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Post by derv on Jan 11, 2020 8:01:35 GMT -6
2020 has begun with a look at The Monster Hunter Files edited by Larry Correia and Bryan Schmidt. It's a collection of short stories by various authors, many who are gamers, or vets, or both. I like that. I mean it has a review by Massad Ayoob on the back cover for crying out loud. How cool is that? And of course the stories are written for Correia's Monster Hunter International world. So, this is me dipping my toe into the water to see if I want to get into the series.
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Post by tdenmark on Jan 22, 2020 3:46:29 GMT -6
I started reading A Wizard of Earthsea as a bedtime story to my kids. For me I'm reading JRR Tolkien's translation of Beowulf, and it's great so far. There is more Tolkien in my stack, the next one is The Fall of Arthur.
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Post by tkdco2 on Jan 22, 2020 3:47:53 GMT -6
I started reading A Wizard of Earthsea as a bedtime story to my kids. For me I'm reading JRR Tolkien's translation of Beowulf, and it's great so far. There is more Tolkien in my stack, the next one is The Fall of Arthur. The Fall of Arthur is a good book. I read it a few years ago.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2020 6:43:22 GMT -6
Currently reading 'A Brightness Long Ago' by Guy Gavriel Kay, a short standalone novel about the rivalry between mercenary companies in a faux-Renaissance Italian setting. Not very Fantastical and not much action but a good read about ruthless factional intrigue affecting non-heroes.
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Post by scalydemon on Jan 30, 2020 22:11:34 GMT -6
Just re read Heart of Darkness. The horror!
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Post by doublejig2 on Feb 2, 2020 23:06:13 GMT -6
Currently reading A History of Western Civilization A Handbook - good stuff.
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Post by tkdco2 on Feb 3, 2020 0:46:43 GMT -6
I'm rereading Rolemaster Companion 1. I've been doing some solo MERP gaming*, and I'm looking for stuff to expand the game.
* I also came up with house rules for combat and experience points. Since levelling up takes forever using the MERP rules, I just award a set number of xp (around 2500 per session) in order for characters to level up faster.
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Post by stevemitchell on Feb 23, 2020 17:45:29 GMT -6
Exorcisms and Ecstasies by Karl Edward Wagner. The final collection of Wagner’s fiction, a mix of his horror and fantasy stories, mostly from his last decade, including a couple of stories featuring his character Kane in modern times.
The Rose and the Key, The Wyvern Mystery, The Purcell Papers, and Ghost Stories and Tales of Mystery by J. Sheridan Le Fanu. Two novels and two collections of stories.
The Savage Diaries (Volume One) by Dafydd Neal Dyar. Essays on the Doc Savage novels, often written with a “Wold Newton” take, i.e., Doc was a real person, whose magazine adventures were fictionalized accounts of his true-life adventures. Among other things, the author suggests that Doc’s only repeat villain, John Sunlight, was the son of Fu Manchu. Includes two interviews with the “real” Doc.
The Battle for Pusan by Addison Terry. The author was a lieutenant on occupation duty in Japan when the beastly Reds invaded South Korea in 1950. He was quickly sent into combat and served as a forward observer and artillery spotter in some of the intense early battles of the war, as the American and ROK forces were being pushed back into the Pusan Perimeter.
Call Me Killer by Harry Whittington. A man suffering from amnesia believes he might have committed murder, and has to reassemble the pieces of his fragmented memory. Somewhat similar to Cornell Woolrich’s The Black Curtain.
Fighter! By Robert Jackson. A brief survey of fighter operations from the Spanish Civil War to the close of World War II.
Holy Terrors and The Secret of the Sangraal by Arthur Machen. A collection of short stories, followed by a collection of essays. The stories are fairly minor works by Machen, although the volume finishes with his wonderful mystical tale, “The Great Return.” The essay topics range from the Holy Grail (actually, three essays of that subject) to Machen’s days as a strolling actor to odd byways in old London.
Gothic Lovecraft edited by Lynne Jamneck and S. T. Joshi. Original stories that combine Gothic and Lovecraftian elements. Samuel Taylor Coleridge meets Nyarlathotep, among other things.
Stalin’s Folly by Constantine Pleshakov. How Stalin’s failure to prepare for the German invasion of Russia in June 1941 (not to mention his earlier purges of the officer corps) led to unremitting disaster for the Soviets in the first days of Fall Barbarossa.
