My (Previous) Year in Reading: 121 to 130

…in chronological order.

2015 has been a great year when it comes to reading books for me. During it, according to Goodreads, I have gulped down 212 volumes that were not only novels for adults but also volumes that belonged in many other genres: YA, graphic novels, poetry, children's stories, short stories and books in translation. This has also been a year that I stopped writing reviews since I had much else occupying my mind and time, so below I'll give you no more than a few words about the books I have read. I hope some of my choices echo yours and I look forward to an exciting new year of reading.

So here it goes:

121) Small Wars by Lee Child. This is one of those Jack Reacher ebook shorts that now tend to appear before every new novel released by the author. What we have here is one of the same and which yet we enjoy just the same. Reacher is asked to investigate a crime, and surely soon enough he finds who the killer is, though that discovery comes as a bit of a surprise to the unsuspecting reader. A job well done once again.

122) The Girl in the Spider's Web by David Lagercrantz. When I found out that an author was hired to write a sequel to Stieg Larsson's Millennium series I didn't quite know what to expect. The good thing is that the new author doesn't disappoint. He delivers the goods in a masterful way and since he's a better writer than the late Larsson this new book reads more smoothly than the first three in the series. I look forward to the next one.

123) Judge Surra by Andrea Camilleri. This is not a Montalbano story. It takes place in 1862 in Montelusa, Sicily, where the judge of the title arrives to take over the local court. Most people think that he won't last long there, but the good judge is much more canny than they give him credit for. A very good short story by a great writer.

124) Red Rosa: A Graphic Biography of Rosa Luxemburg by Kate Evans. This graphic novel could have been a masterpiece, but doesn't quite reach that status for one simple reason: it's overly chatty. If that doesn't bother you much then start reading and be prepared for an exciting ride into the muddled waters of history and a heroine that will stay with you for a long time to come.

125) Ragnarok Volume 1: Last God Standing by Walter Simonson. Whenever I read the word Ragnarok in a title I get myself ready to enjoy a great adventure. Sometimes I do others I don't. With the graphic novel at hand I feel a bit conflicted because, though the premise is great, it doesn't quite deliver the goods. I would hope that the best is still to come.

126) Junction True by Ray Fawkes and Vince Locke. This is a futuristic tale about a man and the boundaries he's willing to cross for the woman he loves; a tale of extremes. This is a great concept which could do with some improvements in both the script and art departments. The story works but not as well as it could and should.

127) Alex + Ada Volume 3 by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn. Here we also have a love story of sorts, taking place in the future. Alex, the man, comes to have feelings for Ada, the robot and decides to set her free in order to explore the world in humanly fashion. But things don't quite work out the way they want them to. I loved this story. Good work all around.

128) Edward Scissorhands Volume 2: Whole Again by Kate Leth and DrewRausch. I've enjoyed the second volume of this graphic novel just as much as the first. This Tim Burton creature took a new life on the page and I look forward to reading whatever comes next in the series. Thumbs up.

129) Chew Volume 10: Blood Puddin' by John Layman and Rob Guillory. This series of graphic novels is one of the best out there at the moment. The good scripts and pinpoint accurate art, the heroes and villains, and most of all the action make it one to look out for. A real joy to read.

130) Black Science Volume 3: Vanishing Point by Rick Remender, MatteoScalera and Moreno Dinisio. Yet another series that seems to grow better and better. For me it was enough to read that its heroes are the members of The Anarchist League of Scientists to be sold on the premise. Inter-dimensional travel, intrigue and lots of adventure are the cornerstones of the story. Bring me more.

To be continued.

Read also: 1 to 10, 11 to 20, 21 to 30, 31 to 40, 41 to 50, 51 to 60, 61 to 70, 71 to 80, 81 to 90, 91 to 100, 101 to 110, 111 to 120.

 

My (Previous) Year in Reading: 101 to 110

…in chronological order.

