What fantasy/science fiction book are you reading RIGHT NOW?

[Ainulindale]

All I know is that Entertainment Weekly gave it an A, my local newspaper (the Kansas City Star) gave it a top-notch review, I believe Publishers Weekly and Kirkus did likewise, and there are nothing but 5-stars from the amazon folks. That was enough to make me think it was something out of the ordinary, particularly when it's being promoted with monthly installments and beautiful matching covers.

Well, entertainament weekly is blah IMHO, and Amazon 5 stars are pretty pointless (we can go through the worst authors on earth and see an average of 4-5 start - ie Brooks) and if anything would back-up the popular appeal most people forecast. I read the publisher weekly blurb (can't tell if it was a starred review or not) and it's positive but not lavish. Kirkus would be interesting to see, as depending on who gives the Kirkus review I find them to be pretty honest.

I guess critically lauded is a bit about perception - generally when I ponder reliable/noteworthy critics I think of a small group of people that include John Clute, Gary K. Wolfe, Gabe Chouinard, Paul di Fillipo, Niall Harrison, Matthew Cheney, Paul Witcover, Nick Gevers among a few others, however certainly who each of us deems reputable sources is certainly subjective.

[Roland of Gilead]

Yes, the choice of reliable critics a reader can trust is certainly subjective. I admitted the phrase "critically acclaimed" was misleading on my part.

Still, I've yet to see a single negative statement made with regard to this book, and the amazon reviews were 5-stars across the board, not even a single 4-star.

So my expectations were high and they weren't met.

[Loredoctor]

Plan to read Mission of Gravity, soon.

[CovenantJr]

Fall of Hyperion. Also reading bits of Titus Alone, depending on my mood.

[I'm Murrin]

I've finished reading Moorcock's Von Bek, and will be starting VanderMeer's Shriek: An Afterword tomorrow.

[Loredoctor]

Fall of Hyperion.

Opinion?

[Avatar]

Thieves World, the first of the collection of Sanctuary short stories.

--A

[CovenantJr]

Fall of Hyperion.

Opinion?

Impressive so far. It seems much more cohesive than the first book, and there's more or less an explanation for the Shrike, which I didn't expect.

[pat5150]

Hi guys!

Well, it's finally done. After toiling through three volumes of dubious quality, I have now read the Conclave of Shadows series. I found the first two volumes to be of mediocre quality. Thankfully, Exile's Return is a little better. But not much.

In the end, what it comes down to is that Raymond E. Feist never had enough material to write a trilogy. All those storylines should have comprised a single volume acting as a prequel to Flight of the Nighthawks. As a series, however, it ranks as one of the worst written by a "big name" author that I've read in quite some time. As such -- a veritable milking of the author's popularity -- I feel that Feist is no better than Terry Goodkind for taking advantage of his fans in such a manner. My only consolation is that Flight of the Nighthawks is considered a very good yarn, proof that Feist can still spin a good tale.

The ending of Exile's Return let us catch a glimpse of events to come. It also marks the return of old favorite characters such as Pug, Tomas, Nakor and a few others. But it's too little too late. The damage has been done -- irrevocably so.

For the full review, you can always check the blog. . .

Patrick
www.fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com

[I'm Murrin]

I'm only two chapters into Shriek, and I just want to say how good this is so far. The characterisation of Janice Shriek, carried through the narration, is brilliant even this early in - the writing grandiose and melodramatic, and wonderfully offset by Duncan's interjections. The sense that she writes this more for herself and Duncan - and, to a lesser extent, Mary - is showing already. VanderMeer continues to show that he's a writer worth paying attention to. I'm sure I'm going to love this book.

[Ainulindale]

'

m only two chapters into Shriek, and I just want to say how good this is so far. The characterization of Janice Shriek, carried through the narration, is brilliant even this early in - the writing grandiose and melodramatic, and wonderfully offset by Duncan's interjections. The sense that she writes this more for herself and Duncan - and, to a lesser extent, Mary - is showing already. VanderMeer continues to show that he's a writer worth paying attention to. I'm sure I'm going to love this book.

Loved Shriek! As the novel progresses, the real scope of Vandermeer's narrative comes into play, the delicate instances where he llustrates Janice is not the writer Duncan is, and the differences in his interjections and notes compared to her writing is marvelous.

Some experience a lull, but I just marvelled at how much Vandermeer has improved, starting from a point where he was already one of my favorite authors today already. There are also sume incredible revelations about Vandermeer's iconic setting of Ambergris that has me salivating for Vermillion Files

It's the best book of 2006 thus far - it's the first step of going from great to a budding master of fantastic fiction form.

[CovenantJr]

I've just finished The Fall of Hyperion, so now I'm faced with several options:

1) Revisit (and, this time, finish) Viriconium

2) Read Claw of the Conciliator, following on from the near-forgotten headache that was Shadow of the Torturer

3) Read Danlo's favourite, the long-awaited Neverness

Hmmmm........

[whitetrash]

Im reading the binding stone

[duke]

Covenant Jr, go with Neverness. I dont normally read sci-fi, but Neverness has me hooked. The story (so far, I'm half way through) meets my criteria for bothering to read sci-fi - it focuses more on the *people* in the story and what happens to them than the sci-fi itself. Think "epic Ray Bradbury" - thats what Zindell is to me so far.

[Loredoctor]

If one can find Neverness - it's still unavailable.

[CovenantJr]

If one can find Neverness - it's still unavailable.

I stumbled across it ages ago in a second hand book shop near Hannah's uni house. I'd offer to grab a copy if I see one, but I know you don't like used books.

[Loredoctor]

I can wait until the reprint, as I have plenty of books to read.

[Roland of Gilead]

I've finally begun Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon. I think I'll end up preferring the Shaftoe tale over the Waterhouse tale, which was how I felt about The Baroque Cycle, too.

I probably should have read Crypto first, but what's done is done - it should prove interesting reading them backwards like this.

[I'm Murrin]

I have just finished reading VanderMeer's (wonderful! Brilliant!) Shriek: An Afterword. Ranging from humourous (the section around the opera I found most amusing) to horrific, beautiful to tragic (often within only a few pages), it's an account of two people's (and to some extent, a third's) lives that you want to believe, and yet the doubt is always there, the sense of it being a story of half-truths and melodrama (and Janice does have a tendency towards these things, apparent from the start). The "afterword" to this afterword only makes it more difficult to accept the story as presented.

In the end, though, it is an engaging, entertaining, thought-provoking story that takes you deeper into the mysteries of Ambergris than ever before. I am now eagerly awaiting The Zamilon File (though in the meantime, I'm happy enough eagerly awaiting Secret Lives, Jeff's collection due out this year).

[Ainulindale]

In the Eye of Heaven by David Keck, then The Tourmaline by Paul Park.