Who's reading what? September's selection...

Status
Not open for further replies.
Rereading Robin Hobb's The Liveship Traders trilogy for the 3rd time in preparation for her new one, Dragon Keeper. They're as good as ever!
 
pyan said:
Re-reading (after a gap of 35 years) The Worm Ouroboros, by ER Eddison...
Click to expand...
I hope I don't leave it that long before I re-read this classic.

Now reading "Bring the Jubilee" by Ward Moore.
 
Last edited:
Fried Egg said:
Which other stories have you read?
Click to expand...
So far I've only read Dagon, Polaris, Beyond the Wall of Sleep and The Doom that came to Sarnath. None of which are very inspiring! (My avatar is from the cover of the collection they're in)
I was expecting horrific tales,wanting to be scared but I found them a bit shallow, uninspiring! Where's the Chthulu I've heard so much about?
 
I really liked the story "Beyond the Wall of Sleep". A very interesting premise indeed. "Polaris" was quite good but I didn't like "The Doom that came to Sarnath".

As I've said previously, your collection doesn't contain any of his best stories. Most of those are dark fantasies more than horror. If I were you, I would put that collection to one side (after maybe reading "Herbert West: Reanimator") and looking out for another collection that has his better stories. You can always come back to this collection if and when you become a fan.
 
Fried Egg said:
I really liked the story "Beyond the Wall of Sleep". A very interesting premise indeed. "Polaris" was quite good but I didn't like "The Doom that came to Sarnath".

As I've said previously, your collection doesn't contain any of his best stories. Most of those are dark fantasies more than horror. If I were you, I would put that collection to one side (after maybe reading "Herbert West: Reanimator") and looking out for another collection that has his better stories. You can always come back to this collection if and when you become a fan.
Click to expand...
Oh I shall continue with it,they are quite short stories so nothing daunting-if this were qa novel of some length i'd be put off but not with stories. Easy night reading matter.
 
Last night I started Dune. My Dad bought a copy for me years ago when I was very young, but I never read it. I found a copy for £2 in a charity shop in Torquay and thought, well why not.
anyway, it starts well, a bit too political already though. Hope it turns out to be as good as they say it is.
 
I think I'd also throw in "The Strange High House in the Mist", if it's in that particular selection (I don't recall the contents of that edition at the moment). Again, not your usual horror sort of thing, but a slow creeping of a very subtle sort of horror, quite understated, but with very powerful implications.

I'm particularly fond of "Polaris", though, because of its blurring of the dream/reality border, and the implication that this isn't just a dream, but a genuine cycle this poor individual is trapped in.

As for Cthulhu: As I mentioned to Connavar, Cthulhu is more a symbol; it is what he (it?) represents that matters; as an active character (more or less, and even then mediated through being read about by the protagonist rather than actually experienced directly), he only appears in one story -- "The Call of Cthulhu". But his power doesn't lie in being an active participant, and what he represents permeates a great deal of Lovecraft's work....
 
Fried Egg said:
I hope I don't leave it that long before I re-read this classic. (The Worm Ouroboros)
Click to expand...

Yes, I've been meaning to read it again for ages, but there's always something new, isn't there?...:p

I'd love to see the reaction to this book of those that think The Lord of the Rings has too many descriptive passages...:D
 
200 pages into Alastair Reynold's, Revelation Space. Pretty enjoyable thus far.
 
pyan said:
I'd love to see the reaction to this book of those that think The Lord of the Rings has too many descriptive passages...:D
Click to expand...

Or that they are too lengthy. Um, the description of Lord Juss' hall, for instance... or Koshtra Pivrarcha? Just for starters....:rolleyes: (Then again, I wallow in these passages by Eddison; they are so lushly written that the language proves a sort of sensual, even hedonistic, experience....)

Pyan: Have you read Eddison's Zimiamvia trilogy? I may have seen comments on it from you before, but if so my memory is failing me again....
 
Moonbat said:
Last night I started Dune. My Dad bought a copy for me years ago when I was very young, but I never read it. I found a copy for £2 in a charity shop in Torquay and thought, well why not.
anyway, it starts well, a bit too political already though. Hope it turns out to be as good as they say it is.
Click to expand...


it is don't worry
 
J,D, : I think the reason lots of new "pastiche" writers fail in depicting Cthulhu is because, quite frankly, they have no idea just what he could do were he unleashes, aside from maybe tearing people apart and driving them mad by his visuals .

Oh and for "house in the mist", how about the story concerning the character, "The terrible old man" ?
 
Lobolover said:
J,D, : I think the reason lots of new "pastiche" writers fail in depicting Cthulhu is because, quite frankly, they have no idea just what he could do were he unleashes, aside from maybe tearing people apart and driving them mad by his visuals .

Oh and for "house in the mist", how about the story concerning the character, "The terrible old man" ?
Click to expand...

I'd take it a step further and say that they fail in having Cthulhu (or any of the other "gods" of the mythos, save perhaps Nyarlathotep) as active figures. After all, save for where and how human beings may accidentally conflict with their own aims, these beings seldom have any interest in us, whatsoever ("The Dunwich Horror" being a notable exception -- though even there it can be argued that it isn't the human beings per se that are of interest, but rather the opportunity they provide by their presence to facilitate matters. They are the tools used, nothing more.)

As for "The Terrible Old Man" -- while I find the story has problems (a bit too heavy-handed on the irony, for instance), on the whole I quite like that one, and the Terrible Old Man himself remains a fascinating character....
 
j. d. worthington said:
Or that they are too lengthy. Um, the description of Lord Juss' hall, for instance... or Koshtra Pivrarcha? Just for starters....:rolleyes: (Then again, I wallow in these passages by Eddison; they are so lushly written that the language proves a sort of sensual, even hedonistic, experience....)
Click to expand...
That's exactly the thing. I don't mind long, rambling descriptive passages if the prose is so pleasurable to read. Otherwise my brain just switches off and I can't wait to get past them. Personally I find Eddison far more pleasurable to read than Tolkien.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Thread starter Similar threads Forum Replies Date
nixie The Walking Dead: Dead City: 01:02: Who's There. Dead City/ Daryl Dixon 1
Bren G Who's the first to come to mind when I say - Villain? Writing Discussion 88
J Who's looking forward to The Mandalorian Star Wars: Mandalorian 2
Harpo Who's next? Doctor Who 8
Brian G Turner Doctor Who's new companions (for Jodie Whittaker) Doctor Who 53

Similar threads


Back
Top