What Are We Currently Reading?

[peacheslatour]

49 minutes ago, dubbel zout said:

Finished The Eighth Detective last night, and I did not see that ending. I get the meta aspect of it, but I don't at all like the denouement itself. It ruined the book for me, alas. What a disappointment.

Now I'm reading The Enigma Code, by Elizabeth Wein. I've enjoyed her other WWII stories, so I have some hopes for this one.

Yeah, after reading the comments here and on Amazon I think instead of The Eighth Detective, I'll read Mexican Gothic.

[MargeGunderson]

@dubbel zout, on the basis of your description, I read Mexican Gothic this week. It did not disappoint! I really loved it. 
 

@peacheslatour, read it! 

Edited November 13, 2021 by MargeGunderson

[peacheslatour]

10 minutes ago, MargeGunderson said:

@dubbel zout, on the basis of your description, I read Mexican Gothic this week. It did not disappoint! I really loved it. 
 

@peacheslatour, read it! 

I can't wait!

[Spartan Girl]

Now I’m reading Will Smith’s memoir. And while I do feel like he and Jada overshare details of their marriage, he still has some good stories about Fresh Prince, Bad Boys, among other shows. And his childhood…oy. That famous scene in FP where he breaks down about his dad may have been pure acting, but from what I’ve read there might have been some real anger still, just not for the reasons we assumed.

[Danny Franks]

I'm reading New Spring, the prequel novella to the Wheel of Time. I've read it before, many years ago,  but don't know it nearly as well as I know the rest of the series, so I figured it was time to re-familiarise myself with it before the TV adaptation starts next Friday.

It's always amused me how much Robert Jordan - a crusty old Vietnam vet turned fantasy author - loved to describe women's dresses, hairstyles and mannerisms. Often it seemed like he'd rather write a laundry or packing scene than a battle scene, and this prequel really let him indulge himself.

[Anduin]

5 minutes ago, Danny Franks said:

It's always amused me how much Robert Jordan - a crusty old Vietnam vet turned fantasy author - loved to describe women's dresses, hairstyles and mannerisms. Often it seemed like he'd rather write a laundry or packing scene than a battle scene, and this prequel really let him indulge himself.

While I'm not a military veteran, I'm an amateur writer, and have discovered that character scenes are a lot easier and more enjoyable to write than battle scenes. If I could avoid action entirely, I might just.

[meowmommy]

I just finished The Very Nice Box.  I liked it and I didn't.  Ava came out of her shell awfully fast for someone who had been so firmly soldered in.  The sendup of IKEA and touchy-feely yet micromanagerial corporate structures was pretty heavy-handed.  I didn't like that

Spoiler

the writers made the company completely lackadaisical in their vetting of Mat.  HR departments nowadays don't take your word that you have a degree.  You have to provide proof.

Also, all I cared about by the end was

Spoiler

that Ava went back for Emily, and of course, she did.

 

[SmithW6079]

11 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

It's always amused me how much Robert Jordan - a crusty old Vietnam vet turned fantasy author - loved to describe women's dresses, hairstyles and mannerisms. Often it seemed like he'd rather write a laundry or packing scene than a battle scene, and this prequel really let him indulge himself.

And it may be that having experienced the horrors of combat and war first-hand, he was reluctant to revisit them.

[Danny Franks]

8 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

And it may be that having experienced the horrors of combat and war first-hand, he was reluctant to revisit them.

Quite possibly. He didn't spend that much time writing battle scenes, but when he did he made sure the horror and confusion of them is clear. I know that the main characters' pathological (and sometimes misguided) aversion to seeing women hurt or killed stems from Jordan's time as a helicopter gunner in Vietnam.

He spoke in interviews of an occasion where he shot a figure holding a weapon, then moved onto another target before realising that the person he'd shot was a woman - The first and only time he'd knowingly killed a woman, and it stayed with him for the rest of his life.

