Valor by John Gwynne. Probably shouldn't have waited almost two months to continue the series, but I'm sure a lot of the stuff from the first book will come back to me
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What'cha Reading?
- Thread starter Falselogic
- Start date
Matchstick
(He/Him)
I haven't read that one, yet, although I have it ready to go once I'm done with some other stuff, but P. Djeli Clark is great. The book is set in the world that started with A Dead Djinn in Cairo and a few other stories before he expanded it to a full novel. Mrs. Match totally dug it.
I'm sad to report that I gave it about 90 pages, but it didn't grab me at all. I liked The Haunting of Tram Car 015, and I loved Ring Shout (which I absolutely recommend), so I don't know why. It's not like it was bad, even! Just didn't click with me for whatever reason.
FelixSH
(He/Him)
I have read so many of Asimovs short stories, that I don't remember a lot of them (this sounds bad, it isn't, there are just sooo many, and so many of them good). The Last Question is one of my favourites of his. It's amazing, beautiful, and feels grandious and clever. Loved that one.My nickname is there for a reasonI'm fairly sure I've read all of Asimov's short stories published in Spanish, and all the major novels and major compilations in English. I'm only including the solo ones, though, as I haven't read the extended NIghtfall novel he co-wrote. But I read both NIghtfall (short story) and The Last Question when I was young, and I think they shaped my tastes for literature a lot.
Anyway, I'm done with The Gods Themselves. The third part was good, but the second one is clearly the peak, for me. Very good read, recommended (at least for Asimov fans).
I also started rereading an old favourite of mine, The Metamophosis by Kafka. I'm only a handful of pages in, but I already remember, why I like this author so much. His language isn't really flowery, but it is prettier than, say, Asimov (who writes very dry and precise, which works very well for him). But it feels more, like he writes the way people back than talked? Dunno how true that is, anyway, I like the style.
Some years ago, I read that Kafka would read his works to his friends, and was always confused, when they didn't love. He thought his books were funny. (Don't remember where I read this, maybe I just imagined it) I never saw this, until now. Having Gregor not caring at all about being a giant bug, while being way more frustrated and scared of his regular live is such an absurd situation, I couldn't help but laugh, when the guy from his firm appears, to find out why Gregor is late. Dunno, I find it hilarious, maybe because it feels so true.
My point is, I seem to still love Kafka. Great author, and actually really easy to read (not counting subtext, but it the writing style is very easy to understand).
Valor was a miss for me unfortunately. Instead I ended up reading a novella Gwendy's Button Box by Stephen King and Richard Chizmar. I quite enjoyed it.
Now, reading X-Men Epic Collection Vol. 5: Second Genesis by Chris Claremont
Now, reading X-Men Epic Collection Vol. 5: Second Genesis by Chris Claremont
Yes, absolutely. I remember being baffled in a college discussion section about The Metamorphosis when no one else thought the story was funny. He's transformed into a bug and all he can think about is being late for work or whatever. The gap between the body horror and the mundanity of his concerns is extremely funny, to me.
Gerald's Game by Stephen King
Re-read Johannes Cabal: The Necromancer, which, at its best, feels like if Terry Pratchett took a stab at writing Something Wicked This Way Comes, and when it’s doing that it’s great. The back third shifts the focus away from that to the stories detriment.
Also, and I’m pretty sure this ain’t a component of the later books in the series, but there’s a point where “ironic racism” Kind of loses its sense of irony, particularly when your title character is a smug mid-century German aristocrat.
Also, and I’m pretty sure this ain’t a component of the later books in the series, but there’s a point where “ironic racism” Kind of loses its sense of irony, particularly when your title character is a smug mid-century German aristocrat.
Gerald's Game was too boring for me, so I decided to finish off his Bachman books. I only had Rage, Roadwork and The Running Man to do, so I read all three of them in a row and enjoyed all three of them for the most part. I got to say (although I don't remember my impressions of The Regulators or Blaze) The Running Man is my new favorite in that line.
Now, getting back to Saga with Book Two by Brian K. Vaughan
Now, getting back to Saga with Book Two by Brian K. Vaughan
I really enjoyed this series. Wished he wrote another one
As a matter of fact
The Death of Me was recently released, and I’m looking forward to getting to it.
Irs only a novella however
The Death of Me was recently released, and I’m looking forward to getting to it.
Irs only a novella however
there's a whole anthology out there, but it's only an audiobook right now
Time to reread Dune by Frank Herbert. It's ben six years since I last read it and with the movie coming out, I wanted to get a refresher in
That's a shame. I just started playing the SNES games (a few hours into the 2nd game) and was curious about the original source.
Do any of the video games hew closely to the book?
FelixSH
(He/Him)
If you are curious in finding out where the series came from, it might be worthwile. That's what I meant with "academic curiosity". It's just way too focused on (gross spoiler) Loki trying to get his dick into every vagina possible.. It is short, so even if one has a hard time with it, it's over soon. I think it is a light novel, and the likely simple language wasn't aided by the fact that I read a fan translation. So it probably was just some quick, simple read with a super cool idea.
But on the whole, the games took the cool stuff (grim atmosphere, demons and gods from real-world mythology, using technology to summon them) and made something more interesting out of it.
The book is very different from the game, as it is just a short story about a high-schooler, who is in a school full of bullies, and finishes his demon-summoning computer program. It doesn't really get bigger in scale. But the end makes it clear, that it is only the first of multiple parts. So maybe, if there are more books (I didn't check) it might develop in a similar direction.
Read some books lately...
