Hey!! Let's get some action going! What are we reading? - Page 1797

CRussel · 02-25-2018, 12:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Erle Stanley Gardner wrote sci-fi? Who knew? I didn't.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BenG

So did Travis McGee author John D. MacDonald.

Lot of the old writers wrote for all the different genre magazines using pseudonyms. I know Robert Silverberg wrote erotic fiction in the early days but he won't reveal the pseudonym he used.

As Doctor Johnson so aptly wrote: "No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money."

In those days, at the rates available, they wrote for whomever would pay them.

DiapDealer · 02-25-2018, 03:38 PM

Starting Nordoff and Hall's Mutiny on the Bounty (bought The Bounty Trilogy from Kobo for $4.99).

Dngrsone · 02-27-2018, 12:27 AM

Finished Into the Fire; maybe Grace is just going senile. I got $5 on her buying it in the next book.

Anyway, I've started The Old Man and the Sea. I know someone said it was short, but I didn't know it was that short... I'm 40% of the way through, and will likely finish it before bedtime tonight.

After that, perhaps a non-fic.

pdurrant · 02-27-2018, 07:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

also reading Analog SFF for Jan/Feb 2018.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Now also reading I, Claudius by Robert Graves.

I've just finished both of these. I, Claudius was great. Most enjoyable and highly recommended.

Tha Analog was good, let me review the stories:
"The Quantum Magician" by Derek Künsken is the first part of a serial. If I'd realised I would have left it for when I had all parts available to read together, but the silly Magazine format that they use on the Kindle meant I didn't notice until I'd finished this part. An enjoyable far-future story.

Novella:
"Blurred Lives" by Adam-Troy Castro is an odd story of mind control.

Spoiler:

I enjoyed it.

Novelettes:
"The Journeyman: Through Madness Gap" by Michael F. Flynn is an amusing continuation of the story of Teodorq and Sammi and their quest on behalf of some failing technology. I look forward to the next installment, whenever it appears.

"Endless City" by David Gerrold. Hard bitten detective in cyberspace and realspace. OK, but not really my kind of thing.

Short stories:
"Hobson's Choices" by Mary A. Turzillo is a very good flawed utopia story.

"Ten and Ten" by Alan Dean Foster is a story of communication. Pretty good.

"One to Watch" by Andrew Barton is strange. I don't really understand the motivation of the protagonist.

"Home on the Free Range" by Holly Schofield considers the problems of farming with no experience of the yearly cycle. Good.

"When the Aliens Stop to Bottle" by Ian Watson is a story of alien conquest. Hmmm.

"Two Point Three Children" by Marissa Lingen is a very good story about AI.

"Air Gap" by Eric Cline. A completely different very good story about AI.

"The Dissonant Note" by Jeremiah Tolbert is a very good story about the consequences of uploadable consciousness.

The Probability Zero story "Margin of Error" was a fun look at a political campaign.

All in all, 4/5.

next up: Asimov's SF Magazine for Jan/Feb 2018.

astrangerhere · 02-27-2018, 08:40 AM

Did a quick re-read of The Old Man and the Sea (

) for NLBC. Then moved on to three excellent short stories from various sources:

"Waiting on a Bright Moon: by J.Y. Yang
"The Piece of String" by Guy de Maupassant
"Where Would You Be Now?" Carrie Vaughn

DiapDealer · 02-27-2018, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

"Blurred Lives" by Adam-Troy Castro is an odd story of mind control.

Spoiler:

I enjoyed it.

Thanks for that.

Spoiler:

PurpleStar · 02-27-2018, 10:25 AM

Abandoned the Star Trek TNG book Hearts and Minds. It was just Zzzzzzz...

Now doing a re-read of A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton, since I picked up a bunch of those on sale. I read up to E or F before, but it was a few years ago. Think I enjoy mysteries and thriller books more these days.

Luffy · 02-28-2018, 07:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PurpleStar

Abandoned the Star Trek TNG book Hearts and Minds. It was just Zzzzzzz...

Now doing a re-read of A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton, since I picked up a bunch of those on sale. I read up to E or F before, but it was a few years ago. Think I enjoy mysteries and thriller books more these days.

