Introduction (General Book Club Discussion)

Discussion in 'TMB Book Club' started by Arkie Proud, May 2, 2012.

  1. Lorne Malvo

    Lorne Malvo Aces!
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  2. KJROD20

    KJROD20 the ends will justify the means.
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  3. Lorne Malvo

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    Holy shit at its reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.
     
  4. Gonff

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    I'm cool with it
     
  5. The Blackfish

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    Gone Girl
    Girl on a Train
    I Let You Go
    Big Little Lies

    We love murder mysteries written about women by women.
     
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  6. Lorne Malvo

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    Either that or Stephen King books takes up a decent chuck of what we've read.
     
  7. rv12

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  8. Truman

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    Big Little Lies is Oct book??
     
  9. KJROD20

    KJROD20 the ends will justify the means.
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    Pretty sure it is. I've got an epub if anyone needs.
     
  10. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    Let's say yes.
     
  11. prerecordedlive

    prerecordedlive Sworn Enemy of Standard Time
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    Price drop on Amazon readers today. I'm trying to get them to refund me the difference since there's a supposed 7 day price guarantee.

    They also introduced Amazon Prime Read today. Like a bastard version of Kindle Unlimited but wrapped up in your Prime subscription and doesn't raise the price.
     
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  12. prerecordedlive

    prerecordedlive Sworn Enemy of Standard Time
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    Got a response. They shot down my request due to it being a deferred payment plan but added a $30 credit to my account (the difference in price) for "being a loyal customer".

    Aka thanks for buying so much shit from us. Please continue to buy plenty of shit from us.
     
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  13. Blackterno

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    Check Inbox.
     
  14. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    A few thoughts for next month:

    The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara - Goodreads

    In the four most bloody and courageous days of our nation's history, two armies fought for two dreams. One dreamed of freedom, the other of a way of life. Far more than rifles and bullets were carried into battle. There were memories. There were promises. There was love. And far more than men fell on those Pennsylvania fields. Shattered futures, forgotten innocence, and crippled beauty were also the casualties of war.The Killer Angels is unique, sweeping, unforgettable—a dramatic re-creation of the battleground for America's destiny.


    Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield - Goodreads

    In 480 B.C., two million Persian invaders come to the mountain pass of Thermopylae in eastern Greece, where they are met by 300 of Sparta's finest warriors. The Greek loyalists battle for six days in a prelude to their ultimate victory.


    Dune by Frank Herbert - Goodreads

    Set in the far future amidst a sprawling feudal interstellar empire where planetary dynasties are controlled by noble houses that owe an allegiance to the imperial House Corrino, Dune tells the story of young Paul Atreides (the heir apparent to Duke Leto Atreides and heir of House Atreides) as he and his family accept control of the desert planet Arrakis, the only source of the 'spice' melange, the most important and valuable substance in the cosmos. The story explores the complex, multi-layered interactions of politics, religion, ecology, technology, and human emotion as the forces of the empire confront each other for control of Arrakis.

    Published in 1965, it won the Hugo Award in 1966 and the inaugural Nebula Award for Best Novel. Dune is frequently cited as the world's best-selling sf novel.


    The Brief Wonderous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz - Goodreads

    Things have never been easy for Oscar, a sweet but disastrously overweight ghetto nerd, a New Jersey romantic who dreams of becoming the Dominican J.R.R. Tolkien and, most of all, of finding love. But he may never get what he wants, thanks to the fukú — the ancient curse that has haunted Oscar's family for generations, dooming them to prison, torture, tragic accidents, and, above all, ill-starred love. Oscar, still dreaming of his first kiss, is only its most recent victim - until the fateful summer that he decides to be its last.
     
  15. prerecordedlive

    prerecordedlive Sworn Enemy of Standard Time
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    If I'm truly picking November's as a hazing ritual, would anyone be opposed to:

    Darktown by Thomas Mullen

    Responding from pressure on high, the Atlanta police department is forced to hire its first black officers in 1948. The newly minted policemen are met with deep hostility by their white peers and their authority is limited: They can’t arrest white suspects; they can’t drive a squad car; they can’t even use the police headquarters and must instead operate out of the basement of a gym.

