Sci-Fi/Fantasy Book Discussion/Appreciation Anyone..??

[Mimzy]

I'm surprised I haven't seen many ppl on here blabbing about the Twilight series considering that the movie comes out next week (in the U.S., anyway). Not that I'm a big fan. I was just pointing that out.

[Trek_Girl42]

I'm surprised I haven't seen many ppl on here blabbing about the Twilight series considering that the movie comes out next week (in the U.S., anyway). Not that I'm a big fan. I was just pointing that out.

No! Don't point it out or the Twilight-head people might start pouring out of the woodwork making this into the Edward fawning thread and then I'd have to dis-own this thread.....

Ahem, speaking of such literary masterpieces, has anyone read Paolini's latest offering? The library is sending it to me and I'm wondering how prepared I need to be for.....you tell me.

[warmbeachbrat]

Actually, Twilight has its own thread--so we're all congregating over there....

[Pandora's_Box]

I'm surprised I haven't seen many ppl on here blabbing about the Twilight series considering that the movie comes out next week (in the U.S., anyway). Not that I'm a big fan. I was just pointing that out.

Blegh. I couldn't stand Twilight myself. Nor the second one, the name of which escapes me at the moment.

If I had to read one more time about how beautiful Edward was, how handsome, how perfect, how white his teeth were, and how luscious his hair was, I think I would have killed someone.

Not to mention that Bella and her profound insecurities is simply not the sort of protagonist I enjoy reading about.

Ahem, speaking of such literary masterpieces, has anyone read Paolini's latest offering? The library is sending it to me and I'm wondering how prepared I need to be for.....you tell me.

The author of Eragon? Again, not one of my favourite novels. I simply don't think they're as amazing as they've been made out to be. He was, what, 18 when he wrote the first one? It shows.

[Trek_Girl42]

Blegh. I couldn't stand Twilight myself. Nor the second one, the name of which escapes me at the moment.

If I had to read one more time about how beautiful Edward was, how handsome, how perfect, how white his teeth were, and how luscious his hair was, I think I would have killed someone.

Not to mention that Bella and her profound insecurities is simply not the sort of protagonist I enjoy reading about.



The author of Eragon? Again, not one of my favourite novels. I simply don't think they're as amazing as they've been made out to be. He was, what, 18 when he wrote the first one? It shows.

They're horrendous.....and I'm reading them all. Just like Twilight. It keeps me informed when I whine about how such crappy writers make all the money.

Actually, what I recommend anyone who hasn't read them is reading the first Twilight book and then the last, skip the two middle ones. I wish I could get someone I know to do that. Preferably with cameras trained on them. It would be a great exercise in documenting WTF facial reactions.

And New Moon is the single worst book I have ever read. That tripe should never have been published. Buuuuut, if this is the way to make it as an author now, hey, give me a pen and I'll write your next craptastic tween wish fulfillment story and make a million bucks. I'll throw in lots of chisled chest muscle descriptions if that's what it takes.

Yes, as someone who puts in a lot of time and tries to work at writing well and will probably never see a living for it, I have every right to whine on behalf of aspiring authors everywhere.
/complaining

On the topic of quality kid/tween lit, has anyone read the final book in the Inkheart trilogy yet? I've got my copy but probably won't get to it until Christmas. I'm actually having trouble remembering what happened in the second one.....

Must still read the latest Artemis Fowl as well.

And I've got a huge stack of books from a used booksale, has anyone read A Song for Arbonne by Guy Gavriel Kay? Trying to decide whether to start that next.

[Pandora's_Box]

They're horrendous.....and I'm reading them all. Just like Twilight. It keeps me informed when I whine about how such crappy writers make all the money.

I do that too. I do it with Dan Brown as well. Maybe most people find me crazy when I say this, but I can not stand that man's writing.

Sure The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons had an "interesting" premise (and I use quotation marks because it was rife with historical inaccuracies), but that's where the "good" ended. Not only was the ending of AD the single most convoluted part of that novel (and that's saying something considering the rest of it) but I could barely stay awake while reading TDC. Not to mention the horrible writing of all of his other novels most notable the one with the supercomputer and the code and whatnot....I can't even be bothered to remember it's title. Everything else he's written makes those two books look like masterpieces.

Yes, as someone who puts in a lot of time and tries to work at writing well and will probably never see a living for it, I have every right to whine on behalf of aspiring authors everywhere.
/complaining

I'm right there with you. There are actual good novels for children and teens out there and this is what they choose to read? Don't even get me started on the atrocity that is The Gossip Girl novels.

