frankie Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Great review of Les Miserables, Tim! I'm somewhat relieved that you don't think it's a depressing book, because that's been a big fear of mine. You make it sound like a book that can actually be read! And you're certainly living up to the title of the thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devi Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 I finished Rengade's Magic by Robin Hobb, the final book of her Solider Son trilogy. I read before starting that it was generally OK, but no where near as good as her other work, which I'm glad I did otherwise I think I wouldn't bother with any more Hobb. As it stands I am still eager to try out the Farseer trilogy. But I would only recommend this trilogy to hardcore Hobb fans. The main reason I read it was that I picked up the whole trilogy on Kindle for 50p! They are very slow, in desperate need of some editing. They are between 600 and 750 pages each but with no where near enough story to fill that. Other than the protagonist, Nevere, none of the characters were very likeable or relate-able (and to be honest Nevere wasn't very likeable either!). There were some interesting concepts though, and a few sections with some real page-turning action, but they were few and far between. Shaman's Crossing - 7/10 Forest Mage - 8/10 Renegade's Magic - 6/10 Overall 7/10 Agree completely with you. I read them when they were first released and didn't quite enjoy them as much as her Farseer Trilogy. Interesting about the Robin Hobb books. I guess they are her early work. I think I will give them a miss. I hope you enjoy the Farseer trilogy. I loved it The Solider Son trilogy was written after her Farseer Trilogy, which is scary, because I thought her work was going down hill. I didn't like her Soldier Son books as much either. The Rain Wild Chronicles is supposed to be a lot better - written after the Soldier Son books. Farseer Trilogy Assassin's Apprentice (1995) Royal Assassin (1996) Assassin's Quest (1997) Soldier Son Trilogy Shaman's Crossing (2005) Forest Mage (2006) Renegade's Magic (2008) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 Brilliant review of Les Mis. I agree it's a fantastic book but I did have to skim read some of it - the battle of waterloo certainly. But other than its occasional slowness its such a treat! Glad you enjoyed it. I normally love anything about Waterloo but that was a very clinical and sterile description, I don't blame you for skimming it all. Great review of Les Miserables, Tim! I'm somewhat relieved that you don't think it's a depressing book, because that's been a big fear of mine. You make it sound like a book that can actually be read! And you're certainly living up to the title of the thread It's a joy to read! As long as you don't dwell on the negatives it shouldn't depress you, like I say, the underlying theme is hope and that comes through very stongly The Solider Son trilogy was written after her Farseer Trilogy, which is scary, because I thought her work was going down hill. I didn't like her Soldier Son books as much either. The Rain Wild Chronicles is supposed to be a lot better - written after the Soldier Son books. Purely based on the snyopsis, I am really looking forward to the Liveship Traders, have you read those ones? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 My latest tome acquistion: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 I hope you enjoy your new book, Tim ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 I'll be interested to hear your thoughts about that one Tim. I've heard many things about it, some good and some very critical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devi Posted January 31, 2015 Share Posted January 31, 2015 Purely based on the snyopsis, I am really looking forward to the Liveship Traders, have you read those ones? I tried reading them when I first got into the series years ago, but I couldn't really get into the first book. Andrea's reviews of the books though have made me want to try and attempt them again. I do plan on reading them, I just want to finish A Feast for Crows first but it feels like it's taking forever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 I hope you enjoy your new book, Tim ! I'll be interested to hear your thoughts about that one Tim. I've heard many things about it, some good and some very critical. Thanks! I think it will be a while before I get around to it though, just saw it in Waterstone's and couldn't resist I tried reading them when I first got into the series years ago, but I couldn't really get into the first book. Andrea's reviews of the books though have made me want to try and attempt them again. I do plan on reading them, I just want to finish A Feast for Crows first but it feels like it's taking forever. It's a big 'ol book! I'm hoping they re-release the Liveship Traders to match the nice new editions of Farseer and Tawny Man. I finished Myke Cole's Fortress Frontier, the second in his ongoing miltary fantasy series; Shadow Ops. Thought it was a brilliant page turner with some incredible action and a big improvement over the first novel. I've