Whats everyone reading?

[Colin YNWA]

Cool cheers. I do like my Pop history from that era (well in the broadest scene) and Tom Holland's excellent Rubicon is a great example of what I can happily get on with. Love that book.

[Mardroid]

Zenith Phase 4 - Kinda nuts, and I was slightly lost largely due to my memory of the predecessors being a bit faulty. I largely enjoyed it though. [spoiler]An interesting twist at the end of the main story.[/spoiler] And I wonder Grant Morrisen got away with some of the stuff in the zenith.com. I've yet to read the extras.

I think I preferred it to phase 3. Good overall. [spoiler]Zenith wasn't much of a player in the end, was he? Although that's not a bad thing.[/spoiler]

In thought of getting the slip-case in the sale, but figured, why bother? They stand confine next to each other. Still, it's a nice thing to have...

Bazaar of Bad Dreams - Stephen King's latest short story collection. I've read some of these stories before (and enjoyed rereading them) but there's plenty of new stuff. Again, all pretty good. The one I'm on now bares a strong resemblance in theme  to Death Note, an anime series I've been watching. It's not bad for that though, but a curious coincidence just the same. Or is it ka?

[TordelBack]

Cool cheers. I do like my Pop history from that era (well in the broadest scene) and Tom Holland's excellent Rubicon is a great example of what I can happily get on with. Love that book.

Yeah, it is a darned good read, although at times I could hear my old schoolfriend turned Classics professor wincing all the way from Michigan.

It's a different time and place, but a similarly engaging take on classical Athens is James Davidson's Courtesans and Fishcakes.

[ThryllSeekyr]

Finished Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny for a reading review podcast a friend of mine is putting together. Thought it was okay for fantasy, though I could care less for the main character and his goals. Can't relate to magic immortal royals fighting over thrones. Probably won't follow up on its sequels.

I recall first finding the very-soft-porn version as photo-story book when I was in my pre-teens still attending early school. Filled with pictures of Pan's, Satyr's, Centaurs & topless wood-Nymphs & Fauns. (Later wondering if I ever truly found this book as I can't find any trace of it now on the internet.) Which got my attention, but I thought this was presented so poorly that it turned me off that type of porn. (This was legitimate bookstore & not the adult section of any newsagency!) These pictures were photo real & blended with painted images or just poorly costumed mythological beasts like a  early version what Clint Lanely did with Books of Invasions.  This never got me into the Nine-Princes stuff ever again. Until I discovered, the Shannara world had been adapted to television. Very poorly as well!

Wondering if the original work will ever be adapted to film or television likewise. I know little of it, the walking the intricate patterns or something like that (Reminding me of tracing the black-spiral from the Werewolf the Apocalypse game manuals.) to cross over to the modern day world or something like that.

I guess nothing these days is truly original.

[ThryllSeekyr]

Finished Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny for a reading review podcast a friend of mine is putting together. Thought it was okay for fantasy, though I could care less for the main character and his goals. Can't relate to magic immortal royals fighting over thrones. Probably won't follow up on its sequels.

I recall first finding the very-soft-porn version as photo-story book when I was in my pre-teens still attending early school. Filled with pictures of Pan's, Satyr's, Centaurs & topless wood-Nymphs & Fauns. (Later wondering if I ever truly found this book as I can't find any trace of it now on the internet.) Which got my attention, but I thought this was presented so poorly that it turned me off that type of porn. (This was legitimate bookstore & not the adult section of any newsagency!) These pictures were photo real & blended with painted images or just poorly costumed mythological beasts like a  early version what Clint Lanely did with Books of Invasions.  This never got me into the Nine-Princes stuff ever again. Until I discovered, the Shannara world had been adapted to television. Very poorly as well!

Wondering if the original work will ever be adapted to film or television likewise. I know little of it, the walking the intricate patterns or something like that (Reminding me of tracing the black-spiral from the Werewolf the Apocalypse game manuals.) to cross over to the modern day world or something like that.

I guess nothing these days is truly original.

I was older actually, like 12 or 13, because I was in early high school stopping at the bookstore on my way home.

[Colin YNWA]

Just finished the final (for now) Nexus Omnibus 6 which covers the last 15 or so issues of the original 80 issue series. It was typically fantastic, Nexus really is a quite superb series, though sadly missing Steve Rude's art (and Paul Smith who seemed to be doing a lot of the fill stuff) its pretty much on a par with the first 5 volumes. What was fascinating and if I'm honest a little off putting, was some of the political reflections and how they are currently relevant. Very relevant.

For those reading the series (think there's a couple of folk about these parts) I'll keep this spoiler light but be mindful of whats to be said.

