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I've put together a collage of some books from last months What are you Reading? post. It's mostly random, but the more discussion something gets the more it stands out to me. Going forward I'm going to make a new post every month to talk about what people are reading.
Here is last months post. What are you Reading? (July 2023)
At any rate, what are you currently reading or plan to read in August?
I've been taking a short break from Malazan Book of the Fallen recently, by exploring some new, lighter books, especially while at work, but I think I'm going to get back into it in August.
I have read and love the top 2 rows you've got there. I think I'm going to have to check out those last three.
I've just finished all Daniel Suarez's books. I found his visions of a tech future interesting. Best ones for me were Daemon, then the sequel freedom™, Change Agent, Delta V and the sequel Critical Mass - all great reads imo. Only book I didn't like was kill Decision.
tower by bae myung-hoon, early days yet.
Last few I've read recently:
Just started Infinity Gate today, actually - not too far in yet, but it'll go quick.
Cool
I’m coming up to the crescendo (hopefully) of Termination Shock by Neal Stephenson. I can’t say that I’ve loved it as much as some of his previous work but it’s got 150 pages left to change that.
Does Silo counts as Sci-fi, I read the novels after binge watching the series with my wife. After the cliffhanger ending I just need to know the story and proceeded to binge read the whole series under a week.
I'm currently on the Liveship series, after just finishing the Farseer Trilogy. Prior to that was Mistborn 1-3, and I only mention the chronology because it all started May 2022 with the WoT series, and that's on the picture up there so I'm lumping the rest of these into science fiction I suppose, despite Mistborn potentially being the only one that you could really call science fiction.
I've read all these series. WoT seemed to drag toward the end and i didnt care for the last few chapters. It felt like there was too much to wrap up with too few pages so it felt rushed and unsatisfying.
I love all works by Sanderson so I've read all mistborn(except the new one from last November #7 I think). Excellent series. Have you read Elantris by Sanderson. I thought that was a very unique one off book that I couldn't put down.
I just started the final set in the farseer/liveship series. I loved the first farseer trilogy. I felt the second trilogy(live ship trilogy) had a significant change of pace and almost skipped it. I really liked the first person view of fitz. In the end it was good and there are a few tie ins to later trilogies.
I only read Mistborn 1-3 from Branderson. I intend to check out more of his works, but he needs to finish the one, Stormlight maybe, before I pick that up, I will not find myself in the situation GRRM and Rothfus have put their fans. And what I've read and know of Brandon Sanderson, I have faith he will finish, it I'm not one to put stock in faith so I want to see it published.
I picked up Farseer and absolutely loved it, and it's odd because the first-person was a real change of pace. Name of the Wind was first person essentially, but that series has kinda left me annoyed and so I didn't have faith first-person could do well, and I'm glad to have been shown it could. The pacing of Farseer was great for me, I felt like it went from slow burn to much happening over the course of the three.
I'm on chapter three of first Liveship, I have a terrible time remembering the names of books. I'll read the whole trilogy, I don't think it'll fail my 10% test, where if I'm unsatisfied at 10% I put it down, and so I'll just plow through. Definitely feels different now, and any relationships only tangential from existing in the same universe.
Depending how this goes, I either finish up this Robin Hobb series, 12 or 14 books or whatever, and go back to one of the Sanderson series, which name I also cannot remember.
And as to WoT, the last book could've stretched it's legs a little more. Which is crazy because the last three books were technically just one in Jordan's version of the telling.
I’m planning on reading The Expanse at some point, but currently I’m not reading any sci-fi, since I’m reading A Game of Thrones and Empire of Ivory.
I’m currently reading Sword and Citadel, second half of The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe.
Right now I'm listening to Damnation Alley by Roger Zelazny. It's probably an interesting story, but the narrator is awful. Sometimes he reads without any pauses so it feels like you are listening to a wall of text. There is also very little inflection in his voice as he reads so it is hard to stay engaged. I'm going to stick with it if I can, but I'm not holding much hope.
Is this just for sci-fi or books in general? In July I didn't read any sci fi, just fantasy stuff.
I'm on book 5 of the Wheel of Time on Audible. I hope the TV series keeps going but it sounds like a lot of people think it's meh.
Just started the Vorkosigan Saga. It's okay. It's growing on me, but I don't think it's anything to write home about. I'll stick it out through the first book and see how it goes.
I'm currently resuming my read through of "John Carter of Mars", with "Warlords of Mars", and continuing through Glynn Stewart's Duchy of Terra series with "Shield of Terra".
I can't help compare Glynn Stewart with Edgar Rice Burroughs, in that they both write such reliably entertaining series.
Though I suppose Stewart is aiming for Asimov in the volume category. As a big reader, I sure appreciate that.
Currently working on book 5 of Gaunt's Ghosts. It's been a few months since I read a chapter though because of busy life has been.
After reading Necropolis, it's gonna be hard for the rest of the series to match it.
I just finished The Deep Sky by Yume Kitasei. It was a decent page-turner that kept me wanting to read the next chapter.
Still haven't decided what to read next. Are there any good newish cyberpunk books?
I'm currently reading The Stars, Like Dust. By Issac Asimov. Seems decent I haven't been completely invested in the main character like I was in The Currents of Space (I know I read book 2 before book 1). But I like Asimov so I'll finish it it'll be a quick read anyways. I plan to finish the Galactic Empire series and then start Foundation (Finally!).
Trying to punch through Seasons of Skulls by Charles Stross.
Finally got to finish Death's End. Got really dark by the end ans current life events dont really support this kind of reading.