Just a quick post to wish everyone here in the US a happy July 4th weekend. And if you don't live in the US, I hope you have a nice non-holiday weekend :)
I bought a (meat) smoker yesterday and will be trying it for the first time later today. Wish me luck. Hopefully the chicken will turn out well for our holiday dinner. I never could get the hang of cooking well with a grill, so thought I would give the smoker a shot.
Had planned on a Today in Fantasy post this morning, but just got a call from my mom, and she is only 15 minutes away, so no time to post anything longer. Will try to do it tonight, though, depending on our evening schedule. Or I might choose to read more of Nights of Villjamur. We'll see.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Today In Fantasy: July 2, 2009
FBNR News:
Yesterday I forgot to mention a 4th book i was reading: Nights of Villjamur by Mark Charan Newton. It appears that this is the book I am now officially reading, as I crossed the 100 page mark last night. So far the story is pretty good. I like winter settings so I'm interested to see how the coming ice age is handled. I will say that I've was a little surprised by the graphic content, as I don't remember this being mentioned before in other reviews. It should be noted that I have a pretty low bar for graphic content, so I would imagine what I consider graphic is probably nothing for most of you. For example, twice a character is stated to be "wiping off" after sex. While the wording isnt graphic, for me the image the phrase conjures is graphic. And there is the gay sex, as i dont really want to read about a guy taking another guy "in the mouth" (I dont want to read about it if its guy/girl, either). I'm interested enough in the story, luckily to continue, otherwise I might have had to put it down. Again, I expect this doesn't bother most of you, but I'm one of those readers who like scenes similar to the above to take place behind closed doors. And I mention this in case you are thinking of passing this book off to your 10 year old. I personally wouldn't do it, as I would say this is meant for mid teens and up. Also, at times I feel like I should be reading with a dictionary or thesaurus beside me. Some of the more esoteric words work, but other times I feel like "bigger" words are used when a more normal, everyday word would work just as well. Other than the above 2 issues, I think the story, characters, and writing and pretty darn good, and I am enjoying the book. I needed a good book to hook me after my recent reading break, and Nights of Villjamur is doing the job of getting me excited about reading again.
I took the "Which Fantasy Author Are You Like" quiz that made the rounds 2 weeks ago, and my author was Robert Jordan. That should be no surprise to regular readers, as i've been pretty vocal about my love for traditional epic fantasy. This is another indication of why the graphic content mentioned above was almost too much for me.
Oh, and with the new review links added today, my Fantasy Review Index (check the right side of the blog, if you are reading this in a news reader) hit 1200 different links today.
Reviews:
-King of the Nerds: Dawnthief by James Barclay (Looking forward to finally reading this when the Pyr editions hit the shelves here in the US this fall. I have heard that the series gets better after book 1, though it sounds like Mike might not give the series a second shot).
-davebrendon's fantasy & sci-fi weblog: Avempartha by Michael J. Sullivan (one of these days I will quit saying i need to read this, and actually go online and buy the first 2 books).
-Highlander's Book Reviews: The Edge of the World by Kevin J. Anderson
-Speculative Horizons: Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding (i wasnt sure i was interested in this one, but after reading James's review, I might need to check Book Depository for ordering info)
-Bookgeeks: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, Fall of Thanes by Brian Ruckley
-Blood of the Muse: Lamentation by Ken Scholes
-Fantasy Book Critic: Monument by Ian Graham
-Pat's Fantasy Hotlist: Fall of Thanes by Brian Ruckley
Yesterday I forgot to mention a 4th book i was reading: Nights of Villjamur by Mark Charan Newton. It appears that this is the book I am now officially reading, as I crossed the 100 page mark last night. So far the story is pretty good. I like winter settings so I'm interested to see how the coming ice age is handled. I will say that I've was a little surprised by the graphic content, as I don't remember this being mentioned before in other reviews. It should be noted that I have a pretty low bar for graphic content, so I would imagine what I consider graphic is probably nothing for most of you. For example, twice a character is stated to be "wiping off" after sex. While the wording isnt graphic, for me the image the phrase conjures is graphic. And there is the gay sex, as i dont really want to read about a guy taking another guy "in the mouth" (I dont want to read about it if its guy/girl, either). I'm interested enough in the story, luckily to continue, otherwise I might have had to put it down. Again, I expect this doesn't bother most of you, but I'm one of those readers who like scenes similar to the above to take place behind closed doors. And I mention this in case you are thinking of passing this book off to your 10 year old. I personally wouldn't do it, as I would say this is meant for mid teens and up. Also, at times I feel like I should be reading with a dictionary or thesaurus beside me. Some of the more esoteric words work, but other times I feel like "bigger" words are used when a more normal, everyday word would work just as well. Other than the above 2 issues, I think the story, characters, and writing and pretty darn good, and I am enjoying the book. I needed a good book to hook me after my recent reading break, and Nights of Villjamur is doing the job of getting me excited about reading again.
I took the "Which Fantasy Author Are You Like" quiz that made the rounds 2 weeks ago, and my author was Robert Jordan. That should be no surprise to regular readers, as i've been pretty vocal about my love for traditional epic fantasy. This is another indication of why the graphic content mentioned above was almost too much for me.
Oh, and with the new review links added today, my Fantasy Review Index (check the right side of the blog, if you are reading this in a news reader) hit 1200 different links today.
Reviews:
-King of the Nerds: Dawnthief by James Barclay (Looking forward to finally reading this when the Pyr editions hit the shelves here in the US this fall. I have heard that the series gets better after book 1, though it sounds like Mike might not give the series a second shot).
