Steve's Bookshelf 2013

[Karsa Orlong]

Book #19:  A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

 

 

From Amazon:

 

When Dr John Watson takes rooms in Baker Street with amateur detective Sherlock Holmes, he has no idea that he is about to enter a shadowy world of criminality and violence. Accompanying Holmes to an ill-omened house in south London, Watson is startled to find a dead man whose face is contorted in a rictus of horror.  There is no mark of violence on the body yet a single word is written on the wall in blood. Dr Watson is as baffled as the police, but Holmes’s brilliant analytical skills soon uncover a trail of murder, revenge and lost love . . .

 

 

Thoughts:

 

I first read this book when I was about 14 or 15 years old.  I had become a fan of the Basil Rathbone movies (I seem to remember they showed one each Friday on BBC2 for a while) and my folks kindly bought me the Penguin Complete Sherlock Holmes, which stayed on my shelf until very recently, when I moved it on because I was given this Barnes & Noble Leatherbound edition as a gift.  As it's such a long time since I read A Study in Scarlet, I didn't recall the story in minute detail, although I remembered Holmes' and Watson's first meeting, and the fact that the story is effectively split in half, and other aspects such as the writing in blood upon the wall etc.

 

I have to say it was a joy to revisit.  One thing is very apparent right from the start:  Conan Doyle was a natural storyteller.  There is an easy flow to his words which makes reading a pleasure.  Being the first Holmes book, it is his character that is lavished with the most attention, and much of what everyone knows about him is already on display.  He is enigmatic, forthright with his opinions, moody, impatient, fiddles with his fiddle whilst lost in thought, laughs at the predictability of the actions of his Scotland Yard counterparts, and generally knows everything about someone before they've even said hello.  Apart from a brief history of his military career right at the start, Watson doesn't really have a lot to do:  Holmes is front and centre, for the first half of the book, at least.

 

That is because there is what could be considered to be a jarring change of direction around halfway through the book, jumping back in time and across continents.  I won't say anything more about that so as not to spoil it for anyone who may want to read the book.  For me, once I'd got over the switch (it probably softened the blow that I knew it was coming), I enjoyed the second part as much as the first and, again, this is down to Conan Doyle's inherent storytelling ability.

 

It's far from the best Holmes tale, but it's a hugely enjoyable beginning, well worth anyone's time.

 

 

8/10

[Karsa Orlong]

The Plan 2

 

From the TBR list:

 

Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

Stonemouth by Iain Banks

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

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch (Gentleman Bar Steward Sequence Book 1) - started 31/03/13

HMS Surprise by Patrick O'Brian (Aubrey/Maturin Book 3)

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)

Monarchies of God by Paul Kearney

Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis (Milkweed Tryptich Book 3)

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Shogun by James Clavell

 

 

The 'one no-one saw coming'

 

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

 

 

[Athena]

Nice review of A Study in Scarlet , I'll read it sometime! I generally like detectives though I don't read them that often (I don't have that many of them, either).

[Karsa Orlong]

^^  Do give it (or one of the other Holmes books) a try

 

 

Curses!  Necessary Evil (the final book in the 'Milkweed Tryptich') was supposed to be out on Kindle this week but they've put it back to 30th April to coincide with the paperback.  Boooooooo!  (On the plus side, it saves me having to buy both versions   )

[Athena]

I think I will ! I own all four books (in two volumes/books in total) and a book that contains some short stories.

[Karsa Orlong]

Actually, if you're not sure about it, a short story or two is probably a good way to dip your toe in the water   

[Karsa Orlong]

I've been having trouble sleeping recently, so I thought I'd try listening to an audiobook on those occasions to see if it would help.  I picked The Painted Man, as I've read it before, so it wouldn't matter if I fell asleep whilst listening to it, plus it would remind me what happened before I read the second book, The Desert Spear.  Sadly, all it's done is convince me that audiobooks aren't for me (something that I've kind of expected all along, but I was curious to find out).  I find the guy reading it, Peter Joyce, incredibly annoying.  Most of the time he sounds like he's reading from a textbook, and when he's putting on voices for the characters it's just laughable.  It's also too slow for me.  I've listened to three hours (out of nineteen) now, and it's only up to the start of chapter three.  Needless to say, it hasn't helped me sleep.  I'd thought maybe I'd just picked a bad one, but the reviews on Audible are very good 

[Timstar]

Yeah they are not for everyone, I have also found that other peoples reviews of the narrator are not very helpful so I always listen to a sample first and I can usually tell within the first few minutes whether I will like them or not.

[Karsa Orlong]

Yeah, I tried the sample beforehand but I didn't really get how annoying prolonged exposure to his voice would be.  Ah well, worth a try.

[Timstar]

Sometimes the opposite happens and you get used to the narrator. I haven't listened to loads but so far it is about 50/50 for ones i've enjoyed and ones I haven't,  the ones I haven't have only been down to the narrator.

[Karsa Orlong]

Book #20:  The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch

 

 

From Amazon:

 

They say that the Thorn of Camorr can beat anyone in a fight. They say he steals from the rich and gives to the poor. They say he's part man, part myth, and mostly street-corner rumor. And they are wrong on every count.

 

Only averagely tall, slender, and god-awful with a sword, the greatest weapons at Locke Lamora's disposal are his wit and cunning.  What Locke cons, wheedles and tricks into his possession is strictly for him and his band of fellow con-artists and thieves: the Gentleman Bar Stewards.  Together their domain is the city of Camorr. Built of Elderglass by a race no-one remembers, it's a city of shifting revels, filthy canals, baroque palaces and crowded cemeteries. Home to Dons, merchants, soldiers, beggars, cripples, and feral children. And to Capa Barsavi, the criminal mastermind who runs the city.

 

But there are whispers of a challenge to the Capa's power. A challenge from a man no one has ever seen, a man no blade can touch. The Grey King is coming. A man would be well advised not to be caught between Capa Barsavi and The Grey King.

 

Even such a master of the sword as the Thorn of Camorr.
 

As for Locke Lamora . . .

 

 

Thoughts:

 

I've had this book sitting on my shelf for about four years and not read it until now.  I'm not entirely sure why but, whatever the reason, it was a mistake.

 

Beginning like some foul-mouthed fantasy version of Oliver Twist, we first meet Locke Lamora as a child as he is taken by the Thiefmaker of Camorr to the Eyeless Priest of the Temple of Perelandro.  The Thiefmaker (it was hard not to picture him as Ron Moody as Fagin) wants to get rid of Locke.  The child is out of control.  He likes stealing just a little bit too much.  Needless to say, the priest - Chains - sees something in Locke that sparks his interest, otherwise there wouldn't be much of a story!

 

Once this prologue is out of the way the story then jumps forward in time and becomes what I can only describe as a fantasy version of the tv show Hustle, as a plan is hatched to set up a couple of nobles and take them for almost everything they've got.  I liked Hustle, so I thought this was great fun.  In the early stages it's easy to view Locke and his gang, the so-called 'Gentleman Bar Stewards' (damn that word filter!), as being just a little bit too smart-arsed for their own good.  Their banter is droll, the characters are confident, verging on arrogant.  Yeah, it's easy to dislike them.  But Lynch does something very clever: he ends each chapter with an 'interlude' which goes back in time to tell the continuing story of Locke as a child, and how he meets his friends and learns his trade under the tutelage of Chains.  In doing this, Lynch not only headed off any antipathy I might have had towards the characters, but he also succeeded in getting me completely on their side, and liking them all very much.

 

It seems to me that nothing Lynch does in this book is wasted.  Almost everything that happens early in the novel has a pay-off later on, many with major consequences.  And, once their plan spirals out of control and leads them into much deeper water than they were expecting, and their game becomes a far more deadly battle for their very lives, the narrative moves smoothly through the gears and successfully lands twist after twist.  Just how successfully Lynch carries this off can only be measured by the number of times I could feel my heart thumping as the jaws of various traps seemed about to slam shut, or others when my jaw dropped open in shock - and there are some truly unexpected shocks herein.

 

As for the characters, they are wonderfully written, fully rounded, and you care for all of them, from Locke himself, to Jean, Bug, and my favourites, Calo and Galdo.  Not only that, but the city of Camorr comes alive in Lynch's hands.  The only niggle I had with the whole novel was that, occasionally, some of the later 'interludes' seemed to get in the way of the pacing.  I just wanted to race on to find out what the hell had just happened, only to be given a short history lesson on Camorr and its denizens. 

 

But it's a minor quibble.  With its memorable characters, its setting and its clever, precision-made plot, The Lies of Locke Lamora is a bravura debut novel, full of heart and brains.  It's gritty and exciting, scary, sad, and often very funny.  Disguises are worn, swords are drawn, knives are sharpened, and swashes are buckled.  It's almost a shame there have to be sequels, because it's just about perfect just the way it is.

 

 

9/10

[Timstar]

Great review! Glad you liked it (though I knew you would ) I agree with everything you said. It is perfect as a stand alone book but I am glad there are more, assuming the standard is kept up of course. I loved their banter, and the interlude technique works very well to get you caring about the characters. Very clever and well-thought out plot.

 

Why not a 10?

[frankie]

Why not a 10?

 

Cause a Steve Tenner is hard to come by

 

Edit: I'm going to read the actual review later, now I can't concentrate.

Edited April 5, 2013 by frankie

[Karsa Orlong]

Why not a 10?

 

 

I was thinking of other fantasy novels I've given 10s to in the past.  I thought it was brilliant, but not quite in the same bracket as about five of the Malazan books, or The Heroes, Replay, The Lions of Al-Rassan, A Storm of Swords . . .  

[Timstar]

Yeah fair enough, think I gave it a 9 as well...

[Karsa Orlong]

Currently reading Stonemouth by Iain Banks.  Felt kind of odd sitting on the tube reading it this morning, like people would think I was only reading it because of the sad news about Iain, despite the fact that I've had it for a couple of months, and it was always in the plan, and I always intended to read it next.

 

 

 

The Plan 2

From the TBR list:

Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

Stonemouth by Iain Banks - started 06/04/13

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

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)

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)

Monarchies of God by Paul Kearney

Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis (Milkweed Tryptich Book 3)

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Shogun by James Clavell

 

The 'one no-one saw coming'

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

 

 

 

[Karsa Orlong]

Book #21:  Stonemouth by Iain Banks

 

 

From Amazon:

 

Stewart Gilmour is back in Stonemouth. After five years in exile his presence is required at the funeral of patriarch Joe Murston, and even though the last time Stu saw the Murstons he was running for his life, staying away might be even more dangerous than turning up.

 

An estuary town north of Aberdeen, Stonemouth, with it's five mile beach, can be beautiful on a sunny day. On a bleak one it can seem to offer little more than seafog, gangsters, cheap drugs and a suspension bridge irresistible to suicides. And although there's supposed to be a temporary truce between Stewart and the town's biggest crime family, it's soon clear that only Stewart is taking this promise of peace seriously. Before long Stu steps back into the minefield of his past to confront his guilt and all that it has lost him, uncovering ever darker stories. Soon his homecoming takes a more lethal turn than even he had anticipated.

 

Tough, funny, fast-paced and touching, Stonemouth cracks open adolescence, love, brotherhood and vengeance in a rite of passage novel like no other.

 

 

Thoughts:

 

This is the first of Iain's non-'M' novels that I've read, and I suspect that is why I had more time for it than many reviewers on Amazon seem to have had.  A lot of them think he is just repeating himself here, and that the story is similar to previous works.  I can't judge that, obviously, which is probably the reason why I quite liked it.

 

Only 'quite', though.  It's a very simple, predictable story, populated by somewhat stereotypical characters.  Five years ago, Stewart was set to marry Ellie, daughter of one of the two drug 'lords' who effectively run the town of Stonemouth.  But something happened that made him an enemy of her family and sent him on the run to escape them.  Since then he's lived and worked in London, but now, upon the death of Ellie's grandfather - with whom Stewart was great friends - he is returning to Stonemouth to attend the funeral, and the inevitable meeting with the family.

 

What exactly happened five years ago is gradually revealed over the course of the book (ultimately, it's not much of a surprise).  It is narrated in the present tense and delves back into the murky past, telling of Stewart's childhood in Stonemouth, his first meeting with Ellie, etc etc.  So it's nothing particularly spectacular, but it's decent, and Banks's writing skill is engaging and amusing, and occasionally builds up a bit of tension.

