I love to read book series. Some can be very good. If you were going to recommend some series of books which would you recommend? For myself I'd recommend these, these aren't in any particular order :):
1. The Incarnation of Immortality Series by Piers Anthony
2. The Deeds of Paksenarrion by Elizabeth Moon
3. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowlings
4. Dragon Riders of Pern by Anne MacCaffery
5. The Donovan Legacy by Nora Roberts
6. Xanth Series by Piers Anthony
7. The Adept Series by Deborah Turner Harris and Katherine Kurtz
8. The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice
9. Alex Cross Series by James Patterson
10. The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons by Dan Brown not quite a series but close enough
That's a good list I think. Anyways I want to find what you would recommend so I know what to look for next. So share a way.
[question posted by emeraldisle]
responses and comments:
With a few exceptions we love the same books. I hate Anne Rice and wasn't thrilled with Dan Brown or Nora Roberts, (but I'll read them if I find them cheap). I'd add the Odd Thomas series by Dean Koontz, in fact anything by him and anything by Charles de Lindt. And for a good laugh, the Diskworld series by Terry Pratchett! [judyt00]
I saw the Odd Thomas mentioned in another thread. I'm going to have to look into that one. Now I read the one series by Terry Pratchett, Magic Kingdom for Sale..Sold. I think that was his. I liked that one. [emeraldisle]
I liked most of the Left Behind series. But, I want to warn people that it is based on bible prophecies. So, if you don't want to read anything related to that, then don't read this series. I also like some children's series such as Anne of Green Gables and the Chronicles of Narnia. For mysteries, I have liked the Jim Chee and Joe Leaphorn series by Tony Hillerman. On Gather.com, I saw someone recommend another series called Big Stone Gap. I like reading books in the series. I enjoy seeing the same characters going through new adventures and problems. [desertdarlene]
Same here. If I liked the characters I want to know what happens to them after the one story ends. Having a series can really work out well. Now the Xanth series follows several generations which is very neat. I also like when sometimes they take a minor character from one book and make them a major one in a later. It means you have to pay attention to what you are reading. [emeraldisle]
I really loved the Left Behind Series also. I could hardly wait for the next book to come out. Mine were all passed on to my daughter-in-law, then on to my sister and my cousin after that. They will continue to be passed on to someone inside or outside the family...anyone who loves to read. My favorite author is Nora Roberts. I loved her Circle Trilogy, Key trilogy, Donovan Legacy series, Chesapeake Bay series and several other series she wrote. She also writes as J.D. Robb and has a fantastic series of 25 or so books that take place in the mid-21st century and follow the same main characters...they are fantastic, and I just got the latest one from my cousin today. Another good series is Fern Michaels' "Sisterhood"...about 7 very different women who are out for revenge for wrongs done to them. I'm on book 4 right now. Very good reading. Fern Michaels also has several series that were very good. [claudia413]
I want to check out some of Nora Roberts other series. What I have read of hers I have enjoyed. She's a fantastic author. Fern Michaels' I have heard of but I can't say for sure what books of hers I've read. I'll have to check into the "Siterhood" one. That sounds good. [emeraldisle]
I sincerely recommend these books, not because I am the author/translator but the Word of God or Holy Bible is the source of truth. I am a Christian, a child of God, baptized into Christ on October 1, 1989 and I belong to the Church of Christ founded and headed by Christ as shown in Acts Chapter 2. I am given the gift of knowledge and understanding Bible Greek and I translate the Word of God from Greek to English PLAINLY - Greek word into its English equivalent with additional words for grammar purposes written in italics so that readers may delete them when they so desire. I have already published GENESIS, EXODUS, LEVITICUS (Greek-English), THE WILL New Testament (Greek to English), ELEMENTS of SALVATION, The Right Way, GOD, ORIGIN, TRANSFER into PERFECTION, GREEK-ENGLISH (Grammar & Vocabulary), WORDS in THE WILL New Testament, and others shown at http://www.lulu.com/arseniajoaquin I have seen the versions being circulated worldwide and they are generally admitted to be 80% NOT translations. My translations are 99.99% translations and I see the truth, beauty, and sweetness of the Word of God. I hope these books could also help people understand the Word of God and be saved. I hope that people would include these in their reading. May God bless all of us. [arseniajoaquin]
