Started next book in the Dresden Files series, Ghost Story by Jim Butcher. This is book 13, and is pretty unique so far. The previous book “Changes” has changed quite a bit, and now we are living those changes.
Can’t put it down, want to see how it develops!
My previous book, Streams of Silver covers 2 bingo squares: Title: [X] of [Y] and Off your TBR pile (hard mode).
What about all of you? What have you been reading or listening to lately?
For details on the c/Books bingo challenge that just restarted for the year, you can checkout the initial Book Bingo, and its Recommendation Post. Links are also present in our community sidebar.
Last three weeks I finished John Scalzi’s “the consuming fire” and “the last emperox” and “the android’s dream”. Latter one was just up my ally, the other two were fine except for the villains of the story, they were too over the top for me. Somewhere along the line I also read Orson Scott Card’s “the last shadow”, I had read all the Ender and shadow books years ago, but somehow missed this one. It’s not the best book in the series, way too much people for way too little storyline. In the last month and a half or so I’ve read the Beastie Boys book by Adam Horovitz and Michael Diamond, which was a good book to read on and off between doing other stuff. Basically I forgot to mention it before because I wasn’t reading it during my normal reading time. Currently I’ve just started “the long earth” by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter, it’s a bit too early for an opinion on that one.
Dungeon Crawler Carl series book #6 Eye of the Bedlam Bride by Matt Dinniman.
It’s not my first listen. I got a friend into them so we’re listening together. I really like these books and the narrator, Jeff Hays, is the best damn narrator I’ve ever heard.
Highly recommend if you haven’t heard these yet.
Started reading Entangled Life. Just a few pages in and I was dumbfounded by how almost ubiquitous and even supernatural fungi is, and how we barely even scratch the surface even with what we learn about them in school, and with our fascination with horror content about fungi like the cordyceps or something. Like for example, fungi served as roots before plants had them, they make microclimates, they have high metabolic ability, in which the book also described as something akin to alchemy… The ability to turn the raw environmental ingredients into a variety of substances, and structures with unique properties. And that’s just in the few pages of the first chapter!
Also, when I started getting into reading this year I got interested in the classics, and had a good time with reading Don Quixote. Interestingly enough, the part with Marcella almost seemed like it criticized incel culture. Also to those who say that brainrot culture is a recent thing and that the past was better, read Don Quixote as it portrays a phenomenon of brainrot except with chivalric romances, which was the pop culture of the day. I also recently read Teleny: The Reverse of the Medal and Manon Lescaut. Damn Des Grieux, you were born for tragedy… Also, I’ve read the Picture of Dorian Gray, Carmilla, and Venus in Furs. You may see where I’ve been going if you’re familiar with these titles, and it’s all about love and passion and, well, a dash of homoerotism. Just in time for Pride Month. I honestly wanted to see how love and desire, such messy feelings, was felt by people who we were less likely to relate to, even idolized in our flawed perception of their orderliness, and whose lives were struck, smitten by it. The twitter post about Rennaissance teenagers comes to mind. What was their lives like, outside of cultural survivorship bias. I might even read On Love after reading Entangled Life if I have the time (unfortunately I have to deal with summer class, so I’m reading as much as I can before my time and energy gets sucked into it).
Fungi sounds interesting, which is so weird!
Interesting list of books. Have fun!
Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio. The second book in the Sun Eater Series. The first book was alright. The last third carried the whole book. Howling Dark is so much better. I’m about 350 pages in and everything about it is a vast improvement over the first book. Pacing, prose, the plot, everything is a big step up from the first book. Even Hadrian.
I’m still working through Kushiel’s Avatar by Jacqueline Carey. I love the series, I just read her writing style pretty slowly.
Also working through Cibola Burn by James S.A. Corey audiobook. I’m rereading the whole Expanse series in publication order, including the short stories.
I’m also thinking of starting The Expanse: Dragon Tooth graphic novels since I have a really nice boxed set from the Kickstarter.
I’m reading Chapterhouse Dune right now. Really enjoying it so far and I’m a little sad that this will be the last of Frank’s books. The book is just as slow and a bit silly as the previous but I’m loving it fully.
I’ve been on a Brandon Sanderson kick after starting and finishing all of the Mistborn books last year. Now I’m on The Stormlight Archive series and just finished The Way of Kings (book 1) a few days ago, so I’m onto the second!
Second book is my favourite on of the series!
Mine as well, just absolute cinema all the way through!
The Mercy Of Gods by James S. A. Corey. I picked it up a few months back and then a few people in my discord server mentioned they were interested so we have been doing a book club on it. I love the book. It’s a great follow up series to The Expanse, but feels very different and very fresh.
This one is on my list because I loved The Expanse so much
Definitely give it a read. The characters feel very on brand for The Expanse, but the book feels and flows VERY differently.
Really liked that one and hope a sequel comes soon
Have you read Livesuit? It‘s a short novella set in the same universe. Can highly recommend!
