Week 7: What are you reading?

[Liz]

Another Monday; another week to read!

Last week I finished Infected by Scott Sigler, which was definitely a thrill-ride. I'm almost done with the sequel, Contagious now. Already looking forward to finishing off the trilogy with Pandemic later this week.

I haven't started my fantasy challenge yet. I think I will wait til I'm done with this current trilogy. Then I'll pick out a fantasy book to tackle.

What is everyone else reading this week?

[Traci]

I finally finished A Discovery of Witches. Though the last 80 or so pages picked up the pace a bit, the previous 500 pages of mind-numbing boredom just made this book torture to get through. The overall plot wasn't awful, but the way she wrote every little detail (describing every cup of tea - and there was LOTS of tea) just made the story drag. And the relationship was absurd. At one point the vampire actually says to her "I will kill you myself before I let anyone hurt you...And I don't want to kill you. So please do what I tell you." Yeah, I really didn't like this one.

Anyway, I'm now reading Retribution Falls by Chris Wooding, which reminds me a bit of Firefly. I'm really enjoying it.

[Jodie]

Liz, did you ever read "Hater" by David Moody? The cover caught my eye as I was walking back to my desk from the bathroom, and that is how I stmbled across it. (I think their position on the fiction shelves as changed, though.) When I looked up the Sigler trilogy books you read, it made me think of this book. Hater is also the first book of a trilogy, but I couldn't get into the 2nd and never tried the 3rd. The 2nd and 3rd are "Dog Blood" and "Them or Us."

Okay, so I gave up on Classics and haven't started Fantasy but FINALLY finished my first book of teh year (how sad is that?): John Grisham's "Sycamore Row." I really liked it! I will now go and log it in!

[Jennifer]

Cinnamon Roll Murder...I needed a light mystery in my life :)

[Katie]

I read Infected a long time ago when I was first obsessed with self published ebooks. (Off topic- my phone thinks it is a good idea to substitute the work Ebola for ebooks.) I liked it but didn't read the sequel.

I am reading Unspoken after abandoning a long chain of mediocre books. So far this is great!!

[Donna]

I finished the Smartest Kids in the World and How They Got That Way. It was a fascinating look at the American education system and how we compare with other countries...what we prioritize compared to them and how we handle teaching etc. I would highly recommend to anyone interested in education. Good stuff. Starting Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard. Does that count as fantasy?

[Ann]

I finished both Catching Fire and Mockingjay over the weekend (and not much else), and loved them. Can't wait for the movies of Mockingjay (I've already seen Catching Fire twice). Amazing books.
I'm now reading Divergent, and enjoying that too. :)

[Julie]

I'm still reading A Dance With Dragons, which I'm certain I will be for some time.

I also picked up the audio book for Life of Pi, so I'll probably start that today.

[Liz]

Jodie, I have read Hater, and every day I notice the other two books on the fiction shelves. I will get to them one day, but who knows when! I have so many books on the "back-burner" it's ridiculous. You know what makes me sadder than just about anything? The fact that there are so many good books out there, and even if I spent all day, everyday just reading I'd never get through all the books I want to read.

I will quote John Waters real quickly: "Being rich is not about how much money you have or how many homes you own; it's the freedom to buy any book you want without looking at the price and wondering if you can afford it." That is what I aspire to.

[Angela]

Donna wrote: "I finished the Smartest Kids in the World and How They Got That Way. It was a fascinating look at the American education system and how we compare with other countries...what we prioritize compar..."


I read The Graveyard with my son last summer, what a great book... He is such an interesting writer.


This week I picked up Enders, Uninvited, Erased, The Dollhouse Asylum and No Place. I have 1/2 read Enders and it is pretty good. I am also half way through 11/22/63. Books are an insomniacs best friends!!!

[Phyllis]

Just finished There's More to Life than This by Teresa Caputo. It's a great encouraging read. Now reading The First Phone Call from Heaven by Mitch Albom.

[Kyra]

I'm finishing up The Golden Compass for my fantasy challenge and it is finally my turn to read The Fault In Our Stars! I'm looking forward to it.

[Pattie]

Both my car audiobook and my lunch audiobook finished today (The Host by Stephanie Meyer and Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes respectively). I really enjoyed both of them, although I would not recommend anyone read Matterhorn for their lunch book since it is quite stomach turning. Now I am on to An Echo in the Bone by Diana Galbaldon (any other Jamie and Claire fans out there??). I love the reader for the series. Davina Porter's voices of all the characters just bring them to life!

[Liz]

The Outlander is definitely on my list of things to read, but it's so hard to stick to the list! Especially when I keep adding crazy, long series like The Wheel of Time and Discworld

[Donna]

Has anyone read Helprin's Winter's Tale? I'm about 100 pages in a trying to decide if it's worth it?

[Kyra]

Liz,
I actually read Outlander for a class my freshman year of college!! Lots of action & romance if I remember correctly! It was a good read.

[Liz]

Kyra, I'm glad to get another recommendation. It's actually one of my boyfriend's favorite series, and I promised him I would eventually get to it. I'm interested to see how they adapt the story for the TV series.

[Vivian]

I just finished" Board Stiff" by Elaine Viets and starting "T J's Ride" by J R Hamilton- an ebook available on smashwords. It was written by my boss!

[Liz]

Vivian wrote: "I just finished" Board Stiff" by Elaine Viets and starting "T J's Ride" by J R Hamilton- an ebook available on smashwords. It was written by my boss!"

Very cool, Vivian. It's great to see how much easier it is to self-publish these days!

[Jodie]

Liz wrote: "Jodie, I have read Hater, and every day I notice the other two books on the fiction shelves. I will get to them one day, but who knows when! I have so many books on the "back-burner" it's ridiculou..."

I know, my "To read" list is way too long and actually causes me stress! :) I liked "Hater" much better than Stephen King's "Cell," which was about people suddenly acting violently. Both had their moments, but "Cell' was almost relelentlessly bloody.

[Katie]

Pattie wrote: "Now I am on to An Echo in the Bone by Diana Galbaldon (any other Jamie and Claire fans out there??). I love the reader for the series. Davina Porter's voices of all the characters just bring them to life!


Have you heard they are doing an Outlander mini-series? There's a preview on the Starz website: http://www.starz.com/originals/outlan...


Jodie wrote: "I liked "Hater" much better than Stephen King's "Cell," which was about people suddenly acting violently. Both had their moments, but "Cell' was almost relelentlessly bloody.




I LOVED "Cell" I listened to it as an audio book several years ago, and it stuck with me- probably because of the excessive gore.


I just finished reading Royally Lost it was completely predictable, but an easy book to fly through. I'm also listening to Nos4A2 and that is taking me longer than expected to get through, plus it is dark. I have messed up dreams after listening.

[Cami]

Pattie wrote: "Both my car audiobook and my lunch audiobook finished today (The Host by Stephanie Meyer and Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes respectively). I really enjoyed both of them, although I would not recomme..."

Pattie- i just LOVE the Outlander series! Can't wait to see the Starz series. I'm going to have to subscribe just for that! I own all the books in the series( digitally) and plan on re-reading Outlander soon before the TV series begins.