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Kesper North posted:We did make a lot of Footfall jokes, as I attended college in the city that builds and launches an Orion ship in the novel (thus ceasing to be a city). Makes me wonder what the hell Bellingham ever did to Niven and Pournelle... I have a vague recollection of reading somewhere that Niven once got a parking ticket there. Vindictive much if true.
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Dec 8, 2022 23:34
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GTD Aquitaine posted:Makes me wonder what the hell Bellingham ever did to Niven and Pournelle... I have a vague recollection of reading somewhere that Niven once got a parking ticket there. Vindictive much if true. Wasn't it Niven who had Tarzan get into some kind of giant penis swordfight? Blanking on the details.
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Dec 8, 2022 23:56
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Everyone posted:Wasn't it Niven who had Tarzan get into some kind of giant penis swordfight? Blanking on the details. iirc that was philip jose farmer?
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Dec 9, 2022 00:09
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Stanislaw Lem's From the Memoirs of Ijon Tichy. Memoirs of a Space Traveler: Further Reminiscences of a Space Traveler - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08BTB2KPF The Futurological Congress (#3) - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008IGK68O/ Peace on Earth (#4) - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008533DBW/ I guess the first book there is one version of the original first book? The Way of Shadows (Night Angel #1) by Brent Weeks - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001E0V112/
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Dec 9, 2022 00:10
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sebmojo posted:iirc that was philip jose farmer? You're probably right. Like I said, blanking on a lot of that. I have a weird desire to read whatever that was though. It sounds bonkers. Like that "Balls Deep" thing from upthread.
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Dec 9, 2022 06:00
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new new adrian tchaikovsky is out city of last chances, not children of memory
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Dec 9, 2022 06:12
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HaitianDivorce posted:I would say Ministry of the Future and New York 2140 are both worth reading if you're feeling doomer. Neither one is a tightly-written thriller or anything, but they both do wind their way toward imagining societal transformations away from capitalism as it becomes increasingly clear to everyone how unworkable it is on a dying planet. There's no global apocalypse or intractable dystopia. There's just growing pains and problem solving and struggles to make the right thing happen, and that helped me work through a lot of my own anxieties about climate change. Ministry of the Future was good, but still had some moments that were deeply Robinsonian in that they feel like the product of the imagination of a liberal arts professor who has no contact with the real world (which bothers me because I highly doubt Robinson is actually like that). I'm thinking specifically of the people who manage to convince rural Americans across places like Wyoming and Idaho to move to cities and let their lands return to nature for the good of the planet, and don't seem to receive any pushback, whereas in the real world (in America or anywhere) that's not happening and if you force the issue will lead to civil war. The moment in 2312 akin to that is when they convince a bunch of Russian immigrant farmers in Canada that air-dropping shitloads of genetically engineered predators back into their farmland is ultimately good because animals are our "brothers and sisters," which in real life would get you glassed. I just feel like sometimes he glosses over what would be required to actually change a majority of people's thinking to achieve that near-utopia (to be fair I have no clue how we'd achieve it either, and maybe it's impossible). New York 2140 was fine, but it felt like what he actually wanted to do was write a novel set in the modern day about the aftermath of the 2008 crash, growing inequality and what it will take to amend that, but his publisher pressured him into setting it a century down the track instead so that it could be set in the flooded Venetian Manhattan from 2312. It feels very weirdly like a book of two halves, both of which are fine in isolation, but which don't fit together. (And if you're going to be the most *important* contemporary science fiction writer, which I believe he is, the book set in the 2020s or the 2030s imagining a tipping point in the global financial system is a way more interesting and more relevant book than one which just has the set dressing of a flooded New York.)
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Dec 9, 2022 07:17
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Doktor Avalanche posted:new new adrian tchaikovsky is out Dude is some kind of writing machine.
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Dec 9, 2022 08:18
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Just snagged the new goon book. Will get to it in a few books. Sounds cool! Dunno who read it but The Lost Way by Justin Lee Anderson is getting a rerelease. He's apparently rewritten parts and added to the story so I guess this is v2. I remember liking it but I'll be damned if I can remember much about the details. I think there was an asexual knight which I thought was kinda neat. Not exactly a character type you see in fantasy often.
