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Cary Storm
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RE: Currently Reading.
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Macha wrote:
Cary Storm wrote:

I've started The Great North Road by Peter F. Hamilton. Hamilton has put out several series of books, all of them wonderfully character driven epic Sci-fi stories (with a hint of fantasy elements to them).

 This was just published, right? I think I've heard about it. I should read Hamilton, I think I'd like him. I'm reading The Chronoliths by Robert Charles Wilson. Pretty ok so far.

 Robert Charles Wilson is also one of my always-buy-when-has-a-new-book authors. 



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Macha
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Cary Storm wrote:

 Robert Charles Wilson is also one of my always-buy-when-has-a-new-book authors. 

 Hmm, this one was ok but it seemed a bit unfocused and simplistic. Now I've started reading Kevin J. Anderson's Nebula 2011 anthology.



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Lyanna Stark
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Reading The Twelve by Justin Cronin. Anyone read this or have any input on it?

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Anneliese
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Of Bees and Mist, by Erick Setiawan. What a strange book! It's very much magical realism-meets-a mature sort of fairy tale. I'm enjoying it quite a bit.

The main antagonist is a fantastic "monster in law" kind of character that you really love to hate, but she's also unfortunately one dimensional so far.

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Macha
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Just started "Been in the Storm So Long: The Aftermath of Slavery" by Leon Litwack, and I can't put it down. Great book.



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Black as Snow
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It sounds fascinating, Macha. Let me know what you think.

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DonalNoyesArm
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I restarted the last Dunk and Egg novella, never got around to it. Since they arent huge I figure I should start over to get back into it.

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andrea
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can´t finish Julia Kristeva´s book. I need to mix that book with something lighter. PLEASE



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Rygar
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I currently read wicgeeks chat

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Cary Storm
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Currently reading Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey (aka Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. who helped see GRRM through ADWD). I expected a good book and it looks pretty good so far. Very heavy sci-fi. Of course, knowing Ty as I do, I wouldn't expect any less.

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Asha Karina
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Just finished the Other Hollywood, an  american porn history by Legs Mc Neil (already read an english punk history by the same author, "please kill me"), yeah i know... but i'm french so pardon me for introducing gross stuffs in a litterary section, it's cultural for us !

EDIT : ENGLISH GRAMMAR TORTURED BY RAMSEY KARINA !



-- Edited by Asha Karina on Sunday 21st of April 2013 06:28:33 AM

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andrea
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Asha Karina wrote:

(already have read an english punk history "please kill me by the same"), yeah i know... but i'm french so pardon me for introducing gross stuffs in a litterary section, it's cultural for us !

 punk is not gross!!! look at him!

joe.jpg



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"I´d not prolongued the chewing up, Doc. Nor the being spat out. Not go out a cunt. It´s the dispatch I find inglorious. The whole delusory fucking self importance.". Al Swedgin ;).

 

 

 
Asha Karina
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Joe Strummer was a great singer and a great human being, very rare person . And he died before Maggie, life is a whore !

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Asha Karina
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I didn't read all of him (the ones you mentioned are his south african novels, i haven't read them yet), but my favourite is certainly Porterhouse, love all of the academic's mentalities bashing (in a more violent way than David Lodge or alison Lurie). And as a teacher i must admit that i deeply understand his character's frustrations and creepy behaviours.



-- Edited by Asha Karina on Sunday 21st of April 2013 10:55:10 AM

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Asha Karina
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Rereading Tom Sharpe's Wilt, even better on a second shot !

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Macha
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Asha Karina wrote:

Rereading Tom Sharpe's Wilt, even better on a second shot !

 YES! I only read The Wilt Alternative, completely loved it. Wanted to purchase the whole series, but I keep forgetting. And I still haven't found his Riotous Assembly and Indecent Exposure here, I was very curious about those.



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Macha
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Finished Benioff's City of Thieves last night. Not great, a bit predictable, but not bad either. It'd work better as a coming-of-age war movie than a novel. The narrator is supposed to be Russian and I couldn't stop thinking "this is not how a Russian would write", but other than that it was very sweet and witty at times.



