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[dakster]

Just finished The Terror by Dan Simmons after recommendations here on Gaf, very good. Led me to find out the real events regarding the idea for the book.

Stuart Macbride, Dying Light, another great read. Great humour which anyone from Scotland can immediately relate with.

Not sure what to read next, the two books i haven't read yet from Peter James about Roy Grace or more Stuart Macbride. Blood Meridian has also caught my attention, but reading some reviews it appears to be a bit harrowing.

 

[speculawyer]

GAF and technical documents for work.

I'm not sure which is geekier.

 

[-Kees-]

 

[FnordChan]

Over lunch I finally got around to finishing Crisscross, the eighth novel in F. Paul Wilson's Repairman Jack series. For the uninitiated, Jack is a fix-it man (read: mercenary) who lives completely outside of the system in New York City. He stays anonymous and deals with people's problems, which invariably have a supernatural element to them as he's dragged further into the endless cosmic war between (somewhat) good and (definitely) evil. Crisscross pits Jack against a Scientology knock-off with sinister intentions. It felt like a darker novel than usual, with things getting pretty ugly by the end, while still progressing some of the subplots running in the background. All in all, a solid entry.

I dunno what I'm going to read next - I'll have to peruse the shelves when I get home - but Arkady Renko and Aburey/Maturin are strong contenders.

FnordChan

 

[Chorazin]

Over lunch I finally got around to finishing Crisscross, the eighth novel in F. Paul Wilson's Repairman Jack series. For the uninitiated, Jack is a fix-it man (read: mercenary) who lives completely outside of the system in New York City. He stays anonymous and deals with people's problems, which invariably have a supernatural element to them as he's dragged further into the endless cosmic war between (somewhat) good and (definitely) evil. Crisscross pits Jack against a Scientology knock-off with sinister intentions. It felt like a darker novel than usual, with things getting pretty ugly by the end, while still progressing some of the subplots running in the background. All in all, a solid entry.

I dunno what I'm going to read next - I'll have to peruse the shelves when I get home - but Arkady Renko and Aburey/Maturin are strong contenders.

FnordChan

Ok, those Repairman Jack books sound bad-ass. I'll check out the first one and see how it goes!

EDIT: Err, scratch that. The first book's not out for the Kindle, and I'm not starting any new series unless it's on Kindle.

EDIT 2: Weird, when I went to the paperback's page on Amazon, it linked to the Kindle edition, but when I searched the Kindle Store it found nothing. Odd!

 

[FnordChan]

Ok, those Repairman Jack books sound bad-ass. I'll check out the first one and see how it goes!

They're generally a lot of fun, not least because they acknowledge that the fantasy of living completely outside of the system can be an incredible pain in the ass. I also like the supernatural/horror element that's tied in with the detective/mercenary plots.

EDIT 2: Weird, when I went to the paperback's page on Amazon, it linked to the Kindle edition, but when I searched the Kindle Store it found nothing. Odd!

Bizzare! Glad to see that The Tomb is available on the Kindle, at any rate. Let us know how you like it.

FnordChan

 

[Chorazin]

They're generally a lot of fun, not least because they acknowledge that the fantasy of living completely outside of the system can be an incredible pain in the ass. I also like the supernatural/horror element that's tied in with the detective/mercenary plots.

That's what drew me in, it sounds a lot like a low-fantasy Dresden Files, which could be sweet. It's only $6.39 on Kindle, so I'll take the plunge right after I finish Brom's The Child Thief.

 

[jason10mm]

For Cyan...

Spoiler

I'm confused. Do you mean intelligence with a conscience, i.e. no morals, emotional connection etc, or consciousness, like no awareness of onesself, like a group-think borg entity?

 

[Chorazin]

Read most of Blindsight, by Peter Watts.

Oh man, I read that a long time ago, when it was first free on the net (and it still is!) and I thought the exact same thing. I mean, REALLY? It just came out of left--field and gave me a real WTF moment.

 

[Undeux]

I'm in my last week of vacation, and trying to get through a small pile of books. All of them are pretty good, though the middle two are a little dense for vacation reading. Hoping I can get started on The Corrections before I'm back in school, too. I'm a little surprised at how much I'm liking The Historian, and The Coming of the Third Reich is very good, but very dense. Definitely recommended for anyone curious about that the depression - WW2 era, though. Perfecting Sound Forever's also a great read for any fellow music nerds out there.

 

[Blatz]

Just started this:

Just finished this trilogy:
It's not great, just good

 

[keith!]

uber hipster I know, but I'm very excited to start this.

it's one of my friends favorite books ever so going in with pretty high hopes.

