FenrisUlf Posted April 14, 2011 Report Share Posted April 14, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Oh' date=' he got in a flamewar a couple years ago with one of the posters at Scans Daily over someone posting images from one of his comics for discussion and ended up pitching a hissyfit that resulted in the community being deleted. (He had every right to request the removal of copyrighted material, but his response was more along the lines of "Someone in Akron, OH used my property in a way I do not approve of and made fun of me! Burn the entire city and salt the earth where it stood!")[/quote'] Oh, so that's what happened to that site. I was wondering why it vanished from the net. Thanks for the information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bozimus Posted April 14, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I thought the first book of that series was really funny and enjoyed it a lot. The second book didn't make me laugh as much but I still enjoyed it. I didn't make it through the third book. Thanks for sharing your opinion! I think I will try to scrounge up "Howling Mad" instead. It sounds like it may be more up my alley than the Sir Apropos books... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st barbara Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... "Agents Of Light and Darkness" by Simon R Green. The "Nightside" novels look like fun and this one is particularly apocalyptic; regarding a search for "The Unholy Grail" (Judas Iscariot's cup from the Last Supper) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teh bunneh Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Six-Guns Straight From Hell, an anthology of Weird Western short stories from a small press publisher. Most of the stories were pretty good, although the book as a whole needed some tighter editing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xavier Onassiss Posted April 24, 2011 Report Share Posted April 24, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Just finished Richard K. Morgan's Market Forces, and I give it a big fat F for fun. It's a weird mash up, sort of like Wall Street meets Mad Max, in a mid-21st century world where international corporations finance small wars in the developing world, and high-powered executives broker deals in ritual combat on the highway. Yes, Morgan actually manages to make sense of this idea. In a nut-shell: It all began during a recession in the not-too-distant future, when corporations instituted a policy of assigning seven desks to eight-person training sections. Last one to the office in the morning had to find desk-space elsewhere, until they were simply terminated or quit. Things went downhill from there, until "cut-throat competition" became the literal norm in the corporate world. That's the quick-and-dirty version; I've hardly done it justice here! Market Forces was very different from the other Morgan books I've read, which were all part of the "Takeshi Kovacs" series. (In a hilarious shout-out, the protagonist in Market Forces tries to read a Kovacs novel; he can't get into it.) Forces was simultaneously surreal and applicable -- surreal because of the parts which could simply never happen (and yet would be so cool...) and applicable due to the parts which were all too plausible. Aside from the "autoduel" scenes, this could easily be our world in 50 or 60 years. Corporations out of control, ineffectual governments, a huge divide between the rich and poor, rampant warfare in the developing world, and sensationalist media. Oh, wait.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Escafarc Posted April 24, 2011 Report Share Posted April 24, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Just finished Elizabeth Moon's Oath of Fealty and Kings of the North. On the good side they were easy reads with some good ideas to use in a FH game. But the thing that bothered me was in the various descriptions of the books they really over-state the involvement of Paks herself. I'm a little over a 150 pages into View from the Imperium by Jody Lynn Nye and I'm not sure I'm going to keep reading. It's suppose to be humorous(i.e. they use P. G. Wodehouse on the back cover blurp), it's not:( and the jumping back in forth from 1st to 3rd person POV is jarring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranxerox Posted April 24, 2011 Report Share Posted April 24, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The first of the True Blood books' date=' Dead Until Dark. Which I found a nice read[/quote'] I recently read this book too and for the most part enjoyed it. I liked the straight forward nature of it's world. Vampires have existed for centuries but due to the recent invention of artificial blood, it is now possible for vampires to come out the closet (or coffin if you prefer). However, some vampires don't want drink the yucky tasting artificial blood and some humans, called fangbangers, are quite willing to donate some of their own. The protagonist of the book is psychic cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse who is still a virgin due to the awkwardness of trying to have sex with someone while "hearing" everything that they are thinking. Then a handsome vampire shows up in her small Louisiana town and she discover that she can't read his mind. Like death