meet gong hyo jin too but i honestly don’t think i could handle her presence.

a drama/movie that didn’t disappoint you from start to finish?

it’s rare for me to go into a drama with high expectations or any at all so i’m rarely disappointed. idk if that makes sense. but i think both my wife is having an affair this week and awl really surprised me. for both of them, i went in just to watch b/c of cast or people saying it’s good so i only wanted to check it out and they really just blew me away with each ep. also dmf! i hadn’t really seen any of the actors/actresses in other things so i was kinda going in blind (and i didn’t really love its okay its love or that winter the wind blows) but it’s a fave now :’’)

favourite kdrama/kmovie of all time?

queen in hyun’s man is my absolute fave but i also love age of youth, gaksital, signal and misaeng just as much :’)

favorite movies are my ps partner and sunny :D