Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion
Archive [Retired Book Clubs]
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RETIRED THREAD: Vagabond Treehouse Book Club
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I've heard good things about the first book. Are you enjoying it? =)I need to wrap up a re-read and then I'll probably listen to He Who Fights Monsters #3. The audio just came out and I had it pre-paid.
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Witness for the Dead is half the length of Goblin Emperor, which was a long book and also great...
This Witness for the Dead was a side character in the first book sent to investigate a murder/accident...
I agree with Rob in the BR thread, that it would be great to get a 3rd book that has both character POVs from book 1-2 to tell another bigger story...
When I originally heard there was a second book, I thought it was gonna be more closely tied to the first book, but in alot of ways, this is just a 2nd book set in the same world... the MC's new position is far enough away from the capital, that you never see any characters from the first book... just commoners asking what the Emperor is like...
Only reason I waited so long to read it, was the narrator's voice was too easy to be drowned out by noise at work... or lose words if not paying attention... been an easy listen while terraforming my Terraria world...
Some people in the BRs just weren't in the mood for a pleasant, almost uncomplicated book like that when the BRs happened... I found the first book at the right time, and know/knew what to expect from the 2nd book...
I make the books sound less complicated than they are... they just don't have any big twists or leaps of logic really...
Goblin Emperor starts with the least the MC's entire royal family dying in an airship accident, and suddenly becoming Emperor without any training, after years of exile for being half-goblin, from father's political marraige to daughter of powerful neighboring race/tribe/etc... so that storyline looms over learning to be Emperor...
Witness for the Dead follows the struggles of the MC's place in the religious structure, as well as the murder of a thespian and some smaller plots with a fake will and a Black Widower (is there a term for men that murder their wives for inheritance/dowry?)
Anyway, I'm rambling, and have edited this multiple times now... I'm gonna stop :D
Sometimes rambling posts are the best! hehe
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For a minute, I thought there was a chance that Diogenes was a feint, and it was going to be the more homocidal kid, from the more recent dead wife trilogy, but it doesn't look like it...
Yup. Lots of crazy happens in this book. It would be easier to swallow if I didn't think Diogenes was DEADer than a doornail. Still, cool story line.
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I'm more in the 2nd camp... I think Constance is alright as a side character, but don't like so much when she's more center stage, I guess... and especially find the romance with Pendergast weird, given her backstory and situation as his legal ward...
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Part 1: The Procter chase chunk...
Part 2: The Constance/Diogenes romance chunk...
Part 3: The Pendergast/smuggler ransom chunk...
Part 4: The NYPD/check-in on Procter/etc chunk...
Part 5: The investigation into Diogenes and Flavia chunk...
Part 6: Back to Diogenes and Constance, with a bit of clingy assassin Flavia...
That's about where I am now...
I like segments of the book more than the whole plot. The relationship between Pendergast and Constance is weird. The switch happened in the two books before Obsidian Chamber. I do like that various sidekicks get together and make things work.
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I do like that vari..."
If I remember correctly, Pendergast made it plain early on they wouldn't be hooking up... then Diogenes took advantage of her and made a baby... then she had some serious issues after that... then Pendergast found out he had kids with his "dead" wife... then the Constance/Pendergast angle crept back up... now Diogenes is back, temporarily...
Not to mention this Flavia chick... her infatuation with Diogenes seems weird, given her abusive backstory that led to her becoming an assassin... I'm sure it's going to have explosive results... she's spying on Diogenes now and found his hideout... just as he's hooking up with Constance...
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I do like that vari..."
I like the sidekick angle, too... altho after that reporter died back in book 6/7, I always worry that another murder will rock a successful sidekick romance... that was (view spoiler) wasn't it?
As far as I'm concerned, Constance is also a sidekick. And yes to the spoiler tag. lolConstance & Pendergast: (view spoiler)
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LoL - Well, can't have Pendergast live a calm & happy life?
