Otherland

banjobongo

Forgive me if this has already been posted by somebody else previously. Has anybody else read Otherland (four science fiction/cyberpunk novels written by Tad Williams)?
I thought that were fantastic.
Havent read anything else by him as I dont really like fantasy (with the expection of LOTR and the Earthsea triligoy and a few other exceptions) but this is a great SF achivement IMO!

MJH

Hi banjo,

I've read the first two and will starting book three soon. Completely agree, very original and incredibly imaginative.

bonkey

banjobongo wrote: »

Forgive me if this has already been posted by somebody else previously. Has anybody else read Otherland (four science fiction/cyberpunk novels written by Tad Williams)?
I thought that were fantastic.

They're quite good, alright. I wouldn't rank them as the best sci-fi I've ever read, but they're certainly not bad.

I did think the ending a bit lame, though.

Havent read anything else by him as I dont really like fantasy (with the expection of LOTR and the Earthsea triligoy and a few other exceptions)

Sounds like you like fantasy just fine...you just don't like all fantasy.

Memory, Sorrow, Thorn is pretty good as eipc trilogies go. I could see you maybe liking it given that you liked LOTR.

The War of the Flowers was one of the best single-novel fantasy books I've read in a long time.

Oh...and from a quick visit to his site...it would appear that Otherland the game is in development and it looks stonking.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

he has another series out at the moment, second book was released a few months ago it's... not terrible.

Memory sorrow and thorn is just wonderful though, the first book takes a long time to get through because it is fairly boring for a looong time.. but once the story gets going it just keeps the pace up and if I remember the story correctly you'll be in for quite a few moments of jaw dropping awesomeness.

War of the flowers was also very sweet... might actually dig that out for a read.

bonkey

Mordeth wrote: »

he has another series out at the moment, second book was released a few months ago it's... not terrible.

Oh yeah...I forgot about that. I read book one and decided that I'd give it a second chance.

Must re-read it...sometime (re-reading Donaldson's Gap series is higher on my list right now).

mcgovern

Its been on my list for awhile, heard good things about it but always forget about it when I'm ordering my monthly batch of books!
Will have to remind myself to get it now.

ixoy

Liked it a lot and it even prompted me to write to Tad Williams on a small point in it (got a response too!).

There's some great ideas in there, with dark twists on familiar work. Also some good characters - Dread in particular stands out. The ending is a bit weak, but I find that's a problem with many multiple part series.

I'd strongly recommend "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" - great fantasy trilogy and yes, as said above, it has some great plot turns (including one that probably ranks as my all time favourite for its sheer simple brilliance). It's very much in the vein of "Lord of the Rings" but don't think of it as a knock-off as, for me, it was very much a worthy successor.

"War of the Flowers" is one of the best single-fantasy novels around, far better than I would have expected. Some of the faerie elements in it are explored further in his new "Shadowlands" series which is a bit weaker - I'd advise you to look at the works above first.

bonkey

ixoy wrote: »

Liked it a lot and it even prompted me to write to Tad Williams on a small point in it (got a response too!).

You can't stop there....

ixoy

bonkey wrote: »

You can't stop there....

If I recall correctly, one of the characters is Irish and he's thinking of some Irish word from his past. I pointed out that the word he used wasn't pure Irish (I might have been wrong!) but Tad pointed out how he had come across the word in his research and felt it was right... and that he had a new book coming out

bonkey

That rings a bell.

Maybe I'll need to put Otherland higher on my re-read list...

I've read Otherland and liked them a lot - a couple of years ago now (I really must revisit them!). More recently I've read "Caliban's Hour" and "War of the Flowers" (when it was first published) both which I liked. I've also read the first two of Tad's new Shadowmarch" trilogy. These are all great novels.

I firmly believe that Tad Williams is one of the most talented authors out there at the moment, and will be remembered in time as one of the greats of fantasy literature.
But his best work (in my humble opinion) is his epic, vast, incredible "Memory , Sorrow and Thorn" trilogy. I first read them when I was fifteen or so, and to me, they are the greatest fantasy novel of all time, equaled only by "Lord of the Rings".

A long time ago (10 years or so) when I was in college, I posted a comment on a Tad William forum, in which I posed some questions. I then (being a typical student) promptly forgot about it. About three years later I stumbled across it only to discover that Tad Williams himself had replied to my post!!!

I'll always regret not having realised sooner and continuing my "conversation" with him...


...sigh...

banjobongo

banjobongo wrote: »

Forgive me if this has already been posted by somebody else previously. Has anybody else read Otherland (four science fiction/cyberpunk novels written by Tad Williams)?
I thought that were fantastic.
Havent read anything else by him as I dont really like fantasy (with the expection of LOTR and the Earthsea triligoy and a few other exceptions) but this is a great SF achivement IMO!

Absolutely loved it. Haven't read anything else by him yet either though.

Quite original I thought and very interesting

Must read war of the flowers too