Karsa Orlong Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 Especially with Malazan - if I read it any faster than a snail's pace I end up having to re-read entire chapters because I end up with no idea of what's going on. It's the weird thing with SE - I find his style so easy to read that I do end up reading it fast (or fast for me, at least - I still wouldn't class it as 'racing' ). I remember the first time I read GotM that I was reading it quite slowly at the start, and re-reading some bits to get it straight (particularly the poems, which I'm glad I did, cos there's so much info buried in them). But his style just clicked with me after a few pages and after that I was away. Maybe it's because I liked the air of mystery and history about it all, so I wasn't bothered about the stuff some people find difficult Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 It'll be interesting to see how I get on. Tim, how was your reading speed during GotM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 Anyone got a stopwatch? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 13, 2014 Author Share Posted August 13, 2014 It's the weird thing with SE - I find his style so easy to read that I do end up reading it fast (or fast for me, at least - I still wouldn't class it as 'racing' ). I remember the first time I read GotM that I was reading it quite slowly at the start, and re-reading some bits to get it straight (particularly the poems, which I'm glad I did, cos there's so much info buried in them). But his style just clicked with me after a few pages and after that I was away. Maybe it's because I liked the air of mystery and history about it all, so I wasn't bothered about the stuff some people find difficult The poems had so much more significance this time around. I used to skip them sometimes, especially the long ones, but I'm glad I took the time to read them this time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 14, 2014 Author Share Posted August 14, 2014 Review: 'World War Z' by Max Brooks It began with rumors from China about another pandemic. Then the cases started to multiply and what had looked like the stirrings of a criminal underclass, even the beginnings of a revolution, soon revealed itself to be much, much worse. Faced with a future of mindless, man-eating horror, humanity was forced to accept the logic of world government and face events that tested our sanity and our sense of reality.Based on extensive interviews with survivors and key players in the 10-year fight-back against the horde, World War Z brings the very finest traditions of American journalism to bear on what is surely the most incredible story in the history of civilisation. Not everyone realises at first that the full title of this book isWorld War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War. And so many people are surprised, and even disappointed, that the format of the book is set out exactly so: like an oral history.World War Z is written as a series of interviews with survivors from all over the world: soldiers, housewives, children, mercenaries, from India, America, China, Korea . . . The format really lends itself to the faux-factual tone of the book, and once you’ve accustomed yourself to reading a ‘history’ rather than a novel, you start to realise its brilliance. Although the book is built from lots of seemingly disparate accounts, it is organised chronologically into rough chapters such as ‘Warnings’, ‘The Great Panic’ and ‘Turning the Tide’, all of which outline major stages of the war. Despite the fragmentary format World War Z ultimately still tells a story, and the various survivors' accounts are arranged into a narrative with a distinctive beginning, middle and end. The chapters and accounts depict the course of the zombie war, from the initial outbreak and speculation over its cause, to the inevitable spread of the undead infection through the mediums of immigration and organ transplants, to the ‘Great Panic’ and mass evacuations, to the eventual reclaiming of the planet from the zombie infestation. The oral accounts are told from many different perspectives and ‘voices’, and this paints a picture of how differently certain people and parts of the world were not only affected, but how they chose to deal with the situation, most of which are probably frighteningly accurate predictions. Many of the accounts focus on relaying the political and economic impact of the apocalypse on various nations, and some of these do occasionally become a little dry. However, they serve to add to the overall atmosphere of realism; and they’re often sandwiched between much more exciting accounts, the tone and content of which vary between horrific, hilarious and heart-wrenching. Some of the highlights are the retired handler from the army’s canine unit; the introverted teenager forced out of his cyberspace haven and into the harsh reality of a Japan overrun by undead; the plucky fighter pilot stranded in the heavily-infested Louisiana swamps and guided to safety by a mysteriously anonymous ‘Skywatcher’; and the Chinese crew of a nuclear submarine fighting to stay alive