What are you currently reading?

[sholloman81]

Just finished reading the SST LE of Stephen Graham Jones' "Demon Theory", a first time read for me. Really enjoyed it as I have all of SGJ's stuff. This one was definitely more of an interesting & fun read rather than being particularly scary. You could tell that the author was having loads of fun playing with the characters and formatting of each section of the book. I also really enjoyed how the author played with and subverted a lot of the typical horror story/movie conventions (horror in the woods, hospital, Xmas, etc.). This edition was also the author's preferred text which made a difference in that this book had way fewer footnotes than the standard edition. The level of footnotes in the standard edition always put me off on wanting to read it. Overall, I'm glad that I finally got around to reading this book and would give it a B- to C+ grade.

Am now reading the SST LE of Josh Malerman's "Inspection".

[sholloman81]

Oh - here are some pictures of tonight's event.

Daniel Kraus is touring his new book Whalefall. Sadie Hartmann turned me onto this book (it's about a diver who gets swallowed by a whale - hits lots of checkboxes for sure!) Stephen Graham Jones was there as a moderator/interviewer. I've seen SGJ at two official events, and one unofficial when I saw him in line as a fan at a recent convention in Denver, so tonight was my third time meeting him.

It was a great talk - I'm not familiar with Kraus as an author, but Whalefall is going to move to the upper portion of my TBR pile.

Got my copy signed (and stamped) and I had SGJ sign my SST edition of Demon Theory. Yeah, I know some collectors are going to freak that I had an LE personalized to me, but I'm not ever going to part with this, plus double signed now! The inscription is pretty cool tool. (This was also the only SGJ book I had handy since all of my books are currently in storage.)

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Wow, am even more jealous now! That event looks bonkers!

[Sock Monkey]

Sounds like a great time. And that additional signature and especially that inscription, on the limited edition is very cool! Congratulations!

[TacomaDiver]

Oh - here are some pictures of tonight's event.

Daniel Kraus is touring his new book Whalefall.  Sadie Hartmann turned me onto this book (it's about a diver who gets swallowed by a whale - hits lots of checkboxes for sure!)  Stephen Graham Jones was there as a moderator/interviewer.  I've seen SGJ at two official events, and one unofficial when I saw him in line as a fan at a recent convention in Denver, so tonight was my third time meeting him.

It was a great talk - I'm not familiar with Kraus as an author, but Whalefall is going to move to the upper portion of my TBR pile.

Got my copy signed (and stamped) and I had SGJ sign my SST edition of Demon Theory.  Yeah, I know some collectors are going to freak that I had an LE personalized to me, but I'm not ever going to part with this, plus double signed now!  The inscription is pretty cool tool.  (This was also the only SGJ book I had handy since all of my books are currently in storage.)

20230816_004207258_iOS (Medium).jpg

20230816_033433029_iOS.jpg

[TacomaDiver]

Wow, I'm jealous! I've never gotten to attend an SGJ event and would love to do so! He seems super cool!

He is a really cool guy in person.  Very smart (he is a professor at CU Boulder after all) and just has so much to talk about.  Never boring!

[sholloman81]

As long as things don't change, I should be attending an event on Tuesday where SGJ is the moderator/interviewer. I believe every book I have from his is signed (everything is boxed away) except for Demon Theory. Was thinking of having him flat sign it for the hell of it.

Wow, I'm jealous! I've never gotten to attend an SGJ event and would love to do so! He seems super cool!

[TacomaDiver]

Am now reading the SST LE of Stephen Graham Jones' "Demon Theory", a first time read for me. This version is his original never seen before text so I'm glad that I get to read this version first! Hope it lives up to his other books as I'm a huge SGJ fan.

As long as things don't change, I should be attending an event on Tuesday where SGJ is the moderator/interviewer. I believe every book I have from his is signed (everything is boxed away) except for Demon Theory. Was thinking of having him flat sign it for the hell of it.

[Chuggers]

Reading TITANIUM NOIR by Nick Harkaway...my first experience with this author but so far very enjoyable. The noir elements are really driving this one, would definitely recommend to fans of the genre

[sholloman81]

Just finished reading the SST LE of Paul Tremblay's "No Sleep Till Wonderland", a first time read for me. I did read the first book in this series awhile back and enjoyed it; so, I had high hopes for this one as well. Luckily, it doesn't disappoint. The main narcoleptic detective character, Mark Genovich, really works for me. I enjoy his inner dialogue and how he tries to juggle his cases and illness. If I had one complaint with this book, it would be that it spends a bit too much time rehashing his illness and its symptoms. I'm guessing that the vast majority of readers probably read the previous book; so, it felt bit unnecessary and repetitive. Other than that, it's a pretty strong read. Hopefully, Tremblay will revisit this character in the future, but I doubt it. Overall, I would give this a C+ to B- grade.

