What are you reading?

[Sandikal]

Bigger chain stores carry them.. Borders etc. Smaller stores possibly not as she's not one of the better known names.

I haven't seen her at either Borders or B&N.  (We don't have any independent book stores around here.)  I only heard about her through GoodReads.  I couldn't even find the Tamir Trilogy at my really good library.

[stePH]

Bigger chain stores carry them.. Borders etc. Smaller stores possibly not as [Lynn Flewelling's] not one of the better known names.

I had to order Eugie Foster's book online; Barnes & Noble didn't have it on the shelf.  They also specified "no returns" if I bought it.

[lowky]

I am just finished reading the 4th book in the House of Night series by P.C. and Kristen Cast.  It's yet another teen vampire series, but also deals with it from an almost Wiccan point of view.  It's kind of a cross between Harry Potter and Twilight. 

[stePH]

I am just finished reading the 4th book in the House of Night series by P.C. and Kristen Cast.  ...it's kind of a cross between Harry Potter and Twilight. 

You had me, then you lost me. 

[lowky]

it's much more potteresque than twilightish.  I only mention twilight as there is teen angst about relationships and there are vampires.  The first book is called Marked  I recommend it.  check your local library. 

[CryptoMe]

Just finished Time Traveler's Wife. It was interesting at first, with all the interleaving of her past and his future. But towards the end, it just got too unpleasant to read. I didn't like what was happening to the characters and what they were doing in response.

[Listener]

Just finished Time Traveler's Wife. It was interesting at first, with all the interleaving of her past and his future. But towards the end, it just got too unpleasant to read. I didn't like what was happening to the characters and what they were doing in response.

But isn't that the mark of a well-told tale? That you get so invested in the characters that when they make bad decisions due to unfortunate events you get upset with them and feel bad on their behalf?

No spoilers please; I haven't read the book.

[Listener]

Reading Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" for the second time. The beginning bit, where Raz, Orolo, and Quin are talking, is off-putting, but once you get past that it gets really good really quickly. I love the world that was created, and I'm hoping to find stuff I missed the first time.

[CryptoMe]

Just finished Time Traveler's Wife. It was interesting at first, with all the interleaving of her past and his future. But towards the end, it just got too unpleasant to read. I didn't like what was happening to the characters and what they were doing in response.

But isn't that the mark of a well-told tale? That you get so invested in the characters that when they make bad decisions due to unfortunate events you get upset with them and feel bad on their behalf?

No spoilers please; I haven't read the book.

True, but not if you think they are acting out of character...  That was my problem, I didn't think the characters were behaving and reacting in a manner that was consistent with what we had been told about them up to this point.

Also, I had a tough time understanding the motivation of many of the characters so I didn't actually feel all that invested - in that way, the book failed for me.

I did find the premise and events leading up to the end interesting, though.

[Darwinist]

Just finished Time Traveler's Wife. It was interesting at first, with all the interleaving of her past and his future. But towards the end, it just got too unpleasant to read. I didn't like what was happening to the characters and what they were doing in response.

I felt that way, too, but I guess it didn't bother me as much.  Plus, I thought the ending was well done. 

Have you seen the movie?  I rather liked it.  It was not harsh as the book, a bit more watered down. 

[Boggled Coriander]

Reading Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" for the second time. The beginning bit, where Raz, Orolo, and Quin are talking, is off-putting, but once you get past that it gets really good really quickly.

I actually liked those opening dialogues with Flec and Quin a lot.  They amused me and contained some interesting world-building.  But then, I would have been perfectly happy if most of the action-adventure bits in the middle of the book had been shortened or jettisoned in favor of more philosophical talk, so I'm probably a little weird.

[Boggled Coriander]

Reading my way through "Year's Best SF" collections #7, 8, and 9 that I picked up for cheap at a used bookstore.  Excellent value for money there. 

[Sgarre1]

In December, finished a bunch of 19th century stories by Madeline Yale Wynne, AN ANCESTRALM INVASION AND OTHER STORIES & THE LITTLE ROOM AND OTHER STORIES (not horror, but some weird fiction - "The Little Room" is great! - and some regional writing) and Also finished modern crime anthology CHICAGO NOIR.

January I get to grapple with the Marquis de Sade (which I guess could be considered horror, in a way) - doing a concurrent reading of PHILOSOPHY IN THE BOUDOIR: OR, THE IMMORAL MENTORS along with Annie Le Brun's SADE: A SUDDEN ABYSS and Angela Carter's THE SADEIAN WOMAN AND THE IDEOLOGY OF PORNOGRAPHY. Carter is one of my all time favorite writers and the book is incredible!