The Green Round by Arthur Machen. Machen’s last long work of a fiction, a short novel dealing, rather obliquely, with a variety of strange phenomena.
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Post by stevemitchell on Mar 19, 2020 19:51:21 GMT -6
Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King. The first in a series of three linked novels dealing with retired police detective Bill Hodges and his circle of helpers. I drifted away from King for many years, but starting back with Under the Dome, I have been reading his more recent novels, and really enjoying them.
Fire and Fortitude by John A. McManus. The first book in a two-volume history of U.S. Army operations in the Pacific theater in World War II. It covers battles from Bataan to Guadalcanal to the Aluetians, and beyond. A detailed account, from the command level to the trenches.
Vulcan’s Hammer and Dr. Futurity by Philip K. Dick. Two early SF novels by Dick, both quite entertaining.
The Black Prince by Michael Jones. One of the best medieval biographies I have read in a long time. Edward of Woodstock was the oldest son of King Edward III, and was known in later history (though not during his lifetime) as the Black Prince. At the age of 16, he commanded a division of the English army at the Battle of Crecy, the first major land battle of the Hundred Years War. Ten years later, he led another English army to victory against superior numbers at the Battle of Poiters, where the King of France himself was captured. And a decade or so later, Prince Edward took the English south into Spain, where England and France were supporting opposing contenders for the throne of Castile. The result: yet another smashing victory for the Prince at the Battle of Najera. But Prince Edward predeceased his father, so when Edward III died, the English crown passed to the Prince’s son, Richard of Bordeaux, who became Richard II, which leads us to. . .
Summer of Blood by Dan Jones. In 1381, 4 years after Richard II became King of England, peasant rebellions spread throughout the kingdom, particularly in Kent and East Anglia. London was captured by Wat Tyler and his men, the Archbishop of Canterbury and other notables were taken and slain, but Richard II was able to hold on to his crown through a mixture of bluff and duplicity. A very good account of this violent chapter in the young king’s reign.
The Astounding UFO Secrets of James W. Moseley by Moseley et al. Moseley was an early writer on UFOlogical topics, not necessarily a “true believer,” but someone with a definite interest in the subject. But he was also willing to make fun of the “seriousness” of some of the other UFO investigators of the time. This is a substantial collection of essays by and about Moseley.
Flying Saucers Humanoids and Creatures of the Subterranean World by Richard Shaver, Ray Palmer, et al. And along the same lines, here’s a batch of articles linking UFOs with the supposed underground realm/hollow earth. Beware of the Deros!
The Golden Age of Weird Fiction Megapack, Volume 7 by Manly Bannister. Bannister was a fantasy and SF writer active from the 1940s to the 1960s. This large collection (a Kindle set) has many of his stories from the pulps, including several with a werewolf theme, along with two novels, Magnanthropus and Seed of Elasporan.
Death’s Sweet Song by Clifton Adams. I’ve read a few of Adams’ westerns, but this is the first of his mystery novels I have seen. A downbeat story in the 1950’s “paperback original” tradition.
The Philip K. Dick Megapack by Philip K. Dick. A big collection of Dick’s early SF stories, available as a download for Kindle.
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Post by Otto Harkaman on Apr 26, 2020 10:05:17 GMT -6
I thought I might read the Deryni Novels by Katherine Kurtz, decided to try to read them in "historic" order. So starting with "Camber of Culdi" the supposed first book historically if not in publication. Well I've read a couple chapters, but it hasn't consumed me to read non-stop. I might now call them young adult or teen literature, they are a bit harder to get into since I've become a grumpy old man.
Also looking at "King Arthur’s Wars: The Anglo-Saxon Conquest of England" by Jim Storr (publication date 2016)
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Post by doublejig2 on Apr 27, 2020 21:49:58 GMT -6
Just finished John Norman's Tarnsman of Gor and Piers Anthony's Split Infinity, pretty much as I remembered them from high school. I will read others in these series.
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Post by doublejig2 on Apr 27, 2020 21:53:52 GMT -6
bump post so I can become a magician at 350
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Post by Deleted on Apr 28, 2020 0:26:54 GMT -6
bump post so I can become a magician at 350 ASK AND YE SHALL RECEIVE *swings magic wand*
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Post by Otto Harkaman on Apr 28, 2020 9:25:51 GMT -6
Just received "Codex Derynianus" in the mail from Plumcircle Books, excellent condition and value. I am slowly starting to enjoy "Camber of Culdi," hopefully the Codex will help me keep track of all the places named.
