My Top 10 Most Controversial Fantasy Book Opinions
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 1. 07. 2024
- This is a list of my top 10 most controversial fantasy (and a bit of Sci-Fi) book opinions. Frequently when I make claims on my channel I get a whole host of people commenting telling me I am wrong, and this video is highlighting the most hot button of those takes!
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00:00 | Intro
00:34 | #1
04:24 | #2
09:32 | #3
12:52 | #4
16:54 | #5
19:39 | #6
24:44 | #7
28:01 | #8
31:47 | #9
35:25 | #10
#fantasybooks #bookreview #bestbooks #fantasybooks #booktube #booktuber #books #bookstagram #bookworm #booklover #booknerd #bookish #book #reading #read #booktubers - ZĂĄbava
Even tough I don't agree with many of theese statements I do love to see people being able to state their own ideas and opinions and discuss in a respectful way
Thank you Matheus!
My jaw literally dropped when I heard your LotR opinion. I've been saying the exact same thing about the LotR (I think it's so overrated and I enjoy the movies so much more) but whenever I say that most people think I'm a psychopath or something it's nice to know somebody has the same opinion as me I was beginning to think I was the only one. Couldn't agree more on your LotR opinions đ
YEAH! There are dozens of us. DOZENS!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews ONE OF US, ONE OF US.
@@bruh-zy1dp NONE OF US. NONE OF US
Thatâs how things work. People have opinions, itâs not special to not like something. Doesnât mean something is overrated. The lord of the rings was pretty much the first adult fantasy book I ever read and I loved it. I consider it top ten of series Iâve read today. Making assertions like something is overrated is bullshit. You donât like it thatâs cool well done.
@@TheCosmerenaut1 One of the first I read was the chronicles of Prydain
Iâve always said A Feast for Crows is my favorite ASoIaF book. Itâs the one that branches off from the showâs story the most. And we get so many more interesting character POVs.
I think most of the anger directed at Rothfuss and Martin at this point is not so much the fact that the books remain unfinished and unreleased, it is the way both keep hinting about releasing them when their public presence starts to fade. They don't seem to be telling the truth at this point; but if they did it seems like they'd lose most of the attention both seem to crave. People dislike dishonesty, and both are acting that way. Rothfuss' perceived shenanigans with his charity -- fair or not, hard to say -- also do little to move the needle in his favor.
How on earth do you go off about Butcher's attitude about women while giving Rothfuss and his creepy fedora tipping sex god stalker main character such a pass? Genuinely curious. I can see slamming both, I can see excusing both. What I can't see is going after one while giving the other a pass. FWIW, I read a few of the Dresden Files books and was not offended so much as I was bored by them, so I'm hardly the world's biggest Butcher defender. (Did quite like the Cinder Spires book and do look forward to the sequel to that.) KKC is one of the odd series I can think where I liked the books well enough while loathing the main character. I do consider KKC wildly overrated, but still thought it was pretty good.
Maybe because everyone is aware of Rothfuss fedora tipping sex god stalker garystu, but a lot of people try to defend Dresden?
Probably cause he know how "active" angry Rothfuss fans are, insane levels of evil from them when someone critique their god.
I think Rothfuss is severly overhyped but a good author.
For me it just gets annoying reading about how sick rothfus is.. He is so sick he should be getting a pass for everything, yet he is doing shit on the internet every other day, including "charities" and kickstarters(with no deliveries).. "Give the man a break! He is just human and have mental health issues!"
Name of the wind was readable, though his MC was annoying (not going to pretend I remember how to spell Qvoth), but by the second book it was unbearable. He's the greatest of all time at literally everything, especially sex, and everyone's constantly impressed by everything he does. It's such a loser fantasy I won't be able to force myself to finish the series on the off chance Rothfuss actually decides to write book 3. I hold a grudge for the self professed "literary snob" who recommended it to me.
1: Tolkien is a master of a language but his storytelling prose is so far off course from what most people read in an action/adventure fantasy story these days that it can definitely take some getting used to.
2: I give GRRM no slack. Itâs been 12 years since Dances with Dragons and heâs written literally anything BUT Winds of Winter. He wrote two other books and a video game, helped make tv shows, and even had two years of isolation and he still couldnât do it. He doesnât get a pass anymore
GRRM's problem is money in excess. Did he need money he would find the words to finish up that series. And that is what pisses us off.
The best part of A Song Of Ice And Fire is the prologue. It never got that good again.
In GRRM's defense, it's all that fame bush coming his way. I wrote a stellar book report in 6th grade and it almost ruined me so I can only imagine what it's like being a NY Times bestselling author. Cut the man some slack, he's only human.
@@csd8204 No
@@csd8204 No
I'm happy I found your channel a couple of months ago, that's again an exciting video. I like that you gut your own opinion and can argue them well, and even if I don't agree with everything or really liked a book you talk about negatively, it's interesting to see a well-argued opposite opinion. Especially in this video, I agree with a lot you said. Keep it up.
