[Mentalist]

4 chapters into Magic Binds , and I have a sneaking suspicion I know what "Kate's new Rubicon" is gonna be

Spoiler

She's gonna go and recruit Hugh against Roland, isn't she?

[Abyss]

Mentalist, on 30 January 2018 - 11:49 PM, said:

4 chapters into Magic Binds , and I have a sneaking suspicion I know what "Kate's new Rubicon" is gonna be

Spoiler

She's gonna go and recruit Hugh against Roland, isn't she?

Nah. They just bang.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

I finished Red Mars last night. Move over, GRRM — KSR is a master of abruptly killing off relatable characters.

Started Green Mars. For all the darkness of the human condition on display in these books, I find them relentlessly inspiring and optimistic.

[Abyss]

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 31 January 2018 - 12:53 PM, said:

I finished Red Mars last night. Move over, GRRM — KSR is a master of abruptly killing off relatable characters.

Started Green Mars. For all the darkness of the human condition on display in these books, I find them relentlessly inspiring and optimistic.

Stop now and walk away while you still hold that favorable impression.

[JPK]

I'm about 100 pages into Peter Watts' Blindsight and I've a couple of thoughts It'd like to share.

Spoiler

1- I have to hand it to Watts, he has managed to write a very compelling sociopath as a main character here.

2- The Firefall is a terrifying concept. There's something out there and it obviously knows we're here, but it's not even attempting to talk to us. Holy shit, they're in trouble.

So, yeah, I'm enjoying this so far.

[Aptorian]

Read Blindsight a while back as well. It is indeed very unnerving and Watt's writing is impressively clever. I love it when it feels like the author is a hundred miles ahead of you at any time.

[Abyss]

JPK, on 31 January 2018 - 06:25 PM, said:

I'm about 100 pages into Peter Watts' Blindsight and I've a couple of thoughts It'd like to share.

Spoiler

1- I have to hand it to Watts, he has managed to write a very compelling sociopath as a main character here.

2- The Firefall is a terrifying concept. There's something out there and it obviously knows we're here, but it's not even attempting to talk to us. Holy shit, they're in trouble.

So, yeah, I'm enjoying this so far.

Alternative Goose, on 31 January 2018 - 06:33 PM, said:

Read Blindsight a while back as well. It is indeed very unnerving and Watt's writing is impressively clever. I love it when it feels like the author is a hundred miles ahead of you at any time.

Loved that book, tho i have yet to get around to the sequel.
At once insanely complex yet addictively readable... you kind of feel smarter and dumber for having read it.

Amazes me that he just gives it away for free.

[JPK]

Abyss, on 31 January 2018 - 06:44 PM, said:

JPK, on 31 January 2018 - 06:25 PM, said:

I'm about 100 pages into Peter Watts' Blindsight and I've a couple of thoughts It'd like to share.

Spoiler

1- I have to hand it to Watts, he has managed to write a very compelling sociopath as a main character here.

2- The Firefall is a terrifying concept. There's something out there and it obviously knows we're here, but it's not even attempting to talk to us. Holy shit, they're in trouble.

So, yeah, I'm enjoying this so far.

Alternative Goose, on 31 January 2018 - 06:33 PM, said:

Read Blindsight a while back as well. It is indeed very unnerving and Watt's writing is impressively clever. I love it when it feels like the author is a hundred miles ahead of you at any time.

Loved that book, tho i have yet to get around to the sequel.
At once insanely complex yet addictively readable... you kind of feel smarter and dumber for having read it.

Amazes me that he just gives it away for free.

Not just Blindsight either. He has pretty much everything but Echopraxia up for grabs.

Watts' Backlist

[Abyss]

JPK, on 31 January 2018 - 07:46 PM, said:

Abyss, on 31 January 2018 - 06:44 PM, said:

JPK, on 31 January 2018 - 06:25 PM, said:

I'm about 100 pages into Peter Watts' Blindsight and I've a couple of thoughts It'd like to share.

Spoiler

1- I have to hand it to Watts, he has managed to write a very compelling sociopath as a main character here.

2- The Firefall is a terrifying concept. There's something out there and it obviously knows we're here, but it's not even attempting to talk to us. Holy shit, they're in trouble.

So, yeah, I'm enjoying this so far.

Alternative Goose, on 31 January 2018 - 06:33 PM, said:

Read Blindsight a while back as well. It is indeed very unnerving and Watt's writing is impressively clever. I love it when it feels like the author is a hundred miles ahead of you at any time.

Loved that book, tho i have yet to get around to the sequel.
At once insanely complex yet addictively readable... you kind of feel smarter and dumber for having read it.

Amazes me that he just gives it away for free.

Not just Blindsight either. He has pretty much everything but Echopraxia up for grabs.

Watts' Backlist

Yep. His STARFISH remains a favorite of mine. The rest of the Rifters trilo is good, but that book is just a whole other level.

[Aptorian]

Read a bit more Annihilation, much earlier this time, thank you very much.

