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Vienna Circlejerk posted:Yeah this was good stuff, been ages since I read it though. There are a few stories from the same universe in The Crystal Express but the only one that really jumps out from my memory is "Swarm" so I think I will reread these soon ("Swarm" was really good and I think the only one that took place in a different star system).
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Sep 20, 2022 01:10
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Catching up on this thread after a while. Finished The Brick Moon novella written way back in 1869 and it's kind of wild in how bizarre and wtf almost everything in it is.cant cook creole bream posted:What are some good examples where the protagonist/point of view character isn't quite honest with the audience? I did enjoy that stuff in the throne of glass novels. The main character did some convoluted plans, which seem reasonable at first glance. But in the relevant moment it turns out that her specific approach also has three other positive side effects. This is every Gene Wolfe story I've ever read. It reaches Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes narrator dishonesty levels. AARD VARKMAN posted:I read Blake Crouch's Upgrade. it's bad airport fiction but I was apparently in the mood for that, despite some incredibly dumb stuff in the plot. Better terrible techno thrillers you asked for? You can't find much worse than Winn Schwartau's TERMINAL COMPROMISE. It's so bad Schwartau pretends it doesn't exist, and kept editing out mention of it on his wikipedia dot com page. If anyone is really curious about it, it exists on the project gutenberg website. Finally, it took the internet archive about 10 months to finally image and upload the books I donated to them back in november 2021. Here's a link to one of them, Monday Begins On Saturday by the Strugatski(Strugatsky) brothers. (I know it's the copy of MBOS I donated to the IA because the crack pattern on the cover and the blue stamp on the inside are identical to what I donated in 2021.) https://archive.org/details/mondaybeginsonsa0000arka In my opinion, this older English translation version of Понедельник начинается в субботу is much better than the 2005 english translation.
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Sep 20, 2022 01:28
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RDM posted:Vernor Vinge's Fire Upon the Deep and Deepness in the Sky. Vinge's Marooned in Realtime* also deals with long-timespan civilization, though with a central conceit better read unspoiled. *a sequel to The Peace War, which is also a good read but doesn't deal directly with deep time living
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Sep 20, 2022 01:59
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Shitstorm Trooper posted:Got immediately sucked into Neuromancer after I picked it up for $7.99. Only about 30 pages in but I'm already itching to get back home and dog in again. First thing I've read in non audiobook format in a while. If you're a fan of audiobooks and Neuromancer, at some point you should go back and listen to the Neuromancer audiobook - the abridged version narrated by William Gibson. It's an absolute fever dream of a production, not what anyone would consider "good" by today's standards, but it's utterly unique: there's something about the combination of Gibson's strange, nasal, almost affectless narration and the extremely heavy abridgement that makes listening to it feel like you're entering an altered state of consciousness. It's no longer sold anywhere since it was only ever made for cassette tape, but you can definitely track an MP3 version down pretty easily.
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Sep 20, 2022 10:20
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AARD VARKMAN posted:I read Blake Crouch's Upgrade. it's bad airport fiction but I was apparently in the mood for that, despite some incredibly dumb stuff in the plot. I have just started Blackthorne by Clayton Snyder. It's a military bootcamp-tech post apocalyptic action thing with necromancy. Kind of like airport fiction mixed with a bit of Shadowrun. It's not good but I'm enjoying it so far
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Sep 20, 2022 12:13
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branedotorg posted:I have just started Blackthorne by Clayton Snyder. Thread title, please
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Sep 20, 2022 15:32
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cant cook creole bream posted:What are some good examples where the protagonist/point of view character isn't quite honest with the audience? I did enjoy that stuff in the throne of glass novels. The main character did some convoluted plans, which seem reasonable at first glance. But in the relevant moment it turns out that her specific approach also has three other positive side effects. I've been enjoying Megan Whalen Turner's Queen's Thief series; you-the-reader usually know when the protagonist is actively lying, but he also conceals a lot of information and action from everyone, including the reader, which is only revealed later (although there are often hints that become obvious in retrospect). Then the third book is written from the perspective of a rando who gets sucked into his schemes so you get to see what it looks like from the outside.
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Sep 20, 2022 18:58
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Everyone posted:The 1632verse is pretty good overall. Really thoughtful and detailed. I eventually lost track of it and it got huge but at some point I'm going to rebuild it and read it via Kindle. Baen sells the ebooks directly, I've been downloading epub files from them as I go. I think because the series started in like 1999 or 2000, and Flint was a socialist, it really avoids all the bullshit of 2000s-era stuff wrt the war on terror and whatnot. I appreciate that a lot.
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Sep 20, 2022 19:12
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cant cook creole bream posted:What are some good examples where the protagonist/point of view character isn't quite honest with the audience? The PoV character in Iain M. Banks's Use Of Weapons doesn't act as narrator so it's not quite like he's deceiving the audience but I'd say the effect is pretty similar.
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Sep 20, 2022 19:15
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I've been playing a lot of Dark Souls lately and I'm wondering if there's any print fantasy in a similar vein. Specifically, dark fantasy where the dark-ness ultimately stems from the nature of the world itself rather than the world simply being filled with murdering rapists / raping murderers. Any ideas?
