Books Fantasy Reads

[Raptori]

Spoiler

Wait, what? What women? Must have completely missed that!

Think it's in the first book? When Fitz finally gets to go to the town after ages stuck in the castle, when he first sees Molly after she starts wearing "women's clothes". Just before he sees her, there's some mountain woman who stares at him and says "Keppet", he just shrugs or something then she starts yelling "Keppet" and trying to chase after him, but she's restrained by the older woman sat next to her. Fitz spots Molly and completely forgets about the woman.

At some point later on, Fitz has a tiny flashback that shows you a little bit of memory from before he was abandoned at Moonseye, and in that someone calls him Keppet, so I think that's his original name. It's really subtly done though, very easy to miss. Don't think I noticed it until I re-read them.

Male and bisexual. If he's to be believed he has a gigantic cock down there

Hah I always thought of him as a woman, though I still call him a him!

 

[Nighteyes]

Spoiler

Think it's in the first book? When Fitz finally gets to go to the town after ages stuck in the castle, when he first sees Molly after she starts wearing "women's clothes". Just before he sees her, there's some mountain woman who stares at him and says "Keppet", he just shrugs or something then she starts yelling "Keppet" and trying to chase after him, but she's restrained by the older woman sat next to her. Fitz spots Molly and completely forgets about the woman.

At some point later on, Fitz has a tiny flashback that shows you a little bit of memory from before he was abandoned at Moonseye, and in that someone calls him Keppet, so I think that's his original name. It's really subtly done though, very easy to miss. Don't think I noticed it until I re-read them.

Hah I always thought of him as a woman, though I still call him a him!

Never realised that but makes sense. A nice subtle reveal though largely irrelevant I suppose.

Always thought he was a male tbh. Think it would have been revealed had it not been the case.

 

[Raptori]

Spoiler

Never realised that but makes sense. A nice subtle reveal though largely irrelevant I suppose.

Yeah, doesn't really impact anything in any way but it's a nice detail to have in there.

Always thought he was a male tbh. Think it would have been revealed had it not been the case.

It hasn't been revealed because Hobb hasn't decided, someone asked on an AMA and she said she didn't know. Bit weird to not know the gender of one of your characters, but whatever!

 

[Nighteyes]

Spoiler

Yeah, doesn't really impact anything in any way but it's a nice detail to have in there.


It hasn't been revealed because Hobb hasn't decided, someone asked on an AMA and she said she didn't know. Bit weird to not know the gender of one of your characters, but whatever!

 

[Revan]

Cnuts the lot of you. Can't read those posts :S

 

[Raptori]

Cnuts the lot of you. Can't read those posts :S

Go read Farseer then!

 

[Raptori]

Just finished the Tales of the Ketty Jay, really sad that I'm done with them. I don't think I've ever read anything like them before - they're a crazy mix of Indiana Jones, Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean. A lot of people compare them to Firefly, but I've never watched that. While they're not particularly deep they're incredibly vivid - the characters are great, their relationships are brilliant, the plot is fast and furious, and the setting is one of the best I've encountered. The only thing that would've improved the last three books would be a little more depth to a couple of the characters - it's ridiculous that they're not a massive hit.

Ratings:
Retribution Falls: 7/10
The Black Lung Captain: 9/10
The Iron Jackal: 9/10
The Ace Of Skulls: 9/10

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Just finished the Tales of the Ketty Jay, really sad that I'm done with them. I don't think I've ever read anything like them before - they're a crazy mix of Indiana Jones, Star Wars and Pirates of the Caribbean. A lot of people compare them to Firefly, but I've never watched that. While they're not particularly deep they're incredibly vivid - the characters are great, their relationships are brilliant, the plot is fast and furious, and the setting is one of the best I've encountered. The only thing that would've improved the last three books would be a little more depth to a couple of the characters - it's ridiculous that they're not a massive hit.

Ratings:
Retribution Falls: 7/10
The Black Lung Captain: 9/10
The Iron Jackal: 9/10
The Ace Of Skulls: 9/10

Finally, you've given me some interest! If anything is being compared to Firefly, then it must be really good. That is one of the best series I've watched. Sad that it was discontinued after a handful of episodes, but what a gem of a series.

Let me see where I can ...ehm... get them.

 

[Revan]

Shadow Games - I've gone back to Black Company. This is the fourth book on the saga, and the first book from Books of the South.

The situation is quite different to the previous books. I like how the story is going. I like the characters. And I thought that the ending was really good. The new book will have to directly build from that ending. 7/10

 

[Krovv]

Finally, you've given me some interest! If anything is being compared to Firefly, then it must be really good. That is one of the best series I've watched. Sad that it was discontinued after a handful of episodes, but what a gem of a series.

Let me see where I can ...ehm... get them.

If you like Firefly, you should check out Babylon 5. It's a great series. The pilot is really slow but after that season 1 is just awesome. Has some clunky graphics but that's to be expected from an old show.

