January challenge

[Sheila]

Well, I hope I'm out of my reading slump. I have a lot of books to read and share with you. I also have my reading challenges to do. My goals are 200 books this year and 40,000 pages to read. Slumps not allowed this year!

Here are some ideas for books for January:

1. Read a book whose author's surname begins with H.
2. Since it is a new year, read a book with NEW in the title.
3. Since it is cold seemingly everywhere, read a book set in winter.
4. Since it is cold, read a book set in a warm climate.
5. With all the bowl games, January 1 is the Ice Bowl game in hockey so read a book with hockey as its backdrop.
6. January is Book Blitz month so read a book about books.
7. January is also National Polka Month so read a book about dance.
8. There will be two full moons in January (1st and 31st) so read a book with a moon on the cover.
9. Your choice.

[Colleen]

So we're off again for a new year. Starting the year reading "A Wrinkle in Time". I read it as a child and I've been enjoying it so far. Hope to be more consistent in posting this year. Happy new Year to all.

[Sheila]

Here's my January list:

6/9, 9 books

1. Read a book whose author's surname begins with H--Moonrise by Erin Hunter--finished 1/3/18.
2. Since it is a new year, read a book with NEW in the title.
3. Since it is cold seemingly everywhere, read a book set in winter--Merry Murder by C. S. McDonald--finished 1/19/18.
4. Since it is cold, read a book set in a warm climate--California Girl Chronicles: Brea & the City of Plastic by Michelle Gamble-Risley--finished 1/25/18.
5. With all the bowl games, January 1 is the Ice Bowl game in hockey so read a book with hockey as its backdrop--Holly & Hockey Boots by V. L. Locey--finished 1/24/18.
6. January is Book Blitz month so read a book about books--Murder at the Book Group by Maggie King--finished 1/22/18.
7. January is also National Polka Month so read a book about dance.
8. There will be two full moons in January (1st and 31st) so read a book with a moon on the cover.
9. Your choice--Duke of Storm by Gaelyn Foley--finished 1/7/18.

Other reads:
Girl Waits With Gun by Amy Stewart--finished 1/15/18
A Room with a Brew by Joyce Tremel--finished 1/18/18
Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult--finished 1/24/18

[Colleen]

Well, I finished "A Wrinkle in Time". I liked it but found it much more complex as an adult than I did as a child. I loved that the characters were willing to risk everything for each other and family. Very enjoyable book. Next up for me is "A Brief stop on the road from Aushwicz". So far it is an unusual memoir.

[Deb]

I am going to attempt to read 100 or books this year.

1. The Passions of Chelsea Kane by Barbara Delinsky 1/2/18
2. Slow Burn by Ace Atkins 1/4/18
3. Babyville by Jane Green 1/8/18
4. The Bridge by Robert Knott 1/11/18

[Colleen]

So I finished "A Brief Stop on the Road from Auschwitz". It was a well-written memoir of the author's father's attempts to rebuild a life and some obstacles he faced. It is tough to read the book at times since it appears disjointed but as you progress in the book, the writing style begins to make sense. The writing matches the life.

I also read "Devlin's Door" and "The Raven Queen". They are both by K. Kibbee and are a series of fantasy books involving fairies and their interactions with the worlds of 2 teenage girls from different time periods. The books need to be read in order to get the most from them and I liked "The Raven Queen" better of the two. Some parts of "Devlin's Door" were a little creepy.

Next up, "Bloodline" by Claudia Gray, another Star Wars book. I'm indulging my geekiness again.
Looking forward to weekend of bad weather so I can stay home and read.

[Sheila]

Deb wrote: "I am going to attempt to read 100 or books this year.

1. The Passions of Chelsea Kane by Barbara Delinsky 1/2/18
2. Slow Burn by Ace Atkins 1/4/18
3. Babyville by Jane Green 1/8/18
4. The Bridge ..."

Glad to have you.

[Tia]

Thankyou sheila 😁😁
Books for january a bit late nevertheless lets see where we go.

