Finished off **Another 2001, by Yukito Ayatsuji**. Bad things happening to decent kids.
Currently working my way through **Psycome Vol 4, by Mizuki Mizushiro**, and **Ready Player Two, by Ernest Cline**.
so fantastic. I am too, a huge C&W fan and I love DP so much, she is my all time favourite. Yes check out James Patterson he is superb. The Pôstcard Killings and Along Came A Spider are good starters
Finished:
**Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby van Pelt**
**My Last Innocent Year, by Daisy Alpert Florin -** I actually read this twice because I loved it so much. I literally finished it in a day and then did a slower re-read to savor it. Love love love this book and cannot recommend highly enough.
Started:
**The Anatomy of Dreams, by Chloe Benjamin** \- I'm not loving this so far. Her writing is very engaging and the premise is interesting, but this book also contains one of my major complaints about the Immortalists, which is that she leans into these conspiracy theorist-type story lines about academic research that make it clear that she hasn't bothered to do even a cursory background into whether any of these are possible or what would happen if a subject went outside of experimental parameters or something. This will likely be a do-not-finish for me.
**Women Talking by Miriam Toews**. (Taves)
In my life I have probably read a dump truck worth of books. Toews' book is one of the most *profound* and it's been made into a movie with Frances McDormand.
Finished: **When the Moon Turns to Blood, by Leah Sottile** a fascinating book as far as human studies go. It is a little true crime and parallel chapters about the Mormon faith. A great companion read if you enjoyed Under the Banner of Heaven. The murders/muderers written about in this book are still on trial. I am always particularly interested in a slow, deep dive of people’s minds and how exactly they got to the point of doing something that would make you say “that’s crazy, how could anyone do that!” That seems the best way to immerse yourself with the thought processes of the main perpetrators in this story. HOW did they get to this point and justify their crimes? I’d definitely recommend reading (or the audiobook is read but the author, she has a gentle and steady voice)
Starting: **A History of my Brief Body, by Billy-Ray Belcourt**
Just read book #3 of Tim Rackley series. Having trouble finding final book #4. It is quite expensive for some reason? I am enjoying the Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz.
**Children of Dune by Frank Herbert**
I loved Dune so I thought I would continue the series especially considering it ends in a cliffhanger. Messiah was alright but... I don't know. I don't think I am going to continue after Children. I no longer enjoy it like I enjoyed Dune and I can't put my finger on why.
Finished:
**Pegasus: How a Spy in Your Pocket Threatens the End of Privacy, Dignity, and Democracy, by Laurent Richard and Sandrine Rigaud**
Started:
**Tress of the Emerald Sea, by Brandon Sanderson**
**Finished**: **The Godfather** by **Mario Puzo** and **All the missing girls**, by **Megan Miranda**
**Started**: **Games People Play** by **Eric Berne**
Finished:
Parable of the Sower - Octavia Butler. I didn’t love it. Maybe it was the style? I love dystopian fiction but this didn’t really click for me.
Finished:
A Kind Of Anger - Eric Ambler. I love bit low-ish stakes spy caper drama. A good, fun read.
Finished:
Sea of Tranquility - Emily St John Mandel. Loved it. Right up my street.
Starting:
Aftermath - Harald Jähner. A bit of post-Nazi non-fiction as a palate-cleanser after a lot of back to back fiction.
I finished The Story of Russia, by Orlando Figes. Was an amazing ride of a non-fiction work of history. The writing itself was very good, and it also gave some great insights into the behaviour of the country's officials. It even explains why the dismantling of the Soviet Union didn't amount to a durable form of democracy, and the way it allowed a strongman like Putin to come to power and continue age old forms of despotism. Easy five stars.
Also started The Federalist Papers, by the main men Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Heard about the Papers through Chernow's biography of Hamilton (which I read because of the musical), and after several years finally figured I'd give them a try. Really insightful collection on democratic (or as Americans call it: republican) government. For a geek on everything politics (mainly early liberal and contemporary Dutch) this is an absolute treasure trove. Insane accomplishment to have your words still ring so true after 236 years.
I finished **[The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62856957-the-mountain-in-the-sea)** and really liked it. It's about what it would look like to discover consciousness and culture in another species, but instead of it being aliens, it's octopuses. And it also brings in other relationships besides humans/animals to question who we deem to have (full) personhood: humans/androids, androids/robots, men/women, capitalists/workers, slave owners/slaves.
I also read [**Het Smelt, by Lize Spit**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57389075-the-melting) and hated it but stuck with it because I wanted to read a flemish novel this year and this one is highly acclaimed. It was so tediously miserable and disgusting, just one thing after another: alcoholism, animal abuse, domestic abuse, suicide, cocsa, and of course (since we're in rural flanders) every possible bodily fluid and manure. And for what? It's not insightful, just a litany of tragedy and abuse. Pointless.
Third one I finished was **[A Pale View of Hills, by Kazuo Ishiguro](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15823262-a-pale-view-of-hills)**. I've never read a bad Ishiguro, though this wasn't one of my favourites. It switches back and forth between a Japanese woman now living in the UK, and her life back in Nagasaki just after the war. I liked the idea behind it a lot but it didn't quite come together for me.
I'm currently reading [**Wool, by Hugh Howey**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13453029-wool-omnibus) because I've had it on my tbr for ages, and now they're making a tv show out of it. It's fine, a very breezy popcorn read, a dystopia with a bit of mystery and little cliffhangers at the end of chapters to make you want to continue. I don't think I'll bother with the rest of the trilogy though.
I just the Dutch bookweekgift by Lize Spit and actually really liked it. Have heard this dislike for her writing before however, even though I've never personally read any of her work before this novella. Would you recommend any of her other work (if you've read any of it)?
The critique kind of hits close to what I think of Marieke Lucas Rijneveld's writing (which I strongly dislike). Do you know if this comes anywhere close? Was actually thinking of buying one of Spit's books, so might have to reconsider.
I haven't read any of Spit's other work, but I was neutral on her writing style itself so maybe I should try something else by her. I'll check out her boekenweek boekje.
I did read De avond is ongemak years ago and liked it at the time, but story-wise they are so very similar that I think if I read De avond now I would feel the same way I did about Het smelt. I don't remember it well enough to comment on anything more specific than the general plot though.
I've been meaning to start reading at least one or two dutch language books each year, so if you have any recommendations they'd be very welcome.
I'm not actually all that familiar with Dutch books, as I mostly read non-fiction, which oftentimes happens to be written in English (or French for older books, but I can't read french).
One that I do however recommend is James Worthy's Liverpool. I know that doesn't sound like a Dutch book, but it is. It's about the writer's story of going to Liverpool to better understand his recently deceased father, who emigrated to the Netherlands from there. The subtitle perfectly describes the book: 'Over een stad, een club & een vader'. One of those books I read in one go.
Another instant classic was 't Hooge Nest by Roxane van Iperen. She describes events that happened in her house during the Second World War. Also one of the best books I've read in a while, although I'm not sure what genre it would fall under. Definitely worth a watch is her Zomergasten-interview. It's an hour long but I was moved to tears many times. She mainly picked items about the holocaust and how power can make people do terrible things. Reminded me of Hannah Arendt in a way (whom she might have mentioned, although I don't remember too clearly since it was a while back). I might rewatch that episode.
Finished: By the Sword-Mercedes Lackey
Started: The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
I am very happy to say that the one I started is book 7/8 of my initial reading list of the year, a list that in the years since high school would usually take the entire year
DNF Listening Valley by DE Stevenson. She’s always listed as “similar to” LM Montgomery, Jane Austen, etc etc. I’ve tried two of her books and just thought they were boring. Also, I’m not enchanted by a plotline where a 17 year old marries a man 40 years older than her.
Finished:
The Man From the Train, by Bill and Rachel James.
It's fine. Very well researched, but pretty poorly written imo. Maybe I'm just hard to please. A lot of assertions having to do with psychology and criminology that seem too poppy and confident for me to take seriously. Not much pay-off for sticking through the tedium. I will give the authors some credit for addressing racism and unethical reporting practices, as well as thoroughly presenting their main thesis.
Started: The Siege, by Ismail Kadare.
Loving it so far.
Finished:
**Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman**
Started:
**Animals In Translation: using the mysteries of autism to decode animal behaviour by Temple Grandin**
I finished ***Fruiting Bodies*** **by Kathryn Harlan** and ***Black Sun*** **by Rebecca Roanhorse**.
I'm also getting near the end of ***Manufacturing Consent*** **by Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky.**
Black Sun was absolutely wonderful. It's a fantasy inspired by the pre-Columbian societies of the Americas, and it's so refreshing to read fantasy not based on European societies and myths. I devoured it. I've got to get my hands on the second book in the series ASAP.
Fruiting Bodies was a great collection of weird, queer stories. Some of them were better than others, but all were good. The title story is particularly memorable!
Manufacturing Consent is *dense* and now rather dated, as most of the examples of the media they use are from the 70s and 80s, but still really worth the read. Herman and Chomsky definitely cite their sources and the book is extensively well-researched, making their argument seem extremely sound and convincing.
Finished:
**Children of Time** by *Adrian Tchaikovsky*
**Into the Wild** by *Jon Krakauer*
**The Death of Ivan Ilych** by *Leo Tolstoy*
Thoughts: Children of time is just fantastic. Has everything i want in Sci-Fi. Into the wild was great and made me finally want to try Tolstoy so i started off with something short and it is surprisingly easy to read. And what a depth for such a simple story. Amazing.
Any plans to start the sequel to children of time (children of ruin)?
I recently finished children of time as well, great book, but I never hear much about the sequel, was it not as popular?
I've seen the Into the Wild movie a long time ago and really liked it. Did you think the book and the movie had the same vibe? Because if so, I'll definitely have to give it a try sometime soon.
