The Book Vipers discussion

Finished The Book Thief a couple of days ago. I had been worried it wouldn't live up to all the hype and I'm not sure it did, but it came close. A moving and enjoyable page turner. Not sure if I want to see the film though, not sure how it could do the book justice.

It doesn't Wendy, keep your memory of the book intact by avoiding the film ;)

Finished reading The House of Special Purpose by John Boyne. Loved it. He's definitely a favourite author of mine.

Later today I'm going to start Love Anthony by Lisa Genova.

Golden Son, book two in the Red Rising trilogy by Pierce Brown, was every bit as good as the first volume, Red Rising. If you're looking for some well told epic sci-fi, you really need to indulge.

Paul wrote: "Finished The Penguin Lessons late last week. Not a bad little tale of how a young man inadvertently ended up saving and then adopting a penguin. My review is here"
Enjoyed your review. Might have a look at that one.

Thanks Jan. it is quite short and a charming little story.

Just finished Flood of Fire which I enjoyed very much. Amitav Ghosh creates such convincing characters that often I was rooting for them even when they were fighting for an unjust cause.

Just finished Total Chaos by Jean-Claude Izzo, a crime-noir set in Marseilles. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished my first Margaret Atwood novel, Surfacing. My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just read Miss Pym Disposes, an enjoyable light mystery.

I love an Atwood

Finished Resuscitation Of A Hanged Man and found it not as strong as I had hoped it would be:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished The Gunslinger. I'll probably read the next book to see if the series does get better, but this was a little underwhelming:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished From Baghdad to America: Life Lessons from a Dog Named Lava by Jay Kopelman.

Just galloped through another thriller by Belinda Bauer that I couldn't put down - The Facts of Life and Death

Just finished Cure: A Journey Into the Science of Mind over Body by Jo Marchant. It was a fascinating journey into the power of the mind over the body with regards to healing. Well worth reading. My review is here

Paul wrote: "Just finished Cure: A Journey Into the Science of Mind over Body by Jo Marchant. It was a fascinating journey into the power of the mind over the body with regards ..."

Great review! It sounds fascinating; I've added it to my TBR list.

Another from the Royal Society Prize shortlist that people may well like is The Most Perfect Thing: Inside (and Outside) a Bird's Egg by Tim Birkhead. it is all about the almost magical object that is the egg. Well worth reading; my review is here

I've just finished The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. You can check out my review from here.

I've just finished Blindness by José Saramago .
My review is here.

Damn Paul. I'm aiming to reduce my tbr pile. Now you add another. Sounds good though.

I've just read The Long Mars . I'd read the first in the series and picked this up at the library thinking it was the second. Turns out it's the third, but I don't think it mattered and I won't be seeking out book number two. The world building is very convincing; the characters less so, but the real problem was the lack of plot - no tension or suspense at all, just one thing ( one world) trundling along after another.

It hasn't been the best series ever Joy. Really enjoyed the first, the second was not good at all, but it did improve. Will read The Long Cosmos just to finish it though.

Just finished Lamentation I enjoyed it as I was expecting, also got my partner on to the Shardlake series and he's currently reading Sovereign.

That is a result Catherine

Finished Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club and liked it, but it's definitely not a book for everyone. Palahniuk likes being offensive and pushing at boundaries:


https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

My recent reads have included (finally) Franzen's The Corrections. Four star review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show.... and (finally) a Margaret Drabble - The Pure Gold Baby, also four stars: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... https://www.goodreads.com/review/show.... Also Elizabeth Strout's first novel Amy and Isabelle, which got five stars from me: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Just finished Skyfaring: A Journey with a Pilot, a beautifully written book about the world of flying.. My review is here

Wrapped up the final book in Pierce Brown's Red Rising Trilogy, Morning Star. What a great sci-fi epic. The author is great at world/character building and is fond of throwing a wrench in the works of the hero's best laid plans. Normally I like to space out the books in any series I read, but this one I "binged" and absolutely recommend it to any fan of epic sci-fi.

They are on my TBR, next year though I think

Finished reading The Cry by Helen Fitzgerald. Bit of a difficult read as in the subject matter but I thought it was a good book. 4 stars.

Joy wrote: "Tara wrote: "Storyheart wrote: "Joy wrote: "Have you read Life After Life? It has a similar theme and, although I liked Harry August, I preferred Kate Atkinson's. "

I'm re-listening to Life After ..."