heard they just keep getting better so had to stop myself diving straight into the third book, I also need to acquire the latest, Gemini Cell. Control Point - 7/10 Fortress Frontier - 9/10 Over the weekend I also read The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. To be honest I wasn't impressed and I wouldn't have bothered if it hadn't been on my '50 Books' list. Maybe I would have gotten on with it better if I was either A: A Woman, B: Had a mental illness or knew someone close who did or C: Lived in New York. Overall 6/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 11, 2015 Author Share Posted February 11, 2015 Ulysses by James Joyce Synopsis James Joyce's astonishing masterpiece, Ulysses, tells of the diverse events which befall Leopold Bloom and Stephen Dedalus in Dublin on 16 June 1904, during which Bloom's voluptuous wife, Molly, commits adultery. Initially deemed obscene in England and the USA, this richly-allusive novel, revolutionary in its Modernistic experimentalism, was hailed as a work of genius by W. B. Yeats, T. S. Eliot and Ernest Hemingway. Scandalously frank, wittily erudite, mercurially eloquent, resourcefully comic and generously humane, Ulysses offers the reader a life-changing experience. Review I knew from the moment I started this book that it would be a hard one to review. I also know for certain that I didn't get everything I could out of it, I'm sure it needs to be studied in-depth to be fully appreciated. Most people who even haven't read it now the 'plot', it follows the activites of two main characters, Leopold Bloom and Stephen Dedalus through the course of one entire and completely ordinary day, 16th of June, now commonly referred to as Bloomsday by fans of the novel. The main focus is on Bloom and it follows him right from when he gets up in the morning to goes to sleep at night and everything in between, and I mean everything. From overly detailed descriptions of his bodily functions to his musings on the most trivial matters. The story is said to be based on Homer's Odyssey (Ulysses is the Latin name for Odysseus), I say 'said to be' as even though I have read The Odyssey in the last year or so I only noticed a handful of vague similarities. This is another aspect that needs to be studied to be understood. So what did I actually make of it? I'm still not really sure to be honest. There were bits I loved, without a doubt some of the finest use of the English language I have ever read, sentences I had to re-read several times in awe. There were bits that made me burst out laughing and bits that made me re-think the way I look at certain idiosyncracies of life. Then there were the other bits... which can only be described as tedium. Painfully dull reams of seemingly pointless narrative and dialogue, not to the mention the lists! I swear Joyce tries to make a list of everything that's ever existed and stick them in this book. Including: Fictional characters, authors, street names, historical figures, food, clothes, events, items in a room, sexual positions, cities, types of trees, types of flowers, furniture, medical procedures and... well you get the idea. I can see why people hate this book, but I can also see why it is so popular and so important to 20th Century literature. I'm glad I read it but I'm not sure I could recommend it to anyone else, unless maybe they had wronged me in some way. Overall 8/10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 I can see why people hate this book, but I can also see why it is so popular and so important to 20th Century literature. I'm glad I read it but I'm not sure I could recommend it to anyone else, unless maybe they had wronged me in some way. :lol: Great review, Tim Somehow you manage to make it a slightly bit more manageable to read. I don't think I've ever considered actually reading the book, not having been interested in it, but you've managed to make a slightly more appealing case for it. And I say only slightly more appealing, because the size and the 'unreadability' of it is massively intimidating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 Great review, Tim ! I don't know if the book would really be for me, but you do make it sound more interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 The part of the review Frankie quoted made me laugh. What a perfect summary of the book. I'm glad you felt like you got something from it. When I read it, I just wanted all those hours of my life back I'd spent reading it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolf woolf Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 (edited) I'll retry to read it in a couple years. I have the feeling I'll enjoy this book like few, but it's said one must have a vast knowledge of books to understand the references and appreciate it more. And I need to get better in english before the odyssey. Edited February 11, 2015 by Sousa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marie H Posted February 11, 2015 Share Posted February 11, 2015 :lol: Great review, Tim Somehow you manage to make it a slightly bit more manageable to read. I don't think I've ever considered actually reading the book, not having