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The GOT Book Club

anjelikaferrett said:
I've just finished reading Holly by Stephen King. It was brilliant. More of a straight crime thriller than his usual
stuff featuring a pair of octogenarian serial killers. Well worth reading.
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It's set in the same universe as the Mr Mercedes trilogy isnt it?

I've just finished Mr. Mercedes. It's pretty good. Not your usual Stephen King fair, I think the whole series are crime thrillers.
The plot wasn't anything to write home about, but the characters were great. Look forward to reading the rest.
 
Just ordered a few more.

'Maxwell's Demon' by Stephen Hall.
I really enjoyed 'The Raw Shark Texts' by the same author, and this looks to be in the same vein.

'The Road' by Cormac McCarthy.
Enjoyed 'Blood Meridian' and have seen the film of this, so thought I'd jump into some more McCarthy misery :lol:

'Foucaults Pendulum' by Umberto Eco.
I love weird stories and have been recommended this one. Sounds a bit barmy, which is up my street.

Got loads on my reading list, and some audio books to listen through as well, so needed to stop the spending spree at that point!

Was also thinking about picking up 'Piranesi' by Susanna Clarke at some point. It won a load of awards a couple of years back and the story sounds great, but have heard mixed reviews on it. Some saying it's brilliant and others saying it's a bit overly surreal and pretentious. Anyone here read it?

Piranesi lives in the House. Perhaps he always has.

In his notebooks, day after day, he makes a clear and careful record of its wonders: the labyrinth of halls, the thousands upon thousands of statues, the tides that thunder up staircases, the clouds that move in slow procession through the upper halls. On Tuesdays and Fridays Piranesi sees his friend, the Other. At other times he brings tributes of food to the Dead. But mostly, he is alone.

Messages begin to appear, scratched out in chalk on the pavements. There is someone new in the House. But who are they and what do they want? Are they a friend or do they bring destruction and madness as the Other claims?

Lost texts must be found, secrets must be uncovered. The world that Piranesi thought he knew is becoming strange and dangerous.

The beauty of the House is immeasurable; its kindness infinite.
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LostLegend said:
It's set in the same universe as the Mr Mercedes trilogy isnt it?

I've just finished Mr. Mercedes. It's pretty good. Not your usual Stephen King fair, I think the whole series are crime thrillers.
The plot wasn't anything to write home about, but the characters were great. Look forward to reading the rest.
Click to expand...
Yes it is. Holly was a minor character in Mr Mercedes. You will enjoy reading this one.
 
LostLegend said:
Just ordered a few more.

'Maxwell's Demon' by Stephen Hall.
I really enjoyed 'The Raw Shark Texts' by the same author, and this looks to be in the same vein.

'The Road' by Cormac McCarthy.
Enjoyed 'Blood Meridian' and have seen the film of this, so thought I'd jump into some more McCarthy misery lol

'Foucaults Pendulum' by Umberto Eco.
I love weird stories and have been recommended this one. Sounds a bit barmy, which is up my street.

Got loads on my reading list, and some audio books to listen through as well, so needed to stop the spending spree at that point!

Was also thinking about picking up 'Piranesi' by Susanna Clarke at some point. It won a load of awards a couple of years back and the story sounds great, but have heard mixed reviews on it. Some saying it's brilliant and others saying it's a bit overly surreal and pretentious. Anyone here read it?
Click to expand...

The Road was mighty depressing but couldn't put it down. Read it in like one afternoon if I recall. His span of vocabulary is quite impressive; I distinctly recall his use of "catamite" which was both appropriate for the scene he was describing, and also horrific. (had to look that up immediately upon reading it)
 
verreauxi said:
The Road was mighty depressing but couldn't put it down. Read it in like one afternoon if I recall. His span of vocabulary is quite impressive; I distinctly recall his use of "catamite" which was both appropriate for the scene he was describing, and also horrific. (had to look that up immediately upon reading it)
Click to expand...

The Road is one of all time favourite books.

It’s so achingly bleak, but just so beautifully written.

If you aren’t in bits at the end, you aren’t human.

It’s a shame they bottled the film to get it through the censors.

Deserves to be re done, as a faithful reproduction of the book.
 
Second read of the Christmas holidays. Recommended by a friend who then gave me a copy he found in a charity shop. I can't work out if it is a work of genius or a load of pretentious garbage. The story centres on a 13 year old girl who goes missing from a village where her family are staying over New Year. But it isn't really about her. It is about the villagers whose lives go on. It spans 13 years and you get to know the villagers bit by bit. You get to know about their lives but never enough to care about them. The missing girl is remembered each year.
The descriptive passages are beautifully written but on the whole there's no plot and it seems a bit pointless. It is a study in the mundane. I'm feeling a bit Emperor's New Clothes - the author has been nominated for many prestigious prizes and I've just read he's a Professor of Creative Writing at Nottingham University. It reads like that- somebody trying too hard. I would be really interested to know if anybody else has read it and what you thought.Screenshot_20231230_103607_Google.jpg
 

anjelikaferrett said:
I can't work out if it is a work of genius or a load of pretentious garbage.
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anjelikaferrett said:
The author has been nominated for many prestigious prizes and I've just read he's a Professor of Creative Writing at Nottingham University. It reads like that- somebody trying too hard.
Click to expand...
I find this a lot with books that get lots of critical praise.
They often feel like they are meant for people who like to sit and stroke their chins in quiet contemplation after finishing to ponder the 'real' meaning of the story :lol:
That's why I asked about 'Piranesi' earlier in the thread. The plot sounds great, but the amount of literary awards it's won is ringing my pretentious alarm bells.



From 2 minutes onwards. Nail on head ;)
 
E355BDFB-5675-4F8B-99D7-AC7A4E62B7E2.webp

After watching and enjoying the adaptation of this book on Netflix recently, I ordered the book.

As much as Netflix have done s good job with their adaptation, it doesn’t come close to the book, which is truly wonderful.

Set prior to and during the Second World War, in Saint Malo in France, the book narrates the story of a young blind girl, as she strives to keep a priceless diamond out of German hands and her life prior to and during the occupation.

It’s just beautifully written and deserving of every award that it‘s won.

Highly recommended.
 
LostLegend said:
I find this a lot with books that get lots of critical praise.
They often feel like they are meant for people who like to sit and stroke their chins in quiet contemplation after finishing to ponder the 'real' meaning of the story lol
That's why I asked about 'Piranesi' earlier in the thread. The plot sounds great, but the amount of literary awards it's won is ringing my pretentious alarm bells.



From 2 minutes onwards. Nail on head ;)
Click to expand...

You're right - nail on head.
 
COYBL25 said:
View attachment 240128

After watching and enjoying the adaptation of this book on Netflix recently, I ordered the book.

As much as Netflix have done s good job with their adaptation, it doesn’t come close to the book, which is truly wonderful.

Set prior to and during the Second World War, in Saint Malo in France, the book narrates the story of a young blind girl, as she strives to keep a priceless diamond out of German hands and her life prior to and during the occupation.

It’s just beautifully written and deserving of every award that it‘s won.

Highly recommended.
Click to expand...
I enjoyed that book a lot
 

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