Reddit mentions: The best sea stories

I think this kind of material is awesome! I'm more of a fantasy reader myself, but the type of immersion content I like to see is stuff like...

• maps!
  
• artwork - like photos of places; drawings of stuff from the novel (swords/whatever); diagrams. I'm not personally into character drawings/photos, but I think a lot of people probably do like that.
  
• unpublished artwork and scenes - like original cover concepts, as well as scenes that had to be cut or side-stories about characters who don't get enough time in the main work
  
• "making of" content, like early drafts, planning pages, crappy doodles, whatever
  
• games/puzzles related to the story
  
• recipes! This is kind of a weird one, but a lot of people love descriptions of food and a lot of books (esp scifi and fantasy) have weird food that I think might be fun to try to make yourself
  
• other (non-written) media, like songs/music from the book
  
• other genre/format material, like comics about the same characters,
  
  I'm largely unpublished at the moment, but I do a lot of side-projects and I also enjoy developing a story from multiple angles :D I think that's a great way not only to entertain existing fans, but to draw people to your book/product. Despite the fact that my novel is unpublished, I got quite a lot of attention to a "which character are you?" quiz that I made for my blog.
  
  This is a big unrelated, but you might also like checking out the Raw Shark Texts (allegedly there are real-world places you can travel to to "discover" more things about the book content) and/or The Ship of Theseus (/"Book of S"), which is sold with a bunch of "extraneous" material like newspaper clippings, and the whole book is filled with notes written back and forth from "previous readers"; it's a pretty interesting experience.

Others have covered this well, but I wanted to throw in some thoughts. You absolutely MUST read if you plan on writing a novel. Just... required.

But don't force yourself to read things you don't like. Have you tried graphic novels? They are chock full of story but are more dynamic than your typical novel. Harry Potter may not have clicked for you because you saw the movies, but have you tried other young adult novels that don't have movie tie-ins? A lot of YA is imminently readable because they're usually in first person, fast-paced and very hook driven. There are some fun sci-fi/timey-wimey YA books out there you could try.

On the adult side, have you tried to read Thursday Next by Jasper Fforde? It's surrealist fantasy with a very fun time travel element, though they are very heavily rooted in bibliophilia--it's all tongue-in-cheek love of books stuff (the main character can jump into fiction). But he's my favorite writer on the planet and a great example of having fun with language/writing.

So I haven't actually read it but one of my BFFs loved this book to pieces: S by JJ Abrams and Doug Dorst. http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642. It's apparently a very bizarre "book" that is not quite a book and is supposed to be an experience unto itself. Sounds a bit like what you maybe have in mind.

This is for fans of fantasy, pirates, and universes that have plans for dozens of books in the future!

My debut novel, Daxton, the first book of the 5th Compass, released on April 19th but I'm far from done with my releases this year. I wanted to share what I'm releasing in the next few months in case anyone would be interested.

The fantasy universe I have created is called Stonehaven and as a part of that world I am introducing Stonehaven Fables. An endless collection of short stories, each with their own self-contained story that gives the reader insight into the world as well as characters (some of which are introduced in the novels I release). Stonehaven Fables are exclusive to Patrons at a per creation price starting at just $1. I'm only releasing 5 fables in 2019. So, if you have $5 for 5 short stories that will be 30K+ words in total, check out my Patreon! The first fable will be released on Monday, June 10th.

To go alongside my debut novel, Daxton, is a novella, release date Friday, June 21st. Here is the e-book pre-order up for this first novella, Spire and the Dragonwood Affair, for only $.99! But, if you join my newsletter, you'll get ALL of the novellas for FREE! I have a monthly newsletter with occasional mid-month emails whenever I have a pre-order or release to share.

Oh, and I do also have the e-book pre-order for the next book in the 5th Compass, Eternal Forest! Scheduled for release on Wednesday, August 14th, Eternal Forest looks great and will be a great read.

Thanks for reading about all of my releases and if you should decide to become a patron, sign up for my newsletter, or buy a book, I am eternally grateful!

