So I've started listening to the unabridged HP books for the first time since I've been commuting a lot. I've never read any of the books or seen the movies, although I do know the storyline and how the series ends.

I just finished the Sorcerer's Stone, and I find that the Trio are great and all, but I really like Neville, d'aww. I just want to give him a big hug and then be his friend, lol. And I legit cried when Dumbledore was explaining to Harry why Voldy couldn't hurt him. *tear*

On to Chamber of Secrets!

W4J, I've seen you mentioning this on FB. What is it? I've been thinking it was a TV show, but is it actually a book?

I finished some books recently, three to be exact. First Heinlein's Have Spacesuit - Will Travel, which was a lot of fun. I think I covered the synopsis earlier, so I'll just say I really enjoyed this one. The plot has some weird developments that sometimes seem to come out of the blue, but by books end it all works out nicely. Fun read! 4 out of 5 stars

Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I had never read this before and a coworker who had a spare copy lent it to me so I could correct that . It's a dystopian novel set in the future in which all books are banned and firemen are responsible for torching any books they find. The protagonist is a fireman who enjoys his job but one day has second thoughts about it after meeting an unusual neighbor. He ultimately starts hoarding small caches of books with intent to read, a sin punishable by death. Very dark book with an important message that is quite timeless. The prose is nice and Bradbury has a gift with description that is augmented by an almost poetic writing style. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury. My second Bradbury read, I downloaded this on to my Kindle a few weeks ago when they were having a great Daily Deal on Amazon (I got it for 99 cents as opposed to the 5 bucks it normally went for). Not so much a book as it is a collection of short stories. I actually can't even call them that because most are just small vignettes, only a few pages in length. The main story thread is about an unnamed traveler who is picnicking on the side of the road when approached by a big burly man covered in rich, gorgeous, hyper-detailed tattoos. The man explains he was given the tattoos by a strange mystical woman and that they cover almost his entire body. Each tattoo tells a story and the one on his back tells the future of the person looking at it. The story basically begins with the narrator looking at each tattoo in turn and seeing the "story" unfold before his eyes (the tattoos somehow change every 24 hours with 18 new stories the next day), and the book chronicles each of the stories. I was surprised by how so many were so good and while most deal with either space missions gone wrong or Earth-bound technological developments gone horribly wrong, they are all gratifying stories to read. 4 1/2 stars out of 5. Am looking forward to the Martian Chronicles and Something Wicked This Way Comes when I get a chance!

So I've started listening to the unabridged HP books for the first time since I've been commuting a lot. I've never read any of the books or seen the movies, although I do know the storyline and how the series ends.

I just finished the Sorcerer's Stone, and I find that the Trio are great and all, but I really like Neville, d'aww. I just want to give him a big hug and then be his friend, lol. And I legit cried when Dumbledore was explaining to Harry why Voldy couldn't hurt him. *tear*

On to Chamber of Secrets!

Yay! I've been listening to these as well, though I've read each of the books at least once or twice before and I've seen the films multiple times. Yeah, Neville is one of my favorite characters. His growth throughout the series is so much fun to watch.

Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. ... Very dark book with an important message that is quite timeless. The prose is nice and Bradbury has a gift with description that is augmented by an almost poetic writing style. 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury. ... Not so much a book as it is a collection of short stories. I actually can't even call them that because most are just small vignettes, only a few pages in length. ... I was surprised by how so many were so good and while most deal with either space missions gone wrong or Earth-bound technological developments gone horribly wrong, they are all gratifying stories to read. 4 1/2 stars out of 5. Am looking forward to the Martian Chronicles and Something Wicked This Way Comes when I get a chance!

Fahrenheit 451 was my first Bradbury as well. I loved it, though I don't think I understood all of it at the time. I think I had seen the film already, which helped in some ways and confused me in others (since the fate of Clarice is different in the film). I enjoyed it immensely, but I think Something Wicked This Way Comes is still my favorite.

As for The Illustrated Man, it is most definitely a collection of stories. At the time Bradbury wrote it, story collections weren't very popular, so several of his earlier books are essentially "novels" cobbled together from short stories. The Martian Chronicles is also done this way, but with a much better thread to follow through the stories. I like it as a whole much better than TIM, though some of the stories in TIM are fantastic. My favorite Bradbury story (so far), "The Fire Balloons" is in TIM (it's also in some editions of TMC, but not the one I have).

