|
Scorchy posted:Yeah I just finished a run of all the Harmony Black and Revanche Cycle books (since I liked Ghosts of Gotham). They're available all on Kindle unlimited so it's a good deal. Dang I might have to give these a shot when I want a lighter read this summer
|
#
?
Jun 19, 2019 19:23
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 16, 2024 19:09 |
|
|
Revanche and Wisdom's Graves are both batshit insane. I really enjoyed both for the ride.
|
|
#
?
Jun 19, 2019 19:40
|
|
|
Zore posted:I also take issue with the idea Rivers is better plotted. It has stronger prose and pretty good character work, but the mechanics of everything are a huge mess after roughly the second book. I believe Nightingale's hypothesis that magic had been dying off was nothing more than that, the rest of the magical community has always been doing just dandy, better, probably given that the Folly had been effectively neutered. The Folly spent 300 years being supremely dismissive at best and actively murderous at worst to any non-Newtonian old white guy magics, small surprise the last remnants of them don't know poo poo about poo poo.
|
|
#
?
Jun 21, 2019 04:25
|
|
|
Yak of Wrath posted:I believe Nightingale's hypothesis that magic had been dying off was nothing more than that, the rest of the magical community has always been doing just dandy, better, probably given that the Folly had been effectively neutered. The Folly spent 300 years being supremely dismissive at best and actively murderous at worst to any non-Newtonian old white guy magics, small surprise the last remnants of them don't know poo poo about poo poo. And, Nightingale's embrace of Peter's attitude about fair policing is one of the optimistic views of the series, and the Folly, that make the books a cut above in tone.
|
|
#
?
Jun 21, 2019 13:13
|
|
|
Zore posted:I also take issue with the idea Rivers is better plotted. It has stronger prose and pretty good character work, but the mechanics of everything are a huge mess after roughly the second book. Dresden's unfortunately turned into a video game though. Every book Dresden gets a powerup and tackles a bigger Boss Baddie. torgeaux posted:And, Nightingale's embrace of Peter's attitude about fair policing is one of the optimistic views of the series, and the Folly, that make the books a cut above in tone. Yak of Wrath posted:I believe Nightingale's hypothesis that magic had been dying off was nothing more than that, the rest of the magical community has always been doing just dandy, better, probably given that the Folly had been effectively neutered. The Folly spent 300 years being supremely dismissive at best and actively murderous at worst to any non-Newtonian old white guy magics, small surprise the last remnants of them don't know poo poo about poo poo. It's pretty clear that the central dynamic of the book is Nightingale as Everything Good (Or Cool) About The British Empire, vs Peter As The Best of Modern Britain, and that's the tension that drives the series. Past that yeah Aaronovitch kinda wrote himself into a bind in the early books by making the cast too small and he's had to work his way around that ever since.
|
|
#
?
Jun 21, 2019 13:50
|
|
|
I thought it was pretty clear that Nightingale was incredibly clueless about the modern world and that included modern magic and it's various forms. That and the series drops hints from Peters research that the Folly was pretty consistently quite ghastly to those lower on the power scale than them so people avoiding them wherever possible makes a lot of sense.
|
|
#
?
Jun 21, 2019 14:32
|
|
|
"An errand is getting a tank of gas or picking up a carton of milk or something. It is not getting chased by flying purple pyromaniac gorillas hurling incendiary poo". Heh, I forgot about this one, Dresden can get pretty ridiculous at times.
|
|
#
?
Jun 22, 2019 14:56
|
|
|
StonecutterJoe posted:Also, unrelated UF blatherings to avoid a double post: Good Omens embraced the ridiculous, offbeat, and fun source material to make a show that was full of life and true to the source material. Changes made to the story only make it that much better for a television audience and fill in gaps. If only every adaptation could be that good. I think we're going to get to see a complete opposite type of adaptation next week with The Rook. A few early reviews that were published and later taken down did not have kind things to say. Sounds pretty heavily rewritten to be a slick and stylish action show rather than a mystery.
|
|
#
?
