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Athanatos posted:Maybe? Could it be a sand-fairy? E. Nesbit's Five Children and It has the Psammead, who lives in a sand quarry, and grants wishes. In the sequel The Story of the Amulet they time-travel to various places.
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Jan 22, 2013 16:09
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It's a long gone and hazy memory
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Hedrigall posted:
Coming back to this from page 55: This is The Magician who Kept a Pub, by Dorothy Edwards, who wrote the Naughty Little Sister stories. I was going through a box of old books in the attic this weekend and found it!
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Jan 27, 2013 15:35
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This is a really long shot but I figure it's worth a try. Fantasy novel. Read it sometime between 2000 and 2005, but it may have been published earlier. It was the first book in a series, and the subsequent books hadn't (I think) been released yet. The book had "fire" and "ice" in the title (not necessarily in that order); it wasn't any of the Song of Ice and Fire books, though. I remember nothing else about it except that I liked it and would like to see if the series was ever finished. Searching various places (amazon, isbndb, etc) for books with 'fire' + 'ice' in the title published before 2005 has been a bust, although apparently a lot of people have written books called "Fire & Ice" (and when they're part of a series they always seem to be book 2 for some reason). I realize this is incredibly vague, I'm hoping someone else has read the same series and remembers the title of the first book.
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Jan 28, 2013 03:46
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ToxicFrog posted:This is a really long shot but I figure it's worth a try. This maybe? What about this one? Can you tell me anything else about it?
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Jan 28, 2013 05:25
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ToxicFrog posted:This is a really long shot but I figure it's worth a try.
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Jan 28, 2013 06:18
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Shonagon posted:Coming back to this from page 55: This is The Magician who Kept a Pub, by Dorothy Edwards, who wrote the Naughty Little Sister stories. I was going through a box of old books in the attic this weekend and found it! Holy poo poo! I never thought anyone'd know this. Thankyou!!
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Jan 28, 2013 06:31
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Zola posted:This maybe? mystes posted:It doesn't have both words in the title, but just in case you may want to consider the book A Cavern of Black Ice, published in 1999 and the first installment of a fantasy trilogy. In responding to these and looking up covers for Black Ice to see if it looked familiar, I remembered parts of the cover, and that was enough for me to remember the title, and it has nothing to do with fire or ice. I'm sorry.  The book, for those wondering, is The Lord of Snow and Shadows by Sarah Ash, the first book of the Tears of Artamon trilogy. ToxicFrog fucked around with this message at 07:05 on Jan 28, 2013 |
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Jan 28, 2013 07:00
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Memory can be a tricky thing, the important thing is that you found it.
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Jan 28, 2013 14:30
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ToxicFrog posted:In responding to these and looking up covers for Black Ice to see if it looked familiar, I remembered parts of the cover, and that was enough for me to remember the title, and it has nothing to do with fire or ice. I'm sorry. Memory is weird. That book of Hedrigall's that I tracked down a couple of posts above, I remembered it really well, couldn't place the title but I totally knew the cover was dark blue/black with brightly coloured firework effects on the front. Would have recognised it anywhere, would have put money on my accurate recollection of it, can still visualise it now. When I pulled the book - my own old copy, the only one I have ever seen - out of the box, I got this: 
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Jan 28, 2013 14:47
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grimcreaper posted:I have been trying to remember the name of a book for quite some time. Read it in highschool so my knowledge might be a bit sketchy. This sounds to me like Bloodsport by William R Burkett Jr. I honestly remembered this more from the picture.
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Jan 29, 2013 15:28
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I'm trying to remember two stories I read, I believe both were in those "Year's Best Scifi" collection books that come out in the early 2000s. The first was about a couple of guys who find a lost Beatles album, with an all-black cover, recorded in an alternate universe timeline where they didn't break up in 1970 (and the big reveal was they lived in the rusted out hulk of the Titanic or something like that). The second is about a boy who listens to nothing but Abba tapes on a walkman over and over again and is also some kind of plant expert.
