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Post by Lore on May 12, 2014 4:29:57 GMT -5
I recently started The Child Thief by Brom. I read Brom's Krampus the Christmas before last and I loved it. It was very dark and very graphic so it is not for those with uneasy stomachs. Gerald Brom is known in the D&D community for being the major artist for the Dark Sun campaign setting. He does his own artwork for his books and they are fantastic. In fact, he is one of my favorite artists.
I really want to jump in to Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson as it is the sequel to The Way of Kings which I had bought on a whim and fell in love with but it is a daunting title at about 345,000 words. I have to stop looking up that sort of information when I get such a behemoth of a book because it makes the task all that more daunting. If I don't start on this after my current read then I will put it off by reading The Devil's Rose which is also by Brom and is something of a giant picture book with some amazing artwork.
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Post by dragonreader on May 12, 2014 8:37:10 GMT -5
Now reading Empress of the Sun the 3rd book in the Everness series by Ian McDonald
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Post by Sargai on May 12, 2014 15:41:43 GMT -5
I recently started The Child Thief by Brom. I read Brom's Krampus the Christmas before last and I loved it. It was very dark and very graphic so it is not for those with uneasy stomachs. Gerald Brom is known in the D&D community for being the major artist for the Dark Sun campaign setting. He does his own artwork for his books and they are fantastic. In fact, he is one of my favorite artists. I really want to jump in to Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson as it is the sequel to The Way of Kings which I had bought on a whim and fell in love with but it is a daunting title at about 345,000 words. I have to stop looking up that sort of information when I get such a behemoth of a book because it makes the task all that more daunting. If I don't start on this after my current read then I will put it off by reading The Devil's Rose which is also by Brom and is something of a giant picture book with some amazing artwork. The Child Thief was an amazing book. I read it a few years ago and have recommended it often since then. I wrote a terrible review of it, parts of which I will quote instead of trying to remember opinions years old. Back before Eos was absorbed into Harper Voyager, they would release long samples on their site that provided more than enough pages (like a quarter of the book in some cases) to judge a book by. Despite the pain it caused my eyes, I sat there and read their sample of The Child Thief. I have to admit that though I thought the story was interesting, the prose wasn't doing much for me. I ordered it anyway and was glad that I did. Relevant because: The workmanlike prose that did nothing for me in the sample chapter blossomed into something that was rich and lyrical and really, exactly what I hoped for from an artist taking a swing at the writing game. I will admit that I had expected there to be problems with excessive description, but that never came to be. I thought the characters deserved the bulk of the praise though. As with most books, the primary characters get the most focus and the secondary characters are left with whatever can be spared. This is so common that I stopped considering it a mark against a book years ago. In The Child Thief, the brief moments we spend time with the secondary characters often changed my perspective of the novel. Peter, the iconic wild boy and one of our two main characters, is an obsessive sociopath. He is the opposite of the second main character, Nick, who he stole on one dark, horrible night. Nick is a skeptic, a doubt-bringer, in constant struggle with both himself and the world around him. The interplay between the two is well done, with Nick acting as Pan's conscience and Peter representing the wild boy that Nick could be if only he would let go of his doubt. Add to this the propensity of the novel to twist away from your expectations and predictions, the flawed characters, the prose, and the art and you have a book that is you really should read now or, at least, sooner than later.
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Post by mattymoron on May 16, 2014 21:42:23 GMT -5
Well, I just finished Night of the Hunter earlier today. First time I've not been able to read a new Salvatore book within 48 hours of it's release since The Orc King, but I literally had NO time for any reading outside of class last semester. It was the first thing I read once I got out for the summer. I won't post my full thoughts on it here, but, briefly, I will say I have extremely mixed feelings, almost entirely because of the way I feel the treatment of orcs is regressing. I loved the re-introduction of drow machinations, the finally cosmic struggle over Drizzt... Everything except the way the handling of the orcs (and Catti-Brie's sudden self-righteousness).
I've just started In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck, and I'm enjoying it so far, though I'm not far in. Over the past year or so, I've become much more, ahem, passionate about certain ethical and political beliefs of mine, and it's looking like Steinbeck is going to be someone that will be very affirmative for me. He's such a quietly brilliant stylist, The Red Pony is one of my favorite books of all time.
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Post by Avelyn on May 18, 2014 21:36:53 GMT -5
Wasn't making much progress on Night of the Hunter, for now, so figured I'd start something else. Am now reading the first book in Dean Koontz's Frankenstein series, entitled Prodigal Son. It's a bit different, but has been good, thus far.
