|
Flaggy posted:I have an old one I can send you bub. I got it for free and so can you! I use the Kindle App on an Ipad because its easier than carrying the multiple books around that I am currently reading. Is there a secret to getting free paperwhites?
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 17:17
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 24, 2024 00:12 |
|
|
Kindles don’t wrinkle when reading in a hot bath. I only really buy physical books now if they’re particularly awesome editions or include some gimmick that works better on paper. Books are great, but they take up a lot of space and I just love having tons of stuff to read without taking up half of my luggage when going somewhere. It’s the same as iPod vs carting around a pile of CDs back in the day.
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 17:18
|
|
|
My kobo slides nicely in most of my jackets and I get to load it with news articles to read while commuting which is great. It's supposedly splash tolerant too
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 17:28
|
|
|
Skyscraper posted:Is there a secret to getting free paperwhites? Flaggy and I are friends outside the forums, it's not just random benevolence 
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 18:40
|
|
|
COOL CORN posted:Flaggy and I are friends outside the forums, it's not just random benevolence I meant how flaggy got it for free :p
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 18:49
|
|
|
Skyscraper posted:I meant how flaggy got it for free :p My wife's aunt passed away and had 7-8 of them due to her illness and always buying the latest thing.
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 22:52
|
|
|
Flaggy posted:My wife's aunt passed away and had 7-8 of them due to her illness and always buying the latest thing. Aw, sorry.
|
|
#
?
Jan 9, 2020 23:08
|
|
|
I want to read more Clark Ashton Smith, but it looks like there's about a billion different collections of his work. Anybody have a good definitive one they'd recommend? Or individual stories that are worth hunting down (since it looks like a lot of his stuff is online in some fashion)? I see there's a Penguin Classics collection, which I'm usually pretty happy with, but it looks like a lot of it is his poetry, which if I'm honest, I don't care about reading at all.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2020 00:13
|
|
|
MockingQuantum posted:I want to read more Clark Ashton Smith, but it looks like there's about a billion different collections of his work. Anybody have a good definitive one they'd recommend? Or individual stories that are worth hunting down (since it looks like a lot of his stuff is online in some fashion)? I have the Penguin Classics edition (The Dark Eidolon and Other Fantasies) and only maybe ~20% is poetry. I definitely enjoyed the book.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2020 02:13
|
|
|
MockingQuantum posted:I want to read more Clark Ashton Smith, but it looks like there's about a billion different collections of his work. Anybody have a good definitive one they'd recommend? Or individual stories that are worth hunting down (since it looks like a lot of his stuff is online in some fashion)? Start here.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2020 02:42
|
|
|
MockingQuantum posted:I want to read more Clark Ashton Smith, but it looks like there’s about a billion different collections of his work. Anybody have a good definitive one they’d recommend? Or individual stories that are worth hunting down (since it looks like a lot of his stuff is online in some fashion)? gey muckle mowser posted:I have the Penguin Classics edition (The Dark Eidolon and Other Fantasies) and only maybe ~20% is poetry. I definitely enjoyed the book. MQ, I think I know your tastes pretty well from our goon/discord interactions over the years. I think you’ll like the Classics collection even with the poetry. And by god, I actually like the poetry. You might just find yourself enjoying it too. Also re reading in the bathtub chat, I have an LG G6 waterproof phone and I get a lot of bathtub reading done that way. I never got bit by the kindle bug due to living in a country which Amazon basically doesn’t service, so I don’t know what I’m missing. Phone works fine for me.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2020 11:57
|
|
|
I think there's one subsection of the population that never needed an e-reader, one that tried one and found that they needed it and one that never tried one but still knew they needed one, and I'm part of the latter. I've never been happy reading books off screen, it's always been a strain, and when I got my kindle it was just like "ah, yeah this just works". But gently caress Amazon, can't say that enough, this is not an advertisement. Steal a kindle.
|
|
#
?