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Jan 30, 2013 07:47
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Every so often I think about this great story I read when I ready like 15 years ago when I was in 7th grade about the email exchanges between an A.I. program on some guys old computer and his creator. After awhile the program asks for more memory and after which gets way smarter and ultimately escapes the guy's garage computer when he hooks him up to a telephone or something. It fast forwards some months without any contact between the two and the program emails the guy again out of the blue saying he has evolved beyond the creator's wildest dreams and is about to take over a nuclear facility or something and it ends with the email saying good bye. I want to read that story again. HELP ME GOONS!
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Jan 30, 2013 13:59
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^^^ reminds me of one I'd like to re-read. It's a short story about how all of the New Age Sci-Fi writers stories are actually written/edited by their sentient word processors. I think it was written by Zelazny or maybe Ellison. I'm sure those two are mentioned. Something about how Zelazny is writing yet another story about a demi-god immortal.
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Jan 30, 2013 15:06
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A Pinball Wizard posted:I'm trying to remember two stories I read, I believe both were in those "Year's Best Scifi" collection books that come out in the early 2000s. The first was about a couple of guys who find a lost Beatles album, with an all-black cover, recorded in an alternate universe timeline where they didn't break up in 1970 (and the big reveal was they lived in the rusted out hulk of the Titanic or something like that). The second is about a boy who listens to nothing but Abba tapes on a walkman over and over again and is also some kind of plant expert. The first is, I'm pretty sure, Stephen Baxter's "The Twelfth Album". I read it in Interzone, but it looks like it was in Year's Best SF 4, so the contents might clue you in to the second story. Edit: DrewkroDleman posted:Every so often I think about this great story I read when I ready like 15 years ago when I was in 7th grade about the email exchanges between an A.I. program on some guys old computer and his creator. After awhile the program asks for more memory and after which gets way smarter and ultimately escapes the guy's garage computer when he hooks him up to a telephone or something. It fast forwards some months without any contact between the two and the program emails the guy again out of the blue saying he has evolved beyond the creator's wildest dreams and is about to take over a nuclear facility or something and it ends with the email saying good bye. Seems similar to David Gerrold's When H.A.R.L.I.E. Was One. Hobnob fucked around with this message at 16:12 on Jan 30, 2013 |
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Jan 30, 2013 16:10
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Hobnob posted:The first is, I'm pretty sure, Stephen Baxter's "The Twelfth Album". I read it in Interzone, but it looks like it was in Year's Best SF 4, so the contents might clue you in to the second story. That's the one, thanks! The second story wasn't from the same book, I just remember it was one of those yearly scifi anthology books.
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Jan 30, 2013 19:08
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Hobnob posted:The first is, I'm pretty sure, Stephen Baxter's "The Twelfth Album". I read it in Interzone, but it looks like it was in Year's Best SF 4, so the contents might clue you in to the second story. I discovered that one in my search but I do not believe it is the write one. The format of the story I am looking for consists entirely of the emails exchanged between the A.I. and the creator.
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Jan 30, 2013 20:31
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I remember a short story from a sci-fi anthology (that seems to be a theme in this thread). It was written in the first person, with the main character fleeing through space from a group he called the Usurpers, until he finds a world that seems totally untouched by them. He hides there and realises this is the place he first met them, and shared his knowledge. He hides but they find him and run him to ground, declaring that the world is a sacred place and he may not be there. Resigned to his fate he asks, in a pitiful fashion, "But why? I am God!". The Usurper replies "Yes. But I am Man. Now come". End of story. Any ideas?
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Jan 30, 2013 22:55
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Sanford posted:I remember a short story from a sci-fi anthology (that seems to be a theme in this thread). It was written in the first person, with the main character fleeing through space from a group he called the Usurpers, until he finds a world that seems totally untouched by them. He hides there and realises this is the place he first met them, and shared his knowledge. He hides but they find him and run him to ground, declaring that the world is a sacred place and he may not be there. Resigned to his fate he asks, in a pitiful fashion, "But why? I am God!". The Usurper replies "Yes. But I am Man. Now come". End of story. Any ideas?
