MobileRead Book Challenges discussion

Update: The Weird Challenge is Cancelled.

Points Goal Overall: 300 Points

Part 1: "I'll take the letter H, Pat."
For each book I read, I must find a way to connect it to the winning letter from 2016. (I've been tallying titles against the alphabet.) The winner was H. Actually a tie between A and H, so I rolled a virtual die and H won. I could make the connection with a character whose name starts with that letter, such as Harold, or something in the book, like a horse or hamster. (Hey, it could happen.)

One point for each connection made, up to 5 per book. Bonus point (up to two per book) if the connection is ridiculously obscure or amusing, but it has to be legit and not stupid like "He lives in a House."

Part 2: "I'll take Tangential Reviews for 500, Alex".
Write at least 10 reviews for books read in 2017, and these reviews have to mostly be about anything but the book but still be relevant to the book enough to count as a review. 5 points for each review and 2 bonus points if Mrs J thinks the review is hilarious. (Hey, this was her idea, so why not?)

Part 3: "You've just won a lifetime supply of wine!" - Find (or fabricate) a connection to alcohol for each book I read. (Thanks for the inspiration, Orlok!) One point per connection, up to 5 per book.

Part 4: "The Dating Game"
'Ship characters from different books with each other, and write a few paragraphs about their relationship. At least 5 'ships, each one worth 10 points.

Part 5: "The Gong Show"
Write a poem about any book that I rate less than 3 stars. Worth 5 points each but not factored into points goal because I'm really hoping there won't be too many shitty books in 2017. :D

Part 6: "Friend or Foe"
For every book I read, relate one of the characters or events to one of my friends on Goodreads. :P One point per book.

New Orleans Noir - finished 1/4/17 - 11 Points
http://monkeynotowl.com/2017/01/read-...

On the Edge - finished 1/12/17 - 8 Points
http://monkeynotowl.com/2017/01/i-rea...

Impervious - finished 1/25/17 - 8 Points
http://monkeynotowl.com/2017/01/i-rea...

Beaten to a Pulp - Finished 2/8/17 - 8 Points
http://monkeynotowl.com/2017/02/i-rea...

Totals by Month
January: 3 books, 27 points

Reserved

Reserved

And, just in case, reserved. Done.

LOL How in the hell did I end up trapped in a game show theme for this? :D Well, weird is as weird does, I guess.

First!!

Okay, with that out of the way!
OMG, OMG, OMG I can't wait to see how you proceed! :D

You and me both! This is either going to be awesome, or a hilarious mess. :D

I don't even know how to set a points target because to do that, I'd have to set a target for number of books read, and I'm not quite prepared to set that number yet. This year is going to come in at 36 or 37, I think, but I don't know if I want to commit to higher. Eh, I'll think on it this week.

Christa wrote: "You and me both! This is either going to be awesome, or a hilarious mess. :D

I don't even know how to set a points target because to do that, I'd have to set a target for number of books read, and..."

I say play it by ear. There's no reason that you have to finalize it right this second.

I wish you the best with whatever you decide to do.

"Weird" doesn't even begin to describe this challenge :P

I wish you all the best with it - I'm particularly looking forward to Part 6...

...and I think you deserve points for Part 5 if you ever do one, as that's going to take some effort.

haha thanks, both of you! :) Part 6 should definitely be fun. :D

I sort of agree with you, Orlok, about Part 5, but if I do points for that one, I won't factor it in to whatever points goal I come up with. It'll end up being bonus points, both for suffering through a shitty book and for writing a poem about it. LOL

Okay, I'm adjusting some point values (part 2 will require work but only be worth 10-20 points? no way!) and making rough calculations based on reading a minimum of 30 books. Will update above with changes / point goals when done.

Okay, info calculated and added. Points goal for the year will be 300, which is based on reading a minimum of 30 books.

This sounds fantastic and fun :D
You are tempting me to try it too xD

Also: you people need to not start threads when I'm sleeping, how am I ever going to get First?! :P

DoodlePanda wrote: "This sounds fantastic and fun :D
You are tempting me to try it too xD

Also: you people need to not start threads when I'm sleeping, how am I ever going to get First?! :P"

*Sits in corner with an evil grin. All 2017 threads are belong to me!!! Mwaaahaaahaaahaahaa!

