Whizbang Dustyboots
Gnometown Hero
The problem comes when people hear my generally excellent accent in Spanish, assume I have the vocabulary to go with it, and suddenly I get the deer in the headlights look.
What are you reading in 2025?
- Thread starter Elodan
- Start date
overgeeked
Open-World Sandbox
I'm lucky. Both my accent and my vocab suck. Though I'm working on both.
The worst is when you have more Spanish than a 2nd or 3rd generation Latino/a. Trying your best to talk to someone in broken Spanish only for them to bust out a "no sabo." It's embarrassing all around.
Ralif Redhammer
Legend
Definitely. Out of 19 short stories, I only skimmed/skipped two of them.
overgeeked
Open-World Sandbox
I love anthologies for exactly that reason. Short, easy to read bite-sized fiction. Skip a few pages if it’s a dud, but most of the book will still be filled with good stuff. Probably something to do with growing up on a steady diet of Twilight Zone, Outer Limits, Tales from the Dark Side, Tales from the Crypt, and all the other anthology shows.
Last edited:
Some of my favorite books ever have been anthologies. The collapse of the (especially periodical) market/s for short fiction is IMO tragic.
Autumnal
Bruce Baugh, Writer of Fortune
Depending on your genre, there’s a lot available online and digitally, but you’re unlikely to just stumble across it. (I can make suggestions for some genres.)
Last reading of the month, Gladius by Guy de la Bedoyere. Like his book Populus, enthused about above, this is about Roman daily life across the republic and empire, this time focusing on life in the army. The author really clearly describes how troops were recruited, organized, and mustered out, their routine duties and the things they did when unusual need arose, clothing and gear, housing and food, shelter on the March and when settled, kinds of opponents they faced, who they lost to and how they responded, their evolving role in succession and usurpation, the whole deal. This is an exceptionally fine effort at capturing what was normal at different points, and why and how that kept changing, and the limits of our knowledge. And it’s enjoyable, particularly his use of funerary inscriptions and other evidence like offerings and shrines to give us great glimpses into very specific, individual moments. We learn, for instance, that soldiers were never permitted to marry while serving but that there is no record of one ever being punished for breaking this role, and a lot about various men’s wives and families and even their well-loved dogs. Great stuff.
I’ve resumed Memories of Ice, Malazan #3, but it’s likely to take at least the weekend to finish.
Last reading of the month, Gladius by Guy de la Bedoyere. Like his book Populus, enthused about above, this is about Roman daily life across the republic and empire, this time focusing on life in the army. The author really clearly describes how troops were recruited, organized, and mustered out, their routine duties and the things they did when unusual need arose, clothing and gear, housing and food, shelter on the March and when settled, kinds of opponents they faced, who they lost to and how they responded, their evolving role in succession and usurpation, the whole deal. This is an exceptionally fine effort at capturing what was normal at different points, and why and how that kept changing, and the limits of our knowledge. And it’s enjoyable, particularly his use of funerary inscriptions and other evidence like offerings and shrines to give us great glimpses into very specific, individual moments. We learn, for instance, that soldiers were never permitted to marry while serving but that there is no record of one ever being punished for breaking this role, and a lot about various men’s wives and families and even their well-loved dogs. Great stuff.
I’ve resumed Memories of Ice, Malazan #3, but it’s likely to take at least the weekend to finish.
Whizbang Dustyboots
Gnometown Hero
Finished my re-read of A Hat Full of Sky. I know there are people who don't like the Tiffany Aching Discworld books, but those people are wrong. This sub-series is like a more serious take on the Witches books, with discussions about the moral imperative behind witches and care for communities and a bunch of other deep thoughts by Pratchett, leavened by hyper-violent Scot faeries.
Voadam
Legend
I remember getting that on audiobook from the library for a long road trip to visit out of state family when my son was young and it was fantastic. The narrator did a fantastic job with the voices and I quite liked the story and tone and themes.
