It is several decades since I read the books, probably about the time I was working through the Dune saga, all of them being very good (although I am not sure that I stuck with all the later Dune books after Frank Herbert stopped writing them).

Dan, you can sign up for Apple TV + on any device and for a month at a time without longer commitment, so it could be worth a look: I think that you can also access the first instalment of at least some shows as a taster without signing up. A lot of good stuff there!

flotsam, I still have hard copies of my Asimov books too.

Thanks Lex...I will check it out!

I am just delving into the weird and interesting (too early to say whether or not "wonderful"} Exordia by Seth Dickinson: has anyone else tried any of his books, and if so what did you think? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seth_Dickinson

I am reading the most amazing book. I've been staying up way too late because "just one more chapter!" There is a good reason it was on the NYT Bestseller List.

All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker

This is the blurb on Amazon.

I'm continuing on with the Robin Hobb books, now reading the Rain Wilds books. These are not nearly as good as the Farseer and Liveships books, and I find them almost a bit YA, with a bit of bodice-ripping breathlessness, but they're still worth a quick read.

I quite like the sound of Chris Whittaker and I am about to start on Robin Hobb, but meanwhile I have been reading some excellent but very violent thrillers by S A Cosby: definitely worth a look if you have the stomach for it!

I'm reading Four Ruined Realms which is book number two of The Broken Blades series.

I'm reading the final series in Robin Hobb's Farseer books. Then I'll have a look through my Kindle; I must have at least 50 books I haven't read yet. There's bound to be something good in there.

I have the 3 Farseer books and All the Colors of the Dark waiting patiently for me to read them. I hope to get to them soon.

In the meantime, I've read two very good books. First is The Life Impossible by Matt Haig (author of The Midnight Library), which starts out with a retired and widowed math teacher named Grace being left a rundown house on a small Mediterranean island by someone she hardly even knew. The island is special in ways that Grace, and most non-residents, could never imagine, and her search for her missing friend leads her to amazing revelations.

I also read Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh. Since her birth, Kyr has been trained as a warrior to avenge the destroyed planet Earth. Gaia Station holds the last scraps of humanity, and Kyr is one of the best trainees of her generation. However, when Command assigns her brother to certain death and relegates her to Nursery to bear sons until she dies trying, she escapes into a universe much more complicated than she was ever led to believe. Excellent twists and turns in this sci-fi thriller and coming of age story.

I'm currently reading Starter Villain by John Scalzi. I really like the humor he brings to science fiction... and cats.

LadyK, some great suggestions from you as usual which I will have to explore! Meanwhile I am greatly enjoying Meet Me In Another Life by Catriona Silvey, gently reminiscent of The Time Traveller's Wife (which I loved), although I do not know where it is leading https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54698696-meet-me-in-another-life

I'm reading "The Outsider" by Stephen King, I'm only about 150 pages in but so far it's holding my interest.

I've recently started Jack Reacher #15, Worth Dying For. I'm liking it so far.

Love the Jack Reacher books...and his 'helping' other folks.

I just finished and really enjoyed The Silverblood Promise by James Logan.

I'm reading the Alliance novels by CJ Cherryh and Jane Fancher. I don't see any real difference from CJ's other books, so I'm hopeful that if Cherryh can't finish the Foreigner series, Ms. Fancher will be able to do them justice.

I think Jane Fancher co-wrote book 22 of the Foreigner series (which I have not yet read - 20 is next).

I am currently laughing out loud at some of John Scalzi's Redshirts, a great read and a very different sort of SF yarn from his Old Man's War saga (which I thought was excellent), then having a tear in my eye at some of the ending.

Judith,
I read The Outsider when it first came out. I don't remember all of the plot, but I do remember it's suspenseful and creepy.

Lex,
Thanks for the Redshirts recommendation. I’ve been wondering which Scalzi book to read next, and that one sounds just right.

I just finished Ancillary Justice, the first book in the Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann Leckie. It’s written from the first person perspective of an individual who used to be a starship. Some of the exposition was confusing at first and slowed the story a bit, but the universe Leckie has created is complex and fascinating, and when things took off, they really flew. I also really like the protagonist.

I’ve already started the second book, Ancillary Sword, but I’m also reading a book of short stories by Bernard Malamud called Rembrant’s Hat. I’ve had it in my collection probably since the early 70s and came across it while trying to make room for some recent purchases. I hadn’t read any of Malamud before this, but I like his writing. I also discovered I have a paperback copy of The Fixer by him that I also want to read.

I had a quick look through some Bernard Malamud books, and he writes well: however, he appears to focus heavily on disappointment and missed opportunity (real or perceived), especially within what I might term the Jewish experience, while I tend to prefer something more positively escapist...

Yes, that's exactly the way I would describe Malamud's style, Lex. I suspect aome of it comes from the times and events he was writing about in the 60s. I am alternating his stories with chapters in Leckie's book so that the melancholy nature of his protagonists don't weigh me down.

Bernard Malamud. That's a name from the past. I suppose I read his books from my father's collection.

I just finished the second of the Alliance books and I have to say they are excellent, especially the second one. Unfortunately, it's obviously a trilogy at the very least, and I'm going to be impatiently waiting for the next one as this ended on a bit of a cliff-hanger.

I think I might take a cruise through my Ian Banks collection, most of which I haven't read for at least a decade. I though I'd start with his weird first novel, The Wasp Factory, which is bizarre but certainly got him the attention he needed to launch his writing career. I love the way he jumped back and forth between his science fiction and "literary" novel writing.

I have mentioned my daughter Rachel's substack blog on the Break Room thread, but she has just posted something about changes in her own reading habits which might be of interest to some of you here: this is the link https://racheloriordan.substack.com...;triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

After John died I couldn't focus on books, so I went straight for the familiar and re-watched all 15 seasons of Supernatural, followed by BTVS.

Now that I'm back reading The Wasp Factory, I realize that it's actually a horror novel. Its protagonist is seriously twisted.