Unofficial What are you Reading Thread?

[Disco Pickle]

If you want a much more consistently decent, long fantasy series on the other hand, I recommend the Malazan Books of the Fallen series by Steve Erickson.  Tenth and final book should be out sometime next year, and it veers away from many standard fantasy tropes hard, unlike Wheel of Time, hews way too closely to Tolkein at times, and without the skill Tolkein had.

I think Im going to stay away from Wheel of Time.  I'll check out the Books of the Fallen next time Im at the local book warehouse.

That Brian Lumley series I mentioned, Necroscope, is a good read, btw.  It's the only vampire story Ive ever enjoyed, and it's a real good twist on the origin mythos.  Lumley's vampires don't sparkle or slink around new orleans all depressed like..  they fashion creatures from human flesh. 

There's a lot of books in the series, but you can sink your teeth into the first 5 pretty easy without feeling compelled to keep going, as it wraps up the first main story arc.

[Don Coyote]

Ugh...the Wheel of Time...the Whell of failing failure of crap....Stay away from it if you can.

[Telarus]

Hey thanks Cain. My Girl and I were debating getting the last few WoT books. We loved the opening books of the series, but you've pretty much nailed the problems with the last few books. We were pretty "meh" about it, but that was a pretty good capsule review, so we'll be finishing the series (if only to, as you said, kill of the dangling plotlines in our memory).

[Placid Dingo]

Started Opening Skinners Box, accessible book on psychology. It over-sentementalises everything, but it's forgivable as its conciously avoiding the clinical language of psychology.

[Cain]

I'm actually remembering more and more why I dislike them, now I'm reading them again.  The ridiculous reasoning for why Rand is banging three chicks at once, and none of them especially care about it (I mean, seriously?  This is like fanfiction level failure here.  Bad fanfic).  That people of the age of twenty or so are: the Messiah God Emperor, in charge of a tower full of (mostly) good witches, a Queen (semi-justified), in charge of a band of militant religious fundamentalists and a seasoned military leader (again, semi-justified).  And they all know each other from way back.  The idiot ball constantly being held by every member of the Forsaken simultaneously, which involves them spending more time trying to kill each other than the guy who might put their boss back in limbo.  I mean, yes, a certain amount of cut-throat infighting is expected, but come on.  If you really want to get the Dark One's favour, how about you kill the fucking Dragon Reborn and scatter his armies?  Srsly.

So far the only smart character seems to be the deceased Pedron Niall, who was convinced the Dark One and the Forsaken would sit back and swamp the world with endless hordes of Trollocs.  Sadly, he vastly overestimated the intelligence of his opponents.

Actually, you know what would've been a really awesome idea for this series?  If they'd concentrated on Aludra, the chick making the cannons.  But that would involve forsaking the quasi-fascist fantasy aesthetic (decline from the old times, races of entirely evil people who can be slaughtered without mercy, a messiah-hero-leader who will save all the "good" people) and doing some original thinking

[Don Coyote]

I just hated the stupid retarded way he had the men and women interacting, and the stupid long chapters, with each chapter jumping another character in some other ricokulous situation.

[Telarus]

I'm actually remembering more and more why I dislike them, now I'm reading them again.  The ridiculous reasoning for why Rand is banging three chicks at once, and none of them especially care about it (I mean, seriously?  This is like fanfiction level failure here.  Bad fanfic).  That people of the age of twenty or so are: the Messiah God Emperor, in charge of a tower full of (mostly) good witches, a Queen (semi-justified), in charge of a band of militant religious fundamentalists and a seasoned military leader (again, semi-justified).  And they all know each other from way back.  The idiot ball constantly being held by every member of the Forsaken simultaneously, which involves them spending more time trying to kill each other than the guy who might put their boss back in limbo.  I mean, yes, a certain amount of cut-throat infighting is expected, but come on.  If you really want to get the Dark One's favour, how about you kill the fucking Dragon Reborn and scatter his armies?  Srsly.

So far the only smart character seems to be the deceased Pedron Niall, who was convinced the Dark One and the Forsaken would sit back and swamp the world with endless hordes of Trollocs.  Sadly, he vastly overestimated the intelligence of his opponents.

Actually, you know what would've been a really awesome idea for this series?  If they'd concentrated on Aludra, the chick making the cannons.  But that would involve forsaking the quasi-fascist fantasy aesthetic (decline from the old times, races of entirely evil people who can be slaughtered without mercy, a messiah-hero-leader who will save all the "good" people) and doing some original thinking

Aludra was the character that sparked a RPG idea I had for Earthdawn (Therans with Steampunk tech vs anti-slaver rebels with early "elemental powder weapons"), and was one of the best "what happens when we throw _this_ into a fantasy world" character ideas I've run across.

