Scarecrow and Army of Thieves :: A Rant

I read the book the day I got my hands on it. Suspended everything. Turned off the phone and for about a good 6-7 hours I was lost in the world of Scarecrow and the problems he was facing and how he was facing them and all the awesome shit he was doing to get out of trouble.

BUT

While I was reading the book, I felt cheated.

I felt cheated because Matthew had already used all these tropes before in his books.

The plot with missiles was already done in SCARECROW

The part about a team of soldiers on an island in HELL ISLAND

The part about a hero dying and coming back to life FIVE GREATEST WARRIORS

There were instances when "Scarecrow said nothing." was used in same tone as "Reacher said nothing."

There was an instance where Scarecrow is thrown out of the plane again and he escapes because of the maghook.

I mean, alright, Matthew Reilly is a big shot, big selling author and he is awesome at what he does and I am sure that Scarecrow and Island of Thieves sold a lot of copies, but for readers who've been waiting for a book for a long time, at least there should be something new, something novel, something awesome which is NEW too. Yup, I also realize that all stories are basically about good triumphing over evil, but come on. There are ways to do it, 1001 and more. And with Scarecrow, we expect high volume, mad and apocalyptic intensity.

But it was just not there in Army Of Thieves.

Call it high reader expectations or call it it anything else, there is a lot more Matthew can write than make something that has shadows of his previous works.

That's it. I wanted to rant a bit about it.

Reading :: A Song Of Ice And Fire :: Book 2 :: A Clash of Kings

The first book went by pretty fast and I started on the second one. Lot of commotion in this one. There were two new character chapters introduced, Cerscei and Theon. I don't think the queen was in the first book,  but I am not really sure.

Anyway, Tyrion in now in the kingdom and he is now involved in the kingdom's politics. This echoes too much of Inquisitor Glokta going to the besieged city in Joe Abercrombie Book 2 of First Law. (I need to do a future post on comparisons between Glokta and Tyrion.)

So, almost 65% done with the book. Going good so far.

The chapters I like most are of Jon and Tyrion. Sansa and Arya are okay-ish. The chapters of Bran are also interesting. I don't really like Catalyn's point of view, but hey, anything that moves the story forward.

Once I am done reading this book, I'll finish the two hanging books Plugged by Eoin Colfer and The Cold Commands by Richard K Morgan. I hope Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch releases soon. I really want to read that.

(Future post idea :: Why I didn't like Scarecrow and the Island of Thieves)

Two future post ideas in this one post. GREAT!

Reading : A Song Of Ice and Fire :: Book 1

I really shouldn't have started reading A Song of Ice and Fire : A Game of Thrones in November. I really shouldn't have, but I did! So, I am hooked now! Reading through it on a rapid pace. And liking it more with every page turn. I had held myself from reading this series for such a long time because I knew that it was going to get addictive and then I'd not be able to get anything else done.

I like everything in the story so far, but I am not able to grasp why GRRM is so lazy in writing the fight scenes. When reading fight scenes written by Joe Abercrombie or Richard K Morgan, you can feel the sweat, the blood, the swords swishing and limbs getting hacked apart, but with GRRM, fight scenes are a very formal affair. Not once did i feel myself cringe or moving with the characters. But well, what the fuck do I know, the guy is a genius for just writing all this and keeping a sane head on his shoulders. Any praise given to the man is less.

Cheers!

Republic Of Thieves Release Date

http://www.amazon.com/Republic-Thieves-Gollancz-Scott-Lynch/dp/0575077018/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321985780&sr=8-1

^^ This went live on Amazon few hours ago. It shows release date for Scott Lynch's Republic Of Thieves as December 8th, 2011. I am excited!!

If you've the $$ and you live in the areas where Amazon provides it's services, make sure you place your pre-order for the book! :)

IN OTHER NEWS

Things have been silent on this blog, cuz well, i've been reading. I finished reading Scarecrow and Army of Thieves as soon as it was in my hands. I've many gripes with the book, next post will be about the issues I have with that book.

