What books did you read in 2021?

[Glasgowchivas]

1. The First Fifteen Live of Harry August by Claire North

I've posted about this book before so I won't say too much about it here. I love it so much that I ordered a 2nd hand Hardback version, just so I could have a physical copy.
 

Harry August is born, lives a relatively uneventful life and dies an old man. Whereupon he wakes up, as a newborn baby, on the day of his birth, but with his previous life memories intact. The book explores how Harry comes to adjust to his life as an Orborouan whilst dealing with messages that are being passed down, child to dying person, from the future: "The world is ending and it's speeding up."

A fantastic book that I cannot recommend highly enough.
 

[Miner Willy]

2 hours ago, Glasgowchivas said:

1. The First Fifteen Live of Harry August by Claire North

I've posted about this book before so I won't say too much about it here. I love it so much that I ordered a 2nd hand Hardback version, just so I could have a physical copy.
 

Harry August is born, lives a relatively uneventful life and dies an old man. Whereupon he wakes up, as a newborn baby, on the day of his birth, but with his previous life memories intact. The book explores how Harry comes to adjust to his life as an Orborouan whilst dealing with messages that are being passed down, child to dying person, from the future: "The world is ending and it's speeding up."

A fantastic book that I cannot recommend highly enough.
 

 

I read this previously on your recommendation. I thought it was great. 

[Darren]

4. Star Wars: Shadow Fall - Alexander Freed

 

Reviewed in the Star Wars New Canon thread.

 

Spoiler

1. Circe - Madeline Miller

2. Star Wars: The Destiny Path - Charles Soule & Jesus Saiz (graphic novel)

3. Darth Vader: Dark Heart of the Sith - Greg Pak & Raffaele Ienco (graphic novel)

4. Star Wars: Shadow Fall - Alexander Freed

5. Immortal Hulk: The Keeper of the Door - Al Ewing & Joe Bennett (graphic novel)

6. Doctor Aphra: Fortune and Fate - Alyssa Wong & Marika Cresta (graphic novel)

7. Bounty Hunters: Galaxy's Deadliest - Ethan Sacks & Arif Prianto (graphic novel)

8. Star Wars: Operation Starlight - Charles Soule, Ramon Rosanas & Jan Bazaldua (graphic novel)

 

[Vimster]

02. The Commitments by Roddy Doyle - I binned the tedious murder mystery book and read this, and I'm so glad I did. This was pure, undiluted joy from beginning to end. I've not seen the film so my mind was free to fill the characters in for itself. Laugh-out-loud funny, great characters, ands brilliantly. Fantastic.

 

Spoiler

 

01. Timescape by Gregory Benford

02. The Commitments by Roddy Doyle

 

 

[little che]

The Troy trilogy by David Gemmell.  I haven't read any books by Gemmell since Legend decades ago, but I really enjoyed this epic and how he subtly changed some of the established "facts" of the Trojan war.   

The Thicket by Joe R. Lansdale.. The blurb said a mixture of Tom sawyer and a Coen movie and that about nails it.  A late western about a boy and his ragtag posses' mission to rescue his kidnapped sister.  It is full of smart dialogue and memorable characters ( a gunslinging, philosophical dwarf). Absolutely recommended. 

[Mercury]

2. Believe Me by JP Delaney

 

Really enjoyed "The Girl Before" - one of those books I read in a couple of sittings on holiday but this didn't grab me in the same way. It was okay I guess but the writing not as good as TGB. In the acknowledgements he mentions it is a rewrite of a book he wrote when he was first starting out which might explain it.

 

Previously:

 

Spoiler

1. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

 

[Vimster]

03. From Elephant To Hollywood by Michael Caine

Got this in a sale on Audible, the man himself reads it, there are times when he'll crack up at the recollection of some story, the producers wisely keeping that in. Some decent stories although he does tend to gloss over the bad films. There is some tedium here, endless chat about this restaurant or nightspot or other, dinner parties with his Hollywood neighbours and the lists of stars who attended, "I was walking through central London and bumped into [insert famous actor here]" anecdotes. Largely though there was enough entertaining stories to make it worthwhile. This was recorded in 2010 when he was 77. Still going strong today. 

