There's just some really engaging and thought provoking (to me, anyways. I am prone to wondering about the flight of a fly, soooo) fantasy series out there that a lot of people pass over because they consider them to be lighter fantasy, or "worthless", just because each book isn't 500+ pages long and the plots/characters aren't so consulted they require charts.
Hell, I'm more impressed with the authors like, oh, Jacquline Carey, who fits more plot and character/theme development into the first book of Kushiel's Legacy than I can even remember. I regularly think something happened in a later book, because how could she have gotten that far already?, only to check and discover it's in the book before!! And it doesn't feel crammed. She just doesn't waste the reader's time with superflous descriptions, subplots, etc...etc... She's here to tell a story and she damned well tells it! That's what I've never liked about Jordan's books. I don't want to read an Encyclopedia of a World You Can't Be Bothered to Name (which on its own pisses me off). I want to read a story.
Actually, now that I think about it, the Kushiel's Legacy series is also interesting to me because, while it's certainly fantasy, there's a lot more to it than that. It's kind of an alternate history of our own world. What would happen, by the time of the Renaissance, if Christianity had never kicked off, and these other little factors she created existed? Granted, it's all caused by some fantastical scenarios...but she keeps the "magic" to a minimum. It's always something weird, but undeniable. It's interesting to think about how versions of her alternate reality could have been created in our own world (without such fantastical influences).
Aaaanyway I was just kind of jumping to "fantasy"'s defense, but it's so much more than Jordan and Martin!! But hey, if it's not floating your boat, so be it
I can certainly understand the appeal of classical literature and it's not like I don't read it myself! Just, after a week of shoving medical knowledge into my head, I'd rather free-think about fantasy books than claw my way through some plodding internal monologue-ridden classic 
And the demand for "series" instead of one goddamned BOOK is kind of irritating.
Hell, I'm more impressed with the authors like, oh, Jacquline Carey, who fits more plot and character/theme development into the first book of Kushiel's Legacy than I can even remember. I regularly think something happened in a later book, because how could she have gotten that far already?, only to check and discover it's in the book before!! And it doesn't feel crammed. She just doesn't waste the reader's time with superflous descriptions, subplots, etc...etc... She's here to tell a story and she damned well tells it! That's what I've never liked about Jordan's books. I don't want to read an Encyclopedia of a World You Can't Be Bothered to Name (which on its own pisses me off). I want to read a story.
Actually, now that I think about it, the Kushiel's Legacy series is also interesting to me because, while it's certainly fantasy, there's a lot more to it than that. It's kind of an alternate history of our own world. What would happen, by the time of the Renaissance, if Christianity had never kicked off, and these other little factors she created existed? Granted, it's all caused by some fantastical scenarios...but she keeps the "magic" to a minimum. It's always something weird, but undeniable. It's interesting to think about how versions of her alternate reality could have been created in our own world (without such fantastical influences).
Aaaanyway I was just kind of jumping to "fantasy"'s defense, but it's so much more than Jordan and Martin!! But hey, if it's not floating your boat, so be it
I can certainly understand the appeal of classical literature and it's not like I don't read it myself! Just, after a week of shoving medical knowledge into my head, I'd rather free-think about fantasy books than claw my way through some plodding internal monologue-ridden classic And the demand for "series" instead of one goddamned BOOK is kind of irritating.
Still Empress of the Poofy Purple Pillow Pile Palace!!
Continued Love of my Aussie <3
Continued Love of my Aussie <3
This message last edited by LadyLorraine on 03/08/2011 at 12:29:16 AM
A Dance of Dragons will influence A Memory of Light?
- 28/07/2011 03:30:30 PM
2398 Views
It's impossible for nothing to happen in AMoL.
- 28/07/2011 07:30:02 PM
1368 Views
Oh, you're so cute in your innocence!
- 02/08/2011 06:14:37 AM
1140 Views
Re: A Dance of Dragons will influence A Memory of Light?
- 28/07/2011 07:37:24 PM
1131 Views
Actually, there is growing discontent, even among those who've defended Martin.
- 07/08/2011 11:05:33 PM
1209 Views
Those who says that nothing happens in ADWD really need to read CoT
- 29/07/2011 12:02:23 PM
1146 Views
Watching grass grow is better than reading CoT, so it's not saying much for ADWD *NM*
- 30/07/2011 02:10:12 AM
398 Views
A Dance of Dragons is hardly filler. *shrugs* *NM*
- 31/07/2011 04:43:58 PM
617 Views
Agreed. It could be argued that more happens in the epilogue of ADWD than all of CoT. *NM*
- 01/08/2011 01:27:58 AM
400 Views
*NM*
I regret wasting much of July reading it, so I respectfully disagree.
- 02/08/2011 04:41:39 AM
955 Views
I do request that you don't lump ALL of fantasy into those two authors
- 02/08/2011 06:08:21 AM
941 Views
- 02/08/2011 06:08:21 AM
941 Views
You are completely overlooking his point, however.
- 02/08/2011 06:12:45 AM
1013 Views
F*** you, you idiot. *NM*
- 02/08/2011 06:13:48 AM
425 Views
At least he didn't ramble for five thousand words before actually making a point. 
*NM*
- 03/08/2011 11:04:06 PM
472 Views
*NM*
- 03/08/2011 11:04:06 PM
472 Views
And a direct reply:
- 02/08/2011 06:25:28 AM
1011 Views
that's fair enough
- 03/08/2011 12:22:34 AM
933 Views
Wait... You want intelligent meaningful books, but you're demanding action?
- 02/08/2011 06:52:00 AM
936 Views
I think the issue is conflating fantasy with the multi-volume epics than anything I'd disagree with
- 03/08/2011 04:05:12 AM
1216 Views
Oooo! A smart one! She reads forums! Thank heavens an expert has come.
- 02/08/2011 06:24:47 AM
1030 Views
Re: Oooo! A smart one! She reads forums! Thank heavens an expert has come.
- 07/08/2011 10:40:41 PM
1088 Views
Re: Oooo! A smart one! She reads forums! Thank heavens an expert has come.
- 19/08/2011 12:07:24 PM
1394 Views
Okay I'm not reading any of the replies in this thread until I finish ADwD, but I just wanted to say
- 10/08/2011 01:49:11 PM
1100 Views