Amph What book are you reading right now?

Yeah, I'm really enjoying this book. The way that Fowles wrote Frederick/Ferdinand is both captivating and disturbing. I've not been able to finish it yet because of work, but I'm going to polish it off over the weekend.

I bought a copy of The Magus as well. I'm planning on reading that one in the near future. I saw three of Carrie Fisher's books on special offer today. I think I'll pick up The Princess Diarist and Wishful Drinking. I never knew that she and Ford had an affair. Sounds like an interesting read.

 

I really disliked The Magus.

 

Reading Kershaw's Hitler, the Germans, and the Final Solution. Functionalism vs. intentionalism.

 

THe Unseen Queen by Troy Denning

 

^Before the dark times, before the Denningverse.

(Tatooine Ghost and Star by Star weren't bad, at least compared to some more questionable Denning entries).

 

Finally finished Morning Star by Pierce Brown. It's a good trilogy, but the first book is the best, imo; in books two and three the protagonist is so much more reasonable and enlightened than everyone around him it feels a bit unreal and condescending. I don't like it when an author oversells his/her hero/heroine.

 

Nemesis Games. It's been a real pleasure seeing The Expanse continue to develop as a series, getting better and better in both character and plot, while always being willing to kick over the status quo. In fact, its model is sort of built around change, as it rotates through new POV characters in each book and constructs each novel as a sort of one-off adventure that happens to advance a big, vaguely overarching plotline by continually shifting the status quo. Here, we get yet another interesting shift, as the formula is jarred by not introducing any new POV characters, but instead giving POV slots to the rest of the crew of the Rocinante, the central cast of characters who've been tagging along with series protagonist Holden for four books, and splitting them all up. The mechanism for this is a bit clunky, as everybody happens to get drawn away by issues from their own pasts while the ship is getting overhauled, but it's pretty rewarding for longtime readers to finally dive into these supporting characters, see inside their heads, and really build the story around all of them. It's also nice that several past POV characters pop back up as supporting characters; one of the weaknesses of the series is that it's resisted building a central cast outside the crew of the Rocinante, leaving many interesting POV characters unrevisited, but now it pays off nicely and really helps the investment in the series to get some of these people back. The plotline is probably the biggest shift to the setting of all, and of course it ends up catching up all of the characters in it. Holden is still Holden, but it's amazing how much more compelling he's become with time and development and growing self-awareness, and it's always fun having him working with Fred Johnson. Naomi gets a really well-written, wrenching plotline built around her relationship with the villain of the piece, a narcissistic, emotionally abusive, manipulative sociopath who happens to be the father of her son. Alex's section is mostly functional, but it's full of tense action and it has Bobbie Draper in it. And Amos's visit to Earth is the least significant, in its contribution to the overall plot, but it's got some good atmosphere and the writing for Amos is fantastic, showing off just what a compelling character he is. What's happening to Amos really has no impact on the building tension of all the other plotlines, but you still can't wait to read his chapters just because Amos is so magnetic a character once you're finally allowed inside his head. I think I liked Cibola Burn better, but this is a great entry in the series and it puts on display just how good and involving it's gotten.

 

A Man Called Ove

About a cranky old man.

 

Seventh Son (2014)
I'd heard bad things about this fantasy movie, but it was okay; it doesn't live up to the promise of its cast or its budget, but it is solid entertainment if you want something escapist and undemanding.

 

Yeah, I felt the third book dragged a bit

 

Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, multiple authors. Still need to finish it, but thus far may fav is definitely Nnedi Okorafor's The Baptist story.

 

Just started 'Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell.' I also started a new job recently, and I'm very busy. I fear I won't be able to read as much as I'd like. And this book is really long.

 

Blood of Elves, by Andrej Sapkowski. Books that the Witcher games were based upon.

 

I really enjoyed The Last Wish, it was so unique.

 

Yeah, I tried to read that book a few years ago. I give her kudos for coming with really, really detail fake footnotes, but it does make reading Strange and Norrell a bit of a slog since you often have to cover the same ground twice.

 

Valiant Dust by Richard Baker. Scifi military, space cruisers with a Victorian dreadnought feel. The author was a naval officer, so he makes the characters and action believable. The plot was kind of predictable. I'll probably check out more of his work. It doesn't compare to early Honor Harrington books, but I definitely liked it better than the later ones.

 

Disregard the massive continuity error with the games that chapter one drops on you, incidentally.

 

Which, I have to admit I can't recall one

 

Triss gets namedropped as being listed among the dead at Sodden Hill. When I first read it I got really confused about the chronology of the opening scene until I realized Sapkowski was clumsily trying to retcon an earlier mention of that detail when I finally got around to reading Sword of Destiny.

 

Triss, or Yen? Triss is at kaer mordan in chapter 3 or so, training ciri...

 

Triss, that's why I was so confused that first time. Obviously the whole Geralt and Yen thing is explicitly brought up in the games.

 

I've only played 3

 

I think it gets brought up in 3, although it's not the focus the way it is in The Witcher 2: Assassin of the Novels. Anyway hurry up and keep reading so you will feel the deep shame of making many choices you didn't know were poor at the time.

 

Er, do you maybe smell something burning?