Last Book You Read

[Millennium]

Started reading Augustine of Hippo's Confessions.

[The Hip Historian Iaredios]

Started reading Augustine of Hippo's Confessions.

I've always wanted to read his stuff, from historical records to theological discussion. You, my good man, are lucky.

 

 

 

I myself have started reading Neil Gaiman's Sandman Vol. II. I've been on hiatus from it since September of last year.

[SynthMav]

Life, the Universe, and Everything 

 

Douglass Adams

[Kopekemaster]

Read four Sherlock stories, a few Ambrose Bierce stories (wanted to read something of his, but didn't think they were that great), and began the Welcome to Night Vale novel. Really good, has very much the same feel as the podcast while still being a different style.

Didn't finish the Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath yet, but I'll get to it once I finish the Night Vale book.

[Erasmus Graves]

OK, here goes:

 The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (absolutely first-class novel), The Land Across by Gene Wolfe (the great SF&F author writes a great Kafaesque 21st Century thriller), VALIS by P.K.D. ( a great novel about theology, philosophy, paranoia, metaphysics, madness, drugs, mental illness, pop culture, and it is brilliant, even if it goes over the rails sometimes).

 Gilead's Curse by Dan Abnett (the underrated sequel to Gilead's Blood), Nightmares & Dreamscapes by Stephen King, Legend by David Gemmell (the legendary *nopunintended* fantasy author's classic first novel. If you haven't read any David Gemmell, go read some, he's great.), The Night Lords Trilogy by Aaron Dembski-Bowden (one of my favourite all-time SF series), Double Eagle by Dan Abnett (high-octane SF aerial combat in the Sabbat Worlds).

 Currently reading The True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey (one of the greatest Australian novels ever written) and The Collected Stories of Raymond Chandler.

 

There. That's all the novels I can remember reading (though doubtless there are some that I've forgotten).

Edited January 20, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[Kopekemaster]

Read The Wendigo, Hound of the Baskervilles, halfway through The Sign of the Four, and still reading the Welcome to Night Vale novel.

[Erasmus Graves]

Titus Alone by Mervyn Peake. The final novel of the magnificent Gormenghast Trilogy (which I wholeheartedly recommend to everyone I meet) is best appreciated when read a few months after the first and second novels (which are best read consecutively e.g. 10 seconds to a week in between), as to let yourself cool down before entering this most technologically fantastical of the trilogy. Titus Alone is, as China Mieville once said, extremely underrated. People say, Yeah, beautifully written but disjointed, unreadable vastly inferior to Titus Groan and Gormenghast. (Books I and II), attributing this to the fact that Peake's mind was wracked with a horrible disease at the time.

 But wait a few months to cool down from the first two, and it becomes truly brilliant. Titus Alone is, admittedly, the strangest of the trio in sheer sense of oddness, but after about twenty-five chapters in (most of them are very short), there is more reason to keep on reading other than the force of Peake's incredible prose. New characters develop considerably and we see some really interesting one-offs, like the sinister Mr Veil and his companion Black Rose. It's quite the page-turner, in fact, and gives a sense of distance and otherness which is appropriate, considering what kind of situation Titus has got himself into.  

 However, Titus Alone CANNOT be read without having read the previous two novels. By that I mean that Titus Groan and Gormenghast can comfortably  stand as masterpieces by themselves, but without their supporting presence (backstory, foundations etc.), Titus Alone is a disjointed collection of manically poetic ravings, with a incomplete allegory for concentration camps done by the brief appearance of the factory. I have a feeling that if Peake were wholly well at the time the allegory would have been a major point.

 Titus really grows as a character - in Gormenghast he was rather dull and dry compared to Steerpike, Fuschia, Flay, Bellgrove, Barquentine, Prunesquallor & all the others - but he matures and becomes far more interesting and at time incredible in Alone. The novel is an interesting old/future tech hybrid, almost steampunkish but not quite, as well as being far more elegant and tasteful. The comedy of manners elements are stronger than ever here, and there are many good laughs to be had as well. Muzzlehatch & everyone in the Under-River are probably the best characters in the novel - the Under-River section is both haunting and funny at once.

