Light Over Liskeard - Louis de Bernères

mfw "There was no light over liskeard."

In the far-but-also-not-quite-so-distant-future, humanity has become so reliant on technology that they have becomed disillusioned with reality that they have no purpose but to indulge in ways that satisfies the hypothalamus...

...yeah basically modern times.

I'm someone who considers themself to be a bit of a luddite (the way that you understand new tech but know which is good to indulge... pardon my autism). This book I got for Christmas was something I was interested in: the title alone, the beautiful cover and how it relates to my view... except on some aspects.

It's about a quantum cryptographer named Q (real name Arthur) taking refuge into the Cornish countryside after he finds out that the übertech the world is relient on will... BSOD forever.

In the beautiful and very dangerous countryside, he meets a plethora of charming characters. Not including an arthinian knight who awaits the return of King Arthur and a ghost of an Edwardian lady whom he felt a crush on.

The message of this book is very understandable: how the reliance on technology, especially how advanced it is, can lead to the downfall of humanity. Without any physical backup, any sign that infomation is legit... everything digitally was essentially fodder. I like how it also helps you appreciate the beauty of small things, those were my favourite parts and I gotta say it did have an effect on me!

And then the ending. That anticlimax really punched my guts out...

Well... not really anticlimax... but... it was sad ok?

Would reccommend! But it does have a bad case of thesedamnkidsontheirphonesitis...

and... other... stuff...

I will make a low amount because I have lost the habit and I have to recover it.

2 I am clear that by 2024 I have to read at least two more fazbear frights, the lore of FNAF is advancing and I am still stuck in 2018.

Maybe there are 3, I don't know if I will finish reading A happy World.

I finished Grant Morrison's run on Animal Man the other day.

Really fun meta story on the nature of being and fiction, and what it is to exist. It is a product of it's time though and was in the second wave of the post Watchmen/Darknight Returns mainstream superhero deconstruction books. I would say it has stand out moments/plotline, with relatively weak/outdated connective tissue between them. The effects of it being tied to what was going on in DC comics' continuity/editorial obligations are definitely there; but the stand out moments are really cool, and there is some really great art, if you're into that era of superhero art.

It's three collected volumes, but I'd count them as one book.

I'm too busy this year, so i aim to read at least two books more. I have 4 read until now

One of my favorite runs. Have you read Doom Patrol too? That’s a great next step for Morrison, but jumping right into The Invisibles works too.

Doom Patrol is definitely on the list somewhere down the line, I really liked the show, and the overall weirdness of the concept has always been appealing. I just happened to have the three volumes of Animal Man sitting on my shelf from when a family member was moving and dumped a bunch of comic/graphic novels on my lap, and needed something to read so I finally dove in.

Looking at the covers of The Invisibles I'm going to have to check that out, thanks!

Considering what you liked about Animal Man, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed with The Invisibles. Some of it gets pretty crazy and obtuse, but stick through it and you’ll be rewarded. The Grant Morrison documentary by Respect Films is also great and I think still available for free on YouTube.

26. Count Zero - William Gibson

If you think every vaguely cyberpunk/sci-fi action story stole most things from Neuromancer, you’ll find the rest of the stuff they stole in Count Zero. Damn what a book. Even better than Neuromancer. Can’t wait to start Mona Lisa Overdrive. 

I also read the short story Cyberpunk by Bruce Bethke which coined the name of the movement. It’s an interesting curio for that reason, but not very good. Check it out if you’re a cyberpunk completist, but otherwise don’t worry about it. 

26. Fantasy Femmes of Sixties Cinema - Tom Lisanti 

A lovely book of interviews with lesser known film and television actresses of the 1960’s loaded with stories about Jerry Lewis, Elvis, Natalie Wood, Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, Vincent Price, etc. Light, fluffy, and very worth your time if you’re interested in that era of film. 

27. The Shockwave Rider - John Brunner

A fun thing happens when you read a lot of old sci-fi books. Occasionally you’ll encounter an idea that was novel at the time, but commonplace now in fiction or even reality. A major chunk of this book is spent explaining a surveillance society and the negative impacts it could have on its citizens. Since I live in America in 2024 and can’t leave my house without being photographed by six different dorks posting their boring lives on Instagram, I’m pretty familiar with the idea. Much of the story involves escaping and avoiding the surveillance society, which is also fun to read these days when people just kind of take it for granted.

