2024 Reading Challenge discussion
ARCHIVE 2017
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Kylie's 52+ Books for 2017
good luck with your challenge!
Book 1: The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year by Sue Townsend 
Let's Turn Pages: 437
Popsugar: #2, a book which has been on my TBR for way too long
A to Z Location: E for England
Genre bingo: Chick-lit
A - Z Title: Y
Also: a book read in a day, published 2012
Book 2: The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Let's Turn Pages: 178 (615 total YTD)
Colour Challenge: a book with Black on the cover
A-Z Title: L
I wasn't expecting to read this book, and it sort of snuck up on me. I was intrigued by the title and I enjoy Neil Gaiman's writing.
Book 3: Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 307 pages (922 total YTD)
A-Z Location: Dartmoor
Serial reader: first new series, first book (Finishing School)
Popsugar: #46, a sub-genre I'd never heard of (steampunk)
Colour Challenge: purple
A-Z Title: E
Book 4: 1-2-3 Magic Teen by Thomas W. Phelan
Let's turn pages: 192 pages (1,114 total)
Bingo: Parenting NF
A-Z Title: M
Book 5: Woof - a Book of Happiness for Dog Lovers by Anouska Jones
Let's turn pages: 163 pages (1,277 total)
A-Z Title: D
Book 6: Curtsies & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger
Let's turn pages: 310 pages (1,587 total)
Colour challenge: Dark Blue
Serial Reader: Book 2 of the Finishing School series
A-Z Location Edition: London
A-Z Titles: C
Popsugar: #22, a steampunk novel
7. Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger
Let's turn pages: 298 pages (1,885 total)
Serial Reader: Book 3 of the Finishing School series
A - Z Location edition: Oxford
A - Z Title: W
Book Riot: #12, Fantasy Novel
Can't add it to the colour challenge ;-) since there's no Teal category!
Given this is the third book I've read by Gail Carriger this year, you could guess I'm really enjoying them. Easy read in a genre that I'd often wondered about but not delved into (Steampunk). I see more books by her in my future... in fact I'm about to start #4 of the series, Manners & Mutiny.
8. [Book:Manners & Mutiny] by Gail Carriger
Let's turn pages: 326 pages (2,111 total)
Colour challenge: yellow
Serial Reader: Book 4 of the Finishing School series. This completes the series which I've now read in full.
A - Z location: Whiffle-on-Exe in Devon
A - Z Title: M
Popsugar: #17 mythical creatures (vampires and werewolves)
Some of the books on my reading list this year are:- the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger, starting with
- Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews (Meg Langslow series #1) (serial reader, genre bingo)
- Zoo by James Patterson (one to finish) (genre bingo)
- Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett (another to finish) (serial reader)
- A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson (serial reader)
- One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson (serial reader)
- The B12 Deficiency Handbook, Vitamin B12 or Glutathione or Could it be B12 (Dewey Decimal)
- one of Barbara Sher's books like I Could Do Anything if Only I Knew What it Was (Dewey Decimal)
- How to be Sick (Dewey Decimal)
- something by Brian Weiss such as Many Lives, Many Masters (Dewey Decimal)
- Finish The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M Valente (serial reader)
- A book or two by Christopher Moore...
- Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld
- The Frog Princess by E.D. Baker (serial reader)
- Jasper Fforde's Quarkbeast series, starting with The Last Dragonslayer (serial reader)
- something about raising teenagers! Ten Conversations You Must Have with Your Son: Preparing Our Sons for a Happy and Successful Life, Tricky Teens (Popsugar #15, genre bingo, Dewey Decimal)
- A Joe Hill novel eg NOS4A2 (genre bingo)
- How to Write a Damn Good Mystery by James N. Frey (genre bingo)
- Jodi Picoult's Change of Heart
- Anonyponymous about the people and stories behind words by John Marciano
- Knit One, Kill Two by Maggie Sefton (serial reader)
- something by Gregory Maguire such as Mirror, Mirror (serial reader)
- Damn Why Didn't I Write That by Marc McCutcheon (genre bingo, Dewey Decimal)
- Flourish by Martin Seligman (genre bingo, Dewey Decimal)
-
- Piers Anthony's Cautionary Tales
- Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs (serial reader)
- The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
- Faust Among Equals or You Don't Have to be Evil to Work Here by Tom Holt
-
- We Have Always Lived in the Castle (Popsugar #29) or The Haunting of House Hill by Shirley Jackson (genre bingo)
- The Book of Lost Things by [John Connolly]
-
- The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod (Dewey Decimal)
- Quite a few things on happiness and positive psychology (genre bingo, Dewey Decimal)
- Goldilocks on Management
- a parody or two
-
- Letters from Pemberley: The First Year by Jane Dawkins (genre bingo, serial reader)
- one of the Anne or Emily books by L.M. Montgomery (Popsugar #25; Book Riot Read Harder #7) or perhaps The Secret Garden
- 2016 bestseller 15th Affair by James Patterson(Popsugar #42)
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay by J.K. Rowling (genre bingo)
- The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket or Beauty and the Beast (popsugar #37)
- Thylacine: The Tragic Tale of the Tasmanian Tiger by David Owen (Dewey Decimal) or Nicholas Shakespeare's In Tasmania: Adventures at the End of the World
- A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn
- More steampunk! The Difference Engine, Phoenix Rising from the Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences series by Pip Ballantine or a collection edited by Jeff VanderMeer like Steampunk, Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded, The Steampunk Bible,
Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories,
Steampunk III: Steampunk Revolution. And The Map of Time
(and its trilogy) looks awesome.