Jan 10, 2020 16:29
|
|
|
i hoard physical books like a dragon, but also give them generously to friends and family, neither of which is quite as ceremonial with e-books
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2020 00:58
|
|
|
nankeen posted:i hoard physical books like a dragon, but also give them generously to friends and family, neither of which is quite as ceremonial with e-books I believe this is technically classified as hobbit behavior
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2020 01:05
|
|
|
I was surprised to see that Iain Reid’s short novel I’m Thinking of Ending Things is getting a Netflix adaptation. It generated a decent amount of buzz back when it was released, but I was very whelmed by it at the time. It felt like most of the praise I saw for it describing it as so unique and mind-bending were reviews written by people who have apparently never read the gothic horror genre before. They were so excited by the concept of (twist ending spoilers ahoy) the real villain being MADNESS and the weird evil boyfriend and the worried girlfriend actually being two facets of the same mentally ill person’s personality! I don’t know, maybe my standards for gothic horror are just much higher than “mentally ill person trapped in an inescapable scary building / being haunted by weird locals” but it really didn’t feel like anything groundbreaking to me. I still enjoyed it and it’s well written enough, just a well-written retread of a story that’s been done better before. Instead of a creepy manor it’s a deserted high school. Instead of a strange caretaker and maid it’s Jake’s creepy parents. I had already figured out the twist by the time the narrative voice switched over and the reader was meant to realise that Jake had made the girlfriend up and their entire road trip was invented in his mind. It was telegraphed pretty well. The more I think about it though, the more I think the story might actually work better as a film than as a book. There’s some neat visuals they could play with. Anyway, to anyone considering reading it because it’s been picked up by Netflix: it’s a decent short horror read but I don’t think anyone who’s a seasoned reader of the genre will find it as mindblowing as the general public.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2020 11:09
|
|
|
Anomalous Blowout posted:I was surprised to see that Iain Reid’s short novel I’m Thinking of Ending Things is getting a Netflix adaptation. It generated a decent amount of buzz back when it was released, but I was very whelmed by it at the time. It felt like most of the praise I saw for it describing it as so unique and mind-bending were reviews written by people who have apparently never read the gothic horror genre before. They were so excited by the concept of (twist ending spoilers ahoy) the real villain being MADNESS and the weird evil boyfriend and the worried girlfriend actually being two facets of the same mentally ill person’s personality! I pretty much agree with this. My only quibble would be that I wouldn't call it gothic horror, exactly, but then I don't know that I have a specific genre in mind that it would fit. I would definitely recommend that people wait for the movie before reading the book. I also think that Plemons is very well cast as the lead.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2020 18:30
|
|
|
pospysyl posted:I pretty much agree with this. My only quibble would be that I wouldn't call it gothic horror, exactly, but then I don't know that I have a specific genre in mind that it would fit. I would definitely recommend that people wait for the movie before reading the book. I also think that Plemons is very well cast as the lead. I think Plemons is well cast in anything but yeah, he'll knock this particular role out of the park. And yeah maybe calling it gothic horror was simplifying things a little but I felt it was structured very much like a traditional gothic horror tale and hit a lot of the same plot points.
|
|
#
?
Jan 11, 2020 20:44
|
|
|
I just found out Nathan Ballingrud will sign your books for free if you buy them from the local book store near where he lives 
|
|
#
?
Jan 12, 2020 22:49
|
|
|
COOL CORN posted:I just found out Nathan Ballingrud will sign your books for free if you buy them from the local book store near where he lives This is true of a lot of authors. If you're interested in signed copies, it pays to check their websites.
|
|
#
?
Jan 12, 2020 22:59
|
|
|
I actually just got back from a mini vacation in Asheville NC, and stopped by Malaprop's... sure enough, left with a signed copy of Wounds. I loved NALM but I didn't think I'd enjoy Wounds since 'magical realism but with HELL STUFF' didn't seem quite up my alley. But I'm through the first two stories, and I'm loving it. The imagery of the babbling/rumbling skull in "The Atlas of Hell" is amazing, and "The Diabolist" was so sad and wonderfully imaginative.
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 03:41
|
|
|
j. alfred moonrock posted:I actually just got back from a mini vacation in Asheville NC, and stopped by Malaprop's... sure enough, left with a signed copy of Wounds. Hang on to your butt then for the last story
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 05:14
|
|
|
Yo what's good space horror?
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 16:51
|
|
|
Black Griffon posted:Yo what's good space horror? Event Horizon, Alien, Jason X... there aren't a ton of really great ones. I like Sunshine, Europa Report, Last Days on Mars, and Apollo 18 but ymmv on those. Life was OK. e: Lifeforce! e2: this is not the thread I thought it was! gey muckle mowser fucked around with this message at 17:44 on Jan 13, 2020 |
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 16:59
|
|
|
I was thinking books though, but thanks anyway! Edit: for reference, I've read Blindsight twice and I love it. Black Griffon fucked around with this message at 17:38 on Jan 13, 2020 |
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 17:11
|
|
|
Black Griffon posted:I was thinking books though, but thanks anyway! lol sorry I thought I was in the horror movie thread. Yeah Blindsight is great. "The Voyage of the Space Beagle" by A. E. van Vogt is mostly sci-fi but it does have some good monsters and dangerous space stuff. e: I liked Crescent by Phil Rossi too gey muckle mowser fucked around with this message at 17:46 on Jan 13, 2020 |
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 17:44
|
|
|
