What else are you reading - March 2022

[John (Taloni)]

Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky came in off hold so I interrupted my low-key binge read of Clarke for this one. It's quite a good book. Just 200 pages, about the length of an old-school SF book. Tchaikovsky is usually good at this length or shorter, it's only the longer ones that can get tedious.

A junior anthropologist representing the second wave of human colonization observes descendants of the first wave. He has to decide just how much to intervene in their culture when they are threatened for the second time. His first intervention made sense at the time, but does it now? Plus, he doubts himself, and with good reason.

Well, I don't want to spoil because the book is really well done, so read for more!

[Ian (RebelGeek)]

Rick wrote: "Ian (RebelGeek) wrote: "I'll take one for the team & let you know if the next book Use of Weapons is good & if it makes sense if you skip PoG. ..."

You mean you'll let us know if YOU THINK it's go..."

Of course. And thank you.

[Clyde]

Seth wrote: "These are my favorite books ever. In case you were feeling guilty (though why would you?) about leaving SFF behind for a while, Jo Walton makes a good case that these should qualify and did a book by book read-along on Tor: https://www.tor.com/2010/10/04/not-a-...

That's the link to the series introduction (no spoilers for books) and there's a post for each book too that are fun to read after you're done. There's also a fan site which has maps for each of the books, if you're interested - it sometimes helps, here's the map for the first one: http://www.cannonade.net/map.php?Mast... ..."

Thank you, Seth.
I am thinking to reread the series this year (actually already read the first a few months back) and those links -- especially the maps -- will be a big help.

[Joseph]

Sped through Tanith Lee's Companions on the Road -- a fairly short but excellent collection of two novellas -- and am starting The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng, the third in K.S. Villoso's trilogy.

[Ruth]

Clyde wrote: "Seth wrote: "These are my favorite books ever. In case you were feeling guilty (though why would you?) about leaving SFF behind for a while, Jo Walton makes a good case that these should qualify an..."

Gotta say, I’m appreciating the scene in Master and Commander where Maturin is given a tour of the ship and an explanation of some of the nautical jargon. Now I understand what a staysail is! I was a little taken aback when, early on, Aubrey discusses a rope join with the supremely nsfw name of a (view spoiler)[ cunt-splice. (hide spoiler)]

[Seth]

Ruth wrote: "Gotta say, I’m appreciating the scene in Master and Commander where Maturin is given a tour of the ship and an explanation of some of the nautical jargon."

Yep. Some readers bounce off the jargon, but miss that it's usually employed humorously: to point out how ignorant Stephen is of it, or how Jack can be entirely consumed with minute tweaks of the cross-catharpings and talk about it endlessly while everyone around him has to smile and nod as if they care. And then, as a bonus, sometimes you learn something.

[TRP]

Just finished Up To The Throne by Toby Frost
It the first in a series of books based in a sort-of Renaissance Italy (not called Italy) with fantasy and magical elements
It took me a while to get into it but it ended well and I'm looking into the next book in the series.

I enjoyed Toby Smith's previous Space Captain Smith series of books which spoof British Empire derring-do books of the 19th and early 20th Century in a Science Fiction setting

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

I started to read Light Years From Home by Mike Chen which is moving so fast compared to Pandora's Star.

[Bill]

Currently reading The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue as part of a goal to read more fairy-tailish, modern and non-Tolkienesque fantasy and magical realism. I'm working on a novel that falls within those genres and realized I hadn't read enough of such books. Finished A River Enchanted last week (loved it) and am making my way through my S&L fantasy challenge shelf

[Ruth]

Bill wrote: "Currently reading The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue as part of a goal to read more fairy-tailish, modern and non-Tolkienesque fantasy and magical realism. I'm working on a novel tha..."

Ooh I’m going to read A River Enchanted next week (Illumicrate read along) good to hear it’s, um, good!

[Ruth (tilltab) Ashworth]

Ruth wrote: "Ooh I’m going to read A River Enchanted next week (Illumicrate read along) good to hear it’s, um, good!"

I’ve started it already and am enjoying it so far. Plan is to finish that, Dune, and Red White and Royal Blue by the end of next week.

[RJ - Slayer of Trolls]

I finished the novella that inspired the film Hellraiser


The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker
Rating: 4 stars
Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

and I started reading


Hurricane Season by Fernanda Melchor

[Ruth]

Just finished the audiobook of His Last Bow and now I’m moving on to the final part of my Holmes-a-thon: The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes

[Silvana]

Finished with Age of Ash - found it too slow for my taste and I really struggled in finishing it.

Starting an interesting novel by my fellow Indonesian The Wandering for another group. The book looks fun, a choose-your-own-adventure book. Last time I read something like this was when I was a kid.

[AndrewP]

Ruth wrote: "Seth wrote: "Ruth wrote: "ust started Master and Commander as I realised I hadn’t read much Patrick O'Brian so I thought I’d start at the beginning."

These are my favorite books ever. In case you ..."

For people struggling with the naval jargon I recommend A Sea of Words: A Lexicon and Companion to the Complete Seafaring Tales of Patrick O'Brian

[Rick]

Two books just hit my queue...

The library hold for Escape from Yokai Land just came in. And the 7th book in Stephen Blackmoore's awesome Eric Carter series, Suicide Kings was released and the preorder is sitting in the Kindle app. Mmm...

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

I'm in a book group called the Indigenous Reading Circle, and this month we are reading Love After the End: An Anthology of Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer Speculative Fiction. It should be interesting, plus it's in Hoopla.

The original pick was Love Beyond Body, Space & Time: An Indigenous LGBT Sci-Fi Anthology, but it was discovered to be out of print.

I'm reading both!

[Rob, Roberator]

I just finished Billy Summers and really enjoyed it. Next I'll be starting our March Madness winner since I was able to get it from the library but have to return it in 2 weeks.

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

Rob wrote: "I just finished Billy Summers and really enjoyed it. Next I'll be starting our March Madness winner since I was able to get it from the library but have to return it in 2 weeks."
If anyone can do it, Rob, you can. (If it's in audio!)

[AndrewP]

No digital copies available anywhere but 4 copies of the dead tree version in my library system. I noticed the e-book version costs exactly the same as an audible credit, which is double the cost of the UK kindle version.

[Joanna]

I’m in the middle of Last Exit by Max Gladstone (in audio). I loved his Craft Sequence series, liked the Empress of Forever, but this one is not like any of the previous books. Some of the reviews compare it to King’s It, and I can see why, but I think I like LE more. I hope the second half would not dissapoint me.

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

AndrewP wrote: "No digital copies available anywhere but 4 copies of the dead tree version in my library system. I noticed the e-book version costs exactly the same as an audible credit, which is double the cost o..."
My system has print and ebook so I put them both on hold. It's a footrace!

[David]

Just started John Scalzi’s Kaiju Preservation Society. Really enjoying it. It’s what I expect from him in a good way. Kinda reminds me of Fuzzy Nation meets Red Shirts.

[Steve]

David wrote: "Just started John Scalzi’s Kaiju Preservation Society. Really enjoying it. It’s what I expect from him in a good way. Kinda reminds me of Fuzzy Nation meets Red Shirts."

I've recently finished it and although I found it a little too breezy for my tastes, it was interesting to read his note at the back of the book indicating that this was exactly the type of book he wanted to write at this time (basically a post-pandemic palate cleanser), which actually made it rise in my estimation.

[Iain]

Just finished listening to The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms which was very good. Always difficult going from an authors master piece (The Broken Earth trilogy) to a first work. The book certainly gives a very different flavour to a fantasy world and a refreshing take on the heroes journey (I use the term loosely). Not sure I will read the next two books though...

Now Moon Witch, Spider King..

[Seth]

Steve wrote: "David wrote: "Just started John Scalzi’s Kaiju Preservation Society. Really enjoying it. It’s what I expect from him in a good way. Kinda reminds me of Fuzzy Nation meets Red Shirts."

I've recently finished it and although I found it a little too breezy for my tastes, it was interesting to read his note at the back of the book indicating that this was exactly the type of book he wanted to write at this time (basically a post-pandemic palate cleanser), which actually made it rise in my estimation"

Actually, breezy is sounding pretty good for me right now, I think I'll bump this up to the top of the pile.

[TRP]

Currently reading Alternative 3: Because Life on Earth is Doomed by Leslie Watkins
It's based on a TV mockumentary from the 1970s about people disappearing to somewhere.

It seems kind of like what Mr Musk wants to do.

[Trike]

Currently listening to The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson which is the opposite of Stephenson's Termination Shock in that it's actually good, covering the same ground of the world dealing with global warming.

There are multiple narrators from different countries, giving it a real international feel.

[Ruth]

Reading A River Enchanted for the Illumicrate read along and tbh it isn’t enchanting me at the moment!

[Misti]

I attempted to listen to Vicious on Audible but it was so not for me so I went ahead and started A Master of Djinn instead.

[Chris K.]

I finished Judas Unchained. Really liked it. Now I have to finish Fire & Blood before moving on the April's pick.

[Jenny (Reading Envy)]

I finished my two indigenous anthologies I was reading this month that are all science fiction and/or post-apocalyptic in addition to being either trans, 2-spirit, or lgbt in nature. There are some friends of the show in these collections!

Love Beyond Body, Space & Time: An Indigenous LGBT Sci-Fi Anthology
My review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The two related to S&L are LEGENDS ARE MADE, NOT BORN by Cherie Dimaline and NÉ LE! by Darcie Little Badger, both of which were in my favorites.

The other was Love After the End: An Anthology of Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer Speculative Fiction
My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
One friend of the show, Darcie Little Badger again, with the story STORY FOR A BOTTLE.

[Joseph]

Finished The Dragon of Jin-Sayeng -- great series! -- and started a reread of Appendix N: The Eldritch Roots of Dungeons and Dragons for a book club discussion.

[John (Taloni)]

Continuing on the low-key Arthur Clarke binge, the short story collection Tales from the White Hart.

I seem to have read this book some decades ago, or perhaps a few of them in a collection. In any event, I recognize at least the most famous story: Memories recorded and played back at any time. The MC of the story (not the narrator) winds up getting a professional level courtesan experience recorded and just sits around replaying it. He gets killed by his girlfriend who has turned horribly jealous. I suppose it played well in the 50s and it didn't bother me when I first read it. Now it seems horribly misogynous. Just for starters, what about the woman's side?

The theme seems to be, science-y stories that are preposterous to the point where it's clear they could not have happened, but nevertheless explore a scientific concept. Another one is about mining the dissolved metals in seawater; another, about the unexpected effects of antigravity.

It's all done in a sardonic British sensibility that sometimes comes across well and sometimes is just plain mean. The New England puritan who shows a prurient interest in the sex recordings, yep, I've known some people like that. The battle-axe of a wife who shows up to pull away the narrator in the final story, really not funny.

Kind of odd to think, Spider Robinson's Callahan's Bar stories are older now than these were when I first ran across my first White Hart story. I'd recommend Callahan's Bar unreservedly. They have a timeless quality. These stories need a lot of forgiving for historical context. It was nice to reacquaint myself with some classics, but not completely a joy.

[John (Taloni)]

Then there's the last Expanse novella, The Sins of Our Fathers. TBH I'd forgotten that Filip Nagata survived. He's much older now, and it's (spoilers for anyone that hasn't read the last Expanse book) (view spoiler)[after the gates failed. (hide spoiler)]

Interesting to see how he deals with someone whose personality matches his father and the effects on him even decades removed. You can't just walk away from a past like his and yes, it will affect the rest of your life.

But, if we're going to see more of the Nagata clan, I would have hoped to see more of Naomi. (view spoiler)[Her and Holden froze some genetic material and I was always disappointed they didn't have children. Naomi has that chance even after Holden's death. Well, I suppose that will have to be head canon. (hide spoiler)]

[Ruth]

I’ve finished The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes and with it my complete Sherlock Holmes audiobook and so my Holmes-fest is complete!

The quality of the stories tails off a bit towards the end but I’m enough of a completist to power through the final volume. My next audiobook will be our March Madness winner, A Master of Djinn.

[John (Taloni)]

^ Yeah, they fell off towards the end, but still worth reading. IIRC in the last few stories there was a "surprise" disguise that wasn't much of a surprise, but was still silly fun. Way too many plaudits from royals in-story for my taste, but then, Holmes and Doyle probably got those IRL. Worth reading the whole oeuvre.

[Mark]

Ruth wrote: "I’ve finished The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes and with it my complete Sherlock Holmes audiobook and so my Holmes-fest is complete!"

Now it's time for some S&L Holmes :-)

The Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

or an older title

Sherlock Holmes Through Time and Space

[Joseph]

Started The Dreaming Tree an omnibus of a couple of early 80s fantasy novels by C.J. Cherryh that I haven't read in ... decades.

[John]

In March I finished reading Brimstone Angels and then the next 2 books in that series Lesser Evils and The Adversary - at this stage I will probably finish off remaining books in the series as I kinda have to see how it all ends :-)

I finished book 3 last night and am trying to decide if I dive straight into book or take a diversion into 1920's Cairo. mmm

[Tassie Dave, S&L Historian]

John wrote: "I finished book 3 last night and am trying to decide if I dive straight into book or take a diversion into 1920's Cairo. mmm"

If you're talking about this months book pick, then it is pre-1920s.

It is set in 1912