[QuickTidal]

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 05:23 AM, said:

Abyss, on 14 February 2017 - 04:16 AM, said:

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 03:30 AM, said:

I've been chipping away at The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar for the last couple of weeks as my current ebook. I can't remember which one of you (Abyss or QT maybe?) was raving about it at the time, but I originally saw it mentioned on this thread, bought immediately, and left it sitting buried in my etrp ever since. That was a mistake. This book is insane in the best possible ways.
There is very little I feel I can say about this book without going into spoiler territory but it starts out with a young man going to see an illicit play about the Lizard Kings that have taken over an alternative London. During this play, a terrorist called The Bookman has sabotaged a book that is used for a prop and turns it into a bomb killing a couple of the actors and causing damage and general mayhem. Then things go crazy.

Not me, I ultimately borderline hated the series.Great concepts, execution utterly didn't work for me.

So I'm about 1/3 of the way through the second part of book 1 and find that is been rather solid so far. Can you go into any more detail about where it fell apart for you? Spoiler-free if possible? Honestly, I'm mostly just curious because I don't find my reading preferences differing from yours very often. As I've mentioned previously, I'm pretty sure you're directly to blame for about 1/3 of the stuff on my trp.

Also not me.

[Abyss]

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 05:23 AM, said:

Abyss, on 14 February 2017 - 04:16 AM, said:

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 03:30 AM, said:

I've been chipping away at The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar for the last couple of weeks as my current ebook. I can't remember which one of you (Abyss or QT maybe?) was raving about it at the time, but I originally saw it mentioned on this thread, bought immediately, and left it sitting buried in my etrp ever since. That was a mistake. This book is insane in the best possible ways.
There is very little I feel I can say about this book without going into spoiler territory but it starts out with a young man going to see an illicit play about the Lizard Kings that have taken over an alternative London. During this play, a terrorist called The Bookman has sabotaged a book that is used for a prop and turns it into a bomb killing a couple of the actors and causing damage and general mayhem. Then things go crazy.

Not me, I ultimately borderline hated the series.Great concepts, execution utterly didn't work for me.

So I'm about 1/3 of the way through the second part of book 1 and find that is been rather solid so far. Can you go into any more detail about where it fell apart for you? Spoiler-free if possible? Honestly, I'm mostly just curious because I don't find my reading preferences differing from yours very often. As I've mentioned previously, I'm pretty sure you're directly to blame for about 1/3 of the stuff on my trp.

I had to search my old posts to trigger the memory, so let me correct myself re the above - i liked the first book for its concepts and originality, i really enjoyed the second which went to a fun espionage space in the same setting, i was disappointed in the third which almost seemed a step backwards for the series, and skimmed massive chunks of it. That was due to the author meandering away from the things i enjoyed in 1 and 2 - rather than amping things up i found that he stepped back, and that didn't work for me. My comment was that the series is worth a try because most will likely enjoy the whole thing.

So yah, it probably was me, and if you're liking it so far keep going.

[JPK]

Mentalist, on 14 February 2017 - 12:32 PM, said:

Parts 1 and 2 are great. 3 tapers off quite a lot, mostly because it retreads same ground as 1, instead of doing smth new, and the pacing slows down.Oh, and it was me that pushed it, back in 2013.

That sounds like the right time frame, and explains why I've been having a hard time remembering who suggested it.

Abyss, on 14 February 2017 - 03:06 PM, said:

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 05:23 AM, said:

Abyss, on 14 February 2017 - 04:16 AM, said:

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 03:30 AM, said:

I've been chipping away at The Bookman by Lavie Tidhar for the last couple of weeks as my current ebook. I can't remember which one of you (Abyss or QT maybe?) was raving about it at the time, but I originally saw it mentioned on this thread, bought immediately, and left it sitting buried in my etrp ever since. That was a mistake. This book is insane in the best possible ways. There is very little I feel I can say about this book without going into spoiler territory but it starts out with a young man going to see an illicit play about the Lizard Kings that have taken over an alternative London. During this play, a terrorist called The Bookman has sabotaged a book that is used for a prop and turns it into a bomb killing a couple of the actors and causing damage and general mayhem. Then things go crazy.

Not me, I ultimately borderline hated the series.Great concepts, execution utterly didn't work for me.

So I'm about 1/3 of the way through the second part of book 1 and find that is been rather solid so far. Can you go into any more detail about where it fell apart for you? Spoiler-free if possible? Honestly, I'm mostly just curious because I don't find my reading preferences differing from yours very often. As I've mentioned previously, I'm pretty sure you're directly to blame for about 1/3 of the stuff on my trp.

