[Tsundoku]

Thanks

Finished King of Ashes. It was ... ok. I'll read the next one, but I hope it picks up the pace a little. Then again, this one was the 'establishing' book.

Six Weasley clones out of ten.

In between times I read The Mammoth book of Alternate Histories (short stories). Not bad, but could have trimmed maybe a third of the stories. I guess then it wouldn't have been so mammoth though.

Seven inevitable variations on the cause/end of WW2 out of ten.

Now on to Dancer's Lament.

This post has been edited by Tsundoku: 01 October 2018 - 12:51 PM

[Abyss]

Puck, on 01 October 2018 - 08:55 AM, said:

... as with Fool's Assassin, the actual story starts about 85-90% into the book. Fitz just sits around diddling his thumbs for most of the book.

This is one of my primary problems with Hobb.

[Puck]

Abyss, on 01 October 2018 - 01:44 PM, said:

Puck, on 01 October 2018 - 08:55 AM, said:

... as with Fool's Assassin, the actual story starts about 85-90% into the book. Fitz just sits around diddling his thumbs for most of the book.

This is one of my primary problems with Hobb.

Guess what? It's even worse in this trilogy than in the previous ones. At least Tawny Man had all that unnecessary shipping bait to string you along. Not so much Fitz and the Fool!

...I really should already finish this stuff and be done with it. To be fair, at this point I'm just wanting to find out how far Hobb can stretch this. That she has the balls to go on endlessly is pretty obvious.

[Andorion]

Reading The Sky is Yours by Chandler Klang Smith. Interesting world and idea utterly drowned by turgid plot and idiotic characters.


Also finished The Conquering Tide, the second book in Ian Toll's Pacific War series. These books are really informative and well written. I hope he writed a third from Leyte Gulf to Okinawa.

[Maark Abbott]

Puck, on 01 October 2018 - 08:55 AM, said:

Tsundoku, on 30 September 2018 - 11:49 PM, said:

worry, on 30 September 2018 - 11:28 PM, said:

INow onto The Great Ordeal.

Is that code for any Bakker read? That's what I felt when I read the first one and didn't feel the desire to go further.

You know, I love Bakker, but this is just too good


In reading matters, I am about to finish Fool's Quest. I had to take a month+ break because... the slog. The sloooog. There wasn't even any shipping bait to change up the scenery, except that bit stuffed in shortly before the end. You'd think that two characters who are supposedly devoted to each other to such a degree as they claim would have more meaningful conversations that I do with my distant cousin. Same issue as with Fool's Assassin, the actual story starts about 85-90% into the book. Fitz just sits around diddling his thumbs for most of the book.

Puck, do you smell a Weeper? On the slog?

The COFFERS, boys!

[TheRetiredBridgeburner]

Started The Book of Dust - only a few chapters in but it's got the same lovely whimsical feel to it as HDM already.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Just finished Holdstock's Mythago Wood. This is a good book with a satisfying ending.

I'm debating whether I should follow it up with the sequel, Lavondyss, which is not as positively reviewed. I'd also be perfectly happy to leave it where Mythago ends. Thoughts?

[QuickTidal]

Finished A BREATH OF SNOW AND ASHES (Outlander Book 6) by Diana Gabaldon...man, after book 3 those books are TWICE the length they need to be for the amount of relevant story that is contained therein. Like there is a solid bunch of meaty plot points and things going on...but it's mired in a whole slew of day-to-day crap that doesn't matter. It's fine. I'm just cranky that I had to read a 1500-page book to get like a 600-700pg story. Only two more of these giant volumes and I'm caught up with the series. There's a book of short stories I'll probably read before those just because...well, they're short. So glad the TV show cuts the extraneous fluff out of this narrative.

Onto Riryia re-read, book 2, AVEMPARTHA...and already I noticed something from the prequel series that makes a plot point in this book SO much richer!

spoilers for FIRST EMPIRE series up to AGE OF WAR...

Spoiler

When I first read this book I had no idea why an enchanted sword would be able to kill a Gilarabrwyn (dragon)...it seemed like such a "this if fantasy, so of course a special sword could kill a beast" point that felt like a minor let down.

Then in AGE OF SWORDS we learn that Gilarabrwyn's are not just dragons, they are the soul of a loved one, killed by magic, and reborn as a dragon like being of magic. So that added a different dimension to the creature.

