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embracing the Jonathan Livingston Seagull ethos a bit too closely
I actually enjoyed Jonathan Livingston Seagull when I read it (decades ago) ...haven't read Stallman though.
Posted : August 17, 2026 7:38 pm
Finished my re-read of The Talisman yesterday and then read The I Scream Truck - a middle-grade spooky read by (not kidding) I.M. Eerie that's being released on August 25th. Definitely a fun and quick read - worth keeping an eye out for if you have younger readers (ages 8-12, according to the publisher's page) in your life.
Posted : August 17, 2026 7:55 pm
I'm currently reading The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin. First Le Guin book for me, not a big Sci-fi reader. It was picked for my library's book club, though I wasn't able to attend. Sci-Fi tends to be a slog for me, so it takes a little longer to get through.
Next on deck I have Tomie by Junji Ito, and Rumbullion by Molly Tanzer. Both for my horror book club.
Posted : August 18, 2026 12:57 pm
I'm currently reading The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin. First Le Guin book for me
Honestly don't remember if I've ever read Le Guin ... I've always loved sci-fi so I have trouble believing I haven't, but I'll have to read some to see if any look familiar.
Posted : August 19, 2026 12:02 am
then read The I Scream Truck - a middle-grade spooky read by (not kidding) I.M. Eerie that's being released on August 25th
I posted a review of The I Scream Truck on my blog for anyone interested...
https://www.pagesfromthemist.com/2026/08/review-i-scream-truck.html
Posted : August 19, 2026 12:03 am
Reading THE BOOK OF THE BEAST trilogy by Robert Stallman. Centipede announced a month or so ago that they were reprinting it, and so since I’d never heard of it, I thought I’d give it a read. I’m about halfway through the first volume and am enjoying it very much.
I finished the first volume of the trilogy and enjoyed it...there are a few issues, mostly to do with POV and segmented/fractured storylines, but they could also be written off as deliberate choices rather than debut-author weaknesses, and I could see that argument being made. I'd give it a 7.5/10, and am looking forward to the next/second volume. Interestingly, it's not SF as originally marketed, and it's barely horror (though it has a few scenes that would qualify), even though its protagonist is a monster/creature...it's almost more of a literary coming-of-age saga with a strong theme of what-does-it-mean-to-be-human with all genre flourishes being largely secondary. Reminds me a bit of BLIND VOICES by Tom Reamy in its quasi-literary approach to the fantastic...interesting that that book, too, was a debut work by an author who died before (or shortly after) publication.
I'll report back on the second volume...we'll see if it remains a strong narrative, or like too many series, tends to trail off as the story wears on.
Finished the second volume, and while it was still entertaining and I'm digging the overall arc of the story, I didn't find it quite as engaging as the first book...it felt a bit too plot-heavy, too pulpish. I'm on to the third novel, which one review I read decries it as embracing the Jonathan Livingston Seagull ethos a bit too closely...guess we'll see.
Well, that went south fast. First volume a 7.5/10, second volume we'll give a 6, and the third volume a 3, barely readable. This was really a disappointing experience in that it just feels like lost potential...that first volume had great depth and was a truly emotive narrative that felt engaging and of a time and place (1930s, IIRC) yet immensely relevant and immediate. Volume two could be excused as an author trying to notch up the pacing and plot, to do a different twist on the story, even if it came at the cost of characterization. I've no clue what he trying to do in volume three, with its parallel storylines (with two leading protagonists now) that only came together at the very end, with some sort of mystical juju thing involving Indians on one hand and dimensional creatures on another. Everything that made the first volume special was absent in this one (and, to be frank, mostly in the second as well, though at least that one had some parental stuff that I could connect with). I almost DNFd it, but fought it through to the end, just to say I've read the entire saga. I'd like to say it was worth the effort, but I can't. Lost potential indeed.
Posted : August 20, 2026 4:02 pm
Well, that went south fast
Always disappointing when a book/series you have high hopes for doesn't deliver for you. It doesn't mean it is a "bad" read, just one that didn't click with you.
Hopefully you're next book will be more satisfying!
Posted : August 20, 2026 6:52 pm
About halfway through the huge TOM STRONG COMPENDIUM from DC. I have all of the original issues in floppies, but it's been fun revisiting. I just finished a very emotional three-parter, and it amazed me that Alan Moore was able to build such a large cast in only 20 or so issues, and how he effortlessly creates seemingly throwaway characters that manage to stick with you and seem three-dimensional, no matter how little screen time they get. I'm also reading CONAN THE BARBARIAN: THE ORIGINAL MARVEL YEARS OMNIBUS, VOL. 5, which features the first few years of the post-Roy Thomas era. I read a lot of these issues when I was a kid, and they're really nothing worth writing home about. A fun nostalgia blast so far, and the John Buscema art looks great with Bob McLeod inking, but the stories themselves are lacking.
On the novel front, I'm reluctantly starting Grady Hendrix's THE FINAL GIRL SUPPORT GROUP. This is my last unread Hendrix, and I've been putting off reading it. I usually like to keep a book or two from favorite authors unread, as a "Break glass in case of emergency!" fail-safe, in case I need a mood boost. We'll see if it does the trick.
Posted : August 23, 2026 5:10 am
rmquist reacted
I'm a little more than 1/3 of the way through A Dark Path: Shadowy Heavens 1 by Manuel Mesa. Unsure how to feel about it at this point. It's supposed to be "epic fantasy" but so far it's been a jumble of characters and situations that don't seem all that interconnected except for references to/searches for some mysterious Orb (or Orbs?). There seems to be a fair amount of descriptive text that "tells" what's happening, rather than "show" it, and lot of repetition to focus attention on specific elements and inner monologues that, for me, break the flow of the story rather than enhance it.
I'm going to continue to read for at least a while longer - I suspect there's a decent story in here, but if the threads don't start to come together soon I may give up.
Posted : August 23, 2026 6:20 pm
Finished up Black House by King & Straub.
This was a reread, though it’s been 25 years since I last read it, and quite frankly, had forgotten most of the storyline.
I definitely had forgotten just much of a Dark Tower book this was!
Looking forward to the last book in the trilogy this fall.
After Black House, I read Shadowflowers by Jeffrey Thomas, the latest chapbook from Rapture Publishing. It was a very interesting story, but the conclusion left me feeling that this was a small piece to a larger storyline.
After Shadowflowers, started my reread of The Dog Stars by Peter Heller.
Wanted to reread this one before the the movie opens this weekend.
B
Posted : August 24, 2026 2:14 am
dannyboy121070 reacted
Finished up Black House by King & Straub.
This was a reread, though it’s been 25 years since I last read it, and quite frankly, had forgotten most of the storyline.
I definitely had forgotten just much of a Dark Tower book this was!
Looking forward to the last book in the trilogy this fall.
Black House is on my list to re-read before Other Worlds Than These comes out in October. Like you, it's been awhile since I last read it so I'm looking forward to finding out how much (probably most of it) that I've forgotten.
Posted : August 24, 2026 1:01 pm
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