-davebrendon's fantasy & sci-fi weblog: Avempartha by Michael J. Sullivan (one of these days I will quit saying i need to read this, and actually go online and buy the first 2 books).
-Highlander's Book Reviews: The Edge of the World by Kevin J. Anderson
-Speculative Horizons: Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding (i wasnt sure i was interested in this one, but after reading James's review, I might need to check Book Depository for ordering info)
-Bookgeeks: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, Fall of Thanes by Brian Ruckley
-Blood of the Muse: Lamentation by Ken Scholes
-Fantasy Book Critic: Monument by Ian Graham
-Pat's Fantasy Hotlist: Fall of Thanes by Brian Ruckley
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Today in Fantasy: July 1, 2009
FBNR News:
Work is finally back to "normal". Finally. This means a return to regular blogging and reading. Hoorah! Right now I am bouncing around between The Dwarves by Marcus Heintz, Spirit Gate by Kate Elliott, and A Mage of None Magic by A. Christopher Drown (this one is one of the small press submissions i received. So far, pretty good, too).
I recently finished reading The Alchemyst by Michael Scott, but it won't get an official review this time. I read the first 2/3 6 weeks ago, and read the rest last week. With such a large gap between reads, I don't think its fair to review it. However, I will say I enjoyed the book, and thought it could appeal to the YA crowd and adults as well (especially if you are looking for a light, but nicely entertaining read). I plan to locate a hardcover copy of book 2, The Magician sometime soon.
Reviews:
-Robots & Vamps: A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin
-Grasping for the Wind: City of the Dead by Rosemary Jones (always nice to see some Forgotten Realms or Dragonlance coverage)
-Mad Hatter's Bookshelf: The Affinity Bridge by George Mann (sounds interesting, but not sure it would interest me)
-Fantasy Book Critic: Dragonseed by James Maxey
-SFF World: A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin (i've come close to buying this a couple of times, even though I dont read much/any urban fantasy), Two Pearls of Wisdom by Allison Goodman, Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding
-Neth Space: Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie (looking forward to this one more after Neth's review. Maybe I should move it up the stack and read it before The Dwarves?)
Authors/News:
-Barnes and Noble announced that on their eReader ebook site, they will be competing with amazon's kindle book price point. Most new books will now be just 9.95 on eReader.com. Awesome stuff. Check the article here for more details. Even the Lord of the Rings combined trilogy (all 3 books in 1) ebook is down to 9.95.
-Karen Miller posted the cover for The Prodigal Mage. Pretty nice, I like it. Really looking forward to this one.
-Not book related, but my favorite new band of 2008, The Gaslight Anthem, was joined by my favorite music artists of all time, Bruce Springsteen. The Gaslight Anthem reminds me of a mix of 1970s Springsteen rock and Green Day. Sounds weird, but if you listen to them, you'll get it. Awesome new band. Anyway, here is a video of Bruce joining them onstage to sing The '59 Sound. Check it (and become a new fan!) here.
-Edit the above, I had a tie for favorite new band of 2008: The Gaslight Anthem is tied with The Airborne Toxic Event. Meant to devote a real post to these 2 bands, but never got around to it.
Work is finally back to "normal". Finally. This means a return to regular blogging and reading. Hoorah! Right now I am bouncing around between The Dwarves by Marcus Heintz, Spirit Gate by Kate Elliott, and A Mage of None Magic by A. Christopher Drown (this one is one of the small press submissions i received. So far, pretty good, too).
I recently finished reading The Alchemyst by Michael Scott, but it won't get an official review this time. I read the first 2/3 6 weeks ago, and read the rest last week. With such a large gap between reads, I don't think its fair to review it. However, I will say I enjoyed the book, and thought it could appeal to the YA crowd and adults as well (especially if you are looking for a light, but nicely entertaining read). I plan to locate a hardcover copy of book 2, The Magician sometime soon.
Reviews:
-Robots & Vamps: A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin
-Grasping for the Wind: City of the Dead by Rosemary Jones (always nice to see some Forgotten Realms or Dragonlance coverage)
-Mad Hatter's Bookshelf: The Affinity Bridge by George Mann (sounds interesting, but not sure it would interest me)
-Fantasy Book Critic: Dragonseed by James Maxey
-SFF World: A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin (i've come close to buying this a couple of times, even though I dont read much/any urban fantasy), Two Pearls of Wisdom by Allison Goodman, Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding
-Neth Space: Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie (looking forward to this one more after Neth's review. Maybe I should move it up the stack and read it before The Dwarves?)
Authors/News:
-Barnes and Noble announced that on their eReader ebook site, they will be competing with amazon's kindle book price point. Most new books will now be just 9.95 on eReader.com. Awesome stuff. Check the article here for more details. Even the Lord of the Rings combined trilogy (all 3 books in 1) ebook is down to 9.95.
-Karen Miller posted the cover for The Prodigal Mage. Pretty nice, I like it. Really looking forward to this one.
-Not book related, but my favorite new band of 2008, The Gaslight Anthem, was joined by my favorite music artists of all time, Bruce Springsteen. The Gaslight Anthem reminds me of a mix of 1970s Springsteen rock and Green Day. Sounds weird, but if you listen to them, you'll get it. Awesome new band. Anyway, here is a video of Bruce joining them onstage to sing The '59 Sound. Check it (and become a new fan!) here.
-Edit the above, I had a tie for favorite new band of 2008: The Gaslight Anthem is tied with The Airborne Toxic Event. Meant to devote a real post to these 2 bands, but never got around to it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
