Kevin's Watch

Linah - Titus Groan is the first book of the Gormenghast series by Mervyn Peake.


In other news, I finally read the second half of The Godless by Ben Peek, which I think I started in November. It's a decent book, although the start of another new epic fantasy trilogy, so not much of a conclusion.

I'm Murrin wrote:Linah - Titus Groan is the first book of the Gormenghast series by Mervyn Peake.

Okay - thanks.
I thought it might still be a continuation of that Gormenghast discussion from earlier.

Avatar wrote:Oh, I'm now reading Oryx & Crake by Margaret Ashwood.

--A

Close. It's by Margaret Atwood. That one's pretty good. It's more or less the middle book of a trilogy, even though it was published first. The Year of the Flood was published second, but its events happen earlier, and I think I liked it better. Haven't gotten around to reading the third book, MaddAddam, even though Amazon tells me I bought it. Maybe I'd better get on that....

I'm reading a WFC freebie: The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. It's YA contemporary fantasy, and apparently the first in a series. I'm a little over halfway through and am ambivalent. I nearly put it aside at about the 100-page mark because the author was still introducing new characters and nothing had really happened yet. I'm reserving final judgment 'til I see how she wraps things up. If it's a cliffhanger ending, I'm going to be severely annoyed...

aliantha wrote:Close. It's by Margaret Atwood. That one's pretty good. It's more or less the middle book of a trilogy, even though it was published first. The Year of the Flood was published second...

Oh... Margaret Atwood.
I cringed so many times when reading (some of) "The Handmaid's Tale."

Also, I think I vehemently told my book club that I didn't finish it...
(Pretty sure that makes me complicit in the slow decline in which all the people who didn't finish the book each month talked about how they didn't finish the book.
It eventually became difficult for some of us to even admit to reading the whole book in a given book.)

Linah Heartlistener wrote:

aliantha wrote:Close. It's by Margaret Atwood. That one's pretty good. It's more or less the middle book of a trilogy, even though it was published first. The Year of the Flood was published second...

Oh... Margaret Atwood.
I cringed so many times when reading (some of) "The Handmaid's Tale."

Really? that is a book that is so good even a shitty movie of it is still ok. [other atwood is highly debatable]

aliantha wrote:

Avatar wrote:Oh, I'm now reading Oryx & Crake by Margaret Ashwood.

--A

Close. It's by Margaret Atwood. That one's pretty good. It's more or less the middle book of a trilogy, even though it was published first. The Year of the Flood was published second, but its events happen earlier, and I think I liked it better. Haven't gotten around to reading the third book, MaddAddam, even though Amazon tells me I bought it. Maybe I'd better get on that....

Loved that trilogy.

Vraith wrote:

Linah Heartlistener wrote:

aliantha wrote:Close. It's by Margaret Atwood. That one's pretty good. It's more or less the middle book of a trilogy, even though it was published first. The Year of the Flood was published second...

Oh... Margaret Atwood.
I cringed so many times when reading (some of) "The Handmaid's Tale."

Really? that is a book that is so good even a shitty movie of it is still ok. [other atwood is highly debatable]

I don't love all of her books. But The Handmaid's Tale is a classic. I have friends my age who are adamant that it ought to be required reading for every young woman today. What made you put it down, Linah?

Wildling wrote:

Orlion wrote:

Rawedge Rim wrote: So far the Way of Kings has been an outstanding set

I liked The Way of Kings, but I imagine Wildling is listening to the audio... which I imagine would be confusing!

You imagine truth.

I'm not sure if I'm going to keep going with it or not. Tonight's drive will be the key. If it's not making any sense by the end of tonight's run, then I move on to something else.

The decision has been made. The Way Of Kings has been put aside for a while in favour of The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy series.

Linah Heartlistener wrote:

aliantha wrote:Close. It's by Margaret Atwood. That one's pretty good. It's more or less the middle book of a trilogy, even though it was published first. The Year of the Flood was published second...

Oh... Margaret Atwood.
I cringed so many times when reading (some of) "The Handmaid's Tale."

Hahaha, dunno how I typed that instead. Anyway, I'm enjoying it. More than The Handmaids Tale, although I quite liked that too. And more than I expected when I started.

I know about the other books, the person I borrowed it from has them all luckily.

--A

I intend to get around to the MaddAddam books eventually. I have one of her others, The Blind Assassin, on my pile right now.


Next book I'll be reading is probably The Girl With All the Gifts by M R Carey. Hard to work out what I want/need to read for award consideration, though I know I need to get ahold of The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison.

I enjoyed The Blind Assassin a lot more the second time I read it. Not sure why. There is a lot going on.

I think I was about 12 the first time I read The Handmaid's Tale. There's a quote I refer to fairly often: "Ordinary is what you are used to."

Well, finished it and it left me wanting more, so that's good. Unfortunately have to wait 'til Tuesday to get the other 2, so reading Blatty's The Exorcist in the meanwhile.

--A

Finished that and Gemmell's Ironhand's Daughter. Reading the sequel The Hawk Eternal now.

--A

aliantha wrote:

Vraith wrote:

Linah Heartlistener wrote:Oh... Margaret Atwood.
I cringed so many times when reading (some of) "The Handmaid's Tale."

Really? that is a book that is so good even a shitty movie of it is still ok. [other atwood is highly debatable]

I don't love all of her books. But The Handmaid's Tale is a classic. I have friends my age who are adamant that it ought to be required reading for every young woman today. What made you put it down, Linah?

I'm thinking there are many kinds of pain and many dark things in the way the world's systems are set up...
But somehow, the evil and the abuse of authority and the apparent helplessness of the women in that story.. just horrified me.
(Maybe that's exactly where I was "supposed" to be.)

I was like, "The situation these women are in is so completely unacceptable... *turns page* ...wait, what? It's even worse than I'd imagined?!"

Reading Perdido Street Station. It is so wonderfully weird and grotesque! I like it!

Gemmel's Legend.

--A

The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend.

--A

The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams

Wildling wrote:The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams

That title amuses me... yup, y yup, pretty Douglas Adams.

Linah Heartlistener wrote:

Wildling wrote:The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul by Douglas Adams

That title amuses me... yup, y yup, pretty Douglas Adams.

I am a huge fan of both the Hitchhiker's books and the Dirk Gently Books. He walks that line between absurd and "yeah, that kinda makes sense" like no other author I've ever heard of.