What (in the supernatural genre) are you reading right now? > Likes and Comments

If you're reading any book right now that happens to fit into this group's focus, this is the thread where you can tell us about it! Maybe that'll spark some discussion from other members who've read it and liked (or disliked) it, or who want to read it or have some questions about it. (And if a book sparks enough discussion here, we could start a new thread just for that one.)

I'm reading Daywatch, by Sergei Lukyanenko. It's not as good as Nightwatch (Book 1), but I've been told I have to get through it before reading the last 2 books in the series.

I've finally started reading Twilight --my oldest daughter gave me a copy for Father's Day. So far, I'm liking it, though I'm not far into the book. I know, I know; some of you are thinking, "We've already had that discussion!" :-) You know the old saying, "Sticks and stones will break my bones...." So whatever you do, just don't throw sticks and stones! (As a 56 year old, straight male, I promise that at least I won't swoon over Edward! :-))

Werner, good luck with Twilight. I read it, didn't think the writing was very good nor did I like the POV. Even my daughter didn't like the last 3 books of the series, though. Marg & I had no interest in reading them after reading the first.

Thanks, Jim! Even when their tastes overlap, different readers will often like (or dislike) different things, too --part of the fun of Goodreads is comparing the fascinating mosaic of people's different reactions to books. :-) POV is a big factor for most of us in our experience with a book --a viewpoint we can't enter into effectively or sympathize with is a real killer.

For myself personally, a teenage girl's POV isn't in itself a deal-breaker in fiction, even though I'm an older guy. Sometimes I like fictional perspectives different from my own, as sort of a learning experience. And then, too, my background has a big influence: I was raised in what was otherwise an all-female family (mother, aunt, and grandmother), my closest playmate as a young kid was a neighbor girl --we were both only children-- and I had no sons, but did raise three daughters. And even as a kid, I'd read books with female protagonists (even female teens) as readily as ones featuring males. (Of course, I'd read encyclopedias, too, if I didn't have anything else handy. :-)) So that perspective isn't as forbiddingly alien to me as it would (understandably) be for most males.

Teenage boys are bad enough - I raised two - but teenage girls are aliens. Besides, mine bosses me around all the time with incantations like, "Please, Daddy" while batting her eyes at me. It's witchcraft! The boys agree.

Reading The Strain, as some of you may know already I am really liking it. :)

I decided to give Laurell K Hamilton another try with . Unfortunately it wasn't worth the try. The non-sex scenes are good but they're only about a third of the book. It seems like she's run out of things to write about so she fills it in with lots and lots of silly sex stuff like every man in the known universe can't wait to have sex with Anita and she doesn't really want to do them but she just HAS to or her head will explode...or something. Gawd, get a grip. I liked her first two or three books so much but I'm done.

Hm, I am currently reading Robert Bloch's Strange Eons, a hardcover I recently bought on Abebooks (it's long out of print). It's a nice yarn where Bloch uses his mastery of the psychological pulp-thriller (is that really something you can say?:-P) to create his own Cthulhu Mythos story. Clearly an homage to Lovecraft and the whole Mythos sub-genre. While not technically a supernatural tale, it does have elements, since the story includes people believing or disbelieving magic and, of course, supernatural beings in some guise or other. At present I am reading about a--perculiar--church gathering where "magic is being created.":-D

Twoina wrote: "I decided to give Laurell K Hamilton another try with . Unfortunately it wasn't worth the try. The non-sex scenes are good but they're only about a third of the book. It seems like she's run out of..."

You'll find the same thing happened to her Merry Gentry series, but it started on the 2d or 3d book.

I'm loaning my Anita Blake series to a friend & she just finished the 4th book & is still very pleased with it. I've warned her, though. I can't recall exactly when I decided this series had hit the skids, but it was somewhere around the 6th book, I think.

I don't know if you world classify this as supernatural, my guess is mostly not, but I am in a few days going to read A Clockwork Orange. I've tried last summer, but wasn't into it a great deal. Just wondering what you guys' thoughts are on the book...

I don't think "A Clockwork Orange" is supernatural, but it is fantastic. I loved the movie, too. It's one of those SF classic's like "1984" or "A Brave New World" that is a must read for anyone interested in the genre.

Alright, I have started reading the book and unlike what I thought after a few pages the language is actually pretty easy to understand.

Burgess used Russian, I think. It doesn't take long to get used to. It adds a lot to the book, too.

Right now I am reading Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris. So far I like the book. I plan to read all of the Sookie Stackhouse books eventually.

The Sookie books are great - I read them last summer and finished the latest one the day it released. I also like MaryJanice Davidson's Queen Betsy series for goofy/weird vampire tales. And, of course, the Twilight series is the goofiest/weirdest of them all.

Right now I'm smoking thru Kim Harrison's The Hollows series. I'm on the third book - Every Which Way But Dead, and I'm enthralled. She's a better than average writer for this genre and I'm loving her language and perspective as much as the stories.

I will look for The Hollows series. I am always looking for suggestions on books.

Harris' books are like peanuts for me. If I have them handy or start reading one, I find it difficult to stop. It's fluff, but very engaging fluff. My wife & daughter don't seem to have that problem. Odd.

