Steve's Bookshelf 2013

[bookmonkey]

East of Eden sounds good.  It's one I've always wanted to read.

[Karsa Orlong]

Go for it!

[~Andrea~]

Cathy was my favourite character in East of Eden - not because I liked her but because as you say, she pulls you into the story and was really interesting.

[Karsa Orlong]

Yes, that was it exactly, Andrea.  I really wasn't expecting to find a character like her in that book, I don't know why.

 

I'm debating whether or not to watch the movie.  I've managed to miss it all this time, now I'm wondering if it will tarnish the experience of the novel

[muggle not]

The Plan 2

 

 

 

 

Books I might buy:

 

Dead Beat by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files Book 7)

Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan (Kovacs Book 1)

Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey (Expanse Series Book 1)

Monarchies of God by Paul Kearney

Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis (Milkweed Tryptich Book 3) - started 30/04/13

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Shogun by James Clavell

 

 

The 'one no-one saw coming'

 

East of Eden by John Steinbeck - finished 29/04/13

 

 

 

I will strongly endorse Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry and Shogun by James Clavell.

 

The TV production of Lonesome Dove is also great viewing with outstanding acting (Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, Diane Lane and Angelica Houston).

 

James Clavell was one of my favorite authors and I really miss his writing (have read all his books, if my memory is correct).

 

My absolute favorite author is John Steinbeck. I have read all of his books and many twice.

Edited May 1, 2013 by muggle not

[Karsa Orlong]

I'll definitely get to Lonesome Dove and Shogun sooner or later.  I was thinking I might get one or t'other to keep me going when I'm making train journeys up and down the country later this month

[Karsa Orlong]

Book #25:  Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis

 

 

From Amazon:

 

The history of the Twentieth Century has been shaped by a secret conflict between technology and magic. When a twisted Nazi scientist devised a way to imbue ordinary humans with supernatural abilities - to walk through walls, throw fire and see the future - his work became the prized possession of the Third Reich. Only Britain's warlocks, and the dark magics they yield, have successfully countered the threat posed by these superhuman armies.
 

Now British Intelligence officer Raybould Marsh must make a last-ditch effort to change the course of history - if his nation, and those he loves, are to survive.

 

 

Thoughts:

 

I just had to edit the hell out of that blurb to get rid of all the spoilers   Oh well, it will always be the case with the final book in a trilogy, and it's tough to know what to say about it for the same reason.  One thing, though:  it's actually a pleasure to read a sequence of books and reach the end and know that it is the end, that there's no more waiting required.

 

I thought this final instalment actually took a while to get going.  The pacing of the first half of the novel is very deliberate, concentrating - as per the previous book - very much on the characters.  Tregillis has also chosen to write parts of the book in the first person.  It's an interesting stylistic choice and - for very spoilery reasons - I can't explain why but, although I found the switches between first and third person quite jarring at first, there is a very good reason for it, and it made a lot of sense once I got to grips with it.

 

I absolutely loved the second book, The Coldest War.  The fact is, I guess, that this one was always going to struggle to live up to the standards set by its predecessor.  It's got that tricky job to do of balancing character, action, plot and at the same time tie up all of the loose ends.  Overall, I think it does a good job.  I turned the final page, read the final line, and felt quite satisfied with the conclusion.  But there were a couple of aspects of this final book that I felt could have been better.  For a couple of reasons it perhaps lacks the dynamics of the previous books, which were told from the viewpoints of both English and German characters. This one is told purely from the English standpoint, and robs it of some of the shades of grey that worked so well in the first two novels.  Also, Tregillis - an American - is writing about English characters, but he allows far too many American-isms to slip through the net on this occasion.  Wallets are referred to (repeatedly) as billfolds, pavements as sidewalks, and policemen on the beat frequently end sentences with "what?" like they're toffs out for a stroll ("Nice night for a walk, what?" etc).  Also, no Englishman in his right mind in the 1940s would've used the word 'snuck'.  I refuse to believe that.  It's a real shame, because each successive time one of these words sneaked (sneaked!!!) through the net I found it kicked me out of the experience, kicking and screaming "Why?  Why?  Why?".  Although there were a handful of moments like this in the previous books, it is rampant in this one.  I'm not sure if this is down to lazy editing, in a rush to get the book published.  I would happily have waited a while longer for it and had it sorted out.  Maybe Tregillis thinks there's no problem, but that really would be lazy, especially given the amount of research he has obviously done into England during the war.

 

On the plus side, the action, when it comes, is written with a real flair for the dramatic.  The characters stay true to themselves throughout, and there are some encounters, some scenes, where I couldn't tear myself away - the kind of scenes that the end of the previous book demanded to be written.

