What else are you reading in February 2010?

[Stefan, Group Founder + Moderator (Retired)]

Please let us know what else you're reading this month!

[Bill]

I am just about to start on The Magicians by Lev Grossman

[Laurel]

I had such a great January reading month, I can't wait to dive head first into February!

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Thanks for starting the thread, Stefan. Happy Reading!

[Kerry]

I'm still getting through The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness. It's a very good book, but not at all a comfortable one to read.

For a change of pace, I've started The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley and Doubleblind by Ann Aguirre.

[Shel, Moderator]

I finished The Line Between (short stories by Peter S. Beagle) and zipped through Odd and the Frost Giants, and I'm still waiting for Young Miles to arrive in the mail so I'm embarking on a re-read of Watership Down for the first time in many years.

[Cindy]

As far as SF/F goes I'm planning on reading:
Darwinia (almost finished)
The Time Machine
The Swarm: A Novel (881 pp!!)
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
and a re-read of Cat's Cradle
I'd love to get to Perdido Street Station, but that might be wishful thinking.

Laurel: I'm totally digging your February reading list!

[Maddie]

I'm finishing up and . They're both excellent.
What I'm planning on reading:
.

[Stefan, Group Founder + Moderator (Retired)]

I'm taking a break from Shadow Prowler by Alexey Pehov (which is not very good, to be honest) and started Darwinia: A Novel of a Very Different Twentieth Century today.

[Sandi]

I'm reading The January Dancer by Michael Flynn, A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle and Empire Falls by Richard Russo. They're all due back at the library this weekend.

I've also just started my latest FirstReads win, Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned: Stories by Wells Tower.

[Laurel]

Kerry,

Let me know how "The Sweetness At The Bottom Of The Pie" fares - I've been meaning to get to it.

[Ron]

Just finished two books by Elizabeth Bear: "All The Wind-wracked Stars" and "Hell and Earth", fourth in her Promethean Age series and really the second half of a long novel begun with "Ink and Steel". I liked both books very much; I've become a great fan of her prose style and the wringers she puts her characters through.

Just starting "Gabble", ten short stories by Neil Asher which should be good clean violent fun with plenty of snarky AIs and weird hungry aliens.

Sandi, I'd love to hear what you think about "January Dancer".

[colleen the convivial curmudgeon]

I'm currently reading, and mostly enjoying, The Magicians and Mrs. Quent. Next up I'm planning on reading To Reign in Hell, but whether this changes by the time I'm finished my current book remains to be seen, as I also have Blood and Iron at home, and Ron has now made me consider putting Ms. Bear higher on my list.

[Bookbrow]

I have become inspired by the site and the groups to try to read two books concurrently and to see how it goes from there. I picked up The sword and the lady by S. M. Stirling, I have read the first 5 books of this series. I particularly enjoyed the first three books where the premise was set and the world rebuilt. At the same time I will be reading the Iron dragons daughter by Michael Swanwick. After two fantasy-like novels I will for sure have a desire to tackle some hard sci-fi soon, likely to include space travel and far future topics just to mix things up a bit.

[Brian]

Just started The Flight of the Eisenstein a Warhammer 40K novel about the Horus Heresy. I also finished Gundam 00F volume 1.

[Jon]

I finished the standalone fantasy novel the Master of Whitestorm (my review) last night and I'm half finished with A Study in Scarlet, both of which I'm enjoying immensely.

I started reading the next Vorkosigan novel this morning - Memory.

After Memory, I'll read Flesh and Spirit by Carol Berg.

Not sure where I'll head after that. I'm not enthused by my book club reading for February/March, so I may just tackle more of my own-but-unread shelf. I will read a few mysteries this month as part of my local library's Readers in the Rue Morgue contest. Typically, it doesn't take me long to read through a good mystery, so those will be fun.

[Suman]

Stefan wrote: "Please let us know what else you're reading this month!"

First post by a Goodreads rookie.

I'm reading Winter Warriors by David Gemmell. I've long enjoyed his stuff, and I can't believe I missed this installment in his Drenai world.

[Stefan, Group Founder + Moderator (Retired)]

Welcome - always nice to welcome a new member!

I finished Darwinia last night and thought it was good but not great. I posted my thoughts in the spoiler topic for that book.

Next up... I'm not 100% sure yet. I have a stack of books that I should read soon for reviews (including some very exciting ones - see my "to be reviewed" shelf...). I may go for a short story collection next, so I can take a break and pick up a novel if I change my mind. This one looks good: The Best American Fantasy 3.

[Suman]

Stefan wrote: "Welcome - always nice to welcome a new member!

Next up... I'm not 100% sure yet. I have a stack of books that I should read soon for reviews (including some very exciting ones - see my "to be reviewed" shelf...)."

Stefan, #1 on your "to be reviewed" shelf, _The Master of Whitestorm_ would be a fast, enjoyable read. I put in my first Goodreads review on that book.

