This post was contributed by one of our members, Lancer, fondly known as Sir Lancer!
Welcome one and all to Sir Lancer Recommends! I have been wrangled in and convinced (thank you Hybrid and everyone else) to starting my super awesome recommendations thread.
To get things off and running I am going to have begin by recommending what you all know I was going to. So my first official recommendation is May’s Book of the Month: Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding.
Along with this I am gonna go ahead and just recommend the whole damn series:
- Book #2: The Black Lung Captain
- Book #3: The Iron Jackal
- Book #4: The Ace of Skulls
This is one of my favorite series of all time. It is not going to win any awards for whimsical writing or mind blowing prose. What it is though is one of the funnest, funniest, rip-roaring adventures I have had the pleasure of reading. It is a series that makes you smile and feel connected to its many characters. I definitely suggest reading the books in order as certain plot elements evolve over the course of the series and the character arcs as well, so reading the out of order may lead to spoilers or missing little pieces. The way that Wooding writes the dialogue and interaction between the crew is just great. Also I would describe it like a steampunk-ish Firefly all taking place on one planet. I have recommended this series more than any other.
And because this is the first post I will add a second recommendation as well. I just completed this series as fast as I could find and read the books. It is the Low Town Trilogy by Daniel Polansky.
- Book #1: Low Town (The Straight Razor Cure)
- Book #2: Tomorrow the Killing
- Book #3: She Who Waits
This series hit all the good spots for me. Whenever I play an RPG kind of game I usually play my first go as a Rogue/Thief type character. This trilogy takes place in the slums of Low Town. It is fantasy crime-noir told through the first person view of the main character (The Warden) who is now one of my all-time favorite characters. Again I recommend reading the series in publication order and don’t want to give away anymore and spoil anything.
So there you have it. This concludes Episode #1 of Sir Lancer Recommends! I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!
dragonandjetpacks.com 
Well done Sir Lancer. First post and a great one to start with
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I LOVED Retribution Falls, but I still haven’t read any more of the series.
And I was sent She Who Waits for review years ago, but I still haven’t read it – I didn’t want to start at the end of the series! I now have a copy of The Straight Razor Cure (free at Bristolcon), just need book 2 🙂
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Reblogged this on Archer's Aim and commented:
Reblogging on Archer’s Aim – a good set of recommendations for a current read on the Dragons and Jetpacks reading group on Goodreads!
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Lancer, you’ve convinced me to read Retribution Falls and the whole series as soon as I finish my current reading plans!
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I don’t want to start a whole series. Any recommendations for standalones?
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I honestly have not read many stand alone books. Is there a certain genre you are looking for a recommendation in?
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Anything SF&F, really. Your recommendations were just heavy on series for my taste.
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This is a stand alone that I read very recently and will likely end up in a sir Lancer recommends soon. Skullcrack City by Jeremy Robert Johnson. It is kind of a SF/bizzaro/thriller hybrid but may not be for everyone. I loved it and finished very fast. I don’t want to say too much because it will likely be in an episode soon but I would say to check that out.
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Why not try Naomi Novik’s Uprooted? It’s a standalone fantasy novel that I found very enjoyable, with a strong female role. It’s also been nominated for a Hugo Award and will be Dragons and Jetpacks fantasy read next month.
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Why not give Naomi Novik’s Uprooted a try? It’s a standalone fantasy novel with a strong female lead, along with it being nominated for a Hugo Award and being Dragons and Jetpacks’ upcoming fantasy read.
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I had brought Retribution Falls when it had became the BoTM. But haven’t gotten around reading it yet, but the concept definitely intrigued me and I generally have a fondness of Steampunk genre. So I can bet that I will definitely read it soon.
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