What is a good book series to read?

Earthsea Earthsea Earthsea!

Do it.

Start with A Wizard of Earthsea.

LotR

Sticking with the fantasy theme:
Urban fantasies are great:
Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files (wizard in Chicago)
Patricia Briggs’s Mercy Thompson series (werewolves and other creatures in the northwest)
The Urban Shaman Series (mostly Seattle I think)
The person who write Urban Shaman has another good series, but I can’t think of the name. Its main creature is Gargoyles.

Hmm. A very in depth plot: A Tale of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson. A lot of people can’t read them though, because they’re extremely detailed and cover multiple characters over thousands of years. If you think you can read something like that, I highly recommend them.

If you want something much lighter, but still great (action, humor, fantasy, etc.) I also highly recommend The Hollows series by Kim Harrison.

The Space Trilogy by C.S. Lewis.

The Twilight Series. Once you read one page you dont want to stop.

Stephen King’s “The Dark Tower” series

Roland the gunslinger, my favorite heroantihero

The Saxon Chronicles by Bernard Cornwell

Light fantasy and political intrigue combine in Katherine Kurtz’ Deryni novels. She’s been writing the series for about 30 years, now. With 15 or 16 in the series, it’ll keep you busy for a little while. There’s still one more book to come unless she finds a new part to develop. You can read them in chronological order either according to the story, or when they were written.

Looks like a bunch of sci fi and fantasy is popping up. I’ll contribute…

The Ender Series – Orson Scott Card
Dragon Bones / Dragon Blood – Patricia Briggs
Any series by Juliet Marillier, but I like Foxmask / Wolfskin
Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy

Ummmmm I’ll stop here before I get out of hand. I read a lot of series when I was in high school…

( @EmpressPixie – you’re the first person I’ve run into who has read Briggs’ work! Good on ya! )

@shadling21 How could I forget Ender? Nice!

@shadling21: syz has too!

Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia are in a class of their own.

If you enjoy historical fiction, then Patrick O’Brien’s Aubrey-Maturin series can’t be beat!

I would recommend anything but Twilight. I hate it!

If we are sticking with Fantasy I would definitely recommend the Piers Anthony series. You can read in any order and there are a BUNCH of them. The Xanth series to be specific. It is light fantasy, very humorous if you can enjoy puns. LOL

Let us know if you are looking for something other than fantasy.

Dear WillBrawn,

Do you like fantasy? Apparently all of us do.

XOXO, EP.

Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files are pretty good, but he gets whiny/bitter at times..

Kim Harrison’s Hallow series is excellent, but the protagonist has a tendency to sulk at times.

Simon Green’s Nightside series, especially the first 6 books, is fun fun fun.

Oh. And Robert J. Sawyer’s The Neanderthal Parallax.
@EP – I hope he does too.

Harry Potter

If you like a nice, tasty post-apocalypse story, I recommend The Change Series by S.M. Stirling.

However, if you’d rather go to the past, there’s always the Earth’s Children series by Jean Auel.

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
It’s a classic.
No, really. I’m done now.

Thanks for the suggestions. I’m looking into all of them. I’ll let you know what I start.

James Clavell’s saga about the Orient and trading families/rivalries/corporations that evolved through generations. I’ve read this series three times already because it is outstanding. Here is the complete series:

Shogun
Tai Pan
Gai Jin
Noble House
Whirlwind

If you enjoy satire with a dollop of slapstick, Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series may enchant you. I wonder, though, if you would enjoy the Barsetshire novels of Anthony Trollope (1815–1882), the English novelist. There are six titles in the series, beginning with The Warden and ending with The Last Chronicle of Barset. I have read all more than once, and enjoyed them all, especially the last. They describe a world and a civilization that died with Queen Victoria; the characters develop and grow through the series. You should find Trollope in your local library.

@TaoSan I have to agree… I just started the series last year. I’m on Book 6 Song of Susannah, and I have loved every page. I don’t think it’s your typical King, but it is an interesting journey for anyone who loves sci fi and adventure.

The Discworld series, of which there are eight strands:

* Rincewind
* Death
* The Witches
* The City Watch
* The Wizards
* Tiffany Aching (for kids and young readers)
* Moist von Lipwig
* The History Monks

There’s sci-fi and fantasy elements, and a lot of satire of modern life.

The Isaac Asimov Future History http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychohistory_(fictional)

The Dragon Riders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

and I would like to second several entries above: Xanth by Piers Anthony (or any of his delightful series); Kathryn Kurtz Deryni and Camber series; Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams; and

If you are into action/spy novels Robert Ludlum’s Bourne Series is a fun ride.

Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Series by Laurell K. Hamilton.

I would second Bourne.

And if you want fantasy, I really enjoyed reading The Rose and the Prophet by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. That was a great trilogy.

The Illuminatus! Trilogy
The Chronicles of Narnia
The Dark Tower Series

I’d like to add votes for The Dresden Files, Discworld (especially the Death ones), Harry Potter, “NOT TWILIGHT,” the Ender series, and Hitchhiker’s Guide.

I would advise not getting too attached to the Anita Blake books, as they turn into badly written Mary Sue porn.

And I recommend George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series.

I’ll cast another vote for The Dark Tower and His Dark Materials. Harry Potter is a given.

I’m totally tracking these down, too. Nothing like anohter book series to distract me from my studies.

His Dark Materials, Harry Potter, and Lord of the Rings get my vote. Depending on your age and gender (given that I don’t know either…) I would also recommend “Daughters of the Moon”. I loved those when I was younger.

