SylandraJoin Queue for Mafia GamesThe Last Mafia Game
edited August 2016
Finally tackling Sister Outsider. For a class, granted, but it's been on my list of "stuff you should read" so that's exciting. Also ordered a copy of Rupi Kaur's Milk and Honey. Her poetry is so. Damn. Good. Ugh.
"Oh yeah, you're a naughty mayor, aren't you? Misfile that Form MA631-D. Comptroller Shevat's got a nice gemstone disc for you, but yer gonna have to beg for it."
High school graduate Jeremey Samson is looking forward to burying his head under the covers and sleeping until it's time to leave for college. Then a tornado named Emmet Washington enters his life. The double major in math and computer science is handsome, forward, wicked smart, interested in dating Jeremey—and he's autistic.
But Jeremey doesn't judge him for that. He's too busy judging himself, as are his parents, who don't believe in things like clinical depression. When his untreated illness reaches a critical breaking point, Emmet is the white knight who rescues him and brings him along as a roommate to The Roosevelt, a quirky new assisted living facility nearby.
As Jeremey finds his feet at The Roosevelt, Emmet slowly begins to believe he can be loved for the man he is behind the autism. But before he can trust enough to fall head over heels, he must trust his own...
For as many of us here playing a text game, I'm surprised this thread about books isn't more popular. Fine literature abounds, tell us what you have encountered!
I'm currently working on the Prince of Nothing, a fantasy trilogy by R. Scott Bakker. I've never seen anybody weave plot and subplot quite like he does.
Mayor Steingrim, the Grand Schema says to you, "Well, as I recall you kinda leave a mark whereever you go."
I've been rereading Sara Douglass' books, which I do at least once a year. I just picked up the Burning World by Isaac Marion. I have had trouble finding new books I like in the last few years, especially since a few of my favorite authors died a number of years ago.
Avurekhos says, "Dylara's a PvP menace in my eyes, totes rekting face."
The eye of Dylara materialises in your hands and flings itself around your neck, tightening incomprehensibly until it is irremovable. Perfectly clean, this eyeball has been wrenched from the socket of Dylara. It has been animated by some unusual force, constantly looking around itself as if in shock or fear. It is bathed in a light covering of white flames that roll endlessly over its surface. A single chain of empyreal metal pierces either side of the eye, allowing it to be worn around the neck.
Been using my time sick to catch up on reading. Really loving "Hard to Be a God" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_to_Be_a_God). It's a 60s science fiction piece from Russia where scientists travel to parallel dimensions to study medieval life. Kinda like Heart of Darkness meets Timeline with a very quiet subtext coming from being written during Cold War USSR.
There are also TWO movies made based on it and at least one of them is on Netflix and is fantastically weird and art house, so I'm excited to get stoned and watch that after I'm done reading.
I'm about to start my second read through of the Burning World, I was very happy with it my first go around and read the rest of the series again. I just love the message of what it means to be human that the series gives, despite the flip flop nature of one of the main characters. Finally getting some back story on the main character, R, was interesting and how he tied into the world that was built. Also references to modern events such as Walls blocking borders.
Avurekhos says, "Dylara's a PvP menace in my eyes, totes rekting face."
The eye of Dylara materialises in your hands and flings itself around your neck, tightening incomprehensibly until it is irremovable. Perfectly clean, this eyeball has been wrenched from the socket of Dylara. It has been animated by some unusual force, constantly looking around itself as if in shock or fear. It is bathed in a light covering of white flames that roll endlessly over its surface. A single chain of empyreal metal pierces either side of the eye, allowing it to be worn around the neck.
I'm currently working on the Prince of Nothing, a fantasy trilogy by R. Scott Bakker. I've never seen anybody weave plot and subplot quite like he does.
I was in the library looking for the next book to read and thought why no this author so borrowed "The Judging Eye" by the same author which their next series from yours. It's early days yet but it jumps around in time and place a bit but I can see its going to be one of those "complicated stories" with a few active threads.
