Romance Readers Reading Challenges discussion

Diane ~Firefly~ wrote: "Looks like all the recs are in, so time for stats!"

ahh this is great!! i was thinking of the stats myself while driving this morning!!! i love stats!! thanks for the info firefly!! ;)

xxxxx

Finished
*note: the dates posted below are based on my time zone (CST) and the day posted.

1. Leah *Silk Desire* - The Things They Carried(4/2)
2. Pam - Vampire Academy(4/3), Undead and Unwed(4/9)
3. MountainKat - A Lot Like Love(4/3), No Place to Run(4/4), Shoulda Been a Cowboy(4/9)
4. Rena - Games of Command(4/4)
5. Elke - Welcome to Temptation(4/4)
6. Sarah - Pleasure Unbound(4/4)
7. Anja - A Little Bit Wild(4/4)
8. Cacophony - The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie(4/4)
9. Tania - Morrigan's Cross(4/4),What Happens in London(4/7)
10. KarenH - Hunger Games(4/5),16 Lighthouse Road(4/7)
11. Alexis - Lip Service(4/5)
12. ChristineS. - The Gargoyle(4/5)
13. Monica - A Kingdom of Dreams(4/5), The Hunger Games(4/5)The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie(4/7),
14. moulin - Wicked Lovely(4/5)
15. Isabella - Hunger Games (4/5)
16. Lindsey - Slave to Sensation(4/3), The Darkest Passion(4/5)
17. Penney - Babysitting the Baumgartners(4/6)
18. Fran - Diary of a Mad Fat Girl(4/6), Raising the Stakes(4/7)
19. MichelleK - Hero at Large(4/6)
20. Debbie - The Darkest Secret(4/6),Pleasure Unbound(4/8)
21. Diane ~Firefly~ - Witch Heart(4/6)
22. Valerie ~Varuca - Raising the Stakes(4/7)
23. Cathy - Frostfire(4/7)
24. Caroline - The Gargoyle(4/8)
25. Megan - A Discovery of Witches(4/8)
26. Laura - Just the Sexiest Man Alive(4/8)
27. Melissa** - One Day(4/9)
28. Sue - The Darkest Lie(4/9)
29. Kami - The Hunger Games(4/9)
30. Inga - Pride Mates(4/9)
31. TeresaJo - Fanta C(4/10)
32. Lacy - City of Fallen Angels(4/10)

Diane ~Firefly~ wrote: "Looks like all the recs are in, so time for stats!

Suzanne Collins takes over first place this month. She and J.R. Ward had a big lead over the competition. Julie James clawed her way back to th..."

Thanks Diane, I love your stats

Well, with Collins the top author, the top book probably won't be a big surprise. Ward manages to get two books in the top, as did Roberts (if you count her AKA Robb). The Time Traveler's Wife, Lover Unleashed, Vision in White, Cry No More, Extreme Exposure and Pride and Prejudice came out of nowhere to make the top of the list.

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - 27
2. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon - 15
3. Dark Lover by J.R. Ward - 13
3. Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh - 13
5. Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning - 10
6. The Book Thief by Makus Zusak - 9
6. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen - 9
6. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger - 9
6. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead - 9
10. Naked in Death by J.D. Robb - 8
10. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs - 8
10. Soulless by Gail Carriger - 8
10. Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie - 8
10. Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas - 8
10. Lover Unleashed by J.R. Ward - 8
16. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare - 7
16. Vision in White by Nora Roberts - 7
16. Cry No More by Linda Howard - 7
16. Just the Sexiest Man Alive by Julie James - 7
16.One for the Money by Janet Evanovich - 7
16. Extreme Exposure by Pamela Clare - 7
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - 7

i'm sorry i can't anymore :(

Debbie ~ ☾ ~ wrote: "Thank you, Thank you, everyone did there part..."

Thank you for hosting - you're doing an amazing job!!!

Nbfunny wrote: "i'm sorry i can't anymore :("

Can't what? - sorry I am confused by that statement. You can still be a part of it, you did sign up.

Nbfunny, I am sorry that you didn't get any recommendations. If you are interested in getting recommendations we can, but you will have to friend someone to let them do it. Lrt me know if you are still interested.

Debbie ~ ☾ ~ wrote: "Tania, I really get it, I have terrible internet connections from time to time. Glad you showed.

Rossy wrote: "Ok so Comfort now has her recs, anybody else missing theirs?"

Once Tania gets Shona..."

Wow Debbie, truly impressive. *bows down* Seriously, you know how hard is to get people to have all their recs, and with this amount of people? Woman you have skillz!

Diane ~Firefly~ wrote: "Looks like all the recs are in, so time for stats!

Suzanne Collins takes over first place this month. She and J.R. Ward had a big lead over the competition. Julie James clawed her way back to th..."

