Which book are you reading now? Volume XIV

[EgonSpengler]

I just finished Ballistic by Marko Kloos (2020), book 2 of The Palladium Wars, and The City We Became by N.K. Jemison (2020). Kloos needs a better editor. I thought maybe he was writing in German, his first language, and that the translation was weird, but then I see that he's been living in New Hampshire for years, so now I'm not sure. Good military sci-fi, if you're into that, although this book feels very much like a middle chapter. Jemisin usually does epic fantasy, but this one is more urban-fantasy set in the not-quite-real world, like King Rat and Neverwhere. This one took a while to come together, for me, and I almost dropped it, but I was glad I hung in there.The big reveal was kind of fun. I think it's the beginning of a new series, which may be why it took its time getting rolling.

I started The Sundering by Walter Jon Williams (2003), book 2 in the Dread Empire's Fall series, a military-space opera, but I'm not really feeling it right now. I think I need something else.

 

[EnglishEdward]

I have just finished

The Ice House

by

Tim Clare

a fantasy with chapters written deliberately out of sequence to confound the reader.

Bits I liked, bits I didn't; the overall story line on the imaginary universe was partly incoherent.

 

[Kyriakos]

"People has been reading books for millions of years. And now thanks to new technology they can even write them".

 

[Birdjaguar]

This was recommended above and it was one of the best non fiction I've read in a long time. It is a deep dive into the origins of consciousness and a close look at the mind of the octopus. Well written too.

Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness

 

[Josu]

Ended Shogun by James Clavell.
Is a good book, but at the end it seemed to me longer than it is.

Started The running man, by Richard Bachman, aka Stephen King. My umpteenth attemp to enjoy a book by this author

 

[Synobun]

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. Extremely hyped, extremely "edgy." And not in a good way. The narrative goes from fine to "I am thirteen years old and really edgy." at a moment's notice, and those moments were too distracting for me to continue. Many sections of the exposition are written like you would write a casual conversation with a friend using meme-y, Gen-Z language. In a "dark fantasy, horror" book, this is stupid.

 

[EnglishEdward]

I have this week finished reading:

The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.

by

Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland

Copyright 2017

It was quite enjoyable.

I can only describe it as an odd mixture of sci-fi (time-travel) and fantasy
(witches), but with some quite good send-ups of military bureauspeak.

 

[PhroX]

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. Extremely hyped, extremely "edgy." And not in a good way. The narrative goes from fine to "I am thirteen years old and really edgy." at a moment's notice, and those moments were too distracting for me to continue. Many sections of the exposition are written like you would write a casual conversation with a friend using meme-y, Gen-Z language. In a "dark fantasy, horror" book, this is stupid.

That was the lesbian necromancers in space one, right? If so, I found it quite fun as some light reading, but certainly no classic.

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Green Mars is the second part of Kim Robinson's Mars Trilogy, focusing on further environmental and political developments since the devastating conflict at the end of Red Mars. The reader finally learns about the Martian underground liberation movement and is treated to vivid descriptions of Mars' changing locales. Still filled with great worldbuilding and characterization as the first novel, and inspirations for SMAC (red dissenting graffiti, green forests spreading, etc.).

 

[EgonSpengler]

I started The Sundering by Walter Jon Williams (2003), book 2 in the Dread Empire's Fall series, a military-space opera, but I'm not really feeling it right now. I think I need something else.

I never did find something else before I finished this one, but I'm glad I stuck with it. It ends with a kind of allegory about the French Resistance that could be interesting in the next book, Conventions of War. I'm not imediately rushing out to grab that one, I need a break, but I'll definitely be reading it.

Green Mars is the second part of Kim Robinson's Mars Trilogy, focusing on further environmental and political developments since the devastating conflict at the end of Red Mars. The reader finally learns about the Martian underground liberation movement and is treated to vivid descriptions of Mars' changing locales. Still filled with great worldbuilding and characterization as the first novel, and inspirations for SMAC (red dissenting graffiti, green forests spreading, etc.).