 

[Tim the Wiz]

uber hipster I know, but I'm very excited to start this.

it's one of my friends favorite books ever so going in with pretty high hopes.

And you'll be a greater human being for doing so. Ms Rand has a knack for compartmentalizing her philosophical views in her prose in quite seamless fashion. Unlike certain other authors, you will never be preached at for pages upon pages, and its narrative never takes a back-seat to any message. Moreover, her prose cannot be called anything close to pedestrian; the characterization is rich and suitably complex, and progress through the novel never becomes turgid and stilted. As for the sterling philosophical impact of the work, let's leave that for another day, shall we?

I further recommend Terry Goodkind, a fantasy author deeply influenced by the master-craft of Rand. You won't regret it.

How envious I am! Enjoy.

 

[Karakand]

keith! here you go: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8fkdBz2bds

Spoiler

Movie not so bad actually. Rand much better when you force her to compromise. The steamy sex suffers for obvious reasons however.

 

[Shinjitsu]

I am reading (and loving):

Don't listen to the haters of this series, it does get a little preachy near the midpoint, but overall its a very fun read through all eleven books.

But you know GAF, it's either "AWESOME" or "IT'S TOTAL SHIT".

I'm rereading it now, only on Stone of Tears atm, but plan to finish it all again.

 

[Tim the Wiz]

If the sarcasm of my last post was lost...

The fact that Ayn Rand gave an introduction to her own book provides the first inkling of what is to come. Either she is a glorious novelist on the scale of Nabokov or she is a gloriously arrogant novelist on the scale of Ayn Rand.

There. Things should be much clearer now.

P.S. Goodkind is a laughably bad author. The works of both are riddled with a ridiculously overbearing message, but at least Rand can string together decent prose. Even the mediocre first book (see: Wizard's First Rule) - that some claim is actually good - is difficult to navigate through without being struck by its two-dimensional characterization, bland prose and stunningly-obvious pontification. Don't be fooled: I don't take issue with it simply for being objectivism-based propaganda dressed up as fiction, but it is also sub-standard fantasy fare.

 

[Shinjitsu]

If the sarcasm of my last post was lost...

The fact that Ayn Rand gave an introduction to her own book provides the first inkling of what is to come. Either she is a glorious novelist on the scale of Nabokov or she is a gloriously arrogant novelist on the scale of Ayn Rand.

There. Things should be much clearer now.

P.S. Goodkind is a laughably bad author. The works of both are riddled with a ridiculously overbearing message, but at least Rand can string together decent prose. Even the mediocre first book (see: Wizard's First Rule) - that some claim is actually good - is difficult to navigate through without being struck by its two-dimensional characterization, bland prose and stunningly-obvious pontification. Don't be fooled: I don't take issue with it simply for being objectivism-based propaganda dressed up as fiction, but it is also sub-standard fantasy fare.

See?=P

Nothing can just be fun to read.

 

[_Isaac]

I'm in my last week of vacation, and trying to get through a small pile of books. All of them are pretty good, though the middle two are a little dense for vacation reading. Hoping I can get started on The Corrections before I'm back in school, too. I'm a little surprised at how much I'm liking The Historian, and The Coming of the Third Reich is very good, but very dense. Definitely recommended for anyone curious about that the depression - WW2 era, though. Perfecting Sound Forever's also a great read for any fellow music nerds out there.

Blegh at The Historian. It has a good start, but I get so tired of the travelogue style and the last chunk of that book is a bit disappointing. I never realized how little I cared about other cultures until I read this book. Maybe a book wasn't the best medium for me to absorb so many cultures like that.

 

[Salazar]

Goodkind's first three or four books, while still laughable in parts, should not be dismissed. The rest, however, should be burned to cinders and the remains shot into space.

I'm reading the Malazan books and flipping through the (beautiful, eccentric) Webster's Pictorial Dictionary.

 

[Tim the Wiz]

See?=P

Nothing can just be fun to read.

Nonsense. There are plenty authors in the genre that write fun stuff without ambition to be the next Gene Wolfe or something, and still maintain a decent level of quality storytelling. You simply haven't encountered them yet. Sadly, this happens often. Goodkind is a bestseller, and so, it's not uncommon for him to be presented to the mainstream audience as an accessible fantasist - which he is - but people then go further and assume his books must at least be the average marker line for quality in the genre, because of this presence. And he most certainly is not. His entire oeuvre is worse than the last decrepit Feist novel.

 

[Karakand]

See?=P

Nothing can just be fun to read.

I have fun reading bad books but they are still bad.

