Philotic Web

Perfect timing, mang! I've been rereading them/finally buying them for myself, and, trust me, they only get better. I think the series really starts to hit its stride in the third book, Grave Peril, and I'm not just saying that because the TWO BEST CHARACTERS are introduced in it. Although they help. Fool Moon is probably my least favorite of all of them, actually, despite Storm Front's pretty slowly pacing.

I guess this means that even if I don't really like Fool Moon, I'll be reading the third book on your recommendation.

I'm holding you responsible.

Oh no, the third book is far worse than Fool Moon, IMO (& one of my friends opinion). Though yes, my two favorite characters are introduced in Grave Peril, despite the fact I found the overall plot pretty meh.

I'm 2/3 into Turn Coat and looking forward to hopefully starting Changes tonight.

Has anybody else read any of the Myron Bolitar books by Harlan Coben?

Nate's parents got us (me) started on them and I really enjoy them but I think I might be the only person I know reading them.

The main character is a sports agent (who used to do some secret work for the FBI with his sociopathic but still totally charming best friend) who solves mysteries involving his clients' various legal and personal woes. They're also hilariously funny (but read as a total deadpan... if you can read in deadpan.)

Has anybody else read any of the Myron Bolitar books by Harlan Coben?

Nate's parents got us (me) started on them and I really enjoy them but I think I might be the only person I know reading them.

The main character is a sports agent (who used to do some secret work for the FBI with his sociopathic but still totally charming best friend) who solves mysteries involving his clients' various legal and personal woes. They're also hilariously funny (but read as a total deadpan... if you can read in deadpan.)

My mom and sister-in-law are big fans. I haven't gotten around to reading any of them, but from what they've told me they seem pretty awesome.

Has anybody else read any of the Myron Bolitar books by Harlan Coben?

Added to the list, now. (As if the list weren't long enough...)

So... hoping for recommendations again. I've had a hankering for more Sci-Fi stuff, and I'm hoping that people will have some ideas! Old Man's War was awesome, so books like that, if you can think of any?

I just read Scorch trails really random. Was okay.

Honestly I think enders game is the only thing sci-fi i like...

I liked Dracula and the three musketeers....

Just finished FIRELIGHT by Sophie Jordan. It was awful. The Draki mythos was so promising, but the book is a mess. Twilight-esque in the very worst way. No substance to the romance. No character development. I pretty much hated the protagonist and the only characters I liked were those I'm pretty sure are meant to be antagonists/foils. Ugh. Such a mess.

Am half-way through with ACROSS THE UNIVERSE by Beth Revis and cannot put it down. So good! I am so upset that I have to work and can't just read it straight through.

My post-baby brain these days is more magazine-mode then book-mode, but I've managed to get halfway through the Book Thief by Markus Zuzak, and I'm loving it so far.

Rereading all of Harry Potter, for pretty much no reason other than so I can before part 2 of the deathly hallows movie comes out.

Also reading Xenocide...fffff there's so many boring parts I just want to skip over, and OSC takes forever to get the ball rolling sometimes.

Which really is my main problem with Brave story (Miyuki Miyabe), she takes so long to get into the meat of the story that I almost rage quit from having to read about the boring parts of the protag's school life, but it's a goopd book nonetheless. Thick enough to be a weapon though, it's a shame there isn't an e-book version of it, I'd much rather have it on my reader than have to lug around a 5 lb brick of paper.

And no, I have no clue why I'm reading different books at the same time. Its a wonder I don't get them confused.

Finished ACROSS THE UNIVERSE.

Lovers of YA sci-fi dystopia? Read it.

Finished ACROSS THE UNIVERSE.

Lovers of YA sci-fi dystopia? Read it.

Requested from my library but the system only has one copy and twelve holds so it'll be awhile.

So... hoping for recommendations again. I've had a hankering for more Sci-Fi stuff, and I'm hoping that people will have some ideas! Old Man's War was awesome, so books like that, if you can think of any?

So I haven't actually finished either of them, but for some reason I immediately though of Paul McAuley's The Quiet War and Gardens of the Sun. And he has another coming out soon that sounds more up my alley, at least. And also kind of random, but Spin by Robert Charles Wilson. Also random? Adam-Troy Castro's Andrea Cort series, though each book so far is only really based on one planet.

