No books in a while for me, I'm still trying to catch up on all my other "required" reading...

I'm reading "The Bartimaeus Trilogy" and "The Keys To The Kingdom" series.

I suppose I should put in a plug for the Golden Age classic "The Weapon Shops of Isher" by A.E. van Vogt. My daughter was so knocked over by it that she tried to talk her high school English teacher into assigning it for the whole class. That didn't fly, needless to say. Still, it's more fun than "Beowulf".

aside from tons of required reading, I'm reading Confess, Fletch by Gregory Macdonald.

I finished The Hard Way Up - the last couple stories were a bit stupid. I have started on book four - Spartan Planet.

So far it is a big step up from the first three but given his track record on the first three books I am sure that Chandler will have found some really lame and stupid way to end the book.

Pyramids by Terry Pratchett. His books are hilarious.

Hmm, this "Magician" is a bit weak so far. How on earth did it get into the Top 100 books of all time?

The Butcher Boy by McCabe...funny at times, but mostly tragic.

"Magician" is a great book. That trilogy by Feist is one of my favorites.

BTA, I hope it gets better then. I'm 200 pages in and yet to encounter anything other than a bunch of one-dimensional characters doing dull things (like travelling through a dangerous ancient dwarven mine tunnel because the mountain pass is snowed in - wonder where that idea came from?)

:lol: You remind me of this guy in highschool. I loaned him my "Riddlemaster" trilogy and told him they were good. True, the story started slowly, but ended up pretty good. Well, every day when I saw him he'd smile and say "Boooriiinng", and I'd tell him "Just wait, you'll see" and in the end he agreed with me :)

Hopefully this will turn out the same. It has been many years since I've read "Magician", but I do remember it fondly :)

I agree with BTA: Feist's "Magician" is a great trilogy. But it's been 15 years since I've read them also. I not sure how they would hold up on a first reading today.

I just finished Garth Nix 'Abhorsen' series. Good stuff.

JSBB: You seem to read an amazing amount of mediocre crap. Maybe you should try reviews or something first :p

@ Aikanaro - with the volume of books that I read it is inevitable that I will get a fair amount of crap - especially when I try new authors. Also, when it comes to books (and most other things actually) my mediocre/decent/good/excellent scale tends to be skewed higher than most people's. It is a very rare book indeed that would earn an excellent on my scale.

I have finished book four (Spartan Planet) - for once Chandler's ending wasn't bad. Still, the same general idea was done a lot better by Lois McMaster Bujold in Ethan of Athos. I have started on book 5 - The Inheritors. So far it has fairly dull. I suppose that book 4's males only planet of homosexuals and book 5's matriarchal nudist society may have been controversial enough to support a book with relatively little plot back in the 70s but frankly I am not so easily impressed.

Chugging away at Sue Grafton's alphabet series. I'm halfway through 'C is for Corpse' and next up is 'E is for Evidence'.

@ kuemper - What happened to D?

@JSBB - D is in Deerlake :lol: Really, it's in Deerlake at that library and I can't be bothered requesting it.

The Illearth War - Stephen Donaldson

The Blue Dress -Libby Hawthorne (I think)

The Antichrist - Friedrich Nietzsche

I finished The Inheritors - for once Chandler actually had a good ending. It was a welcome surprise.

I have started on The Woods Out Back by everyone's favourite writer of schlocky fantasy (R.A. Salvatore). I must say, so far Salvatore really outdid himself of the groaningly corny scale - everytime Mickey McMickey (a leprechaun) says or does anything I start to :rolleyes: . :shake:

All this historical stuff I have to read to my university classes :(

Black Juice (can't remember the author's name...)

Guys, if you can find copies, I seriously suggest that you pick up copies of the Fletch series by Gregory MacDonald. You may remember them as Chevy Chase played Fletch in the first novel somtime ago. These are the funniest books I've ever read :D

I'm now reading Way of the Warrior, Book 1 of the Miyamoto Musashi series by Eiji Yoshikawa

_Memories of Ice_ by Steven Erikson - YES!

Now THAT is a quality read, Chandos. Not like this "Magician" rubbish. 350 pages in and it still hasn't risen above the quality of your average Salvatore blah-fest. Erikson has great and memorable characters. Feist just seems to have bunch of people who do some stuff.

_The Chosen_ Ricardo Pinto,

very in depth, and hard to put down. But equally as hard to pick back up again for fear of never being able to put it down again.

I agree with you, HB - Erikson is quite a bit better than Feist. BTW, _House of Chains_ is due for American release in August of 2006. I wish I knew why we were having to wait for so freakin long for books that were released everywhere else, at least so it seems, years ago. :confused: But I've never read anything by Salvatore...it doesn't appear I'm missing much though...

I've just finished the best book I've read in several years: Assassin's Apprentice by Hobb.

While I seem to always judge everything by Martin's works....I'm not sure that even he can match up with her ability to bring her characters to life and evoke such reader response to their actions. I had a hard time putting the book down. The way she crafts her sentences -- one flows after another with such smoothness, as if someone is talking the tale -- effortless to read and impossible to ignore.

Oh, good. I've been thinking about putting something by Hobb on my list, and since I've never read anything by her, that may be a good place to start. But Erikson is first. :grin:

Spellbound - can't believe its taken you so long to read Robin Hobb, after all the praise she gets on these Boards. The Farseer trilogy is awesome, and I liked the Liveship Traders trilogy even more. For me, modern fantasy is all about Erikson, Hobb, and Martin. Nobody else I've read holds a candle to those three.

400 pages into Magician and it is actually starting to get a little bit better.

i'm definitely with HB on this one. at least with Martin and Hobb :p Haven't tried Erikson or Feist yet though. Witrh the exception of Feist's Faerie Tale which was actually pretty good.

I also think that Greg Keyes and Tad Williams are good. But IMHO, Erikson is the standard right now.

Paul Auster - "Oracle Night"

"Magician" is getting a bit better now. The first 300 pages were complete garbage but it's almost as if a different person took over the writing from that point on.

The standard IS Erikson, Martin and Hobb those three are neck and shoulder above everyone else. There are quite a few simmering just below those though like Mieville, Bujold, Keyes and a few more.

