Now Reading... - Page 75

Pellaz · May 22nd, 2011, 01:34 AM

Now reading Off Armageddon Reef by David Weber...just started, shaping up to be really good.
I must say it's a bit daunting to start reading a future history where all of humanity, every last interstellar colony plus Earth itself, has been wiped out to a man. (!)

jaimek · May 22nd, 2011, 09:09 AM

I picked up Hunger Games for the plane ride to New Orleans last week. It's good - good enough that I spent a couple of days in NO fruitlessly looking for this second book but had to wait til I got home to hit the bookstore - but it's a teenager's version of The Running Man/The Long Walk, and I don't find the protagonist especially likable, plus she's conveniently adept in all the "right" skills. The people around her are a lot more interesting, and how they're handling a manipulative authoritarian government that has *no* problem laying the smack down on people who don't play the party line.

Locust0311 · May 22nd, 2011, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pellaz

Now reading Off Armageddon Reef by David Weber...just started, shaping up to be really good.
I must say it's a bit daunting to start reading a future history where all of humanity, every last interstellar colony plus Earth itself, has been wiped out to a man. (!)

I'll be interested to hear what you think of this. I've picked up the series in hardcover as its appeared on the discount racks but haven't started it yet. I'm about to finish Cussler's "Deep Six" then I'm returning to the second part of "Team of Rivals". After that, don't know.

ashaman7122 · May 22nd, 2011, 12:41 PM

Recently finished - Off Season by Jack Ketchum
Currently - Bullets Of Rain by David J. Schow, about a widowed recluse who may or may not be going insane while huddled in his house over the course of a hurricane-soaked weekend.

Akumu · May 22nd, 2011, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaimek

I picked up Hunger Games for the plane ride to New Orleans last week. It's good - good enough that I spent a couple of days in NO fruitlessly looking for this second book but had to wait til I got home to hit the bookstore - but it's a teenager's version of The Running Man/The Long Walk, and I don't find the protagonist especially likable, plus she's conveniently adept in all the "right" skills. The people around her are a lot more interesting, and how they're handling a manipulative authoritarian government that has *no* problem laying the smack down on people who don't play the party line.

I read the first book recently and only thought it was okay, but the second one sounds much more interesting - I'm just hesitant to read it because I heard that Mockingjay took a huge nosedive in quality.

Harvester · May 22nd, 2011, 02:33 PM

Bamafan · May 22nd, 2011, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harvester

This one keeps coming up as a "recommended for me" selection on my Kindle, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. Is it worth obtaining?

Dogs Playing Poker · May 22nd, 2011, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pellaz

Finished Tanya Huff's Blood Debt and Blood Bank -- really excellent, they're fast reads. She doesn't get anywhere near enough credit in the vampire/horror world for this series.

Especially since she largely created vampire-based urban fantasy — and frankly did it better than most. I like how Henry doesn't particularly whine, nor does he act like a "bad boy." And when he does show angst, it's over stuff that is relateable (like how Huff's vampires are by nature solitary).

I wish more contemporary vampires had a similar balance.

jaimek · May 22nd, 2011, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dogs Playing Poker

I wish more contemporary vampires had a similar balance.

And I wish they'd get that shit off my SF/F shelves and move it over to smut where it belongs!

guardian26 · May 22nd, 2011, 11:29 PM

Thanks to HBO, just finished Game of Thrones and now I'm on to Clash of Kings.

Creeps · May 23rd, 2011, 08:21 AM

R.A. Salvatore's "the Bear".

Harvester · May 23rd, 2011, 11:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bamafan

This one keeps coming up as a "recommended for me" selection on my Kindle, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. Is it worth obtaining?

Steve Berry is one of my favorite adventure/thriller writers. TJK is his 10th book and 7th with Cotton Malone as the main character.

If you haven't already, I would suggest going back and starting with "The Templar Legacy" and working your way forward if you enjoy it.

Bamafan · May 23rd, 2011, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harvester

Steve Berry is one of my favorite adventure/thriller writers. TJK is his 10th book and 7th with Cotton Malone as the main character.

If you haven't already, I would suggest going back and starting with "The Templar Legacy" and working your way forward if you enjoy it.

Thanks!

TheLongshot · May 23rd, 2011, 01:18 PM

Finished off Brandon Sanderson's "Mistborn" over the weekend. Overall, a very satisfying read with a couple of twists that I probably should have seen coming and enough stuff to build on a sequel.

I'll also be finishing off Orson Scott Card's "The Memory Of Earth" soon.

yardleybates · May 23rd, 2011, 01:38 PM

Just finished the latest in the Noble Dead series. It was slow compared to the rest but had a fantastic finish!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0046ECFGI/ref=pd...

