| 5 FEB 2010 at 9:29am |
stophroCommander
Posts : 2171
Joined: 3 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | @Far Away Sooner: It was my life long dream to see LOTR on the big screen. I will agree that I enjoyed PJ's effort, but I was FUMING (as in smoke rolling out of my ears, fire breathing out of my...mouth, etc.) when I saw the liberties taken with my beloved story. I could go on ad infinitum about how pissed I was and point out every niggling detail of what was wrong, but I have come to terms with it (mostly). What upset me the most was that EVERY change he made was unneccessary. Tolkien's story as it stands is dramatic enough and well put together enough that you don't have to invent anything. I can feel my blood boiling, so I am going to stop, but I do watch the movies again from time to time because they are well done and nothing else will come close in my lifetime.
And Schlomo wouldn't give a rat's ass about whether it was platemail or email.-LB about Gus
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| 5 FEB 2010 at 10:28am |
LongBladeGeneral
Posts : 20586
Joined: 2 MAY 2003
Status : Offline | Most of my fantasy reading has been in the Forgotten Realms of D& fame. For a while R.A. Salvatore was hot, but some of his later stuff just didn't do anything for me. Ed Greenwood, especially some of his Elminster series, is quite good.
Another author that I enjoy is John Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice. It's set in a non-magical world that is semi-historical, which makes it a bit of a non-fantasy fantasy book. Still good.
Richard Lee Byers' Year of Rogue Dragons is also Forgotten Realms/D& but quite enjoyable.
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| 5 FEB 2010 at 1:07pm |
ghostryderColonel
Posts : 6937
Joined: 4 MAY 2004
Location: US, Texas
Status : Offline | PG certainly failed on the 300 archers of helm's deep- that stood out like a sore thumb. Probably the most botched book in my view is Stephen King's "The Stand". Randall Flagg, The dark one wasn't some morphing red skinned demon with horns with bad TV actors stumbling over each other in the quest to challege him.
The dark one, as any self respecting SK fan knows is a recurring progtologist that appears repeatedly in SK's works-- From "IT" (another mangled movie) to "Needful Things," Casting Jack Nicholson in, "The Shining" dueling with the awful acting of Shelly Devuall was a close second. That's an intricate story of slipping into madness- I like Nicholson but he's already there in the opening scene.
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| 8 FEB 2010 at 6:48pm |
Baltic TraderCenturion
Posts : 25
Joined: 29 MAY 2009
Status : Online | The Old: Jack Vance, with the Lyonesse trilogy especially, Araminta Station, and the Demon Princes series. Roger Zelazny, with Amber of course, but also Doorways in the Sand and The Changeling.
The Not So Old: Lois McMaster Bujold, with the Curse of Challion. If we include SciFi, Charles Sheffield with Dark as Day. Vernor Vinge with A Deepness in the Sky. George Alec Effinger, with When Gravity Fails, and the sequels with Marid Audran in A Fire in the Sun, and The Exile Kiss.
The New: Mark L. Van Name, with the Jon and Lobo series. John Varley, Red Thunder series.
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| 7 MAR 2010 at 8:54am |
JP FalconCenturion
Posts : 802
Joined: 29 MAY 2005
Status : Online | Reviving a dormant thread with a review.
I recently finished reading Turtledove's "Hitler's War" and thought it was a decent read but nothing to get all excited about. The basic premise is that the war begins in '38 over Czechoslovakia which results in a few "alternate historical" events such as Poland allied with Germany in their fight with Russia. The Spanish Civil War is also played out differently as the Axis and Allies withdrew their support sooner. The book does not cover the war on a grand scale, with the exception of the first chapter, but from the viewpoint of over 10 main characters who receive a few pages of story before jumping to the next character, and then to the next, and basically back and forth from these indivdual points of view until the end. The characters represent a cross section of military and civilian, so you have viewpoints from:
- German tanker (PzKpfw II)
- German pilot ( JU-87)
- German Infantryman
- German U-Boat Captain
- Czech Infantryman
- French Infantryman
- Russian Bomber Pilot (SB-2)
- Russian Infantryman in Manchuria
- American Marine in Peking
- German-Jewish Citizen
- American Citizen stuck in Berlin
- Japanese Infantryman in Manchuria
- Nationalist Soldier in Spain
- Republican Soldier in Spain
I may have missed a couple, but you get the point. It took me about 1/2 the book to finally get into all of these characters but once I did, the read was much better.