The standard IS Erikson, Martin and Hobb those three are neck and shoulder above everyone elseCarey is actually every bit is good as those three; see Kushiel's Dart.

Currently re-reading Donaldson's Gap Cycle. It's damn good.

I've read some of Martin, and to be honest, Erikson is superior. I have not read anything by Hobb, but still, as far as I'm concerned no one has come even close to what Erikson has accomplished with Tales of the Malazan, except Tolkien - and he's the grand master. ATM, I'm in the middle of _Memories of Ice_ and it's the best thing I've read since LoTR for pure accomplishment of narrative structure - so far. IMHO, "Memories" puts Erikson in a class by himself among the current fantasy writers. No one comes close.

[ November 10, 2005, 05:46: Message edited by: Chandos the Red ]

Ah, Chandos, welcome to the club. Maybe that is why books like 'Magician' seem so shallow to me because Erikson has set such a high standard for me. Erikson's books are just so rich.

HB - It's been quite a few years since I've read "Magician" and compared to what was being written at the time, Feist did a pretty good job. And also consider that Magician was written in the 80s: There was Jordan, and the first two books of the _Wheel of Time_ series, which I thought was the best at that time; then there was David Eddings, whom I liked; the very average Dragonlance books; Terry Brooks' efforts, which I won't comment on; and Dennis McKiernan, who like many of the other writers in the 80s was inconsistant, ranging from very good, to abysmal. And I'm sure I'm forgetting a few - it has been twenty years.

But IMO, Feist is still a pretty good writer. Granted he's not as good as Erikson, or perhaps your Robin Hobb, whom I don't doubt is as good as you claim, and I have commented at length here on Feist's most recent work. While I think his work is pretty good, especially for the casual, or more mainstream reader, it is no where near what a demanding reader, such as yourself, would place in the first rank. Erikson requires a lot from the reader. Just the first two books alone, which are quite sizable tomes, appear to be almost exposition for the far more ambitious design that Erikson appears to be crafting with the Malazan series.

Everytime I pick up one of his epic masterpieces, the scope and the story's overall architecture appears to enlarge exponentially. Just when you think he can't add more characters, Gods, mytholoical creatures, clans and tribes of lost civilizations, they appear quite literally out of the swirling dust of his world.

YET, while mortals ascend to become gods and mythological beings of fantastic power vie for power, Erikson still painstakingly renders the most insignificant infantry soldier with loving detail. There are so many great characters in this story that they are all hard to keep track of. And the most lowly soldier is just as important as the most lofty god in Erikson's world, and in the grand scheme of his story. I could go on like this - but I'll stop now. :)

I agree with you guys on Erikson, Martin and Hobb. But House of Chains in aug 2006 (I assume paperback, but still)??? Midnight Tides came out, on paperback, about a year ago here. BTW,The Healthy Dead: A Tale of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1597800066/104-2081012-9595941?v=glance&n=283155&s=books&v=glance) is coming out in december, while we're waiting for Bonehunters.

Erikson still painstakingly renders the most insignificant infantry soldier with loving detail. Exactly! This is what makes him brilliant, not the sweeping history and grand scale. Compare a minor Erikson character like Picker or Itkovian with a main Feist one like Pug or Tomas and there is no comparison.

It's still some sort of wierd mystery why his books seem to have been available for years in the rest of the world, but are only just now coming out in USA. Very odd.

Right now I got three books goin' (I 've gotten ever so bored with the The first man in Rome series, so I've begun something new)... For light reading I have Eragon. Yup, nothing beats a fantasy novel when it's cold and rainy outside... Besides that, I'm reading Homers the Illiad and, of course, the last book in the The first man in Rome series by Colleen McCullough..

At the minute I'm reading Sharpes Company by Bernard Cornwell and I've just started the first of the Dragonlance Chronicles, Dragons of Autumn Twilight :) .

I am currently reading The Swordman's Oath by Juliet E. McKenna, which seems pretty good so far.
The previous in the series, The Thief's Gamble, is also very good. I'd strongly recommend reading it first too, as the sequel assumes you've read it.
Both of them are solid, pretty 'serious' high fantasy.
:borg:

After finally picking up a copy of Fight Club (I am woefully behind the times... the dangers of teaching "old" literature, I suppose), i've become a Palahniuk fanatic. Picked up Survivor yesterday (and Dune, so I can finally get that damned monkey off my back - he's been throwing bannanas with "Dune, dipstick!" at my head a lot lately).

All of that, along with trying to re-swallow most of John Steinbeck's major works and a great deal of scholarship in preparation for my Senior-level "Studies in a Major Author" class.

So, the next month or so of my life will be something like: Read. Teach. Grade. Pee. Read some more. (note lack of sleeping and eating).

Erikson still painstakingly renders the most insignificant infantry soldier with loving detail. There are so many great characters in this story that they are all hard to keep track of. And the most lowly soldier is just as important as the most lofty god in Erikson's world, and in the grand scheme of his story. I could go on like this - but I'll stop now. Y'know...based on why you like Malazan, I'd recommend reading Donaldson's Gap Cycle. Scifi, not fantasy, but the books share the virtues you're extolling there. The only caveat is that the first book is extraordinarily brutal, and the second only seems less so by way of comparison--so don't read them if you don't have a strong stomach.

I completely agree with your assesment of Erikson, by the by.

re-reading the murder at hazelmoor by agatha christie, i cna never get tired to her stuff

R.A. Salvatore - Icewind Dale Trilogy

Out of desperation, I am starting Jordan's "Wheel of Time" books again.
:help:

God, you are desperate for a good read. I am not doing much better with WOTC new book "Whisper of Waves". Utter drivel.

@newfie

is that an FR novel? have you tried reading from that new "Priests" series? I've been thinking about getting the one that Richard Lee Byers wrote, but I'm traumatized by Bruce Cordel''s Lady of Poison which was one of the worst FR books I've ever read.

Stay away from the priest series, Enagonios. I have that collection and it is crap. The thief series was pretty good, so lay your hands on that if you can, especially The Yellow Silk.

