What Are You Reading - May '08

[Annelise]

Rereading Truman Capote's, [i]In Cold Blood.[/i] Excellent (again).

[Ser Barry]

House to House by David Bellavia

A first hand account of the 2nd Battle of Fallujah from an infantryman. Intense is the best way to describe this book. The author failed to take me all the way in to the battle with him but then his whole ideology was foreign to me. An insight in to the mind of the people fighting on 'our' side.

[Cuchulain]

Despite my previous post I have read another book today, namely [i]Wizardry & Wild Romance: A Study of Epic Fantasy[/i] by Michael Moorcock. It's a great book which I would recommend to anyone with an interest in the subject. While I do not agree with many of Moorcock's views, it's still very interesting to read what someone like him, who has been working for so long in the genre, has to say. The one small letdown to the book (as mentioned by Vandermeer in the afterword) is Moorcock's neglect to mention his own work, which is quite significant. If you don't like Moorcock's view, it's still worth a read for the discovery of many good authors you've probably never heard of.

[Peadar]

I just finished [url="http://www.amazon.com/Thunderer-Felix-Gilman/dp/0553806769/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211407450&sr=1-1"]Thunderer[/url] by Felix Gilman. There's some great world-building here with echoes of Zelazny's Amber very prominent.

I don't know what I'll read next. Maybe [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jude-Level-1-Julian-Gough/dp/1905847246/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211407597&sr=1-1"]Jude: Level 1,[/url] by Julian Gough. A bit of wild humour wouldn't go astray right now.

[pat5150]

[quote name='Gormenghast' post='1363313' date='May 20 2008, 22.53']You still don't have Toll the Hounds?

I wonder when we'll get the first review. One month before the book's out.

And I'll ask the nasty, silly question: bluntly, where would you put ROTCG among all other Malazan books? Still behind all Erikson's or you think it is better than some of those?[/quote]

My set of page proofs of Erikson's Toll the Hounds is in transit somewhere between London and Montreal. . . :tantrum: Hopefully I'll get it in time before I fly away for my month-long vacation in Eastern Europe.

Hard to say where I'd put RotCG among the other Malazan novels. Probably behind all of them but GotM, though GotM still has more going for it, what with the Bridgeburners, Tool and the Adjunct, Rake and Moon's Spawn, etc. But all in all, I firmly believe that RotCG brings a lot to the dance and should satisfy most -- if not all -- Malazan fans!

Patrick

[Xray the Enforcer]

I just started [i]Neuropath[/i]. I'm already creeped out. :sick:

But god[i]damn[/i], did Scott overwrite the fucker. My inner editor wants to beat the shit out of the prose.

[Guinevere Seaworth]

[quote name='pat5150' post='1364810' date='May 21 2008, 15.36']My set of page proofs of Erikson's Toll the Hounds is in transit somewhere between London and Montreal. . . :tantrum: Hopefully I'll get it in time before I fly away for my month-long vacation in Eastern Europe.

Hard to say where I'd put RotCG among the other Malazan novels. Probably behind all of them but GotM, though GotM still has more going for it, what with the Bridgeburners, Tool and the Adjunct, Rake and Moon's Spawn, etc. But all in all, I firmly believe that RotCG brings a lot to the dance and should satisfy most -- if not all -- Malazan fans!

Patrick[/quote]


Eh?

Scott Bakker is a Canuck. Why is your copy being shipped from London? Surely he would be publishing in Canada? Unless you mean London, Ontario (Scott lives there according to Wikipedia).

[kcf]

[quote name='Xray the Enforcer' post='1364870' date='May 21 2008, 17.20']I just started [i]Neuropath[/i]. I'm already creeped out. :sick:

But god[i]damn[/i], did Scott overwrite the fucker. My inner editor wants to beat the shit out of the prose.[/quote]

I'm about 110 pages into it - so far I'm not overly creeped out. Unless it gets significantly creepier, I think that aspect may be over-hyped.

It is quite good though.

[Xray the Enforcer]

[quote name='kcf' post='1364907' date='May 21 2008, 19.44']I'm about 110 pages into it - so far I'm not overly creeped out. Unless it gets significantly creepier, I think that aspect may be over-hyped.