Thank you for sharing the link. I agree the bible can be a great series to read at times. I like to read different religious books and the bible is in that list. [emeraldisle]
The only series I can think of that I've really been following is the Shopaholic Series by Sophie Kinsella. It goes in this order: Confessions of a Shopaholic, Shopaholic Takes Manhattan, Shopaholic Ties the Knot, Shopaholic and Sister, Shopaholic and Baby. I don't know if these are the type of books you like, but I think they are great! I also would recommend the Harry Potter series, but it seems you have already listed that. :) [dopey22girl]
Hi, I also love the Shopaholic series! But I haven't read Shopaholic and baby yet. =) [moira20]
My all-time favorite series is the Dune novels by Frank Herbert. Science-fiction fantasy series that's tops is His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman. If you like historical fiction with a strong military flavor, I highly recommend the Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell--all 21 of them (so far). And I guess I couldn't leave out Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. [unusualsuspect]
That sounds like an interesting series, the Sharpe One. I did like the Wagon West series and also the one by John Jakes, the Kent Family Chronicles. I forgot about them until you mentioned the historical fiction. [emeraldisle]
Wow! Some great ideas of books in there. I LOVED the Vampire Chronicles and also the Dragon Riders of Pern. I haven't read any of the others, but thanks for the great ideas! ;) [chaygylmommy]
Oh you're very welcome. I hope you enjoy them. They are all a bit different but if you liked the Dragon Riders of Pern you would probably like both series by Piers Anthony. They are fantasy based. [emeraldisle]
After seeing your lists, I think that our tastes might overlap a bit. I don't usually read that many series books, but I do have some reccomendations. 1) His Dark Materials Books by Philip Pullman. - They are about to become a movie, but you should still read them. They are written for yound adults, but the story is just too good to be ignored by adults and the story gets better and more complicated as you read each book. And the ending, wow! The individual books are called The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass. I would try to describe the plot to you, but I'm not sure I would do it justice. 2) Red Dwarf Books - There are 4 of them that are based on the tv series, but these books expand the stories to make them more unified and cohersive. Thankfully, they are still hilarious. Also, the last two books go in two complete different directions from the same point in the second book. It's two possible outcomes of one event and it's really interesting to see how each author differently envisioned what would happen. 3) Dark Angel Trilogy by Meredith Ann Pierce - Not your usual vampire book and the ending is quite surprising. 4) Earthsea Novels - Ignore that terrible tv movie they made. These books are so great and if you like Harry Potter you should really check them out. [krebstar5]
I think I read the first one. It sounds so familiar. I'll have to check my listings. I'm so bad on names. I remember storylines more and of course that makes it harder to find them. OH there are some great young adult books. If you like vampires try the Silver Kiss. I'm blanking on the author name but I think it was like Wooley but not sure. It was very good story. [emeraldisle]
I love book series too!!!! My favourit is Harry Potter (by J.K Rowling), of course Lol. But I love too Lord Of the rings (J.R.R.Tolking),all the written books by Dan Brown (Da vinci Code, Angels and demons, and the others one) the brazilian books serie by Malba Tahan (its not so famous, but is really good!) Artemis Fowl (I cant remember the name of the author) and All the books by Sidney Sheldon [GabrielGebara]
If you like a whole bunch of series for a book theme, you just got to read Erin Hunter's Warrior series...no it's not what you might think...Erin Hunter has a great love for cats and she spins a great tale about cats...It begins with the first book Into The Wild where we meet Rusty...a "kittypet"--in other words a kitty who grows up in a nice warm cozy home with TwoLegs--uh--humans...but he is entranced of what lies beyond the saftey comfort zone and is aware of cats in the forest..these are the ferals ...he leaves the comfort of his home and life to join with Thunderclan...you see there are four clans..Thunderclan, Windclan, Riverclan and Shadowclan--each clan has a leader, a deputy, a medicine cat..the elders, the queens and their kits--the way E.Hunter presents the stories has a real tribal feel to it--I just know you'll love them...they are very addictive to read and it doesn't look as if Hunter is running out of ideas for the stories..I'm on the sixth one of the first part of the series... Check the website: http://www.harpercollins.com/authors/25047/Erin_Hunter/index.aspx and be sure to click on the link there for the official Erin Hunter site...it has a part where you can find out what your name might be if you were a cat and which clan you might belong to.. If I were to give these books a rating--a definite 10 [pyewacket]
