January! What are you reading?

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Beverly
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January! What are you reading?

Post by Beverly »

I finished up Isle of Palms. It was okay, but way too simplistic for all the heavy topics it was trying to deal wtih.

Now I'm going to start Man Walks Into a Room by Nicole Krauss.
mellenhead
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by mellenhead »

I'm about halfway through "The Emperor's Tomb" by Steve Berry. Its decent but nothing mind blowing

Next up is "I'd Know You Anywhere"
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Spudd
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Spudd »

I just finished "Bicycle Diaries" by David Byrne. Meh. It had its moments but he got too philosophical for me.

Now reading a book about a family with 3 kids (7, 5, and 1) who bike across Canada.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Sílvia »

I'm reading The Jane Austen Book Club and I'm hating it. It's just so BORING. The only reason I'm reading it is that I started it and had nothing else at the beach (I'd finished my previous book), so I kept reading to page 160 and it only has 250, so I guess now I'll finish it.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Spudd »

Finished my bike touring book, it was entertaining. Being sick is good for something, getting lots of reading done. Now I'm starting The Girl Who Played With Fire. So far, so good.
Rowan
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Rowan »

I finished Such a Pretty Face by Cathy Lamb on Monday. It was just ok - I only finished it because I kept thinking it would get better.

I started By the Time you Read This by Lola Jaye yesterday. I may give it up. Its the story of a girl who's father dies at 30 and has left her a manual of life and she is to read a chapter a year from 12yo to 30yo. Interesting concept but the writing is poor.

Wah! I want a good book!
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Anna »

I guess I'm reading Blood Memory but I don't think i've actually started it
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Bugsy
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Bugsy »

I finally finished The Man Who Ate Everything, by Jeffrey Steingarten. The middle of it kind of dragged for me, but overall I liked this. I even got some cool-sounding recipes from it.

Not sure what I'll start next. Something more light-hearted, I think.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Blush »

I had never heard of Linwood Barclay before Rowan and Spudd mentioned him, so I am now reading "No Time for Goodbye". I like his style. Suspenseful with a dash of humour here and there and no rambling descriptions of crap I don't care about.


ETA: I finished this on Monday and really enjoyed it. I will look for more of his stuff.

Now I'm reading "Faithful Place" by Tana French.
Back in 1985, Frank Mackey was nineteen, growing up poor in Dublin's inner city, and living crammed into a small flat with his family on Faithful Place. But he had his sights set on a lot more. He and Rosie Daly were all ready to run away to London together, get married, get good jobs, break away from factory work and poverty and their old lives.

But on the winter night when they were supposed to leave, Rosie didn't show. Frank took it for granted that she'd dumped him-probably because of his alcoholic father, nutcase mother, and generally dysfunctional family. He never went home again.

Neither did Rosie. Everyone thought she had gone to England on her own and was over there living a shiny new life. Then, twenty-two years later, Rosie's suitcase shows up behind a fireplace in a derelict house on Faithful Place, and Frank is going home whether he likes it or not.

Getting sucked in is a lot easier than getting out again. Frank finds himself straight back in the dark tangle of relationships he left behind. The cops working the case want him out of the way, in case loyalty to his family and community makes him a liability. Faithful Place wants him out because he's a detective now, and the Place has never liked cops. Frank just wants to find out what happened to Rosie Daly-and he's willing to do whatever it takes, to himself or anyone else, to get the job done.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Annie »

I'm reading this: http://www.amazon.com/Escape-Carolyn-Je ... 283&sr=8-1

"Escape" by Carolyn Jessop, a former polygamist wife. It's a page turner. Very fascinating.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by mellenhead »

"The Emperor's Tomb" by Steve Berry was decent. Not one of his better Cotton Malone novels though.

I didn't get to read "I'd Know You Anywhere" because I got 2 chapters in and realized it was due back at the library and since there are other holds I couldn't renew it. I'll have to circle back to it at some point since I've heard good things.

I just started "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption" by Laura Hillenbrand. So far it's very compelling, I'm just about to to get into the real meat of the story so I'm anxious to sit down this weekend for a few hours and just read.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Rachael »

I am almost finished with The Nobodies Album by Carolyn Parkhurst and IT IS SO GOOD. I wish I could be reading it right now.

