Author Topic: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings  (Read 286457 times)

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Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3360 on: May 07, 2021, 04:59:46 PM »
Finally getting back into The Expanse with Abaddon's Gate by James S.A. Corey



Loved the first book. How was the 2nd?
Caliban's War was a decent sequel IMO, this book was a bit weak though, except for the last quarter. Now working on the second compendium of Kirkman's Invincible

Offline Kwyjibo

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3361 on: May 08, 2021, 01:18:45 PM »
Read a couple of books since I last posted here:

Plea Of Insanity by Jilliane Hoffman

The Winter Of Frankie Machine by Don Winslow

The Lies Of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

The Day Of The Jackal by Frederick Forsyth

and currently reading

Call For The Dead by John le Carré
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3362 on: May 10, 2021, 06:34:34 AM »
Captain America: Winter Soldier Complete Collection by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3363 on: May 10, 2021, 01:29:42 PM »
Guns of the Dawn by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3364 on: May 11, 2021, 01:31:04 PM »
Cliffs of Fall: Paradox and Polyvalence in the Parables of Jesus by John Dominic Crossan
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3365 on: May 15, 2021, 05:59:40 AM »
Guns of the Dawn by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Okay, this was really good. A bit slow at times, but I highly recommend it. I also finished up reading the last volume of the Invincible comics, so I'm definitely excited to see how Kirkman adapts the rest of the run, and to how many seasons it will last (realistically, I think no more than six. I don't think fans are going to let him get away with making it another ten season show, but we'll see)



Moving on now to Saint Mick: My Journey from Hardcore Legend to Santa's Jolly Elf by Mick Foley

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3366 on: May 15, 2021, 08:19:42 PM »
Bette Davis: More Than a Woman by James Spada and The Last American Vampire by Seth Grahame-Smith
« Last Edit: May 16, 2021, 06:50:40 PM by masterthes »

Offline Kwyjibo

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3367 on: May 17, 2021, 10:39:50 AM »
Deception Point by Dan Brown
Must've been Kwyji sending all the wrong songs.   ;D

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3368 on: May 19, 2021, 11:40:25 AM »
The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3369 on: May 20, 2021, 11:25:18 AM »
450 pages into Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon and I think it's not even half of the book. Man, this guy loves to ramble. I don't know.

Honestly I understand why he added some of the viewpoints beyond the main three characters. On the other hand—and I may be completely wrong as I don't know where this book is going, perhaps it'll neatly tie all the plot points up—there's just... nothing happening mostly beyond the main plot points which are scarce. Some chapters are literally Randy and Avi and Tom and Eb discussing stuff. Some chapters are Shaftoe painting the stencils which was hilarious, I'll admit.

Honestly I just wish he sped up the plot a little bit. The premise is exciting, but I wish it was more action-packed instead of this: Lawrence Pritchard Waterhouse spends three hours to walk into Bletchley Park. He sees bees flying around. Bees are flying in patterns. Lawrence likes patterns. Sergeant Bobby Shaftoe is on a boat to who knows where. He doesn't understand what's going on, but he intends to follow the orders and not ask any questions. "Sir, yes, sir!", says Bobby Shaftoe. Randy boots up his laptop and then remembers he's ought to be at the meeting at 10 AM. Avi orders him a suit which arrives at 7 and the suit is perfectly tailored for him. Goto Dengo spoke with Shaftoe a couple of times and now he's about to lose the war. Admiral Yamamoto's feet hurt because his shoes weren't aired for a while and the climate here is shite.

All I'm saying is he'd better to stick the landing.

Okay you know, I kind of low key liked it. It felt a little bit bloated (I think you could've cut like 200 pages from this and not lose anything. Like, I didn't need 5 pages of diagrams of how Randy can't think when he gets too horny), but when I take the whole story into account, I really felt the author knew where he was going with it. All the more impressive it was written in 1999, and now, more than twenty years later, the cryptocurrency is very prominent in the world. I don't regret sticking with this book. This was interesting and even enlightening in some areas.

