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> Recommended reading (Of SR novels)
Kesslan
post Dec 22 2006, 09:46 AM
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You guys can all blame Fortune for this one.

Various discussions recently (like the 2070 corp thread I started in the SR4 section of the forums) brought about the fact that there are still quite a few of us, who arnt really aware of various revelations and happenings directly related to 'cannon' material because it was in novels we'ev never read. (Or possibly even heard of)

So what I'd love to see here is a list of recommended SR novels for reading. Either becaus they gave a good 'feel' for the world of shadowrun, or simply becuase they offer up information about the happenings behind such things as the big D's assassination (which turned out not to really be an assassination)

Personally to date one of my favourites is 2XS. I've got two others, one which is somewhat decent, but I cant recall the name of it atm and.. once again I'm posting from work. (I also may have put the novel away in storage somewhere)

It was a good one though too I felt, had dying team member, a healthy screw job, some runin with the mafia etc. Had a pretty good feel to it I felt.

Unfortunately that rather tiny insignificant list is my whole experience with the various novels. You can still find most of them floating around used bookstores and online. Though it greatly helps to have an actual listing of the titles.

Sooo, then as with the topic, anyone care to contribute a 'suggested reading list' of various novels that cover the various happenings in the world of Shadowrun?

(There has for example been mentioned this dragon heart trillogy or some such?)
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Fortune
post Dec 22 2006, 10:18 AM
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Everybody always blames me ... :(

I'll just repost what I wrote on this in the other thread.

QUOTE (Me)
Interestingly enough, I just recently had this very conversation with His Fistiness himself. I highly recommend that people read any (if not all) of the Shadowrun novels. He is somewhat hesitant, considering the admittedly quite bad writing involved in some of them, and the attrocious plotlines of others. My stance is that, despite all the bad points, each and every one gives a further glimpse into the inner workings of the Sixth World. Each and every one can be a source of inspiration for both character and campaign building. Sometimes you just have to take the bad with the good.


Seriously, I think you should read any of them that you can get your hands on.
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Fortune
post Dec 22 2006, 10:25 AM
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A list of the (English language) Shadowrun novels can be found here.
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Trigger
post Dec 22 2006, 10:35 AM
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Thanks Fortune, I have been meaning to look up and get more of the SR novels. I have only read the newer ones (since WizKids got the license, except Drops of Corruption) and one of the older novels, Ragnarok, which is one of my favorites so far. I have been trying to find more of them in used bookstores aroud my area and I may soon delve more into internet purchases to get some of them.
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Kesslan
post Dec 22 2006, 10:44 AM
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Cool Fortune, that helps alot.

And while I agree with reading any one can get their hands on, there are still the odd 'exceptional' books. One that -really- get that SR feel going, or at least reveal some pretty important information that has a good deal of relevance to the SR storyline as a whole.

Which is more why I was asking for abit of a list of what people thought such books were.
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Fortune
post Dec 22 2006, 10:49 AM
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Just gettin' the ball rollin'. ;)
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Kesslan
post Dec 22 2006, 11:10 AM
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QUOTE (Fortune)
Just gettin' the ball rollin'. ;)

*ducks behind cover* I dont belive that its' a ball! I bet it's some sort of grenade!
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Thanee
post Dec 22 2006, 12:27 PM
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QUOTE (Fortune)
A list of the (English language) Shadowrun novels can be found here.

Nice. Looks like there havn't been a whole lot of them coming out, since I stopped buying them (~35, not entirely sure there right now), so I guess I should be able to complete that eventually. :)

Bye
Thanee
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Kagetenshi
post Dec 22 2006, 12:50 PM
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Technobabel has some pretty important information. Substantial amounts of it may be lame important information, but it's still important information.

~J, foe of the Humanized Deus
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fistandantilus4....
post Dec 22 2006, 01:47 PM
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QUOTE (Fortune)
Everybody always blames me ... :(

I'll just repost what I wrote on this in the other thread.

