March 2009 reads

[AprilFool]

I was just not getting into Meaney's Black Blood so I have put it to the side to read The Jennifer Morgue by Charles Stross. This book is very fun even if I don't get some of the programming jokes. Very cool book - James Bond meets Lovecraft in a comedy club.

[Ser Barry]

The Johnstown Flood by David McCullough

David McCullough rocks my world. Takes a dam high in the mountains shoddily rebuilt by rich pleasure seekers, take a badass storm, mix together with the best historian in the world ever[sup]tm[/sup] and you have another compelling book. If it wasn't true you wouldn't believe it.

[Peadar]

I just finished Ken Macleod's [url="http://www.amazon.com/Learning-World-Scientific-Ken-MacLeod/dp/0765351773/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1236762851&sr=8-1"]Learning the World[/url]. It reminded me of a lot of Vernor Vinge's stuff with a hint of David Zindell in places.

[Trinuviel]

I've begun re-reading Guy Gavriel Kay's [b]Tigana[/b].

[Budgie]

I have not posted in a while books I recently finished include:

Bonehunters - Steven Erikson I actually enjoyed this a lot but he could sure do with a good editor, these books could still be could whilst being about 300 pages shorter!

Fragile Things - Neil Gaiman collection of short stories I liked this book some of the stories were good.

Altered Carbon – Richard Morgan After hearing all the good things about this book I gave it a shot but was unsure as to if I would like it. But to my amazement I liked it a lot it was thrilling & engrossing, I couldn’t believe that I finished it so quickly. I will definitely be checking out more of his work.

Carpe Jugulum – Terry Pratchett another usual Pratchett book ok.

Un Lun Dun – China Mieville I really enjoyed this, I think the main reason I liked this & King Rat a lot is because it is about London, maybe its because I’m a Londoner & I love London town! :)

Currently I am reading Reapers Gale – Steven Erikson & also plan to start Let the right one in – John Ajvide Lindqvist.

Ps a quick question regarding Malazan books where would the Ian Cameron Esslemont books fit in to the grand picture, i.e. should I read Night of knives before or after Toll the Hounds?

[Arlingzen Bill]

Epic reread project progress. Game of Thrones... check

[bossfan2000]

Just finished [b]The Stormcaller[/b] by Tom Lloyd ([url="http://fantasybookreviewer.blogspot.com/2009/03/review-stormcaller-by-tom-lloyd.html"]review[/url]). I had to start the book twice, but the second time around I really, really enjoyed it. I thought it was a good mix of the traditional epic fantasy, along with a bit of the "gritty" stuff currently popular. I know this book seems to be a bit polarizing, but I really had fun with it.

Up next, either The Twilight Herald, The Warded Man, or A Magic of Nightfall.

[Deornoth]

Finished reading D.M Cornish's 'Foundling'; a steampunky tale of smugglers, adventurers and monsters...
'Foundling' is the opening book in a trilogy and the resulting journey that the main character has to make (in order to get to where he needs to be for Book 2) can be a little monotonous. This is balanced out though by a book that's high on atmosphere and adventure. My full review is over [url="http://www.graemesfantasybookreview.com"]Here[/url]. I'm now finishing off Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle's 'Escape from Hell'...

[Jaqen the FatManderly]

Finished [i]The Lies of Locke Lamora[/i], a contender for the worst book I've ever read voluntarily. If you can't write at the level of the average romance novel .... I mean, really.

Continuing with Gene Wolfe's [i]Book of the New Sun[/i] - now on [i]Claw of the Conciliator[/i], and missing Dorcas.

[snookyrump]

Just finished [i]Gallows Thief[/i] by Cornwell.

Super fast paced, and a neat mystery at that. Lord Alexander, Sandman's pal, steals every scene he's in.

Next up is a quick re-read of [i]Gates of Fire[/i] and then probably my fifth try of Gardens of the Moon.

[palaeologos]

[quote name='Budgie' post='1716072' date='Mar 11 2009, 05.36']Ps a quick question regarding Malazan books where would the Ian Cameron Esslemont books fit in to the grand picture, i.e. should I read Night of knives before or after Toll the Hounds?[/quote]

[i]Night of Knives[/i] fits into the picture right after the Prologue of [i]Gardens of the Moon[/i].

[Bellis]

[quote name='Jaqen the FatManderly' post='1716342' date='Mar 11 2009, 12.29']Finished [i]The Lies of Locke Lamora[/i], a contender for the worst book I've ever read voluntarily. If you can't write at the level of the average romance novel .... I mean, really.[/quote]

Wow. And I thought I was harsh on the genre fanboy reads. I concede the story is pedestrian, but didn't you find the world interesting at least?

Latest reads:

[b]Lamb[/b] by Christopher Moore. It's hard to be really creative with alternate gospels, when it seems as though every author at one point or another seems to want to try their hand at it (I liked Moorcock's and especially Saramago's takes - anyone read Micheal Faber's Fire Gospel yet???). So, this book is entertaining enough, considering you know already how it all ends.

[b]Starship Troopers[/b]. I respected the book, but military fiction is not normally to my tastes. I really felt like I was learning a lot about Stego though (it's his favorite book).

[Jaqen the FatManderly]

[quote name='Bellis' post='1716381' date='Mar 11 2009, 14.17']Wow. And I thought I was harsh on the genre fanboy reads. I concede the story is pedestrian, but didn't you find the world interesting at least?[/quote]
I am not a fan of worldbuilding [i]per se[/i]. I only connected with two characters to [b]any [/b]degree at all: Jean and the Gray King. Not caring about the characters (I despised Locke, but I don't think that counts....), I was bereft of any reason to care about the world (which I thought, besides, was more of a hodgepodge than anything interesting or coherent). So, yes, it was a disastrous read for me.

The Book of the New Sun would be dreadfully boring if I hadn't connected with Severian. Even Middle Earth - if I didn't love Bilbo & Co., I might as well chuck the Silmarillion and go (re-)read Poems from the Eldar Edda and my big honkin collection of sagas. Okay, maybe I'd still be interested in Tolkien's philology and whatnot, but you get the idea.

[Tobin]

[quote name='Maia' post='1711849' date='Mar 7 2009, 15.24'][b]
"Moon Called", "Blood Bound", "Iron Kissed", "Bone Crossed" and "Cry Wolf"[/b], all by [b]Patricia Briggs[/b].

The former 4 from her [b]"Mercedes Thompson"[/b] series, the latter from her [b]"Alpha and Omega"[/b] series.[/quote]


I found myself collecting an embarrassing collection of this type of 'supernatural hero chick' ([i]SNHC[/i]) stuff lately, though I did really enjoy Briggs' stuff. I spread the books around family/work and have been generating a small following.
Unlike Anita Blake - Mercy's story isn't devolving into pr0n strung between bloody and awkward events. The idea that Mercy is 'gaining power' isn't so much displayed as 'gaining' but as in - "Hey, I didn't know I could do that - sucks being the only one like me around, wonder what else I can do..."
I think Mercy is a great character: lots of personality, spunky and loyal.
Bran is also someone I find really interesting - I was glad to see more of him in the A&O book.

SPOILER: Bran Theory

I've run into the name Bran before in another series, (I know, OMG an author used a real name), I can't help but wonder if the characters are linked/reflections somehow. The age and location of Bran's origins are right in line: Susan Cooper's [i]Dark is Rising[/i] series had a boy named Bran who turned out to be the son of Arthur and Guenivere.

Other [i]SNHC[/i] books I've read in the last month or so:

[b]Magic to the Bone[/b] – by Devon Monk
Allie is a "Hound", sort of a magic bounty hunter.
She’s also the daughter of a powerful spellcaster who turns up murdered and fingers point to her, so she has to figure out who really killed her father before they kill/catch her.
Different take on magic use than I’m used to seeing, but one I could get into. Not a bad story overall, decently written but a little predictable.

[b]Bitten[/b] - Kelley Armstrong
Elena is the only female Werewolf in existence and is called back to the Pack she left because someone is murdering its members.
I'm about halfway through - it's a popcorn book: not a lot of deep thought or complication, but still enjoyable. I'll probably pick up the second book before I leave town this weekend.

I picked up one by Melani Rawn who I loved through the Sunrunner books, but reviews of her [b]Spellbinder[/b] book have me wondering if I should return it or pass it off to my sister without reading it.


I also finished:

[b]Name of the Wind[/b] – Patrick Rothfuss
A story within a story (like The Princess Bride) about a guy recounting his life story to a scribe. The book covers his the time between his parents’ murder and his early years at the magic University.
The story progresses steady and sure, a little slow at times and not a whole lot of ‘physical action’ – but I like how it was written. The world is detailed and not handed to you on a platter, so part of the enjoyment is figuring out the lay of things.


Been tempted to reread [b]Harry Potter[/b], but then I remember how the series takes a dive toward the end.


Sister has been trying to press the [b]Twilight[/b] books on me, but I've stubbornly refused. Having played [i]Vampire the Masquerade[/i] and been instilled with how Kindred should really be - the idea of sappy teen vampire love makes me cringe.
Who knows, they might actually be decent books - but I won't cough up the money for them.

[beniowa]

Yesterday I finished Catherynne Valente's latest, [b][i]Palimpsest[/i][/b] for Bookspot Central ([url="http://www.bookspotcentral.com/2009/03/book-review-palimpsest/"]review[/url]). I found to be a good, rich novel, though not quite as good as [b][i]The Orphan's Tales[/i][/b]. Recommended for Valente fans and those that want a richer experience than the average fantasy novel.

For my next book I think I'll finally get around to [b][i]River of Gods[/i][/b] by Ian McDonald.

[quote name='Trinuviel' post='1714682' date='Mar 10 2009, 07.21']Joe Abercrombie's [b]Before They Are Hanged[/b],
[b]Kitty and the Midnight Hour[/b][/quote]
Another Abercrombie and Kitty fan! :D

[Frosty]

Broken Angels by Richard Morgan

Amimuth or something like that by Phil K Dick

Guilty Pleasures: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter - Finished it and had mixed emotions - liked her style but it seemed to drift back and forth with no clear direction. Don't know it I will continue or not.

Alphane Moon or something by Phil K Dick - Finished and totally satisfied except for the ending.

[Morcant]

[quote]Finished reading D.M Cornish's 'Foundling'[/quote]

I hope that you will continue with the series and read 'Lamplighter'. I am looking forward to the yet to be published 'Factotum' (the last in the the trilogy) almost as much as ADWD.

[quote]Next up is a quick re-read of Gates of Fire[/quote]

That book is so damn good. I should reread it one of these days also.

[pat5150]

Just finished Kay Kenyon's [i]City Without End[/i], and it's definitely the best volume of the series so far.

No offense to Peter F. Hamilton and the other scifi authors in the middle of ongoing series, but The Entire and the Rose could well be the best game in town!

Check the blog for the full review. :)

Cheers,

Patrick

[Deornoth]

[quote name='Morcant' post='1716624' date='Mar 11 2009, 18.35']I hope that you will continue with the series and read 'Lamplighter'. I am looking forward to the yet to be published 'Factotum' (the last in the the trilogy) almost as much as ADWD.[/quote]

Absolutely, I've been pestering the publisher for a copy of 'Lamplighter' and there's now one in the post :thumbsup:

I finished reading Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle's 'Escape from Hell', the sequel to 'Inferno'. Allen Carpenter escaped from Hell but now he's going back to rescue the souls that he had to leave behind...
'Escape from Hell' is a slow old read (almost too slow sometimes) but left me with loads to think about after I had finished it. I'm not sure I'd read it again but it was worth picking up. My full review is over [url="http://www.graemesfantasybookreview.com"]Here[/url]. I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever get round to picking up 'Dragonfly Falling' again, it's not a bad book (quite the opposite) but it's just not doing it for me at the moment. In the meantime, it's onto Joe Abercrombie's 'Best Served Cold'...

[Tobin]

[quote name='Frosty' post='1716553' date='Mar 11 2009, 16.08']Guilty Pleasures: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter - Finished it and had mixed emotions - liked her style but it seemed to drift back and forth with no clear direction. Don't know it I will continue or not.[/quote]


The first two or three books were ok - after that...it devolved...
They're clearly Mary Sue - but it gets even worse later.
It used to be that my sister and I would buy mirror copies each time a Blake came out.
Now we take turns and have talked about hitting up the library since we don't think they're worth the money anymore.

Try the [b]Mercy Thompson[/b] books by Briggs, they have all the fun spark and supernatural of Anita Blake (though more Werewolf centered) but none of the gratuitous/fetish pr0n.