 There is not so much a villain or villains in the novel as a presence. A country thronged with bureaucracy and prison camps, the latter "told, not shown" with a spiderstouch of allusion, twisted minds in beautiful bodies, sceptical throngs, and incredible technology in an almost Austenian  or Waughlike world.   

 This is a rather long review for the a page entitled sharply and succinctly: "Last Book You Read", but the Gormenghast Trilogy is such a wonderful phenomena that a short comment about but a single one of those books grows into a bit of a baroquely labyrinthine review.

 Read The Gormenghast Trilogy before you die. Put it up there with Lord of the Rings. Titus Alone is a lot better than many say it is. Remember that.

 

Still on Collected Stories and Kelly Gang. Also reading Wake in Fright by Kenneth Cook. Another Great Australian Novel and the original and best realistic outback horror story. Superbly written, disturbingly eerie and haunting.

Edited January 27, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[The Hip Historian Iaredios]

Picked up 'The Night Atilla Died', by Michael Babcock again. I abandoned it several months ago. It's an enjoyable read so far, but sometimes I feel like the author is just planting plot in-between the lines. He says that philology does that but it is the whole-hearted truth. In short, a diplomat is grouped up with a small posse, one member was supposedly an assassin that stealthy killed Atilla while engagin in a mission of peace with the main diplomat Priscus (Atilla died shortly after the diplomat and posse left). Some sort of an old Roman conspiracy to kill the 'scourge of God' headed by Emperor Theodosius II. I'll have to read it all to say if I believe the author or not.

 

I found humor to how, according to every other historian, Atilla died by choking on his own blood while having a nosebleed while sleeping, all on his wedding night. The man drank too much (hardcore party i guess) and it popped a blood vessel, or something like that. I'm kind of hoping it stays that way, it's a great conversation piece and adds dark humor to history.

[Millennium]

I suspended Confessions of Augustine to read Lovecraft's The color out of space and The Dunwich horror. I was mildly entertained, Lovecraft can surely be boring and repetitive at times. Some say that The Dunwich horror is one of the best short stories by Providence man. I still think nothing tops The shadow over Innsmouth.

Edited February 2, 2016 by El-P

[Erasmus Graves]

Finished off Kelly Gang. Loved it.

Keeping up with my Australiana vibe, I'm currently reading Cloudstreet. It's easier reading than True History of the Kelly Gang, but even more addictive  (110 pages fly by in no time). Also reading Ross Poldark by Winston Graham. Extremely addictive as well.

Finished off Wake in Fright. it's haunting and quietly disturbing, but genius through and through.

 

EDIT: Finished Cloudstreet. Phenomenal stuff. Also reading Darkness at Noon by Arthur Koestler and Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel.

Edited February 10, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[randomreviewerbros]

I personally have not read a full book for a few years, I'm going thru that stage where I don't have enough time to read whilst juggling school and my LEGO building and a job, but I do believe the last full book I read was "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" a few years back.

Could have been "Artemis Fowl and the Atlantis Complex" but I'm not 100% sure on that.

[Millennium]

I finished Confessions (despite me not being christian, I found it very deep for the time it was written and decorated here and there with reflections fascinating and true even today) and now I'm into another classic: Ulysses by Joyce. I'm not even a third into it, but it's crazy.

[Erasmus Graves]

Currently reading Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee (on top of Wolf Hall and Darkness at Noon). It's better than what most people say, and the one of the most terrifying novels of 2015.

[Kopekemaster]

Finished The Sign of the Four and the Night Vale novel. Over halfway through the Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath, and starting A Clockwork Orange. I've been looking forward to reading that for a while, and I'm really liking the style so far.

[Metallic O'Dalek]

Recently finished "The Age Of Odin" by James Lovegrove. I was really enjoying it up until the last chapter, where the author pulled a "it was all a dream... or was it?" type ending. With the exception of that, I highly recommend it to anyone interested in quasi-military thrillers.

