Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion
A Hodge Podge Folder
>
Random Chatter
Yea I didn't finish name of the wind. I got about a third through. I didn't hate it and would have given it a two bordering on three stars meaning i liked it at that point but I got busy with school. I want to give it another go once the last one comes out.My favorite fantasy series so far is a song of ice and fire. I think they are the best in terms of how real the world's cultures and characters feel. I didn't really like the last one though. I felt like it meandered and didn't feel focused. And the dang phrase words are wind was really annoying and took me out of the book since I don't think anyone ever used that phrase in earlier books.
Mod
No doubt. I don't begrudge the people who loved it. I love Stormlight Archive and I read a review from somebody who absolutely hates it and I had to give them credit because it wasn't the typical ad hominem attack you see in many hate threads. It was so well thought out I couldn't begrudge the guy his opinion.
Dan wrote: "@Eli - I truly hope you enjoy those books, they are truly a wonderful masterpiece to me. The emotional pay-off in the 9th book(third of the third trilogy) specially is as emotional as I'll ever get with a book I believe, just wondrous. "I am definitely going to give them a try sometime soon. They are all on my audiobook service, so I will be able to do them on the side of my other reading :)
Has anyone read anything by Trudi Canavan? I have often looked at her books and wondered if they were worth getting into, but I've never heard much talk of them.
Mod
I haven't and I can't say I've heard much of anything about her books.
@ Angela - Well, it's a good thing we all have different tastes, I think the world would be a bit boring if we all had the exact tastes! Still, it's interesting that you guys dislike it as it seems to be one of the most beloved fantasy book series in this site. Any specific reason for disliking it that you can think of? Just curious!As a side note, its writer, Patrick Rothfuss, is amazing to follow on this site. He's very active here and gives some of the most fun reviews I've seen here! It's also nice that he reviews plenty of kids books as he reads them to his son.
@Eli - I have read her main trilogy, The Magicians' Guild, and its prequel and I highly recommend them to any fantasy fans. They are very well written fantasy books with female leads that don't actually focus on romance at all. It's also one of those trilogies that get better with each book.
I haven't read her trilogy set after this one yet but I'll definitely get to it sooner rather than later.
Eli wrote: "Has anyone read anything by Trudi Canavan? I have often looked at her books and wondered if they were worth getting into, but I've never heard much talk of them."I've read the Magician's Guild trilogy and really liked it. Not my favorite fantasy books, but still good. I was not happy about the way something ends up at the end of the last book, but I'm not going to spoil it.
Eli wrote: "Cool, I might pick up The Magicians' Guild at some point then :)"I hope you truly enjoy it whenever you do pick it up. Just let us know about it :)
By the way I've been thinking about picking up Traitor's Blade lately and I've just read your review of it and it sounds like you had great fun with it! I guess you would recommend it then?
Mod
Thanks for the recommendation - I'll add it to the very long to-read list!
Mod
Yes, I would definitely recommend Traitor's Blade! I loved it. Best thing to come out of Jo Fletcher Books, for whom I reviewed quite a few titles some years past. Great people behind the scenes over there, too ;)I still haven't gotten around to the next in series, though. I really should do that soon!
Thanks for the reply Eli. These books will probably be purchased in a couple of months then when my urge to buy new books become unbearable! Talking about that, how do you guys usually read books? Ebooks, audio or physical books? I prefer physical books myself, I only read ebooks if I really can't find their physical version for a reasonable price, which sadly happens often as I'm not in Europe nor theStates. I tend to be too impatient for audio books...
Mod
I used to be really big on physical books because I liked the feel and smell... But I switched to mostly kindle because it's a lot easier to carry around. Although if it's a book with a lot of maps or info in the back I'll usually get the physical copy so I can easily flip back and forth. I get audio a lot also in case I'm to tired to read the book and I usually have it playing on a faster speed.
Mod
I had a kindle, but I didn't like it and then it broke so I never bought another one. It was either too sensitive to touch or non-responsive which was very frustrating. It was also very small and when I made the font bigger, I was only having a short amount of text per "page," making it seem like the book went on forever as I was constantly turning pages.
My computer is still not ideal, but I do like it. As a note, my laptop is relatively small, flips into tablet mode and is touch screen, so it's quite portable and it is similar to an e-reader. I can still make the font bigger on the e-reader app which is great so I don't always have to wear my glasses when I'm reading.
I also don't like audio books. Don't really have a real reason for that one, though.
Mod
Mod
It was a couple of years ago, I can't exactly remember...2-3 years? It could have been the model I got (which I don't remember anymore) or it could have been a single faulty one, but my experience just turned me off from kindle and I enjoy reading on my computer well enough.
