[Andorion]

The Incredible Kitsu, on 08 April 2015 - 12:52 AM, said:

Just about to finish Winter's Heart and I am torn about what I am going to start afterwards. On one hand, I have Crossroads of Twilight. It's tempting to push straight through and get to the other side of the slog. On the other hand, I have Storm Front ready to go and I'm itching for some Dresdencrack.

Also, Baco, what is a good place to start with Vandermeer?

You might want to save Dresden as a palate cleanser after Crossroads of Twilight. If you thought WInters Heart was a slog, well......... lets just say you are going to need something to cheer you up.

[JPK]

Andorion, on 08 April 2015 - 01:03 AM, said:

The Incredible Kitsu, on 08 April 2015 - 12:52 AM, said:

Just about to finish Winter's Heart and I am torn about what I am going to start afterwards. On one hand, I have Crossroads of Twilight. It's tempting to push straight through and get to the other side of the slog. On the other hand, I have Storm Front ready to go and I'm itching for some Dresdencrack.

Also, Baco, what is a good place to start with Vandermeer?

You might want to save Dresden as a palate cleanser after Crossroads of Twilight. If you thought WInters Heart was a slog, well......... lets just say you are going to need something to cheer you up.

Yeah, I'm very aware of the reputation of CoT. I really debated skipping it and just reading a summary and the last chapter. If it was another book without Mat I likely would have.

This post has been edited by The Incredible Kitsu: 08 April 2015 - 03:46 PM

[Baco Xtath]

The Incredible Kitsu, on 08 April 2015 - 12:52 AM, said:

Also, Baco, what is a good place to start with Vandermeer?

Really I would suggest reading Shriek and then listening to Finch (which is one of my favorites) but if you're going pure audio, then do the Southern Reach in order starting with Annihilation.

[polishgenius]

I'm gonna say, audiobook concerns aside, start with City of Saints and Madmen if you can, not Shriek. I mean I did start with the latter and enjoyed it well enough, but I was clearly missing stuff that was coming out of the two stories concerning the characters of Shriek that are in CoSaM.

[JPK]

Ok, I picked up CoSaM for my kobo and plan to start it as soon as I finish the one I'm currently reading. If i like it as much as i suspect i will, Shriek and Finch will be purchased in the near future.

As for audiobook, I ended up going with Storm Front. It's nice picking up on all the little tidbits that he planted in that first book that come into play later. Crossroads of Twilight will be stated right after i finish SF.

[Baco Xtath]

I only read Dradin in Love out of CoSaM actually. My first Vandermeer was Veniss Underground, which was great. Read Shriek because I'd already bought the audio of Finch, and Polish told me to read the former before the latter. Both were great, Finch being particularly fantastic. Out of the Southern Reach, read the first, listened to the second and third. The first two were really good but I'm still not sure what happened in the third.

Just bought the Grace of Kings which I'll listen to on my 6 hr drive tomorrow.

Edit: Ha, wrote Dresden in Love.

This post has been edited by Baco Xtath: 10 April 2015 - 11:35 AM

[JPK]

Res!

Andorion, on 29 March 2017 - 04:54 AM, said:

How about the Riyria books or China Mieville?

I didn't listen to the main series of Riyria, having read them before I went down the audiobook path, but I did listen to the first of his prequels - The Crown Tower. The narrator, Tim Gerard Reynolds, was excellent and really nailed the tone for both Hadrian and Royce.

I have listened to all three Bas-Lag books by Mieville. I would highly recommend. Perdido Street Station is also covered by my favorite narrator, John Lee.

If you feel like a longer term re-read project at some point I would recommend listening to The Dresden Files. The narration is done by James Marsters - best known as Spike from Buffy. It's a total treat and almost an all new experience.

Anything written by Gaiman that is narrated by Gaiman, with the exception of American Gods. For that one, go for the full cast 10th anniversary edition.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline and narrated by Wil Wheaton - enough said.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke, narrated by Simon Prebble. Another excellent narrator.

I've got more I could recommend but they're more sci-fi or horror.

[Andorion]

JPK, on 29 March 2017 - 05:20 AM, said:

Res!

Andorion, on 29 March 2017 - 04:54 AM, said:

How about the Riyria books or China Mieville?

I didn't listen to the main series of Riyria, having read them before I went down the audiobook path, but I did listen to the first of his prequels - The Crown Tower. The narrator, Tim Gerard Reynolds, was excellent and really nailed the tone for both Hadrian and Royce.

I have listened to all three Bas-Lag books by Mieville. I would highly recommend. Perdido Street Station is also covered by my favorite narrator, John Lee.

If you feel like a longer term re-read project at some point I would recommend listening to The Dresden Files. The narration is done by James Marsters - best known as Spike from Buffy. It's a total treat and almost an all new experience.

Anything written by Gaiman that is narrated by Gaiman, with the exception of American Gods. For that one, go for the full cast 10th anniversary edition.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline and narrated by Wil Wheaton - enough said.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke, narrated by Simon Prebble. Another excellent narrator.

I've got more I could recommend but they're more sci-fi or horror.

Both Riyria and Mieville are on my Read this Year list, so that is great news!

I might do a re-listen of Dresden - great idea that.