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DonalNoyesArm
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I need to get back to reading, I am a bing reader so I will devour a few books at a time and then not want to see a book for half a year. I am weird, I know.

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Asha Karina
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I make that with movies ... But i'm weird so i guess i'm not comforting you. I can't find a good recent novel so i reread Joyce Carol Oates and history books.

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Mags Giantsbabe
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Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children, Terry Goodkind's Wizard's First Rule. Stuff on Asceticism, Spatial Theory and Hagiography for my Masters

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Cary Storm
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I just started reading Terry Pratchett's _The Long War_ and I have Neil Gaiman's _The Ocean at the
End of the Lane_ in the queue



-- Edited by Cary Storm on Saturday 6th of July 2013 10:50:41 AM

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Cary Storm
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Mags Giantsbabe wrote:

Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children

 yippiecheesemousesapito

 

Mags Giantsbabe wrote:

Terry Goodkind's...

 disbeliefnobarffacepalmblehnodisbelief



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Macha
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Just started Phillip Roth's Operation Shylock. I have yet to find another book of his other than The Human Stain that I could really get into.



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Tir Airgid
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How's the Pratchett one, Cary?

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Mags Giantsbabe
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Cary Storm wrote:
Mags Giantsbabe wrote:

Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children

 yippiecheesemousesapito

 

Mags Giantsbabe wrote:

Terry Goodkind's...

 disbeliefnobarffacepalmblehnodisbelief

 Well I"ll agree Terry G is not GrrM. But I'm glad I read it. Enjoyed it, actually *ducks!*cerseiwatch



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Cary Storm
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Tir Airgid wrote:

How's the Pratchett one, Cary?

 Excellent. 2nd in a series. I ate it all up. 



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andrea
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Someone here read some Alice Munro. Never heard of her and seems like a crime because there´s people calling her "the new Chekhov". That should be pretty great.



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Macha
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Dunno about Alice Munro, haven't heard about her until they gave her the Nobel award.
Currently reading Naomi Klein's No Logo and Stoner by John Williams. Both really good so far.

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Bastard de Hodor
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Scott Sigler's latest thriller, "Pandemic", was just released and I downloaded it to my kindle. It's the third in his "Virus Invasion" series...a very unique horror/sci-fi series that includes "Infected" and "Contagious". He's got a crazy wild style that keeps the blood pumping and lungs gasping. I've been waiting for a few years for this one.

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Al Swearengen
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This summer I plan to read Cormac McCarthy's The Road, Blood Meridian and finally start Stephen King's The Stand.

I might also see if I can squeeze in Neil Gaiman's Sandman series in there, I've read the first Graphic Novel and loved it.



-- Edited by Al Swearengen on Saturday 3rd of May 2014 04:24:23 PM

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TormundsWoman
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Al, I loved McCarthy's The Road. It is so visceral and quite frankly awesome. I've read several of his but this one is the best of his works IMO. Never saw the movie adaptation though. They tell me it's just as good. Also All the Pretty Horses ranks high too.

I started yesterday Christopher Moore's "The Serpent of Venice". I liked his Lamb and loved his Fool. I might even re-read the Sacre-Bleu when I'm done with this one. I found that one so different from everything else he wrote. Quite refreshing because of it, though.



-- Edited by TormundsWoman on Saturday 3rd of May 2014 04:17:00 PM

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Rygar
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Blood Meridian is amazing, especially if you like westerns. The Road is pretty fucked up. No Country for Old Men is still my fav.

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JapieQ
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Blood Meridian took me ages to read, but mainly because his English is hard to read for me. Boy, I loved that book. People who think Gurm is gritty know about as much as Jon Snow.

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TormundsWoman
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Rygar wrote:

Blood Meridian is amazing, especially if you like westerns. The Road is pretty fucked up. No Country for Old Men is still my fav.

