What Are You Reading?

nhur

ok - it happened again... my post went in multiple times... I deleted the one with (no comment) and now the comment is gone - apologies to whoever that was

Xofpod

Gone back to old-school SF - and I'll admit the title is 99% of my reason for reading it - with A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah! - Harry Harrison

Nody

On a bit of a Heinlein run atm.

Finished:
Job: A Comedy of Justice
The man who sold the moon

And currently reading through The Cat Who Walks Through Walls.

Thargor

Read all 8 Cradle books in a row, loved them, cant wait for book 9.

Read The Troop by Nick Cutter afterwards, short but entertaining, scout troop on an island gets a visit from an escaped bioweapon. Higher quality of writing than these things usually have, Stephen King has it on his recent top 50.

Stuck for something to read now, going back over the backlog but nothing is grabbing me yet, Im saving the Peter F Hamilton trilogy for Christmas.

keane2097

I don't suppose there's any chance of Ready Player Two being any good?

shrapnel222

keane2097 wrote: »

I don't suppose there's any chance of Ready Player Two being any good?

i really hope it is. Armada was garbage, so a return to that world might be a good idea.

keane2097

shrapnel222 wrote: »

i really hope it is. Armada was garbage, so a return to that world might be a good idea.

I have it pre-ordered on Audible, found the first one so much fun. It would be a dream for the second one to be in the same league.

Incidentally, any recommendations for books like that where the protagonists are trying to figure out puzzles or mysteries? I always seem to enjoy anything along those lines I come across

ixoy

Just because I've far too many books to read, I arbitrarily decided to start three series where the first book's title has the word 'Traitor' in it:

"Traitor's Blade" by Sebastian de Castell, the first book in his Greatcoats series. Think renegade Muskeeters, with some great banter between the group as they fight to restore their honour. It does take a dark turn, somewhat for the worst (there's enough grimdark out there), but it remained very readable and nice and short (in fantasy terms).

"The Traitor God" by Camerson Johnston, the first book in his Age of Tyranny duology. In the urban fantasy genre, it features an exiled mage returned to avenge a friend's death in a magus-ruled city. Part of it reminded me in tone of Daniel Polansky's Low Town series with the same dark humour and part if some mad-large scale battles that seemed animé/Manga inspired. An interesting city and characters and being only a two-book series, makes it seem worthwhile.

"The Traitor Baru Comorant" by Seth Dickinson, the first book in his Masquerade series. A bit like a KJ Parker book (minus the humour), it features a huge amount of Machiavellian maneuvering with Baru using her new position as an accountant in Masquerade-controlled territory to try and exact revenge for their invasion of her own country.
It's a fairly short book but not one I could read quickly because it features a lot of political gambits, double- and treble-crosses and it's all done through the eyes of Baru. The empire she's rebelling against is fascinatingly cold and clinical - everything is done through doctrine and there's a very nasty streak of eugenics - and so is her mindset. It's not a fun novel but I found it very refreshing and interesting.

Also read some non-Traitor titled books:

"Sojourn" by R.A. Salvatore, the third book in his Dark Elf trilogy. Very old school fantasy, it's pretty well written but does feel quite episodic. There's not much of an overall story arc in it, and Drizzt seems to lumber along from encounter to encounter. Grand for what it is - every now and then, it's okay to eat a Digestive-biscuit fantasy especially when read alongside heavier fair.

"Tales from the Folly: A Rivers of London Short Story Collection" by Ben Aarvonitch. It's exactly what it says it is with 2/3 of it being stories about Peter (some original, some collected from special editions) and the other 1/3 being from other character's perspectives. They're perhaps a bit too slight at times but - aside from one - are all pretty good. Won't change anyone's mind about the series but it'll do until the next book.

shrapnel222

keane2097 wrote: »

I have it pre-ordered on Audible, found the first one so much fun. It would be a dream for the second one to be in the same league.

Incidentally, any recommendations for books like that where the protagonists are trying to figure out puzzles or mysteries? I always seem to enjoy anything along those lines I come across

only one i can think of off the bat is Enders game.

In terms of mystery i'd say Hyperion 1 and 2 fit the bill (definitely my fav series ever).

i'll keep thinking and looking forward to seeing what other suggestions come up

keane2097

shrapnel222 wrote: »

only one i can think of off the bat is Enders game.

In terms of mystery i'd say Hyperion 1 and 2 fit the bill (definitely my fav series ever).

i'll keep thinking and looking forward to seeing what other suggestions come up

Yeah I've read and loved the three of those.

Thargor

A lot of the Culture novels are mysteries/whodunits, all of them well worth reading if you have any interest in sci-fi but Im guessing if you've read Hyperion and Enders Game you've read those.