Here're the books that I absolutely love and return to from time to time:

1. The Beach - Alex Garland. This book places you inside the head of a character in a way that I've never experienced in another read. This book rocked my world when it came out. Reviews.
   
   
2. The Rama series - Arthur C. Clarke. Interested in Sci-Fi? This is Sci-Fi done very right. Reviews.
   
   
3. Return of the King - J. R. R. Tolkien. To get to this one it goes as no surprise that you'll have to read the first two of the trilogy (there are other books as well, but they aren't necessary to read in order to get to Return of the King). Of all books that I've read, I've never had to stop so many times and ask myself, "Who in the world thinks of this stuff?" as I did when I read Return of the King. As wonderful as the movies were they absolutely pale in comparison to the books. They're wordy--they're a bit tough to get into, at first--but goodness gracious are they worth it.
   
   
4. The Great Divorce - C.S. Lewis. Looking for something deeper? This is a short read--100 pages or so--but it is one of the thickest reads you'll ever come across. You'll know what I mean if you read it. Few stories have moved me to tears (good god the feels in this book) the way this one does.
   
   
5. The Name of the Wind & The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss. Sort of a more grown-up version of Harry Potter. Kind of. The third book in the series is supposed to come out next year.
   
   There are so many more. OP if you are interested in reading any of these, send me a message. I have extra copies of all of them (and a few others as well) and I'd be more than happy to get them into the right hands.
   
   Enjoy!

Huh... well, I'll take a few shots at this, although I doubt I have any better idea what he means than you do. Still, support the troops...

The ultimate would be S., J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst but only if you can get him the printed copy, not the ebook. The print version is just a phenomenal experience. It is definitely high-concept: in fact, it's best just to read the description in the link. It's a mystery/thriller/geopolitical/surrealist experience, but the object itself is just amazing. Check out the images of the book on Amazon-- normally I don't link to Amazon, but the images give you a sense of it. It's not just that one of the two major parallel stories unfolds in the margin-notes of the other novel; it's that the other novel is stuffed full of odds-and-ends of things the two correspondents shared with each other-- maps written on hotel napkins (and damn if they don't print the thing on an actual napkin), postcards from other countries, etc. It's just amazing.


How to Live Safely in a Science-Fictional Universe, Charles Yu, is the epitome of a high-concept novel. It's 'meta' to the core-- the execution doesn't quite live up to the concept, but it's still a decent read, and it might be what he's after. The premise is that the son of the man who invented the first time-travel machine, but was screwed out of the credit for it, works as a time-machine repairman and travels the... well, multiverse? multi-time?... looking for his father, who eventually disappeared. In the end it's as much a family drama as a sci-fi novel, but I found the premise irresistible.


Another idea would be You Shall Know Our Velocity!, Dave Eggers, It's certainly another "meta" or "high concept" novel; at first it seems like it'll be a standard travelogue, but then it takes a decidedly Eggers-ish turn. Not a lot to say about it without disclosing spoilers. As with How to Live Safely... I don't know that the execution lived up to the concept... or maybe the concept didn't live up to the execution, I'm never sure how I feel about Eggers.

Happy birthday! I hope you've been having a fantastic day!

I have so many books on my wish lists, it's hard for me to pick just one, but I can narrow it down to the top 3 I've really been wanting to read:

Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

I love Norse mythology, history, language, religion and learning more about it, and from what I've read of Gaiman's, I enjoy his writing style.

S. / Ship of Theseus by Doug Dorst and J.J. Abrams

From the reviews it seems like a great book. There's the book Ship of Theseus, but in the margins and inserts there's a whole different story between two people trying discover the identity of the author of Ship of Theseus. It just looks like a fun book.

House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski

Another book I've heard great things about. I've heard it can be a difficult read with the unconventional format and footnotes etc.. But that just makes me want to read it even more.

All 3 are on my Most Wanted list.


Thanks for the contest!