 Ry, if you are talking about one of the themes in The Road, specifically 

Spoiler

I'm buying Blood Meridian. You made me curious. Thanks.



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Rygar
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Yes TW. Its a beautiful and stunning portrayal of the most horrible circumstance a father could ever find himself in.

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The Kindly Man
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Has anyone read The Kingkiller Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss?  I'm trying to find some epics to help fill in while we await TWoW, but this trilogy also has the curse of "work in progress" with the last part currently 3 years in the making. 

I'm going to try the Maurice Druon 'The Accursed Kings' books that GRRM says served as an inspiration for ASOIAF, I'm interested in mediaeval history anyway and have read a few factual books on the subjects. Trouble is the first two in the series are cheap as eBooks but the rest get more expensive.



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Macha
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The Kindly Man wrote:

I'm going to try the Maurice Druon 'The Accursed Kings' books that GRRM says served as an inspiration for ASOIAF, I'm interested in mediaeval history anyway and have read a few factual books on the subjects. Trouble is the first two in the series are cheap as eBooks but the rest get more expensive.

 Here you can find many of Druon's books in second-hand bookshops, or in public libraries. Don't know how it is over there, but I'm sure you can find some copies, he was a big hit all over Europe.



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TormundsWoman
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I didn't know they republished the new edition of the Accursed Kings! Only the first two books in which Martin I think is involved. Probably why the ones that you find are really expensive.

I'm reading Joe Abercrombie now The First Trilogy. Makes for a good fantasy read. Exciting.

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The Kindly Man
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I have to get eBooks now as I have no room left on my shelves, so the used market is out no

 

I don't know Joe Abercrombie, I stopped reading fantasy for ages after the early 90s until I picked up ASOIAF three years ago, after the hiatus with GRRM I kinda decided only to read works which are complete now!



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TormundsWoman
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Joe Abercrombie's First Law is finished! Thank the Gods!!! teehee
But to be honest I'm not much of a fantasy reader. I've got the HP books, ASoIaF, The Camulod Chronicles and that's it. Read some more but it was long ago. Much more of a crime novels person or just plain classics.

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Rygar
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Reading an interview with Will Oldham aka Bonnie 'Prince' Billy.

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Asha Karina
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Manchester Music City by John Robb.

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andrea
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The Kindly Man wrote:

I'm going to try the Maurice Druon 'The Accursed Kings' books that GRRM says served as an inspiration for ASOIAF, I'm interested in mediaeval history anyway and have read a few factual books on the subjects. Trouble is the first two in the series are cheap as eBooks but the rest get more expensive.

 I read them, have them all (was a gift), I´d gladly give them away. How´s your spanish? smile. Didn´t like them but they are informative if that´s what you are looking for and you´ll have a broader view (?) of the whole thing BUT I bet there´s better books than those; some wonderful medieval historians out there that are/were also great writers.



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Asha Karina
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Andi, you already know this but i also hate Druon's academic style very very very much !

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Dolan
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If you guys are interested in medieval-ish stuff, i could recommend Bernard Cornwell's stuff, the Saxon stories, the Archer series, his version of Arthur, all great stuff. Not much politics in it though, more adventure, fantasy-like stuff, but i think what the Druon books promise is the court politics stuff, at least that's what inspired Martin in asoiaf.

I started reading The Gunslinger, first book of the Dark Tower series, hooked me up quite fast.

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The Kindly Man
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Well I got the first book in Druon's series quite cheap, so I shall see if it's my thing, if not - I won't read the rest!

One thing is that after reading GRRMs books "normal" fantasy or historical fiction feels a bit tame, for example Conn Iggulden's Roman, Mongolian and now War of the Roses series - enjoyable enough but they just seem a bit lightweight somehow even though they don't hold back on the violence of the age.

Strangely, since they are not really aimed at male readers, Philippa Gregory's 'Cousins Wars' (Wars of the Roses) series I found enjoyable because they are also focussing on people and courtly intrigue rather than the "boy's own" stuff of men going to war - although of course it doesn't have the gravity and grittiness of GRRMS works! 



