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I just went back and checked the best novel category of the last twenty years of Hugos and I don't know, to my tastes this year is no worse than most of them, and a drat sight better than several. "There's a lovely Scalzi novel on the list" is like... par for the fuckin course, apparently.
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Jul 7, 2023 20:16
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Rand Brittain posted:Wasn't Eric originally an illustrated extravaganza like The Last Hero that's now always published without the illustrations? Yeah. If you like Josh Kirby's illustrations I guess they add to it...
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Jul 7, 2023 20:25
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I liked all 4/6 novels and 2/6 novellas from the 2021 Hugos that I read, and the smaller fraction of the nominees from 2020 & 2022 that I read, whereas there's nothing besides Nona from this year's novel nominees that I'm even tempted to pick up, so... 
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Jul 7, 2023 20:34
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Scalzi getting nominations for a book even he basically acknowledged was a low effort cash in is an inspiration to lazy frauds everywhere.
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Jul 7, 2023 20:35
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RDM posted:The hugos were pretty good in the mid-2010s (like 2014-2019) as a backlash against that lovely alt-right trolling campaign. An actual backlash would prove their point, so no.
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Jul 7, 2023 22:19
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Senlin Ascends (Books of Babel #1) by Josiah Bancroft - $2.99 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074M62D7Y/
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Jul 7, 2023 22:26
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sebmojo posted:just a really good post, and totally agree. thank you! it was one of the rare posts I didn't just type up and immediately abandon. I agree with your take on Gideon too; it hints at a lot of really cool stuff (and the narrative is propulsive and the characters/gideon are so much fun) but it took the sequels to really catapult the whole thing into greatness. buffalo all day posted:does the locked tomb series follow the dune rule or does it get better again after harrow (I did not like harrow) your little buffalo avatar is often next to a book rec I've either read and liked or will read and like, so I'm bummed you didn't like Harrow! I don't know if you'll like Nona and I also don't think I have anything to say that won't just boil down to "you seem to like things that I like so I want you to read this book and like it" so: you seem to like a lot of things I like so I hope you read Nona and like it! ... and what didn't you like about Harrow?
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Jul 7, 2023 22:37
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oh the other thing I'm reading is the giant Complete Calvin and Hobbes Collection. Whenever I'm feeling down about the state of Art (or literally anything) I crack it open and read some comic strips; highly recommended.
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Jul 7, 2023 22:40
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Man, Bill Watterson is forever a legend for doing his thing until he felt done and then just being done.
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Jul 7, 2023 22:55
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Groke posted:Man, Bill Watterson is forever a legend for doing his thing until he felt done and then just being done. He's making a Soulslike
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Jul 7, 2023 23:09
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Gato The Elder posted:your little buffalo avatar is often next to a book rec I've either read and liked or will read and like, so I'm bummed you didn't like Harrow! I don't know if you'll like Nona and I also don't think I have anything to say that won't just boil down to "you seem to like things that I like so I want you to read this book and like it" so: you seem to like a lot of things I like so I hope you read Nona and like it! I was kind of flip about it earlier but the thing I loved most about Gideon was Gideon and the second thing I loved was the locked room mystery plot and those things got me past the meme stuff which I didn’t particularly enjoy. harrow got rid of Gideon sort of and the murder mystery plot, in favor of something that wasn’t really a mystery at all, so I was pretty much left with the stuff I didn’t enjoy.
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Jul 8, 2023 00:03
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My daughter loved Gideon and then was baffled and outraged by harrow, so fair enough. She got into it eventually, just took a while.
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Jul 8, 2023 00:15
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I was baffled and outraged too, but loved it all the same.
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Jul 8, 2023 00:40
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Crashbee posted:I'm reading Galatic Patrol by Doc EE Smith, part of the Lensman series. It's the first thing I've read by him and it's a weird combination of quaint old-timey tropes and language ('"Blinding blue blazes!" Kinnison exclaimed') and extreme violence - so far the protagonists have started a close-combat brawl where they bashed the bad guys' brains in, murdered a bunch of space-pirates while they're knocked out and unconscious, killed hordes of otherwise-innocent mind-controlled slaves, genocided a race of evil aliens, and grounded a spaceship then machine-gunned its entire crew. And I'm not even halfway through yet! That's the good place to start with that series, the first book was originally a different serial that was modified to fit the Lensman universe and has a tacked on beginning that is slow and confusing which is unlike the rest of the series, which pretty much keeps the same tone you are reading currently. It's all ridiculous and dumb but it's awesome and I love them
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Jul 8, 2023 00:55
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Cpt. Mahatma Gandhi posted:I’ve been on a big Fantasy kick recently, so I’m currently reading through Unsouled by Will Wight and 16 Way to Defend a Walled City by KJ Parker, and audiobooking The Thousand Names by Django Wrexler. 16 Ways is easily the best of the bunch, though I’m not that far into Unsouled yet so that could change. The tipping point for Unsouled is at the midpoint, during the Festival. big mean giraffe posted:I really need to dig into more of Will Wight's stuff, I got the traveler's gate series for free years ago via an amazon promotion and really enjoyed it as a fun romp Cradle is his flagship series and books 5-8 out of 12 are the highlights, imo. But I actually like his Elder Empire series better (Lovecraftian ninjas vs pirates). If the parallel trilogy structure has been putting you off starting, don't worry. They can be read as standalone trilogies, or interleaved, or in publication order. Doesn't really matter whether you start with Sea or Shadow though I hear that whichever you start with tends to influence who you root for eventually. (I'm Team Shera/Shadow and I don't think that would have changed even if I had started with Calder/Sea.) I did not enjoy the sample of The Last Horizon which is his new wizard space fantasy.
