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Hedrigall posted:Hell yes, read The Icarus Hunt by Timothy Zahn, who's also known for writing the best (read: "only good") Star Wars novels. It's a standalone book about rogue space adventurers and a murder mystery on a spaceship. Tons of adventure and intrigue, hopping from spaceport to spaceport; and tons of cool aliens. It's the lightest fluff but I loved it. I thought Stover was known for writing pretty solid Star Wars fiction, too?
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Jul 2, 2014 05:32
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InMyHighCastle posted:I'm thinking of getting stuck into Mark Lawrence's latest novel, Prince of Fools; I'm a big fan of Joe Abercrombie's stuff, and I've heard that Lawrence's writing is similarly grim 'n gritty. They're not great books exactly, but I found them all to be quite enjoyable reads. I would start with the Broken Empire trilogy before reading Prince of Fools, though. Fools works as a standalone but there is some crossover that's more enjoyable if you've read Broken Empire first.
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Jul 2, 2014 05:36
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Ornamented Death posted:Since people are posting about ARCs they've gotten/are getting, I just found out I'll be getting one for Fool's Assassin. You motherfucker.
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Jul 2, 2014 05:44
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I am cranky because I recently re-read Revelation Space, and then continued on with Redemption Ark and Absolution Gap. I have a short memory and forget book plots quickly, so I was happy that I enjoyed Revelation Space the second time around. The other two, though... what a mixed bag. The world-killing Conjoiner weapons teased so much in the first book accomplished gently caress-all against the Inhibitors. It felt like Reynolds had written himself into a corner with them, then downgraded their power to get out again. Absolution Gap had an intriguing setting that felt like it would be better off as a self-contained story, but it rejoins the main story and the ending is extremely unsatisfying. I'm pretty forgiving so long as my hard SF has plenty of hard in it, but I was disappointed by the trilogy overall. I still rate Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days as one of the better shorter stories I've read, so it feels like Reynolds gets lost in novel-length stories. I'm torn about whether it's an editing issue or his writing style, because I feel like there's a really good novel to pull out of the concept of pilgrims staring intently at a planet waiting for it to do something magical. I feel like it might be both: his concepts could support long novels if they were written differently, but... they're not. I also recently tried to read Stephen Baxter's Proxima, but I just couldn't muster any enthusiasm. Is it worth trying again? I like colonisation stories, but I just didn't feel engaged by the main character and I gave up when he woke up with years to go before reaching their destination.
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Jul 2, 2014 06:14
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I'm just about wrapping up Consider Phlebas. It's pretty good although dragged in a few spots. I definite feel like it could've been a quicker plot or just a shorter book.
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Jul 2, 2014 06:19
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Neurosis posted:I thought Stover was known for writing pretty solid Star Wars fiction, too? He is, yes. His Revenge of the Sith is far and away better than the film and actually feels like a heroic epic. Count Dooku is given characterization and his motives make sense. Grievous is a complete monster. Anakins fall makes sense. Obi wan feels like "Old Ben" I basically clack out the film in my mind and go with the book instead.
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Jul 2, 2014 13:25
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Stover's Sith novelisation is pretty amazing, simply because he cuts out all the chaff and rewrites virtually all the dialogue and adjusts scenes here and there (such as the arrest of Palpatine).
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Jul 2, 2014 13:49
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Milky Moor posted:Stover's Sith novelisation is pretty amazing, simply because he cuts out all the chaff and rewrites virtually all the dialogue and adjusts scenes here and there (such as the arrest of Palpatine). It works because he changes everything? I agree, it's just that what it comes down to. That and his use of prose really gives it all a sense of grandeur and importance that the film lacks. The Yoda Palpatine fight is a great example of that
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Jul 2, 2014 14:25
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Fried Chicken posted:It works because he changes everything? The more time goes by, the more I wonder just how the hell George Lucas even managed to make the first trilogy as good as it was. Was he once a competent and imaginative writer/director, and then his talent fell down a mountain? Or did they succeed despite his mediocrity, simply because he'd happened to catch lightning in a bottle by creating such a worthwhile universe? And if the latter is true, then how could he have fumble-hosed the prequels so badly?
