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  • Little Red Riding Hood (ed. Alan Dundes)


    Originally posted by Mister Ed View Post
    I really wish J.K. Rowling would write a novel based on this one. I've read scripts before, and enjoyed them, but I can't help but feel it would be jarring to read the continuation of a novel series in script format.
    Especially since she had to turn to a screenwriter and director to compose it.
    I can't weigh in on that yet since I only read the first two scenes and they were basically the same as the postscript chapter from Deathly Hallows (though there is a seeming mistake or unclear stage direction that I'm sure would be clear in the play, but that's nitpicking).
    Space Cop
    The Dandy
    Last edited by Space Cop; 09-26-2016, 10:54 PM.

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    • A Thousand Sons (Graham McNeill)







      During the closing days of the Great Crusade, the Thousand Sons are under the command of Magnus the Red, a son of the Emperor of Mankind. The Legion is investigating a primitive planet, and when they are late in responding to the calls for aid from another Legion, warriors of the Space Wolves arrive. While the novel starts with how inquisitive and learned the Thousand Sons are, it's only when the sons of Leman Russ arrive that we're given a true glimpse at how much o the Imperium and many others feel about the psychic (called here "psyker") powers of the sons of Magnus.

      Namely that they are monsters with unholy and abominable powers, not good and brave men.

      The Fifteenth Legion draws much of its unstoppable power from the warp/immaterium, which they call the Great Ocean. They have spirit familiars and can warp the fabric of reality in a variety of ways, boiling one's blood, casting lightning, or manifesting fireballs, or even seeing the future. Many people view these powers with great suspicion, and at a major turning point, we see just what one main character, Ahzek Ahriman, speaks of: the flesh change. The power of the warp overcomes a man and turns him into a hideous monster, a freak to be put down before it kills everything in its sight. We see how dearly the Legion clings to the salvation given by its primarch, how like a father he is to them, but we also see exactly the fears and hatreds of the other side, why they decry any psyker powers, and the terrible cost of using them.

      Another and even greater point is when the Thousand Sons are summoned to a major meeting, the Emperor Himself presiding over what amounts to a trial. Are the Sons power-crazed enemies, using their gifts with wanton abandon, or are they misunderstood heroes? Unfortunately, despite a valiant effort, the Sons are sided against and told never to use their powers, and the same goes for every psyker in the Imperium.

      But this is where things get darker still: we have an arrogance in the Legion, that they have a wise and just leader and they are in control and preserved from their terrible curse of the flesh change. This very haughtiness causes Magnus to make horrible choices which ultimately damn his entire world and Legion, many thousands and thousands of lives snuffed out in a full-scale assault by the Space Wolves. The Sons fight back, inflicting ugly wounds on their assailants, but the deepest cuts are to themselves as the powers they swore by consume them, and it is painful to see such a betrayal, how characters who are heroic despite their smugness are struck down.

      This novel serves as a warning as much as it entertains as a war story: that knowing something doesn't make you invincible or perfect, and that believing otherwise will only lead to your downfall. At the novel's end, with Prospero burning and many of his children slaughtered, Magnus finally understands just how much of a fool he was to insist he was a master of knowledge.

      I absolutely loved reading this, and strongly recommend it. I have yet to read its companion (Prospero Burns by Dan Abnett), but I would suggest grabbing that as well, as much of this particular tale of treachery and loss is reflected there.
      Villain Draft 3: Fourth Place Winner

      September 11, 2001; January 6, 2021; February 13, 2021

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      • Bill Cosby's Treasure Hunt


        Counts for two categories.
        Space Cop
        The Dandy
        Last edited by Space Cop; 09-26-2016, 10:55 PM.

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        • Finished the Space Marine Battles: Flesh Tearers anthology by Andy Smillie.

          Overall, a well-written, brutal and enjoyable tale of ruthless, unapologetic killers doing their best to resist their insatiable bloodlust while defending humanity. However, there are some snags along the way to this being a stellar work.

          First of the three stories collected (all of which are written by Andy Smillie) is Flesh of Cretacia. We are introduced to the Chapter Master of the Flesh Tearers, Amit, who bore that title due to being incredibly violent even by Space Marine standards, wielding a particularly nasty barbed sword. In Flesh, the Chapter is hunting orks on a feral world, in the process discovering a lost colony of mankind that has reverted to tribal ways. Over the course of Flesh, we become familiar with the Black Rage that threatens to push all Blood Angel-descended Marines into permanent killing frenzy, and see the Chapter establish its home world, having previously only roamed around, grabbing up new recruits from whichever world was closest. This tale is well-written, with good characterization and insight into the minds and feelings of a deeply distrusted and equally misunderstood group of antiheroes.

