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 2022?
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Jemppu
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Jun 25, 2022 06:09PM
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I am finally starting song of ice and fire, should finish the first book tomorrow!
DivaDiane wrote: "I would buy that book narrated by Patrick Stewart."How about if it was done by Idris Elba?
just finished Joe Abercrombie's Age of Madness Trilogy. Quite good if a tad bit gruesome in parts (it is grimdark, after all!).
I would watch or listen to Idris Elba do anything. Yes.
Stephen wrote: "I read Mexican Gothic about a year ago. For me it was a 4 star book."Me, too. Fairy tales meet Weird Tales, sprinkle in a pinch of feminism and mix well.
DivaDiane wrote: "I would watch or listen to Idris Elba do anything. Yes."LOL. Now just have to get it done.
Read
Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy, which I would categorize as literary fiction. It is a novel about the re-introduction of wolves to the Scottish Highlands and the opposition that provokes among the people who live there. The story is told in first person by Inti Flynn, the project lead, whose complex personality and past trauma make her a not-so-reliable narrator. The prose is great and pulls the reader along. This is a great story of wolves, their environment, and how they shape it. It is also a story of characters - the people often don't look nearly as good as the wolves - and how their lives are affected by violence and domestic abuse. Note that some of this is very intense. I recall some posts about recommendations for fantasy involving forests and forest creatures. I think readers who like those tales would like this book as well. Readers who enjoy complex and deep characters will also enjoy it. My one complaint would be an ending that is too tidy and not too believable, but that's a minor quibble.
The second in this series and I did not enjoy it as much as the first.My review of Paper & Blood by Kevin Hearne
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Finished off the Lady Astronaut series (at least those that are available), and dang it, it left on a cliffhanger. Calculating Stars/Fated Stars/Relentless Moon, great set of books, thank you Mary Robinette Kowal! just finish the next one!!Anyhoo, now started Robert Sawyer's Hominids, and have on order his followups Humans and Hybrids, and have various Lois McMaster Bujold books on order so I can get to her Hugo-award-winners. If they don't arrive in time, I will probably finish up Anne Leckie's Ancillary series (already read justice, just got sword and mercy to go)
I enjoyed this more than I did The MartianMy review of Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I'm reading the Lightbringer series. I loved the first few books, but then it kinda a.... I don't like a arc for one of the main characters. But the first books were dear to my heart.
I honestly didn't think I would enjoy Hail Mary after reading Artemis. I agree, PHM was fantastic.
just finished the cult classic Midwich Cuckoos, and for a change out of SF into NF and Some Assembly Required by Neil Shubin, a easygoing science book.
Looks like this year I could actually finish the popsugar reading challenge for the first time. I'm still on track with my books. I've readThe Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi, which has a promising worldbuilding and concept. But unfortunately the first book was for a major part about a love triangle and about the preparation for and competing in a tournament. I love playing those challenges in video games but it is boring as hell for me to read about them.
So for me there were some glimpses of what this series will be about within way too many pages of plot that felt like filler.
Hopefully the second book will be what the first could have been. I will give it a chance when it will be released.
(read for the popsugar prompt "A sapphic book")
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett was a mixed bag. In part good writing and observations of the surreal feeling of a hostages situation that turns into a kind of sanctuary for both terrorists and hostages. In part unbelievable and over-the-top emphasis on the enthusiasm of everybody for an American soprano and her opera music.
In the end I wasn't convinced.
(Read for the popsugar prompt "A book that features two languages")
Forever Peace by Joe Haldeman - this one convinced me even less. Getting through this novel was a chore and I admit that I started skimming/skipping from halfway on. I have no idea why this got a Hugo and Nebula award.
Crossed off the list and instantly forgotten.
(for the popsugar prompt "A Hugo Award winner")
31/50 read.
decided to start Lois McMaster Bujold's vorsakian series, the chronological order (as opposed to publication order). just finished Falling Free, and now starting Shards of Honor, then I'll read Barrayar. Hopefully I'll get Warrior's apprentice and vor game (got them on order, but they've been on order for a month now...)
Working on current books but have started reading stuff I've not looked at for decades. Dune, Witches of Karres, The Pride of Chanur. Some have aged better than others,
Marc, that's my preferred way to read that series, too!
Dana wrote: "Working on current books but have started reading stuff I've not looked at for decades. Dune, Witches of Karres, The Pride of Chanur. Some have aged better than others,"I loved all three of those and would have loved to see a movie version of Witches of Karres (Drew Barrymore at the time of ET would have been a perfect casting for the youngest witch)
Read Aliette de Bodard's new book Of Charms, Ghosts and Grievances which is predictably excellent. It's set in a ruined, post-magical war gothic Paris (well, actually in a Viet dragon kingdom under the Seine IN that Paris...), a setting she developed in earlier volumes of the series and is quite fun.
I was given a recommendation for Rich Man's War as another good military sci-fi story. I'm about 40 % into it, and I am enjoying it. At first I was ho-hum about it, but then boot camp came into play.
