In the context of the universe a proper physics has like a whole extra dimension based on the calendar in force at the time in that location. It is apparently predictable and even testable so it really just comes across as weird science rather than magic. At least to me.
When you start having magic that is just applied knowledge I really question why you're using that word instead of technology.
I suppose the distinction is this:
In universe, these are measurable, testable phenomena, approached with scientific rigour.
However, the details of this system are (I assume deliberately) never explained to the reader, and are left at a level of abstractness so absolute that they may as well be magic.
It's a great series though, so who cares, label it how you want.
In the context of the universe a proper physics has like a whole extra dimension based on the calendar in force at the time in that location. It is apparently predictable and even testable so it really just comes across as weird science rather than magic. At least to me.
When you start having magic that is just applied knowledge I really question why you're using that word instead of technology.
So, what would you call what Harry Potter does in his books? It is also the applied knowledge of the spells he has learned, so would you also call what he does technology? I mean Asimov's famous quote really comes into play here.
Do you mean Asimov or Clarke?
I'm fine with Clarke's famous quote but I would say that the reverse isn't true without making magic and technology mean exactly the same thing.
Edit: Oh, and I never read any of the Harry Potter books so can't really answer the question. From the movies it sure looks like exactly what I take issue with.
Yeah, my bad, Clarke, not Asimov. My point is that I don't see any useful distinction between the two terms in worlds where you can study and repeatedly apply abilities that are impossible in the real world. Harry Potter's magic (or again, just a stand in for any world were one can study and learn "magic") could just as well be called technology using your definition, but I see any real distinction between the two.
Edit: I also don't want to derail this conversation away from books, so I'll leave it there.
chrono_traveller on
The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it. ~ Terry Pratchett
In the context of the universe a proper physics has like a whole extra dimension based on the calendar in force at the time in that location. It is apparently predictable and even testable so it really just comes across as weird science rather than magic. At least to me.
When you start having magic that is just applied knowledge I really question why you're using that word instead of technology.
I suppose the distinction is this:
In universe, these are measurable, testable phenomena, approached with scientific rigour.
However, the details of this system are (I assume deliberately) never explained to the reader, and are left at a level of abstractness so absolute that they may as well be magic.
It's a great series though, so who cares, label it how you want.
Definitely agree on the last bit. There is a difference between what we, as readers, would call magic and what the characters in the story would refer to as magic. As far as I recall in Ninefox the characters admit and act like it is just another branch of science. Which feels like what the truthful human reaction to it would be. Which is part of what I enjoyed about it.
Yeah, my bad, Clarke, not Asimov. My point is that I don't see any useful distinction between the two terms in worlds where you can study and repeatedly apply abilities that are impossible in the real world. Harry Potter's magic (or again, just a stand in for any world were one can study and learn "magic") could just as well be called technology using your definition, but I see any real distinction between the two.
Edit: I also don't want to derail this conversation away from books, so I'll leave it there.
Well keeping in mind we're in the book thread I'll wave vaguely towards Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell as having magic around while keeping it feeling like magic to me. It is partly a matter of applied knowledge but it isn't exactly repeatable or testable. Especially as it gets closer to the faerie sources of it. That did the very rare thing of trying to make magic "fair" in the narrative sense while also maintaining it as something that fits the definition of magic.
BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
With how much you guys hyped Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, I was really excited to try reading it, but it didn't really capture my attention very well. I think I got maybe a quarter of the way through and gave up.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
With how much you guys hyped Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, I was really excited to try reading it, but it didn't really capture my attention very well. I think I got maybe a quarter of the way through and gave up.
With how much you guys hyped Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, I was really excited to try reading it, but it didn't really capture my attention very well. I think I got maybe a quarter of the way through and gave up.
It's got a very specific tone and style to it. It's amazing if you can get into that but like any style it's not necessarily for everyone.
When you start having magic that is just applied knowledge I really question why you're using that word instead of technology.
I'm reading the Craft novels by Max Gladwell. There they do Applied Theology to extract energy from gods.
Harry Potter's magical training is subtly akin to the magical university in Terry Pratchett's Discworld books. The majority of their studies are as much about teaching what they should not do with magic as teaching what it is capable of, while also pushing practitioners down a path of puttering around on eccentric diversions instead of amassing power. Voldemort's entire appeal revolves around the message that magic is so powerful that the practitioners should rule the world, and the rest of magical society is keeping them down.
+1
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BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
I thought The Magicians take on what to do with magic was interesting, although I still don't know how I feel about the series as a whole.
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
When you start having magic that is just applied knowledge I really question why you're using that word instead of technology.
I'm reading the Craft novels by Max Gladwell. There they do Applied Theology to extract energy from gods.
Harry Potter's magical training is subtly akin to the magical university in Terry Pratchett's Discworld books. The majority of their studies are as much about teaching what they should not do with magic as teaching what it is capable of, while also pushing practitioners down a path of puttering around on eccentric diversions instead of amassing power. Voldemort's entire appeal revolves around the message that magic is so powerful that the practitioners should rule the world, and the rest of magical society is keeping them down.
I imagine the theory is the same as the Camarilla in Vampire. Basically the first day you are turned you get a packet that says:
Congratulations, you are a member of a group of unusually powerful individuals capable of extraordinary feats well beyond the abilities of most people.
However, before you start to have delusions of setting yourself up as a vampire-king, consider the following:
1. Mortals are numerous. Extremely so.
2. While mortals may be powerless on an individual level, mortals have access to powerful weaponry and resources. You may be able to stomp a mortal in a fistfight, but a mortal with a flamethrower, military grade machine gun, or access to powerful explosives is a much larger threat. Mortals may not have widespread access to these now, but in the face of a known supernatural threat they will certainly arm themselves on a much more comprehensive level. This affects everyone, not just you.
3. Mortals have shown absolutely no hesitation in the past to conduct genocide against real or perceived threats. Should you become a nuisance, you will not only get yourself killed, but will also get the entire group hunted down and killed.
So respect the society you live in, and keep your fucking head down.
I thought The Magicians take on what to do with magic was interesting, although I still don't know how I feel about the series as a whole.
I love The Magicians, but it is a setting that can never decide if magic is a metaphor for drug addiction or a really cool thing the characters should love and fight for.
Just finished Off Armageddon Reef by David Weber. The story starts off very sci-fi and then transitions into historical drama with some sci-fi mixed in. It's the first of a long series and after the first two chapters the book was somewhat of a long build up. The final couple of chapters did pay off but i think the book could have been cut in half and not lost much. I put the second novel on my "to read at some point in the future, maybe, possibly" list.
If you've read the Honor Harrington series or like other David Weber stuff, it's probably worth it.
I thought The Magicians take on what to do with magic was interesting, although I still don't know how I feel about the series as a whole.
I love The Magicians, but it is a setting that can never decide if magic is a metaphor for drug addiction or a really cool thing the characters should love and fight for.
The Magicians has a lot of interesting and exciting individual ideas, but I never felt like it all really came together. Also, I felt like it was trying too hard to be an edgy caricature of Narnia as a form of criticism (I don't think criticism is the right word, but I can't find the one I'm looking for).
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
I thought The Magicians take on what to do with magic was interesting, although I still don't know how I feel about the series as a whole.
I love The Magicians, but it is a setting that can never decide if magic is a metaphor for drug addiction or a really cool thing the characters should love and fight for.
Magic is never a metaphor for drug addiction in the book trilogy.
I thought The Magicians take on what to do with magic was interesting, although I still don't know how I feel about the series as a whole.
I love The Magicians, but it is a setting that can never decide if magic is a metaphor for drug addiction or a really cool thing the characters should love and fight for.
The Magicians has a lot of interesting and exciting individual ideas, but I never felt like it all really came together. Also, I felt like it was trying too hard to be an edgy caricature of Narnia as a form of criticism (I don't think criticism is the right word, but I can't find the one I'm looking for).
I think each book comes together quite well around it's central ideas. The series as a whole only kinda flows though because it's full of retcons in each subsequent book.
I thought The Magicians take on what to do with magic was interesting, although I still don't know how I feel about the series as a whole.
I love The Magicians, but it is a setting that can never decide if magic is a metaphor for drug addiction or a really cool thing the characters should love and fight for.
The Magicians has a lot of interesting and exciting individual ideas, but I never felt like it all really came together. Also, I felt like it was trying too hard to be an edgy caricature of Narnia as a form of criticism (I don't think criticism is the right word, but I can't find the one I'm looking for).
I liked it from the jump, but I think the show has improved greatly as the actors have gotten a better handle on their characters and the show has figured out ways to use the setting in clever ways. But it has still never satisfactorily answered the question, "Wouldn't everyone involved be much, much better off if they had never heard of magic?"
Anyone have any recommendations for a 'slice of life' bit of fiction? I want to get a book for my wife for the holidays. Generally she likes stories that tend to drop you into someone's life during a turbulent time and then watch as they try and figure it out. She stays away from sci-fi/fantasy so anything that crosses into those worlds might be a turn off.
She also enjoys romance in her fiction but it doesn't have to be a straight up romance book.
Recent books she's enjoyed have been the Room by Emma Donoghue, and Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. (I recognize that neither of those books really fit the 'slice of life' I'm looking for). While she hasn't read the book, she loved the film adaptation of Palm Trees in the Snow.
Just reposting because I think this got lost in the shuffle. It'll be the last time I repost it, because I don't want to spam the thread.
Reattaching to the Ninefox discussion, after originally thinking I might skip the rest of the series, gambit ended enticingly enough to make me want to check out what happens next. So I think I'll buy the next book today if it's at the local chapters.
The long way to a small angry planet is an amazing slice of life book.
It is however sci-fi in that it takes place on a spaceship and has nonhuman characters, but the book itself it firmly about the characters lifes and interactions as they undertake a long journey.
Anyone have any recommendations for a 'slice of life' bit of fiction? I want to get a book for my wife for the holidays. Generally she likes stories that tend to drop you into someone's life during a turbulent time and then watch as they try and figure it out. She stays away from sci-fi/fantasy so anything that crosses into those worlds might be a turn off.
She also enjoys romance in her fiction but it doesn't have to be a straight up romance book.
Recent books she's enjoyed have been the Room by Emma Donoghue, and Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. (I recognize that neither of those books really fit the 'slice of life' I'm looking for). While she hasn't read the book, she loved the film adaptation of Palm Trees in the Snow.
Just reposting because I think this got lost in the shuffle. It'll be the last time I repost it, because I don't want to spam the thread.
Reattaching to the Ninefox discussion, after originally thinking I might skip the rest of the series, gambit ended enticingly enough to make me want to check out what happens next. So I think I'll buy the next book today if it's at the local chapters.
Sarah Pinborough’s ‘Behind Her Eyes’ maybe? Bit dark though. And weird.
David Downing’s story of a British journalist in Berlin in the late 1930’s might work? (‘Zoo Station’)
Or a Roman PI mystery during the early years of the reign of Vespasian? (Lindsey Davis’ Falco series, ‘The Silver Pigs’)
Maybe a Jeeves and Wooster anthology? Aged surprisingly well.
Perhaps Joe Lansdales ‘Hap And Leonard’ short stories collection, ‘Blood and Lemonade’? Very good at evoking the US South during the civil rights era - at least to me, someone from somewhere else. Evocative, uncomfortable reading.
Oh, maybe C.J. Sansom’s ‘Dissolution’, a mystery set in an isolated monastery during the, Er, dissolution. It really makes that whole frenetic, ideological period feel alive.
Anyone have any recommendations for a 'slice of life' bit of fiction? I want to get a book for my wife for the holidays. Generally she likes stories that tend to drop you into someone's life during a turbulent time and then watch as they try and figure it out. She stays away from sci-fi/fantasy so anything that crosses into those worlds might be a turn off.
She also enjoys romance in her fiction but it doesn't have to be a straight up romance book.
Recent books she's enjoyed have been the Room by Emma Donoghue, and Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. (I recognize that neither of those books really fit the 'slice of life' I'm looking for). While she hasn't read the book, she loved the film adaptation of Palm Trees in the Snow.
Just reposting because I think this got lost in the shuffle. It'll be the last time I repost it, because I don't want to spam the thread.
Reattaching to the Ninefox discussion, after originally thinking I might skip the rest of the series, gambit ended enticingly enough to make me want to check out what happens next. So I think I'll buy the next book today if it's at the local chapters.
Sarah Pinborough’s ‘Behind Her Eyes’ maybe? Bit dark though. And weird.
David Downing’s story of a British journalist in Berlin in the late 1930’s might work? (‘Zoo Station’)
Or a Roman PI mystery during the early years of the reign of Vespasian? (Lindsey Davis’ Falco series, ‘The Silver Pigs’)
Maybe a Jeeves and Wooster anthology? Aged surprisingly well.
Perhaps Joe Lansdales ‘Hap And Leonard’ short stories collection, ‘Blood and Lemonade’? Very good at evoking the US South during the civil rights era - at least to me, someone from somewhere else. Evocative, uncomfortable reading.
Oh, maybe C.J. Sansom’s ‘Dissolution’, a mystery set in an isolated monastery during the, Er, dissolution. It really makes that whole frenetic, ideological period feel alive.
OK I’m tapped out.
I've always liked John Maddox Robert's SPQR series.
Of course there is Caleb Carr with the Alienist and The Angel of Darkness.
Stuart Kaminsky's Rostnikov series covers Russia through quite a bit of changes.
The long way to a small angry planet is an amazing slice of life book.
It is however sci-fi in that it takes place on a spaceship and has nonhuman characters, but the book itself it firmly about the characters lifes and interactions as they undertake a long journey.
It’s some of the chillest sci-fi I’ve ever read. The latest book could have been just as easily set in a historic town grappling with modernization.
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
The long way to a small angry planet is an amazing slice of life book.
It is however sci-fi in that it takes place on a spaceship and has nonhuman characters, but the book itself it firmly about the characters lifes and interactions as they undertake a long journey.
It’s some of the chillest sci-fi I’ve ever read. The latest book could have been just as easily set in a historic town grappling with modernization.
Chambers uses the SciFi setting to deal with a lot of queer related issues in really positive ways. She's the first author I ever sent fan mail to.
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Aww yiss!
The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I felt betrayed by the author for pulling this on me! You go through a whole trilogy and then Bayaz pulls an arch-asshole move.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Aww yiss!
The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I felt betrayed by the author for pulling this on me! You go through a whole trilogy and then Bayaz pulls an arch-asshole move.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
I think the OG trilogy works better as a foundational work for the setting than it does as a contained fantasy trilogy.
+2
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BrodyThe WatchThe First ShoreRegistered Userregular
Man, Skyward just became available for me for pickup at my local library, but I'm still in the middle of Warbreaker. I need to remember to read!
"I will write your name in the ruin of them. I will paint you across history in the color of their blood."
Man, Skyward just became available for me for pickup at my local library, but I'm still in the middle of Warbreaker. I need to remember to read!
I enjoyed Skyward, it's even more YA than The Reckoners was, but it was still good.
I had spoiled myself a little bit by reading online about the short story that Skyward takes place in the same universe as. But I still couldn't connect all the dots until the end.
Some thematic spoilers for Skyward:
The focus on cowardice as being this terrible and awful character trait was a bit much for me. Ejecting from a crashing spaceship is not cowardice, it's living to fight another day.
I do feel like Skyward could have been three books by itself, but the whole thing is in fast-forward. Which is mostly fine, as it doesn't dwell on the teen drama stuff too much.
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Aww yiss!
The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I felt betrayed by the author for pulling this on me! You go through a whole trilogy and then Bayaz pulls an arch-asshole move.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
First Law Spoilers
Having been to a book signing, it seems Abercrombie wanted to at least have a LotR fellowship story going on, where all of the fellowships were horrible.
The bit I skip out on when going through the trilogy, is the Bloody Nine Killing Thunderhead. I find that really rough.
Character I hope makes an appearance or at least get an update in this new lot of books
Ferro; apart from one line in Best Served Cold, I don't think anything else has been said about her
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Aww yiss!
The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I felt betrayed by the author for pulling this on me! You go through a whole trilogy and then Bayaz pulls an arch-asshole move.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
I think the OG trilogy works better as a foundational work for the setting than it does as a contained fantasy trilogy.
Disagree. It's a really strong single piece. It's just is purpose is in many ways:
to deny you the catharsis of a traditional fantasy narrative.
Not just or even primarily in the sense that the bad guys kinda win. Sorta. But in that the journey itself is without meaning or purpose. That everything is merely a sideshow to a larger conflict between two beings who don't really give a shit about the personal stories we are following and that growth and change even as this occurs is fleeting or meaningless as well. It denies the idea that the entire traditional fantasy arc must have meaning.
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Aww yiss!
The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I felt betrayed by the author for pulling this on me! You go through a whole trilogy and then Bayaz pulls an arch-asshole move.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
I think the OG trilogy works better as a foundational work for the setting than it does as a contained fantasy trilogy.
Disagree. It's a really strong single piece. It's just is purpose is in many ways:
to deny you the catharsis of a traditional fantasy narrative.
Not just or even primarily in the sense that the bad guys kinda win. Sorta. But in that the journey itself is without meaning or purpose. That everything is merely a sideshow to a larger conflict between two beings who don't really give a shit about the personal stories we are following and that growth and change even as this occurs is fleeting or meaningless as well. It denies the idea that the entire traditional fantasy arc must have meaning.
Part of the reason I wrote that was that I think that Ambercrombie became a much better writer between the trilogy and the follow-on books, and the further works were more nuanced and interesting than just an inversion of the traditional fantasy quest novel. The trilogy sets the stage, introduces characters who will go on to grow in future books, and generally establish what kind of writer Abercrombie is, but they just aren't as good as what comes next.
Joe Abercrombie released a blurb of his newest book, A Little Hatred, that shuld be available before the end of 2019.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
The chimneys of industry rise over Adua and the world seethes with new opportunities. But old scores run deep as ever.
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Aww yiss!
The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I felt betrayed by the author for pulling this on me! You go through a whole trilogy and then Bayaz pulls an arch-asshole move.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
I think the OG trilogy works better as a foundational work for the setting than it does as a contained fantasy trilogy.
Disagree. It's a really strong single piece. It's just is purpose is in many ways:
to deny you the catharsis of a traditional fantasy narrative.
Not just or even primarily in the sense that the bad guys kinda win. Sorta. But in that the journey itself is without meaning or purpose. That everything is merely a sideshow to a larger conflict between two beings who don't really give a shit about the personal stories we are following and that growth and change even as this occurs is fleeting or meaningless as well. It denies the idea that the entire traditional fantasy arc must have meaning.
Part of the reason I wrote that was that I think that Ambercrombie became a much better writer between the trilogy and the follow-on books, and the further works were more nuanced and interesting than
just an inversion of the traditional fantasy quest novel
. The trilogy sets the stage, introduces characters who will go on to grow in future books, and generally establish what kind of writer Abercrombie is, but they just aren't as good as what comes next.
I agree he becomes a better writer with each book (even book 3 is noticeably better then 1 imo) but I think it's a lot more then just
an inversion. I think it goes for something more interesting.
Anyone have any recommendations for a 'slice of life' bit of fiction? I want to get a book for my wife for the holidays. Generally she likes stories that tend to drop you into someone's life during a turbulent time and then watch as they try and figure it out. She stays away from sci-fi/fantasy so anything that crosses into those worlds might be a turn off.
She also enjoys romance in her fiction but it doesn't have to be a straight up romance book.
Recent books she's enjoyed have been the Room by Emma Donoghue, and Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. (I recognize that neither of those books really fit the 'slice of life' I'm looking for). While she hasn't read the book, she loved the film adaptation of Palm Trees in the Snow.
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was really popular a few years back, I enjoyed it.
Open City by Teju Cole is literally just about a guy walking around and reminiscing, doesn't get more slice of life than that.
Anyone have any recommendations for a 'slice of life' bit of fiction? I want to get a book for my wife for the holidays. Generally she likes stories that tend to drop you into someone's life during a turbulent time and then watch as they try and figure it out. She stays away from sci-fi/fantasy so anything that crosses into those worlds might be a turn off.
She also enjoys romance in her fiction but it doesn't have to be a straight up romance book.
Recent books she's enjoyed have been the Room by Emma Donoghue, and Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer. (I recognize that neither of those books really fit the 'slice of life' I'm looking for). While she hasn't read the book, she loved the film adaptation of Palm Trees in the Snow.
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was really popular a few years back, I enjoyed it.
Open City by Teju Cole is literally just about a guy walking around and reminiscing, doesn't get more slice of life than that.
