SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion

Trike, it's called a Traffic Jam

Since my last post, I’ve read:

Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke. I enjoyed this quite well, with my only real complaint being the unanswered questions left open at the end. I’m aware there were some sequels written much later, but I’ve elected to just treat this as a standalone. My review.

Aside from that, I've been continuing my read of The Wheel of Time . I’ve finished books 4 and 5 and I’m still enjoying it a lot so far, despite all the muttering. Not my muttering, the characters’ muttering. My review of book 5 has muttering statistics and a small tirade. :)
Book 4 review.
Book 5 review.

I intended to read an unrelated standalone book between books 5 and 6 for a change of pace, but book 5 left me with too many questions that I’m eager to have answered, so I changed my mind and am currently reading book 6 now.

Look at y'all closing in on the finish line for your challenges! Well done!

YouKneeK, I'm using your reviews to gauge how I should read WoT when I get to it :)

Allison, speaking of the challenges -- there are so many books on the Club bookshelf, that I am tired of clicking through to the second page to figure out my unread TBR Challenge books!
So, my TBR Challenge 2018 is to "get off page two of the bookshelf (counting by 200s!)"

I'm slowly making my way through The Anubis Gates by Tim powers. Savoring my copy of Persepolis Rising for Xmas.

Mike wrote: "Allison, speaking of the challenges -- there are so many books on the Club bookshelf, that I am tired of clicking through to the second page to figure out my unread TBR Challenge books!
So, my TBR ..."

Ha! Good luck! One day when I had a particularly tedious, eternal conference call I went through and marked all my TBR books that were also on our group bookshelf. I'll have to do it again soonish, I think, but it bought me several months of not having to click through the shelves. I really wish GR had some better compare features.

MadProfessah wrote: "I'm slowly making my way through The Anubis Gates by Tim powers. Savoring my copy of Persepolis Rising for Xmas."

Slow because it's dense? Slow because you're not really feeling it? Slow because it's the holidays and all downtime has evaporated?

I’m flying today — if you’re in BWI until 3, come say hi! — so I started the last official book of the year that is also my last official entry for my Alphabet Challenge. Appropriately enough, it’s a book that starts with Z, Zoo City, and it’s awesome. I’m already 1/3 done. If the ending is as good as the beginning, this will be a 5-Star book.

It’s such a fast read I might also be able to read another book by the end of the year.

Zoo City was 4.5 stars until about 75% and then it plummeted hard. I wish the ending was stronger, it would be an amazing book.

I'm still reading Arcadia, I'm at 60%. I got my new glasses today, so hopefully I can finish it faster. After that I'll start Cloud Atlas, I just got the audio from Overdrive today.

YouKneeK wrote: "Aside from that, I've been continuing my read of The Wheel of Time . I’ve finished books 4 and 5 and I’m still enjoying it a lot so far, despite all the muttering. Not my muttering, the characters’ muttering. My review of book 5 has muttering statistics and a small tirade. :)"

most people seem to complain about the braid tugging

Allison wrote: "YouKneeK, I'm using your reviews to gauge how I should read WoT when I get to it :)"

Are you trying to gauge whether I'm gibbering more as I progress through the seires than I did before I started? ;)

CBRetriever wrote: "most people seem to complain about the braid tugging"

I complained about that when I reviewed book 3. It’s equally bizarre, but at least it’s only one character. The muttering happens way more often. I thought the sniffing happened quite a bit too, but the Kindle says no.

I just finished with Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said which I think is my favorite PKD so far. Sufficiently weird but easy to follow the story. Currently reading a couple of the book club books The Stars Are Legion and Touch.

I am really enjoying Touch, fantastic pick by the mods.

Th a nks Randy. I'm looking forward to getting into it.

I'm reading Red Sister with Neuromances next in line.

I'm wrapping up Raven Stratagem on audio right now.

I enjoyed Ninefox Gambit earlier this year, and picked up the sequel. I'm looking forward to talking about them a bit next month, as people finish the first book.

I have to say, they're distinctly odd.

Finished Red Sister - intense!

and The Raven Boys - so un-tense that I took a nap and still read the back half of it in one evening.

Just started War for the Oaks finally and it's really much more my speed so far! Thank goodness! Hoping to get it and one more short story out of the way before the New Year and then I'll be listening to Touch and reading Ninefox! ...And Golem and the Jinni! ...And Uprooted! ...And the rest of the Song of the Lioness!

