What we're reading, the SFF edition

GeorgieB

Almost a wannabe writer
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 3, 2007
Messages
317
Reaction score
69
Location
Near nirvana
You should'a asked me yesterday when I was finishing up the reading "The Year's Best Science Fiction", Nineteenth Annual Collection edited by Gardner Dozois. Picked up the huge hardback for $.50 (you got that right, 50 cents) at a white elephant sale. Great stories by Kress, Reynolds, Simmons, etc.

Now I've moved on to a book that I paid full price for, "The Merlin Trilogy" by Mary Stewart. I read this series years ago and decided to re-read it. The Arthurian legend has always fascinated me.

So, is "The Merlin Trilogy" SF, F or just plainly good reading?
 

DragonHeart

Oerba Yun Fang
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 16, 2005
Messages
2,479
Reaction score
245
Location
New Hampshire
Website
www.thefinalfantasy.com
I just finished Sleipnir. Didn't like the beginning very much but it had a hell of an ending. :D It helps that I'm a sucker for Norse mythology, got the book solely because it had Fenrir on the cover lol.

Now for the hard part...picking the next book to read.
 

Kitty Pryde

i luv you giant bear statue
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
9,090
Reaction score
2,165
Location
Lost Angeles
I'm reading the R.K. Narayan condensed prose version of the Mahabharata. The original is the longest epic in the world at 1.8 million words, and this version is only 200 pages, hurray! It's mythology, not fantasy, but they are similar beasts I think. The writing is really good and it's explaining all the really confusing bits that I didn't quite understand before. Also it has pictures! I recommend it highly if you like epic fantasy or stuff like Gilgamesh or the Odyssey.

Funny writing technique: the alleged author of the epic is the great grandfather of the main characters (I'm not sure how he lives long enough to write about them growing old and dying, but I think it's like in the Bible where everybody lives for hundreds of years). Anyways, sometimes the author randomly turns up to talk to the characters and tell them something bad's going to happen, or warn them about someone. Then the characters all resign themselves to their fate and soldier on.
 

AceTachyon

Odd person
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 22, 2005
Messages
6,452
Reaction score
972
Location
The Lair, WA
Website
www.abnersenires.com
Just finished 13th Legion by Gav Thorpe, set in the Warhammer 40K universe. If you like full-frontal military SF brain candy, have a go at this.
 

Pthom

Word butcher
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
7,013
Reaction score
1,207
Location
Oregon
I started that, Dempsey. Then got side tracked with Pump Six and Other Stories by Paolo Bacigalupi (from the library--had to read it fast, cuz someone else had it reserved). I'll get back to Pushing Ice next. It's an interesting story, but I will admit: the British convention of using single quotes for dialogue instead of double ones, is somewhat rough to get used to.
 

Ardent Kat

Kill your television
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 27, 2009
Messages
793
Reaction score
152
Location
Austin, TX
Website
www.katherineokelly.com
I'm reading A Brother's Price by Wen Spencer at the recommendation of some AWers who, like me, are interested in writing non-patriarchal societies. I'm about 3/4 through and it's a little romance-y for my usual tastes, but the women majority/male minority is so well-written, this is exactly what I was looking for. A whole society where the gender roles are turned completely on their heads, but with a matter-of-fact tone instead of some idealized Fem-topia. FINALLY a book that writes a desirable submissive role for males instead of the usual swaggering Dom. Pretty awesome.
 

geardrops

Good thing I like my day job
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 3, 2007
Messages
2,962
Reaction score
629
Location
Bay Area, CA
Website
www.geardrops.net
I started that, Dempsey. Then got side tracked with Pump Six and Other Stories by Paolo Bacigalupi (from the library--had to read it fast, cuz someone else had it reserved). I'll get back to Pushing Ice next. It's an interesting story, but I will admit: the British convention of using single quotes for dialogue instead of double ones, is somewhat rough to get used to.

I have Pump Six. How'd you enjoy it? I started in on Windup Girl and got distracted, but IMO Paolo's a damn good writer. (Like, "Screw you that's so unfair" good.)
 

Koobie

Super Duper Member
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 8, 2007
Messages
748
Reaction score
182
Website
tyrovogel.com
Currently reading The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi

I have his "Pump Six and Other Stories" in my reading pile. I'm currently reading the Jan-Feb issues of Interzone and Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, and then next I have Tim Pratt's Blood Engines and some other stuff on my list as well.

I only wish there'd be more hours in a day. Or, at least, more hours that I don't have to spend working. :)
 

Pthom

Word butcher
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
7,013
Reaction score
1,207
Location
Oregon
I have Pump Six. How'd you enjoy it? I started in on Windup Girl and got distracted, but IMO Paolo's a damn good writer. (Like, "Screw you that's so unfair" good.)
I loved it.

Terry Bisson (Bears Discover Fire--another collection of which I read some) wrote a blurb on the dust jacket of Pump Six: "I hate this guy. All of a sudden he comes out of nowhere, writing like a weird angel, and winning awards, and knocking us old pros out of the box with stories about stuff we hadn't gotten around to thinking up yet. (Like that stupid bio dog!) Plus he's young and good looking. Luckily, he has an unpronounceable name."

I don't hate Bacigalupi, I envy him. :D

From what I know about Windup Girl, I recommend you read the stories before you tackle the novel. Several of the stories deal with the same world, and the same characters (or at least character types) and they precede the novel.
 

geardrops

Good thing I like my day job
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 3, 2007
Messages
2,962
Reaction score
629
Location
Bay Area, CA
Website
www.geardrops.net
From what I know about Windup Girl, I recommend you read the stories before you tackle the novel. Several of the stories deal with the same world, and the same characters (or at least character types) and they precede the novel.

