This weekend we're going on vacation – FINALLY the grown ups are going on vacation after the dudes had camp all summer. It was a shocking disappointment to the dudes that grown ups have to go to WORK in the summer. I think there should be grown up camp where we all go and live in cabins, eat smores and wear bug spray, and read books. Camp Drop Everything And Read! I love this idea.
So in addition to packing up all the stuff, and making sure the luggage isn't overweight, I've been advising Hubby on what books he'd like to read now that he's read all the Game of Thrones books twice. I know he has the Warren Littlefield book, Top of the Rock, ( A | BN | K | S ) on his Kindle. I have to go peek to see what else he bought. I still haven't found a romance that he'd enjoy – but I'm working on it. Slowly.
Are you taking an end-of-summer vacation, or are your families well into the back-to-school routine? My kids don't start school until about six years after Labor Day (it seems like it, anyway) so there's a tiny bit of summer left for us. What are you reading this weekend?
AND! In case you're looking for some historical romance, a bunch of Jacquie D'Alessandro novels are cheap digitally right now, plus The Duke and I, (which I have retitled for myself as My Conflicted Feelings About the Book and I):
- The Duke and I by Julia Quinn * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
- Sleepless at Midnight by Jacquie D'Alessandro * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
- Never a Lady by Jacquie D'Alessandro * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
- Not Quite a Gentleman by Jacquie D'Alessandro * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
- Confessions at Midnight by Jacquie D'Alessandro * $0.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
- Who Will Take This Man? by Jacquie D'Alessandro * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
- Love and the Single Heiress by Jacquie D'Alessandro * $1.99 * A | BN | K | S | iBooks
Has the husband tried Patrick Rothfuss yet? He’s the author of two hefty tomes of fantasy goodness. The Name of the Wind is the first one and Wise Man’s Fear is the second. And much like George R.R. it takes him yearsssss between installments but it’s worth the wait.
If you want hubby to try romance and he likes fantasy, try What a Scoundrel Wants by Carrie Lofty as is full of adventure, or Year of the Unicorn by Andre Norton – my husband likes that one and keeps telling me to review it here.
I am about to take a quick break from fantasy/sci fo stuff i am reviewing to read that swedish book, yay! Just finished an ARC of Moonlight and Mechanicals and next will read Some Assembly Required by Anne and Sam Lamott just as soon as I stop bursting into tears every time I look at the cover. Operating Instructions basically got me through my first year of parenting so every time I read “My son’s first son” on the cover I get all teary.
I stayed up late last night to finish S.J. Kincaid’s YA adventure, Insignia. Not my usual fare (I’ve never read Harry Potter, etc.), but I REALLY, REALLY enjoyed it. It’s the first book in a trilogy, and I’ll for sure be reading the next two books.
A whole lot of Georgette Heyer is on sale on Amazon too.
In a book drought. Reread Mastiff by Tamora Pierce – it’s even better on second reading.
Also watched the Entire Five Seasons of Friday Night Lights. As a devotee of relationship driven fiction, this show was … right up there.
Will be perusing this thread eagerly for more books.
I just finished THE MAGIC GOES AWAY by Larry Niven (a good read, loaned to me by a gaming buddy) and continue reading THE UNTIMATE GUIDE TO KINK: BDSM, ROLE PLAY AND THE EROTIC EDGE, edited by Tristan Taormino.
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. Excellent read!
Just finished a Lisa Marie Rice. Total craziness, but I devoured it in about one gulp. The sexual prowess of the heroes in these books is beyond insane—hilarious. Am trying to finish Kristen Callihan’s “Firelight”, but for some reason have ground to a halt in the middle. I have the new K.A. Mitchell queued up, and I will probably read another book in Janice Kay Johnson’s backlist.
Also reading a great book about female genitalia (believe it or not). It’s called “Read My Lips” and is an excellent informative book that I wish my mother had given me to read when I was 16, instead of waiting to discover it at the age of 47. It was recommended by one of the guests on Dan Savage’s podcast a month or so ago.
Right now I’m finishing a reread of Howard’s Now You See Her. I have yet to decide what I’ll pick up next. Maybe Kristen Callihan’s Firelight. I have to second the suggestion for the Rothfuss books. If anything, he might be able to pinpoint what exactly he likes about the Martin books and go from there. Finally, I’m curious about why you now have conflicted feelings about The Duke and I. I don’t think I’ve ever reread it, though I’ve reread others in the series. There was something about it that put me off and I’ve never quite have been able to vocalize it. I think it was something about how Simon acts in the beginning of his relationship with Daphne.
I’m hoping to read Kissing Comfort by Jo Goodman this weekend.
If your hubby likes fantasy, I would suggest the Eddie LaCrosse series by Alex Bledsoe. It’s a mix of noir detective fiction and epic fantasy. The first book, The Sword-Edged Blonde, is really good. He might also try The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch. It’s an epic fantasy book about a group of thieves.
I’m re-reading The Princess Bride and enjoying it (although I don’t remember it dragging so much the first time I read it, some 20ish years ago).
I just read the new K. A. Mitchell – it was fun and compulsively readable, but not as good as some of her others, imo. Dylan was a little too young for me – I’m realizing I don’t have the patience for 22 yo heroes, at least not ones that actually read like 22 year olds. And, continuing my m/m glom, I just downloaded a Josh Lanyon novella – The Dickens with Love (or something like that).
I bought several Georgette Heyers while they were on sale (the big sale seems to be over, at least at BN – they were 2.99) and am just waiting to feel calm enough to get in the proper Heyer head-space.
I really liked Some Assembly Required. I haven’t read Operating Instructions, so I’d be curious to hear how it compares. I’ve read most of her non-fiction and she’s definitely mellower in this book, but still feisty and insightful.
Can’t speak for Sarah, but I know what bothers me about The Duke and I – the scene where Daphne seduces/forces Simon into not withdrawing when they have sex, even though she knows he doesn’t want to have kids. That ruined the book for me. And I really loved it up until then.
I’ve been re-reading David Eddings’ The Belgariad and The Malloreon series. They are fantasy and they are very good. There are 12 books so it takes awhile. Belgararth is awsome.
I’m currently alternating between an ARC* and The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making.
*Not romance, or good, so I’ll leave it nameless.
Everyone, not just Mr. SBTB, should read Zoe Ferraris’s Finding Nouf (crime novel set in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, featuring a female medical examiner, a Palestinian-Bedouin investigator and a look into a culture most of us don’t know) and Alif the Unseen by G. Willow Wilson (modern day Middle Eastern computer hackers, djinn (oh, my, yes), the Arab Spring, love and another look into that world). These two books are brilliant, imho.
Currently I’m reading The Gods of Gotham by Lyndsay Faye, a crime novel set in 1845 Manhattan when a force of “copper stars” was created by the city to keep order. It’s so interesting to read about the violent resistance to a police force, which many considered to be a standing army and railed against. Plus, anti-Irish, anti-Catholic sentiment was rampant, no, virulent, from the likes of Sam Adams and Samuel Morse. What an eye-opener.
I just started Blood of the Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski. It’s well written gritty manly fantasy. I also have a couple of romances waiting on my kindle, in case I want something happier.
Just finishing up Jennifer Crusie “Trust me on This”. It was the perfect curled-up-by-the-campfire read after the rest of the family had gone to sleep.
Currently reading Maria Snyder’s ‘Touch of Power’ which is good but not great though I’m only 1/3 of the way in so far. But I also just finished DB Jackson’s ‘Thieftaker’ which I liked but had some issues with one of the characters – probably driver error there though because I can easily get crabby when I don’t like characters.
For the SB Husband I’ll second Rothfuss and toss in Scott Lynch and his Gentlemen Bastards series, Robert Redick’s Voyage of the Chathrand and Steven Erikson’s Malazan books of the Fallen. All long, complex and interesting fantasy stories. The Redick series is considered YA but I personally think it has more to offer for adults.
For a fantasy/romance crossover to get him moving in that direction he could try Maria E. Schneider’s Dragons of Wendal.
I’ve been reading the Dresden Files and some Charlaine Harris because lately romance novels have all seemed disappointing (case in point: I read a Miranda Neville book yesterday and I have already forgotten every single thing about it). I’m also rereading the Spenser novels, trying to space them out so I don’t get overdo it. Fabulous nostalgia, particularly if you remember Boston in the 70s and 80s. I’m having a hard time resisting glomming them all down at once.
When my dad wanted more Martin books and there weren’t any, I got him some Cornwell, and he was really into the Saxon series. I like them too, but I’m still looking for a better substitute.
I’m with Cleo on the problem with the Duke and I. Such a shame. One assumes Quinn knows her business, and they’re her characters and all, but I still prefer to believe it’s a reporting error. That is *not* what happened, because that is *not* how the Daphne I know would behave. I’m not saying I know her better than Quinn does, I’m just staying, I heard a different story (that I made up in my own head, whatever).
I was about to go a huge Loretta Chase spree. Unfortunately, Barnes and Noble is having some sort of syncing issue and they won’t download. B&N assures me it will be fixed by Monday but I want them now! Hmph. I have plenty of book in my TBR pile but you know how it is when you are excited to start something. Nothing else will do.
I am in the middle of two Shana Galen books. “The Rogue Pirate’s Bride”, because, well, aristocratic pirates can never be wrong. And because I saw the sale price here, I downloaded “Lord and Lady Spy” to my phone for some waiting-on-the-children reading.
When I’m done with either/both, I have a ginormous stack of books from the libary that includes the latest from Angela Knight, Christene Feehan, Rhyannon Byrd, Larissa Ione, Gail Carriger, Ilona Andrews…as well as a few where-I’m-at-in-the-backlist for Sabrina Jeffries and J.D. Robb, and a few never-heard-ofs that looked interesting.
Kids are back in school on Monday morning, and reading time returns.
I started reading “Shards of Honor” which is the first(I think) of the Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold, and also “Defiant”, which is the 3rd MacKinnon’s Rangers book by Pamela Clare. Oddly, they have quite a bit in common, at least in the beginning. Besides both of them being cracktastic, there is a female heroine who is a captive in an alien environment which is very challenging, and she goes through a physical and mental ordeal. She is forced to cooperate with the hero to survive, but doesn’t know him or trust him.
I just finished Anne Calhoun’s “Liberating Lacey” based on one of your “what to read if you couldn’t get past chapter 4 of 50 Shades but still like reading about the hot sexy times” lists that I read a while ago, Sarah – thanks for the rec! I loved it.
For your hubby – if he’s a George RR Martin fan and hasn’t at least tried to read Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, I highly recommend picking it up. I had the great fortune to pick up the first book in the series shortly after it was published. That was 23 years ago. The final (14th, I think) book is being published in the spring (I hope). It’s been worth the wait. (Plus he stole his pen name from For Whom the Bell Tolls, which is just cool). I’d also really recommend Black Prism by Brent Weeks. Good worldbuilding and lots of manly intrigue and violence.
I’m reading Ben Aaronovitch’s Midnight Riot (U.S. title for The Rivers of London) and finding it a really interesting mystery/urban fantasy combo; so far, I’m in agreement with the DA review that it’s an excellent book.
I’m about 3/4 of the way through “Wolf Hall” by Hillary Mantel – one of the best books I’ve read in YEARS. Also recently read the new biography of Catherine the Great by Robert Massie – absolutely fascinating.
I am about to read A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer. I think this is the is the only romance of hers tulip haven’t read & I bought on sale. I have just enjoyed reading Ravishing the Heiress and I gather it is a similar trope.
I leave for Boston Sept. 10, but haven’t decided what I’m bringing. Hopefully Amazon will cough up something from the ridiculously large order I placed last month. In the meantime I am STILL doing the Anne McCaffrey Memorial Read. In between I’m reading “The Raven Print” by Elizabeth Hoyt and the first Books and Braun installment, “Phoenix Rising”. Reading schizophrenia, I has it.
I’m reading Nice Girls Don’t live Forever by Molly Harper. I really love this series, it always makes me laugh.
If you started a Drop Everything and Read Camp I would definitely be there! I’ve been on vacation and haven’t read nearly as much as I would have liked. Although I’m not sure how much reading I would get done at a camp either. With all the other book lovers around, I’m sure we would spend most of our time talking about books!
Finding and Alif duly requested from library..both sound awesome, thanks for tip!
I am currently marathoning the Emperor’s Edge series thanks to the review here and loving the books! I already read the three first books, plus the short stories, and am about to start the fourth book any time now. Lindsay Buroker’s work has definitely moved into my must-buy list!!!
Just finished A Civil Contract by Georgette Heyer. Loved it! Now I am trying to start A Night To Surrender by Tessa Dare but I just can’t seem to get into it. It’s looking like a rainy weekend here in South Florida so I will have plenty of time to work on it.
Wen Spencer’s new Tinker-related novel, Elfhome, is out in hardcover, but the e-book is available from Baen for around $5. GLOMPH! Consumed in very short order, with about 4 bathroom breaks, in one highly enjoyable afternoon. I’m currently re-reading her backlist.
OMG, really? Really really? I’m there. Thank you!
The Kingmaker’s Daughter by Philippa Gregory.
I love that book so hard. A word of warning, though. It is not a traditional romance. It is incredibly good and a fabulous story of love/affection growing slowly, but some people really don’t like it because the passion is not overt. I would love to see a film adaptation (hopefully directed by Emma Thompson).
Just now discovering the “Within” series by Mima. Interesting, well done fantasy and romance for the hubby maybe? A spin on the “Alpha Male” concept, as well as to the shapeshifting romance genre in general—to date, none of the hereos in the parts of the series I’ve read so far are wolves—were-lizard, anyone?
The Summer of You, by Kate Noble. (I want to squeeze it in while it’s still ‘technically’ summer.)
I don’t know if I care for the highwayman mystery, but I am enjoying the narration.
I’m on a YA reading spree since I bought Enclave (2.99 at Amazon) and have been getting YA recommendations.
Team Human-It was okay.
For Darkness Shows the Stars-(a post apocalyptic retelling of Jane Austen’s Persuasion) I really liked it.
Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow-(it’s not new but it was only 1.99 on Amazon) I am really liking this book so far. This book came out after Edith Patou’s East and for some reason I thought one retelling of East of the Sun, West of the Moon was enough.
Shadow of Night is next on deck for me.
You guys are so cool and good at suggestions. Hubby bought a bunch of books last night. Thank you!