 

[Revan]

If you like Firefly, you should check out Babylon 5. It's a great series. The pilot is really slow but after that season 1 is just awesome. Has some clunky graphics but that's to be expected from an old show.

I am thinking to start it. Stargate and Star Trek are too intimidating to start (the first has mroe than 300 episodes, while the second has more than 600). I want a good sci-fi and having watched Galactica and Firefly, these three seems to be the obvious choices.

 

[Krovv]

I am thinking to start it. Stargate and Star Trek are too intimidating to start (the first has mroe than 300 episodes, while the second has more than 600). I want a good sci-fi and having watched Galactica and Firefly, these three seems to be the obvious choices.

Go for it. Babylon 5 is awesome. I just finished season 1 and I am hooked. The viewing order is a bit confusing, but you can check here: http://johan.kiviniemi.name/blag/b5/

 

[Waldner]

Just finished Royal Assassin:

Spoiler

So many people in this book can feck off. Regal. Wall-Ass (that part was the highlight of the book for me). Will. Even Molly can do one! Hobb is an incredible writer - I was actually getting a bit pissed off at how much they were torturing Fitz at the end there. It got a bit trippy with his body-swap, but I'm itching to start the final book now. Great read.

 

[caid]

On the subject of Hobb books
Should probably give this one a miss till you finish the 3rd one waldner, glad your enjoying it

Spoiler

Think it's in the first book? When Fitz finally gets to go to the town after ages stuck in the castle, when he first sees Molly after she starts wearing "women's clothes". Just before he sees her, there's some mountain woman who stares at him and says "Keppet", he just shrugs or something then she starts yelling "Keppet" and trying to chase after him, but she's restrained by the older woman sat next to her. Fitz spots Molly and completely forgets about the woman.

At some point later on, Fitz has a tiny flashback that shows you a little bit of memory from before he was abandoned at Moonseye, and in that someone calls him Keppet, so I think that's his original name. It's really subtly done though, very easy to miss. Don't think I noticed it until I re-read them.


Hah I always thought of him as a woman, though I still call him a him!

Spoiler

Completely missed that about his mother, thats kind of cool.

I thought the fool was transgender ... or maybe a woman, who's pissed off at fitz for mistaking her for a man and doesn't want to have to point out to him thats shes a woman.
Think it was a conversation in Liveships that made me think that for a while.
But i dont remember really, haven't read them in years at this point

 

[Raptori]

@Waldner

Spoiler

So many people in this book can feck off. Regal. Wall-Ass (that part was the highlight of the book for me). Will. Even Molly can do one! Hobb is an incredible writer - I was actually getting a bit pissed off at how much they were torturing Fitz at the end there. It got a bit trippy with his body-swap, but I'm itching to start the final book now. Great read.

Lol I had completely forgotten about the Wall-Ass bit, that was the Fool wasn't it? He/she/it is hilarious at times.

@caid

Spoiler

I thought the fool was transgender ... or maybe a woman, who's pissed off at fitz for mistaking her for a man and doesn't want to have to point out to him thats shes a woman.
Think it was a conversation in Liveships that made me think that for a while.
But i dont remember really, haven't read them in years at this point

Yeah transgender is definitely a possibility, but for some reason I still think he's a woman. Have you read the Tawny Man trilogy?

 

[caid]

@Waldner

Spoiler

Lol I had completely forgotten about the Wall-Ass bit, that was the Fool wasn't it? He/she/it is hilarious at times.

@caid

Spoiler

Yeah transgender is definitely a possibility, but for some reason I still think he's a woman. Have you read the Tawny Man trilogy?

No, just the first 2 fitz trilogies and the liveships one.
I should pick up some more of her books. Or maybe just read the above again, its been long enough to enjoy them again.

Also lol @ bold in spoiler

 

[Raptori]

No, just the first 2 fitz trilogies and the liveships one.
I should pick up some more of her books. Or maybe just read the above again, its been long enough to enjoy them again.

Also lol @ bold in spoiler

Tawny Man is the second Fitz one. Rain Wilds isn't as good, but I really enjoyed the first book in the new Fitz trilogy.

I ask because near the end of the third book in Tawny Man...

Spoiler

...there's the bit where Fitz uses the Wit to take over the Fool's body in order to heal him. A lot of people think this means he'd know the Fool's gender, but I don't think that's the case - he'd have been concentrating on the tiny details, and wouldn't have noticed imo.

 

[celia]

I have finished Blood of Elves by Blood of Elves. I was annoyed by all these women and even this girl in love with the same man. I probably should have read the short stories to get how awesome he is. Or maybe not. This book seems more like a really long introduction.

I am reading The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu because I like shiny new things... well it seems well-praised even if it's his first novel. Though itt has many characters and so far, he doesn't seem to get us really close to the characters. So sometimes, it feels like I am watching lot of puppets from afar.

