Kevin's Watch

Wayfriend wrote:I savor anticipation. I'm not gonna wilt if I don't read FR on the first day it's out. Heck, I held onto Runes for two weeks before I read it, as I wanted to finish what I was currently reading. And then I read it nice and slow, a little bit each day, so that I could have plenty of time to ponder what I was reading.

Savor the savory savoriness of life, everyone!

You got it man! That's how I'm doing it.

Relayer wrote:

Lord Foul wrote:Hopefully Revenant will up the ante and rectify the flaws I saw in Runes.

Well, this comes from a slightly biased source:

In the GI, Lord SRD hath wrote:On the other hand, I'm gratified that you enjoyed the GAP books. Taken as a whole, I still consider them my best work so far--although I believe that "Fatal Revenant" has raised the bar.

Yeah, I heard that FR is damn promising. It might end up beating Illearth Wars, my favorite Covenant book. But then again, I better just come in there with no expectations and make that judgment after the reading (or re-reading, heh).

I got a feeling that, no matter what, FR is going to be a return to form.

Lord Foul wrote:

Relayer wrote:

Lord Foul wrote:Hopefully Revenant will up the ante and rectify the flaws I saw in Runes.

Well, this comes from a slightly biased source:

In the GI, Lord SRD hath wrote:On the other hand, I'm gratified that you enjoyed the GAP books. Taken as a whole, I still consider them my best work so far--although I believe that "Fatal Revenant" has raised the bar.

Yeah, I heard that FR is damn promising. It might end up beating Illearth Wars, my favorite Covenant book. But then again, I better just come in there with no expectations and make that judgment after the reading (or re-reading, heh).

I got a feeling that, no matter what, FR is going to be a return to form.

I think it would have to be a lot to beat IEW -- but i have spoken with a few people who read it and say its amazing.... I am full of anticipation.

19 days!

dlbpharmd wrote:19 days!

Damn, now I'm starting to get excited. I know it's just a number, but we're in the teens, folks!

iQuestor wrote:

Lord Foul wrote:Yeah, I heard that FR is damn promising. It might end up beating Illearth Wars, my favorite Covenant book. But then again, I better just come in there with no expectations and make that judgment after the reading (or re-reading, heh).

I got a feeling that, no matter what, FR is going to be a return to form.

I think it would have to be a lot to beat IEW -- but i have spoken with a few people who read it and say its amazing.... I am full of anticipation.

For me, TIW probably can't be beaten until we see at least half of a book's worth of material from Covenant's POV again.

Niftium wrote:

iQuestor wrote:

Lord Foul wrote:Yeah, I heard that FR is damn promising. It might end up beating Illearth Wars, my favorite Covenant book. But then again, I better just come in there with no expectations and make that judgment after the reading (or re-reading, heh).

I got a feeling that, no matter what, FR is going to be a return to form.

I think it would have to be a lot to beat IEW -- but i have spoken with a few people who read it and say its amazing.... I am full of anticipation.

For me, TIW probably can't be beaten until we see at least half of a book's worth of material from Covenant's POV again.

heh, good point.

iQuestor wrote:

Lord Foul wrote:

Relayer wrote: Well, this comes from a slightly biased source:

Yeah, I heard that FR is damn promising. It might end up beating Illearth Wars, my favorite Covenant book. But then again, I better just come in there with no expectations and make that judgment after the reading (or re-reading, heh).

I got a feeling that, no matter what, FR is going to be a return to form.

I think it would have to be a lot to beat IEW -- but i have spoken with a few people who read it and say its amazing.... I am full of anticipation.

I hope we (including me) don't repeat the same mistake with FR as we did with Runes - raising our expectations to an absurdly unrealistic point. Good as SRD is, there was no way he or any writer could have matched the kind of hype and anticipation we fans all felt over Runes, even if he had written the Greatest Fantasy Novel Ever - because he had to compete with our romanticized memory of the Covenant books. Yes, it's an obvious thing to say - in hindsight. I'll be perfectly blunt: I don't give a damn that some early readers have said FR is amazing. I'll read it for what it is - the continuation of a story, and if it also happens to be good, that's a bonus.

Matrixman wrote:

iQuestor wrote:

Lord Foul wrote: Yeah, I heard that FR is damn promising. It might end up beating Illearth Wars, my favorite Covenant book. But then again, I better just come in there with no expectations and make that judgment after the reading (or re-reading, heh).

I got a feeling that, no matter what, FR is going to be a return to form.

I think it would have to be a lot to beat IEW -- but i have spoken with a few people who read it and say its amazing.... I am full of anticipation.

I hope we (including me) don't repeat the same mistake with FR as we did with Runes - raising our expectations to an absurdly unrealistic point. Good as SRD is, there was no way he or any writer could have matched the kind of hype and anticipation we fans all felt over Runes, even if he had written the Greatest Fantasy Novel Ever - because he had to compete with our romanticized memory of the Covenant books. Yes, it's an obvious thing to say - in hindsight. I'll be perfectly blunt: I don't give a damn that some early readers have said FR is amazing. I'll read it for what it is - the continuation of a story, and if it also happens to be good, that's a bonus.

