Tricia’s Comments (group member since Jan 04, 2022)

Tricia’s comments from the Nothing But Reading Challenges group.

I'm particularly trying to figure out what to do about Red Rising. I read the original 3 books ages ago and while I remember book 1 really well, I also remember book 3 being confusing and losing track of all the characters. I don't have time to reread all 3 before tackling book 4, but know I'll be hopelessly lost if I just jump right in. My son just read all of them in anticipation of 6 this summer and is mercilessly on my case to get on with it so we can talk all about books 4 and 5. lol

How do you all handle a series that has years between books? Do you reread the previous book first to remind yourself of what's happening? Or jump in and hope the author takes pity on your with a recap, knowing even then some of the characters might be mysteries and plot points long forgotten?

I read the Starless Sea a couple of years ago and it was one of the best books I had ever read. I'm thinking audio must have not done it justice. In print it was magical. It was a terrific blend of books, magic, and mystery. It got a little random and dragged a little towards the end, but I still loved it. Sorry you didn't have a good time.

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Tricia wrote: "I guess it was just a popular year for those books. What Sanderson have you read that you recommend?

..."

I *loved*

Closely followed by the Mistborn ser..."

I put Mistborn on my TBR this year when I removed Warbreaker. It resets the clock for me with the new title. LOL

Carmen wrote: "Tricia wrote: "Carmen wrote: "Look at you all, just deleting books off your TBR list. Y'all are superheroes."

It's the fastest way! lol"

I know! But my brain is like 'but what iiifffff' xD"

I figure that I can always add it back in this year if I can't get past it in a couple of months. But so far, I'm having no remorse. ;)

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Tricia wrote: "I'm removing/crossing off the following 4 books from my TBR.

- It's been on my list since 2016, and while I really do want to dip a toe into the Bran..."

I guess it was just a popular year for those books. What Sanderson have you read that you recommend?

Carmen wrote: "Look at you all, just deleting books off your TBR list. Y'all are superheroes."

It's the fastest way! lol

I'm removing/crossing off the following 4 books from my TBR.

- It's been on my list since 2016, and while I really do want to dip a toe into the Brandon Sanderson cosmere, I've heard there are other books that are better to start with. So this one is off the list.

- I clearly thought that high fantasy was my jam, but this has been on my list since 2017 and I don't think I would enjoy it as much now. My tastes have definitely moved on.

- I absolutely LOVED Pillars of the Earth, but I honestly don't feel compelled to continue with the 2nd book. I know it jumps generations, and I haven't gotten to it since 2017, so I don't think I will at this point.

- This was added to my TBR in 2017 and I can't remember why. I've read the blurb and some reviews, and I'm not feeling a strong urge to read it, so off it goes.

LaurLa wrote: "Quick question (if the mods are watching) - do we have to read the books in the same month? Meaning, January releases in January, Feb in Feb and so on? Or can we choose previous month releases (obv..."

I'm not a mod, but I definitely don't read them in the month they are released. I get most of my books from the library, and so sometimes the wait list for a new book is really huge. I just treat it like any year-long challenge - I try and get it done by the end of the year. And honestly, sometimes the december books don't happen until early January.

I've finished with two so far:


I'm DNF'ing this one at 21%. I was listening to it on audio and realized I honestly haven't heard a word. It's just not engaging me. I might come back to it in print form some day, but today is not that day.


I also listened to this on audio and enjoyed it very much. I gave it 4 stars.

Eunice wrote: "Yep, I think so! Do you mean clicking on a random shelf/tag and then changing the end of the genre link to the tag you're looking for?"

Yes! Just making sure, as I found that trip really crucial to many tasks.

Eunice wrote: "Hello, can we use the skip option however many times we want? My first task on easy mode is to read a book shelved as started on the first page, and I can't find any T_T I don't think this bodes we..."

Do you know how to search for tags? I don't want to presume, but it is really helpful for these types of prompts.

