Goodreads Ireland discussion

45 views
Genre Challenge 2017 > Third Genre - Fantasy

Comments Showing 51-100 of 113 (113 new)    post a comment »

message 51: by Margo (last edited Apr 06, 2017 10:11AM) (new)

Margo Well I picked The Probable Future because it wasn't the kind of book I'd usually read and I discovered I was right to avoid Alice Hoffman and her brand of magical realism! Here is my reveiw but, in a nutshell, I gave it 2 stars.

I will also read Rebel of the Sands which is YA, again not a genre I'm overly fond of.


message 52: by Paul (new)

Paul Working my way through another Fantasy , The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson a writer you just can't go wrong with for fantasy.


message 53: by Margo (new)

Margo I'm inclined to agree Paul. I'm working away on The Way of Kings on kindle. Sanderson does like his doorstoppers - at 1009 pages it's my most ambitious kindle read ever. It's a wonderful book so far. I hope to finish it sometime this year ;-p


message 54: by Trelawn (new)

Trelawn I abandoned my first choice, The Bell Between Worlds, after 100 or so pages. Not a bad book but just not grabbing me. Gonna try Guards Guards instead.


message 55: by Maria Hill (new)

Maria Hill AKA MH Books (mariahilldublin) | 601 comments I am still coughing after three weeks. This is one hell of a virus I have :(

Sorry, you didn't like the Probable Future Margo. I haven't read her yet but I do love the movie Practical Magic so have been meaning to try her for a while now.

At the moment I am reading The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami (not for this challenge but I guess it would count for this category). I am working my way up to his 1q84 which at over 1,300 pages in the mass market paperback copy is one hell of a door stopper.


message 56: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments Maria wrote: "I am still coughing after three weeks. This is one hell of a virus I have :(

Sorry, you didn't like the Probable Future Margo. I haven't read her yet but I do love the movie Practical Magic so ha..."

I loved 1Q84 . I think it's my favorite so far of the ones I read


message 57: by Maria Hill (new)

Maria Hill AKA MH Books (mariahilldublin) | 601 comments So it's worth the time then Colleen? I hear it's very repetitive but that is required as part of the narrative.


message 58: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments Yes it is somewhat repetitive but I was interested in the story line so that the pages flew by but I will have to warn you that he is a bit over the top with female body parts .


message 59: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments I just started The Stolen Child it looks good .


message 60: by Brian (new)

Brian O'Sullivan | 280 comments Paul wrote: "Working my way through another Fantasy , The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson a writer you just can't go wrong with for fantasy."

I foolishly started the second in this series when given a copy as a present and it ruined the experience. The characters history and personalities had been established in the first book so some of their actions made little sense without that context. Gave up half way through but it seemed as series worth pursuing in the correct order.


message 61: by Maria Hill (new)

Maria Hill AKA MH Books (mariahilldublin) | 601 comments I have finished my second book for this genre. One Hundred Shadows . It's an Indy published translation of a Korean Novella. The Fantasy elements are surreal and open to interpretation. I enjoyed it, for an urban fantasy novel, it's very grounded in reality.


message 62: by Paul (new)

Paul Brian, definitely one to start at the start. Very little would make any sense in book 2 .


message 63: by Paul (new)

Paul Definitely an interesting choice Maria


message 64: by Donna (new)

Donna McCaul Thibodeau (celtic_donna) | 1150 comments I finished The Princess Bride and I have to say that it was an entertaining read. Probably more so because I had the film's characters in my head whilst reading.


message 65: by Trelawn (new)

Trelawn My first pick was a DNF. My second pick was Guards Guards by Terry Pratchett which I finished today. It was a fabulous read. Pratchett's intelligence and humour are both on top form here. I love all the Watch characters but Sam Vimes in particular is special. The development in this one book was so brilliantly drawn. Carrott is another great character and serves as one of the catalysts for the development of Vimes. The story itself was strong but for me, the joy of a Pratchett book is always the characters, the witty one liners and breathtaking insights delivered with a blend of irony and panache.


message 66: by Paul (new)

Paul I've always said Vimes is one of the best characters in literature.
So good


message 67: by Paul (new)

Paul I even did a blog post on Vimes last year

https://dragonandjetpacks.com/2016/07...


message 68: by Margo (new)

Margo Trelawn wrote: "My first pick was a DNF. My second pick was Guards Guards by Terry Pratchett which I finished today. It was a fabulous read. Pratchett's intelligence and humour are both on top form here. I love al..."

I originally read this about 20 years ago and on relisten a few months back it still cracked me up. Great choice Trelawn. Vimes is the man and Carrot is hilarious.


message 69: by Brian (new)

Brian O'Sullivan | 280 comments Paul wrote: "Brian, definitely one to start at the start. Very little would make any sense in book 2 ."

:)


message 70: by Trelawn (new)

Trelawn You're so right. Vimes is definitely the man and I'm hoping Sybil is his woman : ) Carrot is such a brilliant character too. I love his black and white view of life.


message 71: by Margo (new)

Margo Trelawn wrote: "You're so right. Vimes is definitely the man and I'm hoping Sybil is his woman : ) Carrot is such a brilliant character too. I love his black and white view of life."

