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On 4/19/2018 at 6:37 AM, joesixpack said:

EThe ringworld series

 

the red/green/blue mars series

 

evolution

 

 

 

Never a big fan of Ringworld, or Kim Stanley Robinson's books.

 

Except for The Years of Rice and Salt.  That book was brilliant, and one of the few where KSR's Buddhism fetish actually works with the story.

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On 4/18/2018 at 6:47 PM, ShadyBillsFan said:

If you don’t mind sharing books with your wife / girl friend.  

 

The Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon 

currently 8 books the 9th is in the works.   

A woman time travels 200 years back in Scotland to the time of the Scottish uprising and then progresses to America and the Revolutionary War.  

 

It is also a series on Starz cable channel 

Outlander, a great series on tv......the read is tough if you dont do gaelic lol

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I used to read much more than I do now. There were some classic books that I heard about and read that I came away very disappointing wirh. I don't want to sound like a Debbie Downer here, but a few of these books are  Zen and the art of motorcycle Maintenance, The Slaughterhouse 5, and A Brave New World.

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"The Night Market"

 

by Jonathan Moore

 

0544671899.jpg

 

If you like genre-bending types of crime novels, then I highly recommend this whole series of trilogy books: "A Poison Artist", "The Dark Room", and "The Night Market", all set in San Francisco and loosely connected. Each book is a little different from the others in terms of what it leans toward (horror, classic hard-boiled, and sci-fi), but all are still crime/procedurals, very tightly written with well developed characters and a great sense of atmosphere.

Just now, RaoulDuke79 said:

I used to read much more than I do now. There were some classic books that I heard about and read that I came away very disappointing wirh. I don't want to sound like a Debbie Downer here, but a few of these books are  Zen and the art of motorcycle Maintenance, The Slaughterhouse 5, and A Brave New World.

 

Brother, with your name and avatar:  please tell us what books did not disappoint!

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9 minutes ago, {::'KayCeeS::} said:

"The Night Market"

 

by Jonathan Moore

 

0544671899.jpg

 

If you like genre-bending types of crime novels, then I highly recommend this whole series of trilogy books: "A Poison Artist", "The Dark Room", and "The Night Market", all set in San Francisco and loosely connected. Each book is a little different from the others in terms of what it leans toward (horror, classic hard-boiled, and sci-fi), but all are still crime/procedurals, very tightly written with well developed characters and a great sense of atmosphere.

 

Brother, with your name and avatar:  please tell us what books did not disappoint!

Scroll back a few posts and to page 1.

Edited by RaoulDuke79
Page 1 is now page 2
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1 hour ago, {::'KayCeeS::} said:

 

Speaking of Dan Simmons, anyone watching "The Terror" on AMC?

 

 Dune is required reading for anybody, much like Moby Dick, or any classic novel you can name.

 

 

 

Fall of Hyperion is almost as good as Hyperion. The third book goes off the rails. I didn’t get the point. 

 

I read The Terror. Great writin* and atmosphere but I think it lacks substance. I think the TV show is well done but it seems to run out of steam when you realize there it isn’t much more than a creature killing everyone. 

 

I havent read any any other Simmons mostly because I feel I’ll be disappointed. 

 

Same with Dune. I was surprised how much I liked it but never took the leap to read the next book. 

 

The Fifth Season series’s is good. First two are great, with an OK third act. 

 

Same for the Passage. First two are excellent but third ran out of steam. 

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10 minutes ago, Max Fischer said:

 

Fall of Hyperion is almost as good as Hyperion. The third book goes off the rails. I didn’t get the point. 

 

I read The Terror. Great writin* and atmosphere but I think it lacks substance. I think the TV show is well done but it seems to run out of steam when you realize there it isn’t much more than a creature killing everyone. 

 

I havent read any any other Simmons mostly because I feel I’ll be disappointed. 

 

Same with Dune. I was surprised how much I liked it but never took the leap to read the next book. 

 

The Fifth Season series’s is good. First two are great, with an OK third act. 

 

Same for the Passage. First two are excellent but third ran out of steam. 

 

Yah, I haven't read the third Passage book yet... again, i fear that it won't live up to my expectations... and I think that's what you're saying?

 

Dan Simmons perplexes me.  On one hand, he's a great writer.  On the other hand, I think he's written a lot of mediocre stuff.  I've tried to read some of his other books, but the only one I've ever finished is "Hyperion".  So there's that.  And I've only watched the first episode of "The Terror", so...

 

Well, Dune.... I think you should give the Frank Herbert Sequels another shot.  They're all interesting, but his son's books that continue the series are CRAP.  Don't read those.

 

I read NK Jemison's first trilogy, "The Inheritance Trilogy", and I respect her chops, but I didn't really like it that much.  I try to differentiate: she's got the skills, just not my thing.

