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What are you reading? (July 2014)
- Thread starter Maklershed
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sparky2112
Member
Recently finished:
Malazan Book 2 - Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erikson
I gave up on this a few hundred pages in and I am now officially DONE with this series... probably.... There are things I like here and there, but the story is so dry, and the characters are so flat... Erikson mentions that Frank Herbert's Dune books were an influence for the Malazan series, and I definitely see the resemblance. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish Dune either, for many the same reasons. This series has some good points, and I can't say that it's actually crap (although the first book is borderline), but there is something clinical about the writing style, a lack of emotional juice, that just kills it for me.
Erikson is quite proud of the fact that he doesn't revise. What goes on the page stays on the page, and I can't help but think that a process like that would lend itself quite nicely to flat characters. The guy's pace must be blistering, and so you get plot, plot, plot and...plot. But having said all that, I'm amazed he's as good as he is, if what we're all reading is his first and only pass through the pages.
Wow... So it's basically a first draft? That actually is very impressive.
The writing is a bit clinical, but it seems fairly polished in most ways, so I never would've guessed it.
Mackenzie 92
Member
Taking a break from the Kaiju anthology. Not sure if I'll get back to it or not, it's utter shit for the most part.
Started this and it's refreshingly badass. Better than the movie.
First Blood by David Morrell
I'd say it's dumbed down a bit. One boring POV vs several interesting and diverse. Plot is also very simple and predictable.
Started this and it's refreshingly badass. Better than the movie.
First Blood by David Morrell
I'd say it's dumbed down a bit. One boring POV vs several interesting and diverse. Plot is also very simple and predictable.
Finished a few books during the past week:
Oyasumi PunPun. Here is the short post I wrote in the 50 Books thread:
I completed the first novel in the esteemed 1Q84. It certainly has that Murakami weirdness that I simply adore. I plan to continue onto the second novel once I get to the halfway point of Fables (of the original run, which is 75 issues) and complete Solanin.
Oyasumi PunPun. Here is the short post I wrote in the 50 Books thread:
I completed the first novel in the esteemed 1Q84. It certainly has that Murakami weirdness that I simply adore. I plan to continue onto the second novel once I get to the halfway point of Fables (of the original run, which is 75 issues) and complete Solanin.
AngmarsKing701
Member
It's basically a PG-13 Abercrombie. I have no idea how well it will do in the YA crowd. I hope he does well with the trilogy planned but frankly look forward to him returning to R rated fantasy.
I liked Half a King for what it is but it basically means we'll see watered down Abercrombie for the next 3-4 years before we get back to bloody Abercrombie.
The second novell in the Half a king trilogy is coming out this winter, with the third and last coming out next summer. so I think we'll get a new "R rated fantasy" book sooner than that
I hope...
Intheflorsh
Banned
I finally finished my ASOIF marathon...
For the first time in months I'm going to actually need to think about what I will read next. I'm thinking about picking up something by Joe Abercrombie since he gets so much love in this thread.
For the first time in months I'm going to actually need to think about what I will read next. I'm thinking about picking up something by Joe Abercrombie since he gets so much love in this thread.
Maklershed
Member
The racial insensitivity in this book makes me uncomfortable.I'm zipping through Mr. Mercedes. Fun little hard boiled detective novel.
Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King
AngmarsKing701
Member
5/5 stars. Fantastic book.
Really great so far. Like American Gods but on a smaller more personal scale.
Tawney Bomb
Member
As I'm reading Elantris (only 20% done), right now only Raoden's chapters are interesting. Do the other two characters get better?
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
Finished:
The Devil in the White City
Read a lot of it while in Chicago. Visited some of the locations on tours. It helped, but the book didn't need much help. Damn great non-fiction. The ending felt a little abrupt though.
The Marching Morons
I can see how it was influential, especially for Idiocracy, but I found it sophomoric and alarmist.
Currently reading:
Dune
I've somehow never read Dune. Finally digging into it. Dense and delicious.
After Dune I think I'll pick up a Kindle Unlimited subscription and pick off Wool and Arthur C Clarke's 2001/2010/whatever series, alongside some of the Jeff VanderMeer Weird Fiction bundle.
