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Fearless posted:No, I do too. The entire series is populated by fantastic characters, but I think Peter is interesting because he has a presence in so many different overlapping worlds. Same. Peter is smart in very specific ways that Nightingale and Abigail aren't, which is a refreshing change. He's not the best or the brightest, he just thinks differently.
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May 16, 2022 12:34
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biracial bear for uncut posted:Rivers of London suffers from the same "the world and its past is infinitely more interesting than the main character" syndrome as the Iron Druid books, except Peter is far less irritating a person than Atticus. I unironically think of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell as a direct prequel to the Rivers books.
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May 16, 2022 23:57
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Sloth Life posted:Same. Peter is smart in very specific ways that Nightingale and Abigail aren't, which is a refreshing change. He's not the best or the brightest, he just thinks differently. Yes. Peter has to be the central character. Abigail is paper thin and a common stereotype, nightingale is best as a "he's soooo good, let me tell you this hint of a story that would probably be less interesting if I gave you the details." It's time to move on from Leslie May. Her character is just tiresome now.
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May 17, 2022 01:22
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Peter's a good POV to the Rivers universe, but I find myself weirdly uncompelled by any of his personal relationships. Like I really could not care less about Beverley.
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May 17, 2022 01:46
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I've been kind of wondering if Aaronovitch was going to setup Leslie as an anti hero for a stand alone book. Leslie as a mercenary wizard who is pragmatic but still cares somewhat wandering America could be a decent pitch for a book I'd read.
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May 17, 2022 01:55
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Lawlicaust posted:He really should just move on from Peter as the POV character for every book. I don't think the Laundry Files did a great job moving on from Bob so don't make that mistake but more of a shared would like Schaefer would be nice. I'd probably enjoy Peter more as a character if he he was only every third released book or something. The Laundry Files had pretty well jumped the shark before then. It only really worked when Bob was a relatively normal IT dude in over his head with supernatural wierdness and bureaucracy. Once it went full Lovecraftian horrors are real, it lost the shine. Stoss tried to go back to him in the new book this year, but I haven't really bothered to pick it up and see if it's any better.
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May 17, 2022 08:52
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I was ok with Case Nightmare/God Game stuff happening, but really didn't care for the Mhari Sue or Scrum-Vampire guy POV stories. I still haven't read the two most recent books because I keep bouncing off the introduction chapters for the apparently non-laundry metahumans under the New Managment. If Angleton made some kind of triumphant return from his fight with the Elder Vampire I'd be invested again.
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May 17, 2022 09:23
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torgeaux posted:Yes. Peter has to be the central character. Abigail is paper thin and a common stereotype, nightingale is best as a "he's soooo good, let me tell you this hint of a story that would probably be less interesting if I gave you the details." Abigail comes off the usual smart but snotty teen brat because we mostly see her through Peter's eyes and that's how Peter sees her. She's much more interesting when she's the PoV character.
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May 17, 2022 15:18
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Artonos posted:I've been kind of wondering if Aaronovitch was going to setup Leslie as an anti hero for a stand alone book. Leslie as a mercenary wizard who is pragmatic but still cares somewhat wandering America could be a decent pitch for a book I'd read. If I recall (because it's been a while since I read the last book she appeared in), Leslie's gone full UKIP Brexiteer, so I think Aaronovitch is holding onto her as a foil for the multicultural London/UK that Peter represents. Though I admit learning more about American magic could be interesting. As an American, I can imagine us having a ton of mini Follies that never speak or acknowledge each other.
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May 17, 2022 19:29
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Fighting Trousers posted:If I recall (because it's been a while since I read the last book she appeared in), Leslie's gone full UKIP Brexiteer, so I think Aaronovitch is holding onto her as a foil for the multicultural London/UK that Peter represents. I don't think this is the case? The Faceless man certainly did, but Leslie was just working with him in exchange for power, revenge, and a new face and then she shot him in the back of the head. I don't think it's implied that she bought into his ideology.
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May 17, 2022 19:34
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I kinda always read Leslie was white feminism. So like she betrayed the multicultural london Peter represents in favor of the power offered to her by faceless man's white supremacism patriarchy. And she betrays the faceless man too because white feminism's problem with his ideology is the patriarchy part, not the white supremacism part. So she's not fully on board of faceless man's beliefs but is okay following them to get her way. Either way, I also think she has also run her coarse.
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May 17, 2022 22:35
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I think Leslie went completely insane when her face fell off in Book 1 anyway, and Punch's continued influence was always going to mold her into a villain.
