Ah, Internet

[przed]

Back from a nice and relaxing Christmas spent with my folks. Turkey was eaten, gifts were opened and I had the luxury of having the time to finish not one but two books. (The first was Point of Hopes which was not, alas, what I hoped it would be in spite of its Bodie and Doyle avatars. But the second, Ellen Kushner's The Privilege of the Sword was utterly brilliant and more than made up for the first. If like me you grew up wishing you could be a musketeer, run out and grab this book. Right. Now.)

With less than a week remaining of what seemed like an endless three weeks of vacation, I'm starting to seriously prioritize my time. How much can I read/watch/write before I have to go back to the grind? And how many people can I manage to see? Not nearly enough, I fear.

Comments

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Oh, you didn't like Point of Hopes? Really? (I have to admit, Point of Dreams is better, but still..?) Oh no!

[przed.livejournal.com]

Alas, I'm afraid I found the writing workmanlike at best, her characters only cursorily sketched out and the plot plodding. An opinion only confirmed when I read the Kushner directly afterward. Kushner's prose sparkles, her plotting is ingenious and her characters, even the minor ones, are fully formed flesh and blood.

Plus, Kushner knows how to make a novel seriously slashy. With Point of Hopes if I hadn't known that the main characters were meant to be a) Bodie and Doyle and b) ended up involved in the second novel I wouldn't have even noticed the slim threads of attraction between them. In Kushner's novels (both The Privilege of the Sword and the earlier Swordspoint) there is absolutely no chance of not noticing how deep the love between Alec and Richard goes.

[gilda-elise.livejournal.com]

I love Kushner's Sword universe, to the point of seeking out and finding all the short stories from it. But I haven't got around to reading the latest novel. I think it's just moved up on the list of "books I'm reading next...um, soon." :-)

[przed.livejournal.com]

If you love Kushner's universe, you must read Privilege as soon as possible. It's as good as any of the other novels, and though they're not the main characters, there are several key scenes with Alec and Richard.

[faramir-boromir.livejournal.com]

Kushner goes on the wish list, then. Thanks for the heads up.

Enjoy your time off. Hope you're sleeping late each and every day!

[przed.livejournal.com]

I predict you will love it.

And did you ever read Swordspoint? I know I've mentioned it. It's the book that introduces this world and is utterly genius as well. Not to mention the fact that the two main characters are a male/male couple, one a scholar and the other a swordsman.

[faramir-boromir.livejournal.com]

I bought it, and it went in the stack next to the bed. Guess where it still is?

[przed.livejournal.com]

Ah. If your stack beside the bed is anything like mine...

Still, if I were you I'd nudge it just a wee bit closer to the top of the stack.

And Privilege holds up on its own, should you care to start with that. (Seriously, I think you will love, nay, adore it.)

[canadiansuzanne.livejournal.com]

There's never enough time.

I wish I could sit and read a book uninterrupted.

[przed.livejournal.com]

I'm betting this is one of my last chances for, oh, about twenty years.