What Else Are You Reading in 2023? Showing 651-700 of 1,880

[Phrynne]

I read the latest T.J. Klune, In the Lives of Puppets. I enjoyed it but could not give it the five stars so many others are giving it!
My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Ozsaur]

Eudaimonia - interesting climate change apocalypse/handmaid's tale mashup.

[Sarah]

I just finished The Lighthouse duet by Carol Berg (Flesh and Spirit & Breath and Bone) - so good. I was struck by the beautiful descriptions of male friendship, the touching reframings of (view spoiler)[dyslexia (hide spoiler)] in a magical context, and the incredible journey and growth of our flawed main character, Valen, including his struggles with (view spoiler)[addiction (hide spoiler)]. I've also never seen dance incorporated into a story as Berg has done here. I feel like my heart was racing and my muscles were contracting as she described the movements of the Danae! Amazing. It was so good to be swept up in this high fantasy story and along with this wonderful cast of characters (forever a fan of brilliant, tough healer Saverian).

Now I am on to Not Seeing Is A Flower by Erhu Kome. This novella made the short list for the 2022 Nommo Awards, which recognize works of speculative fiction by Africans. Kome self-identifies as "the first Nigerian female author of bizarro fiction."

I usually read one physical book and listen to another one a the same time. So, the audiobook I've got queued up is Weyward by Emilia Hart. Potential for witchy, feminist, magical, historical fiction, anyone?

[Norm's ✧ Bookshelf]

I'm currently about halfway into "How High We Go in the Dark". This is the rawest book I have ever read. The chapters are heavy with grief and full of death and sadness. That being said, I am finding the story quite eye opening.

Does anyone have any experience with this book? Any thoughts?

[Michelle]

Sarah wrote: "I just finished The Lighthouse duet by Carol Berg (Flesh and Spirit & Breath and Bone) - so good. I was struck by the beautiful descriptions of male fri..."

Have you read her other books? Song of the Beast incorporates music rather than dance. It's very good!

[Sarah]

Michelle wrote: "Have you read her other books? Song of the Beast...

Song of the Beast is currently on my nightstand! Found a copy at my local Half Price Books. :)

[Michelle]

Oh, good!

[Beth]

Restarted Unconquerable Sun, because the second book in that series came out recently and brought it to mind, and also because I got a signed copy from Elliott herself and feel some obligation to actually finish it. :D This will be the 8th book of hers I've read. (after Spiritwalker trilogy, Court of Fives, and King's Dragon) She has been, and remains, a bit of an acquired taste for me, though obviously I've been enjoying her writing enough to continue to try "just one more." I'm curious if her style, that I know only through her fantasy novels, carries over into her SF.

[David]

Just finished Sleeping Giants. Entertaining book but a bit peculiar format as almost the entire book is written as a series of interviews. But good sense of wonder and exploration.

[Brett]

Reading akwaeke emezi's Pet. It's really good so far. Perspective (nonbinary Afro-Caribbean) is nice and fresh.

[YouKneeK]

Sarah wrote: "I just finished The Lighthouse duet by Carol Berg (Flesh and Spirit & Breath and Bone) - so good."

That duology is one of my all-time favorites. In case you weren’t already aware, Carol Berg published another duology a few years later that’s set in the same world at around the same time. It mostly focuses on different characters and tells an entirely different story, but the two duologies share the same political backdrop so there are some occasional minor connections. I enjoyed both of them. The second duology starts with Dust and Light.

I also loved her Rai-Kirah trilogy, starting with Transformation. Just ignore the horrendous cover!

I liked Song of the Beast a lot too, although not quite as obsessively as the others I’ve mentioned. Those 8 books are the only books of hers that I’ve read so far, so I’ve pretty much loved all of them. :)

[Michelle]

I have read the Rai-Kirah trilogy several times. I loved the friendship between the two main characters.

[YouKneeK]

Michelle wrote: "I loved the friendship between the two main characters."

Me too!

[Sarah]

YouKneeK wrote: "Michelle wrote: "I loved the friendship between the two main characters."

Me too!"

Grateful for these additional Berg recommendations!

[Anna]

We have a buddy read thread for Flesh and Spirit by Berg!

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Sarah]

Anna wrote: "We have a buddy read thread for Flesh and Spirit by Berg!

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/..."

Ah, awesome! Thank you so much, Anna!

[Brett]

Really enjoying A Thousand Ships. It's the story of the Trojan War as told from the perspectives of female characters, mortal and immortal - taking the entirety of Greek mythology into account, not only the Homeric ones. It reads like a novelized oral history.