tribble said it is a nice read. I was a bit put off by the amount of sex in the book. Sookie losing her virginity was plot relevant and I don't begrudge it being described, however, many of the latter sex scenes seemed gratuitous to me. Still, I recognize that gratuitous sex is considered feature not a bug by many people, and the book as a whole was an enjoyable read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted April 24, 2011 Report Share Posted April 24, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Just finished Elizabeth Moon's Oath of Fealty and Kings of the North. On the good side they were easy reads with some good ideas to use in a FH game. But the thing that bothered me was in the various descriptions of the books they really over-state the involvement of Paks herself. I think what bothered me more is the lack of feeling involved in the characters. While it's interesting to read, Moon's bouncing between 3-4 different POVs, and I just don't feel the connection I did for Paks in her own series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted April 25, 2011 Report Share Posted April 25, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The only Paks book I read was Deed and I wasn't terribly inclined to read any others afterwards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted April 25, 2011 Report Share Posted April 25, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The only Paks book I read was Deed and I wasn't terribly inclined to read any others afterwards. I really liked that series. I also liked the prequel about Gird. The sequels... not so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clonus Posted April 25, 2011 Report Share Posted April 25, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Generation Dead. High school students struggle with how to relate to their zombie classmates and what happens when a living girl starts dating a zombie boy. It's not as funny as it sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Escafarc Posted April 25, 2011 Report Share Posted April 25, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I think what bothered me more is the lack of feeling involved in the characters. While it's interesting to read' date=' Moon's bouncing between 3-4 different POVs, and I just don't feel the connection I did for Paks in her own series.[/quote'] It says a lot when the characters that I wanted to read more about were Dorrion's squires. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted April 25, 2011 Report Share Posted April 25, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... It says a lot when the characters that I wanted to read more about were Dorrion's squires. I think if she's stuck with just one character, it would work better for me. It's interesting, but just not as gripping as the original Paks trilogy, or even the Gird novels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teh bunneh Posted April 25, 2011 Report Share Posted April 25, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The Alien Invasion Survival Handbook: A Defense Manual for the Coming Extraterrestrial Apocalypse by W.H. Mumfrey. Or I should say, I tried to read it. It's not like it's a hard read, but I struggled to keep my interest up through the first chapter, and after reading a couple of pages of chapter two I finally decided I had better things to do. It's supposed to be similar to the Zombie Surival Guide by Max Brooks, which I found engaging and interesting, both humorous and scary at the same time. But the Alien Survival Handbook just wasn't doing it for me. Maybe it was that the book seemed too earnest, too "This is really happening!" and not tongue in cheek enough. And maybe it's just me, but the idea of "Grays" being a terrible threat just seems a little dated, a little Project Bluebook, to get worked up and/or frightened about. Bunneh sez: Not recommended. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bozimus Posted April 28, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I just finished "Boneshaker" by Cherie Priest, the first book in the "Clockwork Century" series. This book takes place in an alternate Seattle set in the 1880's...roughly 16 years after a subterranean bank robber released the Blight, a gas that turns people into very aggressive zombies. This resulted in downtown Seattle being walled up and virtually abandoned. The bank robber's teenaged son decides to enter the hellish center of the city, looking for clues that will redeem his father. Hours later, the boy's mother discovers where he has gone and pursues him. I don't want to say anything more specific, for fear of spoiling the enjoyment of future readers. This book has lots of steampunk elements. The author does a nice job of depicting the suffocating atmosphere and the desperate plight of those who remain within the walls of downtown Seattle. The characters are fully realized and the action is believable/satisfying. As I was nearing the end, I was eagerly turning the pages to see what would happen next. I recommend it. I will definitely buy the novella "Clementine" and (assuming I like reading Clementine) the novel "Dreadnought". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susano Posted April 28, 2011 Report Share Posted April 28, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers. Historical Fantasy set in 1500s Europe. A fun read, with a lot of nice details and scenes. I recommend it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gewing Posted May 6, 2011 Report Share Posted May 6, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I read "The Genesis Secret" by Tom Knox. Interesting, then he took it in a really annoying direction. IMO he came up with an idea and didn't bother to look at it from another point of view. All in all I thought it was pretty good up until the last bit. HOWEVER Unless I misunderstood his premises, he is putting forth a concept of Human Evolution and human nature that is incredibly racist. Sure, the character that openly espouses such beliefs IS a lunatic, but... The attitudes seemed to fit remarkably well with some other reading I did this week. I also read "the weird tales of Robert E. Howard." volumes one and Five. The blatant racism inherent in many of the stories was rather disturbing. I know he was from a different Historical period of America, and of science too, but still... I have finally read a "Steve COstigan" story, and he is very impressive. I don't know how impressive he is when he is NOT addicted to an Atlantean concoction, but I suspect quite. The odd thing is that the Tom Knox book fits pretty well with the Howard stories. One of the Howard stories also mentions Melekh Tau, and the attitudes toward history, "Races of man", Religion, and Human nature fit fairly well together. Knox's second book "The Marks of Cain." sounds like it is even moreso. Apparently it puts forth a genetic justification for the Nazi genocide. Actually, "the Genesis Secret" sort of does too. In particular it includes a genetic predisposition towards Murder and human sacrifice. (WTF???) Murder, maybe. We are mammals after all. I was describing the book to a friend, and realized one of the flaws had noticed, but not really thought out. He set out this huge prehistoric situation that was supposed to render all religion obviously false. But it occurred to me that in one of the examples he used, there was an opposite interpretation. Thinking more about it, I could see several ways that the same "evidence" could be interpreted in a manner that is diametrically opposed to his premise. Oh well, I sometimes think too much. As a recommendation, read the RObert E. Howard stuff. THere is much that is so out of date it is almost quaint, but there is some good stuff there too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csyphrett Posted May 6, 2011 Report Share Posted May 6, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Read Legions of Fire by David Drake and Phoenix Rising by Pip Ballentine and Tee Morris. Legions of fire is set in Carce in ancient Rome. Magicians and spirits are battling using cats paws because of situations they got themselves into. There is also some time meddling going on. I know it makes for some exciting stuff to have the heroes sent to other places in the hopes they die, but is it too much to ask for the villain to just hire some guys to stab the hero. The set up is similar to the Isles books where the heroes have a problem and then quest for the answer. Phoenix Rising is a book set in an alternate Victorian England where the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences battle hidden societies for the fate of the world. Agents Books and Braun decide to investigate an old case and find themselves chasing a mad scientist building robots. CES Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Tom 2009 Posted May 8, 2011 Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I just got through with a David Weber reading marathon of sorts: Storm from the Shadows, Mission of Honor, In Fury Born, and Out of the Dark. The first two are the 18th and 19th books in the Honor Harrington series (I would have preferred to have started the series from the beginning; unfortunately, one can only read what the library has on hand), while In Fury Born is set in a different universe and (at least in the first half of the book) oriented more towards ground-based military action. Fans of Weber's space warfare stories won't be disappointed, as there is ship-to-ship combat not too different from what exists in the Honorverse. Out of the Dark is more of an alien invasion novel (set at some point in the near future -- how near isn't specified, but there are mentions of events taking place in 2012 that, from the point of view of the people remembering them, took place only a few years ago) with an interesting twist thrown into the mix. Speaking of interesting twists, there's also one in In Fury Born, but I don't want to spoil either book for those who haven't read them yet. Major Tom 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Man Posted May 15, 2011 Report Share Posted May 15, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson, last book of the Mistborn trilogy. Vin and Elend attempt to figure out the lost secrets of their dying world in time to save it from an omniscient god bent on the destruction of everything. I am going to have to heartily recommend this series. The development of the setting and magic system, and the mysteries they create, are so thorough that they take center stage even in a series with really good character development. I initially thought that the second and third