What are you reading now?
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I read Steinhauer's Tourist.
I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Easy enough to read despite all the plots within plots; would have preferred more action; really liked the spy stuff (especially the turf war within the US); but didn't care about the wife or kid.
@Friday said in What are you reading now?:
I read Steinhauer's Tourist.
I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Easy enough to read despite all the plots within plots; would have preferred more action; really liked the spy stuff (especially the turf war within the US); but didn't care about the wife or kid.
Thanks...I'm only about ¼ of the way through it, and I find the family stuff overbearing and irrelevant.
This is the third Steinhauer book I've done. I gave up on "Bridge of Sighs" - too much talk and scene-setting without actually moving the story along. "All The Old Knives," as I said, was a better movie than book. If this doesn't grab me soon, I'll give up on this author.
If I want popcorn, I'll read Connelly.
If I want a thriller, I'll read Forsyth.
If I want top-notch spy stuff, well, there's only LeCarre', right?
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Just started
Elbows up!
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Just started
@Renauda looks like this was published before Chernow's biography. I believe Chernow's is considered the best. I loved it.
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@Renauda looks like this was published before Chernow's biography. I believe Chernow's is considered the best. I loved it.
I picked up a pristine hardcover copy of Chernow’s bio for a couple of dollars at a rummage sale in early summer. I have had this one for a couple of years - thought I would read it first then Chernow’s because the latter is considered the definitive bio of Grant.
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I picked up a pristine hardcover copy of Chernow’s bio for a couple of dollars at a rummage sale in early summer. I have had this one for a couple of years - thought I would read it first then Chernow’s because the latter is considered the definitive bio of Grant.
@Renauda Do you know about this fellow?
My Journey Through the Best Presidential Biographies
https://bestpresidentialbios.com/about/Stephen Floyd writes, "Given my fascination with the presidency and love of great writing, in 2010 I began collecting the best biographies of each of the presidents. In late 2012 I embarked on a quest to read them all – beginning with George Washington.
This site was initially created to log my journey and organize my thoughts. But 260 presidential biographies later it has evolved into something a bit larger…"
Success is measured by your discipline and inner peace. – Mike Ditka
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Just started
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@Renauda Do you know about this fellow?
My Journey Through the Best Presidential Biographies
https://bestpresidentialbios.com/about/Stephen Floyd writes, "Given my fascination with the presidency and love of great writing, in 2010 I began collecting the best biographies of each of the presidents. In late 2012 I embarked on a quest to read them all – beginning with George Washington.
This site was initially created to log my journey and organize my thoughts. But 260 presidential biographies later it has evolved into something a bit larger…"
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Just started
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It’s okay, I knew that already from my childhood collection of Civil War cards.
I know you and George would probably remember those.
@Renauda said in What are you reading now?:
I know you and George would probably remember those.
Harrumph.
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@Renauda said in What are you reading now?:
I know you and George would probably remember those.
Harrumph.
C’mon George, at least we were there when the cards came out. Seems to me I still had some of those Confederate dollars that were included with the cards and bubblegum stick in each pack, kicking around when was in high school. Don’t know what ever happened to them.
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@Copper said in What are you reading now?:
@Renauda said in What are you reading now?:
Just started
click to showHa. I can tell you didn’t finish your reading.
click to show -
@Copper said in What are you reading now?:
@Renauda said in What are you reading now?:
Just started
click to showHa. I can tell you didn’t finish your reading.
click to show -
This book has me entirely enthralled. Life has ceased for me until I find out what happened.
It's not a chick book, but I kind of feel like it's better suited to women. Maybe it's the sort-of Austenish flavor; maybe it takes more patience to read than the pace of modern life. I don't know. But it's super!
Don't take my word for it. It has 4,294 stars at 4.0. And as you see from the cover, it's a Booker Prize nominee.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JMFFCYL/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title -
That was typical Connelly. Good story, and perhaps a bit more involved than his other tales.
(This is not a "Bosch" book, by the way).
Having read "All The Old Knives" and being disappointed by it, I really wanted to give Steinhauer another shot. He's written a series of books based on one character. So, I started this today.
"Milo Weaver used to be a “tourist” for the CIA—an undercover agent with no home, no identity—but he’s since retired from the field to become a middle-level manager at the CIA’s New York headquarters. He’s acquired a wife, a daughter, and a brownstone in Brooklyn, and he’s tried to leave his old life of secrets and lies behind.
But when the arrest of a long-sought-after assassin sets off an investigation into one of Milo’s oldest colleagues and exposes new layers of intrigue in his old cases, he has no choice but to go back undercover and find out who’s holding the strings once and for all."
