What Are You Reading? |OT| One Thread to Rule Them All

[Draconian]

I'm doing something that I have not done in decades… reading a book in Spanish.

I found it as I was looking for something similar to the movie The Ninth Gate. I'm in love with the book right now.

Spanish is my maiden language, but I've never enjoyed Spanish literature. The only books I've read are the ones I had to for school. I don't like how Spanish authors tend to write these long and complicated sentences just to show off their vocabulary… and this one book is not an exception, but the tone is different and I don't mind it at all.

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I love these books. I may have to do a reread soon because it has been quite some time since I read the earlier ones. I was very sad to read of his passing last year, but am thankful he lived long enough to finish this series. The setting, time period, and characters are so good.

 

[WhySoDevious]

I love these books. I may have to do a reread soon because it has been quite some time since I read the earlier ones. I was very sad to read of his passing last year, but am thankful he lived long enough to finish this series. The setting, time period, and characters are so good.

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Shit. I didn't know he had passed away. 55 years old. Damn. Fuck cancer.

 

[gosublime]

Read it a long time ago - rereading due to my wife teaching it this year. Had forgotten how lovely it is, with some really interesting ideas and well written. Will be interesting for my wife teaching Y10 when it includes sections such as Pi eating the tiger's poo but at least it will be more interesting than Hard Times!

 

[Jag]

See quite a few ERA favorites on here. I wouldn't call this a definitive list by any means, but there are some things that I would check out on it.

We Asked, You Answered: Your 50 Favorite Sci-Fi And Fantasy Books Of The Past Decade

 

[Sparky2112]

I saw that in the library the other day. Looked like propaganda.

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This really fits into what I like to call: The Future Belongs to the Malicious. The more we're technologically advanced, the more those who have bad intensions have their way. That's what this book says over several hundred pages and could be said in one. The reason we have ransom were is because we're letting scumbags like Russia use it. Who wins? We sure as shit don't.

 

[sackboy97]

Is anyone here read all the Expanse books? I have finished Leviathan Wakes yesterday; I quite enjoyed it, though it didn't hook me entirely. I was wondering how the other books in the series were.

 

[djinn]

Is anyone here read all the Expanse books? I have finished Leviathan Wakes yesterday; I quite enjoyed it, though it didn't hook me entirely. I was wondering how the other books in the series were.

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I'm almost halfway with Leviathan Wakes and ngl I'm struggling a bit. Chapters are really short and nothing really happens in them. The first 50 pages were cool, though.

 

[sackboy97]

I'm almost halfway with Leviathan Wakes and ngl I'm struggling a bit. Chapters are really short and nothing really happens in them. The first 50 pages were cool, though.

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If you're at least enjoying the characters and are curious about where the main plot is going, I think you should stick with it. It gets better as it goes, imho.
Though I have to say, it's been kind of a rare situation for me where I was enjoying the story, I was curious about where it was going, but I still didn't feel a strong pull to keep reading, if that makes any sense. More than once I'd just read one chapter per character and call it a day, which is a bit unusual for me.

 

[djinn]

If you're at least enjoying the characters and are curious about where the main plot is going, I think you should stick with it. It gets better as it goes, imho.
Though I have to say, it's been kind of a rare situation for me where I was enjoying the story, I was curious about where it was going, but I still didn't feel a strong pull to keep reading, if that makes any sense. More than once I'd just read one chapter per character and call it a day, which is a bit unusual for me.

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I feel pretty much the same. I'm curious about the story but not really super engaged.

 

[Freezasaurus]

Is anyone here read all the Expanse books? I have finished Leviathan Wakes yesterday; I quite enjoyed it, though it didn't hook me entirely. I was wondering how the other books in the series were.

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I enjoy them enough that I still keep looking forward to the next book. It has ups and downs like any series, but it gets better IMO. The first book deals with a relatively contained situation that sets the stage for bigger things to come.