 

 

Edited November 14, 2021 by Danny Franks

[Constant Viewer]

I just finished Leave Only Footprints by Conor Knighton, it is about a man who tried to see the National Parks in one year. It was a nice read, and I will probably pick it up again.

I am also reading Brideshead Revisited for the first time. I did not like the prologue, but it picked up after that.

[Tom Holmberg]

I'm rereading the "Flashman" series by George MacDonald Fraser..  Very politically incorrect, but very funny. 

[sugarbaker design]

10 hours ago, Constant Viewer said:

I just finished Leave Only Footprints by Conor Knighton, it is about a man who tried to see the National Parks in one year. It was a nice read, and I will probably pick it up again.

Viewers of CBS Sunday Morning, like myself, would know about CK's visits to Nat'l Parks, He would report, nearly every week, from a different Nat'l Park.  It must've been a good read.

I'm always a little late to the party, I tend to read pop fiction a couple of years after everybody else.  I just read Dodging and Burning by first time author John Coperhaven.  I found it to be a coming of age story, a murder mystery, a southern drama, a period piece (most of it is set in the 1940's).  It's told in alternating narratives, along with a short story.  It's complex and convoluted, just the way I like it.  I finished it Friday and I was still thinking about it on the train to work this morning.

[peacheslatour]

1 hour ago, sugarbaker design said:

Viewers of CBS Sunday Morning, like myself, would know about CK's visits to Nat'l Parks, He would report, nearly every week, from a different Nat'l Park.  It must've been a good read.

I'm always a little late to the party, I tend to read pop fiction a couple of years after everybody else.  I just read Dodging and Burning by first time author John Coperhaven.  I found it to be a coming of age story, a murder mystery, a southern drama, a period piece (most of it is set in the 1940's).  It's told in alternating narratives, along with a short story.  It's complex and convoluted, just the way I like it.  I finished it Friday and I was still thinking about it on the train to work this morning.

I just ordered it from Amazon.

[Luckylyn]

I am reading Truth of the Devine by Lindsay Ellis.  This is the sequel to her book Axiom’s End.   The first book took a while before pushing the story forward.  This second book is faster paced.  

She did a great video discussing things she wished she knew before publishing her first novel.   The part that surprised me was how the publisher left her to her own devices on the first book and so for book 2 she independently got editing help. So far I think I am enjoying book 2 a lot.   The situation is tense and the characters are compelling.  I like that the aliens are so different from humanity and that there’s effort needed for humanity and the aliens to comprehend each other not only through language but culture.

 

[Black Knight]

For Halloween, I read Stephen Graham Jones's The Only Good Indians. I found it quite creepy. Summary is that years ago, four Indian men did something, and they find it catching up with them. It's a psychological thriller, but also some genuine horror, I'd say.

I also recently read Mary Roach's latest, Fuzz. If you're not familiar with her, she's a humorous popular science writer, and this book is focused on human conflict with wildlife and plant life. It is an entertaining read.

[blackwing]

On 11/8/2021 at 2:09 PM, meowmommy said:

I am working my way through Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series.  Currently on #5, The Brutal Telling.  I really liked the earlier books, but the more I get into this series, the more I feel like I'm in Cabot Cove, Maine.  Is this little hamlet with its irritatingly twee central characters (I mean, come on, enough with the old bitchy poet and her duck!) the only place in Quebec where the head of homicide for the entire province is solving murders?  There are, I believe 17 books in this series.  Someone tell me it gets better.

 

On 11/8/2021 at 2:53 PM, sugarbaker design said:

If you're referring to the core characters as twee, and if you're sick of Ruth and Rosa, then perhaps this isn't the series for you.

I love the Inspector Gamache series.  There are parts then can get a bit repetitive (somewhere in the middle of the series, Penny becomes fixated on corruption in the police force and it's a recurring theme) but after so many books in the series, I feel like the characters are old friends and sometimes I think I would love to live in a place like Three Pines.  A sleepy little country village where everybody knows everybody and doors are always unlocked.  But hopefully without the murders!

