#cs friedman

[s3lene]

So incredibly validated that this vague description helped me find The Coldfire Trilogy. I read it years ago and these are the only details I remember! Also I’m still laughing that I didn’t find it until I added “and also a cat lady” to my search 😂

I might re-read it 👀

[leserattevirginie]

Crown of Shadows by C.S. Friedman

Genre: Sci-Fantasy Star Rating: 4,25 ⭐️

Plot: ⬜️ Plot holes big enough for a herd of elephants ⬜️ I think I’ve read this before. (Unoriginal to the max.) ⬜️ No plot, just vibes ⬜️ Enjoyable but not super memorable. ✅ You have my undivided attention. ⬜️ Mind = Blown

Characters: ⬜️ Mary Sue is in the house! ⬜️ These are cardboard cut-outs. ⬜️ Good main cast, but the rest is forgettable at best. ⬜️ Generally well written. ✅ Complex ⬜️ What do you mean characters? These feel like real people!

Personal Enjoyment: ⬜️ DNF ⬜️ Somebody free me from this hell (but also no, I won’t DNF) ⬜️ WTF did I just read??? ⬜️ I don’t like it, but I also don’t hate it. ⬜️ It’s a good book but I just never want to pick it back up. ⬜️ No strong feelings either way. ⬜️ Enjoyable read ✅ What a page turner! This is fun! ⬜️ I think I’m in love ⬜️ (new) all time favourite

World Building: ⬜️ This takes place in our world. ⬜️ Worldbuilding what worldbuilding? ⬜️ This feels like a TV set. ⬜️ Not super deep, but present. ✅ Detailed, believable. ⬜️ You bet every single ant has its own 100 page backstory!

Pacing: ⬜️ drags/is rushed in all the wrong places ⬜️ Inconsistent ⬜️ something undefinable feels off ⬜️ I don’t love it it but it fits the book perfectly. ✅ Good/no complaints ⬜️ Amazing! Could not put this down!

Writing: ⬜️ This is painful ⬜️ I’m cringing ⬜️ Not great, but not bad either. ⬜️ Neutral (Didn’t really notice.) ✅ Elegant but not overly flowery. ⬜️ So beautiful I actually stopped and noticed it. ⬜️ I’m not sure if this is just a bad translation. ⬜️ I’m not confident enough in my language skills for this language to comment on the quality of the writing.

Wow, I can't believe I've finished the series this fast! That alone says a lot about how much I liked it :) As usual, here's a bunch of rambly thoughts:

For the most part I feel like I did about the other two books - plot is fine but character work and world building take the cake. The plot was still fairly straight-forward, but I will say that it was a bit more complex with the dual plot-lines. A bit I don't think I've mentioned before that I love: due to the set up we get sorcery and sword type stuff but also tourism, instant soup, insurance companies, etc. (Did I imagine the aspirin?) The mix between modern and old timey things is great!

Unfortunately I also still feel the same about the treatment of women within the series. Sure, the argument could be made that maybe it's just Damien who's a bit misogynistic in his POV, and Gerald is just generally The Most Terrible Person ™ around, but it still doesn't sit right with me. Especially since we start the book with Gerald's lunch committing suicide. Was that weird bit about Damien's landlady necessary? Was there no other way to explain how Iezu perceive the world other than "Holy shit can you believe that middle aged lady dares to think of herself as attractive, lol what a hag" ?? But hey, Narilka is still alive! I suppose if you exist to redeem the Gerald clone you get to live. (I can't believe I forgot poor Almea in my last rant. The fridging that started it all! ...is it still fridging if the man murders her himself??)

As for the plot lines, on one hand I really, really enjoyed getting more POVs! ...maybe just not the ones we actually got xD The patriarch was probably my favourite, even if almost every second I spent inside his head was incredibly frustrating. Some of that may be due to Calesta's influence, but for the most part it's probably just him being the fantasy-pope. There's a reason I left the church xD That being said, I appreciate that he actually whole-heartedly believes what he is preaching. The thing that confuses me the most about the church is its stance on working the fae. As I understood it, it was designed to focus the fae, making it a bit less dangrous for the general population. And also providing humanity with the concentrated power of the beliefs and faith of thousands if not millions, which could eventually be used for space travel. (Or something in that vein.) Anyway, I thought it was very clear that they are still manipulating the fae, just on an enormous scale, and disapproved of private sorcery. But at times it kind of felt like the patriarch sort of forgot that (or deliberately repressed it?). All those "no, this isn't witchcraft, this is a miracle from God!" moments felt so odd because - of course its the same thing? You literally created your God yourselves by those exact same means??? Oh well, church is hypocritical, fork found in kitchen.

