7 XI 2009 - 6 XI 2010



1) Jack the Page Ripper (15 books):

5: ???
4: ???
3: ???
2: (Shifters, #6 & #7) by Rachel Vincent
Shift & Alpha
1: (Rachel Morgan/The Hollows, #8) by Kim Harrison
Black Magic Sanction

2) Una-book-bomber (5 books):

chick-lit: Changeless (Parasol Protectorate, #2) by Gail Carriger
romance: ???
mystery: Rosemary and Rue (October Daye, #1) by Seanan McGuire
urban-fantasy: Night Shift (Jill Kismet, #1) by Lilith Saintcrow
young adult: Spirit Bound (Vampire Academy, #5) by Richelle Mead

3) Spree Series Killer (1+ book): (new author)

1. Vulnerable (Little Goddess, #1) by Amy Lane <--disappointing
2. The Curse of the Mistwraith (Wars of Light & Shadow, Arc 1, #1) by Janny Wurts

4) Author-ican Psycho (1 book) DONE
Fire by Kristin Cashore (prequel to Graceling)

5) Dr. Hannibal Lecturer (1 book): (everybody wants me to read it)

Foundation (Foundation, #1) by Isaac Asimov

6) The Book Strangler (1+ books): (whole series)

Steven Erikson - Gardens of the Moon (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #1)
(not sure about this one, it's already 9 books long and still going...)

7) 3rd Degree (3 books): (trilogy)

Daughter of the Forest (The Sevenwaters Trilogy, #1) + the 2 following

My TBR Challenge:

1. The Shipping News
2. Stranger in a Strange Land (from alternate list)
3. A Handful of Dust
4. Dracula

Alternate/Back-up List:

1. My Side of the Mountain
2. Black Magic Woman
3. The Color Purple
4. White Oleander

December (6 read)



1. D for December: The Double
2. Birthday Book: Paper Towns (Kristen)
3. Ohio: Riders of the Purple Sage
4. Winter Themed: Snow Falling on Cedars / March
5. Christmas Themed: ???Winter's Tale or One Man's Bible
6. Children's Day: Enna Burning
7. May-December: Bonjour Tristesse
8. Another Challenge: The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way (Read the month December)
9. Romance: The Vampire Queen's Servant (Berkley Trade)
10. Pick-It-Form Me: The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty

It's A Jungle Out There! Challenge (Sept 1 - Nov 30)



1. dogs: Sharp Teeth
2. cats: Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
3. other mammals: A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America Along the Appalachian Trail
4. fish: Trout Fishing in America
5. birds: The Maltese Falcon
6. reptiles: The Enormous Crocodile
7. amphibians: Beastly (Frog character in the book)
8. insects: The Shrinking Man
9. mythical creatures: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Bonus (human hybrid): Hunting Ground (werewolf)

November (4 read)


1. N for November................................Nip the buds shoot the kids
2. B-day book........................................The Color Purple (Tara's shelf)
3. Geography: New York.......................What I Talk About When I Talk About Running (NYC marathon)
4. Fall Theme........................................Vulnerable
5. DST Change: Time............................[b:]
6. Native American Heritage Month.....Plague of Doves
7. One author two names (Book #1)......[b:]
8. One author two names (Book #1)......[b:]
9. Romantic suspense...........................[b:]
10. Pick It For Me.................................Night Shift

Thanks Yz, I had a great time and I do feel fresh and relaxed, although the whole experience was physically straining, we were trekking mountains every single day. Good times. Luckily, aside from one day, the weather was just splendid.

Welcome back, Kasia! Hope your vacation energized you.

October (9 read)


1. O for October..................Of mice and men
2. B-day book.....................Catching Fire (me!)
3. Michigan.........................Middlesex
4. Halloween.......................A Touch of Dead
5. 2 Authors........................On the Edge
6. Mystery-Crime................Fractured
7. UN..................................Sky Burial: An Epic Love Story of Tibet (Tibet, China, UK)
8. Sea..................................The Shipping News
9. Paranormal.....................Deerskin
10. Pick It For Me...............Dragon's Bait

Yes, I liked it better. There's still room for improvement, I still have problems with several things. But definitely it was less annoying this time... Anyways, not my favorite series, as you can tell, but decent enough to keep on reading.

