What are you READING right now? Showing 501-550 of 1,056

[Craig]

MadProfessah wrote: "Surprised that you're not into THE THREE-BODY PROBLEM. I agree the video game is the weakest part of the book but I loved The Cultural Revolution stuff plus the explanation for the wild phenomena t..."

No on The Expanse. Is it good?

[Heather]

The Expanse isn't the strongest writing-wise. But there are some really great characters and interesting politics and cultural issues as well as cool alien stuff. I think it's worth reading, but keep in mind that some books are weaker than others.

What I do really appreciate about Expanse is that it's not just military sci-fi and it's not too hard science and it's not sexist like the older stuff.

[Alan]

I don't see The Expanse as military sci-fi, and I'm not forgetting the Earth-Mars War in book 2. The series (I'm on book 4 now) is an argument that humans will carry their tribal conflicts with them into space.

What I enjoy about the book is that the characters, and yes characterization is not a strong suit, do come across as people. And, its relatively intelligent space opera, you don’t need much beyond what I consider a lay person's knowledge of science to see that they're getting a fair amount of the science correct, not perfect but better than a lot of what I've read.

[Audrey]

I just started Crystal Dragon. I read it a number of years ago when first published and have been meaning to read it again for awhile now.

See, this is why it is good to keep all books ever read. Just in case.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

I've had a morbid fear of not having anything interesting to read for a long time. Decades ago that meant carting 40 boxes of books each time I moved as well as haunting used bookstores and being very well known at the local library. Now that I have a kindle and a generous budget, I'm getting rid of a lot of books and buying ebooks to replace old friends as well as new ebooks. I figure that eventually money will be tight again but if I have thousands of ebooks something is bound to be worth rereading.

[Betsy]

Teresa wrote: "I've had a morbid fear of not having anything interesting to read for a long time. Decades ago that meant carting 40 boxes of books each time I moved as well as haunting used bookstores and being v..."

I hear you.

[Al "Tank"]

Teresa wrote: "I've had a morbid fear of not having anything interesting to read for a long time. Decades ago that meant carting 40 boxes of books each time I moved as well as haunting used bookstores and being v..."

Guard your glasses or you'll end up like Burgess Meredith in the Twilight Zone episode.

[Lizzie]

Betsy wrote: "Teresa wrote: "I've had a morbid fear of not having anything interesting to read for a long time. Decades ago that meant carting 40 boxes of books each time I moved as well as haunting used booksto..."

I donated everything but my science fiction books when I left WI in 2006.. I refuse to give them up. I have 10 boxes in storage that are just Star Trek and Babylon 5. I have 60 feet of bookshelfs filled with hardcovers and paperbacks, some of which I have owned since I was a teen and joined the science fiction book club in the mid-70s. My daughter has walked off with some of my sci fi and she has advised me that I need to tell her brother that the sci fi is all hers when I die. I created a fan in her too for sci fi and Star Trek.

I have been carting books since I left home at 18, which tomorrow is 40 years and 4 states - home to college in NJ, then to Houston, TX - grandma's, my own place, back to grandma's when she went into a nursing home,; on to New Mexico; then AZ in 3 different towns/cities; then WI; then back to AZ to 2 different places. I have left things behind, but even those I have replaced with ebooks, it's just not the same as holding the hard cover I have read so many times as I lose myself in Dune, fly a Dragon on Pern, travel on an advernture with Pip and Flinx, or leave Earth on a City in Flight.

[Shanna_redwind]

Kirsten **Be A Dragon** wrote: "I've been listening to Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold"

I just finished listening to this and enjoyed it a great deal. I'm really liking going through this series.

Also just finished Consider Phlebas and did not enjoy it. I did enjoy parts of it, but listening to the philosophy made my eyes cross and at the end (view spoiler)[ I just threw up my hands and said "What was the point?" (hide spoiler)]

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

Rereading The Middle of Nowhere by Mackey Chandler. That is third in the April series. Main character is 16yo in this book. We read the first in the series (last year??) as a YA Pick.

[Cody]

Shanna_redwind wrote: "Kirsten **Be A Dragon** wrote: "I've been listening to Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold"

I just finished listening to this and enjoyed it a great deal. I'm really l..."

I liked the story to Consider Phloebas but did not think it was his best written piece.

I am not sure how long he had been writing at that point as I know he started out of genre and I have not read any of those works ... but for me there was a dramatic improvement from this to the next one I read.

Player of games is one of my favourite books

[Audrey]

Shanna_redwind wrote: "Kirsten **Be A Dragon** wrote: "I've been listening to Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold"

I just finished listening to this and enjoyed it a great deal. I'm really l..."

I have enjoyed nearly everything I have read by Bujold, but especially the books featuring Miles Vorkosigen.

