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Post by fallen on Mar 27, 2014 21:49:30 GMT -5
Ah wow, I also loved Deed of Paksenarion! Always wanted to read more in the world - perhaps I will find Oath of Fealty.
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Post by xdesperado on Mar 28, 2014 4:44:33 GMT -5
Will add a few more suggestions here...
Fans of Military Sci-fi should enjoy Hammer's Slammers by David Drake. Not really a series so much as a bunch of stories centered on the mercenary unit and the diverse characters in the unit. If you can find a later edition of Hammer's Slammers, which was the collection of short stories that kicked off his carreer, with Drake's editorials on the stories get it! The editorials are nearly as fascinating to read as the stories, giving you a real insight into the writer's creativity, motivations and inspiration. After reading some of his editorials you may want to reread the short story with the writer's perspective in mind and see how he's transformed current reality into science fiction. He also is writing the excellent Daniel Leary series.
If your a fan of Martial Arts then get the Matador Trilogy by Steve Perry. 3 fairly slim books jam packed with action, interesting characters and intregue. He's since written several follow on books and a couple prequels all of which are great reads.
For fans of Elric of Melnibone I'd suggest doing some digging online or in used book shops for Karl Edward Wagner's Kane books. In particular Night Winds is excellent. The stories were written around the same time as Moorcock was writing Elric and the other Eternal champion stories so don't think Moorcock can get all the credit for introducing Dark Anti Heroes into fantasy.
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Post by xdesperado on Mar 28, 2014 4:54:10 GMT -5
I just finished reading Armor. Man, that was a rollercoaster ride! Thank you to everyone who suggested it. Now I'm giving it to my husband to read. Glad you enjoyed it, hope without giving to much away to those who haven't read it yet, that the change of setting mid book didn't throw you to badly. Extremely jarring for first time reader's, it, at least for me now signefies the change in focus from the awesome combat and carnage to theIindividuals engaged in that conflict and how it can have drastic repercussions far beyond the immediate battlefield. And for the record I'm with those that believe he's still alive out there somewhere, and no I wouldn't tell you where he was even if I knew.
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Post by rabidbite on Mar 31, 2014 21:01:45 GMT -5
I just finished reading Armor. Man, that was a rollercoaster ride! Thank you to everyone who suggested it. Now I'm giving it to my husband to read. Glad you enjoyed it, hope without giving to much away to those who haven't read it yet, that the change of setting mid book didn't throw you to badly. Extremely jarring for first time reader's, it, at least for me now signefies the change in focus from the awesome combat and carnage to theIindividuals engaged in that conflict and how it can have drastic repercussions far beyond the immediate battlefield. And for the record I'm with those that believe he's still alive out there somewhere, and no I wouldn't tell you where he was even if I knew. I have to admit, Armor took me two or three attempts to get through, on my 1st time. You see, I really dislike flashbacks and dream sequences. Most stories use a flashback to explain something about a main character without having to build a credible deep conversation with someone. Those sort of flashbacks feel ... lazy and cheap. That, of course, depends on what the flashback is trying to achieve. Armor uses flashbacks, a lot. Yet, not in the 'shortcut' manner. It took me some effort to get over my natural adverse inclination. rabid
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Post by xdesperado on Apr 2, 2014 15:23:24 GMT -5
rabidbite did you find the effort to get through the book worthwhile? Is it a one time only read for you or will it be a book you will read again in the future?
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Post by rabidbite on Apr 2, 2014 20:43:15 GMT -5
rabidbite did you find the effort to get through the book worthwhile? Is it a one time only read for you or will it be a book you will read again in the future? Oh yes, the book is worthwhile. It feels incomplete ... like it leaves the reader waiting for a 2nd round. But, it is not a 'bad' incomplete. It is a good feeling of "I want more." On another note, reading through the new Parksenarrion world books. Sad its not Packs, but willing to take anything from that world. I think I really did miss Elizabeth Moon. Now, if I could simply write characters like Louis McMaster Bujold (Miles Vorkosigan is my favorite character of all times, anywhere) I would feel truly accomplished. rabid
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Post by Sweet Polly Purebred on Apr 2, 2014 23:21:43 GMT -5
I just finished reading Armor. Man, that was a rollercoaster ride! Thank you to everyone who suggested it. Now I'm giving it to my husband to read. Glad you enjoyed it, hope without giving to much away to those who haven't read it yet, that the change of setting mid book didn't throw you to badly. Extremely jarring for first time reader's, it, at least for me now signefies the change in focus from the awesome combat and carnage to theIindividuals engaged in that conflict and how it can have drastic repercussions far beyond the immediate battlefield. And for the record I'm with those that believe he's still alive out there somewhere, and no I wouldn't tell you where he was even if I knew. I'm with you there. Frodo lives!