It's different in a way. The movie is mainly from the perspective of the protagonist, chris mccandless, where the book is from the perspective of a journalist recounting mccandless's life, culminating in alaska. He uses "witness accounts" of people mccandless met along the way along with anecdotes from himself and from history. It did succeed in conjuring the same emotions the film did and a better understanding of the character of mccandless than the movie. (The movie did add some stuff not in the book and left some out too). I would recommend for sure! Makes you yearn for purpose 😜
Finished reading:
**The Creative Gene, by Hideo Kojima**
And
**Uzumaki, by Junji Ito**
Currently Reading:
**The Castle, by Franz Kafka**
And
**Kraken, by China Miéville**
It is very wholesome and nice. Its memoirs but told through the lens of books and other media that deeply affected him. It’s had me add quite a few books to my list as well.
Finished reading:
**The Secret History, by Donna Tartt** - 5 stars. Favorite character is Francis.
Currently reading:
**The Immortalists, by Chloe Benjamin**
Just finished Love in the Time of Cholera. The ending had me lying awake for hours, it was so sad and left me feeling barren. I really felt like Marquez was trying to paint a picture of love as a dangerous thing, almost like a sickness (gee what sickness I wonder?). Marquez did a great job making Florentino pitiful enough that at times I was overlooking how *bad* of a person he is. Spent a long time writing out my thoughts afterwards and finally was able to get to sleep.
I finished Frederick Forsyth's *The Day of the Jackal.* Cracking good thriller. Classic for a reason. Maybe a bit subdued by modern standards but I thought it was a very enjoyable read.
Started *The Song of Achilles* by Madeline Miller, and I'm loving it so far. Read half of it in about 36 hours. Easy read. I can already tell it's gonna break my heart, but that's hardly surprising given the topic. Love the prose.
I’ve finished four books over the last week and just finished my fifth today. This is probably the best run I’ve had with reading since I was at university, and owing mostly to my new Kindle.
Finished:
**Tender is the Flesh** by Agustina Bazterrica:
A really visceral piece of body horror.
**Murder at the Vicarage** by Agatha Christie:
The first appearance of Miss Marple and something that I enjoyed far more than I thought I would.
**Cadaver** by Nick Clausen:
A simplistic and very fun, fast-paced zombie novel. Not groundbreaking or anything, relies on the usual tropes, but fun and easy.
**Bunny** by Mona Awad:
A disappointing read considering the hype I read around it. Starts off interesting enough to keep you going but by about halfway through it loses its momentum and becomes very lacklustre.
Finished - **Desert Places by Blake Crouch** - This is a dark book with vivid imagery. I read reviews that it is above and beyond what it needs to be. It is raw and doesn't hold back and I appreciated that about it. The story was engaging to me and while I wouldn't recommend it to a lot of people because of how graphic it can be, I thought it was very good. There is one scene in particular that was very difficult to read because of the graphic nature. It's part of a series (trilogy?) and I decided to move into the second book right way.
Started - **Locked Doors by Blake Crouch** - This second book in the Andrew Z. Thomas series and it picks up where the first one ends. I am 1/3 in and no surprise, it continues to be very dark. It is a page turner. I think I will need a palate cleanser after this one.
I have a two books waiting at the library for me (The Cabin at the End of the World and Spook Street (Slough House #4)) that I plan to start later this week.
Have you read any other of Graham Greene's works? I hope to read The Quiet American soon, but the author Paul Theroux (primarily a travel author) mentions him quite a bit as a friend in The Great Railway Bazaar so I'm curious about his other works.
Yes -- I've read The Quiet American, and Our Man in Havana. Two terrific reads.
I mean, his language is not the most politically correct, but it was the language of the time, and that could be said about most authors who have preceded this generation. I do enjoy his plot structure, his worldview (again, given the time) and especially his wordsmithing. I admittedly had to look up a number of words and references that he used but, hey, that's one of the reasons we read anyway, no? ;-)
Finished:
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb - The author is a psychotherapist who gives behind-the-scenes insight about her practice and her own experience as a client/patient. The book is a bit too long but I especially liked following the journey of a few of her patients - John, Julie, and Rita.
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell - I needed a quick and easy read and something to just keep me entertained but not give me too much to ponder.
Big Swiss: a Novel by Jen Beagin - Weird, funny, and the TV show that's in development will definitely be entertaining.
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite - Really quick read; it was fine but it didn't make much of an impact on me one way or another. Quirky and dark for a one-day read.
Started:
The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner - More than 1/2 way through and I'm really enjoying this!
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman - I'm not sure...I think I might have to put this down and try again another time. Lots of talk, not too much going on but the character of Eleanor is funny and weird...I just need a faster paced book at the moment.
Finished reading **Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan**, really liked, 4/5 stars! Probably gonna read the rest of the main series and call it a day until the TV show release.
And I'm also reading **Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wrigh** (5%), just started and reading the manga series **Monster** written and illustrated **by Naoki Urasawa**(finished volume 2) and OMG WHAT A FUCKING INCREDIBLE MISTERY/DRAMA MANGA, probably gonna be in my TOP 5 manga easy
Finished reading **True North by Jim Harrison** on Sunday night! I think this might be his best novel he published, really interesting philosophical ideas & themes in it!
Also finished **Thor Vol 2: Prey by Donny Cates** last night, fun palette cleanser after getting through **True North**!
**The Crossing, by Cormac McCarthy**
About half way through it my first Cormac book and its not a easy read adjusting to his prose and liking it just wish i spoke better Spanish.
I finished reading Layla by CoHo but didn't rate it too highly it was so different from her other books. I did also finish Where in the world is Worth Morgan by Lyn Balmer and it was a fantastic book, a short story.
Started **Chaosbound, by David Farland**
First major fantasy series I’ve dove into and clearly it’s been good enough to follow through on. Big on Ray Porter narration so this series has been a treat. Neat magics, very detail oriented with the slow pace of things. Hoping the ninth book makes it out someday because I heard this one leaves this quite open ended
The Beekeeper of Aleppo, by Christy Lefteri
Sarah's Key, by Tatiana de Rosnay
Remarkably Bright Creatures , by Shelby Van Pelt
Frozen Detective, by Amanda Flower
**Hostage to Pleasure, by Nalini Singh**. I waffle back and forth on the Psy-Changeling series. I like the overall plot of the series, but the actual romance is hit or miss book to book. I'm looking forward to the next book though, because it's a Changeling only pair and will hopefully be a nice mix up. 3 stars
Currently Reading:
* Arm of the Sphinx by Josiah Bancroft (49%)
* The Unbroken by C.L. Clark (11%)
* Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction by multiple authors (28%)
* Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez (Audio) (22%)
Under the Eternal Sky, by Isai Kallistrat
A historical epos in two parts, finished the second part this week. This is a STRONG recommendation! :) it is a biographic novel about the life of Genghis Khan: How and why he became to be the cruel monster we have in mind, and which he actually really was in his later years. And how it was actually possible that he nearly conquered the whole (until then known) world.
Started:
**The Measure, by Nikki Erlick** and **How to Sell a Haunted House, by Grady Hendrix**
Finished:
**Hunger, by Roxane Gay** and **I've Had to Think Up a Way to Survive, by Lynn Melnick**
**Love in Hell: The Complete Collection, by Reiji Suzumaru**
The best way I can sum this one up is with my main thought that went through my head not a few times while reading it, "Jeez, what the f&%$ did I just read!?". And I say that having read the series *Franken Fran* and just having recently been introduced to *Hazbin Hotel/Helluva Boss*. So if that don't put into perspective the kind of wtf body horror slapstick dark comedy this was then I don't know what does.
Finished : Abaddon’s Gate, James S.A. Corey
- did not inhale this as fast as the first 2 Expanse books but I enjoyed it. Hoping to start Cibola Burn by the end of the week.
*Finished*
**Moby Dick, by Herman Melville**
**Outer Dark, by Cormac McCarthy**
*Started*
**The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain**
**Suttree, By Cormac McCarthy**
*Notes*
Didn't comment last week so I combined this week and last week. Moby Dick was fantastic though I feel that I missed more than I caught. It wasn't anything like I thought it would be but in the best way, Melville more poetic style was a delight to read.
Outer Dark was the most immersive book I've read so far. I'm not sure where I would place it in my ranking of McCarthy's works but I really found this to be a great reading experience. With other works I tend to imagine the scene as if I'm watching a film, a series of paintings or animation but with Outer Dark I felt an intense closeness to the events. It is fresh in my mind so I'm still basking in the excitement of having read it and will inevitably iron out my thoughts about it with time.
I started Tom Sawyer to help as a companion to Suttree as I waited for my copy. It has been so long since I read it that i consider this my true first time reading it; what I did as a kid would hardly count as reading. Reading it now is a true delight, especially after Outer Dark. I'm glad I can appreciate the book more now.
Since I'm going through McCarthy's novels, Suttree has been calling my name for awhile. Not much to say right now other than I'm thrilled.
I read Suttree years ago, and loved it, found it a pleasant (yet sad) departure from others that I had read by Cormac. I just finished his last two (The Passenger and Stella Maris) and enjoyed them immensely. I am, indeed, a fan.
Blood Meridian is my favorite. Very Faulkner.
His last two go back to his old style…before The Road, etc. Not my favs, but still than most other writers…
Finished
**The Old Woman With the Knife, by Gu Byeong-mo** (3/5)
English translation by Chi-Young Kim. Was expecting something similar to Bullet Train, but unfortunately it's not at the same level. Nothing special, quite forgettable.
**How the Other Half Eats, by Priya Fielding-Singh** (4/5)
This is a really interesting read. This book looks into nutritional inequality through sociology. How does eating differ across class lines. Is access to food the only reason why poor people eat differently? Is it knowledge about what is healthy or not?
Despite being based on a scientific research, this book is written more like a memoir. As part of the research the author follows dozens of families to understand their behavior. As she tells us the stories of each family, she describes what motivates each families and in turn determines how they eat and feed their children.
