I haven't actually read any Octavia Butler yet myself, so I don't know how they compare.Fuzzy Necromancer wrote:I tried Clive Barker's "The Hellbound Heart" but it didn't work for me. Weaveworld was okay though. Does he have a squick content level that's as high as Octavia Butler, or is he a bit more restrained generally?
The Hellbound Heart is IMO a little on the weak side, mostly famous for being the basis for the first Hellraiser movie. I recommend picking up one of the "Books of Blood" anthologies to get a decent sampling of his style. They are a very mixed bag of short stories, but being short stories, you're not out much if only a couple in a given volume are to your taste.
As far as the novels go, IMO Imajica stands out. It's a big & colorful fantasy epic with a bi or late-blooming gay protagonist. Imagine Kill Six Billion Demons as written by a gay Lars Von Trier, and you'll be in the right ballpark. I love it for its imagination, but at the same time would caution about not taking it's themes too seriously, as it gets very author tract-y on certain subjects in a way that says way, WAY more about the author (in an "unfortunate implications" sort of way, sadly) than the intended subject. That sounds like a weak recommendation, but it's not meant as such: it's like an ornate vase with a big crack in it: beautiful enough to display regardless of its inability to hold water.
