March GenreCAT Action & Adventure

Action & Adventure -- Military/spy/war/Westerns/thrillers etc. etc.
       

The adventure genre has a long history – indeed it has been claimed by some that Homer’s The Odyssey falls in this genre! In more recent times, the term ‘adventure fiction’ has come to imply children’s & young adult books with the term ‘action’ or 'thriller' being applied to books aimed at an older audience but to my mind, these are artificial distinctions. Action books are by definition adventure books.

The adventure genre consists of books in which the protagonist encounters unusual events generally accompanied by danger and/or fast-paced action. These events often involve a journey or a quest/mission, which has produced several specific sub-genres such as sea stories (nautical adventures), westerns and swashbucklers. Books in this genre are almost always plot-driven sometimes, but not always, to the detriment of character development. The adventure genre can be combined with, or overlap with, almost all other genres including nonfiction.

Some examples of famous books that fall into the adventure genre are:

Fiction:
       
·Classics – Don Quixote, Ivanhoe, Kim, The Scarlet Pimpernel, King Solomon’s Mines
·Sea Stories - Captain Blood, The Sea Wolf, Master and Commander, The Long Ships
·Children’s/YA –, Treasure Island, Swallows and Amazons, Johnny Tremaine, Tarzan of the Apes
·Military/War – A Tale of Two Cities, The Cruel Sea, The Empire of the Sun, The Guns of Navarone
·Espionage/Spy – The 39 Steps, The Hunt for Red October, Above Suspicion, Casino Royale, The Mask of Dimitrios
·Westerns/Frontier – The Last of the Mohicans, The Call of the Wild, Lonesome Dove, The Last Trail, The Curse of Capistrano (aka “The Mark of Zorro”)
·Science Fiction/Fantasy – 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Hobbit, Agent of Change, Conan the Barbarian
·Desert Island (“Robinsonades”) – Robinson Crusoe, Shards of Honor, The Swiss Family Robinson, The Beach
·Crime/Thriller - The Da Vinci Code, The Bourne Identity, The Manchurian Candidate
       

Nonfiction:
Sailing Alone Around the World, Tracks, Kon Tiki, Into Thin Air, The Lost City of Z, A Walk in the Woods
   

Please remember to add your books to the Wiki:
https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/GenreCAT_2021

Sorry for the delay getting this thread set up - I lost track of time while devouring some sci fi adventure books (aka space operas) from Sharon Lee & Steve Miller's Liaden series!

Also, since I was rushed, I tended to pull examples from my wheelhouse, which tends to the classics - don't let that make you think that there aren't plenty of examples from current authors.

Dropping by to see what everyone else comes up with. I'm torn between a re-read (I recognise several titles and authors in >1 leslie.98:) and something new to me.

I love adventure stories and I have the following on my TBR pile that I hope to get to next month:

Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Hardest Ride by Gordon Rottman
Pieces of Eight by John Drake
The Raven's Gift by Don Reardon

You did a terrific job setting this up. You gave us lots of room to choose and a lot of good suggestions. I am planning to read one of the Kopp sisters novels by Amy Stewart, which certainly involve action and adventure.

I'm planning on reading Lincoln Child's Utopia. I'm also probably going to try to get into the first book in the Expanse series, Leviathan Wakes, but I don't know if I'll have time to finish it in March on top of the other reads I have planned.

I am planning on reading The Fifth Man by Manning Coles, which is the 6th book in the Tommy Hambledon spy thriller series. I would also like to read The Long Ships if I can get a copy from the library. We'll see what else catches my eye as time & availabilty allow -- Bernard Cornwall's Sharpe series is one I have been thinking about for a while now.

I've picked out a couple. I think they are both YA:

Bloody Jack / L.A. Meyer
The Hero's Guide to Being an Outlaw / Christopher Healy

I am somewhat tentatively looking at The Trilisk Ruins by Michael McCloskey.

I think I’ll read The Rembrandt Affair by Daniel Silva which appears to be a spy thriller.

I've earmarked Puppet on a Chain, one of a few unread Alistair MacLeans in my collection, for this challenge.

I just finished reading a graphic novel, Rat Queens, Volume 1: Sass and Sorcery, about a band of adventuring mercenaries. It was great fun, and I'll try to get hold of Volume 2 for this challenge.

>2 leslie.98: You reminded me that the Liaden Universe books would fit this theme, so I may try to continue that series too.

I'm planning on Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brien. I've planned to begin this series forever and this looks like the perfect time because I can use it for another CAT as well.

Oh, there are so many old favourites of mine in your examples! Sharpe, Flashman, Jack Aubrey, D'Artagnan!

I think I'll do pirates for this, I've got quite a few to choose from...as in Pirate Latitudes or Long John Silver or...