The Devil in the White City
Read a lot of it while in Chicago. Visited some of the locations on tours. It helped, but the book didn't need much help. Damn great non-fiction. The ending felt a little abrupt though.
The Marching Morons
I can see how it was influential, especially for Idiocracy, but I found it sophomoric and alarmist.
Currently reading:
Dune
I've somehow never read Dune. Finally digging into it. Dense and delicious.
After Dune I think I'll pick up a Kindle Unlimited subscription and pick off Wool and Arthur C Clarke's 2001/2010/whatever series, alongside some of the Jeff VanderMeer Weird Fiction bundle.
sparky2112
Member
Finished:
The Devil in the White City
Read a lot of it while in Chicago. Visited some of the locations on tours. It helped, but the book didn't need much help. Damn great non-fiction. The ending felt a little abrupt though.
I've posted this before, but....do not, do not, DO NOT write historical non-fiction and tell me about the dust somebody saw in light beams coming through a window. DO. NOT. I almost threw the book across the room at that point. Never did finish the damn thing...my loss, I know...
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
I don't really understand why that would make you angry.
Is it because it's potentially a fictitious addition? Because not only does it strike me as completely innocuous, but the author takes pains at the end of the book to cite very nearly every detail throughout the novel, while clearly stating what he invented to suit the narrative. The transparency shown is laudable.
sparky2112
Member
Eh, it's just detail that absolutely does not need to be there. In a very, very minor way, it's similar to what Edmund Morris did in his Reagan biography - there are passages where Morris envisions himself as a contemporary of Reagan and narrates portions as if he were witnessing things first-hand, including events he invented 'whole cloth'. Reviews eviscerated Morris for this, and rightfully so. It's non-fiction; don't make shit up. Tell me what happened and stay out of the way.
Yes, I'm over-reacting. I just can't remember another moment in my reading life that just jerked me right out an otherwise fine piece of 'reporting'.
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
Seems like a detail that either could have been pulled from a primary source (like I said, the back of the book has a lot of sources and notes) or it could have been used to illustrate a larger point/to create an environment. It's not an automatically bad detail and I think you're being ridiculous.
sparky2112
Member
Yeah, I went in expecting non-fiction book and didn't get one, stopped reading after 100p or so. I could have avoided the whole mess if I had read few reviews of it. Not my kind of non-fiction.
I'll watch the movie tho.
I read the book earlier this year, and while I did enjoy it despite those issues, it did take me out of it. I felt like the sections about H.H. Holmes in particular were padded by those speculative flights of fancy; I think he admits as much when he says that since no one was there for the actual murders besides Holmes and the victims and Holmes hadn't really described what happened, any speculation of Holmes' inner thoughts was necessarily going to be fictive. I didn't like having to parse what elements were meant to be taken as expressions of fact and which were meant to be taken as expressions of idle fancy, but I really enjoyed the drama of the architectural demands and I thought he did a great job recreating the sense of scale and wonder of the project.
hardcastlemccormick
Banned
From a lot of the sources that Devil in the White City was written around (mostly sensational court documents and boisterously painted memoirs) I thought Larson did a pretty good job overall. The parts of the book supported by the characters' letters to one another (Burnham and Olmstead) are generally the book's best portions, probably because the sources are richer and franker.
Finished 'The White Rose' today, really enjoyed the 1st 3 books.
Little bit pissed off that the next books aren't available on Kindle though, What kind of logic makes you release the 1st 3 books on Kindle but not the remaining 6, kinda makes me want to download a PDF of the remaining books rather than buying paperback copies.
Little bit pissed off that the next books aren't available on Kindle though, What kind of logic makes you release the 1st 3 books on Kindle but not the remaining 6, kinda makes me want to download a PDF of the remaining books rather than buying paperback copies.
CharminUltra
Member
I wish I could tell you, but the first rule is I do not talk about it. The second rule is I DO NOT talk about it.
bengraven
Member
Oh, you're reading Atlas Shrugged.
