I had started Bill Pronzini’s latest, a stand alone novel, The Violated but I gave it up after about 45 pages or so. The change of character POV with each short chapter bothered me enough that I quit the book, despite my liking Pronzini’s nameless books a lot.
I went back to the Raoul Whitfield collection I was reading in February and read more of that until the latest science fiction novel by John Scalzi came, which I read straight through in a couple of days. I’ll try to get a review up with either this coming Wednesday or the following one. I’m not sure what I’ll get into next.
Barbara is reading Harbour Street by Anne Cleeves, which she says is good, but she’s had a lot of distractions lately so it’s slow going on the book.
So how about you?
What have you been reading?
Tip the Wink 
Read Ill Will by Dan Chaon. Not sure how much I liked it. Also read NY 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson which I liked a lot and am about 100 pages into the new John Scalzi. Also read some stories by William Browning Spenser, a underappreciated writer. Next up probably Blue Light Yokohama by Nicolas Obregon. It has been getting a lot of good reviews and I picked it up at the library.
Nice list, Steve. I finished the Scalzi. I read a long review of the Robinson on The Wertzone blog, and it sounds good.
Richard, I have just started reading HELL IS ALWAYS TODAY by my favourite author Jack Higgins. I read a Higgins every few months. I particularly like his early novels, up to THE EAGLE HAS LANDED, 1975.
I don’t think I’ve ever read a Higgins, though I’ve seen movie adaptations of some of his books.
I hope I can get to the new Scalzi book soon. And I hope you get a post up about it soon.
I just finished The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum yesterday. And today I started reading The Hunter by Richard Stark. Bourne Identity was very long and harder to get through, but I did like it. The Hunter is a much easier read (so far) and I am liking it a lot. Although very dark and violent, not my usual fare.
I’ve not read any Ludlum, which seems odd considering how popular he has been over decades.
It’s been a slow week for reading and a busy week for everything else. I read three books this week. THE SEVEN CARDINAL VIRTUES OF SCIENCE FICTION, an Asimov/Greenberg/Waugh anthology, was my FFB. The stories ranged from good to great and from well-known to not-so. I also read FAMILY HONOR, Robert B. Parker’s first book in his Sunny Randall series. Overblown as usual, but Sunny was far less annoying here than in later books. As a writer, Parker had many faults, but his books are fast reads and usually enjoyable while reading them. It’s usually after that you realize how flimsy the plot and narrative structure are. Finally, I read another Jack Reacher novel by Lee Child — RUNNING BLIND. This one was number four in the series and has Reacher going through an identity crisis; the usually likable character comes across as petulant in this one. Women are being murdered across the country but no one can figure out how and the FBI black mails Reacher into helping them solve the case. A good puzzler that comes up short on credulity.
At the top of Mount TBR this week are Neil Gaiman’s NORSE MYTHOLOGY and the Lawrence Block-edited IN SUNLIGHT AND SHADOW. Anything else is up in the air, as usual.
March is going out like a lamb here — a schizophrenic lamb, but what the hell? If an animal could describe your weather in Portland, Richard, what would it be?
It would be either a duck or a fish. We had another half inch yesterday, this is the wettest winter ever here, everything us soaked. We celebrate when the sun is out for an hour.
I know everyone loves Gaiman, but he doesn’t click with me. I saw the piece on PBS Newshour on that book, but it didn’t tickle my interest.
One day of packing up two months’ worth of stuff, and Jackie did a LOT of shopping,
Four days on the road.
Unpacking and dealing with two months’ worth of accumulated mail.
Not much reading time.
I did read one book, the very good Martin Edwards anthology of Christmas mysteries, CRIMSON SNOW. Maybe it was because he had some different authors this time, or maybe it was just the Christmas-time theme, but I liked it more than usual. Also reading Saki & Fitzgerald.
I picked up five books waiting at the library, but I have also downloaded two other library ebooks, and it is one of the latter that I’m reading first, UNIVERSAL HARVESTER by John Darnielle. I’m not sure where I read about this but something enticed me to try it. Not sure where it’s going, but so far I like it. A young man (22) in Iowa, around 2000, living with his father after his mother’s death in a car crash, is getting strange comments at the video store where he works. Seems some people returning tapes are saying there is “something else” in the middle of the movies they are watching (one was Bogdanovich’s TARGETS). I know it sounds like a cheesy horror movie, but so far it’s holding my attention.
The library books I picked up:
Rachel Caine, PAPER AND FIRE
Adrian McKinty, POLICE AT THE STATION AND THEY DON’T LOOK FRIENDLY
Ragnar Jonasson, SNOWBLIND
Jane Harper, THE DRY
Blake Crouch, DARK MATTER
With everything from the trip cleared away, and our taxes ready to be done this morning, I should have a lot more reading time coming up.
Welcome home. Nice list of library books, I look forward to hearing more about them as you read.
I finished THE DRY, which I enjoyed–particularly since I thought I had it all figured out by the middle of the book, but then the book went in a whole other direction. However (MILD SPOILER), the denouement could have been less clumsy, involving as it did an incredible coincidence and a word that has more than one meaning.
I started a (thus far) marvelous and hard to categorize book I knew nothing about, THE ENCHANTED LIFE OF ADAM HOPE by Rhonda Riley. I found it in a list of SF “first contact” books, although I really wouldn’t characterize it as Science Fiction at all. All I can say so far is that it’s beautifully written and I ever interesting story.
I ever = very
/stupid autocorrect!
Deb, I’m depending on you on two of those books, obviously.
I read THE COLLAPSING EMPIRE, Scalzi’s latest, which was fun but very much a setup for the bok to follow. Also read Michael Chabon’s MOONGLOW. I’m a Chabon fan and enjoyed this one, though not as much as several of his earlier books. Currently reading Donald E. Westlake’s FOREVER AND A DEATH and Rex Stout’s THE GOLDEN SPIDERS.
Absolutely right on the Scalzi, Bill. Kinda disappointing. I need to read a Stout or two.
I have the Chabon on my list. My favorites of those I’ve read so far are WONDER BOYS and THE YIDDISH POLICEMEN’S UNION,
Reading IRON LAKE, which I love. Phil just finished ILL WILL and he liked but not loved it, Steve. I think Megan had raised his expectations too much. Still waiting for THE DRY from my library.
Oh, good, you’re reading Krueger. Yay. I hope you go on with the series, Patti.
I read Wesltake’s very long FOREVER AND A DEATH. I have THE COLLAPSING EMPIRE by Scalzi in the On Deck Circle. I envy Bill Crider reading THE GOLDEN SPIDERS which is my favorite Nero Wolfe mystery.
You’ll get through the Scalzi in a day or so, George.
About to reread THE EIGHT STAGE OF FANDOM, a Bloch I’ve been meaning to dip back into for FFB purposes even before I was reminded of the round number year. Editing some documents for various people, but that hardly counts.
Seen this one yet, Rick? http://socialistjazz.blogspot.com/2017/03/some-jazz-and-hybrids-third-stream.html
This blog was new to me, as well (my fault) till Damien Broderick tipped me to it:
http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/reviews
Not interested in the phot thing, saw a hint of it somewhere already, so no.
Or, even, EIGHTH STAGE…
This was actually a correction to another comment which seems to have vanished…
When I re-wrote the post as a Forgotten Books one for this week, when I saved it it was as a new post here…some comments got lost. sorry.
Oh, it’s still there…it just popped up as Awaiting Moderation. (I don’t know why it didn’t before.) It has some links in it you should see, I think…also, are you interested in Scalzi talking about photography?
I’ve always liked Pronzini. Sorry to hear about this book not capturing you
I’m not a big fan of shifting points of view either, Richard. Lately I’ve been reading purely for relaxation: currently re-reading one of my all time favorites, HUNTINGTOWER by John Buchan and marveling yet again at how wonderful it is. Have also been reading some less well known Golden Agers: Miles Burton, George Bellairs and Michael Gilbert. Also Frances and Richard Lockridge (Mr. and Mrs. North books) and a Michael Innes that I somehow missed the first time around, HARE SITTING UP and lots of Patricia Wentworth. So you can see I’m in a certain frame of mind. 🙂
And a good frame of mind it is, Yvette. I’ve never much been attracted to spy themed fiction, so I’d skip the Buchan, otherwise all sounds good.