 

[sackboy97]

I enjoy them enough that I still keep looking forward to the next book. It has ups and downs like any series, but it gets better IMO. The first book deals with a relatively contained situation that sets the stage for bigger things to come.

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That's good to hear, thanks for you impressions. I wonder if I'll manage to catch up before the release of the last book in November.

 

[Dec]

Is anyone here read all the Expanse books? I have finished Leviathan Wakes yesterday; I quite enjoyed it, though it didn't hook me entirely. I was wondering how the other books in the series were.

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Read 3 or 4 and liked each one worse than the one before.

 

[ara]

I must have dropped the first Expanse books like two chapters in, haha. Something about the character writing really grated me.

Really sucks, character-focused epic space operas seem pretty rare.

 

[cognizant]

I wish I had liked PHM. It was half fun science space romp (which I did enjoy), half head-empty politics with no regards for how a situation like the one depicted in the book would go down. I had to put the book down several times. The scene in court where Stratt just shows up to wave her get out of jail card because for a nonsense reason they want to upload all copyrighted work onto the ship or whatever *and* she brags about having the US army behind her, the scene in which they decide to wreck Africa's ecosystem (with no input from an African representative even) and then reason it's alright because they'll develop a really good power industry as a result, the scene in which a climate scientists weeps as he nukes the ice caps... the whole idea of the operation being given carte blanche for whatever is just "science would save us if politics weren't in the way!" nonsense/wishful thinking and there's a whole lot of it. It really pissed me off at parts.

I'll recommend Becky Chamber's novella To Be Taught, if Fortunate as a good thematically adjacent (and much better, IMO) work.

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I find your take a bit bizarre.

Spoiler

Would you accuse Weir of being pro-animal testing too? Just because that's what occurs in the book?

The story is about Grace, Rocky, humanity, Eridians, as well as Astrophage and Taumoeba itself fighting for their own survival, no matter how ugly or the cost.

Instead of looking at it from an emotional point of view, look at it from a macro level: humanity the living organism, hurt its environment on a relatively short-term basis intentionally to give it a better chance of long-term survival.

Stratt's brutal efficiency is Weir's method to solving incredibly hard problems, and is not meant to be taken as theme he's pushing. The story is even told from the point of view of a guy who was quite literally kidnapped and forced to go on the mission.

The story isn't: "If there was no red-tape or ethics look at what we could accomplish". It's "life in all its forms will do whatever it takes to survive, fuck your feelings."

It's telling Grace (reduced to eating meburgers for survival) has no compulsion to return to Earth any time soon. Would it even be recognisable to him anymore, after all he went through, was it all worth it? Did Stratt's dour prediction come true? Was the planet wracked with wars, of people fighting for food, for survival?

He's a compelling character. Stratt beautifully eviscerates him and calls him a coward. He goes through a character arc and willingly sacrifices himself for Rocky, but I wonder if his lack of motivation to return to Earth is also steeped in fear rather than contentment at his life on Eridani. The reader can look at it either way.

 

[Paquete_PT]

I'm 100 pages in Project Hail Mary and really enjoying. I never read any Weir book and thought the science bits would be overwhelming, but he's such a good science communicator, it's not hard to grasp at all. Went in mostly blind and I'm really curious where the book will take me

 

[Jag]

Is anyone here read all the Expanse books? I have finished Leviathan Wakes yesterday; I quite enjoyed it, though it didn't hook me entirely. I was wondering how the other books in the series were.

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Been a fan of the Expanse (and Daniel Abraham) since it came out. I'm a sucker for anything space opera like.

 

[ara]

Finished Blackwing. It was goofy as all hell in its attempts at constantly being edgy and badass and dramatic and poetic, but thankfully it was mostly in an endearing way, not annoying and groan-worthy like something like Red Rising was for me. The story was pretty self-contained too, which is nice, can't say I'm very interested in reading the rest of the trilogy. All in all, I did enjoy it.