Awesome, thanks for the tip!

(As a sidenote, I felt really bad at the last WFC because a friend introduced me to him, and I sputtered, and said, "I have your book of short stories, it was recommended to me when I went to Borderlands, but I haven't read it yet." And he responded to the effect of, "That's fine. In fact, that's better. Keep not-reading it. That way, you won't hate it, and this conversation won't be awkward.")
 

Jess Haines

Boldly going nowhere in particular.
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 8, 2009
Messages
1,726
Reaction score
248
Location
Tampa, FL
Website
www.jesshaines.com
Just finished SHIP OF MAGIC by Robin Hobb. Will be picking up the sequel shortly.

Also reading GENTLEMEN PREFER SUCCUBI by our very own Jill Myles, HAPPY HOUR OF THE DAMNED by Mark Henry, and a couple others. (Yes, I know I'm strange, but I tend to read 2-5 books at a time.)
 

Varthikes

Dragon Writer
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 21, 2006
Messages
1,702
Reaction score
72
Location
Draconia, Orion's Arm, Alpha Quadrant, Milky Way G
I've been reading The Age of Fire series by E.E. Knight. I recently started the second book, Dragon Avenger. I'm really loving this series so far. Knight writes it entirely from the point-of-view of a dragon and develops the main characters nicely. As I understand it for the first three books of the series, Knight follows the journey of three dragon clutchmates, each book centering around a different dragon's adventures.

I would definitely recommend these books to anyone who appreciates dragons and is looking for a fresh look at the Fantasy genre.
 

Fenika

Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Messages
24,311
Reaction score
5,109
Location
-
So I had been reading The Neverending Story, and though it's fun it got a bit slow, so I've put it aside for the moment to start Jhereg. So far so good with that book. A little what I expected, but not entirely.

Also, as a partial aside, I read a bunch of X-Men Legacy comics last night. Rogue is awesome :D
 

Etola

Still looking for stars...
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Sep 10, 2006
Messages
2,867
Reaction score
429
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
(As a sidenote, I felt really bad at the last WFC because a friend introduced me to him, and I sputtered, and said, "I have your book of short stories, it was recommended to me when I went to Borderlands, but I haven't read it yet." And he responded to the effect of, "That's fine. In fact, that's better. Keep not-reading it. That way, you won't hate it, and this conversation won't be awkward.")

Heheh, sounds like a really cool guy :)

I've just started reading Child Thief, which is Brom's dark urban fantasy take on Peter Pan. It is really intriguing so far, and has been pulling me along quite nicely. I find myself, as I read, mentally comparing this Peter to the Peter from the original book, and Peter as portrayed in Hook or the 2004 Peter Pan movie. He certainly is a character who lends himself well to reinterpretation, I think.
 

Pthom

Word butcher
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
7,013
Reaction score
1,207
Location
Oregon
Still wading (plodding) through "Pushing Ice." Up to my knees in it. The story's good enough, but the physical book I have is really hard on my old eyes. It's the first edition hardback (no, I didn't buy it new--got it from the library book sale for a buck), but the print is tiny and the punctuation is wonky. So it'll be awhile before I begin another one.

However, any of you SF/F kids with stories you want read by an old fart, lemme know. :D
 

DragonHeart

Oerba Yun Fang
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 16, 2005
Messages
2,479
Reaction score
245
Location
New Hampshire
Website
www.thefinalfantasy.com
Finally finished Union of Renegades. It wasn't even particularly long, it just felt like it. The etext formatting was kind of wonky and the book itself could have used a couple more rounds of editing. Other than that it's got some decent potential, I think.

Now reading The Mountains of Mourning by Lois McMaster Bujold.
 

J D Dallmeyer

Registered
Joined
Nov 29, 2009
Messages
17
Reaction score
5
Location
Western Pennsylvania
Had been reading The Scar by China Mieville and seriously enjoying it. Then, we went out and my puppy ate the book -- I mean seriously, page bits all over the TV room. Since then we've been pretty much snowed in and I haven't been able to get a replacement copy. So I'm stalled in the middle. But very much enjoying the book.
 

Stellan

Not that other guy
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 15, 2009
Messages
152
Reaction score
52
Location
Manchester, UK
On my lunch hours, I've been reading Neal Stephenson. I finished Zodiac last week, and am now halfway through The Diamond Age. I wish his longer works would fit in my drawer at work (I swear, if there's ever anything that makes me buy an e-reader, it'll probably be Stephenson, because I'd love to read Anathem without spraining myself).

Relaxing at home, I'm re-reading Naomi Novik's Temeraire series, and Melissa Scott's Five-Twelfths of Heaven came from Amazon yesterday, so I'll dip into that next. I'm also waiting for my friend to lend me Iain Banks' Transitions.
 

Mr Flibble

They've been very bad, Mr Flibble
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 6, 2008
Messages
18,889
Reaction score
5,029
Location
We couldn't possibly do that. Who'd clear up the m
Website
francisknightbooks.co.uk
Had been reading The Scar by China Mieville and seriously enjoying it.

Ooh that's next on my list

Am reading Shadowfall by James Clemens, recommended to me by the nice lady in SFF at Waterstone's

Pretty good so far.