[Andorion]

Briar King, on 09 October 2017 - 04:34 PM, said:

Andorion, on 09 October 2017 - 01:56 PM, said:

16 chapters into The Grace of Kings. Despite the strange narration I really rather like it.

I knew that was gonna happen. I was going to bed and stopped on pg 85 in ch6 and was like this motherfucker is going to be so far ahead of me by the time I'm awake.

Ch 5 was pretty fucked up. I'm loving the book.

I had actually meant to read around 4-5 chapters, but I just followed the narrative and didn't stop.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

I just finished Jemisin's The Stone Sky. A taut, wrought, highly emotional conclusion to what's been an emotional powerhouse of a trilogy.

The aspect of Jemisin's works — in her Inheritance and Fifth Season trilogies, at least — that strikes me the most is her ability to capture, process, and convey heavy, intense, and raw emotions in a way that doesn't feel restrained, filtered, or artificial — and that is relatable and empathetic. That's a singular talent, one that I haven't experienced often enough in my years of reading SF/F (Octavia Butler comes to mind [and no, not because they're both black ]).

And, to boot, in Fifth Season, she also crafted a detailed, logical, and fun system of magic and science-as-magic that has strong internal consistency, along with a great plot and ensemble of characters.

I find that pairing of higher-order logic with plaintive, unfettered emotion to be so compelling, and it's set a new standard for what I want to read.

5/5 vehimals.

This post has been edited by Whisperzzzzzzz: 10 October 2017 - 12:31 PM

[Andorion]

28 chapters into Grace of Kings. Really really good.

[Mentalist]

Finished "Magic Breaks". Contemplating just starting the next Kate Daniels novel right away, but I'll thin I'll go back to my Moorcock master-list instead (that stalled a while ago when I got into the Colonel Pyat Quartet and I haven't touched any Moorcock since)

So "War Among the Angels" omnibus goes into my work bag as a commute book.

At home, keeping up a steady pace on Fukuyama. Quite interesting so far.

[Andorion]

Briar King, on 11 October 2017 - 03:43 AM, said:

I just hit page 100. So fun.

What I am noticing is that the author seems to have hit upon a shortcut to putting in worldbuilding and infodumps by adopting the historical narrative style. Weber could learn from this.

[End of Disc One]

Yeah I was surprised at how much I cared about the characters given the cliff notes style of storytelling. My only complaint was that some of them died too soon.

Nearing the end of City of Stairs and it’s pretty damn good too. In some ways I’m reminded of Brandon Sanderson’s world building, where every piece is a part of the plot and there’s this mystery surrounding it.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

I'm starting Catling's The Vorrh. The praise for this book is unreal — Michael Moorcock, Terry Gilliam, Alan Moore, Jeff VanderMeer, and Phillip Pullman all say it's the best thing since hollowed pitas. I hope it's not exaggerated.

[Tattersail_]

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 11 October 2017 - 11:44 AM, said:

I'm starting Catling's The Vorrh. The praise for this book is unreal — Michael Moorcock, Terry Gilliam, Alan Moore, Jeff VanderMeer, and Phillip Pullman all say it's the best thing since hollowed pitas. I hope it's not exaggerated.

 Hollowed.PNG (184.81K)
Number of downloads: 0

[Tattersail_]

Briar King, on 12 October 2017 - 12:39 AM, said:

Dresden 3. Made it to the Sighting of someone. Leading up to this I had forgotten just how disturbing Mickey Malone's condition was. That is traumatic reading it again.

I thought about doing a re
read of Dresden, and then realised the next book is not due out until next century

[Tattersail_]

I'm reading one of the most unengaging book and have been in what seems like forever. I had to google the characters to remember the title. The Axe and the Throne. Its a slog.

[Abyss]

Tattersail_, on 12 October 2017 - 01:17 PM, said:

Briar King, on 12 October 2017 - 12:39 AM, said:

Dresden 3. Made it to the Sighting of someone. Leading up to this I had forgotten just how disturbing Mickey Malone's condition was. That is traumatic reading it again.

I thought about doing a re
read of Dresden, and then realised the next book is not due out until next century

BRIEF CASES in summer 2018. Will include a new Maggie & Mouse novella, so there's that.

No ETA on PEACE TALKS.

....damn there go the shakes again....



Am getting to the end of HELL DIVERS... this was a book (earbook) i had grabbed at serious discount a while ago on the strength of various reviews that put it as solid popcorn reading. Author is Nicholas Sansbury Smith... had never heard of him but apparently he has a bunch of more or less mil sf stuff published or self-pub'd.


It isn't bad at all. It's popcorn, way more action/thriller in an sf setting - post nuclear war apocalypse, shred of humanity survives in large airboats, commandos raid the surface for supplies - than actual sf, but he writes good Hollywood action, keeps things moving, and if his characters are easily familiar archetypes, it just means less time on development and more time running and shooting. It works. Its practically a videogame in book form, but in a good way. If he sticks the landing i'll probably go straight into the second book. Generally really strong earbook narration.

[Andorion]

Finished Grace of Kings and I loved it. The ending was well done. I just became a fan of Ken Liu.

[acesn8s]

Tattersail_, on 12 October 2017 - 01:26 PM, said:

I'm reading one of the most unengaging book and have been in what seems like forever. I had to google the characters to remember the title. The Axe and the Throne. Its a slog.

No limpers!

Sorry, still in the midst of White Luck Warrior.

Progress update, just had the "soylent green" moment.

[Andorion]

Briar King, on 12 October 2017 - 05:59 PM, said:

Andorion, on 12 October 2017 - 04:07 PM, said:

Finished Grace of Kings and I loved it. The ending was well done. I just became a fan of Ken Liu.

Good to hear. Bk 2 is out

May have to get it.

Not going to spoil anything BK, but this is a book that is absolutely fine as a standalone.

[End of Disc One]

I started the SFF classic Perdido Street Station. I had been warned that it takes a while for the story to get going, but I don't care about that if the world is interesting enough. And this world is definitely interesting enough.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Tattersail_, on 12 October 2017 - 01:16 PM, said:

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 11 October 2017 - 11:44 AM, said:

I'm starting Catling's The Vorrh. The praise for this book is unreal — Michael Moorcock, Terry Gilliam, Alan Moore, Jeff VanderMeer, and Phillip Pullman all say it's the best thing since hollowed pitas. I hope it's not exaggerated.

 Hollowed.PNG (184.81K)
Number of downloads: 0

A form of sliced bread.

This post has been edited by Whisperzzzzzzz: 12 October 2017 - 09:44 PM

[Traveller]

Gah, don't know what to read. Finished Hydrogen Sonata, finished a reread of Player of Games - need more Banks but I've read them.

Any suggestions? Sci-fi but not too heavy?

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

T, on 13 October 2017 - 10:16 AM, said:

Gah, don't know what to read. Finished Hydrogen Sonata, finished a reread of Player of Games - need more Banks but I've read them.

Any suggestions? Sci-fi but not too heavy?

Tchaikovsky's Children of Time?

[amphibian]

The Takeshi Kovacs books? A Darkling Sea by Cambria (which is a wonderful book)?

The Dervish House by MacDonald?

[polishgenius]

I always felt that Ann Leckie's Ancillary Justice and sequels had a faintly Banksian air to them. They're also brilliant.