Summer Reading
Summer Reading
CCree's recommendations:
For those into dark humor I recommend:"Tik Tok" by Sladek. Ever wonder what would happen if a robot's "Asimov circuits" went on the blink? You'll have to search your library for this gem. It's been out of print for about 30 years. It's probably my fave book of all time.
***Warning! Although humorous, this book contains adult themes, situations, and actions. It's not for the easily offended.***
Laura's recommendations:
If you're interested in Gaelic history, the Sister Fidelma mysteries are interesting. They're by Peter Tremayne - aka Peter Beresford Ellis. Fidelma is a Brehon and a nun in the mid 7th century. Before the Irish church united with the Roman. The mysteries are fairly tight and the history is real, since Ellis happens to be an Irish scholar.And I just finished The Polkerton Giant, by Ian Ogilvy. It took some time to get into it, but I'm glad I stayed with it. Sorry, it's not being published in the US or Canada that I know of. Only the UK contigent can read this one.
Then there's Edward Marston's Domesday mysteries - the latest being The Stallions of Woodstock.
John Taylor's recommendations
My favorite read: Consider Phlebus by Ian Banks, The Forever War by Joe Hiedleman or anything of a science fiction theme and of dark nature
Julia Blackshear Kosatka
Much as I enjoy dark SF, I must admit to a fondness for the lighter stuff, too (though angsty characters are always good :-). Let's see...Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover books, especially:
Heritage of Hastur Sharra's Exile and The Shattered Chain
(The first two should be read in that order. Shattered Chain follows different characters.)Also, I recently reread all the C.S. Forester Hornblower novels. Great fun, those! It was especially fun as I'd read all of David Weber's Honor Harrington novels a couple of months ago .... Though I could kill Weber for leaving that last one kinda just hanging out there. :-):-)
OH! If you like SF, there's a marvelous little book called "The Still Small Voice of Trumpets" that's been out of print forever, but it's probably still in libraries. Wonderful read, that.
Still can't beat H. Beam Piper's Little Fuzzy books. Oh, and "Left Hand of Darkness" and "Lathe of Heaven" by Ursula K. LeGuin. *sigh*
OH! And C.J. Cherryh's Morgaine books. More fantasy than SF, but still unmistakably Cherryh.
Carol Stoneburner's recommendations:
And let me add "Cyteen" by Cherry (Morgaine). The first bit is a little slow but the rest pays off very nicely and was one of the first books to really get me thinking about the nature of cloning. This was one of the two books (well, three of the four if you go by paperback editions) that I reread in the week after Mutiny first aired. The other one, Psion by Joan Vinge, is also quite good (and it's sequel Cats Paw is better).If folks are interested in interesting and excruciating first contact stories they should check out "The Sparrow" by Mary Doria Russell. Not cheerful but fascinating, one of those books I found my self reading very slowly because I didn't want it to end.
Sandra Huibers' recommendations:
I'v just finished "Against the Tide of Time", sequel to "Island in the Sea of Time" by S.M. Stirling. Fabulous, especially if you enjoy alternate history, time travel or military fantasy.
Susanna's recommendations:
Have any of you read Gary Paulsen's "Winterdance"? (Don't know if I have the right spelling for the author). It's one of the few books that has made me scream with laughter, and my very battered copy is presently doing the rounds of friends and family. It's not just funny, but a very moving account of the preparation for and running of the Iditerot - Alaskan dog race (don't think I've spelt that right either!).Other good reads: Jan Mark's "The Eclipse of the Century", and Philip Pullman's "Northern Lights", both slightly fantastical in apparently "conventional" settings.
Beth Martin recommends:
We have been getting a slew of Sci-Fi books delivered to the house because AL is a judge for some upcoming SF writers award and among the many was a great book called "The Bone Yard" by Paul Johnston. Its an SF/Mystery, great atmosphere, fast paced story with a lead character named Quintillian Dalrymple (I love the name). Its published by New English Library(Hodder & Stoughton )and I believe its available in the UK and Australia.Have you seen the Cadfael series with Derek Jacoby? I started reading the books after seeing these TV programs - very true to the books it turns out. And of course DJ is wonderful as the warrior who gave up the world for the solace of the Church but can't quite forget everything he learned in his prior life. (Books by Perry Ellis.)
Minuet's recommedations:
For the Brits out there (and anyone else, too), I picked up "Consider Phlebas", by Iain Banks, when I was in Montreal in May, because his books had come highly recommended on one of my sci fi sites (and because I couldn't find them at home). Anyone out there read his books and did you like them?If you like your mysteries/thrillers/detective stories really, *really* scary, then I recommend Jeffrey Deaver's "The Bone Collector". Frightened me so badly when I was reading it that I had to sleep with the hall light on for three nights in a row. But, boy--was it good! So good, in fact, that I went out an bought the sequel, "The Coffin Dancer".
THE SPARROW, Mary Doria Russell. Quite possibly the best book that I've read in the last 5-10 years. When Earth receives a transmission from Alpha Cetauri that appears to be alien singing, the Vatican funds a first contact mission and sends a team of priests and scientists to contact "God's other children". The mission goes horribly, terribly wrong, and only one member of the team survives, returning to Earth physically, emotionally, and spritually damaged. A haunting story about friendship, faith, and communication. HALWAY HUMAN, Carolyn Ives Gilman. A fascinating story about an isolationist culture that includes a neuter third gender, Blands, who do all the unpleasant scut work in the society. One Bland, Tedla, escapes to Earth, where information has become the most valuable commodity of all, and makes an ally in the information trade. An extremely well-written and involving story. THE VINTNER'S LUCK, Elizabeth Knox. A lovely, lyrical book set in the 1800's about a fallen angel named Xas, who falls in love with a young vintner named Sobran and eventually forms a strange, life-long triangle with Sobran and his mistress, Aurora. The descriptive passages are gorgeous, the aging of Sobran and Aurora, while Xas remains relatively unchanged, is poignant, and the idea that God didn't actually create the Earth--he just found it one day and more or less appropriated it--made me laugh.
Louise's recommendations:
I like the Dame Frevisse series, set in ... ooh, the 16th century? 15th? By Margaret Frazer. Well written, and I believe Frazer is a Medieval - Renaissance historian.
Karen Kaiser's recomendations:
Ever try the Albert Campion mysteries? I got hooked when the local PBS station started airing Mysteries (PBS Series) based on the novels starring Peter (Dr. Who no. 5) Davison in the lead role as Albert Campion. When I found out they were actual novels I went out and got some from the library. The author wrote them from the 1930-1960's and they can be a little dated in places but they're still good.Beth added: Margery Allingham is the author if I remember correctly.
I've got an interesting book to add to your list. It's called Chicks 'n Chained Males by Esther Friesner.
Sandra Huibers added: It's a good read, but look for the first two, "Chicks in Chainmail" and "Did You Say'Chicks?" There are some hilarious stories in there.
Bink's recommendations:
I love Diana Gabaldon's "Outlander" series, including Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, and Drums of Autumn. It's a bit of a time travel yarn, with a woman from the 1940's stepping through a ring of standing stones in Scotland, and going back to the 1700's. It's a lusty set of books featuring a lot men in kilts. The last of the current series takes place in pre-revolutionary America. The author did a lot of research to make these books historically accurate so they're very interesting, as well as a darned good read.I've enjoyed all of Anne Perry's Inspector Pitt novels and her Inspector Monk novels. They're crime novels set in Victorian England. I also just finished all of Patricia Cornwells's Kay Scarpetta novels along with her Hornet's Nest and Southern Cross. Also favorites are Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe's Rifles series and anything by John LeCarre.
