What book(s) are you reading?

[Cormacaroni]

I love long books if they are holding my attention. That's not an issue for me at all, usually. It's not like reading Proust! It's just that nothing important or interesting has happened for like the past 200 pages so I just put it down and haven't picked it back up. No-one is talking about the amazing ending or anything so I have very little will to continue right now. Still, god knows I have plenty of time to finish it before the next one.

And PD? I've got this fucking far with the series. The first 3 books I liked enough to read twice. I'm not trolling for the sake of it. I wanted to like the thing!

[Phoenix Dark]

Yea there's plenty of time to finish it. I'm just SMH'ing at some of the criticism the book has received. It's not the sequel to ASOS people expected, and is more like a sequel to AFFC. But it's still a great book with a host of great scenes. And the ending made a lot of fanboys and girls cry, which is a plus.

[Cormacaroni]

They gotta be backloaded then 'cause in the first 500 pages only one memorable thing has happened.

[Phoenix Dark]

Oh well. Luckily Martin is finished with what turned out to be a very challenging portion of the series, with him completely scrapping the 5 year gap, plus splitting a book into two. I don't believe it'll be smooth sailing from here, but at least the timelines are even again and we can kinda see where this last phase is going.

[Barry Egan]

Although it should really be called Horace Walpole: Birth of the Modern Troll.

[Mandark]

I really have no urge to read ASOIAF at this point.  I thought about getting back in, with the new book and the HBO series.  But then I realized how little of the earlier books I remembered, so I would have had to start from scratch to get caught up.  In light of 1) the bad reviews from people I trust, 2) boredom with A Feast For Crows, and 3) my complete and utter lack of faith that Martin's gonna bring this home with a bang, that was never going to happen.


Is there a big, fat fantasy series anyone would recommend which is either already finished or clearly headed towards an actual end?

[Cormacaroni]

I could say it but PD would explode

[chronovore]

The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi, the heir to the RAH throne, apparently. Great book; he gets RAH's glib tone just right, reading is breezy.

[Great Rumbler]

Is there a big, fat fantasy series anyone would recommend which is either already finished or clearly headed towards an actual end?

Wheel of Time

They don't come any bigger.

[Phoenix Dark]

I could say it but PD would explode

Well yea, if you prefer a vapid series where heroes can kill thousands of enemies with the snap of their finger!

[Eric P]

I'm still reading mostly comic books.  My touchpad has killed my "real book" reading.

I mean someone just upped amazing quality scans of all of Cerebus, so I have to re-read it to at least Church and State.

[MrAngryFace]

Yeah ever since I found out I could follow comics on my iPad2 its been crazy. That said- I actually kind of like the new spider-man; NO MORE WHINING ABOUT DAT UNCLE

[Cheebo]

I could say it but PD would explode

Well yea, if you prefer a vapid series where heroes can kill thousands of enemies with the snap of their finger!

PD I am curious what massive fantasy book series' out there have you read other than ASOIAF, Middle-earth, and Harry Potter? I haven't seen you jump aboard any of the others out there to my knowledge.


Oh and I see both Wheel of Time and Malazan mentioned. Are any of those two clearly better than the other? I have been on the fence about getting into one of those.

[Phoenix Dark]

I could say it but PD would explode

Well yea, if you prefer a vapid series where heroes can kill thousands of enemies with the snap of their finger!

PD I am curious what massive fantasy book series' out there have you read other than ASOIAF, Middle-earth, and Harry Potter? I haven't seen you jump aboard any of the others out there to my knowledge.


Oh and I see both Wheel of Time and Malazan mentioned. Are any of those two clearly better than the other? I have been on the fence about getting into one of those.

I started Wheel of Time, but haven't finished; first two books are aite. Read the first two books in the First Law trilogy which rocks. I've read the Lyonesse trilogy, American Gods (does that count?), some of the Conan stuff, and some older shit.

Malazan

[MrAngryFace]

Goddamnit youre a fucking moron sometimes, PD

[Phoenix Dark]

waahht? Everything I've heard about Malazan from people I trust suggests it's meh...

[MrAngryFace]

Malazan destroys the garbled uncomfortable sexual fantasies of and shitty ass characters of GRR

[Cheebo]

Wait. You trashed it but never read any of it?

[MrAngryFace]

Deadhouse Gates is required reading imo- so awesome

[Phoenix Dark]

Yea they say that rocks, but Gardens of the Moon doesn't apparently. And it can't be skipped : /

[MrAngryFace]

Gardens of the Moon is the worst, but its still easily better than all of ASOIAF- god I hate GRR and his bullshit books- a few good characters the series doesnt even deserve and OMG LETS ALL SUK SOME GRR DIK

[Eric P]

It's true.  I read 300 pages of Gardens, but only 100 of Game of Thrones.

[CajoleJuice]

It's true.  I read 300 pages of Gardens, but only 100 of Game of Thrones.

3x as good!

[Madrun Badrun]

Gardens is pretty mediocre.  The next two books are fuck awesome though.

The first half of ADWD was really boring.  The last half is awesome though.

[MrAngryFace]

Its not hard to obliterate wheel of time

[MrAngryFace]

http://www.amazon.com/Stalker-Night-Lords-Aaron-Dembski-Bowden/dp/1849701490/ref=reg_hu-rd_dp_img

So far away - This is easily one of my favorite Warhammer 40k series- I hope it continues beyond the standard once off trilogy

[Eric P]

this is twee as fuck so far.  i may not even last 100 pages.

[Beezy]

I've been reading Good Calories Bad Calories thanks to Cormac. Ancel Keys

[Eric P]

ha ha.  that was my reaction as well.

fuck that guy!

[Himu]

Any book suggestions?