been interested in it, but you've managed to make a slightly more appealing case for it. And I say only slightly more appealing, because the size and the 'unreadability' of it is massively intimidating. . I don't think I will manage Ulysses, and I did attempt to listen the Radio 4 day last year, but as I was so exasperated in one of those musings. Ulysses by James Joyce I can see why people hate this book, but I can also see why it is so popular and so important to 20th Century literature. I'm glad I read it but I'm not sure I could recommend it to anyone else, unless maybe they had wronged me in some way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 12, 2015 Author Share Posted February 12, 2015 :lol: Great review, Tim Somehow you manage to make it a slightly bit more manageable to read. I don't think I've ever considered actually reading the book, not having been interested in it, but you've managed to make a slightly more appealing case for it. And I say only slightly more appealing, because the size and the 'unreadability' of it is massively intimidating. I wouldn't say it has unreadability, quite a lot of un-seeingtherelevence-ability though, in fact mostly that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 12, 2015 Author Share Posted February 12, 2015 Great review, Tim ! I don't know if the book would really be for me, but you do make it sound more interesting. It's very hard to say who it actually IS for.. masochists maybe The language itself isn't difficult but maybe for someone whose first language isn't English, then it probably would be quite hard. I'm glad you felt like you got something from it. When I read it, I just wanted all those hours of my life back I'd spent reading it. Clearly a re-read is in order I'll retry to read it in a couple years. I have the feeling I'll enjoy this book like few, but it's said one must have a vast knowledge of books to understand the references and appreciate it more. And I need to get better in english before the odyssey. There are quite a lot of colloquialisms, perticularly Irish ones. But my Mother is Irish so I was OK with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted February 12, 2015 Share Posted February 12, 2015 I wouldn't say it has unreadability, quite a lot of un-seeingtherelevence-ability though, in fact mostly that That word ought to make its way to the dictionary! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 19, 2015 Author Share Posted February 19, 2015 (edited) That word ought to make its way to the dictionary! I think I will need it a lot when reviewing Gravity's Rainbow I finished Empire of Silver, the fourth book in Conn Iggulden's Conqueror series. Some really great battle scenes but probably the worst of the series yet, but still pretty darn good! Overall 7/10 Also finished Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb. Although I enjoyed it I was a little disappointed, the protagonist, FItz, can be very irritating and the world building wasn't particularly great. Overall 8/10 Now racing through the Preacher graphic novels, they are brilliant. Great characters, some hilarious dialogue and gripping story lines. Just finished the 6th (out of 9) which was the best so far! Overall 10/10 Edited February 19, 2015 by Timstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 It's a shame you were a bit disappointed with the Robin Hobb book, though I'm glad you enjoyed it for the most part. I'm glad you enjoyed your two other reads also . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted February 19, 2015 Share Posted February 19, 2015 Also finished Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb. Although I enjoyed it I was a little disappointed, the protagonist, FItz, can be very irritating and the world building wasn't particularly great. Overall 8/10 That's pretty much how I scored it too, though I think I'm due for a re-read in the next couple of years. I found that it started off really promising, what with the assassin training and stuff, but then sort of seemed to forget about all that and never go back to it. The books shouldn't really have the word 'Assassin' in every title - bit misleading, really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 26, 2015 Author Share Posted February 26, 2015 That's pretty much how I scored it too, though I think I'm due for a re-read in the next couple of years. I found that it started off really promising, what with the assassin training and stuff, but then sort of seemed to forget about all that and never go back to it. The books shouldn't really have the word 'Assassin' in every title - bit misleading, really. Yeah I agree with that, but I will keep on with the series. But it didn't make we want to dive straight into the next book. It's a shame you were a bit disappointed with the Robin Hobb book, though I'm glad you enjoyed it for the most part. I'm glad you enjoyed your two other reads also . Thanks Gaia, have you read any Hobb? I finished my re-read of the The Two Towers, it goes without saying how brilliant it is but it is my least favourite of the three. Also finished Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, the YA sequel to