I have also begun The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud.

 

[caid]

Tawny Man is the second Fitz one. Rain Wilds isn't as good, but I really enjoyed the first book in the new Fitz trilogy.

I ask because near the end of the third book in Tawny Man...

Spoiler

...there's the bit where Fitz uses the Wit to take over the Fool's body in order to heal him. A lot of people think this means he'd know the Fool's gender, but I don't think that's the case - he'd have been concentrating on the tiny details, and wouldn't have noticed imo.

My memory of that series is pretty sketchy, particularly the last book (i was spectacularly ill when i read it and was hallucinating and junk)
I enjoyed the first one but didn't really enjoy the series. Just didn't care for any of the characters that were introduced.
The first one kind of reintroduced the characters i gave a rats ass about but it didn't feel like they developed much or at all over the 3 books.
Thought the 3rd book was weak
I think it felt like the magic in the book ... stopped making sense for lack of a better term?
I dunno, just felt like she really started stretching my ability to just accept what was going on and buy into it.

Forgot about the fool part and didn't think much of it, it didn't seem to be something he picked up on though your right.

 

[Raptori]

My memory of that series is pretty sketchy, particularly the last book (i was spectacularly ill when i read it and was hallucinating and junk)
I enjoyed the first one but didn't really enjoy the series. Just didn't care for any of the characters that were introduced.
The first one kind of reintroduced the characters i gave a rats ass about but it didn't feel like they developed much or at all over the 3 books.
Thought the 3rd book was weak
I think it felt like the magic in the book ... stopped making sense for lack of a better term?
I dunno, just felt like she really started stretching my ability to just accept what was going on and buy into it.

Forgot about the fool part and didn't think much of it, it didn't seem to be something he picked up on though your right.

Fair enough, I actually enjoyed that trilogy a bit more than the first one (and Liveships more than either), but I do get where you're coming from. It took me a while to get invested in the new characters, and there were a fair few things that don't quite seem to make a lot of sense.

 

[Raptori]

Just read two books that were released last month, both of which are worth a look.

I still don't know what I think of the first one, The Vagrant by Peter Newman. It's really hard to describe, so here's the blurb and the cover, which both give a good feel for it:

The Vagrant is his name. He has no other. Friendless and alone he walks across a desolate, war-torn landscape, carrying nothing but a kit-bag, a legendary sword and a baby. His purpose is to reach the Shining City, last bastion of the human race, and deliver the sword, the only weapon that may make a difference in the ongoing war. But the Shining City is far away and the world is a very dangerous place.

On the face of it it's a pretty straightforward travel story, but in reality it doesn't quite feel like that. The world is grim and dark, with the taint of demons spreading from the breach and corrupting the world, and all sorts of gruesome things happening as the demons take over. I'm not a fan of grimdark, but this worked well for me, and the gradual journey from the darkness to the light was well done. The three major characters throughout are a mute, a baby, and a goat. The writing was brilliant, the use of present tense gave it a really vivid feel (though it was a struggle to get used to it to begin with), and you have to discern the characters' thoughts for yourself.

I gave it 4 stars on goodreads, but I'll re-read it at some point and wouldn't be surprised if it ended up being a 5 stars on reflection.


The second one is The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu. Really good overall, I've seen a few people say it has some of the good points of A Song of Ice and Fire. The characters were good, there's a huge amount of action, the world has a distinct oriental flavour to it which makes it feel fresh and original, and the story is vaguely based on the fall of the Qin Dynasty and subsequent history in China. The writing was brilliant, similar to Guy Gavriel Kay, and at times it felt like reading a legend of old rather than modern commercial fiction. The one criticism I have of it is that the development of one of the main characters didn't work for me, but in spite of that I really enjoyed it.

 

[Waldner]

Finally finished the Farseer Trilogy. Seemed to take ages!

Spoiler

It started off really, really well. The first two books were interesting, well paced and exciting. Plenty was happening, the changes seen in Fitz and the characters around him were great and you genuinely cared about many of them.

Then you had the third book. It was a reading experience that I'd never really had before - I had bought into the characters from the start of the series (Fitz, Burrich, Fool, Regal, Verity etc) so I kept on reading, but my god the majority of it was just so damn boring. All this travelling monologues, all the travel through the Farrow deserts, then the mountains and 100 descriptions of how cold different characters were... it just dragged on, and on, and on. 837 pages, atleast half could probably be done away with without much impact on the overall story. I also felt the ending of losing Verity into his dragon, this silver 'skill' imprint, waking up the Elderlings etc... it was all a bit vague and unexplained. I really didn't like how Verity 'died', how Molly/Burrich became an item. I get it was supposed to leave a bitter taste in the mouth, but I feel that didn't translate over to the reader very well. It just left me feeling frustrated.

I'll give the Tawny Man series an attempt now, but I really hope there's no more of this massively lengthy travelling stuff in it. I've read the blurb of the first book and it seems Fitz, Chade, Kettricken, Fool etc return. Few questions, if it's possible to answer them without spoilering too much?

