Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion

Busy month already.

Read the second trade volume of Monstress and moved it to up to date.

Read the second volume of Y: The Last Man.

Started Black Sun Rising the first book in the Coldfire trilogy with another GR group in audio. Also in audio I started A Betrayal in Winter just cause. In Ebook I stared Flesh and Spirit the first book in the Lighthouse Duet for a r/fantasy group read over on Reddit.

How do you handle so many groups? Is it fairly easy to split your time or do you just dodge burnout? I only have this one and one for my singing app, but can't seem to muster the energy for both haha.

Also, really looking forward to your thoughts on Coldfire. :)

I tend to join more groups when my current ones grow quiet... but I tend to prioritize certain groups... I feel weird copying and pasting my reading progress each month to multiple groups...

I like to read a wide variety of books... I emptied the well on attention-grabbing UF/PNR and contemporary romance in 2013/14... now I also read SF/fantasy, historical, mystery/thriller, and steampunk and its alt-history off-shoots... bit of everything except horror really

Niki Hawkes wrote: "How do you handle so many groups? Is it fairly easy to split your time or do you just dodge burnout? I only have this one and one for my singing app, but can't seem to muster the energy for both ha..."

I don't tend to do many group reads and the groups all tend to have a ton of overlap in what they read so I can usually join discussions without having to read the books at that time.

The r/fantasy read is spaced out over 5 weeks so if I read a chapter a day I can keep pace. They tend to read stuff I don't have on my radar so it gets me into new stuff. The Lighthouse Duet is only the second group read they are doing. The first was Inda which is now one of my top 5 series so couldn't resist joining this one.

The honest answer though is I only do what I want for each group and don't feel pressured to participate just for participations sake. I'm only really active in this group and one other. I do challenges but not much else in 3 others.

Finished the Inda Quartet by Sherwood Smith. Really loved everything about this series. It is tied for my favorite series with Malazan. The two series are so different that I can't decide between them.

Bill wrote: "Finished the Inda Quartet by Sherwood Smith. Really loved everything about this series. It is tied for my favorite series with Malazan. The two series are so different that I can't decide between t..."

That's some pretty high praise.

I've had those hardcovers on my shelves for like 10 years... your going to make me destroy my carefully laid plans and start Inda, aren't you? Lol

Niki Hawkes wrote: "I've had those hardcovers on my shelves for like 10 years... your going to make me destroy my carefully laid plans and start Inda, aren't you? Lol"

Yes absolutely do it!

Wow, it wasn't even on my radar - added it to the TBR. Thanks Bill!

Started another graphic novel series. This time it's Pretty Deadly, Vol. 1: The Shrike which was absolutely fantastic. Will be picking up the next volume immediately when I get my hoopla allowance next month.

Going to be starting Rat Queens, Vol. 1: Sass & Sorcery next. Going to finish Dragonriders of Pern first so I can keep my open series at 80. :(

Bill wrote: "so I can keep my open series at 80. :( "

Kummerspeck -- "grief bacon" -- weight gained from emotional over-eating

Seemed appropriate

Scott you truly are shameless now.

Iain that explains why I keep "snacking".

As long as it's gluten-free bacon

Bill wrote: "Scott you truly are shameless now.

50% fun smack talk and 50% tough love motivation.

As far as snacking you should do what I do. Read a first in series so it's automatically moved to up to date. Then pick off a few more from the incomplete list.

Margret wrote: "As long as it's gluten-free bacon"

Haha that just made me wonder if there is deep fried bacon.

Scott wrote: "Bill wrote: "Scott you truly are shameless now.

50% fun smack talk and 50% tough love motivation.

As far as snacking you should do what I do. Read a first in series so it's automatically moved t..."

The UTDs bother me more than open series that are fully written. I know that as more time goes on I'm likely going to have to reread the UTDs.

Bill wrote: "The UTDs bother me more than open series that are fully written. I know that as more time goes on I'm likely going to have to reread the UTDs. ."

With very few exceptions I'll never do a re-read. I have a great memory and can usually pick up the story where it left off. It frustrates me when authors spend the first quarter of the book doing a recap of the last one. I am doing a re-read of Stormlight Archives in lieu of book #3 coming out but that's such an exceptional series I want to and didn't feel compelled to do it. Reading TWoK's I remembered everything minus some of the interlude character sections. RoW I expect the same.

I have a really good memory as well but with some of my UTDs it has been 500+ books since I finished the last. I can always remember the big events and major characters but I hate missing small details. So that's about the extent of my memory.

If you're worried about forgetting, do what some of my friends on here do... use your review space to write a little spoiler summary you can check when you continue with the series...

In general, I'm like Scott, and just live with what I remember... nothing annoys me more than excessive recapping in a book... especially when books remind you of things multiple times...

