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Don't know buddy, I have no idea about the book you're talking about but now my curiosity's been piqued.
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Apr 2, 2014 02:23
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EDIT: ^^Check it out, I strongly recommend it. Fallom posted:Question about God's War: Does it ever stop using wacky far out sci-fi with cars exhausting bugs and people using bug magic and selling their wombs for bug cash? The world building does eventually stop seeming so incessant, yes. Everything follows certain rules, it's not part of the surrealist genre - it just seems to act like it for the intro. That initial "poo poo is weird and keeps getting weirder" phase of a sci-fi work is pretty typical. You just have to ride it out.
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Apr 2, 2014 02:34
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Jesus, that had to have been the plot of at least two or three of the Terry Pratchett books. Nevermind. Krinkle fucked around with this message at 03:41 on Apr 2, 2014 |
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Apr 2, 2014 02:53
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I'm near the end of The Way of Kings and it's freaking great but man is it hard to follow in audiobook format. Gonna scour coppermind.net when I'm done.
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Apr 2, 2014 14:28
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Kraps posted:I'm near the end of The Way of Kings and it's freaking great but man is it hard to follow in audiobook format. Gonna scour coppermind.net when I'm done. It'll be very hard to avoid spoiler for the second book in the series if you do that. Consider Tor's reread instead: http://www.tor.com/features/series/the-way-of-kings-reread-on-torcom .
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Apr 2, 2014 14:37
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Walh Hara posted:It'll be very hard to avoid spoiler for the second book in the series if you do that. Consider Tor's reread instead: http://www.tor.com/features/series/the-way-of-kings-reread-on-torcom . That is amazing, thanks a ton!
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Apr 2, 2014 14:43
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Kraps posted:I'm near the end of The Way of Kings and it's freaking great but man is it hard to follow in audiobook format. Gonna scour coppermind.net when I'm done. Man, wait til you read the second one. Sanderson is great at writing doorstoppers that don't feel like doorstoppers.
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Apr 2, 2014 22:44
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Fallom posted:Question about God's War: Does it ever stop using wacky far out sci-fi with cars exhausting bugs and people using bug magic and selling their wombs for bug cash? I won't criticize the series over it, but if there's anything that turns me off of science fiction books it's technology and society that's so completely unrelatable to anything we have that the author might as well be making up magic spells and setting the story in Azeroth. No, I don't think it does stop but why I love these 3 books (and the related short stories) is precisely because - in creating a genre of its own (Bugpunk) - it absolutely worked for me and to take a concept this far out and make me feel like I live there, makes for "greatness" in books. I wouldn't expect this to work for everyone. It's very different from most Sci-Fi.
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Apr 3, 2014 00:21
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Yeah if it bugs you ( ) just pretend it's a fantasy story set in a world that looks a lot like science fiction, or whatever. Kameron Hurley does not believe in exposition and I think her work is stronger for it.
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Apr 3, 2014 01:12
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specklebang posted:No, I don't think it does stop but why I love these 3 books (and the related short stories) is precisely because - in creating a genre of its own (Bugpunk) - it absolutely worked for me and to take a concept this far out and make me feel like I live there, makes for "greatness" in books. General Battuta posted:Kameron Hurley does not believe in exposition and I think her work is stronger for it. You're both convincing me more and more that I need to read this.
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Apr 3, 2014 01:15
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The Goblin Emperor is a joy to read. I finished it a few hours ago and I am still giddy with pleasure. Go buy this immediately. The book is about the unwanted, exiled half-goblin fourth son of an elven emperor who, after his father and first three sons die in a not-Hindenburg airship crash, becomes the emperor and has to deal with court politics, angry relatives, attempts on his life and exhausting fashion. This probably already sounds fun to you, but what's so special about this book, what elevates it above most of the other books I've recently read is how fundamentally positive and full of hope it is. Maia, the protagonist, is at his core a thoughtful, decent human (well, half-elf/half-goblin) being and although he went through a lot of indignity and suffering before the book starts, he responds to every problem with a sense of compassion that I found deeply satisfying and none of it was in the least preachy or cloying. I am so sick of the grimdark trend and this book was like stumbling upon a water truck in the middle of a desert. There are no mis-steps, no false notes. Everything works. It all comes together gorgeously. With this book Katherine Addison has hit a storytelling hole in one and she is wizard and I would fear her terrible powers if I didn't know she will use them responsibly. The only other suggestion I have is to read the section in the end of the book on how the elven names work before you start the story proper. I didn't and I figured everything out on my own, but I think it would be easier if I read the appendix first. PS This post contains secret embedded code that will hack the computers of anyone who doesn't buy this book and will disable cat videos on all your devices forever. Even that chubby Japanese cat who loves boxes. No cat video will be spared. You have been warned. PPS A couple more reviews for those not convinced: http://www.tor.com/blogs/2014/02/book-review-the-goblin-emperor-katherine-addison-sarah-monette http://www.staffersbookreview.com/2014/03/the-goblin-emperor-by-katherine-addison.html Megazver fucked around with this message at 02:16 on Apr 3, 2014 |
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Apr 3, 2014 01:35
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Megazver posted:The Goblin Emperor is a joy to read. Welp I'm going to have to check this the gently caress out. As someone else tired of grimdark hopelessness bullshit, you hit a lot of marks on the checklist of what I prefer out of my fiction in your selling of it. Looking forward to giving it a read.
