The Wallstreet Book Review vol. III

[Mr Wallstreet]

You know you want it

IT by Stephen King
Halo: Contact Harvest
Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Halo: Cole Protocol
The Prometheus Deception by Robert Ludlum
Right as Rain by George P. Pelecanos
Shoedog by George P. Pelecanos
Hard Revolution by George P. Pelecanos
Scavenger by David Morrel
The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells
Friend of the Devil
Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill
The Matlock Paper by Robert Ludlum
The Stand by Stephen King
Shattered by Jay Bonansinga
Twisted by Jay Bonansinga
The Deluge by Mark Morris
The Missing by Sarah Langan
Dead Sea by Brian Keene
Hide and Seek by Ian Rankin
The Vanishing by Bentley Little
Magician: Apprentice by Raymond E. Feist
Dark Hollow by Brian Keene
The Everlasting by Tim Lebbon
Fleshmarket Alley by Ian Rankin
Urban Gothic by Brian Keene
Stephen King Goes to the Movies 5 Short stories by Stephen King containing:
The Shawshank Redemption
The Mangler
1408
Hearts of Atlantis
and Children of the Corn
The Devil's Labyrinth by John Saul
The Hollower By Mary SanGiovanni
Darkness at the Edge of Town By Brian Keene
City of the Dead By Brian Keene

[Mr Wallstreet]

[Placeholder]

[MGM]

YES! I've been waiting for this one.

So exactly when will you start on The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón? :D I'm dying to find out what you think of it.

Also, Feist's Magician?

[Mr Wallstreet]

[Placeholder]

[MGM]

Er... exactly what are those placeholders for?

[Mr Wallstreet]

YES! I've been waiting for this one.

So exactly when will you start on The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón? :D I'm dying to find out what you think of it.

Also, Feist's Magician?


<Appreciated> :D

Great that you jumped in; I was going to ask you about the names of the books you reccomended before the boards died. IT by King has taken me nearly 2 months to finish and was a damn big undertaking.

I'm going to take a break from serious books for a bit. The next two books I'm going to read are short novelizations of video games (HALO: Contact Harvest & The Cole Protocal). After I'm done with those, (it shouldn't be more than a month), I'm going to read Shadow of the Wind and Magician.

Sound good?

[Mr Wallstreet]

Er... exactly what are those placeholders for?

A running list of books I have finished reading. I anticipate this list will vastly outstrip my previous lists.

[MGM]

Sounds good.

BTW, Magician is fantasy (you might've guessed ;)), I have no idea if you like that genre.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I don't usually read fantasy/magic but I'm willing to give it a try. I've been trying to sample new genres lately and find that they're not all that bad. Many are definately an acquired taste but still pretty damn good.

[Mr Wallstreet]

IT By Stephen King.

I’ve been reading this over the course of 6 weeks or so. The reason it’s taking me so long is because it’s a monster (no pun intended) of a novel to begin with and I’m only reading it on my train rides to and from work.

IT takes place in the 1950s in a small town in Maine called Derry. A series of grisly murders –murders that center around child killings- has been plaguing the small town for several months and authorities are no closer to finding the culprit. Children between the ages of 5 and 17 have been disappearing and turn up murdered and mutilated or not at all. The culprit is a malevolent entity that calls itself Pennywise the Clown. Pennywise is not a man nor is it from this world. Pennywise is an ancient evil whose origins are briefly explored as the story progresses but no definitive explanation is given as to what Pennywise really is. Nor is it definitively explained what Pennywise exactly does with the children once he captures them (though several possible theories are posed). All that is known of Pennywise is that it is immortal and it sleeps for 27 years. On the 27th year, Pennywise wakes up and kills children for a period 18 months to 2 years before stopping abruptly and going to sleep again for another 27 years.

Enter our band of unlikely heroes, The Losers club:

Bill Denbrough, a natural born leader plagued by a stutter. Bill’s younger brother George was killed by Pennywise

Ben Hanscom, a keenly intelligent boy who is grossly overweight

Beverly Marsh, a pretty young girl with an abusive father

Eddie Kasprak, a young boy with asthma and a mother so overprotective it borders on child abuse

Michael Hanlon, the only son of the seemingly only African American family in the entire town

Richie Tozer, the joker of the group who can’t seem keep his mouth shut.

Stanely Uris, a quiet boy who comes from a Jewish family and is somewhat ostracized because of it.

All these children are damaged goods in some form another and initially they don’t all know each other, they slowly come to know and befriend each other as the story progresses.

