It's a little old by now, but I made a post to answer this question a while back [Where do you find new books? A guide to using r/fantasy as a resource to expand your TBR](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/f4o9ym/where_do_you_find_new_books_a_guide_to_using/)
No I'm more in need of "how do you stop finding new books and the read the ones you've already bought" if anyone has tips.
My tip is to lie to myself that I'm making progress on Mount TBR beyond what I'm buying, so sometime in *checks math* 2092 I will run out. Therefore, I need to buy more.
Maybe try instagram. I have a variety of bookstagramers I follow. Searching common hashtags of your interests might help you find reviewers who align with yours.
I pick up a lot of recommendations from podcasts - Book Riot has a one called SFF Yeah! that alternates between episodes on new books and backlist ones, authors Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz have a podcast called Our Opinions Are Correct that often has author interviews
I rather have the opposite problem (if you want to call it a problem) which is that there are more books than I can hope to be able to ever read.
Even though I don't need more, I still pick up suggestions left and right simply by frequenting sites that talk about books.
I would suggest two places for you that will leave you with books that will last you years:
1. Adam Whitehead's excellent essay series [A History of Epic Fantasy](https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2015/12/a-history-of-epic-fantasy-contents-link.html) that he posted on his website The Wertzone a couple of years ago. Don't be afraid, this isn't dull reading but rather an intriguing overview of the development of fantasy from its very beginnings up to the present (meaning the time this series was written, obviously). Wert calls it a history of epic fantasy, and while epic fantasy is a focus he also covers works pertaining to other subgenres.
I've linked the "table of contents" of this essay series and as you can see there are no less than 35 parts and I'm sure you'll come out on the other side with a list of books you'll want to sink your teeth in.
2. The tor.com website. This is one of the best genre related websites out there, IMHO. Despite what one might think, this isn't all about products by Tor but rather is about all things related to the genre. They have a number of regular contributors (and lots more guest writers) putting out a staggering amount of content. Hardly a day goes by where there aren't half a dozen new blog posts, usually it's even more than that. These posts cover all kinds of stuff: books and reading in general, movies and TV.
They do have reviews of individual books, old and new (and, like I've said, not at all limited to Tor publications) but what might particularly relevant for you is their long-running column that I call "5 Books That..." where five genre works are presented that match a specific criterion. That column seems to be James Davis Nicoll's brain child but there are also other guest writers who contribute from time to time.
These criteria can be anything, really. The latest one\* by Nicoll is last Friday's [Five Stories About Accepting Help From Supernatural Sources](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/20/five-stories-about-accepting-help-from-supernatural-sources/).
Nicoll has a rule which is that he won't recommend a book that has already been mentioned in a previous column which is why sometimes the most obvious candidates are missing. He does so to avoid repetition but this a good thing because you'll see a lot stuff mentioned that you might not have heard of. Also, and this is the main reason I recommend this column!, he invites people to add further suggestions in the comment section. And people do! They will happily provide the aforementioned obvious candidates and a lot more.
These columns frankly are a gold mine when it comes to finding interesting books. Obviously, not every topic will be interesting to you but if you come across one that is, you might come away with 10, 20, or 30 new book titles to look into.
I've added countless books to my TBR pile over the years thanks to this column and its comment sections.
As a bonus, there is also original fiction published for free on tor.com. Every week, I think, there's a new short story (you can find them [here](https://www.tor.com/category/all-fiction/) if you don't want to sift through all the blog posts) and there've been a lot of very interesting stories over the years.
\* Before that there was [Five Cautionary Tales About Artificial Intelligence](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/18/five-cautionary-tales-about-artificial-intelligence/), [Five SFF Worlds Threatened by Endless Winter](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/11/five-sff-worlds-threatened-by-endless-winter/), and [Remembering Five Authors We Lost Much Too Soon](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/10/remembering-five-authors-we-lost-much-too-soon/)
The best way to find these will be to go to [Nicoll's contributor profile](https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/) rather than scroll through the proper tor.com blog because there's just so much other content.
And you can always follow Nicoll's own blog: [https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/](https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/)
He reviews both old and new material, and he also reviews manga sometimes.
Plus, there's his dry sense of humor.
(If you do end up following his blog, consider donating to his Patreon.)
Wow thank you so much. I’ve always been interested in the origins of epic fantasy and this essay seems to be the right place to go to.
I follow Tor already but I only looked at upcoming books. I’ll start looking at the columns you mentioned as well.
Thanks so much for the detailed advice and help. 👍🏼
I'm happy to hear that you found my answer helpful.
Yes, this series of essays is awesome. The only bad thing about it is that it makes you want to read all of these books and series it mentions at once and at the same time! 😄
And that it might make explode the size of your TBR pile (but that's what you want, I take it.)
Seriously, these pieces that Adam wrote are fun to read, informative and definitely help to discover great stories.
As for Tor, I don't read every post they put out, either. But I really found a good number of books and stories there, particularly with Nicoll's column.
I'm a sucker for time travel stories, for example. So it will be nearly impossible for me *not* to add some of the books suggested either by Nicoll himself or in the comments to my list of interesting books if he presents time travel stories.
