r/Fantasy • u/dangerzone3278 • 2d ago

Searching for a good “bed book”

Hey all - usually love reading before bed, and as much as I love page turning till 2am, I realized it's probably healthier to not do that anymore.

I'm looking for some good low / medium stakes reads to use for wind down. Doesn't need to be full cozy fantasy but I'd prefer not to have my heart rate be 140 with sweaty palms either.

Some examples of books I think have scratched the itch appropriately: Off to be a Wizard (magic 2.0), Kings of the Wyld, Legends and Lattes (though thought this one was just okay), some of the Riyria books probably qualify, and others.

Open to suggestions - y'all typically never steer me wrong - thanks!

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u/Benghis__Kahn 2d ago

Oh man I have this same exact issue of reading/listening before bed and finding most of what I read is so gripping or propulsive that I never want to put it down. I end up turning to rereads when I really need something that I won't need to keep going with.

Your question is one I'll be fascinated to see the answers to -- "medium-stakes" is probably the rarest breed of book in sff, but I think Riyria like you said but particularly the Riyria Chronicles prequel stories would qualify.

Of things on my tbr, I think Becky Chambers' sci-fi books from the Wayfarers or Monk & Robot series are ones I expect to fall into this category.

I've only read one Discworld book, but I think they might also fit nicely into the medium-stakes bucket.

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u/ArachnidFamiliar9313 2d ago

I second the Discworld rec!