Recommend someone like Gene Wolfe

[The Fiendish Dr. Samsara]

Gene Wolfe is a fantastic writer. I really dig his obsessions with language, memory, history, and subjectivism. To be fair, that last sometimes slides into obscurantism. But even then, I still enjoy reading his work. I still don’t really know what the hell was going on in The Book of the New Sun, but I feel like Wolfe did and that somehow gives me enjoyment.

All that said, who else would I like?

[ShannonA]

Gene Wolfe is my favorite genre writer, and I'd be hard-pressed to suggest anyone else who's really like him.

Maybe Jack Vance? His joy of language is somewhat similar and he creates similarly evocative worlds, but he doesn't have the same depth of story nor the unreliable narrators.

Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow felt somewhat similar to me in its mysterious backstory and its unreliable narrator. She's also quite a good writer, but her book didn't feel like a Wolfe book because of the topics she choose to cover.

Those are the best I can come up with though.

[The Fiendish Dr. Samsara]

I probably should list all the other writers I know, but that's too much work. In any case, I'm a fan of Vance's already. I've been leery of The Sparrow.

[ShannonA]

I probably should list all the other writers I know, but that's too much work. In any case, I'm a fan of Vance's already. I've been leery of The Sparrow.

What makes you leery?

[Iozz-Sothoth]

Michael Swanwick? (Well, The Iron Dragon's Daughter, anyway.)

Possibly Sam Delaney's Neveryon stories.

[The Fiendish Dr. Samsara]

What makes you leery?

My wife read the first and her relating of it made it sounds almost exactly unlike a Gene Wolfe story, except, possibly in the broadest sense.

[The Disgruntled Poet]

I'm going to go way out on a limb here..

There's just not really quite anyone LIKE Gene Wolfe. He's built his own voice and is simply better than most.

Perhaps Delaney and Le Guin would have a seriousness that you would enjoy. Dhalgren is a big shining complex mess of a novel that has some of those qualities. Le Guin has very human characters that tend to be as flawed as those in Wolfe's work (particularly early stuff like Free Live Free).

Anyway, I recommend Thomas Ligotti, who is entirely different from Wolfe, but the reason I think of him is that he's the only living author of "genre" fiction who I think holds a candle to Wolfe.

Ligotti is to Poe & Lovecraft what Wolfe is to Vance.. someone who has taken the brilliant explorations of the predecessors and charted whole new territories that were at the borders of those old maps..

[Red Menace]

Let me 2nd the vote for Jack Vance. If you enjoyed the setting of Book of the New Sun, then you'll appreciate the setting of Vance's Dying Earth series.

[Phantom Grunweasel]

There's not many authors like Wolfe. Outside the fantasy genre, I'd suggest Umberto Eco -he's not a perfect match, but he has the same kind of interests and obsessions (in particular, the layers of mystery and allusiveness to Wolfe's work really remind me of Eco). They're literary rather than fantasy novels, but they do often have genre themes.

Inside, people have already suggested Jack Vance. His work doesn't have the depth of Wolfe's (it doesn't attempt to) but his style and dialogue is absolutely immaculate. Vance's Dying Earth influenced the Urth of the Old Sun.

The Dying Earth was in turn influenced by Clark Ashton-Smith's Zothique stories. These are brilliantly macabre stories, although they're quite a distance away from Wolfe at this point.

Lastly, David Linday's strange science-fiction novel, A Voyage to Arcturus was one of Wolfe's main influences (although the theology behind their respective books couldn't be more different). It's a difficult but fascinating read -it completely overturns some established notions about storytelling, characterisation and religion. In particular, I think it combines Wolfe's eye for colour and detail with his philosophy and storytelling.

[The Fiendish Dr. Samsara]

There's not many authors like Wolfe. Outside the fantasy genre, I'd suggest Umberto Eco -he's not a perfect match, but he has the same kind of interests and obsessions (in particular, the layers of mystery and allusiveness to Wolfe's work really remind me of Eco). They're literary rather than fantasy novels, but they do often have genre themes.

Foucault's Pendulum is possibly my favourite novel.

Inside, people have already suggested Jack Vance. His work doesn't have the depth of Wolfe's (it doesn't attempt to) but his style and dialogue is absolutely immaculate. Vance's Dying Earth influenced the Urth of the Old Sun.

I love The Dying Earth. I get less and less interested in the subsequent books.

The Dying Earth was in turn influenced by Clark Ashton-Smith's Zothique stories. These are brilliantly macabre stories, although they're quite a distance away from Wolfe at this point.

And love 'em.

Lastly, David Linday's strange science-fiction novel, A Voyage to Arcturus was one of Wolfe's main influences (although the theology behind their respective books couldn't be more different). It's a difficult but fascinating read -it completely overturns some established notions about storytelling, characterisation and religion. In particular, I think it combines Wolfe's eye for colour and detail with his philosophy and storytelling.

Now here's one I haven't read but have long intended to. Thanks.

Anyway, I recommend Thomas Ligotti, who is entirely different from Wolfe, but the reason I think of him is that he's the only living author of "genre" fiction who I think holds a candle to Wolfe.

Another I haven't read. Recommend a title, if you would, sir.

[The Disgruntled Poet]

Re: Ligotti


Another I haven't read. Recommend a title, if you would, sir.

Ligotti is primarily a writer of short fiction (in fact, I don't know of any novels.) His books tend to be a little rare and expensive, though you can find his stories in lots of 90s horror anthologies.

The one book I was able to easily find was The Shadow at the Bottom of the World, sort of a "best of" collection. That one seems like a good representative mix, although IMO, most of the best stories were in the last 2/3 of the collection.

There are probably a few good stories available online; I may investigate.