Maybe I just think the same way Butcher does or something but I thought one of the biggest weaknesses was the overwhelming lack of plot twists. I'm currently on book three and I don't think the series has surprised me once- not even in a small way. Hell, all you have to do is look at the titles of the books and you'll know how the over-arcing story is going to play out after reading half of the first book.

 

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The books have gotten much better.

I wonder if the first book wasn't an older manuscript he had written and edited up a bit, I think the quality of the books makes a dramatic leap.

 

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I actually quit reading A Song of Fire and Ice in the middle of the second book because it had too many plot twists. It gets annoying. I reread all those 80's books you dog on so much all the time because I enjoy a good, straight forward fantasy book sometimes. They're becoming very rare and I find that sad.

I think there is a happy medium to be had. I don't like plot twists that come from left field, but I do enjoy well crafted twists and more importantly plot reveals where all of the facts are there- I just didn't see it coming. I think Martin uses too many dramatic, out-of-left-field, twists but some of the newer authors like Brandon Sanderson who will bring multiple threads together at the end in a way you didn't see coming are the best around. My best recent example would be Sanderson's Warbreaker.

I think every good author keeps you thinking by holding certain things back and using them as plot twists and plot reveals. The trick is making them cool by tricking the reader or making them fulfilling by allowing the reader to figure them out. Even these Butcher books where I have things pieced together I enjoy the fact that I noticed the clues and was able to use them.

How do you keep the reader interesting if they know what is going to happen with absolute certainty? The most effective way to keep me up until 5 AM is to dangle an unknown over my head that I know will be answered later in the book.

 

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codex alera is one of the series i was planning on reading when my nook gets here but now i'm not sure if i want to. i like dresden but "80s fantasy" is a put off for some reason.

 

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I would still recommend it. The 80s fantasy feel is only really a problem in the first book which gets going pretty slowly. It is on par with Terry Brooks for abysmally slow starts but it picked up after the first book. I was up until 5 AM yesterday reading book 4.

The main character stops being a clueless farmer after book one and you have none of that inept retard all the way up to the final battle you get with most 80s fantasy. He is a strong and competent character is there is no grand battle versus evil after book one either. He still falls in to the castle siege and long action sequence trap but he does the same thing in Dresden so I think you will enjoy it if you enjoy the action pacing on Dresden.

 

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It's not like a series or book has to be a masterpiece in order to be worthy of reading. As long as it draws me in and is entertaining I don't really care if it is not 100% original and great.

I mean really it is not like there are THAT many decent fantasy series out there that most of us have not already read.

 

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If you read this series makes sure you have your Starcraft disks handy. You won't be able to help yourself.

 

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lol true

 

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i'm resurrecting this thread because i'm almost done with the first book. (like 60 pages to go.) jesus christ. i kind of hated it at first. like.. seriously was just bored to tears by it, despite really liking the magic system. it's new to me. not sure if it's been done before. if it hasn't then bravo to him. anyway, what i love about butcher, even though i KNOW what's coming, he still manages to excite me when it comes. like the marat turning on each other. i saw that the second tavi wasn't killed. that was like 200 pages before it happened. (which is half the length of the book so it's a considerable distance away to see it coming.) it just happened and i was like.. YES! SUCK IT BITCHES! generally i'm like ugh. way to think outside the box there. but he painted the evil side so well that i want them to lose. generally, i'm rooting for evil to win. and i'm always sad that it doesn't. plus the can i keep him joke totally made me laugh. screw you all. it was funny.

 

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