Am now reading the SST LE of Stephen Graham Jones' "Demon Theory", a first time read for me. This version is his original never seen before text so I'm glad that I get to read this version first! Hope it lives up to his other books as I'm a huge SGJ fan.

[RonClinton]

Currently reading my first book from Willy Vlautin, THE NIGHT ALWAYS COMES, and loving this contemporary noir…definitely won’t be my last Vlautin. Probably give his MOTEL LIFE a shot next.

[sholloman81]

Just finished the SST LE of Joe Lansdale's "Terror is Our Business: Dana Roberts' Casebook of Horrors". Had previously read some but not all of the stories. Enjoyed them all. These are really fun characters and I enjoy the overall tone of these stories. Hope Lansdale writes more of them in the future. Overall, I would give this book a C+ to B- rating.

Am now reading the SST LE of Paul Tremblay's "No Sleep Till Wonderland", a first time read for me. Enjoyed the previous book and have high hopes for this sequel.

[sholloman81]

Just finished reading the Suntup AGE of Joyce Carol Oates' "Zombie", a first time read for me. This is an admittedly hard book to both read and review. Obviously, the lead character is a repulsive loser; so, it's pretty much impossible to make any sort of connection, but it was fascinating to get into his head space and to see his evolution & how his psyche may have been formed. Also was fascinated by his immediate family and their impulse to explain away odd/bad behavior. That felt very real to me. This story was very well written by Oates and I'm glad to have read it, but I'm not sure that it's a book that I will ever care to re-reread and may decide to offload my copy in the near future. Overall, I would give this a solid B grade.

Am now reading the SST LE of Joe Lansdale's "Terror is Our Business: Dana Roberts' Casebook of Horrors". Happy these stories were finally collected and look forward to reading them all!

[TacomaDiver]

Wow, those are great pictures!

How deep were you diving?

Aren’t six gills supposed to be deep water species?

B

Thanks!

I believe I was around 120' when I took those photos - yeah a little deeper than most recreational divers, but I do have the appropriate certifications, plus I wasn't at that depth too long.

And you're right about the six gills being deep water fish. I know the BBC had footage of them at a few thousand feet, but the theory is they come up shallow to give birth.

The Puget Sound area has routine sightings of them in the summer; usually around 75-100' down. Summertime has the worst visibility so who knows how many are out there. This particular summer was a HOT BED of sightings - it felt like every time you got into the water, there was a shark.

[brlesh]

I lost the video over the years which is a bummer - it was a great video in the style of Blair Witch - shaky cam, darkness, flashlight flashing, and a SHARK!

This isn't the one that knocked me over, but it was the one I saw right before I saw the one that knocked me over.

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This is the one did knock me over:
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(I always thought that these pics were of different sharks - I may have been mistake by looking at them now, regardless of what my notes may say.)

Wow, those are great pictures!

How deep were you diving?

Aren’t six gills supposed to be deep water species?

B

[brlesh]

Just finished reading the Suntup AGE of Balke Crouch's "Dark Matter". This was a first time read and it blew my mind. It was exactly the book I needed as the last few reads have been duds for me. Not this one! Had previously read Crouch's Pines trilogy and enjoyed it, but this book feels extra special. It kept me surprised throughout and had tons of thought provoking scenes and ideas. Also enjoyed pretty much every character, and they all felt fleshed out and real. For me, this was sci-fi/adventure done right! I hope one day that we get to find out what may have happened to the main characters travel companion Amanda, as there might be a story to tell. I would give this book an A grade for sure.

Am now reading Joyce Carol Oates' "Zombie", another first time read for me. Have only read a few of her short stories in random anthologies.

I was in a similar situation when I read Zombie earlier this year. Had read some of JCO short stories in different anthologies over the years, but had never read any of her novels. I found her short fiction to be hit or miss.

Hard to say I liked Zombie, as it was a very disturbing book, though it did hold my interest.

Similar to Let’s Go Play at the Adams’ and The Girl Next Door, it evokes a visceral response on the reader, though not at the same level as those two books.

B