- A collection o grown-up and twisted fairytales edited by Ellen Datlow such as Snow White, Blood Red, Black Thorn, White Rose or Silver Birch, Blood Moon
I read too many books at once. At the moment my "currently reading" list contains:- The Cracks in the Kingdom by Jaclyn Moriarty (Book 2 in the A Corner of White series)
- The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
- Death A Life by George Pendle
- Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
- You Don't Have to be Evil to Work Here, But it Helps by Tom Holt (Book 4 in the J. W. Wells & Co series)
- The Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde Nursery Crime series
- Raising Steam by [Terry Pratchett] Discworld book 40(ish)
Edit 22/4: Add to that:
- The History of Mr. Polly by H.G. Wells - just because my parents read it in school and always complained it was awful! (It's not so bad)
- Steampunk! An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories edited by Kelly Link
9. Soulless by Gail Carriger (seeing a pattern here, peeps?)Book 1 of the Parasol Protectorate series
Let's turn pages: 357 (2,568 total)
Colour challenge: pink
Book Riot: set more than 5,000 miles from home (more like 17,000 km, Hobart - London)
A-Z Title: S
Serial Reader: Start of a new series, first book (the 5th book that's part of a series)
Popsugar: #39 First book in a series I haven't read before
Genre bingo: Paranormal Romance
Nik wrote: "Hi, Kylie, the Soulless link you added is by a different author. =) Methinks you meant this one?"Thanks for that :-)
Book 10: Changeless by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages - 374 pages - total 2,942
A-Z Location: S (Scotland)
Serial Reader: Start of a new series, second book (6th book that's part of a series)
Popsugar: #47, a book with an eccentric character (Lady Maccon)
Colour: Light blue
Think I'm addicted... now onto
Book 11: Blameless by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 355 pages (3,297 total)
A-Z Location: I (Italy) (also more specifically, Nice in France and in Italy, Florence)
A-Z Title: B
Serial Reader: Start of a new series, third book (7th book that's part of a series)
Colour: Red
Next up: Heartless
Book 12: Heartless by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 374 pages - total 3,671
A-Z Title: H
Serial Reader: Start of a new series, fourth book (8th book that's part of a series)
Next up: Timeless, last in this series.
Book 13: Timeless by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 407 pages - total 4,078
A-Z Location: A (Alexandria)
Serial Reader: fifth book of the Parasol Protectorate series, which I've now completed. Two series read from start to finish, 9 books total.
Time for a book/series/author hangover! I have no idea what to read next... the book I'd planned to read somehow isn't what I feel like.
14. The Curious Case of the Werewolf That Wasn't, the Mummy that Was, and the Cat in the Jar by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 32 (short story) - total 4,110
Colour challenge: Orange
A-Z Title: J
15. Prudence by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 357 = total 4,467
A-Z Title: P
A-Z Location: B for Bombay
Serial Reader - first book of new series (The Custard Protocol). Total 10 books from 3 series
Popsugar - #27 - title being a character's name
16. Imprudence by Gail Carriger
Let's Turn Pages: 355 pages - 4.822
A-Z Title: I
A-Z Location: C for Cairo
Serial Reader - second book of The Custard Protocol. Total 11 books from 3 series.
