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Back in the '50s, I read a mystery The Tooth and The Nail, by Bill Ballinger. It wasn't the world's best literature, but it was certainly riveting. It began at the beginning, and at the end, and worked its way to the middle. I'm not into the whole Private Eye genre as a rule but I liked this one. It's out of print. It should make another appearance.
As far as the best fiction book I have ever read, it would have to be Steinbeck's The Winter of Our Discontent. The characters are truly believable, the writing superb. The plot takes a direct path but you don't know it until you reach the end. I strongly recommend. I re-read it every couple of years.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Originally Posted by theatergypsy
As far as the best fiction book I have ever read, it would have to be Steinbeck's The Winter of Our Discontent. The characters are truly believable, the writing superb. The plot takes a direct path but you don't know it until you reach the end. I strongly recommend. I re-read it every couple of years.
I've never read it. That will change soon. Thank you.
I was born and raised in Montreal -- spent the first 40 years of my life there -- and didn't want to explain *too much* of how quirky Canada is, lest our American friends think that we're just plain nutty.
I live in Alabama. Nothing you could possibly say would even raise an eyebrow here.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
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Originally Posted by cpg35223
I live in Alabama. Nothing you could possibly say would even raise an eyebrow here.
LOL!!!!
There was the time when an entire province (Quebec) wanted to separate from the rest of Canada. They still do, actually. There was a referendum 30+ or so years ago. They lost.
About 26 years ago, we vacationed in Canada - Niagara Falls, Toronto, Gananoque- and I was impressed that everyone we met, spoke to, or even just passed on the street was exceptionally polite. Quirky, but nontheless polite.
The streets were so clean and there were flowers planted along the city streets in Toronto. And no vandals ripped them out and threw them on the ground. And we rode on the subway for just a couple of blocks just to see how clean and safe it was. I hope it's still the same.
Although I read it two years ago, The Terror by Dan Simmons is still the best I've read recently. Simmons holds down a narrow niche in historical fiction; his books are all solidly grounded in historical stuff that has room for horror fiction to slip in within the narrow boundaries of the historical facts.
The Terror was an actual ship, originally a British warship that was designed as a mortar bombardment ship that bombarded Norfolk, Va. in the War of 1812. It was built so heavily and stoutly that 30 years later, it was one of the two vessels that were converted into primitive icebreakers that carried the Franklin Expedition, into the arctic in 1845, to seek the Northwest Passage. At the time, the Franklin Expedition was an enterprise of pride and great expectation for the British Empire, who used it to display the superiority of the British in all things.
Factually, the expedition was a total disaster. There were no living survivors, and the no one ever learned where, or how, many of them died. About 10 years ago, the National Geographic mounted an expedition sent into the arctic that disinterred two of the crewmen whose graves were known and mapped. Other accounts from the rescue attempt that followed, almost 5 years after the last communication from the expedition was received, mentioned other skeletal remnants and the artifacts the remains were found with. It was the first exploratory expedition to take photographs, and the first that relied on canned food stores. In it's time, it was as advanced and expensive as the moon landings were a century later.
Simmons uses all these facts to interweave a supernatural horror story within them. It's equally strong in both ways.
The novel uses actual people who were in the expedition, which were partly noblemen, military men, common seamen, some scientists, and some pilots who knew the arctic waters. His characters not only battle the elements- the ships were trapped in ice so thick it lifted them far above the surface of the water- they fight each other, and all are fighting a monster that is as elusive as a ghost, but very real in it's destruction.
It's simply amazing. I started reading it in February, and the descriptions of the cold were so vivid I had to put it up until it was warm outside before I could finish it. It literally chilled me to the bone!
I could barely wait to finish it once the weather warmed up. Even it's supernatural element was plausible in the world Simmons created. It is thrilling from first to last.
Ironically, his next book, Droog, was published later the same year, and I really looked forward to reading it. Once I got it, I simply didn't get into it at all, and finally gave up on it halfway through. As history, it was certainly as good as The Terror, but I found too much of it implausible, and never connected to it's characters as I did those in The Terror.
I love Dan Simmons' historical fiction! I loved The Terror, and I initially had zero interest int he story of the Franklin expedition. Drood was also historical fiction, but a fictional story of the real relationship between Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins, as Collins decended into drug-induced psychosis. That could make the story a little hard to follow, especially when the story's narrator is unreliable and subject to delusions and hallucinations that he sees as real. You might enjoy Black Hills, which is also historical fiction, about an old Native American man who helped carve Mt. Rushmore, and he may or may not be possessed by the spirit of General Custer, whom he briefly met at Little Big Horn as Custer died.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
17,330 posts, read 33,025,722 times
Reputation: 28903
Quote:
Originally Posted by theatergypsy
About 26 years ago, we vacationed in Canada - Niagara Falls, Toronto, Gananoque- and I was impressed that everyone we met, spoke to, or even just passed on the street was exceptionally polite. Quirky, but nontheless polite.
The streets were so clean and there were flowers planted along the city streets in Toronto. And no vandals ripped them out and threw them on the ground. And we rode on the subway for just a couple of blocks just to see how clean and safe it was. I hope it's still the same.
Montreal and Toronto are like feuding sports teams -- everything's a competition. So, this Montreal girl urges you to visit Montreal next time you venture across the border. Having lived there my first 40 years, I took it for granted. However, others have said that it's a cross between NYC and Paris, and now that I don't live there -- and miss it terribly -- I agree. The architecture is breathtaking.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Help. I was prepared to dislike both of these since they had so much hype, but they both surpassed my expectations. Wish they hadn't ended!!!
I recently finished reading the Terry Goodkind 'Sword of Truth' Series and as of the 2nd July 2012 he will be releasing a new book titled The First Confessor - The legend of Magda Searus, i strongly sugeest reading this as it is a prequel to the series itself, and gives you a real taste for what is going on. The character themselves throughout the SoT series are magnificent and the overall premise of the stories are 'magical', and i guarentee you will get fixed and find yourself wanting to read them all. I personally wish the series would continue forever, however that is unfortunatly not the case.
It follows the journey of Richard Cypher and Khalan Amnell, two people from very different walks of life, who try to adapt to an ever changing world, with an array of supporting character that add to the story and are just as 'magical', i get goosebumps reading a single line!
Thus, if you are looking for a thrilling set of books to read, i strongly suggest that you try these!
for more information you can visit [url=http://www.terrygoodkind.com/index-full.shtml]Terry Goodkind: The Official Author Website[/url]
or email me at [EMAIL="mutleymb@hotmail.co.uk"]mutleymb@hotmail.co.uk[/EMAIL]
'Catch-22' by Joseph Heller: I've had the same copy for years and it lives in the car for when i'm picking people up. I know it almost word for word but it still makes me want to read it to the end every time i pick it up.
'World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War'by Max Brooks: Only read it about 9 months ago and was very impressed, i can see it being one i'll be going back to more than once.
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best Fiction Book/Series
