Well, I stopped reading Sword of Shannara prematurely... I only got 150 or so pages into it, and it just didn’t keep my interest. However, I don’t feel like I can officially side with Peter on the argument, because I don’t think it was primarily the book’s fault that I lost interest. First, a rash of good videogames (Burnout 3, Fable, Katamari Damacy) came out as I started reading it which caused me to neglect the book. And when I neglect a book for a week or two, I find it REALLY hard to get back into it. Also, this was my first “real” fantasy book in a long time (I don’t really count the Discworld books, since they are more about comedy than fantasy) and I think I’ve discovered that the fantasy genre just doesn’t interest me. I even had a hard time sticking with LotR when I read it back in ’97. So, Shannara has been returned and I think I’ll stick with Sci-Fi going forward...
I'm calling it a victory for my side nonetheless.
Book recommendations:
The Dragonriders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey. It looks like fantasy, but is really science fiction. Pretty sneaky, sis.
Callahan's Crosstime Saloon series by Spider Robinson. Most of the books are short story collections, so attention span shouldn't be a problem. It's science fiction comedy, AND the protagonist is named Jake. Need I say more?
The Guardians of the Flame series by Joel Rosenberg, if you've ever played D&D. RPG players get magically transported to the game world and become their characters. Worth it just for the surprise twist early in the first book.
Flashforward by Robert Sawyer. I love the way he takes his premise-- that everyone on the planet experiences a one-time mysterious "flashforward" event in which they see out of their future selves' eyes for a few minutes-- and runs with it, exploring all facets of the ramifications.
That's good for starters.
pfft, victory my sweet-ass-hair! ;)
I can't say that the goal in "the argument" was get Jake to like fantasy books if he didn't like them already.
Anyway, I'm cutting my losses, Jake. Until I can find that Sci-fi book that was written by that quantum physicist again, I don't think I'll have another book to recommend to you. Good Sci-fi novels are hard to find.