What we're reading, the SFF edition

rwm4768

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Finished Blood Song by Anthony Ryan. I have no idea why this book was originally self-published. It's one of the best fantasy books I've read recently. It's a great story similar in approach to The Name of the Wind. I think I actually preferred this (though I did love The Name of the Wind). Unlike Rothfuss, Ryan didn't take forever to get to all the most interesting stuff.

It just astounds me that Ryan had to self-publish this originally. Yes, it's a little long (not too much), but it never felt overwritten. If you're looking for something that tells the story of a larger-than-life character's life like The Name of the Wind, but one that is a bit darker, grittier, and war-focused, then this is a book you should check out.

There were a few times, especially early, when the plot dragged a little bit, but I found its plot moved along pretty well. I also noticed some comma splices, which might have actually been a stylistic choice. Other than that, I have nothing to complain about.
 

Ian Isaro

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What can I say? The fact that they broke the bed and shattered the glass illicited giggles from me. Not to mention all the wierd meta stuff that went on during. I've never encountered such a scene before.

But like I said, it's probably just me. :tongue
It's not just you. I was fine with the meta stuff, but the scene was far too saccharine for my taste.

EDIT: Found it. Jemisin says a number of things on the scene in this blog entry, notably this about her intent:
NK Jemisin said:
It could certainly be the case that I just didn’t do as good a job of depicting the weirdness and wildness of the whole godsex thing as I’d intended. It’s also possible that it just didn’t suit some readers’ tastes.
I guess that's why I have trouble with that series. When I read, I want to empathize with the characters.

I can respect what Erikson does with his story and world, but after pushing through four books, I'm just not sure it's my style of fantasy.

I might give it another try at some point. Tastes can change with time.
I finished the series, and from my perspective it doesn't change. If you do return, know that the fifth book has a tighter focus and feels different (especially in regard to characters) but the series does not shift much overall.

On the subject of characters blending, I was fine with most of the characters introduced in the first several books. It was the later marines that frustrated me.
 
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BethS

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Finished Blood Song by Anthony Ryan. I have no idea why this book was originally self-published. It's one of the best fantasy books I've read recently.

I took a look at this one and was immediately drawn in by the writing and the voice. I've downloaded a sample for Kindle to remind me it's one I'd like to read. Glad you mentioned it.
 

phantasy

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I took a look at this one and was immediately drawn in by the writing and the voice. I've downloaded a sample for Kindle to remind me it's one I'd like to read. Glad you mentioned it.

That's interesting, lol. I did the same as you but I didn't like it. It's not the voice, it's actually written quite well. I just don't want to read another heavy war fantasy. I hope I'm not wrong in that assumption, rwm4768.

The only author who could make me do that was Abercrombie (although I'll be honest I skipped over many of the action scenes) and that's because he focuses a lot on his characters and gives them a lot of dark humor.
 

phantasy

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It's not just you. I was fine with the meta stuff, but the scene was far too saccharine for my taste.

EDIT: Found it. Jemisin says a number of things on the scene in this blog entry, notably this about her intent:

I finished the series, and from my perspective it doesn't change. If you do return, know that the fifth book has a tighter focus and feels different (especially in regard to characters) but the series does not shift much overall.

Thank you for the link! I like her blog a lot so far, very interesting. Although I do disagree with the assumption she's made that people who didn't like the scene thought it was because it was romance from the female gaze. I didn't like it because it was just so weird and over-the-top that it made it laugh and kind of ruined the mood for me.
 

BethS

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That's interesting, lol. I did the same as you but I didn't like it. It's not the voice, it's actually written quite well. I just don't want to read another heavy war fantasy. I hope I'm not wrong in that assumption, rwm4768.

The only author who could make me do that was Abercrombie (although I'll be honest I skipped over many of the action scenes) and that's because he focuses a lot on his characters and gives them a lot of dark humor.

Well, I'm hoping there's more to it than just war and fighting. It has a ridiculous number of positive reviews, which would make me suspicious except that I can't imagine anyone has that many friends.

We'll see. I'll have to get through the sample first.
 

rwm4768

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That's interesting, lol. I did the same as you but I didn't like it. It's not the voice, it's actually written quite well. I just don't want to read another heavy war fantasy. I hope I'm not wrong in that assumption, rwm4768.

