MobileRead Book Challenges discussion
2015 Individual Challenges
>
Rumpelteazer's 2015 Challenge
The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl.It took a while for the story to be set up and all the main characters to be introduced but after that it was very hard to put down.
My challenge of trying to keep my Kindle from getting cluttered is also going well. A good side-effect of this is that I impulse-buy/download less books, saving my money. Instead I put a book I think I want on my wishlist. About once a month I go through my wishlist and delete books I'm not really interested in after all.
Apartment 16 by Adam Nevill.I really have a love/hate relationship with this author. I like his very British psychological horror style. I don't like it that his books, or at least those that I've read so far, either end bad for the main character or have an ambiguous ending (nice way of saying I think the story isn't really finished).
The Dead Key by D.M. PulleyI liked the story, except for the ending, which was too open for my taste. I could have lived with the open ending for the main character in the present time, but I hate not knowing what happened to the two most important characters from the past.
Wilful Behaviour by Donna Leon
The 11th book in the Guido Brunetti series. I liked this one better than the couple of previous ones.
Flesh and Bone by Jefferson Bass.Looking at the description for the third book in the Body Farm series I think I might have read the first three years ago. I can remember really liking them and wanting to continue but having forgotten too much to find the series again. This second book was enjoyable and a nice, quick read.
14 by Peter Clines.
Definitely inspired by H.P. Lovecraft and not afraid to admit it. It starts out with strange things in an apartment complex, which progress into weirdness and ending in WTF.
Deadlight Hall: A Haunted House Mystery by Sarah Rayne.The fifth in the Nell West & Michael West series. I think this one was a bit grimmer than the previous books, mainly because it dealt with the Second World War and it's atrocities. But it follows the same basics; either Nell or Michael (in this case the latter) gets asked to come to an old house to look at it's history/items for sale/just a general look. It's an intriguing building and both Nell and Michael look into it's history and slowly uncovers it and discover why it's haunted. Not exactly a cozy but close.
This was my 52nd book of the year, I should be able to finish my current book before the end of the month which means I'm one book ahead of averaging two books a week so far. In July and August I'm housesitting for three weeks. I usually can get more reading done than normal because the dog doesn't expect me to be very social beyond walks and the occasional cuddle.
Red Light by Graham Masterton.I'm not sure I'm going to continue with this series. The story in itself was good, but some things annoyed me. Masterton kept referring to the Irish Garda by their full name; An Garda Síochána. Whilst other crime books set in Ireland might refer to it with its full name once or twice and then call it either the Garda or Guards. I was also annoyed with the main character, Katie, I can't put my finger on why exactly.
A fourth book in this series was released this year and another one is scheduled for next year. I might give the fourth one a try to decide whether or not to continue.
A Beautiful Blue Death by Charles Finch. First in the Charles Lenox series, but this series isn't for me.
Nyctophobia by Christopher Fowler.A creepy and original haunted house story. The only thing I didn't like was that in the first half the author kept adding sentences as "this would be the last time we would ..." and "if I had only known" to give the reader a feeling of foreboding. This annoyed me and was IMHO totally unnecessary.
My tablet died, again, today. Which means more reading time and less distracted reading time.
Bianca wrote: "My tablet died, again, today. Which means more reading time and less distracted reading time.";) Good, right?
I'm all over the place. O_O
MrsJoseph wrote: "Bianca wrote: "My tablet died, again, today. Which means more reading time and less distracted reading time.";) Good, right?
I'm all over the place. O_O"
At the moment I have a difficult time getting into books, no matter how good they are. It takes me days to read the first part and then read the last part in a day.
I do hope I'll get it back quickly; in just over a week and a half I'm going house sitting and having a tablet makes things easier.
Orient: A Novel by Christopher Bollen.Meh. The characters couldn't decide whether they were good, bad or ambiguous. The story kept going in circles about who the killer should be and who was blamed by the residents of Orient and the police. The red herrings were too obvious. And there wasn't really a clue about who the murderer was until the end.
An English Ghost Story by Kim Newman.Despite, or maybe because of, the fact that the character were caricatures of the stereotypical family it was a great and original haunted house story. Loved it.
Raven Black by Ann Cleeves.
The first in the Shetland/Jimmy Perez series. Not as good as the Vera Stanhope series but still good.
Now it's time to start my house sitting reading. First up Great North Road which is over 1000 pages. I plan to read the three Odd Interlude books to break up this long read.
I've read the first of the Odd Interlude books today. I'm immensely enjoying Great North Road, not too sci-fi for me and a good murder mystery. But it's not only long but also a slow read for me, so before I burn out I took a short break.
Great North Road by Peter F. Hamilton.Best book I've read so far this year! It's long, for me it wasn't a quick read, but I loved it. Normally I'm not a fan of sci-fi, but this was more a mystery set in the future (with all the new technology) than a sci-fi story with a mystery, if that makes any sense. The characters were interesting, not until the end you know who's the good guy and who is the bad guy or both. The settings were great and the technology was interesting without it being pushed too much.
