tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4011180133672171801.post1067134322530841209..comments2022-12-10T02:34:01.429-08:00Comments on Fusion Fantasy by Bets Davies: Fifth Quarter by Tanya HuffBets Davieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01470190008122531460noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4011180133672171801.post-50380077466545265462011-12-01T11:05:09.555-08:002011-12-01T11:05:09.555-08:00Actually, Huff's Gate of Darkness, Circle of L...Actually, Huff's Gate of Darkness, Circle of Light--her debut novel--is a rocky and at times painful ride. I didn't start there though, so for me reading that book I was simply interested in how much she'd grown as a writer. That's one thing to think about if you don't like a first book but have heard raves of an author's later work. Some authors will write the same thing forever (*cough*Piers Anthony*cough) and that's okay by some, since that is what the fans follow them for. <br /><br />But a lot of even published authors will find that their first time out there they made a lot of mistakes and have since honed their style. If you want to be linear about the Quarter series, start with Sing the Four Quarters. If you want to go back to the beginning, I believe her fantasy/mystery/horror fusions of the Blood books (Henry Fitzgerald series?) surging into place as the vamp book to read between Anne Rice and Charlene Harris, was her first extended work. I did not have as much luck with that series as I have with several of her other novels, but then again, we've already talked about the fact I'm a vampire snob.Bets Davieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01470190008122531460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4011180133672171801.post-82763516026127350842011-11-30T17:19:18.438-08:002011-11-30T17:19:18.438-08:00Heck, I've never read a Huff book. I would be...Heck, I've never read a Huff book. I would be interested in which one you recommend I start with. This one looks pretty good but I am really linear. I frequently will put off reading an author until I get ahold of her or his first book. And, depending on how I feel after that first one, I amy not continue - even in light of great reviews for subsequent books. I would also be interested in your thoughts about author's who are really readable, but whose first book is a turkey.Rickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08703123387039631290noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4011180133672171801.post-27575603744129867232011-11-30T17:12:07.658-08:002011-11-30T17:12:07.658-08:00I loved this review of Fifth Quarter, which is som...I loved this review of Fifth Quarter, which is somehow one of those books that, in spite of the gicky and sometimes heartbreakingly pathetic Khars, draws me back to reread it every few years, because the people and the relationships seem honest, and that makes my life feel a little more grounded. And I agree, too, that the concept of the sleepy, griping, snoring army that spreads out around Vree and Bannon does seem like warm, dependable wall--almost a home around them. Good review!debbyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09898956529161374972noreply@blogger.com