Books: By Rating

Season of Storms is a fitting palette cleanse after the main Witcher series thud of an ending. There’s no... more

This is a fantasy novel I picked up based strictly on the reviews and auto-recommendations online. I enjoyed it... more

This is the first Western I’ve ever read. Written in 1933, Silvertip is the story of a gray-templed gunslinger who likes... more

Another rambling philosophical tome from Taleb. It expands on the idea that good policy emerges from the participants having... more

This was my first cyberpunk novel (if you don’t count getting stuck in Neuromancer on the IIgs). I thought it was... more

I really do like Vin Packer’s pulp thrillers. This book continues her knack for creating conflicted and dark characters... more

The second book in this series moves along nicely as the various characters continue to do the things they... more

Published in 1964, this book presents itself as a scientific analysis of swinger culture. The opening chapters are filled... more

Nothing to see here.

Billed as a travelogue, this book covers the culture, politics and history of the Nordic countries from the perspective... more

Gritty crime fiction. Basically the blueprint for the entire genre. The writing and language are a tier above most... more

Another solid pulp novel from Prologue Books. This time the story follows a group of ex-soldiers out for revenge... more

Ok. I may have goofed on the first book in The Tripods series earlier, but these are actually pretty fun reads. It’s not... more

I’m continuously on the lookout for a new fantasy series to fill my Kingkiller Chronicles/Song of Fire and Ice void. I’ve... more

Ending is pretty anti-climactic, but the meat of the story is very interesting.

This is a weird, hybrid art book. Not exactly coffee table ready, and not exactly an art history paperback.... more

This was a nice manifesto of sorts that hits all the right marks in terms of what it means... more

I started reading this book without knowing anything about it. I had previously read and very much enjoyed Vin... more

Postrel makes the case for decentralized, dynamic systems. The obvious application of this is in free-market versus command-style economies,... more

Nero Wolfe is a dick. It’s a wonder that this mostly unlikable character spawned such a successful series of... more

Thought I’d give this series a try after finishing the Aubry/Maturn series. Hornblower is definately a simpler read, and... more

Phillip Marlowe has been hired to track down a stolen gold coin and, of course, it leads to murder.... more

This is the sort of book that I feel like I have read already but that is mostly because... more

Listened to it as a book on tape. Good but lacked an over arching plot.

Gutfeld’s latest is a bit more focused than his last book. The primary theme of the book is that people... more

I’ve played the games, watched the television show, and now I am going to work my way through the... more

The story picks up right where The Colour of Magic with our heroes tumbling off the edge of the world. Book... more

Here we go, yet another post about Nox Archaist. This book probably won’t be of much interest to people... more

Apocalyptic dystopia from a libertarian perspective. Biases confirmed! In this story it’s not war, plague or environmental catastrophe that... more

Much better than the last book in the series.

This is probably the definitive guide to the history and process of mezzotint printing. There are tons of images... more

The Nutmeg of Consolation

I vaguely recall reading this.

The final book the The Tripods trilogy delivers a satisfying conclusion to the story. I picture the aliens looking like Sigmund... more

This book is really an economics lesson presented in layman’s terms. The plot and characters are merely a device... more

The harrowing true life account of three airmen who are adrift in a rubber raft for thirty-four days following... more

A better title for this art book would be Etching from the Renaissance. The book covers the dawn of... more

A compilation of humorous essays by eighteen conservative authors in which each tackles the merits and faults or various... more

Another yarn about corrupted youth from Vin Packer. This time it’s four disenfranchised teenage boys who become a vigilante... more

The Witcher continues with more of Geralt not fighting monsters. There’s a conclave of sorcerers, a double-crossing, a big... more

After a very Geralt-centric novel, this fourth book in The Witcher series returns to the Ciri being the primary... more

The Twisted Ones was another 1950’s pulp novel reprinted as an eBook by Prologue Books and available for free download.... more

The main thesis of Tyranny of Clichés begins with the notion that conservative and libertarian arguments tend to get rebutted, not... more

No review written.

This book in the Aubry/Maturin series benefits from a clear plot line of espionage.

Most of the paintings featured in this coffee table art book are preliminary studies for major works. The time... more

A well-paced survival story about a bunch of teenagers abandoned on a desolate planet. There is some delving into... more

Another quality pulp novel from Prologue Books. This one is filled with at least half a dozen cheating spouses... more

This is your standard mass-market artist overview with plenty of high quality color images. The writing is to the... more

I have been slowly building out a little library of wood engraving books and this one is a book... more

While it’s almost structured as a defense of the “misuse” of words such as literally and like, McWhorter’s book is a very... more

A bit of speculative fiction showing how the world would deal with a zombie apocalypse. The book is written... more

Another solid Discworld novel with lots of vivid characters and humorous situations.

