Books You’ve Read in 2023

Discussion in 'TMB Book Club' started by The Blackfish, Jan 4, 2023.

  1. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    It's definitely a book that just drops you right in to the world. It's great though.
     
  2. Pharm

    Pharm Right Handed
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    like I have no clue what the magic system is or how it works. Names of different beings, why that fighting. Just wildly different than how Sanderson developed magic. Gotta rework my brain
     
  3. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Im not an audiobook guy, but I would think this one would be especially hard. There's a lot of African sounding words, names, descriptions that I didnt have much exposure to. For me at least, just hearing it without seeing how it was spelled would make it much harder to ingest.
     
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  4. Kevintensity

    Kevintensity Poster/Posting Game Coordinator
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    You'll get it, took a little time. But man, I loved this book. You could probably find a glossary of the book specific words, that might help
     
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  5. Irush

    Irush Well-Known Member
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    First book of the year I’ve read is Savage Harvest by Carl Hoffman. Deep dive into this disappearance of Michael Rockefeller in Dutch New Guinea and the politics behind the colonization of the island.
     
  6. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    1. How To Do the Work by Nicole LaPera - 8/10
    2. Dead in the Water by Matthew Campbell & Kit Chellel - 8/10
    3. In the Distance by Hernan Diaz - 9/10
    4. Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King - 6.5/10

    5. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George RR Martin - 9/10. Planning to read through the SOIAF series in chronological order. This was great. Now time to dive into the series itself…

    6. Call For The Dead by John Le Carré - 8/10. I read a newly released Smiley novel last year and like GK was confused over all the characters and background. Figured I’d start from the beginning. This was a really good, and quick read.
     
    #56 Upton^2, Jan 19, 2023
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2023
  7. Gallant Knight

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    I'm going to give it another shot and start with the first book.
     
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  8. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    I want to do an ASOIAF re-read. But I want to do it in the lead up to WoW being released so everything is fresh.

    Ive given up on looking forward to that reread
     
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  9. Gallant Knight

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    i'll be doing the same if that ever happens (lol)
     
  10. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    How long would that take you
     
  11. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Idk. They’re long ass books. 5ish months? About a book a month? I have no idea
     
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  12. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    The shitty thing is I bet it will be difficult to avoid spoilers, so you gotta hop on WoW ASAP.
     
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  13. Gallant Knight

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    I mean it would be at least a few months between announcement the book was finished to actually being able to buy it

    once again-not something we actually need to worry about
     
  14. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    Oh for sure. I bet It would be at least 6 months. And probably more because we know it’s gonna get pushed back.
     
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  15. clemsonvianj

    clemsonvianj Well-Known Member
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    1. Weeds of the Upper Midwest by Teresa Marone - 5/10. Not bad yet it was an informational book on weeds, so it is what it is.
    2. The New Yorker Book of Doctor Cartoons - 3/10. Not that funny.
    3. The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown by Daniel Coyle - 8/10. Good stories to illustrate different ways different areas of the world have been successful at "producing talent" (like Brazil in soccer/football due to futsal, culture, etc.).
    4. Improve Wisdom: Don't Prepare. Just Show Up by Patricia Ryan Madson - 8.5/10. Sort of "self-help" like though surprisingly good (as some one who always tries to prepare, "just showing up" sounded awful). Lots of nice lessons.
    5. The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel - 8/10. Good stories to illustrate how to think about money.
     
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  16. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    1. The Trees - Perceval Everette (7/10)
    2. Stranded - Sarah Goodman (7.5/10)
    3. American Midnight: The Great War, a Violent Peace, and Democracy's Forgotten Crisis - Adam Hochschild (10/10)
    4. Ninth House (Alex Stern #1) - Leigh Bardugo (9/10)
    5. Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) - Leigh Bardugo (7.5/10)
    6. Age of Vice - Deepti Kapoor (8/10)


    Alex Stern Novels - Urban fantasy/Dark Academia that takes place in Yale. The Secret Societies use the occult type rituals to retain power in society. At some point they got in too much trouble and had to appoint a oversight house to keep things underwrap. A girl who OD'd is taken from her hospital bed by the society and given the chance to attend Yale, change her life while being in a role for the oversight house - for reasons. None that sounded too interesting to me. Not really a genre I look for, but it got such a huge rec that I read it. The first book was amazing. Gritty, dark, gruesome and fast paced. The 2nd book wasnt as good. Suffered from middle book syndrome a bit. Still looking forward to reading the finale whenever it comes out.


