Finished Wayward by Blake Crouch. Great follow up to the first book. Kept the story going with a few unexpected twists. Solid cliffhanger to end it. Looking forward to finishing out the series.

Books read in 2025:
Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut (re-read)
A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle (re-read)
The Silent Patient - Alex Michaelides
Project Hail Mary - Andy Wier
Pines - Blake Crouch
Wayward - Blake Crouch

On deck:
The Last Town - Blake Crouch

Started Atlas Shrugged. I Wikied the plot in the last few years but don't remember much about it. It's a big book and really trying to take my time and absorb every word.

I read it about 10 years ago and enjoyed about 95% of it. There's one chapter that I just skimmed over. The rest was worth the read.

lurker76 said:

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I read it about 10 years ago and enjoyed about 95% of it. There's one chapter that I just skimmed over. The rest was worth the read.

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You mean the 60 page repetitive monologue? Not even napoleon's buttons in Les mis are that bad.

But agreed, the rest is good once it gets going.

The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock. A dark, brutal, violent, gritty Southern Gothic novel that I really enjoyed. Pollock weaves numerous storylines into one in the setting of post-WWII Ohio and West Virginia.

Finished A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik
Good enough to read the next one. Kind of a clean version of Fourth Wing.

Looking for a good new Historical Fiction: I've read every Bernard Cornwell series twice.

Anything to do with War (romans, knights, British, colonial America, civil war), Ancient times, or early Christianity preferred.

I might pickup Dungeon Crawler Carl as well, based on feedback from this thread.

Pillars of the earth is not a series but is a great historical fiction book. You might also like Shogun.

Pillars of the Earth is an exceptional book and is a series! Think there's a prequel and multiple sequels.

SpreadsheetAg said:

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Looking for a good new Historical Fiction: I've read every Bernard Cornwell series twice.

Anything to do with War (romans, knights, British, colonial America, civil war), Ancient times, or early Christianity preferred.

I might pickup Dungeon Crawler Carl as well, based on feedback from this thread.

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David and Stella Gemmel's Troy Trilogy: Lord of the Silver Bow; Shield of Thunder; Fall of Kings
Different take on the Odyssey/Trojan War

Brian McClellan's The Powder Mage Trilogy and Gods of Blood and Powder Trilogy
Set in Revolutionary War timeframe but in a different "multiverse" (for a lack of a better word)

Jim Butcher's Codex Alera series
Roman tones with a blend of Pokemon (I just learned on here)

The last two are Fantasy not necessarily Historical Fiction but definitely have levels of history interlaced. The first one is not really fantasy but more of a logical answer to Greek Mythology.

Took inspiration from another poster and my second book of 25 was a wrinkle in time.

I squeezed Stoner by John Williams over the weekend (took a detour between Book 6 and 7 of Donut and Carl). I'm perplexed by this book (Stoner). A few have commented on it, but I often hear it often praised as one of the best books people have read. For whatever reason it has been popular again and it hear it mentioned frequently of late. So with it only being a touch under 300 pages I gave it a ride over the weekend. There is no part of me thinks it was one of the best books I've read. In fact, after starting I was highly disappointed but kept going because I assumed the pay off was at the end (which never manifested). But there is something about it that sicks with you as you read, and you do feel yourself expressing and feeling emotions that surprises you. Towards the end I (and rather late) realized what people love about this book. Its the prose. While the story is no frills, straightforward, no twists, historical academic fiction based on historical literature, the prose are some of the most simple yet creative and beautiful I've come across. And again, they are so well done and simple (not forced), it is not immediately obvious. So a good book, and if you like the classic and appreciate good writing, definitely recommend. But not enough for me to put it in the pantheon of best books written, unless that is constrained to prose only, then maybe yes. Have others read it? Thoughts?

SpreadsheetAg said:

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I might pickup Dungeon Crawler Carl as well, based on feedback from this thread.

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You should, but just make sure you go in with the right expectations. Most love it, but I've been surprised by a few who I thought would love it didn't (my opinion is because of expectation). If you think you would like to read a book written by Douglas Adams on mushrooms about Dungeons & Dragons in space, then you'll love it!

Finished Dominion by Tom Holland (no, not spider man).

I would definitely recommend it. He traces the impact of Christianity on the modern world through history, starting before Christ for obvious reasons. I thought it was hard to see where he was going at first, but it really picks up after a chapter or two as he ties things together. He normally picks places and people to explain how western thought is shaped focusing on events, some of whom you'll know and some you won't. I would caution that it's western Christendom and not the east, so lots of Catholic and Protestant influence. He'll talk about Calvin, Luther, but also nietzche, bede, Augustine, and more. He concludes it really well by bringing it to the present and at the very end making it personal, not in a way to convert, but to explain how he's been touched by the religion through family and society.