after spending years of the war on the bottom of the ocean. Each of the stories are unique, and Brooks has really excelled himself in imagining just how the apocalypse would affect different classes of people from literally all over the world. While a lot of the fictional accounts are focused on the ‘facts’ of the war, they nonetheless create vivid images that stick in the mind. Like the few hundred army troops facing a million-strong zombie horde across a deserted plain to the soundtrack of Iron Maiden’s ‘The Trooper’; like the refugees sheltering in safety on beaches and tropical islands only to have shambling corpses emerge without warning from the sea; and like the French forces trapped in the catacombs beneath the city of Paris, with hardly any working torches or weapons, trying to stay ahead of an enemy they can barely even see in the dark, flooded tunnels. World War Z is terrifying, entertaining, and most of all, it will have you believing that the zombie apocalypse actually happened . . . orcould happen . . . 5/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 14, 2014 Author Share Posted August 14, 2014 So, I finally spent my Waterstones voucher: The Widow's House has just been released, and it's the fourth in Abraham's Dagger and Coin series, a series which has been slowly getting better and better as it progresses. I'm really looking forward to reading this. The King of the Crags is the second book in Stephen Deas' Memory of Flames, of which I recently read and reviewed the first book. I'm also looking forward to getting around to this. Knights of Dark Renown will probably sit on my TBR for a really long time, just like Legend and the first 2 Rigante books have . . . but I've had it on my Amazon wishlist for ages and couldn't resist. My grandma gave me an Amazon voucher recently, so I've also just ordered a bunch of books off there. Pictures coming soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 14, 2014 Share Posted August 14, 2014 Knights of Dark Renown will probably sit on my TBR for a really long time, just like Legend and the first 2 Rigante books have . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 14, 2014 Share Posted August 14, 2014 Great review, Laura ! I've got World War Z on my wishlist. I hope you enjoy your new books ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted August 14, 2014 Share Posted August 14, 2014 I read WWZ a few years back and really enjoyed it, very refreshing and original. Just don't compare it to the film. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 14, 2014 Author Share Posted August 14, 2014 I really will get around to Rigante before Christmas - I promise! Great review, Laura ! I've got World War Z on my wishlist. I hope you enjoy your new books ! Thanks Gaia! I can't wait to read them. I read WWZ a few years back and really enjoyed it, very refreshing and original. Just don't compare it to the film. Oh, god, the film. It's not a bad film . . . it's just not WWZ. I think there are literally 2 things from the book that made it into the film - it didn't deserve to be called WWZ at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 14, 2014 Share Posted August 14, 2014 it didn't deserve to be called WWZ at all. It wasn't - it was called World War Zee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 15, 2014 Author Share Posted August 15, 2014 Review: 'The Copper Promise' by Jen Williams There are some far-fetched rumours about the caverns beneath the Citadel… Some say the mages left their most dangerous secrets hidden there; others, that great riches are hidden there; even that gods have been imprisoned in its darkest depths.For Lord Frith, the caverns hold the key to his vengeance. Against all the odds, he has survived torture and lived to see his home and his family taken from him … and now someone is going to pay. For Wydrin of Crosshaven and her faithful companion, Sir Sebastian Caverson, a quest to the Citadel looks like just another job. There’s the promise of gold and adventure. Who knows, they might even have a decent tale or two once they’re done.But sometimes there is truth in rumour.Soon this reckless trio will be the last line of defence against a hungry, restless terror that wants to tear the world apart. And they’re not even getting paid. The Copper Promise is a classic fantasy romp, a sword and sorcery tale of epic quests, fallen heroes, plucky sellswords and fearsome dragons. After unwittingly unleashing an ancient horror from a buried citadel, three unlikely heroes – noble Lord Frith, his family murdered and himself tortured after being overthrown by rivals; Sir Sebastien, an exiled knight with a troubled soul; and Wydrin, a sassy mercenary also known as the Copper Cat – must seek out long-lost magic in order to atone for their mistake and save the world. Williams’ story is a lot of fun, full of action and magic and just the right amount of grit and gore, and it’s entertaining enough to make you overlook the many instances of deus ex machina (need to travel somewhere in a hurry? Of course, take these magical flying griffins!). The reader is often forced to suspend their