Reading List Update: # 50 - 56
Sep. 27th, 2008 04:29 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jedibuttercupSeven books in the last month; I'm about four weeks behind last year's pace. Four fantasy, one future-scifi, one current-scifi, and one historical novel in the bunch.
50. The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold. Paperback, 345pp. Part of the Vorkosigan saga. Definitely didn't disappoint. Miles has the most interesting and ridiculously convoluted adventures, and yet remains a very human character, backed up and/or thwarted by a stellar secondary cast. I am also very fond of the depth of the cultural construction and world-building that the author put into these novels. Barrayar, especially. Looking foward to whatever heroic trouble Miles manages to stumble into next.
51. Barrenlands by Doranna Durgin. Paperback, 342pp. I didn't know until today that this is actually supposed to be a prequel to some other series, but I'm not surprised. It's a fairly bland and formulaic fantasy, in which a lot of the detail and action has to do with the magical geographic anomaly of the title. The hero was likeable, though; the villain sufficiently villanous; the secondary characters not completely clichéd; and the action sufficiently wrapped up by the end. An enjoyable but relatively unmemorable read.
52. Boundary by Eric Flint and Ryk E. Spoor. Paperback, 595pp. This one, on the other hand, will stick in the mind. Gleeful scifi fun. The authors must have had a crush on Dr. Ellie Sattler of Jurassic Park fame, because the lead character in this one, "Dr. Helen Sutter", starts off very similar in looks, age, and occupation-- even down to digging up a group of velociraptors. But then she digs up something else impossible along with the raptors, and a rover on one of the Martian moons spots something that matches her ridiculous find, and pretty soon this forty-something archaeologist, her geeky-yet-muscular late-twenties astronaut boyfriend, and a bunch of other interesting characters are on the adventure of their lives, rocketing towards Mars. I adored it for a number of guilty-pleasure reasons, though I'm sure it's not to everyone's taste. *grin*
53. Desolation Island by Patrick O'Brian. Paperback, 313pp. 5th of the Aubrey-Maturin series. While this is probably the best-written of the series yet, displaying an excellent and evocative command of the English language and amazing characterization and worldbuilding, it is also terribly depressing; I had trouble getting through it. Stephen's spy work features heavily in it, as does his addiction, and Jack is seriously out of sorts more often than not; on the other hand, there is some truly spectacular imagery and a thrilling sea chase. I hope the next one is a little more cheery, though it may be awhile until I pick it up.
54. The Diamond Throne by David Eddings. Paperback, 433pp. 1st of the Elenium. Reread.
55. The Ruby Knight by David Eddings. Paperback, 433pp. 2nd of the Elenium. Reread.
56. The Sapphire Rose by David Eddings. Paperback, 433pp. 3rd of the Elenium. Reread.
I grouped these three together so I could talk about the trilogy as a whole. I first read these back in high school; picking them up again is like revisiting an old friend, every time. On the other hand, the storytelling doesn't wear quite as well as certain others of my favorites.
Sir Sparhawk, the central character, is one of my favorite fictional men in the history of ever, and he-- backed up by a generally noble and entertaining secondary cast-- go on your typical epic fantasy adventure to rescue the magic whatsit that will heal his queen and strike down the horrifically evil enemy, with lots of complications, plenty of humor and action, a Dramatic Death, and romantic interludes thrown in. What's not to love? But on the other hand, looking at them with an older eye, a lot of the worldbuilding is seriously questionable. The rigid racial stereotyping, for one thing; gender roles for another; some aspects of the author's observations on religion (ex: the hero is the only person on the planet with actual free will); the treatment of sex, which while frequently referred to is always either completely glossed over as to detail or described as "perversions" depending on whether the people partaking are defined as "good" or "evil"; a likewise squeamish and cartoonish use of language when describing the frequent damage people do to one another with sharp edges; the fact that you can practically tell whether or not someone is "good" by how sarcastic they are, with one exception; and-- well, I could go on and on. I still enjoyed rereading them, but I also feel guilty and disillusioned about it. *sigh*
Next book: I've pretty much abandoned The Lies of Locke Lamora, as you may have noticed. Just couldn't get into it. On the other hand, OMG I found Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls!!!!!! I read it at the library in 1994, the year it came out, and haven't been able to find it since. My crazy-Mal fic, "Picture of Health", was kind of vaguely based on the heroine's abilities; it's a very weird book, but I loved it as a teenager. (I hope revisiting it doesn't prove as disappointing as my recent trip through the Elenium).