You're reading 50 Shades of Grey.
Thanks for the advice! That said, I actually did go ahead with Game of Thrones since I was just more excited about reading it. That and nothing is a quick read for me -- I put aside so little time for reading, The Golden Compass actually took me over a year to complete. (I'm putting aside more time now though.)
So, I'm about 100 pages into GoT and so far it's a fair amount of exposition, which is fine since there are so many characters to introduce, but, when does it pick up?
My Struggle: Book Two: A Man in Love by Karl Ove Knausgård
Book Two is much more indulgent than Book One, dealing with parenthood and writerhood in painstaking detail, but still as compelling as ever. Maybe not as easy to relate to this time out as it's clear that our buddy Karl Ove has serious issues, it digs deeper into his psyche, goes to some dark places, and isn't afraid to show off his less flattering qualities. Looking forward to Book Three.
Also trying to finish up Mr. D's Crime and Punishment, which is fantastic. Duh.
Tragicomedy
Member
John Brunner's The Shockwave Rider is a Kindle Daily Deal today. I haven't read any Brunner yet, but I mean to as he's an important figure in SF. This novel is seen as a proto-cyberpunk novel.
sparky2112
Member
I'm going to have to restart Book 1; I got about halfway through it and got distracted by other stuff when it first came out in English. I've seen multiple sites, etc. that refer to this as a 'biographical novel', but I'm not sure what the novel portion actually entails. He's not truly laying himself open, but embellishing or making stuff up outright, or what?
Christoff Yurievich
Member
I finished The Martian a few days ago and it was a very well written book. None of the science involved seemed too out-there and most of it was even reasonable in it's execution and use. If you can find it (I was on the wait list for months at the library) it's a great read.
Started reading Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb . I don't know if it's because I was tired or if it's just that boring but I almost fell asleep reading the first chapter. I'm going to try again this weekend.
Started reading Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb . I don't know if it's because I was tired or if it's just that boring but I almost fell asleep reading the first chapter. I'm going to try again this weekend.
Well, he wrote the entire thing from memory, and he admits multiple times that his memory is terrible, so I don't thing calling it an autobiography would be fair. I believe it's true in the sense that he believes it's true, and all the people he mentions are real, but some reconstruction of events is definitely going on. But then while I'm reading the thing, concerns about whether it's fiction or non are pretty far from my mind.
EDIT: Also, it's written like a novel, not autobiography. He's less focused on the facts of his life, who did what to whom and when, than on specific feelings, thoughts, individual moments in his life. And the storytelling is fractured like a novel, as I'm sure you noticed. This isn't a staid, linear account of the life of a famous writer, from his humble Norwegian upbringing to his rise to fame.
Beyonce Beytwice
Member
Finished this today. One of the funniest books I've read in a long while.
They are a bit goofy but that makes new ones for new worlds also make sense.
Swearwords are a cultural thing really.
Of course, he could use real ones and explain it as translation thing, in-universe they say something else but we see something we might use... but that would probably go against the feel he strives for.
Just finished guns germs and steel and starting galveston because I need my true detective/noir fix.
Berserk and monster name drops. Welp, I know what im reading next.
Incandenza
Banned
You should be right around the point where it picks up. There's an event that really kicks off the story proper, you'll probably know it when you see it (if you haven't seen it already). It only gets better from there.
I'm excited to read my first Lois McMaster Bujold novel, but Amazon decided that they don't know how to ship something to my address (which has been the same for three years now) and my book went to New York (where I currently live and the delivery address) and somehow they decided they needed to sent it to Miami (my old address ) instead.
The Book Thief
Not sure how I feel about this one, pretty nonplussed by it. I didn't find the story of Liesel to be all that enthralling and the writing style I didn't find that great. However I did enjoy some of Deaths' descriptions, but even those at times felt like the author was stretching.
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
Now this is a good book, perhaps a little long winded, but good. Very much enjoyed reading it. Budo, u such a good guy.
Not sure what I'll be reading next, maybe finally getting around to 1Q84 or The Little Prince.