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Sep 20, 2022 19:15
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sebmojo posted:What if Gandalf was a dick More like "what if Gandalf was also Sauron". I wish First Law was as good as people lead me to believe. It was thoroughly mid-tier at best though.
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Sep 20, 2022 19:36
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Late Fees posted:I've been playing a lot of Dark Souls lately and I'm wondering if there's any print fantasy in a similar vein. Specifically, dark fantasy where the dark-ness ultimately stems from the nature of the world itself rather than the world simply being filled with murdering rapists / raping murderers. Any ideas? Can I interest you in my, Graydon Saunders, Commonweal series?
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Sep 20, 2022 19:39
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Really enjoying the new Elric omnibus! Everyone should read these books!!!
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Sep 20, 2022 19:56
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Late Fees posted:I've been playing a lot of Dark Souls lately and I'm wondering if there's any print fantasy in a similar vein. Specifically, dark fantasy where the dark-ness ultimately stems from the nature of the world itself rather than the world simply being filled with murdering rapists / raping murderers. Any ideas? It's more horror than scifi but Dead Sea by Tim Curran has that kind of feel, the ending is a bit poo poo but apart from that I really enjoyed it.
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Sep 20, 2022 20:15
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Evil Fluffy posted:More like "what if Gandalf was also Sauron". Not sure if you kept reading but I really feel like he became a better writer as he went on, the standalones and the second trilogy in the same universe I liked more.
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Sep 20, 2022 21:21
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Late Fees posted:I've been playing a lot of Dark Souls lately and I'm wondering if there's any print fantasy in a similar vein. Specifically, dark fantasy where the dark-ness ultimately stems from the nature of the world itself rather than the world simply being filled with murdering rapists / raping murderers. Any ideas? I'll also throw out Between Two Fires as having a similar vibe to Dark Souls. It's also just a really really good book.
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Sep 20, 2022 21:35
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sebmojo posted:Oh yeah, schismatrix owns sebmojo posted:The sequels are decent too. quantumfoam posted:This is every Gene Wolfe story I've ever read. It reaches Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes narrator dishonesty levels. Lol or worse. I've read Interlibrary Loan, but never mustered the  to figure out WTF is going on. It's like Mulholland Drive in novel form, complete with random cowboy. Also it's been speculated that he was just in cognitive decline and the whole book doesn't make sense at all?
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Sep 20, 2022 21:51
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Lead out in cuffs posted:Post/title combo, etc.
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Sep 20, 2022 22:24
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Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08FHBV4ZX/ The Rage of Dragons (Burning #1) by Evan Winter - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07L2VKFP5/ Renegade's Magic (Soldier Son #3) by Robin Hobb - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000UZNQNS/
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Sep 20, 2022 23:01
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Everyone posted:The 1632verse is pretty good overall. Really thoughtful and detailed. I eventually lost track of it and it got huge but at some point I'm going to rebuild it and read it via Kindle. A fair number of the books can be gotten from the last CD images on the Fifth Imperium (a collection of the CDs Baen used to include in their hardcovers and completely legit). One big thing I'd suggest is do not try to read the series in chronological order. If you try to read the entire series, and go by timeline ("this book ends in 1635, so I need to read the other books that are ongoing in 1634 and 1635 before moving on to 1636") you not only risk getting absolutely lost but tons of stuff won't pay off until you've read a dozen more books. Instead, read by plot thread. Read, for example, the Barbie plot to (current) completion, then the Russia plot, then the Scottish plot, then the Catholic Church plot, and so on. While this will spoil some future plot developments, you'll get a more satisfying narrative experience and have an easier time tracking the major players. Flint (as explained in at least some of the forewords) set the series up specifically to produce a very messy and complicated plot, trying to mimic how actual history is always extremely messy and complicated. That's the big reason there's so many authors, and also why the series has a good chance of surviving his death.
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Sep 20, 2022 23:14
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Kestral posted:If you're a fan of audiobooks and Neuromancer, at some point you should go back and listen to the Neuromancer audiobook - the abridged version narrated by William Gibson. It's an absolute fever dream of a production, not what anyone would consider "good" by today's standards, but it's utterly unique: there's something about the combination of Gibson's strange, nasal, almost affectless narration and the extremely heavy abridgement that makes listening to it feel like you're entering an altered state of consciousness. It's no longer sold anywhere since it was only ever made for cassette tape, but you can definitely track an MP3 version down pretty easily. And yes, definitely worth a listen. https://www.discogs.com/master/723489-William-Gibson-Neuromancer
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Sep 20, 2022 23:59
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DurianGray posted:I'll also throw out Between Two Fires as having a similar vibe to Dark Souls. It's also just a really really good book. Yeah this. Anyone who is a fan of dark souls or Berserk should read between two fires.
