Reading in January 2010

[Gilgamesh]

... is the lack of well-rounded female characters.

I think you're going to enjoy Joe Abercrombie's latest book, Best Served Cold. It's happening in the same world and the main protagonist is female. For me, this was the best fantasy book I read in 2009. I posted a review today actually .

 

[beniowa]

I haven't had a Sunday off in a long while so I had plenty of time to finish Heroes Die by Matthew Woodring Stover. My reaction to this book is somewhat mixed. I thought some aspects of the novel were well done, but that other parts were merely average. It felt like Stover tried to do too much, tried to combine too many elements and didn't quite put it all together right. I haven't decided if I'll pick up the other Caine books yet.

Next up will be The Cardinal's Blades by Pierre Pevel.

 

[Randy M.]

I'm 200 pages into Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susannah Clarke. Just before the holidays hit I was floundering for what to read next, when it dawned on me that where I work had given us the next week off (green days -- almost no one around at the University, so close as many buildings as possible) and that would be a perfect time to chip away at a longish book. Even so, I'm somewhat amazed I've read this much this soon. Clarke is wonderful so far.

Randy M.

 

[Whitleyrr]

I'm where I was at the end of 2009 right now, in The Lies of Locke Lamora, and contrary to what some others are saying in this thread, I'm devouring it. For me, it is a really really fun book to read. I like the interludes that give us a bit of background about some of the characters, and, as I believe it is planned to be a long series, I can see why the author chose not to jump right into plot and action, but rather give us a sense of who this guy is.

I do agree that up until halfway through the book, Lamora doesn't face real conflict and thus we do not see his full measure. But that is coming. And, for my money, I really enjoyed reading about the early exploits of a successful con artist!

I think next I will take on The Darkness that Comes Before.

 

[SmartAlick]

Just finished C.S. Friedman's Wings of Wrath, but it was a little blah. I actually picked it up in the first place on a recommendation, so I suppose I had fairly high expectations in the first place, but still. It wasn't bad by any means....just sort of short and underdeveloped and obvious. I remember enjoying the Coldfire books a lot more, even though its been quite a while since I read them. On the plus side though, I've had The Gathering Storm waiting in the wings through my last few books, and now its at the top of the stack!

 

[Astra_]

So it's gone from 3 books, to 6 (I found out Tawny Man was the "sequel"), and now to 9?

Yay

I loved the first two trilogies. So much, that I re-read them (first time I read them 8 years ago) last spring before I read Tawny Man for the first time. I disliked Tawny Man as much as I loved Farseer and Liveship traders.

Gilgamesh

There was also a captivating darkness in the story

True. Well said. There is something seductive about it...

 

[Evil Agent]

I'm 200 pages into Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susannah Clarke. Just before the holidays hit I was floundering for what to read next, when it dawned on me that where I work had given us the next week off (green days -- almost no one around at the University, so close as many buildings as possible) and that would be a perfect time to chip away at a longish book. Even so, I'm somewhat amazed I've read this much this soon. Clarke is wonderful so far.

I read this last year, and also enjoyed it. Very well written. However, I can see why some people complain that the book is very slow, without much in the way of action.

 

[molybdenum]

I'm currently reading "The Judging Eye" and I'm beginning to think that no one can set up a story like Bakker. All the things that made The Darkness that Comes Before a very good book are back, and he's really taken on a different tone in this book as well. I'd explain it, but it's kind of spoilerish, so if you're not worried about something that is going to be revealed in the first 100 pages (and was kind of revealed to a degree in The Thousandfold Thought), read on.

Spoiler

Where up to this point the God's have kind of been a "maybe they exist, maybe they don't" type thing, in the Judging Eye, they are definitely there, and taking action in Earwa. Kind of going along with that, the supernatural stuff had been restricted to the magic the sorcerer's use, now there's a lot of kind of weird stuff going on.

At the same time, the book has done nothing to assuage my main fears as of yet. While Bakker's worldbuilding is, of what I've read, second only to Tolkien, and his character interactions are intriguing, he really failed to put a good story together in the Prince of Nothing. Everything was so predictable, it wasn't all that enjoyable following along. The Thousandfold Thought was not a good book, because there was too much philosophy and not enough plotting (twists, intrigue, etc.)

I continue to read Bakker, because there's great potential there, and I hope that it this trilogy, that it actually comes to fruition.

 

[Evil Agent]

I'm currently reading "The Judging Eye" and I'm beginning to think that no one can set up a story like Bakker.

I'm getting excited about reading the Judging Eye soon, as it was just released in Mass Market Paperback and I've seen some positive comments here recently.

I guess I'd better start refreshing my memory as to what happened in the Prince of Nothing trilogy.

 

[Haliax]

Finished Princeps' Fury, and I'm glad I kept going with it. I had almost decided that the story had hit a point where I didn't care about the outcome really, but around the midpoint of the book I become absorbed. Overall a very good book.

 

[Bastard]

Finished Princeps' Fury, and I'm glad I kept going with it. I had almost decided that the story had hit a point where I didn't care about the outcome really, but around the midpoint of the book I become absorbed. Overall a very good book.

I really want to read First Lord's Fury, but since I pre-ordered the paperback version, I'll have to wait till May. I liked the ending, particularly with how all the characters ended up...

Anyways, so far this month I've read Princep's Fury, The Left Hand of God, and Servant of a Dark God which I finished last night.

I was going to start Pilo Family Circus, but opted to try Lamentation by Ken Scholes. About 30 pages in, and seems interesting so far. Well written at least.

 

[BrightStar]

I read the Coldfire Trilogy a year or so ago. As far as I remember, it was recommended to me by BrightStar. I really enjoyed it in general and I loved the setting. I thought the world and the magic system was very smartly constructed. There was also a captivating darkness in the story.

