Yes- I have been reading those for a while on the Kindle. They combine 2 genres I love- fantasy and first-person detective fiction. I like that Harry is not all-powerful- he is mostly determined and driven.

By the way, the TV series is available from Netflix- no idea if it is any good....

Someone I know said that they were good as long as you can forgive that it isn't Jim Butcher's Dresden Files.

Butcher's awesome, and in addition to Dresden, I suggest reading the now finished Codex Alera.

Jim started that project as a high-fantasy series, but with two premises to govern the mechanics and backstory. I won't say what they are, but if you want PM me and I'll give you the scoop. Suffice it to say, he takes two bad ideas and turns it into six great books.

The only Codex Alera book I haven't read is the last one. I really need to get my hands on that one.

And now I have finished The Land of Painted Caves (Jean Auel), and it is time for me to express my thoughts. Is this the way I expected the series to end? No. I actually expected a lot more out of the book when I picked it up.

Firstly, I am glad Auel toned down on the sex scenes in this one, but at the same time, I am very unhappy with what they were replaced with. Unfortunately, Auel committed the cardinal sin of storywriting by having the first two acts be completely and totally meaningless to the plot we have come to know. We are reading about a bunch of French caves that some cavemen happened to draw in, whoopie. That's what I felt about the first two acts. Too many caves, not enough integration. More than once, I found myself wondering just how long those parts would drag on and when we would get to a point in the story that was actually interesting. Only at the very end of the first two acts did anything interesting happen (earthquake and hoodlums, respectively). In the end, after I finished the whole book, I was unable to discern why exactly the first two-thirds of it even needed to be there. Once the third act began, the painted caves that were visited are never mentioned again, they did nothing for either the characters or the plot, they brought about no changes, no interest, and no purpose.

Essentially, the first two-thirds of the book was needless, and you would miss nothing by skipping them over entirely.

Things don't really pick up until the third act, when Ayla actually does see something that DOES have implementations and repercussions. However, I expected more out of the end other than some soap-opera drama that we got (it was the cliche cheating husband scenario, I need not say more). What I wanted to see was, for instance, Whinney being killed by a carnivore out hunting and Ayla having to deal with the loss of her beloved mare. THAT would pull at some heartstrings.

Basically, Auel took no risks with the final act, did nothing she had not done before, the conclusion to the scenarios involving Brukeval and Madroman were weak, and the climax was nothing more than a retread of something that already happened before in The Mammoth Hunters.

In a way, I am glad the series is over now, because it has become rather clear to me that Auel's heart no longer dwells in it. Still, the ride was fun while it lasted.

I read the first three Jean Auel books years ago, and couldn't bring myself to continue the series after the third book. It was becoming repetitive, and the sex scenes were doing nothing for the plot. I'm no prude when it comes to slash scenes, but I want them to move the plot forward or contribute to character development (as they did in the first two books).

Right now I'm not reading sci fi or fantasy. What I'm reading is a historical novel in the flavor of James Michener. It's called "West of Here," and is about the inhabitants of the Elwha River in Washington State. It is now part of Olympic National Park, and I picked up the book because it is about an area I've actually visited. While I wasn't in the actual Elwha Valley, I had heard about the dam that was decommissioned a few years prior and the ongoing restoration efforts. The book covers both the beginning and the end of the dam, and is quite interesting. One thing that bothered me a bit though is the amount of head-hopping that is going on. While I always knew whose head I was currently in, it just made for a lot of characters to keep straight. I'll reserve my judgment until I finish.

Before that, I read Michael Moorcock's Gloriana. I had read his Elric stories years ago, and thought his level of description was pretty rich. I was blown away not only by the level of descriptive detail in this book, but also how he created such strong and distinctive characters and developed the level of byzantine intrigue that moves the plot forward. My only complaint is that it took him nearly half the book to present me with the main conflict that drives the plot, but once I reached that point, I was very satisfied with how he moved forward from there. It was vital, in hindsight, that he take so much time to set the stage for the conflict. It's hard to believe that story is almost 50 years old!

I am about to finish Chapterhouse: Dune, so I'm very excited to see the end of Frank Herbert's science fiction epic. All of his books are pretty slow reads, but the characters are great, and the philosophy and worldbuilding in it is awesomely deep. This also means I can finally peruse the Dune wiki without fear of spoilers.

Before that, I read the Chronicles of the Black Company, another awesome book. Again, the characters and world are unforgettable, and the plot is wonderfully creative. The best part, however, is how it really delves into questions of morality. Everything is shades of gray; there is no absolute evil or absolute good. A refreshing break from Wheel of Time style fantasy.

This summer has been so busy that I've had so little time to read much of anything, BUT......I'm going to start reading some Agatha Christie novels, as I haven't read any since high school. If you like mystery, they are an excellent read.

They take place in 1920s-1930s England, or thereabouts, back when most of them were written, but they are far from outdated! Agatha Christie was a genius at weaving suspenseful and intriguing stories, and she managed to place so many surprising twists within her tales.

Currently, I'm Waltzing with Wyverns.

No, wait, that's wrong. I'm Salsa-ing with Serpents.

Nope, sorry, that's wrong too.

I am, in fact, engaged in (Drumroll please):

A DANCE WITH DRAGONS!

Such a long wait, and yet I know that I'll finish before the weekend is out, and have to wait ANOTHER FEW YEARS before Winds of Winter.

Oh George, you giveth, and you with-holdeth, and we hang upon thine every word.