 

[peakish]

Right now:

Désert

Halfway through, really loving it, especially the vivid descriptions of colour, people and landscapes.

Will then be starting

Dune

 

[Masta_Killah]

Finished this at the beginning of the month. Such a great read.

Currently finishing this up. Disappointed with it so far. The sci-fi aspect comes out of nowhere and doesn't feel remotely believable.

 

[NZNova]

Just finishing off this one.

 

[ymmv]

See?=P

Nothing can just be fun to read.

Wizard's First Rule is a terrible, terrible book. It was just one horrible cliche after another: the good old wizard, the absolutely perfect hero who falls in love with a perfect woman in the first few chapters of the book, the absolutely evil antagonists. All this in just the first 100 pages. It was just BAD FANTASY. I don't mind unoriginality in fantasy too much, but this was an insult to my intelligence.

I stopped reading after the part where the protagonist's evil brother persuaded medieval peasants not to use fire anymore because it was EVIL. It never occurred to Goodkind to think that medieval villagers would consider this idea utter stupidity since they couldn't use forges anymore to make metal tools, they couldn't bake bricks to build houses, they would have to eat raw food and they couldn't keep themselves warm at night or in winter. Fire is one of the building blocks of any culture, without it a medieval civilization will crumble.

 

[Salazar]

Don't forget the poisonous apples or the firefly spirits. Or Gratch.

The book defies parody by resembling it. Cunning.

 

[Shinjitsu]

GAF hate crew ASSEMBLE!

 

[Salazar]

GAF hate crew ASSEMBLE!

He's a ponytailed right-wing douchebag who likes genocide and torture-rape. GAF hate crew has bigger fish to fry.

 

[crowphoenix]

Finished up In the Company of Ogres. While a very fun book, for the most part, it became very predictable near the end, and I couldn't help but feel like I was reading through a jRPG plot. Yeah. As Automatic Detective was his fourth book, I'm hoping that Too Many Curses and Monster are better.

Starting The Lies of Locke Lamora. The first 30 pages haven't really grabbed me. Luckily, the parts I've really enjoyed were Locke's escapades, so I expect it will get a lot more enjoyable.

 

[afternoon delight]

(Kafka on the Shore) and (Norwegian Wood) Any suggestion between the two?

Well, Norwegian Wood is most definitely the stronger novel of the two (both are worth reading) and Kafka on the Shore is a Twilight Zone episode fused with everything he usually discusses. Norwegian Wood is entirely his own, and more focused.

Just finished Last Evenings on Earth by Roberto Bolano. Thirteen short stories full of melancholy and pain and happiness and questioning and reality. There are many moments of absolute perfect recording of suffering and human experience. Bolano seems to understand life so very well, his descriptive power and control of tone/theme/mood is undeniable and immediate. It doesn't have the scope of his novels because its not meant to. Since I've enjoyed four of his books equally, I just ordered this from Amazon and started going through it:

Very thin and short, but well researched/notarized transcripts of three interviews, and an essay on his work in the wake of the 2666. For ten dollars, it's worth every penny to read his thoughts word for word, even if he comes of as despising of questions and reporters. Simply put, he reminds me of Bob Dylan on the '65 Britain tour - obtuse on purpose and tired.

 

[Jarlaxle]

I just finished World War Z (Max Brooks). Fantastic read. I really enjoyed the documentary style of writing and found it both intelligent and fun. I'm currently perusing the Zombie Survial Guide as a sort of addendum. It reads exactly as you would think it would. I'm not sure if I'm going to finish this or not.

 

[Undeux]

Blegh at The Historian. It has a good start, but I get so tired of the travelogue style and the last chunk of that book is a bit disappointing. I never realized how little I cared about other cultures until I read this book. Maybe a book wasn't the best medium for me to absorb so many cultures like that.

I see what you mean, having just started the second section yesterday. I don't really care much about the travelling either, and in another context I'd be really into it. But when it's getting in the way of my

Spoiler

vampire-murder-mystery-what-the-hell's-happening

story I get a little bored.

 

[Spayro]

Reading it in Hebrew. amazing so far.

 

[HiroProtagonist]

I just finished Toll the Hounds- book 8 of the Malazan series.

During book 7 I felt really confident about recalling all the past characters, sub-plots, and sub-sub-plots, but man this book really kicked my ass memory-wise. Reading characters that haven't been mentioned in five or six books worth of story was a little difficult. Otherwise, the book was good for the first thousand pages, and great for the last two hundred. I'm pretty excited about book 9 'Dust of Dreams' coming out on the 19th, so that's what I'll be reading at the end of the month.

