With Dreams of Steel it feels that Glen Cook has hit his stride and has really matured as an author. This is fantasy at its finest: dark, mature and cWith Dreams of Steel it feels that Glen Cook has hit his stride and has really matured as an author. This is fantasy at its finest: dark, mature and captivating. The themes, the politics, the plots, the multiple viewpoints are all at another level.
This is the most political book of the Black Company so far. There's about 3-4 different factions and there's plots within plots within the plots.
Easy 5/5 and the Black Company is now in my top 3-4 fantasy series....more
A wonderful classic fantasy that reads like a fairytale. It's also ahead of its time staying away from the warring nations trope and having a dark skiA wonderful classic fantasy that reads like a fairytale. It's also ahead of its time staying away from the warring nations trope and having a dark skinned protagonist.
It never ceases to amaze me how authors from the 60s-70s manage to build expansive worlds with very few words. Modern authors have forgotten this art....more
Glen Cook is a true master of military fantasy. This is grimdark at its best before it was even a thing.
We are once again with Croaker and the Black Glen Cook is a true master of military fantasy. This is grimdark at its best before it was even a thing.
We are once again with Croaker and the Black Company and that is very welcome. The Company goes to new, exotic lands reminiscent of the Indian subcontinent. Here they face a new evil and fight the best battle of the series so far, hands down.
Everything Glen Cook is here: the fast pacing, the sparse writing, the lack of description, the brutality, the humour and the military life.
The 5 stars is sort of accumulated for the series so far. I really loved the Books of the North but had little issues with each one of them. But then I compare them with everything else I've read and realise at least one of them deserves 5 stars. So Shadow Games it is....more
Quite mediocre, weaker then the first book in the series. It is overbloated as usual for Sanderson. There were some very good moments especially towarQuite mediocre, weaker then the first book in the series. It is overbloated as usual for Sanderson. There were some very good moments especially towards the end. I find some characters very interesting and intriguing (Sazed) while others annoying (Elland and sometimes even Vin). It's probably a 2.5 overall as the novelty of the first book has worn off....more
Glen Cook closed out the 1980s by releasing the Silver Spike, a standalone conclusion to the Books of the North that wraps up a lot of the threads. ThGlen Cook closed out the 1980s by releasing the Silver Spike, a standalone conclusion to the Books of the North that wraps up a lot of the threads. The narrator is no longer Croaker but Case and we actually see little of the actual Black Company.
The book felt like a bit of a redux of the White Rose and because of that it feels a bit unnecessary. It basically undoes some of the events in the previous book and then once again resolves them. There's a bit too much deus ex machina. Also, Cook's famous sparse writing is particularly jarring, I had to go back and reread passages several times because it wasn't clear what was happening.
Despite its flaws the ending is explosive and full of action, I couldn't put the book down after around the 80% mark. There were quite a few surprises and twists as usual.
I gave the book a 3/5 to represent the accumulated frustrations of all the previous Black Company books. It would be a 3.5 in reality as it's definitely above many other books I rated with 3 stars....more
No, just no. This book is about running a coffee shop, incredibly uninteresting. Barely anything happens. I knew that's the point so was expecting to No, just no. This book is about running a coffee shop, incredibly uninteresting. Barely anything happens. I knew that's the point so was expecting to dislike it going in but thought I'd give it a go. The word 'cozy' makes me want to throw everything out the window....more
The Pariah is a solid 3.5 stars. The first 50% of the book starts off as pretty generic medieval fantasy with few things distinguishing it from the myThe Pariah is a solid 3.5 stars. The first 50% of the book starts off as pretty generic medieval fantasy with few things distinguishing it from the myriad other works in the genre. But the second half of the book becomes a lot more interesting with battles, political intrigues, religious plots and some big reveals. The battle especially description is very well done as it really brings to the fore the horror of a medieval melee.
Despite the really good second part and the excellent ending the medieval setting is too generic and I am a bit over the trope of viking inspired Northerners/islanders. The story takes bits from Robin Hood, Joan of Arc and a few other historical epics and brings them together. I am not sure if I will continue with the second book in the series or not, will play it by ear....more
A great climactic ending to the Books of the North trilogy of the Black Company. It's actually a very traditional fantasy ending to the series which wA great climactic ending to the Books of the North trilogy of the Black Company. It's actually a very traditional fantasy ending to the series which was a bit unexpected from Glen Cook.