Overall I give this book a 6 out of 10 as it is a good paperback or e-book read, but I would not pay full cost for the hardcover. Needless to say that there will be more volumes appearing as this book covered up to the Spring of '39, although with Turtledove, you never know in what year he'll decide to end this alternate version of WWII.
And so far, there are no invasions from alien lizards!
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| 7 MAR 2010 at 9:31am |
WertheimerCenturion
Posts : 117
Joined: 7 MAR 2009
Status : Offline | Zelazny will always be the king of my fantasy world. I have re-read the Amber Chronicles ten or more times and always find something new that I overlooked before.
I have become quite enamored with Jim Butcher's Dresden books. I cannot seem to read enough of these books.
Pat W
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| 15 APR 2010 at 5:09pm |
JP FalconCenturion
Posts : 802
Joined: 29 MAY 2005
Status : Online | I have never read a George Martin book, but my B&N Nook had an offer for his first volume of his A Song of Ice and Fire Series "The Game of Thrones", for $4.50 so I downloaded it...according to the blurb, HBO has picked up this book for a series to be aired in the Spring of 2011. I will not be reading this book for a while yet, but I thought the HBO news might interest anyone who has been reading this series....
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| 15 APR 2010 at 5:48pm |
ShelldrakeCommander
Posts : 2742
Joined: 1 NOV 2006
Location: CA, Nova Scotia
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By JP Falcon
I have never read a George Martin book, but my B&N Nook had an offer for his first volume of his A Song of Ice and Fire Series "The Game of Thrones", for $4.50 so I downloaded it...according to the blurb, HBO has picked up this book for a series to be aired in the Spring of 2011. I will not be reading this book for a while yet, but I thought the HBO news might interest anyone who has been reading this series....
A Game of Thrones is a great book and the series showed a lot of potential but George R.R. Martin seems to have lost interest in the series. Originally intended as a trilogy the series has ballooned to 7 volumes with the most recent book in the series (volume 4) being published almost 5 years ago with nothing since. Volume 5 was supposed to by fall 2008 but nada and Martin has stopped publishing updates on his website.
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| 15 APR 2010 at 6:44pm |
OJsDadCommander
Posts : 1440
Joined: 5 AUG 2004
Location: US, Ohio
Status : Offline | JP, I quit reading Turtldove awhile a go. Homeward Bound is what did me in. In every series that I read of his, there was way to much repetition. A nine book series could be condensed into about 2 books with all of the repetition, pointless characters and pointless storylines.
Matthew 25:14-30. Jesus tells that it is not sufficient merely to maintain things as they are. Those who await should make good use of the gifts that God has provided them.
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| 15 APR 2010 at 7:07pm |
SteelgraveColonel
Posts : 3319
Joined: 1 DEC 2006
Location: US
Status : Offline | George R.R. Martin has been very involved in the HBO series, even writing some of the episodes. I hope fervently that once the show is launched that he returns to finish the novels. For my tastes, A Game of Thrones is my favorite fantasy series, hands-down. The characters are real, they have depth, and the author has no sacred cows....everyone in the series is mortal and the era is unforgiving. You may find yourself developing sympathy for characters who have done terrible things, because these characters aren't black and white, not all good or all bad. There were at least two major scenes in the books that I read, then had to re-read because I couldn't believe what had just happened.
Yeah...I'm a fan.
"When in danger, or in doubt.....run in circles, scream and shout!!!", author Herman Wouk.
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| 15 APR 2010 at 7:13pm |
JP FalconCenturion
Posts : 802
Joined: 29 MAY 2005
Status : Online | Originally Posted By OJsDad
JP, I quit reading Turtldove awhile a go. Homeward Bound is what did me in. In every series that I read of his, there was way to much repetition. A nine book series could be condensed into about 2 books with all of the repetition, pointless characters and pointless storylines.
Unfortunately, I believe that you can say that about many fantasy authors.....
