Helen (#2) Low Octane Challenge

[Helen]

I am a 2nd Helen to join the group. I have been lurking around for a few weeks and have decided to dive into your group and join the challenge. Here is my starter list:

A. How to Slay a Dragon by Bill Allen. - Complete 19 Jan 3*
B. Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan - Complete 25 Jan 4*
C. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline - Complete 30 Jan 5*
D. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh -Complete 06 Feb 4*
E. Love Overboard by Janet Evanovich. - Complete 10 Feb 3*
F. Don't Say A Word by Barbara Freethy - Complete 11 Feb 4*
G. Love Anthony by Lisa Genova - Complete 15 Feb 5*
H. Whisper Town by Patricia Hickman - complete 28 Feb 3*
I. Goddess of the Moon by Polly Iyer - complete 14 Mar 3*
J. An Unsuitable Job For A Woman by P. D. James - complete 21 Mar 4*
K. Beloved of the Fallen by Savannah Kline - complete 03 Apr 3*
L. Borrowed Time by c. J. Lyons - complete 14 Apr 4*
M. Invisibleby Lorena McCourtney - complete 3 May 3*
N. Evermore by Alyson Noel - complete 4 May 3*
O. EXTREME by Sharon Osbourne - complete 10 May 3*
P. Zoo by James Patterson - complete 16 May 4*
Q The Paid Companion by Amanda Quick - complete 19 May 4*
R. Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts - complete 05 June 4*
S. Deadly Little Lessons by Laurie Faria Stolarz - complete 09 June 4*
T. The Queen of the Big Time by Adriana Trigiani - complete 12 June 4*
U. Just Plain Weird by Tom Upton - complete 14 june 3*
V. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut - complete 27 June 5*
W. The Wednesday Letters by Jason Wright - complete 01 July 3*
X. A Loyal Character Dancer by Qui Xiolong - complete 10 July 4*
Y. Magic Spells by Christy Yorke - complete 13 July 3*
X. Margarettown by Gabrielle Zevin - complete - 15 July 3*

COMPLETE. YEAH

[[deleted user]]

Hello Helen #2 >:-) we're pleased to have you join us.
Do jump in. there's lots you can choose to do and all sorts of books to read, if the fancy takes you.

[Helen]

Thanks Helen #1. This is a really active group with lots of options - am trying to sort out which things in which to participate.

[Pragya]

Doing good, Helen. :)

[Janice, Moderator]

Welcome to the Alphabet challenge, Helen. :)

[April]

Glad to se e you here, Helen!

[jaxnsmom]

Glad you're jumping into the challenge Helen!

[Rusalka, Moderator]

Welcome Helen! Nice to have you join us in this insanity Challenge :D

[Debra]

Helen 1 and Helen 2! Gotta keep that straight in my head. Welcome aboard!

[Helen]

Thanks much for your support. Am using the challenge to clear shelves and kindle. It is a fun challenge - am really enjoying grabbing books that have been gathering dust and getting them into a reading queu.

[Ava Catherine]

Helen, we are so excited to have you as part of the alphabet challenge! You have a wonderful list! : )

Welcome aboard!

[Helen]

Thanks all. Here is my progress to date:

How to Slay a Dragon - 3*. Fun YA fantasy. Thoroughly enjoyed. Has been on my kindle shelves for quite a while. Those Amazon special deals are wonderful but they do load up the tbr list.

Unspoken. 3*. Also a YA fantasy. The stars aligned for me on this one: 1. Was on the monthly reading list for another group, 2 came due from my library as an e-digital download and 3 hit at just the right time for the alphabet challenge. Just had to read it!! Also was a very entertaining read. Not too deep but lots of fun and the first in a series that I will add to my ever-expanding tbr.

Ready Player One - 5*. Excellent book especially for those who are familiar with the evolution of computer games. Atari and Commodore geeks, this is a blast from the past.

Okay, ready to kick the sci-fi books and try a different genre.

[Debra]

Good start!

[Kristin]

Hi Mom!!!! Looks good!

[Pragya]

5 stars for Ready Player One! I have to read that some day.

[Helen]

Kristin wrote: "Hi Mom!!!! Looks good!"

Thanks kiddo. Now you need to jump on here and add a topic and begin your own abc challenge.

[Helen]

Completed D - The Language of Flowers. 4*

Excellent book following a baby abandoned at birth who is raised in the child-care system until her emancipation at 18. It depicts how a person who feels herself incapable of loving or being loved begins to heal from her past traumas. The use of flowers and their special meanings is an intriguing part of the plot.

[Ava Catherine]

Helen, you are really making excellent progress! I hope you are enjoying your books. Your first book has really caught my interest...talk about a catchy title! Have to add it to my tbr! My ever growing tbr! lol. : )

[Helen]

Connie wrote: "Helen, you are really making excellent progress! I hope you are enjoying your books. Your first book has really caught my interest...talk about a catchy title! Have to add it to my tbr! My ever gro..."

Connie - That first book is a really enchanting YA - just a fun read with a lot of witticisms and plays on words. Also note that my last four books just might work for a Feb toppler!! Hmmmm.

[Helen]

Helen#2

Just finished Love Overboard by Janet Evanovich. Fun easy read - one of her early romances before she developed herStephanie Plum series. Great for Feb toppler.

[Helen]

Finished F and G. Ready to start H.


