Finished:

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

I read this sci-fi novel after seeing it recommended a few times on reddit. Overall, I liked it. The plot and the world-building were well-done, especially considering some of the time spans involved. Character development was good, particularly in the case of some unusual characters (I don't want to spoil anything). The book didn't seem as long as its 600 pages might suggest, and I found that I could read it relatively quickly.

I just noticed that a sequel, Children of Ruin, will be published this year. I will likely read it at some point.

(This was the 2nd book that I have finished reading thus far in 2019.)

Finished Blood Meridian, by Cormac McCarthy

Now starting Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Not what I expected at all but it's fantastic

Finished The Fifth Season, by N.K. Jemisin. It was pretty good, except there was zero attempt to tell a complete story. It just ... ends, ready for the sequel. That is annoying.

Now I am reading Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It also is good, but I am getting toward the end, and I don't know if he/she is going to wrap it up by then. Hey sci-fi fantasy authors - not every book needs to be a damn series! Get over yourself. I may have to call it quits on genre fiction for a while after this and go back to regular literature -- at least those people know how to tell a complete story!

EDIT: Well, I owe an apology to Children of Time. It had a pretty good proper ending after all. True, there is setup for a sequel, but overall it was one story told well. Thumbs up!

From week start 03/06, Finished: Dark Souls: Beyond the Grave by Damien Mecheri and Sylvain Romieu, The Time Machine by H.G. Wells (Kindle), History of the World: Map by Map by Peter Snow, East of Hounslow by Khurrum Rahman (Kindle), Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Audible), and Poor Folk by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (Kindle).

I started Metro 2035 by Dmitry Glukhovsky (Audible).

Children of time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

I was hearing a lot of good things about this one, so I'm looking forward to getting along with the story. The writing has been good in the opening chapters, and the premise of sentient spiders sounds quite interesting :)

Finished Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It was great! Cool sci-fi book about first-contact with a sentient alien planet of humanity's own making.

Now reading The Trouble with Goats and Sheep, by Joanna Cannon. It's about two little girls trying to unravel a the mystery of a woman's disappearance in their neighborhood. Pretty good although not as exciting as Children of Time.

Last week I finished:

Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky

I liked this! The synopsis says “humanity’s worst nightmare” but it’s not really about that, it’s about two different, desperate societies who both want the same planet and how they change over thousands of years. This was an audiobook for my commute/errands/painting and it was easy to follow.

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Not my thing. It was okay, and the first chapter or so was deliciously Halloweeny, but it was super philosophical to the point where I just lost my patience with Will’s dad’s monologues, and the rules for the magic were never said, he just seemed to make them up as he went along. It’s definitely for some people, but not for me.

Short things:

• “Pillar of Salt” by Shirley Jackson (The Lottery)
• “Bounty” by George Saunders (Civil War Land in Bad Decline) (this was weird even for him)
• “Three Quarters of the Way to Hell” by TC Boyle (Wild Child)
• “Do Not Save the Ferocious, Save the Tender” by Ramona Ausubel (Awayland)
• “For What Purpose?” by Karen E. Bender (Refund)
• “Wild Child” by TC Boyle (Wild Child)

Working on:

• White Teeth by Zadie Smith
• The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
• 2666 by Roberto Bolaño
• Prairie Fires by Caroline Fraser
• Blindsight by Peter Watts

Read the first hundred pages of Children of time by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

Just amazing, in the beginning, gives an idea on how the book will go, but then changes it into an amazing, not cliche adventure! And just so fascinating how he can give, certain animals… a character and how interesting and thrilling he can make something that first looked boring!

Just started Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Update: Only a few chapters in, and this is a book I’m having trouble putting down... had to rip myself away from it to go to sleep last night!

Just finished Blood Meridian, by Cormac McCarthy and holy shit the ending was amazing. I am absolutely going to have this in my list of favorites and will reread it someday.

I'm going to follow it up with something relatively light, probably Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky or The Dispossessed, by Ursula K. Le Guin.

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky :) completed on Saturday! After, I started The Success Principles, by Jack Canfield (It's terrible, and as cheesy as it sounds, but it drives home points I've already learned with other books when it's not completely useless, so I'll stick with it for now. :D)

I read Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky and Pet Sematary by Stephen King.

And this week on the the Drunk Guys Book Club Podcast was a very raunchy episode on Fifty Shades Darker (for Valentines Day). Next week, The Turning of the Screw by Henry James.

Guess i'm on a Sci Fi kick at the moment i just finished Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Loved it)

and Skyward by Brandon Sanderson (s'okay)

Also i started a re read of Frank Herbert's Dune (book is like a wisdom onion, it's got layers)

Finished:

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

What a satisfying space opera. It was a fun and interesting ride and I felt happy with the ending (which I did not predict at all). If you like scifi, this should be on your list.

The Hidden Child, by Camilla Lackberg

This is the fifth book in the Patrik Hedstrom and Erica Falk series and I think I need a break from these books. While I initially liked that the author spent time exploring the characters' personal lives, it felt distracting in this book. Also there were at least three accidental pregnancies among the main characters who are all in their thirties (one character accidentally got pregnant twice and the two sisters both got accidentally pregnant at pretty much the same time) - I know accidental pregnancy happens all the time in the real world, but it just seem a bit contrived. I need to find another thriller series to scratch my usual thriller itch.

Started:

Gold Fame Citrus, by Claire Vaye Watkins

I'm about halfway into this post-apocalyptic book and I am mostly enjoying it. The author does have a bit of a tendency to use run-on sentences and lists, but I really like the grittiness and how visual her descriptions are. I don't think this book is for everyone and I can definitely see that from its relatively low goodreads score (3.3).

I finished Children of time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky. I didn't like it, but forced myself because is our Book Club pick at the Moment. I started Beyonf the rift, by Peter Watts, one of my favorite authors.

Done reading:
The time wanderers, by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky It's ok, vague.
Children of time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky Amazing, couldn't put it down.
The city on the edge of forever, by Harlan Ellison It's ok, feels overrated, loved the rant against Roddenberry
Starting:
Robot Dreams, by Isaac Asimov Great so far

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Just finished last night. That one will be stuck in in my head for a long time. Best sci-fi I've read this year.

I plan to start Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky this week.

Finished Assassin's Quest by Robin Hobb. I guess people were right about this being the weakest in the Farseer trilogy. I loved the beginning and ending but I struggled a bit with the middle section. I thought some parts were just really repetitive and tedious. Didn't help that I didn't care for the new side characters either. But overall, I still liked it because Fitz is great, Nighteyes is still awesome and Hobb's writing is still captivating. I'd give it a 3.5/5.

Currently I'm reading Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky on the Kindle. I haven't read a sci-fi book in a while so this is a nice change. I'm 20% in and it's really good! The chapters with the spiders are really interesting.

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of the best Sci-Fi i have read this year! Though there are some heavy sci-fi and military terminology used in the book, the ending of the book makes up for it. Would definitely re-read it.

Finished (consumed might be a better description):

Sea of Rust, by C. Robert Cargill

​

Started:

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Dreams Before the Start of Time, Anne Charnock

Certainly.

There is the Bobiverse Trilogy: We are Legion, For We Are Many and All Of These Worlds. Compared to the Expanse Universe they are far easier to digest. While the scope is larger (many star systems, not just ours) it certainly doesn't feel "epic" like Corey novels.

Infinite, by Jeremy Robinson. Can't say as I exactly recommend this one, it was fine I guess. Can't really give reasons for not liking it because it would ruin the story.

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Another fine book, not great but better (IMHO) than the above listed Infinite.

The Singularity Trap, by Dennis E Taylor (same author as bobiverse). As with Bobiverse, this is easy to digest but not as good as the Bob books, again, IMHO.

Artemis: Written by Andy Weir who also wrote The Martian. This book was not widely well received but I found it generally enjoyable. Not hard sci-fi, more "realistic".

With all that said, the most enjoyable out of these I read is Leviathan Wakes, kinda excited now to jump back in. I read or listened to these all in a row so when I did finish Leviathan Wakes, I needed to shift gears a little bit.

Finished:

The Stone Cutter and The Stranger, by Camilla Lackberg

I really like this particular detective series - it has a good mix of crime with the personal development of characters. However, I did find The Stranger a bit convoluted and it wasn't my favourite in the series (I read a book with a similar premise by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, which I thought was done better).

The Winter of the Witch, by Katherine Arden

This is the third book in the Winternight Trilogy and I mostly read it just to finish up the series. It was okay. I thought the first book of the series was the best by far. A lot happened in this book and sometimes the pace felt a bit too quick. However, I did like the inclusion of Russian folklore elements into the book.

Started:

Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

This book is a bit different from what I usually read, but I'm liking it so far. I really enjoy how it handles the evolution of the spiders - it is a really interesting premise. If you like space operas, this is definitely a book for you.

Shirley Jackson: A Haunted Life, by Ruth Franklin

I decided to listen to this as my latest audiobook for walking to work, as I read The Haunting of Hill House and I've heard a smattering about Jackson, which made me interested in learning about her life. So far so good - it really examines how Jackson's life influenced her books.

Even though I have a stack of unread books calling my name, I bought When She Woke, by Hillary Jordan Monday afternoon and finished it yesterday evening. I need to get back to Children of Time, by Adrian Tchaikovsky.