What's Everyone Reading

[rblnr]

Recently finished the latest Stephen King book 11/22/63 -- extremely good. Haven't read anything of his in a long time. Reminded me a bit of some James Ellroy (LA Confidentail, American Tabloid, a must read) in how uncannily they seem to immerse you in a living, breathing, specific past.

Just started 'The Unconquered' by Scott Wallace, non-fiction about his journey in the Amazon to make contact with rumored but undiscovered tribes there. Read some very positive reviews which combined with the subject matter got me on to it -- starts off well.

 

[MylesBAstor]

http://www.amazon.com/It-Starts-Foo...350383088&sr=8-1&keywords=it+starts+with+food

 

[carolkoh]

But no zombies, right?

Thank the heavens... No!

 

[jazdoc]

Whart --

Just ordered this one...The Last Lion.

The first two volumes of Manchester's biography are incredible. He didn't live to complete the project and this is a combined effort with Paul Reid. You can read about it in yesterday's NY Times...http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/04/m...-churchill-biography.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

 

[Bill Hart]

Whart --

Just ordered this one...The Last Lion.

The first two volumes of Manchester's biography are incredible. He didn't live to complete the project and this is a combined effort with Paul Reid. You can read about it in yesterday's NY Times...http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/04/m...-churchill-biography.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

I need to read them all. Thanks for this, Doc.

 

[Steve Williams]

Just finished John Grisham's latest, The Racketeer

I am huge Grisham fan and have read all of his books. There was a time that it seemed he was cranking out books on a far too regular basis such that many were somewhat boring.

However his latest books have proved otherwise with The Confession probably IMO the best he has written.

Now comes The Racketeer and I must say I couldn't put it down and read it in a day. Terrific story with a great twist at the end that leaves us dangling to literally the last page
Definitely recommended

 

[Johnny Vinyl]

Just finished John Grisham's latest, The Racketeer

I am huge Grisham fan and have read all of his books. There was a time that it seemed he was cranking out books on a far too regular basis such that many were somewhat boring.

However his latest books have proved otherwise with The Confession probably IMO the best he has written.

Now comes The Racketeer and I must say I couldn't put it down and read it in a day. Terrific story with a great twist at the end that leaves us dangling to literally the last page
Definitely recommended

I'm a huge Grisham fan as well and picked this up the other day. Haven't started it yet as I have a few others on the go.

 

[Whatmore]

This is the best book I've read in ages... never really been a fan of the his "M" books but just discovering the non-"M" books - awesome

 

[Bill Hart]

Just finished John Grisham's latest, The Racketeer

I am huge Grisham fan and have read all of his books. There was a time that it seemed he was cranking out books on a far too regular basis such that many were somewhat boring.

However his latest books have proved otherwise with The Confession probably IMO the best he has written.

Now comes The Racketeer and I must say I couldn't put it down and read it in a day. Terrific story with a great twist at the end that leaves us dangling to literally the last page
Definitely recommended

I usually stay away from lawyer books for obvious reasons, Grisham is a solid writer, and I blew through the Racketeer tres fast. The whole thing seemed a little make it up as you go, but it was a fun read. Try Live by Night- Lehane, I think you'll like it. (overtones of Boardwalk Empire but original and Lehane's writing is good and easy to soak up). Also just read Mad River, and while I'm not a fan of that writer, at about 40% into the book (sorry, Kindle reader), it really locked in and became riveting. Classic police procedural, serial murderers on the loose, good cops, bad cops, set in the great midwest. Now reading Gone Girl, which seems like a 'chick book,' but also pretty good-

 

[Steve Williams]

See Bill, while I prefer the lawyer novels and you don't. I don't read medical novels but I bet you do

 

[Bill Hart]

See Bill, while I prefer the lawyer novels and you don't. I don't read medical novels but I bet you do

Steve, you're right about the law stuff, given my background. As to medicine, honestly can't remember the last medical thriller i read- i went through my Ebola phase years ago (fiction and non-fiction), haven't read a Robin Cook novel in a million years, do like apocalpytic novels that have a bio slant, but I guess I'd put that either into horror or sci-fi. I did think the Emperor of all Maladies was one of the best non-fiction books about medicine that I've ever read, but I can't say I've read a huge number of those.
FWIW, I thought the non-fiction work that Grisham did about the locality that wrongfully convicted several people was first rate. I have a good story about vampire books that i'll share when i have an extra minute. Right now, I'm too busy counting ballots.

 

[Steve Williams]

IMO the best Grisham book I have read in years of reading him was The Confession

 

[Asamel]

Waging Heavy Peace

Bruce

 

[Bill Hart]

IMO the best Grisham book I have read in years of reading him was The Confession

Alright, i'll read it. The non-fiction one of his I found compelling was The Innocent Man.

 

[Steve Williams]

Agreed. Also an amazing True story

 

[Terry E.]

Recently read:

Richard Ford's novel, Canada.

Outstanding.

 

[Bill Hart]

IMO the best Grisham book I have read in years of reading him was The Confession

Read it, found it a page turner, good story and characters and brought the whole death penalty system into stark relief. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[Steve Williams]

I couldn't put it down. A chilling story. How Grisham shows how police are allowed to lie and say anything to coerce a confession during interrogation

 

[Bill Hart]

Currently reading the interview book of Jimmy Page, Light and Shade. Not a 'rock star' book, much more about his mindset on production, work as a session player, his early experiments in recording, and his post-Zep work. While it obviously touches on LZ, it is not about the band. More later when i have finished it. Quite enjoyable, since I am an admirer of his work. (And for those who think of him as just the LZ guitarist, take a look at his session credits when he was still really a kid. Impressive- played on everything from Shirley Bassey's 'Goldfinger' theme song to early Van Morrison, Donovan, Burt Bacharach, Tom Jones, The Kinks, The Who, The Stones, and an endless list of pop tunes from the mid 60's).

 

[Bill Hart]

I'm now fully in the thrall of Tanya French's latest, 'Broken Harbor.' For those of you who haven't read her, the first book, In the Woods, was about the murder of a child that had bizarre, ritualistic qualities. What was eerie about the book was that a series of murders had taken place in the same town decades before, also of children, and one of the people involved in the current investigation had been a victim who survived the earlier murders, although he remembers almost nothing. It's not just a 'creep you out' serial murderer book, but deals with the mind and emotions of the survivor, who is desperate to find a link to his past in the investigation of the current murder. If that makes any sense.
She's a young Irish writer, and has the procedural elements nailed, as well as the rough dialogue of cops in the trench, the gallows humor and the stress and pressure of a murder investigation. That was her first book. The next several were good, but didn't pack the wallop of the first one, although some of the characters were carried forward.
The new book, about the murder of an entire family in a remote housing development that failed when the economy cratered, shows the author in top form. The level of thoroughness in the investigation, the imagination of the detectives in thinking up leads, and how to pursue them, is far more interesting than the standard police procedural. It's not just forensics or technology ala CSI. These guys have to take virtually no leads, and turn them into a strategy to figure out what happened and who the actor was. It's an amazing ride so far. You have to cope with some peculiarities of Irish slang- but it's easy enough to figure out in context. If you are into police procedurals, grab this one first. Then go back and read In the Woods.