[Caitlin]

Reading The Peripheral, by William Gibson. Took me a bit to get into--the plot is convoluted--but the man knows how to establish atmosphere like few others.

[Shanna_redwind]

Cody wrote: "I liked the story to Consider Phloebas but did not think it was his best written piece."


Maybe I'll give him another try then, because I really liked some of it, but somehow the whole story didn't do it for me.

[Lizzie]

I just finished the fist 3 books in Scalzi's Old Mans War Series. As my Budget allows I am alternating between it and Jucha's Silver Ship series.

[Audrey]

Happily, I discovered that I still have the edition of The Ship Who Sang that I got in 1979. Re-reading this next.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

Finished my reread of the April series, including the portion of Secrets in the Stars where that series intersects the April series.

Now I'm rereading Fledgling . Not sure whether I will do Saltation next or The Ship Who Sang (or something else that catches my eye). My daughter is reading The Martian so I may reread that one.

[Trike]

Just started Redshirts by Scalzi. The first chapter was funny.

[Monika]

This summer has been bad for real life getting in the way of my reading. I currently have the following on the go:
Lightless by C A Higgins
Forgotten Suns by Judith Tarr
Cibola Burn by James S A Corey

[Craig]

I'm trying to find something wonderful, but....
I am forcing myself through this one. It's private dick in space so far, and not all that good private dicks in space. Too many characters dumped in initially and I still can't keep them straight. As to the plot, it's slow to show itself and meh so far.

Leviathan Wakes


Tried to read Awakened: Age Of ExpansionAwakened: Age Of Expansion - A Kurtherian Gambit Series but was turned off by Bill Cosby scene where girl drugged boy into sex.

I'll keep a candle burning in the window for great scifi....

[Jonathan]

Craig wrote: "I'm trying to find something wonderful, but....
I am forcing myself through this one. It's private dick in space so far, and not all that good private dicks in space. Too many characters dumped in ..."

Leviathan Wakes is excruciatingly slow for the first 1/2 of the book, but holy shit does it pick up steam.

When I finished reading the book, it made me think of a super long locomotive, one of those that builds its own momentum as it moves. That train starts chugging along from a standstill, taking forever to even make it to walking speed, but then momentum is on its side. The train keeps picking up speed, Before you know it the ground slightly declines, track straightens out, and this super long train becomes a force of nature. Ground trembling like an earthquake. Rails screaming. The very air vibrating so violently that it heats up, producing a a mirage that makes the train look demonic. And then the train careens off the rails and carnage follows, making you happy you kept watching the train, because train wrecks are cool to look at.

The second book in the series isn't as good as the first, and the third is cliched garbage written for the sole purpose of getting a movie/TV deal. I only assume each subsequent book gets worse.

[Ally]

Al "Tank" wrote: "Teresa wrote: "I've had a morbid fear of not having anything interesting to read for a long time. Decades ago that meant carting 40 boxes of books each time I moved as well as haunting used booksto..."

I so remember this episode ! And I saw it as a kid, I was sad for him ...

[emily]

Craig wrote: "I'm struggling through The Three Body Problem..."

Same, to be honest. I've been slogging through it for months now, while I've blown through about 10 other books. It does pick back up again toward the end, but I'm not sure I have it in me to read the other 2 in the trilogy.

The only other sci-fi I'm reading currently is Babylon's Ashes, the latest installment in The Expanse series. I also have Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor from the library, so I'm looking forward to that; I love near-future sci-fi so I have high hopes.

[MadProfessah]

What?? I can't believe you think the Expanse books get worse. Or that book 1 is slow. Sheesh. The only one that doesn't really go with the others is CIBOLA BURN, but even that one is an extremely thrilling ride.

And BABYLON'S ASHES is incredible!

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

A Hop, Skip and a Jump by Mackey Chandler. Latest in both the April and Family Law series, merging characters from both series. I just noticed it was out, still haven't gotten the email from Amazon about the release.

[Bill's]

The Dark Forest by Liu Cixin

[Audrey]

Starshine. I am more than a third of the way through and still trying to figure out what is going on. I am getting confused by the sheer number of minor characters coming out of the woodwork every other chapter.

[Brandon]

Galactic Empires

This short story collection has some very cool stories. If it is not always space opera, it's at least in the neighborhood.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

Rereading the trilogy that starts with Janissaries by Jerry Pournelle. I'm about halfway through the second book. Not exactly space opera. Yes there are aliens and some traveling in space ships, but most of the story is on a planet (Tran).

[Heather]

I didn't like Expanse book three either and I heard four is weak. I'm skimming four to make it to five, which I heard is good. I just felt that three was a side story that didn't contribute to overall plot.

I am re-reading Ready Player One, which I have read before, and felt irritated by. But I started a local book club and wanted people to get involved and that was the one they went for!

[AndrewP]

Personally I thought book 5 was the weakest. Book 6 gets back on track though.

[Heather]

Oh no. :) Well, if I can slog through the boring bits of ASoIaF, I can endure anything.

[Shanna_redwind]

I'm reading Saturn Run right now and at halfway through I'm really enjoying it.

[MadProfessah]

Saturn Run is quite good!

[Trike]

I'm reading The Queen's Squadron by R.M. Meluch. Immortals versus mortals, empire versus rebels, FTL starfighters and humans who can tell when people are lying. It's a slightly harder version of Star Wars, with the same sort of stuff she'd later get into with her Tour of the Merrimack series.

[Craig]

'm running out of steam regarding The Expanse, Book 1. The cover, with the woman blown into space, is terrific. The writing part, not so much. I'm 50% through it and I'm searching for a plot to grab onto.

[Heather]

Craig wrote: "'m running out of steam regarding The Expanse, Book 1. The cover, with the woman blown into space, is terrific. The writing part, not so much. I'm 50% through it and I'm searching for a plot to gra..."

It is rather cliche gumshoe stuff at first. Once you get to the alien parts, I started to really get into it. Also you'll get a lot more politics as you get further in.

[Teresa, Plan B is in Effect]

eARC of Neogenesis by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller came out Thursday. I forced myself to wait until today to start, so that I could be productive at work on Friday. This is the newest in the Liaden Universe.

[odedo1]

Took a break from the Culture series, reading The Naked God by Peter F. Hamilton ( will take a while, its the longest space opera or any other book I've ever seen ).

[MadProfessah]

I hope you're reading THE NAKED GOD only after reading the first two books!

I'm reading the second book in Michael Sullivan's new fantasy series, AGE OF SWORDS.

[Cody]

MadProfessah wrote: "I hope you're reading THE NAKED GOD only after reading the first two books!

I'm reading the second book in Michael Sullivan's new fantasy series, AGE OF SWORDS."

I really like Michael Sullivans stuff, i think he got a bit of flack in AOS for too many female protagonists but it was another that i really enjoyed.

[Trike]

Cody wrote: "I really like Michael Sullivans stuff, i think he got a bit of flack in AOS for too many female protagonists but it was another that i really enjoyed. "

How many is too many? Kidding. I know the answer for dipwads who complain about that sort of thing is "one".

[Cody]

Trike wrote: "Cody wrote: "I really like Michael Sullivans stuff, i think he got a bit of flack in AOS for too many female protagonists but it was another that i really enjoyed. "

How many is too many? Kidding...."

ha yeah, I am more a 2 woman limit !! (joke)

I remember reading some of the reviews and they were like 'I normally give anything Michael writes 5 stars but there are too many women in this, 1 star'

I think that is an internet dynamic though, everything is either the best ever or awful. it would be interesting to see the amount of 1 and 5 star reviews compared to 2,3,4 star ones. I imagine the former group is by far in front

[Kirsten]

Just started reading Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee yesterday.

Very impressed so far. At first I thought all the technospeak would throw me off... but the plot and characters are so good it doesn't bother me at all.

[Shanna_redwind]

Just finished Not Without Hope. It was ok, but I wouldn't highly recommend it unless you really enjoy non fiction overboard stories.

Reading a jungle thriller by Frank Herbert that he couldn't get published: Angels' Fall. It's quite good so far.

[Tony]

Currently finishing up Babylon 5: Out of the Darkness. Its book 3 of the trilogy that fills the gaps between the end of the TV series and shows what happens with the Centauri and the Drakh over the next several years leading to the scene from the show that occurs in Londos vision. All of that means nothing if you never watched B5. lol If you watched the show I highly recommend the series. It's a great continuation of the story and the author is true to the characters.

[Brandon]

That trilogy is very good but hard to find. If you see copies for less than $20 per book and are a B5 fan, jump on it!

[Tony]

Brandon wrote: "That trilogy is very good but hard to find. If you see copies for less than $20 per book and are a B5 fan, jump on it!"

That's for sure. I'd been looking for them for a while now but only ever found the first one for a decent price. E bay had the 3rd going for $60+ at one point. I had just about given up and was hoping they'd be released as ebooks eventual when was talking with a friend. Turns out he had them and loaned them to me. So glad he did.

[Kirsten]

I've been reading Downward to the Earth by Robert Silverberg and listening to Secrets in Death by J.D. Robb

[C.J.]

I just finished the latest Exodus: Empires at War, by Doug Dandridge. After David Weber, I think Doug is the best SO author out there.