RJ - Slayer of Trolls’s Comments

RJ - Slayer of Trolls’s comments from the 2025 Reading Challenge group.

Note: RJ - Slayer of Trolls is not currently a member of this group.

I'm finished! I really enjoyed it. I promised myself I wouldn't say "so it goes" but...oh well.

Just got back in town after two back-to-back trips to the desert - first a 4 day trip to Las Vegas for my daughter's basketball tournament and to see my folks who live out there, then a week-long trip to Arizona for work. Lowest temperature during my days away? 108 degrees F. Let's just say it's good to be home where the temperature is currently 77 degrees.

While I was away I chipped away at a lot of books and finished #23 for the year - A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge. It's a fun space opera with a lot of cool ideas but slow pacing and awkward prose that slow it down at times. I gave it 4 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Taking its place in my Currently Reading pile is Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer which is a group read in the GR Dragons and Jetpacks group. Feel free to join and jump in! Also there is a movie version coming next year.

And of course, I'm still working on:
- The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard
- Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
- Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
- A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
- Savages by Don Winslow
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System from Crisis — and Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins
- Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman

I already started this one. Not sure what to think yet, but so many of my GR friends like it and have rated it highly that I'm certainly going to continue.

Wow! There are some terrific insights above. Thank you everyone for sharing.

I'm very impressed with how well Vonnegut is building suspense, even though he is describing a historical event that already happened (bombing of Dresden) and he also gave us a lot of "spoilers" in the first chapter.

I just finished the first 3 chapters, then came straight here to see what everyone thought so far.

I agree that "So it goes" is kind of catchy. Also, he says it everyone someone dies. So although I laughed a little when I read "so it goes" I also thought about death, and how much there is in war or just in everyday life.

I also noticed that chapter 1 is in 1st person then the next chapter switches to 3rd person. I took it that chapter 2 is the beginning of the book that is written by the chapter 1 narrator. I think he even ends chapter 1 saying the phrase his book starts with, then those same exact words are used to start chapter 2.

Finished #22 on Sunday - Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson - the ending let me down, more than a little bit - there were some good parts and some things I really liked but overall I gave it a 3 star rating - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Replacing it in my Currently Reading pile (which has become large enough to be a Currently Reading tower) is:
- Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. for our group read in this group! I'm looking forward to it - this will be my first Vonnegut.

And of course, I'm still working on:
- A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge
- The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard
- Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson
- Savages by Don Winslow
- A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System from Crisis — and Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins
- Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman

I started yesterday. I'm enjoying it so far - I keep picturing the narrator as a old guy who's 3 martinis in to a 2 martini lunch.

Today while waiting at the doctor's office for a routine checkup I finished #21 - The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes - I liked it a lot and gave it 4 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

To replace it in my Currently Reading pile I added two books:

- A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman - which I hope will be our group read in this group for the month of August, and...

- Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman which is related - but not a true sequel - to American Gods which I read a few weeks ago - this will be my 4th Gaiman book so far this year (including the short story collection I'm picking at slowly) - I'm reading it as a group read for my SciFi and Heroic Fantasy GR bookclub

And of course, I'm still working on:
- Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
- A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge
- The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson
- Savages by Don Winslow
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System from Crisis — and Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins
- Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman

I'll be jumping in a little late, probably around the middle of July. I'm finishing up some other club reads right now, also work is crazy and daughter's summer basketball is in full swing.

This will be my first Vonnegut.

I finished two more books:

#19 - Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman which is a short story/poetry collection by the author of American Gods - I actually finished this one a couple weeks ago but forgot to post about it - I liked the collection but it was pretty uneven; some stories were terrific and others I didn't like at all. Gaiman says in his terrific Introduction that he uses his short pieces to experiment and play around, so I guess it's not surprising that the results are all over the place. I liked it and gave it 3 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

#20 - The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth which is a re-read of a Cold War-era thriller I first read way back in high school over 30 years ago. I liked it almost as much as I did then - I gave it 4 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I added a few books to my Currently Reading pile, including:
- The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard - this collection of pulp-era stories by Conan's original creator is a lot of fun so far, and helped start the Sword and Sorcery Fantasy subgenre - I'm reading it as a group read for the SciFi and Heroic Fantasy GR book club

- Savages by Don Winslow - some of my friends have enjoyed this so I thought I'd give it a try

- Too Big to Fail: The Inside Story of How Wall Street and Washington Fought to Save the Financial System from Crisis — and Themselves by Andrew Ross Sorkin - seems interesting to me, especially after reading Michael Lewis' The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine last year which was a five-star book for me. This one's a bit slower at the start, however...

- Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman - I read the Shadow Moon story The Monarch of the Glen in this collection after finishing American Gods, so I decided just to throw the collection in my pile. I won't be actively reading it now with all my book club reads going on, but I'll just pick at it from time to time as the mood strikes me.