Not sure what to read next. I'll probaby pick something I've had downloaded on my Kindle for the longest time at random. Maybe The Steerswoman or Foundryside or The Gone World or Circe or Aching God or The Lie Tree or.... Wow there's a lot of stuff I haven't read.

 

[Agamon]

I assume those wondering about The Expanse series haven't watched the show?

I thought the books were pretty good, but the show is amazing.

 

[LiQuid!]

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Just a few chapters from finishing this one up and sad to be done with it. I knew I was gonna like this one from the description alone unless some aspect of the execution completely bungled it and happy to report that has not been the case. Lots of well realized characters, pulpy, supernatural mystery, and the setting and tone are so far up my alley it's not even funny.

Have not read this author's first book and it's on my list now after this, despite it being drastically different

 

[FliX]

Hey Era, so I am looking for a book recommendation.
I'm looking for a fiction novel about the dangers of AI, and how dangerous it is without trying to be manevolent, think Prey not Terminator.

 

[cognizant]

Hey Era, so I am looking for a book recommendation.
I'm looking for a fiction novel about the dangers of AI, and how dangerous it is without trying to be manevolent, think Prey not Terminator.

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If you're not afraid of really hard sci-fi, I recommend a couple mid-90s books by Greg Egan. Specifically Diaspora and Permutation City. These books contain AI, and what some may consider AI, but are not typical cautionary tales. Rather they are both about transhumanism while also making you feel the existential dread of how dangerous and mindfucky future tech could be.

Here's the description of Diaspora:

By the end of the 30th century humanity has the capability to travel the universe, to journey beyond earth and beyond the confines of the vulnerable human frame.

The descendants of centuries of scientific, cultural and physical development divide into three: fleshers — true Homo sapiens; Gleisner robots — embodying human minds within machines that interact with the physical world; and polises — supercomputers teeming with intelligent software, containing the direct copies of billions of human personalities now existing only in the virtual reality of the polis.

Diaspora is the story of Yatima (a polis being created from random mutations of the Konishi polis base mind seed) and of humankind; of an astrophysical accident that spurs the thousandfold cloning of the polises. Of the discovery of an alien race and of a kink in time that means humanity — whatever form it takes — will never again be threatened by acts of God.

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Permutation City:

In the not-too-distant future, technology has given birth to immortality. The human mind can be scanned and downloaded into a virtual reality program to become a perfect electronic "Copy", aware of itself. The bad news is, someone has blocked the bail-out option that allows a Copy, by law, to return to flash-and-blood life.

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I read these books decades ago and they blew my mind apart. I call them 'really hard' sci-fi because they're not written in an accessible way for mainstream consumption, and can be considered 'dry' by some.

 

[FliX]

If you're not afraid of really hard sci-fi, I recommend a couple mid-90s books by Greg Egan. Specifically Diaspora and Permutation City. These books contain AI, and what some may consider AI, but are not typical cautionary tales. Rather they are both about transhumanism while also making you feel the existential dread of how dangerous and mindfucky future tech could be.

Here's the description of Diaspora:



Permutation City:



I read these books decades ago and they blew my mind apart. I call them 'really hard' sci-fi because they're not written in an accessible way for mainstream consumption, and can be considered 'dry' by some.

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Thanks I'll check them out, though I am looking for something a little more grounded in what we might expect over the next century.

 

[Temperance]

The Maidens (2021) - Alex Michaelides

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So that sure was an ending. Abrupt and non sensical towards the last reveal. Maybe if i had cared about anyone in the book it could have landed differently. Bottom tier in terms of pacing as well. So I can't rate it a 1 because I didn't truly hate it but I sure wouldn't give it any recommendations either. Guess that's a 2/5 for how indifferent it left me in the end.

 

[ara]

Returned to Red Country. Still can't myself to really care about the story or a big chunk of the cast, unfortunately, but it really is nice to be reminded how much I like Abercrombie's prose and dialogue. Just read a chapter that was just 10 pages of Temple and Majud talking about building a shop on some muddy plot and it was the best thing I've read in the last few weeks.