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Jul 2, 2014 15:00
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mdemone posted:The more time goes by, the more I wonder just how the hell George Lucas even managed to make the first trilogy as good as it was. Was he once a competent and imaginative writer/director, and then his talent fell down a mountain? Or did they succeed despite his mediocrity, simply because he'd happened to catch lightning in a bottle by creating such a worthwhile universe? And if the latter is true, then how could he have fumble-hosed the prequels so badly? He was surrounded by people who were willing to tell him "that's dumb as gently caress George, do something else."
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Jul 2, 2014 15:08
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mdemone posted:The more time goes by, the more I wonder just how the hell George Lucas even managed to make the first trilogy as good as it was. Was he once a competent and imaginative writer/director, and then his talent fell down a mountain? Or did they succeed despite his mediocrity, simply because he'd happened to catch lightning in a bottle by creating such a worthwhile universe? And if the latter is true, then how could he have fumble-hosed the prequels so badly? The second movie turned Star Wars from an interesting cultural one-shot into an ongoing force. It's a stone classic, but only because Lucas had so little to do with it. He had someone come up with the basic plot (Brackett), someone else wrote the script (Kasdan), and he hired Kershner to direct. The third movie was a wreck, made out of mostly recycled material (back to Tatooine and Dagobah, restaging the cantina scene at Jabba's palace, oh hey look ANOTHER Death Star), cutesy dumbassery (midget teddy bears, and they wipe out Imperial Stormtroopers with stone age weapons), and a complete fizzle of the love triangle (turns out she's Luke's sister so everything is OK!) and unearned redemption (Luke says "I love you Dad" to Space Hitler and he gets to go to heaven!). Most of the problems people had with the prequels were clearly visible in the third movie. Even in the original trilogy there's only one good movie, an it's the one Lucas had the least to do with. The first movie was, I think, a weird catch lightning in a bottle in the right place at the right time kind of thing. In the context of Lucas' career it looks increasingly like a fluke. A brilliant and influential fluke that made his fortune (and deservedly so), but still a fluke. Anyway, Lucas' real masterpiece was his contribution to Raiders of the Lost Ark and Temple of Doom.
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Jul 2, 2014 15:21
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I love Star Wars, I'm a huge nerd who can quote starship specs from memory and owned way more merch than was healthy But Lucas' real contribution to film was turning around and ploughing all the money he made into ILM and THX. The advancements and breakthroughs he made there made so many other great films possible, and contributed more to art than the films he directly made. But this is getting more CineD than books
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Jul 2, 2014 15:47
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mdemone posted:The more time goes by, the more I wonder just how the hell George Lucas even managed to make the first trilogy as good as it was. Was he once a competent and imaginative writer/director, and then his talent fell down a mountain? Or did they succeed despite his mediocrity, simply because he'd happened to catch lightning in a bottle by creating such a worthwhile universe? And if the latter is true, then how could he have fumble-hosed the prequels so badly? American Graffiti is good - well, the first half is, I haven't seen the second. FMguru posted:He had someone come up with the basic plot (Brackett), A nitpick to a good post, but Brackett wrote enough of the script to win a Hugo, even if her version wasn't the final one.
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Jul 2, 2014 16:05
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Neurosis posted:I thought Stover was known for writing pretty solid Star Wars fiction, too? Yes, but Stover's normal sci-fi/fantasy writing is substantially more grimdark than Star Wars and not fluffy at all. His poo poo will not be light and campy. Squicky phrase from the Caine universe: the orcs will cut you open and gently caress the wound.
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Jul 2, 2014 20:12
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I'm reading The Rook (pretty sure someone in here mentioned it), and enjoying it, but I've reached a point (maybe 66% through, or so) where it's getting a bit slap stick. It's a big enough departure that it almost feels like a different book. It will be interesting to see if it turns around, or full on jumps the shark.