There are many book tubers, but not many with unique and fresh opinions, and then have also good audio and video quality.
You know I am one salty curmudgeon, so I live for this kind of controversial opinion videos!!! đđđđ»
Why does this not surprise me!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews thanks for responding
Totally agree with your take on LOTR. Saying that it's #1 (or TOP10) also means that ever since the genre was born, hundreds of authors only wrote worse books, fantasy literature has not developed by an iota.
While LOTR is fantastic and important, it has been surpassed in many aspects by other works.
Well... I would say people who count LOTR among the best fantasy books ever written consider the fact, that most of the people who have written fantasy novels after the 70s stand on the shoulders of Tolkien. How many of those books you consider better would exist without LOTR? It's not that "hundred of authors wrote worse books" or that "fantasy literature has not developed by an iota". It's that he was one of the first ones with huge impact to everything that followed.
It is also not a bad book, like many other early fantasy novels. It still gathers fans.
When I read it for the first time in my life (admittedly in the 70s) I loved it. It was not because there was a hugely successful movie series made (there wasn't), or because everyone else had read it and loved it and spoke about it (my big brother was the only person I knew who had read it). I loved it because of itself. I had never read anything like the hobbits. He also created the ents and the orcs. Can you imagine the world of fantasy without orcs? Even the elves as understood today owe their existence to uncle Tolkien. I was really scared by the black riders. I wanted to learn the languages. I learned passages and poems by heart and wandered in the forests singing his songs to myself. Even now, every time I shower, I sing "A loon is he that will not sing: O! Water Hot is a noble thing!"
The language is beautiful and rich. Might be because I read the Finnish translation that used three translators, one especially for the poems. The Finnish translation is amazing.
It was the first book I couldn't continue reading after certain events. I just couldn't physically force myself to pick up the book and continue reading the story without G. I can't remember another book at the moment that has had so a strong impression on me.
It created a longing for the past times and worlds nothing else has managed to do. I even read the Silmarillion because of LOTR. The language is beautiful and rich. The world is fantastic. No other book has had such an impact on me during my 54 years of life.
And, there's Sam. And there's the "But I am not a man" scene. One of the best scenes ever written.
If all this is not reason enough to count this book as one of the best fantasy novels ever written, I don't know what is.
Now, I don't expect everyone else to have the same relation and reaction to this book as I have, but don't assume that just because you don't, no-one else can either. OK?
â@@KetutarI agree. Even some modern fantasy books/series are still in shadow of Tolkien. First one that comes to my mind is "The First Law" trilogy, which is, in my opinion, written in opposition to Tolkien. For example, protagonist (I forgot his name) turns to old, bearded man who looks like wise wizard. Well, jokes on him, because actual wizard looks like a butcher.
There are several fantasy novels that are their own thing, truly straying away from Tolkien (Perdido Street Station or even The Fifth Season mentioned in this video) but they aren't that popular.
Worldbuilding. Nothing has reached Tolkien except Malazan. But Malazan has way more problems.
I read A Feast For Crows and A Dance with Dragons in the exact way you mentioned. I didnât like the idea of Tyrion not being in one of the books. So, I read them at the same time! Great video!
Yeah I hated that aspect with Tyrion as well!
Glad I subscribed to your channel, I've been enjoying hearing your thoughts and opinions about these books. I haven't read all the books in this post, but many of them, and mostly agree with your opinions. I tried one Butcher book and couldn't get into it at all so haven't read any more. I listened to the first two 5th season books but don't think I'll bother with the 3rd. Most of these books have fallen short of my expectations even while enjoying them. Except for LOTR's, having read that back in the '60's, it is what got me into this fantasy genre. I'm looking forward to reading some Stephen Ericson next year since you express such a high opinion of his books. I'm going to keep following you! Thanks Matt!
Thanks so much, I appreciate the kind words!
I hope you enjoy Erickson! He's not for everyone, but if he is - you are in for a heck of a ride!
I will forever be part of, and will probably die on, the Lord of the Rings bandwagon....but I can totally agree with what you are saying. They were the books that spawned my love for the fantasy genre at 13 years old. I don't read them for the quality at this point, though the overall story is timeless in my opinion - for me they are now an absolute comfort read.
Yeah I can totally respect that.
I can see that. I find things that put me to sleep comforting as well.
Good and sad for you to agree. I read Tolkien as an adult after reading "modern" fantasy for over 10 years. And I still find his works better than almost anything else I have ever read. And so do many other people. Many people discovered Tolkien and fantasy through the movies and came to love his works. No childhood nostalgia just appreciating good books. Maybe you could see quality if you read it from a more critical perspective? Something being a comfort read shouldn't disqualify it from being of quality automatically?