A Gentleman in Moscow is as good as the reputation.
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I suppose the distinction is this:
In universe, these are measurable, testable phenomena, approached with scientific rigour.
However, the details of this system are (I assume deliberately) never explained to the reader, and are left at a level of abstractness so absolute that they may as well be magic.
It's a great series though, so who cares, label it how you want.
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Yeah, my bad, Clarke, not Asimov. My point is that I don't see any useful distinction between the two terms in worlds where you can study and repeatedly apply abilities that are impossible in the real world. Harry Potter's magic (or again, just a stand in for any world were one can study and learn "magic") could just as well be called technology using your definition, but I see any real distinction between the two.
Edit: I also don't want to derail this conversation away from books, so I'll leave it there.
Definitely agree on the last bit. There is a difference between what we, as readers, would call magic and what the characters in the story would refer to as magic. As far as I recall in Ninefox the characters admit and act like it is just another branch of science. Which feels like what the truthful human reaction to it would be. Which is part of what I enjoyed about it.
Well keeping in mind we're in the book thread I'll wave vaguely towards Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell as having magic around while keeping it feeling like magic to me. It is partly a matter of applied knowledge but it isn't exactly repeatable or testable. Especially as it gets closer to the faerie sources of it. That did the very rare thing of trying to make magic "fair" in the narrative sense while also maintaining it as something that fits the definition of magic.
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You should try the TV miniseries. It's well done.
It's got a very specific tone and style to it. It's amazing if you can get into that but like any style it's not necessarily for everyone.
I'm reading the Craft novels by Max Gladwell. There they do Applied Theology to extract energy from gods.
Harry Potter's magical training is subtly akin to the magical university in Terry Pratchett's Discworld books. The majority of their studies are as much about teaching what they should not do with magic as teaching what it is capable of, while also pushing practitioners down a path of puttering around on eccentric diversions instead of amassing power. Voldemort's entire appeal revolves around the message that magic is so powerful that the practitioners should rule the world, and the rest of magical society is keeping them down.
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I imagine the theory is the same as the Camarilla in Vampire. Basically the first day you are turned you get a packet that says:
Congratulations, you are a member of a group of unusually powerful individuals capable of extraordinary feats well beyond the abilities of most people.
However, before you start to have delusions of setting yourself up as a vampire-king, consider the following:
1. Mortals are numerous. Extremely so.
2. While mortals may be powerless on an individual level, mortals have access to powerful weaponry and resources. You may be able to stomp a mortal in a fistfight, but a mortal with a flamethrower, military grade machine gun, or access to powerful explosives is a much larger threat. Mortals may not have widespread access to these now, but in the face of a known supernatural threat they will certainly arm themselves on a much more comprehensive level. This affects everyone, not just you.
3. Mortals have shown absolutely no hesitation in the past to conduct genocide against real or perceived threats. Should you become a nuisance, you will not only get yourself killed, but will also get the entire group hunted down and killed.
So respect the society you live in, and keep your fucking head down.
I love The Magicians, but it is a setting that can never decide if magic is a metaphor for drug addiction or a really cool thing the characters should love and fight for.
If you've read the Honor Harrington series or like other David Weber stuff, it's probably worth it.
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The Magicians has a lot of interesting and exciting individual ideas, but I never felt like it all really came together. Also, I felt like it was trying too hard to be an edgy caricature of Narnia as a form of criticism (I don't think criticism is the right word, but I can't find the one I'm looking for).
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Magic is never a metaphor for drug addiction in the book trilogy.
I think each book comes together quite well around it's central ideas. The series as a whole only kinda flows though because it's full of retcons in each subsequent book.
I liked it from the jump, but I think the show has improved greatly as the actors have gotten a better handle on their characters and the show has figured out ways to use the setting in clever ways. But it has still never satisfactorily answered the question, "Wouldn't everyone involved be much, much better off if they had never heard of magic?"
Just reposting because I think this got lost in the shuffle. It'll be the last time I repost it, because I don't want to spam the thread.
Reattaching to the Ninefox discussion, after originally thinking I might skip the rest of the series, gambit ended enticingly enough to make me want to check out what happens next. So I think I'll buy the next book today if it's at the local chapters.
It is however sci-fi in that it takes place on a spaceship and has nonhuman characters, but the book itself it firmly about the characters lifes and interactions as they undertake a long journey.
Sarah Pinborough’s ‘Behind Her Eyes’ maybe? Bit dark though. And weird.
David Downing’s story of a British journalist in Berlin in the late 1930’s might work? (‘Zoo Station’)
Or a Roman PI mystery during the early years of the reign of Vespasian? (Lindsey Davis’ Falco series, ‘The Silver Pigs’)
Maybe a Jeeves and Wooster anthology? Aged surprisingly well.
Perhaps Joe Lansdales ‘Hap And Leonard’ short stories collection, ‘Blood and Lemonade’? Very good at evoking the US South during the civil rights era - at least to me, someone from somewhere else. Evocative, uncomfortable reading.
Oh, maybe C.J. Sansom’s ‘Dissolution’, a mystery set in an isolated monastery during the, Er, dissolution. It really makes that whole frenetic, ideological period feel alive.
OK I’m tapped out.
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I've always liked John Maddox Robert's SPQR series.
Of course there is Caleb Carr with the Alienist and The Angel of Darkness.
Stuart Kaminsky's Rostnikov series covers Russia through quite a bit of changes.
It’s some of the chillest sci-fi I’ve ever read. The latest book could have been just as easily set in a historic town grappling with modernization.
Spoilers for previous books from The First Law series below!
On the blood-soaked borders of Angland, Leo dan Brock struggles to win fame on the battlefield, and defeat the marauding armies of Stour Nightfall. He hopes for help from the crown. But King Jezal’s son, the feckless Prince Orso, is a man who specialises in disappointments.
Savine dan Glokta – socialite, investor, and daughter of the most feared man in the Union – plans to claw her way to the top of the slag-heap of society by any means necessary. But the slums boil over with a rage that all the money in the world cannot control.
The age of the machine dawns, but the age of magic refuses to die. With the help of the mad hillwoman Isern-i-Phail, Rikke struggles to control the blessing, or the curse, of the Long Eye. Glimpsing the future is one thing, but with the guiding hand of the First of the Magi still pulling the strings, changing it will be quite another…
Chambers uses the SciFi setting to deal with a lot of queer related issues in really positive ways. She's the first author I ever sent fan mail to.
They're very good.
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The first time I finished the first trilogy I was so pissed.
I enjoyed it a lot more the next time I read it when I knew what was coming.
I think the OG trilogy works better as a foundational work for the setting than it does as a contained fantasy trilogy.
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my wife is a biology teacher, who has a botany degree. thanks for the xmas gift idea
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I enjoyed Skyward, it's even more YA than The Reckoners was, but it was still good.
I had spoiled myself a little bit by reading online about the short story that Skyward takes place in the same universe as. But I still couldn't connect all the dots until the end.
Some thematic spoilers for Skyward:
I do feel like Skyward could have been three books by itself, but the whole thing is in fast-forward. Which is mostly fine, as it doesn't dwell on the teen drama stuff too much.
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The bit I skip out on when going through the trilogy, is the Bloody Nine Killing Thunderhead. I find that really rough.
Character I hope makes an appearance or at least get an update in this new lot of books
Disagree. It's a really strong single piece. It's just is purpose is in many ways:
Not just or even primarily in the sense that the bad guys kinda win. Sorta. But in that the journey itself is without meaning or purpose. That everything is merely a sideshow to a larger conflict between two beings who don't really give a shit about the personal stories we are following and that growth and change even as this occurs is fleeting or meaningless as well. It denies the idea that the entire traditional fantasy arc must have meaning.
Part of the reason I wrote that was that I think that Ambercrombie became a much better writer between the trilogy and the follow-on books, and the further works were more nuanced and interesting than just an inversion of the traditional fantasy quest novel. The trilogy sets the stage, introduces characters who will go on to grow in future books, and generally establish what kind of writer Abercrombie is, but they just aren't as good as what comes next.
I agree he becomes a better writer with each book (even book 3 is noticeably better then 1 imo) but I think it's a lot more then just
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was really popular a few years back, I enjoyed it.
Open City by Teju Cole is literally just about a guy walking around and reminiscing, doesn't get more slice of life than that.
A Gentleman in Moscow is as good as the reputation.
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