Sorry, Doodles. Next time I'll check and make sure everyone is awake first. :D But I can't promise that Nyssa won't get there first anyway. She's really good at that.

Christa wrote: "Sorry, Doodles. Next time I'll check and make sure everyone is awake first. :D But I can't promise that Nyssa won't get there first anyway. She's really good at that."

True, it's like she senses it... Creepy really ;)

LOL!! :D

OMG ROFL!!

I really, really want to start early. I won't, because I'm not that dysfunctional that I can't wait three days, but I want to.

And I am soooo, so glad that image will forever be on the first page of The Weird Challenge. I love it! :D

Edited to add: I'm also very amused by what's currently in message 2: "reresered". Which is apparently an obscure word for "Christa was in too much of a hurry for self-editing".

Christa wrote: "I really, really want to start early. I won't, because I'm not that dysfunctional that I can't wait three days, but I want to. ."

I've been wanting to start my challenge(s) early too. But like you, am impatiently waiting.

Christa wrote: "And I am soooo, so glad that image will forever be on the first page of The Weird Challenge. I love it! :D."

Hee hee hee! Yay! :D

Christa wrote: "Edited to add: I'm also very amused by what's currently in message 2: "reresered". Which is apparently an obscure word for "Christa was in too much of a hurry for self-editing".
"

I feel your pain. Typos like that happen to me all the time, as I'm sure you've seen.

Yeah, I make plenty of typos myself, but I usually notice them pretty quickly. I think. Maybe not? I mean, if I don't notice them, then I don't know about them, so... Hmmm.

I'm questioning things now.

:D

I'm extra excited now - there's an Ilona Andrews series I somehow completely missed, The Edge series. If not for one of them popping up on my Amazon recs... Anyway, library has them so checked the first one out and added to the "up next" collection on my Kindle. Very excited to read it, especially as it features some characters that have appeared in The Innkeeper Chronicles. Which I need to get the third one of, also.

So many books!

Christa wrote: "Yeah, I make plenty of typos myself, but I usually notice them pretty quickly. I think. Maybe not? I mean, if I don't notice them, then I don't know about them, so... Hmmm.

I'm questioning things..."

Wait, The Edge and The Innkeeper cross over with each other!?!

I've read 3 of the 4 Edge books, and the first Innkeeper book (which I loved!!!)

Yeah, apparently George, Jack, Sophie and a couple of others, according to something I read in a blurb. It sounds like The Innkeeper books use the same world as The Edge, so it's all the same universe. Which I guess would put the Inn in the Broken?

Oh wait! I remember now - it's on the series info page here. A note after the main description. https://www.goodreads.com/series/4680...

Apparently George and company are young at the time of The Edge, and are all grown up in Sweep in Peace.

Nice!

Hmm ... I just realised, that I read 2 of the Edge books not 3.

Hmm I'm thinking I might have to try this Ilona Andrews

Her books I mean? Not the actual woman obviously :P

DoodlePanda wrote: "Her books I mean? Not the actual woman obviously :P"

You'd definitly get more than you bargan for seeing as "she" is actually a "they"; him and her to be exact. They are a married writing team. lol

And yes, so far the books I've read of theirs are awesome, Although I was not as impressed with The Edge series as I was with Innkeeper and Kate Daniels.

I stopped reading the Kate Daniels series at book 6. Not a reflection of quality, it's a very good series, but due to my own preferences. I don't usually like series with couples, or those that have a mid-series HEA followed by relationship issues that feature too prominently.

I prefer things more like what Kim Harrison did with Rachel Morgan - that sort of thing didn't really start to resolve into finality until near the very end of the series, and it involved significant story arcs for the characters, not just the romance arc. (I still haven't read the last book, I just realized that.)

Really doesn't reflect well on me, does it? I like the tension, the journey, but once two people are together, they bore / annoy me. LOL

I can see that. Romance isn't my go to either but I do enjoy it if/when things are going well. Love/Hate or "will she, won't she" type drama drives me nuts. Don't even get me started with love triangles.

I haven't gotten that far into Kate Daniels, but I do like what I've read so far.

I put both Rachel Morgan and Sookie Stackhouse on hold when I learned that the series were coming to an end because I wanted to buy all of the books and then read them straight through. (Which reminds me, I actually have to check both series to see if I have everything).

