Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Really want to read a certain book in 2024, but can't seem to figure out if it will fit into a Challenge category? Get help here!

Hey everyone! I just wanted to hop on here and say I work as a librarian if anyone needs recommendations for that prompt :) Happy reading in 2024!

Do you think I could count Game of Thrones as a cozy fantasy? One person's "violent death and destruction" is another person's "cozy," right???

Whitney wrote: "Hey everyone! I just wanted to hop on here and say I work as a librarian if anyone needs recommendations for that prompt :) Happy reading in 2024!"


Will you please recommend A Little Bit Wicked by Kristin Chenowith to me? Lol!

I'd like to enter the Grishaverse in 2024...would Shadow and Bone fit any of the prompts?

Does The Neverending Story take place in one day?

what is this prompt saying where a character sleeps for more than 24 hours?? How in the heck would we figure that out? Or just takes place over multiple days and they sleep "off the page"?

Britany wrote: "what is this prompt saying where a character sleeps for more than 24 hours?? How in the heck would we figure that out? Or just takes place over multiple days and they sleep "off the page"?"

Lots of Sleeping Beauty retellings, sci-fi with characters in stasis, books about mysterious sleeping sicknesses. I recommend Thornhedge, but the individual threads and listopias in this group will have loads of ideas in a few days.

Laura wrote: "Do you think I could count Game of Thrones as a cozy fantasy? One person's "violent death and destruction" is another person's "cozy," right???"

I feel GoT is as far from cosy as you can get but you do you.

Britany wrote: "what is this prompt saying where a character sleeps for more than 24 hours?? How in the heck would we figure that out? Or just takes place over multiple days and they sleep "off the page"?"




RIGHT??? How the heck did they come up with that one??? I've never read a book by Ottessa Moshfegh and I see her recommended a lot for the kinds of books I like, so I think I'll try the book Popsugar recommends: My Year of Rest and Relaxation. But I'm also liking the idea of a Sleeping Beauty retelling (it's my favorite Disney Princess movie!) so Thornhedge is my backup plan if I hate Moshfegh. Kingfisher has NEVER failed me.

Ellie wrote: "Lots of Sleeping Beauty retellings, sci-fi with characters in stasis, books about mysterious sleeping sicknesses."

You are brilliant Ellie- when I first read through the list my mind could not compute this.

Yes, I jotted both of these down Nadine in my list of ideas. :)

These are the books I have planned for January.

Can someone help me fit all or some!?

Six of Crows
My Year of Rest and Relaxation
The Proposal
War Storm
Does It Hurt?

Does Intensity by Dean Koontz take place in one 24-hour day?

Ashleigh wrote: "These are the books I have planned for January.

Can someone help me fit all or some!?

Six of Crows
My Year of Rest and Relaxation
The Proposal ..."


I've got Year of Rest pencilled in for "character sleeps for 24 hours."


Six of Crows has a lot of snow in it, so you could try using it for "book set in the snow."

Ashleigh wrote: "These are the books I have planned for January.

Can someone help me fit all or some!?

Six of Crows
My Year of Rest and Relaxation
The Proposal..."

Six of Crows has more than 3 POVs, and also (IIRC) a character dies in the first chapter. One of the relationships in it is an enemies to lovers romance.

From reading the blurb, it looks like one of the characters in The Proposal is a writer, so it could satisfy a book about a writer.

I have several series that have been sitting on my shelves for a long time, can anyone tell me where they fit?

—A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas

—The Dark Tower series by Stephen King

—The Daevabad trilogy by SA Chakraborty

—Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo

Jennifer wrote: "I have several series that have been sitting on my shelves for a long time, can anyone tell me where they fit?..."

Ali is 24 in The Empire of Gold, Nahri starts off the series aged 20, but there is a big gap between the books and I can't remember if she's actually 24 during any of them. Most the POVs are Nahri and Ali but I think all the books have other POVs for a small portion, so maybe 3 POVs.