Absolutely agree with your take on The Gentleman Bastard books, Lies of Locke Lamora is an absolute belter of a book easily in my top 3 stand alone titles. However the other 2 books in the series are great as well although they do fall short of the first one. My analogy would be it's like a band that comes out with a stunning debut album because they have had years and years of practice and refining song writing before they release their first album. It garners huge critical acclaim but after touring for the album they have just 6 months to write, record and release a new one. It may yet still be an amazing album but it's extremely rare for it to be better than the debut.
I was disappointed that so many of the gang got killed. Limiting it to just two main characters was disappointing for me.
I admit, I got my hackles up when you started into the first topic! However, when I set aside my nostalgia (I was introduced to the series as a young child in the 80s when my parents read the books to me) and listened objectively to what you were saying, not only could I not find anything that I disagreed with, but I actually very much agreed with all the points you made.
However I did strongly disagreed with your point about Martin/Rothfuss/Lynch. That being said, I have a lot to learn from you regarding your empathetic and gracious approach to those authors.
I don't know how I've only recently stumbled upon your channel, but I'm really enjoying your eloquent, thoughtful, and balanced approach to book discussions!
I love your channel because, even if I don't always have your same preferences, I almost always agree with the points you make. Keep it up! Cheers from south america
Thanks Santiago!
I just finished the Fifth Season, and to some extent I agree with your critiques. While I understood the reason for using 2nd person, I don't think there was any payoff to withhold the identity of the narrator because when it was revealed, I was like "ok, so what". What was interesting was the purpose of this character not the identity. I also agree that the book would have been better if the timeline was clear from the beginning. However, I do think the book is thematically rich and likely written for a different audience in mind. I can understand why it won awards but also I understand why the book won't work for many readers.
Also you're wrong about Mistborn Era 2 :) Ok, The Alloy of Law isn't the best, but Bands of Mourning and Shadows of Self are great. I do prefer era 1, but era 2 is still good in its own right.
Starting to learn that me and Matt have vey similar tastes and opinions. Very helpful when selecting books for the TBR. Keep it up!
In Butcher's case it is not that we are not reading the same books, it is that most of us are not reading into the same books what you are.
I love to speculate about twists and revelations. I absolutely hate being right about them.
I agree with so many of these. Great video, Matt! I think having discussions about differing perspectives on books and reading experiences is so important and underutilized.
And yes yes yes to the comments on Gentleman Bastards 2 and 3. I loved 2 especially.
Thanks Tori! And so glad you liked the whole of Gentleman Bastards!
Man, I loved Feast of Crows and Dance with Dragons as well!! Not a boring moment in them for me.
I agree with you about the Fifth Season Matt! I tried 3 times before I gave up!
Wow that's a lot of trying! Once I give up a book I'm done forever!
Your commentary here is so spot on and so appreciated! I always reward those that speak honestly. Good on you
great video matt! I couldn't stand The Fifth Season either, it was a struggle finishing it đ. Really don't undertand the huge hype around it.
I don't think Jemisin has any middle-ground opinions. YOU pick up her books and YOU read them. YOU then form your opinions on how YOU feel about reading books in the second person. YOU either love them or YOU hate them.
Excellent opinions and video!
I 110% agree with you regarding Red Rising. I'm struggling to get into Dark Age and I looooved the first 3 books
Fair take but completely disagree. With Darrow arc going into Lightbringer and than Red God. I believe this arc will end tragicly and fulfilling. Lysander response to Darrow in Golden Son is excellent foreshadowing to the rest of the series.
15:22 "Dresden is what a neckbeard thinks a gentleman is." Lol that's perfect! I'm stealing that. I think "sexist" and "misogynistic" are strong words though. It's belittling but it's not oppressive.
Lol thanks! I read that at some point online and it always stuck with me as perfectly stated.
Big props for honestly saying your opinions and not hiding them
Opinion #3 is really important and I wish I could have realised this sooner. I've sadly put off starting GOT for years now bc I dislike having to wait for upcoming releases but it's time to accept reality and start enjoying the books that are out in the world lol
Yes - do it!
I read LOTR as teenager, I think I was 17, and then again as an adult, 32 years old. The second time around was even better. With maturity, I could grasp better the grandiosity of Tolkien's work, and appreciate it even more. Completely disagree with you on that.
Great video. Thanks!
You are most welcome!
Great, thanks Matt!
Thanks Alexander!
Regarding The Gentlemen Bastards series, I agree. I heard/saw so much praise for the first book that I read it. And I, too, loved it. So I just went on and read #2 and #3 without seeking out opinions on them and I really really enjoyed them. Not as good as LoLL, but they're solid and very enjoyable. I look forward to whatever Lynch ends up releasing in this world.
Yeah that's exactly how I feel.
2nd person? That would drive me nuts!
I agree with your thoughts on the fifth season .even thought I sort liked we are the city that came out later
Interesting, I might try that other book!
I think LOTR is the best but I also actually prefer older writing styles.
The best what?
