May '24 Books | Fantasy, Classics, Crime Fiction | 9 Reviews
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- Опубліковано 6 сер 2024
- What was your best book in May?
Channels mentioned:
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@BooksWithBenghisKahn
@kdk / @kayshiddenshelf
00:00 Intro
00:33 Crime Fiction
03:33 Magical Realism
05:46 Classics
11:47 Fantasy
26:32 Book of the Month
29:55 Outro
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Thanks for watching!
Really glad you enjoyed Block!
Thanks again for the recommendation!
Great recap of your month Josh! I do want to read Dumas at some point. Not sure if I will read Count of Monte Cristo, but I do want to try him. I DNFd Prince of Thorns lol.
Wow what a packed month!! I can’t wait to try out Dumas at some point, and I have the Count of Monte Cristo ready to go on the shelf.
And thanks for the channel shout out!! I’m glad a lot of the story aspects of Becomjng a Druid worked for you, but sorry the prose held it back from being an immersive read. I did it mostly by audio and I think in that format with a great narrator the dialogue heavy style works great, but I could definitely see it working less well in print only. And right with you on the purely aesthetic level, that naked hardback with the impressionistic painting is awesome.
Haha i love Lawrence Block! I read every one of Block’s books years ago. Glad you liked the book and you keep reading the rest! They don’t disappoint!
Glad to hear he's consistently good - I loo forward to more by him for sure!
Block is amazing and glad you found him. He’s for quite a few series - including gentleman burglar Bernie Rosenblatt and also Evan Tanner who due to an injury cannot sleep, ever. He writes NYC better than anyone else out there. I hope you read more of him.
You had a great reading month. I've read the first two Matthew Scudder books and I fully agree they are great, gritty noir. My best book in May was The Terror by Dan Simmons. Great atmospheric book with supernatural overtones.
The Terror is fantastic! Right up there with Hyperion for my favorite by him.
The best book I read in May was Nathan Lowell's "Working Class", from his Golden Age of the Solar Clipper world. It will definitely not be for everyone, since, like much of his work, it's mostly a slice-of-life book set on a science fiction trading ship. It doesn't have all that much action or suspense; instead, it has lots of economics and small-group leadership discussions, with a bit of career angst. If that sounds interesting to you (it's very much my type of book, though I didn't know that before reading his work), I'd recommend starting with Quarter Share.
Note that the review section on Goodreads for any of his books is very interesting and quite bimodal. People seem to either really like or really hate his writing. Obviously, I fall into the former group. 8-)
If you're a Dickens fan, chase up Dodger by Terry Pratchett. It's his take on the character the Artful Dodger in Elizabethan London. In the story Dodger meets a journalist named Charles Dickens. It's a great romp through the streets and underground sewers of the city.
Oh, that sounds fantastic!
Lehane is an amazing writer. I finished Small Mercies in two days, found myself rooting for Mary Pat all the way towards the end. I still think Mystic River is his better work, but I’ve yet to read his detective series and Shutter Island. I’m currently watching season 3 of the Wire as well!
You're immersed in Lehane right now! I just started a reread of his Kenzie and Gennaro series and think it's great.
Definitely understand the criticism with Becoming A Druid and it is quite a fun book. I also love Druids a lot! Prince of Thorns is way overdue for me, I might pick it up soon.
excellent video! So you say you like druids.... well, my friend, I may have a recommendation for you. Kevin Hearne's "The Iron Druid Chronicles." It's urban fantasy, shorter books, and the premise is we have Atticus Finch, a druid who's been on the run from the Irish gods pantheon for several thousands of years, presently living (I think) in New Mexico (or Arizona). Finally he's come out of hiding and ready to face whatever they have in store for him. Excellent urban fantasy. If you like The Dresden Files, you'd probably like this one. Book one is called "Hounded." I did them on audio but they read just fine sight-read. Loved the video!
That sounds fantastic! I'm adding those to the list right now - thanks!
Great wrap-up, my friend! I also read my first Matthew Scudder book this month, but started at the beginning with The Sins of the Fathers. It was great!
I can’t wait to read Small Mercies later this summer. I’m glad you enjoyed it! I love a good Lehane stand-alone crime thriller.