2015 has been a great year when it comes to reading books for me. During it, according to Goodreads, I have gulped down 212 volumes that were not only novels for adults but also volumes that belonged in many other genres: YA, graphic novels, poetry, children's stories, short stories and books in translation. This has also been a year that I stopped writing reviews since I had much else occupying my mind and time, so below I'll give you no more than a few words about the books I have read. I hope some of my choices echo yours and I look forward to an exciting new year of reading.

So here it goes:

101) Criminal Volume 6: The Last of the Innocent by Ed Brubaker and SeanPhillips. This is getting a bit too much, right? I would like to ask the creators of Criminal to take a little break. Come on people, how much of this good stuff you think we can take? And what if we overdose? Jokes aside, another great volume from a great creative team. I won't even bore you with the details of this story.

102) East of West Volume 4: Who Wants War? by Jonathan Hickman and NickDragotta. Apparently everyone, or almost everyone, wants war. Here we are yet again in the throes of a major catastrophe. Maybe I had a bit too much of this stuff during last year since I haven't enjoyed this volume as much as the previews ones, though both the art and the story are good.

103) Ways of Going Home by Alejandro Zambra. Zambra is a Chilean writer whose star seems to be rising higher year after year. This here is a short beautifully written novel that plays with the notions of time and space, character and author. It is experimental, but not experimental enough to give one pause. Besides the language is so rich and the game so good that most friends of literary fiction will surely enjoy it.

104) Millennium by Joe Harris and Colin Lorimer. The great disaster to come never realized at the dawn of the millennium largely thanks to the efforts of three people. However evil has not lost all its power and as it seems it is about to strike again. Will it succeed this time? An interesting story with a good plot, but which could use a little more of work.

105) Vampirella Feary Tales by Nancy A. Collins. To tell you the truth I like reading the adventures of Vampirella though I am never quite satisfied with the stories or the art. They always remind me of rush jobs but at least they are fun to read, so as long as they can keep my interest alive I guess I will keep reading them. This volume collects five stories full of action and mayhem.

106) Twisted Dark Volume 3 by Neil Gibson and others. This is my favorite of the Twisted Dark series. The writing is as good as ever and the art is absolutely great. And I do love its heroine, a young girl who simply wants to be left alone but, alas, that's not meant to be. One of the comic book highlights of the year in my opinion.

107) Mercy Thompson: Hopcross Jilly by Patricia Briggs, Rik Hoskin andTom Garcia. This volume brings together a lot of talent and that can be seen on the page, as the reader rushes through a story full of action and echoes of love, and mythical creatures and their endeavors. The script is great and the art serves it well.

108) Where There's Love, There's Hate by Adolfo Bioy Casares and SilvinaOcampo. I hate to admit that this is the first piece of work that I've read by either author, or at least I think it is since my memory is not that great. Anyway, this is a crime novel of sorts. I say of sorts since it spends most of the time mocking the genre, or simply having fun with its clichés. It all begins with a murder. And then… Silvina Ocampo is already in my to-read list, so I guess I will see what happens next.

109) Visitation by Jenny Erpenbeck. This is a short novel that mostly takes place in a house, but whose main subject is history. History as it happened and as it now unravels in the lives of a small community of people who, like it or not, are haunted by their country's, Germany's, past. The author does a great job when diving into the souls of her heroes.

110) Lovers on All-Saints' Day by Juan Gabriel Vásquez. This collection hosts seven stories that most often than not are preoccupied with the many ghosts that haunt the lives of people. Things like memory and loss. Things like regret and redemption. Fear and hope. Vásquez, an exile to Europe, sets his stories on this continent, as if trying to escape his past, but then the stories themselves seem to echo it, thus proving that wherever you go you carry your ghosts with you. A job well done.

 

To be continued.

Read also: 1 to 10, 11 to 20, 21 to 30, 31 to 40, 41 to 50, 51 to 60, 61 to 70, 71 to 80, 81 to 90, 91 to 100

 

My (Previous) Year in Reading: 81 to 90

…in chronological order.

