Beyond Reality discussion

Please let us know what you are reading or planning to read in December.

Guess what? I'm *still* reading Toll the Hounds, with Dust of Dreams up next. And at the rate I'm going, I may not get to anything else this month!

I have a little pile going slow burn, for those moments snatched while under deadline, Vellum, a rather unusual title by Hal Duncan, also Without Bloodshed by an author brand new to me, and The Killing Moon on kindle, my first toe in the waters with N.K. Jemisin.

Dreading the hot moment of temptation when Ash and Silver and The Labyrinth of Flame arrive, Berg and Schafer being firmly established on my toplist of favorite authors.

Almost done with Cuckoo Song which I am enjoying. On my shelf are Fated and Squire

Janny, I spotted the word deadline; stopped, re-read it and thought aha a new book....

I think Jemisin is quite good. I read her The Inheritance Trilogy a couple of years ago and thought it explored some interesting ideas. I, also recently saw Vellum and it whetted my interest, do let me know if it's good.

Kathi, I finished Toll and have to say it isn't my favourite.

I squashed in The Last Witness which I thoroughly enjoyed. Last night I started The Traitor which has caught my interest.

I finished The Traitor Baru Cormorant just now. I thought it was incredible - absolutely fantastic, and other adjectives for loving the hell out of it. I had trouble with it at the start, had put it down, but I'm really glad I picked it up again, because it then grabbed me by the throat and has only now set me down. Gush gush gush etc.

I'm going now to be alternating reads of Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami, Luna: New Moon by Ian McDonald and Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett. Looking forward to all of them, though especially Equal Rites.

I'm also going to be getting through the last few short stories in Miracle and Other Christmas Stories by Connie Willis. Judge me all you like, but I love SFF, short stories, Connie Willis, and Christmas, so this collection appealed. And I think some of them are very good so far, rarely erring on the side of twee.

Still working on Terrier, with The Traitor Baru Cormorant up next!

I just finished The Traitor Baru Cormorant, and do recommend that to anyone still trying to decide whether or not to read it this month. It was very good. Although if you are choosing between that and Ancillary Mercy, I would have to say go for the latter:) But read both if you can!

I'm currently reading Archivist Wasp. Very good so far.

I finished Archivist Wasp and would definitely recommend it.

I am now reading Falling Sky...another book that has been on my TBR for so long that the sequel is now out before I managed to get to it:)

December is my favourite month along with August! I loved The Traitor Baru Cormorant (I read the UK version btw) too, one of my favourite releases on 2015.

I've just started reading Robin Hobb The Liveship Traders Trilogy, kind of okay for now. Currently discussing Warhost of Vastmark, the third book of my favourite epic fantasy series ever (waves to Janny Wurts :D). Exactly last year I read The Curse of the Mistwraith for the first time.

Just bought Ash and Silver, I'm looking forward to read the whole duet, I loved the Lighthouse duet and another story set in the same world sounds great.
And then I'll probably start the vacation in the company of The Whitefire Crossing.

Alissa wrote: "December is my favourite month along with August! I loved The Traitor Baru Cormorant (I read the UK version btw) too, one of my favourite releases on 2015.

I've just started readin..."

I didn't love the Liveship Traders books - worth reading just for the completist picture of what's happening, because I LOVED the Farseer trilogy and the Fool trilogy, but I found them kind of meh.

Finished Falling Sky, and it was pretty good. Now reading Aurora, which is not impressive at all so far, especially compared to the last generation ship book I read, Children of Time, which was brilliant.

Finished up a few books I've been reading for awhile. In non-SFF, Hissing Cousins: The Untold Story of Eleanor Roosevelt and Alice Roosevelt Longworth, which I found unenlightening. After a slow, easy-to-put-down start to Spirit Gate, I enjoyed the ending. I usually like Elliott's work, so I'm hoping the next two are better.

Had a chance to pick up Rothfuss' The Thing Beneath the Bed. Definitely not for kids (as it tells you right on the cover) but not an unfamiliar twist for most SFF readers.