(Though as always I'm recommending Iain Banks. Specifically Use of Weapons if you liked the Scalzi.)

So... hoping for recommendations again. I've had a hankering for more Sci-Fi stuff, and I'm hoping that people will have some ideas! Old Man's War was awesome, so books like that, if you can think of any?

A Scalzi fan recommended the Lost Fleet series by Jack Campbell, but I haven't picked it up, yet.

Just finished the first book of the Lost Fleet series. Not quite as awesome as Old Man's War, but still very good Scifi. I love the fact that it takes in to account relativity and time delay. For example: Jumping FTL into a star system means that you'd be able to see an enemy fleet immediately, whereas it would take the enemy fleet the time it takes the light from your arrival to travel.

*thumbs up*

My post-baby brain these days is more magazine-mode then book-mode, but I've managed to get halfway through the Book Thief by Markus Zuzak, and I'm loving it so far.

I think I'm the only person who was completely bored by this book. My roommate and I fought about it frequently. It's been done before and--I'd argue--been done better. I wasn't at all emotionally invested and was just so uninterested I had to force myself to finish. I don't know what my problem is as I've never met another person who shares my opinion about that book. I wonder what it is I'm missing?

Interesting! It seems like your kind of book, Kelly.
I think what makes it seem a bit different to me (then other WWII books I've read) is that it takes place in Germany and is about civilians living their normal lives - not on the run or in a camp- just living. It is interesting to read, having just read Blackout by C. Willis, which takes place in London during the Blitz, and have it be such a similar story on the other side of the same war.

Though I'm only 3/4 through it, so that opinion may change.

Just finished the first book of the Lost Fleet series. Not quite as awesome as Old Man's War, but still very good Scifi. I love the fact that it takes in to account relativity and time delay. For example: Jumping FTL into a star system means that you'd be able to see an enemy fleet immediately, whereas it would take the enemy fleet the time it takes the light from your arrival to travel.

*thumbs up*

It sounds like an interesrting series. I think I may add it to my 'get around to reading' list.

I've just finished "Robots and Empire" and have therefore completed all of the novels and most of the short stories in Asimov's epic Robots/Empire/Foundation universe.

I exchanged a bag of books at the used book store up by renees house for The Language Instinct by Stephen Pinker.

I finally finished Blood Sweat and Chalk, fun little 'history o' football' book, made me appreciate and grasp the big picture of formations, strategy and tactics much better (considering I'd never played, much of what I see on TV is often opaque to me).

bought and devoured Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes. It's his 'airplane' version of Good Calories Bad Calories (which was a history and analysis of the epistememical trends of weight loss science). Since this book is neither presented like a research text nor is it one third citations, it's a much easier slog, much less repetitive and more clear and direct, as well as better presented. Still a bit too repetitive, still at times a bit opaque, but mostly brilliant.

MATCHED by Ally Condie.

So disappointed. Everyone else I know liked it, but I thought the beginning showed so much promise and then the whole thing just crashed and burned for me.

YA is becoming so formulaic and it makes me so sad.

MATCHED by Ally Condie.

So disappointed. Everyone else I know liked it, but I thought the beginning showed so much promise and then the whole thing just crashed and burned for me.

The friend I trust most in terms of reviews hated it, but I still have an interest in trying it, even though I did not care for the excerpt.

I am getting stuck in my book pile on a stretch of ones by authors I do like but I just don't really care for this particular book...

I thought it was like a donut; the middle was all sorts of empty but the beginning was okay, as was the end. Overall, I was letdown that it wasn't as strong as I was expecting but as far as fluff reading is concerned, it was decent enough.

It didn't work as fluff for me, because I can't stand Ky and I really didn't enjoy or believe the "romance" between him and Cassia. I also thought the world-building was weak, and that Cassia's impetus for change was trite. I thought the beginning was fantastic and combined with all the buzz the book has been getting I suppose my expectations were too high. Comparisons to THE GIVER are inevitable, but rather than expand on that touchstone it seemed as though MATCHED just hovered on it and paled in comparison. The only person I was really interested in or cared about at all was Xander, and it's clear the author intends to give him the short stick.

