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recentreads.bsky.social
Recent Reads
@recentreads.bsky.social
160 followers 68 following 370 posts
Not necessarily recently written. I read a lot of old books.
Also, I read a lot of comix.
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recentreads.bsky.social
Bridge Planet Nine
Written & illustrated by Jared Throne

Science fiction tale of a heist on what was supposed to be a deserted planet. Of course things go wrong. Good characterizations. Nicely illustrated in a loose brushed drawn style.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#sciencefiction
#comicbook
#booksky
November 10, 2025 at 7:31 PM
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The Best of Don Winslow of the Navy
Edited by Craig Yoe

Another beautifully curated and restored collection of classic comic book stories from Yoe. Charmingly naive plots and some wacky villains, but nicely illustrated.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbooks
#vintagecomics
#craigyoe
#booksky
Large format hardcover book, with an illustration of naval officer Don Winslow, wearing dress whites, facing the viewer and saluting, with a line of signal flags swirling around him.
November 10, 2025 at 7:25 PM
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A Treasury of Modern Mysteries, Volume 2
See photos for complete contents.

A collection of two complete novels and several short stories, all worth reading. Both novels are classics of their genres.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#mystery
#collections
#iralevin
#trumancapote
#johndmacdonald
#ianfleming
#booksky
A hardback book with a cover illustration in a collage style, showing human faces, a Victorian brick house, a man holding a pistol, a hand holding a pistol, a bald man, a prone figure wearing only shorts, and a man wearing a bowler hat smoking a pipe.
November 10, 2025 at 7:15 PM
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Dumarest of Terra #3: Toyman
By E.C. Tubb

What can I say; I'm a fan. A man searching the galaxy for his dimly remembered home planet, while trying to survive the various cultures he finds during his travels. In this episode, he faces an autocratic corporatocracy.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#sciencefiction
#booksky
November 10, 2025 at 7:04 PM
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The Far Cry
By Fredric Brown

Famed for his short stories, Brown was no slouch at novels, either. This classic crime mystery written in 1950 builds tension superbly, as a man trying to recover from a nervous breakdown becomes engrossed in an old unsolved murder.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#vintagefiction
#crime
#noir
Pocket paperback book with a cover illustration of a woman in close-up view, with a look of terror on her face, the shadow of two arms holding a large knife on the wall behind her.
November 10, 2025 at 6:56 PM
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Battle Action, Volume 3
See photos for complete credits.

More short stories in homage to the classic British comics. Fun reads, great art.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbooks
#battleaction
#booksky
Book with a collage of illustrations on the cover. Clockwise from the top left, a giant shark leaks out of the water with a gaping maw. A man wearing a fatigue cap and dog tags aims a rifle with a scope. A man with a large black moustache and wearing a big sombrero appears to get shot as he drops his pistol. An extreme close-up of the profile of a man in a sports helmet as he reacts in horror to a large ball with a skull image speeding at his face. A close-up portrait of a brunette woman gazes directly at the viewer.
November 10, 2025 at 6:47 PM
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Battle Action, Volume 2
See photos for complete credits.

More modern homages to the classic British comics, with short stories featuring favorite characters. Well-illustrated entertaining reading.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#battleaction
#comicbooks
#booksky
Book with a collage of illustrations on the cover. The largest image, top left, shows a WWII naval vessel plowing through waves, cannons firing. Top right shows a WWII fighter aircraft, possibly a Spitfire or Hurricane, with another aircraft plunging groundward in flames in the background. Below that is a close-up of a WWII fighter pilot glaring through his gunsight. Across the cover below those is a painterly image of two men in British WWI uniforms firing a heavy machine gun from behind a pair of armor plates. Underneath that is the image of a row of tanks with the sun behind them.
November 10, 2025 at 6:37 PM
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Battle Action
By Garth Ennis
See photos for complete credits.

A collection of short stories written and illustrated in homage to the British comic books of the same names. Well illustrated and a pleasure to read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbooks
#battleaction
#garthennis
#booksky
Book cover illustrated with a color drawing showing a collage of many of the characters from the stories in the book, over a background of an explosion. The characters include, clockwise from the left, a soldier in a WWI British Army uniform holding a rifle, a background male figure holding a pistol, a blond man wearing a fur-ruffed quilted leather vest and a heavy sweater, another blond man wearing a leather cap and nondescript uniform firing a submachine gun, a brunette woman wearing a Russian WWII uniform with a red star belt buckle and heavy leather gloves, a grim-faced with close-cropped silver hair wearing a German WWII military uniform and holding a Luger pistol, and a trio of adolescents, one a young girl holding a heavy stick in both hands and the boy in the forefront holding a heavy chain in one hand, with an angry expression. In the sky background above the characters fly a biplane and a WWII fighter plane.
November 10, 2025 at 6:25 PM
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Callahan's Key
By Spider Robinson

