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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31727 Posts |
 Posted - 13 Feb 2013 : 02:32:08
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quote:
Originally posted by Thauranil
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
quote:
Originally posted by Thauranil
I finally finished Halo Primodium, I ve been reading snippets of it between other books mostly because I did not care ofr it too much.
While its an interesting book, I really dont think Greg Bear is capable of conveying the whole Halo ethos. His books just dont feel like Halo books, I know he has to work with completely new characters and even the story is set way back in ancient days but still it just dont feel like Halo, especially this particular one.
Makes me wonder if he has ever played any of the games or even read the other novels in the series.
I felt kind of the same way... until I began to fully comprehend that Greg Bear isn't really writing about HALO. Instead, these books are focused almost exclusively on the Forerunners. Once I started reading them in that way, I found both of the books to be a great deal more enjoyable. There's a rich but untapped history to the HALO-verse, and I really do think Bear is only just beginning to get a handle on it.
Maybe, but that's a charitable way of looking at it. I didnt want to buy a Greg Bear novel, I wanted a Halo book.
Well, we do have to consider that the Forerunner branch of the HALO-verse occurred in a very different "world" to what we know and love about the HALO franchise in the games and other novels set around the time of the Earth/Covenant War. I appreciate Bear's ability to craft such an "ancient" world for the setting.
Not quite sure what you mean by it not being a HALO novel, though. I really felt like the two books were building up to branching the long-lost time of the Forerunners with what was eventually to come in the later HALO books.
Maybe the proposed third book in the trilogy will make this connection clearer.
quote:
I mean there are Star Wars novels set thousands of years apart, many of them having no Jedi in them at all and written by a varied cast of authors. But despite this i have never felt this strongly that a novel does not belong in this specific universe before. If SW can do it why not Halo, which has a miniscule amount of novels in comparison.
That's a worthwhile point.
But, at the same time, you're kind of answering your own question. The SW universe can easily delve into ancient history because there's so much support material. The HALO-verse, in comparison, is still an infant in terms of published material supporting the ENTIRE history of the setting. So I'd imagine these Forerunner books are an attempt to start somewhere earlier in the setting's history, and eventually work toward bridging it with more modern history.
Let's remember, too, that when the first books/comic books about the Old Republic in times nearly 5,000 years before the events of A New Hope, were released, a great many fans found them strange and unconnected to the main impetus of SW as well. But now, after decades of subsequent material, we all can't imagine what the setting would be like without these old sources depicting strange times in the ancient Old Republic. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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realmsrider
Acolyte
USA
48 Posts |
Posted - 13 Feb 2013 : 15:59:41
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Gotrek and Felix Omnibus 3 by William King and Nathan Long
Giantslayer Orcslayer Manslayer
Warhammer is my FR alternative. Darker, grittier and more desperate to the core. Gotrek and Felix are my favorite duo. Nathan Long is not William King but I enjoyed the transition between authors. I think he gives Gotrek more of a voice and the encounters really had me feeling Gotrek might actually meet his doom. I highly recommend for anyone who wants a hopeless struggle in their fantasy setting.
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Richard Lee Byers
Forgotten Realms Author
USA
1814 Posts |
Posted - 13 Feb 2013 : 16:53:17
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| I'm back to reading George R. R. Martin's A Dance with Dragons but am also going through P. J. O'Rourke's Holidays in Heck. |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 13 Feb 2013 : 21:40:03
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| Finished up Feist's At the Gates of Darkness. Decent read and sets up things for another series. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
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Valmour
Acolyte
27 Posts |
Posted - 14 Feb 2013 : 14:14:50
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Finished The Rage and The Rite by Byers; I am currently reading The Ruin.
I really enjoyed The Rage with the way the group came together and experiences they had as a group. I was a bit disappointed with The Rite though, it was a good book, but I did not enjoy all the jumping back forth from scene to scene. If I put the book down for a day, I had to sit there for a few seconds to remember what was going on.
So far The Ruin is more like The Rage and I am enjoying it more.
P.S. - I gave up on Evermeet.... I had like 150 pages left and blah... Tried a few times to get back into it. |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 14 Feb 2013 : 14:20:15
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| Continuing with The Crippled God and I'm also starting Tolkien's translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, but I will just be reading a few pages a day on this since it's an epic poem written in an almost Shakespearean old English style. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Wooly Rupert
Master of Mischief
USA
36798 Posts |
Posted - 14 Feb 2013 : 16:30:44
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I'll finish Scoundrels on my lunchbreak. It's not as good as some of the other Timothy Zahn Star Wars novels I've read, though it is enjoyable. Next I'm going to read something I picked up on a whim, The Rook.