I thought D is for Deadbeat was exceptionally good. But most people disagree with me.

pdurrant · 02-28-2018, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

next up: Asimov's SF Magazine for Jan/Feb 2018.

It turns out I must have started this some time ago, and then forgot that I'd started it. Now finished.

Two Novellas:
"In the Lost City of Leng" by Rudy Rucker & Paul Di Filippo. A Lovecraftian story and not really to my taste.
"The Rescue of the Renegat" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch. One of her Fleet stories. I enjoyed it.

Four Novellas:
"Sea of Dreams" by Cixin Liu, trans. John Chu. Artistic temperament write large. Quite good.
"Solicited Discordance" by Matthew Hughes. P.I. on alien world. OK.
"Assassin in the Clouds" by Robert R. Chase. Bodyguard work. OK.
"Barren Isle" by Allen M. Steele. A Coyote story. Good.

Four Short Stories:
"Consciousness: 4107's Story" and "The Final Commandment: Trey's Story" by James Gunn. Back stories of two characters in his Transcendental trilogy. OK, but only just. Clearly setups for the novels.
"The Equalizers" by Ian Creasey. An interesting look at anti-discrimination technology and social interactions. Good.
"Mother Tongues" by S. Qiouyi Lu. Good story about the importance of language.

Only 3/5 for me this time.

Next up: Penhallow by Georgette Heyer. Her 31st novel.

Dngrsone · 02-28-2018, 01:50 PM

Whelp, read The Spy Who Couldn't Spell: A Dyslexic Traitor, an Unbreakable Code, and the FBI's Hunt for America's Stolen Secrets by Yudhijit Bhattacharjee. You know it's non-fic by the length of the title (well, I suppose there are a few Victorian novels with titles as long, but I digress). I definitely picked this one up for the title, and it wasn't terrible, though maybe not as gripping as some other of the same type I have read.

Meanwhile, I have picked up Nimisha's Ship by Anne McCaffrey. Can't remember if I'd read this before or not, but it should be a quick palate cleanser before delving into something deeper.

astrangerhere · 03-01-2018, 08:15 PM

Enjoying Leigh Calvez's The Hidden Lives of Owls with Willow the cat.

Dngrsone · 03-02-2018, 01:18 PM

So, I haven't read Nimisha's Ship before, so that was nice. Not her greatest work, though, but enjoyable enough.

Now I have started a much denser tome: The Road to Middle Earth: How J. R. R. Tolkien Created a New Mythology by Tom Shippey. I am not a philologist, and while I don't read Old English, I wish I could... it fascinates me how almost legible it is compared to the language I do know.

At any rate, I read some Tolkien at least every other year, but when I do read LoTR, I can't read anything else after for a good month, LOL.

MickeyC · 03-03-2018, 12:41 PM

Just finished Sleeping in the Ground by Peter Robinson another great Inspector Banks book.

astrangerhere · 03-03-2018, 03:10 PM

Finished up Emma yesterday. It was the last Jane Austen fiction that I had not read. Nowhere near my favorite title, but enjoyable nonetheless. I still have the Letters of Jane Austen to read (link to HarryT's cleaned up version in the PCML), but I think that'll keep for a while.

In paperback, I am still reading The Hidden Lives of Owls. I started listening to Alan Bennett's The Clothes They Stood Up In novella during my 10k today. Delightful as always (and read by the author!).

pdurrant · 03-04-2018, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: Penhallow by Georgette Heyer. Her 31st novel.

One of her 'modern' novels. Period pieces now, but set only a decade or two before they were published.

Not a whodunnit or even a howdunnit. More about the consequences.