This was the first video of yours that I found and maybe I'm just a grumpy contrarian but I agree with everything and just had to subscribe! The LOTR part especially is pretty much how I feel. I'm always suspicious of people's recommendations after they tell me LOTR is their favourite fantasy saga, so I feel like this is a channel I can trust hahah
Thanks so much!
I only came across your channel a couple days ago, but the thing I love most about it thus far is how down to earth it is
Also are you wearing an MLB shirt? Iâm a huge Philâs fan!
Have you ever read Gormenghast?
Agree with all of these, except on Mistborn era 2 - I love those books, and I think Wayne is hilarious. To each their own!
Great takes. I love your passion even of we don't always agree đ€Șđ
Agree with LOR, yes its the most important fantasy book but I felt like every time it was getting interesting it would be interuppted with more descriptions to slow the pacing down to a crawl, the writing style was so different to what I was use to. I had the same issue as you, I had read too many other fantasy books before it. I had even read the sword of Shannara years before it, yes Sword copies everything from LOR but for me the LOR was my 100th epic quest story
The unfinished stories is an interesting one. My issue with ASOIAF is I am more deeply invested in these characters than other stories that I feel like I need the correct ending after so long but what you said is correct, their are loads of other great characters out there that I have not met yet and I need to move on and discover their story instead
Yeah I agree with you on ASOIAF and the other unfinished stories in that I really, really want to see how they end. But that doesn't take away from what was already written in my opinion.
This video was sooo fun haha đ
Happy to hear what's in my mind đ
LOL
Hi Matt, id love to know your opinion (if you have one) on the Percy Jackson book series
It's the catalyst to my start on the fantasy book genre and, given that is YA, it normally isn't talked about on this channel.
Loved the video
Haven't actually read them!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews Really?! You should pick the first one up!
They're really fast reads and they get better and better the more you read.
From the first 5 I love the last one and from the second 5 i love the 4th one.
@@TheBrunoforce Great to know!
I agree. I love a Feast For Crows. I think it's fantastic. I'm reading A Dance with Dragons now.
Weâre on the same wavelength. In other words, I love the honesty
Very interesting and I agree with your straight out of the gate opinion.
Great video. Really enjoyed this.
I gave my opinion on all of your takes đ
1. Sort of agree. I absolutely love LOTR. ( I even have a LOTR tattoo) but I read it when I was very young so there is a lot of coming home and nostalgia in there so I understand that for some people this is not a book that they love as much. as long as people give the book credit for its influence
2. Disagree. Loved the book and loved the series.
3. Agree. Let the authors be. there are books enough to read
4. Harry is indeed sexist. It is even commented on in the series.
5. No opinion as I have not read anything from Pierce Brown
6. isn't this the normal opinion? I read this in a lot of places. I loved the 2nd era (but my love for westerns coloured that opinion I think) I'm rereading era 2 at the moment and must say Alloy of Law I still really liked. The other books rereads are on my tbr in the next months.
7. I think I stopped reading somewhere in the middle of A feast for Crows. By then I was watching the TV show and stopped reading the books
8. I will start my Malazan journey next year. But you have me convinced to also read the Esselmont books (If I like the original series)
9. I've not read any Riyria books. I always hear they are very dark. So not sure they are for me
10. I liked all 3 of the gentleman bastards. I don't think they are the pinnacle of fantasy, but they are good stories. (I really disliked the flashback chapters in book 3 though) And if there is ever a book 4 I will read it. And if Lynch decides to write a different fantasy series I might pick that up as well.
I'm totally with you on Mistborn. Era 1 was fantastic, but Era 2 didn't really work for me. Also, I appreciate the heads-up regarding The Fifth Season: judging by the hype, one would think it was a work of profound genius.
Yeah...I mean give Fifth Season a shot you may love it like most people do. Just for me - it was horrible.
Nice take on LOTR. Love watching your vids
Thanks so much! Turns out there are a lot of people who agree with this.
The neckbeard comment literally made me laugh out loud!
Thanks so much! My channel is pretty new (about 8 months old) so I'm pretty dang happy with where it's at right now!
Great person, Great books , Great video
You make this sound like a Papa Johns slogan! Thanks!
I really like your channel!
Thank you!
Love the hot takes! Lol..
This is a spicy video for sure, love hearing the controversial opinions!
Thanks Mark!
Wow⊠this was a fun video!
I agree with number 1 completely.
Number 2 was so hard to read, such bad writing, everything kicked me out. But the story and twist were fun but Iâm definitely not picking up the next.
Disagreed with number 6, Vin fell flat for me. Great character, just didnât hook me. But Wax and Wayne are so fun and their stories are so great.
100% agree on Lord of the Rings. Itâs decent, but modern fantasy is just better. Fantasy has evolved so much since then. Itâs written better now.
I also think the Broken Earth is horrible. I donât understand why people like it so much. I really wanted to like it and I had low expectations, but I hated reading it.
