What have you been reading or listening to lately?
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I just read “Brightly Shining” by Ingvild H. Rishøi. I suppose its more suited to read in wintertime, but it’s such a good book.
Alcoholism is a theme, just fyi.
I discovered it via Dua Lipa’s Book Club, which imo is worth checking out.
I finished the first six of The Expanse recently. Had a buddy suggest that the next three can kind of stand alone from the first six, and with the direction book six and the series went, I decided to put the rest on hold.
I had previously read the first three books in The First Law series by Joe Abercrombie, and I was craving his style a bit, so I’m on to Best Served Cold, and it’s exactly how I expected it to be. So it’s not new and exciting, but the style is very much the same as the first three, the story is interesting, and while it feels a bit like a rehashing, I’m cool with it.
Just finished Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.
There was only one cringey moment I can remember:
spoiler
“Hold on, Ms. Stratt,” said Justice Spencer. “This is still a court of law, and you will remain for the duration of these proceedings!”
“No, I won’t,” said Stratt.
The bailiff walked forward. “Ma’am. I’ll have to restrain you if you don’t comply.”
“You and what army?” Stratt asked.
Five armed men in military fatigues entered the courtroom and took up station around her. “Because I have the U.S. Army,” she said. “And that’s a damn fine army.”
Idk it just seems a bit shoved in there.
Otherwise I liked it a lot :)
A Parade of Horribles - dungeon crawler carl. Also Ground State - expeditionary force.
I’ve been waiting for Faith of Beasts to come onto LibroFM since it released, but it isn’t available to buy there till July 13th. I might just… acquire… it through other means, same as any other audible exclusive.
The books I’m reading are what I’d expect from them so far. Reccomend Dungeon Crawler Carl, much less so Expeditionary Force.
The Suicide Murders by Howard Engel, the first book of his Benny Cooperman series. It’s almost a parody of the private detective genre which may or may not have been the author’s intent. The cover art isn’t much, but I’ve concluded it’s an African tribal sculpture, normally posing as office artwork, but also sturdy enough to bash in the skull of a crooked psychiatrist on page 60, so I’ve scored it in the weapon on the cover category hard mode.
I just finished The Gathering Storm by Brandon Sanderson. Per request, I’ll leave some thoughts about it here.
While I know Jordan wrote some of this book, I personally regard it as Sanderson’s work. As such, I felt it was a huge improvement over Jordan’s writing and for me, the best book in the series since The Fires of Heaven. This confirms to me a fact that has been bouncing in my mind for a long while: I don’t think Robert Jordan is a very good writer. He certainly had an interesting story to tell in a captivating setting, which is why I continued to read this far, but his idiosyncrasies are somewhat infuriating.
… Which is why this book is so refreshing: the plot actually moves along, things actually happen, characters don’t constantly sniff derisively or adjust their clothes when annoyed, nor is the reader incessantly hammered with how oh so different the sexes are in the setting, when they act pretty much the same. On that note, the characters feel more reasonable here, and not as unlikable as is Jordan’s wont. While still arrogant and bullheaded to a fault, they feel more understandable in their actions. I think I even saw some character development typically lacking in the series.
While I will again take a break between books, I’m very optimistic about the last two books in the series. I probably won’t read the prequel, but we’ll see.
I’m on the latest Murderbot book Platform Decay. I love the series.
Way too short, as always (except for vol 4, I think?) :D
Just re-read V for Vendetta. Depressingly familiar. Need to rewatch the movie.
Now rereading Blood Child by Octavia Butler. I normally hate short stories, but Butler is an exception.
I am still working my way through same book/audiobook as last week
The Butchers Masquerade and Queens of the Crusades. Hope to finish both soon and then straight into the next book in each series. The eye of the bedlam bride and queens of the age of chivalry. Looking forwads to both
I just finished Automatic Noodle, Annalee Newitz, which was pretty okay. The themes about trans and marginalized groups rights were well done with the robot analog. Unfortunately I thought the dialogue was cringey at times and I never resonated with any of the characters. I enjoyed the setting and world building, but the length and rushed pace of the piece compounded my negative feelings.
Currently reading A Parade of Horribles, Matt Dinniman, which I’m enjoying but feel like the zaniness is maybe getting out of hand? Well see, only a quarter in.
I felt that way about her book Autonomous. I thought her message about autonomy was great, but the book got a little cringy at times. I’m still happy I read it and I will recommend it to folks I think will enjoy it, but it was a bit underwhelming.
The part that was really cringy for me was
Spoiler
When one of the characters was helping the bot aim correctly at a shooting range, then he got a hard on from shooting the bot’s gun. Just kinda weird.
Oh yeah, automatic noodle left me wishing there’d be more done with that world!
I am currently doing a book club with my 10 year old daughter. The last time I posted in one of these I was on the first book of Percy Jackson.
We are now on book 2 of the series (Sea of Monsters).
It’s been so much fun. I am really having a blast.
Omg I love this so much. I hope you guys have the best time reading together. You’re a kick ass parent!
Just finished The Unexpected Inheritance of Inspector Chopra by Vaseem Khan. Currently reading Why Does He Do That? by Lundy Bancroft and just started My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney.
Diamond Dogs, Turquoise Days by Alastair Reynolds. Seems a witty, post-everything far-future space opera with visually-distinct alienoid characters, through there’s still plenty of page space left for it to tank. We’ll see.
I am about halfway through Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence by Judith Herman.
Recently finished listening to Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson. Currently working through The Hitchhiker’s Guide series.
Reading (very occasionally) The Martians by Kim Stanley Robinson (a book of short stories related to his Mars series).
