Great book. Not for everyone. Les Miserables looks longer if I stick them side by side on my shelf, which I wouldn't do because H and T are nowhere near each other alphabetically.
What are you reading?
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Another Jacqueline Winspear book, A Sunlit Weapon.
Almost at the end of my reread of At the Mountains of Madness.
Speaking of Mountains, I picked up Cold Mountain the other day. Haven't read it since I was about 20 and it blew my mind then. Now it reads like a very vanilla Cormac McCarthy or Faulkner knock-off, so we'll be see how far that goes.
With all the War and Peace talk I dusted that off, too. Probably read it four times before, so I'll noodle on it or not, depending on how I feel.
With all the War and Peace talk I dusted that off, too. Probably read it four times before, so I'll noodle on it or not, depending on how I feel.
Finished it last night.
I forgot to mention this yesterday, but I think it’s hilarious Lovecraft repeatedly describes penguins as grotesque. Not the weird, blind, oversized penguins who show up near the end of the story. No, just…totally normal penguins
Although I'm really liking Olive Kitteridge (Elizabeth Strout), I watched the 5-part Mildred Pierce over the weekend, and it was so amazingly, phenomenally good (with incidentally and incongruously by far the best classical singing I've ever heard in a TV program, by an evil character with elements of histrionic, narcissistic, and borderline personality disorders, though in real life sung by Chinese and South Korean contraltos Dilber Yunus and Sumi Jo, whom I mistook for Renee Fleming) that I've put Olive on hold to read Mildred Pierce (1941), by James M(allahan) Cain, an author familiar to aficionados of noir, possibly best known for The Postman Always Rings Twice — who was also an accomplished pianist and operatic singer who tried to make a professional go of the singing. This is not crime writing, it's family drama in plain style for mainstream publication in an era when noir was pulp press.
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Over the weekend, I tore through The Shadow Over Innsmouth and made it about a third of the way through the latest issue of Lovecraftiana.
The latter has been a mixed bag so far, with the poetry better than most of the stories, but I loved “House of the Holy” by PN Harrison. It feels a lot like the work of the classic Lovecraft Circle, but it creates a sense of vulnerability more through the vast isolation of its West Texas setting than through the mysterious antiquity of Lovecraft’s favored New England. There are also some cool ties to Robert E. Howard’s “The Black Stone”, one of the best Cthulhu Mythos stories not written by Lovecraft.
The latter has been a mixed bag so far, with the poetry better than most of the stories, but I loved “House of the Holy” by PN Harrison. It feels a lot like the work of the classic Lovecraft Circle, but it creates a sense of vulnerability more through the vast isolation of its West Texas setting than through the mysterious antiquity of Lovecraft’s favored New England. There are also some cool ties to Robert E. Howard’s “The Black Stone”, one of the best Cthulhu Mythos stories not written by Lovecraft.
Finished A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon, and now I'm on to The King in Yellow by Robert W Chambers, and Orbital by Samantha Harvey.
I just finished What you are looking for is in the library, and was very pleasantly surprised by the variety of voices and the simple, no-stakes plot of each story, where the only developments were in the character's inner worlds.
While I was logging the book for the year, I noticed I've read 78 books so far. At the beginning of the year, I set out to read 22. Now there's no way I'm not going for 100 books by the end of 2025, and that will probably be the first time I've ever achieved that.
While I was logging the book for the year, I noticed I've read 78 books so far. At the beginning of the year, I set out to read 22. Now there's no way I'm not going for 100 books by the end of 2025, and that will probably be the first time I've ever achieved that.
I'm also about to get that from the library! Really looking forward to it.
The last book I read (which I bought at a discount) was The Mysterious Case of the Victorian Female Detective by Sara Lodge, which uncovers the often-overlooked history of real female detectives in Victorian Britain. It was immaculately researched and full of tons of information, but after the novelty of the premise, it eventually became a little dull and repetitive, and I found myself skipping whole paragraphs or even whole pages in self-defense.
Still recommended, but I would only recommend it as a reference book, not as something to read for fun.
Still recommended, but I would only recommend it as a reference book, not as something to read for fun.
After rereading Lovecraft’s The Whisperer in Darkness and “The Haunter of the Dark”, I borrowed Far Away & Never by Ramsey Campbell via Kindle Unlimited. It’s a collection of short stories starring his sword & sorcery hero Ryre, and I’ve found it fairly creative and enjoyable so far. Campbell’s background as a horror author shines through clearly in his monsters, which are both weird and horrific. Perfect for good S&S!