Andrys and Narilka I actually liked well enough, as long as they weren't on page together. Or thinking about each other. Actually, scratch that. I liked Narilka when she wasn't being compared to teacups or dolls! But then she had to fall in love with Andrys after talking to him...twice? Andrys... I mean he was there and relevant to the plot. I do feel bad for him, but there wasn't really that much to him other than (admittedly horrific) trauma and an uncanny resemblance to his great-great ....-great grandpa. And drugs to cope with all of that. Small pet peeve: the nickname Andri. WHY. You're literally just taking of one letter (and changing the other because....aesthetics??)

On to more enjoyable ramblings!!! The Damien-Gerlad dynamic in this book was just *chef's kiss* You can't just hit me with the "You changed me" speech that early in the book, I was not prepared xD The many ways in which we see the depth of their...friendship... were just sweet (especially post-hell), and such a contrast to the first book! (Well, Damien still tells us constantly how hot Gerald is, that hasn't changed at all xD My dude literally described his very platonic bestie as "aesthetic perfection". A few pages after Karril rerminds us of how very straight he is, of course.) Now maybe at this point my rose coloured shipper glasses are just glued to my face, but that moment when he tried to explain how Almea supposedly feels also slightly came across as him projecting just a bit. (Gerald is right, Almea (or the Almea-thing) has every right to be pissed, honestly she should have shown up with ghostly divorce papers. Or maybe Damien was right and she just wanted to see him jump into a volcano for a good cause, who knows.) There are some things I would have loved to see more of: - the mental link between Damien and Gerald was criminally under-used, imo. Did it change Damien physically somehow, since Gerald no longer felt cold to him? Is he now part vampire for ever xD (And dear god that whole bit about taking the Hunter into his body, whyyy xDD) - honestly I would have loved to see Gerald readjusting to being human (and being incredibly annoyed about it) a bit more. It's been 900+ years, surely there's stuff he's forgotten? I mean he spent the vast majority of his life being the stuff of nightmares! - Gerald honestly wanting and trying to redeem himself (sure, he was ready to sacrifice himself in the end, but it kind of struck me as a last minute decision. And you can't tell me being the first to kill a Iezu and saving the world didn't also appeal to his ego). But I get that that would take another 10 books, minimum

Damiens break with the church was a long time coming, and handled well, I think. Oddly enough, priest never struck me as a job that you can just quit.

I just remembered about Gerald's apprentice (Amoril?). What an idiot. I would have loved to know how he came to be the Hunter's apprentice though. Can you apply for scolarships? Anyway, trashing a library is unforgivable in my book ;)

Oh, and Hell! Hell was surprisingly meh to me, but I did appreciate the insight into how the Iezu operate (which was probable the main point of that scene anyway). Love that Damien could just reason with the literal devil. (But the concept of the Devil as a non-unified entity was actually cool though). How did it take Damien so long to understand what the mountain of dead women could possibly be. Neither he nor the reader are stupid enough not to get it. Friedman usually doesn't hold our hand and over explains in the series, why start now?? Shock factor? I doubt anyone cared enough about Sisa? Sasi? for that to work.

OK I promise I'm coming to an end soon but guys. Guys. The epilogue. The freaking epilogue. What a trip that was xDDD 1) The Wedding. Karril POV was... certainly something! We now officially know that not only women find Andrys attractive. (Take that, Damien "idk, he's probably attractive to women but also aesthetic perfection" Vryce. Did I need to know about potential Iezu sex that only benefits the (currently presenting as) male partner? No, not really. Also WTF was that scene with Andrys' ex lovers. I know we're supposed to see and rejoice in the fact that Andrys is no longer a playboy, but did we really need that "women hating women for the benefit of some hot guy" thing in here? I swear there were bits in the series where I could have sworn it was written by man (derogatory). At least Narilka remained unbothered. Presumably moisturised. Very happy and in her lane. Focused on her wedding, as she should be. She gets to live on to be compared to countless fragile things made of porcelain, whether she wants it or not. 2) Freaking Riven Forrest. I was cackling throughout that whole bit. Not only does he get to hunt and terrify people just like his father, he also runs a successful (?) fishing rod business on the side. (I know, I know, hunting supplies in general, the rods just kind of stuck out to me). The fact that the intelligent prey he looks forward to hunting the most is once again a woman (even if it is an abusive, horrible woman) tells us exactly what part the Iezu mother chose to take from the OG Hunter, huh. Which is great for Gerald, but a weird choice on her part?? But dear God the last bit. He keeps a portait of Gerald above his fireplace??? I finally completely lost it at "Here's to you, dad" xDDD 3) The "dark haired youth". Of course he survived. I was suspicious as soon as we didn't actually get to see Andrys kill him. As for the new persona - I suspected who he was, but the moment I was really sure was when Damien started describing him in loving detail. For an entire paragraph. That was half a page long. But the ending. WTF. I could have accepted Gerald's Death, but this? You're telling me after all they went through together, and after he basically just risked his life again by saying hi to Damien in the most cryptic way possible, they just...never talked again?! Nah, in my expert opinion they just met up in the next bathhouse. Also I wanted to see the guy suffer be annoyed a bit more because he can no longer Work to maintain his image. (I'd also have loved to know Geralds criteria for his new body, vain as he is. What was his thought process? "Oh no, the wonderful world of magical horse-breeding is now lost to me! Guess I'll just have to make sure that from now on I have the most majestic ponytail out there!"? Although, come on. He might be willing to risk his life for a horse.) My last words: I enjoyed this series so much more than I ever thought I would, and these idiots now live rent-free in my brain. Also how the f- are we supposed to read these books as an entirely platonic relationship? The most I'll agree to is some weird, slightly cursed QPR. But come on. COME ON. Even if they are both heterosexual (notwithstanding Damiens constant thirsting casual descriptions) they are definitely in love. Or just so deeply obsessed with, and at this point, sort of dependent on each other (Gerlad's words, not mine. sort of) that it makes little to no difference.

I know there's some prequels (?) I think I might check them out sometime.

[geraldtarrant]

Nightborn, the prequel to my all-time favorite Coldfire Trilogy by CS Friedman, is out today. It tells the story of the first settlers who arrived on Erna, and their challenges as they slowly start to figure out what exactly is different about the planet they landed on, while all their tech is failing, people are mysteriously disappearing, and nothing is going as expected.

Goodreads link

[pushthequorumbutton]

favorite word?

malevolence

[notwithstandingclause]

Insane about Gerald Tarrant hours because okay okay on the surface of things he can't be party to the god he created because it would mean dying and he has chosen this half life for 1000 years, but it runs so much deeper.

Insane that in this cosmology lucifer created god and Still fell from His grace and suffers eternally at the memory of a light for which he himself drew the blueprints.

Is it about fearing the loss of power that stepping away from darkens would necessitate or is it about fearing what your very presence would Do to the god you've created? Is it about forcibly separating yourself from your creation because You are the only thing you can't fit into the paradise you're constructing?

But no it's so SO much worse for him because the thing is the one genuine miracle we see, the only time God appears in the books, it's because Damien is protecting Jensenny from Gerald. Does god Need an opposite to exist? Is falling the last step, the big sacrifice that Gerald needs to undertake to bring god into existence for everybody else? How much of the Unnamed exists independently of Gerald, and how much has the fight against that evil contributed to the spread of belief on Erna?

CS Friedman really popped off with the whole Belief Begets Being part of the worldbuilding is what I'm saying and BOY is Gerald not having a good time with it.