 

Spoiler

 

01. Timescape by Gregory Benford

02. The Commitments by Roddy Doyle

03. From Elephant To Hollywood by Michael Caine

 

 

[Miner Willy]

7. Deadeye Dick by Kurt Vonnegut. I loved Breakfast of Champions which I read recently. While this is also enjoyable to read, I don't think it's in the same league. I also got to the end and realised I didn't really understand what it was about. Possibly my fault I guess.

8. Moneyball by Michael Lewis. Previously seen the film but never read the book. I have no interest in baseball, but I loved it.

9. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. It's impressive that a book written 60 years ago can still shock, but I found the subject matter and characters so unpleasant that I just didn't enjoy this very much.

 

Previously:

 

Spoiler

1. Piranesi

2. The Devil and the Dark Water

3. I Love the Bones of You

4. Feral

5. Melmoth

6. The Beekeeper of Aleppo

7. Deadeye Dick by Kurt Vonnegut
8. Moneyball by Michael Lewis
9. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

 

[Vimster]

04. The Assault On Truth by Peter Oborne  - the former Daily Mail columnist goes right for the jugular in this short book, really laying in to the culture of lies and deception that he feels has taken over politics. The Guardian reviewed the book and pointed out how much of a cheerleader Oborne was for Johnson and Trump in 2016, and I agree there isn't much in the way of soul-searching on his part, but he does admit his career as a mainstream political journalist in the UK is in tatters because he has pursued this line about Tory fibs. 

 

Spoiler

 

01. Timescape by Gregory Benford

02. The Commitments by Roddy Doyle

03. From Elephant To Hollywood by Michael Caine

04. The Assault On Truth by Peter Oborne 

 

 

[Stopharage]

Looking to read at least 40 books this year. First 4 down:-

 

1. Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell. 

This is great. Grim and grubby throughout but evokes a sense of wonder of what it would be like to live in Paris and London at the times. There's a wonderful sense of humanity that runs throughout it as Orwell empathises with those working in poorly paid roles and revels in the moments of luxury such as having some cheese with the old loaf he picks up. Totally recommended. 

 

2. Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam.

Really disliked this. Characters were deeply unlikeable and I couldn't bring myself to care about them. And they seemed to make some really stupid decisions throughout. And some of the writing, yelp. "His penis jerked itself towards the sun, a yoga salutation, bouncing, then stiff at the house's allure". Add to that a 2 page breakdown of what was bought at a supermarket. Self indulgent twaddle. 

 

3. Cage of Souls by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

The world building in this is wonderful. Sometime in the future the world is irretrievably broken and only one city is left standing. This plays no real part for the vast majority of the novel, where the protagonist is imprisoned in a floating prison, surrounded by twisted natural forms that have mutated with the world's transformation. It's as much about the cage behind the prison as it is the cage in which he is trapped. There are a number of other locations that are equally well-developed and there's a real sense of an uneasy familiarity to a very other-worldy novel. There's one section where he lives in the underworld of the city which is great and really atmospheric. He's a cracking writer. 

 

4. Doggerland by Ben Smith. 

Two characters maintain a vast field of turbines following some cataclysmic event that befalls Britain (and the world?), which is neither Brexit nor COVID. It's unrelentingly bleak and I found it a pretty dull dystopian tale. Comparisons to The Road are way off, it's more of a Cul-de-sac. 

[Miner Willy]

I bought Cage of Souls ages back. Despite liking everything I've read by Tchaikovsky I've always ended up choosing something else, but that description does make it sound great.

[glb]

1. The Thursday Murder Club - Richard Osman

 

Apparently this is quite popular... Was bought it for Christmas and thought it would make a nice easy read to get back into a more regular reading habit. Absolutely is an easy read but I was willing it to end long before the clumsy finish. Lovely central concept but found the characters too cookie cutter and the actual story contrived and amateurishly told. Some parts felt quite snobbish to be honest. Some mildly amusing lines, but very little flair to the writing.

