What I'm reading 12/7/13

Hello again! It's seems like forever since I've managed to blog, but then I remember it's because I was busy surviving and recovering from a holiday with my siblings. It actually wasn't as bad as I feared, and I actually enjoyed myself (although it was hard to tell what was scarier: the rides or my siblings arguing over who got to push me!). I'm starting to get back into the swing of things so expect more updates soon. 

What are you currently reading?

At the minute, I'm only in the middle of The Aylesford Skull by James P Blaylock. I am dipping in and out of it as my breaktime read, but I'm not too sure about it. I'm intrigued enough to keep reading but I'm not exactly excited by it.

What did you recently finish reading?

I DNF'd Val McDermid's Place of Execution after I finally admitted I had lost all interest in it. I'm not sure why exactly, especially after the first part sucked me in so well, but I was just past the halfway point and the thought of reading the rest was just plain tiring.

Laidlaw by William McIlvanney. This one felt a little odd to me. I mean, I can see why it is such a recommended book, and how it set off the Scottish crime writing scene, and I did enjoy it, but I have no desire to either reread it or go on and read the other two in the series. I think it was the amount of different POV's that did it - I couldn't really latch onto anyone long enough to properly care about reading more. I'm glad I read it though.

Blade Reforged by Kelly McCullough. It was definitely worth the wait to read this one. I love the slow unveiling of the worldbuilding that keeps taking place, and the development of all the main characters is still fantastic. I said when I first started it that it was like rolling yourself up in your favourite quilt, and that feeling lasted through the whole book. There are throwbacks to previous books, some interesting new characters are introduced and things get a little political as well (always one of my favourite aspects). The whole book is littered with fantastic little details that make the world seem alive, and it feels like coming full circle from the first book. At the same time, new questions and plot threads are introduced so it feels like . The only criticism I would have was the absence of Faran felt a little odd, and perhaps a little forced, but that was my only quibble in what is an otherwise great book.

According to McCullough's website, there are going to be at least two more in the series, but it's going to be at December 2014 before the next one. I'm extremely pleased there is going to be more, but I can wait. The end of this one feels like a natural stopping point in the series, and whilst I'm still very eager for more, it's not quite as urgent as it was at the end of the last one. In the meanwhile, I'll definitely be rereading the series so far.

What do you think you’ll read next?

I'd really like to finish Bujold's Komarr as it sort of fell by the wayside, and Kevin Hearne's Hunted just came in at the library for me.