Choose me a book to take on holiday

The Martian.
Astronaut gets stranded on Mars. It's a survival story, written with a dry humour and terrific detail. I wasn't sure I'd like, couldn't put it down.

The follow ups to the dragon tattoo are excellent, very much worth continuing with.

Ok, interesting to know. Never heard any fuss about the other two after all the hype over Tattoo so figured they weren't so good. Will check if I really do have the second one (Fire?)

Yep, hornets is the third.
If you like the murder mystery a then look up Peter Robinson, grittier and more 'British' than Patterson, top notch stuff.

I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes....radicalised Muslim planning an atrocity, Pilgrim of the title is CIA-type who has to find him...absolute top-notch stuff,and pretty topical

Good suggestions - all sound decent so far.

An Officer and a Spy - Robert Harris

Based on the true story of a French army officer sent to Devil's Island for a crime he didn't commit and where the phrase "J'accuse" comes from. Rather than admit to their mistake, the authorities do their best to cover it up including trying to have the investigator murdered who wants to put it all right. A marvelous thriller imo.

Three I can suggest, by the same author Tom Rob Smith. CHILD 44, THE SECRET SPEECH, AGENT 6. If you just want to laugh your b0ll0cks off try the WILT books by Tom Sharpe.

+1 for Terry Hayes' I am Pilgrim. Great holiday book.

Any of the Jack Reacher books by Lee Child are pretty good and will keep you going for a year or two if you read all 16 in the series. Don't be put off by Tom Cruise playing him in a film a couple of years back.

A bit more sinister, but the Harry Hole crime thrillers from Jo Nesbo are good too. Start with The Snowman.

Not sure how you can have read the first Larsson book and enjoyed, then not wanted to know how the story ended. To follow an author you often read a brilliant book, i dont then think i aint reading the others just incase they are not as good

The Martian would be my choice, the theme is totally against my normal choice but it is brilliantly written.

At the moment im into Karin Slaughter, not everyones cup of tea but all above average so far.

The Martian was written by a scientist who gave away the book for free. In turn his audience critiqued his science and he changed the book. It was never intended as a best seller, more as a hobby for the author.

There's loads of free books on Amazon, pick one and read it imo.

If you're heading for a North African beach resort you might find a copy of the Quran quite handy.

I enjoyed Harvest of the Slaughter books, but could they got repetitive. Could never get into Child's Reacher, I'm surprised that someone who likes Nesbo could rate Child tbh.
Child 44 is a masterpiece, disappointed I didn't mention it myself.

Stephen King 's are always a good read.

The Unlikely Pilgramage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce.

"Pilgrimage"

Gerald Seymour, who of course wrote 'Harry's Game' has written 'The Journeyman Tailor, 'A Line In The Sand', 'Holding The Zero', A Deniable Death', worth checking out.

Am halfway through I am Pilgrim and am enjoying it - read the Martian last year, and personally found it well written but boring (you can  guess what's going to happen before you start the book)

Personally I would recommend City of Thieves by David Benioff

Andy Mcdermott - Start of with Genesis and work your way through all of them.

Any of Bill Brysons though Notes from a big country is especially funny.

Not new ones but here goes

Dick Francis - Forfeit (his best book imo)

Augusten Burrough - Dry (really good but uncomfortable read, us gamblers will get it)

Helen Simonson - Major Pettigrew's last stand (old school Major gets dragged into 21st century by an occurrence)

Amongst others mentioned also agree with onthejim & Facts about theirs (The Library Policeman my favourite of King's)

Enjoy your hols

Robert Crais  the Pike and Cole series are very good and if you want a historical novel try one by C J Sansone Shadlake series  surprisingly good

Sports : I mentioned to you a few months ago that 'Fire In Babylon' by Simon Lister is an informative and entertaining account of the Clive Lloyd West Indies super team of the late70s and onwards.

Crime Fiction :  "The Fifth Woman" by Henning Mankell is for my money the best of the Wallander Scandi-Crime stories (and miles better btw than any of the Stieg Larsson efforts)

Alternatively, try "Cul-de-Sac", possibly the very best of the many 'police procedurals' written by the late John Wainwright, for my money the finest of the UK's writers in that particular genre. He served 20 years or so in the West Yorkshire police and knew what he was writing about.

True Crime : a huge field to select from, so maybe subdivide it into a few recommendations :

US Drug Crime :  "American Desperado" by  Jon Roberts and Evan Wright.  Roberts was one of the infamous 'Cocaine Cowboys', a Colombian Cartel's very own 'Man in Miami' as it were. An entertaining read and some hilarious stories about O J Simpson thrown in for good measure. (The DVD 'Cocaine Cowboys' is also recommended btw).

