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Just a quick heads-up, for those of you who, like me, are slow on the uptake

I said a while back that I wanted to read "a study in emerald" by Neil Gaiman. Well, I finally did, and can proclaim that it is very good

http://www.neilgaiman.com/mediafiles/ex ... merald.pdf

Enjoy

I will second that proclamation. I can imagine his Cthonic Magesty Ashmie will be shambling along to add his vote. I have a paperback compilation (Smoke and Mirrors- I think) of Gaiman short stories with it included. He has a couple of other k Cthulu stories in there, but a bit more tounge in cheek than "A Study in Emerald".

It's a good 'un. I quite like Gaiman when he isn't going out of his way to be twee.

I`ve only read "American Gods" - which I thought was a bit interesting.

Danguinius

I have to confess to being a bit of a Gaiman fanboi. I started reading his stuff with Sandman back when it was a monthly. I read most all of his collections and novels, too. I even met him once - at a signing for Coraline, wherein I got my copy of Coraline signed, along with my hardback ltd ed copy of the last sandman story. I live in hope I can get Yoshitaka Amano to sign it too, one day. If you like Gaiman's stuff, I'd recommend China Mieville - similar style and content, if anything Mieville is even more imaginative.

Miéville is what you get if you read both Dragon Magazine and the Socialist Worker. I've read all three of his Bas-Lag novels, but not any of the others yet.

In the world of Sci-fi, you may be interested in Alastair Reynolds. Big, epic space opera, but really rather twisted and somewhat gruesome up close.

Regarding American Gods, that book apparently shares a universe with Stardust. There's a sequel novella in Fragile Things and apparently plans for a proper sequel at some point.

AndrewGPaul wrote:Miéville is what you get if you read both Dragon Magazine and the Socialist Worker. I've read all three of his Bas-Lag novels, but not any of the others yet.

In the world of Sci-fi, you may be interested in Alastair Reynolds. Big, epic space opera, but really rather twisted and somewhat gruesome up close.

Regarding American Gods, that book apparently shares a universe with Stardust. There's a sequel novella in Fragile Things and apparently plans for a proper sequel at some point.

American Gods was fun. I passed by something called Anasazi Boys? in the bookstore. That a sequel/shared universe thing? His Sandman stories were brilliant, made a significant dent in my brain back in the day. Most horror/fantasy stories are are what happens when unearthly, and terrible things happen to everyday ordinary people. I like how in his stories, it's more like everyday, ordinary things happen to terrible and unearthly people.

@agp - mieville's bas lag books are his most overtly political, I think. Kraken is much more in the style of Neverwhere (secret London, basically) and EmbassyTown is an out-and-out sci fi book. UnLunDun is probably his weakest book (IMHO), and The City and The City is basically a detective novel. I'm not actually sure if it even qualifies as a fantasy book. Well written, though, for sure.

@konrad - Anansi Boys is similar to American Gods in concept, and could easily be set in the same universe. It's about a normal bloke who finds out that his dad was Anansi (Anansi being an African trickster god, often represented as a spider.) it's quite funny in many parts, as well as being a clever story. It's the only Gaiman book I have on my shelf at the moment, as it happens