    When a black woman who was last seen in a car driven by a white man turns up fatally beaten, no one seems to care except for Boggs and Smith, two black cops from vastly different backgrounds. Pressured from all sides, they will risk their jobs, the trust the community has put in them, and even their own safety to investigate her death. Their efforts bring them up against an old-school cop, Dunlow, who has long run the neighborhood like his own, and Dunlow’s young partner, Rakestraw, a young progressive who may or may not be willing to make allies across color lines.
     
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  16. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Looks good to me, and different from what we've been reading lately.
     
  17. The Blackfish

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    Is it a murder mystery written by a woman about a woman? No?

    Ok good I'm in.
     
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  18. prerecordedlive

    prerecordedlive Sworn Enemy of Standard Time
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    I'll give you reprieve. It's too early to read Gone Let You Shine on the Girl Train.
     
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  19. Gin Buckets

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    I fucking love Westworld... Outside of Jurassic Park, are there any other books similar? The best one I can think of is Ready Player One, but I've already read that.
     
  20. Gin Buckets

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  21. The Blackfish

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    He retired, now spends his time posting on restaurants facebooks pages
     
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  22. rcragg82

    rcragg82 Well-Known Member
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    So 2 months later, I just wanted to circle back and say I did read the Passage and really enjoyed it. I have actually started on book 2 and if I continue on to book 3 which I know came out this summer, the trilogy will probably occupy the back half of my 2016 reading.
     
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  23. prerecordedlive

    prerecordedlive Sworn Enemy of Standard Time
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    Got that on my long-term list. There's about 10 books ahead of it but I've heard good things about Cronin.
     
  24. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    This the final choice? We all good here?

    All right. Will start once I finish Malazan #9.
     
  25. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Has anyone read either of these two Books/series? Saw them listed Goodreads for best Sci-fi of the Year nominations. Peaked my interest.

    The Brilliance Series by Marcus Sakey (Brilliance, A Better World, Written in Fire)

    In Wyoming, a little girl reads people’s darkest secrets by the way they fold their arms. In New York, a man sensing patterns in the stock market racks up $300 billion. In Chicago, a woman can go invisible by being where no one is looking. They’re called "brilliants," and since 1980, one percent of people have been born this way. Nick Cooper is among them; a federal agent, Cooper has gifts rendering him exceptional at hunting terrorists. His latest target may be the most dangerous man alive, a brilliant drenched in blood and intent on provoking civil war. But to catch him, Cooper will have to violate everything he believes in - and betray his own kind.

    From Marcus Sakey, "a modern master of suspense" (Chicago Sun-Times) and "one of our best storytellers" (Michael Connelly), comes an adventure that’s at once breakneck thriller and shrewd social commentary; a gripping tale of a world fundamentally different and yet horrifyingly similar to our own, where being born gifted can be a terrible curse. (less)


    or

    Confluence Series by Jennifer Foehner Wells (Fluency, Remanence)

    NASA discovered the alien ship lurking in the asteroid belt in the 1960s. They kept the Target under intense surveillance for decades, letting the public believe they were exploring the solar system, while they worked feverishly to refine the technology needed to reach it.

    The ship itself remained silent, drifting.

    Dr. Jane Holloway is content documenting nearly-extinct languages and had never contemplated becoming an astronaut. But when NASA recruits her to join a team of military scientists for an expedition to the Target, it’s an adventure she can’t refuse.

    The ship isn’t vacant, as they presumed.

    A disembodied voice rumbles inside Jane’s head, "You are home."

    Jane fights the growing doubts of her colleagues as she attempts to decipher what the alien wants from her. As the derelict ship devolves into chaos and the crew gets cut off from their escape route, Jane must decide if she can trust the alien’s help to survive
     
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  26. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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  27. Gin Buckets

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    I'm currently "reading" House of the Yellow Sun by Chimamnda Ngozi Adichie

    It's good, would recommend guys.

    Truman -- did you like "Off to be a Wizard" by the same author? That one really wasn't for me.
     
  28. Gin Buckets

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    Brilliance books look real interesting.
     
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  29. Truman

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    Yeah I did, it was goofy and different. Seemed to be pretty well received by most of us, which is why I threw it out there.
     
  30. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    So I'm perusing Google today and notice their site is celebrating an author named James Welch's 76th birthday.

