Austenesque Lovers TBR Pile Reading Challenge 2016 discussion

I'll be listing books as I read them, then do a monthly tally. I hope everyone enjoys my list.

I'll enjoy seeing what you read!!

Thanks Claudine.

Okay here's my end of January tally (yes I know there's 1 more day, but I wouldn't get another book in):

1. Four Sides of a Triangle by Heather C. Myers 5 star
2. Relentless Considerations: A Pride and Prejudice Novel by Amy Cecil 4 star
3. Austen in Austin, Volume 1 by Susanne Dietze 5 star
4. Suddenly Mrs. Darcy by Jenetta James 5 stars
5. Meryton Medley: Four Pride and Prejudice Novelettes by Cassandra B Leigh 4 stars
6. As Good as a Lord: Pride and Prejudice by P.O. Dixon 4 stars
7. The Last Waltz: . . . another pride and prejudice journey of love by Pat Santarsiero 5 stars

YTD: 7 (+4 romance genre ARCs)

I will try to post links to my reviews here as I finish the books I read.

So many good JAFF reads come out this week!! Now you'll have time for them,

Claudine, is there a list of what's new coming out?

Here's my best knowledge ... Feb 2/ Jane and the Waterloo Map by Stephanie Barron

Recent Releases I want to read... "Undeceived," by Karen Cox

"P&P& Shakespeare," by Michele M.

"Obsession," by Jann Rowland

Newly read releases:

"A Little Whimsical in His Civilities," by J. MARIE Croft

"Darcy's Deliverance," by Carolyn Whyte

"Elizabeth : Mistress of Pemberley," by de Jong

"Accusing Elizabeth," by Jennifer Joy

Authors I know coming out with releases sooner rather than later:

Laura Hile
Lori Lilian (Rainy Days Sequel)
Regina Jeffers
Brenda Webb
Linda Berdoll (has been writing book 4 for a LONG time and I am all anticipation for book 4)
Victoria Kincaid
Robin Helm
Suzan Lauder

I'm definitely missing titles on these lists, (sorry to forget anyone!) but this is my fast and furious list!! Lol!!

Erika, keep an eye on Meredith Esparza's blog, Austenesque Reviews. She publishes a retrospective monthly list of new releases. The one for January 2016 can be found here:

http://austenesquereviews.com/2016/01...

Thanks!!

Okay, I finished these books:

8. Compulsively Mr. Darcy 4 stars https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
9. A Little Whimsical in His Civilities 4 stars https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

I'm off to a slow start this year, have had lots of ARC requests and life and work have been crazy. I will catch up I promise. :)

10. Pride and Prejudice: ...and Kids A Pride and Prejudice Variation 4 stars https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

11. An Heir for Pemberley: A Pride and Prejudice Variation Short Story 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

12. Missing Conversations: A Pride and Prejudice Vignette 3 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
13. One More Chance 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
14. When Mary Met the Colonel: A Pride and Prejudice Novella 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
15. A Death at Rosings: A Pride & Prejudice Variation 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
16. The Carriage Ride: a Pride and Prejudice short story 3 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
17. Pride in Meryton: Three Pride and Prejudice Novelettes 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
18. The Companion's Secret: A Pride and Prejudice Variation 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

19. Pemberley Quaking 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
20. Heiress to Longbourn 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Okay so my March was very under productive with my reading:

21. Remorse and Reconciliation 3 star
22. Betrayal (non-published JAFF) by PatM 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
23. George Knightley, Esquire: Charity Envieth Not 4.5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

So YTD JAFF is: 23
YTD total is: 38 (I had 6 ARC books I read this month)

My March has been a little stressful, usually reading helps, but it didn't this month. I look forward to doing more starting now.

You're doing OK Erika, you're only two behind me even though you've only three under your belt in March. Sorry to hear about the stressful month. Hope things are picking up for you now.

Erika-you're doing fine! Don't be so hard on yourself! If you've been under pressure then you had other things to keep you occupied...hopefully you'll have a great April and get a chance to read-for pleasure and not as a stress relief.

Thanks Mary and Anji, you guys are great. Reading is usually my stress reliever, but it hadn't helped his month. Too much personal crap!!! I just need everyone to let me read!!! Lol!!

I hear you Erika. You need some 'me' time and I sincerely hope you get some. We all deserve s little pampering from time to time,whether it's books,wine,chocolate........or a delightful combination of all three!!
Look after yourself Erika,I'll be thinking of you.