Oh, good to know some other Scudder books are great too!
I recently read a book called December Park by Ronald Malfi that I think you will like, as I seem to recall you saying that you enjoyed 'coming of age' thrillers/horrors, that King and McCammon are so good at. It's a slow burn with well written characters and well worth your time of you haven't read it.
Oh awesome - thanks for the recommendation!
Sounds like you had a great reading month. I can very much relate to your Murakami short story experience. I read First person Singular recently and felt exactly the same. I read some great shorter books last month. I read The Painted Bird by Jerzy Kosinski, which was very fascinating but very dark and gruesome, about a boy who is hidden and abandoned by his parents in the Polish countryside at the start of the second world war. Recommend, but not for the faint of heart.
In the SF/Fantasy corner I read This is how you lose the time war and Piranesi. Both very ambient, beautifully written and enganging. I thought Piranesi was the better though. I loved there is a mystery to solve there. If you haven't read it, it might fit your affinity with mystery and thrillers.
Yes, I agree that First Person Singular was definitely quite uneven. I also loved Piranesi - it's a really underrated book in my opinion.
You made Curiosity Shop very interesting! My only Dickens is Great Expectation. It didn't relate to me. My recent read favorite classic is O Pioneer by Willa Cather. The book shines insight on good, sin and crime in another time and culture. As to short stories, the only author who wrote them and I love is Amos Oz, full of tension and surprise. I love my recent read memoir, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone. I am a psychology fan. I've got my first adult fantasy, Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, which may be a good entry point for me.
Perhaps another fantasy stand alone you may like (because of your love of psychology) would be Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. Very short and thought-provoking.
I'm so interested in Small Mercies, definitely will be the Lehane I go to after Mystic River. And I really want to read The Three Musketeers, Count of Monte Cristo has some of the best and most memorable writing that I've read.
My May reading ranked:
The Vanished Birds by Simon Jimenez
Mystery Walk by Robert McCammon
Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer
Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby
The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois Bujold
Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer
My Book of the Month is The Vanished Birds, and it's also my favorite read of the year so far, despite a certain booktuber trashing it recently. 😂
I just bought The Vanished Birds recently and I saw the booktuber you’re talking about say how much he disliked it. Glad some people are enjoying it. :)
My favorite book of May was The Twelve. Enjoyed it as much as The Passage.
I definitely look forward to the livestream about Vanished Birds to see the big difference of opinion that that group will have! And you can't go wrong with Small Mercies - it's really great and a lesson in concise storytelling.
Three Musketeers is the first of a trilogy, in a group of five or six books depending on how they are published in the US. Next is Ten Years After, and then a very long book called The Vicomte de Bragelone, of which The Man in the Iron Mask is the last installment. It’s all great fun, but I think Three Musketeers is the best of them. Ten Years After centers around the execution of King Charles in England. I’m amused that you talk about their chivalry, when it’s pretty clear that all of the Musketeers are assholes (and D’Artagnan gets a huge pass from people even though he is a rapist). MiLady is the character that sets Three Musketeers apart for me. Such a great villain, and one of the best female characters in the 19th century.
For other Dumas, Queen Margot is fantastic. It deals with the rise of Henry V in France. Margot is the princess who becomes his wife. It’s fantastic.
If you want an homage to these books in the fantasy genre, pick up The Phoenix Guards by Steven Brust. It’s the first of a trilogy in five books called the Khaarven Romances written in a style that combines Dumas and Tom Stoppard (really), written by a fictitious author named Paarfi. It’s classic/post-modern fantasy, set in the same world as the Vlad Taltos books, and it’s tremendous fun.
Block is great, and very consistent. The Burglar books have a completely different tone and are great fun. The Tanner spy books are also good, but a step lower for me. My favorite Scudder book is When the Sacred Ginmill Closes. But all the Scudder books are good to excellent (and his wife lives in Syosset, which is where I grew up).
The best Dickens books you haven’t read are Bleak House, Little Dorritt and Our Mutual Friend, all of which are as good or better then Great Expectations. Best quote about Curiousity Shop is from Oscar Wilde: “One must have a heart of stone to read the death of little Nell without laughing.”
