|
Deus Ex Manatee posted:Any actors you would want to see portray your favorite characters? I picture Brad Dourif (wormtongue from LOTR) as Silas Fennic for some reason.
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2010 12:31
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 14, 2024 19:45 |
|
|
Captain_Indigo posted:\After tearing through PSS and The Scar, I'm finding it hard to get into Iron Council. My schedule has changed significantly, which is part of the problem, but I just can't seem to get through the opening (I presume its sort of a prologue). It starts in media res a lot more than the previous two, any advice on how far in the plot takes a little more shape? There are 10 "parts" to the novel, each divided into chapters. Part 1 and Part 2 introduce you to all the major characters and get the gears turning on the plot. After part 3, and about a quarter of a way into the book, the story takes a complete sideways turn and goes into a 150 page flashback ("anamnesis"). This flashback tends to put a lot of readers off as suddenly you're in a completely different storyline which has, seemingly, nothing to do with the plot threads you were following - and the writing style is particularly dense here. HOWEVER: stick it out because the anamnesis is one of the best parts of the book. It is a fantastic novella-within-a-novel which adds depth and meaning to everything that comes before and after. And it does tie into the main plot in the end, so don't worry about it being a non-sequitur. When you finish that, you will be halfway through the story and the plot rockets from there to the finale, much like the latter half of PSS did, with lots of action.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2010 12:49
|
|
|
I just finished Iron Council. It had its moments but it also had its infuriating stretches. As far as his Bas Lag books go, I think the Scar was the most well-written and Perdido Street Station was the most exciting. Mieville has this interesting habit in his books of introducing new toys and then suddenly breaking them before they can really affect the narrative. The Ape-Constructs, mercenaries and Handlingers in PSS all show up for a bit and then are destroyed or cowed by the Slake Moths pretty quickly. In the Scar Armada spends so much time summoning the Avanc, but then it just pulls Armada along, gets sick and turns back. The Statue is broken because the Grindylow are like "Hahah gently caress we're not savages ma'am." And even the reveal of what the Scar is kind of defeats the purpose of even going there in the first place. In Iron Council it's Toro's helmet, which up until like three paragraphs before it bursts into flames was completely fine and working perfectly, and the light golem: used once then never again. It's kind of cool he can just toss those things aside like that, it makes for some pleasant uncertainty when reading his work. I still think Un Lun Dun is his best book, though.
|
|
#
?
Oct 28, 2010 18:50
|
|
|
Desumaytah posted:I just finished Iron Council. It had its moments but it also had its infuriating stretches. As far as his Bas Lag books go, I think the Scar was the most well-written and Perdido Street Station was the most exciting. I could be wrong, but in The Scar didn't the Grindylow chew big gashes in the Avanc or some such that made it sick?
|
|
#
?
Oct 31, 2010 08:11
|
|
|
Squidbeak posted:I could be wrong, but in The Scar didn't the Grindylow chew big gashes in the Avanc or some such that made it sick? That is correct.
|
|
#
?
Oct 31, 2010 12:14
|
|
|
A tiny bit of Embassytown info from this page: http://blog.libraryjournal.com/prepubalert/2010/11/01/fiction-2/Library Journal posted:Miéville, China. Embassytown. Del Rey: Ballantine. May 2011. 208p. ISBN 9780345524492. $25. eISBN 9780345521859.
|
|
#
?
Nov 2, 2010 02:48
|
|
|
I know this was mentioned pretty far back, but at the time I hadn't read the begining of IC and so I didn't really read much of it, but I take it that in the puppet show that shows what happened to Jack half-a-prayer, we are to presume that the pock-faced figure is Yag? And if so I like to imagine that his miraculous escape is down to finding someone else to teach him to fly! Stupid lying bird bitch, she definitely wanted it.
|
|
#
?
Nov 11, 2010 14:23
|
|
|
Captain_Indigo posted:I know this was mentioned pretty far back, but at the time I hadn't read the begining of IC and so I didn't really read much of it, but I take it that in the puppet show that shows what happened to Jack half-a-prayer, we are to presume that the pock-faced figure is Yag? And if so I like to imagine that his miraculous escape is down to finding someone else to teach him to fly! Stupid lying bird bitch, she definitely wanted it. Ye, it is supposed to be Yagharek.. I actually thought it was supposed to be Isaac for some reason, but this thread set me right on that. Although I don't think he ever learned to fly again, but I don't remember exactly what happened in the puppet show, so maybe. I thought the point of the puppet show was that the Militia baasically got 'cheated' out of executing Jack because he was mercy-killed by Yag, and that was his true escape in typically brutal Mieville fashion. This story was suppressed because, well, it's the Militia, although again I don't really remember.
|
|
#
?
