Books completed (and general book talk)

[duskvstweak]

Was Norse Mythology any good? I've had it a while and not read it yet. I usually love Gaiman, but just haven't fancied it so far. I've even bought the graphic novel adaption and not looked at that either.

It was good! I mean, it's just Gaiman retelling/restructuring existing stories. It sort of feels like the definitive collection of Norse myth. Sometimes, I felt, it could have used more juice, but I had a good time with it.

[Minowese]

I've just finished "All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages" edited by Saundra Mitchell. Each one of the stories felt it could have been it's own novel. The Robin Hood adaptation really left on a cliffhanger. Malinda Lo's new book "Last Night at the Telegraph Club" seems like it could be a follow up to her short story, "New Year". I haven't looked too far into but that would be really exciting.

[duskvstweak]

Spoiler: show

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson
Dinosaurs Without Bones by Anthony Martin
Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin
Star Wars: The High Republic: Into the Dark by Claudia Gray
The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History by John M. Barry
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
Acid for the Children by Flea
Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany
Circe by Madeline Miller
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder
Spin by Robert Charles Wilson
The Future of Humanity by Michio Kaku
Outcast United by Warren St. John
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
Count Zero by William Gibson
Press Reset by Jason Schreier

June Reading
Yearbook by Seth Rogen
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
The Hierarchies by Ros Anderson

Basically, Project Hail Mary took me longer to read than I had hoped, and it wasn't totally worth it in the end, at least not for me. Much better than Artemis but I don't know if I'll be reading Weir's next book.

[Feirsteax]

Just finished reading Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian. It's a long, violent story of the american wild west, following a gang of mercenaries across different parts of mexico and texas. Someone in the movies thread recommended "Hostiles" as a good "Revisionist Western". I had no idea what that genre was until today, and turns out Blood Meridian is a notable example of the genre in literature.

That was an experience all right. At times it felt extremely long and a slog, and at times the plot seemed like it was going nowhere. But all the way through it were flashes of something deep and mystical that kept me going. It actually took me over two years to finish reading it, since I took breaks and read other things along the way, and just couldn't get the motivation to read it at times too.

The prose is fairly dense at times. Sometimes McCarthy can turn a phrase that seems colloquial into something deeply profound and beautiful. Other times, it feels like wading through a jungle of adjectives and half-finished sentence clauses. It can be a bit disorientating.

But towards the latter third of the book I became a lot more engrossed and flew through it. All the themes and characters and situations that had transpired throughout the book came to take on a different light as I tried to contemplate what was trying to be conveyed through this gruesome, brutal story of seemingly senseless violence on the american frontier.

One of the creepier characters, Judge Holden, has stuck in my mind since I read it. He seems to represent a kind of dark philosophy that haunts the characters in the book and drives the brutal actions going on at that time. I'm not really sure how to word it but it's really interesting. And his relationship to "The Kid", the main character, is also very interesting too. There's something going on there that I haven't quite worked out, but they seem to share a connection or a dark link of some kind.

It was only after I'd finished it that I found it was loosely inspired by a real life gang of scouts called Glanton's Gang that was hired by the state of Mexico to hunt down native americans. At one point they decided to start killing and scalping Mexican citizens as well because the hue of their skin was close enough for them to pass off. Eventually though their gruesome acts caught up with them and they began to gain a reputation. To say any more would probably verge into spoiler territory so I will leave it there.

It really was a story that stuck with me. It led me to think about the circumstances and events of that time, and how they resonate through to today. The book was written in 1985 and the American war in Vietnam had ended in 1975, and one of the American squadrons called "Tiger Force" in Vietnam were known for their savagery and carrying out of multiple war crimes. They even collected scalps of killed Vietnamese and collected their ears on a necklace, clearly inspired by the kinds of atrocities committed during the time of American expansionism into the "Wild West".


It's a really weird one. It's not a pleasant read at all, but I'm really glad I read it. It definitely has been swimming around my head since I finished it, and in a strange way finishing the book made me retroactively appreciate even the more boring, painstaking and confusing parts of it.

[Feirsteax]

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Basically, Project Hail Mary took me longer to read than I had hoped, and it wasn't totally worth it in the end, at least not for me. Much better than Artemis but I don't know if I'll be reading Weir's next book.

A few people recommended this heavily to me and I picked it up the other day. I've only read the first chapter and while I am enjoying it, I also feel as if it may have been slightly overhyped... It's got a few too many snappy one-liners for my liking as of right now, but I'm trying to keep an open mind.
I'll see how it goes. But your comment has only heightened my skepticism


I'm reading two other books ... sort of at the same time as this one. I'm kind of hopping between them depending on which one I'm in the mood for. I'll probably magnetise to just one of the three eventually but right now I'm book-hopping between:

One Billion Years to the End of the World by Boris and Arkady Strugatsky (Also known as "Definitely Maybe" in America, I think)
Oh this is so cool. And also really strange. A theoretical physicist called Malianov finds himself constantly interrupted from his work, just as he finds himself on the verge of a scientific breakthrough. Strange visitors, a mysterious box full of vodka, and various other distractions seem to keep popping up out of nowhere.

