February 2012, What Book are you reading?

**plaveye** · 02-14-2012, 09:00 PM

You know what guys, I thought reading Jordan/Sanderson two books would be weird. There was a moment of weirdness only because of a different writing style, when pages started rolling weirdness was gone. Seems to me that Sanderson got that solid page-turning story telling ability from start of the book to the end ( like Jordan). I'm not comparing two of them so don't jump, I'm just saying that both got that quality.
Sanderson didn't butcher Jordan's work and did not try to shine or insert too much of himself into it. He deserves a shout out for that and of course work well done.
I can't wait to read his works, especially The Way Of Kings--this one sounds very interesting.

**kraden** · 02-15-2012, 01:32 AM

I can't find Gatherer Of Clouds by Sean Russell anywhere, I have to order it.
Instead I got Daughter Of The Empire by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts, a very promising beginning.

**Dale** · 02-15-2012, 07:15 PM

I'm reading The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K Jemisin. It's the first book of the Inheritance Trilogy (not to be confused with the Inheritance Cycle).

It's quite an interesting read so far. It's written in first-person with a female lead character, Yeine. There are brief, paragraph-long interludes that break up the story. These interludes are also from the point-of-view of Yeine, but set in the near future. As such, the story is structured somewhat like a conversation.

As for the story itself, it's about a political war of succession with the victor assuming control of Sky (a sprawling city/floating palace combination) and, with it, the rest of the world. The main character is one of the heirs, but grew up as an outsider. As such, you learn about Sky as she learns about Sky. Considering the bare facts alone, it sounds very much like any traditional fantasy novel. The difference lies in how fast the story progresses. All of this information is learnt in about 10 pages, and new information is always being presented. This makes you feel like you don't quite know everything. This uncertainty encourages you to be sceptical and question the characters' motives. At the very least, the book is written well and the story is unpredictable. Nothing annoys me more than when I figure out what's going to happen, before it's happened.

If you like conflict involving gods and mortals as well as an intriguing political system then gives this a go.

One additional thing I will mention is that I've recently discovered that I'm a lot less critical of novels written in first-person.

**Keizer** · 02-20-2012, 03:36 PM

OT: non-fantasy books

Just finished a lawyer/political thriller by Huston called Marine One. Some of his earlier work I loved when I was younger, he didn't write any new books for a long time and I thought he was done writing.

Just noticed that he had 2 or 3 new books out in the last 3 years or so. Marine One is about the Pres. of U.S. dying in a suspicious helicopter crash and the resulting civil suit brought against a French/European conglomerate. The main character is a marine helicopter pilot who is also a successful lawyer (yeah right) who defends the French company and uncovers a major geo-political event during the trial.

It was well written and a decent yarn, but I just couldn't get into the subject matter. I don't recommend it.

On another note, I just picked up Cornwell's Death of Kings. The latest installment of his Saxon stories which I would place in the historical fiction genre. I have to say that this series is as good as any fantasy series I have ever read (and better then most), and reads much the same.

The series centers around a Saxon-born noble named Uhtred who was raised by Danes (Vikings). He gets roped into serving Alfred the Great despite his mixed loyalties and his personal disdain for Christianity and priests in particular.

I strongly urge you to read the series if you like epic fantasy.

**kraden** · 02-20-2012, 10:09 PM

Originally Posted by Dale

I'm reading The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K Jemisin. It's the first book of the Inheritance Trilogy (not to be confused with the Inheritance Cycle).

It's quite an interesting read so far. It's written in first-person with a female lead character, Yeine. There are brief, paragraph-long interludes that break up the story. These interludes are also from the point-of-view of Yeine, but set in the near future. As such, the story is structured somewhat like a conversation.

As for the story itself, it's about a political war of succession with the victor assuming control of Sky (a sprawling city/floating palace combination) and, with it, the rest of the world. The main character is one of the heirs, but grew up as an outsider. As such, you learn about Sky as she learns about Sky. Considering the bare facts alone, it sounds very much like any traditional fantasy novel. The difference lies in how fast the story progresses. All of this information is learnt in about 10 pages, and new information is always being presented. This makes you feel like you don't quite know everything. This uncertainty encourages you to be sceptical and question the characters' motives. At the very least, the book is written well and the story is unpredictable. Nothing annoys me more than when I figure out what's going to happen, before it's happened.

If you like conflict involving gods and mortals as well as an intriguing political system then gives this a go.

One additional thing I will mention is that I've recently discovered that I'm a lot less critical of novels written in first-person.

I've always avoided this book thinking it's a YA romance, someone even compared it to Meyer's Twilight Saga-- only in this case he is a dark god or something.
Obviously there is more to it.

**Dale** · 02-21-2012, 03:16 AM

Ah yeah, I definitely see where that comparison comes from. I will admit that love is a major theme discussed in this book. Specifically, it's about the "unconditional" love that family members share, and how that love can transform into hate. Fundamentally, most (if not all) of the story threads revolve around that love/hate relationship. In turns of actual romance though, there is a bit of that but, the author seems keen to promote the idea of free-love rather than rigidly dictating that you should only have sex with one person.

.....Sorry, I'm not really reassuring you am I?

**kraden** · 02-21-2012, 09:27 PM

Originally Posted by Dale

Ah yeah, I definitely see where that comparison comes from. I will admit that love is a major theme discussed in this book. Specifically, it's about the "unconditional" love that family members share, and how that love can transform into hate. Fundamentally, most (if not all) of the story threads revolve around that love/hate relationship. In turns of actual romance though, there is a bit of that but, the author seems keen to promote the idea of free-love rather than rigidly dictating that you should only have sex with one person.

.....Sorry, I'm not really reassuring you am I?

I don't really have any problems reading romance and/or characters' relationships, or any kinds of loves etc. as long as they are a part of the bigger picture. Hell, I would read a full blown romance if there is some originality and a bit of complexity, or at the very least unpredictability in the story. If Martin ever writes a romance I would be the first in line to get a book. That would be something.

You stated in your previous post that there is unpredictibility, that's good enough for me. The rest sounds interesting enough to give it a try. Thank you.

**l3gacy** · 02-22-2012, 10:55 AM

Originally Posted by kraden

If Martin ever writes a romance I would be the first in line to get a book. That would be something.

Are you saying A Feast For Crows isn't a romance? Jaime goes to town on his ovulating, incoherent sister in a crypt in front of their dead son; that's top notch romance material right there.