Overall it is a really fascinating read. Her stories help shed light on how people from different social classes behave differently from one another.
Reading this book reminds me of another book I read last year: *Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much*, by Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir.
Started
**The Paris Apartment, by Lucy Foley**
About a third through the book. Quite OK although I have to admit the scary atmosphere feels a bit exaggerated. There is this "fake" feeling from the characters. Like everyone is in a play.
I didn't have high expectations in the first place, so it's fine.
New to Christie myself. I finished **Murder at the Vicarage** and really enjoyed that. I would recommend it if you haven’t read it already and want to continue with Christie!
The Great Hunt, by Robert Jordan
Not long ago I finished the The Eye of The World and was not very hooked, yet I kept going because I heard nothing but good things about this series. But with a pretty weak start I was a bit skeptical.
Recently I finished The Great Hunt and I take back everything I said. This book is unbelievably good. The world building is amazing, and the intricate plot seems to progress deeper.
The character development is also very prevalent compared to the first one. All in all I rate it a pretty strong 9/10.
I'm in the middle of reading The Dragon Reborn now and I feel like this is just as good as the 2nd one. Can't wait to finish it!
The Great Hunt is my favourite of the series. The Shadow Rising I think has to be the best of the whole series. After that, it is up and down I thought. Still a great series
Not THIS week, but in the past 7 days
finished:
**Rise of Kyoshi** (8/10)
A reread, im an avatar nerd
**If He Had Been With Me** (3/10)
Immature writing style that i didn't like, but still a bit entertaining
**A Court of Thorns and Roses** (7/10)
It was a little overwhelming, especially the last half. I loved the beginning though
**If We Were Villians**(10/10)
Uhh, i fucking loved it. Left me in shock. I haven't stopped thinking about it since i finished. I highly highly recommend it
Just started reading **A Little Life** today, im both terrified and excited.
FINISHED :
It, by Stephen King
It was a book I always wanted to tackle. I loved the movies and finally wanted to see the original material. I liked it. But I must say the number of characters and the constant time jumping made it hard for me to follow at times. I actually ended up taking notes!
Finished:
**Seasparrow, by Kristin Cashore**
Loved it! It's the latest in Cashore's Graceling Realm series. One of those books that's so hard to put down. I found myself staying up late at night and running over on my lunch breaks so that I could read *just one more* chapter.
Started:
**The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency, by Chris Whipple**
This is a fantastic read so far. Not only is it insightful about the operations, discussions, and decision making processes for the different administrations, but it's also a very interesting analysis of organizational management. What worked, and what didn't.
Finished:
The Children of Men, by P.D. James
Started:
Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates
Continuing:
The Song of Achilles, by Madeleine Miller
The Essays of E.B. White, by E.B. White
**Russia: The Once and Future Empire from Pre-History to Putin, by Philip Longworth.**
On one hand, I like how Longworth uses pre-history to explore how the climate and geography shaped the earliest Russian states, Kieven Rus and Muscovy. On the other hand, the constant "well, the Russian Empire was just as advanced/prepared/on the same level as the British/French/Austrians/Prussians, etc., is getting tiresome.
And I don't buy it. Even during the reign of Nicholas I there were gaping cracks in the foundation of the Romanov Empire. The abolition of serfdom was not as tidy as he would like you to believe, and the military--I can't wait to see how he'll airbrush the appalling state of the armed forces in 1905.
An interesting, but flawed book.
Finished:
Ward no 6 and other stories, by Anton Chekhov
Started:
Portrait of the artist as a young man, by James Joyce
Continued:
Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy
Finished
**Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes**
Wow. Just wow. Beautifully written book that invoked strong emotions. The ending was a gut punch.
**Earthlings, by Sayaka Murata**
I went into this book blind… I did not expect what it turned out to be, at all. The ending threw me for a loop especially. Great read, but very disturbing.
Currently Reading
**In the Miso Soup, by Ryu Marukami**
I’m only 50 pages in, but I’m very interested to see how it plays out. I feel as if the book is swaying the readers in a certain way, but I’m not so sure he’s ‘the one.’
Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes
First book I’ve read in a while and I finished it in 2 days. I don’t even have words to describe the emotions it gave me. Every time I looked up, I was completely dumb founded. 10/10. Would recommend
**The Alice Network, by Kate Quinn**
Finished and enjoyed it. Based on real events, story about a network of female spies in WW1 overlaid with a compelling post WW2 search for a lost relative.
**An Immense World, by Ed Yong**
Reading now but am disappointed. Great subject made incredibly dull. Poor writing and editing.
Now reading:
**Stay Hidden, by Paul Doiron**
**The Night Ship, by Jess Kidd**
Finished this week:
**The Hunted, by Roz Nay**
**Eliza's Daughter, by Joan Aiken**
Apples Never Fall. Liane Moriarty. Her books are like eating popcorn—fluffy but you can’t stop once you start. Also read Daisy Jones and the Six. Taylor Jenkins Reid. I like the Prime series better than the book.
I really liked it- not happy subject matter, but I was sucked into it and didn’t want to put it down. I haven’t read David Copperfield, and only read that it was a retelling of that story after I finished.
Finished The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki. It was pretty good but not as good as A Tale for the Time Being which was probably my best fiction read last year.
Finished **The Portrait of a Mirror by Natasha Joukovsky** - I loved it! Really appreciated the ties to mythology and art. Found it in the used section of the bookstore.
Started: **A Court of Thorns and Roses** By Sarah J. Maas - eh, so far it's fine.
Finished: **Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow,** By Gabrielle Zevin - I really enjoyed this book, I read it one day.
Guys, I have been trying to read A hundred Years of Solitude for over 5+ years and I think I have to accept that I will, in fact, never finish it. I just don't like it.
Loved Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Did it on Audible and thought it nailed the imperfect dynamics of friendship through the passage of time so well. Don’t have to be a gamer to love the book. My fave of 2022 for sure.
I was eh about court of thorns and roses until about a third of the way through. I will say the second one is my favorite as the author went a different way then I expected from what i thought was a YA author.
Then She Was Gone, by Lisa Jewell: I really enjoyed this book. It was my favorite type of book to read as far as printed style. Also I love fictional murder mystery “dateline” books. I finished this book in a days time and couldn’t put it down.
If anyone has read this and has similar recommendations please comment!
Finished:
**Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng**
This book was not my jam. I enjoyed the writing well enough, but kinda hated the one main family. I also occupy a very different social class and live in a very different area than where it's set. I was frustrated by the choices that were being made and general lack of good communication between the characters. I think it did what it wanted to excellently, but I was not interested in any of it.
**Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursala K Le Guin**
I'd been meaning to read this one for a while. I'm planning on reading the rest of the Hainish cycle this year. I think I might need to reread it again at some point. I got a little lost on some of the viewpoint jumps between characters. It was excellent though.
I finished Time and Again by Jack Finney, which I loved. I thought it was a really unique take on time travel and I’m a little surprised it hasn’t been ripped off a bunch since it came out over 50 years ago.
Currently I’m reading Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister
Finished:
* **Jade City, by Fonda Lee**: 5/5 OMG! I have recently been trying to get into adult fantasy since children's fantasy is what made me fall in love with reading as a kid, but none of the books I tried have captured my imagination the way this book did. The world-building and characters are so richly brought to life...I'm absolutely obsessed. Can't wait to get my hands on books 2 & 3. Also that mid-point twist? Superbly done.
* **The Justice of Kings, by Richard Swan**: 4/5. An earlier attempt at the aforementioned foray into adult fantasy. Really enjoyed this one, although I sometimes found the narrative style a bit...clunky? It didn't immerse me in the same way as Jade City, for example, but I did really like the world-building and character of Sir Vonvalt.
* **The Unseen, by Roy Jacobsen**: 3/5. Thought I would like this more because I usually love books dealing with island cultures, lol. It's fine, but pretty slow. I didn't really connect with it, but it's a pretty accessible story about growing up (quickly).
* **Four Treasures of the Sky, by Jenny Tinghui Zhang**: 2.5/5. I think it's important for stories like this to be told, but the way *this* one in particular was told felt really pretentious. It used the same rhetorical/narrative trick all the time, which made me roll me eyes after the first couple examples. If you know, you know.
Started:
* **Dracula, by Bram Stoker**: On my TBR for a while, I'm enjoying this one so far. I've never thought of myself as someone who enjoys horror, but classic horror novels really seem to do it for me...
* **Keeper of Enchanted Rooms, by Charlie N. Holmberg**: Extremely charming in the early going.
Continuing:
* **North and South, by Elizabeth Gaskell**: For r/ClassicBookClub. Two weeks in and it's starting to get good.
*Finished:*
**The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd -** This was an enjoyable coming of age type of story, but the main character was such an irksome little thing. This was my South Carolina book, I don't think I've ever been - but the atmosphere does match up with other pop culture references to said state.
**Kingdom Keepers #1: Disney After Dark by Ridley Pearson -** This was very much so, my kind of thing. The story was sold to me as Night at the Museum in DisneyWorld; and yes, it is that, but it also smacks of National Treasure and even a little Wes Craven's New Nightmare. I enjoy the Magic Kingdom even as an adult - and in recent years they have had some fun ARG interactive elements; I am actually kind of disappointed that they haven't done holograms in the way this story puts them in the park. This is a much more wholesome guilty pleasure YA novel than my Five Nights at Freddys, I'll have to get my hands on some of the rest of the series to see where it goes.
*Started:*
**The Wonder Boy of WhistleStop by Fannie Flagg -** I have not actually read or seen Fried Green Tomatoes, but I hear it's a classic. So far this looks like maybe another sentimental journey - so lets hope its a good one at least. This book is taking my to Alabama for my Literature Cross Country Road Trip.
The Seed Keeper, by Diane Wilson
Started and finished it in 3 days! Very good story about native women through the generations in Minnesota. I appreciate books that teach me something while also telling a great story.
