This weekend I read Stephen King’s new short story collection, Just After Sunset. There were no stories that blew my mind like some from Skeleton Crew or Night Shift, but if you’re a fan I think you’ll be happy. It’s not one of the lousy ones! I really like the realistic stories about people in tough situations (The Gingerbread Girl, A Very Tight Space, Rest Stop), but my favorite was N.
After that I got back to the non-fiction with Breaking Out: a woman’s guide to coping with acne at any age, by Lydia Preston. Very very good if this is a topic that interests you, and I don’t see why it wouldn’t apply to men as well. It has a lot of information about all the different treatments and medications, so I could look up all the stuff my dermatologist has ever prescribed and see what the hell he thought he was doing.
I’m just starting The Book of Lists: Horror by Amy Wallace. I’m about four pages in and loving it already. This is one of the books that makes me want to interrupt what other people are doing and tell them what I just read. (Gene Hackman and Michelle Pfeiffer considered for the leads in Silence of the Lambs? No friggin way!)
Just finished Vagabond by Bernard Cornwell and am starting Heretic tonight. Earlier this week re-read Watchmen by Alan Moore. I’ve also got the latest Orson Scott Card, Ender in Exile, which will get tackled right after Heretic.
Have you read a lot of Cornwell? I’ve read the Sharpe books, and I’m going to get around to the rest of his fiction one of these days. I already bought the first couple of his Saxon books.
I started A Lion Among Men by Gregory Maguire last night, the third in his Wizard of Oz related trilogy. I really enjoyed Wicked and absolutely detested Son of a Witch, so I’m interested in seeing which way Lion goes.
Just reread “Planet Joe,” Joe Cole’s journal of being a roadie for Blag Flag and others and hanging out with Rollins. He was Henry Rollins’ best friend and was shot at the age of thirty by a robber in their home. I had read it about 17 years ago, forgotten I had it, found it and plowed through it again. Somewhat entertaining and understandable day in the life of blather from a 24 year old. Many times he and Rollins are total assholes, but, at least he’s honest about it. Can’t help it, I still love me some Rollins.
While I was waiting for my Kindle battery to be delivered, I read real books again:
Suffer the LIttle Children by Donna Leon (I like this series, the stories are interesting and the Venice ambience is exotic, but suspense is pretty lacking).
Gone by Jonathan Hellerman (completely forgettable and a total waste of time. This guy no longer has anything interesting or useful to say)
Sunset Express by Robert Crais, an Elvis Cole novel (not bad but the bad guys are all stereotypes visible from a mile off; I’d like to be fooled once in a while)
Now that I am back on my Kindle, I am once again immersed in the worlds of H. Rider Haggard. I started with King Solomon’s Mines, then She, followed by a sequel of She, then one about a giant orchid (I forget the name) and now I’m just starting another one. I like the main character, Alan Quatermain. He is genuine, polite, and self-deprecating, but he absolutely knows what he is doing (and he doesn’t look anything like Stewart Granger). One of the things I like about his character is that he treats the African natives with some respect. He calls them “savages” sometimes, but never any ethnic slurs, and he saves his hatred for slave traders.
I also like the writing style. He wrote before, during and after WWI, and the style is what I think of as Edwardian. Some good descriptions of (I presume imaginary) African landscapes, as well as the occasional interlude in England.
I have several more of his books stored in my Kindle, but I will probably take a break after this one and move onto something else.
Roddy
Finally finished *Snake Agent: A Detective Inspector Chen Novel *by Liz Williams. It was tough going. I had been looking for a mystery/fantasy blend. I used to really enjoy Glen Cook’s Garrett PI novels and I thought this would be an entertaining change.
It found it rather bland and in some ways odd. One (very minor) scene had a demon beginning to rape another demon and I found the amount of time spent on describing the female demon’s breast quite odd. I enjoy sex, but I don’t want it in my fantasy novels. I don’t want to hear about the werewolves getting into it with each other, or demons or, well you get it I’m sure.
I guess I’m not diverse enough, but I had trouble with the various chinese names. The few main characters stuck out, but many of the minor characters I had trouble following from chapter to chapter.
All in all, I guess I don’t recommend it.
Since December is coming I will warn you that next month’s reviews will probably include several sappy Christmas books.
Oh well, I thought I was going to love it. It was just okay. There was an awful lot of stuff in there about movies I haven’t seen (and wow…some I wouldn’t *want *to see!) There were also some bits in there that made me want to investigate some interesting-sounding books, so if I get a good recommendation out of it, that’d be a big plus.
Just started another Jodi Piccoult “Keeping Faith,” and, like her others that I’ve read, have trouble putting it down. I plan to read everything she’s written!
Just finished Magic To the Bone. My first thought was that the writing was competent and after finishing it that didn’t change. But the plot was original and overall not a bad read.
I guess I’m a prude, but as I’ve mentioned before, I’m not interested in the sex scenes in my fantasy books.
I’ve spent this whole month on Reaper’s Gale by Steven Erikson.
The new King book arrived but I’ve only read the first story, “Willa”. I liked it, even though I went :smack: at the twist. In my younger days, I would have known from the first page.
Singularity Sky by Charles Stross - I read the sequel, Iron Sunrise, first and now I’m going back and reading the first book.
Hitler’s Empire: How the Nazis Ruled Europe by Mark Mazower - Not finding it all that good so far. The author is writing too much and saying too little.
Right now I’m reading The Year’s Best Fantasy & Horror 2008 : twenty-first annual collection, edited by Ellen Datlow. From previous experience with these collections, I know the stories will range from jewels to junk. I’m only about four stories in. The first story was one of the jewels: The Cambist and Lord Iron: A Fairy Tale of Economics, by Daniel Abraham.
I finished Devil’s Brood last night. It was great, but the wretched death of Henry II has left me depressed as hell. I wonder how Penman stands it? On her website she lists Here Be Dragons as her favorite of her own books, in part because there are still characters left alive at the end of it.
I think I’m going to try some David Sedaris now. I’ve had one of his books sitting around for a while, and I could use something funny.