[dontblameyoko]

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

almost done with it, actually.

[Bella]

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

almost done with it, actually.

I liked that book.


Ur by Steven King on kindle for the pc, and it's freaking me out a little bit because the plot is built around a kindle.

[Cain]

I just hated the stupid retarded way he had the men and women interacting, and the stupid long chapters, with each chapter jumping another character in some other ricokulous situation.

I read about a quarter of the new book in one sitting, and lots of the old plot stupidities came flooding back, or were referenced (Sanderson seems to be trying to put a lid on them as much as possible, but there is only so much you can do without creating a Discontinuity).  So I needed to rant a little.  Still gonna read it though.  Invested too much time to back out of the series now.

Aludra was the character that sparked a RPG idea I had for Earthdawn (Therans with Steampunk tech vs anti-slaver rebels with early "elemental powder weapons"), and was one of the best "what happens when we throw _this_ into a fantasy world" character ideas I've run across.

There is absolutely no reason why you can't have gunpowder and firearms in a fantasy setting, and it's only High Medieval Western Europe fetishization by fantasy writers that makes this otherwise.  That's another trope Erickson averts to a degree, with his Moranth munitions.  As a potential game-changer when it comes to warfare, gunpowder is great for building a plot around.  Everyone is going to want a piece of that action, and it will lead to intrigue, fighting and lots of running away from heavily armed people.

[Cuddlefish]

Got my copy of SC Trilogy yesterday. Already about a third of the way through. I really enjoy this brand of fiction, the type where there's more than just a fictional story going on... you know what I mean. Like Thus Spoke Zarathustra: Technically fiction, but whith a lot of actual value... whatever...

I'm also reading Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's tale" for my modern lit class. So far, it's pretty terrible. "Oh noes, shocking view of what possibly, in another universe, could have happened, but totally didn't!" I dunno. I have a hard time getting emotionally involved in shit like that. It's like getting emotionally attatched to a character in Marvel's "What If" series...

[Don Coyote]

I just hated the stupid retarded way he had the men and women interacting, and the stupid long chapters, with each chapter jumping another character in some other ricokulous situation.

I read about a quarter of the new book in one sitting, and lots of the old plot stupidities came flooding back, or were referenced (Sanderson seems to be trying to put a lid on them as much as possible, but there is only so much you can do without creating a Discontinuity).  So I needed to rant a little.  Still gonna read it though.  Invested too much time to back out of the series now.

And that is why I am glad I stopped reading around book 4.

Aludra was the character that sparked a RPG idea I had for Earthdawn (Therans with Steampunk tech vs anti-slaver rebels with early "elemental powder weapons"), and was one of the best "what happens when we throw _this_ into a fantasy world" character ideas I've run across.

There is absolutely no reason why you can't have gunpowder and firearms in a fantasy setting, and it's only High Medieval Western Europe fetishization by fantasy writers that makes this otherwise.  That's another trope Erickson averts to a degree, with his Moranth munitions.  As a potential game-changer when it comes to warfare, gunpowder is great for building a plot around.  Everyone is going to want a piece of that action, and it will lead to intrigue, fighting and lots of running away from heavily armed people.

Considering the only difference betwixt firearms and fireball majiks in fantasy is one can be given to quickly trained conscripts and the other requires years of soul bending study. Can't be stealing the limelight from the leet majikians.

And I agree, gun powder being introduced or discovered in a pre-gunpowder world can cause all kinds of fun. There is a short story about a civilization that while possessing firearms, the manufacturing of arms and powder are solely in the hands of a corrupt priest hood. Gun powder gods by H. Beam Piper.

[Cain]

Yeah, but wizards suck for the most part.  It's really an aesthetic thing with me, but if an author is going to include magic I prefer to be the more subtle style, like Tolkein or even George RR Martin, where sometimes you even doubt it's anything more than coincidence, than the Walking WMD approach which was, presumably, inspired by D&D.  Every strengthening of the side of the protagonist needs to be matched by more overwhelming power on the side of the bad guys (otherwise you have a Mary Sue/Marty Stu plot going down), and if you've got someone who can freeze time, blow apart regiments and summon demons, that means you need to give the Big Bad the power to reverse time, blow apart armies and summon Cthulhu.  In which case they should have already won.

I will find a copy of Gun Powder Gods and throw it on the pile.  Which is currently rivalling that tower in Dubai for the world's largest man made structure.

[Cuddlefish]

I also had finished reading August Wilson's play "Joe Turner has Come and Gone." Incredible ending.

[Disco Pickle]

went out yesterday and picked up Gaiman's Anansi Boys, Clive Barker's Sacrament, and Terry Pratchett's The Color of Magic and The Light Fantastic

starting with Anansi Boys