SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
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What Else Are You Reading?
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What Else Are You Reading in 2018?
Recently finished, All Systems Red, I really enjoyed this, told from the perspective of the awesome and snarky Murderbot.
A Poisoned Season, entertaining historical mystery, Victorian England setting with a presumptive heir to the French throne lurking around.
Currently reading,
Extreme Makeover, the first chapter was a bit slow, but it has picked up speed, and accelerated, ever since. A cosmetic company accidentally creates an anti-aging cream that re-writes DNA.
The Years of Rice and Salt, working my way through this. Interesting but slow paced. I took a break between sections to read some other stuff. Getting back to it again.
Finally finished Wonder Woman Warbringer. It was a library ebook loan that expired 2 days ago but was still on my iPad thankfully. It was gone from my iPhone. Didn’t mind it. It was pretty good actually. A young Diana in the 21st century is a little hard to get my head around but once you get past that it’s good. My daughter had a minor procedure under a general anaesthetic this morning and I read it while I was waiting for her.
Help! I can't decide which audiobook to start. I'm in the mood for something fun and easy, so I thought it's a great time for Scalzi. But which one?Fuzzy Nation
The Android's Dream
The Collapsing Empire
Old Man's War isn't an option right now, because I want to binge it all in one go at some later date.
Mod
Fuzzy Nation
[book:The Android's..."
Haven't read Fuzzy Nation yet. Collapsing Empire was one of my favorites from last year -- fun, light, popcorn with great women characters. Android's Dream is weird, trippy with a message to convey. So what's your mood?
My mood is weird, which is why I'm not starting a more challenging read with my eyes. It sounds like maybe Collapsing Empire is exactly what I need, and I have to read it before June anyway, so I'm leaning towards that. More fun, less message for now. Thanks!That was easy! I should ask more often.
Meredith wrote: "Recently finished, All Systems Red, I really enjoyed this, told from the perspective of the awesome and snarky Murderbot.
A Poisoned Season, entertaining historical ..."
A Murderbot? That sounds like something to avoid.
Allison if you haven't been to the Bobiverse you might try that they were excellent on Audio
Mod
It's definitely on my short list! Good tip on the audio, thanks.
I finished Carnival which ended up being a buddy read both with the "inclusive bingo" crew, and GR friend Mimi. Really good! I liked Angelo, Lesa, and Vincent a lot, and appreciated how it didn't offer easy answers to the ethical questions it raised. There's some really cool scene-setting too: I want a khir and some carpet plant for my House, posthaste.It nicely fits in to a couple of the challenges I'm following, too: "Buried Alive!" and "TBR Challenge" under category 17: "Standalone novel."
(Review)
Since my last post, I’ve read the Broken Earth trilogy by N.K. Jemisin, which starts with The Fifth Season. I enjoyed the whole trilogy, but the first book had me completely absorbed whereas the second and third books didn’t hold my interest to that same extent. I still enjoyed all of it, though, and I was happy with the conclusion.My reviews:
Book 1
Book 2
Book 3
Next up I’m planning to read both of this month’s group reads, which is something I rarely do during the original reading month. The timing was good, and they’re both conveniently standalones. I’m staying out of the threads until after I read the books, though. I’m starting with Among Others by Jo Walton and then I’ll do Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny. I’ve read and enjoyed books by Walton before, but Zelazny will be new for me.
Dj wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Recently finished, All Systems Red, I really enjoyed this, told from the perspective of the awesome and snarky Murderbot. ...
A Murderbot? That sounds like something to avoid."
Murderbot is actually strangely appealing, though rather anti-social.
Catch-up:Read Gene Wolfe's The Fifth Head of Cerberus and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1414020222.
Then a "biography" which I wasn't keen on - 1963: A Slice of Bread and Jam: One boy’s year of adventure, crippling poverty, abuse and an encounter with The Moors Murderers by Tommy Rhattigan and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2352912628.
Meredith wrote: "Dj wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Recently finished, All Systems Red, I really enjoyed this, told from the perspective of the awesome and snarky Murderbot. ...
A Murderbot? That sounds like something to avoid."
Murderbot is actually strangely appealing, though rather anti-social.”
Although avoiding murderbots in general is a good idea, Murderbot refers to itself that way for good reason, and it’s not the hack-and-slash gorefest one might imagine. I don’t think Murderbot was anti-social so much as a socially awkward introvert suffering from PTSD. Also, Murderbot isn’t a robot.
