Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion

Choko and I have done a number of series BRs / binges over the last 2 years, so it just seemed natural to make an end-all thread to cut down on all the other threading.

InCryptid -- 8 books, 4 weeks, February to March 2018
Kurtherian Gambit -- 21 books, 18 months, March 2018 to August 2019
Vlad Taltos -- 8 books, 4 months, April to July 2019 ongoing/hiatus (7 books to go)

This is out first concerted effort to just pick a new series to read. First up, we're reading the works of Jasper Fforde, a Swedish bizarro author, in the vein of A. Lee Martinez / China Mieville / Terry Pratchet / etc, but on the funnier end of the spectrum, I think...

Nursery Crimes:

Thursday Next:

We're doing Nursery Crimes first, and we're starting today/tomorrow.

WARNING: Me and Choko are fast readers, so books tend to be over barely after they've begun, if anyone else decides to join... That's the inspiration for the thread name :)

So I started Nursery Crimes last night at work, since all of a sudden everybody wants to read books tomorrow (this, Scarlett Bernard #3 with Daniel, and I late joined the BRs for Senlin Ascends and Made to be Broken)

The epigraphs definitely grew on me as the book progressed. I'm near the end now and have laughed a ton. I love all the incorporated nursery rhyme references and children's book plots... I think I got about 75% of them...

The book is also pretty meta, with the Detective's guild and legislation to ban tropes and such... to the point, I now think the book tricked me with some red herrings of it's own (view spoiler)[for awhile, I thought the famous detective was the bad guy, trying to cover up the crimes by stealing the investigation... now I don't think so... (hide spoiler)]

I can't wait to hear what you think... I find books like this to be a mixed bag... some work for me and other don't... and this definitely did... I'm tempted to continue with the 2nd book quickly after finishing, but have also learned that with books like this, too much of a fun thing can sour the enjoyment... it's why I've read 6 A. Lee Martinez books now, and loved 2-3 of them... I've binged them in two 3-book lumps... they're all standalone...

On the other end of the spectrum, I never quite gelled with China Mieville's oddities... I read Kraken and the first Bas-Lag book, and decided he wasn't for me...

I've never actually read Discworld, altho I think I've almost read it twice... I loved Good Omens, tho... also haven't read Hitchhiker's Guide...

I haven't read hitchiker's guide to the Galaxy either... Maybe someday...

I love everything by Terry Pratchett, but as you said, you really have to space them out, or you would overdose and actually start getting bored... Those books should be read as pallet cleanser in between other more substantial reads... China Melville I have not tried yet. Goodness, there are so many authors that I need to still discover, I am excited!

So, starting this book right now. I am very encouraged by your response:-) And thanks for making this awesome thread:-)*\0/*!!!

Jasper Fforde is an author I'd like to get back to. His middle grade fantasy series The Last Dragonslayer was fun. Haven't tried his other series though.

Silvana wrote: "Jasper Fforde is an author I'd like to get back to. His middle grade fantasy series The Last Dragonslayer was fun. Haven't tried his other series though."

I accidentally deleted a comment about how I think Nursery Crimes is set in the same world as Thursday Next, and that you're more than welcome to join, since me and Choko will still be around long after we finish each book, even if you read slowe...

Choko wrote: "I haven't read hitchiker's guide to the Galaxy either... Maybe someday...

I love everything by Terry Pratchett, but as you said, you really have to space them out, or you would overdose and actual..."

Gil's All Fright Diner was the perfect intro to A. Lee Martinez, in my opinion... it's like a cross between Dukes of Hazzard and Dusk 'Til Dawn, and the audiobook totally sells it with the voices...

Haha! I can't stop laughing!!! or Humpty Dumpty! he was a philander though, and kind of a crook... Still, I want to know if he fell down that wall or if someone helped him down... Also, the conversation with his widow was hilarious!! He really got depressed around Easter... Hahahaha! And Jack the Giant Killer... Hahahaha! I can't take it! It is just adorable!!!

The whole thing is hilariously jam-packed with references... have you gotten to the cow painting yet?... Georgie Porgia ((view spoiler)[I think this is a mix of Georgie Porgie and the Borgias (hide spoiler)])... Wee Willy Winky... on and on...

The idea of the The Three Pigs being tried fairly by a jury of their peers (view spoiler)[(12 other pigs) (hide spoiler)] was laughable, as well...

They also really lean on Humpty Dumpty's casanova ways... towards the end, I think they say nearly 200 of his ex-lovers came forward to try and help with the investigation... like a tip line entirely of ex-lovers, lol...

I got to the point where Marry Mary agreed to give tips to that asshole! I am very disapointed in her! I hope she doesn't go through with it...

Prometheus as a border, ha!

The Humpty Dumpty autopsy, where she could do what all the king's men couldn't, was just precious!!!

