2025 Reading Challenge discussion

Here are my challenges for 2021, all of which I'm determined to actually reach this year!

Personal Challenge to read at least 50 books in the year.

1. 'Home Before Dark' by Riley Sager - finished on Kindle on 2nd Jan
2. 'The Last' by Hanna Jameson - finished on 4th Jan
3. 'Where the Crawdads Sing' by Delia Owens - finished on 7th Jan
4. 'The Vanishing Half' by Brit Bennett - finished on Kindle on 12th Jan
5. 'Conversations with Friends' by Sally Rooney - finished on Kindle on 15th Jan
6. 'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig - finished on 18th Jan
7. 'The Chalet' by Catherine Cooper - finished on Kindle on 19th Jan
8. 'Sister' by Rosamund Lupton - finished on 23rd Jan
9. 'The Book of Two Ways' by Jodi Picoult - finished on 27th Jan
10. 'Girls' Night Out' by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke - finished on Kindle on 31st Jan
11. 'The Family Upstairs' by Lisa Jewell - finished on 3rd Feb
12. 'Wonder' by R.J. Palacio - finished on Kindle on 5th Feb
13. 'My Dark Vanessa' by Kate Elizabeth Russell - finished on Kindle on 10th Feb
14. 'The Girl You Left Behind' by Jojo Moyes - finished on 16th Feb
15. 'Away with the Penguins' by Hazel Prior - finished on Kindle on 21st Feb
16. 'Last One at the Party' by Bethany Clift - finished on Kindle on 22nd Feb
17. 'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons - finished on 6th Mar
18. 'The Other People' by C.J. Tudor - finished on Kindle on 11th Mar
19. 'This Is How It Always Is' by Laurie Frankel - finished on Kindle on 27th Mar
20. 'Behind Her Eyes' by Sarah Pinborough - finished on Kindle on 19th Apr
21. 'Bunny' by Mona Awad - finished on Kindle on 26th Apr
22. 'The Wife Between Us' by Greer Hendricks - finished on Kindle on 29th Apr
23. 'The Sanatorium' by Sarah Pearse - finished on Kindle on 23rd May
24. 'Call Me Evie' by J.P. Pomare - finished on 30th May
25. 'The Wicked Girls' by Alex Marwood - finished on 7th Jun
26. 'The Lying Game' by Ruth Ware - finished on 29th Jun
27. 'The Secrets of Us' by Lucinda Berry - finished on Kindle on 20th Aug
28. 'The Island' by C.L. Taylor - finished on Kindle on 2nd Sep
29. 'Such a Fun Age' by Kiley Reid - finished on 2nd Sep
30. 'You and Me on Vacation' by Emily Henry - finished on Kindle on 6th Sep
31. 'The Dare' by Lesley Kara - finished on 21st Sep
32. 'The Push' by Ashley Audrain - finished on Kindle on 22nd Sep
33. 'The Last House Guest' by Megan Miranda - finished on Kindle on 29th Sep
34. 'The Hunger' by Alma Katsu - finished on Kindle on 20th Oct
35. 'The Burning Girls' by C.J. Tudor - finished on Kindle on 26th Oct
36. 'The Hollows' by Mark Edwards - finished on Kindle on 2nd Nov
37. 'The Country Village Christmas Show' by Cathy Lake - finished on Kindle on 14th Nov

Popsugar 2021

Aiming for 25 books in this one.

20/25

1. A book that published in 2021: 'Last One at the Party' by Bethany Clift
2. An Afrofuturist book:
3. A book that has a heart, diamond, club, or spade on the cover:
4. A book by an author who shares your zodiac sign: 'The Vanishing Half' by Brit Bennett
5. A dark academia book: 'My Dark Vanessa' by Kate Elizabeth Russell
6. A book with a gem, mineral, or rock in the title: Stone from 'DI Kim Stone #1' - 'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons
7. A book where the main character works at your current or dream job: 'Away with the Penguins' by Hazel Prior
8. A book that has won the Women’s Prize for Fiction:
9. A book with a family tree: 'The Family Upstairs' by Lisa Jewell
10. A bestseller from the 1990s:
11. A book about forgetting: 'The Dare' by Lesley Kara
12. A book you have seen on someone’s bookshelf (in real life, on a Zoom call, in a TV show, etc.): 'Sister' by Rosamund Lupton
13. A locked-room mystery:
14. A book set in a restaurant:
15. A book with a black-and-white cover:
16. A book by an indigenous author:
17. A book that has the same title as a song: 'Home Before Dark' by Riley Sager - a Neil Diamond song
18. A book about a subject you are passionate about:
19. A book that discusses body positivity:
20. A book on a Black Lives Matter reading list: 'Such a Fun Age' by Kiley Reid
21. A genre hybrid: 'The Last' by Hanna Jameson'
22. A book set mostly or entirely outdoors: 'Where the Crawdads Sing' by Delia Owens
23. A book with something broken on the cover:
24. A book by a Muslim American author:
25. A book that was published anonymously:
26. A book with an oxymoron in the title: 'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons
27. A book about do-overs or fresh starts: 'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig
28. A magical realism book:
29. A book set in multiple countries: 'The Book of Two Ways' by Jodi Picoult
30. A book set somewhere you’d like to visit in 2021 (or more likely 2022: 'Girls' Night Out' by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke
31. A book by a blogger, vlogger, YouTube video creator, or other online personality:
32. A book whose title starts with “Q,” “X,” or “Z”:
33. A book featuring three generations (grandparent, parent, child): 'Wonder
34. A book about a social justice issue:
35. A book in a different format than what you normally read (audiobooks, ebooks, graphic novels):
36. A book that has fewer than 1,000 reviews on Amazon or Goodreads:
37. A book you think your best friend would like: 'This Is How It Always Is' by Laurie Frankel
38. A book about art or an artist: 'The Girl You Left Behind' by Jojo Moyes
39. A book everyone seems to have read but you: 'Conversations with Friends' by Sally Rooney
40. Your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge:

Advanced:

41. The longest book (by pages) on your TBR list:
42. The shortest book (by pages) on your TBR list:
43. The book on your TBR list with the prettiest cover:
44. The book on your TBR list with the ugliest cover:
45. The book that’s been on your TBR list for the longest amount of time:
46. A book from your TBR list you meant to read last year but didn’t:
47. A book from your TBR list you associate with a favorite person, place, or thing:
48. A book from your TBR list chosen at random:
49. A DNF book from your TBR list:
50. A free book from your TBR list (gifted, borrowed, library):

Give us a Clue 2021

Going for 5 deductions from 15 books

Suspects
Read a book with any shade of the following colours on the cover:
Mr Green - green
Colonel Mustard - yellow
Mrs Peacock - blue
Professor Plum - purple
Miss Scarlet - red
Mrs White - white

Weapons
Read a book with the following word (or related word, not limited to the examples below) on the cover or in the title:
Candlestick or flames or fire
Dagger or knife or sword
Lead Pipe or musical instrument or writing instrument
Revolver or gun or pistol
Rope or string or ribbon
Wrench or spanner or any other tool

Rooms
Ballroom: Read a book which features a character who is a dancer
Billiard Room: Read a book that features your favourite hobby, game, sport or craft.
Cellar: In the board game, the solution can be found here so read a detective, mystery or true crime book
Conservatory: Read a book where a character has to save or conserve someone or something
Dining Room: Read a book with an item of food or drink on the cover
Hall: A hall tends to be the first room that welcomes you to the manor so read a book that is the first in a series.
Kitchen: Read a cookery book or a book with a chef as a character
Library: Read a book you have borrowed from a library or from someone else
Lounge: Here you can relax with a book in your favourite genre.
Secret Passages: Read a book with "secret" in the title
Study: Read a book about a subject you're passionate about or would like to learn more about

3/5

Deduction No.1: I deduce it was Mr Green in the Billiard Room with the Candlestick.
Books deduced from:
Suspect: 'Home Before Dark' by Riley Sager

Weapon: 'Last One at the Party' by Bethany Clift

Room: 'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig - reading as the hobby

Deduction No.2: I deduce it was Colonel Mustard in the Cellar with the Rope.
Books deduced from:
Suspect: 'Conversations with Friends' by Sally Rooney

Weapon: 'My Dark Vanessa' by Kate Elizabeth Russell

Room: 'Sister' by Rosamund Lupton

Deduction No.3: I deduce it was Mrs Peacock in the Study with the Candlestick.
Books deduced from:
Suspect: 'Wonder' by R.J. Palacio

Weapon: 'The Burning Girls' by C.J. Tudor

Room: 'The Book of Two Ways' by Jodi Picoult

Deduction No.4: I deduce it was [suspect] in the [room] with the [weapon].
Books deduced from:
Suspect:
Weapon:
Room:

Let's Turn Pages

20,000 pages in 2021.

January

'Home Before Dark' by Riley Sager - 397 pages
'The Last' by Hanna Jameson - 352 pages
'Where the Crawdads Sing' by Delia Owens - 185 out of 370 pages
'The Vanishing Half' by Brit Bennett - 350 pages
'Conversations with Friends' by Sally Rooney - 323 pages
'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig - 288 pages
'The Chalet' by Catherine Cooper - 400 pages
'Sister' by Rosamund Lupton - 358 pages
'The Book of Two Ways' by Jodi Picoult - 416 pages
'Girls' Night Out' by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke - 323 pages

Total pages: 3,392

February

'The Family Upstairs' by Lisa Jewell - 464 pages
'Wonder' by R.J. Palacio - 316 pages
'My Dark Vanessa' by Kate Elizabeth Russell - 385 pages
'The Girl You Left Behind' by Jojo Moyes - 516 pages
'Away with the Penguins' by Hazel Prior - 346 pages
'Last One at the Party' by Bethany Clift - 400 pages

Total pages: 2,427

March

'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons - 416 pages
'The Other People' by C.J. Tudor - 416 pages
'This Is How It Always Is' by Laurie Frankel - 336 pages

Total pages: 1,168

April

'Behind Her Eyes' by Sarah Pinborough - 320 pages
'Bunny' by Mona Awad - 320 pages
'The Wife Between Us' by Greer Hendricks - 416 pages

Total pages: 1,056

May

'The Sanatorium' by Sarah Pearse - 400 pages
'Call Me Evie' by J.P. Pomare - 368 pages

Total pages: 768

June

'The Wicked Girls' by Alex Marwood - 378 pages
'The Lying Game' by Ruth Ware - 464 pages

Total pages: 842

July

Total pages: 0

August

'The Secrets of Us' by Lucinda Berry - 271 pages

Total pages: 271

September

'The Island' by C.L. Taylor - 320 pages
'Such a Fun Age' by Kiley Reid - 310 pages
'You and Me on Vacation' by Emily Henry - 368 pages
'The Dare' by Lesley Kara - 381 pages
'The Push' by Ashley Audrain - 317 pages
'The Last House Guest' by Megan Miranda - 353 pages

Total pages: 2,049

October

'The Hunger' by Alma Katsu - 384 pages
'The Burning Girls' by C.J. Tudor - 400 pages

Total pages: 784

November

'The Hollows' by Mark Edwards - 335 pages
'The Country Village Christmas Show' by Cathy Lake - 400 pages

Total pages:

December

Total pages:

Total pages for 2021:

Colour Challenge

14/15

1. White: Wonder' by R.J. Palacio

2. Pink: 'Where the Crawdads Sing' by Delia Owens

3. Red: 'The Girl You Left Behind' by Jojo Moyes

4. Orange: 'My Dark Vanessa' by Kate Elizabeth Russell

5. Yellow: 'Conversations with Friends' by Sally Rooney

6. Green: 'Girls' Night Out' by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke

7. Light Blue: 'The Chalet' by Catherine Cooper

8. Dark Blue: 'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig

9. Purple:
10. Brown: 'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons

11. Black: 'The Last' by Hanna Jameson

12. Metallic: 'The Book of Two Ways' by Jodi Picoult

13. 5 or more colours: 'The Vanishing Half' by Brit Bennett

14. Geometric pattern:
15. Ugly (to you) cover: 'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons

16. Two or more colour words in title:
17. “Color” or “Colour” in title:
18. Word describing colour in title: Dark - 'Home Before Dark' by Riley Sager

A-Z Challenge - Character Edition

Starting with 20.

20/20

A - Ashley from Girls' Night Out by Liz Fenton & Lisa Steinke
B - Bobbi from 'Conversations with Friends' by Sally Rooney
C - Courtney from 'Silent Scream' by Angela Marsons
D - David from 'Behind Her Eyes' by Sarah Pinborough
E - Édouard Lefèvre from 'The Girl You Left Behind' by Jojo Moyes
F -
G - Ginette from 'Last One at the Party' by Bethany Clift
H - Hugo from 'The Chalet' by Catherine Cooper
I - Izzy from 'The Other People' by C.J. Tudor
J - Jon from 'The Last' by Hanna Jameson
K - Kya from Where the Crawdads Sing' by Delia Owens
L - Louisa Elm from 'The Midnight Library' by Matt Haig
M - Maggie Holt from 'Home Before Dark' by Riley Sager
N -
O - Oonagh from 'Troubled Blood' by Robert Galbraith
P - Phin from 'The Family Upstairs' by Lisa Jewell
Q -
R - Reese from 'The Vanishing Half' by Brit Bennett
S -
T - Tess from 'Sister' by Rosamund Lupton
U -
V - Vanessa from 'My Dark Vanessa' by Kate Elizabeth Russell
W - Wyatt Armstrong from 'The Book of Two Ways' by Jodi Picoult
X - Ximena from 'Wonder' by R.J. Palacio
Y -
Z - Zeya from 'This Is How It Always Is' by Laurie Frankel