MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Currently reading Gaiman's Norse Mythology. It is...less than stellar, but I'm a Gaiman completist, so I shall press on.
Magnus
Pica Serdica
I liked it.
Edit: Just noticed this when going to my old post:
Dude it took you some time...
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Haha, yeah...I chose to reread a whole series since then.
I enjoy it, because I enjoy Norse mythology, it just doesn’t feel like a Gaiman book to me. It doesn’t sound like Gaiman, if that makes sense.
Magnus
Pica Serdica
It does make sense but, finish it first?
Finished "Needful Things" by Stephen King last night. It's a book I've been meaning to read for a long time because I remember the film fondly - although I watched it maybe 20 or more years ago and it probably will seem a lot cheesier to me now.
I can't say the climax impressed me very much, but you don't read away 933 pages in five days (taken together) if the book is bad.
Then again, I read "The Silk Tree" by Julian Stockwin in two nights and it was the worst book I ever read, so what do I know.
Anyway, I liked "Needful Things". There's something about the story's premise that has stuck with me for decades and the book was worth reading for the transaction scenes alone.
I can't say the climax impressed me very much, but you don't read away 933 pages in five days (taken together) if the book is bad.
Then again, I read "The Silk Tree" by Julian Stockwin in two nights and it was the worst book I ever read, so what do I know.
Anyway, I liked "Needful Things". There's something about the story's premise that has stuck with me for decades and the book was worth reading for the transaction scenes alone.
ironmaidenlewes
Trooper
The full cast audiobook is brilliant.
Magnus
Pica Serdica
I remember I liked it too (only read the Bulgarian translation a long time ago) but also realized I've completely forgotten most of it since.
Which doesn't happen too often with Stephen King's books.
Magnus
Pica Serdica
Philip K. Dick, Our Friends From Frolix 8.
Before that, Gaiman's Trigger Warning, Erich Kästner's Der kleine Grenzverkehr and Die verschwundene Miniatur, and Alfred Bester's The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination (a.k.a. Tiger! Tiger!; with a postface by Neil Gaiman thus coming full circle in a way).
Can't believe I'd never heard of Bester until now, so ahead of his time.
Before that, Gaiman's Trigger Warning, Erich Kästner's Der kleine Grenzverkehr and Die verschwundene Miniatur, and Alfred Bester's The Demolished Man and The Stars My Destination (a.k.a. Tiger! Tiger!; with a postface by Neil Gaiman thus coming full circle in a way).
Can't believe I'd never heard of Bester until now, so ahead of his time.
Spambot
Meme Lord
So, in past month or so I've read:
Agatha Christie - And Then There Were None...
Awesome book. The way it was written, you can tell it's 80 years old, but damn, that is still one of the finest mystery novels I've ever read. Even Agatha herself said it's one of the rare books she wrote that needed an epilogue because the plot is so well thought of. Even better, what I really like about those "older books" is that they're bullet proof. After you know the ending, you can return to any chapter and it would still hold water (unlike some new ones which deliberately "lead" you in the wrong direction so the ending would be more shocking)
Lucy Foley - The Guest List
OK, so this one was voted as best Mystery&Thriller by Goodreads Choice Awards 2020. Her previous one (The Hunting Party) was also promising, so why not. Another whodunit mystery set on a small Irish island. I got to hand this to her. Usually, this type of book need a hook right at the beginning (and this one has it, although I could bet it was written only after her editor ordered it) and usually that hook it connected to the victim. In this one, around 350 pages long, you don't even know who the victim is until the last 50 pages and that is some sort of accomplishment.
Ragnar Jonasson - The Darkness
Another mystery set on Iceland.... This one is kind of a slow-burn. An older female detective, days away from retirement picks up a year old case. Throughout the book you follow her as she tries to connect the dots in the case, but most of the time, you get an insight into her thoughts, that is, how she sees herself and her past. Blurbs on the book cover mostly mention the ending and I admit - the ending is the best part of this book. There aren't many twist and turns through the story, but the way the authors ties everything at the end is quite... shocking.