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Hardly... based on details in this book, only 2-3 years have passed in the past 10 books... not surprising when you have trilogies that span 2-3 months tops...
So, add in the first couple books, and it's only been like 4-6 years for the whole series... and Pendergast has been presumed dead 2-3x, and dealt with all these crazy mysteries...
He'd have a hectic life, even if the authors let the archnemesis die...
Kinda glad Constance (view spoiler)
I started my re-read of the Waste Lands #3 of Dark Tower. Did we ever make comparisons between Dark Tower series and Golgotha by Belcher? I can imagine Golgotha series being a nod to Dark Tower series. =DUgh, I've been dealing with internet connection issues for a while now. Found an error in my Tracker. At least it was an easy fix. For some reason, Dark Tower #3 was marked as read instead of #2 for last month. Glad I saw the error & fixed it!
Martial Peak is one of the longer comics I started. *sniffs* I caught up! Ch1476 was the latest update. It took me about a week to read.I adore Peerless Dad. I wish that one released faster. That has maybe 1 translation per week/month. I'm going to see if I can find an English translation of the novel that the comic is based on. I think I'd love it!
In my comic spree, I found out there are lots of unscrupulous people out there! They take popular comics and sell collected scans on Amazon as their own work. Asian works that haven't been bought to translate in US stuff. I found out because there are Amazon links on blog posts and fake comic postings on GR. It's super lame of people to do that.
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I wish Golgotha existed outside of Graphics Audio... I guess I'll knuckle down and read the ebooks someday, since I love the author and his bibliography is rather small... and the series is ongoing, from what I mentioned a few months ago...
I had a power flicker today that reset my PC... didn't restart router tho... probably because it needs less power...
Speaking of Graphics Audio, did you see that announcement about "3D audiobooks" on Audible a little while back... or whatever it was... sounded like an Audible version of Graphics audio... hopefully they don't get too serious about it, considering my issues with the format...
Nah, I haven't seen the news about 3D audiobooks. Hm, I'll bet that's their relabel for Audible Original drama/etc. I think the first Golgotha book is on Audible as not GA. All of the GA versions are on there now. It's interesting that GA would partner up with Audible. It must make some money, but not as much as if people buy from their site vs on Audible with it's credit system.
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Finished the latest Ben Coes book. Was a pretty good thriller and overall enjoy that series. I am starting The Night Agent by Matthew Quirk. Never read him before but its one of my massive list of paperbacks to get to. Pretty decent writing so far and intriguing. Also starting A Demon in Silver. Have both paperback and its free on Audible plus so I am tag teaming the book. Just started It but so far its been good.
I have a 11 hour drive on Friday and a 6 hours flight on Sunday so I am gonna plow through some audio and paperbacks hopefully.
Brian, I'll add A Demon in Silver to my reading pile for the weekend. Where are you traveling to? Iain, didn't you read Dark Tower series? I'll be super surprised if ya'll haven't read it. I mean, I get mad at the ending but I'm a minority on that front.
I just finished Dark Tower #3 and it was great! I love Frank Muller's narration for the book. He's the best fit for the series. =D
Dark Tower is a mix of alternate realities/dimensions, dash of horror, brutal action and a host of American culture that's probably forgotten by the latest generation. lol
I got today's Audible daily deal: The RookieGoing to listen to that first and see if it's entertaining. It's football in space. lol
The kindle book is currently $0.00. You can get that and the audio is $4.95.
I'm driving from Seattle area to Idaho on Friday. And them I'm flying to Dallas on Sunday
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Brian, you make me miss roadtripping! =D Have a safe drive/flight. Stephen King that I really enjoyed:
- The Eyes of the Dragon
- The Talisman #1/Black House #2 (I read #1 as a kid. Found the sequel a few years ago. Had no clue there was a sequel & loved it!)
