Ishil Posted July 8, 2008 Share Posted July 8, 2008 I read the first one, and that was enough. I thought it was rubbish - unimaginative and poorly described. I've been reading my way through the Man-Kzin Wars books set in Larry Niven's Known Space universe. Good books, and they do a superb job of fleshing out an alien race - one based on a different evolutionary basis, and the different personality, culture and history that would inevitably result. Ishil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Jack Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 Since Friday, I've read two books and started a third. I'll have that one finished tomorrow. Simon R. Green's "The Man With The Golden Torc", Vicki Petersen's "The Touch Of Twilight", and Caitlin R. Kiernan's "Daughter Of Hounds"... "The Man With The Golden Torc" is the only one that's got Sci-Fi elements to it - In typical Simon R. Green fashion, it's an anything-goes mish-mash of science and magic and a dozen other things. It's about a guy named Edwin Drood, a.k.a. Shaman Bond, who's a member of the infamous Drood family, an "MI-6"-style organization that's been secretly protecting humanity from supernatural threats for hundreds of years. He likes to buck the family trend and go his own way, but then he's declared rogue for unknown reasons and suddenly his whole family is out to kill him and he begins to suspect that they might not be the Good Guys after all. Even though it's not actually sci-fi, I'd recommend "Daughter Of Hounds" to anybody who's from New England if you like occult stuff - It's set in RI and MA, written in 2007, and the characters visit a bunch of actual places. It's great to be reading about two characters sitting in a Dunkin Donuts talking, and you can picture it in your head because you've been to that Dunks yourself... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranzadule Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 After I finish the Song of Ice and Fire, I mean to get back to some Scifi. I have the novels that go with the Vor minis game and the sample I read looked pretty good. I'll either read those or work on exploring Heinlein a bit more. I LOVED Starship Troopers. I have Time Enough for Love but I am thinking of something shorter. Suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotty kahn Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 I read the first one, and that was enough. I thought it was rubbish - unimaginative and poorly described. Ishil To each thier own I guess. Can i ask what specifically you didnt like about it? I thought it was a great quck read, nothing ground breaking but still enjoyable nonetheless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dilvish the Deliverer Posted July 9, 2008 Share Posted July 9, 2008 After I finish the Song of Ice and Fire, I mean to get back to some Scifi. I have the novels that go with the Vor minis game and the sample I read looked pretty good. I'll either read those or work on exploring Heinlein a bit more. I LOVED Starship Troopers. I have Time Enough for Love but I am thinking of something shorter. Suggestions? Get one of his short story anthologies. The Roads Must Roll or the Past Through Tomorrow are just two off of the top of my head. There are charecters that run through several of Heinlein's book and stories. If you are interested in Time Enough for Love, get make sure that you get a collection with Methusala's Children. It provides a good overview of the Howard Families and also has, IRC, the first appearence of Lazerus Long, the main focus of Time Enough for Love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergeant_Crunch Posted July 11, 2008 Author Share Posted July 11, 2008 Unfortunately I finished my book before we even started the move. So now the only thing I'm reading is inprocessing forms. Once I get settled in I'm probably going to check out those Lost Fleet books. Saw them before I left and am interested. Though I need to repurchase Starship Troopers as my copy was absconded by a PCS'ing friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joshuaslater Posted July 11, 2008 Share Posted July 11, 2008 Edgar Rice Burrough's Mars series. I'm barely into the first one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ishil Posted July 12, 2008 Share Posted July 12, 2008 I read the first one, and that was enough. I thought it was rubbish - unimaginative and poorly described. Ishil To each thier own I guess. Can i ask what specifically you didnt like about it? I thought it was a great quck read, nothing ground breaking but still enjoyable nonetheless. It just felt really uninspired. Secret organisation, living in the London Underground, somehow has this super-technology, blah blah... To be honest, the game setting of Hellgate: London (which I haven't played) probably doesn't leave much room for inspiration, but even so. Things annoyed the heck out of me, like the way that a tank couldn't hurt a demon yet Templar hand