    Age of Vice - Huge sprawling organized crime novel that takes place in early 2000s India. Book is long AF but didn’t feel like it. Really enjoyed. The only thing that kept from 9/10 range was one part that really dragged for me. Only real disappointment is it’s the first in a trilogy and the next one isn’t due out for close to a year.
     
  17. Gallant Knight

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    Just finished the last of the red sparrow trilogy and I’m bummed it’s over
     
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  18. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    It’s been years since I’ve read it and I’ve been thinking about a re-read ever since I suggested it to you. So good.
     
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  19. Trip McNeely

    Trip McNeely Guys like us....we are a dime a dozen
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    1. A Darker Domain (Karen Pirie #2) - Val McDermid (6/10)

    2. An Immense World - Ed Yong (9/10)

    3. How to Do the Work - Nicole LePera (8/10)

    4. The Investigator (Letty Davenport #1) - John Sandford (7/10)

    5. Remarkably Bright Creatures - Shelby Van Pelt (8/10)

    6. A Heart That Works - Rob Delaney (9/10)
     
  20. Gallant Knight

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    John Adams by David McCullough 9.5/10
    A Tale or Two Cities by Charles Dickens 7/10
    The Marquis; Lafayette Reconsidered by Laura Auricchio 8/10
    The Turmoil by Booth Tarkington 10/10

    Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir 10/10
    Dark Matter by Blake Crouch 9/10
    Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews 9.5/10
    Palace of Treason by Jason Matthews 9.5/10
    The Kremlin's Candidate by Jason Matthews 9/10
    Call for the Dead by John le Carre 6.5/10

    I think everyone has read Project Hail Mary and Dark Matter--both recommended by a bunch of people on this board. I'm definitely in the consensus that both are great and fun reads.

    Thank you to Truman for recommending the Red Sparrow Trilogy. Like 1500 pages total and I think I read all three books in about a week. Could not put them down. I've already recommended them to everyone I know who likes to read.

    I wen to Barnes and Noble yesterday and bought Call for the Dead, the first George Smiley book, after being thoroughly confused when I tried to read Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. I think le Carre just isn't for me. The idea was fun, but I just didn't care about any of the characters.
     
  21. Gallant Knight

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    the used book options on amazon are legit. can get pretty much anything you want for like 6 bucks or less
     
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  22. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    If you have a Kindle, check out the Libby app and see if your local library participates. There’s books and audiobooks you can “check out” and download to your kindle for free. It’s fantastic
     
  23. lomcevak

    lomcevak The suck zone
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    It's also available for Android and iOS too. My 6 year uses an older android phone with that app to listen to audiobooks
     
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  24. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    Yeah I have it on my iPhone and then download on Kindle for books or listen on app for audiobooks
     
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  25. Imurhuckleberry

    Imurhuckleberry Avid spectator of windmill warriors
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    1. He Who Fights with Monsters 8 (Shirtaloon) (6 out of 10). Fun book in a fun series.
    2. Enemy women. (Paulette Jiles) (7-10) Took A few dozen pages to catch my interest but some good history and good fiction combined.
    3. Iron Gold (pierce brown) (3-10) just a bad book but I guess I needed to read it so I can read book five in the series.
    4. Dark Age (Pierce Brown) (7-10) Definitely continues the series trend as the darkest series in this genre I’ve ever read. A line “cut off his cock, gang rape his ass bloody, then force his cock down his throat to kill him. Oh and here are some video drones to record it and send back to his wife” is possibly the darkest thing I’ve read in memory. Most books in this genre tend to trigger a solid dopamine hit. This series isn’t that at all. The heroes are always outsmarted and escape only by the latest incidence of deus ex machina. Still, it’s different and after 40 years of reading that has its own value. Going to something lighter next. Maybe back to the Bobverse.
    5. Dark Matter (6-10) (Blake crouch) interesting twist on quantum potential. I liked the idea but would have enjoyed a bit more science and a bit less of the family angle. Still decent read.