A hacker with the ability to erase and rebuild his own identity online is on the run. In creating these false identities through the net he struggles to hold on to his own true self and differentiate the real him from the personas he creates online. But, I’m sure that has no modern relevance either…

Comics - Peep Show #15 

Last year we lost brilliant cartoonist Joe Matt and the final issue of his iconic indie autobio comic Peep Show has finally been posthumously published. Beautiful. Read it. 

Finished What Are the Odds? From Crack Addict to CEO by Mike Lindell today.

Kind of a wild one. I am generally a sucker for business books and love a good rags-to-riches story and this one seemed like it had elements of that in it. It did, but it was WAY more focused on how Mike Lindell was an out-of-control crackhead who was constantly gambling and putting his family and friends through tremendous hardships.

And we're not talking about a man who was a knucklehead as a teenager/20-something. He was legit an addicted monster up until he was like 47 years old and his company, MyPillow, was very much a thing BEFORE he became a sober born-again Christian.

So, with all of that said, it made for some excellent car crash reading as the book is full of him getting into all sorts of trouble with casinos and drug dealers, but it's hard to believe everything he says because he has a REMARKABLE memory (like able to recall minute details from incidents that happened in the 80s and 90s) for someone who was allegedly using drugs heavily for several decades and he makes a TON of bold claims where one in a million odds fall his way because he was "destined" to have it happen so that he could have a "platform" to spread his message on.

It was also nuts to hear him claim that he didn't know the difference between a Republican and a Democrat as recently as 2015, especially when you consider all of the extreme voter-fraud claims he's made in the last five years. Still, though, the man did go from having literally nothing to being in the White House as part of manufacturers meeting, so that must count for something...

Glad I read this, but wouldn't recommend it unless you love messed-up drug stories.

The April 1959 issue of the magazine of fantasy and science fiction, by way of archive.org. I was curious about its first short story, Flowers For Algernon, then decided I may as well read the rest. The highlight for me was a translation of a sci-fi parody by Anton Chekhov called The Floating Islands, which includes this quote:

Was going to wait but figured I share what I've read thus far for the month. These made for some nice reading during quick breaks at work.

25) Reading and Watching about Le Mans and 24 Hours of Le Mans by Kate Mikoley

Reading About Le Mans

Got curious about Le Mans after watching some clips from the movie Gran Turismo. Haven't played the game since GT2 and read bits and pieces online during a binge session where I wound up on the official site. This was mainly spurred from complaints about the film not actually being filmed on the course to which many replied that it wasn't possible/available at the time of filming.

The Experimental Car

I went from reading to watching videos. Was lead to the video about a Le Mans lap record then I watched one about an experimental car that got to drive at Le Mans which was a modified stock car that was drastically different from its counterparts. The team responsible for the car wasn't driving to compete so they got some leeway with the rules - namely for the exploding engine which they were permitted to rebuild due to said experiment. It was also nice to hear the distinct difference between the experiment car and the typical cars that drove the course.

The Book

From the Juvenile non-fiction section of my library's digital library (1 of 2 to be exact). It was an interesting and nice read. I was so busy reading up on the course's layout that I some how missed the racing for 24-hours bit.

The book explains that cars and teams of drivers have to make as many laps as they can around the course with the main objective of covering the longest distance. Which means, the winner(s) that travel the furthest win. Learning about the different types of cars was cool too.

The cars that participate in Le Mans are specifically designed for the course and possibly endurance racing. The LMPs, as mentioned in the book, were designed for this particular course. That said, non-LMPs participate as well.

26) Enzo Ferrari vs Lamborghini Aventador SVJ by Jaxon Hayes

An interesting approach to reading. The book is laid out like an intro short of sorts for the two competing vehicles. The author gives an overview of the company responsible for each car. Then, they give you key specs - horsepower, engine type, drive-type (FR, FF, AWD, etc), 0-60 time and max speed.