After that will either be Unholy Night, or it'll be time to give in and read the Weis & Hickman Dragonlance novels. |
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Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
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I am the Giant Space Hamster of Ill Omen!  |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31727 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 02:27:34
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I can't decide whether to carry on with my reading of the "Wheel of Time" so that I can finally get to A Memory of Light, or work on my Realms novels backlog.
Hmmm. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 04:00:34
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quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
I can't decide whether to carry on with my reading of the "Wheel of Time" so that I can finally get to A Memory of Light, or work on my Realms novels backlog.
Hmmm.
How far into WoT are you now? |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
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Aulduron
Learned Scribe
USA
343 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 04:04:52
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Just finished reading Prophet of the Dead. And before that, I read A Memory of Light.
I recommend Sage finish WoT. I was happy with it. |
"Those with talent become wizards, Those without talent spend their lives praying for it"
-Procopio Septus |
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Entromancer
Senior Scribe
USA
388 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 04:22:30
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| 300 pages into Deadhouse Gates. Baudin is all right; Felisin turned nigh insufferable. |
"...the will is everything. The will to act."--Ra's Al Ghul
"Suffering builds character."--Talia Al Ghul |
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9thChapter
Learned Scribe
Canada
110 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 04:53:58
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quote:
Originally posted by Entromancer
300 pages into Deadhouse Gates. Baudin is all right; Felisin turned nigh insufferable.
I had a hard time with DG and ended up putting it down halfway through to focus on other books. I still haven't gotten back to it after a year. |
Fantasy author of The Rithhek Cage series
http://darrentpatrick.com/the-rithhek-cage-trilogy/ |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 14:59:55
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quote:
Originally posted by Entromancer
300 pages into Deadhouse Gates. Baudin is all right; Felisin turned nigh insufferable.
Funny, Erikson's books are filled with characters people love and hate and everyone seems to have different choices for each.  |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 15:01:14
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quote:
Originally posted by 9thChapter
quote:
Originally posted by Entromancer
300 pages into Deadhouse Gates. Baudin is all right; Felisin turned nigh insufferable.
I had a hard time with DG and ended up putting it down halfway through to focus on other books. I still haven't gotten back to it after a year.
For what it's worth, I thought the second half of that book was much more entertaining than the first. Actually that is how I have felt from every Malazan book. Erikson really likes to end his books with a bang. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Thauranil
Master of Realmslore
India
1591 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 15:18:24
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quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
quote:
Originally posted by Thauranil
quote:
I mean there are Star Wars novels set thousands of years apart, many of them having no Jedi in them at all and written by a varied cast of authors. But despite this i have never felt this strongly that a novel does not belong in this specific universe before. If SW can do it why not Halo, which has a miniscule amount of novels in comparison.
That's a worthwhile point.
But, at the same time, you're kind of answering your own question. The SW universe can easily delve into ancient history because there's so much support material. The HALO-verse, in comparison, is still an infant in terms of published material supporting the ENTIRE history of the setting. So I'd imagine these Forerunner books are an attempt to start somewhere earlier in the setting's history, and eventually work toward bridging it with more modern history.
Let's remember, too, that when the first books/comic books about the Old Republic in times nearly 5,000 years before the events of A New Hope, were released, a great many fans found them strange and unconnected to the main impetus of SW as well. But now, after decades of subsequent material, we all can't imagine what the setting would be like without these old sources depicting strange times in the ancient Old Republic.
A good point, I had though more on the lines of Greg Bear not having a ton of previous work to live up to but I can see your point as well.
What I meant was that I didnt get that feeling of defiance , sacrifice and adherence to duty in the face of overwhelming odds that characterizes the Halo universe.
Still lets see how the third book pans out, I ll still give it a try despite my reservations. |
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Thauranil
Master of Realmslore
India
1591 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 15:19:15
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| Reading an older realms book, the Alabaster Staff. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 15:42:10
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
I'm reading Prophet of the Dead by Richard Lee Byers. I'm postponing all my appointments today so I could devour it without any distraction.
The blurb on the physical book is way better than what's currently on Amazon. (Doesn't WotC care?)
I'm now on page 69, Chapter 3. I'm loving it so far. I didn't know Sarshethrian is that important. For those of you seeking more lore on Lod and the Eminence of Aurant, this is a perfect book. For fans of Richard and the Brotherhood, a must.
This had me smiling:
quote:
From page 46:
Jhesri cocked her head. "It's poor and backward, certainly, and those qualities ought to make it an easy conquest. But the Thayans have never found it so."
