The Black Company -- Spoilers!!

[GOLLUM]

Thanks precious

I'd better get reading it looks like!!

Well they're not as good as Malazan but you can see how erikson would be influenced by these books and Cook's the first I saw introduce this hard-boiled gritty military style fantasy to such effect.

 

[Taltos]

True but the main series itself consists of the seperate books:

The Black Company - May 1984
Shadows Linger October 1984
The White Rose - April 1985
Shadow Games - June 1989
Dreams of Steel - April 1990
Bleak Seasons - April 1996
She Is The Darkness - September 1997
Water Sleeps - March 1999
Soldiers Live - July 2000

Extra:

Silver Spike - September 1989

... what are you trying to say precious ? ... the link I provided plus the mini series names - give the same book names - and you can ignore omnibusses as they are always reprints of older books.

To come:

A Pitiless Rain
Port of Shadows

Nice to know he is planning more - at the same time I've yet to read last 2 books

And as a response to your later comment - Erikson is only fatter and unnecessarily complicated Cook

It's all in the readers private POV (and also what you read first)

 

[Lirineth]

You should try the following website, not only you would find them all, but also the price range goes from £0.50 to £18.00

Which translated to U$A is something around $1 to $30

Fantastic Fiction

They also have a wide variety of books, authors and all kinds of specials.

Good luck
cheers

 

[GOLLUM]

... what are you trying to say precious ? ... the link I provided plus the mini series names - give the same book names - and you can ignore omnibusses as they are always reprints of older books.

And as a response to your later comment - Erikson is only fatter and unnecessarily complicated Cook

It's all in the readers private POV (and also what you read first)

Yes you're correct about mini-series vs. seperate books, I just wanted Rane to be familiar with the book titles in case he was going to purchase seperately and for some general information.

I certainly agree Erikson is a more complicated version of Cook but I think you'll find this is a major attraction for readers that follow this series. Sometimes it isn't easy to follow Malazan but I do enjoy the big detail you find in the books.

Cheers...

 

[Taltos]

I certainly agree Erikson is a more complicated version of Cook but I think you'll find this is a major attraction for readers that follow this series. Sometimes it isn't easy to follow Malazan but I do enjoy the big detail you find in the books.

Well, it was meant as a response to the "not as good as Malazan" remark. The "goodness" factor is in the eyes of reader - personally, I find Cook better, as his story gets less sidetracked from descriptions of the mercenary life ... at least in earlier Black Company books.
The complication of matters in Malazan may be the major attraction for some, it's just not attraction for me. Still I find it a good read and will try to find some time to read at in near future.

 

[GOLLUM]

Cool, I hope you find time to read some more of the Erikson stuff. I'm a big Cook fan too. I am also collecting the Dread Empire books from Nightshade, very beuatiful HB editions, you know the ones? Have you read some of his Space stories? I've got some books on these eg Passage To Arms.

 

[Taltos]

Cool, I hope you find time to read some more of the Erikson stuff.

Me too, but at current rate ... it will take a while, if I don't get bored and buy some new books - my TBR is actually full for the next 4-5 years

I'm a big Cook fan too. I am also collecting the Dread Empire books from Nightshade, very beuatiful HB editions, you know the ones?

No. There are almost no Hb editions in the shops here, only trade paperbacks. And even then they are from authors who have been translated to local language as you can imagine Cook isn't one of them. Of course there is possibility to buy online, which I should use more. And to be honest I have read most of Cook in Russian translations, which aren't bad but translation can never compete with original.

Have you read some of his Space stories? I've got some books on these eg Passage To Arms.

So far I've read all of his Garret stories, most of the Black Company, The Dragon Never Sleeps and two first books of the Darkwar trilogy - The third one got too depressing and I never finished it, but I probably should. Somewhere in the TBR pile is the first three books of the Dread Empire, first book of Starfishers and also the first book of Instrumentalities (tried that one also but wasn't in mood) What can I say, a moody person I am

 

[Wolfbrother]

Well they're not as good as Malazan but you can see how erikson would be influenced by these books and Cook's the first I saw introduce this hard-boiled gritty military style fantasy to such effect.

Erikson was extemely influenced by these books, I see it before I ever even heard that Erikson claimed that. Bridgeburners = Black Company? he he

I compare the Black Company series to a lot of Vietnam stuff I have read. If anyone is familiar with the book "Fallen Angels", it is like a version of that in a world with magic and swords instead of guns.

That is my opinion at least.

 

[GOLLUM]

I compare the Black Company series to a lot of Vietnam stuff I have read. If anyone is familiar with the book "Fallen Angels", it is like a version of that in a world with magic and swords instead of guns.

That is my opinion at least.

That's an interesting thought. The only thing Glenn specificaly modelled his Black Company series on regarding Vietnamn was the following:

Fan: The Nyueng Bao seemed to reflect Vietnam to an extent, was Vietnam part of your motivation for creating them?

Glenn: Nyueng Bao (ancient race) very loosely based on Mekong delta non-Vietnamese ethnic group called Black Thai. Vietnamn otherwise had nothing to do with the books.

 

[Wolfbrother]

Interesting and thanks for posting Gollum.

I wasn't really stating that I thought Cook modeled anything after Vietnam though, I was just saying that the book Fallen Angels and the Black Company both give me the same feel.

Different setting, characters, and weapons; same dreariness, same grittiness, same hopelessness almost.

I just got the feel that the "soldiers" in both books seemed to just kind of do what they were told, knowing they were doing wrong at times, knowing they were put in the most danger, etc, etc.

(This only applies to the original "Black Company" though, not so much the second and third book, and I haven't read the rest.)

 

[Snowdog]

Lots of posts in response to reviving an old thread

So I should add that a new Garrett will be out this year as well...

I like the Malazan books as well but I haven't yet met a character quite as malefic as The Limper. Powerful and evil, yes, but impersonal. And that, to me, is the major difference between the two series. The Bridgeburners may equal The Black Company, but you don't know them or feel for them the way you do Croaker, One-Eye, Goblin and the rest. At least I don't.

I felt Dread Empire was a bit up and down. I really liked Shadow of All Night Falling and the two prequels, but thought the rest got a bit bogged down with the focus on Bragi who wasn't nearly as interesting a character as Varthlokkur or even El Murid. And as for Saltimbanco, someone should have drowned him at birth I still have the last one to read.

 

[youngbull]

Well couldn't croaker still work as the gollum? You know lady isnt going anywhere. Croaker isnt really dead, he just swapped bodies with it. So she s just going to sit there on the plain forever eating those lil happy mushrooms and going off into the land of the ravens every once in a while only when tobo and them need her.

 

[nixie]

Please post a spoiler warning before given parts of the plot away

 

[Ronsworth]

Well I'm just going to pop in here and say that I've never read any Glen Cook. But, having read this thread I've done a little research and now really really want to!

I'll have to see if they stock them at my local bookstore.

Thanks for all the info everyone!

 

[GOLLUM]

Well I'm just going to pop in here and say that I've never read any Glen Cook. But, having read this thread I've done a little research and now really really want to!

I'll have to see if they stock them at my local bookstore.

Thanks for all the info everyone!

If Cook sounds like your go and I've noted you've read George RR Martin, then you will likely also be interested in the following 2 authors (military fantasy):

Steven Erikson - Malazan series.
Paul Kearney - Ships series, Monarchies of Gods and several stand-alones.

*Cook's Black Company novels are probably his finest series.

 

[Ronsworth]

If Cook sounds like your go and I've noted you've read George RR Martin, then you will likely also be interested in the following 2 authors (military fantasy):

Steven Erikson - Malazan series.
Paul Kearney - Ships series, Monarchies of Gods and several stand-alones.

*Cook's Black Company novels are probably his finest series.

Thanks for the recommendations! Actually I'm already reading Gardens of the Moon by Steve Erikson. But I'll definitely give Paul Kearney a look!