After the introduction, we're given a race in a play-by-play commentary style. Everything starts at the starting line and ends with one victor. I can only imagine what the video - if there is one - would like with this two going head-to-head like the narrator states.

27) Ford F-150 Raptor vs Ram 1500 Rebel by Jaxon Hayes

Same layout as #26. I had no idea there was more to these trucks name than just F-150 and Ram 1500. That said, I like how this author writes about vehicles.

28) The Story of Zombie by Jaxon Hayes

Not the musician/band, but the monster truck. I've seen some episodes of Monster Jam with this truck in action and didn't know that it was born from a post that fans voted into existence. I think the most memorable was seeing a clip from one of the drivers making an appearance at one of the major Halloween theme park up north and taking pictures with the cast of zombies that worked there.

There's also stats toward the back of the book of some records that broken by the truck both on and off the competition clock.

29) Demolition Derby by Brian Howell

Unlike the previous reads, this felt more like a short story; and I enjoyed every moment of it. From it's earlier days to present, the book talks about what goes into making a vehicle demo derby ready. In addition to this, they talk about the rules that have to be followed verbatim - this includes having functioning seat belts. There's also some tidbits from participating drivers which also included a shout-out to a demo derby family that's featured in a show called Kings of Crash on the Velocity channel.

30) Lawn Mower Racing by Kate Mikoley

I was not expecting this despite encountering a video of tiller racing. While you're not racing to cut the grass, you are racing to win a race. As one would expect, there are strict rules for racing lawn mowers.

Only riding mowers can participate, the blades have to be removed, drivers have to wear protective gear (no exceptions) and the mower must have a kill switch that is attached to the driver. The kill switch ensures that if the driver should fall off, the mower instantly turns off to prevent unnecessary injuries. There's also an interesting tidbit where it states that lawn mower racing is the cheapest of the racing sports.

31) Final Lap! Go-Kart Racing by Christine Dugan

Really should've had a different name. I was expecting the approach to be similar to how Brian Howell wrote #29 but darn is this different. There's more focus on building a kart than the actual sport of racing them. Sure, there's some mention of racing but not in an engaging way. An interesting read but the title doesn't fit...well.

32) Rally Car Racing by Brian Howell

Much like his demo derby book, Howell shares a wealth of information on rally car events. You are given an introduction to the sport through a glimpse into history. Then the author transitions into the present by discussing changes and the different vehicle classes that participate today.

There's even a chapter dedicated to some notable rally drivers along with the mention of a division (not sure if I'm using that right) of the sport called RallyCross which was added to the X Games lineup some years ago.

There are more readings planned and hopefully I can get them in before the month is out.

Put me down for .5 of a book, I'm at page 350 of Thomas Sowell's Basic Economic's, but I want to read book three of Thee Wheel of Time before I continue it.

Panorama of Hell by Hideshi Hino

14. Andy Weir - The Hail Mary Project. Dr Ryland Grace logs the efforts to save Earth and other planets from a space-based extinction event. I greatly enjoyed Rocky.

15. Andy Weir - Artemis. Moon based crime caper, shorter and more action than some of the Andy Weir books I've logged so far, but pretty good.

33) Rock Crawling by Patrick Hueller

This book describes the motorsport known as rock crawling. Only this crawling isn't done by a person, per se, but by a meticulously modified vehicle (driven by a person). To simplify, if you've ever seen footage of a monster truck-like vehicle driving near vertical over boulder filled terrain then you got a glimpse into the sport.

From humble beginnings to an ever growing sensation, rock crawling has seen the number of participants and spectators grow over the years. Like most sports, there are rules in place to ensure everyone's safety. This includes the driver's assistant, known as a spotter, that works outside of the vehicle guiding the driver thru course obstacles.

By outside, I'm talking about them walking/jogging/climbing with the vehicle. There are also rules for getting extra help with the course which can get tricky if the vehicle in question gets stuck. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the points system so I'm unable to explain it well.

Like the demo derby book, the author shares some info about the organized events along with some notable drivers of the sport. Love that Hueller has a similar writing-style as Howell.

