What we're reading, the SFF edition

rwm4768

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Now I've finished Fade to Black by AW's own Francis Knight. I really enjoyed this book. It gave me a world I've never seen before. It took me a while to like the protagonist, but the good pacing and interesting setting kept me going through that period.
 

BethS

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Just finished The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker.
Really enjoyed it. I loved both the main characters, and the setting (immigrant communities in 1899 New York) was interesting and something I'd never read about before. I also loved the way the story was told - there are lots of different threads, but they all connect and work together well.

Loved this book. I think it's one of the best books I read last year.
 

rwm4768

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Finished Firefight by Brandon Sanderson. I loved Steelheart. I'm not sure I have words for how much I loved Firefight. In typical Sanderson fashion, he took the world we thought we had and turned it on its head. There were so many twists and revelations in this book.

I have read few authors who rival Sanderson as a storyteller.
 

ClareGreen

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SF Masterworks are re-releasing a lot of my old favourites as ebooks, at last. I have a six-book Stainless Steel Rat collection to wade through, only three of which I've ever managed to hunt down before, and I have my eye on a lot of Elric and other Moorcock works...
 

TeamWingless

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I'm reading The Dark Eidolon by Clark Ashton Smith--he was one of the writers in Lovecraft's little circle, but a much better writer. His use of language is just off the charts, it's ambitious and mind-blowing, actually written above a sixth grade reading level. I'd say it reads something like The Scarlet Letter for scifi. I've been pulling it out just for reference lately. Great book of stories and also poetry.
 

Taylor Harbin

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Just finished Alloy of Law by Brandon Sanderson. Great progression of the Mistborn universe.
 

pixydust

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Finished Firefight by Brandon Sanderson. I loved Steelheart. I'm not sure I have words for how much I loved Firefight. In typical Sanderson fashion, he took the world we thought we had and turned it on its head. There were so many twists and revelations in this book.

I have read few authors who rival Sanderson as a storyteller.

I'm reading STEELHEART with my kids and loving it (I keep sneaking and reading ahead….lol). I just bought FIREFIGHT so we'd be able to keep on rolling.

I'm currently reveling in WORDS OF RADIANCE, jumping right in after WAY OF KINGS. So much amazingness in these books. I have no words. Hope we don't have to wait too long for book three.
 

franky_s

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Now I've finished Fade to Black by AW's own Francis Knight. I really enjoyed this book. It gave me a world I've never seen before. It took me a while to like the protagonist, but the good pacing and interesting setting kept me going through that period.

I bought this just before Christmas (when I was meant to be buying presents for others). Looking forward to reading it!
 

Isilya

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Working on What If? by Randall Munroe (XKCD guy) and Lock In by John Scalzi
 

Dreity

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Been on something of a reading spree now that I'm in between drafts. :)

First, I read We Leave Together, the last book in the Dogsland trilogy. I really wish more people knew about this series. (I bet AW's own badducky does too.) I read books for compelling characters, unique prose, and insight into the human condition. Dogsland gives me all of these things. Some of the most immersive POV I've ever read, and my heart just kept breaking for the characters.

Then I read The Curse of Chalion and Paladin of Souls by Bejold. I really, really enjoyed these, and yet...

It's definitely a taste rather than a craft issue, but if all of the clothing descriptions were cut and replaced with more theological meat to sink my teeth into, I think both books would have been darn near perfect. The descriptions of the prayers, songs, and rituals, and the contemplations on the nature of faith were a bit too coy for me, especially since I was led to believe that Paladin of Souls is something of a go-to novel for fantasy readers looking for a more intellectual take on speculative spirituality.

Red Country by Joe Abercrombie. This review mirrors my thoughts quite nicely. There were a couple of things that made me slightly uncomfortable re: appropriation, but considering the astounding progress he's made with his female characters over the years, I think the same will hold true for his future efforts in writing the "Other". This was a really good book by one of the best current authors in the genre, and I have complete confidence that his best work is ahead of him.

Now I'm less than 100 pages into A Blight of Mages by Karen Miller. This was a rare impulse buy. (600 pages for 1 dollar? I'll take it!) I knew nothing about the Kingmaker, Kingbreaker universe going in. As soon as Morgan was introduced I was like, "Holy crap, these two are awful! Are they going to become bad guys together or something?" Then I went online, became educated, and it all makes a lot more sense now. I'll probably finish it, so long as the train wrecks that are the MCs continue to fascinate rather than agitate me.
 

franky_s

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Working on What If? by Randall Munroe (XKCD guy) and Lock In by John Scalzi

I've just finished Lock In. I loved it. Think it would make a great movie. Really keen to get a hold of Red Shirts. Heard mixed reviews but it sounds right up my alley.
 

phantasy

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Read the Girl with all the Gifts by M.R. Carey. It's a paranormal fantasy horror thing. At least...I think it falls under fantasy? Good book, but the beginning was the best part. Nice change of style and pace for me.