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Jul 8, 2023 01:07
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Leng posted:The tipping point for Unsouled is at the midpoint, during the Festival. Ooh, another Elder Empire reader! Am I the only one who noticed that the setting is basically Ravnica?
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Jul 8, 2023 01:28
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I’m reading The Power Broker, and the government of New York State might as well be that of some byzantine fantasy kingdom.
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Jul 8, 2023 01:50
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Yeah it’s really fuckin good. I stole a lot of it for my last attempt at a Baru 4 draft.
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Jul 8, 2023 02:04
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GhastlyBizness posted:Just finished the second book of goon favourite Graydon Saunders’ Commonweal series, A Succession of Bad Days. I think A Succession of Bad Days is probably my favorite of the Commonweal books (though I've enjoyed them all), partially because I love a good "going to sorcery school" book and ASoBD is possibly my favorite of that sort of book. Ed, as a bit of an outsider PoV (both to the Creeks and to the use of magic) is also helpful, as it provides a lot more opportunity for the reader to learn about the setting and the hows and whys behind things. Re-reading The March North afterwards puts a bunch of things in somewhat different (or at least more understandable) light. Regarding Harrow the Ninth, I though it was good, but it's definitely a more involved read than Gideon the Ninth, which I find to be an absolute comfort food book -- just enjoyably fun to visit. Also, the audiobook narration for the Locked Tomb series is absolutely fantastic. Highly recommended.
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Jul 8, 2023 02:25
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FPyat posted:I’m reading The Power Broker, and the government of New York State might as well be that of some byzantine fantasy kingdom. This book, and the LBJ biography (the whole series, but especially the first book), are absolute musts.
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Jul 8, 2023 03:06
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General Battuta posted:He's making a Soulslike I know it was already posted in here, but just in case anyone thinks this post is a joke: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Mysteries/Bill-Watterson/9781524884949 out in just a few months
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Jul 8, 2023 03:59
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edit: wrong thread I am supremely excited for Bill Watterson's weird new book.
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Jul 8, 2023 04:45
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GhastlyBizness posted:Just finished the second book of goon favourite Graydon Saunders’ Commonweal series, A Succession of Bad Days. Every book is from a different pov, with some having multiple. Every pov is written in a distinct voice. You should definitely read Safely You Deliver as it's basically A Series of Bad Days part 2. Also the books do reward re-reading.
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Jul 8, 2023 05:47
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I basically got every single one of my friends to read Gideon and Harrow but I immediately bounced off Nona and planned to go back and re-read them all in one go I think part of the reason I bounced off was because I got the feeling I needed to refresh my memory of the other books before continuing
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Jul 8, 2023 06:36
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I liked Gideon and Harrow about equally. For the improvements in quality Harrow made, having less compelling characters pulled it back down a bit. I liked Nona the least, but still liked it a lot. It wasn't mysterious in the same way either of the first two books were. And in fact the central mystery of Nona's identity is obvious from very early on if you pay attention to the right things: there are only two possibilities (not the same two that the characters think) and one of those is ruled out if we trust what we read previously. But maybe I feel that way because I reread Gideon and Harrow and took notes while doing it right before starting Nona. If I hadn't done a reread, then there might have been more mystery in it. Then again, I enjoyed the backstory "history as told by God" chapters a lot - it was nice to get a clear exposition of how things got to be the way they are, at least from one point of view. There wasn't any attempt at mystery there, which made them a refreshing change of pace.
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Jul 8, 2023 06:44
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I loved Gideon, was greatly upset by the endingand somewhere in late 2020 decided I was going to read them all in one fell swoop. So, here I am, waiting on Alecto to be released. So I can read Gideon, Harrow, Nona and Alecto. The Ninth. Eventually. Hopefully.
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Jul 8, 2023 06:54
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One final Power Broker note-I’m now imagining a Superman story where Metropolis’ version of Robert Moses takes the role that Lex normally would.