1. Read a book whose author's surname begins with H.The Kite Runner
2. Since it is a new year, read a book with NEW in the title.Brave New World
3. Since it is cold seemingly everywhere, read a book set in winter.Little Women
4. Since it is cold, read a book set in a warm climate.Appointment with Death
5. With all the bowl games, January 1 is the Ice Bowl game in hockey so read a book with hockey as its backdrop.The Goal
6. January is Book Blitz month so read a book about books.The Book Thief
7. January is also National Polka Month so read a book about dance.dancergirl
8. There will be two full moons in January (1st and 31st) so read a book with a moon on the cover.Where the Red Fern Grows
9. Your choice.Batman: Nightwalker

[Colleen]

So I haven't really picked a lot of books to work with the side challenges this month. I'll try to get better on that next month.
Since last I've been here, I've finished "Star Wars Bloodline". I loved it. Leia has to try to hold politics together through corruption, division, and the revelation that she is the daughter of Darth Vader. She learns that people can overcome poor first impressions and the fighting is often easier than politics. It sets up the new trilogy of movies well. I also finished a short story called "Starflower" by Andrew Croke. It is super short and speaks for itself. I enjoyed "Boomer's Bucket List" but definitely recommend keeping the tissues close for that one. It is a love story set up by a dog. I loved the dog in it though. He was fun. I finished a comic book called "The Comics of Richer Faster Poorer on Common Sense Investing". Let's say that book shows how uncommon Common Sense is. It does give practical, steady as you go tips that are worth knowing about money.
I also finished "Darcy Swipes Left" which is a cute update on the classic "Pride & Prejudice". I was grateful for the emoji & text translators in the back of the book. I also finished "She Captains: Heroines & Hellions of the Sea". Joan Druett thoroughly researched & detailed the lives of women on the seas throughout time. It had some fascinating people that could support books on their own.

So to finish up January I am working on "Winter" to finish off the Lunar Chronicles to date.

[Rachel]

January's reads:
-Tracy L. Higley 1-11-18
This was an intriguing romantic suspense novel set in Biblical times during the days of the first century Church. The protagonist ends up playing a vital role in the Christians' fight against the demonic influences of witchcraft and service to Artemis in Ephesus. The writing style was fairly good, and the characters were reasonably well developed, and I will say that it worked well as a stand-alone novel, as I didn't know it was part of a series until now (1-31). My taking 10 days to finish it was due to my restless state of mind rather than any fault of the book.

-Lynette Eason 1-16-18
This is an intense, entertaining, and well written Christian romantic suspense novel with complex, twisting plot lines. It is the first novel of the Deadly Reunions trilogy, and it is also the first book by Lynette Eason that I have read, and I am so glad I read it. I devoured the book in a single day and was pleased that I was able to get the other two books of the trilogy rather quickly from the library because the ultimate mystery isn't solved at the end of the first novel, but enough plot lines do get solved that it doesn't feel like a real cliff hanger. My definite props to a master storyteller.

-Jody Hedlund 1-20-18
This is the second novel in the Beacons of Hope series, which are so far subtly Christian historical romances set in various lighthouses of Michigan during the 1860s. The main drawback for me was that although I liked the protagonist as a character, she honestly didn't appear to be a good light keeper even though that's what part of the plot was trying to prove because it didn't focus much on her actually doing the job of not only keeping the light lit at night and turning it off and cleaning it in the mornings and of keeping good records but of actually watching the lake during the night. It mentioned a few more elements of what her job was meant to entail than it actually showed her doing. Even though she was dealing with opposition from several directions, I felt that she wasn't shown to be even half as conscientious about her job as the main male from the first novel of the series. But I liked the romance, so I will keep reading the series.

-Lynette Eason 1-29-18
This is an intense, entertaining, and well written Christian romantic suspense novel with complex, twisting plot lines. It is the second novel of the Deadly Reunions trilogy, and having loved the first book of the trilogy, I was pleased that I was able to read this next book rather quickly. As was the case with the first novel of the trilogy, the ultimate mystery isn't solved at the end of this novel, but enough of the remaining plot lines are unraveled that it doesn't feel like a real cliff hanger. My definite props to a master storyteller.

-Lynette Eason 1-30-18
This is an intense, entertaining, and well written Christian romantic suspense novel with complex, twisting plot lines. It is the concluding novel of the Deadly Reunions trilogy [well, okay there's a tag along 3.5, but as it's only an e-book and not a whole number, I'm not counting it] and having loved the previous two books of the trilogy, I was pleased that I was able to read this last book rather quickly. I loved seeing the rest of the plot lines get unraveled, and I was totally stunned when the big overarching mystery of the whole trilogy was finally revealed; I would have never expected the person who ended up being the ultimate nemesis. My definite props to a master storyteller.