MobileRead Book Challenges discussion

Goals:

* 52 books
* 20000 pages
* Keep my blog up to date
* Something with first-in-series?

Statistics:

Books read: 63
Pages read: 23124
Rereads: 3
Audio book: 3
New authors: 14
Abandoned books: 1

Active series:

* Matthew Corbett (2/7)
* Hillary Greene (3/17)
* The Paper Magician (2/4)
* Lady Darby (5/7)
* Pieter Vos (2/4)
* Black Winter (1/4)
* Wyman Ford (1/4)

Series finished/abandoned/back burner:
* Rizzoli & Isles
* The Beckoning Dead
* The Ulrich Files
* Agent Pendergast
* Peter Grant
* Graveyard: Classified
* Cold Hill House
* Shades of Magic
* Ruth Galloway
* The Shadow Police
* Sigma Force
* The Bayou Hauntings
* Sebatian St. Cyr
* Georgia (Grant County/Will Trent)
* Guido Brunetti
* Detective Harlan Ulrich
* The Anomaly Files
* Camino Island
* Vera Stanhope

First in series read: 7
First in series left: 133 (125)

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First!

Lol.

I am wishing you a Happy & Healthy 2020!

Thank you Nyssa!

I wish everyone a great 2020!

I've added the goal of keeping my blog up to date. Over the past year and a half I did keep my reading list up to date, but I hadn't posted anything since May 2018. I want to change that. I want to write a monthly blog about how my reading challenge is going. I also want to start writing reviews again, but I'm not sure how often.

I'm also thinking of posting a weekly update, where I can go more into detail of what I've read over the past week. An in between the monthly blog and a full review. I might also add updates about my other hobbies on that post; what series/films I"ve enjoyed, any other things I've done.

Year Zero by Jeff Long.
The right book at this time. I loved it and it was a great way to start the year.

Up next is the latest Rizzoli & Isles book, which was released almost two and a half years ago. I missed the initial release, only finding out about it recently.

I also haven't read the latest Cormoran Strike book (released over a year ago) yet. I plan to get to that after my reading retreat. In Februari four books of series I follow are published. I want to keep up to date again with those releases.

I Know A Secret by Tess Gerritsen.
A great book, why did I miss the release?

Also, two (proper length) books in just one week. Let's see how long I can keep this up.

I start every year strong. I think that's a weather thing. Lousy weather and colds equals lots of reading.

HomeInMyShoes wrote: "I start every year strong. I think that's a weather thing. Lousy weather and colds equals lots of reading."

For me it's going back to the normal routine. November and December are very busy in the store, I work extra hours and have to go downstairs outside of opening hours to deal with shipments and cleaning. The school vacation is over and although it's still busy things are back to normal, so I have time to read.

Also, I don't read a lot during the Christmas/New Year week; I'm expected to be social, and eventhough I can read in the livingroom (as long as there are no guests) I can't read as much as when I'm able to curl up on my bed all afternoon on a Sunday or Monday and read. This weekend I was able to do that again, and I loved it.

The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring
A good debut novel, with an original twist towards the end. I'm looking forward the release of Faring's next book in September.

The Haunting of Rainier Asylum by Ambrose Ibsen
A good second book. Though, the box of files from her deceased parents the main character got at the end of the first book doesn't play a role in this sequel. At the end it is implied she will get to it in the next book.

The House Next Door by Darcy Coates.
Another good book, I liked the twist, which made the story a lot more original than other, similar, books. I only have a few of her books left to read.

I'm reading a lot this vacation. I am choosing books I like. But that's nothing is as frustrating than picking books you end up disliking or are even just uninterested in during your vacation. I am afraid I'll fall into a major reading slump after my vacation, having burned out. But at least I will be ahead several books.

Five Nights in a Haunted Cabin by Tamara Thorne & Alistair Cross.

A nice, but short, recount of Thorne & Cross's time in a supposedly haunting cabin. Thorne is also a paranormal investigator, but both of them always try to find a normal solution for things happening. I like how they're not afraid to admit they were scared.

Darkside Blues by Ambrose Ibsen.
A lot better than the second book in the series, the first book was the best in the series IMHO. I saw today that there is a follow up series, last year the first book was released.