 

Think the eventual film will actually be a lot more enjoyable because a lot of the faff will be trimmed out.

[Glasgowchivas]

On 27/01/2021 at 14:39, Glasgowchivas said:

1. The First Fifteen Live of Harry August by Claire North

I've posted about this book before so I won't say too much about it here. I love it so much that I ordered a 2nd hand Hardback version, just so I could have a physical copy.
 

Harry August is born, lives a relatively uneventful life and dies an old man. Whereupon he wakes up, as a newborn baby, on the day of his birth, but with his previous life memories intact. The book explores how Harry comes to adjust to his life as an Orborouan whilst dealing with messages that are being passed down, child to dying person, from the future: "The world is ending and it's speeding up."

A fantastic book that I cannot recommend highly enough.
 

After reading this I had an urge to revisit some classic crime writing and so ventured up to the loft to dig out my faves...only to find that in the last house move it would appear that I left them behind! :-(

So some £100+ lighter and with many, many orders via AbesBooks...

2. The Hunter 
3. The Man with the Getaway Face

4. The Outfit
5. The Mourner

6. The Score

7. The Jugger

8. The Seventh

9. The Handle

10. The Rare Coin Score

11. The Green Eagle Score

12. The Black Ice Score

13. The Sour Lemon Score

14. Deadly Edge

15. Slayground

16. Plunder Squad

17. Butchers Moon

This is the Parker series from Richard Stark - the first series, after Butchers Moon there was no new Parker books for 25years - and I think it's my favourite series of fiction ever.
 

[little che]

Darktown by Thomas Mullen. 

A fairly standard police procedural novel enlivened by its setting.  1948 Atlanta and the first seven black police officers are hired to bring order to "their" part of town, even whilst not even being allowed in the whites only police precinct and having no power of arrest of white people.  Its the first of three books and has enough to make me look forward to the next one. 

[Mercury]

3. The Secret Barrister by Anon

 

Bought this on a whim in Waterstones but proved to be a fascinating book. After reading it you are amazed we ever convict anyone of anything. Particularly interesting for me as the Crown Prosecution Service are one of my customers.

 

Previously:

Spoiler

1. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

2. Believe Me by JP Delaney 

 

[lolly]

The 5th Season - N.K Jemison

 

1st in  a trilogy set in the far future/fantasy where a mother sets out looking for her kidnapped daughter after a cataclysmic event. It and the two sequels won Hugo and Nebula awards when they were released AFAIK. Goes  to some very dark places and is generally pretty decent overall.

 

All you need is kill/Edge of tomorrow/Live,Die, Repeat

 

The Manga the Tom Cruise  movie is based on which I watched again on Sunday- it's excellent for most of it's runtime.The manga it's based on is also excellent  though a little bit different. Its far more melancholy  as we see the affects of the loops more often and has more time to flesh out the two protagonists  much better.Definitely  recommended. Just to not my e-reader (Kobo) pushed this out right-to-left  so it took me a bit of adjusting to get used to it. Interesting experience though.

 

Previously

Spoiler

Best Served Cold- Joe Abercromie

Ancilliary Justice- Ann Leckie

 

 

 

[Mercury]

4. The Sentinel by Lee and Andrew Child

 

Raced through this - genuine comfort reading. This is the first one Lee has co-written with his younger brother Andrew as he plans to hand the reins over. No major differences - maybe a little more technology involved than in previous books.

 

Previously:

 

Spoiler

1. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

2. Believe Me by JP Delaney

3. The Secret Barrister by Anon

 

 

[Boothjan]

1. Cibola Burn by James S A Corey

 

Book 4 of the Expanse - and now I'm starting to see a pattern emerging.  Start slowly, introduce new characters to the fold before building to a frantic finale that opens up even more possibilities for future instalments.

 

This is such a good series - even though I didn't enjoy this as much as Abaddon's Gate, it's not far off.  Looking forward to book 5 which is ready to go as soon as it's unboxed in our new house (could be months away then....)

