Gordon0Freeman
Member
So I have a kindle CD someone gave me that has hundreds of free kindle books. Thinking of starting to read something of Michael Critchton. Whats his best book?
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What are you reading? (April 2012)
- Thread starter Maklershed
- Start date
Hmmm, that doesn't sound quite right...
Maklershed
Member
Haven't gotten around to it yet.
I'll need to read it at some point, then.
kobobooks.com
booksonboard.com
are the ones I use the most. There's always coupons for kobo here http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=115233 (some up to 45% off), so you can get new books very cheap, cheaper than amazon.
and for UK restricted e-books
whsmith.co.uk
If you have any other questions, just PM me.
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Anybody else excited about Skagboys (Irvine Welsh's new book, Trainspotting prequel) coming out tomorrow?
nakedsushi
Member
I felt that way about Pandora's Star. I was super excited starting it. Then about halfway in, I just wanted the plot to get going. 75% in...omg end already. I like Hamilton's ideas, but he's just so wordy and meandering sometimes. Still not sure if I should read Judas, even though I'd like to know where this all ends.
DarkestLight
Member
Stairouais
Member
Gave up after 90 pages. I can't even remember anything that happened during these 90 fucking pages.
This will be my third attempt to finish this book.
Does it really worth it?
Maklershed
Member
I've only read his books from 1994 to the present but of those my favorite was Next (read it in a day if I remember correctly). Followed by Pirate Latitudes and Timeline.
nakedsushi
Member
Gave up after 90 pages. I can't even remember anything that happened during these 90 fucking pages.
This will be my third attempt to finish this book.
Does it really worth it?
I still haven't finished GR. I think I made it a little further than you, then I lost the book somewhere.
House of Leaves. If you're not enjoying it, you should stop reading it. Nothing about completing the book seems "worth it" if you don't like the experience. There's really no "ah hah!" moment in it. More like, you're just along for the ride and if you don't like it, time to get off.
MentallyCritical
Member
Finished H.G.Wells - The Time Machine in 5:30 in the morning today. Didn't love it, didn't hate it.Thought it was going well in the beginning but kinda got rotten by the end, as if he was trying to finish the book in a deadline plus the damn misprints on my Indian published version really screwed with my head on this one. Still, a good read.
Sean Williams and Shane Dix wrote a pair of great epic trilogies that might be of interest. They've got a good balance of space opera and hard sci-fi.
Evergence:
* The Prodigal Sun
* The Dying Light
* The Dark Imbalance
Orphans:
* Echoes of Earth
* Orphans of Earth
* Heirs of Earth
Unfortunately, they're out of print and the e-book status is absolute shit. Only Prodigal Sun and Echoes of Earth appear to be available at all (former on Nook, latter on iBooks).
But you can certainly buy cheap used copies.
Castor Krieg
Banned
Pushing Ice finished. Really great book, but the ending was a bit disappointing. It also happened way too fast, too much was pushed to the last 1/4 of the book.
sparky2112
Member
Gave up after 90 pages. I can't even remember anything that happened during these 90 fucking pages.
I hate that DFW is always compared to Pynchon. DFW is actually readable.
Eh, maybe I'll have to make a run at Gravity's Rainbow one day, but I won't go within 10 feet of it without a reader's guide. Same for Ulysses.
Just finished reading Mort, which happened to be my first Terry Pratchett book. I thoroughly enjoyed it, it's the first book I've read in a long time with any sort of intentional comedy so it made a nice change, will definitely be looking into more books I can get a laugh out of.
Moving on from that I'm about to start reading The Once and Future King, I've always really enjoyed King Arthur stories so this has been on my to do list for quite a while, feels nice to finally get around to it.
Moving on from that I'm about to start reading The Once and Future King, I've always really enjoyed King Arthur stories so this has been on my to do list for quite a while, feels nice to finally get around to it.
ElectricBlue187
Member
About 1/3 through Battle Royale and I think it's pretty good so far. Once you get over his strange writing style (maybe its a translation thing?) the plot is pretty well thought out and enjoyable. There are a few fun twists and the gore, while ever present, has not been so bad. Maybe I'm desensitized but the only thing that has happened that got to me was
. I made the mistake of reading this right before bed, big mistake. I wasn't really scared but I guess my subconscious kept thinking someone was about to kill me and woke me up like 5 times last night haha
hatchet face
Neffarias_Bredd
Member
Great book, but I could only follow like three of the characters names the entire time
Ventilaator
Banned
Reading Ender's Game. It's pretty cool how after every page I turn, I see the movie having less and less chance of not being shit.
The next books are quite a change of pace, and I think a break after Storm would probably be beneficial. They're great, but it's a good point for a break if you want to read other things.
hm, ok guess i'll read kite runner. Thanks for your input!
I'll second this. While I personally loved House of Leaves and couldn't put it down, if you aren't enjoying it, there's nothing that changes to the point where you will all of a sudden. If you don't like it, go find something else to read.
Different strokes, etc.
Just read:
Enjoyed it. Enjoyed it enough to start on:
So far Im a little let down by the sequel. Whats Gafs thoughts on the series?
Loved the book but agreed about the ending.
Enjoyed it. Enjoyed it enough to start on:
So far Im a little let down by the sequel. Whats Gafs thoughts on the series?
Loved the book but agreed about the ending.