UK Crime : the subject matter isn't pretty but two sober and measured books about the 'Yorkshire Ripper' case spring to mind, 'Somebody's Husband Somebody's Son' by Gordon Burn, and particularly 'Wicked Beyond Belief : The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper (Updated Edition) by Michael Bilton, which focuses very sharply on the flawed police investigation. The Burn book I recall reading by a pool in Barbados in 1991, so I also have previous experience of taking it on holiday.

UK Crime :  I very much enjoyed "Other People's Money" by Neil Forsyth and Elliot Castro, which tells of the latter's exploits with credit card companies, and the self-explanatory "White Gold : The Inside Story of the UK's Largest Ever Drug Haul" by Eugene Costello.  Both of these can usually be picked up for buttons in the usual online book selling places.

So, have fun in Thailand, unless you're already gone and find yourself unintentionally knee-deep in lady-boys. Easy mistake to make officer.

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov.

Another recommendation  for Terry Hayes' I am Pilgrim'.

Also really liked the Tim Rob Smith trilogy starting with Child 44.

A big shout out for a Northern Irish author not many will have heard of Adrian McKinty.  Love both his Michael Forsythe (Jack Reacher with bigger balls) book and his Sean Duffy books.  Gritty, atmospheric, crime drama, he writes like a dream.

Penguins Stopped Play - Harry Thompson
The Damage Done - Warren Fellows

Lee Ho Fooks

The Library Policeman by Stephen King, was a novella. And was part of the book entitled Four Before Midnight.

* Four Past Midnight '  !

Any Robert Harris book imo.

Also any Bill Bryson, particularly if it's a travel one and covers the area you are going to. Aside from that my fav is probably "Made in America" which charts the growth of the US and has some amazing and interesting facts to boot.

Other than that a short classic would be Steinbeck's "Cannery Row" which has great warmth, some magical comic moments and great characters.

You should get one of those adult colouring in books.

facts, the library policeman, scared me too death.

Stephen King is a master storyteller. He creates situations and characters who are believable, who you have empathy for. So it really matters, when things go horribly wrong !
I've got every one  of his novels

The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle - Haruki Murakami

Dear Lupin: Letters to a Wayward Son - Roger Mortimer + Charlie Mortimer

Oh god I like Stephen King, I've something in common with Facts
His books are FAR better than the films of his books, that are mostly rubbish.

Adios America by Ann Coulter.

Its the book of our age and something you need to read.

Treason in November (if ye can get a copy)

There should be more Robert Catesby's btw..

Ann Coulter is a top Trumpite.

And an excellent author and contributor.

Stephen King, 'Joyland", superb America nostalgia.

"I say my favourite you say novella let's call the whole thing off"

The Shawshank Redemption the film chitchatters love & hate in equal measure was also a novella (Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption)

Yep. I wasn't being 'picky ' Lee. Just saying it wasn't a ' book' in its own right.

Just Checking



Re rims of his books , there have been some really good adaptations:-

The Shining
The Shawshank Redemption
The Green Mile
Misery

* films

Went into town yesterday morning charity shop browsing & picked up Four after Midnight for 50p (I'll take it to work to read at lunchtime beats watching tv), came home sat down with a coffee & looked on chit chat. First thread I read was this one. Life in the fast lane or what?

I do liked shawshank and the green mile, but facts you have to admit there have been a fair amount of SK film stinkers,

The green mile has hanks, that genius could turn the film adaption of me doing a poo into an oscar winner :)

(Read the book of that, it's just .. better as a medium, how he can link everything together in the sort of flashback things without confusing you, and .. well .. I've an old mouse in the corner myself :P)

I can second the recommendation for CJ Sansom's Shardlake series - a bit of a medieval whodunnit.

I'm currently reading The First Law trilogy by Joe Abercrombie which is excellent.

Greatest TV film adaptation of Stephen King book has to be Salem's Lot, starring "Hutch" David Soul. Scared the bejesus out of me when I was a kid in the 80's.

Under the Dome is a great book but the tv series made a right f uck up of it!

I loved the martian too, but I can understand that some may think it is boring. 

I also like the Jo Nesbo books, Steig Larsson, Bill Bryson,Dick Francis, Steven King and others that I cannot think of at the moment.

I would also agree about lolita by Nabokov.  No one would dare to write or publish it today, unfortunately.

I really like threads like this one as I am always on the look out for good books as I don't have a television,so this thread has given me lots of ideas.

Where are you going to on holiday Roger?

Where are you going to on holiday Roger?

D'oh double posted.
Maybe a book set in your destination might be memorable?

While we're on the subject of books, if any of you like history or "war" related stuff, do yourself a favour and read "The guns of August" which is a narrative about how WW1 broke out. It's a fantastic book, won the pulitzer prize, in a style that's a page turner and you'll learn so much. We view ww1 from our viewpoint which in reality was just one corner of one front, this was by an american woman with a more objective viewpoint. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

I can second the recommendation for CJ Sansom's Shardlake series - a bit of a medieval whodunnit.

