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

[Loosheesh]

For December, I'm reading from The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries (edited by Otto Penzler) and last night I read a witty story from it, Boxing Unclever by Robert Barnard. This is the first time I'm encountering this author and I like his style but, alas, my library has only two of his novels. When I checked out his Wikipedia profile, I wasn't surprised to read that Agatha Christie was his favourite author, because the story brought to mind one of her novels.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: Dirge by Alan Dean Foster. The second in his "Founding of the Commonwealth" series. I read the first back in 2013 and liked it. It's about time I got onto the second one!

Luckily stand-alone. Odd that after emphasising the differences of opinion in individuals of various races, one alien race is presented as a unified whole.

4/5

Next up: The Body Human by Nancy Kress.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: The Body Human by Nancy Kress.

Three near-future dystopias. Good, but not my preferred topic. 4/5

Next up: The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers. I read this in paper many, many years ago, an I remember enjoying it. I also remember what the Dark is, but it will be interesting to see how much more I remember, and whether I still enjoy it.

[Fbone]

Originally Posted by Fbone

Next, library loan, Spy School Secret Service by Stuart Gibbs.

An excellent addition to the series. I enjoyed this one more than the previous Ski School. A little rushed at the end, I thought, with regard to the wrapping up but still this was very witty with a twist here and there. Rated B+ [4 stars].

It appears I have the sequel to In the Labyrinth by John Bierce which I recently gave a one-star rating. I'll try a few chapters to see if Jewel of the Endless Erg is any better, otherwise, it's dropped like a wet towel.

[ReadingManiac]

I've finally started reading The Raven Boys by Maggie Steifvater. I wasn't sure I was going to like it at first but I've got into it now..

I'm not sure if I'll want to continue the series yet but I'm on a quest to finish reading series books I've had waiting.

[astrangerhere]

I've started listening to Colm Tóibín's new book The Magician on my commutes, bike rides and rows. I thought it started pretty slowly (and even a little dully), but it's rather picked up now.

Still reading Ada Palmer's Terra Ignota on my Kobo in the evenings.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by astrangerhere

I've started listening to Colm Tóibín's new book The Magician on my commutes, bike rides and rows. I thought it started pretty slowly (and even a little dully), but it's rather picked up now.

I’ve got this in ebook, but haven’t started it yet, as with so many books this year. While I’m always looking for good listens, the ebook may work out for me, since when you read, you can pick up speed over the dull bits.

[astrangerhere]

Originally Posted by issybird

I’ve got this in ebook, but haven’t started it yet, as with so many books this year. While I’m always looking for good listens, the ebook may work out for me, since when you read, you can pick up speed over the dull bits.

I had a conversation with my wife about it. I love Tóibín generally, but I was waiting for a spark in this one. I found it with the appearance of a prominent female character. They are generally the guiding lights in his books, and this one seems no different.

[Dr. Drib]

Just now finished one novella - Schoolgirl, by Osamu Dazai.

Finished Blood-Sucking Monkeys From North Tonawanda, a wonderfully wild and crazy collection of four short stories by Crad Kilodney. The ebook was kindly donated to me.

I'm one-half through The Eyewitness, by Ernst Weiss.

Still reading (but in sporadic bursts) Horn, by D. Keith Mano.

[db105]

Planet of Adventure by Jack Vance.

An explorer from Earth gets stranded on an planet with several alien species living on it. There are also human beings who seem to be descended from people taken from Earth thousands of years in the past.

This is very much pulp fiction, with a lot of action and direct to the point. It's a collection of four rather short novels that are often published together as one book, since they are four parts of the same story.

It reminded me a lot of Edgar Rice Burroughs' work, only more science fictional and better written. Vance's ability to describe interesting alien cultures is clearly shown. Quite a good read, with the agile and entertaining nature of its pulp roots, but also with its limitations (do not expect deep characterization).

[Uncle Robin]

Fifteen percent into Margaret Tudeau-Clayton's Shakespeare's Englishes: Against Englishness. A very interesting read so far, definitely not one that I can speed read on my e-reader, including as it does a lot of quotations of material in unmodernized EME, but happily as the first PDF I'm reading on my Sage, KOReader is doing a great job of making the reading experience as comfortable as an epub.

[spacepope]

Over the past few days I've finished Aurora's End (Aurora Cycle #3) by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff (★★★★), Concrete Rose Angie Thomas (★★★), and Promise of Blood (Powder Mage #1) by Brian McClellan (★★★★).

Trying to figure out what to read next too much YA recently... Not really into it and definitely need to be more picky (though I really did enjoy the Aurora Cycle, despite it's soap opera overtones)

[Uncle Robin]

Just over half way through Shakespeare's Englishes: Against Englishness and I'm going back to Il Gattopardo. It says a lot about how seldom I read densely argued academic-style writing that I'm switching from My L1 to my L3 for a break because it will be less mentally taxing!

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Next up: The Drawing of the Dark by Tim Powers. I read this in paper many, many years ago, an I remember enjoying it. I also remember what the Dark is, but it will be interesting to see how much more I remember, and whether I still enjoy it.

I enjoyed it again, although perhaps not as much as the first time. 4/5

Next up was Landed Gently by Alan Hunter. A country house murder mystery set in a renamed Norfolk. Fun, as expected.

And now: Lightspeed Magazine #11, edited by J. J. Adams. A random pick from the TBR.

[gmw]

The Traitor Game by B. R. Collins (aka Bridget Collins, author of The Binding). This is the author's first novel. Sold as YA, this is not a typical YA fantasy. For a start the fantasy part is quite small - important but small. The main protagonist is at times quite a frustrating character, but as a teenager with very low self-esteem this all feels quite realistic albeit uncomfortable. A reader will likely guess where things are headed, but this seems intentional, adding to the tension along both the school and fantasy storylines. All up I thought this was very good and it's one that has stuck in my head long after finishing. 4/5.


Edited to add: The book leaves a few things unexplained. I liked it like that. I think it was for the best, but I know this sort of thing bothers some people so thought I should mention it.