    Now, I've heard the name but have never read any of his stuff. Don't know a thing about him. Didn't even know he writes native american lit.

    Checking his Wikipedia page, it talks about one of his books having won some big awards. Book is titled Fools Crow. Description in the spoiler. Goodreads profile.

    I know we just read a book of historical fiction, but still thought this sounded interesting. Figured I'd bring it up, anyways.

    Set in Montana shortly after the Civil War, this novel tells of White Man's Dog (later known as Fools Crow so called after he killed the chief of the Crows during a raid), a young Blackfeet Indian on the verge of manhood, and his band, known as the Lone Eaters. The invasion of white society threatens to change their traditional way of life, and they must choose to fight or assimilate.

    The story is a powerful portrait of a fading way of life. The story culminates with the historic Marias Massacre of 1870, in which the U.S. Cavalry mistakenly killed a friendly band of Blackfeet, consisting mostly of non-combatants.

    "A major contribution to Native American literature." -- Wallace Stegner

    Also, if we want to go the Scott Meyer route I enjoyed his book last year, so I'm game.
     
  31. Truman

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    Read the first Confluence book and really liked it. There's some groan worthy romance stuff that the author just seems to not be able to help herself. It's not overbearing or takes away from the story. Really liked it. Knocked out the first 6 chapters of the second book and seems to be heading in a good direction.

    Definitely scratches the sci fi itch.
     
  32. Truman

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  33. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Or something else.
     
  34. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    House of the Yellow Sun sounds good to me, but I'm a geek for that sort of stuff. But that would get my vote of the two.
     
  35. The Blackfish

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    I would vote Master of Formalities
     
  36. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    finna finish my current book today or tomorrow. WTF are we reading dudes?!?!?!?!

    Whatever it is I want to knock it out this weekend before the next Expanse book comes out Tuesday
     
  37. Gonff

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    Vote is split 1-1 now so I say if you have a preference, just start the thread and we'll go with it.
     
  38. The Blackfish

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    I guess we're taking December off to spend more time with our families.
     
  39. Blackterno

    Blackterno Well-Known Member
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    Looks like Scott Meyer's first after the Magic series was a flop.

    Maybe we can pick it up again in January with a format that generates more interest. I may be beating a dead horse but I liked it when we had a poll choosing among 4 or 5 books.
     
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  40. Gonff

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    I have no problem with that system. But if we're doing a poll with 4-5 choices a month, we'll need everyone to be consistent with the recommendations.
     
  41. Virgil Caine

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    Anybody got a good rec for a book about Obama's time as president?
     
  42. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Noticed on GR that The Blackfish is finally reading Red Rising.

    I think it was one of his friends that recommended it to him on GR that sparked my interest
     
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  43. The Blackfish

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    It's been on my list for a while, about a quarter of the way in. I'll post thoughts in the thread soon
     
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  44. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    Audiobook? Friend of mine said it was really well done (the narrator).
     
  45. The Blackfish

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    Yes, he's been really good, but unfortunately I just finished all of Iron Druid books narrated by Luke Daniels and Luke Daniels is just on another level
     
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  46. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Shall we start thinking about January ?
     
  47. Gonff

    Gonff Prince of Mousethieves
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    Sure. I'm assuming we're going to go for a poll this time around?

    I'll just copy one of the suggestions I posted above.

    Dune by Frank Herbert - Goodreads

    Set in the far future amidst a sprawling feudal interstellar empire where planetary dynasties are controlled by noble houses that owe an allegiance to the imperial House Corrino, Dune tells the story of young Paul Atreides (the heir apparent to Duke Leto Atreides and heir of House Atreides) as he and his family accept control of the desert planet Arrakis, the only source of the 'spice' melange, the most important and valuable substance in the cosmos. The story explores the complex, multi-layered interactions of politics, religion, ecology, technology, and human emotion as the forces of the empire confront each other for control of Arrakis.

    Published in 1965, it won the Hugo Award in 1966 and the inaugural Nebula Award for Best Novel. Dune is frequently cited as the world's best-selling sf novel.
     
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  48. Truman

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    Ive never read it, so I like it
     
  49. The Blackfish

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  50. Truman

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    Started it this today and can't put it down. About half way through. Really good so far
     
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