Suggest me a book/book series.
I like and read just about anything. But, I'm sort of at a loss what to read at the moment, and I've read every book I own at two times, some I've read 15 or 16 times.
-I'd like it to be newer (In the last 5 years)
-Preferably a series
-I don't like mystery/crime books
-I like romance (well), but I don't like chick lit
-I enjoy historical fictions
-I enjoy books set in other countries
Originally Posted by Fynn
Terry Pratchett's Discworld series.
The Sword of Truth is not exactly new, but it is worth diving into! It is a huge universe, so there's a lot to choose from. Television show known as The Legend of the Seeker.
Halo: The Fall of Reach (then just read the rest :P )
Forgotten Realms
Though new ones... I haven't read.
Netheril Trilogy
Avatar Series
Anything by RA Salvatore (though these are like comic books)
The Old Man's War series by John Scalzi.
It's ostensibly military sci-fi, but Scalzi is smurfing hilarious.
Historical Fiction
Check out Wolf Hall & Bringing Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel. They two of some of the most highly rated books in recent years, historical fiction or otherwise. Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett is also a fantastic historical fiction. It's a giant fat thing of a book and I read it in like 2 days, it was that engrossing. You just can't stop once you start. I really enjoyed Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey by Alison Weir too.
Series
If you want kind of a cheap, easy series that's still entertaining (ie: way better than Twilight), look into The Vampire Academy. I know, I know, vampires. But seriously, this series got me through 5 days of sneezing, wheezing sickness. It was great fun.
Set in Other Countries
My Life in France by Julia Child is great if you're into cooking or French culture at all. Same for The Sweet Life in Paris which is HILARIOUS.
Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea is as "other" as you can get. Really fascinating look into the lives of the people trapped in North Korea. Heartbreaking stuff but also oddly uplifting.
Romance
The Fault in Our Stars for romance. Not the hot steamy sexy kind of romance. But the simple heartfelt kind that will melt or break your heart. One of my all time favorite quotes about love comes from this book:
“I fell in love the way you fall asleep: slowly, then all at once.”
I mean c'mon. That's good stuff.
Romance AND Series AND set in other Country
Daughter of Smoke & Bone and the sequel Days of Blood and Starlight are some of my favorite Young Adult books I've read in recent years. Daughter of Smoke & Bone was especially good and it's set in Prague. The 3rd book in this series isn't out yet so I don't know if you want to join the rest of us in the OH MY GOD IS IT OUT YET?? Boat.
I could go on and on and on.
Regarding Chris' suggestion for The Sword of Truth, I would recommend you skip the books and just watch the show. The books are terrible and the show is so much fun.
Neverwheeeeere.
Since you're all up in England's bidness, I very strongly suggest Neverwhere and/or anything ever by Neil Gaiman. A story about a man who goes down into the London Underground tunnels and the alternate world that waits down there.
Neverwhere is the story of Richard Mayhew and his trials and tribulations in London. At the start of the story, he is a young businessman, with a normal life. All this changes, however, when he stops to help a mysterious young girl who appears before him, bleeding and weakened, as he walks with his fiancée to dinner to meet her influential boss.
The Raven and Elves books, in the correct order (starting with Dawnthief) by James Barclay. It's like a Final Fantasy in a book, but with fantastically believable and "real" characters (ie, they swear, they have banter, they can be serious, the characters develop and grow on you, etc). I'm not a huge reader all the time, but I've read my fair share of Fantasy books and I have to say that I adore these, they're possibly my favourite fantasy books ever, alongside Lord of the Rings (which are rather ironically the exact opposite in style). Very fast and extremely well written action, global threads, a rag-tag team of adventurers group together to save a world which is very well thought out in history and magic. There is very little if anything about the Raven books that I have ever disliked and God damn, I can't wait for the next Elves book to come out. o_x
Dawnthief can be purchased for around $4.00 on Amazon, so no excuses!
Bow before the mighty Javoo!
The Bartimaeus trilogy by Jonathan Stroud. Has a big Harry Potter feel to it, but it deals more with demons. Yes, they're directed towards youth, but I found them whimsical and addicting.
It is fantasy, but my favorite relatively recent series is the Mistborn trilogy. My mind is blanking on historical fiction books at the moment, though. I'll try to ask around with my friends who read a lot of historical fiction if I get the chance.
Oh! Submarine by Joe Dunthorne is pretty good from what I've read so far. I like the movie better just because the book has some more explicit content, but it is still pretty beautifully written. It's a Welsh coming of age story (if I remember right) about an awkward teen. You have a bit of a love story in there and it also deals with some family issues as well.
Yeah, anything by Gaiman is win. He gets attention for his kiddy works, but he has other work worth reading too. American Gods, for example, is utter genius.
Morgan Llywelyn is one of my favorite historical fiction authors, but I haven't read her newest works (Pirate Queen, Vikings in Ireland, etc.). Finn Mac Cool is one of the greatest books ever, though. If you like Ireland at all, she's a go-to.
I was going to recommend the disc world series, but someone beat me to it.
So instead, I will recommend the disc world series.
Seriously. Read it.
EDIT: Especially the ones with Vimes. I have a fem-boner for Vimes.
It is probably the best fantasy series ever. And it's certainly the best satirical fantasy series ever.
The best thing is there's just so many of them, you'll have plenty to read, and yet it's not like reading The Wheel of Time or something. Each book starts off a little slow, a little off, but it gathers steam and about 5 pages in it's impossible to put it down.
There are a few movies based on the books too. They're not the greatest, but some of them are fun.
Or, since we have suggestions for both Gaiman and Pratchett, you could just read the book they co-wrote: Good Omens. It's not the best work of either man, but that's like saying "those aren't the best boobs I've ever seen." I mean, they're still boobs right?
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