I liked it, giving it 4 stars. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Trike wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Dj wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Recently finished, All Systems Red, I really enjoyed this, told from the perspective of the awesome and snarky Murderbot. ...
A Murderb..."
Well, I for one would sit in the back of the transport with Murderbot, making sure not to make eye contact. The follow up Artificial Condition is coming May 8. Murderbot tries to learn more about its past.
I really enjoyed (and finished) Sorcerer's Son. I found War and Peace on my shelf from when I was in the chunksters group on here so I think I'll try to get through it for the owned book challenge (it's worth a bunch of points) but to mix it up I'm going to also tackle Lord of Light.
finished Roger Zelazny's Alien Speedway Series (3 books)
- Clypsis
- Pitfall
- The Web
wasn't real impressed with these books
and
False Colours and Lady of Quality by Georgette Heyer - both were good
and
All My Sins Remembered by Joe Haldeman - this was OK
and
Killing Pretty - part of the Sandman Slim series by Richard Kadrey - a little better than OK, but I think I like Tad Williams' Bobby Dollar series which is similar a bit more
Read By the River by Lynn Flewelling this morning and then wanted to start reading the rest of the series and then my iPad needed charging so I couldn’t read any more of her books. Picked up a new paperback I bought a few days ago that was released last week instead. (As I’ve said before most New Releases in Australia are massive paperbacks not hardcovers which seem to be pretty rare nowadays here probably because of the excessive price and then after a while they rerelease them as smaller mass produced paperbacks). The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart by Holly Ringland. Only up to page 94 but it got me from the start. Just WOW! Brilliant debut novel. I’ve read a few debut novels this year so far and the quality has been exceptional. Just about to go to the shop to get something for dinner and then I’ll be back to it again.
Jacqueline wrote: "Read By the River by Lynn Flewelling this morning and then wanted to start reading the rest of the series and then my iPad needed charging so I couldn’t read any more of her books. Picked up a ne..."
does that Lynn Flewelling book have a different name in the US? I like her books, but I've never seen one with that name and I can't find it on amazon.com
Hey CBR...If you search for it here on Goodreads you might get better answers than I can give you. I found it as a stand-alone thing on the internet and it was here as a stand-alone as well when I went to add it to my read books but it is very short. I think it is in a book called Glimpses along with other stories to do with the series that fill in bits and blanks from the books.
thanks - that makes sense then and no, it's not available on Amazon except as part of this: Glimpses: A Collection of Nightrunner Short Stories
I didn't have that one, so thanks for mentioning it
Meredith wrote: "Dj wrote: "Meredith wrote: "Recently finished, All Systems Red, I really enjoyed this, told from the perspective of the awesome and snarky Murderbot. ...
A Murderbot? That sounds l..."
Anti-Social... Well I guess that would be one word for it. Poor Azimov. LOL.
I finished the audio for Dawn of Wonder which was a gift from a friend of mine a few years that I only just now got around to. I really enjoyed it. - ★★★★☆ - (My Review)Prior to this year I had read 0 Mark Lawrence books. Grey Sister is my 5th. I didn't enjoy it as much as Red Sister, but the series continues to be excellent and I highly recommend it. - ★★★★☆ - (My Review)
Late to the party here, but right now I'm reading The Human Division. If you're not a sci-fi fan but want to give the genre a go, I highly recommend John Scalzi. Start with Old Man's War and see if you like it. If it sticks, you've got a whole series in front of you. Sci-fi overall has never been my bag. Loved Vernor Vinge's work and now Scalzi. That's it, unless you count Hitchhikers Guide...Already devoured a dozen novels this year. New here, but will try to keep up with everyone's recommendations and thoughts.
I'll be looking forward to this one.Space Odyssey: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke, and the Making of a Masterpiece
Michael Benson
I’ve been into the books that are coming out with a lot of hype lately and I haven’t been disappointed. Read The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart by Molly Ringland over the last couple of days. Bloody gorgeous book. The cover is stunning which is what drew me to it but the story is moving and beautiful. It does deal with domestic violence which would be a trigger for some people. I reached into my bag of books (I’m at the beach again so I filled a bag with books of every genre that might interest me) and pulled out Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas to start right now. I’ve noticed I’ve been reading a lot of books by female authors lately. I don’t mean to. It’s just working out that way. I have heaps by male authors but I’m just not getting drawn to them as much.
Re-reading The Quartzsite Trip -- an old favorite discovered during my college days. It's sharp and sweet at the same time -- kind of like a quirky 1960s version of The Breakfast Club.