          The second story, Sons of Wrath, takes place before Flesh of Cretacia, is largely well-written (Smillie is, in fact, a fairly good pen), and the plot is fairly interesting, but suffers from a strange plot mechanic which flat-out defies an entire faction's practices and beliefs. The action begins when the Chapter enters the Zurconian system and battles an enemy fleet, but the enemy is using a phantom projection. The protagonists narrowly survive the battle, but when they land at the Zurconian capital to conclude the war, their real enemy makes their move.

          While certainly well-written and featuring a pretty good plot, there is, as mentioned above, a serious problem: the main villain is not only pretending to help someone they are utterly opposed to, but they in fact end up possessing them and using their powers. All as if acting in such intimacy with not only a sworn enemy but one that represents the polar opposite of your very identity simply by virtue of their having psychic powers is no big deal. Except this flies directly in the face of such a character. It's a huge plot hole, no two ways about it. The installment overall is still a good read, but it's working against this problem. I can't see why Black Library's editorial department would green light this story when it's pretty much a direct contradiction to what Games Workshop has clearly established, but oh well, best we can hope for is Smillie learns from this mistake.

          The third and final segment of the anthology is Trial by Blood, detailing a series of very controversial (read: super-brutal, merciless, and shocking) actions by the Flesh Tearers, which call into question whether or not their Chapter should be allowed to continue along or if it should be split up and its members absorbed into the other Blood Angels Successor Chapters. Chapter Master Gabriel Seth (note: this is long after Amit has died) is called to account for his Chapter's actions, and we see some of those bloody moments and hear some of the arguments both for and against the dissolution.

          This portion of the story is by far bloodier than the other two parts combined. We see the Flesh Tearers ruthlessly protecting their dark secrets, to the point where they will kill a ton of injured bystanders just to get to a single target. Throughout the anthology, we see that these Marines do not disguise that they are killers, but in Trial we see they really, really mean it. The court martial does largely end (in a fashion/semi-cliffhanger) with Seth still walking in spite of his Chapter's remorseless killings, though it's still a very fine knife's-edge life for them. In this part we see a shifting of perspectives, glimpsing Seth, his soldiers, and the writing style alters between third-person and first-person. It shows flexibility by Smillie, and I have to give him credit that for the most part he does well. Mostly: the writing is more solid with the standard third-person portions, though the first-person is by no means of poor quality, just unexpected and perhaps off-beat. The only real issue I have with Trial is the identity of the person who killed a number of Flesh Tearers during one mission, since that is never revealed and readers can only speculate.

          Overall, this anthology is fairly good, though the aforementioned problems can be a bit rankling to those more familiar with the workings of Warhammer/40k. If you want a set of stories about the bloody nature of war and battles against one's inner demons, there are few better places to look, so give this a try if you can find a copy.
          Villain Draft 3: Fourth Place Winner

          September 11, 2001; January 6, 2021; February 13, 2021

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          • Just finished Book 9 of The Beast Arises: Watchers in Death (David Annandale)




            Overall a very good read, and a good change of pace considering how on-the-defensive the Imperium has been through much of the series.

            This entry focuses on how Supreme Commander Koorland adapts the Office of Assassins methods to the Space Marines, creating mixed-Chapter kill-teams. With overlapping-yet-distinct skill sets, the teams are able to better accomplish a mission of the highest order, each member offering unique abilities while overall meshing with the team through their similarities as Marines. The "black of mourning" color scheme is something several members think of on their own, realizing they each chose black despite having no input from one another and marking it as a sign of great import: this is where the name "Deathwatch" is first made known.

            The writing is something of a step forward for Annandale. While he's been known to write good Chaos/daemon tales, he's been in the past shown to be a little problematic and underwhelming when it comes to the orks. Here he redeems himself a good bit, offering a much better take on the greenskins, showing a ruthless efficiency in their hunting and a careless relaxation in their crewing, the latter of which comes back to bite them when the Deathwatch teams make their move.

            There also is an element of mystery to the story. The Imperium, having lost Vulkan but realizing how critical it is that they go after the ork psykers, chase down leads on the Heresy-era Sisters of Silence. In doing so, we get some scenes of stealth action and puzzle-solving, and both are handled rather well in a genre better known for brains-on-the-walls action; this element actually reminds me of how previous books would handle the various Assassins, sneaking around in a murderous cat-and-mouse game of wits.