Not sure yet what to read next. Am I going for another safe and short-ish choice or do I start one of the longer books on my Kobo.

I've had my Kobo for about 6 months now and I love it. The battery lasts longer than my previous Kindles and it charges quicker. It has some quirks; most notably that the page count doesn't correspond with the percentage of how far you are in the book. But I can live with those.

The Whisper Man by Alex North.
Another debut novel, and another book that I've had on my Kobo for a while now (since its release?). A good, solid book, with some paranormal hints. A bit too predictable at times for me, but, again, for a debut novel it isn't bad at all.

This was the last book of my vacation, I hadn't expected to finish it today. Six books and 1606 pages is not a bad score. Up next is a novella. Maybe I finish it, depending how much I manage to read tonight and tomorrow morning before I get picked up, but I don't think I'll finish it.

Now it time to start packing and go to bed early I think (the joys of getting a throat infection on your vacation and don't sleep much because your afraid you wake up the neighbours with your coughing).

Wow. You are really piling the titles on so far.

The Haunting of Maple Mansion by Carrie Bates
Meh. It felt like the start of an interesting haunted house book, but at the point where the main character is supposed to get down to business she's instead like "never mind".

As predicted I didn't read much in the past week. Though not due to a reading funk but due to a nasty cold/throat thing. I'm still coughing like crazy, though it's slowly getting better (might still go to the doctor if it doesn't improve quickly enough). I'm just really annoyed that I haven't been able to concentrate on reading or anything creative since coming home from vacation on Monday.

Those Across the River by Christopher Buehlman.
A good story, though it has a bit of a slow start.

January has been so-so. I had a good start, mainly thanks to my annual Reading Retreat.. But a nasty cold/respiratory infection caused me not to read most of last week and I didn't read a huge amount this week (feeling a lot better, but I still get tired easily). So I"m not sure if I'm climbing out of my reading slump. But I haven't read this much since September, so that's at least something.

You're getting a lot of books in this month. I got that same cold thing going on. It's a pain.

Stephanie wrote: "You're getting a lot of books in this month. I got that same cold thing going on. It's a pain."

It is. It's going on for two and a half weeks now and it still isn't gone. But at least the non-stop coughing has stopped and I can sleep reasonable well again.

The number of books is mostly due to them being short. My page count average so far this year is below 300 pages. I do have a couple of longer books on my TBR-soon list, though.

The Glass Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg.
I liked this better than the first book. It was less rushed.

Up next a reread. I read the first two books in a trilogy years ago, but the last book had geographical restrictions until recently. But I need to refresh my memory of the first two books again before finishing the series.

I just realized I'm procrastinating on finishing my current read because I don't know what book to read next.

I plan to read a long(er) book and have narrowed it down to three
Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk
The Institute by Stephen King
The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley

But I simply have no idea what I'm in the mood for.

The Dark Man by Desmond Doane.
Although I forgot most of the story of this book, I did remember the overarching story of the series. I enjoyed this book a lot. A fun ghost story.

I've decided to read Lucinda Riley's book next. It's not something I would pick normally, but the latest book was recently released and there was quite a hype about it on TV and other media. So I want to see what the fuss is about and if it lives up to the hype.

Decided to take a break from my current read. The book started out great, but then it started lagging (for me, it's a more romantic section). I'm half way through now but haven't read anything since Monday. Not a good sign.

So now something completely different, the second book in The Shadow Police Series.

I do want to finish The Seven Sisters, but I might read 10-15% sections between other books

I keep trying to get to The Institute too. I have too many long books I think. :)

I started The Institute a few days ago. I'm about 1/4th in and I'm enjoying it so far. I, too, had been wavering on my potential longer reads but the library hold came in sooner than expected and solved the problem for me. :D

The Institute is the next long book I'm going to tackle. I'm currently reading one of my first-in-series, which looks like a series I'm going to put on my waiting list.

The Severed Streets by Paul Cornell.
A good book, though the main characters are all over the place. I love the inclusion of a fictional (I hope) Neil Gaiman. There's one more book left in the series so far. It was supposed to be a 5 part series, but Tor dropped it. It's uncertain if the last two books are going to be released. So I do hope there will be some answers in the next book. In the next book the ghost of Sherlock Holmes is killed and the team has to solve it. I expect I'll get to it sooner rather than later.

