Whats everyone reading?

[Mardroid]

The books do largely move the plots forward, just at a rather slow pace. (It does pick up later.)

A lot of the seemingly irrelevant slide plots, etc (which I don't mind, as I said. Some of those stories are good in themselves.), do have some relevance though even if only to develop the characters.

[SmallBlueThing]

Charley's War volume 7, Tombs of the Dead: Hungry Hearts, The Living Dead 2 and Zombies: The Recent Dead (the last two both anthologies).
SBT

[mogzilla]

a book aboout myths legends and folklore of britain.

[Mardroid]

Strontium Dog S/D Files 2
I just finished Portrait of a Mutant. A good tale, although I think I'd enjoy reading it better piece by piece rather than in one fell swoop, like I did. For some reason it seems to drag a little. I think that might just be due to the recap each chapter, or maybe the continuous warfare. (War seems like a fun thing to see in a comic in that there's plenty of action, but if it continues for a while I find it a bit numbing for some reason.)

It was a very good tale though. I knew some of this already but it was good to get the full story.

One question, what actually are thwup guns? I know they're guns that make a 'thwup' sound (dur) I'm just curious as to what they fire, etc. Are they energy beam weapons? It's the first time I've come across them, and they seem to be the standard weapon used by the mutant army.

Wheel of Time: Towers of Midnight.
Couldn't put it off any longer! I'm still in the rather long prologue at the moment, but it's already highly enjoyable, (spoiler)[spoiler]including a twist that I hadn't quite seen coming.
I suspected a certain character might have escaped, but seeing how the attack and the result was portrayed in the previous novel, The Gathering Storm, it seemed pretty conclusive. In hindsight it seems so obvious. Cleverly done.[/spoiler]

[Kerrin]

Vol 1 of "The Walking Dead" trades and vol 1 of "Chew". Both excellent. Also rereading "The Blade itself" from Joe Abercrombie.

There are a couple of options for my next purchase of Walking Dead trades, there's a hardcover collecting the first 12 issues (I can give the Vol 1 TPB I've just read to someone for Christmas or flog it) which looks nice OR there's a phonebook which has the first 48! Does anyone know if the quality of the hardback issue outweighs the apparent value for money of the phonebook? Advice welcome.

[SmallBlueThing]

Vol 1 of "The Walking Dead" trades and vol 1 of "Chew". Both excellent. Also rereading "The Blade itself" from Joe Abercrombie.

There are a couple of options for my next purchase of Walking Dead trades, there's a hardcover collecting the first 12 issues (I can give the Vol 1 TPB I've just read to someone for Christmas or flog it) which looks nice OR there's a phonebook which has the first 48! Does anyone know if the quality of the hardback issue outweighs the apparent value for money of the phonebook? Advice welcome.

Personally, I stick with the trades- for completely nerdy reasons of liking the way they look on the shelf, and having bought the first twelve it seems a pity to "upgrade".

The hardbacks are lovely, but due to being oversized, they take up way too much space and I find them difficult to read while lounging on my sofa, cocktail in hand. Due to their weight, they leave an unsightly crease across the nipples.

The "phonebook" is small, on grottier paper, but is spectacular value (I think I saw it in FP on Saturday for about £35) AND it contains the 6 page "Christmas Story", featuring Morgan and his son- that'll be "the man who moved next door to Rick in volume one" to you- that isn't reprinted in either the trades or the hardbacks. BUT- containing as it does 8 trades-worth, there's a long wait between editions- with no firm guarantee that they will continue to publish in that format.

I just READ the 6-pager in a shop. It's not part of the main storyline, so it makes no odds to me.

Glad you're enjoying. I'd stick with the trades and get them off the net. I don't usually pay more than about £8 for them due to shopping around.

SBT

[HdE]

Vol 1 of "The Walking Dead" trades and vol 1 of "Chew". Both excellent. Also rereading "The Blade itself" from Joe Abercrombie.

'Chew' is absoultely fantastic! i cackled all the way through that one.

Volume 2 didn't hit the same heights for me. But I look forward to volume 3 with high hopes.

[Roger Godpleton]

So yesterday I read some 'mics.

First off I read Parker: The Outfit, the second Darwyn Cooke adaptation. More so than the first volume, you really get the feel that Cooke is trying to do so much more than a straight adaptation. The nearest comparison this neophyte can make is to something by Chris Ware, when form is equally as important as content. You should read this.

Then it was Love & Rockets: New Stories #3. I enjoyed this more than the previous two volumes, possibly because there weren't any T-Girls, but I maybe would have liked some more standalone stuff. I realized today what I like most about L&R: There's always something new we want to learn. Sometimes it's in the earlier stuff, other times it's yet to come. You should read this, but only if you've read L&R before.

Finally came X'ed Out, the new Charles Burns undertaking. You need to read this for yourself. You should read this.

[Christov]

Every Bat-title under the sun since the Inc. relaunch.

[uncle fester]

Silent Hill - "Past Life" pt.1(IDW)

Gorgeous looking tale of two settlers in 1867 seeking a new life in a new town, courtesy of a house left in a will.

Possibly not the most original plot (or synopsis) ever, but I rarely buy single comics for anything other than strong original art. Which this has by the bucketload.

Oh and it's very creepy too.

[Paul faplad Finch]

I've just started another Tempe Brennan book by Kathy Reichs called Break No Bones. I've been wading through this series for a while now.

I really enjoy them but some of the science takes a few rereads to get my head around. I'm sure it's not that complicated but on the list of disciplines I fail at Science comes pretty near the top.

[Emp]

The Left Hand of God.

I'm going through it quite quickly so i must be enjoying it but i think thats down to the contents of the page i'm reading at the time.When i stop and think about the story so far there seems to be holes in the plot,almost as if the authour himself hadn't decided on the ending or main plot.
Might be a deliberate ploy and it'll all work out in the end(i'm only half way through and there is apparently another book coming)

[maryanddavid]

Finished the Criminal collection by Brubaker and Philips, got it last christmas and never read it, great collection, first two stories are pretty strong, second half not as good, more wrapping up the first two stories, still good though.

Good comics.

David

[Mardroid]

The Left Hand of God.

I'm going through it quite quickly so i must be enjoying it but i think thats down to the contents of the page i'm reading at the time.When i stop and think about the story so far there seems to be holes in the plot,almost as if the authour himself hadn't decided on the ending or main plot.

Maybe he actually hadn't when he was writing it!  While many authors plan out their books to start with, writing out a plot outline, etc, there are some who start with a main character and situation and expand on from there, essentially experiencing their own story the way a reader would.

That's how Stephen King tends to write, the way he suggests in his book 'On Writing'.

I think their are pros and cons with each way. I think the former is better in tying everything together properly and keeping one from writing oneself into a rut, but the latter is probably more fun for the author and possibly more dynamic for the reader.

[Emp]

I agree,my own prefered way of writing is to have a begin,and an end and let the character guide me there but this one seems a bit........i dunno feels wrong.

Without spoiling it for anyone who wants to read it, it's starts of in a medieval/fantasy training ground/monastary/barracks but people seem not to know what is going on and while that could be acceptable in a Gormenghast sized place this doesn,t have that feel, maybe i'm being picky.

I'm still enjoying it,just as i said,once i stop reading it i get the feeling that it doesn't sit right.