Will start by throwing a few into the ring:

The Beach by Alex Garland - While its plot is certainly limited with regard to imitability, it offers a very interesting perspective on the types of people you meet in the more interesting places you'll travel.

Vagabonding by Rolf Potts - A quintessential nonfiction guide for anyone who's considering traveling long term. It's preachy in places, but it'll fire you up to get moving.

Off the Rails in Phnom Penh by Amit Gilboa - You'll see this one being sold by street children in Phnom Penh often, but it's not too hard to find a copy anywhere else. A really great, enjoyable view of expat life in Phnom Penh.

Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac - On the Road is, of course, the standard American road novel, and Jack's most famous, but the Dharma Bums offers a really unique perspective on travel - that of a spiritual nature.

The Geography of Bliss by Eric Weiner - Another highly enjoyable read by an author who travels to the world's most purported "happy" countries. Great take on the subject area.

Glad to be able to share.

If you find the story of Moitessier's race interesting, Robin Knox-Johnston provides a really interesting counterpoint with "A world of my own"

He is the British stalwart plucky "stiff upper-lip" counterpoint to the frenchman's "I go because i must and the rest will happen"

"A Voyage for Madmen" is a great summary of all the viewpoints in that race, which includes a lot of great info from Nigel Tetley, and Donald Crowhurst (subject of the Deep Water documentary) whose books I haven't yet collected.

Another great collection I have surround the Vendee Globe race of 96-97 include "Godforsaken Sea" as a good overall coverage of the race which included the death of a competitor, and miraculous rescue of another by his fellow racer Pete Goss, whose "Close to the wind" is another plucky british tale of plugging on against all odds.

I'd love to see what you finally submit, so if you want to throw it up somewhere when you're done, pass along a link.

I've explored the pines for more than 20 years at this point. I've learned the most history from this book. It also gives you directions on how to get to many of them, although many are no longer legal to get to by vehicle. It also gives you maps and renderings of what the original towns/buildings were used for.

https://www.amazon.com/Ghost-Towns-Quirky-Places-Barrens/dp/093754860X/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1536949348&sr=8-7&keywords=pine+barrens

The trail system is pretty manageable with some googling. I typically start from the main dirt roads that have names and explore from there. The Batona trail is a nice hike if you have the legs for it and a lot of bug spray. Batsto village has a lot of cool educational stuff too. Head there when they have an event and you won't be disappointed.

If you like folklore, I enjoyed this book. Varies a bit from the original lore I heard growing up, but I enjoyed the book.

https://www.amazon.com/Legendary-Pine-Barrens-Tales-Haunts/dp/0937548766/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1536949348&sr=8-13&keywords=pine+barrens

I'd be happy to point you in the right directions, but I'm usually solo with my dogs in the pines. It's my church and it's where my happy place is.

​

​

S. by J.J. Abrams is a wonderful book with a bit of a cult following.

It's actually a book-within-a-book, but is filled with handwritten conversations between readers in the margins, as well as mementos and inserts that go along with the multiple storylines and mysteries being solved. It's thrilling, fun, and very interesting.

It's the book "S." , which was conceived by JJ Abrams and written by Doug Dorst. Haven't gotten to open it yet, but it looks like a library book titled "Book of Thesus" , and it's 2 stories involving the actual book and someone who I think buys/rents the book. It is a mystery that you solve as you go, it is supposed to have clues and such in it. People who've read it say it's super fun, as long as you go into believing the book is real. I may be making this up, but I think there may be other things in the book that tie in to Lost, like the numbers, but again, I haven't read it. Can't wait to get home and give it a whirl. Here's the Amazon link.

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

What you really need is a good anthology. Those are good for people in your situation because they let you discover different writers you might want to read more of, they let you discover genres that you like, and if you don't like a story you can go onto the next one.

I'd actually recommend getting two anthologies, one of older stories and another of more modern stuff.