 

4/5

[Mercury]

5. Heartburn by Nora Ephron

 

Someone recommended this when my second marriage broke down and it has been sat in the pile for a while. It's a relatively short, thinly-veiled novel about Nora finding out her husband was having an affair with a very tall woman when she was seven months pregnant. It's both heart-breaking and laugh out loud funny - recommended.

 

Previously:

 

Spoiler

1. The Guest List by Lucy Foley

2. Believe Me by JP Delaney

3. The Secret Barrister by Anon

4. The Sentinel by Lee and Andrew Child

 

[Stopharage]

5. The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson.

It's a story about multiverses and initially delivers; really engaging and interesting premise as the protagonist has the job to flit between various versions of the Earth, interacting with various versions of herself and her acquaintances. In some worlds these acquaintances are good in others they're not so pleasant. I really enjoyed it until about 40% of the way through and then it became quite dull, with some flimsy internal logic and character behaviour that just seemed out of kilter with what went before. 

 

Now reading the Bellingcat book, which is really interesting but just throws names, places, events etc. at you with a fierce intensity. Not one to read to switch off to or read before bed..

 

Previously:

Spoiler

 

1. Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell. 

2. Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam.

3. Cage of Souls by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

4. Doggerland by Ben Smith. 

 

 

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

1. Cibola Burn by James S A Corey - 4/5

 

2. How Not To Be a Professional Football by Paul Merson

 

I only paid a pound for this in a Kindle sale and it's really not worth that much.  The reason - Paul Merson is a prick.  This book has anecdote after anecdote from his life as a professional, but there are 2 glaring issues with them.  1.  It's so incredibly badly written and 2. there's no hint of remorse or guilt whatsoever.  Some of the pranks he played, and some of the strops he had over not being selected etc etc are so puerile and in some cases just downright nasty but it's all 'bantz' innit.

 

I like to read these kind of books to see how these ex pros managed to turn their lives around despite struggling with fame, pressure or in Merson's case a dangerous combination of alcohol, drug and gambling addiction.  By the end of this, I wasn't really bothered because Merson seems too concerned with the 'hilarious' pranks he played on people, or the amazing fun he had during his more hedonistic period.  His annoying cockney rhyming slang is littered throughout - there's even an attached glossary.  Yawn.

 

Wasn't massively keen on the guy before reading this - dislike him even more now.  I wouldn't bother reading this sensationalist nonsense.

 

1.5/5

 

3. The Twins of Auschwitz by Eva Mozes Kor

 

I also picked this up in a 99p Kindle deal - I remember this author being interviewed in the excellent BBC series about Auschwitz.  Her account is absolutely heartbreaking - along with her identical twin sister, Miriam, she was separated from the rest of her family at the gates of Auschwitz by Dr Josef Mengele, purely because he wanted to use their for his barbaric experiments on twins.  She never saw the rest of her family again, and somehow both her and her twin sister managed to survive the horrors of the camp - they were ten years old, were experimented on by Mengele, the unknown consequences of which led to her sister's death in the 1990s.  

 

Despite these horrors, Mrs Kor was able to forgive the Nazis and spent the latter part of her life campaigning for awareness of the Holocaust.  She was a remarkable woman, stoic from a very young age which was a key factor in her getting through such an ordeal.

 

I cannot imagine what horrors they went through - my daughter is 10, and reading Mrs Kor's account made my blood run cold.

 

It's a harrowing but excellent account.

 

4/5

[Miner Willy]

10. The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton. Read this after it was mentioned on Rllmuk, and found it fascinating. I am pretty clueless when it comes to this stuff, so while it all seemed to make sense (and I'm clearly not a million miles from the author in terms of political leaning) I had no way of challenging any of the arguments she puts forth.

 

11. Butcher's Crossing by John Williams. This is by the author of Stoner (which is excellent), but is very different indeed. I thought it was great. At times it reminded me of Cormac McCarthy's border trilogy, though it's not as bleak.

