Annual reading challenge 2018- Join in on the Fun

[hulagirl87]

I just finished my first book of the year! Until I Break by Kara Bietz. I liked it a lot and I was crying at the end. About 2 boys who used to be friends and are now rivals. Competing in sports and for the same girl. And then there's a shooting.... It was good and had alternating chapters in "then" and "now" I like books like that and at points it made me anxious about how it was going to meet up in the "now" portion! Not sure what I'm going to read now, but I have a large pile to pick from!

 

[adelaster]

I'll join. My reading is abysmal these days so the encouragement to make time is nice! My goal is least twenty-two, but I'll be ok with twelve.

Updated with titles:

1. Born A Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood
2. Modern Romance
3. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
4. Daring Greatly
5. The Grapes of Wrath
6. My Life and Hard Times
7. The Fire Next Time
8. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian

 

[Swimnoid]

#1 for 2018
The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub
I had read this when it came out back in the 80s and loved it. Both King and Straub are favorite authors of mine. I wanted to re-read it since I have gotten a copy of Black House which is the sequel to the Talisman. I really didn't remember much of the action in the book so I really enjoyed it all over again.

#2. The People vs Alex Cross by James Patterson.
The latest installment of Alex Cross. They all pretty much take up where the last one left off and this was a good one.

 

[Christine]

Okay, first two books of the year done:

#1 - Watch Me Disappear - Janelle Brown - This book was compared to Big Little Lies and Gone Girl. It wasn't bad. It had me going until the end as to what was going to happen. I sort of saw it coming, then was convinced in another direction.
#2 - Little Broken Things - Nicole Baart - A suspenseful family drama that was just okay.

 

[KrazyPete]

#1 ”Thrawn” by Timothy Zahn
I liked it, I didn’t love it. Admiral Thrawn is intelligent and stoic. I can see the attraction some Star Wars fans have for this military mastermind. Given his character, his story was appropriately lacking in passion and suspense. For me, it fell a little flat.

 

[rebornat33]

I'd like to join if not too late. I'm going to go low as work is a bit crazy with long hours and not sure when it will calm down. I absolutely love to read and really miss the time I used to be able to devote to it. Let me go with 20. I'm hoping the commitment will jump start me again to find the time to squeeze it in.

 

[zippitydoo]

I want to join in. I think I would like to try to read 40 this year.

 

[tiggrbaby]

I'm here! Going to try for 90 this year...

 

[disneychrista]

#1 - Purity in Death by JD Robb

 

[jevs]

1. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

I have a couple of YA fiction that I bought the kids so will most likely start on those while they’re away. One is Otherworld by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller, and the other is The silent Invasion by James Bradley the first in The Chance Triology.

 

[Kewz1]

I’d like to join again! And hopefully this year I’ll remember to post on the books I read...

Put me down for 15, please.

 

[tiggrbaby]

#1/90: The Black Hand: The Epic War Between a Brilliant Detective and the Deadliest Secret Society in American History by Stephan Talty (4.5/5) (nonfiction)
True account of an Italian NYC detective and his battle against a violent group and the difficulties encountered dealing with prejudices during the early 1900s.

 

[xlsm]

I'll join! I've kept up in the past with decent goals but last year was a dumpster fire, and I don't think I posted more than a couple times on that thread, and barely read - which is not like me at all. So I'm setting an itty bitty goal of 12 with the hopes that I blow it out of the water. My old goals were four times that, so let's see if I can get back on track.

Getting ready to start You by Caroline Kepnes, and really looking forward to it!

 

[Tiggerish]

I want in for another year. But I have a different goal. I am not going to count the fluffy books I read to help ease me into sleep. So my goal is 52 books of some substance. To that end, I have completed my first book, Shanghai Girls by Lisa See. Set between the late 1930's when Japan began its aggressive take over of Asia and the 1950's McCarthy communist hunting, it follows two sister from a pampered life in Shanghai, fleeing the Japanese to surviving as poverty level immigrants in California. It was particularly interesting because of the information of how Chinese immigrants desperate to come to America circumvented or exploited the immigration process.