If you count privateers as pirates, you could use Siege and Storm. While I can't really remember details from the books now, the TV show certainly has bits set in snow.

I'm sure you can find a bookseller and librarian who recommends them too.

Laura wrote: "Whitney wrote: "Hey everyone! I just wanted to hop on here and say I work as a librarian if anyone needs recommendations for that prompt :) Happy reading in 2024!"


Will you please recommend A Lit..."

Consider it recommended lol

Ellie wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "I have several series that have been sitting on my shelves for a long time, can anyone tell me where they fit?..."

Ali is 24 in The Empire of Gold, Nahri starts of..."
This librarian HIGHLY recommends Six of Crows and ACOTAR. I haven't read the other two series

Jennifer wrote: "I have several series that have been sitting on my shelves for a long time, can anyone tell me where they fit?

—A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas

—The Dark Tower series by Stephe..."

As I said in the last post, I can recommend ACOTAR and Six of Crows. Idk about the other two series. Additionally:

ACOTAR - a bildungsroman, a book with an enemies-to-lovers plot
ACOMAF - a book with an enemies-to-lovers
ACOWAR - a book where somebody dies in the first chapter
ACOFAS - a book set in the snow, a cozy fantasy book
ACOSF - a boo with an enemies-to-lovers plot, a book with an unreliable narrator

SOC - a book where someone dies in the first chapter, an enemies-to-lovers plot, a book with at least 3 POVs
CK - a book with at least 3 POVs

could also potentially be a genre you avoid

Does anyone know if The Marriage Portrait fits any of the specific prompts? I can use it for bookseller/librarian recommendations, or even the bucket list travel prompt since I want to travel to Italy. But I would at first like to see if this book fits a specific prompt! I thought maybe based on the premise someone dies in the first chapter but I'm too afraid to research further in case I read spoilers.

Susan wrote: "Does anyone know if The Marriage Portrait fits any of the specific prompts? I can use it for bookseller/librarian recommendations, or even the bucket list travel prompt since I want..."

do you typically read Historical Fiction? Could be your "genre you typically avoid". Considering the character is also 15, could be a Bildungsroman since it's "coming of age" technically.

Anyone know where Lessons in Chemistry would fit?

Whitney wrote: "Jennifer wrote: "I have several series that have been sitting on my shelves for a long time, can anyone tell me where they fit?

—A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas

—The Dark Tower..."

Thanks! Romantasy is definitely a category I usually avoid.

Sabedra wrote: "Anyone know where Lessons in Chemistry would fit?"

There is a bit of enemies to lovers plot.

Sabedra wrote: "Anyone know where Lessons in Chemistry would fit?"

You could use it for magical realism, the dog reads Proust. Some bits are from the dog's POV too.

Where would these books fit? They are on my book club list for 2024...

- Red Queen series
- A Discovery of Witches series
- A Cruel Prince series

I'm not sure about Red Queen. A Discovery of Witches magical realism? A Cruel Prince, I saw it might work for enemies to lovers?

Brodie wrote: "Where would these books fit? They are on my book club list for 2024...

- Red Queen series
- A Discovery of Witches series
- A Cruel Prince series

I'm not sure about Red Queen. A Discovery of Witc..."

Cruel Prince series DEFINITELY works for enemies-to-lovers through all three books. Red Queen & Cruel Prince (books 1) are also bildungsromans. Depending on your definition of "cozy", you could do How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories (which is delightful). If I'm not mistaken, I believe Jude sleeps over a day in book 2. I would recommend that series, so it can also go for your librarian one if you want xD

Brodie wrote: "Where would these books fit? They are on my book club list for 2024...

- Red Queen series
- A Discovery of Witches series
- A Cruel Prince series

I'm not sure about Red Queen. A Discovery of Witc..."



DoW definitely works for cozy fantasy.


Red Queen is sort of a dystopian and at one point they are in a NYC subway car or something, so that means it's in the future, so you could read it for set in the future.