2015 has been a great year when it comes to reading books for me. During it, according to Goodreads, I have gulped down 212 volumes that were not only novels for adults but also volumes that belonged in many other genres: YA, graphic novels, poetry, children's stories, short stories and books in translation. This has also been a year that I stopped writing reviews since I had much else occupying my mind and time, so below I'll give you no more than a few words about the books I have read. I hope some of my choices echo yours and I look forward to an exciting new year of reading.

So here it goes:

81) Twisted Dark Volume 1 by Neil Gibson and others. I don't know if you need to have a-sort-of twisted mind to enjoy the stories contained in this volume, but if you do, I plead guilty. I loved the stories and I loved the art - though some of them were better drawn than others. If you are a comic books fan I'm certain that you'll enjoy this tome.

82) Die Again by Tess Gerritsen. Gerritsen is a great crime fiction writer and I really love her Rizzoli & Isles series. Though the characters on TV are funnier than the ones on the page, I like the latter more because in every new book that comes out I, as a reader, come to discover new depths in their psyches. As for the plot, well, there's a murder, and there are some more, and these dynamic women have to capture the killer. Simple as that. And not simple at all. Read it.

83) Karate Chop by Dorthe Nors. The stories included in this collection I could never describe as usual. They remind me of exercises in storytelling; very good exercises. They are short. They are to the point. And they have a lot to offer to the open-minded reader. This author is a new discovery for me and I'll keep an eye out for any future work of hers that's translated into English or Greek.

84) The Malediction by Jean Giono. To be honest I didn't have an easy time reading this book. I don't know if that had something to do with the translation. Whatever the reason, the fact is that in the end it left a bittersweet taste in my mouth. Bitter for the words that didn't seem to flow as they should; sweet for the story itself. And I still can't decide as to whether I should recommend it to someone or not.

85) Too Much Happiness by Alice Munro. As I've mentioned in an earlier review it's almost impossible for me to give five stars to a short story collection, and I only did it twice all year long. This was the second time. Wow! I said after I finished reading it. Wow! Read it. Full stop.

86) Solitude Creek by Jeffery Deaver. I don't like the Kathryn Dance series of novels as much as the Lincoln Rhymes one, but this here was a really great read. In it Deaver did what he does best, wrong-foot the reader again and again, make him believe one thing while leading him to another. I think this is the best book in the series so far, but Rhymes is Rhymes people.

87) The Other Language by Francesca Marciano. Italians, just like Irish, are natural-born storytellers, and Marciano is a very good one. I really enjoyed following the figments of her imagination from one place to the next, see the world through their eyes, share their feelings. Stories that speak to the soul.

88) You Don't Say by Nate Powell. This is a hybrid collection of comic stories and more. And it is exactly this miscellany of pieces that make it worth reading. Perhaps one would say that some things don't belong in this volume, but in turn I'd say that they are wrong. There is a great concept here that works very well on the page. One could only wish that one day he'd be able to create something like this. Not perfect, but close enough.

89) Flash Gordon Omnibus Volume 1 by Various. I wish I could say that I've enjoyed reading this a lot but I'm afraid that's not the case. I did like it, but at the same time I felt that the art was a bit lacking, that the plots could use a bit of… shining, and so on and so forth. However I'm sure that the fans will enjoy reading it since it offers a lot of material and enough action scenes to satisfy their thirst.

90) Robert Heinlein's Citizen of the Galaxy by Robert Lazaro, EricGignac and Steve Erwin. Most of the times when a work of fiction is "translated" into a comic book things don't quite work out. However they did work out here, as the original myth took new life on the page, with the help of a good script and wonderful artwork. A job well done.

To be continued.

Read also: 1 to 10, 11 to 20, 21 to 30, 31 to 40, 41 to 50, 51 to 60, 61 to 70, 71 to 80