1/52

 

[willowsnn3]

#1 of 50

The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom

When a white servant girl violates the order of plantation society, she unleashes a tragedy that exposes the worst and best in the people she has come to call her family. Orphaned while onboard ship from Ireland, seven-year-old Lavinia arrives on the steps of a tobacco plantation where she is to live and work with the slaves of the kitchen house. Under the care of Belle, the master's illegitimate daughter, Lavinia becomes deeply bonded to her adopted family, though she is set apart from them by her white skin.

Eventually, Lavinia is accepted into the world of the big house, where the master is absent and the mistress battles opium addiction. Lavinia finds herself perilously straddling two very different worlds. When she is forced to make a choice, loyalties are brought into question, dangerous truths are laid bare, and lives are put at risk.

Excellent first book of the year!! Hoping as good as this one is, the rest of the year will follow. Last year nothing I read stood out to me.

 

[NJlauren]

#1 of 50

The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom

When a white servant girl violates the order of plantation society, she unleashes a tragedy that exposes the worst and best in the people she has come to call her family. Orphaned while onboard ship from Ireland, seven-year-old Lavinia arrives on the steps of a tobacco plantation where she is to live and work with the slaves of the kitchen house. Under the care of Belle, the master's illegitimate daughter, Lavinia becomes deeply bonded to her adopted family, though she is set apart from them by her white skin.

Eventually, Lavinia is accepted into the world of the big house, where the master is absent and the mistress battles opium addiction. Lavinia finds herself perilously straddling two very different worlds. When she is forced to make a choice, loyalties are brought into question, dangerous truths are laid bare, and lives are put at risk.

Excellent first book of the year!! Hoping as good as this one is, the rest of the year will follow. Last year nothing I read stood out to me.

I really liked this book as well! Very good read!

 

[kimblebee]

Because of this thread I went and renewed my library card. I’m not even sure when it expired lol

I had a bad habit of returning books late and racked up quite a tab on late fees. I’ve decided to stick to ebooks but I already miss holding a physical book. We’ll see how it goes..

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

#1 Origin by Dan Brown
Robert Langdon is at it again. Minding his own brilliant business when he gets sucked into another enormous adventure that develops around him. This time it swells around an ex student(an Elon Musk type of fella) of Robert's who is murdered just before he announces something that may breakdown all the religions. I for the most part love these books, though I guessed most of the ending of this one. Ending went on a little to long, and was so over dramatic with students reveal and how people would react. I mean it was almost laughable.

If anyone is interested, I would gladly send a kindle gift version of any of my works “Written for You”, “Three Twigs for the Campfire”, “Cemetery Girl” or “Reigning”. You can see them all reviewed at Goodreads. If you are interested in reading any just message me.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Book 1 of 20: The Legends of Luke Skywalker by Ken Liu

As a cargo ship rockets across the galaxy to Canto Bight, the deckhands on board trade stories about legendary Jedi Knight Luke Skywalker. But are the stories of iconic and mysterious Luke Skywalker true, or merely tall tales passed from one corner of the galaxy to another? Is Skywalker really a famous Jedi hero, an elaborate charlatan, or even part droid? The deckhands will have to decide for themselves when they hear The Legends of Luke Skywalker. A collection of myths and tall-tales about the legendary Jedi Luke Skywalker, written by Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy award-winning author Ken Liu.

I really appreciate the fact that this one author wrote 5 short stories about Luke in 5 distinct styles, and sewn them all together in a story about 5 crew members of a ship going to Canto Bight (the casino city from The Last Jedi). Now, these stories are of questionable validity, but the point isn't about how accurate the stories are, but rather what they tell us about Luke and the Force, and how the galaxy at large see about Luke and the Force. This ties in to one of the themes in The Last Jedi.

4 out of 5 stars.

Now reading: Death on the Nile

 

[NJlauren]

Book 1/40: Love life, and the list by: Kasie West, 2.5/5 stars.

This is a young adult novel, I have read a few of her books before two of which I loved. So I keep going back for more and the last few have been pretty disappointing. They are usually pretty fluffy but enjoyable, nothing overly specially about this book, it was just fine. I’ll read her next one, but I hope it’s a bit better then the last two.

I’m starting The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney