Reading Challenge 2024

jimmy blue shoes said:
Having read the First Law books I'm now currently listening to them on Audio. Steven Pacey does an absolutely brilliant job of bringing them to life. You can find them on YouTube if you don't have an audible account.

You should definitely finish the series and be careful to read the stand alones in the correct order. The final three (Age of Madness) are just on another level!
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Yeah. A lot of my books are in audio format, as I do a lot of running. I commented on Steven Pacey's narration when I left a review of one of the earlier books. He definitely enhances the experience of these books.
 
WickyWain said:
I finally got round to finishing The Lies of Locke Lamora and loved it!

A brilliant story, lots of twists and moments that shock you and the characters are all genuinely unique and interesting.

@RobMCFC are the other Gentleman Bastard books as good?
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@WickyWain Apologies as I've only just seen your edit.

When I first read The Lies of Locke Lamora, I felt that the 2nd book was a let down. But on a subsequent reads, I think it more than stands up. If you enjoyed the first book, you'll definitely want to keep on reading. Just a shame it's been 11 years and counting since The Republic of Thieves.
 
  1. Fairy Tale – Stephen King - 5/10
  2. Wolf Pack – Will Dean - 7/10
  3. A Small Death in Lisbon – Robert Wilson - 6/10
  4. A Man Called Ove – Fredrick Backman – 8/10
  5. Tomorrow's Children – Daniel Polansky – 3/10
  6. The Mobster’s Lament – Ray Celestin – 8/10
  7. Priest of Crowns – Peter McLean – 9/10
  8. Get It On: How the ‘70s Rocked Football – Jon Spurling – 9/10
  9. The Effigy Engine – Scott Lynch – 7/10
  10. The Ferryman – Justin Cronin – 8/10
  11. Catch a Wave – Peter Ames Carlin – 8/10
  12. Sunset Swing – Ray Celestin – 7/10
  13. When Giants Walked the Earth: 50 years of Led Zeppelin - Mick Wall – 7/10
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I’m not been a big Led Zeppelin fan over the years, but thanks to some pointers on these forums, I’ve enjoyed listening to their music over the past few years.

I’m conflicted about this book – it’s researched and presented in incredible detail by author Mick Wall and does indeed give a fantastic account of the career of the band. For me, it spent a bit too many pages on post-1980 events. A few short chapters on what had happened since then would have been enough, but the hours I spent reading about it in this book felt like too much.

My biggest grumble, and obviously this is nothing to do with the author, is what an incredible set of awful people the band seem. Less so John Paul Jones and Robert Plant, although the latter doesn’t come across to well in the post-band section with his refusal to entertain the idea of any further re-unions. But the behaviour of Jimmy Page and John Bonham, along with tour manager Richard Cole and manager Pete Grant, at the height of their fame in the 1970s is just plain sickening.

The reader is constantly told what a great family man Bonham was, whilst we are reading about his indulgence with groupies, him smashing up hotels and worst of all, punching a female journalist in the face because she “looked at him funny”. All because he “missed home”.

I come out of reading this book thinking that this is a case where I should just concentrate on the music and not try to think too hard about the individuals involved.
 
RobMCFC said:
@WickyWain Apologies as I've only just seen your edit.

When I first read The Lies of Locke Lamora, I felt that the 2nd book was a let down. But on a subsequent reads, I think it more than stands up. If you enjoyed the first book, you'll definitely want to keep on reading. Just a shame it's been 11 years and counting since The Republic of Thieves.
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Not to worry! I wasn't sure if the tag would work properly with it being an edit.

Thanks. That's pretty much consistent with what I've read online elsewhere about them. I will give them a go at some point.
 
RobMCFC said:
@WickyWain Apologies as I've only just seen your edit.

When I first read The Lies of Locke Lamora, I felt that the 2nd book was a let down. But on a subsequent reads, I think it more than stands up. If you enjoyed the first book, you'll definitely want to keep on reading. Just a shame it's been 11 years and counting since The Republic of Thieves.
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At least that one didn't end on a cliffhanger. I was reading them as they were released and had an agonising wait to see how that paarticular plot-point was resolved. Felt a lot longer than the 4 years it actually was (maybe because other authers I'd also picked up around that time were pounding them out at a rate of 1 or 2 a year).
 
JRockBlues said:
At least that one didn't end on a cliffhanger. I was reading them as they were released and had an agonising wait to see how that paarticular plot-point was resolved. Felt a lot longer than the 4 years it actually was (maybe because other authers I'd also picked up around that time were pounding them out at a rate of 1 or 2 a year).
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It was a lot longer than 4 years - it was 6!
 
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