- The Stand
- Dark Tower series is good. I just hated the ending. XD
- The Outsider
- The Institute
Planning to Read:
- Revival
- Elevation
- Bag of Bones
- Gwendy's Button Box
Pretty much most of the horror stuff that I didn't read.
I read most of King's Fantasy stuff. Less of the horror stuff. Though, I'm not sure how scary his horror stuff is? I should find out. lol
Timelord Iain wrote: "Seems like Brian is always traveling…"Unfortunately I do. LOL
Soo wrote: "Brian, you make me miss roadtripping! =D Have a safe drive/flight. Stephen King that I really enjoyed:
- The Eyes of the Dragon
- The Talisman #1/[book:Black House|10607..."
Stephen King is hit or miss for me. I liked the Stand and 11/22/63 and hated Dark Tower. I might be interested in trying a few with ya. I haven't read any of his horror really
If there's a horror you want to try, let me know! We can aim for around Halloween. =DOh yeah, I want to read 11/22/63 too. I've heard mixed reviews bout it, but that's pretty normal for most of King's books.
I finished the Rookie. Eh, it was ok. I was happy to note that Scott Sigler is a decent narrator! Downside, I think the series was some sort of podcast production with background sound effects, etc. That was kind of annoying.
The coolest part was the aliens that made up the football team. The author introduced them by having the MC being xenophobic. He does come across as a huge ass. lol
Overall, I think a movie would be a lot of fun, but the book was a steady keel of meh during the games to get into the major league playoffs.
A Demon in Silver #1 and the Hangman's Gate #2 are on Audible Plus. We can read both if we like #1. =D
Sounds good to me. I've started Demon in Silver today
Me too! Let's see how this story will roll. On GR, the author is listed as Richard S. Ford. On Audible, he is R.S. Ford. Kinda strange.
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Demon in Silver #1 - I would enjoy the story more if it stuck to the mercenaries vs flip-flopping between Josten (mercenary), Livia the magic girl and Silver. I was lucky to find a review with the names. lolI have two GR buddies that rated the book at 5 stars. Hmmmmmm. Normally, anything they rate on the high end, I tend to enjoy.
So, I like Josten's sarcastic humor, but the two female characters don't have a lot of personality right now. Also, stuff is kinda happening without a lot of explanation.
This book isn't very long. I may dive into the next one to see how the story will establish. Thus far, it's all setup.
Brian, do you hear Justin for Josten? Cause that's what I hear with the narrator's accent. LOL Also, there are more than 3 POVs. It's all over the place. Several action packed sequences.
I re-started Slow Horses. I tried to listen to it several times and for some reason I'm not as engaged by the story as I feel like I should be. Trying again! I kinda want to have it finished before I go into my other library books. =)
Yep definitely sounds like Justin. I like the story but the pacing is way off in some spots. Sort of confusing. I'm about half way done and overall I like it, but feel it's just building up for book 2
I finished it and will be going into #2 tomorrow. Totally want to see what you think when ya get to the end of #1. =DYeah, the author changes POV willy-nilly. Some of the scene changes are flip-floppy too. I think this author has better potential than some of the other "new" fantasy authors.
I finished Slow Horses. Meh. I'd rather read Clancy, Mitch Rapp or Jack Reacher, etc. I liked the active scenes in the story, but I wasn't a fan of the "inner monologues" or overly chatty dialogue to fill in info/etc. Iain, let me know when you wanna read Peculiar Peril. I'm going to just assume that book will be weird. lol
I read Hangman's Gate #2 since it's on Audible +. Another mixed bag story. There are new characters introduced and one of them is really cool, a couple of fun fight scenes and minor plot advancement. It was another setup and transition piece with a couple of big info dumps.
For this series, I recommend people wait until the series is completely out and then binge read. Good potential in the writing. The whole thing is written in vignettes strung together style. Some of those vignettes were great! Others, meh.
