[The Tyrant Lizard]

Raymond Luxury Yacht;327231 said:

The world in the Dark Tower is pretty interesting. You don't see too many fantasy/scifi/western/post-apocalyptic worlds out there.

Have you read David Gemmel's Jon Shannow trilogy? They're set in a similar world, with interdimensional jumps and everything. I find it hard to believe it isnt based on the Dark Tower - although I have to say, I probably prefer the Gemmel books, as the action scenes are more exciting.

[Sir Thursday]

Here's something completely different for you: Riverworld, from Philip Jose Farmer's The Riverworld Saga. It's such a crazy idea, and despite the handwaving-y "How is such a thing possible? Futuristic technology!", it works for me because it is pretty much a pure "What if?" of a place.


Sir Thursday

[acesn8s]

A bunch of my favorites were mentioned already, so I'll offer up something I haven't seen yet.

Moorcock's multiverse - the interlinking of all his heroes as the Eternal Champion.

[polishgenius]

I'm going to agree with Bas-Lag as my favourite. I agree with Apt's assessment that he's actually doing something different with the magic world thing and it's very refreshing. The other thing though is that despite that he's made it feel like a real, living and breathing place. He's achieved precisely the right balance of making up lots of stuff and just leaving bits to your imagination.

While I do love both Middle-Earth and Wu, I think that's where they fall short. Because the writers are trying to capture every little detail for us, it ultimately loses that piece of richness, simply because the author can't describe everything. They're myth-worlds, and while I love visiting you don't get the sense they carry on when the story stops.
I know in both cases it's not their intention, particularly Tolkien who was very deliberately writing myth, but it's a personal preference of mine. They're probably still my second and third favourites as worldbuilding goes, mind.

Curiously, Feist has that sense with Midkemia/Kelewan, particularly in Magician but really all along to a point, as does Martin. I say curiously because they're both descendant from the Tolkien strand, although they take it in a different direction.

[Dagger]

I like Martin's world and Wu is a fascinating place but I sure as hell wouldn't want to live there. Now if I had to pick a place to live in fantasy, it would be Hobbiton on Middle Earth, after the War. Of course I would be a hobbit of some means but it would be a nice life. Hobbits brew fantastic ale, like to read, are voracious little gourmands, smoke heroic amounts of weed, and given all those little hobbits running around, hump like crazy. If you get too bored I suppose the occasional trip to Rivendell or Bree would be in order, but on the whole it would be a nice life.

[Pig Iron]

Dagger;327747 said:

I like Martin's world and Wu is a fascinating place but I sure as hell wouldn't want to live there. Now if I had to pick a place to live in fantasy, it would be Hobbiton on Middle Earth, after the War. Of course I would be a hobbit of some means but it would be a nice life. Hobbits brew fantastic ale, like to read, are voracious little gourmands, smoke heroic amounts of weed, and given all those little hobbits running around, hump like crazy. If you get too bored I suppose the occasional trip to Rivendell or Bree would be in order, but on the whole it would be a nice life.

Great post.

[Skywalker]

Pig Iron;328029 said:

Great post.

Seconded.

I have to say I like Wu, Middle Earth, Simmons' Hyperion world, and Randland or whatever from RJ. In that order.

One scifi world that i used to really love was Asimov's foundation universe. But that was before I learnt he tried to retro-integrate the Empire/ Foundation/ Robot tales and a few pages into 'Foundation and Earth' I really started hating on it. Take my advice, read only the original foundation trilogy (Foundation/ Foundation and Empire/ Second Foundation) if you want fond memories of it...

The other scifi/ fantasy world I hate for similar reasons is Stephen King's multiverse. I mean I have only read The Shining and the Dark Tower saga by King... and while I enjoyed them, I hated the idea of EVERY novel he ever wrote fitting into the same tapestry.

