What are you reading this week of May 21, 2017?

[hermetic]

I'm still reading The Stars, My Destination by Alfred Bester. It's quite enjoyable.

Been really busy getting veggies planted IN pots this year since nothing survived last year. Also enjoyed a fun trip to a B&N a couple days ago. Haven't been in one for many years and my sweetie likes to spend time in their cafe, writing. This gave me much time to explore and I discovered their discount table and went a little crazy.

So, what's bringing you enjoyment these days?

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. Pines by Blake Crouch.

It's the first of the trilogy (other two are Wayward and The Last Town) that the series Wayward Pines is based on. I watched the first episode or two of the series and decided I wanted to read the books first. So far, so good.

[hermetic]

3. Cool!

I don't have television so never heard of the series but I do live in Idaho and am a sci fi fan so I will be looking more into this. Mr. Crouch has a book at my library called Dark Matter which also sounds interesting..."A mind-bending, relentlessly paced science-fiction thriller, in which an ordinary man is kidnapped, knocked unconscious--and awakens in a world inexplicably different from the reality he thought he knew."

So, evidently I have much to look forward to from this author. Thanks!

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

14. I don't have a TV either. But I watch a fair amount

via the internet. Best part? No commercials.

I've read Dark Matter and it's quite good. Go for it!

[PoorMonger]

15. Sounds Good!

I was sorta interested in that when I saw the first commercials - but like most TV shows I let it slip my mind till it was too late. Didn't even know it was based on anything.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

16. It's on Netflix or Hulu or Amazon Prime.

One of those, anyway. I may or may not bother to resume watching after I've read the books.

Blake Crouch is a pretty decent writer.

[cyclonefence]

2. Our Mutual Friend

My favorite Dickens novel. I read aloud to my husband, who has ADHD, while he has football or some other sports event on tv, muted. ADD people are amazing in their ability to pay attention to multiple things at once.

Our favorite book this year has been Tristram Shandy, which neither of us had read before. It is hilarious.

[hermetic]

5. What a nice thing to do

I've always enjoyed reading aloud to others. Never read Tristram Shandy but it certainly sounds like I should some day. Thanks for joining in.

[northoftheborder]

10. Our Mutual Friend, had not heard of

will look up - thanks for hint. Also, I haven't read Tristram Shandy.

I'm listening to "The Women in the Castle" by Jessica Shattuk.

Survivors of WWII - this time - Germans, women and their children, whose husbands were part of the German Resistance and who tried to assassinate Hitler, failed, then were killed themselves. Have read plenty of books of the era, about other war survivors, Polish, Jewish people, the English, French, Italian. But not all Germans were Nazi's, and it is interesting to learn how hard it was for these people to also survive the devastation of that war.

[cyclonefence]

11. I can't recommend Tristram Shandy highly enough

It is a masterpiece and I don't know why it wasn't taught in any of my English literature classes.

And Our Mutual Friend has an author's note asserting that human spontaneous combustion is a real thing (important to the plot)!

[TexasProgresive]

4. I finished "Gallow's View" by Peter Robinson

It was really good getting an insight on the younger Alan Banks when he was happy in York, happy with his wife and children. And the mysteries were good as well. I'm back in non-fiction and worse bicycle racing non-fiction Slaying the Badger:Greg Lemond, Bernard Hinault and the Greatest Tour de France by Richard Moore. It has been gripping so far but I imagine it would not work for someone who is not obsessed with cycle racing. I don't have the grit to race, but I love cycling, both to ride and watch.

I may start reading books by Mark Gimenez. They seemed to be lawyer oriented.
http://www.markgimenez.com/books/

[hermetic]

6. We all have our little niches, after all

Mr. Giminez looks interesting. My library has most of his books, surprisingly. Be sure to let us know what you think.

[Runningdawg]

7. The Golem and the Jinn by Helene Wecker

It's modern day fairy tale set in Jewish and Syrian enclaves of turn-of-the-century NYC. It's also a page turner, I started it on Thursday and will finish it within the hour. I borrow most of my books from the library and then purchase the best to add to my library. A copy has already been ordered from Amazon. I rarely say this, but I really hope this one becomes a movie.

