Books you're currently reading??? - Page 110

toranokaze · 12-06-2009, 10:55 PM

Textbooks- I hate finals

lumberjim · 12-06-2009, 11:14 PM

this is a good one

DanaC · 12-07-2009, 05:16 AM

That looks rather good Jim. I might get hold of a copy of the series.

I'm thinking, if you haven't already come across them, you might like Joe Abercrombie's trilogy. First one is called Before They Are Hanged, I think. Awesome fantasy series, with a political intrigue at its core (which is what made me think about it now ;p)

lookout123 · 12-07-2009, 12:37 PM

One Second After Sure you can discard it as conservative scare tactics, or decide to pick apart the workman -like writing, or debate whether the science holds true... or you could just enjoy it as a novel that might get you to look at your day to day life and dependence on technology.

The basic premise is that the US is shut down by EMP and life must continue.

Clodfobble · 12-07-2009, 01:35 PM

Eesh. It's an interesting premise, and I went to check it out on Amazon... but just based on the preview pages there, I know I could never get past the crappy writing. Let me know how it ends.

Sundae · 12-07-2009, 02:53 PM

Haven't read Ilium, but I adored Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion. Recommended to me by the lovely man who used to give me a lift to and from work. He hid a burning creative light beneath a cynical, techie carapace. I adored him, and regret losing contact.

I recommended he read Against A Dark Background, and he dismissed it as sci-fi-lite. I claimed it was because it had a female main character (okay, I was 19) and he gave me Hyperion in return. We talked about it for the next week. I was embarrassed that he picked up on far more of the literary references than I did, because I assumed as a techie he wouldn't be well read. Thank goodness I met him, or I might still be insufferable today

Anyway.

Recently read.
The Good House, Tananarive Due
Supposed to be a horror. FAR too much given away on the back page. Written by a black woman, and all the major characters are black (and most are female). Always interesting to read from a different perspective. No real scares though. Good horror is hard to find.

As you can see below I keep trying though.

London Under Midnight, Simon Clark
Some interesting ideas. Again, supposed to be a new slant on the vampire genre, but not densely written enough to occupy you for more than an afternoon. And the ending was like a soap opera episode.

The Silver Face, Edward Wright
Lightweight, good fun. I'm a big fan of complex and literary murder mysteries. This was neither and I guessed the killer very quickly. Which is not like me. But this killer had a sign round their neck saying, "Hello, I've just been introduced as the killer!" And that was before someone even died. Nicely evocative of '50's Hollywood though.

Monster Nation, David Wellington
Zombie novel. Don't bother.

I've read others, but am losing the desire to write about them.
FTR:
Blood Atonement, Dan Waddell - C
Bloody Mary, Whiskey Sour and Fuzzy Navel[3 novels], J A Konrath - C+
Little Face, Sophie Hannah - C+
The Japanese Corpse, Janwillem Van de Wetering - C

I'll be back at the library sometime this week because I've reserved a DVD (Let the Right One In, if you're wondering), so I'll try to choose more carefully this time, instead of my usual snatch and grab. I also promise a review of Mr Darcy, Vampyre and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

Qice · 12-11-2009, 03:41 PM

Under the banner of Heaven - Krakauer

wolf · 12-15-2009, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lookout123

One Second After

Finished it a couple of months ago, really enjoyed it.

wolf · 12-15-2009, 01:40 PM

Since Late November ...

UR - Stephen King

Creepy novella, about the Kindle, read on a Kindle.

The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design - Jonathon Wells, Ph.D.

I usually really like the P.I.G.s, this one got repetitive.

Maximum Ride 1: The Angel Experiment - James Patterson

Free Kindle Download. It was supposed to suck me into reading the rest of the series. It didn't. Think Dark Angel without the EMP but with the mad scientists.

American Gothic - Robert Bloch

Fictionalized account of the story of HH Holmes. Devil in The White City was WAY better, less melodramatic. But melodrama is what I expect from the author of Psycho.

The Prisoner - Thomas M. Disch

Familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. This was published shortly after the original TV series aired.

Am I the Only Sane One Working Here? - Albert T. Bernstein, Ph.D.

Amusing variation on those management guru books.

Going Rogue: An American Life - Sarah Palin

Yes, I really read it. It's actually pretty good. The letter to Trig got me tearing up.