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

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Just starting Darwinia: A Novel of a Very Different Twentieth Century.
After that, I have a book I won on First Reads quite a while ago that I haven't yet gotten to, and Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold for our next Miles read.

[Chris]

Sandi wrote: "I'm reading The January Dancer by Michael Flynn, A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle and Empire Falls by Richard Russo. They're all due back at th..."

Sandi. I loved Empire Falls. I read it on audio a few years ago and was completely absorbed....

[Stefan, Group Founder + Moderator (Retired)]

I started Toll the Hounds, the 8th part of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series by Steven Erikson, today. More about this later. I'm also starting to nibble on The Best American Fantasy 3.

[Sandi]

Chris wrote: "I loved Empire Falls. I read it on audio a few years ago and was completely absorbed.... "

I had to return Empire Falls to the library. I have a tendency to check out more books than I can read. :( I wrote down exactly where I was at and will check it out again next time I go to the library. I'm probably going to take the hit on a couple of days of late fees for The January Dancer. It's a newer book and the library's only copy, so I'll pay 50 cents rather than not finish it.

How's the narration on the audiobook of Empire Falls? Maybe that's the way to go. I bet The January Dancer is great in audio, it's got a lot of different dialects and I'm finding I have to "hear" it as I'm reading rather than just absorbing the words.

[Chris]

Sandi wrote: How's the narration on the audiobook of Empire Falls? Maybe that's the way to go. ..."

I loved it....it took awhile to get thru because it's pretty long. But I was working a job at the time where I was alone in the car for lots of hours, so it was a great one to pass the time with....Ron McLarty did the audio and was very good...

The HBO movie is really good too and fairly true to the book...

[Kerry]

Laurel - I finished The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie yesterday. I liked it, but I wasn't as bowled over by it as a lot of other readers seemed to be. I don't know, maybe I was expecting too much after reading the reviews, but I didn't find it as deftly written as I was expecting. It was a bit more, well, stody, than I had expected it to be. But it was still fun and I expect I'll read the next one, The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag when it comes out later this year.

(ETA: Good grief, what a lot of "expected"s in that paragraph. Sorry.)

Right now I'm reading Doctor Who: The Writer's Tale after my husband pointed it out to me on display at the library. I'm enjoying it much, more more than I expected to do, but you do need to be a Doctor Who fan to appreciate all the detail I think.

[Laurel]

Thanks Kerry! I look forward to picking it up. But, I'll think of it like a lot of over hyped movies - wait 'til it hits the cheap theaters...

[Patrik]

I hope to finish by this WE.

[Chris]

Jane, here is a recent blog that Daniel Abraham did on tor.com: http://www.tor.com/index.php?option=c...

He talks about working on the Wild Cards project with George R.R. Martin and others...

[Jon]

I finished Memory (my review) early Sunday morning. Later, after watching two movies and gorging myself on chili and cherry pie, I started reading Flesh and Spirit by Carol Berg. The first chapter, while only ten pages long, grabbed my attention. I like her prose and can't wait to pick it up again this evening.

[Kelly]

I'm trying so hard to read The Way of Shadows. I was really looking forward to reading it and I am trying really hard to like it. But I'm having trouble with immersing myself into the story. The names of the characters refuse to roll off my mental tongue and though there is ample motivation for their actions, I feel like an outsider in their world.

I'm going to keep reading it for now, I'm well past the 100 page mark (say 190 or so) and hope it becomes less of a chore.

[Shel, Moderator]

I finished Young Miles - dang, these books are fun! - and am now starting in on a YA book I won in the firstreads giveaways, How High the Moon: A Novel. I'm not very far into it yet, and so far am ambivalent - the writing isn't great, but I like the characters, which could make up for it.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

I had 3 choices of what to read when I finished Mirror Dance--The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown, Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold, or Pulse by Jeremy Robinson, which I won in a FirstReads giveaway but haven't gotten to yet. I went with _The Lost Symbol_ because I had borrowed it from my dad and my sister wants to read it next, so if I finish it by the weekend, I can give it to her then.

[Christine]

Before reading the Bone Doll's Twin, I read Dean Koontz' Breathless and have only one word to describe this book UGH...this is the worst Koontz book I have read. Hopefully this is an aberration and not where he is going next.

BTW, how do I underscore a book title?

[Kerry]

I'm a couple of chapters into Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore. So far, so good. It's YA fantasy and an enjoyable read so far.

[Kathi, Moderator & Book Lover]

Christine wrote: "BTW, how do I underscore a book title?"

You can click on the "add book/author" link just above the comment box where you type your comment. Then type in the book title and it will give you some choices. Choose the correct book and it inserts it into your comment as an underlined link.

[Anton]

Currently reading Blackout by Connie Willis. The only bad part about this book is that I have to wait till October to read the second volume. :D It's really quite excellent.

[Marty]

ooh, ooh ,ooh Alchymyst that's the book i want most to read!!!I'm a little green here. but I'll probably wait for spring break....excellent you say....ooh, ooh, ooh....