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Jul 8, 2023 07:38
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FPyat posted:One final Power Broker note-I’m now imagining a Superman story where Metropolis’ version of Robert Moses takes the role that Lex normally would. Done in various comics but not Superman iirc
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Jul 8, 2023 09:04
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jackofarcades posted:I basically got every single one of my friends to read Gideon and Harrow but I immediately bounced off Nona and planned to go back and re-read them all in one go I recently re-read Gideon and Harrow before starting Nona, and I found the refresh to be very helpful.
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Jul 8, 2023 10:59
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Has anyone read The rise and fall of D.O.D.O. and if so, does it ever get good? I'm about 20% of the way in, and the plot idea so far seems kinda neat and it's definitely original, but it's going off on a loving weird tangent and I'm not sure I wanna keep going. If it gets better, I'll stay, but if it just gets more odd, I'm gonna tap out. Also, Legends and Lattes needs to win cause I liked it and therefore it's the best on the list 
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Jul 8, 2023 11:51
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Fyi, for those who want to, there is a thread for locked tomb chat in this here very forum https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3937069 Again not saying you must not talk about it here, but just in case folks didn't know about it.
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Jul 8, 2023 11:54
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Anyone recommend books about reluctant adventurers? Like they don't wanna go on this stupid quest or they don't wanna be a child of destiny or plot but god dammit every loving solstice some weird poo poo happens and bam, stuck in a new adventure. I know of the discworld books, NPCs, the etshar books, Andrew mayhem series, constance verity series, and cyclops road (which was a pretty good standalone). Just in the mood to read more. Bonus points if it's got some humor to it.
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Jul 8, 2023 12:05
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:Anyone recommend books about reluctant adventurers? Like they don't wanna go on this stupid quest or they don't wanna be a child of destiny or plot but god dammit every loving solstice some weird poo poo happens and bam, stuck in a new adventure. The Hobbit!
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Jul 8, 2023 12:52
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:Has anyone read The rise and fall of D.O.D.O. and if so, does it ever get good? I'm about 20% of the way in, and the plot idea so far seems kinda neat and it's definitely original, but it's going off on a loving weird tangent and I'm not sure I wanna keep going. If it gets better, I'll stay, but if it just gets more odd, I'm gonna tap out. It was ok but I can't remember it getting substantially better. It's similar to most of his airportier books, fine as a techno-thriller if you don't mind info dumps.
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Jul 8, 2023 12:52
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:Anyone recommend books about reluctant adventurers? Like they don't wanna go on this stupid quest or they don't wanna be a child of destiny or plot but god dammit every loving solstice some weird poo poo happens and bam, stuck in a new adventure. Planet of Adventure by Jack Vance is about an space explorer who's been unwillingly stranded on an alien planet and gets quite annoyed by how long it takes to track down a working starship to take him back to Earth.
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Jul 8, 2023 13:02
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I liked Legends and Lattes, but it seemed way too short.
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Jul 8, 2023 13:34
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pradmer posted:Senlin Ascends (Books of Babel #1) by Josiah Bancroft - $2.99 Has anyone here ever read the rest of the series? I really liked this book but lost a little steam in the back half for me and it sort of has a classic planned series 'to be continued...' ending. The writing and the setting were great but it felt like the hooks were the deepest at the start and I didn't have the urge to immediately pick up the sequel. edit: actually, this book fits in with the reluctant adventurer question too, the protagonist is a mild-mannered teacher who thinks he's going on vacation until he has to deal with all the poo poo that pops up Ror fucked around with this message at 14:37 on Jul 8, 2023 |
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Jul 8, 2023 14:35
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:Anyone recommend books about reluctant adventurers? Like they don't wanna go on this stupid quest or they don't wanna be a child of destiny or plot but god dammit every loving solstice some weird poo poo happens and bam, stuck in a new adventure.
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Jul 8, 2023 14:46
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Crashbee posted:I'm reading Galatic Patrol by Doc EE Smith, part of the Lensman series. It's the first thing I've read by him and it's a weird combination of quaint old-timey tropes and language ('"Blinding blue blazes!" Kinnison exclaimed') and extreme violence - so far the protagonists have started a close-combat brawl where they bashed the bad guys' brains in, murdered a bunch of space-pirates while they're knocked out and unconscious, killed hordes of otherwise-innocent mind-controlled slaves, genocided a race of evil aliens, and grounded a spaceship then machine-gunned its entire crew. And I'm not even halfway through yet! By Klono's tungsten teeth and curving carballoy claws... I've never read Lensman, so I have no way of knowing if Smith was trying to take the piss with that Space Profanity, or if he was completely serious.
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Jul 8, 2023 14:49
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Ror posted:Has anyone here ever read the rest of the series?
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Jul 8, 2023 15:39
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