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>>25214544
Incognito mode obviously doesn't remember them if you close the browser.

I'm not very far (reading very slowly and sporadically) so I don't want to judge too harshly but I'm pretty disappointed with the darkness that comes before so far. The earlier part with kellhus was a million times more interesting than this weepy cuck, his whore not-wife, and his faggot not-son. I trust that it gets better but it already feels like a slog reading about how much of a loser achamian is.

>>25214548
that's a you problem.

The Magic Engineer, The Saga of Recluce, #3 - L.E. Modesitt Jr (1994)

300 years after the second book and the founding of Recluce, Dorrin is exiled from Recluce. No one understands his obsession with technology and wanting to build machines, least of all his father, who is a member of the council that rules the country. His father fears that change will disrupt Order and bring Chaos, the two fundamental sources of magic in their world. Dorrin doesn't care and pursues his dream regardless. He and two other exiles are sent to a country ruled by Chaos. Thus begins Dorrin's rise as a smith, toymaker, healer, and engineer, among other roles. Chaos cannot abide Order, so it's only a matter of time before they come for him.

There's a lot of killing, that happens during war, but for the most part Dorrin is a support character. He can fight a bit, but since he's so Order-linked, harming others and causing destruction is very difficult and painful. There are severe consequences for excessively using Order to destroy. Chaos magic has no restriction on causing destruction. The war isn't what really matters or what the book's about. Dorrin would prefer to avoid any involvement if possible in any kind of conflict. The vast majority of the book is simply Dorrin's daily life as a smith. There's almost nothing magical about that. That means making nails, forging farm tools, and whatever else the townsfolk need. Eventually he does more elaborate and extensive work with toys, building a house, and then a warship. I don't believe saying so spoilers much, as it says nothing about the character interactions, the plot, or anything else that would be usually be considered a spoiler. The purpose is to demonstrate why this may or may not be what you want to read. There's minimal adventure and battle scenes. The only ambition Dorrin has is to build stuff and muse about why the world is the way it is.

I first read this over 20 years ago as a book I checked out from a local library with no idea that it was the third book. I always intended to follow up, but over the decades it became the series that I had the biggest mental block reading and I still don't know why. Hopefully that's over now and I can read the rest of the series, which currently is 26 books, without issue. I had also forgotten that it was specifically the kind of book that I had been looking for to read. I don't know how much of it is nostalgia and other factors, but it's so much better than the previous two books. I may be setting myself up disappointment for the future books in the series, but I'm okay with that. To further complicate matters, I apparently made up the two most vivid memories I had of the book, because nothing like either ever happened. I have no idea what I must've been thinking reading this for the first time, but I have a far greater appreciation for it now. This is exactly what I needed and wanted to read at this time.

Rating: 5/5

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>>25214573

>>25214544
i just bought the entire Mistborn trilogy because the female mc is barefoot, did i make a mistake?

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I’ve posted a few updates while writing my first book last year. After about four months of querying, and just over a dozen full requests, I got an agent offer of representation.

I’ve got the call tomorrow. I guess we’ll see how it goes.

Thanks for all the support. I couldn’t have done it without you guys.

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ANY SF NOVELS WITH GHOSTS
ESPECIALLY GHOSTS IN SPACE?!?!

>>25214690
nice, hope it works out, let us know

>>25214552
I was one of the biggest Second Apocalypse critics a couple months ago, and honestly I have few problems with the Darkness that comes before. Kellhus seems interesting at first, but the next POVs slowly carry their weight as things progress. Kellhus only seems interesting to a first time reader, because hes the first introduction, and the conditions of his journey, and his goals are the most shrouded in mystery, so theres an implied deeper understanding to find (there isnt, not as a character atleast, and no I dont care whatever plot twist bullshit bakker pulls out of his ass in the aspect emperor series) With Achamian, everything about him, his desires, his thoughts, his goals, and the purpose of his journey is on the surface level. But Achamians value is in filling in the world building, so he adds depth to the world, even if it isnt much depth of character.

Esmenet is a completely pointless character for the most part, but she makes the surface level Achamian slightly more interesting by adding gravitas to his surface level desires, she gives them meaning and context beyond merely being a world building guide. Shes as surface level as him, but it makes Achamian feel just that bit more like an actual person.

