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RoboCicero posted:Eh -- as a big fan of the first one, the second one is a lot more sedate in many ways. I was (foolishly) expecting a space battle at one point, but the book is much more focused around character and social issues so you're probably not going to get hooked. It just feels like a real missed opportunity that the first book set up a bunch of intrigue and presumably a big civil war and instead all of that is happening off-screen while the protagonist frets about labor issues.
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Dec 14, 2014 22:32
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Slo-Tek posted:If I were a spy scribbling a map, I'd probably go with a stick and balls model. Big circles for big things, small circles for small things, and lines arrows etc. Denoting relationships. Because what shape the harbor is probably doesn't matter depending on the nature of your particular belligerence that sort of thing might matter a lot actually. In fact, terrain detail probably matters more than anything else regarding gathered intelligence on a foreign power in that sort of setting.
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Dec 15, 2014 01:31
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Rosetta have just started publishing the works of Walter Tevis in ebook format. Mockingbird is $3 and is a very good dystopian sci-fi.
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Dec 15, 2014 09:44
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The first book in Harry Connolly's (Twelve Palaces) fantasy trilogy is available for preorder and, I think, will be released in a couple of days. If you haven't backed the Kickstarter but have been meaning to buy this when it comes out, preordering it will boost its visibility on Amazon, I think.
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Dec 15, 2014 18:46
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i finally finished up Hamilton's Confederation trilogy, which I'd say was enjoyable for a trashy sci fi sort of read. The only thing I really didnt like was the whole al capone thing. It just felt too goofy even for a series like that. I also similarly enjoyed his Commonwealth series. Anyway, I generally enjoy reads like that for my before bedtime reading ritual, and Im in the mood for some fantasy now. I randomly started Farseer, the Assassins Apprentice. I'm still not sure how I feel about it, I mean I think it's good but I'm not sure if it will continue to grab at me enough to plow through the series. Just in case it doesn't does anyone have any recommendations for a fantasy series? I prefer at least a trilogy or longer as I enjoy the immersion of decent world building. I was enjoying Wheel of Time but somewhere around book 7 it started slogging so bad I had to take a break and its been so long I'm not sure I can easily get back into it. I generally prefer slightly darker, more serious stuff but it doesn't have to be extremely grimdark. I'm not too picky either, I actually enjoy forgotten realms stuff from time to time enough to hold my interest. I asked for recommendations before and was suggested Wars of Light and Shadow by Janny Wurts, and the Elric books. Any opinions on those? I'm not sure how much I trust goodreads ratings.
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Dec 15, 2014 20:44
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I've been on a really disappointing run of books recently. Maybe the thread can suggest some books that won't make me feel like I wasted my time? Mainly looking for stuff written in the last 20 years or so. Blackout by Connie Willis. Boring and repetitive and I was 75% of the way through the first book and the narration still hadn't jumped back to the future to give any kind of clue what was going. I'm sure it was going to get there eventually, but I ran out of patience. I previously read Doomsday Book by the same author and enjoyed it, but this one was just too slow. 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson. This started off pretty slow too but I thought once she discovered her grandmother's secret it'd get better. But no, because her grandmother's secret is that she's working on something to "balance the power" and there's even a 3D chart with coloured spheres representing the power balance. If I wanted a complete lack of nuance and subtlety I would be reading YA. God's War by Kameron Hurley. I finished this one, at least, but I didn't really care about the world or any of the characters and I'm not going to read other books in the series. Among Others by Jo Walton. This was the best of the bunch but felt like a short story with a ton of padding. So what do I like? I don't generally like fantasy with the exception of Le Guin's fantasy (Earthsea Quartet and the Annals of the Western Shore trilogy). For SF, much broader. I've liked all of Ted Chiang's stories I've been able to track down. Last page Greg Egan was mentioned as a similar author - suggestions on where to start with him? I liked all of the Culture books except for the one set in some patriarchal desert society (don't remember the title). I think that one seemed too much like fantasy for me. I like Elizabeth Moon's SF but haven't read any of her fantasy. Another potential exception? I thought Speed of Dark was good and Remnant Population was amazing. Her space opera (Familias Regnant, Vatta's War) was entertaining. I liked The Wind-up Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi and Slow River by Nicola Griffith.
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Dec 15, 2014 20:57
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Have you read 'Pump Nine and Other Stories' by Bacigalupi? They're pretty fantastic and one of the stories is set in the same setting as Windup Girl. For Egan, I'd say just pick a short story collection to start with like Axiomatic.