The Elementals by David McDowell.I think I might have read this book before, some scenes were vaguely familiar. But it must have been 15 or 20 years ago.
I loved this book. It's a psychological horror, not much outright scares and no flying bodyparts but it builds up a very creepy atmosphere. This is also helped by the almost incestuous relations between the family members of the two families. On the one hand a shame it was such a short and quick read, on the other hand it was exactly the right length for the story.
Odd Interlude #3 by Dean Koontz.I like the added voice of Jolie instead of only Odd.
I've decided that in August I'll try to read mainly horror books. I've got a whole bunch of them on my TBR pile which I try to reserve for special occasions (mostly vacations or for when I need a quick and easy read). This year I've read, on average, 9 books a month. So my goal for August is to read at least 5 horror novels.
I love to read y our updates. You have such a wonderful variety of books!
Thank you.I couldn't do it any different way, I get bored easily. I see my mom reading a series from start to finish in one go and I just couldn't do it.
Bianca wrote: "Thank you.I couldn't do it any different way, I get bored easily. I see my mom reading a series from start to finish in one go and I just couldn't do it."
I can with my favorites but I always read multiple books at one time so that allows me to break it up a bit.
But I still get horrible reading slumps.
MrsJoseph wrote: "I can with my favorites but I always read multiple books at one time so that allows me to break it up a bit.But I still get horrible reading slumps. "
I'm not good at reading multiple books. If I'm reading a very long book I might break it up by reading another book/other books in between, but that's it.
I've been doing the reading challenge since 2011 and the only time I didn't read was during the two weeks following the fire next door to us. I was in too much of a shock to concentrate and too busy and too tired at night to read.
During the week I usually read a little bit during the day and then again for a while at night. I get most of my reading done on Sunday and Monday (my weekend). Unless I'm reading a really good book.
Odd Interlude #3 by Dean Koontz.The three Odd Interlude books were together basically a shorter Odd Thomas novel.
I liked it that we also get a bit of first person narrative from someone else than Odd. Hopefully in the next books this will return, although I doubt it.
House of Small Shadows by Adam Nevill.Of all of Nevill's books I like this one best. I really like his stories, but most of the time I dpn't find his characters very likeable. I did like the main character of this book. As often in his books the ending was ambiguous.
This first book of my August challenge.
I'm liking this month's horror mini-challenge. So much so that I want to do something like that each month in 2016; pick a theme and read a certain amount of books related to that theme. I'm thinking of 4 books a month and not to exclude longer books I will count any books over 800 pages as 2 books and books over 1200 pages as three books for the challenge.I don't want to decide before hand what month will be which theme, I'll choose at the start of the month so I can take into account what mood I'm in and any new releases.
I've made a list of 20 themes to choose from (which can still change):
1. horror
2. thriller
3. crime
4. cozy
5. British
6. books I've wanted to read for a long time
7. new bestsellers
8. series (full month)
9. stand alone (full month)
10. authors I haven't read
11. old favourites
12. tv/film
13. Scandanavian (including Iceland)
14. classics
15. Far East
16. Australia
17. historical
18. mystery
19. non-fiction
20. young adult
Definitely Scandanavian. I really enjoyed my selections from that area last year.
Homeinmyshoes wrote: "Definitely Scandanavian. I really enjoyed my selections from that area last year."I have several on my TBR list, but suggestions are always welcome.
I will need to go through Calibre and add information, where I can find it, about country/city the novel is set in.
^I did mine based on author's country (generally upbringing and formative years and subject is how I determine country for an author.)The Year of the Hare by Arto Paasilinna (Finland) and The Transformation by Mette Newth (Norway) are my recommendations. The Transformation is set in Greenland and the Year of the Hare is set in Finland.
The Ghost Hunters by Neil Springand
Long Lankin by Lindsey Barraclough
Number 2 and 3 of my August horror challenge. Both good stories. Ghost Hunters is based/inspired by real life events (ghost hunter Harry Price's investigation of Borley Rectory), I need to look into this and see if I can get Price's books on the investigation.
I'm now taking a break from horror for a little bit, by reading The Einstein Prophecy.
The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik LarsonThe Maze Runner by James Dashner
Miramont's Ghost by Elizabeth Hall
Bones of Betrayal by Jefferson Bass.I'm now looking which books I want to put on my Kindle for the trip to Krakow next week. Especially during the travel days I have a lot of time to read since my sister suffers from what I call travel-narcolepsy (seriously, she sits down in the train/bus/car/airplane and she dozes of immediately).
I'm panicking about what to read during my vacation. I usually do, unless I go somewhere where I plan to do not much besides reading and watching films. It's not that I haven't got anything to read.I've got a (hopefully) nice, short, fluffy horror for during the flight tomorrow.
