Jump to content

Menu

Book a Week 2019 - BW42: Masoaka Shiki


Robin M
 Share

Recommended Posts

Happy Sunday and welcome to week forty-two  in our 52 Books rambling roads reading adventure. Greetings to all our readers, welcome to all who are joining in for the first time and everyone following our progress. Visit  52 Books in 52 Weeks where you can find all the information on the annual, mini and perpetual challenges, as well as the central spot to share links to your book reviews. 

In honor of Masoaka Shiki, born October 14,1867, who influenced and developed the modern form of Japanese Haiku and Tanka. 


 

Asleep in a boat
I lie side by side with it:
the River of Heaven

 coolness-
a mountain stream splashes out
between houses

an old pond-
floating upside down
a cicada's shell

 crimson sunset
even through clouds
vernal equinox

fallen petals of
the crimson plum I pluck
from the tatami

 

 

What are you reading this week?

 

Link to week 41

 

 

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm in a reread mood right now.   Reading M.L. Buchman's second book in his Night Stalker series, I own the Night.    We watched Eragon last night and it was the first time for both hubby and James.  Always know it is a good movie when hubby gets emotional over a character's death scene.

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I recently read what is described as a short story, but I'd quibble about that. 

Evidence of the Affair by Taylor Jenkins Reid

It's a story that is composed of letters by four people. It begins with a letter written by a woman who has just found love letters written to her husband by another woman; she writes to the husband of that woman. And the story goes from there. The time period is the seventies. I enjoyed it.

"The repercussions of an illicit affair unfold in this short story by bestselling author Taylor Jenkins Reid.

Dear stranger…

A desperate young woman in Southern California sits down to write a letter to a man she’s never met—a choice that will forever change both their lives.

My heart goes out to you, David. Even though I do not know you…

The correspondence between Carrie Allsop and David Mayer reveals, piece by piece, the painful details of a devastating affair between their spouses. With each commiserating scratch of the pen, they confess their fears and bare their souls. They share the bewilderment over how things went so wrong and come to wonder where to go from here.

Told entirely through the letters of two comforting strangers and those of two illicit lovers, Evidence of the Affair explores the complex nature of the heart. And ultimately, for one woman, how liberating it can be when it’s broken."

Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some bookish posts ~

Reorder Your Routine With These 12 Books On Minimalism & Simplicity

https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/reorder-your-routine-with-these-books-on-minimalism-simplicity

5 Books with Well-Rounded Witches

https://www.tor.com/2019/09/27/5-books-with-well-rounded-witches/comment-page-1/#comment-829655

11 of the best books about witches by Sarah Shaffi

https://www.stylist.co.uk/books/best-books-about-witches-witchcraft-wicca/260215

The Best Nonfiction Books of 2019 Span Everything From True Crime to Scammer Culture

https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/g29190686/best-nonfiction-books-2019/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CYS - 100119&utm_term=BookRiot_CheckYourShelf

The Iconic Western & Sci-Fi Heroes Who Inspire My Writing

by MOLLY GLOSS

https://www.simonandschuster.com/getliterary/the-iconic-western-sci-fi-heroes-who-inspire-my-writing/

***

Plus a FREE classic for Kindle readers, today only:

Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell,

Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 6
  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I read The New York Stories of Edith Wharton - 1 Star - I should have known better. Short stories are usually not my cup of tea. In all fairness, I got a Kindle sample and the first story in this collection of twenty, was good. I figured that based on that sample, the rest of the stories would be good also. Well, other than the first story, I didn’t care for any of them. The ones that I did care for, ended all too abruptly.

9781590172483.jpg

MY RATING SYSTEM

5 Stars

The book is fantastic. It’s not perfect, since no book is, but it’s definitely a favorite of mine.

4 Stars

Really Good

3 Stars

Enjoyable

2 Stars

Just Okay – nothing to write home about

1 Star

Rubbish – waste of my money and time. Few books make it to this level, since I usually give up on them if they’re that bad.

--

I forgot to share photos last week. Here are some from our time in beautiful Granada. 

27.jpg

36a.jpg

45.jpg

Edited by Negin
  • Like 8
  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Negin Beautiful!!  and short stories aren't usually my thing, either. 

I actually finished a book this week! Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed by Lori Gottleib. It was ok. I found it to drag on and on when she was talking about her clients but picked up when she spoke of her own life, mostly. 

