Karsa Orlong Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 I actually thought of you when I wrote that part. Perv Well, you and your best mate Bob. Oi, leave my BFF out of this - he writes fine novels that do not contain magic 'systems' or thinly-veiled attempts to foist his religious beliefs on the unsuspecting reader at all. Nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 19, 2015 Author Share Posted May 19, 2015 That is a great review, Laura, wow!! I'm glad you enjoyed the book. I shall get around to it eventually . Thanks Gaia! I can't recommend it highly enough. Fab review! I read it last year and enjoyed it but felt it dragged on a little bit too much. I guess you re-read it in time for the series as well which aired last night? Yes! And I'm so glad I did. Did you watch it? Oi, leave my BFF out of this - he writes fine novels that do not contain magic 'systems' or thinly-veiled attempts to foist his religious beliefs on the unsuspecting reader at all. Nope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 Thanks Gaia! I can't recommend it highly enough. The reason I held off at first was because I didn't know anything about it, and no one had recommended it to me. Now, on BCF, people recommend it to me but I've been holding off because I'm worried about the writing style and whether it'll be difficult for me to read as I find it hard to read older English language and people say the book mimicks that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 The reason I held off at first was because I didn't know anything about it, and no one had recommended it to me. Now, on BCF, people recommend it to me but I've been holding off because I'm worried about the writing style and whether it'll be difficult for me to read as I find it hard to read older English language and people say the book mimicks that. Hmm, yes, it does mimic the 19th century style, but I wouldn't say it makes it difficult to read. Aside from a few alternative spellings here and there, most of the actual language is standard English (as opposed to, say, Shakespeare English). Maybe check out the sample on Amazon to see what you think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Went trawling the charity shops and book stalls in Bury today with the mother and grandmother in tow. Came home with these beauties: Only cost me £7.99 for all 4! And as usual, Kili tried to get in on the book-photo action: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted May 27, 2015 Share Posted May 27, 2015 Nice book haul. Actually, forget the books - that is a ridiculously gorgeous cat! Yowzer, I'm in lurve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Nice book haul. Actually, forget the books - that is a ridiculously gorgeous cat! Yowzer, I'm in lurve. Haha thanks Chrissy! She is a pretty kitty isn't she. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 27, 2015 Author Share Posted May 27, 2015 Review: 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban' Harry Potter is lucky to reach the age of thirteen, since he has already survived the murderous attacks of the feared Dark Lord on more than one occasion. But his hopes for a quiet term concentrating on Quidditch are dashed when a maniacal mass-murderer escapes from Azkaban, pursued by the soul-sucking Dementors who guard the prison. It's assumed that Hogwarts is the safest place for Harry to be. But is it a coincidence that he can feel eyes watching him in the dark, or should he be taking Professor Trelawney's ghoulish predictions seriously? The Great Harry Potter Re-read continues with book three of the series, Prisoner of Azkaban. Although it’s been years since I last read it, I always remember this book as my least favourite of the series, so I was really surprised when I found myself enjoying it rather a lot. It has all the things I enjoyed about the first two books, such as funky magical creatures, stunning plot twists, and of course Rowling’s trademark humour. Furthermore, some of my favourite characters – namely Sirius and Lupin – make their first appearance here, and I thoroughly enjoyed becoming re-acquainted with the little darlings. Despite this, I did find myself getting a little impatient with the story, and was often reminded why I previously regarded this as my least favourite of the series. (Yes, Harry, we know you’re not allowed to go to Hogsmeade, now please stop moaning about it. It’s a rat, Ron, for God’s sake get over it. And oh dear God, not another Quidditch match?!?!) I also feel like I was less engaged with the story in general than I was with the first two books: Philosopher’s Stone kept us guessing throughout and was full of questions (who robbed the Gringotts vault? What is Fluffy guarding? Who is Nicholas Flamel?), and Chamber of Secrets was packed with even bigger questions (What is the Chamber of Secrets? Who is the heir of Slytherin? Who or what is petrifying muggle-borns?). Prisoner of Azkaban is the first book in the series to lack a great underlying mystery, and unfortunately this meant that I felt less compelled to keep turning the pages. That said, there are a lot of things this book does very well, the main one being its depiction of the characters’ emotional growth. We see the first real disagreements between Harry, Ron and Hermione as they each become more headstrong, and their arguments are portrayed as