            While the first of the series, I Am Slaughter, made me really like the Imperial Fists, this novel got me a bit more interested in the Dark Angels. I never really liked them in the Great Crusade/Heresy setting (haven't found the right novel yet, I suppose), but I always kind of liked their color scheme post-Heresy, the tan-and-green combo catching my eye. While they don't play a major role here (not enough to really go in-depth), they are handled well enough to get some spark of curiosity in readers/players previously uncaring of them.

            Overall a good read, portraying a variety of massive action, sleuthing, political maneuvering, and more. With only three more until the series is concluded, I find things right where they should be.
            Villain Draft 3: Fourth Place Winner

            September 11, 2001; January 6, 2021; February 13, 2021

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            • Re-reading an obscure little tome by JD Salinger called The Catcher in the Rye.



              Ronald Reagan in Private by Jim Kuhn (his assistant)


              The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe



              More challenge categories.
              Space Cop
              The Dandy
              Last edited by Space Cop; 12-31-2016, 05:43 PM.

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              • Heh. Reminds me of the Scrotty McBoogerballs episode of South Park, where the kids write the most disgusting story ever just to be offensive, because they were pissed that the "big controversy" about Catcher was nothing by today's standards.
                Villain Draft 3: Fourth Place Winner

                September 11, 2001; January 6, 2021; February 13, 2021

                Comment


                • Martin Luther by Simonetta Carr



                  Originally posted by Agent Purple View Post
                  Heh. Reminds me of the Scrotty McBoogerballs episode of South Park, where the kids write the most disgusting story ever just to be offensive, because they were pissed that the "big controversy" about Catcher was nothing by today's standards.
                  It's my last category for the 2016 Reader's Challenge. I don't re-read many books (I'm too slow a reader and I have too many books I haven't read but want to), but as I was thinking of "a book you haven't read since high school," this topped the list of ones I wanted to see if I'd view differently 20+ years later. I had even purchased new copies of all Salinger's books the day he died, but hadn't gotten to them. This is one of those novels I hear people say you should read for each stage of your life (youth, middle age, and old age) to get something different from it.

                  Just for fun,
                  Books I have read multiple times (sometimes because of classes) include:

                  The Bible
                  The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings
                  Alice in Wonderland and Alice through the Looking Glass
                  Emma
                  Jane Eyre
                  The Confessions of St. Augustine
                  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
                  Dracula
                  various Shakespeare plays (Macbeth, Hamlet, Twelfth Night, Romeo and Juliet, and Henry V come to mind)
                  Space Cop
                  The Dandy
                  Last edited by Space Cop; 12-27-2016, 06:12 AM.

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                    • The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen


                      I read this for two categories I missed in last year's Reading Challenge (a book published in 2015 and a Pulitzer winner).

                      It's about a communist mole in the SVA who migrates to America at the fall of Saigon and eventually goes back with guerrilla fighters. I liked it, but it was more satirical, cheeky than I was expected.

                      Originally posted by myuserid View Post
                      It's amazing how prolific Chrichton has been from beyond the grave. In High School, he was my favorite writer, but it makes me nervous to read a book the writer could not edit or approve.
                      Space Cop
                      The Dandy
                      Last edited by Space Cop; 11-27-2016, 04:21 AM.

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                      • It's amazing how prolific Chrichton has been from beyond the grave. In High School, he was my favorite writer, but it makes me nervous to read a book the writer could not edit or approve.
                        I thought the same thing. It was supposedly found in his files as a a complete manuscript after his death. I imagine some editing has been done. It's not his best but it's okay.

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                        • Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy


                          Originally posted by myuserid View Post
                          I thought the same thing. It was supposedly found in his files as a a complete manuscript after his death. I imagine some editing has been done. It's not his best but it's okay.
                          I'll probably get around to it (and the other posthumous book) some day. I see on the wiki that he had told someone he was working on a pirate novel, so maybe he would've prioritized it one day if he had lived. I sure wish he had hung around longer. In the world of potboilers and instant #1s, he was a cut above.

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                            • Finishing this today:

                              The Steampunk Trilogy by Paul DiFilippo


                              This is the last category I missed from last year's Reading Challenge (this year's is basically wrapped up). Now that I did one year legitimately and made up what I missed from last year's I'll take a break. I liked doing it---it forced me to pick some things I may have never gotten to otherwise---but I'm tired of having to pass up stuff I want to read for "required reading." Looking forward to some other stuff I've put off because it didn't fit a category.

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