Reading Books For Pleasure

[bluekitty69]

Other minds/ The octopus The sea, and The Deep Origins of consciousness..by Peter Godfrey- Smith

I never visit Portland without visiting Powell's city of books on west Burnside, I've even had to pay extra for a check bag at the airport on the way home because of my new books!

 

[FurryFury]

Silence Fallen (Mercy Thompson #10) by Patricia Briggs 5/5

Undead and Unfinished(Undead #9) by MaryJanice Davidson 4/5

Seventh Grave and No Body(Charley Davidson #7) by Darynda Jones 5/5

The Disappeared (Joe Pickett #18) by C.J. Box 4/5

The Undead Pool (The Hollows #12) by Kim Harrison 5/5

I, Eliza Hamilton by Susan Holloway Scott 3/5

V is for Vengeance (Kinsey Millhone, #22) by Sue Grafton 5/5

The Arab of the Future: A Childhood in the Middle East, 1978-1984: A Graphic Memoir by Riad Sattouf 2/5

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling 2/5

My Friend Fear: Finding Magic in the Unknown by Meera Lee Patel 3/5

No Crumbs Left: Whole 30 Endorsed, Recipes for Everyday Food Made Marvelous by Teri Turner 2/5

Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake by Frank W. Abagnale 4/5

Plant-Based on a Budget by Toni Okamoto 4/5

September

Beneath the Sugar Sky (Wayward Children, #3) by Seanan McGuire 3/5

 

[AlwaysFara]

Wondered what you didn’t like about Mindy’s book.
I haven’t read it.

I may read Rose Madder again. Stephen King.
Next is Filth, by Irvine Welch.

 

[midwestyankee]

Here’s a recommendation if you’re interested in something fairly serious. We Met in Paris: Grace Frick and Her Life with Marguerite Yourcenar.

 

[Specula]

I am currently reading THE VICARS OF CHRIST. If you want to read all about the cesspool and crimes committed by the Catholic church this is the book to read.

Also read: God's Bankers

 

[Dreamliner]

A pleasurable read

 

[seela]

Still chipping away at the mountain that is the Harry Potter series. Please, be over already... I miss other books. But I decided I'd read them all this year, so for the rest of the year I probably can't read anything else, if I want to finish.

 

[guyonside]

Trying to finish The dispossessed. It is not what I expected. wonderfully written and cerebral but has yet to become a page turner for me.

 

[FurryFury]

A Column of Fire (Kingsbridge, #3) by Ken Follett 5/5

The Sinner (Graveyard Queen, #5) by Amanda Stevens 4/5

All You Can Eat (Fat Vampire, #3) by Johnny B. Truant 4/5

The Friendly Vegan Cookbook: Vegan-Friendly Recipes for Everyone by Toni Okamoto 4/5

Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins 1/5

The Awakening (Graveyard Queen #6) by Amanda Stevens 5/5

A Salty Piece of Land by Jimmy Buffett 4/5

Trapped in a Video Game: Book One by Dustin Brady 4/5 (juvenile novel)

The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin 1/5 (juvenile novel, newbery winner)

How Green This Land, How Blue This Sea (Newsflesh Trilogy, #3.2) by Mira Grant 4/5

------------------------------

It just didn't do it for me. It's just okay for me. Others in my book group loved and and have read more by her. Frankly I don't watch sit coms and didn't know her either and that may be part of it?

Wondered what you didn’t like about Mindy’s book.
I haven’t read it.

I may read Rose Madder again. Stephen King.
Next is Filth, by Irvine Welch.

Life is too short for this! Try not to do it to yourself again please.

Still chipping away at the mountain that is the Harry Potter series. Please, be over already... I miss other books. But I decided I'd read them all this year, so for the rest of the year I probably can't read anything else, if I want to finish.

 

[FurryFury]

Desires of the Dead (The Body Finder, #2) by Kimberly Derting YA 4/5

My Lobotomy by Howard Dully 4/5

First Frost (Waverley Family, #2) by Sarah Addison Allen 4/5

The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See 4/5

 

[seela]

Life is too short for this! Try not to do it to yourself again please.

That's true. But at least this Harry business doesn't feel like that one year when I had to force myself to read several stupid but short books that fit certain criteria in November and December, because I wanted to finish a reading challenge set by the library and I had made very poor reading choices earlier in the year.

