Still reading The Twelve by Justin Cronin. Book 2 of The Passage trilogy, so no change there.

It has become quite interesting though (or maybe it’s just the Stockholm syndrome talking), I am in last 1/3 or maybe 1/4th of the book, and things have started to get together, though I still don’t know what’s the goal in this book. From all I have read, this seems to just be a ‘middle’ book whose purpose is to explore the world and take us from book 1 to book 3 where everything will be concluded.

Let’s see how I feel by the time I finish it.

What about all of you? What have you been reading or listening to lately?

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  • conciselyverbose@sh.itjust.works
    1·
    2 months ago

    Finally got through Karen Rose again.

    For some reason Stormlight Archive is super intimidating even though I just finished a series way longer. But two days into the week and still only 2/3 of the way through one book just feels like it’s taking forever for audiobooks lol. Though I’ve read The Way of Kings and a chunk of Words of Radiance in the past, so maybe it’s because I want to know what’s next where I was. I read plenty of longer books, but not usually full on epics. It’s usually more like a main story per book with through lines between them.

      • conciselyverbose@sh.itjust.works
        2·
        1 month ago

        They’re paced pretty well, too. It feels a little longer so far because the entire last week has only just barely brought me close to where I was reading the ebooks, so I’ve been chomping at the bit to get some of the questions where I was answered.

        But holy hell does it feel longer as one big storyline though. It’s fantastic, but even though I listen to a lot of audiobooks (and just finished a 30 book series with a bunch of them pushing 600 pages/30 hours) and do it at 2x speed, the length feels different lol.

        • dresden@discuss.onlineOPMEnglish
          2·
          1 month ago

          Heh, I can understand. I haven’t read Rhythm of War, but want to re-read the whole series to prepare for the 5th book, and it feels pretty daunting.

          • conciselyverbose@sh.itjust.works
            2·
            1 month ago

            I think I might have to break my habit and not start from scratch before book 5. It just feels like so much.

            I love all extra myths and fairy tales as part of the story. I feel like you could pull those out and sell it as standalone for people intimidated by the whole giant thing who still want a flavor of his worldbuilding.

            • dresden@discuss.onlineOPMEnglish
              2·
              1 month ago

              Well, I didn’t read book 4 when it released (though I did buy it). Wanted to read when the series was complete. So, I haven’t read the series since 2017-18, and 6 years is a very long time for my brain to remember stuff. I need a re-read to understand what’s happening now.

              Well, I don’t even remember why the books were so long, but I recall I wasn’t bored when reading them. There are some books (like King’s) which I feel can be just as good if half of it is taken out. Don’t recall feeling like that with these. Though, don’t know what I’ll think after the re-read.

              • conciselyverbose@sh.itjust.works
                2·
                1 month ago

                It’s a little different on a second read. The way it’s set up is excellent at building a tension where any scene can be pivotal, and you don’t have that on a re-read. But I did pick up details I missed the first time on the second pass (about through words of radiance), and the scenes that don’t progress you through the main arc still feel purposeful.

                If I’d read 6 months ago instead of finishing probably a month before the new one I’d probably start from the beginning again. I reread a lot, though. A lot of other series (even with less of an arc) I’d read from the start even after just finishing it lol.