I know I'll enjoy them, but I also know how frustrated I will be with the wait for the next book. These reading threads have been permeated the past few years with kvetching about the release date of A Dance with Dragons. I've resigned myself to the frustration though, and I'm excited about starting them.
I read Empire of the Summer Moon just recently. Fascinating, tragic story. I am currently reading "Crescent and Star" by Stephen Kinzer, about Turkey
What I find amazing about the books is that the writing is tight and there is very little filler. In the 1500 pages I've read so far, there have only been a handful of paragraphs that made me glaze over for a second or two. I should finish #2 and start #3 tonight. (Assuming we can keep the kids' bedtime on a decent trajectory heading into the school year.)
I'm on book 5 now and just ordered book 6. I've been very impressed by this series. Martin has really created a densely textured world and he is great at adding on layer after layer.
Book 5 just came out, and the sixth (The Winds of Winter) is at least a year, possibly 5 more away from being released. Who knows if that gets split into two books like A Dance with Dragons did.
Hey Scribo. Sent you a message through the board. Wanted to get your take on some interesting/challenging books.
Not a big reader, but ever since i saw no country for old men, i've been going through the cormac mcarthy collection. Just finished the border trilogy Currently reading Good books, but they certainly aren't rays of sunshine.
The Lions of al-Rassan was another masterful effort by Guy Gavriel Kay. This novel was based on Moorish Spain and featured depictions of Jewish (Kindath), Islamic (Asharites), and Christian (Jaddites) faiths. The premise is that the nation of al-Rassan, once ruled by the Jaddites and now by the Asharites for centuries has fallen in power and is ready to be retaken by the Jaddites living to the North. The Kindath are regarded as unworthy to both the Jaddites and Asherites. The three main characters are Jehane bet Ishak, a fiery Kindath doctor, who is also the daughter of one of the preeminent doctors in the history of al-Rassan, Rodrigo Belmonte, a captain of a Jaddite company, who has a fierce reputation for his and his company's prowess in battle, and Ammar ibn Khairan, a poet, warrior, current advisor to the heir to the throne of a city-state, and the assassin of the last khalif of al-Rassan. These three form an unlikely alliance for most of the book as city states collude against one another, heirs plot to take their thrones early, and clerics call for holy wars pitting civilizations against one another. Ammar and Rodrigo, in particular, seem to be mirror images of another in so many ways despite their opposing faiths. This book was filled with memorable moments that have stuck with me a few days after finishing the novel. Some were humorous, others touching, some tugged on familial strings, and some were heartbreaking or even horrifying to read. At times when the religious parties cross forces, they do so brutally as it was during the Crusades. Atrocities are committed by many sides. Overall this was an epic tale. It started with a prologue depicting the fall of the Asherite al-Rassan, and then picks up immediately with the skirmishes years later that are the opening moves in a regional war that will affect everyone. Kay with his three main characters and about a dozen or so minor ones manages to personalize this epic confrontation and gives the reader perspective of each side. When I reached the end, I felt everything ended as it should have. I haven't wanted to touch another book for a few days to let this one marinate. I highly recommend this one. A few thoughts on some scenes: Spoiler When Amman and Rodrigo had to fight at the end was simply heartbreaking. It made complete sense in context, but it was a hard passage to read with no clear favorite. The scene was one of the most gripping fights I've read, but it was such a different feeling not wanting either character to die. Not knowing who won for another 10 pages until you reach the final scene was tense. I laughed my ass off when Jehane was imitating the queen and shouting down carnal thoughts to the captain in that echo canyon. He was clearly unnerved, and it cost him. Ishak was such an amazing physician. To perform the first cesarean birth and then be blinded and have his tongue put out because he touched an Asherite woman was horrifying. It was beautiful to witness him healing Diego after his brutal head wound. For a man, so terribly treated, Ishak had such beauty and a simple knowledge to learn and heal people. After two outstanding Kay novels, I'm going to have to finish the rest of this guy's work. I'm reading Tigana next.
I have been reading the "Game of Thrones" series but needed a break before A Storm of Swords. Its illuminating and fascinating to watch real characters react to the slow, steady rise of Nazism in Germany in 1933-1934. They just didn't want to believe it was really happening...
Im not a big reader, I get bored quickly. Maybe 1 in 3 books i'll actually finish. I just started A Game of Thrones. So far so good. It also helps that I work shifts and at night there isnt much to do other than watch reruns or read.
I'll offer you damnation and praise both. Damnation for hooking me on another author, but high praise for pointing me at an excellent writer. Right now I see my reading path taking me to: Tigana Sailing to Sarantium Lord of Emperors A Song for Arbonne The Last Light of the Sun Ysabel
I'm in the same boat. I've heard rave things, but it's zombies. I've enjoyed some zombie films, but it's pretty thin material. I don't know if a novel could hold my attention that long.
That's exactly why I haven't read it. I've yet to convince myself that zombies would translate better to the page than they have on film. It would have to be better, because the majority of zombie flicks I've seen were pretty awful, with a couple of exceptions.
I thought World War Z was much better than I was expecting. You'd think it would be difficult to really give an original spin to such a somewhat tired and rehashed subject, but Brooks really pulls it off. It's more 'classic' moments - zombie attacks on a smaller scale - are fresh enough in their own right thanks to the 'oral history' approach, but the book also dips into the ideas of a zombie attack in a large scale, military approach, where you would have thought such a scenario falls apart. Really does a good job of giving you a wide range of emotions with the characters throughout each chapter, too. Worth reading.
