Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion
This topic is about
The Perfect Run
Book Clubs!
>
Vagabond Treehouse ~ [Fall 2025: World of Chains #1-3 (Wayward Bard) | The Perfect Run 1-3 (alternating)]
Books/Series Vagabonds Read: ~ Updated 01/02/2024(If you want to read a book that has been buddy read before, feel free to ask or hop over to the Buddy Read Invite thread to post for interest.)
Psst! What all did we read? I can't remember. Also, anyone check out the books mentioned in the old thread? We talked enough books to be listed on six pages. Woo!
- Threadbare series by Andrew Seiple
- Joe Ledger series by Jonathan Maberry
- Space Team series by Barry J Hutchison
- Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold
- Tufa series by Alex Bledsoe
- Eddie LaCrosse series by Alex Bledsoe
- Pendergast series by Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child
- System Apocalypse series by Tao Wong
- Cradle series by Will Wight
- The Wandering Inn (WebSerial) by Pirateaba
- Phule's Company series by Robert Lynn Aspirin, Peter J Heck (Incomplete)
- Sandman Slim series by Richard Kadrey
- Alex Verus series by Benedict Jacka
- Parker series by Richard Stark
- Chimera series by Cate Glass
- Legendary Moonlight Sculptor (Korean WebNovel) by Hee Sung Nam
- Constance Verity series by A. Lee Martinez
- Orphan X series by Gregg Andrew Hurwitz
- Middle Falls Time Travel series by Shawn Inmon
- Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
- Andrea Vernon series by Alexander Kane
- Incryptid series by Seanan McGuire (Spelunking Through Hell #11)
- Skyward series by Brandon Sanderson
- Terrible Fall of Angels by Laurell K. Hamilton
- Beware of Chicken (Webserial) by CasualFarmer
- Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
- Gray Man by Mark Greaney
- Orlando People by Alexander C Kane
- Dragon Heist by Alexander C Kane
- Ghosts of Gotham Saga by Craig Schaefer
- Midnight Jury by Craig Schaefer
- Unorthodox Farming series by Benjamin Kerei
- Herokiller by Paul Tassi
- Nora Kelly series by Preston & Child
-
**Potential Vagabond BR's**
Mod
Orlando People by Alexander C Kane
Dragon Heist by Alexander C Kane
Ghosts of Gotham Saga by Craig Schaefer
Midnight Jury by Craig Schaefer
Few more for the read pile... otherwise your list feels pretty complete to me... might remember a few more, but we tend to comment on books, more than do real Buddy Reads, half the time, since people are so busy...
I finished BOC 3 this morning. Man I love this series. What a great start to the new year. Now the long wait for BOC 4 on audio.
Yay for BoC! Seal Team 13 by Evan Currie is on KU Read & Listen.
Quicksilver by Dean Koontz
Decided to have this be my 1st book read for 2024. I wanted to start with a book that I'd probably enjoy vs an experiment.
Between Koontz's writing and the narration by Todd Haberkorn, this story is hilarious! 🤣
Guess how I came up with 247 as the GR goal for 2024?
Soo wrote: "Guess how I came up with 247 as the GR goal for 2024?"LOL is it to read 24/7?
@Narilka--grats on finish!
@Nirkatze, ooo a good reason. That can be the subliminal reason.
Soo wrote: "Yay for BoC! Seal Team 13 by Evan Currie is on KU Read & Listen.
Quicksilver by Dean Koontz
Decided to have this be my 1st book read for 2024. I wanted to start ..."
Quicksilver was a hidden gem on KU
Mod
Was gonna say 365 minus the number of books you read in 2023, but the math doesn't line up...
2nd guess is/was 2024 and 47... 24 47... 247... that number only gains significance if you're turning 47 this year, and I have no idea if that's true... I know you're a bit older than me, Nirkatze and Emily... and we keep getting older each year...
I turn 37 in a few months... somehow...
I'm gonna shut up now, before I dig this hole any deeper :D
Hahahaha. @Iain. 47 is the new 27. At least I tell myself that
Brian wrote: "Hahahaha. @Iain. 47 is the new 27. At least I tell myself that"🤣🤣🤣
Whaddayamean?
I'm forever 27 in my head.
