Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading? - Page 1598

ReneAZ · 04-30-2016, 04:24 PM

Lately I've been reading through the Bess Crawford series (by Charles Todd) and am enjoying them very much. Just finished "An Unmarked Grave" and found it to be excellent. All the books take place during WWI; have to wonder if the series is ever going to get out of there. ;-) I'd like to see where Bess goes/what she does after the war.

I prefer the Maisie Dobbs series (Jacqueline Winspear) -- much more diversity in locations -- but since I'm up to date with the series (read last one just recently) I am very happy to have the Bess Crawford books.

pdurrant · 05-01-2016, 04:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

No Wind of Blame by Georgette Heyer.

Also a wonderful 20th Century murder mystery

And now a treat: Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch. The fifth in his splendid modern day urban fantasy police procedural with PC Peter Grant.

cadele · 05-01-2016, 04:53 AM

About a third of the way through Spellbound: Book II of The Grimnoir Chronicles by Larry Correia. Not quite as much fun as the Monster Hunters International series of his but still a good page turner.

Hampshire Nanny · 05-01-2016, 11:24 AM

I finished off the month at 11 books and 4199 pages. I finished reading two books on the 29th and plunged into two others yesterday. Finished reading Fairest, a prequel in the Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer and Abaddon's Gate, third in The Expanse series by James S. A. Corey (writing team of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck).

I'm currently in the middle of The Edge of Dreams by Rhys Bowen (book #14 in her Molly Murphy mysteries set in early 1900s NYC) and Brotherhood in Death by J. D. Robb. Yeah, it's book #42 in the Eve Dallas/In Death series.

WT Sharpe · 05-01-2016, 11:59 AM

Last night I finished The Case of the Stuttering Bishop by Erle Stanley Gardner, in which Hamilton Burger is prepared to issue a warrant for Perry Mason's arrest for swimming in a septic tank until Perry emerges smelling like a rose. Another guilty pleasure under the belt! Now to concentrate on finishing the collection of science essays I'm currently reading, This Explains Everything: Deep, Beautiful, and Elegant Theories of How the World Works compiled by John Brockman.

elaysee · 05-01-2016, 12:34 PM

I just took stock of my April reading - a good month for good books.

I was wowed by Laline Paull's The Bees. The book follows the life of an anthropomorphized worker bee. I felt it made a successful balance between analogizing the hive social structure without falling too far into bees-as-people. I've read a bit of scientific writing on bees and other social insects, and the author definitely did a lot of homework.

Seanan McGuire's Every Heart a Doorway is set at a school for kids who went to places like Narnia, then came back and need to move on. It's not a perfect book (but it is a short one - 173 pages), but if you've read a lot of portal fantasy it makes enjoyable, thoughtful reading.

I'm starting to think that Ilona Andrews' has hit peak Andrews in the Clean Sweep series and especially this second one, Sweep in Peace. The books center on a Texas innkeeper who caters to intergalactics in an "indistinguishable from magic" universe. Nothing earth-shattering about it, but a lot of genial fun that doesn't take its tropes too seriously.

CRussel · 05-01-2016, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Also a wonderful 20th Century murder mystery

And now a treat: Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch. The fifth in his splendid modern day urban fantasy police procedural with PC Peter Grant.

Indeed a treat. And I really hope the next one will hurry up and get here. It's already been delayed twice.

pdurrant · 05-01-2016, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

And now a treat: Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch. The fifth in his splendid modern day urban fantasy police procedural with PC Peter Grant.

Wow. Splendid stuff. A bit of an abrupt ending, but that's the only thing I can say against it. Great fun.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRussel

Indeed a treat. And I really hope the next one will hurry up and get here. It's already been delayed twice.

I'm looking forward to the next instalment, but I'll probably wait for the paperback prices drop rather than pounce when it's first published. Something to look forward to in 2017.

Next up: The Big Black Mark by A. Bertram Chandler. The seventh in his John Grimes series. I'm beginning to think I might abandon the series as just too dated. We'll see how this one goes.

Hampshire Nanny · 05-01-2016, 02:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Now to concentrate on finishing the collection of science essays I'm currently reading, This Explains Everything: Deep, Beautiful, and Elegant Theories of How the World Works compiled by John Brockman.

Sounds a bit like the book I'm listening to, A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson. Bryson has a delightful and entertaining way of conveying not only the scientific facts and theories, but the history of how we came to understand the universe around us. From the beginnings of everything (big bang or not) to the rise of civilization, with geology, paleontology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, and biology all thrown into the mix. I'm only 1/3 of the way into the book and thoroughly enjoying it.

While I don't enjoy reading non-fiction, I find that I *really* enjoy listening to well-written and well-presented non-fiction. Interestingly, Bryson has referred to a number of books which I've already "read", and I'm adding others that he mentions to my Audible wish list.

cromag · 05-02-2016, 01:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

...
Next up: The Big Black Mark by A. Bertram Chandler. The seventh in his John Grimes series. I'm beginning to think I might abandon the series as just too dated. We'll see how this one goes.

No! I love the Grimes stories! (Of course, I suppose I might be a bit dated, too.)

I'm still reading through some short stories, including the current Asimov's and Analog issues. But I can stop long enough to recommend Barnaby's Shorts (Volume One) by Barnaby Wilde -- free at Smashwords. It's self-pubbed, but I liked it. The stories all feature memorable, quirky characters, and they all have a twist at the end. Sometimes that twist goes clear over to left field and bounces into the Twilight Zone.

Now, I have some "library maintenance" to take care of, and then some more short stories to fit into my days.

DiapDealer · 05-02-2016, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRussel

Indeed a treat. And I really hope the next one will hurry up and get here. It's already been delayed twice.

