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Llamadeus posted:Isn't that writer known only for an exceptionally derivative and poorly written fantasy series anyway? Doesn't seem like something worth the effort The sad part is, a lot of it is totally decent. World building, cool aliens, dynamic action scenes, all good. But holy mother all the characters are not just lifeless two dimensional cutouts, but actively unlikable cutouts.
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Apr 11, 2021 04:03
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Folio makes good stuff.
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Apr 11, 2021 04:19
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Rand Brittain posted:Folio makes good stuff. Ornamented Death posted:That's one I have. It is absolutely gorgeous in person. A folio a deux
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Apr 11, 2021 05:15
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Invalid Validation posted:One of my favorite trilogies is The Coldfire Trilogy and I need new books to read. Any suggestions? Just want to chime in that Gerald Tarrant is one of my favorite characters in fantasy
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Apr 11, 2021 05:54
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tildes posted:The City We Became- i really like NK Jemisin in general, but couldn’t finish this. Maybe I just need to give it another shot. It seems like I might be in the minority in this opinion though? Maybe this would be the one to bet on if any other book were to win? I felt the same - I love the concept and was super excited for it but it didn't click. It felt, I dunno, forced? Maybe not the right way to describe how I felt but it felt like it was missing something.
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Apr 11, 2021 06:26
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It was aggressively Fine.
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Apr 11, 2021 07:19
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Broken Earth set a very fuckin' high bar.
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Apr 11, 2021 12:33
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Read through Vandermeer's new Hummingbird Salamander in one sitting and I'm not really sure how I feel about it. It's at once very different and strikingly similar to his other stuff.
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Apr 11, 2021 13:33
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uber_stoat posted:that Folio Dune calls to me. dare i heed the call. Dare, dare!
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Apr 11, 2021 13:37
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Teddybear posted:I’ve smashed my face against To Sleep in a Sea of Stars a couple times now and I’ve bounced off. I’m like 150 pages in and looking at the little progress marker going 17% and I just absolutely cannot see that through. I got all the way through, and I can tell you confidently that if you're not enjoying it you will never enjoy it. It's decently crafted so I assume he had a competent editor who helped him dials his characters right in at "acceptable but not interesting." Danhenge fucked around with this message at 17:34 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 17:31
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Any fantasy series in the last 5 years that have not horrible LGBT stuff, even in side characters? I like when stuff has People Like Me.
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Apr 11, 2021 17:43
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KittyEmpress posted:Any fantasy series in the last 5 years that have not horrible LGBT stuff, even in side characters? I like when stuff has People Like Me. Gideon the Ninth
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Apr 11, 2021 18:36
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KittyEmpress posted:Any fantasy series in the last 5 years that have not horrible LGBT stuff, even in side characters? I like when stuff has People Like Me. i think you can find this just searching within this thread (now that that function actually works) because good queer sf/f has been exploding in the last few years and there's a lot of really good poo poo out there that's been talked about a lot from a quick scroll of my calibre library: - gideon, as mentioned - a memory called empire and it's new sequel by arkady martine - baru cormorant, written by the guy above this post - ancillary justice and the sequels (more to do with gender than sexuality) - all the becky chambers books (record of a spaceborn few, etc) which mostly take the "queer gender/sexuality isn't a focus of the plot but is normalized and routine" route - dawnhounds by sascha stronach (who i want to say is also a person who posts here?) - practically anything by yoon ha lee, both ninefox gambit and the sequels and phoenix extravagant and this list is really just some of the bigger names that i remember and are critically acclaimed, i'm sure there's loads more out there i don't know about eke out fucked around with this message at 18:53 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 18:49
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KittyEmpress posted:Any fantasy series in the last 5 years that have not horrible LGBT stuff, even in side characters? I like when stuff has People Like Me. - Calvin Effie's Inthya series is extremely fluffy/light lesbian fantasy, I really liked the second book in it and I'm reading 3 now - my book discord hasn't shut up about KD Edwards' Last Sun / Tarot Sequence, which has gay content in it - The Unspoken Name by AK Larkwood has lesbians in it, haven't read it yet - oh I give up https://kadoore.com/2020/05/29/2020-queer-adult-science-fiction-fantasy-books/ https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/129725.2020_Queer_Sci_Fi_Fantasy Googling 2020 queer fantasy gets you OODLES of new stuff to read, so much that it's hard to keep up with it!!