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Dec 9, 2022 08:23
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pradmer posted:Stanislaw Lem's From the Memoirs of Ijon Tichy. Memoirs of a Space Traveler is Stanislaw Lem's The Star Diaries Pt2. It got split up into two books for the English language translation. The Futurological Congress is Stanislaw Lem/Ijon Tichy doing a commentary on convention life/professional conferencee lifestyle, futurism, and better living through drugs drugs drugs. Stanislaw Lem's Peace on Earth is hard to describe without giving away a bunch of plot however it takes place on the Earth and on the moon (in flashbacks). Ijon Tichy is the main character. quantumfoam fucked around with this message at 10:24 on Dec 9, 2022 |
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Dec 9, 2022 10:19
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Groke posted:Dude is some kind of writing machine.
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Dec 9, 2022 12:21
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Kesper North posted:I attended college in the city that builds and launches an Orion ship in the novel (thus ceasing to be a city). Oh, hey, same! GTD Aquitaine posted:Makes me wonder what the hell Bellingham ever did to Niven and Pournelle... I have a vague recollection of reading somewhere that Niven once got a parking ticket there. Vindictive much if true. They were at a Vikingcon a couple years prior to the book, I think it was their way of honoring the city.
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Dec 9, 2022 13:09
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Copernic posted:Its only a spoiler if its fantasy novel lesbian romance, where they typically MAYBE share a smoldering glance before the credits roll. One thing I appreciate about the Effie Calvin fantasy lesbian romances I'm reading right now is that the leads usually get together by the halfway point and the rest of the book is them learning how to vibe together + dealing with whatever that book's theological crisis is. quantumfoam posted:All three Lem books are worth getting if you can stand his Ijon Tichy character. I did not particular like The Star Diaries/Memoirs but The Futurological Congress is amazing. anilEhilated posted:At this point I'm convinced he's some kind of alien bug in disguise. Multiple pairs of limbs, multiple typewriters. IIRC there was an interview a while ago (shortly after the release of Children of Time) where the interviewer asked him something like "so are you actually a human, or are you a large number of spiders wearing a human suit?" and his response was basically "ha ha, how silly! a human suit would take forever to put on and off, some sort of holographic projection would be much more comfortable". ToxicFrog fucked around with this message at 16:47 on Dec 9, 2022 |
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Dec 9, 2022 16:42
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The Illustrated Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake - $2.51 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NHZVF5T/ Childhood's End by Arthur C Clarke - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XG6MG3Y/ Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C Clarke - $1.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07XD75HGV/ Eden by Stanislaw Lem - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008533D44/
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Dec 9, 2022 17:50
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freebooter posted:Ministry of the Future was good, but still had some moments that were deeply Robinsonian in that they feel like the product of the imagination of a liberal arts professor who has no contact with the real world (which bothers me because I highly doubt Robinson is actually like that). I'm thinking specifically of the people who manage to convince rural Americans across places like Wyoming and Idaho to move to cities and let their lands return to nature for the good of the planet, and don't seem to receive any pushback, whereas in the real world (in America or anywhere) that's not happening and if you force the issue will lead to civil war. The moment in 2312 akin to that is when they convince a bunch of Russian immigrant farmers in Canada that air-dropping shitloads of genetically engineered predators back into their farmland is ultimately good because animals are our "brothers and sisters," which in real life would get you glassed. I just feel like sometimes he glosses over what would be required to actually change a majority of people's thinking to achieve that near-utopia (to be fair I have no clue how we'd achieve it either, and maybe it's impossible). One of the reasons his Mars Trilogy was so good was that the slow societal changes actually felt earned and believable. Also Aurora is amazing.
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Dec 9, 2022 18:18
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Copernic posted:Its only a spoiler if its fantasy novel lesbian romance, where they typically MAYBE share a smoldering glance before the credits roll. I thought it was supposed to be "Oops, all bone puns!"