QUOTE (Me)
Interestingly enough, I just recently had this very conversation with His Fistiness himself. I highly recommend that people read any (if not all) of the Shadowrun novels. He is somewhat hesitant, considering the admittedly quite bad writing involved in some of them, and the attrocious plotlines of others. My stance is that, despite all the bad points, each and every one gives a further glimpse into the inner workings of the Sixth World. Each and every one can be a source of inspiration for both character and campaign building. Sometimes you just have to take the bad with the good.


Seriously, I think you should read any of them that you can get your hands on.

My two :nuyen: :Don't read Nyx Smith.
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Fortune
post Dec 22 2006, 02:38 PM
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And naturally, I disagree, for the reasons listed above. :P
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fistandantilus4....
post Dec 22 2006, 02:43 PM
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And sometimes you go through an intiatory like ordeal reading them. In this case, sacrifice, a point of logic. Yadda yadda yadda. :P
The whole "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" is not necessarily true for books. It's like killing off a little bit of yourself for every wated page, every wasted hour, that you just wish you could get back.
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Fortune
post Dec 22 2006, 02:47 PM
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It's a small price to pay for insight and inspiration.

Besides, there are a lot of people here that have read the books, and most of them are hardly the worse for wear because of it. :P
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fistandantilus4....
post Dec 22 2006, 02:50 PM
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debateable

But to add something meaningful, I liked most of the stuff nigel Findley did :LoneWolf, 2XS, and House of the Sun. Burning Bright was also good (not so much Burning Time though). Headhunters good, Shadowplay, didn't care for personally. Same for Shadowboxer. Liked Psychotrope, although it's been years since I read it. Recall liking Wolf and Raven.

See Fortune these are the books I need to pick up. Fade to Black not so much. I'll still get it, I'll still disagree with you.

As much as I hate to admit it, there really isn't a one of those books that I can think of that I haven't taken something away from that gave me some idea or helped. The one exception was Poison Agendas. Got absolutely nothing out of that one.

This post has been edited by fistandantilus3.0: Dec 22 2006, 02:56 PM
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fistandantilus4....
post Dec 22 2006, 03:05 PM
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For some more specific:

Psychotrope covers the '61 Matrix crash in Seattle and an AI

Dragon Heart Trilogy: Dunkie's Dead. Get his ruby slippers

LoneWolf: Cutter's gang and Lone Star and the Tir

House of the Sun: Hawai'i and some immortals stuff and Dirk Montogomery

Shadowboxer: Bad book after the first half. interesting group of runneres but the plot gets a bit ridiculous (well, as ridiculous as it can get in a world with elves and trolls on cyber decks and bands like Darwin's Bastards).

HeadHuneters: Jack Skater's team. Good stuff

Burning Bright: Good Bug city stuff, Ares, and cool mage

Wolf and Raven: Basically a Robin Hood type runner with a series of short stories by Michael Stackpole. I like him, and I like the take on the character, which is basically a shamanic adept that follows, suprise of suprises, Wolf!

Hope that helps a bit more. I recommend Used Book Stores (includes that old book smell!) or amazon.com to hunt down Used Book Stores.

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SL James
post Dec 22 2006, 04:29 PM
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I really like Dead Air. It's been a while since I read it, thoiugh, but I know it is one of the few novels that I didn't hate when I was finished.

QUOTE (Trigger @ Dec 22 2006, 04:35 AM)
I have only read the newer ones (since WizKids got the license, except Drops of Corruption) and one of the older novels, Ragnarok, which is one of my favorites so far.

Oh, god. Oh GOD !!

I can only hope this is based on a very small sample of books, none of which were written before 2000.