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Post by Sargai on May 18, 2014 22:37:44 GMT -5
I just finished Jeff VanderMeer's Authority. Compared to the headlong rush into the weird that was Annihilation, Authority is a slow, spiraling descent. It is a different beast, but it is damn good. I thought I had something planned for my next read, but can't remember what it was. Might go ahead and reread Annihilation again.
EDIT:
Oh... right. I was reading Charlie Huston's Skinner. I may have to put that one aside for now. I wasn't expecting to find similar content in Authority and I really hate reading the same sort of books back to back (that's why I avoid fantasy series).
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Post by mattymoron on May 21, 2014 2:57:30 GMT -5
I finished In Dubious Battle last night, and read The Moon Is Down (also by Steinbeck) today, it was very short, only 126 pages.
They were both 4.5/5 books (extremely, extremely good), but I ultimately ended up awarding In Dubious Battle 5 on Goodreads, and The Moon Is Down only 4. I'm not entirely certain why. In Dubious Battle just felt like a more complete experience for me, The Moon Is Down was so quick, purposefully as it was meant to be translated into drama like Of Mice and Men, that I just didn't get the "Oh, wow..." feeling that makes me feel comfortable awarding 5 stars, though it is FILLED with some absolutely beautiful writing and some absolutely heartbreaking moments. In Dubious Battle is actually a bit more pessimistic, and rather rougher, definitely not as refined as The Moon Is Down. But, In Dubious Battle is a little more angry, and it got me a bit more riled up than The Moon Is Down, which really just made me feel more defeated, even though I think it's supposed to be a more affirmative book.
Actually, you know what. I'm just going to go ahead and give it 5 stars as well. I recommend them both whole-heartedly, they are both really quick reads and very, very worth your while. Steinbeck is quickly becoming one of my favorite writers.
Just started on Fear and Loathing: On the Campaign Trail '72 by Hunter Thompson. Just read the author's note, going to start digging into it tomorrow.
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Post by mattymoron on May 26, 2014 20:13:40 GMT -5
Just finished F&L on the Campaign Trail. Man. What an intense, hilarious, and utterly disheartening book. I think often this consumer-culture created celebrity mystique often overshadows how utterly brilliant Thompson was. One of the most incredibly raw and visceral stylists I've ever read, and so funny. If you're at all interested in presidential politics, I can't begin to recommend this book enough.
Now starting another of Thompson's books, Hells Angels.
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Post by Avelyn on May 26, 2014 20:35:03 GMT -5
Finished up Prodigal Son the other day and am going to start on Skin Game, the newest Dresden Files book, by Jim Butcher. Doesn't come out until tomorrow, but I plan on getting and starting it.
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Post by dragonreader on May 27, 2014 21:09:58 GMT -5
Finished Empress of the Sun the 3rd book in the Everness series by Ian McDonald. As usual with McDonald it was a great read.
Now reading Strange New Words a collection of short stories by Ari Marmell.
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Post by Sargai on May 28, 2014 14:43:51 GMT -5
I'm so burned out on most things that I've been having a hard time coming up with books to read. It will be different when the books that I have been looking forward to come out over the summer, but until then I am sort of stuck trying to find something, anything.
I read the sample to Anthony Ryan's Blood Song and figured I would give it a shot. The whole chronicler angle the book uses was soured for my by Patrick Rothfuss' great steaming piles of Mary Sue, so I am wary of that in this book. I'll probably end up reading Peter Higgins' Truth and Fear first because it should continue where Wolfhound Century left off, which is to say right in the middle of the fricking story.
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Post by Avelyn on May 30, 2014 16:25:38 GMT -5
Finished Skin Game and not exactly sure what I'm going to read next.
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Post by mattymoron on May 30, 2014 20:54:26 GMT -5
I finished Hell's Angels yesterday morning. It took me a little while to get into it (just because I've never really found motorcycle gangs very interesting), but Thompson's extremely elegant writing (much different from the style he developed later on, which is much more frenetic) and thoughtfulness really engaged me. Another excellent book.
I'm now about a third of the way through Voltaire's Candide. It's so funny, but nothing particularly revelatory thus far.
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Post by Sargai on May 31, 2014 22:45:10 GMT -5
I've been reading Truth and Fear by Peter Higgins. It seems like the author is trying too hard to make the main character seem cooler than he was in the last book and it is leaving a sour taste in my mouth.
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Post by dragonreader on Jun 3, 2014 21:19:58 GMT -5
Finished Strange New Words a collection of short stories by Ari Marmell. Really enjoyed it.
Now reading Please Pass the Guilt a Nero Wolfe novel by Rex Stout.
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