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Apr 3, 2014 02:27
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specklebang posted:No, I don't think it does stop but why I love these 3 books (and the related short stories) is precisely because - in creating a genre of its own (Bugpunk) - it absolutely worked for me and to take a concept this far out and make me feel like I live there, makes for "greatness" in books. Bugpunk is a great way to put it. I started on the audiobook and decided I just needed to read it. I find it easier to process ridiculous worldbuilding in text the first time around. Can someone sum up the various words on the Culture books that this thread was going on about a million pages back? I'm almost done with Consider Phlebas and I kind of like it. It's got this weird thing where I kind of hate the protagonist for being a huge cock at all times and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to or not. But I like the book. What are the other books like?
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Apr 3, 2014 03:14
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Better, mostly.
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Apr 3, 2014 03:17
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specklebang posted:No, I don't think it does stop but why I love these 3 books (and the related short stories) is precisely because - in creating a genre of its own (Bugpunk) - it absolutely worked for me and to take a concept this far out and make me feel like I live there, makes for "greatness" in books. You could probably describe the Shadows of the Apt series as "bugpunk" also.
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Apr 3, 2014 03:18
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Megazver posted:The Goblin Emperor is a joy to read. This post just convinced me to buy it. And not only because I'm sick of poo poo of grimdark books (that I didn't even love when it was a new idea).
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Apr 3, 2014 04:49
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Megazver posted:The Goblin Emperor is a joy to read. This sounds like a book that I've wanted without knowing I've wanted it. Also an interesting example of the phenomenon where if your first novel(s) sell poorly, the only way to get published again may be to adopt a new nom de plume.
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Apr 3, 2014 12:14
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Anyone else read The Burning Dark by Adam Christopher yet? I'm about 40% in and it's really compelling. Lots of spookiness and mystery aboard a space station. A cover quote calls it The Haunting of Hill House in space, and that's a pretty apt comparison so far. Other reviews are invoking Event Horizon, which is like my favourite horror movie. However, I've read some reviews that say the book ends up explaining too much, which diffuses the tension and fear. I'm hoping it has a satisfying ending, anyhow.
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Apr 3, 2014 12:57
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So I just finished Rise of Ransom City by Felix Gilman. Compared to Half-Made world it was a disappointment, which was a pity. The thing that made Half-Made world great was the different viewpoints of the Agent of the Gun and the Linesmen. Ransom City devolved into a outside perspective of the great struggle between Line-Gun-Neutrals, where I felt I missed the most interesting parts. A continuation of the story covering Liv, Creedmoor and including Ransom would have made for a much better story line, but instead he does a Mieville after only 2 short books.
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Apr 3, 2014 13:33
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Antti posted:This sounds like a book that I've wanted without knowing I've wanted it. Yes. Forgot to mention this - Katherine Addison is a pen name of Sarah Monette who wrote the fantastic The Bone Key. Kyle Murchison Booth FTW, yo.
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Apr 3, 2014 14:00
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Cardiac posted:So I just finished Rise of Ransom City by Felix Gilman. The world peripheral to the major conflict is the more interesting part for me because it's not just more of what you expect from a genre novel. You can imagine whatever big showdown you want to the Gun/Line conflict--Liv holding the magic plot device above her head as holy light shines down on her, Creedmoor facing off with an Engine as it sprouts a Transformers-ish face and gives a big villain speech--the book doesn't forbid any of that from having happened. But you don't actually need a second book for that, you can easily fill in your own satisfying conclusion by the end of The Half-Made World. What I found far more fun were the depictions of misguided attempts to achieve those dramatic climaxes like that would-be revolutionary who got blown away by the Engine and Harry Ransom's failed powwow with the Folk, or hucksters exploiting others' fear and uncertainty like Alfred Baxter (and probably Harry Ransom,) or people with genuine talent and goodwill who can't catch a break like you really want Ransom to be. I think it's to the book's credit that it isn't another plucky-outcasts-save-the-world story. Or rather it is, but it acknowledges you've read that setup dozens of times and there are other people with their own things going on regardless of what the heroes are doing. Corin Tucker's Stalker posted:Has anyone started Felix Gilman's The Revolutions yet? Now that it's out I'm halfway tempted to set aside my current book, which I never do. BigSkillet fucked around with this message at 15:37 on Apr 3, 2014 |
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Apr 3, 2014 15:17
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Cardiac posted:So I just finished Rise of Ransom City by Felix Gilman. I agree that more Gun vs. Line would've been more entertaining, and made for a better page turner. But if I can say this without sounding too pretentious, I think RoRC works better as a work of art. HMW was very allegorical and RoRC continues that inquiry, with heavy allusions to Chicago at the turn of the 20th century and The Education of Henry Adams.
