I‘m officially on vacation. Murder Elf and I are heading down to Atlanta tomorrow. I‘ll be spending 3 days in Athens attending the annual Cracker/CVB Camp In music event at the 40 Watt, then doing touristy stuff in Atlanta. Any bookish places worth a visit?

I mostly listened to this because my mind wasn‘t focusing on other books and to prepare for Broken Lands. This was a good collection of shared world stories which fleshes our Maberry‘s world after First Night. Some old and new characters appear. Helps that it‘s narrated by Ray Porter and Dana Fredsi who are an improvement over the previous series narrator.

The premise of Karen Thompson Walker‘s newest novel isn‘t all that original, that you can‘t help but be mesmerized at times. Yet, at other times I found myself not fully engaging with the tale. The tale is told in almost a dream like way that lulled me, but then she would hit me with a narrative trick, or a slight skewing of what I expected. All in all, it was an interesting yet disconcerting experience.

Truly all a good action series needs is an intriguing main character, a colorful cast of supporting characters, a decent hook and lots of explosions and car chases. Well, the latest Peter Ash thriller, Tear It Down has this in spades. Stephen Mendel‘s narration hits all the right notes. He reads the many action scenes with a high paced intensity that creates a manic but clear picture of the action, driving the story in just the right direction.

I‘ve had mixed feelings with this series. Overall, it‘s fun but the narration has annoyed me. Yet, since a Maberry seems to be tying much of his world together and the new spin off series has Ray Porter narrating decided to finishing it off. Solid finale with interesting potential to build upon.

The Gone World by Tom Sweterlisch
This Body‘s Not Big Enough for the Both of Us by Edgar Cantero
The Cabin At the End of the World by Paul Tremblay
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
Down the River Unto the Sea by Walter Mosely
The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
Washington Black by Esi Edugyan
Still of Night by Jonathan Maberry and Rachael Lavin
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green
Unbury Carol by Josh Malerman

Most action novels come with a deal, if you‘re willing to suspend disbelief then you‘ll be paid off with some kick ass action. Zero Sum Game puts those disbelief suspending muscles to the test but in the end it‘s worth it. A complex conspiracy laden plot and weird quasi-reality super powers pepper what is basically a cool heroine kicking ass with math. It may give you a birds eye view of the top of over the top but it‘s a heck of a lot of fun.

I‘ve been in a mini-rut. Started and stopped about 4 different books before listening and finishing The Singularity Trap, which was listenable but not all that special. So, sometimes when I can get into something new I‘ll choose a book to listen to that I enjoyed in print but never listened to in audio. So I went with Double Dead, because I need some happy Holiday Cheer and for that nothing is better than a surly Vampire in a Zombie Apocalypse.

Today‘s #manicmonday is brought to you by the letter V and @JoScho

📚 Version Control by Dexter Palmer
✏️ Kurt Vonnegut
🎥 V for Vendetta
📺 V I love the miniseries and both versions of the show.
🥕 I love veggies. I won‘t mention the many versions of Vanilla anything I enjoy.

One of the problems with Epic Sci-fi series is that the author has so many big ideas and complex scenarios that the books become bloated. Scalzi has a brilliantly thought out world and lots of moving pieces but his attempts to keep the story more concise and moving along makes it feel rushed at times. While it‘s fun and he pulls it together well, in the end I felt like there were areas that could have been explore more and opportunities missed.

The Chalk Man is old score horror, reminiscent of early Stephen King. It‘s structure and utterly unreliable narrator takes this beyond a traditional murder mystery making it more of a who did what exactly than a whodunnit. At no point in this novel do you truly know what exactly is happening and clues and information is revealed sparingly. With a gothic undertone The Chalk Man is one of the more effectively unsettling suspense novels I have read.

With echoes of Ready Player One and the Themis Files An Absolutely Remarkable Thing is #science #fiction for the hashtag generation. Green sets up a scenario that hard core sci-fi fans will embrace but plants it firmly in a world where events only truly happen if they are tweeted out to a significant social media following. Featuring a protagonist whose vapidness has layers making her frustratingly fascinating.