I am catching a lot, but I am sure not all of it... Everything is just so good! I am laughing constantly:-):-):-)

Exactly... finally finished, and the ending is great... some big surprises, and pays off on a lot of random details like the 3 bags of wool (from Baa Baa Black sheep?)

Hahahaha! Just finished and it was absolutely delightful!!! I love it! All the people who wanted to kill him, poor Humpty Dumpty!!! And just the countless possibilities, it was a really good mystery too, not just funny. The world, a mixture of the mundane reality of today and the world of fairy tales and nursery rhymes, seamlessly intertwined, was awesome!

Just say when and I will be here for the next one:-)

I'd be up for book 2 sometime next week, once I catch up on all my other commitments at the moment :)

Awesome! works for me...

I've been doing series marathons by myself too!

You should join us or invite us to yours:-):-):-)

Yanique wrote: "I've been doing series marathons by myself too!"

You should join us, or mention what you're reading / interested in reading... half my BRs with Choko are flexible series marathons/binges...

Like I mentioned at the top, we re-read the entire InCryptid series before the release of book 8 in under a month... we spread out Kurtherian Gambit over a longer period of time because I was overbooked and the series was a mixed bag, but we did a couple of 2-3 book binges along the way, and we binged a decent amount of Vlad Taltos back in April/May/June before getting sidetracked...

Laura and Daniel's MMM Book Club functioned similarly, until it branched off into official BRs of Graeme and Nick Moseley's books... I've been reviving the thread for books by Melissa F Olson recently, tho...

And I think you noticed me and Anni's Queen's Thief BRs that started near the end of last month... we also have a Skulduggery Pleasant thread going and are talking about reading The Wandering Inn: Volume 1

The chance to continue with The Fourth Bear is fast approaching :)

Finishing up Hope and Red right now, then I want to listen to Sweep of the Blade (finally released) and Queenslayer (anticipated BR), then I'm all free, I think...

After that I have a BR of Boundary Crossed, and I'm thinking of continuing with Issola finally (heads up!)

Starting now... I NEED this... first 75% of Queenslayer was a bit of a disappointment, then there was a WTF moment, and every little thing in the last 25% of the book just annoyed me... I couldn't stop complaining in the BR thread...

This came after I jokingly swore at Ilona Andrews for ending Sweep of the Blade with a bit of a cliffhanger regarding Klaus (the 3rd DeMille child)...

Clearly I led a sheltered childhood... I never heard of the Scissorman, *snip snip snip*

Ooo, my goodness! The scissorman was a biggy:-) Starting tomorrow for sure!

Clearly it's regional... I searched it online and found it on a site of 19th century German stories...

I'm almost done now... I didn't think this one was as good as the first one (maybe it was the novelty of being the first book like it I'd read)... but I had some good laughs here towards the end with things started coming together...

Still looking forward to Thursday Next...

For now, I'm going to catch up on Demonica novellas, since it seems that Larissa Ione is finally pushing forward with the sequel series soon...

I haven't read the Demonica for ever! Are you doing a full re-read?

Choko wrote: "I haven't read the Demonica for ever! Are you doing a full re-read?"

No... I'm jumping in with Hawkyn... it's where I left off, and where Larissa Ione says the relevant Azagoth plotlines start for the new books...

I'll be reading leading up to the release of

That means I'm skipping re-reading , which all happen between / & Hawkyn... if you've never read any Demonica Underworld novellas, you should probably read Azagoth then you can probably skip to Hawkyn... all the novellas are available with an Audible Escape subscription (the romance package)...

I tried doing a re-read of Demonica a year or 2 ago, and made it through the original couple books I think, and tapered off with the Four Horsemen... it's harder for me to re-read PNR, altho Demonica has a fair amount of plot/world to it compared to some...

Also, Dining with Angels doesn't have an audiobook, since it's a short story anthology / cookbook hybrid... gonna have to get that elsewhere...

I have that romance package and I love it. I will try to catch up with it soon, thanks! You are a fount of information and I really appreciate it!!!

Let's do The Eyre Affair soon... I was thinking in the next day or 2... reading Ghost in the Wind right now and City of Lies tonight... then I'm pretty open... can do this or a couple other books I have...

Started... despite being loosely connected to Nursery Crimes (from the cameo mention in Fourth Bear), this series is clearly much more serious...

I spoke a bit too soon last time... Thursday Next was funny... but a bit more subtle about it, vs how in your face Nursery Crimes was... sophisticated?...

Regardless, I grew to love it as the story progressed...

You want... to read... with me... Read... With... Me... READ WITH ME!!!!

:D

I really grew to love the book by the end... and the "magic" system...

I’m about to marathon Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch series this month 🤗

You're doing this on purpose... just kidding... I know you mentioned this a couple weeks ago... it's just that I just made a commitment to not start new things and push on clearing my TBR by New Year's...

