What Else Are You Reading - January 2017

[David H.]

Mort by Terry Pratchett. The 4th Discworld book, and the 1st of the Death series. I loved the humor, and it was what I needed. I really need to read more of his stuff.

[John (Taloni)]

Discworld is awesome. After kicking around a few books I decided to read them all in publication order. You can read them out of order, but it's easier to follow the overall arc if you read in publication order. Either way, do read more Discworld! Pratchett is great.

[Eric]

David wrote: "I finished reading Clarkesworld Magazine, Issue 124 earlier this week. Probably the first issue I really liked since I started seriously reading the magazine in October. I've always..."

I've been listening to the podcast for ages (narrator is really good). Just started up a subscription to support the show and get the non-fiction part. Also, it's a simpler way to have the stories to share with my kids when they get older than scraping the website.

[Dara]

Finished Nemesis Games by James S.A. Corey. I loved it. Here's my short review. Now I'm reading The Three-Body Problem.

[Elizabeth]

Finished both God's War: A New History of the Crusades (in time for my exam on Crusades next week) and The Just City today. Not sure if I liked The Just City, but I'm enjoying the characters so I'll keep going with The Philosopher Kings. My next non-fiction will be more research-related stuff, this time on medieval magic.

[Eric]

Elizabeth wrote: "Finished both God's War: A New History of the Crusades (in time for my exam on Crusades next week) and The Just City today. Not sure if I liked The Just City, but I'm e..."

Research on medieval magic? Did I slip into an urban fantasy universe?

[[deleted user]]

I'm rereading The Lord of the Rings, the one volume 50th anniversary edition. A Christmas present. It rewards each rereading.

One thing I notice is just how much this is not an action book. I've made it to the end of the Council of Elrond. Maybe 10 pages of action? Only once has a main character used a sword, Frodo in the barrow. The other "action" scenes are hiding, running away, or being rescued. Very different experience than the films.

I've been reading The The Lord of the Rings: A Reader's Companion along with the Lord of the Rings. Finding the latest version of the Song of Eärendil, sung by Bilbo in Rivendell was a treat.

[John (Taloni)]

The good news is, my insomnia has lessened. The side effect is that I've been reading less. As a result I've been reading Hamilton's Great North Road for a week and am less than halfway through. Meanwhile Babylon's Ashes has come available. I may bail on my next choice, Three Body Problem, or at least delay it.

FWIW Great North Road is a pretty good read. Hamilton gets right to the action, which is unusual for him.

This is a murder mystery, which I don't enjoy out of SF contexts. Well, with the notable exception of the Sherlock Holmes stories, due to Conan Doyle's immense writing skill. In Great North Road it's used partly to bring early tension to the story and partly as a forum for a slow reveal.

Hamilton reuses a few things here. The MC is a pretty obvious copy of Cat from the Commonwealth books. The setup is a shabby Commonwealth, with wormholes connecting planets but not yet post-scarcity. Rejuvenation is in its early stages.

So far I'm enjoying this the most of any of Hamilton's books. Just a bit more slowly!

[Elizabeth]

Eric wrote: "Research on medieval magic? Did I slip into an urban fantasy universe?"

You just gotta remember not to speak Latin in front of the books.

[Nimrod]

I'm currently reading Theft of Swords. I finished The Crown Conspiracy, and started Avempartha, which is the second book in the Theft of Swords Omnibus. So far it's great.

[Joseph]

Finished Savage Season and decided I didn't want to read the second book (Mucho Mojo) until after I watch the second season of Hap & Leonard; so instead I started Lev Grossman's The Magicians (having just finished watching the first season of the SyFy series).

[Rob, Roberator]

It's been a busy few weeks and I've fallen behind on my reviews:

The Dispatcher - ★★★★☆ - My Review
Ninefox Gambit - ★★★★☆ - My Review
Moving Pictures - ★★★★☆ - My Review
Gemini Cell - ★★★☆☆ - My Review
Mona Lisa Overdrive - ★★★★☆ - My Review
Lumberjanes, Vol. 4: Out of Time - ★★★★☆ - My Review

[Iain]

I managed to slog through The Vorhh ★★★☆☆, which felt as endless as the eponymous forest. If you don't mind a plot that makes no sense and that does not really have a point and liked Conrad's Heart of Darkness then this is a good read.

Made it through TTBP ★★★★☆ which was a hell of a lot of fun once it got going. But then I am a sucker for magnificent science bull

[Trike]

Rob wrote: "It's been a busy few weeks and I've fallen behind on my reviews:

The Dispatcher - ★★★★☆ - My Review
Ninefox Gambit - ★★★★☆ "

How did you do the stars? Are they just emoji?

[Rob, Roberator]

It's Unicode, and I copied them from a friend of mine in another group.

Goodreads doesn't seem to support emojiis, or at least not the newer/more complicated ones. I believe the stars have been part of it for a few decades.

[Sky]

I just finished book:The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet|22733729] over the past month. I am about 10% through Babylon's Ashes right now.