Does Molly/Burrich appear again? Did Kebal Rawbread (Red Ship leader) die - seemed that was really glossed over?

Overall I make it: Kingkiller > Mistborn > Powder Mage >> Farseer. Third book just killed it for me, would be higher otherwise.

 

[Raptori]

Finally finished the Farseer Trilogy. Seemed to take ages!

Spoiler

It started off really, really well. The first two books were interesting, well paced and exciting. Plenty was happening, the changes seen in Fitz and the characters around him were great and you genuinely cared about many of them.

Then you had the third book. It was a reading experience that I'd never really had before - I had bought into the characters from the start of the series (Fitz, Burrich, Fool, Regal, Verity etc) so I kept on reading, but my god the majority of it was just so damn boring. All this travelling monologues, all the travel through the Farrow deserts, then the mountains and 100 descriptions of how cold different characters were... it just dragged on, and on, and on. 837 pages, atleast half could probably be done away with without much impact on the overall story. I also felt the ending of losing Verity into his dragon, this silver 'skill' imprint, waking up the Elderlings etc... it was all a bit vague and unexplained. I really didn't like how Verity 'died', how Molly/Burrich became an item. I get it was supposed to leave a bitter taste in the mouth, but I feel that didn't translate over to the reader very well. It just left me feeling frustrated.

I'll give the Tawny Man series an attempt now, but I really hope there's no more of this massively lengthy travelling stuff in it. I've read the blurb of the first book and it seems Fitz, Chade, Kettricken, Fool etc return. Few questions, if it's possible to answer them without spoilering too much?

Does Molly/Burrich appear again? Did Kebal Rawbread (Red Ship leader) die - seemed that was really glossed over?

Overall I make it: Kingkiller > Mistborn > Powder Mage >> Farseer. Third book just killed it for me, would be higher otherwise.

Interesting, I loved the characters so much that even with the weak final book I liked it more overall than Mistborn or Powder Mage. Very close though. Haven't read Kingkiller yet, keep meaning to but never motivated to pick it up...

Boo @ skipping Liveships, it's by far the strongest of the Realm of the Elderlings books imo, and you'll miss out on a few small details if you don't read them in order. Totally get that you might want to stick with Fitz though, but make sure you give Liveships a look sometime rather than ignoring it!

Spoiler

Completely agree with you on the third book, most of it could be cut without impacting the story. I like the ending though, but I think that's after multiple readings and I might have felt differently when I first read them.

There's some travelling in Tawny Man, but from what I remember it's not as tedious as the third book, since it's much faster and there's intrigue and stuff going on at the same time. I enjoyed Tawny Man more than Farseer, though a lot of people feel the opposite.

Yep, Molly and Burrich appear, they're fairly prominent at times iirc though it is definitely a subplot. Rawbread didn't die, the major conflict of the trilogy is with him.

 

[Waldner]

Interesting, I loved the characters so much that even with the weak final book I liked it more overall than Mistborn or Powder Mage. Very close though. Haven't read Kingkiller yet, keep meaning to but never motivated to pick it up...

Boo @ skipping Liveships, it's by far the strongest of the Realm of the Elderlings books imo, and you'll miss out on a few small details if you don't read them in order. Totally get that you might want to stick with Fitz though, but make sure you give Liveships a look sometime rather than ignoring it!

Spoiler

Completely agree with you on the third book, most of it could be cut without impacting the story. I like the ending though, but I think that's after multiple readings and I might have felt differently when I first read them.

There's some travelling in Tawny Man, but from what I remember it's not as tedious as the third book, since it's much faster and there's intrigue and stuff going on at the same time. I enjoyed Tawny Man more than Farseer, though a lot of people feel the opposite.

Yep, Molly and Burrich appear, they're fairly prominent at times iirc though it is definitely a subplot. Rawbread didn't die, the major conflict of the trilogy is with him.

Thanks for the reply! Didn't realise Liveships was the next sequential series. Reading the intro for the series though, seems a bit... too OTT? Living ships? Does Hobb indulge in hallucinogens or something? It seems quite disparate from the Fitz books though so hopefully I won't miss too much by leaving it out. Maybe if Tawny Man gets me more hooked on the Six Duchies as a whole I'll come back around to it.

Spoiler

I really, really enjoyed Mistborn and can't wait for the next Powder Mage book to come out, so I am slightly biased. Mistborn was one of the first fantasy books I read that really got me engrossed in a particular character (Vin) so it's a hard one to beat. That third book of Farseer though just really took the wind out of the series for me, so long winded.

Thanks for the answers. I'm quite interested in the whole story about him and the Raiders, they were never really mentioned much and seemed to be dealt with so quickly at the end of the first book. Glad Molly and Burrich are back involved, I'd quite like to see how they'd both react on seeing Fitz alive again (if that even happens) and I like Burrich as a character. I think I'll enjoy Tawny Man if there's atleast other stuff going on than Skill Road travels, desert travels, forest travels etc.