New Release Challenge 2023:
Level : Twice Shy - 2 books per month

Started: 1/1/23
Completed: 1/4/24

January:
1. Never Have I Ever: Submitted to My Enemy - read 1/11/23
2. Guarded - read 1/29/23
3. Hell Bent - read 7/10/23
4. Lor - read 5/21/23
5. Alter Arlo - read 7/7/23
6. Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries - read 11/6/23


February:
1. Johann - read 1/26/23
2. Maniac - read 2/16/23
3. Loathe to Love You - read 5/1/23
4. The Crane Husband - read 5/8/23
5. For the Fans - read 4/15/23
6. The Husband Hoax - read 6/1/23
7. The New Guy - read 12/31/23


March:
1. Never Have I Ever: Had a Bromance with a Teammate - read 6/9/23
2. In Memoriam - read 8/20/23
3. The Running Girls - read 8/5/23
4. Rainbow History Class: Your Guide Through Queer and Trans History - read 9/12/23
5. Something Wild & Wonderful - read 12/5/23


April:
1. Garron Park - read 6/23/23
2. Defender - read 9/2/23
3. Hollow Beasts - read 8/7/23
4. Happy Place - DNF 11/19/23
5. Yours Truly - read 11/16/23



May:
1. A Collection of Monstrous Short Stories - read 5/24/23
2. Every Day: The Graphic Novel - read 6/25/23
3. Practice Makes Perfect - read 7/20/23
4. Wolfgang - read 6/11/23
5. Never Have I Ever: Wanted My Brother's Rival - read 6/25/23
6. Fourth Wing - read 10/9/23
7. Warrior Girl Unearthed - read 9/14/23
8. The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich - read 11/10/23
9. Chain-Gang All-Stars - read 12/19/23


June:
1. Berries and Greed - read 6/20/23
2. Lot 62 - read 7/2/23
3. Northranger - read 7/9/23
4. Flight & Anchor - read 9/7/23
5. We Could Be So Good - read 11/19/23


July:
1. Hello Stranger - read 11/7/23
2. None of This Is True - read 11/16/23


August:
1. Like You Hate Me - read 9/21/23
2. Rivaled - read 9/20/23
3. Fangirl, Vol. 3: The Manga - read 8/28/23
4. In the Likely Event - read 11/20/23


September:
1. The Scenic Route - read 8/22/23
2. You, Again - read 11/9/23


October:
1. Starling House - read 12/15/23
2. Creepy Court vol. 1: A Monster Mall Anthology - read 1/2/24
3. Sword Catcher by Cassandra Clare


November:
1. Just a Bit Captivated - read 12/28/23
2. The Bone Collector - read 12/29/23


December:
1. Heartstopper: Volume Five - read 12/27/23
2. Second Chances in New Port Stephen - read 1/4/24

This sounds fun. I'm going to generate each number after I've read the previous book, to keep it interesting.

Current TBR size: 386
Goal: Spear Tackle - 18-26 books

1. Number: 302 - Fakers by Lucy Lennox. - READ 1/1/23
2. Number: 288 - Locked In Silence by Sloane Kenndy - READ 1/12/23
3. Number: 69 - Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner - READ 2/2/23
4. Number 209 - See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon - READ 2/26/23
5. Number 49 - The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johson
6. Number 330 - The Magpie Lord - READ 6/7/23
7. Number 254 - A Taste of Ink - READ 6/21/23
8. Number 187 - Sheets - READ 7/15/23
9. Number 200 - Exasperating - READ 7/18/23
10. Number 246 - Practice Makes Perfect - READ 7/20/23
11. Number 186 - Distorted - READ 8/24/23
12. Number 269 - Rainbow History Class: Your Guide Through Queer and Trans History - READ 9/12/23
13. Number 239 - We Spread - READ 9/16/23
14. Number 349 - Come Tumbling Down - READ 9/26/23
15. Number 177 - Jon's Downright Ridiculous Shooting Case - READ 9/27/23
16. Number 206 - Kick at the Darkness - READ 10/2/23
17. Number 249 - Foster - READ 10/5/23
18. Number 260 - A Dowry of Blood - READ 10/23/23
19. Number 3 - Blindness - READ 11/4/23
20. Number 78 - I Hate Men - READ 11/19/23
21. Number 260 - Something Wild & Wonderful - READ 12/5/23

sob... had to give up my prime spot here at the top, because I ran out of room to post my books. I will be moving my beautiful list to the current bottom of the thread. :(