Mary, you're just the sweetest!! I have off of work from Wed through Fri next week and will be at a conference in Chicago. I plan to be reading and chilling at night in my hotel room!!! The conference is the annual AOTA (American Occupational Therapy Association) Conference, I have been looking forward to this for the past several years (it's always in a different city each year) and finally it's back to Chicago. So it is sorta "work" but not really. I will learn some new things, but get lots of free pens and other OT related stuff!! Plus network with others.

This is the first "vacation"/time-off I've taken in 2 yrs!!

Love the idea of networking.....but hope that it's more practical based than theory.

Whenever I go on courses, the general consensus is that however important and relevant the info the speaker wishes to impart,at the end of the day we usually learn a lot more from just talking to each other!!

Put a bunch of like minded people together in a room and we will all willingly share our experience and expertise.

To spend the whole day listening to a speaker is,for me quite tiresome! And no,I don't have a low boredom threshold !!!

But if it's OT then I'm assuming some of it will be practical, which I'm sure you'll enjoy.

The idea of chilling on the hotel room sounds like just what the doctor ordered. Lock your door and forget the outside world exists....at least for a night of two.

However you choose to spent your time I hope you not it,learn some new skills but more importantly,go home refreshed,renewed and revigorated!! Enjoy!

I agree with Mary too. It sounds like you deserve to recharge and get your groove back! I hope the conference is time well spent.

Oh my time will be spent well. I have already picked out the courses I want to go to, and they focus mostly on the Home Health aspect of OT which is great cause I'm working as a Home Health OT at present so it is beneficial. Plus there is lots of time to roam the Exhibit Hall at all the new things available. I had so much fun the last time I went to one which was maybe 5-6 yrs ago when it was in Indianapolis. Plus I will get a lot of walking in and then go up to my hotel room to read. I paid a little extra to get a room at the hotel there at the conference center so I don't have to take a shuttle to and from everyday. I will have my iPad along for my Kindle books. Only thing missing is my cats will be staying home, so no cuddly fuzzballs!!!!

That sounds great Erika. You deserve the R&R... Especially with all the time you spend on the JAFF lists!!

Erika-let us know how the conference goes.I dearly hope you enjoy it and get an opportunity to fit in the work,walks and reading.

Erika, when I was working full-time, I literally went decades without reading more than 1 or 2 books a year. I'm always amazed at my GR friends like yourself who lead such busy lives but still manage to read multiple books a month- and, in your case, organize all your reads so efficiently! Enjoy your well-earned vacation, your socializing, your conference exhibits, and your freebies!

You guys are the best!! Thanks for all the support, you don't always realize how much support you have until you fatigue yourself.

You couldn't keep me away from my books!!! When I was younger and my family would go on a driving vacation (Disney World, Gulf Shores, AL, or northern WI) my mom would buy me a stack of books to read throughout the trip!! I may have been born with books in my hand!! Lol

I think we'd all be bereft without our books. They see us through the ups and downs of life.....yes,we'd be lost without them.

Okay I'm trying to get my P&P fix in, so here's my start to April:

24. Every Appearance of Composure: A Pride and Prejudice Variation https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... 4 star
25. Prevailed On To Marry: A Pride and Prejudice Alternative Story https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... 4 star

Two cute novellas down, many more to go!! Lol

Cool. Enjoy your vacation!

Erika-hope conference is going well and that you're learning loads!!! Enjoy your evening and your 'me' time!

Okay everyone, I am back from my conference, I had a fabulous time!!!! I may be physically weary (I mean I walked close to 7,000 steps on Wed, then over 10,000 steps from Thurs thru Sat), but it was great to get out and network, see some old co-workers, learn new things, and find the new fantastic product available!!! I did some reading on Wed once I got into my hotel room and then more late on Fri and Sat nights and today. I read 2 more P&P variations though finished another ARC while starting a second ARC.

26. A Pemberley Bride https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... 4 star
27. Ice and Fire at Pemberley: a Pride and Prejudice variation https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... 4 star

I needed to get more of my ARC books out of the way before they piled up!! Then it will be back to JAFF!!!

Awesome! Glad your conference lived up to your expectations.

Glad to hear it Erika. Sounds like you had fun and did everything you wanted to do. Good for you!

28. Darcy's Marriage Plan: A Pride & Prejudice Intimate 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
29. Darcy's Continental Escape 4 star review to come
30. Fitzwilliam Darcy An Honourable Man 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
31. A Conversation Behind the Tapestries: A Pride and Prejudice Variation 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I read these plus 6 romance ARCs and another romance (non-ARC).