Shadowlander, The Pretender rebirth is a renewal of the cult hit TV series - The Pretender from the mid-to-late 1990's. It was a mystery thriller/drama that concerned the Pretender Project where young highly-gifted boys were stolen from their families and taken to a place called the Centre (a think-tank combination of Freemasons, CIA and the RAND Corporation). There, these children were put through simulations involving real world events and situations eg. political assassinations and other things, both scientific, sociological and technological. They were told they were helping to save people but unfortunately, people were then exploiting their genius for their own power and money and selling off the simulations (or what they learned) to corporations etc. to instigate these very tragedies. Jarod, one of the Pretenders manages to escape as an adult and the rest of the series is about him exploring the outside world (as a man-child really) and helping the underdog who are also being exploited for more ordinary reasons. He's hunted by a Centre operative called Miss Parker, who has strong ties to his past, as he also tries to track down his family. The series was highly serialised and both Jarod and Miss Parker's pasts played large roles. Quality series, you should check it out.

The TV series was stupidly cancelled and two TV movies continued where it left off but then the series was never picked up again, until now. The novels take an existing property and continue the story. There will also be a series of graphic novels looking at the origins of the Centre.

At it's core the series is about a man who can pretend to be anyone he wishes to be, but doesn't himself, know who he is. The key themes are family and identity. It's very good!

Did that help?

That sounds interesting enough for a view. Is it on Netflix?

I'm not sure if The Pretender is on NetFlix but it's on Hulu, neither of which I, as an Aussie, can access. Hulu's free though, isn't it? The series is heavily serialised in one aspect and rather self-contained/stand alone, in other regards. Yes, please check out The Pretender. I think you may enjoy it.

Here you go:

http://www.fan.tv/shows/338-the-pretender

THE PRETENDER

Here's an overview of the series and a summary of Rebirth from the official Pretender website. http://www.ThePretenderLives.com

In 1996 a television series known as The Pretender splashed onto the scene as NBC’s highest testing series concept since Bonanza. For some 12 years since its premature cancellation, legions of worldwide fans have patiently awaited for its return.

Now, in the form of a fully original, mystery thriller novel, The Pretender - Rebirth marks the exciting return of Jarod, Miss Parker, Sydney and the nefarious, clandestine activities of The Centre.

Series creators and authors of The Pretender – Rebirth, Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle, have crafted a slick tome sure to please not only returning fans of the original series but also new readers unfamiliar with the world of The Pretender.

The Pretender – Rebirth features a brilliant human chameleon named Jarod, who after escaping from his captors at the notorious Centre, plunges headlong into his newfound freedom, embracing his NYC environs, Harlem to be exact, as his new home. While also discovering the joys and intricacies of everyday life with the pure wonderment of the man/child he is, Jarod uses his dazzling mind and unequaled abilities to literally become anyone he wants to be – a human chameleon of the first order - as well as his unique mind over muscle vigilante-like skills to bring down the powerful and corrupt as they exploit the little guy – those who can’t defend themselves.

But while Jarod is capable of becoming anyone he wants to be, the heart-rending truth is – he doesn’t know who he himself is. Stolen as a child and raised and exploited for his genius by The Centre, the now free Jarod vows to discover the truth about who he is, where he came from and the location of his real family.

But much like the challenges Jason Bourne faces, seeking answers about his identity and taking care of the wrongs he’s trying to right, Jarod’s path in the outside world is fraught with roadblock after roadblock. The dangerous worlds he infiltrates as a Pretender are rife with intense scrutiny, constantly threatening his complex ruses to exposure.

Then there are those who simply want Jarod dead.

All the while he must stay a step ahead of his relentless pursuers from The Centre, who want him recaptured at any cost – alive - preferably.

Leading The Centre hunt for Jarod is the sexiest woman on the planet, the complex, b***h-on-wheels, Miss Parker, a tenacious woman Jarod has known since childhood. Theirs is a truly multifaceted cat and mouse relationship - one driven by Jarod who holds the key to many of the emotional secrets at her very core, secrets that fuel her relentless drive to recapture him.

