Return of the Book Thread

[FatuousTwat]

The Big Time was first published in 1958, Dr. Who first aired in 1963.

[IainC]

Fairly sure Dr Who did that first.

Or Michael Moorcock as he prefers to be known.

[Murgos]

Fairly sure Dr Who did that first.

Or Michael Moorcock as he prefers to be known.

He was 16 at the time, I doubt if you have the cause/effect sequence right.

[Johny Cee]

The Big Time was great, imo. I don't know if Lieber invented the idea of diverse time soldiers from mixed eras, but he pretty much nailed it. Nothing too deep, that's just not his style, but lots of fun to see Roman gladiators hanging in a locker room with funky future aliens.

While the plot of the book was a locked room mystery, the underlying subtext was on the war between the Snakes and the Spiders to determine the future final state of humanity's time-line.  Can't really say more without spoilers.

The narrator does come off as a little corny/fake, but she's supposed to be '20s flapper chick from an alternative time-line where the Nazis conquered the US, pulled out of time to staff an R&R pocket universe for Snake soldiers, so... yeah.

[Johny Cee]

Finally managed to track down a book by Caitlin R Kiernan, The Red Tree.  About half way through, and I'm really enjoying it.  Snarky lesbian author protagonist who retreats to an isolated house in Rhode Island to deal with a bad breakup and health issues while trying to make her next deadline, told in a journal format.  Increasing paranoia and mental issues while slowly ramping up Lovecraftian horror/New England superstitions angle.

Very enjoyable read.  It has the one of the least representative covers of any book, ever, though:  Large picture of a slouching pretty young thing in the foreground, reddish landscape in the background.  The narrator is supposed to be a mid-40's lesbian author, who does make comments to the effect that she my not be in the best shape.

A couple of good scares, and an overall feeling of creepiness.  It's very interesting how the author works in the fact that her protagonist is actually very knowledgeable (and sometimes quotes in her journal) Poe and Lovecraft and Machen and Algernon Blackwood and the rest.


Really the best new read I've had in a while.

[Ironwood]

The Big Time was first published in 1958, Dr. Who first aired in 1963.

That'd be a 'no' then ?

[Cyrrex]

Don't know if it's been mentioned in this thread yet or not...I'm guessing you guys don't generally read a lot of the pop schlock on the top 10 list - but I read Dan Brown's last book (The Lost Symbol).  It is fucking terrible.  I actually generally liked all his other books for some moderately entertaining reads, but this one is just God Awful.  Do Not Buy.

On another note, on the advice of someone (or sometwo) in this thread, I've started reading that Malazan stuff from Steven Erikson.  I think I'm going to eventually enjoy it, because I like the writing style...but holy fuck does it hop around alot.  There's like 5 different major threads going on and I'm only like 150 pages into it.  I'm sure it will get better when I recognize who all these people are and what they're really doing, but holy shit.

[RhyssaFireheart]

Yep, that's how I felt when I started reading as well, since Erikson just drops you into the middle of the action.  I actually liked that though over the usual "let's explain the whole back history and what's going first" tack taken most of the time.

[Ard]

Yeah, instead, you get to spend the next 8 books learning the backstory instead.  Starting through Toll the Hounds now, and I still don't know half of what's going on, or where he's even going with some of these storylines.

[FatuousTwat]

Just in case you have only read the first book Cyrrex, his writing stye changes a lot (in a good way IMO) in the second book. I think I read somewhere that it took him almost 10 years to sell that first book, so that might have something to do with it?

[Khaldun]

Been really enjoying The Mysterious Benedict Society series, reading that with my daughter. I'm sure they've been optioned for a film series.

[Johny Cee]

On another note, on the advice of someone (or sometwo) in this thread, I've started reading that Malazan stuff from Steven Erikson.  I think I'm going to eventually enjoy it, because I like the writing style...but holy fuck does it hop around alot.  There's like 5 different major threads going on and I'm only like 150 pages into it.  I'm sure it will get better when I recognize who all these people are and what they're really doing, but holy shit.

