Spoilers What Book Are You Reading?

[MacDawg]

I'm finishing up Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. Much better than I had anticipated, and the audiobook is very well narrated.

Reading Gone Girl now myself
Finished up the latest Jeffery Deaver / Lincoln Rhyme book The Skin Collector

 

[vulcanvillalta]

Reading Gone Girl now myself
Finished up the latest Jeffery Deaver / Lincoln Rhyme book The Skin Collector

I read "Dark Places" by her, per my cousin's suggestion. We typically have different tastes in literature, and this is no exception. It was an alright story, although a little unlikely. She seems to be doing very well for herself as an author.

 

[LadyX]

Finished up the latest Jeffery Deaver / Lincoln Rhyme book The Skin Collector

How did you like this one?

 

[MacDawg]

How did you like this one?

I've read them all, and I have to say this one wasn't one of my favorites
It was good, not great

 

[bearwrestler]

I envy those of who you have the time to read so often...I hope that someday I will have a job that permits me enough "off-time" to sit and read for a few hours a day. Right now I run around like an idiot all day, and by the time I sit down to read at all, I fall asleep after five pages.

 

[SandPebble]

This guy writes some good stories about the navy in WWII.

 

[LSUtigers03]

Finished up the latest Jeffery Deaver / Lincoln Rhyme book The Skin Collector

I really have to get back into the Lincoln Rhyme novels the last one I read was The Twelfth Card.

Right now I'm reading A Storm of Swords.

 

[Limey77]

Having been laid up in hospital for a while I've got back into reading in a big way, over the last two months I've read:

The Football Factory and Headhunters - John King
We Need To Talk About Kevin - Lionel Shriver
Casino Royale - Ian Fleming
Solo - William Boyd
Hannibal Rising - Thomas Harris
Room - Emily Donoghue
A Man in Full - Tom Wolfe
The Sun Also Rises - Ernest Hemmingway
The Wolf of Wall Street - Jordan Belfort
Charlie Wilson's War - George Crile
Kingdom of Fear - Hunter S Thompson
Shantaram - George David Roberts
Fahrenheit 911 - Michael Moore
Out of Sight - Elmore Leonard

and a couple more I can remember of the top of my head.

The John King books were very good, but very English, Hannibal and 911 were pretty crap really. The two James Bond's were as fun as they always are but a bit silly.

Hemmingway, Wolfe, Thompson and Leonard are always a good read.

The Wolf of Wall Street was very good (and probably as good as the film but I haven't seen it yet), Charlie Wilson was much better than the movie and really showed how one congressman could subvert the entire US government system to wage an illegal war.

Room was a bit odd but an interesting story - if a bit light.

But the two that really surprised me were We Need To Talk About Kevin and Shantaram. I'd heard about the Kevin movie and haven't seen it, but will do now. The book is well written and suspenseful, even if you do see at least one of the twists coming before halfway.

Shantaram is well worth a read but very long at about 980 pages. Being basically the autobiography of a wannabe writer it can be over the top in language terms and a bit verbose. The main character (the author) also isn't 100% likable and thinks an awful lot of himself, but the story is amazing and hard to believe that it's true. Johnny Depp has bought the rights to it and I'm sure it will make a great movie. It really brought Mumbai and it's underworld to life.

Hopefully about to start a new job soon, so will be slowing down a bit but trying to decide whether to read Hemmingway's Boat;
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/00995659...UTF8&colid=18EJ98VKSFJES&coliid=IFJA822C6JMYD

or

The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, money and Power next.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/06717118...TF8&colid=18EJ98VKSFJES&coliid=I2BCQP6NT8L49I

Anyone have an opinion?

 

[LadyX]

What Book Are You Reading?

Hannibal Rising - Thomas Harris



The John King books were very good, but very English, Hannibal and 911 were pretty crap really.

Hannibal Rising is the fourth and final book in the Hannibal Lecter series, and I was just wondering, have you read the three books before this one?

 

[Limey77]

Hannibal Rising is the fourth and final book in the Hannibal Lecter series, and I was just wondering, have you read the three books before this one?

Yeah I read the others a few years ago but had never got around to reading this one. I just found it very simplistic without much suspense and while it did explain some of the why I thought it missed out on a lot of opportunities.

My favourite was Red Dragon, then Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, then Hannibal Rising.

I also found it very short in comparison to the others, it only took a few hours to read with its large print.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Hannibal Rising is the fourth and final book in the Hannibal Lecter series, and I was just wondering, have you read the three books before this one?

Yeah I read the others a few years ago but had never got around to reading this one. I just found it very simplistic without much suspense and while it did explain some of the why I thought it missed out on a lot of opportunities.

My favourite was Red Dragon, then Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, then Hannibal Rising.

I also found it very short in comparison to the others, it only took a few hours to read with its large print.

When the movie 'Silence Of The Lambs' came out, I went to see it, although I rarely watch movies. The cast (Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins) were excellent, and the movie managed to be both curiously dark yet quirky and to contrive to make you root for both the character of Dr Hannibal Lecter when, at the end of the movie, he blandly observed that he was 'having an old friend for dinner', and for the courageous yet wounded character of Clarice Starling.

Subsequently, I read the book, and read both 'Red Dragon' and 'Hannibal Rising'. Now, the author of the books, Thomas Harris, strikes me as one of those male writers who strives to disguise his quite deeply rooted misogyny by arguing that he writes his books to try to find out why such monsters seek to murder and mutilate women.

I think that he enjoys writing about these things; the dispassion (let alone sympathy) he claims seems to me to be almost entirely absent, and instead one finds that there is a prurient interest, and dark fascination, in the descriptions of dismemberment of females he renders in such incredible detail.

 

[LadyX]

Yeah I read the others a few years ago but had never got around to reading this one. I just found it very simplistic without much suspense and while it did explain some of the why I thought it missed out on a lot of opportunities.



My favourite was Red Dragon, then Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, then Hannibal Rising.



I also found it very short in comparison to the others, it only took a few hours to read with its large print.

Ah ok. So would you recommend the series in general?

When the movie 'Silence Of The Lambs' came out, I went to see it, although I rarely watch movies. The cast (Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins) were excellent, and the movie managed to be both curiously dark yet quirky and to contrive to make you root for both the character of Dr Hannibal Lecter when, at the end of the movie, he blandly observed that he was 'having an old friend for dinner', and for the courageous yet wounded character of Clarice Starling.



Subsequently, I read the book, and read both 'Red Dragon' and 'Hannibal Rising'. Now, the author of the books, Thomas Harris, strikes me as one of those male writers who strives to disguise his quite deeply rooted misogyny by arguing that he writes his books to try to find out why such monsters seek to murder and mutilate women.



I think that he enjoys writing about these things; the dispassion (let alone sympathy) he claims seems to me to be almost entirely absent, and instead one finds that there is a prurient interest, and dark fascination, in the descriptions of dismemberment of females he renders in such incredible detail.

What did you think of the books? I only saw the movie but never read them.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Ah ok. So would you recommend the series in general?





What did you think of the books? I only saw the movie but never read them.

The writer likes - far too much for my taste - to describe the dismemberment of women, and seeks to mask this with the spurious excuse that he is just trying to work out why sadistic serial killers behave they way that they do.

 

[LadyX]

What Book Are You Reading?

The writer likes - far too much for my taste - to describe the dismemberment of women, and seeks to mask this with the spurious excuse that he is just trying to work out why sadistic serial killers behave they way that they do.

Thank you for the reply. I might try the first book to see how I feel.

 

[Limey77]

The writer likes - far too much for my taste - to describe the dismemberment of women, and seeks to mask this with the spurious excuse that he is just trying to work out why sadistic serial killers behave they way that they do.

I tend to agree with this and also that following the success of Silence of the Lambs Thomas Harris just decided to cash in on a popular character and the subsequent two books were purely gratuitous and didn't really add much to the character.

There's lots more killings, often described in great detail, but it seemed that he was just trying to find new ways to have his creation kill and sometimes eat his victims.

It seemed to me that this was more a long screenplay for a movie than a true novel, it lacked Harris' descriptive ability and any real characters apart from Hannibal. Even he was a shadow of his later self.

 

[LadyX]

I tend to agree with this and also that following the success of Silence of the Lambs Thomas Harris just decided to cash in on a popular character and the subsequent two books were purely gratuitous and didn't really add much to the character.



There's lots more killings, often described in great detail, but it seemed that he was just trying to find new ways to have his creation kill and sometimes eat his victims.



It seemed to me that this was more a long screenplay for a movie than a true novel, it lacked Harris' descriptive ability and any real characters apart from Hannibal. Even he was a shadow of his later self.

Thank you for your opinion. I thought of trying the first book but I'm not sure I will anymore. I don't think it'd be my cup of tea.

 

[Limey77]

Thank you for your opinion. I thought of trying the first book but I'm not sure I will anymore. I don't think it'd be my cup of tea.

I'd give Red Dragon a go, it is well written and is a gripping thriller. Hannibal is really only there in the background. It's more about an FBI agent Will Graham chasing another serial killer, the Tooth Fairy, but Hannibal lurks in the background.

The characters are very good, the story I thought was excellent and, again in my opinion, has some of Harris' best writing. If you don't enjoy Red Dragon then you'll know to skip the others, and if you do then Silence is also very good, Hannibal pretty good (but somewhat gratuitous) and then Hannibal Rising is the worst of the bunch.

 

[LadyX]

I'd give Red Dragon a go, it is well written and is a gripping thriller. Hannibal is really only there in the background. It's more about an FBI agent Will Graham chasing another serial killer, the Tooth Fairy, but Hannibal lurks in the background.



The characters are very good, the story I thought was excellent and, again in my opinion, has some of Harris' best writing. If you don't enjoy Red Dragon then you'll know to skip the others, and if you do then Silence is also very good, Hannibal pretty good (but somewhat gratuitous) and then Hannibal Rising is the worst of the bunch.

So the books can be read as standalone novels?

 

[aaronvan]

The just finished "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Excellent hard sci-fi. Humorous and technically detailed. I heard that Ridley Scott will film the movie. Matt Damon to lead. Not bad for a first-time author!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18007564-the-martian

 

[Limey77]

Sounds quite interesting.

What did you think of the lead character? And the writing style? I'd heard that Watney is quite annoying and hard to like, and that the writing style veers from overly-scientific and therefore boring to very cliched and cutesy. Lots of Yays, LOLs etc..

 

[Limey77]

So the books can be read as standalone novels?

Oh yes. Red Dragon doesn't feature Clarice Starling at all (if I remember correctly) and is really about Will Graham, who survived being attacked by Hannibal, and his new case the Tooth Fairy. Although Hannibal is talked about it's mainly because the Tooth Fairy admires him and what he's done.

My guess is that Harris didn't intend for Hannibal to become so popular. He is a minor, but important, character in Red Dragon (the first book). The book was published in 1981 and then the movie of it (called Manhunter) was released in 1986, and it wasn't until 1988 that Harris even wrote Silence where Hannibal comes more to the front. That was made into a movie in 91 to critical acclaim but it took another 8 years for him to write Hannibal, then another 6 to do Hannibal Rising.

I think he just started milking the success of his most popular character, without really having a clear idea of where it was going. Having said that, the first two are well worth a read, and even Hannibal (the third book) is pretty good but tries too hard to shock, whereas the first two, in my opinion, shocked much more naturally and were filled with many more twists and turns.

 

[LadyX]

What Book Are You Reading?

Oh yes. Red Dragon doesn't feature Clarice Starling at all (if I remember correctly) and is really about Will Graham, who survived being attacked by Hannibal, and his new case the Tooth Fairy. Although Hannibal is talked about it's mainly because the Tooth Fairy admires him and what he's done.



My guess is that Harris didn't intend for Hannibal to become so popular. He is a minor, but important, character in Red Dragon (the first book). The book was published in 1981 and then the movie of it (called Manhunter) was released in 1986, and it wasn't until 1988 that Harris even wrote Silence where Hannibal comes more to the front. That was made into a movie in 91 to critical acclaim but it took another 8 years for him to write Hannibal, then another 6 to do Hannibal Rising.



I think he just started milking the success of his most popular character, without really having a clear idea of where it was going. Having said that, the first two are well worth a read, and even Hannibal (the third book) is pretty good but tries too hard to shock, whereas the first two, in my opinion, shocked much more naturally and were filled with many more twists and turns.

That's good to know. I've also checked out the reviews for the books; the first two had almost 5 stars, the third and final book 3 stars, plus the final one had the least amount of reviewers, so it does show that those who read the series lost interest in the final book as the third one wasn't that good so they didn't bother with the fourth one. But after reading your post I decided I would give at least the first book a go to see how I like it for myself. Thank you!

 

[aaronvan]

Just to let you know that there is a "book" thread...

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1080245/

Got it. And this is the "The Martian by Andy Wier" thread. A book-specific thread, that is.

----------

Sounds quite interesting.

What did you think of the lead character? And the writing style? I'd heard that Watney is quite annoying and hard to like, and that the writing style veers from overly-scientific and therefore boring to very cliched and cutesy. Lots of Yays, LOLs etc..

The humor and snark feel forced from time to time, but in several places I actually laughed out loud, which is rare for me when reading a book. The narrative falls into deep quantitative detail at times and that probably turned some readers off. I liked it myself. I was surprised that this is the guys first book. He has some good writing chops.

 

[Shrink]

Got it. And this is the "The Martian by Andy Wier" thread. A book-specific thread, that is.

Please forgive my presumptuous post.

 

[Limey77]

That's good to know. I've also checked out the reviews for the books; the first two had almost 5 stars, the third and final book 3 stars, plus the final one had the least amount of reviewers, so it does show that those who read the series lost interest in the final book as the third one wasn't that good so they didn't bother with the fourth one. But after reading your post I decided I would give at least the first book a go to see how I like it for myself. Thank you!

You're welcome, I just hope you enjoy in now!

Got it. And this is the "The Martian by Andy Wier" thread. A book-specific thread, that is.

----------



The humor and snark feel forced from time to time, but in several places I actually laughed out loud, which is rare for me when reading a book. The narrative falls into deep quantitative detail at times and that probably turned some readers off. I liked it myself. I was surprised that this is the guys first book. He has some good writing chops.

Thanks, I might have to give it a go then.