On the topic of quality kid/tween lit, has anyone read the final book in the Inkheart trilogy yet? I've got my copy but probably won't get to it until Christmas. I'm actually having trouble remembering what happened in the second one.....

Would you like me to summarize it or will you like to just read it all over again?

Must still read the latest Artemis Fowl as well.

I'm kind of sad it's over. They were enjoyable if not amazing.

And I've got a huge stack of books from a used booksale, has anyone read A Song for Arbonne by Guy Gavriel Kay? Trying to decide whether to start that next.

Read it. I don't know what your other options are, but Guy Gavriel Kay is superb regardless.

[Trek_Girl42]

I do that too. I do it with Dan Brown as well. Maybe most people find me crazy when I say this, but I can not stand that man's writing.

Sure The Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons had an "interesting" premise (and I use quotation marks because it was rife with historical inaccuracies), but that's where the "good" ended. Not only was the ending of AD the single most convoluted part of that novel (and that's saying something considering the rest of it) but I could barely stay awake while reading TDC. Not to mention the horrible writing of all of his other novels most notable the one with the supercomputer and the code and whatnot....I can't even be bothered to remember it's title. Everything else he's written makes those two books look like masterpieces.

Nope, you're not crazy, his writing sucks. I barely finished the super computer one (Digital Fortress), absolute painful reading, another publication mystery. I think I was at least entertained by the other one, I can't remember it's been so long since I read it, I don't even remember what it was about (there was an asteroid involved?).

I read The Da Vinci Code in the version with pictures, which I will admit made it kinda genuinely fun, and Angel and Demons.....I really don't remember at all except a bunch of guys chocked on dirt and I have no idea how it ended. Except at the time I thought the book itself was better that The Da Vinci Code. Meh. The writing of them sucked, but I thought they at least had some kind of thinking value to them in terms of subject, historically accurate or not.

I'm right there with you. There are actual good novels for children and teens out there and this is what they choose to read? Don't even get me started on the atrocity that is The Gossip Girl novels.

Ick ick ick! I've never read those, never will.

Would you like me to summarize it or will you like to just read it all over again?

Give me two sentences and it will probably come back.

Read it. I don't know what your other options are, but Guy Gavriel Kay is superb regardless.

I've only read Ysabel of his, which I enjoyed- I didn't think it was brilliant, but I thought it was solidly good, and I suspect it's one that I might re-read some time. And I love the cover art. I liked his writing so I'm looking forward to more of his stuff.

Also, it was a book about a kid having an adventure that I actually bought. I didn't think the parents were disposed of too conveniently when they needed to be, or were too ignorent of his actions- all those little things that need to be believable in order to believe the fantasy, I bought. A big plus.

[Pandora's_Box]

Ick ick ick! I've never read those, never will.

Another one my, "I have to read it so I can complain about it" things. So utterly horrible. And people wonder why teenage girls have so many issues these days. That is why! Because stupid, inconsiderate, selfish people decide to write meaningless drivel for the sole purpose of making money. And people read it because it's about rich, "cool" people and takes place in a fantasy land that so many of us will never reach but love to dream about. It panders to hyper-emotional teenagers and teaches them absolutely nothing of consequence while garnering tons of attention and furthering the materialistic tendencies of our society.

/rant.

ahem.....

Give me two sentences and it will probably come back.

Spoiler:

Meggie reads herself and Farid back into the book to go after Dustfinger who's managed to find his own way back out of desperation. Mo is injured and about to be hanged, Resa has her voice back, and Fenoglio wants to do something with the Book of Immortality.

Have you read anything by Elizabeth Moon. I'm currently on a reading spree of her novels. I just finished Speed of Dark and am currently speechless.

[Trek_Girl42]

Another one my, "I have to read it so I can complain about it" things. So utterly horrible. And people wonder why teenage girls have so many issues these days. That is why! Because stupid, inconsiderate, selfish people decide to write meaningless drivel for the sole purpose of making money. And people read it because it's about rich, "cool" people and takes place in a fantasy land that so many of us will never reach but love to dream about. It panders to hyper-emotional teenagers and teaches them absolutely nothing of consequence while garnering tons of attention and furthering the materialistic tendencies of our society.

/rant.

ahem.....

Spoiler:

Meggie reads herself and Farid back into the book to go after Dustfinger who's managed to find his own way back out of desperation. Mo is injured and about to be hanged, Resa has her voice back, and Fenoglio wants to do something with the Book of Immortality.

Have you read anything by Elizabeth Moon. I'm currently on a reading spree of her novels. I just finished Speed of Dark and am currently speechless.

Hmmm. I'm going to have go go back and re-read the last few chapters at least.

