Author Topic: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings  (Read 286367 times)

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Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2590 on: December 17, 2019, 09:26:53 PM »
Hey fantasy lovers, can I get a recommendation for a fantasy novel/series for someone who doesn't consider himself a fantasy fan? I know, kinda weird, but I am burned out on my usual literary fare, and want something new to dive in to. I'd prefer to avoid anything super long as I don't have much time to commit to reading and don't want to spend months just to get through one bookFor reference, I loved the Song of Fire and Ice books. While they are rooted in fantasy, the focus was always on its very human characters, which was what I was drawn to in the series.

The Dresden Files are fantasy-lite since they're mostly urban based fantasy

The first two books are questionable though, as much as I like the series. Also, Peace Talks is finally being released next summer, so it's a perfect time to dive into the series.

I'm two hundred something pages in and I'm really liking it so far. Only complaint is the whole going back and forth through tenses

For what it's worth, I really liked the first half of it.
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline Podaar

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2591 on: December 18, 2019, 04:03:24 AM »
Hey fantasy lovers, can I get a recommendation for a fantasy novel/series for someone who doesn't consider himself a fantasy fan? I know, kinda weird, but I am burned out on my usual literary fare, and want something new to dive in to. I'd prefer to avoid anything super long as I don't have much time to commit to reading and don't want to spend months just to get through one bookFor reference, I loved the Song of Fire and Ice books. While they are rooted in fantasy, the focus was always on its very human characters, which was what I was drawn to in the series.

The original Earthsea Trilogy from Ursula K. Le Guin is a classic with moderate sized books, grounded characters and thought provoking stories. They are often considered a gateway series for people new to fantasy. Better yet, none of the books require you to read any of the others. I will say, I personally think it's best to read them all, in chronological order.

     A Wizard of Earthsea
     The Tombs of Atuan
     The Farthest Shore

If you were only to pick one, I'd suggest TToA. It is one of my favorite books of all time.
"Religion poisons everything” — Christopher Hitchens

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2592 on: December 19, 2019, 05:56:44 PM »
I enjoyed the whole thing and can't wait to continue with the next book

For a short respite, I'm now reading Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins, Volume 1 by Matthew Colville. Even though I don't play Dungeons and Dragons, I consider myself an enthusiast, and I was a big fan of the Vox Machina campaign, so I'm sure I'm going to like this a lot

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2593 on: December 19, 2019, 08:23:24 PM »
Nice thing about graphic novels, they usually finish rather quickly. moving on to Quichotte by Salman Rushdie. I read Don Quixote more than 20 years ago and it became an instant favorite for me, so this book will hopefully be an enjoyable experience for me

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2594 on: December 19, 2019, 09:21:25 PM »
I enjoyed the whole thing and can't wait to continue with the next book

For a short respite, I'm now reading Critical Role: Vox Machina Origins, Volume 1 by Matthew Colville. Even though I don't play Dungeons and Dragons, I consider myself an enthusiast, and I was a big fan of the Vox Machina campaign, so I'm sure I'm going to like this a lot

I love CR but I just couldn't justify dropping money on this.

My Tal'Dorei map blanket is on the way though
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline Kwyjibo

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2595 on: December 20, 2019, 01:07:10 AM »
Small Favor by Jim Butcher
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2596 on: December 20, 2019, 06:26:36 PM »
Decided to switch gears (because, quite frankly, the B story in Quichotte was boring me) and instead, I'm going to binge read the rest of Neil Gaiman's Sandman, starting with World's End

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2597 on: December 20, 2019, 08:31:09 PM »
The Kindly Ones by Neil Gaiman

Offline Cool Chris

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2598 on: December 20, 2019, 08:40:09 PM »
Thank you for the fantasy recommendations.

In the meantime, now reading Ohio by Stephen Markley.
"Nostalgia is just the ability to forget the things that sucked" - Nelson DeMille, 'Up Country'

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2599 on: December 21, 2019, 06:27:43 PM »
Well, I have finished the series proper, so now I'm going to read the prequel Overture

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2600 on: December 22, 2019, 08:05:51 AM »
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2601 on: December 22, 2019, 09:03:45 AM »
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson

Big fan of Brandon Sanderson, I'd say he's my favourite author for the last couple of years, but this is one of the few books that falls flat for me. Maybe I should reread it next year. Hopefully you'll like it more than I did!
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline ozzy554

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2602 on: December 23, 2019, 12:12:05 PM »
Vanilla ride by joe lansdale

Bad News by Donald Westlake
Do you read Sutter Cane?

Offline Cool Chris

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2603 on: December 23, 2019, 12:39:54 PM »
In the meantime, now reading Ohio by Stephen Markley.