PS. Read Kingkiller immediately! You don't know what you miss out on.

 

[Raptori]

Thanks for the reply! Didn't realise Liveships was the next sequential series. Reading the intro for the series though, seems a bit... too OTT? Living ships? Does Hobb indulge in hallucinogens or something? It seems quite disparate from the Fitz books though so hopefully I won't miss too much by leaving it out. Maybe if Tawny Man gets me more hooked on the Six Duchies as a whole I'll come back around to it.

Spoiler

I really, really enjoyed Mistborn and can't wait for the next Powder Mage book to come out, so I am slightly biased. Mistborn was one of the first fantasy books I read that really got me engrossed in a particular character (Vin) so it's a hard one to beat. That third book of Farseer though just really took the wind out of the series for me, so long winded.

Thanks for the answers. I'm quite interested in the whole story about him and the Raiders, they were never really mentioned much and seemed to be dealt with so quickly at the end of the first book. Glad Molly and Burrich are back involved, I'd quite like to see how they'd both react on seeing Fitz alive again (if that even happens) and I like Burrich as a character. I think I'll enjoy Tawny Man if there's atleast other stuff going on than Skill Road travels, desert travels, forest travels etc.

PS. Read Kingkiller immediately! You don't know what you miss out on.

I thought the exact same thing when I first heard of it, sounded really shit and I didn't want to read it at all. I hate skipping books so I forced myself to read it.

It's got the depth of characterisation that you see in the Fitz story, but with a dozen or so main characters instead of just one. The worldbuilding is a lot deeper and more interesting, and there's a hell of a lot more going on, think it's paced a lot better overall. The liveships are surprisingly good, and the story behind them (and how it links to the Skill magic in the Fitz books) is pretty interesting I thought.

Spoiler

I read Mistborn just after Farseer, so the characters seemed a bit cardboard to me in comparison. They're still a favourite though, and I think if Sanderson can improve his characters (judging by Stormlight he's starting to) then some of his future series will be brilliant. I only read Powder Mage recently, thought it was brilliant too, like a more polished Sanderson book.

No probs! Yeah that bit of the story is explained in Tawny Man (though I think the first book doesn't touch on it much, it comes into play more in the last two when they travel to the Out Islands), there's a ton of stuff going on there that was completely ignored in Farseer. Yah Burrich is a nice character, can't say much since it'd spoil stuff, but they do meet again, although not necessarily in the best of circumstances!

My ratings of the books go like this:

Assassin's Apprentice 10/10
Royal Assassin 9/10
Assassin's Quest 7/10

Ship of Magic 10/10
The Mad Ship 10/10
Ship of Destiny 10/10

Fool's Errand 9/10
Golden Fool 9/10
Fool's Fate 9/10

...so overall I liked Tawny Man more than Farseer, but none of the individual books quite hit the same level as the first one for me. Liveships is just on another level entirely.

Yeeeah, I was going to start it yesterday but decided to start something else instead...

 

[Waldner]

I thought the exact same thing when I first heard of it, sounded really shit and I didn't want to read it at all. I hate skipping books so I forced myself to read it.

It's got the depth of characterisation that you see in the Fitz story, but with a dozen or so main characters instead of just one. The worldbuilding is a lot deeper and more interesting, and there's a hell of a lot more going on, think it's paced a lot better overall. The liveships are surprisingly good, and the story behind them (and how it links to the Skill magic in the Fitz books) is pretty interesting I thought.

Spoiler

I read Mistborn just after Farseer, so the characters seemed a bit cardboard to me in comparison. They're still a favourite though, and I think if Sanderson can improve his characters (judging by Stormlight he's starting to) then some of his future series will be brilliant. I only read Powder Mage recently, thought it was brilliant too, like a more polished Sanderson book.

No probs! Yeah that bit of the story is explained in Tawny Man (though I think the first book doesn't touch on it much, it comes into play more in the last two when they travel to the Out Islands), there's a ton of stuff going on there that was completely ignored in Farseer. Yah Burrich is a nice character, can't say much since it'd spoil stuff, but they do meet again, although not necessarily in the best of circumstances!

My ratings of the books go like this:

Assassin's Apprentice 10/10
Royal Assassin 9/10
Assassin's Quest 7/10

Ship of Magic 10/10
The Mad Ship 10/10
Ship of Destiny 10/10

Fool's Errand 9/10
Golden Fool 9/10
Fool's Fate 9/10

...so overall I liked Tawny Man more than Farseer, but none of the individual books quite hit the same level as the first one for me. Liveships is just on another level entirely.

Yeeeah, I was going to start it yesterday but decided to start something else instead...

