Like the general games discussion thread but for books! And whatever else you happen to be reading. Because I keep wishing a thread like this existed and then suddenly remembered that I can just make one :P
oh yippee ! i am currently reading and the band played on which covers the AIDS epidemic. it's a heavy read so i've been going really slow, and it's definitely Of Its Time in how it chooses to describe things, but i'm really enjoying it.
I've been down in the dumps lately, so I've been revisiting some of my favorite fanfics! Right now I'm rereading Carapace by Whitedemoness, it's a Naruto fanfic, a standard "OC replaces Sakura" one which usually I'm not into, but the focus on the aburame clan is really fun! It's also not the best grammatically, but is nice and long and full of heart. I actually did fanart of the OC because I loved it so much.
I just finished reading SVSSS and goddamn!!! the internet wasn't kidding, that book is fucking good and I can see why everyone and their mother suddenly started writing fic for it (and other stuff by that author, which I will read soon) a while ago. the main couple is a fucking escher painting of competing power imbalances. it is delightful. I love them. and what a climactic scene, holy shit, I wasn't expecting it but it really worked. I think this book is one of those that seems to be, and is, silly, but also you're going to sit bold upright a month after finishing it because you just realized something about what it was actually about. idk I literally just finished it an hour ago so it's still cooking. I do love how it simultaneously mocks itself and its genre full of tropey nonsense, but also embraces it and praises the genuine passion and affection readers and authors have for the material. it ends up being a love letter to itself and also to fanfiction. I have a feeling I'm missing a lot due to my total lack of knowledge about Chinese web novel subculture, but it's still very sweet.
I'm working my way through Agatha Christie's bibliography. Currently on one of the romance novels she wrote under the name of Mary Westmacott. I don't enjoy those as much. While they give a great sense of the time in which they were written, they tend to have less happy endings and more drama and heartache and such for the characters. The one I'm currently about halfway through took a turn that I don't quite like, and when that happens I have a hard time continuing. It's called A Daughter's a daughter btw
I'm currently reading the epilogues of Heaven Official's Blessing. I haven't had as much time to read at work, so I'm stuck on the memory loss one because my friend wanted to discuss that one once I'm done with it.
I read MDZS too this past week via another fanmade audiobook. Wei Wuxian is an absolute darling of a protagonist. I really enjoy MXTX's writing, and I like how neither of the books I've read so far have a single clear villain. the weirdness around consent in the sex scenes is oddly nostalgic lol. it's like being on FFNet back in 2010 again.