Books

[LotB]

I haven't read a book set in the "Forgotten Realms" in probably 13-15 years, but these Salvatore Drow novels look interesting. Exactly where should I start, if I get around to reading them? From what I found on Amazon, there are evidently quite a few different series of Drow books, but all related. I've found lists of what order the books are supposed to read in per series, but nowhere did I find which actual series came first and what order they go in. With that many books, it could be a while before I ever get around to starting on reading them. You wouldn't believe the back queue of books I've got now that I need to read. To top it off, I just received a shipment of 11 more Richard Laymon novels from Australia a few days ago, and another six books from the Overlook Connection Press (www.overlookconnection.com/)

[Üncle Snake]

Here's the order they should be read:

The Dark Elf Trilogy (Homeland, Exile, Sojourn)
The Icewind Dale Trilogy (The Crystal Shard, Streams of Silver, The Halfing's Gem)
The Legacy of the Drow (The Legacy, Starless Night, Siege of Darkness, Passage to Dawn)
Paths of Darkness (The Silent Blade, The Spine of the World, Servant of the Shard, Sea of Swords)
The Hunters Blades Trilogy (The Thousand Orcs, The Lone Drow, The Two Swords)

So that's 17 books total, but The Two Swords hasn't been released yet. I think it will be out in October. Beginning with Homeland later this month, they are rereleasing them in brand new annotated hardcover editions, which I am looking forward to. I enjoyed all of the books, but my favorites are The Dark Elf Trilogy, The Legacy and The Silent Blade. Passage to Dawn is probably my least favorite. There are also a few short stories published along the way in various anthologies, some of which are very good, but they aren't necessary to follow the story. It's become a huge series, but I think anyone who enjoys fantasy will get hooked soon after starting Homeland. I wish I could go back and read it again for the first time.

[The Duke]

Thanks for the post, Snake. I have been considering checking into more of Salvatore's work , and your listings will make it easier to choose books in his series'.

[Üncle Snake]

I should also mention that in a couple of those books characters from Salvatore's Cleric Quintet pop up. I think it's only Passage to Dawn, Servant of the Shard and The Hunter's Blades Trilogy. The Cleric Quintet consists of Canticle, In Sylvan Shadows, Night Masks, The Fallen Fortress and The Chaos Curse. It probably isn't necessary to read them to follow the other series, but they are very good and I recommend them.

I've also mentioned Demon Wars a few times, which is probably Salvatore's best work. (It's because of this series that I think "Pony" is not a good nickname for my brother or any man. One of the main characters is a WOMAN named Pony.) Those books are:

The Demon Awakens
The Demon Spirit
The Demon Apostle
Mortalis
Ascendance
Transcendance
Immortalis

His latest book, The Highwayman, is set in the same world but in a different time period. He's also written a few other series that I can tell you about if you really want to know. As you may have guessed, Salvatore is probably my favorite author.#nosmileys

[MASON]

Alright folks, the English Man thought he would finally speak up. First Up, Racing to Win by Joe Gibbs.

Joe Gibbs is an incredible football coach and built Joe Gibbs Racing. In his book, he talks about the hard times and the good times on how to be successful. He has sections dedicated to Personal Relationships, Finance, Health and some other stuff that made for good reading. Now, he is religious, and he talks about the Bible has the Game Plan in it for success. Joe actually practices what he preaches though. It is pretty interesting, and I have now changed some aspects of my life based on what I have read. I recommend it all for you.
Ma$on

[The Duke]

I am about to pick up a book entitled "Little Children" by Tom Perotta....no, it has nothing to do with Michael Jackson, or anything of the sort. The author, Perotta, is accomplished and is very good. He has written four previous books, and numerous short stories. He also wrote the novel upon which the movie "Election" was based.

On a side note, has anyone on the boards ever thought of writing a book themselves?

