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Books Read 2018
Posted: Mon Jan 01, 2018 1:05 am
by Jeff V
Once again, the goal is 75, something I've achieved exactly once in the past decade. Glutton for punishment, I guess.
Update: Goal achieved on September 13! Revised goal: 100
I need to try to review more this year. Last year, I think I only reviewed the books I was obliged to review.
Read
The Rooster Bar by John Grisham (A)
The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert (A)
Yesterday's Savior by Keith Bliss (K)
The Dolls by James Patterson (A)
The Blood Within The Stone by T.R. Thompson (K)
Nighthawk by Clive Cussler (A)
Blitzed - Drugs in the Third Reich by Norman Ohler (A)
Ramses the Damned by Ann Rice (A)
The Martian Job by Fenn Jain (K)
Spitting Devil by Brian Freeman (A)
Indestructible: One Man's Rescue Mission That Changed the Course of WWII by John Bruning (A)
Waterloo: The History of Four Days, Three Armies, and Three Battles by Bernard Cornwell (K)
In the Name of the Family by Sarah Dunant (A)
The Moores Are Missing by James Patterson (A)
Spilled Blood by Brian Freeman (A)
Shadow Life by Jason Mather (K)
The Golden House by Salman Rushdie (A)
Patton at the Battle of the Bulge by Leo Barron
Big Red Tequila by Rick Riordan
A Mentor and Her Muse by Susan Sage (K)
An Illutrated Book of Bad Arguments by Ali Almossawi (K)
Leonardo DaVinci by Walter Issacson (A)
The Gangster by Clive Cussler (A)
The Cutthroat by Clive Cussler (A)
The Lawyer Lifeguard by James Patterson (A)
City of Endless Night by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (A)
The Bathwater Conspiracy by Janet Kellough (K)
Stealing Gulfstreams by James Patterson (A)
The Exile by James Patterson (A)
Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton (A)
The Assassin by Clive Cussler (A)
Never Never by James Patterson (A)
The Eye of Heaven by Clive Cussler (A)
Munich: A Novel by Robert Harris (A)
The Pharaoh's Secret by Clive Cussler (A)
Home Sweet Murder by James Patterson (A)
Stingrays by James Patterson (A)
The Solomon Curse by Clive Cussler (A)
The Romanov Ransom by Clive Cussler (A)
If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look On My Face? My Adventures in the Art and Science of Relating and Communicating by Alan Alda (A)
Winter Eternal: The River That Flows Two Ways by E. Thomas Joseph (K)
Devil's Gate by Clive Cussler (A)
Zero Hour by Clive Cussler (A)
Pirate by Clive Cussler (A)
All-American Murder - The Rise and Fall of Aaron Hernandez by James Patterson (A)
Circe by Madeline Miller (A)
Fortunate Son: My Life, My Music by John Fogerty (A)
Count to Ten by James Patterson (A)
You Can't Spell America without ME by Alec Baldwin (A)
The Store by James Patterson (A)
Crescent Dawn by Clive Cussler (A)
The Brethren by John Grisham (A)
Odessa Sea by Clive Cussler (A)
Unstoppable Influence: Be You. Be Fearless. Transform Lives by Natasha Hazlett (B)
Infidelity by Ally Bunbury (K)
Bleachers by John Grisham (A)
Rising Sea by Clive Cussler (A)
The Client by John Grisham (A)
Writer, Sailor, Soldier, Spy by Nicholas Reynolds (A)
Gwendy's Button Box by Stephen King (A)
The Innocent Man by John Grisham (A)
Freja's Daughter by Rachel Pudelek (K)
Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman (A)
The Outsider by Stephen King (A)
The Grey Ghost by Clive Cussler (A)
Murder Games by James Patterson (A)
Fifty Fifty by James Patterson (A)
The Ghosts of Ragged Ass Gulch by Bill Pronzini (A)
Seinfeldia by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong (A)
Young Washington: How Wilderness and War Forged America’s Founding Father by Peter Stark (A)
The Spy by Clive Cussler (A)
The Thief by Clive Cussler (A)
Diary of a Succubus by James Patterson (A)
By the Light of Camelot by J.R. Campbell (K)
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman (A)
Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and Owen King (A)
Cars 3 by Disney Press (A)
Coraline by Neil Gaiman (A)
The Race by Clive Cussler (A)
Come and Get Us by James Patterson (A)
Pete's Dragon by Disney Press (A)
Havana Storm by Clive Cussler (A)