 

The 'Milkweed Tryptich' has been a fun ride.  It's easy to read, not overly demanding, but it treats its outlandish subject matter - and its audience - with respect.  It's the sort of story that could've lurched into cartoon-ish exaggeration but has, instead, delivered a character-driven adventure, full of twists and clever foreshadowing.  I'll be curious to re-read it at some point with the knowledge of what happens later on, just to see how Tregillis laid all the groundwork earlier on.  The title of the first book Bitter Seeds seems to have taken on a whole new level of meaning now that I've completed the trilogy.

 

I'm looking forward to seeing what Tregillis does next.

 

 

8/10

[Karsa Orlong]

Right, enough of all this Earth-bound stuff I've been reading recently.  I've been putting this next one off for far too long.  Time for some space opera!

 

 

The Plan 2

From the TBR list:

Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie - finished 17/04/13

Stonemouth by Iain Banks - finished 09/04/13

The Desert Spear by Peter V. Brett (Demon Cycle Book 2) - dropped

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch (Gentleman Bar Steward Sequence Book 1) - finished 05/04/13

HMS Surprise by Patrick O'Brian (Aubrey/Maturin Book 3) - finished 21/04/13

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson (Stormlight Archive Book 1) - finished 22/03/13

Terminal World by Alastair Reynolds - started 23/03/13 - finished 28/03/13

The Cure of Souls by Phil Rickman (Merrily Watkins Book 4)

 

Re-reads:

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge (about 20 years since I read this)

A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (over 30 years since I read this!) - finished 30/03/13

 

Books I might buy:

Dead Beat by Jim Butcher (Dresden Files Book 7)

Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan (Kovacs Book 1)

Leviathan Wakes by James S. A. Corey (Expanse Series Book 1) - to start 04/05/13

Monarchies of God by Paul Kearney

Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis (Milkweed Tryptich Book 3) - finished 03/05/13

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Shogun by James Clavell

 

The 'one no-one saw coming'

East of Eden by John Steinbeck - finished 29/04/13

 

 

[Athena]

Bitter Seeds (the first book) is on my wishlist, glad to hear you liked the series .

 

Leviathan Wakes is also on my wishlist, I look forward to hear/read if you like it .

[Karsa Orlong]

Orbit's press release about the UK release of Stover's 'Acts of Caine':

 

https://www.orbitbooks.net/2013/05/02/presenting-matthew-stovers-acts-of-caine-novels-coming-to-the-uk/

[Timstar]

awesome, another series to start!

[Karsa Orlong]

Pre-ordered Heroes Die for £2.99 (having handily taken my paperback copy to the Cancer Research shop last year ).  The other three are £3.99 each.  I'm assuming that'll be the regular price after release day, and that they won't all go up in price come May 27th . . .

Edited May 7, 2013 by Karsa Orlong

[Timstar]

hmm let's hope so... might be worth pre-ordering just in case

[Karsa Orlong]

That's what I was thinking    The only thing that's putting me off is that I wasn't that enamoured with Heroes Die when I tried to read it last year, but I think that was as much to do with Blade of Tyshalle being so difficult to get hold of as anything else.  I couldn't see much point in reading the first book if I couldn't get the sequel, but that's obviously about to change 

[Timstar]

You convinced me... Pre-ordered it

[Karsa Orlong]

I haven't even convinced myself yet

[Karsa Orlong]

Book #26:  Leviathan Wakes (Expanse Series Book 1) by James S. A. Corey

 

 

From www.the-expanse.com:

 

Welcome to the future. Humanity has colonized the solar system – Mars, the Moon, the Asteroid Belt and beyond – but the stars are still out of our reach.

 

When Jim Holden and his crew stumble upon a derelict ship, The Scopuli, they find themselves in possession of a secret they never wanted. A secret that someone is willing to kill for – and kill on a scale unfathomable to Jim and his crew. War is brewing in the system unless he can find out who left the ship and why.

 

Holden must thread the needle between the Earth government, the Outer Planet revolutionaries, and secretive corporations – and the odds are against him. But out in the Belt, the rules are different, and one small ship can change the fate of the universe.

 

Thoughts:

 

Until I finished this book I didn't realise that James S.A. Corey is actually the pen name of fantasy author Daniel Abraham and Ty Frank, who is - apparently - George R. R. Martin's assistant (which kind of calls into question yet another Martin quote on the cover ).  Daniel Abraham is an author whose fantasy series 'The Long Price' and 'The Dagger and the Coin' have been on my radar for a long time, but I just haven't taken the leap and bought any of his books yet.  At least, not knowingly.

