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Maklershed · May 2, 2014

Plasticine · May 2, 2014

Finished Seductions by Ray Garton. It was an interesting take on the Incubus/Sucubus, even if the whole story didn't quite hang together. I definitely like Garton's style, and the way he tells a story. I think his Live Girls is one of the best vampire novels around. I'll definitely check out more of his work soon.

But up next:

I got this beautiful illustrated edition of The Shining a few weeks ago. I thought it was time to finally dig in.

Bazza · May 2, 2014

Saw Hyperion mentioned a few times in the last thread so im giving that a go, need a small break from the fantasy genre.

The Flash · May 2, 2014

Western Civilization Volume 1: to 1715; Ninth Edition by Jackson J. Spielvogel

disappeared · May 2, 2014

I'm a few days from finishing For Whom the Bell Tolls. Then I've finished reading his living work. Then it's onto his posthumous material.

TheUsual · May 2, 2014

The Gunslinger: The Dark Tower 1.

B.K. · May 2, 2014

I'm about three quarters through A Storm of Swords.

Everyone's dying!

Maklershed · May 2, 2014

Kindle

Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie

Hard Copy

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress by Robert A. Heinlein

Audio Book

A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin

NJDEN · May 2, 2014

Now that I'm a proud owner of a Kindle and with finals coming to a close I can do some reading...

I'm going to reread the first two books in the Halo Forerunner trilogy, then read the last one.

After that I was planning on reading Starship Troopers.

Regiruler · May 2, 2014

Feels much better paced so far than Crossroads of Twilight.

thomaser · May 2, 2014

thomaser said:
Haven't read much since last summer because of school, but I have a couple of weeks free before exams and just started The Leopard by Tomasi di Lampedusa. Started it now because I was just in Sicily, and this is probably the most famous book written by a Sicilian.

Quoting myself from the April thread. The book is up to a good start. Beautiful language laden with meaning. And unexpectedly humorous!

Tragicomedy · May 2, 2014

Still sitting on Urth of the New Sun, though I'll likely start it early next week. I'm halfway through the fourth Dresden book...more of the same.

Once I finish those two up, I'll take a close look at my backlog and see what I want to tackle. Maybe Flash Boys by Michael Lewis. I've loved his other economic books (The Big Short is a personal favorite).

The Culture Vulture · May 2, 2014

Into the second appendix of House Of Leaves. Once I glean all I can from it I'll move on to Let's Discuss Diabetes With Owls.

kick51 · May 2, 2014

repost from the other thread since i forgot it was May

The original book that the movie got its name from (edit: nevermind, they got it from the burroughs version i talk about below.) It's a totally different story-- one about a national healthcare system that admits people based on some eugenics heuristic, which spawns an underground medical economy with rogue doctors, medical suppliers, and patients who can't go through the national healthcare system because they will be sterilized in exchange for healthcare. it's a really interesting dystopic world he's got there--and I know it because that's all the characters can talk about. They just talk about everything, all the time, like it's a Metal Gear game. I actually put it down halfway through because they just talk about shit non-stop. The world and concept for the story are really interesting, but wasted in an ocean of expository and explicatory dialogue that just makes you want to go to sleep. I wanna say it's aimed at teens or something, but even then, that doesn't really explain how dry it is...

I suggest instead:

Bladerunner: A Movie by William Burroughs, which is a screeplay based on the Nourse book (nothing to do with the Scott movie.) It's about half the length, contains all the world building, a 1/10th of the dialogue, along with plenty of Burroughs' drug-induced satirical horror. It's about as obscure and underrated as Burroughs' work gets, but has become more relevant over time, in my personal opinion. It reads like a complete satire of conservative "elderly death squad" nightmares about nationalized health care. It's small, takes about an hour to read, and so damn over-the-top, you can't help but laugh.

update: I'm going to finish Nourse's Blade Runner anyway.

Jintor · May 2, 2014

Just started reading Catch 22. I like it so far but I've completely forgotten what it's about and the book doesn't have a blurb and I don't really want to look it up. So this should be fun!

I used to always get it confused with Fahrenheit 541, I remember that much.

X-Frame · May 2, 2014

About halfway done!

I hear this book seems a lot better on a re-read of the series. I can't deny that I feel like I want to skip ahead or skim quickly in order to get to ADWD so that I (assume) find out what happens with the other characters missing from this book. It's a lot of world building, I'll give it that.

Piecake · May 2, 2014

I am currently listening to this and it is excellent. Ron Chernow has become my favorite historical biographer. I will definitely be checking out Hamilton and House of Morgan (already read Washington: A Life)

I am reading this and am enjoying it so far. Not as interesting as other books because it is a survey and lacks the narrative or deep analysis that surveys really can't provide. This gives a comprehensive (but not detailed) look at China-Japanese conflict in WWII from China's perspective though.

One thing that I found interesting was that Joe Stilwell comes off terribly in this book. He is basically described as a reckless, megalomaniac fool who refused to actually take into account the current state of Chinese affairs/factors in his thinking. Sadly for Stilwell, the argument was quite convincing.