Based on your interest in FPS, I'd say go with something like The Big Book of Adventure Stories edited by Otto Penzler. It's mostly "classic" adventure stories, including well known ones like "The Most Dangerous Game" and "Leningen vs. The Ants", but also obscure things from the 20th century.

For the modern anthology, you might try The Outlaw Bible of American Literature. It contains a lot of avant-garde and literary writings, but also pulp, sci-fi, rap lyrics, humor and more. Some of it may be crap, but again, you can always just skip things that look silly. It's huge, and there's plenty of good stuff in it as well.

If these anthologies don't appeal to you, try looking for ones that do.

This title is on Netflix currently. Glad you pointed it out!

I haven't watched this, yet. Seeing the comments about Crowhurst and Moitessier piqued my interest, though. I will watch it tonight.

When I saw the name I assumed it was the movie about the couple stranded in the middle of the ocean Open Water.. a though so terrifying to me that I have no interest in exploring it for entertainment purposes.

If you haven't read it, the book A Voyage for Madmen (NYTimes book review, Amazon link) is a really great read.

Reading Moitessier (he published several excellent titles about his voyages over the years, including his account of this race) leads me to believe he was far from mad. He simply came to realize what he valued most highly while it was still within his power to achieve it. We should all be so fortunate.

If by all the credit you mean JJ's name above Doug's on everything about the book including the book itself.

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

JJ loves to have his name on shit, always has, and he loves taking the shared glory when it succeeds.

Some of my favorites:

• The Myth of Sisyphus for philosophical essays.
  
• The Road and The Stand for dystopian fiction.
  
• American Gods or Neverwhere for fantasy.
  
• Brave New World, The Picture of Dorian Gray or Les Miserables for classics.
  
• Harry Potter is my favorite book of all time. It's pure story that is fun to read, evokes emotion and has great depth.
  
• The Beach is good to begin with, better if you're a traveler or like utopian type fiction. (Think of it as a dirtier, contemporary version of H.G. Wells' The Time Machine.)
  
• The Autobiography of King Henry VIII for historical biographies. Note that this one is fiction, but well researched.
  
• A few final random ones are Flowers for Algernon, Angela's Ashes and Italian Folktales.

That promo was for a book entitled S. It's a book that JJ Abrams co-wrote with Doug Dorst. Really, really great multi-layered experience beyond just a great read.

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1409957588&sr=8-1&keywords=s

Reading that right now last time was when it first came out.. yeah I'm that old.. Audiobook is pretty good though. Another GREAT read is Fight Fight. about a China/USA war scenario in the South China Sea.. Great read.. 3rd book in the series though so while you can pick it up and read it by itself it is best to read the other 2 just for character development. https://www.amazon.com/Fight-Raven-One-Book-ebook/dp/B07GXT4VJP Written by a USN Capt who flew Hornets.

This may be a little outside of what you're looking for, but I found it pretty interesting. Have you seen S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst? Hard to describe, but it's like a story in a story. There's the main book, and then two people talking about it and to each other in the margins... Ha, it sounds weird, but it was unique if nothing else.

I used to have a job writing book reviews of self-published novels. Most were terrible but this one was a lot of fun, and given that it's self-published it's fairly "under the radar" as far as pirate novels go. The plot borrows liberally from The Count of Monte Christo, but the high-seas adventure stuff really excels on its own.

https://www.amazon.com/Privateer-Michael-Scandalios/dp/1466314796

S. (www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/) would be a good example. It's a story about two people who read a book and they tell their story by means of annotations. It also comes with tons of inserts that add to the story, like postcards and maps. Here's a picture:

http://i.imgur.com/Qm4Tmje.jpg

There was a picture, which had watermark illustrations, not sure of the name anymore. There are also tons of cool up-market editions by publishers. I'd say the folio society would be a good example, being a publisher who specializes in such editions. Look at their limited editions - they are beautiful.

http://www.foliosociety.com/limitededitions

You might look at S. by Doug Dorst. It's not exactly a journal, but it is exactly the book equivalent of found footage.

At any rate, epistolary novels above been around for a long, long time.