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Dolan
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The Kindly Man wrote:

Well I got the first book in Druon's series quite cheap, so I shall see if it's my thing, if not - I won't read the rest!

One thing is that after reading GRRMs books "normal" fantasy or historical fiction feels a bit tame, for example Conn Iggulden's Roman, Mongolian and now War of the Roses series - enjoyable enough but they just seem a bit lightweight somehow even though they don't hold back on the violence of the age.

Strangely, since they are not really aimed at male readers, Philippa Gregory's 'Cousins Wars' (Wars of the Roses) series I found enjoyable because they are also focussing on people and courtly intrigue rather than the "boy's own" stuff of men going to war - although of course it doesn't have the gravity and grittiness of GRRMS works! 

 Don't you think that's rather because George Martin is heavy handed in his depiction of violence than the other authors being too light on theirs? Keeping in mind that they're writing their fiction based on real historic events they're even more constrained on their choices than Martin, who chose a full fantastical background instead. This tells against him even more, as i see it, 'cause he can talk about realism as much as he wants, but in a story with dragons, zombies and white walkers, every piece of violence being depicted is done by his choice, not by any mandate from realism or any of that.



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The Kindly Man
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Dolan wrote:
The Kindly Man wrote:

Well I got the first book in Druon's series quite cheap, so I shall see if it's my thing, if not - I won't read the rest!

One thing is that after reading GRRMs books "normal" fantasy or historical fiction feels a bit tame, for example Conn Iggulden's Roman, Mongolian and now War of the Roses series - enjoyable enough but they just seem a bit lightweight somehow even though they don't hold back on the violence of the age.

Strangely, since they are not really aimed at male readers, Philippa Gregory's 'Cousins Wars' (Wars of the Roses) series I found enjoyable because they are also focussing on people and courtly intrigue rather than the "boy's own" stuff of men going to war - although of course it doesn't have the gravity and grittiness of GRRMS works! 

 Don't you think that's rather because George Martin is heavy handed in his depiction of violence than the other authors being too light on theirs? Keeping in mind that they're writing their fiction based on real historic events they're even more constrained on their choices than Martin, who chose a full fantastical background instead. This tells against him even more, as i see it, 'cause he can talk about realism as much as he wants, but in a story with dragons, zombies and white walkers, every piece of violence being depicted is done by his choice, not by any mandate from realism or any of that.

 When I said lightweight I didn't mean depiction of violence so much as the way the characters are written with unexpected twists and turns in their arcs. The multiple POV thing (even with the problems it creates with bloating) is what creates a lot more depths in many characters and the story, plus the willingness to dispose of what seem like crucial characters along the way - dunno, not explaining myself too well here!

I should try some of Cornwell's work though perhaps.



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Then you probably won't like Cornwell, his writing is pretty straightforward, usually a single plot-line story, some twists here and there, but not much. I think it's a safer course, easier to read, and not less entertaining then the most complex stuff out there.
About Gurm, yeah he kept juggling with those multiple plots until he wrote himself into the Mayonnaise Knot, heh.
I mean, it was really great stuff, but then he went too far.



-- Edited by Dolan on Sunday 29th of June 2014 01:04:18 PM

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TormundsWoman
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No, KM! I think I got it. I feel the same way actually. There's something about Martin's POV style that makes it resonate with the realism one would expect from a different literary genre, actually. I find his characters inner conflicts the way he describes them powerfully written.

For example in the books I'm reading now the POV shows little depth of human struggling. All the protagonists in The first law have some kind of past that haunts them, actions that are questionable, but it is rather shallow written. You just go with the plot. The heroes don't stop to process what happens to them. The story is so plot and action driven it feels like a marathon. Not once that happened with Martin. Anyway, I just wanted to underline that some of us do feel like you!

Finished the first book and though it feels like I just stepped into a Michael Bay action pact movie, I feel the need to continue! Moved on to second book. Curious to find out what I want to know about what makes some characters tick.

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