It takes Erikson a while to find his own voice.  Part of the problem with the first book the writing feels like a pastiche of Glen Cook with Jordan/Martin thrown in.  There also used to be a slew of continuity and narrative errors (affectionately referred to as "GoMisms" by fans) that have mostly been taken care of in subsequent editions.

I liked book one enough to reread it a few times, and I still rank books two and three up there with the best of epic fantasy.


There's some good new stuff on the way:

- Jeff Vandermeer has a new Ambergris novel coming out this week, called Finch.  Basically a bizarre steampunk setting with horror overtones.  He's a wonderful writer.
- Erikson's Dust of Dreams is set to be released early 2010.
- Erikson's first three novellas dealing with Bauchelain and Korbal Broach have been collected in one volume which is on sale now.
- Steven Brust has a new Vlad Taltos novel in the pipe for January 5th.
- Glen Cook's latest "Instrumentalities of the Night" book is supposedly set for a 2010 publication.  He has a pile of reprints slated for early next year as well.

[Sky]

Took Modesitt a while, too. I enjoyed the beginning of the Recluce sage when I first read it, but now that I've read so much of his later stuff, it's tough to get through the earlier novels. I just finished Scion of Cyador, and the difference from the first novel is pretty remarkable. Also, he seems to need two novels for each story now, but it's nice how he splits the background story and the meat of the story he means to tell. Scion did end a bit abruptly, though.

And the next book disappeared from our shelf. Got the fiancee upset because somebody discarded it without telling her - she's the fiction librarian and Modesitt is one of our regular authors, and we don't break series.

[FatuousTwat]

Was it all fucked up or something? People are disgusting with their books, I love opening one to find food crumbs and ketchup (!) spread all over a page.

Edit: I finished reading a series recently, and every book had food packed into it, smudged fingerprints all over, broken spines and the blank pages in the front and back were torn out (wtf?). I wish that one of the people in the library had time to go through books they have just checked in, and ban people who do this kind of shit, unreasonable, but I can still wish, haha.

[Sky]

Generally people are pretty good. I rarely come across the odd stain or water damage. The thing that bugs me most is getting a book after a smoker. Ecch.

[Johny Cee]

So, if you wanted to put together a Sword & Sorcery/Traditional Fantasy anthology, who would be your top picks?  Probably something like this:

"Goats of Glory" - Steven Erikson
"Tides Elba: A Tale of the Black Company" - Glen Cook
"Bloodsport" - Gene Wolfe
"The Singing Spear" - James Enge
"A Wizard of Wiscezan" - C.J. Cherryh
"A Rich Full Week" - K. J. Parker
"A Suitable Present for a Sorcerous Puppet" - Garth Nix
"Red Pearls: An Elric Story" - Michael Moorcock
"The Deification of Dal Bamore" - Tim Lebbon
"Dark Times at the Midnight Market" - Robert Silverberg
"The Undefiled" - Greg Keyes
"Hew the Tint Master" - Michael Shea
"In the Stacks" - Scott Lynch
"Two Lions, A Witch, and the War-Robe" - Tanith Lee
"The Sea Troll's Daughter" - Caitlin R Kiernan
"Thieves of Daring" - Bill Willingham
"The Fool Jobs" - Joe Abercrombie

Called "Swords & Dark Magic" and set to be released in June.

So... 
Abercrombie, Erikson and Lynch for newish authors with a good deal of heat.
Wolfe and Moorcock from the old school.
Kiernan who I was just talking about.
KJ Parker, who alot of folks here seem to like.
Glen Cook Black Company story?  Yes, please.


Seems a really solid anthology.

[stray]

Has anyone ever read David Foster Wallace (particularly Infinite Jest). Kind of curious since "Time" (not that I place that much importance in magazines) put it in one of the 100 greatest novels of all time? Seriously? I thought modern literature couldn't have that impact.

He killed himself btw. I think he was butthurt about everyone being ironic and not saying what they mean or something. Curious about opinions.


I'm reading yet another trashy Dune prequel via Frank Herbert's son. "Paul of Maudib". I think at this point, it's all guilty pleasure. Can't get enough Dune.

