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On February 22 2013 17:08 sam!zdat wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 17:11 Cambium wrote: Standing on Zanzibar, Dune series, and possibly Red Mars and more Dan Simmons. nice taste  (it's Stand on Zanzibar, though, so no one gets confused. John Brunner is a recent new favorite of mine! i had that right initially!! major brainfart
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England2666 Posts
On February 22 2013 06:39 skzlime wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 06:27 DoctorHelvetica wrote: Also up for any good mystery (particularly murder) or sci-fi recommendations if anything good has come out in the last few years. In case you haven't read it yet, Black Man by Richard Morgan is exactly what you're looking for.
I haven't read Black Man but I have read Altered Carbon by Morgan which is a sci-fi detective story. I would recommend it for sure. Full of philosophy/ethics heavy sci-fi but ultimately a hard-ass detective story. Reminded me of a modern take of 80s sci-fi movies.
On February 22 2013 06:29 sam!zdat wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 06:27 DoctorHelvetica wrote: sci-fi recommendations if anything good has come out in the last few years. I'd recommend China Mieville's two newer books, The City & The City and Embassytown
I didn't really like The City & The City a whole lot. I felt like it never lived up to its premise. I wouldn't tell you not to read it, but I felt like it could've done more with what it had.
@DrH - Obviously Hyperion if you haven't read it. It has a detective story in it as well.
OH, almost forgot - Consider Phlebas by Iain M Banks is a great sci-fi book. It's not strictly murder/detective but it's heavily sci-fi and in a similar vein.
It's a bit off your request, but for a murdery/crime book, try the early Alex Kava books (A Perfect Evil, Split Second)
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For this semester, I'm thinking The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho for my public transport trips.
I was thinking of reading the LotR books as well. I heard the poetry goes beyond the movies
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Hyperion is some grim shit...
On February 22 2013 17:59 HuggyBear wrote: For this semester, I'm thinking The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho for my public transport trips.
I was thinking of reading the LotR books as well. I heard the poetry goes beyond the movies
Alchemist is such a simple story with a simple message, shouldn't take you more than a few hours to finish. I read LotR when I was in high school, and I was just thinking about reading it over again.
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On February 22 2013 17:52 Flicky wrote: I didn't really like The City & The City a whole lot. I felt like it never lived up to its premise. I wouldn't tell you not to read it, but I felt like it could've done more with what it had.
I think you'll find Embassytown more appealing - give it a shot!
On February 22 2013 17:59 HuggyBear wrote: I was thinking of reading the LotR books as well. I heard the poetry goes beyond the movies
do it!
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Norway10161 Posts
On February 22 2013 17:04 aZealot wrote:I loved ASOIAF until Book 4. I did not finish it, and stopped reading the series as I was afraid that Martin was doing a Jordan and losing control of his story. I hear Book 5 marked a semi-return to form and that the next book may mark a return to the narrative pace of Book 1 - 3. I do understand the digressions that necessitated Book 4 and Book 5 but I still can't be bothered reading them. I may get around to reading them before Book 6 comes out. But, for now, I don't have the inclination.
I found book 4 to be decent, mainly because of the evolution of Jaime as a character, but I just shelved book 5 halfway in. Really, the end of book 4 killed it for me. Can anyone tell me + Show Spoiler +?
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Norway10161 Posts
On February 22 2013 17:59 HuggyBear wrote: For this semester, I'm thinking The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho for my public transport trips.
I was thinking of reading the LotR books as well. I heard the poetry goes beyond the movies
Alchemist is an evenings read, quite good. You might enjoy El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha.
I read Lotr a few times when I was about 12, and found it a bit childish after reading Wot and growing a bit. Silmarillion is still pretty good.
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On February 22 2013 18:01 ToKoreaWithLove wrote:I found book 4 to be decent, mainly because of the evolution of Jaime as a character, but I just shelved book 5 halfway in. Really, the end of book 4 killed it for me. Can anyone tell me + Show Spoiler +?
+ Show Spoiler +
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On February 22 2013 18:01 sam!zdat wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 17:52 Flicky wrote: I didn't really like The City & The City a whole lot. I felt like it never lived up to its premise. I wouldn't tell you not to read it, but I felt like it could've done more with what it had. I think you'll find Embassytown more appealing - give it a shot! Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 17:59 HuggyBear wrote: I was thinking of reading the LotR books as well. I heard the poetry goes beyond the movies do it!
I tried Embassytown, really didn't like it. Maybe I should try it again...
