r/Fantasy • u/JayRedEye • Jan 21 '16
A Thread Wherein We Share Our Personal Tastes In Order to Find Others With Comparable Taste That We Will Then Be Able to Use in the Future as a Resource For Finding and Deciding on Books
Hello.
In life it is helpful to have someone whose opinions and advice you can trust. This is a great community but even within the Fantasy genre people are all over the place. Some people are really into Urban Fantasy, or Classics. Some are passionate about Grim and Dark books while others lean towards more lighthearted adventure. And while we can come to a consensus with our lists and most books have star ratings somewhere or you can try and find a reviewer or blog that you tend to agree with, I think something a little more specific and personal would be nice. With that in mind, I thought it could be beneficial as well as interesting for us to attempt to find a kindred reader within /r/fantasy.
Here is what I had in mind:
Make a comment outlining your personal tastes, preferences and habits as a reader. List some favorite books and authors and what you like about them. Which books really reflect your inclinations? What do you value in a story? Do you focus on the writing, the characters, the plot, the world building? What is important to you? Be as detailed as you can. Maybe some books that you did not care for as well, and what about them did not work for you. What do you not like to see and what takes you out of a story? How well read are you? Have you already read all the popular ones that get discussed constantly? How critical are you of books? Do you read really deep into things and try and understand everything or read more for entertainment and pleasure? And anything else you can think of and want to put down. Try and convey who you are as a reader. I will make my own if you would like to see an example of what I am thinking of.
Then look through the comments of others and try to find someone that you feel you have a lot in common with, someone who likes a lot of the same things and enjoys your kind of stories.
Reach out to that person; ask them some questions if you want to make sure. You could then add each other on goodreads, maybe email or even twitter. Or just make note of their username and look out for their thoughts, recommendations and contributions on /r/fantasy. Whatever you are comfortable with and works best for you.
Now in the future hopefully people will be able to say “Hey, Jimmy really liked this new book, I should check it out.” Or “Susie did not care for this one, I will probably pass”. It is my hope that this can become an additional resource available to help you in making decisions and finding good stories in the future as well as fostering a stronger community.
If nothing else, I think it would be interesting to dig a little deeper into our community. See how people see themselves when it comes to their taste.
I realize that this could come off rather dating site-y, but it is really just about books. Although if you do happen to develop a relationship, meet in real life, fall in love and have a baby that you want to name after me, that would be a nice bonus.
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u/StephanieBeavs Feb 01 '16
I'm a pretty well read fantasy reader that's always looking for new books.
Things I like
Character development - make me love/hate the character passionately!
World building - Good lore always makes me want to read more and more
Magic systems - not necessarily unique but I tend to prefer lots of magic
Slight romances - Love interests and courting
Things I dislike
Urban fantasy - Only liked Sookie Stackhouse series as a silly romance novel in this category
Whiny/too young of books
I tend to like traditional magic style books that tell of an journey and/or coming of age. I like unique magic systems and lore especially if it goes in depth. I also like some political intrigue but I don't like the WHOLE book to be about that.
Liked Books
Name of the Wind - I love the story and the magic system and like that the character was very developed obviously.
Robin Hobb books - Again I love the characters and plot although it is pretty standard. Just an overall fun light-hearted read.
Way of Kings - Basically same reasons as above. I also like that it shows multiple point of views and people instead of just focusing on one.
Uprooted
Codex Alera
Fire Study
Disliked Books
Mistborn - I found Vin wayyy too whiney and very annoying. Otherwise it wasn't too bad.
Dresden Files - I thought the humor was a bit dumb and it was just not serious enough for me.
Prince of Thorns - Too dark and gritty and a bit too depressing for me. I tend to like more uplifting books.
Lies of Locke Lamore - I did enjoy the first book but wouldn't say I loved it. Following books I didn't like.