Another comic’s memoir, but this time it’s actually funny. The first half is really is much better, in which... more

I think it’s telling that throughout this book the author in constantly having to backtrack and clarify what he... more

The sixth Expanse novel is the last of the series that was adapted for the show. The biggest problem... more

I enjoyed his fantasy series, so I thought I’d try out Brown’s crime thriller series. This is the story of... more

The French comic upon which the movie was based. Stunning 60’s stylized artwork, but the story is just a... more

Decent and weird graphic novel. Lots on indy comic cliche.

Not the strongest book in the series. It doesn’t help that many of the regular characters are gone in... more

This the second book in The Expanse series. It felt like a bit of a retread but with less interesting characters.... more

A short book about a lesser known hero of the American revolution. As the captain of a Connecticut privateer vessel,... more

Joe Coleman is a sicko and he wants you to know it! While I still like his art, I... more

Despite an exciting opening, the second book in this series is not as good as the first. The stakes... more

Poirot on a plane, a blow dart, and many suspects all with reasons to kill the old hag. I... more

James Bond #4 pits Bond against the mob in America. I’m surprised at how little actual spy-craft takes place... more

Sowell is always an interesting read. However, I find that he can be a bit repetitive in his points... more

I like Andrew Klaven. His Klaven on the Culture videos are good natured and entertaining little bits of political satire that... more

This one is a giant Dover paperback with glorious, near actual-sized reproductions of most of William Hogarth’s prints. But,... more

I know Lileks mostly as a humorous conservative commentator and a connoisseur of cheesy 50’s pop culture. I wasn’t... more

This book presents a history of the current financial crisis thingy in a way that tries to be as... more

An entertaining read that pretty much says everything funny that can be said about food. I’ve read a couple... more

Well, this is why I write these reviews. I got about a quarter the way into this book and... more

Bond travels to Istanbul to meet with a rogue Russian agent who claims to be in love with him.... more

This short and small volume does a good job in contextualizing the work of Bosch. Lots of images but... more

I am not usually a non-fiction reader outside of the occasional political tome, but I bought this after it... more

This is a pretty good overview of the roots of (mostly) right-wing Internet subcultures and trolls with a little... more

The final Witcher book is a solid conclusion to the series but doesn’t quite stand up to the previous... more

The final book of the First Law trilogy was a sort of step backwards from the previous book. In... more

A perfectly serviceable Poirot mystery involving the most despicable kind of people on earth. That’s right, theater people.

Starts out nicely with Hornblower sent off to deal with a mutinous crew and keeps up the pace for... more

Above average 50’s pulp trash. See my Bent Pages recap.

Now much to say. It’s a swell Poirot mystery that is written in the first person from the perspective... more

The first chapter about sea creatures is probably the best part of this book. Lots of great illustrations of... more

Seems like they are scraping the bottom of the barrel with this MotU entry. The book is roughly divided... more

Public sector unions stink and cause all sorts of problems. This book points out just about every reason why... more

This is a science fiction tale based on the premise that, sometime in the distant future, our planetary defense... more

In many ways this is a continuation of The Future and Its Enemies with a heavy emphasis on open... more

An incredibly prescient book from the 19th century that basically lays out everything that is wrong with the practical... more

Penn details his weight-loss journey and his wacky diet. It’s an interesting take on how we view food and... more

Looks like I am ending the year on a YA fiction kick. Prey is the story of a young boy (aren’t... more

Decent mystery. A nice change of pace from A. Christie.

In the 1960s Fritz Eichenburg illustrated many classics as part of the Heritage Press series of books. This one... more

I enjoyed the first half of the book in which the Discworld is introduced to the first all-powerful sorcerer... more

The title and cover art have absolutely nothing to do with the story within the pages of the pulp... more

I want to eventually read Huckleberry Finn, so I figured I should read this one first. It’s pretty entertaining, but... more

I think I would have liked this book better if I had listened to the audiobook version instead. As... more

Admittedly, I didn’t finish this book. There’s a point about halfway through when he tells the casual reader that... more

The final book in the Tower and the Tree doesn’t quite work as well as the earlier books. I... more

Sometime during my late teens I started reading a bunch of H. P. Lovecraft books. His style never fully... more