B.K. · May 2, 2014

kick51 said:
The original book that the movie got its name from (edit: nevermind, they got it from the burroughs version i talk about below.)

If you DO want to read the book that the Blade Runner movie is inspired by, it's called Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick.

Pau · May 2, 2014

After a break from Gene Wolfe, I'm back to understanding only half of what's going on!

Matt Damon · May 2, 2014

Just read this.

9780399168437_custom-c0c26692e3190f58fe9dbe4c00c24b0f297c5920-s2-c85.jpg

kick51 · May 2, 2014

B.K. said:
If you DO want to read the book that the Blade Runner movie is inspired by, it's called Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick.

right, right. I read that before all these of course. great book, due for a re-read, actually

Mackenzie 92 · May 2, 2014

Half a King was just 3 stars for me. My least favorite Abercrombie book to date.

Moved on to this. Good stuff.

Into the Storm by Taylor Anderson

braves01 · May 2, 2014

I haven't decided whether to go right into Doctor Sleep after I finish, or read Hyperion as an interlude.

nakedsushi · May 2, 2014

Matt Damon said:
Just read this.

How was it? I have trouble reading books with unlikeable characters. Would I like this one?

belkan · May 2, 2014

The Things They Carried and A Farewell To Arms.

Empty · May 2, 2014

i read eleanor and park by rainbow rowell. it's a teen romance but a good one, captures nicely how young people feel when they're first in love and has a genuine class consciousness. it's narrated from the perspectives of both lead characters, which it uses well and feels authentically like the voice of teenagers, but is slightly detrimental as eleanor is far more of an interesting character than park, and the push and pull between her romantic feelings and the difficult home life on the breadline drives the book for me. the book is set in the eighties and i found some of the use of cultural touchstones a bit annoying. they share comics, music, books etc as they develop from strangers to friends to dating which is fine and feels natural, but nearly everything is something that's revered as a classic in 2014 (watchmen, joy division, the smiths, the beatles etc), for such a personal feeling book i wanted more personal artifacts.

i'm also reading the making of the atomic bomb for the book club. which is totally fascinating and a gripping read but just an absolute tome. need to pace myself through may.

just started cakes and ale by w. somerset maugham. god i love his narrative voice so much, it's so much fun to follow as he whisks you through a satire of the literary world in britain in the early 20th century.

TCRS · May 2, 2014

read the first two chapters. great start. I love sith stories.

Ratrat · May 2, 2014

Rereading Game of Thrones for the third time. Only 70 pages in and its far more interesting than 600 pages of that other book.

GasProblem · May 2, 2014

Still reading this, slowly but steadily and enjoying it:

Deciding what to read after it. Maybe Hyperion. Maybe Blood Song. Maybe Shift. Maybe the Mistborn Trilogy. Maybe the Hitchhiker books. Maybe start my re-read of the first three books of Song of Ice and Fire so I can read A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons.

I'm leaning towards Hyperion to get a break from the fantasy stuff. Maybe Shift + Dust so I can finish the Wool trilogy. Ah I don't know, too many choices

Nymerio · May 2, 2014

I'm making my way through The Stress of Her Regard. I'm really struggling though. The book just hasn't been able to hook me. I don't find it remotely suspensful or exciting in any way nor do I care for any of the characters. I really liked it in the beginning and I don't know where it fell apart but after

Julia's killed

I began losing interest rapidly. I was going to read On Stranger Tides next, but now I'm not so sure about that.

RepairmanJack · May 2, 2014

Finished The Strain, thought it was OK. After dragging on a little big in the middle it finished pretty strong. It will probably be a while before I read the second book though. I have too much of a to-read pile.

Decided to jump back into Hyperion due to the Shrike vs Dr Manhattan thread.

RangerX · May 2, 2014

Adam Smith's Wealth of nations at the moment. I wanted to understand the genesis of free market philosophy. Turns out he was'nt quite saying what all the modern neo liberals would have you believe.

Corum · May 2, 2014

I just finished Robin Hobb's "Fool's Fate", brilliant book and an excellent trilogy; I love the world she's created with these books.

I was surprised to see that she's releasing "Fool's Assassin", the first book for the new "The Fitz and the Fool" trilogy. Surprised but pleased.

Lollipop Dave · May 2, 2014

Finished this during the last week of April.

Should of probably just watched the film.

Now back onto the Horus Heresy novels. Currently on Decent of Angels.

ShaneB · May 2, 2014

These are always my favourite threads.

I finished The Shock of the Fall the other day, and shared my thoughts in my goodreads review. Really wanted to give it a 5/5, and I may go back and do that just because I still think about it, but at the time, but I had just some slight issues with it, so it's a very strong 4.5/5, easy to recommend. Loved this quote too..

"He repeated the story he liked to tell us. The one with the small boy who was trying to lift a rock in his garden, and the boy’s dad was watching him heave and sweat and struggle, but get nowhere. Eventually the dad asks, ‘Why don’t you use all of your strength?’ And the boy says, ‘I am, Daddy. I am using all of my strength.’ And his dad says, ‘No you’re not. You haven’t asked me for help."