I'm loving your stats, this time even more for some odd reason. Maybe the way you made it sound like they were all competing against each other. I love a good fight!LOL

Debbie ~ ☾ ~ wrote: "Finished

Leah *Silk Desire* - The Things They Carried (4/2)
Pam - Vampire Academy (4/3)
MountainKat - A Lot Like Love (4/3)
Rena - [book:Games of Comman..."

Whoa, talk about our little over achievers. Congratulations!

lol Rossy, thanks
Big but fun, thanks again for letting me take this one.

Soo, did your favorites win :)

Dark Lover by J.R. Ward
Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
Cry No More by Linda Howard
Just the Sexiest Man Alive by Julie James
Extreme Exposure by Pamela Clare

I can vouch for all of these right now. They were really good, if not perfect for me. Dark Lover and the Julie James book above, are not even the best of their work, their later books are even better. I can guarantee though that if you like these, then you will be totally hooked on these authors.

haha, I think I even recommended Hunger Games this month. And I think I rec a Sarah Addison Allen every month. There is a reason all of them always seem to make the top stats, huh?

Yeap, they are gooood stuff!LOL

I've just done the final list for march and 84% of our signups completed the challenge with a total of 80 different books read.

It'll be interesting to see the difference is this month given we've got so many new members in the challenge.

I finished a second book - No Place to Run! What an amazing, intense book. I loved it! Thank you Fran for recommending it, I wanted to get to it soon, but needed to fit it in to at least one challenge! (I got it into two monthlies and at least one annual - woo hoo! I am addicted to challenges...)

That is a good completion number Tania.
I am curious to see how many remember to come back and let us know what they read and how they liked it too.

Another one MountainKat, that is great :)
All things considered, I wish I had read more today also.

Rossy wrote: "Ok so Comfort now has her recs, anybody else missing theirs?"

Me

no Vonny, you got yours, let me go find it :)

Vonny, Isabella posted your recommendations here, in message #884.

Debbie ~ ☾ ~ wrote: "Vonny, Isabella posted your recommendations here, in message #884."

oh wow, thank you! I think my eyes are bad or something, because I scrolled up and down that page and didn't see it. haha. Anyway, much thanks! <3

glad to help :)

Wow. Huge and wonderful effort Debbie! And great idea for the parameter choices :)

Diane Firefly - love your stats!

(And I love the fact that a book written nearly 200 years ago makes the top 20 books recommended in this challenge!)

Cacophony wrote: "I finished The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie last night. I thought it was one of the best romances I have read in a long time..." - underlining mine

Cacophony, I, too, couldn't agree more! was recommended for me on another thread; however, it lived up to all the hype. Hard to do. I just finished it today and I'm still thinking about it. Lord Ian was intense, but I loved all the characters in it and look forward to the next book in the series.

Jane (PS) wrote: "Diane Firefly - love your stats!

(And I love the fact that a book written nearly 200 years ago makes the top 20 books recommended in this challenge!)"

I'm glad people get something out of it. It is nice to see a lot more changes now that the rules are different every month.

I just finished listening to The Hunger Games, and I'm finding it hard to decide how I feel about it. I thought it was very well done; intense, and emotional, but I also found the whole concept rather disturbing and not what I generally look for in my pleasure reading. I didn't dislike it, the story was gripping and I had trouble putting it down, but it was also quite depressing and I'm in no hurry to read the rest of the trilogy. Now I'm going to go about as far to the opposite end of the spectrum as I can get and listen to 16 Lighthouse Road next! =)

Tugce Nida wrote: "Ritu wrote: "Hey Rebecca,

Thanks for the recs! I appreciate that you have recommended many from my TBR (:. And some new books too!

One thing, I've read Vision of White. As did most of her books! ..."

Hey Tugce Nida,

I've no idea how i overlooked this post. Neil Gaiman is one author I've been wanting to try for a long time but sadly haven't. This is going to give me an extra push. Will let you know how I found it :)

KarenH wrote: "I just finished listening to The Hunger Games, and I'm finding it hard to decide how I feel about it. I thought it was very well done; intense, and emotional, but I also found the w..."

Karen
Glad you liked it and want to "digest" it before reading another in the series. I loved it and am waiting awhile to go on with the series.
Debbie is always a good cozy read. I read my list and needed to order 3 of the books. I got one in the mail in just 2 days:
Flowers from the Storm by Laura Kinsale Large print too!



Looking forward to reading
Summer At Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs
and

Summer By the Sea by Susan Wiggs



What a great month April is gonna be.

Thank you Tania!
My TBR pile looks so svelte because I only put the books up there once I have them in my hands (bought or borrowed).
I read Bet Me a couple of years ago…I’ll have to add it to my read list.
I have been planning to try a JD Robb so next time I’m at the library I’ll grab it.
The Reluctant Dom looks really interesting…I will have to find that one.
I am up for the buddy read of Darkfever, it’s been on my shelf for a while now and I will definitely get to The Other Boleyn Girl girl this month.

Love the stats, Diane!

I wasn't surprised that Suzanne Collins came on top. Her books worked out well for the Friends, Emotional and Intense categories!