Oh I hate recapping as well. The recaps only usually cover major things anyway so I find them completely useless. One of the worst offenders is Dresden Files. If I had to hear about his car or apartment again I would have lost it.

One of the worst offenders for me was Elemental Assassin... EVERY TIME Gin Blanco went to the Devereaux sisters house/salon it was the same long descriptions...

Finished Dragonriders of Pern trilogy. Think the series as a whole lacks a real villain and suffers from it. Don't think I will continue with the larger Pern series.

Bill wrote: "Finished Dragonriders of Pern trilogy. Think the series as a whole lacks a real villain and suffers from it. Don't think I will continue with the larger Pern series."

I need to get better at letting series go.

Me too. That's why I'm breaking series down into their smaller trilogies. Makes it easier to have a point where I can say ok I finished that otherwise I'll just keep going.

Iain wrote: "If you're worried about forgetting, do what some of my friends on here do... use your review space to write a little spoiler summary you can check when you continue with the series...

In general, ..."

I hate recapping as well. Especially when you are well into a series and it feels like a quarter of the book is recapping previous events. The October Daye series is a serious offender in this regard too.

I think how annoyed I get at recapping is a sign of how much I like a series or could care less... if I really love a series I'm more forgiving...

That makes total sense Iain. I seem to have no problem forgiving it in the Dresden Files and while I do like October Daye, I grit my teeth through the recapping.

Monthly Totals:
Books read towards challenge: 12
Finished series: 3 (Inda, Dragonriders of Pern, Long Price Quartet)
Brought up to date: 1 (Monstress)
Series progressed: 2 (Y:The Last Man, Discworld)
New series started: 4 (Coldfire, Lighthouse, Dark Elf, Pretty Deadly)
Abandoned: 0
Total series completion: 206 for 454 = 45.4%

Haven't finished the last Long Price Quartet book yet but between painting at my sisters today and doing yard work tomorrow I should finish it easily.

Really good month for me. Finished Inda which is tied for my all time favorite series, started two really great graphic novel series and read 3 of the LPQ books which are amazing.

That is a great month. :) if my name is ever chosen for book club, I'm totally nominating Inda. Either way, it's getting read in 2018.

That's awesome. If you enjoy even half as much as I did you are in for a treat.

Niki Hawkes wrote: "That is a great month. :) if my name is ever chosen for book club, I'm totally nominating Inda. Either way, it's getting read in 2018."

I'm in for it in 2018.

We'll talk. :)

well done, Bill!

Thanks Miche.

October 5th is my end date for year 1 so going to try to get LPQ and World of the Five Gods done. Also going to try to get Pretty Deadly and Rat Queens to UTD which should be pretty easy.

That would give me 78 open series of which 28 are UTD. So 50 active series with 69 finished would leave me feeling pretty good.

Niki Hawkes wrote: "We'll talk. :)"

Thanks Joan Rivers.

Bill wrote: "October 5th is my end date for year 1 so going to try to get LPQ and World of the Five Gods done. Also going to try to get Pretty Deadly and Rat Queens to UTD which should be pretty easy."

Nice.

Lol

That's a great month Bill. Nearly there for 1 year completed on the challenge. I think I need to check out this Inda series, Sounds really good.

Great job Bill!

That is a great month Bill. I missed that you previously listed your September stats.

Thanks everyone. Finished The Price of Spring to polish off Long Price Quartet. Really loved the series. Great character development throughout and really enjoyed the world and creative magic system.

Bill wrote: "Thanks everyone. Finished The Price of Spring to polish off Long Price Quartet. Really loved the series. Great character development throughout and really enjoyed the world and creative magic system."

I'm glad you loved it and that it translated well in audio. I was thinking about doing a few of the novellas for expanse in audio but I was worried some of DA's brilliance would be lost to the narrator. There's some works that translate well, WoT and Stormlight, and some I just cannot picture going well such as BotF or LPQ because of the complexity and prose.

FYI I did audio for all Expanse books and the narrator is outstanding. You wouldn't regret it.

(except Cibola Burn (#4) as it was a different, shitty narrator)

Margret wrote: "FYI I did audio for all Expanse books and the narrator is outstanding. You wouldn't regret it.

(except Cibola Burn (#4) as it was a different, shitty narrator)"

Good to know, thanks.

I second the audio quality. I read the first two then did audio for the rest. Nothing lost imo.

Cibola didn't bother me once I got used to him, but he's not quite as good.

I don't think I had a problem with Cibola Burn's narrator... I just didn't care for the story of that one as much... (view spoiler)[being trapped planetside and all... (hide spoiler)]

LPQ was great in audio. I did the first two expanse books in audio as well and enjoyed them.

Just realized I never added in The Walking Dead comics only the book series. Just like that I'm back to 80 series. I have only read the compendiums but think I will go by trade volumes as that is what is available from Hoopla.

I read the 2nd and 3rd trade volumes of Rat Queens last night to bring that UTD.