Nov 12, 2010 22:04
|
|
|
 Embassytown update! 6 May 2011 (UK) Hardcover, 432 pages Embassytown: a city of contradictions on the outskirts of the universe. Avice is an immerser, a traveller on the immer, the sea of space and time below the everyday, now returned to her birth planet. Here on Arieka, humans are not the only intelligent life, and Avice has a rare bond with the natives, the enigmatic Hosts - who cannot lie. Only a tiny cadre of unique human Ambassadors can speak Language, and connect the two communities. But an unimaginable new arrival has come to Embassytown. And when this Ambassador speaks, everything changes. Catastrophe looms. Avice knows the only hope is for her to speak directly to the alien Hosts. And that is impossible. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Embassytown-China-Mieville/dp/0230750761/
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2010 08:04
|
|
|
Fuckin' A, half-birthday present here I come!
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2010 08:14
|
|
|
SaviourX posted:Fuckin' A, half-birthday present here I come! Day after my birthday 
|
|
#
?
Nov 13, 2010 14:48
|
|
|
If I'm a marxist yet dislike most fantasy/sci-fi books, is reading Mieville worth it?
|
|
#
?
Nov 14, 2010 00:48
|
|
|
1294028 posted:If I'm a marxist yet dislike most fantasy/sci-fi books, is reading Mieville worth it? Probably, although IC will be of the most interest to you. He tends to break with a lot of familiar genre tropes, so I mean it's not like his books are filled with wise, pointy-eared elves or anything.
|
|
#
?
Nov 14, 2010 01:21
|
|
|
1294028 posted:If I'm a marxist yet dislike most fantasy/sci-fi books, is reading Mieville worth it? Depends. Did you want a Marxist Fantasy? or a weird setting that includes some laborers and rebels? Yes, there was union organizing, and the oligarchic leadership of the city was portrayed as baddies, but it isn't a marxist fantasy where the marxists actually win or anything.
|
|
#
?
Nov 14, 2010 07:17
|
|
|
On the same day Embassytown is released (6th of May 2011), China's entire back catalogue is getting new cover art. Here's the first one to be revealed: I like it a lot. The new editions are all going to look great, I bet.
|
|
#
?
Nov 16, 2010 14:18
|
|
|
Cover art time!
|
|
#
?
Dec 5, 2010 15:31
|
|
|
I finished Perdido Street Station on Thanksgiving after almost a year of on-and-off reading. Despite the length of time to finish, I would consider it one of my favorite novels ever. This is mostly for the massive number of crazy ideas rather than the story, though I liked that too for the most part. It was interesting how unpredictable it was from the beginning. For example, I never would have guessed that Derkhan would have an important part in the plot from her introduction. I thought the ending was OK. I wasn't expecting it to be happy and it wasn't. It did seem a little unfair that Motley apparently got his whole mind back when Lin did not. I'm now reading the Scar and liking it a lot, though I don't think I've gotten to the parts that people in this thread loved so much. It definitely reads more smoothly than PSS.
|
|
#
?
Dec 7, 2010 22:30
|
|
|
Iron Council Spoiler: Just found out the identity of Torro . Mind blown!
|
|
#
?
Dec 8, 2010 01:42
|
|
|
Captain_Indigo posted:Iron Council Spoiler: Just found out the identity of Torro . Mind blown! One of my favourite twists in the series! I especially like her nonchalant killing of the mayor, then the reveal that the mayor wasn't her real target... ^^^^^ maybe don't read that spoiler text yet, I can't remember when the thing I talked about happens relative to what you just read. Portable Staplefrog posted:I'm now reading the Scar and liking it a lot, though I don't think I've gotten to the parts that people in this thread loved so much. It definitely reads more smoothly than PSS. Oh my god, just you wait, you are going to have a blast 
|
|
#
?
Dec 8, 2010 01:46
|
|
|
Captain_Indigo posted:Iron Council Spoiler: Just found out the identity of Torro . Mind blown! I literaly just read that chapter last night! Anyway, I'll soon be done with IC, and sadly, the whole Bas-lag trilogy. So I am looking for reccomendations on what Mieville books to read next. Do any of the other boks stand out? Is there one to avoid? Which is most similar to the Bas-lag trilogy I have liked so much?
|
|
#
?
Dec 8, 2010 23:47
|
|
|
Reset Smith posted:I literaly just read that chapter last night! Kraken is my favourite non-Bas-Lag book. It's full of weird ideas like those books, only set in London.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2010 01:10
|
|
|
Reset Smith posted:I literaly just read that chapter last night! Un Lun Dun is loving fantastic. YA/Children's lit stigma be damned.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2010 08:37
|
|
|
Maybe because it was my first one of his, or maybe just because it appeals to me, but I rank The City and The City higher than anyone else. It is just an example, for me, of a concept novel that works. The entire book is a typical thriller, but revolving around one bizzare concept. The sheer imagination of this one idea, coupled with the way in which it is utilised, makes you actually believe it.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2010 15:47
|
|
|
Captain_Indigo posted:Maybe because it was my first one of his, or maybe just because it appeals to me, but I rank The City and The City higher than anyone else. It is just an example, for me, of a concept novel that works. The entire book is a typical thriller, but revolving around one bizzare concept. The sheer imagination of this one idea, coupled with the way in which it is utilised, makes you actually believe it. I love TC&TC too, the concept was amazing and carried out so well. And it was ambivalent enough about the supernatural forces at work, if any, to keep it interesting and let the reader fill in the gaps themselves. Possibly my favourite Mieville, but I really like them all. Plus the main character was pretty easy to relate to (I found) and was generally pretty likeable.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2010 21:41
|
|
|
I raced through TC&TC when it came out, determined to find out the solution to the mystery. I think I lost a lot of the soaking-up-the-weirdness. I think I should reread it soon.
|
|
#
?
