Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading?

[Dr. Drib]

I just finished "The Collector," by John Fowles, a novel I've been meaning to read for a long, long time. Every horror writer could take a lesson from reading this chilling book.

I'm currently reading John Irving's "The Fourth Hand," one of my favorite writers. I put this one on the back burner years ago. Now, with my book collection in storage and unavailable, I decided to buy this one in ebook and read it. I'm about 2/3 into the the book and it's wonderful reading.




Don

[CRussel]

Dr. Drib - I remember reading that many years ago, and it certainly qualifies as chilling! Not sure I could even read it now. My tolerance for horror stories like that has definitely decreased.

[alansplace]

Originally Posted by alansplace

Deadly Heat was the best Nikki Heat novel yet with turns and twists, unexpected surprises, looming danger and untrustworthy players. All-in-all it was a GREAT read.

Next I'm going to be visiting the Australian roaring twenties with Death At Victoria Dock (Phryne Fisher #4) by Kerry Greenwood.

Death At Victoria Dock was, as is always the case with a Phryne Fisher mystery, a great read!

My #2 son (to quote the Hollywood Charlie Chan) gave me a Kindle book for my birthday last month. It was Mistborn: The Final Empire (Mistborn #1) by Brandon Sanderson. So I'm giving it a try next.

[Latinandgreek]

Originally Posted by caleb72

Why doesn't it surprise me that you would have read the work in Italian. I always wanted to be multi-lingual, but I think the closest I'm going to get to it is knowing multiple computer programming languages.

Actually, I've always held that my interest in computer programming languages and spoken languages are actually related - but before I go off on my Maths = English = Latin = Computer Programming philosophy...

And I've always wanted to learn computer programming languages, I've been thinking of signing up for a course now that I have the time! I have my own suspicions that programming and spoken languages are related as well.

To get back on topic: I'm reading Ruth Ozeki's The Time Beings. Beautiful and heartbreaking.

[caleb72]

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

I just finished "The Collector," by John Fowles, a novel I've been meaning to read for a long, long time. Every horror writer could take a lesson from reading this chilling book.

Thanks for that. A friend gave me a copy of A Maggot a while back which I haven't read. I've never read Fowles - and I have no problem with chilling, disturbing or even mind-bendingly terrifying.

[HarryT]

Three books read over the last week:

1. "King of the Murgos" by David Eddings. The 2nd book of the "Mallorean" fantasy series. A true classic of fantasy writing.

2. "The Hound of Death" by Agatha Christie. This was her 18th book, and was originally published in 1933. Although Christie is best known as a detective novelist, she also wrote many supernatural stories, and this book, "The Hound of Death", is a collection of 12 short stories, the majority of which are supernatural in nature (although some of them are also crimes). A very interesting collection, and well worth reading if you've not read any of Christie's supernatural stories.

3. "Demon Lord of Karanda" by David Eddings. The 3rd book in the classic "Mallorean" fantasy series.

[WT Sharpe]

I just preordered the Kindle edition of I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai (Author) and Christina Lamb (Contributor).

[Rumpelteazer]

I'm currently reading The Fabric of Sin by Phil Rickman, the ninth book in the Merrily Watkins series. Another great story, even better than the previous books.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by HarryT

2. "The Hound of Death" by Agatha Christie. This was her 18th book, and was originally published in 1933. Although Christie is best known as a detective novelist, she also wrote many supernatural stories, and this book, "The Hound of Death", is a collection of 12 short stories, the majority of which are supernatural in nature (although some of them are also crimes). A very interesting collection, and well worth reading if you've not read any of Christie's supernatural stories.

Checking my notes, I find I read this back in June 2011. I found it a confusing mixture of supernatural and mystery. It's as if in Scooby Doo you had no idea whether the ghost they were hunting would turn out to be a man in a mask or an actual ghost. It rather spoiled the fun for me.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Checking my notes, I find I read this back in June 2011. I found it a confusing mixture of supernatural and mystery. It's as if in Scooby Doo you had no idea whether the ghost they were hunting would turn out to be a man in a mask or an actual ghost. It rather spoiled the fun for me.

Thanks for the link, Paul. I liked the "is it really supernatural or is it a trick?" aspect of the collection. I do agree that "Witness for the Prosecution" is a real gem, and it doesn't really fit in with the other stories in the collection at all; it's the only story in the book which doesn't have any supernatural element to it at all.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I liked the "is it really supernatural or is it a trick?" aspect of the collection.

How interesting. I hated it. I feel it's like concealing a vital piece of information in a whodunnit -- the reader has no chance of working out what's going on.

[Dazrin]

Originally Posted by Dazrin

Next is either The Bone Collector by Jeffery Deaver or Top Ten by Ryne Douglas Pearson. I am second in line for the Bone Collector, so I will probably read Top Ten first, depends on if it comes in tonight or tomorrow.

I enjoyed Top Ten and am glad it is not a series - I have enough of those going already. There was one point where I didn't want to continue because I was afraid of what might be coming next. I guess that is a good thing for a thriller.

Still waiting for The Bone Collector so I will probably read Agent of Change by Sharon Lee in the mean time. This is part of a series that I haven't read before, so maybe I am pushing my luck. Oh well. I only need 270 pages to complete my goal for the year, so this should wrap that up too.

[covingtoncat73]

I am reading Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed and the pages are flying. It is a very good book. I love stories about people in the wilderness, whether fiction or non. I'm 60% done.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Now on to the latest in the Inspector Banks series by Peter Robinson - Watching the Dark. I'd have had to wait to read this, but one of those 65% Kobo codes was gifted to me, so I used it well.

I finished Bad Boy, #19 in the Inspector Banks series (this was a catchup I'd apparently missed), and moved on to #20, Watching the Dark. This doesn't have the early problems of Bad Boy, but moves immediately into the story and Inspector Alan Banks involvement. Hard to put down, even though we're dealing with some fairly dark stuff.

[WashWest]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

I just preordered the Kindle edition of I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai (Author) and Christina Lamb (Contributor).

Thanks for that link. I hadn't heard of this yet. I can't believe it's been a whole year since she was attacked by the Taliban!