Ashamed to say I don't actually remember if they end up together but yes- they were made for each other! I think Carrot was was responsible for some of Pratchett's funnies writing


message 72: by Trelawn (new)

Trelawn Yes. Him and Nobby


message 73: by Lorraine (new)

Lorraine | 152 comments I read two Irish YA fantasies. Skulduggery Pleasant and Knights of the Borrowed Dark. The latter was my favourite. I've already checked at my library for the sequel but no luck.


message 74: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments I finished The Stolen Child and really enjoyed it . It was a little slow getting started but it picked up and caught my attention .I plan on reading more of his novels. I still plan on reading The Name of the Wind for my second pick but I will read the quarterlies first.


message 75: by Myra (new)

Myra (myrajoyce) I loved 1Q84 . I think it's my favorite so far of the ones I read

I loved 1Q84. I listened to the audiobook. It is loooonnng, but worth the time. I've read most of Murakami's books - I'm hooked.


message 76: by Myra (new)

Myra (myrajoyce) Still plowing my way through The Golem and the Jinni and I'm enjoying it - about 85% in.


message 77: by Margo (new)

Margo I finished Rebel of the Sands at the weekend. I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. Great mythology. I'll definitely add that to the list of series I intend to follow ;-/


message 78: by Marcia (new)

Marcia | 437 comments I've just started The Princess Bride and I'm hoping it is as good as I've heard it is. So far I'm liking it.


message 79: by Thomas, Moderator (new)

Thomas (tom471) | 1966 comments Mod
I have not read a true fantasy, but did read a story with a ghost.
The Highwayman
My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
It will have to be a placeholder for now.


message 80: by Margo (new)

Margo It has a ghost and a shaman - that's paranormal fantasy I think.


message 81: by Paul (new)

Paul There's a lot of crossover in between horror , fantasy and scifi.
Dracula can just as easily be fantasy and Frankenstein is probably more scifi than horror.
Ghost stories can jave more than a touch of fantasy


message 82: by Margo (new)

Margo Paul wrote: "There's a lot of crossover in between horror , fantasy and scifi.
Dracula can just as easily be fantasy and Frankenstein is probably more scifi than horror.
Ghost stories can jave more than a touch..."


I'm reading American Gods at the moment and it's nearly more horror than fantasy. Very hard one to classify.


message 83: by Paul (new)

Paul Definitely a strong tint of horror to it, most of Gaimans stuff does. It also feels like a crime noir book in sections. The spinoff book Anansai boys is almost like a crime thriller as well.


message 84: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments I'm reading The Name of the Wind and I'm really liking it . My favorite quote from the book so far is
Power is okay,and stupidity is usually harmless. Power and stupidity together are dangerous.


message 85: by Paul (new)

Paul One of many brilliant lines :-)


message 86: by Thomas, Moderator (new)

Thomas (tom471) | 1966 comments Mod
I read a paranormal mystery, with a detective that talks to dead people, mostly murder victims. The Scientology Murders: A Dead Detective Novel
My review, 4/5 https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


message 87: by Maria Hill (new)

Maria Hill AKA MH Books (mariahilldublin) | 601 comments Sounds good Thomas!


Bookworm with Kids I finished my fantasy choice Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas a few days ago. My daughter really loved the book and was telling me to read it for ages. It took me a while to get through it even though I normally get through young adult books quickly. I think that the story was very good but it was too slow in the telling. There was a lot of hints at the main character's back story and a lot of trying to build up romantic tension (will she fall for the Prince or the Captain?) but the action sequences were well written but too far apart. It's a shame because the book would have been excellent if the pacing was better.


message 89: by Thomas, Moderator (new)

Thomas (tom471) | 1966 comments Mod
Maria wrote: "Sounds good Thomas!"

Thanks


message 90: by Paul (new)

Paul I havent read Sarah J Maas. Seems to be popular though , think I see her books everywhere


message 91: by Maria Hill (new)

Maria Hill AKA MH Books (mariahilldublin) | 601 comments I think my sister (who is in her early 40's) has read it/the series. Well, she asked me for the colouring book for Christmas so I assumed she had read the books and like them. Really must ask!


message 92: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments My youngest daughter reads her books and really likes them but has never suggested that I should read them . I'll have to ask her about if I should read them .She had me read The Hunger Games series and I did love them .


message 93: by Marcia (new)

Marcia | 437 comments I have finished The Princess Bride. I was a bit disappointed in this book. I thought it dragged a bit. But I'm still glad I read it.


message 94: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments I finished The Name of the Wind and really enjoyed it. Thanks Paul for suggesting it.


message 95: by Paul (new)

Paul One of the masterpieces of the genre Coleen . Glad you liked it


message 96: by Margo (new)

Margo Any update on whether trilogy will finally be completed this year Paul? I'm loathe to read the second book til I'm sure - my memory is terrible ;-)


message 97: by Paul (new)

Paul No idea Margo. Rothfuss keeps fairly quiet on it .


message 98: by Colleen (new)

Colleen | 1205 comments Margo I hate reading the next one until I know the next one in the near future. There is that novella about Auri that I think is suppose to be read between the second and third . So I might be reading the second sooner because what drew me to the series was seeing the novella at the store . I think one of my favorite characters in the novel is Auri and I want to learn more about her.


message 99: by Margo (new)

Margo I agree Auri is very interesting. What did you think of the main character (I listened to the audio so I am not sure how his name is spelt - maybe Kwoth?). I spent most of the book wanting to box his ears - when I wasn't heartbroken for him of course!


message 100: by Paul (new)

Paul The name is spelled Kvothe.
He's an arrogant little swine but likeable at the same time


back to top