What Are You Reading? March 2009

Since the last thread was only for a single month...

Blade Runner 2: Edge of Human reviewed it for the 42 Science Fiction Challenge. Actually a good tie-in novel.

http://42sciencefictionchallenge.blogspot.com/2009/03/blade-runner-2-edge-of-hum...

If I don't get distracted, I'll finish City Come A Walkin' by John Shirley this evening.

Just starting Drood

Currently I'm reading Infoquake by David Louis Edelman. I was supposed to get this through the Early Reviewer program and never did. However, I found it in a local library and decided to have a go at it despite the books "no show".

I can't seem to catch up. I'll likely be too late to have a go at Vinge's book for the SF reading group. I need to step up the time I stick to reading without getting distracted...or something.

I am not reading SF at the moment. I am reading a book about the 60s, it is fiction, but based on the intersection of the Rolling Stones, the Mansons and the film maker Kenneth Anger. Sway by Zachary Lazar.

The Day It Rained Forever. I find Bradbury odd. Often more fantasy (which I am not a huge fan of) than SF (Which I am), and some of his stories can be as dark as anything Stephen King could think up. I like some of his ideas, but I doubt I'd ever call him a favorite author.

Just got Revelations: A Blueblood novel by Melissa de la Cruz, Glass Houses by Rachel Caine and The Great Good Thing by Roderick Townley ..some from the library , some from Goodwill. I'll probably read Revelations first, and I'm still reading Nation by Terry Pratchett.

Wylie's After Worlds Collide

Rereading Star King by Jack Vance. It's the first of the Demon Princes novels. I'd forgotten how many "essays" there were in it...

I promised a review of Spirit; or the Princess of Bois Dormant and here it is.

I finished Sway. Not sure what I think. There was a lot of visuals that were supposed to mean something, but I am not visual person. The three strands of the story (Stones, Mansons, Anger) didn't really integrate well. Still mulling.

I am now reading Nightlife by Rob Thurman, first in the Cal Leandros series.

Currently reading City at the End of Time, though so far, 230 pages in, it doesn't seem terribly science-fictional at all.

I'll probably have to take a break this week to read Black Swan Green for my book group. I understand David Mitchell has written some science fiction before, but I don't think this one is.

I'll also be trying to read my proof copy of Journey into Space (no touchstone) before every other bugger can read it.

I think Mitchell's only sf is Cloud Atlas. I have it; I've not read it yet.

i recall Cloud Atlas being more fantasy than SF, but it was a while ago that i checked it out from the library.

9: What do you think so far? I usually have luke-warm feelings for Wylie's work, and wasn't overly impressed with When World's Collide but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed "After".

Finished McAuley's the Quiet War recently. I thought it excellent, if not his best book, one of his best.

#14, 15

Cloud Atlas had six interconnected stories told in parts, I recall; three historical fiction, one modern fiction, and two SF. I found the historical and modern fiction average, and the two SF stories to be excellent.

Finished Star King by Jack Vance for this month's reading challenge, and wrote about it here. Now started A Fire Upon the Deep for the Group Read.

i liked McAuley's Fairyland a good deal. But I also liked Nancy Kress's beggars in Spain and the its sib books. Both Fairyland and the Beggars books deal w/ bio-engineering

The only book of Mcauley's i haven't finished is pasquale's angel. I think i was just in the wrong mood when i started it, as it seemed quite well written.

>20 bobmcconnaughey: I've only read the first Beggars book. I've not been much of a trilogy/series sort of gal with regards to the genre (I'd never survive in the fantasy subgenre now would I?:-). That said, while I liked this McAuley alot, I don't feel compelled to read the next installment (and there will be a next installment, I'm sure of it.)

I'm Reading Dune by Frank Herbert right now, I've never read any of the series before and thought it was time to get in on the debate - are they a worthy classic or not.

The Martian General's Daughter by Theodore Judson will be read in March, right after I finish Last Chance to See by Douglas Adams and Ptolemy's Gate by Jonathan Stroud.

I just finished Infoquake! (I too had problems getting it after "winning" an early reviewer copy, but I emailed the publisher and got it in the mail a few weeks later.) I actually ordered the sequel last night from Amazon.