😇
Mod
LOL I always try to think of myself as older than I am, that way I won't be disappointed when I realize my actual age...
Soo wrote: "Brian wrote: "Hahahaha. @Iain. 47 is the new 27. At least I tell myself that"🤣🤣🤣
Whaddayamean?
I'm forever 27 in my head.
😇"
You and me both!
Hey @Iain. Let me know when you read Xenos. I just ordered it on Thriftbooks so give a week or two and I can be ready
Mod
There's a BR thread... it's why I added it to my list... BR thread is for Friday... I have so many BRs on my schedule I'll probably read it around then or next week... https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Ok cool thanks. Missed it somehow. So many threads now days
Mod
Me and Ann-Marie and Nirkatze filled half the sheet in October/November, then had to ration ourselves to leave room for other people :D
Need to remember to request a bunch of books for July to December, before too too long, before it gets flooded with other things, because we only requested a bunch of long series to June to avoid overflooding, and going too far in the future, but we really like to finish things we start...
Nirkatze wrote: "LOL I always try to think of myself as older than I am, that way I won't be disappointed when I realize my actual age..."Lol that's a good way of looking at it... I'm probably the youngest around here.. Turning 30 this year 😳
@Iain 2nd Guess was correct! 🤣🤣🤣I was like, what am I gonna put down for 2024? 200? 250? I don't want to use 100 again.
2024 + turning 47 = 247
🤣🤣🤣
Also, I developed a new thing about author pix on GR. Unless the author is a horror/crime writer, it's super weird to see a "mean, angry, demented, etc" type of pix on author page. Visually put off by that.
I think I like it better when I don't know what my authors look like.
🤣🤣🤣
This may be due to the fact I am a photographer, artist in various formats, business management, ad creator, etc. Basically my life experiences make me look at these VERY BAD PIX and give judgey side eye.
I've definitely been burned, in the past... scheduling BRs with people who don't show up... or joining BRs other people scheduled, and they don't show up... it's a sad sad feeling... but I feel like there's a solid group of folks who will at least comment and reschedule, nowadays...
There was more fade/burnout from BRs due to pandemic.
Mod
Visually put o..."
Alot of these authors post bio pics once at the beginning of their career and never seem to update... I still see the old Jim Butcher with long hair picture all over the place, from like 25 years ago, and he's been buzz cut and grey hair for at least a decade now (first the short hair, then the greying hair)...
Maybe he's started growing it out a bit again, but still...
Seanan McGuire has the best author pics...
Regular Seanan... again with the decades old picture, but still:
Mira Grant, horror author:
Doing her lipstick with a butcher knife :D
Mod
There was definitely a downturn for a few years, between babies and the pandemic, and people not reading as much... the ranks have refilled in recent years, and me and Yanique filled in the gaps in thread management that had crept in... and put in the work to bring back a semblence of the old Master Buddy Read List, with the spreadsheet and monthly postings in Random Chatter and the BR Invite thread...
I like that there's a backbone of Buddy Reads to the group, between people like me and Nirkatze reading everything, and doing solid series BRs with Ann-Marie... and we leave room for other stuff in between...
Just leads to some vague plans for the next multiple years, because there's not enough time in the day/month/year to read everything I'd like to read (even when I read 500 books a year)...
FOMO, as Nirkatze likes to mention...
Those bio pix are fine. Some of the new authors have pix that make them look like serial killer options. 🤔🫥👻🙃
I deep dived into Instagram this year. Went from only following people I know + a few pros in different fields to randomly following Suggested profiles that seemed interesting. Doing that lead me to Vanlife & Carcamping.
Making a vid takes skill. It's been an eye opener to view so many amateur creatives. Tech is cool. It makes so much possible.
Anyway, super enjoyed digging into Vanlife because I enjoyed learning about van builds and seeing a wide variety of designs. If I didn't have hand issues, I'd be plotting my own build. 😄
Anyways, my hypothetical vehicle pick for van build is a Mercedes Sprinter.
There are four Mercedes Sprinters doing story stuff in Quicksilver.
😆
Adding that vehicle to your Portal build, Soo? The car talk makes me think of My Cousin Vinny--saw that a few weeks ago for the first time and it was a lot of fun.Sebastian de Castell's author pics make me smile a little--he looks like he's trying a bit to hard to look like one of the characters in his books...
