I even suggested this snooze fest to people based on the overwhelming hype. I have never come across less likable character, less suspense, less plot or more drudgery anywhere.

After book one took me eleven days (I average 3-4 for a book that length) I put the series down and only just now came back to it. 150 pages in to book two I'm so bored I'm going to read something else and possibly postpone this indefinitely. I suppose from a technical standpoint it is well written, it is just the polar opposite of engaging.

If you loved this series what did you see in it? Because I only see a glacier of a plot that I feel no investment in and a bunch of character I mostly dislike. It isn't like Jordan where the book is long because of the great depth of detail and the many different plots. This thing has 2-3 plot lines, little detail and a whole hell of a lot of drawn out scenes.

Abercrombie took the writing maxim, "late in, early out" and decided to adopt the polar opposite. He also spends a LOT of time getting to know these characters I would just assume see dead. I think that is the overwhelming problem for me- terrible characters. The only ones I don't hate are out and out boring.

I suppose I can partially blame the fast pace and cheap suspense of urban fantasy for smothering my ability to enjoy a drawn out epic fantasy plot- but Jesus this is dull.

 

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I got the trilogy for a Christmas present, read like the first 15 pages of the first book and immediately didn't like the character. I read a bit more and then realized I had also gotten several volumes of Erikson's "Malazan Book of the Fallen". I put it down and haven't been back since, although I'm about to finish "Dust of Dreams" so I may wind up giving them another go here shortly.

 

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You like Terry Goodkind's lame series but not the awesomness that is the First Law trilogy, wow that's unfathomable!

 

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Oh nevermind i just read another thread were you confess your disgust at Terry Goodkinds series i thought you had mentioned you like it back on the outpost a while back nvm still how can you not like Fist Law trilogy its so awesome.

 

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Me? I think Terry Goodkind is the worst author to ever be published....

Sword of Truth is arguably the biggest piece of hack trash I've ever read. I've written some pretty lengthy posts on this board reviling Goodkind.


The series got better, but never good. The characters actually become increasingly unlikable as the series progresses. 2 > 3 >> 1.

 

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I came off as the biggest asshole to a real life co-worker of mine when he confessed that he was a big fan of Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth Series, i just could not understand why a grown man would enjoy that crap. It's beyond linear, i wanted to scoop my eyes out with a rusty spoon because of how boring and linear it was, and many people complain about violence in fantasy like in Martin's books but it usually serves a purpose and goes well with the content, on the other hand the rape and violence in Goodkind's series is a text-book example of gratuitous violence. How did you even get pass the first 100 pages? It reads like a 4 year old wrote it.

On another note though i'm thinking about getting Jim Butcher's Codex Alera or Sanderson's Mistborn i read his Elantris and it was alright, i'm also thinking about getting Lies of Lake Lasomething or other what do you recommend Yoss?

 

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I am a huge Brandon Sanderson fan. Elantris is his weakest book because it was his first. I wouldn't call Mistborn one of the greatest series or anything but it was very good. I think Sanderson's stand alone Warbreaker is his best work to date (it is also free on his website if you don't mind reading through the computer). What I appreciate most about Sanderson is his ability to construct a novel. His plot progression, reveals, set-ups, foreshadowing, etc. is all very well executed. Perhaps he doesn't grab you like the masters of prose or characterization but he does nothing poorly.

I loved the Codex Alera as well. I thought it started off very slow, trite and unoriginal but it picked up remarkably well and other than a lull or two I barely put them down. I posted about it on this board somewhere when it was fresh in my mind, I started off very skeptical because I really was not impressed with book one but the series turns around so much I thought maybe he wrote book one a while back when he was starting out and then wrote the rest with the benefit of his experience.

The Lies of Locke Lamora is on my series to watch list. I have not picked it up because I want to let the series finish, or at least develop, before I do. I'm tired of starting series from unproven authors that take forever to finish.

 

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punctuation: the practice or system of using certain conventional marks or characters
in writing or printing in order to separate elements and make the
meaning clear, as in ending a sentence or separating clauses.

 

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He also doesn't capitalize his 'I's.

 

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neither do i, but jesus man. don't string like 5 sentences together and pretend they're one.

 

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