Kevin's Watch

Horrim Carabal wrote:I will brook no criticism of Weis & Hickman Dragonlance books! They were my gateway drug.

Yeah, mine too. Although I'd already read The Hobbit and LOTR young, that was really my intro to mainstream fantasy. (I know LOTR etc is mainstream today, but it wasn't back then... )

Skyweir wrote:Dragonlance sounds intriguing .. will look out for these
Cheers

Uh...what? Never read? Madness. (Check out The Rose Of The Prophet series by the same authors...my favourites actually.)

--A

Avatar wrote:
Uh...what? Never read? Madness. (Check out The Rose Of The Prophet series by the same authors...my favourites actually.)

Never read those. I'm in the mood for something new to read. Finished The Stone Sky. It was good. I will probably enjoy it more the second time, since it included a lot of backstory/history that got off to a bit of a slow start - though it was really good once it got going and will probably be more enjoyable the second time around.

On the subject of D&D and whatnot, I think I will probably go back and reread Paul Kidd's Greyhawk trilogy. (White Plume Mountain, Descent into the Depths of the Earth, Queen of the Demonweb Pits)

Sorus wrote: Never read those. I'm in the mood for something new to read.

Do self a favour. Sorta a Pantheon-like thing.

--A

Sorus wrote:I'm in the mood for something new to read.

My absolute favorite Dragonlance novel is this one:



....but you should probably start with this one:

I really liked the first trilogy and Time/Test of the Twins (which inspired one of my favorite fantasy metal songs). It was around Dragons of Summer Flame and The Second Generation that I started losing interest, because it felt like they were trying to do the same thing over again, only with less-interesting characters. But it's probably been about 20 years since I last read those, so my opinion could change.

Sorus wrote:I really liked the first trilogy and Time/Test of the Twins (which inspired one of my favorite fantasy metal songs). It was around Dragons of Summer Flame and The Second Generation that I started losing interest, because it felt like they were trying to do the same thing over again, only with less-interesting characters. But it's probably been about 20 years since I last read those, so my opinion could change.

Dragons of Summer Flame was good....but it was the beginning of the end. You are right.

Of the DL books, the Twins ones were my favourite.

--A

Avatar wrote:Of the DL books, the Twins ones were my favourite.

--A

We seem to agree on several things!

You clearly have excellent taste.

--A

Sorus wrote:Finished The Stone Sky

I'm just about to start it Picked up a copy today - I'm looking forward to it as I really enjoyed the other two.

Just got out a collection of short stories by Atwood the other day:
'"The Stone Mattress" and other stories.'
preliminary verdict is I think it kind of floats my boat.

Been awhile since I read that collection, but I recently went through a fairly comprehensive Atwood reread - some of my favorites; The Handmaid's Tale, The Blind Assassin, Cat's Eye - plus The Robber Bride, even though that one was never one of my favorites, and Surfacing, which I'd only read once before. I think I mentioned Surfacing on another thread, though perhaps not by name. It can be difficult to get into - difficult to connect with, because the protagonist is so disconnected that it's hard to empathize with her. But maybe I was in the right mood - or more prepared for it this time around, because the narrative seemed to flow. I have to wonder if the flow came naturally to her, or if it was difficult to write. Alias Grace was like that in some ways, but I don't remember the style being quite as extreme. There's no way I could write an entire novel in such a foreign style, and I respect the ability.

The GF is planning to pick up a few of those soon. I've read a couple, but don't own them.

--A

I think I'll take a Bakker Break and read The Nine by a so-called Tracey Townshend

How can you break from Bakker?

--A

Bit of a loose end, book wise. So reading Gemmel's Quest For Lost Heroes until I decide what I feel like reading.

--A

Avatar wrote:How can you break from Bakker?

--A

Just like I said! It's either that or end up reading 20 books and finishing none of them!

Just finish them. And there's not 20, it's only like 7.

--A

At a bit of a loose end book-wise, so I'm reading Robert Adams' Horseclan books. Some good old fashioned escapist post-apocalyptic sword and sorcery.

Book 1, The Coming Of The Horseclans.

--A

Now on book 8, Death of a Legend. Take all the intervening books as given, except book 5, which I don't have. (I also don't have book 10.)

--A