 

12. Schismatrix by Bruce Sterling. I know this is popular on here, but I'm afraid I didn't love it. I found the first third pretty bewildering, but even once I settled into it I didn't really warm to any of the characters. I dunno; not my kind of sci-fi I guess.

 

13. There is no Antimemetics Division by qntm. Clever, mind-bending and well written. I loved this.

 

14. Lost at Sea by Jon Ronson. I'm at the point where I'll read (or rather, listen on Audible, as I love his delivery) pretty much anything by Ronson. This is a collection of articles, so varies a little in quality, but still thoroughly enjoyable throughout.

 

15. The Assault on Truth by Peter Oborne. I only knew of the author from his criticisms of Kuenssberg and Peston etc. during the last election. While he clearly has very different political views to me and I didn't agree with all of the commentary, the main thrust is a pretty comprehensive takedown of Johnson's record of lying and approach to politics.

 

Previously:

 

Spoiler

1. Piranesi

2. The Devil and the Dark Water

3. I Love the Bones of You

4. Feral

5. Melmoth

6. The Beekeeper of Aleppo

7. Deadeye Dick by Kurt Vonnegut
8. Moneyball by Michael Lewis
9. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

10. The Deficit Myth

11. Butcher's Crossing

12. Schismatrix

13. There is no Antimemetics Division

14. Lost at Sea

15. The Assault on Truth

 

[lolly]

5. To kill a mockingbird

 

The trial of a black man for the alleged rape of a white woman in the south of the US in the 1930s. Covers about 3 years of the lives of the children of the lawyer who defends him. Generally hailed as a classic I initially found it slow going but picked up after the 1st third. It's a wonderfully humourous and loving book that also deals with the issues of racism, rape and murder so there's quite the juxtaposition during the latter half of the story.

 

Would absolutely recommend giving it a read .4/5

 

Previously

Spoiler

1.best served cold -Joe Abercrombie

2. Ancillary Justice- Ann Leckie

3.the 5th Season - N.K. jemisen

4. All you need is kill-

 

[Boothjan]

Spoiler

 

1. Cibola Burn by James S A Corey - 4/5

2. How Not To Be a Professional Football by Paul Merson - 1.5/5

3. The Twins of Auschwitz by Eva Mozes Kor - 4/5

 

 

4. Ian Wright - A Life in Football: My Autobiography by Ian Wright

 

Well this was a pleasant surprise - where Paul Merson's book left me cold and wholly frustrated with the poor writing and unlikable tone of the author, Ian Wright's book is the opposite.  This is a really interesting insight into the former Arsenal legend's life before, during and after his career.  

 

It's actually rather gratifying to know just how good he was and how much he achieved considering his tough upbringing and the way he was discovered by Crystal Palace.  He was signed straight from a Sunday league side - not an amateur club, or a non-league outfit, but a mere Sunday league side.  That's pretty much unheard of!  Wright's excellent work ethic and never forgetting where he came from or how fortunate he was runs through the whole book.

 

He made many mistakes but he at least has the good grace to admit those mistakes - plenty of people I really don't like come across really poorly in this (Harry Redknapp for example - never liked him) so it's always gratifying to know your dislike isn't misplaced!!

 

Wright also goes on to talk about the racism he's faced as well as the poor job the FA are currently doing regarding the situation.  He talks candidly about growing up, the music he loves, the successes as well as the struggles he's encountered with his family and his own kids - it's never sensationalist but is often very interesting.

 

One of the better football autobiographies out there - Ian Wright is a good guy and this is a satisfying read.

 

4/5

[Miner Willy]

5 hours ago, Boothjan said:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

1. Cibola Burn by James S A Corey - 4/5

2. How Not To Be a Professional Football by Paul Merson - 1.5/5

3. The Twins of Auschwitz by Eva Mozes Kor - 4/5

 

 

4. Ian Wright - A Life in Football: My Autobiography by Ian Wright

 

Well this was a pleasant surprise - where Paul Merson's book left me cold and wholly frustrated with the poor writing and unlikable tone of the author, Ian Wright's book is the opposite.  This is a really interesting insight into the former Arsenal legend's life before, during and after his career.  

