Jump to content

September Reading Thread


Stubby

Recommended Posts

Seeing as its a new month now. As Mult noted in the first post in August:

A brief description of what you are reading and/or your thoughts about it will be very helpful to a lot of people looking for recommendations based on similiar taste.

For me, I have a dilemma at the moment. The Lies of Locke Lamora has finally been released down here and I picked up my copy yesterday. I have been looking forward to it ever since it was first discussed as a reccomended read on this board. Unfortunately, I am well into the third of the Ender books (Xenocide) and am enjoying it. So I am debating if I should put Ender down to pick TLOLL. I think it would be rather difficult to follow the (deep) philosphical threads in Xenocide if I do put it down so I think I will be restrained and pick up TLOLL in a week or two when I have worked through the rest of the Ender saga.

Its a good dilemma to have. :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Seeing as its a new month now. As Mult noted in the first post in August:

For me, I have a dilemma at the moment. The Lies of Locke Lamora has finally been released down here and I picked up my copy yesterday. I have been looking forward to it ever since it was first discussed as a reccomended read on this board. Unfortunately, I am well into the third of the Ender books (Xenocide) and am enjoying it. So I am debating if I should put Ender down to pick TLOLL. I think it would be rather difficult to follow the (deep) philosphical threads in Xenocide if I do put it down so I think I will be restrained and pick up TLOLL in a week or two when I have worked through the rest of the Ender saga.

I have the same issue. I'm on book four of Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen. I have books five and six on the shelf queued and I have Knight of Knives (by Ian Cameron Esslemont) which takes place just before part six of the regular Malazan series. I truly want to do TLOLL next as a break but I've made it this far in the Malazan series that I don't know if I want to toss in something else before I finish. :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Finished Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell and I, Claudius within the last couple of days. Can't wait to get my hands on Claudius the God.

I'm currently reading Lord of Light and Grendel. Afterwards, I have to get back to One Hundred Years of Solitude and The Lies of Locke Lamora ... although I'm tempted to read Gardens of the Moon before either, purely on the grounds that my copy smells really good.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

... although I'm tempted to read Gardens of the Moon before either, purely on the grounds that my copy smells really good.

I made it thought GoTM even thought it read like an overblown D&D game. ;D I quite liked DG and MoI an HoC is pretty good so far... I do agree that the 253 page intro/origin of Toblakai is a BIT over the top but it does give insight into the character... I'm close to finishing it and how it ends will determine if I go on to Midnight Tides straight away or dive into TLOLL.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I finished Tuf Voyaging by Martin and Crusader by Douglass. I am currently reading The Lies of Locke Lamora by Lynch.

Tuf was excellent. Crusader was average and only slightly interesting but I wanted to finish the series. Not sure how I felt on her take on the Garden of Eden story. Lamora is quite good so far and I'm really enjoying it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm working my way through the Sandman Chronicles. It's my first time reading them, and I've been enjoying them so far. I'm also planning on getting Robert Charles Wilson's "Spin" and reading it in a few days. Everyone has had great things to say about it so far.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Currently working my way through Katharine Kerr's Deverry novels, which are suprisingly good, all things considered. Also waiting on the third book of Dread Empire's Fall, which has proved to be a fun romp so far, and Matthew Stover's Blade of Tyshalle, the sequel to Heroes Die(also quite good). Nothing amazing at the moment, but I'm surprised at the good luck I've been having lately with all these novels.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been working my way through the books reviewed on Stego's blog, and will happily second the recommendations for Jeffrey Ford's The Empire of Ice Cream and Tim Powers' On Stranger Tides - the latter particularly. Pirates AND voodoo! Fantastic! Full reviews on the blog.

Now starting the Otherland series which I've borrowed from a friend - enjoying it so far despite the dated "full immersion VR net" concept.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have been trying to wrap my head around Brian Ruckley's Winterbirth a new epic fantasy due out in October (and from the English at that) - this will be the subject of my first review for Strange Horizons

I recently finished Karen Traviss' Bloodlines, the second book in the Legacy of the Force and I have to admit I think the Star Wars franchsie might have a winner with this series - really enjoyed it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Any thoughts on Winterbirth sofar Jay?

Only that it took me 2 days to want to and finish reading the first 12 or so pages. That isn't reflective of the book as I have been under the weather for a week (like constantly in the fetal position under the weather).

At this point I'm at the stages we all go through with new epic fantasy - just getting used to identifying tribes/nations with the people. I really don't have an opinion thus far, it could be horrible, or I may be starting a series that enthralls me like Bakker's or Erikson's, I'm just through the prologue (which was a bit standard - people forced from homeland due to war with the promise of revenge/remembering and possibly a Thermopylae-like event hinted at that allowed for the retreat, and on to the first chapter which is your standard boar hunt to introduce crown prince (or in this case a Thane) that occurs some time (perhaps generations) afterwards.

The promotional info attached to this book casts a strange description mentioning both Gemmell and Martin (two - I think - widelyy different authors, both in terms of elements and quality).

To early to tell, at times the prose is up to snuff to keep me interested for the long hull, and some of the instances that it's not may be due to this being an uncorrected proof. If you give me a couple days I may have a better feel, as I'm introduced to more players and have a better feel of the relationship between immortals and people that's mentioned on the flap (during the time of the prologue - the gods had been absent for some time).

I'm definitely interested, as it's always worth giving a long look to a possible quality epic fantasy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just finished House of Chains. The second best book in the series so far behind Deadhouse Gates. Erikson's writing quality has improved from Gardens. Karsa = Guts from Berserk. The last one hundred pages could be subtitled "Karsa kills stuff".

I could jump into Midnight Tides now but have decided to read something slimmer to cleanse the palate before I jump into another muscle building tome. Next up is Blood Follows by Erikson. Wow. Only around a hundred pages. I might actually finish this within the month and post again in September.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm working my way through the Sandman Chronicles. It's my first time reading them, and I've been enjoying them so far.

This morning I decided I need to start buying those so I can read through them for the, uh, 5th time or so. Currently working through Warren Ellis' Transmetropolitain series.

I also just started Daniel Abraham's A Shadow In Summer. After being controlled by him for the human chess match at WorldCon, I figured I should check his book out. So far, so good.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Last few days of August:

Jeffrey Ford's Cley books - The Physiognomist, Memoranda, and The Beyond.

I was pleasantly surprised by how very good these books are. At times reminiscent of Kafka and Gene Wolfe, and in some ways more enjoyable to read. The third book, The Beyond, is especially good, but you have to read, and possibly re-read, the others to fully appreciate it - happily, the entire series is only about 750 pages. Highly recommended.

Charles Stross - Glasshouse. I really wanted to like this book, but in the end it was just meh. Nothing really too new, and neither the writing nor the characters are all that interesting. Both the ideas and writing borrow heavily from Cory Doctorow (are they in the same writer's group?) - but Doctorow's Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom was a faster-paced, more interesting, and funner look at post-singularity culture.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

With a copy of INTO A DARK REALM on the way, I'm currently reading Raymond E. Feist's FLIGHT OF THE NIGHTHAWKS. About 100 pages into it, and already it's head and shoulders above his last six books. :)

Patrick

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also just started Daniel Abraham's A Shadow In Summer. After being controlled by him for the human chess match at WorldCon, I figured I should check his book out. So far, so good.

I just started reading A Shadow in Summer as well. I don't know if it's just me, but I loved the prologue. At the end of it and the revealing of the newest poet in the first chapter I was pretty enthused to continue.

The concept of the andat is a very interesting thing for me, I really like the idea. However, the poses...I wanna try to develop a pose system for use in the real world :lol:!

Next up after that, the first four books of The Malazan Book of the Fallen.

EDIT: I'd also like to point out that I only got this book two days ago. Reading the reviews and hearing about the concept of the andat interested me so much I put this in front of everything else I have (AFFC, Erikson AND Bakker). Hope I'm not disappointed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Tim Powers' On Stranger Tides - the latter particularly. Pirates AND voodoo! Fantastic!

On Stranger Tides is wonderful novel. There should be more great fantasy novels about pirates.

At the moment I'm reading Poul Anderson's "Starfarers" about an expedition to the far side of the Milky Way to investigate alien signals. There's no FTL but the ship goes close to the speed of light so while the crew only experience a few years travel-time, millennia will have passed by the time they return to Earth. I think the crew's experience of the time gaps caused by interstellar travel is going to be one of the main themes of the books, but I'm also curious to see what the alien signals will turn out to be.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just started reading A Shadow in Summer as well. I don't know if it's just me, but I loved the prologue. At the end of it and the revealing of the newest poet in the first chapter I was pretty enthused to continue.

EDIT: I'd also like to point out that I only got this book two days ago. Reading the reviews and hearing about the concept of the andat interested me so much I put this in front of everything else I have (AFFC, Erikson AND Bakker). Hope I'm not disappointed.

Oh, hey. That's pretty cool. I bought this when it came out (Mr. X is reading that copy now) and I was solidly impressed. There were issues with pacing and characterization, but on the whole I LOVED the poet/andat relationship, and I loved the "pose" system of communicating. I'm curious to see what the next books brings.

Even if DORNE PWND HIGHGARDEN. :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...