Re: Why didn't you tell me about this before?

On Apr 1, 8:13 am, jdnic...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 (James Nicoll) wrote:
[...]
>         Books that look like the reader should love but they don't?
>
> John Clute's APPLESEED. Lovingly constructed but I'd rather be beaten
> with barbed wire before rereading it (Note: I am not the Formula One
> boss and this is a figure of speech).

For me it was Peter Hamilton's "Pandora's Star" and "Judas
Unchained."  It should be exactly the kind of thing I like, with
multiple complicated plot threads and cool new ideas.  I did like it
enough to finish, but that is weak praise from me.  Without too much
analysis, I had saw three problems: Characters I didn't like, at least
one plot line that could have been ripped completely out of the book
and published as a separate volume without losing anything in either
book (Ozzie's Great Adventure, although it was one of the more
interesting plot lines), and too many problems solved (or caused) by
deus ex machina.

On the other side, books I shouldn't like but do, include pretty much
anything by Gene Wolfe.  Some are beyond me (Urth of the New Sun), and
some I like better than others (Book of the Long Sun), but I've
greatly enjoyed everything of his that's I've read.  Which is strange,
because I don't usually like to work too hard when I'm reading, and I
tend to avoid fantasy.  But Wolfe works for me.  Even if I'm missing
half of it...

Regards,

   -=Dave