Hmm, while checking to see when I read it (December 14th), I noticed I gave it 4 stars out of 5, which doesn't feel accurate. Part of my issue with sites that allow rating is that my immediate ratings are likely to be inflated to begin with and then I feel bad giving less than a 3, even if it really deserves to be, but I also feel picky about what gets a 5, so I end up with all sorts of 4s that shouldn't be. 4 is the new C average. (Why did I never feel bad flunking most students who earned their Fs but I feel bad saying I didn't like a book?)

At any rate, I was checking to see the date for when I read it so I could justify coming in and saying, I have almost no recollection about the book beyond the very basic premise and a vague memory that I want to see how book two addresses the end of book one.


As for what I'm reading now, or going to try to read if work doesn't kill me first:

Cold Magic by Kate Elliott
Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse edited by John Joseph Adams
Ask a Mexican! by Gustavo Arellano
[other book whose title I don't want to mention]

Patrick Rothfuss just came out with the sequel to his amazing novel The Name of The Wind, on March 1st. This book, The Wise Man's Fear , is three years late, and has three years worth the hype, to live up to.

After getting it tomorrow/today, I will be partaking in this 1000 word literary delight all throughout this Spring Break that I'm spending at my college, which is currently a ghost town.

/Living the life

Was awesome. Enjoyed it. Worth the wait.

So... hoping for recommendations again. I've had a hankering for more Sci-Fi stuff, and I'm hoping that people will have some ideas! Old Man's War was awesome, so books like that, if you can think of any?

Lets see.... have you read the commonwealth series by Peter Hamilton? Damn good space opera in my opinion.

Implied Spaces by Walter Jon Williams was also very good.

Karl Schroeder is also a fun author, plus released several of books under creative commons, meaning you can read them for free.

Dan Simmons has two very good series. Most people like his Hyperion series the best, but personally I LOVED Illium and Olympos. They are a weird combo of greek mythology, Shakespeare's Tempest set in an awesome sci fi setting. Weird but awesome.

Im a huge fan of everything by Charles Stross as well (have i said that in this thread yet? I don't remember...) Singularity Sky, Iron Sunrise, Atrocity Archives, all amazing books.

Woot, Verner Vinge is FINALLY about to release another book in the same universe as Fire Upon the Deep, and Deepness in the Sky. Its suppose to come out late this year.

So I haven't actually finished either of them, but for some reason I immediately though of Paul McAuley's The Quiet War and Gardens of the Sun.

While I enjoyed these books, they reminded me a lot of the Mars trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson. Although Robinson's books are a tiny bit slower from the get-go, i enjoyed them alot more than The Quiet war.

On my current list of "To Read" includes Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. (Funny thing about this author, he is the one that is finishing Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series which i didnt really like... Sanderson is a much better author.)

and Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi.

Perfect timing, mang! I've been rereading them/finally buying them for myself, and, trust me, they only get better. I think the series really starts to hit its stride in the third book, Grave Peril, and I'm not just saying that because the TWO BEST CHARACTERS are introduced in it. Although they help. Fool Moon is probably my least favorite of all of them, actually, despite Storm Front's pretty slowly pacing.

I agree completely. But which characters are you referring to? Personally Michael Carpenter is my favorite character in the series...

I agree completely. But which characters are you referring to? Personally Michael Carpenter is my favorite character in the series...

Michael and Thomas, of course.

Michael and Thomas, of course.

ah, of course.... I thought maybe you meant Michael's daughter, but I didn't think she was introduced in that book. Its seems like everyone that has read the books is obsessed with her. Yea, another goth girl character, big deal. That being said, i still like her.

timeline, Michael chrichton

timeline, Michael chrichton

Hey, I just acquired that book but won't have a chance to read it for quite some time. Let me know how it is when you're done?

it's good but by far not as good as Enders game. But yes a good book to me. Tell me what you think when you get done

Was awesome. Enjoyed it. Worth the wait.

I'm about 100 pages from being finished, but I was curious,
*small Wise Man's Fear's spoilers coming up*

What do you think of this comment that Vashet made in the book?

"Early on I noticed a gentleness in you. It is a rare thing in one so young, and it was a large piece of what convinced me you were worth teaching. But as the days pass, I glimpse something else. Some other face that is far from gentle. I have dismissed these as flickers of false light, thinking them the brags of a young man or the odd jokes of a barbarian.
But today as you spoke, it came to me that the gentleness was the mask. And this other half-seen face, this dark and ruthless thing, that is the true face hiding underneath"
Vashet gave me a long look. "There is something troubling inside you. Shehyn has seen it in your conversations. It is not a lack of the Lethani. But this makes my unease more, not less. That means there is something in you deeper than the Lethani. Something the Lethani cannot mend."

