Reader Thread: Whatcha Reading?

A reader named Sheri emailed me, asking if there were a place at SBTB she could talk to other romance readers about what she's reading, and know that folks would understand what she's talking about. Sheri wrote, I would love for there to be a place where all of us fans and romance lovers had a place to talk without a thread, just free form. I am sure there is a place like this somewhere on the internet but I …enjoy your website and its followers so much. I really feel like it would just be an added bonus. I am going to be starting the Evanovich  Plum Series and while I feel like this is a big undertaking, I am sure no one in my immediate circle would care. I am sure however that the bitchery would totally understand and give lots of humorous support.

The whole Plum series, all upteen books? Oh, yes, I know exactly what you're facing. The early books will make you laugh hard enough to consider using the bathroom, so be ye warned. 

Sheri's email got me thinking, though, about having a Friday afternoon thread for y'all, just to talk about what you're reading right now, or planning to read this weekend. I love hearing about what you're reading when I post the Top 10 list, but perhaps a separate thread just for discussing what you're reading would be of interest. I'll tag them all “reader thread” for easy following. 

So, whatcha reading? 

 

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  1. Emily says:

    I’ve read her trilogies and they’re definitely ones I’ve enjoyed. I’ve actually re-read three sisters. One of the few series I’ve read where I’ve liked every h/H

  2. I’m in the middle of Instant Attraction by Jill Shalvis.  It’s really good so far!

  3. MissB2U says:

    I LOVE hearing about all the books you guys are reading!  I add to my list every time based on what you have to say.  Makes Friday even better.  I’m finishing Unclaimed by Courtney Milan and will get the next one in the series for my ereader since the library only has Unclaimed from the series.  I’m not liking it as much as the first but it’s still good.  Every time I hear about the Evanovich series all I can think about is the scene where her sidekick is chasing someone down the street and the line says something about you don’t see a full figured woman in a thong running down the street every day.  I almost peed in my pants reading those first few books!  I finished The Shadow Reader which was wonderful and romantic and I’m starting the second book in the Greyfriar series by Clay and Cathy Griffin.  Wonderful.  She wrote the Matthew Swift series, (Urban Fantasy), which was off the charts good.  Happy Friday all!

  4. Donna says:

    Which is where I got it. Now if they’d just cough up “Lothaire” before too much longer…

  5. Deb G. says:

    I’m in the middle of Elizabeth Bear’s “Jacob’s Ladder” series – Dust, Chill, and Grail. The first two sucked me in like you wouldn’t believe – space opera, nanotechnology, family scheming and plotting (and brother-sister marriages!), well-developed world that is skillfully described, etc.

    Plus, I was getting desperate to read some scifi/fantasy that didn’t have a werewolf or vampire in it.

  6. H. Vert says:

    Chiming in on the JAK/AQ Arcane books.  Yup, they certainly have the formula down.  Lol.  But as long as I give myself some time between, and allow myself to gently mock as I go, I enjoy them.  Color them a guilty pleasure.  😀 At the moment I’m working through “The Burning Lamp.”

    To the folks who mentioned Valdemar, I am just rediscovering those books.  I’m hesitant to get back in, because frankly, the Arrows series traumatized me.  But I enjoy the worldbuilding.

  7. @Jenny Lyn – I feel that way every time I read something by Kristan Higgins. Why go on struggling to write myself, when her work is already out in the world being unattainably excellent? Which means I’m looking at Until There Was You on my Kindle, and bargaining with myself to do my own writing before I tap on that cover image.

  8. I stayed up way late last night to finish Diana Gabaldon’s The Scottish Prisoner. It’s been a long time since I laughed so often during the tense bits – Lord John is so damn wry and I sure wish he could just find happiness of his own. Sigh.

    Earlier this month I read a couple of SBTB recommendations – Beverly Jenkins’s Captured and Cecelia Grant’s A Lady Awakened. It took me a while to get into Captured (the writing was too clunky at first) but I really really liked the world and the characters. A Lady Awakened grabbed me from the outset and I particularly enjoyed the pacing of Martha’s defenses being breached. And Theo. Oh, Theo! He hardly did any stupid arrogant male things and his whole reformed rake journey felt more grounded and real than just about any I’ve ever read.

