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The 2nd "What are you reading now" thread

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I have a number of series books be released this month so I'm rolling around in my happy place at the moment.

1) The Phoenix Hoard - 3rd book Pearl City has just been released, I'm a few chapters in.

2) The Devils - by joe Abercrombie I've just finished. Excellent read

3) Storm and Sky - the latest Rivers of London release by Ben Aaronovitch and its spot on enjoyment as per usual.
 
Finished Green Mile (had never seen the film) it was very good but not great, more of a 3.5/5. I liked the first half much better than the second which isn't to say the second half was bad.

After that I read Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut which was OK, had some interesting strands but petered out a bit I thought - again I liked the first half better than the second and this time it was because the second half dragged a lot more I felt.

Am now going to give Infinite Jest another crack, got about 120 pages in last time before pulling the pin, I started off yesterday and got through 40 off pages pretty easily, having started it before helped as it felt a bit more fluent this time. Will see how I go, it is highly rated but may not be for me 🤷
 

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wannabewinner said:
Not yet. I started reading “ The sudden appearance of hope” by Claire but picked up a different book for a bit.
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They're very different and early into her career. I loved them but she's clearly moved on and I'm never going to get any more:cryv1:
 
Demonic Ascent said:
Finished Green Mile (had never seen the film) it was very good but not great, more of a 3.5/5. I liked the first half much better than the second which isn't to say the second half was bad.

After that I read Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut which was OK, had some interesting strands but petered out a bit I thought - again I liked the first half better than the second and this time it was because the second half dragged a lot more I felt.

Am now going to give Infinite Jest another crack, got about 120 pages in last time before pulling the pin, I started off yesterday and got through 40 off pages pretty easily, having started it before helped as it felt a bit more fluent this time. Will see how I go, it is highly rated but may not be for me 🤷
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I’ve got sirens of titan on my list.

Have you read slaughterhouse 5?
 
demondavey said:
I’ve got sirens of titan on my list.

Have you read slaughterhouse 5?
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Yeah read Slaughterhouse 5 years (decades?) ago. Also read Breakfast of Champions, Cats Cradle, Timequake and maybe one or two others, liked all of them better. After reading I realised Sirens of Titans was one of his earlier works so makes sense.

I'm about 200 pages in to Infinite Jest and it's reading easier than my last go but some of it is still a real slog. There's definitely some interesting themes emerging but I'm still waiting for it to click/come together. I'm hoping it does otherwise if it just continues along the current trajectory it will feel like a bit of a wank.
 
wannabewinner said:
Same… have a look at

All our wrong todays by Elan Mastai
The first fifteen lives of Harry August by Claire North
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I read that Harry August book and quite enjoyed it. The ending seems hotly debated as a bit of a letdown but for me it’s just a
checkmate move

Followed that up with Replay by Ken Grimwood and similar themes but I enjoyed it even more.
 
I've been reading the Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell. As I really enjoy the Napoleonic era of history it's been interesting to really look at the English campaign on the Iberian peninsula. I find that historical fiction gets me into research of what really happened and apart from Sharpe himself being purely made up, the historical facts and the battles and tactics are mostly accurate.

I've read 18 of the 25 350 page novels this year and while they are really great I needed a break. Now im reading the Last King of Ostern Ard series by Tad Williams. Read Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy as a teen and this is a follow up which he started writing 30 years later. A bit of nostalgia reading.
 

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Neese said:
I love the 2002 movie with a very young Henry Cavill and Guy Pearce
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Just watched a 8 episode show just done. Very good show. Think it's on britbox atm

m.imdb.com

The Count of Monte Cristo (TV Mini Series 2024) ⭐ 7.8 | Adventure, Drama

The Count of Monte Cristo: With Sam Claflin, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Ana Girardot, Blake Ritson. Edmond Dantes, a sailor falsely accused of treason, is imprisoned in the Château d'If off Marseille. After escaping, and adopting the identity of the Count of Monte Cristo, he plans revenge against...
m.imdb.com m.imdb.com
 
I finished Infinite Jest, it was OK, had some interesting themes but was a bit of a slog overall especially specific sections and some of the endnotes. The thing is after I finished reading it I found myself thinking about it in the days/weeks afterwards and started reading online (particularly the infinite summer forum which seems to be down now?) and download a few podcasts that discussed it. Some of the themes/stories in the book would only become apparent on a second reading but not sure I would ever go back to it. It made me think though, if you don't actually enjoy a book (or large parts of it) while you're reading it but enjoy discussing/thinking about it after you're finished is it a good book? I'm still not sure.

Anyway have started on The Brothers Karamazov now and about 400 pages in, it's good but waiting for it to really get going. I felt the same way about Crime and Punishment and ended up really liking that so hopefully this is the same.
 

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BEaston said:
Started the Farseer trilogy by Robin Hobb.
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One of my favourite authors. Most of the books set in that world are great. It's interesting as you've got two largely separate groups of series (one Farseer) that only tangentially cross until the very last series in the world where it all comes together.
 
Demonic Ascent said:
I finished Infinite Jest, it was OK, had some interesting themes but was a bit of a slog overall especially specific sections and some of the endnotes. The thing is after I finished reading it I found myself thinking about it in the days/weeks afterwards and started reading online (particularly the infinite summer forum which seems to be down now?) and download a few podcasts that discussed it. Some of the themes/stories in the book would only become apparent on a second reading but not sure I would ever go back to it. It made me think though, if you don't actually enjoy a book (or large parts of it) while you're reading it but enjoy discussing/thinking about it after you're finished is it a good book? I'm still not sure.

Anyway have started on The Brothers Karamazov now and about 400 pages in, it's good but waiting for it to really get going. I felt the same way about Crime and Punishment and ended up really liking that so hopefully this is the same.
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Finished Brothers Karamazov, it was good not great I thought, could have done with some solid editing. I was expecting some of the themes to have more depth to them. Will have to go back and read the Grand Inquisitor chapter again, that was an interesting read. Comparing to Crime and Punishment I enjoyed that one a lot more. I have The Idiot on my reading list too so will give that one a go at some point but not rushing to it.

Next on my list is a much shorter story (novella?) The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde. I listened to a podcast that discussed this recently (Weird Studies, highly recommend if you're into weird fiction, esoteric stuff and a bit of philosophy) and have had it on my bookshelf for 20+ years so thought I'd finally read it 🤣
 

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The 2nd "What are you reading now" thread

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