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Dec 15, 2014 21:25
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toe knee hand posted:I like Elizabeth Moon's SF but haven't read any of her fantasy. Another potential exception? I thought Speed of Dark was good and Remnant Population was amazing. Her space opera (Familias Regnant, Vatta's War) was entertaining. If you don't much like fantasy you won't like Moon's fantasy; while she writes some of my favourite takes on conventional fantasy, it's very much working within convention.
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Dec 15, 2014 21:39
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bonds0097 posted:Have you read 'Pump Nine and Other Stories' by Bacigalupi? They're pretty fantastic and one of the stories is set in the same setting as Windup Girl. I don't generally like short stories - Ted Chiang is basically the only exception I've come across. Although if Egan is like Chiang, maybe I'd like his, but I'd probably be better starting off with a novel. I did read that Bacigalupi collection as well as Ship Breaker, his YA book, and they were a bit disappointing after Windup Girl.
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Dec 15, 2014 21:49
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toe knee hand posted:I don't generally like short stories - Ted Chiang is basically the only exception I've come across. Although if Egan is like Chiang, maybe I'd like his, but I'd probably be better starting off with a novel. I did read that Bacigalupi collection as well as Ship Breaker, his YA book, and they were a bit disappointing after Windup Girl. In that case, I would maybe suggest starting with Diaspora or Permutation City by Egan (both novels); they're fairly representative of his work.
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Dec 15, 2014 22:03
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bonds0097 posted:In that case, I would maybe suggest starting with Diaspora or Permutation City by Egan (both novels); they're fairly representative of his work. Agreed. I'd start with Permutation City, it's the better book in my opinion.
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Dec 15, 2014 22:59
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toe knee hand posted:
I haven't read Blackout, and got distracted from Doomsday Book and didn't care that much to pick it up again, but I absolutely loved the other book in that 'series'To Say Nothing of the Dog. It's a similar premise of people from a university (probably the same one, but not the same people) as they look for a lost artifact in the past. The search for the artifact, which rather obviously is only 'lost' because some people from the future came and stole it when no one was looking , <- spoiling the final ending but it really doesn't matter, is just an excuse for a comedy of manners featuring two near future researchers hanging out with various victorian characters. I really really like it. Harold Fjord fucked around with this message at 04:50 on Dec 16, 2014 |
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Dec 16, 2014 04:48
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Bold Robot posted:This never got answered and I'm wondering the same thing. 150 pages in and nothing is happening. Does it go anywhere? The first one was alright but I'm not really sure why it won so many awards. Amazon tells my I bought Ancillary Sword on October 8. We're just over two months past that and I didn't remember a thing until just now. Some things are coming back now, but overall I gotta say it didn't go very far.
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Dec 16, 2014 04:59
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The customer reviews for Mockingbird make me really want to buy it, is it as good as people say it is in there? I'd never even heard of it.
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Dec 16, 2014 13:07
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Koburn posted:Rosetta have just started publishing the works of Walter Tevis in ebook format. Mockingbird is $3 and is a very good dystopian sci-fi. Thanks, this was pretty good. Obviously it borrowed hugely from Brave New World, but it introduced other themes. I think its concern of this kind of society is kind of outdated given its predication upon machine intelligences which are basically autistic, but it's still an enjoyable read. I liked the distinct voices of the characters.
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Dec 16, 2014 14:00
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Man, I wish the Joe Abercrombie thread had a more solid spoiler policy. I'm a short way into the third book in the First Law trilogy (Last Argument of Kings) and there's so many things I want to discuss, but it's a free-for-all in there.  (The TOR reread has at least been a godsend for seeing other reactions and notes and stuff on the books, if a little spoilery itself. )I bought the three spinoff-y books too, because Before They Are Hanged might have been one of my favourite books ever. Abercrombie writes books like Christopher Nolan used to direct movies. Not a second, not a paragraph wasted. The descriptions are short but perfectly evocative, everything is a story beat, a character beat, a comedic or action beat. It never feels like a whole chapter is wasted (á la Game of Thrones), but that's partially because with most books I'm thinking about the destination and these books are the only ones where I really enjoy the journey. Of course that's because it's all in the strong, likeable characters and the individual situations and moral dilemmas. The one downside is the relative lack of an overarching story, and that does have me a little concerned about the wrap-up, but either way it's been a hell of a ride. One thing that's been driving me mad: I know something has to be up with Quai, but the fact that Logen never noticed or commented that he has a totally different personality after their adventures together in the first book is super annoying.