I remember getting another Tiffany Aching audiobook for our next trip as well.
I had another week-long business trip this week, and as a result, I got a lot of reading done. I finished up Spartacus: Swords and Ashes, which really captured the feel of the TV series well, I thought. And then I read:
The Watchmaker's Hand, a Lincoln Rhyme novel by Jeffery Deaver. Another fine entry in the series, with a logical way to continue the rivalry between the antagonists in future books. This time, Lincoln Rhyme, a criminologist paralyzed below the neck (with some movement in his right arm and left ring finger) specializing in pathology, is up against his rival the Watchmaker, who's been causing construction cranes to collapse in New York City.
Dead Mountain by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, the latest in their series with archaeologist Nora Kelly and fledgling FBI agent Corrie Swanson, both characters from their Agent Pendergast series. This time they're investigating the deaths, some 16 years ago, of nine college students who ripped through their tent in panic and ran outside in a panic into a blizzard with most of them leaving their cold weather gear behind. Only six bodies were ever found at the beginning of the novel, when two more are accidentally discovered. It held my interest, but it wasn't the most thrilling book in their series (although I did enjoy a courtroom scene at the end, which was very well done). I just wish he'd learn to capitalize "Air Force" and "Navy" - a pet peeve of mine.
And now I'm almost done with Spartacus: Morituri by Mark Morris. Despite being a different author than the first work, they both do equally well in capturing the characters and the unique phraseology used in the show. Unfortunately, both take place at the same time in the series - immediately after Spartacus became the Champion of Capua, the Slayer of the Shadow of Death, and the Bringer of Rain, with Crixus healing up from the wounds encountered in the arena - so they couldn't have both happened, nor do they fit into the events of the series very well, but I think fans of the show will enjoy them nonetheless. I sure did - it's just a pity those were the only two ever written.
And waiting in the wings is a new book I picked up, thinking Spartacus might not hold me through the flight home: The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke, a series of short stories set in the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. I'm looking forward to reading that one!
Johnathan
The Watchmaker's Hand, a Lincoln Rhyme novel by Jeffery Deaver. Another fine entry in the series, with a logical way to continue the rivalry between the antagonists in future books. This time, Lincoln Rhyme, a criminologist paralyzed below the neck (with some movement in his right arm and left ring finger) specializing in pathology, is up against his rival the Watchmaker, who's been causing construction cranes to collapse in New York City.
Dead Mountain by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, the latest in their series with archaeologist Nora Kelly and fledgling FBI agent Corrie Swanson, both characters from their Agent Pendergast series. This time they're investigating the deaths, some 16 years ago, of nine college students who ripped through their tent in panic and ran outside in a panic into a blizzard with most of them leaving their cold weather gear behind. Only six bodies were ever found at the beginning of the novel, when two more are accidentally discovered. It held my interest, but it wasn't the most thrilling book in their series (although I did enjoy a courtroom scene at the end, which was very well done). I just wish he'd learn to capitalize "Air Force" and "Navy" - a pet peeve of mine.
And now I'm almost done with Spartacus: Morituri by Mark Morris. Despite being a different author than the first work, they both do equally well in capturing the characters and the unique phraseology used in the show. Unfortunately, both take place at the same time in the series - immediately after Spartacus became the Champion of Capua, the Slayer of the Shadow of Death, and the Bringer of Rain, with Crixus healing up from the wounds encountered in the arena - so they couldn't have both happened, nor do they fit into the events of the series very well, but I think fans of the show will enjoy them nonetheless. I sure did - it's just a pity those were the only two ever written.
And waiting in the wings is a new book I picked up, thinking Spartacus might not hold me through the flight home: The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke, a series of short stories set in the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell. I'm looking forward to reading that one!
Johnathan
Last edited:
Eyes of Nine
Everything's Fine
Hellooooo Dangerous Visions...
Similar Threads
Spelljammer
Spelljammer Collector’s Guide Revisited