Super hectic time for me so I‘ve fallen off my my posting but thought I‘d try and catch up with @MinDea #humpdaypost

1. Beer... (I may have cheated and took the second image.)
2. My bottle opener which inspired me to choose beer.
3. Thriller with a Sci-fi edge. Really good.
4. Love tater tots but they are one if the things I gave up when losing weight.
5. Enjoy going more than participating.

Today‘s #manicmonday is brought to you by the #lettert and @JoScho

📚 The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub
✏️ Paul Tremblay
📺 12 Monkeys
🎥 Terminator
🌮 Tacos

On a bit of a whim I started An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green. Seems my whims lead to good life choices. A highly entertaining listen with elements of The Themis Files and Ready Player One while remaining a its own kind of novel, this one should capture the imaginations of fans across a broad spectrum of genres. Narrator Kristen Stein starts off almost speed reading the book but settled in a gives a engaging and nuanced performance.

As with many people this is one of my busiest times, and I often look for lighter fun reads to distract me from the hustle and bustle. One of my go to genres is military science fiction. Planetside was a highly enjoyable mix of investigative mystery and interplanetary mil-sci-fi. RC Bray‘s narration perfectly fits the complicated tough guy protagonist and wide array of characters.

Today‘s #manicmonday is brought to you by the #letters and @JoScho

📚 Swan Song by Robert McCammon
✏️ SM Stirling
📺 Southland
👻 The Sixth Sense
🍜 Soup. I eat soup almost every day. Soup makes me happy, warm and full.

I have known Mary Robinette Kowal mostly as a narrator and read some of her short fiction. This is her first full length novel I‘ve read and I absolutely loved it. It has so many elements I like, part apocalyptic alternative history and part hard science fiction with a focus on developing a space colonization program. While I loved all the science and social stuff in the book, what I trying enjoyed what how real her main character felt.

This is my nephew Hank. About a year ago, when he was 3 he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma. Today he is officially in remission and currently on his Make a Wish trip to Disney World and Universal Studios. Tomorrow is his 5th Birthday.

I already got him some gifts but would like to send him some books for when he gets back. Any suggestions for a 5 year old boy who like basically all the stuff 5 year old boys like?

Today‘s #manicmonday is brought to you by the #letterR and @JoScho

📖 Replay by Ken Grimwood
✏️ John Ringo
🎥 Rocky
📺 Roswell
🍦 Reese Pieces Sundae

I always talk with my best friend about the foods I miss since eating healthy and when we talk about Friendly‘s Reese‘s Pieces Sundae we both sigh longingly making others look at us questionably. We are also very specific about the proper way to make it.

Those shocked that this latest from Stephen King wasn‘t full of horrors and monsters have a limited understanding of who the Grand Master really is. This is quintessential King short fiction, a slice of life of some quirky characters with a bit of weird thrown in for flavor. King is a voice of small town America uncomfortable in a new progressive age. Here the sentiment floats as high as the weirdness.

This latest from Micheal Connelly seamlessly combines his two current series with a solid cold case mystery. Connelly‘s books are traditional procedurals yet somehow manages to feel fresh and unique. Here his young brash female detective is the perfect counterpoint for a slower version of Bosch who is questioning his skills as both a detective and as a man and his worth to society. Both narrators are splendid in their performances.

It‘s hard for me to write an unbiased review of his series because well, screw being unbiased. I love the Joe Ledger series and would love each entry even if it was just Joe and Mr. Church discussing needlepoint. Especially if it‘s the audiobook version read by Ray Porter.

This latest edition answers a lot of questions and takes us on another action saturated rocket ride through weird science and ancient horrors.

It‘s #manicmonday featuring the #letters

📖 The Quiet Place by Greg Iles
✏️ Matthew Quirk
📺 Quantico (at least the first two seasons)
🎥 The Quick and the Dead
🌮 Quesidillos

Happy Halloween from a couple of characters!

Today‘s Halloween gift to my self is the newest Joe Ledger audiobook from Jonathan Maberry read by Ray Porter. I guess I chose a treat.

