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General Battuta posted:They're good, in my opinion! The third one a little less so, but still very good. The twist near the end of 2 Like 2 Lightning does not make the whole story nearly as stupid and obnoxious as I feared it was going to: specifically the series does not devolve into endless cosplay philosophy sex Oh dear god that's good. I wasn't really that afraid of it going that route but that certainly was a surprising tangent. Also I was a little confused by something, probably because I kind of read the book in disconnected chunks of time: in that section, Mycroft says something to the extent of "I hear you dear reader, you're wondering why I won't just say who the Anonymous is, even though we all know." But I definitely didn't know. Should I have? I don't remember some early parts of the book that well, so I'm not sure if the first book "gives away" who the current Anonymous is. Is this one of those instances of Mycroft saying "well obviously you future readers know your history and know how all this turned out" or should I have actually been able to ferret out who it is? If I were to venture a guess based on nothing other than how the book has sort of worked so far, I'd guess it was Vivien Ancelet, which makes the whole "adultery fantasy" thing kind of ironic and funny. Or there's some sort of literary trickery going on here and Mycroft is the Anonymous, but that would be... a much bigger stretch.
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Sep 24, 2019 19:25
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Has anyone read through Naomi Novik's Temeraire books? They are, like a goon said, fairly formulaic but charming and I like them a fair bit, but quick question- I'm on Book 5 and I feel loving horrible for Laurence and I kind of just want to know if there's some kind of redemption for him?
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Sep 24, 2019 20:59
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BlackHattingMachine posted:the 3 chapter preview to Forever Free. That's weird, because as Cringe Rock pointed out, definitely nobody ever wrote a sequel to Forever War. Maybe you're thinking of the unrelated book by haldeman that shares the naming convention, Forever Peace? (Forever Peace is a totally unrelated setting, is quite weird, but at least has some interesting ideas. Free is aggressively garbage.)
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Sep 24, 2019 23:57
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Recently finished Gnomon and was a bit underwhelmed. I called the ending when I was halfway through it. Just picked up Ficciones, so I can do the Borges comparison soon. I loved Too Like the Lightning when I first read it a couple years ago. I've been meaning to reread it and see if it holds up, as well as check out the sequels.
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Sep 25, 2019 00:22
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MockingQuantum posted:Oh dear god that's good. I wasn't really that afraid of it going that route but that certainly was a surprising tangent. Also I was a little confused by something, probably because I kind of read the book in disconnected chunks of time: in that section, Mycroft says something to the extent of "I hear you dear reader, you're wondering why I won't just say who the Anonymous is, even though we all know." But I definitely didn't know. Should I have? I don't remember some early parts of the book that well, so I'm not sure if the first book "gives away" who the current Anonymous is. Is this one of those instances of Mycroft saying "well obviously you future readers know your history and know how all this turned out" or should I have actually been able to ferret out who it is? If I were to venture a guess based on nothing other than how the book has sort of worked so far, I'd guess it was Vivien Ancelet, which makes the whole "adultery fantasy" thing kind of ironic and funny. Or there's some sort of literary trickery going on here and Mycroft is the Anonymous, but that would be... a much bigger stretch. That question is answered definitely, later. The second Terra Ignota book is a step down, but is still worth reading. The third one is excellent.
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Sep 25, 2019 00:40
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That's too bad, there were some really cool and interesting ideas in Forever War. I did notice some off putting parts, but chalked it up to this being 2019 and all. There was a glowing forward from Scalzi, and having read Old Man's War recently, do his next books hold up? Thanks for saving me time, precious brain space, and general disgust!
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Sep 25, 2019 00:41
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BlackHattingMachine posted:That's too bad, there were some really cool and interesting ideas in Forever War. I did notice some off putting parts, but chalked it up to this being 2019 and all. There was a glowing forward from Scalzi, and having read Old Man's War recently, do his next books hold up? I just finished the Old Man's War series and I think the first couple are head and shoulders above the rest. The rest are entertaining, but they aren't really military sci-fi in the vein of Forever War etc. If you read the first two and absolutely must know what happens in the universe after that then go on, but know that you aren't missing anything big if you skip it.