Black Griffon posted:Yo what's good space horror? More sci-fi horror with lovecraftian themes: Dry Salvages, Black Helicopters, Agents in Dreamland by Kiernan. All three novellas are real good. Peter Watts' Starfish is incredible, but it uses the deep ocean instead of space. Finally, borderline recs: Queen of Angels by Greg Bear has some horror elements and is set in the future. Luminous Dead is about caving horror in a sci-fi setting. Sorry I don't have anything exact for you.  e: I haven't read it yet but Greg Bear's Hull Zero Three. e2: Again, haven't read it yet: Salvation Day by Kali Wallace. If it's good post about it so I pick it up sooner. StrixNebulosa fucked around with this message at 17:53 on Jan 13, 2020 |
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 17:49
|
|
|
Hull Zero Three is good, not amazing. A neat concept with an okay ending and a couple of iffy hand-wavey plot details, but not enough to ruin the experience IMO Ship of Fools/Unto Leviathan is another sci-fi horror favorite... that I'm iffy on. It has some really great moments and I love the setting and atmosphere, but the ending is weird. I'm not sure I'd call it terrible, I think others would, but it absolutely squanders a lot of the mystery and horror that was built up to that point. I've seen Luminous Dead recommended in a couple places as horror, first and foremost, which I actually don't think does the book any favors. It's got some spooky moments (and probably does qualify as horror, period, if you're claustrophobic) but in the end some of the "horror" elements were kind of a let-down and I don't know I'd recommend it on its horror merits or lack thereof alone. I did enjoy the book, though. Not really directly related to the request for sci-fi horror, just thought I'd mention it. Long story short, I wish there was more good sci-fi horror out there! edit: so I did a search for sci-fi horror and just found out that Brian Evenson actually wrote two Dead Space books, Martyr and Catalyst (under BK Evenson) which is bizarre. On the one hand, yech licensed tie-ins, but on the other, Brian Evenson! Anybody read them? He's done a couple of pretty good, very weird sci-fi stories that I liked (The Warren, and... some other one, can't remember the name, but it was short) MockingQuantum fucked around with this message at 18:09 on Jan 13, 2020 |
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 18:06
|
|
|
MockingQuantum posted:Ship of Fools/Unto Leviathan is another sci-fi horror favorite... that I'm iffy on. It has some really great moments and I love the setting and atmosphere, but the ending is weird. I'm not sure I'd call it terrible, I think others would, but it absolutely squanders a lot of the mystery and horror that was built up to that point.
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 18:54
|
|
|
anilEhilated posted:This, although I'd say it is definitely worth reading. That's kind of my feeling, now that I've thought about it a bit. At the time, the ending really disappointed me (and still does, I should be clear) but with some time away from it, it's the cool, atmospheric moments that stand out to me, rather than the ending. That first facility they open up, on the first planet they land on, with all the bodies on hooks in the huge room... oof, still a chilling image.
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 18:57
|
|
|
Black Griffon posted:Yo what's good space horror? 'Obscura' by Joe Hart
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 19:05
|
|
|
Thanks for all the recommendations! With both sci-fi and horror being occasionally tricky genres, I guess it's a given that good sci-fi horror might be hard to pin down, but I have a lot to go on here. Keep 'em coming if you've got 'em!
|
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 20:04
|
|
|
Black Griffon posted:Yo what's good space horror? "Voyager in Night" by C J Cherryh Brian Evenson has done a lot under the name B. K. Evenson fez_machine fucked around with this message at 21:27 on Jan 13, 2020 |
|
#
?
Jan 13, 2020 21:15
|
|
|
Well, I finally finished NALM. I'd kept putting off the last story, perhaps out of no small degree of trepidation, perhaps because it's hard to end things sometimes. I think the wait made it even better though. In some ways, I feel that all the other stories built up to The Good Husband, and with all the varied strengths of the rest of the tales, this one felt the most like pure horror. Utterly magnificent. North American Lake Monsters is loving good. Read it if you haven't (though who in this thread haven't?).
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 02:26
|
|
|
ive been listening to the Magnus Archives and it’s good
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 03:03
|
|
|
Black Griffon posted:Well, I finally finished NALM. I'd kept putting off the last story, perhaps out of no small degree of trepidation, perhaps because it's hard to end things sometimes. I think the wait made it even better though. In some ways, I feel that all the other stories built up to The Good Husband, and with all the varied strengths of the rest of the tales, this one felt the most like pure horror. Utterly magnificent. The Good Husband is so magnificently  it is the perfect capstone to a thoroughly strong series of stories
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 05:20
|
|
|
Bilirubin posted:The Good Husband is so magnificently
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 06:32
|
|
|
chernobyl kinsman posted:ive been listening to the Magnus Archives and it’s good This podcast really is a ton of fun, and the actors are pretty impressive given the genre. The mix of anthology-style stories and long-running plot bits is good as well.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 18:16
|
|
|
a foolish pianist posted:This podcast really is a ton of fun, and the actors are pretty impressive given the genre. The mix of anthology-style stories and long-running plot bits is good as well. I liked it a lot, but then I think I hit a streak of so-so episodes and never really picked it up again. I can't remember which episodes, though. I guess it might be worth another try.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 18:21
|
|
|
In the later seasons, they got the guy who hosts the Pseudopod podcast to act, and he's very much not good at it. He's got a great host voice, but an actor he is not. Those bits get a bit grating.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 18:25
|
|
|
|
| # ? Apr 24, 2024 00:12 |
|
|
On the other hand, the host/writer/main actor's parents act in the show and it's so wholesome and great and also good.
|
|
#
?
Jan 14, 2020 18:42
|
|