What else are you reading?

[MattC]

Need to read GoT series, need to read more period. Seems like I dont have the time, with comics, tbletop gaming, vgaming and work and school, but currently reading Catching Fire. I wish I didnt see the movie before I started reading that series.

[Jay Tomio - Part Deux]

By some strange coincidence a couple of copies of Martin's A Storm of Swords arrived in the mail today, might mean I might have to start what would have to be my 20th + reread.

[Kenney]

By some strange coincidence a couple of copies of Martin's A Storm of Swords arrived in the mail today, might mean I might have to start what would have to be my 20th + reread.

So what you're saying is you think those books are pretty decent? I've never read anything that many times, let alone something as long as the GoT books. Color me impressed.

[Jay Tomio - Part Deux]

So what you're saying is you think those books are pretty decent? I've never read anything that many times, let alone something as long as the GoT books. Color me impressed.

I'm a habitual rereader in general. If I like a book I've read it a half dozen times. In this case I've read A Storm of Swords the least amount of times of the series because I always came away with the thought it is Martin's best installment by far.

I will say that more than other book or cycle of books it has without the question the most in-between the lines and throwaway but not throwaway sentences, red herrings and not red herrings of any book I've read. There's definitely more debate/conversation/mystery points in this series than anything I've ever read, probably by the dozens. I definitely get more out of this read than anything other than maybe Erikson's Malazan series, another long series.

I kind of go in cycles and get into kicks. One month read Saramago, one month McCarthy, one month Edward Whittemore , one month Ishiguro, Mishima Yukio, Kobo Abe, or Ben Okri, another month will be Gene Wolfe or Neal Stephenson, and so on.

It's probably just an extension of addictive personality.

[the other mike]

I'm a habitual rereader in general. If I like a book I've read it a half dozen times. In this case I've read A Storm of Swords the least amount of times of the series because I always came away with the thought it is Martin's best installment by far.

I will say that more than other book or cycle of books it has without the question the most in-between the lines and throwaway but not throwaway sentences, red herrings and not red herrings of any book I've read. There's definitely more debate/conversation/mystery points in this series than anything I've ever read, probably by the dozens. I definitely get more out of this read than anything other than maybe Erikson's Malazan series, another long series.

I kind of go in cycles and get into kicks. One month read Saramago, one month McCarthy, one month Edward Whittemore , one month Ishiguro, Mishima Yukio, Kobo Abe, or Ben Okri, another month will be Gene Wolfe or Neal Stephenson, and so on.

It's probably just an extension of addictive personality.

same here (though not to quite jay's extent! that's hard core, man!).

although, my tastes have broadened in the last decade or so, and my re-reading has slackened some. there are simply just too many new awesome books out there, i NEED to consume them all. i fear missing out on the next phenom author or book.

authors and books i've re-read include stephen king's it, the stand, eyes of the dragon and talisman, dead koontz' lightning, twilight eyes and watchers, robert mccammon's swan song, wolf's hour, they thirst and stinger, weis and hickman's dragonlance chronicles and legends (planning to re-read their unique rose of the prophet series soon!), GRRM's game of thones, RA salvatore's forgotten realms halfling's gem series, raymond feist's riftwar saga... and a bunch more that i can't remember. ken follet (there's a good one.). bernard cornwell...

some authors really hold up surprisingly well on the re-read. for example, stephen king's books are like talking with your best friend, and very easy to fall into familiar conversational rhythms. what's more, the more mature/smarter i get, the more new stuff i pick up and appreciate that i missed from the previous pass.


-mike 

[Jay Tomio - Part Deux]

oooh...Dark Elf Trilogy used to be in heavy rotation.

I will say that my addiction(s) have been aided in that I've had a shitload of free time in much of my adult life, though it's probably telling that I spent many days that I was suspended in high school in a library.

ken follet (there's a good one.)

I had an odd streak when I used to talk to/run into various (relatively minor) Tv personalities, who'd sayPillars of the Earth was their favorite book. I haven't yet got to the tv adaptations, which do have nice casts, but they are on netflix. There are at least 2 dozen hot young actresses who love that book - I wonder if a script was going around that time or something.

[the other mike]

anybody here read the atrocity archives by charles stross? i finished it a few days ago and its fascinating stuff.

basically its urban fantasy meets hard sci-fi; its like lovecraft meets william gibson meets office space. its about an IT dept. drone who works for 'the laundry', britain's version of BPRD. bored out of his mind fixing computers (and magic-tech) and hating his boss, he transfers to active operations and becomes a sort of spy. the plot that follows is essentially urban fantasy meat and potatoes. what's fascinating however is stross applying hard science and science fiction to fantasy, sounding like a grant morrison comic explaining lovecraftian old ones and other-dimensional possession. i could understand the words individually, but not together.

he describes how a character is turned into stone (medusa-style) and talks about how protons suddenly get extra electrons (paraphrasing) and how the person's carbon atoms suddenly become silicon, and the energy created/expended flash-fries the soft organs...

or the fact he's got magic spells in his phone. (he just brings up an app.) or the part where he explains how a hand of glory works...

anyhoo, i just thought it was really cool, and i'm definitely gonna check out the other books of the series.


-mike

[Jay Tomio - Part Deux]

I've read everything by Stross minus the Saturn's Children books and The Apocalypse Codex. He started out as an exciting new SF author who kind of got less interesting over time.

[Nojfotra (Jonathan D. Gordon)]

I've been re-reading the oral history of ESPN: These guys have all the fun. I love that book.

[the other mike]

I've read everything by Stross minus the Saturn's Children books and The Apocalypse Codex. He started out as an exciting new SF author who kind of got less interesting over time.

reading amazon reviews, that's what i gathered. for example, i absolutely fell in love with book 1 of his merchant books. fantastic concept and engaging story. then i read the following 3 books, and while they were still entertaining, they lost some focus and steam. they still had some great action and sci-fi concepts, but the protagonist's arc stalled for a while there, and the story had to play catch-up when he introduced new POV characters.

i love urban fantasy, so i'm curious to see where his laundry books go.


-mike

[Jay Tomio - Part Deux]

He just struck me as someone who probably had 3 good books in him, but successfully struck when he looked hot and now has a bloated catalog.

He probably reached his apex with Accelerando but even that and Singularity Sky don't really hold up to in hindsight to what they were being propped up to be, or rather, what they truly were when they came out.

[Lawrence]

I wanted to buy a new book this weekend but instead dove into my comics regina pile, why?

Because tomorrow Joe Hills new book NOS4A2 hits the shelves!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Collarbone666]

I'm just about finished with Hunter S. Thompson's Songs of the Doomed. It had a bit of a slow start for me but picked up as it went along.