Finished The Texas Murders, and it was fantastic; page turner! Could not put it down.

It is the third book in the series, which I did not know until about 23 chapters in, but it did not spoil anything to much from previous books. I started book one Texas Ranger as soon as I finished The Texas Murders.

The book is about a quick draw (like lightning speed) Texas Ranger out of Waco. He's starts helping a Tribal Indian Officer look for missing women that go missing. Additionally he's on a team with FBI agents finding other exploited/missing women. He travels from Waco to El Paso to find the bad guys; action packed throughout the book with lighthearted moments.

The first book in the series (Texas Ranger), gives the Ranger his backstory and is a murder mystery; he cannot assist but finding ways to insert himself in the investigation. Again, another page turner and great Texas feel about it. Highly recommend both books for a fictional account, but could be real, about a homegrown Texas Ranger.

Philo B 93 said:

---

I started the year off in full nerd mode. I finished "The Legend of Drizz't: The Crystal Shard". This is the first book in the Forgotten Realms Dungeons and Dragons series of 34 books about an Elf named Drizz't. It was published in 1988. If you read it, you probably read it before you were legal to drink.

I haven't had that much fun reading a book in a long time. Orcs, goblins, dragons, barbarians, magic, wizards, swords, adventures, two epic battles between good and evil, and a happy ending leading into the "next great adventure"..... and it was all done in a quick 334 pages. There is a lot about Drizz't and this series all over the internet. It's a big part of the D&D culture. I haven't rolled dice since the 10th grade, and even then it was only a few times, but this book works very well with no knowledge or appreciation of the game.

I'm now pivoting to "The Uncool" which is Cameron Crowe's autobiography, but I'm pretty fired up about the next book in the Drizz't series after that.

---

So cool to see others enjoy the Drizz't stories. I read a bunch of them 25 years ago when I first started my career. Had a lot of down time and couldn't put them down. It was my first introduction to fantasy.

I hope they make a movie based on the character one day. Total BA character!

His Last Bow by Arthur Conan Doyle

YouBet said:

---

Cinco Ranch Aggie said:

---

Shattered Sword is one of the best books I have read about the war. I will grab 1942 as soon as it is published.

Just preordered the hard cover on Amazon. It is expected June 1.

---

Not sure if y'all are aware that one of the authors of Shattered Sword is a regular TA poster.

---

I would have to guess it would be Tully, then, since I'm pretty sure Parshall is from Minnesota.

Finished:
The Silmarillion

Now Reading:
Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth

Thunder18 said:

---

Finished:
Morning Star
Shadow of the Gods
Hunger of the Gods

In progress:
The Fury of the Gods

---

Any good? Comparable to any other series?

Moe Jzyslak said:

---

Finished:
The Silmarillion

Now Reading:
Unfinished Tales of Numenor and Middle-Earth

---

Good stuff; I need to re-read these

SpreadsheetAg said:

---

Thunder18 said:

---

Finished:
Morning Star
Shadow of the Gods
Hunger of the Gods



In progress:
The Fury of the Gods

---

Any good? Comparable to any other series?

---

I've enjoyed them, definitely a more unique take on viking sagas. Extremely violent but quick paced and good character development IMO

Thunder18 said:

---

Finished:
Morning Star
Shadow of the Gods
Hunger of the Gods

In progress:
The Fury of the Gods

---

Those are definitely on my list. Gwynne is excellent. I read his other two series last year and loved them.

Thunder18 said:

---

SpreadsheetAg said:

---

Thunder18 said:

---

Finished:
Morning Star
Shadow of the Gods
Hunger of the Gods



In progress:
The Fury of the Gods

---

Any good? Comparable to any other series?

---

I've enjoyed them, definitely a more unique take on viking sagas. Extremely violent but quick paced and good character development IMO

---

Noted. Will check them out too

(Sorry, not following the use of that meme for my udpate/comment)

Wolfpac 08 said:

---

Finished The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien. Went in knowing basically nothing about this book. Never saw the movie.

I don't know if it's bc I just came off of 4 Grisham novels or bc the book was written 90 years ago, but it took me a while to adjust to the story and the writing style. It was a book where, while I was reading a lot of it, I never got that moment of "I can't put this down". On the other hand, I would find myself at random parts of the day wondering what that silly hobbit was up to.

I thought the ending was great, and bc of that I'm going right into LOTR. The Fellowship of the Ring is up first!

Books read in 2026:

January
The Runaway Jury - John Grisham
The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien

---

Skip the Hobbit movies, at least for now. They're a huge drop in quality from LOTR. HUGE.

I think he's saying he just finished that with his kid, too. Funny enough, my 6 year old is interested in me reading The Hobbit to him

Well, this is one way for your kids to find out that movies and books are related, but not the same. There is so much added nonsense in The Hobbit movies to stretch a wonderful story into three 2+ hour shows that it will spin their minds around. How many times will you hear "Daddy, I don't remember that from the book."? Hopefully, they will learn a deep appreciation for reading.

"Fahrenheit 182" by Mark Hoppus.

We were both reading the same book at the same time. I finished The Hobbit this morning.

Update your spreadsheet, man!

Wolfpac 08 said:

---

We were both reading the same book at the same time. I finished The Hobbit this morning.

Update your spreadsheet, man!

---

Spreadsheet updated! Got it now

Also, to the others above; yes I know they added a ton to the Hobbit movies (I was looking for Azog the Defiler in the books; and his name appears exactly once towards the end as a kind of footnote to say he is Bolg's dad; but in the movies he's the #1 antagonist)

jkag89 said:

---

SpreadsheetAg said:

---

Finished - The Hobbit (I read aloud to my kids each night before bed; and now they are allowed to watch the movies)

---

While they have nice moments (Riddles in the Dark for one) overall the Peter Jackson trilogy is disappointing. I suggest the Ralph Bakshi animated version if you can find it. It also has its own set of flaws but far more likely to hold the attention of children.

---

Minor correction: the animated Hobbit is done by Rankin/Bass. Bashki did the rotoscoped Lord of the Rings that finishes less than halfway through the trilogy.