120 in 2016 - Chris

[Chris]

After finishing my goal of 101 with some room to spare in 2015 I'm back for more! I read more books last year than I had in the last five put together and loved every minute (well, almost). Here we go again.

1. The Boy Who Wept Blood - Den Patrick
2. Lost Stars - Claudia Gray
3. The Revenant: A Novel of Revenge - Michael Punke
4. Drake - Peter McLean
5. Steal the Sky - Megan E. O'Keefe
6. Sixth of the Dusk - Brandon Sanderson
7. Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Alan Dean Foster
8. Annihilation - Jeff VanderMeer
9. Red Queen - Victoria Aveyard
10. The Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss
11. Wool Omnibus - Hugh Howey
12. The Witches of Echo Park - Amber Benson
13. The Bands of Mourning - Brandon Sanderson
14. Mistborn: Secret History - Brandon Sanderson
15. Air Awakens - Elise Kova
16. City of Blades - Robert Jackson Bennett
17. Authority - Jeff VanderMeer
18. Cruel Crown - Victoria Aveyard
19. The Lost Daughter - Elena Ferrante
20. Morning Star - Pierce Brown
21. Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
22. The Book of Strange New Things - Michael Faber
23. My Brilliant Friend - Elena Ferrante
24. Borderline - Mishell Baker
25. Wool: The Graphic Novel - Hugh Howey
26. The Story of a New Name - Elena Ferrante
27. The Days of Abandonment - Elena Ferrante
28. United States of Japan - Peter Tieryas
29. The Dragon in the Sword: Book 3 of Erekosë Trilogy - Michael Moorcock
30. Crown of Midnight Sarah J. Maas
31. The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
32. Towers Fall - Karina Sumner-Smith
33. Dawn of Wonder - Jonathan Renshaw
34. Spirits Rising - Krista D. Ball
35. The Two of Swords: Part Eight - KJ Parker
36. Snakewood - Adrian Selby
37. The Two of Swords: Part Nine - KJ Parker
38. Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay - Elena Ferrante
39. The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories -Ken Liu
40. Cinder - Marrisa Meyer
41. Gemini Cell - Myke Cole
42. The Warrior Prophet - R. Scott Bakker
43. Ghosts of the Tristan Basin - Brian McClellan
44. The Emperor of the Eight Islands - Lian Hearn
45. Audition - Ryu Murakami
46. The Story of Kullervo - J.R.R. Tolkien
47. Let Me Off at the Top!: My Classy Life and Other Musings - Ron Burgundy
48. The Vegetarian - Han King
49. Real World - Natsuo Kirino
50. The Map of Bones -Francesca Haig
51. The Daedalus Incident - Michael J. Martinez
52. The Thousandfold Thought - R. Scott Bakker
53. The Vagrant - Peter Newman
54. Heir of Fire - Sarah J. Mass
55. Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
56. The Builders - Daniel Polansky
57. The Judging Eye - R. Scott Bakker
58. Road Brothers - Mark Lawrence
59. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - J.K. Rowling
60. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J.K. Rowling
61. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J.K. Rowling
62. The Wheel of Osheim - Mark Lawrence
63. The Invisible Library - Genevieve Cogman
64. The Mages of Bennamore - Pauline M. Ross
65. Das Reboot: How German Football Reinvented Itself and Conquered the World - Raphael Honigstein
66. The Assassin's Blade - Sarah J. Maas
67. Persona - Genevieve Valentine
68. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire - J.K. Rowling
69. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - J.K. Rowling
70. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J.K. Rowling
71. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - J.K. Rowling
72. A Gathering of Shadows - V.E. Schwab
73. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Parts One and Two - J.K. Rowling
74. Insanity - Cameron Jace
75. Red Queen - Christina Henry
76. American Gods - Neil Gaiman
77. Revelation Space - Alistair Reynolds
78. The Butterfly Garden - Dot Hutchinson

Currently Reading
Queen of Shadows - Sarah J. Maas
Senlin Ascends - Josiah Bancroft

[Megan]

Congratulations on your excellent accomplishment last year! Good luck w/ this year's challenge!

[Chris]

Started out with two five star books in a row. I'm getting soft.

The Boy Who Wept Blood was an amazing sequel to Den Patrick's The Boy With the Porcelain Blade. Lost Stars had the Star Wars factor but was pretty damn good on its own still. Never going to be able to watch the original trilogy again without thinking about all the characters from this running around in the background.

[Chris]

Huge update and I'm still on track!

What a great year this has been for me. I FINALLY read Name of the Wind and oh my god did it live up to the massive hype. Such a great book...I'm scared of reading the sequel and having to wait for book 3 like everyone else. Think I'm going to save that for awhile.

New Mistborn and a brilliant novella from Sanderson. He's amazing. Finally got around to Red Queen and loved it. Eagerly anticipating the sequel this month. I have a new love in Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy..it's so weird and bizarre. I have to know more! Currently reading City of Blades which is every bit as good as the brilliant City of Stairs.

I have yet to not enjoy a book this year which is incredible. I thought I might have a stinker in Air Awakens which was pretty bad for the first half or so but finished so strongly I will continue on with the series.

And Tuesday....MORNING STAR COMES OUT!!!! I am literally more excited than I was for the new Star Wars movie. I can't even function properly waiting for this book. 3 MORE DAYS.

[Chris]

MORNING STAR! Wow that was incredible and such a satisfying conclusion. Amazing.

Too bad I just finished Jude the Obscure and think I might be unable to feel happiness ever again. Such a great book but dear god, how dark and dreary it was.

[Chris]

Why didn't anybody tell me Elena Ferrante was so amazing?

[Cassandra]

Great job, Chris! You've read a lot of books I'm looking forward to. I'm in line for Morning Star at the library right now.

How are you liking The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories?

[Chris]

It's pretty great. Loved The Grace of Kings last year so I had to try this one even though I don't read a lot of short fiction. Just been reading one story a day to break up the emotional devastation of the Elena Ferrante novels. I highly recommend The Literomancer if I had to choose one so far. Easily one of the best short stories I have read in a long time.

But yeah..Elena Ferrante is my new obsession. Just finished The Story of a New Name and I can barely describe how much I love these books. On my way to pick up book 3 right now although Im not sure if im ready emotionally for it just yet haha. Everybody should read these books.

[Cassandra]

Good to know! I like to read short story collections in small chunks like that.

[Chris]

Another brilliant Ferrante novel down. Days of Abandonement was a great, short break from the Neapolitan series (which I couldn't find book 3 in town so am waiting on it to ship errghh).

United States of Japan..just finished this awesome alternate history novel. Incredibly unique, morbid and bizarre.

[Chris]

Almost done with the third Neapolitan novel. I know I've been praising Ferrante a lot here but it just keeps getting better. I am obsessed..going to have her entire body of work finished in just a few months..amazing.

[Chris]

Might have to up this to 150. So many books to read yet.

[Chris]

Anybody read Map of Bones? Such a great, underrated series.

[Chris]

Halfway there. Finally getting around to a Harry Potter reread. Want to do the whole series before Cursed Child comes out.

[Chris]

Forgot to update this for awhile but I'm still on track. Finished my Harry Potter reread and loved The Cursed Child. Not sure why I waited so long for American Gods but that was amazing.