I was considering getting Norse Mythology by Gaiman

[Abyss]

I really really enjoyed the NORSE earbook. Gaiman is a glorious narrator and i extend the reco to any of his earbooks.

Audible has a ton of fantasy stuff in earbook. Lately i look there for anything heavily reco'd in the forum and add it to my wishlist. KINGS OF THE WYLD was a recent acquisition on that basis.
Django Wexler is on there. Mark Lawrence. Terry Brookes if you're feeling Olde Schoole. GGK.

There's even more urban fantasy stuff as well - Max Gladstone's Craft Sequence by example - tho ymmv in terms of quality, generally no fault of the narrator. Other than the Iron Druid series... that narrator makes me want to punch a schnauzer.

[QuickTidal]

Abyss, on 29 March 2017 - 02:14 PM, said:

I really really enjoyed the NORSE earbook. Gaiman is a glorious narrator and i extend the reco to any of his earbooks.

I would listen to Neil Gaiman read a grocery list.

[Abyss]

QuickTidal, on 29 March 2017 - 02:48 PM, said:

Abyss, on 29 March 2017 - 02:14 PM, said:

I really really enjoyed the NORSE earbook. Gaiman is a glorious narrator and i extend the reco to any of his earbooks.

I would listen to Neil Gaiman read a grocery list.

But it would be a really whimsical, fantastic grocery list, that suddenly took a dark turn, like it went from oranges and whipped cream and cereal to knives and fertiliser and then had sex with the dry-cleaning receipt.

[QuickTidal]

Abyss, on 29 March 2017 - 02:53 PM, said:

QuickTidal, on 29 March 2017 - 02:48 PM, said:

Abyss, on 29 March 2017 - 02:14 PM, said:

I really really enjoyed the NORSE earbook. Gaiman is a glorious narrator and i extend the reco to any of his earbooks.

I would listen to Neil Gaiman read a grocery list.

But it would be a really whimsical, fantastic grocery list, that suddenly took a dark turn, like it went from oranges and whipped cream and cereal to knives and fertiliser and then had sex with the dry-cleaning receipt.

But it would have Shoggoths Old Peculiar on it...a whole case. That's tasty stuff!

[Baco Xtath]

Looking for some comedy. Need some reccs.

What i've listen to and liked:
Warren Ellis
David Wong
Douglas Adams
Pratchett
Hard Luck Hank
Steven Brust
Jim Butcher
Cook (no Garrett P.I audiobooks unfortunately)
Iain Banks
Tad Williams's Bobby Dollar
Peter Clines
Nick Harkaway

My very favorites are Gone-Away World, John Dies at the End, Crooked Little Vein, and all Hard Luck Hank (though I think I'm the lone fan hereabouts).

[polishgenius]

The recently-discussed in the reading thread Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames is comic fantasy, as well as being a really good adventure quest thing. Not sure of the audiobook quality (I believe Abyss has it in the earbook queue, don't think he's started it yet), but if that's okay then the work itself is well worth it.



Poland's SF master Stanislaw Lem isn't generally thought of as a comic writer, but his Cyberiad and Star Diaries are both works of comedy, among other things, and I see both are available on Audible. Of course, here you run the double issue of needing both a good narrator and a good translation, neither of which I can vouch for, but Lem is one of the true greats and either of those is as good a place to start as any.

[Baco Xtath]

Bought Kings of the Wyld and will start it next. Also stuck Cyberiad and Star Diaries in my wishlist. Putting down over two books a week in earbook has me constantly in search of more. I really wish they'd make the Jonathan Swift books into audiobooks.

[Andorion]

Listened to some more of Zen Cho's Sorceror to the Crown. The awfulness of the narration is tamped down a bit, but I am not impressed with the authors very unimaginative tackling of 19th Century societal mores.

[Baco Xtath]

Finished Kings of the Wyld. Holy shit, that was a lot of fun. The comedy aspect doesn't overshadow the story though it's definitely prevalent but the book overall is fantastic. Very much obliged for the recc as I've been finishing drywall and painting this week and it made it bearable.

[Abyss]

Coming off of WARBREAKER, felt like a little fun so started JOHN DIES AT THE END. Great narrator, really works well with tone and speed. Speaks faster than I'm used to for earbook, but it works once I adjusted.

[Baco Xtath]

Abyss, on 08 April 2017 - 05:58 PM, said:

Coming off of WARBREAKER, felt like a little fun so started JOHN DIES AT THE END. Great narrator, really works well with tone and speed. Speaks faster than I'm used to for earbook, but it works once I adjusted.

The sequel is a different narrator but he's also my favorite, Nick Podehl. I wouldn't recommend going straight into it because the change is jarring but it's a fantastic listen, probably even crazier than the first, which is saying a whole helluva lot.

[JPK]

I polished off Cornwell's The Burning Land yesterday.

Spoiler

I can't wait to see who Uhtred's next woman is. Joking aside, I'm surprised that he went for Alfred's daughter. I mean, he's giving her husband exactly the excuse he was looking for to divorce her and force Alfred's hand. I can't wait to see the fallout from that situation in the next book.

Now I've started Zahn's new Thrawn book. I'm still really early in, but it's refreshing to see the cold calculating Thrawn back. Also, this audiobook has sound effects like birds and crickets chirping as well as explosions. I'm not sure how I feel about that addition yet.