113 Minutes by James Patterson (A)
Kingdom of Ash and Soot by C.S. Johnson (K)
Marina by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (A)
True Consequences by Robert Barnes III (K)
The Haunted Mask by RL Stine (A)
Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler (A)
The Death of Truth by Michiko Kakutani (A)
Cradle and All by James Patterson (A)
Time Enough for Love by Robert Heinlein (A)
Typhoon Fury by Clive Cussler (A)
Soldiers and Secrets by E. Jon Gant (K)
The Emperor's Revenge by Clive Cussler (A)
Accessory to War by Neil DeGrasse Tyson (A)
Murder Beyond the Grave by James Patterson (A)
Dark Sea Rising by Barry Broad (K)
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil DeGrasse Tyson (A)
Z.O.S. by Kay Merkel Boruff (K)
Arctic Drift by Clive Cussler (A)
Piranha by Clive Cussler (A)
Sea of Greed by Clive Cussler (A)
The Reckoning by John Grisham (A)
Shadow Tyrants by Clive Cussler (A)
Reading
Stonehenge by Bernard Cornwell (B)
The Antiquities Dealer by Ed Protzel (K)
Minecraft - The Island by Max Brooks (A)
The Pharaoh Key by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (A)
2018 totals: Books read: 104 Pages read: 34,646 Pages per day: 95
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Mon Jan 01, 2018 1:52 am
by Isgrimnur
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- The Arms of Krupp 1587-1968
- How Chance and Stupidity Have Changed History: The Hinge Factor
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
- Information Technology Auditing, 4th Edition
- Code Breakers: Alpha
- Code Breakers: Beta
- Defend the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Mon Jan 01, 2018 8:53 pm
by YellowKing
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Mon Jan 01, 2018 8:58 pm
by Jeff V
This is a good one to start with. Fascinating, true adventure story reminiscent of something Jack London would have done.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 11:34 am
by Fretmute
I'll keep track here this year. Ever since I joined Kindle Prime my throughput has gone up, although the general quality is down.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 11:43 am
by Isgrimnur
The only way to keep up with Kasey is to switch to children's books.
Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 11:46 am
by Carpet_pissr
Maybe Kasey could start a specific thread for his since it’s so...prolific? No offense, Kasey, but I stopped reading and participating in this thread last year because your romance summaries made up 98% of it. (Seriously not a knock against you or romance novels, but just as I assume a thread titled “Carpet Pisser’s Wrench Collection” would not have a lot of general interest or participation by others)
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 11:55 am
by xenocide
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:02 pm
by El Guapo
Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Tue Jan 02, 2018 11:46 am
Maybe Kasey could start a specific thread for his since it’s so...prolific? No offense, Kasey, but I stopped reading and participating in this thread last year because your romance summaries made up 98% of it. (Seriously not a knock against you or romance novels, but just as I assume a thread titled “Carpet Pisser’s Wrench Collection” would not have a lot of general interest or participation by others)
Yeah it does kind of seem like a dedicated Kasey thread would work better, as a practical matter. Or he could have a post on the first page that he keeps editing (is there a limit on the number of characters that can go in one post?).
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:06 pm
by Jaymann
Now I'm kinda interested in Carpet Pisser's wrench collection.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:22 pm
by El Guapo
Jaymann wrote: ↑Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:06 pm
Now I'm kinda interested in Carpet Pisser's wrench collection.
We all are. Yet he still won't create a thread!
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:37 pm
by Carpet_pissr
OK, OK. Bad example. I thought I was the only one with a wrench fetish.