17. Doctor Who: Time Lord Fairy Tales by Justin Richards
Let's Turn Pages: 260 - total 5,082
My Favourite Things: TV Show (total 2 / 10)
A-Z Title: F (total: 15 / 18)
A-Z Author: J
Popsugar: #30, a book with pictures (total 8 / 10)
18. Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
Let's Turn Pages - 392 pages - 5,474 total
A-Z Title - R (total 16 / 18)
A-Z Author - B
Serial Reader - new series started, book 1
19. Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch
Let's Turn Pages - 375 pages - total 5,849
A-Z Title - O
Serial Reader - new series, book 2
Next up: book 3 of the Peter Grant series, Whispers Under Ground
20. Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch
Let's Turn Pages: 418 pages - total 6,267
A-Z Title: U
A-Z Location: N (Notting Hill)
Serial Reader - new series, book 3
Next up:
Ideas for tricky A-Z Title letters:A - We Have Always Lived in the Castle - Susan Hill; I Could Do Anything if Only I Knew What it Was - Barbara Sher; In Tasmania - Adventures at the End of the World - Nicholas Shakespeare
G - The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M Valente
K -
N - NOS4A2 - Joe Hill; Night Watch - Terry Pratchett
Q - Quarkbeast books by Jasper Fforde; Susan Cain - Quiet Power: The Secret Strengths of Introverts; The Queen and I - Sue Townsend
V - anything with Vampires; Villette by Charlotte Bronte; Virtue, Amanda Hocking
X - The Xibalba Murders, Lyn Hamilton; X Saves the World: How Generation X Got the Shaft but Can Still Keep Everything from Sucking by Jeff Gordinier; X by Sue Grafton
Z - Zoo, James Patterson; anything with zombies
Book 21. Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch
Let's Turn Pages: 357 pages, total 6,624
Serial Reader: new series, book 4
Popsugar: main character with different ethnicity to me
Next book in the series: Foxglove Summer
Book 22. Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch
Let's Turn Pages: 377 pages - total 7,001
A-Z Location: H (Herefordshire)
Serial Reader: New Series, book 5; total 16 books read from series
Colour Challenge: Green
Last book in the series (so far) will be
Book 23. The Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch
Let's Turn Pages: 387 pages - 7,388 total
A-Z Location: K (Knightsbridge)
Serial Reader: 6th and last book of Peter Grant series; 17 total; 4 series read in totality
I've started a couple of new books, but my imagination and reading fervour hasn't exactly been grabbed.All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood by Jennifer Senior
The Map of Time by Félix J. Palma - while I really like the concept, the pace of this one is way too slow, and it's laboured with descriptions of things that don't seem remotely necessary. Not sure if I have the stamina for this one... life is too short with CFS/ME etc to read books that one groans before opening.
Book 25. Northanger Abbey by Val McDermidLet's Turn Pages: 343 pages (8,147 total)
Genre Bingo: Jane Austen retelling
Serial Reader: part of a series; 18th book that is part of a series. (New series started)
My Favourite Things: author (total 3/10)
A-Z Title: N (total 19/26)
A-Z Author: V
Popsugar #23 book with a red spine (total 12/18)
Book 26: The Cracks in the Kingdom by Jaclyn Moriarty
Let's Turn Pages: 468 pages - total 8,615
My Favourite Things #4 - 4/10
A-Z Title: K
A-Z Author: M
Serial Reader: Series to finish: 1 series, 1 book
Book 27: A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty
Let's turn pages: 480 pages - total 9095
Serial Reader: 1 series finished, 2 books read
Colour: Book with a colour in the Title
A-Z Title: G
A-Z Author: J
Book 29: Life on the Other Side: A Psychic's Tour of the Afterlife by Sylvia Browne Let's Turn Pages: 272 pages - total 9,659
Dewey Decimal - 2/10
Colour: White
Book 30: The Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey
Let's Turn Pages: 479 pages - 10,138
Serial Reader: 2nd series commenced, 1 book read (21 books from 7 series in total)
My Favourite Things: Fairy Tale (Cinderella, beautifully twisted). 5/10 complete
Popsugar #43: Book with a family member term in the title - total 13/18
On my reading list:Starting 500 Kingdoms book 2, One Good Knight by Mercedes Lackey -> 5 colours on cover
Ask Your Guides: Connecting to Your Divine Support System by Sonia Choquette
Conversations With God: An Uncommon Dialogue, Book 2 by Neale Donald Walsch
The Basics of Corset Building: A Handbook for Beginners by Linda Sparks
The History of Mr. Polly by H.G. Wells
Steampunk! an Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories by Kelly Link
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George
Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett
And I possibly haven't finished All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood by Jennifer Senior (which I will, later in the year) or The Map of Time by Félix J. Palma (which I quite likely won't).
I am prepared to defend my right to be reading 10 or so books concurrently. Once I get up from my reading chair, that is.
500 Kingdoms book 2, One Good Knight by Mercedes LackeyLet's turn pages - total 10,531
Favourites: #11 colour = emerald green. (A key character is an emerald green dragon) 6 / 10
Serial Reader: 2nd book of 2nd new series. 22 books total
Popsugar #52: book based on mythology 14 / 18
Book 32. Latte or Cappuccino?: 125 Decisions That Will Change Your Life by Hilly JanesLet's Turn Pages: 193 pages - 10,724 total
Popsugar #15: Book with a Subtitle 15 / 18
To be honest, this was a really ho-hum read. Nothing there I haven't heard before and not worth close, slow reading.