2023 Serious Readers Challenge
Started: 1/1/23
Completed: 4/25/23
Level 2

January - 1-31
1. The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein -1/1/23
2. Taproot by Keezy Young -1/1/23
3. Fakers by Lucy Lennox -1/1/23
4. El Deafo by Cece Bell -1/2/23
5. The Glow Up by AM Johnson - 1/4/23
6. Beach Read by Emily Henry - 1/5/23
7. The Prince of Southland by Chris Geroux - 1/6/23
8. Fangs by Sarah Andersen - 1/7/23
9. Brand New Ancients by Kate Tempest - 1/7/23
10. Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me by Ellen Forney - 1/7/23
11. Never Have I Ever: Punched my Roommate's V-Card by Willow Dixon - 1/9/23
12. Never Have I Ever: Submitted to my Enemy by Willow Dixon - 1/11/23
13. Inhabitant of Another Planet by Kaiju - 1/8/23
14. Ocean's Echo by Everina Maxwell - 1/12/23
15. Locked in Silence by Sloane Kennedy - 1/12/23
16. Moth by Lily Mayne - 1/16/23
17. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh - 1/19/23
18. Novae book 1 by Kaiju - 1/10/23
19. Novae book 2 by Kaiju - 1/18/23
20. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo - 1/20/23
21. Fence Vol 5: Rise by CS Pacat - 1/21/23
22. Invisible Differences: A Story of Aspergers by Julie Dachez - 1/21/23
23. Under the Greenlight by Jaxx - 1/22/23
24. Seraph by Lily Mayne - 1/22/23
25. Darius by JR Ward - 1/22/23
26. Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center - 1/24/23
27. Johann by Grae Bryan - 1/26/23
28. The Tea Dragon Society by Kay O'Neill - 1/26/23
29. Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus - 1/29/23
30. Guarded by Nicole Dykes - 1/29/23
31. Deja Demon by Julie Kenner - 1/31/23


February - 32-60
32. Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner - 2/2/23
33. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo - 2/2/23
34. A Monstrous Christmas in the Camp by Lily Mayne - 2/3/23
35. Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell - 2/3/23
36. The Shadows by Vincent Zabus - 2/4/23
37. The Demon You Know by Julie Kenner - 2/4/23
38. We Are Mermaids: Poems by Stephanie Burt - 2/5/23
39. Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton - 2/5/23
40. A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers - 2/6/23
41. Learning Curve by NR Walker - 2/7/23
42. Unfamiliar by Haley Newsome - 2/7/23
43. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers - 2/8/23
44. As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of the Princess Bride by Cary Elwes - 2/10/23
45. Heir's Game by Suspu - 2/11/23
46. The Book of Delights: Essays by Ross Gay - 2/11/23
47. The Shuddering City by Sharon Shinn - 2/14/23
48. Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung - 2/15/23
49. Shattered Warrior by Sharon Shinn - 2/15/23
50. Maniac by Onley James - 2/16/23
51. In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado - 2/16/23
52. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green - 2/17/23
53. Shadows of the Past by Sharon Shinn - 2/18/23
54. Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree - 2/20/23
55. Making Waves by Christina Lee - 2/21/23
56. Autoboyography by Christina Lauren - 2/23/23
57. How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu - 2/24/23
58. See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon - 2/26/23
59. No Exit by Taylor Adams - 2/28/23
60. Parable of the Sower: Graphic Novel by Damian Duffy - 2/28/23


March - 61-83
61. Football Royalty by Eden Finley - 3/1/23
62. I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqualine Harpman - 3/1/23
63. Run & Hide by Beatrix Hollow - 3/3/23
64. Demon Ex Machina by Julie Kenner - DNF 3/3/23
65. You & Me by Tal Bauer - 3/6/23
66. The Tea Dragon Festival by Kay O'Neill - 3/7/23
67. The Tea Dragon Tapestry by Kay O'Neill - 3/7/23
68. Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas - 3/8/23
69. Interlude: First Noel by Tal Bauer - 3/9/23
70. Home Before Dark by Riley Sager - 3/11/23
71. Run Rose Run by Dolly Parton - DNF 3/12/23
72. The Low, Low Woods by Carmen Maria Machado - 3/15/23
73. Amari and the Night Brothers by BB Alston - 3/16/23
74. Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez - 3/18/23
75. The Doctors are Out by Lynn Sceret - 3/20/23
76. Enemy of My Enemy by Tal Bauer - 3/21/23
77. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare - 3/21/23
78. Orange: The Complete Collection Vol 1 by Ichigo Takano - 3/24/23
79. The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson - 3/25/23
80. Exodus 20:3 by Freydis Moon - 3/26/23
81. Bluff by Gianni X - 3/26/23
82. I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy - 3/31/23
83. Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr - 3/31/23