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Dec 16, 2014 22:54
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Plowed through The Magician's Land in one long sitting. I quite liked it, although I think that my reading suffered from not having read either of the other books in several years; aside from Quentin I had a hard time remembering who was who and had done what. (My fault, not the books'; will read Wikipedia summaries next time I try picking up a series I've been away from for so long). Still, while it seemed a little thin in some aspects, it was a worthy conclusion to the series, and I look forward to seeing what Grossman writes next. Also, I remembered it getting picked up by a broadcast network for a show a few years back and then dropped, but checking his blog I saw that he had dropped by the set?! A pilot has been ordered, which is pretty exciting, I could see it scaling to a series (at least as long as there's source material) pretty well. Downside is that it's SyFy behind it now, although I remember reading recently that they're trying to turn themselves around from... whatever it is they've become. Be great if they got some BSG-level weight behind it.
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Dec 18, 2014 04:51
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VagueRant posted:spoiler Logen is not exactly a people person.
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Dec 18, 2014 19:03
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Buddy recommended Dragon Precinct by Keith Candido as something kinda interesting. It's apparently it's a police style drama where you have elves and dwarves and whatnot solving murders. Imagine a discworld that's more serious and all about the guards and you kinda have the idea (although way less humor). Will letcha know if it turns out to be good. Apparently there's 3 books in the series?
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Dec 19, 2014 06:21
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So those of you who like Harry J. Connolly's Twenty Palaces Series, he has just published the first of his Kickstarted novels. http://www.harryjconnolly.com/blog/index.php/the-way-into-chaos-post/. All 3 of the trilogy are out if you backed paperback or ebook. Hardcover takes longer and is still a month away. I haven't started yet, I'm 40 pages from finishing Django Wexler's The Thousand Names and so I won't start for a day or two. The novels were meant to be a very action-focused anti-grimdark trilogy and he couldn't get them published at the time due to both bucking trends and having a failed series. If you liked his stuff before, I think this is worth checking out, there's a preview of the first few chapters available as well. This is self published but with professional artists, map designers, and most importantly professional editors. I'd be interested in what anyone thinks but especially Megazver who I think is as big a fan as I am and also a backer and I would not mind some book-by-book reviews behind some spoiler text. Also the Kickstarter paid for a stretch goal editor review and publication of a new Urban Fantasy title, which is not for sale yet but has been released to backers and will be for sale within the next month or two. fermun fucked around with this message at 12:11 on Dec 19, 2014 |
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Dec 19, 2014 12:05
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VagueRant posted:Man, I wish the Joe Abercrombie thread had a more solid spoiler policy. I'm a short way into the third book in the First Law trilogy (Last Argument of Kings) and there's so many things I want to discuss, but it's a free-for-all in there. I found the wrap-up of the First Law trilogy was handled well. Nearly every story and character arc will be resolved, so you don't need to worry.
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Dec 19, 2014 15:25
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fermun posted:So those of you who like Harry J. Connolly's Twenty Palaces Series, he has just published the first of his Kickstarted novels. http://www.harryjconnolly.com/blog/index.php/the-way-into-chaos-post/. All 3 of the trilogy are out if you backed paperback or ebook. Hardcover takes longer and is still a month away. Haven't heard of this before but "anti-grimdark" sounds awesome.
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Dec 19, 2014 16:43
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Borachon posted:Just finished City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett and enjoyed it. World was really interesting and the plot was solid, though some of the twists a bit predictable. The characters had some depth too them, too. It also told the story in one book, didn't have a lot of unnecessary filler, and was overall pretty tight. I picked this up on a whim based on the Goodreads fantasy list for 2014, and I'm really enjoying it so far. The author also says recently on his blog that he was convinced by his agent and publisher to write a sequel (basically, they got on him for having created this great world and not explored it enough) so City of Blades has been turned in, which is pretty great.
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Dec 19, 2014 16:48
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HIJK posted:Haven't heard of this before but "anti-grimdark" sounds awesome. I'm about 1/4 of the way through the third book and "anti-grimdark" totally does not describe the series at all. Overall it's pretty good, though not nearly as flavorful as his Twenty Palaces series.
