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Reading at t'moment?

#24281 User is offline   QuickTidal 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 12:35 PM

View PostMorgoth, on 03 April 2019 - 12:24 PM, said:

View PostAptorian, on 02 April 2019 - 06:45 PM, said:

Avoid Shadows of the Apt. Nothing happens for three books and then people claim it gets better but I'll never know.


It's so very rare that we agree this completely on something.


Also me, I agree with this completely as well.
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#24282 User is offline   Abyss 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 02:01 PM

View PostMentalist, on 03 April 2019 - 04:34 AM, said:

...
At home I'll try "Lost Symbol", since otherwise it'll be another half a decade before I get to it, and then I'll want to re-read the first 2 langdon books again before reading it.


You could just look at pictures of Washington DC on the internet and then slap yourself across the face repeatedly. Same outcome, less time wasted.

View Postacesn8s, on 03 April 2019 - 11:52 AM, said:

I have about 30 pages left in The Dragonbone Chair. I just keep falling asleep on the sofa at night.


I had this same problem with that book, only it was all the time, everywhere.
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#24283 User is offline   Tattersail_ 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 02:06 PM

I've started the Laundry Files.
Apt is the only one who reads this. Apt is nice.
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#24284 User is offline   End of Disc One 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 02:18 PM

I know a lot of people don't care for the early Shadows of the Apt books, but "nothing happens" is a new one for me.

Either way I hope you guys aren't turned off of all Tchaikovsky because Children of Time is amazing...far better than Shadows of the Apt which I think is pretty good.

This post has been edited by End of Disc One: 03 April 2019 - 02:26 PM

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#24285 User is offline   Imperial Historian 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 03:05 PM

Children of time is so much better than shadows of the apt I wondered if it was a different author with a similar name. Definitely worth it.
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#24286 User is offline   Aptorian 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 05:58 PM

View PostTattersail_, on 03 April 2019 - 02:06 PM, said:

I've started the Laundry Files.


You should double-fist Laundry Files and The Peter Grant books.
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#24287 User is offline   Abyss 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 07:26 PM

View PostAptorian, on 03 April 2019 - 05:58 PM, said:

View PostTattersail_, on 03 April 2019 - 02:06 PM, said:

I've started the Laundry Files.


You should double-fist Laundry Files and The Peter Grant books.



I would argue that's too much 'British urban fantasy w humour undertones' all at once. I acknowledge the differences between the (awesome) series', but at the end of the day both are a bunch of authority figures sipping tea and driving on the wrong side of the road and navigating stuffy bureaucracy while trying to save blissfully unknowing people in mostly London from stuff.
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#24288 User is offline   worry 

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Posted 03 April 2019 - 08:31 PM

When are we gonna get some rural fantasy heavyweights?
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#24289 User is offline   Abyss 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 01:04 AM

View PostAbyss, on 01 April 2019 - 01:48 AM, said:

View PostAbyss, on 28 March 2019 - 04:29 PM, said:

View PostAbyss, on 22 March 2019 - 02:19 AM, said:

O'Sullivan's THE ROOK.Light urban fantasy spy-fi stuff, fun. Excellent earbook narrator makes it more engaging than the otherwise unsurprising story might be.About 75% thru and if it ends as strong as it's been i'll Probably jump right to book 2 unless the next EXPANSE arrives.


Just finished ROOK, satisfied.

It's abit light, and there's a tonal shift to near comedy about 2/3rds of the way thru that's almost jarring (tho, when it's funny, very much funny), but overall it was an enjoyable urban fantasy take on the 'superagent in super secret agency loses memory, has to fake they know what they're doing while solving crime, saving world' story. Great earbook narrator really sells it. The main character(s) is/are engaging. The supporting cast are fairly cardboard but the way the story is written that's not problematic. Some of the pov shifts from first to subjective third to omniscient third are less than smooth, but again, not problematic. Despite those 'flaws', using the term loosely, the book never lost my attention, and i went right into the sequel STILETTO.



ETA.....ooooh, TV SERIES THIS SUMMER DID NOT KNOW THAT!

https://twitter.com/...143345926922240


Surprisingly STILLETO is sufficiently entertaining that I'm not sidelining it for TIAMAT'S WRATH.



Oh dear god...
“No situation is improved by the presence of a gigantic anus.”
...I may love this book.
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#24290 User is offline   worry 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 03:02 AM

Kellanved's Reach arrived today. Should I abandon Red Rising and dive right in, or show some patience?
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#24291 User is offline   Macros 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 05:32 AM

Prince of Thorns!!
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#24292 User is offline   Zetubal 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 10:26 AM

Took me longer than I expected, but I finished Soldiers Live (aka Black Company 9) yesterday. Since this also means that I am now done with the "main storyline" of the Black Company Series, I guess it makes sense to talk about both the final entry and the series on the whole.


