Beyond Reality discussion

Post here with your April reads!

Tiamat's Wrath. Can't say much else. Loaded with spoilers.

Finished Daughter of Ancients by Carol Berg--so good! 10/10

Next up is what appears to be the last Isavalta book by Sarah Zettel, Sword of the Deceiver, to be followed by Fool's Fate and Tiamat's Wrath.

I might try to read something else before the Expanse book since our discussion for that doesn't start till May.

I'm halfway through The Priory of the Orange Tree. I read the first half on ebook from the library before I had to return it. I was given a hardback copy for my birthday at the weekend. Boy, that is a BIG book. But I'm very much looking forward to getting back to it today.

Jim wrote: "Tiamat's Wrath. Can't say much else. Loaded with spoilers."

I am ridiculously excited for it - it's loaded on my kindle! I'm making myself wait until closer to our discussion date, because I tend to forget details shortly after finishing a book :)

I'm reading a memoir, Coming Clean, that a friend recommended. Next after that is probably Fool's Fate for the group series read, and possibly Dogs of War after that.

I’m reading Rosewater

I finished Sorcerer to the Crown which I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend. I decided to try an out-of-genre best seller: Where the Crawdads Sing, but couldn't deal with excessively flowery/descriptive language and swapped this one out for Judgment which has engaged me.

I finished We Are Legion (We Are Bob) & loved it. I'm starting the next book & plan to finish the trilogy before reading anything else. I gave it a 5 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I was still in a nonfiction mood when I finished Coming Clean (which was excellent), so I picked up Unthinkable: What the World's Most Extraordinary Brains Can Teach Us About Our Own and read the first chapter last night. So far it's taught me nothing that I don't already know, but the book is about to move into the case studies, which I'm looking forward to - I love learning weird things about the brain :)

Fool's Fate will be next.

The Wrath of Cons by Robert Kroese

I finished Judgment in three days and gave it a 3 star review (I did finish it but am angry at the author for what he does with the main character)
I've just started on The City in the Middle of the Night which is starting a bit slowly

75% done with Fool's Fate. Looking forward to the discussion...

Working on Debt of Honor (mostly via audiobook) and The Blinding Knife. I'm really enjoying The Blinding Knife; it's not as compact as The Broken Earth but has some similarly wise insights. I'm hoping to finish reading the series by the time the last Lightbringer novel comes out this summer.

I may pick up Green Arrow, Vol. 5: Black Arrow just to bump my page count up for the month. Also trying to finish my re-read of Royal Assassin. I fell way behind on the group read so I'm just going to read the threads and jump back in when the group starts The Fitz and The Fool trilogy.

In Plain Sight by Dan Willis

Finally finished Firstborn. Have to say disappointed, not by the writing. The book didnt move the story all that much, it is part of a larger thing so it may work out in the end

Started Good Omens, I have been meaning to read this for years, always see a copy in the bookstore but never picked it up. So far so good

I finished Fool's Fate (WOW) and decided to read some other things before starting the Expanse book, so I read The Winter Prince and am ready to start the second book in that series, A Coalition of Lions (they are quick reads). I also went way outside genre with a Nicholas Sparks book, Nights in Rodanthe.

So far I read the next of my read-to-my-boys-Pratchett Marathon The Truth, which is a bit on the lighter side but for the last part, yet still very enjoyable.

I fought through Cyteen which has excellent worldbuilding, understanding of politics and psychology - but is a bit dry and talkative at times, so that I often found myself squinting at the time to see if it is over soon.


Then I read the 4 books of the "Patternmaster" series by Octavia E. Butler, not in chronological, but in published order (4, 2, 1, 3), which was a good choice, cause I think they function better in this order. Very provocative, very blunt and brutal (simply very Butler ;) )

And now I'm listening quite fascinated to The Terror. Simmons manages to write this very long drawn survival drama in the endless ice absolutely captivating.

Gabi wrote: "And now I'm listening quite fascinated to The Terror. Simmons manages to write this very long drawn survival drama in the endless ice absolutely captivating."

Ooh, I loved that book. The atmosphere was delightfully creepy. I should read it again...

I'm almost halfway through Fool's Fate and am totally sleep deprived this week because I have a hard time putting it down and going to bed...

Still on a Pierce Anthony kick. Went through the first three of the Apprentice Adept series. and couldn't go on. The story wasn't bad, but I kept wincing horribly at the characters for way too many reasons.

Started a reread of the Incarnations of Immortality series. I initially read these books spread out through high school and early college. I read the books primarily out of order and I don't believe I ever finished (but started) Wielding a Red Sword or Being a Green Mother. The last fell off the truck as I was being transported out for guard duty early one morning and never recovered. I can't remember a whole lot about the books, but so far doesn't have the flaws that the other series had.

The next Expanse book will likely break in as I intend to start it by the end of the month.

Random wrote: "Started a reread of the Incarnations of Immortality series."
I think these were among my favorite books of his.

Kathi wrote: "I finished Fool's Fate (WOW)..."

Yeah, I finished it last night. WOW is right - can't wait to discuss it with everyone!

I'm picking at some short stories now while I decide what to read next. I requested The City in the Middle of the Night from the library but there are four requests ahead of me in the queue so it may be a while.

I finished the 5 books in the YA series, The Lion Hunters, by Elizabeth E. Wein. They were good, not exceptional, but absorbing and certainly quick reads. My ratings were all 6 or 7 out of 10.

