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What are you reading at the moment?

ChrisN

By ChrisN,
in Arts & Literature

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Chosty

Chosty

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Try, maybe, Moorcock's Gloriana, or: the Unfulfill'd Queen; or M John Harrison's Viriconium books (there's a collected paperback), say In Viriconium and Viriconium Nights. Or Ian M Banks' Feersum Endjinn, although the central conceit of transliterating the hero, Bascule's mode of speech onto the page takes a little getting used to.

Or play Ico . . .

Cheers for those recommendations. 'Gloriana' in particular sounds worthwhile - the Wikipedia entry says that Moorcock dedicted it to Peake, and the book's atmosphere is said to be similar. Excellent.

As for 'Feersum Endjinn', it sounds like there are some similarities with the aforementioned 'Riddley Walker' in terms of its use of phonetic language.

I've started 'Titus Alone' and it's a bit of a jolt so far.

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cassidy

cassidy

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I've not read it so I can't say, but any fantasy series that creates the type of following that it has done is usually, in my experience, horribly convoluted and utterly convinced of its own genius. I'd give it a chance, but man, the fans it has are just so tiresome.

Are they? Seeing as I've just got into this series as well. On the last available book at the moment. And I just like them cos their a cracking read IMO.

Still prefer Abercrombie to Martin though, but Martin does write bastards and their ilk rather well.

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moosegrinder

moosegrinder

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I've not read it so I can't say, but any fantasy series that creates the type of following that it has done is usually, in my experience, horribly convoluted and utterly convinced of its own genius. I'd give it a chance, but man, the fans it has are just so tiresome.

I know what you mean, but a lot of the time the source material is ace and the fans take it too far. See Harry Potter (IMO, obv), wicked series of books (albeit ones with plot holes you could drive and artic wagon through) but I know many MANY people who won't read them because "it's Harry Potter".

Also, on a realted note, I'm bored to the tits of hearing about this Twilight and seeing that bouffanted twats face in Waterstones. I'm not into vampire books, really. If it's not Necroscope I don't wanna know about it :lol:

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Lovelyman

Lovelyman

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I've not read it so I can't say, but any fantasy series that creates the type of following that it has done is usually, in my experience, horribly convoluted and utterly convinced of its own genius. I'd give it a chance, but man, the fans it has are just so tiresome.

I'd say give it a go. I'm not a millitant fan but there is something in asoiaf that makes it better than most of the fantasy around. He has a lot of foreshadowing, and there are things to puzzle over that may or may not be revealed. Not in the same league as gene Wolfe, although that might be a good thing as that guy knows how to fry your brain.

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Danster

Danster

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I finished Light by M John Harrison. Cracking good read, very cyber-punk and twists in the fabric of space and serial killers.... But it all kinda works.

Then cracked straight on with Imperium by Robert Harris. Man! I don't why I've taken so long to read his books! I always love 'em. I must have read Enigma back in 98-99 or something, then Archangel, then nothing until last year-early this year when I got Fatherland in a charity shop and loved that too! So I got Imperium from the library and it is fantastic. Marvellous book for anyone with interest in the Romans and particular the Senate and the power struggles within. And I'm happy to see that a sequel is on it's way later this year, fantastic!

Now on to book two of the Dark Tower and after that No Country For Old Men (my first Cormac McCarthy novel).

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vcassano

vcassano

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I'm currently about half-way through the Wind Up Bird Chronicle. It is my first read of Murakami so I didn't really know what to expect, but I am impressed. There is a wonderful serenity to the writing which makes the often mundane events seem somehow more interesting.

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Lovelyman

Lovelyman

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I never got on with the Dark Tower, but I know other love it.

I would HIGHLY recommend the First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. The books rattle along at a fair pace and are really exciting and have great characters.

Best trilogy I have read for a long time.

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pauc

pauc

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Cool. Hopefully I'll get into both series and will then have plenty to chomp into.

I note that the first Dark Tower book was written when King was 19, so I'm not too sure the quality will be all that...

King spruced up the book in later editions. I don't know if he added anything of value though, I was a latecomer to the series.

Edit: A quick google suggests the 2003 editions where the first revised ones.

I would HIGHLY recommend the First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie. The books rattle along at a fair pace and are really exciting and have great characters.

I bought The Blade Itself today. \o/

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Lovelyman

Lovelyman

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King spruced up the book in later editions. I don't know if he added anything of value though, I was a latecomer to the series.

Edit: A quick google suggests the 2003 editions where the first revised ones.

I bought The Blade Itself today. \o/

Lucky you. The sequels get better and better.

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pauc

pauc

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What pleases me is that the trilogy is out and ready for me to read. If I do take a shine to it it can be plucked from a shelf and read.

Unlike Patrick Rothfuss and Scott Lynches individual works in which I must sit and wait for the next installment.

I know it takes a long time for a good polished book (and honestly I'm glad they take alot of time) but I really enjoyed The Name of The Wind and I'm hankering for the next installment.

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moosegrinder

moosegrinder

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Ah yes, I've got the revised one.

I dunno about the newwer ones (mines a 197something paperback) but The Gunslinger is interesting, yet doesn't make much sense on it's own. In fact it's not that it makes sense, it's that you appreciate more when you read a few more of the books. It has so many brilliant ideas throughout the series. I hope you get on with it.

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Silent Runner

Silent Runner

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I went out to pick up some fantasy titles yesterday but couldn't find anything I liked the look off so I grabbed a couple of thrillers instead. I started Dennis Lehanes Shutter Island this morning and I'm about 200 pages in.

Finished this last night. I thought it was really good but

I’m a bit disappointed with myself that I didn’t spot the anagram right from the start.

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cassidy

cassidy

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I think abercrombie is churning out books at the rate of just under one per year, and so far they've gotten better and better. Best served cold is out this June I think. :D

Yup read a reveiw of Best Served cold and it sounds as full of nasty characters as his last book. I cannot wait.

I also have a feeling some characters from First Law may be making an appearance.

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gone now bye

gone now bye

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I've been reading a bunch of plays lately. Read Moliere's Don Juan earlier this week, and also Kneehigh Theatre's Tristan and Yseult, The Bacchae, The Red Shoes and The Wooden Frock. All absolutely brilliant - even off the page, they're immensely colourful, spectacular and inventive.

Now I'm back to reading what I SHOULD have been reading for my course: Sam Sevelon's The Lonely Londoners, Angela Carter's Wise Children, and lots of background reading about Modernism.

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Jamie John

Jamie John

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The House of the Dead by Dostoyevsky. Pretty interesting after about one hundred pages. He'll give you about ten pages of intense but prolonged description before dropping in some truly shocking lines or two, about the prisoners not being at all fazed by the staggering number of cockroaches in their cabbage soup and similar atrocities of prison camp life. It's hard work keeping up with all the different names, middle name and nick names at times but I'm enjoying it.

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Silent Runner

Silent Runner

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51Tr0LniqGL._SS500_.jpg

Ever wondered what the Drunken Bakers would be like if one of them relocated to Swansea and was working as a Private Investigator? Well wonder no more.

I picked this up on a whim because it's published by Serpents Tail who publish some of my favourite writers; George Pelecanos, Walter Mosely, Ken Bruen and loads more. So they 're normally a good judge of crime fiction. I'm about 100 pages in and it's superb, a down on his luck P.I and a heroin addict try to get by and keep themselves in a state of blissful oblivion. Their problem is that the world is conspiring against them, no one will sell them drugs and various gangs seem out to get them. It's the second in a series but I haven't read the first. I'll be grabbing that ASAP.

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