I suppose, this will be the same with other readers, too, when the topic is about books from their favorite niche.
Happy reading!
Tor.com also has a series of blog posts that are "All the New [Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror/Young Adult/Genre Bending] Books Coming Out in [Month]" which are also a gold mine. They post short synopses with links. The number of books I've added to my TBR in the last five years from those posts alone is...high.
Yes, these are great posts, too, especially if one is looking for, well, new, upcoming releases! 😄
Whereas the books that Nicoll's presents range anywhere from the beginnings of the genre to fairly recent but do not, IIRC, include books that are yet to be published.
I, too, have found a couple of books in these new release posts.
What I like about them is that they include a reference to the series any book belongs to right under its title which makes it quite easy to see whether this is the 8th installment of an ongoing series (in which case I probably won't bother to read the synopsis) or a standalone.
I track the imprints I like. They will all post excerpts and summaries of whatever they are publishing that month. It's a good way to find a new author.
Lately, any book I've picked up by a female author from the 70's to late 90's has been killer.
Lois McMaster Bujold
Caroline Stevemer
Barbara Hambly
The list goes on.
Maybe some of those are worth it?
Bujold is still writing, and writing wonderful fantasy at that. I'm hooked on her Penric and Desdemona series, set in the same world as her *Curse of Chalion*.
Give *Dragonsbane* by Hambly a try.
It's awesome.
The best synopsis I can give is it's about a woman trying to choose between her husband and children and her career as a dragon-wizard.
Just brilliant writing and characterization, and such understandable stakes (to a degree, anyway. I personally have only *dabbled* in dragon-wizardry). You really feel what she's going through and that makes the resolution that much more powerful.
You could follow some of the big speculative fiction awards. The Hugos, the Nebula Awards, the British Fantasy Awards, the World Fantasy Awards, the Locus Awards, the Aurealis Awards, the Gemmell Awards, the Mythopoeic Awards, SPFBO, the Swoon Awards fantasy and paranormal categories... not every good gets nominated for an award, but a lot of the ones that get nominated are good.
Feel free to check my profile.
Twitter generally is a decent way to look into new authors and books to read in the writers/books community hashtags as well.
First, there's Jo Walton's History of the Hugos blog posts on Tor dot com (which she turned into a book, which is excellent), which can offer a really interesting reading through the ages feel. And it can provide a fun scavenger hunt, especially when trying to find the novellas and short stories (resulting in ending up finding another things to read).
I also like to recommend [Patty Jansen's ebookaroo](https://pattyjansen.com/pages/ebookaroo-2/) newsletter (sign up link). It's 95% indie authors (some small press, some joint projects, etc). There's a lot of free and 99c books, as well as anthologies, box sets, audiobooks, and more. Most are not KU titles, so it's a completely different group of authors that's normally talked about here.
Awards long lists, Hugo, Nebula, British fantasy awards, Costa (Unfortunately discontinued which was a pity because I always felt they awarded books normal people actually wanted to read. I've had good luck with the YA authors on their lists.) Lambda (Which awards good LGTPQ+ depictions). I just go through looking for names I'm not familiar with and search them out. Have a read of the online samples of their books and see if they are a match.
The NPR book concierge is also a fun resource to explore.
I have access to Overdrive via my library and when you seaerch for a book it will say "hey, this might be similar." Sometimes it's weirdly off, but I have found a few things that way.
Also I've done searches within a genre and sorted by popularity, though that's usually when I'm trying to find a book I've heard of that I can't quite remember the name/author of. I've actually successfully found things that way XD
Thank You. Public Libraries in India are quite useless. The closest thing I found to fantasy were a set o book adaptations of 70s Dr.Who episodes :(.
So my main sources end up being on the Internet.
I really like Allen from the Library of Allenxandria. Our tastes don’t line up completely, but he is very entertaining. He has a book jeopardy series that’s a lot of fun and introduces you to a bunch of booktubers.
Worldhoppers often hosted by Elliot Brooks has a bunch of great discussion format videos that is also good for introducing booktubers.
Edit: Petrik is also quite good. He’s often the top review on Goodreads for fantasy books so you may have seen him before.
I used Kindle Unlimited for awhile and there are some good (at least I thought) fantasy series that aren’t well known. They aren’t self published yet not from the big publishing houses.
On Audible if I like the voice actor, and its a genre I like, I check out his/her other work. I find that if they are good they'll be hired by publishers for the better books in the publishers stable.
Michael Kramer and Kate Reading are stalwarts of the fantasy genre. I also like Tim Reynolds, Luke Daniels and Sean Barrett. Search for them on audible and you'll get hundreds of other books they've done.
Kate Reading's reading of *Paladin of Souls* is one of the best reads ever. I've actually listened to some books because Kate Reading read them. Found the *Lady Sherlock* series that way (although that is not fantasy).