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Apr 3, 2014 15:20
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On the Felix Gilman note, has anyone read The Revolutions yet? It was only published two days ago, and I'm about to start it today or tomorrow.
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Apr 3, 2014 15:35
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I found Ransom City a bit of a slog after The Half-Made World. I found the Gun and Line the most interesting part of the setting and they became relatively peripheral. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't entirely satisfying. I don't really buy the 'anything you could imagine would be better than what was written!' argument posited above either. No, I'd find a more direct telling of the major events more enjoyable.regularizer posted:On the Felix Gilman note, has anyone read The Revolutions yet? It was only published two days ago, and I'm about to start it today or tomorrow. Read threads better.
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Apr 3, 2014 16:27
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I'd edited the bit about The Revolutions into my post without noticing there were posts afterwards, so he's not at fault there. Sorry about that.
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Apr 3, 2014 16:48
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Didn't Half Made World end on sort of a cliffhanger?
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Apr 3, 2014 19:46
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Tad Williams just announced a sequel trilogy to his first major series, Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn. Considering those were my gateway-to-fantasy books back when I was in middle school, I am incredibly excited and only slightly worried.
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Apr 4, 2014 01:40
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BigSkillet posted:The world peripheral to the major conflict is the more interesting part for me because it's not just more of what you expect from a genre novel. Seldom Posts posted:I agree that more Gun vs. Line would've been more entertaining, and made for a better page turner. But if I can say this without sounding too pretentious, I think RoRC works better as a work of art. HMW was very allegorical and RoRC continues that inquiry, with heavy allusions to Chicago at the turn of the 20th century and The Education of Henry Adams. I guess we disagree then. The whole selling point of the HMW was the larger than life egos of the Agents and the bureaucratic Linesmen and their Talking Thomas the Trains. If I wanted to fill in my own conclusions I wouldn't need to read books at all. RoRC felt like a history book, and if I wanted that I would have read a real one. Having an outside viewer can work, like for instance in The Scar and The Iron Council by Mieville, where you still feel part of the story. Gilman didn't succeed with that in RoRC. It was still an OK read, but a let down compared to HMW. Chamberk posted:Tad Williams just announced a sequel trilogy to his first major series, Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn. Count me in on that. I have read more Tad Williams than I should, considering it often felt like a chore. Has anyone read his new books about Hell? Saw them in a bookstore last weekend and I had missed he had new books out.
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Apr 4, 2014 07:39
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Cardiac posted:Count me in on that. I have read more Tad Williams than I should, considering it often felt like a chore. I read The Dirty Streets of Heaven and enjoyed it, but I've enjoyed most of what I've ready by Williams, so take my recommendation with a grain of salt.
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Apr 4, 2014 22:49
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MalleusDei posted:I read The Dirty Streets of Heaven and enjoyed it, but I've enjoyed most of what I've ready by Williams, so take my recommendation with a grain of salt. Nah, both The Dirty Streets of Heaven and Happy Hour In Hell were pretty good. I'd rank them over Sandman Slim, anyway.
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Apr 5, 2014 03:42
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I forced my way through the first half of Count to a Trillion by famed nutty right winger John C Wright. The prose was strange and people didn't talk like anything in reality. I did it because The Golden Age was a loving amazing series. And Count to a Trillion became that, too. Holy poo poo. It adverts to a bunch of bullshit that no centrist/democratic person will like, however, the sci-fi ideas and prose are great (well, once you adjust to the prose, anyway). The series becomes about posthuman geniuses battling each other over the fate of mankind. The protagonist wants an age of wonder, much like the Singularity would be. The antagonists want to control humanity to produce a race that will be servile to aliens who are approaching from the Hyades Cluster. The author's right wing opinions pissed me off a lot (pro guns! some antiquated views re gender relations) but he had a really imaginative history of humanity, which reminded me of the First and the Last Men, although this time evolution was controlled by immortal posthumans. A lot of people here are 'triggered' by right wing opinions, but holy gently caress, this is a good series. Neurosis fucked around with this message at 14:37 on Apr 6, 2014 |
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Apr 5, 2014 16:56
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Yeah, it's a shame he went so bugfuck it started leaking into his work. His story in the Dying Earth tribute anthology was excellent as well and written recently.
