Just started reading Peter F. Hamilton's newest novel, A Hole in the Sky. It's the first of a trilogy. Apparently Hamilton says it isn't YA, but YA is definitely the vibe I get 1.5 chapters in. We'll see, I've enjoyed most of his other space opera works.
Third Perpetual Book Thread
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I've enjoyed all of his books except the Void series and it's jumping in and out of fantasy. Hamilton's world building is great, and his characters are pretty interesting.
Loved the entire Pern series, and the character studies and stories would generally work well on screen, though the issue 10+ years ago would be the sky-high CGI budget given all the most interesting characters are giant telepathic flying lizards. I also would have thought the whole concept of Weyr relationships and sexuality being driven by the mating cycle of the aforementioned giant flying lizards would have also been... problematic to put on screen, but then GoT et al comes along and makes all of that fairly tame and humdrum by comparison.
I think the biggest issue is that while Pern is well-loved, it was never as genre defining and broadly read as GoT, LotR, and others. Would have always felt more like a production risk, especially with such high CGI costs at the time. Now that you can animate a bunch of lizards breathing fire at falling seeds for a lot less money maybe it will one day get off the ground.
This was actually helpful. I've been in a rut with Dresden - was one of my all time favorite series till it went on it's long hiatus when Butcher had his first divorce and resulting writing crisis. It's been hard to get back in - I still have Peace Talks and Battleground on my Kindle but haven't read them yet. Twelve Months auto-delivered last week when it released (don't even remember pre-ordering), so this review actually gets me motivated to go back a few books and start re-reading.
I can’t blame you for falling off there. The Peace Talks/Battle Ground duology had some real issues. Peace Talks, in particular, I would say is the third weakest book in the entire series behind only Storm Front and Fool Moon. But given where Butcher was as a person and author when he wrote those (literally a college kid doing this on his own without an editor, publisher, or really any actual professional help) vs when he wrote PT, relatively speaking the latter is easily his weakest work as an actually established author. PT is rough, no way around it. The surgery to split it into two books was clearly done entirely for the benefit of BG, but after he made that choice he needed to go back and restructure PT both to take advantage of the extra space he now had as well as structure it to work as its own book, and he did neither. The Dresden Files has built up a massive cast of supporting characters over its length, and quite a few so how up in PT for the first time since Changes. Given everything that’s happened since then you’d think them seeing Harry again would prompt a few conversations, but there’s nothing (in particular for Ivy and Luccio, but for plenty of others also). And the book doesn’t really have its own plot, ultimately serving just as setting the scene for Battle Ground, without even really attempting an ending.
Battle Ground comes off a lot better (PT took me a week to read; despite being considerably longer I finished BG in 3 days). It’s fast paced, there’s always something happening, and there’s a clear direction and goal to the action. The problem is apart from the opening and closing chapters the entire book is one extended action sequence, and we can only see Harry cast variations of fuego and forzare so many times before it starts to wear a bit. Butcher keeps enough variety between the various confrontations that it never becomes entirely stale, but ultimately the breaknececk pace gets fatiguing. It’s still a solid effort, easily placing in the top third of the series, and a welcome bounce back after PT, but not a standout either.
Twelve Months, on the other hand, is a great return to form. The hardest part of it is how personal it feels. It feels inappropriate to armchair analyze a guy I’ve never met, and everyone’s entitled to their privacy, but Butcher has been open that he’s had a rough go of it in his own personal life over the last decade or so (there’s a reason the book releases slowed to a crawl), and in this book at times it’s hard to tell where Harry’s own internal monologue ends and Butcher’s begins in this one. On the flip side he’s become a good enough author that even if he is working out his own issues on the page in front of the entire world, it’s pretty compelling and makes this by far the most human book in the entire series.
I ended up getting maybe halfway through Why Nothing Works - Who Killed Progress and How to Bring it Back but wasn't super into it (I don't think it was really an issue with the book, I just wasn't in the right mood and reading it got dragged out). And after reading the intro of Not That Kind of Bad Guy by John Ringo, I realized I was not in the mood for that either.
