Fifth Avenue Forum

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 11:44 am**

The system works.

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 11:49 am**

Yes, fully. I added The Marauders: A Novel, Troublemakers: Silicon Valley's Coming of Age, and Southern Gods to my queue. All set.

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 11:51 am**

I see that Graham Greene was mentioned. Highly recommended.

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 12:47 pm**

The marauders is fun, odd and light if it's the book I'm thinking of

Gaucho, favorite Graham Greene books?

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 1:16 pm**

The Quiet American and Our Man in Havana are two of my favorites...not that you asked me.

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 3:11 pm**

Let's see ... The Quiet American and Our Man in Havana are two of my favorites.

Also, off the top of my head, Power and the Glory, The Comedians, The Heart of the Matter.

Posted: **Tue May 22, 2018 5:50 pm**

The Comedians cool that wasn't on my radar.

Posted: **Sun May 27, 2018 12:03 am**

The Marauders was a fun read with outstanding characters. The dialogue was a blast. I even incorporated some of it into my own jargon to my girlfriend's dismay.

Yes, very enjoyable.

Except:

Posted: **Thu May 31, 2018 8:22 pm**

Xenogenesis Trilogy by Octavia Butler. I can't recommend this enough. So much so I'm willing to share it with you jagoffs...

Posted: **Thu May 31, 2018 8:23 pm**

Posted: **Thu May 31, 2018 8:25 pm**

And thanks for the suggestion, looks right up my alley.what a pop in!

Posted: **Thu May 31, 2018 8:27 pm**

And thanks for the suggestion, looks right up my alley.what a pop in!

It was way ahead of it's time. Reading it in the late 80s would have had a totally different impact from reading it today. Quick read too, it's not long. I read the third book in a single sitting.

Posted: **Thu May 31, 2018 8:29 pm**

PFIDC

Posted: **Thu May 31, 2018 8:31 pm**

Frodrick!

Posted: **Fri Jun 01, 2018 7:23 am**

Xenogenesis Trilogy by Octavia Butler. I can't recommend this enough. So much so I'm willing to share it with you jagoffs...

The first novel in the trilogy, Dawn's story begins after a terrible nuclear war that left the earth uninhabitable.

Shut up and take my money dot gif

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 9:46 am**

I'm not quite finished, but I'm recommending it anyway.

Southern Gods by John Hornor Jacobs

I got it used for $3 and have since ordered more of his.

this synopsis sold me
Recent World War II veteran Bull Ingram is working as muscle when a Memphis DJ hires him to find Ramblin' John Hastur. The mysterious blues man's dark, driving music - broadcast at ever-shifting frequencies by a phantom radio station - is said to make living men insane and dead men rise. Disturbed and enraged by the bootleg recording the DJ plays for him, Ingram follows Hastur's trail into the strange, uncivilized backwoods of Arkansas, where he hears rumors the musician has sold his soul to the Devil. But as Ingram closes in on Hastur and those who have crossed his path, he'll learn there are forces much more malevolent than the Devil and reckonings more painful than Hell...
It's definitely Southern Gothic meets Lovecraftian Horror as I've seen put by many readers. Very cool.

Finished this last night. Not sure what to make of it. The writing felt like it was on the cusp of being really great but rarely crossed that threshold. As a first novel I think it did really well, just sometimes the dialogue could be a little wooden. The last 20 minutes of the book were paced really well and it didn't linger too long. I enjoyed it and recommend it.

I think I'm going to spend the rest of the summer reading books in a southern setting, gothic or not. Any recommendations? I picked up a Southern Gothic short story anthology to hold me over for a day or two. Will probably just pick up Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (have never read it) unless someone suggest something more compelling. My wife liked the movie so we've toured some of the locations in Savannah so I think it would be an enriching read for me.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 9:57 am**

Ah, Southern lit: my specialty!

I'm a big fan of Walker Percy: The Moviegoer and Lancelot are excellent.

Anything by Flannery O'Connor as well.

Ernest J. Gaines' A Gathering of Old Men and A Lesson Before Dying are excellent as well.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 9:59 am**

I'm not quite finished, but I'm recommending it anyway.

Southern Gods by John Hornor Jacobs

I got it used for $3 and have since ordered more of his.

this synopsis sold me
Recent World War II veteran Bull Ingram is working as muscle when a Memphis DJ hires him to find Ramblin' John Hastur. The mysterious blues man's dark, driving music - broadcast at ever-shifting frequencies by a phantom radio station - is said to make living men insane and dead men rise. Disturbed and enraged by the bootleg recording the DJ plays for him, Ingram follows Hastur's trail into the strange, uncivilized backwoods of Arkansas, where he hears rumors the musician has sold his soul to the Devil. But as Ingram closes in on Hastur and those who have crossed his path, he'll learn there are forces much more malevolent than the Devil and reckonings more painful than Hell...
It's definitely Southern Gothic meets Lovecraftian Horror as I've seen put by many readers. Very cool.
Finished this last night. Not sure what to make of it. The writing felt like it was on the cusp of being really great but rarely crossed that threshold. As a first novel I think it did really well, just sometimes the dialogue could be a little wooden. The last 20 minutes of the book were paced really well and it didn't linger too long. I enjoyed it and recommend it.

I think I'm going to spend the rest of the summer reading books in a southern setting, gothic or not. Any recommendations? I picked up a Southern Gothic short story anthology to hold me over for a day or two. Will probably just pick up Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (have never read it) unless someone suggest something more compelling. My wife liked the movie so we've toured some of the locations in Savannah so I think it would be an enriching read for me.

I agree with everything you said. While it's not US, but a gothic spain setting, I highly suggest reading Shadow of The Wind. Just an incredible book

https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Wind-Carl ... op?ie=UTF8

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 9:59 am**

I've been to her house, O'Connor that is. Had never read or even really heard of her and thought Flannery was a man's name, felt like an ass in front of whoever was talking to us about it.

Thanks for the recs.

Amazon's search isn't very good. If you search 'Southern Gothic' you get trashy romance books.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 10:01 am**

There's always William Faulkner, as well. Some are difficult to get into, but the payoff is worth it.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 12:34 pm**

My absolute favorite book set in the South is probably the Shadow Country trilogy by Peter Matthiessen. He combined the three books into one, but I read them all separately. It was just fantastic.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 12:52 pm**

There will always be William Faulkner.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 12:55 pm**

Source of the post Anything by Flannery O'Connor as well.

I'll read through her "The Complete Stories" book every few years. A Good Man is Hard to Find is obviously great but that whole book is amazing.

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 1:11 pm**

Posted: **Wed Jun 06, 2018 3:26 pm**

Good Omens is frigging fantastic so far.

started reading this last night. I've had some issues with getting into Gaimens stuff in the past, but so far this may end up being my favorite of his.

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