[Werthead]

World War Z by Max Brooks, although the world survives the apocalypse in a semi-reasonable state (no more than about 80% of the human race is wiped out).

Second the recs for The Road and The Postman. The Amtrak Wars is a very cool idea for a post-apoclyptic series (Western meets SF meets Shogun) but the writing isn't fantastic and it takes until the second or third book to really take off. But it's a hell of a lot of fun.

[Astra]

Masonity, on Oct 9 2008, 01:31 PM, said:

Already mentioned (then promptly ignored for the sake of the listings), but I'd strongly recommend Gemmel's Jon Shannow series. It starts with Wolf in Shadow (also published as The Jerusalem Man), then goes on to The Last Guardian, before ending in a stunning fashion in Bloodstone.

I really can't recommend this series enough.

Then you might read Ghost King and Last Sword of Power before the forementioned trilogy. You don't have to, but they have some small bits that will be mentioned later in Jon Shannow series.

I agree, nice series.

[Masonity]

Astra, on Oct 9 2008, 07:12 PM, said:

Masonity, on Oct 9 2008, 01:31 PM, said:

Already mentioned (then promptly ignored for the sake of the listings), but I'd strongly recommend Gemmel's Jon Shannow series. It starts with Wolf in Shadow (also published as The Jerusalem Man), then goes on to The Last Guardian, before ending in a stunning fashion in Bloodstone.

I really can't recommend this series enough.

Then you might read Ghost King and Last Sword of Power before the forementioned trilogy. You don't have to, but they have some small bits that will be mentioned later in Jon Shannow series.

I agree, nice series.

Don't forget Lion of Macedon and The Dark Prince. I've never understood why they aren't considered Stone of Power books?

Then again, they are both historical / legendary fantasy, while the Shannow books are post apocalyptic, which is why I ignored them here:p

[lord of tragedy]

"been racking my brains to reply to the apocalypse now thread. the book was kind of like planet of the apes but set in the future. plot revolved around man being betrayed by his space empire and ending up on a strange planet run by mutant humans with taloned hands. he then works as there military advisor as they conquer planet and at the end they realise oh no it was earth all along! it was a trilogy and was actually quite enjoyable. someone put me out of my misery."

posted this in the need any help section but got no reply. wanted to add it to this list. anyone know what it is?

[Aztiel]

I will add Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank.

The Canticle of Liebowitz is an absolute classic, if you like these kinds of books you really must read that as soon as you can.

I'l like to add on that I made a topic with a similar request before I realized this topic was not about the movie it's titled after. If anyone has more suggestions I'd love to hear them.

I'd also like to hear more about Hal Duncan. I bought Vellum, but found it rather rough going so I loaned it to a friend and never got it back. Is it worth it to go after him and get it back so I can finish it? I never really got over the character being named Phreedom.

EDIT

There is also a good collection of themed short stories called Wastelands, with stuff from Stephen King, George Martin, and Orson Scott Card among others. It's quite good.

This post has been edited by Aztiel: 13 October 2008 - 04:37 PM

[Frost92]

This series might not be everyone's cup of tea...but the Obernewtyn Chronicles is a series that I enjoyed. Here is a quote from Publishers Weekly about the series...

"In the tradition of Andre Norton and Marion Zimmer Bradley, Carmody embarks on a promising new series featuring telepathy, empathy and other psychic talents. On an Earth nearly wiped out by radiation and chemicals that have whitened the sky and poisoned the land, surviving humans have built a semi-agrarian culture. Though their own religious leaders, the Herders, have paranormal powers, they persecute the mutated Misfits, whose psychic abilities they view as a form of subversion. Thus, Elspeth Gordie, an orphan, conceals her exceptional abilities (prophetic visions, the ability to communicate with animals) from the other workers around her. Nonetheless, she is discovered and taken to the legendary Obernewtyn, an isolated town reputedly full of horrors. But instead of the tortures she expects, Elspeth finds friends and learns of the harmful experiments performed elsewhere upon talented Misfits and of the destructive powers that may have survived the Age of Chaos that ruined Earth. Though most of Carmody's characters are clearly bad or good, she avoids blatant stereotyping by imbuing many with conflicting interests. She also presents the Herders' primitive culture in considerable and vivid detail, from Elspeth's arduous ride through the Western Mountains to a farmer's daily life of toil and gossip. Despite their abilities, the Misfits are at the mercy of their superstitious culture and those who run ObernewtynAa plight that generates convincing plot turns. This is the first novel by Carmody, an Australian writer, to appear in the States. Readers will look forward to more."

amazon.com page for first book

This post has been edited by Frost92: 19 October 2008 - 02:32 AM

[Morgoth]

I didn't see this mentioned anywhere..

Wastelands is a collection of short stories set in post acopalyptic settings, written by authors like GRRM, Steven King, Gene Wolfe and so on.. I quite enjoyed it and it seems to match what you're looking for

[Ganymed]

Update:

V.A. - Wastelands
Margaret Atwood - Oryx and Crake
David Brin - The Postman
Max Brooks - World War Z
Terry Brooks - Armegeddon's Children
Isobelle Carmody - Obernewtyn Chronicles
Philip K. Dick - Dr. Bloodmoney
Philip K. Dick - The Penultimate Truth
Hal Duncan - The Book of All Hours Duology
Pat Frank - Alas, Babylon
David Gemmell - Jon Shannow Series
General John Hackett - Third World War
James Herbert - Rats Trilogy
Stephen King - The Stand
Stephen King - The Dark Tower Series
Stephen King - The Cell
Richard Matheson - I am Legend
Robert McCammon - Swansong
Cormac McCarthy - The Road
Paul J McAuley - Fairyland
Walter M. Miller - A Canticle for Leibowitz
Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle - Lucifers Hammer
Jeff Vandermeer - Veniss Underground
Alastair Reynolds - Chasm City
Jeff Somers - The Electric Church
George R. Stewart - Earth Abides
S. M. Stirling - Dies the Fire
S. M. Stirling - Island in the Sea of Time
S. M. Stirling - Snow Brother (the first of the Fifth Millinium series)
Patrick Tilley - Amtrack Wars Series
Roger Zelazny - Damnation Alley

@lord of tragedy
Sounds interesting, but I have no idea what you're talking about. Sorry, dude. Anyone else?

[The Tyrant Lizard]

Yeah the jon shannow books are great.

I am legend is cool too. I think it's far superior to the film - and about them changing the ending? That is one of my favourite endings of all time, so hollywood decides to change it it. grrr!

The Day of the Triffids is about as end of the world as you can get. basically a green meteor shower covers the world and 99.999 percent of the world watches it like some kind of fireworks display. and then in the morning they're all blind. Enter apocalypse. And then the triffids - man eating flowers that can walk - decide the inherit the earth. Lucky for mankind, some people don't like fireworks.

[Tuberski]

They just re-released one of my favorite post-apoc novels

Ariel: a Book of the Change by Stephen R. Boyett.

Similar to the "Dies the Fire" series, except that there are magical creatures also.

Ariel is a Unicorn.

Awesome book when I was a kid.

[lord of tragedy]

sunfall trilogy william james. finally discovered its name. excellent read.