Sci-Fi & Fantasy Girlz discussion

What are you planning on reading/hoping to read in 2015?

My current plans are to get to another James Bond book (I've been working my way through the Ian Fleming versions) as well as 1 or 2 of the Aubrey & Maturin series by O'Brian.

At some point, I want to pick up another Mary Renault and another Jeanette Winterson. I didn't read Hamlet this last year, and I try to read that one every couple of years, so I'll probably get to that one again soon.

I'm planning on reading the MadAddam trilogy early in the year and read more Margaret Atwood.

I want to finally get started with Mary Renault. I also want to read the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

I also want to read some historical fiction. I'm not sure I've ever read the genre.

I should get my hands on some classics. I've always wanted to read Jane Austen and I also have Anna Karenina high on my list.

Also want to read some Ken Follet because apparently his books are awesome.

I've just begun Richard Flanagan's The Narrow Road to the Deep North which is a bit out of genre for me, but I do like to read a variety of things.

I've seen loads of good reviews from people whose opinions I respect, so I'm really looking forward to it.

I'm also planning on reading the rest of Patty Jansen's Ambassador series.

I'm a crazy person who'll re-read the nightrunner books. Or, at least the first one, Luck in the Shadows, because I'm crazy and I love the books.

I want to read the Temeraire series and of course finally the fourth book I got of Anne Rice's vampire series. I got the first four as a box set so, I guess I might as well finish reading the ones I got.

Apart from that ... I don't know. More Le Guin, if I can manage.

Yoly wrote: "I also want to read some historical fiction. I'm not sure I've ever read the genre.
..."

If you want to read some historical fiction, I'm going to put in a plug for Dorothy Dunnett. Most people think of her Francis Crawford of Lymond series when her name comes up, but personally I prefer "King Hereafter." She is my second-most favorite historical fiction author.

Ken Follet can be a lot of fun, but I found him a little dated at times. And I have to say that his female characters sometimes rubbed me the wrong way a bit. YMMV.

Gary wrote: "My current plans are to get to another James Bond book (I've been working my way through the Ian Fleming versions) as well as 1 or 2 of the Aubrey & Maturin series by O'Brian..."

I can't say enough good things the Aubrey & Maturin series and when I try, I tend to sound like an idiot. There are really no weak books in the series (IMHO), though I tend to think "The Ionian Mission" is the most accessble for people unfamiliar with the times and his style.

And I'd be eager to hear what you think about Jeanette Winterson.

Owen wrote: "I can't say enough good things the Aubrey & Maturin series and when I try, I tend to sound like an idiot. There are really no weak books in the series (IMHO), though I tend to think "The Ionian Mission" is the most accessble for people unfamiliar with the times and his style."

Having read the Hornblower series, I was pretty jaded when I picked up O'Brian, but he's impressed the hell out of me. It's hard to see someone doing a better job with that period or the naval combat genre. I've gone through the first 12 of that series (I think it may be getting time for the next one sooner rather that later, in fact, just to clear the bitter taste of Honor Harrington from my mental palate...) and some dynamics are getting a little strained, but overall he's amazingly consistent.

Owen wrote: "And I'd be eager to hear what you think about Jeanette Winterson."

She's brilliant. I've only reviewed one of here books, The Stone Gods, here on GR (link: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...) but if she sits down and writes a shopping list for the supermarket, I'll read it under the assumption that it must contain literary gold. I think the first piece of her work I found was The Passion. I hate to gush, but it would be inaccurate if I didn't say that that was a seminal moment in my reading experience--and, dare I say, writing aspirations.

Gary wrote: "Owen wrote: "Having read the Hornblower series, I was pretty jaded when I picked up O'Brian..."

I felt rather the same way when I first picked up O'Brian over 20 years ago. How people can compare the books to Hornblower is beyond me (though the Hornblower books were something new in their time). The long interlude in the Pacific is not my favorite part of the series, but overall, the quality he maintains thru 19 or 20 books is an amazing achievement. The thirteenth book in the series is one of my favorites, and should act as a nice palette cleanser.

My acquaintance with Jeanette Winterson has been brief -- I look forward to extending it. On first blush, I put her a notch below Djuna Barnes (my review of Nightwood: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... ), but I intend to read more before expressing a firm opinion.

I want to finish up the books I'm still currently reading, and make some dents in my "want-to-read" list (and in the pile of currently-on-hand-to-read books in my house). :)

And also make an actual effort to track down and read some of the books coming out in 2015.

Owen wrote: "Yoly wrote: "I also want to read some historical fiction. I'm not sure I've ever read the genre.
..."

If you want to read some historical fiction, I'm going to put in a plug for Dorothy Dunnett. M..."

I reccommend THE LAST TEMPLAR by Michael Jecks if you want to read historical fiction that is ALSO a murder mystery. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

The first two books of my year, decided by what has come in from my library holds, will be:
David Mitchell's The Bone Clocks (I'm halfway through)
John Darnielle's Wolf in White Van

The next two immediately after will likely be
Jennifer Marie Brissett's Elysium and Daniel Jose Older's Half-Resurrection Blues, both of which I just bought.

Other stuff I hope to read this year as they come out:
Nnedi Okorafor's Lagoon
Fran Wilde's Updraft
Maria Dahvana Headley's Magonia
Ann Leckie's Ancillary Mercy

And in between I can tackle everything else I've never gotten to. I'd really like to read the Poisonwood Bible this year.