The only author who could make me do that was Abercrombie (although I'll be honest I skipped over many of the action scenes) and that's because he focuses a lot on his characters and gives them a lot of dark humor.

I love battles, so that could be part of why I loved the book. A whole lot of it isn't about battles, though. It's very focused on the main character and often deals with how those battles affect him. He's not just some soulless killing machine like you see in some fantasy.

But I can completely understand that it's not for everyone. I don't think you'll ever find any book that works for everyone.
 

WriteMinded

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Finished Blood Song by Anthony Ryan. I have no idea why this book was originally self-published. It's one of the best fantasy books I've read recently. It's a great story similar in approach to The Name of the Wind. I think I actually preferred this (though I did love The Name of the Wind). Unlike Rothfuss, Ryan didn't take forever to get to all the most interesting stuff.

It just astounds me that Ryan had to self-publish this originally. Yes, it's a little long (not too much), but it never felt overwritten. If you're looking for something that tells the story of a larger-than-life character's life like The Name of the Wind, but one that is a bit darker, grittier, and war-focused, then this is a book you should check out.

There were a few times, especially early, when the plot dragged a little bit, but I found its plot moved along pretty well. I also noticed some comma splices, which might have actually been a stylistic choice. Other than that, I have nothing to complain about.

I bought this book just before it was picked up by, uh, whoever published it. I didn't expect much, but damn! Best book I've read in a long time. I've been meaning to rave about here, but I should have known Mr. Readerly (that's you rwm4768) would beat me to it.

Not a battle story, at all. A character driven story about brotherhood and doing the right thing no matter the cost.

I was a little taken aback that the story is so much like my current wip, but then again, I loved it, too, for just that reason.
 

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Finished Blood Song by Anthony Ryan. I have no idea why this book was originally self-published. It's one of the best fantasy books I've read recently.

I'm about 1/3rd through it, which is better than the last 2 or 3 that I gave up on for being bored or irked ... it has its issues writing-wise (if it were mine I'd subject it to a cleanup edit, and the pacing is kinda all-the-same) BUT... what WM said. It's strongly character-driven with strongly-driven characters, and has a trick of never being quite predictable that propels the story and the reader.
 

rwm4768

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Finished Old Man's War by John Scalzi. Overall, I thought it was a very good book with a very interesting premise. My favorite part was actually the first third of the book, which is rare for me. I felt like I really got to know these characters.

The rest of the book, while I still enjoyed it, did not allow me to connect as much with the characters. I also thought the battle scenes felt a bit distant. There were also some plot points that I found a little implausible. Definitely a good read, though.
 

rwm4768

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Finished The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamilton. For me, Hamilton is a very frustrating science fiction author. There's a lot of interesting stuff in his books, and I should love them, but they always end up being just okay because I have trouble connecting with his characters.

I also find his writing style a bit overwritten for my tastes, and I frequently have trouble figuring out how all the characters connect to the story.

This book picked up toward the end, so I'll probably see where the series goes. I did end up liking the previous duology I read by him. It just took a while.
 

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I liked Hamilton's Commonwealth Saga, but the Void Trilogy didn't do anything for me.


Finished Malazan Book of the Fallen.
I'm sad to say that it was rather disappointing near the end. I didn't particularly like the way the story trailed off, but I believe it was intentional, but I really don't like how a lot of the characters were just left by the wayside. This thing should have had the longest epilogue ever. Instead we got two quite short ones.
 

ULTRAGOTHA

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I'm re-reading Rosemary Kirstein's Steerswoman books. She's released the first three on Kindle and I'm awaiting the imminent release of book four on Kindle (any day now!).

Then she has to recover from her cancer and write the next three books.
 

rwm4768

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Finished The Emperor's Blades by Brian Stavely. I really enjoyed this book. It gave me characters I actually felt like I could root for (unlike a lot of recent fantasy that revels in how terrible they can make the main characters). The first half of the book is a little light on the action, but I still found it engaging, and the second half makes up for any lack of action early on.

Warning: it is the first in a series, so don't expect complete resolution at the end. The primary plot issue is resolved, but there's a lot left over to be answered.
 