Cunningham's Book of Shadows - Scott Cunningham

A lot of the material appears in his other books, but it has potential as a good reference. I'm not on board with his personifications of Goddess, God, and Creator. One thing that was kind of jarring ... after years of seeing cause of death in the author's bio, it's now downgraded to "after a long illness."

By Reason of Insanity - Randy Singer

Courtroom drama. Another free Kindle Download. I could probably chug along for several years on free downloads alone.

dar512 · 12-16-2009, 08:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sundae Girl

The Eyre Affair had me laughing out loud on the bus.

I'm about halfway through and loving it. Any author who names characters Thursday Next and Jack Schitt is worth a read.

Trilby · 12-16-2009, 09:32 AM

I'm re-reading Kate Atkinson's stuff. LOVE her.

*thanks SG

Gravdigr · 01-03-2010, 06:49 PM

Two-stories-in-one-book cheapie: "The First Mountain Man: Preacher's Justice"/"Fury of the Mountain Man" by William W. Johnstone.

elSicomoro · 01-06-2010, 12:54 PM

The End of Overeating by Dr. David Kessler...he led the FDA during Bush 41 and Clinton. Good book...very insightful.

wolf · 01-06-2010, 01:16 PM

I did it, I did it, I did it!!! I finished the Baroque Cycle!!!!!!!

(If you know what it is, you know that making it through is quite the achievement)

glatt · 01-06-2010, 03:33 PM

And did you like it?

12-06-2009, 10:55 PM	#1636
toranokaze I'm still a jerk Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Little Mexico Posts: 1,817	Textbooks- I hate finals __________________ "Without deviation from the norm progress is not possible." - Frank Zappa It is the ignorance of ignorance that lead to the death of knowledge The Virgin Mary does not weep for her son, for he is in paradise. She weeps for the world , for we are in suffering.

12-06-2009, 11:14 PM	#1637
lumberjim I can hear my ears Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 25,571	this is a good one __________________ This body holding me reminds me of my own mortality Embrace this moment, remember We are eternal, all this pain is an illusion ~MJKeenan

12-07-2009, 12:37 PM	#1639
lookout123 changed his status to single Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Right behind you. No, the other side. Posts: 10,308	One Second After Sure you can discard it as conservative scare tactics, or decide to pick apart the workman -like writing, or debate whether the science holds true... or you could just enjoy it as a novel that might get you to look at your day to day life and dependence on technology. The basic premise is that the US is shut down by EMP and life must continue. __________________ Getting knocked down is no sin, it's not getting back up that's the sin

12-07-2009, 01:35 PM	#1640
Clodfobble UNDER CONDITIONAL MITIGATION Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 20,012	Eesh. It's an interesting premise, and I went to check it out on Amazon... but just based on the preview pages there, I know I could never get past the crappy writing. Let me know how it ends. __________________ My book My other book My spirit animal

12-07-2009, 02:53 PM	#1641
Sundae polaroid of perfection Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 24,185	Haven't read Ilium, but I adored Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion. Recommended to me by the lovely man who used to give me a lift to and from work. He hid a burning creative light beneath a cynical, techie carapace. I adored him, and regret losing contact. I recommended he read Against A Dark Background, and he dismissed it as sci-fi-lite. I claimed it was because it had a female main character (okay, I was 19) and he gave me Hyperion in return. We talked about it for the next week. I was embarrassed that he picked up on far more of the literary references than I did, because I assumed as a techie he wouldn't be well read. Thank goodness I met him, or I might still be insufferable today Anyway. Recently read. The Good House, Tananarive Due Supposed to be a horror. FAR too much given away on the back page. Written by a black woman, and all the major characters are black (and most are female). Always interesting to read from a different perspective. No real scares though. Good horror is hard to find. As you can see below I keep trying though. *London Under Midnight, Simon Clark Some interesting ideas. Again, supposed to be a new slant on the vampire genre, but not densely written enough to occupy you for more than an afternoon. And the ending was like a soap opera episode. The Silver Face, Edward Wright Lightweight, good fun. I'm a big fan of complex and literary murder mysteries. This was neither and I guessed the killer very quickly. Which is not like me. But this killer had a sign round their neck saying, "Hello, I've just been introduced as the killer!" And that was before someone even died. Nicely evocative of '50's Hollywood though. Monster Nation, David Wellington Zombie novel. Don't bother. I've read others, but am losing the desire to write about them. FTR: Blood Atonement, Dan Waddell - C Bloody Mary, Whiskey Sour and Fuzzy Navel[3 novels], J A Konrath - C+ Little Face, Sophie Hannah - C+ The Japanese Corpse, Janwillem Van de Wetering - C I'll be back at the library sometime this week because I've reserved a DVD (Let the Right One In, if you're wondering), so I'll try to choose more carefully this time, instead of my usual snatch and grab. I also promise a review of Mr Darcy, Vampyre* and Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. __________________ Life's hard you know, so strike a pose on a Cadillac