  9. CarrieS says:

    Love Connie Willis!  If you haven’t read my guest review of All Seated on the Ground, by Willis, you might check it out because there is a lengthy discussion in the comments re Willis’s works.  I am reading “The Disappearing Spoon” which is not romance but is wildly entertaining.  This surprised me because it’s a non-fiction about the periodic table of the elements.  It is excellent and nicely pitched for my level of ignorance.

  10. ECSpurlock says:

    @ Lusty Reader, Yeah, you do have to pay attention to EVERY detail with Willis in order to really understand what’s happening; she gets a little convoluted, especially when the time changes start happening really quickly. But it’s SUCH a fun book.

    And I adored the perspicacious lorises! I so want one now! It was a cute twist on the real creatures known as slow lorises. And I was SO hoping Volger and Barlow would hook up by the end of the series, they were just two of a kind, if they only weren’t on opposite sides of the perspective divide! I understand Westerfeld’s tossing out the idea of continuing the series but as a second trilogy, focusing on different main characters (with the original characters making cameo appearances) but carrying on to the end of the war. I’ll definitely sign on for that!

  11. Hmr28 says:

    I’ve been on a YA glom for a while now and finished Fracture by Megan Miranda a couple of days ago. It is an excellent book. I really like her writing style. I wrote a bit about it on my goodreads account but basically her characters are very realistic and multifaceted which is not very common in YA. I gave it a 5 on goodreads.

    I am about half way through Cinder by Marissa Meyer. I am not liking this one as much. For some reason, despite the excellent writing I am finding it very boring. I think the characters are rather blah and it is taking forever for anything to happen (plus I am pretty sure I guessed the “mystery” at the first mention of (spoiler*********************************************************************************)
    the burned princess. I think if it does not improve soon it will be getting a dnf and a 2 on goodreads from me.

  12. Hmr28 says:

    I have to ask have you ever read any of her earlier books (Connie Willis)? I read Water Witch (by Connie Willis, Cynthia Felice) and SOOO loved it that it launched my quest for more sci-fi mixed with romance. It’s funny but as much as I loved her earlier books I really don’t care for the books she has released lately. I guess I liked her writing when it was a bit more unformed and less “thought” about. As a result of that book I learned about a whole new genre (to my 11 year old self anyway) ….romance and I’ve never looked back!

  13. KimD says:

    Finished Sorcery and Cecelia earlier in week. It’s a YA but has a triple HEA. I dug the Austen time period with a twist so I’m currently halfways through The Grand Tour and will probably finish the trilogy this weekend. Third book is “Ten Years later.” The authors are Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer, in case anyone wanted to know.
    The first book is just the cousins writing letters to each other, which reminded me of Dangerous Liaisons, the translated book, which rocked too.

  14. Alpha Lyra says:

    I’m currently reading Why Violence has Declined by Steven Pinker. Since I’m not always in the mood for heavy science stuff, plus it’s a print book I don’t like to carry with me everywhere, I’m interleaving it with Collision Course by Zoe Archer and Unclaimed

    by Courtney Milan, both of which I have on my Kindle and cell phone.

  15. Kael says:

    I’m technically reading two books right now (‘A Storm of Swords’ by George RR Martin and ‘Tears of the Sun’ by SM Sterling). But I’m taking a break for Swords to actually read Tears (hence two books at once). I love the SoI&F books, but they can get so dense I just gotta take a break with different genre (in this case Sci-Fi/alternate history (technically it’s now alternate future since it covers events from 2023-2025, but that’s not really a genre name)).

  16. Jessica E says:

    I’m slowly, as in 1-2 books per month, working my way through Jill Shalvis’s backlist.  Between school and my dog nearly dying it’s been a rough week and the semester only just started.  I just finished Smart and Sexy, Instant Gratification, and Instant Temptation.  I love that she always makes me laugh, which is something that I don’t get to do nearly enough, and that only the bad guys die in her books, or no one dies at all.

  17. Tracy Faul says:

    LG—Myste hasn’t shown up that I’ve seen since. Lately, she’s mostly concentrating on back-history.  Foundation of the Collegia, the Mage Wars, etc.

  18. Lusty Reader says:

    @CarrieS thanks so much for letting me know of your Willis post on here since i wasnt on blogs much this Dec i missed it! im the 3rd category – have not tried her…but 200 pgs in i think i’ll belong to the 1st – adore her 😉 now im reading all the comments for more Willis recs.