But I agree with the comment that if you don't like Ruth and Rosa, then you may find the series annoying, because Ruth is in almost every single book, as cranky as ever, and Rosa her cussing duck is always with her.

Some years ago they adapted the first book as a TV movie.  With Nathaniel Parker as Gamache and Anthony Lemke as Jean-Guy.  I wish they had done more TV adaptations.

On 11/11/2021 at 5:58 PM, truthaboutluv said:

I recently just completed The Lying Game by Ruth Ware. It's the third book of hers (this one, In A Dark, Dark Wood and The Woman in Cabin 10) I've now read and I have to admit that I officially don't get the hype.

I think my favorite of the three was The Woman In Cabin 10, only because while there was no big surprise in the mystery, I liked how action packed it was. The story never stopped moving and if anything, it felt like the reader barely had time to catch their breath. 

Not the case with The Lying Game. Lordy that shit dragged. And the so-called twist was the lamest, most obvious shit ever. Meanwhile the main character went from dull asf in the first half to a complete full of shit raging bitch whose partner needed to dump her ass and save his kid from her. Just a hot mess.

The first book of hers I read was "The Woman in Cabin 10", and I hated it to the point where I almost considered quitting.  I hated the main character so much, it was just poor choice after poor choice.  I wanted her to die.  I hated this book so much that I didn't read anything by Ruth Ware again until "One by One", which I loved.

[blackwing]

Quote

 

At thirty-three, Andrea Tang is living the dream:  she has a successful career as a lawyer, a posh condo, and a clutch of fun-loving friends who are always in the know about Singapore's hottest clubs.  All she has to do is make law partner, and her life will be perfect.  And if she's about to become the lone unmarried member of her generation in the Tang clan - a disappointment her meddlesome Chinese-Malaysian family won't let her foreget - well she doesn't need a man to complete her.

Yet when an encounter with charming, wealthy entrepreneur Eric Deng offers her the glimpse of an exciting, limitless future, Andrea decides to give Mr. Right-for-her-family a chance.  too bad Suresh Aditparan, her office rival and the last man her family would approve of, keeps throwing a wrench into her plans.  Now Andrea can't help but wonder: in the endless tug-of-war between pleasing others and pleasing herself, is there room for everyone to win?

 

Does this summary from the book's back cover sound familiar?  Sounds kind of like "Crazy Rich Asians", right?  Well, it's actually called The Last Tang Standing and it's written by someone named Lauren Ho.  But it sounds like a complete rip-off, even down to the Singapore setting and the Chinese-Malaysian family (Michelle Yeoh is Malaysian of Chinese ethnicity, and Henry Golding's mom is indigenous Malaysian).  The back cover even bills this book as "Crazy Rich Asians meets Bridget Jones Diary".

Has anyone read this?  My wife picked it up from the library and is curious if it is any good or if it is just an imitation trying to cash in on CRA.  Even the cover art makes this book look like it is in the CRA series.  Similar bold bright colours and drawing of the head of the protagonist.

Book sounds utterly predictable... it seems obvious that she is going to choose Suresh, the guy she butts heads with at the office but apparently grows to love, instead of the rich guy her family wants her to end up with.  Because one thing seems certain in these kinds of books... a plucky heroine will never listen to her family; she is strong and independent and forges her own path!  Sorry Michelle Yeoh stand-in, nobody puts Andrea in a corner! 🙄

Edited November 16, 2021 by blackwing

[isalicat]

I am 100 pages or so into "The Trespasser" the last of the Dublin Murder mysteries by Tana French and once again reminded how much her writing speaks to me. Extraordinary insight into people. The previous book in the series was all from the viewpoint of Steve, the new guy who joins the Murder squad almost by default; this one is from the senior detective that takes him on board as her partner, and her experience as the only woman in a very misogynistic environment - definitely the unstoppable force meets the unmovable object. Its brilliant and I am finding myself rationing it so as not to get to the end of this series.