[Ron]

Picked up two that look good: Walter Jon Williams' This Is Not a Game and Eve by Tony Gonzales. I must say though that playing "Dragon Age: Origin" is really killing my reading time...

[Kerry]

I bought Blackout this week and I'm looking forward to it, but I don't know when it will rise to the top of the TBR. Other things are taking priority at the moment. Having heard it ends of a cliffhanger, I may wait until the second one is out and read both together.

[Sandi]

Alchymyst wrote: "Currently reading Blackout by Connie Willis. The only bad part about this book is that I have to wait till October to read the second volume. :D It's really quite excellent."

DAMN! (Excuse my French.) That's the book I wanted to get with my Borders coupon. I skipped going to the bookstore because I couldn't think of anything I wanted to use my coupon on. Connie Willis is one of the few authors I will buy in hardback.


I finally finish The January Dancer by Michael Flynn. It took forever and cost me a dollar in overdue fines. I'm still not quite sure what it was about. I'm now reading a couple of non-genre works, Shanghai Girls by Lisa See and Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned: Stories by Wells Tower. I won the latter through FirstReads, so I want to finish it quickly and get it reviewed so I can win something else. I'm hoping to win the new Joe Hill book.

I also started listening to The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett. I'm about an hour into it and it's excellent so far.

[Shel, Moderator]

Sandi, let me know if Shanghai Girls is any good - I read her Snow Flower and the Secret Fan for my book club a few years ago and LOVED it.

I finished How High the Moon: A Novel, the one I'd won in the giveaway - it was ok. Now I'm reading Scales of Gold, historical fiction, which might take me a while - Dunnett is a slower read - and then I'll probably get back to the Miles books.

[Ken]

I already posted this but I am reading Anathem by Neal Stephenson and its AMAZING!!!
This guy has redeemed himself after his last 3 books and reminded my why I like the guy. After a bit of a rough start, he leaves you to figure out what the heck is going on but when you do...POW. Booky greatness. I cant put the book down, that hasn't happened in a long time. Hope he doesn't blow as I am just at the halfway point

[Bookbrow]

Ken wrote: "I already posted this but I am reading Anathem by Neal Stephenson and its AMAZING!!!
This guy has redeemed himself after his last 3 books and reminded my why I like the ..."

I too am looking forward to reading Anathem by Neal Stephenson. I just finished The Sword of the Lady: A Novel of the Change by S. M Stirling and I am now starting This Alien Shore by C. S. Friedman, the reviews have been very positive. I am also reading The Iron Dragon's Daughter by Michael Swanwick. The multiple book reading challenge continues...

[Kelly]

Ron wrote: "Picked up two that look good: Walter Jon Williams' This Is Not a Game and Eve by Tony Gonzales. I must say though that playing "Dragon Age: Origin" is really killing m..."

I really enjoyed the WJW book. Dragon Age: Origins is ruining my life, but I'm not complaining yet... still too obsessed. I usually read over 100 books a year, this year I've read 2 so far I think... no time to read, must play.

[colleen the convivial curmudgeon]

I'm currently reading The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud. I'm on page 173, and not quite wowed so far...

I did end up quite liking The Magicians and Mrs. Quent, though, despite its many flaws.

[Jim]

Ron wrote: "Just finished two books by Elizabeth Bear: "All The Wind-wracked Stars" and "Hell and Earth", fourth in her Promethean Age series and really the second half of a long novel begun with "Ink and Stee..."

Hi Ron, last year I read "Undertow" and I'm about to read "Dust" I hope to get into more of her recent work. She's a wonderful writer

[Kelly]

I really enjoyed Undertow, it was such a different kind of novel. Bear is a really inventive writer.

[Jim]

I'm still reading Science Fiction The Years best by Rich Horton. It's a good anthology, The Policeman's daughter by Wil McCarthy is so far the best of the bunch. I began this book believe it or not on Christmas Day 2009. It can take me 2-3 weeks to finish a novel but this one for some reason is taking me a bit longer to read and is tough to get into

[Jim]

Hi Sisimka...I visit her Live Jounal blog often.

[Random]

Ron wrote: "I must say though that playing "Dragon Age: Origin" is really killing my reading time... "

Hehehehe, you too? I think I misplaced the month of January, I can't seem to remember where all the time went. My husband has actually threatened to hide my gaming machine. He claims I'm addicted. :D

Ken wrote: "I already posted this but I am reading Anathem by Neal Stephenson and its AMAZING!!!"

I read this one last year. My first book by this author and I have to agree it blew me away. I recommend it to everyone who will listen to me. :)

[Kelly]

Random wrote: "Ron wrote: "I must say though that playing "Dragon Age: Origin" is really killing my reading time... "

Hehehehe, you too? I think I misplaced the month of January, I can't seem to remember where ..."

I'm on my eighth play through, someone needs to stage an intervention.