I can't do any serious reading when I'm in 'writing mode', as I found out writing Memories when all of a sudden it's like a bad Terry Pratchett added a chapter..

This post has been edited by old Andy: Jul 15 2011, 11:16 PM

So that's what happened!Currently I'm reading two books - Prophecy, a historical thriller set in Elizabethan England, and Hero of the Pacific, a nonfiction about Marine Sgt. John Basilone, who got the Medal of Honor on Guadacanal and was KIA on Iwo Jima. One's a heavy duty hardcover book, the other's on my iPad.

Well, now, I have that second book, myself! (softcover)

AND I also own the HBO Miniseries The Pacific, which based a great deal of its footage of John Basilone on that very book.

Do let me know what you think of it!

Anyways, I also find myself reading a WWII memoir now, too. In this case, With the Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa by Eugene B. Sledge (which also got featured in The Pacific.

Peleliu is one of the most under-appreciated battles in the entire war. More people were killed there than on Tarawa, and the entire campaign for the island was (and still is) a subject of controversy.

This post has been edited by Thomas Kaira: Jul 16 2011, 07:54 AM

TK, I agree that Peleliu is much, much overlooked, both for the carnage and for the purpose of that particular campaign.

I have owned Saturn cars since 1994, and started off naming each of them after a moon of Saturn (of course). The problem I had was that most of the moons were named for handmaidens and catamites in the court of the lusty god - none really were known for being anything other than sexual objects. The first car (which my mother still drives) was Calypso, the second Telesto, the third Ganymede. After that, I decided to change up my naming system, but couldn't decide what to go with. When my Dad said my fourth Saturn was a "good Navy color," I realized Oh My God, Battleship Grey! Then it occurred to me to name it Tarawa. After that, it was a done deal. Then came Iwo Jima, and my current Saturn (and the last one I'll ever own :-() is Tripoli. All well-known Marine battles. I have the Battle History of the Marine Corps and use that all the time for reference.

I will let you know how I like Hero of the Pacific. I already am somewhat familiar with John Basilone, since I also have (and read) Flags of our Fathers, about the six men who raised the flag on Iwo Jima. Yes, Basilone was one of them. I have the book for the HBO series The Pacific on my wish list at my library, also.

good book


also a really good book


John Basilone died near the airstrip on Feb. 19th, 1945, as a result of Japanese mortar assault. The first flag wasn't raised until Feb. 23rd 1945 by

First Lieutenant Harold G. Schrier
Platoon Sergeant Ernest I. Thomas Jr.,
Sergeant Henry O. "Hank" Hansen,
Corporal Charles W. Lindberg,
Private Gene Marshall
Private First Class James Michels, and photographed by
Staff Sergeant Louis R. Lowery for leatherneck magazine. But this flag was too small to be seen by the troops on the beach.

Second flag raising and 'offical' photo was taking in the early afternoon. Of the six men in the picture for Time Magazine;
Sergeant Michael Strank,
Corporal Harlon H. Block
Private First Class Ira H. Hayes
Private First Class Franklin R. Sousley,
Private First Class Rene A. Gagnon
and Navy Pharmacist's Mate Second Class -corpsman- John H. Bradley,

Strank, Block, Sousley died later during the Battle on Iwa Jima.


Jarheads get spoon-fed marine history in the mornings while we field strip tanks..

This post has been edited by old Andy: Jul 16 2011, 04:56 PM

At present I am reading the Ancient Greece series by Steven Pressfield -

"Last of the Amazons"
"Gates of Fire"
"Tides of War"
and
"Alexander: the Virtues of War"

Hey Andy - Steven's a former Jarhead, and "Gates of Fire" is required reading at the Marine Corps Academy!!!

At present I'm reading A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin. I really like it this far. Loads of characters with loads of depth. It gets confusing sometimes with all the names, but luckily the author added an appendix in the end with all the names and details about the houses. I'd really recommend it if you like fantasy.

I shall be reading this very soon! I watched the television series and I loved it and I usually tend to like reading better than watching T.V so I have ordered the first and second book.

I have finished Hero of the Pacific about Marine Sgt. John Basilone of Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima fame. The book was written by a fellow Marine who served during the Korean conflict (at the same time as my uncle/godfather who has been such a mysteriously big influence on me). He basically takes apart the standard Basilone legends that have been put down by Basilone's sister and nephew, as well as a couple of pressmen who tended towards hyperbole. It was interesting as he pitted the legends against the Marine records and what he knew about Marine training methods.

No one really knows for sure how he died. Did he die by small arms fire (as is stated in the official Marine records), or did he die from shrapnel from a mortar shell (as stated by several eyewitnesses). Did he really die instantly (official version) or did he linger for several hours afterwards, chatting with the medics and bumming cigs (the sister's version).

It's very interesting to see how the fog of war works - no one witness told exactly the same story. When you're busy ducking bullets (or arrows, or slingshots, depending on the war), the last thing on your mind is getting the story straight about the events going on around you.

Right now I'm reading the second Harry Dresden book - Full Moon. I'm not sure if I'll continue the series, but so far I'm enjoying the mixture of Sam Spade and Merlin the wizard.

In my opinion, the books get better as the series continues. If you are enjoying the early ones, then I'm sure you will enjoy the later ones as well.

Have finished A Dance with Dragons.

Now reading the newest installment of The Dresden Files, Jim Butcher's Ghost Story.

Nothing much that can be said about this one without revealing some major spoilers for those who have yet get far along with Harry Dresden. All I can say is for those still working through Jim's bibliography: "Keep at it."