Previous book was "Flame of Sevenwaters" by Juliet Marillier. I read this after reading her "Dreamer's Pool" and "Tower of Thorns" from her Blackthorn and Grim series. I preferred the latter two over Flame, but it was still a reasonably good fae and forest type of book. There's actually a link (a similarity?) between Flame and Dreamers Pool which I hadn't noticed until typing this. I'm not sure if there is any significance to it and it's a bit hard to describe without spoiling either story.
I just finished reading Mirror Sight by Kristen Britain, and I am so pleased with this book that I am seriously tempted to go reread the entire six-books-so-far series because I'm not ready to leave them yet.
"Oh yeah, you're a naughty mayor, aren't you? Misfile that Form MA631-D. Comptroller Shevat's got a nice gemstone disc for you, but yer gonna have to beg for it."
Cheers. I'm burning through Handmaid's Tale, so should be on to the Blind Assassin fairly lively.
Freedom to/Freedom from... a debate as relevant today as ever, but damn, that was one of the best passages I've read in a while.
1
SylandraJoin Queue for Mafia GamesThe Last Mafia Game
Assassin is a fat book too so that should pace you out. It's two stories in one and to date the best example of two parallel narratives I've ever read in a novel. You keep changing your mind on what story is gripping you more and by the end of the book you are positively devouring each chapter.
Oryx and Crake also bears mentioning. That one starts a series. Dystopian with a dash of genetic engineering. Has two sequels iirc.
"Oh yeah, you're a naughty mayor, aren't you? Misfile that Form MA631-D. Comptroller Shevat's got a nice gemstone disc for you, but yer gonna have to beg for it."
I'm currently working on the Prince of Nothing, a fantasy trilogy by R. Scott Bakker. I've never seen anybody weave plot and subplot quite like he does.
I was in the library looking for the next book to read and thought why no this author so borrowed "The Judging Eye" by the same author which their next series from yours. It's early days yet but it jumps around in time and place a bit but I can see its going to be one of those "complicated stories" with a few active threads.
It definitely is complicated, lol. But the way it comes together is very much like a sort of literary orchestra. The end result is amazing!
And speaking of endings, the final book is being released in about two weeks. The story is finally ending, and I'm so excited to read it! The wait on these last two books was over half a decade of impatient agony.
Mayor Steingrim, the Grand Schema says to you, "Well, as I recall you kinda leave a mark whereever you go."
For the third time. Go read it. It's a fairly light novel. Dystopian future, life in the online world, epic treasure hunt mystery, so many 80's and 90's references that I'm sure I've missed a third of them. The author drives a Delorean with the license plate 'Ecto 1'.
The mortal instruments & mentally comparing it to the tv show.
BY THE GODS! THE TV SHOW DOES A BETTER JOB! Better dialogue & character development.
"Magnus was a cool guy": this is what one character says after watching Magnus (a half demon human= warlock) adopt an abandoned baby who would otherwise be thrown out like trash. Um...I bet you lovely folks here can rp a better warm & fuzzy scene.
The drama she creates is A+ ....the prose, not so much. I read it because the tv series has everything you could ever want in tv junk food: Eye candy, fight scenes, romance, sass, great sets, & character chemistry. (and I need my crack)
I'm currently reading the fourth book of The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel and quite like it so far. Was a bit confused by all those deities thrown together at first but now I've started to get used to it.
Heh, it's not terribad except the one of the "canibal hunter" trios(who look like a teenage boy and his 2 sisters) actually seem to be a male fertility trio. Which I just found amusing. The rest of the series is pretty good fun if you don't try to take it seriously.
I'm working my way through The Wheel of Time Reread by Leigh Butler because books 10-14 have been sitting on my shelf for too long and I need closure. It's been ten years since I read book 9 so I can't remember all the plots and people but the thought of starting from the beginning...
The Reread is good. Each chapter has a summary and notes including explanations of clues I'd missed. I'm up to book five.