Oh, my. 2018's gonna be a problem.

Lowell wrote: "I'm wrapping up Raven Stratagem on audio right now.

I enjoyed Ninefox Gambit earlier this year, and picked up the sequel. I'm looking forward to talking about them..."

Odd sounds like we'll be having good discussions then, I hope!

Allison wrote: "Lowell wrote: "I'm wrapping up Raven Stratagem on audio right now.

I enjoyed Ninefox Gambit earlier this year, and picked up the sequel. I'm looking forward to tal..."

Whats odd about having a good discussion about one of our books we read?

Lowell said Ninefox was odd, and I replied that I thought that would make it good discussion fodder! (fODDer?)

Allison wrote: "Lowell said Ninefox was odd, and I replied that I thought that would make it good discussion fodder! (fODDer?)"

Ok now I understand. Hadn't read the book yet.

Allison wrote: "Lowell wrote: "I'm wrapping up Raven Stratagem on audio right now.

I enjoyed Ninefox Gambit earlier this year, and picked up the sequel. I'm looking forward to tal..."

So, having finished Raven Stratagem last night... I am more confident in the decisions Yoon Ha Lee made in Ninefox Gambit. Of course, now I'll be desperately waiting for the next one to come out in June...

Getting my seasonal dose of Christmas stories in so I'm reading Letters from Father Christmas by JRR Tolkien and listening to Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris. I finished Pratchett's Hogfather this week and watched the movie last night.

On a more SFF note, I'm also slowly reading through Asimov's The Complete Robot and The Lost Plot by Genevieve Cogman. I finished Diving into the Wreck by Kristine Kathryn Rusch last night. I've got mixed feelings for it. I liked the story well enough but some of the rules of the world were just odd.

My review of Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

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

Phrynne wrote: "My review of Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

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

Lol. Seems like the link goes to a Berenstein Bears book.

Rob wrote: " Lol. Seems like the link goes to a Berenstein Bears book. "

We haz bin Crissmuss punked!

Speaking of Yoon Ha Lee, I am currently finishing all his available free short stories, one of them have been a favorite, starring a young Jedao in a hilarious caper story: https://www.tor.com/2017/02/15/extrac...

This makes me want to read Raven Stratagem asap even though I have planned it for Jan 1st (since you guys are reading Ninefox Gambit at the same time). I love this 'verse.

Rob wrote: "Phrynne wrote: "My review of Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson

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

Lol. Seems like the ..."

Thanks Rob. Gremlins in the works!!!! I fixed it.

Trike wrote: "Rob wrote: " Lol. Seems like the link goes to a Berenstein Bears book. "

We haz bin Crissmuss punked!"

I haz at least:)

Silvana wrote: "Speaking of Yoon Ha Lee, I am currently finishing all his available free short stories, one of them have been a favorite, starring a young Jedao in a hilarious caper story"

I loved that one! It has one joke I didn't like, but otherwise it's perfect. I will read any Jedao novellas in the future.

I don't understand the Yoon Ha Lee love I bounced hard off the first 10% of NINEFOX GAMBIT. Definitely on the DNF pile for me.

It's fine not everything is for everyone.

MadProfessah wrote: "I don't understand the Yoon Ha Lee love I bounced hard off the first 10% of NINEFOX GAMBIT. Definitely on the DNF pile for me."

That's what I was expecting to happen when I started it, and I know lots of people totally agree with you. I've since read a lot of Lee's short fiction, and Ninefox is definitely the weirdest/hardest of the bunch. The sequel is actually too normal in my opinion. But I completely understand why people wouldn't want to finish Ninefox, it is really strange, but for me it was totally worth the effort. I still only gave it four stars, because even though some people completely love it, is does start out in a way that will make a lot of people instantly dnf it and miss out on a wonderfully weird world.

I read a Hanukkah- set capital R Romance novel that didn't work for me, Lighting the Flames by Sarah Wendell. I appreciated the concept, but the novel didn't work for me, but then, the genre rarely does.

I loved Carry On by Rainbow Rowell. that I read in part for a Read Harder Challenge.

And Queens of Geek is one I liked a lot that took place at a ComicCon- like con and I counted it for a Read Harder Challenge, too.

