What have you just read? Opinions, recommendations & reviews Showing 701-750 of 12,687

[Elisa]

Yesterday night I finished the Caster Chronicles, also known as The Beautiful Creatures Complete Collection. Frankly not impressed by them... I started them because I saw that Emma Thompson, Viola Davis and Jeremy Irons were playing in the movie adaptation of the first book, so I though "if Jeremy agreed to do such a thing, the story must be good". Well... it's ok. In a nutshell, he is a normal boy, she is a witch (caster), and they have lots of paranormal problems over foour books. This is the boring part. The nice touch is that it is settled in South Carolina, with the typical South-USA characteristcs such as aboundance of sooul food, religious righteousnees, distorted idea about the Civil war (= war of Northern aggression). A bit like A Time to Kill or The Help without the preponderant racial issue.
In summary, it's ok if you're into YA magical stuff. Otherwise it's too much of an effort to read four books for the occasional nice description.

[Amber]

I just finished The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales by edgar allan poe today and it was a pretty good read. I liked all of the stories except for two, but i'd definitely reccomend this collection to others. I'll post my full review on it shortly since I did a readalong on it recently here. Today was the last day of it but more are going to continue their poe reading. :-)

[Kristi]

I finished We Have Always Lived in the Castle last night. A great book for October. I liked it, and I commented on it in the readalong thread.

[[deleted user]]

What Kristi said! I have just finished the same book, posted my review on the thread and I would recommend it!

I have also finished Lord of Chaos> which I actually started 2 years ago and found on my kindle. It's the 6th book of a 14 book fantasy series, The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan. I clearly needed a break from the series when I stopped but after reading a synopsis on the internet I restarted the book and loved it. I think I will try finish the series over the next year but it's quite a challenge as each book is around 1000pages!

[[deleted user]]

Oops... That should not be all in italics but on phone ap. Will edit when I can get to a PC!

[Amber]

Hey Heather I'm the same way about the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich I read the first 10 books of the series in 2011-2012 but now that there are 20 books, I decided to read a few a year until I am finished so will read book 11 next year. I know I can do it though.

[Leslie]

I just finished Girl, Interrupted which I found quite readable. If you like memoirs or are interested in mental illness, I would recommend it.

[Anastasia]

I finished two days ago The Prince of Tides and I would absolutely recommend it: a friend of mine has said that Conroy's style is very similar to John Irving's one, and the story is very absorbing :)

[Shirley]

I have just finished Into the Darkest Corner which was for my book club. I'm not sure what I think about it, so I haven't rated it yet. It's the sort of story I would prefer to watch as a film, rather than read about. Very tense, rather violent and a very abusive relationship, reminiscent of the film Sleeping with the Enemy. I did have to finish it though, and read the last third of the book really quickly as I had to find out what happened!

[dely]

I just finished Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri and I really liked it.
It is a collection of short stories and the leading theme is the life and feelings of second generation emigrants who were born and grown abroad. They are in the middle between parents bound strongly to their origins and traditions, and the mentality of the country where they are born and where they live.
The stories seem so simple, taken from ordinary life and in my opinion this is their strenght: they seem true and real.
I liked Lahiri's writing style and how she depicted the characters and their feelings. There are some details that seem unimportant but at the end these simple details depict very well and deeply the lives and emotions of these immigrants.
Yes, I would recommend it to everybody, it was really a pleasant read.

[Amber]

I just finished Deceptionby C.J. Redwine and it was pretty good. I can't wait for the next book in the defiance series.

[Book Ninja]

I finished the Midnights' Children. Had been reading it since last year! I thought it got too dragged in the end, if it was shorter I would have liked the book a bit more.

[LauraT]

dely wrote: "I just finished Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri and I really liked it.
It is a collection of short stories and the leading theme is the life and feelings of second generation emigrants who were..."
I definitly need to read something by her. I've insert her name in my next year challange

[Leslie]

Rahat wrote: "I finished the Midnights' Children. Had been reading it since last year! I thought it got too dragged in the end, if it was shorter I would have liked the book a bit more."

Hi there Rahat! This is on my TBR, but no time soon especially if it took you this long!!