To give you some referential context, this was immediately after Vashet beat him for saying that the point of carrying a sword was to use it. And, right before this, he was about to leave the Adem - and played his lute for Vashet.

I can't decide whether this might be related to the Cthaeh. Afterall, Bast says that any encounter with the Cthaeh is supposed to leave one diseased/poisonous/contagious. Since it's evil, sees all the possible futures branching out from the current moment, and then picks exactly what to say in order to manipulate the future to cause great destruction(Such as what happened with Lanre, that one powerful Namer stealing the moon and the war it caused, ect.)

"Reshi, the Cthaeh can see the future. Not in some vague, oracular way. It sees all the future. Clearly. Perfectly. Everything that can possibly come to pass, branching out endlessy from the current moment..." Kvothe's eyes went distant as he nodded to himself. "If it knows the future perfectly," he said slowly, "then it must know exactly how a person will react to anything it says." Bast nodded. "And it is vicious, Reshi." Kvothe continued in a musing tone. "That means anyone influenced by the Cthaeh would be like an arrow shot into the future." "An arrow only hits one person, Reshi." Bast's dark eyes were hollow and hopeless. "Anyone influenced by the Cthaeh is like a plague ship sailing for a harbor."..."Kvothe gave a wry smile. "So after a person meets the Cthaeh, all their choices will be the wrong ones." Bast shook his head, his face pale and drawn. "Not wrong, Reshi, catastrophic."

Thoughts?
I only see the relation because the Lethani is supposed to be the right way, the right path, the right choice in any given moment.
While, the Cthaeh is supposed to manipulate a person into doing the wrong things and making the wrong choices.
So it would make sense that people following the Lethani would notice it.

And there's an obvious conflict there.
However, Cthaeh's manipulation would overrule since he actually tells Kvothe he wouldn't find anyone who'd be willing to talk of the Chandrian till he made it to Stormwal - which is where the Adem Mercenaries live. So, part of the reason he went to the Adem and attempts to learn Lethani and Ketan is because Cthaeh's manipulated him into it. Thus, Cthaeh must have already taken into account his learning of Lethani in his manipulation of Kvothe into making choices that will lead to horrible consequences.

In that sense, this influence would be something in Kvothe that is not caused by a lack of Lethani, but deeper than the Lethani and incorporating it.

Or, maybe I'm jumping the gun and this is referring to the look the book mentions that Kvothe gets where his eyes get a darker shade of green and he looks evil/fearinspiring.

Maybe I'm wrong and we'll never know... Or we'll find out in the next/last book.

Those are my ponderings, what are your thoughts?

Hey, I just acquired that book but won't have a chance to read it for quite some time. Let me know how it is when you're done?

Timeline was my favorite Crichton for a long time. I'm not sure anymore, as its been a long time since I've read it (possibly The Lost World by now), but I had a lot of fun with it. Learned a lot of random stuff, as is common, especially fun things about quantum theory. Plus medieval things. Then the movie came out, which sucked, and so everyone assumed the novel sucked, so it was unpopular to bring it up among non-Crichton fans. Which was lame.

But yes, tell us what you think!

Those are my ponderings, what are your thoughts?

You put a lot more thought in to it than me, but what you say makes sense. I think it's just part of what makes Kvothe, Kvothe as well. He's always been quick to anger; that's his major weakness.

But I think also, perhaps Bast is being a little extreme in his description of the Cthaeh. I think the Cthaeh just sets you on the path that will bring about the most destruction that you're capable of. The longer you listen to the tree, the more it can poison you to the people in your life and the more it can manipulate the events to its liking.

A thought I had after this book was that Pat Rothfuss is going to be writing another three books. He has two general storylines going right now. Kvothe's life and what happens after Kvothe's life. Kvothe and Kote. I have the feeling that book 3 will finish up Kvothe's story up to the beginning chapters of the first book, and then we're going to get another trilogy covering Kote after he told the story of his life. There is no way that we can finish Kvothe's life and also resolve things happening in the world at the time of the Waystone Inn during book 3.