I'm anxiously awaiting this, too. I think I saw an August 2016 date last time I looked--is that the latest?

mewmartigan · 05-02-2016, 11:31 AM

Finished the Reckoners series by Sanderson. They were entertaining...wonder if he'll revisit that world later.

Now starting A Call to Duty, the Honor Harrington prequel series (set hundreds of years before Honor herself).

Wish Weber would get off his butt (or off Safehold) and write another Honor book!

CRussel · 05-02-2016, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I'm anxiously awaiting this, too. I think I saw an August 2016 date last time I looked--is that the latest?

So far as I'm aware, yes, that's the latest. Original was December of last year, then July, now August.

MickeyC · 05-02-2016, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hampshire Nanny

Sounds a bit like the book I'm listening to, A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson. Bryson has a delightful and entertaining way of conveying not only the scientific facts and theories, but the history of how we came to understand the universe around us. From the beginnings of everything (big bang or not) to the rise of civilization, with geology, paleontology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, and biology all thrown into the mix. I'm only 1/3 of ....

If you liked this Bryson, I strongly recommend his "The Mother Tongue" a fascinating history of the mess we politely refer to as the English language. Very interesting. Also his At Home, a history of houses and how they got to be the way they are.

pdurrant · 05-02-2016, 01:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: The Big Black Mark by A. Bertram Chandler. The seventh in his John Grimes series. I'm beginning to think I might abandon the series as just too dated. We'll see how this one goes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by cromag

No! I love the Grimes stories! (Of course, I suppose I might be a bit dated, too.)

No, I'm afraid I'm giving up on them. I bought the entire collection of 31 books when they were available at Baen books back in 2007, but they just don't do it for me. I also find I accidentally skipped the sixth book in the series.

Mainly it's the way the attitudes to and treatment of the (few) women in the series that I can't suspend my disbelief over.

Next up: Carnifex by Tom Kratman. Another purchase from 2007. I'm not sure I'll like this, but I'll give it a go.

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04-30-2016, 04:24 PM	#23956
ReneAZ eBookaholic Posts: 79 Karma: 1071702 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Phoenix AZ USA Device: iPad Mini, Kindle Fire	Lately I've been reading through the Bess Crawford series (by Charles Todd) and am enjoying them very much. Just finished "An Unmarked Grave" and found it to be excellent. All the books take place during WWI; have to wonder if the series is ever going to get out of there. ;-) I'd like to see where Bess goes/what she does after the war. I prefer the Maisie Dobbs series (Jacqueline Winspear) -- much more diversity in locations -- but since I'm up to date with the series (read last one just recently) I am very happy to have the Bess Crawford books.

05-01-2016, 04:53 AM	#23958
cadele Addict Posts: 372 Karma: 3710372 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: Kindles, Sony 650	About a third of the way through Spellbound: Book II of The Grimnoir Chronicles by Larry Correia. Not quite as much fun as the Monster Hunters International series of his but still a good page turner.

05-01-2016, 11:24 AM	#23959
Hampshire Nanny Guru Posts: 615 Karma: 8064562 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: Sony PRS-505, Kindle 3 KB, iPad2	I finished off the month at 11 books and 4199 pages. I finished reading two books on the 29th and plunged into two others yesterday. Finished reading *Fairest, a prequel in the Lunar Chronicles* series by Marissa Meyer and *Abaddon's Gate, third in The Expanse* series by James S. A. Corey (writing team of Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck). I'm currently in the middle of *The Edge of Dreams* by Rhys Bowen (book #14 in her Molly Murphy mysteries set in early 1900s NYC) and *Brotherhood in Death* by J. D. Robb. Yeah, it's book #42 in the Eve Dallas/In Death series.

05-01-2016, 11:59 AM	#23960
WT Sharpe Bah, humbug! Posts: 39,072 Karma: 157049943 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Chesapeake, VA, USA Device: Kindle Oasis, iPad Pro, & a Samsung Galaxy S9.	Last night I finished *The Case of the Stuttering Bishop* by Erle Stanley Gardner, in which Hamilton Burger is prepared to issue a warrant for Perry Mason's arrest for swimming in a septic tank until Perry emerges smelling like a rose. Another guilty pleasure under the belt! Now to concentrate on finishing the collection of science essays I'm currently reading, This Explains Everything: Deep, Beautiful, and Elegant Theories of How the World Works compiled by John Brockman.

05-01-2016, 12:34 PM	#23961
elaysee Groupie Posts: 168 Karma: 1319590 Join Date: Jun 2012 Device: iPad/MapleRead	I just took stock of my April reading - a good month for good books. I was wowed by Laline Paull's The Bees. The book follows the life of an anthropomorphized worker bee. I felt it made a successful balance between analogizing the hive social structure without falling too far into bees-as-people. I've read a bit of scientific writing on bees and other social insects, and the author definitely did a lot of homework. Seanan McGuire's Every Heart a Doorway is set at a school for kids who went to places like Narnia, then came back and need to move on. It's not a perfect book (but it is a short one - 173 pages), but if you've read a lot of portal fantasy it makes enjoyable, thoughtful reading. I'm starting to think that Ilona Andrews' has hit peak Andrews in the Clean Sweep series and especially this second one, Sweep in Peace. The books center on a Texas innkeeper who caters to intergalactics in an "indistinguishable from magic" universe. Nothing earth-shattering about it, but a lot of genial fun that doesn't take its tropes too seriously.

05-02-2016, 11:31 AM	#23967
mewmartigan Guru Posts: 852 Karma: 8242060 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: Kindle Oasis (2019)	Finished the Reckoners series by Sanderson. They were entertaining...wonder if he'll revisit that world later. Now starting A Call to Duty, the Honor Harrington prequel series (set hundreds of years before Honor herself). Wish Weber would get off his butt (or off Safehold) and write another Honor book!