Overall the world is expanded, there are multiple points of view, multiple timelines, huge twists and plenty of action. This is dark, mature fantasy at its finest....more
Glen Cook is fast rising in my ranking of fantasy authors. This book introduced multiple points of view and settled on a more traditional story structGlen Cook is fast rising in my ranking of fantasy authors. This book introduced multiple points of view and settled on a more traditional story structure. The whole story takes place only in a couple of locations. Everything is a lot more focused. There is a bit less confusing writing.
I missed a bit all of the travelling from front-line to front-line in the first book and also the company atmosphere and antics. But the ending made up for it. So unexpected and unorthodox, really loved it. The new characters introduced were so morally grey and great to read.
I'm reeling for more adventures of the Black Company!...more
No, no, no!! I really enjoyed Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire Trilogy but The Book That Wouldn't Burn is almost the worst book that I have read in my liNo, no, no!! I really enjoyed Mark Lawrence's Broken Empire Trilogy but The Book That Wouldn't Burn is almost the worst book that I have read in my life.
Usually in a fantasy story the author builds a world and a story and then weaves in deeper meanings, social critique, philosophical musings, historical allusions and so on. It feels like Mark Lawrence went exactly the opposite way in this book. He wanted to write a book with underlying meaning and full memorable quotes and then added some story at the end for the sake of it.
Most of the book was just pointless wandering through an endless library. This was as unbelievably boring as it sounds. The characters were very uninteresting, the romance was annoying.
All of the musings about knowledge, society, the cyclical nature of history, discrimination etc are so in your face, overt and cliche. They break the immersion and are also pretty obvious.
A few twists and reveals do nothing to reduce this boring mass of words. It almost makes me never want to read another Mark Lawrence book ever again....more
The second book of the Powder Mage trilogy was a fun, fast pace read. There was a bit of a drop in quality from the first book, the first 50% of the bThe second book of the Powder Mage trilogy was a fun, fast pace read. There was a bit of a drop in quality from the first book, the first 50% of the book was quite slow but then the action started and it never stopped until the end.
The series isn't a masterpiece by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a good romp and it reads very fast. Looking forward to finishing this trilogy....more
A very solid 3.5, very well paced and action packed. I enjoyed a whole lot more then the other Sanderson book I've read, the Way of Kings. I was readyA very solid 3.5, very well paced and action packed. I enjoyed a whole lot more then the other Sanderson book I've read, the Way of Kings. I was ready to give up on Sanderson but now I'm interested in continuing with the next book in this series.
Rounded down to 3 stars just because I gave 4 stars to other fantasy books written by authors I really love....more
Glen Cook is the grandfather of dark fantasy, the ancestor of today's grimdark genre. I've been wanting to read this one for a long time.
This is militGlen Cook is the grandfather of dark fantasy, the ancestor of today's grimdark genre. I've been wanting to read this one for a long time.
This is military fantasy at its best. The story revolves around the mercenary group the Black Company and their involvement in a civil war. There is politics, there is magic, there is humour and there is lots of grittiness. There are some battles but there is more of a focus on the individual mercenaries and their misadventures. There's lots of campside chats, jokes and mucking around.
I understand that Glen Cook was in the military, he didn't fight in Vietnam but would have been familiar with all of the military banter and day to day life.
For anyone that has read Steven Erikson's Malazan this book will feel very familiar as it was the inspiration behind the Malazan marines.
The difficulty of the book lies in the fact that the writing is very sparse. The descriptions are very minimal and there are little explanations. Things can get pretty confusing, I had situations where I re-read a paragraph 3 times and still didn't understand what was happening. But this is part and parcel of a trend popular with fantasy authors like Gene Wolf in the 80s.
The ending is explosive and there are some unexpected twists. All in all 4 out of 5 stars, the sparse writing and the lack of more large scale battles drags it down a bit. Definitely will continue with this wonderful classic....more
Empire of Black and Gold is the debut novel of the now well know Adrian Tchaikovsky. It's the start of a 10 novel series set in a steampunk world wherEmpire of Black and Gold is the debut novel of the now well know Adrian Tchaikovsky. It's the start of a 10 novel series set in a steampunk world where different nations of people have powers and features of insects.
There's beetle kinden, fly kinden, moth kinden and so on. The great enemy is the Empire of the wasps that is expanding and invading the city states of the Lowlands.