I've heard of Elizabeth Moon, but I have no idea what she writes.

Ever read George R.R. Martin? He puts Tolkien to shame. Well, not to shame, but his fantasy series beats LotR. (and I love LotR)

[Pandora's_Box]

I've heard of Elizabeth Moon, but I have no idea what she writes.

Science fiction. It's refreshing in that most of her novels have a female protagonist that is not, oddly enough , a damsel in distress.

I would strongly recommend reading Speed of Dark. It's written from the POV of an autistic man. He and several other autistic men and women work together for a corporation as part of a special "problem solving" group I guess you could say.

Anyway, a cure is developed for autism and the main character fights with himself trying to decide whether or not to get it. Whether he wishes to change his whole world, how he views it, how he reacts to it, how others react to him, to become "normal".

It's utterly fascinating in its portrayal of an autistic mind and in the behaviours of autistic people. And it's also merciless in its portrayal of the cruelty, arrogance, and condescension mostly born of ignorance, that some of the "normal" people are capable of it.

I thought it was fantastic.

Ever read George R.R. Martin? He puts Tolkien to shame. Well, not to shame, but his fantasy series beats LotR. (and I love LotR)

A Song of Ice and Fire is epic. Truly epic.

[Trek_Girl42]

Science fiction. It's refreshing in that most of her novels have a female protagonist that is not, oddly enough , a damsel in distress.

I would strongly recommend reading Speed of Dark. It's written from the POV of an autistic man. He and several other autistic men and women work together for a corporation as part of a special "problem solving" group I guess you could say.

Anyway, a cure is developed for autism and the main character fights with himself trying to decide whether or not to get it. Whether he wishes to change his whole world, how he views it, how he reacts to it, how others react to him, to become "normal".

It's utterly fascinating in its portrayal of an autistic mind and in the behaviours of autistic people. And it's also merciless in its portrayal of the cruelty, arrogance, and condescension mostly born of ignorance, that some of the "normal" people are capable of it.

I thought it was fantastic.

That sounds really interesting, I'm definitely adding it to my list- have you read A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon? Fantastic book from the POV of an autistic boy.

[Pandora's_Box]

That sounds really interesting, I'm definitely adding it to my list- have you read A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon? Fantastic book from the POV of an autistic boy.

No, I haven't but I'll definitely look it up.

[Mimzy]

Wow, and I thought I was the only one who thought the Twilight series was bleah. Well, I actually think at least the first book is decent, but it's not amazing. Bella I found to be incredibly whiny and not someone I could sympathize with at all--which is a problem b/c she's the protagonist...so yeah. Edward I actually like. He has more of a dynamic to him than Bella has, and not just b/c he's a vampire. But Bella...eh. Now the whole girl-falling-in-love-with-vampire plotline I actually don't have a problem with--it's the way it's written and the characters (well, mainly Bella) that make it almost unbearable. If the books were written better, I'd probably love the series.

Oh, and to all the people who insist that Twilight is better than Harry Potter, it's not. HP still pwns. Well,

[Mimzy]

Wow, and I thought I was the only one who thought the Twilight series was bleah. Well, I actually think at least the first book is decent, but it's not amazing. Bella I found to be incredibly whiny and not someone I could sympathize with at all--which is a problem b/c she's the protagonist...so yeah. Edward I actually like. He has more of a dynamic to him than Bella has, and not just b/c he's a vampire. But Bella...eh. Now the whole girl-falling-in-love-with-vampire plotline I actually don't have a problem with--it's the way it's written and the characters (well, mainly Bella) that make it almost unbearable. If the books were written better, I'd probably love the series.

Oh, and to all the people who insist that Twilight is better than Harry Potter, it's not. HP still pwns.

[Trek_Girl42]

Wow, and I thought I was the only one who thought the Twilight series was bleah. Well, I actually think at least the first book is decent, but it's not amazing. Bella I found to be incredibly whiny and not someone I could sympathize with at all--which is a problem b/c she's the protagonist...so yeah. Edward I actually like. He has more of a dynamic to him than Bella has, and not just b/c he's a vampire. But Bella...eh. Now the whole girl-falling-in-love-with-vampire plotline I actually don't have a problem with--it's the way it's written and the characters (well, mainly Bella) that make it almost unbearable. If the books were written better, I'd probably love the series.

Oh, and to all the people who insist that Twilight is better than Harry Potter, it's not. HP still pwns. Well,

I was amused by the first one- it was bad, but at least I was amused by it so it was kinda fun to read the once. Can't say the same for the rest of them. Crap like that shouldn't be published, period. I mourn the trees sacrificed for that book.