What separates them from found footage, though, is the notion of pulling the reader in. With found footage, you're watching the movie as if you have discovered this footage and are now watching it. A journal-as-novel accomplishes something similar, but discovering a clever way to spin the book the reader has as something they've found—well, that's something special.

Hawai'i, by James Michner.

It's pretty well researched. Gives you an idea of centuries of history from multiple characters, up to statehood.

Mango Hill, by Diana Hansen Young.

Children's books about local tales. Often the best place to start learning about a culture.


Reefsong, by Carol Severance.

Polynesian science fiction, which I've found to be an exceedingly rare thing.

Podkayne's brother is kind of Eustace-y.

The dreaming jewels made a profound impression on me, Can't say why.

I resisted Melville's charms until a few summers ago on St Georges Island. I spent two weeks in a hammock on a screened porch, eating buckets of boiled shrimp and reading the annotated Moby Dick. Doing it within earshot of the gulls and the smell of salt spray was one of my better ideas.

Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:


amazon.co.uk

amazon.ca

amazon.com.au

amazon.in

amazon.com.mx

amazon.de

amazon.it

amazon.es

amazon.com.br

amazon.nl

amazon.co.jp

amazon.fr

Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
I currently look here: amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, amazon.in, amazon.com.mx, amazon.de, amazon.it, amazon.es, amazon.com.br, amazon.nl, amazon.co.jp, amazon.fr, if you would like your local version of Amazon adding please contact my creator.

That's a tall order!

Some books that similarly acknowledge the book you're holding as complicit in the story, or bring in multimedia elements, might include Tree of Codes by Jonathan Safran Foer, Night Film by Marisha Pessl, A Humument by Tom Phillips, or S by J. J. Abrams and Doug Dorst. The Raw Shark Texts also plays with words on the page in an interesting way.

I also liked Danielewski's Only Revolutions. It's not on par with House of Leaves but it is a unique read: two protagonists tell the same story from their own perspective. As the book progresses, each chapter gets shorter and the font gets smaller, like the tale is spiraling in on itself. And when you've finished one character's story you literally flip the book upside down to start the other's. (Danielewski recommends reading one chapter from one side, then the corresponding chapter from the other, as you go. The hardcover includes two bookmarks for this purpose.)

Ship of Theseus by Doug Dorst and J.J. Abrams (yeah, that JJ) seems like it might fit your interests - it's not aesthetically wild from the outside, but the main story takes place in marginalia, post-cards, written letters, and I think at one point a napkin that all happen around the grounding typed text. There are literally papers stuffed into the book that fall out as you read, which is a really fun experience and aesthetically different than anything I've encountered before or since!

"S" by Doug Dorst and JJ Abrams

This is the most imaginative concept I've ever seen for a novel. This work comes in a box. Upon opening it, you find a novel called 'the Ship of Theseus bu V. M. Straka, the last work of an enigmatic writer from the early 20th century. The intriguing part is that in the margins of the yellowed pages, two university students take turns writing notes to each other. Together they begin to unravel a sixty year old mystery.


I've never seen anything this innovative before, and it's incredibly well executed!

S by JJ Abrams and Doug Dorst is all about the footnotes (and the effluvia - it includes tons of letters, notes, maps, whathaveyou).

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1408996926&sr=1-1&keywords=s+book

Very fun book to read, I can't imagine writing anything like it, personally.

Why not buy yourself a book? I just finished The North Water and loved it. A little dark but a great read.

I just stumbled upon S. by Doug Durst and JJ Abrams which sort of falls into this category as well. There's a "people who viewed this also liked..." rabbit hole to venture on from there. I should've thought of that first!

Edit: Mezzanine by Nicholson Baker, from what limited preview is available, also seems to use a footnote format that could be appropriated.

Thank you for your help. You seem to always be dispensing quality advice in general for a single upvote.

I always suggest The Beach when someone asks for a beach book, its pretty awesome and a quick read.