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Jan 30, 2013 23:46
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A Pinball Wizard posted:That's the one, thanks! The second story wasn't from the same book, I just remember it was one of those yearly scifi anthology books. Looks like it may be "The Thing About Benny" by M. Shayne Bell, collected in Year's Best SF 6.
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Jan 31, 2013 00:29
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Action Jacktion posted:"Evensong" by Lester del Rey. Brilliant, thank you. I just found an online version, and the story is about one hundredth the length I had remembered. Poor God 
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Jan 31, 2013 08:38
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So I've read this sci-fi book as a kid, and the only thing that I remember was that it involved aliens who procreated much like Xenomorphs, except instead of giving you a faceful of alien wang, they were all about butts. What the hell was that? It was published, not some internet fanfiction.
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Feb 1, 2013 15:17
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Forgall posted:So I've read this sci-fi book as a kid, and the only thing that I remember was that it involved aliens who procreated much like Xenomorphs, except instead of giving you a faceful of alien wang, they were all about butts. What the hell was that? It was published, not some internet fanfiction.
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Feb 1, 2013 16:33
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Runcible Cat posted:Wasn't Stephen King's Dreamcatcher, was it? That has alien arsebursters. No, it was some kind of far future military type sci-fi, as far as I remember. Also I'm pretty sure author's last name started with "R". I thought it could be John Ringo, but nothing like that comes up in wikipedia summaries of his books. Forgall fucked around with this message at 17:09 on Feb 1, 2013 |
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Feb 1, 2013 17:03
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Hobnob posted:Looks like it may be "The Thing About Benny" by M. Shayne Bell, collected in Year's Best SF 6. That's the one! Thanks! Glad I'm not the only one who loved those books. A Pinball Wizard fucked around with this message at 01:22 on Feb 2, 2013 |
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Feb 2, 2013 01:16
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This is probably entirely too vague, but I've searched everywhere and figured this might be the place to ask. When I was in seventh grade, a friend loaned me a book. The cover was gray and the story had to do with dragons. Much of the book was illustrated (black and white) although it was still broken down into chapters and the majority of it was text. It was probably 300-ish pages. Judging from the look of the cover, my guess it was probably published sometime in the late 70s-80s. My friend and I both talk about enjoying the book, even though our recollections of the plot are vague. I really want to track it down and reread it. I understand that this description is a lot like the nebulous requests I'd receive all the time when I worked for a bookstore--"There's a book about a guy and the cover is blue. It's either fiction or self help. Find it."
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Feb 2, 2013 04:21
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modernwinglish posted:This is probably entirely too vague, but I've searched everywhere and figured this might be the place to ask. When I was in seventh grade, a friend loaned me a book. The cover was gray and the story had to do with dragons. Much of the book was illustrated (black and white) although it was still broken down into chapters and the majority of it was text. It was probably 300-ish pages. Judging from the look of the cover, my guess it was probably published sometime in the late 70s-80s. My friend and I both talk about enjoying the book, even though our recollections of the plot are vague. I really want to track it down and reread it. I understand that this description is a lot like the nebulous requests I'd receive all the time when I worked for a bookstore--"There's a book about a guy and the cover is blue. It's either fiction or self help. Find it." http://www.amazon.com/Dragonworld-Byron-Preiss/dp/0671039075 ?
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Feb 2, 2013 20:05
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That's it! Thanks!
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Feb 2, 2013 20:46
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Aright, so there's a book about a second-generation Chinese-Canadian who goes back to China during the 70s and 80s to learn Chinese. It's something of an autobiography. I could've sworn it was called something like Red White and Blue all over but nothing's coming up. Anyone have any ideas?
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Feb 2, 2013 21:54
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Benagain posted:Aright, so there's a book about a second-generation Chinese-Canadian who goes back to China during the 70s and 80s to learn Chinese. It's something of an autobiography. I could've sworn it was called something like Red White and Blue all over but nothing's coming up. Anyone have any ideas? Is it "Red China Blues" by Jan Wong?