Today was the Halloween Party at the St Christopher‘s Oncology Clinic. Benjamins wanted to be his favorite SpiderMan Villain, Flint Marko aka Sandman from SpiderMan 3. I did my best.

It‘s #manicmonday #letterp

📖 Prince Caspian by CS Lewis
💻 George R. Pelecanos
📺 Person of Interest
🎥 Pump Up the Volume
🥨 Soft Pretzel (I‘m from Philly, yo...)

Since there are two books from series I love comes out on Tuesday, I decided I didn‘t want to start a long audiobook. I realized while I‘ve read Hitchhiker‘s Guide and listened to the audio drama, I had never listened to the audio version narrated by Stephen Fry.

So far it‘s been excellent. Always great to revisit a much loved world and old favorite characters.

The Stranger Game is more than its thriller set up, it‘s a complex look at modern loneliness in a world full of people and technology that is supposed to make us feel more connected. It‘s haunting trip into inward focused paranoia expressed outwardly. Unfortunately, much of the subtext seems to be missed by the narrator whose awkward cadence and high pitched voice drains away much of the emotion, that a more nuanced performer could capture.

Martha Wells ties it all together in this latest chapter of The Murderbot Diaries. Murderbot confronts his past and takes in his corporate nemesis in this fast paced, exciting and surprisingly emotional chapter. I devoured this audiobook in one gulp, and it kept me engaged to the very end. Wells places an unique spin on Murderbot who seeks to be an individual but not necessarily human. Narrator Kevin R. Free gives a fully realized performance.

1. My favorite genre is basically mixing genres. I love books that have a contemporary science fiction theme but mix in elements of horror or fantasy.
2. I love almost all vegetables although I don‘t really get the love of Kale.
3. My final grandparent passed last year. She was 92.
4. My mothers parents were from Turkey.
5. We had our Fall Formal/Prom at work this week. One of my favorite events.

#friyayintro

So, I‘m halfway through this one. Have a bit over 6 hours left.

Brilliant concept and extremely well written but I just find myself not engaged or really caring what happens to most of these characters. Trying to decide whether to stick with it and maybe I‘ll get some payoff or bailing.

Part of the problem is that the narrator is very good and probably the main reason I‘ve stuck with it but I‘d rather be listening to so many other things.

1. Milo decided that she wanted to impede any productive instincts I may have.
2. 4, 1 Audio, 2 print and a GN. One of the print novels is a beta read.
3. Yes. It‘s a bit chill at night and I control heat for my apartment and the upstairs neighbor.
4. Yes. Without them I‘m blind and I can‘t wear contacts so it make picking out cool glasses tough since I can‘t see how I look.
5. I finished just because Ray Porter is an amazing narrator.

My library hold came in. Looking forward to this one from one of my favorite authors. I have the feeling the title may have some foreshadowed irony.

This was a wonderfully written creepy Halloween read beautifully narrated by Bernadette Dunne. I think listening to this right after watching the wonderful Netflix series may have been a mistake, since I was looking for similarities between the two. This is the best kind of horror, eerie and messy with nothing spoonfed to the listener, with an ending that is open enough to allow your own imagination to fill in the blanks.

We‘ve only been dating for a few weeks, but she‘s already lent me the second book in this series of graphic novels. That‘s a good sign, right?

A solid Reacher Thriller combining two stories that somewhat interlock but both play out in their own way. Here Reacher‘s search for some connection to his past involves a bit of historical investigation combined with some coincidental reliving of history. As the backbone of the book it works but Lee also adds a strange little thriller story into the mix that adds action. This is the first book narrated by Scott Brick and take some adjustment.

I didn‘t make a collage today because @JoScho made a pretty awesome picture for today‘s #manicmonday celebrating the #lettero

📚 Old Man‘s War by John Scalzi. Love this series.
✏️ Nnedi Okorafor
📺 Orphan Black!!!!!!!
🎥 O‘ Brother, Where Art Thou?
🍨 Orange Popsicles

Happy O Day!

Beautiful book with an interesting tale. I‘ve been told that it only gets better, so I‘m intrigued to see where things go. Being one of my first Graphic Novel reads it took me a bit to get pulled into the story telling style but by the end I was totally into it.

