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 2021?
I've been re-visiting Kate Daniels and post-shift Atlanta the past few days. Kate is a 5☆ character. In terms of new books, I'm trying John le Carré's very popular George Smiley series from the beginning. 
Call for the Dead #1 by John le CarréMy review - www.Goodreads.com/review/show/3851996833
Thanks for the info about Sweet Harmony Gabi. I had missed that one.
discworld books have become my comfort read which is good i guess.
Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster. Excellent, highly readable, thoroughly researched and well presented, with maps, glossary and many pages of end notes. Not entirely unrelated to sf.
Currently reading 3 books, The Eye of the World & Eragon which are both rereads. Eragon is for a challenge, The Eye of the World because I want to move on to The Great Hunt, I never seem to pick it up and I need a refresher. This is my 3rd reading of TEOTW. And a first time read of Reunion in Death.
I reread Never Let Me Go in preparation for Klara and the Sun, and why isn't it Tuesday already?! I can't wait to see how Ishiguro returns to the same themes from a different perspective. I kind of want to rewatch the movie, but also not, because I want to keep the book clear in my mind and separate from the movie, and I've almost managed to forget how it differs.Anyway, if you like quiet literary specfic, and haven't read NLMG yet, what's wrong with you?!
Hey Carrie, I’m reading Eragon to my son!. Our progress is slow, but we’re about halfway through.
DivaDiane wrote: "Hey Carrie, I’m reading Eragon to my son!. Our progress is slow, but we’re about halfway through."I hope he's enjoying it.
Anna wrote: "I reread Never Let Me Go in preparation for Klara and the Sun, and why isn't it Tuesday already?! I can't wait to see how Ishiguro returns to the same themes from a diff..."I loved Never Let Me Go I recommend it all the time. I have a question, is Klara and the Sun connected? Same world or characters? That you know of?
Not connected in reality, but I’ve seen Ishiguro comment that it’s connected in his mind. I’ve purposely avoided reading anything about it beyond it being about an AI, because I want to be surprised 😊
Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City
by K. J. ParkerFantasy adventure detailing the adventures of Orhan, an engineer caught up in a war in a world rather combining ancient Roman and ancient British historical memes -- swords, bows and arrows, personal armor, that sort of thing. Very cute, really liked the first half-two thirds and it started to get a bit repetitive. And a terrible too abrupt ending. So 3 stars.
A Murder of Quality by John le Carré. This was his second novel, and it featured his ex-intelligence officer George Smiley. It can be read as a standalone.My review - www.Goodreads.com/review/show/3861303507
Anna wrote: "Not connected in reality, but I’ve seen Ishiguro comment that it’s connected in his mind. I’ve purposely avoided reading anything about it beyond it being about an AI, because I want to be surprised 😊"Haha connected in his mind is good enough for me.
Heh, I don't remember what he said exactly, and I didn't want to go looking for it, because I really do want to go into Klara knowing nothing besides the fact that it's thematically similar to NLMG :)
I gave Anthony Ryan a shot.
Blood Song and
Tower Lord. Stopped after the second book. A two star sequel to a four star start. Then I tried,
The Waking Fire, The Legion of Flame
and manage the third and final,
The Empire of Ashes. Ryan's stories are not so bad, but his writing style, to me is irksome. Ryan has a nasty habit of ending chapters on "cliff hangers." The outcomes are predictable. Three stars for the second series.
I agree with you on all points, Eric! I adored Blood Song, but it's almost as if a different author took over for the other books!
@Anna I want to read NLMG but I’m worried it’s going to be too sad.
It is sad, but I always feel like it’s worth the tears.
I tried Sweet Harmony and it turned out to be the first book by this author that I did not much likeMy review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I know'd The Cat in the Hat was up to no good!!!Dr. Seuss books are ‘racist,’ new study says. Should kids still read them?
Don might cancel Dr. Seuss... and we're coming for you Winnie the Pooh... I don't know what you've done wrong yet but we'll find something.
Some sad books are definitely worth the tears I just have to be in the right headspace for it if I know it’s sad going in :/.
AMG wrote: "I started reading this last year, but I had to return it and am just now picking it up again. Middlegame I'm excited for it. I like Seanan McGuire a lot for urban fantasy."
I really enjoyed Middlegame. McGuire took it up to 11.
Michelle wrote: "I agree with you on all points, Eric! I adored Blood Song, but it's almost as if a different author took over for the other books!"Ryan's concepts were good. His melody became discordant.
I've finished Salute the Dark by Adrian Tchaikovsky, the 4th book in the "Shadows of the Apt" series in a high-adrenaline, nail-biting, forgetting to breathe race. While the first three books had their slow moments I felt like this one didn't allow the reader a moment pause.Extremely good, broke my heart several times and finishes one of the story arcs.
Now I'm not sure if I should wait for the next one to get released as audiobook (cause Ben Allen's narration is very good and the voices meanwhile belong to the world like it is the case with the Stormlight Archive for me), or if I should go on with reading to satisfy my curiosity.
(and I only have to wait a couple of days till the next AT book will be released XD. This year really is pampering me)
Not reading...buying. Went to my favourite bookshop today (the one 80km away where the owner has a really good SFF section because he’s into it himself) and picked up The Galaxy and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers. I don’t buy full price new releases for just anyone. It’s very rare I will pay $33 for a paperback. Also picked up Nophek Gloss (saw it in the poll and it looked interesting so bought it and it was the price of the mass market paperback which is $19 so it wasn’t too bad) and The Poppy War. I’m hoping I don’t have that one already. If I do it doesn’t matter. My son’s birthday is this month. Really annoyed about having to pay full price for anything. The discount dept store I usually buy them from for half price has closed in our town. It’s still in other towns but they’re a long way away from me. Still reading The Last Emperox and The Midnight Library as well as 20 others.
We have a thread for book hauls! It’s a little dusty but I’m sure it’ll work just fine 😊https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Currently reading The Theory Of Everything
by Stephen Hawking and The Three-Body Problem
by Liu Cixin. I think this is a great duo of books to read together. Reading The Theory of Everything has helped me immensely to overcome any difficulties that the hard science fiction of The Three Body Problem might have posed. I'm thoroughly enjoying it and this book is en route to become one of my favorites.
I've just devoured One Day All This Will Be Yours by Adrian Tchaikovsky and it is perfect! Do yourself a favor and read it (or better, listen to it. The author narrates it himself and gosh is his voice beautiful and fitting for the snarky, self-deprecating mass murderer that his POV is. This is even weirder than your usual brain knotting time travel story and the end is spot on. I mean ... I'm biased where AT is concerned, but even for his standards this novella is brilliant!
Mystic wrote: "Currently reading The Theory Of Everything by Stephen Hawking and The Three-Body Problem [bookcover:The T..."Ouch just thinking of reading the two of those together makes my brain hurt.
unfortunately I didn't but as I'm now reading The Steerswoman series by Rosemary Kirstein I'm doing better.I'm also struggling through a The Jake Grafton Collection: The Intruders, The Minotaur, Under Siege, and The Red Horseman which is a bi too Tom Clancy-ish to me with lots of descriptions of how planes and flying and bombing work.
and finally for the Short Story challenge as well as Y for Title in the Alphabet Challenge, I'm reading The Year’s Best Military SF & Space Opera: First Annual Edition. It's not my typical read, but some of the stories have neen good
AMG wrote: "Just finished reading Howl’s Moving Castle for the first time since I was a child, and it was a great comfort read. Also reading Harrow the Ninth. I adored [book:Gideo..."
Gideon was better. Harrow starts off slow, but keep reading. The last third wraps up the story, sorta. For once, I can't easily guess where the author is going into the next book.
AMG wrote: "Just finished reading Howl’s Moving Castle for the first time since I was a child, and it was a great comfort read. Also reading Harrow the Ninth. I adored [book:Gideo..."
Howls Moving Castle is a beautiful read - I can't recommend it to people enough even if they've never seen ghibli - since it's so different! Loved "Howell's" home life... Couldnt agree more about how comforting it is to read - perfect for an evening bath type thing. Has anyone read the sequels?
I'm currently reading The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires and Real Life (40 pages in in both...) while also trying to get started into the The Way of Kings audiobook. Just finished reading The Thursday Murder Club and The Shadow of What Was Lost.
Rhona, the second Howl book hasn’t aged very well, but if you can look past that, there are some fun moments. The third one is kind of a spooky mystery for kids, and reads younger than the first imho.
I tried the sequels, and I put them aside. The first was so excellent!
Pyramids goes onto the Early Discworld Turkey List along with Eric and early Rincewind. The very next one, Guards! Guards! is actually quite good, and things keep looking up from there... I hope. I haven't actually read any of them between Reaper Man and Hogfather, so we'll see! (review)Next, on to The House in the Cerulean Sea for virtual book club, and which also comes recommended by several GR friends.
I just finished the second installment of the Chronicles of Tornor: The Dancers of Arun by Elizabeth Lynn. It was....interesting. Here's my review, chock full of tagged spoilers.Next up:A Desolation Called Peace
I'm reading Paladin's Strength, and I think life's getting in the way of my enjoyment, because I'm having a hard time getting into it. Although "possessed peacocks" gave me a chuckle.
Michelle wrote: "I'm reading Paladin's Strength, and I think life's getting in the way of my enjoyment, because I'm having a hard time getting into it. Although "possessed peacocks" gave me a chuckle."Also "the gentleman's bunchy hindquarters" :D
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SciFi and Fantasy Book Club
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Blood of the Mantis by Adrian Tchaikovsky, the third book in the "Shadows of the Apt" tales. It is still centered around war and siege, yet the mystery part is getting bigger as is the cast. I have to read the other books in a tighter sequence, because it starts to get complicated to keep track of all the characters and connections.
Past Master by R.A. Lafferty and
A Time of Changes by Robert Silverberg
were both oldies I read in my pursuit to go through the Hugo and Nebula lists. Both were interesting reads more on the philosophical/psychological side.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt I read for the popsugar prompt "dark academia", and I liked it a lot. Very slow going, but creating the moody, distanced atmosphere I love.
Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach by Kelly Robson was another one of those novellas who wanted too much and ended up being nothing at all. Rather boring, but I could cross off the "oldest book on your TBR" prompt from the popsugar challenge.
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson was a rare dip into social non-fiction (cause it was a group read in my non-fiction group and available to me on audio). Very interesting read, and I appreciated that the author did not only center on US but also shed some light on Nazi-Germany and the Indian caste system.
Sweet Harmony by Claire North was a mean and nasty reckoning with the urge to be perfect and to use whichever products necessary. I liked it a lot, but is has some quite stomach turning scenes.
Infinite Powers: How Calculus Reveals the Secrets of the Universe by Steven H. Strogatz is perfect for math geeks. The history of calculus is narrated in a quite approachable way. I listened to it, which is not really recommended if the reader hasn't the ability to 'see' formulas while they are narrated, but with two exceptions I could follow.
88 Names by Matt Ruff was basically a good idea (espionage in a RPG environment), but somehow the way the book was written/structured didn't work for me at all.
Live Long and Evolve: What Star Trek Can Teach Us about Evolution, Genetics, and Life on Other Worlds by Mohamed A.F. Noor was a cute idea to bring the basics of evolutionary biology and genetics across by using Star Trek episodes as starters. A good book for ST fans who want to learn a bit about genetics.
A Complicated Love Story Set in Space by Shaun David Hutchinson unfortunately wasn't for me. I liked his "We are the ants" a lot. But this one here didn't work. Way too much teenager romance.
The Mission by David W. Brown I read at the right time (while Perseverance was landing). The content was interesting, but the writing felt too pathetic for my taste. Even though the tale about the Europa mission was fixed upon several characters, they all stayed too indifferent to me to get invested.
A Life on Our Planet: My Witness Statement and a Vision for the Future by David Attenborough is a sobering, important summary of the state of our planet over the last decades and a view into the future. I'd say this is recommended reading for everybody. (and I learned that there is a documentary as well, which we will watch next weekend)
Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age by Annalee Newitz - I was looking forward to this one, but somehow it missed the mark. The idea of writing about four ancient cities and musing about the reason why the inhabitants gave up on them sounded so interesting, but it turned out relatively unengaging.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. At least I can now say I've read it ^^'. I guess I'm missing some connection to appreciate the greatness of this supposedly masterpiece of literature. I felt more moved by above mentioned "The secret history" - which evokes a similar atmosphere.
And now I'm nearing the end of Starlings by Jo Walton, a collection of short stories. Walton says herself in the foreword that short stories aren't her forte - and I fear I have to concur with her. There are great ideas in there, but the execution missed (at least imho) most of the time the point of a short story structure.