Cnauir is interesting for the insights on War, and the Dunyain that he offers, which completely destroys the mystery of Kellhus, and is basically where Kellhus' downhill trajectory as a character starts, because basically right after he meets Cnauir (despite the ironic point of Cnauir (atleast on the surface) being that hes not as easily manipulated by Kellhus) he starts mass manipulating everyone and everything to get his perfect way. And Bakker doesnt realize why this is bad writing, which is why Im guessing he pulls some bullshit in the Aspect Emperor series to subvert this or add another "layer" to make it interesting, but itll never be justified writing because it will always feel poorly established beyond vague hints and nods, like people seeing Halos on Kellhus.

Which embodies the mystery box problem where you can just hint at something, then post hoc fill in some bullshit and voila, youve got an interesting story beat.

>>25214640
The first Mistborn is fine, I hated the rest of the trilogy. They were a slog to complete.

I forgot to say. Darkness that Comes Before is fairly good. The Two books that come after, are shit. And the Warrior Prophet is one of the driest most unenjoyable books ever. I'm being hyperbolic but the whole thing really did feel like a waste of time till like the last 50 pages? A summary would suffice.

>>25214573
Been meaning to get around to reading this series, genuinely sounds like everything I want in fantasy (just based off the first book)

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>>25214536

>>25214700
xeelee sequence has the Silver Ghosts :-)

>>25214700
Night's Dawn trilogy by Peter Hamilton

God Emperor of Dune fucking sucked.

How do you write an entire book with zero good characters?

>>25214640
Nah you'll probably have a good time. Only pseuds hate Sanderson.

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>>25214819
You are as embarrassing as the routine Wolfe/Vance/Red Rising faggot author's name/whatever else is FOTM normalfag niggers.

>>25214830
and you're a faggot contrarian

>>25214832
You're new to 4chan LOL

>>25214834
Unfortunately, I've been here longer than you.

>>25214837
>DUDE 4chan launched in 2016
LMAO

>>25214845
kek you gottem dude

>>25214845
you got here in 19

>>25214847
>>25214856
You will never fit in.

God I fucking hate sun eater why are so many current book recs so retarded and shallow

People make lots of comparisons here between Sun Eater, and TBotNS. Is that just becaude it's a story of a man telling the story of how he came to power?

>>25214913
I'm not wholly into BotNS yet, I heard of it after I got started with SE. Apparently Dune and new sun were the most influential inspirations for Ruocchio. I'm going to guess it's because of the easy comparisons to be made between them. fictional memoir, theological features in the narration, science fiction backdrop, maybe even the violence of the story's events feel similar to some people. Seems like SE just misses in all the same places as the ender's game series.

>>25214955
What about the prose? I'd say that the pose and narration style are the defining traits of TBotNS.

>>25214773
>the Warrior Prophet
It is an excellent book on how an Evil Jesus hijacks the holy war:

" “Witness is the seeing that *testifies*, that judges so that it may be judged. You saw, and you judged. A trespass had been committed, an innocent had been murdered. *You saw this.*”

“*Yes!*” the man hissed. “A little girl. *A little girl!*”

“And now you suffer.”

“But why?” he cried. “Why should I suffer? She’s not mine. She was *heathen!*”

“Everywhere . . . Everywhere we’re surrounded by the blessed and the cursed, the sacred and the profane. But our hearts are like hands, they grow callous to the world. And yet, like our hands even the most callous heart will blister if overworked or chafed by something new. For some time we may feel the pinch, but we ignore it because we have so much work to do.” Kellhus had looked down into his right hand. Suddenly he balled it into a fist, raised it high. “And then one *strike*, with a hammer or a sword, and the blister breaks, *our heart is torn*.** And then we suffer, for we feel the ache for the blessed, the sting of the cursed. We no longer see, *we witness* . . .”

<...>

“Rejoice.”

“Rejoice? But I *suffer!*”

“Yes, *rejoice!* The callused hand cannot feel the lover’s cheek. When we witness, we *testify*, and when we testify *we make ourselves responsible for what we see*. And that—*that*—is what it means to belong.”