And in the throwback reads, I finished reading The Wednesday Witch aloud. Still a cute book.

Onward to finishing The Way Into Darkness, a trilogy I am enjoying immensely! I backed it as a Kickstarter and it's quite good, better than I expected even from the generous excerpt the author previewed online.

Just a quick note that City of Stairs is available for $1.99 from Amazon and iBooks. Since it's an upcoming read, get it while it's on sale!

Lindsey wrote: "Finished up a few books I've been reading for awhile. In non-SFF, Hissing Cousins: The Untold Story of Eleanor Roosevelt and Alice Roosevelt Longworth, which I found unenlightening...."

Shel wrote: "Alissa wrote: "December is my favourite month along with August! I loved The Traitor Baru Cormorant (I read the UK version btw) too, one of my favourite releases on 2015.

I've just..."

I liked The Way Into Darkness a lot, the beginning was very surprising and it was a nice trilogy throughout. Another one I owe to reccs!

I'm liking Ship of Magic so far, but I'm not connecting to the story and the characters like I did to the first Farseer trilogy. We'll see. Lately I've had very little time to read so I'm happy I'm not reading a complicated book.

Whew! I finished Toll the Hounds and since the group has officially started Dust of Dreams, that's up next for me as well. Although I usually take a break between Malazan books and could really use a Terry Pratchett right about now, I'll be diving into Book 9 of the Malazan Book of the Fallen later today.

I'm not starting til later in the month and I believe Justine isn't reading either.

Alyssa, Ships is different and on my reread I was wondering why I was bothering and why I'd liked it so much previously. However, it suddenly becomes awesome.

Yes Kathi I think Scott is the only only one on track right now with Dust of Dreams. I just finished Rising Tide, the follow up to Falling Sky and now I am rereading Golden Son because the final installment, Morning Star, is due out in February.

I decided to take a break from Malazan after Reaper's Gale because I felt like I enjoyed the book less because I'm getting impatient and wanting to read other things. So, it's a Malazan-free December for me. Hopefully that will restore my patience and let me finish off the series in style. :)

Right now, I'm reading some older scifi. I just finished Hunting Party by Elizabeth Moon the other day, and now I've moved on to Sporting Chance, the second in that series. It's a very nice change of pace.

Tani wrote: "I decided to take a break from Malazan after Reaper's Gale because I felt like I enjoyed the book less because I'm getting impatient and wanting to read other things. So, it's a Malazan-free Decemb..."
I did the same after Toll the Hounds. When I tried Dust of Dreams I realised I had enough. Put it down. Hopefully will be able to restart in the spring

The good news is that the MBotF threads will still be available for you to add your comments whenever you choose to return to the series, Tani & Ken & anyone else taking a break.

As I commented previously, I usually have read at least one other book between the Malazan books, but now I am pushing through to the finish. I confess I have also bought all the Malazan Empire books by Ian C. Esslemont and will be reading them at some point, but probably not for a while after I finish Erikson's series.

I've been thinking of reading his too.

Are you going to read Forge of Darkness and the rest of that trilogy too?

I got the itch so I went right from Dust of Dreams into The Crippled God

I made a goal at the beginning of the year to start and finish Malazan so I'm trying to get them done. Plus, after the end of DoD I couldn't imagine waiting any amount of time to get into the next. That has totally boned me on other things I was planning on reading, but I've really loved this series and am ready to know how it ends.

I plan on reading the ICE books as well as the Karkanas trilogy at some point. Not sure exactly when, though.

Scott wrote: "I got the itch so I went right from Dust of Dreams into The Crippled God"

Ah, so you are the one who has already posted in the "Dust of Dreams--Finished Reading" thread. I know Erikson wrote this and The Crippled God as one book and so it makes sense to go right from one into the next. I probably will do that as well, just not as quickly as you.

Justine wrote: "Are you going to read Forge of Darkness and the rest of that trilogy too?"