Soldiers Live is pretty great for the most part. While it feels odd to see Cook suddenly abandon his insistence on PoV-annalist storytelling, I think this vastly improved the pacing of the book. Croaker's return as annalist feels like a long-awaited reunion, with his melancholic narration adding flavor to even the more mundane scenes. Additions to the cast like Shukrat and Arkana are likable enough, even Mogaba acts in a way that makes him sort of sympathetic/tragic. Though the novel did little to endear me Narayan or "Booboo", it was actually kind of heartbreaking to see Croaker and Lady's breakdown in their moments with the latter. Guess that's great writing for you, if you feel sympathetic to characters even if don't exactly share the emotions they are experiencing. As for the novel's plot, I like how straightforward it is. The fact that the Company has a clear goal in the form of ending the Protectorate structures the story well-enough while allowing for unexpected things to occur along the sidelines all the time.
Now, something I am not quite sure how to feel about, is the way so many characters kick the bucket in this book. To some extent I can see that that's always been kind of the point: Some soldiers die, others "live and wonder why". But this novel gets to a point where presumably thousands of Company brothers survive while every single member who was introduced before Water Sleeps dies in the course of this book. The exceptions being Iqbal, a minor side-character, Lady, and Croaker. There's a point where it doesn't feel like a consequence of the ongoing war effort but like the writer's insistence on tying up potential loose ends. I've always taken issue with the occasions where things that Cook does for "meta-reasons" become too apparent, and this feels like one these occasions. That said, some deaths are really impactful, especially in the minor and major ways they resonate with other characters (looking at you, Willow). Then again, there are also stupid totally unwarranted deaths that make me question why this or that character would ever put themselves in such danger to begin with.
Ah, and one more thing: I actually really like the subliminal theme of the novel which is the Company's leadership getting into trouble because they overlook stuff due to being hopelessly over-worked. It's kind of an odd, rare topic in fantasy novels but comes off as a really natural, humane thing considering the way the Company is run.



So...Final words about the series. It sounds really harsh when I think about it, but the Black Company series wasn't all that great. It's special, dare I say, unique even. Definitely left its mark on many later novels by other authors, and in a good way at that. But throughout the series, there are just too many sub-par moments, clunkily handled exposition, meandering, pacing issues, try-hard pseudo-philosophy and other bad quirks of the series. This really cast a shadow over my enjoyment even though the series has its great standout moments (or novels). As it stands, Black Company is probably a piece of modern dark fantasy history, which I appreciate more for its impact on other works than on its own merit. Accordingly, I'd recommend the series to people who are "hardcore" fans of dark, mature, fantasy. For casual audiences or people who are just looking for a great series, though, I'd be hesitant to suggest checking this one out.
On a sidenote, I now feel even more spoiled by SE because most of what I enjoyed about Black Company is done equally as good or better in MBotF.

Since it's 2019 and this is the internet, I guess I might try to rank the 9 Black Company novels from best to worst, too. Here goes:
Shadows Linger -> The White Rose -> Soldiers Live -> Dreams of Steel -> Water Sleeps -> The Black Company -> Shadow Games -> Bleak Seasons -> She is the Darkness
or: 2 -> 3 -> 9 -> 5 -> 8 -> 1 -> 4 -> 6 -> 7
I'd also like to point out that until/including Water Sleeps, I'd call these book 'good', whereas the remaining ones are standard to slightly bad.



Now, though I hear good things about "The Silver Spike", I'll first move on to Kellanved's Reach, and then probably check out something different like Harry August or Library at Mount Char.

This post has been edited by Zetubal: 04 April 2019 - 10:28 AM

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#24293 User is offline   Tsundoku 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 11:03 AM

View Postworry, on 04 April 2019 - 03:02 AM, said:

Kellanved's Reach arrived today. Should I abandon Red Rising and dive right in, or show some patience?


Why not go all "GRRM" on that series and wait for it to be finished (final count unknown at this point) before you read it? That will show nerves of steel.
To explain, I read AFFC after that godawful long wait and decided that while I was going to buy the books as they came out, I wasn't going to read them until it was finished.
That'll show GRRM!

Oh, wait ... :) :p
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#24294 User is offline   Salt-Man Z 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 03:21 PM

View PostZetubal, on 04 April 2019 - 10:26 AM, said:

Now, though I hear good things about "The Silver Spike"

Lol, where did you hear that? Seriously, though, I'm surprised you hadn't read this one yet, since it ties up the loose ends from the original trilogy (and as such is probably best read immediately thereafter.)

View PostZetubal, on 04 April 2019 - 10:26 AM, said:

Harry August or Library at Mount Char.

You can't go wrong with either of those, though the initial absurdity of Char might make it slightly harder to get into.
"Here is light. You will say that it is not a living entity, but you miss the point that it is more, not less. Without occupying space, it fills the universe. It nourishes everything, yet itself feeds upon destruction. We claim to control it, but does it not perhaps cultivate us as a source of food? May it not be that all wood grows so that it can be set ablaze, and that men and women are born to kindle fires?"
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#24295 User is offline   Tiste Simeon 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 03:52 PM

View PostSalt-Man Z, on 04 April 2019 - 03:21 PM, said:

View PostZetubal, on 04 April 2019 - 10:26 AM, said:

Harry August or Library at Mount Char.

You can't go wrong with either of those, though the initial absurdity of Char might make it slightly harder to get into.

Agreed both are excellent. Char is utterly bonkers though so like SMZ said it might be more difficult to initially get into. Well worth it though.

Harry August is one of my favourite books of the past few years it is just amazing.
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#24296 User is offline   Andorion 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 04:22 PM

Finished Never Die by Rob J Hayes. Great self pub book.
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#24297 User is offline   Aptorian 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 06:11 PM

This Harry August, are you referring to the first fifteen lives of Harry August?
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#24298 User is offline   QuickTidal 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 06:43 PM

View PostAptorian, on 04 April 2019 - 06:11 PM, said:

This Harry August, are you referring to the first fifteen lives of Harry August?


No, it's Harry August & The Dildo of Peril
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#24299 User is offline   Aptorian 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 06:46 PM

Hmm, I don't think I'm old enough to read your fan fiction yet, QT.
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#24300 User is offline   Abyss 

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Posted 04 April 2019 - 07:29 PM

View PostAptorian, on 04 April 2019 - 06:46 PM, said:

Hmm, I don't think I'm old enough to read your fan fiction yet, QT.



Start with his Dora the Explorer vs Predator series. It's fairly tame.
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