SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

Shanna_redwind wrote: "I love Tunnel in the Sky. One of my teen favourites."

I'd never read it, but I do like Heinlein. Glad I did. It's kind of like Swiss Family Robinson Visit Outer Space :)

Michele wrote: "Shanna_redwind wrote: "I love Tunnel in the Sky. One of my teen favourites."

I'd never read it, but I do like Heinlein. Glad I did. It's kind of like Swiss Family Robinson Visit Outer..."

You've convinced me, I added it to the TBR pile.

@Jen, I just read Wizard of Earthsea earlier this summer, and am really happy with it. I can't wait to continue!

Super behind in books. Arcadia is very enjoyable, but it's really put the brakes on my pace. I still have Pusheen Eyes to read, too!

Allison wrote: "@Jen, I just read Wizard of Earthsea earlier this summer, and am really happy with it. I can't wait to continue!"

I really loved it, I can't believe its taken me this long to read it. So beautifully written, I was enamored.

We just gave A Wizard of Earthsea to our 12-year-old niece for her birthday this past weekend. Hoping it clicks!

Michele wrote: "We just gave A Wizard of Earthsea to our 12-year-old niece for her birthday this past weekend. Hoping it clicks!"

Coolest aunt ever! I AM SO LOOKING FORWARD TO GIVING SMALL HUMANS THE BOOKS I LOVED WHEN I WAS SIMILARLY SIZED!

Plotting my moments. Biding my time. Soon they'll all be reading age and I can build book towers for them.

My review of Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff

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

Allison wrote: "I AM SO LOOKING FORWARD TO GIVING SMALL HUMANS THE BOOKS I LOVED WHEN I WAS SIMILARLY SIZED!"

It really is the best thing about family and friends spawning :)

I just finished finally Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race by Margot Lee Shetterly. I liked the movie more, which isn't something I say often.

Next up is Forest Dark by Nicole Krauss.

I've been reading Dodge's bio of Caesar for ages, and Angel's Truth by AJ Grimmelhaus likewise. I'm really enjoying both, but a recent bout of mild pestilence has reduced my reading speed massively.

The Caesar bio (simply entitled "Caesar") is focused on the military exploits in the Gallic and Civil Wars. Moves along at a fair pace but there's also a lot of juicy detail. Grimmelhaus' Angel's Truth is a darkish fantasy with a tight cast, very nice characterisation and an engaging plot. I really rather like it.

I'm just finishing Arcadia which I think is an excellent read. I've also started reading The Last Policeman which is an entirely different read. My jury is still out.

Just read book 6 of John Conroe's Accord series : excellent. It is the first time I have read a storyline re told by another character and still enjoyed it. Usually it boring re reading the same story bit.

I'm busy reading Francis Hardinge's

I listened to The Cardinal of the Kremlin - It was good, but not great - ★★★☆☆ - (My Review).

Reading

Robin Hobb's The Farseer Trilogy and am on book 3 right now. I will continue with The Complete Tawny Man Trilogy: Fool's Errand, The Golden Fool, Fool's Fate and then on to Fool's Assassin, Fool's Quest and Assassin's Fate to complete the series

I also finished A Stark and Wormy Knight and started on The Very Best of Tad Williams
and
Remnant Population which was excellent. I put off reading this one for the longest time as I didn't think a book with an elderly women as the protagonist would be interesting, but I was wrong, completely wrong
and

The Mallory series by Carol O'Connell: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01... which I love

I just read Good Morning, Midnight. It was amazing. To me.

Jennifer wrote: "I just read Good Morning, Midnight. It was amazing. To me."

Loved the atmosphere in that one.

I finished reading Arcadia which I quite enjoyed but man was it long. Just started Pushing Ice. It is skating on...well, thin ice. First I don't like it's name (ugh, sibillants, mushy vowels, and gerunds), then the prologue is just the worst waste of resources (from what we know so far. Maybe it makes sense later, but I was irate at the prologue) and then so far I don't believe any of the characters and find the dialogues and descriptions to be off.

Oh! And the alien name! Even though they give us the pronunciation, every time I see it I get the jolt of "someone just used a bad word!" It'd be like naming a someone Fucer or something.

I'm gonna try to make it to the 20% mark, see if the story picks up or these characters/the author gets a proper good boot up the arse.

Allison wrote: "I'm gonna try to make it to the 20% mark, see if the story picks up or these characters/the author gets a proper good boot up the arse. ..."

I think it was around a third of the way in when I got really hooked.

Sarah Anne wrote: "Allison wrote: "I'm gonna try to make it to the 20% mark, see if the story picks up or these characters/the author gets a proper good boot up the arse. ..."

I think it was around a third of the wa..."

I am filled with great ambivalence at this news. We'll see. (view spoiler)[Takahashi dying is interesting (hide spoiler)], she says, impersonating the little boy from Princess Bride.

Right now I am reading a few different books.

The Rogue Mountains it just came out; it is a mix of supernatural/post-apocalyptic thriller, horror, fantasy, self-realization, with a touch of questioning theology. The story centers around a small town outside of Pittsburgh after an apocalyptic event that opens the doors to the supernatural. It's really good, recommend it so far.

