BigWeather
Member
Hmmm, interesting. Guess I'll wait and see if it brings anything new to the table before plunging in.
What are you reading? (January 2017)
- Thread starter Maklershed
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Is the Witchwood Crown still coming in April or has that been pushed back again because of this one?
BigWeather
Member
Amazon said my pre-order was delivering in June rather than April, so yeah looks to be a slight delay.
Yep. Only about 50 pages in but I get the impression it's not going to be a fun read
AngmarsKing701
Member
Currently about 1/3 through a re-read of To Green Angel Tower Part 1. Looking forward to the new Osten Ard books in 2017.
Edit - hmm if I'm reading the original, will The Shadow of What Was Lost be anything new or is it just summarizing the original trilogy?
It's an original story, and I've seen some early reviewers on goodreads talk about how it doesn't really work as a stand alone jumping on point, despite what the publisher seems to want people to think.
I've been going through the N64 Anthology that was a Kickstarter book.
Side note, my brother's weekly novel is still going. I used to post weekly updates on them...anyway, figured I'd start the new year with another post. He's up to Chapter 37 and is coming close to the ending.
Here's the site:
http://www.reedycreeknovel.com
Side note, my brother's weekly novel is still going. I used to post weekly updates on them...anyway, figured I'd start the new year with another post. He's up to Chapter 37 and is coming close to the ending.
Here's the site:
http://www.reedycreeknovel.com
AngmarsKing701
Member
Ah ok, good. I was hoping to read it, assuming it was an original story that bridges us from the original trilogy to the new one. Saw a post in here earlier that suggested maybe it was treading previous ground a bit to help those who had never read the original.
Whew!
I set my 2016 goal at 10 books and hit it. I'll likely set 2017 similarly, especially with the number of epic fantasy (read: more than 700 pages) on my "to read" list.
Tragicomedy
Member
Really loved that book.
Servbot #42
Unconfirmed Member
Someone mentioned this book here before, it completely blew my mind, it's definitely remarkable. I should have suspected something was up because of a certain discrepancy.
TwntyOneTwlv
Member
My Goodreads goal for last year was fifty books, and I think I finished nine books short. I set my 2017 goal at fifty again, so I'll take another crack at it!
As for what I'm currently reading, I'm about a quarter of the way through Lies of Locke Lamora. I'm really enjoying it and I want to savor it, but on the other hand I received seven books for Christmas so there's pressure to get through it quickly!
As for what I'm currently reading, I'm about a quarter of the way through Lies of Locke Lamora. I'm really enjoying it and I want to savor it, but on the other hand I received seven books for Christmas so there's pressure to get through it quickly!
sparky2112
Member
I finished 56 books, comprising ~24,500 pages, according to Goodreads in 2016. My original goal was 35 books, which I bumped to 50 when I hit that goal in July or August.
I will probably set this year's initial goal for 36 books. I recently got a PS4, and will be trying to play through some games for the Final Fantasy 30th anniversary thread. Free time is limited, so my reading will likely take a hit. If I end up reading more than expected, I can always adjust later.
I will probably set this year's initial goal for 36 books. I recently got a PS4, and will be trying to play through some games for the Final Fantasy 30th anniversary thread. Free time is limited, so my reading will likely take a hit. If I end up reading more than expected, I can always adjust later.
It's an original story following the closing of the original trilogy. It's not at all a recap of the original trilogy (I think Simon is only mentioned once or twice), and loses a lot of its emotional strength if you're not familiar with the original trilogy. It's not an ideal place for new readers, and it won't really satisfy returning readers who want to catch up before they read The Witchwood Crown. It is, however, a terrific companion to the original trilogy and looks to very nicely set up the upcoming trilogy.
AngmarsKing701
Member
Thanks, Aidan! I thought you might have already read it. ;-)
Just finished my first book of the new year, The Settlers (Movement book 1). I disliked the first half, but the second half gets a bit more interesting. I doubt I will get into the rest of the series any time soon, I didn't particularly enjoy the writing style.