Seriously terrible writing. "I earned it and nobody should take it. Nobody. It's mine, I earned it and nobody should take it. I'll keep saying it until you believe me. It's mine."

Hillbilly Elegy : good and a little shocking read. Kind of weird hearing the VP of the USA use language like that. I did laugh several times too.

13B said:

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Hillbilly Elegy : good and a little shocking read. Kind of weird hearing the VP of the USA use language like that. I did laugh several times too.

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That's a fantastic book and one I definitely need to re-read this year. It really does give you insight into how Trump won back in '16 and shows you where Vance is coming from now as VP. It makes me very happy to see his mom doing so well these days.

13B said:

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Hillbilly Elegy : good and a little shocking read. Kind of weird hearing the VP of the USA use language like that. I did laugh several times too.

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He talks about his sailor mouth and how it affects his kids on his episode with Rogan.

Shogun - Part 1
Starting Part 2 this weekend

The book is better than the TV series.

MRB10 said:

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Shogun - Part 1
Starting Part 2 this weekend

The book is better than the TV series.

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I was hoping, based on the stellar reviews for the TV series, Shogun would be an exception to this rule. But yes, if you've read the book, the TV series is very questionable. My wife (who also just finished reading Shogun) and I have nearly lost interested after episode 8. We're going to try to finish the show this weekend because we like the actors.

Finished Table for Two (Amor Towles) last week. Just started High Adventure (Edmond Hillary).

So far this year:

Dungeon Crawler Carl The eye of the bedlam bride - Awesome, can't wait for the next audiobook
Dresden Files: Fool Moon - I really enjoyed this one even though most say it's the weakest.
Marvel Secret Invasion (audiobook) - I really enjoyed this story, I wish Disney could do this one right in a movie.
Avengers: Infinity (audiobook) - different version of the Infinity war story line, I enjoyed it.
X-Men The Dark Phoenix Saga (audiobook) - the narrator was not enjoyable to listen to, but okay story.
The Martian - I thought it was a well written story, enjoyable listen.
Just started Project Hail Mary - so far it's been an entertaining listen

Read The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk. I had seen the movie but this was a first time reading something by Wouk and now I will definitely be on the lookout for more of his work.

Wrapped up The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman. If you like his writing style this might be my favorite from him. He covers everything from the Internet, Nirvanna, Crystal Pepsi, George Bush and Micheal Jordan. Fun and entertain perspective on the 90's.

Finished The Last Town by Blake Crouch. Final book of the Wayward Pines trilogy. Solid conclusion to the series. I thought he tied things up nicely when he could have easily let the story get convoluted. This thing could have gone a lot of different directions, but he kept it under control and led the reader to a nice landing.

Would definitely recommend!

Books read in 2025:

January
Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut (re-read)
A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle (re-read)
The Silent Patient - Alex Michaelides
Project Hail Mary - Andy Wier
Pines - Blake Crouch
Wayward - Blake Crouch

February
The Last Town - Blake Crouch

On deck:
Not 100% sure what's next. Crouch quoted Slaughterhouse Five in his book Recursion, which led me to a re-read of the Vonnegut classic. In one of the Wayward Pines books he quoted Catch 22 which is now sitting on my bedside table. I first read Catch 22 about 15 years ago and remember loving it…thinking it might be time for a re-read.

At least that will keep my wife off my ass about buying more books

Endless Night by Agatha Christie. I have read the vast majority of Christie's books, and this has always been my favorite, even though it does not feature Hercule Poirot. Had not re-read it in a few years, and loved it just as much this time around. This is one of the darkest novels she ever wrote, and I highly recommend it(or any other Christie novel; they're all great) to anyone who enjoys mystery.

The Gate of the Feral Gods (Dungeon Crawler Carl #4)

In this series like others. It's fun. I'm now reading book 5 but also reading a book outside of this series to switch it up.

So I've read one book this year and my wife has already read 12 freaking books in one month.

13B said:

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Hillbilly Elegy : good and a little shocking read. Kind of weird hearing the VP of the USA use language like that. I did laugh several times too.

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Well, he was a Marine. They aren't known for their restraint of cursing.

YouBet said:

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13B said:

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Hillbilly Elegy : good and a little shocking read. Kind of weird hearing the VP of the USA use language like that. I did laugh several times too.

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Well, he was a Marine. They aren't known for their restraint of cursing.

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Well, we know for fact he had a ghostwriter....