I'm now reading the last book of the Potter series and it's been okay.

I didn't love The Order of Phoenix, which is a shame because it was such a huge book, but Half-Blood Prince was pretty nice. Deathly Hallows has been entertaining so far as well.

I don't regret picking up the series, and I'm glad I struggled through the first two books. But I'm also ready to finish the series and move on.

 

[UsuallyPresent]

Fun:
Daniel Black series by E. William Brown (Fimbulwinter, Black Coven, Extermination, Thrall, #5 planned) 5/5 - modern human brought to magic world & given munchkin'd powers, learning to use them & survive the 'death of the gods'. Includes harem, because of course it does.


Old Man's War, by John Scalzi - First in a series, best of the series IMO. Exceptional walk through 'interesting' times for a character and the changes that those experiences bring.


Head-stretchers:
Finite and Infinite Games, James Carse 5/5 - "A finite game is played within rules. An infinite game plays with rules." Not the easiest read, but stretched my head pretty darn well.


Marriage of Heaven & Hell, William Blake 5/5 - Collection of poems illustrated by the author. Short, but a head-stretcher if you let it. The illustrations add to the pieces, so get a copy with the original color illustrations if you can.


To quote Blake, "Enough!
or too much..."

 

[FurryFury]

The Boy on the Bridge (The Girl With All the Gifts #2) by M.R. Carey 4/5 A sequel as good as the original! Yes!!!

Today I Am Carey by Martin L. Shoemaker 4/5 Loved

The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa 4/5 Also loved.

Dream Bender by Ronald Kidd 3/5 Good book, as a juvenile novel it was short and I wanted more.

Good for you!

That's true. But at least this Harry business doesn't feel like that one year when I had to force myself to read several stupid but short books that fit certain criteria in November and December, because I wanted to finish a reading challenge set by the library and I had made very poor reading choices earlier in the year.

I'm now reading the last book of the Potter series and it's been okay.

I didn't love The Order of Phoenix, which is a shame because it was such a huge book, but Half-Blood Prince was pretty nice. Deathly Hallows has been entertaining so far as well.

I don't regret picking up the series, and I'm glad I struggled through the first two books. But I'm also ready to finish the series and move on.

Some of these look really good. Thanks!

Fun:
Daniel Black series by E. William Brown (Fimbulwinter, Black Coven, Extermination, Thrall, #5 planned) 5/5 - modern human brought to magic world & given munchkin'd powers, learning to use them & survive the 'death of the gods'. Includes harem, because of course it does.


Old Man's War, by John Scalzi - First in a series, best of the series IMO. Exceptional walk through 'interesting' times for a character and the changes that those experiences bring.


Head-stretchers:
Finite and Infinite Games, James Carse 5/5 - "A finite game is played within rules. An infinite game plays with rules." Not the easiest read, but stretched my head pretty darn well.


Marriage of Heaven & Hell, William Blake 5/5 - Collection of poems illustrated by the author. Short, but a head-stretcher if you let it. The illustrations add to the pieces, so get a copy with the original color illustrations if you can.


To quote Blake, "Enough!
or too much..."

 

[AlwaysFara]

That's true. But at least this Harry business doesn't feel like that one year when I had to force myself to read several stupid but short books that fit certain criteria in November and December, because I wanted to finish a reading challenge set by the library and I had made very poor reading choices earlier in the year.

I'm now reading the last book of the Potter series and it's been okay.

I didn't love The Order of Phoenix, which is a shame because it was such a huge book, but Half-Blood Prince was pretty nice. Deathly Hallows has been entertaining so far as well.

I don't regret picking up the series, and I'm glad I struggled through the first two books. But I'm also ready to finish the series and move on.

I’m glad you stuck with it.

I’m going to attempt the Silmarillion again.

 

[seela]

I’m glad you stuck with it.

I’m going to attempt the Silmarillion again.

FWIW, I'm really into the Deathly Hallows now. I have less than 100 pages left and really want to know how it all ends.

I think this one makes up for all the less than awesome reading experiences I had with the other books in the series.

Re: Silmarillion, I really enjoyed it. It's quite Bible-y or generally epic-y. I recognize many things in the stories from our own national epic. But I also understand why it isn't for everyone. Hope you can find an angle in it that you enjoy!