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Sep 25, 2019 01:23
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Ceebees posted:(Forever Peace is a totally unrelated setting, is quite weird, but at least has some interesting ideas. Free is aggressively garbage.) iirc Forever Peace depicts a fascist US full of impoverished people suffering without healthcare and a government that plays both sides of endless South/Central American conflicts in order to keep its populace in wartime panic mode Glad I skipped Forever Free. I guess I assumed Forever Peace was the only "follow-up" (in name only, as it turns out).
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Sep 25, 2019 01:38
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Dang. I've been almost universally disappointed by reading follow ups to great initial offerings. I thought both the Foundation and the Rama series were such let downs after amazing beginnings. Fantasy has burned me a ton as well. Oh and gently caress you to any Dune book but Dune. I suppose it's extremely common and I'm just now noticing, or my ability to hold my nose has degraded over time and I'm just pickier in my old age.
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Sep 25, 2019 01:41
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The Rat posted:I just finished the Old Man's War series and I think the first couple are head and shoulders above the rest. The rest are entertaining, but they aren't really military sci-fi in the vein of Forever War etc. If you read the first two and absolutely must know what happens in the universe after that then go on, but know that you aren't missing anything big if you skip it. I read the initial trilogy of Old Man's War and stopped, based on multiple recommendations from friends. I'm okay with that.
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Sep 25, 2019 03:14
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Yeah, it seemed like after the second or third, it veered away from being mil scifi and just became space politics opera kind of stuff. Which is fine I guess, it was entertaining and serviceable, but it wasn't what got me started reading the series. The Sagan Diaries caught me off guard though, it was a lot more emotional and earnest than I'd expect from a mil scifi series.
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Sep 25, 2019 04:56
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The Rat posted:Yeah, it seemed like after the second or third, it veered away from being mil scifi and just became space politics opera kind of stuff. Which is fine I guess, it was entertaining and serviceable, but it wasn't what got me started reading the series. Thanks for the heads up. I think I'll give that one a chance.
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Sep 25, 2019 08:29
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Cross-posting this from the Games/GOG thread. Everyone who cares probably owns it already, however Freespace 2 is free on GOG for the next 42 hours.
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Sep 25, 2019 20:29
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Ahh the best game, and genuinely one of my favorite SF narratives in any medium. It’s an incredible deconstruction of the Independence Day archetype. The FreeSpace Open upgrade is easier than ever, and gives you twenty years worth of bug fixes, graphical updates, and fan campaigns. The mod I worked on, Blue Planet, even comes with a remastered version of the original campaign that enables some unfinished features and improves the worst missions.
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Sep 25, 2019 21:08
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Aw hell I just started Torment: Tides of Numenera and now Freescape gotta come out for free incidentally Tides is a really cool game (I say after 2 hours) very inspired by dying earth fiction, especially Book of the New Sun - there's a cannibalistic cult who eat corpse to absorb their memories - folks here might like it!
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Sep 25, 2019 21:22
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This thread's getting a bit long in the tooth, so I'm going to close it in four pages' time. Who wants to write the OP for the new one?
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Sep 26, 2019 02:01
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my bony fealty posted:Aw hell I just started Torment: Tides of Numenera and now Freescape gotta come out for free It pulls a lot from all of the Dying Earth subgenre - I'd say in many ways it's more fantastic than the New Sun. I greatly enjoyed it and, aside from the Dying Earth aspect, it tickled the part of my brain books like The Quantum Thief and The Golden Age hit - incredibly idea dense. I thought it was underappreciated at release.
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Sep 26, 2019 03:54
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Safety Biscuits posted:This thread's getting a bit long in the tooth, so I'm going to close it in four pages' time. Who wants to write the OP for the new one? Voting for a simple transcription of the insane monologue from ATHF's Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future for the new SciFi/Fantasy thread OP. https://youtu.be/2a1LV1IeG8U?t=8 It is both Science-Fiction and Fantasy rolled into one incoherent ever-changing story.
