kcf Posted March 8, 2007 Share Posted March 8, 2007 Ah the ending. *cough* I have problems with that but many are Kay fans so you won't be alone if you do like it. Let's just say the same complaints I have for Al-Rassan characters and love affairs also applies. The ending was nothing less or nothing more than I expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowbeat Posted March 8, 2007 Share Posted March 8, 2007 I recently read Shaman's Crossing by Robin Hobb, my first experience with her writing. I understand that it (the first in the Soldier's Son trilogy) isn't highly regarded but I liked it well enough. I do have a strange fascination with "boys at strict school" stories , so that may have something to do with it. But I quickly got sick of Hobb's "oh, man is destroying the pretty green things!" philosophy that she seemed to be pushing. I also caught Runner by William C. Dietz. Fairly standard sci-fi fair. He presents a image of a great civilization brought down by a fear of technology (wow, wonder if he's heard of Warhammer 40,000? ), but it quickly becomes tiresome. Between too-easy battles, some kind of religious interludes, and a ton of pseudomilitaristic-speak, the whimpering ending seems like a fitting end to a weak story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klegane the Kinhater Posted March 8, 2007 Share Posted March 8, 2007 For my Speculative Fiction Class, I read Titus Groan By Mervyn Peake. I didn't know what to think while reading the novel other than, how the hell is this going to turn into a story with so many peculiar characters and pitiful existences? When I finished it I really enjoyed the plot, convoluted as it is. It was a great book and definitely a different read than what I am used to (High Fantasy etc). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IheartTesla Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Havent read a new book in a while, but I was in an airport bookstore and saw Colleen McCullogh's name there, so I went ahead and bought Caesar, which I guess is a fictional novel based on his life and times. (not part of the first man series). I have plans for buying other books too, like the Armageddon Rag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheHoundRules Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 I had to stop reading The Prestige. Boring. Of course, I should not be surprised. I only finish reading 1 out every 5 fantasy/sci-fi books I pick up. I still want to see the movie. Decided to pick up Turning Angel by Greg Isle. A whodunit, but entertaining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deedles Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Cyrano, If I may be so bold, Caesar is one of the "Masters of Rome" series. She sets up the story with Sulla and Marius in the earlier books and gradually introduces Caesar. It's after Caesars Women" and before "The October Horse" iirc. So if you are reading that series you may want to hold it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Dracarys Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Somebody threw a copy of the Communist Manifesto at me today (literally) so maybe I'll read that on the road trip home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IheartTesla Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Cyrano, If I may be so bold, Caesar is one of the "Masters of Rome" series. She sets up the story with Sulla and Marius in the earlier books and gradually introduces Caesar. It's after Caesars Women" and before "The October Horse" iirc. So if you are reading that series you may want to hold it. Ah! Thanks for the information. I didnt see any of the First Man books, but October Horse and Caesar's Women were there IIRC. The titles didnt sound as interesting to me, but I will hold on to this book and get the other ones in the series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Halfway through The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds. Not a true return to the form of the excellent Revelation Space or his one true classic, Chasm City, but still a very good read and much better than Century Rain (which started off well and went a bit off the deep end at its conclusion). Very interesting how the plot loops back and ties in with the other Revelation Space universe books whilst remaining a stand-alone story. Quite clever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dornish prince Posted March 9, 2007 Share Posted March 9, 2007 Just finshed You Suck by Christopher Moore and it had me laughing quite often. He does a good job mixing in current street lingo of about 5-6 years ago with some present talk when giving the POV of a new young character; she provides a great deal of hilarity and allowed the novel to remain soft despite the hardness of the action taking place. Lots of humor and some moral points make this a good quick read and follow up to Blood Sucking Fiend, although I have a feeling that there will be a book #3. I will try to get through the God Delusion, Son of a Witch, Time Traveler's Wife, Mortified, and if I get time the last two books in the Ender-verse of Card. you suck is about three or four back in my queue but i can't hardly wait to read it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isis Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Finished ASOS last week as part of my s-l-o-w reread. Best thing I have read in ages. And it makes everything else seem dull by comparison. I'm about 2/3 through River of Gods and I could really take or leave the rest of the book. Except that it's an overdue library book so I'll have to plough through it and get it back asap. It's not that I dislike