[hermetic]

8. Ohhhh, that sounds interesting

Like a Neil Gaiman kind of story...weaving strands of Yiddish and Middle Eastern literature, historical fiction and magical fable. AND my library actually has it so I look forward to reading it myself, soon. Thanks!

[OxQQme]

13. Neil Gaiman has a new book entitled 'Norse Mythology'

I'll be reading that, after I finish with Pattison's 'Water Touching Stone'.

Loved all of Neil's previous books.

[pscot]

9. The Chatelet Apprentice by Jean-Francois Parot

Police procedural set in 1760. There's a French TV series based on Parot's books. Still struggling with Lincoln in the Bardo. I'm also reading Speedboat by Renata Adler plus The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett. We've been doing some planting as well. Tomatoes will go in today. This is the 1st 70 degree day we've seen since last October.

[hermetic]

27. Dare I say

You've been longer in the Bardo than Lincoln?

Wow, now I really must read Speedboat.

"When members of the National Book Critics Circle were polled to see which book they would most like to see republished, they chose Speedboat—“by far.” This story of a young female newspaper reporter coming of age in New York City was originally published serially in the New Yorker; it is made out of seemingly unrelated vignettes—tart observations distilled through relentless intellect—which add up to an analysis of our brittle, urban existence. It remains as fresh as when it was first published.

"

For some reason that reminds me of a review someone wrote here a few months(?) ago though I feel quite certain that was not the title. hmmm

[pscot]

32. The Bardo is kind of a downer

I'm struggling with it. Speedboat OTOH, is an entertaining ride.

[OxQQme]

12. Water Touching Stone (Inspector Shan Tao Yun Series #2)

If you wonder what it's like in Tibet, Eliot Pattison describes Tibetan life and the grandeur of a country besieged by the Red Army.

Shan is the lead character. A previous high ranking police inspector in Beijing, brought down by a higher political figure.
Sent to a gulag for five years where he was tazed, beaten, tattooed with an ID number and put to work digging holes.
There, he is touched by Buddhist monks who are also prisoners, and has a change of heart about who he has been.
His character makes me think of the tv series, Columbo.


In Water Touching Stone, the sequel to the internationally acclaimed The Skull Mantra, Shan Tao Yun is cloistered in a remote Tibetan sanctuary when he receives shattering news. A teacher revered by the oppressed has been found slain and, one by one, her orphaned students have followed her to her grave, victims of a killer harboring unfathomable motives. Abandoning his mountain hermitage, Shan Tao Yun, a former Beijing police inspector who has been exiled to Tibet, embarks on a search for justice. Shadowed by bizarre tales of an unleashed 'demon,' Shan braces himself for even darker imaginings as he stalks a killer and fights to restore spiritual balance to the ancient and tenuous splendor of Tibet.

[hermetic]

20. I really enjoy Pattison's stories

I have a little trouble keeping up with the names, though. I have to keep a list close at hand for whenever anyone shows up mid-book.
You might also enjoy Colin Cotterill's Dr. Siri Paiboun books about one of the last doctors left in Laos after the Communist takeover. Dr. Siri finds many mysteries in his daily dealings.

[PoorMonger]

17. The Unquiet Dead by Asuma Zehanant Khan

(Getty & Khattak #1)

“Khan is a refreshing original, and The Unquiet Dead blazes what one hopes will be a new path guided by the author's keen understanding of the intersection of faith and core Muslim values, complex human nature and evil done by seemingly ordinary people. It is these qualities that make this a debut to remember and one that even those who eschew the [mystery] genre will devour in one breathtaking sitting.” ―The LA Times

Despite their many differences, Detective Rachel Getty trusts her boss, Esa Khattak, implicitly. But she's still uneasy at Khattak's tight-lipped secrecy when he asks her to look into Christopher Drayton's death. Drayton's apparently accidental fall from a cliff doesn't seem to warrant a police investigation, particularly not from Rachel and Khattak's team, which handles minority-sensitive cases. But when she learns that Drayton may have been living under an assumed name, Rachel begins to understand why Khattak is tip-toeing around this case. It soon comes to light that Drayton may have been a war criminal with ties to the Srebrenica massacre of 1995.

