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The only thing I remember about the Rama sequels is there is an exposition scene where characters use anal beads on each other. Swear to God.
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Sep 4, 2018 16:42
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Ben Nevis posted:Admittedly, it's been a few years since I've (re)read Hyperion, but I don't remember anything particularly cyberpunk about it. Lamia's tale is explicitly cyberpunk. Grimy, impoverished hive cities. She hooks up with a hacker to infiltrate the Technocore, they jack in Gibson-style, he gets killed by black ice, it's straight up as cyberpunk as it gets. It's also just that one story that's like that.
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Sep 4, 2018 17:21
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Strom Cuzewon posted:Are there any discussions from Howard and Lovecraft's contemporaries on their racial views? I know some of Lovecraft's friends took issue with his racism, and obviously modern critics are highly aware of it, but I've never seen anything from other writers at the time. Well, I heard Lovecraft was so racist it weirded Howard out and made him reexamine his own views a bit.
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Sep 4, 2018 20:01
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Strom Cuzewon posted:Are there any discussions from Howard and Lovecraft's contemporaries on their racial views? I know some of Lovecraft's friends took issue with his racism, and obviously modern critics are highly aware of it, but I've never seen anything from other writers at the time. Lovecraft was so super racist that it stood out even for his time and embarrassed his wife a lot. Sibling of TB posted:The only thing I remember about the Rama sequels is there is an exposition scene where characters use anal beads on each other. Swear to God. I might have to check out this thing after all.
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Sep 4, 2018 20:49
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I'm reading through Brian Stableford's Inherit The Earth and I'm about halfway through and phew, what a neat book. It's a mystery/thriller on the surface, but it's more about the central question - with immortality almost guaranteed for humanity, who shall deserve to live to inherit the earth, so to speak? It's also a neat cyberpunk book that's predicting the future left and right: the internet's omnipresent reach, the degradation of privacy, Anon style hacker/terrorist groups, VR, the VR equivalent of youtube's homemade videos, the impact of fake news, and how annoying it is calling a number and getting an AI/robot on the other end. And this was written in 1998!
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Sep 4, 2018 21:27
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So, somebody brought up Glynn Stewart a few pages back and I idly checked him out. Wow. Dude has 5 books in a Space Opera series, with a new series getting ready to start in the same world, 2 books into one urban fantasy series, and like another 10 books, all of which are apparently self-published, in Kindle Unlimited, and actually readable! Not great literature, but absolutely in the genre habitable zone.
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Sep 5, 2018 02:23
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If we're talking popcorn books, I'm liking the The King's Dark Tidings series by Kel Kade. The first book is a little rough, but he gets better. At first glance the hero is a total Gary Stu, trained since before he can actually remember in all the Skills and Rules of the elite spies, diplomats and fighters (and then some). He's known nothing else his entire life and was raised to be a weapon. But apparently one of his masters subverted his training by disclosing the last rule (Rule 1) as Honor Your Friends. But he has no idea what a friend is. It's a total power fantasy, and personally I think Master of All Skills is the worst part. But... starting in the second book and even more in the third his absolute lack of socialization growing up has caused some serious issues with the people he's decided are "friends" (but he still doesn't quite get it) and the very few who actually know who he is (to an extent) see him as a monster. Also, a lot of the byzantine plots he spins by assuming various personas to different groups start catching up in the third book and create serious trust issues and resentment amongst some of his friends and allies.
