Just wondering ... what is everyone reading now?

[FrankZ]

steven king's "black house" i am about half way through. written with peter straub. kinda drags in some places. just called library and eight books are on the way in the mail.

That wasn't too bad of a continuation, but The Talisman was, um.. much better.

 

[Steve Kroll]

Currently reading "A History of the World in 6 Glasses" by Tom Standage. Interesting book that relates the historical context of six beverages: beer, wine, tea, coffee, spirits, and Coca-Cola.

 

[Zereh]

i have been forgetting to post in this thread. so, to catchup. in the last month i have read, four books by Charline Harris. they are about vampires, werewolves, and shift changers. in some cases very funny, and in general is a different take on the current vampire wave.

I enjoy those books as well. So much so that I was inspired to start watching the TrueBlood series on HBO. It does deviate from the books quite a bit but it's still a fun and strangely entertaining show.

I've had my nose buried in Mark Bittmans' The Food Matters Cookbook for something to fuel my brain and kitchen enthusiasm. I just started Ted Dekker's Circle Triolgy for pure entertainment.

 

[FrankZ]

I enjoy those books as well. So much so that I was inspired to start watching the TrueBlood series on HBO. It does deviate from the books quite a bit but it's still a fun and strangely entertaining show.

Quite a bit? Anyone ever give you an award for understatement?

They do, umm, use mostly the same characters.

 

[Zhizara]

I just finished the Rowan series by Anne McCaffrey and am switching back to The Gripping Hand by Niven & Pournelle. It's a little confusing between the Mrdini and the Moties.

This should be fun!

 

[JoshuaNY]

I am a big fantasy/sci fi fan, I read it almost exclusively. With the occasional mystery thrown in.

Right now I am reading Cursors Fury by Jim Butcher. I loved his Harry Dresden Series so I figured I would try his other books.

Next up is Hunger Games, my mother said it was very good. So figured I should give it a shot before the movie comes out.

 

[simonbaker]

For Christmas i got "Michael Vey" By Richard Paul Evans, I am looking forward to getting enough time to read it soon.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I am a big fantasy/sci fi fan, I read it almost exclusively. With the occasional mystery thrown in.

Right now I am reading Cursors Fury by Jim Butcher. I loved his Harry Dresden Series so I figured I would try his other books.

Next up is Hunger Games, my mother said it was very good. So figured I should give it a shot before the movie comes out.

How is the Fantasy series by Butcher? I really like the Dresden books.

 

[tinlizzie]

Just finished a Body Farm novel - Carved in Bone. Another good one by the Jefferson Bass duo. And zoomed through Betty White's If You Ask Me. Still working on Simon Mawer's book Mendel's Dwarf, a story alledgedly by a descendent of Gregor Mendel, with all kinds of interesting info on the original pea project. The Mathematics! My nemesis. Also about halfway through The Food of a Younger Land - Mark Kurlansky. Good, but puts me to sleep. Looks like I'll have to renew it.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I love the Body Farm books. Too expensive for me to donate to it, though. I looked into it when I read the first book.

I loved "Salt" by Kurlansky, but have found his other books too dry and difficult to read.

 

[tinlizzie]

I love the Body Farm books. Too expensive for me to donate to it, though. I looked into it when I read the first book.

I loved "Salt" by Kurlansky, but have found his other books too dry and difficult to read.

I briefy thought about the donation thing, but very briefly - not long enough to look into it. I'm glad others are willing and able.

Salt was his first for me, and I was going to order up Cod, but I agree about the dryness of this one and wonder if I need to do the New England fish industry - although it was on the news again this morning, dealing with new limits on cod and difficulties for the coast fishermen.

 

[Syberia]

Hi, I'm reading the song of ice and fire series by George RR Martin enjoying every bit of it. I'm on the fourth book, a lot slower than the previous ones but very good all the same!
I'm a big fan of fantasy books too and have my eyes set on the name of the wind for when I finish this ones.

 

[vitauta]

I love the Body Farm books. Too expensive for me to donate to it, though. I looked into it when I read the first book.

I loved "Salt" by Kurlansky, but have found his other books too dry and difficult to read.

i liked kurlansky's salt too. the younger land books seem to be a series of bureaucratic rush job assignments hastily crammed together, with little editing, and not much evidence of kurlansky's own writings or contributions. i read only samples of some of these regional younger lands books, and would not buy the complete collection...

 

[babetoo]

i have been trying to read, " the prosecution of george w. bush for murder. it is written by vincent bugliosi. he also wrote "helter skelter" about the manson murders, which was a spell binder. this one no so much. pretty dry. interesting premise, though. new books coming from library tomorrow.

 

[Zhizara]

I finished the Rowan series by Anne McCaffrey and went back to Patricia Cornwell's new book, Port Mortuary. Good read!