    had no internet driving through the Rockies so started HWFWM book 1 and happy to be rereading now that I’m more used to the style. Really the only series that frequently makes me actually laugh out loud. It’s thin writing but I liked it so much I bought the tshirt.
     
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  26. Pharm

    Pharm Right Handed
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    ok almost done with book 1

    he really trained in the underworld. I legit was like. That’s badass and fucked up. Poor baby dragons too.
     
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  27. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    Got $500 credit from work once that could only go to books. You should see how I racked up
     
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  28. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    Only for nonfiction though :(
     
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  29. Tangman

    Tangman Well-Known Member
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    check out thriftbooks.com as well. I think they may be tied in to Amazon but you earn points on each purchase that can be redeemed for free books. Free shipping over $10.
     
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  30. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    Even I maintain a fiction shelf
     
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  31. Dillingham

    Dillingham Well-Known Member
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    When I Sing, Mountains Dance by Irene Sola - 7.25/10. Really ....ethereal? book about a family in the Pyrenees. Has POV characters that are both human and non-human. Some really delightful writing about the natural world, but definitely a different feel than a linear novel.
    The Immortality Key - Brian Muraresku - 7/10. To be honest, this one is really difficult to grade out. The way the author presents arguments feels very plausible, but I recognize that he is writing to seduce/convince his audience of his point, so it is difficult to parse out what is fact vs conjecture. Most of it seems to be conjecture and maybe too convenient, but it also feels like it makes a lot of sense. As someone raised Catholic and has experienced psychedelics, there's a lot that makes sense. It's an interesting book to think about and read as a "what if this is true" rather than "this is definitely true". On the other hand, it appears as though this book is a Joe Rogan-ite darling, which immediately raises red flags and makes me annoyed that I enjoyed it. I can definitely see people not liking it and would be curious to hear some refutations of the book from historians.
     
  32. laxjoe

    laxjoe Well-Known Member
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    All rereads so far, but I’ve enjoyed them. Enjoyed book 3 more this time around, and book 1 remains one of my all time favorites
    1. The Passage - Justin Cronin
    2. The Twelve - Justin Cronin
    3. The City of Mirrors - I’ll give you one guess
     
  33. laxjoe

    laxjoe Well-Known Member
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    Red sparrow series is next, I think. Have a 10 day vacation to Anguilla coming up at the beginning of Feb, so I’m trying to line up some books to listen to on the beach. So thanks for the ideas to everyone that’s posted in here
     
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  34. Hoss Bonaventure

    Hoss Bonaventure I can’t pee with clothes touching my butt
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    Almost finished with Fairytale. Can’t decide between The Talisman or The Gunslinger next.
    Edit:Forgot to add I highly recommend Fairytale even if you’re not a Stephen King fan. My wife really liked it as well.
     
    #84 Hoss Bonaventure, Jan 26, 2023
    Last edited: Jan 26, 2023
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  35. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
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    I just started The Talisman
     
  36. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    1. How To Do the Work by Nicole LaPera - 8/10
    2. Dead in the Water by Matthew Campbell & Kit Chellel - 8/10
    3. In the Distance by Hernan Diaz - 9/10
    4. Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King - 6.5/10
    5. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George RR Martin - 9/10
    6. Call For The Dead by John Le Carré - 8/10

    7. A Murder of Quality by John Le Carré - 6/10. Not my favorite. I did enjoy the setting of an Eton-like school and the absolute railing against prestigious private schools from le carre. But the plot itself was kind of thin and the characters weren’t really fleshed out.
     