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Sep 5, 2018 03:48
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navyjack posted:So, somebody brought up Glynn Stewart a few pages back and I idly checked him out. Wow. Dude has 5 books in a Space Opera series, with a new series getting ready to start in the same world, 2 books into one urban fantasy series, and like another 10 books, all of which are apparently self-published, in Kindle Unlimited, and actually readable! Not great literature, but absolutely in the genre habitable zone. Yeah I'm going through the starship mage stuff and it's pretty breezy listening. The only criticisms I have is a heavy reliance on a "turtles all the way down" masterminds behind masterminds, escalating power levels, and continual unresolved plot hooks. Still it's a real fun read but by book 5 I'd really like some closure on like, anything! I like the author enough to check out the other series, it's pretty good beach reading power fantasy stuff. Plus, in-world mechanics, the determination of when he can and can't teleport himself and others, the distance and how fatiguing it is seems to perpetually change based on what the plot requires at the time. Annoying. Bhodi fucked around with this message at 04:10 on Sep 5, 2018 |
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Sep 5, 2018 04:03
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I know they've been discussed in this thread before, and they're of an age where nearly every series either did something dumb or objectionable, but how do the Anne McCaffrey Pern books hold up today? I swear, I need a curated list of SF/F books & series titled "Best Read When You're 11, or Never" so I don't have to ask this about every "classic" series I never got around to reading.
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Sep 5, 2018 05:25
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MockingQuantum posted:I know they've been discussed in this thread before, and they're of an age where nearly every series either did something dumb or objectionable, but how do the Anne McCaffrey Pern books hold up today? Anne McCaffrey's Pern books are bad when you're 11 too. I threw one of them against the wall (excuse: I was 11).
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Sep 5, 2018 07:51
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MockingQuantum posted:I know they've been discussed in this thread before, and they're of an age where nearly every series either did something dumb or objectionable, but how do the Anne McCaffrey Pern books hold up today? I think they’re ok, especially the first few. As soon as the vewwy special White Dragon shows up they start getting worse. Basically use the Dune formula. They never get better, so stop when you lose interest. Also, FWIW, Anne McCaffrey might be some kind of weirdo pedophile or pedo-enabler. I don’t remember the details or care enough to look them up. Bhodi posted:Yeah I'm going through the starship mage stuff and it's pretty breezy listening. The only criticisms I have is a heavy reliance on a "turtles all the way down" masterminds behind masterminds, escalating power levels, and continual unresolved plot hooks. Still it's a real fun read but by book 5 I'd really like some closure on like, anything! Yeah, they’re handwavy as poo poo, but I found them to be a easy FREE read, and I was interested enough to keep going which is so rare for the self-pub Kindle Unlimited crap. I’ve definitely seen traditional publishing stuff that was way worse. I am guessing that he must have made the unusual step of paying someone to edit and do actual cover design which makes all the difference.
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Sep 5, 2018 07:52
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Pyromaniac Ida posted:Lovecraft was so super racist that it stood out even for his time and embarrassed his wife a lot. According to Wikipedia he started a flamewar in a scifi magazine about it, and I'm really sad that the relevant issues are microfiche only  Edit: Also people used to write dodgy poetry making fun of him: quote:Love Versus Lovecraft ("Winged Feet" is a story by Fred Jackson that Lovecraft took issue with - another letter is telling the editor that Jackson is awesome and Lovecraft should get stuffed) Strom Cuzewon fucked around with this message at 11:54 on Sep 5, 2018 |
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Sep 5, 2018 11:32
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navyjack posted:I think they’re ok, especially the first few. As soon as the vewwy special White Dragon shows up they start getting worse. Basically use the Dune formula. They never get better, so stop when you lose interest. Also, FWIW, Anne McCaffrey might be some kind of weirdo pedophile or pedo-enabler. I don’t remember the details or care enough to look them up. There's a scene in one of her other series where a super-telepathic teenager gets curious about sex and seduces a grown man. He is not happy about it when he realises, but you can definitely spin it as "young people have desires, why shouldn't adults help them out?" I did not read the sequels.
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Sep 5, 2018 12:43
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Bhodi posted:Plus, in-world mechanics, the determination of when he can and can't teleport himself and others, the distance and how fatiguing it is seems to perpetually change based on what the plot requires at the time. Annoying. How do you mean? I blew through all five recently and while I admit I wasn't paying that much attention since they are, as you say, breezy beach reading rather than something to really sink your teeth into, the teleportation mechanics never struck me as internally inconsistent. Except perhaps that teleport range and recharge time doesn't seem to scale with the power of the mage, but perhaps increasing power just lets you jump more precisely or with less warmup time or something. Oh, and you do get some closure in book 5, but some stuff is deliberately left hanging to lead into his next (as yet unwritten) series in that setting.