petty yet as realistically serious in that dramatic way unique to young teenagers just starting to hit puberty. Much of the story is about Harry being in emotional turmoil rather than physical danger, and while this doesn’t always make for the most thrilling of reads, it’s nonetheless well done. I think this is the point where the series first starts to mature: there’s a lot more emphasis on personal revelations rather than magic, and it’s the first time we see Harry have to really deal with emotional issues surrounding his own past and the deaths of his parents. It has to be said that the last few chapters of the book are really fantastic: fast-paced and full of really great revelations and clever plot twists leading to yet another tidily satisfactory conclusion. Best of all, finishing this one means that now the fun really begins: Goblet of Fire next! 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted May 28, 2015 Share Posted May 28, 2015 Awww Kili is so cute !! And that's a great price for 4 books, I hope you enjoy them all . I'm glad you're enjoying your Harry Potter re-reads . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted May 28, 2015 Share Posted May 28, 2015 What crazy fool gave away their copy of Master & Commander? It should be against the law. Have them hunted down and arrested. There is not a moment to be lost! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 29, 2015 Author Share Posted May 29, 2015 What crazy fool gave away their copy of Master & Commander? It should be against the law. Have them hunted down and arrested. There is not a moment to be lost! Yep, 99p in Oxfam - biggest bargain of the day! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissy Posted May 29, 2015 Share Posted May 29, 2015 It is interesting (and lovely) reading someone else's re read thoughts on the HP series. Lots of "I'd not thought of it that way before!" moments. As Arnie would say - I'll be back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 29, 2015 Author Share Posted May 29, 2015 It is interesting (and lovely) reading someone else's re read thoughts on the HP series. Lots of "I'd not thought of it that way before!" moments. As Arnie would say - I'll be back. I know! You've made me look at Harry in whole new light! I'm thinking it's a shame we didn't do the re-reads as a co-ordinated thing, especially as others like Noll and Gaia have also read the books relatively recently. Maybe a few years down the line we can do a group re-re-read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted May 29, 2015 Author Share Posted May 29, 2015 Review: 'The Last Wish' by Andrzej Sapkowski Geralt was always going to stand out, with his white hair and piercing eyes, his cynicism and lack of respect for authority ... but he is far more than a striking-looking man. He's a witcher, with powers that make him a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin - his targets are the vile fiends that ravage the land.As guardian of the innocent, Geralt meets incestuous kings with undead daughters, vengeful djinns, shrieking harpies, lovelorn vampires and despondent ghouls. Many are pernicious, some are wicked, and none are quite as they appear. Geralt of Rivia is a witcher: a man who has suffered through years of gruelling training and exposure to terrible alchemic mutations in order to become a kick-ass monster hunter, complete with white hair and night vision. The original inspiration for the video game series The Witcher, The Last Wish is made up of six short stories, framed by a series of intermissions wherein Geralt recuperates from one of his battles and muses on both the past and the future. Having already played the console game The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings (twice), I enjoyed learning more about the titular character, as well as getting more background knowledge about things referenced in the game, such as how Geralt earned the moniker ‘the Butcher of Blaviken’. One of my favourite aspects of the book was the pervading sense of humour, which is very dry and gives a whole new dimension to the character of Geralt who, in the game, is mostly straight-faced (and, to be honest, a little boring). Book-Geralt is, I’m pleased to say, much more fun to be around. Despite being the driving influence behind a popular video game series, there is much to distinguish Sapkowski’s world from the myriad other fantasy settings out there. There are no dragons here, no giant spiders or walking skeletons: instead there are rusalkas and kikimoras, strigas and bruxas, djinns and devils. Many of these outlandish beasts – as well as the settings in which their stories take place – are lifted from Slavic mythology, and this Eastern European influence has the wonderful effect of making The Last Wish feel all the more fantastical. The stories themselves are essentially clever and irreverent subversions of classic fairy tales. This in itself is hardly unique, nor is it the first example of its kind I’ve ever read, but it’s by far the most enjoyable. The original fairy tales themselves, as well as many traditional fantasy tropes, are clearly recognisable yet different, twisted, as though seen through a dark and distorted window. Sapkowski’s elves are beautiful and long-lived, yet also narrow-minded, violent and cruel; his priestesses are wise and haughty, but also