I definitely prefer physical copies. But I just started doing audiobooks and I must say I am probably reading more books like that currently. I love that I can listen to books while doing other things. Sometimes I can nock off five hours of a book while at work (I do a lot of routine stuff), which greatly helps my reading progress. I do ebooks too, once in a while, but I don't want to pay for them, so that is mostly for public domain books. And never anything too long, because I hate that feeling of never getting anywhere, and my phone's screen is so small that I am constantly swiping to the next page.
I used to buy all the books I read too. But I have other priorities with my money these days - and I don't have a bookcase currently, so all my babies are locked away in the cellar :( - so now I am always sitting around waiting for the books to be available from my library. Then it is just so much eaiser to turn to my audiobooks.
Mod
Eli I agree audio books are also great for mindless chores. I can crank out laundry, dishes, etc and the time flies.
Between Kindle and Audio it also eliminates clutter and my copies are always just like new. Plus with the YA titles I do one of my daughters and I read the same copy at the same time.
I have just quenched the entire 800 pages of The Daylight War in a week thanks to the audiobook format. That would never have happened with a physical copy.
Eli wrote: "I have just quenched the entire 800 pages of The Daylight War in a week thanks to the audiobook format. That would never have happened with a physical copy."I've read that one a month ago or something! What did you think of it? I thought it wasn't as strong as the other two. Still pretty good of course, I gave it 4 stars, but I felt it's lost something by trying to expand its scope, you know? The first book of this series was so amazing in its simplicity, just black and white done right, I really loved that.
Mod
Dan wrote: ´I've read that one a month ago or something! What did you think of it? I thought it wasn't as strong as the other two. Still pretty good of course, I gave it 4 stars, but I felt it's lost something by trying to expand its scope, you know? The first book of this series was so amazing in its simplicity, just black and white done right, I really loved that.."Yeah I really agree. I gave it 3 stars, where I gave the first one 5 and the second 4. I think he tried to cover too much with it. There was entirely too much backstory for me and not enough happening in the main story line.
When I think about, what really happened in those 800 pages to move the story along? I mean, it did pick up the pace towards the end, but otherwise it was mostly just talk of the Daylight War and every character needing to justify themselves.
Eli wrote: "Dan wrote: ´I've read that one a month ago or something! What did you think of it? I thought it wasn't as strong as the other two. Still pretty good of course, I gave it 4 stars, but I felt it's lo..."Completely agree with it all! Plus, you know, there was one particular character that felt way too forced into the story. The character itself is fine, but I felt like the writer really forced her into the whole thing. Do you know who I'm talking about?
If you are referring to the person I think you are, then I totally agree. I didn't like the way he wove her into the story at all. She would have been so much more awesome if he had let her stand on her own some more. The way he wrote her into the story, she just ended up coming off as an annoying accessory to me.
Eli wrote: "If you are referring to the person I think you are, then I totally agree. I didn't like the way he wove her into the story at all. She would have been so much more awesome if he had let her stand o..."Exactly!And she has so much potential too, I just wish she'd let Arlen, and us the readers, breath a bit so she herself could stand on her own.
(view spoiler)
Haha, yes we are completely on the same page here. Actually I think that was a big theme for many of the central characters in this book. They all got terribly caught up in their various love affairs to the point where I just wanted to shout at them to get on with it.
I gotta confess I'm putting that book off for now because, well, I needed to breath haha! That character was a bit too much for me to read again right away. Plus I've read the first 3 books one after the other real quick so I really just need some space from that world for now. I'll get back to it sometime this year though.
I get that. I am not in any hurry to pick it up right away either. I was just hoping you could tell me if things got better, but I guess I'll have to wait and see.Since the last book hasn't been published yet, there's no real reason to rush it anyway.
I just ordered Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire trilogy and the first three in Django Wexler's Shadow Campaigns. They should arrive just as I get back from holidays! :)Add that to the rest of the Riyria Revelations (which I picked up today), new Scott Lynch material and a Backer re-read - I think I am set up well for the next while!
Sounds like some really good reading plans, Sean! I am currently reading the first of the Shadow Campaigns series, so please join in on the discussion when you get to that! :) Also I would love to hear what you think of The Broken Empire series as that is one of my fabourites.
Happy reading!
Mod
Add that to the rest of the Ri..."
A lot of awesome reads! :)
Sean wrote: "I just ordered Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire trilogy and the first three in Django Wexler's Shadow Campaigns. They should arrive just as I get back from holidays! :)Add that to the rest of the Ri..."
You're going to have such a blast reading all that! They're all wonderful.
Have any of you read something by Raymond E. Feist? I have a lot of his books on my audiobook service and wondered whether I should try them out, but then I noticed that many of my friends here on Goodreads have given them quite bad ratings (which is weird because the overall rating is quite high).
What do you guys say?
Mod
I have a lot of his books on my audiobook service and wondered whether I should try them out, but then I noticed that many of my ..."
I've never read any, but I am also curious.
Mod
Knights of the Black and White
Lord Foul's Bane
The Black Swan
Anyone read any of these and liked them?
