I can keep a tally of users and total books they've read, just drop in here and say what you read and what you thought about it, should be a fun discussion I think. Oh, and I guess let me know how many systems you own or something. Maybe you'll win a prize! Probably not. Read books because it's the Chad thing to do on a website about trading videogames.
I finished up If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B-Movie Actor by Bruce Campbell. Pretty light-hearted look at the film industry from an indie and cult-movie actor. Always been a fan of Bruce and hearing some of the antics of his involvement with Sam Raimi and the Evil Dead films is always gonna be fun.
The Power of the Dog - An excellent book about the DEA vs the Mexican cartel, with a little mob stuff mixed in. This is part one of a trilogy, The Cartel and The Border are two and three, but I’m taking a break from the series after half way through the 23 hour audio book for The Cartel.
I've been reading Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow for the past week or so. I'm not sure if I heard about this book on here or on Reddit or something. I just found out that this was named one of the best books of 2022 and shows up on a bunch of awards lists.
Either way, this is legitimately some of the most cringe-inducing writing I have ever encountered. While the actual storyline is fine, though a little heavy-handed, the prose is full of bullcrap. Nearly all the secondary characters are despicable tropes that sound like they were created by an edgelord internet troll. There are constant references to pop culture items that seem like an attempt for the author to justify their nerd-credit. Overly tragic events and crapty decisions by the main characters sprinkled throughout that would make you wonder why they would ever associate with one another. It's like the author took all the worst aspects of a book like Ready Player Two and dialed it up.
I'm wondering if I'm in the minority on this as it seems like this book is not only praised but apparently is getting a movie.
> Sounds like another Ready Player One type of book. Basically, Twilight for dudes.
>
My first impression of the book was Ready Player One written by a female who wanted to capitalize in the wake of Gamergate. While some of the pressure points she touches are rooted in truth, it makes for an unpleasant read. Many of the characters are thinly veiled misogynist butt-holes and some excerpts of the writing are hilariously bad.
It's not often I literally stop reading to show something to my wife or a buddy but I've had to do this for a handful of passages in this book. Below are just a couple examples of some truly ridiculous passages.
When Dov came down to the apartment to help Sadie set up Ulysses, Marx hated him immediately: the leather pants, the tight black T-shirt, the heavy silver jewelry, the immaculate goatee, the eyebrows permanently in the shape of circumflexes, the topknot. “The poor man’s Chris Cornell,” Marx whispered, referencing the lead singer of the grunge band Soundgarden. “Chris Cornell?” Sam said. “I think he looks like a satyr.” But it was Dov’s cologne that Marx loathed. It wasn’t a cheap cologne, but as soon as he came into the room, his scent was everywhere, and even after he left, and they opened every window in the apartment, Marx could still smell him. The room felt murky and musky, oppressive with pine, patchouli, and cedar. It was, he felt, an aggressively male cologne, a roofie of a cologne.
I remember that she had great hair, though,” Lola said. “That shiny Beverly Hills blowout that all the Jewish Westside girls get.” Sam wasn’t sure if this comment was anti-Semitic or not. “I think her hair just looks that way,” Sam said. No one’s hair just looks that way,” Lola said. She leaned in to kiss him, and he kissed her, and then she put her hand between his legs, wrapping her fingers around the cylindrical chamber of blood sponges that was his (and every) penis. He felt the corpora cavernosa, commanded by nerve messages from his subconscious brain, fill up with blood, and the tunica albuginea membrane, the penis’s straitjacket, trap the blood inside. He pulled away.
I literally just discovered that my local library has Kindle books you can somehow check out. This might end my book purchasing... however when I order on Amazon and don't need something fast I usually get the digital credits. That and there's a beta for some points program. So lately I've not actually paid for any books either. Still might be helpful for some! The app you want to download is Libby... it'll do a search to see if a local library supports it and often times you can set up membership online too.
Just finished up Deadbeat Druid by David R. Slayton. finished up the series
the majority of the book was really good. the ending seemed a bit rushed. like it sounded like they could have almost had a 4th book but then said 'naw, lets just deus ex machina and neatly wrap everything up in the last two chapters"
Finished Heart of the Sun Warrior: (Celestial Kingdom Book 2) by Sue Lynn Tan and was rewarded by finding out book 3 was announced and should come out in February. I loved this 2 book series and can't wait to continue the story. I would love to see the novels brought to life on the screen some day and since they quickly blew up for the new author there's always hope.
> Almost there, presuming I didn't miss any books. Nice work
Yeah you missed one somewhere.
I read Dexter #7, #8 (so probably one of those) Into Darkness: The Children of D'Hara Pachinko Go Tell the Bees That I'm Gone Daughter of the Moon Goddess and Heart of the Sun Warrior
woohoo. I gotta pick up the pace though if I want to meet my goal of 20 books by end of the year though. But I'm still thrilled to get these 7 read. I'm onto For You and Only You (the You series, book 4)
I finished Flowers for Algernon yesterday. Been on my to-read list for a while so glad that I finally get to check it off. A touching look from the point of view of the main character with mental retardation. Pretty well written.
@sinnie I also just started For You and Only You. My wife still enjoys the Netflix show (I bailed at season 2 but kept reading the books with her). I'd say that that the Joe Goldberg persona has jumped the shark but we still revel in how ridiculous everything gets. I re-read the synopsis for Book #3 before I started and had forgotten how insane the finish to the last book was. I suspect I'll breeze through this and chuckle at how everything works out perfectly at the end despite multiple people going missing and getting murdered in his immediate circle.
> @sinnie I also just started For You and Only You. My wife still enjoys the Netflix
> show (I bailed at season 2 but kept reading the books with her). I'd say that that
> the Joe Goldberg persona has jumped the shark but we still revel in how ridiculous
> everything gets. I re-read the synopsis for Book #3 before I started and had forgotten
> how insane the finish to the last book was. I suspect I'll breeze through this and
> chuckle at how everything works out perfectly at the end despite multiple people
> going missing and getting murdered in his immediate circle.
Oh yeah the show has been awful after season 2.... the books are so so but at this point I'm happy to finish it (and the show when it comes back.) Yes it gets quite insane!
I finished up For You and Only You. Hoping that's the end of the series.
@sinnie Curious on your thoughts when you wrap it up. I think the books continue to get worse as the series progresses. Joe's superpower of conveniently figuring out ways to kill people without casting any suspicion is pretty comically on display at this point. This only pales to his other super ability to only meet females with ridiculous names. I've never met nor heard of a single person named Love, Sly, Wonder, Peach, Guinevere, OK, etc.
finished The Queen's Poisoner by Jeff Wheeler. another one of my wife and i's driving books. likely going to finish up the next book in the next week or so as well
plus, will likely finish up another book tomorrow :)
Lonesome Dove - I never thought I’d enjoy a western but this was great. The tv series from 1989 was maybe the most accurate book to show/movie I’ve ever seen. But the show was a lot softer than the book. Augustus McCrae is now near the top of my list for favorite all time book characters.
City on Fire - Pretty good Boston crime mafia book. A but too short for me but Don Winslow was probably saving stuff for books 2 & 3.
Now I’m on to Killing Floor (Jack Reacher book 1).
i just added it to my wishlist. sounds pretty interesting. LitRPGs are hit or miss for me. They can be done really well though, and like you said, it has crazy good reviews
others that i really like are: -The Gam3 (3 books, and i'm not sure if he'll ever finish the series) -Ben's Damn Adventure