Jun 24, 2019 00:51
|
|
|
Hieronymous Alloy posted:Dresden's unfortunately turned into a video game though. Every book Dresden gets a powerup and tackles a bigger Boss Baddie. What’s with the unfortunately, that’s what great about it!  Seriously though, different tastes at all but I’m so confused by the “like a video game” complaint - would’t mind if someone wanted to elaborate why that’s generally brought up as a bad thing.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 14:28
|
|
|
Avalerion posted:What’s with the unfortunately, that’s what great about it! It's a very simplistic narrative trope that, on its own, is predictable and boring. Most video game stories are bad because they all-too-often rely upon this (and other) predictable trope. Often exclusively. I don't agree that Dresden has turned into a video game. Dresden is better-written than the vast majority of video games. The fact that it uses some common tropes does not mean it does not do other things.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 14:37
|
|
|
At least for me the “predictable and boring” applies more to something like Alex Verus with how his powers as well as his enemies are more or less still the same after however many books in we are now.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 14:48
|
|
|
Avalerion posted:At least for me the “predictable and boring” applies more to something like Alex Verus with how his powers as well as his enemies are more or less still the same after however many books in we are now. Isn't Verus' power basically save-scumming anyway?
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 15:36
|
|
|
Beachcomber posted:Isn't Verus' power basically save-scumming anyway? Yes, which is why I absolutely love it!
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 16:32
|
|
|
Listening to the Revanche cycle book 1 now. Not sure how it crosses over into Faust / Black territory at all, but I'm enjoying it
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 16:39
|
|
|
Avalerion posted:What’s with the unfortunately, that’s what great about it! I like the early books more when it's more directly playing with noir tropes and Dresden is overall smaller and weaker and more consistently desperate. Too much of the later books he just solves problems by levelling up. I mean, sometimes it's cool. But it's cool like Doom is cool, not cool like Deus Ex is cool.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 17:24
|
|
|
Hieronymous Alloy posted:I like the early books more when it's more directly playing with noir tropes and Dresden is overall smaller and weaker and more consistently desperate. Too much of the later books he just solves problems by levelling up. On the plus side, even in the later books there are characters that just plain out class him in terms of power and skill. He's way more dangerous than most of the Council, but the head guys are on par if not more scary than he is. That's not even getting into the various Fairy and Vampire courts.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 20:49
|
|
|
seaborgium posted:On the plus side, even in the later books there are characters that just plain out class him in terms of power and skill. He's way more dangerous than most of the Council, but the head guys are on par if not more scary than he is. That's not even getting into the various Fairy and Vampire courts. Butcher's also claimed that a significant part of Peace Talks is going to be showing the White Council cutting loose. Harry's good, but according to Butcher most people on the Council are just as powerful if not more so, and a lot more experienced.
|
|
#
?
Jun 25, 2019 23:58
|
|
|
We've already seen McCoy cut loose, he waved a staff around and hundreds of people died on the spot and he walked away like nbd, this is just Tuesday. The Blackstaff just kept it from costing his own soul for breaking the first law. Now a whole Senior Council cutting loose like that...
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 00:44
|
|
|
Cythereal posted:Butcher's also claimed that a significant part of Peace Talks is going to be showing the White Council cutting loose. Harry's good, but according to Butcher most people on the Council are just as powerful if not more so, and a lot more experienced. If they're so great, why were they losing to the Red Court? Was it just a numbers game?
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 01:34
|
|
|
Beachcomber posted:If they're so great, why were they losing to the Red Court? Was it just a numbers game? Partially. Remember the Red Court made the first strike and managed to take out a lot of Wizards or turn them. They also had massive resources in the mortal world and access to modern technology which Wizards largely don't. Also you can churn out new vampires pretty quickly, even making them from your enemies, but Wizards take at a minimum years to get to 'basic competence'. And even with all those advantages the White Council was holding its own for years and eventually killed every Red Court vampire in existence. Like the poo poo Harry saw Ebenezer or the Merlin pull off in passing was insane. It just doesn't matter when you have like a dozen people covering the entire world. Remember so many Wardens died North America was being covered by 3 people
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 01:46
|
|
|
Beachcomber posted:If they're so great, why were they losing to the Red Court? Was it just a numbers game? The Red Court launched an absolutely devastating first strike. Like remember that the White Council we see in the series is one which lost 99% of its best fighters and was forced to throw literal newbies into the meat grinder because they had no other choice. They were so desperate that they recruited Dresden after all. Even then we hear about how they did genuinely impressive things during the war. Morgan, singlehandedly, apparently came close enough to killing the Red King that he forced a retreat. The same Red King who was the next best thing to a god. (If an addicted dying one.)