Kellhus suddenly stood, leapt from the low platform, took two breathtaking steps into their midst. “Make no mistake,” he continued, and the air thrummed with the resonance of his voice. “This world *owns* you. You *belong*, whether you want to or not. Why do we suffer? Why do the wretched take their own lives? Because the world, no matter how cursed, *owns us*. Because *we belong*.”

“Should we celebrate suffering?” a challenging voice called. From somewhere . . .

Prince Kellhus smiled, glancing into the darkness. “Then it’s no longer suffering, is it?”

The small congregation laughed.

“No,” Kellhus continued, “that’s not what I mean. Celebrate the meaning of suffering. Rejoice that you *belong*, not that you suffer. Remember what the Latter Prophet teaches us: glory comes in joy a sorrow. Joy and sorrow . . .”

“I s-see, see the wisdom of you-your words, Prince,” the nameless knight stammered. “I truly *see!* But . . .”

And somehow, Achamian could *feel* his question . . .

*What is there to gain?*

“I’m not asking you to see,” Kellhus said. “I’m asking you to witness.” Blank face. Desolate eyes. The nameless knight blinked, and two tears silvered his cheek. Then he smiled, and nothing, it seemed, could be glorious.

“To make myself . . .” His voice quavered, broke. “To m-make . . .”

“To be one with the world in which you dwell,” Kellhus said. “To be in a covenant of your life.”

*The world . . . You will gain the world.* "

>>25214977
>how an Evil Jesus hijacks
hijacks the entire plot and everyone's wives too

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I've read the first two discworld books and they were decent,good even.
I really don't get how these books are considered as a "must avoid" in the series.

>>25214552
>but I'm pretty disappointed with the darkness that comes before so far
It will become great on reread, once you've accustomed to the context

>>25214573
your """reviews""" are SHIT
FUCK OFF

>>25214769
>Kellhus' downhill trajectory as a character starts
>Which embodies the mystery box problem
No, it isn't. Just because Kellhus is a shallow character, it does not make him a poorly-written character. Kellhus is a walking fantasy-equivallent of a super-AI. His plot-function is to be the cognitive hazard that ruins/reassembles others' lives.

Kellhus is the reason why Bakker even stated a few times that his book is actually a sci-fi in disguise. Because Bakker more than a decade ago in his blog had predicted Chatgpt, and warned that machines will be cueing our responses better and better, forcing us to hallucinate a personality in them and becoming a "socio-cognitive pollution".

>Esmenet is a completely pointless character for the most part
She is a normie, her presence helps grounding the narrative to the mundane. A very smart and perceptive normie, but still a regular human. While Achamian whines that he is an outcast, he is nonetheless a very powerful sorcerer. Esmenet, on the other hand, has troubles of even moving from town to town without some mob stoning her for shits and giggles. An ordinary event of traversing a war camp full of celebrating drunken soldiers is a chapter-length ordeal for her.

>>25215005
Because it’s written “too hard” for adult babies who need to be handheld with easy prose. Some people genuinely want Pratchett to write like his children’s books for the entire series.

>>25215005
Isn't it mostly because Death is ooc in them?

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Bakker sometimes writes really dry philosophy essays on Three Pound Brain. Do you read them?

Red God news?

People still publish grim dark?

>>25214573
Have you read his "Isolate"? If so, is it any good?

>>25215307
Comfycore hasn't completely wiped it out yet

>>25214913
It's because Hadrian is an "unreliable narrator," a conceit rather at odds with the series' epic scope. I still enjoyed the books, though.

>>25215210
PB is 1000 pages deep and hasn't found the "soul" of the book. I don't recall whether he outlines or discovery writes but I wouldn't be surprised if he's struggling with the conclusion. Iirc he said he doesn't want a clean ending like the trilogy, but he doesn't want the Society to win, either. Seems like a tragedy of modern sff, where the heroes winning is a trope, and the heroes losing is also a trope, and readers get mad if they sniff out anything they think they've seen before, so authors don't know how to conclude their epic good vs evil conflicts.