Eventually ended up rereading Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy. Was fairly enjoyable, even if I forgot how sparse he can be with characterization - I suppose it is a skill since he still develops them pretty nicely. And I'd forgotten a lot of the plot so it was enjoyable.
I think I'm going to read Fourth Wing next, though we'll see if that keeps my interest. I'll definitely be picking up the last TransDimensional Hunter series at some point, which might cut Fourth Wing short. And I should really take a look at the Mob Sorcery Urban Fantasy Series NervousEnergy posted about - maybe I'll remember next time before I pick out a book to read.
Eventually ended up rereading Rainbow Six by Tom Clancy. Was fairly enjoyable, even if I forgot how sparse he can be with characterization - I suppose it is a skill since he still develops them pretty nicely. And I'd forgotten a lot of the plot so it was enjoyable.
I think I'm going to read Fourth Wing next, though we'll see if that keeps my interest. I'll definitely be picking up the last TransDimensional Hunter series at some point, which might cut Fourth Wing short. And I should really take a look at the Mob Sorcery Urban Fantasy Series NervousEnergy posted about - maybe I'll remember next time before I pick out a book to read.
Just finished Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor. It's for my sci-fi book club; it caught me more than The Mercy of Gods did. I think I'm going to have to reskim it to see if there are hints about the ending I overlooked earlier.
Just finished Orbital, by Samantha Harvey. (Bookshop.org)
It’s a day (16 orbits) in the lives of six astronauts/cosmonauts onboard the ISS. It is at times profound, but for the most part? It’s a love letter about the earth. At times, the prose is absolutely gorgeous. But by the end of the book? It felt like an exercise in self over-indulgence by the author in reading their own words.
It’s short, and ultimately pointless.
Up next? I dunno. Something from the shelf!
It’s a day (16 orbits) in the lives of six astronauts/cosmonauts onboard the ISS. It is at times profound, but for the most part? It’s a love letter about the earth. At times, the prose is absolutely gorgeous. But by the end of the book? It felt like an exercise in self over-indulgence by the author in reading their own words.
It’s short, and ultimately pointless.
Up next? I dunno. Something from the shelf!
Finished “A Talent For War”, by Jack McDevitt.
An archeological mystery, kind of, in a sci-fi setting. World building is good, with a first person viewpoint. The latter leads to limited character development, aside from the narrator, but reasonable.
It’s the first in a series, although it does wrap up the plot. Will have a look at the next one soon.
An archeological mystery, kind of, in a sci-fi setting. World building is good, with a first person viewpoint. The latter leads to limited character development, aside from the narrator, but reasonable.
It’s the first in a series, although it does wrap up the plot. Will have a look at the next one soon.
I ended up devouring Fourth Wing, finishing it in a little under a week. Despite my concerns, I was fine with the book. It did at times seem a bit excessive on how horrible being a dragonrider is. Anyway, looks like most people have pretty much covered that.
Looking at the series, it looks like it is planned for five novels and has three out. I think I'm going to pick up the two that are out but wait for the series to finish to read them - it sounds like there are lots of cliffhangers so it feels like a series where I won't want to wait for the books to come out.
That means I'm looking for a new book. The last TransDimensional Hunter book is out (at least, it should be the last in the series and I hope it is), but I'm waiting for my dad to read it before I do. I think I am going to embrace the Romantasy genre and try War Bride by Sylvia Mercedes. Looks like it is going to be four books in total, with two already released and two coming out in February and March 2026 to complete the series. Yes, that is only one month apart - hopefully that isn't a bad sign. Elisabeth Wheatley recommended it as a forced marriage romance involving fae and badass unicorns... I don't think I've read any forced marriage tropes before so I'll see if I like it or not.
Looking at the series, it looks like it is planned for five novels and has three out. I think I'm going to pick up the two that are out but wait for the series to finish to read them - it sounds like there are lots of cliffhangers so it feels like a series where I won't want to wait for the books to come out.