@George-K said in What are you reading now?:
Though this was a "meh" book, I thought the concept and world that Steinhauer described was interesting. So, being curious, I thought I'd pick up the first of 3 sequels.
About ¼ of the way through it, and so far, it's a much better book, and a much tighter story. The events of "The Tourist" set up the situation in "The Nearest Exit," but the story isn't really dependent upon it.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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Amazon: "But despite the odds, these underwater warriors accounted for almost 60 percent of Japanese shipping losses, and were a major factor in winning the war. 16 U.S. submarines - and one German U-Boat - that saw action during WWII are now open to the public. Most have been restored and authentically equipped.
Final Patrol takes a fascinating look at these subs and the personal stories of the brave sailors who lived, fought, and often died in them. Now, visitors can climb into these cramped steel cylinders, peer through their torpedo tubes, and imagine diving under the sea - perhaps for the last time - to stalk a fanatical enemy who threatened our nation's freedom."
4.5 stars, 68 ratings. $1.99.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004IATDEM?_bbid=90553873&tag=bookbubemail1-20
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Amazon: "But despite the odds, these underwater warriors accounted for almost 60 percent of Japanese shipping losses, and were a major factor in winning the war. 16 U.S. submarines - and one German U-Boat - that saw action during WWII are now open to the public. Most have been restored and authentically equipped.
Final Patrol takes a fascinating look at these subs and the personal stories of the brave sailors who lived, fought, and often died in them. Now, visitors can climb into these cramped steel cylinders, peer through their torpedo tubes, and imagine diving under the sea - perhaps for the last time - to stalk a fanatical enemy who threatened our nation's freedom."
4.5 stars, 68 ratings. $1.99.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004IATDEM?_bbid=90553873&tag=bookbubemail1-20
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"From breaking wild horses in Colorado to fighting the Red Baron's squadrons in the skies over France, here in his own words is the true story of a forgotten American hero: the cowboy who became our first ace and the first pilot to fly the American colors over enemy lines."
$1.99. 638 ratings at 4.5 stars.
https://www.amazon.com/Horses-Dont-Fly-Memoir-Cowboy-ebook/dp/B01DRX7UNQ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=8YD4RP4DLZ36&keywords=Horses+don't+fly&qid=1666624938&qu=eyJxc2MiOiIxLjkzIiwicXNhIjoiMS43MiIsInFzcCI6IjEuODAifQ%3D%3D&s=digital-text&sprefix=horses+don't+fly%2Cdigital-text%2C143&sr=1-1 -
@George-K said in What are you reading now?:
Though this was a "meh" book, I thought the concept and world that Steinhauer described was interesting. So, being curious, I thought I'd pick up the first of 3 sequels.
About ¼ of the way through it, and so far, it's a much better book, and a much tighter story. The events of "The Tourist" set up the situation in "The Nearest Exit," but the story isn't really dependent upon it.
@George-K said in What are you reading now?:
About ¼ of the way through it, and so far, it's a much better book, and a much tighter story. The events of "The Tourist" set up the situation in "The Nearest Exit," but the story isn't really dependent upon it.
See, I'm the type of person who likes the whole goddamned story.
"Nearest Exit" was a much better book than "The Tourist." More satisfying, less obscure, and the characters were really fleshed out well.
The ending was good, but left enough threads in the air that I was hankering for more.
So the other day, I started #3 in the "Milo Weaver" series. It's gotten so-so reviews because some found it confusing and difficult to follow.
If you're going to find spy stories convoluted, stay away from Steinhauer (and LeCarre).
Yeah, this is convoluted, and I find it difficult to keep track of all the Chinese names. But, the overall arc has been good, and Steinhauer's trying to tie up the loose ends of "The Nearest Exit."
I find myself getting into a rhythm of his books, and I'll probably continue with the fourth, and final, book in the "Weaver" stories.
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Unfortunately, "An American Spy" was not what I was hoping for. There's a lot of edge-of-your-seat action, and lots of suspense, double-crosses, etc.
But...it's nothing more than a vehicle to set up the fourth, and final, book of the Milo Weaver story.
I found all of the Chinese characters' names confusing, and the wheels-within-wheels story was just a bit too complicated for its own good. It's like "All The Old Knives" on steroids.
So, someone recommended more Alastair Reynolds. This is a standalone book. I'm only about 10% into it, and it's typical Reyonlds. It has a totally new take on a far-flung future. Humanity is no longer what it was. The protagonist, an "angel" pathologist named Quinllan, has to leave his home.
Why? Who's put him in danger?
Typical Reynolds. Mind-boggling imagination and wholly unique worlds.