>>25215398
As long as Lysander dies most people will be happy with the ending

Thought I'd give kingkiller a try since it's been years and he'll die before George from terminal smug. I remember loving it, outside the cuckstuff, at least until he runs off with the fairy. Thought it couldn't possibly be as annoying as I remember it to be even with all the things I personally love. A shame it was worse. Everyone has an idiot ball, it reads like a biography of a wizardchan poster if he had a psychotic break. No, wait, it's more pathetic than that. I have unironically read better harry potter fanfiction.

I even reread the lies of locke lamora, the book I was reading at the time I originally read the kingkiller books, a series that has a similar sequel issue and liked as much to see if that was awful too - no, I found that mostly held up. Even reread the others in the series. Bit dumb in places, especially the last one, but hey, lots of interesting stuff.

Tl;dr the kingkiller series get worse if you try to treat it fairly and objectively

>>25215035
>that faggot who writes novels like detailed films scripts
For once we agree.

>>25214536
>tranny book
stop shilling this garbage

>>25214573
>>25214575
Seems cool actually

>>25215005
Early Discworld just isn't as good as the highlights of the series. I wouldn't tell anyone to avoid them, though.

>>25215406
The odds of Gentlemen Bastards being finished is slightly higher than ASOIAF or Kingkiller, at least Lynch has published something related recently-ish (Locke Lamora and the Bottled Serpent) and has new material coming out at some point (the Road to Emberlain novellas), same cannot be said for the two others.

Don't forget to report and ignore newfags like >>25215035 who actively contribute to off-topic discussion and have been spamming off-topic for over four years.
>>21323327

>>25214913
It's because normalfags here only read megapopular titles like BotNS and Sun Shitter.

>>25214913
It's because the author of one directly plagiarizes entire chapters from the other. We don't need to have the "Ruocchio is a plagiarist" conversation in every thread, though.

>>25215586
>wolfe plagiarizes vance
>nobody cares
>ruocchio plagiarizes wolfe
>this is suddenly the worst thing ever

>>25215609
>your honor I may have stolen the car, but are you aware that at other times in the past, other crimes have also been committed?

>>25215568
>BotNS
>Sun Eater
>Megapopular
BotNS is a cult classic and Sun Eater is a midlist success at best. Actual normies don't know either. They know Andy Weir, Dune, and maybe Heinlein and Asimov.
>>25215609
>>25215616
They're all downstream of The Night Land.

>>25214776
It could be, but maybe not. It's difficult to know for sure until you read it, and even then it may be a matter of circumstance. He has a lot of series and many novels.

>>25215316
https://warosu.org/lit/thread/20829325#p20829412

>>25215454
His style definitely requires qualifications, which I've provided in many of the books I written about by him.

>>25215523
There's only one way to find out.

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>>25215634
>cult classic
PFFFFFFFT
>Sun Eater is a midlist success
Doesn't change the fact that NORMALFAGS, like your newfag ass, keep bringing these books up every single thread, disingenuous nigger.

>>25215722
>80s awards mean it's still popular today
Right. Booth Tarkington is huge in 2026 AD.
>NORMALFAGS (I'm totally not one!!!!1!)
I accept your concession, newnigger-kun.

>>25215743
You only like what's popular because you're mindless cattle. It's like a twelvie who worships Eminem because they literally cannot name other rappers.

>>25215743
>no u
>more buzzword usage
every single dang ol' time, i sure tell you hwat

>>25215756
For all your insistence on the superiority of your taste to mine, you have yet to say anything of substance about a book you enjoy. Also I've been reader Sun Eater since 2019, so I certainly don't like it because it's popular.
You are mentally ill and should kill yourself.

>>25215756
Eminem is 53. That's like someone that age citing their grandfather. You need to update your material and references.

>buzzword user is the "anything of substance" queer who intentionally ignores discussion of non-megapopular books
shocked pikachu

>>25215791
Guy comes in bleating about newfags, normalfags, and mindless cattle and I'm the "buzzword user"

>>25215775
>Top influencers and artists for Gen Alpha include Taylor Swift, Imagine Dragons, Olivia Rodrigo, The Weeknd, BTS, and Bad Bunny
Most of these people are in their thirties. Gen Alpha kids are listening to oldheads. The Weeknd is almost 40.

Is this gonna be another meltdown filled general again? Things were going decent for a few threads.