The legacy of Callahan's bar continues, as the motley crew moves to Key West to save the universe, with the help of Nikola Tesla. Outrageous puns ensue.
Pure fun to read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#sciencefiction
#puns
#callahansbar
#humor
#booksky
Book cover with an illustration of an anthropomorphic satellite that is thumbing it's nose at a cat while shooting a beam of light at the cat. The beam is stopped by something invisible before it can hit the cat. The cat seems to be sitting like a giant on the Earth and is wearing a key on a line around its neck. A space shuttle is approaching the cat.
November 10, 2025 at 6:03 PM
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Jimgrim
By Talbot Mundy

A spy action thriller from one of the most popular writers of the 1930s. This one ventures into the genres of science fiction & psychic phenomenon, and features a protagonist and his companions strongly reminiscent of Doc Savage.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
#vintagebooks
#sciencefiction
#booksky
November 10, 2025 at 5:50 PM
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Caesar's Spy
W: Jean-Pierre Pécau
A: Fafner

Excellent tale of a Gaul warrior pirate slave gladiator spy, working for Julius Caesar to effect his own revenge on the murderer of his wife and child.
Lovely art. Clever use of the actual (AFAIK) history of Julius Caesar.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#graphicnovel
#comicbook
Book cover illustration of a large barabarian-looking man with long black hair and a moustache, wearing a tattered cape swirling behind him, forearms covered in thick bands of leather, heavy boots, a rough loincloth, a wolf's head covering his shoulder closest to the viewer, holding a large Roman gladius sword in one hand, and a large stone mace bound in bands of metal in the other, standing atop a pile of human skulls, with a large statue of the Roman eagle symbol behind him.
October 22, 2025 at 4:53 PM
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Spector: Incorruptible
W: John Wagner
As: Carlos Ezquerra, Dan Cornwell

Robot police detective makes waves in a corrupt city. Apparently Ezquerra's last work before he died, ably finished by Cornwell. Fun story; would like to see Spector unleashed on Washington DC.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbook
#graphicnovel
Trade paperback cover illustration of a cityscape that is also a portrait of the book's protagonist, Spector, using architectural features to represent the character's features.
October 22, 2025 at 4:41 PM
Reposted by Recent Reads
johnshirley2024.bsky.social
We're asking every day
how could this be legal
even asked with a squawk
by the American Eagle
Trump is normalizing
obvious corruption
Dammit when will there be
a Democrat eruption
October 16, 2025 at 2:44 AM
Reposted by Recent Reads
joncooper-us.bsky.social
‼️‼️
October 5, 2025 at 2:55 PM
recentreads.bsky.social
Flashback
By Nevada Barr

NPS ranger and LEO Anna Pigeon finds herself investigating two mysteries at Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas NP, one in current day, and one through letters written by her ancestor at the close of the Civil War.
Excellent read!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#mystery
#fiction
#booksky
Hardcover book with a dust jacket. The author's name is large in the center. The title is below. The top two thirds of the cover has a nearly abstract image behind the author's name, showing what might be a very red sunset sky with small orange and yellow clouds, with silhouetted unidentifiable flying shapes, above a blackness below. At the bottom of the cover is a faded image of the fort in the Dry Tortugas National Park.
October 15, 2025 at 5:02 PM
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Calavera P.I.
By Marco Finnegan

Supernatural pulp noir from a Latino perspective. Sam Spade meets Dia de los Muertes, with a soundtrack by Los Lobos. Great minimalist art style that sets the tone perfectly for the story. An very enjoyable, entertaining read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbook
#graphicnovel
#booksky
The yellow title pops out of a purple sky background at top. Below the title are the head and shoulders of a woman looking skyward, long strands of hair partially obscuring her face. Her lower body is hidden behind a hill, upon which is displayed the "HOLLYWOODLAND" sign. The central figure below, his head partially blocking the sign, is a skeleton wearing a fedora and trench coat, holding a .45 automatic pistol in both hands. Behind him are the gravestones of a cemetery.
October 15, 2025 at 4:25 PM
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Assorted Crisis Events
W: Deniz Camp
A: Eric Zawadzki

Time travel, shifts, and lines are the central motif in this collection of short stories that are allegorical in nature. The 2nd story is a particularly apt look at the current sociopolitical state in the USA.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbook
#booksky
An old man with bushy long hair and a beard, wearing ragged clothes and a jetpack, stands holding a sign that says "OUT OF TIME." His figure is in color, while around him walk several other figures, all wearing the accoutrements of different time periods and cultures, and are line drawings over the background color of pink.
October 15, 2025 at 4:11 PM
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Navigator
(See photos for complete credits.)