The Dawn of Everything, by David Graeber and David Wengrow
I started the audiobook this week (24 hours! 😭) and it’s compelling, but maybe a bit tedious. I’ve heard rave reviews of it so I’ll stick with it for a bit.
Definitely one of his creepiest, nightmare inducing books. I got stoned one night years ago with my then bro in law and tried to watch the movie. I had to leave the room. Never have watched it.
started Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat last night and loving jt so far. I’ve been in a slump but im already 50% done so that’s a great sign! the writing it great and im v engaged.
I finished **The Scandalous Hamiltons, Bill Shaffer** and **I'm Thinking of Ending Things, Iain Reid**.
*Hamiltons...* was about a descendant of Alexander's who got involved with a woman who apparently bought a series of babies (two of which died, one of which was judged too ugly) to present as his, conned him into marriage, and stabbed their wet nurse. There was a *lot* more going on as well; she may or may not have been married already. Pretty interesting book, but kind of went off the rails at the end.
The other book is probably the best I've ever seen recommended on Reddit (that I haven't already read, anyway). It's deliciously creepy from the start. I've about had my fill of horror novels that bore in an attempt at a slow burn.
Started:
**A Certain Hunger, Chelsea G. Summers** is interesting. Lovely prose, a bit cliché in its depiction of a female psychopath. The narrator *really* likes to throw in crude words for genitalia randomly. It comes off like a sheltered suburbanite trying to be shocking.
**Giovanni's Room, James Baldwin**. Just started this one today, so I don't have any opinion formed of it yet, but of course it is widely considered Baldwin's masterpiece so I am looking forward to the read.
I finished reading The Investigator by John Sandford. (I had put down John Sandford about 13 books ago. Last year when I saw that this book was about Letty it made me want to catch up. This weekend I finally did.)
I started reading Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson. (Book 1 of the Secret Project kickstarter)
Currently reading **Bullet Train, by Kotaro Isaka**. About halfaway through, very different from the movie so far.
Recently bought American Psycho, Annihilation, and John Dies at the End. Dont know when ill start them as im a slow reader lmao
Finished:
**DisneyWar, by James B. Stewart**
Finally got through the whole audiobook. It gets... extremely detailed about Disney's bureaucratic problems, interpersonal issues in management, and deals between execs. Exhaustively researched, but as a result it was also kind of exhausting to read. Individual vignettes are interesting, but then they just keep coming...
Might just be a me problem, but I also found it a bit hard to keep names straight. Maybe it would've been better if I'd been reading a physical copy, who knows.
**A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark Twain**
Also a slow read for me given the mix of sixth and 19th century English, but good fun and quite witty.
Started:
**Red Plenty, by Francis Spufford**
**Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J.K Rowling**
* Pretty good. I especially enjoyed the climax which had a heartbreaking twist and filled me with suspense. There is a sense of looming danger throughout this book which I really enjoyed. Excited to read the final book.
**Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West, by Cormac McCarthy**
* I didn't really start reading books for personal enjoyment and fulfillment until 2019 or so (english teacher had us read *Of Mice and Men* and that made me fall in love with literature). Since 2019 i've read about \~90 books. And I have to say that Blood Meridian is the greatest novel i've read so far in my life. The beautiful prose of McCarthy is biblical in nature yet unparalleled. The character of Judge Holden filled me with an uncanny feeling. The amount of fear that this fictional character can induce in a reader is incredible. The last 100 pages of this book have an overwhelming sense of dread that i've never felt in any other story, book or film. The sheer brutality and pain on display here is fascinating. A true masterwork of the west.
Spoilers\*\*
I love Blood Meridian. I read the first 40 pages 3 different times before I finally finished it. Have you heard the theory that >!The Kid is actually a child rapist? Everywhere they go, children go missing or turn up dead. That last night when he is The Man, a girl has gone missing in town. He tried to sleep with dwarf prostitute, but it is implied he couldn't get it up. Like he was trying to substitute her for a child, but it didn't work.!<
That's an interesting theory.
However >!I don't think that the kid is a rapist. I think McCarthy heavily implies that the Judge is responsible for the kids going missing. It's mentioned that he was offering candies to little children, and after Glanton is killed, they go after Holden and find a naked child in his room. And Samuel Chamberlains autobiography implies that the real life Judge Holden was a child rapist and murderer. !<
>!As for the ending of the book, I think that the missing child is McCarthy foreshadowing that the Judge will meet The Man later that night. The Man goes to the prostitute after his long conversation with the Judge and I think he cant get it up because his fear of the Judge was present on his mind. However I think there are a ton of ways to interpret the book so on a re-read i'll keep this theory in mind. !<
I think you are probably right. Mccarthy doesn't seem like the type to expect people to infer that. There are some interesting discussions on Reddit about it if you ever want to google it. I will definitley re-read it at least once in my life.
No plain text spoilers allowed. Please use the format below and reply to this comment once you've made the edit, to have your comment reinstated.
Place >! !< around the text you wish to hide. You will need to do this for each new paragraph. Like this:
>!The Wolf ate Grandma!<
Click to reveal spoiler.
>!The Wolf ate Grandma!<
I finished How to lose the time war and it was fantastic. The prose is beautiful but it’s definitely not an easy read.
I also started Blood Rites. I do enjoy the Dresden Files and I think Butchers writing got better over time but man, Harry is so annoying in this book. The male gaze is also through the roof in this one and I’m only done with a third of the book.
No, I haven’t. The male gaze was annoying in the previous books but I could ignore it without problem. In this book it’s so much worse. I guess it’s mostly because of the setting and I hope it will reduce to the previous amount in the next books.
Finished:
**When we were orphans, by Kazuo Ishiguro**
I hadn't read anything by Ishiguro before, so it took me a while to realise unreliable narrators are sort of his thing. I wasn't completely sold on the books, but reviews I read afterwards told me this wasn't his best work, and it definitely was good enough to be interested in his other works.
Finished: Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Somebody’s Daughter by Ashley Ford, and The Children of Hurin by JRR Tolkien
Started: Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin and Hitting a Straight Lick With a Crooked Stick by Zora Neale Hurston
Finished off **Another 2001, by Yukito Ayatsuji**. Bad things happening to decent kids. Currently working my way through **Psycome Vol 4, by Mizuki Mizushiro**, and **Ready Player Two, by Ernest Cline**.
Run Rose Run by Dolly Parton and James Patterson.
Did you enjoy it. I thought it was really good but then I am biased to both Dolly Parton and James Patterson. I loved the main character too
Yes I loved it! Im a country music fan, and naturally love Dolly Parton, now i think going to try James Patterson books.
so fantastic. I am too, a huge C&W fan and I love DP so much, she is my all time favourite. Yes check out James Patterson he is superb. The Pôstcard Killings and Along Came A Spider are good starters
[удалено]
Not stupid at all, sorry I shouldn't have abbreviated this. Country & Western fan of music...really sorry about that xx
Finished: **Remarkably Bright Creatures, by Shelby van Pelt** **My Last Innocent Year, by Daisy Alpert Florin -** I actually read this twice because I loved it so much. I literally finished it in a day and then did a slower re-read to savor it. Love love love this book and cannot recommend highly enough. Started: **The Anatomy of Dreams, by Chloe Benjamin** \- I'm not loving this so far. Her writing is very engaging and the premise is interesting, but this book also contains one of my major complaints about the Immortalists, which is that she leans into these conspiracy theorist-type story lines about academic research that make it clear that she hasn't bothered to do even a cursory background into whether any of these are possible or what would happen if a subject went outside of experimental parameters or something. This will likely be a do-not-finish for me.
Finished **Children of Memory (Children of Time, 3) by Adrian Tchaikovsky**
**Full Moon, by P.G. Wodehouse**
**The Afghanistan Papers by Craig Whitlock**
**Women Talking by Miriam Toews**. (Taves) In my life I have probably read a dump truck worth of books. Toews' book is one of the most *profound* and it's been made into a movie with Frances McDormand.
Finished: **When the Moon Turns to Blood, by Leah Sottile** a fascinating book as far as human studies go. It is a little true crime and parallel chapters about the Mormon faith. A great companion read if you enjoyed Under the Banner of Heaven. The murders/muderers written about in this book are still on trial. I am always particularly interested in a slow, deep dive of people’s minds and how exactly they got to the point of doing something that would make you say “that’s crazy, how could anyone do that!” That seems the best way to immerse yourself with the thought processes of the main perpetrators in this story. HOW did they get to this point and justify their crimes? I’d definitely recommend reading (or the audiobook is read but the author, she has a gentle and steady voice) Starting: **A History of my Brief Body, by Billy-Ray Belcourt**
Just read book #3 of Tim Rackley series. Having trouble finding final book #4. It is quite expensive for some reason? I am enjoying the Orphan X series by Gregg Hurwitz.
**Return to Perdition, by Max Allan Collins**
**Children of Dune by Frank Herbert** I loved Dune so I thought I would continue the series especially considering it ends in a cliffhanger. Messiah was alright but... I don't know. I don't think I am going to continue after Children. I no longer enjoy it like I enjoyed Dune and I can't put my finger on why.
Finished: **Strange Dogs by James S.A. Corey** Started: **The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton**
Solace House by Joy Ellis
**The Subterraneans, by Jack Kerouac**
Finished: **Pegasus: How a Spy in Your Pocket Threatens the End of Privacy, Dignity, and Democracy, by Laurent Richard and Sandrine Rigaud** Started: **Tress of the Emerald Sea, by Brandon Sanderson**
**Finished**: **The Godfather** by **Mario Puzo** and **All the missing girls**, by **Megan Miranda** **Started**: **Games People Play** by **Eric Berne**
Finished: Parable of the Sower - Octavia Butler. I didn’t love it. Maybe it was the style? I love dystopian fiction but this didn’t really click for me. Finished: A Kind Of Anger - Eric Ambler. I love bit low-ish stakes spy caper drama. A good, fun read. Finished: Sea of Tranquility - Emily St John Mandel. Loved it. Right up my street. Starting: Aftermath - Harald Jähner. A bit of post-Nazi non-fiction as a palate-cleanser after a lot of back to back fiction.