[Colin]

Still working my way through The Three-Body Problem but in the meantime have finished:

Asteroid Made of Dragons This, of course, featured in the Sword and Laser contest on Inkshares. Afraid I was a wee bit underwhelmed. I ended up not much liking the genre-mashing combination of fantasy setting with sci-fi elements.

Miniatures: The Very Short Fiction of John Scalzi A fun collection of short fiction from John Scalzi. If you enjoy the snarky / sarcastic humour in his writing then these will probably be right up your street. It really is a small collection of very short pieces though, some of which I had read before, so possibly a tad overpriced for what it is.

[Kristina]

Nimrod wrote: "I'm currently reading Theft of Swords. I finished The Crown Conspiracy, and started Avempartha, which is the second book in the Theft of Swords Omnibus. So far it's great."

I've loved all his stuff.

[Kristina]

Just finished up Manners & Mutiny. I just love Gail Carriger's sense of humor in all her books. Started Time Salvager, so far so good!

[Colin]

John (Taloni) wrote: "... I've been reading Hamilton's Great North Road for a week and am less than halfway through."

At 900 - 1000 pages or a stonking 36 hours of audio, that still sounds like reasonable progress. A book like that would keep me occupied for a couple of months, I reckon!

It sounds like a book that would appeal to me if it wasn't for the huge investment of time required.

[Viola]

Stuck on page 99 in The Three-Body Problem. It is interesting but I don't feel like reading it

[Dara]

Viola wrote: "Stuck on page 99 in The Three-Body Problem. It is interesting but I don't feel like reading it"

It doesn't get better - at least it didn't for me. I just finished it myself (my review).

Now I'm reading A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab.

[Brendan]

Dara wrote: "Now I'm reading A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab."

Ugh I did not enjoy that book at all.

I finished The Dream-Quest of Vellitt Boe. Started Ninefox Gambit.

[Trike]

Viola wrote: "Stuck on page 99 in The Three-Body Problem. It is interesting but I don't feel like reading it"

I felt the same way early on, but I thought it started picking up around 150-170, then burbled right along until the very end where he nailed the landing.

[Sumant]

Here is my review of The Path of Daggers

[Eric]

Finished Starship Trooper - review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Started The Forever War

[John (Taloni)]

Finished up Great North Road. Great start, kind of fumbled towards the end. There were too many disjointed storylines that came together too quickly. Usually with Hamilton it's a slow start and a strong finish, this one is the reverse. I didn't hate the book, just wanted it to live up to its beginning.

Several characters take unexpected turns, one of which left me completely puzzled. There's some wishful thinking that huge scientific strides would be made in a communist environment, all evidence to the contrary.

Anyhoo, with that done, finally on to Babylon's Ashes!

[Jon]

Lemmed The Arabian Nights. I was looking forward to Sinbad the Sailor and he disappointed me. Finished The Ballad of Black Tom which I thought was quite good. About 30 pages into Doomsday Book, slow going so far.

[Kristina]

Still working on Time Salvager but I'm almost done and just wanted to share how much I am enjoying it! Fast paced, exciting and time travel! I think it should be considered for a group read!

[Eric]

Completed Absolute Power: Tales of Queer Villainy review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Started: Singular Irregularity: Time Travel Gone Terribly Wrong and got a gut punch w/ the ending to the first story

[Elizabeth]

Done with The Philosopher Kings and I really was very bored most of the way through it. But, I have the next/last book in the trilogy in my pile from the library, so I may as well finish it? They're pretty short...

Still going with Elantris but oh boy, does it have some flaws. I first found Sanderson with the Stormlight Archives, and you can definitely see how his style matured from the first book! The not-great audio recording isn't helping. It's a shame Kramer and Reading couldn't come back and re-record Elantris, I think it would help the story so much more. So, I'll switch to a text version once I've finished my library book pile.

On the non-fiction front I've started on Magic: A Very Short Introduction, which should take me five minutes, and then onto more meaty research.

[John (Taloni)]

About a quarter of the way into Babylon's Ashes. So far it has definitely delivered. I'll want more of what's going on with the ancient war, but if the other books are any guideline then I'll get it towards the end of the book.

[Nimrod]

I finished reading Bounty of the Everdark. That's a wonderfully written short tale for children. It can be a great tale for kids and very enjoyable for adults as long as you keep in mind it's a tale for children.

[Keith]

Finished Dolce Vita Confidential: Fellini, Loren, Pucci, Paparazzi, and the Swinging High Life of 1950s Rome and, although I intended to move on from it to something science fiction, I was excited enough about DVC to just plow right ahead into Ready, Steady, Go! : The Smashing Rise and Giddy Fall of Swinging London by the same author. Although written first, RSG works as a perfect sequel to DVC since that one ends with the production of Casablanca and the arrival of The Beatles, shifting global cool away from the grown-up elegant ennui of Rome and toward the rowdy youth culture emerging in London.

[Francis x]

trigger warning : short fictions and disturbances by Neil Gaiman
audio book from Hoopla
and Kindle book.

www.hoopladigital.com/home

[Trike]

Finished two memoirs, Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything in Between and Failure is Not an Option: Mission Control From Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond. One was a bit lighter than the other. Next is My Stroke of Insight: A Brain Scientist's Personal Journey. More sci than sci-fi lately.

[Stephen]

I am reading Blackguards: Tales of Assassins, Mercenaries, and Rogues which has short stories by many of my favorite authors. Picked up the The Salt Roads via Overdrive for February BOM.

[Jessie]

I'm reading Worm by Wildbow. It's a completed web serial, which is a new format for me (I was definitely skeptical at first). And it's a behemoth, clocking in at 4000 pages in ebook form.

I'm not typically a fan of straight-up superhero novels. But Worm is incredible and totally addicting. It's one of the most epic things I've ever read. It has a huge cast and expansive world-building, but also a phenomenal character arc at its center. Plus, as someone who gets fed up with plotholes and super powered characters not using their powers to the logical extent, Worm is so satisfying. Honestly, I can't recommend it enough.

My only complaint is that it's eaten up so much time this month and put me behind on my goodreads reading challenge. I feel like a 1.7 million word monstrosity should be worth at least a couple of books, right?

[Tassie Dave, S&L Historian]

Jessica wrote: "I feel like a 1.7 million word monstrosity should be worth at least a couple of books, right?."

To quote a great man: ;-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjsSv...

[Jessie]

To quote a great man: ;-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjsSv...

Haha - good point. I guess I just have to up my game for the rest of the year.

[Phil]

Finished The Three-Body Problem. Well, this was probably the most poorly written novel I've read since Eragon. The science was sometimes interesting, and the plot was ok but I found the writing itself to be wooden and amateurish. In particular, when writing dialogue, the author seemed to be trying to emulate badly dubbed cartoons. I don't know if this was caused by the translator or the original author.
I sometimes don't like a Hugo winner like Ancillary Justice or Among Others but I can understand why others do. This one is a mystery to me.
Starting Bite Me.

[Joseph]

Finished The Magicians and went straight into The Magician King. I'm liking the series a lot, and it's an interesting contrast with the TV adaptation (of which I've only seen S1; I'll probably wait for S2 until I can get it on Blu-ray).

[Selena]

I finished 'The Puppies of Terra' by Thomas M. Disch, and it had an interesting concept, although I was somewhat disappointed by the ending. :( I still think it's an good read nevertheless.

[Darren]

Joseph wrote: "Finished The Magicians and went straight into The Magician King. I'm liking the series a lot, and it's an interesting contrast with the TV adaptation (of which I've o..."

Started re-reading these again myself.

[Shad]

Joseph wrote: "Finished The Magicians and went straight into The Magician King. I'm liking the series a lot, and it's an interesting contrast with the TV adaptation (of which I've o..."
I've done the same thing. From the discussions had when the book was an S&L pick, I wasn't sure about it until seeing the show. I have enjoyed the books, but find this being a case where I agree with quite a few of the changes made adapting the books.

[Darren]

Shad wrote: "Joseph wrote: "Finished The Magicians and went straight into The Magician King. I'm liking the series a lot, and it's an interesting contrast with the TV adaptation (..."

Same. Penny, especially, is a better character in the show. Fillory looks pretty cheesy, though.

[Joseph]

Shad wrote: "Joseph wrote: "Finished The Magicians and went straight into The Magician King. I'm liking the series a lot, and it's an interesting contrast with the TV adaptation (..."

Same. Penny, especially, is a better character in the show. Fillory looks pretty cheesy, though."

Agreed. As adaptations go, I'd describe it as relatively loose -- what it reminds me of more than anything is L.A. Confidential, where when they decided to make a movie, they just kind of took the characters and a very broad structure of the plot, but ended up taking much of the story in entirely different directions.

My one possible regret (or maybe not) about watching the TV series first is that I can't picture the characters as anything other than the actors from the series.

[Aaron]

Jessica wrote: "I'm reading Worm by Wildbow. It's a completed web serial, which is a new format for me (I was definitely skeptical at first). And it's a behemoth, clocking in at 4000 pages in ebook..."

To quote M.Bison "YES...YES...YES". Someone else finally taking a dive into webnovels, there is so much good stuff out there.

One thing you probably missed since you were blasting though it was the comments section and the wild speculation. Basically if you like group reading you will probably absolutely love following someone like Wildbow's stuff live as it's coming out. Plus while Worm and Pact were in genres that have been done a lot with unique spin...Twig is uhhhh a bit more unique.

[Misti]

I've put Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell on the back burner yet again (I may keep it there; I'm not enjoying it as much as I was). Another library hold (The Dirty Streets of Heaven) has become available.

[Lite]

Reading superpowerds year 3
By Drew Hayes. Stombled on the series. Really good developed characters and world setting
Look forward to the final book in series. Listened to audible books very well done