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Post by Solana on May 26, 2021 17:11:11 GMT -5
Nah, you just have friends with high standards. After re-reading a few entries in 'The Finishing School' series, I now also want a Depraved Lens of Crispy Magnification.
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Post by Ambrienne on Jun 20, 2021 20:47:31 GMT -5
The last time I posted on this thread, my Dad was still alive. Er... There's no way I'm going to remember every single book since then. I'll try anyway. I'm sure if I miss a couple, they weren't important, right? Yeah. Sure... Carrie Summers' Stonehaven League series: I think I've mentioned some of the series before. And the seven book series is definitely a better than average entry in the LitRPG genre. The major characters are interesting, etc. I still felt, somehow, that it could be more than it was. A. C. Spahn's Endurance series: On the cover image, it says Protect. Serve. Try not to screw up. Yes, that's... definitely the case. I will not say that it's my favorite sci-fi series of all time or anything, but it was pretty good, especially for the price I got it at. Maisie Dean's Booker Brothers Detective Agency Mysteries: It has the right amount of humor for a really good cozy mystery series while still having an actual mystery somewhere present. It also leaves you wondering (so far anyway) which of the three brothers the lead character will actually end up with but without making you too annoyed in the process (I'm looking at you, Janet Evanovich; there's a reason I gave up on your books however many numbers ago). Personally, I'm rooting for the geekiest of the three brothers, but hey... will the author have the guts to actually finish it that way? Luana Ehrlich's Titus Ray Thrillers, Ben Mitchell Thrillers and Mylas Gray Mysteries: The Titus Ray series is up to seven books now, and I'm not bored yet. Which, if you know me, should tell you a lot. Heh. And the Ben Mitchell books (one novella, one full length so far) are a spin-off/continuation of those? Hard to say which. I'm curious to see how Ben comes into his own. Mylas Gray is up to three books now. I'm not warming up to him as much as Titus and Ben (yet), maybe because the action isn't quite there as much. Natsu's Obsessions of an Otome gamer series: Oh, please. Please. Bring out the final book for both love interests, already. The first two books basically put the readers in love triangle hell. At least there is supposed to be a conclusion for both planned. E. M. Foner's Earthcent Ambassador/Universe/Auxiliary stuff: It's still going. And going. And still funny/lighthearted sci-fi. Not quite Terry Pratchett level but hey... who is? Timeline wise, some of the lead characters (though not dead) have aged out of the main focus and others are center stage now. There's still plenty of human/alien craziness to poke fun at, though. Julia Huni - She's continued the Space Janitor series into Tales of a Former Space Janitor. I'm in the middle of her newest one in that series (which came out not too long ago). I'm still amused, though sometimes it's difficult to take the problems seriously, even when explosions happen. I also read the Krimson Empire Complete Omnibus that was co-written with Craig Martelle. It's not quite as outright comical but still enjoyable, with best laid plans going awry at times, etc. M. B. Aznoe's Swordflower Saga is now up to book 4 (I think number 5 is planned to be the last). Technically, the series is Christian sci-fi, but it's much closer to the fantasy genre. I don't think no. 4 is as strong an entry as the first three, maybe because of the way the main characters are split up in focus at times. It probably couldn't be avoided, though. Jaxon Reed's Pirates of the Milky Way/Agents of the Planetary Republic books: I somehow can't stop reading them. Silly sound effects and all. The second series is a same universe/not quite continuation of the first, and I'm about 2/3rds of the way through it. Ah, well. I guess if other people can binge watch shows, I can binge read a series/genre like this. R. J. Ross' Cape High series: I'm no longer sure how many of these there are (even though I've read them all, due to a few of them being designated outside the main numbering system). They're getting increasingly ridiculous, but they're still funny entries into the superhero/anti-hero/villain/whatever the nonsensical division you want to make of it genre. I'm still surprised the series expanded into space before fully exploring the European stuff they brought up. At least the newest book spent time directly inside Nico's head (one of the main adults) instead of one of the teens for a change. Dorian Hart's Heroes of Spira series: Book 4, the Infinite Tower came out recently, and I finished it (within the past couple of weeks). This is more serious (though not without humor) fantasy stuff. It is definitely well written (with his background, it should be). I think this is another series where the next book to come may be the last one (can't remember for sure). All plot signs seems to point that way, though. They seem to be foreshadowing a certain character's death, but also hint that things may not turn out that way as well. I hope they don't kill this one off. His character is one of the more in depth ones and the sacrifices he's made make you want him to live. V. A. Lewis' Salvos series: It's currently at two books (both of which I've read in the past month). It's labeled as Isekai/LitRPG, but the main/title character is not the Isekai-ee so to speak. Yeah, that's me mangling words on purpose. Because I can. All I can say is that I find the series amusing so far as Salvos goes on her merry, havoc causing way like a barely guided missile at times. And the one who is from another world is... not finding their life to be all sunshine and roses, either. Fun stuff. Tom Barber's Sam Archer series - It's still going and recently came out with another one. However, it's been so long since I read the others that I'm currently in the early stages of re-reading the previous entries so I can prepare myself for the newest one. Yep, so far it's just as thrilling as I remember them. I am picking up on more clues as to what certain baddies were up to than I did before, though. Sorry that I didn't go more in depth on these, but... I have been reading. A lot. More than this even, but these are the majority of those worth mentioning. So now, I can only be concerned with keeping track of those most recent reads to mention (again).
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Post by Solana on Jul 3, 2021 8:00:55 GMT -5
Darknight was right- I LOVE the Kamala Khan 'Ms. Marvel' books. Puns? Yes. Scientific nerdery used to beat bad guys? Yes. A protagonist who's a huge nerd and writes fanfics and is a gamer? HELL yes!
But it's been more than that. Kamala is Marvel's first Muslim character to head her own comic series, and her faith does play a big role in her story. I love reading characters with very different backgrounds than my own, as it can be very eye-opening. (Kamala and Bruno competing in a science fair to get attention for scholarships to be able to attend college, for one thing. It made me realize how being able to go into STEM is such a privilege, between the very expensive textbooks and extra hours in labs compared to classes.)
The writing is excellent- Kamala FEELS like a teenager who's trying to help others, but does get in over her head and does make mistakes. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for a new comic to check out.
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Post by Rune Lai on Sept 24, 2021 13:13:03 GMT -5
Taking a brief break from gaming to finish Catalyst Gate by Megan E. O'Keefe. It's taking me a few days to work my way through, but I love the main characters, especially Bero, who's grown into a little (actually big) snit of a spaceship. It's the last book in the Protectorate trilogy, and it's been a pretty good ride if you like action-based sf with good character relationships. There are a lot of f-bombs, but they feel more like they're the way people actually talk rather than swearing to show how angry these people are, especially since the swearing is used in positive instances as well. (Like the long awaited love confession comes out "I f***ing love you.")
Tomas is my favorite character because he has so much at stake and yet he's afraid to tell anybody what's wrong, because his problems are definitely not normal. I tend to be sympathetic towards good characters that go through the trauma conga line, and Tomas has so many bad things happen to him. I'm not even sure he'll get a good ending out of it, and a part of me wouldn't mind if he doesn't since I like a good tragedy, but I think eventually it's going to work out.
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Post by Ambrienne on Sept 29, 2021 22:38:21 GMT -5
I just finished reading J. F. Lee's current 2 books in the Tales of the Swordsman series, Sword of Sorrow, Blade of Joy, and Fangs of the Tiger. They're wuxia novels.
So... Cultivation. Yeah, I really don't think that part added too much to the books in any positive sense. It wasn't horribly intrusive, but I think it took away from areas that could have been better spent adding to the character depth. The first book was decent enough in that regard, but I thought that the second one was kind of a fail in that area. Especially when it came to the amount of 'screen time' with the villains. The big baddie came off as pretty one dimensional (a lot more time was spent with his female underling's character), and the ending of the second book irritated me enough that I decided not to stick around for book three. It's a shame. I liked some of the asides in the footnotes (there was humor to be found), but it just wasn't enough to really grab me.
Ah,well. On to the ginormous backlog of unread books still left on my Kindle.
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Post by Ambrienne on Oct 21, 2021 20:08:22 GMT -5
Successfully got through Hand Off by Tom Barber (a novel spinoff/prequel type thing to the Sam Archer series). It seemed closer in style to the earlier Archer books, which is a good thing as I think some of the later ones are a bit messy (still haven't re-read my way completely through to get to the newest one yet). I'm kind of irked though that a couple of people got away with stuff that they shouldn't have. I'm not talking about the out and out villains but a couple of the side characters. I guess something could be done with them if the spinoff spawns additional books that are 'before Archer', so to speak.
I've been up to my old habit of reading five books at a time, and some of those in the rotation right now are boxed sets, so... I've actually read a lot more than just one book lately. It's been more like, um... 10 - 12 since my last post? ::coughs:: Yeah, I won't even mention the rest of them here until I actually complete the sets.
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Post by Solana on Oct 24, 2021 16:06:12 GMT -5
I finished re-reading 'Throne of Glass', which was better than I had remembered. My NOOK seems to be having trouble downloading the sequel, so I may just buy the physical form. (I bought a NOOK for travel, pictures, and buying a copy of DarkKnight's book 'Brotherhood of the Black Flag'. If anyone hasn't read it yet, I highly recommend it. Seriously.)
In the meantime, I also re-read 'Mata Hari's Last Dance', which I found to be much better than 'The Spy'. I've never danced with a snake (yet) but would definitely like to try a bellydance with one some day. I adore snakes, with their cute little tongues, jewel-like eyes, and soft scales. Unfortunately, I didn't stay a volunteer long enough at the zoo to learn snake-handling. (I stopped to help for my niece's benefit and was diagnosed with fibro not long after.)
I also renewed my vow to go see Java sometime. I love the Indonesian language, the food, the sheer beauty of the country, the culture, and the beautiful clothes and jewelry I brought back.
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Post by Solana on Jan 8, 2022 9:40:14 GMT -5
Our parents always do a large gift and cash for Christmas. My large gift was a list of books. 'Tiger Queens' was one that caught my eye in the bookstore days. It follows four women in the family/circle around Genghis Khan. I don't know much about Mongolia or the history of the empire, so this was very fascinating. The story is told through the first person view of four different women, and the style definitely varies. It's beautifully written and I had a hard time putting it down. I may have to find more titles by this author. Continuing my historical fiction kick was 'The Temple of a Thousand Faces', written by the same author as the amazing 'Beneath a Marble Sky'. Another author who clearly does their homework. This story involved the Khmer royal family being ousted from Angkor Wat in Cambodia and rebuilding an army in the jungle to take it back. For this story, it was surprisingly light on action, but with a lot of tenderness between family and loved ones. I also don't know a whole lot about Cambodia but would like to take my friend and ex-coworker Run up on his offer to stay with his family there if visiting. Rounding off a trio of books involving areas of Asia I don't know much about is (now Sir) David Attenborough's book 'Journeys To the Other Side of the World'. I loved him already as the passionate narrator of many BBC documentaries and have since learned that the man is a hell of a writer as well. This book is a collection of stories about searching for species and people in Papua New Guinea, Fiji and Micronesia, and Madagascar so far. He's wonderful with descriptions of cultures and customs without getting bogged down in too many details or judging. He also has a sense of humor about the mishaps along the way. I'll have to look for more of his books. Of course, we also have 'Planet Earth 2' to look forward to as well.
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Post by Solana on Apr 6, 2022 17:31:47 GMT -5
Taking a break from novels and diving into 'The Oceans' by Ellen Prager. I love the history of earth and descriptions of the evolution of oceanic creatures alongside our own planet's evolution. I'll be honest, the inspiration for making my characters as old as they are comes from being able to witness great changes in a world over time.
Now that I'm getting settled into my role as vet tech, I'm looking into possibly adding a marine biology minor to my bachelor's. Scheduling could be difficult, as face-to-face instruction covers the majority of the classes. If nothing else, I can always buy some of the textbooks to get started. I also wished I could have taken a geology class, but graduating a year early in biology didn't leave me a lot of open slots for optional classes.
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Post by Solana on Sept 8, 2022 8:26:39 GMT -5
I'm re-reading the first two books of 'Janitors of the Post-Apocalypse' to get ready for grabbing the recently published last one. More Jim Hines, WOOT!
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Post by Rune Lai on Sept 18, 2022 19:24:25 GMT -5
Trying to get back into reading stuff. It's not much, but I read Yes, I'm Hot in This by Huda Fahmy. It's a nice hardback comic book collecting the artist's instagram comics (with several new entries) chronicling her life as a nerdy Egyptian Muslim American and all the dumb things people end up saying to her because she wears a hijab. She has some pretty good comebacks. I'll probably pick up one of her other books involving her (in her words) Jane Austen-style courtship and wedding since I read some of it on her instagram and I'd love to see it fleshed out.
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Post by Rune Lai on Sept 22, 2022 21:14:01 GMT -5
Started Legend of the Galactic Heroes Vol 5. After catching up on season 3 of the anime (most of Vol 3) and in anticipation of season 4 (ought to be rest of Vol 3 and probably all of Vol 4) I got in the mood to keep going. Is it a bit weird to be experiencing different parts of the story at the same time? Yeah, but I don't mind. The anime is refreshing my memory of the books since I've been reading them so slowly, and in turn the books give me something to look forward too with the anime.
It's kinda of funny though. The book will give an description of a young admiral with one shoulder being higher than the other due to a battle injury, while otherwise looking like a desk warrior, but in the anime he's just this handsome guy with no sign of previous battle damage. It's interesting seeing the character designs after getting to know the characters in the book first, though anime designs are gradually replacing the original ones I had in my mind. Mostly. Remsheid is just hideous in the anime, and while he's not meant to be a sympathetic character, that haircut makes him look like a clown so he's keeping his more reserved look in my head.
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Post by Solana on Oct 16, 2022 14:02:35 GMT -5
How did I bring home a Terry Pratchett book without reading it? Started 'The Hogfather' last night. I love Susan, Death, and the Death of rats. I really love how Susan deals with the bogeyman and other monsters.
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Post by Solana on Nov 26, 2022 16:53:26 GMT -5
Woo-hoo, found a few veterinary textbooks at the old place. And some oceanography textbooks, too. That will be wonderful to start building my own reference collection for work since I don't have the associates degree.
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Post by Solana on Dec 7, 2022 16:17:26 GMT -5
I've started the oceanography textbook and it's fascinating! I wish I would have had more time for earth science courses to go with it, but it wasn't possible if I wanted to graduate early.
I'm also re-reading 'Peace Talks'. Whenever I re-read a Harry Dresden novel, I always wonder why it takes me so long to pick another up again.
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