Also I read Horns by Joe Hill. I know it's horror, but to me it was more dark fantasy. Wasn't scary at all, just...weird and interesting.
 

LOG

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Finished the Age of Fire series.
Don't think I'd recommend it.
The writing is OK for the most part, but I feel like the overall plot of the series is somewhat confused. It takes a hard right around the 4th/5th books, and then just goes completely bonkers in the 6th.
The first three books are the most decent, but unfortunately they don't make a complete story.

Perhaps worst of all though is that while the rising action and the like are OK, the battles, big moments, and pretty much any kind of climax are immensely rushed and rather poorly written IMO (so, so telly). It's quite frustrating.
 

rwm4768

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Finished two books today.

The Blood Knight by Greg Keyes. Overall, this was another solid entry in his Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone series. It's not great, but it moves along at a good clip, and I like most of the characters.

Servant of the Underworld by Aliette de Bodard. This one was a surprise. I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. It's a fantasy murder mystery set in the Aztec empire. The first half wasn't that great, but I was riveted through the second half.
 

LOG

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A Discovery of Witches, Deborah Harkness.

It's fun at first, but it ends up dragging out far too much, and for all its extra dressing from history it's still following an extremely standard and rather boring plotline.
Characters tend to be quite OP as well.
 

AmandaHelms

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Currently wrapping up Valour and Vanity by Mary Robinette Kowal. I enjoy it, but am also (somewhat) analyzing the pacing--it's interesting to me that the decision to go after the antagonists didn't come until the 2/3 mark. Which, granted, works for something in the style of Jane Austen, where one would expect the pacing to be slower. But I think it was on a Writing Excuses episode that I heard Kowal mention that she was following a heist/caper plot for this one. Granted, I tend not to read or watch those, but I would've thought the turning point would come at least by the 1/2 mark.

But again, I'm enjoying it. Love how Kowal manages the conflict(s) between Jane and Vincent, and it is SO NICE to see an FMC actually stopping herself from saying something to her SO that she knows she'd regret or would hurt the SO unnecessarily. Because that's how solid relationships are supposed to work.
 

RandomWords

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Just found this thread ~tips hat~

I recently finished Under the Skin by Michel Faber, and The Immortality Game by Ted Cross (AKA knight_tour). I liked them both, I think the Faber was belaboring its point by the end. The Immortality Game was a Gibson-style cyber-actioner, set in a future Moscow.

Picking up Ancillary Justice (Leckie) and Century Rain (Reynolds) from the library tomorrow.
 

Isilya

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Loved Lock In by John Scalzi and I laughed so hard I cried while reading What If?

Now reading Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay and The Mirror Empire by Kameron Hurley
 
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rwm4768

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Finished Prince of Lies by AW's own Anne Lyle. Overall, I thought this was an enjoyable trilogy. I liked the characters, and the plot moved along quickly. There was something that kept it from being among my favorites, but it was still a good read.
 

Sara K.

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I'm slowly working my way through Ytasha L. Womack's Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci Fi and Fantasy Culture.

I've only read the introduction and the first essay so far, but she write in a very conversational, accessible tone, which is nice for a lit crit book. It's also something I'm interested in, minorities in sci fi/fantasy. I think I'm really going to enjoy it.

I am hoping, though, she delves into more nitty gritty criticism, but there's plenty of time for that.
 

rwm4768

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Finished Valor by John Gwynne.

When I read Malice, the first in the series, I enjoyed it overall. But it had a number of issues. I found the writing clunky in many places. The beginning was slow and looked like a story I've seen a thousand times before. In the second half of the book, the action ramped up and made it an enjoyable read overall.

In Valor, though, it was like Gwynne got past all the writing issues that hurt the first book. The writing was smoother. The pacing was more even, with action interspersed throughout the book rather than cramming it all at the end (of course, there was still a lot at the end).

I also grew to like the characters more and appreciate the story for the fact that it's twisting the traditional Chosen One story. It's taking that story and making it darker and more complex, and I like that.
 

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I just found a copy of Frank Herbert's Eye in an old box out in the garage, so...thought I'd give it a go.