Tuesday, August 31, 2010

The next book comes out WHEN!!?

Spent the weekend reading after all.

Name of the Wind, Patrick Rothfuss, turned out to be completely addicting. Best fantasy I've read in years; the kind of book I'm always hoping to find but rarely do.

Of course, the next book isn't coming out until next year, which must mean he's a once every four year guy. Arrgghh. I was smart enough to wait on the Bujold, Sharing Knife series, until it was close to finishing; got caught by the frakken George Martin series.

This is more or less why I read more mysteries and S.F. So as not to get stuck in a series. Fantasies are just different than S.F. as far as reading series out of order. I have no problem reading mysteries out of order.

But waiting for years and years for the next fantasy book to come out has derailed many an author for me. Most of them aren't THAT good. There is an interesting similarity to comics in that. I can't tell you have many times I've said, "I read the first five issues and liked it."

So, I can see the customer thinking, if you liked it, why did you just read the first five issues?

Well, because by the time enough more issues have come out, I've gone to the NEXT thing, and so on.

When I save up long series, I find myself balking because it's TOO much.

Anyway, I'll read Martin when he finishes, but once again I'm learning that fantasy is dangerous. if you're looking for complete stories.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Been stuck by Martin, Jordan, Butcher and Hamilton for years. Gives you something to look for when you 'accidentally' find yourself wandering around a bookstore :).

Anonymous said...

Glad you enjoyed The Name of the Wind, I'm just about through with it myself and its some of the best fantasy I've read in years. In fact I was in your store a few days ago looking for a copy for myself since the one I'm reading I borrowed. I'll buy a book I really enjoy(especially from a series) and just borrow others that don't quite do it for me, for example Boneshaker. I liked it enough to want to read the next in the series but not enough to buy. Next in line for me is Snow Crash, then Temeraire book 5...wow, I'd better get cracking, lots to read.

Leitmotiv said...

So far I've got three people hooked on The Name of the Wind and they all love it. I got started by a suggestion from a Powell Books employee when I was on a trip to Portland.

Can't wait for The Wise Man's Fear. I am on the third book of Brent Week's The Night Angel trilogy. It's good for the most part, but some of it drags on in places. Not the best trilogy, but I have to see how it ends. And uh, hey you have to support Oregon novelists right?

Anonymous said...

It is really not an easy game.