Dec 9, 2010 21:44
|
|
|
Reset Smith posted:I literaly just read that chapter last night! I would recommend avoiding King Rat. Don't get me wrong, the ending had me grinning from ear to ear, but you can defiantly tell that it was his first novel. It's pretty clunky, and he spends way to much time talking about "jungle music".
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2010 05:47
|
|
|
Patrick Spens posted:I would recommend avoiding King Rat. Don't get me wrong, the ending had me grinning from ear to ear, but you can defiantly tell that it was his first novel. It's pretty clunky, and he spends way to much time talking about "jungle music". It picked up as it got going though. I like King Rat more than TC&TC in all honesty.
|
|
#
?
Dec 10, 2010 06:12
|
|
|
I'm gonna recommend Looking for Jake. Its a mixed bag of short stories, but some of them (The Tain, Looking for Jake, Reports of Certain Events of London) are awesome.
|
|
#
?
Dec 12, 2010 01:56
|
|
|
 Well huh. Is that... is that Impact and the Harry Potter font on one book cover? 
|
|
#
?
Dec 26, 2010 15:26
|
|
|
Hedrigall posted:
I dunno, I kinda like it...
|
|
#
?
Dec 26, 2010 17:48
|
|
|
Only thing that throws me is having the incredibly distinctive Bank of China Tower in there with the sci-fi buildings.
|
|
#
?
Dec 26, 2010 18:30
|
|
|
About 150 pages through The Scar, at the moment, and enjoying it a lot. Armada certainly is interesting.
|
|
#
?
Dec 27, 2010 10:59
|
|
|
SmokinDan posted:About 150 pages through The Scar, at the moment, and enjoying it a lot. Armada certainly is interesting. I think it gets even better from here on out.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2010 23:35
|
|
|
Captain_Indigo posted:I know this was mentioned pretty far back, but at the time I hadn't read the begining of IC and so I didn't really read much of it, but I take it that in the puppet show that shows what happened to Jack half-a-prayer, we are to presume that the pock-faced figure is Yag? And if so I like to imagine that his miraculous escape is down to finding someone else to teach him to fly! Stupid lying bird bitch, she definitely wanted it. Yeah that's me 
yag fucked around with this message at 07:29 on Dec 29, 2010 |
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2010 02:48
|
|
|
Here's another blurbacious thing: China Miéville doesn’t follow trends, he sets them. Relentlessly pushing his own boundaries as a writer—and in the process expanding the boundaries of the entire field—with Embassytown, Miéville has crafted an extraordinary novel that is not only a moving personal drama but a gripping adventure of alien contact and war. In the far future, humans have colonized a distant planet, home to the enigmatic Ariekei, sentient beings famed for a language unique in the universe, one that only a few altered human ambassadors can speak. Avice Benner Cho, a human colonist, has returned to Embassytown after years of deep-space adventure. She cannot speak the Ariekei tongue, but she is an indelible part of it, having long ago been made a figure of speech, a living simile in their language. When distant political machinations deliver a new ambassador to Arieka, the fragile equilibrium between humans and aliens is violently upset. Catastrophe looms, and Avice is torn between competing loyalties—to a husband she no longer loves, to a system she no longer trusts, and to her place in a language she cannot speak yet speaks through her. It seems the language part is the big, weird idea of the book — kind of like the dual cities was the big, weird idea of TC&TC.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2011 15:08
|
|
|
That language thing sounds loving preposterous. I can't wait.
|
|
#
?
Jan 18, 2011 22:04
|
|
|
Someone got their hands on a proof of Embassytown and sold it on Ebay. Here's some pics: Click here for the full 1280x1012 image.  Click here for the full 1280x1080 image. Still probably not the final cover art, which is a shame because I really like this design. The stuff on the back about his upcoming publicity campaign is interesting. What the hell is "ambient marketing"? Edit: VVVV Oh, that's pretty cool. I wish Pan Macmillan would hurry up and reveal the new cover art for all his books. It was supposed to happen in January. Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 12:12 on Feb 11, 2011 |
|
#
?
Feb 11, 2011 12:06
|
|
|
Hedrigall posted:What the hell is "ambient marketing"? It's when advertisers place their messages in outdoor/indoor locations other than traditional billboards and similar. You know, like spray painting brands on pavements and stuff.
|
|
#
?
Feb 11, 2011 12:10
|
|
|
And (thank you to our temporarily departed Hedrigall for the link) here's the back catalogue in the new cover style (click for big):         Time for everyone to buy all the books again my shelf must look pretty damnit.
|
|
#
?
Feb 23, 2011 11:48
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 14, 2024 19:45 |
|
|
Those are amazing. Surprised by the relative simplicity of TC&TC one, but they are all amazing.
|
|
#
?
Feb 23, 2011 12:30
|
|