<snort> Crowhurst is kind of a hero of mine. Dude got in too deep and ended up stepping off his boat (most likely.) Wanna good read? Voyage for Madmen by Peter Nichols. Good introductory to the event.

Sounds like S by Doug Dorst. JJ Abrams is involved somehow too.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0316201642/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_Ko.ttb1709JJ3

(Edit) P.S. If it didn't have the box, the book looks like an old library book called "Ship of Theseus" by VM Straka

Would recommend anything by Robert Asprin, particularlly the first two books of his Dragon Series.

Naomi Novik has some really good books with the Temeraire series and uprooted Authors Site

Note - edited to provide non amazon link for second recommendation.

Here's something trippy, and something you may not expect...S by JJ Abrams. Its' a puzzle, mystery, drama, love story, mission, action/adventure....all while being a book within a book wrapped in a riddle.....literally! Have a look and have fun, there is no end to what you can uncover in this mess.

['S' the Book] (http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642)

You are right! But do you honestly think that "they" could, or even should, invent a device for such a small pool of books?

There are many experimental books - this is one of them - S. and it will only ever be possible in paper. You know? Because books such as this exist doesn't mean that a device needs to be invented so that I can enjoy it on an ereader.

There is no absolutely pressing need to invent a color ereader as long as there are still paper books and color tablets.

If this story interests you, then my all means take a look at the book "S" by Doug Dorst and JJ Abrams. A very imaginative homage to the written word. Quite entertaining. http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417745191&sr=8-1&keywords=%22S%22+in+books

You really, really need to purchase this book, today, and study it top and bottom:

https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Theseus-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1539921615&sr=8-7&keywords=S

Maybe that's where you got the idea. If not, buy the book and then read about how it works. It's basically exactly what you describe.

Also - don't be like "oh this was already done, I should quit." No one will care, your story actually sounds good.

The book was substantially better than the movie (I like the movie too, but the book was leaps and bounds ahead of the movie). No stupid love triangle, a more in-depth protagonist (Richard is British in the book), a far better / darker ending. Not to mention that Keaty's character is scaled down heavily in the movie - and Jed's character is completely removed. Read the book. I cannot recommend it enough.

You might like S. by JJ Abrams and Doug Dorst.
http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

It has a similar feel to House of Leaves in terms of reading experience with notes written on the pages in different colors and other such things.

I'm looking forward to reading S. by Doug Dorst and JJ Abrams. It's a book called Ship of Theseus by a mysterious (fictional) author named V.M. Straka. The real story is the correspondence in the margins between a grad student specializing in Straka and an undergrad lit major as they try to uncover the secrets of his life and disappearance. The book comes with all kinds of inserts of things they find during their investigation, like post cards and newspaper clippings. It even includes a decoder ring to decipher one of the chapters of Ship of Theseus.

I can't wait to start it. I've been saving it for vacation.

Ship of Theseus by JJ Abrams seems similar to HoL in it is a physical reading experience. If that makes sense.

Also if you like footnotes & meandering you could try Infinite Jest.

S. By J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst came out today. It is EXTREMELY gimmicky, kind of like House Of Leaves. So far it is Awesome.

A Crack in the Sky above Titan sounds perfect for you! It's a short novella about future people who sail on the methane seas of Titan, one of Saturn's moons.

The book S. by J. J. Abrams and Doug Dorst. Its a book that is about two people communicating through a book. So you are reading what they are writing in the book. I haven't read too far into it but it's really interesting.

http://smile.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411962881&sr=8-1&keywords=s.+book

In no particular order:

1. The Grishaverse By Leigh Bardugo
   
   
2. Binti by Nnedi Okarafor
   
   
3. The Great Library by Rachel Caine
   
   
4. Hunter by Mercedes Lackey
   
   
5. The Temeraire Novels By Naomi Novik
   
   
6. Wake of Vultures by Lila Bowen
   
   
7. The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin
   
   
8. Kings and Sorcerers by Morgan Rice
   
   
9. The Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb
   
   
10. The City of Brass by S A Chakraborty

For a while I was waiting for that one to drop in price on Amazon, but it never happened. It went up, in fact.