My collection of Member's Mark brand butter knives from 1995 to present. A painstakingly detailed journey into the changes each year (or lack thereof), in the design, manufacture and material quality over a 22 year period. Photos included for each year's knife. Three page summary of findings for each knife.
Topics include:
Wal-Mart version vs. Sam's Club Version - Similarities and Differences
Location and ownership of factory in China where each model is made, and factory changes through the years
Regressive Dishwasher Tests - 'gentle' vs. 'pots and pans', and effects on knife, by year, with photos
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:44 pm
by El Guapo
I think we need a Carpet_Pissr cutlery / metalworks sub-forum.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 12:48 pm
by El Guapo
Anywho, on the actual book-reading thing, our family effort to encourage our children to do more independent reading is also having the positive effect of getting my wife and I to do more independent reading (whereas last year 90%+ of my reading was on the 20-minute train rides to and from work). I don't really have a specific book # target, but more than 2017 seems doable.
For now I'm about halfway through the Smartest Guys in the Room - not sure whether that properly belongs in the 2017 thread or the 2018 thread, but I guess I'll include it in here.
Reading
Declutter Your Mind: How to Stop Worrying, Relieve Anxiety, and Eliminate Negative Thinking, by S.J. Scott
The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail-but Some Don't, by Nate Silver
Completed
Grant, by Ron Chernow. (I'm going to count this as like 2.5 books, since it's 960ish pages).
The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron, by Bethany McLean
Man's Search for Meaning, by Viktor Frankel.
A History of the United States in Five Crashes: Stock Market Meltdowns That Defined a Nation, by Scott Nations
The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds, by Michael Lewis
Like Dreamers: The Story of the Israeli Paratroopers Who Reunited Jerusalem and Divided a Nation, by Yossi Klein Halevi.
Black Panther: A Nation Under Our Feet, by Ta-Nehisi Coats and Brian Stelfreeze.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 2:27 pm
by Jaddison
Reading:
All Gain No Pain- The Over 40 Man's Comeback Guide
Extreme Ownership
The Most Dangerous Enemy: A History of the Battle of Britain
Anatomy of Failure: Why America Loses Every War it Starts
Listening:
Bloody Ridge and Beyond- a memoir of life in Edson's raiders
Finished:
Ready Player One (audible)
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 2:39 pm
by coopasonic
I do not understand this reading more than one book at a time thing. I am a book monogamist (monlibrist? sounds... interesting). I am not judging you all... much. I finished up Jim Butcher's Codex Alera a few weeks ago and I have the new Sanderson tome, but just haven't gotten moving on it. I think I might read the third Dungeoneers book first to cleanse my proverbial palate (yeah I had to look up which spelling is right here, so much for reading expanding your vocabulary!).
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 3:09 pm
by Jeff V
coopasonic wrote: ↑Tue Jan 02, 2018 2:39 pm
I do not understand this reading more than one book at a time thing.
For me, different formats. Audiobooks I listen to in the car or when exercising. Kindle books I read whenever I have a few minutes because my phone is with me always. These days the only physical books I read are those provided for review purposes, but those get read in the rare moments I can relax around the house.
Most of the books I'm compelled to review are ebooks these days. When I get caught up in the queue, I start another book that has no particular urgency. Often I don't finish that book before the next review title shows up and then have multiple in-progress books showing on my list. Rarely this happens for audiobooks too if I get an audiobook to review that comes on CD (I'm too lazy to rip them these days). Most of my audiobooks read are from the library via Overdrive, so when I have a CD audiobook, that gets "read" in the car while something on Overdrive gets listened to while exercising. This happens maybe once a year -- this past year, it was amusing that the CD audiobook I was reviewing (on the Army of the Potomac during the Civil War) had the same reader as the Stephen King Dark Tower book I was listening to on Overdrive. One voice, both fiction and non-fiction.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 3:23 pm
by Scuzz
I used to be a one book at a time person but currently I am reading 2-3 at a time. Why? Well..
