Tamzin Ashevai

Please allow me to apologize for the perceived tone of the post I made regarding video games, which I've since edited. I hope that you'll review it. My intent certainly wasn't at all to be passive/aggressive and/or inflammatory. Never was it my intent to deride those who enjoy gaming, nor to imply that the activity is shallow and immoral. It's just not for me; that's all. With this in mind, I have to admit that I'm a generation beyond many members here and my exposure to and experiences within the growth of technology and all that the internet has made available worldwide has been amazing; not just a given. My first computer was the very first Mac and, then, the Mac Plus. A friend of mine was instrumental in developing True Basic. So, now you know I'm old enough to be someone's mother, but I'm not. Perhaps the generational gap aids in making me seem what you perceived. Perhaps my experience/inexperience characterizes some of my responses. Please be assured that I'll be more sensitive to the responses of others on-site given these differences. In all honesty, I'm really happy to be here; to be a part of this.

I'm not much of a gamer and never have been. I wasn't really drawn to gaming, despite that I was a teen when Pac-Man first came out. Perhaps this is due to the fact that my family didn't have Atari or any other comparable system of the day. However, there was a local pizza place that had some table-top games and I remember playing Centipede when I was there on occasion. Later, I played Snafu with a young boy whom I babysat. (I know well just how much I'm 'dating' myself in stating this.) After I joined Facebook (obviously, many years since that previous time), I played some of the Zinga games for a very short while. I got bored with their repetitiveness and, eventually, requested that all games updates from Friends be deleted from my Home page. I've also deleted all games invites from Friends since then. I think I'm just a different sort of geek.

I'm actually looking forward to the resolution of the identity of David Webb/Jason Bourne and every other "active" like Aaron Cross (i.e.: Jeremy Renner.) Pamela Landy is going to have to defend the likes of Jason Bourne while refuting the lies of Noah Vosen (i.e.: David Strathairn), who remains supported by the characters portrayed by Albert Finney and Stacy Keach.

First and foremost, Arya Stark is indeed freaking awesome! She's been my favorite character within the literary series since I first began reading. (The same goes for the HBO series.) Alternately, with regard to the ways in which sexual relations are expressed within the novels, I believe that G.R.R.M. is lacking. Why? Because there really is very little explicit sexual engagement described throughout the series unless what little between Daenerys and Khal Drogo, Cersei and Jaime, Stannis and Melisandre, Robb and Jeyne Westerling and, eventually, between Cersei and whomever. I think we all know that Sansa was terrified of her husband, Joffrey ... the King, with good reason. Without giving anything away, I've always been in agreement with her regarding her fear. So, maybe we should split this topic between the literary drama and the television series. I'm open to every option ... including continuing just as we've progressed upon this topic.

Thank you for that, Trizee. I've enjoyed Ken Follett's The Eye of the Needle and The Key to Rebecca, although i did so in the early '80s. I haven't read any of his works since. Would you recommend The Pillars of the Earth and anything else since then by Follett?

Some of us have connected elsewhere; let's connect on Facebook as well! https://www.facebook.com/trae.ashleigh

I'm a http://vegetarian.about.com/od/glossary/g/Pescatarian.htm. In other words, for those who don't know, I'm a vegetarian who eats fish and shellfish on occasion. I love sushi and will be enjoying this next weekend in celebration of my birthday! EDIT: So, since I simply can't read through absolutely all of this tonight, I believe I have to start by stating that I'm a pescatarian. If you don't access the link or question just what that is, I'm predominantly a vegetarian who occasionally eats fish and shellfish. My annual birthday gift is an indulgence in sushi, provided by my RDP, who is a strict vegetarian. I'm so fortunate to be indulged thus! I enjoyed the best sushi just 1-1/2 weeks ago at the one and only restaurant in my hometown that provides the best variety in vegetarian rolls. (I enjoyed my fish, of course, but she enjoyed her maki too!)

With regard to the Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind. I read only "Wizard's First Rule" and found it to be so predictable that I couldn't stand reading further. I know there are hardcore fans of this series, but I'll never be one of them. While I appreciate T.G. as an author of my favorite genre (i.e.: fantasy fiction), I can't condone his outright predictability ... and infused attitude into the series. To me, that indicates a lack of investigation on rhe part of the author. So, ... .

Might I ask by which author? The reason I do so is because I couldn't stand Anne Bishop's, The Pillars of the Earth. Is this the same novel? Please correct me If I've erred in this assessment!

I think a 'Shard Con' would be awesome, however, I can't imagine anything like this happening until The Stormlight Archive has at least received its second volume. Brandon took on a huge responsibility in completing Robert Jordan's W.o.T. series at the same time he was beginning his own epic. Perhaps this is an event we can all hope for in the future.