It is quite good though.[/quote]

Might be a gender thing, too.

SPOILER: neuropath

I'm not much for vicious rape scenes, and this book is on par with the more gruesome bits of PoN (not just for the things described, but for those that are implied as well)

. But, yes, a jaded (not sure that's the correct word, but I'll go with it for now) audience will not find this to be any worse than what they've seen elsewhere, even in Bakker's books.

To its credit, the prose does pick up after the first few chapters, which leads me to believe that he's aping the painful prose style of thrillers for his own reasons.

Edit -- I decided to spoiler a bit of that explanation for the spoiler sticklers of the forum. :)

[Larry.]

When I re-read it over a week ago, I noticed more than before the "overwritten" qualities of NP. It was a bit grating, actually. Then the ending...well, I already knew that from reading the 2006 draft, but still...it's an unbalanced book, the more I think about it. He achieved the effect he wanted, but I can't help but wonder if the scalpel might have worked better than the sledgehammer in places...

And as for my own most recent reads, finished two translated books that I bought after reading the Reading the World bit I posted a few days ago: Amanda Michalopoulou's [i]I'd Like[/i] and Etgar Keret's [i]The Girl on the Fridge[/i]. Both are short story collections, although Michalopoulou's is very intertwined, as if she were beginning a novel from various fragments which ultimately do connect together to create a very vivid tapestry. Beautiful, beautiful prose. Keret reminds me of a darker, even more twisted David Sedaris, a cynical Israeli Sedaris, if you would. Or something like that ;) I'll review both at length later on the OF Blog and link to it in the Reading the World post.

Just started reading the latest Premio Alfaguara winner, [i]Chiquita[/i], about the late 19th century freak show woman who was only 26 inches tall. Almost 50 pages in and this book is really good. Might make for a nice historical novel complement to Katherine Dunn's [i]Geek Love[/i].

[Werthead]

[quote name='Deornoth' post='1363733' date='May 21 2008, 14.06']I started reading this last night and am not sure either :huh: The author's saying a lot but it just feels like he doesn't have a lot to say...[/quote]

The book was starting to make me angry, which hasn't happened since [i]Viriconium[/i], so I put the fucker down to read something more awesome, which in this case was [i]Lord of Light[/i] by Zelazny. There is more genius in the first three pages of this book than in the 50-odd pages of [i]Gone-Away World[/i], that I managed to wade through. I'll see if I have the willpower to return to it afterwards to see if it does get any better.

[Deornoth]

I've put it to one side, I [i]might[/i] give it another go soon...

Just finished 'Sly Mongoose' (Tobias Buckell) and it's great! Loads of cool space opera goodness which is just what I'm after, although he has a nasty habit of building the tension up and then drawing a conclusion in one small sentence that you really have to look for... That aside though, I really enjoyed this and a full review is over [url="http://www.graemesfantasybookreview.com"]Here[/url].
Next up is either Brian Ruckley's 'Blood Heir' or Kay Kenyon's 'A World Too Near'.

[kcf]

[quote name='Xray the Enforcer' post='1364960' date='May 21 2008, 18.17']Might be a gender thing, too.

SPOILER: neuropath

I'm not much for vicious rape scenes, and this book is on par with the more gruesome bits of PoN (not just for the things described, but for those that are implied as well)

. But, yes, a jaded (not sure that's the correct word, but I'll go with it for now) audience will not find this to be any worse than what they've seen elsewhere, even in Bakker's books.

To its credit, the prose does pick up after the first few chapters, which leads me to believe that he's aping the painful prose style of thrillers for his own reasons.

Edit -- I decided to spoiler a bit of that explanation for the spoiler sticklers of the forum. :)[/quote]

Well, I suppose I fall into the 'jaded' area, so that could be it as well.

As for the spoiler bit - I think he balances things effectively (at least so far) with getting across the horror, but really leaving it up to the reader's imagination for the full horror of it to be realized.

