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kholerik Gesperrter Account

kholerik@bookwyrm.de

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hat Todesrache besprochen (Maarten S. Sneijder #7)

Todesrache (German language, Goldmann)

None

This book picks up right where Todesschmerz left us, so you absolutely need to read that one before moving on with Todesrache. It's one of the most exciting books so far, with frequent flashbacks to decades earlier, multiple plot lines that eventually merge and a crossover from the author's other series, Pulaski and Meyers. But you don't need to read that series to enjoy this book, as I know from firsthand experience. Sabine Nemez has some amazing scenes in this book, even though her part feels smaller than in the other books. Another recommendation for fans of the series.

hat Todesschmerz von Andreas Gruber besprochen (Maarten-S-Sneijder-Reihe, #6)

Andreas Gruber: Todesschmerz (Paperback, deutsch language, Goldmann Verlag)

None

I forgot about this series for so long, that there were two new books to read. This one and the seventh installment.

I really enjoy the series. The books are fun to read, a lot happens, some small twists here and there, the characters larger than life and you better not think too hard about whether things could happen the way they do in the books. In this book the large team Sneijder has assembled over the years goes to Norway to solve the murder of the German ambassador and of course a few other crimes. If you've enjoyed the first few book, definitely pick this one up. If you haven't, I recommend to start with the first one.

M. L. Wang: Blood over Bright Haven (EBook, Del Ray)

Magic has made the city of Tiran an industrial utopia, but magic has a cost—and …

None

It was fine. The story was quite predictable, the characters felt a bit bland or shallow. But it was nice to read a standalone novel for once and the magic system which used essentially keyboards to program spells sounded like fun. Recommended if you're looking for a light read you'll soon forget.

Ed McDonald: Daughter of Redwinter (2022, Doherty Associates, LLC, Tom)

None

I was torn between 2 and three stars. It's not a great book and many people might say it's not even a good book. The writing is all over the place, turning reading into a chore. But at its core it was something I enjoyed. It was just annoying to pick out the good parts from the crappy writing. I felt the writing was way too clumsy for an established author. I don't need to be reminded by Raine's internal monologue that she was deeply traumatized and that she wonders what her mama would say every five pages. My god, that was annoying.

I will continue with Traitor of Redwinter, but I cannot really recommend this book and that's why I settled on two stars.

Andy Weir: Project Hail Mary (Hardcover, 2021, Ballantine Books)

Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission--and if he fails, humanity …

None

I enjoyed it. It was similar to The Martian, in that someone has to science the shit out of a life-threatening situation, but everything else is very different and the stakes are so much higher. So you do indeed get a new book despite the broad similarities. The characters were fun and I can see how they will translate onto the big screen with the upcoming movie adaptation. Recommended if you enjoyed The Martian or if you enjoy a lot of science facts and their application or if you want to know beforehand what happens so you can focus more on Ryan Gosling.

hat Red Team Blues von Cory Doctorow besprochen (Martin Hench, #1)

Cory Doctorow: Red Team Blues (Hardcover, 2023, Tor Books)

A grabby next-Tuesday thriller about cryptocurrency shenanigans that will awaken you to how the world …

None

Unreadable for me. It's just a huge infodump showing off the author's knowledge and research, vaguely disguised by adding dialogue. But then the people talk like no real person I've ever met. DNF on page 17, that's how bad it is.

hat Edge von David Baldacci besprochen

None

A nice follow-up to The 6:20 Man. I even liked this one better, because the scale wasn't so ridiculous. Everything happens in a small town in Maine. I see this being turned into an entertaining 8-10 episode show. Baldacci delivers again on a main character who who is just slightly silly in the expanse of his competence. But as someone who picks up the new Jack Reacher novel each year I feel like I should not complain. This book has a detective story with moments of explosive action and a clumsy resolution, neither the best detective book, nor the best action. But still a nice read, if you're into that sort of thing. This book can be picked up without reading The 6:20 Man.

Bernhard Hennen, Mira Valentin, Sam Feuerbach, Greg Walters, Torsten Weitze, Fünf Federn: Die Minen der Macht - Der Formbrecher (German language, 2023)

None

The second book picks up just a short time after the first book. The characters have not progressed between the books. If you think the synopsis sounds interesting, pick up the first book. All the characters are there again and they are being nicer to each other. New problems arise and our team deals with them. I liked that some good things happen to some of the underprivileged characters. Absolutely recommended if you liked the first book and not recommended until you have read the first book.

Bernhard Hennen, Mira Valentin, Sam Feuerbach, Greg Walters, Torsten Weitze: Minen der Macht (German language, 2023)

None

I saw the book at the store and thought it sounded interesting. And I was surprised by how much I was entertained. The exposition is a bit clumsy at times, but many first entries in a series suffer from this. I was afraid that it would be jarring to read a book written by five different authors. But there is no noticeable difference in the POV characters. And the characters are where the book really shines. They feel real and fleshed out and the world they inhabit is simply their stage. I liked that a lot. Don't expect the most novel or unique characters, but they are very likeable. The story is also entertaining, moving into a crime story once all characters are introduced. And there is still a lot of mysterious stuff going on that is not resolved in this book. I will definitely continue the series!

Recommended if …

Suzanne Collins: Catching Fire (Hardcover, 2009, Scholastic Press)

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 …

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Well, I liked the first one, but all the teenage angst and internal drama is really grating after a while and I try to just ignore and skip all the parts where Katniss is confused and torn between Peeta and Gale. Very annoying. If anything, I now have even less of an idea why these books became so successful. They are OK at best. I'll still move on to the last one and re-watch the movies, but more out of a sense of duty to finish what I started. The story is not bad enough to drop, but not good enough to enjoy it.

hat The Hunger Games von Suzanne Collins besprochen (The Hunger Games, #1)

Suzanne Collins: The Hunger Games (Hardcover, 2008, Scholastic Press)

Could you survive on your own, in the wild, with everyone out to make sure …

None

With the new Hunger Games movie out, I realized I only ever watched the movies and that was 10 years or so ago. So I decided to give the first book a try and it was... nice. I don't quite understand why it became such a success, though. The book was fine and I remember the movie being fine as well. Might need to re-watch it too. But this global success? Ah, well. If you haven't read the book and feel even slightly curious, give it a go. It's a quick and easy read and it's fine overall.

Ernest Cline: Armada (Hardcover, 2015, Crown Publishers)

Zack Lightman has spent his life dreaming. Dreaming that the real world could be a …

None

This book is like viewing The Last Starfighter and Ender's Game through Ready Player One-tinted glasses. The result is hot garbage. If hot garbage is your jam, then by all means, enjoy this book. I DNFed it about one third in, which took me less than an hour because I was just skimming through the trash to find the nuggets of relevant information. Until I decided that I had enough of this shit. Awful book, avoid.

hat Ready Player Two von Ernest Cline besprochen (Ready Player One, #2)

Ernest Cline: Ready Player Two (Hardcover, 2020, Ballantine Books)

An unexpected quest. Two worlds at stake. Are you ready?

Days after Oasis founder James …

None

DNF after only about 50 pages in. What an annoyingly cheap cash grab after the surprising success of the first book. I did enjoy RPO, even though the pop culture references got annoying sometimes. But RPT is a cheap, lifeless copy of something that wasn't quite amazing to begin with. I read the plot synopsis on Wikipedia and have zero desire to dive back into the book. Instead it feels like I dodged a bullet. Not recommended.