An interesting graphic novel told in a cinematic style with a unique plotline, about an alien race invading Earth. Tightly plotted and with excellent, highly detailed art.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#graphicnovel
#comicbook
#sciencefiction
#booksky
Graphic novel cover with an illustration of a man in an ochre-colored spacesuit standing er a bipedal alien figure laying on the ground in snow, raising one hand in supplication. Snowflakes swirl.around them, and in the background can be seen a part of a spacecraft.
October 9, 2025 at 12:22 AM
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Cossacks
Vol. 1: The Winged Hussars
Vol. 2: Into the Wolf's Den
See the photos for complete credits.

Excellent graphic novels about a Hussar who deserts and joins the Cossacks. No idea how accurate the history is, but the story is well-told and the art lovely.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#graphicnovel
#comicbooks
Graphic novel cover with an illustration of an armored man on horseback, charging toward the viewer, right arm holding a sword up ready to strike. In the background is a montage in shades of orange, showing a young man with a bad period haircut, a woman, an older man in profile smoking a pipe, and a column of men on horseback running across the page with the setting sun behind them. Graphic novel cover with an illustration of a Cossack warrior, in shades of blue. He is looking at the viewer angrily, holding a large curved saber on his right shoulder, with a large flintlock pistol thrust through his belt, his left hand resting on its butt. A montage in the background, in yellows fading to light green, show an older man with white hair and a bushy moustache to the left, and to the right a field of white flowers lead up to a standing horse with a woman sitting astride it's back.
October 9, 2025 at 12:11 AM
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Bear's Tooth, Vol. 4: Amerika Bomber
By Yann & Henriet

An excellent series of graphic novels following the experiences of three young Austrian friends in an alternate history of WWII.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#graphicnovel
#comicbooks
#booksky
#alternatehistory
#worldwarII
#WWII
Graphic novel cover illustration showing a woman wearing a WWII vintage pilot's outfit, standing on the roof of a taxi cab that is mostly buried in dirt and human skulls. Behind her is a city skyline, with skyscrapers, some of which are damaged and missing their upper floors. In the menacing orange sky above is a large flying wing aircraft, with a number of smaller aircraft above it.
October 8, 2025 at 11:58 PM
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The Complete Carl Barks Disney Library, Vol. 1: Walt Disney's Donald Duck: "Donald Duck Finds Pirate Gold"

A collection of Bark's earliest comic book stories for Disney. Lovingly restored art, with a text section by Barks scholars. Simply a treat to read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#comicbooks
#carlbarks
#booksky
Book cover with two illustrations by Carl Barks, one above the title and a larger one below. The upper is of a pirate parrot with a pegleg, leading Donald Duck and his three nephews, Huey, Louey, and Dewey. Below, Donald Duck sits in a treasure chest, up to his armpits in coins and jewels, his arms upraised as he sprinkles treasure, a strand of pearls hanging over his beak.
October 8, 2025 at 11:49 PM
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Octobriana with Love
See photos for full credits

Short stories featuring the mythical Russian heroine of comic books. Some nice art, but simplistic plots and cheesy dialogue.

⭐⭐⭐
#comicbook
#octobriana
#booksky
October 8, 2025 at 11:37 PM
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The Wreck of the River of Stars
By Michael Flynn

A character study of a small crew with disparate personalities trying to save themselves on a doomed spacecraft. The characterizations & psychology are more important to the story than the technology.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#sciencefiction
#michaelflynn
#booksky
Book cover illustration of a sailing spacecraft. Center of the image is a sail that looks somewhat like a huge glowing snowflake, tethered by lines to a much smaller sail that also looks like a snowflake, but with a pale yellow color. That is tethered to the main body of the spacecraft in the distance. It is in the midst of scattered asteroids. A black portion of a circle at the top of the illo occults a bright white light, with the book author and title reversed out of the black.
October 8, 2025 at 11:30 PM
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"When the Eagle Hunts"
By Simon Scarrow

During the early days of Rome's invasion of Britain, two legionaries deal with life as soldiers, including a perilous mission to rescue a general's wife and children from human sacrifice at the hand of Druids.
Highest recommendation

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#historicalfiction
Book cover with the title across the top and the author's name across the bottom. Between those is an illustration of a gold ceremonial scythe, resting on a background of an aged, cracked mural of Roman legionaries.
September 24, 2025 at 8:23 PM
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"Death's Head"
By David Gunn

Military SF, in which a grunt comes to realize he has special abilities, and those abilities lead to his rapid rise through the ranks as he stumbles his way through dangerous misadventures. Fast paced, excellent writing, and hard to put down.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
#sciencefiction
Book cover with an illustration of a solitary male figure carrying a firearm, silhouetted against a sunset, above the book's title. The word "Death's" is in a condensed sans serif typeface, is a bright red, and fills the cover side to side. The word "head" is in the same typeface, also fills the cover from side to side, is about twice the height of "Death's," and is black and seems to be filled with stars, as in a night sky.
September 24, 2025 at 8:14 PM