|
Amberskin posted:Fantasy-wise my vote goes to City of Stairs. I have read really a few books published this year, and none of them deserves to be named "the best" of anything. Got it for Christmas and really enjoyed it. The only criticism I'd offer is that (not a direct spoiler but will shape your reading) it sets up a lot of Chekhov's guns. I also read it straight after "The City &The City" which made for some interesting thematic contrasts and comparisons (also an excellent book obviously). I've read both "Words of Radiance" and "The Girl With All The Gifts" and would also heartily recommend both. Munin fucked around with this message at 00:36 on Dec 28, 2014 |
#
?
Dec 27, 2014 23:55
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 22, 2024 05:12 |
|
|
Dunno if it's been brought up in this thread (checked a few pages back), but Cixin Liu's The Three-Body Problem is phenomenal and only recently released in English. Best sci-fi I've read in as long as I can remember, and one of the best books I've read in recent memory.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2014 00:26
|
|
|
Smeef posted:Dunno if it's been brought up in this thread (checked a few pages back), but Cixin Liu's The Three-Body Problem is phenomenal and only recently released in English. Best sci-fi I've read in as long as I can remember, and one of the best books I've read in recent memory. Agreed. I cannot wait for them to hurry up (please don't hurry, quality matters more) with the translation of the next two books. I am kinda worried that it looks like one translator is doing 2 of the series, and a 2nd translator did the 3rd book. I'd imagine consistency would be a plus.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2014 01:56
|
|
|
thetechnoloser posted:Agreed. I cannot wait for them to hurry up (please don't hurry, quality matters more) with the translation of the next two books. I am kinda worried that it looks like one translator is doing 2 of the series, and a 2nd translator did the 3rd book. I'd imagine consistency would be a plus. You're right. Ken Liu, an award-winning Chinese-American sci-fi writer, translated the first book and will be translating the third. I don't know who the guy is translating book 2, but he doesn't have a Chinese name.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2014 02:12
|
|
|
The blurb for The Annihilation Score, the next book in The Laundry Files series, is out on Charles Stross' blog.quote:Hugo Award-winning author Charles Stross presents the next case in The Laundry Files, "a weirdly alluring blend of super-spy thriller, deadpan comic fantasy, and Lovecraftian horror" (Kirkus Reviews). I really hope that Mo has been working out her non-demon violin combat/self-defense sorcery muscles, because something tells me that continued use of that instrument is going to become non-viable as CASE NIGHTMARE GREEN rolls along.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2014 04:27
|
|
|
Smeef posted:Dunno if it's been brought up in this thread (checked a few pages back), but Cixin Liu's The Three-Body Problem is phenomenal and only recently released in English. Best sci-fi I've read in as long as I can remember, and one of the best books I've read in recent memory. So, and I don’t mean this in the offensive sense, sell it to me. Why is it so good? Is the translation good? Most importantly: What's it about?
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2014 04:44
|
|
|
Snuffman posted:So, and I don’t mean this in the offensive sense, sell it to me. I don't want to give away too much, because I read it with no background knowledge and felt that made it more special. I was hooked from the opening segment. It draws a lot on unanswered questions of modern theoretical physics, and some of the concepts it explores in creative ways are mind blowing. I thought that as the plot unraveled the story would lose steam, but it didn't at all. Not only were the ideas interesting, the narrative was perfectly paced, too. I felt like every page had something happening, and nothing was superlative or missing. The translation was so good that I didn't feel like I was reading a translated work. Some of the language was downright gorgeous. I was never left wondering due to bad writing. Most of it takes place in contemporary Beijing and a healthy amount of backstory takes place in the Cultural Revolution. These made for especially interesting settings since they're through the eyes of a Chinese writer, not someone in search of an exotic locale. Most of the characters are Chinese scientists. I didn't think the main character was especially well developed, but that was more than made up for with another major character who would have made a great story even without the sci-fi elements.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2014 06:09
|
|
|
Jedit posted:It's a good book, but when you finish it you'll be strongly reminded of something else. (The contents of the spoiler are deliberately vague, but if you think about it too much you could be spoiled.) Huh, the only obvious one I can think of right now is Lord of the Flies Joke option: Stripes Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:I finished it last night. Good book. Ending was a little irritating though. I saw your post yesterday and how you were irritated with something about the ending but didn't read the specific spoiler. I was trying to guess what bothered you after I finished earlier today. I thought it might've been Sarge's fate, or the ambiguity with Helen's. I was hoping for a happier ending for the three of em, but the author did pull off a really good bittersweet one imo. I loved the final image of Melanie keeping the tribe she alphaed in line, while Helen uses the side of the Stripes van as a makeshift blackboard to teach them If there was something in the final act that bothered me, even though it wasn't that big of a deal, it was Gallagher's motivation for leaving the van. I think the author could have messed with the timing a little bit around that junction and made the porno rags the reason he snuck off, and avoided the contradiction that his actual motivation was. Like I said, not a big deal, but I did think exactly that as I was reading those parts and the author had already written stuff that easily could have been set-up for it Anyway, anyone who really liked this should check out Daryl Gregory's Raising Stony Mayhall. Similar in a lot of ways, but different and great enough in others to be well worth reading.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 03:11
|
|
|