This is also a big reason why the novel is so long. The timeline is non-linear. Rather than reading it as they are children growing up, the story jumps from the present day (when they are adults) to when they were children; where King must introduce us to seven people, have seven points of view, set up seven first time meetings, the first battle with Pennywise, the result - then jump between past to present and show us the lives of seven adults who drifted away and the actions of seven adults as they come together again.
In addition to Pennywise as the main antagonist, there are other “villains” in this book.

Henry Bowers, the local bully who, as the story progresses, becomes increasingly unhinged and eventually graduates to full fledged murderer

Belch Huggins and Victor Criss, Henry’s cronies who do his bidding, albeit hesitantly at first –without question later.

This was a fantastic (if a little long) story. King introduces a monster to the world; an ancient monster that kills tortures and presumably eats little children. Then King dresses the monster up as a perversion of something children should find harmless and funny. And in the final twist of irony, in the few instances when Pennywise makes public appearances, it is the younger children who can truly see Pennywise for what he really is whereas the adults are ignorant of his true self.

In a great move by King, when the origins of Pennywise were being discovered King gave us a brief view of how Pennywise arrived in Derry but cut it off at that point. The reader is never told where Pennywise came from or what it had done since then. Because Pennywise is a shape shifter his true form is never revealed; but he generally models himself as a clown but when hunting specific children he takes the form of their worst fear. King offers a brief glimpse of what Pennywise really is, and the glimpse is so brief and so strange that no one knows what to make of it.

The characterization of the protagonists is also well done. We see what their ticks and fears are; what makes them happy and just how deeply their friendship runs and the different places they come from and what their aspirations are. We also see what becomes of them.

Despite all the horror goodness in this book there are several things I could do without: The various in-jokes got very tiresome halfway through the book as did some of the seemingly unnecessary scenes where they were just playing and hanging around at home thinking. Some of the scenes when they were adults seemed to drag the hell on as well.

Overall, I give this book 3 ½ Jelly Donuts out of 5.

[MGM]

Well, Magician is one of the better books I've read, so you could like it.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Just placed a request for Shadow of the Wind at my local library. I should have it within a week or so. I figured Wth, I'll start it next.

If it's a good read, I'll probably read Magician after that.

[Mr Wallstreet]

And thanks for making my thread a sticky :cool:

[Junkogen]

Any nonfiction?

[Mr Wallstreet]

Not yet but if you have some reccomendtations I'd be happy to check em out.

EDIT:

Please refrain from listing communist literature on my thread. :D

[Junkogen]

Please refrain from listing communist literature on my thread. :D

....

:(


:D

[ChimeraCreative]

Speaking of communist and inflammatory literature...

When we hit the Hairy Tarantula comic book store in Toronto we met the bizarre store owner, Leon. A group of us got talking to him and he found out Adam and I would be crossing the border back into the USA in a few days. Leon got excited and gave us a free copy of "Manifesto of REAL Democracy (the guide to Liberty, Equality - and Survival)" by Democrates. Apparently, he's never had anyone try to bring it over the border before, lol. He joked that it was contraband. ^_^

[Mr Wallstreet]

....

:(


:D

Looking like I do, I have enough problems with Homeland Security. Last thing I need is for them to find communist reading material on my person or in my thread :D

[Mr Wallstreet]

Speaking of communist and inflammatory literature...

When we hit the Hairy Tarantula comic book store in Toronto we met the bizarre store owner, Leon. A group of us got talking to him and he found out Adam and I would be crossing the border back into the USA in a few days. Leon got excited and gave us a free copy of "Manifesto of REAL Democracy (the guide to Liberty, Equality - and Survival)" by Democrates. Apparently, he's never had anyone try to bring it over the border before, lol. He joked that it was contraband. ^_^

There's actually a communist bookstore near my office. They've been selling bottles of "Obama-Aid" ever since Nov 4. :D

[Sandman]

I loved IT. I first read it during college after I finished the Dark Tower series where the Turtle from IT makes an apperance. Derry is a very very evil town. or atleast a town where evil things happen. other stories that take place there are Dreamcatcher and Insomnia. Dream Catcher was not too good but there was one part near the old stand pipe that was cool.
In Dreamcatcher, Mr. Gray drives to Derry in search of this standpipe and finds only a memorial featuring a cast-bronze statue of two children, a boy and girl, and a plaque reading:
"TO THOSE LOST IN THE STORM
MAY 31, 1985
AND TO THE CHILDREN
ALL THE CHILDREN
LOVE FROM BILL, BEN, BEV, EDDIE, RICHIE, STAN, MIKE
THE LOSER'S CLUB"
and, further, spraypainted below:
"PENNYWISE LIVES".

