November 2020 Reading Thread

[The Judge]

Well, those of us who live in England are going to be doing a lot of reading over the next four weeks, since there's bugger all else we'll be allowed to do, but whether you're trapped here or no, what books are you keeping company with this month?

As for me, I'll be starting Knight's Shadow, the second in Sebastien de Castell's Greatcoats series. I had reservations about the previous book thanks to a rather rushed and disappointing ending, but I'm hoping for better things here.

 

[HareBrain]

About halfway through my reread of The Magus by John Fowles. This is one of my favourite books, and thanks to my terrible memory, I can experience its mysteries afresh each time.

 

[Danny McG]

I'm starting another of the James Patterson formulaistic crime stories this morning (co-authored with Chris Tebbits)
1st Case

 

[tobl]

Well, those of us who live in England are going to be doing a lot of reading over the next four weeks, since there's bugger all else we'll be allowed to do, but whether you're trapped here or no, what books are you keeping company with this month?

As for me, I'll be starting Knight's Shadow, the second in Sebastien de Castell's Greatcoats series. I had reservations about the previous book thanks to a rather rushed and disappointing ending, but I'm hoping for better things here.

you know i have the same problem in Portugal lol aldo we are still able to go to work or so. Anyway i can send you some annoying work of finishing my thesis if you want

 

[Rodders]

Unfortunately, I'm still reading Iain M. Banks's Surface Detail. It is proving to be quite an exquisite novel, but i am just not getting much time to read.

 

[Randy M.]

Finishing the last story in A Nest of Nightmares by Lisa Tuttle, a really good story collection. Next up, probably another collection, though I'm not positive which one. Probably mystery/crime.

 

[hitmouse]

Have just read The Plagiarist in the Kitchen by Jonathan Meades. This is a very iconoclastic cookbook/ kitchen philosophy by the well-known critic. Meades makes the point that there is really very little scope for true originality in cooking: it has all been done before, and the average celeb chef cookbook is disingenuous if they suggest that their new cookbook presents anything other than variations on established recipes. This book, then, is Meades’ very opinionated, acerbic and funny take on his favourite food. Useful and practical. He is clearly well read and travelled on his subject. The title itself is taken from the (vg) Pedant in the Kitchen by Julian Barnes.

 

[Hugh]

Robert Silverberg "Dying Inside" (1972)
Just finished and still digesting -it seems likely to be one of those books that sinks in more as the days go by. It's been highly recommended by others here, and at first I wondered whether I'd get into it - it's not the kind of book that sweeps me away, but it's well written and very readable. The main themes of ageing, loss of vitality, alienation, self-disgust and some kind of self-acceptance are not overdone but creep up on you.

 

[vanye]

As for me, I'll be starting Knight's Shadow, the second in Sebastien de Castell's Greatcoats series. I had reservations about the previous book thanks to a rather rushed and disappointing ending, but I'm hoping for better things here.

I, too, thought that the first book was just good enough to whet my appetite for the sequel. Don‘t think I‘ll ever ead the third, though.

 

[The Judge]

Well, that's dispiriting, especially as I've already bought books 3 & 4!

 

[vanye]

Ooops. Sorry, didn’t mean to put you off!

 

[Danny McG]

One I haven't read for a long time, I think when I originally read it I gave it a DNF but I'm trying again.
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle

 

[AE35Unit]

To be honest I spend most of the time watching TV, binge watching box sets. Reading is done at bed time and in the morning. Still on Skeleton Crew by King

 

[Parson]

Finished Radiation Hazard by Laurence E. Dahners --- not one of his best but a lot better that a lot of the other stuff I read. Why? because it's hopeful and science forward. Next up the follow up to Radiation Hazard, Halting the Reaper by Laurence E. Dahners book 4 in "The Stasis Series." It already looks better than Radiation Hazard. I'm happy.

 

[Danny McG]

One I haven't read for a long time, I think when I originally read it I gave it a DNF but I'm trying again.
Golden Witchbreed by Mary Gentle

Nah, DNF again..
It's got too many characters with a full sentence (and multiple punctuation marks) for a name, my brain just can't follow it.

I've a crime thriller to try instead, The Guilty Man by Helen H Durrant

 

[kythe]

I just finished The Einstein Intersection by Samuel R. Delaney. Wow, was that ever a weird - and unsatisfying - story. It was hard to follow and understand, and so open-ended there was no real conclusion at all. Nova was a strong story that felt deeper than a typical adventure due to its allegorical nature and ties with literature. The Einstein Intersection has a very interesting premise, but was too philosophical at the expense of a good story and characters. Even after finishing it and mulling over it, I'm not sure what it was about. The writing style was very poetic and the theme of the hero's journey is usually good, but I don't feel this story pulled it off.

I like stories that draw on mythology because they help us understand who we are as humans. But I think Neil Gaiman does much better handling these concepts than Delany. Despite this, I'm considering giving Babel-17 a try. It seems to explore a unique idea, this time about the nature of language.

 

[BigBadBob141]

Half way through "Dead Lies Dreaming" by Charles Stross, very good so far, not part of but similar to his Laundry series, this is probably a different universe, must read more of his stuff, excellent writer!

 

[Vince W]

After spending the last two months moving I finally had some time to read again. Finished The Pillars of Eternity by Barrington J. Bailey. Not a bad little book but as a science fiction book it owes more to Michael Moorcock and Robert E. Howard than it does Asimov or Clarke. It explores a number of philosophical outlooks but none of them too deeply. I felt the end left me rather flat.

 

[Thiswriterinme]

Currently, I am reading Petals on the Wind by V. C. Andrews, Esoteric Anatomy by Bruce Burger, Verath the Red by Melissa Mitchell (free on Wattpad), and Sunset: Book One of the Nightlord Series by Garon Whited. I'm also listening to The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri on audiobook. I'm a restless reader and I like to have options to switch through.

While I usually enjoy pretty much everything I read, I'm not as excited about V. C. Andrews's writing style as I was when I initially read her Dollanganger Children book series about ten years ago. The Wattpad book I'm reading is the third in a series of self-published books. The story is interesting, but unfortunately, it plays off of all the overdone fantasy tropes. As an avid fantasy reader, I'm a little played out on those tropes, even if they are popular for a lot of good reasons. The story itself is unique and the characters are interesting though.

I try to balance my reading with classics, non-fiction, fiction, and some self-published titles by new and aspiring authors. As a writer, I believe that the more I read, the more I can grow as a writer. Even though I tend to write in the fantasy and science fiction genres, I like to read across all genres to broaden my own style and to experience the writing style of others. It keeps me busy, but I can finish two to three books a month, so these five are all on my list for November.

 

[Randy M.]

Welcome aboard, Thiswriterinme.

Randy M.