[(Daedalus)]

Last month I finished the first and second books of Cliff Graham's Lion of War series (which, to my knowledge, are the only two currently out). They were quite good, with the second being better than the first, simply because the plot was a little better and had more direction. I couldn't help but feel that both books had a little more violence and gore than necessary (as in, it seemed like some of the descriptions were there just to gross the reader out rather than portray the brutality of war), but overall, I liked the much more human approach to characters and events of the Bible. None of these guys are the superheroes they are sometimes made out to be; just normal, occasionally unlikable guys with Divine help.

 

Currently, I am nearing the end of Ken Follett's The Pillars of the Earth. Quite a different book from the previous two I had read, but no less enjoyable. It has been described as an epic, and with good reason; so far the book has spanned nearly two decades. All the characters have faults, and some are just outright despicable. The friend who recommended this book to me told me that he had never hated characters so much in all his life, and it only took me a few hundred pages to understand why. I'm curious to see how the book is going to turn out; things are starting to look up, but there have been so many twists for the worse that I'm doing my best not to get my hopes up.

Edited February 14, 2016 by (Daedalus)

[Millennium]

Forget Ulysses. With all due respect, it's not my kind of book, and I dumped it in favor of a faboulous collection of Lovecraft's works. I read pearls like The rats in the walls, The loved dead (incredibly, disturbingly enthralling in its approach to such an obscenity, I felt hypnotized), The temple, The strange high house in the mist (it struck me how different, almost positive, is the approach to the horrific here, which is not so horrific in the end), The cats of Ulthar, The doom that came to Sarnath and The dreams in the witch house (this one was really, really creepy and I really was afraid to go to sleep after I was done, it's just so different, and the final death...oh my) and re-read The nameless city and the masterpiece that is The dreamquest of unknown Kadath. I'll be reading The shadow out of time next, and with that I'm done, and off to reading the first chapter of A song of ice and fire, finally.

Edited February 19, 2016 by El-P

[Tarn]

The latter half of Restaurant at the End of the Universe, and the entirety of Life, the Universe and Everything and So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish. Really funny stuff. The way some of the dialogue is written makes a lot of conversations flow naturally in a way that adds to the humor. I'm assuming it's a byproduct from most of the stories originally being radio dramas, and Douglas Adams just being a frickin' good author.

[Erasmus Graves]

Finished Darkness at Noon and Demelza; second novel of the Poldark series. Also finished Daredevil: Volume 2 (an omnibus series collecting the Miller/Jansson era).

 

EDIT: OK, here goes. Finished off Jeremy Poldark. Read Cannery Row by John Steinbeck (extremely good novel, nice short read, VERY well written and absorbing, better than Grapes of Wrath, more fun that Of Mice and Men, and happier than East of Eden).

Almost done with Flann O'Brien's postmodern masterpiece The Third Policeman (Go read it. Go read it now), which is by turns hilarious, surreal, as absurd as Alice in Wonderland and ought to have made James Joyce jealous if he were still alive when it came out (though Joyce spoke highly of O'Brien's debut At-Swim-Two-Birds).

Still reading Wolf Hall and now assaulting Norman Mailer's great nonfiction novel The Fight which is about the Muhammad Ali vs. George Foreman match in Zaire. I've got Kim Newman's (Jack Yeovil for you who know about Drachenfels) Anno Dracula and Kazuo Ishiguro's Booker Prize-winner Remains of the Day lined up for the next leg in my terminal case of marathon-reading.

Edited February 28, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[Millennium]

I finished the first book in Martin's A song of ice and fire saga, A game of thrones. Simply amazing.

Next up is a collection of Kafka's works.

Edited February 29, 2016 by El-P

[Nescent]

Finished Mistborn: The Final Empire. It was great, I'd like to read the second book, but I think I'll re-read His Dark Materials next.

[Queen of Liars]

Finally got around to reading The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories by Angela Carter. A lovely collection of morbidly twisted fairy tales.

