[Tiste Simeon]

Aptorian, on 20 August 2022 - 06:50 PM, said:

There's always other books to read.

I get this! I'm currently struggling through the second Crimson Empire book and part of me is just like "you've got so many books to read why waste your time if you're not enjoying it?"

On this occasion I'm inclined to keep going purely because of how many people on here who's opinion I respect have told me it's good.

[Aptorian]

I am of course also being slightly facetious. There are books that are worth giving a try despite your first impressions and there are books worth sticking through, despite not loving the experience. I just finished the Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy, only because I thought it was culturally significant enough that I felt I should know it. But it's also perfectly legitimate to dismiss a book on the first page or at first glance.

It's part of the reason why authors should be very "hands on" when decisions are made about the cover, the text on the back, the spine, the title, the font and set-up of the pages, etc. So many books look like shit or seem uninspired when you examine them or open up on the first page. Minimalistic designs, with some windings logo and a single color. It's all important if you want to catch the readers attention when their eyes are scanning across hundreds of books on a display or on the shelf.

And I really hate that candle hand cover for some reason I can't quite put my finger on (pun intended).

[worry]

YOLO

[Gwynn ap Nudd]

Just finished Michael J Sullivan's Age of Myth. Like what he states in the preamble about not publishing the first book in a series until the whole thing is written, to avoid those never finished series. Obviously not everyone can do that, but it is a bonus.

The book is not ground breaking, but had a decent plot, writing and character development. Foreshadowing is a little over heavy towards some events - not "oh neat everyone here dies three hundred pages from now" a la the red wedding, but some events are predictable. Decent world building. Might not be as much emphasis from his part on world building as I understand this is in a world he has written about in a couple of other series. Solid enough I'll read the next book, but not great enough that I'll go pick up the next book now when there is other interesting stuff on my too read pile.

My only quibble is that it there is the early premise that the events at the start of the book are going to start a war between man and essentially elves, which man cannot possibly survive. This was only book one of six, but I really doubt humanity goes extinct. That's a book I would like to read. The elves seem shut away and in decline, man trespasses into their territory logging and trapping, elves get pissed off, no more humans.

[QuickTidal]

Gwynn ap Nudd, on 22 August 2022 - 06:18 AM, said:

My only quibble is that it there is the early premise that the events at the start of the book are going to start a war between man and essentially elves, which man cannot possibly survive. This was only book one of six, but I really doubt humanity goes extinct. That's a book I would like to read. The elves seem shut away and in decline, man trespasses into their territory logging and trapping, elves get pissed off, no more humans.

In the Riyria Relevations books (which he wrote first and take place about 2000 years after that one), elves are either hidden away in their lands and in no communication with humans, or they are treated as slaves and are racially profiled by human in human cities which now dominate the landscape.

The 6 books in the series you started show how that possibly happens when the elves seem so ascendant and powerful in AGE OF MYTH, as you noted "How could man survive such a conflict"....you gotta RAFO. Those books get better as they go as he builds that world....but yeah, the key bit you might be missing is that the elves are pitiful creatures in the main series, so I think he always wanted to tell how the world and societies got there.

I don't want to spoil anything for you, but it's a long and interesting journey.

[QuickTidal]

I'm doing THE SURGEON'S MATE by Patrick O'Brian (continuing my first circumnavigation of the Aubreyad) in audiobook....and this is in fact the first audiobook that I've ever tried that could hold my attention. Read by Ric Jerrom, who does the voices quite well and is never boring.

In physical book I'm about 100 pages into MAGIC'S PAWN by Mercedes Lackey (Herald-Mage book 1). It's much different from the first Valdemar trilogy, but I'm very much enjoying it!

[amphibian]

Tiste Simeon, on 21 August 2022 - 12:27 PM, said:

Aptorian, on 20 August 2022 - 06:50 PM, said:

There's always other books to read.

I get this! I'm currently struggling through the second Crimson Empire book and part of me is just like "you've got so many books to read why waste your time if you're not enjoying it?"

On this occasion I'm inclined to keep going purely because of how many people on here who's opinion I respect have told me it's good.

I really think you'll enjoy what happens in book two, especially as Hoartrap stops being able to anticipate the plot and as the young ones start to really become interesting people on the level of the old gang of demon controllers.

[Tiste Simeon]

amphibian, on 22 August 2022 - 06:56 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 21 August 2022 - 12:27 PM, said:

Aptorian, on 20 August 2022 - 06:50 PM, said:

There's always other books to read.

I get this! I'm currently struggling through the second Crimson Empire book and part of me is just like "you've got so many books to read why waste your time if you're not enjoying it?"

On this occasion I'm inclined to keep going purely because of how many people on here who's opinion I respect have told me it's good.

I really think you'll enjoy what happens in book two, especially as Hoartrap stops being able to anticipate the plot and as the young ones start to really become interesting people on the level of the old gang of demon controllers.

I'm carrying on at the moment but I dunno it just feels like the momentum isn't there any more! I'm about a quarter of the way through and it feels like a drag to me for some reason...

[amphibian]

It's definitely a book that opens with tumult and a ton of walking by Sullen + Grandfa.

[QuickTidal]

Finished SURGEON'S MATE. Excellent stuff as usual.

Finished MAGIC'S PAWN too...I find the protagonist (Vanyel) EXCEPTIONALLY whiny and annoying, but everything else about it was solid.

Since I'm watching WOT on Prime, I decided to do a slow/unhurried re-read of the books (starting with THE GREAT HUNT, because reasons) so that's what I'm onto next.