It might be hype, but if Donaldson says it raises the bar, I tend to believe him. After all, I agree with him that the Gap series is his best work to date. He didn't say Runes, after all, even though I'm sure he'd love to sell a few more copies of that one. He seems to have an accurate assessment of his own writing skills.

<skipping massive requotes>
Not only do we have Donaldson's words. Consider, if you will, that if Runes was a let-down, FR has to start getting better. And since the let-down is already behind us, by comparison it will feel a lot better.

Also, FR won't be suffering from what Donaldson calls "a long windup". That's the biggest thing, I think.

Hey ... many of you have read the first two chapters. Without spoilers, can those yous give any opinion of FR's quality?

Wayfriend wrote:Hey ... many of you have read the first two chapters. Without spoilers, can those yous give any opinion of FR's quality?

Read it all ... Rune - 6 out of 10; Revenant 8 out of 10 - IMO

Ah, crap, even with all the deep cutting and editing I've done on my post to avoid spoilers, I worry about upsetting anyone (deleted it twice). So, suffice it to say, I wasn't impressed with the writing. The actual events were cool, but it felt forced to me. But I've only read the 1st two chapters.

WF said: Hey ...

many of you have read the first two chapters. Without spoilers, can those yous give any opinion of FR's quality?

I will tell you that when I read chapter two, i said Holy $h&t out loud about 10 times -- in a good way.

Wayfriend wrote:Hey ... many of you have read the first two chapters. Without spoilers, can those yous give any opinion of FR's quality?

Runes began with a lot more foreplay than FR has. A lot.

Edit: I no sooner posted this when I received a shipment confirmation from Amazon.co.uk. I made a very unmanly sound of joy before I noticed that it was indeed a mistake, but only in that they are shipping the book separately from another item I ordered, which is the item currently being shipped (they were supposed to ship together). Drat.

iQuestor wrote:WF said: Hey ...

many of you have read the first two chapters. Without spoilers, can those yous give any opinion of FR's quality?

I will tell you that when I read chapter two, i said Holy $h&t out loud about 10 times -- in a good way.

Ditto.

I was a bit aggressive in my last post cuz I was in a rush, and for that I apologize. Didn't mean to get on a soapbox there. I did not mean to disrespect those who were lucky enough (or desperate enough) to acquire early copies of FR. Of course they have a right to express how good/bad they think the book is. Me, I'm just going to wait and judge the book for myself.

I'm going to try to refrain from joining in any Last Chrons discussions here at KW til after I've read all the remaining books. I want to recapture the "innocence" of reading the Chrons, like it was back in '83 when it was just me and the books and no internet message boards.

Malik23 wrote:...suffice it to say, I wasn't impressed with the writing. The actual events were cool, but it felt forced to me. But I've only read the 1st two chapters.

Pretty much agree. Only read the first two chapters...feels like they should have been part of the end of Runes. But I have hopes...

--A

18 days!

Avatar wrote:Pretty much agree. Only read the first two chapters...feels like they should have been part of the end of Runes. But I have hopes...

I find it funny when people say that. I just don't get it. You need all that stuff (the first two chapters) and it couldn't go before the cliffhanger at the end of Runes, and if you slapped it onto the end of Runes you'd lose your cliffhanger. And, well.... <shrug> Besides... oh, never mind.

I don't like "scoring" books. I agree with the assessment that Runes was essentially setting the scene for the next three books. In my opinion, FR has "raised the bar".

Matrixman, you have a point: if people start upping their expectations they are, naturally, more likely to be disappointed. Until I read the last word on the last page of the last book I won't be able to judge how good The Last Chronicles is. That said, when I read Fatal Revenant I "tasted" it, and I every faith in SRD's ability to succeed in what he's trying to do.

And, oh MM: to "recapture the innocence". I hear you!

Seareach wrote:

Avatar wrote:Pretty much agree. Only read the first two chapters...feels like they should have been part of the end of Runes. But I have hopes...

I find it funny when people say that. I just don't get it. You need all that stuff (the first two chapters) and it couldn't go before the cliffhanger at the end of Runes, and if you slapped it onto the end of Runes you'd lose your cliffhanger. And, well.... <shrug> Besides... oh, never mind.

I don't like "scoring" books. I agree with the assessment that Runes was essentially setting the scene for the next three books. In my opinion, FR has "raised the bar".

Matrixman, you have a point: if people start upping their expectations they are, naturally, more likely to be disappointed. Until I read the last word on the last page of the last book I won't be able to judge how good The Last Chronicles is. That said, when I read Fatal Revenant I "tasted" it, and I every faith in SRD's ability to succeed in what he's trying to do.

And, oh MM: to "recapture the innocence". I hear you!

well said.