It's written by two Soviet scientist brothers, and I wasn't sure what to expect from it. I thought it might've been a bit boring, but it's actually really funny. It's very light-hearted, but has an intriguing backdrop of conspiracy which is keeping me turning the pages.
It is a lot less sci-fi than I expected at first, seems more of a mystery novel than anything. But so far I'm loving it and I would probably reccomend it if you want something short, sweet and very curious.

The Algebraist by Iain M. Banks
For the most part, I'm really enjoying this. I had actually read it already, a few years ago, but I'm reading it again because I remembered the concept being pretty cool.

It's not a Culture novel, so it's slightly different to his other books in that it doesn't have a shared universe with them. But it still has that characteristic vibe of Banks's sci-fi books. Grand, sweeping space opera, with weird inventions and weapons and things influencing the politics and inter-relations of the civilisations at play, all with more personal dramas unfolding in the foreground.

I'm really liking it, the concept of the Dweller civilisation is super cool, being a alien speicies that seems to experience time on a much slower scale, so a casual conversation with could last a few weeks, and a war between them could last millennia. Due to this, they kind of operate on a completely detached level from the rest of galactic civilisation, they barely pay the "Quick" species any heed at all and only interact when absolutely necessary.

It's very cool, the world building is always great I find with Banks's stuff. Though there are sometimes I find his characters a bit childish or silly. The "bad guy" who gets introduced in the second chapter is just eye-rollingly bad in my opinion, and the whole chapter was spent describing his sadistic torture methods on his captors. It just felt tasteless and boring, I didn't really get it. Maybe I'm missing something but I remember having this same problem the first time I read the book as well some years ago.
On the plus side it does make me hate the character, maybe that's all it needed to do

P.S. Do we have a "Whatcha Been Reading?" type thread, or am I okay to continue rambling in this one?

[duskvstweak]

Spoiler: show

Star Wars: The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule
The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson
Dinosaurs Without Bones by Anthony Martin
Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin
Star Wars: The High Republic: Into the Dark by Claudia Gray
The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History by John M. Barry
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
Acid for the Children by Flea
Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany
Circe by Madeline Miller
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder
Spin by Robert Charles Wilson
The Future of Humanity by Michio Kaku
Outcast United by Warren St. John
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport
Count Zero by William Gibson
Press Reset by Jason Schreier
Yearbook by Seth Rogen
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
The Hierarchies by Ros Anderson

July Reading
Sea of Rust by C. Robert Cargill
Barren Cove by Ariel S. Winter
Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor
Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy

I was on an A.I. kick, starting with the Hierarchies last month. Sea of Rust was enjoyable, in a Mad Max way, but not what I was looking for and Barren Cove is really about human loneliness, just with robots. Remote Control was short, but just as long as it needed to be. Luck of the Titanic was disappointingly boring. I've been looking around for some Climate Fiction, which is how I picked up Migrations, which I found depressing but less depressing than some people online, which makes me worried I'm a darker mind than I thought!

[Alex79]

P.S. Do we have a "Whatcha Been Reading?" type thread, or am I okay to continue rambling in this one?

Carry on!

I downloaded a load of Cormac McCarthy the other week, not sure where to start with it though. His only book I've read is The Road, but I've enjoyed a few of his novels as film adaptions. Thinking I'll probably start with Blood Meridian or The Evening Redness in the West as I'm on a bit of a western tip at the moment and it sounds good.

[duskvstweak]

P.S. Do we have a "Whatcha Been Reading?" type thread, or am I okay to continue rambling in this one?

Carry on!

I downloaded a load of Cormac McCarthy the other week, not sure where to start with it though. His only book I've read is The Road, but I've enjoyed a few of his novels as film adaptions. Thinking I'll probably start with Blood Meridian or The Evening Redness in the West as I'm on a bit of a western tip at the moment and it sounds good.

Did you enjoy the Road? I read that forever ago and I remember being miserable as I did.

[Alex79]

I thought it was pretty good, although a rare example of enjoying the film version more than the book. I actually bought it to take on holiday one year, but never ended up taking it with me as it seemed a bit of a buzz kill, haha. Only actually ended up reading it a couple of years back (after I'd already seen the film).