Book 33. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
Let's Turn Pages: 660 pages - 11,384
Colour Challenge: Brown
Favourites: #9 movie = The Secret Garden. 7 / 10
A-Z Location: P (Palperro in Cornwall). 14 / 18
Popsugar #7: Story within a story. 16 / 18
A-Z Author: K 14 / 18
Book 34. The Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley
Let's Turn Pages: 416 pages - total 11,800
Favourites: Real Place - France 8 / 10
A - Z Location: F for France. 15 / 18
Popsugar #28: Novel set in wartime. 17 / 18
Colour #13: 5 colours on title. 13 / 15
Book 35. The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
Let's Turn Pages: 562 pages - 12,362 total
Book Riot Read Harder: #3 A book about books. 3 / 6 complete
Popsugar #33 - set in different time periods. 18/18 (Challenge met!)
Book 36. Holly Lisle's Create A Plot Clinic by Holly Lisle
Let's turn pages: 166 pages - 12,528 total
Genre bingo: Writing NF - 7 of 13 books, still 0 bingos
Dewey Decimal: 400s - 3 / 10 complete
Listopia: Book 2
Serial Reader: 3rd book from 2nd new series; 23rd book from a series
Book 40. [Papa Panov's Special Christmas], a children's tale by Leo Tolstoy... at Christmas lunch at Jen & Rose's home.Let's Turn Pages: 16 pages, 14,056 total
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams - 306 pages - total 14,362Let's Turn Pages: 306 pages, 14,362 pages total
2024 Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
The Dialogue Thesaurus: A Fiction Writer's Sourcebook of Dialogue Tags and Phrases (other topics)The Dialogue Thesaurus: A Fiction Writer's Sourcebook of Dialogue Tags and Phrases (other topics)
Gluten-Free on a Shoestring Bakes Bread: (other topics)
Gluten-Free on a Shoestring Bakes Bread: (other topics)
The Death of Hitler: The Full Story With New Evidence from Secret Russian Archives (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Gail Carriger (other topics)Ben Aaronovitch (other topics)
Jasper Fforde (other topics)
Dahlia Evans (other topics)
Dahlia Evans (other topics)
More...
1. The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year by Sue Townsend
2. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
3. Etiquette and Espionage by Gail Carriger
4. 1-2-3 Magic Teen by Thomas W. Phelan
5: Woof - a Book of Happiness for Dog Lovers by Anouska Jones
6. Curtsies & Conspiracies by Gail Carriger
7. Waistcoats & Weaponry by Gail Carriger
8. Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger
9. Soulless by Gail Carriger
10. Changeless by Gail Carriger
11. Blameless by Gail Carriger
12. Heartless by Gail Carriger
13. Timeless by Gail Carriger
14. The Curious Case of the Werewolf That Wasn't, the Mummy that Was, and the Cat in the Jar by Gail Carriger
15. Prudence by Gail Carriger
16. Imprudence by Gail Carriger
17. Doctor Who: Time Lord Fairy Tales by Justin Richards
18. Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
19. Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch
20. Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch
21. Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch
22. Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch
23. The Hanging Tree by Ben Aaronovitch
24. Barking by Tom Holt
25. Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid
26. The Cracks in the Kingdom by Jaclyn Moriarty
27. A Tangle of Gold by Jaclyn Moriarty
28. How to Succeed in Evil by Patrick E. McLean
29. Life on the Other Side: A Psychic's Tour of the Afterlife by Sylvia Browne
30. The Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey
31. One Good Knight by Mercedes Lackey
32. Latte or Cappuccino?: 125 Decisions That Will Change Your Life by Hilly Janes
33. The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton
34. The Lavender Garden by Lucinda Riley
35. The Distant Hours by Kate Morton
36. Holly Lisle's Create A Plot Clinic by Holly Lisle
37. A Place of Secrets by Rachel Hore
38. The Shifting Fog by Kate Morton
39. The Dream House by Rachel Hore
40. Papa Panov's Special Christmas by Leo Tolstoy
41. Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams - 306 pages - total 14,362
42. The Death of Hitler by Ada Petrova
43. Gluten-Free on a Shoestring Bakes Bread: by Nicole Hunn
44. The Dialogue Thesaurus: A Fiction Writer's Sourcebook of Dialogue Tags and Phrases by Dahlia Evans
And my challenges!
Let's turn pages: 15,018 - CHALLENGE COMPLETE!!!
A-Z Location: 15 / 18
A-Z Titles: 20 / 26
A-Z Author: 14 / 18
Favourite Things: 8 / 10
Colours: 13 / 15
Book Riot: 3 / 6
Genre Bingo: 8 / 13 squares, 0 / 3 bingos
Serial Reader: 4 series read start-finish, total 17 books; 2 series started, 4 books read; 1 series finished, 2 books read; total 23 books from 7 series
Dewey Decimal: 5 / 10
Listopia: 2 / 12
Popsugar: 19 / 18 - COMPLETE!