Goodreads Authors/Readers discussion
IX. Currently Reading?
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What are you currently reading (or just finished)?
Finished The King Must Die. It just wasn’t my cup of tea.I liked the story well enough, but Renault’s writing style was distracting. It’s not because her sentences are wordy. I’ve read a lot of Victorian novels and am used to wordiness in sentences with a lot of subordinate clauses that go on for several lines. I had problems with her syntax and unnecessarily convoluted sentences. For example,
All this I saw before he deigned to look at me; this and the way he stood; like a painting done on a wall of a princely victor, whom words do not touch, nor time and change, nor tears, nor anger; but he will stand so in his ease and pride, uncaring, till war or earthquake shakes down the wall.
Huh???
Or
If a man could prevent knowledge before he has it, I would not have known.
Again, huh???
Also, her unorthodox use of punctuation bothered me. It’s not that I’m a stickler for rules. It’s just that when you violate the rules of proper syntax and good punctuation, you better have a legitimate reason for doing so. Maybe I missed something but I just couldn’t figure hers out.
I read reviews of the novel after I had written mine. And it seems a lot of people loved the book and admire her writing style. So just because it wasn’t my cup of tea, it doesn’t mean it can’t be yours.
My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Currently reading Dark Places, by the author of Gone Girl, and really enjoying it so far! Loving the mystery and the sinister atmosphere of the book. Very dark but also gripping.
My February book reviews blog post is up. If you want to check it out, go here: http://ziglernews.blogspot.co.uk/2017...
Terri wrote: "Brew. Really enjoying it so far."I'm still waiting for the book I was promised before the new year to arrive!! Goodreads authors should deliver what they promise
Currently reading The Muse by Jessie Burton. It's a far cry from my usual scifi/fantasy fare but I really like her style, even if the plot is a little slow. I remember it taking me a while to get into the Miniaturist too, so I won't be deterred!
Just started
Wizard's First Rule. I've been meaning to try this author for some time and finally decided to get going. Grabs you right away and so far, though barely started, it keeps me reading.
Just finished
. It was a great read. If you are interested, my review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...Now starting
I just finished Anita Desai's Fasting, Feasting, a finalist for the Booker Prize in 1999. I enjoyed the novel. Desai has a keen eye for detail and for revealing her characters through gestures, facial expressions, words said, and words left unsaid. I thought her use of food as a metaphor to illustrate the similarities and differences between the Indian family and the American family was skillfully done. From my review: "Although worlds apart, the two families have in common a patriarchal family structure with an inflexible hierarchy that goes unchallenged, one that forces its members into rigidly defined roles. In both cultures, women are the primary victims whether they are married or single, young or old."
My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Read Marion Zimmer Bradley's The Shattered Chain and posted a review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1932490280.
Read the follow-up to The Shattered Chain, Thendara House, and posted a review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1934827050.
I just finished reading This Is How You Lose Her. Personally, I didn't like the book very much because it was so explicit and didn't really have a message...but regardless, I'm still glad I got a chance to read it, because it's a type of book that I probably wouldn't read on a normal basis.
Read Thomas Burnett Swann's The Not-World and posted a review - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1934898666.
Just finished reading Hiedi and currently reading Master of the Game by Sydney Sheldon
A quick read - John Gordon's The Midwinter Watch - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1936857372.
Recently finished Halloween Nightdance Comics. the characters are so relatable and micheal myers is scarier than ever! I highly recommend it!
I finished The Hakawati by Rabih Alameddine. If you like getting sucked into a labyrinth of stories within stories, replete with bizarre characters and magical happenings, you'll enjoy this novel. I loved it.My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
I finished The School of Essential Ingredients by Erica Bauermeister. It was ok. I wasn't too excited about it.My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Still working on
and have found it great and not so great in different spots. Getting near the end.
Just finished
. A lovely book.Now starting
.
I just finished Amanda Prowse The idea of You.Utterly Fantastic! Had me in tears.
Amanda always puts so much raw emotion into her books and always challenges topics that are sensitive, in a way that's informative and passionate.
This book is about a women's longing for a family, however mother nature has other ideas and she suffers several agonising miscarriages.
Luckily for her she has a supportive and strong partner.
This book is captivating and draws you in from the very first page. Although there is heartache there is love.
I cant recommend this book enough it's a gem of a book.
Don't be put off by the idea that it is about miscarriages, there is so much more to this book. There is a fantastic twist and a whole lot of Sass from a teenage step daughter. It's about family and new beginnings.
I finished Lyrics Alley by Leila Aboulela. I enjoyed her depiction of 1950s Sudan, the intersection of the story lines, and the struggles involved in transitioning from a very traditional culture to a more progressive one.My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Currently reading Wicked / Son of a Witch by Gregory Maguire. I'm currently 65 pages into Wicked. I did see the musical before reading this book, and have tried to read the single volume of Wicked, but I couldn't concentrate on it. This version though, with the formatting of it as a larger book with a larger font has made it easier for me to get into the book, and I've actually been enjoying it this time around. The cover on this copy is beautiful.
I just started Childhood's End
. An old scifi classic that I realized when I saw it that I'd never read it. Got sucked into it right away. Now nearly done and I can't wait to see how it ends.
I've not long finished Jack Campbell's the lost fleet dauntless. This I thought was an amazing entrance into a military science fiction book which lead me to buy nearly all of Jack Campbell's books. I am now reading his next book The lost fleet fearless and carries on perfectly from where Dauntless finished. I recommend them.
The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin OlympicsIU'm 90 pages into this book. I fascinated. Aside from the sport aspect, it is giving a vivid picture of the time just before the depression and during it.
I just finished Witches, Midwives and Nurses: A History of Women Healers. I read it years ago and decided to give it a re-read. Although it was first published in the '70s, it is still an excellent resource for those interested in learning about women as healers, their persecution as witches during the middle ages, and their ouster by the male dominated medical profession of the late 19th early 20th centuries.
Highly recommended.
My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
I am about to finish the sci-fi ebook Celestial Ascension (I have about 10 minutes left in it as of right now, so it will be done after my afternoon break). It is bloody, violent, and has a good deal of gratuitous sex and swearing! Other than the fact that you pretty much need a scorecard to keep up with who is on which side, IT ROCKED! Next up is Resurgent, the first book in the Star Brigade series, by C.C. Ekeke.
And I am over half thru the H.P.Lovecraft tome.
Just finished The Handmaids Tale....awesome.
Just finished 
It's actually a very sweet romance. Memoir of a boy who falls into a harem. Starts with his birth, which endears Young to you.
Very honest account, and not at all shocking. Well, I didn't think so, but perhaps my years as a romance reader and author have changed me?
I have almost finished reading Land of Heroes: A Retelling of the Kalevala by Ursula Synge. Years ago I enjoyed reading W.F. Kirby's verse translation of The Kalevala, which has been called the national epic of Finland. Longfellow was inspired to write Hiawatha after reading a German translation of the epic poem. The prose retelling of the Kalevala by Ursula Synge is very good. I doubt if it could have been done better. Weland: Smith of the Gods by Ursula Synge, her retelling of the Lay of Volund from The Elder Edda is one of my favourite books in my book collection.
Starting
Magic Bites today. Somehow I read one of the books in this series a while back before I realized it was not book 1. So, now trying to correct that.
I finished Complaints and Disorders: The Sexual Politics of Sickness by Barbara Ehrenreich and Deirdre English, their sequel to Witches, Midwives and Nurses: A History of Women Healers. Another powerful read. Highly recommended for anyone interested in how medicine has been used as a tool of social control against women.My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Just finished Monster Calls by Patrick Ness, and currently reading Caraval by Stephanie Garber.
I finished Mayan Folktales by James D. Sexton. I enjoyed it. As with many folktales, it was entertaining and reflected cultural values. Some of the stories were funny--talking kettles complaining about their black bottoms. Some were a bit bawdy--not suitable for children. All in all, a nice collection.My review on goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Just finished 'Big Little Lies' (didn't love it), just started 'Catch 22'.
Just finished A Woman of Courage (which for some reason doesn't want to come up as an add book) https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... by J.H. Fletcher, which I really enjoyed. J.H. has the ability to convey the thoughts and feelings of the women characters in his stories so well I always think he is a female author.
Finished Web of the Witch World by Andre Norton and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1954248792and also The Spyglass File by Nathan Duncan Goodwin and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1765215455
Just finished "The Life We Bury." Best book I have read in a long time.
Read A Cotswold Casebook by Rebecca Tope and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1967530739.
Just finished a re-read of Ariel by Steven Boyett. This time around found it a bit of a disappointment - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1954253265.
Just finished
Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh by Joyce A. Tyldesley.Tyldesley pieces together historical and archaeological evidence to present the life and times of Hatchepsut. A well-researched biography about a fascinating woman at a fascinating time in history.
My review on goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
and on my website at www.tamaraaghajaffar.com
Goodreads Authors/Readers
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Oui Oui Gigi
and (almost a classic):
Burning Bright
Right now I am reading
Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products
quite fascinating. This is going to be another 5 stars