What are you reading? 2020
12-07-20, 03:02 PM
#276
Re: What are you reading? 2020
A couple of finishes:
The 10th Joe Ledger novel, so at this point you pretty much know what you're getting: a popcorn thriller that's a cross between 24 and The X-files. I like the stories that go more "out there" into the horror and sci-fi, and this one fits the bill (involving aliens and Cthulhu). I'm glad I put this off long enough until after the Presidential election, since the POTUS character in this book is clearly influenced by real-life.
This was a fun book, mixing Lovecraftian cosmic horror, noir mystery, southern gothic, and the blues. It seems he's written a bunch of stuff since this, and I should probably check some of it out (A Lush and Seething Hell: Two Tales of Cosmic Horror sounds interesting).
The 10th Joe Ledger novel, so at this point you pretty much know what you're getting: a popcorn thriller that's a cross between 24 and The X-files. I like the stories that go more "out there" into the horror and sci-fi, and this one fits the bill (involving aliens and Cthulhu). I'm glad I put this off long enough until after the Presidential election, since the POTUS character in this book is clearly influenced by real-life.
This was a fun book, mixing Lovecraftian cosmic horror, noir mystery, southern gothic, and the blues. It seems he's written a bunch of stuff since this, and I should probably check some of it out (A Lush and Seething Hell: Two Tales of Cosmic Horror sounds interesting).
12-13-20, 01:59 PM
#278
DVD Talk Hero
Thread Starter
Re: What are you reading? 2020
I started Too Many Clients by Rex Stout.
It's a great example of how times have changed. A recently murdered corporate executive kept a secret apartment for the purpose of having sex with many different women. His secretary tells Nero Wolfe that he told her to go there one night because he needed her to take a dictation. She didn't like it and told the CEO. The reaction of the CEO was to tell her to tell no one, because he had to head off the damage to the reputation of the company that would result if the rest of the plastics industry learned about that an executive had secret love nest.
Today the CEO wouldn't care about the executive's sex life if it didn't involve other employees. The CEO's reaction to him ordering his secretary to the apartment would be either 1. to tell him to stay away from other employees or 2. to start a cover-up, not because he was having sex but because he was having sex with other employees.
It's a great example of how times have changed. A recently murdered corporate executive kept a secret apartment for the purpose of having sex with many different women. His secretary tells Nero Wolfe that he told her to go there one night because he needed her to take a dictation. She didn't like it and told the CEO. The reaction of the CEO was to tell her to tell no one, because he had to head off the damage to the reputation of the company that would result if the rest of the plastics industry learned about that an executive had secret love nest.
Today the CEO wouldn't care about the executive's sex life if it didn't involve other employees. The CEO's reaction to him ordering his secretary to the apartment would be either 1. to tell him to stay away from other employees or 2. to start a cover-up, not because he was having sex but because he was having sex with other employees.
12-13-20, 08:08 PM
#280
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
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Re: What are you reading? 2020
I finally finished this. It took me about 2 months and 20 days. I loved it, but it was overly long. The characters are fantastic and I couldn't figure out what happened until it was revealed in the book. I'm going to start another whopper next, Dune, at 890 pages.
12-25-20, 02:04 AM
#288
DVD Talk Legend
Re: What are you reading? 2020
12-27-20, 10:20 PM
#290
Re: What are you reading? 2020
Some finishes:
I really enjoyed The Broken Girls, and this was certainly in the same vein (and cranking the horror/ghost quotient up).
I'm close to finishing Brandon Sanderson's bibliography, and I haven't been disappointed by anything yet.
I had a long car ride before Christmas and listened to an audio book of a old classic:
A bit dated in spots but still enjoyable. I wonder if George Lucas read this, since the main religion of the galaxy is "The Force" (a collective energy that runs through all living things) ... this was written in 1963.
I saw Brandon Sanderson's new Oathbreaker book just came out and was also available on audio. But the running time was nearly 60 hours
I had a long drive, but not that long.
I really enjoyed The Broken Girls, and this was certainly in the same vein (and cranking the horror/ghost quotient up).
I'm close to finishing Brandon Sanderson's bibliography, and I haven't been disappointed by anything yet.
I had a long car ride before Christmas and listened to an audio book of a old classic:
A bit dated in spots but still enjoyable. I wonder if George Lucas read this, since the main religion of the galaxy is "The Force" (a collective energy that runs through all living things) ... this was written in 1963.
I saw Brandon Sanderson's new Oathbreaker book just came out and was also available on audio. But the running time was nearly 60 hours
I had a long drive, but not that long.
12-30-20, 01:25 PM
#292
DVD Talk Hero
Thread Starter
Re: What are you reading? 2020
I haven't read Way Station since I was a teenager, and I should re-read it. I have the prequel short story, where a judge retires and plans to spend his days at his mountain cabin. He's approached by a couple of aliens who want him to become a judge again, but this time in interstellar law.
I'm sure George Lucas had read Way Station. He read science fiction as a teenager, so he would have run across it.
I finished The Second Confession by Rex Stout. This was one of the better novels, but it would be a bad choice for the first Nero Wolfe book. It relies too heavily on the reader being familiar with the characters. Out of over fifty standalone books, there are three that have a conflict with the same villain. This is one of them.
I'm sure George Lucas had read Way Station. He read science fiction as a teenager, so he would have run across it.
I finished The Second Confession by Rex Stout. This was one of the better novels, but it would be a bad choice for the first Nero Wolfe book. It relies too heavily on the reader being familiar with the characters. Out of over fifty standalone books, there are three that have a conflict with the same villain. This is one of them.