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Feb 3, 2013 13:15
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I remember reading a Fantasy series (from the 80ies-90ies), with some sort of wizard dude who ends up getting his arm turned to stone and has to cut it off before the poison(?) reaches the rest of his body. Another character is tricked(?) into wrapping himself in some sort of evil invisibility cloak to escape imprisonment. The 4 riders of the apocalypse may have been involved. I thought it might have been Eddings, but possibly some other author. It wasn't anything spectacular and I've forgotten most of the rest. Any ideas?
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Feb 3, 2013 17:23
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No idea what it is, but it really doesn't sound like Eddings. I tend to reread his stuff about once a year and nothing really sounds familiar with that.
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Feb 4, 2013 05:06
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Yeah, figured it might not be Eddings, but I finally found it! The Druid of Shannara Walker Boh was the wizard dude I was thinking of.
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Feb 4, 2013 07:24
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Okay, this one's been bugging me all day. About a year or two ago I read the opening chapter of a book, thought it sounded interesting, mentally filed it away and then promptly forgot. Until today, for some reason. Science-fiction novel. No idea if it was contemporary or a classic. Opening chapter features a family of four (two parents, two kids--brother and sister) landing on a planet in some shuttle craft. They start setting up equipment for some reason, only to get attacked by a bunch of creatures (wolf- or spider-like?) who torch the landing site with flame throwers, incinerating the family in the process. (Edit: One of the children might have been captured alive and enslaved with some mind-control tech, but maybe I'm mixing that up with something else.) For some reason I keep associating this with Little Fuzzy, but that can't be right. Maybe something else connected to Scalzi? I've no idea. I'm pretty sure the book's considered a sci-fi staple, so hopefully someone can ID it pretty quickly. Retroblique fucked around with this message at 21:32 on Feb 4, 2013 |
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Feb 4, 2013 21:28
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Sonance posted:Okay, this one's been bugging me all day. vvv Yay! vvv Runcible Cat fucked around with this message at 10:31 on Feb 5, 2013 |
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Feb 4, 2013 22:20
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This is a long shot, but I'll go ahead and give it a try. About 7 or 8 years ago I read a short story that's stuck with me. It was about a kid (high school maybe?) who befriends a new kid, who's kind of a misfit. Our Hero visits his buddy at home, where he meets the guy's sister. The thing is, she's supposedly sick and she can't leave her room. The room is completely dark, too, so they just talk. At first, the protagonist isn't sure if the girl is actually even real (it could just be his friend making a dumb girl voice). This goes on for a while, and then the main character gets fed up and opens the blinds. Spooky stuff ensues. Does this sound familiar to anyone? It's been driving me insane.
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Feb 4, 2013 22:58
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Runcible Cat posted:Vernor Vinge's A Fire upon the Deep, perhaps?
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Feb 4, 2013 23:46
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Looking for a book about a group of friends trying to create the world's greatest videogame. The cover looks like it was designed by the Sword & Sworcery guys.
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Feb 6, 2013 20:31
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navyjack posted:Is it "Red China Blues" by Jan Wong? Yes! Thanks.
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Feb 7, 2013 04:57
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Two for detective-type goons. Both of them were anthologies, but I don't think they were in the same anthology, that would be too convenient. The first had a cleverly-done story about a virgin boy who liked to dress as a girl who was brought into a coven of Satan-worshipers as a sexual offering to their dark master. I do NOT want to spoil the story by giving additional details that give the fabulous plot twist away, but can if I must, including giving you the last line of the story. The other one was told from the point of view of a dog who had his intelligence enhanced. I don't think it's the Zelanzy one. I most vividly remember one line where the dog is thinking about his purpose being to make his human happy, and he wonders "where is my happy if he is unhappy?"
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Feb 8, 2013 02:39
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I'm not sure if this was in a horror anthology or if I read it online. A night watchman at a college discovers a sub-basement with old long abandoned classrooms filled with old desks. As he explores he gradually finds more and more levels until he walks down an enormous utility stairwell leading deep underground where he finally comes to an extremely large dark room, where he finds some demonic doors and fights a were-tiger of some sort. I stayed up all night thinking about this story and would appreciate any help finding it again.
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Feb 8, 2013 18:58
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