Sarshethrian smiled. "What I was getting at is that it's the country where the mortal and fey worlds mingle more than any other. I don't know why, and at this point, neither does Lod. But he no doubt believes that given time and free rein, he can wring unique and potent magic from the land, and I imagine he's right.
"It's also a country that shares a border with those Thayans you mentioned, folk governed by necromancers and undead grandees who have good reason to be content with the world as it is. Lod will never free any zombie and wraith from bondage or persuade every vampire and lich to join him as long Thay stands as an alternative to his vision. Control of a neighboring land will help him pursue the task of bringing it down."
Remembering what it was like to fight the legions of Thay with their well-trained troops, formidable mages, and tamed demons, Jhesri smiled a crooked smile. "I wish him luck with that."
Finished it Monday. Wow. Truly amazing! You can read my Spoiler-FREE Review here. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 15:48:11
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quote:
Originally posted by Entromancer
I need to reread The Masked Witches. Dennis, does the situation in Prophet of the Dead feel as desperate, or stacked against our heroes, as in Unholy?
Hmm. In a way, yes. But the desperation, the tension, and the hopelessness are more pronounced in Unholy than in PotD.
In case you're interested, you can read my Spoiler-FREE Review here. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 15:55:14
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quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
Jumping back into Midkemia with Feist's At the Gates of Darkness during my brief Malazan hiatus. This is book 2 of a small series which I thought I had all ready read.
It has some nice surprises, despite its (small) size.
Demonwar Saga is actually just a duology. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 16:01:19
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quote:
Originally posted by Valmour
Finished The Rage and The Rite by Byers; I am currently reading The Ruin.
I really enjoyed The Rage with the way the group came together and experiences they had as a group. I was a bit disappointed with The Rite though, it was a good book, but I did not enjoy all the jumping back forth from scene to scene. If I put the book down for a day, I had to sit there for a few seconds to remember what was going on.
So far The Ruin is more like The Rage and I am enjoying it more.
The Ruin's my favorite of the three. I'm not so sure about your observation, but to me, The Ruin has as much jumping scenes as its two predecessors--which were fine with me. It's some of the characters that I had problems with. Overall, I should say it's a decent series. Not something I consider Richard's best, but good all the same. |
Every beginning has an end. |
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Clad In Shadows
Learned Scribe
Canada
158 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 16:17:22
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quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by 9thChapter
quote:
Originally posted by Entromancer
300 pages into Deadhouse Gates. Baudin is all right; Felisin turned nigh insufferable.
I had a hard time with DG and ended up putting it down halfway through to focus on other books. I still haven't gotten back to it after a year.
For what it's worth, I thought the second half of that book was much more entertaining than the first. Actually that is how I have felt from every Malazan book. Erikson really likes to end his books with a bang.
Toll The Hounds, especially. Man, what a rollercoaster ride that final part was.
Memories of Ice was where I REALLY got into the series. |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 19:03:35
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
Jumping back into Midkemia with Feist's At the Gates of Darkness during my brief Malazan hiatus. This is book 2 of a small series which I thought I had all ready read.
It has some nice surprises, despite its (small) size.
Demonwar Saga is actually just a duology.
Yeah at 290 pages I believe it's Feist's smallest book yet. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 15 Feb 2013 : 19:07:31
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quote:
Originally posted by Clad In Shadows
quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by 9thChapter
quote:
Originally posted by Entromancer
300 pages into Deadhouse Gates. Baudin is all right; Felisin turned nigh insufferable.
I had a hard time with DG and ended up putting it down halfway through to focus on other books. I still haven't gotten back to it after a year.
For what it's worth, I thought the second half of that book was much more entertaining than the first. Actually that is how I have felt from every Malazan book. Erikson really likes to end his books with a bang.
Toll The Hounds, especially. Man, what a rollercoaster ride that final part was.
Memories of Ice was where I REALLY got into the series.
I thought Toll the Hounds had the most action-packed ending of all the Malazan books up to that point. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31727 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2013 : 04:09:10
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quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
I can't decide whether to carry on with my reading of the "Wheel of Time" so that I can finally get to A Memory of Light, or work on my Realms novels backlog.
Hmmm.
How far into WoT are you now?
*Cowers slightly*
The Shadow Rising.
