What Are You Reading?

donegal_man

Trojan wrote: »

I read a lot of Alastair Reynolds stuff but never really got hooked like I did with Banks.

Finished the 3rd in the Lightbringer series from Brent Weeks, thoroughly enjoyable - chomping at the bit waiting for the fourth (and final afaik) book in November or so.

Still wading through the first Lightbringer book (The Black Prism). For some reason I'm finding it hard to engage with.

shrapnel222

shrapnel222 wrote: »

Finished The invisible library by Genevieve Cogman. interesting concept but her writing is not very good unfortunately.

started rereading intervention by julian may (discussed recently). really looking forward to it!

Finished intervention. Such an easy and enjoyable read for what is essentially just a 700 page introduction to the rest of the series.

started on Wool now to make a break before jumping back in to the galactic milieu trilogy.

Fian

donegal_man wrote: »

Still wading through the first Lightbringer book (The Black Prism). For some reason I'm finding it hard to engage with.

I found the second book much better, though I also enjoyed the first. Just finishing second atm.

pixelburp

About a third through 'Ready Player One', on the back of some breathless reviews & the apparent Spielberg adaptation in the works.

Honestly, I really don't get the praise it has received and feels like a lot of it just comes from the barrage of 80s pop culture references thrown at the reader. Great I suppose if you like straight shoutouts to your favourite films & shows from childhood. It's borderline obnoxious and makes the writing really tough to get through: if you want to kill yourself with alcohol poisoning, take a drink every time the narrator makes a blunt reference to the 80s.

Trojan

donegal_man wrote: »

Still wading through the first Lightbringer book (The Black Prism). For some reason I'm finding it hard to engage with.

How far in are you? I almost dropped it about 8-10% in, but gave it a chance and was hooked by halfway.

Overall it's a pretty awesome series - I'd have it up there with Sanderson level, maybe not quite Mistborn but definitely Way of Kings level.

donegal_man

Trojan wrote: »

How far in are you? I almost dropped it about 8-10% in, but gave it a chance and was hooked by halfway.

Overall it's a pretty awesome series - I'd have it up there with Sanderson level, maybe not quite Mistborn but definitely Way of Kings level.

I'm about two thirds through,

Kip and Liv have arrived at Garadul's camp

and to be honest I'm only sticking with it because I got the three of them as a Christmas present.

mcgovern

Trojan wrote: »

How far in are you? I almost dropped it about 8-10% in, but gave it a chance and was hooked by halfway.

Overall it's a pretty awesome series - I'd have it up there with Sanderson level, maybe not quite Mistborn but definitely Way of Kings level.

I must be the only one who much prefers Way of Kings over Mistborn

Thargor

Trojan wrote: »

I'd have it up there with Sanderson level

Is that good? I find his worlds and characters very flat. I suppose at least he tries to break out of the same old magic mechanics but it always seems to take place in very featureless places.

OwaynOTT

mcgovern wrote: »

I must be the only one who much prefers Way of Kings over Mistborn

Nope, I'm with you in that regard. Never got into Mistborn.

Fian

mcgovern wrote: »

I must be the only one who much prefers Way of Kings over Mistborn

Not even a contest imo, way of kings >>>> than mistborn.

Which is not to suggest I didn't enjoy mistborn too.

shootermacg

Thargor wrote: »

Is that good? I find his worlds and characters very flat. I suppose at least he tries to break out of the same old magic mechanics but it always seems to take place in very featureless places.

The characters are terrible, if they had an extra dimension, they'd have one dimension. He's great at original concepts with regard magic and world building, but his characters are barely there, prone to changing entirely to suit the plot. Well that's just my opinion, so fell free to disregard it. I myself will never read another book from this author.

The Night angel books, were pretty shocking for much the same reason, I couldn't believe how badly the characters were portrayed, especially the women.

|It would be hard to say which one I hated more, its probably a draw.

Nody

mcgovern wrote: »

I must be the only one who much prefers Way of Kings over Mistborn

I'm halfway through the third book in the Mistborn for the last three years now; I think I've made about 10 pages of progress before I get to bored and put it away again. First book was great, second meh and third is me wishing I had the nails hammered into me instead

Trojan

Thargor wrote: »

Is that good? I find his worlds and characters very flat. I suppose at least he tries to break out of the same old magic mechanics but it always seems to take place in very featureless places.

