| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 13 Sep 2011 : 15:46:37
Hello everyone. Like many of you, I have set out to read every Realms book ever published. While most are very enjoyable, there are still a few that are hard to push through. I wanted to get anyone's thoughts on skipping books. I will usually give a book 50 pages of my time before making the decision to stick with it or move on. I would love to read every Realms book front to back, but some of them are just not worth it. Thoughts? I am also curious to see what books others have decided to give up on as well. |
| 30 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 04 Oct 2011 : 13:46:00
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
That's the only Denning Realms book I haven’t yet read. And knowing what class the characters belong to, I’m not sure if I’ll give it a try.
Some people really like it, which is one of the things that to me really emphasizes the hit-or-miss nature of his stuff. Some of his stuff is really good, some is not.
So just like his The Return of the Archwizards Trilogy. I know some people dislike it, rather too vehemently. Many, though, myself included, love it.
I read a couple of reviews elsewhere saying that FoD doesn’t feel like it’s set in the Realms…
Wasn't FoD set in/around the mountains between Kara Tur and Faerun?
...sort of like a real world setting in Tibet |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 04 Oct 2011 : 13:45:22
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
That's the only Denning Realms book I haven’t yet read. And knowing what class the characters belong to, I’m not sure if I’ll give it a try.
Some people really like it, which is one of the things that to me really emphasizes the hit-or-miss nature of his stuff. Some of his stuff is really good, some is not.
So just like his The Return of the Archwizards Trilogy. I know some people dislike it, rather too vehemently. Many, though, myself included, love it.
I read a couple of reviews elsewhere saying that FoD doesn’t feel like it’s set in the Realms…
Wasn't FoD set in/around the mountains between Kara Tur and Faerun? |
| Dennis |
Posted - 04 Oct 2011 : 11:18:13
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
That's the only Denning Realms book I haven’t yet read. And knowing what class the characters belong to, I’m not sure if I’ll give it a try.
Some people really like it, which is one of the things that to me really emphasizes the hit-or-miss nature of his stuff. Some of his stuff is really good, some is not.
So just like his The Return of the Archwizards Trilogy. I know some people dislike it, rather too vehemently. Many, though, myself included, love it.
I read a couple of reviews elsewhere saying that FoD doesn’t feel like it’s set in the Realms… |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 04 Oct 2011 : 10:53:19
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
That's the only Denning Realms book I haven’t yet read. And knowing what class the characters belong to, I’m not sure if I’ll give it a try.
Some people really like it, which is one of the things that to me really emphasizes the hit-or-miss nature of his stuff. Some of his stuff is really good, some is not. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 04 Oct 2011 : 09:55:05
That's the only Denning Realms book I haven’t yet read. And knowing what class the characters belong to, I’m not sure if I’ll give it a try. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 22:12:42
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by swifty
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
Road of the Patriarch was definitely one of the ones I had in mind. I would have happily read another 6 books featuring Entreri and Jarlaxle anyway, but even otherwise the ending was terribly rushed. Damara storyline, King Gareth Dragonsbane and his buddies, so on and so forth...boom now we're in Memnon to finish up this last bit so we don't leave everything totally unresolved, but yes. Definitely rushed.
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me.
faces of deception had a very sudden ending.
I don't recall that it had a swift ending... Only that it was one of the very few books I've ever wanted to throw across the room, because of the ending! 
Some people really like that book... I am not among their number.
I read Faces of Deception, and enjoyed it little at the time. But now i don't remember much about it at all. I do remember it was one of my least favorite Denning books. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 22:00:43
quote:
Originally posted by swifty
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
Road of the Patriarch was definitely one of the ones I had in mind. I would have happily read another 6 books featuring Entreri and Jarlaxle anyway, but even otherwise the ending was terribly rushed. Damara storyline, King Gareth Dragonsbane and his buddies, so on and so forth...boom now we're in Memnon to finish up this last bit so we don't leave everything totally unresolved, but yes. Definitely rushed.
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me.
faces of deception had a very sudden ending.
I don't recall that it had a swift ending... Only that it was one of the very few books I've ever wanted to throw across the room, because of the ending!
