No, we're not doing a 2018 Book Challenge just as we didn't do a 2017 Book Challenge.
But we here at Infomaniac would like to know if you read any interesting books this year. And what are you currently reading?
At the moment, The Mistress is reading this...
... which is a coincidence because Charles Manson has finally gone to hell.
Books ? Will have a look.
ReplyDeleteI know you won’t disappoint, Mago.
DeleteAll the Birds in the Sky is a 2016 science fantasy novel by American writer and editor Charlie Jane Anders. I liked it.
ReplyDeleteJEFFERY: A comment on “Goodreads.com” says, “This is one weirdass book.”
DeleteThat’s enough to intrigue me.
I read it in 24 hours. A page turner for me.
DeleteOoh, yes! "All the birds..." is a great book! Science AND magic - what's not to like?!
DeleteAs long as it’s not a Star Trek book, I’m in.
DeleteI was living in LA during the Manson era. Total five-alarm local media freakout after the Tate/celebrity murders hit at the heart of Tinseltown.
ReplyDeleteI did later read the book Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi who prosecuted the case.
LX: I read “Helter Skelter” twice, back in the day because I was both horrified and fascinated by the cult of Manson.
DeleteYour recollections of life in Manson-era LA would make an interesting blog post. Unless you’ve previously done one and I’ve forgotten. I forget some of my own posts!
I just finished The Stolen Lake by Joan Aiken. Yes I know it's one of her children's books but one i missed in her Wolves Chronicle series.
ReplyDeleteILDUCE: Thanks for bringing the “Wolves Chronicles” series to my attention.
DeleteIs it best to read them in order?
I have read just as many books as I did in 2016. Funny, as I love going to literary evenings so much, that I rarely get into the frame of mind to read any of them. Jx
ReplyDeleteJON: Sometimes it’s just comforting to see books, waiting there for you to eventually read them.
DeleteWe are surrounded by them... Jx
DeleteGoogle the "Collyer Brothers," Jon.
DeleteWe may have a collection, but not "pickled human organs, hundreds of yards of unused silk and fabric, the folding top of a horse-drawn carriage and the chassis of an old Model T". Thus far. Jx
DeleteJON: Give it time. You’re still young-ish.
DeleteCurrently I am about a third of the way through reading The Sound of Building Coffins. It’s bizarre. The main character and his siblings are all named for infectious diseases: Typhus, Diptheria, Cholera, Malaria and Dropsy. Something about their minister father and these being vehicles to a quicker path to God. Last night we were in a voodoo trance so we’ll see how the rest evolves.
ReplyDeleteHAYWARD: It is 1891 in New Orleans, and young Typhus Morningstar cycles under the light of the half-moon to fulfill his calling, re-birthing aborted foetuses in the fecund waters of the Mississippi River.
DeleteYou Bitches read some weird shit. Yet I’m tempted to read this.
I started "The Slow Waltz of Turtles" but gave up early.It seemed very pedestrian.I wonder if that's because it's an English translation of the French original?
ReplyDeleteDINAHMOW: I read Katherine Pancol’s “The Yellow Eyes of Crocodiles” in the original French and enjoyed it so it’s possible something was lost in translation with her books.
DeleteI"m reading a book in French, but I must tell you, I love the pic.
ReplyDeleteRAINETTE: Is it a Katherine Pancol book, by any chance?
DeleteNope ; Michel Tremblay un Québécois comme moi.
DeleteRAINETTE: Le père du théâtre québécois.
Deletei love him.
DeleteI've just finished reading The Valley Of Secrets by Charmian Hussey, it had me gripped until I discovered that the thing visiting the house wasn't supernatural at all but an old man from the Amazon, who lives in a hidden cave on the estate. It got a bit boring after that, but beautifully written. 6/10
ReplyDeleteMITZI: From reviews I’ve read on “Goodreads,” people either love that book or hate it.
DeleteFor example: This book was so boring I almost didn't finish it. But, sadly, I did and made some of my brain cells die in the process.
I actually reread an old fave from high school, The Icewind Dale trilogy, this summer. That inspired me to take on the entire line of Forgotten Realms novels. So far, I've read over 80% of the novels in the Forgotten Realms settings. I was surprised at the differing writers interpretations and styles. What's canon and set by one writer is contested, even contradicted by another. And a good half of the books were ok. A few, I couldn't finish because they're awful. But I did come away with a few good ones.
ReplyDeleteIf you like Fantasy novels, try the Brimstone Angels series by Erin M. Evans. It was different and entertaining. I also liked the tone of The Last Mythal series by Richard Lee Byers. The Year of Rogue Dragons, also by Richard Lee Byers, was an interesting series. And though dark at times, Richard Lee Byers drew me into the The Haunted Lands and follow up Brotherhood of the Griffon series.
DeleteFor a stand alone novel, there were quite a few grouped under a theme; I like Crypt of the Moaning Diamond, by Rosemary Jones; War in Tethyr by Victor Milan; City of the Dead by Rosemary Jones; and The God Catcher by Erin M. Evans.
I thought of writing reviews on the books, but I'm not done with the line of Forgotten Realms books. And at this point, I feel guilty, because I'm recognizing the authors and their writing styles, and I've all ready picked out the ones I like from those I don't gel with.
EROS: The “Forgotten Realms” series didn’t really look appealing to me until I noticed that one of the characters is a succubus.
DeleteI'm slowly (intentionally) making my way thru Ma'am Darling- 99 Glimpses of Princess Margaret.
ReplyDeleteA few of the glimpses have been a bit thick & stodgy for me, but many are a delight. I'm hoping to see some of these prickly bon mots & barbs pop up in upcoming seasons of "The Crown."
NORMA: I see that the Guardian describes this book as “naughty” so that alone makes me want to explore further.
DeleteThe Guardian goes on to say about Margaret… How to explain the utter rottenness of her character? In the end, one feels it must go back to her relationship with her mother, the stench of which brings to mind scent left too long in the bottle.
I understand your wish to linger over the pages. Some books are to be slowly savoured.
What un-godly words the reviewer uses !
DeleteI would never do that. There is a need for at least a little bit of decorum. Margaret may have some issues or even flaws, but call her a "rotten character" is a bit full. Why insult ? It helps nobody, and in the end - at least from my perspective - harms the critic, the insulter.
One can use fire & brimstone, and can get personal, ad hominem, but there should be a very good reason. I doubt that Margaret deserves that one speaks about her in this way, at that publicly and in print. Sorry, but something like this vexes me, it's simply not how we should deal with each other.
The Guardian is rather an anti-Royalist paper. I think Margaret sounded rather fun! Jx
DeleteThank you fro reminding me to read this book!
DeleteSx