Reading in March 2011

[MattNY]

I've been slogging through The Well of Ascension, the second Mistborn novel by Brandon Sanderson. I liked the first one, but this second one is slooooooow. Hopefully it will pick up soon.

Next up will either be Under the Dome (Stephen King) or Esselmont's Return of the Crimson Guard, to prepare me for Toll the Hounds.

Ken

I didn't have any issues with WoA, though I also did enjoy the first one much more. It seems a lot of people felt like it was slow due to it being more about building up for the finale.

 

[Loerwyn]

I've started L.E. Modesitt, Jr.'s Imager, and so far it's pretty good. Modesitt, Jr.'s writing style isn't the easiest to get into, but he's been nicely descriptive so far. My only gripe is that the chapter titles could probably benefit from a location along with the date.

Further into it, and I don't want to put it down. It's brilliant!

 

[Seak]

I've been slogging through The Well of Ascension, the second Mistborn novel by Brandon Sanderson. I liked the first one, but this second one is slooooooow. Hopefully it will pick up soon.

Next up will either be Under the Dome (Stephen King) or Esselmont's Return of the Crimson Guard, to prepare me for Toll the Hounds.

Ken

I'd go with Return. That book was great, better than some of Erikson's latter volumes even.

 

[Toma]

Peter S. Beagle's new short story collection, Sleight of Hand, arrived and I finished it today.

There's a new story featuring Schmendrick the magician, set well before his appearance The Last Unicorn, but the collection was disappointing in that there was more than one story that I didn't care for, but I think it also has a few that hold the possibility of being some of his best work.



Some of the best stories from it:
Sleight of Hand
The Children of the Shark God
La Tune T'Attend
The Rabbi's Hobby
Dirae
Vanishing
The Woman Who Married the Man in the Moon

It also includes a first for me. A story by Beagle which I would very nearly call horrible - Oakland Dragon Blues.

 

[bearcatmark]

I just finished The Last Argument of Kings.

The Last Argument of Kings was an action packed and all together satisfying end to the First Law trilogy. Throughout the trilogy Abercrombie proved himself to be second to none when it came to great action sequences. More importantly in my opinion was the fact that his characters were all incredibly unique and interesting. The events of The Last Argument of Kings are wrapped up very well, in the sense that they are consistent with the world Abercrombie created and that everything is tied together. At some level the end is not a happy ending.

Spoiler

What we get hints of throughout the series and ultimately find out is that much of the events, the death, the tragedy of the novel have been about revenge and power of one particularly important individual (Bayaz).

In some sense it is disappointing to see where the state of Abercrombie's world is left. Though this series is over I do hope he revisits these characters down the road. All in all this was an excellent series and fun to the very last page.

I don't have time to read anything today and now must decide where to go next. On my immediate pile are:

1. Surface Detail - Iain M Banks
2. The Wise Man's Fear- Rothfuss
3. The Shadow of the Torturer- Gene Wolfe
4. Revelation Space- Reynolds
5. Pandora's Star - Hamilton
6. Atlas Shrugged- Rand

 

[MattNY]

In some sense it is disappointing to see where the state of Abercrombie's world is left. Though this series is over I do hope he revisits these characters down the road. All in all this was an excellent series and fun to the very last page.

I can understand why you (and others) may feel that way, but to me, it would have detracted from his excellent ending to that series if things had turned out differently.

I have yet to continue on to BSC or The Heroes, but from what I understand, the characters will still continue to play roles in these two standalones. They just won't be the focal point like they were in First Law. Although, I do believe that

Spoiler

Logen

does not make an appearance as of yet.

 

[bearcatmark]

I can understand why you (and others) may feel that way, but to me, it would have detracted from his excellent ending to that series if things had turned out differently.

I have yet to continue on to BSC or The Heroes, but from what I understand, the characters will still continue to play roles in these two standalones. They just won't be the focal point like they were in First Law. Although, I do believe that

Spoiler

Logen

does not make an appearance as of yet.

I don't mean that it was disappointing in the sense that it detracted from the work. In fact i agree with you to a large extent. I just mean that ultimately we are not left with an ending where are characters have achieved what we hoped they would.

 

[MattNY]

I don't mean that it was disappointing in the sense that it detracted from the work. In fact i agree with you to a large extent. I just mean that ultimately we are not left with an ending where are characters have achieved what we hoped they would.

Oh yea, I know what you mean. For me, the characters did achieve the ending I pretty much hoped for.

 

[Carlyle Clark]

Just finished Paul Kearney's CORVUS. I really enjoyed it but then another fantasy reading friend of mine doesn't like his stuff because he borrows so much directly from history. I, on the other hand, am embarrassingly ignorant and was thus entertained.

According to my Kindle I'm 38% through THE CRIPPLED GOD. Erikson's my favorite fantasy author, but the book is almost relentlessly depressing so far. Of course, that can make for a spectacular ending . . .

 

[Paks]

I have finished up Royal Exile by Fiona McIntosh. It was a good read and I quickly picked up the second volume in the trilogy, Tyrant's Blood. This one jumps forward 10 years at the beginning, the only problem I have with it so far are a couple of discrepancies from the first novel, a characters age changing by a couple of years sort of thing, minor but annoying all the same. I'm probably a 1/3 of the way through now and so far so good.