I am also reading Every Bitter Thing Sweet, and Paper Magician. Both really good.

I'm juggling multiple books right now:

1. The Honor of the Queen by David Weber
2. Fool's Quest by Robin Hobb
3. Primal Dawn by Ryan Kirk
4. Conan the Unconquered by Robert Jordan (this one's a re-read)

I'm also going to jump into "A Lot Like Christmas" by Connie Willis as soon as it comes out. I pre-ordered it last week and I think it will be released tomorrow.

So many books, so little time!

My library is accepting holds for Oathbringer! I'm on the list!

It's 1248 pages. It was not the only book he wrote last year.

What is Brandon Sanderson? Is it like a race of people maybe? A horde of Brandon Sandersons who all take turns writing series? Three Stephen Kings in a trenchcoat?

Allison wrote: "What is Brandon Sanderson? Is it like a race of people maybe? A horde..."

LOL! Definitively superman!

My review of The Blood Mirror by Brent Weeks

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

In the past few days I've finished a bunch of books. I listen all day while I'm working (And tend to listen on 1.4 speed because I find they talk really slowly.)
Finished: March to the Sea, which I enjoyed immensely. There was a lot of battle tactics, and I thought I wouldn't enjoy that as much, but found that his description made it so clear that I could picture what was going on and ended up liking it a lot.

Crypt of the Shadowking. I haven't read a Forgotten Realms in ages and I forgot just how much fun they are to read. This book was great.

Extra Lives: Why Video Games Matter. A lot of people didn't like this book all that much, but I enjoyed listening to his description of the games, though many of the reviews are right in that he didn't really answer his subtitle's question/statement.

The Mountain Story. This was good. I enjoy survival, and this book accurately depicts what being unprepared in the mountains could reap.

Alone: Orphaned on the Ocean Enjoyed reading this. What a a terrible ordeal this poor girl had to go through.

Magic Steps This was an ok story. I hadn't read the first series, so I had a bit of catching up but I managed. I didn't enjoy the narration by the author. She was much to careful in enunciating all of her words extremely carefully. The magic system was fun, but it's quite a quick read.

Magic Shifts Kate Daniels is my favourite kick butt heroine. This one was a bit angsty in parts, but that was forgiven with all of the great magical action.

Listening to Shards of Honor. On chapter 2. I know it is a romance novel so I am a bit anxious whether the romantic plot development will be cheesy....so far it's pretty standard. Hoping I made the right decision of starting with this one and the not the first Miles novel.

Silvana wrote: "Listening to Shards of Honor. On chapter 2. I know it is a romance novel so I am a bit anxious whether the romantic plot development will be cheesy....so far it's pretty standard. Hop..."

I really liked this book and the others in the series. I didn't find it too cheesy, but then I have a fairly high tolerance to cheese

Silvania If it helps- the next Cordelia one - Barrayar won a Hugo (I have a life goal of reading all Hugo winners so )

Thanks for the encouragement, guys.

The reason I picked up the series was because it won the Hugo for best series and I am mightily curious as to why.

Well I'll be reading with you in November- I have the Cordelia's Honor omnibus and The a Young Miles omnibus too

Silvana wrote: "Thanks for the encouragement, guys.

The reason I picked up the series was because it won the Hugo for best series and I am mightily curious as to why."

Unfortunately Shards is not really the best introduction as to why us Vorkosigan fans love the series so much... it was her very first novel and it shows in some ways. We say to start with Shards because it makes sense to read it before Barrayar (which is a direct sequel and starts immediately when Shards ends), but I agree with Rachel that Barrayar is a much better example of what Lois is capable of and what the series is about.

A lot of the books in the series have some amount of romance but with just two or three major exceptions they aren't really what I'd call "romance novels". The relationship between Cordelia and Aral is certainly important (and extremely important to the series as a whole, since it's very character-driven and the series is mostly about their family), but it doesn't drive the plot. I have no interest at all in the romance genre but I love this series. Even the one installment that's literally a romance novel is one of my favorite books.

Just finished The Hunters which is good. I've had fun reading this series so far Vikings are always fun.

and The Many I didn't enjoy this as much. The atmosphere was great, but I just didn't get the book very well. I'm a pretty straightforward reader, and this wasn't such a straightforward book.

Since my last post, I’ve read:

1. The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I liked this well enough for what it is, but I wanted more world building to fill in some of the details. My review.

2. Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams. I went into this with low expectations, but I liked it surprisingly well. It made me laugh a lot, and I enjoyed the story. My review.

3. The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams. I didn’t enjoy this nearly as much as the previous book. It was ok, but it wasn’t as funny to me and I thought the story was less interesting. My review.

4. All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders. I didn’t have any strong opinions about this, either good or bad. I liked it well enough while I was reading it, but it had some issues and I don’t expect it to stick with me. My review.

Next, I’m starting Slade House by David Mitchell.

David wrote: "Silvana wrote: "Thanks for the encouragement, guys.

The reason I picked up the series was because it won the Hugo for best series and I am mightily curious as to why."

