RIP (Read In Progress) Wednesday

[quillpunk]

The bell is ringing. It is Wednesday.

What are you reading? 👀

Comments

[goodbyebird]

Finally done with a couple of books I did not enjoy but stubbornly finished as they're part of my bingo card this year. Now I'm reading Gideon the Ninth on my phone, and Bardugo's The Familiar when I get to cozy up at home. So far, so good!

[senmut]

Did Bardugo's writing improve? I ask because I really wanted to read more, but the first GrishaVerse novel was boring in the prose to me. (First books often are). Would the Crows be a better place for me to try?

[stonepicnicking_okapi]

I love Gideon!

[white_aster]

Heh, Gideon the Ninth can definitely be a bit of an acquired taste (I wasn't sure if I'd be able to ignore all the weirdly modern meme references that Gideon uses, which don't make much sense for that world, for instance), but it was definitely my favorite out of that series. :D

[white_aster]

Still plunking along, so I have not finished anything this week.

I AM still reading:

Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma by Claire Dederer
I described this book to a friend as "It's like she's got some great points buried in a big pile of other stuff I care nothing about". Which is accurate. I've highlighted a bunch of the good points, but then she gets into talking about genius artists I've never heard of, and I lose interest. At least I'm almost finished with it.

Armageddon Science: The Science of Mass Destruction by Brian Clegg
This book continues to be a slog. I am determined to get through this book in the next week if it kills me, solely because I am tired of looking at it.

And I started:

A Stroke of the Pen: The Lost Stories by Terry Pratchett
Newly released book of short stories Sir Terry wrote under an early pseudonym. I've read one story, which was "eh", but at least was short. Even if the whole book's that way, at least it, as well, is short.

I also just picked up a borrow of:

Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes
After the nonfiction and short stories, I think I'll need some space horror as a palatte cleanser. I hope this is good, as reviews seem to be mixed on it.

[senmut]

Just finished Snow White and Rose Red by Patricia Wrede.

Reading Rights of Man by Thomas Paine for my Banned Book square next. (Banned in the UK at publication, it was the specific reason he was labeled a traitor to the King and State)

[stonepicnicking_okapi]

It Came From the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror ed. Joe Vallese. Only 2 chapters in, but so far, it's awesome. Each chapter is an essay by a different author and focused on different horror film.

[goodbyebird]

Oh, excellent! I linked an essay a few days ago that I very much enjoyed, so my eye is on the book as well.

[rekishi]

I read "The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea" which was okay but sort of a bit too streamlined? I saw the twist coming, which isn't a bad thing at all! But a few things were going slightly too smoothly, I thought.

Interestingly, I see some parallels between this book and "Guardian of the Dead" from a few years ago, except that I liked the ending here much better and was more consistent with the story that was being told.

I'm reading "Hench" right now and it's a bit different than I was expecting? We'll see. I'm mostly reading this because everyone on AAM keeps raving about it.

I also read two short-ish Good Omens fics.

[white_aster]

I am one of those who loves Hench. It does take a bit to get through Anna's trauma and recovery and get to the "good stuff", IMO. Some significant timeskips happen later, though, to when she's much more driving her own revenge bus. :)

[givemeyourhonor]

Been a few weeks since I commented, but last night I finished the first of Case File Compendium by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou and I'm not entirely sure what I think.

The protag has an illness called psychological ebola. Let that sink in. Also, both leads are dicks in different ways and really don't like each other, so I'm curious how they're going to get together. This first book is all set up for a lot of things going on and I'm not sure where it's going. Also ot sure if I can recommend this or not, because it's... very much not a story for everyone, though I found myself intrigued because I want to see how the character development falls out, if at all.

Going to be starting Lirael by Garth Nix next and I'm excited since I read Sabriel and loved it. I went on my Goodreads and then made a filter to see which books on my "to read" list were available at the library and made a filter for that. Also, a filter for that I can purchase at the book store and those I'll have to do online, so I'm hoping to force myself to read a little more just to make those turn in dates at the library.

[white_aster]

"psychological ebola" I uh...I am not sure what to think about that. I'm kind of afraid to think too hard about what it means. :P

Also, are you using the Library Extension? I love it so much. :D https://www.libraryextension.com/

[goodbyebird]

I went on my Goodreads and then made a filter to see which books on my "to read" list were available at the library and made a filter for that. Also, a filter for that I can purchase at the book store and those I'll have to do online

That is such a good idea!

[ilyena_sylph]

Eeee, Lirael!!!!

I love that book, that series, so fucking much, though Lirael's childhood can be... such a rough read.

[vriddy]

I finished Witch King by Martha Wells last week, which I tremendously enjoyed. Just utterly in love with the characters and their relationships, platonic and otherwise, it was a delight for me. I really liked how the structure worked to shed a light on what was happening at two different times.

After that, I also finished Starter Villain by John Scalzi, mostly because it was such a quick read. Still very little inner life to the protagonist (I'm not sure if they are meant to be empty vessels for the reader to project into? I had a bit of the same feeling in Kaiju Preservation Society), but I love all of the interesting situations he throws his protagonists into, it was cool to follow especially once the action picks up. A bit YA in feeling but a good time overall.

Now, I started reading Planetfall by Emma Newman and am intrigued so far!

[senmut]

Right, MW is on my list of 'try the fantasy'

[suncani]

I need to restart Witch King as it was one I was listening to rather than reading. But I realised after about 5 hrs I had no clue what was going on so book format for that 1 I think. Theoretically I should love it as I saw some great meta comparing the difference and similarities between the main character and Wei Wuxian from Mo Dao Zu Shi

Planetfall I found interesting rather than enjoyable just because of its depiction of anxiety and a few late book decisions. An excellent book though.

[quillpunk]

Currently on *The Qaurterback* by Tal Bauer, M/M romance, still on *The Foxhole Court* by Nora Sakavic but (but!) I have read an additional chapter since last week so this is going great—I'll finish it one day! And also still reading *Dark Rise* by CS Pacat (which I'm not sure if I was reading yet last Wednesday or not, but regardless, I'm reading it now, and also I keep getting this mixed up with *Dark Heir*—for some reason my brain insists that *Dark Heir* is the first book in the series, lol.)

[vriddy]

The Foxhole Court/All for the game series is one of the few series I occasionally re-read :D It hits something really right for me haha. Hope it eventually picks up for you, or you're able to abandon it if it really doesn't!

[goldentunes]

I’ve just started The Penguin Book of Korean Short Stories; finished the first story. I’m so excited to read more!!

I’ve also re-opened Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. I got through about two fifths of the book and then put it down in a fit of rage haha, but I’m ready to pick it up again. I love the way she writes!

[pauraque]

I just started Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender by Kit Heyam. So far I've read the introduction, and I am SO excited about how nuanced and intersectional Heyam's approach seems to be that I decided not to read any more tonight because I have to work tomorrow and can't risk staying up all night reading!

[poppyseedheart]

Oh I hadn't heard of this one but I'm immediately interested in it (and love to hear that it's bringing the nuance!!)

[sixbeforelunch]

I'm poking along in several things right now, though not very excited about most of them.

I'm still on the fence about continuing with Ringworld but I read a little bit more today and it's keeping me just interested enough to keep going.

I started Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro. I'm on the fence about this one too. It's well written, but I have a feeling it's going to break my heart, and I'm not sure if I'm up for that right now.

I ended up picking back up a book about the Crimean War (The Crimean War: A History by Orlando Figes) last night, that I'd listed as paused in my book tracker app. I was enjoying it when it was about politics and culture in the run up to the war, but now it's mostly endless battles and slow going.

And I'm reading The Face of the Unknown by Christoper L. Bennett, a Star Trek TOS novel which is fine so far, but not much more than fine.

Oh, and I'm listening to Bloodlands: Europe Between Hilter and Stalin by Timothy Snyder, which is heavy and gutting material, but also riveting.

[poppyseedheart]

Just finished System Collapse (the most recent novel in the Murderbot Diaries series) and had a great time! I've read all of them via audiobook and the narrator has been my parasocial companion on many a commute, so it's bittersweeet to have caught up. :')

About thirty pages shy of finishing Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree, an out of character pick for me in that I'm not a regular cozy fantasy reader at all, but life was lifing and I needed something sweet. It hit the spot in that way!

Total genre change, the other two books I'm currently reading (very early into both) are The Lucky Ones by Rachel Cusk, which I picked up on a whim in a secondhand bookstore + bar community space that opened reacently, and Birnam Wood by Eleanor Cattan. The Lucky Ones totally gripped me from the first chapter and seems to have a lot to say about class and family. Birnam Wood also gripped me!! So far it's a masterclass in characterizing quickly and compellingly. It'll be tough to pick which I want to actually focus on once I finish the Baldree, but thankfully the Cusk novel is quite short (and, hilariously, has a cover I'd neverrrr have picked up if I'd actually looked at it; I just saw the spine, went straight to the jacket copy, and started reading).

[vriddy]

I'm still waiting on my library hold for System Collapse orz But slowly making my way to the top of the list!! Haha. I've only heard good things about it so it sounds like I'll be in for a good time whenever it is finally available :D

[suncani]

Still reading A Veiled & Hallowed Eve and The Atlas Paradox. I'm in two minds about whether to carry on with Atlas as the level of ridiculousness has increased, but I don't have the same urge to know what's going to happen that carried me through the first one.

I've started Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens which is a cross between boarding school and golden age detective novels. It's suitably lighthearted and is my listening whilst working book for the time being.

I finished Wyrd Sisters and it reinforced what I thought about Discworld books, they're brilliant for quotes and character studies but I ultimately don't care about the plot. I do love Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg though unsurprisingly. Next up is Monstrous Regime which is the other one my friend particularly wants me to read.

[goldentunes]

Ooh Discworld!! I’ve never read any of the books but have been thinking now (actually for quite a long time) to try Mort. If you read that one, what did you think of it?

[falkner]

I got started on "How To Become The Dark Lord And Die Trying" by Django Wexler today, and although I am only two chapters in I'm already hooked. It's not exactly the kind of story flavor I'd go for, but I am an absolute sucker for the time travel do-over trope so I decided to grab the book on release, and so far no regrets.

[enchantedsleeper]

I have something to report!! I'm currently reading a thriller called The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz, which I should be able to finish in the next day or so (I've had a few early mornings and late nights reading it xD). It's the first new thing I've read since Making Money in early April. I went to a bookshop, bought new books, and actually started reading one of them promptly xD

I don't often go for thrillers, but I like them! I'm still undecided as to whether this one's a bit schlocky or good, but I'm having no trouble getting through it. It's also much more queer than I'd expected!