# Reccomend a Mystery, Fantasy, or Other Fiction Book for Me, Please! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 14, 2002, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reccomend-a-mystery-fantasy-or-other-fiction-book-for-me-please/128386 "2002-09-14T03:01:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![burundi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3ec8ea/32.png) [@burundi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burundi)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2002, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reccomend-a-mystery-fantasy-or-other-fiction-book-for-me-please/128386/41 "2002-09-23T17:04:11Z")
**Freedom and Necessity** by Emma Bull and Steven Brust is a terrifically fun mystery/historical fantasy. It’s set in 1840s England and is chock-full of intrigue, swashbuckling, politics, and magic. I can’t recommend it highly enough, especially if you’re a history buff. ---
**Author:** ![Epimetheus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c4cdca/32.png) [@Epimetheus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Epimetheus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2002, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reccomend-a-mystery-fantasy-or-other-fiction-book-for-me-please/128386/42 "2002-09-24T01:23:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Chronos \* > \*\*And when **Epimetheus** mentioned the Dune chronicles, he surely just meant _Dune_. There are no sequels. Really. \*\* While _Dune_ is certainly the better of the 6, I must say that technically you are wrong. The second book, _Dune: Messiah_ IS a sequel. It tells the story of what happens to the prophet, which is what the first book is about. The Third book _Children of Dune_, of course, relegates Paul as a minor character, thus suggesting that it is starting a NEW series, rather than continuing the old. (many parts of Children of Dune were written before Herbert even finished Dune, so it was planned from the start to go where the first three books went) They are all good, though you can tell in later books that Herbert gives up continuity for a good yarn, a mistake many otherwise good authors make. I feel that keeping inconsistencies out of the books is more important than simply telling a story. Inconsistencies make the believability factor of a story plummet. Some nitpickers go too far though, and try to say because there are inconsistencies that those books that contain them are not **really** part of the series. To them I say: :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Epimetheus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c4cdca/32.png) [@Epimetheus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Epimetheus)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2002, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reccomend-a-mystery-fantasy-or-other-fiction-book-for-me-please/128386/43 "2002-09-24T01:31:47Z")
Doh, should have previewed. Oh well. Just wanted to add, that the Dune Chronicles should be split into three Duologies. _Dune_ and _Dune: Messiah_ follow Paul. _Children of Dune_ and _God Emperor of Dune_ follow Leto II, and _Dune: Heretics_ and _Chapterhouse: Dune_ follow… Well, the Bene Geserit/Atradies line, but If I had to pick the key element, I would say it would be the Duncan ghola. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2002, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reccomend-a-mystery-fantasy-or-other-fiction-book-for-me-please/128386/44 "2002-09-24T04:50:43Z")
Oh and lawrence blocks “burgular” series aka bernie rohdenbarr series These are so popular that he writes one every year or so so his fans dont drive him nuts In a preface of the burgular who traded ted williams he wirtes “If everyone who ever asked me if bernie was ever coming back buys one of these books I’ll be a millionaire” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reccomend-a-mystery-fantasy-or-other-fiction-book-for-me-please/128386.md?page=2)