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Apr 11, 2021 19:12
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Winter’s Orbit just came out, I thought it was pretty good and it’s in that vein.
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Apr 11, 2021 19:13
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The Culture is pretty cool with whatever, but part of that is that LGBT stuff isn’t really a focus so much as just being chill and having a good time. Or bristling with penises.
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Apr 11, 2021 19:19
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The Unspoken Name was great, I loved it. I think I liked it more than Gideon the Ninth because there’s more variety in setting and I can actually remember who all the characters are.
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Apr 11, 2021 19:26
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KittyEmpress posted:Any fantasy series in the last 5 years that have not horrible LGBT stuff, even in side characters? I like when stuff has People Like Me. Just want to second the reccs for baru and ninefox gambit in particular, the former is imo the best fantasy series for a long while and the former is v solid sci fi. To add on to the previous list: - this is how you lose the time war (good novella) - unconquerable sun (sapphic alexander the great in space is the tagline) - memory of empire/desolation of peace (I like them; the first one in particular is slow to start) - every heart a doorway - the song of achilles (patroclus and achilles, maybe not the best representation of a queer relationship but a good book) - black leopard, red wolf (the lgbt stuff isn't horrible in terms of characterization etc., but a lot of the stuff that happens is pretty brutal just in general) - the tensorate series by Neon Yang (or really any of their books, just about) These are more gender, i.e. trans/intersex protags etc: - an unkindness of ghosts (generation ship & racial underclass) - full fathom five (part of a decent series where magic relies on contracts/'law') Not a big focus in the series, but the Broken Earth's protag is in a poly relationship for a bit and it's a great series. Honestly just looking at my kindle reading list I think it's majority probably majority queer protagonists, which is certainly in part because of what I choose to read, but there's really a lot of LGBT SFF nowadays.
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Apr 11, 2021 19:34
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feels like the rarity lately is queer male protagonists not that i'm calling for more male main characters in scifi/fantasy lol, but i do think there's the classic male gazey "gay women are hot, gay men are gross" tendency you see in other media that sff isn't exempt from and probably influences publishing to some extent
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Apr 11, 2021 19:45
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eke out posted:feels like the rarity lately is queer male protagonists While there is a larger amount of queer ladies in sci-fi/fantasy there is a contingent of dudes, hang on - a companion to wolves - havemercy - luck in the shadows - swordspoint - god eaters - melusine - the stone prince - vintner's luck - point of hopes - beyond the pale etc etc
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Apr 11, 2021 19:55
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eke out posted:feels like the rarity lately is queer male protagonists Very true that there’s potential for this, but mainly IMO it’s the explosion of female characters and queer acceptability. I do note though that there was one now forgotten KU book written first person from a female POV so well that I assumed the writer was a woman. Then the sex started, and it made me check the cover to see “Oh, writer is fat middle-aged white guy with a beard (that’s isn’t me)”.
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Apr 11, 2021 20:00
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e: Already out there ofc but on reflection probably not a net positive thing to add.
foutre fucked around with this message at 20:53 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 20:05
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Remulak posted:Very true that there’s potential for this, but mainly IMO it’s the explosion of female characters and queer acceptability. yeah it's absolutely a combination of a bunch of different things at the same time but also i agree with: foutre posted:Purely anecdotally it does seem like straight men write queer women more than queer men as protags etc. Not necc. bad or anything, but it does seem like it skews it a bit. Maybe just a function of what I've read ofc. i'm a queer man and i don't think it's like a major problem or anything, just something i've noticed over the past few years as LBGQT+ characters in sff have exploded everywhere and publishers seem to actually realize we exist and will buy their books eke out fucked around with this message at 20:16 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 20:14
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eke out posted:feels like the rarity lately is queer male protagonists Dealing with this implication is just another exhausting layer of the Justifying Your Presence that's constantly heaped on queer creators. foutre posted:Purely anecdotally it does seem like straight men write queer women more than queer men as protags etc. Not necc. bad or anything, but it does seem like it skews it a bit. Maybe just a function of what I've read ofc. So is constantly outing yourself to people to deal with this implication.