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Sep 26, 2019 04:42
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AND THERE WAS MUCH DEFECATION is probably as close a description to shitposting as we could hope for. Also probably a great thread title.
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Sep 26, 2019 06:46
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:AND THERE WAS MUCH DEFECATION is probably as close a description to shitposting as we could hope for. Also probably a great thread title. SUNSET FOUND HER SQUATTING IN THE GRASS
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Sep 26, 2019 07:07
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Don’t make people think about poop before even opening the thread guys
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Sep 26, 2019 15:53
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General Battuta posted:Don’t make people think about poop before even opening the thread guys ...you say, like they weren't already.
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Sep 26, 2019 16:29
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General Battuta posted:Don’t make people think about poop before even opening the thread guys Are you new to SA or
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Sep 26, 2019 19:04
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SFF Thread 2: No Sithposting (there's a thread for that)
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Sep 26, 2019 19:09
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Science Fiction and Fantasy MegaThread 2: Literacy is Overrated Science Fiction and Fantasy MegaThread 2: Reading Comprehension Not Required (Love this potential thread title but it might be too long to fit/too on-point topic wise.) [BODY] This is a GENERAL CHAT thread about Fantasy and Science Fiction and Fantasy stories and Fantasy and Science Fiction and Fantasy authors. Thread conduct rules from "The Science Fiction and Fantasy Thread: Read the OP, Bridge of Birds, and Murderbot" will apply in this thread. Not everyone likes the same authors as you, or has read the same books as you, or even knows that those authors exist! Conversely not every author you can't get into/actively hate is terrible. Please keep any sick burns on your fellow thread posters to a minimum and try to move extended thread derails to the proper dedicated subgenre threads. Not to going bother listing all dedicated BookBarn subgenre literary threads because they are impossible to keep track of. Just be aware that they exist, and are always eager for new people/new content. If you can't find a relevant subgenre thread, CREATE ONE and post away in it. That is all. Have fun, stay safe, and remember: IRONY TAGS DO NOT EXIST ON THIS WEBSITE/FORUMS SOFTWARE. [/BODY] quantumfoam fucked around with this message at 13:54 on Sep 27, 2019 |
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Sep 26, 2019 20:41
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BlackHattingMachine posted:Dang. I've been almost universally disappointed by reading follow ups to great initial offerings. I thought both the Foundation and the Rama series were such let downs after amazing beginnings. Fantasy has burned me a ton as well. Oh and gently caress you to any Dune book but Dune. I suppose it's extremely common and I'm just now noticing, or my ability to hold my nose has degraded over time and I'm just pickier in my old age. Dune sequels are way better than the Foundation sequels and WAY better than the Rama sequels though
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Sep 26, 2019 22:17
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I just finished Gideon the Ninth and as been said before it's great except a little wincing when she references memes. I can't wait for the next one. I'm happy to see lately so much crazy cosmic fantasy. Exploring worlds like Ninefox or Gideon is so interesting. I moved on to Empress of Nothing and the opening lady Tony Stark / Elon Musk thing is way cringier than Gideon's memes but I'm interesting enough in the world to persevere.
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Sep 26, 2019 23:31
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FuzzySlippers posted:I just finished Gideon the Ninth and as been said before it's great except a little wincing when she references memes. I can't wait for the next one. I liked Gideon and Ninefox, I've added Empress to my to read list, what else has there been lately?
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Sep 26, 2019 23:45
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A Little Hatred if you like Joe Abercrombie
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Sep 27, 2019 00:00
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90s Cringe Rock posted:SFF Thread 2: No Sithposting (there's a thread for that) Science Fiction and Fantasy Thread 2: The Sequels Are Always Worse
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Sep 27, 2019 00:29
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skasion posted:Dune sequels are way better than the Foundation sequels and WAY better than the Rama sequels though Ah Jesus, you had to go and remind me that Rama had "sequels". Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to let Gentry Lee write anything at all?