To hold me over until then I picked up Altered Carbon and Perdido Street Station, both recommendations from these threads.

 

[ShadyMilkman]

Awesome new cover for The Shadow Rising:

Although I have to ask... where's the hat?

Perfect, I don't have to go find a picture.

I just read a bunch of Neil Gaiman (didn't like Neverwhere that much, and Anansi Boys was ok). I purchased American Gods, but wanted to put NG on hold for a while so I started the WoT up again.

Just finished The Dragon Reborn and am about to start Shadow Rising. So far, so good, though there are good stretches of not a lot happening. I figure I'll keep going as long as I stay interested.

 

[Timo]

Now reading:

Just read:

All on the notions that they are slightly similar to Bret Easton Ellis. I am on a crusade. I also cannot wait until Imperial Bedrooms in May. Damn.

 

[Combichristoffersen]

Blegh at The Historian. It has a good start, but I get so tired of the travelogue style and the last chunk of that book is a bit disappointing. I never realized how little I cared about other cultures until I read this book. Maybe a book wasn't the best medium for me to absorb so many cultures like that.

Wait, you liked the start of the Historian, but disliked the last part of the book? For me it was completely opposite, I quite enjoyed the later parts of the book, but absolutely hated the start due to it being so damn boring, with next to nothing happening.

 

[Mr. Sam]

Hated it, but then I got used to its style and am loving it.

 

[manofmandango]

Perfect, I don't have to go find a picture.

I just read a bunch of Neil Gaiman (didn't like Neverwhere that much, and Anansi Boys was ok). I purchased American Gods, but wanted to put NG on hold for a while so I started the WoT up again.

Just finished The Dragon Reborn and am about to start Shadow Rising. So far, so good, though there are good stretches of not a lot happening. I figure I'll keep going as long as I stay interested.

Interestingly enough this is similar to my predicament ATM. I had been reading The Great Hunt (2nd book in WoT series) and completely lost interest. Started up American Gods and I'm about half way through it, but haven't been able to bring myself to pick it up. Should I press on GAF?

P.S. - Also, I need suggestions for other good fantasy/scifi books and/or series. Any takers?

 

[Skittleguy]

I like getting lost in the obscurity.

 

[JORMBO]

 

[Combichristoffersen]

Started up American Gods and I'm about half way through it, but haven't been able to bring myself to pick it up. Should I press on GAF?

It gets somewhat better during the latter half, so yeah, just keep on truckin'. And when you're done, you should read some of Gaiman's better stuff, like Stardust, Good Omens or Coraline. Or Monarch of the Glen, the 'sequel' to American Gods.

 

[HiroProtagonist]

Interestingly enough this is similar to my predicament ATM. I had been reading The Great Hunt (2nd book in WoT series) and completely lost interest. Started up American Gods and I'm about half way through it, but haven't been able to bring myself to pick it up. Should I press on GAF?

P.S. - Also, I need suggestions for other good fantasy/scifi books and/or series. Any takers?

The second half gets better, but better than ‘bleh’ is still pretty mediocre. I think that was the first time I questioned the wisdom of the GAF hive mind.

For fantasy/sci-fi see:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=361224&highlight=fantasy
or
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=380023&highlight=fantasy
or
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=329448&highlight=fantasy

Or you can wait until next week when the next one pops up.

 

[sparky2112]

I'm about a third of the way through this:

and, so far, it's AMAZINGLY good - although I find it absolutely ludicrous that this was/is marketed as YA; if it's YA, I really can't imagine how it could possibly be more challenging, and I see nothing in this story that wouldn't appeal to even the most discerning adult readers - the prose is THAT good.

 

[rareside]

Just finished:

Saw the trailer for it in the theater, thought I would be spoiled (as movie trailers show faaaaar too much these days), but really enjoyed the book. Will probably check out the movie when it releases next month.

What to read next.....

 

[S. L.]

Never have i been more disappointed by GAF hive-mind aside from Snow Crash

Spoiler

yeah yeah i know it's supposed to be tongue in cheek whatever - i also see your nickname

 

[Magni]

Taking my time to finish A Feast for Crows (don't want to have to wait too long for ADWD =( ). After that, it's The Divine Comedy, Dune, and then The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, by Mark Haddon.

 

[Cosmic Bus]

I kind of hate myself for buying something that Miranda July contributed to, but there are enough good qualities to the other stories to make it worthwhile.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

just picked up

will probably start reading it today after the football games.

 

[Quake1028]

Hated it, but then I got used to its style and am loving it.

Same for me. I'm on my third attempt to read it. Liking it better this time.