That means I'm looking for a new book. The last TransDimensional Hunter book is out (at least, it should be the last in the series and I hope it is), but I'm waiting for my dad to read it before I do. I think I am going to embrace the Romantasy genre and try War Bride by Sylvia Mercedes. Looks like it is going to be four books in total, with two already released and two coming out in February and March 2026 to complete the series. Yes, that is only one month apart - hopefully that isn't a bad sign. Elisabeth Wheatley recommended it as a forced marriage romance involving fae and badass unicorns... I don't think I've read any forced marriage tropes before so I'll see if I like it or not.
So I started reading the Dinotopia by James Gurney series again. Well, “reading” is a strong word. It’s like 75% pictures and 25% text that adds story to the pictures whole following a fairly simple plot. These are really kids books after all, but they’re still a joy for me to got through. The only thing that doesn’t really hold up are the dinosaurs themselves, as paleontology has since gleened more insight into the creatures and their environment from the time these were published. I mean, the first book came out in 1992 and Brontosaurus was still in common usage.
Anyhow, the books hold up to my nostalgia, though I really wish I had my old audiobook version I had on cassette. I remember that being voice acted pretty well.
Anyhow, the books hold up to my nostalgia, though I really wish I had my old audiobook version I had on cassette. I remember that being voice acted pretty well.
“The history of libertarianism in the United States cannot be separated from the business of selling collectible coins,” Slobodian notes.
Just finished this book by Quinn Slobodian - fits nicely with his other work, "Crack-up Capitalism" in review of the Chicago School of Econ., e.g. M. Friedman, Hyack,Van Mises, Rothbard et al. Slobodian also contributes to the New York Review of Books.
This is the current administration's agenda, anti - everything, racist, gold and coin, and paleo to a huge extent. Seems there is a common denominator to "Democracy in Chains" by Nancy MacLean, in the guise of James McGill Buchanan, perennial far right gadfly and pal to Pinochet.
These people are, in my estimation, responsible for the state of the State, despite the fact they would say "Kill it" and never do so.
Slobodian is a good writer, well researched if a bit repetitive, but considering the cast of characters he works with, that's understandable.
Finished the Dinotopia series. Difficult or thought provoking reading? No. But it is an interesting exercise in world building, especially in the Afterwards in the Anniversary edition where the author explains his processes. For example, he built physical models and busts of the main characters so that he could pose them in order to get more consistent drawings. I do have one knock against it though. So they are really art books with some narrative text, right? So why, in the fourth book Journey to Chandara, would you describe a Utahraptor barber trimming beards with it’s claws that were sheathed in metal and not illustrate this obviously cool thing! There were a couple of times in the fourth book where the narrator would describe something cool and the accompanying art would just be a landscape piece or something general. There were some other knocks I had, mainly with the fourth book having some plot holes in it. The biggest one of which is the Chandara region is considered a breakaway province that hasn’t had direct relations with the rest of the island in 30 years. No where in the first two books (the third is set 2000 years prior to the first), which span about 2 years and occur about a year before the fourth book, is this even hinted at. It is just mentioned as a major city on the Belt Road and occasionally minor characters would be from there.
Overall, it was pleasant nostalgic read over the series, including the third and fourth book which I didn’t realize existed until about two years ago. I still have some problems with the fourth, but it still wasn’t bad and fits, albeit a bit roughly, with the rest of the series.
Overall, it was pleasant nostalgic read over the series, including the third and fourth book which I didn’t realize existed until about two years ago. I still have some problems with the fourth, but it still wasn’t bad and fits, albeit a bit roughly, with the rest of the series.
Finished War Bride - I think I just ended up with more time to read it, though it was shorter than Fourth Wing. I suppose I have become a romantasy reader at least for now.
Rough plot summary:
I really enjoyed it even though it had a general feeling of "the heroine fails at almost everything she wants to do" - I suppose that is me downplaying some pivotal moments for her, though some of those were helping others to take decisive action versus doing so herself. And in fairness, it didn't feel unearned - Isvedel was not trained in any of the "masculine" arts (as her mother put it) while Taar is a very experienced warrior.
