nickthegun wrote:This is 99p on Kindle right now, for anyone interested. |
Rate the last book you read
•
Page 103
-
GrandpaUlrira 3,877 posts
Seen 4 hours ago
Registered 16 years ago -
Mola_Ram 26,066 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 9 years agoProject Hail Mary
The new one from Andy Weir, writer of The Martian. It's not actually out until May, but I got an advance copy through work.
I liked The Martian, and after Artemis (which I didn't like) I remember wondering whether Weir was a one-trick pony. You know, science man (or woman) is in a fix, needs to use real science to get out of it, etc. Like a more science-fictioney MacGyver.
And after reading this... yeah, one-trick pony. But it's better than Artemis, because at least he's not trying (and failing) to write believable female point of view characters anymore. He's gone back to what he knows, and that at least is an entertaining read.
So, probably recommend if you liked The Martian. Just don't expect it to break any new ground.
Edited by Mola_Ram at 09:45:47 07-04-2021 -
Murbs 25,138 posts
Seen 4 days ago
Registered 17 years agoI didn’t enjoy Artemis either. Thought it was incredibly average.
I’m re-reading Perdido Street Station at the moment (recently picked up the other two New Crobuzon books). First read it ten years ago - it was the first book I bought on my OG Kindle. Finding it hard going though, which surprises me as I remember it as one of the best books I’d read at the time. We’ll see. -
Mola_Ram 26,066 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 9 years agoHe reminds me a bit of Ernest Cline, in that he's not the best writer but (sometimes) makes up for it by bringing something unique and nerdy to the table.
(he's an infinitely better writer than Cline though) -
Tonka 31,933 posts
Seen 5 hours ago
Registered 18 years agoI enjoyed the Martian but felt that after about 90% I'd had my fill of "The little rock rested on a layer of sand about 39mm thick for thousands of years..." Won't read any of his other.
I tried to re-read Perdido Street Station about two years ago and I also struggled. Gave up half way through. The Scar is just the better book (I've read it thrice as a matter of fact). IRon Council is waaaay too depressing however. Won't read that one again.
I loved Perdido and I still think it's a marvellous achievement. It's just a bit too much.
I recently finished The Kings Assassin the second entry in the Farseer Trilogy, and it was just as good, if not better than the first one. Straight onto number three.
For those that like fantasy and haven't read them I'd say they're a must read. -
Armoured_Bear 31,146 posts
Seen 55 minutes ago
Registered 9 years agoMurbs wrote:
I thought it was terrible, full of cringe, horrendous dialogue that can only be aimed at teenagers.
I didn’t enjoy Artemis either. Thought it was incredibly average.
Amazed at how successful such poor writing can be. -
Your-Mother 8,044 posts
Seen 3 minutes ago
Registered 5 years agoThe Martian was an okay read, but two things really annoyed me.
1) The relentless optimism of Watney. By the end I was basically taking it as "this guy is mentally ill in some way" but that isn't an intentional subtext and more a head canon.
2) The sheer volume of sign-posting through bad writing. You can tell when something bad is about to happen because the POV and tense changes, and the narration becomes more abstract. It's lazy and inelegant, and I'm surprised it wasn't tidied up by an editor on its journey from a publicly blogged first draft to commercially published product. -
TechnoHippy 19,220 posts
Seen 4 hours ago
Registered 18 years agoWalking to Aldebaran by Adrian Tchaikovsky
The style of this surprised me after his previous books, but it was quite engrossing and I enjoyed it a lot. It's a short read with a furious pace, although the ending was a little obvious.
8/10 -
dmj 1,081 posts
Seen 3 months ago
Registered 17 years agoTonka wrote:
I’ll spoiler tag the below just in case you’re not aware there are two more trilogies.
I recently finished The Kings Assassin the second entry in the Farseer Trilogy, and it was just as good, if not better than the first one. Straight onto number three.
For those that like fantasy and haven't read them I'd say they're a must read.
I still haven’t read the third part of the final Fitz trilogy (presumably. I mean, it’s called Assassin’s Fate) as I’m not sure I’m ready to say goodbye yet. It’s been sitting on the shelf since 2015...
Edited by dmj at 00:06:31 08-04-2021 -
dmj 1,081 posts
Seen 3 months ago
Registered 17 years agoThings I’ve recently read:
The Terror - Dan Simmons
Very much enjoyed this, especially as it didn’t go to shit during the final third. Unlike The Abominable, which really did.
The Eagle of the Ninth - Rosemary Sutcliff
Haven’t read it since I was 13 or something, but still great. A ‘proper good’ historical novel, though arguably not as wonderful as:
The Lantern Bearers (same author)
Another re-read. Set during the Roman withdrawal from Britain as the barbarians take over. Quite melancholy, but great. The sequel, Sword at Sunset, is one of her adult novels and possibly her best. It’s about the ‘historical’ King Arthur (kinda like the King Arthur movie with Clive Owen, only not crap).