[Black Knight]

On 11/16/2021 at 3:12 PM, blackwing said:

Because one thing seems certain in these kinds of books... a plucky heroine will never listen to her family; she is strong and independent and forges her own path!

Heh. This made me think of Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy, which I highly recommend. It is looooooooong but worth it.

22 hours ago, isalicat said:

The previous book in the series was all from the viewpoint of Steve, the new guy who joins the Murder squad almost by default; this one is from the senior detective that takes him on board as her partner, and her experience as the only woman in a very misogynistic environment - definitely the unstoppable force meets the unmovable object. Its brilliant and I am finding myself rationing it so as not to get to the end of this series.

I'm really sad it does seem to be the end of the series. But I'm glad you read the previous book after originally planning to skip it. I think it's crucial for reading Conway and Moran's interactions in this one to know how their partnership started and what kind of inner thoughts Moran has.

[EtheltoTillie]

On 11/13/2021 at 9:22 AM, JustHereForFood said:

Thanks, I'll check it out.

Putting in a good word here for the entire Maeve Binchy oeuvre. 

[Anduin]

I managed to drag my way through the Expanse book 4, Cibola Burn. Ultimately, I didn't like it. There were highlights, but Murtry was just too much of an asshole and there was too much time groundside. I desperately hope that book 5 has more space adventures where they belong: in space.

It's funny. I don't remember a central antagonist for books 1 & 2. More a collection of temporary foes for the heroes to thwart, with a bigger threat looming in the background. Book 3, they give us someone who's taking revenge on the wrong person for the wrong reason. Book 4, it's a swaggering bully given absolute power. So bad he made the previous one look good by comparison. I can't imagine who they have lined up for 5, but I desperately hope it isn't a religious fanatic.

[Haleth]

11 hours ago, Anduin said:

I managed to drag my way through the Expanse book 4, Cibola Burn. Ultimately, I didn't like it. There were highlights, but Murtry was just too much of an asshole and there was too much time groundside. I desperately hope that book 5 has more space adventures where they belong: in space.

It's funny. I don't remember a central antagonist for books 1 & 2. More a collection of temporary foes for the heroes to thwart, with a bigger threat looming in the background. Book 3, they give us someone who's taking revenge on the wrong person for the wrong reason. Book 4, it's a swaggering bully given absolute power. So bad he made the previous one look good by comparison. I can't imagine who they have lined up for 5, but I desperately hope it isn't a religious fanatic.

Book 5 is back on this side of the Ring but the bad guy is even worse. Made me give up the book series.  (But I’m really, really excited for the tv series’ return next month.)

Edited November 20, 2021 by Haleth

[Anduin]

1 hour ago, Haleth said:

Book 5 is back on this side of the Ring but the bad guy is even worse. Made me give up the book series.  (But I’m really, really excited for the tv series’ return next month.)

Is it at least mostly in space? That's the part that I really missed.

[estellasmum]

On 11/10/2021 at 10:20 AM, Snow Apple said:

I finished Hayley Mills' book and almost finished with Ron and Clint Howard's book. Both are worth reading, but of the two, I prefer the Howard book. Lots of interesting stories and even a few incidents that were bad or traumatizing for the boys. The world wasn't as politically correct or aware back in the day.

I totally agree with this. I liked Hayley Mills' book, but it ended so early in her life (somewhere in her 20's, and I was disappointed with that. I really liked the story and the back and forth narrative between Ron and Clint, which I normally don't like.

[Haleth]

10 hours ago, Anduin said:

Is it at least mostly in space? That's the part that I really missed.

Yes.  Mostly.

[Anduin]

1 hour ago, Haleth said:

Yes.  Mostly.

Good!

[Scatterbrained]

I recently read Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout.  
 

I think I read it because my library/overdrive recommended it to me, and I was bored.  I have not read any other books by this author and I do not want to.  This book is part of a series.  Perhaps if I had read the other books, I might have more information about the characters and would be less annoyed.

The story centers on the 1st person character talking about her life, especially about her relationship with her 1st husband.  
 