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May 18, 2022 01:04
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biracial bear for uncut posted:I think Leslie went completely insane when her face fell off in Book 1 anyway, and Punch's continued influence was always going to mold her into a villain. Yeah, I think her face falling off was the thing. The bad guy being the only one able or willing to help can't have endeared her to 'the good guys' either. Other than offing the cartoon villain bad guy when he in the act (?), what crimes has she committed? Did I miss something or did Nightingale shack up with the soviet murder witch?
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May 18, 2022 05:15
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I’ve only managed to read the first Rivers of London book. Can people add spoiler tags to discussion of later events in the series?
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May 18, 2022 07:53
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Please put spoilers for the Harry Potter books in spoiler tags, I haven't read them yet. Edit: The book events in question were published in 2016 for the most recent thing Leslie did (everything else literally happens in Book 1, which was released 11 years ago). I get spoiler tagging a book released this year but spoiler tagging things from six years ago from the forum that made a meme out of "Dumbledore Dies" is silly. Some Pinko Commie fucked around with this message at 13:08 on May 18, 2022 |
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May 18, 2022 13:01
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I dunno, maybe be a little kind for the dude currently reading them, instead of being an rear end in a top hat about it.
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May 18, 2022 13:08
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quote:4) Spoiler Policy: For most threads, please use spoiler tags for any major plot events no matter how old the book is, unless it's common knowledge (Romeo and Juliet kill themselves?!?) or if you're in a discussion thread for people who have read that specific author or book. If you *are* in a discussion thread for a specific author, book, or series, use spoiler tags for anything that's been out less than about six months to a year. Beyond the rule, as a matter of general politeness, if someone asks you to use spoiler tags, please do so. https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3875825 literally in the forum rules, folks, bolding in the original I didn't add that just now
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May 18, 2022 13:33
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Kchama posted:I dunno, maybe be a little kind for the dude currently reading them, instead of being an rear end in a top hat about it. It just seems a little weird coming from the guy that only uses spoilers talking about lesser known books (Like the Library at Mount Char) rather than one of the most recommended series in this thread. The same poster who also has no problem posting "spoilers" about Dresden Files books in this very thread. If we're supposed to spoiler everything regardless of the age of the book, this thread is going to always look like a redacted classified document. Also nothing that Leslie does after book one is treated like a major plot event so much as incidental things that happen alongside the main plot. Hieronymous Alloy posted:https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3875825 I explained the reason for my response above. This is a general Urban Fantasy thread and not a specific Dresden Files or Alex Verus or Peter Grant thread. If it's that hard a rule everybody from the last dozen pages is going to eat probations. Some Pinko Commie fucked around with this message at 13:51 on May 18, 2022 |
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May 18, 2022 13:45
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biracial bear for uncut posted:It just seems a little weird coming from the guy that only uses spoilers talking about lesser known books (Like the Library at Mount Char) rather than one of the most recommended series in this thread. The same poster who also has no problem posting "spoilers" about Dresden Files books in this very thread. It says "if someone asks that you do not spoil, then please do not spoil", that is the part he bolded. Please read it. Also, I'm pretty sure he's posting that to tell people to knock it off with the spoilers.
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May 18, 2022 14:12
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The important part is the bolded part. This falls under the general "don't be a jerk about spoilers if people are asking politely" provision.
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May 18, 2022 14:12
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Kchama posted:It says "if someone asks that you do not spoil, then please do not spoil", that is the part he bolded. Please read it. Also, to be clear, that part was not bolded just for this thread, it is in bold in the original rules thread I wrote out years ago.
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May 18, 2022 14:13
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Also, to be clear, that part was not bolded just for this thread, it is in bold in the original rules thread I wrote out years ago. Oh right, sorry. It is pretty relevant for the conversation, though! Anyways, be kind. Just because other parts of the forums are jerks about books don't mean we have to be jerks too.
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May 18, 2022 14:17
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Nothing I've posted without spoiler tags about Rivers of London is a spoiler-level plot point, though? I wasn't talking about Beverly Brook possibly being pregnant with Peter's child or even the actually plot-relevant act where Leslie executes The Faceless Man with a bullet to the head. By about halfway through book 2 the reader should already be aware that Leslie isn't exactly following what Nightingale would call the Ethical Magician's path. I'm speculating that descent towards being a villain from Peter's POV started when she was a victim of magical assault and violence. That isn't even close to spoiling the series for someone that is still reading it (especially since less than maybe 15 percent of the events so far even concern Leslie, she's kind of a selfish dick character). That's like someone calling a discussion about the violence in The Shire in Lord of the Rings a spoiler. It is something that happens, yeah, but it isn't a plot-critical piece of information that will ruin the rest of the book's journey for the reader. Some Pinko Commie fucked around with this message at 16:12 on May 18, 2022 |
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May 18, 2022 16:09
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biracial bear for uncut posted:Nothing I've posted without spoiler tags about Rivers of London is a spoiler-level plot point, though? Chill, dude. You'll notice nobody's gotten probed here. I just don't want to have to come edit in spoiler tags all through the thread. Please help me keep my job easy. Thanks.