[Kristi]

I have finished The Gate to Women's Country. I'm trying to write a proper review of it, but I think my computer is seeing its last days so that may have to wait. I'm thankful to my book club for selecting this book. How have I not heard of it before now? I loved the play within the book, having read The Song of Achilles earlier this year. There was one section towards the end that I really did not like, but I thought it was a very smart book, and so I recommend it. It would be interesting to have a man's perspective!

[AmberZehr]

I just read book 7 of the Incarnations of Immortality series, And Eternity, and have one more to go in the series. I had read books 1-6 before and never got to 7(or realized there was an 8!) but it had been so long since i had read them i power read them in like 2 weeks. i give this series 5 stars and the authors notes are unique too, if you enjoy reading about the authors process and experience while writing the book/s.

[Leslie]

Kristi wrote: "I have finished The Gate to Women's Country. I'm trying to write a proper review of it, but I think my computer is seeing its last days so that may have to wait. I'm thankful to my book club for se..."

Yay! What part did you not like - (view spoiler)[the part after Stavia has been rescued, when Morgot and Joshua 'confront' Michael and his co-conspirators (hide spoiler)]?

[Bionic Jean]

I really want to read "The Gate to Women's Country"! Didn't you and Laura talk about doing a readalong Leslie? I think it would be a reread for you, as I know you think very highly of the author - which is why I looked into her work in the first place. I'm up for a readalong anyway, unless it's nominated for a monthly read some time.

I'm looking forward to your review, when your computer behaves, Kristi. Did you see mine on "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks"? I think you said you wanted to read that book (though knowing me I might have got muddled...)

[Faye]

I just finished The Secret Life of Bees. I would definitely recommend it - beautiful story, very well written. I would recommend the movie, too, which stayed very true to the book and is one of my favourites. :)

[Petra]

I finished the 5th book of the Chief Inspector Gamache series, The Brutal Telling.
I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys murder mysteries that are character driven. The books should be read in order because of the interpersonal relationships that happen.

[LauraT]

Petra wrote: "I finished the 5th book of the Chief Inspector Gamache series, The Brutal Telling.
I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys murder mysteries that are character driven. The books should be..."

I haven't found the books yet, but I don't despair!!!!

[Petra]

Laura, I think they are just coming into people's notice. I was looking for some used copies and could only find the first of the series, Still Life. I'm sure that in a year from now (probably sooner) the books will be more available.

[LauraT]

Petra wrote: "Laura, I think they are just coming into people's notice. I was looking for some used copies and could only find the first of the series, Still Life. I'm sure that in a year from now (probably soon..."

Hope so!!! ;)

[Shirley]

Faye wrote: "I just finished The Secret Life of Bees. I would definitely recommend it - beautiful story, very well written. I would recommend the movie, too, which stayed very true to the book and is one of my ..."

That's good to know, Faye, I also have a copy to read. Glad you liked it.

[Leslie]

I just finished the audiobook of a children's book that somehow I missed growing up, Ballet Shoes. While it was a charming story that I am sure I would have loved when I was 8, it didn't really hold up that well to adult listening (too many implausible happenings - or perhaps better to say that the implausibility of them struck me while listening instead of later on). I gave it 3 1/2 stars.

[Amber]

Through the Zombie Glass by gena showalter was a pretty good read. It was alice in wonderland meets zombies. I enjoyed it and will go back to read the first book in the series later.

[Bionic Jean]

Thanks, Leslie! Maybe I won't bother...

[Shirley]

Leslie wrote: "I just finished the audiobook of a children's book that somehow I missed growing up, Ballet Shoes. While it was a charming story that I am sure I would have loved when I was 8, it d..."

Ah, Leslie, you have definitely missed out not reading it as a child! One of my most cherished childhood books!

[[deleted user]]

I loved it as a child as well. Wonderful memories. I have two left feet but I so desperately wanted to be a ballet dancer!

[Laurel]

Finsihed Mistborn: The Final Empire which was absolutely brilliant - definitely recommened for anyone who likes Fantasy. Also just finished We Need New Names which was one of the Booker shortlisted novels (I am belatedly reading my way through the shortlist) - very good, especially the first half.

[dely]

I have finished The Algebra Of Infinite Justice by Arundhati Roy and I recommend it to whoever is interested in political and economical issues, who is against globalization, against privatization of water and energy, abuse of power, and so on. Roy makes a deep inside of many of these problems related to India but I think these problems are important in every country. We really should never trust the government because where there is a lot of money and personal interests, there will never be something good for common persons or for nature: the rich become always richer and the poor always poorer.