Whitney wrote: "Brodie wrote: "Where would these books fit? They are on my book club list for 2024...

- Red Queen series
- A Discovery of Witches series
- A Cruel Prince series

I'm not sure about Red Queen. A Di..."

Thank you!

Nadine in NY wrote: "Brodie wrote: "Where would these books fit? They are on my book club list for 2024...

- Red Queen series
- A Discovery of Witches series
- A Cruel Prince series

I'm not sure about Red Queen. A Di..."

Thank you!

I have to read the following books for a different challenge (the oldest on my tbr) so just wondering if anybody can fit any these anywhere? I'd be happy with even just a couple! :D Thanks!

The Gown by Jennifer Robson
American Nations by Colin Woodard
Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier
Renegades by Marissa Meyer
The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
The Exiles by Christina Baker Kline
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano
Earthlings by Sayaka Murata
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
The Book of Longings by Sue Monk Kidd

Tricia wrote: "I have to read the following books for a different challenge (the oldest on my tbr) so just wondering if anybody can fit any these anywhere? I'd be happy with even just a couple! :D Thanks!

The Go..."

I have only read a few of those. A lot of these will work for Bildungsroman. You can probably find them on lists recommended by librarians & booksellers, also, and maybe some are in a "bucket list destination" for you.


Earthlings has portions set in snow, a somewhat unreliable narrator & she is neurodivergent. (She believes in aliens, as a coping mechanism after trauma - whether you want to pencil that is as "unreliable" or "neurodivergent" is up to you.) It's got some very disturbing scenes, so you could perhaps classify it as horror.


I could be wrong but I think someone dies in the first chapter of Glass Hotel. There are ghosts, so you can say it's magical realism. And I'm almost certain there are more than 3 POVs.

Untamed - I haven't read it, but isn't that the memoir where she discovers she's queer? so that could be a memoir exploring queerness.

Renegades could be said to be set in the future (it's never spelled out - is this an alternate world? or is it our future world?), and it's kinda sorta got an enemies-to-lovers subplot. It's definitely a Bildungsroman. There are at least 2 POVs, I can't remember if there are 3.

I can't find a category for Transcendent Kingdom, other than looking for it on "recommended" lists. She's 28 years old, so it doesn't work for the 24 yo one.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Tricia wrote: "I have to read the following books for a different challenge (the oldest on my tbr) so just wondering if anybody can fit any these anywhere? I'd be happy with even just a couple! :D ..."

Thanks! This really helps.

Looking for help trying to fit a few books on my 2024 tbr into the popsugar reading challenge:

Don't Look Back, by Karin Fossum
Idlewild, by Nick Sagan
After the Forest, by Kell Woods
The Starless Sea, by Erin Morgenstern
The Woman in Me, by Britney Spears <-- OMG SHE IS 42 GTFOH
Smoke and Iron, by Rachel Caine
Muse of Nightmares, by Laini Taylor

I plan to read these even if I can't make them work for any of the prompts, but my tbr is so unwieldy that I'm hoping to have a bunch of overlap LOLOL ... thanks for your help!

The Woman is Me works for #44 - a woman in rock n roll.
Muse of Nightmares is a fantasy book.
The Starless Sea is also fantasy or magical realism, and I've seen it recommended by librarians and booksellers.
Don't Look Back is a complete sentence - #31.
Idlewild's goodreads blurb says it's set in the future. And it sounds like someone dies in the first chapter, but I haven't read it so can't be sure. Could also qualify for #30 - single word title you have to look up.
After the Forest is also fantasy, and set in Australia - not sure if that's a travel bucket list for you, but it happens to be for me. :) Might also work for Cozy Fantasy - #38.
Smoke and Iron is also fantasy, so you have lots of choices for that one.

Andi-Roo wrote: "Looking for help trying to fit a few books on my 2024 tbr into the popsugar reading challenge..."