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May 18, 2022 16:14
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biracial bear for uncut posted:Nothing I've posted without spoiler tags about Rivers of London is a spoiler-level plot point, though? Granted, I don’t pay as close attention to things as maybe I should, but I left the first book with the impression that Peter was still interested romantically in Leslie, and that Leslie was moving along a similar professional arc as Peter but in a different division of the police force. I did not think it was a given that she would become a villain, though without access to the book I can’t go back and re-read to pick up on any hints (or perhaps outright statements) to that effect.
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May 18, 2022 17:02
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Grundulum posted:Granted, I don’t pay as close attention to things as maybe I should, but I left the first book with the impression that Peter was still interested romantically in Leslie, and that Leslie was moving along a similar professional arc as Peter but in a different division of the police force. I did not think it was a given that she would become a villain, though without access to the book I can’t go back and re-read to pick up on any hints (or perhaps outright statements) to that effect. There are some hints before Leslie was attacked in Book 1 with her arguments with Peter about what it means to be a Police Officer in London, but some of that may be lost depending on where you live and what that institution means in your local society. Rivers of London police seem to be idealized Law and Order level fictional cops that actually care about people in addition to being an arm of oppression (as opposed to just being an arm of oppression that gives no fucks about people).
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May 18, 2022 18:13
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LesLEY goddammit!
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May 18, 2022 19:00
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Just more evidence of how little importance her arc has in the series! 
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May 18, 2022 19:15
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biracial bear for uncut posted:Just more evidence of how little importance her arc has in the series! Mostly it’s evidence of how many people listen to the (excellent) audiobooks.
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May 18, 2022 21:03
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Grundulum posted:I’ve only managed to read the first Rivers of London book. Can people add spoiler tags to discussion of later events in the series? No problem. In exchange, you have to post your thoughts and theories after each book as you make your way through them. It's been a while since we've had someone make their way through one of the big UF series. Old Kentucky Shark posted:Mostly it’s evidence of how many people listen to the (excellent) audiobooks. They're so great and I always laugh at the narrator's terrible American accent
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May 19, 2022 00:53
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I like that at the end of one audiobook there was an interview with Aaronavich and he said after realizing how good the audiobook reader was at accents, he intentionally started putting less and less common ones in the book to try and trip him up.
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May 19, 2022 01:54
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I recently started listening to Rivers Audio books and also October Daye audiobooks after reading both series. Both narrators are substantially better than most other audiobooks I’ve ever listened to. So much so that I bought the latest Rivers book only on audiobook and will probably do the same for October Daye. Urban Fantasy having the best narrators was an interesting surprise.
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May 19, 2022 03:05
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I think it falls under urban fantasy? Last Smile in Sunder City was a pretty good debut novel imho. It's a bit detective noir, it's a bit dystopian, tonally kinda lands somewhere between Captain Vimes and Felix Castor.
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May 19, 2022 22:35
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Sloth Life posted:Felix Castor. I wish this series had gone a little longer.
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May 20, 2022 00:39
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Xtanstic posted:They're so great and I always laugh at the narrator's terrible American accent Terrible American accents are the best thing. Alan Rickman's Hans Gruber is the best thing I've ever heard.
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May 20, 2022 00:44
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biracial bear for uncut posted:I wish this series had gone a little longer. Same, Felix Castor was a really good series.
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May 20, 2022 07:08
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I remember in one of the books that Lesley says he was in my head for months. And then of course her face does fall off. Tbh I'm amazed she's even coherent.
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May 22, 2022 02:39
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Butcher and GRRM need to sell their IP to Brandon Sanderson so the books actually get written.
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May 23, 2022 01:19
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Azuth0667 posted:Butcher and GRRM need to sell their IP to Brandon Sanderson so the books actually get written. If Sanderson was writing dresden he'd never have stopped using potions, and it would be loving awesome.
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May 23, 2022 01:34
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NinjaDebugger posted:If Sanderson was writing dresden he'd never have stopped using potions, and it would be loving awesome. Though Dresden probably wouldn't make any more "gently caress me" potion but he would make cooler potions.
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May 23, 2022 02:27
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