The best one I can think of that you might not have read is Blindsight by Peter Watts, a ship sent to investigate a proper alien first contact:

It's been two months since a myriad of alien objects clenched about the Earth, screaming as they burned. The heavens have been silent since - until a derelict space probe hears whispers from a distant comet. Something talks out there: but not to us. Who to send to meet the alien, when the alien doesn't want to meet? Send a linguist with multiple-personality disorder, and a biologist so spliced to machinery he can't feel his own flesh. Send a pacifist warrior, and a vampire recalled from the grave by the voodoo of paleogenetics. Send a man with half his mind gone since childhood. Send them to the edge of the solar system, praying you can trust such freaks and monsters with the fate of a world. You fear they may be more alien than the thing they've been sent to find - but you'd give anything for that to be true, if you knew what was waiting for them. (less)

(Ignore the vampire thing its very well explained and absolutely brilliant...)

Its standalone but theres a sequel aswell, its proper hard sci-fi horror and he's a brilliant writer.

keane2097

Three Body Problem would be another example of one with a central mystery or puzzle being unravelled that I enjoyed.

I've had Blindsight on the Kindle for years, thanks for the suggestion

Thargor

You should get on Blindsight then its one of the ones that stays with you.

Ive started Alpha and Omega by Harry Turtledove, his usual cast of characters style following a journalist, an archaeologist, an Israeli soldier etc at the Temple Mount in Israel as the end times seem to be starting.

shrapnel222

The galactic milieu series by Julian May is a brilliant whodunnit, and it all starts with the prequel intervention. Maybe one day, you'll actually get round to reading it. :-)

fenris

shrapnel222 wrote: »

The galactic milieu series by Julian May is a brilliant whodunnit

Now there is a blast from the past

Feeling like a bit old school cyberpunk lately, so I have just reread Software by Rudy Rucker - short and twisted, the ware series is very good, so a reread of them all with some dipping into the Mirror Shades anthology is the current plan (Software is available on audible as a freebie on Audible Plus).


Also reread the Paratwa series by Christopher Hinz, (Starts with Leige Killer), nice fast moving story with a nice concept of binary assassins with their consciousness split between two ninja like bodies causing a bit of mayhem.

keane2097

shrapnel222 wrote: »

The galactic milieu series by Julian May is a brilliant whodunnit, and it all starts with the prequel intervention. Maybe one day, you'll actually get round to reading it. :-)

Should I start with Intervention or come back to it after reading the main series?

shrapnel222

keane2097 wrote: »

Should I start with Intervention or come back to it after reading the main series?

Definitely start with intervention.

coffee_cake

new brandon sanderson, rhythm of war. yay

Xofpod

Really enjoying Last Ones Left Alive, Sarah Davis-Goff, Irish post-apocalyptic zombie type stuff.

Ave Sodalis

bluewolf wrote:

new brandon sanderson, rhythm of war. yay

I pre-ordered it off book depository so I'm gonna have to wait on this. I've to unfollow all of the Facebook pages!

Thargor

Why are all the epubs for the new Stormlight all ~100mb? It couldn't be that big surely!

RMDrive

Thargor wrote: »

Why are all the epubs for the new Stormlight all ~100mb? It couldn't be that big surely!

I bought the Audible version today. 60 hours!!!!! :eek:

ixoy

Thargor wrote: »

Why are all the epubs for the new Stormlight all ~100mb? It couldn't be that big surely!

Illustrations might add to it. He was always good at including pieces from Shallan's notebook.

I'll be starting into this over Christmas - anyone spoils it here, without using spoiler space, I'll make them go bye bye

keane2097

I listened to the first few of those on Audible but while I enjoyed the world building at the start, over time it began to wear me out how much they dragged on and on. The ratio of pages to important plot developments is diabolical.

coffee_cake

I've been reading for (what feels like) ages and I'm only 31% through. Hefty enough I'd say. Not sure how to get the pages on the kindle

Ah yes here
Paperback 1232 pages

Jaypers

Buford T. Justice XIX

bluewolf wrote: »

I've been reading for (what feels like) ages and I'm only 31% through. Hefty enough I'd say. Not sure how to get the pages on the kindle

Ah yes here
Paperback 1232 pages

Jaypers

I started Joe Abercrombies First Law trilogy and it's a similar length on Kindle.

Though you can reduced the length of the book by making the text smaller:p

shootermacg

Just finished the Night's Dawn Series. I feel like I've been reading it forever.
Conclusion: It is very long...too long.

keane2097

I picked up Reamde the other day, in fairness there seems to be little or no sci-fi element of it but it's really good. This Neal Stephenson guy is really doing it for me.

The White Feather

Recently read Woken Furies by Richard Morgan. The third book in the Takeshi Kovacs trilogy. I didn't like it at all.

ixoy

The White Feather wrote: »

Recently read Woken Furies by Richard Morgan. The third book in the Takeshi Kovacs trilogy. I didn't like it at all.

I found the series got progressively weaker.. Just like the TV show did..