Jim wrote: "Harris' books are like peanuts for me. If I have them handy or start reading one, I find it difficult to stop. It's fluff, but very engaging fluff. My wife & daughter don't seem to have that pro..."
The Sookie books are the only ones I have read by her and they are pretty easy reads.

Paula, she has 2 other series that I know of; Aurora Teagarden & Harper Connelly. The first is a straight murder mystery. The second is our world, but Harper got struck by lightening & can find dead people. She's a depressing whiny person - not like Sookie or Aurora. I reviewed all of them, if you're interested.

I have started the first of the Sookie books. Really digging it. Like you said Jim: "If I have them handy or start reading one, I find it difficult to stop." That is so true!

Sookie is a great for a narator. These books give me a flash back to the Twilight series (which for me just makes them even better than they already are!) for some obvious reasons, can't wait to read the others! XD

I will also check out the Hollow series sometime, and I hate this you guys give me so much stuff that seems great and I just can't stop!!! But then again there's nothing wrong with that! :D

Jim wrote: "Paula, she has 2 other series that I know of; Aurora Teagarden & Harper Connelly. The first is a straight murder mystery. The second is our world, but Harper got struck by lightening & can find d..." Okay, thanks, I will check them out.

I use BookMooch & PaperBackSwap to get books. It costs me about $3.50 a book now & I've built up a pretty good library of books. Any I don't like, I swap back out. Unfortunately, my to-read pile is over 7' long now. But I agree with Levi, it's a tough problem to have, but of all mine, it's by far the best!

thanks to the groups suggestions I got Patricia Briggs Moon Called and Iron Kissed from the library, I know I'm missing the second but oh well. Only ten pages into it and I have to admitt I'm liking it.

Nona, I think you should look around hard for book 2 before reading book 3. As I recall, a lot happens. I don't think book 3 was my favorite, either. Not as good as the others.

I am half-way through the Sookie books now. I started Dead As A Doornail last night.

oh ok thanks Jim I'm on the hunt now searching libraries.

I recently started A Taste for Blood which is vampire stories. I am reading Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu right now.

Danielle, it's cool that you're reading Carmilla --I'll look forward to your rating/review of that one, just to compare our reactions. :-) And thanks for the compliment, on another thread, re my Lovecraft description. My worldview isn't anything like his, but I really like his imagination, storytelling skill, and mastery of purple prose. And Chris, HPL gets some "love" in several of our other discussion topics, too (see above, for instance).

Levi, re A Clockwork Orange, I know this is probably woefully belated information, but there are different editions of that book, and which one you read does make a difference. It was originally published in England; but in the first American edition, the last chapter was deliberately omitted (the movie version was based on that mutilated edition). That materially changes Burgess' story and message. (On the plus side, though, that edition does include a Nadsat glossary.)

finished Moon Called, good easy witty read.

My wife is reading the Sookie Stackhouse books now. I think we have the first 8. I borrowed the 9th from a friend & read it. I have to say the books aren't particularly memorable, but they are a fun read. I found Brigg's books to be more memorable & just as much fun.

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My printed book of A Clockwork Orange is missing the last chapter, as Werner says. I have both a .lit & .pdf version though that have both the last chapter & the glossary. If you're wondering which version is which, the full version ends with:

"...And so farewell from your little droog. And to all others in this story profound shooms of lipmusic brrrrrr. And they can kiss my sharries. But you, O
my brothers, remember sometimes thy little Alex that was. Amen. And all that cal."

The edited version ends with:
"Oh it was gorgeosity and yumyumyum. When it came to
the Scherzo I could viddy myself very clear running and running on like very light and mysterious nogas, carving the whole litso of the creeching world with my cut-throat britva. And there was the slow movement and the lovely last singing movement still to come. I was cured all right."

The last chapter does make a huge difference in the message - like a 180 degree difference. Email me if you need it.

Generally speaking, I'd classify zombies as supernatural entities --though I suppose that depends on how the author explains them. (The zombies that figure in Haitian voodoo beliefs are certainly thought to be supernaturally created.)

Piers Anthony treated a zombie that way in one of his Xanth books, Jo. They're amusing - the first few, anyway. I lost my taste after that. Puns can only go so far.

I just finished up an SF book & am now going to try the "Kitty" books, starting with Kitty and the Midnight Hour by Carrie Vaughn.

I decided to read Kitty and the Midnight Hour a couple of weeks ago & was surprised to find I had books 2 - 5, but not book 1. Very odd. I rarely get later books in a series unless I've read the first & like it, but I looked on my book shelves & couldn't find it. So I got another.

As soon as I finished the SF book I was reading, I put in this one & found I had a review from last October! I had read it, but forgotten it & misplaced it. Some digging around turned up my other copy & I skimmed through most of it last night.

It's another candy book, like the Sookie books. Fun to read, engaging & just not very memorable, unfortunately. I guess I read too many of these books & find it hard to keep them straight. That's why I made a special bookcase just for them, though.