I need a book for the gym. But something on the smaller side and more "entertaining", so to speak. Serious stuff just doesn't hide the burn from the bicycle.
I need a book for work. Yea, things are so slow and I am kinda self employed so I keep a book there.
And a book by my chair at home. This is usually the serious book, although sometimes it is just the book printed in a larger format.
So right now I am reading book 2 of Brin's Uplift Trilogy at the gym, a McDonald Travis McGee novel at work and the 4th book in the Expanse series at home.
Often, as the books near the end I may concentrate on just one book depending on the size of the book.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 3:29 pm
by Jaddison
I am almost always listening to a book in the car. Haven't really gotten into WhisperSync with Kindle/Audible so it is always something I only listen to not read.
I read multiple books because for the most part nothing absolutely grips me or it is something meant to digest slowly ( I would put Extreme Ownership in this category). Occasionally one of the books I am reading will turn into the only book I am reading until I finish. This used to happen often but not so much now.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 5:08 pm
by Jaymann
I usually have one novel or series going plus one library book (fiction or non-fiction) plus one audio book that I can listen to while gaming. If any one of these grabs me relentlessly I will binge it to completion. Any that don't I will use for bedtime to put me to sleep.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 5:24 pm
by El Guapo
I am usually a book monogamist, though I've been considering book bigamy, because the Kindle is just so much more convenient for my daily train ride, but I have a number of hardcopy books in my reading backlog. So I may wind up with one book at home, one book for on the road.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2018 5:27 pm
by Rumpy
Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Tue Jan 02, 2018 11:46 am
Maybe Kasey could start a specific thread for his since it’s so...prolific? No offense, Kasey, but I stopped reading and participating in this thread last year because your romance summaries made up 98% of it. (Seriously not a knock against you or romance novels, but just as I assume a thread titled “Carpet Pisser’s Wrench Collection” would not have a lot of general interest or participation by others)
Yeah, I think it would work out better that way too. No having to weed out anything to get to general book discussion.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Wed Jan 03, 2018 10:37 am
by Jaymann
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Thu Jan 04, 2018 2:44 pm
by Bad Demographic
Currently reading:
Fear: Trump in the White House Bob Woodward
Read:
The Ten Second Staircase by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
Penric's Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold
Penric and the Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold
Penric's Fox by Lois McMaster Bujold
Lost Temple of Ssis'sythyss by Jeffery Russell
Penric's Mission by Lois McMaster Bujold
White Corridor by Christopher Fowler (reread)
Back to the Moon by Homer Hickam, Jr. (failed to finish)
For Love of Mother-Not by Alan Dean Foster
The Chronicles of Riddick by Alan Dean Foster (did not finish)
The Right Side by Spencer Quinn (not a Chet and Bernie novel)
The Midnight Line by Lee Child
The Tar-Aiym Krang by Alan Dean Foster
The Limpopo Academy of Detection by Alexander McCall Smith (apparently a re-read, but I didn't remember it)
The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon by Alexander McCall Smith
The Victoria Vanishes by Christopher Fowler
Bryant & May: Wild Chamber by Christopher Fowler
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Precious and Grace by Alexander McCall Smith
Bryant & May On the Loose by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
Mira's Last Dance by Lois McMaster Bujold
Bryant & May Off the Rails by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
The House of Unexpected Sisters by Alexander McCall Smith
Dream Angus by Alexander McCall Smith
Terminal Alliance by Jim C Hines
The Memory of Blood by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
The Prisoner of Limnos by Lois McMaster Bujold
Bubba and the the Cosmic Blood-Suckers Joe R. Lansdale
Forgiveness: A Gift from My Grandparents by Mark Sakamoto
The Invisible Code by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
Bryant & May and the Bleeding Heart by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
Bryant & May and the Burning Man by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
Bryant & May: Strange Tide by Christopher Fowler (re-read)
Constance Verity Saves the World by A. Lee Martinez
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill (audio book)
Our Man in Havana by Graham Greene (audio book)
The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett (audio book)
Sharpe's Fortress[\b] by Bernard Cornwell (audio book)
Sharpe's Tiger[\b] by Bernard Cornwell
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Thu Jan 04, 2018 3:00 pm
by Archinerd
Maybe I'll remember to keep track this year.