[dely]

I have finished a very short book won with the giveaways of GR. It's Centosette by Stefano Cafaggi and I don't recommend it to nobody.
It is full of illogical events, the reader really doesn't know what the author wants to say with this story. At the end I found out the theme of the book: chimical gases and the damage to persons and the environment but everything seen and told by a child. The author really didn't succeed in this.

[Dhanaraj]

Finished The Leopard. A lovely book with superb descriptions and interesting characters in the backdrop of an all the more interesting historical events. A must read for those interested in Italian history......... I gave it five stars......

[dely]

Dhanaraj wrote: "Finished The Leopard. A lovely book with superb descriptions and interesting characters in the backdrop of an all the more interesting historical events. A must read for those intere..."

I will read it in January as a cozy read with a member of another group. I have it since roughly 20 years and I have never read it!

[Dhanaraj]

Read it, dely and you will like it. Even if you may not like the novel (which I doubt) I am sure you will love the fourth and the seventh chapter. Superb.....

[dely]

Dhanaraj wrote: "Read it, dely and you will like it. Even if you may not like the novel (which I doubt) I am sure you will love the fourth and the seventh chapter. Superb....."

Now I am curious but must wait till January :D

[Pink]

Just finished The Midwich Cuckoos. I rated it 3 stars overall, but for me that's still a really enjoyable book and I'd definitely recommend it. I'm looking forward to trying some more of his books next year....maybe with one of two others here ;)

[Holly]

I'd happily read some more Wyndham novels, Pink!

[Pink]

Holly wrote: "I'd happily read some more Wyndham novels, Pink!"

Good to hear! I've started making myself a list of possible readalongs for next year...it's getting quite long already!

[Bionic Jean]

I'm definitely in, Pink and Holly. Booked up or not, Wyndham's such a quick read I can fit it in! I remember skulking in the school library when I should have been in class once (can't remember which) because I couldnt bear to stop reading the Wyndham I'd started! (When I was a pupil, not a teacher.)

[Pink]

I agree this one was a nice quick, easy read. I'm looking forward to trying more- which other ones have you read?

[Bionic Jean]

The quickest thing is for me to do a link here to my John Wyndham page, as there are 11! As you can see, he used to publish as John Beynon Harris.

[Pink]

Ahh yes, I remember you talking about that somewhere Jean ;) I didn't realise that you'd actually read so many though, I'll take a look at your page now.

[Bionic Jean]

There's a couple I haven't read there. The print is too small :(

[Pink]

Jean wrote: "There's a couple I haven't read there. The print is too small :("

Ah okay, I guess some of his books have more large print availability than others....shame though

[Bionic Jean]

I think some will never make it to Kindle, or audio either. But sometimes publishers do make a special effort, like that American SF publisher that's putting a lot of out-of-print SF up on Kindle now - lots of Sheri S Tepper (whom I want to read, but haven't. Have you?)

[Pink]

Nope, haven't read or heard of it!

[Shirley]

I would also like to join in a Wyndham readalong, even if it's one I've read, I don't mind as it's so long ago since I read any of his! Thanks for the link, Jean, it reminded me that I hadn't marked The Midwich Cuckoos as read! I can't remember if I read Chocky? I would have to try reading it to remember!

[LauraT]

Dhanaraj wrote: "Finished The Leopard. A lovely book with superb descriptions and interesting characters in the backdrop of an all the more interesting historical events. A must read for those intere..."

One of the best books italian literature has "produced". It is so whildly famous that it has become a sort of "way of saying" its "You have to change something to make everything stay the same". Now you have to see the film with Burt Lancaster and Alen Delon. The dress Angelica had in the Ball scene is gorgeous : I've seen in an exhibition on italian fashion in Turin a couple of years ago.

[LauraT]

Jean wrote: "I'm definitely in, Pink and Holly. Booked up or not, Wyndham's such a quick read I can fit it in! I remember skulking in the school library when I should have been in class once (can't remember whi..."

Never read anything by him. I'll give a look when I'm out of these election days: at the moment I'm with my tablet at my childrens' school for thr election of the school commitee - composed by some teachers, some students and some parents. A real bore, especially because nobody seems intrested in them and we are doing exactly nothing!