In my Feb Alpha Kit book The Game by Laurie R King, Mary Russel and Sherlock Holmes are off to find British spy Kimball O'Hara who served as an inspiration for the novel Kim. So I've decided on a reread of Kim.

>1 leslie.98: Lovely setup and so many great suggestions! Thank you for putting this together!

I will read Kidnapped for this because it fits another CAT as well and I won't get to it this month!

I also hope to read The Titanic Secret by Clive Cussler. It was a spontaneous buy on our honeymoon (I hadn't heard of the author and was simply hooked because of the Titanic cover) and I was totally disappointed by the first chapters, but I'll give it another chance!

I'm considering The White Darkness certainly an adventure crossing Antarctica. But I'm also tempted by Tracks as I've been looking to enter Louise Erdrich's body of work. I plan to read Cinnamon and Gunpowder for the RTT challenge so this may work here as well. Pirates!

>11 rabbitprincess: yippee! Me too.

And Hammond Innes and Helen MacInnes...

>14 MissWatson: & >17 beebeereads: Oh, I should have had a 'pirates' subcategory!! There just wasn't room in my lists for all the wonderful books I wanted to include... But talking of pirates reminds me that I have been wanting to read more Rafael Sabatini so maybe I'll read The Black Swan...

>18 fuzzi: Yes! And Mary Stewart, Norah Roberts & Phyllis Whitney for those who want a more romantic adventure...

>13 clue: Oh yes, I have several of those on my shelf. They were really popular some years ago.

I know it's early but I am currently reading Ben Kane's Roman military fiction series Eagles of Rome of a trilogy + two novellas. They are set in the disaster (to the Romans) of the Battle of the Teutoberg Forest in 9 AD, when Rome lost 3 legions (1/10 of its whole army) against the German tribes, and its aftermath.

>21 Robertgreaves: FYI, I grew up in the Teutoburg Forest :-) There's a huge memorial from the 19th century close to the town where we lived. Unfortunately for the town, it was discovered that the battle probably took place somewhere else (in Lower Saxony).

>22 MissBrangwen: In the author's note to Eagles At War, he seems to doubt the theory that Kalkriese was the site of the battle but doesn't suggest any alternative site.

>11 rabbitprincess: want to do a shared read for Puppet on a Chain?

I have a few other MacLeans and a bunch of Innes and MacInnes too...

>24 fuzzi: Sure! I might also read Night Without End.

Oooh, this is a great theme! I have The Hunt for Red October sitting there on my shelf, staring at me, inviting me for a re-read.

Or maybe A Perfect Spy which I've been meaning to read since I inherited it (although it is longer and I might not finish it this month).

>25 rabbitprincess: ooh, that's a good one.

>26 threadnsong: The Hunt for Red October is the only Clancy that I've read more than once. I love the book and the movie.

Have you ever read The Cardinal of the Kremlin? It's my second favorite book by Clancy. I should reread it sometime, it's a Jack Ryan that deserved to be made into a movie but wasn't for some reason.

>27 fuzzi: I have read many of the Clancy books more than once - my overall favorite is The Bear and the Dragon, I guess in part because I love the way consumer reaction baffles the Chinese Politburo (sp??).

>26 threadnsong:, >27 fuzzi: >28 leslie.98: I used to read Clancy and enjoyed them so much but haven't read any in a long time. I only kept The Hunt for Red October and every year I think I'll reread it and read the others I've never read but you know how it is.

On a different note: the mother of one of my friends lived in the condo below his for years and she thought he was so nice. I always like to hear that about "my" writers!

>29 clue: Love the personal note - I haven't had much experience with interacting with authors but I agree that it is a nice thing to hear about one whose books you enjoy (much better than the converse!).

>29 clue: nice note. I enjoyed Clancy's writing, good to know he was a pleasant person too.

I read Pieces of Eight by John Drake, the second in a trilogy that is meant to be a prequel to the classic Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. These books have plenty of pirate action and adventure.

I finished a couple already -

The Talisman Ring by Georgette Heyer is a blend of adventure, romance and humor. One of my all-time favorite Heyer books, this one involves smugglers, Excise men, Bow Street runners and an excitable romantic young French emigrée. 5* especially for the audiobook edition narrated by Phyllida Nash.

Code Blue - Emergency by James White is not quite a space opera science fiction book but there is plenty of adventure in it. This 7th entry in the Sector General series focusses on a young Sommadarven warrior-surgeon who is for the first time in her life off her home planet and surrounded by a large number of alien species at the Sector General hospital station. 4*

I have also read The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell. This classic short story stands the test of time and still packs a punch today.

