Hi guys! Long time, no spam thread every day with new books. Some high- (and low-) lights from the past however long:
The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula LeGuin. Some great philosophical insights, but the story didn't catch my attention, probably due to poor pacing.
The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson. Phenomenal depiction of America's post-reconstruction great migration told from three enlightening viewpoints. Maybe the best book I've read all year.
I finished the last two books of Bruce Catton's centennial Civil War trilogy. I like his descriptions of marches and maneuvers, even all the politics, but I found his battle scenes to be lacking. Learned a ton from these books.
The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi didn't quite live up to the hype. Reminded me a lot of how I felt about
Metro 2033 -- awesome atmosphere and setting, but lacking engaging characters or interesting plot.
The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. More high hopes dashed. Not a bad book at all, but a little too milquetoast and perky for my taste. Characters (ugh) always talk about their problems and (blech) find meaningful solutions to them. WTF kind of book is this? Still kinda liked it and already picked up the second book.
This book fills a sort of "cozy sci-fi" niche.
Tom Clancy's
The Hunt for Red October offended my highly tuned literary senses. So rah-rah 'Murica, so many instances of "How's the family doing?", that it was hard to swallow. Solid plot, though.
Agatha Christie's
Murder on the Orient Express. Excellent mystery, even if the revelation is telegraphed. Wanted to read this before I watch the new movie... haven't seen new movie yet.
Hammered by Kevin Hearne. I didn't like the use of Thor as the main antagonist (all Chris Hemsworths' fault) but it's another solid entry in the series.
The Stone Sky by NK Jemisin finishes off her Broken Earth trilogy well enough, but I was a little disappointed by the ending. Her second person narrative worked extremely well in the first book, but it's shoehorned into the second two books. And her clipped style started to wear on me by the end. Still, I very much like her perspective on fantasy, and I'm very interested to see what she does next.
Go Down Together by Jeff Guinn tells the story of Bonnie and Clyde realistically, pointing out where fact and fiction diverge and filling in a lot of details. Excellent book that shows them as the small-time raggedy gangsters that they were. Lots to like about this book: the depression-era backdrop, Bonnie's poems, trips to mom's house, backwoods camping, etc.