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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:Rivers of London is good and well-written. Audiobook version is also one of the better things I have listened to. If you enjoy Rivers of London, you may want to go for Alex Verus, too. I just finished the first one and enjoyed it. Still pretty pissed that I can't get the new one until the end of January because I committed the terrible sins of being born in and subsequently living in North America. Fearless fucked around with this message at 15:22 on Nov 9, 2016 |
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Nov 9, 2016 15:16
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Ornamented Death posted:Sure you can, so long as you don't mind a physical copy. I didn't want to buy a physical copy and I prefer to support an author I enjoy, so thank you for this.
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Nov 9, 2016 15:52
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tithin posted:
Lux is his main go-to because, as he states, it is the first spell that wizards learn. They learn it because it is probably the easiest of the formae to pick up and subsequently modify-- the Faceless Man can't totally prepare for a lot of what Peter does because it's all stuff that he's created himself based on his observations and needs. I think Peter's actions are easier to understand in the context that he's not really fish or fowl-- at the start of his career he was scheduled to be assigned to evidence control or some sort of similar clerical job because his mind wandered too much to be an investigator. He's not completely a wizard in the mold of the Folly either, because he's too much a policeman (in particular, he has a knack for community outreach and policing that is becoming a more prominent part of most force's activities). moderator edit to add spoiler tags Somebody fucked around with this message at 22:42 on Dec 3, 2016 |
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Dec 3, 2016 20:19
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tithin posted:Didn't realise it wasn't out in the US yet, sorry. Lesley's also had tutelage from someone that has none of Nightingale's scruples and then there's the whole matter of what sort of influence has Punch had on her too. She's also had ample time to devote herself to her training now that she has no other job, while Peter still has to be a police officer. It's mentioned a couple of times that training to be a competent magical fighter takes years and even then, a wizard can be stopped much the same as another person with a bullet or explosives. I think Peter is where he is supposed to be-- it's Lesley's progress that's unnatural. Just a thought, but it's also worth remembering that Nightingale came into the police role after completing his rehabilitation post-war. Prior to that, there have been some hints that he worked for the Colonial Office before taking up arms during the Second World War. He was seconded to the Met by virtue of being the last remaining practitioner in the Folly, so he really does sit outside of the police culture as he was never really immersed in it like Peter was during his academy days. Remembering this helps keep his actions in context, he's not just old fashioned. Hieronymous Alloy posted:please use spoiler tags for detailed discussions of books that are not released in the US yet I'm sorry, I'll do this going forward.
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Dec 5, 2016 01:49
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:I will admit I think it's hilarious that Jordan managed to put out three books in between the publication of Storm of Swords and Feast for Crows . . . despite literally dying. According to my friends, what was released after he died was better than what was released when he was alive.
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Jul 4, 2017 18:15
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navyjack posted:I feel the same way about Pete I'd even give him a pass on that given how new he was to the study of magic and the fact that "jazz vampire" isn't exactly a concept or creature that most anyone would be aware of (unless they are one I suppose though the girls themselves don't fully seem to fully grasp the nature of what they are). The criticism (seen elsewhere ITT) that he can be self-absorbed and even immature is fair-- he's well meaning, but his tendency to blame himself for the failures of others close to him suggests that he doesn't fully grasp the fact that individuals can and will make decisions for themselves that are at odds with what he would prefer to see them do. But again, I think that's appropriate to the character. He's a cop, an island of official law and order in a very strange and often hostile world. I don't think he's stupid by any stretch, but I do think that he does not focus on tasks well (and isn't really allowed to, given the enormity of what he has to learn and do and his relative youth) so the end result looks a lot like incompetence.
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Aug 30, 2017 03:32
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Mortanis posted:Yeah, I want to say it was Dead Beat where Harry "thumbs back the trigger" on his .44 I was going to protest this sentiment, being a recreational marksman, but it's true. I'm also extremely unpleasant to watch historical movies with as I tend to nitpick those as well.
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Oct 2, 2017 20:05
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Exmond posted:With no context and no knowledge of the characters, I found the joke to be okay. The social justice jokes aren't a constant thing in the book is it? The social justice jokes aren't overdone, but they're there mainly as a way of demonstrating Nightingale's gradual acclimatization to the modern world (he was born no later than 1900 and spent part of his early career in the British Raj. They're far and away my favourite UF series and a lot of the reason why is the strength of the character development.
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Sep 8, 2018 06:09
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Hieronymous Alloy posted:Yeah, I really liked it overall. It's not the best book in the series but it's not bad. The ending was a little bit of a flop landing but that's kinda the thing with police procedurals: once you catch the badguy it always turns out they were just a guy.. That's always been pretty heavily foreshadowed by Nightengale's own observations, mainly to the effect that while it is easy to mythologize criminal masterminds (especially ones that use magic), but at the end of the day they're still flawed and human like the people that chase them. I liked the book quite a bit. The direction that Peter is headed in was of particular interest to me and I think that the author has done well at showing this rather than outright telling us about it. Now that the Faceless Man plotline has been more or less wrapped up, one wonders where Leslie is headed next. Fearless fucked around with this message at 07:40 on Nov 26, 2018 |
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Nov 24, 2018 20:29
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wiegieman posted:Has Peter ever mentioned what his own Signare is? We know Nightingale's (extremely complex clockwork) and the Faceless Man's (a sharpening straight-razor), and Leslie's (A crying seagull) is mixed with both of theirs, so presumably Peter's is something overly whimsical mixed with a lot of disapprovingly glaring clockwork. I think Nightengale's is described in various terms; I'm not sure he is quite as specific as the Faceless Man's. I'd like to think that Peter's involves jazz in some way.