>>25215801
You purposely dissuade book discussion and repeat any 2016+ buzzword you can like you're going down the same newfag script every single other version of your ilk uses. Read some more books and develop a vocabulary

>>25215812
The nature of generals is ever thus: mentally ill loner freaks with no social interactions in their daily lives make general threads their primary means of interacting with other human beings but because are mentally ill loner freaks they know of no other means of accomplishing responses than through being abrasive. The same antisocial qualities that cause them to be ostracized in society are the qualities that give them (You)s and with (You)s a small rush of dopamine, enough to stave off suicide another day.
This is why generals are banned on some boards.

>>25215812
All I did was say BotNS and Sun Eater aren't megapopular, which they aren't. If you ask normalfags in a bookstore about Gene Wolfe and Ruocchio 9/10 won't know who they are. Certain posters in this general have a skewed idea of popularity due to what /sffg/ reads.

>>25215816
How the fuck am I dissuading discussion? It's not like you can't post when I do, you sperg.

>>25215819
Isn't that to do with sample size and (low) amount of genuine readers in bookstores? Most people go into book stores to browse or buy knick-knacks or gifts, even. Book stores aren't for books anymore. The same assertions you made could be made about just about any author. Hey, random bookstore customer, have you heard of George Saunders or TS Eliot? No? That's probably because you're an unwashed pleb who comes into here because it's in the mall, not because you read!
I knew who Wolfe was way before I got into SF/F. In fact, I knew about him when I was like 18 because he was massive on YouTube even among so-called "literary" channels I followed. I was a big Pynchon reader. And people at university all knew who he was.

>>25215826
Yeah, those knick knack purchasers and mall rats ARE normalfags, and they don't know about Gene Wolfe. I'd wager neither your college experience nor mine reflects normalfags. And even booktube is niche compared to other hobbies these days. I'll grant interest in Wolfe seems to be resurging, but he's hardly "megapopular" anywhere but here.

so I'm on book 5 of BOTNS, but I'm unsure how I feel about the series. I hear that it is quite a lot better on a reread because there's a lot of "huh, so this was actually hinted at earlier moments," but idk if that would make it materially better. Like other posters I like the prose, and the world is interesting I guess... The most special part of it is you are dropped into a whole lot of random proper nouns without knowing what the fuck is going on, for pretty much the entire first book I would say. Then after that there's a lot of "teehee you thought this was the case? well it's THIS," and of course there's a ton of flowery prose to dissect to figure out wtf is happening. Also a lot of world building is behind stories and anecdotes, which I can imagine a lot of people bouncing off of. From a technical standpoint it's a very interesting series, but I'm not sure that I care much about what the overarching narrative is. Before I read it there was a poster shit talking how Wolfe writes his characters, but I thought it was pretty in line with the rest of his prose and narrative, so it didn't ruin anything for me.

>>25214819
>“How?” Ishar repeated. “What are you?” He gestured toward Szeth. “Are you… are you his spren? His god?”
>“No,” Kaladin said. “I’m his therapist.”

Recommend me a book series like Lord of the Rings!
Requirements
>European "Medieval" fantasy setting - no urban / modern / sci fi or too weird shit
>Clear good and evil sides. Orcs / monsters etc
>A journey across many lands
>Similar prose to Tolkien

>>25215848
I read it when I was 19 and thought it was interesting and good but not my favorite. It stuck with me for years and years and came out of my subconscious in odd ways (Kubrick does the same thing to me) and at 28 I reread it and it instantly became my favorite series. If you just don't like it that's fine, of course.

Also imo it's better to not consciously try to figure out anything, at least on the first pass.

>>25215838
Most people don't read even 1 book a year. Being a normalfag is dismal. If you read what you like and it's fun, then you are smarter and more fulfilled than most people. But I guess wrt Wolfe, he is one of the most renowned fantasy writers, at least in literary circles, with LeGuin saying he is the Melville of SF/F. But if we're going with pure recognition from normies, then JK Rowling is the undisputed queen of fantasy because of the movies and games.

>>25215848
Urth was a strange book. Packed with bizarre breakneck action and thick with cryptic symbolism, like Wolfe wanted to play all the hits at the same time. I found it very disorienting but the ending was satisfying enough to warrant a reread. MC finding a monument to himself is always cool.
Just started Long Sun and it's the total opposite, it provides a much stronger sense of the world by opening on a more or less mundane note.