 

[algernoninc]

Captain Alatriste by Arturo Perez-Reverte : it's not fantasy but it should appeal to fans of action heroes (Abercrombie, Gemmell) . There are overt references to The Three Musketeers, the author has done a great job recreating the Spanish society around 1620, a Golden Age fed by the gold from the Americas, but with signs of the decadence to come. "Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition" according to Monty Python, but in this story they play an important role.
This is very much the first book of a longer series, and as such the action may seem lacking, with a lot of pages devoted to worldbuilding and the introduction of secondary characters. The narration alternates between first person fom Inigo, the young page, and third person.
The main character deviates slightly from the mold of D'Artagnan, Zorro or Pardaillan by being a man of few words and open to a little cheating if the situation requires it. He also has a fondness for theatre and poetry.
The main appeal for me was in the beautiful, evocative language of Perez-Reverte. The translator did a good job, but I wish I were able to read this text in original.

I have also finished Academ's Fury by Jim Butcher. It was a little better than the first Codex Alera book, but I would still rate this as "popcorn fantasy" : entertaining, but with little substance / depth. The focus is again on sustained, slightly over the top action, plenty of magical fireworks and "end-of-the-world" threats, bombastic speeches about duty, sacrifice, honor and graphic decriptions of severed limbs, torn intestines, fountains of blood, gouged eyes, etc.

I am now about halfway through The Fox Woman by Kij Johnson - this may be the reason I was so harsh on Jim Butcher. This will be one of my favorite books of the year and is the exact opposite of the Alera style: lyrical, intimate, contemplative, almost devoid of plot. It is an exploration of love through the diaries of three characters from 10th century Japan: a young magical fox, a nobleman and his wife - each putting their thoughts on paper, sometimes in exquisite poetry.
I am reminded of the ghost stories from Kwaidan by Lafcadio Hearn

Once again I'm starting more than one book, so I'm also reading Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore and Cold Copper Tears by Glen Cook - the third Garrett P.I. investigation.

 

[DurzoBlint]

Did you see the news from Sullivan, that he has been picked up by Orbit and the last won't be out until January, and then only paired with Wintertide? I started a thread, and his wife stopped in to paint the whole picture, so just wanted to make sure you heard. Personally I think it is great news for Michael, even if it means waiting and not having a perfect set.

I'm reading WMF right now as well, so far it is fantastic. I'm about a third of the way in and literally had to force myself to stop last night to ensure I got enough sleep to prepare for a pretty important work meeting today. Rothfuss is an amazing author.

I did and spoke with Robin as well regarding the last book and giving my congratulations on the book deal. Great news for Michael and I might get my hands on a separate copy of the last book. Fingers crossed.

 

[Westy]

Finally reading The Blade Itself and really enjoying it so far. Some memorable characters (especially Glokta) and genuinely funny moments.

 

[Evil Agent]

Finally reading The Blade Itself and really enjoying it so far. Some memorable characters (especially Glokta) and genuinely funny moments.

Awesome, I've just started Book 3. The first book was a little slow, but the next two have caught my interest even more.

 

[Astra_]

It is not fantasy but it is not Sci-Fi, so I post it here. If it is inappropriate place, please move it.
I am about 3/4 into The Girl Who Played with Fire [Millennium #2] by Stieg Larsson. This book is more fun than The Girl with the Dragoon tattoo. A lot more action. In hindsight the first book looks more like an introduction to the main characters.


After that.....I might start The Malazan Book of the Fallen.....*shiver*

 

[Gilgamesh]

After Mark Lawrence's great debut novel Prince of Thorns, I finished Joe Abercrombie's The Heroes.

The Heroes was one of the most anticipated books of 2011 for me and it didn't disappoint a bit. It was amazing. I find it different than his previous books. The fact that (almost) the whole story is about a three-day war changes the style of the setting. In comparison, his The Heroes felt more like a play as opposed to a movie. It was much more focused, especially on the characters. The author managed to bring some very memorable characters to life, again. And...

Spoiler

...who needs Logan when one has Gorst?

Another one of those most anticipated books, The Wise Man's Fear was the next book I threw myself at. However, for some reason, I was very disappointed with the beginning. I remember I loved The Name of the Wind so I keep asking myself, have I forgotten Rothfuss's style completely or have my tastes changed since I read the first book. Regardless, I may leave it aside for a few weeks and come back to it later. This may well be because of the impression The Heroes has had on me.

 

[cgw]

Tried Darkborn by Alison Sinclair which did not work for me. Read Carousel Tides by Sharon Lee which did work for me. Next up, getting my hands on Wise Man's Fear.

 

[DurzoBlint]

Another one of those most anticipated books, The Wise Man's Fear was the next book I threw myself at. However, for some reason, I was very disappointed with the beginning. I remember I loved The Name of the Wind so I keep asking myself, have I forgotten Rothfuss's style completely or have my tastes changed since I read the first book. Regardless, I may leave it aside for a few weeks and come back to it later. This may well be because of the impression The Heroes has had on me.

Keep chugging along on this one. It gets better. There is a bit of repetition which I find I don't like as much but just before the halfway mark the environment changes and a new adventure starts which is what you want anyway. I can see where it didn't hook you in the beginning but where I am in the book it is starting to take off.

It is hard to beat The Heroes and I am not sure whether or not Rothfuss can do it but I am enjoying the ride and the story that he has put together for WMF.

 

[kcf]

I got a little bit closer to ending my quest to catch up on all my reviews. Today I posted a review of The Dark Griffin by K.J. Taylor. It's mediocre at best.

I still owe reviews for The Fallen Blade by Jon Courtenay Grimwood, Never Knew Another by J.M. McDermott, and Midnight Riot by Ben Aaronovitch. I'm currently reading Embassytown by China Mieville - it's interesting to see him write science fiction.

 

[ChrisW]

Just about to finish my reread of The Name of the Wind. Hasn't improved since I first read it. I did find one thing annoying this time, that being the whole "if this was a story, blah blah blah would happen but since it's not blah blah blah happened". Gets old after awhile. Other than that still a great story.