What book did you just read and how was it?

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#1226118 1-Feb-2015 08:43

Yes, I thought I loved David Morrell's work, and I was surprised by how poor I found Covenant of the Flame. Thinking back to First Blood and Brotherhood of the Rose, they were right up there with the Bourne books. Relentless pace and action that couldn't be put down till finished.

Recently discovered Patrick Lee who writes SF with an Area 51 flavour. That is, based on Earth, and in the present, but with other world content. So far there's a three book series sort of Stargate derivative, and the first of the new series that starts with 'Runner' that also takes place in our world, but has people with unworldly powers. Sounds kind of lame from my description, but it is actually really well written and worth checking out.

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#1258209 14-Mar-2015 02:07

I'm reading 'A Game of Thrones' the first in George Martin's epic series.

I have two more of the books to find after that and my collection will be complete.

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TLD

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#1259350 14-Mar-2015 15:33

I keep forgetting this thread, so have read a bunch of books since I read the Patrick Lee books. At the moment I'm working my way through Simon Kernick books. These revolve around various people either members of, or linked to, various police and crime fighting organizations based around London UK.

Characters overlap from book to book with the focus shifting each time. Major characters are not guaranteed to survive, which makes it all the more exciting. The plots and people sometimes get a bit dark, but the forces of evil generally get their comeuppance — although not necessarily in the same book they performed their dirty deeds in.

The fact that I have gone straight to the next in the series after finishing each one, tells me that they are a lot better than average. Do try to read them in order if they sound like they might appeal, or it might get a bit confusing. At least one major character is killed _in_between_ books, so I found myself scouring through websites looking to see if I'd missed something.

I'd give the series 4.5/5. Not up to Lee Child, but not so far behind either.

Speaking of Lee Child, I can't remember if I mentioned Diane Capri back up this thread. Diane is a buddy of Lee Child, and he has allowed her to write books that exist in the Jack Reacher universe. I was initially very excited about this because the Jack Reacher books are as good as they get, but I ran out of steam half way through book four, which remains unfinished on my Kindle. It's not that she is a bad writer, but more that the restrictions I suspect Lee Child places on her (Like Jack never quite makes it into her stories) stifle her creativity. I'll pick it up again one day, but not till I have nothing better to get stuck into.

Trevor Dennis
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#1289076 22-Apr-2015 11:13

Still reading Game of Thrones.
I'm currently into Steel and Snow.

There are so many characters, events and locations that I sometimes find myself having to stop and try to remember who this or that is.

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JayADee

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#1289917 23-Apr-2015 08:13

Fugitive Colours, Lisa Barr. Badly written, plot full of holes, stridently read as an audiobook, best avoided. About a group of young artists in Europe during WW2.

TLD

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#1290000 23-Apr-2015 10:06

Looking at the date of my last post (14th March) I seem to have got through a few titles since then.

Cold Fire by Dean Kontz — I'd forgotten how good Koontz is, and this book gets off to a cracking start, but gets bogged down around the half way point. I shall definitely be looking for some more Koontz titles though, and I have a few of his Odd Thomas series in Audiobook format waiting on my hard drive.

The Contractors by Harry Hunsicker — This was a new author for me, but it is well written, and the action never stops. It's right up there with the Bourne books as far as pace goes. It's about Contract DEA officers, which apparently the USA is using a lot of nowadays. Exactly like the private military companies like Blackwater, the USA now hires contract DEA, and even FBI agents. It all takes place in America, and the body count keeps climbing all the way to the end.

Endangered by C.J.Box — I've read a lot of his Ranger Joe Picket books. This is a the latest, and perhaps the best yet. Joe's daughter April gets seriously beat up and left in a coma, and Joe is up against a redneck psycho family of loonietunes out to protect their son who did the dirty deed, and at _any_ cost. A great book, and a great series.

The Girl at the End of the World by Richard Levesque — Another new author for me, but this just his second book. It get's rave reviews on sites like Goodreads and Amazon, but I'd only give it a 6/10. It is post apocalypse with a 15 year old girl surviving a modern plague, and coming up against other survivors who are mostly bad and out to get her. This was an audiobook, and read by the same lady who did the Hunger Games audiobooks, and I thought the project just a wee bit derivative. Young girl up against it, and she even uses a bow and arrow. Incidentally, I could only manage the first two HG books, and couldn't force myself to start the third.

Once a Spy, and Twice a Spy, by Keith Thomson — A great premise and very well written. A supposedly no account son discovers his dad is a super spy, but dad has early onset dementia, and swings between harmless and nice old guy, to lethal killing machine. Lots of humour, and a great plot with lots of twists and turns. The son comes good of course. I really hope Thomson does some more of the same.

I've also reread some Gerald Seymour, and a few of the Jack Frost novels, and have started going through the Vince Flynn books again.

Trevor Dennis
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#1407331 15-Oct-2015 16:14

I just finished the last of the Game of Thrones novels the other day. It's taken me several months of reading on and off to get to the end.

A Game of Thrones
A Clash of Kings

A Storm of Swords: Steel and Snow
A Storm of Swords: Blood and Gold
A Feast for Crows

A Dance with Dragons: Dreams and Dust
A Dance with Dragons: After the Feast

Now I just have to wait for George Martin to finish the next one.

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#1407362 15-Oct-2015 17:29

The Power of the Dog and Cartel by Don Winslow. If you watched Narcos on Netflix , then you need to read these two books on the Mexican drug Cartels. They are fiction but they are so close to non fiction it is eye opening. Very violent but so good.

Common sense is not as common as you think.

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#1408467 18-Oct-2015 00:36

Haven't read a book in ages.
Trying to attack The Stand the complete and uncut edition by Stephen King.
And Python programming for the absolute beginner.
Have a ton of books on my kindle from Burton on Burton, and Count of Monte Christo to Cathedral and the Bazarr and Clive Barker's Hellbound Heart. Strata and Dark Side of the Sun by Terry Pratchett.
I have an aversion to kindle reading but I love how many books you can fit on them.
and Stephen King books especially tend to be too big to travel with.

Of course my favourite authors are: Stephen King, Terry Pratchett, Greg Egan, B. F. Skinner, Douglas Coupland, Justina Robson, Glen Duncan, Shane Koyczan, Lorenzo Carcaterra, Conrad Williams, David Brin, Orson Scott Card, Stephen Laws, Clive Barker, F. Paul Wilson, Patrick McGrath, Sudhir Venkatesh, Harry Harrison, R. L. Stine, C. S. Lewis, Sergei Lukyanenko and Tad Williams.

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#1429253 16-Nov-2015 21:21

'Make Me' which is the 20th Jack Reacher novel. I found it to be as good as any of the other JR books.

afe66

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#1429258 16-Nov-2015 21:47

The Keeper of lost causes - Department Q book one.
Jussi Adler-Olsen.

And subsequently books 2-6.

New favourite scandinavian crime series. (better than Jo Snow)

Premise is the main character is police officer after being injured in a shooting which kills one partner and cripples another, is demoted / promoted to lead Department Q which is set up to look into old cases. Each book deals with a cases with the past, with events leading up to the crime running in parallel to modern attempts to solve the crime.

Running through the series are also themes such as learning more about his oddball crime partners, questions about what was the background to the shooting which occurs before the first book. While long books at about 500 pages, they dont drag and the cases are solved in a believable way.

Ive polished off most of the series in the last month or so. so for me 9/10.

The film version of the first book was on Rialto channel last week.

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#1431423 19-Nov-2015 22:08

Who Killed Palomino Molero?
The Discreet Hero

Both by Mario Vargas Llosa

No One Writes to the Colonel
by Gabriel García Márquez

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#1431462 20-Nov-2015 00:17

DarthKermit: 'Make Me' which is the 20th Jack Reacher novel. I found it to be as good as any of the other JR books.

After 20 they get a bit predictable but always a good read.

DarthKermit

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#1431703 20-Nov-2015 13:42

benokobi:
DarthKermit: 'Make Me' which is the 20th Jack Reacher novel. I found it to be as good as any of the other JR books.
After 20 they get a bit predictable but always a good read.

Yeah, know what you mean. Reacher very often finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time and gets caught up in some major conspiracy or other. The latest one used this plot device again.

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#1527120 6-Apr-2016 16:18

Hi.

Off to Hawaii for a fortnight fairly soon. I am keen to get some recommendations on some "riveting" books (No not a tutorial on how to insert Rivets).

Books I enjoyed:

1) First two hunger games (Esp the first)

2) Jack Reacher Novels but moreso the first 6 books

3) Early Dean Koontz

4) John Grisham

I like books which are reasonably fast paced, not too light but not too indepth (reading technical novels slays me). Murder Mystery/Thriller.

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