[swedeheadchris]

I've just finished [url="http://thebookswede.blogspot.com/2008/05/lord-of-snow-and-shadows.html"]Lord of Snow and Shadows[/url] by Sarah Ash which I was actually really impressed at. After a conventional start it very (very!) quickly moves on and gets better. Interesting twist on the vampire myth (although this is a relatively small part of the story) in an Epic Fantasy setting. Plenty of fighting, politics, and potential for the next books in the series, even though [url="http://thebookswede.blogspot.com/2008/05/lord-of-snow-and-shadows.html"]Lord of Snow and Shadows[/url] could be read as a stand alone :)

[url="http://thebookswede.blogspot.com/2008/05/lord-of-snow-and-shadows.html"]Review of Lord of Snow and Shadows![/url]

~Chris

I currently have: Tad Williams' [i]The War of the Flowers[/i], the [i]Return of the Crimson Guard[/i] by Ian Cameron Esslemont (which, I suppose means I have to catch up on my Malaz history!), and a bunch of good new sci-fi which has happily arrived just when my mood required it ;)

[Black Wizard]

[i]Atilla[/i] by William Napier, which I am nearly finished.

[gyrehead]

[quote]And I'll ask the nasty, silly question: bluntly, where would you put ROTCG among all other Malazan books? Still behind all Erikson's or you think it is better than some of those?[/quote]

You didn't ask me but I would place it higher than the first three of Erikson as I think I am one of the few readers who thought the series got significantly better in terms of Erikson's plotting and writing in book four. NoK falls as being better than GotM and firmly in second to last. Still poor Erikson and Esslemont both are nothing for me to sneer at.

I'm currently reading an advance copy of Lewis Black's upcoming book and mixing that with finishing off Glen Cook's [i]Books of the South[/i] new omnibus.

[saint777]

Finished [b]Before They Are Hanged[/b] and enjoyed it more than [b]TBI[/b]. All three storylines are engaging with some unexpected outcomes at the end. Loved the characters especially Glokta, West, Threetrees and company, Logen and Ferro. The scene between Logen and Ferro is hilarious. Also love Cosca. He reminds me a bit of Bronn.


Now Reading [b]Bloodheir[/b] and [b]Star Wars:Legacy of the Force: Betrayal[/b].

[hadaad]

I'm reading The Outstretched Shadow by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory. Seems a little clunky at the beginning but I'll wait until it gets into it a little more before I decide if I'll finish it.

I'm also reading The Born Queen by Greg Keyes. I know a lot of people don't think much of him but I like the way he tells a story.

[Mr. X]

I finished [i]Consider Phlebas[/i] by Iain Banks. It had its moments, but left me sort of flat on the whole, largely because it dragged on a bit at the end.

Now I'm reading [i]Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology[/i], which was published in 1986 and edited by Bruce Sterling. I picked it up at a used bookstore in Sacramento last weekend. It's entertaining.

[Bellis]

An eclectic mix over the last couple weeks:

Thakerey's [b]Vanity Fair[/b] - the story is somewhat slow-moving, but the snarky author asides are priceless.

[b]The Truth About Celia[/b] - Kevin Brockmeier. A literary meditation/wank about a lost child. Or is she just in a parallel universe? Nice to read, sort of reminded me of Wolfe's [b]Peace[/b], but ultimately forgettable.

[b]Maledicte[/b] by Lane Robins - An engrossing, wholly original, fun, dark story. I was delighted and captivated. Transvestisism, murder, vengeance, possession by dark spirits, amorality, the works. The world is reminiscent of Sarah Monette or Carey, but I enjoyed this one much more. My only quibble is that the ending felt a bit forced, the personages acting a bit out of character, but nothing that a sequel wouldn't easily remedy :).

[b]Lavinia[/b] - lyrically written, and i don't usually think of Le Guin as a great prose stylist. I enjoyed the connection to Virgil's Aeneid; in fact, this book reads like an afterword, by a minor character to the tale. However, I got a bit bored towards the end... and for me, I'll consider this minor Le Guin. NO big ideas, just a certain wistfulness and melancholy.

So I've got a pile of Amin Maalouf from the library, and I've already read [b]First Century After Beatrice[/b] and forward to the rest!

But, seriously, folks, check out [b]Maledicte[/b].