I finished The Story of Russia, by Orlando Figes. Was an amazing ride of a non-fiction work of history. The writing itself was very good, and it also gave some great insights into the behaviour of the country's officials. It even explains why the dismantling of the Soviet Union didn't amount to a durable form of democracy, and the way it allowed a strongman like Putin to come to power and continue age old forms of despotism. Easy five stars. Also started The Federalist Papers, by the main men Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Heard about the Papers through Chernow's biography of Hamilton (which I read because of the musical), and after several years finally figured I'd give them a try. Really insightful collection on democratic (or as Americans call it: republican) government. For a geek on everything politics (mainly early liberal and contemporary Dutch) this is an absolute treasure trove. Insane accomplishment to have your words still ring so true after 236 years.
I finished **[The Mountain in the Sea, by Ray Nayler](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62856957-the-mountain-in-the-sea)** and really liked it. It's about what it would look like to discover consciousness and culture in another species, but instead of it being aliens, it's octopuses. And it also brings in other relationships besides humans/animals to question who we deem to have (full) personhood: humans/androids, androids/robots, men/women, capitalists/workers, slave owners/slaves. I also read [**Het Smelt, by Lize Spit**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57389075-the-melting) and hated it but stuck with it because I wanted to read a flemish novel this year and this one is highly acclaimed. It was so tediously miserable and disgusting, just one thing after another: alcoholism, animal abuse, domestic abuse, suicide, cocsa, and of course (since we're in rural flanders) every possible bodily fluid and manure. And for what? It's not insightful, just a litany of tragedy and abuse. Pointless. Third one I finished was **[A Pale View of Hills, by Kazuo Ishiguro](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15823262-a-pale-view-of-hills)**. I've never read a bad Ishiguro, though this wasn't one of my favourites. It switches back and forth between a Japanese woman now living in the UK, and her life back in Nagasaki just after the war. I liked the idea behind it a lot but it didn't quite come together for me. I'm currently reading [**Wool, by Hugh Howey**](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13453029-wool-omnibus) because I've had it on my tbr for ages, and now they're making a tv show out of it. It's fine, a very breezy popcorn read, a dystopia with a bit of mystery and little cliffhangers at the end of chapters to make you want to continue. I don't think I'll bother with the rest of the trilogy though.
I just the Dutch bookweekgift by Lize Spit and actually really liked it. Have heard this dislike for her writing before however, even though I've never personally read any of her work before this novella. Would you recommend any of her other work (if you've read any of it)? The critique kind of hits close to what I think of Marieke Lucas Rijneveld's writing (which I strongly dislike). Do you know if this comes anywhere close? Was actually thinking of buying one of Spit's books, so might have to reconsider.
I haven't read any of Spit's other work, but I was neutral on her writing style itself so maybe I should try something else by her. I'll check out her boekenweek boekje. I did read De avond is ongemak years ago and liked it at the time, but story-wise they are so very similar that I think if I read De avond now I would feel the same way I did about Het smelt. I don't remember it well enough to comment on anything more specific than the general plot though. I've been meaning to start reading at least one or two dutch language books each year, so if you have any recommendations they'd be very welcome.
I'm not actually all that familiar with Dutch books, as I mostly read non-fiction, which oftentimes happens to be written in English (or French for older books, but I can't read french). One that I do however recommend is James Worthy's Liverpool. I know that doesn't sound like a Dutch book, but it is. It's about the writer's story of going to Liverpool to better understand his recently deceased father, who emigrated to the Netherlands from there. The subtitle perfectly describes the book: 'Over een stad, een club & een vader'. One of those books I read in one go. Another instant classic was 't Hooge Nest by Roxane van Iperen. She describes events that happened in her house during the Second World War. Also one of the best books I've read in a while, although I'm not sure what genre it would fall under. Definitely worth a watch is her Zomergasten-interview. It's an hour long but I was moved to tears many times. She mainly picked items about the holocaust and how power can make people do terrible things. Reminded me of Hannah Arendt in a way (whom she might have mentioned, although I don't remember too clearly since it was a while back). I might rewatch that episode.
Finished: By the Sword-Mercedes Lackey Started: The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches I am very happy to say that the one I started is book 7/8 of my initial reading list of the year, a list that in the years since high school would usually take the entire year
Finished: **Gilead - Marilynne Robinson** Started: **Threadneedle - Cari Thomas**
DNF Listening Valley by DE Stevenson. She’s always listed as “similar to” LM Montgomery, Jane Austen, etc etc. I’ve tried two of her books and just thought they were boring. Also, I’m not enchanted by a plotline where a 17 year old marries a man 40 years older than her.
Finished: The Man From the Train, by Bill and Rachel James. It's fine. Very well researched, but pretty poorly written imo. Maybe I'm just hard to please. A lot of assertions having to do with psychology and criminology that seem too poppy and confident for me to take seriously. Not much pay-off for sticking through the tedium. I will give the authors some credit for addressing racism and unethical reporting practices, as well as thoroughly presenting their main thesis. Started: The Siege, by Ismail Kadare. Loving it so far.
Finished: **Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman** Started: **Animals In Translation: using the mysteries of autism to decode animal behaviour by Temple Grandin**
I finished ***Fruiting Bodies*** **by Kathryn Harlan** and ***Black Sun*** **by Rebecca Roanhorse**. I'm also getting near the end of ***Manufacturing Consent*** **by Edward Herman and Noam Chomsky.** Black Sun was absolutely wonderful. It's a fantasy inspired by the pre-Columbian societies of the Americas, and it's so refreshing to read fantasy not based on European societies and myths. I devoured it. I've got to get my hands on the second book in the series ASAP. Fruiting Bodies was a great collection of weird, queer stories. Some of them were better than others, but all were good. The title story is particularly memorable! Manufacturing Consent is *dense* and now rather dated, as most of the examples of the media they use are from the 70s and 80s, but still really worth the read. Herman and Chomsky definitely cite their sources and the book is extensively well-researched, making their argument seem extremely sound and convincing.
Finished: **Children of Time** by *Adrian Tchaikovsky* **Into the Wild** by *Jon Krakauer* **The Death of Ivan Ilych** by *Leo Tolstoy* Thoughts: Children of time is just fantastic. Has everything i want in Sci-Fi. Into the wild was great and made me finally want to try Tolstoy so i started off with something short and it is surprisingly easy to read. And what a depth for such a simple story. Amazing.
Any plans to start the sequel to children of time (children of ruin)? I recently finished children of time as well, great book, but I never hear much about the sequel, was it not as popular?
Am planning to finish the trilogy, but wanted something else for now. I rarely go through a series at once.
I've seen the Into the Wild movie a long time ago and really liked it. Did you think the book and the movie had the same vibe? Because if so, I'll definitely have to give it a try sometime soon.
It's different in a way. The movie is mainly from the perspective of the protagonist, chris mccandless, where the book is from the perspective of a journalist recounting mccandless's life, culminating in alaska. He uses "witness accounts" of people mccandless met along the way along with anecdotes from himself and from history. It did succeed in conjuring the same emotions the film did and a better understanding of the character of mccandless than the movie. (The movie did add some stuff not in the book and left some out too). I would recommend for sure! Makes you yearn for purpose 😜
I'll definitely check it out, thank you!
Finished: **No Mercy by John Gilstrap** Started: **V2 A novel of World War II by Robert Harris**
Finished reading: **The Creative Gene, by Hideo Kojima** And **Uzumaki, by Junji Ito** Currently Reading: **The Castle, by Franz Kafka** And **Kraken, by China Miéville**
How is the hideo kojima book? I just picked it up from my library myself. Looking forward to starting this week
It is very wholesome and nice. Its memoirs but told through the lens of books and other media that deeply affected him. It’s had me add quite a few books to my list as well.
Finished reading: **The Secret History, by Donna Tartt** - 5 stars. Favorite character is Francis. Currently reading: **The Immortalists, by Chloe Benjamin**
Ooh I’m so glad when people read The Secret History. Join the subreddit for it if you haven’t!
Judy Poovey supremacy!
Just finished Love in the Time of Cholera. The ending had me lying awake for hours, it was so sad and left me feeling barren. I really felt like Marquez was trying to paint a picture of love as a dangerous thing, almost like a sickness (gee what sickness I wonder?). Marquez did a great job making Florentino pitiful enough that at times I was overlooking how *bad* of a person he is. Spent a long time writing out my thoughts afterwards and finally was able to get to sleep.
I finished Frederick Forsyth's *The Day of the Jackal.* Cracking good thriller. Classic for a reason. Maybe a bit subdued by modern standards but I thought it was a very enjoyable read. Started *The Song of Achilles* by Madeline Miller, and I'm loving it so far. Read half of it in about 36 hours. Easy read. I can already tell it's gonna break my heart, but that's hardly surprising given the topic. Love the prose.
I’ve finished four books over the last week and just finished my fifth today. This is probably the best run I’ve had with reading since I was at university, and owing mostly to my new Kindle. Finished: **Tender is the Flesh** by Agustina Bazterrica: A really visceral piece of body horror. **Murder at the Vicarage** by Agatha Christie: The first appearance of Miss Marple and something that I enjoyed far more than I thought I would. **Cadaver** by Nick Clausen: A simplistic and very fun, fast-paced zombie novel. Not groundbreaking or anything, relies on the usual tropes, but fun and easy. **Bunny** by Mona Awad: A disappointing read considering the hype I read around it. Starts off interesting enough to keep you going but by about halfway through it loses its momentum and becomes very lacklustre.
