What books are you reading right now?

I just finished Bleachers by John Grisham. It wasn't a horrible book, it wasn't a great one, at least it was a short book. I guess that ex-jocks who had love-hate relationships with their former coaches, and have a hard time letting go of the "glory days" would enjoy this book. I'll give Grisham credit for one thing, he did manage to capture the insanity that can surround high school football in small towns.

FTR, I enjoyed Playing For Pizza, another "football" novel by Grisham.

 

I'm about 80 pages into Boiling A Frog by Christopher Brookmyre. This book is getting off to a very slow start compared to Brookmyre's One Fine Day In The Middle Of The Night, and some knowledge of British & Scottish politics in the '90s (which I don't have) would be useful.

I don't mind political novels about behind-the-scenes shennigans, but much of the humour is going over me haid.

 

I read half of Jeffrey Deaver's The Bodies Left Behind today. Nice distraction.

 

I just downloaded a short and cheap kindle book - Darwin's Odyssey: The Voyage of the Beagle

 

Yesterday I finished The Morning River by W. Michael Gear. It's an autographed 1st ed HB that doesn't appear to have ever been read; I bought it for a $1.00 at a thrift store that helps to support a substance abuse treatment group.

At first I didn't much care for one of the main characters, Richard Hamilton, but as the story progressed I begrudgingly began to like him (which was most certainly the author's intent). The biggest problem I had with TMR was the ending, I felt as though I had read one half of a novel. I now know that there is a follw-up novel, Coyote Summer, which I plan to read, if for no other reason than to see if Gear knows how to end a story. Nothing bothers me more than reading a good story only to find the ending inconclusive, or too tidy.

 

(Sorry. Christmas prep and celebration distracted me from your response.)

Your description of Sanderson is spot on. He is not at all tedious--at least in the five books of his that so far I've read, the last being Warbreaker, which I read as if it were crack. I burned through that sucker. It takes a really good writer to get me so excited that I'm sneaking to go have a "break" to read. The title misled me, but in an honest way, meaning instead of sleeping Christmas night, I mentally went through the book and thought of as many incidents and plot points as I could remember which led up to the conclusion of what the title really means.

Prior to Lord Of the Rings, I'd never read any epic fantasy in my life so I have room to read more before I move on. As much as parents influence their children to read, the only reason I read Harry Potter was because my then 9 y.o. son was. Now he's 21 and Sanderson remains his favourite epic fantasy author. The kid had good taste for a 9 y.o. and I'm finding he still does.

I figure that I'll start with the Canadian (non-fantasy) authors that I've missed (due to growing up here in the States) this summer when I'm actually in Canada.
So much to read, so little time. <sigh>

P.S. Thanks for The Way Of The Kings contest note. I actually bought the paperback copy some months ago but it is HUGE. I've been a bit daunted about starting it.

 

I am reading the God Delusion again. Wonderful book.

 

I won a copy of The Biology of Luck on Goodreads. I'm going to start it this afternoon. I'm also starting The Angry Buddhist and listening to the end of Lee Child's Echo Burning. Cause that's how I roll.

 

I've finished three books in the past four months—Ender's Game, The Fault in Our Stars and Gone Girl—the most reading I've done in years... all thanks to @GeneticShift's positive influence.

My list of books to read isn't getting any shorter.

 

Re-reading The Poems of the Pearl Manuscript. Middle English is so beautiful....

 

Currently reading Oh, Dear Silvia. It's kind of tedious, not because it's badly written, but because most of the characters annoy the ever living fuck out of me. The title character is in a coma, and the chapters are all different POVs from the people visiting her in the intensive care unit (well, and her nurse.) Also got 999: Twenty-nine Original Tales of Horror and Suspense as a Kindle Daily Deal, but I've read the intro on that one so far.

 

My life revolves around this child. When she's out it'll be Dr. Seuss or some crap like that.

 

@GeneticShift got me a Nook for Christmas, and now I'm finally reading The Hunger Games.

 

I am just off to the bath with the new Marvel comics.

 

Yesterday I finished To The Hermitage by Malcolm Bradbury. Since I'm not a fan of philosophy, and know little of Russian history, much of TTH probably went over my head.

Adventures in Postmortemism

 

On a Brandon Sanderson binge.
The Way Of The Kings

 

I've never been a fan of James Bond movies. Hell for me would be having to sit through all the Bond films, especially for all of eternity. A friend told me I needed to read some Ian Feming Bond novels because Bond in the novels is vey human compared to the unbelievably (to me) cool super spy Bond in the movies.

I read Casino Royale, the first Bond novel. Yes, Bond is very human (he gets captured and is tortured by having his male genitalia beaten nearly to a pulp), but I'm in no hurry to read any other Bond novels. At least CR was a quick & easy read.

 

Finished The Hunger Games. Onward to Catching Fire.

I've also added two cycling-centric tales—A Dog in a Hat and Slaying the Badger—to the Nook, as well as several other titles to a growing eBook wish list.

Yay for reading again!

 

I'm 17 pages into Iron Sunrise by Charles Stross (I've read read his Singularity Sky). Some of the opening explanation is downright intimidating, an understanding of astrophysics would be useful (pure fiction? actually possible? a mix of both?).