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Sep 27, 2019 01:02
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Groke posted:Ah Jesus, you had to go and remind me that Rama had "sequels". Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to let Gentry Lee write anything at all? Looking at his Wikipedia page, I can understand why they'd give him a shot Bert Gentry Lee (born 1942) is an American scientist, currently chief engineer for the Planetary Flight Systems Directorate at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and science fiction writer. He had engineering oversight responsibility for the twin rover missions to Mars that landed in January 2004, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) in 2006, and the Deep Impact and Stardust missions. He was also the chief engineer for the Galileo project from 1977–1988 and director of science analysis and mission planning during the Viking projects.
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Sep 27, 2019 01:34
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Yeah. See, where they slipped up there is none of those things involve writing interesting novels.
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Sep 27, 2019 02:40
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FuzzySlippers posted:I just finished Gideon the Ninth and as been said before it's great except a little wincing when she references memes. I can't wait for the next one. Yeah the beginning is probably the most eyeroll inducing / cringy part of Empress of Forever but it sets a basis for the story, which I thoroughly enjoyed, overall.
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Sep 27, 2019 02:54
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WAR CRIME SYNDICAT posted:Yeah the beginning is probably the most eyeroll inducing / cringy part of Empress of Forever but it sets a basis for the story, which I thoroughly enjoyed, overall. Yeah, it definitely picks up after a pretty cliched setup
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Sep 27, 2019 04:43
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quantumfoam posted:Science Fiction and Fantasy MegaThread 2: Literacy is Overrated You should list the thread rules from here, and the new thread will be the third sf/f thread.
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Sep 27, 2019 07:27
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I propose we just poo poo on the 'Real Literature' thread in the title.
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Sep 27, 2019 10:23
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Safety Biscuits posted:You should list the thread rules from here, and the new thread will be the third sf/f thread. Ok...here it goes. Would really prefer the "Reading Comprehension Not Required" thread title, however it's your call. Borrowing heavily from this threads current OP text with slight changes. =============== Science Fiction and Fantasy MegaThread 2 Rules -Post your opinion, not somebody else's stale talking points. Noting popular opinions alongside your own is great. -If someone asks for recommendations, pay attention to what they're asking for. -Post about books you're reading or excited about! Mention the author or title so we know what you're talking about. -Include lots of details in your posts to give us something to talk about and give us a taste of what you like. -Don't discuss how bad [insert fantasy or sf writer here]'s sex scenes are. They're awful. We know. And for God's sake don't discuss how good they are either! -Don't recommend David Weber. It always provokes a derail and there is a dedicated thread for that now(Mil-SciFi Thread). Same with Terry Goodkind, and Rothfuss...etc. -A lot of Big Name authors have recently been revealed as sex predators or worse. That kind of discussion is OK in here, no one published (especially your favorite authors) is without blame.
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Sep 27, 2019 13:50
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quantumfoam posted:Ok...here it goes. I don't mind which title you use, it's your call. I just meant it's better to have the thread rules in the OP rather than referring people to a closed thread. This last line doesn't quite make sense, though. I think you mean something more like: -We know some Big Name authors are sex predators or worse. That kind of discussion is OK in here; there are no sacred cows. E for content: A Proper Uppercut posted:Has anyone read through Naomi Novik's Temeraire books? They are, like a goon said, fairly formulaic but charming and I like them a fair bit, [/spoiler] I liked the first five and the sixth was terrible so I dropped the series right there. Safety Biscuits fucked around with this message at 15:08 on Sep 27, 2019 |
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Sep 27, 2019 15:06
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Doorknob Slobber posted:I liked Gideon and Ninefox, I've added Empress to my to read list, what else has there been lately? Gamechanger just came out, and it's a little like if Too Like the Lightning was written by that crowd instead of a classics professor, and also set only like 100-150 years in the future.
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Sep 27, 2019 15:24
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