Nice! I'm looking forward to reading your impressions of Brenda Webb's book. It's just such a wild melodrama! Another one that's crazy over-the-top is I Think of You. It's barely a Pride and Prejudice variation, even though it uses many of the characters including, of course, Darcy and Elizabeth. I consider both guilty pleasures.

I've had that one on my TBR list for a long time now. I will have to get to that soon.

Great job, Erika! I'm so glad to see you gave Brenda Webb's book 5 stars! I loved that one too!

Meredith, will be posting my review today.

To all those who were waiting to see my review of Fitzwilliam Darcy An Honourable Man, it is posted (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...).

Plus I got one more JA book squeaked in:
32. Beguiling Miss Bennet 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

YTD JA books: 32
April's JA total: 9
YTD total books: 56

I am behind in posting my YTD tracker, so here it is now:

33. Yes, Mr. Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Novella 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
34. Worthy of Marriage: A Pride and Prejudice Variation 1 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
35. A Willful Misunderstanding 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
36. The Pemberley Ball: A Pride and Prejudice Vagary Novella 4 star
37. Leaving Nothing to Chance 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
38. To Capture Mr. Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation Novel 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
39. Mr. Darcy and the Bennets of Longbourn: A Pride and Prejudice Love Story 3 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
40. A Moment Forever 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

YTD JA books: 40
May's JA total: 8
YTD total books: 72 (I did 8 ARC reviews in May!!)

YTD 72?? Wow!!! Well done Erika!

Thanks Mary!!

Amazing reading!

June's JA Reads:

41. No Promise of the Kind: A Pride and Prejudice Variation 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
42. In Love With Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Intimate 5 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
43. A Walk in Oakham Wood: A Pride and Prejudice Variation Novella 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
44. Darcy to the Rescue: A Pride & Prejudice Variation Novella 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
45. Forced to Marry Mr. Darcy: A Pride and Prejudice Variation 3 star (though technically I gave it a 2.5 star) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

A very low month of JA reading for me, but I had an unbelievable amount of ARCs to review (9 ARCs) this month. Plus I have been house hunting and in the process of purchasing my first house. Now I am trying to go through and sort all my stuff in my parents' basement and either pack things or get rid of things!!! Real life can cause lots of chaos!!!!

YTD JA books: 45
June's JA books: 5
YTD total books: 86 (did 9 ARCs in June)

Wow! Nine ARCs? Plus these 5? Plus you're buying a house? You're one impressive lady!!

I second that,Debbie!! Erika,take a bow. I'm exhausted just thinking about sll you've got on your plate!

Erika wrote: "June's JA Reads:

41. No Promise of the Kind: A Pride and Prejudice Variation 4 star https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
42. [book:In Love With D..."

Really enjoyed "A Walk in Oakham Wood!" Felt like I was reading a play. Powered through it. I am somewhere in the 38 book range. Writing both a short story (Of Fortune's Reversal) and a novella (Henry Fitzwilliam;s War) tends to cut into the read time. Need to ask you: what is an ARC?

Have just been working my way through "Sense of Worth." The story line is great but is a little talkative for all the reveals. There is a point where you sort of go "enough already!"

The bigger problem with this book is...and this is an ongoing concern of mine...the massive number of typos and misused words. Now the typos are not a flipped "i before e" or something like that. Rather they are dropped suffixes or even a properly spelled word used in the wrong person or tense.

Examples

shot instead of shoot (As in "Lizzy wanted to learn to shot.")

question instead of questioned (As in "Mrs. Gardiner question Lizzy's story.")

Spellcheck is not your friend! I tell my writing students to Proofread aloud. Now, what is also possible is that the writer is ESL and this has either been self-translated or was dictated with the errors.

Sadly, the book has a wonderful premise and plot, if predictable. That's OK. What is not OK is serving up a work rife with errors. It gives those of us who self-publish an image of writers who could not get their works published by "real publishers and here's why."

I would love to do a "no harm, no foul (or in the case of this book, fowl)" read of anybody's work as a beta reader if only to reduce this sort of stuff. You seem to be looped in tightly...any places where the "share" is more formalized?

Don, an ARC is an Advanced Reader Copy. Authors will give out free rough copies of their books with the stipulation that you write an honest review.

Don, I would check with Sophia (our fearless leader) and/or Meredith (Austenseque Reviews) they are more in the know. I've only had one JA author ask me to do an ARC review, that was Cat Gardiner. 98% of my ARCs are from romance authors, some have requested me to review their books after seeing my reviews here on GRs. But lots are from me seeing requests for reviewers on FB. I have one person I review for that all the books have been clean romances. These books are already fully edited and great reads. If you're interested just shoot me a PM with your email address.