I actually got chills when I read that!

Insomnia was far better than Dream catcher and it was directly linked to the Dark Tower.

IT was a fantastic coming of age story and it had a 5 out of 5 from me.

You might also want to try The Stand. it is another "monster" book huge but well worth the read

[Mr Wallstreet]

Just to give you guys an update, I've been waiting for Shadow of the Wind to arrive for 2, almost 3 weeks now. I'm supposed to be recieving it soon but so far nada. In the interim I finished reading HALO: Contact Harvest, based off the video game of HALO.

I also requested Sandman's reccomendation: The Stand from my library. Mitch, a question, what is the full name of the author of Magician? The searches I got for "Zeist" and "Magician" were too many to sort through.

Many thanks

[MGM]

Presumably because the man's name is Feist. Raymond E. Feist, to be exact.

[CBKA]

I read a book once.

It was called where's wally.

I couldn't find him:e2bummed:

[Mr Wallstreet]

Presumably because the man's name is Feist. Raymond E. Feist, to be exact.

:doh: Guess I had a brain queef of my own. For some reason I kept thinking Zeist and not Feist. Anyho, I'll request that book from my library by this weekend.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Finally, Finally got Shadow of the Wind. I'll crack it open today on my commute back home

[MGM]

Hurrah!

And did you find Feist yet, or what? :D

[Mr Wallstreet]

:mad: :D

Yes I have, but I haven't requested it yet. I'll do it later this week. After Shadow of the Wind I plan on reading the Stand by Stephen King, then Feist's novel.

Back to Shadow of the Wind, I was really surprised to find out how much I'm enjoying it. Despite professing to be open minded about literature, I had a few preconceptions about it; and all of them were negative. I thought it was going to be some boring story about heart stricken and forlorn man trying to find happiness and love and getting trapped in some cheesy love triangle.

Though it is about a love stricken man and the pursuit of happiness, it's not at all lame. It's fascinating and intriguing. The prose is intelligent and thoughtful without coming off as forced or pretentious and the writer does a magnificent job of describing locales with a richness and detail that I haven't read in a very long time.

Great reccomendation Mitch. I look forward to reading the Magician very soon.

[MGM]

Isn't it the most fucking awesome book ever? :D I'm love that book. The twists keep coming and coming, and the history of the characters gets more compelling the more you learn. How far are you into the book? I have no idea how long your commute is. And why did you have negative preconceptions about it?

About Magician, apparently that's been released as a two-parter as well. Than you'd need Magician: Apprentice and Magician: Master. It's really one story, and was originally released that way, so if you'd get the first part, I highly recommend to read the second part as well. Although, with the game-changing twist as cliffhanger at the end, you'd probably only give up if you'd really hate fantasy.

I also would like to recommend The discovery of Heaven from Harry Mulisch. It's a Dutch book, also a movie these days, but I remember reading it (just started again) and thinking it was one of the best books I've ever read. Wiki: It describes the intense friendship between two men and the mystical journey of another to return to Heaven the stone tablets containing the ten commandments. It's rather huge, though, 900 pages. But in my opinion, every one of them worth it.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I'm not really that far into the book but I'm enjoying the shit out of it. I'm up to chapter 7 "The Empty Plate". My commute is roughly about an hour so I get a good amount of reading done as long as its not too crowded. Also, funny thing, I actually missed my stop yesterday while riding the train. As my stop was approaching I put away SoW and got ready to exit, but before the train came to a complete stop, I started thinking about some of the characters from the book that I forgot to get off. I just stood in front of the doors as they opened then closed. That hasn't happened in a while either. :D

The reason I had some negative preconceptions about it was because it sounded a lot like some of the coming-of-age stories I had read earlier and I did not like them too much; but this was a welcome surprise.

I'll also put Discovery of Heaven on my list, I might get this before Magician, but after The Stand. It sounds more appealing than Magician.

[MGM]

Shiiiit, chapter 7 and you think it's good now? You haven't even gotten to the good parts yet! :D


I think Magician is a really good book, it's of course fantasy (whcih you don't like), but it's unlike a lot of other fantasy. There's swords and macig, sure, and they do play a big part. But it's the characters that make it interesting to me.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I wouldn't say I don't like Fantasy, I just haven't read any Fantasy to date that I have really liked. Also, I don't read Fantasy a lot in general. Perhaps if I had some good authors, I could make a getter go at it.