Next up: The Simpleton by Mark Wayne McGinnis.
Next up: The Simpleton by Mark Wayne McGinnis.
It's also very, very good. Shows a lot of the growth that Williams has made over the past 25 years as a writer, but also feels very much like an Osten Ard novel. If it's any indication, The Witchwood Crown is going to be something special.
AngmarsKing701
Member
How much of his stuff have you read? After reading M, S & T I was pretty psyched for his stuff, but I read book 1 of Otherland and came away feeling kinda meh. Maybe it was the timing; the internet was just becoming a thing and I'm not sure I felt connected enough to the world he was creating.
I never dove into Shadowmarch, partially because I had abandoned Otherland.
BrokenFiction
Member
Damn. The original trilogy is so long. I'll never have time to read it again.
Ravensmash
Member
It just gets more and more fun - I'm closer to the end now and I can't wait to read the other books in the series.
Edit: Actually, wanted to ask :
Would I lose anything by not reading the next two novels immediately after?
It's possibly one of the most enjoyable reads I've had recently, but the books are fairly long. I also have a fairly hefty backlog (booklog?) to get through.
MrOogieBoogie
BioShock Infinite is like playing some homeless guy's vivid imagination
I'm reading "Book II" of The Stand and the story has taken an interesting (
) turn. I'm not sure what to make of it and I'm really interested to see where King is going with this. I have zero idea what the end game is, which is pretty cool.
and very biblical, somewhat LotR-esque
Atraveller
Banned
Finished my Dune re-read.
Started Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation.
Started Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation.
Maklershed
Member
Looking at the kindle daily deals and apparently bookshots are a thing now. Apparently they're "premium" novellas, up to 150 pages or so, and meant to be read in one sitting.
xeroborn55
Member
I really enjoyed 'The Fifth Season' by N.K. Jemisin. Eagerly moved on to the second book in the series, 'The Obelisk Gate' and I had to drop it about halfway through. The first book was so exciting all the way through, with crazy, interesting things happening throughout.
Ugh... the second book was SO boring. I'm sure things will pick up in the 2nd half (they kind of have to, given how stagnant the first half is) but i just didn't care about the characters enough to power through.
Picked up 'The Signal and the Noise' by Nate Silver. Lots of cool stuff in there so far.
Ugh... the second book was SO boring. I'm sure things will pick up in the 2nd half (they kind of have to, given how stagnant the first half is) but i just didn't care about the characters enough to power through.
Picked up 'The Signal and the Noise' by Nate Silver. Lots of cool stuff in there so far.
I finished The Art of Happiness and is looking to start up another book. I am not used to reading much. Last year I read one book about Buddhism but I think I would like to read a novel. I have had a hard time getting into 1Q84 and have tried twice (I'll try again another day), but how would Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage be? Or After Dark? It have been a decade since I last read a novel.
TheExhaustedWalrus
Member
Just finished The Gunslinger for the first time, now it's either onto the second Dark Tower book or 1776 by David McCullough.
How much Murakami have you read? If you haven't already, I'd suggest Kafka on the Shore or the classic Norwegian Wood to ease you into him.
Sad to hear this. I am about 70% through the first book and really enjoying it.
I wasn't planning on jumping to the second immediately though. I think I need a breather from sci fi/fantasy for a book or two.
ClosingADoor
Member
Finished: News of the World
Great book and characters. One of my favorites I read last year and recommended.
Now reading: Leviathan Wakes
Interesting universe, looking forward to see where it goes.
Great book and characters. One of my favorites I read last year and recommended.
Now reading: Leviathan Wakes
Interesting universe, looking forward to see where it goes.
I haven't read anything other than the first 10 pages of 1Q84.