It was OK. 3/5

Next up: Grantville Gazette #76

02-27-2018, 08:40 AM	#26945
astrangerhere Professor of Law Posts: 3,755 Karma: 68428716 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Chapel Hill, NC Device: Kobo Elipsa, Kobo Libra H20, Kobo Aura One, KoboMini	Did a quick re-read of The Old Man and the Sea () for NLBC. Then moved on to three excellent short stories from various sources: "Waiting on a Bright Moon: by J.Y. Yang "The Piece of String" by Guy de Maupassant "Where Would You Be Now?" Carrie Vaughn

03-01-2018, 08:15 PM	#26951
astrangerhere Professor of Law Posts: 3,755 Karma: 68428716 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Chapel Hill, NC Device: Kobo Elipsa, Kobo Libra H20, Kobo Aura One, KoboMini	Enjoying Leigh Calvez's *The Hidden Lives of Owls* with Willow the cat. Attached Thumbnails

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02-25-2018, 03:38 PM	#26942
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 28,631 Karma: 204624552 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	Starting Nordoff and Hall's Mutiny on the Bounty (bought The Bounty Trilogy from Kobo for $4.99).

02-27-2018, 12:27 AM	#26943
Dngrsone Almost legible Posts: 1,457 Karma: 4611110 Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: In a high desert, CA Device: Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy Tab A (2017), Likebook P78	Finished Into the Fire; maybe Grace is just going senile. I got $5 on her buying it in the next book. Anyway, I've started The Old Man and the Sea. I know someone said it was short, but I didn't know it was that short... I'm 40% of the way through, and will likely finish it before bedtime tonight. After that, perhaps a non-fic.

02-27-2018, 10:25 AM	#26947
PurpleStar Wizard Posts: 1,625 Karma: 11387182 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Canada Device: Kobo Clara BW, Kindle Paperwhite (11th Gen)	Abandoned the Star Trek TNG book Hearts and Minds. It was just Zzzzzzz... Now doing a re-read of A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton, since I picked up a bunch of those on sale. I read up to E or F before, but it was a few years ago. Think I enjoy mysteries and thriller books more these days.

02-28-2018, 01:50 PM	#26950
Dngrsone Almost legible Posts: 1,457 Karma: 4611110 Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: In a high desert, CA Device: Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy Tab A (2017), Likebook P78	Whelp, read The Spy Who Couldn't Spell: A Dyslexic Traitor, an Unbreakable Code, and the FBI's Hunt for America's Stolen Secrets by Yudhijit Bhattacharjee. You know it's non-fic by the length of the title (well, I suppose there are a few Victorian novels with titles as long, but I digress). I definitely picked this one up for the title, and it wasn't terrible, though maybe not as gripping as some other of the same type I have read. Meanwhile, I have picked up Nimisha's Ship by Anne McCaffrey. Can't remember if I'd read this before or not, but it should be a quick palate cleanser before delving into something deeper.

03-02-2018, 01:18 PM	#26952
Dngrsone Almost legible Posts: 1,457 Karma: 4611110 Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: In a high desert, CA Device: Galaxy Note 9, Galaxy Tab A (2017), Likebook P78	So, I haven't read Nimisha's Ship before, so that was nice. Not her greatest work, though, but enjoyable enough. Now I have started a much denser tome: The Road to Middle Earth: How J. R. R. Tolkien Created a New Mythology by Tom Shippey. I am not a philologist, and while I don't read Old English, I wish I could... it fascinates me how almost legible it is compared to the language I do know. At any rate, I read some Tolkien at least every other year, but when I do read LoTR, I can't read anything else after for a good month, LOL.

03-03-2018, 12:41 PM	#26953
MickeyC Grand Sorcerer Posts: 16,731 Karma: 12185114 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Florida Device: iPhone 6 plus, Sony T1, iPad 3	Just finished *Sleeping in the Ground* by Peter Robinson another great Inspector Banks book.

03-03-2018, 03:10 PM	#26954
astrangerhere Professor of Law Posts: 3,755 Karma: 68428716 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Chapel Hill, NC Device: Kobo Elipsa, Kobo Libra H20, Kobo Aura One, KoboMini	Finished up *Emma* yesterday. It was the last Jane Austen fiction that I had not read. Nowhere near my favorite title, but enjoyable nonetheless. I still have the Letters of Jane Austen to read (link to HarryT's cleaned up version in the PCML), but I think that'll keep for a while. In paperback, I am still reading The Hidden Lives of Owls. I started listening to Alan Bennett's *The Clothes They Stood Up In* novella during my 10k today. Delightful as always (and read by the author!).