I agree about the sexism in Dresden Files but I donât mind it much. Heâs a dirty middle aged man. I donât get offended very easily. Dresden files is mediocre, but I like it.
Havenât read the red rising series yet. I will though.
Mistborn era 2 was jarring at first to me because era 1 was so much better. Era 2 felt like fan fiction, but I enjoyed it. It was definitely mediocre.
I also loved ALL the ASOIAF books. I didnât have a favorite. Theyâre just great.
Havenât read Ian C Essemont yet. I will though.
Havenât read Sullivan either. I plan on it though.
Iâve only read the first book in gentlemen bastards. I plan to read the rest but I have a massive TBR.
Overall, I agree with you on all of this. I think our only disagreement is the problematic nature of Dresden sexism. The Molly stuff was weird, but I donât know, 17 is age of consent in a lot of places so I didnât find it that crazy.
Man... I'm 38, born and raised in Baltimore Md, and just happened to be a " Nerd in the hood" when I tell the younger generation about the " Silmarillion aka kate Blanche was wrong about what started the war of the ring" when I read the story of FĂ«anor, Fingolfin and Melkor, or Morgoth. They love it I can also speak to something else you said
Loved Fifth Season but the second person narration worked for me, I feel like it's one of those divisive things you either love or you hate and it will color your opinion of the entire book.
Hard agree on ADWD. Reek chapters are GRRM's best writing to date imo.
Fellow Malazan fan that has to get around to Esselmont's stuff, currently have the main 10 as my favorite series as well.
Yeah man get on that Esslemont train!
Ooooooh spicy. i think you're right in everything you said about tLotR, but i still disagree that it's overrated (maybe because of the nostalgia lol - it was my introduction to fantasy when i was a kid, so it has a special place in my heart). but yeah for sure it's very different from modern fantasy, and it's not my favorite fantasy series anymore since i've read more modern stuff
I appreciate your willingness to admit your more controversial opinions. I have a few myself. All the books I've read (that were recommended as numerous book tubers' "favorite of all time") have just been... bland, at best. I feel like: what am I missing? Am I just too... ignorant to recognize whatever depth made this their favorite?? ( It's really got me questioning my intelligence or lack thereof) I
Don't doubt yourself, everyone is different and have different tastes!
Great video again, you are spot on in many cases.
I agree with you on The Fifth Season, I don't know about unreadable, but I was not impressed at all with all the hype. Agreed the Red Rising Trilogy was enough, I read it and have no interest in going further. Sullivan's Riyria Revelations was extremely enjoyable, loved those two characters. Lynch's three books are so clever, and the characters are wonderful together.
Any idea when scott lynches novellas are going on sell?
There hasn't been any updates lately on those unfortunately.
I really appreciate you sharing your opinion about The Dresden Files. I am a woman fan of fantasy and Dresden views on how to treat women make me extremely uncomfortable. Every time a see women reviewers speaking out about how terrible Dresden is to women I also see a cascade of male fanboys defending Butchers horrible treatment of female characters. So seeing a male fan speaking out about it and criticizing Butcher for his horrible treatment of female characters it gives me hope. No Dresden is NOT an old school gentlemen. Dresden is sexist and thinks that White knighting is ok. Newsflash: It is NOT. Dresden gives a lot of bullshit about being a gentlemen to women while inside his head he is reducing women around him to boobs, legs, asses, etc. Even teen girls, is fucking disgusting. I continue reading because people told me it would get better, but according to this video, it doesn't look like it. Anyway thank you for bring it up, I appreciate it.
EDIT: Just adding, even if I don't like it I still think Butcher has the right to write what he wants, HOWEVER, that stops when he starts sexualizing teen girls. Want to objectifying adult women? It' sucks but it's your book. But writing a supposedly "nice guy" objectifying underage girls in his head and trying to sell this dude as a gentlemen is fucking gross and disturbing.
Thanks for the comment. I get a lot of hate about my opinion on Dresden so it's refreshing to hear the other side!
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews First off, I totally agree that Dresden is a sexist and objectifies women, though I think it is consistent with his character. I think it's worth acknowledging that Harry Dresden had zero female role models growing up. Raised by his dad, orphaned, adopted into an evil wizard's home with a girl his age, and they started experimenting sexually almost immediately. He's then traumatized, thinking he was unable to save the life of the one female he had in his life in his life for years. He's then adopted by a 300 year old wizard and grows to maturity on a farm, isolated from the world. To summarize, the one female in his life was an adopted sister/teenage sex partner and his primary male roll model was a Scottman who's morals are rooted in the 1700's. In short, of course Dresden has really questionable ideas what women are and how they should be treated! Additionally, he is constantly called out by his peers and female friends that his notions about women are archaic and that he needs to change. Of course, it's from Dresden's point of view, so his sexism is front and center, but the other relationships in the books are quite equitable and modern. Hendricks and his lover fight side by side, Michael became the swordsman he is because Charity trained him. The Alphas are all kinds of modern.