Some people really like that book... I am not among their number. |
| swifty |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 21:58:03
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
Road of the Patriarch was definitely one of the ones I had in mind. I would have happily read another 6 books featuring Entreri and Jarlaxle anyway, but even otherwise the ending was terribly rushed. Damara storyline, King Gareth Dragonsbane and his buddies, so on and so forth...boom now we're in Memnon to finish up this last bit so we don't leave everything totally unresolved, but yes. Definitely rushed.
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me.
faces of deception had a very sudden ending. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 20:24:18
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me.
Agreed. But it's just one of the things I dislike about that book. I wished Rabe used some more sensible, more interesting characters as Harpers. I could barely stand the druid's incessant complaining of almost everything. It surprised me that Wynter didn't even for once smash the druid's head to shut him up. Ironically, though, I re-read it more than I did some of my favorite novels. And that's because of Thay, Maligor, and Szass Tam.
Nah, I wasn't too much a fan of the druid. And Brenna annoyed me a bit, too. Nowhere near as cool as Szass Tam.
Druids. Psht. |
| Yoss |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 18:56:53
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me.
Agreed. But it's just one of the things I dislike about that book. I wished Rabe used some more sensible, more interesting characters as Harpers. I could barely stand the druid's incessant complaining of almost everything. It surprised me that Wynter didn't even for once smash the druid's head to shut him up. Ironically, though, I re-read it more than I did some of my favorite novels. And that's because of Thay, Maligor, and Szass Tam.
Nah, I wasn't too much a fan of the druid. And Brenna annoyed me a bit, too. Nowhere near as cool as Szass Tam. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 16:41:32
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me.
Agreed. But it's just one of the things I dislike about that book. I wished Rabe used some more sensible, more interesting characters as Harpers. I could barely stand the druid's incessant complaining of almost everything. It surprised me that Wynter didn't even for once smash the druid's head to shut him up. Ironically, though, I re-read it more than I did some of my favorite novels. And that's because of Thay, Maligor, and Szass Tam. |
| Yoss |
Posted - 03 Oct 2011 : 15:59:17
Road of the Patriarch was definitely one of the ones I had in mind. I would have happily read another 6 books featuring Entreri and Jarlaxle anyway, but even otherwise the ending was terribly rushed. Damara storyline, King Gareth Dragonsbane and his buddies, so on and so forth...boom now we're in Memnon to finish up this last bit so we don't leave everything totally unresolved, but yes. Definitely rushed.
I kind of thought the end of Red Magic (which I did like well enough overall) felt pretty rushed. Like, damn, we've got 10 pages left, time to wrap this up, and it seemed really weak to me. |
| Seabus Mythforger |
Posted - 02 Oct 2011 : 08:14:53
quote:
Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
quote:
Originally posted by jornan
I quite enjoyed Evermeet, City of Splendors, and Cormyr as well as the WotSQ.
To be honest, I did like the ending of City of Splendors--no, not in a sarcastic "because I'm glad it was over" sort of way, it wrapped up well. The only problem I had was it took so long getting there. And Evermeet was just several kinds of enjoyable.
Are people in general more likely to forgive a rushed ending, or a boring middle? Now that I think about it, I've probably disliked more books based on their endings (even if I enjoyed them up until that point) than I have given up partway through because I was bored.
I don't know that I've ever felt that any Realms books had a rushed ending... That said, as for the BattleTech novels, I was enjoying reading about the FedCom Civil War... And then, after it had been building for a while and was nearing a tipping point, it suddenly ended. I remain very disappointed with its abrupt ending -- it's one of many reasons my interest in that setting has faded.
The only books I've read that have appeared to have a rushed ending was the 3rd book in the Sellswords trilogy. I just think Salvatore could've wrapped it a little better with another 50-100 pages. As for a book/series ending abruptly...the best example I can think of would be the Twilight series (go ahead and get your flak in now.....ok, done?). I was encouraged to read it by an ex-girlfriend so I gave it a whirl and was thoroughly disappointed. Aside from vampires that sparkle and shape-shifting wolves, the first 3 books led up to what had the potential to be a full out awesome battle with serious repercussions...but then it just didn't. I don't know any better way to describe it. It just stopped and everyone was all buddy-buddy again. Such fodder! |
| Dennis |
Posted - 02 Oct 2011 : 07:22:40
There were occasions when, after reaching the 100th page and still felt excruciatingly bored, I jumped right to the last chapter---and was still disappointed. |
| Wooly Rupert |
Posted - 01 Oct 2011 : 03:37:36
quote:
Originally posted by Yoss
quote:
Originally posted by jornan
I quite enjoyed Evermeet, City of Splendors, and Cormyr as well as the WotSQ.