In other words, I have way too many series on my plates, but still seem to find the want of more. lol

LOL I know that feeling, and I also keep finding more series I want to read! Fortunately, a good chunk of them these days are mystery series, which don't usually have unresolved stuff / ongoing story arcs going from book to book, so that makes it easier to go in and out of them.

I do like romances, but I like standalone romance novels with a neatly tied-up HEA at the end. I don't really want to see them arguing over who has to cook dinner after that, you know? LOL And I really, REALLY hate the "now they're together so he tries to protect her but she does it anyway and they both get mad and one of them gets hurt because they're too stupid to just talk to each other".

Even my 13-year-olds get frustrated over the "I'm mad but I'm not going to tell you why I'm mad" ridiculousness in books and movies. My daughter, in particular, keeps saying "You know, if they'd just talk to each other...", and then I remind her that there probably wouldn't be a lot of story left if they actually used common sense. LOL

I like HEA's too ... in every genre, lol. I have to be in the right frame of mind to specifically read romance, though. I like UF because there's usually something else going on, but with a side of romance. If they do it right then the romance just blends in nicely instead of overwhelming the whole thing.

LALALALALALALALALALALALA

*stops up ears because havent gotten far in Kate Daniels*


lol!


OMG.


OMG.

I so flipping excited about this challenge!!!! I'm going to be stalking Christa's thread now. >.>


<.<


>.>



:-D

By the way, the Edge is only good through book 1 for me. The other books start getting pretty depressing. I read books 2 & 3 when I was kinda done because it was a lot of sad going on.

Well, it's about time you showed up. LOL I think we're all going to have entirely too much fun with this challenge. :D

For some reason, I thought you'd read further than me in Kate Daniels.

I just hope they continue with The Innkeeper books for a long time, and that they keep being as good as the first ones. (Haven't read #3 yet but will as soon as I tackle some others.) And I hope the story doesn't get bogged down in the romance sub-plot.

I stopped after 5 but I own all the books. Sometimes I get antsy.

Don't look at me like that! ;-)

But I've read almost everything else she's wrote. Except book 4 of The Edge.

LOL I'm not looking at you like that! :P I used to get antsy too, until I realized that library holds won't kill me and I could save a lot of money in the process.

BUT that only works if my library happens to license the ebooks I actually want to read, which fortunately, they've been doing lately. Apparently UF has been popular enough in my county that they've been investing heavily in the newer stuff. Having an out-of-state card from Brooklyn as a back-up helps, too.

Sweet! It's it awesome when the library makes dreams happen??

It really is. Especially since I need to save up to take my Mom to Vegas next year, so anywhere I can cut costs without suffering is awesome. LOL

Christa wrote: "It really is. Especially since I need to save up to take my Mom to Vegas next year, so anywhere I can cut costs without suffering is awesome. LOL"

IKR??!


Oh, god. Please help me with Steam before I beat my head into my computer.

I already replied on that thread with a suggestion. Hopefully it helps. :)

fingers crossed

Now to a very important question: are you going to create a reading list?

I don't know. I mean, you realize the second I feel like I have to read something, I no longer want to. That's how contrary I am. I can't even take instructions from myself.

I do have some things that I definitely want to read that aren't already listed in my main challenge thread, though. Just... listing them doesn't make me any more likely to read them. LOL

LOL!

I know those feels. Why not...not create a list but check your books against the list when you're done.

Christa wrote: "I don't know. I mean, you realize the second I feel like I have to read something, I no longer want to. That's how contrary I am. I can't even take instructions from myself.

I do have some things ..."

So much all of this! LOL.

I gotta admit, I'm really, really curious why you want me to make a list. LOL Are you gonna steal my list? Or trap me into a buddy read? Hmmm? :P

It just so happens that I'm trying to extend my current read (already at 82%) a bit longer so that the next book I read will be finished after the year rolls over, so perhaps I could MAYBE put a little of that reading time into making a possible-maybe-I'll-read-maybe-I-won't list.

Maybe.

Would moi try to buddy-read you?

Yes. Yes, you would.

Be careful what you wish for, though. I did an impromptu buddy read with Doodles recently and I basically just bitched about the main character the whole time. :D