34) The Story of Grave Digger by Jaxon Hayes

One of my favorite trucks to see in action. Hayes provides the best parts by giving a quick look into the truck's history and some memorable performances over the years. Both the founding driver, Dennis Anderson, and his kids have driven this truck in a variety of competitions.

Grave Digger has been performing since the 80s and has a theme song to match - Bad to the Bone. One of the things the book mentioned that I didn't even noticed until the closeup shot, was that the tombstones on GD's truck contains the names of all his defeated opponents. There was also mention of records being set by Dennis and two of his kids Adam and Krysten (one of his sons and daughter) while driving said truck in competitions.

35) The Story of Son-uva Digger by Jaxon Hayes

This spin-off of Grave Digger is driven by Dennis' other son Ryan. Adam got "the Legend" version. Both of their trucks were debuted a year apart at a Monster Jam event.

Son-uva Digger's first appearance wasn't as a competitor but as an after show performance. Kind of similar to how his dad performs when he's just driving for the crowd's amusement. His first competition was the very next year.

And much like his siblings, he has set some interesting records while driving his truck. Like his dad, he has a theme song from the 80s - Hells Bells.

36) The Tractor Race by Mari C. Schuh

An unexpectedly quick read but reads better than the go-kart one. Didn't pay much attention to the cover image but after starting the book discovered that the image was that of a mower. There were more pictures with this one and it showed how some of the racers exchanged their mower stirring wheels for handle bars.

This is a nice companion book for the lawn mower racing book as it shows in more detail what the protective gear looks like for each driver along with the modifications that some drivers make to their competing mowers. You also get a nice glimpse of what race track looks like for these events.

The author describes the race in simple terms (young age group) but keeps it engage much like Hayes with the vehicle vs vehicle books.

37) Wild Moments of Stock Car Racing by M. Weber

A nice read that captures a little bit of everything from over the years of NASCAR racing. There are also some moments from the UK and Australian equivalents of the race. One of the first ones I had to look up while reading was the 37-car crash at Daytona 500 in the 1960s.

Reading the drivers' accounts was one thing, but seeing the crash is something else. Especially, when you see what the drivers are wearing. Stark contrast to the gear of today.

Outside of crashes there were moments of close calls due to drivers being equally skilled drivers to the point where their race finish has to be examined to see who was closer to winning. Petty vs Pearson was highlighted along with Reagan being mentioned as the first US president to attend a NASCAR event. There was even mention of Dale Earnhardt Sr and Jr.

While I was familiar with the crash, I didn't know his son drove the #3 car in a race. Even though it was only once, it was memorable for those who to experience it.

38) Parallel Parking is Easy (and other Lies) by Kristy Grant

Based on the title, I was expecting something...humorous. The book is filled with lots of useful information for young drivers to use when they get behind the wheel for the first time. That said, the delivery of this information is on the dry side.

There are also moments where it feels like information overload. The pictures that are present aren't displayed in action; which is problematic when describing things in/around the vehicle. I had to look the book up on Amazon to see the target age group: 15 and up. In my opinion, if the designated reading group can make it past Section 1 then they should be good to go.

Wanted to get these in before I forget. I'm still reading but needed a break from regular reading and searching for new reads. The digital library catalogs are a pain to navigate and there's no way to narrow down results.

23: Backyard Starship by JN Chaney & Terry Maggert

Tried out a new series and I don't think it's for me. Guy's grandpa dies and leaves him his farm and everything but in the barn is a spaceship. His grandpa was a space cop of some sort. Apparently you can just be a space cop because you inherit the ship? It felt very Harry Potter overpowered main character immediately good at everything and by the end of the first book he's like in the upper echelons of the Peacemakers but like only a few months has gone by?

I think I'll sit on this series for now as I've got an interesting nonfiction book to read next.

39) Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex: Episode 1 - Section 9 from Kodansha USA

According to the book overview and some reviews, got curious, the book is stated to be a print copy of the first episode of the first season of the show. The way it was showcased when I first watched it, broke the book into two episodes and had some extras added/modified. One of the things that stayed intact was the geisha scene.

Also noted how the English translation was different from the version I saw some years ago. Still a nice and welcoming read. Glad it was part of July's Bonus Borrow session as June's wasn't that great.