I noticed your comment on Prey, I'm patiently waiting on mine to arrive. Was it better than the last book?

well thanks im glad to be welcome

Hi Keagan! Welcome to the group ;)

wow

September (10 read)



1. S for September....................Spindle's End
2. B-day book...........................Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex (colleen)
3. Canada..................................Neuromancer (Gibson is American-Canadian)
4. Editors and Writers..............Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History
5. GR author.............................Wicked Lovely (Melissa Marr)
6. Labor Day.............................Triptych (car wash worker)
7. Hispanic culture...................Blue of Noon (Spain)
8. Animal on the cover..............The Enormous Crocodile
9. Historical Fiction..................Half of a Yellow Sun (Civil war in Nigeria)
10. Pick It For Me.....................Blue Bloods

2009 A-Z Character Challenge July 01, 2009 (December 31, 2009)

DONE!

A - Arturo the Aqua-Boy (Geek Love)
B - Bones (Destined for an Early Grave)
C - Catherine (Catherine Called Birdy)
D - Dennis Barlow (The Loved One)
E - Eleanor (The Haunting of Hill House)
F - Faythe Sanders (Prey)
G - Golightly, Doc (Breakfast at Tiffany's)
H - Howl (Howl's Moving Castle)
I - Ida Mancini (Choke)
J - Joanne Baldwin (Cape Storm)
K - Kaylee (My Soul to Lose)
L - Lilith (Delta of Venus)
M - Mariam (A Thousand Splendid Suns)
N - Mr. Norrell (Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell)
O - Olive (Ella Enchanted)
P - Portnoy (Portnoy's Complaint)
Q - Quentin (The Magicians)
R - Roe Teagarden (Dead Over Heels)
S - Sam O’Neill (The Likeness)
T - Tor (The Hero and the Crown)
U - Ueko (Beauty and Sadness)
V - Verne (The Lonesome Gods)
W - Will Trent (Undone)
X - Xenie (Blue of Noon)
Y - Yidl (Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began)
Z - Zachary (Beautiful Lies)

ARMCHAIR TRAVELERS (June 21st - Sept 21st)

challenge ended

Option #1:
Around the World in 80 Days:
Read a book set somewhere on each continent (Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia).

1. Beauty and Sadness (Asia: Japan)
2. Bel Canto (South America)
3. Icebound* (Arctic)
4. Geek Love (North America: Portland, USA)
5. Crap at the Environment (Australia)
6. Half of a Yellow Sun (Africa)
7. Welcome To The Real World (Europe: UK)

Option #2:
Tour the Continent: (Europe excluding the UK, Ireland, and Iceland)
Read books set in 7 countries scattered around Europe.

1. Story of the Eye (Spain)
2. Venus in Furs (Austria)
3. Necroscope (Romania)
4. Night (Hungary/Poland)
5. A Hunger Like No Other (France)
6. For the Good of the Cause (Russia)
7. Bluebird: A Memoir (Bosnia)
8. A Farewell to Arms (Italy) (BONUS)


____________________________________________________________________
* Arctic instead of Antarctica

Thank you Nichole! that's honest and more objective than what I was saying. But I do still feel like and asshole... That hasn't changed ;(

And my mother could handle the content of this book easy, (I wouldn't recommend it to her though, cuz she's very into mystery and thrillers...) And yes, there was some heavy shit going on in TTTW but I still got the love-conquers-all vibe. Maybe that's why I got so aware of my doucheness... LOL

Briansgirl wrote: "I'll keep the book in mind as I need to fill slots this summer. If my Illinois books stinks, I think someone said this book qualifies for that category."

