[D'iversify]

Salt-Man Z, on 01 September 2013 - 01:57 PM, said:

I think Severian's unreliability is less important than a lot of people make it out to be. There's a certain lie of omission that makes you do a double take at one point, but certainly there's nothing integral to the plot, I don't think.

OK, thanks. Good to know that I'm not just overly drawn in by his charisma as a character.

[polishgenius]

There are occasional moments when he might be outright lying, but by and large, his unreliability comes from omission, vagueness and, often, him having a different idea of what's important than you'd expect so things will be mentioned in passing that have a big effect later and the like.

[Serenity]

polishgenius, on 31 August 2013 - 12:15 PM, said:

Serenity, on 31 August 2013 - 11:40 AM, said:

Abyss, on 30 August 2013 - 02:00 PM, said:

I hope you're patient. Apparently poor sales of the second trilo bks 1 and 2 have left Bakker focusing on his academin career. he's still writing, but it's a sideline so bk 3 may take years.


- Abyss, bummed about that.

I can wait - so much other stuff to read

Mind you, at the rate I'm progressing, I'll probably still be reading The Count of Monte Cristo by the time Bakker's done

I think the thing to bear in mind that when you're waiting like that... it's your fault.

Nothing's my fault, I'm completely innocent

Well, apart from taking so fecking long to read TCoMC Might manage to finish it tomorrow. God, I hope so!

[Tiste Simeon]

Dead Beat!

[McLovin]

QUINLAN VOS: JEDI IN DARKNESS.

[JPK]

Finished Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World the night before last. As I mentioned elsethread, I loved it enough to immediately order IQ84. I know some of you guys on here are fairly well versed in his works, what would you consider to be the must-haves of Murakami? There's enough of it I feel I need to ask for a little bit of direction here.

In the meanwhile I've started on my September reading list with The Wandering Fire and I'm already ready 150 pages into it. All in all I'm very excited for my list for the month as if I follow through I'll have knocked this one out as well as The Protector's War by SM Stirling, The Silmarillion by Tolkien, Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth, and a reread of Ghost King by Gemmell.

[worry]

I've only read Sputnik Sweetheart, and I have no idea where it stands in comparison to his other works, but I liked it a lot. I wouldn't say "enjoyed" since it's morose as hell, but it's intriguingly opaque and actually made me feel uneasy...like a light sci-fi, comic-relief-less David Lynch or Daniel Clowes story. IIRC it's fairly stream-of-consciousness too, which helps set the mood, but it's a short enough novel that it doesn't become stifling.

That said, I read it at the same time as I read a book called A Personal Matter by Kenzaburo Oe, which is about an entirely different subject but somehow struck a very similar chord -- I was in a weird mood with both of them, and I sometimes conflate them, but hopefully I didn't in the above description.

[Serenity]

Finished The Count of Monte Cristo yesterday. Thank fuck for that!

Straight away, for some reason, I decided to start another doorstopper, The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Penman, about Richard III. Only 950 pages, a mere novella by comparison

[QuickTidal]

The Incredible Kitsu, on 02 September 2013 - 08:07 PM, said:

Finished Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World the night before last. As I mentioned elsethread, I loved it enough to immediately order IQ84. I know some of you guys on here are fairly well versed in his works, what would you consider to be the must-haves of Murakami? There's enough of it I feel I need to ask for a little bit of direction here.

1Q84 is easily on the list of Murakami must-haves. The others that I've read that are great are AFTER DARK, DANCE, DANCE, DANCE, and KAFKA ON THE SHORE....but yeah from what I hear all his books are worth it.

[Salt-Man Z]

Finished Emperor of Thorns over the weekend. As good an ending to a series as any I've ever read.

[QuickTidal]

Salt-Man Z, on 03 September 2013 - 03:34 PM, said:

Finished Emperor of Thorns over the weekend. As good an ending to a series as any I've ever read.

Indeed.

Spoiler

That epilogue was such perfect, creamy, dessert to me. On the back of such a wonderful ending, I was almost as pleased with that epilogue as I was the "19 years later" portion at the end of HARRY POTTER book 7. Great stuff!

[Tiste Simeon]

Proven Guilty (via Something Borrowed in Side Jobs)!

The Dresdencrack is even better the second time!!

[Salt-Man Z]

QuickTidal, on 03 September 2013 - 05:12 PM, said:

Salt-Man Z, on 03 September 2013 - 03:34 PM, said:

Finished Emperor of Thorns over the weekend. As good an ending to a series as any I've ever read.

Indeed.

Spoiler

That epilogue was such perfect, creamy, dessert to me. On the back of such a wonderful ending, I was almost as pleased with that epilogue as I was the "19 years later" portion at the end of HARRY POTTER book 7. Great stuff!

You know what actually bothered me the most in the entire book, though? The final sentence! I hated it; I just pretend it doesn't exist. The penultimate sentence is the one with real power behind it.

This post has been edited by Salt-Man Z: 04 September 2013 - 04:05 AM

[QuickTidal]

Salt-Man Z, on 04 September 2013 - 04:05 AM, said:

QuickTidal, on 03 September 2013 - 05:12 PM, said:

Salt-Man Z, on 03 September 2013 - 03:34 PM, said:

Finished Emperor of Thorns over the weekend. As good an ending to a series as any I've ever read.

Indeed.

Spoiler

That epilogue was such perfect, creamy, dessert to me. On the back of such a wonderful ending, I was almost as pleased with that epilogue as I was the "19 years later" portion at the end of HARRY POTTER book 7. Great stuff!

You know what actually bothered me the most in the entire book, though? The final sentence! I hated it; I just pretend it doesn't exist. The penultimate sentence is the one with real power behind it.

Heh, I doubt you'll find anyone who would disagree with you on that point sir.

[lokiman]

Might not be reading it right now, but I will be reading the series Bio of a Space Tyrant by Piers Anthony.
Read this when I was about 15, going to see if I still enjoy it 8 years later.

[Tiste Simeon]

White Night!

[Tattersail_]

Graablick, on 20 August 2013 - 03:57 PM, said:

Done with Ian Irvines Geomancer and I can't see any reason to read the rest of the series. The whole book was just dull and all the persons was as shallow as Skyrim.

Ha ha, I have all 4. Of that one.

[Abyss]

Tiste Simeon, on 31 August 2013 - 05:42 PM, said:

Blood Rites! Via Vignettes (Side Jobs)!

Tiste Simeon, on 02 September 2013 - 12:42 AM, said:

Dead Beat!

Tiste Simeon, on 03 September 2013 - 11:15 PM, said:

Proven Guilty (via Something Borrowed in Side Jobs)!

The Dresdencrack is even better the second time!!

Tiste Simeon, on 04 September 2013 - 11:46 AM, said:

White Night!

You're down to like 12 hrs per book Tiste... what. the hell?!?!??

[Tattersail_]

Tiste Simeon, on 24 August 2013 - 05:10 PM, said:

Now on Fool Moon!

I am.

[QuickTidal]

Started Leigh Bardugo's SHADOW AND BONE and I've been sucked right into it from page 1.

It's YA fantasy in what seems like Alt-history 17th century Russia, fused with military magic, class struggles, and a giant fuck-off expanse of gray sanded blackness called The Unsea that the faction sail across in skiffs (using wind created from Elemental Grisha's (magic users) to get to the actual sea and trade ect. I think what hit me first was how lovely and evocative the prose was, without being overtly flowery. If I had to match a tone and style...Harry Potter (just with a bit more of a teen edge from the outset) fits with the expansive worldbuilding and characters.

I'll check in when I'm done, but so far I nearly missed my subway stop...and that's normally a good sign.