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Post by Sweet Polly Purebred on Apr 2, 2014 23:28:04 GMT -5
I love Lois McMaster Bujold and will buy anything she writes. I love the Miles Vorkosigan stories, but my favorite book of hers is The Curse of Chalion. Cazaril is my absolute favorite character. On the other hand, I really was not enamored of the Sharing Knife series. It was still interesting but the characters didn't grab me like in her other books. She is a really gifted writer; you can practically see and hear the characters as you read.
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Post by rabidbite on Apr 3, 2014 6:17:25 GMT -5
I love Lois McMaster Bujold and will buy anything she writes. I love the Miles Vorkosigan stories, but my favorite book of hers is The Curse of Chalion. Cazaril is my absolute favorite character. On the other hand, I really was not enamored of the Sharing Knife series. It was still interesting but the characters didn't grab me like in her other books. She is a really gifted writer; you can practically see and hear the characters as you read. Pretty much the same thing you said Polly. The Curse of Chalion, The Paladin of Souls and The Hallowed Hunt are sooo good. Those books are even better than the Vorkosigan books. Irrelevant of which books I believe are better written, Miles Vorkosigan still is my #1 character. His situation is so unfair, so deeply precarious that he takes survival and achievement to heights of greatness. Miles Vorkosigan reminds me of Tyrion Lannister from Game of Thrones. In fact, they are in exactly the same position, except that Tyrion suffers the disdain of his family and is in even more danger than Miles Vorkosigan. Thus, my #2nd favorite character of all times goes to another dwarf: Tyrion. I have to re-read the Sharing Knife series. I remember not being particularly impressed with it. rabid
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Post by tenbsmith on Apr 3, 2014 16:52:44 GMT -5
Looks like you guys talked me into reading Bujold's Falling Free, the first book according to the internal chronology of that universe. I like reading Nebula/Hugo award winners and Falling Free is one.
I should polish off Treasure Island tonight--it came free on my phone and I'd never read it before--it was fun and a classic.
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Post by xdesperado on Apr 5, 2014 14:23:20 GMT -5
Sadly Steakly only completed a very rough draft of first chapter in a sequal to Armor before his untimely death. If you look you can find that rough draft online His only other book is a fun read. Vampire$ and several of the names and character descriptions are very similar though the setting is obviously quite different.
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Post by tenbsmith on Apr 13, 2014 17:55:48 GMT -5
Falling Free really is an awesome book, I'm definitely going to read more Bujold. Characters are all well realized, plot moves along nicely but remains realistic within the rules of the reality in which it exists. And, being a middle-aged office worker, I like how it combines office politics with grand adventure... or at least the beginning of a grand adventure.
I'm keeping an eye out for Steakly at the local use book store. Nice thing about used books is I can easily share the ones I like with my sons--not so much with ebooks since we use devices from different ecosystems.
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chronic
Exemplar
[ Star Traders 2 Supporter ]
I bloody well hate two things in this galaxy; Independants and Xenos.
Posts: 389
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Post by chronic on Apr 14, 2014 7:14:10 GMT -5
*Neuromancer Really, really good cyberpunk esque novel about hacking, wetwork, and Rogue AIS. *The Forever War A war that spans almost 1000 years and a man who fought through it all. *Snow Crash Again, a really cyberounk novel about a samurai and his escapades. *Consider Phleabas Really really hard scifi about an intergalactic a shape shifting spy who is working against The Culture. *Player of Games Another book about the culture, a games master plays against for an entire civilization. *The Windup Girl Dystopian, bleak East Asian novel on post oil world and political rivalries. *Mona Lisa Overdrive Third in gibsons The Sprawl Trilogy *Count Zero Second in Gibsons the Sprawl *Feed Futuristic media/bloggers in a world with zombies. Surprisingly intelligent *Blackout Concluding novel for feed trilogy. *burning Chrome A collection of short stories by Gibson *WHEW*. I'll add more details later, but I love scifi can you tell?
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Post by rabidbite on Apr 14, 2014 7:30:40 GMT -5
I can tell . Neuromancer is a genre marking sort of book. I partly read the Windup Girl, but never finished. Mostly because I was too busy. I should give it a 2nd go. I haven't read any of the rest, at least that I can remember." rabid
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Jamozk Ekhiss
Star Hero
This is not the Personal Text you are looking for.
Posts: 599
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Post by Jamozk Ekhiss on Apr 14, 2014 15:20:38 GMT -5
DAMMIT! I was at a bookshop on Friday, and saw Neuromancer on a shelf and thought "I know that name, but I can't remember where". I walked past it because I didn't have much time, and now I wish I'd bought it.
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