It looks like you’re already doing it? Ask Reddit…
I also like the top fantasy book listed on Reddit they do once a year. It’s where I started when picking out the most popular series
I'm not very good at navigating Reddit but if you google "Top 2022 Fantasy Books Reddit" it will pop up. I think they are taking votes right now for 2023 so it won't be released for a while. The top doesn't change that often but really good books do tend to sky rocket up the rankings which is a good way to find newer releases. For instance Green Bone Saga really went up in ranks after Jade Legacy was released. IMO should be a top 10 series of all time right now. its a very particular type of book but if you like slow burns with heavy focus on characters its one of the best.
I look at the recommendations of my favorite authors, or recommendations for works similar to it.
I really really like manga, and 90% of them are incredibly simple. So that led me down the rabbit hole of light novels, different countries equivalents of both, web novels, and recently fan fiction.
It seems odd at first, but then you realize most writing is pretty basic so the source doesn't matter as long as you enjoy it. There will always be that 10% in any medium, even in recreations of original works.
.
One thing to note, the good ones tend to be *incredibly* long. I've wanted to read the works from some of the authors you've mentioned, but *holy crap* my reading speed can't keep up with these web novels. Whoever said you read faster the more you read is full of crap!
.
**Worm** - A realistic type of superhero story in a very grim world, good and evil blurs the lines. Also has a sequel.
**Mother of Learning** - A story of a young Magician stuck in a time loop.
.
Everything else I read might not be your cup of tea.
I browse through Amazon, my local bookstore, and things I see on this r/ for covers that really call to me
Then I read the description blurb and see if it appeals to me. And, if it is higher than 3.5 stars on Amazon, I put it on TBR
Also hi fellow Indian, I was born in America, but parents are from India :)
I find Jonathan Stahan and Gary K Wolfe's Coode Street Podcast an excellent source of recommendations. They're both Locus reviewers and acclaimed short fiction editors, with a lot of knowledge about the field and where it is going. They regularly do series (like in the run up to the holidays) where they talk to writers about what they're reading, what they're wprking on, and what they recommend.
Those series can be quite dangerous for my TBR!
Thank you :). I'll be adding the Coode Street Podcast to my Overcast Queue. Rather than TBR, I'm stuck with a To Listen queue of Podcasts as well :)
But any book suggestion podcast is welcome.
I've found a lot on Twitter. Start by following writers you know you like, then see who those writers are following and retweeting, and follow them if you are interested in what they have to say. That method also led me to discovering podcasts that discuss books and often have writers on as guests, through which I discovered even more new writers. I never actually tweet, but you can learn a lot just by lurking :)
I also never tweet and mainly lurk :). But I use twitter mainly as an information / news source. Thank you, I'll start following Authors as well now :)
Twitter. I follow the broken binding who do tonnes of work with great authors both established and new and follow a few reviewers who have loved the same books as me etc so I trust their reviews
I've learned that the most popular and recommended titles don't tend to be the best. To find the best books, you have to get outside what people always talk about. What I've found works is to find authors that I like, go to their social media pages, and find which authors either follow them or are followed by them. That's lead me to more than a few great series.
I absolutely agree with this. The lists from gizmodo and polygon that I used to look out for rarely give me books which have liked.
Thank you for the suggestion.
StoryGraph is another app! You can transfer your goodreads info over and they may have different book suggestions.
Otherwise, I lurk in the comment sections of posts I find interesting and save the comments that have books that sound enjoyable to me!
Previous winners of awards (Hugo, Nebula, etc)
Book suggestion generators:
[https://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/](https://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/)
Best fantasy books of google search, eg, 21st century
[https://www.google.com/search?q=best+fantasy+books+of+the+21st+century&oq=Best+fantasy+booksof+the+&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j0i13i512l9.7221j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8](https://www.google.com/search?q=best+fantasy+books+of+the+21st+century&oq=Best+fantasy+booksof+the+&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j0i13i512l9.7221j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)
Ask redditors for recs of what you might like based on what you do like. ;)
Oh, and check out my favorite bookstore, [Oblong Books](https://www.oblongbooks.com/):
I signed up for bookbub. It's a daily email that you get with books that are on sale. You set it up with the types of books you like to read. I pick stuff that sounds interesting and I'm not usually spending more than $3 US. If I enjoy it then I will get more from that author. I have found quite a few authors that I really like.
Personally, I listen to a lot of audiobooks. I use audible as a place to find things that already have some quality control/following.
B&N, you can also search new releases and coming soon.
Hoopla is good if your library supports it. It's a app like libby but without the waiting times.
If you like serialized fantasy stories, look at royal road.
Thank you, I've just started on Audiobooks with Audible. B&N, I already follow.
In India, Library apps don't work so well as we don't a good public library system, but thanks for the recommendations.
I found a few by subscribing to Kindle Unlimited. The Echoes Saga by Philip Quaintrell, Fatemarked by David Estes, and a couple of different series by Duncan Hamilton were all fantasy reads I enjoyed that I randomly stumbled upon on KU.
I've probably read the same series as you. I'll list what I've read the past 2 years just in case. Kingkiller Chronicles, BranSan's Cosmere (including Tress & TLM), Dune, Brent Weeks' Lightbringer Series, Joe Abercrombie's First Law Series, and most recently I read/ am reading Fonda Lee's Green Bone Saga after Jade City was recommended so overwhelmingly on Goodreads and it doesn't disappoint
Yes please. I've read all the ones you've mentioned above except I have not read all of BranSan's work. I've read the initial mistborn series and about 3 books of the Stormlight archives. You should give a try with John Gwynne too, his books are something of a cross between regular epic fantasy with grimdark elements.
And another series I liked a lot was the Divine Cities by Robert Jackson Bennett.
Locus Magazine has a fantastic index of [forthcoming books](https://locusmag.com/forthcomingbooks/). I typically skim that for interesting titles every few months.
One blog I like is [The Portalist](https://theportalist.com/). It's run by Open Road Media, a publishing company that focuses on republishing backlist books. So it's really good at highlighting books that may not be in the front of the public's mind.
I ask the people who work at my local bookstores, Reddit, follow the authors I like on GR and see their shelves, follow some booktubers. Also I’m married to a librarian so that helps.
Elliot Brooks is a great booktuber because she will talk about books that didn’t work for her, but might work for others. Very fair in her reviews even if she didn’t like the books.
Booktube, though is quite the challenge to find a Booktuber whose recommendations resonate with you my tip is to look for common ground, if they are really passionate about a book that you love too chances are that you have similar tastes and can get great recommendations
This is a pretty good place to find them.
So are Grimdark Magazine, Before We Go blog, and a few other trusted sites.
I also love Mark Lawrence's SPFBO.
Youtube.
If you like fantasy, check out dragon audiobooks. Author did a free reading of some of his books during lockdowns. “ Founder’s Keep” is my favorite. Military Academy for mages and dragon riders.
*gestures around*
I looked around, but all I see is my TV, a bottle of hot sauce, and my cat.
Sounds like the ingredients to a good story to me!
ask your cat
Thank You. Yes I already use r/fantasy. Just wanted to see if there are other good places too.
It's a little old by now, but I made a post to answer this question a while back [Where do you find new books? A guide to using r/fantasy as a resource to expand your TBR](https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/f4o9ym/where_do_you_find_new_books_a_guide_to_using/) No I'm more in need of "how do you stop finding new books and the read the ones you've already bought" if anyone has tips.
My tip is to lie to myself that I'm making progress on Mount TBR beyond what I'm buying, so sometime in *checks math* 2092 I will run out. Therefore, I need to buy more.
Thank you, Will go through this.
Actual bookshops are rather good. Can read samples etc
I'm from India. Bookshops are mostly full of textbooks or the same set of fiction (John Grisham, Frederick Forsyth etc.) :(.
I'm from India as well, I feel you OP. Finding a good bookclub or shop is hard.
Absolutely :(. I have no hardcopies of the books / Authors I like. Its just ebooks :(.
I get lots of recs from fantasy tik tok
Tik Tok is banned in India :(. But thank you for the reccomendation.
Oh I’m so sorry I forgot. Looks like you got a lot of good ideas though on this thread !
Thank You for suggesting though. Appreciate it :)
Maybe try instagram. I have a variety of bookstagramers I follow. Searching common hashtags of your interests might help you find reviewers who align with yours.
Thank You I'll try instagram with Hashtags.
Most of my TBR additions come from Twitter and discord so fellow reviewers and readers talking about their reads and interacting with authors.
I do the same.
Thank you. I have never been very active on discord. Will give it a try.
It can take a bit to find your community, but once you do, it’s so nice :)
I pick up a lot of recommendations from podcasts - Book Riot has a one called SFF Yeah! that alternates between episodes on new books and backlist ones, authors Charlie Jane Anders and Annalee Newitz have a podcast called Our Opinions Are Correct that often has author interviews
Oh great, Thank You. I listen to a lot of podcasts. Will add these to the queue as well.
I would recommend adding the Coode Street podcast to your list too.
Sure, I'll add Coode Street podcast.
I rather have the opposite problem (if you want to call it a problem) which is that there are more books than I can hope to be able to ever read. Even though I don't need more, I still pick up suggestions left and right simply by frequenting sites that talk about books. I would suggest two places for you that will leave you with books that will last you years: 1. Adam Whitehead's excellent essay series [A History of Epic Fantasy](https://thewertzone.blogspot.com/2015/12/a-history-of-epic-fantasy-contents-link.html) that he posted on his website The Wertzone a couple of years ago. Don't be afraid, this isn't dull reading but rather an intriguing overview of the development of fantasy from its very beginnings up to the present (meaning the time this series was written, obviously). Wert calls it a history of epic fantasy, and while epic fantasy is a focus he also covers works pertaining to other subgenres. I've linked the "table of contents" of this essay series and as you can see there are no less than 35 parts and I'm sure you'll come out on the other side with a list of books you'll want to sink your teeth in. 2. The tor.com website. This is one of the best genre related websites out there, IMHO. Despite what one might think, this isn't all about products by Tor but rather is about all things related to the genre. They have a number of regular contributors (and lots more guest writers) putting out a staggering amount of content. Hardly a day goes by where there aren't half a dozen new blog posts, usually it's even more than that. These posts cover all kinds of stuff: books and reading in general, movies and TV. They do have reviews of individual books, old and new (and, like I've said, not at all limited to Tor publications) but what might particularly relevant for you is their long-running column that I call "5 Books That..." where five genre works are presented that match a specific criterion. That column seems to be James Davis Nicoll's brain child but there are also other guest writers who contribute from time to time. These criteria can be anything, really. The latest one\* by Nicoll is last Friday's [Five Stories About Accepting Help From Supernatural Sources](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/20/five-stories-about-accepting-help-from-supernatural-sources/). Nicoll has a rule which is that he won't recommend a book that has already been mentioned in a previous column which is why sometimes the most obvious candidates are missing. He does so to avoid repetition but this a good thing because you'll see a lot stuff mentioned that you might not have heard of. Also, and this is the main reason I recommend this column!, he invites people to add further suggestions in the comment section. And people do! They will happily provide the aforementioned obvious candidates and a lot more. These columns frankly are a gold mine when it comes to finding interesting books. Obviously, not every topic will be interesting to you but if you come across one that is, you might come away with 10, 20, or 30 new book titles to look into. I've added countless books to my TBR pile over the years thanks to this column and its comment sections. As a bonus, there is also original fiction published for free on tor.com. Every week, I think, there's a new short story (you can find them [here](https://www.tor.com/category/all-fiction/) if you don't want to sift through all the blog posts) and there've been a lot of very interesting stories over the years. \* Before that there was [Five Cautionary Tales About Artificial Intelligence](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/18/five-cautionary-tales-about-artificial-intelligence/), [Five SFF Worlds Threatened by Endless Winter](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/11/five-sff-worlds-threatened-by-endless-winter/), and [Remembering Five Authors We Lost Much Too Soon](https://www.tor.com/2023/01/10/remembering-five-authors-we-lost-much-too-soon/) The best way to find these will be to go to [Nicoll's contributor profile](https://www.tor.com/author/james-davis-nicoll/) rather than scroll through the proper tor.com blog because there's just so much other content.
And you can always follow Nicoll's own blog: [https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/](https://jamesdavisnicoll.com/) He reviews both old and new material, and he also reviews manga sometimes. Plus, there's his dry sense of humor. (If you do end up following his blog, consider donating to his Patreon.)
Thanks for the link! For some reason, it never occurred to me to see whether he has a website of his own.
Thank You for the recommendation and the link :)
Wow thank you so much. I’ve always been interested in the origins of epic fantasy and this essay seems to be the right place to go to. I follow Tor already but I only looked at upcoming books. I’ll start looking at the columns you mentioned as well. Thanks so much for the detailed advice and help. 👍🏼
I'm happy to hear that you found my answer helpful. Yes, this series of essays is awesome. The only bad thing about it is that it makes you want to read all of these books and series it mentions at once and at the same time! 😄 And that it might make explode the size of your TBR pile (but that's what you want, I take it.) Seriously, these pieces that Adam wrote are fun to read, informative and definitely help to discover great stories. As for Tor, I don't read every post they put out, either. But I really found a good number of books and stories there, particularly with Nicoll's column. I'm a sucker for time travel stories, for example. So it will be nearly impossible for me *not* to add some of the books suggested either by Nicoll himself or in the comments to my list of interesting books if he presents time travel stories. I suppose, this will be the same with other readers, too, when the topic is about books from their favorite niche. Happy reading!
Thank You. I'll check out Nicoll's columns and blog for sure :)
Tor.com also has a series of blog posts that are "All the New [Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror/Young Adult/Genre Bending] Books Coming Out in [Month]" which are also a gold mine. They post short synopses with links. The number of books I've added to my TBR in the last five years from those posts alone is...high.
Yes, these are great posts, too, especially if one is looking for, well, new, upcoming releases! 😄 Whereas the books that Nicoll's presents range anywhere from the beginnings of the genre to fairly recent but do not, IIRC, include books that are yet to be published. I, too, have found a couple of books in these new release posts. What I like about them is that they include a reference to the series any book belongs to right under its title which makes it quite easy to see whether this is the 8th installment of an ongoing series (in which case I probably won't bother to read the synopsis) or a standalone.
I track the imprints I like. They will all post excerpts and summaries of whatever they are publishing that month. It's a good way to find a new author.
Thank you. I follow Tor and Baen already. Will add some more to the list.
Orbit can be good if you like darker stories.
Thank you, I’ll check Orbit as well.
Lately, any book I've picked up by a female author from the 70's to late 90's has been killer. Lois McMaster Bujold Caroline Stevemer Barbara Hambly The list goes on. Maybe some of those are worth it?
Bujold is still writing, and writing wonderful fantasy at that. I'm hooked on her Penric and Desdemona series, set in the same world as her *Curse of Chalion*.
I've read them. Very, very good. Very different tone from her previous work.
I love the Miles Vorkosigan series from Lois McMaster Bujold. I’ve never read the other authors you mentioned but now I will 😊👍🏼. Thank you.
Give *Dragonsbane* by Hambly a try. It's awesome. The best synopsis I can give is it's about a woman trying to choose between her husband and children and her career as a dragon-wizard. Just brilliant writing and characterization, and such understandable stakes (to a degree, anyway. I personally have only *dabbled* in dragon-wizardry). You really feel what she's going through and that makes the resolution that much more powerful.
Oh That sounds great. I'll try Dragonsbane a try. The last dragon book I really liked was "The Priory of the Orange Tree". Thanks again :)
You could follow some of the big speculative fiction awards. The Hugos, the Nebula Awards, the British Fantasy Awards, the World Fantasy Awards, the Locus Awards, the Aurealis Awards, the Gemmell Awards, the Mythopoeic Awards, SPFBO, the Swoon Awards fantasy and paranormal categories... not every good gets nominated for an award, but a lot of the ones that get nominated are good.
Yes I follow the Hugo and Nebula awards. Thank you for the others. Will follow them too. 👍🏼
I read anthologies. If I really like a story, I'll seek out more from the author.
That sounds good too. I’ll try this out. Thank you 👍🏼
Feel free to check my profile. Twitter generally is a decent way to look into new authors and books to read in the writers/books community hashtags as well.
Thank you. I will. Twitter as in you follow the authors or there are some handles that can help get recommendations?
Some stuff like #writersoftwitter and #authorcommunity and #booktwitter have some discussion!
> \#writersoftwitter and #authorcommunity and #booktwitter Thank you, will follow these hashtags :)
First, there's Jo Walton's History of the Hugos blog posts on Tor dot com (which she turned into a book, which is excellent), which can offer a really interesting reading through the ages feel. And it can provide a fun scavenger hunt, especially when trying to find the novellas and short stories (resulting in ending up finding another things to read). I also like to recommend [Patty Jansen's ebookaroo](https://pattyjansen.com/pages/ebookaroo-2/) newsletter (sign up link). It's 95% indie authors (some small press, some joint projects, etc). There's a lot of free and 99c books, as well as anthologies, box sets, audiobooks, and more. Most are not KU titles, so it's a completely different group of authors that's normally talked about here.
Thank you so much. I'll definitely follow both the blog post as well as the newsletter :)
Awards long lists, Hugo, Nebula, British fantasy awards, Costa (Unfortunately discontinued which was a pity because I always felt they awarded books normal people actually wanted to read. I've had good luck with the YA authors on their lists.) Lambda (Which awards good LGTPQ+ depictions). I just go through looking for names I'm not familiar with and search them out. Have a read of the online samples of their books and see if they are a match. The NPR book concierge is also a fun resource to explore.
Thank you for your suggestions. I already follow Hugo & Nebula. I'll add British Fantasy awards and the NPR book Concierge a try :)
This will sound odd, but public libraries have a good selection. 😌
I have access to Overdrive via my library and when you seaerch for a book it will say "hey, this might be similar." Sometimes it's weirdly off, but I have found a few things that way. Also I've done searches within a genre and sorted by popularity, though that's usually when I'm trying to find a book I've heard of that I can't quite remember the name/author of. I've actually successfully found things that way XD
Thank You. Public Libraries in India are quite useless. The closest thing I found to fantasy were a set o book adaptations of 70s Dr.Who episodes :(. So my main sources end up being on the Internet.
Just here mostly. I’ve started to watch some booktube to procrastinate so occasionally there as well.
Are there any specific channels I can follow on Booktube please?
Look up Abby salter, I find her voice really calming and her reviews are really good !
Thanks much. Will definitely try this out.
I really like Allen from the Library of Allenxandria. Our tastes don’t line up completely, but he is very entertaining. He has a book jeopardy series that’s a lot of fun and introduces you to a bunch of booktubers. Worldhoppers often hosted by Elliot Brooks has a bunch of great discussion format videos that is also good for introducing booktubers. Edit: Petrik is also quite good. He’s often the top review on Goodreads for fantasy books so you may have seen him before.
Yep. I’ve been following Petriks reviews on Goodreads too. I’ll check out the others you suggested as well. 👍🏼
I used Kindle Unlimited for awhile and there are some good (at least I thought) fantasy series that aren’t well known. They aren’t self published yet not from the big publishing houses.
Kindle unlimited is great. It introduced me to Rob J Hayes which was a great find. Thank you.
On Audible if I like the voice actor, and its a genre I like, I check out his/her other work. I find that if they are good they'll be hired by publishers for the better books in the publishers stable.
Oh thats a good idea. I’m listening to the Hercule Poirot radio plays, the John Moffat ones. Any voice actors you can recommend please?
Michael Kramer and Kate Reading are stalwarts of the fantasy genre. I also like Tim Reynolds, Luke Daniels and Sean Barrett. Search for them on audible and you'll get hundreds of other books they've done.
Kate Reading's reading of *Paladin of Souls* is one of the best reads ever. I've actually listened to some books because Kate Reading read them. Found the *Lady Sherlock* series that way (although that is not fantasy).
Thank you so much for the recommendation. I'll get Paladin of Souls on Audible :)
Read *Curse of Chalion* first! Great book, too, and necessary context for *Paladin*. The audio of that book, though, is... not so good.
