December 2010 Reading Thread

[kcf]

I finally got my review posted for Swords & Dark Magic edited by Lou Anders and Jonathan Strahan. It's a decent anthology that succeeds well withing its goals. The stories aren't outstanding, but are fun and entertaining (and there are some pretty big names authoring them). Full Review

I still have a couple more reviews to catch up on and I'm currently reading Stonewielder by Ian C. Esslemont, which is fun, Malazan goodness.

[siemprepe]

Received my copy of Wintertide my Michael Sullivan. i think this book will be finished quite fast :).

Also reading the broken kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin. Those books are something different for me, but I like them.

[Astra]

I have finally settled on my next read. In fact, I have already started to read it.

None from the list I have posted before.

Northern Lights aka The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

[palin99999]

Finished:

Three on a Light by Victor Gischler - 6.8/10

Starting:

Shadow Season by Tom Piccirilli

[hadaad]

Finished Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan. Very entertaining.

Moving on to the second half of Reaper's Gale by Steven Erikson.

[Lord Toblerone]

I finally finished Warriors. I read The Mystery Knight ages ago when I first got the anthology, but I got around to reading the rest of it only late October-ish.

And now I'm done. Weak link is definitely Out of the Dark, I found it bloody tedious, but it's probably worth struggling through for the mad ending

Nosferatu Ex Machina

There's several memorable stories though -Dirae is very good.

Now I'm gonna go on and read The Folklore of Discworld.

After that - I Shall Wear Midnight.

[Ski the Swift]

I was really surprised to find out he was Finnish, actually. The writing felt so smoothly...english.

Reading Jasper Kent's Twelve - started a bit slow, but i'm getting into it now, though horror still really isn't my cup of tea, and Gabaldon's Outlander, per recs in the recent romance threads. (even slower)

Next its either Surface Detail or The Windup Girl.

I own this but have yet to start reading it, how horroresq is it/anymore details I should know?

[Tyria]

Reading Canticle by Ken Scholes at home, and Homer & Langley by E.L. Doctorow on the bus.

[Lordwalker]

Finished Lullaby by Palahniuk. Enjoyable, wierd as usually, but enjoyable.

Was unable to finnish The Bone Dolls Twinby Flewelling, I have reluctantly put it in the "try again later pile" but don't know if I will. After 150 pages I feel like I'm still trapped in a long drawn out description of the book that still has a looong way to go before the story can begin. Oh, well.

Started A Cavern of Black Iceby JV Jones, it has great reviews, and many on this board have spoken very highly of it, so it is worth a shot.

Also Started:

Meditations on Violence by Rory Miller

Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie

[beniowa]

Last night I finished The Quiet Woman by Christopher Priest. This book wasn't quite as fulfilling as some of the author's other work, focusing on a small plot about a writer and a government "information broker". Priest's characters are well written as always. And as usual, he plays around with our perception of reality. I didn't fully understand the possible multiple endings, but that's not really unusual with Priest and I'm always willing to forgive him for anything.

Next up will probably be Antiphon by Ken Scholes.

[nickg]

Finished Dune last night. I actually didn't think it would live up to the praise but I thought it was great. Quite a few similarities between Paul and Khellus. Starting To Green Angel Tower next. I love the cover.

[mashiara]

It's been a while since I posted. I've done a lot of reading but I can't say it was all quality reading, or that I was completely focused to it.

The Wishing Game, Patrick Redmond. A book with lots of potential about public schools in England and what goes on there that reads well until it takes a turn for the paranormal. Then it gets silly.

Winnie the Pooh, A.A. Milne. I know, this doesn't count as a "real" for someone my age but there was this meme making the rounds of Facebook two weeks ago about a 100 books one should read (I think it was Stego who published it first) and it kind of pissed me off that while I had read 70+ of those it counted against me that I had never read Winnie the Pooh. So yeah, it wasn't available in Greece when I was growing up and I took steps to rectify the situation. I do identify with Eeyore after all.