 

[jleo]

Just finished reading This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends: The Cyberweapons Arms Race.

I love reading investigative journalism. Book was really well done, and honestly really terrifying as people connect more equipment (traffic lights, smart fridges, cameras, industrial equipment) to the internet.

 

[Tony]

Going through the newest Library of America release. Started with Fahrenheit 451 since I somehow missed it until now. It was good but Wow, I was not expecting the bleak ending lol.
Will read Martian Chronicles next and then finish out with Dandelion Wine and Something Wicked This Way Comes (in that order) since they take place in the same fictional location.

 

[gosublime]

Wow, I was not expecting the bleak ending lol.

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Oddly, the author thought the movie's ending is better (Clarisse doesn't die and they reunite at the end) and Ray Bradbury said he would want to go back and change the ending to add a ray of hope to the world

 

[Teiresias]

Just started reading "The Haunting of Hill House" since I'd seen all but the original film/series adaptions, but had never read the novel which I was well aware was different from all of them. Not really going in with any expectations since reading horror rarely frightens me, plus the age of the book. I rather like it so far though.

Before this I just finished reading "The Forgotten Beasts of Eld," which quickly has become one of my favorite novels of all time.

I'm a slooooooow reader though so I haven't gotten through many reads so far this year, that and my FFXIV addiction is getting in the way, lol.

 

[Glasgow Mega-Snake]

Started the first Witcher short story collection. First story didn't grab me that much, but from what I understand it's the first piece of fiction Sapkowski had written, for that it's perfectly fine. Already liked the second story a lot better, great fairytale feeling and I liked the riff on Beauty and the Beast

I actually haven't played the games, always wanted to read the books first, but never got to it. But I see why this was turned into a game, the setup feels perfect for an RPG. Actually it's weird how much Sapkowski seems to look down on video games, when especially his fight scenes have a very videogamey feel to them. This isn't exactly high-brow literature, but it doesn't have to be.


Also read The Old Man and the Sea. In a way it really resonated with me, because it made me think of my Grandpa, who's a (hobby, but still) fisherman and hunter to the core and went out hunting into his 80s.
But also, this story gets put on such a pedestal, earned Hemingway a nobel and there's a ton of philosophical analysis... and I don't think it reaches that level for me. But as just a simple story about a fisherman I liked it
Maybe it's that even 70 years ago Hemingway had to go out of his way to get a man vs nature story in the 20th century, where both are on an equal footing. That's just not the world we live in anymore

 

[cognizant]

Started the first Witcher short story collection. First story didn't grab me that much, but from what I understand it's the first piece of fiction Sapkowski had written, for that it's perfectly fine. Already liked the second story a lot better, great fairytale feeling and I liked the riff on Beauty and the Beast

I actually haven't played the games, always wanted to read the books first, but never got to it. But I see why this was turned into a game, the setup feels perfect for an RPG. Actually it's weird how much Sapkowski seems to look down on video games, when especially his fight scenes have a very videogamey feel to them. This isn't exactly high-brow literature, but it doesn't have to be.

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I read the Witcher short story collection, which I thought was ok. Then I played Witcher 3 which was incredible, and referenced the short stories. Then after the game I tried reading the main novels, and gave up midway through the second. I don't know if it was the English translation or what, but I found it all pretty stilted, and the relentless pontificating about 'destiny' just annoyed me. Didn't like the TV show either, so I must be an outlier in only loving the game and some of the short stories.

 

[Jonnykong]

Finished this today which I really liked.

It's a coming of age story about an 18 year old girl in Ireland starting college(possibly University actually) for the first time, her having to deal with that and the way her unusual upbringing affects her personality whilst trying to live a normal life.

It doesn't really have a huge amount of plot to be honest, it's a pretty simple story that's more character driven than anything.

