What are you reading? Fourth Quarter 2023

[Pellert]

15 hours ago, mcbigski said:

Been devouring Abraham's Dagger and Coin series.  My local library has had vol 2-4 on the shelf for the last three years or so.  Finally got off my ass and read vol 1.  Enjoying them for sure.  If you like the Expanse, and you like multi point of view fantasy with relatively low magic, imperfect characters, and a solid back story and world building, you should probably give it a go.  Hopefully that's not too narrow a niche around here. 

Excellent series I must say, however I didn’t find it to be up there with the biggest epics (and that is not expected either, just saying). 
 

And just in case you are “new” to Abraham, I can recommend you next read to be the Long Price quartet, it’s a bit different but still a very good series from Abraham. 

[Larry of the Lawn]

On 12/27/2023 at 9:59 AM, Fragile Bird said:

This is the problem, do you want to invest the time in a series that will eventually seriously disappoint you, or worse, either disgust you or just bore you to death.

I'd say the ending of the TAE both disgusted and disappointed me, and yet is still probably my favorite fantasy series, and one that I have reread several times. Not for everybody but I think it's pretty great.

[unJon]

On 12/28/2023 at 2:54 PM, Larry of the Lawn said:

I'd say the ending of the TAE both disgusted and disappointed me, and yet is still probably my favorite fantasy series, and one that I have reread several times. Not for everybody but I think it's pretty great.

No weepers on the Slog!

[williamjm]

I finished Kate Elliot's Furious Heaven, the second book in her space opera trilogy loosely inspired by Alexander the Great's conquests. It is a long book, at well over 700 pages in the edition I read but I thought it moved along at a good pace and packed a lot of story into those pages. Initially it took a while to remember all of the plot points from the first book, I think perhaps it could have benefited from a synopsis of the previous book at the start. It does have a lot of characters in it, many of whom get their own point-of-view chapters but the vast majority of the book is told from the perspective of 4 or 5 of them. I did find the characters interesting and varied, and I thought most of them got some good character development. It does also feature perspectives from both sides of the central conflict, although most of the story is told from the Chaonian side, seeing some of the Phene perspective on events does help avoid them being faceless villains. The world-building has some interesting mysteries in it, such as the reasons for the long-ago collapse of parts of the beacon network than joins star systems. The series is set several millennia in the future and their knowledge of their own history is a fragmentary and unreliable, some bits of contemporary culture have survived but there is also much that has been forgotten or made up. I think this way a stronger novel than the first book, which did take a while to really get going, and I am looking forward to the final book in the trilogy.

I have now started Ian McDonald's latest book, Hopeland.

[Fragile Bird]

Lol, a board member has posted on Facebook that she just finished the wildest series: started with a deadly version of The Bachelor, added killer clones, an insane AI, and evil doctors. Ended with palace intrigue and a 100 page fight scene!

Looked it up, hooray for YA! It’s called Royal Replicas (I think there’s a big spoiler in the title!) and my library has all the books in one 36 hour audiobook. The author is Michael Pierce and otherwise there are 4 books in the series. Sounds like fun!

[Teng Ai Hui]

I just finished Mr Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan and its prequel, a short story called Ajax Penumbra 1969.  I think that the best way to describe the plot is that someone took The Da Vinci Code and rewrote it for book lovers.

Not sure what to read next, but since I started this year with Legends & Lattes, I think I’ll start next year with Bookshops & Bonedust.

[ljkeane]

I read the two most recent Murderbot novellas Fugitive Telemetry and System Collapse. I like the Murderbot books but they are a bit expensively priced in the UK so I don't tend to pick them up straight away, I got some Amazon vouchers though so it seemed like a good use for them. Anyway, a good entertaining read as usual.

I'm finishing up my 2024 reading with Claire North's The Pursuit of William Abbey.

[Peadar]

On 12/27/2023 at 12:17 AM, williamjm said:

I also bought the book about the time it was being discussed a lot on the boards but never actually got round to reading it. I think some of the reactions I've read to how the series progressed didn't really encourage me to start it.

I highly recommend the first trilogy. Yes, there is some dodginess -- lack of women except as unflattering clichés -- but some of the good parts made me feel like I was hurtling towards the edge of a cliff with no brakes. In a good way. Dark and way too horrible to miss out on.

As for me, Adrian Tchaikovsky's House of Open Wounds was tremendous fun. If you liked the first book in the same universe, you'll like this too. If not, not.