I just finished Rumer Godden's Five for Sorrow, Ten for Joy for the tenth or twentieth time. Right now, I'm reading... nothing.
thanks. Finished the book now
Certainly gives the reader a true account of what it's really like in the Armed ForcesBooks I've read recently at Exodus and Battle Cry. Have got Trinity lined up to read soon
I think Trinity is my favorite of his novels. The followup I didn't like so much <googles> Redemption (1995). Can't remember why specifically, but I may not have finished it.Books I've read recently at Exodus and Battle Cry. Have got Trinity lined up to read soon
I had a real hankering for some good sci-fi of the gritty, grungy kind, so the last time I stopped by a bookstore I picked up Red Rising by Pierce Brown. It's a book that's been on my radar pretty much since I heard about it, but somehow it never happened before now. Less than a hundred pages in and I'm enchanted with this bloodydamn thing. It has just the vibe I was looking for. It has teeth and heart and attitude and style; for me it strikes a pleasant balance between feeling familiar and fresh. If it keeps on giving the way it has been, I think I'm gonna make finishing this whole series a priority.
The other main thing I'm reading at the moments is Josiah Bancroft's The Hexologists: A Tangle of Time, the recently released second book in that series. I've always loved this guy's worldbuilding and way with words, and while I'm not as taken with this as I was with the Books of Babel series, it's a quaint and rather cozy little franchise with plenty of humor, intrigue, and weirdness. I haven't paid as much attention to it as I might have, as a I struggle a bit with focusing on audiobooks, but it's a pretty perfect companion for my evenings spent doing arts and crafts - I can only re-listen to Gormenghast so many times before I turn absolutely nutty.
On the backburner at the moment is the Shepherd's Crown series by Rachel Gillig. I picked up the second book of that the same shopping trip I got Red Rising, but I'm still stuck pretty early in the first. It's not bad, it's just not particularly grabbing me at present.
In general I'm just happy to be reading some new stuff, for a change, and consistently finding things that actually captivates me. For a few years there it felt like a chore to read anything but old, comfortable favorites, but now I'm voracious for the unexplored. That indicates healing, I guess? Zest for life rediscovered and all that.
The other main thing I'm reading at the moments is Josiah Bancroft's The Hexologists: A Tangle of Time, the recently released second book in that series. I've always loved this guy's worldbuilding and way with words, and while I'm not as taken with this as I was with the Books of Babel series, it's a quaint and rather cozy little franchise with plenty of humor, intrigue, and weirdness. I haven't paid as much attention to it as I might have, as a I struggle a bit with focusing on audiobooks, but it's a pretty perfect companion for my evenings spent doing arts and crafts - I can only re-listen to Gormenghast so many times before I turn absolutely nutty.
On the backburner at the moment is the Shepherd's Crown series by Rachel Gillig. I picked up the second book of that the same shopping trip I got Red Rising, but I'm still stuck pretty early in the first. It's not bad, it's just not particularly grabbing me at present.
In general I'm just happy to be reading some new stuff, for a change, and consistently finding things that actually captivates me. For a few years there it felt like a chore to read anything but old, comfortable favorites, but now I'm voracious for the unexplored. That indicates healing, I guess? Zest for life rediscovered and all that.
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I’m almost finished with Louis L’Amour’s The Quick and the Dead. It’s classic western genre fun — probably a 4 star rating. I’m also working my way through Peter Ackroyd’s Foundation. I say "working my way through," but it’s not a slog; it’s lively written.
And this evening my daughter and I will get started with The Wizard of Oz. I've actually never read it. I’m familiar with the story, though.
And this evening my daughter and I will get started with The Wizard of Oz. I've actually never read it. I’m familiar with the story, though.
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I loved Red Rising, at least the first few books in the series really hit me hard. They are gritty and emotionally fraught, and real in ways sci-fi usually isn't. The twists landed painfully well in the way Song of Ice and Fire did. I've just finished Light Bringer, and unfortunately, I felt like he put so much into the first books in the series he didn't really leave himself anywhere to go, and by book 6 it feels a bit formulaic and the twists no longer hit as hard. Still an enjoyable read though.
I picked up Web of Lies (which is actually book 2 of Jennifer Estep's Elemental Assassin series, I've not read book 1) from the library as it piqued my interest. Reading through it was fun and interesting, not too complex, felt like a YA and I was thinking my teenage son might enjoy it -- and then they spent an entire chapter having sex. So, probably not going to give him that one.
Currently reading McCarthy's The Road.
I picked up Web of Lies (which is actually book 2 of Jennifer Estep's Elemental Assassin series, I've not read book 1) from the library as it piqued my interest. Reading through it was fun and interesting, not too complex, felt like a YA and I was thinking my teenage son might enjoy it -- and then they spent an entire chapter having sex. So, probably not going to give him that one.
Currently reading McCarthy's The Road.
I've read the first couple of Red Rising books and really enjoyed them. It helps that they keep going on offer on the Kindle, so I don't just get to enjoy them: I get to enjoy them at a discount price, which as a tight Yorkshireman makes me rather happy. I'll be moving on to Morning Star pretty soon, something I'm very much looking forward to. It makes a change from marking anyway.