Sell me on the Black Company novels [Merged Threads]

[haiiro]

Thanks for the great feedback, all! This sounds like a series that would be very much up my alley, and I appreciate the info.

 

[JoeGKushner]

This may sound stupid, but if you get into the series, a fairly inexpensive way is through the Science Fiction Book Club. They have collections of the various novels by theme and have some nice covers. If you join, tell them I sent ya!

 

[drothgery]

Are all the Black Company books good or are does it decline as the series goes on? I have the first three and will be reading them but want to know if the rest are worth getting as well.

Some peoeple don't like the books after the first trilogy as much as the initial three, but I've got a high opinion of all of them except maybe The Silver Spike, which isn't really a main-sequence book (it follows some of the characters that didn't stay with the Company after the initial trilogy).

In any case, if Cook ever decides to have Arkana and Shukrat pen the Books of Hsien, I'll be buying them right away.

 

[Thorntangle]

With the current thread on anachronisms going in General, i had to throw this in. I don't like historical anachronisms. I couldn't finish reading the first book because I found it poorly written and one of the characters says (and I'm not making this up), "Bingo!".

Maybe I'll pick up the series again. It does get a lot of recommendations. Does the author get better with practice as the series goes on?

 

[JoeGKushner]

The only book I really had a hard time with was the one where the city's under siege and, I think it's Murgen, is like travelling through time and falling backwards. Shift of character threw me way off balance but it gets better from there.

 

[barsoomcore]

I don't like historical anachronisms. I couldn't finish reading the first book because I found it poorly written and one of the characters says (and I'm not making this up), "Bingo!".

I'm curious. How do you determine what is or isn't a historical anachronism in a world entirely separate from our own?

No, Cook doesn't get much better at that as the books go on. Although he definitely grows as a writer and tries new things and expands his scope and vision, he still commits dozens of them historical anachronisms. Don't bother. I'm sure you have dozens of books that don't commit historical anachronisms you can read.

Incidentally, how DO you decide what is or isn't a historical anachronism in a world that never existed? I just wonder.

 

[Desdichado]

I've only read the first book, so I don't know if this applies to them all, but, while there is an overarching story that spans the entire book, each chapter is relatively self-contained, and can be read as an individual story.

Dude, you have to at least read the first three books -- they're quick, and you get to tie up the story arc that's introduced in book 1.

The Black Company books I've read (I've not finished the entire series, and I'm not likely to in the near future because my library doesn't carry any of them, and I'm not likely to run out to Barnes & Noble to pick up half a dozen books...) have incredibly intriguing plots and characters, but a very frustrating writing style and occasional long spots where you wonder why what's going on is relevent (you later find out, of course, but it still feels weird).

I'll certainly recommend them, but it's a bit of a qualified recommendation. They're quite likely not up a lot of folks alleys, especially if the writing style turns you off.

 

[hellbender]

The Black Company books I've read (I've not finished the entire series, and I'm not likely to in the near future because my library doesn't carry any of them, and I'm not likely to run out to Barnes & Noble to pick up half a dozen books...)

Don't forget used bookstores. I saw seven of the books in excellent shape at a local used bookshop. Almost always an option.

 

[nimisgod]

I'm glad I found this thread bec. I had just heard that Black Company is similar in atmosphere to my favorite games of all time: Myth and Myth II (not Myst!).

Thanks for the info everyone! I'll be looking for the first book in the series to pick up tonight.

 

[Thorntangle]

I'm curious. How do you determine what is or isn't a historical anachronism in a world entirely separate from our own?

No, Cook doesn't get much better at that as the books go on. Although he definitely grows as a writer and tries new things and expands his scope and vision, he still commits dozens of them historical anachronisms. Don't bother. I'm sure you have dozens of books that don't commit historical anachronisms you can read.

Incidentally, how DO you decide what is or isn't a historical anachronism in a world that never existed? I just wonder.

If Cook would have come up with a reasonable, on-the-fly definition of what "Bingo" means in his universe, maybe I could have given it a pass. Since he didn't I'm going to have to assume he was referring to either the puppy with namesake song or a game played by retirees on present-day earth, same iteration and timespace as this messageboard.

It probably doesn't bother a lot of people but it bothered me. Snapped me right out of the zone.