 

[Bramblethorn]

Seanan McGuire: Every Heart a Doorway. This was beautiful and sad. So many fantasy novels tell stories about children who discover a magical world through some portal, have their adventures, and come back to the real world at the end of the story. This one is about what happens to those children afterwards, when they can't find the doorway back to their magical world.

Ben Aaronovitch et al.: Cry Fox graphic novel (Rivers of London series). Enh. I like Rivers of London, in part because it includes a lot of capable women. This one had those female characters taken captive with zero ability to affect the plot, rescued only when the male cavalry showed up. Come on, it's 2019, we can do better than this.

 

[AlwaysFara]

FWIW, I'm really into the Deathly Hallows now. I have less than 100 pages left and really want to know how it all ends.

I think this one makes up for all the less than awesome reading experiences I had with the other books in the series.

Re: Silmarillion, I really enjoyed it. It's quite Bible-y or generally epic-y. I recognize many things in the stories from our own national epic. But I also understand why it isn't for everyone. Hope you can find an angle in it that you enjoy!

I’ve never gotten all the way through.

 

[FurryFury]

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater 4/5

Uprooted by Naomi Novik 5/5

The Brain that Changes Itself by 29 Norman Doidge 3/5

The Beautiful Ones by Prince 4/5

Gorilla and the Bird: A Memoir of Madness and a Mother's Love by Zack McDermott 3/5

Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You by Lin-Manuel Miranda 4/5

Goodnight Mind: Turn Off Your Noisy Thoughts and Get a Good Night's Sleep by Colleen E. Carney 3/5

Blood Magic (World of the Lupi, #6) by Eileen Wilks 4/5

An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness by Kay Redfield Jamison 4/5

The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks 4/5

Children of Vengeance and Virtue by Tomi Adeyemi 4.5/5

Deathly Hallows was by far my fav in the series because it had a lot of action AND Harry didn't get abused by the Dursleys.

FWIW, I'm really into the Deathly Hallows now. I have less than 100 pages left and really want to know how it all ends.

I think this one makes up for all the less than awesome reading experiences I had with the other books in the series.

Re: Silmarillion, I really enjoyed it. It's quite Bible-y or generally epic-y. I recognize many things in the stories from our own national epic. But I also understand why it isn't for everyone. Hope you can find an angle in it that you enjoy!

 

[FurryFury]

I read a Seanan McGuire recently that was maybe in the middle of this series. It was very odd but by the end it was pretty good.

I like most of the Ben Aaronovitch I've read but I've never read a graphic novel of his stuff.

Seanan McGuire: Every Heart a Doorway. This was beautiful and sad. So many fantasy novels tell stories about children who discover a magical world through some portal, have their adventures, and come back to the real world at the end of the story. This one is about what happens to those children afterwards, when they can't find the doorway back to their magical world.

Ben Aaronovitch et al.: Cry Fox graphic novel (Rivers of London series). Enh. I like Rivers of London, in part because it includes a lot of capable women. This one had those female characters taken captive with zero ability to affect the plot, rescued only when the male cavalry showed up. Come on, it's 2019, we can do better than this.

 

[UsuallyPresent]

Monster's Mercy William D. Arrend - 5/5 - Modern day psychopath driven by a bloodthirsty voice in his head is brought into a mystical world through circumstances that set a god laughing. He's given a second chance to live a better life in this new world once the god fixed the voice, with a promise that he'll have help if he ever gets into trouble and a threat that, should he backslide, he'd face consequences worse than death.

Well, he gets in trouble in his late teens - kidnapped - and the voice is back. Let this new world worry about the monster that's just been unleashed.

(I believe I've read everything published by Arend or his pen name Randi Darren. Nothing's been less than a 4/5, but some of it gets pretty kinky, mostly harem based.)


Apocalypse Gates series by Daniel Schinhofen (Rapture, Valley of Death, Gearing Up, Elven Accord, Downtime and Death) - 4/5 - Al was cryogenically frozen. When the company maintaining his frozen head went bankrupt, the courts ruled the corpsicles were corporate assets and he was sold. He wakes up the latest in a long line of 'players' in a death game - fulfill the quests or die. Though struggle, cleverness, and enlightened sociopathy the protagonist levels up and faces down challenges. R-rated, lightly described but heavy BDSM themes, harem/open relationship


Archaeologist Warlord series by E. M. Hardy - 4/5 - Stumbling over a hidden alien defense system in ancient Egyptian ruins, the protagonist is sent elsewhere to rebuild the aliens' infrastructure. Where the aliens are is part of the mystery, as the infrastructure is in bad shape - and the humans around the area are not peaceful, being in the middle of ongoing conflicts themselves. Just dealing with the shock of being put into a bodiless situation is a lot, but having to fight for your existence at the same time? It's either sink or swim.


