Sunday, July 15, 2007

What are you reading?

Here are the last five books I've read or re-read: Midnight Tides, Steven Erikson (four stars); Word Wars, Chris Stevenson (five stars); Starship Troopers, Robert A. Heinlein (three stars); The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway (five stars); The Children of Hurin, Christopher Tolkien (two stars).

Here are the next five books I own and am planning on reading: The Bonehunters, Steven Erikson; Flight of the Nighthawks (Book One), Raymond E. Feist; Song for the Basilisk, Patricia A. McKillip; Dragon Bones, Patricia Briggs; Sword in the Storm (Book One), David Gemmell.

Anyone else care to share? Five or less is fine! Also, I'd love to hear comments on any of the above books, good or bad.

10 comments:

RHUM said...

I am one of Jim's beta readers, so the last five books I have read are The Pit, Moon Goddess, Eve of War, World on Fire, and Sun God -- and I have enjoyed them all immensely. I'm eagerly awaiting Book Six!

Jim Melvin said...

Ha! Thanks, Rick, for the plug. And I appreciate all your hard work.

Allie Boniface said...

I'm going on vacation soon and taking with me Life of Pi (Yann Martel), The Glass Castle (Jeannette Walls), The Time Traveler's Wife (Audrey Niffenegger), Welcome to Temptation (Jennifer Crusie), and The Rule of Four (Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason). We'll see how many I get through!

Jim Melvin said...

My gosh, Allie! Are you going on vacation for six months? That's impressive!

Kelly Meding/Kelly Meade said...

In various stages of reading: Cell (Stephen King), The Good That Men Do (Star Trek tie-in), Stray (Rachel Vincent), Unshapely Things (Mark del Franco), and A Darker Crimson (Carolyn Jewel).

Jim Melvin said...

I was pleasantly surprised by Cell. Though a huge King fan, I wasn't expecting much, for some reason, yet I loved Cell, especially the pacing. And thanks for the comment!

Leah J. Utas said...

Hello Jim,

I just finished the first two Little House books ...Big Woods and ...The Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Signs in the Sky by Adrian Gilbert, Are You really Too Sensitive? by Marcie Calhoun, and Healing Yourself With Light by LaUna Huffines.
I was a major Heinlein fan when I was younger and I still think the world of him.
My husband and I are just finishing up Manda Scott's quadrology on Queen Boudica as our bedtime story.
Thanks for stopping by my blog. I appreciate the visit.

Jim Melvin said...

Leah, it was my pleasure to visit your blog, and thanks to you for visiting mine. My youngest daughter (of five) is named Lia. My wife and I adopted her from Cambodia.

When books are discussed in this fashion, it amazes me how many titles I've never even heard of. Makes me wish I could read ten hours a day seven days a week just to catch up!

Michael said...

Of those you've listed, I've only read Starship Troopers, which I liked very much. The last book I read was Fear Nothing by Dean Koontz, and right now I'm about halfway through The Mars Imperative by Mark Terence Chapman.

Jim Melvin said...

I've read four or five by Koontz, but not that one. And I've never read The Mars Imperative. It never ceases to annoy me how many books I haven't read, despite reading nonstop since I was a teenager!

Synopsis

The Death Wizard Chronicles is a sexy, action-packed six-book epic fantasy series: Book One (Forged by Death), Book Two (Chained by Fear), Book Three (Eve of War), Book Four (World on Fire), Book Five (Sun God), Book Six (Death-Know).

The DW Chronicles is not for children and teenagers -- or the faint of heart. But if you like graphic fantasy that is bursting with excitement yet still has a lot going on between the lines, I think you'll love my series.

In a groundbreaking paradox, the Death Wizard, a champion of good, derives his power from a source traditionally seen as negative -- death. His nemesis, an evil sorcerer, derives his power from the sun, the benevolent source of all life. Their struggle to control the fate of the planet Triken will take your breath away.

In an original twist never before seen in this genre, the Death Wizard is able to enter the realm of death during a "temporary suicide." Through intense concentration, he stops his heartbeat and feeds on death energy, which provides him with an array of magical powers.

The series also is a love triangle involving two desperate characters attempting to come together despite the machinations of an all-powerful psychopath with incestuous cravings.

Graphic and action-packed, spanning a millennium of turmoil, The DW Chronicles carries readers on a journey they will never forget.

Do you fear death? The Death Wizard does not. Find out why.

-- Please go to www.jim-melvin.com for more details.

About Me

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Clemson, SC, United States
I was born in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., but grew up in St. Petersburg, Fla. I graduated from the University of South Florida (Tampa) in 1979 with a B.A. in Journalism. I now live in South Carolina near the Blue Ridge Mountains, a pleasant setting for writing, to say the least. I was an award-winning journalist at the St. Petersburg Times for twenty-five years and I currently work at the Charlotte Observer. I am married with five daughters.

The author

The author
Jim Melvin, a veteran journalist, debuts as novelist.