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Post by Red Baron on Apr 30, 2020 9:53:12 GMT -6
Just picked up the first volume of "Khlit the Cossack" stories, which Melan recommend somewhere as an inspiration for Fomalhaut.
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Post by doublejig2 on May 3, 2020 13:44:40 GMT -6
Just finished a strange book: The Immortal by Roger Zelazny
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Post by Malchor on May 5, 2020 12:49:41 GMT -6
CVODI-19 reading list: The Last Wish, by Andrzej Sapkowski (finished) The Broken Sword, by Poul Anderson (just finished) Sword of Destiny, by Andrzej Sapkowski (just started)
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Post by doublejig2 on May 5, 2020 19:16:40 GMT -6
Wrapped up On Writing by Stephen King. It's a quick read part biography and regards good writing craft.
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yesmar
Level 4 Theurgist
Fool, my spell book is written in Erlang!
Posts: 197
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Post by yesmar on May 19, 2020 20:09:15 GMT -6
I’m rereading The Dragon Masters by Vance for the third time. I love the Dying Earth stories, but his tales about humans devolved to feudal societies always fire up my imagination.
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Post by doublejig2 on May 24, 2020 7:09:33 GMT -6
Finished Steering the Craft A 21st Century Guide to Sailing the Sea of Story by Ursula K Le Guin. The author is a keen authority. Like any book on writing, if you bought it, then perhaps you didn't need it.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on May 25, 2020 10:51:48 GMT -6
Starting in 2017 I've been slowly reading through as much of Appendix N as possible, and have quite enjoyed every author so far but have a particular fascination with the prose and worlds of Jack Vance. However, at this moment I'm taking a small break from Appendix N and reading the 19th century English translation of Arabian Nights, which has been enjoyable. Next I'm going to re-read the King James Bible as I do every few years, and then I'll get back into my pulpy Appendix N goodness.
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Post by Otto Harkaman on May 25, 2020 11:53:11 GMT -6
Finishing up an old historical novel by Alfred Duggan 1903-64The Cunning of the Dove (1960) Edward the confessor and England before the conquest. I didn't know Harold Godwinson, later defeated by William the Conqueror at Hastings 1066, was more an Anglo-Dane than Englishman. He raided the English coast at one time as a Viking when outlawed by King Edward.
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Post by stevemitchell on May 25, 2020 17:49:07 GMT -6
Conscience of the King by Duggan is another excellent read. It's an Arthurian-period story about Cynric, the leader of the West Saxons and founder of Wessex.
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Post by Otto Harkaman on May 26, 2020 18:26:50 GMT -6
Conscience of the King by Duggan is another excellent read. It's an Arthurian-period story about Cynric, the leader of the West Saxons and founder of Wessex. Enjoyed "The Cunning of the Dove" so much I decided to read "Conscience of the King" and then maybe "The King of Athelney" which is about Alfred the Great. Great read these older books!
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Post by doublejig2 on May 27, 2020 13:31:54 GMT -6
Just struggled through Robert Heinlein's Friday.
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Post by Malchor on May 27, 2020 13:56:00 GMT -6
Started Three Hearts and Three Lions.
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Post by doublejig2 on May 29, 2020 20:11:36 GMT -6
Just finished rereading Asprin edited Thieves World. It held up better than I thought it would. Good stuff.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2020 9:43:22 GMT -6
Finished Arabian Nights. It was a fascinating experience. I couldn't help but notice the similarity of tropes and situations between this and the western fairy tales I read last year, namely the compilations of Hans Christian Anderson and the Brothers Grimm, and several of the motifs from Bullfinch's Mythology which I also read last fall. I suppose that makes sense. Most myths and folk tales share common origins and would have traversed the world along trade routes in the ancient world, namely along the Silk Road from East to West. I understand most of these "Arabian" tales are actually Persian in origin, and that was once the most advanced and largest Empire on the planet for quite a while. It's fun for me to realize how much of this made it into Roman and Greek lands and how much persisted as oral traditions in places like Germany before being written down again by the likes of the Brothers Grimm. One story in particular that I'm 100% sure survived across time was the story of the queen with the jealous sisters who kept hiding her kids in the sewers and replacing them with vermin until the King grew angry and locked the queen away, then the kids grew up and became great warriors with magic talismans and redeemed their mother later. Details of this story changed the the core motif was identical. Fascinating how enduring that tale was, to the extent it was preserved across time and space from ancient Persia to 18th century Germany.