I stayed up late last night reading The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell. A newly widowed bride goes to live at her dead husband's family estate and bad things happen. I'm intrigued so far and am not sure how the author is going to resolve things. Kinda spooky but no outright scares. 

Looking forward to going through the links!

  • Like 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you Robin for creating these enjoyable thread topics each week.  (Hoping things have settled somewhat for you and your family?)   I rather enjoy haiku poetry, much to my Dc's consternationđŸ˜‹

**

Straight to books completed  .....

I’ve counted these next two as one read as they are both shorter, classic, works.  The Winslow Boy ~ Terence Rattigan (Classic Radio Theatre) (5)  The execution of this play is so well done.   The Canterville Ghost ~ Oscar Wilde, Narrated by Rupert Degas (5)  The spooking in this tale becomes reversed đŸ™‚Â  and creates a charming, clever, and rather fun listen.  With Robert Degas as the narrator, this is one "spooky" classic that I could have easily listened to with my, then, pre-teen children. 

I’m trying to make my way through select juvenile fiction books this year and  When the Sea Turned to Silver ~ Grace Lin  (audiobook) (3) is one of that selection.   I enjoyed Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and Starry River of the Sky more than this title. I just couldn't seem to find my listening groove with this story. Still good, but just not as good as the other two.

I’m keen to have another read through the LOTR series now that I’ve completed The Silmarillion ~ J.R.R. Tolkien   Book & Audio (4) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2258324953

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love the pictures Negin!

I finished listening to The Goblin Emperor this afternoon and it was so awesome!  Defiantly one for this year’s top ten........fwiw I never opened my book except in an attempt to read the book in order to finish the story when unable to listen due to some busy days.  My reading the book was a failure as I wasn’t enjoying it nearly as much.  I put it away and finished it as the audiobook.

I also read Rupture by Ragnar Jonasson for my Nordic Noir 10x10.  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33257659-rupture This is the fourth book in what is probably my favorite of the Scandinavian mysteries I have tried.  It’s called the Dark Iceland series.  The setting is a small seaside village in Northern Iceland with a young policeman as the main character.  The books are a loose ongoing storyline so reading them in order would be nice but they would probably still be good out of order.  There is one more book in this series which I just filled out a purchase request for and the author has a new series which I am looking forward to trying.

My hold on Forever Wolf by Maria Vale https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40597253-forever-wolf arrived and I really enjoyed this one.  It’s the third in a series and I didn’t care for the second so was very pleasantly surprised.  This whole series has a different type of story than the typical werewolf stories which makes it quite intriguing.

I requested a soon to be released Nevada Barr, the author of the many book long forest ranger in National Parks series, not reading the description.  What Rose Forgot had nothing to do with National Parks or Rangers but a lot to do with escapees from nursing homes.  I was quickly hooked and stayed up rather late to read the ending which was poorly done in a rather tongue and cheek, roll the movie credits way ..........blank is now in high school and on the soccer team ........This book was one I was in the right place for and I actually found it pretty funny but doubt I would have in the last few years of my mom’s life so trigger warning.   Rose catches the flu and wakes up from a drug induced Alzheimer’s type condition to discover she is in a nursing home and runs away from her care unit.  Shh hides out with the help of her granddaughter and before long they realize that there are people who want her dead not just in the nursing home........https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44195174-what-rose-forgot

I hope to start listening to my Toby Peters book tomorrow and have been read a book in the Haunted Library Cozy series called Read and Gone.  After that I will attempt A Small Death in Lisbon for my very last country in my Brexit Express 10x10 category.

 

 

 

Edited by mumto2
  • Like 10
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thwarted by Overdrive - all my choices on are on the waitlist, I resorted to the following:

Audiobook:

Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh. 

Reading:

Finishing Wild Lupines by Link. Such an intense story with so many different, well developed characters.

Looking forward to more of Elly Griffiths.

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

45 minutes ago, Liz CA said:

Thwarted by Overdrive - all my choices on are on the waitlist, I resorted to the following:

Audiobook:

Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh. 

Reading:

Finishing Wild Lupines by Link. Such an intense story with so many different, well developed characters.

Looking forward to more of Elly Griffiths.