I think now that I have read (and really liked) this many of the Malazan books, I will definitely read the others as well. I think Erikson is planning a trilogy on Karsa, too. Esslemont's books will be next for me, but not right away.

I'm reading An Inheritance of Ashes right now. It's very good.

I'm still working on The Traitor Baru Cormorant. It's been slow going, not because I'm not enjoying it (I really like it so far!) but just because life is so hectic at the moment that I've had very little energy to read.

Shel wrote: "I'm still working on The Traitor Baru Cormorant. It's been slow going, not because I'm not enjoying it (I really like it so far!) but just because life is so hectic at the moment th..."

I loved the book :) it's a hectic period for me as well, and my reading pace has suffered. Fortunately I'm reading a light story, so...I'm reading book 2 of Robin Hobb The Liveship Traders Trilogy 3 Books Collection Set but I'm not overly impressed so far; I truly enjoyed the first trilogy and with this one (more POVs, third person perspective, several plot threads) I was hoping for...well...more. I'm enjoying it, but I feel it's geared towards a younger audience - I'm old, I know.

@Alissa continue with the book it gets better.

I am currently reading Judas unchained and have only last 135 pages to go considering it is a 1235 page book, the first book in audio I devoured in two weeks this definitely took longer for me to complete.

Secondly I am reading second book in Gap cycle and it was darker than the first book.

when I got to the end of Dust of Dreams, I immediately had to dive into The Crippled God too. Right before Dust is a good time to take a break!


I am on a Bank's Culture series kick, and just finished Look to Windward and hope to start Matter soon, but first Im going to try to finish off The Snow Queen and Forever Odd

Sumant wrote: "Secondly I am reading second book in Gap cycle and it was darker than the first book."

I read the Gap series many years ago and yes, the whole series is pretty dark. I also found it to be quite dense. I'm glad I read the books but it was a challenge for me.

Judas Unchained is Hamilton, right? Can't remember if I read that or not but he is an author I want to get back to. I have several of his books on my shelf.

And then Maggie mentioned Banks and the Culture books--another series I need to get back to reading. Alissa talked about the Liveship Traders books by Hobb--I've read her first series (Farseer) but none of her other books--yet another author I need to revisit.

I will not make my Reading Goal again this year. I was on track through the first half of the year but the Malazan books just kept getting longer and I was on vacation for several weeks and only read in airports and on flights, so I fell way behind. All these good books being mentioned are motivating me to make reading a priority in 2016. Maybe it will be my first year to make my goal (52 books in a year, an average of one per week).

Alissa wrote: "I'm reading book 2 of Robin Hobb The Liveship Traders Trilogy 3 Books Collection Set but I'm not overly impressed so far; I truly enjoyed the first trilogy and with this one (more POVs, third person perspective, several plot threads) I was hoping for...well...more. I'm enjoying it, but I feel it's geared towards a younger audience - I'm old, I know. "

I felt the same way about that entire trilogy. Well, the first book was ok, but it went downhill from there. That said, it's still worth reading because when she returns to Fitz in the Tawny Man trilogy, the connection is made clear and THOSE are amazing :)

Maggie wrote: "when I got to the end of Dust of Dreams, I immediately had to dive into The Crippled God too. Right before Dust is a good time to take a break!


I am on a Bank's Cult..."

I loved that book.

I finished Squire and Fated and have just started Updraft

Christine wrote: "I finished Squire and Fated and have just started Updraft"

I read Updraft last month; I thought it was good! I finished An Inheritance of Ashes and would recommend that one. I'm now reading The Unquiet, which is very interesting so far.

I finished quite a few the past couple of weeks: first The Colonel, a Tor.com short to go with his Firefall series. Then Golden Son which was just as addictive as the first one, and had a lot going on. I'm looking forward to seeing how it concludes now.