I do own Norwegian Wood but based on the synopsis it seems boring. I might give it a go though.
sparky2112
Member
Spent yesterday trying to catch up on magazines, which is a never-ending task for me. The most recent issue of the New Yorker has two GREAT pieces - the first by Dexter Filkins on the dam in Mosul, Iraq, which with Army Corps of Engineers has rated BY FAR the most dangerous in the world - if it disintegrates (which is likely to happen), it will kill AT LEAST a million people. The other article was on gene editing via CRISPR and what that might mean for large populations of mosquitoes and tics as we try to attach diseases like malaria, etc. Fun fact: ONE QUARTER of Nantucket residents have Lyme disease. ONE QUARTER.
I've read the majority of his stuff (minus Tailchaser's Song and the last two Bobby Dollar novels, and a few other things.) I'm a big fan.
I read Otherland at the right time (not long after it was released), so it was prescient, cutting edge, and has really stuck with me. A wonderful set of core characters, that still remain clear and unique in my head a decade later. I'm not sure how well the technological and social aspects hold up these days--though, I wouldn't be surprised if they're just as relevant now as then.
I actually came to Williams through the Shadowmarch series after bouncing off Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn 3-4 times. It's a lot more approachable, and Williams' prose style is more consistent than MST (which, frankly, is all over the place, especially during The Dragonbone Chair.) It really comes into its own in the third and fourth books, and would scratch the itch for anyone looking to read an epic, well developed fantasy in a fascinating world. It doesn't quite hit the modern classic level of MST, but it's certainly worth your time.
Yeah. I reread The Dragonbone Chair late last year, but I don't know if I'm going to be able to squeeze in the last two novels. They're so bloody long, and not exactly quick reads.
Sectorseven
Member
Are there any sci-fi adventure books similar to Star Wars? I guess more of a fantasy element with a large universe.
sparky2112
Member
I really, really enjoyed Otherland 1, and I didn't read it too many years ago, so I think it holds up. I made it halfway through book 2 and it just struck me that Williams was going to pad the whole story to death. I probably should have pressed on, but I put it down. One of my bigger reading disappointments, really.
The second books is over-bloated and easily the weakest part of the series. The final two books are much better and less padded (while still being very long).
Maklershed
Member
Good question. I'd like to know the answer too. The Mass Effect series comes to mind. And some of the Foundation universe novels scratch that itch a bit too. Other than that though I can't think of anything off the top of my head.
AngmarsKing701
Member
Thank you, sir! Not sure I'll go back and read Otherland, though maybe down the road at some point. I do have the first two of the Shadowmarch books here in ppb, so I plan on reading them sometime.
First is to finish off To Green Angel Tower and then read the new Osten Ard books this year though, and I think I'll be fattened up on Williams for a while.
From what I understand (I haven't read it), K.B. Wager's Behind the Throne has a lot of Star Wars' adventure elements, with a very Han Solo-esque protagonist.
If you're looking for something that mixes SF with fantasy-like world building, you could give Kay Kenyon's The Entire and the Rose series a shot.
AngmarsKing701
Member
I would recommend the Vorkosigan series by Lois McMaster Bujold. I consider her to be pretty "science light" so while there aren't light sabers there is certainly an aspect of the fantastical to the series.
Maklershed
Member
Finished: News of the World
Great book and characters. One of my favorites I read last year and recommended.
Adding all these recs to my wishlist (thank goodness Santa brought me some kindle gift cards).
sparky2112
Member
Thanks for this. I may pull them down off the shelf...
Zelenogorsk
Banned
I feel like half my posts in What are you Reading threads are just telling people about how awesome Drawing of the Three is. So i'm gonna do it again. Go read Drawing of the Three. It blows The Gunslinger out of the water. If The Gunslinger is sitting in a lazy river at a water park then Drawing is white water rafting without a life vest.
Taking my time with Nights of Villjamur, I'm more or less halfway through. Quite liking it so far, although all in all not so much happened and yet new elements keep coming out, so I guess little will be resolved before the end of this book and many plot threads will continue in the next ones.
Gotta say I didn't expect one of the protagonists to be
, that's not something you see often, in fantasy at least.
Gotta say I didn't expect one of the protagonists to be
homosexual
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