 

[djinn]

Going through the newest Library of America release. Started with Fahrenheit 451 since I somehow missed it until now. It was good but Wow, I was not expecting the bleak ending lol.
Will read Martian Chronicles next and then finish out with Dandelion Wine and Something Wicked This Way Comes (in that order) since they take place in the same fictional location.

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Haven't read Dandelion Wine, let me know what it's like. Love all those other stories.

 

[ara]

Okay, finished Red Country and I hate where I dropped it before (a third or so in) because it was only a few chapters away from getting interesting again and boy, did it ever do that. It improved drastically after the fellowship reached Crease and I couldn't really put the book down after the chapter I mentioned in my last post. Hard to say if I liked it more than The Heroes since they're so different, but both were definitely superb fantasy books.

No need to really think what I'm gonna be reading next. It's obviously A Little Hatred lol.

 

[meowdi gras]

A trilogy of novels recounting the downfall of a desperate young Chicago hood.

The most striking thing about this realistic, Depression-era saga is how essentially little American society has changed in the ~90 years since its original publication. Update just a few things and this could easily be about the life of a toxic young Deplorable, blaming his inability to get ahead in the world on immigrants, black people, duplicitous women, and "globalist" bankers, in spite of a privileged start*, and turns to vice and violence in response. Indeed, many of the admittedly frequent and slur-permeated tirades the books characters go into could almost be lifted word-for-word from the Facebook or Twitter of some 21st century right-wing hate-monger.

While I don't find such sordid characters exactly sympathetic, I must admit Farrell does a good job of making them recognizably (and unfortunately) human. The exact same toxic convictions infect many of our family members or former friends/acquaintances today. The author was obviously raised among such folks and he is to be commended for rising above this culture. (Though almost certainly not what you'd consider a modern Progressive, he was a committed Marxist, and the bigoted attitudes described in the book seem to belong to the characters, not the author.)

If nothing else, a work of remarkable honesty and observation.

* Contrary to the impression given by the book cover and the brief synopsis, young Studs actually comes from a decidedly middle-class background.

 

[Jag]

Kings of the Wyld is $2.99 Kindle on Amazon today.
Fun book that treats mercenary companies as rock stars. Centered around an aging mercenary company trying to relive their glory days.

 

[Xagarath]

I'm finally getting around to CL Clark's well-reviewed military fantasy, The Unbroken:

 

[Freezasaurus]

Just started the third book in the Finder series. I enjoyed the first two books plenty, so this was an easy purchase.

 

[Glasgow Mega-Snake]

Finished The Last Wish. It's been a while since I finished a 350+ page book this quick, pretty much read a story a day. I thought I'd take a break since it's all self-contained, but these are addicting, and I want to know more about Yennefer, so I think I have to get the next one soon
(damn Sapkowski for that ending, from what I understand while trying to avoid spoilers

Spoiler

Geralt's actual last wish

is never revealed in the later books either, but I want to know how he continues from there)

 

[Lanthima]

Finished The Last Wish. It's been a while since I finished a 350+ page book this quick, pretty much read a story a day. I thought I'd take a break since it's all self-contained, but these are addicting, and I want to know more about Yennefer, so I think I have to get the next one soon
(damn Sapowski for that ending, from what I understand while trying to avoid spoilers

Spoiler

Geralt's actual last wish

is never revealed in the later books either, but I want to know how he continues from there)

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That is great to hear, it's on my kindle waiting for me to pick it up! With only 1/3 of one of the witcher video games played, I hope it pulls me into that world. Also, as a lurker, I have to say it's great when this thread gets active! My to read list is growing rapidly.

 

[mtlspider]

Even as a Witcher franchise fan, I'd argue that you only need to read The Last Wish and the Sword of Destiny short story compilations.

The main 5-book saga retroactively made me dislike the series a little due to (IMO) uninteresting detours to the region politics which are not really that fleshed out, as well as the treatment of Ciri in general.

Well, you would be missing beloved character Regis, but it's a sacrifice I would make.

 

[Paquete_PT]

Finished Project Hail Mary. What a book. I had never read anything by Weir, but you could see in every single page of this massive book the sheer amount of work and research he had to do. There's real hardwork involved and Weir is an amazing science communicator. It was a fascinating read and I could tell you a lot about the science in the book just from the top of my mind. I do wish there was more to the plot, but it was satisfying throughout. I'm not going to go into plot details, but it was one of the best stories of this type.

 

[Sean C.]

Having followed Marjorie Liu's comics work for years, I picked up this recent collection of her past short fiction (plus some pieces, one of the them the titular story, written specifically for the new volume). Some of them are tied into Liu's previous novels in ways that don't mean anything to me, but none of them felt dependent on those connections for significance. A lot of these are fairytale riffs, generally playing with specific imagery (one of them being "Sleeping Beauty", a story that Liu explains she strongly dislikes in her commentary note), that reminded me somewhat of Naomi Novik, albeit with more intricate prose.

The graphic novel that inspired the M. Night Shyamalan film that left many people nonplussed, translated into English and reissued. An interesting adaptation case study, as there are mysterious hints there that Shyamalan then built into a more detailed explanation of events -- whether you think that was necessary or just detracted from the central themes depends on what storytelling style you prefer, I suppose. There's one element of the movie, though, that makes a lot more sense and is clearly much more thematically relevant in the source material. The two do, however, share something of a characterization inconsistency that a lot of people honed in on when the film came out (namely, how mentally mature the aging children are supposed to be).

 

[Donthizz]

See quite a few ERA favorites on here. I wouldn't call this a definitive list by any means, but there are some things that I would check out on it.

We Asked, You Answered: Your 50 Favorite Sci-Fi And Fantasy Books Of The Past Decade

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The Dead Djinn Universe looks interesting. Thanks for the link.

 

[djinn]

The Dead Djinn Universe looks interesting. Thanks for the link.

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I did a double take 👀🤣

 

[Jintor]

I did a double take 👀🤣

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thats what you get for being a mythological construct

 

[djinn]

thats what you get for being a mythological construct

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JINtor isn't far off.

 

[Ravensmash]

See quite a few ERA favorites on here. I wouldn't call this a definitive list by any means, but there are some things that I would check out on it.

We Asked, You Answered: Your 50 Favorite Sci-Fi And Fantasy Books Of The Past Decade

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Ahhh, I need to reread the First Law trilogy. It's been long enough.

 

[Fireblend]

The Dead Djinn Universe looks interesting. Thanks for the link.

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It's a really good series! Wholeheartedly recommend them, the alternate history+fantasy setting is really cool, the characters are well written and they're really well paced, specially the novellas.

 

[demosthenes]

I just finished the first Mistborn trilogy. It was a good follow up to finishing Wheel of Time late last year. Mistborn has some excellent moments and then some annoying moments but easily has one of my favorite characters in fiction ever.

Deciding what to do next, more Mistborn or re-read Wheel of Time. It keeps pulling at me.

 

[cognizant]

Finished Project Hail Mary. What a book. I had never read anything by Weir, but you could see in every single page of this massive book the sheer amount of work and research he had to do. There's real hardwork involved and Weir is an amazing science communicator. It was a fascinating read and I could tell you a lot about the science in the book just from the top of my mind. I do wish there was more to the plot, but it was satisfying throughout. I'm not going to go into plot details, but it was one of the best stories of this type.

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I found out recently that Ryan Gosling is producing and will star in the adaptation. I think covid delayed things a lot, but hopefully it's still in the works. I was picturing Matt Damon while reading it, but I can see Ryan fitting the protagonist as well the more I think about it.

I just finished the first Mistborn trilogy. It was a good follow up to finishing Wheel of Time late last year. Mistborn has some excellent moments and then some annoying moments but easily has one of my favorite characters in fiction ever.

Deciding what to do next, more Mistborn or re-read Wheel of Time. It keeps pulling at me.

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I'm nearing the end of the book below, and the Mistborn trilogy is next up. Can't wait!