Fiction
Related: About this forumWhat are you reading the week of Sunday, December 14, 2014?
Good morning all! I saw that this week's thread hadn't been started yet, so I figured I may as well do it.
As I've mentioned in previous threads, I decided to re-read Tana French's first 4 books, which I had originally read over a spread of several years, starting in 2007. It's been a marvelous indulgence to read them one after the other in immediate sucession. While I had great memories of each books - bright details here and there, and their general broad outlines - actually diving completely into these books and getting swept away once more into her amazing prose has been even more pleasurable than I expected.
I'm now about 1/3 through the 4th book, Broken Harbor, which was the only one of the four that I hadn't remembered very well, for some reason. But, wow! Once I got going I couldn't imagine why I hadn't remembered it.
Once I've finished Broken Harbor I have no idea what I'm going to get next. Time to check up on my favorite Scandinavians and see if anyone has a new release that I haven't gotten yet.
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CurtEastPoint
(19,322 posts)TexasProgresive
(12,374 posts)If I'm understanding the backstory there are 3 powers in this world, the royalty and nobles of the 11 kingdoms, the Church and the Denyri. THe Denyri have psychic powers. Like all humans it appears that all 3 factions are capable of good and bad.
Thanks, shenmue, for the heads up.
Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)I am reading Revival by Stephen King.
Mrs. Enthusiast is reading The Color of Lightning by Paulette Jiles. This was recommended by DU's japple. I'm looking forward to reading it too.
scarletwoman
(31,893 posts)I've tried a few times, but I've never been able to get into Stephen King. That said, I looked up Revival on Fantastic Fiction and I have to admit that it does sound interesting. Maybe I'll give it a try if it shows up in my library and I don't have anything else to read.
Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)Mrs. Enthusiast and I both liked that one very much. I was kind of reluctant to introduce her to 11 22 63 because of the time travel element. But it is so well integrated into the story that it becomes an interesting asset.
Stephen King wrote some great short stories like Shawshank Redemption, The Body (movie-Stand By Me) and Misery. All three were made into successful movies that pretty much follow the books exactly. I wish all movies were executed as well. As a matter of fact, many consider Shawshank Redemption to be the greatest movie of all time!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shawshank_Redemption
japple
(10,443 posts)think they are the only good movies made of Stephen King's books. The Shining was, IMHO, the most miscast work I've ever seen, and the TV production of The Stand was a disaster.
Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)I have never seen The Stand TV production but I did read the book. Some books should never be transformed into movies.
japple
(10,443 posts)It was horrible.
TexasProgresive
(12,374 posts)It just occurred to me that the title is really appropriate-a harbor is a place of safety and security and this one is broken.
And thank you (I think it was you) for steering me to Tana French.
scarletwoman
(31,893 posts)Now that I'm reading it again I've been asking myself the same question! It may have to do with not liking the protagonist, Detective Mike Kennedy, as well as I've liked her other protagonists. After all, when he first shows up in the preceding book, Faithful Place, he really comes off as something of an asshole. For me, at least, it took a bit of a mental leap to move into his head when he shows up as the lead in Broken Harbour.
In any case, I know I won't be forgetting it after this second reading, that's for sure!
And yes, it's very aptly named - a two-word title that covers a multitude of layers of meaning.
I couldn't say if I'm responsible for being the first one to bring up Tana French in this group, or if it might have been someone else. I know I'm not the only Tana French fan here - but I'm only too glad to bring more folks into the fold.
shenmue
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scarletwoman
(31,893 posts)Like, in the 60s and 70s.
I guess I burned out on it or something, because once I moved away from that genre I've never felt like going back to it. Even so, I can still remember and appreciate the wonderful pleasures of immersing oneself in those fantasy worlds. Have fun!
WCIL
(343 posts)All the Light We Cannot See by Doerr. I loved it. Today I started I Am Pilgrim but Terry Hayes, and it looks promising.
scarletwoman
(31,893 posts)It sounds like an intriguing novel.
I'm not familiar with the second book, I hope you will come back and post your thoughts about it once you've read it.
Enthusiast
(50,983 posts)Sounds like an interesting story.
japple
(10,443 posts)started Alice Hoffman's latest book, The Museum of Extraordinary Things. It is beautifully written.
Paladin
(29,451 posts)I think this is the best Virgil mystery yet, with the state detective/musky fisherman/womanizer dealing with all manner of bad stuff in small-town Minnesota: a thieving and murder-prone school board, creeps kidnapping dogs for medical research, meth cookers, etc. Highly recommended, particularly to those of you who are Minnesota residents.
scarletwoman
(31,893 posts)My friend the librarian always immediately puts me on the list whenever a new John Sandford book is coming out, so I got my hands on it almost as soon as it was delivered to the library a couple months ago.
Yeah, it may be my favorite Virgil Flowers so far, too. That scene when all those dog rescue women descended on the auction had me whooping out loud.
And that venal school board - talk about the "banality of evil". Really a great read!
Paladin
(29,451 posts)I got through the book in about a day and a half, which is a pretty good clip for me. There's always an immediate waiting list for Virgil books at our local library; there's a solid cult following in place. Glad you enjoyed it as I did.