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What are you reading? (March 2017)

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Jag

Jag

Member
AngmarsKing701 said:
So when I got on the plane I was like, "Shit, I need something to read." Fired up Half the World by Joe Abercrombie, book 2 in his YA series. I had read Half a King when it first came out, so I think I'm missing bits of who's who or who's what or what's who, but basically two hour-long flights and I'm more than a third of the way through, with a couple hours on the way back tomorrow.
Click to expand...

The second book stands fairly well on its own and the central character is new. Let me know what you think of Thorn. I think Abercrombie did a fantastic job with her. His character development in general is just so good.

I'll even post the cover for you!

22055283.jpg
 
F

fakefaker

Member
thomaser said:
Just bought a new apartment, over twice as large as the one I have now. Gonna build my own "library" :) Lots of sloping roofs, though, which makes it a little cumbersome.
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Hey if you're building your library check out this curved bookshelf I bought a few months ago. Don't know if it'll work with your sloping ceiling, but you can look up the specs here.

151261-RC_large.jpg
 
T

thomaser

Member
fakefaker said:
Hey if you're building your library check out this curved bookshelf I bought a few months ago. Don't know if it'll work with your sloping ceiling, but you can look up the specs here.

151261-RC_large.jpg
Click to expand...

That's a cool shelf! Don't know how I want things yet, there are many possible solutions.
 
P

Phantom Liber

Neo Member
On my end of things, I'm juggling a couple of different texts. I decided to read Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern for the first time last month then again at the start of this one. The flow of the language and evocative description drew me right in.

Now, courtesy of a work colleague's recommendation and my saving 50% on it due to the $5 off Google Play promotion, I decided to (e)grab Caraval. It isn't bad so far but it is not on Night Circus tier in my opinion since the switch in narratives of Night Circus kept things fresh and the very nature of the dilemma in Night Circus made things feel bittersweet in the sense of there being no outright evil present yet with struggle and tragedy regardless so in shades of gray as though struggling against fate or life, one might say.

Besides fantasy, I decided to grab a copy of Anthony Everitt's new book on the rise of Athens but given my mother's cancer I'm admittedly more in a fantasy or character-driven mood than strict history right now. So that's my literature of the month OT-GAF.
 
N

Number45

Member
I'm nearing the conclusion of The Once and Future King. It's a long ass book that I've enjoyed, even though there's WAY too much time spent on endless lists for the sake of analogy when a few examples would do.

Interestingly, I'm in (what I assume to be) the last book now and it mentions that some of that last book were retconned in (by the original author) to the first book and it perfectly explains my earlier post wondering why there is overt communist rhetoric in the middle of a fairly fantastical setting. That section is much better served where it was originally intended in my opinion.

Still curious to know exactly why this book was name checked at the end of X-Men 2 (which is why I decided to read it) but I'll research that in a little more detail when I've finished.
 
R

Ravensmash

Member
I think I'm gonna sideline Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World for a little while.

Had very limited time set aside for reading this week and I'm just not feeling it - even after 100 pages.

Might save it for some time off I have planned.

Need to find me a fantastic snappy novel to get back into things!
 
K

kswiston

Member
I am about 1/4 of the way through All the Pretty Horses. It makes for a nice contrast to Blood Meridian despite some general thematic similarities.
 
F

fakefaker

Member
Finished reading Grand Hotel by Vicki Baum tonight and really enjoy this engaging story from the 1920's. Next up, Hunger Makes the Wolf by Alex Wells. Need a little space biker action in my diet.

51zHchM5keL._SX329_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg
 
F

Fuu

Formerly Alaluef (not Aladuf)
Ravensmash said:
I think I'm gonna sideline Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World for a little while.

Had very limited time set aside for reading this week and I'm just not feeling it - even after 100 pages.

Might save it for some time off I have planned.

Need to find me a fantastic snappy novel to get back into things!
Click to expand...
That's a good idea since you just finished Kafka. I think even the most ardent Murakami fan would agree that it's a good thing to give it some time between his books. There's a particular vibe he achieves and a lot of repeated motifs and themes in his novels that are better enjoyed after you've been away from them for a while.

Also, I find Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World to be one of his weaker books. I really liked the things that happen at the End of the World side of the story, but the other parts were kind of a drag. That's me though, many have it as their favorite.
 
R

Ravensmash

Member
Fuu said:
That's a good idea since you just finished Kafka. I think even the most ardent Murakami fan would agree that it's a good thing to give it some time between his books. There's a particular vibe he achieves and a lot of repeated motifs and themes in his novels that are better enjoyed after you've been away from them for a bit.

Also, I find Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World to be one of his weaker books. I really liked the things that happen at the End of the World side of the story, but the real world parts were kind of a drag. That's me though, many have it as their favorite.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I felt like if I continued then I'd just be turned off reading more of his work at a later date.

Not that it was bad, but it felt very similar at times and the slow build was not helping to grasp my attention.

I've checked a sample of The Nix out, but I'm now at that lovely stage of being spoilt for choice with what I read next.
 
E

EverythingShiny

Member
kswiston said:
I am debating this myself. I have to move across country at the end of summer. My wife and I have 4 bookshelves worth of books, including university texts. That works out to well over 1000 lbs that I have to lug around in every move.
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I've moved across the country twice without using a moving company (i.e. shoved what I could into my car and shipped the rest.) That definitely motivates you to get rid of a lot of books. I basically keep my Stephen King collection, a few books I haven't read yet and a few other books that have sentimental value or I plan on re-reading. I just moved last week and I'm sadly down to 3 small boxes of books.

That said, I'm planning on buying a house here so I'll probably start hitting up used book stores and rebuilding my collection. I love having shelves and shelves of physical books and would love to have a library room someday.

ETA: On topic, I'm currently reading Red Rising by Pierce Brown and Babylon's Ashes by James S. A. Corey. Not sure how I feel about Red Rising yet.
 
A

aravuus

Member
God bless Kindle and the ability to read books on any device I happen to have at hand. Reading on a tablet is particularly nice. Real books definitely have their own charm, and a full bookshelf can look good, but I'll take the convenience over everything else any day.

Except for some books, like House of Leaves obviously. Which hopefully arrives sooner than the estimated arrival time of April 5 - April 25 lol.
 
F

Funyarinpa

Member
For me, the crazy Daily Deals and transferring books I buy on Kindle over to my Kobo sealed the damn deal. Firmly in the ebooks rule camp.
 
D

dakini

Member
Just finished the Iliad, so I figured I would keep the ball rolling with the Orestia by Aeschylus. I really enjoy how simple and straightforward Robert Fagels' translations are.
 
M

Magus1234

Member
Orestia is great, personally I went through to Odyssey then read Electra/Antigone/Madea/Orestia then went to Aeneid. Though I don't think it really matters in what way you get the whole story, just go to where you are interested.
 
D

Dec

Member
EverythingShiny said:
ETA: On topic, I'm currently reading Red Rising by Pierce Brown and Babylon's Ashes by James S. A. Corey. Not sure how I feel about Red Rising yet.
Click to expand...

I just finished it the other day and Red Rising seemed like a book written by a marketing company to me for most of it. "How can we tap into this YA into movie market without actually technically being YA because that loses us some adult readers?".

I thought that early on, then it gets even worse towards the middle, then it actually becomes enjoyable to read in the last third. I'll read the sequel but I'm not in a rush.

A lot of eye rolling for the first half.

Characters like Sevro,
Pax and Mustang
really turn it around.

I'm also reading James S. A. Corey right now in the form of Leviathan Wakes. It's pretty great.
 
K

kswiston

Member
I'm 40% through All the Pretty Horses. The book has shifted gears a bit since I last posted
John Grady and Rawlins have arrived at the ranch in Mexico, and we have introduced to the Ranch owners' daughter
, but all of it is good. Very few authors are as good at illustrating a scene with words as McCarthy is. I sort of wish I knew Spanish to understand the Spanish portions of the dialogue.

