The Gaming Den

Figured I'd make a topic about this.

We had a similar topic on this in one of the other forums but I don't remember where it was so I suppose I will start another topic about it.

RIght now, I'm on four different books.

"The Fabulous Riverboat" - Phillip Jose Farmer - second book in the riverworld series - has some matrix-like setting stuff but was written in the '60s. It inspired Zelazny's Amber.

"Black God's Kiss" - Catherine Moore - Anthology of Jirel of Joiry stories. I picked this up in the library yesterday. She's supposed to be the original lady of fantasy or whatever. Decent.

"Tom Strong" - Alan Moore - My comic fix A pastische of Tarzan + superman.

"A History of Western Philosophy" - Bertrand Russell - I often pick this up and just read a random chapter just to refresh my memory on whatever philosopher.
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Edit: Finally edited the title to fix WHat to What. It only took me a year or so.

I've been mowing through the Discworld series again, because it's nice, light reading. Other than that, every now and then I read a chapter of "How to rule the world" and "The Art of War" (with commentaries)

Right now, I'm reading some Star Wars Extended Universe stuff.

Timothy Zahn's The Last Command.

But I'm also getting the urge to re-read Nurk and the Book of the Gear, both by Ursula Vernon...

Currently reading The Story of Psychology, which is, interestingly enough, not a fantasy novel. Just finished A Man Rides Through and The Mirror of Her Dreams, by Stephen R. Donaldson. Also reading The Bible.

I just finished The Game by Neil Strauss. Now I'm rereading The Reality Dysfunction by Peter Hamilton and preparing to get back to Physics moddeling books because my end-of-term tests start in like a week

There are many books I want to read, I just haven't gotten around to picking them up yet. I just finished rereading The Long Walk. Now I need to decide what to start on next.

I just finished The Name of the Wind, based on some... impressive recommendations. And yet, I found it to be nothing special.

I just finished The Prince of Nothing Series about a month ago. Since then, I've been re-reading some comics: The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: Year One, 300, The Long Halloween, and Dark Victory.

I'm taking a trip to Barnes and Noble tonight looking for reading material.

Also, I have heard the fifth book in the Song of Fire and Ice is due out next month, but I'm not holding my breath.

Game On,
fbmf

He's planning that, fbmf.

At least, that's what he said at the last reading I attended...

-Crissa

Reading Ilium and Olympos by Dan Simmons. Sci Fi about troy and other stuff. Not bad though Olympos doesn't do any recap so I was a bit lost for the first 200 pages having waited 2 years between books

I read The Watchmen in the airport a few weeks ago. Very good. Gonna make a really bad movie though.

Just finished reading "The Fire Duke" by Joel Rosenberg. It's the first of a trilogy of a pretty swanky world with Norse stuff being just out of synch of ours, reachable via "Hidden Ways". Stuff happens. Most Aesir and Vanir are dead or sorely weakened from age, etc. Also, has lots of fencing (epee and foil), which was kinda cool.

Takes liberties with stuff, but it has rocked so far. Waiting on the second book as it arrives by mail.

shirak wrote:I just finished The Game by Neil Strauss.

I hope you have better luck than I did with that tripe. "Anyone can attract women" my ass, Strauss.

I read Watchmen recently. Several times, actually. I enjoyed it on multiple levels--for one, Rorshach is cool when he's kicking ass, and for another another, all those different perspectives and the realization that not even someone as amoral as the Comedian is completely inhuman.

A few weeks back, I got the whole Artemis Fowl series out of the library. It's not bad; at least it's funnier than most of those "Hidden World" knockoffs of Harry Potter.

Uh, what else...Right now, I'm re-reading the Belgariad, as I said on IMHO. I also bought the Spearwielder Trilogy (by R.A. Salvatore) for pretty cheap, since it was on sale at Books-A-Million. It's been the better part of ten years since I've read it, but I remember it being a decent way to pass the time, and a break from Drizzt.

L.E. Modesitt's Mage-Guard of Hamor, with Lord-Protectors Daughter to follow. And then George Martins A Feast For Crows. Read Watchmen myself not long ago, and The Killing Joke too.

TOZ wrote:L.E. Modesitt's Mage-Guard of Hamor, with Lord-Protectors Daughter to follow. And then George Martins A Feast For Crows. Read Watchmen myself not long ago, and The Killing Joke too.

I'm a big fan of Modesitt. Very strong internal consistency when I last dipped into the order/chaos series.

Gods yes. I pick all his books up.

Huh. Might have to look into him next time at the bookstore or library, then.

I can't stand Modesitt, personally. I read The Magic of Recluce and it was...okay, although it fell prey to the usual "Law good! Chaos bad!" trap that seems to hit most Law-vs-Chaos fantasy.

Then I tried to read another of his - I forget what - and it was all in present tense and was about five times as much work as it should have been to read it. So I didn't.

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Of late I've been reading more gaming manuals than actual fiction, but I am rereading Tolkien's Unfinished Tales and about to start The Magicians' Guild, by Trudi Canavan. Oh, and I just finished The Heart of Valor by Tanya Huff. Military SF; good stuff.

Picked up "Storm Front" - Jim butcher.

It's the first book of the Dresden files series. A mix of wizardry and detective-noir. Seems vaguely interesting. Let's see how long it'll hold my interest.

Went back and read "A Song for the basilisk" by Patricia Mckillip. Her writing while is damnably flowery can be enjoyable in short spurts.

I'm getting second hand Twilight readings from my wife just to "spite me."

"Ivanhoe" is on my short list of reading but I forgot how thick a reading it can be. So I've put it down for now.

A_Cynic wrote:Picked up "Storm Front" - Jim butcher.

It's the first book of the Dresden files series. A mix of wizardry and detective-noir. Seems vaguely interesting. Let's see how long it'll hold my interest.

The Dresden Files are fucking awesome.

Book 2 is a little rough - Harry gets his ass kicked a lot - but it's definitely worth the ride. "Proven Guilty" is probably my favorite,

I recently read this as assigned reading:

Trust me when I say it's not the title or cover - it's the fact that human beings (I suppose) are being required to read this that dealt me SAN damage.

ubernoob wrote:I recently read this as assigned reading:

In the vein of the Smart Bitches, I will give an analysis of this cover.

Highlights:

*He does not have much of a mullet.

*The stubble's not bad.

The Badwrong:

*He's wearing a shirt unbuttoned. Yet he has it tucked in.

*That purplish-pink aura around him makes me wonder if they're trying to hint something about him (hur hur hur).

*He's a gym monkey. Look at that man-titty and the roll of those abs. A gay sculptor from ancient Greece would be hard-pressed to surpass that.

Edit: Make the Burning Stop:

*On second look at the cover, I notice that his abdominals are somehow in a staggered pattern. I think I'm looking at not just a six-pack, but a Buy a Six-Pack, Get One Free 12-oz.

Bigode wrote:Trust me when I say it's not the title or cover - it's the fact that human beings (I suppose) are being required to read this that dealt me SAN damage.

It wasn't assigned by a prof. It was assigned by a chick I RP with. She wanted me to expand my base for writing smut. Also, it seems that the male lead in the book is suspiciously like myself in a number of respects. She wanted to show me a book written about myself it seems.