[Tattersail_]

After Assail I read Hearts of Atlantis by Stephen King, which lead me to try The Dark Tower series again, (I had previously read and disliked The Gunslinger), and with a new perspective I got through The Gunslinger again, then read The Drawing of the Three and The Wastelands. After seeing Abyss get excited over the Ilona Andrews series, which I had completed, I noticed her new book was out Magic Binds, so I have just binge read that. I am now ready to choose my next book.

[Mentalist]

Abyss, on 12 October 2016 - 03:15 AM, said:

Mentalist, on 11 October 2016 - 11:55 PM, said:

Wrapped up "Annihilation Score", the next Laundry Files book.

Stross pulled off a change of narrator well. The story was interesting, even though I'm really not crazy about the whole super-hero thing.

Ment... If you have ever believed anything I have ever posted, believe this: read THE NIGHTMARE STACKS. Immediately.

Noted, but I don't own it (it's not out in mmpb yet) and I still haven't made the jump to e-books/earbooks, so i'm restricted to reading what I own in dead tree format.

[Baco Xtath]

Finished Death's End. It firmly cemented the Three-Body Problem/Trisolaris trilogy as one of my top 3 favorite Science fiction series of all time. It is mind blowing. More so than anything else

[Andorion]

Finished Safehold 4, and halfway through 5. Turns out this stuff is great for hospital waiting rooms

[amphibian]

Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen is low stakes, story-pushing forwards stuff. It's alright and readable, but it's more of an exploration of how to bring up non-standard relationships and family dynamics to the unknowing family/friends than anything else. I call it low stakes because there's no more pressing conflict than "career and tradition vs. what people want after a certain point in life regarding family and parenting".

I still gave it 3.5 out of 5 because Bujold maybe pushed the story to an interesting place regarding Cetaganda over the last two books, but I dunno. It feels like she's reached a stasis point in the universe and I don't know if she'll do something to turn it topsy turvy at this point.

[acesn8s]

Andorion, on 13 October 2016 - 02:25 AM, said:

Finished Safehold 4, and halfway through 5. Turns out this stuff is great for hospital waiting rooms

Hospital waiting room? Hope everything is ok.

[QuickTidal]

Pushed pause on DRUMS OF AUTUMN, to finally start Sanderson's THE BANDS OF MOURNING, and it's already great!

[Macros]

Finished Stalingrad.

Somber reading, but didn't feel like reading a history book, wasnt a struggle to keep turning the pages. Beevor manages to lay out the facts interspersed with enough anecdotes of individuals to make it feel like a story. Not that this in anyway diminishes or trivialises the Stalingrad storz, its brutallity is clearly laid out, and both sides cruelty and callousness is well documented, it just helps keep the endless rhyme of units being thrown into the fray in some kind of a memorable order.
What happened there was just....beyond belief. Both in terms of suffering willfully inflicted and peoples ability to continue and function in the conditions. If you have any interest in modern history, WW2 more precisely, read it, gives a massive insight into the mentallity at the time and why the cost in human lives of the war was so high on the eastern front compared to the west. Another reminder of where and how the war was actually won, private ryan didn't have as much to do with it as hollywood would like us to think

[acesn8s]

Up to chapter 19 in The Thousand Names. The book's title makes sense now. I have a much better idea on what is going on. If the quality remains consistent to the end of book 1 I'l be picking 2 & 3 ASAP.

[Macros]

I think you will, for me 2 was a better book again, and I enjoyed the First book a lot.

Just bought A Crown for Cold Silver, by Alex Morgan for my Kobo. pointless expense as I have dead tree books arriving tomorrow but I'm a compulsively impulsive purchaser.

[amphibian]

Macros, on 13 October 2016 - 08:01 PM, said:

I think you will, for me 2 was a better book again, and I enjoyed the First book a lot.

Just bought A Crown for Cold Silver, by Alex Morgan for my Kobo. pointless expense as I have dead tree books arriving tomorrow but I'm a compulsively impulsive purchaser.

Great book. Probably the closest author working to Erikson right now. The physical comedy in the beginning especially is tremendous.

[Macros]

Alex Marshall sorry. Apparently that's a pseudonym.

Yeah the review I read of it sold it too me. Just about to start it now, hopefully lives up to my expectations

[End of Disc One]

Yeah the beginning of ACfCS was hilarious. I found two POVs to be really funny (both relatives of each other).