1. I take too many pictures of beer. Because beer. It‘s all beer, pictures of books and cat pictures. I‘m a rock star.
2. The new Reacher novel. The first since Dick Hill retired. It‘s taking some time to adjust to Scott Brick as the voice of Reacher.
3. It‘s my weekend to work.
4. My Wawa cup.

“I‘m not the kind to kiss and tell but I‘ve been seen with Farrah....”

#humpdaypost

Shirley Jackson‘s The Haunting of Hill House was a novel I had always planned in reading but never did. After finishing his brilliant version on Netflix I think I may finally need to read it. I know the book will be nothing like this modern version but it‘s the perfect season for a good ghost story.

I‘m not much of a graphic novel reader but a friend lent this to me. Since I‘ll be in the hospital much of this week with one of my guys I‘ll have some good reading opportunity.

Not sure why I always struggle with Graphic Novels and Comics. While the art is amazing I‘m not much of a visual learner and I feel like I need to give my imagination more leeway. Maybe this is why I don‘t enjoy Audio dramas either. Any graphic novel suggestions?

It‘s #manicmonday and with the #lettern I found it hard to stick to one choice and changed my answers multiple times.

📖 Nine Princes In Amber by Roger Zelazny
✏️ Sylvain Neuvel
📺 Nowhere Man
🎥 Night of the Living Dead
🌮 Nacho Cheese Doritos (At least it was 5 years and 300lbs ago)

My answers were almost NOS4R2, Nikita, Naked Gun but changed my mind. Such is the ways of N.

I was a bit hesitant to start this. I don‘t read much contemporary fiction, young adult or otherwise but after much encouragement by a trusted friend and my library hold coming in right as the movie opened I took the leap. This book deserves all the praise it‘s received. Both tragic and funny, full of wonderful characters and a brilliant performance The Hate U Give isn‘t just a timely examination of an important issue but a very engaging listen.

The Oracle Year is full of adventure but short on answers. It‘s an engaging what if premise that morphs into a standard comic thriller. Basically, it‘s a book that never really figures out what it supposed to be. I enjoyed the tale but it only truly stands out when it‘s exploring its sci-fi side. Narrator Charlie Thurton is solid. He moves the book along and his characters are well delineated but nothing here will be especially rememberable.

#humpdaypost

1. While I had to work this weekend I did get to go to the Witches Ball, which was loaded with creepy clowns.
2. Today I‘m working 7am to 9pm. Right now I‘m waiting for one of my guys while he‘s at music therapy.
3. Washington Black
4. Besides food for one of my guys at work, I bought my nephews some books for their birthday.
5. I love Mexican. Burritos for life.

I was hesitant to start this because I heard mixed reviews about the audiobook but I love Connelly and since Renee Ballard will be in the next Bosch book I gave it a go. I really enjoyed the story. Connelly is a master who makes procedurals feel fresh and original. It‘s well plotted and the MC grows on you. The narration was problematic with very bland delivery and poor characterizations. Not unlistenable but could have be so much better.

I was a little skeptical going into Washington Black mostly due to the fact that it was outside my comfort zone, yet I was quickly won over by its engaging main character and the sense of adventure in the story. Edugyan creates a tale of unequal friendship, set in a uneasy cultural landscape full of uncomfortable truths that makes you think while entertaining. What truly helps is the the brilliant narration of Dion Graham, a personal favorite.

It‘s #manicmonday which appropriate because today has been crazy. #letterM

📖 Mister Touch by Malcolm Bosse
📖 Malevil by Robert Merle
Two under appreciated Post Apocalyptic Classics

✏️ Will McIntosh
📺 Mister Rogers Neighborhood
📺 The Magicians
🎥 A Mighty Wind
🌮 Mexican

Today was crazy so just getting to Day 3 of #tarottakeover. I listened to The Only Ones by Carola Dibella a few years ago and it‘s complex portrayal of fertility and motherhood stuck with me. What struck me most was how it challenged classic ideas of fertility in the light of modern science. it‘s post pandemic scenario is scarily plausible. Not sure how well it fits on with The Empress but it was the first book I thought of when I read the topic.