 

It's actually rather gratifying to know just how good he was and how much he achieved considering his tough upbringing and the way he was discovered by Crystal Palace.  He was signed straight from a Sunday league side - not an amateur club, or a non-league outfit, but a mere Sunday league side.  That's pretty much unheard of!  Wright's excellent work ethic and never forgetting where he came from or how fortunate he was runs through the whole book.

 

He made many mistakes but he at least has the good grace to admit those mistakes - plenty of people I really don't like come across really poorly in this (Harry Redknapp for example - never liked him) so it's always gratifying to know your dislike isn't misplaced!!

 

Wright also goes on to talk about the racism he's faced as well as the poor job the FA are currently doing regarding the situation.  He talks candidly about growing up, the music he loves, the successes as well as the struggles he's encountered with his family and his own kids - it's never sensationalist but is often very interesting.

 

One of the better football autobiographies out there - Ian Wright is a good guy and this is a satisfying read.

 

4/5

 

I used to see him around a bit when I was about 14, which would have been around his Arsenal peak. He would say hello and call me "big guy" when we passed each other - always seemed very nice and down to earth.

[Boothjan]

15 minutes ago, Miner Willy said:

 

I used to see him around a bit when I was about 14, which would have been around his Arsenal peak. He would say hello and call me "big guy" when we passed each other - always seemed very nice and down to earth.

 

I can remember going to Wolves to watch them play Arsenal in a preseason friendly in the mid to late 90's.  I'll never forget the way Wright charged around after the ball like a man possessed, chasing down every loose ball, running after every lost cause, whereas the other 21 players on the field were treating it for the mild, slow-paced preseason workout it was supposed to be!

 

I think he only had 1 setting - gung ho!  

[Stopharage]

On 01/03/2021 at 09:34, Boothjan said:

  Reveal hidden contents

1. Cibola Burn by James S A Corey - 4/5

 

2. How Not To Be a Professional Football by Paul Merson

 

I only paid a pound for this in a Kindle sale and it's really not worth that much.  The reason - Paul Merson is a prick.  This book has anecdote after anecdote from his life as a professional, but there are 2 glaring issues with them.  1.  It's so incredibly badly written and 2. there's no hint of remorse or guilt whatsoever.  Some of the pranks he played, and some of the strops he had over not being selected etc etc are so puerile and in some cases just downright nasty but it's all 'bantz' innit.

 

I like to read these kind of books to see how these ex pros managed to turn their lives around despite struggling with fame, pressure or in Merson's case a dangerous combination of alcohol, drug and gambling addiction.  By the end of this, I wasn't really bothered because Merson seems too concerned with the 'hilarious' pranks he played on people, or the amazing fun he had during his more hedonistic period.  His annoying cockney rhyming slang is littered throughout - there's even an attached glossary.  Yawn.

 

Wasn't massively keen on the guy before reading this - dislike him even more now.  I wouldn't bother reading this sensationalist nonsense.

 

1.5/5

I was 23% of the way through this on my Kindle and really getting very bored and irritated by it. Your review was the death knell and so I’ve deleted it. Plus, I’d just reached a chapter that was called something like ‘Why you shouldn’t wax your dolphin before an international game’

 

I really have zero interest in the wanking habits of Paul Merson. 

[Wiper]

We currently have 901 books in our library. Some of these are reference books, but even excluding them, there's a bare minimum of 800 'for leisure' books on our shelves. And that's excluding ebooks and audiobooks. Now, a lot of them I've already read (or are books belonging to my housemate that I don't intend to read), but there's at least 100 books in the stacks that I have yet to get around to, and I need to work on that backlog. Not least as I have a bad habit of buying yet more books (somewhat curtailed since lockdown, at least, what with not being able to browse second hand bookshops).

 

So, naturally enough, with such a large number of books to get through, last year I got through a whopping... nine. Hmm.

