What are you reading at the moment?

[ok-mrs-bee]

Tell us about the book which you're enjoying.  Why is it so enjoyable?  We all like different things so your impression of a book is helpful. 

I added many of the books, which were recommended on the previous thread, to my reading list, based on the poster's comments.

I've been having a crime-fest.  The most recent are ...

Scent of a Killer by Kevin Lewis - I don't really like Brit-cop books - too depressing - and this was no exception.  (What is it with British cops?)  However, apart from some mistakes which should never have got past a decent editor, it was very readable with a good, if meandery, storyline.

The HIdden Man by David Ellis - This author has been likened to John Grisham crossed with Harlen Coben.  Being a fan of both, I poo-pooed this idea.  That was, until I read the book.  How wrong I was!  It is a gripping, fast read and deserves the comparison.

[rose2008-2008]

Im now readin a book called The Guardians by Andrew Piper. Its not a true story that im aware of but its set in Ontario, Canada, ( ha ha my older brother lives there) and is about a Haunted House. Its very very creepy and im so into it already!!.

I do like a good SPOOKY STORY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.

[queenelsa83]

I'm now reading The Illustrated Mum by Jacqueline Wilson 🙂

[vamo48]

Just started "The Resistance Man" by Martin Walker, the latest of his "Bruno, chef de police" series, set in rural France.

[queenelsa83]

Disney's Frozen: Book Of The Film 🙂 😄 ❤️

[margaret*e]

Just finished 12 Years A Slave.

[queenelsa83]

Back to The Illustrated Mum by Jacqueline Wilson again for me 🙂

[pinkie_05]

Just finished Strange Air by Tom Brown billed as a bone chilling Victorian fairytail, not bone chilling at all, based in the 18th century & the present, involving tube trains, the Crystal Palace and skeletons.  It wasn't a bad wee read, not taxing & will pass an hour or two.

Now on to book four in the Inspector McLean series - The Hangman's Song' by James Oswald. 

[ok-mrs-bee]

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@queenelsa83 wrote:
Disney's Frozen: Book Of The Film 🙂 😄 ❤️

---

Is the film as good as the reviews declare?  I ummed and ahhed about buying the DVD.

I have just finished reading Neuromancer by William Gibson.  Having got to the end I think I now understand what was going on and how the plot worked so I've had to start reading it again

Written in 1984, it's a stunning example of Science Fiction predicting the future.  In this case, VR (virtual reality) and AI (artificial intelligence) - I bought my first home computer in 1984, a BBC B, this bloke was seeing where it all could go!  But it is very convoluted.  II think it's a case of the author knowing what he was on about but being inexperienced (30 years ago) he didn't put it over very well.

For Science Fiction fans who haven't already read this I would highly recommend it but be prepared to read it twice.

[rose2008-2008]

Im reading The Ghost Hunters by Neil Spring,,,quite different and a bit creepy.

[pinkie_05]

Now working my way through the Roman Arena series by Simon Scarrow following a Roman noble who ends up as a gladiator, not very confortable reading at times but are quick short reads.

[vamo48]

Not heard of James Oswald or the Inspector McLean series, Pinkie, what are they like?  I am reading "Dying Fall" by Elly Griffiths, one of a series about a forensic archaeologist, am enjoying it.

[5129frederick]

Road to Wigan Pier, by George Orwell.  Old book but VERY USEFUL for getting accurate cost of items in the late 20's early 30's.  Using it as a reference as to what was the working wage Vital for a novel I am writing that stretches from Tyneside to London.

[ok-mrs-bee]

I've just read the first two prequels of the newly released Kuong Huo series by David Wingrove.  I thoroughly enjoyed them but I'm not sure what to expect next..  He wrote the first series about 20 years ago;  now Corvis want to release them all again - rewritten,  I thoroughly enjoyed the two new prequels. I'm now wondering whether to buy the next books in the new series.  I want hardbacks but they only appear to br paperbacvk .

Did anyone read these books when they were originally published?  I'm not sure whether to go for the originals or wait until the new, embellished series reaches the presses.

I have just fininshed reading Daphne Sheldrick's book - An African Love Story - Love, Life and Elephants.  It is as good as the reviews said it was.  I read very few non=fiction books but I loved this one.

[*golddust*]

Just finished "Mudbound" by Hillary Jordan   Each chapter was told by one of the main characters , very enjoyable 🙂 Infact have bought another of hers to read !!

[ryalto-books]

michael mackintyre autobiography,  not bad.

[rose2008-2008]

I have just finished Meet Me Under The Clock by Annie Murray,, it was so good i was crying in some bits,, its so true and such a good story of wartime dramas in families. Of Love and Loss and what it does. Ohh My!!!!. One of the best books i have read!!.

[ok-mrs-bee]

I'm charging my way through Charlaine Harris's, Sookie Stackhouse, books.  They are a delightfully light rendering of a society which is imbued with vampires, shape-shifters, witches and the occasional fairy.

I recently read Anne Cleeves's Shetland quartet and then watched the 'Shetland' TV programmes which I had recorded.  What a mess BBC made of these books and their stories!  I can't believe how bad the TV storylines were.  If you were as disappointed as I with the TV travesty read the books - there's no resemblance, the books are gripping.

[jonnoian66]

Linwood Barclay - A Tap on the window. Great read so far.

[ok-mrs-bee]

I bought a book bundle of authors unknown to me - 10 books for £9.99 - who could resist?   I also bought bundles of Harlan Coben and Andrea Camiierl (Inspector Montalbano) books at the same price.  I've probably mentioned me enjoyment of Harlan Coben's books before.

Of the unknown books (the bundle did include The Kite Runner which I'd already read) ... my opinion so far ...

Empress Orchid by Anchee Min is a superb account of the young life of the last Empress of China in the 1800s.  If you have watched the film The Last Emperor she was the very old towering presence in the early scenes.

Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson is absolutely delightful.  It delivers come-uppances in all directions.  It is warm, intensely characterful and colourful.  I haven't enjoyed a book so much in ages.

A Vision of Loveliness by Louise Levene was not my sort of book at all.  It is evocative of the sixties in London but not the scene with which I was familiar.  Altogether too sleazy.

Back to Andrea Camilleri and Inspector Montelbano.  Although there are notes about Sicilian phrases and dishes at the back of the book I still find them rather difficult to follow.

[malacandran]

The thread title:  "What are you reading at the moment", seems slightly puzzling.

Because it implies that reading a book, is something to be done, over a long period of time.

Like, you might need several days to read a book.  I've never had that experience.  If a book interests me, I read it straight through!

This doesn't usually take more than five or six hours at max. (With the exception of Stephen King's books.  These can take two days!)

It reminds me of a girl in the office.  A long time ago. Back in the 1970's.  She had a copy of the then-popular thriller "Jaws" in her desk-drawer. Each lunch-time, she would open her drawer.  Get the book out and read a few pages. Then put the book back in.

This baffled me. I thought, how can anyone read a book in bits?  Surely, if a book really interests you, then you have to follow it through to the conclusion.  But perhaps that's an old-fashioned idea.  And these days, books are to be "consumed" a bit at time, like crisps, or rollos.

Is that a valid comparison?