Yeah, it's set in Chicago.

I'll keep the book in mind as I need to fill slots this summer. If my Illinois books stinks, I think someone said this book qualifies for that category.

I'll push it on you, Briansgirl! I have no problem saying The Time Traveller's Wife is my favorite book of all time. So far I've read it 3 times, and I anticipate probably reading it 1-2 times a year from here on out.
It being my favorite book and all, I sometimes read it with the thought in mind that I want everyone I know to read it too, and with that in mind I have to disagree with Kasia a little, though. I cannot recommend this book to my mom or my sister, because there is language and graphic sex in it. I barely noticed it, but when I kept my mom in mind I started to see how much there really was.
I also thought the time travel was handled very well. It could have been a complete mess, but she kept it very neat and clean. It wasn't confusing at all.

Kasia, I'm very baffled by your reaction, though. The book was undeniably romantic, but I didn't really think it had that "love conquers all" thing going on. A lot of really crappy stuff happened. And I also don't think having a more realistic and cynical view of life or love makes you an asshole at all.

It's one I wanted to get to eventually. I bought it at the local used bookstore. I have to be in the right mood to read time travel books though.

You don't have to, I'm not trying to push this one on you. LOL. Just saying it's not that scary....

Maybe I'll have to work it into a challenge soon then.

You know, it wasn't too confusing, the time traveling was laid out fair and square: each time shift was labeled and I was given information - who figures in the scene, what's their age. And even though the book was longish, it read pretty fast....

It sounded different. The only thing though is it isn't a really short book and it's a bit complicated to understand all the time traveling. The one thing about reading so many books for challenges is that I stay away from long or complicated books, so I have time to get to all the other ones. So don't know when I'll get to this.

No, it's pretty good - go ahead and read it, the comment was more about me than the book. Some people voice concerns about nudity and some profanities, but to me it all seemed to work. The nudity was essential to the story and profanities were scarce and not offensive at all. I think you's like it a lot!!

I have this book to read eventually and that's why I wondered what you thought of it.

Oh I just realized that:
- I am not a romantic at all,
- that I have a rather pessimistic attitude towards life
- and that I'm a ruthless cynic (at best a pragmatist).

So I got angry, I don't want to know that about myself!! See, denial work for me, and this book made me inspect my soul and I'm not to happy with what I saw. I wish I could believe that as long as you love, everything is going to be fine. That it's all worth it. But I do not believe that. At all. It kind of makes me a jackass, I think. Bah!


(Sorry, that was a rant and some of it might not make much sense)

Kasia wrote: "2. This book made me feel like an asshole."

Why?

July (8 read)


1. J for July (book)............................The Julius House
2. B-Day Book...................................The Shack (Jes!)
3. UK................................................The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
4. Summer Heat................................
5. Vacation Spot................................Prey
6. Western........................................The Lonesome Gods
7. Eat Me..........................................A fool for his honey
8. Reread..........................................
9. Young Adult.................................Hero and the Crown
10.Pick-It-For-Me............................Necroscope


August (9 read)


1. A for August....................A Hunger Like No Other
2. B-day book......................Destined for an Early Grave (Yz, Platas0827, Purple)
3. Australia..........................Crap at the Environment
4. Friendship.......................Something Borrowed
5. Aviation..........................A Dream of Armageddon
6. Beach Cover....................Cape Storm
7&8. Book-2-Movie.............Ella Enchanted
9. Chick-lit...........................Welcome To The Real World
10. Reader's choice..............Thorn Queen

MONTHLY CHALLENGES: (continued)


May (10 done)


1. M for May.....................................The Martian Chronicles
2. B-Day book...................................To Kill a Mockingbird (Shazzy's, BriansGirl's & Nichole's)
3. Illinois book.................................The Time Traveler's Wife
4. Fairytale.......................................The Goose Girl
5. Mother's Day................................Rogue (pregnant werecat)
6. Hospitals/Nurses/Doctors...........Blindness
7. Sports...........................................The Hunger Games
8. Female on the cover......................Dead and Gone
9. Stand-Alone book.........................The Secret Life of Bees
10.* RRR Group Bookshelf...............Pride
* !! Pick-It-For-Me............................The House of the Spirits