[Truk_Kurt]

Finished Bullet Train, a Japanese thriller by Kotako Isaka. It's probably my new favorite fiction book. It has a great pace to it and all the characters are really well written, with a villain who is perhaps my most hated villain ever.
Here is the blurb I copied from amazon to give you a flavour of what it is.
"A dark, satirical thriller by the bestselling Japanese author, following the perilous train ride of five highly motivated assassins—soon to be a major film from Sony Nanao, nicknamed Lady Bird—the self-proclaimed "unluckiest assassin in the world"—boards a bullet train from Tokyo to Morioka with one simple task: grab a suitcase and get off at the next stop."

[duskvstweak]

Finished Bullet Train, a Japanese thriller by Kotako Isaka. It's probably my new favorite fiction book. It has a great pace to it and all the characters are really well written, with a villain who is perhaps my most hated villain ever.
Here is the blurb I copied from amazon to give you a flavour of what it is.
"A dark, satirical thriller by the bestselling Japanese author, following the perilous train ride of five highly motivated assassins—soon to be a major film from Sony Nanao, nicknamed Lady Bird—the self-proclaimed "unluckiest assassin in the world"—boards a bullet train from Tokyo to Morioka with one simple task: grab a suitcase and get off at the next stop."

Well, that's on my to-read list now. I've requested my library get a copy too!

[Truk_Kurt]

Awesome, let me know your thoughts. If they can't get you a copy, send me a DM and I will happily send it you. And if you have any similar recommendations, let me know.

[duskvstweak]

Awesome, let me know your thoughts. If they can't get you a copy, send me a DM and I will happily send it you. And if you have any similar recommendations, let me know.

It's already on order at the library I work at and I've got a hold on it from the local library I don't work at, whichever comes first!

[Alex79]

I'm going to read it too then Closest we've ever come to a book club!

EDIT: Downloaded to my Kindle. Can't remember the last fiction book I read, not sure I have this year at all yet! (Not counting graphic novels).

[Truk_Kurt]

I'm going to read it too then Closest we've ever come to a book club!

EDIT: Downloaded to my Kindle. Can't remember the last fiction book I read, not sure I have this year at all yet! (Not counting graphic novels).

I very rarely read fiction, but it was Matt Castle who recommended this who I know you agree has good taste, so I think you will enjoy it too.

[Alex79]

Read the first two chapters last night. Seems interesting so far. The writing has a definite style to it I'm not so used to, hard to describe. I wonder if it's the translation, but it's almost as though someone is trying to get a story out quickly and out of breath? I can't really describe it properly! Seems like each chapter will jump around different characters, so it'll be interesting to see if and how they end up interlinking.

EDIT: I think I mean it's told at quite a fast pace. Lots of short sentences, light on description, more on actions and doing, if you know what I mean.

[Truk_Kurt]

Yeah I know what you mean.

[duskvstweak]

I just found out Hoopla has a bunch of audio books of the prose novels Marvel put out in the 90s...!!
And I've started spending a LOT more time driving to and from work...

[Seph]

I finished The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton a few days ago. His first book, The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, is one of my favourite modern books and uses the now popular timeloop structure to perfection. Whereas Evelyn Hardcastle felt like a book with a video game structure, his second book seemed to take inspiration from cliffhanger obsessed TV shows. And I don't mean that as a compliment.

The story is set on a ship carrying a bunch of important nobility and a man described as the “world's greatest detective” (who is actually imprisoned for most of the story for reasons that are explained later). But things go to shit when there's murders and a weird cult symbol appearing all over the ship, said to be a demon who has links to many of the passengers on the ship.

While Turton was intending this to be more of a historical fiction story (he even describes it as such in a postscript), it's very clearly a murder mystery with a dark occult undercurrent. All the great mystery writers know that brevity is their strongest weapon, as you don't want to string your readers along with unnecessary detail and constant twists.

It took me a few weeks to finish, not through laziness but because I didn't feel compelled to read more. Once I hit the third act I found it more interesting, but there were more twist in the final 100 pages than the entire Yakuza series. Saying that, I pretty much guessed what was going on by about the halfway point – not every detail, but the main beats at least. This is a positive for me, as it shows that he isn't cheating with his writing and gives you enough clues to figure it out.

I guess it's not fair that the book I read before this was actually a Sherlock Holmes story, The Valley of Fear. This is far from my favourite of this series and suffers from its own problems with bloated narrative in the second half, but I can easily say I enjoyed that more than Turton's book because when it came to the central mystery it got to the point. Plus, that series had a wealth of stories where you are shown how much of a genius the central character is, in this case you're told outright how good the detective is and just to accept it.

So, overall, I'm not if it's one I'd recommend. I was expecting something like Return of the Obra Dinn, but this is far more shallow. I'd say if you enjoyed that game for its setting and you want to try another nautical-based whodunit, then jump right in. Otherwise, read Evelyn Hardcastle if you haven't already.

[Truk_Kurt]

I saw someone tweet about the Devil and the Dark Water yesterday and it sounded interesting. It was the same guy who told me about Bullet Train which I loved, so I have added it to my amazon wish list.