Plain Bad Heroines - Emily M. Danforth
A horror novel but one I didn’t find at all frightening. Beautifully written, but the plot just kinda stops.
Currently reading: Sleeping Beauties - Stephen and Owen King
Started it this afternoon. I’m not sure if it’s going to be vintage King (shit has only just started hitting the fan for real) but I’m really enjoying it. -
Nazo 1,906 posts
Seen 3 hours ago
Registered 12 years agoThe Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
Superb. I've somehow never seen the film and didn't really know what to expect but this kept me utterly captivated throughout. I think I'll have to read more of his works, the two I've read so far have been wonderful.
5/5 -
Tonka 31,933 posts
Seen 5 hours ago
Registered 18 years agoOoohhh, great news. I have it in my bookshelf and I'm a sucker for the whole Upstairs/Downstairs thing. I really enjoyed The Remains of the Day film, Downton Abbey, and Gosford Park.
Will make sure to read this book once I've worked through my pile. -
RichDC 9,171 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 17 years agoSourcery - Terry Prachett
Great wizardry writing from Prachett. Loving slowly working my way through the whole Discworld series.
Under the Blue - Oana Aristide
Post apocalyptic novel following a global pandemic set in 2020. It follows an artist who apparently missed the end of the world because he's a bit of a self obsessed arty farty dick. That may not be how the author intended him to come across but that's certainly what he is. Luckily when he does notice, he's able to get from his London flat to his second home in Devon where he hopes to wait things out. He's joined by his hot neighbour who he then spend the rest of the book pining for but never doing anything about, and her sister and they all go on a road trip to Africa. There's also a side story about a could of scientists creating an AI and then debating ethics with it. (None of that's a spoiler btw, it's basically the blurb.)
An easy read, but never really goes anywhere or does anything interesting. It was recommended in a Guardian list of new sci-fi and does seem to be getting good reviews, but it's an Avoid from me.
Edited by RichDC at 21:18:20 11-04-2021 -
Nazo 1,906 posts
Seen 3 hours ago
Registered 12 years agoThe Catcher in the Rye - J. D. Salinger
I know this is meant to be one of the greats but I found it tedious and annoying. The narrator has about 5 set phrases that he repeats ad nauseum and the whole book is basically him whining about how much he hates everyone and everything.
2/5 -
RyanDS 14,049 posts
Seen 3 hours ago
Registered 13 years agoAsterix the gaul. 1,2 and 3
Wonderful. Nice sometimes to feel shit, revisit a childhood favourite and it is still good. In fact better, so many puns!
8/10 -
Tonka 31,933 posts
Seen 5 hours ago
Registered 18 years agoAssassins Quest by Robin Hobb
Last book in the Farseer Trilogy which is the first of maaaaany trilogies set in the same world and with some of the same characters if I understand it correctly.
Loved the first two, thought this was a cut above most fantasy, but in comparison to the first two it was whiny and indulgent. Things happened, and was given quite a lot of attention, only to be dropped completely.
I wonder if the author wasn't setting things up for later instalments.
It was also annoying that the main character never got to win. Fail piled upon fail, and I get it, it's ok to not feed into the "Lone super hero saves everything and is epic" narrative, but COME ON!
I want some fistpump moments.
Still, it's a very well written book, and a fantastic world that it's set in. Might read more entries in the series, but for now I've had my fill.
A must read -
MasterOfSpin 113 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 6 months agoA Short Stay in Hell - Steven L Peck
It's essentially based on The Library of Babel but takes some of the themes discussed in the original book a lot further. The concept is that people are imprisoned in a version of hell that is structurally similar to the Library of Babel, and the only option of escape is to find the book that perfectly describes their life.
It's only a short book (I think around 120 pages) but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It does a wonderful job slowly allowing the reader and characters to comprehend just how massive the library is, and the crushing reality of the situation stays with you a long time after you finish it.
You can die, but you revive the next day. The library keeps your mind clear, so insanity is no escape. And all you can do for billions (or even trillions) of years is desparetly try and find "your" book. But as the main character often comments - which version of his life? From who's point of view? His own? His big toe's perspective? The snail he accidentally killed whilst gardening? For there are *almost* infinite books that will claim to be the true story of his life, yet the chance of even finding one of these *almost* infinite books is *almost* infinitely small. Yet in the infinite amount of time he has, he will with 100% probability eventually find it. Truly horrifying stuff.
You don't have to have read the Library of Babel to enjoy or understand it, but given the former is such a short tale you might as well.
The book nicely explores concepts of time, relationships and meaning in a place where all these things are arbitary. It's not a horror story, but it is nevertheless horrifying. I've spent a lot of time dwelling on its implications since I finished it and find it hard to dislodge from my mind.