Spoiler

A whole series 10/10?! Blimey... got me seriously considering reading a book about living ships now Nah, I joke. Probably would be quite good, don't think I can put myself off reading Tawny Man now I know that Burrich and Molly return properly. Looking forward to their reactions when they find out Fitz lives. Might give Liveships a miss until I finish Tawny Man, then I'll be right onto it.

Assassin's Apprentice was so good and right up there with some of my favourite books, had everything. Need to get a copy of Fool's Errand right away!

 

[Raptori]

Spoiler

A whole series 10/10?! Blimey... got me seriously considering reading a book about living ships now Nah, I joke. Probably would be quite good, don't think I can put myself off reading Tawny Man now I know that Burrich and Molly return properly. Looking forward to their reactions when they find out Fitz lives. Might give Liveships a miss until I finish Tawny Man, then I'll be right onto it.

Assassin's Apprentice was so good and right up there with some of my favourite books, had everything. Need to get a copy of Fool's Errand right away!

Spoiler

Yep, they're that good.

The ships aren't really alive, there's just some magic that makes them conscious. I thought it was really well done actually. You find out the basics right at the start, so I'll explain a little and it won't affect anything:

The ships are made from some special wood which absorbs memories (the magic is related to the Skill). If three members of the same family die on the decks, their memories combine and become strong enough to bring the ship into consciousness (which is called "quickening"). The ship ends up with some kind of combination of their personalities and all of their memories, and can sense currents and stuff like that. They can also move any of their wizardwood parts, so the figurehead is pretty lifelike, and they can adjust the shape of the hull and stuff like that, so they're the best sailing ships around and are prized by traders.

The characters are the best (though a few people don't connect with them, but I guess that's always going to happen for some people). Most of the protagonists are really good, and they're all utterly believable and deep. Kennit is by a mile the most interesting character I've ever read, absolutely fascinating. Malta has the best character progression I can remember - she starts off as a spoiled little shit who just makes you want to strangle her, but she develops into someone you root for. Wintrow is amazing, Althea is pretty awesome, I could go on and on...

The one thing about reading Tawny Man first is that you'll spoil one character reveal in Liveships, and you'll probably not really get some of the cameos when characters from further south encounter Fitz. Not really a big deal, to be honest! Mm not sure if I'd say they return properly, they're nowhere near as central as they were in the first trilogy. They're there in the background, and their kids are fairly prominent, but I don't think they even encounter Fitz until the last book. Been a while since I've read them so I can't remember the exact details.

 

[Waldner]

Spoiler

Yep, they're that good.

The ships aren't really alive, there's just some magic that makes them conscious. I thought it was really well done actually. You find out the basics right at the start, so I'll explain a little and it won't affect anything:

The ships are made from some special wood which absorbs memories (the magic is related to the Skill). If three members of the same family die on the decks, their memories combine and become strong enough to bring the ship into consciousness (which is called "quickening"). The ship ends up with some kind of combination of their personalities and all of their memories, and can sense currents and stuff like that. They can also move any of their wizardwood parts, so the figurehead is pretty lifelike, and they can adjust the shape of the hull and stuff like that, so they're the best sailing ships around and are prized by traders.

The characters are the best (though a few people don't connect with them, but I guess that's always going to happen for some people). Most of the protagonists are really good, and they're all utterly believable and deep. Kennit is by a mile the most interesting character I've ever read, absolutely fascinating. Malta has the best character progression I can remember - she starts off as a spoiled little shit who just makes you want to strangle her, but she develops into someone you root for. Wintrow is amazing, Althea is pretty awesome, I could go on and on...

The one thing about reading Tawny Man first is that you'll spoil one character reveal in Liveships, and you'll probably not really get some of the cameos when characters from further south encounter Fitz. Not really a big deal, to be honest! Mm not sure if I'd say they return properly, they're nowhere near as central as they were in the first trilogy. They're there in the background, and their kids are fairly prominent, but I don't think they even encounter Fitz until the last book. Been a while since I've read them so I can't remember the exact details.

Spoiler

I've done a bit of Googling and people pretty much say the same as you about the characters. Everyone split as to whether it's a great series or not too! A few people have said they've gone onto Tawny Man straight away as they wanted more of Fitz and that part of the world and then backtracked to Liveships straight after, with little if any effect.

I think as long as there's a scene where it all comes out between the three of them I'll be happy - I was waiting for Burrich or Molly to find out and for shit to hit the fan all throughout that third book, so as long as it happens I'll be happy

 

[Outremangeur]

That was my exact thought when I first read the name of the trilogy. Thankfully I saw that after getting the books and went ahead and read them anyway

Might be worth trying the Long Price Quartet, very good books, and very different to most fantasy - one of the few series that impressed me as much as Liveships. Something in a more traditional world but a lot of fun is the Riyria Revelations. Also maybe the Old Kingdom trilogy if you want something light and a little unusual that has a feckload of zombies and magic. (all three of those are completed series, if you go for Riyria make sure you pick up Revelations before Chronicles - Chronicles are a prequel series best read after Revelations)

Is there no sci-fi thread on here? Been reading some awesome sci-fi this week, Ready Player One was awesome, might appeal to people who usually just read fantasy as well

Well...some time has passed and some reading has been done.

Long price has been good indeed.
The only thing that I didn't like was all the hand signalling;-)

After that I read the Abhorsen stuff by Garth Nix. That was ok, but nothing great I thought.

Now I just finished blood song by Anthony Ryan. Don't know who Suggested that, but I liked it very much! Thanks! There's a second part as well but it's 16 Euros...wtf!

I'm gonna start Riyuria now.

 

[Raptori]

Spoiler

I've done a bit of Googling and people pretty much say the same as you about the characters. Everyone split as to whether it's a great series or not too! A few people have said they've gone onto Tawny Man straight away as they wanted more of Fitz and that part of the world and then backtracked to Liveships straight after, with little if any effect.

I think as long as there's a scene where it all comes out between the three of them I'll be happy - I was waiting for Burrich or Molly to find out and for shit to hit the fan all throughout that third book, so as long as it happens I'll be happy

Spoiler

Yeah, it definitely seems to depend on the person. The sad thing is that it'll always be overlooked by a lot of people who would like it don't read it because they dislike Farseer - particularly those who find Fitz too irritating or dislike the first-person narrative - and then some people don't enjoy Liveships because it's not Fitz so it gets rated lower due to that. It'll probably always be a little underrated. Not to mention the whole "why the hell would I want to read read about sentient ships" reaction that most people have when they read the blurb!

Yeah then you'll be all good at the end!

Well...some time has passed and some reading has been done.

Long price has been good indeed.
The only thing that I didn't like was all the hand signalling;-)

After that I read the Abhorsen stuff by Garth Nix. That was ok, but nothing great I thought.

Now I just finished blood song by Anthony Ryan. Don't know who Suggested that, but I liked it very much! Thanks! There's a second part as well but it's 16 Euros...wtf!

I'm gonna start Riyuria now.

Glad you liked them! A lot of people dislike the hand signalling stuff, for me it faded into the background and I didn't really notice it after a few chapters. Swings and roundabouts I guess! You might like The Grace of Kings as well, the atmosphere and writing reminded me of Long Price, and most of the complaints people have about it are that it's too slow, just like Long Price.

Abhorsen is definitely YA really, good fun but not too deep. I might pick up Blood Song, it's been on my to-read list for ages...

 

[Nighteyes]

I've been reading The Blade Itself and it kinda reminds me a bit of GoT....in that I've got no fecking clue as to what's going on in the story. I've resorted to doing what I did with GoT initially...take notes

Spoiler

Ship of Magic 10/10
The Mad Ship 10/10
Ship of Destiny 10/10

 

[Raptori]

I read them while on holiday. I pretty much refused to leave the hotel unless my missus dragged me kicking and screaming... and then I insisted we just went to the beach so I could read some more.

 

[Revan]

I've been reading The Blade Itself and it kinda reminds me a bit of GoT....in that I've got no fecking clue as to what's going on in the story. I've resorted to doing what I did with GoT initially...take notes

It is definitely the closest thing to ASOIAF that I have read. Didn't think that either of them was as complex as to need taking notes.

Heard that Malazan on the other side...

 

[Raptori]

It is definitely the closest thing to ASOIAF that I have read. Didn't think that either of them was as complex as to need taking notes.

Heard that Malazan on the other side...

I don't think Malazan is too complex, it just gives you no context. I had no problems following it, that wasn't why I stopped reading. I stopped reading when it became a chore - I couldn't care less about any of the characters, the plot was pretty uninspiring, the setting was merely okay... there just wasn't really anything to keep me reading, and I've got so much other stuff to read that I can't be arsed wasting my time on something that doesn't keep my interest.

I gave up my resistance and started reading The Name of the Wind last night. Currently 30% in and really enjoying it.

 

[Outremangeur]

I don't think Malazan is too complex, it just gives you no context. I had no problems following it, that wasn't why I stopped reading. I stopped reading when it became a chore - I couldn't care less about any of the characters, the plot was pretty uninspiring, the setting was merely okay... there just wasn't really anything to keep me reading, and I've got so much other stuff to read that I can't be arsed wasting my time on something that doesn't keep my interest.

I gave up my resistance and started reading The Name of the Wind last night. Currently 30% in and really enjoying it.

Malazan is for me really up there with the best.
I have read it over the summer and was really captivated by the world. It sure does have its flaws, but there is not much better out there.

The name of the wind...i think you are really going to like it!

 

[Krovv]

I don't think Malazan is too complex, it just gives you no context. I had no problems following it, that wasn't why I stopped reading. I stopped reading when it became a chore - I couldn't care less about any of the characters, the plot was pretty uninspiring, the setting was merely okay... there just wasn't really anything to keep me reading, and I've got so much other stuff to read that I can't be arsed wasting my time on something that doesn't keep my interest.

Same here. Till book 6 I read through real quick. After that most of my favourite characters were gone and the new ones weren't appealing enough and what was left of the plot wasn't interesting enough to follow. It's a good series but once again suffers from poor editing and pacing issues. I know there are a lot of fans of the Malazan series here, but I honestly don't know how anyone could get through the whole thing. I had to stop midway through book 8.

 

[Raptori]

Malazan is for me really up there with the best.
I have read it over the summer and was really captivated by the world. It sure does have its flaws, but there is not much better out there.

The name of the wind...i think you are really going to like it!

Yeah I might try to pick it up again at some point, but the 50% or so of the first book really did nothing for me. Even the big, epic battle scenes felt flat because I just wasn't invested in it.

Yeah, definitely seems like it so far!

Same here. Till book 6 I read through real quick. After that most of my favourite characters were gone and the new ones weren't appealing enough and what was left of the plot wasn't interesting enough to follow. It's a good series but once again suffers from poor editing and pacing issues. I know there are a lot of fans of the Malazan series here, but I honestly don't know how anyone could get through the whole thing. I had to stop midway through book 8.

Interesting, you're the first person I've seen who didn't either love the whole thing or stop partway through the first book! I only read half of the first one, since I'm trying to learn to put down anything I'm really not enjoying rather than force myself to read it... :/

 

[Waldner]

Bit of a strange question this. I've got a very, very rough idea for a fantasy book (very bad one too probably!) and just for something to do I've been trying to flesh it out to incorporate a whole world setting, similar to any fantasy series. I just can't do it! It's hard to even plan out any kind of depth/originality to it without trying to get events to link together on a timescale etc. Anyone has any useful links for this, having tried it themselves? Bear in mind this is literally something for me to do when I'm in the mood and totally bored so nothing major, not expecting much to come of it. It's just fun thinking up ideas for things!

 

[Raptori]

Bit of a strange question this. I've got a very, very rough idea for a fantasy book (very bad one too probably!) and just for something to do I've been trying to flesh it out to incorporate a whole world setting, similar to any fantasy series. I just can't do it! It's hard to even plan out any kind of depth/originality to it without trying to get events to link together on a timescale etc. Anyone has any useful links for this, having tried it themselves? Bear in mind this is literally something for me to do when I'm in the mood and totally bored so nothing major, not expecting much to come of it. It's just fun thinking up ideas for things!

You could probably do with reading Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel and Collapse, which detail the rise and fall of civilisations respectively. Very good for getting an overview of how human society develops over time, and what kind of influences you should look to build into your world's history. I find that the concepts taught by those books, along with a good map, means it's pretty easy to get a good overview of what kind of world history you're going for.

Another good idea is to look for situations in the real world that interest you, like the fall of the Roman Empire (Foundation was based on that) or the rise of the Han Dynasty (Grace of Kings), or the War of the Roses (A Song of Ice and Fire). From that starting point, you can spread in both directions in time. Combining different moments in history can also be interesting, as long as you can get it to make sense!

 

[Nighteyes]

Bit of a strange question this. I've got a very, very rough idea for a fantasy book (very bad one too probably!) and just for something to do I've been trying to flesh it out to incorporate a whole world setting, similar to any fantasy series. I just can't do it! It's hard to even plan out any kind of depth/originality to it without trying to get events to link together on a timescale etc. Anyone has any useful links for this, having tried it themselves? Bear in mind this is literally something for me to do when I'm in the mood and totally bored so nothing major, not expecting much to come of it. It's just fun thinking up ideas for things!

I've been doing this for the last 4/5 years! Purely for myself and to be frank it's a load of horsecrap for the most part but I love doing it anyway.

Like you, I had a very very rough idea of what I wanted.

The first thing I did was sketch out a map on Paint. I've made loads of changes to it over the years but to start of it really helped me feel ever so slightly more serious about what I was doing. Get your terrains, borders, routes, castles etc.. marked out. Even staring at it has helped me come up with new stuff. Planning out whether your magic would be a full fledged system or just something vague also helps. A lot more chances of plot holes if you go with the former.

For planning out timelines and stuff, I used an excel file. I've got all my PoV characters written down there, the plots and their timelines all written down in a way that filtering across it makes it all clearer in my head while avoiding any major timeline lapses. Mine is a an epic fantasy so I've got separate tabs for all kingdoms, their back stories and characters. Really helps!

The biggest issue is originality. It's very hard to force your brain to think outside of what you've read and I've had numerous days when subconsciously I've just taken things from different books and then had to rewrite them. Also, in my experience forcing yourself to think of ideas won't really help. If you've really made up your mind to write a book then you'll think about it a lot and likely ideas will float up to you at odd moments. Just be sure to note them before you lose them!

Probably not what you were looking for but yeah...