I've just begun The Wonderling by Mira Bartok, which has a promising beginning.

I requested a bunch of books from the library to meet my twelve books from SF/F bookshelf by 12/31/17.

Read Well of Shiuan, book 2 of the Morgaine saga by C J Cherryh and reviewed it - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2219441259.

Read Book 3 of the Morgaine series by C J Cherryh - Fires of Azeroth - review - https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2225417471.

Currently reading a bunch of short stories off of my kindle, until the challenge begins on 1/1/18. My kindle is a mess.

Anywho, reading Melaran. Gotta love vampires.

Just finished Station Eleven. My god, what a glorious, magnificent book.

Trike wrote: "Just finished Station Eleven. My god, what a glorious, magnificent book."

Isn't it, though? I'm amazed by the structure of it - it's something that shouldn't have worked, but really did.

Peggy wrote: "Trike wrote: "Just finished Station Eleven. My god, what a glorious, magnificent book."

Isn't it, though? I'm amazed by the structure of it - it's something that shouldn't have worked, but really did. "

I know! How did she DO that?!

Whenever I pick up something from Agatha Christie I never read blurbs because I know what to expect. I've just finished Passenger to Frankfurt, and I was very surprised because this book is not about murder at all, but conspiracy. Some parts were interesting, some confusing, and what bothered me most was ending... it's missing her typical conclusions where whole mystery is explained to the tiniest pieces.
If you want to read different Agatha then I can recommend this, otherwise you can just skip it.

Currently re-reading The Way of Kings, Part 1 - I'm re-reading all of the Stormlight Archive in preparation for Oathbringer (and also because I have an exam in 6 days and I need the distraction of a good series)

Aleksandra wrote: "Whenever I pick up something from Agatha Christie I never read blurbs because I know what to expect. I've just finished Passenger to Frankfurt, and I was very surprise..."

If you want a really unusual Agatha Christie try Endless Night. She was experiementing with a completely different style of literature.

I loved Station Eleven! One of the better reads of my year. Speaking of, with 3 days left and a chill over most of the continental US, all I want to do is go home and snuggle with my fuzzballs in front of a fire while reading. It occurs to me that I've already committed to something like 2500 pages of reading for January, which is a bit on the monstrous side for me, so I'm chompin' at the bit to get everything going. Alas, these things called "work" and "critical dates" and "stop staring at books and get these proposals, done, Allison" are really messing with my chi.

Okay, "work," if that is your real name I'll do what you say...but I'm doing desk cleaning stuff all tomorrow and I WILL be listening to a book.

PS, Touch is really cool so far.

Allison wrote: "Okay, "work," if that is your real name"

LOL - that saying is part of our everyday vernacular, too.

I couldn’t decide what to read while flying today so I downloaded a sample of Ninefox Gambit. On page two he references “Hill 117.” 117 is a number that has followed me around my entire life, so decision made. 😝

Trike wrote: " 117 is a number that has followed me around my entire life..."

Like in a sneaky way or in a protective angel kind of way?

This year I read Hamlet, Comedy of Errors, The 1st Golden Age of Science Fiction, and Charlie and the great glass elevator. I just started Ready Player One.

Hank wrote: "Trike wrote: " 117 is a number that has followed me around my entire life..."

Like in a sneaky way or in a protective angel kind of way?"

It’s just... there. Omnipresent and ubiquitous.

Timothy and Thomas, it sounds like you're ending the year on a good note--I hope that's an auspicious beginning for your 2018, too!

Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson (Book #3 of the Stormlight Archive) was released on November 14, 2017, and I finished it in December. In December, I also read The Franchise: Lebron James and the Remaking of the Cleveland Cavaliers by Terry Pluto and Brian Windhorst. I plan to read Blood and Tempest (Book #3 of Empire of Storms) by Jon Skovron next. It was released on November 28, 2017, and I have a copy of it.

Re-read Stephen King's Christine (lots of it takes place in the winter, so I often re-read it during Dec/Jan).

Currently listening to H G Wells The Time Machine and reading Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal.

I started Bleeding Edge and The Woodlanders. They're both owned books on my TBR challenge and I'm relatively sure I'll really like both. It would be a good way to kick off the new year :)

And I'm listening to The Heart's Invisible Furies, which is also very good so far.