    #86 Upton^2, Jan 27, 2023
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2023
  37. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
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    1. Silent Spring - Rachel Carson (8.5/10)
    2. Tress of the Emerald Sea - Brandon Sanderson (8/10)
    3. Cujo - Stephen King (6.5/10)
    4. The Running Man - Stephen King (7/10)
    5. Christine - Stephen King (7.5/10)


    I have to be honest, despite being an avid Stephen King fan I didn't think I would enjoy this and have always avoided it and From a Buick 8. I was wrong and enjoyed it way more than I thought I would. Tone and pacing were fine throughout the whole book and his characters brought me into it. Flew through the book.
     
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  38. Doug

    Doug Skeptical Doug-o
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    I started Iron Gold but after a few chapters I had to put it down, just wasn't grabbing me. Especially after reading the original trilogy straight through. I moved on to The Last Kingdom, may go back to Iron gold after a few of those - it's going to be a slog but I feel like I need to get through it.
     
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  39. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    What are you, copying me? I read Cujo and Christine last year. I had Christine at 7 and Cujo at 7.5.
     
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  40. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    This sounds amazing
     
  41. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    2. Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto / Chuck Klosterman (7/10)
    This is from 2003 so a little dated. Rants on things like The Real World, Saved By The Bell. Gets out over his skis on some takes but pretty funny. I will probably read his history of the 90s that came out recently.

    Currently Reading
    [​IMG]

    1. Will In The World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare / Stephen Greenblatt (8.5/10)
     
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  42. The Blackfish

    The Blackfish The Fish in Black
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    Who is to say I’m not you one year in the past in a similar but alternate universe
     
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  43. TC

    TC Peter, 53, from Toxteth
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    I do love a good stout...
     
  44. Fusiontegra

    Fusiontegra My life is dope and I do dope shit.#SparedByThanos
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    The move that IG makes is necessary and your appreciation for new characters really turns up in book 5.

    Like someone mentioned, this whole series is pretty fucking bleak but I love every minute of it.

    Day of Red Doves > Red Wedding
     
  45. Gallant Knight

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    Screen time down 30% since I decided to go ham on books in 2023
     
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  46. Doug

    Doug Skeptical Doug-o
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    1. Golden Son (Red Rising 2) 7/10
    2. Morning Star (Red Rising 3) 7/10
    3. The Last Kingdom 6/10

    Not sure what I'm going to dive into next. May go Malice or City of Thieves
     
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  47. Upton^2

    Upton^2 blocked just a park away, but I can't really say
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    1. How To Do the Work by Nicole LaPera - 8/10
    2. Dead in the Water by Matthew Campbell & Kit Chellel - 8/10
    3. In the Distance by Hernan Diaz - 9/10
    4. Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King - 6.5/10
    5. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms by George RR Martin - 9/10
    6. Call For The Dead by John Le Carré - 8/10
    7. A Murder of Quality by John Le Carré - 6/10

    8. We Don’t Know Ourselves by Finan O’Toole - 7.5/10. Part memoir part modern Irish history by legendary Irish author. The breadth of topics covered in this was extraordinary, and the writing was really fantastic. Only gripes were it was almost too pedantic and detailed.
     
  48. NCHusker

    NCHusker We named our yam Pam. It rhymed.
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    Finished I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jenette McCurdy. She's an excellent writer and her ability to put herself in the mind and emotional state of child Jenette is pretty incredible. It's a quick and powerful read, strong recommend.

    Note - I listened on audiobook and Jenette narrates it. She's like a 2/10 audiobook reader but it's her words and story so that makes up for it quite a bit.
     
  49. Truman

    Truman Well-Known Member
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    I’ve seen almost universal praise for that book.
     
  50. NCHusker

    NCHusker We named our yam Pam. It rhymed.
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    It landed her a multi-million dollar two-book deal to write fiction novels. She's a legitimately good writer.
     
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