Dogs Playing Poker · May 23rd, 2011, 09:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaimek

And I wish they'd get that shit off my SF/F shelves and move it over to smut where it belongs!

Tanya Huff's vampire books are not smut, or even particularly "romantic." They are vampire books before the genre got overrun with that stuff. "The good old days."

jaimek · May 24th, 2011, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dogs Playing Poker

Tanya Huff's vampire books are not smut, or even particularly "romantic." They are vampire books before the genre got overrun with that stuff. "The good old days."

I didn't mean Tanya Huff particularly, just the entire genre generally speaking, which IS mostly smut with a sloppy coat of "makin' it up as I go" fantasy.

Pellaz · May 25th, 2011, 01:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Locust0311

I'll be interested to hear what you think of this. I've picked up the series in hardcover as its appeared on the discount racks but haven't started it yet.

I'm about a fifth of the way into the first book and it's starting to shape up nicely. The somewhat daunting challenge of overturning the heavily-engrained planet-wide religion on Safehold should make these pretty enjoyable.

TheLongshot · May 25th, 2011, 12:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaimek

I didn't mean Tanya Huff particularly, just the entire genre generally speaking, which IS mostly smut with a sloppy coat of "makin' it up as I go" fantasy.

Sounds like Carol Nelson Douglas' Delilah Street books. I got the first as a freebie and it had promise, so I picked up the second one, Brimstone Kiss. Boy, that was a mistake. The plot just went nowhere and I felt like I was wasting my time.

Akumu · May 25th, 2011, 03:38 PM

Just picked up Mistborn - looking forward to reading it!

Dogs Playing Poker · May 25th, 2011, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaimek

I didn't mean Tanya Huff particularly, just the entire genre generally speaking, which IS mostly smut with a sloppy coat of "makin' it up as I go" fantasy.

Yeah, that stuff is like the third-tier hair metal of vampire fiction.

modernwizardry · May 25th, 2011, 08:05 PM

Ugh...my company is putting us through "accountability training" so I have to read "Change the Culture, Change the Game." lame.

Bamafan · May 29th, 2011, 08:56 PM

An Autumn War by Daniel Abraham. It's part of a 4 part epic fantasy series that is vaguely Asian in flavor. The series has been very enjoyable so far. Nota bene: the series does NOT go Summer, Autumn, Winter then Spring as one would think, knowing that Summer starts the cycle. The actual order is Summer, Winter, Autumn, Spring.

Pellaz · May 30th, 2011, 11:28 AM

About halfway through Off Armageddon Reef, really enjoying it.

I think I'll end up liking Weber's Honor Harrington series a bit more, but that's mostly because I like well-executed spaceborn SF. I have some friends who preferred these books instead (Safehold series) and they were more into planet-bound, medieval settings than 'hard' SF.

Yippee38 · May 30th, 2011, 12:11 PM

I set down House of Chains because I got a new book. My parent's got me an Amazon gift certificate for my B-day, so I bought a good condition, used copy of Glen Cook's Red Iron Nights. It's a Garrett P.I. novel that's been out of print for a while. It's the one I'm missing in that series. New copies are listed for over $100 on e-bay. I wasn't going to buy it, but with the gift cert, I got a nice used copy for $40. It's probably not worth it, but I love that series, and it wasn't like I was spending my money, so it was worth it to me. I'm reading that now.

May 22nd, 2011, 01:34 AM	#1851 (permalink)
Pellaz Tigron of Immanion Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 8,734	Now reading Off Armageddon Reef by David Weber...just started, shaping up to be really good. I must say it's a bit daunting to start reading a future history where all of humanity, every last interstellar colony plus Earth itself, has been wiped out to a man. (!) __________________ http://www.paulcashman.com pellaz1@comcast.net Proud sponsor of Solution .45 (and kinda Primordial), Therion (again!), Tyr, Orphaned Land, Amorphis, Sonata Arctica, Mercenary, Therion, PoS, Nightwish and Devin Townsend Band, PPUSA III-present WREKage, 11:59pm Fri nights http://www.wrekage.org 91.1 FM Atlanta -- Atlanta radio's home of metal for more than 20 years, also streamed live and archived for a week! WINNER: Best of Atl. non-commercial radio show, 2012

May 22nd, 2011, 09:09 AM	#1852 (permalink)
jaimek incorrigible Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Wilmington, NC Posts: 1,887	I picked up Hunger Games for the plane ride to New Orleans last week. It's good - good enough that I spent a couple of days in NO fruitlessly looking for this second book but had to wait til I got home to hit the bookstore - but it's a teenager's version of The Running Man/The Long Walk, and I don't find the protagonist especially likable, plus she's conveniently adept in all the "right" skills. The people around her are a lot more interesting, and how they're handling a manipulative authoritarian government that has no problem laying the smack down on people who don't play the party line. __________________ "He'd be the sort to stand on a hilltop in a thunderstorm wearing wet copper armour and shouting 'All gods are bastards!'" - Terry Pratchett