[Colin]

Went to non-fiction, Storm of Steel by Ernst Junger (In Stahlgewittern is the original). This is his account of his 4 years on the front line of the Western Front in the German Army of World War I. He was wounded 14 times, each time returned to the front and lived to age 102. The prose is apolitical, dispassionate, and unsparing in its depiction of conditions, trench warfare, the "fog of war," and the state of mind of the soldiers. If you read military SF, military historical fiction, or military history, this is an important book. I would get the Hofmann translation. The introduction comments on multiple inaccuracies in the older translation.

[Brett]

If you like Junger, you might want to read Poilu by Louis Barthas, from a French perspective. He too was in for all four years.

[Colin]

Brett wrote: "If you like Junger, you might want to read Poilu by Louis Barthas, from a French perspective. He too was in for all four years."

Thank you for the recommendation. I'm going to order it.

[Sarah]

Brett wrote: "Reading akwaeke emezi's Pet. It's really good so far. Perspective (nonbinary Afro-Caribbean) is nice and fresh."

Have added this to my TBR list - looks interesting! Does it feel super YA?

[Anna]

Pet is not YA at all in my opinion, it's MG with extremely dark topics, perfectly good for adults :)

[Sarah]

Anna wrote: "Pet is not YA at all in my opinion, it's MG with extremely dark topics, perfectly good for adults :)"

Thank you, Anna!

[Lizzie]

The Exorcist's House

[Phrynne]

Titanium Noir: A novel by Nick Harkaway. My opinion of his books varies but I gave this one five stars. Clever world building and lots of humour

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Michelle]

I'm reading the next in the Matthew Corbett series Cardinal Black, HF/thriller/mystery/horror/smattering of fantasy. He is a fantastic author!

[Eric]

I completed "The Riyria Revelations," that ended with Heir of Novron . This last segment was by far the best of the bunch, including "The Riyria Chronicles." Five stars for the last volume.

[Luffy Sempai]

Eric wrote: "I completed "The Riyria Revelations," that ended with Heir of Novron . This last segment was by far the best of the bunch, including "The Riyria C..."

Fully and wholeheartedly agreed! Heir of Novron is the best, and for me Rise of Empire was very mediocre. Thanks for confirming my hunch that Heir of Novron cannot be topped. I have not read any of the Riyria Chronicles, you see.


Last Movie: Suzume no Tojimari (Makoto Shinkai, 2022) 8/10

[Chris]

Sticking to stand-alones for now. Cannot face starting a new series. I’ve got Babel and The Priory of the Orange Tree screaming at me from my bookshelf.

I am also planning to read some old school classics that I’ve been putting off for years. Alfred Bester’s Demolished Man is a dusty classic that I bought decades ago and never read. I see A Canticle for Leibowitz is kicking around the group and that’s always been on my TBR.

[Luffy Sempai]

Chris wrote: "Sticking to stand-alones for now. Cannot face starting a new series. I’ve got Babel and The Priory of the Orange Tree screaming at me from my bookshelf.

I am also planning to read some old school..."

I've never read anything by Bester. He carries a cool reputation though.


Last Movie: Suzume no Tojimari (Makoto Shinkai, 2022) 8/10

[Michelle]

Luffy wrote: "Eric wrote: "I completed "The Riyria Revelations," that ended with Heir of Novron . This last segment was by far the best of the bunch, including ..."

Luffy, there will be a new one next year in case you hadn't heard: Esrahaddon :)

[Luffy Sempai]

Michelle wrote: "Luffy, there will be a new one next year in case you hadn't heard: Esrahaddon :)."

I haven't heard of the title, so thanks a lot, Michelle! I may not follow Fantasy news, but many of my most cherished books are in that genre. And I joined this group partly to be in the know ahead of other amateurs :)


Last Movie: Suzume no Tojimari (Makoto Shinkai, 2022) 8/10

[Brett]

Starting Song of Achilles, and about halfway through The Stories the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell: Sex In the Civil War.

Learned of Stone Blind, by the same author as A Thousand Ships. It's about Medusa(!!!)

[Araych]

Mammoth by John Varley

Sci-fi novel whose central plot point is time travel. Written in rather a thriller, adventure-story style, light and entertaining. This is my first book by Varley; I think I'll try another. I like the book a lot, 4 stars.

[Daija]

Starting to read Fourth Wing and currently reading A Natural History of Dragons and Kingdom of the Wicked

[CBRetriever]

2/3s of the way through Steve Stanton's Bloodlight Chronicles series with only Redemption left to read. I didn't care for this series that much.

I'm also reading Dreamsongs, Volume I by George R.R. Martin and I can safely say that you can skip the first four short stories as they really are a tad bit unfinished/fanfic like. At story 5, things pick up.

[Rick]

Picked up and am in the middle of Rose/House by Arkady Martine and re-reading Issola because reading Tsalmoth made me remember how much I enjoy the Vlad series

[Meredith]

Araych wrote: "Mammothby John Varley

Sci-fi novel whose central plot point is time travel. Written in rather a thriller, adventure-story style, light and entertaining. This is my first b..."

I enjoyed that, definitely fun and fast-paced.

[Billy]

Currently reading King of Thorns, and the graphic novel The Last Ronin.

[Adrian]

Am currently in the south of France - Templar and Cathar country - so I've read a couple of Templar mysteries which is the sort of thing that always sucks me in.

One was terrible - The Sword of the Templars - the other was pretty good but ruined by a lousy ending. The Templar Legacy

Keen to get my teeth stuck into some decent sci-fi again so might hunt down Ubik on my kindle.

[Michelle]

After I finished a five-star read last night, (Robert McCammon's Cardinal Black), I selected Any Job Will Do as next up in my queue. It's distinctly mediocre. Jax (Han Solo) is a smuggler accompanied by some 'droids (R2D2 & BB8). Modern slang is used. The writing is simplistic. The "humor" is not humorous. Jax couldn't hold a candle to Han if he tried. The story just doesn't have any oomph. I might as well save myself some heartburn and mark it DNF now.

[Tamara]

YouKneeK wrote: "Sarah wrote: "I just finished The Lighthouse duet by Carol Berg (Flesh and Spirit & Breath and Bone) - so good."

That duology is one of my all-time fav..."

I just looked at these, and they sound good! But my library doesn't have them 😢.

[Tamara]

I was disappointed by my two previous borrows, The Golden Enclaves and Daughter of the Moon Goddess. (Golden Enclaves was still also very good in its way, but not as good as the first two, for me, and had too much that ruined it; Daughter of the Moon Goddess was a general disappointment).

My current borrows are faring better: Soulsmith, now finished - a decent follow-up to Unsouled, and promising exciting/interesting/daring/challenging things in the future, and Warbreaker, which I started a couple of days ago. I'm not sure yet about it. I'm still in the introductory phase of the story, though - several chapters in - and haven't grown to really like anyone yet, except Lightsong. So far, it's mostly weird, with Lightsong giving the light relief and insightful honesty.

My prediction is that he will be the tragic hero - the one who sacrifices himself and saves them all - of the story. The others will be heroic in their own ways/spheres of action.

[Michelle]

Figures! Sorry, Tamara!

[Luffy Sempai]

Michelle wrote: "After I finished a five-star read last night, (Robert McCammon's Cardinal Black), I selected Any Job Will Do as next up in my queue. It's distinctly mediocre. Jax (H..."

Thanks for giving me the thought of wanting to read Cardinal Black :)


Last Movie: Scary Movie 2 (Keenen Ivory Wayans, 2001) 6/10

[Alice]

As the official English translation of Jin Yong's Return of the Condor Heroes Vol. 1, A Past Unearthed, will be out in October, I'm starting a re-read of the original Chinese version (Vol. 1 to 4). 神鵰俠侶（新修版）（全4冊）(國際正版) The Return of the Condor Heroes.

Return of the Condor Heroes is Book 2 in the Condor Heroes Trilogy.

Book 1 is Legend of the Condor Heroes, and all four Volumes (English versions) have been released. They are: A Hero Born, A Bond Undone, A Snake Lies in Waiting, and A Heart Divided.

I recently re-read the Chinese version of Legend of the Condor Heroes (all 4 Volumes) and found that I still loved the books a lot.

I had first read Jin Yong's wuxia novels as a child and have always been a big fan of all the movie and web drama adaptations.

[Whitney]

Alice wrote: "As the official English translation of Jin Yong's Return of the Condor Heroes Vol. 1, A Past Unearthed, will be out in October, I'm starting ..."

I am so glad you posted this. I've pined after an English translation since I saw "Eagle Shooting Heroes" 30 years ago!

[Alice]

Whitney wrote: "Alice wrote: "As the official English translation of Jin Yong's Return of the Condor Heroes Vol. 1, A Past Unearthed, will be out in October,..."

Oh hi! I'm so glad to have found a wuxia fan here :) You may be interested to know that a new film adapted from Legend of the Condor Heroes starring Xiao Zhan (the iconic actor who played Wei Wuxian in the wildly popular xianxia drama The Untamed) is being produced and directed by Tsui Hark. I can't wait to see it :)

[Jamajčan]

I am reading now a thriller - Kill Shot, and I plan to sometimes read A Voice for Princess.

[Mike]

Just finished 'The Dark Forest', by Liu Cixin, the 2nd book in the 3-book series. Excellent. In it was the very best space battle I have ever read. I hope Netflix does it justice. Be reading the final book soon.