This last year was quite the mix for me in terms of reading and enjoying sci fi. It started out great and then I hit a slump in the summer and just could not find anything I liked. After a couple month break from sci I just recently read and enjoyed Raft by Stephen Baxter. My only real complaint was that I felt it was too short. Some parts of the story felt rushed but overall for his first novel I was very impressed. I'm about a quarter way into Timelike Infinity and have a feeling I'm going to really enjoy the whole Xeelee sequence series. What are other people's thoughts on it? I only read 2 books that actually came out in 2014 which were Echopraxia by Peter Watts and The Martian by Andy Weir. I really enjoyed both but I think Echopraxia would be the 2014 winner for me. I thought The Martian was good but as another poster pointed out on the last page, I found some of the writing really annoying, (YAY!) I understand he self published it on Amazon but it's a book that really would've benefited from a good editor. My favourite book I read this year though was probably Gateway by Frederik Pohl. Since it was written in 1977, I'm sure chances are most of you have read it but to anyone who hasn't I'd highly recommend it to anyone looking for some "darker" sci fi. The first sequel was pretty solid too but after that one I lost interest. My biggest disappointment for the year was The Reality Dysfunction by Peter F. Hamilton. It started off strong with a cool story and a great setting, particularly the storyline about the settlers on the planet but then promptly went to poo poo when he introduced evil energy bad guys and everything that followed. Finally, the book I'm most looking forward to in 2015 is Alastair Reynold's final book of his Poseidon's Children trilogy. I know a lot of people weren't too impressed with Blue Remembered Earth and On the Steel breeze but I loved them both. Not quite as good as the Revelation Space series but overall classic Reynolds in my opinion. johnsonrod fucked around with this message at 05:39 on Dec 29, 2014 |
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 04:44
|
|
|
Smeef posted:I don't want to give away too much, because I read it with no background knowledge and felt that made it more special. I was hooked from the opening segment. While I also enjoyed Three Body Problem, I got a very different impression regarding the translation aspect. The style of writing was distinctly foreign, and reminded me of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo's English translation. Many passages read stiltedly, which I can only attribute to the intentionally preserved idiosyncrasies of the original language. I would anticipate that western audiences might find the storytelling odd or awkward, especially in the way it "tells" way more than it "shows." Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it, but I think half the enjoyment is reading a work of sci fi derived from an entirely different source than most enthusiasts are used to.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 07:27
|
|
|
oryx posted:While I also enjoyed Three Body Problem, I got a very different impression regarding the translation aspect. The style of writing was distinctly foreign, and reminded me of the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo's English translation. Many passages read stiltedly, which I can only attribute to the intentionally preserved idiosyncrasies of the original language. I would anticipate that western audiences might find the storytelling odd or awkward, especially in the way it "tells" way more than it "shows." Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it, but I think half the enjoyment is reading a work of sci fi derived from an entirely different source than most enthusiasts are used to. On one hand, I could see the "telling" vs. "showing" aspect of the style, but on the other hand it flowed very naturally for me. Curious to hear what other readers thought about it.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 20:12
|
|
|
Mars4523 posted:I just read the summary on that book's Wikipedia page, and holy gently caress Kvothe has to be the Stu-iest Marty Stu that ever Marty Stu'd. How the gently caress do you write somebody like that and still have respect for yourself? Was this some high schooler's NaNoWriMo project that somehow got published? I've always felt when reading Rothfuss' work that Kvothe is meant to be a parody of the typical fantasy hero.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 20:25
|
|
|
Smeef posted:I don't want to give away too much, because I read it with no background knowledge and felt that made it more special. I was hooked from the opening segment.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 21:21
|
|
|
Ex-Priest Tobin posted:I've always felt when reading Rothfuss' work that Kvothe is meant to be a parody of the typical fantasy hero.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2014 21:36
|
|
|
I just read The Three Body Problem and rather liked it. Certain things seemed a bit simple, or at least they didn't fully come alive for me. Specifically, the aliens felt rather shallow. Interesting macro setup but felt more like a construct than something with life. The bit with the game really reminded me of some of the books by Bernard Werber. Btw, what are the next two books called? Amazon seemed to be really bad at making them clear.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 00:00
|
|
|
Munin posted:Btw, what are the next two books called? Amazon seemed to be really bad at making them clear. The Dark Forest is #2 and Death's End is #3.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 00:47
|
|
|
Munin posted:I just read The Three Body Problem and rather liked it. Certain things seemed a bit simple, or at least they didn't fully come alive for me. Specifically, the aliens felt rather shallow. Interesting macro setup but felt more like a construct than something with life. I'm guessing the aliens will be better described in the rest of the trilogy since humans haven't encountered them yet and it's all pieced together from the game and transmission data. I wish more time had been spent exploring the unfolding of dimensions... the being from a micro dimension that the aliens unfold and have to nuke was  There were a few plot weaknesses I didn't like. Why didn't the "sophon" supercomputers try to foil the attack on the ship by loving with things the way they did Wang's photos and the observatory? What happened to Wang's family? They must be wondering where the gently caress he is!