I would also cast another vote for The Dark Tower as well as Sandman (if you like graphic novels).

More votes for Harry Potter, His Dark Materials, and all of the Ender books (make sure you read both the Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow series – two totally different series set in the same world).

Also, check out The Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. I haven’t been fond of any of his other work, but there are 10 books in the Amber series, and every one of them is a great read. I recommend getting the complete set, because once you finish the first one, you won’t want to wait to get the second one…

Oooh I totally forgot Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events!

@adreamofautumn Yes! I forgot about that one too – another vote for Lemony Snicket!

@sdeutsch For a while I could not have enough of Lemony Snicket and I used to visit the juvenile library to borrow the latest addition. I was but one of many.

@bea2345 I own the whole series, and I regularly visit the children’s/young adult section of my local bookstore – it’s amazing the good stuff you find there!

The Dark Tower Series is far and away one of the most unique and wonderful stories I’ve ever read.

Coming in at a close second would be the Dune Series.

If you like some sex and violence, The Breeds Series and The Seals Series by Lora Leigh. Very fast reads, A thrill a minute plus, some really hot sex, you will need a fire extinguisher handy! I also love Laurel K. Hamilton (anything by her).

My hubby like the Dragon Lance Series By Weis and Hickman.
Happy reading!

I recommend The Southern Vampire Series by Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
Altogether Dead
From Dead to Worse
...and coming soon in May…
Dead and Gone

@bright_eyes00 I’ve heard good things about the series. Thanks for the list!

anne rice’s vampire chronicles:

- interview with the vampire
– the vampire lestat
– queen of the damned

and if you’re a 16 year old girl…the twilight series.

A series I really loved is the Pellinor Series by Alison Croggin. It’s kind of old timey, and very descriptive, but I liked it.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians
A Series of Unfortunate Events
Harry Potter
Lord of the Rings
Artemis Fowl
The Chronicles of Narnia

harry potter all the way!!!!
i also love gallagher girls series,
wings by aprilynne pike
spells by aprilynne pike
rick riordans percy jackson and the olympipans series
zachs lie and jacks run
another new series by rick riordan is the red pyramid
if you’re looking for a book thats not in a series phoenix rising is a really good book

and…...
MAXIMUM RIDE!!!!!
ive read all of these books and loveed them all

If you like policiers, or crime procedurals, you’ll like the 87th Precenct series from the writer Ed McBain (pen name of Evan Hunter, who wrote the book The Blackboard Jungle that the movie was based on).

Unlike the usual “hard-boiled cops” type books which is mainly about the crime and how it’s solved, this series pulls you into the lives of the detectives on the job and shows empathy for them, even a couple of officers who are straight-up nasty pieces of work. There’s even a recurring master criminal that the boys and girls in blue have a problem apprehending through the series.

I enjoyed them, and was sad when Mr. Hunter died in 2005. :(

read the twilight series it is AMAZING i accually just finished braeking dawn i SOO have to see the movie
or another good one is sudden super natural there are 4 books im waiting for the 4th one to arrive at my house

No one has mentioned the “Hunger Games” Trilogy?!
I have just finished reading them and I loved them!!

Hunger Games are soo good! Just finished them as well and wish it wasn’t over! Couldn’t put the books down look forwards to the movies

I just read The Hunger Games trilogy, too. Awesome. Not looking forward to the movies, though. I really wish Hollywood would leave young adult fiction the fuck alone.

When I finished that, I started on another trilogy, The Forest of Hands and Teeth. I’m about halfway through the second one, and the third one comes out in March. It’s… not bad. I’m not crazy about it like I was over The Hunger Games but that’s probably because it focuses more heavily on the love story aspect than on the zombies. Strikes me as a little Twilight-y at times, only the girls aren’t as brainless as Bella and the guys aren’t thinly-veiled abusers like Edward.

@MacBean I didn’t realize that Forest of Hands and Teeth was a series. Does the second one start right where the first left off? Is it worth reading? Another good series for sci-fi lovers might be The Maze Runner. The Scorch Trials is the second one that just came out, it is my understanding that it is going to be a trilogy.

@SuperMouse No, it doesn’t. It starts probably twenty-something years later and the POV character is Mary’s daughter. (It took an embarrassingly long time for me to figure that out. I felt like such an idiot when it dawned on me.) I’m not entirely sure what I think of it yet. If you liked the first one, I definitely recommend it; I think I’m enjoying it more than the first one even though there are some plot devices that are being recycled in not-terribly-creative ways. But if you were iffy on the first one, I’ll have to finish it before I can say if I think it’s worth the read or not.

@MacBean thanks for the feedback. It seems we felt the same way about the first, not bowled over by it but still willing to keep reading. I am going to be curious to hear what you end up thinking of the second one.

@SuperMouse Okay, I’ve finally finished! I think my standard description for this series is going to be: Imagine if Twilight was about zombies, Bella had a brain, Edward wasn’t a thinly-veiled abuser, there was a plot, and the writing didn’t suck. Which really makes it sound nothing like Twilight, doesn’t it? But there’s something that gives me that same vibe without totally turning me off. I’ve pre-ordered the third book, which will be out near the end of March.

Karen Chance’s Cassie Palmer series is awesome!!!!!!

@MacBean I guess I don’t get thin-veiled and such. I thought the story was very close to actual teen feelings.

@MacBean it sounds like it might be an improvement on the first, I might give it a try. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks!