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WRT nevernessNomnom Cookie posted:I’ve read them all and would say the first one is the best. It’s also a standalone. I liked the followup books well enough but Neverness is the only one I’ve felt like re-reading. My recommendation would be check out Neverness if you like weird as gently caress settings and a weird as gently caress spin on the monomyth, then go for the follow ups if you liked Neverness so much you want more and not quite as good is acceptable Mild Counterpoint. I loved Zindell's Requiem for Homo-Sapiens books when I discovered them. When the third one in the sequel series was released I stayed up until 4am finishing it. Neverness (the relatively standalone first one) is great, but has a section in the ice with the atavistic neanderthals in the middle section that was quite a slog. The sequel series just pandered to my youthful interests in AI and transhumism to a perfect T. The style of them is both a blessing and a curse. They are positively Homeric in their use of language, describing mathematical concepts as poetry and (also like Homer) repreatedly re-using adjectival phrases in a way that made the whole thing seem like an epic poem rather than an SF novel - but I can see how some might find it wearing a bit thin by the fourth book. The ideas it played with (geometrical advancement in cybernetic enhancement, the Dark Forest as the realm of jealous AI/Enhanced Intellect 'gods') were some of the first times I'd seen them them treated with seriousness and depth. That said, we've leared a lot about some of these topics in subsequent decades, and I wonder if some of the neato-wizz-bangery might seem a little niave in retrospect (I'm thinking mostly about the protag's domination of what is basically an electro-encephalograph in the The Wild, but I'm sure there are other examples). But yeah, the whole thing was a serious sense-of-wonder buzz overload for me, though I'm still conflicted about whether the ending was a copout or brilliant, and if Neverness gets your synapses jazzed by its possibilities, there is a lot more where that came from in the sequel series.
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May 28, 2021 02:14
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Started writing up my notes for SFL Archives Vol 21a. Over 300 bookmarks to go through, and at least 4 death notices so far. Gharlane of Eddore keeps reappearing in my notes and is so fixated on George RR Martin's DOORWAYS tv-series pilot being amazing and SLIDERS the tv-series being trash with pages and pages and pages of rebuttals I half think Gharlane is GRRM posting under a sock-puppet alt-account. More likely is the possibility that Gharlane of Eddore is simply Chip Hitchcock, a ur-Internet Troll/Robert Heinlein mega-fanatic, still hiding out from the infamy of how they managed BOSKONE 24. End of the month is coming up. Is there anything anyone wants added to the OP of this thread? quantumfoam fucked around with this message at 02:22 on May 28, 2021 |
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May 28, 2021 02:19
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I'm reading Celtika by Robert Holdstock while I wait for Mythago Wood to arrive. Interesting premise.
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May 28, 2021 02:25
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quantumfoam posted:Started writing up my notes for SFL Archives Vol 21a. Over 300 bookmarks to go through, and at least 4 death notices so far. Gharlane's real identity became known after his death. I used to see his posts on Usenet back when that was a thing.
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May 28, 2021 02:37
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Lemniscate Blue posted:Gharlane's real identity became known after his death. I used to see his posts on Usenet back when that was a thing. One of the cool things is that I have no idea who most of the people posting in the SFL Archives are, and therefore have no agenda* when posting about the SFL Archives...that Gharlane of Eddore reveal you posted just made me shrug. In the SFL Archives of the 1980's - 1990's, Gharlane of Eddore mostly comes across as a give-me-attention "get off my SFF lawn/yeller at SFF clouds ala Abe Simpson" Internet SFF contrarian. So far in 1996, Joel Rosenberg has been using the SFL Archives as a free sounding board to tweak the story arcs/character development for his ongoing SFF book series, Patrick Nielsen Hayden still posts like a edgelord, and Robert J Sawyer has been gunning for the abandoned "defender of the SFWA in the SFL Archives/SFL Archives SFWA White Knight" role extremely hard. And oh yeah, 1996's Daniel Keys Moran no longer has a working relationship with Bantam Books, but has two new CONTINUING TIME series novels ready to be published with minimal delay any day now. *Outside of commenting on the many weird/oddball things posted in the SFL Archives and noting the various SFF stories/movies/tv shows mentions, I have no SFL Archives enemies or agenda except for somehow falling into the role of debunking the various statements Daniel Keys Moran has made to the internet ever since 1988/SFL Archives Volume 13.
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May 28, 2021 03:14
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Lemniscate Blue posted:Gharlane's real identity became known after his death. I used to see his posts on Usenet back when that was a thing. Gharlane once emailed me an unsolicited list of reading recommendations. Whether that was because he thought I would like them, or because he thought my rec.arts.sf.written posting demonstrated insufficient erudition is lost to the ages (along with my old work email account). Anyhow, it was a nice gesture regardless and I always thought he was pretty groovy for an Eddorian.
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May 28, 2021 03:22
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The full SFL Vol 21a notes are going up on the offsite blog right now, these are the highlights I didn't post here yet. -NO PERSON WHO GREW UP IN CANADA HAD EVER WON A HUGO OR NEBULA AWARD UNTIL THE 1995 NEBULA AWARDS. -The flip-book animation of a spaceship exploding inside hardcover printings of HONOR AMONG ENEMIES. -David Drake delivers an ice-burn regarding SM Stirling's writing when discussing THE CHOSEN, a book co-written by Stirling and David Drake..."the point of the book was to teach Stirling how to write a book in which the bad guys *lose*", and the resemblance to the Draka was fully intentional on his part(Drake did a 20k word outline that Stirling expanded out into a novel). -<U616@wvnwm.wvnet.edu> made that joking not joking plea for the UNABOMBER to bomb the NBC Studios buildings in California for the terrible crime of NBC having greenlit and aired episodes of SEAQUEST DSV, and EARTH 2. -"this is a typical cycle - male author gets old and writes bizarre sex ramblings" -And finally thought I would just re-quote the following posts in full: ------------------------------ Date: 27 May 1996 19:40:53 GMT From: djheydt@uclink.berkeley.edu (Dorothy J Heydt) Reply-to: sf-lovers-written@Rutgers.Edu Subject: Re: Banks' Consider Phlebas -- what does the title mean? Dean K Rizer <rizer001@maroon.tc.umn.edu> wrote: >- What does the title _Consider Phlebas_ allude to? ... It's part of T. S. Eliot's _The Waste Land_ (1922). Since no one else has quoted the section, I shall: IV. Death by Water Phlebas the Phoenician, a fortnight dead, Forgot the cry of gulls and the deep sea swell And the profit and loss. A current under sea Picked his bones in whispers. As he rose and fell He passed the stages of his age and youth Entering the whirlpool. Gentile or Jew O you who turn the wheel and look to windward, Consider Phlebas, who was once handsome and tall as you. _The Waste Land,_ which is rife with explanatory footnotes, gives none for this section. It is foreshadowed, however, in a passage in Section I where a clairvoyant gives a Tarot reading saying, "Here is your card, the drowned Phoenician Sailor, (Those are pearls that were his eyes. Look!) ... Fear death by water.") Now you know as much as I do; nay, rather, you know more, since I have never been able to read Mr. Banks. Dorothy J. Heydt University of California Berkeley djheydt@uclink.berkeley.edu ------------------------------ ------------------------------ Date: 19 Jun 1996 13:47:48 -0400 From: daa@seachang.demon.co.uk (David Allsopp) Reply-to: sf-lovers-written@Rutgers.Edu Subject: Iain Banks -- Excession My, I haven't felt so smug since last year's Babylon 5 series' final episodes were shown here first. I've just come back from having my copy of "Excession" signed by the author, and I even managed time for a brief chat. Contents of chat follow, spoilers/comments for the book itself to follow when I've read it - a couple of days at most. I'm paraphrasing the conversation of course, but I'm pretty sure I'm not misinterpreting. Me: "Given that the typical Culture citizen (hah! now *that's* an oxymoron; Ed.) lives about 400 years, with death being regarded as something that gives meaning to life (see "A FEW NOTES ON THE CULTURE", sf-lovers archives), how does this apply to Minds? And drones of course." IMB: "I feel that they're beings with a much longer lifespan. I'd expect Minds to go away, or disappear up their own beatitude, or something, after about 20,000 years. Of course, the Culture's only been around for about 10,000 years..." Me: "Will we have to wait another 4 years for the next Culture book?" IMB: "I have a contract for 2 mainstream and 2 SF, but what the SF will be depends on how the ideas come. Both, one or neither could be Culture books. I do find the big ships, big laser cannons and so of the Culture very appealing though." Me: "Do we meet any old friends in _Excession_?" IMB: "No, but there's always a wee reference somewhere to things that have appeared in other books." Er, that's it. The photographer arrived, and I thought of another 500 questions on the way back :-(. Oh well, at least I get to read the book. David Allsopp Aran Ltd. daa@seachang.demon.co.uk ------------------------------
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May 28, 2021 06:25
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Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DN8BQMD/ Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NERQRPI/ The Eon Series: Legacy, Eon, and Eternity by Greg Bear - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071YMZ3RT/
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May 28, 2021 22:03
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Here, have an old-ish (2019) interview with Ted Chiang where the interviewer is painfully out of touch with genre fiction. Mostly I just wanna know if I am the only one that’s annoyed by this. https://tinhouse.com/podcast/ted-chiang-exhalation/
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May 28, 2021 22:16
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"He who leaps at the moon Into cowshyte falls Glory unto cowshyte!" I like Blacktongue Thief a lot.
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May 29, 2021 02:12
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Aardvark! posted:Finished volume 1 of Two of Swords. It did a good job getting me interested in the set-up, excited to see where it goes over the next 2. Also to read other KJ Parker books Read all the KJ Parker! You might want to give one of the one-shot books a try, or maybe even one of the short story collections, as they are generally tighter works.
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May 29, 2021 03:33
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The Folding Knife is still my favourite Parker book. It does the meteoric rise narrative really well but the intro chapter gives things an incredible sense of foreboding. From the first page you’re wondering how things could have fallen apart to that extent.
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May 29, 2021 04:08
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GrandmaParty posted:"He who leaps at the moon I'm only 10% in and I like it a lot too but it walks a fine line between fun and insufferable. I pre-ordered based on the thread feedback and frankly I'm ready to do the same for the the next book
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May 29, 2021 04:13
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branedotorg posted:I'm only 10% in and I like it a lot too but it walks a fine line between fun and insufferable. It gets more into the groove later. As I get older, I'm looking for more fun things that go completely over the top. This hits some of them and doesn't take itself too seriously.
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May 29, 2021 04:30
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I’m rereading Murderbot and I forgot just how enjoyable this series is. Some of the best sci-fi I’ve read in a long time.
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May 29, 2021 06:11
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Yeah I’m close to 50% into the Blacktongue Thief and enjoying it. It’s not hitting as hard for me as Between Two Fires or The Necromancer’s House did though, he’s still a good writer but he’s really good at horror and dark fantasy vs this kind of fun, gritty fantasy.
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May 29, 2021 23:09
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For those really enjoying Blacktongue Thief: the author, who is also an amazing performer under the name Christophe the Insulter, ruined his poo poo at a renn faire recently and has a GoFundMe to try to put his knee back together, if you want to show some more direct appreciation. I've met him, he's a cool dude.
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May 30, 2021 04:50
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Apparently I bought blacktongue thief already, but not sure if I like that dude or wanna hit him with a 2x4. Prolly both.
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May 30, 2021 06:02
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Remulak posted:Apparently I bought blacktongue thief already, but not sure if I like that dude or wanna hit him with a 2x4. Prolly both. You are Stephen King and I claim my five pounds.
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May 30, 2021 10:04
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I didn't blurb Blacktongue Thief and now I feel stupid about it because I subsequently read Between Two Fires and REALLY liked it. I'm personally sorry Christopher  e: also his editor is a cool lady
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May 30, 2021 15:25
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Cradle is free again because Will Wight hates money, this time it's all 9: https://www.amazon.com/Cradle/dp/B0753FP6SP
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May 30, 2021 17:10
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Silly Newbie posted:For those really enjoying Blacktongue Thief: the author, who is also an amazing performer under the name Christophe the Insulter, ruined his poo poo at a renn faire recently and has a GoFundMe to try to put his knee back together, if you want to show some more direct appreciation. I've met him, he's a cool dude. He's that guy? I'm pretty sure I've been personally insulted by that man at a slow weekend a decade ago.
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May 30, 2021 17:21
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A Little Hatred (Age of Madness #1) by Joe Abercrombie - $3.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MJ656W9/ Ancillary Justice (Imperial Radch #1) by Ann Leckie - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BAXFDLM/ The City We Became (Great Cities #1) by NK Jemisin - $3.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MFKQDJM/ Emergency Skin (Forward) by NK Jemisin - $0.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VFMFPP4/
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May 30, 2021 17:48
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dude, i kept hearing people talking up the Blacktongue Thief but i didn't realize it was written by the guy who wrote Between Two Fires and the Lesser Dead. time to jack in!
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May 30, 2021 18:04
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Danhenge posted:He's that guy? I'm pretty sure I've been personally insulted by that man at a slow weekend a decade ago. Yep, he insulted me at Bristol a couple years back and I laughed so hard I couldn't breathe. I'm excited to find out he's an author, I hadn't gotten around to the other stuff he's written that the thread recommends. https://gofund.me/6ebf285d Silly Newbie fucked around with this message at 20:13 on May 30, 2021 |
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May 30, 2021 20:09
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Holy poo poo I remember him!
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May 30, 2021 20:14
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So I finished The Blacktongue Thief. It's good. It's great for a fantasy debut, but it's also less than I expected after reading Between Two Fires which, although marketed as horror, is definitely a kind of fantasy. In the Acknowledgments, Buehlman cites Abercrombie and Rothfuss as influences. This book definitely feels like a combination of those two authors. The first person narration, obsession with currency and poetry and levels of schooling of Rothfuss combined with the plotting, humor, and grim outlook of Abercrombie. The similarity to those two already ensures many genre readers will love this book. But there are a fair amount of weaknesses. The protagonist's voice dominates the proceedings to an extent that I never got a really good sense of who a few of the side characters are. Norrigal gets her time in the sun, but I've already forgotten the name of the soldier Kinch met on the boat who travels with them for a time, and Galva, despite being built up as the other main protagonist, is mostly there to dominate in fights and pull the plot along with her stoic insistence on the quest. Buehlman also went over and above on the world-building, to the point that I think it occludes the characters. We learn about a lot of nations, and the protagonists are always referenced by what nation they're from and how its national character influences their thoughts and actions. So Spanths love their wine and their horses and are competent in battle. Galts are short and love to swear. Holts are, well, kind of the default, the way British people like to think of themselves compared to their "exotic" cousins on the continent. There are snatches of various languages included in the text, displaying Buehlman's understanding of linguistics, and asides about how words sound coming out of a particular character's mouth due to the their accent. It gives credence to the world, but I wish we got more from the various characters to give more of a sense of who they are. The book functions as a full arc, but there's definitely more to come which I will happily read. The queen introduced near the end gets barely any characterization, so hopefully she'll be fleshed out in the coming volumes. Overall though I'm a bit disappointed that so much time was spent remarking on aspects of the world and we didn't get quieter moments with the characters. One of the great strengths of Between Two Fires was that the lore was all from our history. The story didn't need to explain who the French or English are. Even if you're not well versed in history, you get the salient details through context anyway. In TBT, Kinch spends a lot of time explaining the world and its history to us like we are reading his account from another reality. Which we are, but it shouldn't come across that way in the text. Gene Wolfe was a master of having Severian's narration sound like it was from one member of society to another in the near future. Even Kvothe's story in Kingkiller sounds a bit more like its meant to be for audiences from his own world. This is confusing because Buehlman did first person narration successfully in The Lesser Dead. That narration came across perfectly as the message from another time and about a hidden aspect of our reality, not as something sent from a different world altogether. The final point is that in the shift from horror to fantasy, the writing lost some of its edge. Plenty of gruesome stuff happens in TBT, but none of it feels as horrifying as anything in Between Two Fires, The Necromancer's House, or The Lesser Dead. Part of this is because the narrator insulates himself with humor. But even in the direst moments where levity should leave him, I wasn't hit with an "oh poo poo" moment the way I was in those other books. I was looking forward to seeing how his horror training would really elevate his prose in the scenes that needed to be horrifying, and I didn't get that. It's still well written, to be sure, but there's nothing that even approaches the plague-free castle scene in Between Two Fires for a sense of foreboding. Anyway I wouldn't have written all that if I hadn't enjoyed this book. Buehlman is an author I expected might unseat Abercrombie as my favorite in his shift over to fantasy. As it is, I expect Joe's final book in his current trilogy will be my favorite of 2021. If this takes second place, it's still a solid read. Ccs fucked around with this message at 02:28 on May 31, 2021 |
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May 31, 2021 02:26
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Cicero posted:Cradle is free again because Will Wight hates money, this time it's all 9: https://www.amazon.com/Cradle/dp/B0753FP6SP How are these books? Grabbed them because free and at a glance they seem cool for the premise.
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May 31, 2021 14:41
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In my opinion, they are extremely good at doing what they set out to do: provide a fun popcorn adventure series with lots of fights and training/powering up for fights. It's similar in spirit to shonen anime like DBZ/Naruto/MHA/Bleach, but with writing that's good, instead of bad. And aside from the fights, I think the author has a real talent for snappy, fun dialogue that provides for distinct voices for the characters. That said, I wouldn't describe it as a particularly deep series, in terms of character writing or themes. It's much more of a light novel (the author has even talked about how it's intentionally simple). edit: they're fairly short, if you're not invested by the end of the third one (which is where it really kicks into gear), then it's not for you. The first two I think are still good, but the first is structured pretty differently from the others and the second doesn't have quite as much cool intense poo poo going on. Also prepare to be ruined for other progression fantasy because Cradle is easily the best of the lot Cicero fucked around with this message at 17:08 on May 31, 2021 |
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May 31, 2021 16:58
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I need a new audiobook to do menial lab work to, something that leans on horror or the unexplained supernatural for its gimmick preferably, but very open to trying something new. Audible has too much to sort through to figure this out for myself.
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May 31, 2021 16:58
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Ron Paul Atreides posted:I need a new audiobook to do menial lab work to, something that leans on horror or the unexplained supernatural for its gimmick preferably, but very open to trying something new. Audible has too much to sort through to figure this out for myself. Have you listened to DECLARE by Tim Powers or THE FISHERMAN by John Langan or perhaps THE LUMINOUS DEAD by Caitlin Starling
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May 31, 2021 17:37
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General Battuta posted:Have you listened to DECLARE by Tim Powers or THE FISHERMAN by John Langan or perhaps THE LUMINOUS DEAD by Caitlin Starling no no and no saw that last one though on Audible, will give it a shot ty
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May 31, 2021 17:38
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KJ Parker sale today. Shadow (Scavenger #1) - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B3VX3TA/ Pattern (Scavenger #2) - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B3VX3Y0/ Memory (Scavenger #3) - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B3VX3T0/ The Belly of the Bow (Fencer #2) - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B3VX3S6/ The Proof House (Fencer #3) - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B3VX3UE/ The Two of Swords: Volume Two - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y5685GX/ The Two of Swords: Volume Three - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y5K2CK2/ The Folding Knife - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0035IICZO/ The Hammer - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0047Y0FDM/ The Company - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002B9MHQ8/
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May 31, 2021 17:45
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pradmer posted:KJ Parker sale today. Thanks, I just bought literally all of these, including volume 3 of Two of Swords which I was gonna have to buy today regardless as I'm nearing the end of v 2  I think I'll probably go back and read his stuff in publishing order after I finish Two of Swords.
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May 31, 2021 17:51
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For those prices I guess I'll finish The Fencer trilogy. I wasn't blown away by the first book, and I've heard the second slows down, but a so-so Parker is still better than most other things.
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May 31, 2021 17:59
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Ron Paul Atreides posted:no no and no I just finished reading. It's really perfect for what you're looking for.
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May 31, 2021 18:07
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Declare is a masterpiece and has a good audiobook, I'd second that recommendation. The Luminous Dead is a thread favorite that just made me angry by the end. It trades its premise of "the claustrophobic horror of deep cave exploration plus otherworldly horrors" for a romance between two codependent broken people, one of whom is a nightmarishly manipulative abuser. This is a shame, because deep caving is about as close to a supernatural horror story as you can get IRL, and it's a shame to see that potential left on the table by making the book Not About That.
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May 31, 2021 18:33
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Ron Paul Atreides posted:I need a new audiobook to do menial lab work to, something that leans on horror or the unexplained supernatural for its gimmick preferably, but very open to trying something new. Audible has too much to sort through to figure this out for myself. You might like 14 by Peter Clines. Guy moves in to an apartment building. poo poo gets weird.
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May 31, 2021 18:34
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A few books on my wish list popped up with a discount The Lazarus War: Legion (#2 of 3) by Jamie Sawyer - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B013HA7142 The Lazarus War: Origins (#3 of 3) by Jamie Sawyer - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01922I10W The first in the series, The Lazarus War: Artefact, is often on sale. I honestly don't know where they are quality wise, but I remember adding them to my wish list after reading a review on IO9. Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days by Alastair Reynolds - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0819V8434 Edit: Another 3-part series where I bought the first book a while ago due to an IO9 review, but haven't gotten around to read it, Forsaken Skies (The Silence Book 1) has its two sequels on discount: Forgotten Worlds (The Silence Book 2) by D. Nolan Clark - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KT7YSII Forbidden Suns (The Silence Book 3) by D. Nolan Clark - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MYGCHW0 D. Nolan Clark is the pseudonym for horror writer David Wellington Fart of Presto fucked around with this message at 18:59 on May 31, 2021 |
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May 31, 2021 18:49
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Kestral posted:Declare is a masterpiece and has a good audiobook, I'd second that recommendation. perhaps the real horror was the abusive relationships we had along the way
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May 31, 2021 19:03
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