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Sep 5, 2018 12:59
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navyjack posted:I think they’re ok, especially the first few. As soon as the vewwy special White Dragon shows up they start getting worse. Basically use the Dune formula. They never get better, so stop when you lose interest. Also, FWIW, Anne McCaffrey might be some kind of weirdo pedophile or pedo-enabler. I don’t remember the details or care enough to look them up. McCaffrey is infamous for the "Tent Peg Theory," where she expressed a belief that being penetrated anally releases hormones that turn you gay. (Apparently she had a friend who was mugged while camping, and the attackers shoved a tent peg up his rear end, which she believes made him become gay.) My impression is that she wasn't actively evil like Marion Zimmer Bradley or pervy like Piers Anthony, just ... confused. It's also an example of how standards change; back in the 70s, she was a hero to many gay fans because there wasn't a lot of mainstream fantasy that featured openly gay characters, and they were happy for any representation. But today, she just looks strange and out of touch.
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Sep 5, 2018 14:06
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Selachian posted:McCaffrey is infamous for the "Tent Peg Theory," where she expressed a belief that being penetrated anally releases hormones that turn you gay. (Apparently she had a friend who was mugged while camping, and the attackers shoved a tent peg up his rear end, which she believes made him become gay.) This is kinda how I view her. On the one hand, she was the first woman to win the Hugo and the Nebula. If you read her first winning story, Weyr House or something like that, it's actually kind of interesting and doesn't overstay its welcome. On the other hand, I've never (even as a kid) been able to get through one of her novels and the Pern fandom sounds unpleasant, like a mean-spirited version of the SCA. While McCaffrey was alive she would intervene in it which cannot possibly have been good for anyone involved.
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Sep 5, 2018 14:19
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occamsnailfile posted:This is kinda how I view her. On the one hand, she was the first woman to win the Hugo and the Nebula. If you read her first winning story, Weyr House or something like that, it's actually kind of interesting and doesn't overstay its welcome. On the other hand, I've never (even as a kid) been able to get through one of her novels and the Pern fandom sounds unpleasant, like a mean-spirited version of the SCA. While McCaffrey was alive she would intervene in it which cannot possibly have been good for anyone involved. That's where I'm at too. I actually enjoyed the Pern books as a kid, because, well, dragons!!! That said as I grew up I came to realize that she was the author with the cool covers and WICKED cool summaries, but her writing was just mediocre. The first author I ever read who I came to realize wasn't that good, and I still reflect on that sometimes. I'm still keeping the first trilogy of her Pern books because I like them, even if they're flawed now - the big twist in the first book was good enough for me to remember it fondly.
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Sep 5, 2018 14:24
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Wasn't she really against fanfic? If you create a world where people get psychically bonded to sweet as heck teleporting. dragons (or fire lizards, the superior choice) and then try to stamp out fanfic, you're a monster. You may be saving the world a lot of pain, but you're still a monster.
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Sep 5, 2018 16:52
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Oh no! I just finished The Descent of Monsters by JY Yang and it was really good but I don't think there's going to be any more books in that series! Anyways, if you have read the other two but not this one yet, you really should. It was equally strong and focused as Red Threads, with an interesting structure. Cool stuff happened and it was spooky and tense and good. It's also short and only 4 bucks, I think. If you haven't read any of Yang's Tensorate novellas you should give them a chance! Their setting is really compelling. Even if Black Tides spends a lot of time doing exposition, the next two are a lot tighter and better for it. Just some really cool short reads.
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Sep 5, 2018 18:43
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Jane Yolen's The Pit Dragon chronicles are the better version of Pern anyway.
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Sep 5, 2018 20:30
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papa horny michael posted:Jane Yolen's The Pit Dragon chronicles are the better version of Pern anyway. I remember reading those as a kid and really liking the first one and thinking things got really loving weird in the later books.