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Jul 2, 2014 21:27
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ulmont posted:Yes, but Stover's normal sci-fi/fantasy writing is substantially more grimdark than Star Wars and not fluffy at all. His poo poo will not be light and campy. Yeah, I've read the Caine books. I liked them quite a bit although I thought the most recent one was a bit hard to follow. I mean, I got the general gist of what was happening but some of the specifics passed me by. Which is funny because I thought in the first couple of books the magical/metaphysical stuff was dealt with pretty well and followed fairly comprehensible logic. Black Knife was a bit jarring because of the narrative jump, and then Caine's Law was messy.
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Jul 3, 2014 00:58
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holocaust bloopers posted:I'm just about wrapping up Consider Phlebas. It's pretty good although dragged in a few spots. I definite feel like it could've been a quicker plot or just a shorter book. It's always important to remember that Ian M. Banks writes shaggy dog stories, because the rest of his books are going to leave you feeling a bit like that.
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Jul 3, 2014 01:17
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Neurosis posted:Yeah, I've read the Caine books. I liked them quite a bit although I thought the most recent one was a bit hard to follow. I mean, I got the general gist of what was happening but some of the specifics passed me by. Which is funny because I thought in the first couple of books the magical/metaphysical stuff was dealt with pretty well and followed fairly comprehensible logic. Black Knife was a bit jarring because of the narrative jump, and then Caine's Law was messy. I had a ton of problems following Black Knife and haven't tried Caine's Law yet. I know he went through some bad times with knee issues, to the point of not being able to walk. I wonder if he was hopped up on meds or something.
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Jul 3, 2014 01:19
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fez_machine posted:It's always important to remember that Ian M. Banks writes shaggy dog stories, because the rest of his books are going to leave you feeling a bit like that. I've read up to Use of Weapons and while I can sort of agree on the point that they drag a bit I'm curious what you mean by 'shaggy dog stories'? Just a description I haven't heard before.
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Jul 3, 2014 01:43
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Kalenn Istarion posted:I've read up to Use of Weapons and while I can sort of agree on the point that they drag a bit I'm curious what you mean by 'shaggy dog stories'? Just a description I haven't heard before. Basically, all Iain M Banks books are similar to this:  (I've only read the first four so far but it definitely applies)
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Jul 3, 2014 02:42
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quote:In its original sense, a shaggy dog story is an extremely long-winded anecdote characterized by extensive narration of typically irrelevant incidents and terminated by an anticlimax or a pointless punchline. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaggy_dog_story
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Jul 3, 2014 03:07
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Ok, yeah that was Use of Weapons in many ways. I enjoyed it but I was left vaguely unsatisfied by the ending. Player of Games had a bit of that as well. E: these spoilers aren't for show, if you haven't read Use of Weapons don't read this. Like, wtf, they go to all that trouble to get him, then he does what they ask, better than they expect, then for ~reasons~ the bad guys win anyways and he wanders the battlefield for some reason and gets shot a bunch then goes to meet his sister who's not his sister but is the sister of the guy he got to kill himself by sending a loving human chair made out of his other sister  and then he maybe dies or doesn't and maybe they hire someone new or they don't.
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Jul 3, 2014 04:48
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It's almost like the story isn't a mechanistic device used to inform you of its own end state, but a work of art designed to evoke feelings and thoughts as you pass through it!
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Jul 3, 2014 04:57
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General Battuta posted:It's almost like the story isn't a mechanistic device used to inform you of its own end state, but a work of art designed to evoke feelings and thoughts as you pass through it! yeah yeah yeah. How is Echopraxia? It would be a drat shame if your copy accidentally ended up in my hands before Augest 28th, make sure that doesn't happen
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Jul 3, 2014 05:00
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General Battuta posted:It's almost like the story isn't a mechanistic device used to inform you of its own end state, but a work of art designed to evoke feelings and thoughts as you pass through it! :o this is genre fiction, son, get that outta here!