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On February 22 2013 18:01 ToKoreaWithLove wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 17:04 aZealot wrote:I loved ASOIAF until Book 4. I did not finish it, and stopped reading the series as I was afraid that Martin was doing a Jordan and losing control of his story. I hear Book 5 marked a semi-return to form and that the next book may mark a return to the narrative pace of Book 1 - 3. I do understand the digressions that necessitated Book 4 and Book 5 but I still can't be bothered reading them. I may get around to reading them before Book 6 comes out. But, for now, I don't have the inclination. I found book 4 to be decent, mainly because of the evolution of Jaime as a character, but I just shelved book 5 halfway in. Really, the end of book 4 killed it for me. Can anyone tell me + Show Spoiler +?
+ Show Spoiler +Define what normal is. As in is she no longer blind then yes she gets her eye sight back. Is she still traingin to be a crazy assasin then yes she is still doing that as well.
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idk, China Mieville has obviously been reading too much lit theory, this is good for me, maybe turns some people off
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Are there any good books told in first-person where the protagonist dies but the story still continues for a bit?
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On February 22 2013 18:27 Azera wrote: Are there any good books told in first-person where the protagonist dies but the story still continues for a bit?
That concept is contradictory.
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On February 22 2013 18:51 Syn Harvest wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 18:27 Azera wrote: Are there any good books told in first-person where the protagonist dies but the story still continues for a bit? That concept is contradictory. And awsome.
But I don't want to read it anymore now that Azera spoiled the story.
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On February 22 2013 17:08 sam!zdat wrote:Show nested quote +On February 22 2013 17:11 Cambium wrote: Standing on Zanzibar, Dune series, and possibly Red Mars and more Dan Simmons. nice taste  (it's Stand on Zanzibar, though, so no one gets confused. John Brunner is a recent new favorite of mine! Oo I actually love Stand on Zanzibar, looks like we agree on something :p
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Ok so I finished Eugénie Grandet. And it was nothing short of awesome :D Extremely funny at times, tragic at others, I can't believe some people described balzac at boring. Also its criticism of a miser sometimes turns prophetic for a 1833 book "Misers don't believe in a future life. Present is everything for them. This thought horribly lightens our time, when, more than at any other moment in history, money dominates everything. [...] When this way of thinking will have passed from the bourgeoisie to the people, what will happen to the country ?"
I bought quite a few books : -6 late Racine plays
![[image loading]](http://images.contentreserve.com/ImageType-100/1785-1/%7B89CEEEBF-3226-47A3-9B02-9F08AB16384D%7DImg100.jpg) Critic of practical reason.I think I need to read Kant to understand more modern philosopher, and the three critics seems to be fascinating book. So I chose one, we'll see how this goes.
Le Père Goriot, The Quest of Absolute because I'm convinced I need to read more Balzac :D
![[image loading]](https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSme0ioiLM6UkWEZ2dUXXpvbrZXQCxsbrBzfPB6_D2AW4FlMXru) Looks really interesting. Probably too modern for me though :p
Not sure by which one I'll start though. Oh and I've picked up a translation of Ulysses, but I'll try to wait for sam and the others
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On February 22 2013 18:27 Azera wrote: Are there any good books told in first-person where the protagonist dies but the story still continues for a bit? Maybe, The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner? Might not be exactly what you're looking for because the book has 4 different narratives each in first person from a different character except the last one which is in third person. In one of the narratives, the protagonist does die and the story continues in the narratives after. What's interesting about the book is that when you read the first narrative you're going to be really confused because its written in the perspective of someone mentally handicapped with no sense of time. But as the narratives change the story begins to unfold and by the time you get to the last narrative things start to make sense.
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On February 17 2013 19:35 Dirkzor wrote:Show nested quote +On February 17 2013 16:57 Xeteh wrote:The Daylight War by Peter V. Brett I read the first two books... I liked the first a lot and had to force my way through the second (I seem to be in the minority there) but I want to see how things continue. Hopefully I like this book more than the second. The world is very cool and I like some of the characters but there was a lot in the second book that just felt forced to me, I had a hard time swallowing some of it. Next? Likely something from Joe Abercrombie. Probably the First Law trilogy. I agree with you. The first book I enjoyed a lot but the second wasn't as good. It was still a good read but only because you had the first book in mind. I had missed that the 3rd was out so thanks for that =) Have to see how it ends...
The third just came out alittle while ago (Daylight war) and it was really good. I just finished it yesterday. He writes in a similar style to Brent Weeks (Nightangel trilogy, Black Prism, Blinding Knife) and I enjoy the "multiple main characters" approach of the book (having 5 or so strong characters with 2 main).
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Well, I bought the first three novels of Raymond Chandler, but it's going to take a while until delivery, so I went to the book store and found The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
Just started it, and so far it's very promising.
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On February 22 2013 18:27 Azera wrote: Are there any good books told in first-person where the protagonist dies but the story still continues for a bit?
Any such recommendation is a spoiler, still: + Show Spoiler +though not in first person, The Metamorphosis by Kafka runs a little like this. Well worth the read.
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