I'm going to quickly re-read Peace Talks and Battle Ground by Jim Butcher next now that I have physical copies of those, then move on to the last three books on my "to read" shelf, and after that I'll need a trip to my favourite bookstore I suppose
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3370 on: May 20, 2021, 01:26:50 PM »
Fantasticland by Mike Bockoven

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3371 on: May 22, 2021, 06:44:04 AM »
Last night, I read History of the Marvel Universe by Mark Waid, which I thought was pretty good and I would recommend if you want a primer on all the major events in the Marvel world leading up to current times.



And now, project time, I'm going to start reading Akira by Katshuiro Otomo. We'll see if I can get through the whole thing (and yes, I have seen the movie)

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3372 on: May 23, 2021, 07:16:39 PM »
My Year of Flops by Nathan Rabin

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3373 on: May 25, 2021, 01:12:07 PM »
getting back into some epic fantasy with Malice by John Gwynne

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3374 on: May 25, 2021, 03:14:35 PM »
Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3375 on: May 26, 2021, 11:09:16 AM »
getting back into some epic fantasy with Malice by John Gwynne

I've read A Time of Dread from him and I don't remember much about it. It was alright, a bit unremarkable I thought.
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline Cool Chris

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3376 on: May 26, 2021, 09:51:33 PM »
getting back into some epic fantasy with Malice by John Gwynne

I've read A Time of Dread from him and I don't remember much about it. It was alright, a bit unremarkable I thought.

If memory serves, that was how I felt about Malice. Enjoyed it but didn't feel compelled to read further in the series.

Trying to get through The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman now, but my normal reading time has always been right before I go to sleep, but I have been so tired as of late (and by that I mean the last year or so) that after a couple pages my mind starts to drift off and progress is glacially slow. Been like that with most books I've taken on lately.
"Nostalgia is just the ability to forget the things that sucked" - Nelson DeMille, 'Up Country'

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3377 on: May 31, 2021, 04:26:49 PM »
Another very successful reading month down the tubes

May (20)
The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller 5/2 - 5/3 *****
Abaddon’s Gate by James S.A. Corey 5/3 - 5/6 ***
Invincible, Compendium One by Robert Kirkman 5/3 - 5/7 *****
Invincible, Compendium Two by Robert Kirkman 5/7 - 5/9 *****
Guns of the Dawn by Adrian Tchaikovsky 5/10 - 5/13 ****
Invincible, Compendium Three by Robert Kirkman 5/13 - 5/14 *****
Saint Mick by Mick Foley 5/15 *****
The Last American Vampire by Seth Grahame-Smith 5/16 - 5/19 ****
The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory 5/19 - 5/20 ****
Fantasticland by Mike Bockoven 5/20 - 5/21 *****
History of the Marvel Universe by Mark Waid 5/21 ****
Akira, Vol. 1 by Katshuiro Otomo 5/22 ****
Akira, Vol. 2 by Katshuiro Otomo 5/22 ****
Akira, Vol. 3 by Katshuiro Otomo 5/22 ****
Akira, Vol. 4 by Katshuiro Otomo 5/22 ****
Akira, Vol. 5 by Katshuiro Otomo 5/23 ****
Akira, Vol. 6 by Katshuiro Otomo 5/23 ****
My Year of Flops by Nathan Rabin 5/23 - 5/24 ****
Batman: Earth One, Volume 1 by Geoff Johns 5/30 ****
Malice by John Gwynne 5/25 - 5/31 ****

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3378 on: May 31, 2021, 06:40:01 PM »
The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture by Glen Weldon. I loved his Superman "biography" last year, so I'm sure I'll love this as well

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3379 on: June 02, 2021, 01:15:10 PM »
The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture by Glen Weldon. I loved his Superman "biography" last year, so I'm sure I'll love this as well
I liked the Superman book a bit more, but this was still very good. Loved how he chronicled the movies, especially the '89 Batman. Highly recommended for fans of The Dark Knight



Anyway, back to some science fiction with The Dark That Dwells by Matt Digman and Ryan Roddy

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3380 on: June 04, 2021, 10:11:36 AM »
The Sentinel by Lee Child & Andrew Child
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3381 on: June 05, 2021, 06:56:04 PM »
The Ultimate History of the 80's Teen Movie by James King

Offline Cool Chris

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3382 on: June 06, 2021, 09:48:15 AM »
The Sentinel by Lee Child & Andrew Child

Curious of your thoughts when done.
"Nostalgia is just the ability to forget the things that sucked" - Nelson DeMille, 'Up Country'