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Finished reading "Steelheart." The perfect book. I'm not kidding. So good throughout. It's been a LONG time since I've read a book I couldn't put down. Surprising since I'm not a fan of Sanderson's fantasy novels and especially surprising since I can't stand YA books. Even though this one hits similar beats found in every book of that genre, this one can appeal to adults as well with its smart writing and intriguing story.
 

rwm4768

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Finished Hammered by (AWer) Kevin Hearne. This one was a bit darker and more serious than the first two in the series, but I still loved it. If you're looking for a good urban fantasy series, this is one to check out.
 

rwm4768

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Finished Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files #8). Once again, I love this series and Butcher's writing in general. These books are just so exciting to read. Butcher is a master of keeping the pace going.
 

Introversion

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"The Waking Engine" by David Edison

I'm currently reading "The Waking Engine" by David Edison. I seldom buy physical books any more, as Amazon spoiled me on the convenience of storing hundreds of e-books on a tablet & their cloud. But, I happened to be browsing in a book store last week, flipped through a copy of this, and bought it.

It's a slightly dense read for myself, who in turn is slightly dense. :) His use of language is often both gorgeous and spare. His opening three sentences are sparer than much of what I've read so far, but I think they give you a flavor:

The room was empty except for the smell of disuse and a small woman with a heart-shaped face and a cloud of flaming red hair. She wore a thin dress that had once been a color, and no shoes. Her brown eyes blinked at the knives of light that cut through the slatted windows.
Ultimately, I'm not sure I'm going to find it satisfying, as there's a fair bit of running hither & thither, and after a hundred pages or so, it's still not clear where he's going with it. But I often find myself reading and then re-reading passages just for the pleasure of it, and wishing I'd written them myself. That, in itself, makes me happy I bought it.
 

rwm4768

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Finished The Rook by Daniel O'Malley. It was a pretty good book overall, but I found it to be a little inconsistent. Some parts were great. Other parts were just okay. I loved the world the author created, though, and the main character. I'm looking forward to the next one.
 

phantasy

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Finally finished The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. It took awhile to finish despite being a pretty great book, the problem was because it reads more like a set of short stories so there was never immediacy to get to the next chapter. But lots to learn in how to write great, whimsical short story.

Then I read Best Served Cold by Abercrombie. I'm surprised but I really enjoy his books despite my dislike of dark, gritty war stories and mean characters. I even cheered for certain characters to die at some point but nevertheless kept reading. His characters and writing are quite excellent and very great to learn from. Will definitely read every book he's ever written. Might be a break in between books though, dark fantasy tends to depress me after awhile.
 

Reziac

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Finally finished The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. It took awhile to finish despite being a pretty great book, the problem was because it reads more like a set of short stories so there was never immediacy to get to the next chapter. But lots to learn in how to write great, whimsical short story.

That's because it is a collection of short stories! :)
 

KateJJ

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Just finished The Crimson Campaign by Brian McClellan. Sequel to Promise of Blood. He's a very talented new author, I like his voice, and the magic system he's got is fun. I spent a lot of time annoyed at the characters, especially one who has multiple chapters spent in a drugged haze.

He also has a lack of female characters who exist for a reason other than to motivate a male character: there's only one and so far in the series she's done very little but there are hints she'll do more in the third book. I found the series enjoyable. They've got a little bit of grit without ever being dark and despairing.
 

buirechain

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Read Jack Glass by Adam Roberts, which was very enjoyable until the end (though it's divided up into three different sections each with their own different mood that could throw the people). But the end is disappointing--I've heard that maybe be on purpose in some sort of post modern way, for what that's worth.
 

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So I finally read The Name of the Wind, and mostly liked that (it's very readable, tho it apparently never saw an editor)... not a lot happens but it's presented in an interesting way. Then I started on Book 2, and that was much the same, until the MC meets up with that Fae woman... and now I am quite bored with his antics and have started to wish ill upon him (partly because I dislike manipulative bastards, which is what he's become). And there's a chunk that seems to be preaching at us, which annoys me. I'm about 80% thru it, but am almost to the 'wander away' stage of losing interest. :(
 
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