Karsa Orlong

I doubt it's absolutely necessary to read them in order. You pretty much know what happened at Troy, after all, and I don't believe The Odyssey picks up immediately after those events anyway

Well you're in for a unique and challenging journey I may re-read them at the same time, depending on when you start

^^ Thanks for the review, Tim. I love the movie, too, but have never had the inclination to read the book.

Yes!! Bloody hell And yay!! I'm going to feel bad if you don't like them

It'll be interesting to see what you think, Tim. I hope you enjoy it Thanks Athena. I expect I'll read The Great Hunt soon-ish, as I already have it I'm still trying to decide what to read next. I'm thinking I might have a crack at The Iliad

A book?? Just one????

Happy reading in 2013 Kylie!

Yeah, that's why I posted it. I'm glad someone spotted that I wasn't trying to blow my own trumpet

Time to get this thread back on track, I think. Book #2: The Eye of the World (Book One of The Wheel of Time) by Robert Jordan No blurb. There’s nothing too spoilery in here, other than the tagged part, cos I know Devi and Tim might be reading it soon . . . I’ve managed to stay clear of spoilers from this series for all these years, too, so going in I really wasn’t quite sure what to expect. It’s quite a daunting prospect (14 novels plus a prequel), and then I’ve read comments from so many people saying how the series falls away in the middle, so I’ve been putting it off constantly. In the intervening years I have become a fan of the newer, grittier breed of fantasy. As a result, I think I sat down to it in the wrong frame of mind. The prologue was dark and intriguing enough to make me think I might get the kind of story I like, telling of the aftermath of some cataclysmic event, as the last two combatants trade final blows. It looked like it could be good. Two hundred pages later I commented to a friend that I was unsure about it. On the one hand, it's very easy reading and I don't have to engage my brain to follow it. On the other hand, it's very easy reading and I don't have to engage my brain to follow it. The minuses were outweighing the pluses. After the prologue the story immediately devolves into a generic, heard-it-all-before farmboy-with-a-destiny tale, populated by bland, two-dimensional characters. It has none of the wit or charm or memorable characters that made David Eddings’s Belgariad such a winner. Admittedly, this is – I think – aimed at a slightly older audience, but this doesn’t prevent the main characters constantly, repeatedly bemoaning their lack of understanding of women, or whining about their lot in life. It is a story completely lacking in invention or originality. It rips off other authors left right and centre, especially Tolkien, even Frank Herbert. The protagonists are pursued by Fades (Nazgul) and their armies of Trollocs (Orcs). Um, Trollocs? Seriously?? I hate to badmouth the departed, but could he not have come up with a better name than that? Unless it’s rhyming slang, in which case carry on! The Fades are even dressed in black and ride black horses. After three hundred pages I almost gave up. Almost. Not even halfway through the book. But I kept reminding myself about the people who give up on Steven Erikson after a couple of hundred pages of Gardens of the Moon (no, Kay, that isn’t a dig!), and how I feel those people are missing out on something so unique and special as a result. I don’t think I could say to anyone to keep going with that series if I didn’t do so myself with this. It can’t be so popular without having something going for it, surely? I realise I’ve done nothing but point out negatives so far. But I finished the book, and I ended up really quite enjoying it. It is easy to read. The simple story does mean you can put your thinkymeatz in ‘neutral’ and just go along for the ride. At the end of the day, you need this sort of book sometimes. The second half of the novel picks up considerably. I think, once I passed the 300-page mark I finally found the right frame of mind for it. There is one particular thing that happens to one of the characters that caught my interest, and that made me keep reading. I’m glad I did. The writing is okay without being great. Repetition is a bugbear. Had I read it in my teens (which would be difficult, seeing as it wasn’t published then!) I imagine I would have loved it. As it is, with me coming to it so late, it’s a story out of time, a relatively diverting, almost nostalgic, glimpse back to when fantasy was just this, before braver authors decided to subvert the genre and do something new with it. This opinion is obviously only based on this, the first book. I hope things might get darker and more original with the subsequent novels. But, considering where I was after three hundred pages, I am rather pleasantly surprised to report that – unlike Abu Qatada – I probably will be returning to Jordan in the not too distant future. Colour me stunned. 7/10

Ooh, you have some of my favourite authors there, Athena. I'll hopefully be reading more Hamilton, Asher and Reynolds myself this year. We'll have lots to talk about ETA: and I've just started on the Wheel of Time books, too - just about finished with the first one . . .

That's quite disturbing

Tbh, it when I read the extended version it was so long since I read the original I couldn't tell you what he'd added to it anyway. I don't remember thinking there was anything wrong with the original, though.

Was it the original version, Tim, or the longer version that was published more recently?

It needs to - everything's out of proportion

Ah okay, I hadn't seen that.

Oh dear, my reputation is spreading: http://www.teamliqui...pic_id=226699#3

Thanks Tim. I'm not bothered about it, I was just curious as to how it might have got there. Someone must've copied it over from here or Malazan Empire Jealous why?

Does anyone know anything about tumblr.com? I was just doing a search for quotes from a particular Malazan character and found my photo of my Erikson collection has somehow been posted on their website http://www.tumblr.co...allen?before=39

It's reminded me that I need to get tickets for one of his London gigs this June

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUeM0mJOmhI

Unlike China to write something bizarre