I just recently finished up Why Evolution is True and a bunch of shit on Chinese history. I need something...different.

[Phoenix Dark]

LOTR

[Himu]

They're sitting 5 feet away from me. No.

[Phoenix Dark]

Use Of Weapons

[Madrun Badrun]

Use Of Weapons

seconded.  Or Player of Games.

[Himu]

Aight, my library haul for this week: Les Miserables, She, Catch-22, and The Sun Also Rises. Catch-22 and The Sun Also Rises are amazing. I haven't read the other two before, though.

My library sucks. I tried to find a good book on photography because I could use some tips, and they didn't have shit.

[chronovore]

Use Of Weapons

seconded.  Or Player of Games.

Player of Games. Very good.

I'm reading the first Obernewtyn book, thanks to someone here's recommendation. About halfway in, it's beginning to get a little more interesting, and less bleak.

[Great Rumbler]

Use Of Weapons

seconded.  Or Player of Games.

Player of Games. Very good.

I'm reading the first Obernewtyn book, thanks to someone here's recommendation. About halfway in, it's beginning to get a little more interesting, and less bleak.

That was probably my recommendation, I don't think anyone else here has read them. I'm up to the fourth book, but haven't started it yet.

[Himu]

Use Of Weapons

Thanks for this. My library didn't have this though.

I need a kindle so I can pirate books.

[Phoenix Dark]

Why don't you go buy a book from Borders. Use of Weapons, $10. Thank me later, allah willing

[Himu]

Yeah, dude.

[Phoenix Dark]

to be fair, Himu does have a personal library of manga and hentai

[Himu]

[Himu]

Who has a goodreads account?

[Eric P]

(Image removed from quote.)

this is twee as fuck so far.  i may not even last 100 pages.

I read a review and they compared it to Pahlaniuk.  Ewwww.

I don't see that at all.   I think i've gotten use to the voice in this book because it's no longer annoying the living fuck out of me.  I'm on page 60 or so.

[chronovore]

(snip snip like a vasectomy)

I'm reading the first Obernewtyn book, thanks to someone here's recommendation. About halfway in, it's beginning to get a little more interesting, and less bleak.

That was probably my recommendation, I don't think anyone else here has read them. I'm up to the fourth book, but haven't started it yet.

Ah, thanks. Yeah, I'm not overwhelmed, but it's pretty good. I set it aside twice so far. This time I'm pretty sure I'll make it to the end. I like the anti-religion angle, and I'm always down for a good post-holocaust tale. So strange that it's YA targeted.

[MrAngryFace]

about 90 pgs away from finishing Blood Reaver- Aaron Dembski-Bowden is officially my second favorite 40k author. What an amazing couple o books.

[Himu]

Should I just get a kindle or get an ipad and use the kindle app or both

[MrAngryFace]

ipad 2 has auto brightness using the frontfacing camera- so it doesnt have the issues with keeping folks up at night when reading before bed, however if you want to read outside the glare is obnoxious. Kindles and Nooks are so cheap tho, and you can read them anywhere.

[Narag]

about 90 pgs away from finishing Blood Reaver- Aaron Dembski-Bowden is officially my second favorite 40k author. What an amazing couple o books.

Who is your favorite? Going to guess Abnett.

[MrAngryFace]

totally, Abnett rules. His non 40k stuff is apparently not that good tho, a friend of mine read Triumff and didnt like it. The books that got me into 40k books were the Grey Knights books authored by Ben Counter- also great stuff imo.

[Narag]

totally, Abnett rules. His non 40k stuff is apparently not that good tho, a friend of mine read Triumff and didnt like it. The books that got me into 40k books were the Grey Knights books authored by Ben Counter- also great stuff imo.

I read half of Embedded before I ended up distracted by other stuff. It was pretty good. I should finish it soon.  I've heard great things about the Grey Knights stuff too.

[Eric P]

(Image removed from quote.)

this is twee as fuck so far.  i may not even last 100 pages.

I read a review and they compared it to Pahlaniuk.  Ewwww.

I don't see that at all.   I think i've gotten use to the voice in this book because it's no longer annoying the living fuck out of me.  I'm on page 60 or so.

This severely improves in the second chapter.  This book, while not amazing, is quite good so far.  A guy tries to win back the love of his weird life by finding a cryptozological creature to compete with her recovering a giant squid.

[chronovore]

That sounds pretty good.

[MrAngryFace]

Finished this today. Its mostly already released stuff in a collection, but I saw a few I didnt recognize in there. It's 11 dollars on amazon, hardcover- good quality paper/print. Good to support the strugglan artists n such rite?

[Great Rumbler]

Started on it this week, haven't gotten very far yet.

[Eric P]

I finished Busy Monsters last night.  The ending was ehhhhhh.  It needed another chapter as it tried to fit too much into the finish.

Started Those Across the River when a man (out of work) and his newly won wife (barely employed) during the depression moves into a house left to him by his aunt.  But he's supposed to sell it, not live there.  In fact is warned against living there by his aunt, but he has few options and is determined to make it work.

[Groogrux]

Just started reading A Clash of Kings last week.  Pretty good so far.

[nice cat but chicken]

clash of kings was great! storm of swords even more so. i read the first three of these in about a week each but i've been 250 pages into a feast for crows for like the last month. just can't get into it 

[Howard Alan Treesong]

I finished reading The Magicians and The Magician King. I really loved the first one, more so with distance. It's both a harsh criticism of and love letter to fantasy (especially Potter and Narnia), and actually goes somewhere surprising by the end.  The sequel was better in a lot of ways, but it felt like it had all the jagged edges of the first smoothed off (mostly for the better, but it made it less affecting)

[Eric P]

the government's exasperation at why we have a nation of fatties is becoming funnier and funnier at this point.