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December Book List
Jan. 2nd, 2010 05:34 pmAnd the final list of books read for 2009. Including at least one I didn't finish but not including things like comics trades or game rule books...
Dec 1st: Andrew Vachss - Everybody Pays: Another short story collection from Vachss. This one has larger sections on Cross and on the Underground scifi setting I think...
Dec 2nd: Charlaine Harris - Grave Secret: I'm not sure if this is the last Harper Connelly book, but it works as a finale for the series. The focus is on people's reactions to Harper and her stepbrother's relationship and the resolution on what happened to her missing younger sister...
Christopher Moore - Fool: Moore's explicitly vulgar, strikingly profane and exceptionally humorous parody (or is it a satire? I'm not sure how to tell the difference) of the classic King Lear...
Dec 4th: Diane Duane - The Wizard's Dilemma: It took me a while to start in on the new Young Wizards books. To be fair, the same could be said of Duane. This story has probably one of the best takes on "magic vs. cancer" or Why Can't I Just Magic Them Better?
Dec 5th: Chuck Palahniuk - Pygmy: I think the point when the narrator's way of reporting back in both broken and overly detailed English goes from interesting to fucking annoying is at about twenty pages in. Also, making your "hero" a rapist in the early chapters didn't really work as a way to keep me reading the damn book. I probably should have started with Fight Club or something...
Dec 6th: Virginia DeMarce - 1635: The Tangled Web: After reading this solo collection of DeMarce's Ring of Fire fiction, I have to say that she works better without Flint. The two of them seem to bring each other's flaws more to the forefront...
Kevin Anderson - Hidden Empire: I'd actually forgotten I'd grabbed this trilogy from the thrift store and tried to read it. Which says something about how dull I found it. Good high concepts for the setting, but just bored me utterly. Luckily I paid a buck for all three books...
Dec 8th: John Ringo - There Will Be Dragons: I think S.M. Stirling and Ringo had a bet about writing a series where Rennies and SCA enthusiasts have to save the world. To be fair, Ringo's McGuffin works better than Stirling's. And thats with Stirling not having revealed his yet...
Robert Parker - Pastime: I think the most notable part of this 18th Spenser book is that its where he and Susan get their dog. The rest of the book is enjoyable but doesn't have much to make it stand out from the rest of the ongoing series...
Dec 9th: Ringo - Emerald Sea: Also, Mr. Ringo you need a ding upside the head for sock-puppeting a "global warming is just hysteria" speech from someone whose authority on the subject comes from being a military historian from thousands of years in the future. Seriously leave out the digs at current events and get back to the action...
Dec 10th: Neil Gaiman - Smoke & Mirrors: I've read this Gaiman short story collection before, but somehow I'd missed adding it to my library until now...
Kate Elliott - Traitor's Gate: The last book to the Crossroads Trilogy. Its sad when a heroic character shows themselves to be less than heroic. But happily I get to see the comeuppance on the leaders of the ravaging Star Army. Sweet, sweet comeuppance...
Dec 11th: Paul Neilen - Apathy & Other Small Victories: Darkly funny story with an intentionally dislikable lead...
Dec 12th: Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academicals: I have to say, this latest Discworld novel reads better the 2nd time around...
Dec 13th: John Scalzi - Old Man's War: While an more than enjoyable scifi miltech book, I do wish Scalzi had done more to follow up on some of the concepts he sets up...
Dec 14th: Scalzi - The Last Colony: Which, I'll admit, he manages to do more with in this third book for the series...
Dec 16th: Ringo - Against the Tide: Another generally enjoyable bit of far-future sword&sorcery military epic-ness from Ringo...
Dec 18th: Cherie Priest - Boneshaker: A very enjoyable mash-up of steampunk & zombie survival set in 19th century Seattle...
Dec 19th: Neal Asher - Prador Moon: 1st book of Asher's Polity series. With the start of the war between the far-future human/AI Polity & the vicious crab-like Prador...
Dec 20th: George R.R. Martin (ed) - Busted Flush: Re-reading the second in the latest continuation Wild Cards anthology after I picked up my own copy...
Dec 21st: Parker - The Professional: The only thing that bothers me about this latest Spenser book is the title. Who exactly is it supposed to be referring to? Its not Spenser. Its not the blackmailer he's hired to track down and discourage. Maybe its Hawk? Hawk is in the book...
Dec 23rd: Joel Rosenberg - D'Shai & Hour of the Octopus: I really wish Rosenberg would revisit this mystery series and it's vaguely Asian setting...
Dec 25th-27th: Elizabeth Moon - Hunting Party, Sporting Chance & Winning Colors: The Herris Serrano trilogy and the start of Moon's Family Regnant series...
Dec 28th: Eric Flint (ed) - Grantville Gazette: Just tiding myself over until the next book in the Ring of Fire comes out or I break down and start buying the online editions of the Gazettes...
Dec 31st: Jasper Fforde - Shades of Grey: Ending the year and the decade with Fforde's new series. I like that, unlike the Thursday Next books, there seems to be some kind of future explanation for the weirdness of the setting. The book's ending is also much darker than his other two series...