Kutherian Gambit series by Michael Anderle - 4/5, some 5/5 - long (20+) book series walking the protagonist and her allies through the weirdness and magic in the world. Anderle's partnered with a very large number of other authors and has expanded his world building since, but this juggernaut of a series covers an awful lot of interesting bits. Some fun long-development plotting in there too, if you pay attention.


Demon Accords series by John Conroe - 4/5, some 3/5 and 5/5. Long (dozen+) book series that starts following a young cop who is also the exorcist of last resort, one who hunts the demons that stalk the world. And then more weirdness happens, and Chris finds out more about the world after foiling one demon's assault on a gorgeous brunette in a dance club. The world gets crazier from there as Chris and his allies struggle for their survival against foes grand and grotesque.

 

[13Fantasies]

Just starting The Autobiography of Santa Claus

 

[Bramblethorn]

as i can see a lot of series here i wonder what it is Y/you all find interesting in series

For me, it's partly a comfort thing. With a series, once I've finished the first book I have a pretty good idea what to expect from the next. Life is busy for me at the moment with a lot of stuff that drains my batteries (organising stuff, talking to strangers etc.) and when things are like that, I tend to stay more in my comfort zone for my reading material.

Latest for me: Gideon the Ninth, which I mentioned a while back on one of the other threads. This is an odd book and it seems to be a love-or-hate thing for most readers. Me, I stayed up to 5 AM reading the last 300 pages in one hit, and then picked up the audiobook to go back and catch all the clues I'd missed first time through, so you can guess which category I fell into.

The first half did drag a bit, but after that the pace picks up. The thing that sucked me into this one was the unusual voice and mood. It's very gothic fantasy/SF, with nine great houses of necromancers who've been around for ten thousand years, and haunted towers full of terrible magic... and in the middle of that is Gideon, a swordswoman who's fed up with all this gloomy bullshit and just wants to see the universe with a stack of dirty magazines by her side, and who throws around expressions like "eat a bag of dicks" when everybody else is being Very Serious.

Now I just have to wait for the sequel.

 

[FurryFury]

Has anyone made any reading goals for 2020 yet?

Machines Like Me by Ian McEwan 1/5 I want my time back.

100 Places You Will Never Visit by Daniel Smith 2/5

Molly and the Cat Cafe (Cat Cafe, #1) by Melissa Daley 4/5 Cozy x'mas and cats!

Harder Better Fatter Stronger (Fat Vampire, #4) by Johnny B. Truant 4/5 LOVE this series.

Monster Hunter (Monster Hunter International, #1) by Larry Correia 4/5 Love this series too bad the author is an asshat.

These look really good and up my reading alley! Thanks for posting!

Monster's Mercy William D. Arrend - 5/5 - Modern day psychopath driven by a bloodthirsty voice in his head is brought into a mystical world through circumstances that set a god laughing. He's given a second chance to live a better life in this new world once the god fixed the voice, with a promise that he'll have help if he ever gets into trouble and a threat that, should he backslide, he'd face consequences worse than death.

Well, he gets in trouble in his late teens - kidnapped - and the voice is back. Let this new world worry about the monster that's just been unleashed.

(I believe I've read everything published by Arend or his pen name Randi Darren. Nothing's been less than a 4/5, but some of it gets pretty kinky, mostly harem based.)