I have never seen the movie based on this book, but I have no idea why they decided to cast a 30 year old Matt Damon to play a 16 year old lead character.
 
K

kingofrod

Member
Psychotic_Mantis said:
About to start
179735.jpg


Anyone read this one recently?[/QUOTE

I read this late last year - I hope you have a strong stomach. The subject matter is extremely dark - a few times, I had to put the book down and take a walk - but I never felt like the author was adding extra depravity for shock value. The writing is effective enough to where you can see through the eyes of the teenage narrator in the weird cocktail of confusion, giddiness and powerlessness that comes at that age, even when the situation continues to devolve.

For me, I couldn't stop reading it and finished it in about 2 nights. Let me know what you think!
Click to expand...
 
T

TheChewyWaffles

Member
I found The Girl Next Door just ok. Yes, the subject matter is disturbing, but it wasn't as bad as some of the stuff I read by Blake Crouch, for instance.
 
F

FallenGrace

Member
Never knew about this thread! Excellent, already seen a couple of books people are reading to add to my list.

I am currently re-reading though Brandon Sandersons original Mistborn trilogy before starting on books 4-6 I haven't read yet.
 
R

Rock And Roll

Member
Just started Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin last night and am loving it so far. The writing style is right up my alley and there's already been so many quotes/passages that have warranted highlighting.
 
Z

Zelenogorsk

Banned
Still reading Wise Man's Fear.

Kvothe is hunting the bandits in the woods, and while I find his interactions with Tempi interesting (learning a new language and figuring out what Lethani is) nothing after the University has been all that interesting to me (compared to how amazing all the University stuff is). Hopefully something can really start to catch my interest because I know from the very start of the narration in Name of the Wind that Kvothe was "expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in" and at this point I'm afraid that book 3 will be a snorefest.

That said I'm still reading it which is more than I can say for a lot of other books (I'm really bad at dropping books the moment they lose my interest, but Rothfuss has enough going on that I keep reading, I especially like the Chandrian and the Amyr, all the tiny bits of lore really pique my interest.)
 
E

EverythingShiny

Member
FallenGrace said:
Never knew about this thread! Excellent, already seen a couple of books people are reading to add to my list.

I am currently re-reading though Brandon Sandersons original Mistborn trilogy before starting on books 4-6 I haven't read yet.
Click to expand...

Enjoy! I just listened to the GraphicAudio productions of books 4-6 and they were so good. I enjoyed books 4-6 more than 1-3.

Dec said:
I just finished it the other day and Red Rising seemed like a book written by a marketing company to me for most of it. "How can we tap into this YA into movie market without actually technically being YA because that loses us some adult readers?".

I thought that early on, then it gets even worse towards the middle, then it actually becomes enjoyable to read in the last third. I'll read the sequel but I'm not in a rush.

A lot of eye rolling for the first half.

Characters like Sevro,
Pax and Mustang
really turn it around.

I'm also reading James S. A. Corey right now in the form of Leviathan Wakes. It's pretty great.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info - I'll stick with it because it seems to be a relatively quick read and I like that it's set on Mars. Enjoy the Expanse books! They're some of my favorite recent sci-fi. The characters are pretty great. :)
 
D

DemWalls

Member
Zelenogorsk said:
Still reading Wise Man's Fear.

Kvothe is hunting the bandits in the woods, and while I find his interactions with Tempi interesting (learning a new language and figuring out what Lethani is) nothing after the University has been all that interesting to me (compared to how amazing all the University stuff is).
Click to expand...

Without spoiling anything, I'll just advise to keep your expectations reasonably low.
 
M

mu cephei

Member
Rock And Roll said:
Just started Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin last night and am loving it so far. The writing style is right up my alley and there's already been so many quotes/passages that have warranted highlighting.
Click to expand...

<3 Giovanni's Room is amazing. I love the way it's written, how it gets right in there.
 
F

Funyarinpa

Member
So I'm in this curious mindset where it feels like it's too much of a burden to even pick a new book to read. That said, I did manage to progress in The New York Trilogy (by Paul Auster) and At The Mountains of Madness (by Lovecraft). Both are decent.
 