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Jul 3, 2014 05:07
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General Battuta posted:It's almost like the story isn't a mechanistic device used to inform you of its own end state, but a work of art designed to evoke feelings and thoughts as you pass through it! I guess you missed the part where I said I enjoyed the book. The last literary fiction I read was in high school so I'm still working on acquiring a taste for it. You have to admit that the ending (and other parts) could potentially feel confusing and unsatisfying to someone used to more standard Sci Fi fare.
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Jul 3, 2014 05:19
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Haha, sorry for being sarcastic. I like Banks a lot! At least he doesn't write pun stories. And I don't think Phlebas is a particularly strong selection of his work, though I think the ending is the right one for the story.Fried Chicken posted:yeah yeah yeah. How is Echopraxia? It would be a drat shame if your copy accidentally ended up in my hands before Augest 28th, make sure that doesn't happen It's very heady. Don't expect the same clear, mission-driven narrative as Blindsight: the protagonist is a baseline human and spends a lot of time with no idea what the gently caress is going on. But it's full of fascinating ideas and it makes an interesting companion novel. And it is unmistakably Watts, and I really go for his style.
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Jul 3, 2014 05:30
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Just finished The Rhesus Chart. Remember how I said I was bored by the status quo?  Glad to hear that the next book will be from Mo's perspective, with the next one being CASE NIGHTMARE GREEN (or something very close to it?). Now that Bob's literally the Eater of Souls, she's the closest thing to a normal protagonist the series has, and I can feel the end looming out of the dark but not quite there yet.
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Jul 3, 2014 05:57
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The funny thing is, Mo's typically shuffled offscreen because she'd otherwise resolve Bob's conflicts before they have a chance to run their course. She'd otherwise be too powerful with that demon violin (although if I were her I'd start investing in more conventional, by Laundry standards, armaments). So it'd be interesting to see how the next book works out, because even with Bob's, er, unconventional dining habits, she's still the big guns of the family.
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Jul 3, 2014 08:59
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General Battuta posted:It's very heady. Don't expect the same clear, mission-driven narrative as Blindsight: the protagonist is a baseline human and spends a lot of time with no idea what the gently caress is going on. But it's full of fascinating ideas and it makes an interesting companion novel. And it is unmistakably Watts, and I really go for his style. Not terribly surprising because if you read or watch anything by Watts outside of his fiction you quickly realise he's an ideas first, character/narrative second kind of sci fi writer. But he's good enough at writing to overlay some interesting characters and worldbuilding so it has never really grated on me, although I'm sure it does many people.
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Jul 3, 2014 10:56
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I've never read Cherryh. Cyteen or Downbelow Station first?
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Jul 3, 2014 11:05
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Hedrigall posted:I've never read Cherryh. Cyteen or Downbelow Station first? Downbelow sets up the universe and the backstory, so I recommend reading it first. On the other hand, some people thinks Downbelow is too heavy to begin with, and Cyteen can be read separately without problem. Also, you could consider to read the Chanur series first. It's kinda lighter and although it happens in the same universe the story is 99% unrelated to the rest of the Alliance-Union storyline. E: There is a CJ Cherryh thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3503946
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Jul 3, 2014 11:55
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Mars4523 posted:The funny thing is, Mo's typically shuffled offscreen because she'd otherwise resolve Bob's conflicts before they have a chance to run their course. She'd otherwise be too powerful with that demon violin (although if I were her I'd start investing in more conventional, by Laundry standards, armaments). So it'd be interesting to see how the next book works out, because even with Bob's, er, unconventional dining habits, she's still the big guns of the family. Yeah, there's a reason that the book she is the star of is a superhero book. It runs in parallel to The Rhesus Chart though, so we are going to have to wait for The Nightmare Stacks in 2016 to see the fallout of that ending.