Edited March 6, 2016 by Emilie Autumn

[Kopekemaster]

Finished the Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath. Quite a good story, though I have a sneaking suspicion he was paid by the word... But it was cool to see a much longer tale told in Lovecraft's dream world, and having it open up a lot more of the lore of the land.

[Hazmat Grumbles]

Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner. I'd highly recommend it to anyone. Simply beautiful.

[Erasmus Graves]

Read Evelyn Waugh's A Handful of Dust on the side. I'd previously read his short story The Man Who Liked Dickens, which he adapted to fit into AHoD's storyline - the adaptation provided a tragic ending but came off as a little lopsided but still believable when adapted and grafted into the text.

Also finished Norman Mailer's fantastic book The Fight. Mailer's Gonzo attitude, baroque style, charismatic ego and philosophical musings all come together in this slim little volume to provide a first-class look at the legendary Rumble in the Jungle. I'm not much of a fan of sportswriting (unless it's New Journalism or Gonzo Journalism - I dig those) but this is simply one of the best works in that category - the actual Foreman vs. Ali match is written with such power that you can practically see it; and a description of the African rains is simply incredible in its beauty.

 Also, Wolf Hall - a terrific monument of a book that I have to admit was almost flawless. Wholeheartedly enjoyed reading it and am onto the sequel (2012's Booker Prize-winner) Bring Up The Bodies.

Edited March 11, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[Millennium]

I completed (more or less, I bypassed some minor things) Kafka's collection. His prose is...intensely captivating despite being really prolix, and sometimes openly insane. It's hard to understand what he's trying to convey at times. That's it, if he is trying to say something at all. It is not of help that works like America and The castle were left uncompleted.

 

I'm now already 100 pages into Martin's A clash of kings.

[The Hip Historian Iaredios]

Started reading a preview of a book on the Sassanian Empire on my nook called Sassanian Persia: Rise and Fall of an Empire, by Touraj Daryaee. Released in the twenty-first century, this book is the first to solely cover Sassanian history in the English language. Why did it take so long? We have plenty of books on the Roman Empire, why not it's late ancient arch-rival? [mockingly] Because its too different or not relevant?! [/] Get a grip. Sassanians shaped later Muslim culture to an extensive degree (which is very relevant). In fact the Abbasid Caliphate, the golden age of Islam, is sometimes credited as a revival of the Sassanian Empire (which the prior Rashidun Caliphate had conquered and dismantled). And the Roman Empire of the medieval period were once described as 'Romans who spoke Greek and dressed like Persians', last bit is thanks to you-know-who.

 

It's an interesting read after you get past all the acknowledgements and the like. I think I'll buy this and give it a read. Hopefully the small details are more historically accurate then that Julius Caesar book I got (Caesar, by David Grace), with brief comments about how 'Constantine converted the Empire', and how 'the entire empire fell in the mid-400's' in an attempt to make him (the author) appear more knowledgeable when all the other stuff the book is made of already proves that. The Empire nor those things mentioned has nothing to do with Caesar's early life, why bring it up?!

 

I should see if there is a book on Cyrus the Great, learn more about the foundation of Persia and early roots of modern-Iran.

 

 

The couch-grouch and his mini-rant is done, now go about your business.

[(Daedalus)]

After finishing Erin Healy's beautifully written The Promises She Keeps*, I moved onto something a bit more exciting. I haven't read Monster* by Frank Peretti in years, but I haven't been disappointed so far. I'm a little over halfway through, and it's been pretty gripping. I can definitely see some Michael Crichton influence (though the science isn't quite as prominent, and the approach is a bit different). The style is a bit different from some of his older works, but he writes just as well.

 

*Pretend these are italicized. I'm too lazy to figure out how to italicize on a cellphone.

[Millennium]

I've completed A clash of kings by Martin the other day, and I'm now already halfway into The physician by Noah Gordon. A fascinating historical novel with lots of depth in English history and jewish and islamic culture.