The reason why I think the series would be more fun as a binge reads is due to the author having a habit of leaving almost cliffhanger endings. Mini-arcs are completed, but it doesn't make me think, YEAH! That was good! What's the next step?
Going ahead and reading Cetaganda in Vorkosigan Saga. =)
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I already re-read Cetaganda at some point... Ethan of Athos is next for me... a non-Miles book... focuses on Ethan from a planet without women, and Mile's "cousin" that runs the Dendarii Mercenary Fleet, I think...
Finished Dead Eye... was great... next book is looking even better, with Gray Man back in the US and close to solving why he was burned by the CIA...
Almost done with Machinations, too... it's had alot more romance and near love triangle than I was hoping for, in a Skynet story... otherwise, I feel like a number of elements were inspired by Sarah Connor chronicles... MC is a clone, and based on blurbs and book covers, it looks like by the end of the trilogy the AIs manage to either convert the original body of the MC, or make more clones from the destroyed lab to fight against her... also, there's rogue rogue AI robots that want peace?...
Not there, yet... the first book is all amnesia and romance and politics among the nearby resistance bunkers in Alaska...
Probably won't finish today... been sidetracked again with Community season 2...
When I find a comic I like, I've been searching for stories like it online. That's part of how I've been figuring out what comic to read next. God of Martial Arts was on a bunch of cultivation lists. One of the lists stated that it starts slow, but worth chugging along because the story develops into a rich tale. Well... the comic is based off of a popular Chinese Kung Fu novel series. It's been translated into English & sold on Amazon. Currently on KU. The translation is boring as heck. Whoever translated it, did it in a way that doesn't really show off the story setting, Asian culture, etc. Whoever did the comic adaptation is a good artist but their idea of telling a good story is bad. Just plain bad. It's one of those things where I only need to read the intro part for new characters and I know what's going on just by looking at the comic panels. lol
For change of pace, there are translator teams that I like and they worked on other comics. I started reading Miao Shu Xian Dan. That one has great art, fun characters and brutal action. Wonderful weave of art, story and decent pacing. Oh yeah, I tried it because it has a fun, female protag. Most of the other series are based on guys. The coloring is happy & bright, but the story can get super dark. I like it a lot!
Then I noticed an update for another comic called National School Prince is a Girl. Probably only on Korean version of Webtoon cause it's not in the US app/website. Most of the WebToon comic titles are terrible! LOL Probably odd translations from the original Korean name.
Sidenote: There's some weird & popular story line where the main character is reincarnated into the past, new dimension/world/etc. National Prince is like that. The MC is transplanted in a different body/life. They both share the same name, but not necessarily the same personality traits. Also, for some reason, she was raised as a boy. She's the first born and only the main family knows about her being a girl, not a boy. Weird right?
What hooked me is the story + art. The storyline has her being a top notch hacker & gamer. So, plot has her kicking butt in video games, goofing around as a playboy teen and working to make sure her Mom is ok. A nice change of pacing for story type & setting.
She still looks like a girl to me. LOL
Yay! Audiobook re-read of Cetaganda was great! It's cool that a series I loved as a kid is still awesome now that I'm an old fart. =D LoL The Miles books are a nice mix of politics, caper and growing pains.
Soo wrote: "I read Hangman's Gate #2 since it's on Audible +. Another mixed bag story. There are new characters introduced and one of them is really cool, a couple of fun fight scenes and min..."
I finished book 2. Overall I liked the book but sometimes get confused which POV the author is on for a bit. New characters were good but could have used more of Josten's story. Decent story and good action but writing/pacing seems off sometimes. 3 stars
I am gonna start book 3 tmrw.
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I also can’t tell if they’re trying to setup the Mayor as a long-term rekindled love interest or not…
Fantasy Buddy Reads
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Added Dead Take the A Train to my TBR. I'm going to be cautiously optimistic. It's a co-written one.
I haven't read The Wrong Dead Guy. Library doesn't have that one. I'll wait for a sale. =)