Okay since you mention the language first 3:26 i have a hot take too as a non-native speaker. I didn't find Tolkien's language more difficult to read than other more modern fantasy books. đ
Matt I think your catchphrase is "what do you call it when there's 4 books in a series?" đ€Ł
Agree with a few of these opinions for sure. Especially LOTR, if it wasn't for Andy Serkis' narration, I don't think I would have enjoyed it.
Yeah I don't know why I keep forgetting the name of quartets! And I really should try the Serkis narration, I'm sure it's awesome.
I know I'm late to the party, but holy cow, this should have lit booktube on FIRE! I agree on Fifth Season btw. Also, can't we just leave Lynch, Rothfuss, and Martin alone? Sure my wife or friends can bust my chops on the fact that I don't get a house project done, but can you imagine taking heat from potentially millions of people. I'd be running to therapy for sure! I enjoy books 2 and 3 in Locke Lamore too, quite a bit. I feel like Lynch wants to gut punch us all the time with his endings though. Great video!
Love it! I'll do another sometime this year with new ones.
I enjoyed Legends for the most part but the last book was pretty disappointing to me, and I haven't been able to bring myself to read the middle series.
I agree with most of these! Especially Dresden's disgusting male gaze, that Red Rising should've stoped at 3 books, and Jemisin. But I'll give you my controversial opinion based on one of your statements: I'd rather read Tolkien's archaic use of the English language over Sanderson's simplistic prose any day of the week! :)
I didn't know you were also a Fifth Season hater! There are dozens of us. DOZENS!
A DNF for me! With no regrets!
I would make a point for all of the men out there who have an amygdala, a hormone called testosterone, and are heterosexual: we (humans) are not our thoughts. Yes Dresden has âpervertedâ thoughts. These come from hundreds of thousands of years of evolution and are the reason for the continuation of our species. But we also have this great thing called the neocortex that allows us to evaluate our thoughts and decide how to act. Since we are socialized animals, we do not act on those thoughts that seem repugnant if they were to be extroverted. Unless you do not meet the three criteria above to suggest that sexual thoughts do not pass through the animal portion of your brain, itâs either a lie or youâve suffered brain trauma or youâve reached a level of meditative success that is quite rare. Otherwise to suggest that every person is their thoughts is a psychologically damaging standard to hold as most people are unable to meet those standards. I get if it makes you feel uncomfortable to read such thoughts because that donât comport with how we expect people to act. But that is just a part of reading. You get to see inside the thoughts and sometimes it sucks what people can think while acting overtly acceptable. Most authors sugarcoat thoughts to match the heroic protagonists actions which is an inaccurate depiction of how human beings work.
A couple of these things I can't comment on as I haven't read the books that are the subject of the opinions. Absolutely agree with the Lord of the Rings opinion and everything I've ever heard or read about Dresden says that you're pretty spot on. Honestly the only one I can really fault you on is mistborn era 2. Just like humor and reading are subjective I really tend to enjoy the more punny wordplay type of humor and part of the usage of humor in Wayne's character covers up a lot of dark stuff so I find him to be pretty memorable. Mistborn era 1 still beats 2. But for me they're a lot closer
I can't express how awesome and funny I think you are. I was watching this while eating lunch and almost choked from laughing so hard at the "tip of breast" thingđđđ
Thanks! And yeah every time I read "tip of the breast" I would audibly say "OMG AGAIN WITH THIS?!?"
@@MattsFantasyBookReviews HAHAHAHAHAHAđđđđ
10 seconds into #1 and Iâm already angry. Mission accomplished, my friend.
LOL.
I thought you were mostly fair with your LOTR points but not about leaving POVs out of some of the books. Come on Matt I know you're a Malazan fan, you can't hold that one against anyone!
I think the different in Malazan is that there are literally hundreds of POVs, so of COURSE they are going to leave out many of them each book. With LotR the cast is small so it's way more glaring when people are left out. Makes the story feel choppy.
Wow, you weren't kidding when you said controversial takes. I simply can't get my head around the GRRM/Rothfuss one. I read Name of the Wind, but honestly wish I hadn't. I enjoyed it at the time, but a story can't be satisfying to me if it doesn't have an ending. I've been reading fantasy for over 30 years and haven't touched ASOIAF, and have no plans to unless he finishes it. It would be like starting a puzzle when you know a third of the pieces are missing. What's the point?
While I do love endings, I still think the individual books here are great and worth my time reading.
Yep. No pressure here to finish anything. I'll take what ever they wanna spill.
so fucking excited for this matt
you didn't disappoint king
Interesting take. Have you read M. L. Wang's book..Sword of kaigon? I'm thinking of getting it to read. Did you think it was a good book?
I watch a lot of CZcams. I write my own book reviews on my blog. Not a huge adult fantasy reader. Read to many young adult fantasy. I don't have many people I can talk to about books.
No, but I'll be reading it early 2023, I can't wait!
