I've read AC, and found it good for getting a handle on what's going on in cryptosystems. It definitely didn't leave me feeling like I was anywhere near prepared to implement one. (And the book's a bit dated).
Since you seem to have a lot of experience in this area, what would you recommend as really good reading?
You want to ask Colin Percival (hn://cperciva) this question, since Colin's a professional cryptographer and I'm a software security person. That said, I like "Practical Cryptography" (not Applied Cryptography) and I don't know of a good book that covers side channel attacks or parameter tampering; you just have to be very interested in the topic, follow the news, and start attacking systems.
I would say one of the best things about "Practical" is that it will leave you feeling even less prepared to implement a cryptosystem on your own, even though you'll know much more about how to do it.
Thanks. I'll give PC a read, and perhaps drop cperciva a line. I'm pretty fascinated by cryptography, and I like to be decently well-informed, but I don't see myself focusing on it anytime soon.
Since you seem to have a lot of experience in this area, what would you recommend as really good reading?