I don't get to read for pleasure much anymore what with grad school and the mountain of studies and articles and textbooks I have to read but when I do I go for the hidden gems. I just finished rereading (for about the millionth time) my favorite book series Touchstone by an Aussie self-publisher, Andrea K. Host. It's in diary form which I generally don't like but this one is just different. It's about a girl who's walking home from taking her exams and walks into an uninhabited world all alone. There are 5 books in all now and lots of superpowers and saving worlds and "psychic space ninjas". I'm horrible at making things sound good but it is and it's real entertaining! I own every book she's written I recommend And All the Stars, the Eferum series, and of course the Touchstone series. And All The Stars is about an alien invasion of Earth, and the Eferum is about a family bent on stopping their powerful ancestor from returning to take over their world and a race of golem people. Really good books I promise!
EDIT: I forgot to mention book 1 of the Touchstone trilogy (Stray) kindle edition is free right now on Amazon
The pristine city of
Elysium floats on the water world of Shora, inhabited by 'immortals' who
have succeeded in unlocking the secrets of life.
Outsider
Blackbear Windclan wants to share the secret of immortality with his own
people, but can he, and the City of Elysium, survive the corruption and
decadence that immortality has bred into the ageless society.
And what of the consciousness of self-aware nano-sentient servitors and their quest for vengeance?
A vividly imagined fantasy of court intrigue and dark magics in a steampunk-inflected world, by a brilliant young talent.
The
youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in
exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that
suffuses it. But when his father and three sons in line for the throne
are killed in an "accident," he has no choice but to take his place as
the only surviving rightful heir.
Entirely unschooled in the art
of court politics, he has no friends, no advisors, and the sure
knowledge that whoever assassinated his father and brothers could make
an attempt on his life at any moment.
Surrounded by sycophants
eager to curry favor with the naïve new emperor, and overwhelmed by the
burdens of his new life, he can trust nobody. Amid the swirl of plots to
depose him, offers of arranged marriages, and the specter of the
unknown conspirators who lurk in the shadows, he must quickly adjust to
life as the Goblin Emperor. All the while, he is alone, and trying to
find even a single friend... and hoping for the possibility of romance,
yet also vigilant against the unseen enemies that threaten him, lest he
lose his throne – or his life.
This exciting fantasy novel, set
against the pageantry and color of a fascinating, unique world, is a
memorable debut for a great
1
SylandraJoin Queue for Mafia GamesThe Last Mafia Game
I'm going to resurrect this thread to remind everyone that It by Stephen King is a great read. And sure it's a giant fat book at over a thousand pages, and at places it gets super crazy and you're like "King, what are you even doing buddy," but look, it's a great ride and there's a reason Derry, Maine has staying power. (Caveat that if you don't like horror, this book is probably not for you!)
"Oh yeah, you're a naughty mayor, aren't you? Misfile that Form MA631-D. Comptroller Shevat's got a nice gemstone disc for you, but yer gonna have to beg for it."
Comments
Normal is just a setting on the dryer.
The Roosevelt, Book 1
High school graduate Jeremey Samson is looking forward to burying his head under the covers and sleeping until it's time to leave for college. Then a tornado named Emmet Washington enters his life. The double major in math and computer science is handsome, forward, wicked smart, interested in dating Jeremey—and he's autistic.
But Jeremey doesn't judge him for that. He's too busy judging himself, as are his parents, who don't believe in things like clinical depression. When his untreated illness reaches a critical breaking point, Emmet is the white knight who rescues him and brings him along as a roommate to The Roosevelt, a quirky new assisted living facility nearby.
As Jeremey finds his feet at The Roosevelt, Emmet slowly begins to believe he can be loved for the man he is behind the autism. But before he can trust enough to fall head over heels, he must trust his own...
I'm currently working on the Prince of Nothing, a fantasy trilogy by R. Scott Bakker. I've never seen anybody weave plot and subplot quite like he does.
The eye of Dylara materialises in your hands and flings itself around your neck, tightening incomprehensibly until it is irremovable.
Perfectly clean, this eyeball has been wrenched from the socket of Dylara. It has been animated by some unusual force, constantly looking around itself as if in shock or fear. It is bathed in a light covering of white flames that roll endlessly over its surface. A single chain of empyreal metal pierces either side of the eye, allowing it to be worn around the neck.
There are also TWO movies made based on it and at least one of them is on Netflix and is fantastically weird and art house, so I'm excited to get stoned and watch that after I'm done reading.
The eye of Dylara materialises in your hands and flings itself around your neck, tightening incomprehensibly until it is irremovable.
Perfectly clean, this eyeball has been wrenched from the socket of Dylara. It has been animated by some unusual force, constantly looking around itself as if in shock or fear. It is bathed in a light covering of white flames that roll endlessly over its surface. A single chain of empyreal metal pierces either side of the eye, allowing it to be worn around the neck.
Previous book was "Flame of Sevenwaters" by Juliet Marillier. I read this after reading her "Dreamer's Pool" and "Tower of Thorns" from her Blackthorn and Grim series. I preferred the latter two over Flame, but it was still a reasonably good fae and forest type of book. There's actually a link (a similarity?) between Flame and Dreamers Pool which I hadn't noticed until typing this. I'm not sure if there is any significance to it and it's a bit hard to describe without spoiling either story.
Any particular recommendations from the rest of her work?
Atwood is amazing, anything by her I've read has been stellar honestly.
Freedom to/Freedom from... a debate as relevant today as ever, but damn, that was one of the best passages I've read in a while.
Oryx and Crake also bears mentioning. That one starts a series. Dystopian with a dash of genetic engineering. Has two sequels iirc.
It definitely is complicated, lol. But the way it comes together is very much like a sort of literary orchestra. The end result is amazing!
And speaking of endings, the final book is being released in about two weeks. The story is finally ending, and I'm so excited to read it! The wait on these last two books was over half a decade of impatient agony.
For the third time. Go read it. It's a fairly light novel. Dystopian future, life in the online world, epic treasure hunt mystery, so many 80's and 90's references that I'm sure I've missed a third of them. The author drives a Delorean with the license plate 'Ecto 1'.
accurately describes & paraodies social media fame
BY THE GODS! THE TV SHOW DOES A BETTER JOB! Better dialogue & character development.
"Magnus was a cool guy": this is what one character says after watching Magnus (a half demon human= warlock) adopt an abandoned baby who would otherwise be thrown out like trash. Um...I bet you lovely folks here can rp a better warm & fuzzy scene.
The drama she creates is A+ ....the prose, not so much. I read it because the tv series has everything you could ever want in tv junk food: Eye candy, fight scenes, romance, sass, great sets, & character chemistry.
(and I need my crack)
The rest of the series is pretty good fun if you don't try to take it seriously.
The Reread is good. Each chapter has a summary and notes including explanations of clues I'd missed. I'm up to book five.
EDIT: I forgot to mention book 1 of the Touchstone trilogy (Stray) kindle edition is free right now on Amazon
Daughter of Elysium (Elysium Cycle)
The pristine city of Elysium floats on the water world of Shora, inhabited by 'immortals' who have succeeded in unlocking the secrets of life.Outsider Blackbear Windclan wants to share the secret of immortality with his own people, but can he, and the City of Elysium, survive the corruption and decadence that immortality has bred into the ageless society.
And what of the consciousness of self-aware nano-sentient servitors and their quest for vengeance?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17910048-the-goblin-emperor The Goblin Emperor
The youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that suffuses it. But when his father and three sons in line for the throne are killed in an "accident," he has no choice but to take his place as the only surviving rightful heir.
Entirely unschooled in the art of court politics, he has no friends, no advisors, and the sure knowledge that whoever assassinated his father and brothers could make an attempt on his life at any moment.
Surrounded by sycophants eager to curry favor with the naïve new emperor, and overwhelmed by the burdens of his new life, he can trust nobody. Amid the swirl of plots to depose him, offers of arranged marriages, and the specter of the unknown conspirators who lurk in the shadows, he must quickly adjust to life as the Goblin Emperor. All the while, he is alone, and trying to find even a single friend... and hoping for the possibility of romance, yet also vigilant against the unseen enemies that threaten him, lest he lose his throne – or his life.
This exciting fantasy novel, set against the pageantry and color of a fascinating, unique world, is a memorable debut for a great
Czixi, the Welkin murmurs, "Fight on, My Effervescent Sylph. I will be with you as you do."
Aian Lerit'r, Lead Schematicist exclaims to you, "A *paperwork* emergency, Chairman!