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| 15 APR 2010 at 7:16pm |
airboy45Centurion
Posts : 780
Joined: 12 NOV 2009
Location: 0
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Wertheimer
Zelazny will always be the king of my fantasy world. I have re-read the Amber Chronicles ten or more times and always find something new that I overlooked before.
I have become quite enamored with Jim Butcher's Dresden books. I cannot seem to read enough of these books.
Pat W
I agree.
Zelazny did the Chronicles of Amber on audio tape. He read them. They are excellent.
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| 3 JUL 2010 at 6:15pm |
destraexGlobal Moderator
Posts : 6193
Joined: 8 MAY 2001
Location: AT, 3D
Status : Offline | anybody read markus heitz? I just started the dwarves on a recommendation.
Other than that I like tolkien, as a kid margaret wies and tracy hickman.
Medieval Real Time, Mount and Blade style Historical Combat.
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| 3 JUL 2010 at 9:30pm |
stophroCommander
Posts : 2171
Joined: 3 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | ^Never heard of Heitz? New and I missed it? Or old and I missed it? And I dug Dragonlance as a kid, too.
And Schlomo wouldn't give a rat's ass about whether it was platemail or email.-LB about Gus
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| 4 JUL 2010 at 2:57am |
destraexGlobal Moderator
Posts : 6193
Joined: 8 MAY 2001
Location: AT, 3D
Status : Offline | Relatively new for me at least. He is a german author. Everything is translated. So far its very good.
Legend of huma was my favorite as a kid. I love armies of dragon riders as an arm of the traditional knights force on the ground.
[image]http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/_images/ISBNCovers/Covers_Enlarged/9780316049443_388X586.jpg[/image]
Medieval Real Time, Mount and Blade style Historical Combat.
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| 4 JUL 2010 at 7:04am |
hrothgarCenturion
Posts : 183
Joined: 24 FEB 2010
Location: 0
Status : Offline | I've got to place Tolkien at the top. Middle Earth is wonderfully conceived and brilliantly executed. And, as much as I love The Lord of the Rings, it's The Silmarillion that is his crowning achievement.
I agree with those who love Zelazny's Amber series--a very creative melding of Renaissance dynastic squabbles, alternate worlds, and Platonic realism.
I also must mention Fletcher Pratt. Pratt was an authority in military history and wrote a number of enjoyable fantasies with L. Sprague DeCamp [who, along with Lin Carter, was responsible for the revival of interest in Howard's Conan--overseeing Lancer's paperback publication of the complete collection of Conan stories, along with pastiches from DeCamp and Carter to fill in blanks in Conan's career.]
However, Pratt's solo effort, The Well of the Unicorn, is his best work. Set in a world reminiscent of seventeenth-century Europe, dominated by the pike-and-musket formations of the Vulkings just as the Spanish tercios held supremacy in their day, the book's military and political focuses distinguish it from the bulk of the fantasy of its day. My second favorite fantasy work, after Tolkien.
As for worst, obviously some here disagree [that's what makes the world go 'round], but I was appalled by Terry Brook's Tolkien rip-off, The Sword of Shannara. I felt it was the most derivative, poorly written, piece of trash I'd ever read. I never read another book by Brooks.
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| 4 JUL 2010 at 8:58am |
stophroCommander
Posts : 2171
Joined: 3 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | The Silmarillion, for me, was like the icing on the cake. I was always enthralled by LOTR, but the Appendices in The Return Of the King were like tantalizing glimpses of the rest of the story. Then I found The Silmarillion and all my dreams came true. I finally knew the whole story. (As an aside, I just got done reading a Michael Moorcock book and went to his Wiki to see if there were other books in the series. I found a link to something he had written forty years ago about how he did not like Tolkien and similar writers. The title of the article is "Epic Pooh" and the link is http://www.revolutionsf.com/article.php?id=953
Zelazny wrote in a different style than what I was used to, but once I got into it, I was hooked. I LOVED the first five Amber books. The second five...not so much. I have all ten in a trade paperback I got from BAM.
