As far as I can remember, there are a few series set in the same universe - so maybe thats why?
Just started Erik Larson’s newest book, The Splendid and the Vile. (Larson is the author of Devil in the White City, among other terrific books.)
It’s the story of Winston Churchill’s first year as Prime Minister of Britain during World War II, and the parallels between that situation and the one we’re in today feel incredibly timely. It probably doesn’t offer that much that would be new to any hardcore Churchill fans who’ve read any of the exhaustive histories about the guy, but I’m finding the detailed story and Larson’s excellent narrative gifts to be really well-matched here, and so far I’m enjoying it a lot.
Thanks for the recommendation! Churchill by Larson sounds like two thumbs up.
Just finished Terminus, by Peter Clines.
https://www.amazon.com/Terminus/dp/B082MQXBSL/
I guess this may actually only be available in audiobook form. Didn’t realize that before I tried to grab the above link. Huh.
This is another in Clines’ “Threshold” series, which includes 14, The Fold, and Dead Moon. All those books kind of share the same mythology but feature vastly different settings and characters. This one is the first to actually feature a repeat main character… Veek, from the first book (14), but it barely qualifies as a sequel.
Like all of Clines’ stuff, this is fast-paced, clear, eminently readable, maybe a bit too predictable, but overall just a fun bag of popcorn. It doesn’t hurt that the amazing Ray Porter narrates all the audiobooks.
I have read @Miramon’s Demons of Wall Street!
If you like urban fantasy at all you should love it, as I certainly did. Reminds me a bit of the Laundry series by Charlie Stross, but slanted more toward film noir than existential horror. Bring on book 2!
I’m on the fourth book of Mark Kloos’s Frontlines series and really enjoying it. Good, solid military sci fi set in a well-drawn universe with some surprises up its sleeve. Shades of Star Ship Troopers (the book, not the movie) but without the fascism. They’re fast, fun reads perfect for current circumstances.
I also enjoyed The Demons of Wall Street. Just finished last night. It’s a fun urban fantasy novella with some digs at Wall Street. It was about 120 pages, with a reasonable price for the length of $3. That’s an interesting length: between Murderbot and this I’d like to see a resurgence of novellas. It was long enough for the world building and characters to develop some meat on their bones but short enough to be a bite-sized story and urban fantasy experience, without the filler and ponderous (and unnecessary) extra POVs that lard up so much contemporary fantasy. I’d give it 4 stars out of 5 b/c I am parsimonious with that 5th star but it was enjoyable and recommended for urban fantasy fans.
There’s a lot of novellas in ebook form these days - Tor especially is leaning hard into them. My problem is too many of them are priced like a full novel.
I have liked the other books by Larson that I have read, especially the one dealing with Germany pre-WW2. I will admit to finding parts of Devil in a White City kind of tedious, but overall I enjoyed that. This new book will have to go on my future reads list.
Demons of Wall Street was fun. Fast to read. I appreciate not having a zillion unimportant names and characters cluttering things up.
More Dresden Files coming.
WTF. It took him forever to get Peace Talks out (I know, he had a lot of life things), but since then cranked out the next one?
I recently finished re-reading the Elric books for the first time — I was a big fan in 1983-84. They were much better than I expected to find them.
Yaaaaaaay! I am a completely unabashed massive fan and Dresden has only gotten better over time. May have to reread at least the second half of the series in preparation.
Moorcock is awesome. His themes are sometimes repetitive — as with many great writers — but the language is terrific, and the sense of looming tragedy throughout is beautifully done.
I finished Ian Banks The Hydrogen Sonata. It was another great culture book and I had a hard time putting it down. Interestingly enough it gives the story of a civilization who is ready to sublime (the entire civ collectively levels up and disappears from this reality) and the pettiness of people who are continuing to grab power, and stopping a long lost secret from being known.
Like many culture novels, much resides on the ships themselves and this didn’t disappoint, although the ending seemed a bit short for the length of the book but that is pretty classic Banks in not extending the ending any more than necessary.
The tease of subliming is always present and the secret carefully guarded.
And, confirming that in the end Children of Ruin was significantly less compelling than it’s predecessor. Damn shame, I loved the first book, and the first half of the second book. After that it started to drag on too much, half the chapters could have been cut.
I love Banks, I’ve been saving Hydrogen Sonata for a time of great need…
Persepolis Rising by James S.A. Corey.
This is the 7th book in the Expanse Series. I actually thought this was one of the better written books, as most of them take 100 pages or more before ever getting into the plot or action, or even getting on with the characters. This was launched pretty quick. Spoiler…It is 20+ years since the end of the last book. That does take a bit of getting used to. And things have changed.
Started reading “Empress of Forever” by Max Gladstone. Not quite 100 pages into it. It seems like a fairly straight-up retelling of Journey to the West? With Zanj as the Monkey King and Viv as Tripitaka? Is anybody else reading it or has read it?