books of this trilogy were kind of tacked on to the first book, which seemed to be standalone, but the way this last book ties into the previous books, I no longer think that's the case. I can't actually think of anything that is wrong with this series--the pacing keeps the plot moving at a pretty brisk pace without being rushed, there aren't any plot holes or deus ex machinas or ridiculous character actions, the numerous riddles aren't too easy for the reader to solve ahead of time. The whole trilogy is just really solid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmadanNaBriona Posted May 16, 2011 Report Share Posted May 16, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers. Historical Fantasy set in 1500s Europe. A fun read' date=' with a lot of nice details and scenes. I recommend it.[/quote'] Thanks. Been looking for something to read, and this sounds like it'll scratch the particular itch I'm feeling. Give me some more ideas for my alt history timeline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vondy Posted May 27, 2011 Report Share Posted May 27, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I had forgotten why I never finished Dune as a kid and decided to give it another go. Now I remember why I put it aside - Frank Herbert is boring. This is not to say Herbert isn't a brilliant, clever, sophisticated milieu-world buildier. He had a wonderful grasp of the possibilities. The first fifty pages leaves you in awe of it as a creation - as a line by line vision - and carries you on in sheer amazement. But the problem is that it goes on like that. Line by line. Building new worlds, social orders, political systems, ecologies... and doesn't do much else. The plot is drearily paced and the characters are wholly unsympathetic. Its a grandiose tapesty lacking any reader-investing humanity and drama.. Obviously the book's enduring popularity and legion of fans means people have enjoyed them, but I find them too technically clever by half and too difficult to persevere through from a narrative perspective. Other writers in speculative genres break you in gently and explain their creations bit by bit - but Herbert starts by smashing you with it and never lets up. My wife tells me his son did a better job on a story-level. I just don't have the patience to slog through the quagmire of Arakis the father created before getting into the son's books. I find Herbert much the way I do JRR Tolkein - a visionary world-builder, but not much of a STORY teller. Heresy, I know. And fans (more power to them) will likely be offended. But I just can't force myself through it. Yech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darbor Posted May 27, 2011 Report Share Posted May 27, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Valid points Vondy. I don't disagree with you but just didn't find the faults to be bad enough to stop reading...at least the first book. In fact I was so taken by the world and the characters that I really enjoyed it overall and looked forward to reading the second one. I think I read about three before I decided it just wasn't worth my time and effort to continue. Similarly with Tolkien, I loved the Hobbit and really enjoyed the Fellowship of the Ring but nearly didn't finish the Two Towers. That was a case where I forced myself to finish the book. It probably took me a few months to finish while reading several other entire books in between. Return of the King picked up again and for the most part held my attention. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darbor Posted May 27, 2011 Report Share Posted May 27, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... I think I'm breaking some unwritten rule by posting twice in a row but I didn't want my review to get buried in my comments on Vondy's post, so here goes. I just finished "The Bards of Bone Plain" by Patricia A. McKillip. It's a story with a lot of mystery and with two separate plots, separated by many years, that eventually weave together at the end. I liked the characters for the most part and didn't mind the odd steampunk details thrown into an otherwise straightforward fantasy. In general there is a good variety of characters but my one complaint is that the book is unnecessarily confusing due to plot and character similarities between the two plot lines. There is good reason to have a lot of the similarities but McKillip didn't do a good enough job differentiating the settings, characters and plots. She is a very experienced author and I would have thought she could make these more clearly separate if she wanted to. It's possible the blurring and confusing is intentional but if so I didn't think it worked as she intended. This was the first book of hers I've read. I will probably read more of her books. I like her sense of characters, the way she created suspense and mystery and overall writing style. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted May 29, 2011 Report Share Posted May 29, 2011 Re: What Fantasy/Sci-Fi book have you just finished? Please rate it... Dead in Dallas. The second of the True Blood books. Unlike the Anita Blake books the sex between heroine and vampire can be discrete and take up more of the book than the plot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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