Abir Mukharjee - Death in the East
I've actually just started this one. Another mystery, set in East London in 1902 and India 1922. But I've got to say this: Abir has a way of storytelling that I enjoy so much, I believe (despite how this book ends) I'm going to buy rest of his book simply due to the way he narrates the plot from the first POV.
Agatha Christie - And Then There Were None...
Awesome book. The way it was written, you can tell it's 80 years old, but damn, that is still one of the finest mystery novels I've ever read. Even Agatha herself said it's one of the rare books she wrote that needed an epilogue because the plot is so well thought of. Even better, what I really like about those "older books" is that they're bullet proof. After you know the ending, you can return to any chapter and it would still hold water (unlike some new ones which deliberately "lead" you in the wrong direction so the ending would be more shocking)
Lucy Foley - The Guest List
OK, so this one was voted as best Mystery&Thriller by Goodreads Choice Awards 2020. Her previous one (The Hunting Party) was also promising, so why not. Another whodunit mystery set on a small Irish island. I got to hand this to her. Usually, this type of book need a hook right at the beginning (and this one has it, although I could bet it was written only after her editor ordered it) and usually that hook it connected to the victim. In this one, around 350 pages long, you don't even know who the victim is until the last 50 pages and that is some sort of accomplishment.
Ragnar Jonasson - The Darkness
Another mystery set on Iceland.... This one is kind of a slow-burn. An older female detective, days away from retirement picks up a year old case. Throughout the book you follow her as she tries to connect the dots in the case, but most of the time, you get an insight into her thoughts, that is, how she sees herself and her past. Blurbs on the book cover mostly mention the ending and I admit - the ending is the best part of this book. There aren't many twist and turns through the story, but the way the authors ties everything at the end is quite... shocking.
Abir Mukharjee - Death in the East
I've actually just started this one. Another mystery, set in East London in 1902 and India 1922. But I've got to say this: Abir has a way of storytelling that I enjoy so much, I believe (despite how this book ends) I'm going to buy rest of his book simply due to the way he narrates the plot from the first POV.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
Dude, yes. It’s my favorite Christie novel for the very reason that you can return to it every time and it still holds up (racist wording notwithstanding, but there are other editions with it removed so that’s good). It wasn’t my favorite when I first read it, but it’s the only one I’ve come back to numerous times. Doesn’t matter the ending, the psychological journey she takes you on is strong enough on its own. It’s beautiful, it’s horrifying, it’s amazing.
Azas
Hermit at the End of the Universe
Neil Gaiman, The Ocean at the End of the Lane. I like it. This little book has that so much more behind the curtains feel. Universe is full of wonders and monsters. Scenes at the Hempstock family farm are the best. Poetic and mystic.
Another truly GREAT novel of same type is Roger Zelazny's A Night in the Lonesome October. Here you will meet many of beloved and well known literature figures, such as Sherlock Holmes, Count Dracula, Jack the Ripper, Doctor Frankenstein and others. Some of them will try to open Gates for Lovecraftian monsters and other will try to prevent it. It's called The Game... Oh, main protagonist is a dog Snuff and his sidekicks are a cat, bat, rat, squirrel and others.... One of my favorite novels of all time. Article on Wikipedia
Another truly GREAT novel of same type is Roger Zelazny's A Night in the Lonesome October. Here you will meet many of beloved and well known literature figures, such as Sherlock Holmes, Count Dracula, Jack the Ripper, Doctor Frankenstein and others. Some of them will try to open Gates for Lovecraftian monsters and other will try to prevent it. It's called The Game... Oh, main protagonist is a dog Snuff and his sidekicks are a cat, bat, rat, squirrel and others.... One of my favorite novels of all time. Article on Wikipedia
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Maturin
Sköldpadda
I sort of liked American Gods but The Ocean at the End of the Lane I thoroughly despised. Here, have a universe with no rules. Here, the least interesting narrative voice I can muster. Here, unresolved plot.
Haven't bothered with another Gaiman novel since, even though I liked the film adaptation of Stardust.
Haven't bothered with another Gaiman novel since, even though I liked the film adaptation of Stardust.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
I need to reread Ocean, but American Gods is amazing. His long-running graphic novel series Sandman is also incredible and I highly recommend The Graveyard Book and Good Omens (with Terry Pratchett).