This Week I are mostly reading (contd)

Xofpod

On to Joe Country, the 6th book in Mick Herron's Slough House series. Standard seems as high as ever.

The series has recently been filmed as Slow Horses on Apple TV. Much as I like Gary Oldman and hear very positive reviews, this is one of those cases where I'm definitely happier to stick with the book version.

eire4

Finished Tana French's crime drama The Trespassers and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Travel is good

The Black Count by Tom Reiss. It is the story of Alexander Dumas, the father of the writer Alex Dumas. You can see where the writer found his inspiration for The Count of Monte Cristo. A really interesting tale of the Revolution in France and the subsequent story of Napoleon. Alexander Dumas (father) and Napoleon were actually contemporaries at one stage with Napoleon being a bit jealous of Dumas. Now I have more books to investigate about Napoleon. It’s worth reading.

Travel is good

Just for a bit of light relief I am starting “The Dry” by Jane Harper. It’s an Australian thriller, where three members of the Hadler family are killed. Policeman Aaron Falk, from Melbourne, is sent to investigate.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120144329#Comment_120144329

They made a decent film out of that with Eric Bana. It's like a scandi noir in the outback.

Travel is good

Exactly! I do like Scandi noir so I’m sure I’ll like this one. Thanks for the tip-off about the film.

Xofpod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120144329#Comment_120144329

The Lost Man by the same author is even better, if you liked that one.

Xofpod

Taste, Stanley Tucci. A strange mixture of memoir, food criticism, recipes, hollywood insights,..

Absolutely loved it. Don't read it when you're hungry though - my mouth was watering after 10 pages.

eire4

Finished Isaac Asimov's sci-fi adventure Nemesis. A standalone novel as opposed to his various galactic empire series. Worth a read but nowhere near the level of the foundation, robot and other galactic empire books.

baconsarnie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120145449#Comment_120145449

I really enjoyed the TV series he did when he traveled Italy. He just seems like a genuinely decent person, and funny as well.

Xofpod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120181230#Comment_120181230

Definitely intend to watch it - it's on one of the Sky channels I think?

If you ever get the chance, watch his movie Big Night; captures some of the spirit of italian America that's in the book, the glorious food, and is a great film in itself

baconsarnie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120184812#Comment_120184812

I think it was originally a CNN production, i happened across it on BBC.

eire4

Finished Isaac Asimov's sci-fi adventure The Currents of Space which is the second of his 3 galactic empire novels set in the pre foundation days and an enjoyable read. 

Xofpod

But Beautiful, Geoff Dyer - possibly one of the best books about music I've read. Short, fiction-style passages from the lives of some of the great jazz musicians. Brilliant.

Mr.Nice Guy

Finished 'Northern Protestants: On Shifting Ground' by Susan McKay. It's written 20 years after her previous book 'Northern Protestants: An Unsettled People'. Her first book was about unionism's unease following the signing of the GFA, and this is about their discomfort following Brexit. You do get a sense that the younger people interviewed aren't as fixated on the past and symbolic issues like flags the way the older folks are. Strong sense from the interviews that the people feel the DUP got shafted by Westminister and were foolish not to take the May Brexit deal involving the backstop. Sad thing is most of the older crowd will still vote DUP despite that.

megaten

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120226688#Comment_120226688

Interesting book, read it a few months back. Found it interesting too that some of the traditional Protestant Church's seem to be losing ground to the American evangelical style ones. Don't know if that bodes well for the future.

Finished "This Book Could Fix Your Life" which is a New Scientist publication and follows "This Book Could Save Your Life".

Both really interesting though Save Your Life is definitely better. They basically contain loads of good advice but good advice that is backed up by scientific research, and not based on the individual poor studies that can generate tabloid headlines. Self help books that have been through the scientific method, and they also highlight what's nonsense.

Been reading a lot of non fiction anyway so next is a fiction - Mother Knight by Vonnegut

marvelkhaleesi

Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare - some fluff before getting stuck into Terry Hayes’ I Am Pilgrim for book club. Read it years ago but looking forward to the reread

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120240830#Comment_120240830

I don't really read thrillers but I really enjoyed I Am Pilgrim. Would be happy to read others that entertaining

marvelkhaleesi

@[Deleted User] Pilgrim reminded me of Day of the Jackal which is a much shorter book and fairly old. I devoured it though

Xofpod

Exiles, Jane Harper. Enjoying it; seems like more of a straight-up whodunnit than the last book of hers I read (the Lost Man - brilliant).

eire4

Finished John Connolly's A Song of Shadows a thriller from his Charlie Parker series. This one is a bit different in that it is a transitional book in the series carrying directly on from Parker's near death in the previous book and setting the stage for whats to come with in between Parker becoming involved in looking into a series of murders involving neo nazi's centered around the small seaside town he is rehabbing in.

That They May Face The Rising Sun

eire4

Finished Michael Connolly's The Black Box another of his Bosch series crime thrillers and enjoyed it.

Xofpod

The Trees, Percival Everett. Dark, funny, upsetting - probably the book I've enjoyed most so far this year.

Went straight out and picked up his most recent book, Dr. No.

eire4

Finished Isaac Asimov's third and final Galactic Empire novel Pebble In The Sky. Not as good as the first 2 in the series I felt but still well worth the read. 

Xofpod

Fairy Tale, Stephen King. Not his best but still worth a read.