12-11-2009, 03:41 PM	#1642
Qice A b**** of the highest caliber Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Land of Enchantment Posts: 114	Under the banner of Heaven - Krakauer

12-15-2009, 01:40 PM	#1644
wolf lobber of scimitars Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Phila Burbs Posts: 20,774	Since Late November ... UR - Stephen King Creepy novella, about the Kindle, read on a Kindle. The Politically Incorrect Guide to Darwinism and Intelligent Design - Jonathon Wells, Ph.D. I usually really like the P.I.G.s, this one got repetitive. Maximum Ride 1: The Angel Experiment - James Patterson Free Kindle Download. It was supposed to suck me into reading the rest of the series. It didn't. Think Dark Angel without the EMP but with the mad scientists. American Gothic - Robert Bloch Fictionalized account of the story of HH Holmes. Devil in The White City was WAY better, less melodramatic. But melodrama is what I expect from the author of Psycho. The Prisoner - Thomas M. Disch Familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. This was published shortly after the original TV series aired. Am I the Only Sane One Working Here? - Albert T. Bernstein, Ph.D. Amusing variation on those management guru books. Going Rogue: An American Life - Sarah Palin Yes, I really read it. It's actually pretty good. The letter to Trig got me tearing up. Cunningham's Book of Shadows - Scott Cunningham A lot of the material appears in his other books, but it has potential as a good reference. I'm not on board with his personifications of Goddess, God, and Creator. One thing that was kind of jarring ... after years of seeing cause of death in the author's bio, it's now downgraded to "after a long illness." By Reason of Insanity - Randy Singer Courtroom drama. Another free Kindle Download. I could probably chug along for several years on free downloads alone. __________________ wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis

12-16-2009, 09:32 AM	#1646
Trilby Slattern of the Swail Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 15,654	I'm re-reading Kate Atkinson's stuff. LOVE her. *thanks SG __________________ In Barrie's play and novel, the roles of fairies are brief: they are allies to the Lost Boys, the source of fairy dust and ...They are portrayed as dangerous, whimsical and extremely clever but quite hedonistic. "Shall I give you a kiss?" Peter asked and, jerking an acorn button off his coat, solemnly presented it to her. —James Barrie Wimminfolk they be tricksy. - ZenGum

01-03-2010, 06:49 PM	#1647
Gravdigr The Un-Tuckian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: South Central...KY that is Posts: 39,517	Two-stories-in-one-book cheapie: "The First Mountain Man: Preacher's Justice"/"Fury of the Mountain Man" by William W. Johnstone. __________________ These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA, EPA, FBI, DEA, CDC, or FDIC. These statements are not intended to diagnose, cause, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. If you feel you have been harmed/offended by, or, disagree with any of the above statements or images, please feel free to fuck right off.

01-06-2010, 12:54 PM	#1648
elSicomoro Person who doesn't update the user title Join Date: Jan 2001 Posts: 12,486	The End of Overeating by Dr. David Kessler...he led the FDA during Bush 41 and Clinton. Good book...very insightful.

01-06-2010, 01:16 PM	#1649
wolf lobber of scimitars Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Phila Burbs Posts: 20,774	I did it, I did it, I did it!!! I finished the Baroque Cycle!!!!!!! (If you know what it is, you know that making it through is quite the achievement) __________________ wolf eht htiw og "Conspiracies are the norm, not the exception." --G. Edward Griffin The Creature from Jekyll Island High Priestess of the Church of the Whale Penis

01-06-2010, 03:33 PM	#1650
glatt ™ Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Arlington, VA Posts: 27,717	And did you like it?

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