Edit: Some how episode 1 got blurred with episode 3. That said, I don't recall seeing some of the scenes from the manga being present in the animated episode.

40) The Adventure of "The Western Star" by Agatha Christie

This was a little easier to read than the other book I started by Christie. A lovely little mystery about an exquisite jewel that has a target on its back. It brought to mind that episode of Sherlock Holmes (1930s Rathbone and Bruce) that featured a similar case - but a different plot and setting.

41) The Tragedy at Marsdon Manor by Agatha Christie

A crazy mystery that lost me a bit. At least at the end, Detective Poirot was kind enough to explain things to both the reader and his assistant.

42) The Adventure of the Cheap Flat by Agatha Christie

It was like the jackpot of house hunting...sort of. Didn't think I would ever read a story featuring a party where the popular topic of conversation revolved around house/flat hunting. Seeing how this is a mystery, there was more to finding a steal of a deal than the purchasers' realized.

If you enjoy espionage stories, then this one is for you. On another note, I love how Christie includes French in the dialogue for Poirot when he speaks. Though there are times where I'm sure his friend just wants to throw something at him during his spur of the moment antics.

43) Hero Wars Celeste: Sporting Spirit

This is a comic designed and created by the Hero Wars creative team. It focuses on heroes that can be found on their Web and FB platform along with those that are exclusive to their Mobile platform. The focal heroes - no pun intended - are Celeste, Oya, Cascade and Polaris.

They have been tasked with resolving a dispute between Orcs and Trolls. What better way to do this than with a little friendly competition. Things start out simply enough but all it takes is one party pooper to ruin things.

Fortunately everyone was able to come together to defeat the party pooper before things got too out of hand. An interesting comic to say the least.

---

I've maxed my checkouts for the month so am pausing till August. Love the Bonus Borrows when they have descent books up. Been eyeing some Agatha Christie and will be returning with those in August.

28. Even Though I Knew The End – a gay magic noir novella, where a 1940s paranormal investigator is given a chance to break her deal with the devil and have a future with her longtime girlfriend. This was a good read; it briefly explores the sexism and homophobia of the era. I will keep an eye on the author’s other works.

29. I, Jedi – Got myself lost in a Star Wars book trap again. I ended up reading an old Expanded Universe novel from the 90s, set after Return of the Jedi and after Palpatine somehow returned the first time around. The only first-person Star Wars novel, it follows a Force-sensitive Rogue Squadron pilot becoming a Jedi to find his kidnapped wife. The first half of the book is set at Luke’s Jedi Academy, which is fine except it seems some major events are in the background or written in another book. If anything, it shows off the weak worldbuilding and poor story decisions of the EU. The rest of the book has some weird pacing, like the last chapter having a major flashback that could have been done several chapters before. Not a bad book, but I’m not willing to read the other books this ties into.

30. Psycho – The novel that was adapted to the famous Hitchcock classic. Turns out the movie was truly faithful to the book: a woman steals money from her job, runs off and ends up staying at motel owned by a man with serious mommy issues. Even with the pages of how the characters think and rationalize, the book is relatively short if interesting enough.

5 shorties this month.

The Box by Gunther Grass

Sacred Sex by Gabriele Herstik

Mixing Mindset by Mike Indovina

What to listen for in Music by Aaron Copland

and

Weed Witch by Sophie Saint Thomas

So close to meeting my goal...

Done reading these books:

67. Das Rad der Zeit 2 - Die Jagd beginnt (The Great Hunt), Robert Jordan, 784 pages

68. Drei Tage, zwei Frauen, ein Affe und der Sinn des Lebens, Karolien Notebaert, 168 pages

69. The Weekend Away, Miranda Smith, 280 pages

70. Das Spiel der Anderen, Carlo Feber, 416 pages

71. Seht mich an (Look at Me), Anita Brookner, 288 pages

72. Skorpion, Matt Basanisi + Gerd Schneider, 416 pages

73. Prophezeiungen für Jedermann, Nicole Gozdek, 400 pages

74. Corpus Delicti (The Method), Juli Zeh, 272 pages

75. Das Objekt, Joshua Tree, 332 pages

76. Gesichter (The Faces), Tove Ditlevsen, 160 pages

77. Hexenjäger, Max Seeck, 448 pages

78. Das Rad der Zeit 3 - Die Rückkehr des Drachen (The Dragon Reborn), Robert Jordan, 768 pages

79. Diablo: Book of Lorath, Matthew J. Kirby, 176 pages

The Great Hunt + The Dragon Reborn:

