Whats everyone reading?

[von Boom]

I agree completely. No faux-Culture novels please.

So no Neal Asher for you either von Boom?

Sensible man.

Yeah. I find Asher only okay. I've read a couple Polity novels but they aren't a patch on the Culture.

[radiator]

Listening to the audiobook of Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself. I tried the dead tree version a couple of years ago, but never got very far with it as it does have a very slow start.

It's pretty by the numbers fantasy and a little predictable, but very solidly written, and with some very likable characters. It definitely seems to be building towards something. Will definitely persevere with the next book after this one. It's helped a lot by a really impressive voice performance by the actor who reads the audiobook. It has broad similarities to Game of Thrones - though it lacks the immense scale of that series - and would make for an excellent TV series.

[Theblazeuk]

Powering through those on the e-reader now, after having the same problem you report a few years ago. However I'm very glad I returned to them as they are bloody (emphasis on the bloody) good fun and there are some great twists in store.

[HdE]

Just got done with the first volume of 'Savage Wolverine' by Frank Cho.

Absolutely great stuff! Loved it from beginning to end. It's a really nicely realised comic. And I especially like Corey Petit's lettering design.

[strontium_dog_90]

Just read an advance e-book copy of DC's Injustice: Gods Among Us.

Collecting issues 1-6 of the comic it's a great little read - a lot funnier and more poignant than much of the stuff we see from our American cousins. It also achieves something I had previously thought impossible: it turns Aquaman into a really scary character.

[Mabs]

I'm currently reading Conan: Cimmeria. I bought it from a book retailer online for a fiver, with the impression that I would be receiving a paperback copy. But upon opening the packaging I found to my delight that it was a limited edition hardcover! Result!

[sheldipez]

Just read an advance e-book copy of DC's Injustice: Gods Among Us.

Collecting issues 1-6 of the comic it's a great little read - a lot funnier and more poignant than much of the stuff we see from our American cousins. It also achieves something I had previously thought impossible: it turns Aquaman into a really scary character.

Injustice is without a doubt one of the best things DC are putting out at the moment - it's one of my favourite pulls. It's basically an ongoing "What if.." that asks that question what would the world be like if the superheroes concentrated on the bigger picture of the real world events that are ongoing today. In the latest issue Kalibak, Darkseid's son, has heard about Supes and co. de-weaponising the earth so attempts a full on attack at the world's busiest cities, Supes decides to no longer handle these kind of invasions with gloves on & simply let them scamper off home only to attack again one day but to take drastic measures (the "rule", is broken again and again and again..)

It's dark and very funny and extremely well written. The art was rough in the beginning as DC had no confidence in the title (and the first bunch of issues are worth a small fortune as they simply wasn't enough to meet the demand - I think #1 went into 4th or 5th printing) but the last few have improved a lot.

[Colin YNWA]

Just finished Book 5 of Waid's Daredevil run... well it feel a little weird to describe it as Waid's as while there has been a number of different artists on the comics, almost all of those have brought so much. Still its Waid that's held it all together and so I guess its Waid's run...

...anyway I'm digressing... finished book 5 of the latest DD run and its simply magnificent. If you're a fan of Daredevil, like good superhero comics or just plain enjoy good comics this is a book you really should be reading. Do yourself a favour though and pick it up in order from the beginning. Trust me just like you'd watch a great tv show from the off reading the first 27 issues of this run pays off so brilliantly if you start from the get go and of course these days, just like with TV box sets, that's so easy to do.

The series is bang on target and just blindin'

[Judge Brian]

I just received Slaine Treasures of Britain & Slaine Grail War in the mail today.  I'm half way through ToB  & its wonderful.

[Mabs]

Neverwhere, no not the Neil Gaiman gig but the Richard Corben show,

http://nexuswookie.wordpress.com/2013/09/05/recent-comic-purchases-richard-corbens-neverwhere/

It's quite possibly Corben's masterpiece.

[Rog69]

Just started Stonemouth, which has an appropriately strong opening. However, the fact that this is the second-last Iain Banks novel that I will ever read makes it a desperately sad experience.  He seems to have been continually in my reading pile since I was in school.  It's a bit like realising you're holding the penultimate issue of 2000AD, something I hope I never have to do.

I know how you feel TB, I just finished reading The Quarry and the wife asked me what was taking me so long to read it. To put it in context I asked her to imagine she had the last bar of Dairy Milk on the planet.

[JudgeE1M1RT]

I'm currently re-reading Fatherland by Robert Harris and just finished X-Files: Firebird. About to start an Indiana Jones Omnibus. 

[Theblazeuk]

After my Kobo* broke inexplicably, I'm reading EmbassyTown by China Mieville. It's hard going. Mieville is always a bit weird and esoteric, a little in love with his own complexities of language. Yet in his other books, that has a charm of its own and ultimately  helps bring the fascinating oddness of his characters, settings and concepts to life.

I'm struggling to get to grips with it here however. There are some nice concepts but the narrative is so disjointed, jumping between reminiscence and active plot without clear indication of which is which, that's it's hard to get into a comfortable flow of reading and comprehension. Particularly when everything is expressed with the diegetic points of reference used within the setting, from timeframes - hours, not years, which makes it rather hard to work out when something supposedly took place - to distances, locations and local politics. Bas-Lag and to some extent, London, were featured in their own gnostic terms in his other novels but they were far less abstract.

I suppose on reflection this is a conscious gambit on his part as the main theme is, after all, language, but it's bloody frustrating at times. 100+ pages in though and I'm largely waiting for something to happen.

*One page away from finishing Abercrombies Red Country. Cracking read btw, highly recommend all of his novels. Think Red Country was my favourite out of the latter trilogy of ostensibly unconnected books.

[TordelBack]

I'm reading EmbassyTown by China Mieville. It's hard going. Mieville is always a bit weird and esoteric, a little in love with his own complexities of language. Yet in his other books, that has a charm of its own and ultimately  helps bring the fascinating oddness of his characters, settings and concepts to life.

I generally love Mieville's work, with a particular fondness for Perdido St and Kraken, but I could not get along with Embassytown.  In fact, despite renewing my library loan several times I never actually finished it. Like you I found it too choppy for comfort, and my reading always seemed to be getting up a head of steam and then running into the brick wall of the next section.  I generally like books that play with language (Stephenson) and layers of flashback (Banks), but this one just never grabbed me enough to warrant the required effort.  I'll give it another go one day.

[Theblazeuk]

I'll let you know if its worth it when I finish.

Though whilst we're talking about Mieville I'm just gonna plug Dial H For Hero - that's a bloody good comic. Weird in all the right ways and I cannot believe its actually reviving a slightly naff backup strip. Come to a close now though as DC needs more punching, less the outstanding adventures of open-window-man.