Steelheart, which was a really good follow up! Very funny and places with great characters that you really care about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 26, 2015 Author Share Posted February 26, 2015 (edited) Gravity's Rainbow - Thomas Pynchon Synopsis If I knew, I'd tell ya. Review I'm glad we earlier established the word 'un-seeingtherelevence-ability' because that is key to describing this book. It is simply bizarre. The story loosely follows US. Army Lt. Slothrop in his quest to find the mysterious Schwarzgerát (Black Device) that is to be loaded into a V-2 Rocket known as '00000'. The title itself comes from the flight path of a V-2 rocket that is shaped like a rainbow in that it uses fuel to fly up then gravity to pull it down to its target. The novel is packed full of speculative metaphysics, behavioral psychology, chemistry, sexual fetishes, hallucinations, subterfuge, diversions, digressions, tangents, exploration, paranoia and various writing styles that leave you bemused, befuddled and bewildered all at the same time. There are a number of underlying themes that expertly interwoven throughout, one such being the Poisson Distribution that predicts where in London the V-2 bombs will hit but also the chances of you understanding what is happening at any given moment within the novel. Pynchon has created a massive onion of a novel; many would say it stinks, some would cry in fustration but I know there are so many layers to it that I barely scratched the surface. Some recurring themes I noticed but didn't understand the importance of and I'm sure there's many more I missed. There were many times I was close to giving up and I felt like the whole thing was pointless but then suddenly it would click and I would be right back in it again eager to read more and dissect the enigma that is Gravity's Rainbow. Although I finished it however, I didn't suceed in cracking it, particularly the last quarter of the book when it began to click less and less and it got to a point where after 50 odd pages I could confidently say "Nope, not a clue". Pynchon also inserted enough sexually graphic imagery to make Ulysses look like the Pope's favourite book. He doesn't shy away from any fetish including; BDSM, orgies, scatology, paedophilia, sex slaves. Most of which was unpleasant to read. It was difficult to rate this book, and although I finished it almost two weeks ago, I still can't decide whether I liked it or not. But I can definitely say there were times I loved it and other times I wanted to never see it again. Overall 7/10 Edited February 26, 2015 by Timstar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Thanks Gaia, have you read any Hobb? I finished my re-read of the The Two Towers, it goes without saying how brilliant it is but it is my least favourite of the three. Also finished Firefight by Brandon Sanderson, the YA sequel to Steelheart, which was a really good follow up! Very funny and places with great characters that you really care about. No, not yet . I have a lot of them on my shelf though. I'm glad you liked The Two Towers though it's a shame it wasn't as good as the other two books (I will be reading the trilogy at some point also). I'm glad you enjoyed Firefight! I hope to be reading more of Brandon Sanderson's work this year (I've read a couple so far). Gravity's Rainbow sounds like a really different read. Great review . The cover looks interesting though I don't think I'd like to read the book because of the graphic 'sexual' stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankie Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 (edited) Gravity's Rainbow - Thomas Pynchon Synopsis If I knew, I'd tell ya. Review I'm glad we earlier established the word 'un-seeingtherelevence-ability' because that is key to describing this book. The moment I saw you had written a review of the novel, I immediately wondered if you had used the word in the review A very handy word! Sounds like a tricky read. I got exhausted simply by reading your review (and that's not to criticize the way you've done it, it's more telling of the book itself! ). I applaud you for the stamina to finish it! Edited February 26, 2015 by frankie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted February 26, 2015 Author Share Posted February 26, 2015 No, not yet . I have a lot of them on my shelf though. Somehow I knew that was going to be your answer The cover looks interesting though I don't think I'd like to read the book because of the graphic 'sexual' stuff. I think that's the main reason I wouldn't announce that I loved it and recommend it to others. The moment I saw you had written a review of the novel, I immediately wondered if you had used the word in the review A very handy word! Sounds like a tricky read. I got exhausted simply by reading your review (and that's not to criticize the way you've done it, it's more telling of the book itself! ). I applaud you for the stamina to finish it! Haha, I thought you'd like it It is certainly not an easy read. More difficult and longer than Ulysses, that's for sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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