The Fantasy/Sci-Fi Books Thread Book • Page 148

can I ask more about why you hated Wise Man's Fear so much...?

I remember liking it at the time it came out, but as more and more years and decades have gone by and he continues to just not finish the trilogy I've really cooled on it and him in general

 

"I'm Kvothe, I'm the greatest man who ever lived. I fucked a fairy princess who murdered everyone else who tried." It reads like a giant Gary Stu fuckboy wish fulfillment self-insertion book for me. Name of the Wind carries this vibe, too, but the sex thing sent Wise over the top.

 

You're braver than me, I made it maybe 100 pages into Iron Flame.

And yeah, I 100% understand the Dust of Dreams hate.

As for my end of the bargain:

1. Rand
2. Mat
3. Perrin
4. Egwene
5. Nynaeve
6. Moirane
7. Lan
8. The lady that helps Moirane try on dresses in New Spring
9. Elayne?
10. Rand Al' Thor

 

maybe I'll give Name of the Wind another try, but the book was not compelling in the least to me. And seeing everyone say how it devolves into having an insufferable MC who is good at everything, it doesn't look like I'm missing anything

 

I've actually finished Onyx Storm, so maybe I just like a bit of punishment. (It wasn't a buddy read per se, but one of my friends is obsessed, so I try to read what my friends like.)

I feel like you could've easily named two more.

 

Yeah. I'm actually planning to revisit a lot of works over the next couple years (saves money to re-read) and there are ones where I want to give it another go, ones I loved a long time ago I want to revisit to see if it's still the same, and then ones I know I'm good on. Rothfuss is solidly on the third list.

 

truthfully, I cannot name two more lol. I DNF'd in like 2012, which is another reason I feel like it's time to restart it. That was a lifetime ago and my tastes have assuredly changed. The first three books are just staring at me from my shelf

 

man, my memory must be worse than I thought - I literally don't remember any sex in those books at all! but yeah, those other criticisms sound on the mark from what I do remember

I wouldn't go back and reread either of them unless he finally finished the damn trilogy, but I would be a little curious if that stuff would strike me differently now as a 40-yr-old father vs a single dude in his 20's

 

Read NOTW as a teen and loved it, read Slow Regard about eight years ago and also loved it. But I haven’t reread NOTW nor read book two. They’re on the TBR, but not really a priority.

Some days I contemplate turning over my reading plans to yinz. Too many books. Never read any Abercrombie but I should. Need to do more Malazan. Jen Williams. Tad Williams. The other Williamses probably.

I need the world to pause for like a year so I can write five more books, read through my backlog, play 500 videogames, etc

 

who has time to write books fr

 

I never made it all the way thru Memory, Sorrow & Thorn, but I own them all and do plan to tackle them again at some point, because I really enjoy his writing.

I know I've said it before, but I am constantly telling anyone who will listen (mainly my poor wife) to read Jen Williams The Winnowing Flame trilogy - right up there with Robert Jackson Bennett's Divine Cities trilogy for sorely underappreciated masterpieces as far as I'm concerned

I'm continuing my Abercrombie reread for now and just started Best Served Cold, but there is a strong chance I bail out because it's all to dark and heavy for me and retreat to something lighter and less oppressive

 

Really feeling the temptation to do a reread of Sun Eater before November.. Not sure if I can do it

 

in the words of one of my daughter's books,

 

Man I am loving my reread of GotM. Quick Ben is so awesome. I love the friendship between him and Kalam. The wizard and the assassin, just bros being bros.

It's much easier also to not read the series thinking of any side as "good " Picking up much much more this time around.

 

all kidding aside, I have the utmost respect for anyone who actually writes a book and gets it out into the world. as a long time frustrated writer, actually accomplishing that seems utterly impossible to me.

 

Oh fuck yeah, another Children of Time book coming. That series keeps delivering.

 

I have so many Tchaikovsky books and I've only read a few. Need to fix that

 

I definitely prefer the artwork & design on these versions of the covers for Abercrombie's books, and even went out of my way to make sure I got this one, but I'm a sword guy, and I was just looking at the cover for Best Served Cold and I noticed that they have Monza holding Strider's Ranger sword from the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings movies, the one he carries in the wild when he first meets up with the hobbits, before they reforge the shards of Narsil into Andúril -->


it's still a pretty great cover, it's just funny that they stole the sword design. the way her hand looks it strikes me as a last minute Photoshop addition too. plus, those aren't even the types of swords she uses in the book.

 

The first of that series has been longingly staring at me from my shelf for like 2 years. I’ve just leaned more fantasy or thriller than sci-fi lately!

 

I’ve said it before Tchaikovsky is like the Sci Fi Sanderson, dropping an insane amount of books at such a high level.

 

I finished Piranesi the other night. It’s one of my new favorites. 10/10.

 

I just finished my first Tchaikovsky book, Children of Time, a couple weeks ago. I'll be reading that series back and forth with The Dandelion Dynasty for the next while.

Children of Time was absolutely incredible. I got really connected to those spiders. Really looking forward to continuing the series and delving further into his catalogue.

 

I forget, who in here has read Shauna Lawless? I just finished the first Gael Song book today.

 

So the Children of Time series isn’t exactly an anthology, but it also kind of feels like one, each has such a vastly different premise, but the best part is that each of those premises have been awe-inspiring, sci fi at its best. Each tells a complete story which is why I keep being surprised when a new one gets announced, but also it feels like it could go on forever if his ideas are always this damn good.

also dandelion dynasty rules

 

Also Adrian Tchaikovskys fantasy is good. His 10 book series being top tier fantasy. Echoes of the Fall great too, but it wouldn’t be the first thing I’d recommend. On the other hand it does have the cleanness of a trilogy