Two chit chat recommendations. I've been lent his book Revelation from this series, been had putting it off for others, must get on with it.


While we're on the subject of books, if any of you like history or "war" related stuff, do yourself a favour and read "The guns of August" which is a narrative about how WW1 broke out. It's a fantastic book, won the pulitzer prize, in a style that's a page turner and you'll learn so much. We view ww1 from our viewpoint which in reality was just one corner of one front, this was by an american woman with a more objective viewpoint. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Have you read Max Hastings' Catastrophe, which sounds like it covers some of the same ground - the first 6 months of the war? I thought it was very good, changed my 'Blackadder Goes Forth' view of the war.

Deplasterer    07 Feb 16 13:11 
Greatest TV film adaptation of Stephen King book has to be Salem's Lot, starring "Hutch" David Soul. Scared the bejesus out of me when I was a kid in the 80's.

Under the Dome is a great book but the tv series made a right f uck up of it!



Agreed, on both counts.

Michael Connelly books are a good read.

Good plot and characters and moves along at a good pace.

Just Checking    08 Feb 16 02:13 
While we're on the subject of books, if any of you like history or "war" related stuff, do yourself a favour and read "The guns of August" which is a narrative about how WW1 broke out. It's a fantastic book, won the pulitzer prize, in a style that's a page turner and you'll learn so much. We view ww1 from our viewpoint which in reality was just one corner of one front, this was by an american woman with a more objective viewpoint. I cannot recommend it highly enough.


Just ordered it

Flowermyth, it was I wot seconded the Shardlake books. Revelation is book 4 in the series and I think they need to be read in chronological order to get full enjoyment.

Dissolution is the first book.

Thanks Dan, I've just ordered Dissolution - might as well start at the beginning.

Flowermyth no I haven't. I have read a couple books by hastings though, and he's good. The thing about "the guns of august" is the style/ It's a great big thick book, but you just zip through it, it's history but not stale, it tells a story.

Most of us are wishy washy about ww1, we kind of know it was about a dead duke and that, but there was so much more to it. The political stuff. We basically only went in because of Belgium, not really due to France. And the poor French, some stupidly call them cowards, they threw away a generation in just the first days of ww1 when we'd taken a scratch. Look at a map of europe for a minute and you'll understand it.  Russia was important, but we forget it. Churchill, he was involved! We think of him as a ww2 man, he was in ww1 as well, most of you don't even know. It's such a good book :)

Well facts we may disagree politically but if you respect my book advice, you can't be all bad :)

I am pilgrim is an excellent read 10/10.

If you like the books you mentioned then Michael Connelly,lee child peter robinson will all provide what you need.

Non fiction then the wolf of wall street is a good read about Jordon Belfort although it reads as fiction,unbelieveable what goes on in the real world or unreal world.

parachute   
08 Feb 16 01:09 
Where are you going to on holiday Roger?

Parachute, doing something I have never done before (and may well regret) - hiring a motorhome and going on a tour round of the south east coast, starting at Brighton, then Hastings, Margate, Isle of Sheppey, Lowestoft and finishing in Great Yarmouth. Will have nothing to do in the evenings as have small kids that will be in bed (unless there is a tapas bar nearby that could tempt me), so thought I'd have a week of a book rather than shyte tv.

Just ordered three books, all thanks to recommendations on this thread:

I am Pilgrim
Child 44
The Snowman (not Raymond Briggs)

First two £3.85 each, third one £7.99, but Amazon doing an offer (seemingly on all paperback novels I think) of three for £10 so saved nearly £6. Even better value obviously if you buy three £8 books - all you book lovers on here should get on and grab some bargains.

Thanks for suggestions.

Just Checking - Shall add 'The Guns of August' to the list, Max Hastings himself described it as 'dazzling'. Have had a long-time interest in Bomber Command in WW2, Hastings' book on it I've put off reading for so long also on the list.

Roger, sounds like a great road trip. Hope the weather is kind to you.
All the "trip" books I can think of for the journey is Brighton Rock, but you seem sorted for reading matter.
Have you got a kids book (ghost stories maybe) in case you have to read bedtime stories?
I'm sure you will find a lot of good restaurants on the way as well.
Have a lovely time.

read "the science of getting rich"by Wallace d Wattles.
it explained how to get rich,and all you need to know is the rules.
When you return from your holiday you can thank me.

Thanks Parachute. Could be a little too cosy if the weather is bad!

Try Empire by Niall Ferguson, an excellent critique about the British Empire that is not prejudiced one way or another and presents the history in a balanced fashion noting plus and negative aspects.