The thing that annoyed me most: the main character speaks to the reader throughout the book (1st person POV).  Throughout my reading, I kept wondering what my role was.  What is my relationship to the character as the receptor of this information?  WHY s the narrator telling me all this stuff?  What is the point?  
 

Ultimately, it felt like the story was the author’s way of getting from point A (whatever information was presented in previous parts of the series) to point B (whatever the author intends for the next installment of the series), as the story ends on what could be “the start of a whole new chapter “.

The other thing that annoyed me is the way the main character would state something, then rephrase it, they say “is what I’m saying” or “is what I mean.”  It made me wonder if the author had a word count requirement and was using this strategy as a way of “fudging the numbers”.

And that is my review of that.

Edited November 20, 2021 by Scatterbrained

[Mabinogia]

36 minutes ago, Scatterbrained said:

The other thing that annoyed me is the way the main character would state something, then rephrase it, they say “is what I’m saying” or “is what I mean.”  It made me wonder if the author had a word count requirement and was using this strategy as a way of “fudging the numbers”.

Probably didn't have enough "story" to fill a book because, yeah, if that is "what you mean" or "what you're saying" just say what you mean! It would be super annoying in a story where the main character is talking directly to you but isn't saying what they mean like, what's the point other than adding to the word count? 

I generally hate 1st person narration so I might be slightly biased here. lol 

[dargosmydaddy]

On 11/16/2021 at 4:59 PM, blackwing said:

Some years ago they adapted the first book as a TV movie.  With Nathaniel Parker as Gamache and Anthony Lemke as Jean-Guy.  I wish they had done more TV adaptations.

It's being adapted as a TV series, with a new cast: https://www.iheartbritishtv.com/filming-begins-on-louise-pennys-inspector-gamache-three-pines-series/

[Darian]

On 11/20/2021 at 4:20 PM, Scatterbrained said:

I recently read Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout.  
 

I think I read it because my library/overdrive recommended it to me, and I was bored.  I have not read any other books by this author and I do not want to.  This book is part of a series.  Perhaps if I had read the other books, I might have more information about the characters and would be less annoyed.

The story centers on the 1st person character talking about her life, especially about her relationship with her 1st husband.  
 

The thing that annoyed me most: the main character speaks to the reader throughout the book (1st person POV).  Throughout my reading, I kept wondering what my role was.  What is my relationship to the character as the receptor of this information?  WHY s the narrator telling me all this stuff?  What is the point?  

 

I only snipped your post for brevity. I have loved several of Elizabeth Strout's books, especially Olive Kitteridge. I bailed on Oh, William. Tried to stick with it, but it just kept feeling like a slog. I couldn't get invested. Gave it a fair chance, but it didn't feel like it was ever going to make me feel anything for anyone. 

[dubbel zout]

I've been reading a lot of contemporary fiction lately, so as a sop to my English degree, I just started The Custom of the Country, by Edith Wharton. So far, so good.

[Angeltoes]

I'm in the middle of Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark by Cassandra "Elvira" Peterson.  It's pretty good and has held my interest but has one story about Tom Jones that will have me taking his songs off my playlist.

[Starleigh]

4 hours ago, dubbel zout said:

I've been reading a lot of contemporary fiction lately, so as a sop to my English degree, I just started The Custom of the Country, by Edith Wharton. So far, so good.

I love just about every Edith Wharton, but this one is definitely one of my top picks! One of the best ending lines of any novel I've ever read, too.

[GaT]

I finished Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline. Don't. Really, just don't.

[blackwing]

I finished Ravenspur: Rise of the Tudors by Conn Iggulden.  This is the fourth and final book in his Wars of the Roses series.  It features Edward IV regaining and establishing his power, the accession of Richard III, and the rise of Henry Tudor.  I quite enjoyed it.