Oh well... I AM interested in this... it looks like I can read the 3 main books... not too sure about the shorties... hit me up when you're ready, I'll be around...

🤗 I did mention it before an now the time is upon us! I’m not planning on reading anything beyond the main trilogy (didn’t even know there were any shirts). Probably start next weekend, I’m trying to get to quite a few things before then.

Timelord Iain wrote: "You're doing this on purpose... just kidding... I know you mentioned this a couple weeks ago... it's just that I just made a commitment to not start new things and push on clearing my TBR by New Ye..."

So I started Ancillary Justice yesterday! Let me know when you start.

I read it Saturday, since you mentioned the weekend... the early parts of the book reminded me of Murderbot Diaries...

Timelord Iain wrote: "I read it Saturday, since you mentioned the weekend... the early parts of the book reminded me of Murderbot Diaries..."

I agree, a mixture of murderbot and the Borg. I'm about 40% in, I'm reading physically so it's going to take longer since I have work so I will have to wait to finish it tonight. I also dropped everything to read The Starless Sea when I got it.

The middle chunk didn’t hold my attention very well... I rewound quite a bit and read a summary to make sure I didn’t miss anything important... the ending was worth it, tho, I think...

Timelord Iain wrote: "The middle chunk didn’t hold my attention very well... I rewound quite a bit and read a summary to make sure I didn’t miss anything important... the ending was worth it, tho, I think..."

So wow, I forgot to come on here to comment. I marathoned the remaining two books. I feel like this is the type of series to just power through like it's one book, because the story itself is relatively simple. In the end I really enjoyed it. My favorite parts were definitely our MC perspective and relationships, and the world building. I don't think the plot was particularly impressive.

Yanique wrote: "Timelord Iain wrote: "The middle chunk didn’t hold my attention very well... I rewound quite a bit and read a summary to make sure I didn’t miss anything important... the ending was worth it, tho, ..."

Nice to know... I was waiting for you to continue, but you powering on without me is no big deal... I've been going my own way this month and probably December, to try and clear my TBR without burning out on things I don't want to read, so planning is at a minimum...

I'll continue this in the next few days and at least leave a couple comments here you can see...

I’m such a Buddy Read failure 😩

Yanique wrote: "I’m such a Buddy Read failure 😩"

I'm not the best, either... it's my reading speed (you're similar, I think)... I either start early / on-time and am done before anyone starts, or I start late and have some things to respond to, but I still start and finish before anyone has a chance to notice my dozen or so comments...

Reading at work is a perk and a bane... I get so much more reading done, but I don't have time to stop and comment and theorize before I've finished the book and missed the chance to theorize in ignorance... sometimes I comment on guesses I had that proved right, but otherwise I just move on...

Slower reading also facilitates extra chances to just discuss random things in books that don't have much to discuss about the main plot, it seems...

All this to say, it's nice to just do half/most of my books solo, so I don't feel pressed to overdiscuss nothings, but then I'll be reading a solo book and finally have something I want to discuss and nobody to discuss it with without seeking out a thread or making one... I think it's why I returned to GG&G, where the main thread is just a "What are you reading 2019?" thread to mention and rate books you just read to inspire discussion and give ideas/recommendations on things to read from seeing them there...

Trying to find out the last time you were active, Choko, I just noticed you read the first 2 of these Thursday Next books without commenting... guess that means I can read the second one... hopefully you start commenting again, soon :)

Once I started reading the Thursday Next books without you, Choko, I couldn't stop... they were really great, once I accepted the differences from Nursery Crimes... and the absurdity of it all only got better with each book...

I finished this past week, and now I'm hoping to read sometime in the near future...

lets read colour of magiiiiiiiiiic :D

The echoing seems to be an audio decision to differentiate the prologue and footnotes from the main Rincewind story, I think... which would be fine, except the narrator seems to read faster in the echo chamber and the echo makes it harder to follow, so I find myself wanting to listen to the echo segments at slower speeds...

The Big Bang Theory... lolol... takes on whole new meaning with space turtles...

Timelord Iain wrote: "The Big Bang Theory... lolol... takes on whole new meaning with space turtles..."

that's exactly the part I realized I will enjoy this book!!!!

I've been doing terrible about making time to continue/finish this... I think I listened to a chunk on Sunday... through to the D&D segment... plan to rewind a bit when I continue, and read up on the wiki again...

The wiki seems like a pretty thorough accounting, from fans... the first book has a section where someone dissects the most important quotes/pages & their connection to the larger mythos... I read the sections relevent to the prologue, last week... I figure I can look at the first 60-100 pages, now...

omg lain I'm really sorry I couldn't read anything these past days, I will continue the book today!!!
I'm seriously ashamed...