June (10 done)


1. J for June(author).........................Fear of Flying (Erica Jong)
2. B-Day book...................................Uglies (Courtney's bookshelves)
3. Florida..........................................Black and Blue
4. Wedding.......................................The Princess Bride
5. Witch/wizard................................The Pillars of Earth
6. Gay/lesbian..................................Tipping the Velvet
7. Royalty.........................................The Queen and I
8. Non human cover.........................Ender's Game
9. New author...................................The Reader
10.Pick-It-For-Me............................Don't Look Now

A Lifetime of Books Challenge (23 IV 2009 - 23 IV 2010)
DONE!


1984: Hero and the Crown
1985: Ender's Game
1986: Howl's Moving Castle
1987: The Black Dahlia
1988: Sheepfarmer's Daughter
1989: The Pillars of the Earth



1990: Real Murders
1991: Maus II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began
1992: A Bone to Pick
1993: The Shipping News : A Novel
1994: Three Bedrooms, One Corpse
1995: Blindness
1996: Dead Over Heels
1997: Ella Enchanted
1998: The Poisonwood Bible
1999: A Fool and His Honey



2000: On Writing
2001: Mr. Maybe
2002: The Secret Life of Bees
2003: The Time Traveler's Wife
2004: Something Borrowed
2005: Looking for Alaska
2006: Humble Pie
2007: Beastly
2008: Rogue
2009: Dead and Gone



Done! Finally. I was stuck on 1987, 1988 for ages, but I'm finally done. One less challenge to worry about.

SERIES MADNESS CHALLENGE (updated 19 VIII 2009)


Planning to start:
Alison Croggon - Books of Pellinor
Amy Lane - Little Goddess
Cassandra Clare - Mortal Instruments
Christopher Paolini - Inheritance
Jasper Fforde - Thursday Next
Karen Chance - Dhampir
Marion Zimmer Bradley - Avalon

In Between:
Diana Gabaldon - Outlander
James Clavell - Shogun
Jenna Maclaine - Cin Craven
Orson Scott Card - Ender's
Scott Westerfeld - Uglies

Caught up with*:
Carrie Vaughn - Kitty Norville
Charlaine Harris - Sookie Stackhouse
Charlaine Harris - Harper Connelly
Eileen Wilks - World of the Lupi
Ilona Andrews - Kate Daniels
Jeanine Frost - Night Huntress
Karen Chance - Cassie Palmer
Kim Harrison - Hollows
Patricia Briggs - Mercedes Thompson
Rachel Caine - Outcast
Rachel Caine - Weather Warden
Rachel Vincent - Werecats
Rachel Vincent - Soul Screamers
Richelle Mead - Vampire Academy
Richelle Mead - Georgina Kincaid
Richelle Mead - Dark Swan
Suzanne Collins - Hunger

Abandoned:
Anne Rice - Vampire Chronicles
Amelia Atwater-Rhodes - Den of Shadows
C.E. Murphy - Urban Shaman
Garth Nix - Abhorsens
Holly Black - A Modern Tale of Faerie
J.R. Ward - Black Dagger Brotherhood
Jeanne C. Stein - Anna Strong
Keri Arthur - Guardian (Riley Jenson)
Katie MacAllister - Aisling Grey
Kim Harrison - Madison Avery
Laurell K. Hamilton - Anita Blake
Lee Child - Jack Reacher
Megan Whalen Turner - Eugenides
Rachel Caine - Morganville Vamps
Rob Thurman - Cal Leandros
Terry Pratchett - Discworld
Yasmine Galenorn - Sisters of the Moon

Finished:
Charlaine Harris - Aurora Teagarden
Charlaine Harris - Lily Bard
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter
J.R.R. Tolkien - LOTR
Karin Slaughter - Grant County
Lilith Saintcrow - Dante Valentine
Maria V. Snyder - Study Books
Sapkowski - The Witcher
Stephenie Meyer - Twilight
& more....