ACK! This group is making me as crazy as I was when I first started my (now lamentably defunct damned budget cuts) library job. I wanted to read 90% of the books that came across my desk. Now I'm being inundated with new book suggestions everyday on this list and I already have shelves and shelves of unread books.

So many books so little time.

"So many good books, so little time!" seems to be a common complaint around here. My own To-Read pile is about 7' long now. Of all my problems, this is by far the best, though!
;-)

I'm excited I'm next on the library hold list for the first three Sookie Stackhouse books! how could I get that lucky?

The Sookie books are fun reads. My wife just finished the series - well, up to book 8. We don't have book 9 yet, although I borrowed it from a co-worker & read it. Enjoy, Nona!

You should, Jo. All of Harris' books are candy books. Not terribly memorable, but fun, quick & thoroughly enjoyable. Actually, I think that about most of the paranormal/urban fantasy books I've read lately. Since my primary reason for reading them is escapism, entertainment & more to talk to my daughter & wife about, I'd have to say they're practically perfect.

Jo, if you watch 'True Blood' bear in mind that the books bear little resemblance to the TV show. I like both, but at best they are disparate parallel universes. Even many of the main characters are quite different. My daughter won't read the books yet, but her argument about spoilers is not valid. My wife & I both liked them & the TV show, though.

It's on DVD now...I don't have the channel either and the DVD's cost too much for me to buy right now. I've only read one of the Sookie books and will be reading the second one soon (coming from the library so I have to wait).
I had heard the tv program wasn't much like the books but that's usually how it works isn't it? Most tv shows aren't like their book counter parts. Harry Dresden books weren't like the show at all - different car, no duster, Karrin Murphy was a BRUNETTE and so on. I still thought it was a good show though.
I've heard that Anita Blake will be made into a tv movie or something as well. I know they will deter a lot from the books - can't put much of that on cable let alone regular broadcast tv.

I have heard that there aren't ANY spoilers because of the big differences. Eventually I will watch the series and hopefully will have read most of the books by then.
I love my paranormal/urban fantasy books but watching my favorite genre come to life in live action is fantastic!

IMO, the Dresden Files to the books & True Blood to the books are about the same. I thought one of the Dresden Files books was a spoiler for a show at the start. By the end, I knew that it wasn't. Keep them separate!

True Blood is on HBO or the Internet.

If you have high speed Internet, you can watch the shows through HBO's website here in the US. I know it gets a little weird watching TV out of the country.

The first season of "The IT Crowd" was only for Brits for some unknown reason. They tried to block international access to it. Didn't work, of course. I loved the first season, but didn't care for the second too much. It's on the Independent Film Channel in the US now.

It's been awhile since I've read any supernatural stuff but I just ordered a book called Wither, forgot the author. Heres the back cover:

Wendy Ward, student at Windale, Massachusett's Danfield College, is smitten with all things New Age and magical. When not at home (her dad is the president of the college, so it is a nice home) she whiles away her days in the Crystal Path, a shop full of tarot decks, books on witchcraft, and assorted herbs. Her life seems typical for an offbeat, careworn coed. But as readers learn from the other two primary characters of the novel, something evil is awakening in Windale. First, 8-year-old Abby MacNeil has some terrifyingly vivid dreams that lead her to discover the gravestones of legendary 17th-century witches. Then, Professor Karen Glazer, an unwed expectant mother, begins to see visions of goblins attacking her unborn child. As the novel unfolds, it becomes clear that Wendy's apparently harmless rituals have tapped into--and unleashed--the aged forces of evil that had been buried in colonial America.

Sounds great doesn't it or at least to me so as soon as it arrives this week I'm jumping in!

I may check that out Nona, tell me how it is if you could, please and thank you. I just bought a few days ago Living Dead In Dallas(Sookie book # dos!) by Charlaine Harris. I haven't had the time to actually get into it yet but of the like ten or so pages I've read I like it just as much as the first book.

after fiddling around on the paperbackswap.com site I found book 2 & 3 of the Wither triology or series. I ordered Withers Rain (bk 2) so it's on it's way too. Heres a snippet:

Once they were strangers bound by their fears of a demonic entity called Elizabeth Wither. They saw her come to life on Halloween in the historic college town of Windale, Massachusetts. They saw their dark dreams come true by the terror she wrought. They watched her crushing death in tons of falling stone. But if Wither is gone and their nightmares are over, why do they wake up screaming?

Wendy Ward -- a college student with a gift for white magic -- can sense that the town of Windale is in for a dramatic change in weather. There's a new chill in the air....It's whispered in the warnings of an old woman. It's hidden in the corrupting legacy of a newborn baby. It's waiting in an ancient evil impatient for a human host. And it's being carried in the creeping flow of black blood -- Wither's rain.

Theres is another Withers Legacy but I'm waiting a week or so till I get that one.

I notice some of you were talking about True blood and the Sookie books, I'm currently watching True Blood and I'm ordering the series next weekend. I can say from what I've watched and what I've heard and read about the books there different by a long strech.

Also I'm in the States, actually smack dab in the middle and our local Fox station has been advertising a new show to start in Sept called The Vampire Diaries, anyone read these books? Seems teenie bopper-ish but it might have potential.