AngmarsKing701
Member
What book?
For mine I bought a cover online based on the artwork and the fact that it has a decent tie-in with the book.
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What are you reading? (March 2014)
- Thread starter Maklershed
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What book?
For mine I bought a cover online based on the artwork and the fact that it has a decent tie-in with the book.
BuckRobotron
Member
Reading The Kouga Ninja Scrolls on a lark. Fun read that the anime Basilisk (an all-time favorite) takes surprisingly directly from.
On Kindle, I see The Dresden Files - Proven Guilty at 78%. Lots of players on the field together in this excellent installment, fighting very high stakes.
On Kindle, I see The Dresden Files - Proven Guilty at 78%. Lots of players on the field together in this excellent installment, fighting very high stakes.
fredrancour
Member
A reaction to Malazan book 2, Deadhouse Gates.
Regarding the
plotline:
Funny how the plotline I liked the least at first became the most compelling and emotional one.
FAKE EDIT YES I AM MAD AT MYSELF SPOILERS FOR EITHER THE END OF THIS BOOK OR SOME SUBSEQUENT BOOK: I am listening to this as an audiobook and had to google to figure out how to spell
and apparently
I will have to be more careful in the future.
Regarding the
Chain of dogs
That whole odyssey and ultimate resolution hurt very very badly. I have now been inoculated against horror and despair. The remaining Song of Ice and Fire books will not be able to touch my emotions after that long grueling march, the large-scale suffering, and how Coltaine and Duiker went down.
FAKE EDIT YES I AM MAD AT MYSELF SPOILERS FOR EITHER THE END OF THIS BOOK OR SOME SUBSEQUENT BOOK: I am listening to this as an audiobook and had to google to figure out how to spell
Duiker
he isn't dead?! Fucking hell, I had totally forgotten about that particular chekov's shotgun.....
Incandenza
Banned
I've read something like 300 pages of The Terror in the past two days. Hoping to finish it tomorrow.
I'm really, really liking it. It's so well-paced.
I'm really, really liking it. It's so well-paced.
Neffarias_Bredd
Member
Man, that whole plot line hit me hard. If you continue with the series, you'll be glad to see the ripples of that event in later books
Bout halfway through words of radiance right now, it's pretty entertaining
Dropped Hard City. Bleh.
Now Reading..
Off to a fantastic start so far.
Such a great book and a quick one too.
AngmarsKing701
Member
Tragicomedy
Member
I guess I was expecting the whole story to be wrapped up in this volume. If she doesn't revisit it, the story would feel really unfinished. I'm guessing with how successful it is, she'll write a sequel. (I wonder what era she'd skip to!) didn't love the book and thought the characters could actually use some work, but it's pretty good for a first novel.
It's quick read. I didn't like it as much as others did, but it's enjoyable and a nice sense of setting. Go for it!
AngmarsKing701
Member
It's a fairly quick read but I understand. I haven't started WoR yet for the same reason.
There's a 422 page book calling your name though...
BlueDogAnchorite
Member
Right now I am reading All You Need Is Kill, which is an excellent book. Than The Sandman is next. It'll be my first time reading it. I never read any of Neil Gaimen's comics. I read his books, my favorite book of his is Neverwhere.
FUBAR McDangles
Member
Had a great day at the local used book store.
It was buy two get one free on paperbacks and then I found the Bourne Supremacy/Ultimatum so I figured I'd get them as well.
All are in extremely great shape and were for a grand total of $19.50
It was buy two get one free on paperbacks and then I found the Bourne Supremacy/Ultimatum so I figured I'd get them as well.
All are in extremely great shape and were for a grand total of $19.50
Tragicomedy
Member
It's a fairly quick read but I understand. I haven't started WoR yet for the same reason.
There's a 422 page book calling your name though...
Ahvarra? I'm scared, but Amazon will let me borrow it for free.
Just kidding, I wouldn't do that to you!
AngmarsKing701
Member
That's fine too! I just need folks to read it and hopefully I'll get some decent reviews up.
Tragicomedy
Member
I accept bribes!
BlueDogAnchorite
Member
I finally finished All You Need Is Kill. I thought the book was very fast paced, and was really hard to put down. I really was surprised by all the plot twists. Especially that ending. My god that ending. It's one of the better books I enjoyed this year. Hopefully Edge of Tomorrow will be as good as this book.
Onto Sandman
Onto Sandman
TheCrazyGuru
Banned
Just felt like some of the daily events repeated itself too much. Also, would have thought the characters would have found themselves in more conflicts with lawlessness.
It was an enjoyable read overall and most of the chapters kept you wanting to read the next one.
I thought some of the characters were hard to believe such as Chuck, who was the ultimate survivalist before any signs of trouble and had the answers for practically everything.