There was a time when it was 50% cheaper than it is now. I really wish I had known about it then.

Sometimes you can get it cheaper off B&N.

Example: "S" by JJ Abrams.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/s-j-j-abrams/1115192310?ean=9780316201643

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404307853&sr=8-1&keywords=j+j+abrams+s


People automatically go to Amazon b/c they overall have lower prices. But sometimes they jack up the prices of certain items b/c they know this. Always shop around.

That being said, $15 or more for even a new ebook is absurd.

EDIT: My example only reflects print copies.

https://www.amazon.ca/Voyage-Madmen-Peter-Nichols/dp/0060957034

Very good read

S., perhaps? I'm actually in the middle of it right now -- definitely fits the bill.

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396324187&sr=8-1&keywords=s

• Anything by Issac Asimov (esp. The Roving Mind and Foundation novels)
  
• Mike suggested The Visual Display of Quantitative Information
  
• S by Dorst and JJ Abrams is a fantastically complex story on a story in a story

You might be interested in this paper :

>Membrane alternatives in worlds without oxygen: Creation of an azotosome, by James Stevenson, Jonathan Lunine and Paulette Clancy.

On Earth, all cells are bounded by a lipid bilayer membrane. In water, phospholipids spontaneously form 2D membranes (which, in turn, spontaneously form enclosed cells). This is an abiotic process; when placed in water, almost any medium-length hydrocarbon with a polar group at one end will self-organize into bilayer membranes which form micelles.

The authors of that paper hypothesize the structure and properties compounds that would form micelles in cryogenic hydrocarbon oceans, as found on Titan. It's sort of like the mirror image of phospholipids in water; you have a polar molecule with a non-polar head-group interacting with a non-polar solvent.

They also make a case that the compounds needed to form these structures, which they name azotosomes, should form spontaneously in Titan's atmosphere from light catalyzed reactions between hydrocarbons and nitrogenous species, and rain down on the surface.

Anyhow, if you're interested in a sci-fi treatment of life on Titan, A Crack in the Sky Above Titan builds on current data about the surface conditions and chemistry. It also has some really interesting ideas about sailing, naval architecture and salvage operations on a cryogenic hydrocarbon ocean, which has really different hydrodynamics from water. The lack of surface tension, much lower viscosity and lower density would make sailing pretty tricky.

If you like that kind of thing.

Buy this book : http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

It's a fictional book written by a mysterious author, then checked out by two readers at a library who write correspondence to each other in handwritten notes throughout the book.

I've been getting into the older pulp stories and picked these up after reading a few stories at my local library:

The Big Book of Pulps by Otto Penzler

The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries by Otto Penzler

The Big Book of Adventure Stories

If you're the bookish type, this book is very much worth reading. https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Theseus-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

Heh. Found it myself. The book is called Reefsong. I remember liking the cover a lot as a kid.

Another recent non-traditional is S by JJ Abrams and Doug Dorst. It takes the form of an old library book that was passed back and forth between two people making notes in the margins as they attempt to unravel the mystery of the author's identity. Comes complete with various prop items stuck between the pages of the book-postcards, photos, news clippings, etc.

Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1468533325&sr=1-1&keywords=S+in+books

Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S._(Dorst_novel)

Seems like a strange ad for his book.
http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

And his book's title is "S."

This?

http://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

S. By J.J. Abrams
[](S. https://www.amazon.com/dp/0316201642/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_uIzYxb89GM2A9)

"S." by J.J. Abrams & Doug Dorst

Could it be “S.” by Doug Dorst and J. J. Abrams?

Edit: found it on Amazon as “Ship of Theseus”.

