Fantasy Series/Book Recommendations

[DangerousDan]

boycott ayn rand

[The Power of Machinery]

boycott ayn rand

This dude knows what's up

[Rocinante]

I've been meaning to read Malazan but given the length and number of books I don't have the time :( The Expanse series is worth checking out; there is already a TV series which is on its 4th season. Think Battlestar Galactica and a Song of Fire and Ice in one.

[Pup]

The Expanse series is definitely good.  It is very Arthur C. Clarksian in it's realistic approach to space fiction.  That being said you should read Childhood's End (Ignore the moronic book jacket that describes the book as scary. The human race should be so lucky. Also admittedly this is my favorite book ever.), 2001, 2010, 2050, and 3001.  I admit that at least two and perhaps three of those are outdated but they are still fascinating reading.  While not nearly as realistic as Clark, Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles is a classic as well.

[SN]

I concur with the Malazan Book of the Fallen.
It has been a source of inspiration for me for many things over many years..

I would highly recommend everyone to go through Dan Simmons' works, though.

His Hyperion Cantos was one of those rare books that REALLY hit the spot for me. There's a ton of intertextuality in those books (4) - the way Simmons' blends classic literature and poetry with sci-fi/fantasy is just mind-boggling, to me.
Can't recommend it enough. One of those truly special books on my shelf.

Same with Dan Simmons'Illium/Olympos - it tickled me on so many levels.  Shakespeare, Homer & Proust meet nanotechnology, string and quantum theories and take those  where it has not been taken before, IMHO, by this magnificent blend of classical and (soft) science.

Both series above are very easy to spoil, so I wouldn't recommend looking up much about them. Just trust me , instead ;)

[Random_White_Guy]

The Utterly Uninteresting and Unadventurous Tales of Fred, the Vampire Accountant.

[Rocinante]

The Expanse series is definitely good.  It is very Arthur C. Clarksian in it's realistic approach to space fiction.

Ditto

[Necro]

SC knows whats up, double recommend on all of his. Black company hands down one of the best reads. Steven kings the dark tower series is also amazing for a blend of magic, unique mysticism, and outer planar elements while maintaining a modern feel and connection to the modern world, can be a bit of a drag for a bit, but getting through is amazingly good.
Also, the inheritance series, all four books, amazing series, but depressing end. Amazing, my favorite series
The dune series, all of them, i particularly recommend the house series written by the OG authors son, and the butlerian jihad series, amazing science fantasy in every element of the word

[Jello!]

Mortal engines is pretty good.

[dice dice baby]

I churn through plenty of Audible books and if you're looking for light reading that's a step above airport paperback, then I have a few recommendations.

Maisie Dobbs mysteries by Jacqueline Winspear
Maisie is a British former-nurse from WW1 who becomes an investigative-psychologist. The books' strength is the POV character and the time period, though the romance and mystery itself were fair enough.

Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
A murderbot is a cyborg slave that is rented out as an insurance markup to humans exploring dangerous alien worlds. The subtext is humane treatment of AI, and Murderbot itself is a proxy for people with autism.

Bobiverse series by Dennis E. Taylor
Bob is a bit of a weird one. In the future, idiot countries plant AI in self-replicating rockets then launch them into space to claim distant resources, and war with each other. Bob struggles with the ennui of being immortal.

Grimnoir series by Larry Correia
Fresh out of magic jail for bad boys, Jake Sullivan, private eye, is on orders from top slimeball J. Edger Hoover with one mission: Capture rogue magicals rampaging 1930's America! But when Jake becomes embroiled with a secret society of good boys called the Grimnoire will he risk crossing the FBI to help them with their one mission: Stop the Japanese Empire from takingovertheworld?

[Nazey]

I would highly recommend everyone to go through Dan Simmons' works, though.

His Hyperion Cantos was one of those rare books that REALLY hit the spot for me. There's a ton of intertextuality in those books (4) - the way Simmons' blends classic literature and poetry with sci-fi/fantasy is just mind-boggling, to me.
Can't recommend it enough. One of those truly special books on my shelf.

Yes!  Hyperion is such an amazing series.  I personally liked the first duology better than Endymion, I found Paul rather boring and passive as a protagonist.  He was a passive observer but an integral part of the story at the same time, it just didn't work for me.