Between those books I read Trespassing by Brandi Reeds, 6/10, and The Soul of Viktor Tronko by David Quammen, also 6/10. I also dumped a historical romance after reading about 4 pages. I had hoped it would be OK because the female protagonist was supposedly the daughter of Grania O’Malley, “pirate queen” of Ireland and a real person, but I was so put off by the opening scene that I couldn’t bring myself to read any more of it.

Still delaying Tiamat's Wrath for a while, so I decided to read Legend of the Celtic Stone by Michael R. Phillips. It is the first of a series about Scotland. I have the second book, but it does not appear any more have been published. We are traveling to Scotland in June so I thought these two books might give me some insights.

I’m delaying Tiamat’s Wrath as well by reading the Murderbot novellas.

MadProfessah wrote: "I’m delaying Tiamat’s Wrath as well by reading the Murderbot novellas."

Did I see that you can now get all the novellas in one book? I have only read the first one, All Systems Red.
Edited to say that I looked again and don’t see them all gathered into one book, so I guess I was just dreaming/wishing...

I finished Legend of the Celtic Stone. There was a lot to like, but a few pretty glaring drawbacks led to a 7/10 rating. Still, I will read the second book before our trip to Scotland.

Now I am doing a reread and initial read of Judith Tarr’s Avaryan Chronicles. I read the first 3 books, collectively called Avaryan Rising, many years ago, but have not read the last three, so that is my project—all 6 books. Starting The Hall of the Mountain King tonight.

I will insert Tiamat's Wrath and An Ancient Strife between the books in Tarr’s series.

I am very annoyed that the novellas are being sold for $9.99 EACH on amazon for what is charitably half of a book (150 pages). I got mine from the library.

Ivory Vikings: The Mystery of the Most Famous Chessmen in the World and the Woman Who Made Them by Nancy Marie Brown

I just got home from a week visiting family and had a good amount of reading time. I had some bad luck with books though - I got bored with the first two books I picked up and didn't finish either one: Snobs by Julian Fellowes, writer of Downton Abbey - I adored the show but his novel was meh. I got halfway through and it got tedious. And John Dies at the End, which people rave about, but I got annoyed with the narrator and gave up after about a third of the way through. So I went with something I KNEW I'd love, The Winter Long, the 8th Toby Daye book - Seanan McGuire always delivers!

I just finished You'll Grow Out of It by comedy writer Jessi Klein, which was entertaining, and now that I'm back in town I can head to the library tomorrow and grab the copy of The City in the Middle of the Night that I reserved. Then Tiamat's Wrath will be next!

Random wrote: "Still on a Pierce Anthony kick. Went through the first three of the Apprentice Adept series. and couldn't go on. The story wasn't bad, but I kept wincing horribly at the characters for way too many reasons.."
I read these in High School, I think by end I thought they were just meh. I read the Incarnations series, well the first five books. They were interesting, all sort of tied together even though involved different characters but with all Anthony books, they got stale as the series went on, I never made it to the books about God and the Devil.

MadProfessah wrote: "I am very annoyed that the novellas are being sold for $9.99 EACH on amazon for what is charitably half of a book (150 pages). I got mine from the library."

Yep, very disappointing that. Actually the ebooks in Canada are 10.99. I keep waiting for a sale but nothing yet. Same with Myke Coles novella series.

Finished Good Omens. Not bad, It's watered down Pratchett, which of course it is, it's written by Gaiman and Pratchett.

started on a Doctor Who book Doctor Who: The Turing Test

I enjoyed The Blinding Knife so much that I jumped straight into The Broken Eye. I also started Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching: A Young Black Man's Education for one of my IRL book clubs.

The Man Who Climbs Trees is the autobiography of James Aldred who has climbed, photographed, & helped film many nature shows, but always in the background. It was really interesting & gives me a new appreciation for any nature show. I gave it a 5 star review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Brent Weeks is really good!! The Lightbringer series is one of my favorites. I buy every book in hardcopy when it comes out.

I just finished Spinning Silver which I loved and highly recommend. Now off topic with The Reckoning

Weird month for reading, as I've been recovering from mono and couldn't focus a lot on some of the denser sci-fi and fantasy plots I normally read.

Dear Fahrenheit 451: Love and Heartbreak in the Stacks: A Librarian's Love Letters and Breakup Notes to the Books in Her Life was a recommended read that got me through the worst part of my illness. Such a fun love letter to reading, readers, and books all in one. The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit was another non-fiction book I enjoyed; it's written by a journalist documenting his conversations with Christopher Knight, a hermit who lived isolated in the Maine woods for 27 years.

My one fantasy was a YA, A History of Glitter and Blood, which tends to get very mixed reviews but I liked for its unique take on the unreliable narrator motif.

In horror/thriller, I mostly stuck to easily-digestible novellas. Disliked the unfinished feel of The Haunting of Emily Stone, enjoyed Of Foster Homes and Flies (though it felt more like a dark coming of age than horror), and found Darcy Coates' Dead Lake to deliver reliable scares. I also read Dracul, which, despite its length, was a fast read and provides interesting insight/take (depending on your understanding) of how Bram Stoker came up with the classic tale of Dracula.

Hopefully I'm on the mend and can get back to my normal reading pace in May!