Since her mother’s suicide at age 12, Miss Parker has long sought the acceptance and respect of her iron-fisted father, the man who runs The Centre and who is a master manipulator of his daughter’s increasingly vulnerable feelings surrounding her quest for his love. In Miss Parker’s mind, excising the demons of her past and present and the key to Daddy Parker’s love boil down to one thing: recapturing Jarod. And while hell hath no fury like Miss Parker, deep down inside her reside complex issues with her buried feelings for Jarod – the boy she shared her very first kiss with.

For Jarod, Miss Parker is a constant tightrope he walks – at once trying to open her eyes to family and Centre lies, while also dealing with those same feelings for her – feelings with deep roots in his own boyhood.

One thing is certain – theirs is a pursuer/pursued relationship like no other before it – one that goes far beyond say, Inspector Gerard and his Fugitive. The Jarod/Miss Parker chase is a scintillating one, teeming with lies, secrets and answers - all bound together by emotional ties and mutual scars.

Alongside Miss P on The Centre side of The Pretender – Rebirth is Sydney, Jarod’s surrogate father figure and Centre psychologist who raised Jarod and nurtured his genius for The Centre’s disreputable purposes. To Jarod, Syd is both friend and foe, confidante and captor, counselor and betrayer. But Syd’s calm paternal connection to Jarod remains strong, often in conflict with The Centre’s mandate to bring Jarod back in at any cost.

For Jarod, he senses Sydney holds the emotional keys to his core – the truth about his past and the identity of his natural birth parents he was stolen from and whom he longs to reunite with.

While Sydney accepts and struggles with the guilt over his part in Jarod’s tumultuous Centre life, he also claims not to have known the deadly consequences behind Jarod’s Centre work or to know the answers to Jarod’s origins.

During Jarod’s upbringing at The Centre from age 4, Sydney oversaw all of Jarod’s care and work. The work known as simulations. Much like a computer would be used to crunch data to arrive at answers, in simulations, Jarod would immerse himself into a given real life scenario and emotionally connect to the human variables in that situation to arrive at answers to explain a tragic event or a solution to prevent it:

In The Pretender - Rebirth, Jarod employs multiple sophisticated Pretends in his quest to save one innocent life and the lives of hundreds more hanging in the balance at the hands of multi-national corporate terrorists and mercenaries. His treacherous path to that goal begins with a swim with the sharks…

As Dr. Jarod Russell, Jarod infiltrates a major New York City hospital by impressing its doctors and administrators with his exemplary lifesaving surgical skills – most of which Jarod only half kiddingly says he learned on YouTube. Once firmly ensconced, his whole drive is to gain access to the uber-secretive wing known as The Annex. A place he knows is driven by greed and disregard for human life – a place he knows is concealing a very special patient he needs to get to in Room E913.

Meanwhile deadly, corporate, military-grade mercenaries are at work alongside several of The Guardian’s medical elite to protect their secret in E913 at all cost – increasingly troubled by the presence of one Dr. Jarod Russell, who continues to get in their way.

Mere miles away in New Jersey, Detective Jarod Coto is embroiled in a missing persons case that is ripping a family apart from the inside out. A once loving family – the kind Jarod was ripped from the arms of – more than anything Jarod wants to give this family the peace they need to come back together. This emotional quest for Jarod against all odds is his ultimate drive.

But as the clock starts ticking down and The Centre heat increases on Jarod, he’s faced with his pretend world and the world of his past colliding in one resounding fell swoop, threatening not only the failure of his Pretend, but his recapture at the hands of Miss Parker as well…

In The Pretender – Rebirth Jarod discovers that survival in the outside world will require all of his extraordinary skills and brilliance. It will require tenacity and guile, risk and fearlessness, keen human instinct and yes, even a little help from his new friends. Rebirth is at once an enthralling tale of one man’s exploration of life around him, intricate suspenseful mystery and intense edge-of-your-seat thrill ride – a fast-paced novel that captures and reignites the cult hit TV series for both the loyal generation of Pretender fans who’ve long awaited Jarod’s return and for a new generation of readers about to discover what many before them already have…

There are Pretenders among us…

Going back a couple of pages to Arwenel's post ...

I am working through the Temeraire series now (currently on the 4th book, Empire of Ivory. I find the books very intriguing and her writing, compelling. However, I agree that the casual attitude towards intimate relations is troubling. (Thankfully she does not touch on this very often.) I am wondering for the future books, though, how much reader-interest she can keep up, as even though the destination might be different, so much of the same type of thing re-occurs in each book. I am not bored so far with it all, but think this may begin to happen soon.

I'm thinking about reading the Wingfeather saga next; not any time soon, unfortunately, due to issues of money, but soon-ish. Has anyone here read those books?

Breaking news! The fourth (and last) Wingfeather book is finally being released: object.

I would highly recommend these books, as I know others on the forum would as well. At first I thought them almost silly in parts, but have come to see them more as whimsical and very delightful. And now I am utterly curious how Peterson is going to wrap everything up. A very cool read, indeed! I found there is more to them than meets the eye and mind at first.

With the Enders Game adaptation coming out later this year I'm really interested in the books. Has anyone here read them? What did you think of them?

I ditto Shadowlander's comments on the books, and urge you to read at least Ender's Game. Ender's Shadow is the same story ... but from another perspective. I did not lose interest at all. I read Speaker for the Dead this past year and found it fascinating. So much to consider. I have not read further in the series though, but would like to at some point. I am really looking forward to the film!

Speaking of sci-fi, I'm going to attempt to read Dune again.

Ahh, I read that fascinating (long ) novel for the first time last year, and enjoyed it very much. Having said that, some pages I was seriously thinking "what on earth is the author talking about?" but overall, I got the gist of the tale, which is very nigh believable, I found. I then purchased the 2nd book (can't recall the title), but have not got into it yet.

And I'm currently reading The Book Thief. Only on the first chapter at the moment, but the narration is certainly very interesting.

Bella, I just finished The Book Thief! What a story. The narration is so bizarre and took a bit of getting used to, but very compelling. I can't get enough WWII stories, so I eagerly lapped this one up. And I see a movie is being released this November with a great cast! One thing I was hoping was that we would hear more of Max's intervening story. But in most every way, what a powerful book! (Heads up: the language can be less than desirable at times.)

parableproductions, I'm glad you enjoyed listening to The Hobbit. Certainly, Tolkien's writing style is not for everyone, so no worries there. I'm just glad you found a format whereby you could enjoy the actual tale. I am very unusual (noting Lady Galadriel's good post at the top of this page) in that I adored the LotR chapters, "The Shadow of the Past" and "The Council of Elrond". Strange, I know.

but I really like Neville, d'aww. I just want to give him a big hug and then be his friend, lol.

Ditto! Neville is my favourite character in the books (films, too). There is such a story behind him! *zips lips*

I have been able to read a fair bit more lately, mostly in the evenings before bed and have covered a number of biographies (Alexander Graham Bell, a few about a guy called Jack Lewis , Amy Carmichael, Josh McDowell, amongst others, plus more WW II tales, either true (A Man Called Intrepid or historical fiction (such as The Book Thief.

More Sanderson! While on vacation, we stopped by Barnes & Noble. I bought The Rithmatist, and Steelheart. At first it looked like i was exactly one day too early for the latter book, which really would have bugged me (as i said, on vacation, so wouldn't have had a chance to return the next day to get it) but one of the staff had just put a bunch of copies out, so i was able to get mine.

The Rithmatist takes place in an alternate version of the world, where North America is actually a huge group of islands known as the United Isles of America. The story follows Joel, a student at a special school for primarily Rithmatists -- people capable of drawing things in chalk and bringing them to life -- and though he is not actually a Rithmatist, he's kind of a nerd about it. He ends up getting involved in the investigation into the disappearances of some of the school's most talented Rithmatist students.

Like everything i've read by Sanderson, the magical system is unique, very well thought-out and fascinating. He tends to rely a bit too much on "wittiness" when writing female characters, so it was nice that none of the female characters, especially major character Melody, were particularly witty but still interesting. I don't think it's his best work, but i enjoyed it and i'm looking forward to the sequel.

Steelheart also takes place in an alternate USA, though closer to our world. Some time in the recent past, some people started manifesting super abilities. These people, called Epics, then proceeded to use these abilities to conquer or destroy most of America (and presumably the rest of the world as well). The main character, David, is determined to kill the eponymous Steelheart, who killed David's father ten years ago. There's more to the story, but it seemed like i was writing a book blurb for it or something.

I really, really liked this one. The Reckoners - a group of ordinary people who study and kill Epics - bore some resemblance to the thieving group in the first Mistborn books, but their characters were different enough that it didn't bother me. There was a bit of a romance, but i thought it was handled very well, and Sanderson was once again excellent at tying things together in the end.

Steelheart is the first in a trilogy, and Sanderson said he's working hard to get it made into a film. I really hope he succeeds, as it was a fantastic book.

"The Pretender: Rebirth" is now available!
Here are links to the first book in the series.

Paperback:
http://www.amazon.com/Pretender-Rebirth ... er+rebirth

Kindle:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Pretender-Reb ... er+rebirth

So I'm about halfway through Goblet of Fire, and I don't know if it's because I'm listening to the audiobook rather than reading, which has a set pace, but sometimes I want to just chuck it out the window! JK Rowling takes foreeeeeeeeeeever to get to stuff...I know a lot of this is setup, blah blah blah, but so much of it seems like unnecessary verbiage when all you want to do is just get to the meaty stuff, lol! I just checked out OttP from the library and that set is TWENTY SIX DISCS LONG. Holy cow, I'm going to die.

But like I said, I think I had the actual physical books in my hands I wouldn't mind so much, because I could speed up or slow down reading depending on what was going on. But I need the audiobooks for all the driving that I'm doing, so I'll just have to stick it out. I will say though, when the action is REALLY pumping, audiobooks are the BEST. In PoA during the last Quiddich match, I was literally having heart palpitations, haha!

I don't generally care for audiobooks for that reason, and others. HP and the GoF is actually quite good in book form. It's more character development then plot development but it's very enjoyable. HP and the OotP is really good too but the first quarter is rather slow and in my mind, most of it's unnecessary. Beyond that, it's an enjoyable book.

Illusion by Frank Peretti.

First let me say, I've been a big fan of Frank Peretti ever since I first came across his "Darkness" books as an early teen. Secondly, let me warn you that "Illusion" is a very different beast to Peretti's usual works. It's not a spiritual thriller but more a curious combination of general fiction, romance and science-fiction. I've never been a fan of general fiction, or romance for that matter, but I think "Illusion" is a solid effort. The story is well-written, if a bit confusing towards the beginning, the main characters, Dane and Mandy, are realistically-portrayed but still intriguing.

Now, without giving too much away, "Illusion" has elements of the manga, "Akira" (without the extreme violence) and the movies, "The Prestige" and "The Time Traveller's Wife" and yet, it's like none of these stories. Dane and Mandy's romance is multifaceted and clever - touching but tasteful, fun-loving, seriously awkward and realistic in every other manner, far from the 'bodice-ripping' nonsense you find in other so-called romance novels. If you read the book, you'll know why. The last third of "Illusion" is where the story really kicks into high-gear and by then, you'll be on the edge of your seat to the very end!

My biggest concern with this book is that it takes forever to get started. I'm all for spending time with characters to develop them properly but it shouldn't take 200 pages to get the ball rolling! Much of the first third of the book could've easily been excised and the beginning reworked to convey the necessary information (same goes for "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix", but that's another story, by a different author). There are just too many pages describing basic stage magic. While it's interesting too watch stage magic in real-life, the written word doesn't compare and after the hundredth card trick or ball trick, they grow tiresome. Thankfully, the magic tricks become more involved and interesting and the stakes increase as the story continues.

I give "Illusion" a 7/10. If you enjoy general-fiction/romance books raise the rating by 1.

I don't generally care for audiobooks for that reason, and others. HP and the GoF is actually quite good in book form. It's more character development then plot development but it's very enjoyable. HP and the OotP is really good too but the first quarter is rather slow and in my mind, most of it's unnecessary. Beyond that, it's an enjoyable book.

That's what my friend told me as well, (about OotP) so I'm wondering if maybe I'll be better off going through the first bit of that in book form and then switching to audiobook. We shall see, though.

I actually didn't find GoF to be that difficult to get through as an audio book, but I'd read it a couple of times already. Yes, the first part of OotP is tough, especially on audio. I don't know that I'd call it unnecessary, but it is dark and dismal.

Dark and dismal, yes, but the same information could've been conveyed to the reader in much fewer pages.