the story, it just doesn't compel me to hurry back to it. I have around 50 pages left of Brighton Rock which I started reading two years ago and as it is currently more interesting to me than River of Gods I should get that one finished this weekend. Aaaand, I'm 78 pages into The System of the World. Predictably, very little has happened so far and there are still hundreds of pages to go. Basically I suck at finishing books right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Werthead Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Finished The Prefect and stuck up my review elsewhere on the the forum (short version: it's great, nearly-but-not-quite a return to form). Now reading Black Man (aka Thirteen in the USA for no discernable reason) by Richard Morgan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konstantine Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Just finished Dragonbone Chair, took me forever. I thought the first 300 or so pages were incredibly boring, but the last 200-300 pages were awesome. I hope the next is like the last few pages. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. X Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 (X-Ray, any commentary on that Planetary volume you read?) I'm not Xray, but I am reading the same copies of Planetary. I've finished the first 3 collections and I have to say I love it. The first collection didn't really catch me until the 4th story or so. At first it felt like a lot of primarily one-off stories like Global Frequency, and while I enjoy those, I had some sympathy for Elijah Snow and his "Why don't you ever give an answer to a question that doesn't leave me with a lot of new questions?" attitude. The issues where Snow talks with Axel Brass on the lawn of the medical facility and where the Four are introduced were the ones that hooked me. The former because it showed that continuity would matter to this series and the latter because it presented a notable enemy and hinted at Snow becoming the central figure. The second two collections have been the sort of stories that stay with me for a while. This morning on the subway I figured out something about one of the issues which I had read two days ago. Quality work! Speaking of Planetary, do you know if the crossover issues with JLA, Batman, etc are worth picking up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaime L Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 Toward the End of Time by John Updike. Absolutely reinforces how much I enjoy an unreliable narrator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Bentley Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 I'm about 2/3 through River of Gods and I could really take or leave the rest of the book. I thought I was the only one who felt this way about RoG, as it's been getting good reviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Barry Posted March 11, 2007 Share Posted March 11, 2007 I thought I was the only one who felt this way about RoG, as it's been getting good reviews. There are at least 3 of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
williamjm Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 Just finished Dragonbone Chair, took me forever. I thought the first 300 or so pages were incredibly boring, but the last 200-300 pages were awesome. I hope the next is like the last few pages. I thought the later books in the series were generally more interesting than the first book (which was very boring at times), they still have some tedious moments but there's also plenty of good bits as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaxom 1974 Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 I'm not Xray, but I am reading the same copies of Planetary. I've finished the first 3 collections and I have to say I love it. The first collection didn't really catch me until the 4th story or so. At first it felt like a lot of primarily one-off stories like Global Frequency, and while I enjoy those, I had some sympathy for Elijah Snow and his "Why don't you ever give an answer to a question that doesn't leave me with a lot of new questions?" attitude. The issues where Snow talks with Axel Brass on the lawn of the medical facility and where the Four are introduced were the ones that hooked me. The former because it showed that continuity would matter to this series and the latter because it presented a notable enemy and hinted at Snow becoming the central figure. The second two collections have been the sort of stories that stay with me for a while. This morning on the subway I figured out something about one of the issues which I had read two days ago. Quality work! Speaking of Planetary, do you know if the crossover issues with JLA, Batman, etc are worth picking up? 1. Yah. The first three issues are fun, but you have to wonder some about what's going on...starting with #4 it takes off more. #6 is possibly my favorite issue of them all...though don't forget to pay attention (which you seem to be doing) because you never know when something is going to be important! 2. Actually, the Batman crossover is considered part of the main story and is pretty good. Apparently there were plans for a Batman-like character to appear in the series and then the chance for the crossover came about instead. From the Planetary Appreciation Page... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinDonner Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 I'm about 60 pages into Morgan's Black Man now and so far it's bloody brilliant, even better than Altered Carbon so far. Hurrah! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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