>Veeky Forums considers this essential reading
I tried to read this twice already, and I couldn't get more than a couple chapters. The problem for me is that it's narrated by a guy who's supposed to be a doctor, but he sounds nothing like a doctor. On top of that, the characters are given no description whatsoever. You don't even find out that one guy is a balding old man until he dies.
Is it really worth giving it another try?
I don't even know if this is bait or forced memeing but wtf
Who considers this essential reading? The ghetto general? They aren't Veeky Forums, they are Veeky Forums and /v/.
Everyone here will tell you that it's mediocre at best.
It's shlock, what do you expect?
>he sounds nothing like a doctor
A field medic in a primitive mercenary company wouldn't sound like what you expect a doctor to sound like anyway you twat
Its quite good, very gritty, a unusual writing stil, very slow character bilding.
I'm fucking counting on that slow character building you bastard.
Don't you let me down.
Honestly though OP I'm running into the same problems as you. Pushing through because last time I did that with a book I fucking fell in love with it.
The Black Company is a good series.
>The problem for me is that it's narrated by a guy who's supposed to be a doctor, but he sounds nothing like a doctor
Thats probably one of the most simple yet effective take-downs of a book that i've ever read, and its certainly better than 90% of my English assignments in high school. Bravo
Harry Potter is superior Sci-Fi
I consider it essential because it portrays the atmosphere and feel of life and people in a real military company better than any other fantasy I've ever seen. I'm not in the military, but the guys in the story all act like the veterans I've been around, and veterans that read all agree it's much more realistic than the way soldiers act in other fantasy stories.
It has a lot of problems, but other people that write about war would do very well to emulate the way soldiers are portrayed there.
>all agree
You should try reading fantasy and sf by actual war vets.
These don't sound or act like them.
Well, he is a veteran, though I don't know if he's ever seen action, and he's said in interviews that the series was a huge hit among vets particularly from the Gulf War when it was released
How about his other works? Anyone read Dread Empire or Instrumentalities of the Night?
I read the first book of Instrumentalities and it really wasn't that bad. It doesn't have the same comfy that Black Company does, but the concept of the world is very interesting and I think it works.
If he said it then it's probably true.
>Veeky Forums considers this essential reading
It's genrefic, OP. You should probably lurk more before coming to any conclusions about what Veeky Forums as a whole thinks.
Why is Veeky Forums so easy? Other boards really aren't like this.
The Black Company is a strange series. I absolutely hated the first book on my initial reading, then adored the second one, and got bored with the third one. It has an acquired taste to it, that's for certain. I do love the concept overall though.
I had a hard time reading this the first time around, I was a teen then. I eventually got through the first book and fell in love with it and read every other book and Cook's other series. I recently started reading it again and I definitely found it easier to read and appreciate things I didn't catch at first, but it's definitely not as profound as when I first read it. Kinda sad since I considered it an important aspect of my character when I was young.
I really liked the dread empire series. The Black Company is in some ways a commentary and a parody of fantasy as well as being a fresh take on fantasy as well. Dread Empire is the same but includes a more fleshed out world. Best way to describe the dread empire would be if you were given the perspective of the lady and the rebel leaders from the black company in the books of the north. It's sort of difficult to describe, but if you liked the black company you'll enjoy the dread empire.
>instrumentality
I thought that was just a made-up word for Evangelion.