F. Don't Say A Word by Barbara Freethy 4*. Good romantic mystery.

G. Love Anthony by Lisa Genova. 4* excellent, two women and an autistic boy. Three parallel lives which ultimately converge. Very moving. Keep tissues handy.

[Janice, Moderator]

You're moving right along. Have you read Lisa Genova's Still Alice. It was an excellent read.

[Helen]

I have not but it has been on my radar for quite some time. Just added it to my tbr. Thanks

[Rachel]

Hi helen- i'm new to the group as well- looking forward to seeing what's next on your challenge list

i loved ready player one and the language of flowers- love anthony is on my tbr so glad to hear it's a good one

good luck and happy reading!

[Helen]

Finished H - Whisper Town by Patricia Hickman. A mediocre book similar to the Mitford series about a small town preacher during the depression in the Deep South. This was a carry-over from the Feb toppler so I felt compelled to finish it.

Looking forward to I - Goddess of the Moon by Polly Iyer

[Helen]

Completed:

1. Goddess of the Moonby Polly Ivey - good mix of paranormal, romance and mystery. Well developed characters and interesting plot.

2. An Unsuitable Job For A Womanby P. D. James. Good book by an Edgar award lifetime master. Especially good because it featured a female detective - a rarity for the "gumshoe" mystery style. Well worth the read.

Ready for K

[Helen]

K is completed. Beloved of the Fallen. Debut novel by Savannah Kline. Good mix of the arcane, angels, love, politics, temptation, and redemption. With all that, it has to have something to like. Not bad, easy read.

[Janice, Moderator]

You're doing great on your challenge, Helen.

[Helen]

Thanks. Has been really fun so far.

[Helen]

Finished L book - Borrowed Time by C. J. Lyons. 4*
Very good mystery with a flavoring of romance. New author to me and not bad. Freebie some time ago for my Kindle. Decided to read a few of my back Kindle books. Glad I read this one.

M to be The Misremembered Man by Christins McKenna.

[Helen]

Finished Invisible by Lorena McCourtney. Really good cozy.

Next up is Evermore by Alyson Noel. This has a lot of very mixed reviews but has been on my tbr for awhile. Need to clear it off and see if I want to read the whole series.

[Helen]

Wow - was Evermore by Alyson Noel an easy read. Not very good - a Twilight clone. Not sure if I will read the rest of the series. I burned out on the Twilight series after the first two books. But this was a good chance to meet my M book requirement and check out a popular series even if I didn't love it.

On to my O book - A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki. Looks like a good read and lots of positive reviews.

[Helen]

O complete. - Sharon Osbourne Extreme: My Autobiography

On to Zoo by James Patterson

[Sarah]

Thanks Helen for mentioning James Patterson's book Zoo - I'll be reading that for my Z book!

[Helen]

Glad to be of service even if it was unintentional!! Don't you love what golden nuggets we can find just by scanning each other's posts?

[Sharon75uk]

Helen wrote: "O complete. Revenge by Yoko Ogawa - also picked up from the library at just the right time. Ozeki's book goes back on the TBR but not for too long.

Revenge was very good. Short stories in the Oli..."

I loved Zoo, was just thinking about that book earlier and how much I had enjoyed it :)

[Helen]

Now I can hardly wait to start reading it.

[Janice, Moderator]

Whatever did I do for reading material before I joined Goodreads? I had a wishlist of about 10 books. Now, it's over 400!

[Helen]

LOL!!! Those Sears catalogs sure got boring didn't they?? Thank goodness for the ever growing TBR.

[Helen]

Sarah wrote: "Thanks Helen for mentioning James Patterson's book Zoo - I'll be reading that for my Z book!"


Wow. Zoo was a really good read. Thought-provoking and scary. Hope you enjoy it.

On to Q. The Paid Companion by Amanda Quick

[Helen]

Finished Q - The Paid Companion by Amanda Quick. 4* historical romance. Excellent read, well worth the effort.

On to R - Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts.

[[deleted user]]

I'd agree, you can easily loose a couple of hours with an Amanda Quick book. not terribly taxing, but not bland either.

[Helen]

Helen wrote: "I'd agree, you can easily loose a couple of hours with an Amanda Quick book. not terribly taxing, but not bland either."

I agree. I also like the Jayne Ann Krentz and Jayne Castle books - interesting how she uses different pseudonyms for her different genres.

[Helen]

Finished R - Blood Brothers by Nora Roberts. 4* paranormal romance. Good, easy read - nice characters and an interesting plot. Not deep literature but very enjoyable.

On to S - The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith

[Helen]

Finished S - changed to Deadly Little Lessons by Laurie Faria Stolarz. Entertaining fantasy, YA, easy read.

On to T - not sure what title yet.

[Janice, Moderator]

You're doing great Helen!

[Helen]

Done with T - The Queen of the Big Time by Adriana Trigiani and U - Just Plain Weird by Tom Upton. Both are very good.

Ready for V - Kurt Vonnegutt

[Helen]

Done withV - Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut. Outstanding. Good read on multiple levels.
Starting W - The Wednesday Letters by Jason Wright.

[Janice, Moderator]

You won't know what to do with yourself when you finish the 4 books left in your challenge!

[Helen]

Janice wrote: "You won't know what to do with yourself when you finish the 4 books left in your challenge!"

LOL. Still have a large TBR, an overloaded Kindle, several other challenges, and you guys keep teasing me with lots of interesting new books to try. Guess I will be able to keep myself busy.