Has anyone read this book? If so what's your thoughts? The Golden Thread: A History of the Western Tradition, Volume I: The Ancient World and Christendom Hardcover August 26, 2025
by James Hankins (Author), Allen C. Guelzo (Author)

Such a setup for a joke, but I promised to be better.

Sea Speed said:

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Almost knocked this one out this week. Bet no one here has read it.

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How's the character development?

YouBet said:

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13B said:

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YouBet said:

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I'm dedicated to reading through The Sun Eater this year. Will likely consume most of 2026 with diversions to a few others.

That first diversion will be this which comes out this month:



My second diversion will be this:

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Have you tried Jim Butcher's "Codex Alera" series or "The Cinder Spires" series?

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I have the first book in The Cinder Spires series but I've read mixed reviews about it so haven't dove into it. Did you like it?

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The first book was a little hard for me regarding world building and figuring out what was going on, it was okay just didn't really grab you hard. Codex Alera was also a slow build but I stuck it out and really enjoyed it (plus the behind the scenes reason for writing Codex Alera is pretty funny). If you do read Spires, I'd suggest to not give up until after you have also read the novella and book two. Those really round it out and hooked me.

Sea Speed said:

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Almost knocked this one out this week. Bet no one here has read it.

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Is there a pun or double entendre in there somewhere?

Absolute said:

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13B said:

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YouBet said:

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I'm dedicated to reading through The Sun Eater this year. Will likely consume most of 2026 with diversions to a few others.

That first diversion will be this which comes out this month:



My second diversion will be this:

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Have you tried Jim Butcher's "Codex Alera" series or "The Cinder Spires" series?

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Read the codex Alexa series several years ago and remember liking it. Actually thought about it to maybe reread recently.

Read the first book of the spires series and bogged down on the second. Did not find it quite as good.

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Did you read the tweener novella for Spires? Not great in and of itself but helped me with the timeline on the second book and understanding the various species (for lack of a better word) a little better. Spires didn't just absolutely grab me but neither did Alera when I started it, which I ended up thoroughly enjoying.

htownag08 said:

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Working on finishing The Strength of the Few and then jumping back in to the Stormlight Archives with book 3, 4, 5.

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Finished The Lost Metal last night to wrap up Mistborn Era 2. Still need to read Stormlight 4 & 5, but I'm so burned out on Sanderson at this point I gotta take a break for while.

I need some shorter standalone books to cleanse the palate, then I think I'm going to try to jump back into Suneater (DNF'd Empire of Silence at about 50% last year)

Finished

• The Shadow Rising (Wheel of Time book 4) by Robert Jordan (Audible)

In Progress

• The Fires of Heaven (Wheel of Time book 5) by Robert Jordan (Audible)
• The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel

On Deck

• Atomic Habits by James Clear
• Lord of Chaos (Wheel of Time book 6) by Robert Jordan (Audible)

13B said:

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Absolute said:

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13B said:

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YouBet said:

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I'm dedicated to reading through The Sun Eater this year. Will likely consume most of 2026 with diversions to a few others.

That first diversion will be this which comes out this month:



My second diversion will be this:

---

Have you tried Jim Butcher's "Codex Alera" series or "The Cinder Spires" series?

---

Read the codex Alexa series several years ago and remember liking it. Actually thought about it to maybe reread recently.

Read the first book of the spires series and bogged down on the second. Did not find it quite as good.

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Did you read the tweener novella for Spires? Not great in and of itself but helped me with the timeline on the second book and understanding the various species (for lack of a better word) a little better. Spires didn't just absolutely grab me but neither did Alera when I started it, which I ended up thoroughly enjoying.

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I did not. Will go back and revisit it

I pre-ordered Dennis Prager's new book: If There Is No God: The Battle Over Who Defines Good and Evil Hardcover February 24, 2026
by Dennis Prager (Author)

Just finished The Runaway Jury by John Grisham. This was probably my favorite of the four Grisham books I read over the last month. Seems like he really got better with each book he wrote.

For Christmas I got a box set of The Lord of the Rings (including The Hobbit)…so it looks like I'll take my first venture into this world. I never got into the movies (I think I've seen them all once, like 10 years ago. I've never seen The Hobbit), so I'm coming into this with fresh eyes. Really looking forward to getting started.

Books read in 2026:

January
The Runaway Jury - John Grisham

Loved the Hobbit, really well written. The Lord of the Rings was good, I struggled with the pacing though. I hope you enjoy them!

So far for 2026, I finished Changes from the Dresden Files, started Ghost Story and also started Iron Gold.

Finished:

What Hath God Wrought? - Pulitzer Prize winning history of antebellum America 1818-1848. Very long read, but engrossing and enjoyable. I don't think the last chapter's focus on the suffrage movement really stuck the landing to tie everything together, but worth the time.

Up next: The Lost War for Texas, written by an honest to God TexAger. History of the Texas Revolution before the Texas Revolution.

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The Lost War for Texas, written by an honest to God TexAger. History of the Texas Revolution before the Texas Revolution.

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Great read. I learned much about pre-Alamo Texas history.

With your reading history, you should enjoy all of the LOTR books as well as The Hobbit. I think I first read them in '76. A local radio station ran a series every workday morning during rush hour of clips from The Hobbit. They were what got me involved in the books and I absolutely loved them. They were an annual reread loop for probably 25 years. It has been quite a few years since returning to them, and there is so much other material to read, I don't know if/when I'll get back to them. The books are worlds better than the movies, particularly The Hobbit.

I forgot that I ordered this book after Secretary of Treasury Scott Beset recommended it:

About 2/3rds through the 3rd book of the Sun Eater series. Been entertaining but it does drag on sometimes. Slower pace than the Red Rising series.

PSA - you can download and listen to them for free if you have a paid Spotify account. Just found that out!

Finished "Exit Strategy: A Reacher Novel"
Really enjoyed this Reacher novel; but I do like most of the Reacher books.

Currently about 1/3 of the way through "3rd Degree" by James Patterson. It's alright so far. It's part of the Murder Book Club series; I've not read anything in that "series" I just grabbed a book from the shelf that looked interesting.

Also reading "Sunrise on the Reaping" with my daughter. We want to get through this book before the new movie comes out. Only watched the Mockingbird movies, nothing against the books just decided we'd read this one first; it's very good so far.

Next on deck is "The Texas Murders" by James Patterson - this looked interesting.


2025 - This forum got me to read "Hail Mary", and THANK YOU! It was awesome! Listened to it on Audible and highly recommend it.

I just started Silent Bones-Val McDermid. It's book 8 in the DCI Karen Pirie series.

The Three Musketeers. Second time. Still great, and a great narrator on Audible.

Tonight I finished the first book of '26, the Odyssey series by Evan Currie, book 4 Out of the Black and started Artifact Space by Miles Cameron.

Next up, another best seller.

Sea Speed said:

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Next up, another best seller.

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That'll keep you up all night on the edge of your seat.

One Summer - America 1927. Bill Bryson. Like its title says, it's about America in 1927. Pretty fun read.

"The business of Dying" by Simon Kernick. Police who is also a hitman on the side. Gets in some trouble. Kills everyone. * * * *

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle

User name checks out

Finished the last book of the Bobiverse series: Not Till We Are Lost (1/3/26).

Next up Delta V.