______________________________________________________________
*Upcoming releases:
Charlaine Harris - Harper Connelly 4 (Grave Secret)
Ilona Andrews - Kate Daniels 4 (Magic Bleeds)
Richelle Mead - Georgina Kincaid 5 (??)
Patricia Briggs - Mercedes Thompson 5 (Silver Bone)
Suzanne Collins - Hunger 2 (Catching Fire)

what no deadlines on the box sets! Hmm time to make some more LOL

Well, if there were deadlines, it would be a whole different story...

wow, that's alot boxed sets. Good thing there's no deadline on this one. lol

Yz wrote: "LOL..Kasia..the boxed sets will keep you busy for a long time...but great list...I love it."

Oh yeah, this's gonna last me for the years to come
:: sighs ::

LOL..Kasia..the boxed sets will keep you busy for a long time...but great list...I love it.

None of those in the box sets (that's how this challenge rolls) - which scares me a bit. But then it's all from my TBR pile, so I'd get to it sooner or later anyways...

Wow! You are doing great with the Boxsets. Have you read all the books?

MONTHLY CHALLENGES:


January (3 done)
1. Has been in my TBR pile for too long: The Historian
2. First in a series: Interview With The Vampire
4. Has a word that starts with "W" in its title: Wolfsbane and Mistletoe

February (8 done)
1. 'F' as author's initial: In the Woods (Tana French)
2. Red cover: Fahrenheit 451
3. Love, kiss or heart in title: The Feast of Love
5. B-day book (from Margaret's shelves): The Pilot's Wife
6. New Zealand theme: The Bone People
7. Fav genre (UF): Bone Crossed
8. GoodReads author (Carrie Vaughn): Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand
10. Name in the title: A Prayer for Owen Meany

March (6 done)
1. Author's first or last name starts with "M": The Book Thief (Markus Zusak)
2. Green cover: White Witch Black Curse
4. Texas: Lonesome Dove
5. Scotland: Outlander
6. Military: Killing Floor
7. Previously started and meant to continue: The Memory Keeper's Daughter

April (9 done)


1. A...........................Magic Strikes (Andrews, Ilona)
2. B-Day....................Kissing Sin (Sarah's TBR)
3. California..............Little Brother
4. Oldest TBR book...Cloud of Sparrows
5. Single Word...........Stray
6. Funny....................Zodiac (read in May)
7. War.......................The History of Love
8. Male Profile..........Power of One
9. Part of Series.........Curse the Dawn (Cassie Palmer, Book 4)
10. Pick-It-For-Me....Dark Lover (Yz recommended it, thanks Yz)

Yeah I do, and I like snooping around checking what other people are reading...
so you know, stick around, start your own thread, so then I could be snooping on you as well :D

You do seem to like the challenges! lol
I like the list, seems like a good idea for keeping track of what you read. I'm on my 21st book for this month...

2009 Read the Month Challenge


March
M - The Memory Keeper's Daughter
A - The Adoration of Jenna Fox
R - The Red Tent
C - Congo
H - The Handmaid's Tale

April
A - The Art of Racing in the Rain
P - Power of One
R - The Rule of Four
I - I Capture the Castle
L - Little Brother by Cory Doctorow

May
M - The Martian Chronicles
A - The Anubis Gates
Y - You Shall Know Our Velocity

June
J - Jong, Erica: Fear of Flying
U - Uglies
N - Nix, Garth: Sabriel
E - Ender's Game

July (never finished)
J - The Julius House
U - Urquhart: Away
L - The Lonesome Gods
Y - Young: The Shack

August
A - A Dream of Armageddon
U - Unger: Beautiful Lies
G - Gruen: Water for Elephants
U - Undone
S - Sacher-Masoch: Venus in Furs
T - Thorn Queen