And don't get me started on Brooks and his ilk. I, too, had already read Tolkien and was thoroughly disgusted with Sword of Shannara. Complete and total rip off, not mimicry being a sincere form of flattery, just out and out plagiarism (my opinion). However, I was young enough (and had little experience with the form) that I wanted to see how the series ended. The second book, Elfstones Of Shannara, wasn't half bad. The last book, Wishsong of Shannara, was almost as bad as the first. The only other thing I read by him was Magic Kingdom For Sale: Sold. I liked that. Then again, I was twelve and have not picked it up again since. I expect it would not survive my adult scrutiny.
@destraex: Next time I am out book shopping, I'll look into that. I am always looking for something new and good to read.
And Schlomo wouldn't give a rat's ass about whether it was platemail or email.-LB about Gus
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| 4 JUL 2010 at 9:05am |
CltcDrgnCenturion
Posts : 124
Joined: 28 AUG 2006
Location: US
Status : Offline | I guess I will weigh in here with my 2 cents worth. My rankings of favorite fantasy authors goes as follows:
Tolkien
Jordan
JV Jones
Jennifer Roberson
Sanderson
and I can't remember the authors name, but the series about the Cheysuli is really good as well.
Celtic Dragon Guardian of the Ancient Blood
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| 12 DEC 2010 at 12:10am |
FarAway SoonerCommander
Posts : 1008
Joined: 23 OCT 2005
Status : Offline | I'm not sure if it's Fantasy or Science Fiction, but I'm really enjoying E.E. Knight's Vampire Earth series.
The notion of a semi-feudal post-apocalyptic Earth that's been invaded and is now being run by alien vampires is intriguing, and he does a good job of creating a believable and gritty setting. All he's really missing is having more of the good guys take on the role of suicide bombers.
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| 12 DEC 2010 at 12:59pm |
MartokColonel
Posts : 4019
Joined: 4 JUN 2005
Location: US, Minnesota
Status : Offline | After years of inexplicably not having done so yet, I've finally gotten around to reading Frank Herbert's Dune.
I'm enjoying the book so far (I'm about two-thirds of the way through), but I've yet to figure out why it seems to be considered a benchmark/cornerstone of science fiction. It's good, yes, but I don't know if it's that good.
"I happen to believe that both parties deserve a good scouring with a metal brush and sent to their room without reelection" - Steelgrave
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| 12 DEC 2010 at 5:53pm |
stophroCommander
Posts : 2171
Joined: 3 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | FarAway Sooner, that sounds like a good read. Once you are done with the series, come back and let us know what you think.
Martok, I've read Dune twice and both times come away wondering the same thing as you.
And Schlomo wouldn't give a rat's ass about whether it was platemail or email.-LB about Gus
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| 12 DEC 2010 at 6:06pm |
bboyer66Colonel
Posts : 4709
Joined: 17 APR 2006
Location: US, Pittsburgh PA
Status : Offline | I love Dune. Everything is so vivid. The Machiavellian story line. To me it is the perfect Sci-Fi novel. The sequals on the other hand I found very slow moving and boring.
Anyways my list in order would be
1. Tolkien (Lord of the Rings)
2. Jordan (Wheel Of Time)
3. Salvatore (Dark Elf Trilogy)
4 Martin (Song of Ice and Fire)
5. Rothfuss (Kingkiller Chronicles, great debut)
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| 12 DEC 2010 at 6:20pm |
GusingtonGeneral
Posts : 18089
Joined: 16 AUG 2004
Location: US, USMA
Status : Offline | The notion of a semi-feudal post-apocalyptic Earth that's been invaded and is now being run by alien vampires is intriguing.
You can say that again. Never heard of that series before. I also haven't read any Dune.
I'm glad my character uses a shield because I may be taking a bashing here soon.
- Rayfer
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| 12 DEC 2010 at 7:34pm |
SteelgraveColonel
Posts : 3319
Joined: 1 DEC 2006
Location: US
Status : Offline | George R.R. Martin, hands down. And the prequels for his HBO "A Game of Thrones" redefines freakin' awesome.
Gus, do yourself a favor....read "Dune". The rest of the series, read or not, but Dune is timeless. I reread it every few years and have since High School. It has my vote for being the single best sci-fi novel ever.
"When in danger, or in doubt.....run in circles, scream and shout!!!", author Herman Wouk.
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