[LotB]

I've certainly thought of writing a book, and the day will come when I actually do it. It's just a matter of getting a better grip on my frazzled mind. I'm pretty sure that ma$on, Danny D., and your cousin "Lats" would all also answer in the affirmative, if any of them ever posted here.

[The Duke]

I have thought many times about writing, but have had trouble finding the motivation for it. At one time, probably 5 or 6 years ago, I talked to Danny D. about meeting every so oftern to share writing, but never got around to it.

Perhaps that is an idea, where people can get together on a regular basis (especially this summer) to share bits and pieces of written work. I am full of ideas, but could use some (alot actually) help getting motivated to write.

[LotB]

Getting me motivated to do anything is a big obstacle. I'd be interested in the meeting idea, though I would have to do it 'in absentia' from down here in Virginia for the most part. Perhaps we could call upon the Power of the Internet and have a writing message board or something along those lines.

[The Duke]

That's a great idea, LOTB.......

Perhaps a writing message board is a possibility. When the school year is overwith, that could become a gerat possibility for me. I have come up with (in my head) some new ideas recently, and am eager to try them out.

[LotB]

Sounds good to me. I vote that we discuss it further as the school year draws to a close for you.

[The Duke]

I agree, LOTB...we will definitely need to talk more about some writing as the school year ends. In my mind, it can't end soon enough.

Just an opinion question here, for anyone:

What is the general consensus/opinion on Star Wars novels?

Just some food for thought......

[LotB]

Are you talking fanfic? Or Lucasfilm-sanctioned movie tie-ins?

[The Duke]

I'm mainly talking about the movive tie-ins. I'm not too familiar with the fan-produced fiction.

[LotB]

I'll have to ponder that, as I've never read any of the authorized movie tie-ins. As for "fanfic", it tends to suck horribly, though every once in a while you'll stumble across some that actually has a real writer behind it. Fanfic is cool for producing things that you'll never see, though, like Highlander-Xena-Pretender-Buffy crossovers and the like. Unfortunately, efforts like those are usually poorly done as well, though I did read a cool story one time where Methos of Highlander went up against Callisto from Hercules and Xena. That one was actually written well. No doubt it's still out there on some fansite, somewhere.

[The Duke]

It certainly sounds as if some of the fanfic is poorly done. I will ahve to check some of that out in the near future. Makes me wish there was a short story where Kevin Sorbo (as Hercules) squares off in an epic warrior's duel against David Hasselhoff (as lifeguard Mitch Buchanan). Just kidding.

[The Duke]

I am mid-way through reading "Eragon" by Christopher Paolini". Paolini is a 20 year old author, and began writing this novel at age 17. It is an exceptional fantasy novel that I highly recommend.

[The Duke]

I also wanted to mention another great novel, "Joe College" by Tom Perrotta. A must read for those longing for those wonderful college undergraduate days.

[LotB]

My friend at work read "Eragon" recently and said it was pretty cool. I've never bought it yet since I now have one hell of a reading backlog.

[LotB]

You can find endless amounts of fanfic simply by searching the Web or the newsgroups. I wouldn't be surprised if there really is one where Herc squares off against Mitch Buchanan.

[LotB]

www.crashdown.com/fanfic/crossovers/

Just found this fanfic page, where the TV show "Roswell" crosses over with all of the following other shows:

Buffy, the Vampire Slayer
Angel
Dark Angel
Dawson's Creek
ER
First Wave
The Pretender
South Park
Lois and Clark
Star Trek
The X-Files

[The Duke]

What, no Dukes of hazzard/Roswell creation?

[The Duke]

On a side note, even though you are back logged on reading, Eragon would be worth putting ahead of some of the other things...it is one helluva read that I can see myself reading over and over again. A great story.

[The Duke]

I recently read some Star Wars fanfic, and LOTB, you are certainly right about how bad som of it can be, but also right that some of it is good. I found a few stories that I really enjoyed.

[LotB]

Yep, fanfic is definitely hit-and-miss in regards to quality storytelling, although these days that's getting to be true of the works of "professional" published writers.