See Ylum the planet which is central to the series and politics of which have been increasing its spotlight, is a clear analogue for America. On Ylum, a world built on refugees there are a host of races and religions, one of which is the Elvonic faith. Given the way Nexus works the Elvonic religion is an analogue for America's relationship with Islam, certainly Islamic extremism (possibly religious extremism in general). To that end when the planet's problems with Elvon escalate the solution bares close examination with some modern opinions which I find pretty appalling.

In a story sense they make perfect sense. Its just through the prism of modern reading it takes a different tack and the fact that Nexus packs so much in (it really does, its quite brilliant at that) means that some of the discussions and examination of the issues become simplistic, which is the last thing Nexus is generally.

It all makes for a fascinating read and one that's wonderfully prophetic today for a comic written in 1990!

[Mikey]

Romans and Aliens? Hmmm...

In Thrace, no-one can hear you scream...

FRIED GOLD.

I've just started The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons - I got an omnibus four bleedin years ago and only read Hyperion late last year. The man can write and I enjoyed the structure,writing styles and mystery of the first book so much it took me a while to engage fully with Fall... but am now absorbed. Great stuff! The only other Simmons I've read is The Terror which was utterly fantastic and I'd highly recommend it.

[TordelBack]

Romans and Aliens? Hmmm...

In Thrace, no-one can hear you scream...

Arf!  Readers who go in expecting a prequel to Cowboys and Aliens won't be disappointed - it's every bit as dull as the original.

[Tjm86]

Guards! Guards! - I've decided to do a bit of a thematic re-read of the Discworld novels. Aside from owt else I need something to take my mind of work and the pleasures of 'INSPECTION' The Night Watch has always struck me as one of the more endearing set of characters and the stories tend to have more laugh out loud moments (at least that's how it seems to me).  It always amazes me how Pratchett can take a complete stereotype and turn it into a real character. 

As always devoured in less than a day in between all the other mayhem in work.  Next stop - Men At Arms.

[Theblazeuk]

The Expanse books. Quite different in just enough ways from the TV series, blew right through three books in the last week. It doesn't take the direction that I thought it would and certain things happen a little too repeatedly, but all in all good fun and the space mechanics are nice and interesting (thrust gives gravity, etc).

[Citi-Def_Joe]

I have been dipping my toe in to the world of Star Wars novels recently,  and from what I have read so far pleasantly surprised.
I really enjoyed Death Troopers and I am currently on the third book of Darth Bane Trilogy.
Darth Plagueis and Darth Maul: Lockdown are next....

[von Boom]

Hellblazer: Original Sin. Going back to the very beginning. I haven't read this since it first came out.

[ThryllSeekyr]

Guards! Guards! - I've decided to do a bit of a thematic re-read of the Discworld novels. Aside from owt else I need something to take my mind of work and the pleasures of 'INSPECTION' The Night Watch has always struck me as one of the more endearing set of characters and the stories tend to have more laugh out loud moments (at least that's how it seems to me).  It always amazes me how Pratchett can take a complete stereotype and turn it into a real character. 

As always devoured in less than a day in between all the other mayhem in work.  Next stop - Men At Arms.

More favourites of mine & then there is the Reaper-Man & the The Colour of Magic.

[Tjm86]

I've always recommended Mort and Reaper-Man as some of the better places to start on the Discworld series rather than The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic.  The first two books are enjoyable but show Pratchett still trying to find his voice properly.  They feel a bit like he is still trying to hard.  Mort is the first to really showcase his strengths to my way of thinking.

Having now worked through Men at Arms, Jingo and the Fifth Elephant I'm now on to Thud.  It is interesting to see how the whole cast has evolved over the course of the books on some levels.  The humour has become more subtle and the social analysis more complex.  Jingo was probably the best for the humour, especially Vetinari's take on the old Jingo song:  "We have no ships. We have no men. We have no money, too".

Thud is probably the best book for a critique of some of the complexities of extremist thinking.  The Deep Downers cast as a comparison for, I'm guessing, Extremist Preachers of all stripes.  Along with The Fifth Elephant, Pratchett found the perfect scenario for examining ethnic tension in the Dwarfs and the Trolls.

I did think about including Monstrous Regiment since Vimes appears but since it is only as a supporting character near the end it got passed over for now.

[Fungus]

Tackling the unread mountain of comics.

Last 5 issues of Fraction's ODY-C, a stunning series. Made with absolute love, it's - probably? - under-appreciated. The classical themes aren't always apparent but even when they're not.... (a) stare goggle-eyed at the art, it's beautiful, and (b) it's become a hotch-potch of classical tales anyway (forget ancient Greek) and has recently become more accessible.

Moore's Providence. Read issues 1 to 3 tonight and I'm enthralled. Few more issues till I catch up but the sub-human characters of the fishing village are so well depicted. Plus the dream sequence.... Jeez, it's involving and wonderful stuff. Expecting the craziness to kick off very soon...