Having the points of view of both sides of the romance is interesting, especially as they are both reluctant participants in the forced marriage and both want to get out of it as soon as they can but keep finding themselves trapped in the situation. Having both points of view probably helps as a reader with the whole forced marriage situation as well. The romance is definitely a slower burn than Fourth Wing and not as explicit.
On to book two in the series.
Rough plot summary:
Princess Isvedel is beautiful and has a god-given (literally) ability for singing, but her father believes her only use is to marry and secure a military alliance to the king of the trolls. Desperate, Princess Isvedel's prayers seem to be answered when mage Artosi, her first and only love from years ago, arrives to rescue her. But the rescue is interrupted when a fae warband attack the temple. Artosi escapes but Isvedel and her younger sister, Aurae, are kidnapped and placed on the auction block separately.
Warlord Taar, one of the leaders of the attack on the temple, is cursing the mage's escape while wondering about the two women he helped to capture during the raid and the strange attraction he felt for the older of them. Seeing a rival leader about to purchase Isvedel, Taar outbids him. But his intention to free the woman backfires when he is informed that, by fae custom, he must marry and consummate the relationship with his war bride by sunup or forfeit her to the next bidder; a fate worse than death for Isvedel. The two must navigate their emotions for each other and decide whether they can make a marriage of convenience work long enough to discover what has happened to Aurae and to be returned to her people.
Warlord Taar, one of the leaders of the attack on the temple, is cursing the mage's escape while wondering about the two women he helped to capture during the raid and the strange attraction he felt for the older of them. Seeing a rival leader about to purchase Isvedel, Taar outbids him. But his intention to free the woman backfires when he is informed that, by fae custom, he must marry and consummate the relationship with his war bride by sunup or forfeit her to the next bidder; a fate worse than death for Isvedel. The two must navigate their emotions for each other and decide whether they can make a marriage of convenience work long enough to discover what has happened to Aurae and to be returned to her people.
Having the points of view of both sides of the romance is interesting, especially as they are both reluctant participants in the forced marriage and both want to get out of it as soon as they can but keep finding themselves trapped in the situation. Having both points of view probably helps as a reader with the whole forced marriage situation as well. The romance is definitely a slower burn than Fourth Wing and not as explicit.
On to book two in the series.
You can tell a book is going places when it starts:
“I’m pretty much fucked.
That’s my considered opinion.
Fucked.”
“I’m pretty much fucked.
That’s my considered opinion.
Fucked.”
Just finished "River" by Esther Kinsky, a work of fiction that reads like a very personal memoir. The translation from German of Kinsky's writing is excellent, both my wife and I read it in chapters per day, a wonderful break from all the other fun in this timeline. We'd recommend this for anyone looking for diversion.
Seems she won a series of prizes in her native Germany, and was listed for the 2014 German Book Prize.
That was an adventure (and by adventure, I mean a disaster that the protagonist somehow survived)!
Good solid story. I appreciated the moments when Mark (who is a bit of a potty mouth) rages in despair, stops, and comes back with his frustration dampened. And the continuous MacGyvering.
That was an adventure (and by adventure, I mean a disaster that the protagonist somehow survived)!
Good solid story.
Nah. I’ve got Kingfisher (paladin with a dead god) and McGuire (post-portal fantasy) checked out.
I finished HeartTorn by Sylvia Mercedes, the second novel in the WarBride series. It was pretty good, though things are definitely getting more complicated with Taar and Ilsevel's situation. I'm still enjoying the romance and the distrust, jealousy, and other issues hindering it. This one gets into a lot more of the world and why the humans and fae are at war with each other. I found the fantasy elements really atmospheric. The unicorns are both wondrous and terrifying. Looking ahead at the blurbs for the next two books, I'm going to wait for the fourth book to be released in March before reading the third one.