disbelief even more than is usual for a fantasy novel, as several threads of the story are so contrived as to be reminiscent of quests in a Dungeons & Dragons game, but again the flighty pace and likeable characters (particularly Wydrin) will make you more than happy to turn a blind eye. The pacing of The Copper Promise does suffer a little bit from its uneven structure. As I understand it the story was originally written as a series of four novellas, and this version of the book is similarly split into four distinct sections. While this means for quite fast pacing and lots of exciting moments and mini-climaxes, it does make the final events of the book seem a little anti-climactic, although the wild chase through the skies was still very exciting, if a little rushed. Most of all, it’s nice to read the first book in a series that can actually be read as a standalone. Far too many fantasy authors recently have cut me up with sudden and dramatic cliffhangers at the end of their books (I’m looking at you, Brian McClellan), and The Copper Promise is refreshing in that it is somewhat self-contained and ends with a sense of resolution, while at the same time inviting (rather than forcing) a sequel. Nonetheless, I’m pleased to learn that there will be a sequel, as there are a few plotlines not entirely resolved (such as Bezcavar, Ip and O’rin), and interesting things mentioned once or twice but then never heard from again (such as Wydrin’s pirate mother and her father’s disappearance). I hope these will at least make an appearance in The Iron Ghostwhen it’s released, and can’t wait to read more about the Copper Cat and company. 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 It wasn't - it was called World War Zee ! Laura, great review ! It's great to hear of a part one in a series that can be read standalone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted August 16, 2014 Share Posted August 16, 2014 Great review of World War Z. I read it last year, but I didn't particularly enjoy it, I think due to the format. There were no central characters to hang on to throughout the book, and each chapter was almost like a separate story. However, I enjoyed the movie, even though it had no real connection to the book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 20, 2014 Author Share Posted August 20, 2014 Great review of World War Z. I read it last year, but I didn't particularly enjoy it, I think due to the format. There were no central characters to hang on to throughout the book, and each chapter was almost like a separate story. However, I enjoyed the movie, even though it had no real connection to the book. Thanks BB. Yeah, the format's not everyone's cup of tea, but at least you tried it - I know a few people who've flat-out refused to read it when they learned it was set out that way. Personally I found it fascinating because it almost made me believe it had actually happened. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 20, 2014 Author Share Posted August 20, 2014 Review: 'The Widow's House' by Daniel Abraham Lord Regent Geder Palliako's war has led his nation and the priests of the spider goddess to victory after victory. No power has withstood him, except for the heart of the one woman he desires. As the violence builds and the cracks in his rule begin to show, he will risk everything to gain her love or else her destruction.Clara Kalliam, the loyal traitor, is torn between the woman she once was and the woman she has become. With her sons on all sides of the conflict, her house cannot stand, but there is a power in choosing when and how to fall.And in Porte Oliva, banker Cithrin bel Sarcour and Captain Marcus Wester learn the terrible truth that links this war to the fall of the dragons millennia before, and that to save the world, Cithrin must conquer it. The Widow’s House is the fourth – and penultimate – book in Daniel Abraham’s awesome fantasy series The Dagger and the Coin, and continues to follow the stories of four central characters during their nation’s descent into war. As with the previous three books in the series, The Widow’s House is very character-focused and is structured using the named chapters and switching POVs popularised by George RR Martin. As with all books that use this technique this is sometimes quite frustrating, particularly when a chapter ends on a cliffhanger, or when you’ve forgotten what a certain character was doing when last we saw them. However, it’s nice that the focus has consistently been on the same four POV characters throughout the series, and picking up The Widow’s Housegave me the sense of being reunited with old friends. The switching POVs also become much less disorienting as the novel progresses and each of the different storylines all begin to fall together. Much as I like all four of the main characters, I have to say that once again Geder Palliako edges in front as my favourite. The Lord Regent is child-like and peevish, petulant and bitter, and yet strangely sympathetic. He’s the nicest of people while at the same time being the villain of the piece, a tyrant who simply does not realise he’s a tyrant. He