Also, the first part of chapter 7 had me cringing and feeling pity for the poor boy, I really felt bad for him after that chapter. Kid was head over heels for a girl who seems to be toying with him while dating the pretentious asshole musician who I disliked to begin, but felt nothing but seething hatred for after he gave Daniel a beating. It's now getting a lot more interesting. I've met a few more interesting characters, namely Torres the bum and the arsonist. The games afoot!

One thing that seems somewhat confusing, and maybe you can shed some light on this, is the nature of the dialogue. When describing objects, locations, and people Daniel uses words that have vivid and rich imagery. But when speaking to other characters, or when other characters are speaking to him or one another, the dialogue sounds remarkably similar to that of current speech.

I don't know how people in Spain spoke to one another in the 40s and 50s but I'm not entirely sure it sounded like the way we speak to one another now...Or is it?

[MGM]

I'm not entirely sure what you mean, but I'll grab the book and read a random chapter one of these days and see if I can get into your question.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Maybe I made my question more confusing than it had to be.

I just mean that the manner in which the characters speak to each other sounds an awful lot like how people today speak to each other today. A lot of the speech, sounds very casual and is peppered with sarcasm and dirty humor

Having almost no knowledge on Spanish culture from the 40s and 50s, I'm having somehwat of a hard time believing that people living in Spain during the 40s and 50s sounded like us today...

[MGM]

Oh... I suppose they didn't. But would you really want to read a book that has characters speak like that? I think it'd hardly be as enjoyable as it is now.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I finished Shadow of the Wind a few days ago and it was a Fantabulous book.

SoW was a combination mystery, drama and romance story. Although the story was populated with a rich cast of characters and, all whom were scarred tragedy, the star of the book was Fermin Romero de Torres. He was funny, insightful, witty, intelligent,optimistic (despite years of dogged abuse by a corrupt and evil officer) and above all, a romantic.

I give this book 4 Jelly Donuts out of 5. I would highly recommend this book to other people.

[MGM]

Agreed. I still have no idea what part I liked better, the 'present' or the whole history of the writer. Glad you liked it!

Any chance on a more in depth review? :D

[Mr Wallstreet]

Sure, just give me a couple of days.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Shadow of the Wind takes place just after the Spanish Civil War in Barcelona, Spain between 1945_ and 1966. The story begins in 1945; we are introduced to our protagonist, a young boy named Daniel Sempre. Daniel lives with his father, who is a widower, in an apartment and together they manage a book store. Daniel’s mother had died many years ago and Daniel can now, no longer remembers what she looks like while Daniel’s father seems to be in perpetual mourning for his lost wife.

Daniel’s life changes for better and for worse (the worse always coming before the better) when his father takes him to a very special place when he is 10 years old. This place is called “The Cemetery of Forgotten Books”. It’s location and existence are a secret except for those whose love for the written word knows no bounds. There, Daniel finds a book called Shadow of the Wind by an author named Julian Carax. Daniel is instantly captivated by the story and tries in vain to find other books written by Julian Carax. While searching for other books by Carax, Daniel meets woman many years older than him named Clara Barcelo whom he strikes up a friendship with and simultaneously falls in love with her. Though he is too young to properly understand what he is feeling for her, it is plain to everyone around him what is happening (especially Clara) but Daniel’s friends and family, for the most part, let it continue. Daniel spends several long years quietly pining for Clara, during which time he gives her his copy of Shadow of the Wind and hoping against hope that he can be with her despite Clara having several boyfriends (which she somewhat cruelly flaunts in his face). Daniel’s “friendship” with Clara continues until things come to a head and end disastrously for Daniel.

Late one night, just before Daniel’s “relationship” (hehe) with Clara is euthanized, he is approached by a man who wishes to buy his copy of SoW. The man is named after a character in one of Carax’s books and is horribly disfigured. When Daniel refuses to sell it, the man makes several veiled threats against Daniel and his loved ones. Daniel, afraid but not (really) showing it still refuses but the man says he will continue to be in touch. Daniel then hides the book and continues a task he had abandoned long ago: to learn what happened to the rest of Carax’s novels. Daniel soon learns that they were systematically destroyed by an unknown person (though we can guess who the culprit was) and that there are almost none left.

