Welcome to Writers Talkback. If you are a new user, your account will have to be approved manually to prevent spam. Please bear with us in the meantime
I got hold of Sol Stein's Solutions for Writers and it's going to take me some time. Why didn't I find this book five, ten years ago. It would have saved a lot of beating round the bush.
[quote=Seaview]The Black House by Peter May - started it a few days ago and have been picking it up at every spare minute. Set on the island of Lewis, it's a dark tale with wonderful descriptions that make you feel you are there...you can hear the seagulls shrieking! [/quote]
Sounds great! I love atmospheric stuff!
Just finished 'Laura's Handmade Life' by Amanda Addison. Being a 'makey' type of person, I was really looking forward to this but was sadly disappointed. Quite surprised that it came from a big agent at a big publisher.
Last night started 'A Dancer In Wartime' by Gillian Lynne. I saw this lady on The Book Show some time ago and have had the book on reservation since January. The library made a boo boo so I've only just got it but really looking forward to it from what I saw on that programme.
Reading Pride and Prejudice on my Kindle. I tried reading it this time last year, but exams got in the way. This year I need to do reading in preparation for my Lit exam, so it's a win win situation for me.
Finished Mark Billingham's 'From the Dead'. It was alright, I suppose. Now reading a kindle book by a fellow author on Goodreads. Can't remember the name, but the words 'genealogical thriller' come somewhere into the title.
Just finished GIllian Lynne's 'A Dancer in Wartime' (biog) and just started Judy Astley's 'Other People's Husbands'. I won a box of books a couple of years ago for a reivew I did and so am getting to read books I might not normally pick up. Very cool! Hilary Mantel's 'Wolf Hall' was in there but I haven't got around to tackling that yet!
[quote=Tiny Nell]That sounds interesting, f-m-n. It doesn't sound like a book ('issues') - what is it and who is it by? I do like a psychological thriller!! [/quote]
It's written by Shinobu Kaitani an is a manga which is like a Japanese comic but the plot is as skilled as any psychological writer I know. It is about a foolishly honest girl called Nao who receives 100,000,000 yen at her door (about £700,000), and is thrust into a dark game by a mysterious company. You have to locate other Liar Game players and steal their money within the month, at the end they come to collect the yen they loaned and any extra you made is yours. However whatever was stolen you have to pay back to them and if you can't... Nao loses her entire money through her gullibility almost straight away and has to enlist the help of an ex-con to save her.
Apologies for the long explanation - I'm no good at explaining books!
Recently finished City of Veils by Zoe Ferraris, a police procedural (whodunnit to you and me) set in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. A really good read and I recommend it because it is so different.
Currently reading Jurassic Park by the late and luminous Michael Crichton, because although I watch the film regularly (have the boxed set) I never actually read the book. He was a master of plotting, along with Stephen King, amongst the best.
Next on my list is his latest, Micro, which was completed by another author, Richard Preston and published posthumously.
Have just finished "Losing Lucy" on Kindle, written by our very own Viv (Vivienne Hampshire) from TB. I can thoroughly recommend it if you want a really good read. :)
"French Revolutions -Cycling the Tour de France," by Tim Moore."
A mildly amusing account of a journalist's attempt to cycle the whole route of the T.de F with little or no training. I suspect parts of it are the product of a fertile imagination. All the blurbs on the back cover claim ' laugh- out- loud ', but I haven't yet.
Puzzled by two references to ' Percy Stannard ', who I later realised was ' Percy Stallard ', cycling legend and the ' father ' of British road racing. I was privileged to meet Percy a time or two, and he deserves to have his name spelt properly.
I've just been reading a section in How To Be a Woman where she talks about overeating as an addiction, it is sooooo wrong that reading that made me feel an incy bit peckish!
Just begun Dangerous Waters by Anne Allen. The book was sent to me for review and it's really very good. Makes a nice change from some of the books I receive and then have to decline. If it's dire during the 1st chapter then it gets the chop. Life's too short to read tosh.
Yes Baggy life is too short to read tosh! I think in the past (because I'm just stubborn) I've fought my way through books I've hated just because I've felt I should finish them, it's like some screwed notion that in finishing them the time I had already spent on them would not be wasted. What a stupid notion. Nope never again, there's too many good books out there that I could be reading instead :-)
HIs last novel, finished by Richard Preston, and published posthumously.
It may be techno-thriller if we are being strict about genre, but golly by gum it is seriously horrific, I mean real visceral bloodthirsty stuff.
No spoilers here, but any of you who like blud and guts will enjoy this one. Set in Hawaii and the Hawaiin jungle, and the science is clearly explained and there isn't too much of it. A nice bit of romance and a really bad villain.
I think it's even scarier than Jurassic Park. For one thing, the technology in 'Micro' has more or less been invented and is here to stay.
I was trying to read The Illuminatus! Trilogy, but it turned out to be a complete bucket of tripe so I'm reading One of Our Thursdays is Missing by Jasper Fforde instead. At least that's actually funny :)
Among the many things I'm reading now is a review copy of a Western-horror anthology due to be released next month. I've never read a word of this genre before because cowboy books don't appeal to me, but it really is a good read.
Comments
Sounds great! I love atmospheric stuff!
Last night started 'A Dancer In Wartime' by Gillian Lynne. I saw this lady on The Book Show some time ago and have had the book on reservation since January. The library made a boo boo so I've only just got it but really looking forward to it from what I saw on that programme.
I can't say I'm gripped at the moment...but give it time!
It's written by Shinobu Kaitani an is a manga which is like a Japanese comic but the plot is as skilled as any psychological writer I know. It is about a foolishly honest girl called Nao who receives 100,000,000 yen at her door (about £700,000), and is thrust into a dark game by a mysterious company. You have to locate other Liar Game players and steal their money within the month, at the end they come to collect the yen they loaned and any extra you made is yours. However whatever was stolen you have to pay back to them and if you can't... Nao loses her entire money through her gullibility almost straight away and has to enlist the help of an ex-con to save her.
Apologies for the long explanation - I'm no good at explaining books!
Isn't that, strictly speaking, the job of HMRC ?
Just finished ' Started Early, Took My Dog '. Kate Atkinson, A good read.
Currently reading Jurassic Park by the late and luminous Michael Crichton, because although I watch the film regularly (have the boxed set) I never actually read the book. He was a master of plotting, along with Stephen King, amongst the best.
Next on my list is his latest, Micro, which was completed by another author, Richard Preston and published posthumously.
I have Viv's book on my 'must read' list!
A mildly amusing account of a journalist's attempt to cycle the whole route of the T.de F with little or no training. I suspect parts of it are the product of a fertile imagination. All the blurbs on the back cover claim ' laugh- out- loud ', but I haven't yet.
Puzzled by two references to ' Percy Stannard ', who I later realised was ' Percy Stallard ', cycling legend and the ' father ' of British road racing. I was privileged to meet Percy a time or two, and he deserves to have his name spelt properly.
"Percy STALLARD", Tim, 0/10 for research.
Am now reading How Proust Can Change Your Life by Alain de Botton
HIs last novel, finished by Richard Preston, and published posthumously.
It may be techno-thriller if we are being strict about genre, but golly by gum it is seriously horrific, I mean real visceral bloodthirsty stuff.
No spoilers here, but any of you who like blud and guts will enjoy this one. Set in Hawaii and the Hawaiin jungle, and the science is clearly explained and there isn't too much of it. A nice bit of romance and a really bad villain.
I think it's even scarier than Jurassic Park. For one thing, the technology in 'Micro' has more or less been invented and is here to stay.
I indulged in a loan fest from the library.
Got a book of essays by Nora Ephron (RIP), a Ken Follet, a Janet Evanovitch - Stephanie Plum - and another Michael Crichton, Next.
Love his books.
My god, she is SO funny! What a writer!
Stephanie Plum is cute, and she's funny too.
I can't wait to read the rest of JE's books.
Cheers PBW, hope you enjoy.