Breathing method and Survivor Type, two short stories from Stephen King, the creepy, scary ones that he was so good at writing in the good old days.

Book of the Dead, Patricia Cornwell. I've read a few of her Kay Scarpetta books and some of them were really well written but this one wasn't. Too hastily thrown together with no real depth to the characters or any attention to the plot.

The private papers of Eastern Jewel, Maureen Lindley. A mildly interesting book about the supposed real story of a Chinese princess that ends up being a Japanese spy. Worth reading for the window into another culture, but too focused on sex to be taken seriously. ( Not to be misunderstood here, I quite like books focused on sex. Just not this one)

Divorcing Jack, Colin Bateman. I can honestly say I'm not sure what this book is about. Something about a couple of murders, the IRA, a reporter cheating on his wife, lots of other people that didn't register at all... it probably didn't help that I was reading it while waiting for a medical procedure, but I was really unimpressed.

Queen Mum, Kate Long. I liked her Bad Mother's handbook when I read it last month, this one wasn't as enjoyable. I guess it could be called an interesting study on what goes on in a marriage and a family and what reality shows do to you, but I wouldn't really recommend it.

Candles on Bay street, K.C McKinnon. I just finished it this morning, a quick read. A bittersweet book, surprisingly well written and leaving you with such a sad feeling. It deals with love (especially first love, the kind that stays with you forever), friendship, sickness and loss. A very touching book.

I guess i'll be reading Under the Dome by Stephen King next. I've been putting it off because I did not feel like carrying a 900 page book with me to work but since I'll be on bed rest for a couple more days I'll give it a go. I remember the time when a new Stephen King book would have me so terribly excited, now the best I can say is "meh, I hope it doesn't suck.".

[Starkess]

I had to give up on Les Miserables for now. It was actually really good, until all of the sudden there is a random history of the battle of Waterloo that dragged on for ages and ages. I actually ended up skipping most of it (and I never skip parts in books, I can't remember ever doing so before), and now I'm just too disinterested to get back into the story. Putting it on hold for a while and distracting myself with some lighter fare, currently Anne of Green Gables. I can't count how many times I've read these before, but they're very dear to me and they were free to download the whole series to my Kindle, so here I am reading them again!

[hadaad]

Gave up trying to figure out what was going on where I left off in Reaper's Gale. Bit the bullet and restarted Gardens of the Moon.

[nickg]

Well, instead of To Green Angel Tower, I started on the Great Hunt. I never was a huge Wheel of Time fan, but I am think I am hooked now. I had trouble getting started on Eye of the World, but once I got past the beginning I flew through it. I haven't been able to put TGH down.

[Bellis]

Not been reading much lately, but did pick up The Book of Evidence by John Banville as per book club selection. It's pretty derivative of Crime and Punishment and L'etranger (Camus). But it's still a readable foray into an amoral mind.

[Xalinor]

Finished Stephen King's Christine.

Started off well enough, peaked in the middle, and fell miserably short at the end. Arnie Cunningham's descent into madness was absurd. The final confrontation with Christine was forgettable and remarkably dull. The ominous ending was awesome, but not enough to pull this novel from the pit of despair.

5/10

[Guinevere Seaworth]

I typically like Morgan Llywelyn's Irish historical fiction, but Lion of Ireland felt flat to me. I enjoyed the first half, but I lost interest in the characters and story in the second half, making this read a bit of a chore.

Simon Winchester's Atlantic is up next and I hope this will be an interesting read.

[Peadar]

I enjoyed The Atrocity Archives by Charles Stross.

Up next, The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper.

[Vrana]

Finished Michail Bulgakov's Master and Margarita, Jose Saramago's The Double and Ben Okri's Tales of Freedom.

Okri is an author that always gives me a gut-punch a day or so after I've finished a book. I remember many sleepless nights wandering about after having finished The Famished Road, so I will probably try his Dangerous Love next.