And then in AGE OF WAR we learn that the enchanted sword is the item that killed the loved one to create the creature, and therefore the same sword is the only thing that can end its magical existence.

I don't know how much Sullivan planned that out in advance or if it's a retcon to tie up a loose end...but MAN that makes the fact that a Gilarabrwyn terrorizing Thrace's village by the Nidwalden and Avempartha SO much more of a plot point, and so much better than it was originally. There is a weight there that didn't exist before.

Loves it.

[Mentalist]

Finished the first Moorcock short story collection. Mostly good, mostly dealing with some sort of post-apoc setting. Thematically similar to the really early sci-fi books (which I mentioned in the Moorcock review thread), with the over-arching theme being the extremes (both good and bad) to which humans can go in extreme situations. The exception is "The Caire Purse", which reads more a setting-piece, focused on Aswan in a setting of a global fuel crisis and dealing more with the sense of place and less with the character plot (which reads a bit like a short mystery)

Moved onto vol 2 of the best short fiction.

This post has been edited by Mentalist: 06 October 2018 - 07:38 PM

[Abyss]

Jemisin's OBSIDIAN GATE just finished, on to STONE SKY.

Solid series this. Reminds me of Vodna McIntyre's DREAMSNAKE in post-apocalyptic tone, but faster pace, and i really like the setting/magic system/big concept.
Also like the shifting style of narration, nicely original.

[worry]

Yah, I may have said this already, but I really love how the finale of each book dictates changes to the narrative 'tricks' she gets to pull in the next, and yet all three books manage something cool in that regard.

[Tiste Simeon]

worry, on 30 September 2018 - 11:28 PM, said:

I finished Harry August. Didn't love it as much as some, but I liked it well enough. 3 stars on the ol' Goodreads meter.

I think you'd like her other book THE SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF HOPE. It is very much something I can see you getting behind. I've not finished it yet but I'll post some thoughts when I have.

[amphibian]

Tiste Simeon, on 02 October 2018 - 09:19 PM, said:

worry, on 30 September 2018 - 11:28 PM, said:

I finished Harry August. Didn't love it as much as some, but I liked it well enough. 3 stars on the ol' Goodreads meter.

I think you'd like her other book THE SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF HOPE. It is very much something I can see you getting behind. I've not finished it yet but I'll post some thoughts when I have.

I didn't like Sudden Appearance that much. August felt more moving and the best of her books are the Matthew Swift ones.

[worry]

Fortunately I am immortal, so I will get to every book eventually.

[Andorion]

amphibian, on 02 October 2018 - 11:17 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 02 October 2018 - 09:19 PM, said:

worry, on 30 September 2018 - 11:28 PM, said:

I finished Harry August. Didn't love it as much as some, but I liked it well enough. 3 stars on the ol' Goodreads meter.

I think you'd like her other book THE SUDDEN APPEARANCE OF HOPE. It is very much something I can see you getting behind. I've not finished it yet but I'll post some thoughts when I have.

I didn't like Sudden Appearance that much. August felt more moving and the best of her books are the Matthew Swift ones.

I would rank her Claire North books like this:
1. Harry August2. Gameworld3. Touch4. Sudden Appearance of Hope5. End of the Day
I loved the base concept of Sudden Appearance, but the execution was too on the nose for me. End of the Day felt very repetitive.

[Salt-Man Z]

Just blitzed through the entirety of Vaughan/Staples' SAGA the past three days. Today I devoured volume 9 and WHAT THE FUCK.

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

Reynolds' Elysium Fire.

[Macros]

Regards: harry August.

What were your problems with the book?

A few of the Goodreads negstivs reviews I saw (after reading) had complained about

Spoiler

Harry's character being flat or not progressing. Which I kind of thought was the point. He openly admits he is emotionally broken on some level, that's why he is able to win in the end. He stops a misguided monster solely by the virtue of being an emotionally broken (and so emotionless when it matters) mess. A cold and objective monster on some level as well .

I tried to respond to the review but the phone ate my post twice and I just gave up

[Abyss]

Salt-Man Z, on 03 October 2018 - 07:26 PM, said:

Just blitzed through the entirety of Vaughan/Staples' SAGA the past three days. Today I devoured volume 9 and WHAT THE FUCK.

Which WTF? ....there were so many.

[Salt-Man Z]

Abyss, on 04 October 2018 - 02:40 AM, said:

Which WTF? ....there were so many.

The end of issue #54. (Last 6 pages or so, really.) I am very upset.