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

[bfisher]

I just finished "The Norman Conquest: The Battle of Hastings and the Fall of Anglo-Saxon England" by Marc Morris. It seemed a balanced view of the Norman Conquest, and was readable, except for the usual tangle of near-identical Anglo-saxon names - AEthelred, AEthelric, AElfgar, AElgifu ...

[CBG]

I found so many great book suggestions on MB in general and on this thread in particular that it's time I gave back a little: I just finished l'Evangile selon Satan (The gospel according to Satan?), a Da Vinci Code type of story but my God - I could not put this one down. I read it in french but there must be an english translation somewhere. Onto Andy Weir's The Martian, starting in a few minutes!

[Nyssa]

I want to hate this book! Based on the attitudes and musing of his main character, Conrad Stargard, Leo Frankowski seems to have been a misogynistic racist! (Women are bitches when they don't do as asked and American Blacks lack a sense of self worth). [Excuse Me!?!]

Yet, I'm halfway through the book, and the author's [insert expletive here] views aside, I am finding this story to be fascinating! The descriptions of daily living, the engineering challenges, even the simple science and mathematical lessons are all interesting. As much as I want slap Conrad upside his head, his unassuming knight routine is quite charming.

The time travel aspects have been kept in the background so far - addressed in interludes, cleverly and purposely pointing out the conceit presented throughout the book.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Climbing Olympus by Kevin J. Anderson.

An OK near-ish future Mars terraforming/colonisation story. The main premise seems impossible, but the story is OK, in an anti-hero kind of way.

It was OK. Damning with faint praise.

Next I read I, Strahd by PN Elrod. Obviously only the first half of two books, OK, but unsatisfying.

And now I'm reading a short by Wen Spencer. Then I'll move on to the latest Robert Buettner.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Went with Waldo and Magic, Inc.. Enjoying it so far. And I find it fascinating that not only did Heinlein add the word waldo to the dictionary, but his descriptions of free-fall are quite good considering no one had yet actually been in space.

Finished both of these stories. Interesting, especially Waldo. I enjoyed them, and I'm glad they've been made available in eBook format by Baen.

Next up, The Outskirter's Secret, by Rosemary Kirstein. This is the second book in the Steerswoman series, featuring the Steerswoman Rowan and her friend Bel, a barbarian, Outskirter warrior. The first three of the books are now available DRM free from Amazon, with the fourth promised for next month.

These books were released across a fairly long time frame, starting in the late 1980's and developed quite a dedicated following, though we apparently weren't a big enough following to satisfy the likes of Del Rey. IAC, Ms. Kirstein is now releasing them in eBook format, with a promise of a new one coming. I highly recommend the series. Start with The Steerswoman, the first in the series and now available on Amazon for $2.99 in the US, or £1.86 in the UK. At that price, by all means give this series a try. It's not flashy, no big wars or battles, but the underlying premise is compelling and the characters very well done.

[covingtoncat73]

I am reading Fever: A Novel by Mary Beth Keane. It is based on "Typhoid Mary." I'm 7% in and finding it good so far.

[Gronk]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Finished both of these stories. Interesting, especially Waldo. I enjoyed them, and I'm glad they've been made available in eBook format by Baen.

Next up, The Outskirter's Secret, by Rosemary Kirstein. This is the second book in the Steerswoman series, featuring the Steerswoman Rowan and her friend Bel, a barbarian, Outskirter warrior. The first three of the books are now available DRM free from Amazon, with the fourth promised for next month.

These books were released across a fairly long time frame, starting in the late 1980's and developed quite a dedicated following, though we apparently weren't a big enough following to satisfy the likes of Del Rey. IAC, Ms. Kirstein is now releasing them in eBook format, with a promise of a new one coming. I highly recommend the series. Start with The Steerswoman, the first in the series and now available on Amazon for $2.99 in the US, or £1.86 in the UK. At that price, by all means give this series a try. It's not flashy, no big wars or battles, but the underlying premise is compelling and the characters very well done.

CRussel, is that recommendation meant also for those of us who aren't normally science fiction readers? I am always looking for good books and the few reviews on Amazon are impressive but I'm not much of a science fiction reader. As a point of reference on my Sci-Fi tastes, I recently tried the first book in the Ender's Game series and thought it was OK but didn't feel compelled to finish the series. I also read Hugh Howey's Wool and Shift and enjoyed them but wasn't blown away. In your opinion should I try The Steerswoman or not?

[CRussel]

Well, I don't know enough about you to know, BUT if you enjoy reading well written stories with strong women protagonists who think before they act, and you enjoy stories that are character driven rather than action driven, then yes. Extracted from the Amazon description:

If you ask, she must answer. A steerswoman's knowledge is shared with any who request it; no steerswoman may refuse a question, and no steerswoman may answer with anything but the truth.

And if she asks, you must answer. It is the other side of tradition's contract -- and if you refuse the question, or lie, no steerswoman will ever again answer even your most casual question.

And so, the steerswomen — always seeking, always investigating — have gathered more and more knowledge about the world they traveled, and they share that knowledge freely.

At $2.99, it's not costing you a great deal, and might provide an entry point into SF&F that could lead to other character-driven authors.

ETA: Oh, and for what it's worth, my DW who routinely gives me a hard time about my SF reading tastes read all four of the books and enjoyed them. There's something quite compelling about Rowan.

[Gronk]

Thanks for the response. I'll probably try it.

[covingtoncat73]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Well, I don't know enough about you to know, BUT if you enjoy reading well written stories with strong women protagonists who think before they act, and you enjoy stories that are character driven rather than action driven, then yes. Extracted from the Amazon description:

At $2.99, it's not costing you a great deal, and might provide an entry point into SF&F that could lead to other character-driven authors.

ETA: Oh, and for what it's worth, my DW who routinely gives me a hard time about my SF reading tastes read all four of the books and enjoyed them. There's something quite compelling about Rowan.

Well, I'm in. Thanks for the rec.

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by covingtoncat73

Well, I'm in. Thanks for the rec.

Good. I'll be interested to hear what you think.

[samhy]

I just finished Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally today.
It was a nice and fun read. Above all it was a great choice to wipe away (off?) the nasty taste the previous book had left in my mind.

[WT Sharpe]

I just finished The Martian by Andy Weir and now I see what everyone's been raving about. This was one hell of a good story; a thrill ride to be sure. The resourcefulness of the protagonist reminded me of the old TV show MacGyver.

[bfisher]

It really reminded me of Robinson Crusoe - the ur-novel.

[covingtoncat73]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

I just finished The Martian by Andy Weir and now I see what everyone's been raving about. This was one hell of a good story; a thrill ride to be sure. The resourcefulness of the protagonist reminded me of the old TV show MacGyver.

Originally Posted by bfisher

It really reminded me of Robinson Crusoe - the ur-novel.

Oh, cool. I love stories about lost in the wilderness (whether it be the forest, an island, or space). I've enjoyed everything in that way from Robinson Crusoe and the Tarzan Books to A Brief History of the Dead and the movie Gravity. I'll have to look The Martian up.