[Kruppe of Darujhistan]

Macros, on 13 October 2016 - 01:32 PM, said:

What happened there was just....beyond belief. Both in terms of suffering willfully inflicted and peoples ability to continue and function in the conditions. If you have any interest in modern history, WW2 more precisely, read it, gives a massive insight into the mentallity at the time and why the cost in human lives of the war was so high on the eastern front compared to the west. Another reminder of where and how the war was actually won, private ryan didn't have as much to do with it as hollywood would like us to think

Too few Americans are even aware of the Soviet contribution, let alone how overwhelmingly significant and costly it was. If I were to ask a neighbor what they knew about "The Great Patriotic War" they'd probably answer with something like: "Yeah, George Washington beat the Redcoats back in seventeen-something."

[Andorion]

Macros, on 13 October 2016 - 01:32 PM, said:

Finished Stalingrad.

Somber reading, but didn't feel like reading a history book, wasnt a struggle to keep turning the pages. Beevor manages to lay out the facts interspersed with enough anecdotes of individuals to make it feel like a story. Not that this in anyway diminishes or trivialises the Stalingrad storz, its brutallity is clearly laid out, and both sides cruelty and callousness is well documented, it just helps keep the endless rhyme of units being thrown into the fray in some kind of a memorable order.
What happened there was just....beyond belief. Both in terms of suffering willfully inflicted and peoples ability to continue and function in the conditions. If you have any interest in modern history, WW2 more precisely, read it, gives a massive insight into the mentallity at the time and why the cost in human lives of the war was so high on the eastern front compared to the west. Another reminder of where and how the war was actually won, private ryan didn't have as much to do with it as hollywood would like us to think

Yeah the Russian constribution has been continuously understated. Its extremely irritating as without the Red Army Hitler would have been a far greater problem. Richard Overy's Russia's War is a good book about the Eastern Front.

[Andorion]

acesn8s, on 13 October 2016 - 12:45 PM, said:

Andorion, on 13 October 2016 - 02:25 AM, said:

Finished Safehold 4, and halfway through 5. Turns out this stuff is great for hospital waiting rooms

Hospital waiting room? Hope everything is ok.

My grandmother is in hospital. Been posting about it in the Groove thread

[Mentalist]

wrapped up Stand on Zanzibar wow, what a bleak ending. I need to check out Brunner's other books.

my next home will probably be Tad Williams' "War of the Flowers"

[Mentalist]

acesn8s, on 04 October 2016 - 05:12 PM, said:

Finished Monarchies of God. It was as rough and abrupt an ending as you guys promised. Such a shame.

Over all I think books 1-4 were 4/5 and book 5 was a 3/5. Still an above average series.

I started Control Point (Shadow Ops # 1) by Myke Cole. Life has been busy so I don't want to jump into a more in depth read at this point.

Yeah, the series really ends poorly. Corfe's entire arc is epic mil fantasy though.

Abyss, on 07 October 2016 - 04:39 AM, said:

Ketty Jay bk 3, IRON JACKAL. Marathoned the first half, damn I missed these characters.
In earbook, Ilona Andrews MAGIC BREAKS. Just started, but wow.

"Iron Jackal" does surprisingly good characterization. I loved Ketty Jay series overall, but those 2 middle books especially, because Wooding really layered a ton of character development and backstory in there between his adventure plots.

Macros, on 10 October 2016 - 02:40 PM, said:

Was going to pick up something else to stretch out my limited supply of gaiman booms but read Anansi Boys there.
It took me a little longer to really get into than Neverwhere,but overall I liked Anansi Boys better. Not that I didn't like Neverwhere, I did,I liked Anansi Boys more. Probably my favourite Neil Gaiman book yet, even ahead of American Gods and Good Omens (both of which I really enjoyed, for different reasons)

"Anansi boys" imho, is not fantasy. It's a coming of age rom-com with fantasy elements. That's why it reads different form other Gaiman's stuff.

Macros, on 13 October 2016 - 08:41 PM, said:

Alex Marshall sorry. Apparently that's a pseudonym.

Yeah the review I read of it sold it too me. Just about to start it now, hopefully lives up to my expectations

I loved that book. Probably still the best thing I read this year (it was also the first book I read this year). There's a point towards beginnning of Part 2 where it slumps a bit, but then it picks up again and the ending is pretty mindblowing.

[Baco Xtath]

I'm trying to make it through Night's Dawn 2 but the whole

Spoiler

Capone bit

is really silly to me. I just don't think I can carry on. Listened to Hanover's Unclean Spirits. It was good. Not great but good. Of course, anything by Abraham is good in my eyes. Also listening to Company Town and reading Greatcoats #3, which is great so far.

[Andorion]

Got a bunch of reading done.

Finished the Safehold series by David Weber.

Read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime

Now I am at a bit of a crossroads.

Song of Achilles or Fifth Season or Darkness that Comes Before or Curse of the Mistwraith

Whichever one I pick I will parallel read it to Outlander #2