Hello Joy and Tara,

I've just completed A God in Ruins. I enjoyed Life After Life, but I think A God in Ruins is even more successful.

Just posted a five star review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished Italian Ways: On and Off the Rails from Milan to Palermo a couple of days ago. Lovely book about the delights and frustrations of Italy and its railways. My review is here

Just finished Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway in my opinion it's very clever, utterly bonkers and hugely entertaining, although possibly a little slow to get started. Will definitely be reading more by this author.

Finished The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen. I gave it 3 stars as I liked, but also found it dull in pretty much equal measures.

Richard wrote: "Joy wrote: "Tara wrote: "Storyheart wrote: "Joy wrote: "Have you read Life After Life? It has a similar theme and, although I liked Harry August, I preferred Kate Atkinson's. "

I'm re-listening to..."

Richard wrote: "Joy wrote: "Tara wrote: "Storyheart wrote: "Joy wrote: "Have you read Life After Life? It has a similar theme and, although I liked Harry August, I preferred Kate Atkinson's. "

I'm re-listening to..."

I agree I thought it was even better. I'm just finishing 'Versions of Us' by Laura Barnett, which is similar to 'Life after Life' in terms of retelling stories, but I have found it hard going.

Just back from a lazy beach holiday and read several books. The Girl on the Train was a good thriller. The Lola Quartet was a very readable mystery, but I was a bit disappointed as for me it didn't live up to the author's Station Eleven which I absolutely loved. Lastly, Under the Skin, which it's almost impossible to say anything about without giving away the plot! It kept me completely hooked and tensely gripped, but then for me the ending let it down, with no real resolution.
I'd be interested to know if anyone else has read Under the Skin and what you thought.

I have only read one Michael Faber book, and was underwhelmed with it. Again, it was the ending

Knocked off my second Translated Books Challenge book, Blind Goddess by Norweigan mystery writer, Anne Holt. I'm not overly familiar with the mystery genre, but I did very much enjoy this one and will definitely be reading the next book in her Hanne Wilhelmsen series.

Well done Kevin

Finished Wood this morning. Stunning natural art. My review is here. This was a library book, but I liked it so much I have ordered a copy for myself

Joy wrote: "Stayed awake into the small hours to finish I Let You Go - a mystery thriller. At the beginning it was a bit slow but when it took off I was gripped and couldn't put it down."

This sounds similar to a book I read a couple of months ago, 'The Primrose Path' Rebecca Griffiths. I'll definitely give it a go.

I've finished reading The Mirror World of Melody Black by Gavin Extence. I really enjoyed it and gave it 4 stars. He has added a very honest author's note at the end of the book. I don't always bother to read those but I'm glad I read his as it seemed to add to the story somehow.

Finished Bukowski's Post Office. Something of a disappointment:

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I just finished The Last Painting of Sara de Vos on audio and enjoyed it very much. If you're a lover of stories about art and art forgery, you might enjoy this one.

Tara wrote: "Joy wrote: "Stayed awake into the small hours to finish I Let You Go - a mystery thriller. At the beginning it was a bit slow but when it took off I was gripped and couldn't put it ..."

I'll keep a an eye out for The Primrose Path at the library - thanks for the suggestion.

I looked for The Humans at the library, for the group read but they didn't have it so I picked up another by the same author - The Dead Fathers Club. It was so good I read it in one day! It's a modern take on Hamlet and very cleverly done. So now I know I like the author I think I'll buy The Humans.

Finished A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. Great book. Even though it's pretty long (600 pages) it gets straight into the story from the off & I was still reading every word by the last page. 5 stars from me.

Jackie wrote: "Finished A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. Great book. Even though it's pretty long (600 pages) it gets straight into the story from the off & I was still reading every word by the last page. 5 st..."

Interested to hear this Jackie. I have Such A Long Journey by the same author on my shelf, this is tempting me to start it.

Finished Uprooted by Naomi Novik a day or so ago. Really good and original fantasy that is drawn from European folklore in the forests. My review is here

Hiya Pamela,

I haven't read any of his other books but I'm definitely going to have a look at them sometime. Mind you, somebody in another group did say they thought A Fine Balance was his best work. Is the book you have very long?