March's Marvellous Meanderings In Melodious Manuscripts.

[Mouse]

Just finished the Toymaker by Jeremy De Quidt. Loved, loved, loved it. Very dark for a kid's book. Just read the acknowledgements and realised the author wrote it for some kids at a school in Somerset (where I'm from) so that was cool.

 

[Connavar]

Well I am a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and have read all (and re-read several) of the Sherlock Holmes stories by ACD. I've even read some of the further stories by his son Adrian Conan Doyle (don't bother, they're just unworthy pastiches), watched nearly all seasons of the Granada TV Sherlock Holmes series with Jeremy Brett (skipped Memoirs... because Jeremy was seriously ill and they worked around him in that season), seen and liked the new BBC series Sherlock, watched FOUR Hound of The Baskervilles movie adaptations, heard all the canon and non-canon Sherlock Holmes radio plays with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (amusing 30 min each if you don't mind that they're often very bone-headed)....you get the idea

I like The Sign of Four a great deal...I thought the back story was better integrated with the preceding narrative and much tighter on the whole. Also the story had some terrific morbid humor with the character of Thaddeus Sholto. You may also like The Valley of Fear, which like Study... has a long back-story about one of the central characters. But really, read the stories in order if you can, I feel they make the most sense and the best impact in the order they were written.

Even if i have read only two novels so far i adore ACD writing,characters. I enjoyed the new BBC Sherlock series because they captured the asocial ways,personality of Holmes very well despite the modern setting,techs.

I ordered Adventure and Memories collection just yesterday despite i promised no more new books. I will of course read in chrono order.

Holmes and Watson made me too interested to wait a month for next read

Good to know you are a big fan so when i read the stories i can change words with another fan here and not just talk to myself about the stories i read.

 

[ravenus]

Oh I actually envy you, discovering the Holmes stories now. I wish I could wipe my memory clean and go back to them afresh

But tell me, you don't get Sherlock Holmes all-in-one collections? That'd be cheaper than ordering individual series, no?

 

[Hypnos164]

Finished Child of Fire by Harry Connolly an urban fantasy debut that didn't quite deliver on what sounded like a winning combination of elements - pacing not quite right and too much reference to undisclosed backstory - will give the next one a go as with the minor niggles ironed out it could be an excellent series/setting

Next up Wise Man's Fear really looking forward to this as i devoured the last one in a single (long) sitting.

 

[Rosemary]

Just finished reading 'The Heroes' by our Joe Abercrombie! Great story, packed full of action and very interesting characters all the way through. However, in terms of entertainment, it didn't find it quite as good as his previous books

Now reading The Gathering Storm by Jordan and Sanderson. No too much has changed, although the pace is a little faster than the last couple of volumes.

That book should keep me going until my copy of the Crippled God arrives

 

[Rothgar]

Finished Day Watch & Twilight Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko. Just started Patrick Rothfuss The Name of the Wind.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I'm just starting Sixty-One Nails, by Mike Shevdon.

 

[woodsman]

Just getting to grips with Tad Williams - Shadowheart, really should have re-read the proceeding books so I knew what was going on.


Conn - I would highly recommend The White Company & Sir Nigel both by Arthur Conan Doyle I actually prefer them to the Holmes books in the main.

 

[K. Riehl]

Finished Wise Man's Fear and starting on Heroes.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Good to know you are a big fan so when i read the stories i can change words with another fan here and not just talk to myself about the stories i read.

I've read all of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories (and some Holmes stories that weren't by Doyle, but most of those are better forgotten) and I've read many of the stories multiple times. So, I too, am a fan. Not the sort of hardcore fan who can recite minute details of the stories off the top of her head, but I would enjoy discussing the stories.

Someone could start an A. C. Doyle thread, and it wouldn't be inappropriate to these forums, because he did write SF and Horror. And if we end up talking more about Holmes and Watson ... ah well.

woodsman, I read The White Company, but so long ago that I hardly remember anything about it. I have a vague impression that I liked it.

 

[Mouse]

Now reading The Secret Life of Oscar Wilde by Neil McKenna.

Thought 'Sixty-one Nails' looked like my sort of thing, Teresa, let us know if it's any good!