If that's true, any number of people might have had reason to help Drayton to his death, and a murder investigation could have far-reaching ripples throughout the community. But as Rachel and Khattak dig deeper into the life and death of Christopher Drayton, every question seems to lead only to more questions, with no easy answers. Had the specters of Srebrenica returned to haunt Drayton at the end, or had he been keeping secrets of an entirely different nature? Or, after all, did a man just fall to his death from the Bluffs?

In her spellbinding debut The Unquiet Dead, Ausma Zehanat Khan has written a complex and provocative story of loss, redemption, and the cost of justice that will linger with readers long after turning the final page.

[hermetic]

21. That sounds quite good

The Srebrenica massacre was such a horrid event, I imagine the book might make some people uncomfortable.

[PoorMonger]

22. Musical Suggestion - Lilies

https://m.

From the 2012 Bat For Lashes album , A Haunted Man.

This one fits for symbolism and lyrical content moreso than the kinda creepy Labyrinth like video.

[hermetic]

24. Lovely voice

I found the video rather amusing. Guess she conquered her demons. Labyrinth is one of my favorite movies. Actually just watched it again last week.

[Number9Dream]

18. Finished "Sisterhood of Dune" by Brian Herbert & Kevin Anderson

This book was interesting enough to get me to finish it. However, I wouldn't advise others to read it unless they plan to read the two sequel books of the Dune schools trilogy. At the end of this book, the individuals and factions I was rooting for had taken a beating (depressing). I think I'll pass on the two sequels (at least for some time).

[hermetic]

19. Thanks for that

As much as I've always loved Dune, I don't really feel like investing so much more time in that story these days. Someday, maybe...

[japple]

23. Hi everyone. Many thanks for the thread, hermetic. I've been among the missing

for awhile. I'm back now, but still reading the same book. Spent time pet/housesitting for a friend in western NC which, coincidentally, is the setting for the book I'm (still) reading: Michael Cogdill's She-Rain. There has been quite a lot of development in this area since the 1920s, but it is still beautiful and touches my soul like no other place I've ever been or lived. I should have reduced the size of the pictures, but that didn't occur to me until after I downloaded them. The 1st one is in Madison County, NC and the other is the French Broad River outside of Asheville. Both feature prominently in the book I'm reading.

[hermetic]

25. Glad to see you

I have long been fascinated by the Carolinas. Visited twice, once just driving north from Florida and once to spend a week in Myrtle Beach. Such gorgeous scenery abounds, as we can see from your pics. Thanks for that. I've always been stunned by how deep the woods can be.

[matt819]

26. Got a few going

Almost done with Nest by Terry Goodkind. Just in case you were getting just a bit complacent that people are fundamentally kind and decent. They aren't. Also, a primer on the darknet. Keep thinking I'll put it down, but I want to see where it's going.

Just started The Twenty-three by Linwood Barclay, the fourth in the Promise Falls series. I don't remember if I read the first book in the series, though I did read The Promise. Lots of story lines to keep track of, but he's a good writer and a good story teller. The likeable characters are likeable, and the not so likeable ones are appalling. Once I finish Nest, I'll get rolling faster on this one.

Listening to the latest from Jo Nesbo, The Thirst. So far, so good.

Just finished listening to To Kingdom Come, second in a series by Will Thomas, about a 19th century - books take place in 1884 - private detective, Cyrus Barker, told by his own Watson, 22-year-old Welshman, Thomas Llewellyn. Excellent narrator, clever (enough) story lines. The author incorporates a number of figures in the books who eventually become prominent in their real lives into the 20th century.

Also listened last week to the latest Lincoln Rhyme from Jeffery Deaver, The Burial Hour. The book devolved from a possible murder mystery (mainly kidnappings) to a spy story. I don't like spy stories. So that was disappointing. But he introduced a new character, an Italian forestry-type cop who gets swept into the investigation. I don't know if we'll see this character again, since this book took place mostly in Italy. Which is too bad, because this character was the main appeal of the book.

Another recent listen, The Golden Prey, by John Sandford. It's funny. While the Lincoln Rhyme novels are getting a little long in the tooth in my view, I can read and listen to John Sandford as much now as in his early days.