++Read++
GameTek: The Book by Geoff Engelstein
The Lost Temple of Ssis'sythyss by J.R. Gryndyl
I am Legend - Richard Matheson
A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea - Masaji Ishikawa
Tales of Dunk and Egg - George RR Martin
Beacon 23 - Hugh Howey
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J.K. Rowling. (re-read)
Harry Potter and the The Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the The Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the The Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the The Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette - Hampton Sides
Great Boer War by Byron Farwell
The Million by Karl Schroeder
++Abandoned++
Ringworld - Larry Niven. Made it about a 1/4 of the way through and I'm just not liking it at all.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Thu Jan 04, 2018 7:43 pm
by Holman
[Reserved]
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Fri Jan 05, 2018 9:42 am
by Gryndyl
I always start these with the best intentions and then forget to update them.
Currently reading:
A Confederacy of Dunces
No Middle Name
The Way of Kings
Sufficiently Advanced Magic
Finished
Night School by Lee Child
It's a Jack Reacher book. That's pretty much the extent of the review.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Fri Jan 05, 2018 10:58 am
by Torfish
Read: Salem's Lot - Stephen King
My first time reading this. Very good and fast pace Vampire story in modern times.
Next Up: Arcanum Unbounded - Brandon Sanderson
Short stories of Sanderson's worlds. Prepping for my read of his Storm Archives Book 3 that recently came out. Other than the Storm Archive series, I loved the book Elantris. Looking forward to the short story from that book.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Fri Jan 05, 2018 11:20 am
by ImLawBoy
I'll try this year. I really only read in 20 minute stretches on the train to and from work, and almost exclusively on the Kindle app on my phone. I just finished a book I started last year, though, so I can contribute:
Read
Storm Front - Jim Butcher Sounds like I'm pretty late to this series, but someone pointed out the first six or so books were on sale for a crazy low price for Kindle, so I grabbed them. It was fun. Will read more.
The Lost Temple of Ssis'sythyss - Jeffrey Russell (aka Gryndyl)
Fool Moon - Jim Butcher
Bone Music - Christopher Rice
Grave Peril - Jim Butcher
Punishment - Scott J. Holliday
Summer Knight - Jim Butcher
Bandwidth - Eliot Peper
Death Masks - Jim Butcher
The Outsider - Stephen King
Blood Rites - Jim Butcher
Extinct - RR Haywood
A Killer's Mind - Mike Omer
John Adams - David McCullough
Dawn - Octavia E. Butler
Lovecraft Country: A Novel - Matt Ruff
Reading
Happy Doomsday - David Sosnowski
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 10:45 pm
by Jeff V
Yesterday's Savior by Keith Bliss (K)
Yesterday's Savior is a very smart time-travel story. If you can, for the moment, accept that time travel in any sense has been discovered, this is a very plausible tale of the possible outcome.
Father Dyson is a priest in the Church of the Second Coming, a near-future replacement of the Catholic Church that has, in a short period of time, become the dominant political and religious force on the planet. The US and UK, among others, have become theocracies under a totalitarian Church control. How did this happen so quickly?
Well, it seems, documented reports of the appearance of an ethereal Jesus started occurring on a regular basis in locations around the world. They would only appear for a few minutes or hours per year, but still...it gave the church cred and the masses deferred to it in totality. With such responsibility comes power, power corrupts, yada yada.
Father Dyson is a genuine guy. He buys into the church line, and as their top researcher, believes he's doing the work of his lord. Except things aren't as they seem to be....after a friend (and fellow priest) is hit and killed by a car prior to meeting him to tell him something of vital importance, a report (a womans, no less!) approaches Dyson with a portion of the story and activates his long-dormant hormones. Dyson finds himself on hot on the trail of something that can break the church scam wide open when bam! Seems those with the power aren't keen to let it slip away so easily.
