Finished reading (though I have to admit it took me forever to finish it) the Eisenhorn omnibus. Despite what many would think, it's not exactly a trilogy for *cough* geeks, because I'm certainly not one, and it was quite enjoyable to read actually. Sure, there's blood and gore, it's sci-fi, and it's linked to warhammer 40k (mind you, I do not play it, nor do I own any pieces, and I really do not go to games workshop... I walked in once and oh my gosh... anyway!!), but just treat it as a normal sci-fi novel like Neuromancer, and it's actually really good.

No, I'm not trying to reassure myself that I'm perfectly non-geeky in any sense, the point is, the book is good, and people should read it. Written in first person's pov makes the story feel kinda personal... and being a reader, there's nothing you can do to stop the protagonist's spiral from justice of the Inquisition into the dark abyss of heresy. The ending, tragic tragic ending, was, to put it bluntly, dodgy. There are so many million ways it could have ended better, but no, it was bad, it was a disappointment. You could tell, the author just wanted to get rid of everyone. But the book itself was really well-written.

Since taking the Japanese fantasy course at uni, I must say it has kind of ruined fantasy for me. Now, whenever I read something fantastical, or watch a movie (such as the Spanish "Pan's Labyrinth" as mentioned back two posts before), I think of the hesitation, the selves, the "I" and "Not-I", the ego, superego, the uncanny etc etc, rather than simply enjoying it as simply "fantasy". In my head, there's always the analytic speaking and interpreting fantasy in a deeper meaning than intended. Then I think: hey, this would have been a good related material for an essay. That's when you stop and realise what studying's done to you. Not that my interest in fantasy has really dropped in any way, but it's just sad. People just shouldn't study things they enjoy- things that are meant to be enjoyed aren't for studying.