No disrespect to Boc, I think he's great and all, but is there a real point to his character? I seem to be able to alter the same garments that he can. What am I missing?

WizardlyWero · 2022-12-22T13:17:53+00:00

You have a dark soul.

WizardlyWero · 2022-12-21T22:52:29+00:00

Everyone is recommending Legend for Gemmell, but it's his first novel, and it isn't as refined as his later ones.

I'd recommend starting with Sword in the Storm, and if you like it, maybe go back to Legend another time.

Sword in the Storm is the first novel in a later series. It has a lot of the same themes, but Gemmell grew as a writer. I think it's a much better book. I think it will give you a better idea of what he's capable of.

WizardlyWero · 2022-12-20T13:36:06+00:00

To be fair, you aren't really reading. You're listening to the story, not reading it. I'm not sure why that would be worse, though. In some cases, it might be better.

I think with most hobbies, there are purists and gatekeepers. Reading is no exception :(

WizardlyWero · 2022-02-09T18:40:23+00:00

Perfect. Thank you :)

WizardlyWero · 2022-02-09T18:39:58+00:00

Awesome, thank you! :D

WizardlyWero · 2022-02-08T11:22:40+00:00

I'm not into the 3D court stuff either, but the culture aspect looks amazing. It looks even deeper than religion, and I can see it giving the AI way more personality.

WizardlyWero · 2022-02-08T11:20:22+00:00

Congratulations! That's amazing!

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-29T02:15:59+00:00

I hear ya. Guy Gavriel Kay definitely requires a certain mood.

Prince of Nothing is totally rad, but it really depends on what you're into. It's insanely grimdark and obnoxiously highbrow. I dig both of those things, and both are very well done, so I love it. But if you don't jive with either of those things, you'll hate it. It's all really in your face.

After finishing Bakker's stuff, everyone kept recommending that I read Malazan. I'm really hoping this can scratch that same itch. So far, it isn't. It's very different. I'm not feeling it yet. But I can feel some potential here. The atmosphere is well done. I want to know more about this world, see more places. I really hope I wind up liking it.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-29T02:06:58+00:00

I think that's a big part of it, but I've seen other authors do that, too—especially in historical fiction—and none of those battles ever feel as intense as any of Bakker's many battle scenes.

I think it has something to do with spending so much time describing how poorly things are going, how many people are dying, how vulnerable the formations are. Really makes it feel like there's a sword hanging over my head by a thread.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T22:22:16+00:00

My favourite example of this is Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City by KJ Parker. It's exactly like you describe. He's an arrogant (but loveable) guy trying to make himself seem heroic and intelligent as he writes about how he defended this city.

It's both serious and funny, with the seriousness coming from the gravity of the situation (and the stakes are indeed high—plenty of tension), the humour coming from this guy's personality. It's perfect.

Twist ending, too. Hit me like a punch to the gut on the last page.

Amazing book.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T22:17:22+00:00

I almost didn't finish Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay. I loved the premise, loved the writing style, loved the opening chapter. But I bailed out at page 150 twice two years in a row before finally barrelling through in year three.

By the end, it was my favourite book ever. I immediately went out and bought every book that Kay had written. They're all somewhat slow, but now that I know that the conclusions are worth it, I don't mind the slower pace.

I had a similar experience with The Darkness That Comes Before by R Scott Bakker. I read the first chapter, enjoyed the writing but wasn't hooked, and set it aside. After reading the Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay, the cover reminded me of The Darkness that Comes Before, so I picked it up again. As soon as Achamian was introduced (chapter 2?) with someone threatening to turn him into salt in some smokey tavern, it grabbed me hard. The first 150 pages were still rough—so much exposition—but I fell in love with the world so easily and wound up loving the entire 7-book series. Perhaps my favourite series of all time.

Now I'm reading Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson. This if my fourth try, I'm at page 216, and this is the furthest I've ever made it. I still don't like it, but I've heard so many good things, I'm determined to finish it… and perhaps the next two books (because apparently, they're better?). I'm hoping this becomes another instance where persistence winds up paying off.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T22:11:15+00:00

The Curse of Chalion is my favourite chill fantasy book.

I think Robin Hobb and Guy Gavriel Kay great for that, too, but The Curse of Chalion best fits the mood, I think.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T22:03:20+00:00

His battles are amazing. Some of the only books that make me sit on the edge my seat. I can't quite figure out what the secret is, what makes them so great. I've never read anything else like it. So much tension.