To be honest, I did like the ending of City of Splendors--no, not in a sarcastic "because I'm glad it was over" sort of way, it wrapped up well. The only problem I had was it took so long getting there. And Evermeet was just several kinds of enjoyable.
Are people in general more likely to forgive a rushed ending, or a boring middle? Now that I think about it, I've probably disliked more books based on their endings (even if I enjoyed them up until that point) than I have given up partway through because I was bored.
I don't know that I've ever felt that any Realms books had a rushed ending... That said, as for the BattleTech novels, I was enjoying reading about the FedCom Civil War... And then, after it had been building for a while and was nearing a tipping point, it suddenly ended. I remain very disappointed with its abrupt ending -- it's one of many reasons my interest in that setting has faded. |
| Yoss |
Posted - 01 Oct 2011 : 00:23:14
quote:
Originally posted by jornan
I quite enjoyed Evermeet, City of Splendors, and Cormyr as well as the WotSQ.
To be honest, I did like the ending of City of Splendors--no, not in a sarcastic "because I'm glad it was over" sort of way, it wrapped up well. The only problem I had was it took so long getting there. And Evermeet was just several kinds of enjoyable.
Are people in general more likely to forgive a rushed ending, or a boring middle? Now that I think about it, I've probably disliked more books based on their endings (even if I enjoyed them up until that point) than I have given up partway through because I was bored. |
| Seabus Mythforger |
Posted - 24 Sep 2011 : 06:15:04
quote:
Originally posted by jornan
I would definitely check out House of Serpents again.
My issue with the first 50 (or 100) page rule is that I usually like the first 100 pages of any novel the best and find than many FR books peter out around the 2/3 or 3/4 mark and by that time you might as well finish it as I've invested so much time into it already.
I loved House of Serpents! Especially since it was my first journey away from Drizzt and friends. I didn't know much about the area where the books took place or anything at all about Psionics (other than a small mention of House Oblodra and the illithids during the Drizzt books), but when I finished I wanted to go back and read them again. Alas, I had already purchased multiple other books that I decided to venture into so I've yet to get back to them. I did let a friend of mine borrow them and it was his first venture into the Realms and he loved them. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 13:47:48
quote:
Originally posted by jornan
I would definitely check out House of Serpents again.
My issue with the first 50 (or 100) page rule is that I usually like the first 100 pages of any novel the best and find than many FR books peter out around the 2/3 or 3/4 mark and by that time you might as well finish it as I've invested so much time into it already.
The good news is that at least these are short books we are talking about |
| Dennis |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 04:43:22
quote:
Originally posted by jornan
My issue with the first 50 (or 100) page rule is that I usually like the first 100 pages of any novel the best and find than many FR books peter out around the 2/3 or 3/4 mark and by that time you might as well finish it as I've invested so much time into it already.
It happened to me sometimes. The prologue and first five chapters were so good but the quality dropped significantly in the succeeding chapters. I would stop in the middle part, or sometimes even if there were only four chapters left. I ceased to be a masochistic reader a long time ago. |
| jornan |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 03:55:18
I would definitely check out House of Serpents again.
My issue with the first 50 (or 100) page rule is that I usually like the first 100 pages of any novel the best and find than many FR books peter out around the 2/3 or 3/4 mark and by that time you might as well finish it as I've invested so much time into it already. |
| Caolin |
Posted - 22 Sep 2011 : 03:02:50
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
Hello everyone. Like many of you, I have set out to read every Realms book ever published. While most are very enjoyable, there are still a few that are hard to push through. I wanted to get anyone's thoughts on skipping books. I will usually give a book 50 pages of my time before making the decision to stick with it or move on. I would love to read every Realms book front to back, but some of them are just not worth it. Thoughts? I am also curious to see what books others have decided to give up on as well.