[straysinfiltrator]

~10 (give or take) blorbos, fandoms, tags 

In reverse order from present day to childhood: Kerr Avon - Blake’s 7 Gerald Tarrant - Coldfire Trilogy by CS Friedman Aaravos -  The Dragon Prince cartoon Iorveth - The Witcher 2 videogame Gascon Brossard - Thronebreaker videogame Don Simon Ysidro - James Asher novels by Barbara Hambly Lestat - Anne Rice’s vampire novels  Methos - Highlander TV series  Old Shatterhand - Winnetou by Karl May Zorro - Kaiketsu Zoro anime Shredder - Ninja Turtles cartoon series 

A lot of these are good bad boys, or villains with a heart. Many have some hidden dark past or secret identity. They often look elegant, swift or graceful rather than bulky; their strength tends to lie in their mind more than their body, and insofar as they’re physically strong, it’s in a way that makes them look like a figure skater rather than a wrestler. They’re all brilliant and very competent at what they do. They tend to have a certain wisdom in the way they see the world, delivering unexpected and often sarcastic insights, but with a sweet bitterness that hints at a sensitivity they are trying to hide. 

Thanks for the tag @myblacksailstales  Tagging with no pressure @theobscurepotato @bertilakslady @first-and-last-neocount @aretuzagradschooldropout @alter-koker @witch-and-her-witcher @vigil-of-the-red-waste @sarasade @zzzett @marnasid @she-who-drank-vodka-with-cats @between-thepages and anyone else who wants to join.

[ballsballsbowls]

I think one of CS Friedman’s worst/best traits is her protagonists are morally upright guys with baggage and stuff 

who seem to always come across as absolute weenies compared to their “I hate your guts and we are morally incompatible but I think you are the only person who can solve my problem, even if I think you are an IDIOT and driven by animal urges” morally gray frenemies.

Who are always, always interesting and multifaceted and hot.

Which is to say: I have a favorite at 100ish pages and it’s even funnier because I already know of his crimes, and have for decades, and have decided they were objectively hilarious.

[ruunkur]

I really like CS Friedman's "Coldfire" trilogy - it has one of the best "i will pull you from the darkest parts of yourself to prove there is still good in you" enemyship between two dudes set in a sci-fi world of humans landing on another planet that i absolutely forgot was a sci-fi series due to the incredible worldbuilding of the fae and magic as this series has (right down to fanatical religious people)

[aranict]

Was going through my GR lists today , and kept having random thoughts about the Magister Trilogy, about how what could have been a triple-a fantasy series manages to fall short, unexpectedly, due to having a totally disinteresting main heroine.

It's weird how CS Friedman manages to create a world with a tremendously interesting magic system - where, essentially, in order to use magic, one literally consumes human souls - and make a compelling commentary around the nature power, the impact of fanaticism and religion, the politics of a corrupted kingdom falling apart, and yet, fail at the simplest of things : have a main character that the readers can care about.

Kamala, even though she is presented as a woman who wants things, and will not stop at claiming her place in the world- and is never punished by the narrative for such a ''sin'', thank you Friedman - she ultimately comes of as... one sided and boring. It's a jarring contrast with the supplementary cast members, who outshine her in every regard, or even Colivar - who is an example of how to do the 'morally grey, powerful immortal caster and later LI ' trope right, thank you again Friedman. Don't get me wrong, I liked the trilogy enough, but if Kamala was written to be as charismatic as the supplementary cast, this could have elevated the series considerably, and stand to rival the success of the Coldfire Trilogy.

That being said, CS Friedman will remain one of my favourite writers and I am adamant that she has yet to write a bad book, but to be honest, i really expected more out of this one.

[rantsintechnicolor]

i love books; what I read in 2023

The State of Affairs by Esther Perel (everyone who is married/partnered or wants to be should read this book) (also, read it at the tale end of last year, finished it this year)

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Things I Should Have Told My Daughter by Pearl Cleage

The Dress Lodger by Sheri Holman (reading it again, and am again fully transported, incredible book)

Over My Dead Body; Unearthing The Hidden History of America's Cemeteries by Greg Melville (highly recommend)

The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware (another reread)

Nimona by ND Stevenson

The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis

Big Friendship by Amitatou Sou and Ann Friedman (e-book via Libby app and my library card)

The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

The Wandering by Intam Paramaditha

Hercule Poirot Short Story series by Agatha Christie

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Volume I, II and III by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (audio book via hoopla and my library card!) (so is this three books? I'll just call it one)

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Egyptomania by Bob Brier, Ph.D.

