November Reads 2015 2.0

[Nicomo Cosca]

First third of Wheel of Time is on the whole pretty good, enjoy. 

I've read fuck all for pleasure since University started. I've just handed this semester's only assignment in, so I feel I can finally start something I want to - in this case, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?. The only other Philip K. Dick book I've read was The Man In The High Castle, which I really enjoyed. I'm one chapter into Androids, and so far I think I'm going to enjoy it more. For a start, Blade Runner is brilliant. This is also one of the rare occassions where I actually read a foreword, and I found it really interesting.

At this point I don't expect to finish my updated reading challenge for this year. 12 books in 6 weeks is too big an ask, especially since I idiotically left all the heavy books* for this end of the year. If I can get another 6 in though, I'll be well chuffed.

*I realise Androids doesn't qualify as a heavy book, but everything else does. 

I read the criticism regarding the slower pace of the middle section of TWoT (especially book 10, it seems it gets bashed everywhere I look). I´m hoping the books at least remain entertaining when I get deeper into the series, right now I´m having a blast!

[SkynJay]

Reading it at the moment. Looks nice, although nothing special so far (read around 40% of it).

If you are reading it on your Kindle there is a chance you are actually about 80% done and have The Dragon's Path in the same file after it.

[Paxter]

Currently slogging through Stephenson's Cryptonomicon and Russell's History of Western Philosophy. The former is doing my head in slightly - I preferred the hectic pace of Snow Crash. HoWP is a bona fide classic and I'm annoyed not to have tackled it sooner.

[The Marquis de Leech]

Kvothe is a deliberate and self-conscious Mary Sue. Whether it works in a literary sense is up for debate (I personally think it doesn't - which is a shame, because I absolutely love Rothfuss' magic system).

Anyway, am almost finished Sailing to Byzantium by Robert Silverberg (the six novella collection). Born with the Dead might just be the most memorable instance of zombies I've yet encountered in literature. I have no idea if Silverberg had read Clark Ashton Smith before writing that particular story, but it wouldn't surprise me. There's a touch of Necromancy in Naat about it.  

[Iskaral Pust]

I returned to Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and the Blade of Tyshalle (Caine #2) and read them both from the 20% mark where I last dropped them to the 40% mark on both. I'm still not feeling it. Both are too dull with nothing really to recommend them (TTSS would have been great when it was released).

I'm dropping both again.

I picked up Rafa Benitez' book on his Liverpool years as a quick read. It's ok but doesn't actually develop the tactics, just that he worked for hours on them each game.

I need something new to read now.

[peterbound]

Trying to read the Dark Tower series.  Never got around to getting it done.  

[Guinevere Seaworth]

I finished The Ionian Mission by Patrick O'Brian.  I liked this one more as it had more political intrigue and a great chase scene that did not end up in a battle.

Now halfway through Raptor by Lindsay Buroker.  I really like her indie Dragon Blood series.

[Peadar]

Reading American Elsewhere by Robert Jackson Bennett.

[Zoë Sumra]

I'm on the second book of Steve Alten's Meg series, which is about the discovery of living megaladons in the Marianas Trench and what happens when one breaks through the thermal barrier of the Trench and gets loose. It's actually a pretty good series so far, and pretty believable science wise too.

I just started the first of these! Enjoying so far.

[Joe Pesci]

I just started the first of these! Enjoying so far.

Meg: Origins was also a good, short read. Finished up the second book yesterday and really enjoyed it as well.

[deleted01]

I just finishing rereading Wolf Winter by Cecilia Ekback. I love this book, it's beautiful. 

Downloaded The Unnamed Midwife on Kindle Unlimited (hello free trial). It's meant to be similar to Atwood's Handmaiden's Tale, which I loved, so I have high hopes.

[Spockydog]

Just finished Christopher Buehlman's Those Across the River. I really, really liked this. Loved the characters and the creepy Southern Gothic vibe.

I went into this book entirely blind, and was a little disappointed when the guys across the river turned out to be

werewolves. 

Had I known, I might not have picked it up in the first place, but I'm really glad I did. Highly recommended.