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 01:53
|
|
|
Zore posted:Like the poo poo Harry saw Ebenezer or the Merlin pull off in passing was insane. Hey, you don't get to be the Merlin by collecting bottle-caps.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 03:06
|
|
|
Hey, how is the Alex Verus series holding up ten books in, and how are the audiobooks? I'm going to have a bunch of time in the near future where my body is busy and I need stuff to fill my head with.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 04:28
|
|
|
Skippy McPants posted:Hey, how is the Alex Verus series holding up ten books in, and how are the audiobooks? I'm going to have a bunch of time in the near future where my body is busy and I need stuff to fill my head with. Can't speak to the audiobooks but overall the series is consistent. It's about as good at book 10 as it was at book 1. IMHO book 4 is the best overall. It has the same popcorn page turner quality that the early Dresden books had. Most people I know who've read the series binged the whole thing in a few days.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 04:35
|
|
|
Skippy McPants posted:Hey, how is the Alex Verus series holding up ten books in, and how are the audiobooks? I'm going to have a bunch of time in the near future where my body is busy and I need stuff to fill my head with. The audiobooks are solid. The series is still okay but it peaked early. It's run into the somewhat common problem of having an author's pet character who they like more than pretty much every person I know who reads it and that character keeps getting more and greater emphasis. It's still a fun enough read but don't get to attached to any side characters because they get increasingly sidelined.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 04:50
|
|
|
ImpAtom posted:The audiobooks are solid. The series is still okay but it peaked early. It's run into the somewhat common problem of having an author's pet character who they like more than pretty much every person I know who reads it and that character keeps getting more and greater emphasis. It's still a fun enough read but don't get to attached to any side characters because they get increasingly sidelined. Yeah, this is all true. Seriously, that series needs so much less Anne and much more Caldera.
|
|
#
?
Jun 26, 2019 05:22
|
|
|
Slanderer posted:Yeah, this is all true. I like Anne to a point, she's very similar to Alex in that she has gamebreaker powers, but trying very hard not to break anything. I do love Caldera though and more her equals better. She's so atpyical (blunt sturdy, Friar-ess Tuck) in a genre full of gorgeous nymphy witches (Luna, you included).
|
|
#
?
Jun 27, 2019 18:05
|
|
|
Skippy McPants posted:Hey, how is the Alex Verus series holding up ten books in, and how are the audiobooks? I'm going to have a bunch of time in the near future where my body is busy and I need stuff to fill my head with. Alex Verus is very consistent. I didn't like them, but if you like the first book you'll probably like the rest of the series. For me, book 4 was on almost the exact same level as the first book and that's where I stopped. Zore posted:And even with all those advantages the White Council was holding its own for years and eventually killed every Red Court vampire in existence. LLSix fucked around with this message at 13:50 on Jun 28, 2019 |
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 02:51
|
|
|
It's been eight years and several books, the statute of limitation on Changes spoilers has long passed. No one was at Chichen Itza specifically representing the Council, but a Warden regional commander and a Senior Council member (at least, there may have been more) were there and you're drat right the Council is claiming the kill, can't let a status boost like that slip through your fingers on a technicality.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 05:42
|
|
|
Harry does talk about how being good at magic and combat are two different things, and he’s lucky in the sense that his magical talents really help him in combat. His main downside against other wardens was the lack of a sword or the skills to use one.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 17:30
|
|
|
LLSix posted:
Harry and Ebenezer were both integral and they're two of the top people in the Council. Harry likes to downplay it because he started off on the wrong foot with the Council, but by Changes he's a really important and high up member of their exclusive military arm. Also if Harry's actions counted as White Council to start the war it seems fitting they should also count as White Council when he ended it.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 17:51
|
|
|
