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I'm re-reading Julian May's Intervention, the second volume of his backstory to the Pliocene Exile series.

Um actually Intervention is the prequel to the Galactic Milieu Trilogy, in itself the prequel trilogy to the Pliocene Exile quadrilogy, and is in no way a second volume of anything.

Whoops, I'm reading Metaconcert, the second volume in the Intervention duology. Just looked at the spine of the book.

Yeah, May's timeline was a little fucked up, with the four books of Pliocene Exile published first, then Intervention, then Jack the Bodiless, Diamond Mask, and Magnificat. Kinda like Star Wars actually, with the end bits first, then the back story. Still and all, I find them entertaining. Where else in English language sci-fi are you going to find a word like "salopard?"

Rogue Warrior: Dictator's Ransom by Richard Marcinko. This book is so bad that it's good, you could practically make it into a direct to TV Steven Seagal movie.

I'm reading Ari Marmell's Conqueror's Shadow on a library check-out. To be honest, I'll probably start just skimming it soon till the end. Why? Because none of the characters are interesting, the plot is mildly interesting but mostly meh, and the omnipresent snarking (basically sarcastic "witty" comments) is getting very irritating. Seriously, enough with the fucking snarking, Marmell - it does not equal characterization.

Before that, I finished Richard Preston's The Hot Zone (a readable and interesting book, although his prose was a little odd sometimes).

aerius wrote:Rogue Warrior: Dictator's Ransom by Richard Marcinko. This book is so bad that it's good, you could practically make it into a direct to TV Steven Seagal movie.

I picked up Task Force Blue (and also some of the SEALS and SOAR series) in an op shop in Frankfurt before flying back to Australia. Turns out that Marcinko writes exactly the kind of books that you want to read when you are stuck in several airports across the world and on shitty flights because your booked carrier decided to have a coup in their nation.

Currently I'm reading "D-Day" by Stephen Ambrose as it's in a pile of history books I picked up for CHEAPS at a bargain bookstore. Also I'm watching Band of Brothers again as I just realised that "The Pacific" starts shortly. There's a whole other feeling to these books and shows having spent time in Normandy being shown about by friends who's families live there (and lived there at the time).

And I just got from the library "The Knight" by Gene Wolfe, which was endorsed by several usually trusted sources, but having read the blurb on this book I'm suddenly very hesitant.

aerius wrote:Rogue Warrior: Dictator's Ransom by Richard Marcinko. This book is so bad that it's good, you could practically make it into a direct to TV Steven Seagal movie.

As long as it isn't as bad as the Kildar novels. Plus, there's a Rogue Warrior video game now.

weemadando wrote:I picked up Task Force Blue (and also some of the SEALS and SOAR series) in an op shop in Frankfurt before flying back to Australia. Turns out that Marcinko writes exactly the kind of books that you want to read when you are stuck in several airports across the world and on shitty flights because your booked carrier decided to have a coup in their nation.

Him and Matthew Reilly, their books are just great for when I'm stuck somewhere for a few hours and waiting around with nothing to do. I just started on The Five Greatest Warriors, it's more of the mad over the top goodness that Reilly's known for.

[R_H] wrote:As long as it isn't as bad as the Kildar novels. Plus, there's a Rogue Warrior video game now.

It's pretty close, the Kildar series is actually the Rogue Warrior novels with less plot and more gratuitous sex & action, but the last few Rogue Warrior novels have been getting increasingly absurd.

Currently about a third of the way through This Time is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly. It's funny how we never seem to learn from history, well, it's not funny but if you don't laugh a bit at the absurdity you'll want to swan dive off a building in despair.

Right now I'm reading Not Without My Sister. It's about three sisters who were born into the religious sect of Children of God in the "loving era" where they grew up having sex from the age of two or three.

Some sickening stuff to go through in the name of "God's love".

Is that the same group where the head guy outlawed red for everyone? Yes, there are some mighty sick fucks out there.

A slightly different group but all with the same money, power loving leaders. This man "grandpa Mo" was mostly based around Europe and Asia where as the sect you are thinking of are mostly based around Utah. The book "Escape" by Carolyn Jessop talks about her experience with the Utah leader and being a polygamy wife. It's a very interesting read. You would hold your breath in suspense at some parts and it's so scary to think it's all true.

I read Escape by Carolyn Jessop some time ago. It reads almost like the Handmaiden's Tale or ]Native Tongue in some spots.

I think one of my more horrific memories from that book Escape was the wife who mutilated herself unintentionally while trying to self-treat the skin cancer on her nose.

Just finished Neverwhere and was quite satisfied. A bit short, but interesting nonetheless to one who regularly travels through the New York underworld.

I started reading Culture of Corruption at the book store. Quite interesting, Malkin doesn't comment or analyse very much though, which may be a good thing. Mostly paraphrasing and quoting on her part.

Broomstick wrote:I think one of my more horrific memories from that book Escape was the wife who mutilated herself unintentionally while trying to self-treat the skin cancer on her nose.

Oh yes, so disgusting.

I also found Torey Hayden to be a good writer on her perspective of being a teacher to children with elective mutism if you'd like to check her out.

Books which show the truth are often the most disturbing. Sometimes they can be a bit too difficult to take in one sitting.

the Book of Lost Tales. Tolkien with footnotes. Much better.

Mona Lisa Overdrive, William Gibson - my last copy was stolen and I just found a nice second edition in one of my second hand book haunts.

Re-reading "Almost Everyone's Guide to Science" by John Gribben. Only the chemistry/atoms/biology parts, but it's nice when combined with actually studying the material.

I'm in the midst of reading Olympos, by Dan Simmons. It seems rather interesting, but I think that I'm suffering from having picked up the sequel before reading the first novel in the series. Unfortunately, I bought it based on the back-cover blurb and the fact that he'd been recommended to me by a friend, without noticing that it was a sequel.

Still, it seems a good read thus far (I'm only about a quarter of the way in)...

Currently also reading Revelation Space. It's very well written, one of my favorite parts was Sylvester's wedding getting crashed (because of the language, and the killer peacocks). Reynolds described broken glass falling as "shards of frozen lightening".

Rereading The Cobweb. One of Neal Stephenson's more obscure works, co-authored with his uncle, and strangely relevant despite taking place 20 years ago.

I'm reading The Maltese Falcon for the first time. Really enjoying it.

Just started reading Klimakriege (Climate Wars) by Harald Welzer.

I read Batman: Year One the other day. Man, what a fucking pile of Frank Miller pap. As soon as we got kung fu fighting whores I remembered exactly why I went into this book with zero expectations.