The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb by Agatha Christie

The Mummy! by Jane C. Loudon (it is extremely amusing to read science fiction written in the Victorian Era, but also infuriating, but also hilarious)

Lot 249 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle via Antique Freaks and Terrible Book Club podcast (read to me, you glorious queers!)

The Mummy's Foot by Theophile Gautier via Antique Freaks and Terrible Book Club

In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

Ghost Stories of Charles Dickens, Volume 1

The Haunted Man & The Ghosts Bargain by Charles Dickens

Straight by Chuck Tingle

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria

BOOKS FROM BEFORE. So, I didn't used to document all my reading so well. These I have read sometime in the five years previous to 2022, and just ran across the title and remembered reading it:

The Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss

Gods of the Upper Air by Charles King

[leserattevirginie]

When True Night Falls by C.S. Friedman

Genre: Sci-Fantasy Star Rating: 4,25 ⭐️

Plot: ⬜️ Plot holes big enough for a herd of elephants ⬜️ I think I’ve read this before. (Unoriginal to the max.) ⬜️ No plot, just vibes ✅ Enjoyable but not super memorable. ⬜️ You have my undivided attention. ⬜️ Mind = Blown

Characters: ⬜️ Mary Sue is in the house! ⬜️ These are cardboard cut-outs. ⬜️ Good main cast, but the rest is forgettable at best. ⬜️ Generally well written. ✅ Complex ⬜️ What do you mean characters? These feel like real people!

Personal Enjoyment: ⬜️ DNF ⬜️ Somebody free me from this hell (but also no, I won’t DNF) ⬜️ WTF did I just read??? ⬜️ I don’t like it, but I also don’t hate it. ⬜️ It’s a good book but I just never want to pick it back up. ⬜️ No strong feelings either way. ⬜️ Enjoyable read ✅ What a page turner! This is fun! ⬜️ I think I’m in love ⬜️ (new) all time favourite

World Building: ⬜️ This takes place in our world. ⬜️ Worldbuilding what worldbuilding? ⬜️ This feels like a TV set. ⬜️ Not super deep, but present. ✅ Detailed, believable. ⬜️ You bet every single ant has its own 100 page backstory!

Pacing: ⬜️ drags/is rushed in all the wrong places ⬜️ Inconsistent ⬜️ something undefinable feels off ⬜️ I don’t love it it but it fits the book perfectly. ✅ Good/no complaints ⬜️ Amazing! Could not put this down!

Writing: ⬜️ This is painful ⬜️ I’m cringing ⬜️ Not great, but not bad either. ⬜️ Neutral (Didn’t really notice.) ✅ Elegant but not overly flowery. ⬜️ So beautiful I actually stopped and noticed it. ⬜️ I’m not sure if this is just a bad translation. ⬜️ I’m not confident enough in my language skills for this language to comment on the quality of the writing.

I think this is the first series where my favourtite part is just the world itself! I certainly haven't ever enjoyed reading about fantasy-christianity before xD

Somehow this continues to be one of the gayest fantasy series I've ever read, even if it is all unintentional (how?!?!) subtext.

One burning Question I have left: does the author just hate all her female characters? Last book, Ciani was amazing, but the majority of the time the readers get to spend with her she had the personality of a wet towel. (Yes for plot reasons, and maybe only because Damien just started to see her that way, but still.) Then she regains her personality and we never see her again. This book, pretty much all named women who had more than half a page of "Screen Time" died. Jenseny was a surprise for me because I usually don't enjoy the random overpowered child who is there to further the plot, but I really liked her. And then she died. (With style, and very heroically, but still.) Which leads me to Hesseth. Justice for Hesseth, she was way too cool to go so soon! Badass explorer Rasya? Dead to make Damien and the new Patriarch sad. Even the Matrias were all burned at the stake (or worse). I think the only one who survived is the one that Gerald brings along as a snack. I can only hope that she gets the opposite character arc, and starts out as sad, scared vampire food only to become an interesting character later? Oh, and I suppose Narilka - whose great deeds amount to *checks notes* not being brutally murdered despite being pretty - is still around somewhere, hopefully living her best life.

oof this came out as more of a rant than I had anticipated 😅

I'll end this on a positive note and say that I absolutely LOVED seeing how Damien and Gerald are starting to influence each other in their actions, their little moments throughout the book were a delight. Especially that one time when they looked at a random valley and went "You know what would improve this place by 200%? HORSES." Gotta love that Gerald is pretty much evil incarnate and yet somehow such a horsegirl at the same time xD.

Oh, and the Unnamed One made me laugh. I know he probably shouldn't but here we are xD There's just something about Gerald (understandably) panicking at the end of the book, and the Big Evil Entity probably wouldn't even have noticed anything was amiss for years if it weren't for Calesta. (And even then there's that one stray thought that insists that Gerald has been doing a great job overall xD)

Oh well, that's all from me until I get the 3rd book.

[geraldtarrant]

The Coldfire Shipyard is an 18+ unofficial discord for fans of CS Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy. If you're looking for fanart, fanfics, a place to shout your Gerald/Damien thoughts outside the tumblr void, or just a friendly Coldfire fandom community to lurk in, please join us!

[straysinfiltrator]

Coldfire Trilogy, YES.

90s sci-fi/fantasy books by CS Friedman. Now obscure but still well worth it.

Tiny fandom = so much room to explore new ideas, with no pressure to adhere to established 'correct' interpretations of the characters or live up to The Standard set by creators with 1000 works who have been doing this for decades. Two of my longest fics are in this fandom for a reason.

4, 5, 8, 21 for the fandom/fanfic asks!

4. Pairing that makes no sense to you?

HMMM god, honestly I'd say the majority of my notps I can actually see why people ship it but it doesn't tickle my fancy, you know? But I'd probably have to go with hm. I think Vossler/Gabranth - someone really recced this long fic of them to me and I'm just like. Well FOR ONE Basch is right there, FOR BOTH THEM?? And for another, Ashe is right there!!! That one makes absolutely zero sense to me, I just don't get it! Then again, I have absolutely no room to talk considering how much I'm into Ghis/Bergan, two guys who just absolutely would loathe each other lmao. Stones, glass houses etc.

5. Favorite platonic pairing?

God, I think I'm too much of a shipper to really be into platonic pairings, idk idk. Let me think. 🤔🤔 OH WAIT NO I KNOW. Emmrich and Harding!! Their friendship means everything to me, they're just so fucking cute!! Going camping together..... Harding altering her famous sandwich to make it vegetarian for him..... 😭😭 Too damn cute!!

8. Fandom you're a part of that's the most obscure?

Well, quite a few of my fandoms qualify for Yuletide which is for rare fandoms! But most likely C.S Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy! I'm only tangentially part of it (there's a very small discord), but I'm fairly sure I'm getting that for my Yuletide gift and I'm SO EXCITED!! It's a trilogy of fantasy books from the 90s about a priest and an emotional vampire who invented the priest's religion going on a journey for world saving reasons, and it's fucking fantastic. And very gay, despite what Friedman says lol. Fellas, is it gay to have a parasitic mindlink with a guy u hate so he can feed off the terror he sends u in ur dreams? Is it gay to wade into actual, literal hell for the guy? Is it gay to constantly think about how beautiful he is? Surely not!!! Anyway READ COLDFIRE TRILOGY IT'S FUCKING AWESOME

21. Favorite fic trope?

THIS ONE IS SO HARD FKFKFKF I loooove missionfic, especially for star trek stuff, but I think my fave more traditional tropes are like. There was only one bed, fake marriage, hurt/comfort and good old fashioned whump, UST and pining is a big one, and fix it is my ultimate fave I think - ESPECIALLY when one half of the ship doesn't die and then has to live with the consequences of their actions!! That's like fucking catnip for me >:3

[just-hunterthings]

Damien every time someone so much as mentions the ocean in his presence, probably.

[miscellaneous-geekery]

Visit the artist's website: jeszika.com/

C.S. Friedman on csfriedman.com

[leydhawk]