“Reading brings us unknown friends…”
Honore De Balzac, “The Elixir Of Life” (1830)

[CryptoMe]

Just finished Time Traveler's Wife. It was interesting at first, with all the interleaving of her past and his future. But towards the end, it just got too unpleasant to read. I didn't like what was happening to the characters and what they were doing in response.

I felt that way, too, but I guess it didn't bother me as much.  Plus, I thought the ending was well done. 

Have you seen the movie?  I rather liked it.  It was not harsh as the book, a bit more watered down. 

I've heard that about the movie from others too. I don't know why, but I am not drawn to seeing the movie, now that I have read the book. Maybe when it comes out on broadcast TV, I'll see it...

[Listener]

Reading Neal Stephenson's "Anathem" for the second time. The beginning bit, where Raz, Orolo, and Quin are talking, is off-putting, but once you get past that it gets really good really quickly.

I actually liked those opening dialogues with Flec and Quin a lot.  They amused me and contained some interesting world-building.  But then, I would have been perfectly happy if most of the action-adventure bits in the middle of the book had been shortened or jettisoned in favor of more philosophical talk, so I'm probably a little weird.

Well, I did like the discussions. I just thought they were off-putting. The best part of them was that they established Orolo, though I much prefer Fraa Jad.

[Bdoomed]

So I suggested Italo Calvino's "Six Memos for the Next Millennium" to Patrick McLean... and the horrible result was http://patrickemclean.com/?p=1759

I'm scared for his word count as he reads the rest of it.

[Listener]

Finished "Anathem". Still a little weird and muddy near the end, but I liked it. Again.

Now reading "Artifact" by Gregory Benford.

[stePH]

Finished Returning My Sister's Face; hoping Eugie Foster has another collection coming soon.

Now into The Philip K. Dick Reader.  I'd forgotten how weird his short stories are.  I think I might record another EA audition with "The Eyes Have It" since "Come On, Wagon!" has me affecting a "country" voice.

[DKT]

Finished reading Cherie Priest's Four and Twenty Blackbirds. Great southern ghost story. Absolutely loved it. Now reading her steampunk zombie adventure Boneshaker, which is rollicking fun.

[Boggled Coriander]

Richard Condon's The Manchurian Candidate, as part of my "novels that everyone's heard of but few people have read and don't really count as classics" campaign.

It's got some decent ideas and political satire, but also contains flashes of really poor writing and some astonishingly inept characterization.   I figure the two cinematic versions must be improvements.  I hope so.

[lowky]

Been on a reading kick lately

first 4 books in the dresden files series, The Nymphos of Rocky Flats by Mario Acevedo, and now reading The Devil's Right Hand book 3 in the Dante Valentine series by Lilith Saintcrow.

[DKT]

Finished reading Cherie Priest's Boneshaker (which is a Nebula nominee). You'd think a book with zombies, and airship pirates, and the Seattle underground would be something I loved. Some fun excitement and stuff, but in the end, it was only okay and I mostly felt let down (partially, because I thought her Four and Twenty Blackbirds was amazing). I would've liked some of the characters to have a little more depth to them and, I dunno. Maybe I like a little more magic in my steampunk?

A lot of people love it. I wish I had read the same book they did 

[gelee]

A lot of people love it. I wish I had read the same book they did 

I know how you feel.  I had the same problem with Mistborn.
I've recently finished, in audio, Shutter Island and Dies the Fire.
Dies the Fire was actually pretty good.  The plot is pretty straightforward, so the writing has to carry it, and Stirling does fine.  A little more variety in the characters would have been nice.  Frankly, the whole first half smacked of SCA and neopagan wish fulfillment.  The second half was much more balanced, but this still ended up being one of those novels that you wish you could re-write yourself.  On the whole, I enjoyed it enough that I won't hesitate to pick up the next one.
Shutter Island was simply a complete mind f*ck, start to finish.  If that's your thing, or noir detective stories, or cold war thrillers, then check this out.  I simply lurved it.  I haven't see the movie, but Al seemed to think that the film was going to be fairly faithful to the novel.  If that's the case, then I will not miss the film.

[DKT]

Ah, I really want to see Shutter Island. Might have to check out the book now, too!

[Listener]

Sean McMullen, "The Time Engine". It's probably the weakest of the Moonworlds books, though it still has some funny bits.