I had to search my old posts to trigger the memory, so let me correct myself re the above - i liked the first book for its concepts and originality, i really enjoyed the second which went to a fun espionage space in the same setting, i was disappointed in the third which almost seemed a step backwards for the series, and skimmed massive chunks of it. That was due to the author meandering away from the things i enjoyed in 1 and 2 - rather than amping things up i found that he stepped back, and that didn't work for me. My comment was that the series is worth a try because most will likely enjoy the whole thing.So yah, it probably was me, and if you're liking it so far keep going.

I do plan on finishing it simply odd the strength of the first book. The thing that I find so interesting about this though, is that your original impressions of the work were overall positive but over time it twisted to that "borderline hate". It's funny what time can do.

[Abyss]

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 04:52 PM, said:

...
I do plan on finishing it simply odd the strength of the first book. The thing that I find so interesting about this though, is that your original impressions of the work were overall positive but over time it twisted to that "borderline hate". It's funny what time can do.

It totally is, and i fell back on the last impression, plus having time to think about it after that last post and deciding i was kind of annoyed with the series because 1 and 2 set up what should have been an awesome bk3.

I suppose it's fair to judge a series as a whole ... it's hard to want to commit to twoor more books knowing the finale that wraps things up disapoints... Wingrove's CHUNG KUO comes to mind... six great epic books, massive buildup, cast of thousands, then bk 7 is a trainwreck and i don't even want to discuss bk 8, or Campbell's DEEPGATE CODEX...

...so knowing the series is going to fail you in the last stretch, do you commit to the rest of it?

...but to be fair, i don't think Tidhar - a brilliant author - failed with BOOKMAN, i just didn't like where he went with it, much as Ment posted.

[EmperorMagus]

Color of Magic for the firs time.

"Big Bang Theory" ffs ...

Edit: Sorry, "Hypothesis"

This post has been edited by EmperorMagus: 14 February 2017 - 07:20 PM

[Mentalist]

Abyss, on 14 February 2017 - 07:07 PM, said:

JPK, on 14 February 2017 - 04:52 PM, said:

...
I do plan on finishing it simply odd the strength of the first book. The thing that I find so interesting about this though, is that your original impressions of the work were overall positive but over time it twisted to that "borderline hate". It's funny what time can do.

It totally is, and i fell back on the last impression, plus having time to think about it after that last post and deciding i was kind of annoyed with the series because 1 and 2 set up what should have been an awesome bk3.

I suppose it's fair to judge a series as a whole ... it's hard to want to commit to twoor more books knowing the finale that wraps things up disapoints... Wingrove's CHUNG KUO comes to mind... six great epic books, massive buildup, cast of thousands, then bk 7 is a trainwreck and i don't even want to discuss bk 8, or Campbell's DEEPGATE CODEX...

...so knowing the series is going to fail you in the last stretch, do you commit to the rest of it?

...but to be fair, i don't think Tidhar - a brilliant author - failed with BOOKMAN, i just didn't like where he went with it, much as Ment posted.

it was a very different tone, for sure. I get what he was trying to do, kind of, but it didn't wow me.

But Book 2 was SO awesome, that it managed to eclipse the disappointment with a "lukewarm at best" finale.

In other news, since I had to endure a 2-way trip commute to Hamilton this morning, I finished "Price of Valor", the 3rd Shadow Campaigns book by Wexler. More muske-punk battle action, more pseudo-French Revolution politics and intrigue, and a ffirestarter demon thrown in to mix things up. Solid, fun action, page-turning pace, everything to love.

At some point soon I'll need to slot in that "Bitter Seeds" re-read, but first I'm gonna read the next Kate Daniels, "Magic Bleeds"

This post has been edited by Mentalist: 14 February 2017 - 07:24 PM

[Abyss]

Mentalist, on 14 February 2017 - 07:23 PM, said:

Abyss, on 14 February 2017 - 07:07 PM, said:

...so knowing the series is going to fail you in the last stretch, do you commit to the rest of it?

...but to be fair, i don't think Tidhar - a brilliant author - failed with BOOKMAN, i just didn't like where he went with it, much as Ment posted.

it was a very different tone, for sure. I get what he was trying to do, kind of, but it didn't wow me.

But Book 2 was SO awesome, that it managed to eclipse the disappointment with a "lukewarm at best" finale.
...

Whereas for me bk 2 set the stage for a bk 3 that didn't hit the same level.

So i have to agree w JPK's point that with time i tend to forget the parts i liked vs the last impression. The destination didn't live up to the journey.

[Slow Ben]

Finished FoL.

Like most i thought there were points where it was brilliant.

There were also points where i was pretty sure i didn't need another internal diatribe.

Overall i really enjoyed it, although it was probably the biggest slog i've ever had reading a book.



Gonna finish Nick Offermans "Paddle Your Own Canoe", before moving on to Dancer's Lament.