If you can, grab the new series of books in the Age of Conan: the Hyborian series. This stuff is gritty, grim and dark just like Conan's world. It ain't Robert E Howard, but it's still a good read.

Also Del Rey has released all of Howard's works: the first being the Coming of Conan, the second,The Bloody Crown of Conan and the third forthcoming. Save the money you spend on WOTC novels, which have the equivalent of a thirteen year old's reading level and buy these masterpieces.

oh okay, thanks newfie. of the thiefs collection i think black bouqet and the yellow silk are available. i was also kinda discouraged from that series because the only one i've read so far was the crimson gold and it was crap imo. i think the fantasy masterworks series has reprinted howard's conan stuff, i'll check it out.

Yesterday I finished The Dragon's Dagger and Dragonslayer's Return to finish off the Spearwielder's Tale trilogy by R.A. Salvatore. Despite some decidedly corny elements I actually found it quite enjoyable.

I then read The Hero by John Ringo and Michael Williamson. I wasn't expecting much but it was surpisingly very entertaining. However, I wouldn't recommend it if you have not read Ringo's Posleen series.

Tolkein's Unfinished Tales. I'm intrigued by some of the backstories and history that he established yet never covered in LotR or Silmarillion, and I'm enjoying learning even more about the world of Middle Earth.

I just finished Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. To be honest, I am not quite sure what to make of it. Book: Great! Arguement contained therein: Hmmm...

started The Magician's Nephew today :)

"How the Koala Lost his tail and other Australian short stories".
Took 5 mins to read the whole thing. :lol:

Enagonios, C.S. Lewis' The Magician's Nephew?

I really should revisit Narnia soon.

Gene Wolfe's The Wizard Knight

@Lai you mean you leave Narnia, how strange :lol:

Indeed it is my gel ;) Uncle Andrew really is annoying :|

I have some free time to read now. My choice is Ken Follet - The Eye of the Needle

Eye of the Needle is such a great book. The Eagle has Landed is just as good.

Lately I've been reading the Handbook of Epoxy Resins (real exciting).

Currently reading Midnight's Mask, the last in the Erevis Cale trilogy. Pretty good, halfway through.

I like Ken Follet's books very much. Well maybe not all of them :p

Good point, Undertaker. Pillars of the Earth is a great book.

Yeah, Key to Rebecca and Triple are enjoyable as well, but Eye of the Needle is great. The movie with Donald Sutherland and Kate Nelligan is pretty good too.

The Risen Empire, by Scott Westerfeld. Stereotypical scifi, in that it's got pretty entertaining and interesting technology and plotting, but, erm, minimal characterization. At best.

Fun, but forgettable.

Darkness Visible by William Golding

will start the lion, the witch and the wardrobe tonight if i can do all my work without passing out :eek:

Currently working on Nietzsche's "The Gay Science", David Attenborough's "The Private Life of Plants" and Benjamin Hoff's "Te of Piglet".

Slow progress. I'll get to the end of them, eventually...

Waiting for the next volume of Robin Hobb's Soldier Son trilogy.

But the last book I read was Terry Pratchett's "Going Postal". Bit of a Pratchett fan... :o

what's with the :o face? :) the boards are filled with Pratchett fans, I'm also now one of them :D how was the 1st book in soldier's son?

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe

err... Galaxy

Re-reading "A Storm of Swords 2: Blood and Gold" by George R. R. Martin, in preparation for "A Feast for Crows" which I got the other day (I've forgotten everything that happened in the other books, I think).

Oh, the first soldier son book was :love: ! As are all Hobb's books in my most humblest opinion. I'm head over heels with the way she plays the readers feelings. You actually find yourself arguing with the characters (No! Why'd you go and do that for!) and hope that the character would wisen up.

It's so great that for once a fictional character isn't just some kind of a narrator voice hanging in the ether, or a person with an amazing luck, who just does the right thing getting to the right goals without any actual effort. This is rarer than one would hope, but in Hobb's books (and in some other cases as well) it happens. Her characters have depth, and they grow as people.

On a different note, I'm waiting for Iain M. Bank's next novel as well. And those Ian Banks -books aren't bad at all either.

[ November 21, 2005, 08:13: Message edited by: Ichor ]

I just started some kooky book from the 1930's called 'Topper Takes a Trip' that my sister got for free when the library was trying to get rid of stuff. It's ... interesting. Magical realisticish, maybe, though I haven't gotten very far.

I have started on Red Death by P.N. Elrod - so far it has been forty pages of fairly dull character introduction and what appears to be a rather poor attempt at setting the stage for the beginning of the plot.

I find this bizarre given that Elrod normally jumps right into the plot, typically making you have to figure out what is going on along with the main character.

Heck, everything about this one is below Elrod's normal level - hopefully it will get better once the plot starts moving.

'Black Gods and Scarlet Dreams' by C.L. Moore.

I have finished Red Death and all I can say is that the entire novel feels like it is nothing more than one hugely inflated origin/flashback that would normally take up 10 pages or so. I kept wondering when the actual plot would start - but it never did.

I have started on Death and the Maiden (book 2 of the series) and it looks like more of the same so far. :rolleyes:

Topper Takes a Trip was incredibly enjoyable. :)

Am now reading Cabal by Clive Barker.

I have finished Death and the Maiden - there was a bit more of a plot to this one but it was fairly poorly done and the ending was just plain annoying. The old vital information just falls right into the main character's lap in the nick of time plot gimmick just makes me want to :rolleyes: .

I have started on Death Masque (book 3). More of the same so far.

Just finished "The World According to Clarkson" by...well...Jeremy Clarkson. Gonna start Digital Fortress by Dan Brown tonight.

Currently reading Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melnibone series. It's like seeing an old friend again after twenty years of being apart.

And since I'm feeling nostalgic, I actually just came across my old 3-book (Players Handbook/DM Guide/Monster Manual) AD&D set. Probably won't read any of them cover to cover, but still a nice stroll down Memory Lane...

I have finished Death Masque. It was about the same level of quality as Death and the Maiden but at least the resolution of the plot wasn't so lame.

I have moved on to book 4 - Dance of Death. More of the same so far.