For the rest of the week I have three main contenders:
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (reread)
The Scorch Trials (#2 The Maze Runner)
The Girl on the Train (very popular this summer).
The Haunting of Gillespie House by Darcy CoatesThe Scorch Trials by James Dashner
The Visitors by Sally Beauman
The Visitors by Brian Keene
Glass Houses by Rachel CaineA great read, except that it ends on a cliffhanger and I hate books that end on a big cliffhanger.
No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill.For the first time since reading Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House about 14 years ago I had to put a book aside when reading at night because it creeped me out so much!
Added bonus is that it was set in Birmingham, UK (I went to uni nearby). Loved it.
The Death Chamber by Sarah Rayne.I just love her mixture of suspence, history, a tiny bit of romance and hauntings.
The Moth Catcher by Ann Cleeves.A great addition to the Vera Stanhope series. I like it that we get to know Holly better, though I do miss Joe's point of view.
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine
The Eight by Katherine Neville.Technically a reread. I read this book in the mid 1990s, I remember the cover, the title and even that I read it during the summer holidays when the weather was great and I remember that for years after reading it I kept checking if there was a sequel. I recently came across this book again and a sequel had been released. But since it was such a long time ago I read the first book I decided on a reread. Which was a good thing, because nothing of the story was familiar. I still loved it, though.
The Abandoned Orphanage by John Carter.
A good story, but I suspect no editor was involved. There were silly typos ("stop" instead of "step"), capitalization gone wrong (the word "stand" was always capitalized), punctuation, grammar and spelling mistakes and sentences that were grammatically correct but either it wasn't clear what the author meant to say or it just didn't flow.
Also, I suspect that one of the character got a name change and the author did a search and replace without remembering a certain scene, which changed into something rather confusing:
“Your son Jacob and your daughter Lauren were—”
“We call him Jacob,” Hank interrupted.
“What’s that?”
“We call him Jacob. He hates to be called Jacob. Never mind, I don’t know what I’m saying; it’s not important. Sorry.”
Also, The Eight was just over 700 pages long, which means I've finished my long book challenge for this year!
Woohoo. Always a happy day when a sub-challenge is finished.
I managed to finish two shorter books during the weekend:White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi.
If it wasn't so short (just over 200 pages) I probably wouldn't have finished it. I like the concept of the house that haunts several generations of women but the characters just weren't very likeable.
Witches of Lychford by Paul Cornell.
Loved it. It reminded me a bit of the Merrily Watkins series by Phil Rickman. Hopefully more will follow.
Dream London by Tony BallantyneIt took me half of the book to get into the story, but in the end I really liked it. I think it took so long because I needed to get to know Dream London, but since it's changing all the time and the main character also didn't have a clue about what was happening it made it harder for me to get going.
The Vanished Man by Jeffery DeaverGood book with a good twist. The ending was a bit of a cheap shot, though.
Ghost Camera by Darcy Coates
Nice little ghost story. Great read for Halloween
Vent:
Because a book didn't show up after transferring it to my Kindle I wanted to restart it. I accidentally didn't reboot but reset it. I'm just spend half an hour setting up my Kindle how I like it and reloading books.
Bianca wrote: "The Vanished Man by Jeffery DeaverGood book with a good twist. The ending was a bit of a cheap shot, though.
Ghost Camera by Darcy Coates
Nice little ghost story. Gre..."
Oh no!
I can't even imagine.
I refuse to upgrade my Kobo software due to this fear. Plus the last upgrade was atrocious.
MrsJoseph wrote: "Oh no!I can't even imagine.
I refuse to upgrade my Kobo software due to this fear. Plus the last upgrade was atrocious."
I had a Kobo for about a year and then I gave up because each update brought more bugs than it solved, plus the touchscreen went unresponsive about once a month and it was only solved by a reset.
Luckily I try keep the number of books down on my Kindle. But after a summer with three weeks of housesitting, a weekend away and a week to Krakow I had added a lot of books to it that didn't have much chance to be read soon.
When the accidental reset happened I had luckily just finished a book and no other books I was reading. So the reset was more of an inconvenience; having to go through the "How your Kindle works" tutorial and adding my books again. I ended up with a nice clean Kindle again.
Slander Hall by Matthew Tait.Great concept, but too short. At times it felt as if it was a longer story but things had been cut out. It felt a bit disjointed and truncated to me.
The Puller by Michael Hodges.A nice creature feature horror with a message. However, the environmental message is a bit heavy handed, it was getting to the stage of annoying.
The ending was a bit abrupt, IMHO.
MobileRead Book Challenges
Books mentioned in this topic
Madonna and Corpse (other topics)The Dead Girls' Dance (other topics)
Murder in Whitechapel (other topics)
The Fire (other topics)
Where the Dead Walk (other topics)
More...
For some reason I just couldn't really get into the story.