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Third Quarter 2020 Reading is a Joy


Peadar

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4 hours ago, Peadar said:

I'm trying We are Legion (We are Bob) by Dennis Taylor. So far, it reminds me a bit of Andy Weir's The Martian -- an engineer solves problems to stay a step ahead of death. Is that a genre?

If it isn't it should be.  Maybe it should be called 'MacGuyvereseque'.  

I have started to read the Cryptonomicon on the advice of a work colleague.  The way he presented it I thought it would be more of a history and less of a Tom Clancyesuqe (is that another genre?) spy thing.  Not what I expected but enjoying it so far.

ETA: (PS I loved The Call)

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In terms of antagonists as protagonists, this Q&A with Edmund White in the NY Times (pay wall) -- includes both Nabokov and Dostoyevsky.  He speaks of how sometimes translations make a book better reading, and the conundrum of Humbert Humbert, whom the 60's perceived as likable whereas now his likableness is not perceived. And other authors and books too.  One of the many reasons I wish wish wish I were fluent in French is to read Faulkner in French.  I've heard so much of how differently the impact of his work is in French.  OTOH, if one doesn't know in one's dna the composition of the United States, historically and geographically, methinks it would be hard to comprehend Faulkner in the round

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/06/books/review/edmund-white-by-the-book-interview.html

 

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Just read both and 'Shorefall' was a fun read but a step down from 'Foundryside' for me.

The Clef characeter didn't work for me. The author explained it a little bit why the character used the term 'kid' so much but it took me out of the story a bit. It felt too specifically modern-ish American vernacular. Like if Bronn kept calling everybody 'bro'.

Spoiler

The overall plot may all work out fine in book three but feels like there are a few too many plot threads for 2/3 of the way through the series.

The way that one of the big antagonists (val) is basically now some other entity and the other big antagonist seem to be flitting between nigh invincible and speechifying to being I guess semi-defeated seems abrupt. Now it feels like the story will head out to the slave colonies with a bigger role for Polonia (sp?) where I'd love more about the city and characters like Claudia.

Overall though, I'm looking forward to the third book to wrap it up.

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14 hours ago, mushroomshirt said:

ETA: (PS I loved The Call)

That is very kind!

I hope you enjoy the rest of The Cryptonomicon. It was one of my favourite reads of all time and I wonder if it would stand up to a reread.

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5 hours ago, Teng Ai Hui said:

I'm really disappointed that no one has posted a review about Midnight Sun yet. 

Ehh, it's quite cool. It feels like it's late afternoon all night. Daylight all the time also means the temperature can be quite high, even if you're really far north. Makes it a hassle to sleep, though. And of course it means you don't get to see the aurora.

4/5 stars. 3/5 if you consider the unavoidable fact of all-day darkness at the other side of the year.

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Broke with my recent policy of avoiding ebooks to try Empire of Gold; which I enjoyed but thought was a slight step down from Kingdom of Copper.

Spoiler

I think the final third was probably the weakest part of the book; but perhaps that's just because things went in quite a different direction than I'd been envisioning up that point. 

I'd been expecting a lot less involvement by the marids and the peris in resolving the central plot, and in general a rather less optimisitc ending to the trilogy.  In particular, it seems to stretch credulity a bit that with all the violence and murder going on in Daevabad pretty much every character of note (except Kaveh and Manizheh) somehow managed to survive..

Going to try Sue Burke's Semiosis next.

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On 8/8/2020 at 7:27 AM, Peadar said:

I'm trying We are Legion (We are Bob) by Dennis Taylor. So far, it reminds me a bit of Andy Weir's The Martian -- an engineer solves problems to stay a step ahead of death. Is that a genre?

I downloaded that a couple of months ago after a some of my cousins were raving about it.  Will read it when I'm next in the mood for some science fiction. 

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Finished Fragile Things by Kevin Wignall, another of his spy(-ish) novels set in Central Europe.  Once again the stakes and action are low and the plot is mostly about tradecraft and personal reflection & growth by the POV protagonist, who is once again a morally grey (dark grey in this case) loner spending a career in the shadowy world.  Well written and a good read, despite being far too forgiving of the hero.

Started and abandoned The Elven by Bernhard Hennen, the first in a fantasy series.  The opening chapter in the Nordic setting worked well (and I think that was the sample chapter that got me to buy it), but the following chapters about the courtly elves were trite at best.  I was left with a feeling that the contrast of the coarse Nordic types and the courtly, chivalrous elves was a propaganda allegory for Saxons and Normans.   I doubt the author meant it that way, and I probably saw that comparison because of podcast series I’ve been listening to.  Regardless, I dropped this book at 10%.  It didn’t seem worth reading further, despite high ratings at Amazon.

Finished Priest Of Bones by Peter McLean, the first in a new grimdark fantasy series.  It’s pretty good grimdark but it was jarringly similar to the story of Peaky Blinders: two brothers and their comrades return from a foreign war to a gritty industrial city north of the more refined capital.  Their gangland empire has been stolen away in their absence, despite their tough-as-nails aunt supposedly overseeing it in their absence.  They want to rebuild their protection rackets, smuggling and gambling (there was even a race horse), so they start by reclaiming their tavern to build from there.  And there’s a beautiful spy who comes to work as a barmaid and be a love interest, and a corrupt official who drags them into government affairs against their will.  The older brother is named Tomas, and the younger brother is impulsive, violent, unreliable and nursing some envy and resentment.  Everyone has PTSD.  After a while I found myself just ticking off the similarities as they flooded by.  But it’s a pretty good grimdark with a late medieval urban gang setting.  Worth a read.

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On 8/8/2020 at 1:25 PM, Zorral said:

In terms of antagonists as protagonists, this Q&A with Edmund White in the NY Times (pay wall) -- includes both Nabokov and Dostoyevsky.  He speaks of how sometimes translations make a book better reading, and the conundrum of Humbert Humbert, whom the 60's perceived as likable whereas now his likableness is not perceived. And other authors and books too.  One of the many reasons I wish wish wish I were fluent in French is to read Faulkner in French.  I've heard so much of how differently the impact of his work is in French.  OTOH, if one doesn't know in one's dna the composition of the United States, historically and geographically, methinks it would be hard to comprehend Faulkner in the round

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/06/books/review/edmund-white-by-the-book-interview.html

 

Hm interesting. I actually totally see HH as likable, it's what makes him such an interesting and compelling character. He is likable and self-deluded while committing a terrible crime. It's been a while since I read the book, though, so my memories are a little foggy.

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I finished Harrow the Ninth. I've got mixed feelings about this one. I liked bits of it and I think there's the potential for a really interesting next book but I did think it was a bit too convoluted. Overall I'd say I enjoyed it but not as much as I enjoyed the first book.

Next up I'm going to read Django Wexler's Ashes of the Sun.

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On 8/8/2020 at 4:58 PM, The Marquis de Leech said:

I've been bingeing a bit on the Icelandic Sagas so far this month. 

There was a man called Sture Hjorlufson. His house was between the mountains blabla and the river etc. He had a servant called Thordur Snorrison. At harvest time Thordur and two others met men from the other side of the river. There was a quarrel. Thordur was killed... 10 years of blood feud, burning down homestead etc. follow

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21 hours ago, Iskaral Pust said:

Started and abandoned The Elven by Bernhard Hennen, the first in a fantasy series.  The opening chapter in the Nordic setting worked well (and I think that was the sample chapter that got me to buy it), but the following chapters about the courtly elves were trite at best.  I was left with a feeling that the contrast of the coarse Nordic types and the courtly, chivalrous elves was a propaganda allegory for Saxons and Normans.   I doubt the author meant it that way, and I probably saw that comparison because of podcast series I’ve been listening to.  Regardless, I dropped this book at 10%.  It didn’t seem worth reading further, despite high ratings at Amazon.

It's amazing that this has been translated. I have not read it but Hennen was/is connected with the largest German table top roleplaying system (DSA) and wrote a whole bunch of novels or novellas connected with their worlds and scenarios. As my younger brother played that system in the late 1990s, I read a bunch of Hennen's earlier books, partly collaboration with the more famous author Wolfgang Hohlbein (who became already famous in the late 80s or so with a bunch of fantasy, often YA novels). They were not horrible, but not very good either. Typical fare based on/connected with RPG campaigns, only in a rather low magic setting IIRC, compared with e.g. Salvatore or Dragonlance. And, being 10-20 years later with little of the freshness that saves some of the Dragonlance novels.

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8 hours ago, Jo498 said:

There was a man called Sture Hjorlufson. His house was between the mountains blabla and the river etc. He had a servant called Thordur Snorrison. At harvest time Thordur and two others met men from the other side of the river. There was a quarrel. Thordur was killed... 10 years of blood feud, burning down homestead etc. follow

You forgot the exciting court case, and the payment of compensation. And that the killer will likely be composing verses of drottkvaett poetry at various intervals. 

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