I remember really liking Red Mars. There was a portion, I think in the middle of that book, that I thought would have made a good exploration roleplaying game, for PC or even a tabletop RPG. It was when the nascent colonies were growing, but weren't quite secure yet. There was kind of a Wild West on the Frontier feel about it. I think at some point a couple of characters were traveling in what amounted to an advanced dirigible, which I thought was cool. And I think there was something about a caravan of vehicles all traveling together, like a little, mobile village. I never got around to the next book, though. I'll add it to my list.


EDIT: Here's an illustration somebody did of one of the vehicles, possibly during that era of the novel I was describing. You can see it's enormous, more than a "rover", it's like a habitat and a research station on wheels.

Spoiler :

 

[Darsnan]

The tenth book in David Weber's Safehold series.

From the Wikipedia page:
Safehold is a science fiction book series by David Weber, currently consisting of ten titles, the latest released in January 2019. The series is mostly set around the 31st century, on a distant world dubbed "Safehold" where a group of humans are in hiding from the Gbaba, an alien enemy responsible for the end of all other human civilization.

The humans on Safehold avoid detection by reverting to a pre-electrical, pre-industrial technology base. This status is enforced by a religious belief system discouraging scientific curiosity and forbidding any higher technological innovation on penalty of death. The threat of the Gbaba is barely mentioned in the books so far; the main issue is the divergence of the official church from its original aims versus the outlying areas which deny the leadership of the corrupt vicars.

Every book after the first has a name taken from a hymn.

I'm a high tech sci-fi sort (Niven's Known Space series, Scalzi's Old Man's War, Frank Herbert's Dosadi, etc.), so this is a little change of pace for me, but overall very enjoyable. I'm about 2/3rd's of the way thru the tenth book, and so far I think its the second best in the series - hopefully the last 250-ish pages doesn't peter out.

D

 

[Josu]

Ended The Running Man by Richard Bachman, aka Stephen King. 10 out of 10.
I am happy because I finally have been able to find a book by Stephen King which I have been able to enjoy.
I was unable to enjoy any of his horror books, then someone told me that he is better fantasy writter than horror writter, and I tryed The Dark Tower, which I considered trash.

Starting Hyperon by Dan Simmons

 

[hobbsyoyo]

I remember really liking Red Mars.

I read the trilogy and while I liked them, they also felt extremely bloated and I don't think I'll do it again.

 

[Paul in Saudi]

My Opposition, being a German man's diary of everyday life in Nazi Germany. It is disturbing. He has the habit of reporting on obituaries of children killed in the Allied bombings. It is worth your time.

 

[EnglishEdward]

I have just finished a good Sci-Fi

Recursion

by

Blake Crouch

sudden appearance of false memory syndrome due to the transfer of
personality at point of death to the past resulting in multiple timelines.

 

[Kyriakos]

Some series on mathematicians, by E.T. Bell.
Imo not worth it. I don't see why amateur biography should be mixed with amateur historiography and then have a few (very few) pieces on the actual math works of some people, and call this a serious or informative book.

 

[EgonSpengler]

I have just finished a good Sci-Fi

Recursion

by

Blake Crouch

sudden appearance of false memory syndrome due to the transfer of
personality at point of death to the past resulting in multiple timelines.

I liked Dark Matter too, if you haven't read that one. Its premise is maybe getting a little worn now, but it was fun. The Wayward Pines books were okay, too, but I'd probably rate those behind these other two.

 

[abradley]

https://www.goodreads.com/series/51042-spqr

Finished the SPQR series by John Maddox Roberts, enjoyed.

The series follows the life of Decius Cecilius Metellus from 70 BC thru 20 BC.

Worth a read.

Part 1 of 6 part interview.

 

[Paul in Saudi]

I finished rereading Keynes' Economic Consequences of the Peace, which is very important and an easy read. Now I just started the silly Victory of Eagles, which is part of the Temarare series.

Napoleonic dragons. Nothing finer.

 

[Snerk]

Finally getting around to some Kafka. Starting with The Trial. @Kyriakos made me do it.