Or try reading S.?

https://www.amazon.com/Voyage-Madmen-Peter-Nichols/dp/0060957034

The beach by Alex Garland

http://www.amazon.com/The-Beach-Alex-Garland/dp/1573226521/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346552703&sr=8-1&keywords=the+beach+by+alex+garland

You should read the last Kevin Miller book. It takes place in that theater. (But read the first ones before)

​

Link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07GXT4VJP/ref=oh_aui_d_detailpage_o08_?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'll just leave this here...

https://www.amazon.com/S-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642

House of Leaves was my first thought, followed by Ship of Theseus.

You need to have someone doing something interesting with the media in order to really lose something going to e-book.

The Waters of Nyra - Kelly Michelle Baker

Temeraire Series - Naomi Novik

Age of Fire Series - E.E. Knight

Enchanted Forest Chronicles - Patricia Wrede

Tooth and Claw - Jo Walton

Dragon Keeper Series - Caroline Wilkinson

Dragons in Our Midst Series - Bryan Davis

Dragon Orb Series - Mark Robson

Rain Wilds Chronicles - Robin Hobb

Dragon Rider Series - Cornelia Funke

The Dragon Codices - R.D. Henham

The Dragons: The Lost Histories - Doug Niles

Dragon Chronicles - Susan Fletcher

Pit Dragon Chronicles - Jane Yolen

Dragonfriend Series - Marc Secchia

Shapeshifter Dragons Series - Marc Secchia

Seraphina Series - Rachel Hartman

A Dragon's Guide Series - Laurence Yep

Day of the Dragon / Night of the Dragon - Richard A. Knaack (Yes, I like Knaack come at me)

Wings of Fire Series - Tui T. Sutherland (The writing and characters can be frustratingly childish at times, read a sample first.)

​

There are way more than this but these are all I can think of off the top of my head. Some are Dragon PoV because I strongly prefer to read those.

No, but this has actually been sort-of-done. Check out this. I'm not a big romance reader but holy shit, this book was amazing.

want a a bit of a mind fuck? i suggest The Beach by Alex Garland

S. By J.J. Abrams. A mysterious book within a book with margin notes and loose sheets tucked between the pages. It seems to be a non frightening cross between House of Leaves and Griffin and Sabine.

Aside from a few instances with web ARGs [EMH, Ackerly Green] most games that involve physical items I've come across are paid for experiences.

The Mysterious Package Company has some experiences that vary in story type as well as number of mailings you get. They're on the pricier end of things, but the artifacts they send reflect the price. They also have a quarterly subscription called Curios and Conundrums that involve a newspaper with stories, riddles, and puzzles as well as some ephemera and objects that all wrap up in a yearly story. The Weeping Book is a good starter point for people who don't want to spend a whole lot on an unknown company. Also, they've got a holiday sale going on right now to knock off a bit of the price tag: https://www.mysteriouspackage.com/

The Mysterious Experience Company is a monthly crate box experience where you get some items and notes on a murder usually. It's up to you to read through it all, investigate online, and determine who from a list of suspects committed the crime. I've only had one box from them so far, but I am impressed so far by it: https://mysteryexperiences.cratejoy.com/

Forgotten Folios is another monthly subscription through Patreon. The letters and artifacts you receive, depending on which level you support at, are more story driven than puzzle oriented but I think they're well worth checking out for their attention to detail: https://www.patreon.com/forgottenfolios

The Haunted Dollhouse is an experience offered by Lady Delaney. You receive a series of boxes through the mail that allows you to put together a small dollhouse and piece together a story of betrayal and murder from the early 1900's. This experience happens a few times a year. Right now the next time it'll start going out is January. The creator also has a monthly subscription called Letters From the Dead where you get letters and other ephemera mailed to you, but I don't know a whole lot about that: https://www.lettersfromdeadpeople.com/about

On the less pricier side of things there are a few books you may be interested in checking out. The Ship of Theseus tells several stories. Some overt and some only apparent when you read into the puzzle. There are artifacts inside the book that add to the stories and help with the puzzles. It may be hard to find at times but I recommend buying the book new so that you know you have all the pieces: https://www.amazon.com/Ship-Theseus-J-Abrams/dp/0316201642