QUOTE (fistandantilus3.0 @ Dec 22 2006, 09:05 AM)
HeadHuneters: Jack Skater's team. Good stuff

Preying for Keeps was pretty good too until they meet Lofwyr.
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mfb
post Dec 22 2006, 05:12 PM
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see, if i didn't like you, i could cripple you for life. all i'd have to do is recommend you read Shadowboxer. and you'd find it, and open it, and afterwards, you'd never be the same.
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Butterblume
post Dec 22 2006, 05:54 PM
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Perhaps a blacklist of shadowrun novels you better never ever look at would be more usefull.
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Fortune
post Dec 22 2006, 07:59 PM
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QUOTE (Butterblume @ Dec 23 2006, 04:54 AM)
Perhaps a blacklist of shadowrun novels you better never ever look at would be more usefull.

I've read them all, and I haven't found one that I would put on that list yet.
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fistandantilus4....
post Dec 22 2006, 08:29 PM
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QUOTE (Butterblume)
Perhaps a blacklist of shadowrun novels you better never ever look at would be more usefull.

1)Poison Agendas
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Nemesis
post Dec 22 2006, 11:41 PM
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I own, and read them all, and I feel that one could do without a Lisa Smedman novel.
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Hocus Pocus
post Dec 23 2006, 03:51 AM
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QUOTE (Fortune)
QUOTE (Butterblume @ Dec 23 2006, 04:54 AM)
Perhaps a blacklist of shadowrun novels you better never ever look at would be more usefull.

I've read them all, and I haven't found one that I would put on that list yet.

agreed
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HMHVV Hunter
post Dec 23 2006, 06:43 AM
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QUOTE (Nemesis @ Dec 22 2006, 07:41 PM)
I own, and read them all, and I feel that one could do without a Lisa Smedman novel.

I disagree. I didn't much care for the "left turn in the plot near the end" style of writing, but "Bloodsport" was probably one of the most vividly-described SR novels I've read, and given that it takes place in Aztlan, that means some very gory images in my head. I remember coming across some really gory descriptions and shutting my eyes to try to get away from them, only to realize I was forgetting that the images were all in my mind. Yeah, my mind formed the images, but she put all the information there to make those images almost movie-like without slowing the novel down with long descriptions. I don't think any other SR author has had that power on me since then.

I gotta go against any book written by Mel Odom. I didn't care for "Preying for Keeps" at all, and I got halfway through "Run Hard, Die Fast" before selling the damn thing to a used book store for $1. He just cannot make a novel interested, IMNSHO.

Oh yeah, and if you find ANY Nigel Findley novels, BUY THEM. "2XS" was awesome; I'm still trying to find House of the Sun so I can find out what the hell happened to Dirk Montgomery!
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mfb
post Dec 23 2006, 07:38 AM
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blacklisted:
1) Shadowboxer. wow. just... wow.
2) Striper Assassin. i've never actually read this one, to be honest, but a) the premise is just... too teen fantasy, and b) i wasn't a fan of the short story in Into the Shadows.

speaking of which, i definitely recommend Into the Shadows. i like it even better than the two Dirk books.
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SL James
post Dec 23 2006, 07:53 AM
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QUOTE (HMHVV Hunter)
"Bloodsport" was probably one of the most vividly-described SR novels I've read, and given that it takes place in Aztlan, that means some very gory images in my head. I remember coming across some really gory descriptions and shutting my eyes to try to get away from them, only to realize I was forgetting that the images were all in my mind.

Good lord. This is why I don't run games in regions I've never been. Most descriptions of Aztlan piss me off so much because of that.

But too gory? I find that hard to believe.


QUOTE
I gotta go against any book written by Mel Odom. I didn't care for "Preying for Keeps" at all, and I got halfway through "Run Hard, Die Fast" before selling the damn thing to a used book store for $1. He just cannot make a novel interested, IMNSHO.

Oh yeah, and if you find ANY Nigel Findley novels, BUY THEM. "2XS" was awesome; I'm still trying to find House of the Sun so I can find out what the hell happened to Dirk Montgomery!

And you can find out why Odom's version of Argent is a ginormous tool.
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