[pat5150]

Recently finished Weis and Hickman's Dragons of Deceit and it's by far their worse Dragonlance book ever. It could be their worst work to date. Definitely wait for the ebook sale, as it's not worth the cover price.

You can read my full review here​​​​​​​.

[QuickTidal]

pat5150, on 23 August 2022 - 07:17 PM, said:

Recently finished Weis and Hickman's Dragons of Deceit and it's by far their worse Dragonlance book ever. It could be their worst work to date. Definitely wait for the ebook sale, as it's not worth the cover price.

You can read my full review here​​​​​​​.

Goddamit Pat! I have this on ebook at cover price...have not read it yet....I'm not happy to hear it's this bad.

[JPK]

QuickTidal, on 23 August 2022 - 07:33 PM, said:

pat5150, on 23 August 2022 - 07:17 PM, said:

Recently finished Weis and Hickman's Dragons of Deceit and it's by far their worse Dragonlance book ever. It could be their worst work to date. Definitely wait for the ebook sale, as it's not worth the cover price.

You can read my full review here​​​​​​​.

Goddamit Pat! I have this on ebook at cover price...have not read it yet....I'm not happy to hear it's this bad.

Hold on to hope that maybe we won't agree with Pat? I mean, yeah, we usually agree with Pat, but maybe this time we won't?

[pat5150]

Sorry, guys. Nobody wanted to like this one more than I did.

It's awful. . .

[JPK]

pat5150, on 23 August 2022 - 11:00 PM, said:

Sorry, guys. Nobody wanted to like this one more than I did.

It's awful. . .

Let me have my denial!

[Tsundoku]

pat5150, on 23 August 2022 - 11:00 PM, said:

Sorry, guys. Nobody wanted to like this one more than I did.

It's awful. . .

"The Dragonlance Chronicles were my gateway into the fantasy genre. It was my first year of junior high and I was twelve years old."

I received it as a Xmas gift when I was 12 (first year of High School, year 7) as well. Sounds like we are of a similar vintage.
After reading The Hobbit a year or so beforehand because it came with the Commodore 64 game, and the Narnia series not long before that, it was one of my intros to fantasy.
Not long after a friend of mine got me into playing AD&D and that was that.

[Abyss]

I fell out of Dragonlance a long long time ago, and while DEATHGATE remains one of my fave series ever, I've read enough from both authors that were close to the opposite, or just ok. Even so I'm sad to read this because I would have loved to see a triumphant return for them and Dragonlance generally when DnD is having a resurgence via streaming games.

Just Finished RUIN OF KINGS, very satisfying ending and game changer for the next book, and moving to Lyons' second Chorus of Dragons book NAME OF ALL THINGS. It's a direct sequel, adding some new characters including a septagenerian horny grandmother spymaster who is rapidly stealing every scene she's in. The narrative focus has changed and the primary narrator isnt quite as skilled as the first book's at the rapid voice switching necessary but she seems to be getting better and the editors seem to have noticed and given her slightly longer pauses after about 20% of the way. Still enjoying this series.

[QuickTidal]

Abyss, on 24 August 2022 - 04:22 PM, said:

I would have loved to see a triumphant return for them and Dragonlance generally when DnD is having a resurgence via streaming games.

This has been amplified by things like Critical Role, and STRANGER THINGS having so much D&D touchstoning....and I expect that IF next years D&D: Honor Among Thieves movie is a hit that this will only increase.

so yeah, it would have been nice for the new DL movies to hit on that sweet spot...

[QuickTidal]

Re-reading the WOT in its entirety.

I finished the series back when AMOL came out, but I skipped and skimmed SO much of the middle books and I think I was more lost in the final 3 books than I would ever have admitted (hell, Illy told me the only thing of note that happened in one of them and so I skipped it entirely).

I also recall saying that the series was not really worth it in the end....but I'm here to eat crow as I don't think I realized at the time what a profound enjoyment I got out of books 1-6 at least...and I was being unfair.

I donated the series (most of which was the old school Sweet covers in MMPB versions) to my local library and didn't really look back.

Then the show came out and I started to get an itch to re-visit it, but didn't. Now that I've almost finished the show, the urge to re-read became too overwhelming, and TeotW and TGH were both on ebook sale a few weeks back so I picked them up for my re-read.

Then I realized that a wish I had WAY back when I originally read them (that the sweet eBook covers they released would grace physical copies of the books) had come true in the intervening years...and what would a QT post be WITHOUT me buying a whole slew of books at once for matching covers...I have re-purchased Books 0-11 in the most recent TOR Trade Paperbacks (the final 3 are on my Christmas list), all of which have been redesigned with largely the eBook redesigns, they look spectacular, and they match on the shelf. Sidenote: TeotW has the old Sweet cover art, just adapted onto the new format and not the eBook art of Rand on the ship, CROWN OF SWORDS uses Tyler Jacobson's art of everyone's not-favourite cougar Cadsuane, instead of Mélanie Delon's art from the eBooks, PATH OF DAGGERS has Chris Rahn's art instead of Julie Bells [a shame as I REALLY liked Bell's] from the eBooks....but every other entry is the same from the 2011 redesigns.

So anyways, I skipped TeotW since I just watched the show and I wanted to roll into TGH instead, and I'm only about 100 pages into it, but I've already forgotten so much!

[Tiste Simeon]

QT I realised when the show came out that I had most of the series on my Kindle. I've never read it and I'm tempted to start (perhaps interspersing it with other books).

Do you think it's worth beginning without the nostalgia factor that you might have?