Anybody who's still looking for ideas might like this article:

https://www.advnture.com/features/the-best-adventure-books-as-chosen-by-our-expe...

>34 DeltaQueen50: oh, I remember that one, it's a goodie.

I read two for this challenge: Dear Miss Kopp by Amy Stewart and The Thief of Blackfriars Lane by Michelle Griep. Both had enough adventure to keep me interested!

Finished Utopia by Lincoln Child--full review written. This was a great read.

COMPLETED The Trilisk Ruins by Michael McCloskey

Quite a bit of action and adventure in this story of a team of alien artefact smugglers who get trapped in an alien military station and actually come across an alien all the while being pursued by the forces of law and order in the form of the United Nations Space Force.

>33 leslie.98: I love all of Georgette Heyer's books!

For this month though I plan to read The Blood Gospel by James Rollins and Rebecca Cantrell

I have finished Revenger which has lots of action and two girls hungry for adventure. They get a bit more of it than they bargained for.

>41 MissWatson: said: "They get a bit more of it than they bargained for."

LOL - that is usually what happens!

I have finished rereading The Three Musketeers - I had thought that I would take several weeks on this but instead got so caught up that I finished it in just a few days :)

It isn't my official read for this CAT, but Roger Lancelyn Green's retelling of The Adventures of Robin Hood holds up on the umpteenth re-read :)

I just finished Algonquin Sunset by Rick Revelle. This is the third book in his Algonquin Quest trilogy and follows a small band of Algonquin Indians in the 13th century, describing both their day to day survival and their many wars.

I've read Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian. Jack Aubrey, a sailor from the age of 9, is given his first ship to command during Britian's war with France at the beginning of the 19th century.

I listened to Beau Geste (by Percival Christopher Wren; narrated by Geoffrey Howard). This is the ultimate boy‘s adventure story— if you were a boy in 1924. The story itself opens with a double mystery: What happened at this fort in the middle of the desert? And who stole the Blue Water? As intriguing & action-packed as it is, it is also a dated tale where honor & chivalry look like snobbishness, racism and misogyny now. IMHO, The Four Feathers (by A.E.W. Mason; 1902) is better in all ways... But the one saving grace is Geoffrey Howard's narration. He pulls off the transitions from British English and French so seamlessly and overall is just so masterful in his performance and delivery, and without dipping into caricature, I actually believed the characters lived and breathed --- so much so, that I'm still annoyed with Aunt Patrica and Beau himself!

>46 clue: Thanks to your thought about this in post #13, I am currently reading H.M.S. Surprise, the 3rd book in that series...

I have finished Pirate Latitudes and thought it was too predictable and formulaic. And the Kraken was definitely too much.

I just read Up Periscope, and it didn't occur to me before that it fits this challenge, yippee!

I read The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm for this month. It was a fun middle grade adventure set in futuristic Zimbabwe.

>33 leslie.98: I also read The Talisman Ring this month! Such a fun romp.

My pick for this CAT was Heaven's Queen by Rachel Bach, the last book in a trilogy about a space mercenary, human-alien hybrids, and (of course) a quest to save the universe. Lots of space battles and so forth!

>52 christina_reads: Eustacie makes me smile but my heart belongs to Sarah :)

>53 leslie.98: I wish I WERE Sarah -- she's the best! Love her sense of humor.

>48 leslie.98: I hope that's a good one, I'm really looking forward to the second. I was so lucky at a library booksale to buy the whole series for $1 a book!

>55 clue: I did enjoy it once I had a chance to recall the previous books (which I had read many years ago). I envy your purchase - I kick myself for not taking my mom's collection of this series when my parents downsized!

I read one that fits here, I think, it is a classic by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; The Lost World.

>57 Kristelh: Oh, that is an interesting one - such a precursor to modern day books such as Jurassic Park...

So I decided to go with A Perfect Spy, and while I'm not totally finished with it I'm more than half-way through it. (Thank you, oil change and favorite sushi restaurant!) I'm really surprised at how much I like it, especially since it was my mom's and she and I didn't see eye-to-eye on our book choices. But this one? Yeah, I'm devouring it.

And >27 fuzzi:, >28 leslie.98:, and >29 clue: - I did pull two Clancy novels off of my bookshelf in case le Carre went badly. But I may not get to them at all for this month's challenge! I think I did read Cardinal of the Kremlin once, because I remember the sleep deprivation as part of his "imprisonment." First time I had heard of that. So Hunt for Red October and Rainbow Six may stay on my pile or may be added to my total. He's a fast read.