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Dec 16, 2018 04:24
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I'm cautiously optimistic about both this and The Watch.
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Apr 29, 2019 17:10
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Kea posted:Hardy Boys when I was young and then Discworld when I was a bit older got me into reading, Discworld was especially a great start, Lord of the Rings was my gateway into reading when I was a kid. I didn't discover Discworld until I was an adult, but I am glad I did. Night Watch hits me like a hammer every time I read it.
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Aug 14, 2019 01:52
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Nightingale reminds a lot me of a Latin tutor I had in high school many years ago. He was a product of a prestigious British public school, flew for the RAF during the War, was horribly traumatized by his experiences and never talked about it. Aaronovitch captured some of the best aspects of a generation in Nightingale and reading the Rivers books reminds me a lot of my old tutor (or magister), who passed away years ago.
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Oct 15, 2019 01:16
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Ninurta posted:So I just finished up the latest Harmony Black, and it seemed like a decent semi-reset with Cthulhu features. I liked it overall, however The Harmony/Jessie relationship seems to be a recycle of Revanche/Wisdom's Grove with Marie and Nessa. Only now it's the Paladin and...the Wolf? IDK. The next Rivers book has Peter working in the private sector while on suspension from his duties as a cop after the events of the previous book. I kinda doubt that ol' Tobias is appearing in this one.
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Oct 17, 2019 07:59
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Necrotizer F posted:I managed to find some of Ben Aaronovitch's short stories that were only published in special Waterstones editions of certain of his books. Agreed. It amazes me how much could be added to a character in such a short story.
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Nov 2, 2019 07:01
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When I first read The October Man, I assumed that the reference to the terrifying new apprentice was a nod to Leslie, but it's pretty clearly Abigail. Peter's always going to be a cop that became a wizard. Abigail is going to be the first purpose-trained wizard in the UK in eighty years. It's going to be very interesting how their characters continue to grow and evolve as the series progresses.
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Nov 2, 2019 07:53
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Nice little 40k reference in False Value. I smiled when I caught that.
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Feb 26, 2020 13:12
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Peter's job status was resolved in the most recent comic series, the final issue of which was released a few weeks ago so that wasn't really an issue for me reading the book. The end of False Value seems to hint that Nightingale is considering leaving policing behind and is looking at Peter to take over leadership of the SAU. Coupled with the fact that Nightingale's mentioned to be working on reacquainting himself with some of the basics of magic instruction, I'm wondering if he isn't considering a career change into teaching and possibly reopening Casterbrook. I mean, why review the basics now when both Peter and Abigail are obviously well past that?
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Mar 2, 2020 05:55
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Hub Cat posted:That's annoying, hate having to buy all the things or miss plot details. And to think I just defended the comics on that issue. I'm not sure if it was intentional as such. I wonder if the book's delay in publishing had something to do with it? It was originally scheduled for an October release as I recall.
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Mar 2, 2020 06:13
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Hub Cat posted:Eh feeling more like I'm just getting hung up on dumb poo poo really. I was gonna get the comics anyway just didn't realize they were out already and like I said earlier we all knew Peter was gonna keep his job so I'll give False Value and at least Lies Sleeping a reread and see if I change my mind at all about it. I think the criticism of False Value being unpolished is valid-- I don't think it's you at all. I found the introduction to the book very unfocused and rushed and also found it difficult to keep the different characters that were introduced straight as there were so many thrown at us so quickly. Fearless fucked around with this message at 07:29 on Mar 2, 2020 |
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Mar 2, 2020 07:26
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Deptfordx posted:It has occasionally occured to me that Nightingale, a man whose childhood was literally Edwardian Britain, and whose entire life has been spent in rarified circles is a little too implausibly (for want of a better phrase) woke. I think Nightingale's prolonged exposure to the demi-monde (particularly through Molly) and his work in policing it has made him far broader of mind than a great many of his contemporaries. I don't think it is much of a leap from accepting various kinds of fae to also accepting other perceptions of identity as well.
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Sep 8, 2020 02:15
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Fighting Trousers posted:Nightingale was raised to be A Gentleman. He's just keeping up with the modern definition. That's an interesting take on the subject, and not one I have considered before.
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Sep 9, 2020 21:31
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Everyone posted:What Abigail Did That Summer was gooood. At this point I kind of want Peter Grant to have some kind of "one last hurrah" adventure and then go raise a family with Beverly so we can get a "Foxes of London" series focusing on Abigail. Abigail is a fascinating character. Once she starts learning magic, it is easy to see why the Germans are alarmed by her skill and capacity for quickly learning.
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Apr 10, 2021 06:25
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biracial bear for uncut posted:Well, except for Mama and Papa Thames. They aren't impressed by Nightingale at all and have some pretty rough stuff to say about him whenever they say something to Peter about him. That has more to do with his semi-adversarial role as a government official than his ability as a practitioner, I think. Most of the demi-monde really resents the "official" tendency to classify, categorize and label them.
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Nov 9, 2021 20:29
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awesmoe posted:i feel like im the only person who reads those books because i like the character of peter grant No, I do too. The entire series is populated by fantastic characters, but I think Peter is interesting because he has a presence in so many different overlapping worlds.
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May 16, 2022 11:55
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The best thing for game of thrones would be for Martin to sell the IP to Kevin J. Anderson so that when the final books get published they'll make season 7 look incredible by comparison.
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Jun 15, 2022 10:00
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