And of course, I'm still working on:
- The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
- Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
- A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins

I'll second A Man Called Ove

I finished two books this weekend:

#17 - American Gods by Neil Gaiman - this was a terrific book, probably my favorite of the year so far (replacing The Circle by Dave Eggers which was my previous favorite of 2017) - I gave it 4 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

#18 - The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley - I didn't like this book at all, and in fact would say it was the worst book I have read in years - I gave it 1 star - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I replaced them in my Currently Reading pile with:
- A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge for an upcoming monthly discussion in the SciFi and Heroic Fantasy bookclub, and
- The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

And of course I'm still working on (in order of projected finish):
- Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman
- The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth
- Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins

Lisa wrote: "Great setup you've got here, Randy. I'm really a fan :)
I've read everything and added a few more books to my TBR list that weren't already there.
Good luck with your goal."

Thanks Lisa, much appreciated. Good luck with your goal too!

I've gotten into a groove with studying so life is starting to come back to normal.

Last week I finished #16 for the year - Five Patients by Michael Crichton. It's one of Crichton's early works, a non-fiction look at a "modern" hospital (written in 1970, so not quite so modern anymore). Although dated there are still some interesting parts if you're a fan of Crichton or medical history, and some of Crichton's experiences including the stuff in here was used when he co-created the TV show ER. I gave it 2 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I have more than enough to read right now so I didn't add anything to my Currently Reading pile.

I'm currently reading (in order of projected finish):
- The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley
- American Gods by Neil Gaiman
- Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman
- The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth
- Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins (note: I also set this one aside temporarily)

I'm hoping to finish the top 3 on the list right around the end of the month, then maybe I'll add some new books.

Winter wrote: "Randy wrote: "Rina wrote: "I'd like to nominate The Nightingale for its powerful story set in WW2, and how 'bravery' during war time can take many shapes as portrayed by two sisters who have comp..."

It's a good tip that if you want a book to be chosen out of the nominations and into the poll it's wise to second it. Every seconded book that fits the criteria of being both available as ebook and physical will be chosen at default. If there are less than ten books seconded the other ones are chosen after rating."

I did second All the Light We Cannot See but since that one is ineligible I'll use my second on Slaughterhouse-Five.

I'd still be excited to read The Nightingale or All Quiet on the Western Front too, if Slaughterhouse-Five doesn't get chosen.

Rina wrote: "I'd like to nominate The Nightingale for its powerful story set in WW2, and how 'bravery' during war time can take many shapes as portrayed by two sisters who have completely differ..."

I was wondering when someone would nominate this one. It's another one I'd be interested in reading. Good nominations this month!

Vernice wrote: "I'd like to nominate All the Light We Cannot See, which is set during WW2 and has some really great reviews."

I'll second that, but I'd also be happy to read along with Slaughterhouse Five or All Quiet on the Western Front. All three are in my TBR pile.

Well, I started my new job, and with all the work I have been putting in studying for some licensing exams my reading has really slowed down.

I did just finished #15 for the year - Foreigner by C.J. Cherryh. I thought it was an interesting idea, but unfortunately the execution was lacking. I gave it 2 stars. You can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I have more than enough to read right now so I didn't add anything to my Currently Reading pile.

I'm currently reading (in order of projected finish):
- The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley
- Five Patients by Michael Crichton
- Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman
- American Gods by Neil Gaiman
- The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth
- Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson (note: I set this aside for the moment since I have so many other books to focus on)
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins (note: I also set this one aside temporarily)

I nominate Summerland by Michael Chabon. It's been on my TBR pile for a while and I'm interested in reading something by Chabon. And the title alone leaves no doubt about the relation to our summer theme.

Last night I finished #14 - The Long Home by William Gay. Although it got off to a slow start I enjoyed it and gave it 4 stars - you can read my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

To replace it in my reading pile, I started a whole bunch of new books, all for upcoming discussions in various GR book clubs, including:
- Foreigner by C.J. Cherryh
- American Gods by Neil Gaiman
- Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
- Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman
- The Stars Are Legion by Kameron Hurley (technically I won't start this one for a few days until my copy arrives in the mail from Barnes & Noble)

It's a lot I know! I like to jump in on book discussions when I get a chance, so I use it as an "excuse" to read books I've already got lying around unread. In the case of The Stars Are Legion, I've heard so many good things about this book I decided to try it.

Of course, I'm still working on (in order of projected completion):
- Five Patients by Michael Crichton
- The Odessa File by Frederick Forsyth
- The Best American Mystery Stories 2015 edited by James Patterson (note: I set this aside for the moment since I have so many other books to focus on)
- Rama II by Arthur C. Clarke
- A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin
- Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Girls Through Sports by Hannah Storm and Mark Jenkins (note: I also set this one aside temporarily)