weapons could! I couldn't suspend my disbelief over how they could have all this technology and magic, stuff that the most advanced governments couldn't even dream of. The plot developments - clashing with the guy in charge who's an arsehole, winning people over by showing how good he is, etc felt almost like ticking boxes on a writing chart. A lot of it could be forgiven if written by a better writer, but not this guy. There were no surprises, everything followed a familiar path. Okay, I was surprised that one powerful character turned to the wrong side, but that was all. Once he did, the surprises ceased again. The characters were one-dimensional, drawn with a few simple traits, so you knew how they'd act. Both people and battle scenes were badly described, using a basic shorthand that gave only a superficial sense of what they were like. I had read the Diablo trilogy in the past, and again Mel Odom's book was definitely the weakest. I've read enough to know that this stuff is common, but even game fiction can be much better. I can't give more concrete examples because the whole thing has blurred into a vague grey lump in my memory. It wasn't something I cared to remember in any detail. Ishil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.Wizard Posted July 13, 2008 Share Posted July 13, 2008 I'm reading 'Seeker' by Jack McDevitt and lovin' it! Cannot recommend it enough. There's mystery, suspense, and interstellar archaeology. Very engaging! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercoutlaw Posted July 13, 2008 Share Posted July 13, 2008 Re-reading Starship Troopers for the third time. It's been about 8 years and it was calling me from the bookshelf a couple of weeks ago, so alas I picked it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sergeant_Crunch Posted March 8, 2009 Author Share Posted March 8, 2009 I've been reading the Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell. It's not going to win any Pulitzers, but I've been enjoying them. Newest book just came out last week. Sorry for the necro, but just wanted to curse you. I finally got around to purchasing "Dauntless" and have spent my entire morning reading it and am going to have to purchase the rest of the series. Hopefully they last the rest of the trip I'm on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrome Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 I just started one of RA Salvatores later novels last weekend. Highway man is the title I think. Sheesh. I haven't spent too much time w/it yet, but I'm sure it'll pick up soon and I won't be able to put the stupid thing down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanael Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 After I finish the Song of Ice and Fire, I mean to get back to some Scifi. I have the novels that go with the Vor minis game and the sample I read looked pretty good. I'll either read those or work on exploring Heinlein a bit more. I LOVED Starship Troopers. I have Time Enough for Love but I am thinking of something shorter. Suggestions? Get one of his short story anthologies. The Roads Must Roll or the Past Through Tomorrow are just two off of the top of my head. There are charecters that run through several of Heinlein's book and stories. If you are interested in Time Enough for Love, get make sure that you get a collection with Methusala's Children. It provides a good overview of the Howard Families and also has, IRC, the first appearence of Lazerus Long, the main focus of Time Enough for Love. Heinlein is one of my all-time favorite authors; I've read about a dozen of his books so far and am always looking for the next one. I'll second the short stories. I just finished up Stranger in a Strange Land and it's well worth the "opus" status it's known for. If you like just plain adventure, Friday and Glory Road are both very good. If you like sexy/crazy mindtwists, I Will Fear no Evil is fantastic. Job: a Comedy of Justice and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress vie for top spot, for both my favorite Heinlein and my favorite all-time book. I will also say, anyone interested in military fiction should read Glen Cook's Black Company series. Really nice stuff, there. Cook, in general, is awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
haldir Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 Nothing really right now. I do read a few entries in the Pathfinder Campaign guide before I fall asleep each night, or at least the nights before I work in the morning. ha ha RM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ishil Posted March 12, 2009 Share Posted March 12, 2009 I've just finished reading Blackcollar: The Judas Solution (the third in the trilogy) by Timothy Zahn. Very inventive and well-written. Like the first two, an object lesson in that even the most apparently impregnable defences can be overcome with sufficient ingenuity. Ishil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.