Karsa Orlong Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 Was it Vicious? The one about the superheroes? That's on my birthday list. That's the one! I suppose I should read it at some point Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 12, 2015 Author Share Posted August 12, 2015 That's the one! I suppose I should read it at some point I should be getting it at some point in the next few weeks, so maybe we could read it together in the future if you feel like it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 I should be getting it at some point in the next few weeks, so maybe we could read it together in the future if you feel like it? Sounds like a plan Once my jury service is out of the way I'm planning on finishing the Aubrey/Maturin series, so that'll be three books in a row, plus the unfinished one. After that, though . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 12, 2015 Author Share Posted August 12, 2015 Sounds like a plan Once my jury service is out of the way I'm planning on finishing the Aubrey/Maturin series, so that'll be three books in a row, plus the unfinished one. After that, though . . . Well there's no rush. Doesn't even have to be this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 I'm sure I can fit it in this year I don't think it's a very long book Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raven Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 Wyrd Sisters is a rare diamond in that I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish, and is by far the best Discworld instalment so far. Wait 'til you get to Guards! Guards! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 12, 2015 Author Share Posted August 12, 2015 I'm sure I can fit it in this year I don't think it's a very long book 350 pages! All in a day's work. Wait 'til you get to Guards! Guards! That's what people keep telling me! I really must get back to my Discworld read soon . . . the only thing is, I have to get through Pyramids first, and from what I remember it was slightly naff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 Just wanted to pop in and say hello. I don't usually because I'm pretty sure there is zero overlap in our reading interests I wish I loved fantasy, but I'm so fussy about it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 13, 2015 Author Share Posted August 13, 2015 (edited) Just wanted to pop in and say hello. I don't usually because I'm pretty sure there is zero overlap in our reading interests I wish I loved fantasy, but I'm so fussy about it! Hi Noll! I stalk your reading log fairly often, and always think that we'd have loads to talk about . . . if only we shared the same reading interests. ETA: Your avatar is ADORABLE by the way! Edited August 13, 2015 by Signor Finzione Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted August 13, 2015 Share Posted August 13, 2015 Haha thanks, my friend actually drew similar panda heads when she was doodling a big random detailled drawing, and I thought the pandas were adoreable so I redrew them in full as me and her. One has a wonky eye (as per the original doodle), and apparently that one is me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 13, 2015 Author Share Posted August 13, 2015 Haha thanks, my friend actually drew similar panda heads when she was doodling a big random detailled drawing, and I thought the pandas were adoreable so I redrew them in full as me and her. One has a wonky eye (as per the original doodle), and apparently that one is me You drew them yourself?! That's awesome! And yay for wonky eyes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 13, 2015 Share Posted August 13, 2015 Wait 'til you get to Guards! Guards! I loved that one! Haha thanks, my friend actually drew similar panda heads when she was doodling a big random detailled drawing, and I thought the pandas were adoreable so I redrew them in full as me and her. One has a wonky eye (as per the original doodle), and apparently that one is me So cute ! Laura, great review of A Darker Shade of Magic, I own The Archived by the same author (V. E. Schwab and Victoria Schwab are the same person), but I haven't read it yet on account of it being book 1 in a series (which I didn't know when I bought it). I'm glad you enjoyed A Darker Shade of Magic, it sounds like a book I might enjoy too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted August 13, 2015 Share Posted August 13, 2015 They're less awesome if you see them up close Yes I thought the wonky eye made my panda a bit special Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 19, 2015 Author Share Posted August 19, 2015 Laura, great review of A Darker Shade of Magic, I own The Archived by the same author (V. E. Schwab and Victoria Schwab are the same person), but I haven't read it yet on account of it being book 1 in a series (which I didn't know when I bought it). I'm glad you enjoyed A Darker Shade of Magic, it sounds like a book I might enjoy too. Thanks Gaia, I definitely think you'd enjoy it. I quite like the sounds of the Archived series - I look forward to hearing what you think of it when you do eventually read it. (Once again you can be my guinea pig ) They're less awesome if you see them up close Yes I thought the wonky eye made my panda a bit special Special, yes, that's the word. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 19, 2015 Author Share Posted August 19, 2015 Review: 'Ancillary Justice' by Ann Leckie On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest.Once, she was the Justice of Toren - a colossal starship with an artificial intelligence linking thousands of soldiers in the service of the Radch, the empire that conquered the galaxy.Now, an act of treachery has ripped it all away, leaving her with one fragile human body, unanswered questions, and a burning desire for vengeance. Ancillary Justice won about a million SFF awards last year; and while I haven’t read enough of the other contenders’ work to judge whether this one truly deserved all the top spots, I can say that it had me rooting for the unlikely protagonist throughout, and left me wanting more. Ancillary Justice plays with futuristic possibilities of science and technology, and subverts the way we think about concepts such as humanity, social inequality and gender. In Leckie’s future, ancillaries are a common feature on many ships. Created by fusing the AI of a spaceship with the body of a brain-dead human being, ancillaries are intelligent yet inhuman extensions of a ship’s consciousness. But although they are looked down upon by society and treated merely as pieces of equipment by those they serve, there is much more to some ancillaries than their creators could have anticipated: the protagonist of Ancillary Justice is (as the title suggests) an ancillary who is on a personal mission to exact revenge on the individual who betrayed her captain and destroyed her ship. Breq proves to be far more than simply a slave of the Radch, and is moulded yet not defined by her complicated interactions with those around her. As a protagonist she is unusual, intriguing and more than a little likeable. I initially found the plot of Ancillary Justice to be slightly confusing, although this probably says more about my own lack of familiarity with the genre and its tropes than it does about the novel itself. However, I would have been prepared to endure even more confusion if it meant avoiding the infrequent yet unwarranted infodumps scattered throughout the beginning of the book. This doesn’t happen often enough to really detract from the story, but it has to be said that there are one or two awkward instances of the old ‘let’s have a detailed conversation about lots of things we as characters clearly already know about,’ where I would have preferred a gradual drip-feed of information instead. My usual diet of traditional fantasy doesn’t generally stretch my brain in these sorts of directions, and I find figuring things out for myself to be fun rather than frustrating. The main thing I struggled to get my head around was the concept of the novel’s antagonist, largely due to the somewhat bewildering use of pronouns used by characters with multiple embodiments. Thankfully things became much clearer as the novel progressed, as did the subtle differences between the three different incarnations of the protagonist herself: I came to really appreciate the divergences in her behaviour between the past and the present. In fact, I would love to read Ancillary Justice again in the future having finally got my head around the way things work in the Radch. A point of interest within Ancillary Justice is the lack of gender in the imperial language of the Radch. As a result the first person narrator Breq refers to everyone as ‘she’, regardless of their actual gender. While this does lead to some confusion – namely in the instances where Breq is speaking in another language and is forced to try and pinpoint others’ gender in order to correctly address them – but eventually it becomes such a natural part of the narrative that you stop even trying to figure out whether a character is a man or a woman because, in Leckie’s world, it simply doesn’t matter. I would probably never have bought this novel if not for a bored evening spent searching for potential new reads using Amazon’s ‘Look Inside’ feature. The beginning of Ancillary Justice – a chance meeting in suspicious circumstances with someone the protagonist has not seen in a thousand years – was sufficiently intriguing to hook me into buying, as was the clearly unconventional nature of the protagonist herself. The rest of the story is engaging and continues in a way that keeps the reader intrigued: it’s well-paced and nicely structured, with chapters that alternate between past and present to gradually reveal more and more about events leading up to the main plot. Furthermore the reader is made to care about secondary characters, including those not central to the main plot, despite the fact that we’re encountering them through the impassive filter of an ‘inhuman’ AI. And of course there’s the AI herself: she’s the main focus of the novel and I really came to care about her story, enough that I want to immediately grab the next book in the series to see what’s next for Breq. Bring on Ancillary Sword! 