Depending how strict you're being, you can use The Starless Sea for video games, main character is a gamer, studying games, and the whole thing is like an ode to game narratives without it actually being about a game.

My copy of Smoke and Iron has a dragon on the cover, so maybe it has dragons in it but I haven't read it yet.

Andi-Roo wrote: "Looking for help trying to fit a few books on my 2024 tbr into the popsugar reading challenge:

Don't Look Back, by Karin Fossum
Idlewild, by Nick Sagan
After the Forest, by Kell Woods
The Starles..."



The only book I've read on that list is Muse of Nightmares, and it doesn't fit well into any of our 2024 categories. A main character dies at the end of the first book, and if they reprise that death, then you'll have someone die in the first chapter.

It's kinda sorta got an "enemies to lovers" plot, but that's a weak connection since they were never truly enemies.

Since it's all about Lazlo controlling dreams and meeting Sarai in dreams, it's possible that someone sleeps more than 24 hours at some point? but I can't remember if that actually happens.

Nadine in NY wrote: "Since it's all about Lazlo controlling dreams and meeting Sarai in dreams, it's possible that someone sleeps more than 24 hours at some point? but I can't remember if that actually happens...."

Oh, I seem to recall they give one character a sleeping drug...so it's quite possible they're out for more than a day.

Tricia wrote: "I have to read the following books for a different challenge (the oldest on my tbr) so just wondering if anybody can fit any these anywhere? I'd be happy with even just a couple! :D Thanks!

The Go..."

Depending on your knowledge of their definitions, Renegades and Caste could be a one word title you had to look up. Any of them could potentially be a genre you avoid.

Here's some books I have on hold...

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine
The Stand by Stephen King
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar

Help! Thank you!

Deb wrote: "Here's some books I have on hold...

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine
The Stand by Stephen King
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Counting the Co..."

My Roommate is a Vampire and Meet Me at the Lake are both books with a title that's a complete sentence. Depending on if you count paranormal as "magical realism", MRIAV could also be magical realism. I would have to look at it, but it seems likely The Stand might have someone die in the first chapter. Christina Lauren is a pseudonym for two authors, so that's the pen name one.

Deb wrote: "Here's some books I have on hold...

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine
The Stand by Stephen King
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Counting the Co..."

The Unhoneymooners - Christina Lauren is a pen name, and I think I saw someone say this was their 24th book.

The Stand - someone definitely dies in the first chapter.

I'm not familiar with the others, though.

Deb wrote: "The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren..."

I haven't done the counting on this yet but someone mentioned it in the thread for an author's 24th book.

Deb wrote: "Here's some books I have on hold...

The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren
My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine
The Stand by Stephen King
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Counting the Co..."

Does Counting the Cost cover the year she was 24?

Someone recommended Lucky. Having trouble getting it to fit somewhere based on description alone. Any ideas?

Allison wrote: "Someone recommended Lucky. Having trouble getting it to fit somewhere based on description alone. Any ideas?"



Any chance the person recommending it was a bookseller or a librarian? hahaha!

I don't' know this book so this is all guess work ...

Or maybe Lucky is 24? or she's unreliable? the description doesn't say. Perhaps the author is hard of hearing or visually impaired, or wrote this during NaNoWriMo? Maybe the recommender was thinking it's a Bildungsroman, or a one word title (although I don't know anyone who would need to look up "lucky"!)

Nadine in NY wrote: "Allison wrote: "Someone recommended Lucky. Having trouble getting it to fit somewhere based on description alone. Any ideas?"



Any chance the person recommending it was a booksell..."


When looking at it again I think it was Reese Witherspoon's book pick one month. It has been on my TBR list for a bit. I think I'm just gonna put it in the one word title slot.

Allison wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote: "Allison wrote: "Someone recommended Lucky. Having trouble getting it to fit somewhere based on description alone. Any ideas?"



Any chance the person recommend..."

It's about a grifter. High probability it's an unreliable narrator.