 

This year, I've resolved to do something about my backlog, and Actually Read Things. And so far, it's going well!

 

Also I shouldn't have waited until March to start cataloguing this; apologies for the endless post.

 

============================================

January

 

Hardcore Gaming 101 Presents The Unofficial Guide to Shin Megami Tensei and Persona by Kurt Kalata et al.

Okay, a pretty nerdy start to the year. A reference book looking through the entire SMT franchise. Unfortunately lacks a strong editorial voice, and the different contributors have disparate styles which can grate; particularly unfortunate is the lack of even a clear style guide for, e.g. acronyms, and a varying approach to tackling the games' storylines which swerves from "light allusions to avoid spoiling the plot", to "complete, end-to-end epitome of the story".

 

Still, despite varied style and, frankly, varied quality of insight, there's some genuinely interesting detail about some of the games and their background. When diving into cultural, religious and literary influences on the games it's a fascinating book, and more than justifies itself for those essays alone; it's just a shame that level of quality isn't maintained throughout.

3/5

 

The Black Tides of Heaven and The Red Threads of Fortune (Tensorate Books 1 & 2) by Neon Yang

A pair of fantasy novella based around a pair of twins, one of whom with special powers, the other with very special powers.

 

The plot itself is relatively generic, but the characters are likeable enough, and the actual setting is reasonably non-standard for English-language fantasy; East-Asian mythology rather than Norse/Anglo-Saxon Tolkien-esque fantasy, a mild but active interest in actual romance, and interestingly genderfluid society abounds. Plus, being novellas helps keep them pacey. Enjoyable.

2.5/5

 

 

============================================

February

 

The Descent of Monsters (Tensorate Book 3) by Neon Yang

An interesting diversion, here, as this is framed as that most uncommon of novels, particularly within genre fiction: the epistolary novel. In fact, the whole thing is presented almost as a crime procedural, as the investigator at its heart puts out her thoughts and findings as she creeps towards uncovering a conspiracy. Refreshing and neatly done, it also benefits from its protagonist possessing no special powers; the everyman story within a fantasy setting remains surprisingly uncommon, for all its potency.

3.5/5

 

The Ascent to Godhood (Tensorate Book 4) by Neon Yang

The final book of the series, and an interesting combination of epilogue and prologue to the whole affair, focussed on the series' key antagonist. As with the series as a whole, the conceit is perhaps more impressive than the execution, but it makes for a solid frame for the whole affair.

3/5

 

Virtual Cities: An Atlas and Exploration of Video Game Cities by Konstantinos Dimopoulos

A bit of an odd one, this. On the one hand, this is a gorgeous book, packed with wonderful illustrations (courtesy of Maria Kallikaki) and lovely anecdotes and descriptions of a variety of video game cities across a wide range of genres and eras. From Ant Attack to Thief, Grim Fandango to Assassin's Creed, it covers a fantastic selection of games and approaches, and I had a nice time reading it.

 

But... it's not really what it describes itself as. While it's very pleasant reading, it isn't in any way an 'Atlas', and its explorations of the cities themselves are effectively entertaining little blog posts, but not necessarily all that insightful. Reading about the cities/games I was less familiar with was somewhat interesting, but any time a game I actually know well was covered, the analysis felt very slight, not particularly informative. I enjoyed reading it, but it felt like a bit of a missed opportunity.

2/5

 

Ship of Magic, The Mad Ship and Ship of Destiny (Liveship Traders Books 1-3) by Robin Hobb

Some years ago I read through Robin Hobb's first Eldering saga trilogy (Farseer), and enjoyed it a fair bit. Finally I decided to give its sequel trilogy a look-in, and I'm glad that I did. Where the first trilogy was told entirely from the perspective of the assassin Fitz, who is definitely not a rogue/ranger dual class D&D character, the Liveship Traders books hop from person to person, place to place, treating the reader to an enjoyable dance of perspectives, and taking full advantage to build in plenty of tension as the reader waits for different payoffs, different things to come to light.