  19. cleo says:

    I’ll have to check that out.  I read and enjoyed Primo Levi’s The Periodic Table, which is a series of essays (loosely) based on the periodic table, so somehow I feel like I should continue that reading trend.

  20. Kate4queen says:

    I’m reading the first Kate Ross Julian Kestrel mystery which was reprinted recently and I’m enjoying it-despite the head hopping which makes me wince. 🙂

  21. Rij says:

    The last book I finished was Emily May’s Beauty and the Scarred Lord, which I enjoyed quite a bit. I’ve read two of her fantasies written under the name Emily Gee and I enjoyed them so much that I had to check out her regency romances too. Not sure if I’ll get around to her other romances, maybe when I get desperate enough for the sequel to The Sentinel Mage.

    Currently reading The Demon’s Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan. It’s the last book in a very good YA fantasy trilogy.

  22. @Jenny, I LOVED The Winter Sea! It was so excellently crafted. I’ll have to look for the Deveraux title, it’s not one I’ve read.

    I read Kearsley’s second, The Rose Garden, last week, and was sad that it didn’t captivate me as much as The Winter Sea. It was still very good, just not as transportive as the other.

  23. cleo says:

    I’ve just started the Dirk and Steele series too, and two books in, I’m trying to decide if I really want to commit to another complicated paranormal romance series.  I really, really enjoyed Tiger Eye – I was able suspend disbelief enough to accept that a shapeshifter can be enslaved for 2,000 years but quickly adjust to the 21st Century and have no ptsd symptoms.  I enjoyed the 2nd one too, even though it strained my SoD a little more.  I love Liu’s voice and writing style – I think she writes beautifully.  But the end of the 2nd book seemed like a set up for more intrigue and that made me wonder what I’m getting myself into.

    Anyone who’s read the Dirk and Steele series – I have questions.  Do the books have to be read in order?  How big of a commitment is it?  How much do I have to remember from book to book? (wow – that makes me sound like a shallow reader, but really, one of the reasons I switched from mysteries to romance after I started teaching is that I couldn’t remember the complicated plots – I have too many things in my head as it is).  Is it more like Singh’s Psy/Changeling books (books have to be read in order, relatively complicated story arcs and world building) or JAK’s Arcane series (books can be read in order but are more stand alone, with less intense world building)?

    And thanks for this thread.  I was just wondering who I could ask about this series.

  24. LG says:

    So far, I think I’ve only read To Say Nothing of the Dog, Bellwether, and Remake. I keep meaning to read more, time passes, I forget how enjoyable her books are, etc. I’ll have to add Water Witch to my TBR.

  25. LG says:

    Good to know, I might try getting back into the series then. I hate that I feel like I have to be wary anytime a book takes place in Valdemar’s “present,” but I hated Myste’s inclusion that much. It seemed like a very fanfic writer thing to do. I read and enjoy fanfic (I’m working my way through Avatar: The Last Airbender fic right now, actually), but I read fanfic with a different mindset than when I read published works.

  26. De says:

    Taking shameless advantage of this free for all thread.

    I’m working on a book display for my library on caper/heist books. I need more.  If anyone has any suggestions I’d love to see them.  (I was doing a marathon re-watch of Leverage, loaned my White Collar dvds to my boss, and was reading the second Heist Society book by Ally Carter when I came up with this theme.)

    Thank you!

  27. kkw says:

    I just finished Pretty Little Liars, I’m in the middle of a Lorraine Heath, and I think Victoria Dahl is up next. Enough people here seem to like YA that I’m going to ask for recommendations. I’m tutoring two Dominican high school girls here in Brooklyn, neither of whom are big readers. One of them liked Twilight, the other is a fan of The Coldest Winter Ever. The girl at the bookstore suggested Pretty Little Liars, which I didn’t hate as much as I expected, but I don’t know that it’s a great match. But what do I know? I didn’t like YA even when I was. I don’t care if the book has literary merit, mostly I want to help familiarize them with English idioms, and show them that reading can be fun.
    I really loved the Evanovich books for a while but I OD’d. Every time I compulsively gobble up a series, I wind up wishing I hadn’t. I think part of the reason I like JAK as much as I do, is that I’ve liked her for so long there was never a backlist for me to immerse myself in, so whenever a new one comes out, I’ve read a zillion things since the last one. occasionally I read a couple back to back, but I never enjoy them as much that way.

  28. I’m reading the 2nd book in Milan’s “Un” series.  I finally got it for Christmas and I figured I should read this one before I start the 3rd one for the book club.  I haven’t gotten very far, but I really like it so far.

  29. lorelai says:

    Love the idea of a weekly “What are you reading?” thread!

    I just started “Unraveled” by Courtney Milan the other day. I’ve read all the others in the Turner series so I know it’s going to be good but it’s starting out slow for me – I can’t seem to get into it. After this, I have no idea what I’m going to read. My TBR pile is out of control.

    @Jenny – Have you read any of Kearsley’s other books? I read “The Rose Garden” last month and it’s really good.

  30. LG says:

    I can give you recommendations for the one who liked Twilight. Try books by L.J. Smith (if she wants more vampires, she should try the Vampire Diaries books or some of the Nightworld books). Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause is another good one – it’s about werewolves, but Klause has another one, The Silver Kiss, that has a vampire. Then there’s The Darkangel by Meredith Ann Pierce. I’m more hesitant about that recommendation, because it’s been ages since I read it, but I have vague memories of it being angsty, and I know I loved it when I was a teen.

  31. Loulou says:

    runswithscissors, I’m so with you on this one! The relationship development kept me going in Fifty shades of Grey and now I’m kind of plodding through the sex and wtf moments because I feel I should see it through.And what also bugs me is the endless repetition of how hot he is. I feel like saying:ÿeah, we get it, the guy is gorgeous. Move on. Will you bother with the 3rd one when it comes out?

  32. SB Sarah says:

    Oh Carney I am so pleased that you liked it! It is a very different sort of romance but I am so happy you liked it as I did!

  33. delphia2000 says:

    I’m on the third book in LA Meyer’s Jacky Faber series (YA) and find it great mindless fun. I started to read Iron Duke a while back, but had to set it aside for some RL so I’m going to pick that up again this weekend along with Julie Kagawa’s Iron Knight. (I tend to read 2-4 books at a time.) Just finished Lackey’s The Snow Queen and really like her 500 Kingdoms series. (Like all her stuff but had no idea she’d put herself into her books. I say bravo and plan to re-read what ever that one is.) I also am reading my way thru 3 non-fics, one on vegan diet, one on Ball Jointed Dolls and the other on a medical issue. Also read that book about Heaven being for real.

    And I’m probably the only person in the world who didn’t like Stephanie Plum, didn’t laugh and won’t read any more in the series. I laughed out loud reading Lackey’s Sleeping Beauty and would rec in a heartbeat.

  34. Non-fiction today: Hedy’s Folly: The Life and Breakthrough Inventions of the Most Beautiful Woman in the World.  Cool biography of actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr, who said, “American men, as a group, seem to be interested in only two things, money and breasts. It seems a very narrow outlook.”

    She had six husbands and an amazing life.

  35. Tam says:

    I just read Connie Willis’ Domesday Book over Christmas, and I’ve got to say, as an ex-Brasenose postgraduate who’d studied medieval literature, it was the best Christmas read ever.  I used to go to that carol service in St Mary the Virgin every year…  (My brother said ‘Oh wait, it’s a book in which a Brasenose medievalist has a glamorous and exciting job?  It MUST be science fiction.’  Cheers, o brother of mine…)

    I spent most of my Christmas Amazon gift card on the Courtney Milan trilogy, and the Smart Bitches have not let me down; I’m loving it…

  36. sheri says:

    Cool, my name is Staci now…interesting. Anyhow I am so glad that my idea took hold. I really do love the bitchery and all the fun stuff that is brought up on here. And here i go on the Stephanie Plum books….how many are there again? :#

  37. That’s next up on my list! Glad it’s a good one.

  38. sheri says:

    I really love the Arcane Society book, except for the ones she writes as Castle. I really love contemparies as a general rule, but I really like the Regency area ones as well.

  39. sheri says:

    Do you find that you have favorites in each of her series? I have four of her series but I always go back to my favorite of each and reread those often, and almost never reread the whole series. In fact the only one of the Born In series I have is Born In Ice. Its my favorite and the one I go back to the most.

  40. sheri says:

    I am so lucky, my library has the whole series. Otherwise I wouldn’t be attempting it. My wallet would never recover.

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