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Whats everyone reading?

Started by Paul faplad Finch, 30 March, 2009, 10:04:36 PM

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Paul faplad Finch

My 4 at a time (hardback, paperback, American GN, twoth GN) rule has fallen by the wayside because of a scarcity of twoth trades. Once Droid Files and Anderson arrive from book depository I'll be back in action. They will also sadly be the last books I buy in a while. Yes, the money has finally run out. I put it off this long by getting my American trades from the library but the day has come. Never mind.

Anyway, my Hardback is Skullduggery Pleasant, which has raised a fair few chuckles so far and lead to me embarresing myself on another thread. After that it's Duma Key, as I attempt to catch up with my King. Hints have been dropped that Under The Dome may be heading my way come Christmas so now seemed the time.

In paperback I'm reading Triumff, which is everything you'd expect from Mr Abnett. Whether thaats a good thing or a bad thing is up to you but I'm loving it.

Then there is my American GN, which at the moment is the Hawkman Showcase. This is the first Showcase book to grab me properly since Jonah Hex. Probably because it's the first I've read since Hex that wasn't written by Robert Kanigher. Although he did do the back up strips in the Hex book, which made it end on a duff note so Hawkman is probably gonna have to go down as my favourite so far. After I finish this I've got a bit more Delano Hellblazer to read although without the book in front of me I can't remember the collection title. It's the collection that comes after Fear Machine chronolgically.
It doesn't mean that round my way
Pessimism is Realism - Optimism is Insanity
The Impossible Quest
Musings Of A Nobody
Stuff I've Read

House of Usher

Re: Blood Brothers (yawn!) - I checked the AQA GCSE Eng. Lit. syllabus on Friday, and Blood Brothers isn't even on it, so that's all right then! Probably why I chose the AQA syllabus in the first place.
STRIKE !!!

HOO-HAA

LET THE RIGHT ONE IN by John Ajvinde Lindqvist

Excellent. Better than his latest novel, Handling the Undead (also a good read, mind).

I do suspect, however, that much is lost in the translation - particulalrly with dialogue.

Colin YNWA

Just finished reading Jack Kirby's '2001 a Space odyssey'. Wow that was good fun, the first 7 issues in particular. Its a shame when the more traditional superhero narrative of the Machine Man (nee Mister Machine, nee X-51) issues takes over as those early issues are some great craziness. I'd have loved to know where he'd have taken it had it not changed track, I assume cos of poor sales as its clear from the letters pages etc that he was building something.

Still if you can hunt down these little talked about Kirby issues I can't recommend them highly enough. Inspired.

Bolt-01

Way of the Barefoot Zombie by Jaspre Bark.

Trash- utter trash- but really enjoyable page turning trash. Great fun, but not one for lunchtimes...

James Stacey

Quote from: faplad on 13 December, 2009, 12:39:55 AM
In paperback I'm reading Triumff, which is everything you'd expect from Mr Abnett. Whether thaats a good thing or a bad thing is up to you but I'm loving it.

I'm reading Triumff at the moment too. Like an alternate history Flashman. Really enjoying it.

Dandontdare

Didn't want to start a new thread, but felt I had to warn everyone...

If anyone's considering the new Viz-style comic POOT, (issue 2 currently in the newsagents £2.50), then seriously don't. It's even worse than all the other pale imitators that came out. Very very poor indeed.

The only joke that made me even smile featured Judge Dredd oddly enough. The "gag" is that the character changes every panel - from Frankenbstein's monster to a dinosaur to a baby etc. 3 panels from the end he turns into JD while on a train - and then is the same in the next 2 panels, prompting the punchline "shit - forgot to change at Crewe"

If you think that's weak, the rest of it is much much worse.

HOO-HAA

Sounds grim, Dan. :(

I'm  reminded, though, of a wonderful Viz strip from back in the day called Frankenstein's Cock, where the good doctor created a huge, stitched up, electrified, veiny member to wow the ladies. 

Halcyon days!  :)

Bolt-01

I've just finished 'WAY OF THE BAREFOOT ZOMBIE' by Jaspre Bark.

This is a cracking little volume- it wears its heart on its sleeve, along with many other internal organs, but the plot is solid (apart from one really annoying thing near the very end) and as you would expect, the tension in places is palpable.