The book is weird. There is a hopelessness to the whole tale. Like the books chapters. Annihilation. Desolation. Immolation. Or what ever they are called. Like there is nothing but death or eternity laid bare before the protagonist as she wanders further into this inferno of weirdness. Everything continues to be normal and so not normal. And everything is sort skewed because at some point you need to realise that the biologist has to be an unreliable narrator. Not just because of her exposure but because of how weird Area X is. Is any of it even happening?

There's about a third of the book left. I have no idea where the story is going or how it will possibly end. I don't expect a happy ending.

Also reading more Sandman Slim. Also about a two thirds in or more. I feel like the story has completely derailed or rather I finally realized the book has no destination. Stark has come across like 5 different people/factions now and only 1 of them was Mason bad guy related. The story is just expanding instead of zeroing in on the vendetta against Starks enemies. Which leaves me with the notion that this will indeed just be an open ended series and Mason is probably going to be the big bad, one armed man, the living macguffin for more books. Or who knows, in a hundred pages everybody is going to be dead. What ever the case, this book lacks a red thread.

I also think Stark is written very inconsistently as "Sandman Slim". Supposedly he's a monster slaying, gladiator champion cum demonic hitman, mortally wounded an infinite amount of times, resistant to all kinds of damage, blessed by a hundred unholy spells, etc. but his powerlevels are hugely inaccurately depicted. He's super strong but not actually, super durable but he gets bruised and battered constantly, he can't die but he's constantly almost killed... I feel like the author desperately wants to keep tension when ever Stark gets in danger and as such is undermining the supposed scariness of this Sandman Slim persona. He can't even break a pair of hand cuff for Christ sake.

Arguing that Sandman Slim is a scary demon killer, feels like when people think Superman should be afraid of Batman. Yeah, Batman might get lucky if Superman is distracted, but Superman could sneeze and blow Batman into sub atomic particles from across the solar system.

This post has been edited by Alternative Goose: 31 January 2018 - 09:34 PM

[Mentalist]

Hah, just wait till you get to Authority. That's where it gets creepy.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Abyss, on 31 January 2018 - 03:26 PM, said:

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 31 January 2018 - 12:53 PM, said:

I finished Red Mars last night. Move over, GRRM — KSR is a master of abruptly killing off relatable characters.

Started Green Mars. For all the darkness of the human condition on display in these books, I find them relentlessly inspiring and optimistic.

Stop now and walk away while you still hold that favorable impression.

Why?

[Abyss]

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 31 January 2018 - 10:58 PM, said:

Abyss, on 31 January 2018 - 03:26 PM, said:

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 31 January 2018 - 12:53 PM, said:

I finished Red Mars last night. Move over, GRRM — KSR is a master of abruptly killing off relatable characters.

Started Green Mars. For all the darkness of the human condition on display in these books, I find them relentlessly inspiring and optimistic.

Stop now and walk away while you still hold that favorable impression.

Why?

Just a personal opinion on how the second book develops. You’ll form your own view.

[Maark Abbott]

Somewhat over halfway through Deadhouse Landing now. It's starting to pick up which is good. Still not thrilled by it but ICE still has time to turn my opinion about.

[Morgoth]

Mentalist, on 31 January 2018 - 10:05 PM, said:

Hah, just wait till you get to Authority. That's where it gets creepy.

That attic/ storage room scene 😱

[QuickTidal]

Morgoth, on 01 February 2018 - 09:55 AM, said:

Mentalist, on 31 January 2018 - 10:05 PM, said:

Hah, just wait till you get to Authority. That's where it gets creepy.

That attic/ storage room scene 😱

That is my hands down fave moment in the trilogy. Goddamn.

[Aptorian]

Finished Annihilation yesterday. Bit of a disappointing ending but it wasn't much different than I expected. There shouldn't really be true answers but:

Spoiler

I felt there was some revelation missing at the end. Coming face to face with the crawler was not enough. I wanted to know what was behind the door of light.

What I was really hoping for was something like ending of "Rats in the Walls". The stairs of the tower would opened up into a vast cave or something similar and what the Biologist then saw should have driven her mad. Old Lovecraft style.

But eh, I just started reading Authority and I think we're getting something else.

I do wonder about this maker of words crawler thing. What the hell was it doing? Fortune telling? Reprogamming Area X? So strange.

This really did feel like reading an overly long Lovecraft story. Are there any other authors out there that have this successfully recreated Lovecrafts themes and atmosphere?

[Maark Abbott]

Damn Goose, you seem to tear through books. I'm lucky if I finish one per month at the moment.

[Aptorian]

I've been at home sick for two days, today probably too. I've had nothing to do other than sleep and read and try to lie really still while the waves of nausea crash against my bed side.

[Maark Abbott]

Alternative Goose, on 02 February 2018 - 07:10 AM, said:

I've been at home sick for two days, today probably too. I've had nothing to do other than sleep and read and try to lie really still while the waves of nausea crash against my bed side.

I'd say hold me, but... back, back with you, plaguebearer!