These are more fantasy than Sci-fi, but I also just finished Last Watch, Lukyanenko, which I highly recommend (the whole series is quite good), and then this morning I started reading Timothy and the Dragon's Gate, which was another Early Reviewer copy. (These are the only two I've snagged so far.) Timothy is definitely a young adult novel, but I'm enjoying it so far, and it promises to be a quick read.

Do you have the publishers email? I would rather like to read it.

Just started on Atlas Shrugged.

My condolences.

are you Catholic doing penance for past sins ;-)

I'm about 3/4 through Jumper: Griffin's Story.

Though while I was waiting for that to arrive in the post I started on The Left-Handed Hummingbird.

Just got Little Brother from the library, and am digging it.

I am overly amazed with RESONANCE by A.J. Scudier.

I loved Michael Crichton and I am so glad that AJ Scudiere is here to fill that void. Even better, AJ offers an AudioMovie to go with her book.

I listened to AJ's free audio movie tracks on her site. Audio Movies are a big step up from Audiobooks. You should hear it and see the difference for yourself!

http://www.ajscudiere.com/resonance-audiomovie/#resonance-audiomovie/

Have finished Black Swan Green now. Wasn't science fiction at all, sadly. But! It did mention science fiction in it, with reference to the main character reading Z for Zachariah, and books by Isaac Asimov and John Wyndham. :)

#28, 29

I thought it only fair to read it, since I have seen so much criticism about her works; I wanted to see what the fuss was about.

Digging into Vernor Vinge's A Fire Upon the Deep today. At my recent rate, this should keep me occupied for a bit.

We'll Always Have Paris by Ray Bradbury.

EDIT: Apparently the touchstone for We'll Always Have Paris will work, or go to the correct book, but not both at the same time.

I'm just finishing up The Dispossessed by Ursula K. LeGuin and then plan to tackle Asimov's Foundation series. That'll be my March project.

I am reading my first book due for a RL book group, The Engines of God by Jack McDevitt. It is SF about ancient alien artifacts and archeology. Book 1 in the Engines of God or Priscilla Hutchins series.

His books in this series always sound so good, but they are usually disappointing. This isn't the first of them we have read.

The problem is the book is supposed to be about some alien mystery or artifact and he spends 4/5ths of the book in backstory, character building, and journey and then tries to cram the actual subject into the last 1/5 of the book and often fails to even come face to face with it. I hope this one bucks the trend.

I am up to Chapter four of Alastair Reynold's The Prefect. Already things are looking bad for the Prefect (an investigator) with a minor political infringement regarding some old program code causing a lock down of one space habitat and another habitat destroyed by the burn from a spacecraft drive. His wife is a vegetable from a previous mission and there are hints a colleague may be a traitor...

I just finished the Morganville Vampires by Rachel Caine...loved the series and cannot wait for the next book! Definitely going to check out her Weather Warden series next !! Also, Would be Witch by Kimberly Frost .......this book was SO good and I cannot wait for more from this author!

I am almost done with The Engines of God and miracle of miracles it actually is dealing with the subject. I am enjoying it.

Finished Atlas Shrugged.

http://42sciencefictionchallenge.blogspot.com/2009/03/atlas-shrugged-ayn-rand-19...

When someone warns you off Rand, they are trying to do you a favour. Listen to them; it's not worth the effort.

BTW, when writing the review, I kept on typing Rant instead of Rand.

Finished up Blood Rites (A).

When someone warns you off Rand, they are trying to do you a favour. Listen to them; it's not worth the effort.

You should put that on a T-shirt...

#41... Rant about sums it up!

Just finished Steal across the Sky by Nancy Kress.
This book was an excellent blend of different cultures, personalities and science, with aliens to boot.

Now reading Seeds of Earth* by Michael Cobley. If anyone else has this book, check out the last line of the acknowledgments....

* what a surprise: touchstone doesn't work...

i've always taken "what are you reading" at face value and put in whatever i'm reading whether SF or not.

Just finished a terrific memoir my own country detailing an (Asian) Indian infectious disease specialist's experience/practice in rural Eastern Tennessee (well, Johnson City is a small town) where he "discovers" HIV/Aids in a rural setting. And, just before that, a superb long poem, the throne of Labdacus - a retelling of the Oedipus story from multiple points of view..Apollo's, Oedipus', the citizenry of Thebes. Very much a meditation on the nature of art and creation.