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson. Seems pretty heavy going to begin with. He doesn't really explain things much! Hopefully things will make more sense later...

Yeah, it is really heavy going and to be honest, I'm still not sure what happened half the time. But I just love the overall concept and each little character is so different and individual. The series also gets better as it goes along.

about to start Tyrant by VM Manfredi. Should've read Narnia when I was younger.. can't really get into it now so I think I will stop with the lion, the witch and the wardrobe instead of finishing all the books.

Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey - lots and lots and lots of porn...

... a Harlequin collection that includes 4 novels were the romantic lead is a Sheikh of some sort.

:angel:

I changed my mind on reading Digital Fortress...so I'm reading The Narnia books instead, for the first time :D

good for you on the first, and good luck to you on the second dave. as i mentioned in my previous post, i couldn't really get into narnia :/

Pfft. CS Lewis > Dan Brown.

I have moved on to book 4 - Dance of Death. More of the same so far. Not to be a twit, but why are you still reading the series?

Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey - lots and lots and lots of porn... Indeed. It's rather unique among fantasy (I've read) in that respect. If you can get over that, erm, hurdle, you'll have loads of fun with it--it really is an excellent book. If you can't, you should probably skip it.

I am still reading the series because I bought the set of four together on e-bay and I figure that I might as well read them once.

If you look over my posts in this thread you can see that I can typically keep up a book a day pace so it isn't exactly a huge investment of time for me to finish the series.

I will probably finish book four during my train ride tomorrow and be started on something different.

I'm reading Canticle at the minute, it's quite slow paced, but well written and entertaining. I recommend it to those who haven't read it already.

I picked up Eragon yesterday on a friend's recommendation, and started reading it around 11 pm. At 1 am, I realized that I was still reading and that I really needed some sleep if I wanted to function in class. I'm finding it an engrossing read.

I finished Dance of Death yesterday. Elrod apparently decided that it would be good to ramp up the plot in this one, unfortunately the ending really fizzled out. Oh well, at least I am finished with the series.

I have started Spirit Ring by Lois McMaster Bujold. I am nearly 50 pages into it but it seems like I have barely read anything. I really don't know what to think of it yet except that either I somehow ended up with a large print version for the visually impaired or that the printers decided to try and make the book look bigger than it should be by using a large font and really spacing things out.

Still re-reading "A Storm of Swords 2: Blood and Gold" by George R. R. Martin in preparation for A Feast For Crows. This book is actually much better than I ever remembered! It's enough to make me want to use a dire-wolf all the time in NWN.

The Willow Files. Picked it up for fifty cents at the library the other day. Not too great; just rehashing the episodes. :bad:

Being inspired by a thread here I will read all my Asterix&Oblelix comics right now :D

Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell

Great book

I finished The Spirit Ring today, it was not Bujold's best work but it was still quite good.

I have started on Black Griffon by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon. I have been putting off reading this series because I had a feeling that I wouldn't like it, and so far it is living down to my expectations. Lackey is much better at smaller scale stories, when she wanders into larger epic fantasy stories they just don't seem to work.

Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. (For a related text :rolleyes: )

Dreams of Stardust - Lynn Kurland. ALthough it is extremely uncharacteristic of me to read a romance (blah) my mother told me this one was actually pretty good and it has time travel and ghosts in it. Being as my mother usually doesn't read romance either I took her word for it and I'm actually enjoying the novel.

Tad Williams - Shadowmarch, Book I. So far it's pretty good.

just finished Tyrant by Valerio Massimo Manfredi. I liked it more than Spartan, his other book. It was actually very good. You see the transition from nice guy to ******* and all the reasons for it, kinda like a well-done version of what happened to Cyric in the FR Avatar Trilogy. Going to do some light reading and go through a cheap copy of Silver Shadows by Elaine Cunningham that I picked up.

@Chandos

could you let me know how it turns out? maybe a review? :D I've been thinking aobut getting it and your vote will swing it to either yea or nay :)

Enagonios - Will do, and if it is better than average, I will post a review. So far I really like it, but I just got started on it and it is quite long.

I finished Black Griffon during my lunch break - I was actually very pleasantly surprised as it was actually quite good. There was just enough of the epic story to serve as a background while most of the story focused on the main characters' lives. :thumb:

I am moving on to The White Gryphon (book 2). Given that Black Gryphon covered the events that I had though would take up the entire series I am really not sure where the plot is going to go in books two and three. I guess I will just have to read them and find out.

T. Ernesto Bethancourt's Doris Fein: Superspy.

I recently finished Reading in the Dark by Seamus Deane and thought it was good. :)

Book #11 of the Wheel of Time: Dagger of Dreams. Has been more interesting than the last two books too, during the two chapters I have managed to read.

Jussi Viitala - Vapaasta tahdosta, käyttäytymisen evolutiivinen perusta

This translates to: Jussi Viitala - Of the Free Will, the evolutionary basis of behaviour

A collection of stories illustrating the evolution of behaviour in animals, including humans as well.

Am reading Dances with Wolves by Michael Blake right now

Just got my grubby little hands on No Plot? NO Problem! By Chris Baty. Should be,.. interesting :D

I'm up to "The Horse and his Boy" in the Narnia series (I think thats its title). I'm rather enjoying it, granted its written for a much younger audience, but I still enjoy it. Its the sort of book I'd read to my kid if I had one...damn I think I just decided I want a kid, just so I can read to them, thats scary...

:yot: Kids are also good to have around for an excuse to buy lots of leggo.


The book I am currently reading is "The Witches of Eastwick" by John Updike. This is the edition that came out before the movie.

Ah, just finished re-reading "Storm of Swords 2: Blood and Gold" by George R. R. Martin. Brilliant.

Now I can start the next book in the series, "A Feast for Crows". :)

Started to read "Narnia Chronicles" first time from 10 years.

Got Assasins Quest by Robin Hobb today, I'll start reading that to finish the Farseer Series. It's bloody big though! It'll take me forever.

The Western Way of War - Victor Davis Hanson

Well, this is a rather fascinating exploration of the mechanics of hoplite combat.

just finished Dances with Wolves.. AWESOME stuff. gonna have to go see the movie..