The Anatomist's Wife by Anna Lee Huber
I really liked this book, I enjoy historical mysteries, but often the romance aspect is too much for me. This one wasn't too cozy, the main character was relatable for me and though there was a bit of romance it wasn't too much. Added to my series waiting list and another first-in-series struck off my list.

Since I got sick halfway through my vacation last month and all the goings on with the Family Thing (good news, but stress waiting for it) I've decided to get away from it all a couple of days next month. So now I'll have to go on the look out for reading material. Some fun and easy horror and/or ghost stories as usual.

Crooked River by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child.
The last couple of book in the Agent Pendergast series were okay at best. I liked this one a lot better, I feel because it focused on the mystery rather than Pendergast strange ways to solve cases. It's also longer than the previous books, so there's more space to tell the story properly.

The White Night by Desmond Doane
A reread.
Still three stars, mainly because in the first half the two male main characters have a bit too many observations about the female body. Also, many chapters end with sentences like "little did we know" and "how wrong was I". Which also got on my nerves. It's still a good story, though. All that's left of this trilogy is the final book, the one I haven't read before.

February wasn't too bad, 2355 pages read, where normally my average is 2700. So, not to far behind, despite being sick at the start of the month and one book I did not finish (I did count the pages I read).

But now I'm going to read Makaryk's Nottingham. A longer book. I want to try and read at least two of those in March.

I just factory reset my Kobo. After the update earlier this week I got a bit enthusiastic with messing about with the KoboExtendedDriver to get the new series feature to work. I messed up, and it would be quicker to start again then to repair. Hopefully thing will be okay now.

Meanwhile, I decided to take a break from Nottingham, which I'm really enjoying, but which also turns out to be a slow read for me. I chose a shorter story by Jeremy Bates.

Black Canyon by Jeremy Bates.
A good novella. I'm usually not one for short stories or novellas, but for this story it was the right length. It reminded me of Patrick Hockstetter's storyline in Stephen King's It.

Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk.
A very good read. Don't expect a swashbuckling story. This one focuses and a bunch of the important characters and their motivations. Even though it was a slow read it was interesting to see things from a lot of different points of view.

To be honest, it wasn't just the book's fault it was a slow read. The last couple of weeks have been stressful with the Corona virus. My mother is very much at risk if she catches it. I found that diamond painting and listening to podcasts whilst doing that are a better distraction than reading.

I expect that in the next couple of days all stores except pharmacies and supermarket are to close for a while, including our store. It might sound silly, but that would give me a bit more peace of mind. Not having to get into contact with customers, hoping that they're responsible and not sick.

A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab
and
Utopia by Lincoln Chlid

Both great reads.

The Island by Clarissa Johal

Yesterday I subscribed to Audible for my month free trial. I have a lot of podcasts I want to start listening to, but I couldn't find anything that interest me. Since it's quieter in the store I'm working less and have more free time to do other things.

I've chosen Usher's Passing by Robert R. McCammon and two Audible exclusives. I was tempted to go for Stephen King's The Stand, since it's over 40 hours long. Although I have been thinking of rereading it for a while I don't think I'm in the mood for it now. Maybe next month.

I can listen to it whilst diamond painting, sketching or watercolouring. I find that those distract me more than reading at the moment. I have a hard time concentrating on books, even those I like.

I will count audiobook towards my yearly total and log them with the number of pages of (one of) the paperback editions.

In other the government have extended the measures to put into place until 28 April, up from 6 April. If everything goes well the measures might be slowly reduced from that date, or it might be extended again. The "intelligent" lockdown might also become a full lockdown. But for now I have more time on my hands. The wise thing to do would be to start tidying up, but I know that won't happen. I'm happy if I can get myself to be more creative again.

False Value by Ben Aaronovitch

Aaronovitch has been on my list for a while. Is the series good that far in?

Yes, I really enjoyed this latest book. IMHO it holds up better than The Dresden Files. Aaronovitch can go a bit too detailed into architectural details, but I don't mind that.