2nd and third book of the Wheel of Time series. Without many spoilers, I found book 2 to set things up too quickly for one character and the whole book overall more middling than the first. The Dragon Reborn with more emphasis on other characters was a great read, on the other side.

Drei Tage, zwei Frauen, ein Affe und der Sinn des Lebens:

Marie and her mother do some hiking in Ireland and discuss basic philospohy, how to influence your thoughts positively and the basics of meditation and mindfulness.

Solid book. The ideas here are explained well but also so basic that most readers that don't live under a rock probably heard of them already. Some of the dialogue between the mother and daughter, allegedly a loving relationship, also legit felt like AI was tasked with writing emphatic dialogue, the result being robotic in some places.

The Weekend Away:

Samanthas twin sister is dead - after seemingly killing herself, one day after sending Samantha a message that she needs her now. Samantha doesn't believe that her sister would kill herself and her suspicions rise when she finds her sisters diary, revealing secrets of her friends that she started a company with. Even though the last pages have been ripped out, there is enough left for Samantha to investigate - and the perfect opportunity arrives when she is invited to join the group of friends to spend a weekend in a lodge in the wintery mountains. She must be careful, as she believes alteast one of them to be involved with her sisters death.

Great book. Read in english.

Das Spiel der Anderen:

Malu, Sanctus and Habibi share a common belief that the global banking system is morally bankrupt (haha!) and together they plan to kidnap two people of the higher management of a bank. Their plans are ruined when on the day of the mission, their planned second victim is found dead in a burned down car - meaning that someone knew of their plans and has highjacked it for their own purposes. They still go through with the kidnapping and find themselves juggling between staying away from the police while also finding out who is behind the murder.

Solid book.

Look at Me:

Frances Hinton lives a sheltered life working for a library, that is until she meets the glorious couple Nick and Alix, a paring so divine and with no flaws, completely awing her away and she feels blessed when the couple is interested in picking her up as a friend. France hopes that some of their greatness and great social behaviour will get imprinted on her too but as her life revolves more and more around them, slowly the cracks of that perfect image she made up of them increase in number, revaling a profound feel of loneliness lingering in her soul.

Great book about loneliness.

Skorpion:

A priest is shot dead in Palermo, a pilot commits suicide in Zurich and three tons of cocaine are found in Antwerpen - three events that seem unconnected at first sight but somehow, the former banker Nauman has connections to all these cases and investigator David Keller tries everything to unravel this mess.

Mid book. Guess what behind everything is a secret agency and then another and then another and so on and so forth, That grew boring after 200 pages but that's only halfway for a thriller that is enterily too formulaic. Atleast the real backround that the events of the book are based on seem well researched.

Prophezeiungen für Jedermann:

In this world, everyone has to fulfill a prophecy that is revealed to them by the Oracle. As they are labelled as "prophecies for everyone" most of them are easy tasks like helping out some homeless people, etc. Zacharias prophecy seems easy at first too - but that quickly turns out to be more complicated and as he tries to fulfill his own prophecy, the people around the world struggle more and more with theirs and it seems like a big change is coming.

Good book. The main character is struck with bad luck constantly which makes the book a bit of a tough read. Ending seems to set things up for potential sequels but is still a worthwile conclussion to the story. Not available in english.

The Method:

Mia Holl is brought before a judge for a multitude of offenses: for loving her brother - who was proven to be guilty by undeniable facts - too much, for thinking too freely and for taking not enough care of her health in a society where maximising everyones health has become the number one rule. As she decides to stay uncooperative, she gets brought before a judge more times, further and further to be made an example of an unruly person and how such behavior is seens as society-eroding.