Wow, I've read all of these ones from the top books. :)

1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - 27
2. Outlander by Diana Gabaldon - 15
3. Dark Lover by J.R. Ward - 13
3. Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh - 13
6. The Book Thief by Makus Zusak - 9
6. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen - 9
10. Naked in Death by J.D. Robb - 8
10. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs - 8
10. Soulless by Gail Carriger - 8
10. Secrets of a Summer Night by Lisa Kleypas - 8
16. Just the Sexiest Man Alive by Julie James - 7
16. Extreme Exposure by Pamela Clare - 7
16. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - 7

4/5/11 - Today I finished Lip Service. I'm sad to say I was sorely disappointed in the book. Not that you didn't warn me photojim! I usually enjoy Mallery's work, but I really wasn't in love with much of anything in the book. The characters annoyed me and I felt as if the story went no where fast. Now that I've gotten it out of my way I'm excited to read the better recommendations given to me!

Just so you know Alexis, #3 & #4 are both better. Still my least favorite Mallery series to date, but I think they are worth the read.

Photojim wrote: "Just so you know Alexis, #3 & #4 are both better. Still my least favorite Mallery series to date, but I think they are worth the read."

Thank goodness! I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt. Every author has a miss and I think this was hers. I adore her Fools Gold series and can't wait for the next three books to come out.

I just finished The Gargoyle & gave it 5 stars. It was a unique gripping tale, dark & gritty at times, but full of love & very moving.


Thanks for the rec & buddy read Caroline!

Autumn, I finished reading both A Kingdom of Dreams and The Hunger Games. I LOVED it. JM is an amazing author and I'm definitely going to look into more of her books! I just got done reading Hunger Games and my oh my! I'm putting all other books on hold while I finish the series. I so want to see what Katniss is going to get into. I blame you for my lack of sleep though, since I was ready for bed, and decided to read a few chapters and the next thing I know, the sky is lighting up and it's 6:30am. But well worth it! Thank you!

MountainKat wrote: "I finished a second book - No Place to Run! What an amazing, intense book. I loved it! Thank you Fran for recommending it, I wanted to get to it soon, but needed to fit it in to a..."

MountainKat, Wow! 2 finished for you- awesome! So glad you liked it. I love Maya Banks, I haven't read that series yet, but it looks good.

Fran, I highly recommend the KGI series! It is so good, very emotional and intense! And I actually started a third of your recommendations Shoulda Been A Cowboy, not sure where that fits in April other than here, but I wanted to read it. =)

i'm feeling highly unproductive compared to some of our readers out there....

MK - have you read the other RR books? Cam is my favorite for soo many reasons - I got this book as an ARC when it first came out and totally cried during some spots

MountainKat wrote: "Fran, I highly recommend the KGI series! It is so good, very emotional and intense! And I actually started a third of your recommendations Shoulda Been A Cowboy, not sure where tha..."

Cacophony wrote: "I finished The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie last night. I thought it was one of the best romances I have read in a long time. You could really empathize with the characters emotions. I am glad ..."

Oh!!! I'm so glad you liked it!!

Delicious Dee Challenge Addict wrote: "i'm feeling highly unproductive compared to some of our readers out there...."

Lol..tell me about it! In order to read my recs, I need to reread all the books in two series!:-o I hate feeling like I'm missing out on plotlines otherwise.. Too many books read since!

Monica wrote: "I was ready for bed, and decided to read a few chapters and the next thing I know, the sky is lighting up and it's 6:30am. "

Glad to hear I'm not the only one with this illness! lol! ;) I also love, love both A Kingdom of Dreams and The Hunger Games!

uhh huh...but you read superfast...ur point...

Melanie wrote: "Delicious Dee Challenge Addict wrote: "i'm feeling highly unproductive compared to some of our readers out there...."

Lol..tell me about it! In order to read my recs, I need to reread all the bo..."

Delicious Dee wrote: "MK - have you read the other RR books? Cam is my favorite for soo many reasons - I got this book as an ARC when it first came out and totally cried during some spots"

I've read up to this one. I'm rather OCD (OK, anal) about reading books in order. I have loved them all!

Delicious Dee Challenge Addict wrote: "i'm feeling highly unproductive compared to some of our readers out there...."

You too? I have not read a single book in 2 days, i feel weird. No time though, but hopefully i'll remedy it tonight since i got some new books this week.

Shona wrote: "Thank you Tania!
My TBR pile looks so svelte because I only put the books up there once I have them in my hands (bought or borrowed).
I read Bet Me a couple of years ago…I’ll have ..."

Excellent - I'll hunt up a copy of darkfever!

Rossy wrote: "Delicious Dee Challenge Addict wrote: "i'm feeling highly unproductive compared to some of our readers out there...."

You too? I have not read a single book in 2 days, i feel weird. No time though..."

NO BOOKS IN 2 DAYS!!!! Rossy, are you feeling okay???? Need me to send a doctor?????

oh, i've been reading, I just haven't finished anything...well, up to today...i just finished up two of my in progress books