If you enjoyed "The White Queen" TV series from several years ago, I think this would give an additional point of view.  Whereas That Hack Phillippa Gregory viewed events from a female point of view and took great liberties in making her characters fit her intent, Iggulden narrates events from a male perspective.  The focus is from the point of view of Edward and Richard and Henry

I do wish Iggulden would have gone into more detail regarding certain events.  Some of the more notable events in English history during this time period were completely glossed over, which was done on purpose according to the author's note. 

I would have liked to have had more on George the Duke of Clarence being famously drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine.  And more about the Princes in the Tower and Richard's involvement.  Instead, both of these events were  reduced to a single sentence each after the fact.  In the author's note, Iggulden makes it clear that he has no doubt that Richard was responsible for the princes' deaths, so I'm not sure why we couldn't have had more depiction of that in the book instead of "the princes were found dead".  It's not like Richard or any distant relatives can sue him for libel and defamation.  If so, That Hack Phillippa Gregory would have been sued many times over.

I found out that Iggulden (who before I read this series, I knew best as the author of "The Dangerous Book for Boys") also has a series on Julius Caesar, one on Genghis Khan, and a new one set in Ancient Greece during the "300" period.  Going to try the Julius Caesar one at some point.

12 hours ago, GaT said:

I finished Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline. Don't. Really, just don't.

Aw, sorry to hear you didn't like it.  I liked it even more than the first one.  I loved the 1980s pop culture references and I loved that Wade went to a world of John Hughes' movies and a world featuring TAFKAP/Prince.

[Tom Holmberg]

1 minute ago, blackwing said:

I finished Ravenspur: Rise of the Tudors by Conn Iggulden.  This is the fourth and final book in his Wars of the Roses series.  It features Edward IV regaining and establishing his power, the accession of Richard III, and the rise of Henry Tudor.  I quite enjoyed it.

I'm reading the NF book The Burgundians: A Vanished Empire by Bart Van Loo, which was a best-seller in Europe.  It covers era of basically the Hundred Years War and immediately after.  The Burgundians were at the center (literally and figuratively) of everything during that era.  I found it very readable.

[Tom Holmberg]

9 minutes ago, blackwing said:

I found out that Iggulden (who before I read this series, I knew best as the author of "The Dangerous Book for Boys") also has a series on Julius Caesar, one on Genghis Khan, and a new one set in Ancient Greece during the "300" period.  Going to try the Julius Caesar one at some point.

 

If you're interested in Julius Caesar, you might want to consider The Landmark Julius Caesar version of his writings, which has good notes and other info.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I'll be starting on Nora's  The Becoming, which dropped today.  Book Two of her Dragon Heart Legacy trilogy.

After I finish my re-read of Divine Evil, of course!

[Anduin]

So, Expanse book 5. You know, the antagonist reminds me of Killmonger or Thanos. Yes, he has somewhat of a point. However, he's far far too extreme to have any sympathy for. Hell, he doesn't even deliver his own justification. Someone else puts words in his mouth.

I find myself wondering about his people. Not the inner circle, the kind of rank and file types. How many believe in his cause, versus how many listened to the wrong influence, or were even deceived into providing help. Given what they've pulled off, I'm betting there more of those kind than the true believers. Be interesting to see how they react.

It's not an easy read, but it's worthwhile.

[peacheslatour]

23 hours ago, Tom Holmberg said:

If you're interested in Julius Caesar, you might want to consider The Landmark Julius Caesar version of his writings, which has good notes and other info.

I really enjoyed The October Horse. Would you say it was historically accurate?

[Tom Holmberg]

1 hour ago, peacheslatour said:

I really enjoyed The October Horse. Would you say it was historically accurate?

I read the early books in her series, but never got this far.  I found her style odd, not unreadable, just somewhat strange. Since I tend towards NF, I some times  find authors of historical fiction interpretations of historical figures inner motivations and thoughts hard to accept.