Looking for a new book, Neon Gods by Katee Robert caught my eye. It reimagines the myth of Hades and Persephone into a modern day setting. And is the first of the Dark Olympus series - looks like those are all independent books (maybe with some character overlap) of similar mythological retellings. It sounds interesting but I think I want something lighter for my next read. And maybe with more of a military vibe.
That lead me to find the SWAT series by Paige Taylor. They sound amazing, though I'm not sure how to articulate the idea that the premise sounds fun for seeming stupidly over-the-top without it sounding like an insult to the author or books. I hope it manages to stay enjoyable for me.
The series follows various members of the Dallas SWAT team as they run into various attractive women and fall in love despite themselves. This team is the standard for law enforcement, with minimal complaints against them and a flawless record. Able to shoot to wound hostage takers after an hour-long exercise routing of benching 525 pounds of weight (or was it 575?). The only thing they don't have apparently is a love-life involving any women whatsoever.
The catch? SWAT stands for "Special Wolf Alpha Team". As in, eight years ago, a new commander replaced the whole team with his handpicked werewolves. And not just any werewolves - they are all Alpha Werewolves, six feet tall at a minimum with bulging muscles and extreme competitiveness.
Like I said, it sounds ridiculous but in a good way. Hopefully it is.
Looking for a new book, Neon Gods by Katee Robert caught my eye. It reimagines the myth of Hades and Persephone into a modern day setting. And is the first of the Dark Olympus series - looks like those are all independent books (maybe with some character overlap) of similar mythological retellings. It sounds interesting but I think I want something lighter for my next read. And maybe with more of a military vibe.
That lead me to find the SWAT series by Paige Taylor. They sound amazing, though I'm not sure how to articulate the idea that the premise sounds fun for seeming stupidly over-the-top without it sounding like an insult to the author or books. I hope it manages to stay enjoyable for me.
The series follows various members of the Dallas SWAT team as they run into various attractive women and fall in love despite themselves. This team is the standard for law enforcement, with minimal complaints against them and a flawless record. Able to shoot to wound hostage takers after an hour-long exercise routing of benching 525 pounds of weight (or was it 575?). The only thing they don't have apparently is a love-life involving any women whatsoever.
The catch? SWAT stands for "Special Wolf Alpha Team". As in, eight years ago, a new commander replaced the whole team with his handpicked werewolves. And not just any werewolves - they are all Alpha Werewolves, six feet tall at a minimum with bulging muscles and extreme competitiveness.
Like I said, it sounds ridiculous but in a good way. Hopefully it is.
Out of curiosity, How common is it for you folks to buy a book when you want to read it vs. checking it out from a library?
We basically live by the library, but I have coworkers that buy everything they want to read.
We basically live by the library, but I have coworkers that buy everything they want to read.
I generally buy books if I know I'm going to want to read them, and I'll buy physical copies of books I really like (the vast majority of my reading is on Kindle).
I'll check stuff out from the library if it's an author that's new to me, or if it's something that I'm not sure that I'm actually going to enjoy reading.
I'll check stuff out from the library if it's an author that's new to me, or if it's something that I'm not sure that I'm actually going to enjoy reading.
I get a lot of books from the library. I buy books mostly to come back to. Some books (e.g. anything by Lois Bujold) I know I'll want to own so they're instant buys on release. And sometimes I'll buy a book that I've been looking for if it's hard to get from the library and the price is right (used hardcopy or low-priced ebook).
I buy basically everything I want to read. Hard copies of books for my kids, ebooks for me (and fancy collector editions). I love that libraries are an option, but the way ebooks are handled is silly. I know why it is the way it is, but having to wait weeks to months for a limited allotment of digital files to become available really doesn't work for me...not to mention the limited duration loan periods. With kids and endless illnesses and other setbacks, an otherwise reasonable loan period can suddenly become something I just can't manage without annoyance. I'd rather just buy them, have them delivered in seconds, and read them at my leisure.