Though SoW contains plenty of drama and mystery, to me, it is above all else a love story; a frighteningly unconventional, unorthodox and perverse love story but still a love story. The writer does a marvelous job of interweaving the various genres within the love story. The first portion of SoW is clearly a romance. It bears all the hallmarks of a love that is doomed from the start but tries in vain to succeed. When the romance is briefly set aside the mystery immediately begins. The flow of storytelling (everything from mood, to narration to style) changes so smoothly you don’t even notice it. One minute the character is stewing in his own angry juices and the next minute he’s pulled into a world of danger he neither fully understands or properly equipped to handle (both emotionally, mentally and physically). Another great aspect of SoW is its use of the unexpected. So much in film and literature today tries so hard to be clever and unexpected, that they just wind up making the reader scratch his head and go “wtf” or “where’d that come from?”. That’s not the case here. SoW delivers several great plot twists which the writer properly lays the groundwork for, and if you follow it carefully, can anticipate the twist and see how it fits within the story. The plot devices also serve as strong motivations for several of the characters.

All these things aside, what ultimately makes SoW such a wonderful read is its rich cast of characters. Our protagonist whose eyes we all view the world through: Daniel Sempre. Daniel is a typical boy living in Barcelona during the 30s, he is well mannered (mostly), intelligent, possessed by raging hormones and helps his father in their bookshop. Daniel’s father is a quiet, unassuming man who still has not gotten over the death of his wife but loves his son deeply. Clara Barcelo, Daniel’s first love who lets Daniel fall in love with her with disastrous consequences. Inspector Fumero – a high ranking sadistic, corrupt and dangerous officer of the law. During the Spanish Civil War, his loyalty was open to the highest bidder and he often carried out assassinations, torture and other brutal acts. Once the civil war ended, he betrayed many of his employers and traded in his black ops for the respectability and protection of a police badge. He has not an ounce of remorse or humanity in his body and never hesitates to kill those who hinder him or cease to be useful. He keeps tabs on those he had deposed during the civil war, in the event they ever become useful to him. He is known and feared by just about everyone within Barcelona. Needless to say, he is our primary antagonist. And finally Fermin Romero de Torress.

De Torres is one of the many hundreds of men who had suffered at the hands of Inspector Fumero. A former civil servant who worked in some capacity of intelligence gathering during the civil war; he was captured by Fumero and tortured until he gave up his superior officers. Once the civil war ended and Fumero became an Inspector, De Torres had his livelihood stripped from him and was thrown into the street to live as a beggar. Though recently, life has been unkind to De Torres, he remains an optimist – which is one of his strongest qualities. Torres is witty, intelligent, charming, insightful and hilarious. His thought processes and dialogue are punctuated by so many tangents that it’s almost difficult to keep up. De Torres singlehandedly made the book far better than it was with his humor and wisdom and though he wasn’t the central character, he quickly became the star of the story. All the characters have their own unique quirks and personalities, but De Torres stands head and shoulders above them all.

However, the book isn’t without its faults. One of the biggest things I had a hard time with, was reconciling the dialogue to the time period the story takes place in. Some of the characters spoke in a fashion similar to that of young people in the world today. As SoW is a period piece, I didn’t expect to see the style of dialogue that many people use today, reflected in 40s Barcelona.

Also, what I had a difficult time getting behind was the way Daniel Sempre took the emotional abuse of Clara Barcelo and didn’t utter a single phrase or sound in protest. I’m not saying it’s unheard of for a young person to become infatuated with someone older or that they sometimes say and do things to please them; but Clara played soccer with Daniel’s heart for years by toying with his emotions by telling him of her various boyfriends, he still bore no ill will towards her. I find that just a bit difficult to believe.
There are a few more things which didn’t sit well with me but those more minor nitpicks than anything else. Overall, it was –and is- a wonderful read.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I've just now started reading The Stand by Stephen King, as reccomended by Sandman and by the Gods, its a huge book. It's at least twice the size of IT. Not that care how big a book is, but its been damn difficult to fit this monster in my bag along with all my other daily items (lunch, umbrella, papers, etc...). Anywayz, I'm about 100 pages into it, and so far it seems okay.

Once I'm done with The Stand, I'll try for The Magician by Raymond E. Feist :D

[MGM]

Glad you liked it! Now, don't you think, in hindsight, that this was a bit premature? After all, the book gets WAY better past chapter 7. :D

Back to Shadow of the Wind, I was really surprised to find out how much I'm enjoying it. Despite professing to be open minded about literature, I had a few preconceptions about it; and all of them were negative. I thought it was going to be some boring story about heart stricken and forlorn man trying to find happiness and love and getting trapped in some cheesy love triangle.