Immune: a Journey into the Mysterious System that Keeps You Alive by Philipp DettmerAn unconventional but memorable nonfiction about the powerful Immune system. The author's style made the information accessible to many ages (teenaged and up) and regardless of the reader's knowledge level of biology.
My review - www.Goodreads.com/review/show/4788409912
Recently finished Papa Lucy and the Boneman by Aussie author Jason Fischer
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I finished reading The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance by Ron Chernow. Chernow also wrote a biography of Alexander Hamilton that the play Hamilton was based upon. This is a biography of a company rather than an individual. J. P. Morgan and J. P. Morgan, Jr. figure prominently in the book but it covers the company’s history up to its publication date of the book. I am reading It by Stephen King. Amazingly enough, I’ve never read it before. I suppose it’s because the novel is over one thousand pages long but I did read The Stand which is almost as long, so that might not be the reason. I plan to read Black Sun Rising by C.S. Friedman, next. I’ve read great reviews on the novel and want to find out how good it is for myself.
Gary wrote: "I finished reading The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance by Ron Chernow. Chernow also wrote a biography of Alexander Hamilton th..."love Ron Chernow! his Alexander Hamilton and Washington biographies were amazing! I will be adding that to my 'to-read' list!
Okay, I finally read Le Guin's A Wizard of Earthsea. Wow, really good book!It's funny b/c the story seems cliche now - a young boy learning to become a wizard...but I guess at the time it was trailblazing, since Wizards were always old men with big beards like Gandalf.
Check out all the Earthsea discussions! :)A Wizard of Earthsea >> First impressions | Final thoughts & More & Series
Just finished Barrayar - Lois McMaster Bujold, a quite entertaining read! but now I'm stuck, still waiting for the next book in the series to ship, so... I guess I'll finish Robert Sawyer's Neanderthal Parallax series, starting Humans, then Hybrids...
Sea of Tranquility
by Emily St. John MandelGentle, fascinating little book about time travel. Written in an amazing unique style. 5 stars.
We have a buddy read thread for Sea of Tranquility, check it out! :)https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
I have completed
All the Seas of the World and
Jade Legacy. The first fantasy is set in a make believe world fashioned after the City States of Italy in the Middle Ages. The second, a three book series, is set in a world where jade is precious and enhances the fighting arts. It is used by the clans, aka, gangs, for power. One might be reading about the Mafia. Four stars for both reads.
Completed The Edge of Worlds, the fourth book in the Raksura series.
I liked it but not as much as the three previous books.
My review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
reading:Firewalkers by Adrian Tchaikovsky - not impressed by this one
Bloody Rose by Nicholas Eames - I really like this one - it's as good as the first book
The Towers of the Sunset by L.E. Modesitt Jr. - so far so good and the author has cut down on the written sound effects
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir - OK but I'm losing interest about halfway in
Nothing to Lose by J.A. Jance - mystery that some idiotic publisher has decided to release with a jagged right edge. My OCD is twinging me big time.
Something old, something new, and a reread:Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake (audio): a young woman with a little daughter and a dead-end job joins a televised baking competition. I don't usually read contemporaries, but the "British Bake-off" aspect caught my attention. It ended up being a light, fun read, if a little preachy and predictable at points. (review)
Gideon the Ninth (audio, reread): I also intend to listen to Harrow's book before Nona comes out a lil' later this year. I came to appreciate Harrow, and the girls' relationship, a bit more this time around. (review)
King's Dragon: pre-2000 chonky DAW fantasy series by an author who's slowly becoming a favorite. Not sure if I'm going to be able to scale the whole wall o' words here--there's been a lot of misery with very little respite in this first volume, and there are six more to go. Despite that, Elliott's books thus far have consistently left me with a sort of afterglow (a weaker version of a book hangover, I guess) and this is no exception. I'm willing to follow this set of characters for at least another volume or two. (review)
After reading Songs of Distant Earth, I grabbed
Beyond The Fall Of Night by Arthur C. Clarke and Gregory Benford. If you have the US edition (I think the UK is different), the cover suggests this is the third iteration of the story Clarke originally published as Against the Fall of Night and then revised as The City and the Stars. (It says, "Based on the novella" and "expanded and continued.") To me, that's not what it is. Part 1 of the book seems to be a reprinting of Against the Fall of Night. I haven't done a line-by-line check, but I don't think anything has been changed. Part 2 is really a sequel, written by Benford that could be a separate novella. Clarke, in Against the Fall of Night (Part 1 here) is again writing a "big picture" story with very broad brushstrokes and minimal character development. It is a thought- provoking concept of the very, very distant future. I'm not sure I can think of another one that goes that far out. In Part 2, Benford captures much of the spare style Clarke uses, but the story is more a fantastic exploration of how worlds and biology might evolve with only a little plot, again little character development, and weak linkage to the story of Part 1. There is also a huge inconsistency between the universe of Part 1 and Part 2 that is hard to swallow. (view spoiler) If you enjoy speculation about how life and intelligence may evolve or be manipulated over millions of years, this could be fun. If you are looking for strong plotting and solid characters, it might be better to pass.
right now I’m reading Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Willow wrote: "right now I’m reading Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo"I liked that one.
I'm finishing up Elliott Kay's terrific military sci-fi series with Last Man Out. Hopefully there will be many more to come!
Rick wrote: "Read Aliette de Bodard's new book Of Charms, Ghosts and Grievances which is predictably excellent. It's set in a ruined, post-magical war gothic Paris (well, actually in a Viet dragon kingdom under the Seine IN that Paris...), a setting she developed in earlier volumes of the series and is quite fun."Wow; interesting setting! I know the name of the author, but not anything about her or her books. Can you describe them a little?
Eric wrote: I have completed All the Seas of the World by Guy Gavriel Kay.... Four stars for both reads.
How does the second book compare to the first, do you think? And the other similar ones of his? I liked the first enough, but not hugely hugely, so I'm ambivalent about reading this. If it's better, I will; if it's pretty similar, maybe not.
____
I got Edgedancer, which should be a nice, short read. (Back into the series world... I took a little break for intensity). After that, I'll be reading Time and Time Again. Really don't know how it'll be, but it seemed good from my research. I think it has an interesting premise.
@Tamara: I'd say All the Seas of the World is similar to his other books. As I mentioned, the historical back drop is the City States of Italy during the Middle Ages.
Tamara wrote: "Rick wrote: "Read Aliette de Bodard's new book Of Charms, Ghosts and Grievances which is predictably excellent. It's set in a ruined, post-magical war gothic Paris ..."Aliete de Bodard is of French/Vietnamese background. I have read a number of her science fiction and fantasy books and have enjoyed them. Her worldbuilding features culture and mythology that is derived from Vietnamese, although I think there are Chinese influences as well. Good examples are
On a Red Station, Drifting, which is science fiction and
In the Vanishers’ Palace, which is a Beauty and the Beast story set in the culture and myth of Vietnam. Hope this is helpful.
@tamara - Bodard's books tend toward the mythological in that they're derived from the myths of a culture but not retellings of those myths. Aside from the books Colin notes, she has a trilogy of books set in Aztec times starting with Servant of the Underworld which is how I found her. The setting of the Dominion of the Fallen books (there are 3 novels and various shorter works) is best described by Bodard herself, here: https://www.aliettedebodard.com/tag/p.... The core idea is that angels fall, but not to Hell, rather to Earth. And they retain all of their power and pride, which let to magical wars. The stories are set after the end of those wars but the end of wars doesn't mean the end of conflict. And angels aren't the only magical creatures, nor is the Christian world the only magical world.
An Orc at College Books 1-3
This book takes all the worst tropes for a Harem fantasy and puts them together in one place. It is told from the Male Character's point of view, so it comes off more as conquest than humor and with the main character being an Orc, it adds a huge layer of unreality. The book has some interesting moments and would have been readable if the author had decided to avoid passages of graphic sex. It is sad for me to have started these books with such hope and to be turned away by a form of fantasy penthouse letters.
This isn't remotely science fiction or fantasy, but we all love books here, so I figured this is worth posting.
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin is the story of a curmudgeonly (although not really old) bookstore owner whose life is spirally toward disaster when he gets a second chance. It's not the sort of second chance he (or the reader) would expect. It's light; it's sweet. A lot of it is about books and reading and the love of both. There is some sadness, but I would still categorize this as a feel-good story. (view spoiler) Strong recommendation for those who love books and reading and want a delightful summer read.
I've readThe Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar - two POVs 800 years apart. In one a girl is fleeing as refugee from Syria across Northern Africa and Middle East, the other has a girl accompanying a map maker along the same route in the past. The prose is beautifully poetic and it kept me mesmerized, but the two stories themselves somehow lacked the intensity their journeys could have had.
(for the popsugar prompt "A book with two POVs")
Dragon Prince by Melanie Rawn about a society of witches and witchers who try to influence the kingdoms in secret ways. They reminded me a bit of the Aes Sedai from The Wheel of Time series. The idea was good, the beginning as well, but the story went down the partriachal path with a lot of court intrigue, torture and rape, which ended up being rather boring and too romance novel like. I'm not sure I will read the next book.
(for the popsugar prompt "A book about witches")
Tiamat's Wrath by James S.A. Corey - I'm nearly done with The Expanse! In this book I liked the scientific parts of Elvi's POV - the military/rebellion stuff not so much. It feels like this part repeats itself in each book and it is getting rather boring.
Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, our Fantasy BotM after "Tiamat's Wrath" had the perfect title for the popsugar prompt "A book whose title begins with the last letter of your previous read".
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson. This one I picked up after nearly a year break somewhere at the 40% mark where I started to get bored. But with a fresh attempt I enjoyed it again, even if I would have wished for a more unconventional course of the plot in this per se interesting idea and worldbuilding.
(for the popsugar prompt "A book featuring a parallel reality")
35/50 popsugar prompts down.
... reading my comments it looks like I get easily bored nowadays ^^'.
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