This might be a DNF. Reads like Dostoyevsky. Not much in the way of plot (at least one I care about 125 pages in), just people pontificating endlessly. It is also about nostalgia, with people revisiting their old home town, friends, and past lives. I am not in a mood to go down that road myself, so putting this on the shelf indefinitely.
"Nostalgia is just the ability to forget the things that sucked" - Nelson DeMille, 'Up Country'

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2604 on: December 29, 2019, 10:04:54 PM »
The Peanuts Papers: Charlie Brown, Snoopy & the Gang, and the Meaning of Life: A Library of America Special Publication by Andrew Blauner (Editor)

Offline vtgrad

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2605 on: December 30, 2019, 11:38:29 AM »
Dune- Frank Herbert

Tesla: The Life and Times of an Electric Messiah
"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter; Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."  Ecclesiastes 12:13

Now with Twitler taking a high end steak of this caliber and insulting the cow that died for it by having it well done just shows zero respect for the product, which falls right in line with the amount of respect he shows for pretty much everything else.- Lonestar

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2606 on: December 30, 2019, 12:03:02 PM »
The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins by Clint McElroy

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2607 on: December 30, 2019, 01:45:09 PM »
B^F: The Novelization of the Feature Film Ryan North reviews Gorge Gipe's insane novelization of the major motion picture (Back to the Future)

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2608 on: December 30, 2019, 02:06:59 PM »
End of Watch by Stephen King
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2609 on: December 31, 2019, 03:50:18 AM »
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski. Really enjoyed the first season of The Witcher. Hopefully, I'll enjoy the books even more

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2610 on: December 31, 2019, 05:02:25 PM »
I'm officially done for 2019. 112 books read. Second best reading year, in terms of quantity (Quality goes to 2017, where I read 22 five star books. This year, I had 17). So, what were your favorite books this year? If I had to do a top 10, it'd be:

10. Home
9. The Ruin of Kings
8. The Last Wish
7. All My Colors
6. American Pop
5. The Last Days of Jack Sparks
4. The Priory of the Orange Tree
3. Daisy Jones and the Six
2. Wild and Crazy Guys
1. Becoming Dr. Seuss

 

Offline SchecterShredder

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2611 on: December 31, 2019, 06:46:03 PM »
This was another low count year for me given how many long French novels i read, so my final tally was 14.75 books (I'm 75% done DT3, so I'm counting it). Of the 14 completed, here's my top 10:

10- Past Tense
9- Brief Cases
8- DT2
7- HP5
6- HP6
5- HP7
4- 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle
3- Crucible
2-  Men at Arms
1- My Grave Ritual

A full third of the books i read this year were re-reads.


Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2612 on: January 01, 2020, 04:58:30 AM »
Alright, time to get 2020 started with Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff. Was a huge fan of Nevernight, so hopefully, I'll enjoy the sequel

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2613 on: January 02, 2020, 11:42:14 AM »
Bought the second Discworld books for the Death, City Watch, Witches and Rincewind series, starting this year with The Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett

This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline SchecterShredder

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2614 on: January 02, 2020, 01:58:09 PM »
Bought the second Discworld books for the Death, City Watch, Witches and Rincewind series, starting this year with The Reaper Man by Terry Pratchett
Reaper Man and Men at Arms are great. If the Rincewind book you're referring to is Eric, then you may be in for some disappointment. It was my last favorite in the series so far.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2615 on: January 02, 2020, 03:36:03 PM »
Eric would be the third. The Light Fantastic is the second. I could see how you'd think that, since TLF is a direct sequel to Color of Money

Offline v_clortho

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2616 on: January 02, 2020, 06:12:59 PM »
Eric would be the third. The Light Fantastic is the second. I could see how you'd think that, since TLF is a direct sequel to Color of Money

Is that the book where Rincewind was a pool shark?

Offline SchecterShredder

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2617 on: January 03, 2020, 06:25:50 AM »
Eric would be the third. The Light Fantastic is the second. I could see how you'd think that, since TLF is a direct sequel to Color of Money
I assumed he already read the color of magic and light fantastic back to back if he's already made it to the first Death and Night Watch books. Unless he's  reading out of order (gasp!).

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2618 on: January 03, 2020, 06:29:16 AM »
Eric would be the third. The Light Fantastic is the second. I could see how you'd think that, since TLF is a direct sequel to Color of Money
I assumed he already read the color of magic and light fantastic back to back if he's already made it to the first Death and Night Watch books. Unless he's  reading out of order (gasp!).

I'm reading out of chronological order but in order by series instead, so yeah, it's The Light Fantastic.
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline Kwyjibo

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2619 on: January 03, 2020, 06:54:08 AM »
I quite liked Eric.
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2620 on: January 04, 2020, 02:53:26 AM »
Darkdawn by Jay Kristoff. Hoping the finale delivers. Last book was almost as good as the first

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2621 on: January 05, 2020, 03:27:31 PM »
So, Darkdawn was my least favorite in the trilogy, but not by too much. Would still recommend the trilogy.

Moving on to I, Asimov by Isaac Asimov. I have yet to read any of his fiction, but hopefully after reading his life's story, I may be inclined to start

Offline Kwyjibo

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2622 on: January 06, 2020, 08:13:31 AM »
Asimov has written a ton of stories and books, some are great, some not so great. I really like the robot series and the foundation books. Both series are combined at the end. But I fear some of those books will probably come across as dated.
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2623 on: January 06, 2020, 05:40:27 PM »
Will also be reading Batman: The Dark Knight: Master Race by Frank Miller

Offline Kwyjibo

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #2624 on: January 07, 2020, 03:51:25 AM »
Blood Red Rivers by Jean-Christophe Grangé
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D