River: 1001. 1002. Simon: River... River: Shh. I'm counting between the lightning and the thunder to see if the storm is coming or going. .1005

'The Message'


Literary Buffistas 3: Don't Parse the Blurb, Dear.

There's more to life than watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer! No. Really, there is! Honestly! Here's a place for Buffistas to come and discuss what it is they're reading, their favorite authors and poets. "Geez. Crack a book sometime."


-t - Mar 07, 2021 10:10:03 am PST #26495 of 27912
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

They're pretty great.

I decided to reread Swordheart, very enjoyable. I think I was wrong in thinking there was a biggish time gap in these stories, probably I was confused by the long time since the sorceror-smith created the swords. Maybe it was a matter of me feeling like I had to wait too long for the next one although objectively it can't have been that long a time.


askye - Mar 09, 2021 8:12:15 am PST #26496 of 27912
Thrive to spite them

So I'm excited because I've read the first 2 books of The Expanse series--this is exciting because I read 2 books--in a row!! I haven't done that in so long (I've mostly been reading/re reading fanfic).

I'm waiting for the next one from the library and I was wondering if anyone had recommendations for sci fi series that would be along the same vein. I've read Old Man's War by John Scalzi and liked that but I'm kind of floundering on what to read next.


Toddson - Mar 09, 2021 8:38:32 am PST #26497 of 27912
Friends don't let friends read "Atlas Shrugged"

Ten Thousand Doors of January is on sale at Amazon for $3.99, if you've been holding back.


chrismg - Mar 09, 2021 8:49:28 am PST #26498 of 27912
"...and then Legolas and the Hulk destroy the entire Greek army." - Penny Arcade

askye, have you read A Memory Called Empire? If you like interstellar politics and unusual societies I recommend it.


-t - Mar 09, 2021 8:51:23 am PST #26499 of 27912
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

The second book on that series just came out


Jessica - Mar 09, 2021 11:53:01 am PST #26500 of 27912
If I want to become a cloud of bats, does each bat need a separate vaccination?

I'm lukewarm on Scalzi generally (love his blog and Twitter feed, meh about most of his books) but I really enjoyed the Interdependency series (first book is The Last Emperox).


-t - Mar 09, 2021 12:09:39 pm PST #26501 of 27912
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

I am trying to think of what might scratch the same itch as The Expanse and tangling myself up. I did read a sort of space opera ish series not too long ago by Nathan Lowell that I liked. First book is Quarter Share and there are, like, 5 trilogies in the universe, more or less in chronological order. I think I like his fantasy better, to be honest, but the sci fi has its merits.


DavidS - Mar 09, 2021 12:47:00 pm PST #26502 of 27912
"Look, son, if it's good enough for Shirley Bassey, it's good enough for you."

I'm a big fan of Iain Banks Culture novels, which are fantastic space opera. But they're not to everybody's taste.

I thought his first in that series, Consider Phlebas, played out like a mix between Firefly/Farscape. But I know DXM read it and disliked it (I think because it has a rather downer ending). But I loved that world and its thoughtful exploration of ideas, as well as the slam bang adventure.

A lot of people like Ann Leckie's books, which are pure space opera.


-t - Mar 09, 2021 12:49:09 pm PST #26503 of 27912
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration

Oh, if you haven't read Ancillary Justice and so forth, that is excellent!


Volans - Mar 09, 2021 5:36:29 pm PST #26504 of 27912
move out and draw fire

Yeah, I was going to rec Ancillary Justice.

There are all the old SF books from the 60s/70s, like the Rama books etc. I haven't read them since I was a kid so I don't know how they hold up.

Oh! Empress of Forever by Max Gladstone. It's less on the hard science and more on the quantum, sort of Guardians of the Galaxy meet Godel Escher Bach.