Remainders, but all that often means is that the book was some kind of a bestseller but at the end of its hardback or oversized paperback life, there were copies left.
Anyway, I think the best stores mix used, remainders, and new on the same shelves. After all, if I’m looking for Stephen King I want to look in one place instead of three, if possible.
So giving away the first Black Company worked on me. I’m on book 4 now. As soon as I finish one I buy the next one. The ending of book 3 just blew me away. I did not see the Lady joining forces with Darling. When they both had their true name spoken I actually felt worse for the Lady. Cook got me to like her after despising her for ever. And I felt so very sorry for Croaker and the remainder of the Black Company. Great stuff. Outstanding.
You may want to read the standalone The Silver Spike, which takes place after the first three books. I loved it, but it’s different.
Also, Glen Cook is an interesting St. Louis guy. He worked at a Chrysler plant for most of his life on the production line. He had a table behind him and after he screwed on his part or whatever it was he did, he had about 60 seconds until the next vehicle came down the line. He used those 60 seconds to write in longhand and that’s how he composed large parts of many of his books.
Yes, I love the Fafhrd and Gray Mouser books! And I don’t even really like fantasy all that much, but they’re like the Han Solo or Mal Reynolds of fantasy, not trying to save the world, just trying to get by and make a buck here and there.
Cool. Bought. I like the sound of that better than a Neal Stephenson book. I just find the guy really hard to read. I got through Snow Crash, but I had a really tough time visualizing his virtual reality, and I never liked any of the characters or found any of them memorable.
It’s also kind of a sequel from the past to Cryptonomicon, and has a quasi-sequel (in theme and ideas) in Anathem.
I rather wish I had stopped after Cryptonomicon. As I recall, Quicksilver was kind of hard to get into, and after working my way through it, I kind of felt obligated to finish the other 2 books, and I feel I need to evaluate whether every book since then is worth the time. I greatly preferred Zodiac/Snow Crash/Diamond Age to the recent stuff.
I read Quicksilver and The Confusion, never got all the way through System of the World. I agree that Crytonomicon was the high point of the four. I will mention, though, that all of his more recent stuff (ex. Mongoliad nonsense) is more readable than the Baroque Cycle. Anathem, Reamde, Seveneves, and DODO are all fast, easy, fascinating reads even though they’re long books.