Great information here - thank you! What I meant to say was the flamboyant and faux chivalry of the characters, but it didn't come out correctly. It was so over the top that I just couldn't help but enjoy it. Thanks for the info regarding the other works by Dumas - it helps me consider where to go next.
Looking forward to that Lehane video. Small Mercies was my entry point and I loved it. Ready to check out more.
Oh awesome!
More or less the reaction I was expecting from you regarding Broken Empire. Its a favourite series of mine but I understand a lot of the complaints. I personally prefer Red Queen's War, which is set in the same world. I found that series to be more emotional, the characters more compelling with more variety in tone, as well as a slightly different approach to humour. Its been a few years since I've picked up any Lawrence, so I'm overdue to pick up another series of his.
May was a weird one for me. It was a month of indecisiveness, randomly picking up books and DNFed/NFNed on a whim very quickly. But what I did finish I really enjoyed.
*Epic Fantasy*
Wars of Light & Shadow 1: Curse of the Mistwraith
- I liked it a lot, Lysaer and Arithon are great characters. I did struggle at times, especially in the 2nd half, with the high magic elements, its not a hard magic system but there's a lot at play. The prose is very rich and elaborate but not overly so. I think I'm gonna treat this series like I did Malazan, and read it over the course of a couple of years. Carried over from April.
*Mystery*
Shutter Island / Dennis Lehane
- I'll certainly be reading more Lehane, this was fantastic! Book of the Month!!!
*Sci-Fi*
Warhammer 40k - Gaunt's Ghosts: A Ghost Return (re-read)
- Short story prelude to a much longer series. I'm already a fan of Abentt through his comics, especially Sinister Dexter.
*Steampunk*
Books of Babel 1: Senlin Ascends (re-read)
- Carry over from April.
I had gotten 40% into a re-read of The Blade Itself via audiobook and just wasn't feeling it, I NFNed Robert McCammon's Swan Song and M.L.N Hanover (Daniel Abraham)'s Unclean Spirits for now. And I re-read Part 1 and the first set of Interludes for the Way of Kings.
So far in June I have finished:
*Historical-Fantasy*
Children of Earth & Sky / Guy Gavriel Kay
- Not my favourite GGK so far, but still superb. I'm a huge of fan of Renaissance inspired stories and this did not disappoint, there was a particular character I wanted more of because the dialogue and interactions were just so good but what we did get was fantastic.
A Brightness Long Ago / Guy Gavriel Kay
- Picked it up immediately after finishing Children of Earth & Sky, and blazed through it. I think I can comfortably say its my favourite GGK I've read so far.
*Southern Gothic*
Child of God / Cormac McCarthy
As for what I'm currently reading:
*Epic Fantasy*
Wars of Light & Shadow 2: Ships of Merior
- Kinda on the back-burner for now but still enjoying it.
*Historical-Fantasy*
All the Seas of the World / Guy Gavriel Kay
*Sci-Fi*
Sun Eater 2: Howling Dark
You've read some fantastic things in May and June so far! Lehane and GGK in the same month is a great month for sure.
Excited for that list of Classics!
Filming tomorrow - should be up on Sunday!
You have a way of summarizing and analyzing books that is almost professional in nature. Well done again. My top Lehane novels are Mystic River, Small Mercies and The Given Day in no particular order. I just have a couple of Lehane books left to read. Sadly.
Thanks so much! I think those three are probably my favorites as well, although I Gone Baby Gone is certainly in the conversation.
Josh, if you you enjoyed reading 'The 3 Musketeers' and thought it was a fun read, I would recommend 'The Man in the Iron Mask' to you.
Great - thanks!
I can't wait for your in depth look at Dennis Lehane and I totally agree with everything you said regarding "Small Mercies", a great read. As for Dumas, you should just continue on with the rest of the d'Artagnan Romances (there are 6 in total). "The Three Musketeers" is and always will be my very favorite book, even better than "The Count of Monte Cristo", though I thoroughly enjoyed that as well. An author I recently encountered that you might enjoy is Louis Bayard. Try his book "The Pale Blue Eye". His style of writing is really nice.
Thank you!
Just saw the 80s movie adaptation of “8 Millions Way To Die” with Jeff Bridges as Scudder: Not bad, not at all, but I definitely enjoyed “Against All Odds” better! 😄
Yeah, I have not read the Jorg trilogy, but Mark Lawrence is definitely worth checking out and not limited to just Grimdark!