>>25215859
I stopped after book 2 because I was trying to figure it all out as it went along. I'll pick it up again with the intention to reread it in the future.

>>25215854
Sword of Shannara?

>>25215861
That's what I was getting at, albeit sff has largely devolved to D&Desque epic fantasy, hard-ish sf, and romantasy. Even Le Guin mostly survives via Earthsea and college reading lists, near as I can tell.

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>>25215854
Read more Poul Anderson, Tolkiendrone!

>>25215854
David Gemmell is good. No elves/orcs but a strong sense of morality, light/dark magic, etc.

>>25214908
I really can't wait to blow this place up with Sun Eater screenshots.

>>25215644
Thanks!

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>>25215854
Phantastes, George MacDonald
The King of Elfland's Daughter, Lord Dunsany
The Worm Ouroboros, E. R. Edison
The Broken Sword, Poul Anderson
Lud in the Mist, Hope Mirrlees
The Last Unicorn, Peter S. Beagle
The Lyonesse trilogy, Jack Vance

>>25215876
>urboid drivel
No thanks.
>>25215879
>>25215871
I'll take a look, I appreciate it.

>>25215886
Again, thank you. I will look into each of these; I have already read Dunsany, and enjoyed his work.

>>25215882
epic for the win xD

>>25214977
Oh yeah, this was the time that one soldier felt bad for killing a child during the war or whatever and kellhus expertly convinced a traumatized murderer that he shouldnt be traumatized.

I really wonder about things like this sometimes. I wish the Second Apocalypse was actually deeper and not superficial. I wonder about the effect religion can actually have compared to therapy, and more importantly. HOW it has that affect. This feels like the kind of thing Psychology should investigate but oddly I never see Psychology talk much about religion, in all my memory of psych classes in highschool and uni, I dont remember religion ever being discussed.

I ask, because maybe it really is possible that erase or reduce somebodys trauma with some spiritual appeal. It sounds absurd to me if its genuine trauma, but you know the phenomenon of born again christians, criminals who served their time then found god. Drug addicts who found god. The fact that there are more drug addicts and criminals who remain both of those things, rather than redeemed new Christians (thats just what my brain tells me based on the fact that most criminals dont rehabilitate (and dont have the opportunity to) and most drug addicts dont seem to suddenly become functioning individuals, or homeless people etc. Most people in downtrodden circumstances remain downtrodden without mass societal change) Suggests that its probably not that effective, but you could honestly use that argument against almost any remedy couldnt you? Its not about whether it works on most, its about whether it works relative to some other remedy

>>25215116
>No, it isn't. Just because Kellhus is a shallow character, it does not make him a poorly-written character. Kellhus is a walking fantasy-equivallent of a super-AI. His plot-function is to be the cognitive hazard that ruins/reassembles others' lives.
You've already attempted this tango. You fundamentally do not understand my argument. No matter how many times I explain it. Just move on. I get it, you like bad writing as long as it feels cool and relevant. You dont care about the basis, you just like the feeling that something matters.

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>>25214908
Normies are retarded and slurp of whatever is popular. Always shocked by how many tards are in these threads. But I guess I shouldn't be shocked. They call us Goy for a reason...

>>25215900
>Just move on
He's been at this for 10 years.

>>25215947
I should rephrase my last sentence. What I mean is that he likes the conclusion, and doesnt care about the argument. He doesnt care that the premises are actually true, or that the conclusion logically follows from that premise. The conclusion is true because of how the conclusion is framed, an appeal to intuition that skirts proof and basis.

I tried to make the guy understand the problems Kellhus poses for the writing, for the character in particular, but he keeps saying it doesnt matter for reasons that are essentially "Kellhus isnt supposed to be realistic anyway, so it doesnt matter that he strips away all the real depth of human behaviour and personhood, because hes supposed to be this imaginary idea of a super AI computer that has zero fucking relevance or meaning to the real world, or real human behaviour".

The fuck am I supposed to do with that? At that point you just like an idea because its an idea that has been framed so that you specifically like it. It means nothing.

