Philo, I enjoyed it like most Crichton books, but I think your description of lacking energy is a good one. It could be called a "historical fiction", in that there are real people,places, and events, but the poor is made up and the people are either switched or not where he Sid they were at that point in time. It's a good book, but not on the level of his other dinosaur books, State of Fear, or Prey, imho.

I used to be big on getting hard covers of books. Several years ago, I realized I just didn't have room for all of those, so I culled my collection. But I had a few select titles that I was going to keep, which included Jurassic Park / The Lost World. Others were The Shining, Salem's Lot, It, and The Stand, and all of Tom Clancy's books from The Hunt for Red October to Red Rabbit.

We did the same thing, no need to keep a bunch of hard covers of books we don't love and plan to reread. Started buying these books and plan to hand em down

https://www.foliosociety.com

Put Little Fuzzy by H. Baum Piper in the completed list. Next up is Into the Black (Odyssey One, book 1) by Evan Currie. It is book 1 of 4.

Philo B 93 said:

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I finished "The Elfstones of Shannara". I realize that anyone else who read it is thinking "I read that in 7th grade". But it was among the first of the original post-LOTR fanatasies, so I thought I'd try a classic.

New rule: I flip through the pages of any book before I read it to make sure it has quotes and dialogue. I can't handle 5 pages of exposition on the dark haunted woods and mysterious sounds and moonlight shining through the break in the trees and whatever the hell else the writer thinks I care about. I'm a character and dialogue guy. I wish Elmore Leonard had written Sci-fi or Fantasy. If there's a mysterious shadow following the adventurers, I'd rather hear two adventurers talk about it in their own unique way than hear the omniscient author describe it generically.

That being said, the story in "Elfstones" was nice. There were some good antagonists, a war, some magic, a good twist ending, and what-have-you. I don't recall what exactly made the three elfstones so magical, but I'm sure it was explained in what of the many non-dialogue paragraphs I skimmed over.

Now to clense my palate with some Jurassic Park or a Spenser novel.

Hey Lurker76 - what did you think about Dragon Teeth? I love all Chrichton, but his heyday was the late 70s through early 90s to me. Is post-humous stuff seems to lack the energy of stuff he wrote when he was alive. I've read three books he published poshumously. He's fairly prolific as a dead writer.

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Man this post was like a nostalgia trip. My dad introduced me to terry brooks when I was probably about 10 years old. The original Shanarra trilogy being one of the first I tackled as a teenager.

I remember Elfstones being my favorite and Wishsong was the weakest.

It's a great story. I know there are many, MANY more after Wishsong but recall this all being based on a bloodline becoming more and more diluted but somehow a distant grandchild inherits powers. I'm sure they're good, maybe I'll try them some day in the future.

Thanks for the trip down memory lane. I miss my dad.

After finishing The Lost World earlier this month I started the Wayward Pines trilogy the next day and...wow. I've never read a series that fast. Absolutely incredible books that I couldn't put down.

I'll be chasing that high for awhile.

FancyKetchup14 said:

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After finishing The Lost World earlier this month I started the Wayward Pines trilogy the next day and...wow. I've never read a series that fast. Absolutely incredible books that I couldn't put down.

I'll be chasing that high for awhile.

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Great series. I wish Apple would make this series into a few seasons instead of stretching dark matter past the source material.

Completed:
Memory's Legion by James S A Corey (4/5)
The Mercy of Gods by James S A Corey (4/5 with room to improve as the series continues)
A Woman Underground by Andrew Klavan
Dune
Dune: Messiah
Children of Dune
God Emperor of Dune

Currently Reading:
Heretics of Dune by Frank Herbert

God Emperor of Dune was a trip. The more books I've read in the series, the more the whole story has made sense. I'm just starting Heretics of Dune and am already sad that Frank Herbert died before he wrote book 7 in the series.

FancyKetchup14 said:

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After finishing The Lost World earlier this month I started the Wayward Pines trilogy the next day and...wow. I've never read a series that fast. Absolutely incredible books that I couldn't put down.

I'll be chasing that high for awhile.

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Had the exact same experience with Wayward Pines. So good while at the same time being such an easy read. I think read the whole trilogy in 3 weeks.

If you haven't read Recursion (same author), I would highly recommend it!

Just completed Alan's The Lost War for Texas. I learned more about the history of our State that I had not previously known. The Battle of Medina, as the authors states, is the bloodiest battle ever fought on Texas soil, yet it seems to be an unknown event. The last book I read focused on Texas history was Lone Star (HW Brands) referenced the battle twice with no details, but to be fair, that book's focus was on later Texas history.

I cannot recommend The Lost War for Texas enough if you have even an inkling of interest in the subject.

Finished Golden Son by Pierce Brown. Solid follow up to Red Rising…I thought he really upped his game with this one and ended very strong! Looking forward to finishing out the Trilogy with Morning Star.

For those who have read the series…thoughts on books 4 and 5? Worth continuing with the series after book 3?

Books read in 2025:

January
Slaughterhouse Five - Kurt Vonnegut (re-read)
A Wrinkle in Time - Madeleine L'Engle (re-read)
The Silent Patient - Alex Michaelides
Project Hail Mary - Andy Wier
Pines - Blake Crouch
Wayward - Blake Crouch

February
The Last Town - Blake Crouch

March
Dark Places - Gillian Flynn
Sharp Objects - Gillian Flynn

April
Red Rising - Pierce Brown
Golden Son - Pierce Brown

On deck:
Morning Star - Pierce Brown

I think I stopped in Morning Star. I got sick of the protagonist making the mistake over and over, and just stopped reading it.

I'm half way through Red Rising. So far so good, enjoyable in a light hearted way. Nice balance to The Darkness That Comes Before which I'm also halfway through and an absolute brain buster (but in a great way). I love when you can fond two complimentary (in this case different) booms to read at the same time.

I had to stop after Morning Star.
The ending satisfied me, and I couldn't take anymore!

Oh man, the second part of the series is even better imo, and that's not a knock on the first part. I've read it 5 times now. One of my all time favorite series.

kapon said:

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I had to stop after Morning Star.
The ending satisfied me, and I couldn't take anymore!

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Exactly the same for me. Loved the first 3 books but was too worried that Darrow would really ruin things for me if I kept reading lol

krosch11 said:

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Oh man, the second part of the series is even better imo, and that's not a knock on the first part. I've read it 5 times now. One of my all time favorite series.

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Yarp

krosch11 said:

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Oh man, the second part of the series is even better imo, and that's not a knock on the first part. I've read it 5 times now. One of my all time favorite series.

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Oh wow, then I'm genuinely excited. First book keeps getting better and better.

Backyard Gator said:

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I think I stopped in Morning Star. I got sick of the protagonist making the mistake over and over, and just stopped reading it.

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Definitely give it another shot. I felt the same at first and stopped. Glad I went back and finished. Different feel but great.

Blood over Bright Haven

4.5/5

Really enjoyed this one. A one off by ML Wang who also wrote Sword of Kaigen which I also really enjoyed. She is batting a 1.000 with me so far.

ETA: It's $2 on Kindle right now btw for anyone who wants to give it a shot or needs a filler.

Tried Wayward Pines from seeing it here as I am between stuff (just finished all 5 of the old mans war series and liked 5 and 6 better this time.) Almost didn't stick with it, but I did and I am glad. Interesting and fun. Bought the second to jump right in.

Getting towards the end of Pet Semetary and WOW this is a great read.
Much fewer characters than Salem's Lot which I read last month, so easier to keep track of & you know the characters better.

Just creepy AF. This book hits much harder at my age with kids to worry about making stupid decisions & older parents and relatives that seem a Dr. visit away from a bad diagnosis. I feel like I go to a ton of funerals these days (vs. weddings when I was in my 20's/30's) & King's descriptions of the grieving process is, dare I say, dead on?

There's also a couple of passages where the protagonist Louis makes comments on the younger nephews, cousins, etc. who are strapping big guys from a distant part of the family that are the pall bearers.
To these younger guys, the deceased was a person that they only sort of knew, one of those older relatives you put up with or visit on occasion. They exist largely in stories or old photographs.

The young pall bearers thought of the deceased as the past, arthritic relics, someone used up & thought of themselves as young, full of vigor. They were at the funeral, but their thoughts were other places they could be... fun places. I'm occasionally guilty of that myself, especially when I was younger.

Not only is the book a solid horror read, it is making me reflect on mortality. Highly recommend this one!

Edit: Finished this one last night. The ending finished about like I thought it might, which was a slight disappointment though it was nice and scary! I would have enjoyed the book a little more if it had a little more background/origin story on the evil power at the Indian burial ground.... but maybe leaving the ultimate evil behind it all a mystery is just what King does. Deep, unspeakable mysterious horror that just exists.

Yesterday I finished Into the Black (Odyssey One, book 1) by Evan Currie, and started Spearhead: An American Tank Gunner, His Enemy, and a collision of Lives in World War II by Adam Makos.

If anyone has read the Odyssey One series, I'd like your feedback on them. The first book started slowly and felt like a slog for a while. Once the space battle kicked in, it was a faster read.

Since January I've done all the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, The Hail Mary Project, Starship Troopers.

About to start the Dresden Files series based on recommendations on here.

FancyKetchup14 said:

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Finished The Lost World by Crichton and I'm so disappointed in that abomination they called a film adaptation. Great book and I highly recommend.

Is Sphere also worth reading?

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Sphere was the book that got me into reading as a kid. I've read it probably 5 times since. Amazing book, and an at least "not horrible" movie adaptation.

htownag08 said:

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Since January I've done all the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, The Hail Mary Project, Starship Troopers.

About to start the Dresden Files series based on recommendations on here.

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You're going to love Harry Dresden. Sardonic and self-deprecating wit while shooting a .44 revolver at vampires and generally getting his @$$ kicked . . . What's not to love???

Dr. Mephisto said:

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htownag08 said:

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Since January I've done all the Dungeon Crawler Carl books, The Hail Mary Project, Starship Troopers.

About to start the Dresden Files series based on recommendations on here.

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You're going to love Harry Dresden. Sardonic and self-deprecating wit while shooting a .44 revolver at vampires and generally getting his @$$ kicked . . . What's not to love???

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One of those series I wish I could start over fresh. Same with carl.

After a few books in, you feel happy that you still have a good number left and are just enjoying the ride, seemingly no end in sight. Once you get to the last one, you're excited but also kinda sad. When you get to the last page, you feel lost and unsure what to do with yourself afterwards.

Last night I finished Spearhead by Adam Markos. It's about a tank gunner in the 3rd Armored Division in WW2, and a German counterpart that is integral to the story. If you've ever seen the footage of the Pershing tank shooting at the German Panzer tank in Cologne Germany, the gunner in the Pershing is the one that is the focus of the book. It is very interesting, well researched and quite a read. If you are interested in WW2 and haven't read it, the book is worth the time.

Next up I'm going to read another story from the Robert E. Howard Omnibus, which I'm about 60% finished with.

I read that one last year and it was very well written, very interesting and really sad. My grandfather was a tank gunner in WW2, and the details in the book are exactly how he described it in the few stories he and my dad shared with me. I definitely recommend this book, especially since it shows from the German soldier's perspective as well.

Speaking of WWII books, if you want a fun one, check out "The forgotten 500". Basically did a European Doolittle's raid on Hitlers munitions and manufacturing facilities, get shot down and how they (troops) survived, and got home.

Finished "The Border" by Don Winslow. Was the 3rd and final book in his Cartel series. Thought it was really good, and had a chaotic but entertaining last act. Maybe not quite as good as the first two books in the series but still highly entertaining and tough to put down.

I finished my self-imposed, yearly requirement of reading or re-reading one MIchael Chrichton book. This year was the original Jurassic Park. What a damn near perfect book. Science, action, horror, dialog, adventure, perfect length, and freakin' DINOSAURS! If it could have some how squeezed aliens in, I'd be re-reading it already.

Philo B 93 said:

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I finished my self-imposed, yearly requirement of reading or re-reading one MIchael Chrichton book. This year was the original Jurassic Park. What a damn near perfect book. Science, action, horror, dialog, adventure, perfect length, and freakin' DINOSAURS! If it could have some how squeezed aliens in, I'd be re-reading it already.

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Been meaning to reread that. As good as the original movie was, the book is just so much more!

Philo B 93 said:

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I finished my self-imposed, yearly requirement of reading or re-reading one MIchael Chrichton book. This year was the original Jurassic Park. What a damn near perfect book. Science, action, horror, dialog, adventure, perfect length, and freakin' DINOSAURS! If it could have some how squeezed aliens in, I'd be re-reading it already.

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This is the only book I've ever sat down to start reading and finished in the same day. It was that good. But many of Crichton's books are quick reads. He could deliver science in such a way that it was actually interesting, without clubbing you over the head with your lack of knowledge of things like DNA or nano-bots or whatever. And year, DINOSAURS!

The only other book that could even enter the conversation, and not because of how great it was, was Stephen King's IT - for me, I had started it at the beginning of the fall semester, then put it down because, well, classes and tests and crap. Then I literally read the last 800 pages or so on Christmas Eve, well into the night to very nearly Christmas morning. For both of these books, I couldn't put them down.

A few years later I forced myself to put down Tom Clancy's The Sum of All Fears since I had just obtained the hard cover at its initial publication, and found myself reading that thing like a banshee. The thought I had when I put it down was, this guy doesn't publish often enough for me to blow through this thing, so try to enjoy it for longer. Something like that.

For me it is a really special thing when I find one I read like that. Few and far between anymore it seems like. I also try and savor them now.