Jenna wrote: "I went to a used book sale and picked up a few fantasy books:Knights of the Black and White
Lord Foul's Bane
The Black Swan
Anyone read any of these and..."
I have had Lord Foul's Bane sitting on my shelf for years now, but I have never really gotten around to pick it up. So I too would be curious to hear from someone who's read it.
Jenna wrote: "I went to a used book sale and picked up a few fantasy books:Knights of the Black and White
Lord Foul's Bane
The Black Swan
Anyone read any of these and..."
I'm the same as Eli - I actually have most of the Thomas Covenant books, but haven't actually gotten around to reading them. I know Donaldson can be a divisive writer - perhaps another series to have a buddy read of at a later stage? :)
Mod
Mod
I have a lot of his books on my audiobook service and wondered whether I should try them out, but then I noticed that many of my ..."
Eli I read Raymond E. Feist many years ago now (showing my age as it's probably 20 years ago I was reading these). I read The Riftwar Saga, The Empire Trilogy and The Serpentwar Saga -book 1 and 2. After that I actually started to get a bit bored with the world Feist had created and stopped reading them. I really enjoyed The Empire Trilogy, mainly due to the fact there was lots of intrigue and a strong female lead character.
I tried to read Lord Foul's Bane once, but I couldn't get into it so put it aside. Maybe I was too young at the time, as I tried to read it in my late teens.
Scott wrote: "BTW IMO and I know I'll get killed for this but the most overrated series for me is the king killer chronicles. I made it through The Name of the Wind but didn't continue. I really cannot see how p..."*whispers*
I didn't even make it through The Name of the Wind... sssshhh, don't tell anyone. I don't like being killed.
Edit:
I realize that I'm reacting to an old discussion - just couldn't resist.
Mod
I've heard a lot of divisive opinions on Rothfuss' stuff - I'm hoping to get started with the series in the next while to form an opinion. It seems that it doesn't take too long to decide whether it's to your taste or not, based on what I've read from reviews.
Mod
The Name of the Wind is something I've found people either love or hate and not much in the middle. Personally, I loved it, but I know a couple people who couldn't get through it.
Jenna wrote: "Sean wrote: "I've heard a lot of divisive opinions on Rothfuss' stuff - I'm hoping to get started with the series in the next while to form an opinion. It seems that it doesn't take too long to dec..."Until I came here I mostly read rave reviews. I really tried to like it but just had to give up.
Mod
I've mellowed on the topic after reading a great review trashing The Way of Kings which is one of my favorite books but the guy who wrote it did so in a constructive manner (even though I still see it differently). But after reading it I kept thinking it was like the emperor's new clothes were only the enlightened could see them.
Scott wrote: "Dani wrote: "Until I came here I mostly read rave reviews. I really tried to like it but just had to give up. ."I've mellowed on the topic after reading a great review trashing The Way of Kings w..."
Since being more active on this site, I make it a point to read both kind of reviews and not just before, but also after I've read a book. As a reader I may resent negative criticism when I enjoyed a book but as an aspiring writer I feel I can often learn from it. And then I discovered that there are SO many good reviewers out here on GR that are capable of making fair points/writing down a novel's weaker aspects, that as an inadvertent byproduct it has become less hard for me to read them and has helped me to be more appreciative of someone else's views. Reading many differing views to one and the same book has also led me to the strong belief that besides technique, writing style etc. there's very much a personal factor that weighs in as well with regard to the enjoyment of a story. That x-factor so to speak (for lack of a better word) that does or does not succeed to push your emotional buttons, that thing that gets you involved. There may not be much "wrong" with a story with respect to the author having covered all the basics, but even when an author got it all "right", a story may not draw you out emotionally regardless, Therefore, the books that I call my favourites may not always be the best written ones, however, they are consistently ones that spoke to me and invoked in me the highest and the widest range of emotions.
In other words, I get your remark with regard to the Emperor's clothes and am inclined to agree, although my interpretation of it may not be quite how you meant it..
Fantasy Buddy Reads
Books mentioned in this topic
Elantris (other topics)The Hope of Elantris (other topics)
Isles of the Emberdark (other topics)
Mistborn: The Final Empire (other topics)
The Well of Ascension (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Michael Lesley (other topics)Michael Lesley (other topics)
Michael Lesley (other topics)
Michael Lesley (other topics)
Michael Lesley (other topics)
More...
Scott I hated The Name of the Wind. You are not alone. Well done for reading the whole book. I tried 3 times to read that book and I just couldn't finish it. For me it was terrible. I know we are in the vast minority though, as it rates so well. There is no way in my book, it's one of the great fantasy books ever written. Haha as I DNF'd it, I guess I rate it at the very bottom of fantasy books for me. Overrated for sure.
How diverse individual taste is, where Dan and I both enjoy Hobb, yet Dan enjoyed The Name of the Wind and I hated it. We're all so different aren't we.