I like Elly Griffiths other series too if you want to try those.  Ruth Galloway is an archaeologist who does occasional work for the police.  This is a series that really must be read in order but you could miss one.  The spoilers of being out of order would really ruin the continuing storylines.

  • Like 3
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

@mumto2

The Goblin Emperor is one of my top 10 this year, too. And I am nearly finished with another book that will definitely make my  Top 10 - the audio version of Milkman by Anna Burns. I see on GR that you also gave it 5 stars. I drove my son back to college this weekend, and had many many hours of listening time.

We have another road trip this coming weekend, and I have about four hours left to go. I'll save those hours for that journey.

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, mumto2 said:

I finished listening to The Goblin Emperor this afternoon and it was so awesome!  Defiantly one for this year’s top ten........fwiw I never opened my book except in an attempt to read the book in order to finish the story when unable to listen due to some busy days.  My reading the book was a failure as I wasn’t enjoying it nearly as much.  I put it away and finished it as the audiobook.

Well done on that epic listen (which I  wished/felt like it could have continued on longer)  such a good story .  Audio isn't an option we can get down here.

18 hours ago, Liz CA said:

Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh. 

Are your reading or listening?  My DS & I enjoyed the audiobook of this title .... this book gives the wool presses here a whole new look.   

7 hours ago, Penguin said:

And I am nearly finished with another book that will definitely make my  Top 10 - the audio version of Milkman by Anna Burns.

It looks like it's one of those books that is either loved or not: adding it to my want to try list đŸ™‚Â 

@aggieamy, Danger Point is a Patricia Wentworth  title I'm hoping audible will make available .  Even more so now that you've enjoyed it.

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

For others that (also) like to keep abreast with juvenile fiction , Trouble at Rose Cottage: Tumtum and Nutmeg Bk7 ~ Emily Bearn was a wonderful story.   I listened to Bill Wallis (sped up slightly) narrate this charming tale, which I think added an extra edge to the enjoyment.  I'm an appreciator of books like The Littles,  The Borrowers,  Ralph S. Mouse, and  Brambly Hedge, this story has shades of each of those in it.

I'm currently listening to The Goliath Code and enjoying it.  (Christian content. Some swearing).

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just finished The Hanging Girl, another Dept Q mystery. It moved at a decent pace, but I feel like the series is wobbling on the tracks. There was a relatively large jump in time between the previous book and this one (3 years?) but the characters hadn't grown at all. Also the assistant has sustained some serious injuries over the course of the series, and I wonder where the author is taking that. I really, really hope there is a plan.

I've started The Silence of the Girls, by Pat Barker. I'm reading The Iliad for the first time with my two freshman and really enjoying it. It was beneficial to me to have recently read The Song of Achilles, for a decent overview of the story, albeit from a different perspective, before we began. I thought I would try The Silence, as it is also a historical fiction version of the siege of Troy, this time told from Briseis' perspective. I like it so far, except for some anachronistic dialog which could completely ruin it if there turn out to be a lot of talking scenes! I'm also working on Naves Negras Ante Troya, inspired by all the dual language readers I see in this group.

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This evening I finished   Gateway to the Moon: A Novel

by Mary Morris which my book group will be discussing later this week. It was rather ironic to finish this on Columbus Day as Columbus figures in the book and not in a positive light. While I'm happy to have read the book, I'll caution that it contains 
 

rape, torture, and more rape and torture.

"In 1492, the Jewish and Muslim populations of Spain were expelled, and Columbus set sail for America. Luis de Torres, a Spanish Jew, accompanies Columbus as his interpreter. His journey is only the beginning of a long migration, across many generations. Over the centuries, de Torres’ descendants travel from Spain and Portugal to Mexico, finally settling in the hills of New Mexico. Five hundred years later, it is in these same hills that Miguel Torres, a young amateur astronomer, finds himself trying to understand the mystery that surrounds him and the town he grew up in.

Entrada de la Luna is a place that holds a profound secret--one that its residents cannot even imagine. It is also a place that ambitious children, such as Miguel, try to leave. Poor health, broken marriages, and poverty are the norm. Luck is unusual. When Miguel sees a flyer for a babysitting job, he jumps at the opportunity, and begins work for a Jewish family new to the area. Rachel Rothstein is not the sort of parent Miguel expected. A frustrated artist, Rachel moved her family from New York in search of a fresh start, but so far New Mexico has not solved any of the problems she brought with her. Miguel loves the work, yet he is surprised to find many of the Rothstein family's customs similar to ones he’s grown up with and never understood.