Decent book. Dialogue reads like a theatre play which makes everything feel a bit unnatural, which might be intented but is just making it tough to emphazise with the characters.

Das Objekt:

One day Melody Adams, who works for NASA, discovers a strange object nereby Pluto - and further inspection of the object seems to indicate that it is not a natural object as it portrays behaviour that asteroids don't. As such, a space mission to meet up with that object is planned but as Earth is going through a variety of cricises, even the space mission is getting affected by this. Can the mission succeed? And what will the team find?

Great book. Unlike many other books labelled as Hard Science, this one also manages to have a good plot without an overbearing amount of scientific details. Sadly not available in english.

The Faces:

Kopenhagen, 1968: Lisa Mundus is a succesful author and also losing her mind, believing to hear voices and seeing faces in places where they shouldn't be. After some back and fourth, she agrees to go to a mental hospital and meets an unforseen conflict: the desire of recovering versus the feeling of freedom that the madness and staying in the hospital invokes in her.

Good book. I expected a slower descent into madness but nah, main characters is crazy right off the hook. Outside of that, I enjoyed this.

Hexenjäger:

A murderer seems to draw inspirations from the books of a famous crime book author. Jessica Niemi and her team can't get a hold of the killer(s) and it seems like any evidence they find is just deliberately left at the crime scene.

Kinda bad book. Basically worse version of Requiem which I read earlier this year. Interesting sidestory but not connected to the main case, main case goes nowhere, unclear motivations and weak ending only to set up future books but with one-dimensional characters all around, I'll skip the rest.

Diablo: Book of Lorath:

Book 4 of the Diablo lore books. This one mainly focuses on artifacts, including some legendaries from the games. Overall a nice addition to the series, though a tad weaker than the first three. Got this one recently, after I heard that a fifth book will relase in October.

I finished The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro a few days ago.

It's a bit out of the way of my usual interests, but I enjoyed it. Very contemplative on potential missed opportunities in life and justification of past actions/inactions. It's told through the perspective of an English Butler in his later years looking back on his career as he takes a week driving vacation.

It's only 250 pages or so, and it's surprisingly engaging - when I first started reading, on premise alone I thought it was going to be a slog to get through - but I think I knocked it out in about four sittings. Definitely worth checking out - especially as an 'inbetween big books' book.

Oops, if anyone else has updates for July throw them at me.

@argile @Asandir @Atlas @AxolotlGav @CarterSterling @CappyCatII @Darklion0 @Dean @detergent1 @door88 @DrSevenSiezeMD @Dr-Freebase @Ganon-Dorf @Gimmick @GonzaloAtWork @Haggard @JerseyWildcard @Joltopus @Malachy @OlTrout @OneThousandMeeps @Pingu @Prinzy2 @PudgieDaFrog @Sheik13LoZ @SlutasaurusRex @SourCherryJack @StrangInk @TecNoir @TehPoptartKid @TopazAzul @UnderWhirl @Urichov @YendorNG @Yomuchan @ZJ

July +2 books for me

28. James Bond and the Sixties Spy Craze - Thom Shubilla

I really like hearing Thom Shubilla on podcasts and the ideas of both his books are great, but he is just not a good writer. If you’re very interested in learning about the films that fit into this surprisingly massive subgenre, the book is worth checking out. But it really does not go in depth about very much and, like the last one, it really needs an editor. It’s loaded with errors and the very distracting method of citing sources is even worse than in the last one. 

In the intro, he credits Sean Connery as being in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. The MOST important thing about that movie is that Sean Connery is NOT in it. And at one point he mentions Ralph Fiennes was considered for Bond in OHMSS. I believe Fiennes was considered when Craig was cast, and of course he would go on to play M. And when OHMSS came out he was seven. 

I love James Bond and I love spy movies, so at least it was a fun list of films to watch. 

Comics: I spent way too much money at Comic Con. Been reading a lot of Conan the Barbarian and Little Lulu. There are a lot more similarities between the two than you’d think. 

+3

Record of a Spaceborn Few and The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers

I am so sad this series has ended. Let me back into your world Becky.

That's it, that's my review. I NEED MORE WHOLESOME SPACE SHIT.

