I’ve recently gotten into reading. I realised how much I love fiction, and a couple of tropes. So I’m here asking maybe some of you know any books that have them.
I love it when the story focuses more on world building rather than character. The theory crafting I can do in my head, or just before I sleep, is priceless.
Here I’ll contradict myself by saying a character development related point, but the more important one. I’d like to read more works that show some mysterious big-bad first as a rivalry, later as a friend. They soften up with the MC and we they become friends or allies or whatever. We get to see a BBEG of sorts’s friendly and weak side. I get that it’s a bit childish, but I lost my mind of how cool of a character they made the first time I read it. Now, it was in a manga, so I’d love to read an example that made this best or first.
Thank you in advance, even if you just name some genres or authors.
The Discworld series has nice world building, however the individual books focus on different characters for telling a story and getting to know that world.
If anyone is interested in Discworld for world building, then I’d recommend skipping the first few books. They were written before Terry Pratchett had a good grasp on the world and the characters. They can be worth coming back to later, but I definitely recommend not starting with them. “Wyrd Sisters” and “Guards! Guards!” are pretty good entry points.
If you like world building then check out Brandon Sanderson and his cosmere related books. They all play out within the same cosmere and all build upon that same world with different stories. I started with Mistborn and think that is still my favourite but it is a hard decision as there is a lot of good books / series.
You could also try Stephen Kings - The Dark Tower and then go down the rabbit hole of a plethora of other books that all happen within the same world and have various different connections to The Dark Tower books and midworld.
N.K Jemison - The Broken Earth trilogy was pretty decent in terms of building the world it was set in and I think is pretty highly regarded for that element.
If you want a bit of space operas then I think Simon R Greens - Deathstalker books are really great and build a whole quirky universe for itself.
Maybe check a few of those out :)
Cosmere feels like it focuses on politics. If I’m right I’d rather not read it. I’m not even interested in real life politics.
I heard a buch of praise for Stephen King and someone else also said the dark tower. I think I’ll give it a shot.
Couldn’t find a wrong word for The Fifth Season, it got on my list.
I don’t think Deathstalker is for me.
Still, thanks! I’m probably set for a long while.
I thought dark tower was okay, but it was a bit too surreal for me towards the end.
Might I recommend the Mortal Engines quartet? They’re kinda YA, especially the first one, but the setting is as far as I know completely unique, and beyond amazing. I really don’t want to spoil the first few moments of realization, so I’m just going to put the first two passages below.
Also, many of the BBEGs are cool af and (spoiler for the later books) as least one matches your request exactly, while others match it pretty well.
Honestly I love the characters, they work so well. Especially Tom, he’s the most normal everyday lead I’ve ever read in a fantasy/sci-fi book, and yet all his actions are totally believable.
My only complaint is that book 2 is kind of frustrating in places.
First two passages:
It was a dark, blustery afternoon in spring, and the city of London was chasing a small mining town across the dried-out bed of the old North Sea.
In happier times, London would never have bothered with such feeble prey. The great Traction City had once spent its days hunting far bigger towns than this, ranging north as far as the edges of the Ice Waste and south to the shores of the Mediterranean. But lately prey of any kind had started to grow scarce, and some of the larger cities had begun to look hungrily at London. For ten years now it had been hiding from them, skulking in a damp mountainous, western district which the Guild of Historians said had once been the island of Britain. For ten years it had eaten nothing but tiny farming towns and static settlements in those wet hills. Now, at last, the Lord Mayor had decided that the time was right to take his city back over the land-bridge into the Great Hunting Ground.
I thirst for befriending “bad” guys, so you sold me. Rest of the text was wasted /j. I won’t even read reviews, I trust you stranger.
I do agree that it does get weaker towards the end, I think after King got hit by the car in real life the writing for this series went down hill. I enjoy the first 4 books the most, then it is a steady decline however it never reaches bad for me still and I have still read through it multiple times.
I also enjoy the majority of his books though and a lot of the ones that tie into this universe are amazing books in their own right but the fact they build into a bigger world than that which exists within the books themselves appeals to me a lot.
I will also look into your suggestion :p
No worries, I hope you find something you enjoy.
I would say that I personally can’t stand politics in the real world or in stories so I am with you on that and I don’t believe any of the cosmere stuff focuses on politics at all. Dune is something politic heavy and whilst I made it through it eventually it took me four or five tries and I probably wouldn’t return.
I highly recommend trying out at least the first mistborn book to see if you like it if you get to a point where you are in need of something else to read after you’ve worked your way through some other suggestions.
Happy reading :)
It’s possible I missjudged it. Not like I read the whole thing to say that. I can tell that you enjoyed it, so it can’t be bad. I’ll look into it, but no promises :p
Three Body Problem is great for if you want more world-oriented experiences than character-oriented ones. The character in focus changes often and sometimes harshly, but I feel it’s in service of the plot and feels great.
The dark tower series.