The Two Swords (Book Three of the Hunters Blades Trilogy) By: R.A. Salvatore.
I love his books, they are always eye-poppingly :eek: great for me!

While away I finished the Kushiel's Dart trilogy and also read The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. Am now reading The Handmaiden's Tale by Margeret Atwood - yay dystopia!

While away I finished the Kushiel's Dart trilogyDoes that mean you ended up liking it after all, Aik?

It was good standard fantasy - not something I would rave over but quite enjoyable.

R.A.Salvatore, The Two Swords

Tom Clancy, Clear and Present Danger

When I'm done with the Hunters Blade Trilogy I'm due to reread David Eddings monster ten book Belgariad and Mallorean series.

Warsaw city guide. How I hate this city :mad:

Clive Cussler - Polar shift.

Enjoyable nothing more nothing less

Very close to finishing The Vampire Lestat - 50 or so pages to go. I'll probably move onto Queen of The Damned as soon as I'm done, unless something else comes along.

i read a number of the vampire chronicles. imo, the only ones worth anything were interview with a vampire and the vampire lestat. Memnoch the Devil was certainly crap. Not reading anything right now except economic journals and textbooks for school. can't wait until friday..

I had not been reading since I arrived in Chicago but I went out to Pizza restaurant and brought my book along because I knew there was going to be a wait. As typical with me, once I start reading I can rarely stop so I ended up finishing White Griffon back in my hotel room and I have started on Silver Gryphon.

White Gryphon was decent but not as good as Black Gryphon. It is a little too early to tell but Silver Gryphon seems similar in quality to White Gryphon.

1/3 of the way through "A Feast for Crows" by George R. R. Martin. Good stuff so far, even though not much has happened.

Assassins Quest is exceptional at the moment, I'm about a quarter through it. Hobb really is an exceptional writer, probably my favourite. I hope it doesn't get sad at the end olike the last one! Sad endings suck. Happy endings are where it's at.

Just finished Knife of Dreams by Robert Jordan and i can recommend it to every Wheel of Time fan...finally the pace in the story is to back to where it once was, and subquests finally ends...

I'll start reading A Feast for Crows by George R. R. Martin now, expectations are extremely high....

Barmy - Hobb rules. You can read the Liveship Traders trilogy next. I enjoyed that one even more than the Farseer trilogy although they're both great.

I hope it doesn't get sad at the end olike the last one! Sad endings suck. Happy endings are where it's at. Well, before reaching the state of contentment, there are still some volumes to be read. Bittersweet is the best that one can get. But that's probably the addicting part of it, the loss, the grief and no noteworthy reward.

-The Gift of the Magi
-Incredible Journeys
Oh yeah, I've just finished Black Juice. A disturbing book of short stories if I ever read one.

@Barmy

As I said in another thread (can't remember which) Fitz has got to be the most unfortunate protagonist ever. Nobody has had to put up with all the crap that he's had to. Still a good read though, but it can get pretty ****ing depressing lol

Gates of Paradise - V.C Andrews. I swore to myself I'd stop reading her books but I can't help it. I need to know what happens.

The depressingness of The Farseer Trilogy is one of its best elements IMO :)

Anyway, finished Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman - and it was funky. Now I'm once again lacking for reading material.

Have never played the Myst games, but I was in a used-book sale earlier and picked up a copy of Myst: The book of Atrus and Myst: The book of Ti'ana. I'm reading the former right now, pretty good stuff...

Don't know if it counts as a book, but currently reading Masamune Shirow's Ghost in the Shell. Excellent stuff, VERY witty in parts.

@Enagonios: Atrus is pretty good. Tiana's less so, IMO. There story's idea is pretty good, but I always felt neither book really took advantage of the material at hand. There's a third book in the series (The Book of D'ni) but I've never read it.

Yeah, I saw the the 3rd book in the bookstore and I'm planning to pick it up this weekend

I finished Silver Gryphon waiting for my flight home - it was good - better than White Gryphon but not quite as good as Black Gryphon.

I have started The War of the Flowers by Tad Williams. So far I am a little bored but the story has barely started yet.

With This Ring - Amanda Quick

Gotta read something while waiting for cookies to bake.

War of the Flowers is pretty good imo, it does start slow but it gets better.

now that i'm finally free I can continue reading Myst: The Book of Atrus

War of the Spider Queen -- Dissolution

So far, I am enjoying myself. But do the drow freak me out. It's waiding through a sea of blood and murder, I say. Ever deeper, ever farther we go.

:aww:

Cant wait to learn what the Mother of Lusts is up to. And whether the drow pantheon will attempt to take advantage of it all...

What comes after the "Dark Elf Trilogy" for Drizzt? I just finished Jordan's Knife of Dreams and I'm looking for something new to read...Any suggestions?

When I read for fun I usually stick to fantasy and sci-fi, but I also like reading history.

After Dark Elf comes The Icewind Dale Trilogy

Not reading anything at the moment - but after Christmas I don't think I'll be lacking for reading material for quite a while...

Bel... you've had all those listed in order on SP for years!

See near the bottom of http://www.sorcerers.net/Books/index_fr.php and continued at http://www.sorcerers.net/Books/index_fr2.php

And if you're looking for book suggestions, I dare say you'll find something listed at SP there that'll interest you.

Thanks, Tal - You've added so much to the site, I sometimes forget how huge it is...I mean, there's a front page??!?! ;) :p

That excuse is 6 years old now, you know... :p

I'm about halfway through "A Feast for Crows' by George R. R. Martin. Not much has happened, to be honest, but it's still great reading so far.

Taluntain wrote: That excuse is 6 years old now, you know...You of all people should know: Never mess with the classics!

:grin: :spin: :roll: :banana: :outta:

just finished the Book of Atrus, good stuff. Going to start on the Book of Ti'ana now.

I'm about 3/4's through Assassins Quest, I've just put it down as my eyes have gone funny from too much reading! Jeez, this is a mammoth book. Brilliant though, absolutely brilliant. I'm really getting into the nitty of it now, it's unfolding. I can see that Fitz is going to meet some sad end and Molly and Burrich are going to get it on. Unless Hobbs is luring me into thinking that before swinging in the twist at the end! Can't get enough of this. Hobb is my favourite author by a massive amount. I'll be getting her full works for sure.