Then I think taste is a factor in this case: I prefer faster, plot driven end of the spectrum, as opposed to extensively detailed but often slower moving stories.

giftgrub

Just finished Ernest Cline's Armada

Big let down after Ready Player One

A truck load of exposition at the start, geek references on every other page in italics that get really irritating after a while.

Characters are in no way appealing or even likeable, and an no stage did I ever feel that any of them were in danger.

I got through it, but only just, I thought overall it was badly written, a poor follow up to RP1.

On the plus side i have just started Allen Steele's "Orbital Decay", so far so good

Thargor

Finished the Bad Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy, more Junior Cert piss, not even worth a bad review, avoid. Too many people who cant write being given publishing deals these days, especially in sci-fi/fantasy.

keane2097

Inability to write good prose has always been a big issue with these genres tbf. Some of the 'classic' series are atrociously put together.

Thargor

I put it on the list because of Stephen Kings quote on the front, I dont know what book he was reading, Percy must be a mate of his:



Ive noticed GRRM reccomending some absolute stinkers a couple of times aswell though, maybe authors read differently...

ixoy

62% into "This Census-Taker" by China Mieville (which I began on the night my census form was taken from me!). It's a novella but since it's Mieville I'm not racing through it as I like to linger on the beautiful prose.

Also reading "Legion: Skin Deep" by Brandon Sanderson alongside it. As ever, the guy knows how to pace a story.

OwaynOTT

ixoy wrote: »

62% into "This Census-Taker" by China Mieville (which I began on the night my census form was taken from me!). It's a novella but since it's Mieville I'm not racing through it as I like to linger on the beautiful prose.

Also reading "Legion: Skin Deep" by Brandon Sanderson alongside it. As ever, the guy knows how to pace a story.

Chalk and cheese on the prose there.

Thargor

I never bothered with Legion when I was going through his stuff a while back, apparently its unfinished and he "might" get around to it eventually.

Nody

Going through Scrapyard Ship series atm (popcorn youth scifi at best); not exactly a strong start with book 1 completed so far but we'll see; finished Cameron Dayton's Etherwalker (The Silicon Covenant #1) before that. Interesting series and curious to see where it will go.

GhostMutt30

Started reading Dune again. Seriously love that book

Kovu

Finished the last of the Books of Blood around 1.30am this morning. Thought I'd get a slight start into the Broken Empire trilogy, ended up reading until after 3am. :pac:

Nody

Kovu wrote: »

Finished the last of the Books of Blood around 1.30am this morning. Thought I'd get a slight start into the Broken Empire trilogy, ended up reading until after 3am. :pac:

I'm surprised you could put it away at 3am already :P

Kovu

Nody wrote: »

I'm surprised you could put it away at 3am already :P

I needed sleep! I think it was 3.18 to be exact. Am looking forward to getting into it again later. Very gripping, Jorg is a nicely sadistic, brutal main character so far, makes a welcome change from the good guy perspective.

Nody

Kovu wrote: »

I needed sleep! I think it was 3.18 to be exact. Am looking forward to getting into it again later. Very gripping, Jorg is a nicely sadistic, brutal main character so far, makes a welcome change from the good guy perspective.

It gets better but what I really liked was the overall world building and figuring out what is what.

ixoy

Nody wrote: »

It gets better but what I really liked was the overall world building and figuring out what is what.

Did it get a lot better? I didn't like "Prince of Thorns" *at all*. Thought it very poor. No issue with a "bad guy" in the lead (it's been done elsewhere) but nothing in it gripped me, including the setting.

Nody

ixoy wrote: »

Did it get a lot better? I didn't like "Prince of Thorns" *at all*. Thought it very poor. No issue with a "bad guy" in the lead (it's been done elsewhere) but nothing in it gripped me, including the setting.

It built up the world and helped develop his character and more importantly build up the world and why it is what it is. It took me a while to realize that it was actually scifi world rather than a fantasy world and what was the driver of it all.

Buford T. Justice XIX

Nody wrote: »

It built up the world and helped develop his character and more importantly build up the world and why it is what it is. It took me a while to realize that it was actually scifi world rather than a fantasy world and what was the driver of it all.

Yeah, it's a

post apocalyptic world

but using fantasy themes to tell its story. I enjoyed it despite not being a big scifi fan with years.

OwaynOTT

The Black Company Chronicles just get better and better.

How many books are there in the series?