My only real complaint about this book is the romance with the reporter was rather underplayed -- her character rather underdeveloped. A few other characters could have used further development too...the flow of the book was nice as it was, but I think it could have been longer. Or maybe I liked it enough that I just didn't want it to end so soon.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 11:05 pm
by Jeff V
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 11:26 pm
by Jeff V
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 11:40 pm
by Jeff V
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2018 11:58 pm
by Smoove_B
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2018 1:53 pm
by Scuzz
A Deadly Shade of Gold by John D MacDonald
Recently at a library fund raiser I bought several slightly used books, among them several MacDonald's. They remind me a lot of the original James Bond books, placed in about the same time.
Our hero is Travis McGee, a rough and tumble veteran who lives on a boat in Florida that he won in a poker game. He only works special cases, and makes his income from a percentage of whatever he recovers, plus expenses.
This story takes us from Florida, to NYC, to Mexico, to LA and back to NYC. And people die along the way.
I find these to be great reads. They are quick, full of action and for the most part the plots make sense, something you don't see in many books of this genre. This book was written in 1965 so it is a little aged, but well worth the read.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Fri Jan 12, 2018 2:13 pm
by YellowKing
The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester
Fascinating true story of one of the most instrumental contributors to the Oxford English Dictionary...who also happened to be an insane murderer and spent nearly four decades in an asylum. Not only interesting from that perspective, but as a history of language and the creation of one of the most epic literary undertakings ever attempted by humankind. Highly recommended.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Sat Jan 13, 2018 8:17 pm
by Jolor
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Mon Jan 15, 2018 10:40 pm
by hitbyambulance
The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. - Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland
Neal tries his hand at "Urban Fantasy". definitely the 'lightest' book he's put out since Snow Crash. Nicole did keep Neal's digressions in check, which i appreciated. you might want to turn your brain off for this one - SO MANY PLOT HOLES. most of the characters have hardly any depth to them at all. it was ok.
and is that ending a set up for... a sequel !??!? (seveneves also seemed to have an open ending.) i also wouldn't be surprised to see this turned into a movie or TV series in the not-very-distant future.
The Three-Body Problem - Cixin Liu
[this was a book club assignment]
this is really weird, in that reads like a 'hard sci-fi' novel, but some of this speculative 'science' is _extremely_ speculative to the point of 'making stuff up' (aka fantasy, i guess). i do like that the last few chapters read like some of Stanislaw Lem's humorous parables. expect long paragraphs of exposition and not very pronounced characters, which seems consistent with the other Chinese novels i've read. i feel it was more valuable for the moral quandaries it brought up, and the way it's exploring these thoughts. this is the first of a trilogy, and i'll read the rest of the series to see how it goes.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2018 6:38 pm
by Moliere
hitbyambulance wrote: ↑Mon Jan 15, 2018 10:40 pm
The Three-Body Problem - Cixin Liu
[this was a book club assignment]
this is really weird, in that reads like a 'hard sci-fi' novel, but some of this speculative 'science' is _extremely_ speculative to the point of 'making stuff up' (aka fantasy, i guess). i do like that the last few chapters read like some of Stanislaw Lem's humorous parables. expect long paragraphs of exposition and not very pronounced characters, which seems consistent with the other Chinese novels i've read. i feel it was more valuable for the moral quandaries it brought up, and the way it's exploring these thoughts. this is the first of a trilogy, and i'll read the rest of the series to see how it goes.
Highly recommended. I enjoyed the whole trilogy. I think it was my first Chinese novel. Being anglocentric it was weird at times reading a novel where 'Merica and 'Mericans were not playing the central role. The hardest part was the names and places. I have no frame of reference on the geography of China nor was it easy for me to remember all the Chinese names and their relationships to other characters.
Re: Books Read 2018
Posted: Tue Jan 16, 2018 6:58 pm
by Jaymann