Zoë Heller's Notes on a Scandal was obviously very impressive so I checked out The Believers and it was also a great time.
You Love Me is the third You book. I wondered how easily I'd be able to tolerate it because I used to not really enjoy long-running franchises focusing on an undefeatable villain. Well, this was was longest fiction book I read in a while and it was a blast. Every time I wonder if Caroline Kepnes can really sustain this for four hundred more pages (or whatever - using Overdrive's e-reader pagecount) she proves me wrong. Cackled at the penultimate chapter. There's just always more bullshit and she has such a good sense of internet brain.
But maybe I don't have much of a problem with villain narratives anymore because I hope I have successfully stopped reading the Temeraire series. I've read and enjoyed several Naomi Novik books in the past, this year particularly, but I just cannot stand the human protagonist in this story. He's, uh, too noble, among other things. I'm maybe the only person with this problem, judging by goodreads? I just completely agree with all the incensed British military dicks that he sucks and is a huge problem. There's a war on, Laurence! Looking forward to the next Scholomance book nonetheless.
The Vanishing Half is fantastic and a huge takeaway for me this year is that fictional trans people are named Reese. (oh, yeah, read Detransition, Baby not too long ago and it was also so good)
Currently reading Caroline Kepnes's non-You novel Providence. Know some people had problems with it but about halfway through, I don't have any yet. I just really enjoy reading the way she writes about people and the way they relate to each other.
Zoë Heller's Notes on a Scandal was obviously very impressive so I checked out The Believers and it was also a great time.
You Love Me is the third You book. I wondered how easily I'd be able to tolerate it because I used to not really enjoy long-running franchises focusing on an undefeatable villain. Well, this was was longest fiction book I read in a while and it was a blast. Every time I wonder if Caroline Kepnes can really sustain this for four hundred more pages (or whatever - using Overdrive's e-reader pagecount) she proves me wrong. Cackled at the penultimate chapter. There's just always more bullshit and she has such a good sense of internet brain.
But maybe I don't have much of a problem with villain narratives anymore because I hope I have successfully stopped reading the Temeraire series. I've read and enjoyed several Naomi Novik books in the past, this year particularly, but I just cannot stand the human protagonist in this story. He's, uh, too noble, among other things. I'm maybe the only person with this problem, judging by goodreads? I just completely agree with all the incensed British military dicks that he sucks and is a huge problem. There's a war on, Laurence! Looking forward to the next Scholomance book nonetheless.
The Vanishing Half is fantastic and a huge takeaway for me this year is that fictional trans people are named Reese. (oh, yeah, read Detransition, Baby not too long ago and it was also so good)
Currently reading Caroline Kepnes's non-You novel Providence. Know some people had problems with it but about halfway through, I don't have any yet. I just really enjoy reading the way she writes about people and the way they relate to each other.
Ended up reading I’m with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie by Pamela Des Barres, which I quite enjoyed. Don't know if I'll read the rest of her books though. Now, reading The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz
zonetrope
(he/him)
This Is How You Lose the Time War: I briefly posted an "I don't get it" in this thread before deleting the post and deciding to soldier on. And I'm glad I did, because I ended up really enjoying it, and the plot feels like it's meant more to be experienced than understood. This is a great book, truly unlike anything I've ever read, and it seems like it would get even better on repeat reads.
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Violentvixen
(She/Her)
It's so good.
Finished Victories Greater Than Death. Which was a fine YA sci-fi yarn about a gal who realizes she’s borked up being a clone of a great space hero. Biggest complaint being that it felt really inconsistent; Generally felt like it was skewing a bit younger than I was expecting, but not always. The crazy space tech was inconsistent about what it could or could not do, one character swung wildly between speaking grandiose and casual in the same interaction. There’s a lot of stuff going on in the story I really liked, so my complaints just tampered down my enthusiasm rather than making me dislike anything in it.
Also, every character introduced themselves by stating their preferred pronouns which is a good policy when trying to make a friend, a weird policy when making first contact with an alien species and completely inexplicable when it’s coming from a space racist actively trying to murder you with torpedos.
Anyway; moving from lasers to wizards, I started reading Deadly Lessons, which was pitched to me as “If Lina Inverse was enrolled in a Magic School that actively tried to kill all its students”, and I fell in love with it before I got midway through the first chapter.
Also, every character introduced themselves by stating their preferred pronouns which is a good policy when trying to make a friend, a weird policy when making first contact with an alien species and completely inexplicable when it’s coming from a space racist actively trying to murder you with torpedos.
Anyway; moving from lasers to wizards, I started reading Deadly Lessons, which was pitched to me as “If Lina Inverse was enrolled in a Magic School that actively tried to kill all its students”, and I fell in love with it before I got midway through the first chapter.
Violentvixen
(She/Her)
A coworker had never heard of the Flying Spaghetti Monster so I'm going to lend him the gospel, but giving it a reread before I do. What a goofy thing this was.
The Plot was a nicely done thriller with a nasty twist I didn't see coming. So, going back to nonfiction. With this month being the official 40th anniversary of MTV, I decided to wax nostalgia and read VJ: The Unplugged Adventures of MTV's First Wave by Gavin Edwards
Is this the name? Wanted to look at it but can't find it: found another book that might be it though
Sorry, Deadly Education
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Almost done Kafka on the Shore. I'm not sure I like Haruki Murakami as much as I thought I did. Each chapters alternate between related stories and one of them is much more interesting to me. I'm less interested in the Oedipal half as it goes on but was consistently interested in the old man and his young trucker friend.