Now deciding what to read next. Book 5 (the last one) of 'The Walk' series comes out on Tuesday, I went through those books really fast last summer, so I'm excited to finish that, so I may just wait over the weekend and start that up and not worry about having to finish something else.

nakedsushi · May 2, 2014

Lollipop Dave said:
Finished this during the last week of April.

(Flowers int he Attic)

Should of probably just watched the film.

No. The Lifetime movie was terrible and left out the most important part of the book

creepy incest

.

hythloday · May 3, 2014

On an Edwardian-era England kick lately.

Finished Summerset Abbey and its 2 sequels:

Summerset Abbey by T.J. Brown

I was almost right about the plot twist in the first book. This was good for a lazy afternoon read but finishing became a chore by the 3rd and I only plodded on to see how it ended. I'm not sure if this was self-published or not but it was lacking in decent editing by the end. Moreso in the 3rd book than the others. I was catching really basic things, like improper use of apostrophe's. (Yes that was intentional. But was it intentional in the book?) The author had a serious illness midway through writing so if it was self-published that may explain it.

About 75% through The Passing Bells, and it's quite good, but I'm not sure I'll pick up the sequel.

The Passing Bells by Phillip Rock

Ceebs · May 3, 2014

Read this based on a Cyan recommendation

Really enjoyed it. It was also hit one of my "I will like this fantasy novel 20% more if it does this" criteria by following a single character instead of jumping perspectives every chapter.

Maklershed · May 3, 2014

^ Sounds intriguing. Added to my Kindle wishlist.

fakefaker · May 3, 2014

Finished up Brothers of the Snake by Dan Abnett and thought it was mildly good, but wouldn't want to read it again. For diehard 40k fans only...

Went to a used book sale yesterday that supports a local library and picked up some interesting older books. Going to start with Tales of Toytown by S.G. Hulme Beaman as a change to all the gore from the last book.

AngmarsKing701 · May 3, 2014

Ceebs said:
Read this based on a Cyan recommendation

Really enjoyed it. It was also hit one of my "I will like this fantasy novel 20% more if it does this" criteria by following a single character instead of jumping perspectives every chapter.

I've loved pretty much everything Bujold has written.

Just finished

Here's my review: http://brianjlang.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/book-review-joe-abercrombie-half-a-king/

Now, um, shifting back to

Piecake · May 3, 2014

Only a little into this, but it is quite good so far. Its very well written and the level of detail and analysis is impressive (still entertaining). I appreciate that it is not simply focusing on the American situation, but also explains what was happening in Britain to explain their reasons/situation.

Mackenzie 92 · May 3, 2014

AngmarsKing701 said:
I've loved pretty much everything Bujold has written.

Just finished

Here's my review: http://brianjlang.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/book-review-joe-abercrombie-half-a-king/

Now, um, shifting back to

I didn't really like Yarvi as a protagonist. Also missed having different POVs. Laithlin, Nothing and Grom-Gil-Gorm were all more interesting to me. Kinda sucked seeing these cool characters typical of Abercrombie, but not being able to get into their heads.

Also thought it was all a little too cliche by the end. Felt to me like, been there, done that.

jred2k · May 3, 2014

Does anybody have a recommendation for a book or books that focus on the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Revolution? Preferably something that I'll be able to follow without much prior knowledge of the events of people involved.

Maklershed · May 3, 2014

jred2k said:
Does anybody have a recommendation for a book or books that focus on the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Revolution? Preferably something that I'll be able to follow without much prior knowledge of the events of people involved.

If you don't mind fiction, James Ellroy Underworld USA trilogy focuses on this. Here's book 1 if you wanted to read into the description:

American Tabloid by James Ellroy

MarshallH · May 3, 2014

At the moment I am re-reading Terry Pratchett's Sourcery. It's light, funny, and a good way to relax.

jred2k said:
Does anybody have a recommendation for a book or books that focus on the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Revolution? Preferably something that I'll be able to follow without much prior knowledge of the events of people involved.

Try Fabian Escalante's The Cuba Project: CIA Covert Operations 1959-62

AngmarsKing701 · May 3, 2014

Mackenzie 92 said:
I didn't really like Yarvi as a protagonist. Also missed having different POVs. Laithlin, Nothing and Grom-Gil-Gorm were all more interesting to me. Kinda sucked seeing these cool characters typical of Abercrombie, but not being able to get into their heads.

Also thought it was all a little too cliche by the end. Felt to me like, been there, done that.

It's toned down, but Yarvi is definitely different than anyone else he's written.

Maybe he'll write a Director's Cut.

Mumei · May 3, 2014

I just started The Warmth of Other Suns today. Stupid book, making me tear up in public.

Piecake · May 3, 2014

Mumei said:
I just started The Warmth of Other Suns today. Stupid book, making me tear up in public.

Ooo, tell me what you think when you finish with the Warmth of Other Suns. I am definitely interested in reading it.

Hrmm, just checked audible and its stupid cheap there. If its good, that might be my next book once I use up my credits for the month

RatskyWatsky · May 3, 2014

A while back someone recommended me a "good" romance novel (Cyan?) but I can't for the life of me remember the title of it. Anyone know?

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