[acesn8s]

Dagger;327747 said:

Now if I had to pick a place to live in fantasy, it would be Hobbiton on Middle Earth, after the War. Of course I would be a hobbit of some means but it would be a nice life. Hobbits brew fantastic ale, like to read, are voracious little gourmands, smoke heroic amounts of weed, and given all those little hobbits running around, hump like crazy. If you get too bored I suppose the occasional trip to Rivendell or Bree would be in order, but on the whole it would be a nice life.

Cool idea. I like Gaiman's Neverwhere and Startdust settings, that and DeLint's city of Newford.

[Raymond Luxury Yacht]

The world from Silverberg's Lord Valentine books, I think it was called Majipoor, was pretty epic. Freaking huge, interesting culture, well done. I only read one or two of those books a long time ago, and still remember how interesting it was to me. Hey, I just added to my reading list...

[opiate taylor]

Either Wolfe's Urth or Vance's Dying Earth.

[Greymane]

My favoruites in no particular order;

Erikson's Malazan. Erikson's past experience really shows through in his world. Hundreds of thousands of years of history, interesting and diverse cultures and non-human species that aren't just copies of dwarves and elves.

Bakker's Earwa. Interesting and distinct cultures, based on some real wold civilisations but remade and reworked so they stand on their own. There's a consistency to the world that makes it feel almost real. Exotic, mysterious, grim and dangerous.

Martin's Westeros. So much texture, for want of a better world. It feels real, yet it still retains many fantasy elements. The world is conveyed subtly, without cramming it down the reader's throat, yet at the same time there seems little doubt Martin knows every little detail of his creation (even if he actually doesn't, he manages to make you *think* he does) Like Bakker, there is also a great feel of consistency.

Mieville's Bas Lag, just for the sheer ammount of imagination and cool ideas.

Simmons' Hyperion universe. Fascinating, a great mix of technology, mystery and the hint of mysticism.

[Abyss]

Bas-Lag, for all the reasons above.

Malaz, for the sheer weight of history and complexity.

- Abyss, gratuitously might have included Xanth for all the perverted inter-species sex PA has go on there...

[temp]

Regarding Bakker's world Earwa...he created it as a kid playing D&D and it evolved over the years until long after he decided to make a story in that world. Read interview here

[Use Of Weapons]

In science fiction, I'd have to go with Herbert's Dune universe. Completely and deliberately ignoring the travesties that are the prequels and sequels (Brian Herbert, how could you?) I love the Bene Gesserit, the Orange Catholic Bible, the sense of history, the idea of a jihad against thinking machines, kwisatz haderach, sandworms, Space guild -- an amazing job.

Honourable mention to Bujold for the Vorkosiverse. I love the society on Barrayar, and how she's managing to portray its gradual, painful acceptance of galactic mores and technology.

In fantasy, um, that's much harder. Tolkien for depth and attention to detail. Wu for multiplicity. Bas-lag for inventiveness (though I wouldn't want to live there). The Land for wonderment. The one I'd choose to live in, though? Gotta be Lackey's Valdemar!

[Raymond Luxury Yacht]

You just like Vanyel Askevron, don't you?

[Use Of Weapons]

Raymond Luxury Yacht;347065 said:

You just like Vanyel Askevron, don't you?

Uh, uh...no!

...


...yes. Does that make me a bad person?

[Raymond Luxury Yacht]

No, no it doesn't. I'm glad I could help to understand yourself better.

[Use Of Weapons]

I think I prefer Firesong k'Treva, though (wink wink, nudge nudge, y'know worra mean)

[cerveza_fiesta]

Wheel of time world is pretty fracking huge and well written. GRRM's world is interesting and much more based in reality (at least in the first few books...that's as far as I've read)

Wu wins for me though, for absolute imaginativeness and the entertainment I derive from reading about it.

[caladanbrood]

Thinking about this the other day, I've come up with one that's not exactly the same category, but the world created by the post-humans in Dan Simmons' Illium/Olympos duology is pretty damn awesome. I mean, it's basically Ancient Greece with benefits. In fact, Benefits, with a captial B.