Though it is about a love stricken man and the pursuit of happiness, it's not at all lame. It's fascinating and intriguing. The prose is intelligent and thoughtful without coming off as forced or pretentious and the writer does a magnificent job of describing locales with a richness and detail that I haven't read in a very long time.

Great reccomendation Mitch. I look forward to reading the Magician very soon.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Glad you liked it! Now, don't you think, in hindsight, that this was a bit premature? After all, the book gets WAY better past chapter 7. :D

:disappointed:

Yes'm...

[Mr Wallstreet]

An update on The Stand by Stephen King:

I had to return it before I finished reading it, and I was unable to renew due to it being on hold for other people. So after I returned it, I requested it again. Hopefully I’ll get it soon and can finish it off. I got up to page 955 (or thereabouts), Harold and Nadine fled the Zone after blowing up Nick’s house during a meeting, killing him and several others. The Judge who had been on his way to Nevada to try and infiltrate the city was killed before reaching there and Dayna, who had already been living in Nevada for several days was caught. I don’t know her fate yet.

Granny Freemantle returned to the Free Zone, just about ready to die, and told the select few members what they needed to do. Ralph, Stu, & Stu’s friend (whose name I can’t remember were to go to Nevada and “Make their Stand”. Frannie was to stay behind for an unspecified reason. Good stuff.

[Mr Wallstreet]

While waiting for my library to get The Stand in again so I can finish it, I've been reading HALO: The Cole Protocol. Its the sixth novel based off the video game series and it's a quick read, only a few hundred pages and a nice way to kill some time between books. I'm just about halfway through it.

[XIII]

I'm reading Shutter Island. It's pretty good.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Shutter Island is indeed a great book by Dennis Lehane. If you like it, I can reccomend a few others. He writes great noir

[MGM]

Dude, the new Zafón is out coming Thursday. Not a sequal to his first book, though. But apparently something in the same vein.

[Mr Wallstreet]

Updates:

I'm still waiting for Magician and The Stand to arrive. There are both on "Very Long Wait"

To kill time until they arrive, I read The Prometheus Deception by Ludlum; a mostly generic but enjoyable spy novel and I've discovered an exciting new author who writes some great noir: George P. Pelecanos. I've only read one novel by him so far: Right as Rain, and I'm currently reading another novel by him called Shoedog.

From what I've gleaned so far, his protagonists vary from novel to novel; he writes both white and black characters with amazing insight and realism. There isn't a whole lot of humor in his books but that's okay. I don't need it in every book I read (but it certainley would have been added plus). most of his stories take place within Washington, D.C., which is a great backdrop that allows him to tackle social, cultural and economic issues.

I'm only on his second novel and I'm already a huge fan. I would highly reccomend his work to anyone to who liked noir.

[XIII]

Pelecanos was a writer on The Wire.

[Mr Wallstreet]

So Mitch,

Magician by Ray Feist is not available at any library in NY. Instead here are a list of books by Raymond Feist that are available:

Wrath of a Mad God
Talon of the Silver Hawk
Silverthorn
Shards of a Broken Crown
Shadow of a Dark Queen
Rage of a Demon King
Rise of a Merchant Prince
A Darkness at Sethanon
Flight of the Nighthawks
Into a Dark Realm
Daughter of the Empire
Rides a Dead Legion
Exile's Return
Faerie Tale
Honored Enemy
Jimmy The Hand
King of Foxes

And some others. Would you reccomend any from this list, given that that the one you originally reccomended is not available?

[wolf_2099]

Updates:

I'm still waiting for Magician and The Stand to arrive. There are both on "Very Long Wait"

.

I can keep my eye out for Magician if you want, I see it frequently in used book stores here.

It was republished here as"
1. Magician: Apprentice (1986)
2. Magician: Master (1986)

[MGM]

So Mitch,

Magician by Ray Feist is not available at any library in NY. Instead here are a list of books by Raymond Feist that are available:

Wrath of a Mad God
Talon of the Silver Hawk
Silverthorn
Shards of a Broken Crown
Shadow of a Dark Queen
Rage of a Demon King
Rise of a Merchant Prince
A Darkness at Sethanon
Flight of the Nighthawks
Into a Dark Realm
Daughter of the Empire
Rides a Dead Legion
Exile's Return
Faerie Tale
Honored Enemy
Jimmy The Hand
King of Foxes

And some others. Would you reccomend any from this list, given that that the one you originally reccomended is not available?