Guilt-Edged Ivory by Doris Egan

This is book 3 of a big chonky omnibus I put down years ago. Finishing it gave me so much peace. There's a whole plot line about the main character trying to figure out if she can have kids and how frustrated she was with her husband. These two were just a wild daredevil power couple in the first two books. At the time I was also having the conversations every 20 something woman with free will has with her family that boils down to "yeah I know I can theoretically make a kid, but I have a life and hobbies too that you could ask about." So while I'm wishing I could just cut my whole reproductive system out for people to talk to instead of bothering me about it, that change in tone just made me lose interest. Plus the husband being so frustrating. Ew.

So anyway I have a husband now. I understand loving someone even when they are being a complete moron with their head stuck up their ass. I also can understand the appeal of reproducing (even though we'd rather not, and just adopt instead if our situation ever improves enough). This book haunted me because I knew I stopped reading for childish reasons. It caught me at a bad time and I stopped reading an objectively good book because it just hit a raw nerve.

It was a satisfying end to the series, and helped wrap up that frustrating chapter of my life too. (spoiler) They also float the idea of adoption even though it's left open ended. I threw this character away because she wanted a different life than me, and it turns out she really doesn't.

At 2/1/24 12:33 PM, OneThousandMeeps wrote:

1. Eve - Cat Bohannon

2. What's Gotten Into You - Dan Levitt

3. The Murder Wheel - Tom Mead

4. The Whole Truth - Jim Peebles

5. Death and the Conjuror - Tom Mead

6. The Overcoat and Other Tales of Good and Evil - Nikolai Gogol (transl. David Magarshack)

7. Thunderball - Ian Fleming

8. Remembering Peasants - Patrick Joyce

9. Wuthering Heights - Charlotte Brontë

10. Close to Death - Anthony Horowitz

11. Full House - Steven J. Gould

12. The Fiancée Farce - Alexandria Bellefleur

13. The Stolen Bacillus and Other Incidents - H.G. Wells

14. Count your Lucky Stars - A. Bellefleur

15. Written in the Stars - A. Bellefleur

16. Mismeasure of Man - S. J. Gould

17. Showstopper - Peter Lovesey

18. Cabaret Macabre - Tom Mead

Six books in July. the others I read before but forgot to update here

Finished Inflame on Wednesday. Had a good laugh when at one point the characters sang a song about war crimes to the tune of Spongebob Squarepants.

4 for July, still off my mark but there's still time to pick it up this year maybe.

July (4)

21: Raze by Dakota Krout

22: Ruthless by Dakota Krout

23: Backyard Starship by JN Chaney & Terry Maggert

24: Inflame by Dakota Krout

Crap, only one for July.

God Emperor of Dune, it was meh.

LITFAM UPDATE: KINDLE OF THE FIRST FLAME EDITION

Apologies for the extra-late post, unfortunately I blinked on the 1st and then I was here. Last month we hit one of our highest counts for the year though, indicating some of us have been able to do more than enter fugue states and bake out in that there heat. @Atlas and @TopazAzul tunnelled under the walls of the alcatraz library and into the open aquafields of the 100% gang, with Topaz also hitting one of the highest individual totals of the year.

Also welcome @Thewolf257 and @SerebetGM to the roster. I'd say roll out the initiation ritual but I seem to have misplaced the My Immortal printout during the blackout.

Top Fam

1. @TopazAzul (19)
2. @Asandir (13)
3. @OneThousandMeeps (6)

@argile @Asandir @Atlas @AxolotlGav @CarterSterling @CappyCatII @Darklion0 @Dean @detergent1 @door88 @DrSevenSiezeMD @Dr-Freebase @Ganon-Dorf @Gimmick @GonzaloAtWork @Haggard @JerseyWildcard @Joltopus @Malachy @OlTrout @OneThousandMeeps @Pingu @Prinzy2 @PudgieDaFrog @SerebetGM @Sheik13LoZ @SlutasaurusRex @SourCherryJack @StrangInk @TecNoir @TehPoptartKid @Thewolf257 @TopazAzul @UnderWhirl @Urichov @YendorNG @Yomuchan @ZJ

nice, road to win the challenge :3