I need to read more Philip K. Dick....

Sarah wrote: "The first two books of my year, decided by what has come in from my library holds, will be:
David Mitchell's The Bone Clocks (I'm halfway through)..."

What do you think about The Bone Clocks so far, would you recommend it?

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

My goal is 2015 is to read more "classic" SF&F. I'm reading Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb right now. I've got The Pride of Chanur by C. J. Cherryh out from the library. I also plan on tackling The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Guin some time this year.

As for newer releasses, I've just finished Ancillary Sword by Ann Leckie and enjoyed it a lot.

Eliene wrote: "My goal is 2015 is to read more "classic" SF&F. I'm reading Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb right now. I've got The Pride of Chanur by C. J. Cherryh out from the lib..."

For classics, I recommend Asimov and Heinlein particularly works like I, ROBOT (Asimov), FARMER IN THE SKY (Heinlein), THE CAVES OF STEEL (Asimov) and/or THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS by Heinlein. You could also read Leigh Brackett...one of the few female SF&F writers from the Golden Age of pulp sci-fi...she's also the only SF& F writer to have ALSO written a screenplay for a John Wayne Western.

For myself, I have just added five books to my list of Currently Reading: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list...

Amber wrote: "You could also read Leigh Brackett...one of the few female SF&F writers from the Golden Age of pulp sci-fi...she's also the only SF& F writer to have ALSO written a screenplay for a John Wayne Western..."

She wrote at least two screenplays for a John Wayne Westerns, as I recall (Eldorado and Rio Bravo) - possibly a third. And one hard-boiled detective screenplay also, The Big Sleep, with William Faulkner.

Thanks for the recs Amber. I'll keep those in mind though I've just gotten out of a reading slump so I want to keep a slow reading pace for a while.

Is there a good place to start with Leigh Brackett's work?
And I had to google who John Wayne was... Maybe it's a generational or cultural thing that I didn't recognize his name. But I do recognize True Grit :)

Eliene wrote: "Is there a good place to start with Leigh Brackett's work?"

Personally (if I'm not butting in), I'd start with the Skaith trilogy. The first book is 'The Ginger Star'. She wrote those in early 70s, and I found them more interesting than the more "pulp" stories she wrote in the 40's and 50's.

Owen wrote: "Amber wrote: "You could also read Leigh Brackett...one of the few female SF&F writers from the Golden Age of pulp sci-fi...she's also the only SF& F writer to have ALSO written a screenplay for a J..."

I didn't remember that part, Owen. *S*

Eliene wrote: "Thanks for the recs Amber. I'll keep those in mind though I've just gotten out of a reading slump so I want to keep a slow reading pace for a while.

Is there a good place to start with Leigh Brack..."

Yes, it's a generational thing. Hardly anyone born after 1978 recognizes John Wayne by name. I was born in January 1978 and I was a little over a year old when he died. Nor do they realize that John Wayne wasn't the name on his birth certificate. The name on his birth certificate is Marion Michael Morrison.

As for a starting point on Ms. Brackett...ask Owen.

Leigh Brackett wasn't the only woman writing pulp.

Definitely check out also Jane Gaskell and C.L. Moore

Janny wrote: "Leigh Brackett wasn't the only woman writing pulp.

Definitely check out also Jane Gaskell and C.L. Moore"

She's the first one we've mentioned.

Thanks Owen! The synopsis for the first book didn't really hook me but I'll see if It's available that my library.

And Amber, I definitely missed that John Wayne window by a good 15 years!

(Apologies for any confusion I create by not using the reply function... I'm on the mobile app which doesn't have that capability)

Eliene wrote: "Thanks Owen! The synopsis for the first book didn't really hook me but I'll see if It's available that my library.

And Amber, I definitely missed that John Wayne window by a good 15 years!"

Eliene, if you read the description on Amazon (the book appears to be out of print), it is quite goofy. (Who makes this stuff up anyway?) The book has a sort of dystopian, noir feel to it, though I don't think it's much like current dystopian fiction (which I don't read a lot of, so take that with a grain of salt). One thing I like about it is the way she portrayed the various cultures on dying planet (which they all know is dying), and how they have reacted to that.

It's not a deeply philosophical work, by any means (it pretty much stays true to it roots), but I enjoyed how she carved out the various characters in clear, sharp, lucid prose. Stark is an interesting character, having more depth than most of his ilk in heroic fiction (IMHO), although this is conveyed in a economical and understated way.

Gerrith, the main female character, I think was very well handled also: a strong, determined woman who's not the cartoonish caricature of a "kick-ass" heroine that we sometimes get these days.

There is nothing hyperbolic or florid about Brackett's writing (which I like), and I think it has more impact for that. (Some modern writers try way too hard, for my tastes.) Her characters do not engage in histrionics, yet you get a sense of how they feel and what they are carrying with them. And she does the sense of decay, and slow, grinding, impending doom well, too.

Those are my thoughts, for what they worth. If you remain interested, I hope you can find a copy.

Eliene wrote: "Thanks Owen! The synopsis for the first book didn't really hook me but I'll see if It's available that my library.

And Amber, I definitely missed that John Wayne window by a good 15 years!

(Apol..."

Apology accepted about the "Reply" function. I understand about the John Wayne thing. LOL.