Egwene's death didn't quite make u quits. It's only that she suffered Gawyn's death beforehand that I'll call it even with her after the horrible and disgusting thing she did to Nyn'.

I finished the Dragonbone Chair. Really picks up after they leave Geloe's place. Will start the beginning the Stone of Farewell tonight.

I'm just over half-way through the Dragonbone Chair. It's quite ponderous. I think the actual story is all right and might end up being great... but I'm just not feeling how he's telling it. I wont be defeated I'll plough on but a lot of the time I find my self not paying attention as I'm reading!

One thing that has actually pissed me off is the names. Why do authors thinking throwing a bunch of random consonants and vowels together will give you an interesting or fun name? Please just use James, Elisabeth, Ryan, and Patrick, or minor variations of it. And the same goes for country names, etc.

I'm reading book one of Tad William's Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. I'm just over 250 pages in. I'm enjoying it enough.. but chapter thirteen and a bit of fourteen are quite possibly the most mind-numbingly boring pieces of fiction I have ever read. I'd rather read about Elayne having a bath again.

But I'll plough through.

[. . .]

Dude I miss your posts on this subject. Honestly the Egwene-bashing threads just aren't any fun without your participation. I'm not joking when I say that any thread I open here I always press ctrl + f and search for your name.

Finished The Night Angel trilogy yesterday. Either going to either re-read A Song of Ice and Fire, The Lord of the Rings or read The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant for the first time. Think Thomas Covenant is pulling ahead.

I'm re-reading the Night Angels Trilogy. I forgot how much pwnsauce Blint is made of.

And yes I also read the Darren Shan books (and the Demonata ones too) but mostly because I started them when I was far younger.

The first books I ever read (of my own free will ) were Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. I started them when I was about 10. Kept reading them even into my teenage years though because I wanted to see how they ended. Whilst waiting for those books to come out though I discovered The Saga of Darren Shan and became hooked.. possibly because they had a good 3 for 2 offer going at the local . Absolutely loved them. Over the yars they became misplaced, etc., so I picked up the omnibus editions last year and re-read them. Lemony Snicket introduced me to the world of fiction, Darren Shan made me love it.

Tried reading the Deamonata series but I started them when I was about 15 or 16? So after a while I just couldn't get into them and stopped about half way through Wolf Island.

I think I'll pick up his new series about Mr Crepsley though. I cried when he died. Re-reading those scenes I still tear up a little !

It's worth the effort. I didn't like when it changed from Croaker to Murgen but I got used to it. Just started Warbreaker, seems interesting. When the guy handed me Way of Kings my jaw dropped at how thick it was.. he even mentioned that hehe.. wow gonna take awhile to read that.

You'll fly through Way of Kings. I did .

I also just started The Black Company and I have to say it's surprisingly hard to get used to the first person POV.

I have the omnibus edition. The first person has somewhat put me off really trying to read it. I've only read one series that with first person POV and that was The Saga of Darren Shan from my childhood. I only re-read it for nostalgia's sake .

Finished Warbreaker. Have to say it's my least favourite of Sanderson's books. Which isn't saying much because I'm quite a fan. I liked it.. just preferred his other works. Was a bit disappointed with the ending. A little too abrupt. And wasn't keen on the epilogues POV. Wished for someone else.

Hm.. now I have nothing else to read .

Just finished chapter 35.. God Sanderson makes me feel so stupid. I mean it was obvious.. mercenaries! With Martin everything is shadows. Sanderson puts it in broad daylight and I missed it! I'm an idiot!

Though I'm glad it's picking up. For a few chapters in the middle there I wasn't really that into it all. I'm still not a huge fan of the setting and the magic system still seems complicated to me. But the story its self is interesting which is going to keep me reading. Not that far from the end any way. Just over a quarter to go I'd say.

About half way through Warbreaker. I feel so bad for Lightsong. All that alcohol and he can't even get drunk !

Almost finished Elantris. Two days (I keep odd hours) is both good and disappointing. I picked up Elantris and Warbreaker because I was afraid I had lost my attention span from reading so much manga. I was half afraid that I couldn't read a good book any more! Happily that isn't the case. So that's the good. The bad is that I'm almost done ! I never could pace my self well.

Still like Spirit. I look forward to his chapters Sarene.. I've come to like her to an extent. Hrathen.. I love to hate him .

Edit: Finished Elantris. Was good. For a minute I despaired of what the ending would be. Honestly I was a bit.. abrupt. There's so much potential for future works here and I'm glad Brandon is working on an Elantris II though I don't know how I'll like it.

But any way.

Raoden: cool.

Sarene: still meh.

Hrathen: bad-ass does not even begin to describe him.

Probably leave Warbreaker 'till tomorrow.

Nobody likes zealots anyway. That said, Hrathen is pretty badass.

I like zealots, just not the wrong zealots . I will say one thing though, his armour sounds cool. Makes me think of the Blood Dragons bloodline from Warhammer Fantasy Battles.

I picked up Elantris and Warbreaker the other day. Currently reading Elantris. Already like Raoden. He didn't fall to pieces when he was chucked into the city. He has strength. I like that. Dislike Hrathen. Not because he's religious, but because he's not the right religion ! Reserving judgement on Sarene.

.. you try to explain to the policeman on the High Street that your sword is peace-bonded and so it's all right.

I've been on a mad manga-bent recently. I'm completely caught up on BLEACH and Naruto (for the most part) and I've just finished reading Dragon Ball (the box-sets are a God-send!). I'll need to get started on Dragon Ball Z when that box set is back on Amazon.

Because the TR will ever surpass Andor's army of 200,000? Saying it has had massive boosts in those areas is a pretty big stretch.

Most of home are mercenary and wont be in the Queen's employ forever.

What exactly do you mean by "massive population". Even with the refugee influx, I doubt there are more than 15 000 - 20 000 persons living there - IIRc they got about 10-20 refugees per day on average. Only about 3000 - 4000 thousands men came from Two Rivers to fight at Malden, even with Perrin's ta'veren influence and extreme popularity ensuring that most men there would come.

You missed the "boost" qualifier? The Two Rivers has, pretty much over night, went from a population of a couple of hundred to a couple of thousand. And there's no reason to doubt that this wont keep building.

Two Rivers consists of 4 villages currently upgraded into small towns, they are hardly a major power.

The Two Rivers consists of four villages that have had massive population, cultural, technological and industrial boosts, that have had a solid identity forged in the fires of war and are current under the lordship of one of the most important men in the world.. literally. It is the birth place of the Dragon Reborn, if is the cradle of the greatest general of the days and its men have seen war in almost every battlefield in the West.

There are huge natural resource opportunities in the Misty Mountains that have no been explored in this area. With the alliance between the Two Rivers and Ghealdin will it be any surprise that a bridge between Ghealdin and The Two Rivers could be constructed over the Manetherendrelle? This would facilitate greater access between western trade and the Two Rivers (and indeed Andor as a whole). It could even possible cause trouble with Murandy who would see this as an unacceptable attack on their economy).

Very lame.

Well it really doesn't.. it has a king for all intent and purposes. Accepting Elayne is simply the easiest thing to do. If you ask me, she got the bad end of the stick. Her and hers are going to have to deal with an extremely powerful family to their west who will have the military and economic power to cause them problems.

Eastern noble: "Your majesty, we must raises taxes on gold mining. It's simply damaging the economy of our the nation in the east."

Queen whispers: "I agree."

Perrin's great-great-great-grandson hefts his granddaddies war hammer: "Sorry what was that Elayne IV?"

Queen: "I said: "Guards! Take this easterner to the stocks!"

I'll give Bakker one thing then; he at least gets credit for actually having a qualification in the subject, unlike Dawkins, so I apologise for lumping them in the same group.

I had just put the book down when I originally posted. Bakker can write, I think it was poorly paced and regardless of what I think of the philosophy riddled through the books or what my morals say about certain scenes, he wrote them all well.

Well, I'm half-way through Bakker's The Warrior Prophet and I won't be continuing. It just doesn't sit well with my Catholic sensibilities.

No, it doesn't sit will with my intellectual sensibilities. If I want pseudo-philosophical ramblings against religion I'll read Dawkins.

Ignoring all that though, I think it was just poorly written. Nothing happened in the first book at all and I simply got sick of reading about cum-stained banners, incestious bitch-mothers and Esmi's "peach" every second page.

On to Janny Wurts again for me.

I finished The Shadow of the Torturer. I don't think I'll be moving on to The Claw. Instead I'm going to finally try and get through R. Scott Bakker.

I took a couple of hours tonight and started Shadow and Claw by Gene Wolfe (I spent most of the day reading a Scottish writer's science fiction). Right now I am up to point where Sev' receives his sword, Terminus Est (I've not actually read the chapter yet, so no spoilers!).

Right now I am a little unsure. This is only the second time I have read a novel in the first person narrative. I've found a little slow going (visually). The first person narrative makes it that for me I sometimes find my self coming out of the scene. It's also slow in that it's taken up 100 pages to just introduce Sev' and nothing else (the world etc.) though I suppose we may just learn along with Sev'.

I found his conversation with the whore quite interesting as well. And on another note I don't trust a thing he says. Perfect memory? My arse !

But I'm interested.