What book(s) are you reading in 2020?

[zlogdan]

In the years the Myscenally had been on a hiatus I became very fond of Gene Wolfe's books. I read the whole solar cycle and I am now reading The Shadow Of The Torturer again.

[Jack Of Shadows]

Currently, I'm on two books which is unusual for me. I'm reading Alan Moore's "Jerusalem" and "Metal Of Night" by Mark W. Tiedemann. I'm enjoying both so far. I think the reason for starting a second book alongside "Jerusalem" is the book is just so incredibly long and will take me a while to absorb. It's over 1200 pages and very deep and descriptive. There is so much going on with the smallest of details that much of it leaves me mentally exhausted, in a good way though because I'm really enjoying the story so far, but still feel the need to take an occasional break by reading something along completely different lines. "Metal Of Night" is a book I stumbled across at a thrift store recently, knew nothing about, but thought it looked cool and interesting so decided to give it a go. I'm glad I did, because it's pure science fiction fun so far, very well written with good character development.

[zlogdan]

Currently, I'm on two books which is unusual for me. I'm reading Alan Moore's "Jerusalem" and "Metal Of Night" by Mark W. Tiedemann. I'm enjoying both so far. I think the reason for starting a second book alongside "Jerusalem" is the book is just so incredibly long and will take me a while to absorb. It's over 1200 pages and very deep and descriptive. There is so much going on with the smallest of details that much of it leaves me mentally exhausted, in a good way though because I'm really enjoying the story so far, but still feel the need to take an occasional break by reading something along completely different lines. "Metal Of Night" is a book I stumbled across at a thrift store recently, knew nothing about, but thought it looked cool and interesting so decided to give it a go. I'm glad I did, because it's pure science fiction fun so far, very well written with good character development.

I have a real problem with trying to read Alan Moore's non-comics fiction since I once bought the Voice Of The Fire and I thought I would read it in a day despite how difficult it would be reading it since Alan Moore is my favorite comic author and it is in my top 5 of favorite authors, but whenever I tried to read Voice Of The Fire I never have gotten to go beyond first or second short story. So I imagine that Jerusalem would be the same thing but bigger :-)

[EverKing]

I just recently picked up Patrick Rothfuss's "The Name of the Wind." It is interesting so far in the setting, world building, and framing narrative device but I do find the protagonist to be tad bothersome. He is something of a male Mary Sue, a near perfect genius naturally talented in all endeavors. In that way his most similar to Paul Muad'dib of Dune but also somehow less convincing and therefore less compelling. Still, the ease of the narrator's voice, helped by the framing device, catches a simple rhythm which keeps the pages turning more than character himself does.

[Jack Of Shadows]

I have a real problem with trying to read Alan Moore's non-comics fiction since I once bought the Voice Of The Fire and I thought I would read it in a day despite how difficult it would be reading it since Alan Moore is my favorite comic author and it is in my top 5 of favorite authors, but whenever I tried to read Voice Of The Fire I never have gotten to go beyond first or second short story. So I imagine that Jerusalem would be the same thing but bigger :-)

Yeah Jerusalem is going to take me quite a while to get through for sure, but I'm going to do my best to stick with it. I think reading other "lighter" books alongside it will help.

[fammann]

I just read Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin. I absolutely loved it. Character driven fantasy and not about war. I wish there were more books like that.

[zlogdan]

I just read Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin. I absolutely loved it. Character driven fantasy and not about war. I wish there were more books like that.

I agree. The first two books are absolutely masterpieces. I would recommend if you have not already read them:

• Gene Wolfe and his Wizard/Knight.
• Jack Vance's Lyonesse, Dying Earth
• Brian Staveley's
  Chronicles of the Unhewn Throne
• Robert Silverberg's Lord Valentine's Castle
• Mathew Hughes Majestrum and A God In Chains
• Roger Zelazny Amber series

There is, of course, the omnipresent theme of war in these books but they are definitely not about the bloody war :-). Gene Wolfe's Solar Cycle is always associated with the fantasy genre but the author has always mentioned that there is no "magic in that universe".

Modern-day fantasy is more easily seen not related to War I think, but I am not sure if you enjoy the subgenre. I do :-)

I think Elric and Corum's books have the war thing incrusted but what makes them great is the fact they are focused on the main characters wandering through their worlds. Elric's is an anti-hero struggling to convey the good but most of the time conveying the evil while Corum is definitely a good soul who had to accept the evil to go through. They are not your usual black and white fantasy hero and we are more easily connected to their lamentations and dilemmas. And there is the perfected flawed fantasy character that is Von Bek.

[danskmacabre]

Currently read "The Neverending Story" by Michael Ende, the book the movie was based on.
A teen fantasy book, but actually quite good.

Also reading "Moonchild", by Aleister Crowley

And "The power that preserves" by Stephen Donaldsen.
I've read this before a few times many years ago, but I decided to read the series again and this is the last book in the first Trilogy.

I have a few other books I'm working through about Mysticism and others that are technical books relating to Virtual machines and programming.

[fammann]

Currently read "The Neverending Story" by Michael Ende, the book the movie was based on.
A teen fantasy book, but actually quite good.

Wow thats great. I also recently reread that (the german original). It was one of my favorite books as a child.

It is probably the most read childrens book in german speaking countries. I'm from switzerland, by the way.

[danskmacabre]

Wow thats great. I also recently reread that (the german original). It was one of my favorite books as a child.

It is probably the most read childrens book in german speaking countries. I'm from switzerland, by the way.

It has a lot more depth to it than you'd think.
The author took an interest in western mysticism and there's a lot of that hidden i there.

[Jack Of Shadows]

Currently read "The Neverending Story" by Michael Ende, the book the movie was based on.
A teen fantasy book, but actually quite good.

Also reading "Moonchild", by Aleister Crowley

And "The power that preserves" by Stephen Donaldsen.
I've read this before a few times many years ago, but I decided to read the series again and this is the last book in the first Trilogy.

I have a few other books I'm working through about Mysticism and others that are technical books relating to Virtual machines and programming.

"Moonchild" is a beautiful book by Crowley. I haven't read it in years, but really enjoyed it.

[zlogdan]

I have watched the Neverending movie back in the 80s and it has been since a favorite of mine. Some years later I have found a copy of the book and I read it and loved. It was great to see the movie was just half the book and I ended up loving the whole story even more.

[zlogdan]

I have finished The Shadow of The Torturer reread and started The Claw of The Conciliator. I am also reading Grokking Algorithms.

[danskmacabre]

I have finished The Shadow of The Torturer reread and started The Claw of The Conciliator.

Oh nice. there's a really sort of dark, mellow mood to that series of books.
You have to be in the right frame of mind to enjoy those books.
I read them many years ago in the 80s.

[zlogdan]

Oh nice. there's a really sort of dark, mellow mood to that series of books.
You have to be in the right frame of mind to enjoy those books.
I read them many years ago in the 80s.

The crazy thing for me was that the very first Gene Wolfe book I read has been Fifth Head Of Cerberus, which I had found not that good. I actually thought I would never read Gene Wolfe again.
Then, I picked up Shadow Of The Torturer and could not stop reading it. It was the sort of book that I thought about it before sleeping. I have later read Fifth Head Of Cerberus again and loved it.