I agree about LOTR. Greatly infuential for its genre and Middle Earth is one of the most vivid worlds out there, but man did I struggle to get through these books. The books are just 30% hiking, 30% singing and 30% someone telling us the history of a location. I gave up after Two Towers, it's just not for me.
Yeah the singing in particular is...an odd choice.
LOTR is special for many people because for decades they were the top tier of fantasy. When you look at fantasy books in the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s thereâs few that are at the same standard. We waited a long time for authors to surpass him.
Funny enough I agree with most of your hot takes! However haha, I'm a strong defender of Mistborn Era 2. I say this while also acknowledging that I love Era 1 way way more than Era 2. My argument is that everyone goes into Era 2 expecting the same tone, scope, and weight of Era 1, but Era 2 doesn't have the same goals as Era 1. Era 2 is supposed to be a smaller, more contained story, it's supposed to be more light-hearted, and it's supposed to be more of a transition series to update us on the world/magic/characters.
I respect Sanderson for trying something new and giving us variety. It's like reading different Stephen King books that have completely different tones. I'm definitely not saying everyone has to like it, I just think more people would by checking their expectations going into it.
Also, I feel like the series is almost like a bonus because Sanderson wanted to tell another story to avoid burnout. I imagine Era 3 will return to more of an Era 1 in tone, scope, and story. To me it's kinda the opposite of the problems you mentioned with Pierce Brown and Michal J Sullivan writing the same thing with the same formulas over and over. Sanderson is trying something very different and I think it works for what he's going for.
I guess that might be my hot take haha đ
1. Nostalgia is my number one reason why I hesitate to put Lord of the Rings on my top 10 list. The last time I read it was almost 20 years ago and I really can't say if it would hold up now.
2. The controversial aspects of this book keep me from reading it. It is definetly not high on my TBR list.
3. I can fogive Scott Lynch, because from what I understand he is dealing with some helth issues. But man, G. R. R. Martin really doesn't want to finish his series. Every year he comes up with new distractions. I have really given up on it.
4. For some reason it never really bothered me how Dresden acts and thinks. His comments are more like background noise to me and I don't really pay much attention to them. I am only 4 books in, so maybe it get annoying later on.
5. Never read Red Rising.
6. It suprises me that there are people who consider Era 2 better than Era 1. I thought that everyone agreed that Era 1 was far superior. I still enjoyed Era 2.
7. The thing that threw me of when it comes to Feast for Crows was the absence of Deanearys, Jon and Tyrion (there were other things too of course), but about halfway through I started to enjoy it again. Dance with Dragons on the other hand was a dissapointment from beginning till end. Especially the way Tyrion acted, it was justified but too painfull to watch. Maybe reading both books at the same would have been better.
8. Read only Gardens of the Moon, so nothing to say here.
9. Never read it.
10. The second book is actually my favourite of the three. The third one hovewer is noticaebly worse then the rest in my opinion.
@9:54 I agree ⊠Iâve given up on the Bermuda Triangle long time ago and moved on ⊠donât know why everyone hasnât đ
I have to agree with humour in Era 2. In third book i was rolling my eyes with how bad that humour got. I also think they are to short. I don't like to judge book by it predictability, but my god.. Also have to agree about hype train. I think the best examples were latest Star Wars shows.
I think that, maybe not hot take, you should NOT read books by ratings only. After reading or watching some reviews that aline with what you are looking for in books? Yes, but don't look at the numbers. Last two books in Lightbringer as an example. You need someone that does not shy away from giving low scores to books. Even the popular ones.
While I somewhat agree with the Dresden Files criticism, on the other hand, a lot of it makes sense with the world/mythos, and is at least partially justified by the story setting pulling from existing earth mythos systems. There's a lot of mythological creatures that are essentially "sexy women that tempt men", between vampires, succubi, sirens, and various others. It does make sense for a lot of the supernatural female characters in the books to come across the way they do, using sex appeal to prey on human men. However, Butcher's choice to keep many of these characters as recurring major secondary characters is questionable. It's fine if the white court of vampires and sidhe are supernaturally beautiful and use that as the means they prey on humans, but then when both are major allies that show up in book after book, it starts to wear thin. It'd feel better if Mavra got more screen time than Lara, rather than it swinging far in the other direction.
3rd take is absolutely wholesome
:) Thanks!
I didnât think Mistborn era 1 being better than Mistborn era 2 was controversial? But I agree. Mistborn era 1 was way better
It's not so much that I think it's better, it's that I think it's MILES better to the point that I didn't really care for Era 2.
Controversial or unpopular opinions are great to spark discussion. Letâs go!
Hi đ always be honest with the books u read..... itâs not right a wrong answer because books are personal to you! Happy reading to you! đ„đđœđđ
Thanks as always Safina!
Winds will be out next winter. Calling it
My controversial opinion is that probably 95% of people who claim to like Jemisin actually agree with you but are afraid to say so
The first of her books that I read was the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. And it's actually okay, but I've been jaded ever since because there's like, I think maybe 8 kingdoms total. Such a rip off.