I credit Iain with teaching me the meaning of FOMO... both literally and figuratively...
Sebastian de Castell: The name, his 'look' and the type of stories he writes are all up my alley. Except I have yet to enjoy his work. Soooo I feel like should be fangaling was deflated before it ever started. 😆🙃🫠I am scatterbrained about the Settlement Challenge!!!
Too many choices! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh
I'm leaning to an LN style Player Character. Gonna give myself this week to figure it out and get it started. 🤔🧐📚
@Nirkatze & Iain: You two enjoyed Vigor Mortis. Think I'll like it? Reviews do not make me excited about it. Maybe worth trying via sale but not worth $11 credit. Hmmmmmm
Happy New Year and a brand new thread!!! Yay! Let's hope we all stay healthy and enjoy many, many books together!!!
Choko wrote: "Happy New Year and a brand new thread!!! Yay! Let's hope we all stay healthy and enjoy many, many books together!!!"Ditto this! Here's to a Happy, Healthy, and heart-warming-story-full New Year!
Soo wrote: "@Nirkatze & Iain: You two enjoyed Vigor Mortis. Think I'll like it? Reviews do not make me excited about it.
Maybe worth trying via sale but not worth $11 credit. Hmmmmmm"
Hm... I feel like you are a lot more critical reader than I am and Iain might have a better idea on what you like and dislike. After reading three of the author's works I can say she has a very distinct style and feel to her story-work, and her take on body-horror made me both cringe and think. It took me a little while to get into the story, and it took some turns I wasn't expecting. Outside of the MCs, the side characters didn't really stick in my memory much. My impression of volume 2 is more favorable than volume 1, but I enjoyed both. I would recommend it to someone to try #1 at least, if any of that sounds appealing.
On the plus side--credit purchases can be refunded. I even bought something with a credit for a BR once... it didn't work out, returned it... and then saw it on sale and was like hell, I'll give it another try... the series came up on sale multiple times last year.
Now that I'm neck deep into LNs, my reading critic scale has more layers. 😆 I definitely leave more room for error in fan translated work vs pro translations or English. - Trad Publish (New & Established)
- Experienced Self-Pub
- Self-Pub
- Amateur Self-Pub
- Online/Mobile Pub (English or Translated)
I try to not let expectations color my reading but that's hard to do. 🙈
Mod
We've read Vigor Mortis 1-2, and Hive Minds Give Good Hugs... plan to read Vigor Mortis 3 in February, I think, after we do Wandering Inn 10: Windrunner this month... Emily just asked us in the Animorphs thread about trying BioShifter sometime in the future (there's 2 volumes of that so far)... I definitely want to, it's one of the BR ideas I had for 2024 that was scrapped to avoid spending more of everyone's money... and then she has another series that's only on Patreon so far, about superheroes fighting Eldritch monsters across the multiverse...
She definitely has a theme in her stories... characters mutating and questioning their identity... body horror, as I summarize it...
The thing that I was wondering about for Vigor Mortis:- are the characters well established and stay true to character?
- decent cause and effect?
Like, Wandering Inn goes all over the place, but what won me over was how true to character template, extreme perspective showing of events (totally manipulates reader emotions/thoughts + representation of how people tend to perceive and think in real life), fun writing concept experiments that stay in story realm for long haul, consistent cause & effect.
Reviews made Vigor Mortis sound wishy washy in writing and pulpit for some cultural/political grandstanding, no causal reasons to actions.
Books for Vigor Mortis aren't on KU.
--- On another note, I went down (again) rabbit hole for Wars of Light and Shadows. A series I prefer in print with American quotation/grammar.
Kindle ebook has European quotation for dialogue and B&N Nook has NO QUOTATIONS AT ALL. Which is a change cause it used to before.
Guess I will suck it up and just read my ebooks.
But I'm used to "This is talking out loud." & 'This is mental chatter'.
The Wayward Bard #1 - Good rereading! Woo!MC starts off with full signs of being a bad guy & mishaps have him falling on his face/mudpit. Totally deserved it. 😆
LitRPG with light stats, standard VR fantasy MMORPG setting but fun (if it only worked in real games too) game environment and play mechanics, and Daniel grew on me as the story progressed. I'm having fun with the reread & looking forward to finishing the series.
Soo wrote: "The thing that I was wondering about for Vigor Mortis:- are the characters well established and stay true to character?
- decent cause and effect?
Like, Wandering Inn goes all over the place, but..."
re: Wars of Light and Shadow--that's why I always look for DRM free ebooks and edit them to my own preferred formatting... I can't stand European quotes.... I go through and do a replace-all and then spot-check for s' and 'em etc. Putting end punctuation after quotes also bugs me.
I actually asked the author about why the U.S. print versions had U.K. punctuation, even though she's American and must have written them with U.S. grammar, and she said it had to do with the publishers and nothing she could control...
re: Vigor Mortis Characters--I felt like the characters, at least the main ones (like I said, the side-characters didn't make much of a blip) held true to their personal cause-effect, but it isn't something I have a very sensitive radar for.
Mod
- are the characters well established and stay true to character?
- decent cause and effect?
Like, Wandering Inn goes all over th..."
Vigor Mortis: same... waited for Nirkatze's opinion, since it's been 3 months since I read, and she's been reading them in the past 6 weeks...
Nirkatze wrote: "Soo wrote: "The thing that I was wondering about for Vigor Mortis:- are the characters well established and stay true to character?
- decent cause and effect?
Like, Wandering Inn goes all over th..."
Replace all in like Word?
Love my ebook reader apps but don't think they have replace punctuation functions.
Mod
- are the characters well established and stay true to character?
- decent cause and effect?
Like, Wandering Inn..."
Calibre... best ebook management tool... has a suite of ebook editing and format conversion tools built in and extra plugins available...
https://calibre-ebook.com/
Ahhh ok. I should have remembered that. I haven't used Calibre in years.
I have bare bones of Settlement Portal Challenge down, but stalled on how to implement the Dimensional Library as the mixing point. Gonna eat and brainstorm more.
I use Sigil to edit epubs. https://sigil-ebook.comBut I think Sigil is best if you know or are willing to learn html.
I find Calibre way too messy in the html, but the tools are probably good if you don't want to deal directly with html editing.
Also, when replacing/swapping quotations, I have to do it in a few steps:
・replace existing left-quote “ with @
・replace existing right quote ” with $
・replace apostrophes sandwiched between letters ’ also with $--requires Regex (\w)’(\w) replace with \1$\2
・then replace all left apostrophe ‘ with left quote “
・replace all right apostrophe ’ with right quote ”
・replace all @ with left apostrophe ‘
・replace all $ (regex off, if regex is on, use \$) with ’
・search for any (\w)” and replace with \1’ to see if there are any end-word apostrophes I missed.
・search for any (space)” to see if there are any apostrophe words I missed...
so on.
I went ahead and started Dragon Heist on audio today. Didn't get very far though, only two chapters in. Birdie's dad is hilarious though thinking he scared off some dragons lol
@Nirkatze - Ooo cool! Love learning something new.I'm probably gonna just grumble and read ebooks as is. Less typing/mouse clicking is current life motto.
@Narilka - Yay fun! Putting Dragon Heist into read sooner pile.
Fantasy Buddy Reads
Books mentioned in this topic
Beware of Chicken 5: A Xianxia Cultivation Novel (other topics)The Wayward Bard (other topics)
Beware of Chicken 5: A Xianxia Cultivation Novel (other topics)
The Wayward Bard (other topics)
The Wayward Bard (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Nathan Lowell (other topics)Nathan Lowell (other topics)
Nina Bangs (other topics)
Vagabond Treehouse is a hangout place for casual Buddy Reads between planned BR's at FBR. Anyone to stop by, chat about books or life, plan for a spontaneous buddy read, chill, and have fun.
Vagabond Treehouse Rules:
- Anyone can plan a buddy read in the treehouse. Just ask if anyone is interested in reading the book or books you are thinking about reading.
- Reading Start Date will be chosen by participating Vagabonds.
- Read & Chat at your own pace! No such thing as a dead book topic.
Buddy Read Posting Format:
- Name of Book/Series
- Spoiler Tags for Big Plot Points
Vagabonds enjoy a wide variety of genres. We tend to read fantasy, sci-fi or thrillers, but most books/genres are open for buddy read suggestion and conversation.