The Hero's Guide to Being an Outlaw /Christopher Healy
3.5 stars

This is the third (and final – sniff!) installment of the “Hero’s Guide” series, which follows the “League of Princes”. The League of Princes consists of four Princes Charming (which is not the real name of any of them!): Duncan, Liam, Frederic, and Gustav. Although the princesses (Snow, Rapunzel, (Cinder)Ella) have been involved in all adventures in the series, in addition, this time around, they (as well as an additional character Val Jeanval, and Lila, Liam’s younger sister) give themselves a name (which Snow shortens to ffff… though I can’t remember what exactly it stands for! But I liked Snow’s shortened version!).

Anyway, in this one, all our heros are “WANTED” for the murder of Briar Rose (aka Sleeping Beauty), though they don’t even realize it initially! There are bounty hunters on their tail, looking for the “untold riches” that are promised to those who bring them back alive.

As usual, this was fun! I listened to the first two on audio, which I think added to the “ambiance”, though I do recall that I did occasionally lose interest, but Bronson Pinchot was the narrator and with all the accents and voices he can do, what fun! With the ebook this time around (the library did not have the audio for this one), I do think I was able to keep more focus, though I did miss those voices and accents! I am sad that the series is finished.

I finished reading The Titanic Secret by Clive Cussler and Jack du Brul which was better than I thought after the prologue, but all in all still a disappointment. Even more so because it had next to nothing to do with the Titanic!

>59 threadnsong: I read The Spy Who Came in From the Cold, liked it quite a bit, but once it was done I decided not to revisit the author, for personal reasons.

I need to reread The Cardinal of the Kremlin, it's been many, many years. I believe it I read it in the early 1990s. I saw the movie version of The Hunt for Red October, found and read the book, and then read Cardinal. So, yeah, it has been about 30 years!

>60 LibraryCin: Ooh! Those sound like fun! I'm adding them to my Audible Wishlist now! :-)

Now reading Gunmetal Gray from the Gray Man series by Mark Greaney

>63 Tanya-dogearedcopy: They are so much fun! Enjoy!

Bloody Jack / L.A. Meyer
3.75 stars

At the end of the 18th century, Mary thinks she was about 8 years old or so when her parents died and she was literally put out on the street and left to fend for herself. She managed to join up with some other homeless kids and they begged and stole and did what they could for money and food. When she was a few years older, Mary decided to dress like a boy and she managed to get on a ship as a ship’s boy. But no one knew she was really girl as they went about their adventures on the sea.

I listened to the audio and loved the accent. I think it was a Cockney accent (had to look that up!). I quite enjoyed this and it gets the extra ¼ star for the audio. The story was fun, too. It’s odd, but whether I listen to or read adventure, I tend to not pay as much attention to the adventure parts. Odd, I know. But I still quite liked the story and I will be continuing the series.

Uprooted / Naomi Novik
4 stars

Every 10 years, the Dragon comes to the valley to select a 17-year old girl to go with him. She is not seen again for the next 10 years. The people allow this because the Dragon makes sure the evil in the Wood that surrounds them stays at bay. Growing up, Agnieszka (and everyone else) always knew it would be her smart, beautiful best friend, Kasia, who is chosen. Possible spoiler, though it happens in the first couple of chapters: But, it’s not Kasia who is chosen. It’s Agnieszka.

I really enjoyed this. This one has (Baba) Jaga mentioned – she’s not a character, as she is long-dead, but she is mentioned and her effects are felt. Many know that I am not always a fantasy fan (depends on the type of fantasy), but I do like fairy tales. This one had a lot going on – not all at once, but one thing after another. Lots of adventure in this one.

Moonraker by Ian Fleming

Not my favourite James Bond story, the details of the card game were beyond me. I remember the movie somewhat but as usual, the book is better.

I finished Simon the Coldheart by Georgette Heyer. While nominally a historically set romance, it is as much an action story as it is a romance. Lots of fighting and going to war and even the lady herself tries to escape her situation in classic style.

I haven't gotten to a book for this yet this month. But I just picked up The Dig by John Preston from the library for my husband and it's a fairly slim book. I think I'll read it for this even if I don't finish by tomorrow.

I finished Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse. It is a middle grade adventure fantasy featuring Navaho mythology. It is part of the Rick Riordin presents collection. It was fun and interesting. I think my son would like it, although not as much as he adores Percy Jackson.

I finished Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson, which was a perfect fit!

>73 MissBrangwen: A perfect fit indeed!

I hope that everyone enjoyed their time with this CAT - I sure did!

>75 leslie.98: Yes indeed I did! I read (devoured) Le Carre's A Perfect Spy and I might not have read it without this challenge. Thank you for deciding on this genre!

>75 leslie.98: Thanks for this topic. It is way out of my comfort zone, but I am now reading Cinnamon and Gunpowder featuring a lady pirate in the 19th c. So much adventure and daring-do!

I finally made it to this genre. I am reading The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.