I'm not familiar with his entire work, but a lot of the titles I see there are follow-ups to Magician. And sadly enough, that first book outshines them all.

Wulf's idea seems quite reasonable, though. If nothing else works out, NYCC 2010 will get you a copy, 'cause I'll make it my mission by then to get you one.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I can keep my eye out for Magician if you want, I see it frequently in used book stores here.

It was republished here as"
1. Magician: Apprentice (1986)
2. Magician: Master (1986)

Thank you kindly, I would very much appreciate it.

I'm not familiar with his entire work, but a lot of the titles I see there are follow-ups to Magician. And sadly enough, that first book outshines them all.

In that case, I'll hold off on getting the ones listed above.

In the interim, do you have any other books you'd care to to reccomend? And that goes for everyone, I am open to suggestions if anyone has read something they care to pass along

Wulf's idea seems quite reasonable, though. If nothing else works out, NYCC 2010 will get you a copy, 'cause I'll make it my mission by then to get you one.

Your enthusiasm has given me an erection.

[MGM]

I've always loved Wilbur Smith's Courtney books. The first trilogy starts with When the lion feeds.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I'll put those on my list ASAP. Here's hoping they're at least available.

[Mr Wallstreet]

When The Lion Feeds is on long wait but thats okay with me. I had a few other books on the backburner that I wanted to get into.

I picked up Shattered and Twisted by Jay Bonansinga a few weeks ago. They showed promise but wound up being average at best.

The Deluge by Mark Morris was a balls to the walls amazing story. It was a post-apocalytpic horror story about what happens to the world when the ocean levels mysteriously and abruptly rise far beyond ground level, killing 99.9% of the population within minutes. I shall try to make time to write a detailed review later but this was one of those books that I simply couldn't put down (and I don't get them often).

On another note, Wulf, I recieved a package from you early this morning. I didn't have time to open it but I assume it contains the Magician. I look forward to reading it. And once again, thanks for taking the time out find and send it to me.

[wolf_2099]

It is either the Magician, or the mail bomb I sent to Arn. I might have gotten the packages switched.

[XIII]

Oh ok, I was wondering what that fucking book was. :D

[ChimeraCreative]

How was Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill? I've thought about snagging it but haven't heard much about it.:disappointed:

[Mr Wallstreet]

Heart Shaped Box was an okay read; average Ghost story so nothing too special. It had a strong begining but slowly became meh. There were some well written flashback scenes and it made interesting use of animals, specifically dogs. Still, worth a read if you're looking for a decent enough horror story.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I'm trying to wrap up a book I'm reading now so I can get to Magician. I'm hoping to start it some time this weekend. Only reason I didn't start reading the Magician books immediately was because work got crazy around the holidays and is only slowing down now. And the book I'm reading now, I've been waiting forever to get from the library.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I started reading Magician: Apprentice a little over a week ago (f'ing finally) and so far its pretty good. The themes, story points, and characters are all standard formula in an adventure story (young orphan unsure about himself who is destined for great things and begins his tutelage under a wise sage etc...)

I haven't read a lot of Fantasy books in my life. Even though they are just different variants of adventure/action stories, they were never really my thing. They were interesting enough but I just couldn't get into them. But so far I'm enjoying Magician, so we'll see how it goes.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I finished reading Magician: Apprentice and, yes, it was a very enjoyable book. I hesitate to use the word “great” in describing the book because there was nothing in there that really shocked or amazed me or left me hungering for more. This doesn’t take away from the book though because it was still a wonderful read.

As mentioned earlier the story, themes and characters in Magician are those that we’ve seen many times before in other genres (Orphaned child, unsure of himself and destined for greatness) and though this is seemingly standard formula for writing an action/adventure story, it was still interesting because it was formula done right. The main protagonist is an orphan named Pug who serves in the Kings court and eventually becomes an apprentice to the King’s Magician Kulgan. The story then focuses on Pug’s studies and growth into adolesence as well as those of his close friends in the King’s castle.

The story then shifts to an oncoming invasion from people from a different dimension and Pug’s apprenticeship takes somewhat of a backseat to the story of the invasion.