This month, I've also read:

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner by Stephanie Meyer. I love the Twilight saga, but this sucked.

The Walk by Paul Richard Evans. I really liked this, but when I finished it, I realized it is the first book in a series. I didn't like it enough to read more. It was a good book on its own, though.

My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster. Blush got me into her. She's so funny, but all of her books are pretty much the same. Just how many memoirs can one person write?!

Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen. She writes young adult fiction, but I love her.

I think I'm going to try Poor Little Bith Girl next. I've had it from the library for a while and am out of renewals.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by mellenhead »

Rachael wrote:
My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster. Blush got me into her. She's so funny, but all of her books are pretty much the same. Just how many memoirs can one person write?!
She is funny the first couple of times you read her....I've read two of her books and I just took another one out of the library....I'm blanking on the name right now, but I couldn't even read it. It was like she was trying waaaaaay to hard to be funny. I didn't get more than 3 chapters in.

Is Poor Little Bitch Girl Jackie Collins or Joan Collins...? I think I read it - it was ridiculous....in a good fluffy way.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Rachael »

mellenhead wrote:
Rachael wrote:
My Fair Lazy by Jen Lancaster. Blush got me into her. She's so funny, but all of her books are pretty much the same. Just how many memoirs can one person write?!
She is funny the first couple of times you read her....I've read two of her books and I just took another one out of the library....I'm blanking on the name right now, but I couldn't even read it. It was like she was trying waaaaaay to hard to be funny. I didn't get more than 3 chapters in.

Is Poor Little Bitch Girl Jackie Collins or Joan Collins...? I think I read it - it was ridiculous....in a good fluffy way.

I totally agree on Jen Lancaster and yes - something Collins. I saw it mentioned here (I think by you). I'm all for fun fluff right now.

The Nobodies Album isn't fluff, but I am really enjoying it. I just added the authors other two books to my library que.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Sílvia »

I'm reading World without End by Ken Follett, which is supposed to be a sequel to the Pillars of the Earth. I'm only on page 60 or so, but I can see that he's following exactly the same formula of Pillars. It worked the first time, we'll see if works a second or if it'll get on my nerves. Leo's been going to bed super late, so I've only been reading like 5-10 pages a night. The book has more than 1000, so I don't think I'll read anything else this year. It was nice talking to you guys.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Blush »

Agreed on Jen Lancaster. Now each book seems to talk about writing the last book and going on tour with it. And adopting more dogs.
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Bugsy
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Bugsy »

I just started the ...4th? 5th? Sookie Stackhouse book, "Dead as a Doornail." Only a few pages in, but I'm guessing it'll be a somewhat entertaining story and a quick read.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by mellenhead »

I finished: "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption" by Laura Hillenbrand. So so good. I highly recommend it if you have any interest in WWII. Just an amazing story of the war and of one mans journey as a POW in Japan. The author (I feel) really does a good job showing both sides of the story.

Not sure what I'm going to read next, I have 127 hours the book that was made into a movie about the guy that cuts off his arm after he gets it stuck rock climbing. I skimmed the beginning and I'm not sure I'm going to like it though.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Rowan »

I have Unbroken in my queue at the library. I think I'm 12th or so.

I read The Lock Artist by Steve Hamilton yesterday. I really liked his writing -- never read anything from the author before. Its the story of a young man who went through a traumatic event as a child and hasn't been able to talk since. He finds that his talent is in picking locks/safes.

I read Veracity by Laura Bynam. Its a bit post-apocalyptic (which is why I picked it up) - I liked it but didn't love it. There were a few nice touches to it I have to admit.

Haven't started anything new yet. Probably next on the list is The Weight by Andrew Vachss.
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Re: January! What are you reading?

Post by Rowan »

Jen Lancaster has a new book coming out in the spring -- its fiction this time. I guess she realized she was "out of" memoirs. :)

I still really like her and read her blog regularly. I like her snark but sometimes it rubs me the wrong way.
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