*for the characters
the problem isnt that kellhus isnt an actual person, i already explained why I didnt care about that in darkness that comes before.
its how his interactions reduce characters to nothing, but reflections of what he wants to do with them.

>>25215867
there is more than the initial 5? I thought it was a complete series

>>25215984
The Solar Cycle is much larger than you can guess! Book of the New Sun + Urth of the New Sun tell Severian's story across 5 novels, but then you get Book of the Long Sun (4 more books) that focus on Pater Silk's adventures, and then there's Book of the Short Sun (3 books)
The Solar Cycle as a whole was Wolfe's big achievment, but most people only ever talk about the early stuff for some reason

>>25215867
Urth is amazing. I have no idea why it gets so much dislike compared to the rest of the series. The scene where They're leaving the universe faster than the speed of light, so they're watching the universe be unborn as they leave is mindbogglingly beautiful.

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>>25215644
>qualifications, which I've provided in many of the books I written about by him

>>25216008
That spoiler sounds similar to Tau Zero.

>>25215871
>Terrible Books
>Similar prose to Tolkien

>>25215987
i see, I guess I still have a lot more to read then

>>25216018
Yes, I know, you replied the same 4 years ago as seen in the warosu link.

Heh I finished malazan in 4 years and just learned cotillon is a word for an old fashioned dance event

>gridlocked
very interesting. so far MC is like the prototype for blade runner 2049. down to the humanity testing.

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>>25216062
Told slop that I'm chasing the takeshi kovacs high and never come close. it gave me those. I dropped gravity falls once. don't remember why.

>>25216062
that's some slow-ass reading

>>25216087
yeah but 2 was boring early and I dropped 4 for months, but I read 3 in a week.

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About halfway through this book, around the 60% mark I think, I grew suddenly very bored. It was difficult at first to reason as to why, but after finishing The Blacktongue Thief and letting it sit in my memory for a few days I think I know why.

When I came into this, I expected adventures involving a thief. Stealing, lying, taffing about, that kind of thing. There is indeed some minor bits of that in this book, but it is a very very minor aspect. So much of the text is bogged down by intricately explained histories of language and countries and their peoples, that the plight of the main character and his flat companions falls to the background.

The plot, much like most fantasy, is a get from point a to b story, exploring new lands along the way, meeting new people, that kind of thing. Problem is, Blacktongue is a modern "grimdark" fantasy, so that means everyone they meet is an arsehole, out to do arsehole things to arse over each other. It's exhausting. Every time they come to a new city you get an overlong explanation of who's king or queen or duke or whatever, and then when they converse with minor characters we hear more about their language and its quirks than we do the characters themselves. And why bother? It's like I said before: everyone is an asshole.

The action leaves a lot to be desired as well. The set-pieces are generic, and the tactics employed by our party aren't inspired. The magic of this world is fairy tale nonsense. Non-euclidean architecture, noses that let you smell magic, tattoos that hold people in a kind of stasis on your body, lightning bolts and books that kill you by reading them. Whatever. The kind of high fantasy mush that doesn't serve the theme (there are no themes) or even give me something to chew on because it can be whatever the author needs it to be in any particular scene.

And the tropes, good lord save me from these tropes. Our protag rescues a cat, you know so we know he's a good guy, and that cat is also blind! He's an extra good guy, do you care yet? How about a game who's rules also happen to match the tone and theming of the story and world, no? Ok, the only attractive female character in the entire book, happens to also fall in love with the protagonist, with zero build up besides snarking at one another. And it's a good thing too, because without her he would have no reason whatsoever to take the risks that he does. I'd say what happens to her by the end, but c'mon, this is grimdark high fantasy, you can guess.

In short, this thing is generic, boring, predictable, overly long, stuffed with dull world-building, and not at all as advertised. And I don't care if the themes make sense by book four or whatever.

2/5

>>25216108
Good work. We need more like you. I didn't get nearly as far myself. I didn't care for his Between Two Fires either. Most who expressed their opinion have felt differently, so it's nice to see a differing opinion.

>>25216118
I just wan to read a book that gives me dnd type adventure vibes, but isn't bogged down with dropes and shitty world building. Just show me some adventures! Some action! Some fun characters! I am so fucking sick of grimdark and maps and histories and blah blah blah.