Obviously, there are some very strong opinions and a lot of emotion in this thread. Foremost, I have to admit that I didn't even learn of Robert Jordan's W.o.T. series until I joined www.terredange.net and in the site's forum topic, Other Books. You might wonder just how a longtime fan of J.R.R. Tolkien and Frank Herbert had missed the genius of Robert Jordon. Sure enough, I did ... because I ceased reading fantasy fiction during my years following The Grateful Dead (i.e.: 1981-1991), and as a performer in an 8-woman, world-beat band by the name of Pele Juju. During these years (i.e.: 1991-2000), my focus was my music ... both its creation and delivery. Once the band ceased to exist (beginning in late 2000), I returned to passions I'd set aside for the sake of music and returned to reading favorite fantasy and science fiction authors whom I'd known previously. By one of my drumming students, I'd been encouraged to read the work of Jacqueline Carey when Kushiel's Dart was brand new. I was hooked as I'd never been since Frank Herbert's Dune (despite however different the genres.) It was the subject matter that drew me in! Were it not for the writing of Jacqueline Carey, I wouldn't have learned of the writing of Brandon Sanderson (and that of Robert Jordan). So, I have several sites before 17th Shard for which to be grateful (inclusive of adonalsium.net) because each author whom I'd read and each site with which I'd become affiliated led me here in a round-a-bout way ... and I'm really glad I'm here now!

I have to admit that I bypassed all previous comments on this topic before my own. Given that, I have to say that I've loved ASoIaF ever since I began reading it. Even in stating this, I know that some of my own friends disagree with me in my assessment of this novel! So what?

OMG! Where do I begin? There's so much I don't know! It's not like I'm the kind of person who feels that she needs to be the expert on anything ... but I feel like I'm the in-expert on everything! While there are some things that I know, I really don't know so much that, it seems, everyone else does. I have to admit that I'm not a data-whore. Neither am I a horder of information. Given both of these fats, just where do I proceed from here?

I'm now reading The Sword of Shannara. Why? A Professor, colleague and friend (plus a fellow fan of fantasy fiction), had asked me for the past several years if I'd ever read the series. Since he is now retired, I'm honoring him in my reading of a series he held in such high regard. Thus far, I'm pleased with what I've read. Even so, I'm challenged NOT to compare it to J.R.R.Tolkein's, Lord of the Rings series. Still, it's really good in its own right! I'm looking forward to finding out what happens!

I'm a pescatarian. If you don't click on the link, what this means is that I'm predominantly a vegetarian, but I eat fish and shellfish, albeit rarely. While I love my sushi, I eat salads on a daily basis and enjoy my own dips like hummus, black bean, and cilantro, the latter two of which I make myself. My diet is designed to keep me fit and trim. (I also work out on the elliptical trainer at the gym while I read books on my iPad to focus my attention.) There's a lot of food that I love that I no longer allow myself to eat. My body is my job and if I'm not in shape, I'm not working. Beyond this, my profession is my yoga; my work-out is my sweat ... and is absolutely necessary to my constitution. There's no way I'd have been able to do what I've done for the past nearly 22 years if I hadn't maintained the conviction I have.

I would like to announce that I'm still very new here (despite whenever I joined the site because I was distracted elsewhere) and I'm slowly making my way through the forum topics while curious to understand just how members advance and receive awards. I know I have a lot to read but I definitely want to be a contributing member of this community. I believe that Brandon's Cosmere contains within it the bright future of fantasy fiction and I'm happy to be an avid reader of his works. (Sorry if I got too serious for this thread.) I look forward to getting to know more Brandon fans!

Mistborn! (I think I got off easy on that one.) Would you rather careen off a cliff (without the ability to burn Steel as an Allomancer) and risk the canopy that awaits you below, or scale a building given only your hands and feet (without the same ability) in the event that you fall?

Sorry to meet you in your wake, but I hope you land softly wherever that may be.

I'm on Goodreads and recently provided Chaos with some links to discussion there regarding Elantris and Warbreaker, although I don't yet know if he was able to gain access to them. http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/3626834-lady-shahrizai

Can I please state that I need to learn a lot more before I can even ask a question? I know only what I know; I'm not one of those individuals highly apprised of inside information. Suffice it to say that I love this author's writing and I'm looking forward to reading more of it. This is a good place for me to be because I know so little, where I want to know so much more.

I read the 3 novels in His Dark Materials one after the other ... as I'm typically won't to do in any series. Anyway, I loved all three (even though they're not among my favorites). Still, I do like them a great deal for their outrageous take on religion and the convictions of those devoted to various Christian denominations. Before reading them, I thought that within the novels, something quite different than that which I expected would be revealed. Having read them, I remain disappointed because not enough that was set forth was achieved ... legally, at the very least.

I do believe that the divine breath remains with the recipient. Why else would Lightsong have given himself wholly to Susebron? I believe that Lightsong knew the consequences of his actions and acted for both Seb and Sirri, betting on the future of not The Returned, but the unknown!

Okay, hate me for fast-following this feed without reading anything. All I have to say with regard to the Mistborn movie is that I don't think it will ever happen. I'm sorry to say this but, even though I haven't yet read it, Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series still commands more attention, even though Brandon has written the concluding volumes of the epic. Dare I say that there's a greater chance of WoT becoming a film epic (just as ASoIaF has become for G.R.R.M/)? I don't know ... but I'm not hopeful.

Tam (as in ram); zin (as in zinfandel); Ash (as in gosh); e (as in eh); vai (as in hi). The bold denotes syllabic emphasis. Tamzin Ashevai.

Welcome, Momo! I think you're going to like it here! Even though I registered a while ago, I've only recently become active. Please, join me!