Twilight is substandard fare and all the books the follow

Post Reply New Topic

It's not so much that the quality is similar as that I suspect they're rubbish, yet I'm curious to read them so I know what people are talking about. I do sometimes get pleasantly surprised! (but not by BE, which is truly So Bad It's Horrible )

...Twilight should be arriving in the post soon.

Let me put it this way: the worst book I have ever read was Atlas Shrugged, and THAT was even more boring than Twilight. The only reason why I read the whole book was because of a bet on another forum. I read Atlas Shrugged, he read House of Leaves (a psychological horror novel). Needless to say, neither of us enjoyed our respective books.

That's the best recommendation I've ever seen for anything. I'm definitely checking out that link.

As for Twilight, I haven't read any of the books but have seen the first movie and I'm not a fan. It's no more or less cheesy than any other teen movie but what bothers me about it are the vampires that aren't really vampires. If it wasn't being sold as a vampire story then I wouldn't have any issues with it because I don't really care. But as a fan of vampires I was disappointed at the lack of vampires in a vampire movie. How many times can I say vampire before it starts losing meaning?

In total agreement, Quatermass - Herbert's "Dune" is a benchmark novel for science fiction, at least in my mind. Herbert, Heinlein, Clarke... all were incredible authors. I enjoy Asimov, but much of his writing is a little less complex than I prefer - though I did find myself caught up in the Robots series.


M.

Dune... I like Dune, but I don't rate it so high. I think it loses more by the allegory than it gains. I'd use Red Mars or Dhalgren for my benchmarks.

House of Leaves? Odd book - alright, but it didn't really do that much for me. I kept thinking of that JG Ballard short story. I've not read Atlas Shrugged (meant to after Bioshock ) or the Necroscope books (because my introduction to them was through someone's third-rate appropriation of their bad guys in fantasy RP, though I meant to 'cause the author is local.)

So thanks for the reminders. *invokes Amazon* It is by will alone I set my mouse in motion...

Dhalgren. You just earned bonus points... that is an obscure one, at least in the circle of people I know. Have read it several times - it's a good read. I found the interwoven history of the Dune chronicles to be absolutely fascinating... a rarity, as history is not a favored subject of mine.


M.

I plodded through the first two dune books but it was sooooo annoying. Those dammned footnotes etc..

Of course, I read it when I was young, and probably if I hadn't waited until I was 30+ to read Lord of the Rings, the same thing woul have happened there. Maybe one day, I'll give Dune another go...If I can psych myself up to do so.

I don't know why the DaVinci code is coming in for a bashing. The film wasn't great (It would have improved a lot if they fixed Tom Hank's hair) but the book was fantastic IMHO. I love short chapters, they make it go faster (more action packed) and because I didn't know the "secret" when I read it, I enjoyed the revelations.

Pity people had to
a. Blab all the secrets out and spoil it for the rest of the world.
b. Take it seriously and start going all "religious defensive" on it.

Well I think that's a bit harsh. Everyone has the right to like what they want. As long as no one is being hurt then I really see no problem with anything anyone does. Twilight is a harmless book/movie. In the long run it doesn't matter. I don't like how mean people can get when the subject comes up. It's silly. If someone told you that something you liked made you mentally unstable and you should be i a hospital you would be quite defensive. Human beings have the freedom of choice. If someone wants to read twilight, or harry potter, or star trek, or manga, it's their choice and they have the freedom to do that. If it's not hurting anyone then what's the big deal?

What Atlas Shrugged is the great book ever, ok I am lying, its is the most mind numbingly boring book in existence.
I haven't read Twilight or the Harry Potter books, but what ever get kids reading is not a bad thing, I grew up surrounded
by those insipid Sweet Vally High books, and was called weird for reading Anne Rice or Steven King

Your read Dhalgren, that is an awesome book, it was such a convoluted story I had to re read it several times, definitely a better read then Atlas Shrugged

Wow you have real good tastes friskey, I wish there more women like you around my area. Sigh.....

haha but I am a geeky nerd girl

I only got into Stephen King with The Green Mile, and I also like The Gunslinger and The Waste Lands of The Dark Tower books, as well as his Richard Bachman books The Running Man and Rage.

I have only read part of Interview with a Vampire, and gave up a little way into the book. The most interesting book with vampires that I have read was a Doctor Who spin-off novel called Goth Opera by Paul Cornell. That, and Carpe Jugulum by Terry Practhett, as I mentioned before.

I'm not actually that much of a fantasy or horror fan, although I enjoy the Discworld and Artemis Fowl series.

I have too add I am a fan of classic science fiction Foundation series, Dune and some of the new wave authors such as
J.G. Ballard, Michael Moorcock , also Philip Jose Farmer and Theodore Sturgeon. I did read the new Dune series and was
disappointed, they just don't write good science fiction these days.

Michael Moorcock will be writing a Doctor Who novel soon, that should be interesting to read.

Delany is cool, I like Nova too (not so much Babel 17, though); I keep meaning to track down his more risqué stuff. Very soft sf, but done with great style (unlike many of his peers, who did very soft sf without style. )

If you want good sf/weird fiction/space opera from more recent periods I'd start with The Player of Games, Perdido Street Station, Revelation Space, The Skinner, Downbelow Station or 40,000 in Gehenna, Ash: A Secret History, and Cryptonomicon for good introductions to their various authors.

Yes, talk about eagerly awaited...

Now, if only we could get Timothy Zahn.

The best Doctor Who novel has already been written. Lungbarrow. By Marc Platt. Accept no substitutes.

Now, back onto a debate about Twilight's relative merits, if any.