Resurrecting October Reading

[Michael01]

I'm still reading K. W. Jeter's DS9 novel, Warped. I was hoping for at least some of the flamboyance he showed in Dr. Adder, but so far it seems pretty much like a normal DS9 adventure - although done very well.

 

[kyektulu]

Still reading Wrath of a mad god by Raymond E Feist, I havnt picked it up for a week, I should finish it.

 

[Lord Soth]

Well I'm half way through Curse of the Mistwraith by Wurts, and to be honest - not really enjoying it :/

//ready for a rant - skip if needed!//

Now, as I have mentioned before I'm not really a fan of female authors (so sue me!) but after reading the excellent Empire series collaberation again (Feist and Wurts) I asked for recommendatons and acted on such. One of those was CotM..

I think it may have been Feist's influence that tempered Wurts into something I like, but im finding it very 'twee' (is that a word?) She annoy's me by going on and on about the self pitying half brother she continues to (annoyingly) call 'Master', spends pages and pages of monologue about the moral dilema's but DOESNT ACTUALLY GET ON WITH THE STORY!

(Sorry was getting a little annoyed then!) IMO all of the characters seem amazingly shallow and unbelievable, gaining neither empathy or likeability from the reader. Even the character names annoy me (I'd much rather read an interesting and enjoyable story than give a **** about how to pronouce a name 'correctly'.

Sorry for the rant but i think I have just convinced myself to give this one up - perhaps after reading the Empire series my hopes were simply too high, or it may be that my tastes have been turned towards the more realistic (if I can use that in this context!) and gritty works or Erikson, GRRM and most recently Morgan...

Anyway, I think I'll pick up the new Hamilton for a nice change of scenery now...

//rant off//

 

[Rosemary]

something about obvious observations...?

anyhoo, i'm on Russell Kirkpatrick's Across The Face of the World. having bought all 3 at a bargain charity shop price, i feel obliged to get through them even though so far i'm not terribly impressed by the writing. the maps are rather lovely though and i can tell he really cares about his world. just wish his dialogue wasn't so wooden.

I'm sorry to hear you are not enjoying this series, Chopper, although out taste in fantasy might be quite different. I really enjoyed them and am waiting for the third book in his second trilogy to arrive in the bookshops.

At present I am now re-reading The Demon Child trilogy by Jennifer Fallon while I STILL wait for Toll of Hounds to arrive

 

[GOLLUM]

At present I am now re-reading The Demon Child trilogy by Jennifer Fallon while I STILL wait for Toll of Hounds to arrive

Really? You do live on the other side of the world don't you!..... I don't get why WA always gets the raw end. Presumably it relates to population density. You do have a nice SFF shop in Perth, wouldn't they stock it?

 

[Rosemary]

I thought Melbourne was on the other side as well, only further!

The initials from Western Australia are WA = Wait Awhile!

I have the book on order at Angus & Robertson and each time I check, I have been told that the release date has been changed by the distributors. Just think how much more I will enjoy reading it when it does arrive.

PS Just received a mobile text message - MY COPY OF 'TOLL OF HOUNDS' IS NOW READY FOR COLLECTING!

 

[Talysia]

Next up is Jim Butcher's White Night.

 

[gully_foyle]

Did I mention that the copy of We Have Capture I read was also signed? By Tom Stafford, of course

I have books signed by Stafford, Lovell, Glenn, Schirra, Aldrin, Schmitt, Haise, Scott, Carpenter, Irwin, Duke, Cernan, Mitchell, Cooper, plus a few non-astronauts such as Liebergott, Kranz, Wendt, Kraft.. Oh, and one signed by Neil Armstrong, but I'm pretty such that's a forgery.

Wow! A bona fide astronaut stalker.

 

[iansales]

Wow! A bona fide astronaut stalker.

Nah. I bought them signed.

 

[Serin]

I finished Countess Ilona by Robert Muller, another good one in this anthology. Have also read Death Can Add by Philip Ketchum, the next on the list is The Partnership by William F. Nolan.

 

[Clansman]

Just finished J.V. Jones' A Cavern of Black Ice. A good adventure story, decent characters, but I was expecting more depth. Finishing off O'Brian's saga of the sea, with the indefatigable Jack Aubrey and the talented Stephen Maturin, with Blue at the Mizzen, the last in this excellent series. I have been saving it. Also on tap is Slaves of the Shinar, by Justin Allen.


.

Well I'm half way through Curse of the Mistwraith by Wurts, and to be honest - not really enjoying it :/

//ready for a rant - skip if needed!//

Now, as I have mentioned before I'm not really a fan of female authors (so sue me!) but after reading the excellent Empire series collaberation again (Feist and Wurts) I asked for recommendatons and acted on such. One of those was CotM..

I think it may have been Feist's influence that tempered Wurts into something I like, but im finding it very 'twee' (is that a word?) She annoy's me by going on and on about the self pitying half brother she continues to (annoyingly) call 'Master', spends pages and pages of monologue about the moral dilema's but DOESNT ACTUALLY GET ON WITH THE STORY!

(Sorry was getting a little annoyed then!) IMO all of the characters seem amazingly shallow and unbelievable, gaining neither empathy or likeability from the reader. Even the character names annoy me (I'd much rather read an interesting and enjoyable story than give a **** about how to pronouce a name 'correctly'.

Sorry for the rant but i think I have just convinced myself to give this one up - perhaps after reading the Empire series my hopes were simply too high, or it may be that my tastes have been turned towards the more realistic (if I can use that in this context!) and gritty works or Erikson, GRRM and most recently Morgan...

Anyway, I think I'll pick up the new Hamilton for a nice change of scenery now...

//rant off//

I had the same observations of Erikson's Gardens of the Moon about half way through. I persevered, and was glad that I did. Your Lordship, CotMW is perhaps the most difficult book of The Wars of Light and Shadow, especially as a new Wurts reader, because she is setting up the story of a ten novel epic. The last half of the book (which I assume you have not reached) is much faster paced and goes to the action, and is gritty and realistic (the rape of Tal Quorin will convince you if I do not).

I would have sent you to read To Ride Hell's Chasm first, as it is a more recent work and does not commit you to a ten-plus novel series. Also, CotMW was written almost 20 years ago. Her craft has been honed significantly since, but to understand the series, it must be read in order. This book does a lot of the work for the series, and the payoff comes in the second half of the book, and in the rest of the series.

Frankly, I have never heard Wurts' characters being described as shallow and unbelievable. Indeed, most I have seen comment on her writing think of her characterization as her main strength, and as something that she does better than most other writers. As for getting on with the story, READ THE LAST HALF OF THE BOOK! That's where it is. I see Erikson and Wurts as similar in this respect, as the first half of the book is used as set-up, and the last half of the book is a pounding gallop to the finish.

I encourage you to finish the book, and remember that it is the main foundation stone for the series. The other details of the Atheran world are revealed as you go, but as you have the detail from CotMW, you aren't left scratching your head as much as you might be in the Malazan books (that is my main complaint about Erikson, but one gets over it after a few books). She does all the things that Erikson didn't do in Gardens of the Moon, such as give the reader the basic set up of this new world. The succeeding books, as a result, flow much faster, and release the details more slowly, and at timely intervals when the reader needs them.

However, if you finish the book and remain of the same opinion, so be it. At least you tried it and finished it. This series is really more like one large book with several volumes, so you really are in the first few chapters of a much larger work.

 

[Lobolover]

"Observation of October Opuses"-yeah,I never realy liked that one :/

 

[HoopyFrood]

Still on 'Tis Pity She's a Whore, also an extract of Thyestes by Seneca and also finishing off Will You Please Be Quiet, Please? by Raymond Carver.

 

[Lady of Winterfell]

I am still reading Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay. I haven't had much time lately for reading, so its taking me longer to finish books. But I am enjoying it so far, think I'm about halfway through.