I have only given up on one book and that was Unbroken Chain. The writing was fine, but I just didn't care about the location and the subject matter. I found it difficult to stay interested.
As for skipping novels, I have only skipped two series. Threat from the Sea and The House of Serpents series. Also, both of those I avoided due to lack of interest in the subject matter. I am planning on reading both of those since the stream of books has slowed to about 1 book every month or two. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 21:41:12
quote:
Originally posted by Erik Scott de Bie
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
I thought War of the Spider Queen was fair, especially considering it was written by 6 different authors. This makes me reluctant to read the Waterdeep series though.
I wouldn't concern yourself too much on this point. As one of the Waterdeep authors, I will gladly tell you that our stories were not encouraged to cross (actively discouraged, in fact) and that we don't share any significant characters, so there are no worries about tone/characterization. That the stories all take place in the same city (though in different districts) and at roughly the same time (1479-80) are the only two areas of crossover. (Oh, and I liked 'em all, but that's IMO.)
Cheers
Thanks Erik. I guess i thought it was more like War of the Spider Queen with the same charcters being followed from book to book. Whew! |
| Erik Scott de Bie |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 21:30:39
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
I thought War of the Spider Queen was fair, especially considering it was written by 6 different authors. This makes me reluctant to read the Waterdeep series though.
I wouldn't concern yourself too much on this point. As one of the Waterdeep authors, I will gladly tell you that our stories were not encouraged to cross (actively discouraged, in fact) and that we don't share any significant characters, so there are no worries about tone/characterization. That the stories all take place in the same city (though in different districts) and at roughly the same time (1479-80) are the only two areas of crossover. (Oh, and I liked 'em all, but that's IMO.)
Cheers
|
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 21:09:26
quote:
Originally posted by entreri3478
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Agreed. I must say I admire those who really endeavor to read ALL the FR novels, despite their strong dislike for some.
There was a time when i wanted to read every Realms book cover to cover without skipping anything. After suffering through quite a few novels i now give a book 50 pages. If it hasn't caught my interest by then, then i move on to the next book. I have read TONS of books, and there are still too many left to read to be wasting time with the bad ones.
I am not targeting only the Realms books with this rule of mine. It applies to all |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 21:07:05
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
Agreed. I must say I admire those who really endeavor to read ALL the FR novels, despite their strong dislike for some.
There was a time when i wanted to read every Realms book cover to cover without skipping anything. After suffering through quite a few novels i now give a book 50 pages. If it hasn't caught my interest by then, then i move on to the next book. I have read TONS of books, and there are still too many left to read to be wasting time with the bad ones. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 20:48:34
Agreed. I must say I admire those who really endeavor to read ALL the FR novels, despite their strong dislike for some. |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 20:44:43
The good news is that with tons of Realms books out there, then there has got to be something for everyone. :) |
| jornan |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 20:25:26
Notable mentions for having a hard time to get through for me were:
The Baldur's gate Series
Watercourse Trilogy (although upon reflection it wasn't that bad)
Every James P Davis Novel...I'm actually, for the first time ever, considering skipping a FR novel (Restless Shore) because I don't want to waste my time.
I quite enjoyed Evermeet, City of Splendors, and Cormyr as well as the WotSQ.
Don't be put off Ed Greenwood's Waterdeep series. The first five books are real gems and helped persuade me that the 4th edition realms really isn't too bad after all. I would give the last one a skip though...the cover was cool at least ;) |
| Artemas Entreri |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 18:11:26
I thought War of the Spider Queen was fair, especially considering it was written by 6 different authors. This makes me reluctant to read the Waterdeep series though. |
| Seabus Mythforger |
Posted - 21 Sep 2011 : 17:19:02
War of the Spider Queen did get pretty ridiculous toward the end...and I almost quit after book 5 (couldn't stand the fact they killed off Ryld) but i pushed through and finished book 6 and while i'm glad i got the whole story i'm still pissed they killed Pharaun...it was definitely not expected...but that's the way the drow work...they're like women...you think you got 'em figured out but you couldn't be more wrong.. |
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