[Soln]

I have to ask this somewhere:  Did Wallace get a lot of press in the last few years?  Or ever?   Because it feels like his suicide and the encomium in the New Yorker that followed has been helping build him up.  The unpublished excerpt from his latest in the NY did look good.  But I can't help feeling there's some retcon going on or academic justification. 

[Ingmar]

Time picked him for the 100 Novels list before his death, so I don't think I would describe it as a retcon sort of thing.

Also it wasn't 100 greatest of all time, Stray, it was 100 Greatest English-Language Novels Since 1923. Bit of a smaller sample size there.

[stray]

Ah my bad.

Really haven't read many 20th century classics.. outside the usual (Nabakov/Kerouac/Salinger). Not sure if Chuck P qualifies as "classic", but I've read him too.

[Ashamanchill]

I'm sorry if someone has mentioned this already, but has anyone read the new Wheel of Time installment yet?

[FatuousTwat]

I have to ask this somewhere:  Did Wallace get a lot of press in the last few years?  Or ever?   Because it feels like his suicide and the encomium in the New Yorker that followed has been helping build him up.  The unpublished excerpt from his latest in the NY did look good.  But I can't help feeling there's some retcon going on or academic justification. 

I'd heard of him before his suicide, but have never read any of his books.

I'm sorry if someone has mentioned this already, but has anyone read the new Wheel of Time installment yet?

No, I'm currently like 11/15 in position at the library... I'm sure I'll mention it when I do, though.

[Ashamanchill]

I have to ask this somewhere:  Did Wallace get a lot of press in the last few years?  Or ever?   Because it feels like his suicide and the encomium in the New Yorker that followed has been helping build him up.  The unpublished excerpt from his latest in the NY did look good.  But I can't help feeling there's some retcon going on or academic justification. 

I'd heard of him before his suicide, but have never read any of his books.

I'm sorry if someone has mentioned this already, but has anyone read the new Wheel of Time installment yet?

No, I'm currently like 11/15 in position at the library... I'm sure I'll mention it when I do, though.

Just finished it on the way to work today (yeah I powered through it pretty quick). It's a good read.

[bhodi]

Can you tell where it's ghost written?

[Ashamanchill]

To be pedantic, it's not ghost written, it's co-written. I think Brandon Sanderson wrote most of it, with Robert Jordan outlining what was happening. Actually, the few things clearly taken over by BS's writing style I thought were done better. There are a few places where it is obvious RJ wrote them, and to be honest they kinda sucked could have been left out of the book altogether.

(Don't worry I'm not giving anything away)

[Rasix]

So, does it finish the series?  I promised myself I wouldn't attempt to finish the series if they didn't end it.

[bhodi]

No, 2 more books to go because TOR's got bills to pay and mouths to feed.

[FatuousTwat]

They split the last book in three, but don't worry! It's still one book. 

[proudft]

All I need to know is if they finally reveal that braid-tugging is what breaks those Great Seals.

[Sheepherder]

All I need to know is if they finally reveal that braid-tugging is what breaks those Great Seals.

I laughed harder than that warrants.

[Ashamanchill]

You wouls Sheepherder.

[Sheepherder]

My ancestors were shepherds.  Unfortunately, they were also illiterate, so my last name is Sheppard.

[Sky]

Have you sexed up a blue alien at any point?

[Ashamanchill]

You would Sheepherder.

[Morat20]

No, 2 more books to go because TOR's got bills to pay and mouths to feed.

When it's all done, I'll read them again. I quit somewhere around book 85, mostly because I realized the first half of book 85 was everyone reacting to the last chapter of book 84.

I got really fed up with what felt like 6000 pages of "And holy crap, did everyone notice that immense magical working? Let's talk about it for 30 pages, then we shall allow EVERY character still alive who can sense magic to spend 30 pages on their version of 'OMG, WTF?'".

I think there's been three or four books since then, so I figured "why not wait?".

I just finished Unseen Academicals and despite finding the Wizard books the least amusing, enjoyed it. Mostly for Ponder Stibbons dry and detailed dissertation about the Wizards attempts to play soccer.