Level 3: Mt. Vancouver (36): Nell Enjoys the Mountan View

[Nell]

Re-upping again this year at the Mt Vancouver level. This is my third full year participating in this challenge. I reached Mt. Ararat in 2014 but so far this year I'm behind in my TBR reading. Not sure whether I'll reach the peak of Mt Vancouver for 2015. (I think it's time to read some skinny books ;D) All the same my goal is to scale Mt Vancouver in 2016.

[Nell]

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Nell]

Mt TBR Tally

Hardcovers = 6

Trade p/b = 1

Mass mkt = 14

Kindle = 15

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

Tomes = 5
[350+ pp]

Double Digits = 3
[> 10 yrs]

[Bev]

Welcome back, Nell! Good luck with Vancouver!

[Nell]

January:
First strides!

1) Duck the Halls by Donna Andrews 1/09/16 ♥♥♥♥½
2) Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates 1/14/16 ♥♥♥½
3) The Good, the Bad, and the Emus by Donna Andrews 1/18/16 ♥♥♥♥

[Nell]

Late January:

4) The Nightingale Before Christmas by Donna Andrews 1/23/16 ♥♥♥♥♥
5) Every Day Is for the Thief by Teju Cole 1/23/16 ♥♥♥
6) A Root Awakening by Kate Collins 1/27/16 ♥♥♥½
7) Killer in Crinolines by Duffy Brown 1/31/16 ♥♥♥♥♥

[Jessika]

Lots of good star ratings so far, that's always fun!

[Nell]

February:

8) Pearls and Poison by Duffy Brown 2/05/16 ♥♥♥♥
9) Demise in Denim by Duffy Brown 2/13/16 ♥♥♥½
10) The Handsome Man's Deluxe Café by Alexander McCall Smith 2/18/16 ♥♥♥½

[Nell]

Late February:

11) Say Yes to the Marquess by Tessa Dare 2/19/16 ♥♥♥♥
12) When a Scot Ties the Knot by Tessa Dare 2/22/16 ♥♥♥♥
13) Some Enchanted Éclair by Bailey Cates 2/29/16 ♥♥♥

[Nell]

Hurray!! Pike's Peak - Reached the first summit faster than ever before!

[Jessika]

Awesome!

[Bev]

Congratulations!!!

[Nell]

March:

14) Pall in the Family by Dawn Eastman 3/06/16 ♥♥♥½
15) A Radical Departure by Lia Matera 3/10/16 ♥♥♥♥
16) Be Careful What You Witch For by Dawn Eastman 3/18/16 ♥♥♥♥
17) The Tree of Death by Marcia Muller 3/29/16 ♥♥♥½

[Nell]

Mountaineering Checkpoint #1:

I've read 17 out of 36 books so I'm off to a strong start. I've scaled 5,012 of 10,856 feet up the mountain. This is my third climb and my pattern has been to start strong then lag in the middle. I'll try to avoid that this year and keep climbing steadily during the next quarter.

A. Prettiest cover is this scene of the San Francisco coast


B. Favorite character is Meg Langslow in the Donna Andrews' mystery series. I read three of those: Duck the Halls, The Good, the Bad, and the Emus and The Nightingale Before Christmas.

C. The book that surprised me was Every Day Is for the Thief by Teju Cole. It read more like a travelogue than a novel. That was unexpected.

D. Title Scrabble:

D - Demise in Denim by Duffy Brown
A - A Radical Departure by Lia Matera
N - The Nightingale Before Christmas by Donna Andrews
G - The Good, the Bad, and the Emus by Donna Andrews
E - Every Day Is for the Thief: Fiction by Teju Cole
R - A Root Awakening by Kate Collins

[Bev]

Thanks for doing the check-in! As a bonus question I should have asked those who were able to do a Title Scrabble word if they think that word is representative of the books they've read. :-)

[Nell]

Bev wrote: "Thanks for doing the check-in! As a bonus question I should have asked those who were able to do a Title Scrabble word if they think that word is representative of the books they've read. :-)"

Yes mine is. Most of the books I read are murder mysteries!. Someone is in danger!

[Nell]

April:
Halfway there!!!