Total Books: 28
Dec 1st: Andrew Vachss - Everybody Pays: Another short story collection from Vachss. This one has larger sections on Cross and on the Underground scifi setting I think...
Dec 2nd: Charlaine Harris - Grave Secret: I'm not sure if this is the last Harper Connelly book, but it works as a finale for the series. The focus is on people's reactions to Harper and her stepbrother's relationship and the resolution on what happened to her missing younger sister...
Christopher Moore - Fool: Moore's explicitly vulgar, strikingly profane and exceptionally humorous parody (or is it a satire? I'm not sure how to tell the difference) of the classic King Lear...
Dec 4th: Diane Duane - The Wizard's Dilemma: It took me a while to start in on the new Young Wizards books. To be fair, the same could be said of Duane. This story has probably one of the best takes on "magic vs. cancer" or Why Can't I Just Magic Them Better?
Dec 5th: Chuck Palahniuk - Pygmy: I think the point when the narrator's way of reporting back in both broken and overly detailed English goes from interesting to fucking annoying is at about twenty pages in. Also, making your "hero" a rapist in the early chapters didn't really work as a way to keep me reading the damn book. I probably should have started with Fight Club or something...
Dec 6th: Virginia DeMarce - 1635: The Tangled Web: After reading this solo collection of DeMarce's Ring of Fire fiction, I have to say that she works better without Flint. The two of them seem to bring each other's flaws more to the forefront...
Kevin Anderson - Hidden Empire: I'd actually forgotten I'd grabbed this trilogy from the thrift store and tried to read it. Which says something about how dull I found it. Good high concepts for the setting, but just bored me utterly. Luckily I paid a buck for all three books...
Dec 8th: John Ringo - There Will Be Dragons: I think S.M. Stirling and Ringo had a bet about writing a series where Rennies and SCA enthusiasts have to save the world. To be fair, Ringo's McGuffin works better than Stirling's. And thats with Stirling not having revealed his yet...
Robert Parker - Pastime: I think the most notable part of this 18th Spenser book is that its where he and Susan get their dog. The rest of the book is enjoyable but doesn't have much to make it stand out from the rest of the ongoing series...
Dec 9th: Ringo - Emerald Sea: Also, Mr. Ringo you need a ding upside the head for sock-puppeting a "global warming is just hysteria" speech from someone whose authority on the subject comes from being a military historian from thousands of years in the future. Seriously leave out the digs at current events and get back to the action...
Dec 10th: Neil Gaiman - Smoke & Mirrors: I've read this Gaiman short story collection before, but somehow I'd missed adding it to my library until now...
Kate Elliott - Traitor's Gate: The last book to the Crossroads Trilogy. Its sad when a heroic character shows themselves to be less than heroic. But happily I get to see the comeuppance on the leaders of the ravaging Star Army. Sweet, sweet comeuppance...
Dec 11th: Paul Neilen - Apathy & Other Small Victories: Darkly funny story with an intentionally dislikable lead...
Dec 12th: Terry Pratchett - Unseen Academicals: I have to say, this latest Discworld novel reads better the 2nd time around...
Dec 13th: John Scalzi - Old Man's War: While an more than enjoyable scifi miltech book, I do wish Scalzi had done more to follow up on some of the concepts he sets up...
Dec 14th: Scalzi - The Last Colony: Which, I'll admit, he manages to do more with in this third book for the series...
Dec 16th: Ringo - Against the Tide: Another generally enjoyable bit of far-future sword&sorcery military epic-ness from Ringo...
Dec 18th: Cherie Priest - Boneshaker: A very enjoyable mash-up of steampunk & zombie survival set in 19th century Seattle...
Dec 19th: Neal Asher - Prador Moon: 1st book of Asher's Polity series. With the start of the war between the far-future human/AI Polity & the vicious crab-like Prador...
Dec 20th: George R.R. Martin (ed) - Busted Flush: Re-reading the second in the latest continuation Wild Cards anthology after I picked up my own copy...
Dec 21st: Parker - The Professional: The only thing that bothers me about this latest Spenser book is the title. Who exactly is it supposed to be referring to? Its not Spenser. Its not the blackmailer he's hired to track down and discourage. Maybe its Hawk? Hawk is in the book...
Dec 23rd: Joel Rosenberg - D'Shai & Hour of the Octopus: I really wish Rosenberg would revisit this mystery series and it's vaguely Asian setting...
Dec 25th-27th: Elizabeth Moon - Hunting Party, Sporting Chance & Winning Colors: The Herris Serrano trilogy and the start of Moon's Family Regnant series...
Dec 28th: Eric Flint (ed) - Grantville Gazette: Just tiding myself over until the next book in the Ring of Fire comes out or I break down and start buying the online editions of the Gazettes...
Dec 31st: Jasper Fforde - Shades of Grey: Ending the year and the decade with Fforde's new series. I like that, unlike the Thursday Next books, there seems to be some kind of future explanation for the weirdness of the setting. The book's ending is also much darker than his other two series...
Total Books: 28