Thanks, David. Useful explanation. Do I need to read Barrayar before Warrior's Apprentice?

Unfortunately Shards is not..."

Rachel wrote: "Well I'll be reading with you in November- I have the Cordelia's Honor omnibus and The a Young Miles omnibus too"

Cool. I don't know how long to finish this but hopefully before Nov 1. I only have The Warrior's Apprentice available for the next book. Vorkosigan saga is not available for me to buy in Kindle (country restriction) so I was relying on a past Downpour audio sale and I only bought those two ;p

Ah too bad- my mother went through the series a few years ago so I inherited several omnibuses(?) that have several of the award winners of that series.

YouKneeK wrote: "Since my last post, I’ve read:

1. The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I liked this well enough for what it is, but I wanted more world building to fill in some of the details. My review.

2. ..."

The two Douglas Adams books made me laugh out loud when I was reading them as a teen. I remember because I was in the library and everyone looked at me. I'm afraid to reread now because of the fond memories.

Silvana wrote: "Do I need to read Barrayar before Warrior's Apprentice?"

So for me personally, I'm reading the series in publication order (https://www.goodreads.com/series/9825...).

This is not the order Bujold herself recommends(https://www.goodreads.com/story/show/...), but I'm stubborn about publication order. I read Warrior's Apprentice, but haven't done Barrayar yet. It's the 7th book she wrote in the series.

She recommends you read Barrayar after Shards of Honor and before Warrior's Apprentice.

I love this series. Book #7 is on my to read list right now. I decided to read these in chronological order so I read Falling Free first. Miles is one of my most favorite characters. I thinks Bujold’s characters are so fleshed out that they feel like your friends or.....enemies.

Silvana wrote: "Do I need to read Barrayar before Warrior's Apprentice?"

I wouldn't say you need to; in fact I don't think I did (I started with publication order then switched to internal chronological order after I realized why people recommend doing it that way).

Shards and Barrayar form a single story arc, basically "Cordelia's Story", which sets the foundation for Aral and Cordelia's family. The Warrior's Apprentice takes place 18 years after Barrayar.

Barrayar does contain backstory which is referenced in The Warrior's Apprentice, but nothing really important.

Silvana wrote: "Thanks, David. Useful explanation. Do I need to read Barrayar before Warrior's Apprentice?"

You do not. Warrior's Apprentice was my first introduction to the series and it works perfectly fine as a standalone.

I'm reading Steam Titans at the moment, a history of trans-Atlantic travel and commerce. Enjoying it. There's a link in there somewhere between sailing ships and space ships. :)

Read Best Ghost Stories of Algernon Blackwood and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2140404455.

I try to read something scary every October. This year I'm reading The Best of Poe: The Tell-Tale Heart, The Raven, The Cask of Amontillado, and 30 Others. I find I have to read on my kindle and have the included glossary open on my phone at the same time. He uses many foreign language quote and references that were current in the 1800's but I'm enjoying it. "Never Bet the Devil Your Head" was new to me and is one of the funniest stories I've ever read.
Finishing up Pushing Ice.

I'm on the second of the Lady Trent books The Tropic of Serpents. I really admire the work and the concept and the world building - but I'm getting a little tired of the internal dialogue. So the main character is off studying dragons - as she does - and is in a dangerous tropical swamp, seeing new wildlife, dealing with several new cultures - and all of that is superbly invented and written. It is just that the style of the series is that the main character is writing the account many years in the future when she had developed into the famous Lady Trent so that puts a layer on it, plus she worries about the conventions of her society and is busy explaining, justifying, hand wringing about it. I prefer Elizabeth Peters Amelia Peabody when it comes to intrepid Victorian type intellectual women.

Recently I've read City of Stairs, A Song for Arbonne (really coming to love Kay's writing), My Life as a White Trash Zombie, and Burial Rites. Right now I'm reading Malice by John Gwynne.

Okay some books I have going:
Spellbound (I have been trying to challenge myself to read books I bought in my early 20's on my shelf that I never picked up so that I can give them away. )
City of Heavenly Fire (hate the characters of these books by now. I think Clare drew it out just a little too long.)
A Storm of Swords (loving it but its so long I often end up not reading it for a few weeks so I can get more reading done)
Nevermore ( seems really interesting from the beginning until it went into the present and I realized how cliche the main characters were. I hope that they grow by the end of this book. )

read Nevernight. almost "so bad it's good"
my review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

still going through Robin Hobb's Tawney Man Trilogy Fool's Errand after finishing with the Farseer Trilogy

and Have finished two Tad Williams short story collections: A Stark and Wormy Knight and The Very Best of Tad Williams. I loved the take off on the Wooster & Jeeves theme in the second book with Jeeves being a robot. It was hilarious. However, a lot of stories in the first book were also in the second book.

Finished The Plague Dogs. It was ok. I liked Watership Down better.

I just finished The Scarred Woman, the 7th novel in the Department Q series. It was an excellent addition to my favorite series :)

Veronica wrote: "Recently I've read City of Stairs, A Song for Arbonne (really coming to love Kay's writing), My Life as a White Trash Zombie, and Burial Rites!!

I LOVED City of Stairs!!