18) Murder at the PTA by Laura Alden 4/21/16 ♥♥♥♥
19) Foul Play at the PTA by Laura Alden 4/25/16 ♥♥♥♥

[Nell]

May:

20) The Legend of the Slain Soldiers by Marcia Muller 5/03/16 ♥♥♥
21) The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah 5/07/16 ♥♥♥♥♥
22) Murder on the Rocks by Allyson K. Abbott 5/09/16 ♥♥♥♥
23) Aunty Lee's Deadly Specials by Ovidia Yu 5/21/16 ♥♥♥♥

[Nell]

June:

24) A Demon Summer by G.M. Malliet 6/03/16 ♥♥♥♥

[Nell]

Mount Blanc! Woot! Woot!

[Jessika]

Awesome!

[Nell]

More June reads

25) One Small Step Can Change Your Life: by Robert Maurer 6/19/16 ♥♥♥♥½
26) One Hot Murder by Lorraine Bartlett 6/23/16 ♥♥♥♥
27) Musseled Out by Barbara Ross 6/26/16 ♥♥♥♥♥
28) Suede to Rest by Diane Vallere 6/29/16 ♥♥♥♥

[Nell]

Second Quarter Checkpoint:

1. I've read 28 out of 36 books. I am 8,433 feet up Mount Vancouver - more than 2/3 of the climb. So far, this is my fastest climbing year though shiny new books are a constant temptation.

2.
A. Common link: Several books have birds in the title. Two books name the same bird: The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah and The Nightingale Before Christmas by Donna Andrews. The novels are nothing alike: One is a historical novel set in occupied France during WWII; the other is a humorous contemporary mystery set during Christmas in a small college town.

B. One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way by Robert Maurer talked about how small acts and questions can lead to big changes. It's how America won World War II. We taught this technique to the Japanese after the war then forgot it ourselves!

C. The Legend of the Slain Soldiers by Marcia Muller. I picked this up at a library sale 20 years ago! It was a good mystery but not spectacular.

My Life According to Books
1. My Ex was A Root Awakening
2. My best friend is Between the World and Me
3. Lately, at work Every Day Is for the Thief
4. If I won the lottery, I'd know One Small Step Can Change Your Life
5. My fashion sense is Suede to Rest
6. My next ride is to The Handsome Man's Deluxe Café
7. The one I love is a Long Man
8. If I ruled the world, everyone would seek The Secret Wisdom of the Earth
9. When I look out my window, I see The Nightingale
10. The best thing in life is Ordinary Grace

[Nell]

July:

29) Guaranteed to Bleed by Julie Mulhern 7/23/16 ♥♥♥♥
30) Threaded for Trouble by Janet Bolin 7/25/16 ♥♥♥♥
31) Thread and Buried by Janet Bolin 7/31/16 ♥♥♥♥

[Nell]

August:

32) Long Man by Amy Greene 8/13/16 ♥♥♥♥♥
33) The Countess by Lynsay Sands 8/20/16 ♥♥♥♥
34) Ghost in Trouble by Carolyn Hart 8/26/16 ♥♥♥½
35) Gone With a Handsomer Man by Michael Lee West 8/30/16 ♥♥♥

[Nell]

September:

36) Orange Mint and Honey by Carleen Brice 9/24/16 ♥♥♥♥½

[Nell]

Yea!! Mt. Vancouver!!
Dancing on the Summit

[Jessika]

Woohoo! Hooray!

[Nell]

Mountaineering Checkpoint #3

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read).
I am dancing on the summit of Mt Vancouver - 15,787 feet Woo Hoo!!

2. Complete ONE (or more if you like) of the following:
A. Who has been your favorite character so far? And tell us why, if you like.
My favorite character is Shay Glory Dixon in Orange Mint and Honey and her mother Nona Dixon. The MC is struggling to heal from her childhood and to reconcile with her mother, a recovering alcoholic.

B. Pair up two of your reads. But this time we're going for opposites.
A Radical Departure by Lia Matera
Be Careful What You Witch For by Dawn Eastman

Plus - A book with opposites in the title -
The Good, the Bad, and the Emus by Donna Andrews

D.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
The Nightingale Before Christmas by Donna Andrews

Nightingale

The Handsome Man's Deluxe Café by Alexander McCall Smith
Gone With a Handsomer Man by Michael Lee West

Handsome Man

Pearls and Poison by Duffy Brown

Pearls

Orange Mint and Honey by Carleen Brice

Orange Mint

[Kate]

Nell wrote: "Yea!! Mt. Vancouver!!
Dancing on the Summit"

Way to go Nell! Love that picture!