 

Though far from short, the books raced by, with countless tantalising loose threads drawing me ever onwards. It helps that Robin manages to write compelling and varied characters throughout, and really focusses on character rather than feeling a need to constantly drag the reader into plot development or action, making every perspective - even that of less likable characters - a joy to engage with. While I enjoyed the Farseer series, I absolutely loved every book in the Liveship Traders series. Just a fantastic trilogy.

5/5

 

Fool's Errand, The Golden Fool and Fool's Fate (Tawny Man Books 1-3) by Robin Hobb

(technically I read Fool's Fate on 1st March, but I don't want to split the review)

 

I mean, I loved Liveship Traders, obviously I was going to jump right into the next trilogy. This trilogy returns to the protagonist of the first trilogy, albeit a good 1.5 decades later. And it benefits from that jump: the worn-out, slightly enfeebled character works well to draw the reader in, and refreshingly isn't just an excuse to immediately power him up to hyper-mass-murderer levels of proficiency; a David Gemmel novel this is not.

 

Indeed, the book's musings on adulthood, on a hero now past his prime, on adoptive fatherhood... well, this is very much the territory that AAA videogames seem determined to plumb, with Fitz feeling a bit of a prototype for the Sad Dad Action Heroes that have been propping up action adventures over the past decade. Only, you know, Robin Hobb is actually a competent writer and so Fitz comes across as flawed but likeable, and his relationships challenging but considered. Rather than just the adventures of a dickhead and his convenient excuse for dickheadedness.

 

But I digress.

 

The books have a few flaws - well, one flaw in particular, which is that Fitz can be infurating in not seeing or doing obvious things at times - though a degree of that does get, er, 'handled' at one point - but the characters are engaging, the drama compelling, and the drawing together of strands from previous books masterful. I am also a big fan of the 100+ pages of tying-up-the-character-drama that is the end of the final book, rather than opting for the traditional 'end with the final action sequence' approach. Very satisfying wrap-up, would read again.

4/5, 5/5 and 4/5, respectively.

 

 

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March

 

Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries Book 2) by Martha Wells

A couple of years ago I read the first of the Murderbot Diaries novellas, and it was enjoyable pulp nonsense, starring a socially-anxious, tv-series marathoning, mild doofus of a mechanised killing machine who is mainly concerned with keeping his idiotic, squishy human clients alive.

 

Artificial Condition is enjoyable pulp nonsense, starring a socially-anxious, tv-series marathoning, mild doofus of a mechanised killing machine who is mainly concerned with keeping his idiotic, squishy human clients alive. And also his big-brained AI ship friend.

 

A romp of a series, will continue to enjoy as a snack between meals.

3/5

[Jamie John]

3. The Green Mile, Stephen King

 

 

I finished this a while ago but forgot to update. It was...fine, but, like a lot of King's book, overly long and pretty mawkish in places. I haven't actually seen the film, but I still knew how it ended, which sort of took the sting out of it a bit. I've definitely read better King books.

[lolly]

 

Pompeii- Robert Harris

 

Historical fiction based on the eruption of Mt Vesuvius and the destruction of Pompeii.  Plot follows a newly appointed Aquarius as he investigates strange happenings with the water supply in the build up to the eruption. Blends a lot of historical  and volcanology to reasonable effect and pushes the story along at a leisurely pace without anything really happening until said eruption. I'd like to say it kicks into high gear once the eruption starts but  only really gets from 2nd to 3rd and occasionally to 4th.

Spoiler

They manage to stop for a dinner party  during the eruption , which kills any tension/momentum

It's not bad but I've now read this, Fatherland and Archangel by Harris, none of them are bad books but they're like thrillers for people with high blood pressure, wouldn't want to get anyone too excited . Sunday evening BBC fare (as archangel was if I remember correctly?)

 

3/5

 

Previously.

Spoiler

1.best served cold -Joe Abercrombie

2. Ancillary Justice- Ann Leckie

3.the 5th Season - N.K. jemisen

4. All you need is kill-

5 To kill a mockingbird- Harper lee