It varies for me - I have a rough budget that I use to buy ebooks in series or from authors that I love. New series and authors I try to get from the library or from Kindle Unlimited to see if I feel about them. Those I really enjoyed, I'll usually buy or pre-order the next book in the series. But it is kind of a sliding scale based on how much I've spent overall, so it can be a bit before I get around to buying something. Or I might get tired of waiting for something to become available from the library and buy it.
I only get physical books as gifts (and rarely ask for those) - I just find it easier to use ebooks.
I only get physical books as gifts (and rarely ask for those) - I just find it easier to use ebooks.
I read a lot from Kindle Unlimited. At best, quality is fair to middling, but sometimes I just want something to pass the time.
Authors I like, I buy on Kindle. My wife would be so upset if all the books I read in 2025 were physical books.
I buy almost everything - I work nights, and my local libraries are all open when I’m asleep.
I also tend to buy everything physical. I read during moments of downtime at work, over lunch, etc, and I can NOT bring any personal electronic devices in. Many ebook sites and readers don’t work correctly on the work machines, either.
I do try to buy used books, first. Unless it’s a brand new release? I’m looking at goodwill, the “used” offers on Amazon, the friends of the library stores near me, the used bookstores, etc. Especially if I’m just browsing, looking for a new-to-me story.
I also tend to buy everything physical. I read during moments of downtime at work, over lunch, etc, and I can NOT bring any personal electronic devices in. Many ebook sites and readers don’t work correctly on the work machines, either.
I do try to buy used books, first. Unless it’s a brand new release? I’m looking at goodwill, the “used” offers on Amazon, the friends of the library stores near me, the used bookstores, etc. Especially if I’m just browsing, looking for a new-to-me story.
I'm really enjoying The Interdependency trilogy. I just finished the 2nd book and I'm waiting for the 3rd book at the library.
I should be asleep. Instead, I finished South Coast, book one of Shamans Tales from The Golden Age of the Solar Clipper, by Nathan Lowell.
It ended up being a better read tgan I expected. I shouldn't be surprised; I’m a huge fan of Lowell’s books. But there it is. Up next is a graphic novel, then book two.
It ended up being a better read tgan I expected. I shouldn't be surprised; I’m a huge fan of Lowell’s books. But there it is. Up next is a graphic novel, then book two.
I finished book 2 of Shaman’s Tales, Cape Grace. And it’s a bummer of a book. A father pushes his daughter into a marriage she doesn’t want. The guy she marries then abuses her almost continuously, and the father is in denial of things because it keeps his daughter close while she’s walking around miserable. It doesn’t really dawn on him how much he fucked this relationship up until she leaves the bloody planet to get away from both her husband and her father.
Book 3? Primarily about the father trying to put his life back together. It has a happy ending for him. I’m sorry, but I don’t find this guy sympathetic in the slightest. And I’m not going to bother.
This trilogy is going in the ‘donate’ pile. I really enjoy all the other Solar Clipper novels, but these left a really sour taste in my mouth.
Up next? Fuck if I know. Not this.
Book 3? Primarily about the father trying to put his life back together. It has a happy ending for him. I’m sorry, but I don’t find this guy sympathetic in the slightest. And I’m not going to bother.
This trilogy is going in the ‘donate’ pile. I really enjoy all the other Solar Clipper novels, but these left a really sour taste in my mouth.
Up next? Fuck if I know. Not this.
I really value having a local independent book shop in my neighbourhood, so I almost always buy books that I want to read.
Used, new, or both?
There are several local-to-me used book sellers, but only one that sells new books. And that one? Is the size of a postage stamp, comparatively. There are some large independent shops up in Santa Barbara or over in LA, but it's a long drive to those.
![:\](https://cdn.arstechnica.net/civis/data/assets/smilies/slash-1x.png "Slash :\")
I decided on This is How You Lose the Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. I've been meaning to read it for awhile, decided now was the time after the disappointment of the second and third books of Shaman's Tales.