~
50. The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold. Paperback, 345pp. Part of the Vorkosigan saga. Definitely didn't disappoint. Miles has the most interesting and ridiculously convoluted adventures, and yet remains a very human character, backed up and/or thwarted by a stellar secondary cast. I am also very fond of the depth of the cultural construction and world-building that the author put into these novels. Barrayar, especially. Looking foward to whatever heroic trouble Miles manages to stumble into next.
51. Barrenlands by Doranna Durgin. Paperback, 342pp. I didn't know until today that this is actually supposed to be a prequel to some other series, but I'm not surprised. It's a fairly bland and formulaic fantasy, in which a lot of the detail and action has to do with the magical geographic anomaly of the title. The hero was likeable, though; the villain sufficiently villanous; the secondary characters not completely clichéd; and the action sufficiently wrapped up by the end. An enjoyable but relatively unmemorable read.
52. Boundary by Eric Flint and Ryk E. Spoor. Paperback, 595pp. This one, on the other hand, will stick in the mind. Gleeful scifi fun. The authors must have had a crush on Dr. Ellie Sattler of Jurassic Park fame, because the lead character in this one, "Dr. Helen Sutter", starts off very similar in looks, age, and occupation-- even down to digging up a group of velociraptors. But then she digs up something else impossible along with the raptors, and a rover on one of the Martian moons spots something that matches her ridiculous find, and pretty soon this forty-something archaeologist, her geeky-yet-muscular late-twenties astronaut boyfriend, and a bunch of other interesting characters are on the adventure of their lives, rocketing towards Mars. I adored it for a number of guilty-pleasure reasons, though I'm sure it's not to everyone's taste. *grin*
53. Desolation Island by Patrick O'Brian. Paperback, 313pp. 5th of the Aubrey-Maturin series. While this is probably the best-written of the series yet, displaying an excellent and evocative command of the English language and amazing characterization and worldbuilding, it is also terribly depressing; I had trouble getting through it. Stephen's spy work features heavily in it, as does his addiction, and Jack is seriously out of sorts more often than not; on the other hand, there is some truly spectacular imagery and a thrilling sea chase. I hope the next one is a little more cheery, though it may be awhile until I pick it up.
54. The Diamond Throne by David Eddings. Paperback, 433pp. 1st of the Elenium. Reread.
55. The Ruby Knight by David Eddings. Paperback, 433pp. 2nd of the Elenium. Reread.
56. The Sapphire Rose by David Eddings. Paperback, 433pp. 3rd of the Elenium. Reread.
I grouped these three together so I could talk about the trilogy as a whole. I first read these back in high school; picking them up again is like revisiting an old friend, every time. On the other hand, the storytelling doesn't wear quite as well as certain others of my favorites.
Sir Sparhawk, the central character, is one of my favorite fictional men in the history of ever, and he-- backed up by a generally noble and entertaining secondary cast-- go on your typical epic fantasy adventure to rescue the magic whatsit that will heal his queen and strike down the horrifically evil enemy, with lots of complications, plenty of humor and action, a Dramatic Death, and romantic interludes thrown in. What's not to love? But on the other hand, looking at them with an older eye, a lot of the worldbuilding is seriously questionable. The rigid racial stereotyping, for one thing; gender roles for another; some aspects of the author's observations on religion (ex: the hero is the only person on the planet with actual free will); the treatment of sex, which while frequently referred to is always either completely glossed over as to detail or described as "perversions" depending on whether the people partaking are defined as "good" or "evil"; a likewise squeamish and cartoonish use of language when describing the frequent damage people do to one another with sharp edges; the fact that you can practically tell whether or not someone is "good" by how sarcastic they are, with one exception; and-- well, I could go on and on. I still enjoyed rereading them, but I also feel guilty and disillusioned about it. *sigh*
Next book: I've pretty much abandoned The Lies of Locke Lamora, as you may have noticed. Just couldn't get into it. On the other hand, OMG I found Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls!!!!!! I read it at the library in 1994, the year it came out, and haven't been able to find it since. My crazy-Mal fic, "Picture of Health", was kind of vaguely based on the heroine's abilities; it's a very weird book, but I loved it as a teenager. (I hope revisiting it doesn't prove as disappointing as my recent trip through the Elenium).
~
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Date: 2008-09-28 01:59 am (UTC)Kalten and Ulath are my favourites, and Stragen and all the thieves guild :D
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Date: 2008-09-28 05:55 pm (UTC)