September
S - Spindle's End
E - Easton: The New Topping Book
P - Patchett: Bel Canto
T - Triptych
E - Eliot: The Waste Land and Other Poems
M - Maus I: A Survivor's Tale
B - Blue Bloods
E - The Enormous Crocodile
R - Roach: Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex

October
O - Of mice and men
C - Catching Fire
T - A Touch of Dead
O - On the Edge
B - Belle de Jour: Diary of an Unlikely Call Girl
E - Ellroy: The Black Dahlia
R - Rose Daughter

November
N - Night Shift
O - Oe, Kenzaburo: Nip the buds shoot the kids
V - Vulnerable
E - Erdrich, Louise: Plague of Doves
M - Murakami, Haruki: What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
B - Bryson, Bill: Down Under
E - Exercises in style
R - Rosemary and Rue

December
D - The Double
E - The Elementary Particles
C - Clavell, James: Shogun
E - Enna Burning
M - The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way
B - Bonjour Tristesse
E - Endo, Shusaku: The Girl I Left Behind
R - Roquelaure, A.N.: The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty

Men We Love Challenge (May 01-July, 31) DONE!!!
I prefer not to know too much about books before I read them.... I tied to put some books in advance but I failed to do so miserably... In the end, I decided, I'll be filling this out as I go...

1. cowboy.................................The Lonesome Gods
2. cop/fbi.................................Don't Look Now (detective)
3. military................................Ender's Game (commandor)
4. doctor/lawyer......................Blindness (ophthalmologist)
5. athlete..................................Graceling (fighter)

PNR:
6. demon/witch........................Succubus Heat (demon & succumbi)
7. elf/wizard/angel...................Once Dead Twice Shy (reaper aka death angel)
8. were-animal/shifter..............Rogue (werecat)
9. hunter/ghost.........................Specials (special)
10. vampire..............................Dead and Gone (I ♥ Eric!)

Alternative:
6. CEO/businessman.................Three Bedrooms, One Corpse
7. celebrity................................The Goose Girl (a prince)
8. teacher/scholar.....................The Time Traveler's Wife (librarian)
9. techie/nerd/geek...................Geek Love*
10. unique/unusual occupation..Zodiac (environmental activist)

_________________________________________________________________
* It was a totally different kind of geek, but I did not realize it when I first grabbed the book. Whatever. It stays.

LOL. I do hope i can get and and that it is a good read =D

Kenjii wrote: "My Library has Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. So I will see f I can pick that up. Or check out and re-read Broken Flower. "

And that's how you solve problems! (Bdw, dude, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is on my TBR.)

My Library has Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. So I will see f I can pick that up. Or check out and re-read Broken Flower.

What's In a Name Challenge


1.) color Kitty and the Silver Bullet
2.) animal Kitty Takes a Holiday
3.) first name A Prayer for Owen Meany
4.) place Kitty Goes to Washington
5.) building The Red Tent
6.) plant War for the Oaks
7.) profession The Historian
8.) time of day/number Fahrenheit 451
9.) relative The Pilot's Wife
10.) body part Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand, also: The Bone People, Bone Crossed, Blood Lines

Done on Feb 22, check!

What's In a Name Challenge: Set 2 (Feb 22 - April 30)
(done, on the last day but done)

1.) color White Witch Black Curse
2.) animal Lonesome Dove, Kitty Raises Hell, Cloud of Sparrows
3.) first name The Adoration of Jenna Fox
4.) place Congo
5.) building I Capture the Castle
6.) plant The Poisonwood Bible
7.) profession The Book Thief
8.) time of day/number Night Season , The Rule of Four, Curse the Dawn, The Power of One
9.) relative The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Little Brother
10.) body part The Lovely Bones

Thanks Kenjii for all the suggestions :-)
I'm doing this one step at a time so other challenges will be coming up soon, no worry...