Didn’t know about that one I kind of hate novellas because they always end when I get into them but might have to check that out. Thanks
Faithbreaker - Hannah Kaner. The third of the Fallen Gods trilogy. 1st is a great read. 2nd doesn’t have the family of the first, the stakes of the third, and develops the characters/world not enough for the break imo. 3rd doesn’t recapture the magic of the first, I’m 70% through it. I think the author could have written a tighter pair and added the exposition through novellas for those that want it. I’ve heard that audiences are great at picking out problems but terrible at suggesting solutions though, so what do I know?
Shallowly the world building is pretty good, I like the universe. Being disabled myself, I kinda want to live there, the acceptance and accomodations are great. The social aspect of the world is bold, works well, and is something I’d like to see more of.
The “gods among us” (I don’t know the term for ‘gods and people from a symbiosis each empowering the other’) this has been done better in American Gods or Poppy War etc imo. That’s not to say it’s bad here, just a theme that’s been done well elsewhere, but it’s a shallow observation of the series.
My real joy of the first is the found family. Everyone is damaged in their own way and the characters, crunch and support each other quite well. But, they’re separated in the second entirely and not particularly together for the third. I knew this going in from reviews which is fine. Even the side characters gave me a sense of ‘trauma response to something’ vibes leading to interesting behaviours and conflicts for our protagonists to navigate. Everyone has been hurt, by events immediately before the books and we get to piece it all together as we go.
I think I plunged back in because the LGBT+ and disability acceptance, even celebration, is a welcome escape from today’s world. Faint praise I know, but praise none-the-less.
Book 1>3>2 I think. Book 1 I’d recommend if you’re socially progressive and like found families, or like gods among us stories. 2&3 make your own decision based on your feelings for book 1. Promising author, I look forward to their next book.
Fate Cycle - Sins of the Past by Randolph Lalonde. I’m a huge fan of his sci fi and fantasy books, but hadn’t got around to this one as it’s not part of one of his other series. I’m really enjoying it so far, but it’s longer than I expected, and more complicated, which is a nice change.
I’ve got the latest in his space opera universe queued up next, Rogue Chase. It’s the third in a short series, set in his Spinward Fringe universe, and I’m really looking forward to it.
I’ve just set up KOReader with a few books, and will be setting up Calibre to feed it books too, so have a few options for when I finish these :)
Currently finishing up Old Man’s War by John Scalzi. It’s well-written, but not really my cup of tea.
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Finished:
The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold
An ex-soldier gets a job as a tutor/secretary for a member of the ruling family, helping her navigate court life, enemy schemes, and the titular family curse.
As I said previously, this was too slow for my taste, but I liked the characters and the plot. I did spend a lot of the book hoping the 35yo MC would get introduced to a potential love interest that wasn’t 19, though. (Thankfully, not much time is spent on their crushing.)
Bingo squares: x of y, steppin’ up (HM), political (HM)
Why didn’t you like Old Man’s War, and do you like Scalzi’s other work?
You copied my bingo square “x of y”!
This is gonna sound dumb, but it was too much war for me. I imagine the battle after battle after battle + blur of faceless soldiers was the point, but I needed either a more interesting plot or more character work for it to hold my attention. I haven’t read any other Scalzi, but I liked the narrative voice well enough in Old Man’s War to be down to try something else by him at some point.
Hmm…
I have read only his Kaiju Preservation Society and it’s good. I got the first few books of Old Man’s War, and plan to start it soon.
Let me know how you end up liking it!
Sure, will share it here when I read it.
Fiction: The Wandering Inn series
Nonfiction: Homage to Catalonia by Orwell. Started yesterday and almost done. Highly highly recommend.
Homage To Catalonia is my favorite book. It should be mandatory reading before anyone touches 1984 or Animal Farm
Never read it, adding to my list.
It is so good. The opening little thing about the Italian militiaman just sucks you right in and then it just gets better.
I think about that scene everytime i have a great encounter with a stranger or look at an interesting map. I probably read (a heavily edited and censored verison) that book 20 times in high school. He has such an English take on the Spanish: eternally frustrated by their carefree attitude while simultaneously enamored with it. There is nothing else like it.
Audiobook: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee.
Regular reading: Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin. I think its just okay so far but I’m not really that big on fantasy. Its for a book club. I know others love it.
Fifth Season is a very depressing book. I had hard time reading and finishing the series. Not a bad book though.
I’m rereading the entire discworld series but in a new language and I’m just loving it. I’m just about to finish equal rites, and I’d honestly forgotten what a joy these books are. I miss Terry Pratchett and his profoundly positive impact on me.
Nice. Learning a new language? Or just a different language you already knew?
Reading a book is a great way to improve your language skills, also makes learning fun.
Learning a new language, I can speak and understand pretty well now, but reading is a great way to expand vocabulary I think.
Just finished Slaughterhouse Five again. Reading Starve Acre and the complete farside collection.