When it comes to The Lord of the Rings, Fellowship of the Ring was so hard to get through (Don't get me started on The Shadow of the Past and The Council of Elrond). I'm now onto The Two Towers (a bit more catchy than the first one, but I still have doubts). With that being said, I'm a bit skeptical of The Return of the King. xD
Return of The King is simply amazing, trust
Havenât read Malazan or wheel of time yet, but I plan to
Totally agree with the ICE opinion. They are fantastic novels.
Yeah they really are - and extremely underappreciated!
Regarding Fifth Season:
Bang! Bullseye! Bravo.
100% on the nose in every respect. Thank you.
I would say that stating that Mistborn Era 1 is better than Mistborn Era 2 is about the least controversial thing possible. Lol
That's not really the part I think is controversial - it's that I think its SO much better. I think the vast majority of people that read them liked them both.
Red rising is a god damn masterpieces from book two on! The character study of darrow of what the atrocities of war does to a man, the neckbreak pace is insane
Agree wholeheartedly on Esslemont. His books are excellent. Nothing as good as the best of Malayan, but rarely does he indulge in the extremely slow build-ups that you find in some of the Malazan books. Also have Book of the Fallen as my favorite series.
Disagree on several of your other takes. I hated A Dance with Dragons. Not for the reasons most people do. I thought the writing was lazy and self indulgent. How many times, from different characters, do I have to hear "Words are wind." Bad as that was, two different characters both comment that something was as "useless as nipples on a breastplate." It made my eyes roll the first time. The second time I just had to wonder where his editor was. But that isn't my big issue. Rather, to me it feels like he did almost a complete reset on the characters of Tyrion and Dany. Tyrion is back where he was early on in Clash, and Dany has regressed two books. It seems quite clear to me that he had simply lost his way with these characters. Throw on top of that his excessive reliance on cliffhangers, way more than in the earlier books, and the whole thing struck me as being just dreadful. (Did not dislike Feast as much.)
Again on Martin, I'm happy for him that he got so rich off of this stuff. But that doesn't mean I have to like what he's done to his readers. There is an implied promise (and some actual statements made) in the creation of this kind of series. He has reneged. He's never going to finish it, and I think less of the series as a result. Still think the first three books are great, but it's a project with great promise that failed to deliver.
Next, while I agree with you for the most part about Harry being sexist. It's obviously there in the writing. But it's also obviously a character flaw, and it's one that Harry himself acknowledges from time to time. To a certain extent, I think he gets redeemed by having a real relationship with Murphy (and even there he continues to have problems, but he works on it.) I don't turn off of a series, even in first person, because the character has obvious flaws. Harry has some other big problems as well (fireballs first to solve most problems), but I think he's a good character and there are three books in the series I absolutely love (Dead Beat, Changes and Ghost Story, the last probably being my controversial take).
Finally, I hate when people say that something is dated. Lord of the Rings had archaic prose even when it was written. That was a deliberate choice. It wasn't fashionable then, and it is not now. That said, there's a lot of "dated" stuff that is just awesome - The Iliad and Odyssey, Gargantua, Beowulf, Shakespeare. People present narratives in a different prevailing style now, and that's mostly a question of fashion. It's not because there has been any "improvement."
People say that they like N.K. Jemisin's books because they are told that they must like them. Her sales figures show that not nearly so many people who proclaim her books have spent the money to buy them. Her trilogy won three consecutive Hugos because of politics, not their inherent quality. Her Hugo awards were an attempt to stick it to the Sad/Rabid Puppies crowd and resulted in validating one of their arguments as the award was given an unprecedented three times in a row to inferior books from an inferior author because she was a member of the right groups and had the correct politics.
I read Lord of the Rings when I was 12 and I still adore it, but I get your point about it having a different impact on people who didn't read it when they were adults. So much so that I'm experiencing the same thing with The Wheel of Time. I',m 32 and started the series a year and a half ago. The final book, as well as certain other books within the series, is outstanding, but I have, at times, felt like my fully formed literary taste buds were a little late to the party in some aspects. The continuous berating men receive from women, describing every single leaf and overusing tropey language and other fantasy trope aspects made me feel like I was missing something while reading the series. Like I was reading a different series to the one people were describing. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, but I did feel that the list of deadweight of which the slog and other longwinded parts of the series was comprised of was larger that I anticipated đ
Also, similarly to your Red Rising take, I believe that Dune didn't need to continue after book 3. Most of it was just Allan Watts philosophizing with very little plot.
Yeah I can't disagree with anything you said here. And I completely agree with your take on Dune - just didn't need to keep on going!
My guy. How do you not have more subs? The quality of your content is so high.
Thanks!
My channel is pretty new and hasn't really started to take off until 2-3 months ago, so I'm real happy with where it's at right now!