Red Alert, Bill Bowder

eire4

Finished Anne Rice's The Mummy. So sad that she passed away at the end of last year. Truly one of my favorite writers and loved this stand alone book of her's. It is very much in her horror/super natural historical fiction tradition.

eire4

Finished Michael Connelly's The Gods of Guilt which is from his Lincoln Lawyer crime series and another good read in that series.

Hermy

Recently started Wolf Hall and am really liking it so far.

Have been on a long non fiction run so needed something i knew was a good story.

I'm re-reading Any Human Heart. Absolutely love this book.

I think I'll read Paddy Clarke ha ha ha next

eire4

Finished John Connolly's A Time of Torment. Another very good entry in his Parker Thriller series.

New Home

"As it is in heaven" by Niall Williams. I love it, so far. I'm split between devouring and savouring it, so I end up devouring it and then leaving it for a few days to make it last.

Mr.Nice Guy

Finished 'The Stories of Ray Bradbury' which contains a hundred of his short stories. I never read him before and came away a big fan. Quite a few of them are set in Ireland as well which was a nice surprise.

Fahrenheit 451 seems to be his best known work, so I'll have to get around to reading that at some stage.

Hermy

Taking a break from Wolf Hall which is a slow burner and will take me some time to finish and instead reading Music on Clinton Street, Pat McCabe's second published work, his first being the children's story The Adventures of Shay Mouse. It's a slim volume so shouldn't take too long to read and then back to Tudor England.

eire4

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120755449#Comment_120755449

I will have to get a hold of that Ray Bradbury stories book. Sounds interesting. I have read his Fahrenheit 451 and would highly recommend it an excellent anti authoritarianism book.

Xofpod

Read a few recently:

The Queen of Dirt Island, Donal Ryan. Loved it. Slightly different style/structure to his other books. Also kind of a follow-up to his previous book, Strange Flowers.

Record of a spaceborn few, Becky Chambers. Good, positive sci-fi. Looking forward to working my way through the rest of her books.

The assassination of Margaret Thatcher, Hillary Mantel. Short stories, bit of a mixed bag but she's a wonderful writer. Her third Cromwell book is still glaring at me from the shelf. I know I'll enjoy it when I read it but just have to get in the mood....

Currently reading Dr. No, Percival Everett - great so far.

eire4

Finish Tana French's The Witch Elm. Another really good mystery novel from her. She really gets in lots of twists and develops the characters really well. What was extra interesting in this one for me was how much I disliked the constant self indulgent self pity of the main character. One of her best books I have read so far.

eire4

Finished Laurell K Hamilton's Bloody Bones from her Anita Blake Vampire hunter series. It was the first of her books for me and I have to say it was pretty mediocre stuff.

Mr.Nice Guy

I finished The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin. I wasn't sure about it early on but I grew to enjoy it. I gather there is a Netflix series based on it coming out in a few months.

I might read the sequels when I get the chance.

Hermy

Currently back reading Dracula, one of a number of books on my shelf that I started reading and then stopped but haven't given up on.

It's such a famous story that I'm determined to finish it but I'm not loving it to be honest.

eire4

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120924802#Comment_120924802

Must I have read it a few times and loved it. I assume your referring to Bram Stokers?

eire4

Finished Ken Bruen's Green Hell. Classic noir from the Galway author with his Jack Taylor PI character. A short but great read.

Hermy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120931943#Comment_120931943

Yes, I am referring to the Stoker original.

It's a great story, but I'm not generally a fan of books with multiple narrators, and though it's interesting the way it's told through the correspondence of the various characters, much of that correspondence, especially that of the female characters, is so gushing and flowery, that I found myself skimming over it to get on to something more substantive. If only the whole book were in the manner of the opening four chapters told through Harker's journal then we would have had quite a book. But instead the plot continually grinds to a halt while characters endlessly prattle on in the most exaggeratedly earnest tones about how much they love and respect one another. I'm sorry to say but much of this book has been utter tedium.

eire4

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120933359#Comment_120933359

Fair enough. I can see where your coming from there. Personally I really liked it and have read it multiple times but I can see what your saying there.

Hermy

Ah, don't mind me - if you like it then that's all that matters.

I think I'm just annoyed with the book cause it's one I would have liked to have liked more than I do.

miamee

Currently reading Every Dead Thing by John Connolly. I hadn't read it or any John COnnolly books before but a writer I admire a lot recommended it at a festival event so I added it to my TBR. I'm more than halfway through it but finding it hard going at times. There are so many different things going on that I feel like I have definitely missed out on some bits/connections. I'm not in the greatest form for reading the last while so have been sticking with 'easy reading' but I usually love a crime drama...this one maybe a bit more gory than my usual reads. Has anyone else read and enjoyed it? It's the first Charlie Parker novel.

Xofpod

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120964749#Comment_120964749

My wife and my brother both love this book and the whole series, and they normally have decent enough taste, but I could never get into it. I found it was trying a bit too hard to be gritty/gory/noire-y and didn't really land it.

The series goes off in a kind of a supernatural direction so if that's of interest, may be worth sticking with them.

miamee

Thanks @Xofpod I think you're right, there is a bit of a try hard element to fit a lot into the book. As a result I am a little bit lost (or wasn't paying full attention at some important bits!) I'll finish it but I am not sure I will be looking to read the next one. We'll see!