friendly, helpful and even promiscuous; his kings are corrupt and weak, his princesses are strong and independent, and his great knights are often little more than thugs. Some of his heroes are monsters, and some of his monsters are heroes. Nothing is quite as you expect it to be in Sapkowski’s world, and this sense of the unexpected makes each of the stories a quirky and delightfully unique trip into the unknown. As with all short story collections, The Last Wish is a bit hit-and-miss, with some stories turning out to be much more enjoyable than others. I particularly liked ‘The Witcher’ and ‘A Grain of Truth’; while others, such as ‘A Question of Price’ and ‘The Edge of the World’, didn’t really hold much interest for me. Despite this, each and every story is written in simple and unassuming prose, which makes for pleasant and easy reading (even if the story itself is occasionally less than captivating). Although some of the stories were considerably less thrilling than others, those I did enjoy I enjoyed immensely, and I look forward to reading more stories set in Sapkowski’s world. 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted May 30, 2015 Share Posted May 30, 2015 I'm thinking it's a shame we didn't do the re-reads as a co-ordinated thing, especially as others like Noll and Gaia have also read the books relatively recently. Maybe a few years down the line we can do a group re-re-read. I'd be up for that ! Great review! I tried to play the first game, but I got stuck. I find it an interesting world though . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Glad you enjoyed The Last Wish more this time around I can't remember which one, but they used one of the early stories in the book for the opening cinematic for the first Witcher game. It was odd reading it, as I'd already played the game. I kept thinking 'this seems familiar somehow' . . . and then the penny dropped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted June 3, 2015 Author Share Posted June 3, 2015 Great review! I tried to play the first game, but I got stuck. I find it an interesting world though . Thanks! I've never played the first one (it's only available on PC, and up until very recently I never had a graphics card good enough to support 'big' games), but the second one is quite enjoyable (I have it for Xbox), and the third one looks AWESOME. Glad you enjoyed The Last Wish more this time around I can't remember which one, but they used one of the early stories in the book for the opening cinematic for the first Witcher game. It was odd reading it, as I'd already played the game. I kept thinking 'this seems familiar somehow' . . . and then the penny dropped I've just watched the clip on Youtube, and it's the very first story in the book, called 'The Witcher'. Incidentally that was my very favourite story. D'you reckon you'd ever go back and read more? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I've just watched the clip on Youtube, and it's the very first story in the book, called 'The Witcher'. Incidentally that was my very favourite story. D'you reckon you'd ever go back and read more? No, I don't think so - too much else to read Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Great review! I've been curious about these for a while. I played the 2nd Witcher game but never really got into it which is strange because it is the sort of game I love, I think I found it a bit too slow. I do have have Blood of Elves on my wishlist though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 I played the 2nd Witcher game but never really got into it which is strange because it is the sort of game I love, I think I found it a bit too slow. That's what I thought, too. Played about 6 hours of it and seemed to spend more time sitting and listening than actually playing. Too many quick time events and not enough actual gameplay. Very pretty, though. The first game, on the other hand, was brilliant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 That's what I thought, too. Played about 6 hours of it and seemed to spend more time sitting and listening than actually playing. Too many quick time events and not enough actual gameplay. Very pretty, though. Yeah that's right, very much a case of 'go here and talk to this person, now go there and talk to that person, now go back to the first person again' Also I played on Xbox and it was clearly designed for PC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted June 3, 2015 Share Posted June 3, 2015 Also I played on Xbox and it was clearly designed for PC. Have to disagree there - the first game was designed for the PC but the second one was far too console-ified for my liking (QTEs being the most obvious sign of that). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted June 6, 2015 Author Share Posted June 6, 2015 Speaking of The Witcher . . . :exc: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted June 6, 2015 Share Posted June 6, 2015 I hope you enjoy it !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted June 6, 2015 Author Share Posted June 6, 2015 I hope you enjoy it !! Thanks! I can't wait to play it properly. I only had chance to play it for a little bit last night, and I spent most of that time riding around on a horsey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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