 

[Lobolover]

corection-the full title of the thread was "ORGANISED Observations etc." .

 

[Pyan]

Yes it was, and I should know, because I started it...but it's now Resurrecting October Reading because it's about October reading, and it's been resurrected.

 

[Razorback]

Recently finished Chindi, by Jack McDevitt. Most of the characters are a bit thin and McDevitt gets a bit lazy with some of the specific story points. Nevertheless, the story pace, overall grandeur and style make for a good read. I rate it a 7.5 on a 10 scale.

 

[Lobolover]

Pyan-kinda breaks the tradition though.What makes me sad is,we lost September thread,right,and that had a VERY good title.

 

[Lord Soth]

Just finished J.V. Jones' A Cavern of Black Ice. A good adventure story, decent characters, but I was expecting more depth. Finishing off O'Brian's saga of the sea, with the indefatigable Jack Aubrey and the talented Stephen Maturin, with Blue at the Mizzen, the last in this excellent series. I have been saving it. Also on tap is Slaves of the Shinar, by Justin Allen.


.

I had the same observations of Erikson's Gardens of the Moon about half way through. I persevered, and was glad that I did. Your Lordship, CotMW is perhaps the most difficult book of The Wars of Light and Shadow, especially as a new Wurts reader, because she is setting up the story of a ten novel epic. The last half of the book (which I assume you have not reached) is much faster paced and goes to the action, and is gritty and realistic (the rape of Tal Quorin will convince you if I do not).

I would have sent you to read To Ride Hell's Chasm first, as it is a more recent work and does not commit you to a ten-plus novel series. Also, CotMW was written almost 20 years ago. Her craft has been honed significantly since, but to understand the series, it must be read in order. This book does a lot of the work for the series, and the payoff comes in the second half of the book, and in the rest of the series.

Frankly, I have never heard Wurts' characters being described as shallow and unbelievable. Indeed, most I have seen comment on her writing think of her characterization as her main strength, and as something that she does better than most other writers. As for getting on with the story, READ THE LAST HALF OF THE BOOK! That's where it is. I see Erikson and Wurts as similar in this respect, as the first half of the book is used as set-up, and the last half of the book is a pounding gallop to the finish.

I encourage you to finish the book, and remember that it is the main foundation stone for the series. The other details of the Atheran world are revealed as you go, but as you have the detail from CotMW, you aren't left scratching your head as much as you might be in the Malazan books (that is my main complaint about Erikson, but one gets over it after a few books). She does all the things that Erikson didn't do in Gardens of the Moon, such as give the reader the basic set up of this new world. The succeeding books, as a result, flow much faster, and release the details more slowly, and at timely intervals when the reader needs them.

However, if you finish the book and remain of the same opinion, so be it. At least you tried it and finished it. This series is really more like one large book with several volumes, so you really are in the first few chapters of a much larger work.

Well I am exactly half way through it, and based on your recommendation I will persevere (SP?) Ive heard great things about Wurts - as I mentioned I loved the Empire collaberation, so perhaps was expecting too much! I think it was just little things that were annoying me - but once you have noted those little annoyances you notice them even more, a vicious circle etc...

To defend myself (and my assessment of the characters to this point) I would say that I find (out of the two main charcters) one is glossed over, whereas the other is just annoyingly self pitying! I tend to not have much time for self pity though, in RL or in books, so that probably tainted my enjoyment somewhat. Normally I find you can judge the 'flavour' of a book after the first few chapters - guess not on this one! I shall continue and see how it pans out for me!

PS. I love Erikson, but I agree he is one author where you must take it for granted you probably wont understand whats going on until at least the later stages of the book, sometimes not even that!

 

[Kostmayer]

Just finished Phillip Pullmans Northern Lights. Great storyline, Airships, Bear armies - must get onto the next one soon.

Am also working my way through the Cadfael Chronicles - am halfway through "One Corpse Too Many"