July 2020 Reading Thread

[The Judge]

And it's July already! (Doesn't time fly when you're enjoying yourself locked in your own home?!) So, what are you reading this month?

I've already started on Andy Weir's Artemis, set in a city on the moon. The science and technology stuff is going way over my head, but so far I'm enjoying the main character and her voice.

 

[biodroid]

50% through Transfer of Power - Vince Flynn and so far it is quite good. At least the late author has his moral compass pointing in the right direction which shows in his characters. Sadly Vince Flynn passed away a few years ago but the publisher found another author to write his characters, Kyle MIlls. Not sure why maybe to keep the character alive or finish his story arc?

 

[JimC]

I think I'll re-read Darker Than You Think.

 

[Montero]

Just doing a T Kingfisher re-read and starting Swordheart. Still a great fantasy and with a lot of humour from the mix of characters - not a comedy, more a mix of exasperation and misunderstanding.

 

[Don]

My New Perry Rhodan reading project (whose reviews will be posted to Chrons soon) continues with Moewig Nr. 32 Ausflug in die Unendlichkeit and Ace #24 Infinity Flight. Plus various short stories along the way as the spirit moves me.

 

[Hugh]

John Brunner "The Compleat Traveller in Black"
A collection of the five "Traveller in Black" stories first published 1960 - 1979.
I'd read the first one a while back and found the central character interesting enough to risk reading the others. Sigh! Although there are certain fantasy books I really love, I find most sadly tedious, and, for me, these stories are clichéd, repetitive and dated. A pity, as John Brunner can write.

 

[Danny McG]

(Doesn't time fly when you're enjoying yourself locked in your own home?!

It's been brilliant, seriously!

 

[Paul_C]

I finished Such Big Teeth last night, very enjoyable and quite "Pratchetty" in parts.

Back to How Long 'Til Black Future Month next.

 

[williamjm]

I read through the three 2020 Hugo novella nominees I hadn't read yet.

I really liked Seanan McGuire's In An Absent Dream. I found the previous stories in the Wayward Children series to be entertaining but didn't think they were great, I thought this was the best of them so far. Out of the various portal worlds seen so far in the series I think the Goblin Market felt like the most interesting of them.

I also enjoyed P. Djeli Clark's The Haunting of Tram Car 015 about a couple of government paranormal investigators working in an alternate-history Cairo where djinn and other spirits are commonplace. It seems an interesting setting and I think novella length was appropriate for the plot. I see there has been another story in the same setting which I'll have to track down.

Finally I read Rivers Solomon's The Deep. The premise is fascinating - an underwater society of merwomen descended from women thrown overboard from slave ships - and I thought the 'historical' parts of the story were the highlight. Unfortunately I didn't like the main portion of the story as much, I think the protagonist had justification for lots of self-pity but it was still a bit tedious to read.

 

[Galactic Bus Driver]

50% through Transfer of Power - Vince Flynn and so far it is quite good. At least the late author has his moral compass pointing in the right direction which shows in his characters. Sadly Vince Flynn passed away a few years ago but the publisher found another author to write his characters, Kyle MIlls. Not sure why maybe to keep the character alive or finish his story arc?

I've read the whole Mitch Rapp series several times, and while Kyle Mills does a decent job, he's no Vince Flynn! I think he was brought on to keep the series running simply for the money. The Mitch Rapp series is one of the most popular of all the thriller out there, despite what Hollywood tried to do to it.

Currently finishing the Lifelike series. When I first posted about this series on the 30th, unbeknownst to me, the third book had just been released. I managed to pick it up from the library the day after release, even though I hadn't managed to get a hold on it.

 

[Galactic Bus Driver]

I really liked Seanan McGuire's In An Absent Dream. I found the previous stories in the Wayward Children series to be entertaining but didn't think they were great, I thought this was the best of them so far. Out of the various portal worlds seen so far in the series I think the Goblin Market felt like the most interesting of them.

I've yet to read a Seanan McGuire book that I haven't enjoyed, and I think you're spot on about "In an Absent Dream."

Don't miss her work as Mira Grant, which seems to be her pseudonym for horror. Her Newsflesh series is amazing, and this comes from someone who typically doesn't like zombie fiction at all.

I also just placed a hold on her first work under yet another pseudonym, A Deborah Baker, and am anxiously awaiting that release date!

While no author can achieve excellence in everything they write. McGuire's baseline is 'very good.'

 

[dask]

Started this after too long a delay:

 

[thaddeus6th]

Currently reading The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and NPCs, for the first time, and re-reading The Book of Jhereg, which I haven't read for a loooong time. But I'm enjoying it a lot. My normally glacial reading speed has increased quite a bit.

 

[Rodders]

I finished Neal Asher’s Line War last night. I’m rereading The Soldier in preparation for reading the rest of his Rise of the Jain trilogy.

 

[Danny McG]

I'm continuing with a mil SF I started last week,
Ruins of the Galaxy by JN Chaney, the first in a new sci fi series.
@Parson
As I mentioned last Thursday, I was going to read a few chapters to get a 'feel' for the book and then give you my opinion.
Here we go:
It's gripping, fast moving and I'm enjoying it very much, well worth getting. Get it! Proper sci fi with evil and bloodthirsty aliens

(I'm looking around the interweb now because a sequel is out and I'm hoping someone puts a special offer
on it)

 

[Bick]

I’m currently reading Everybody’s Fool, the long awaited sequel novel to Richard Russo’s excellent Nobody’s Fool. You may remember the movie made from the original novel, starring Jessica Tandy, Paul Newman, Melanie Griffiths and Bruce Willis. I still picture the lead character, Sully, in this new book as Newman.

 

[Elckerlyc]

Started reading Charlie Jane Anders' The City in the Middle of the Night yesterday and am now, after having read 200 pages, about to give up.
It started out interesting. But it never really took off, the plot remained unfocused and even (after the MC's moved to another city) lost in a swamp of uninteresting side mini-plots. But what I found the most disappointing were the frequently occurrence of unrealistic, unclear, even illogical scenes. Of topics which should be foremost in people's mind that remain not talked or asked about.

Spoiler: Spoiler

How did Sophie escape (or better, survive) her execution? Bianca never asked. Really???
Mouth is seeing her travelling group being attacked by something unclear and runs to help, still carrying a tub full with water. Really??? Besides, how did she survive alone in the wild?

I have 4 more novels to read that are Hugo nominees. This book is IMHO definitely not of Hugo quality. So I won't waste my time and move on. Maybe, maybe, I'll finish it another time.

Next... I'll decide Monday. First I have other stuff to do.

 

[HareBrain]

Finished Terry Pratchett's The Colour of Magic. As with many things, I can see why I enjoyed it in my late teens, but it didn't do much for me this time.

Unsure what to go for now. I was looking forward to David Mitchell's new novel, Utopia Avenue, but that didn't get a great write-up in today's paper, so I'll hold off on buying that.

 

[Vince W]

I've started rereading Isaac Asimov's Foundation trilogy for the first time in nearly forty years. Asimov gets criticised for poor characterisation but I am finding the stories just as engaging as I first did. They are hard for me to put down in fact.

 

[Ian Fortytwo]

Yesterday I finished Catch 22, by Joseph Heller, it was brilliant. Today I have nearly finished Wonderscape, by Jennifer Bell. Another brilliant story aimed at kids, however why should the kids get all the good stories.