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 (edited) A point of interest within Ancillary Justice is the lack of gender in the imperial language of the Radch. As a result the first person narrator Breq refers to everyone as ‘she’, regardless of their actual gender. I think this is the most frequent complaint I've heard about it. It seems similar to me to the complaints of people who didn't get along with Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall where she uses 'he' for every male character, including Cromwell. The latter complaint completely bemuses me because I found WH a wonderful, flowing read, so I'm thinking/hoping I'll get on with Leckie - once I get round to it Have you bought the sequel already? But it's not fantasy! It's the end of the world as we know it! Edited August 19, 2015 by Karsa Orlong Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 19, 2015 Author Share Posted August 19, 2015 I think this is the most frequent complaint I've heard about it. It seems similar to me to the complaints of people who didn't get along with Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall where she uses 'he' for every male character, including Cromwell. The latter complaint completely bemuses me because I found WH a wonderful, flowing read, so I'm thinking/hoping I'll get on with Leckie - once I get round to it Yeah, I'd heard about it from others' reviews so I guess I was prepared for it, but even if I hadn't I don't think it would have bothered me very much. I hope you get along with Leckie too - it's about time we had something in common again. I bought Wolf Hall myself a few weeks ago (it was 35p in a charity shop!) and will undoubtedly give it a go eventually as I've heard you rave on about it and its sequel. Have you bought the sequel already? But it's not fantasy! It's the end of the world as we know it! I haven't actually bought it yet, but it's gone on the ever-expanding birthday list. I know, I'm becoming so broad-minded! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karsa Orlong Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Yeah, I'd heard about it from others' reviews so I guess I was prepared for it, but even if I hadn't I don't think it would have bothered me very much. I hope you get along with Leckie too - it's about time we had something in common again. I bought Wolf Hall myself a few weeks ago (it was 35p in a charity shop!) and will undoubtedly give it a go eventually as I've heard you rave on about it and its sequel. By the sounds of it you'll be fine with Wolf Hall. I didn't notice the issue some weak-minded fools people were complaining about when I read it, only heard about it afterwards I haven't actually bought it yet, but it's gone on the ever-expanding birthday list. I know, I'm becoming so broad-minded! Yeah, steady - soon you'll be as broad-minded as I am Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nollaig Posted August 19, 2015 Share Posted August 19, 2015 Ancillaries are an awesome concept! They almost make me want to read the book. ...Almost Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timstar Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 I started that last year but abandoned it about 3/4 in. I can't really remember why, but it wasn't due to the 'she' thing, that was probably the most interesting aspect. I think the story just didn't grab me at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 25, 2015 Share Posted August 25, 2015 Thanks Gaia, I definitely think you'd enjoy it. I quite like the sounds of the Archived series - I look forward to hearing what you think of it when you do eventually read it. (Once again you can be my guinea pig ) Thanks ! Great review of Ancillary Justice . I'm glad you enjoyed an SF read ! It sounds like an interesting book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 25, 2015 Author Share Posted August 25, 2015 Great review of Ancillary Justice . I'm glad you enjoyed an SF read ! It sounds like an interesting book. Thank you! Yes, I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next one. I'm doing really well with SF at the moment - I've just finished book 3 of The Expanse and enjoyed that too! If you have any other 'gentle' SF recommendations you think I might enjoy then I'm all ears. The guy in Waterstones today recommended Seveneves by Neal Stephenson, which looks really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athena Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Thank you! Yes, I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next one. I'm doing really well with SF at the moment - I've just finished book 3 of The Expanse and enjoyed that too! If you have any other 'gentle' SF recommendations you think I might enjoy then I'm all ears. I shall give it some thought ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 I shall give it some thought ! Thanks! Suggestions from other are welcome too. The guy in Waterstones recommended Douglas Adams, William Gibson and Neal Stephenson. For myself I've been looking into John Scalzi, Chris Beckett and Robert Jackson Bennett. I also really like the sound of Peter Clines' latest, The Fold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Signor Finzione Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 Been out and about quite a lot this week. Met up with a friend on Tuesday: we decided to start the world's smallest book club, and treated ourselves to a copy each of Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen (on BOGOF in Waterstones). Then today I met some relatives in Bury and trawled the charity shops, ending up with these little beauties for a grand total of £3: When I popped in The Works to visit my former manager she mentioned they were looking for Christmas temps; I told her I could use some extra cash, and she basically offered me a job on the spot. So, it's been a good week all in all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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