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3383 on: June 06, 2021, 10:30:25 AM »
I'm going to quickly re-read Peace Talks and Battle Ground by Jim Butcher next now that I have physical copies of those, then move on to the last three books on my "to read" shelf, and after that I'll need a trip to my favourite bookstore I suppose

Done, now it's time to start Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3384 on: June 08, 2021, 01:13:54 PM »
Going to stick with the movies theme with a book from the people at Rotten Tomatoes called Rotten Movies We Love: Cult Classics, Underrated Gems, and Films So Bad They're Good

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3385 on: June 09, 2021, 02:42:52 PM »
Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon: Game of Thrones and the Official Untold Story of the Epic Series by James Hibberd

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3386 on: June 12, 2021, 09:29:09 AM »
Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon: Game of Thrones and the Official Untold Story of the Epic Series by James Hibberd
Well, this was excellent, as I thought it would be. If you're a fan of the show, totally recommend.



Also, just ended up finishing two very different novellas. The first was Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman. A very cute children's story. And then, of a completely different matter in the realm of psychological horror was Things Have Gotten Worse Since Last We Spoke by Eric LaRocca. Very disturbing.



Now, going to get my biography on (been reading a lot of nonfic lately. What is wrong with me?! lol) and read JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917-1956 by Frederik Logevall

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3387 on: June 14, 2021, 08:23:53 AM »
The Sentinel by Lee Child & Andrew Child

Curious of your thoughts when done.
Not one of my favorites.

It was OK.  They are all, to a certain extent, formulaic, but this one was extra formulaic.  The writing style seemed mostly consistent. 

Not sure if I will continue with the series after Lee Child exits.  Although I am looking forward to the TV show that is in development.
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3388 on: June 14, 2021, 08:40:01 AM »
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig
Hef is right on all things. Except for when I disagree with him. In which case he's probably still right.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3389 on: June 17, 2021, 01:34:26 PM »
A Shadow in Summer by Daniel Abraham

Offline Cool Chris

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3390 on: June 18, 2021, 09:00:47 PM »
The Sentinel by Lee Child & Andrew Child

Curious of your thoughts when done.
Not one of my favorites.

It was OK.  They are all, to a certain extent, formulaic, but this one was extra formulaic.  The writing style seemed mostly consistent. 

Not sure if I will continue with the series after Lee Child exits.  Although I am looking forward to the TV show that is in development.

That was basically my assessment. I enjoyed it more than the last couple offerings. Maybe Lee was indeed burning out a bit.

Did not know there was a series planned.
"Nostalgia is just the ability to forget the things that sucked" - Nelson DeMille, 'Up Country'

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3391 on: June 21, 2021, 02:36:34 AM »
The Hidden Palace by Helene Wecker. The Golem and the Jinni was one of my favorite books of 2013, so let's see how the sequel is

Offline Evermind

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3392 on: June 21, 2021, 11:59:06 AM »
Done, now it's time to start Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith

Finished this, this was way better than Lethal White, was pretty much hooked for the whole book. Spent 3+ hours in the mornings during my vacation reading this.

Next up, Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett
This first band is Soen very cool swingy jazz fusion kinda stuff.

Offline masterthes

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3393 on: June 24, 2021, 03:30:54 AM »
Being a fan of 70s music, I think I'm going to like 1973: Rock at the Crossroads by Andrew Grant Jackson

Offline vtgrad

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Re: The Currently Reading Thread v. A Clash of Kings
« Reply #3394 on: June 24, 2021, 11:52:43 AM »
Haven't been here in a while... I'll throw in my last few:

Dreams of Terror and Death- H.P. Lovecraft
The Witch-Cult in Western Europe- Margaret Murray (eye opening)
Necronomicon- HPL (several of the stories multiple times... love this book and revisit it often)
Beyond Order- Jordan Peterson
Great God Pan and other weird tales- Arthur Machen
The Poems of T.S. Eliot- T.S. Eliot
The Taint and other Novellas- Brian Lumley
The Burrowers Beneath- Brian Lumley
"Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter; Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man."  Ecclesiastes 12:13

Now with Twitler taking a high end steak of this caliber and insulting the cow that died for it by having it well done just shows zero respect for the product, which falls right in line with the amount of respect he shows for pretty much everything else.- Lonestar