 

The swearing in the novel is off the scale.  Be prepared for the 'f' and 'c' words to appear regularly.  This didn't bother me but I can imagine it being a problem for some.

 

 

7/10

[Karsa Orlong]

The Plan 2

 

From the TBR list:

Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie - started 10/04/13

Stonemouth by Iain Banks - finished 09/04/13

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

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)

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)

Monarchies of God by Paul Kearney

Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis (Milkweed Tryptich Book 3)

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Shogun by James Clavell

 

The 'one no-one saw coming'

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

 

 

 

[Karsa Orlong]

Book #22:  Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

 

 

 

Edited September 4, 2017 by Karsa Orlong

[Timstar]

Glad you liked it! I've no doubt you'll like Red Country as well. Do you recommend reading them in order then? The only one i've read is Red Country and was planning on The Heroes next but would it better to read the First Law then BSC and The Heroes?

 

Abercrombie and Martin are my most anticipated authors at the moment!

[Karsa Orlong]

Glad you liked it! I've no doubt you'll like Red Country as well. Do you recommend reading them in order then? The only one i've read is Red Country and was planning on The Heroes next but would it better to read the First Law then BSC and The Heroes?

 

 

In terms of the stories I don't think it matters.  It's only a case of a few of the characters cropping up in different situations, and I think he does a pretty good job of filling in any vital information.  It's a while since I read 'First Law' and I don't really remember it in much detail, but that hasn't affected my enjoyment of the subsequent books 

[Karsa Orlong]

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)

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) - started 18/04/13

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)

Monarchies of God by Paul Kearney

Necessary Evil by Ian Tregillis (Milkweed Tryptich Book 3)

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

Shogun by James Clavell

 

The 'one no-one saw coming'

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

 

[vodkafan]

Hi Steve I am planning on coming down to  London Friday 3rd May....are you available for a meet up ?

[Karsa Orlong]

Should be!                               

[Karsa Orlong]

Book # 23:  HMS Surprise by Patrick O'Brian

 

 

From Amazon:

 

H.M.S. Surprise follows the variable fortunes of Captain Jack Aubrey’s career in Nelson’s navy as he attempts to hold his ground against admirals, colleagues and the enemy, accepting a mission to convey a British ambassador to the East Indies. The voyage takes him and his friend Stephen Maturin to the strange sights and smells of the Indian sub-continent, and through the archipelago of spice islands where the French have a near-overwhelming superiority.

 

 

This is the third book in O'Brian's 'Aubrey/Maturin' series.  I think, for me, what sets this apart from a lot of the other historical novels I've read to date is how immersive it is.  O'Brian's writing has started to draw me into another time so completely it's almost difficult to adjust once I surface at the other end.  The urge to jump straight into the next book is hard to resist.  The setting and characters and, particularly, the dialogue, seem to me to be so authentic and vivid it's almost impossible to find fault with them.  The nautical terms still get a little confusing for me at times.  Sometimes I'll think the ships are headed one way when they're headed another, sometimes I'll think the enemy is in one place when they're in completely the opposite, which is down to my lack of understanding of the terms used.  I have, though, started using my old 'placeholder' routine with anything I don't understand, and I'm now going with the flow rather than stopping every other sentence and re-reading, trying to work it out as I did with the first book. 

 

This particular story carries on soon after Post Captain, with Aubrey still in debt and his impending marriage to Sophie on hold as a result.  Maturin, meanwhile, is still preoccupied with Diane Villiers, who is quite obviously no good for him.  She has travelled to India with another man and, when the chance of a ship and a diplomatic journey to the East Indies is offered, Maturin grabs at it with both hands and gains Aubrey his own ship in the process.  That ship is the HMS Surprise of the title, unsurprisingly.

 

What I found with this novel was that it delves into somewhat darker areas than the previous two, examining each character's obsessions and having them do so as well.  The portion of the novel set in Bombay I found quite affecting, especially Maturin's friendship with Dil.  Surrounding this is the journey, which is where Aubrey comes into his own - still a genius on the water but totally out of his depth on land.  The action sequences are genuinely thrilling (despite my confusion in places!) and there's one part during a storm which is pretty scary.  The central friendship between Aubrey and Maturin seems so natural it's a joy to read.  The pacing of the novel is pretty much spot on.  I enjoyed it a lot. 

 

 

9/10