I could also go on an entirely too long rant about the books post war "There are way more women than men" setting and how it does nothing with it besides replacing some of the generic asshole goons with female versions who act literally exactly the same as a male would.

>>25216122
You don't see that contradictory? If it were dnd-like, wouldnt it be filled with tropes? What do you think about the book s that are set in tabletop campaign settings? Are you certain what you are looking for exists?

>>25216108
your """reviews""" are SHIT
FUCK OFF

>>25216131
I am not certain what I'm looking for exists, that does not mean it doesn't have the potential to exist. I don't mind them fighting goblins or slaying dragons or whatever, I do mind bog standard characters and generic world building.

>>25216148
So you basically want literary dungeon crawling? In different terms, what do you think of Japanese media? There's a lot of dungeon stuff in general there.

>>25216161
I don't have the desire to read a 5000 chapter long webnovel. What I've seen from anime is hit or miss. Dungeon meshi was fun, but something like Frieren was retarded. If you have recommendations that aren't infinite web novels I'd be interested.

>>25216108
Have you tried reading reading historical fantasy or mythology? Maybe Arthurian tales, or Christian legends like Saint George and the Dragon? Possibly the Edda or Greek/Roman/Norse mythology?

>>25216135
I've never posted a review on this thread before.
>>25216174
Give me specific recommendations and I'll check them out.

Don't forget to report and ignore newfags like >>25216135 who actively contribute to off-topic discussion and have been spamming off-topic for over four years.
>>21323327

>>25216074
>dropped gravity falls once. don't remember why.
it was boring desu. also, there's a large amount of transexuals, including the MC's girlfriend

>>25216172
I'm not going to pretend to understand your taste, but maybe Tower of Druaga.

>>25216204
Possibly Those Who Hunt Elves if you'd find it funny like Dungeon Meshi.

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interesting...

>>25216172
witch hat atelier is a fantasy instant classic. has a cool magic system.

>>25216172
Slayers, Bastard!! and Kings of the Wyld would be good starters.

>>25216216
Loli shit for transexuals, agps, and pedophiles.

>>25216204
>>25216209
These are both mangas, I don't do manga.

>>25216222
Kings of the Wyld might be one of the worst books I've read in my entire life. Reddit novel with a literal, actual, "the cake is a lie" joke. I'm going to assume the rest of your recommendations are of similar dogshit quality.

>>25216227
They both have anime.

>>25216231
why are you recommending anime on a literature board?

>>25216227
The plural of manga is manga.

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>>25216233
>The plural of manga is manga.

>>25216227
I got baited with dungeon meshi. you're willing to just wait until when, if the story concludes in anime form? lame. the manga was finished well before the anime.

>>25216246
my gf loves it, so I watched it with her. Most anime we try are absolute garbage carried hard by production value, like frieren or that new loli magic school pedo shit.

/sffg/ - Anime & Manga

>>25216242
Aw, the newfag posted a random image of a fat man. What a shock!

>>25216248
kinda based for hating frieren but stupid for hating on atelier, it's just cute, all pedo stuff is anons like me. the manga is pure and made by a woman.

>>25216251
imagine getting pwnd by a 2009 era 4chan troll

>>25216279
overweight man in fedora/headwear.jpg began when reddit came over in 2011, used whenever somebody critiqued religion.

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>>25214536
>will he finish it?
Nope, I'm giving up 200 pages in. First DNF of the year.

>>25216307
fuark!!! thats not encouraging might give up to, but to be fair ive barely given the book a chance, im still stuck on like 150 pages because ive just been doing other shit, i miss reading and being engrossed man, but reading something that feels like a waste of time is almost worse than not reading at all.

>>25216307
>>25216375
I almost dropped Perhaps the Stars as well.

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>>25216230
And I am going to assume you're a homosexual

>>25216242
Why did you post a picture of yourself?

>>25216421
oh no no no, the reputation just gets even worse, and its already a series not many here know.
man i really really really hope the end of will to battle is worth it.

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I finished this a couple of days ago as my first GGK book. It is probably barely considered fantasy but I really enjoyed it. I will read Tigana and Lions of Al Rassan next.