Well finally I've read all the 4 threads on "currently reading books".

Made a very, very long list and started reading Eriksons malazan series first book "Gardens of the Moon"
Damn this thing is good :p

What worries me though is that someone said that after Erikson everything seems bland :( So should I continue with some lighter reading and leave Erikson for later or just binge right from the start :p

So far I've read
Tolkien works, WoT, Eddings stuff and Harry Potter books.

Erikson is certainly up there as providing some of the richest fantasy writing around at the moment, so most others will seem less 'complex' I guess but don't let that stop you.

I reckon if you stick to reading Robin Hobb, Steven Erikson, and George R. R. Martin then you are covering the 3 best fantasy writers around right now.

I finally finished The War of the Flowers on the train home today. It started slowly but it got better as it went along and overall I would say it was quite good.

I am working from home until the end of the month and with Christmas stuff going on as well I probably won't be doing much reading until January. I am not sure what I will start next - I guess it will depend on what I receive for Christmas.

I finally finished all 893 pages of Bradbury Stories and have started Vitals by Greg Bear.

I'm re-reading Dan Brown's DaVinci Code and enjoying making a MST3K experience out of it....

have started Vitals by Greg Bear.I don't think I managed to get past the first fifty pages of that book. I like Bear, but something about it just didn't do it for me.

Really? I like it so far. The action has just started with Hal's deep-ocean research trip seemingly sabotaged by something placed in the food, his deep-ocean finds later destroyed, Hal's twin brother Rob killed and a hint that the people behind it are those that do not think man should live for thousands of years.

I reckon if you stick to reading Robin Hobb, Steven Erikson, and George R. R. Martin then you are covering the 3 best fantasy writers around right now. Also, Greg Keyes and Tad Williams are very good. If you get a chance, check out the Briar King and the Charnel Prince.

@Chandos

those 2 books are a collaboration between the 2 authors? Also, how did Shadowmarch turn out?

Well, I now have a heap of books, and am starting with The Dispossessed by Ursula Le Guin.

Brown's back to "will reread when need to hecjkle" pile - American Gods by Neil Gaiman is SO taking priority. :love:

Finished on time with Dune and I got three books this Christmas:

Godel, Escher, Bach: An eternal golden braid, Song of Ice and Fire, A Feast for Crows and The Art of Computer Programming, Volume 2
Needless to say, I will start with the bigger masterpiece amongst them, "An eternal golden braid" :D

"1984" by George Orwell

Finished "Vitals" which was a good read, but left too many things open and unanswered at the end for my taste.

Started "Swift Thoughts" which is set of short stories by George Zebrowski.

I have been given "The Great Book of Amber: The Complete Amber Chronicles, 1-10" and will try out this evening if reading it might lead to back injury.

Just started Dan Brown's "Deception Point". Quite disappointing so far.

Yesterday I finished The Dispossessed - you should all read it :) It's certainly not a simple utopia - the flaws in both of the societies are put forward excellently.

This morning I read Animal Farm by George Orwell. Very funky.

And now I'm reading The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Murakami Haruki. Haven't gotten in enough to comment yet - though the writing is sound.

those 2 books are a collaboration between the 2 authors? Nope.

Also, I have not finished Shadowmarch. It must be the Holidays. :)

I'm forcing myself through reading 5th Harry Potter book. My God it is boring, not at the least as the previous 4 :(

Please someone tell me it gets better and that 6th book isn't as boring as this one...

Well, I would say that the 6th book is better than the 5th, though it is still inferior to the rest of them.

Hitchikers guide ot the galaxy and Pawn of Prophecy by Eddings

I got the 'Chronicles of Narnia' for christmas...I think I'll start reading that soon. :rolling:

started Myst: The Book of the D'Ni. Good stuff this trilogy..

Can't help to wonder: everything now is writen in 'trilogies'?...

Speaking of...

Song of Ice and fire (is in Spanish so I don't know if is the same title in English), by George R. R. Martin; just started.

Yay - just finished 'A Feast for Crows' by George R. R. Martin. Brilliant stuff. Hurry up with the next one!

Now reading 'Eats, Shoots and Leaves' by Lynne Truss.

Assassins Quest, nearly done and still waiting for all the twists at the end with bated breath! I keep turning each page waiting for something massive to happen :lol: . It sounded to me just then at Fool got skilled by the Coterie and tricked Fitz into telling them where Milly and his kid are! Ooooh.
Half don't want to read until the end, I hate horrible endings :lol:

The Farseer trilogy is certainly not what I would call a 'happy' book. More often than not, Fitz seems to have a really bad time.

Barmy - good to see that seem to read books at the same pace as me. Not like some of the people here who seem to be able to time-stop and read a 700 page book instantaneously.

I just finished Patricia Briggs' "Raven's Shadow" and am ready to start "Raven's Strike".

I have the last book of Harry Turtledove's "Darkness" series on my nightstand, next to "Polydoxy" by Dr. Alvin Reynes and the ever-unfinished "Pirate Hunter."

Over in the other room, we're almost through "HPatCoS" as Arlyn's bedtime book, and while at Disney World I picked up a collection of Pirate stories that I'm reading to Marcus.

SPOILERS HERE IF YOU HAVEN'T READ ASSASSINS QUEST BY ROBIN HOBB!!

Can somebody who's read Assassins Quest just explain something to me please. I'm near the end and Verity has just asked Fitz for his body for a time, so he can feel youthful and passionate again. So, they swapped bodies, right? So Fitz is in Verity's body and visa versa? But then, surely it was just Fitz who slept with Kettricken, not Verity? Kettricken just let Fitz's body have sex with her, but with Verity's mind? Ermm... losing it here. But then it gets more confusing. Fitz is meant to be in Verity's body, but then he goes to a bath in the stream and seems to be in his body again. Then he has sex with Starling, in his own body? When did they switch back? I never noticed them switch back to their correct bodies. Maybe I'm missing something here, can someone cast light on it?
I know I'm not the most intelligent of gents, but that's just really lost me completely!