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Apr 5, 2014 23:21
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MalleusDei posted:I read The Dirty Streets of Heaven and enjoyed it, but I've enjoyed most of what I've ready by Williams, so take my recommendation with a grain of salt. I don't really like Memory Sorrow Thorn, got bored in the middle of the first book and stopped reading it, but I really liked both of those books. Happy Hour in Hell was surprisingly bleak - only appropriate for a book that's set 95% in Hell. I haven't read a book that loves to torture its main character like that in a long time, heh.
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Apr 6, 2014 12:20
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Wolpertinger posted:I don't really like Memory Sorrow Thorn, got bored in the middle of the first book and stopped reading it, but I really liked both of those books. Happy Hour in Hell was surprisingly bleak - only appropriate for a book that's set 95% in Hell. I haven't read a book that loves to torture its main character like that in a long time, heh. I enjoyed it as a teenager but then I would read anything I could get my hands on and it was in the cheap bookshop it town. Mind it probably says a lot that I missed one of the paperbacks and didn't seem to have missed anything.
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Apr 6, 2014 22:04
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Cardiac posted:Count me in on that. I have read more Tad Williams than I should, considering it often felt like a chore. Dirty Streets of Heaven was pretty good, I felt a very strong Dresden vibe from it, though that could be mostly due to the in medias res opening and noir narration. I enjoyed it. Happy Hour in Hell was... well, it was good with the sole exception of the SUPER-squicky and  extended jellyfish-vagina rape scene which almost caused me to pack up and stop reading. If you can get by that - and on reflection, it does serve well to remind one that this IS hell, and it IS horrible, when we've spent most of the book up to that point getting used to the idea that it's more-or-less like a more violent slightly-grosser earth where no-one can die - you're good. I don't think the third book is out yet though, but when it is, I'll be interested to see where he goes with it.
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Apr 6, 2014 22:06
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Finished The Scroll of Years last night. Very well written book about two thieves who flee to an China-inspired country to escape assassins. One of them, pregnant with their child, was originally a poet from a noble family. Her POV captures that background; she is very descriptive and artistic and views things for their natural beauty, etc. The other is a common street thief: he is very practical and survival minded, always trying to think a step ahead and very protective of his baby mama. The setting is very fleshed out, giving off some strong wuxia vibes. There's also a character from a West African-inspired country. Again, this is more thought out and detailed than just copy-pasting onto the region like other fantasy writers. The book starts off slow but the finale is very intense, with the lives of mother, father, and child on the line. Highly recommended, especially for those who don't usually like fantasy books. And now to possibly punish myself by reading some Dennis McKiernan because I'm nostalgic for childhood.
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Apr 7, 2014 15:15
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Finished Fire Upon The Deep last night. Reached the climax and stayed up way too late just plowing through it. It's weird to have such a ambiguous ending, where I have definite sacrifices made, and only musings whether it mattered or caused less devastation than the evil they struck back at. And from the first two lines of the sequel summary on wikipedia, it apparently didn't? At the very least the blight's fleet is coming programmed to destroy them on pure spite. Since the book takes place purely on the tine's world I probably won't get net updates on if those higher beyond races were emancipated or not, whether they, still controlled like the blight fleet, are just crawling sideways out of the slowness to try to program the blight again.
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Apr 7, 2014 19:03
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Anarkii posted:Just finished The Emperor's Blades. Having just read Blood Song before that, this book is kinda underwhelming. Too many pages are filled with needless exposition, and a lot of the non-PoV characters are very one-dimensional. I liked all the 3 central PoV characters well enough to wait for the sequel, but I hope he spends more time on character development there. Kraps posted:I'm near the end of The Way of Kings and it's freaking great but man is it hard to follow in audiobook format. Gonna scour coppermind.net when I'm done. coyo7e fucked around with this message at 19:48 on Apr 7, 2014 |
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Apr 7, 2014 19:41
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Wolpertinger posted:I don't really like Memory Sorrow Thorn, got bored in the middle of the first book and stopped reading it, but I really liked both of those books. Happy Hour in Hell was surprisingly bleak - only appropriate for a book that's set 95% in Hell. I haven't read a book that loves to torture its main character like that in a long time, heh. I'm not sure I've read Memory Sorrow Thorn, actually. I may have started reading Williams with Otherland, now that I think about it. I haven't got around to Happy Hour in Hell yet, but its on my list.
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Apr 8, 2014 00:23
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MalleusDei posted:I'm not sure I've read Memory Sorrow Thorn, actually. You probably would remember at least for the protagonist being lost in a bunch of tunnels for what seemed like half of the first book although that's probably my memory playing tricks on me
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Apr 8, 2014 10:02
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