 

[JoshuaNY]

How is the Fantasy series by Butcher? I really like the Dresden books.

I like them alot. But if you did not know they were from Butcher you probably wouldn't recognize them. They are written in a different style, instead of following a single person the entire book. They switch between characters and mini stories all culminating at the end.

If you enjoy other fantasy stories that are written in this fashion then you will like these. The world he created is very interesting and fun to read. Also every now and then I got annoyed at the characters, but thats probably just me

 

[JoshuaNY]

Hi, I'm reading the song of ice and fire series by George RR Martin enjoying every bit of it. I'm on the fourth book, a lot slower than the previous ones but very good all the same!
I'm a big fan of fantasy books too and have my eyes set on the name of the wind for when I finish this ones.

I liked those too. I find them a bit too wordy and some parts were tough to get through. Alot of political scheming throughout the book. But still quite good.

On a side note I liked the show on HBO too.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I like them alot. But if you did not know they were from Butcher you probably wouldn't recognize them. They are written in a different style, instead of following a single person the entire book. They switch between characters and mini stories all culminating at the end.

If you enjoy other fantasy stories that are written in this fashion then you will like these. The world he created is very interesting and fun to read. Also every now and then I got annoyed at the characters, but thats probably just me

Thanks, Joshua, I'll put them on my consider list. Next time I'm looking for something to read. I have about 50 books in line right now.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

How is the Fantasy series by Butcher? I really like the Dresden books.

I just discovered this topic and decided to join it, but I hope nobody expects me to read all 191 previous pages to catch up! But nonetheless it looks like a fun topic so I'll start here, and I apologize in advance if I duplicate anything or missed on something.

I just read my first Jim Butcher novel, Changes which I think is the latest Dresden novel. It was okay but a bit wordy and maybe a bit too self conscious too, in short nothing that inspired me to read back from the beginning of the series or want to get the next installment.

I'm not a fantasy fan, or maybe I'm a recent fantasy fan, so by no means have I explored the field. Originally I was a SF fan (a million years ago) but I burned out, and most of the last couple decades I've been reading thriller/suspense and mystery novels. I've recently discovered a few witch-werewolf-vampire-fae etc. novel series and I vastly prefer those set in the present era but in an alternate reality, often combining other genres in their fantasy.

I have two series to recommend, and I suggest you should Google the authors and if any of this appeals to you then start with the first novel in the series and read in order. The Hollows series by Kim Harrison, about Rachel Morgan, a detective witch who works with local law enforcement agencies and faces threats both mundane and supernatural in origin.

The Fever series by Karen Marie Moning, "Alina is dead and her sister Mac has returned to Ireland, the country that expelled them, to hunt her sister's murderer. But after discovering that she descends from a bloodline both gifted and cursed, she descends into an epic battle between humans and Fae immortals as the Sinsar Dubh turns on her, and begins mowing a deadly path through those she loves. Mac's journey will force her to face the truth of her exile, and make a choice that will either save the world ... or destroy it." (I think this series is concluded after the 5th volume.)

It bugs me that there's a third series by a different author that I really liked too, but I can't remember her name. (Female authors seem to dominate this sub-genre of fantasy.) Now I move on to subjects not related to fantasy.

My big recommendation and I would be astonished if they have not already been already discussed in this topic, the Millennium series by Swedish author Stieg Larsson: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. This suspense series is probably the most awesome I've ever read, has already been made into movies in Sweden, and now currently debuting an American remake just this month (December 2011). I recommend first read the books and then see the movies. The trilogy is awesome, the movies are.... okay. (I want to make it clear I'm recommending the books not the movies, and only saying that they were so good they had to be made into movies for people who don't appreciate reading books.)

The most recent novels I've enjoyed: SF/history genre Blackout and All Clear about time travelers from 2060 who became trapped in 1941 and 1945 WWII era England, and their struggles to get back to ... (ahem) the future. The two novel series is more about what it was like to live in WWII England than about the mechanics of time travel, heavier on history and lighter on the SF aspect (although a fair serving of chaos theory and time travel paradox). Each is about 500 pages and there is no ending for the first (Blackout) but rather proceeds right to the first chapter of the second (All Clear) so MUST be read in sequence!

I'm currently reading a novel by Eric Van Lustbader, The Testament, which is okay but nothing I'd encourage. I'm currently waiting for The Affair, the latest Jack Reacher series novel by Lee Child (a series I totally recommend, and suggest reading them in order of publishing date).

It will be interesting to follow this topic and I'm sure I'll get some new ideas and receive some interesting replies on my recommendations.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

First...you should try the Dresden series from the beginning...there is a lot of back story before you ever get to "Changes." Loved the Steig Larsson and have no interest in seeing the movies.

I started reading SF/Fantasy when I was 5 years old, starting out with "The Hobbit." Always up for new Author names, even though I have a stack of 50 in line first!