April - 84 - 100
84. The Key to My Heart by Lia Louis - 4/2/23
85. If This Gets Out by Sophie Gonzales - 4/3/23
86. Enemy Within by Tal Bauer - 4/7/23
87. Sweet Nothings by Macy Blake - 4/8/23
88. The Trouble with Love by Macy Blake - 4/8/23
89. Santa Trouble by Macy Blake - 4/8/23
90. All of Nothing by Macy Blake - 4/9/23
91. The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith - 4/10/23
92. Captivating by Onley James - 4/12/23
93. No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies by Julian Aguon - 4/13/23
94. For the Fans by Nyla K - 4/15/23
95. The Last House on Needless Street - 4/16/23
96. Terrier by Tamora Pierce - 4/19/23
97. Bunny by Mona Awad - 4/21/23
98. The Risk by ST Abby - 4/25/23
99. Sidetracked by ST Abby - 4/25/23
100. Scarlet Angel by ST Abby - 4/25/23

And that's a wrap! I've completed my second maze. I had a great time - thank you!!

Skipping this task: Read a book shelved (listed on the first page on GR) as british - plurals and spelling acceptable

Heading West (Odd Number of Pages)

S - Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - character: Sadie (401 pages)
K - The Darkness Outside Us - character: Kodiak (397 pages)
I - Intoxicating (295 pages)
P - Playing Games (255 pages)

Karen ⊰✿ wrote: "Tricia wrote: ". Am I supposed to see the old spreadsheet when I click on the link? ."

There is a different tab for 2023 😉"

Ha! Thanks!!

I did fine on my challenge in 2022, which was for 20 books on my TBR from 2011 to 2015. I read 8 of them and deleted the others. I was going to scale down my goal, but I'll never pare down my TBR by going conservative. So this year I'll shoot for 30.

COMPLETED: 12/25/23

2015:
1. Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania - DNF
2. When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present - DNF at 30%
3. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn - DELETED
4. As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride - READ 2/10/23 4 stars
5. Never Let Me Go - READ 10/16/23 2 stars
6. The Language of Flowers - READ 1/19/23 - 2 stars
7. The Cuckoo's Calling - READ 4/10/23 - 3.75 stars
8. Clockwork Angel - READ 3/21/23 3 stars
9. The Girl Who Wrote in Silk - READ 12/26/22 - 4 stars
10. Daemon - DNF @ 29%
11. Terrier - READ 4/19/23 - 5 stars

2016:
12. Warbreaker - DELETED
13. Blood on the Tracks - READ 6/15/23 - 4 stars

2017:
14. The Winter Sea - DELETED
15. The Demon You Know - READ 2/4/23 2 stars
16. Demon Ex Machina - DNF at 50%
17. Pax Demonica - DELETED
18. The Name of the Wind - DELETED
19. Bitten - READ 5/10/23 - 3 stars
20. World Without End - DELETED
21. One of Us Is Lying - READ 6/18/23 - 3 stars
22. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory - READ 6/1/23 - 4 stars

2018:
23. Echo - READ 4/29/23 - 3 stars
24. Iron Gold - DELETED
25. Before We Were Yours - READ 5/5/23 - 3 stars
26. Blindness - READ 11/4/23 3 stars
27. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing - READ 2/17/23 4 stars
28. Then She Was Gone - READ 5/16/23 - 3 stars
29. The Forgotten Garden - DELETED
30. Scythe - READ 12/25/23 - 4 stars

Totals:
Deleted: 8
DNF: 4
Read: 18