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Sep 6, 2018 00:36
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papa horny michael posted:Jane Yolen's The Pit Dragon chronicles are the better version of Pern anyway. I disagree, because I read them with the same enthusiasm for dragons as I read Pern, but I came away bummed because they were so sad and horrible - not the good escape fantasy of Pern at all!
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Sep 6, 2018 00:42
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ToxicFrog posted:I remember reading those as a kid and really liking the first one and thinking things got really loving weird in the later books. I had pretty much the exact same experience but I was really okay with how loving weird they got. I kind of want to reread them, but I'm also afraid they won't rule as much to 26 year old me as they did to 11 year old me.
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Sep 6, 2018 01:11
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The kindle version of The Traitor Baru Cormorant is $2.99 right now, a great price for a great book.
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Sep 6, 2018 02:39
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TOOT BOOT posted:The kindle version of The Traitor Baru Cormorant is $2.99 right now, a great price for a great book. Holy poo poo buy my book While I’m here I might as well rouse you fine lot for preorders on the sequel, which comes out in less than two months and which I have no worldly idea whether anyone will like or buy. Second book sales drop is usually huge even when you don’t lose a couple years to intense  brainBut since book preorder numbers are usually so small, double or triple digits, every one makes a difference.
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Sep 6, 2018 02:50
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TOOT BOOT posted:The kindle version of The Traitor Baru Cormorant is $2.99 right now, a great price for a great book. Anyone who doesn't already own this is a fool.
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Sep 6, 2018 02:51
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withak posted:Anyone who doesn't already own this is a fool. sure everyone here has it, but it is a good time to buy copies as gifts for your friends!
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Sep 6, 2018 02:59
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book No idea it was due so soon! Consider my order pre’d! 
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Sep 6, 2018 03:01
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book Oh sweet, I was just checking the other day if I could pre-order this. Here's the B&N link incase any of the other 6 Nook owners in the world browse this thread: https://m.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-monster-baru-cormorant-seth-dickinson/1127621318?ean=9781466875135
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Sep 6, 2018 03:19
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book Please shill a little on twitter too so i can retweet the hell out of it
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Sep 6, 2018 03:43
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hopped on the big Destiny lore discord server to plug the Baru sale
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Sep 6, 2018 04:04
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book I've had it preordered since January 5th 
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Sep 6, 2018 04:06
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book Done. Your first book astounded me. Your second better as well 
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Sep 6, 2018 05:09
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I lied to Amazon just to preorder Monster. Can't wait to read it 
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Sep 6, 2018 05:19
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book Preordered without hesitation.
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Sep 6, 2018 05:22
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General Battuta posted:Holy poo poo buy my book Oh poo poo it's dropping soon! I have to finish Stormlight 3 so I can reread Baru before Monster drops. Thanks for the notice. Pre-ordered to support your continued shitposting in this thread
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Sep 6, 2018 05:25
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The Traitor holds up on reread, can confirm. If anything it's better.
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Sep 6, 2018 05:57
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I wanted to get Monster in hardcover like I already have Traitor, but it was cheaper to just preorder Monster and buy Traitor again as ebooks just to have a matching pair I guess I'll just keep using the physical copy of Traitor to rope new people in.
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Sep 6, 2018 06:53
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Ornamented Death posted:I've had it preordered since January 5th Feb 22 for me!
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Sep 6, 2018 08:33
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There was a recent thread on reddit regarding a pre-Monster reread, seems well received over there also, couple of people triggered by the nature of the evil imperials though. I personally thought the entire relationship between Baru's seuxality and the inherent evils of the Masquerade was absolutely fantastic, and jesus christ the ending was heartbreaking. Can't wait to see how it develops. PS preorder this book and 5 star on Amazon/Goodreads if you feel it deserves it. Especially UK and other regional outlets on Amazon. I want more.
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Sep 6, 2018 09:34
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