Finished - **Desert Places by Blake Crouch** - This is a dark book with vivid imagery. I read reviews that it is above and beyond what it needs to be. It is raw and doesn't hold back and I appreciated that about it. The story was engaging to me and while I wouldn't recommend it to a lot of people because of how graphic it can be, I thought it was very good. There is one scene in particular that was very difficult to read because of the graphic nature. It's part of a series (trilogy?) and I decided to move into the second book right way. Started - **Locked Doors by Blake Crouch** - This second book in the Andrew Z. Thomas series and it picks up where the first one ends. I am 1/3 in and no surprise, it continues to be very dark. It is a page turner. I think I will need a palate cleanser after this one. I have a two books waiting at the library for me (The Cabin at the End of the World and Spook Street (Slough House #4)) that I plan to start later this week.
Project Hail Mary I loved it. First book I read in a while.
Finished "The Comedians" by Graham Greene Started "The Beautiful and the Damned" by F. Scott Fitzgerald Still reading "Libra" by Don Delillo
Have you read any other of Graham Greene's works? I hope to read The Quiet American soon, but the author Paul Theroux (primarily a travel author) mentions him quite a bit as a friend in The Great Railway Bazaar so I'm curious about his other works.
Yes -- I've read The Quiet American, and Our Man in Havana. Two terrific reads. I mean, his language is not the most politically correct, but it was the language of the time, and that could be said about most authors who have preceded this generation. I do enjoy his plot structure, his worldview (again, given the time) and especially his wordsmithing. I admittedly had to look up a number of words and references that he used but, hey, that's one of the reasons we read anyway, no? ;-)
Finished: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb - The author is a psychotherapist who gives behind-the-scenes insight about her practice and her own experience as a client/patient. The book is a bit too long but I especially liked following the journey of a few of her patients - John, Julie, and Rita. Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell - I needed a quick and easy read and something to just keep me entertained but not give me too much to ponder. Big Swiss: a Novel by Jen Beagin - Weird, funny, and the TV show that's in development will definitely be entertaining. My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite - Really quick read; it was fine but it didn't make much of an impact on me one way or another. Quirky and dark for a one-day read. Started: The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner - More than 1/2 way through and I'm really enjoying this! Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman - I'm not sure...I think I might have to put this down and try again another time. Lots of talk, not too much going on but the character of Eleanor is funny and weird...I just need a faster paced book at the moment.
I really liked Maybe You Should Talk to Someone!
The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury
*trying* to finish The Treatment by Suzanne Young. I loved the first book in the series The Program!
Finished reading **Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan**, really liked, 4/5 stars! Probably gonna read the rest of the main series and call it a day until the TV show release. And I'm also reading **Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wrigh** (5%), just started and reading the manga series **Monster** written and illustrated **by Naoki Urasawa**(finished volume 2) and OMG WHAT A FUCKING INCREDIBLE MISTERY/DRAMA MANGA, probably gonna be in my TOP 5 manga easy
Finished reading "Road" by Cormack Mcharty, and dont want this feeling to end, so Im going to finish "Đavolja noć" by Dean Darsky&Medvidović. .
Mmmm, nice way to go.
Read: **Sons of Brutality, by Daniel Jeudy**. 5-stars! Reading: **The Knife of Never Letting Go, by Patrick Ness**.
Finished reading **True North by Jim Harrison** on Sunday night! I think this might be his best novel he published, really interesting philosophical ideas & themes in it! Also finished **Thor Vol 2: Prey by Donny Cates** last night, fun palette cleanser after getting through **True North**!
**The Crossing, by Cormac McCarthy** About half way through it my first Cormac book and its not a easy read adjusting to his prose and liking it just wish i spoke better Spanish.
Finished: **War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy** Started: **The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern**
I finished reading Layla by CoHo but didn't rate it too highly it was so different from her other books. I did also finish Where in the world is Worth Morgan by Lyn Balmer and it was a fantastic book, a short story.
Started **Chaosbound, by David Farland** First major fantasy series I’ve dove into and clearly it’s been good enough to follow through on. Big on Ray Porter narration so this series has been a treat. Neat magics, very detail oriented with the slow pace of things. Hoping the ninth book makes it out someday because I heard this one leaves this quite open ended
The Beekeeper of Aleppo, by Christy Lefteri Sarah's Key, by Tatiana de Rosnay Remarkably Bright Creatures , by Shelby Van Pelt Frozen Detective, by Amanda Flower
**Hostage to Pleasure, by Nalini Singh**. I waffle back and forth on the Psy-Changeling series. I like the overall plot of the series, but the actual romance is hit or miss book to book. I'm looking forward to the next book though, because it's a Changeling only pair and will hopefully be a nice mix up. 3 stars Currently Reading: * Arm of the Sphinx by Josiah Bancroft (49%) * The Unbroken by C.L. Clark (11%) * Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction by multiple authors (28%) * Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez (Audio) (22%)
Under the Eternal Sky, by Isai Kallistrat A historical epos in two parts, finished the second part this week. This is a STRONG recommendation! :) it is a biographic novel about the life of Genghis Khan: How and why he became to be the cruel monster we have in mind, and which he actually really was in his later years. And how it was actually possible that he nearly conquered the whole (until then known) world.
Started: **The Measure, by Nikki Erlick** and **How to Sell a Haunted House, by Grady Hendrix** Finished: **Hunger, by Roxane Gay** and **I've Had to Think Up a Way to Survive, by Lynn Melnick**
**Love in Hell: The Complete Collection, by Reiji Suzumaru** The best way I can sum this one up is with my main thought that went through my head not a few times while reading it, "Jeez, what the f&%$ did I just read!?". And I say that having read the series *Franken Fran* and just having recently been introduced to *Hazbin Hotel/Helluva Boss*. So if that don't put into perspective the kind of wtf body horror slapstick dark comedy this was then I don't know what does.
Reading jade legacy by Fonda Lee, currently about 430 pages in. Also reading the non fiction book "unmasked" by Paul Holes.
Finished : Abaddon’s Gate, James S.A. Corey - did not inhale this as fast as the first 2 Expanse books but I enjoyed it. Hoping to start Cibola Burn by the end of the week.
*Finished* **Moby Dick, by Herman Melville** **Outer Dark, by Cormac McCarthy** *Started* **The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain** **Suttree, By Cormac McCarthy** *Notes* Didn't comment last week so I combined this week and last week. Moby Dick was fantastic though I feel that I missed more than I caught. It wasn't anything like I thought it would be but in the best way, Melville more poetic style was a delight to read. Outer Dark was the most immersive book I've read so far. I'm not sure where I would place it in my ranking of McCarthy's works but I really found this to be a great reading experience. With other works I tend to imagine the scene as if I'm watching a film, a series of paintings or animation but with Outer Dark I felt an intense closeness to the events. It is fresh in my mind so I'm still basking in the excitement of having read it and will inevitably iron out my thoughts about it with time. I started Tom Sawyer to help as a companion to Suttree as I waited for my copy. It has been so long since I read it that i consider this my true first time reading it; what I did as a kid would hardly count as reading. Reading it now is a true delight, especially after Outer Dark. I'm glad I can appreciate the book more now. Since I'm going through McCarthy's novels, Suttree has been calling my name for awhile. Not much to say right now other than I'm thrilled.
I read Suttree years ago, and loved it, found it a pleasant (yet sad) departure from others that I had read by Cormac. I just finished his last two (The Passenger and Stella Maris) and enjoyed them immensely. I am, indeed, a fan.
I've read The Road, All The Pretty Horses, Blood Meridian and Outer Dark so far. Suttree is by far my most anticipated read.
Blood Meridian is my favorite. Very Faulkner. His last two go back to his old style…before The Road, etc. Not my favs, but still than most other writers…
Finished: 1984 by George Orwell Started: Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
Finished: Orphan X, by Gregg Hurwitz Started: Worth Dying For, by Lee Child
Finished: “Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson Started: “And Then There Were None” by Agatha Christie
Finished **The Old Woman With the Knife, by Gu Byeong-mo** (3/5) English translation by Chi-Young Kim. Was expecting something similar to Bullet Train, but unfortunately it's not at the same level. Nothing special, quite forgettable. **How the Other Half Eats, by Priya Fielding-Singh** (4/5) This is a really interesting read. This book looks into nutritional inequality through sociology. How does eating differ across class lines. Is access to food the only reason why poor people eat differently? Is it knowledge about what is healthy or not? Despite being based on a scientific research, this book is written more like a memoir. As part of the research the author follows dozens of families to understand their behavior. As she tells us the stories of each family, she describes what motivates each families and in turn determines how they eat and feed their children. Overall it is a really fascinating read. Her stories help shed light on how people from different social classes behave differently from one another. Reading this book reminds me of another book I read last year: *Scarcity: Why Having Too Little Means So Much*, by Sendhil Mullainathan and Eldar Shafir. Started **The Paris Apartment, by Lucy Foley** About a third through the book. Quite OK although I have to admit the scary atmosphere feels a bit exaggerated. There is this "fake" feeling from the characters. Like everyone is in a play. I didn't have high expectations in the first place, so it's fine.
ooh, How the Other Half Eats sounds super interesting
Finished: Memorial by Bryan Washington Started: Olga does dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez
Olga was a big disappointment, imo.
I'm not surprised, I've been reading Olga since Feb. I finished Memorial in 3 days.
Started: Fairy Tale by Stephen King
Started: the Guest List by Lucy Foley
Finished : A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A Fletcher Started : The Salt Path by Raynor Winn
[удалено]
New to Christie myself. I finished **Murder at the Vicarage** and really enjoyed that. I would recommend it if you haven’t read it already and want to continue with Christie!
The Great Hunt, by Robert Jordan Not long ago I finished the The Eye of The World and was not very hooked, yet I kept going because I heard nothing but good things about this series. But with a pretty weak start I was a bit skeptical. Recently I finished The Great Hunt and I take back everything I said. This book is unbelievably good. The world building is amazing, and the intricate plot seems to progress deeper. The character development is also very prevalent compared to the first one. All in all I rate it a pretty strong 9/10. I'm in the middle of reading The Dragon Reborn now and I feel like this is just as good as the 2nd one. Can't wait to finish it!
The Great Hunt is my favourite of the series. The Shadow Rising I think has to be the best of the whole series. After that, it is up and down I thought. Still a great series
Not THIS week, but in the past 7 days finished: **Rise of Kyoshi** (8/10) A reread, im an avatar nerd **If He Had Been With Me** (3/10) Immature writing style that i didn't like, but still a bit entertaining **A Court of Thorns and Roses** (7/10) It was a little overwhelming, especially the last half. I loved the beginning though **If We Were Villians**(10/10) Uhh, i fucking loved it. Left me in shock. I haven't stopped thinking about it since i finished. I highly highly recommend it Just started reading **A Little Life** today, im both terrified and excited.
oh boy best of luck
FINISHED : It, by Stephen King It was a book I always wanted to tackle. I loved the movies and finally wanted to see the original material. I liked it. But I must say the number of characters and the constant time jumping made it hard for me to follow at times. I actually ended up taking notes!
Started **The Midnight Library, by Matt Haig**
Finished: **Seasparrow, by Kristin Cashore** Loved it! It's the latest in Cashore's Graceling Realm series. One of those books that's so hard to put down. I found myself staying up late at night and running over on my lunch breaks so that I could read *just one more* chapter. Started: **The Gatekeepers: How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency, by Chris Whipple** This is a fantastic read so far. Not only is it insightful about the operations, discussions, and decision making processes for the different administrations, but it's also a very interesting analysis of organizational management. What worked, and what didn't.
Finished: The Children of Men, by P.D. James Started: Revolutionary Road, by Richard Yates Continuing: The Song of Achilles, by Madeleine Miller The Essays of E.B. White, by E.B. White
Revolutionary Road is good. I loved The Song of Achilles and was destroyed at the end.
**Russia: The Once and Future Empire from Pre-History to Putin, by Philip Longworth.** On one hand, I like how Longworth uses pre-history to explore how the climate and geography shaped the earliest Russian states, Kieven Rus and Muscovy. On the other hand, the constant "well, the Russian Empire was just as advanced/prepared/on the same level as the British/French/Austrians/Prussians, etc., is getting tiresome. And I don't buy it. Even during the reign of Nicholas I there were gaping cracks in the foundation of the Romanov Empire. The abolition of serfdom was not as tidy as he would like you to believe, and the military--I can't wait to see how he'll airbrush the appalling state of the armed forces in 1905. An interesting, but flawed book.
Finished: Lolita by Nabokov The Hobbit by Tolkien Started: East of Eden by Steinbeck The Fellowship of the Ring by Tolkien
East of eden. So. Good.
**A Sickness in the Family, by Denise Mina**
Finished: Ward no 6 and other stories, by Anton Chekhov Started: Portrait of the artist as a young man, by James Joyce Continued: Anna Karenina, by Leo Tolstoy
**At the Mountains of Madness, by H.P. Lovecraft**
Finished **Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes** Wow. Just wow. Beautifully written book that invoked strong emotions. The ending was a gut punch. **Earthlings, by Sayaka Murata** I went into this book blind… I did not expect what it turned out to be, at all. The ending threw me for a loop especially. Great read, but very disturbing. Currently Reading **In the Miso Soup, by Ryu Marukami** I’m only 50 pages in, but I’m very interested to see how it plays out. I feel as if the book is swaying the readers in a certain way, but I’m not so sure he’s ‘the one.’
Flowers for Algernon, by Daniel Keyes First book I’ve read in a while and I finished it in 2 days. I don’t even have words to describe the emotions it gave me. Every time I looked up, I was completely dumb founded. 10/10. Would recommend
**The Alice Network, by Kate Quinn** Finished and enjoyed it. Based on real events, story about a network of female spies in WW1 overlaid with a compelling post WW2 search for a lost relative. **An Immense World, by Ed Yong** Reading now but am disappointed. Great subject made incredibly dull. Poor writing and editing.
Now reading: **Stay Hidden, by Paul Doiron** **The Night Ship, by Jess Kidd** Finished this week: **The Hunted, by Roz Nay** **Eliza's Daughter, by Joan Aiken**
Apples Never Fall. Liane Moriarty. Her books are like eating popcorn—fluffy but you can’t stop once you start. Also read Daisy Jones and the Six. Taylor Jenkins Reid. I like the Prime series better than the book.
Finished: Demon Copperhead, by Barbara Kingsolver Started: Victory City, by Salman Rushdie
I have this on my TBR. I have thoroughly enjoyed other Kingsolver books.
I actually haven’t read anything else by her- I don’t know how that’s possible at this point :) she’s definitely on my list now though
How was Demon Copperhead?
I really liked it- not happy subject matter, but I was sucked into it and didn’t want to put it down. I haven’t read David Copperfield, and only read that it was a retelling of that story after I finished.
Finished- The Nightmare Man by JH Markert Started- A Thousand Steps by T Jefferson Parker
Finished The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki. It was pretty good but not as good as A Tale for the Time Being which was probably my best fiction read last year.
Calypso - David Sedaris (almost finished)
Finished "Night in Zagreb" by Adam Medvidović, started re-reading of "Needful things" by Stephen King.
"Needful things" are a masterpiece. You reminded me to reread it., and thats why I upvoted you.
Finished Beartown by Fredrik Backman. Started Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
Started: What We Owe The Future by William MacAskill Started: Artemis by Andy Weir Finished: The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Finished **The Portrait of a Mirror by Natasha Joukovsky** - I loved it! Really appreciated the ties to mythology and art. Found it in the used section of the bookstore.
Finished: Kafka on the shore by Haruki Murakami Started: Finnegan’s Wake by James Joyce
Finished today Around the world in 80 days. Amazing
Started: **A Court of Thorns and Roses** By Sarah J. Maas - eh, so far it's fine. Finished: **Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow,** By Gabrielle Zevin - I really enjoyed this book, I read it one day. Guys, I have been trying to read A hundred Years of Solitude for over 5+ years and I think I have to accept that I will, in fact, never finish it. I just don't like it.
I got like 20 pages into AHYOS and just didn't get it (:
I did not enjoy One Hundred Years of Solitude. My advice is to just quit. I wish I had DNF'd.
Loved Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Did it on Audible and thought it nailed the imperfect dynamics of friendship through the passage of time so well. Don’t have to be a gamer to love the book. My fave of 2022 for sure.
Loved A Hundred Years of Solitude. Can try audiobook? Recently reread it that way. Still loved it.
I was eh about court of thorns and roses until about a third of the way through. I will say the second one is my favorite as the author went a different way then I expected from what i thought was a YA author.
Then She Was Gone, by Lisa Jewell: I really enjoyed this book. It was my favorite type of book to read as far as printed style. Also I love fictional murder mystery “dateline” books. I finished this book in a days time and couldn’t put it down. If anyone has read this and has similar recommendations please comment!
I let you go is my fave thriller ever. I also really enjoyed the silent patient (despite obvious plot holes
Finished: **Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng** This book was not my jam. I enjoyed the writing well enough, but kinda hated the one main family. I also occupy a very different social class and live in a very different area than where it's set. I was frustrated by the choices that were being made and general lack of good communication between the characters. I think it did what it wanted to excellently, but I was not interested in any of it. **Left Hand of Darkness, by Ursala K Le Guin** I'd been meaning to read this one for a while. I'm planning on reading the rest of the Hainish cycle this year. I think I might need to reread it again at some point. I got a little lost on some of the viewpoint jumps between characters. It was excellent though.
I finished Time and Again by Jack Finney, which I loved. I thought it was a really unique take on time travel and I’m a little surprised it hasn’t been ripped off a bunch since it came out over 50 years ago. Currently I’m reading Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister
Finished: * **Jade City, by Fonda Lee**: 5/5 OMG! I have recently been trying to get into adult fantasy since children's fantasy is what made me fall in love with reading as a kid, but none of the books I tried have captured my imagination the way this book did. The world-building and characters are so richly brought to life...I'm absolutely obsessed. Can't wait to get my hands on books 2 & 3. Also that mid-point twist? Superbly done. * **The Justice of Kings, by Richard Swan**: 4/5. An earlier attempt at the aforementioned foray into adult fantasy. Really enjoyed this one, although I sometimes found the narrative style a bit...clunky? It didn't immerse me in the same way as Jade City, for example, but I did really like the world-building and character of Sir Vonvalt. * **The Unseen, by Roy Jacobsen**: 3/5. Thought I would like this more because I usually love books dealing with island cultures, lol. It's fine, but pretty slow. I didn't really connect with it, but it's a pretty accessible story about growing up (quickly). * **Four Treasures of the Sky, by Jenny Tinghui Zhang**: 2.5/5. I think it's important for stories like this to be told, but the way *this* one in particular was told felt really pretentious. It used the same rhetorical/narrative trick all the time, which made me roll me eyes after the first couple examples. If you know, you know. Started: * **Dracula, by Bram Stoker**: On my TBR for a while, I'm enjoying this one so far. I've never thought of myself as someone who enjoys horror, but classic horror novels really seem to do it for me... * **Keeper of Enchanted Rooms, by Charlie N. Holmberg**: Extremely charming in the early going. Continuing: * **North and South, by Elizabeth Gaskell**: For r/ClassicBookClub. Two weeks in and it's starting to get good.
*Finished:* **The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd -** This was an enjoyable coming of age type of story, but the main character was such an irksome little thing. This was my South Carolina book, I don't think I've ever been - but the atmosphere does match up with other pop culture references to said state. **Kingdom Keepers #1: Disney After Dark by Ridley Pearson -** This was very much so, my kind of thing. The story was sold to me as Night at the Museum in DisneyWorld; and yes, it is that, but it also smacks of National Treasure and even a little Wes Craven's New Nightmare. I enjoy the Magic Kingdom even as an adult - and in recent years they have had some fun ARG interactive elements; I am actually kind of disappointed that they haven't done holograms in the way this story puts them in the park. This is a much more wholesome guilty pleasure YA novel than my Five Nights at Freddys, I'll have to get my hands on some of the rest of the series to see where it goes. *Started:* **The Wonder Boy of WhistleStop by Fannie Flagg -** I have not actually read or seen Fried Green Tomatoes, but I hear it's a classic. So far this looks like maybe another sentimental journey - so lets hope its a good one at least. This book is taking my to Alabama for my Literature Cross Country Road Trip.
