It’s WWW Wednesday. This meme is from shouldbereading.
• What did you recently finish reading?
The last novel I finished reading was Lexicon by Max Berry. I heard about this novel from a podcast and picked it up because it seemed not-quite-genre. I admit I didn’t know Max Berry was a “name” writer, but a look at the Amazon page for this book shows that it’s been favorably reviewed in most major publications and has a high reader rating. What did I think of it? It’s a very well written book, and I was impressed by the author’s ability to tell a story from multiple points of view, shifting frequently from story-past to story-present, without being confusing — but emotionally the story never grabbed me until almost near the end.
One reviewer commented that the story “borders on speculative fiction.” Well, the story is absolutely speculative fiction. The speculative element is supposed to be scientific, but even the characters seemed a little defensive on this subject, insisting several times that “It’s not magic.” That’s not a criticism in itself. The author has pulled off an interesting and unusual story.
I’ve also been reading genre short stories. The one I’d like to mention is “The Naturalist” by Maureen McHugh. It’s a zombie story, and normally I avoid zombie stories — they’re just not my thing — but I had to know what Maureen would do with the trope, and I can enthusiastically say that “The Naturalist” is a terrific story. Find it online here.
• What are you reading now?
In fiction, I’ve stepped outside my genre to read a regency romance, The Spanish Marriage, by Book View Café’s own Madeleine Robins.
And in non-fiction, I’m working on Let’s Get Visible by David Gaughran, on improving one’s ebook sales at Amazon. Let’s call it business reading. At only $4.99, it’s well worth the investment just to understand the way best seller and popularity lists work.
• What do you think you’ll read next?
There are a lot more short stories I’d like read, and I’ll need to find a new novel as well. I’ll peruse the ebook samples I’ve collected until I find something that suits my mood.
What about you? What have you been reading lately? Put the link to your WWW Wednesday entry in comments, or just tell us!