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Jul 3, 2014 12:21
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Mars4523 posted:The funny thing is, Mo's typically shuffled offscreen because she'd otherwise resolve Bob's conflicts before they have a chance to run their course. She'd otherwise be too powerful with that demon violin (although if I were her I'd start investing in more conventional, by Laundry standards, armaments). So it'd be interesting to see how the next book works out, because even with Bob's, er, unconventional dining habits, she's still the big guns of the family. The question is whether they are at the same "power level" now? In the Rhesus Chart Angleton is talking about Bob and Mo with the head of External Assets, where they say that Mo is the most important one for the Laundry, but Bob has more potential. Since Bob now have become the Eater of Souls I guess they are similar in power level. The worst death was Andy. Also, The Causal Angel by Rajaniemi got sent yesterday and will hopefully arrive in my mail box today or tomorrow.
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Jul 3, 2014 12:36
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Cardiac posted:
That whole scene was just brutal though. It reminded me of the reporting on columbine, the step by step walk through of a school shooting. It was absolutely intentional and works so well for what a nightmare outcome this was
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Jul 3, 2014 14:37
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I'd be willing to argue that The Rhesus Chart is the strongest book in the series, to date. Someone in this thread was complaining that Stross has been too busy working on other projects, like Merchant Princes: The Next Generation. I don't think that's true at all; we've been getting a book a year in the series, which is generally the most you can expect from any author - and the Laundry Files is the project that he likes to play hooky with from work on other books. It seems like it's his favorite project, and he's said that it seems to have "gone Discworld" on him. I think we have a lot to look forward to. It sounds like Alex is the new Bob for purposes of Case Nightmare Green - a hapless hypochondriac EVE player who, yes, has an embarrassing hemoglobin addiction, but can do magic in his head without fear of K Syndrome. I can dig it. Just so long as he inherits some of Bob's sardonic attitude...
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Jul 3, 2014 15:24
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Heh, that would be pretty fun. I just want Mo around more. What good is writing an occult direct action operator into your series if you don't let her do anything, drat it? (Yeah she's getting a book, but that'd just be one of six). And speaking of Stross and his other series, I really wish that he didn't discontinue writing his Eschaton series. Iron Sunrise did end on a cliffhanger, and I like Rachel and Martin far more than I do the cast of The Merchant Princes (not to mention that he went a little overboard with the "W Bush and Cheney are evil" anvils there.
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Jul 3, 2014 15:48
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Mars4523 posted:I just want Mo around more. What good is writing an occult direct action operator into your series if you don't let her do anything, drat it? (Yeah she's getting a book, but that'd just be one of six). Might not be the last. If it's "gone Discworld" as he says, then we might see Mo books, Alex books, and other perspectives yet to be imagined. Like how some of Pratchett's books deal with Vimes or the Lancre Witches or Moist von Lipwig, depending on what he's in the mood for. quote:And speaking of Stross and his other series, I really wish that he didn't discontinue writing his Eschaton series. Iron Sunrise did end on a cliffhanger, and I like Rachel and Martin far more than I do the cast of The Merchant Princes (not to mention that he went a little overboard with the "W Bush and Cheney are evil" anvils there. You and me both, but I've gotten the impression he regards it as a childish fancy ( and that he basically can't take the idea of FTL seriously anymore at all). But yeah. gently caress Merchant Princes.
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Jul 3, 2014 16:03
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eriktown posted:You and me both, but I've gotten the impression he regards it as a childish fancy ( and that he basically can't take the idea of FTL seriously anymore at all). I think I read somewhere that he basically couldn't make the plots work any more given the scale things were having to happen on. It does kinda ruin other FTL space opera for a while after you read it.
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Jul 3, 2014 16:09
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And someone over at the blog was spitballing a possibility and Stross confirmed it as the plot of book 8 Blackwater has basically the 40 years outdated anarchist cookbook of computational demonology, and highly trained highly professional highly paranoid highly violent barely trained sorcerers as a result. As CASE NIGHTMARE GREEN is going live they realize that they have an occult asset on the books and an occult threat to they can sell that asset as a counter to and then "take the idea to its logical conclusion"
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Jul 3, 2014 16:10
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