[Macros]

I'm still on like 10% or something. have no real desire to return to it, such a slog even to get that far. Forge of Darkness was heavy going (but still more enjoyable that the last 3 of the main series) but FoL is just......

nope.

about a 1/4 of the way through the man who was thursday.

its very odd

[Slow Ben]

My brother read FoL and after about 50 pages just started scanning and only reading when there was conversation.

Took significantly less time.

[worry]

Placing the odds on whether you will do something seems like cheating. It's like saying "I bet you $500 I won't eat that sandwich"...and then you just don't eat the sandwich. This is how the financial crisis happened, btw.

[Tiste Simeon]

Finished "The Man Who Was Thursday" by G.K. Chesterton. Very surreal story, not sure what exactly happened there. Fun to read though!

Guess I'll start on The Black Prism next...

[Macros]

Just finished the man who was Thursday.

My oh my that's a weird trip.

I get it, enjoyed it for what it was.
But won't read it again I'd say, I do the think it would hold me a second time.

[Dadding]

A couple hundred pages into Blade of Tyshalle. Loving it except for one thing.

Spoiler

Deliann obviously knows his stuff about Rabies - I mean he's looking for Negri bodies. But then he gets all paranoid and starts stripping down, and when his brother/friend/Rroni comes in he uses the sword HE STABBED A RABIES VICTIM WITH to whack his brother on the head. Come on buddy, RABV is transmitted through the blood / saliva. He probably would've been fine if you didn't give him a nice big open wound with a contaminated chunk of metal.
Edit: Okay I get it now, it's a super-virus with roughly the same pathogenesis but a different route of transmission. It's future-science, who am I to judge.

This post has been edited by Dadding: 17 February 2017 - 05:17 AM

[Mentalist]

I'm struggling getting into " Empire Ascendant by Cameron Hurley. I'm about 100 pages in, after a mini-infodump in the beginning (which helped to hint partially on what everyone's goals are), it's been plodding set-up with no action. It's crisply written, but Hurley is dropping the pacing, which is bad, since this is my " at home" read, usually when I'm tired after work.

I'll try to make a dent in it over the weekend, before we start the reading group book next week.

In commute, being back in Ilona Andrew's Atlanta is nice. Attack poodle makes me laugh each time it's mentioned.

This post has been edited by Mentalist: 16 February 2017 - 04:00 PM

[Abyss]

Abyss, on 12 February 2017 - 08:20 PM, said:

JPK, on 11 February 2017 - 07:29 PM, said:

Abyss, on 11 February 2017 - 07:27 PM, said:

Finished Sanderson's ARCANUM. All good Cosmere fun. See red thread for spoileriffic thoughts.
Now... either LIBRARY ON MOUNT CHAR or PETER GRANT 6: THE HANGING TREE.
Tough call.

MOUNT CHAR. Do iiiiiiiiiit.

Andorion, on 12 February 2017 - 01:16 AM, said:

Abyss, on 11 February 2017 - 07:27 PM, said:

Finished Sanderson's ARCANUM. All good Cosmere fun. See red thread for spoileriffic thoughts.
Now... either LIBRARY ON MOUNT CHAR or PETER GRANT 6: THE HANGING TREE.
Tough call.

Mount Char. No contest.

amphibian, on 12 February 2017 - 01:26 AM, said:

Mount Char is the better choice.

Baco Xtath, on 12 February 2017 - 03:14 PM, said:

Abyss, on 11 February 2017 - 07:27 PM, said:

Finished Sanderson's ARCANUM. All good Cosmere fun. See ded thread for spoileriffic thoughts.
Now... either LIBRARY ON MOUNT CHAR or PETER GRANT 6: THE HANGING TREE.
Tough call.

Having listened to all three, Mount Char is definitely your best option.

I feel like you're all trying to tell me something...

Abyss, on 13 February 2017 - 03:49 PM, said:

polishgenius, on 12 February 2017 - 08:44 PM, said:

I agree, definitely read The Hanging Tree.

Tiste Simeon, on 12 February 2017 - 08:48 PM, said:

I really don't think you would like Mount Char.

Tiste, may or may not have read Mount Char or know anything about it...

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 12 February 2017 - 09:55 PM, said:

Do you like your bread toasted or just warm?

Oh.. ok, i'll just start that Goodkind reread then.




...also, about 1/3rd of the way in LIBRARY.... ok damn that it some great writing / fucked up shit there.

JPK, on 13 February 2017 - 10:07 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 13 February 2017 - 09:57 PM, said:

Abyss, on 13 February 2017 - 08:58 PM, said:

polishgenius, on 13 February 2017 - 05:34 PM, said:

Abyss, on 13 February 2017 - 03:49 PM, said:

...also, about 1/3rd of the way in LIBRARY.... ok damn that it some great writing / fucked up shit there.

