Fantasy Aficionados discussion
Epic Fantasy
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A Song of Ice and Fire
lmao! That makes sooo much sense (obviously, we suffer from the same ailment :)
Yes...it's an addiction. On the other hand, if you've got to have an addiction, books are the one to have.
Exactly, most of us are not going to read and drive!
Well... there are audio books that you can play as you drive.
lol @ Grant! You better stop reading and driving! You'll get your library card revoked.Books are my drug of choice. And I do go through withdrawal. I am a total b!tch on wheels if I don't have something to read. I keep a selection of books with me at all times (thank God for iThing apps, I have 11) and I have a stash of books in every room of my house. Sad, right?
Ive recently picked some up actually :) Jason recommended audible.com and I've enjoyed it thus far
Grant wrote: "lol..except this guy!"It looks like you have responded well to your intervention. LOL
Just imagine the commercials for Don't Read and Drive! lolI'm glad you like Audible, Grant. There's a treasure trove there, and they have a fairly good membership program.
I do enjoy it the only issue I have so far is that it takes So much longer to Hear a novel than to read it.
I imagine that might be frustrating for a fast reader. You do get used to it, though. If you find a book with an excellent reader, it'll be like story time at school when you were a kid. LOL
Grant wrote: "I do enjoy it the only issue I have so far is that it takes So much longer to Hear a novel than to read it."I know how you feel. I bought an audio book of Polgara the Sorceress. :( I use it to help me fall asleep.
I don't mind the extra time if it's a good book and a good reader. BUT it can drive you crazy if the book isn't one you like or the reader is...hard to listen to. :)
I hate it when you come across a reader I can't stand. It can turn me off the entire book.
I agree about narrators in audio. They can make or break a book. Once I find a narrator I like, sometimes I just buy a book based on who is reading it. I'm a fast reader but sometimes I like to pop on an audiobook and listen while I do housework. How awesome to read while mopping the floor or cleaning the bathroom. Lol.
Totally agree. I started listening to audios as I was driving and now use them often when I'm doing "hands busy but mind not busy" work.
Nicki wrote: "MrsJoseph wrote: "*note - I feel so very strange talking about my mom so much at my age - but she's been the only person who shared my excitement and love of fantasy books until I joined this group..."I've been thinking about getting my mom a Kobo, Boarders has them on sale for $99. She'd flip!
I have a Kindle as well. I love it. It will never replace the real thing, though. There's nothing like the weight of paper and print in your hands.
That's so true. I have about 4 print books coming tomorrow. :) So excited!!And I received The Man With the Golden Torc via bookswap today!
Yes! Hardback with decent bindings! I bought a couple of HB a few years ago that had the worse bindings in the world. :( Tor had a really bad year in their paperbacks - maybe 2006?
MrsJoseph wrote: "Yes! Hardback with decent bindings! I bought a couple of HB a few years ago that had the worse bindings in the world. :( Tor had a really bad year in their paperbacks - maybe 2006?"
2006: that year (if I recall rightly) a HUGE, very old, very established book LARGE distributor dropped an unpaid debt, to the tune of 60 something million, on the publishers. That shortfall drove many independent publishers under, and wiped out the cash reserves of the major league houses. It was a debacle...of many traumas that have swept through the industry since the 90s....there was a huge article on it in Publisher's Weekly; not even the FBI could determine where the money went.
Janny wrote: 2006: that year (if I recall rightly) a HUGE, very old, very established book LARGE distributor dropped an unpaid debt, to the tune of 60 something million, on the publishers. That shortfall drove many independent publishers under, and wiped out the cash reserves of the major league houses. It was a debacle...of many traumas that have swept through the industry since the 90s....there was a huge article on it in Publisher's Weekly; not even the FBI could determine where the money went."Wow! This is the stuff I missed not knowing about Mobileread and Goodreads. :( How did they get away with that? I thought all "legal" money is required to have a paper trail...
just finished Clash of Kings. awesome! i'm just as impressed as i was with Game of Thrones. right now i'm trying really hard not to run out and buy Storm of Swords - i want to pace myself. i'd love to time my reading of this series so that i can somehow read A Feast for Crows when Dance for Dragons comes out - which i'd like - LIKE - to assume will be sometime this year. the last i read, martin had only 4-5 chapters left, last fall.that ending battle scene was amazing. i also really enjoyed the sequence with renly. i could have used more of Daenerys but i assume i'll be getting more of her in upcoming books. i loved everything that had to do with the Iron Islands. i am looking forward to reading more about the kingdom of Dorne. same with the crannogmen - loved reading about the two in Winterfell (Meera & Jojen) and want to learn more. also looking forward to finally meeting Mance.
i just think Martin is an excellent writer. the details are intricate but everything holds together so well and i don't recall being bored by any chapter, despite the length. his device of not engaging in long battle sequences is great - i think it is very interesting that Robb's battles are kept off-screen so to speak - it makes for more some interesting suspense and makes the actual battles that he depicts all the more powerful. i don't get worn down by them. and same goes for the magic - used very sparingly in the first, a bit more in this second one - magic retains its "magic" quality, unknown & unbelievable & frightening when seen.
my favorite characters are Tyrion (of course), Arya (of course), and actually Theon. favorite non-pov characters are Bronne and Stannis - who makes for a very compelling, villainous character.
although i have to disagree with the idea of Tyrion as evil, as mentioned in this thread. i just really disagree with that! he is empathetic, he is kind when he is able to be, and is seldom cruel - he just happens to be on the wrong side.
I wouldn't count too hard on it being released this year.. I'd say late next year at the very soonest, and probably not even then. It's a better bet to just not get your hopes up at all, it could be a while still.
I would offer you my copy of a Storm of Swords...but I'm going to try to read AGoT One. More. Time. After that, I'm giving up!
aw thanks. but i couldn't help myself, i ordered a copy on amazon. hardback this time, i don't want this book to be in as bad a condition as AGOT or ACOK were when i finished them.
mark wrote: "aw thanks. but i couldn't help myself, i ordered a copy on amazon. hardback this time, i don't want this book to be in as bad a condition as AGOT or ACOK were when i finished them."lol, I know the feeling. I have a fetish for hardbacks, too.
So, I was going to buy A Game of Thrones for my Nook bc it's only 5 dollars. Then I was at the library today and they had a paperback copy for 25 cents! Woo! As a starving college student saving dollars always makes me happy lol. I'm excited to start this. I feel like it's something that I should have been into a long time ago. I've been wondering why I never heard of it.
I am 2/3 through A Feast of Crows and I just wanted to gush about how much I love this series. So far a Storm of Swords was my absolute favorite book. The events that took place were really so emotional. I could not put that book down.As for my favorite character that is difficult, but I would say Jon Snow. I want him to be the “hero”, but GRRM seems to be good at not giving you what you want! I like his background and the mystique it fosters. I always look forward to his parts.
I have not read a fantasy novel in quite some time and when I heard about the HBO series coming out back in October I picked up a Game of Thrones. Now I am sad I have no more Martin books to read, but I’m excited to start reading other fantasy novels again. My passion for the genre is back after many years of it being dormant.
Same thing happened to me, Dave. I was a little burned out on fantasy, but Martin's series really got the fire going again. This was about five years ago or so, so that's a pretty big fire...lolBut then, there's a lot of great stuff coming out nowadays
Dave, it's good to have you back in the fantasy fold! If you're looking for something to take George R. R. Martin's place now that you're finished with what's available for A Song of Ice and Fire, I would HIGHLY recommend Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen epic. The tenth and final book is set to be released on March 1st (so you don't need to be worried that the final elusive chapter will never get published - are you listening Mr. Martin???). But anyway, The Malazan Book of the Fallen is just as intricate and character driven as A Song of Ice and Fire while maintaining a dark and heart wrenching feel. There's excellent action, beautiful dialog, powerful yet tragic characterization, vicious sorcery and even some light hearted levity now and again.As for Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, I completely agree with everyone else on here, it's up there as one of the greatest epics I have ever read. Now if we can just convince George to complete it. Maybe now that the pro football season is done for another few months, he'll get back to the writing desk ... fingers crossed...
I read this series way back when, and we waited so long for A Feast for Crows and finaly Martin said that the book was too big and he had to cutit in half...so after 5 years we got the half book. Everyone thought no problem, the other is just the other half and will be out soon. Every year there was a publishing date, and every year it went by. Now it's 6 years since the first half was published, and last time I looked, DANCE was not going to be available until late 2012.I decided back in '06 I wouldn't read anymore until the series got finished.
I turned to Erikson instead and am an official addict!
Dawn wrote: "I wouldn't count too hard on it being released this year.. I'd say late next year at the very soonest, and probably not even then" In that case, I may have time to read the first 3 books again and finally read A Feast for Crows for the first time before A Dance With Dragons is released!
That's a good idea Weenie ... I think I'll add a re-read of A Song of Ice and Fire to my TBR list in the hope that, by the time I get through it again, Dance will be on it's way to publication.In the meantime, I saw this on a blog ages ago (no idea where now). It made me laugh out loud and I saved it. Thought I'd share it with all of you.
I give you a day in the life of George R. R. Martin:
10:00 am – Wake up.
10:01-10:20 – Get out of bed.
10:21 – Eye fifteen-foot walk to bathroom. Sigh heavily.
10:22 – 10:25 – Walk to bathroom.
10:25 – 11:00 – Gross stuff. Like, really, really gross stuff...
11:01 – Press intercom button. Summon Ty from his basement chambers for morning dressing ritual.
11:02-11:12 – Heated debate with Ty regarding the pros and cons of velvet running suit versus sweatpants-and-sweatshirt ensemble.
11:13 – Sigh heavily.
11:14 – 11:24 – Put on pants.
11:25-11:27 – Snickers break.
11:28 – 11:35 – Put on sweatshirt featuring Southwestern motif of wolves climbing starlit mountains, or, if formal affair is impending, purple velvet zip-front running top.
11:36-1:00pm – Lunch with Ty at Long John Silver’s.
1:01-4:00pm – Blogging, snacking on previously-unnoticed beard foodstuffs, football watching.
4:01-4:11 – Furious, furious masturbation.
4:12-4:15 – Heavy breathing.
4:16-4:30 – Angry phone conversation with local Wizards of the Coast manager re: backordered set of miniature knight-sized velour pants.
4:31-4:52 – Work on ADWD interspersed with web browsing of www.chickseatingturkeylegs.com.
4:53-5:45 – Fall asleep at desk; drool.
5:46 – Wake up; yell for Ty to put on his heavy lifting belt.
5:47-5:55 – With Ty's assistance, get out of chair.
5:56-7:30– Dinner hosted by nearest ComiCon PR manager. Greedily eye leftover steak au poivre sitting on Anne McCaffrey’s plate. Whimper softly as busboy takes plate away.
7:45 – Return home.
7:46-9:20 – Pop in DVD of Deuce Bigalo: American Gigolo. Guffaw repeatedly while simultaneously eating handfuls of Whoppers with one hand and writing the foreword to the deluxe illustrated edition of Fevre Dream with the other.
9:20-9:22 – Consider working on ADWD. Think better of it. Resume eating Whoppers.
9:23-9:25 – Snap in and out of consciousness until falling asleep.
10:00-10:01 – Wake up. Munch on Beard Whoppers. Fall back asleep.
10:15 – Wake up due to Ty’s loud typing. Roar unintelligible curses at him, until noticing that Ty has just finished typing up another “Jon” chapter for ADWD. Pat Ty on head and say, “Good boy.”
10:16-10:25 – Stumble up stairs to bed.
10:26 – Collapse on bear fur blankets and satin throw pillows that cover king-sized bed. Sleep until next day.
Ok, ok ... I know that's a little harsh ... We love you George ... PLEASE keep writing!
Clay wrote: "Dave, it's good to have you back in the fantasy fold! If you're looking for something to take George R. R. Martin's place now that you're finished with what's available for A Song of Ice and Fire, ..."Ok, someone PLEASE tell me what this series (Steven Erikson's Malazan Book of the Fallen) is about! I cannot start a 10 book series to find out all my favorite characters are going to die OR I'm going to spend 99% of the book(s) crying.
What ever happend to a good ole action book?
At the risk of offending readers of the Ice and Fire thread, I will post a brief synopsis of Erikson's epic here for you.The Malazan Book of the Fallen is a 10 volume epic detailing the events leading up to the ascendancy and dubious reign of the Chained One, the Crippled God (or the Fallen One - hence "Malazan Book of the Fallen"). The series details the exploits of, primarily, the down and dirty soldiers of the Malazan Empire and focuses on such themes as the depth of their loyalties to a sometimes duplicitous empire, their perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds, their desire to "do the right thing" even when they are completely misunderstood and their determination to see a masterful plan through to the bitter end.
Along the way, Erikson loads his cast with a fantastic assortment of assassins, thieves, traitors, mages, swordsmen, sappers, ascendants, gods, mortals, immortals, priests, demons and a handful of partridges for the occasional pear tree.
Will characters you love get hurt? Definitely. Will good triumph over evil? Sometimes. Will the story blow you away? Without a doubt.
I guess I can't speak for everybody, but it truly has to be experienced to witness the depth and magnitude of what Erikson has managed to accomplish in just a short decade. I simply can not recommend this series highly enough to anyone who loves the fantasy genre.
That said... It's not for everyone of course. I loved Martin's series, and thought I would love Erikson's too.. But I really really didn't. Not at all. I didn't see how it was even a little similar to Martin's style. Just playing devil's advocate :)
Specifically, Mrs. Joseph, this IS a good action tale. And some of the characters you get to know and love may just end up assuming room temperature at some point in the epic ... but having said that, the brilliance of this series far outweighs any heartbreak. And not ALL of his amazing characters will get run through the meat grinder.Reading Martin, I sometimes felt as if he were torturing his cast simply because he could. With Erikson, the pain felt by those who get hurt seems to have a subtly more profound meaning behind it.
The series is definitely dark ... but it's a ton of fun too.
On a scale of Mercedes Lackey to GRRM, where does it fall? (I didn't think 1-10 would be apropos here, lol)
Dawn, I also have a friend who didn't care for Erikson's series. To him it was just too "wordy". So I can understand it not being everyone's cup-o-tea. But to me, the depth and layered magnitude of what is unfolding in this epic is truly exceptional in this genre.Don't get me wrong, I love A Song of Ice and Fire too. But you're right; they've subtly different styles. Martin's Ice and Fire draws heavily on a War of the Roses style political upheaval while throwing in a heavy dose of Greek Tragedy with an excellent cast of upper class, noble players. Erikson's MBotF portrays more of a raw, battlefield grunt's view of events centered around the ascendancy of a major a-hole.
Maybe not for everyone. But I love the feel of it.
Yeah... I didn't think it was too wordy or complex. I just didn't give a crap about any of the characters. Who cares if they are killed off, I don't like or dislike them enough to worry over it. I felt no connection to it.. Wanted to, but didn't. *shrugs*
Mrs. Joseph, I've never read Lackey ... but possibly my previous post will illuminate more of the narrative's perspective. Erikson's word smithing is, IMHO, on par with a Martin or even a Tolkien (I know that may sound like sacrilege to some JRRT fans...:)
Hmm, I'm a huge Lackey fan (can't help it). I was talking about the tear jerker quality. Lackey tends not to kill off main characters (unless its the bad guy) - I would call most of her stuff rather child friendly - unlike GRRM. GRRM seems to get a kick out of maiming and torturing his characters, which I can't get into. I've noticed a trend toward really sad "gritty" fantasy tales lately. Gritty is not my thing, I will cry and I don't like to.
Based on that and what I know of the series, I would say the Malazan series definitely isn't for you.. It's gritty to the extreme.
Thanks for the honest answer. :-)I'm a strange cat, I get that. I like the blood & guts, just can't stand the emotional tension.
Agreed. Gritty. Harsh. At times, heart-wrenching. You may want to steer clear if you're not into that sort of thing. And I'm not either, really. I like happy endings as much as the next person - I don't like gritty for gritty's sake ... but, in this case, it definitely fits with the world Erikson and Esslemont built - and more importantly, it serves the ends of the whole story.But I would still put MBotF slightly under ASoIaF in the realm of tortured protagonists. It just seems like more good happens than bad in MBotF, as opposed to the inverse in ASoIaF. Martin's characters just can't seem to catch a break...
That gives me some hope. I might pick it up. GRRM does some horrific things to his characters. I really don’t like to cry and he seems to love a good cry fest. I feel like I’m watching the Oxygen Channel or WE or something. Abuse, abuse, abuse, kill, HORROR, kill, kill, incest, abuse, abuse, abuse. Ready for book 2? Revenge! Abuse, kill, abuse…
Fantasy Aficionados
Books mentioned in this topic
A Dance with Dragons (other topics)Ulysses (other topics)
The World of Robert Jordan's the Wheel of Time (other topics)
The Valley of Horses (other topics)
The Mammoth Hunters (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Terry Pratchett (other topics)Steven Erikson (other topics)
I have no will power.