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Dec 19, 2014 17:38
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I was browsing my local SF&F used bookstore for Christmas gifts and found a Dying Earth omnibus. I don't know much about the series, other than that it's pretty influential and that Vancian magic is a pain in the rear end in RPGs. It was in the sci-fi section, although I've been led to believe it's more in the fantasy vein, but whatever. I picked it up thinking I'd get it for my mom, who lately has been getting pretty interested in sci-fi, particularly books about post-ecological-apocalypse settings. Does Dying Earth actually scratch that itch, or should I just keep it for myself? Also, what would be a good eco-apocalyptic book for her?
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Dec 19, 2014 17:47
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The Dying Earth has nothing to do with realistic science. It is a fantastical dying planet (though still ostensibly Earth) where every conceivable iteration of magic and technology has come and gone. It doesn't scratch that itch, but it does own really, really loving hard.
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Dec 19, 2014 17:55
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Flip Yr Wig posted:Also, what would be a good eco-apocalyptic book for her? The definitive eco-catastrophe book is Brunner's The Sheep Look Up (warning: very depressing). I also like Brian Aldiss' Hothouse. I can't think of much else at the moment except for really much older stuff like the oddly opposed Greener Than You Think and The Death of Grass.
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Dec 19, 2014 18:55
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Flip Yr Wig posted:I was browsing my local SF&F used bookstore for Christmas gifts and found a Dying Earth omnibus. I don't know much about the series, other than that it's pretty influential and that Vancian magic is a pain in the rear end in RPGs. It was in the sci-fi section, although I've been led to believe it's more in the fantasy vein, but whatever. The big name in modern ecoapocalypse sf is Paolo Bacigalupi's _Wind-Up Girl_.
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Dec 19, 2014 19:23
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Atwood's Oryx and Crake might count as ecopocalypse?
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Dec 19, 2014 20:53
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Flip Yr Wig posted:I was browsing my local SF&F used bookstore for Christmas gifts and found a Dying Earth omnibus. I don't know much about the series, other than that it's pretty influential and that Vancian magic is a pain in the rear end in RPGs. It was in the sci-fi section, although I've been led to believe it's more in the fantasy vein, but whatever. Be sure to get a copy of the Dying Earth omnibus with properly sized gutters, cos it's a huge thick book and having to crack it all the way open to read properly killed atleast some of my enjoyment. Moreover this http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/ecology 
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Dec 19, 2014 21:05
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Dec 19, 2014 21:20
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You can actually underline words if you want  or hell, italicize book titles, that seems to be the preferred thing now.
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Dec 19, 2014 21:30
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RVProfootballer posted:You can actually underline words if you want Hahah, ok, fair enough. I was phoneposting and because my phone is amazingly antiquated (it still has a slide-out keyboard!) it's easier by far to use _ _ than to get to the screen with the brackets.
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Dec 19, 2014 21:31
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What is this a fifth grade book report? just type poo poo, you don't need to underline anything. It is clear what people are referring to without invoking MLA rules.
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Dec 19, 2014 23:03
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Isn't that how people used to do it on Usenet? Looks old-fashioned to me, anyway.
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Dec 19, 2014 23:29
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Thanks for the tips. I got her the Wind-Up Girl. I also got my girlfriend's mom that zombie anthology the Living Dead, because she's pretty deep into our zombie craze. I guess I'm kinda happy to keep Dying Earth for myself.
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Dec 20, 2014 04:54
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If your mom's not down with graphic rape scenes you should warn her that Wind-Up Girl gets pretty harsh.
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Dec 20, 2014 06:55
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Anyone have an opinion on the Deepgate Codex books? I had a recent playthrough of Planescape Torment and I'm looking for something literary in the similar vein that isn't crap.
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Dec 21, 2014 13:54
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Neurosis posted:Anyone have an opinion on the Deepgate Codex books? I had a recent playthrough of Planescape Torment and I'm looking for something literary in the similar vein that isn't crap. Sorry, not going to find it here. They string a long succession of striking but largely unconnected setpieces into a cavalcade of disjointed grimdark crap with a terrible ending. The first book, at least, is reasonably coherent, but it's all downhill from there.
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Dec 21, 2014 14:00
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Darth Walrus posted:Sorry, not going to find it here. They string a long succession of striking but largely unconnected setpieces into a cavalcade of disjointed grimdark crap with a terrible ending. The first book, at least, is reasonably coherent, but it's all downhill from there. Ah. poo poo. Anything else that's more Planescape like then? In setting, not themes. And I've read Mieville and Ambergris.
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Dec 21, 2014 15:20
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