Edited November 24, 2021 by Tom Holmberg

[Luckylyn]

I’m halfway through The Wolf by JR Ward. This is the 2nd part the prison camp series which spins off from the Black dagger Brotherhood.  The featured couple is Lucan a wolf/vampire hybrid who has been forced to participate in the drug trade and Rio is an undercover cop determined to bring down Lucan’s boss.  

There’s a Black Dagger subplot with V feeling possessive over Butch after Butch runs into an old friend.   The  Butch/V friendship is so interesting.  It’s like their married without being a couple.  The dynamic where they and their wives are all roommates is unique.  I don’t think they could handle being separated which makes me anxious something bad will happen.  

[EtheltoTillie]

On 11/22/2021 at 5:40 PM, dubbel zout said:

I've been reading a lot of contemporary fiction lately, so as a sop to my English degree, I just started The Custom of the Country, by Edith Wharton. So far, so good.

You can’t go wrong with Wharton. 

On 11/22/2021 at 5:23 PM, Darian said:

I only snipped your post for brevity. I have loved several of Elizabeth Strout's books, especially Olive Kitteridge. I bailed on Oh, William. Tried to stick with it, but it just kept feeling like a slog. I couldn't get invested. Gave it a fair chance, but it didn't feel like it was ever going to make me feel anything for anyone. 

Uh oh, I have to start this for my book club next week. I will report back. 

[Luckylyn]

I’m reading  the nonfiction book The Comedians: Drunks, Thieves, Scoundrels, and the History of American Comedy by Kliph Nesteroff.   It’s an entertaining read so far.  I have read the sections on vaudeville, early radio and am now at the nightclubs/mafia section.  It’s interesting how people think people protesting bigotry in comedy is new but people campaigned against racist depictions of people going all the way back to the early days of vaudeville.  So the conflict isn’t new at all.   The mafia section is enlightening to see how some comedians were deeply connected.   One talked about accidentally overhearing the planning of  a kidnapping and how he had to make sure to keep his head down and pretend not to hear.  Basically if the mob approached you, saying no had potentially deadly consequences.  If the mob wanted you to mc someone’s wedding you better get going.   One comedian resisted and got his face slashed so badly he couldn’t speak for years.  Disturbing, and I can’t blame the comedians who went along because I don’t think they had much choice.

[Starleigh]

I read Last Girl Ghosted by Lisa Unger. It was a good, twisty suspenseful mystery. No crazy shocking twists but a solid, good read.

[dubbel zout]

On 11/27/2021 at 7:31 PM, GussieK said:

You can’t go wrong with Wharton. 

You really can't. I also like the feeling that I'm reading a grownup book for a change.

[Tom Holmberg]

On 11/28/2021 at 10:03 AM, Luckylyn said:

  One comedian resisted and got his face slashed so badly he couldn’t speak for years.  Disturbing, and I can’t blame the comedians who went along because I don’t think they had much choice.

That's Joe E. Lewis .  "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn was the perpetrator (he later was involved in planning the St. Valentine's Day Massacre). Sinatra starred in the story of his life, "The Joker is Wild."

[peacheslatour]

10 minutes ago, Tom Holmberg said:

That's Joe E. Lewis .  "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn was the perpetrator (he later was involved in planning the St. Valentine's Day Massacre). Sinatra starred in the story of his life, "The Joker is Wild."

That movie scared the heck out of me as a kid.

[Browncoat]

I'm almost finished with Still Life by Sarah Winman.  It's a character-driven novel set in both Florence and London, between 1944 and 1979.  I've really enjoyed getting to know all the people.  I've got one more section (they aren't really chapters) to read, and I think it's going to be terribly interesting.  

[helenamonster]

Just finished: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, a sprawling WWII novel. I don't want to say "nothing happens" because that's not true, a lot happens, but it didn't feel like it added up to anything. A lot of themes recur throughout the book and link the two POV characters--a blind French girl and a 16-year-old Nazi--but I don't really know what I was supposed to get out of it except "damn this shit sucked." The prose, however, is marvelously evocative, and I never feel like I'm wasting time when something is written well.

Next up: The Overstory by Richard Powers