G

gblues

Banned
I got "Notorious RBG" for free from T-Mobile.

I'm about a third of the way through but I feel comfortable with the following micro review:

Trash-tier book about a God-tier woman.

It reads like a middle-schooler research project. Conflicting verb tenses. The best parts of the book are when it quotes other people.

Can't imagine why it went in the freebie bin.
 
J

JoeyJungle

Banned
Blasian Persuasion said:
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemison. It's well-written, but it's not just clicking with me. I don't know why I can't really sink into a book that's not by J.K. Rowling or Octavia Butler. There has to be another author out there that can give me that same feel where I really feel lost in the story and look forward to reading it.
Click to expand...

Blasian Persuasion said:
Finally got A Wizard by Earthsea. My mind is still wandering off when I'm reading. I don't know what's wrong with me.
Click to expand...

If you're looking for readable fantasy similar to Harry Potter, I'd really recommend The Name of the Wind. It's not my favorite fantasy novel, but it's definitely entertaining and easy reading.

Also the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson, along with pretty much everything else by him. Good page turners if you're just looking to get lost in something.
 
F

FallenGrace

Member
EverythingShiny said:
Enjoy! I just listened to the GraphicAudio productions of books 4-6 and they were so good. I enjoyed books 4-6 more than 1-3.
Click to expand...
That's great news as I like the original trilogy though I like the first book the best.

I also recently grabbed some of his Reckoners books as they were on sale on the kindle, have you read those by chance? Interested in any opinions.
 
E

EverythingShiny

Member
FallenGrace said:
That's great news as I like the original trilogy though I like the first book the best.

I also recently grabbed some of his Reckoners books as they were on sale on the kindle, have you read those by chance? Interested in any opinions.
Click to expand...

I have not, just the Stormlight Archives books (which I also highly recommend) and the Mistborn series. I'll probably check them out at some point because I've enjoyed everything else by him.
 
D

Dec

Member
Sanderson is alright for the most part but I just could not get down with Mistborn. Gave up a third of the way through the third book and it took me like a month to finish 2.
 
S

Servbot #42

Unconfirmed Member
Mackenzie 92 said:
One of my all time favorites. Doesn't get enough love in my opinion
Click to expand...

Yeah it's awesome, is kinda screwed up but uplifting at the same time. From the few chapters i have read i definitely recommend it. Here's a fun fact: Heath Ledger wanted to make his directorial debut based on this book before his untimely passing.
 
Psychotic_Mantis

Psychotic_Mantis

Member
TheChewyWaffles said:
I found The Girl Next Door just ok. Yes, the subject matter is disturbing, but it wasn't as bad as some of the stuff I read by Blake Crouch, for instance.
Click to expand...

Which Crouch books did you think were worse? I never was really disturbed by the ones I've read. Curious on which ones were really disturbing.

kingofrod said:
Psychotic_Mantis said:
About to start
179735.jpg


Anyone read this one recently?[/QUOTE

I read this late last year - I hope you have a strong stomach. The subject matter is extremely dark - a few times, I had to put the book down and take a walk - but I never felt like the author was adding extra depravity for shock value. The writing is effective enough to where you can see through the eyes of the teenage narrator in the weird cocktail of confusion, giddiness and powerlessness that comes at that age, even when the situation continues to devolve.

For me, I couldn't stop reading it and finished it in about 2 nights. Let me know what you think!
Click to expand...

Thanks. I just picked it up from the library tonight. I'll let you know. I'm really interested but also a littler nervous. I barely know anything about it besides it being disturbing.
Click to expand...
 
N

Number45

Member
Finished The Once and Future King - the afterword is something of an eye opener into the author's life. Seems like he was terrified of basically everything back then and it really shows in the closing book. :'(

I have the following on the Kindle (both Kindle First books) which I'll start reading tomorrow. I have a LOT of time to kill!

32614756.jpg
33827568.jpg
Click to expand...
 
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