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I am a huge Neal Stephenson fan, so I have to toss in The Baroque Cycle. Eight books, originally published in three mighty volumes (3 books, 2 books, 3 books*) but now available as individual paperpacks although I personally prefer the volumized format. It is wordy and weighty, but utterly fantastic. The first book is quite slow and doesn't seem to really go anywhere, but it is not intended to stand on it's own - it just the lead-in. But as the second book begins, the pace picks up as new dynamic characters are introduced, and he begins to build elaboration upon elaboration. He wrote this series by hand with pen on paper, because he felt that writing in this way produced a different pace and feel than if he banged it out on a computer keyboard, and it certainly does seem to have given it a unique voice compared to his other works. You can see pictures of a few pages with his cross outs and rewrites, and a shot of the entire thing stacked up on the floor at the link below.
It's difficult to describe in a nutshell what the Baroque Cycle is about, because it seems to be about everything! It is set in the period after the European colonization of the western continents but before the American revolution and takes place all over the world. The cast of characters is huge and includes both purely fictional characters of the author's devising, and also a great many historical figures including Isaac Newton, Gottfried Wilhelm Liebniz and other Natural Philosophers, several Kings of England and the King of France (Louis XIV) as well as other more or less famous royals. The subject matter covers the evils of slavery, the rise of currency and finance, the downfall of various monarchs, the beginnings of what we today call science, a dispute over the invention of calculus, and much more besides. The fictional characters run the gamut from prim English puritans to swashbuckling pirates, financiers in Amsterdam and murderous courtesans at Versaille, a Spanish slave with what we now call Tourette's syndrome, an African linguist, a mad syphilitic vagabond from the streets of London, and other colorful characters too numerous to list. The language includes some archaic spellings and words (an e-reader with a built-in dictionary really comes in handy), and many clever witticisms reward your patience at the most unexpected times. It begins nearly at the end of the story, loops back, and slowly leads you back to where you started before embarking on the grande finale. It's not an easy, fast read, but for those who like their reading meaty and thought-provoking, it is just the thing.
His more famous work, Cryptonomicon, is a sort of post-prequel to the Baroque Cycle. By this I mean that it was written first, but that it is placed later in the timeline. It addresses some similar issues but is set in a more modern timeframe. It has two interleaved stories, one takes place during WW2, and one is contemporary. Or was, at the time of its release. It features several characters who are the descendents of characters from the Baroque Cycle and is an easier read.
*The Baroque Cycle
1st volume is called Quicksilver and contains the books Quicksilver, King of the Vagabonds, and Odalisque
2nd volume is called The Confusion and contains the books Bonanza and The Juncto - and in the original publication these two books are interleaved. I am curious to see if my Kindle version is arranged like this or if they are individual. I believe you can buy them in paperback as individual books but I like the original arrangement.
3rd volume is called The System of the World and contains the books Solomon's Gold, Currency, and The System of the World
All these works are shelved in the science-fiction section rather than where you might expect them, but there are no aliens or spaceships or rayguns. These are works of historical fiction written by an author who was up until this point known more for writing about hackers and nano-technology, if you are wondering why it is classified as sci-fi. He has some interesting ideas about sci-fi, which he calls "speculative fiction" and considers it to be a much broader category than science fiction per se.
Trying hard not to duplicate, which is tough because many of my favorites have already been named.
The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop
The 'Study' books by Maria Snyder
Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz
Anita Blake by Laurell K Hamilton (the first 5 were great, the next 7-8 were poor, but they are starting to be fun again)
The Paksennarian books by Elizabeth Moon
True Blood by Charlaine Harris
The Undead series by MaryJanice Davidson (think Bridget Jones meets Shoppaholic becomes Vampire Queen)
Women of the Underworld by Kelley Armstrong
Joe Ledger by Jonathan Maberry (a good replacement for Repairman Jack, since that series is now over)
Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry (young adult, but very very good)
The Stainless Steel Rat by Harry Harrison
Simon r. green - hawk & fisher, nightside, deathstalker
Peter v. Brett - The Demon cycle
David Wellington - Monster Trilogy - one of the very few intelligent zombie novels I've read
A.J. quinnell - Marcus Creasy series which starts with Man On Fire AMAZING SERIES if a bit hard to find
Steve Alten - Meg Series - about a giant megolodon(sp?) shark that gets loose in modern day times
Jim Butcher - Dresden Files Series - love this series !!
Brian keene - many of his books while not generally a series are in the same world and I believe in later books will eventually come together.
Kate Griffin - Mathew swift series - first book Madness of Angels and SOOO good !
J.L. Bourne - Day by day series right now it's only 2 books but it gives and interesting looking into a zombie apocalypse through the eyes of an unamed U.S. Naval officer through journal entries he makes daily. Definitely worth a shot if your into zombies !!
Trying hard not to duplicate, which is tough because many of my favorites have already been named.
The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop
Yes! One of my favorites. (I enjoy the whole series because I like the characters so much, but the original trilogy is outstanding.) I re-read these books constantly. The villains of the trilogy have the distinction of being the most foul, vile characters I've ever read in a book.
Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon (historical fiction with a fantasy twist). I love these books, but the last one (#7) was my least favorite. I enjoyed the characters, but the book itself felt splintered. Too many storylines going on at once. Nevertheless, Gabaldon has a way with words, and her details are amazing.
Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews (urban fantasy); I do honestly think this series just keeps getting better. I think the world-building is creative, and Kate's smart mouth is irresistible.
The Belgariad by David Eddings (fantasy). This is some old-school boy-and-a-prophecy fantasy. I suppose that compared to today's fantasy works, this series has more of a young-adult feel and lacks complexity and originality. (It's no Song of Fire and Ice!!) It's rife with tropes and conventions and is highly derivative, but that doesn't change the fact that it's an engaging story. I read these books the first time almost 30 years ago (!!) and I still like to dig them out every couple years for a re-read.
The In Death series by JD Robb (futuristic police procedurals). Great characters with chemistry and camaraderie, interesting crimes, and slightly futuristic setting that is both familiar and outlandish. Read them in order, but PACE YOURSELF! There are over 30 books in the series, and if you read too many of them back-to-back, you can burn out.
Crystal Shard Trilogy - R. A. Salvatore
Clerical Quintet - R. A. Salvatore
1632 (series) - Eric Flint
Nantucket (series) - S. M. Sterling
Thousand Orc Trilogy - R. A. Salvatore
The Bourne (series) - Robert Ludlum
I am actually not generally a lover of series; I suppose because while one or two books might thrill me , the others are typically (for me) quite a let down.
I adored the Mapp and Lucia books and believe I have posted about them a few years ago. They were a total delight and I was so disappointed to learn that the author has been deceased for about 50 years if not more (so no more to look forward to.). They are light, but just so addictive. I highly highly recommend them. I believe they were made into a BBC series so there are also DVD's that come up in the search but TRUST me- the books are a GREAT read. Amazon.com: Mapp and Lucia (9781559212328): E. F. Benson, Gilbert Seldes: Books
I also enjoyed Philippa Gregory's books- most of them- The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance, to name afew of them. I must have read about 8 or 10 of her books, and have enjoyed the vast majority of them but not all were so wonderful.
But please, give a try to Mapp and Lucia and let me know if you love them too.
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) quite a let down.