Edited March 18, 2016 by El-P

[Erasmus Graves]

Read Alan Moore's Swamp Thing Books Two and Three, Tim Winton's An Open Swimmer, ​a number of Orwell's Essays (he's easily the greatest essayist of all time as well as one of our greatest writers), still reading Bring Up The Bodies (I've been really, really, lazy with my reading of this) and Anno Dracula (same problem), re-read To Kill A Mockingbird, having an on-off reading of Don DeLillo's brilliant novel Libra (genius literary speculative fiction about Lee Harvey Oswald and the whole metaphysical worldview of the JFK assassination). It's really, really good stuff. I've only read one of DeLillo's other novels (the award-winning White Noise), and though I enjoyed it a lot it's ultimately inferior to Libra.

Libra inspired James Ellroy's magisterial Underworld USA trilogy, and that's another reason to thank the Don; for writing a classic that inspired those knockout brilliant literary nation-spanning crime novels.

Edited March 26, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[The Hip Historian Iaredios]

Started reading Star Wars: Dark Rendezvous, I bought it because I wanted a book that gives Count Dooku some character rather than "OOO, LOOK AT ME, I EEEEVIL! BWAH! BWAH! MWAHAHAHAHAHAA!!".

 

 

 

EDIT: Just bought, "The Story of Sinbad the Voyager", written by Haroun al-Rashid [the Just] Abbasid, 5th Caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate. This is a collection of the Sinbad stories from the legend '1001 Arabian Nights' (one of these stories inspired Disney's Aladdin), which Haroun al-Rashid wrote (with some help). Kind of funny that he makes himself such a crazy murderer in the story and didn't obsess over how the story would affect his 'public image', he just wanted to create some memorable stories. The guy was cool (despite his conquests of Roman Imperial land in Jihad): he was humble (at least for being the most powerful person in the world at that time), scholarly, and good natured. Anyway, that's enough about the author, I'll get to reading of Sinbad's first adventure after my sleep! I've already read up to when he begins telling his tale to a poor man jealous of his wealth. I love the following:

 

"You think, no doubt, that I have acquired without labor and trouble the ease which I now enjoy. But do not mistake; I did not attain this happy condition without enduring several years more trouble of body and mind than can well be imagined."

 

Then he begins his tales. Very inspirational, reminds me of the movie Conan the Barbarian. "...after years, he now wears a crown upon a troubled brow".

Edited March 24, 2016 by Iaredios the Hip Historian

[Millennium]

I'm done with The physician by Noah Gordon and also with Storm of swords by Martin. Next up is Douglas Adams's complete Hitchicker's guide to the galaxy saga. I've read the first chapter some time ago, now it's time for the others.

Edited March 24, 2016 by El-P

[Erasmus Graves]

100 or so pages into Thomas Harris's Red Dragon. Brilliant, eerily disturbing stuff - probably the best pure thriller ever written, as James Ellroy said. Still reading Bring Up The Bodies and Anno Dracula.

[The Hip Historian Iaredios]

100 or so pages into Thomas Harris's Red Dragon. Brilliant, eerily disturbing stuff - probably the best pure thriller ever written, as James Ellroy said. Still reading Bring Up The Bodies and Anno Dracula.

Mnnnnh, I don't like horror games, movies or books, and I usually don't go seeking out thrilling material either. I have a habit of trying to immerse myself in the media I am participating in so that I feel that I am actually there, and mixing that with my standard high paranoia along with the aforementioned material can seriously mess with my head.

Edited March 26, 2016 by Iaredios the Hip Historian

[Kopekemaster]

I finished A Clockwork Orange a week or so ago. Really enjoyed it. What's funny is that I was watching the second season of Psycho-Pass at the same time, and they handled very similar themes. (Questioning whether "bad" people are any worse than the people controlling them, etc.) The nadsat dialect used in the book was cool and fit well into the style of the story.

 

I've begun reading the Hitchhiker series, finally. I also started listening to Crime and Punishment as an audiobook.

[Erasmus Graves]

Mnnnnh, I don't like horror games, movies or books, and I usually don't go seeking out thrilling material either. I have a habit of trying to immerse myself in the media I am participating in so that I feel that I am actually there, and mixing that with my standard high paranoia along with the aforementioned material can seriously mess with my head.