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Sep 21, 2022 00:58
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Kestral posted:If you're a fan of audiobooks and Neuromancer, at some point you should go back and listen to the Neuromancer audiobook - the abridged version narrated by William Gibson. It's an absolute fever dream of a production, not what anyone would consider "good" by today's standards, but it's utterly unique: there's something about the combination of Gibson's strange, nasal, almost affectless narration and the extremely heavy abridgement that makes listening to it feel like you're entering an altered state of consciousness. It's no longer sold anywhere since it was only ever made for cassette tape, but you can definitely track an MP3 version down pretty easily. Oh hell yeah, I'll have to check that out after I finish my current audiobook. I also collect cassettes so thanks for giving me something else hard to find that I need. Lol
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Sep 21, 2022 01:45
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Gnoman posted:A fair number of the books can be gotten from the last CD images on the Fifth Imperium (a collection of the CDs Baen used to include in their hardcovers and completely legit). I've been following the reading order from his website: https://ericflint.net/1632-series-reading-order/ It seems like it was written in 2019, but there are so few books past that point that its probably easy to fill in the rest from there.
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Sep 21, 2022 02:37
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Kalman posted:Can I interest you in my, Graydon Saunders, Commonweal series? I started this series a few weeks ago. I'm currently on book 2. It reads kinda like KJ Parker, if Tom Holt liked overt magic and had an actual sense of humor. 10/10 would recommend.
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Sep 21, 2022 02:39
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VostokProgram posted:I've been following the reading order from his website: https://ericflint.net/1632-series-reading-order/ And... I think this just frightened me away from the series again.
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Sep 21, 2022 02:57
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Everyone posted:And... I think this just frightened me away from the series again.  I mean you can just read the main sequence books and have a good time that way!
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Sep 21, 2022 03:18
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A Proper Uppercut posted:Not sure if you kept reading but I really feel like he became a better writer as he went on, the standalones and the second trilogy in the same universe I liked more. I haven't given him another look after First Law. Maybe I will some day but it'll be low priority.
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Sep 21, 2022 03:27
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Poldarn posted:I started this series a few weeks ago. I'm currently on book 2. It reads kinda like KJ Parker, if Tom Holt liked overt magic and had an actual sense of humor. 10/10 would recommend. Yet another Graydon Saunders sockpuppet appears.
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Sep 21, 2022 03:32
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Fuckin Graydon Saunders must be spending a fortune on SA forums accounts.
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Sep 21, 2022 04:21
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Evil Fluffy posted:I haven't given him another look after First Law. Maybe I will some day but it'll be low priority. The Heroes is a good standalone.
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Sep 21, 2022 05:12
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new commonweal book when
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Sep 21, 2022 05:25
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Larry Parrish posted:new commonweal book when Baru Cormorant isn't too busy for her therapy session
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Sep 21, 2022 06:09
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Larry Parrish posted:new commonweal book when Why don't you finish writing it, Graydon?
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Sep 21, 2022 11:33
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Fumblemouse posted:Baru Cormorant isn't too busy for her therapy session The Graydon Baru Cormorant?
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Sep 21, 2022 12:25
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VostokProgram posted:I've been following the reading order from his website: https://ericflint.net/1632-series-reading-order/ That's exactly the approach I don't recommend, for exactly this reason: Everyone posted:And... I think this just frightened me away from the series again. The "comprehensive" approach described there is pretty drat intimidating due to scale, and can be really exhausting to try keeping track of. Reading by branches gives you nice largely self-contained plotlines that you can mostly follow without the sprawling attached work.
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Sep 21, 2022 13:28
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Kalman posted:Can I interest you in my, Graydon Saunders, Commonweal series? Trainee PornStar posted:It's more horror than scifi but Dead Sea by Tim Curran has that kind of feel, the ending is a bit poo poo but apart from that I really enjoyed it. DurianGray posted:I'll also throw out Between Two Fires as having a similar vibe to Dark Souls. It's also just a really really good book. Thanks y'all. I've already read Between Two Fires and it really tested the limits of how relentlessly brutal a piece of fiction can be while still being enjoyable. It never occurred to me that it was a bit Soulsy (always thought of it more as Bible Fanfiction), but I see it now. I'll check out the other two. I also did some googling and came up with Book of the New Sun, which sounds extremely Soulsy in both theme and presentation. Though as I read up more on this series and its legacy I'm realizing this comparison might be like calling Lord of the Rings Warcrafty.
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Sep 21, 2022 15:56
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Book of the New Sun is pretty great, but it's written in a deliberately obtuse manner so it's not exactly an easy read.
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Sep 21, 2022 16:18
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Lead out in cuffs posted:Also lol if you could read Ilium and not realize that Dan Simmons had gone completely off the deep end. iirc that sequence doesn't steer all the way into the Bad Politics vortex until Olympos Like book 1 is just a somewhat obtuse entry in the Dying Earth vibes subgenre that sets up some intriguing mysteries Then book 2 answers all your questions as racistly as possible
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Sep 21, 2022 17:14
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PupsOfWar posted:iirc that sequence doesn't steer all the way into the Bad Politics vortex until Olympos The Ninth of Av is where it started, which was printed in an anthology between the two books.
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Sep 21, 2022 18:55
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