Finished Brent Weeks Lightbringer series except for the last book which isn't out. Was strangely unhappy during it. Kind of neglected my other hobbies during it. Wondered though if it was just too much injustice. But it could be something else. Spend time writing letters I won't send to people I knew decades ago. Gave up my sexual abstinence after a month or so because I think it was getting me in a bad mood. Have a theory it turns the "must improve" part of a man while neglecting the "maintain/stay alive to rear my children" part. I really had this feeling of dying of a heart attack. Perhaps there's something to that. What few studies there are suggest people who have sex more often live longer but the science isn't that great. Being around a few more decades matters more to me. I don't really feel like there's anything too terribly important to otherwise accomplish. That I have any chance of accomplishing.

Anyway, Weeks' series is about Kip Guile and Gavin/Daven Guile. They both have very special magical powers and suffer great injustice. Gavin/Daven lost his powers, or at least he lost yellow, blue, green, subred, etc. Everything except black which he refuses to use. Preferring to be blinded. Preferring to die. Young Kip is a budding great magician who has never been properly trained but at 15/16 is already amazing. Their father is a terrible man. Color wights are also a bad thing, I guess. And some special order. Or who knows. Maybe the Chromeria is really the bad guy.

Now reading some book. Except son has my phone and I can't remember name... The Curse of Chalion by Lois Bujold. Great detail. Lupe Castelar is a sort of teacher/chaperone to a noble young lady and her friend. He escaped from being a galley slave. Just a tinsy bit of magic. I would like a tad bit more. But just when one gives up hope finally there is some related to Death magic.

Finally bought expensive racquets Wilson Clash. 2 for 480. Doesn't seem to be anything special about the Clash Tour. Though I was a little hasty in not even demoing that one. But online reviews suggest the two are practically the same. I'm liking the Clash though. Also really trying to hit a straight arm forehand with australian grip and even hitting a backhand drive with same grip. Went to "league" night at the posh club and played well enough.

I need to lose weight. I need to stop eating sweets every single day. Donut/s for breakfast. Cookies/brownies sometimes during the day. A pie on the weekend. lol. Straight up addiction like any other addiction. Over the years gradually it happened. Helped by being able to gorge myself when younger every single day while staying skinny for years. Now I'm 240 and don't lift weights. 6'4" and still athletic. Still. How silly to worry about this. No time to go run for 2 plus hours.

Close to finished with Gladiolus. Taken my sweet time. Enjoying it but feel like eventually, learn it or give it up... Wife doesn't complain I guess.

Perfect Shadow by Brent Weeks
Very short and I've nothing much to add beyond his past novels that I loved. One thing I guess, it's got a depth to it that other books just don't. All that talk about the ka'kari. The level of detail about architechture. And here Durzo Blint's past lives that we go back to occasionally. I'm comparing it all to The Kinshield Legacy by KC May which I also just read that doesn't have that same depth.

Truthfully Kinshield got more of an emotional response from me. But then it tantalizes so well. It holds back. It teases with Gavin Kinshield not wanting to be king but we all know he'll become king. In some ways it's really not a good novel. The bad guy is just ...empty, dorky. Not three dimensional enough.

Depth. I think it can even extend to names. Gavin isn't a very good name. Gaelan is. Durzo Blint is decent.

Perfect Shadow goes back to the life of Durzo Blint who becomes the master of... the Night Angel trilogy guy, whatever his name was. It's very short.

The Kinshield Legacy is about a guy who does something similar to pulling a sword out of a rock in order to become king. But it's 5 stones and he does so one by one over the course of the story. And he doesn't want to be king because he's that good of a guy. He is still a bit cartoon charaterish. Little bit too stupid in some ways. Not a bad story but just doesn't have the depth.

Finished The Black Prism by Brent Weeks.
Negatives are:
1. that the main heroes are too standardized.
2. heroes didn't do anything particular other than be born to gain their special powers. Being awesome comes a bit too easily. No suffering or hard work to get their.
3. World is a bit too thin. Lacks sufficient depth. Scott Bakker's book comes to mind as having more depth. And Robin Hobb. And George Martin. Simply is less description of setting. And less background I guess.
4. The magic system isn't so great. And is over explained. Lacks mystery/religion feel.

Positives
1. Did like the Gavin vs Dazen thing. A slight edge of meaningful social depth. Barely. The real Dazen has suffered quite a bit of injustice I guess in life, although it has nothing to do with how he gained his powers.
2. I did really get into it. I was "moved" as I was reading it.

What could have given more depth?
1. Simply describing settings more I guess. A whole bunch of lingo for trees and hills, etc.
2. Describing food eaten.
3. Describing different cultural traits as we go from city to city.
4. Giving more detail to the religion??? It does have detail but the heroes are atheists. And we don't really spend any time with any true believers. As Hobb says a fantasy without religion is ...(something negative.) Personally I think religion is created to counter suffering. Without religion, we've got a world without suffering. Without suffering, people in general don't really have depth to them.

Lately reading Nail Your Novel by Roz Morris. I don't even know who Roz Morris is but it seems useful practical advice.

Started Quantum Thief. Unfortunately the sample was a good read but after I bought it, it isn't working for me at all. Will try again. I don't know. I don't seem to like sci-fi, like I like fantasy.

Now beginning The Black Prism by Brent Weeks. Loved his Night Angel tril. Seems good actually to write something early on. 5% we have the hero Kip, who, whaddya know? Has an ace up his sleeve. But he didn't even realize he had it. Until a life or death moment arised in which he barely survived. Now he'll have to develop his special ability of course.

My main writing project as of now is tentatively titled the Deadlands. What ace will the hero have? I was thinking when he flees to the deadlands, that's when he'll aquire an ace. Yes. And before that, you could say that he's the type of person to flee in the first place and intelligent enough to survive awhile in the deadlands, which plays a role in him aquiring his ace. I don't want his ace to be quite such an accident of genetics. Not quite just tiddah! You're special. One must have the right mindset to obtain knowledge. And POWER.

So finally, absolutely refusing to live with the injustice, and also intelligence and withstanding hardship will lead to the ace. Somehow.

The Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks
Extremely epic. A hero who suffers great injustice but then gets special powers such that he's got one hell of an ace up his sleeve. Eventually saving the world. Was reminded of Conan the Barbarian strongly at the end with the ferali and vurdmeisters. Was reminded of so many epic fantasy stories. They all start to blend together eventually. The same story over and over with different parts left out from one telling to the next.

Was annoyed by the jumping from scene to scene at crucial moments (like that ass G Martin). Also I'm tired of it always being about the kings. I want to hear about some artisan. And not an artisan who ends up a king. An artisan that despite having an ace up his sleeve continues being a part of life as it's lived by 99% of people.

This also could use more pain, more delving into the results of the injustice, and more detail.

FMI, magical artifacts and people with magical abilites (good) and vir (evil magic). People quest for power crushing all in their paths. Bunch of war scenes (yawn). And finally in the most epic way possible good truimphs by the power of love! (slight eyeroll, haven't I heard this one before?).

Thanks to the dictionary function of kindle I now know what 'pince-nez' means. A word I had previously looked up multiple times but always forgot. Also 'wen' and 'antipodes'. I love the kindle.