Interwoven throughout the present-day narrative are the powerful stories of the ancestors of Entrada's residents, highlighting the torture, pursuit, and resistance of the Jewish people. A beautiful novel of shared history, Gateway to the Moon is a moving and memorable portrait of a family and its journey through the centuries. "
 
Regards,
Kareni
  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

16 hours ago, tuesdayschild said:

Well done on that epic listen (which I  wished/felt like it could have continued on longer)  such a good story .  Audio isn't an option we can get down here.

Are your reading or listening?  My DS & I enjoyed the audiobook of this title .... this book gives the wool presses here a whole new look.   

It looks like it's one of those books that is either loved or not: adding it to my want to try list đŸ™‚Â 

@aggieamy, Danger Point is a Patricia Wentworth  title I'm hoping audible will make available .  Even more so now that you've enjoyed it.

 

I am listening to "Died in the Wool" and the narrator is good IMHO which is important for me on Audiobooks. There have been some good books I could not listen to because of the voice or reading style. Since it sounds like you guys have way more insight into anything to do with wool than I do, it must be quite entertaining.  đŸ™‚

 

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's been a month since I last posted!  Wow!  Busy with our schoolwork and Fall yardwork, but I have been reading.

My mom has been reading these "Asperger's Mysteries" by Copperman/Cohen, and suggested I might like them, since all three of my kids are ASD.  She was right, I did enjoy them!

52. "The Question of the Absentee Father" by E.J. Copperman/Jeff Cohen.   

51. "The Question of the Felonious Friend" by E.J. Copperman/Jeff Cohen.

50. "The Question of the Unfamiliar Husband" by E.J. Copperman/Jeff Cohen.

49. "The Question of the Missing Head" by E.J. Copperman/Jeff Cohen.

48. "Pax" by Sara Pennypacker.  Audio book for just DD9 and I when the two of us took a trip together.  She loves animal stories, as long as the character she gets invested in doesn't get killed.  Not going to be doing "Red Fern" or "Old Yeller," for instance.

47.  "The Wizard of Oz" by L. Frank Baum.  Audio book while we traveled to give DD9 something she liked.

46.  "Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien.  Finished our family audio book listening quest!

45.  "Math with Bad Drawings" by Ben Orlin. 

44.  "The Number Devil" by Hans Magnus Enzensberger.

43.  "Insights from a Prophet's Life: Russall M Nelson" by Sheri Dew (LDS).

42.  "Live Up to Our Privileges" by Wendy Ulrich (LDS).

41.  "The Knowledge Gap: The Hidden Cause of America's Broken Education System --  And How to Fix It" by Natalie Wexler.

40.  "Blood, Bullets, and Bones" by Bridget Heos.

39.  "World War I:  The Rest of the Story and How It Affects You Today" by Richard J. Maybury.

38.  "The Thousand Year War in the Mideast:  How It Affects You Today" by Richard J. Maybury.  

37.  "The Two Towers" by J.R.R. Tokien.

36.  "Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien.

35. "The Clipper Ship Strategy" by Richard J. Maybury.

34. "The Money Mystery" by Richard J. Maybury.

33. "Evaluating Books: What Would Thomas Jefferson Think About This" by Richard J. Maybury.

32. "Ancient Rome: How It Affects You Today" by Richard J. Maybury.

31. "Are You Liberal? Conservative? or Confusted?" by Richard J. Maybury.  Funny title, because I thought I knew what I was, but now I'm confused!

30.  "Whatever Happened to Justice?" by Richard J. Maybury.

29. " The Instant Economist: Everything You Need to Know About How the Economy Works" by Timothy Taylor. 

28. "White Like Her: My Family's Story of Race and Racial Passing" by Gail Lukasik.

27. "Personal, Career, and Financial Security" by Richard J. Maybury.

26. "Rascal" by Sterling North.

25. "Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?" by Richard J. Maybury.

24.  "Joy in the Covenant" by Julie B. Beck.  (LDS)

23. "The Essential 55" by Ron Clark.

22. "How to Tutor Your Own Child" by Marina Koestler Ruben.

21. "Faith is Not Blind" by Bruce and Marie Hafen. (LDS)

20. "Silent Souls Weeping: Depression, Sharing Stories, Finding Hope" by Jane Clayson Johnson.  (LDS)

19. "Leap of Faith" by Bob Bennett. (LDS)

18.  "Covenant Keepers" by Wendy Watson Nelson. (LDS)

17. "Manga Classics: MacBeth" adapted by Crystal S. Chan.

16. "One Dead Spy" by Nathan Hale.

15. "Stellar Science Projects About Earth's Sky" and "Wild Science Projects About Earth's Weather" by Robert Gardner.  

14. "Stuff Matters" by Mark Miodownik.  

13. "Led by Divine Design" by Ronald A. Rasband. (LDS)

12. "Forensic Science Projects with a Crime Lab" by Robert Gardner. 

11. "Manga Classics: The Jungle Book" adapted by Crystal S. Chan

10. "Donner Dinner Party" by Nathan Hale. 

9. "Manga Classics: The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe" adapted by Stacy King. 

8. "Bodies We've Buried" by Jarrett Hallcox and Amy Welch.

7. "The Forensic Casebook" by N.E. Genge.

6. "Shaken Faith Syndrome" by MIchael R. Ash. (LDS)

5. "Fingerprints: Crime-Solving Science Experiments" by Kenneth G. Rainis.

4. "Forensic Investigations" (6) by Leela Burnscott. & ("Bones Speak" by Richard Spilsbury)

3. "A Reason for Faith" edited by Laura Harris Hales.  (LDS)

2. "Left Standing" by Mason Wells, et al. (LDS)

1.  "Camino Easy" by B. G. Preston. 

  • Like 8
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This week I needed a small and sturdy book I could take on a plane and fit into a 10x10 category, so I put all else aside and grabbed Mrs & Mrs Stevenson's The Dynamiter, a sort of strange comedy that they wrote quick because, as Mrs Stevenson explains, they were frankly out of money. So it's light, but enjoyable, featuring incompetent anarchist terrorists, Bertie Wooster-style impoverished gentlemen, a down-on-his-luck foreign prince-turned-tobacconist, perfidious Mormon bogeymen, a mad scientist, a wealthy cat lady conveniently eager to give away her mansion, a voodoo priestess, Cuban spies, exploding buildings, narrow escapes, poisonous swamps, a spontaneous deus-ex-machina tornado, and a happy ending. Whee! 10x10 category: Scots Wha' Hae.

Almost done with John Updike's Rabbit, Run. Still working in the occasional Hugh MacDiarmid and Guillaume Apollinaire poem. I find I have to look up MacDiarmid's words a lot more than Apollinaire's, which is kind of sad. Back to Proust at some point, I swear.

By the way, Boston, which I had never before visited, has some very nice used bookstores. I picked up a first edition set of Raby's Secular Latin Poetry, which being medieval is within my translation abilities, for $20 instead of the usual three-digit price. We got to visit the tomb of the Mather family, whose literary importance I only appreciated after reading Perry Miller's The American Puritans: Their Prose and Poetry earlier this year. A plain and unostentatious tomb under a sycamore, right in keeping with their theology and literary style. And Middle Girl got to run an authentic printing press, printing out her own copy of the Declaration of Independence. The guy doing the colonial printing press reenactment, it turns out, homeschooled his own daughter, and was eager to have another interested teen involved in the demonstration. So loads of literary and historical fun.

Okay, off to read the thread now.

Edited by Violet Crown
  • Like 9
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another book I like, a science fiction romance, is currently free for Kindle readers ~

Dark Horse (Class 5 Series Book 1) by Michelle Diener

On a related note, the author's final book in the same series, Dark Matters (Class 5 Series Book 4), was released yesterday, and I've already finished it.  I enjoyed it. This is a series that is best read in order.

 "DARK MATTERS . . . taking matters into her own hands

A time bomb, waiting to go off . . .

Lucy Harris is on the run, not sure where she can turn to for help, or if help is even available. But even as her abductors chase her down, she realizes they don't just want to recapture her, they want to erase her.

When your very existence puts a planet at the risk of war, there's no choice but to do everything in your power to stay out of your enemies hands.