Koroviev
Member
Just read:
Enjoyed it. Enjoyed it enough to start on:
So far Im a little let down by the sequel. Whats Gafs thoughts on the series?
People generally pretend that Clarke stuck to his word and didn't write sequels.
Just finished reading Mort, which happened to be my first Terry Pratchett book. I thoroughly enjoyed it, it's the first book I've read in a long time with any sort of intentional comedy so it made a nice change, will definitely be looking into more books I can get a laugh out of.
Moving on from that I'm about to start reading The Once and Future King, I've always really enjoyed King Arthur stories so this has been on my to do list for quite a while, feels nice to finally get around to it.
You're gonna enjoy The Once and Future King. It's a true masterpiece of fantasy fiction, and it's another book with a very nice sense of humor.
Just finished reading this, which I thought was pretty interesting despite my initial judgement. Although it's no news that we have a slant in our media, I thought it was a good read of how the news industry operates.
Also I'm going to start reading Dragon Tattoo soon
Just bought the book and I'm just waiting to clear my backlog of school work before I get the chance to read it. Very excited to start the Millennium series Maklershed
Member
Finished Free Will Flux and started Mistborn: The Final Empire
Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
So I'm reading Haruki Murakami's 1Q84. It's my first time reading one of his novels and, 200 or so pages in, I'm wondering if I should keep going. I don't know if the translation is the problem but there are certain aspects of the writing that I don't like particularly the Aomame chapters. It doesn't feel like an authentic female POV to me. The sections relating to sex in particular are just very odd to read. Tengo's chapters are better for me so far but in general the book is moving rather slowly.
My question is, does the book pick up or do my issues continue or worsen?
My question is, does the book pick up or do my issues continue or worsen?
ElectricBlue187
Member
I liked Norwegian Wood too
I think he has a reputation for not knowing how to end his novels though
I think he has a reputation for not knowing how to end his novels though
Yeah, maybe I made a bad choice as my introduction to Murakami. I'd vaguely heard of him before 1Q84 but I'd never really seen his books around. I'll seek out your recommendation.
Koroviev
Member
I'm a big fan of Murakami, and I stopped reading "1Q84," too. It's too indulgent, especially with respect to the pacing. The characters are grating. Tengo is a blatant Gary Stu, and as you point out, the female perspective is lacking at best. He has written better novels -- read those.
I agree with this guy. Hard-Boiled Wonderland was my introduction to Murakami and it was wonderful. After that, you might check out "Norwegian Wood" or "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle," depending on your mood. Despite making him famous in Japan, "Norwegian Wood" is actually an unusual novel for Murakami in that it contains no surreal elements. It's simply a coming-of-age story set amidst the student unrest of 1960s Japan. I really enjoyed it.
By contrast, Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is the novel that gained him recognition in the west, and it is very much a work of magic realism. The pacing is strange, but consistent. Each part basically arrives at a crescendo peak, juxtaposed against the seemingly banal activities of an unemployed house husband taking place prior to that point. It's a great novel. If you enjoy that and would like to venture further into surrealist territory, then I would suggest "Kafka on the Shore," complete with talking cats and sexually dissatisfied spirits.
Just read:
Enjoyed it. Enjoyed it enough to start on:
So far Im a little let down by the sequel. Whats Gafs thoughts on the series?
I really liked the first book. I read the sequels back when they were first published, so I can't even remember how many there were (I thought 2 more books, but is there another, written with someone else? Pretty sure I didn't read that).
But I remember they got worse and I hated the way it ended. Very disappointing.
Liminal States by Zack Parsons
About a third of the way through and this has been completely fantastic so far. Some of the most original stuff I've read in a while.
Maklershed
Member
On the hard copy side of things I have to put Manhunt on hold for a bit as my friend just gave me this ...
Marine Sniper: 93 Confirmed Kills by Charles W. Henderson
Marine Sniper: 93 Confirmed Kills by Charles W. Henderson
So I finished Royal Flash and had some trouble finding a good book on my shelf to read after that - after Wodehouse and Fraser, stuff like Clan of the Cave Bear and The Rule of Four were practically unreadable (though I do want to revisit them later).
And then I remembered I'd bought:
And hey, that's more like it! Immediately up there with Jeeves and Flashman, the writing is sogood, the story is great too. I love the rhythm of the writing.
And then I remembered I'd bought:
And hey, that's more like it! Immediately up there with Jeeves and Flashman, the writing is sogood, the story is great too. I love the rhythm of the writing.
DarkChronic
Member
Hey all, hoping this is the right place to ask:
How are the Hyperion and Wheel of Time novels? Halfway through Dance with Dragons (which I'm loving) so I'll need something new.
How are the Hyperion and Wheel of Time novels? Halfway through Dance with Dragons (which I'm loving) so I'll need something new.
elrechazado
Banned
Hyperion is so freaking good. It's what I read right after Martin's series. So glad I did. The first book sets up so much so stay with it.
I love the WoT but I'm willing to admit it drags for a few books. If you can get through the slow books on inertia though its more then worth it (To me).
DarkChronic
Member
Excellent. I suppose I'll do Hyperion first, then dive into Wheel of Time. Fourteen books...that is crazy.
Never read Hyperion, but am not a fan o WoT at all. My main problem with the book is the characters, pretty much every character beisdes Mat is terrible, and the female characters, all of them, are the worst characters in the history of mankind. Its mind-boggling how bad they are.