[hermetic]

28. You sure do have a few

I thought The Nest was wicked funny.

My library has a couple of Barclay's books which sound like they'd be enjoyable (mysterious) reading so thanks for that. Had never heard of him before.

Not really a fan of spy novels, either.

I never realized Sandford was funny. I read one of his very first Prey novels long ago but I tend to stay away from series like that which just keep putting out new books every year as I dislike redundancy. Might have to give The Golden Prey a look, though.

Thanks for joining in.

[trixie2]

29. I'm reading Hominids by Sawyer (part of the Neanderthal Parallax series)

Here is a summary from Goodreads:

Neanderthals have developed a radically different civilization on a parallel Earth. A Neanderthal physicist, Ponter Boddit, accidentally passes from his universe into a Canadian underground research facility. Fortunately, a team of human scientists, including expert paleo-anthropologist Mary Vaughan, promptly identifies and warmly receives Ponter. Solving the language problem and much else is a mini-computer, called a Companion, implanted in the brain of every Neanderthal. A computerized guardian spirit, however, doesn't eliminate cross-cultural confusion; permanent male-female sexuality, rape, and overpopulation are all alien to Ponter. Nor can it help his housemate and fellow scientist back in his world, Adikor Huld, when the authorities charge Adikor with his murder.

[hermetic]

30. Well,

good thing Ponter ended up in Canada and not here, right? Yeah, I know, they have their foibles, too, but you know we would have locked him up right away instead of trying to understand him.

Regardless, sounds like a good story. Thanks for sharing it.

[trixie2]

34. Linking Paleo fiction with politics?

You are the big winner! Ding, ding ding!

[PoorMonger]

31. Where It Hurts by Reed Farrel Coleman

(Gus Murphy #1)

Nominated for the 2017 Edgar Award for Best Novel

From the critically acclaimed and award-winning author comes a gritty, atmospheric new series about the other side of Long Island, far from the wealth of the Hamptons, where real people live—and die.

Gus Murphy thought he had the world all figured out. A retired Suffolk County cop, Gus had everything a man could want: a great marriage, two kids, a nice house, and the rest of his life ahead of him. But in the course of a single deadly moment, his family is blown apart, and he is transformed from a man who believes he understands everything into a man who understands nothing.
Now divorced and working as a courtesy van driver for a run-down hotel, Gus has settled into a mindless, soulless routine. But his comfortable waking trance comes to an end when ex-con Tommy Delcamino asks him for help. Four months earlier, the battered body of Tommy’s son TJ was discovered in a wooded lot, yet the Suffolk County PD doesn’t seem interested in pursuing the killers. In desperation, Tommy seeks out the only cop he ever trusted—Gus Murphy.
Gus reluctantly agrees to see what he can uncover, and as he begins to investigate, he finds that Tommy was telling the truth. Everyone involved with the late TJ Delcamino—from his best friend, to a gang enforcer, to a Mafia capo, and even the police—has something to hide, and all are willing to go to extreme lengths to keep it hidden. It’s a dangerous favor Gus has taken on as he claws his way back to take a place among the living, while searching through the sewers for a killer.

[PoorMonger]

36. Song Suggestion - 'Tears In Heaven'

https://m.

I tried to think of something that was less heart wrenching for this one - but I kept coming back to this as a classic song about loss. This is a fantastic book though for anyone who likes crime fiction. Best start to a series I've come to in a while. Wanted to get the second book in the series which recently released , but it was checked out of the library.

[hermetic]

38. Sounds like a good story

and your music suggestion sounds quite apt. Cool.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

33. Finished "Pines"

Almost done with "Wayward", will start "The Last Town", the final novel in the series, later today. A quick read and I'm enjoying it a lot. I think I will go back and watch the entire series when I'm done. Yes, I'll know what's coming, but it will be interesting to see it performed.

[hermetic]

37. I found a used DVD

of Wayward Pines, Season 1, so I sent for it. Just too intriguing to pass up! I will read the books later. Thanks!

[NoWheyJose]

35. Elmore Leonard's 'Out of Sight'

I'm re-reading it, actually.

Great characters, great dialog, and I love the way I become immersed in Leonard's stories from the start -- sucked right in and along for the ride.

-NWJ