I was playing with Bard last night and gave it a list of books I’ve read and enjoyed recently, and asked it to recommend other books I might enjoy.
Here’s my prompt
The following are the title and author of books that I read and enjoyed recently. Can you recommend other books I might enjoy?
- Project Hail Mary, Weir
- Fall, Stephenson
- The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Gaiman
- A Memory Called Empire, Martine
- A Desolation Called Peace, Martine
- Murderbot Diaries books, Wells
- The Kingston Cycle trilogy, Polk
- Ancillary Justice, Leckie
- Ancillary Sword, Leckie
- Ancillary Mercy, Leckie
- Gideon the Ninth, Muir
- All Clear, Willis
- Blind Lake, Wilson
- Nettle and Bone, Kingfisher
- The Graveyard Book, Gaiman
- Saturn’s Children, Stross
- The Anomaly, Le Tellier
- The Daughter of Dr. Moreau, Moreno-Garcia
Bard response
Based on your reading history, I can recommend several books you might enjoy:
Science Fiction:
- The Martian by Andy Weir: If you enjoyed Project Hail Mary, you’ll likely appreciate Weir’s other work. The Martian is a gripping story of an astronaut stranded on Mars and his fight for survival.
- Seveneves by Neal Stephenson: Like Fall, Seveneves explores a near-future disaster scenario where the moon is destroyed and its fragments threaten to destroy Earth.
- The Bobiverse series by Dennis E. Taylor: This humorous series follows the adventures of Bob Johansson, whose brain is uploaded into a computer and who then travels the galaxy aboard a self-aware spaceship.
- The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu: This award-winning Chinese science fiction novel tells the story of first contact between humanity and an alien civilization.
- The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells: If you enjoyed the Murderbot Diaries, you may also like Wells’ Raksura series, which features shapeshifting creatures and political intrigue.
Fantasy:
- The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch: Like The Ocean at the End of the Lane, this book features a magical setting and a cast of memorable characters.
- The Broken Earth trilogy by N.K. Jemisin: This award-winning trilogy explores themes of race, gender, and power in a post-apocalyptic world.
- The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater: This YA series follows a group of teenagers who discover they have magical powers.
- The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss: This epic fantasy series tells the story of Kvothe, a legendary musician and adventurer.
Other:
- The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson: This timely novel explores the challenges of climate change and offers solutions for a more sustainable future.
- Exit West by Mohsin Hamid: This magical realist novel follows the story of a young couple who are forced to flee their war-torn country.
- Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders: This experimental novel tells the story of Abraham Lincoln’s grief over the death of his son.
- The Overstory by Richard Powers: This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel explores the interconnectedness of all living things.
In addition to these specific recommendations, I can also suggest some general tips for finding books you might enjoy:
- Read reviews and recommendations: Look for books that have been praised by critics and readers with similar taste to yours.
- Explore different genres: Don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and try something new.
- Ask for help: Librarians and booksellers can be a great resource for finding new books to read.
- Join a book club: This is a great way to discuss books with other readers and get recommendations for new titles.
I hope this helps!
Fair warning, Rothfuss hasn’t touched the Kingkiller Chronicles in a long time and there’s no indication if he will ever finish it. (My husband delights in taunting his mom by sending her articles about whatever project Rothfuss is currently working on that’s not the Kingkiller Chronicles)
You have a very similar taste in literature to me so I’d like to offer for your consideration:
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The Expanse series by S.A. Corey (the show adaptation is also excellent)
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Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (first in a series but that’s the only one I’ve read so far)
Thanks for the warning, and thanks for the recommendations. I watched The Expanse, and meant to put it on my reading list - I’ll do that. Mistborn sounds really familiar, but I looked it up and I’m pretty sure I haven’t read it. I’ll put it on the list.
I enjoyed the Mistborn books, but Sanderson is definitely a bad writer. Also, I tried 4 times to get through The Three Body Problem, and never managed to finish it.
Three Body is such an odd book. I was a little prepared for that, being it was written in Chinese and translated -sometimes that makes for an odd feel - but some of it was just so damned unlikely. There were parts of it that I loved, including the game and how that fit into the plot, but I couldn’t suspend enough disbelief to really enjoy it overall.
The show stops at book 6, so there’s a whole chunk you never got to see! (Plus some changes in characters/plot that were necessary to streamline the show) I liked both for different reasons, but there are certain characters that definitely got an upgrade in the show because the casting was so goddamn amazing (Ashford’s role was expanded because … David Straithern)
Another couple series came to mind as well: The Codex Alera and Cinder Spires series, both by Jim Butcher. Cinder Spires is ongoing, the 2nd book just came out.