I didn't even think about looking for an adaptation, but good to know it's out there!
Hi Josh, I keep meaning to pick up The Three Musketeers, but never seem to get round to it.
Have you read The Last Of The Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper? It is possibly my favourite classic and it reads so easily, the pacing is spot on.
May's reading was excellent for me, with my first 5 star book of this year and possible/probable book of the year also.
I read 4 books:
Into The Wild - Jon Krakauer
Morning Star - Pierce Brown
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest - Ken Kesey
The Easy Life in Kamusari - Shion Miura
and 2 comic books:
Judge Dredd - The Complete Case Files 35
Judge Dredd - The Complete Case Files 36
My book of the month and 5 Star read was: One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. It is amazing, a must read for everyone.
I read The Last of the Mohicans, but it's been 30 years probably! Sounds like it might be worth a reread for me.
Amazing video Josh! I completely agree with you on The Three Musketeers, it’s a real comedy and isn’t too far in quality from The Count of Monte Christo. I’m thinking I’d like to read ‘Twenty Years After’ next by Dumas.
Your points on Prince of Thorns are also very accurate to my own and I can say that the character and the world evolve together or more that the reader’s understanding of both grow as the author drip feeds you.
Thanks, Al! I do hope the Lawrence books improve for me.
I’ve finally read a book before you, Men without women by murakami is great!
I hear the black tulip by Dumas is good, it’s a noir and not too long 230p
Oh great!
Great wrap-up as always!! Really appreciated hearing your conflicted feelings on Prince of Thorns, because I can relate! For me the hopping back and forth in timelines created a lack of grounding that made the entire narrative just feel so messy to me. I ended up finishing the trilogy and there were highs and lows, so I am curious to see how you end up feeling!
And oooh nice to hear about Small Mercies! Krystle Matar (the biggest Lehane stan I know, you should invite her for a live collab gushfest haha) recommended I start with The Drop and I loved that, so I want to read more for sure!
My favourite read in May was Hell for Hire by Rachel Aaron, one of the best urban fantasies I have ever read! And also really liked The Girl With Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee, which is an impactful nonfiction about a woman defecting from North Korea. Would recommend both!
Glad I'm in good company with Prince of Thorns! I do hope it improves. Thanks for the two recommendations - the book about North Korea definitely interests me, as years ago I had a student that had fled North Korea.
@@RedFuryBooks Hope you 'enjoy' it if you pick it up. Interesting to hear about that student, at times the memoir made me forget that I wasn't reading fiction, it was so harrowing what defectors can experience. I am glad that student got out safe!
Josh check out the tv show Britannia if you dig druids!😀
The prose in the Broken Empire does evolve and the tone as well, reflecting Jorg's growth in a way. The sequels are much less edgy and get more philosophical as they go. The theme of memories and how they define us and how they also get twisted and become lies that we believe in about ourselves is fascinating. Jorg is absolutely an unreliable narrator, to us but also to himself, and the awareness of it is written in such a brilliant way
I look forward to seeing the series evolve as did the prose and other elements of the first book.
I read 7 books in May. It was actually a great reading month. I read a book by Ilona Andrews (a paranormal romance I guess), Monster Hunter Vendetta by Larry Correia, The Kings Blood by Daniel Abraham, Murder at Spindle Manor by Morgan Stang, The Trouble with Peace by Abercrombie, Stones of Light by Zach Argyle, and the Firefly novel called Carnival. I really liked all of them, but the best two were Stones of Light and the Trouble with Peace.
The Trouble with Peace is awesome! I have that Firefly novel on my shelf to read next - a definitely guilty pleasure for me!
I love that you have been unduly influenced by Sandersonians and say "Yorg" even though I think it is actually commonly pronounced Jorg this time 🤣 Sando out here redefining the way people read the letter J. I think you would love Book That Wouldnt Burn, Josh!
Haha I had no idea there was a Jorg vs. Yorg argument!
I like the fact you linked the channel kdk - a Ukrainian football channel
Oops! YT Studio was acting weird that day. I think I'll keep it lol
Dumas; you might like the Black Tulip