The ending was a disappointment as the last chapter just plainly explained all the events instead of leaving it to the reader's imagination and narrating it all. Entirely too convenient.
The ending was a disappointment as the last chapter just plainly explained all the events instead of leaving it to the reader's imagination and narrating it all. Entirely too convenient.
Ventilaator
Banned
Instead of every once in a while picking a random Lovecraft short story to read, I just went ahead and bought this fancy edition of his everything:
It's pretty sweet. Stuff seems to be in chronological order and there's a small paragraph at the start of each story that explains the significance of it.
It's pretty sweet. Stuff seems to be in chronological order and there's a small paragraph at the start of each story that explains the significance of it.
Ranger Taffles
Member
So I finished:
I was honestly not expecting such a decent read. It had me hooked and I got around finishing it very quick. Loved the quirky observant remarks here and there and it does a good job on the emotional side as well. Although I figured out the story quite early in the book, it was still definitely very much enjoyable and worthwhile. Overall, a light humble experience.
Now on to:
Very excited for this. I have been in the mood for some good local short stories and I think this will do just the job.
I was honestly not expecting such a decent read. It had me hooked and I got around finishing it very quick. Loved the quirky observant remarks here and there and it does a good job on the emotional side as well. Although I figured out the story quite early in the book, it was still definitely very much enjoyable and worthwhile. Overall, a light humble experience.
Now on to:
Very excited for this. I have been in the mood for some good local short stories and I think this will do just the job.
fierrotlepou
Member
Tackling this one now after reading Crime & Punishment for over a month (I'm not a slow reader, but I guess I took some time for this one).
After this, I'm left with the choice between The Brothers Karamazov - which is a beast of 1000 pages, As I Lay Dying or The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchet. Now, it might be smarter and more efficient to read the shorter books before throwing myself into Dostoyevsky's world again, but there's just something about his writing and the world that he creates that just makes me want to return.
I've also heard that it's supposedly "better" than Crime & Punishment. What.
Loving it so far. It's got this strange sensation of being absolutely hilarious, but it's set in a time so bleak and dark and horrific.
All valid points I'll agree.
Like I mentioned, I did wish the ending was a little more vague as well. Right until that final chapter the mystery of it all was a big draw, and to have it spelled out so neatly is a bit of a downer, but I don't mind a book having a nice neat ending either. It also added a sense of believability knowing it was a perfect storm of events that might entirely happen.
Since I got my kindle I seem to read a ebook and a paperbook at the same time, just in different settings.
Currently on kindle:
Such a lovable cute book. Enjoying the heck out of it - except that some of the casual racism can be jarring.
It started a bit slow and I wasn't feeling it, but once it started to pick up it sucked me in a little.
The premise is a little out there, but better executed than the horrendous Cell, the only Stephen King book I stopped reading after a chapter or two. I just couldn't buy the premise at all.
Currently on kindle:
Such a lovable cute book. Enjoying the heck out of it - except that some of the casual racism can be jarring.
It started a bit slow and I wasn't feeling it, but once it started to pick up it sucked me in a little.
The premise is a little out there, but better executed than the horrendous Cell, the only Stephen King book I stopped reading after a chapter or two. I just couldn't buy the premise at all.
I love him. Books of Blood are very old now but still great fun.
I finished the Wool part of Silo last night, it was thoroughly enjoyable and I bought Shift the moment I was finished.
Plasticine
Member
Clive is probably my favorite writer. Just curious what you don't like about his style? Keep in mind, the Books of Blood contain his first published work. His style was still extremely rough around the edges.
To be clear, I only read the "intro" (Simon McNeal etc.) and the midnight meat train.
I really didn't like the intro. Maybe it's the French translation but the style was pretty flat overall - short sentences, one past tense, simple constructions. I enjoyed the MMT much more though.
Was it a good idea to start with this book, anyway ?
Maklershed
Member
Finished Lady in the Lake and started Post Office
Post Office by Charles Bukowski
I'm only 30% in or so but from what I've seen so far I have a feeling Bukowski is going to quickly jump into my top 5 favorite authors category. I'm not sure I've laughed so much while reading a book. Chinaski is such a great character - loathsome, cantankerous, lazy, etc. Can't wait to read more.
Post Office by Charles Bukowski
I'm only 30% in or so but from what I've seen so far I have a feeling Bukowski is going to quickly jump into my top 5 favorite authors category. I'm not sure I've laughed so much while reading a book. Chinaski is such a great character - loathsome, cantankerous, lazy, etc. Can't wait to read more.
Plasticine
Member
The Books of Blood is a good enough place to start. The Hellbound Heart, Cabal or Weaveworld are also solid starting points. The BoB will give you an idea of just how varied and weird Clive's output has been. The stories run the gamut from monster on the rampage, straight horror and dark fantasy. Some of the stories are weaker than others, but the really strong ones (Midnight Meat Train, In the Hills the Cities, Pig Blood Blues, Dread, Rawhead Rex and In the Flesh) are among the best short stories in the genre.
My favorite Barker books are Weaveworld, The Damnation Game, and The Great and Secret Show.
The different volumes of The Books of Blood (I haven't read them all, but I've read a couple), are kind of a mixed bag, which I think is pretty much always the case in any short story collection--there are always a few shitty stories mixed into even the best collections in my experience. But if you're a horror fan, these were definitely influential and they do a good job of representing a particular style of very gory/explicit horror that became popular during the 80s.
Most of Barkers other work that I've read is almost dark urban fantasy rather than straight horror, and he does a good job with that kind of material.
edit// Specifically regarding his use of language... In English, I've always thought he was above average, very readable and with a knack for writing prose that's packed with extremely vivid imagery and sensory detail, but that sort of thing is very subjective, and I also have no idea how a French translation would come across.
Tragicomedy
Member
Finished Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut - ★★★★ - Classic Vonnegut, complete with black humor, zany characters, and underlying moral lessons about living a duplicate life and losing oneself. Love it.
BriareosGAF
Member
Sure, I think generally it's seen as one of his more accessible works, more in the vein of Vonnegut (they both studied under Nabokov at Cornell). This can lead you to either think it's one of his better written novels, free from obfuscation and jargonism; or lightweight almost-parody trash, depending on your predilection
.Sure, I think generally it's seen as one of his more accessible works, more in the vein of Vonnegut (they both studied under Nabokov at Cornell). This can lead you to either think it's one of his better written novels, free from obfuscation and jargonism; or lightweight almost-parody trash, depending on your predilection
i thought it was the dopeness
thats a term i learned from nabokov
Tony Redgrave
Member
I started because it was a mandatory read in College, but I'm having a great time.
Marcovaldo
Member
pynchon himself thought it was a piece of shit iirc in a letter to his editor while working on gravity's rainbow
Uh oh, can you elaborate a bit more on this?
The Artful Dodger
Member
I started because it was a mandatory read in College, but I'm having a great time.
It's really a fantastic book.
Incandenza
Banned
Yesterday I finished:
The Terror by Dan Simmons
The best way I can describe this book: Remember Sunshine? Specifically, remember how the first two-thirds of Sunshine is this really gripping, harrowing survival tale, and then it goes and fucks it all up in the last act by turning into a slasher film?
The Terror is like Sunshine done right. It's a brutal survival story that perfectly weaves its supernatural horror elements in with its historical fiction. I would say that the story kicks into gear around page 150, but the truth is that this book is constantly shifting into a higher gear every 50-ish pages, until eventually skidding into a batshit-crazy climax that contains some truly horrific imagery. While it stumbles a little bit at the veeery end, it's generally a great ride. My one major complaint is that some of the characters felt a bit underdeveloped for a 700+ page novel. Simmons develops everyone just enough to shock you when something horrible happens to them, but only 4 or 5 major characters felt really fleshed out to me.
Anyway, next up:
Hell yeah, it's time to start my reread of A Song of Ice and Fire. Can't wait to see what it's like the second time through, particularly AGoT, since I'll be going into it with a good grasp of the lore and characters.
The Terror by Dan Simmons
The best way I can describe this book: Remember Sunshine? Specifically, remember how the first two-thirds of Sunshine is this really gripping, harrowing survival tale, and then it goes and fucks it all up in the last act by turning into a slasher film?
The Terror is like Sunshine done right. It's a brutal survival story that perfectly weaves its supernatural horror elements in with its historical fiction. I would say that the story kicks into gear around page 150, but the truth is that this book is constantly shifting into a higher gear every 50-ish pages, until eventually skidding into a batshit-crazy climax that contains some truly horrific imagery. While it stumbles a little bit at the veeery end, it's generally a great ride. My one major complaint is that some of the characters felt a bit underdeveloped for a 700+ page novel. Simmons develops everyone just enough to shock you when something horrible happens to them, but only 4 or 5 major characters felt really fleshed out to me.
Anyway, next up:
Hell yeah, it's time to start my reread of A Song of Ice and Fire. Can't wait to see what it's like the second time through, particularly AGoT, since I'll be going into it with a good grasp of the lore and characters.
RatskyWatsky
Hunky Nostradamus
Finally started my copy of Berserk Vol 1 last night.
I like it and the art is pretty good despite what I've heard people say. I've seen the anime, so some of it is familiar to me, but there's a lot of new stuff too.
I like it and the art is pretty good despite what I've heard people say. I've seen the anime, so some of it is familiar to me, but there's a lot of new stuff too.
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