Hehe. |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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The Sage
Procrastinator Most High
Australia
31727 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2013 : 04:14:32
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I've decided to go with some non-fiction. In honour of the birthday of one of my favourite thinkers, I'm going with an old biography of Charles Darwin. And just to swirl things up a bit, I'm tackling a biography of Alfred Russell Wallace too.  |
Candlekeep Forums Moderator
Candlekeep - The Library of Forgotten Realms Lore
http://www.candlekeep.com -- Candlekeep Forum Code of Conduct
Scribe for the Candlekeep Compendium -- Volume IX now available (Oct 2007)
"So Saith Ed" -- the collected Candlekeep replies of Ed Greenwood
Zhoth'ilam Folio -- The Electronic Misadventures of a Rambling Sage |
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Valmour
Acolyte
27 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2013 : 06:28:08
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Just finished The Year of the Rogue Dragons trilogy and finished it in less than a week and I really found it to be entertaining. I enjoyed all of the main characters, which really surprised me, since I usually end up hating at least one character in most books I read.
I wish Byers could have continued the trilogy, but that will never happen now... stupid 4th ed...
Starting The Haunted Lands trilogy... I hear it is very good!!!! Excited!!! |
Edited by - Valmour on 16 Feb 2013 06:33:07 |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2013 : 13:25:13
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quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
Jumping back into Midkemia with Feist's At the Gates of Darkness during my brief Malazan hiatus. This is book 2 of a small series which I thought I had all ready read.
It has some nice surprises, despite its (small) size.
Demonwar Saga is actually just a duology.
Yeah at 290 pages I believe it's Feist's smallest book yet.
I wondered why Feist and/or his editor decided to split the last two series. The plot in Demonwar, actually, spills over into Chaoswar that there's almost no sense for its separation. And I even had a feeling, after re-reading them, that Rides a Dread Legion and At the Gates of Darkness were one whole manuscript split into two.
Oh, well, I suppose what matters is, at the end of the day, we get to enjoy them still.
quote:
Originally posted by Valmour
Starting The Haunted Lands trilogy . . . I hear it is very good!
Indeed. Prepare yourself for a fun "ride." |
Every beginning has an end. |
Edited by - Dennis on 16 Feb 2013 13:30:44 |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2013 : 20:52:01
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quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by The Sage
I can't decide whether to carry on with my reading of the "Wheel of Time" so that I can finally get to A Memory of Light, or work on my Realms novels backlog.
Hmmm.
How far into WoT are you now?
*Cowers slightly*
The Shadow Rising.
Hehe.
Hmm well you definitely have a way to go, but you are 4 books ahead of me. |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
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Artemas Entreri
Great Reader
USA
3131 Posts |
Posted - 16 Feb 2013 : 20:54:31
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quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
Jumping back into Midkemia with Feist's At the Gates of Darkness during my brief Malazan hiatus. This is book 2 of a small series which I thought I had all ready read.
It has some nice surprises, despite its (small) size.
Demonwar Saga is actually just a duology.
Yeah at 290 pages I believe it's Feist's smallest book yet.
I wondered why Feist and/or his editor decided to split the last two series. The plot in Demonwar, actually, spills over into Chaoswar that there's almost no sense for its separation. And I even had a feeling, after re-reading them, that Rides a Dread Legion and At the Gates of Darkness were one whole manuscript split into two.
Oh, well, I suppose what matters is, at the end of the day, we get to enjoy them still.
Is there any time separation between the Demonwars and Chaoswars series or does Chaoswars pick up immediately after At the Gates of Darkness? |
Some people have a way with words, and other people...oh, uh, not have way. -Steve Martin
Amazon "KindleUnlimited" Free Trial: http://amzn.to/2AJ4yD2
Try Audible and Get 2 Free Audio Books! https://amzn.to/2IgBede |
Edited by - Artemas Entreri on 16 Feb 2013 20:55:05 |
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Dennis
Great Reader
9933 Posts |
Posted - 18 Feb 2013 : 12:54:59
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quote:
Originally posted by Entreri3478
Is there any time separation between the Demonwars and Chaoswars series or does Chaoswars pick up immediately after At the Gates of Darkness?
I don't think it was ever mentioned how many months or years. But it's not that long. My own yardstick is the fate of a certain significant character from Demonwar--and since you hate spoilers, I wouldn't say who and what happened to him/her/it.
The events in Demonwar were but some of the ripples involving the mega-plot of Chaoswar. That's why I mentioned they shouldn't, IMO, have been split.
Anyway, how did you find Amirantha and Laromendis?
They're my new favorites. They maybe novices if compared to the conjurors of pre-Szass Tam Thay, but I did like their personalities, specially the former. |
Every beginning has an end. |
Edited by - Dennis on 18 Feb 2013 12:58:04 |
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What are you reading? (2013)
Topic Locked