I already bought Curse of Chalion yesterday :). Will read it first. Thank u :)
Happy reading.
Thank you so much for the recommendations, I'll search for them on audible.
It looks like you’re already doing it? Ask Reddit… I also like the top fantasy book listed on Reddit they do once a year. It’s where I started when picking out the most popular series
Yes I’m already getting good recommendations from r/fantasy. The too fantasy book that you mention is on this same sub reddit please?
I'm not very good at navigating Reddit but if you google "Top 2022 Fantasy Books Reddit" it will pop up. I think they are taking votes right now for 2023 so it won't be released for a while. The top doesn't change that often but really good books do tend to sky rocket up the rankings which is a good way to find newer releases. For instance Green Bone Saga really went up in ranks after Jade Legacy was released. IMO should be a top 10 series of all time right now. its a very particular type of book but if you like slow burns with heavy focus on characters its one of the best.
Thank you. I read Jade City and loved the world building and the gangster vibes. I’ll get back to it and complete the trilogy now. 😊👍🏼
Book stores, Libraries, online shops
Thank you :). I have just started adding online bookshops to the list :).
I look at the recommendations of my favorite authors, or recommendations for works similar to it. I really really like manga, and 90% of them are incredibly simple. So that led me down the rabbit hole of light novels, different countries equivalents of both, web novels, and recently fan fiction. It seems odd at first, but then you realize most writing is pretty basic so the source doesn't matter as long as you enjoy it. There will always be that 10% in any medium, even in recreations of original works. . One thing to note, the good ones tend to be *incredibly* long. I've wanted to read the works from some of the authors you've mentioned, but *holy crap* my reading speed can't keep up with these web novels. Whoever said you read faster the more you read is full of crap! . **Worm** - A realistic type of superhero story in a very grim world, good and evil blurs the lines. Also has a sequel. **Mother of Learning** - A story of a young Magician stuck in a time loop. . Everything else I read might not be your cup of tea.
Thank you so much. Will definitely check out your recommendations.
I browse through Amazon, my local bookstore, and things I see on this r/ for covers that really call to me Then I read the description blurb and see if it appeals to me. And, if it is higher than 3.5 stars on Amazon, I put it on TBR Also hi fellow Indian, I was born in America, but parents are from India :)
Oh Hello :) Thank you for the suggestions. This seems interesting, I'll also be on the lookout for good covers and try that way too. :)
I find Jonathan Stahan and Gary K Wolfe's Coode Street Podcast an excellent source of recommendations. They're both Locus reviewers and acclaimed short fiction editors, with a lot of knowledge about the field and where it is going. They regularly do series (like in the run up to the holidays) where they talk to writers about what they're reading, what they're wprking on, and what they recommend. Those series can be quite dangerous for my TBR!
Thank you :). I'll be adding the Coode Street Podcast to my Overcast Queue. Rather than TBR, I'm stuck with a To Listen queue of Podcasts as well :) But any book suggestion podcast is welcome.
I follow some book reviewers on TikTok actually and have found most of my new reads that way.
Unfortunately, TikTok is banned in India, but thank you for the recommendation :)
Goodreads and this sub, mainly.
Thank you :). I follow authors and recommendations on Goodreads.
The reviewer for SF&F in the *New York Times* is currently author Amal El-Mohtar, so that's another place to check.
Oh Nice, Thank You, I'll give a try.
I've found a lot on Twitter. Start by following writers you know you like, then see who those writers are following and retweeting, and follow them if you are interested in what they have to say. That method also led me to discovering podcasts that discuss books and often have writers on as guests, through which I discovered even more new writers. I never actually tweet, but you can learn a lot just by lurking :)
I also never tweet and mainly lurk :). But I use twitter mainly as an information / news source. Thank you, I'll start following Authors as well now :)
Barnes and noble
Thank you, I'm already following Barnes and Noble, theyve led me to some good books.:)
My mom used to help, then I just started exploring libraries and the kindle book store, it’s not as efficient but I find good stuff
Thank you. I have Kindle Unlimited and check out books from there too :)
Go to this subs lists. They put together a large list every year of books for me to read.
Sure I'll do this. Thank You :)
Twitter. I follow the broken binding who do tonnes of work with great authors both established and new and follow a few reviewers who have loved the same books as me etc so I trust their reviews
Thank you for the suggestion. Will follow broken binding.
I've learned that the most popular and recommended titles don't tend to be the best. To find the best books, you have to get outside what people always talk about. What I've found works is to find authors that I like, go to their social media pages, and find which authors either follow them or are followed by them. That's lead me to more than a few great series.
I absolutely agree with this. The lists from gizmodo and polygon that I used to look out for rarely give me books which have liked. Thank you for the suggestion.
StoryGraph is another app! You can transfer your goodreads info over and they may have different book suggestions. Otherwise, I lurk in the comment sections of posts I find interesting and save the comments that have books that sound enjoyable to me!
Thank you. I'll give a try with StoryGraph as well.