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 01:33
|
|
|
savinhill posted:Huh, the only obvious one I can think of right now is Lord of the Flies Joke option: Stripes The Girl With All The Gifts put me specifically in mind of Robert Matheson's I Am Legend, which also had monsters that turned out to be the replacements for humanity and not really evil at all while the human(s) did monstrous things to them in a futile attempt to survive.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 01:35
|
|
|
coffeetable posted:If the series is meant to be a satire then The Wise Man's Fear's hundred pages of elf sex is real dedication to the joke. I will reserve judgment until the last book is out, but the second book was the polar opposite of where I was hoping the series was going and I don't have a lot of hope that it will pull out of the goony tailspin that the second book dove headlong into. It really is a shame, since the first book had so much promise.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 02:57
|
|
|
Just looked over all the sci-fi/fantasy books I read this year and the best one was none other than China Mountain Zhang. Thanks are in order to this thread constantly recommending it, or it likely wouldn't have ever escaped the book pile. Scenes from that book were actually wandering through my mind just a week ago, and I read it back in May. As far as books published this year go, I'd have to say The Goblin Emperor — another thread favorite, but I love the slow burn of a social-power building plot and having that finally be the main plot in a place other than a high school was magnificent. EDIT: As long as we're talking about biggest disappointment, I'd have to say The Waking Engine. At its core it's an attempt at New Weird that has some sparks of interesting material but just falls flat. It's like someone read Perdido Street Station and decided it would be better if it was much more confusing and boring. Combed Thunderclap fucked around with this message at 09:46 on Dec 30, 2014 |
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 09:41
|
|
|
The mention of Rothfuss has reminded me of another favourite of mine this year: The Slow Regard of Silent Things. It's like he took all the emotional maturity that should've been in The Wise Man's Fear and packaged it up into a neat little 200 pages.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 17:57
|
|
|
I'm almost through Name of the Wind and I'm looking forward to those two even if some of the review of Wise Man's Fear are a little disheartening. It's starting to get almost Peter Parker-esqe how the narrator is constantly running out of money and striking it rich and then losing it all.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 19:43
|
|
|
coffeetable posted:The mention of Rothfuss has reminded me of another favourite of mine this year: The Slow Regard of Silent Things. It's like he took all the emotional maturity that should've been in The Wise Man's Fear and packaged it up into a neat little 200 pages. Went to grab The Slow Regard of Silent Things off amazon and saw that it is "book 1" of Kingkiller Chronicle, but book 2 was published 3 years earlier? Does it matter which is read first?
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 21:31
|
|
|
Bruxism posted:Went to grab The Slow Regard of Silent Things off amazon and saw that it is "book 1" of Kingkiller Chronicle, but book 2 was published 3 years earlier? Does it matter which is read first? The Slow Regard of Silent Things is more properly a side-story or maybe even prequel; I'm not sure because I haven't gotten to it yet. The first book of this series is The Name of the Wind, followed by Wise Man's Fear.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 21:54
|
|
|
In case anyone forgot that John C. Wright is human garbage, here's a reminder.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 22:19
|
|
|
edit: n/m 
Hedrigall fucked around with this message at 22:44 on Dec 30, 2014 |
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 22:39
|
|
|
Combed Thunderclap posted:Just looked over all the sci-fi/fantasy books I read this year and the best one was none other than China Mountain Zhang. Thanks are in order to this thread constantly recommending it, or it likely wouldn't have ever escaped the book pile. Scenes from that book were actually wandering through my mind just a week ago, and I read it back in May. And a drat fine book it is, too, glad you enjoyed it. A major novel in sf history. Ornamented Death posted:In case anyone forgot that John C. Wright is human garbage, here's a reminder. I think he means a "vaginal idol", under the circumstances.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 22:55
|
|
|
Ornamented Death posted:In case anyone forgot that John C. Wright is human garbage, here's a reminder. John C. Wright wrote an entire trilogy to indulge his underage schoolgirl spanking fetish.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 23:12
|
|
|
Bruxism posted:Went to grab The Slow Regard of Silent Things off amazon and saw that it is "book 1" of Kingkiller Chronicle, but book 2 was published 3 years earlier? Does it matter which is read first?