The first chapter? Was off-putting. The second? I was merely confused. By the end of the third? Okay, I'm hooked. It's a book of alternating perspectives and communiques about and between two individuals fighting on opposite sides of the titular Time War. It's more fun than I had anticipated.
"Let me tell you a secret: I loathe Atlantis. Every last single Atlantis across all strands."
I've finished the first three books of the SWAT series by Paige Taylor. I've enjoyed the relatively low stress; there is continuity between the books but each book resolves its own plot. Doesn't seem to be a metaplot unless the Deputy Chief of Police decides to act on his suspicions that something is up with the SWAT, but I think he already knows they are werewolves and doesn't have an issue with it or the increasing evidence of odd things happening around the SWAT team attracts outside attention. It is hard to tell how seriously the series will take those concerns - I hope not very, I like it as kind of a "enjoy the hijinks of a werewolf SWAT team as they each find love and deal with dangerous criminals" series and not something leaning more towards realism... if it makes sense to mention realism in this context.
I was a bit worried about the second book; the blurb didn't make it clear but Khaki, the first woman werewolf that the men have met, is being brought in specifically to get a woman on the SWAT team. But my concerns were quickly put to rest; the book resolved that swiftly enough to not lose my interest and got into Khaki proving herself by getting trained incredibly fast and being quite gifted at the job. The romance between her and her superior might also be an issue, and the fairly lengthy sex scenes. Not close to the level of Anita Blake but more than Fourth Wing. Also some bad advice (at least according to the internet) on birth control pills.
I think I'm going to read the others as a palette cleanser, plus I might be getting burnt out on said lengthy sex scenes for the moment, so I am starting 7 Seconds to Die: A Military Analysis of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War and the Future of Warfighting by John Antal. It is a "military study of the 2020 war between Armenia and Azerbaijan—the first war in history won primarily by unmanned systems" and is focused on the impact of those systems on how wars are fought.
I was a bit worried about the second book; the blurb didn't make it clear but Khaki, the first woman werewolf that the men have met, is being brought in specifically to get a woman on the SWAT team. But my concerns were quickly put to rest; the book resolved that swiftly enough to not lose my interest and got into Khaki proving herself by getting trained incredibly fast and being quite gifted at the job. The romance between her and her superior might also be an issue, and the fairly lengthy sex scenes. Not close to the level of Anita Blake but more than Fourth Wing. Also some bad advice (at least according to the internet) on birth control pills.
I think I'm going to read the others as a palette cleanser, plus I might be getting burnt out on said lengthy sex scenes for the moment, so I am starting 7 Seconds to Die: A Military Analysis of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War and the Future of Warfighting by John Antal. It is a "military study of the 2020 war between Armenia and Azerbaijan—the first war in history won primarily by unmanned systems" and is focused on the impact of those systems on how wars are fought.
My charming Wife buys, usually the sale table. She also cruises the little book boxes in our neighborhood. She has a whole shelf of stuff to read and when done, they go by book rate to her pals or back to the book boxes, a rare few go on our shelves, mostly books she's ordered for one reason or another.
I read from the library mostly as I also get DVD's from them. I also am concentrating on reading what I already own, working through Pynchon and will jump to Roberto Collaso next. The shelves are full of great reads.
@Diabolical - Our library now has a "BiblioBox" locker system into which they will put your request for pickup at any time located outside the building. It works well for me as I don't have to mask-up to go into the building.
I read from the library mostly as I also get DVD's from them. I also am concentrating on reading what I already own, working through Pynchon and will jump to Roberto Collaso next. The shelves are full of great reads.
@Diabolical - Our library now has a "BiblioBox" locker system into which they will put your request for pickup at any time located outside the building. It works well for me as I don't have to mask-up to go into the building.
I finished "Brigands and Breadknives" a few days ago. It's missing some of the magic of the first two novels, but the core was good. I especially liked the twist at the end.
Finally got around to reading Dungeon Crawler Carl. Fun read. Not great literature or mindblowing (definitely covering the same ground as Battle Royale and The Hunger Games) but still a good read when laid out sick.