fails to observe that everyone is terrified of him and his inexplicable rages, and is instead desperate for everyone to be his friend. He doesn’t realise certain things are inappropriate, such as staying over for a week to personally oversee his Lord Marshal’s wife giving birth, or committing entire armies to devastating battles simply to take revenge on a woman who hurt his feelings. He also doesn’t realise that he is a puppet, manipulated by his most trusted friend – the spider priest Basrahip – into turning his kingdom into a platform for the chaotic cult of the spider goddess. The other characters are very different, but also likeable and interesting to read about, and all three are working together – whether knowingly or not – towards the same end. The darling of the piece has to be Clara – the ‘widow’ in The Widow’s House – who is secretly scheming to overthrow the Regent in order to protect the kingdom, a job made much more complicated by the fact that her husband was executed by Palliako for treason, and she is unwilling to jeopardise her sons, both of whom hold high positions within the Regent’s army. Clara is brave, practical and loyal, and her chapters always make for a pleasantly easy read (despite the fact that not a lot really happens in them). In contrast, Marcus is a cynical mercenary who has travelled to the ends of the earth searching for ancient weapons to stop the spider priests from spreading their evil; while Cithrin, a banker, is attempting to undermine the Regent and his priests using more unconventional means. Cithrin’s chapters are often the most interesting: she is the ‘coin’ in The Dagger and the Coin, and is forced to find ways to defeat her enemies using the resources at her disposal, namely money. This thread of the story, focusing on economics rather than war or politics, is original and interesting, although a little under-used. All of the characters have developed throughout the series in their own fascinating way, and the plot has progressed to the point where I can’t wait to see how it ends. Bring on book five! 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Great review, I'm glad you enjoyed this book ! I have to say, I always have to think when I read the English word 'penultimate', to think about what it means. I don't know why . In Dutch we don't have a word like that I think. We do have 'een-na-laatste', which means 'second to last', but because it consists of various words stuck together it's pretty obvious what it means. I don't think I've ever used it while describing books though. I think I just say 'the fourth book in the series' or such (or whichever one it is). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 21, 2014 Author Share Posted August 21, 2014 I have to say, I always have to think when I read the English word 'penultimate', to think about what it means. I don't know why . In Dutch we don't have a word like that I think. We do have 'een-na-laatste', which means 'second to last', but because it consists of various words stuck together it's pretty obvious what it means. I don't think I've ever used it while describing books though. I think I just say 'the fourth book in the series' or such (or whichever one it is). Maybe we just like to make things complicated for you. Next time I'll say een-na-laatste instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 21, 2014 Author Share Posted August 21, 2014 I mentioned the other day that I bought a bunch of new books from Amazon with the money my kindly old grandmother gave to me. Well, here they are! (Although they look a bit paltry after all Devi's lovely photos ) I love having new books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 21, 2014 Share Posted August 21, 2014 Your new books look beautiful ! I hope you enjoy all of them . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devi Posted August 22, 2014 Share Posted August 22, 2014 We have the same krondor sons covers! I love your covers of the other R.E.Fs books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 22, 2014 Author Share Posted August 22, 2014 We have the same krondor sons covers! I love your covers of the other R.E.Fs books. Yes we do! I actually prefer the older vintagey covers to the newer ones, but they only seem to do them for a few of the books these days. Still, my REF collection is now well on its way to being complete - these new ones have filled all the gaps in my collection up to the end of the Riftwar Legacy (barring Jimmy and the Crawler - I'll wait for that to become a bit cheaper I think!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 22, 2014 Share Posted August 22, 2014 It was all going so well until The Thousand Names turned up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 22, 2014 Author Share Posted August 22, 2014 It was all going so well until The Thousand Names turned up Oh shush. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblybear Posted August 24, 2014 Share Posted August 24, 2014 Nice new books. Wool has been on my wishlist for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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