I was expecting this to be a 'slog' of a book, but it was entertaining, gross, funny and even informative. I never knew this much about Voodoo, and I've seen 'Live and let die!' :)

Trash genre fiction it may be- but it was a damn fine read too.

stacey

I'm reading the 1st trade of The Red Seas. I haven't been enjoying this very much in the prog, I didn't really get it, and probably wouldn't have picked up the trade but I got sent it and I'm half way through now and its fooking brilliant! I really, really like it, it's funny and exciting and beautifully drawn. So I'm well pleased.

Richmond Clements

Quote from: Bolt-01 on 19 December, 2009, 08:58:07 AM
I've just finished 'WAY OF THE BAREFOOT ZOMBIE' by Jaspre Bark.

This is a cracking little volume- it wears its heart on its sleeve, along with many other internal organs, but the plot is solid (apart from one really annoying thing near the very end) and as you would expect, the tension in places is palpable.

I was expecting this to be a 'slog' of a book, but it was entertaining, gross, funny and even informative. I never knew this much about Voodoo, and I've seen 'Live and let die!' :)

Trash genre fiction it may be- but it was a damn fine read too.

Or to put it another way: http://www.2000adreview.co.uk/site/index.php/Book-Reviews/Way-of-the-Barefoot-Zombie.html

Bolt-01

And that is why you are a writer and I'm a pencil monkey...

Paul faplad Finch

I've now finished Triumff and it was a tr... No I can't do it. It was really really good though.

In its place I was going to dip back into the Horus Heresy for a book or two but instead I've gone with the Last Legion books by Chris Bunch, which on the surface appear to be a similar kind of thing. Bunch is a name that I've notice a lot over the years but never gotten around to trying so when I notice the Library had a full set of these Legion books I thought what the Hell.

I'm only a couple of chapters in so no real opinion yet although I've noticed he has an annoying habit of refering to characters by their Christian names one second and their Surnames the next, often within the same paragraph. Since the names are all of the exotic alien type and I'm not fully familiar with all the cast yet it can get a mite confusing. It can feel like there are twice as many characters in a scene.

Also, I've just hit Mark Millars run on Swamp Thing. It's a trifle strange. On the one hand he couldn't possibly be worse than Nancy Collins but on the other... the heroine goes from fragile, emotionally damaged damsel in distress to gun toting Sarah Connor wannabe in about 3 pages. There is a whole sequence set in Holland with an immortal woman who decides the best use of immortality is to be a Hooker who lets clients kill her, and his new big villain is a Big Game Hunter with an eyepatch whose built like a brick shithouse and spends a lot of time talking about being afraid of the dark. It's all a bit 'not quite right'.

Course, this could be the era everyone thinks of as the rennaisance of the title and I'm just not grasping the subtleties. Wouldn't be the first time.
It doesn't mean that round my way
Pessimism is Realism - Optimism is Insanity
The Impossible Quest
Musings Of A Nobody
Stuff I've Read

OpusAndBill

Quote from: Colin_YNWA on 17 December, 2009, 01:14:52 PM
Just finished reading Jack Kirby's '2001 a Space odyssey'. Wow that was good fun, the first 7 issues in particular. Its a shame when the more traditional superhero narrative of the Machine Man (nee Mister Machine, nee X-51) issues takes over as those early issues are some great craziness. I'd have loved to know where he'd have taken it had it not changed track, I assume cos of poor sales as its clear from the letters pages etc that he was building something.

Still if you can hunt down these little talked about Kirby issues I can't recommend them highly enough. Inspired.

Agreed. Issue 5 (Norton Of New York?) is one of my all-time favourite comics. You can still pick up the whole series on ebay for about a tenner, or less - at least I've seen it go for that fairly regularly. I've never been able to get my hands on the treasury issues adapting the movie, though.

Currently reading the 60th anniversary issue of F&SF.
Boasting the efficacy of Oliver Wendell Jones' Hair Tonic.

COMMANDO FORCES

Quote from: faplad on 22 December, 2009, 04:09:32 AM
Since the names are all of the exotic alien type and I'm not fully familiar with all the cast yet it can get a mite confusing.

This is what always buggers up a book for me and that's why I can't get into fantasy stuff. Names as long as a paragraph, no thanks!