I did, din't I? If I remember correctly, the first book took a little while to get going for me, but once it did, I was hooked. I loved pretty much everything about it, and it certainly has an atmosphere to it that's extremely captivating.

I'm waiting for Carol Berg's new book, Spirit Lens to arrive (hopefully end of this week, or else early next week) at the moment, so I'm trying to avoid starting a whole new series. I ordered book two of the Godspeaker trilogy not long back, so I don't have that to read in the meantime (it hasn't been shipped yet).

So, currently I'm reading Legacy (book two of The Sharing Knife) at the moment. It's only been maybe 2 or 3 weeks since I finished the first book (which I really enjoyed) but already it seems like forever. Perhaps it's just because I've read quite a lot of other books since then. Anyways, I remember when I finished Beguilement (book one) I was just dying to start the next one, but since I didn't have it at the time, had to read something else until my copy arrived.

I was thinking it would be fun to return to the Sharing Knife world, and continue with Dag and Fawn's story, but... admittedly, I only read the first chapter so far, but I found myself strangely dissapointed. I guess I just need to warm to the characters again, after being away from them for a few weeks. It's only been a chapter, so I expect I just need to be patient .

 

[hobbs525]

I just picked up Nyphron Rising from the library and am totally pumped to get started. Dang this whole "job thing" for interfering with my reading!!

 

[ladyinspring]

I finished the First Law trilogy yesterday and, very unlike myself, I have not decided to read anything else. I didn't enjoy The Last Argument of Kings as much as I had the previous books, but I think a lot of that is due to the very different way I approach life and the way Joe Abercrombie seems to. I shoulda known just by his pictures that he would be trouble for me because he has a smirk. I don't even know how to properly smirk . I could feel that smirk all throughout the last book. Now, I actually prefer tragic endings to happy ones, because tragic ones make me think and identify with the characters a lot more. The endings for the characters were all rather devastating in different ways, and I really liked that.

But there is such a coarseness to Abercrombie's presentation of this world and the characters, whereas I am emotional, look for deep meanings, and not cynical (although I acknowledge the crappitude of circumstances and people). His world seems real, yet not one I want to occupy. I want to think about his characters and I am moved by their fates, but not necessarily moved by their lives. I know I enjoyed the books, yet don't want to read anymore.

I think you're going to enjoy Joe Abercrombie's latest book, Best Served Cold. It's happening in the same world and the main protagonist is female. For me, this was the best fantasy book I read in 2009.

From your review:

They react, have sex, urinate, curse and insult like real people, which contribute to the overall atmosphere of the book.

This is part of that coarseness I was talking about. It's not a bad thing, the realism, it's a good thing, but for some reason it has a negative effect on me. I also do not like sarcasm even though it is funny. It's back to the smirk. I can't smirk, nor am I any good at sarcasm. Something about my character I think.

Abercrombie's characters are very real, their reactions and circumstances make sense, he engages my interest and intellect, and I love the way he twists the tropes, but I don't like the characters nor their world, nor the cynical outlook. So I don't know what to do, and have to think on it.

 

[Daddy Darth]

Still slogging through Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose. I want to like this book more then I do b/c it is so well written and researched but it feels over my head at times - the non stop debating monks fighting over various heresies is a little confusing. In a way it puts you on an equal footing with the narrator/main character of the book who is pretty confused by it all also. I have skimmed a couple of parts - God I hate doing that and havent since Goodkind's Pillars of Creation.

I'll keep you posted.

 

[Seak]

I'm where I was at the end of 2009 right now, in The Lies of Locke Lamora, and contrary to what some others are saying in this thread, I'm devouring it. For me, it is a really really fun book to read. I like the interludes that give us a bit of background about some of the characters, and, as I believe it is planned to be a long series, I can see why the author chose not to jump right into plot and action, but rather give us a sense of who this guy is.

That was one of my favorite reads of last year. I'm glad you're liking it.

 

[kcf]

I finished up Servant of a Dark God by John Brown. It's a decent debut. It's uneven, but the good ultimately out weighs the bad and I am looking forward to reading the sequels to come.

I started Sleepless by Charlie Huston. If the first few chapters are any indication, this is going to be an outstanding book - depressing as hell - but outstanding.

 

[Randy M.]

I read this [Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell] last year, and also enjoyed it. Very well written. However, I can see why some people complain that the book is very slow, without much in the way of action.

Yeah, if those readers want horse chases, sword fights in the street, light-shows of spell-bombardments, beheadings, fist-fights and explosions, then there's not much action.

There's a fair amount happening, several incidents that have decided effects on the characters, events that may change the course of English history and even upset the social calendar, magic creeping back into the world like entangling ivy, the interplay of characters coming to know each other, personal discoveries and the delineation of a time and place.

But so far, no, not much action.


Randy M.

 

[Seak]

Yeah, if those readers want horse chases, sword fights in the street, light-shows of spell-bombardments, beheadings, fist-fights and explosions, then there's not much action.

There's a fair amount happening, several incidents that have decided effects on the characters, events that may change the course of English history and even upset the social calendar, magic creeping back into the world like entangling ivy, the interplay of characters coming to know each other, personal discoveries and the delineation of a time and place.

But so far, no, not much action.


Randy M.

It's definitely a story where you have to really love the prose and Clarke's sense of humor or you'll hate the dragging plot. I loved it and was cracking up the whole time, especially with the footnotes.

 

[kater]

Just starting out on The Lies of Locke Lamora after having it in my to-read pile for ages but procrastinating about it equally as long. Enjoyable first 50 or so pages, particularly the barrel incident.