This week, I finished Luna: New Moon, which was really good. Definitely felt the "GoT in space" vibe, but it had less bluster and filler. I also finished Connie Willis' SFF Christmas story collection, which had a lot of good stories in it, only 2 misses, and got me in the spirit.

I'm now reading Childhood's End and O Pioneers!, along withDark Entries, a short 'strange' story collection which is great so far. I'm surprised Aickman isn't better well known within genre!

Lulu wrote: "I finished quite a few the past couple of weeks: first The Colonel, a Tor.com short to go with his Firefall series. Then Golden Son which was just as addictive as th..."

Oooh, I'm glad to hear about The Colonel! I really loved Blindsight, and the next book is on my list of things to get to, but I hadn't realized there was anything else to the series.

I finished up Sporting Chance by Elizabeth Moon last night, and am moving on to Winning Colors. I'm enjoying the series as a kind of mind-candy science fiction. The majority of the characters are women, which is pretty awesome, and the books are short enough that they don't really drag. Some early author problems, but nothing bad enough that I would stop reading. I really enjoyed the Vatta's War series by Moon, and this just cements my feeling that she's an author for me to keep an eye on.

Shel wrote: "I felt the same way about that entire trilogy. Well, the first book was ok, but it went downhill from there. That said, it's still worth reading because when she returns to Fitz in the Tawny Man trilogy, the connection is made clear and THOSE are amazing :) "

:D I'll finish reading, it's also a very busy period (understatement) for me and I'm ok with a lighter read. A clear-cut three star read and I'm midway through the second book. I miss the "spark" of the first trilogy, but I don't regret picking Liveship up. I'm just dying for more time to read, I'm suffering terribly lately from book withdrawal.

Tani wrote: "Lulu wrote: "I finished quite a few the past couple of weeks: first The Colonel, a Tor.com short to go with his Firefall series. Then Golden Son which was just as ad..."

Definitely read The Colonel before you get to Echopraxia - it's set between the two books and "sets up" the beginning in some ways. I finished both earlier in the year, so the short didn't do much for me because of that.

Just finished Oracle. Very good

Started Believer: My Forty Years in Politics

I'm reading The Martian. Finally. :)

Here is my review of Judas unchained.

Here is my review of 2nd book in the Gap series, really liked this book.

Shel wrote: "Alissa wrote: "I'm reading book 2 of Robin Hobb The Liveship Traders Trilogy 3 Books Collection Set but I'm not overly impressed so far; I truly enjoyed the first trilogy and with this one (more PO..."

I'm an old reader too - in my 50s, and I have to say, I loved the Liveship Trader series. Different from the first trilogy, yes, but still some wonderful characters and storylines. For me anyway :)

I just finished Uprooted by Naomi Novik. Best I've read in a while. I really enjoyed her lyrical prose.

Read Liveship awhile back and definitely enjoyed it, although it's hard to equal Fitz in my head. Also greatly enjoyed Uprooted earlier this year, probably my favorite book of 2015.

Finished The Way Into Darkness, which was good. Also tried out Juliet Marillier for the first time, with Dreamer's Pool. Started a bit slow but I ended up really enjoying it, looking forward to the next one.

Kathi wrote: "I will not make my Reading Goal again this year. [...] All these good books being mentioned are motivating me to make reading a priority in 2016. Maybe it will be my first year to make my goal (52 books in a year, an average of one per week). "

Me either. My goal this year was 51 (one more than last year) but I'll be short by at least 7. Here's to 2016!

I finished Updraft which I liked and recommend; now I'm reading Lady Knight

I finished The Martian (which was good, obviously) and also read Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine which I would definitely recommend! I've now started reading Luna: New Moon by Ian McDonald, which is very promising so far.

I finally finished Baru Cormorant - wow! Loved it. Not sure what's next, I'll see what appeals that I have on my kindle - am traveling and didn't want to bring another physical book along.

I just finished Lady Knight which was a nice conclusion to this quartet; I recommend it. the entire series could be called "light reading" but enjoyable.
Now I'm off topic with Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of an American Family