Apocalypse Gates series by Daniel Schinhofen (Rapture, Valley of Death, Gearing Up, Elven Accord, Downtime and Death) - 4/5 - Al was cryogenically frozen. When the company maintaining his frozen head went bankrupt, the courts ruled the corpsicles were corporate assets and he was sold. He wakes up the latest in a long line of 'players' in a death game - fulfill the quests or die. Though struggle, cleverness, and enlightened sociopathy the protagonist levels up and faces down challenges. R-rated, lightly described but heavy BDSM themes, harem/open relationship


Archaeologist Warlord series by E. M. Hardy - 4/5 - Stumbling over a hidden alien defense system in ancient Egyptian ruins, the protagonist is sent elsewhere to rebuild the aliens' infrastructure. Where the aliens are is part of the mystery, as the infrastructure is in bad shape - and the humans around the area are not peaceful, being in the middle of ongoing conflicts themselves. Just dealing with the shock of being put into a bodiless situation is a lot, but having to fight for your existence at the same time? It's either sink or swim.


Kutherian Gambit series by Michael Anderle - 4/5, some 5/5 - long (20+) book series walking the protagonist and her allies through the weirdness and magic in the world. Anderle's partnered with a very large number of other authors and has expanded his world building since, but this juggernaut of a series covers an awful lot of interesting bits. Some fun long-development plotting in there too, if you pay attention.


Demon Accords series by John Conroe - 4/5, some 3/5 and 5/5. Long (dozen+) book series that starts following a young cop who is also the exorcist of last resort, one who hunts the demons that stalk the world. And then more weirdness happens, and Chris finds out more about the world after foiling one demon's assault on a gorgeous brunette in a dance club. The world gets crazier from there as Chris and his allies struggle for their survival against foes grand and grotesque.

I read that one a year or two back and enjoyed it. Hope you do too.

Just starting The Autobiography of Santa Claus

I also find comfort in them. I like to know that I can count on a fav series and/or author to bring what I love to me again and again. A long time ago the hardback was always on my wish list the moment they came out in a series but now, I keep them for my beach read week knowing I am going to like them.

as i can see a lot of series here i wonder what it is Y/you all find interesting in series

That one sounds good. I'm going to check it. Hate waiting for the next book. Write faster authors! Write faster!!

For me, it's partly a comfort thing. With a series, once I've finished the first book I have a pretty good idea what to expect from the next. Life is busy for me at the moment with a lot of stuff that drains my batteries (organising stuff, talking to strangers etc.) and when things are like that, I tend to stay more in my comfort zone for my reading material.

Latest for me: Gideon the Ninth, which I mentioned a while back on one of the other threads. This is an odd book and it seems to be a love-or-hate thing for most readers. Me, I stayed up to 5 AM reading the last 300 pages in one hit, and then picked up the audiobook to go back and catch all the clues I'd missed first time through, so you can guess which category I fell into.

The first half did drag a bit, but after that the pace picks up. The thing that sucked me into this one was the unusual voice and mood. It's very gothic fantasy/SF, with nine great houses of necromancers who've been around for ten thousand years, and haunted towers full of terrible magic... and in the middle of that is Gideon, a swordswoman who's fed up with all this gloomy bullshit and just wants to see the universe with a stack of dirty magazines by her side, and who throws around expressions like "eat a bag of dicks" when everybody else is being Very Serious.

Now I just have to wait for the sequel.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Has anyone made any reading goals for 2020 yet?

I have a big TBR pile for once I'm done with my second run through Gideon the Ninth. "Wanderers", "This Is How You Lose The Time War", "The Revisionaries", and an annotated "The King In Yellow".

seela,

Did you finish HP? What do you think?
What do you think of JK Rowling’s latest tweets?


(Or anyone else, I picked s. due to the HP thing.)

me: disappointed, not at all surprised.

 

[seela]

seela,

Did you finish HP? What do you think?
What do you think of JK Rowling’s latest tweets?


(Or anyone else, I picked s. due to the HP thing.)

I did finish the books and watched all the movies too. I have no idea what JKR has been tweeting lately. I saw a headline somewhere about her defending someone who was anti trans (or maybe anti gay?) I think, but I didn't read the article and that was some time ago already. I didn't become a HP fan girl, even less a JKR fan girl even though I read the books, so I don't specifically pay attention to her doings.

If the anti trans thing is what you're talking about, then it's sad. It's sad no matter who does it, but her being a public figure means she has a louder voice and her writing youth books means there are probably many young people who look up to her. So that makes it extra sad. But to me personally it doesn't make a difference if it's JKR or someone else saying those things.

I also didn't know about Dumbledore or what else she has said. Clearly she has said or done something questionable before as well, based on Bramblethorn's answer. Like I said, JKR or HP aren't really on my radar.