Of the back off this, I picked up another of Buehlman's books: Between Two Fires. It's a historical fantasy, set during the Hundred Years War, just after the Battle of Crécy. It's okay, I guess, but there's not much depth to it. It all feels a little whimsical.

Mark Alder did a much better job with Son of the Morning.

 

[Richard Writhen]

Trying to read the Dark Tower series.  Never got around to getting it done.  

Good deal. That was a great series.

[peterbound]

 

Good deal. That was a great series.

Pretty mediocre so far.  Cutting him some slack.  I guess he wrote the first book when he was 19?  It shows.   

[Astromech]

Just finished Christopher Buehlman's Those Across the River. I really, really liked this. Loved the characters and the creepy Southern Gothic vibe.

I went into this book entirely blind, and was a little disappointed when the guys across the river turned out to be

Hidden Content

Had I known, I might not have picked it up in the first place, but I'm really glad I did. Highly recommended.

Of the back off this, I picked up another of Buehlman's books: Between Two Fires. It's a historical fantasy, set during the Hundred Years War, just after the Battle of Crécy. It's okay, I guess, but there's not much depth to it. It all feels a little whimsical.

Mark Alder did a much better job with Son of the Morning.

 

I enjoyed Those Across the River as a somewhat spooky, fast-paced ride, but wasn't blown away by it. The ending felt rushed and the main character really acted out of character towards the end. However, I preferred it to Between Two Rivers. Buehlman used Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror as a source for his novel's setting in 14th C. France and it is too similar in many parts. I probably would've enjoyed Between Two Fires more had I not read Tuchman's book shortly before it. I did enjoy the apocalyptic heaven v. hell angle to it though.

Since you enjoyed the southern gothic vibe of Those Across the River, I would recommend Joe R. Lansdale's novel The Bottoms.

On Caliban's War now. So far so good. I'm enjoying the new POVs, especially Avasarala's.

[RedEyedGhost]

I liked Robert Jackson Bennett's The Troupe a heck of a lot.  It reminded me of Felix Gilman's work (although I don't think Bennett's writing was quite to the level of Gilman's).  Really good book, and quite a bit different than I was expecting but still worked well for my Autumnal reading.

 

Just finished Christopher Buehlman's Those Across the River. I really, really liked this. Loved the characters and the creepy Southern Gothic vibe.

I went into this book entirely blind, and was a little disappointed when the guys across the river turned out to be

Hidden Content

Had I known, I might not have picked it up in the first place, but I'm really glad I did. Highly recommended.

I'm a quarter through this right now, and I'm really enjoying the atmosphere.

[Darth Richard II]

I really liked Between Two Fires, but I'm a sucker for stuff set in that time period. It is really weird. I'm still not sure what the hell it was actually about.

 

And yeah, the first Dark Tower book is meh, it doesnt kick off really til book 2.

[Guest]

I really liked Between Two Fires, but I'm a sucker for stuff set in that time period. It is really weird. I'm still not sure what the hell it was actually about..

Is that the one that Zach G's Between Two Ferns is inspired by?

[Spockydog]

Since you enjoyed the southern gothic vibe of Those Across the River, I would recommend Joe R. Lansdale's novel The Bottoms.

I read The Bottoms off the back of a recommendation in the Truly Scary Novels thread. Great stuff. Lansdale sure is a talented writer.

I really liked Between Two Fires, but I'm a sucker for stuff set in that time period. It is really weird. I'm still not sure what the hell it was actually about.

I'm not sure if I'm going to finish this. It doesn't feel like there's any real peril for the protagonists, which makes for a dullish read. And yeah, it's really, really weird. 

I've got another of Buehlman's in the pipeline. The Necromancer's House. This looks like it might be more to my liking.

I've also just started Beyond Redemption by Michael Fletcher. Haven't read any Epic Fantasy for a while, and I'm liking it a lot. Love the concept behind this book. And Konig's doppels remind me a little of the Andats in Long Price Quartet.

 

[maarsen]

I picked up two books for next week from the library. Perfidia by James Ellroy and Copperhead by Bernard Cornwell. Looking forward to reading them both.