 

Leviathan Wakes starts with the mystery of a spaceship called The Scopuli.  It has been hijacked and its crew taken prisoner.  Juliette Mao fought back and, as a result, has been locked in a storage cupboard for days, whilst the hijackers do she knows not what.

 

Jim Holden is XO on the Canterbury, a freighter hauling ice from the rings of Saturn to the asteroid belt.  When they stumble across The Scopuli his captain sends him and a small team to the ship to investigate.  They find it damaged and empty.  Whilst they are there, the Canterbury is attacked.

 

Detective Miller works for the security forces on the Ceres asteroid.  Tensions are high.  Earth and Mars hold an uneasy peace, and both look upon the Belt with contempt and suspicion. When he is given the task of finding a missing woman he is drawn inexorably into this fragile state of affairs.  The woman is the daughter of one of the leading Earth families.  Her name is Juliette Mao.

 

Leviathan Wakes is good old-fashioned, no-nonsense space opera.  It combines science fiction with elements of horror, much like Peter F.Hamilton's 'Night's Dawn' trilogy.  What suprised me about it - and one of the aspects I really liked - is that it all takes place within our own Solar System.  Mankind has gone to the planets but not to the stars. The book tells its tale from the viewpoints of Holden and Miller (I'm guessing Abraham and Frank each wrote one of the characters . . . ) and keeps the cast admirably small.  It means that there is room to develop the characters and I found the results very impressive.  The story itself, for the most part, zips along equally impressively, and the action is well-handled, although I did feel that it slowed down a little too much towards the end. 

 

Having said that, it does have an ending.  It wraps up the main story of this book very well, whilst leaving enough questions unanswered, and opening up further avenues, to make me want to read the next book, Caliban's War.  It's a cracking read in its own right, whilst also being a very good and promising start to the series.

 

 

8/10

 

 

 

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[Karsa Orlong]

Hmm, I seem to have deviated from The Plan a bit with the books I bought yesterday    And I think I want to read one of those next, so I'm going off-plan again.  Oops.

 

Still, only one book from my TBR is left on the plan, so I'll read that afterwards.  Honest, guv

[Raven]

 

Book #26:  Leviathan Wakes (Expanse Series Book 1) by James S. A. Corey

 

....

 

8/10

 

 

Interesting review.  I've picked this up a couple of times in Waterstones, but put it back because I wasn't sure how good it would be.  This has encouraged me to give it a try at some point!

[Athena]

Nice review! I might have to buy the book sometime .

[Timstar]

 

 

 

Until I finished this book I didn't realise that James S.A. Corey is actually the pen name of fantasy author Daniel Abraham and Ty Frank, who is - apparently - George R. R. Martin's assistant (which kind of calls into question yet another Martin quote on the cover ).  Daniel Abraham is an author whose fantasy series 'The Long Price' and 'The Dagger and the Coin' have been on my radar for a long time, but I just haven't taken the leap and bought any of his books yet.  At least, not knowingly.

 

(I'm gonna boast and say I knew that, then shake my head in disbelief of you know not knowing.)

 

....

 

All three of those series are on my wishlist... would love to have time for them but ... maybe one day.

[Karsa Orlong]

(I'm gonna boast and say I knew that, then shake my head in disbelief of you know not knowing.)

 

....

 

 

  I'm not convinced  

[muggle not]

_{Back to John Steinbeck.}

 

_{Since you enjoyed East of Eden you may want to try some of his other writings. Many are easy and quick books to read. I have read all of Steinbeck's books and without a doubt he is my favorite author of all-time.} 

_{I intend to re-read all his books again sometime soon as I seem to get more understanding from them in re-reads. Four of his books I have already read twice....Tortilla Flats, Cannery Row, Sweet Thursday., and the controversial The Moon is Down.} 

_{Tortilla Flats, Cannery Row, and Sweet Thursday all take place in an area of California that I have visited (Monterey - we were racing at LaGuna Seca and we stayed for an extended visit, had dinner at Cannery Row)}

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 10, 2013 by muggle not

[bobblybear]

Leviathan Wakes sounds like a good read. I've added it to my ever-expanding wishlist.

[Karsa Orlong]

Leviathan Wakes sounds like a good read. I've added it to my ever-expanding wishlist.

 

 

It is actually one I can finally take off my wishlist - it's taken me long enough

 

Re Steinbeck, I possibly will go back to his other work at some point in the future.  I enjoyed East of Eden enough to be curious