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Just now, RaoulDuke79 said:

One  of the first serious books I can remember is Where the Red Fern Grows. 

 

Talk about a brutal book.  I have four dogs, and just thinking about it makes me see red.

 

What was my first serious book?  I don't know for sure: what I do remember is my freshman high school English teacher, Mr. Bazzett.  He was awesome, and i thank him for initiating me into the literary spectrum.  All of a sudden, I could have an OPINION!  That's a kind of transformative moment in a young teenager's life....

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2 hours ago, DC Tom said:

 

Never a big fan of Ringworld, or Kim Stanley Robinson's books.

 

Except for The Years of Rice and Salt.  That book was brilliant, and one of the few where KSR's Buddhism fetish actually works with the story.

 

Have you read Baxter’s evolution? I’d be interested in your take.

39 minutes ago, {::'KayCeeS::} said:

 

Talk about a brutal book.  I have four dogs, and just thinking about it makes me see red.

 

What was my first serious book?  I don't know for sure: what I do remember is my freshman high school English teacher, Mr. Bazzett.  He was awesome, and i thank him for initiating me into the literary spectrum.  All of a sudden, I could have an OPINION!  That's a kind of transformative moment in a young teenager's life....

 

My mother was an English teacher. She taught me to read before I got to kindergarten, and introduced me to orwell at age 12. I read 1984 twice in the summer before 7th grade. It’s the greatest gift she gave to me, if I’m honest.

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7 hours ago, {::'KayCeeS::} said:

LOVE Hyperion.  Haven't read any of the other ones, I was kind of scared they wouldn't be as good (stupid, i know).

 

Speaking of Dan Simmons, anyone watching "The Terror" on AMC?

 

 

 

I'm currently reading The Terror. ;)

 

Have the show saved on DVR for after I finish. It's a looonnng book, but very good.

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11 hours ago, RFL said:

Outlander, a great series on tv......the read is tough if you dont do gaelic lol

Fortunately for me my wife was a born Scotswoman!!!!!

 

it took a while to be able to understand her parents so I learned a lot.  

 

So, now what I don’t get she translates. 

:)

10 hours ago, RaoulDuke79 said:

One  of the first serious books I can remember is Where the Red Fern Grows. 

There is one book I remember from high school.   Watership Down.  

Watership Down is the compelling tale of a group of wild rabbits struggling to hold onto their place in the world—

 

 

A better life.  Very political in nature.  

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12 minutes ago, ShadyBillsFan said:

Fortunately for me my wife was a born Scotswoman!!!!!

 

it took a while to be able to understand her parents so I learned a lot.  

 

So, now what I don’t get she translates. 

:)

There is one book I remember from high school.   Watership Down.  

Watership Down is the compelling tale of a group of wild rabbits struggling to hold onto their place in the world—

 

 

A better life.  Very political in nature.  

She has your back then, good thing.  I remember years ago a good friend, a true scottie, introduced me to his parents after I dropped him off after work. We sat and my friend offers tea anyone?.......he then gets up and says, “I’ll be mum”, and proceeds to pour the tea for us. ‘Mum’ stuck with him for awhile on the job......

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3 minutes ago, RFL said:

She has your back then, good thing.  I remember years ago a good friend, a true scottie, introduced me to his parents after I dropped him off after work. We sat and my friend offers tea anyone?.......he then gets up and says, “I’ll be mum”, and proceeds to pour the tea for us. ‘Mum’ stuck with him for awhile on the job......

Tea is usually the term for dinner.  

 

You have ro apecify a “cup” of tea 

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12 hours ago, LeGOATski said:

I'm currently reading The Terror;)

 

Have the show saved on DVR for after I finish. It's a looonnng book, but very good.

 

Cool, let us know what you think at the end !  Like I said, I have mixed feelings about Dan Simmons, but when he's on, he's on!

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"Under the Skin"

 

by Michel Faber

 

under-the-skin-cover.jpg

 

First the obvious: it's nothing like the movie. almost literally nothing. But that's great, because i loved the movie and i loved the book: if one was like the other, I don't think I would have been so keen on either. The movie: more Kubrick/Lynch, the book: straight up Animal Farm Orwell. The book is almost exactly how I imagine great satire to be: less smug humor, and more direct gut-punch. But the beauty of this book is that it's so exquisitely crafted in style and structure and prose: the gut punches aren't gratuitous and obvious; they are expertly woven into the story and development of the situation, characters, and world. Little remarks, words, phrases that seem throw-away in that sentence become things of import later on, and everything proceeds in this fashion until the inevitable but not generically predictable end.

So: Brilliance, imo. A classic that people will still be reading many moons from now.

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