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2014 23:24
|
|
|
Ornamented Death posted:In case anyone forgot that John C. Wright is human garbage, here's a reminder. What is he so upset about btw? I couldn't make that out between all the expletives.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 00:03
|
|
|
Munin posted:What is he so upset about btw? I couldn't make that out between all the expletives. He's apparently frothing mad that the titular main character of The Legend of Korra turned out to be bisexual in the final episode when she and her closest friend in the world hugged and walked off into the sunset holding hands and the writers confirmed after the fact that they were, in fact, a couple from then on. I've never watched the show but I thought that was something really cool for the same reason he hates it. THE main character, in an extremely popular children's cartoon, being gay and also having said relationship be the happy ending for the whole series is a pretty huge deal.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 00:08
|
|
|
Munin posted:What is he so upset about btw? I couldn't make that out between all the expletives. homos perverting america's children.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 00:57
|
|
|
Munin posted:What is he so upset about btw? I couldn't make that out between all the expletives. "What is the lesson here for little boys and girls watching the show? That every friend of yours, male or female, secretly craves sexual congress with you? That to be a policeman means you can neither have the magical girl nor the attractive rich girl, but you are a big loser, and they go off with each other? That family means nothing, that sex is entertainment and means nothing, that life means nothing, that ergo young women should act like bigmouthed jerks? That a woman in a leadership role is not a princess, prophetess nor priestess but is instead a pervertess?" Having never seen the show or know anything about it, I guess he's pissed the male lead didn't "get" either female main character, because he's a policeman (?), and they're big mouthed jerks and pervertesses. The paragraph before he says it isn't even just because he hates gays, but because it is bad story telling.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 01:04
|
|
|
lol at anyone who gives thought to, or cares in any way about, the sexual preferences of characters from a childrens' cartoon.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 01:06
|
|
|
RVProfootballer posted:That every friend of yours, male or female, secretly craves sexual congress with you? I'm going to guess this guy doesn't have many female friends.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 01:08
|
|
|
savinhill posted:lol at anyone who gives thought to, or cares in any way about, the sexual preferences of characters from a childrens' cartoon. All the gay kids who feel good because their cartoon magic heroes can be gay too are gonna care, I think that's pretty neat 
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 01:11
|
|
|
I was wondering where I had heard his name from before, and I still can't recall any books I have read by him, but god drat that author pic google shows is basically dead on "weird internet dude".
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 01:38
|
|
|
savinhill posted:lol at anyone who gives thought to, or cares in any way about, the sexual preferences of characters from a childrens' cartoon. I care because when I was a kid, I had literally no gay people to look up to aside from maybe Willow from Buffy. That was it. All of the rest were portrayed as either flamboyant stereotypes or psychopaths. It may not save someone's life or anything but it's a cool gesture. To stay on subject: best SFF book I read all year is possibly a two-way tie between A Scanner Darkly and Ready Player One. I loved both of them equally for different reasons. The first was possibly the most cyberpunk-y novel I've ever read and it's all wrapped up in complex themes of identity and drug abuse. I found it to be both darkly funny and disturbing at the same time. The latter, meanwhile, was like reading the 80s and I'd highly suggest anyone who either remembers that decade or wishes they could remember it to give RPO a try.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 02:24
|
|
|
Ha ha, someone should tell this guy what moral panics achieve: 1. Adult panics about moral bullshit the kids are completely unaware of because they're too young to understand. 2. Child becomes confused because show (or whatever) outwardly expresses messages about love and tolerance while their parents desperately try to tell them the thing they like is evil for reasons they refuse to articulate because EVIL. 3. Child grows up, sees bigoted, back-stabbing hypocrisy going on in church by damned near every loving adult who holds a position of authority in it. 4. Child concludes if the adults teaching them about God are full of poo poo, then maybe God is bullshit too. 5. Another one leaves the Church.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 02:26
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 22, 2024 05:12 |
|
|
Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:I was wondering where I had heard his name from before, and I still can't recall any books I have read by him, but god drat that author pic google shows is basically dead on "weird internet dude". He helped spearhead a failed campaign to get Theodore Beale/Vox Day a Hugo earlier this year, so you may remember his name from that. Edit: Beale came in sixth...out of five nominees. He lost to "No Vote." Ornamented Death fucked around with this message at 02:50 on Dec 31, 2014 |
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2014 02:46
|
|