Now, I'm reading the King James Bible again. That'll take about a month if I read for an hour or two every night. I would definitely include this translation of the Holy Bible on any top ten list of essential reading in the English Speaking world. I was raised in a small, deeply Protestant community in the American South, so obviously this and football were king when I was growing up. I won't bore you with my own theological views,but I will say that understanding the context of Biblical references and parables are a cornerstone of cultural literacy as I understand it, with many of the common phrases used in the West originating there. I feel the same way about the collected works of William Shakespeare.
After that, I've already got a big hard cover version of the first five Barsoom novels ordered to continue my Appendix N readthrough. Disclaimer - as a kid I read several Tarzan stories but am almost entirely a John Carter neophyte. This should be a very educational experience and help me conceptualize the Optional Arid Plains encounters when I run OD&D in the future. I will say that my Appendix N read-through has been eye-opening so far. My favorites as of this day are Moorcock and Vance, but it's all way better than I expected going in. Unpopular opinion, perhaps, but I found Lovecraft mostly over-rated, except for the Dream Cycle stories, distinct from the Cthulhu Mythos. Those were more "fantasy" flavored and I think I prefer that over the whole "Humanity is a fading light in an eldritch darkness" motif of his other stuff.
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terje
Level 5 Thaumaturgist
Blasphemous accelerator
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Post by terje on Jun 7, 2020 10:17:25 GMT -6
Started reading The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov. Quite funny so far.
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Post by stevemitchell on Jun 11, 2020 12:18:42 GMT -6
The Stealer of Souls by Michael Moorcock. The first two books (in written order) in the saga of Elric of Melnibone—in a composite volume from Del Rey Books, with texts taken from the original British magazine appearances.
Magna Carta by Dan Jones. Hard times of old England, as bad King John drives his barons to revolt. The barons force him to sign the Magna Carta in 1215, which he almost immediately repudiates, followed by more civil war and a French invasion. A fine narrative of this difficult period in English history.
Daughters of the Winter Queen by Nancy Goldstone. The Winter Queen was Elizabeth Stuart, the daughter of King James I of England. She married Frederick, the Elector-Palatine, and became the Winter Queen when she and her husband briefly ruled as the monarchs of Bohemia—setting in train the events of the Thirty Years War. This book follows the fortunes of her many children throughout the 17th Century, with a focus on the daughters. Ms. Goldstone has written several previous books on the roles of influential women in late medieval and early modern history, all of them excellent in my opinion.
The Coming of the Greeks by Robert Drews. The author sifts through the evidence in an attempt to establish an approximate date for when Greek-speaking peoples first arrived in what we now call Greece. He concludes—somewhat tentatively—that they arrived by sea, rather than by overland migration down through the Balkans, in Thessaly around 1600 B.C. There’s also some discussion of the importance of the chariot in the military rise of the Indo-European speaking peoples.
Kthulhu Reich by Asamatsu Ken. Several stories by the author of The Queen of K’n-Yan dealing with the connections between German occultism and the Cthuhu Mythos, particularly during World War II.
Henry IV by Chris-Given Wilson. Another entry in the distinguished “English Monarchs” series. Henry IV usurped the throne of England from his cousin Richard II in 1399—which would lead to the Wars of the Roses 50 years later. A good account of Henry’s life, although I could have done with less detail on economic and taxation issues (perhaps better left for specialist studies).
Starry Wisdom by Peter Levenda. This is the concluding volume of a trilogy that includes The Lovecraft Code and Dunwich. Levenda’s large cast of characters continues their struggle to bring back the Old Ones—or prevent their return. Well done.
The Templars by Dan Jones. Dan Jones strikes again, this time with a balanced, conspiracy theory-free account of the Templar order and its roles in the Crusades.
Anno Klarkash-Ton edited by Glenn Barrass and Frederick J. Mayer. Stories, poems, artwork, and essays in honor of Clark Ashton Smith.
Beneath the Moors and Darker Places by Brian Lumley. Horror stories with a Cthulhu Mythos slant, including Lumley’s first novel, Beneath the Moors.
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