SciFi and Fantasy eBook Club discussion

I've read all the books thus far and of course have been following the TV series avidly. My favourite character in the books is Tyrion closely followed by Arya, for similar reasons I suppose; they're clever, cunning, resilient and adaptable. They're survivors and I hope unlike so many other characters I like in the books they survive right to the very end. Least favourite character - Joffrey without any hesitation!

I 've also read all the books (I recently finished "A Dance With Dragons") and I also, like Mark above, have seen the series.
My favorite characters are Daenerys, Khal Drogo, Tyrion, Arya and Jon Snow. Least favorite characters, Joffrey and Cersei, Viserys, Theon and (surprise, surprise) Catelyn.
Favorite episodes.. Hmm I have enjoyed every episode up to now, even though the storyline changes in later seasons (The gist remains the same-so no worries)

Books: Decently written series. Often over-rated and often not very engaging subtextually.

Show: The only thing I watch on TV, because generally I despise every attempt at drama on the 'tube. Even still, while it does a great job on a TV budget, it too fails to satisfy the intellectual interest.

So in short, both are decent stories, but far from the cream of the crop.

I gave up on the series half way through book 3 - and it was before august 2008 because I read them as paperbacks. The series started out well. It was complex and interesting and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

3700 pages I felt like it was rambling along going no where at all with huge sections devoted to one sub-plot that then wouldn't be visited for another 700 or so pages.

I haven't watched an episode simply because I turned off all the pay channels in 2001 during the last recession and never bothered to turn them back on ...

Geoffrey wrote: "I gave up on the series half way through book 3 - and it was before august 2008 because I read them as paperbacks. The series started out well. It was complex and interesting and I thoroughly enj..."


That's pretty much my thought, as well.

Book 3...kindle, though... :)
All my favorite characters were stalling....just was not looking forward to the next book.
The hubbub of the tv show is what made me look at the series, but I've never seen more than a commercial.
No tv since digital age....LOL

I read the first three books ten years ago; they fair to good; I bought the forth but never read it. I'm not loosing any sleep by not finishing or continuing. I haven't bothered with the TV show.

I have a rule of thumb that works pretty with popular shows or bestselling books - treat them like rattlesnakes. The popularity the dry rattle warning me to back off.

I don't mind all the subplots and side-stories. I don't mind that the story keeps branching out into ever more complex scales.

But I do mind, to some extent, that beyond the plot level there's just about nothing beneath. It's an entertaining tale, but that's it. All special effects and no meat.

Mark wrote: "I've read all the books thus far and of course have been following the TV series avidly. My favourite character in the books is Tyrion closely followed by Arya, for similar reasons I suppose; they'..."

My favourite characters, too, and for the same reasons. I haven't read the books, but have watched series one and two as box sets. Love it. I likely won't read the books now, as there are so many other books I want to read, and Ive heard so many people stopped reading after the first few.