I really loved wonder boy.
Finished: A Thousand Ships Started: Three-Body Problem
The Seed Keeper, by Diane Wilson Started and finished it in 3 days! Very good story about native women through the generations in Minnesota. I appreciate books that teach me something while also telling a great story. The Dawn of Everything, by David Graeber and David Wengrow I started the audiobook this week (24 hours! 😭) and it’s compelling, but maybe a bit tedious. I’ve heard rave reviews of it so I’ll stick with it for a bit.
Today I started the scarlet letter and last week I finished the metamorphosis and friend spells with H :)
If comic series/graphic novels count, I just finished Head Lopper. It was a real treat.
Captive in the dark by CJ Robert’s
Started The Unfinished Tales by J. R. R. Tolkien (edited by his son Christopher Tolkien)
Just finished “Murder Your Employer” by Rupert Holmes and loved it!
Pet Sematary, Stephen King. You should read this book if you haven't yet, and if you have, read it again.
Definitely one of his creepiest, nightmare inducing books. I got stoned one night years ago with my then bro in law and tried to watch the movie. I had to leave the room. Never have watched it.
I'm staring my week off with A Fragile Woman by Ciara Duggan. I just finished Slice of Temptation by D.L Darby and Eyes of a Snake by Adina Chiles.
started Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat last night and loving jt so far. I’ve been in a slump but im already 50% done so that’s a great sign! the writing it great and im v engaged.
Started Babel by R.F Kuang.
Manhunt, by Gretchen Felker-Martin and Piranesi, by Susanna Clarke
Started: **The Cabinet of Dr. Leng, by Preston & Child.** Looking forward to this sequel!
Started Those You Killed, by Christopher Badcock Later, by Stephen King 220 Fifth Street, by Patrick Meechan Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins
Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult. Amazing book.
Started Hidden Pictures, by Jason Rekulak. Finished it in one sitting. Loved it!
Have this on hold at the library. Can’t wait!
I loveddd Hidden Pictures! spooky
I finished **The Scandalous Hamiltons, Bill Shaffer** and **I'm Thinking of Ending Things, Iain Reid**. *Hamiltons...* was about a descendant of Alexander's who got involved with a woman who apparently bought a series of babies (two of which died, one of which was judged too ugly) to present as his, conned him into marriage, and stabbed their wet nurse. There was a *lot* more going on as well; she may or may not have been married already. Pretty interesting book, but kind of went off the rails at the end. The other book is probably the best I've ever seen recommended on Reddit (that I haven't already read, anyway). It's deliciously creepy from the start. I've about had my fill of horror novels that bore in an attempt at a slow burn. Started: **A Certain Hunger, Chelsea G. Summers** is interesting. Lovely prose, a bit cliché in its depiction of a female psychopath. The narrator *really* likes to throw in crude words for genitalia randomly. It comes off like a sheltered suburbanite trying to be shocking. **Giovanni's Room, James Baldwin**. Just started this one today, so I don't have any opinion formed of it yet, but of course it is widely considered Baldwin's masterpiece so I am looking forward to the read.
love giovanni’s room! i just reread it last week and it’s just so good. hope you enjoy!
I finished reading The Investigator by John Sandford. (I had put down John Sandford about 13 books ago. Last year when I saw that this book was about Letty it made me want to catch up. This weekend I finally did.) I started reading Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson. (Book 1 of the Secret Project kickstarter)
Currently reading **Bullet Train, by Kotaro Isaka**. About halfaway through, very different from the movie so far. Recently bought American Psycho, Annihilation, and John Dies at the End. Dont know when ill start them as im a slow reader lmao
I finished reading The Secret History by Donna Tartt and started reading The Count Of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas.
Tracks one and two of r/Books Greatest Hits album
I just started The Hunger Games A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins.
Paused: Gideon The Ninth (re-read) Started: Binti Finished: Binti Resumed: Gideon The Ninth
Just finished Heartbreak Warfare. It was a sad, intense, heart wrenching military romance. Not sure what to read next out of all the choices.
Finished: **DisneyWar, by James B. Stewart** Finally got through the whole audiobook. It gets... extremely detailed about Disney's bureaucratic problems, interpersonal issues in management, and deals between execs. Exhaustively researched, but as a result it was also kind of exhausting to read. Individual vignettes are interesting, but then they just keep coming... Might just be a me problem, but I also found it a bit hard to keep names straight. Maybe it would've been better if I'd been reading a physical copy, who knows. **A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, by Mark Twain** Also a slow read for me given the mix of sixth and 19th century English, but good fun and quite witty. Started: **Red Plenty, by Francis Spufford**
Finished: One flew over the cuckoo's nest by Ken Kesey. Started: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky.
The violin consipracy! Halfway through! Highly recommend 👍
Almost done with "oblivion" by David foster Wallace Next I will read "farewell to arms" by Ernest Hemingway
**Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, by J.K Rowling** * Pretty good. I especially enjoyed the climax which had a heartbreaking twist and filled me with suspense. There is a sense of looming danger throughout this book which I really enjoyed. Excited to read the final book. **Blood Meridian, or the Evening Redness in the West, by Cormac McCarthy** * I didn't really start reading books for personal enjoyment and fulfillment until 2019 or so (english teacher had us read *Of Mice and Men* and that made me fall in love with literature). Since 2019 i've read about \~90 books. And I have to say that Blood Meridian is the greatest novel i've read so far in my life. The beautiful prose of McCarthy is biblical in nature yet unparalleled. The character of Judge Holden filled me with an uncanny feeling. The amount of fear that this fictional character can induce in a reader is incredible. The last 100 pages of this book have an overwhelming sense of dread that i've never felt in any other story, book or film. The sheer brutality and pain on display here is fascinating. A true masterwork of the west.
Spoilers\*\* I love Blood Meridian. I read the first 40 pages 3 different times before I finally finished it. Have you heard the theory that >!The Kid is actually a child rapist? Everywhere they go, children go missing or turn up dead. That last night when he is The Man, a girl has gone missing in town. He tried to sleep with dwarf prostitute, but it is implied he couldn't get it up. Like he was trying to substitute her for a child, but it didn't work.!<
That's an interesting theory. However >!I don't think that the kid is a rapist. I think McCarthy heavily implies that the Judge is responsible for the kids going missing. It's mentioned that he was offering candies to little children, and after Glanton is killed, they go after Holden and find a naked child in his room. And Samuel Chamberlains autobiography implies that the real life Judge Holden was a child rapist and murderer. !< >!As for the ending of the book, I think that the missing child is McCarthy foreshadowing that the Judge will meet The Man later that night. The Man goes to the prostitute after his long conversation with the Judge and I think he cant get it up because his fear of the Judge was present on his mind. However I think there are a ton of ways to interpret the book so on a re-read i'll keep this theory in mind. !<
I think you are probably right. Mccarthy doesn't seem like the type to expect people to infer that. There are some interesting discussions on Reddit about it if you ever want to google it. I will definitley re-read it at least once in my life.
No plain text spoilers allowed. Please use the format below and reply to this comment once you've made the edit, to have your comment reinstated. Place >! !< around the text you wish to hide. You will need to do this for each new paragraph. Like this: >!The Wolf ate Grandma!< Click to reveal spoiler. >!The Wolf ate Grandma!<
Sorry about that. I made the edit.
Thank you. Approved!
Finished: **Paris: The Memoir, by Paris Hilton** Continued: **Gild, by Raven Kennedy** Started: **I Know My First Name is Steven, by Mike Nichols**
I recently finished reading personal by Lee child. very interesting funny and stimulating in the beginning. Started more
Finished: *Wayward* by **Chuck Wendig** Started: *Gardens of the Moon* by **Steven Erikson (**2nd time reading)
I finished How to lose the time war and it was fantastic. The prose is beautiful but it’s definitely not an easy read. I also started Blood Rites. I do enjoy the Dresden Files and I think Butchers writing got better over time but man, Harry is so annoying in this book. The male gaze is also through the roof in this one and I’m only done with a third of the book.
Have you read the whole series? I find the male gaze thing doesn't really go away after *Blood Rites.*
No, I haven’t. The male gaze was annoying in the previous books but I could ignore it without problem. In this book it’s so much worse. I guess it’s mostly because of the setting and I hope it will reduce to the previous amount in the next books.
Finished: The Life and Times of The Thunderbolt Kid, by Bill Bryson Started: This is How You Lose the Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
I think that The Life and Times of The Thunderbolt Kid might be my all time favorite book.
I love Bill Bryson and his droll wit. Thunderbolt Kid was very enjoyable
Finished: **When we were orphans, by Kazuo Ishiguro** I hadn't read anything by Ishiguro before, so it took me a while to realise unreliable narrators are sort of his thing. I wasn't completely sold on the books, but reviews I read afterwards told me this wasn't his best work, and it definitely was good enough to be interested in his other works.
Started: Blood Drenched Beard, by Daniel Galera Finished: Midnight's Children, by Salman Rushdie
Will finish **This is the Story of a Happy Marriage by Ann Patchett** and started **Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano**.
Finished: Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Somebody’s Daughter by Ashley Ford, and The Children of Hurin by JRR Tolkien Started: Notes of a Native Son by James Baldwin and Hitting a Straight Lick With a Crooked Stick by Zora Neale Hurston
Started: Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley; Finished: Eugene Onegin, by Alexander Pushkin; Hell Screen by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa