Have you watched the series? I find it better than the book.
The book was so....dense...
What Are You Reading?
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Have you watched the series? I find it better than the book.
The book was so....dense...I'm currently reading Tom Clancys Sum of All Fears.
Story is good and decent.
Story is good and decent.
I was so confused by the pseudonym when I first downloaded the book...also the plot summary said somethinh about an "illegal abortion" and that's when I looked up the copyright year. I'm about 100 pages in and it's good.
You should look up his other thriller books that he wrote under the John Lange pseudonym. Those are really good reads, too. They're all written in the late '60's to early 70's but still are fun reads. Hard Case Crimes reprinted them all under the 'Michael Crichton' name a few years ago. Michael even added some chapters to one of them. You can find them cheap at thriftbooks.com
It's a great comic book without any art, basically.
Love Gaiman's Sandman. His novels? Nah...
i went crazy buying at used bookstores over the past year, so for once in my life i've got dozens of books i've never read (used to buy them and read them right away but also only bought a few at a time). currently working on Impact by Douglas Preston. last week i read Reprisal and Midnight Mass by F. Paul Wilson (i've read all of the books by him totally out of order unfortunately, but they're also harder to find. still missing several)
i'll be doing this sometime soon. i read it every year anyway
i've been thinking about getting this one. saw it in stores in a promotion for the show
Excavation by James Rollins
james rollins is great. he's on my shortlist of authors that i buy their latest book new as soon as it's out in paperback. others include stephen king, lee child, john sandford, and jeffrey deaver. there are a few more, but those are some of the top spots. currently waiting on the seventh plague to make an appearance.
Dead Low Tide (1953) - John D MacDonald
I'm not too far in but I love the setting, early 1950s South Florida before air conditioning was common. I was born in 1961 and lived in a semi air conditioned South Florida when I was a kid. So the heat, sweat and bugs in this novel are something I'm pretty familiar with.
I'm not too far in but I love the setting, early 1950s South Florida before air conditioning was common. I was born in 1961 and lived in a semi air conditioned South Florida when I was a kid. So the heat, sweat and bugs in this novel are something I'm pretty familiar with.
I've only read the first Travis McGee mystery. I couldn't praise it enough. It makes me wonder why he, although deeply revered by respected writers, was fated for the anonymity of dusty attics. He is well known to a particular generation, namely for his crime fiction, but to this generation he doesn't get the credit he deserves. That's my opinion, since technically it can't be proven. What say you?Dead Low Tide (1953) - John D MacDonald
I'm not too far in but I love the setting, early 1950s South Florida before air conditioning was common. I was born in 1961 and lived in a semi air conditioned South Florida when I was a kid. So the heat, sweat and bugs in this novel are something I'm pretty familiar with.
Thanks, by the way, I'm adding him to my list of authors to search for next bookstore run. Great descriptions, FlowJoe, you sold me.
This is my first one. I've always meant to read him because of the universal praise but I never have. I've read a lot of Ross MacDonald, who was from the same era and he's a bit of a crime writing legend too. I can just tell from the first few chapters that John D is something special. The one I'm reading is a stand alone and not a Travis McGee. Dean Koontz wrote the forward for the book I'm reading and he said that he went a long time without ever reading John D despite everyone telling him to read John D. When he finally caved in and read one, he was so blown away that he read 34 more in a row.
BTW - The movie Cape Fear was adapted from a John D book called The Executioners.
Lol...I hope you find one of his Travis McGee books. I'm going to specifically look for the title you're reading. Somewhere on this site is a photo of King with his John D MacDonald collection.This is my first one. I've always meant to read him because of the universal praise but I never have. I've read a lot of Ross MacDonald, who was from the same era and he's a bit of a crime writing legend too. I can just tell from the first few chapters that John D is something special. The one I'm reading is a stand alone and not a Travis McGee. Dean Koontz wrote the forward for the book I'm reading and he said that he went a long time without ever reading John D despite everyone telling him to read John D. When he finally caved in and read one, he was so blown away that he read 34 more in a row.
Dead Low Tide (1953) - John D MacDonald
I'm not too far in but I love the setting, early 1950s South Florida before air conditioning was common. I was born in 1961 and lived in a semi air conditioned South Florida when I was a kid. So the heat, sweat and bugs in this novel are something I'm pretty familiar with.
I ordered Dead Low Tide a couple weeks ago for my Kindle. I saw it on my Bookbub email and knew that SK really loved him. It was only $1.99 then; it's now $11.99.
I will try to read this one soon.
Thanks for the suggestions!
McDowell non-de-plumes:On to McDowell ' s COLD MOON OVER BABYLON. Another fine weird Gothic
Axel Young- Blood Rubies, Wicked Stepmother
Nathan Aldyne- Cobalt, Vermillion, Slate and one other(?), these are mysteries featuring gay characters, settings
Preston MacAdam- Michael Sheriff: The Shield-African Assignment, Arabian Assault, Island Intrigue (3 great adventure series novels)
Mike McCray- 13 book series Vietnam men's adventure novels
I also highly recommend his three book series 'Jack & Susan in 1953, in 1913 and in 1933. These books feature the same two leading characters and their dog at different eras but they are the same age in each book. Lots of humor and intrigue. These are very hard to find and will cost you $.
Thank you! I'll keep an eye out for any of them
His style is a balm to my overhipsterized brain (from reading contemporary fiction for review).
Available as e-books for $7.99-$9.99 each.
I can't agree with you there. He's one of the very few pulp writers who eventually had all his books reissued in hardback. I think over time he has generally gained his proper place among fiction writers. King, Lee Child, Dean Koontz, and other and other high profile writers naming him as an influence and lauding him out the wingwang, certainly hasn't hurt. That say me!
Heh. Granted, I'd never (probably) latched onto JDM without SK. There are so many crime/mystery writers named MacDonald/McDonald out there it murks up the waters! I've been reading him a little better than a year, and hope to finish the McGee books this summer. Summer is the only time to read McGee. That & Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night. King's Duma Key is on my summer reading list now. I've recently heard of a book, that before his death, MacDonald released as a book of letters between himself & the actor/comedian Dan Rowan of Laugh-In fame. In it, Rowan is supposedly the awestruck pupil, and MacDonald the benign cultured man of the world. They & their wives eventually became close friends. Rowan began going thru 'sports car menopause', and dumped his wife for a younger woman, Macdonald got pissed & cut him off. They only reconnected shortly before Rowan's death. I'm fascinated to read this! It's in Amazon, I need to grab one.
A Friendship: The Letters of Dan Rowan and John D. MacDonald 1967-1974 by Dan Rowan — Reviews, Discussion, Bookclubs, Lists
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I didn't know that about his books being reissued in hardback, huh, whatta ya know?
If you read my post carefully, I was speaking of the newer generation. As a librarian, I didn't see him get the recognition he deserves and his books, sadly, weren't often checked out. Frankly, If I was to ask my neice or anyone in my circle of friends they'd probably say, "John who?"
Admittedly, they probably wouldn't know Raymond Chandler, either. That notwithstanding, it's usually writers who recognize his talent or either readers from the '60s and '70s. The reason I even knew about him was because, years ago, I read his foreword in Night Shift. King and Koontz were the ones that turned me on to him.
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The Red Hot Typewriter is a good biography of MacDonald. His father sounded like a bit of a crank: always wore a blue suit, not speaking at the table during dinner, refused to help MacDonald when he met his future wife, said he had to learn the hard way. I like how in MacDonald's writing the reader gets a snapshot of what life was like in America at that time, and how it was changing in McGee's eyes.
I was reading/looking at this website: Awesome Horror Art: Stephen King's IT - Horror Movie News | Arrow in the Head
I Also read Shane in the last two days, I read it around the mid-eighties, it's a great Western.
I was reading/looking at this website: Awesome Horror Art: Stephen King's IT - Horror Movie News | Arrow in the Head
I Also read Shane in the last two days, I read it around the mid-eighties, it's a great Western.
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