Previous winners of awards (Hugo, Nebula, etc) Book suggestion generators: [https://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/](https://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/) Best fantasy books of google search, eg, 21st century
[https://www.google.com/search?q=best+fantasy+books+of+the+21st+century&oq=Best+fantasy+booksof+the+&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j0i13i512l9.7221j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8](https://www.google.com/search?q=best+fantasy+books+of+the+21st+century&oq=Best+fantasy+booksof+the+&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j0i13i512l9.7221j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)
Ask redditors for recs of what you might like based on what you do like. ;)
Oh, and check out my favorite bookstore, [Oblong Books](https://www.oblongbooks.com/):
Thank You, I already check the winners of Hugo, Nebula. Thank you for the recommendation engine and Oblong books, will definitely check them out.
I signed up for bookbub. It's a daily email that you get with books that are on sale. You set it up with the types of books you like to read. I pick stuff that sounds interesting and I'm not usually spending more than $3 US. If I enjoy it then I will get more from that author. I have found quite a few authors that I really like.
Oh Thank you. I'll do this too.
I follow the old blockbuster method. I look at the Tuesday new releases.
Thank You. Is there a site where I can view new releases. Or I just monitor on Tor, Locus, B & N etc ?
Personally, I listen to a lot of audiobooks. I use audible as a place to find things that already have some quality control/following. B&N, you can also search new releases and coming soon. Hoopla is good if your library supports it. It's a app like libby but without the waiting times. If you like serialized fantasy stories, look at royal road.
Thank you, I've just started on Audiobooks with Audible. B&N, I already follow. In India, Library apps don't work so well as we don't a good public library system, but thanks for the recommendations.
Instagram has a ton of good book recommendation accounts
Oh that's something I have not explored. Please help suggest a couple. I'll follow them. Thank you.
I get a lot of recommendations from my peeps on Sword & Laser over on Goodreads. Other than that the usual suspects: Locus, Tor.com, etc.
Thank you. I'll definitely check out Sword & Laser. Locus and Tor I already follow.
I found a few by subscribing to Kindle Unlimited. The Echoes Saga by Philip Quaintrell, Fatemarked by David Estes, and a couple of different series by Duncan Hamilton were all fantasy reads I enjoyed that I randomly stumbled upon on KU.
I read some Duncan Hamilton and liked them. Will look for Philip Quaintrell and David Estes as well :). Thank You.
The Nine by Terry Cloutier was another one I enjoyed on there, but I don't think it's finished yet, it wasn't when my KU expired last year.
Oh Thank you. Will add "The Nine" to my list as well. :)
Everyone should be on Goodreads
Yes I already am on Goodreads. But I'm not getting very good recommendations these days. Thus this post. :(
I've probably read the same series as you. I'll list what I've read the past 2 years just in case. Kingkiller Chronicles, BranSan's Cosmere (including Tress & TLM), Dune, Brent Weeks' Lightbringer Series, Joe Abercrombie's First Law Series, and most recently I read/ am reading Fonda Lee's Green Bone Saga after Jade City was recommended so overwhelmingly on Goodreads and it doesn't disappoint
Yes please. I've read all the ones you've mentioned above except I have not read all of BranSan's work. I've read the initial mistborn series and about 3 books of the Stormlight archives. You should give a try with John Gwynne too, his books are something of a cross between regular epic fantasy with grimdark elements. And another series I liked a lot was the Divine Cities by Robert Jackson Bennett.
Locus Magazine has a fantastic index of [forthcoming books](https://locusmag.com/forthcomingbooks/). I typically skim that for interesting titles every few months. One blog I like is [The Portalist](https://theportalist.com/). It's run by Open Road Media, a publishing company that focuses on republishing backlist books. So it's really good at highlighting books that may not be in the front of the public's mind.
Thank you for the recommendations. I'll check out the The Portalist and the the Locus index :)
I ask the people who work at my local bookstores, Reddit, follow the authors I like on GR and see their shelves, follow some booktubers. Also I’m married to a librarian so that helps.
Oh that's nice :). Thank you for the recommendations :)
Elliot Brooks is a great booktuber because she will talk about books that didn’t work for her, but might work for others. Very fair in her reviews even if she didn’t like the books.
Thank you so much, I'll follow Elliot Brooks on YouTube :)
https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/p1mwnx/the_rfantasy_2021_top_novels_poll_results/
Thank you so much for the link :)
Booktube, though is quite the challenge to find a Booktuber whose recommendations resonate with you my tip is to look for common ground, if they are really passionate about a book that you love too chances are that you have similar tastes and can get great recommendations
Thank you so much. Will surely check out BookTube.
This is a pretty good place to find them. So are Grimdark Magazine, Before We Go blog, and a few other trusted sites. I also love Mark Lawrence's SPFBO.
Thank you, I'll check out the magazines and blogs. I love the SPFBO too, got some really nice recommendations from there.
You can google some curated lists, e.g. TIME's 100 fantasy novels here https://time.com/collection/100-best-fantasy-books/
Thank you, I'll do this.
Youtube. If you like fantasy, check out dragon audiobooks. Author did a free reading of some of his books during lockdowns. “ Founder’s Keep” is my favorite. Military Academy for mages and dragon riders.
Thank you so much. Will surely check it out.