It sounds interesting. I will be checking it out :) Thanks for letting me know on them. I love finding out about new books and usually other readers are the best way to find out about them. They know what is good or not. [emeraldisle]
I gladly recommend the Holy Bible. Everything is there. In fact there are many movies that are based in some stories of the Holy Bible and they're interesting and exciting. [erminiasanjose]
Let me say I loved the Harry Potter collection and Angels and Demans and The Davinci Code were all good books. My favorites are also V. C. Andrews - Flowers in the Attic series and Right now I am reading Dean Koontz - Odd Thomas. After Odd Thomas there is Forever Odd and also another book I am into this series now. [Shaun72]
I knew she was ghost written after she died but wasn't sure which series it started with. [emeraldisle]
There are a few that come to mind but I don't know the name of the series. The authors & genres are Maggie Furey...fantasy. Janet Evanovitch....humour. The Elijah Bailey Novels....Isaac Asimov...sci-fi. James Herriott...humour, animals. I found the Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles a bit heavy going but my favourite book of hers was The Mummy. The Da Vinci Code to me was a bit ordinary but the marketing was brilliant. Great post. [MsTickle]
Thanks :) I'm glad you liked it. I did ready the Mummy by her and it was good. I also liked the Witching Hour series. She has quite the imagination and gives some nice twists to things. [emeraldisle]
Like you I like J.k Rowling and Dan brown but my all time favourite series were the Hardy Boys and the Star Wars series.The comprised of shorts books which could be completed in two hours max and were real fun to read especailly the hardy boys. [uniqueme20]
I never got a chance to read the Hardy Boys although I watched the show (yes with Shaun Cassidy). I did read the Meg series though, another series about a kid solving mysteries. It was very good as well. [emeraldisle]
well imostly don't read series but i would reccomend you the book "princess diaries" by meg cobet though i have not completed it all [lalchetian]
The Holy Bible is the best for all people, even if not Christians. There are many things that can be learned from it, any situation in life, any problem, there's always an answer there. I recommend that you should have the Holy Bible. [celinlocario]
Oh I love books in a series too! They're really great. You can get into a story and it keeps going. Here are some of the ones that I love - aside from some that you named (HP & Dan Brown). The Avalon series by Marion Zimmer Bradley (The Mists of Avalon, The Fall of Atlantis, ect) Heaven series (or the Castell Family series) by V.C. Andrews Flowers of the Attic series (or the Dollanganger family series) by V.C. Andrews The Lord of the Rings series including The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis Well those are my favorites anyway :) [GnosticGoddess]
I read the first one in the Avalon Series, actually have it, but didn't know about the others until recently. I have to find them and see about reading them. V.C. Andrews is a great author. I've loved most of what I've read by her including the two you mentioned. I know there were others but my memory isn't what it used to be. I figured the Bible would show up from someone. I agree the stories in it can be very good no matter what your relgion. [emeraldisle]
i m not much into the reading thing bt i generally read sidney sheldon have read jeffrey archer for a while read chetan bhagats "five point someone" and "one night at callcenter" i've read dan browns da vinci code also read mr abdul kalams book wings of fire [herbalife]
I dont have anything to add you already had my favorite series in your list. Piers Anthony -Xanth series is awesome.well maybe check out the Jorian series by L'Sprague de Campe . [jeanena]
1. The Amelia Peabody Mystery Series by Dr. Elizabeth Peters 2. The Horse Racing-Themed Mysteries by Dick Frances 3. The M*A*S*H book series by Richard Hooker 4. The Gor novels by John Norman [Bee1955]
The Black Magician trilogy by Trudi Canavan very well written. The riftwar books (there are loads of them) by Raymond feist a bit naive in places but lots of action. The Bakers boy trilogy by J.V.Jones The Wheel of time by Robert Jordan (11 of these) They are some I have read over the past couple of years. [mihimolly]
Right now I am reading the "A Song of Ice and Fire" series by George R.R. Martin and I love it! I can't say that I'm a fan of fantasy (but I can't say that I'm not a fan either, since I really haven't read that much of it) but a friend who IS into fantasy recommended this so I gave it a try. The books are in the fantasy category, but not so "out there" that they are hard to read if fantasy is not your thing. The characters are very deep and draw you right in. Lots of action and plot twists and turns. [ocularium]