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Dec 9, 2022 20:20
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pradmer posted:The Illustrated Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake - $2.51 Eden is one of Stanislaw Lem's interstellar explorers stories that can be summed up as "veni, vigilia, egressu" aka "I came, I watched, I left". Eden has the twist of having the interstellar explorers visit being unintentional (their spaceship crashed) and having an uncontacted alien civilization that is more weird than everything Niven or Pournelle managed with their "gripping hand" series. ToxicFrog posted:I did not particular like The Star Diaries/Memoirs but The Futurological Congress is amazing. Yeah, the Futurological Congress is good but I adore The Star Diaries more. Such a abundance of ideas in it. Master Oh & their Simulations. ps Don't open tins of sardines in space. Hundreds of repo agents sent and billions of dollars spent trying to reclaim a rogue AI that went sovereign citizen. The vending machine diplomat. Trolling alien astronomers with a lost flashlight. Multiple different time loops. Killer potatoes in outer space. Tichy's worse encounters always being interactions with time-clones of himself. Space madness and the (fake?) history of the Tichy family. Etc. quantumfoam fucked around with this message at 21:26 on Dec 9, 2022 |
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Dec 9, 2022 21:19
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ToxicFrog posted:IIRC there was an interview a while ago (shortly after the release of Children of Time) where the interviewer asked him something like "so are you actually a human, or are you a large number of spiders wearing a human suit?" and his response was basically "ha ha, how silly! a human suit would take forever to put on and off, some sort of holographic projection would be much more comfortable". lol he's fabian
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Dec 10, 2022 00:49
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I will forever give Tchaikovsky props for making me root against my own species in favor of large spiders.
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Dec 10, 2022 03:54
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TOOT BOOT posted:I will forever give Tchaikovsky props for making me root against my own species in favor of large spiders. I did not realize his music had such power.
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Dec 10, 2022 04:04
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pradmer posted:The Illustrated Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake - $2.51 Holy poo poo, that’s an insane discount.
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Dec 10, 2022 04:27
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GTD Aquitaine posted:Makes me wonder what the hell Bellingham ever did to Niven and Pournelle... I have a vague recollection of reading somewhere that Niven once got a parking ticket there. Vindictive much if true. Nothing, it was more of an affectionate fannish hat-tip to a place they liked, like tuckerizing a friend into a novel. fritz posted:Oh, hey, same! Yup, and they didn't stop after the book came out. Niven was still turning up at VikingCon when I attended Western in the 90s.
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Dec 10, 2022 11:56
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Vincent Van Goatse posted:I did not realize his music had such power. so this is my idea the 1812 overture, but instead of cannons, it's lasers I just started Guns of the Dawn, it's really good so far
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Dec 10, 2022 12:06
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Kesper North posted:Nothing, it was more of an affectionate fannish hat-tip to a place they liked, like tuckerizing a friend into a novel. Yeah, I gave a friend some mythology advice on a novel she was writing once, so she said she'd put me into it as thanks and what did I want to be? She seemed a bit startled when my response was "Awesome! Can I be the first person the villain kills?"
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Dec 10, 2022 12:11
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TOOT BOOT posted:I will forever give Tchaikovsky props for making me root against my own species in favor of large spiders. Which of his books is this from?
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Dec 10, 2022 16:06
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a foolish pianist posted:Which of his books is this from? Children of Time.
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Dec 10, 2022 16:36
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My sequel book is free today (and for the next few days). Yes, it’s a sequel, but I think it can stand alone. This one’s a bit more sci-fi/alternate world heavy than the first one, which was more of a straight police procedural. Features a bi lead and a non-traditional, verging-on-romance relationship. The Night People quote:A murder with no motive. An invisible killer. A cop with a talent that’s both a blessing and a curse.
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Dec 10, 2022 16:46
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newts posted:My sequel book is free today (and for the next few days)...
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Dec 10, 2022 19:19
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Anybody know of any fantasy books with middle-aged or senior protagonists? I’m tired of opening up new (to me) books and chapter 1 begins with “In the middle of his 17th year, at the start of the harvest festival,” or something like that. Extra points if they’re nobodies and not heroic in the traditional sense, or even better, people who live on the margins of society. I want to see a bum save the multiverse.