Zore posted:Harry and Ebenezer were both integral and they're two of the top people in the Council. Also, the Merlin (a) explicitly ordered Harry not to go to Chichen Itza to rescue his daughter, (b) has known Harry for longer than 30 seconds, and (c) is not actually an idiot.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 17:59
|
|
|
bobjr posted:Harry does talk about how being good at magic and combat are two different things, and he’s lucky in the sense that his magical talents really help him in combat. His main downside against other wardens was the lack of a sword or the skills to use one. Harry also is pretty blunt about the fact that he's effectively a bomb. He does a lot of damage but has almost no control or sustainability. In comparison we see other wizards are capable of less explosive but more effective methods of damage.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 18:11
|
|
|
ImpAtom posted:Harry also is pretty blunt about the fact that he's effectively a bomb. He does a lot of damage but has almost no control or sustainability. In comparison we see other wizards are capable of less explosive but more effective methods of damage. Yeah, seeing Ramirez in action during the raid on the White Court was really cool because he was loving with entropy and being really tricky with water in a way we never see Harry act. Or the difference between Dresden and Ivy during that book where they're locked in the theater and cut off from the outside with limited magic. Dresden runs out of juice almost immediately while Ivy's casting incredibly complicated and powerful spells for much longer by just being much more efficient.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 18:20
|
|
|
ImpAtom posted:The Red Court launched an absolutely devastating first strike. Like remember that the White Council we see in the series is one which lost 99% of its best fighters and was forced to throw literal newbies into the meat grinder because they had no other choice. They were so desperate that they recruited Dresden after all. And the Merlin (I think the Gatekeeper helped, but it's been a while) managed to use one ward to hold off a Red Court army chasing them so they could portal out and save their wounded. Seeing them all cut loose should be interesting.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 19:46
|
|
|
docbeard posted:Also, the Merlin (a) explicitly ordered Harry not to go to Chichen Itza to rescue his daughter, (b) has known Harry for longer than 30 seconds, and (c) is not actually an idiot. A is why I said it wasn't the White Council, but B and C make good counterarguments. In any case, Odin deserves at least some of the credit.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 20:45
|
|
|
Don't forget that the Merlin explicitly put "genocide Red Court" on his to-do list, and was just waiting for the right time to strike. Retroactively, the Council probably framed it as a sanctioned strike by a special assault team that ended the war in a single stroke.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 20:54
|
|
|
Cross-posting from the general Scifi & Fantasy thread:Ben Nevis posted:Apropos of nothing, the urban fantasy-ists might well enjoy Bryan Camp's Crescent City series. It deals with the deities of New Orleans. The first has a down and out magician trying to find out who killed the city's Fortune. The second, a psychopomp trying to find a missing soul. Naturally, things escalate. They're entertaining and New Orleans makes a great magical city.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 20:59
|
|
|
Gnoman posted:Don't forget that the Merlin explicitly put "genocide Red Court" on his to-do list, and was just waiting for the right time to strike. Plus I mean they were interrupting a ritual that was aiming to kill a senior council member. Killing Harry was a completely incidental side effect and the whole thing would have come to a head without him. It is incredibly telling that the Red Court set up a ritual powerful enough to kill every Red Court vampire in existence solely to kill a senior council member. Zore fucked around with this message at 21:03 on Jun 28, 2019 |
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 21:01
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 16, 2024 19:09 |
|
|
Gnoman posted:Don't forget that the Merlin explicitly put "genocide Red Court" on his to-do list, and was just waiting for the right time to strike. If I remember correctly, the Merlin said "we're going to murder every last Red Court Vampire" almost seconds before he said "Under no circumstances, Harry Dresden, who I know both respects my wishes and would never fly off the handle where loyalty to family and friends are concerned, are you to go and murder every last Red Court Vampire" Earlier on, someone (I think Ebenezar) says that the Merlin always has three plans; a plan, a backup, and an ace in the hole. Not sure what the first two plans were but we can probably start calling Harry "Ace" as of Changes.
|
|
#
?
Jun 28, 2019 21:01
|
|