These sound interesting. I'll have to check them out :) Thanks for letting me know. I love fantasy. If you want to read some more I'd suggest the two I mentioned by Piers Anthony. Both are great fantasy series. [emeraldisle]
You know me, all Harry Potter, all the time. I would, however, suggest the Dragonlance Chronicles and Legends from the same genre. [DanielMarvoloRiddle]
I haven't read most of the books you've listed but I did love "The Vampire Chronicles" and I've also read quite a few of James Patterson's books which I enjoyed. I think I'm the only person in the Western world that hasn't read a Harry Potter book and knows nothing about them because I haven't even seen the movies either! I notice others have mentioned it but I would say "Lord Of The Rings" would be my recommendation and also "Little Women", "Good Wives" and "Jo's Boys" by Louisa M Alcott. I loved those books when I was growing up. [Stiletto]
Oh my. The Pern series by Anne MacCaffery is one of my very favorites. You should these series: The Sword of Truth - Terry Goodkind Crown of Stars - Kate Elliott Outlander - Diana Gabaldon All three of these series are awesome! I loved every one of them, and have even re-read them from time to time. You won't be disappointed, I promise. I also love the Harry Potter books and cannot wait till the next movie releases this summer = woo hoo! Hugs [lreddell]
I know I read the Sword of Shannarra by Terry Goodkind. That was a long time ago though. I really enjoyed that one. I just never got a chance to read any more in the series, either the library didn't have them or I was interested in other things besides fantasy at the time. I go in spurts for different genres. [emeraldisle]
I have to admit that most of those I haven't heard of, let alone read. But I do have most of the Harry Potter books, just haven't read them yet. As for the ones I'd recommed: 1. Abarat Series by Clive Barker 2. Flowers in the Attic (Dollanganger) by V.C. Andrews 3. Heaven (Casteel) by V.C. Andrews 4. Key Trilogy by Nora Roberts Those are my top ones for a series of books. I tried to think of a fifth one and I am drawing a blank, though I know its probably back there in the back of my head somewhere. lol [Penguinsangel]
If you like Nora Roberts you'd probably like The Donovan Legacy by her. It deals with cousins who are hereditary witches and have to deal with the real world. They were very good. They are very well thought out storylines. [emeraldisle]
I agree with you on harry Potter. i also like the Chalet School series by Elinor m Brent-Dyer. www.fidrabooks.com is doing some really good books at the moment - they a reprinting out of print titles in the original unabridged format. My favourite book is Middlemarch by George Elliot. [racheldarcy]
A few of my favourite series of books that haven't been mentioned so far are... The Rats Trilogy - James Herbert The Dark Tower - Stephen King Darren Shan Saga - Darren Shan I am at the moment on the forth book of The Vampire Chronicles and I have also read and enjoyed the Dollanganger and Casteel series by Virginia Andrews which have already been mentioned a few times. [ScotsFerret]
I can recommend the Odd Thomas series by Dean Koontz, too. After looking at your list, I think that you would enjoy it. I also read the "Prey" series by John Sandford and "Alex Delaware" series by Jonathan Kellerman. My husband is reading the "Discworld" series by Terry Pratchett. It is fantasy and you would probably like it, since you like Piers Anthony. [1983tyler]
You are like the third or fourth to recommend the Odd Thomas series. I'm really going to have to look into that. I've heard of Tery Pratchett so will look into that one as well. I love Piers Anthony's books and a good fantasy I usually enjoy. [emeraldisle]
I really like the Avalon series by Marion Zimmer Bradley. I'd advise you only to read the first three books and perhaps the fourth one. Bradley died of a heart attack while writing the fourth one and it was finished by a different author and you can really tell as it's simply not to the standard of the first three books. I've heard there's now a fifth book, but I really wouldn't recommend that one as it's only based on the idea of Bradley, she didn't write it herself. [5000ml]
Thanks for the heads up on that. I'd read the first book and only recently found out that there were others. I'd like to read them but I'll be mindful of the later ones. [emeraldisle]
An old Hippie Era series "Seth Speaks" "Conversations With God" - very similar to the "Seth Speaks" series nothing from Llewellyn as I find that publishing house to generic [kitchenwitchoftupper]
Well I was right they do sound interesting. I'll have to look to see if I can find them around here. That might be easier said then done considering our libraries in this area but I'll do my best. [emeraldisle]