Edited by MasterOfSpin at 14:02:15 26-04-2021 -
RichDC 9,171 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 17 years ago@Tonka The next trilogy 'The Liveship Traders' is brilliant, and definitely worth reading. Probably don't need to bother with the rest. They don't get any happier. -
PazJohnMitch 17,189 posts
Seen 8 hours ago
Registered 14 years agoI have only read the first Fitz trilogy and the Liveship Trilogy. Both excellent.
Been told other 2 Fitz trilogies are also good but skip the dragon quadrilogy (tetralogy). -
Tonka 31,933 posts
Seen 5 hours ago
Registered 18 years agoIf they get more miserable then I don't think I could handle it. Some of the raids described were really horrifying. -
MrFlay 4,666 posts
Seen 6 hours ago
Registered 13 years agoRobin Hobb is terrific at portraying angst or any intense emotions. The Liveship Traders is probably her strongest trilogy. The characters are complex and develop and change in interesting ways. The setting is much less conventional high fantasy than the Six Duchies trilogies. I'm working through the whole set of Realm of the Elderlings books currently at book nine and only seven more to go. I read the first nine about 15 years ago.
Her books written as Megan Lindholm are also excellent. The Ki & Vandien Quartet has some very interesting and unusual ideas. Each story is relatively short and self-contained. Ki & Vandien are in all of them but the supporting characters, locations and themes all change from book to book. -
Mola_Ram 26,066 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 9 years agoArmada
So I was having an argument with a friend about Ready Player One. I think RPO is a steaming pile of hot garbage that makes me ashamed to be at all associated with nerd things. But his argument was "no, RPO was actually ok, and if you really want the garbage version of that you should read Armada".
God help me I did. And yes, it is worse. RPO is still garbage, but this was worse, more boring garbage. At least in RPO the nerd references are justified by the plot, but here they are tacked on for almost no reason whatsoever.
I guess I got some entertainment from cringe-laughing at it though. -
DaM 17,719 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 20 years agoMurbs wrote:
I do find his books hard going, and have given up on a couple, but the ones I persevered with have really stuck in my mind, so that must be a good sign.
I didn’t enjoy Artemis either. Thought it was incredibly average.
I’m re-reading Perdido Street Station at the moment (recently picked up the other two New Crobuzon books). First read it ten years ago - it was the first book I bought on my OG Kindle. Finding it hard going though, which surprises me as I remember it as one of the best books I’d read at the time. We’ll see. -
boo 13,888 posts
Seen 3 hours ago
Registered 18 years ago@Mola_Ram
I really like RPO - any book that has a chapter about the greatest band in the known universe is going to be ok with me - and it was so chock full of glee and geekery that I could forgive the ropey bits.
So I was quite optimistic when I read Armada. Trouble is, I'd watched 'Ender's Game' a couple of weeks before hand, and all I could think of was 'How could he get away with such blatant plagiarism?' -
JoelStinty 9,526 posts
Seen 4 hours ago
Registered 7 years agoNazo wrote:
Re-read in a few years time. I similarly hated it first time round for similar reasons but the second time round it floored me, especially the last few chapters. There is a lot more depth to his emotions and character than first appears.
The Catcher in the Rye - J. D. Salinger
I know this is meant to be one of the greats but I found it tedious and annoying. The narrator has about 5 set phrases that he repeats ad nauseum and the whole book is basically him whining about how much he hates everyone and everything.
2/5
You may still hate it but I think it is worth re-appeasing it later down the road. -
Mola_Ram 26,066 posts
Seen 2 hours ago
Registered 9 years ago@boo I don't want to get into too much of an argument about it (people like what they like, and that's completely fine), but... isn't blatantly lifting/plagiarizing from other, better things basically Cline's whole schtick?
Obviously this lifted from Ender's Game, but RP1 was basically Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with the moral challenges replaced with videogames, or stuff about literally reciting movie scripts word for word. He doesn't have an original idea in his body.
Anyway, that wasn't really the problem for me. Tarantino movies are reference-heavy, but they're (mostly) great. The problem is that these books are astoundingly poorly-written, barely on the level of internet fan-fic.
But hey, they were well-reviewed and sold millions, so what do I know.
/drinks
Edited by Mola_Ram at 23:13:57 06-05-2021 -
boo 13,888 posts
Seen 3 hours ago
Registered 18 years agoHmm.
I might have to read it again with CATCF in mind.
Interesting viewpoint! -
Your-Mother 8,044 posts
Seen 3 minutes ago
Registered 5 years agoIf you thought Armada was worse than RPO then oh boy don’t read Ready Player Two as it’s even worsererer. -
Yeah, I think I'm going to stop now, I don't want to torture myself anymore.
It does puzzle me a bit where reviews of the first one were all over it, but reviews of the sequel are all "this is mastabutory nerd bait". Why didn't they see that the first time around?
Sometimes posts may contain links to online retail stores. If you click on one and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. For more information, go here.