A predator . . . waiting for the chance to pounce

The powerful AI battleship, Bane, is accompanying the United Council envoy to Tecra to mete out the punishment the Tecrans have earned for breaking UC law. He revels in the power he's about to have over his old masters. But his mission isn't only to rain down retribution on the people who kept him chained for years, he's also looking for a human woman his fellow Class 5 thinking system mentioned in the final seconds of his life. Paxe admitted to taking Lucy Harris from Earth, and Bane has been looking for her ever since.

A warrior conflicted . . .

Commander Dray Helvan thinks the Grih made a mistake in not pushing for war with the Tecran, but he's had to accept the compromise, that he and the other envoys from the United Council will go to Tecra and dismantle its military from the top down. His mission is not one of his choosing, but when he and his team arrive, he's handed a very different job. While he distrusts Bane on principle, when the thinking system tells him there's a woman running for her life on the planet below, he will do whatever he has to to see her safe. And if that means war for Tecra, well, then it means war. "

Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Howdy!  I just finished Queen Bees and Wannabees (eye reading) and Harry Potter book 7 (audiobook with the kids).  I started another teen parenting book (eye reading) and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (audiobook with the kids).

I also joined a book club!  It is with the women's group at my church.  I have never attended any of their stuff because it really doesn't accommodate working moms, but the book club is web-based.  I like reading, so I thought, that might be fun.

The first book club book is Leota's Garden.  I have only finished a couple of chapters so far, so I am behind everyone else, but it seems like a quick read (just started last night).  I don't really love the book.  The characters are caricatures.  I mean everyone is either absolutely perfect (sweet, gorgeous, brilliant, rich, maximum accomplishments) or absolutely pathetic.  I mean why can't a character ever have a B average and pimples and an average relationship with their loved ones?  I can already probably tell what the moral of the story will be.  But I will read it anyway, because I rarely start a book and decline to finish it.

  • Like 7
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some bookish posts ~

The Messy, Beautiful Worldbuilding of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

 "It all started, we’re told, with a picture of a faun, walking through a snowy wood and carrying some parcels and an umbrella. The image had come to C.S. Lewis when he was 16 years old, and many years later it became the seed of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe—which, incidentally, celebrates its anniversary today, having been published on October 16, 1950....."

 **

The Five Most Badass Vampires of All Time by Renee Ahdieh

https://www.tor.com/2019/10/07/the-five-most-badass-vampires-of-all-time/From

The Best Biographies & Memoirs of October 2019

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/the-best-biographies-memoirs-of-october-2019/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CYS - 100819&utm_term=BookRiot_CheckYourShelf_DormantSuppress

8 Sci-Fi & Fantasy Books We Wish Weren’t Standalones

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/sci-fi-fantasy/8-sci-fi-fantasy-books-we-wish-werent-standalones/

Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I finished listening to Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13538552-memoirs-of-an-imaginary-friend which is yet another book off the favorite book to recommend thread.  The one was also engaging and unique......I gave it a 5.  I doubt it will be on my favorite books of the year list but totally well done.  I also that the narration was really well done for audio book fans.

I have abandoned a few books lately and seem to have stuck on Roadside Picnichttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/331256.Roadside_Picnic?ac=1&from_search=true and have no idea how this rather odd science fiction book appeared in my stack.........literally aliens landed on earth,  made a mess at their picnic, then left leaving their rubbish in a mess.  No idea what is going on beyond that bit of wisdom that I confirmed by reading the Goodreads.  It is early Russian Sci Fi...........

I am also reading Delivering The Truthhttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25834931-delivering-the-truth. A historical mystery featuring a Quaker midwife. 

Edited by mumto2
  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, mumto2 said:

I have abandoned a few books lately and seem to have stuck on Roadside Picnichttps://www.goodreads.com/book/show/331256.Roadside_Picnic?ac=1&from_search=true and have no idea how this rather odd science fiction shelf appeared in my stack.........literally aliens landed on earth,  made a mess at their picnic, then left leaving their rubbish in a mess.  No idea what is going on beyond that bit of wisdom that I confirmed by reading the Goodreads.  It is early Russian Sci Fi...........

I don't generally care for science fiction, but I've enjoyed the Strugatstky brothers' books that I have read. Did you know there's a popular Russian video game based on Roadside Picnic? With a little bit of Chernobyl thrown in.

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Violet Crown said:

I don't generally care for science fiction, but I've enjoyed the Strugatstky brothers' books that I have read. Did you know there's a popular Russian video game based on Roadside Picnic? With a little bit of Chernobyl thrown in.

Oh wow, I can just imagine the toxic bone melting slime pits in a video game.  I have to ask Ds if has knows about the game.  I am now at about 50% and enjoying it.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some books that are currently free for Kindle readers ~

Wild Oats (Territory Trysts Book 1) by Pamela Morsi

Hold Claire Kent aka Noelle Adams

Yuletide Happily Ever After II: An Original Regency Romance Collection www.amazon.com/dp/B07Y6QB6ZR/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_QtCQDbFH1T1C9

The Red Lion (Highland Warriors of Munro Book 1) www.amazon.com/dp/B01I0WGQ02/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_nNBQDbX356905
Kathryn Le Veque

Monster Till Midnight: A Cross-Dimensional Love Story by E.J. Russell

***

A favorite book of mine is on sale for $1.99. You'll need to be pretty daring to read this ~

Claimings, Tails, and Other Alien Artifacts Lyn Gala, $1.99
 

Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yesterday I finished a book that I quite enjoyed; it was loaned to me by an online acquaintance, but I believe I'll be buying it to reread. (Significant adult content and violence)

Bone Rider  by J. Fally

 "Riley Cooper is on the run. Misha Tokarev, the love of his life, turned out to be an assassin for the Russian mob, and when it comes to character flaws, Riley draws the line at premeditated murder. Alien armor system McClane is also on the run, for reasons that include accidentally crashing a space ship into Earth and evading U.S. military custody. A failed prototype, McClane was scheduled for destruction. Sabotaging the ship put an end to that, but McClane is dubbed a bone rider for good reason—he can’t live without a host body. That’s why he first stows away in Riley's truck and then in Riley himself. Their reluctant partnership soon evolves into something much more powerful—and personal—than either of them could have imagined.

Together, they embark on a road trip from hell, made all the more exciting by the government troops and mob enforcers hot on their trail. Misha is determined to win Riley back and willing to do whatever it takes to keep him safe. When hitman and alien join forces, they discover their impressive combined potential for death and destruction. It will take everything Riley has to steer them through the mess they create. "

Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 4
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Earlier today, I read the short work Monster Till Midnight: A Cross-Dimensional Love Story by E.J. Russell which is currently free. It was a pleasant story.

 "What if you staged the best haunted house in the history of the holiday, but nobody came?

Brady is prepared with mounds of treats, stellar special effects, and an extraordinary welcome for the throngs of trick-or-treaters he expects in his first year at his new place—a gloriously gothic house with the reputation for really being haunted! But the trick’s on Brady: Halloween is almost over and not one person has knocked on his door.

Once a top Interdimensional Law Enforcement agent, Rej was busted down to Creature Control after a run-in with his arch-nemesis. When he tracks a non-sentient construct across the dimensional barrier, he’s sure he’s about to confront Gorvenath again. But the person who bursts onto the porch in a swirl of tuxedo coattails is a monster of a very different sort—but is he Gorvenath’s accomplice or his victim?"

 Regards,

Kareni

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/17/2019 at 8:17 PM, mumto2 said:

Oh wow, I can just imagine the toxic bone melting slime pits in a video game.  I have to ask Ds if has knows about the game.  I am now at about 50% and enjoying it.

Dh says the Strugatsky brothers wrote the screenplay - based on Roadside Picnic - for the Tarkovsky movie STALKER, which was later made into a video game of the same name. I wonder how he knows this stuff. I wonder what he's actually doing at work.

  • Like 2
  • Haha 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Violet Crown said:

Dh says the Strugatsky brothers wrote the screenplay - based on Roadside Picnic - for the Tarkovsky movie STALKER, which was later made into a video game of the same name. I wonder how he knows this stuff. I wonder what he's actually doing at work.

I can confirm that information!đŸ˜‚Â  Neither dc had heard of the book which did not appeal to either btw or the video game before or after mom fortified her information with Google.  Both my kid’s seemed to think Cold War era Russians using  a North American setting for the book was strange.   It didn’t seem that odd to me..............oh, well..........This particular book did nothing to enhance my cool mom reputation.  I actually really liked it and would read more by those authors.  

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

Ă—
Ă—
  • Create New...