Finished the series. It was really good and a refreshing sci-fi take with personality in the vein of The Martian. I had a couple of issues- the deep nerd references were probably lost on a lot of readers. I didn’t even get some of them. It reminded me of the 80’s references from Ready Player One without the explanations. What I like about the kindle is that I can highlight words and get a definition or explanation but in this case it was too vague. Granted, I’m the demo that this guy is writing for but I’m not sure how this book will age for future readers, much like The Stand and it’s constant 1970’s references. My other issue was Spoiler that the book doesn’t really go in to why the Bob’s personality changes a little with every copy. This is sci-fi and I can look things up like what is tau but couldn’t find anything on this. That made it a little more sci-fantasy than it should be. One other small issue was the cliff hangery ending to books one and two. Like the author said ‘ok, 400 pages, done’. Authors like GRRM have broken that old school habit and I expect a conclusion to a big story arc and a tease at what’s to come these days. Overall a great enjoyable read that I highly recommend. Will buy book four when it’s out in a few months. *********** To shift gears a little I decided to read the Tokyo Ghoul manga and I’m about 100 issues in right now. It’s a quality horror action Manga with some good fights, good characters and good story that has me coming back for more.
Listening to Sandman by Neil Gaiman. Based on his comic book series. I don't think the audio version is available in print.
That's interesting. I'll have to check it out. Honestly, I could never get into the comics in the 80's. The art was too avant-garde for my tastes at the time. The first issues of New Mutants were the same. But it's Gaiman so I will have to check out the audio.
haha thank god I was browsing this thread. Kept waiting for so many years for this that I gave up hope that he would ever continue this series.
Finally finishing the series myself, it does have great personality. I enjoyed most of the stories but some I found myself more skimming. I think the issue of cliff hangery endings is just a new "bug" of the business of publishing as I've noticed this across several new series. There will be "4 books" total but I'd imagine it would have been two books 10 years ago. So in regards to Spoiler Bob's personality change, I thought it was explained more as "genetic drift" except among a digital population. I don't think it was explained in depth, but that was the general gist. Based on what I've read about Book 4, that will be more of an issue. I was a little disappointed in how the battle (maybe war) ended with The Others destruction because it felt rushed, most likely due to the short book format. There's still the Brazilian threat that has been teased.
The harrowing tale of British explorer Ernest Shackleton's 1914 attempt to reach the South Pole, one of the greatest adventure stories of the modern age. This is one of the best written historical survival stories I've ever read. It's absolutely mind-blowing that they lived to tell this story. I was blown away by the hell these guys went through for so long, and their pure strength and will to never give up. It brought tears of joy to my eyes when they finally succeeded.
Big Wonderful Thing (chapter here, chapter there) Don Quixote (chapter here, chapter there) The Terror Blood Meridian River of Doubt Hellhouds On His Trail (I would read anything Hampton Sides writes, I like his style, Outside articles too. Ghost Soldiers; Americana; Blood and Thunder...and now he's 4-4 so far).
Questionable whether this belongs in "reading" thread, but ive had to do a bunch of long drives recently and there are a ton of classic pulpy sci fi audio books on YouTube. Just listened to Day of the Triffids: And Ubik: I've read them both before, but it was a great way to break the monotony of a long trip. The early 60s portrayal of women as wilting violets who have to be protected from everything cracks me up.
Agree - fantastic book. If you like these stories of survival also try: Skeletons on the Zahara - Dean King Ice Ghosts - Paul Watson In the Heart of the Sea - Nathaniel Philbrick Adrift - Steve Callaghan In the kingdom of ice - Hampton sides
I actually have Skeletons on the Zahara to read next after Kon Tiki. Adrift was a great book. I'll keep your other recommendations in mind. Thanks!
Wow, this is quite a story. It reads like a gripping novel that draws you in from the start. I had read another Adam Makos book titled Devotion, and it was just as gripping. They both tell stories that will bring tears of joy and pain to your eyes. I've never read a book on the subject of wars in my life, but the way Makos tells the stories makes me want to read his other 2 books now. I saw the reviews on Devotion and decided to give it a try. Wow, it had me from the start. This one was a different type story, but just as good.
I read the first three books in this series. The writing gets progressively better (I think this was the author’s first book ), although the second book has some pacing issues that a good editor could have helped with. The third book shifts focus away from the Wild West to Virginia. What I like the most about this author is that he does his research. He nails the history, settings, culture and vernacular. I could see this series being turned into sort of a supernatural Deadwood show on HBO. I read a little more about the author and he has two other series in the same universe, although the other two, Nightwise and Brotherhood of the Wheel, are set more or less in modern times. I picked up the first Nightwise and man, does this guy’s writing kick up a notch. It’s sort of like a Dresden Files book but on a cocaine and heroin bender. It’s very good and I actually made time to read it during the day, something I don’t normally do. It’s very adult and I don’t recommend it to anyone with strong religious beliefs or who has their dreams influenced by books. It’s really neat how the author weaves modern history into being associated with magic. If you like conspiracy theories, it has some interesting ideas (totally fiction but still cleverly done). I’m picking up the second book to start tonight.
After several starts and stops, finally decided to read through this one fully. Almost done. Highly entertaining, but sometimes downright depressing. The most shocking parts aren't the drugs, but the underage groupies *yikes*.