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Dec 10, 2022 20:21
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Nigmaetcetera posted:Anybody know of any fantasy books with middle-aged or senior protagonists? I’m tired of opening up new (to me) books and chapter 1 begins with “In the middle of his 17th year, at the start of the harvest festival,” or something like that. Extra points if they’re nobodies and not heroic in the traditional sense, or even better, people who live on the margins of society. I want to see a bum save the multiverse. Legend by David Gemmell. Druss is old and badass.
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Dec 10, 2022 20:25
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Nigmaetcetera posted:Anybody know of any fantasy books with middle-aged or senior protagonists? I’m tired of opening up new (to me) books and chapter 1 begins with “In the middle of his 17th year, at the start of the harvest festival,” or something like that. Extra points if they’re nobodies and not heroic in the traditional sense, or even better, people who live on the margins of society. I want to see a bum save the multiverse. i don't have any suggestions for you but i want to see this also
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Dec 10, 2022 20:27
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nothing in the rulebook says the Chosen One can't be a 72 year old Vietnam veteran that drinks his dinner from a paper bag. absolutely nothing
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Dec 10, 2022 20:29
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Remulak posted:Wanna note that I really liked the first book, especially the consistent tone of the writing, and the way exposition was handled, both incredibly difficult in this kind of genre fiction. Thank you! I’m not a huge fan of info-dumps (either reading or writing them) so I really tried to have the exposition happen naturally, as it was needed. Glad it worked.
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Dec 10, 2022 20:41
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Nigmaetcetera posted:Anybody know of any fantasy books with middle-aged or senior protagonists? I’m tired of opening up new (to me) books and chapter 1 begins with “In the middle of his 17th year, at the start of the harvest festival,” or something like that. Extra points if they’re nobodies and not heroic in the traditional sense, or even better, people who live on the margins of society. I want to see a bum save the multiverse. Saving the multiverse isn’t exactly the goal but Glen Cook’s Black Company books have a middle aged grizzled veteran protagonist. They’re also quite good besides that.
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Dec 10, 2022 20:42
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Nigmaetcetera posted:Anybody know of any fantasy books with middle-aged or senior protagonists? I’m tired of opening up new (to me) books and chapter 1 begins with “In the middle of his 17th year, at the start of the harvest festival,” or something like that. Extra points if they’re nobodies and not heroic in the traditional sense, or even better, people who live on the margins of society. I want to see a bum save the multiverse. Have you read Curse of Chalion yet?
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Dec 10, 2022 20:54
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newts posted:My sequel book is free today (and for the next few days). Yes, it’s a sequel, but I think it can stand alone. This one’s a bit more sci-fi/alternate world heavy than the first one, which was more of a straight police procedural. Features a bi lead and a non-traditional, verging-on-romance relationship.
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Dec 10, 2022 20:57
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I'm not sure if Curse of Chalion is really going to be satisfying on that end, since both it and its sequel kind of start out leaning heavily on "oh, I am old and broken and my youth is definitely gone" and then eventually both protagonists realize that they aren't so middle-aged that they can't engage in a romantic relationship with a young hottie. I mean, not to say they aren't great! They're definitely great. Someone tell Subterranean to stop doing individual releases of every single Penric book and get me a limited-edition hardcover of the main novels.
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Dec 10, 2022 20:58
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Nigmaetcetera posted:Anybody know of any fantasy books with middle-aged or senior protagonists? I’m tired of opening up new (to me) books and chapter 1 begins with “In the middle of his 17th year, at the start of the harvest festival,” orall all something like that. Extra points if they’re nobodies and not heroic in the traditional sense, or even better, people who live on the margins of society. I want to see a bum save the multiverse. The paladin by cj cherryh. Protag is a seen it all grumpy swordsman who gets pulled in for One Last Empire Toppling by a revenge obsessed peasant girl
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Dec 10, 2022 21:14
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AARD VARKMAN posted:nothing in the rulebook says the Chosen One can't be a 72 year old Vietnam veteran that drinks his dinner from a paper bag. absolutely nothing You got the vibe I’m looking for.
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Dec 10, 2022 21:20
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secular woods sex posted:Do you get paid more if I wait for it to cost money? Yes, but it’s not a big deal ($2). I’m just happy to have people read my book.
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Dec 10, 2022 21:23
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