May 22nd, 2011, 11:29 PM	#1860 (permalink)
guardian26 Mike the Cop Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: MASSACHUSETTS Posts: 814	Thanks to HBO, just finished Game of Thrones and now I'm on to Clash of Kings. __________________ "No, we are a serious metal band, we are evil and we are serious!!" - Tobias Sammet

May 23rd, 2011, 08:21 AM	#1861 (permalink)
Creeps Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Spring Hill, Florida Posts: 2,235	R.A. Salvatore's "the Bear". __________________ The CHP: Cerebral Hemorrhage Podcast http://cerebralhemorrhagepodcast.com/ Crank it!

May 23rd, 2011, 01:18 PM	#1864 (permalink)
TheLongshot Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 1,415	Finished off Brandon Sanderson's "Mistborn" over the weekend. Overall, a very satisfying read with a couple of twists that I probably should have seen coming and enough stuff to build on a sequel. I'll also be finishing off Orson Scott Card's "The Memory Of Earth" soon. __________________ Last edited by TheLongshot : May 24th, 2011 at 12:09 AM.

May 22nd, 2011, 12:41 PM	#1854 (permalink)
ashaman7122 Crazy on a ship of fools Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 1,488	Recently finished - Off Season by Jack Ketchum Currently - Bullets Of Rain by David J. Schow, about a widowed recluse who may or may not be going insane while huddled in his house over the course of a hurricane-soaked weekend.

May 22nd, 2011, 02:33 PM	#1856 (permalink)
Harvester The Promoter Join Date: Sep 2001 Posts: 6,434

May 23rd, 2011, 01:38 PM	#1865 (permalink)
yardleybates Chick Wrangler Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Elgin, IL - NW Chicago burb Posts: 1,034	Just finished the latest in the Noble Dead series. It was slow compared to the rest but had a fantastic finish! http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0046ECFGI/ref=pd...

May 25th, 2011, 03:38 PM	#1870 (permalink)
Akumu Look at the tree. Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: CT Posts: 532	Just picked up Mistborn - looking forward to reading it!

May 25th, 2011, 08:05 PM	#1872 (permalink)
modernwizardry brewing some doom stew Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Plainfield, IL Posts: 1,364	Ugh...my company is putting us through "accountability training" so I have to read "Change the Culture, Change the Game." lame.

May 29th, 2011, 08:56 PM	#1873 (permalink)
Bamafan Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Heart of Dixie Posts: 700	An Autumn War by Daniel Abraham. It's part of a 4 part epic fantasy series that is vaguely Asian in flavor. The series has been very enjoyable so far. Nota bene: the series does NOT go Summer, Autumn, Winter then Spring as one would think, knowing that Summer starts the cycle. The actual order is Summer, Winter, Autumn, Spring. __________________ "Scoot to the edge of the table". Proud co-sponsor of Haken, Kingcrow and Myrath

May 30th, 2011, 11:28 AM	#1874 (permalink)
Pellaz Tigron of Immanion Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 8,734	About halfway through Off Armageddon Reef, really enjoying it. I think I'll end up liking Weber's Honor Harrington series a bit more, but that's mostly because I like well-executed spaceborn SF. I have some friends who preferred these books instead (Safehold series) and they were more into planet-bound, medieval settings than 'hard' SF. __________________ http://www.paulcashman.com pellaz1@comcast.net Proud sponsor of Solution .45 (and kinda Primordial), Therion (again!), Tyr, Orphaned Land, Amorphis, Sonata Arctica, Mercenary, Therion, PoS, Nightwish and Devin Townsend Band, PPUSA III-present WREKage, 11:59pm Fri nights http://www.wrekage.org 91.1 FM Atlanta -- Atlanta radio's home of metal for more than 20 years, also streamed live and archived for a week! WINNER: Best of Atl. non-commercial radio show, 2012

May 30th, 2011, 12:11 PM	#1875 (permalink)
Yippee38 Living the dream! Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Somewhere at 37,000' Posts: 2,289	I set down House of Chains because I got a new book. My parent's got me an Amazon gift certificate for my B-day, so I bought a good condition, used copy of Glen Cook's Red Iron Nights. It's a Garrett P.I. novel that's been out of print for a while. It's the one I'm missing in that series. New copies are listed for over $100 on e-bay. I wasn't going to buy it, but with the gift cert, I got a nice used copy for $40. It's probably not worth it, but I love that series, and it wasn't like I was spending my money, so it was worth it to me. I'm reading that now. __________________ "Step out of line And I'll teach you how to fly Then away we'll go"