well, since i didnt see any specifically for reading in the forum- maybe im just blind.. gnomes have trouble with that sometimes.
Ive long been a supporter of Laurell K. Hamilton and her Anita Blake- Vampire hunter, and Merrideth Gentry- American Fae Princess- books. lately though ive also found a good time waster in Anne Bishop and her Black Jewels Trilogy.

Don't know if anyone has read and/or liked his stuff but I'd recommend that anyone who enjoys alternate history fiction to check out pretty much anything by Harry Turtledove, I've liked every one of his novels that I have read.

Wyrm, by Mark Fabi is a good book. So is the Commonwealth saga, consisting of Pandora's star and Judas Unchained by Peter F. Hamilton. Decipher by some damn guy is a neat book too.

I know that most people haven't read her, but anything by Issable Allende is awesome, Reality Fiction at its best.

Also, if you speak spanish and havent read Aztec by Garry Jennings or One Hundred Years of Solitude by NOBEL PRIZE WINNER Gabriel Garcia Marquez... shame on you.

The worldwar series was and is a really good read, read that series a lot of times.

Currently reading James Barclays ascendants of estoria duo, don't like it as much as I like his 2 Raven trillogies, it just doesn't feel like it has the same sort of energy as the raven books in places, most of it has the same drive, but there are bits where the writing is perfect etc, but it doesn't carry the normal push that almost all of his other stuff I've read does.

By far, my favorite series is Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series. It's quite long, and will therefore keep you entertained for a while. It's also incredibly descriptive. I highly recommend it. For the female audience out there, I recommend Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series. Vampires and werewolves, there's no down side!

Lynsay Sands writes romance stories involving vampires. The neat part about her stuff is the unique idea of the source of vampires (aka immortals).

I realize that most of you are not romance novel readers, but these arent your typical trashy books.

The Argeneau Vampires series is really good and has a very captivating story that really makes you want to get your hands on the next book in the series.

http://www.lynsaysands.net/

that is her website that describes the books

Out of the large amount of novels and comics I've gone through in the last couple years, here are my top 4 recomended novel series, and 3 comics.

George R.R. Martin - A Song of Ice & Fire (possibly the best fantasy series I've read)
Lian Hearn - Tales of the Otori trilogy (ancient japan like world & guys with ninja like powers)
Philip Pullman - His Dark Materials trilogy (another very well done fantasy series)
Janet Evanovich - Stephanie Plum (a down on her luck woman from the burg can't get a job anywhere, untill she blackmails her cousin Vinnie into hiring her as a bounty hunter, then laugh as you read about how she goofs it up in some very amusing ways.)

Comics
Exiles (X-Men meets Quantum Leap or Sliders)
Girls (Brutal survival horror with excellent story. Small town vs a bunch of naked alien chicks. Hard to put down once you get into it)
The Sword (Written/drawn by the same guys who did Girls, pretty new still, but just like girls, the anticipation for each new issue is killer)


Hmm, seems these forums don't like links much, it deleted my post when I tried to link to a spot where you can read a Excerpt from the first Stephanie Plum book (Just look for it on Evanovich's site), and Girls and The Sword #1 can be read on the Luna Brothers web site.

I'm currently reading Fronkinsteen Frankenstein for School. And The Three Musketeers. And Brave New World. And another book which I have not determined yet. All within 2 weeks at most. Well, I don't have to finish Three Musketeers, but still...

Loved the earlier parts of the Anita Blake series, but as the series progressed she seemed to spend more time humping mosters and less time learning about them or killing them. BY obsidian Butterfly she was sleeping with so many different vampires and were creatures you needed a score card to keep track and the villians had become a subplot under all the sex. I've heard Harlequin is better, but I jsut lost the taste for the series.

One of the best fantasy Authors today is Raymond E. Feist. I have been deeply interested in his work since the time I was 12 years old (19 now kthx). He rights the Riftwar Saga to begin with, and then about 8 more sagas after that. He has twenty-four books released, many of which have made it to the best-seller's list as well as nine more planned. I suggest reading them in order and enjoying them just as thoroughly as I did.

http://www.crydee.com/raymond-feist/book-series
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Is a list of the books chronologically.

Another very good author, though it is Historical Fiction, is Conn Iggulden. He writes the Emperor series about Julius Caesar which is beautifully scripted and leaves up to the billing of being fiction while still following the outline of Caesar's life. I don't have a link for him, I don't like him as much as I like ol' Ray.

personally i am selling my soul to the malazan book of the fallen serie by Steven Erikson

info about the serie


apperently its supposed to be something similiar with Glen Cook's Black Company and George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire serie but i have no idea if its true or not since i havnt hade the time to read those YET!!

Great Expectations ......... Most boring book I've evar read. The Bible is more interesting than this.

The Malazan Books of the Fallen by Steven Erikson are insanely good. I read the first one Gardens of the Moon and was instatly hooked. I have purchased every book that has come out in the US since, and it moves directly to the top of my reading list. Ill even put down another book to start reading it. Every book I have read in the series is unbelievably good, the way magic works is completely differant, and the various races and the way the interact with one another is incredible. I can not say enough good things about this series... seriously.

Another good fantasy writer is David Gemmell. The Legend of Deathwalker and Hero in the Shadows creates a Anti-hero that is amazingly fun to read. All though Mr Gemmell has passed on, his writing is supurb, and I highly recommend anything by him.

Sci-Fi, try Eisehorn (it is a collection of the three books Xenos, Malleus, and Hereticus) it is a Warhammer 40k triliogy, but it is so well written by Dan Abnett that you dont even have to know or play Warhammer to understand or enjoy it. Pretty much anything by Dan Abnett, in the 40k univerise or out of it is on my reading list now.

Armor by John Steakley is another incredibly good book, its Sci-Fi also.

Glen Cook just released a book that is Sci-Fi called The Dragon Never Sleeps, but its Glen Cook, and since I enjoyed The Black Company novels so much, I picked it up and was very suprised at how well he did Sci-Fi.

Finally for some fantasy set in todays time, try Storm Front by Jim Butcher, it is book one of The Dresden Files novels, and please dont hold the campy Sci-Fi Channel series against it. It is extreamly well written, and the character Harry Dresden is one of my favorites in modern fantasy.

Thanks,
J

A great six part series that I love to read again and again is ´The Amtrak Wars´by Patrick Tilley, lots of twists and turns that will keep you guessing to the end which side is the main character on, will soon try to read my way through ´Mission Earth`by L Ron Hubbard, and when i can find them to read them the ´Axis of time´ trilogy (as reccomended by sohmer )

a series that i love is the earth's children series by jean m auel

so far there are 5 books, and the 6th book is due out, but she takes years upon years to release a book

clan of the cave bear
the valley of horses
the mammoth hunters
the plains of passage
the shelters of stone

in case you havent ever heard of these books here is a rundown: these books are based during the ice age and follow the life of a prehistoric human named ayla. she is orphaned at around 5 and is taken in and raised by neanderthals. the first book takes you through her early life until she is forced to leave at 14. the following books continue her life. in the 5th book she is about 20.

if you think waiting for GRRM's books is a long wait, then you havent waited. book 1 was released in 1980, #2 in 1982, #3 in 1985, #4 in 1990 & #5 in 2002. They havent released any info on the 6th book, other than there will be one.

fantastic read!

Chronicles of Pern pwns all your logic.

For alternate history David Gemmell's Troy trilogy is a great read. Also Conn Iggulden's Emperor series about Julius Ceasar and his new works on Gengis Khan called wolf of the plains. For comics I'd recommend Powers by bendis and Oeming, also DC's The New Frontier by Darwyn Cooke is really good and Ed Brubaker's Iron Fist storyline is also an engrossing read.

Ok...but how abut non science fiction? I mean, i worship R.R. Martin and Crichton as much as the next reader, but i guess with all the "epic" movies and themes out there recently im looking for a more down to earth modern novel...any suggestions?

you might want to try the earth's children novels i mentioned above

my dad actually got me hooked on them

A modern novel? you might want to look into some Tom Clancy, or at least some author's that work in his world. Those always gave me a chill because a lot of the situations described are very possible.