There is a lot of potential, the world is very unique wirh the combination of technology and the insect powers. The book does feel like an author's first because it starts off really well with a battle but then it dies off and the middle is a bit boring. There's a few young characters that are annoying and uninteresting but some of the older characters more then make up for it.
This book feels like a diamond in the rough, a lot could be improved but all the ingredients are there. Looking forward to try the next book in the series.
My ebook also included a few bonus short stories:
Fallen Heroes Spoils of War Dreams of Avaris Ironclads...more
King of Thorns was a step up in terms of quality of the writing compared to Prince of Thorns. Mark Lawrence is a wordsmith. However, it's quite a stepKing of Thorns was a step up in terms of quality of the writing compared to Prince of Thorns. Mark Lawrence is a wordsmith. However, it's quite a step down in terms of story and structure.
The book has two problems, first there are two timelines and dream sequences too and that makes things very confusing. I usually like confusing and twisted timelines but for some reason this book did it very poorly. To make matters worse Jorg also has some kind of amnesia too which introduces a whole new level of confusion.
Second, there is way too much meandering which isn't that interesting. The adventures in the first book were engaging but the second time around it just felt weaker.
That being said Jorg still shines and there are some very good parts. There are battles against all odds and several twists throughout the book. The ending of the book is really the highlight, I absolutely loved it and it was very satisfying despite some serious deus ex machina.
I quite enjoyed the fact that Jorg wasn't the only pov character. We get a second pov which is in the form of a journal.
All in all it is obvious that Mark Lawrence experimented with a few different ideas and styles. Some worked, some didn't. I was ready to give the book 2 stars but the ending brought it up to a 3.
I'm still looking forward to read Emperor of Thorns because I really want to see Jorg on the throne!...more
Really enjoyed Promise of Blood, it's my first gunpowder fantasy novel but certainly not the last one. It's a very fast read with non stop action invoReally enjoyed Promise of Blood, it's my first gunpowder fantasy novel but certainly not the last one. It's a very fast read with non stop action involving a revolution, politics, a mystery investigation, sorcery and even gods.
The world and style feels quite similar to Abercrombie's First Law but just not grimdark. I saw people say McLellan is similar to Sanderson but that couldn't be further from the truth since this book is very fast paced with no mundane details or endless build up.
The only thing I found a bit annoying is that there is no explanation as to why gun powder gives power to the powder mages.
Overall it's probably 3.5 but rounded up to 4 because I had so much fun reading it....more
I generally read these kind of books as mindless entertainment and because I really like the d&d setting. But Legacy was the worst of the Drizzt booksI generally read these kind of books as mindless entertainment and because I really like the d&d setting. But Legacy was the worst of the Drizzt books so far. The whole book is basically about a group going into some tunnels and fighting some baddies. That's it, no interesting areas, no fantastic encounters, no depth....more
Prince of Thorns is now my baseline for fantasy books. It's grimdark filled with violence, battles and has pretty much no positive characters. Just thPrince of Thorns is now my baseline for fantasy books. It's grimdark filled with violence, battles and has pretty much no positive characters. Just the way I like it!
The main character Jorg is a psychopathic murderer, a young prince that is on a quest to revenge his family. I usually don't enjoy teenage main characters or a first person narrative. But Jorg is such a well written anti-hero that I make an exception.
The world of the Broken Empire is not what it seems. It appears to be a medieval fantasy world with magic. But then there are references to Jesus, Plato and neurotoxins. I won't detail more because it could be a bit spoilery but the world is very interesting and unique.
The book is too short and there is a bit of world building and more depth missing for 5 stars. But it's a solid 4 stars. I cannot wait to continue to King of Thorns!...more
The Judging Eye is a powerful yet slow beginning for the second part of The Second Apocalypse series. It seems to be more of a setup book which is quiThe Judging Eye is a powerful yet slow beginning for the second part of The Second Apocalypse series. It seems to be more of a setup book which is quite different to the previous books in this series.
The amazingly dark writing of Bakker is still at its finest. The grim atmosphere almost transcends the book.
Besides characters from the previous trilogy there are several new characters which are all interesting and complex. The most intriguing to me was the Aspect Emperor's psychopathic son Kelmomas. I've rarely read about a more heinous child.
Achamian's parts were the slowest and at the beginning I struggled a bit but then once the action kicked in I flew through them. My only criticism is that his adventure is a little bit too derivative of Lord of the Rings.
All in all a very solid book, not as good as the previous ones but still very well written....more
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