 

[Connavar]

Oh I actually envy you, discovering the Holmes stories now. I wish I could wipe my memory clean and go back to them afresh

But tell me, you don't get Sherlock Holmes all-in-one collections? That'd be cheaper than ordering individual series, no?

The complete hardcovers is too low quality wordsworth collection or just too huge to read comfortably. Its only a few punds more expensive to get 2 collections,novels at once since the quality complete hardcover is not cheap.

Mostly i dislike illustration on every page that the complete collections have. If i want something like that i might as well read the comics,see the tv shows...

You shouldnt be a purist to want text only collections.

 

[gully_foyle]

Just started The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi. Looks promising. Very cyberpunk.

 

[Vertigo]

I have just finished Mieville's The Scar. To be honest I struggled with this one. It has taken an unusually long time for me to read it and I didn't find it anywhere near as enjoyable as Perdido Street Station.

Going to move back into my comfort zone for a while and read some SF starting with Tanya Huff's The Better Part of Valor.

 

[Thadlerian]

Re-reading The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett. A YA Fantasy, although rather dark. Last time I read it was in 2003 or something.

Re-reading A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin. Re-reading is nice - now that I'm already aware of the world and factions, I can sit back and truly savour the level of detail.

 

[Nesacat]

Connavar ... like Ravenus, I too sometimes wish that I could discover Holmes all over again. There's not many detectives that capture my interest as much as he does. I've been reading a whole lot of 'alternative' Holmes tales recently including a collection called Shadows Over Baker Street, which I thought was quite well done.

Vertigo ... I really, really liked Pump Six and have no reservations at all recommending it to everyone keen on fairly dark short stories and wanting to try a new writer. I will read Wind-up Girl but I think I'm going to leave it for a while until all the fuss settles and my head is not filled with a whole bunch of reviews.

And I spent the whole weekend wading happily through an entire box of The Broons and Oor Wullie comics, which included the annuals as well. After a very hectic, stressful week, the comics were a wonderful antidote.

 

[bluespider100]

Dropped Red Mars for now, but I shall continue on to that when time permits me to, well, I'm on to Starfarers by Paul Anderson, promising start easy to read during this time where I don't usually have time to read.

 

[elvet]

I'm reading Swords and Dark Magic: The New Swords and Sorcery.
I don't usually read short stories, but so many of the contributers are favorites of mine, I just had to try it. I must say it is kind of nice to have the stories in bite-sized pieces .

 

[Hober Mallow]

I really enjoyed that book, quite different, but i guess the ending was kind-of weak (IMO). but i'd think you'd really enjoy it,


I'm still reading Red Mars and now enjoying it, daily activities is the only thing that hampers my reading.

I just finished reading The Accidental Time Machine. Loved it...even the ending. Red Mars is on my reading list too but I probably won't get to it for a few months. I'm thinking of picking up Methuselah's Children by Robert Heinlein next.

 

[Connavar]

Connavar ... like Ravenus, I too sometimes wish that I could discover Holmes all over again. There's not many detectives that capture my interest as much as he does. I've been reading a whole lot of 'alternative' Holmes tales recently including a collection called Shadows Over Baker Street, which I thought was quite well done.

Vertigo ... I really, really liked Pump Six and have no reservations at all recommending it to everyone keen on fairly dark short stories and wanting to try a new writer. I will read Wind-up Girl but I think I'm going to leave it for a while until all the fuss settles and my head is not filled with a whole bunch of reviews.

And I spent the whole weekend wading happily through an entire box of The Broons and Oor Wullie comics, which included the annuals as well. After a very hectic, stressful week, the comics were a wonderful antidote.

Alternative Holmes ? You mean supernatural,SFF Holmes or just patiche detective stories ? Would be interesting to read Holmes in supernatural story.

You are lucky with Pump Six Nesa because i borrowed The Windup Girl from the library and have read only 30 pages in over a week. Too much school work to read that i wish that short story collection of his was in library system to get. 400 pages novel is impossible to read right now. Reading two lit courses at the same time.

I lurk around in this thread of jealousy at people who can read their own books for fun