"In gouged-out marks like howls of laughter/ And brief, snuffed screams,

Tablets homely, sunken, heavy,/ lightless, pockmarked,

Like pieces broken from the moon/ Above the citadel of Thebes"

One could call this fantasy and live, i believe.

Just received the latest issue of F&SF in today's mail so will be back into genre for a couple of evenings.

Marsbound by Joe Haldeman
After reading Red Planet about 35 years ago, I thought we'd have men on Mars long before 2009. Oh well, there's always science fiction....

I'm reading The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks, which should be a quick read and then maybe The Pesthouse by Jim Crace.

I'm now about to start Childhood End by Arthur C. Clarke, am I in for a good time?

49: Most books by Clarke are a good time, but I have to admit I wasn't totally happy with the ending. I gave it 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.
And thanks for reminding me I had the book, I'd forgotten!

I've just finished A Million Open Doors by John Barnes and I have to admit I liked it somewhat more than I remembered - it was certainly worth re-reading.

#49

Childhood's End is great. You are in for a good time.

I loved it! Little Brother was a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon, although maybe I just felt vindicated about my use of some of the websites and applications mentioned. :P

Bob, you didn't mention the title of Verghese's memoir. I've read the book, well the first one, apparently he wrote another. It was years ago, and I loaned it to someone & never got it back, or I'd mention it. He's just come out with a novel, which I am interested in.

I am almost done with the high fantasy *wonderful* Elfhunter by C.S. Marks.

Next? I've got Watchmen from the library, and Sturgeon & Heinlein on my TBR pile.

Just finished Black Man. I enjoyed it despite: the overall predictability in plot and characterization, after the extended hospital/death scene I didn't really care much about finishing the novel, and if one more character "pulled a face" I would have thrown the book into the fireplace (not to mention reading it left me wondering whether Richard Morgan had actually ever met any black folks in person). But, yeah, I enjoyed it.

Local bookseller just pressed Valente's Palimpsest into my hands, and closed the deal with some tale about how she had, for purposes of promoting the book, sponsored a Palimpsest-themed train journey from Chicago complete with fire eaters, and henna tattoos of her alternate world. Been wary of Valente in the past, but such conviction warrants a peek I figure.

I'm just finishing Downbelow Station by C.J. Cherryh and wishing I never picked up the damn thing in the first place. I've rarely read a book i honestly didn't like but this one is certainly one of them. One can only read so many pages describing people feeling knots in the stomachs because they're nervous before you really bloody get sick of it. The problem is that I just can't give up on it (i'm obsessive when it comes to reading). Man, I'll be happy when its all over.

A mention on another thread prompted me to start on This Time of Darkness by H. M. Hoover. Young adult books can be quite enjoyable.

I also want to read some of Kenneth Oppel's books from my daughter's cache such as Airborn and Skybreaker.

Goran, Downbelow Station drove me crazy too, when I read it. The amazing thing is that Cherryh does pull it all together at the end--but it was a tremendous amount of angst to get it there. I much prefer her Chanur books.

re: 51 I loved A Million Open Doors and the whole cycle it is from.

#55 - i liked Valente's the orphan's tales very much: "While Valente respects and gives nods to the classics in fantasy, magical realism, metafictions, et al...The concepts, linkages and , indeed, lack of sentimentality while at the same time being psychologically engrossing and moving are really something new under the readers sun. Slightly better than the followup book in the sequence, but both get 5 stars."

But i've had a v. hard time w/ a couple of other books of hers..

Finished the excellent Non-stop last week-end. I'm half way through Stephen King's phantom limb yarn Duma Key. By the end of the month I hope to get through The Player of Games by Iain Banks, this being the first book of his I've read I'm not sure what to expect. The title made me think a little of PKD though so I picked it up.

Now there's a topic -- if someone really liked PKD, who else would you recommend? Or even what individual books if not an author's main body of work? I'm drawing a blank.

I'm about halfway through The Demolished Man by Alfred Bester, and liking it quite a lot.

Just finished The Gone Away World by Nick Harkaway which I thoroughly enjoyed. Certainly the best book I've read in the last few years. Now reading Vol.3 in The Twelve Kingdoms series by Fuyumi Ono.

I'm reading The Gone-Away World now and not enjoying it. Before that I read Seeds of Earth*, and wrote a little on it here.

* No bloody touchstone. Sigh.

I read The Gone-Away World and didn't enjoy it a great deal. Sure there were sections which were written well, sections that were funny but it was too long, too rambling and less than the sum of its parts.

It waffles, it deviates, it's supposed to be funny, it can't make up its mind whether it's British or American, it has no rigour. I'm over 100 pages in and I still don't know what the bloody Pipe is for.

It's a marvelous feat of imagination, and it's a disgrace that it wasn't shortlisted for the Clarke Award*.

Currently I'm slogging through City at the End of Time still. After that I might cleanse my palate with Altered Carbon.

*NB, I haven't actually read all of it yet...

Bit of a dull Clarke shortlist this year.

Was greatly disappointed by Arthur C. Clarke's last work, The Last Theorem.. Just started David Brin's Sundiver, which was initially boring but suddenly kicked into gear and got real interesting. Recently read (and reviewed) The Big God Network by J.C. McGowan, my favorite science-fiction novel, as well as satirical work, of last year.

It's not the shortlist I would have put together, that's for sure. I expect Clarke-related slapfights to follow nonetheless! Still, you must be pleased at least that Debatable Space didn't make it. :)

I've seen several mentions of the vanity-published The Big God Network recently. I smell another Fe Fi Foe Comes...

Yes, of the 7 Amazon reviews only 2 reviewers have reviewed more than 1 book.

Atlas shrugged by Ayn Rand I was suprised that it was even a little bit science fiction

#74

What did you think of Atlas Shrugged? - just to completely derail this thread.

Oh noes! The Curse of Rand strikes again!

I gave up on The Gone-Away World. I'll return to it when I've more free time to wade through its waffle. Instead I'm trying Fahrenheit 451. I love the film, remains to be seen how I feel about the book...

Finished reading Strata, reviewed it for the 42 Science Fiction Challenge.

http://42sciencefictionchallenge.blogspot.com/2009/03/strata-terry-pratchett-198...

Interesting, but not as good as Pratchett's Discworld, or his other satires, for that matter.

I'm about halfway through The Day After Tomorrow.

Yeah, nothing effs up a thread like Ayn Rand. Plus, it alienates everyone, save for ego-centric oversexed libertarians.

And Klingons.

Finished Eifelheim and posted a review of the novel at: http://individualtake.blogspot.com/2009/03/eifelheim-review.html

(I posted a much shorter version of that review here at LT)

>79 mikeepatrick:

If I'm an "oversexed libertarian" ("ego-centric"? - well, probabably - I'll embrace that part as well) that isn't a fan of Rand - should I consider myself alienated, or not?

Am going to start This Is Not a Game: A Novel by Walter Jon Williams after finishing three mystery noves set in Alaska by Dana Stabenow. Am still reading The Social Life of Money in the English Past by Deborah Valenze when I am wake enough to read dense academic prose with more footnotes than text. Read my husband's copy of Watchmen, but hated it. Liked some of the stories in Extraordinary Engines: The Definitive Steampunk Anthology by Nick Gevers. Finally read Little Brother by Cory Doctorow after having it on my To Read pile since it was published. But the most amazing book I have read this month or even this year is Cyberabad Days by Ian McDonald. Short stories, yes, but taken as a whole, a better novel than most anything nominated for awards this year. I have a Brenda Cooper and a John Birmingham waiting for later in the month.

Touche, PortiaLong... :)

# 83. I reviewed Extraordinary Engines for LTER and agree with you it was pretty curate's egg.

Finished that other book "name not to be repeated". Started Fortress in the eye of Time by C.J. Cherryh. I needed some light hearted fantasy to get me in a better mood after the last one.

Prompted by another thread in this group, I started Player of Games yesterday.

In the midst of All the Windwracked Stars, from my local library. I can't decide if it's fantasy or science fiction, and I'm okay with that.

Doing some re-reading, I just finished Harry Harrison's West of Eden trilogy. I definitely remember having read the first book but I'm not sure if I ever read the second or third. I had very good memories of this one from years ago, but today I'd probably put it at just above average. Better than Jean Auel, but not something to write home about.

I'm about halfway through Night Watch. Saw the film (and its sequel) a while ago and enjoyed them. If I see the film first and like it then I'm always a little apprehensive about reading the book afterwards.

I am now reading a SF/Mystery called Wyrmhole by Jay Caselberg. It is the first book in the Jack Stein psychic investigator series. It is set in the future in an organic city called the Locality, very class divided by money, and with a grasping corporation controlling everything. On a small planet a group of miners have mysteriously disappeared and the company hires Jack to find them, or maybe not ....

I'm reading How to Spot a Liar ... really great book.

Libertarians are oversexed? Is Amsterdam a mecca for Libertarians?

Enjoy Atlas Shrugged it's an icon of American literature ... a 'must read'.

I'm glad I'm not an American then.

You can always immigrate.

If it means I have to read Rand, then I'd rather not.

lol ... I don't think it means that. Besides from what I see many Briits prefer a little place is France or Spain ... that's not all bad.

Finished up Natural History (B) yesterday. Considering how much I've enjoyed Robson's 'Lila Black' books I've been meaning to try some of her other stuff. The problem with this one is that all too often is feels like the novelization of one of those old computer puzzle games, and significant chunks of the novel go by without any of the characters interacting with each other. It least it comes together rather well in the end.

If Atlas Shrugged is an 'icon of American literature', then you haven't read enough American Literature. And, no, I'm not trying to be cute...

I just finished Caryatids by Bruce Sterling.
Not as good as the dust jacket promised, but a fun light read. Depressing undertones with a "Disney" ending.
Just take some clones and mix with the end of the world, pour into a container, shake, pour again.

Reading (Crazy Time) by ((Kate Wilhelm)) and she is a marvelous writer.

#98

Right ... nobody in America has ever even heard of Atlas Shrugged. Or maybe you missed it.

I'm reading The City on the Edge of Forever, and the timing is purely a coincidence. I finally got through my TBR pile from Christmas.

I finished Wyrmhole by Jay Caselberg. SF book first in the Jack Stein, Psychic Investigator series. It was good.

The author has created an organic city, based on gated communities. Everything is self-contained, like the cities in Chung Kuo , but smaller and mobile. The city moves across the landscape. It is separated into New, Mid, Old. Old is the part that is the oldest, with everything breaking down, and about to be re-absorbed and recycled.

The book is a mystery about miners who have disappeared but there is a bunch of mysticism and higher-level math and geometry - though it doesn't overwhelm.

I am now reading The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason. Very cool, imaginary historical fiction. Purports to be the lost parts of Homer's Odyssey. A series of short stories, all so far have a twist/zinger, and the writing is enchanting.

103 - Is this a long series? and is it written in first person? Wyrmhole sounds like something I would really enjoy, but am going to have to order.

# 104 Davisfamily

There are 4 books total. The last one was published in 2006, so I think its done.

The books, in order are:

Wyrmhole
Metal Sky
The Star Tablet
Wall of Mirrors

The author is on LT.

I think the book is written in 3rd person (he).

I finished The City on the Edge of Forever and am now about halfway through Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow.

FicusFan thanks, I have Wyrmhole on its way.

Currently reading Death's Head: Maximum Offense. This one is a little bit tricky you see, but I had just suffered through and finished Downbelow Station (ohhhh the knot in my stomach!! Everything causes a knot in my stomach!!) so i really appreciate something a bit more low brow and less knotty in the stomach. When looking at the entire situation, DH:MO is great! (plus the constant description of breasts in every possible situation is oddly refreshing). However, if I read this book without going through the torture of Downbelow Station, I'd probably say DH:MO is really not very good at all.......very very VERY simplistic.....utterly juvenile. The reviews I read before buying this novel said its an outstanding military space saga......I don't see much genuine "military" though there is quite a bit of fantasy "military," meaning it seems like its written by someone who spent most of their childhood watching Chuck Norris commando movies (yes, Chuck is indeed pushing the world down when he does a push up). Anyways, I'm not done with it yet, so it may become more genuine military......ala Arnold Schwarzenegger's Predator and less Chuck Norris's every movie where he materialized weapons out of no where.

#108 davisfamily,

I hope you enjoy it.

The Night's Dawn Trilogy on my Kindle.

Talk about great value. All three books in one download for just $7.99!

I am almost done with Book 2. And will probably take a break to catch up on some other books that I have been meaning to read and then go back and read book 3...

Now on to Stranger in a Strange Land: The Original Uncut by Robert A. Heinlein.

Just out of interest, how many books does everyone tend to go through a month? (I'm sorry if this is an age old topic!)

#112, It depends on the size of the books. "Normal" paperback size books, I would go thru 3 to 4 a month. Right now I am reading the Night's Dawn Trilogy which is anything but normal. I should finish Book 2 this weekend and its taken me about 10 weeks to get this far.

>113 knipfty:, I agree in that it depends on the size of the books. Likewise, for me at least, it depends on what's going on in real life. I'm a college student so the month of finals, I'll be lucky to make it through two or three books. Last month though was Spring Break and since I don't go anywhere and didn't have anything to do, I went through about five books in just that week.

On the whole, though, I'd say I average 4-8 books a month, or 1-2 books a week.

112: I was managing 15-20 a month until we had a baby,now it's about 3-4.

Read The Custodians by Richard Cowper, a so-so collection by a 1970s UK sf writer. Not the most original stories out there but quite well written. Then read The History Man by Malcolm Bradbury, which proved to be a lot better than I'd expected. Now reading The Levant Trilogy by Olivia Manning, have read and very much enjoyed The Balkan Trilogy last year. The TV adaptation, "Fortunes of War", starring Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh is also very good.

I finished Alastair Reynold's "The Prefect" (which I started reading back at #32 above) and enjoyed it. I then started on Gregory Benford's "Beyond infinity" and found it so bad I gave up reading it. Everything I have read of his previously was fine. I am starting Michael Chabon's "The Yiddish Policeman's Union". I have not read anything from him before.

I have several books in progress, but at the moment I'm giving my attention to Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman.

Additionally, I'm also listening to his audiobook versions of Fragile Things & Coraline, primarily while driving or while doing mind-numbing tasks.

Retief! by Keith Laumer.

Ok. I just finished Microbe by Bill Clem this morning. That is addition to finishing Book 2 of Night's Dawn Trilogy by Peter F. Hamiliton.

I am taking a break from Sci-Fi while I catch on other reading...

Today I finished Adventures on Other Planets an anthology from the 50s. I love the oldies, for some reason I just can't get into modern (within the last 25 years) SF.

I just picked up One Second After I enjoyed Forschten's alternate history of Pearl Harbor. Now let's see what he does in the apocalyptic genre.

AlanPoulter--I'm interested to hear your thought's on Chabon's book. Please keep us posted.

#112

It depends on what's happening for me, too. Right now, I'm reading one or two books a week, but am putting in some effort watching SF television series' and SF movies instead, having neglected my SF viewing until recently.

Last and First Men was waiting for me at the library today.

Last week I read Emma Bull's Bone Dance. It's an amalgam of science fiction and fantasy, first published in 1991. It's set in an unnamed city after the Bang. Sparrow finds pre- Bang videos, music, and technology and sells them. Enjoyed it a lot.

Currently reading The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter.

AlanPoulter-- I too am interested in what you think of The Yiddish Policeman's Union. Because of it I became a *huge* Chabon fan & have read nearly everything by him since.

#112 It depends what's happening & what I'm reading. This month 10. Some months, more than 20.

Working on some shorts at the moment after discovering Paolo Bacigalupi there is something about his style that really clicks with me. So far I have listened to Pump Six from StartShipSofa. I finished the "The Gambler" yesterday which thought had a cool take on news tracking and is up for a Hugo this year. I'm currently reading "The People of Sand and Slag" and the other freebies on the authors website once those are done its on to Fast ships, Black sails.

http://www.starshipsofa.com/20081008/aural-delights-no-45-paolo-bacigalupi/

#124

Have fun, Ronincats. I know I always do when I read it.

i always assumed bone dance was set in the Twin Cities, but only because other of her books are set there. I like her books a good deal; Territory, her most recent, is a fantastic (in all senses) retelling of the mythos of the USAmerican wild west.

I'm a few chapters into Beyond This Horizon.