So, here I was, innocently rekindling my interest in B5, looking forward to the new set of DVDs, when I read on some fan sites that some of the novels they wrote were at least semi-canon. Now normally I don't bother with licenced novel as the quality is usually piss poor in my experience (I've only read a handfull of Star Wars EU novels that were any good and not one Star Trek book that I could get along with.)However, given that there's alot of unfinished material the JMS never got to put out there and based on some good reviews I decided to see if I could lay my hands on some half decient copies.
Now my usual first stop is AmazonUK and sure enough, all the good ones are all there and going for a few quid a piece; the sort of prices you'd expect for a 4/5 year old paper back in good nick.
That is all except for the 2nd book of the Techno-mages Trilogy (Summoning Light.) I can't find a copy of this book anywhere for anything less than �30! Seriously, check it out LINK Some silly bugger has is going for �241! I mean, who would pay that for a not long out of print paperback? Were these books acidentally printed on solid gold paper? Do they have the meaning of life encoded within it's pages? Do they come with free weekend tickets to Disney Planet?
Posted by B.J. (Member # 858) on :
That's suprising. But it is one of the must-read books for a B5 fan, and a great story as well. Certainly MUCH better than that Legend of the Rangers crap!
If you don't already know which books to read, here's the abbreviated list: The Shadow Within The Psi Corps trilogy The Centauri trilogy The Techno-mage trilogy
At least those are the ones I have, and the ones I've heard recommended elsewhere. They certainly do answer a lot of questions from the series.
Posted by Omega (Member # 91) on :
The three trilogies are excellent books. I had the most trouble finding the second book of Legions of Fire, myself. I ended up buying all three trilogies in hardback form, three volumes. Took a while to find at a decent price, though, the hardbacks are even harder to come by than the paperbacks. The reason they're expensive is that they're a) rare, and b) very very good. The technomage trilogy is absolutely awesome. My suggestion is that you create an Amazon wish list with the things you want on it, and check it regularly to see if anyone happens to be selling it that day for a really good price. I got a copy of CS Lewis's "Letters to Malcom" in hardback for $10 that way when it usually goes for $200 or so. Sometimes people sell things without looking at the market prices. Don't know why.
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
So far I've gone and bought The Shadow Within, To Dream in the City of Sorrows (now there's a JMS title if ever I heard one) and In the Beginning. I do plan on getting the Psi Corp & Centauri trilogies at some point, I just wanted the techno-mage trilogy because I just recently bought the (in)complete Crusade DVD set and developed a renewed appreciation for the show. It really helps if you watch it in JMS's perfered order and just ignore the uniforms. I was quite surprised how well it held up on it's own and there's only 2 episodes I don't really care for (one of them being a direct result of TNT being a bunch of plumb duffs.)
Oh, as for LoTR (not the one with the hobbits), I have to confess that I did buy it, though only because it's the last we'll ever see of G'Kar. The rest is pretty crap, though to be fair, so was The Gathering and look how that turned out.
Posted by Mucus (Member # 24) on :
Huh. Wow.
I bought the Technomage Trilogy (for sure) and the Psi Corps trilogy (kinda sure, memory hazy) a long time ago just from the bookstore as they came out in paperback.
Just checked amazon.ca for Summoning Light.
List Price: CDN$ 9.99 (not available) Used: from CDN$ 139.80
Wow. That is severely tempting.
From my hazy memory, I can recommend the Psi Corps and Technomage trilogies (although the latter gets a bit repetitive).
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
I did find the Omnibus edition of the TM trilogy on an Amazon.com marketplace at a not too bad price, but the bastard doesn't ship to the UK.
Posted by Chris (Member # 71) on :
Now I'm glad I already have those books.... And good to know if I ever need some money!
Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
If the book is in that high demand, they'll likely do another printing pretty soon...
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
Possibly. I know there's at least one new B5 book coming out in the next few months, probably a tie in to the Lost Tales DVD. Perhaps they'll do a re-printing.
While I'm on the subject, has anyone seen this yet?
Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :
And I'm a B5 fan.
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
Though not much of an equestrian I take it.
Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
You're also a Star Trek fan, Lee. If you think that B5 is a dead horse, what does that make TAS, much less Enterprise? (Leftovers from the glue factory, I'll bet.)
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
I don't think it's quite dead yet (certainly not compared to Star Trek.) B5 hs mostly been the victim of bad timing and circumstance. Crusade was really going somewhere when you look at the premise of what the last few shows were to have been (think "Sign & Portents" and "Chrysalis") but was cut down due to network politics. LoTR I think suffered from being too rushed, the whole thing felt like a first draft, the dialogue especially felt too on the nose and the actors didn't feel like they really got the material...that plus the Kung-Fu weapons gimmick was a little...off.
Besides all that I have a feeling this new direction has promise. After all, faith manages. Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
Funny, we never even got to the equivalent of "Signs and Portents" in Crusade. (The script is available somewhere online, IIRC.)
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
"To the ends of the Earth" I think it was called and like Signs and Portents, it was to be the "chapter title" of the season. I never got to read the script but I've read a summary and it dose indeed look like it would've turned the show on it's head and knock the whole Drakh plague pretence aside. I seams like the real focus of the show would have been the legacy of the First Ones and what the younger races were doing with it, including the origin of the Techno-mages. I always thought the "search for the cure" premise was a little flimsy to support a whole show, at least a show that was to follow in B5's footsteps.
Posted by Peregrinus (Member # 504) on :
Hey, Rev. "Summoning Light" is on the American Amazon site for $12.00 (and up). That's about �5, right? Also, if you want the omnibus, I'd be happy to receive it for you and send it off to you, as I have no qualms about international shipping.
--Jonah
Posted by Reverend (Member # 335) on :
Cheer's Jonah, I really appreciate that. I did see the $12 one, but if you look that's a battered old library copy, so not really worth the dosh.
If it's ok I think the omnibus is the cheeper option in the long run. Tell you what, I'll PM you and we can sort it out.
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
(Leftovers from the glue factory, I'll bet.)
![[Wink]](wink.gif)