I've known Red Dragon to mess with people with very low to nil paranoia, so it's probably not up your alley, Iaredios.

 

Kopekemaster, you'd probably like it - if you haven't read it already (it's Hannibal Lecter #1).

Edited March 27, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[Kopekemaster]

Kopekemaster, you'd probably like it - if you haven't read it already (it's Hannibal Lecter #1).

 

 

Oh cool, I remember reading about that series a while back and being interested. I may end up checking it out.

[Erasmus Graves]

Just finished Red Dragon and a few Tim Winton short stories.

Red Dragon's undoubtedly one of the best thrillers ever written, and it's a shame that the first film adapted from it - Michael Mann's eerie and brilliant cult classic Manhunter - made so little cash at the box office, despite warm critical reception; whilst Brett Ratner's glaringly unsubtle, vastly inferior - though not rubbish - remake (titled Red Dragon and starring Edward Norton and Ralph Fiennes) grossed 209.1 million USD - 24 times more than Manhunter's humble box office of 8.6 million USD at the box office.

However, Manhunter scored the last laugh - its impact and legacy has survived thirty-something years, while its remake is but footnote in film history, sustained only by Sir Anthony Hopkins and the long-distance glow of Silence of the Lambs. 

 

UPDATE: Just finished Bring Up The Bodies by Hilary Mantel (finished 1/04/2016) and Daredevil Noir. Bring Up The Bodies is an incredible retelling of Tudor History, and its description of the execution of Anne Boleyn is simply breathtaking.

Daredevil Noir is an interesting twist on the eponymous superhero, gloomy & well-drawn with a really good showing from Kingpin and a different sort of Bullseye; plenty of darkness and an ending which was inevitable and pitch-perfect. Some of its impact was lost - with the advent of Netflix's Daredevil, the dark, gory tales of Matt Murdoch & Bros has become the norm - as opposed to when it first hit the stand. However, the Netflix show still has humour and heart, whilst the Noir comic is all dark and depressing. It lacks the lighter - yet still dark - moments of Iron Man Noir and Deadpool Pulp. However, it's nowhere near as soul-crushing as the great X-Men Noir.   

Edited April 1, 2016 by Erasmus Graves

[Sybre]

I finished Star Wars: The Crystal Star today. It's got some pretty bad qualities. Out-of-character Luke Skywalker, force-dampening stars, a boring leftover Imperial crony as a main villain, an interdimensional golden blob, boringly drawn out plot lines, and a lack of Star Wars-esque action (no lightsaber duels, dogfights, or blaster shootouts) topped off with plain writing and dialogue really does make for a novel that leaves a lot to be desired. I read it just to see how bad it was, and they were right. However, I can't complain completely; I found some of the family moments to be heartwarming, but that's just me. Now I'm gonna purposefully seek out another bad Star Wars novel or balance things out with a good one.

 

Hours later, I picked up Hippie Homeschooling by Carlton Smith after leaving it alone for months. Carlton, not to be confused with other Carlton Smiths, is a small-time author with Hippie Homeschooling being his only published novel so far and he's also a creative writing professor whom I've had for a semester. So far, I like the book and the main protagonist doesn't fool around when it comes to his goal, so it shouldn't drag on like The Crystal Star.

[Erasmus Graves]

2/04/16

AT LAST!!!

I finished the new edition of Kim Newman's Anno Dracula, with the Anno-tations, afterword and extra content (film script excerpts, alternate ending, short stories). Very interesting speculative fiction (what if Dracula killed Van Helsing, Morris & Harker and took over the British Empire?) with an interesting take on Jack the Ripper (a murderer who targets vampires). Very funny (though its a horror novel first, comedy third); well-written, and chock-full of shout-outs, homages, satirical takes and cameos by famous Victorians and literary characters (of the time and vampires across history). I highly recommend it.

 

Currently reading Dalton Trumbo's Johnny Got His Gun and Elmore Leonard's Pronto.