The story is well done for a few good reasons. Though the story is about Pug and his apprenticeship in learning magic we hardly ever see Pug perform magic for the entire duration for the first book. Further, the story focuses on several characters or groups of characters simultaneously so the spotlight is, to an extent, shared. The book focuses on Pug for a little more than three quarters of the story but in the last 50+ pages Pug is entirely absent and the story, and rather than focusing back on Kulgan and the party Pug had stayed with, the writer shifts the focus back to Pug’s homeland and puts the spotlight on secondary and tertiary characters whom we have little exposure to.

Overall Magician was a very well written story. It had all the hallmarks of a classic fantasy story: Faraway world, magical races and creatures, war, death and despair, bravery and virtue, heroes and villains, etc…
Now I’m deciding if I want to read Magician: Master immediately or wait a few weeks before diving into it.

[MGM]

Wait, so the end didn't throw you at all? Where the invaders talk about their homeworld?

[Mr Wallstreet]

It was an intriguing little tease they left us in the end but it didn't knock me on my rear or leave me scratching my head in confusion. Throughout the story it is mentioned how different the invaders are so I chalked that up to a difference in their culture. But let me re-read that final part just to see if I missed something

[Mr Wallstreet]

I recently read Fleshmarket Alley & Urban Gothic. Both are fantastic books and worth the read. Fleshmarket Alley, written by Ian Rankin, is a very well done crime fiction story in which he uses his recurring character: Detective Inspector John Rebus. Time and energy prevent me from writing a full blown synopsis, but suffice to say if you like noir, which many of you do, pick up Fleshmarket Alley. Furthermore, if you like noir in general, pick up any of Ian Rankin's books. They are highly entertaining and well written.

In the horror genre, I recently discovered writer Brian Keene; an absolutely fantasmic horror writer. Keene has been writing horror stories for a helluva long time, taking a special interest in zombies, and though he has a penchant for zombie stories, he doesn't limit himself to them. His horror stories deal with supernatural horror, paranormal, human, sci-fi etc...He is a versatile writer within horror and I would reccomend his novels to anyone, ANYONE who likes horror.

Sandman, I finished The Stand a while ago, and while the ending left me a little dissapointed, on the whole it wa a great book. Many thanks for the reccomendation. In turn I would reccomend to you, any of Brian Keene's novels. They kick ass.

And Mitch, I'll be reading Magician: Master very soon so I can see how the story ends.

[XIII]

Recently fell into Ian Rankin. So far I've read the first 2 Rebus novels (Knots & Crosses and Hide & Seek) and really enjoyed them.
Looking forward to more Rebus investigations.

[XIII]

You know, fuck all that Magician stuff. I read in your first post of the thread that you were supposed to do a review of Hide & Seek. Where is it?

Damn the Dutchie and his heroic-fantasy gayness.

:D

[Mr Wallstreet]

I read in your first post of the thread that you were supposed to do a review of Hide & Seek. Where is it?

:D

It's not like you were gonna read it anyway. :)

[XIII]

If I've read the book, I'm ready to read your review, even if it is more than 5 lines long. :)

[Mr Wallstreet]

I've read a few more books by Brian Keene. Keene is a fantastic horror writer. Though he's known mostly for writing zombie stories, his other horror is just as excellent. He knows how to write interesting & compelling characters & more than that, he knows how to write how characters will (re)act in frightening or life and death situations. He also makes his stories funny. Funny is a big plus in my book.

However, with Ramadan starting in a few weeks, I'll be taking a break from reading for pleasure and from horror. The next books I read will be Confederacy of Dunces & The Savage Detectives. I've heard great things about Confederacy of Dunces and a few people have reccomended The Savage Detectives to me.

[Mr Wallstreet]

If I've read the book, I'm ready to read your review, even if it is more than 5 lines long. :)

I read Hide and Seek so long ago I've forgotten what it was about. But no worries, I'll just go back to the library, skim it & post a review. I'm pretty good with remembering details once I've skimmed a book I've already read.

Damn the Dutchie and his heroic-fantasy gayness.

:D

:smilielol5:

[wolf_2099]

Wally, did you ever read Paul Kearney's The Ten Thousand?

One off fantasy book, it was very entertaining.

[Mr Wallstreet]

I haven't read The Ten Thousand but I'll put it on my immediate to read list which will now go:

The Savage Detectives
Magician: Master
The Ten Thousand
Confederacy of Dunces
Band of Brothers


In that order. I'm taking a break from horror and suspense and am getting back into noir & fantasy for a bit. I'll probably start reading these after Ramadan and they'll last me until the new year.

EDIT:
Updated my list. After watching Band of Brothers, I'm adding the book it was based off if to my immediate must-read list