Just wait until it starts getting weird. ...

Just read the part with ...

Spoiler

the phone call to a certain high placed US gov official

...that was nuts, just ramped the stakes waaaaaaay up.

Must have missed it somewhere but I have no idea what book you're talking about...

The Library at Mount Char.

Me, at the 3/4 mark, reading the past 50 pages or so....

oh shit this going to end badly
ah yes, there it is
oh fuck
oh fucking fuck
ouch
ouch!!!
yikes
oooooo
...wait.. what...
wtf
WTF?
WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK DID I JUST READ????
*reads it again*
HOLY FUCKING FUCK
...oh, ok, guacamole... that makes sense...

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

I take it you're now crispily roasted, sweatily boiled, sizzlingly seared?

[Andorion]

Abyss, on 16 February 2017 - 05:13 PM, said:

Abyss, on 12 February 2017 - 08:20 PM, said:

JPK, on 11 February 2017 - 07:29 PM, said:

Abyss, on 11 February 2017 - 07:27 PM, said:

Finished Sanderson's ARCANUM. All good Cosmere fun. See red thread for spoileriffic thoughts.
Now... either LIBRARY ON MOUNT CHAR or PETER GRANT 6: THE HANGING TREE.
Tough call.

MOUNT CHAR. Do iiiiiiiiiit.

Andorion, on 12 February 2017 - 01:16 AM, said:

Abyss, on 11 February 2017 - 07:27 PM, said:

Finished Sanderson's ARCANUM. All good Cosmere fun. See red thread for spoileriffic thoughts.
Now... either LIBRARY ON MOUNT CHAR or PETER GRANT 6: THE HANGING TREE.
Tough call.

Mount Char. No contest.

amphibian, on 12 February 2017 - 01:26 AM, said:

Mount Char is the better choice.

Baco Xtath, on 12 February 2017 - 03:14 PM, said:

Abyss, on 11 February 2017 - 07:27 PM, said:

Finished Sanderson's ARCANUM. All good Cosmere fun. See ded thread for spoileriffic thoughts.
Now... either LIBRARY ON MOUNT CHAR or PETER GRANT 6: THE HANGING TREE.
Tough call.

Having listened to all three, Mount Char is definitely your best option.

I feel like you're all trying to tell me something...

Abyss, on 13 February 2017 - 03:49 PM, said:

polishgenius, on 12 February 2017 - 08:44 PM, said:

I agree, definitely read The Hanging Tree.

Tiste Simeon, on 12 February 2017 - 08:48 PM, said:

I really don't think you would like Mount Char.

Tiste, may or may not have read Mount Char or know anything about it...

Whisperzzzzzzz, on 12 February 2017 - 09:55 PM, said:

Do you like your bread toasted or just warm?

Oh.. ok, i'll just start that Goodkind reread then.




...also, about 1/3rd of the way in LIBRARY.... ok damn that it some great writing / fucked up shit there.

JPK, on 13 February 2017 - 10:07 PM, said:

Tiste Simeon, on 13 February 2017 - 09:57 PM, said:

Abyss, on 13 February 2017 - 08:58 PM, said:

polishgenius, on 13 February 2017 - 05:34 PM, said:

Abyss, on 13 February 2017 - 03:49 PM, said:

...also, about 1/3rd of the way in LIBRARY.... ok damn that it some great writing / fucked up shit there.

Just wait until it starts getting weird. ...

Just read the part with ...

Spoiler

the phone call to a certain high placed US gov official

...that was nuts, just ramped the stakes waaaaaaay up.

Must have missed it somewhere but I have no idea what book you're talking about...

The Library at Mount Char.

Me, at the 3/4 mark, reading the past 50 pages or so....

oh shit this going to end badly
ah yes, there it is
oh fuck
oh fucking fuck
ouch
ouch!!!
yikes
oooooo
...wait.. what...
wtf
WTF?
WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK DID I JUST READ????
*reads it again*
HOLY FUCKING FUCK
...oh, ok, guacamole... that makes sense...

A certain bull?

[Abyss]

Quote

Quote

The Library at Mount Char
...




Me, at the 3/4 mark, reading the past 50 pages or so....

oh shit this going to end badly
ah yes, there it is
oh fuck
oh fucking fuck
ouch
ouch!!!
yikes
oooooo
...wait.. what...
wtf
WTF?
WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK DID I JUST READ????
*reads it again*
HOLY FUCKING FUCK
...oh, ok, guacamole... that makes sense...

A certain bull?

Later...

Spoiler

The raid on the house, and what Caroline said would happen next, then the sun.

The bull thing - tho well done - I've seen before.

[Andorion]

Antics of a ballerina?

This post has been edited by Abyss: 17 February 2017 - 05:35 AM
Reason for edit: trim to reflect later edit