It is a bit fuzzy but it is Fitz's body inhabited by Verity's soul/essence who had sex with Kettricken and then I am pretty sure it was all Fitz with Starling after they had switched back.

All a bit confusing :lol:

Just finished the book now. it was a superb read but I didn't like the ending. It was a bit lame, Hobby's let me down a bit there. Burrich and Molly could have at least found out what Fitz did and that he still lived etc. Living as a hermit with some nameless kid, was a bit of a let down for me. Only Starling ever bothered to come and see him! After he'd just saved the Six Duchies! Nice of them! :lol: I wouldn't be impressed.

Great read overall though, the Liveship Traders will be next, then I've got Narnia to read as I got it for Christmas, then I'll try and tackle Gardens of the Moon again. It'll take me until I;m 60 the speed I read at :lol:

Good work, Barmy - all the books on your list are great (in the opinions of several people here).

I've almost finished "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" and now a book by R. Scott Bakker has shown up on my Amazon recommended list, as recommended by people waiting around for the next Martin and Erikson books, but I've never heard of him. Has anyone here ever read anything by Bakker?

Heros of Horror by James Wyatt, Ari Marmell and C.A. Suleiman. A friend got 6 DnD books for gifts. I'm not jealous. Really. :shake:

Bakker is ok, I read the first book in his series. It was above average but didnt really fly all the way and came up quite a bit short compared to the big three.

Finally finished Stephen King's Dark Tower series. Best books ever. As the ending approached, my left eye shed a tear; no other book has managed that.

A Gentleman's Game, by Greg Rucka. Good espionage stuff, if a bit heavy on the exposition. It hits a bit too close to home, at times.

Also reading Heinz Guderian's Panzer Leader. Should be interesting.

I've read 5 Harry potter books in my 2 week christmas holiday. I was a bit hesitant to read Potter but those books read themselves, I couldn't lay them down. Especially after Prisoner of Azkaban.

Just finished American Gods (was rationing it - so much love for Neil Gaiman :love: ) and am now settling inffor a re-reqd of Bad Company by Jack Higgins.

Hmm, it has been a while since I was on-line. Since then i have read Thud! by Terry Pratchett - it was o.k. but like most of Pratchett's more recent books it fells like he phoned it in.

I have also read Sweet Silver Blues and Bitter Gold Heart by Glen Cook. Silver was o.k. and Gold was pretty good. I have started on Cold Copper Tears and it has been quite enjoyable so far.

Strangely, I've found myself reading a....classic! :aaa: (not by choice, by the way).
Emma -Jane Austen
And then I'll have to watch Clueless.
For school.
:rolleyes:

I just finished Cold Copper Tears. It was pretty good. I will be going on in the series to Old Tin Sorrows (book 4) next.

I finally finished The Wind-up Bird Chronicle - which was good, but I couldn't really recommend it to anyone. Something which I couldn't pinpoint that really irritated me about it was 'What was the point of writing this story?' - there just didn't seem to be a reason for it to exist. It wasn't that it was poorly written or executed - I just don't see why the author wrote it at all, if that makes any sense...

I also have recently read The Phantom of the Opera, which was funky, and am now reading Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie, which hasn't made a great impression thus far.

*sigh* Why can't all magical realism be as brilliant as One Hundred Years of Solitude?

thus spoke zarathustra and drizzt series "passage to dawn"

edit

i'm thinking of reading "a feast for crows" by martin

I just read Odd THomas by (I think) Dean Koontz, which was great, and I highly recommend it. There's a strong fantasy element to it, enough to satisfy buffs, but not enough to annoy non-fans.

I'm now reading Prey, by Michael Crichton. It's good too, but I'm waiting til the end to make a judgment.

Someone (Amaster iirc) also mentioned that book Daie. He said it had "the most traumatizing ending" I think. I may pick it up :D

(Referring to Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz)

Traumatizing is the word. I almost cried..... Um, in a manly way *sheepish grin*

Just started "The Darkness that comes Before" by R. Scott Bakker. Hope it's as good as everyone says it is and helps me fill the gap before Bonehunters and A Dance with Dragons show up.

Kurt Vonnegut - Play Piano

Just started it.

I finished Old Tin Sorrows - I really liked it. I have moved on to book 5 - Dread Brass Shadows.

Just started Atlanta Nights by Travis Tea :)

http://www.sff.net/people/rothman/atlantanights.htp

I just got my amazon order from sunday night....

New books:

Forever Odd, Dean Koontz, the sequel to Odd Thomas. Looks good

Gardens of the Moon, Steven Erikson. You guys cnvinced me to try his stuff. Here goes nothing...

Edit: New Gem! Yay! I can;t beleieve its taken me 4 years to get 450 posts!

Daie - good luck with Gardens of the Moon.

I'm about 20% of the way through "The Darkness that Comes Before" by R. Scott Bakker. So far, it seems OK. The epic scope reminds me of Erikson but without Erikson's amazing ability to breath life into the most minor characters. The only dubious thing so far for me is that the plot seems to revolve around that tired old device of the second coming of a Dark Lord (the Lord of the Rings plot so often copied by others, especially Terry Brooks). But still seems pretty good so far.

After the praise you guys gave Erikson, I picked up Gardens of the Moon and DeadHouse Gates myself. Pretty good read so far (Gardens of the Moon); a bit too militaristic and structured for my taste but I give the man credit for his attention to detail and complex characters. A lot of work went into this world.

I also just finished The Briar King which was good stuff as well. It dragged a bit at the start (I know he was laying the foundation down), but then it got grim and dirty in the middle and the end was as rousing as any good fantasy novel.

I also have a Guy Gavriel Kay novel "The Summer Tree" which I started but kind of lost me and I picked up Erikson instead. Anybody out there recommend Kay?

Just finished Hobb's Farseer Trilogy. Now moving on to the Liveship Traders Trilogy.

Why does everyone go from Farseer to Liveship Traders?

Does no-one move onto Fool's Errand?

I give the man credit for his attention to detail and complex characters. A lot of work went into this world. I second that.

Why does everyone go from Farseer to Liveship Traders?