Not sure how I feel about this one, pretty nonplussed by it. I didn't find the story of Liesel to be all that enthralling and the writing style I didn't find that great. However I did enjoy some of Deaths' descriptions, but even those at times felt like the author was stretching.
Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend
Now this is a good book, perhaps a little long winded, but good. Very much enjoyed reading it. Budo, u such a good guy.
Not sure what I'll be reading next, maybe finally getting around to 1Q84 or The Little Prince.
I just finished Red Country by Joe Abercrombie, and I really liked it. I'm not even a huge fan of the Western genre, although the influences were obvious. A much smaller book than the others, but a very character driven one.
And the characters were pretty great. Shy South was awesome and competent, and badass in a "normal person" way rather than a "Goddess of war" way. She and Monza Murcatto from Best Served Cold are excellent demonstrations that female characters in edgy "gritty fantasy" can be just as capable and impactful as the males, where Mark Lawrence or Bakker would just have you believe that women only have a place as sexual objects, villainous seductresses/crones, or nameless rape victims. Cowardly lawyer/odd jobs man Temple was also great and I really enjoyed how their characters grew throughout the book. And of course there's Cosca and Friendly and, ahem, Lamb.
It's also really damn funny.
And the characters were pretty great. Shy South was awesome and competent, and badass in a "normal person" way rather than a "Goddess of war" way. She and Monza Murcatto from Best Served Cold are excellent demonstrations that female characters in edgy "gritty fantasy" can be just as capable and impactful as the males, where Mark Lawrence or Bakker would just have you believe that women only have a place as sexual objects, villainous seductresses/crones, or nameless rape victims. Cowardly lawyer/odd jobs man Temple was also great and I really enjoyed how their characters grew throughout the book. And of course there's Cosca and Friendly and, ahem, Lamb.
It's also really damn funny.
It always make me so happy to see other people enjoy that book as much as I did.
Also, I think I may need to adjust my reading goal. Set it fairly low thinking maybe some longer books would creep in, so my goal was 35, and I've already read 29 and it's not even August yet!
Horseticuffs
Full werewolf off the buckle
I started "Meditations" by Marcus Aurelius this morning. This is another of those books I've read partially before but never finished.
I'm tackling it in audiobook format now and I'm finding it a very agreeable experience. It's so well written and is packed with wisdom and some very powerful sections.
I was walking through the forest very early this morning, just enjoying nature and listening to this, and it was a really lovely experience in total.
I'm tackling it in audiobook format now and I'm finding it a very agreeable experience. It's so well written and is packed with wisdom and some very powerful sections.
I was walking through the forest very early this morning, just enjoying nature and listening to this, and it was a really lovely experience in total.
Christoff Yurievich
Member
Yeah, the Death parts were both interesting and also very good at taking me out of the book. I dislike the literary mcguffin of telling you something's coming and then not getting to it for several chapters.
Finished Ordinary Grace today. Great read.
.
I really enjoyed it, would recommend!
It was a bit obvious that his sister was going to die when he mentioned that the next death would be the hardest for him and with her sneaking away at night I never really doubted it. I liked that the deaths weren't related in any way, I kept trying to come up with a way to connect them to each other. Never really believed that the indian guy had anything to do with it because he seemed way too suspicious to be more than a red herring. I guessed relatively early that Lise might be connected to Ariel's death after her freakouts kept being mentioned, though I'd never have guessed that Ariel had something with Emil.
I really enjoyed it, would recommend!
AngmarsKing701
Member
Agreed. Bujold is often overlooked when people start making lists, but the Vorkosigan series is tremendously awesome.
Abercrombie continues to shine in the grime. I liked Red Country quite a bit, and like you I'm not typically a fan of westerns.
Just finished this. Fantastic book. I would recommend it to anyone. I kinda expected it to be a go-go introvert self-help book, but while it is a little bit of that, it is so much more. It is more about explanation and science told in a clear manner that would be useful and informative to anyone.
Really great so far. Like American Gods but on a smaller more personal scale.
About to start this as well.
Glad you liked it! Agree with your statements, good balance of leading the reader on, and still plenty of twists in there.
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