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Apr 11, 2021 20:16
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Has anyone read Yellow Blue Tibia by Adam Roberts? Interesting sounding premise but interested if it works well before buying.
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Apr 11, 2021 20:26
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https://crini.de/queer-sff-releases-2021/ I've been referencing this list to keep an eye out for upcoming queer SFF and seems like it's still getting updated as far as more titles. However, not all the release dates are 100% accurate (Galaxy and the Ground Within is listed as February, but it's been pushed back to 4/20  as an example).A few more recent-ish Queer fantasy titles I'll add: Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard Dowry of Blood by S.T. Gibson (if you consider vampires fantasy) Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse Empress of Salt and Fortune / When the Tiger Came Down from the Mountain by Nghi Vo The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone Seconding Dawnhounds but I know it just got picked up by a new publisher (Saga Press) so the old version was pulled and you might need to wait for the re-release unless you can find a used copy somewhere.
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Apr 11, 2021 20:28
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eke out posted:feels like the rarity lately is queer male protagonists Other gay men characters: Iron Council by China Miéville (it has been awhile but p sure has gay male mc) Witchmark by CL Polk (fairly romance central w/ one gay male and one pan male) Samuel Delany’s stuff has a lot of queer characters generally General Battuta posted:So is constantly outing yourself to people to deal with this implication. A good point
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Apr 11, 2021 20:38
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General Battuta posted:Dealing with this implication is just another exhausting layer of the Justifying Your Presence that's constantly heaped on queer creators. it's not an attack or 'implication' about you to mention a widely-studied (to the point that it's cliche now) vein of homophobia exists across our culture and i'm sorry if it came off that way eke out fucked around with this message at 20:57 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 20:55
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General Battuta posted:Dealing with this implication is just another exhausting layer of the Justifying Your Presence that's constantly heaped on queer creators. You're 100% right on both points. I didn't mean to bring the implication with but it's so thoroughly linked it's probably unavoidable, bad call on my part I think. foutre fucked around with this message at 21:01 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 20:55
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I understand the value of examining representation critically but I wish it did not basically always come down to scrutiny of the creator and pressure for them to explain themselves in ways that are often very dangerous, both on the internet and real life. The information you need to decide whether a work is good or bad about [whatever] is in the work.eke out posted:it's not an attack or 'implication' about you to mention a widely-studied (to the point that it's cliche now) vein of homophobia exists across our culture and i'm sorry if it came off that way I think it's very often taken as implied that any man writing about lesbians is a cishet straight guy, certainly. That's a mental default that does need to change.
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Apr 11, 2021 21:27
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Yeah, that's totally fair; I can see how 1) there's issues with looking at books that way regardless and 2) the adverse impact in terms of outing people/policing identities could net out to a narrower range of representation anyway, and with a much higher human cost. Thanks for pointing it out/expanding on it, I hadn't thought about it enough.
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Apr 11, 2021 21:33
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General Battuta posted:I think it's very often taken as implied that any man writing about lesbians is a cishet straight guy, certainly. That's a mental default that does need to change. Your work is not like this for what it’s worth.
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Apr 11, 2021 21:35
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e: nm
General Battuta fucked around with this message at 22:18 on Apr 11, 2021 |
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Apr 11, 2021 21:37
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DurianGray posted:https://crini.de/queer-sff-releases-2021/ Depends on where you’re at, I bought the ebook a few days ago here in Canada.  It’s pretty good so far, lots of congenial, well-spoken aliens hanging out together, being horrified over the concept of cheese. RE: cozy-book chat a few days ago, I’d recommend Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton. An exploration mission to Jupiter is on its way back to Earth when Earth stops responding; at the same time, an aging scientist refuses to evacuate his Arctic research facility with the rest of the staff, and finds himself alone with his thoughts and a random child stowaway.
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Apr 11, 2021 23:10
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The copper cat trilogy had a gay main male character too. Nothing explicit about it though.
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Apr 12, 2021 00:28
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Django Wexler's The Thousand Names series has a lesbian protagonist. It's basically a low-fantasy retelling of the French Revolution and Napoleon's campaigns. I also fourth or fifth the recommendations of Gideon and Baru Cormorant in particular.
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Apr 12, 2021 00:29
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Before I hit hiatus mode on my SFL Archives 1994 readthrough a second time, Ken MacLeod appeared for the first time ever in the SFL Archives. Ken MacLeod's post to the SFL Archives came across as hilarious-sad from a year 2021 perspective. Hilarious because MacLeod's first SFL Archives post was to carry Iain Banks water for him explaining the Culture setting. Sad because that 1994 email to a defunct mailing list is more than Ken MacLeod has managed to do in the 7+ years since he became the literary executor for the deceased Iain Banks. Ken MacLeod has been a terrible literary executor. [start of internet letter to Ken MacLeod] It's been over 7 years. Stop trying to shoehorn Hobbes vs Locke arguments into the Culture setting, Ken. Hobbes and Locke philosophies doesn't fit into what has already been published about the Culture. Just send the final version of The Culture: Notes and Drawings to Orbit already. [end of internet letter to Ken MacLeod] ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 10 Aug 1994 13:09:26 GMT From: kenm@festival.ed.ac.uk (K MacLeod) Reply-to: sf-lovers-written@Rutgers.Edu Subject: Banks: Notes on the Culture [LONG] Iain Banks has asked me to post this. It isn't a FAQ, but many Frequently Asked Questions are Answered ... and, no doubt, more are Raised. [Moderator's Note: Due to the size of the posting forwarded from Mr. Banks, it has been put into the SF-Lovers archives as banks-culture.txt. See the information at the bottom of this Digest for information about accessing the archives.] ------------------------------ banks-culture.txt wasn't included in the mega SFL Archives archive I have been using, however it can be found online at http://www.vavatch.co.uk/books/banks/cultnote.htm
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Apr 12, 2021 00:42
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KittyEmpress posted:Any fantasy series in the last 5 years that have not horrible LGBT stuff, even in side characters? I like when stuff has People Like Me. Dragonoak trilogy by Sam Farren is a fun fantasy adventure and also extremely queer
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Apr 12, 2021 03:38
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The discussions of lesbians and people named Macleod reminded me of something. I'm a lesbian, and when I was a confused babby it was really hard to find any lesbian stories at all, much less ones that weren't clearly written with one hand. I picked up some anthology that I don't remember and in it was Breathmoss by Ian Macleod - the setting grabbed me instantly, a group of all-women scientists that live on a high mountain and have symbiotic moss that grows in their lungs to help them breathe the thin atmosphere. After a while of establishing the setting and some meaningless flings, the main character descends from the mountain (I don't remember why) and coughs out the moss onto a rock, then instantly falls in love with the first man she's ever seen. The rest of the story is about how beautiful and perfect her life is now that she's doing what she's supposed to be doing, and the guy is so much more kind and attentive than anyone on the mountain but he's also so Manly and Strong, and the last scene is her passing the moss rock and seeing that it's thriving, just capping off the whole poo poo sundae with a neat little whipped cream squirt of bigoted imagery. gently caress this was a long post sorry. I hate that motherfucker.
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Apr 12, 2021 07:17
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packetmantis posted:The discussions of lesbians and people named Macleod reminded me of something. I'm a lesbian, and when I was a confused babby it was really hard to find any lesbian stories at all, much less ones that weren't clearly written with one hand. I picked up some anthology that I don't remember and in it was Breathmoss by Ian Macleod - the setting grabbed me instantly, a group of all-women scientists that live on a high mountain and have symbiotic moss that grows in their lungs to help them breathe the thin atmosphere. After a while of establishing the setting and some meaningless flings, the main character descends from the mountain (I don't remember why) and the story ends and was pretty cool actually
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Apr 12, 2021 07:20
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