I also started reading Cold Commands, but that got left in mid because well, November started and I started writing for NaNoWriMo.

I don't think I will finish it in time this year, but we never know till 30 November. I am writing!

Cheers!

Books I am Looking forward to...

2011 is a very good year. Because some of the most awaited books are releasing in the fourth quarter. Let's go through them one by one.

1) Scarecrow and Army of Thieves - Matthew Reilly  This is the fourth book in the Scarecrow, not counting Hell Island which was a novella. Expecting lot of action, mayhem and violence in this one. Reilly never disappoints with his books. Really looking forward to this one. Release date for hardcover - October 20! Fans of thriller, adventure, action should pick this one up.

2) The Cold Commands by Richard K. Morgan - I'm a big fan of sci-fi books by Morgan. Takeshi Kovacs series is my absolute favourite. The first book in the Land Fit for Heroes series "The Steel Remains" left lot of questions unanswered, which I am hoping this book will answer. Ringil is a great character. Complex, brave, troubled, funny, gay, and lot of other things. But he is not a boring lead. The book might be a complex read if you've not read Steel Remains before reading this one. That book is good for getting a feel of the world Morgan has built for his characters. Release date according to Amazon - 11 October! fans of dark fantasy, violent action, complex politics should give this one a go.

3) The Republic of Thieves - Scott Lynch - This books seems to be a classic case of being stuck in development hell. And I really want to read this one as soon as it comes out. But as earlier the release date was somewhere in November 2011, but now, the dates have been pushed back to 2012 at Amazon's website, so not really sure when this is releasing, but it will be released sometime in future. Scott Lynch has had some major problems in his life with depression and other stuff, but the dude is a talented writer. Hope he makes the best of his skills and gets out of the bad phase and writes kickass books for a long time. Will be waiting for this one!

That's pretty much it for today.

What books are you waiting for? Lemme know in comments! 

Just read :: '48 by James Herbert

I bought a double book which has Ghosts of Sleath and '48 by James Herbert. Two books for the price of one. Always a good deal. It's been a long time since I read Herbert and he was an entertaining writer the last time I read him. So, yeah, '48 was a good read. But somehow, i didn't connect with the lead character of Hoke because the book is too fast. Minor niggle, but if you're looking for a good read to pass the time, pick this book. James Herbert knows his disasters well and his other books like Rats and Domain are also good ones.

Now, I've started reading the other half of the book, Ghosts of Sleath. Going ok so far.

After this, I will buy some new book to read. Yes :)

What are you reading?

Re-reading Scarecrow by Matthew Reilly, Plus info on Army of Thieves

There can really be no justification for re-reading a book other than that the book is really really good. And it varies from person to person how much you like a book. Scarecrow by Matthew Reilly is one of those books that I love to re-read. This is as quick a page turner as they come. The plot is not too complex, not too simple either, and it's a fun ride through and through.

There is a bounty on the head of 18 people in the world, all members of elite forces and our very own Shane Schofield aka The Scarecrow is one of them. So, its up to him to save the world from doom and global warfare and he does it in style. Reilly's writing might be over the top for some, but its very very entertaining. His novels are like Hollywood action flicks, where you don't have to spend a lot of brain, but you leave the hall refreshed, excited and happy. And if that doesn't make a book good, then I don't know what does.

I re-read this book to prepare myself for the onslaught that is going to be Scarecrow and Army of Thieves. In this book, an island that houses a destructive weapon is overtaken by a group of soldiers called "Army of Thieves" and it's up to Schofield and his team to stop them from unleashing destruction upon the world. As Matthew Reilly mentions on his website, its going to be a bloody book, it's going to be a fast book, and as I will add, its going to be a fun book too!

The release date for the book is October 12 and I will be waiting to get my grubby hands on it!