what are you reading?

[MattyP]

Dan Brown's "Inferno".

Not sure I'll recommend it.

Started this a week or so back too.... (as I expect most of the book reading public did!).

Still only 40 pages in.....

[PFVA]

A Street Cat Named Bob

Aww... such a cute reading... aww

[F-ZeroOne]

"Harvest of Time", the new "Doctor Who" novel by Alastair Reynolds. Yes, that Alastair Reynolds.

Its good. Really, really good.

Its set during the Pertwee era, and starts off like it - all 70s concrete bleakness, oil rigs, tartan biscuit covers and grey skies. You can almost see the colour blurring at the edges and the blue-screen projection behind the effects. The plot is a classic - Actually Quite Small Alien Crabs ATTACK! and its not long before Earth is imperilled, Time is being rewritten and the Doctor is forced to enter an unwilling alliance with... someone.

You find yourself wondering just how the BBC effects department would have handled things - you can almost see the clockwork scuttling - and then Reynolds ramps it up and you realise, of course, that they wouldn't even have tried. This does mean that Reynolds can do all sorts of big-screen stuff; UNIT for once gets to really go to war and the Brig gets to blow things up the way he always wanted (although with the Doctor, rightly, pointing out how, well, pointless thats going to be).

Its worth remarking that Reynolds is one of the UKs most successful SF writers. I'm sure money was involved at some point, but its worth pointing out that I feel he didn't write this because he needed to - I very much suspects hes writing this because he wanted to.

[Mark]

Just read The High Crusade by Poul Anderson. A really fun little read.

A spaceship from an advanced alien civilization lands in Medieval England. Having lost the art of hand-to-hand combat the aliens get slaughtered by the local Baron and his army, who then try to fly the ship to war with France, but instead get taken to the vast alien empire across the galaxy.

[Governmentyard]

Dan Brown's "Inferno".

Not sure I'll recommend it.

Started this a week or so back too.... (as I expect most of the book reading public did!).

Still only 40 pages in.....

So, been reading it for about seven minutes in total so far, then?

[(o)(o)]

Dan Brown's "Inferno".

Not sure I'll recommend it.

Started this a week or so back too.... (as I expect most of the book reading public did!).

Still only 40 pages in.....

So, been reading it for about seven minutes in total so far, then?

So errr.. you read 342 pages per hour ?? Or is the font very big.

[NorthWay]

Tad Williams "The dirty streets of heaven":
Different (original?). Fast-paced. Action/crime. Well written.

Recommended.

[Dvorak]

Peter the Whaler.
Found it in a wonderful book-store at Palma di Mallorca. Really good condition. 1853, 2nd edition. 50 quid. Not really a bargain, but it touches well, and I really love it.

“Peter,” said my father, with a stern look, though the tone of his voice had more of sorrow in it than anger, “this conduct, if you persist in it, will bring ruin on you, and grief and shame on my head and to your mother’s heart."

[NorthWay]

Jo Nesbø "Politi" (translation: Police)

For those of you following Nordic crime and the translated versions, this is the most recent book starring Harry Hole and came out in Norway just a few weeks ago. I expect translations coming out as the releases are staggered.

I liked it. Very easy flowing.
Recommended.

[VNVObit]

gave up on Triggs (biography of Roy Keane's dog - think Marley and me send up)



now most of the way through Michael Marshall's Killer Moves. Have enjoyed his previous thrillers which usually feature a sinister/secret group and Killer Moves does too. Started it Monday and nearly finished it already which is unusual for me but this has been a really enjoyable read.

Humblebundle have an EBook bundle if anyone is interested.

Cory Doctorow - Little Brother
Cherie Priest Boneshaker
Robert Charles Wilson - Spin
Lois McMaster Bujold - Shards of Honor(Vorkosigan Saga #1)

pay over average (under $10 at the moment ) and you can also get

Will Wheaton - Just A Geek
Peter Beagle - The Last Unicorn

[zip accident]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Am-Strange-Loop ... range+loop

Very, very good. It is interesting, I think I don't agree with what it's saying, but I haven't got to the end yet.

Not as light as Godel, Escher, Bach; the words aren't difficult but the concepts try their best to make your brain hurt.

[everklear]

Humblebundle have an EBook bundle if anyone is interested.

Cory Doctorow - Little Brother
Cherie Priest Boneshaker
Robert Charles Wilson - Spin
Lois McMaster Bujold - Shards of Honor(Vorkosigan Saga #1)

pay over average (under $10 at the moment ) and you can also get

Will Wheaton - Just A Geek
Peter Beagle - The Last Unicorn

Just coughed for the bundle even though I have already bought and read 3//6. It's still a bargain for 3 new ones at $10.

[Istar]

Nick Cook - The Hunt For Zero Point.

Accredited Janes' research journalist explores the history and state of antigravity propulsion.

I didn't expect to get here when I started researching Neodymium magnets and the Lenz effect a few days ago, but now that I have, I'm torn. Because either this is a magnificent work of fiction combining all my favourite 'quasi-science' areas (WWII superweapons development in Germany to contemporary UFO sightings by way of Area 51, The Philadelphia Experiment, and the Lockheed Corporations' Skunkworks projects) or... Well, if even 1% of it is even half-accurate then this rabbit-hole goes very deep indeed.

[Darkflame]

Oww...might try that.
Does it cover how spinning a massive disc somehow reduces gravity by 0.0001% or something?
---
The Hunger Games - grudgingly I admit this was quite good. Not remotely original (what on earth is the back cover on about?) but very well written and page turning.
I'll try the second, but I fear its going to be a home-alone-2 esq repeat.

[nyarla]

Read Infinite Jest a few weeks ago - utterly brilliant, wanna read it again..
Then The Crying of Lot 49 - thanks whoever it was who mentioned it in this thread.
Now just about finished the Illuminatus! trilogy, which I read once before, years ago..

Interesting combination of books.....

But man, Infinite Jest! So good.
Need something else good soon... maybe that one you mentioned Istar