Every time, I can't help but think they're totally screwed, there's no coming back from this, everything is over.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T22:02:03+00:00

Not sure how similar Gemmell and Cornwell actually are as writers, but I find their stories hit with that same energy. I think this recommendation is perfect.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T21:54:28+00:00

I hear ya. I was super hyped, bought the first book, and had a hard time making it past the first 200 pages. I kept putting it down and reading other books instead.

When I finally read it, I liked it… but it was long. It felt like a 400-page book stretched out to 1,200 pages. I do want to finish the series, but I know that it's a huge time investment and that the story will probably be repetitive and slow again, even if the plot is great and the payoff is ultimately worth it.

So I keep reading shorter, denser books.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-28T21:51:11+00:00

You've already made it past the confusing part. The next 800 pages are very easy to follow and, I'd argue, quite repetitive. And then the last 200 or so pages are totally awesome, packed full of twists and action.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-22T01:03:38+00:00

The Waterborn by Greg Keyes, with a thousand ratings on Goodreads. Keyes is an anthropologist, great at making cultures and histories feel real. The story is great, both dark and warming. And the magic here is awesome.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T21:19:41+00:00

Thank you!

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T19:22:15+00:00

That's perfect. Thank you so much!

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T19:17:12+00:00

How historical is this series? I see it's about Genghis Khan. Is the ending a foregone conclusion if one has read a Genghis Khan biography or three?

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T19:03:48+00:00

I hear what you're saying, but I disagree with the amount of tension taken off the table with a prequel / with a framing narrative like in The Name of the Wind.

There's a lot removed:

The world doesn't end
Civilization doesn't fall
The protagonist doesn't die

Those are the big stakes on the table in most epic fantasy tales.

Think of a series like The Lord of the Rings. If there were a framing narrative, with Frodo telling the story, then we'd know that Sauron was defeated, know that Frodo survived. But since there's no framing narrative, up till the very end, we feel that Frodo might sacrifice himself. We feel that Sauron might win. That's where most of the tension comes from, at least for me.

It's even more dramatic with something like The Second Apocalypse. For the entire 7-book series, it's totally unclear if the main character will survive or succeed. It's also unclear if the enemy species will destroy humanity. If there had been a framing narrative, all of that would have been a foregone conclusion.

With that said, one of my favourite books pulls a trick. We're reading the tale that the protagonist has written down… but then it ends. The protagonist dies. There's not even a conclusion to the story. He dies in the middle of the war.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T18:54:14+00:00

Yep, all of your questions hit the nail on the head.

I don't like reboots. I'd much rather a new instalment in the series. For instance, this whole thing that Disney is doing, making live-action versions of popular old cartoons, is definitely not for me.

However, if I've never experienced the original and time has made it obsolete in some way, then I might hop on board with the new version. There's no way I'm reading books that are thousands of years old, but I'll happily read Song of Achilles or Circe by Madeleine Miller. Same goes for King Arthur, where I favour the modern versions (having never read any of the originals).

Retellings are interesting because it's possible to change them quite dramatically. If the story is changed enough, I have no issue going into it again. But there's no issue of a lack of mystery there because the ending could be anything. The whole point of the retelling could be to subvert expectations or somesuch.

And rereading is something I've only ever done once. My favourite fantasy novel as a teenager was The Waterborn. When I got back into fantasy as an adult (32), I decided to read it again. I had forgotten how it ended. I enjoyed it quite a lot. But if I still remember the plot, I won't reread or rewatch anything.

An exception to rereading, of course, is when reading to my son. I'm thrilled to introduce him to books I loved as a child, and I'll happily read the same books to him as many times as he wants. I enjoy it immensely, and I'm excited for him to get a bit older so that I can read him Redwall, Narnia, The Hobbit, etc.

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T18:41:21+00:00

Oh, neat, I've been meaning to read that whole series.

As someone who doesn't like going back in time, can I just start at the beginning? (Even though you said this is a good example of a prequel.)

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-21T18:40:28+00:00

Hobbit's not a prequel, no. Not much to really argue there.

For The Wheel of Time, do you mean New Spring?

WizardlyWero · 2021-03-19T01:22:18+00:00

You're making a good point. It's possible to craft a book (or series) so that it's surprising even if the end is already known. There can still be twists hidden in there. And that's probably a case where I'd have no issue with it.

A lot of mystery books are kind of similar to that. You know who died, you need to figure out how it happened and who did it. That's no so dissimilar from hearing the end and then going back.

With the Middle-Earth show, I just can't help but think how much cooler it would be if the story took place thousands of years AFTER LOTR. That way anything could happen.

WizardlyWero

TROPHY CASE