Marvellous March Manuscripts? So what are you reading this month?

[chopper]

Well worth it, Chopper...as someone said, think Anne McCaffrey writing Hornblower....

never read McCaffrey, though i suppose i should since my latest thoughts include dragons. but i do enjoy a good naval engagement - Patrick O'Brian & the military scifi equivalent Weber, so def going on the TBR lists

 

[Bikewer]

Just started K.J.Parker's Devices and Desires. Pretty good so far; the idea is a mostly-feudal society with an enclave of technologically-advanced types. Not quite steam...More like water-wheel based machining and mass production.
They can make fairly advanced automata, weapons, and so forth. An engineer is condemned to death for the crime of "technological innovation"; he made a non-spec toy for his kid.
He escapes to offer his services to one of the feudal dukes.

 

[K. Riehl]

Finished The Annotated Index to the Thrill Book by Bleiler and starting Lords of Creation by Eando Binder

 

[j d worthington]

Fairly well into No Name, by Wilkie Collins. I was a bit hesitant about this particular Collins at first (hence the postponing of it in favor of The Blood Red Game) but, while it's not quite what I expected, it is (so far) very well done. I'm becoming quite a fan of his work at this point, I must admit....

 

[Ursa major]

Just finished the book The Jennifer Morgue by Charles Stross, which contains the novel of that name, plus a short story (Pimpf) and some thoughts on Bond and his adversaries; both of the latter are quite humerous.

I enjoyed this book's predecessor (The Atrocity Archives) with certain minor reservations. This volume is even better, a Bond-style romp with the added attraction of demons. (As before, this is an SF rather than Fantasy treatment.) The narrative is full of humour and adventure. I'd add horror to that list, but as I don't read much horror, I can't really comment on how effective this work is compared to its rivals. All I can say is that I enjoyed it all immensely.

(There are some annoying typos - I have the paperback version - but they don't spoil the story, I'm please to say.)

 

[Michael01]

I'm not reaqding anything just now, since I finished Moon Goddess, but I'm eagerly awaiting delivery of Elantris by Brandon Sanderson. I hope it arrives soon!

 

[Talysia]

After finishing (and thoroughly enjoying) Naomi Novik's His Majesty's Dragon, I'm moving on to Anne McCaffrey's The Ship who Sang.

 

[Pyan]

Strewth, Tal, that was fast....glad you liked it.

 

[Talysia]

I know - I couldn't put it down. (One of those books that I stayed up late reading) I can't wait to read the others now.

 

[Culhwch]

Got two on the boil at the moment. In addition to Mort I picked up World War Z from the library the other day, and couldn't resist dipping in on the bus on the way into work. Haven't been able to put it down, so I'm rotating...

 

[Pyan]

Well, I finally finished Marrow, by Robert Reed.

Dom't think I'll bother with the sequel, The Well of Stars, though. The premise was pretty good, about a ship a bit similar to a planet size Culture vessel, but unfortunately the story and the writing didn't approach Banks in any particular.

 

[elvet]

I finished The Myth Hunters by Christipher Golden. It had a cliffhanger ending, otherwise I'm not too sure I would have started Borderkind. It's more dark fantasy. There doesn't seem to be much hope - the bad guys are really evil and there's too little positive to balance it out. He also has a steak of thriller/terror running through the story, a genre I've never been comfortable with. Anyhow, if Borderkind doesn't pick up soon, I'm going to leave it.

 

[Allegra]

Fairly well into No Name, by Wilkie Collins. I was a bit hesitant about this particular Collins at first (hence the postponing of it in favor of The Blood Red Game) but, while it's not quite what I expected, it is (so far) very well done. I'm becoming quite a fan of his work at this point, I must admit....

Let us know what you think about the book when you are through, JD. I wanted to read this book for some time.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Fairly well into No Name, by Wilkie Collins.

I read that same book a few weeks ago. It starts a little slow but becomes a ripping Victorian melodrama before the end. Have you read Armadale, JD? I read the two books back to back, and liked Armadale much better.

 

[Thadlerian]

Finished Excession by Iain M. Banks. I thought it was OK. Of course, meeting dozens of Culture Minds/Ships can only be great, but this time I felt they got a little too many. I had a hard time telling apart others than just the most important ones.

Large parts of the book were great. The Affront just has to be the best kind of aliens as of yet; their relaxed, almost good-natured way of offending. And Sleeper Service explaining how Ships relate to all the individuals within themselves, following their lives, befriending them... that sure showed an all-new aspect of the Culture concept to me.

But the ending was bad, almost surprisingly so. I ended up feeling that if Banks wasn't ready to play along with a major reality-altering concept like the Excession, and have it have a profound effect on the universe, changing it forever, then he should have dropped the whole thing altogether, and found a better use for the Affront and the Zetetic Elench.

 

[The Ace]

'Blood and Honour,' by Simon R. Green, sequel to, 'Blue Moon Rising.'

 

[Lenny]

I finished the truly epic Memories of Ice last night. Good book, with some brilliant battles, but I don't think I'd place it above Deadhouse Gates. Of course, to carry on my Erikson marathon, I've started House of Chains, and am so far left wondering how it will link in with MoI and the events the title seems to reference (for one, I see no Ganoes Paran in the Dramatis Personae... but then again, there were a couple of characters in MoI that appeared but were not in the list). Anyway, I'm looking forward to it (nearly 100 pages in - still with Karsa Orlong... crazy fella he is).

 

[Rothgar]

Finished The Dosadi Experiment by Frank Herbert. Started Stars in my Pocket Like Grains of Sand by Samuel Delany.

 

[Spade]

Finished The Dosadi Experiment by Frank Herbert. Started Stars in my Pocket Like Grains of Sand by Samuel Delany.

Have you read Whipping Star? I really enjoyed that one but couldn't get into The Dosadi Experiment for some reason.

I'm currently reading Gateway by Frederik Pohl after reading the first chapter of several books before something really grabbed my attention. Loving it so far. Can't wait to get to the bulk of the novel.

I just finished Stephen Baxter's Ring yesterday. Very depressing, but that's what I expected. What a fantastic read!

 

[Thadlerian]

I finished the truly epic Memories of Ice last night. Good book, with some brilliant battles, but I don't think I'd place it above Deadhouse Gates. Of course, to carry on my Erikson marathon, I've started House of Chains, and am so far left wondering how it will link in with MoI and the events the title seems to reference (for one, I see no Ganoes Paran in the Dramatis Personae... but then again, there were a couple of characters in MoI that appeared but were not in the list). Anyway, I'm looking forward to it (nearly 100 pages in - still with Karsa Orlong... crazy fella he is).

I'm reading House of Chains as well. I don't think it really relates to MoI, it seems more like a follow-up on DHG.

At about 200 pages in, I'll agree on Karsa Orlong being quite fruitcake. However, after meeting Torvald, he has started to resemble some sort of Fafhrd lookalike: all big, quiet, mysterious barbarian...