Does no-one move onto Fool's Errand? I would read them in the order Farseer - Liveships - Tawny Man. It just seems like the right order to me, chronologically, even though Liveships happens miles away from the other two.

I'm going to read Fool's Errand by the sounds of things. I'd rather carry on with Fitz and the guys I know rather than read a complete new series of books with new characters. Fool's Errand supposedly clears up a lot of the loose ends at the end of Assassins Quest, that appeals to me. The end was awfully rushed IMO.

Newfie - Sorry, I have not read Kay. But I agree with you on Greg Keyes. The second book, The Charnel Prince, is almost as good as the Briar King. It would be just as good were it not for the ending. Unfortunately, the Blood Kinght, book 3, will not be out until this summer.

*throws stuff at Barmy*

The ending of Assassin's Quest is perfect - so bleak and depressing. The 'clearing up' which The Tawny Man does cheapens it IMO.

Also: Liveship Traders would be best to read first anyway - seeing that the plot of that is closely related to the plot of The Tawny Man (though it might not be obvious straight away - since it takes two books of waffle for Hobb to get to the actual point of the trilogy).

@Newfie: I've only read "Tigana" from Gabriel Guy Kay. It took some time to pick an interesting pace, but I found the narrative quite good at all times.

I'm starting Paolini's "Eragon" now.

I just started reading The Crystal Shard (by you probably know who). I borrowed the first three books from a friend, finaly I get to read about the most amazing world I know.

If I were to pick up a George R.R. Martin book, where should I start?

Same question from me as well.

A Game of thrones

Newfie - you would definitely start with "A Game of Thrones"

Plus, I agree with Aikanaro about the Hobb books.

Said this about a gazillion times before, but here we go again...

Most of the fantasy books discussed here are listed, in order, on SP. And you can support SP by buying through those links! But even if you don't intend on buying through our links, you can still benefit from the ordered lists: http://www.sorcerers.net/Books/index.php

And for Martin specifically: http://www.sorcerers.net/Books/index_martin.php

Cool, wasn't aware of that Taluntain but thanks for the tip. How about a note in the book reviews section which was the first place I looked to find the order they come in. Might prevent the same question popping up in the future.

[Good idea, will do! -Tal]

[ January 13, 2006, 15:10: Message edited by: Newfie ]

I finished Dread Brass Shadows - it was very good. I have moved on in the series to book 6 - Red Iron Nails.

That's about when they start going a little South, JSBB.

Yeah, so I am noticing. So far Red Iron Nails hasn't been nearly as good as the previous books.

Guns, germs and steel by Jared Diamond. I have heard very good things about this book and the idea behind the book is extremely intriguing.

Carnage and Culture was a better read, Joacq. Same basic idea, vastly different take on it.

Reading C.J. Cherryh's Forge of Heaven. It's quite good. The characterization is more solid than usual for Cherryh, which is nice.

I finished Red Iron Nails - it definitely had a slow start but once it got on track it was pretty good.

I have, barely, started on the next book - Deadly Quicksilver Lies. I am not far enough into it to really form an opinion of it yet.

Just finished Gardens of the Moon (whew!) and don't think I am ready to take on Deadhouse Gates yet. So I picked up Poul Anderson's Conan the Rebel.

Never heard of that one AMaster. Diamond is a bit too much of a "scientist" for my tastes and too little of a historian but it is still very interesting the bits I have read.

Victor Hanson, the author of Carnage & Culture, is probably too much of a historian for your tastes, then. Simply fascinating accounts of a few battles, and even more fascinating explanations of the whys and wherefors. Agree or disagree with the thesis--that Western culture produces more lethal wars, warfare, and soldiers than any other culture--it's still engrossing.

Finished "Eragon" yesterday, starting "Elder" today. The whole story feels... rushed. Like if was more oriented to being a film than any other thing.

Then again, a quicker pace is always appreciated after WoT.

That does sound very interesting AMaster, the entire premise as to why Europe completely owned the rest of the world is fascinating.

I have always wanted to read that Guns, Germs and Steel book but I have not managed to get to it yet. I will try and look out for it in the library.

Stargate by Pauline Gedge. And no, it has nothing to do with the TV show or movie.

Started Deadhouse Gates and it is off a heck of a lot faster and more interesting than Gardens of the Moon. Or maybe that's because I know the world and characters a little better...

About a quarter into the first book of Tad Williams' Otherland. It's been rather frustrating, as parts of it are quite good, while others are either too bizzare or just plain uninteresting to engage me. I'm not liking the VR aspect of the book.

I'm also completely at a loss to see how Otherland is four volumes. The basic story seems simple enough to resolve in one.

Ah, well it's not so simple to resolve as you might think :)

I'm not sure what has happened only a quarter into the first book, but things get rather complicated, and much of the story takes place in the VR world. What seems bizarre now will begin to make sense as you learn more about what's going on.

I just finished The Wolves of Calla (Book V of the Dark Tower Series) by Stephen King, excellent stuff. I'll definetly get the last two volumes.

Otherland is the most drawn out story ever. It could easily have been cut to a third of its size and be much better off for it.

It is worth reading though but there are long stretches of uninteresting transports.

Newfie - Deadhouse Gates rocks. It only gets better too.

I know, Harbourboy. I just love fantasy set in a desert or winter setting and we have the prison setting as well. With the desert setting, I just imagine how much fun an archeologist and an anthropologist like Erikson is going to have. Bring on the forgotten sites!

[ January 17, 2006, 01:12: Message edited by: Newfie ]

I'm about a third of the way through Gardens of the Moon. Anomander Rake has just showed up.

I;m also reading Golden Fool, and Forever Odd, the sequel to Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz. My reading list rocks!

Anomander Rake is one of the my favourite characters in any book. I tried to play an Anomander Rake like character in BGII but it didn't really work.

Reading: Guards!Guards!

Finished Myst: Book of D'Ni. Not bad. Also finished Fletch and the Man Who by Edgar Mcdonald. All of the Fletch stories are brilliant. Funniest stuff I've ever read, bar none. Right now I'm reading An Eye for an Eye by Gerald Seymour.