Books

Last weekend I read the first four Murderbot diaries novellas. I read another one during the week, and now I'm reading the full length novel.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells is the first one and you won't want to stop there.

Just finished up American Gods by Neil Gaiman and started the Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child. I’m most of the way through Killing Floor.

I am slowly reading through Metro 2033 in Russian, and after more than a year I am only halfway done. 😑

I think I spend too much time in a dictionary, where I am clicking through entries when I don't understand a single word (or I am just not 100% sure about it's meaning). Also I think on few occassions I have seen few words that are completely made up (mostly non-existing word forms) by Dmitriy, because even Google Search didn't show anything up :P

I’m reading “Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone”, a delightfully smart and funny locked room mystery

I have started my year-long read for this year: The Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Two chapters a week will get me through it by December.

Otherwise, I am two thirds through The Rings of Saturn which is a melancholic reflection on death, remnants and legacy over the course of a walking tour of the Suffolk coast, where I live and work. I have been aware of it for ages, and it has finally hit the top of my pile. A thoughtful and easy read, though it does seem a little over-romanticised.

And I am continuing with Peter Frankopan's The Earth Transformed. This is a history of the world taking account of changes in climate and environment: both their effects on history, and human effects on them. Informative, although the detail obscures the main points at times.

Finally, I am continuing with the Doctor Who novel The Death of Art. Some well researched worldbuilding and atmosphere and an enjoyable writing style, but an overcrowded plot that gets bogged down as a result.

The Robots of Dawn. I'm almost done with all things Asimov, and it's been a wonderful journey. Having done the entire Foundation arc first, it's really enjoyable going back and reading what really works out to be like ultra prequel material for the whole universe. Yes, Asimov is a little boomer in his execution, themes, motifs, and namely characters. White male dominant is frustrating, but the sci-fi is good, and eventually, some million words later, he modernizes somewhat.

Mother of Learning

It's a pretty cool Fantasy/Time-Loop webnovel, but it's a bit long..
I am at page 1500 of 2500 and I'm not a particularly fast reader.

Just finished "Dead Silence" by S.A. Barnes, and loved it. Very different take on a deep-space opera.

Now finally venturing into The Expanse, loved the series and want to see what happens after it stopped, but apparently the storylines between books and series don't fully align, so I start at rock bottom, including some of the short story prequels setting the stage. Currently reading "Drive", nicknamed as The Expanse 0.1 (only got 28 pages or so).

Just finished The Heir of Novron by Michael J Sullivan and am currently enjoying The Expanse.

Both were/are new to me and have both been gems!

Currently reading The Phoenix Project after postponing it for months, I finally found time during Christmas. So far i’m liking it, though you need to be connected to IT to enjoy it.

I just finished The Other Wind by Ursula K Le Guin, completing my Earthsea readthrough. I loved the series and watching how her growth as a person influenced what she did with that world.

I just started New Spring by Robert Jordan, the Wheel of Time prequel. I've only read the first book of the main series so far and am a bit apprehensive of my decision to dive into such a massive series.

Well, I just finished Infinite Powers: The Story of Calculus - The Language of the Universe, by Steven Strogatz. Really enjoyed it, interesting for an overview of calculus history and how it affects everyday life.

I think I'll start 2024 reading by a reread of Tolkien's lotr + silmarillion. I, of course, already read it but one it was +20 years ago and two I read a French translation at the time and I want to read the original thing.

Currently Reading:

• Rogue - Anthology, ed George R.R. Martin/Gardner Dozois
• Best from Tor: 15th Anniversary - various
• The Dark Half - Stephen King
• The Final Girl Support Group - Grady Hendrix

Going to DNF on The Final Girl Support Group, I'm not verse in horror movies and can not connect with all those reference in the book.

I’m working through The Last Unicorn.

Dead Beat is sooo good (“Polka will never die”). It’s often a suggested book for someone to try out the series because it was written and published right before the SciFi TV series was coming out. So Butcher did a some work to smooth out stuff that relied on knowledge from earlier books and he made it pretty seamless.

Listening to Without Remorse by Tom Clancy at the moment.

God did they murder the film.

Last night I finished Fair Warning. Today I will start reading The Dark Hours - both by Michael Connelly.

Chaos Monkeys revised edition.
It's a lot of the Silicone Valley series with a personal touch and the experiences of the author. I'm halfway trough it and I'm already thinking that will be a bit lost once I finish.

If Anyone knows of a similar topic about the same timeline story please comment and help a reader.

Recently finished

• The Left Hand of Darkness
• The Fifth Elephant

Currently reading

• The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

Still trying to read;

• Eleanor is completely fine
• Theranos

But at the moment my university just doesn’t want me to read and to take a bit of steam-off, I either game or watch shows.