It’s been a while since we talked books. What are you guys and girls reading at the moment?
I have a confession: I haven’t read fiction in a long time. In fact, I haven’t read a book in a while. Usually when I read a book nowadays it’s functional: I want to learn how to do something like exercise better or invest in the stock market. I can’t remember the last time I bought a book and just read it for fun, and even when I do that, I normally read something like history or some sort of autobiography or something.
I think I just spend way too much time reading things on the internet.
A book I’m really keen on reading, which has just been released digitally on Amazon I think, is The Republic Of Pirates. A lot of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag was based on this book. It’s basically a retelling of a historical peroid of piracy in its golden age. Very keen to check it out.
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59 responses to “Off Topic: What Are You Reading?”
Just started Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson, pretty good so far, before that was the Hobbit, prefer the movies to be honest.
I finished that a little while ago and got my copies signed when he was at Supanova last(?) year. Good books though, I’ve yet to properly get into any of his other stuff other than him finishing off the Wheel of Time
I don’t mind Brandon Sanderson. Still got to read A Memory of Light, but he did OK with the other Robert Jordan books considering the magnitude of the task.
I’m the same as you, Mark. Barely read fiction at all. When I do I likes me some Stephen King!
Currently reading through the Warcraft: War of The Ancients trilogy.
Also Forgotten Realms: The Neverwinter Saga.
Near the end of the first bookbof lord of the rings.
Comics:
All New X-Men
Amazing X-Men
Saga
Velvet
Lesser Evil
Whatever else I get my hands on.
Not really feeling like reading anything “new” (i.e. something I haven’t read before) right now (or I’d be on Max Barry’s “Lexicon” or Dean Koontz’s “Deeply Odd”) so I’m just leafing through Tom Clancy’s “Rainbow Six” which is so dog-eared over the years the cover is starting to fall apart. Yes, that’s the one that got made in to a whole series of video games and such. I hear they’re quite playable.
Oh man, I have fallen so far behind on Max Barry books. I frequently refer to him as one of my favourite authors, but I haven’t read Lexicon or Machine Man 🙁
I just learned Max Barry has written books other than Jennifer Government…
Syrup
Jennifer Government
Company
Machine Man
Lexicon
I think that’s all of them, in order. JG is still my favourite of the ones I’ve read, but Company is pretty damn great.
I might look into Company and see how it holds up. I liked Jennifer Government and still do, but I don’t know if I’d like it if I read it for the first time today, you know?
I don’t seem to get too much time for books these days either, though I read a lot of blogs, forums and news sites so I guess that makes up for it? I just finished Book 1 of the Dresden Codak, a comic yes, but I read it so it counts. I do have “The Willful Princess and the Piebald Prince” by Robin Hobb sitting in my Reading Pile Of Shame (yes, I have one) which I’m keen to get into this long weekend.
With the release of the final Midkemia book by Raymond E Feist I started back at Magician and am working my way through the 30 title epic.
Took a small break last night and read “Winterdance: The Fine Madness of Running the Iditarod”
Book by Gary Paulsen
Awesome!!!
I’m the same as you, I’m up to Darkness at Sethanon
Im about to launch into Talon of the Silverhawk tonight
I haven’t read any of this series since I was 16. Do you think they’ll still hold up if I revisit them?
Absolutely they will
The first couple (Magician, Sethanon, Prince of the Blood) etc are a little simplistic for an older reader, but the remaining have a scope, and depth that mature as his writing style and ability matures
Funny you mention investing Mark, I just ordered One up on wall street by Peter Lynch which is supposed to be a great starter book. Time to get investing 😀
I’ve almost finished White Fang by Jack London.
I think the new Halo book is released this week… so probably that.
The Strain is a vampire horror novel by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan. It’s a page turner!
Right now, I’m reading Kotaku 😛
Book-wise, I’m mostly non-fiction these days as well. Got some Spong going on with Re-claiming the Bible for a Non-religious World, and Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.
Just got the Complete Chronicles of Conan on Kindle for crazy cheap, and if the Horus Heresy series ever comes out on Kindle I’ll get the whole thing. I got like 6 books into that and wondered what I’d do with like 25 physical copies.
A good while back someone recommended the ‘Altered Carbon’ triology by Richard Morgan. Having just that series (and loved it) I’m starting on another of his books ‘Black Man’.
If you want yourself some good sci-fi ‘Altered Carbon’ is a great book.
Also I’m 1/2-way through Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski (book 2 in the witcher series) which I’m enjoying.
I just finished The Divine Comedy as part of my ongoing mission to self-civilise. No idea what’s next. Maybe something fun like the Foundation series.
REAMDE by Neal Stephenson, really good so far, and unexpectedly, quite a bit in it about gaming, MMOs, gold mining etc.
I’ve been wanting to get onto that for awhile but I’ve been stalled because the last book of his I read was Quicksilver and I’ve been wanting to finish the baroque cycle trilogy before moving onto anything else.
Currently reading The Gunslinger by Stephen King.
Just finished reading a biography of Bruce Springsteen called, imaginatively, “Bruce”.
Just started reading Joyland by Stephen King.
I enjoyed Joyland. Much smaller scale, with a touch of the Shining. It was good, but I’m enjoying Doctor Sleep more.
I’m waiting for that one to come out in a more conveniently-sized paperback 😛
Currently reading The Dark Tower series by Stephen King. Up to Book III: The Wastelands. Really enjoying the series so far, it’s this weird mix of fantasy, horror and Western. Bit surreal in places, but very cool! I heard there’s a prequel comic too, so probably get into that after 🙂
I think there was going to be a movie with Javier Bardim as Roland, not sure if thats still happening though.
Wow, that would be awesome – I could definitely picture him as Roland and he’s a great actor. That could be something special.
It all fell apart after the studio balked at the cost (it was going to be 3 movies with a season of a TV show in between each movie). So Bardem is no longer on board, and I think Ron Howard has taken it back to the drawing board and is trying to develop it in some way that will work both financially and artistically. I seriously doubt he’ll find a way to make it work on both those fronts.
I’m reading A Game of Thrones (almost done).
People kept telling my I should watch the TV show, and I kept refusing. Maybe they’ll stop bugging me now…
I haven’t read any new books for far too long. I usually keep a paperback in my bag and thumb through it on the train when I don’t feel like looking at stuff on my phone. At the moment that book is Tara Moss’ “Fetish”, which I haven’t made any significant progress on in months. The last “new” book (as in not something I re-read for the 50th time) I actually finished was the second book in the Game of Thrones series. I’ve been wanting to move onto the third for awhile but we’ve been getting them in ebook format on my wife’s iTunes account and I guess I’m waiting for her to actually buy it instead of buying it myself – and I think she might be waiting until she’s watched season 4 of the show so she doesn’t get spoiled on anything since season 3 only covered about half the book. I personally don’t think it counts as a “spoiler” to read the 10 year old book a TV show is based on, but we all have our quirks.
Think I’ll start my witcher novel and even my star wars novel that continues after the Thrawn trilogy. Bought all these great books and just lost momentum. Kinda like a gaming backlogue.
If you liked the Thrawn trilogy I heartily recommend Timothy Zahn’s non-Star Wars work, most significantly the Conqueror trilogy and The Icarus Hunt.
I will check it out. Thanks dude.
Int he past fortnight I managed to finish off Star Wars: Crucible (I have way too much SW @ home) Tom Clancy’s Command Authority (which was a little sad considering that was his last novel) and managed to purchase a new copy of “The Southern Cross” – aka Robotech series 2 which is great train reading 🙂
I started the first Witcher book, The blood of elves a while back, need to see about continuing it. Caught up with the Adventure Time comic as well but need to see about catching up with some other comics too.
borrowed Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy from work to read over the holidays.
gave up when I realised it was like the 12th book in the series & theres all these back stories referenced so I had no idea who the characters were & what had already happened.
then I started Wolf Hall. Its about the rise & fall of Thomas Cromwell in the court of Henry VIII. Pretty much the Tudors TV series, but told from a different POV.
so much politicking & scheming & vying for power it sort of reminds me of Game of Thrones.
though any book that has three prominent characters named Thomas & only ever refers to them by their first name is gonna be hard to follow at times.
Charles Bukowski’s Factotum. Not a big fiction guy (outside of comics/manga/graphic novels) but it’s keeping my interest, it reads like a drunk guy.
Wolf Hall is great. Round it off with Bring Up The Bodies (the sequel) and it is even better.
Im reading Trainspotting atm. It’s taking me months because all that damn scottish slang is giving me a headache.
i mean how does “ken” equal “know”
Have you read A Clockwork Orange? If you think Trainspotting’s hard to read, try keeping up with Alex’s slang!
Reading the Claw Trilogy by M. D. Lachlan. It’s all Norse mythology mixed with werewolf, set in the early medieval period. Good stuff.
ohh sounds interesting! ill e sure to check that out!
Just finished The First Law series. What an incredible series this is, some of the best fantasy out there.
Just started the Malazan series. Before I started, I read that it is a tough series to get into, but once you do it is extremely rewarding. I got into the first book almost straight away, so I’m expecting great things!
A friend of mine also recommended The First Law to me on the weekend. This series is now on my to do list.
Good, it definitely should be. If you’re into dark, gritty fantasy it’s definitely the place to go. The first three books are listed as a trilogy, but it’s not really a traditional trilogy. A lot of the storylines are continued throughout the standalone books that happen after (which pretty much constitute 90% of the complaints against it). You have a lot of brutal violence and gut punches to look forward to.
Yeah my friend is reading one of the other storylines now and tried to explain the trilogy to me.
He thinks I’ll like it as I love the Game of Thrones books and they can be brutal at times.
Reading Doctor Sleep by Stephen King and Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan. I’ve got A Clash of Kings and The Dark Tower Vol. 2 waiting on my shelf next. And to everybody, read anything by Joe Hill, you won’t be disappointed!
A Dance with Dragons! \o/
One book to go and my addiction will be subdued.
I’m reading Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson. Half way through it and it’s worth the read!
I’ve been going on a bit of a Brandon Sanderson binge lately – read Elantris, then The Emperor’s Soul, The Alloy of Law, Steelheart, and currently getting into The Way of Kings. Man, that last one’s a weird one – the world’s far more alien than I’m used to.
I’m reading The Confidential Agent by Graham Greene.
Currently I am reading a series called “The Abhorsen Trilogy” its a fantasy-meets-WWII-tech book by Australian Author Garth Nix. Excellent Series, Would recommend to anyone looking for a good read!