Mod
That one looks like a good 'un to recommend to my friends who only like to read/watch things that make you (read: me) cry.
Finished Dracula
and will start
God of Vengeance. I really enjoyed the style of "Dracula," which used journal, diary entries, newspaper articles and the like to weave this mystery. Published 1897.I have never seen Francis Ford Coppola's movie of this publication produced in 1992. Perhaps I should check it out. Any other Dracula movies I may have seen were just scare tactics and BS.
I'm currently reading The Passage by Justin Cronin. It makes me think of a mix between 'The Strain', 'The Walking Dead' and '28 Days Later'.
I have just finished Red RisingI got it because of the rave reviews but the start was slow and I worried it would be derivative (children fighting to their death while adults look on...) but I loved the characters and the pace built up the excitment towards a surprisingly good ending. 4.5 stars.
Esther wrote: "I have just finished Red RisingI got it because of the rave reviews but the start was slow and I worried it would be derivative (children fighting to their death while adults look ..."
I struggled with the beginning of that book as well. I didn't have the same issues with the next two however.
Sad to say I was a bit meh about The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Ended up giving it a 2.5 stars bumped down to 2, because I can't say I'm too interested in continuing the series.Almost finished A Conjuring of Light, the finale of the Shades of Magic trilogy, and it's so much better than the weaksauce second book. My biggest gripe is that so much is happening so fast, and things get skipped so it feels a bit jerk in place - like, one second someone is at the palace, and the next page they're somewhere else and it's like, woah, did I skip a page?
And I appreciate the fast pace but I also feel like this book could be less all thrusters go if the second book had been better paced and picked up some of the backstory stuff we're getting in this book.
Rob wrote: "Esther wrote: "I have just finished Red RisingI got it because of the rave reviews but the start was slow and I worried it would be derivative (children fighting to their death whi..."
Lots of books have slow starts but it is more worrying if you think the whole book is just going to be a pale imitation of something else.
Even in middle when the action got going I wasn't sure I would continue the series but the last quarter sold me.
Lilyn G. (Scifi and Scary) wrote: "Esther wrote: "Rob wrote: "Esther wrote: "I have just finished Red RisingI got it because of the rave reviews but the start was slow and I worried it would be derivative (children ..."
I can't advise about audio because it doesn't work for me but you need to go farther. The pace picks up when he reaches the institute.
I loved the audio personally. Tim Gerard Reynolds is one of my favorites. It was part of the reason I stuck it out with the first book.
Mod
Colleen, glad you're current book is going better!
I just finished Among Others, which I really thought was well done and relatable, and Carnival which...had carpetplant, which is cool. Among Others had a very simple message that it kept repeating:"You're not alone."
Carnival had a dozen messages and kept trailing off midsentence like an 8 year old who accidentally got their sibling's adderall.
On to The Three-Body Problem for real this time!
Saar wrote: "I'm currently reading The Passage by Justin Cronin. It makes me think of a mix between 'The Strain', 'The Walking Dead' and '28 Days Later'."I tried with The Passage, but I didn't finish it. I liked it, but it felt way too long. I don't remember if it was actually really long or just felt that way, but there was a point where everything changed and it seemed like I had already read a book and was starting on the sequel, but it was still not even halfway done. I plan to go back to it eventually, but I needed a break and then never got around to finishing it.
Almost done with The Girl with All the Gifts. One amazing book !!
Bobby wrote: "Saar wrote: "I'm currently reading The Passage by Justin Cronin. It makes me think of a mix between 'The Strain', 'The Walking Dead' and '28 Days Later'."I tried with The Passage, ..."
I thought I liked The Passage and gave it 5 stars but when I considered reading the sequeals I realised the length had made it a bit of a slog and I just couldn't face any more.
Mod
Ooh, are you reading it or listening to it? The narrator does an ammmmmaaaaaazzzzing job with the audiobook!"
+1 this. :)
Mod
https://www.goodreads.com/poll/list/1...
I'm tempted to vote for Locke & Key to tie it back up...
Mod
lolol
"Some [wo]men just want to see the world burn."
Another catchup:Read a very enjoyable humour-horror read for Star Trek fans by Kevin Anderson - Night of the Living Trekkies - reviewed here - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2338197844.
Then a John Gordon novel, The Ghosts Of Blacklode and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2358173551.
And a Cabbalistic and futuristic fantasy by Liz Williams, The Poison Master, reviewed - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2358348975.
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
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