2025 Reading Challenge discussion
2025 Personal Challenge: 101+
>
Lara (Still) Loves a Challenge - 2025 Ed.
date
newest »
newest »
Monthly Totals To help track my progress
Jan: 46 books
14 booksFeb: 51 books
12 graphic novels
20 picture books
11 booksMar: 61 books
12 graphic novels
28 picture books
20 booksApr: 43 books
30 graphic novels
11 picture books
10 booksMay: 85 books
16 graphic novels
17 picture books
17 booksJun: books
32 graphic novels
36 picture books
booksJul: books
graphic novels
picture books
booksAug: books
graphic novels
picture books
booksSep: books
graphic novels
picture books
booksOct: books
graphic novels
picture books
booksNov: books
graphic novels
picture books
booksDec: books
graphic novels
picture books
books
graphic novels
picture books
Total Books: 72
Total Graphic Novels: 102
Total Picture Books: 112
Grand Total: 286 titles
A-Z ChallengeRead a book beginning with each letter of the alphabet. Will try to count as few picture books as possible - read way too many of those for this to be a challenge otherwise!
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Historical Romance Series ChallengeGoal: Addictive
Another personal challenge through another group. Complete the sets! I'm not holding myself to just one year for this one, especially as my romance reading comes in waves when it comes to themes, tropes, subgenres, etc. This is just an ongoing one for me year to year, as I aim to finish up a few series (and probably reread a number of books in the process!)
Series: Bedwyn Saga - Mary Balogh (9 books, including side works)
Have read 2/9
0.5 One Night for Love (Bedwyn Prequel 1)
(Bedwyn Prequel 2)1 Slightly Married
3 Slightly Scandalous
4 Slightly Tempted
5 Slightly Sinful
6 Slightly Dangerous
6.5 Once Upon A Dream
Series: Mistress Series - Mary Balogh (4 books, including side work)
1 More Than a Mistress
2 No Man's Mistress
2.5 Now a Bride
3 The Secret Mistress
Series: Huxtable Quintet - Mary Balogh (5 books)
1 First Comes Marriage
2 Then Comes Seduction
3 At Last Comes Love
4 Seducing an Angel
5 A Secret Affair
Series: Kellingtons - Maureen Driscoll (6 books)
A reread, but a favorite family to visit
Series: Emersons - Maureen Driscoll (6 books)
Reread the Kellington series first, then on to its sequel series, the Emersons!
1 Always Come Home
2 Always True to Her
3 Always Have Hope
4 Always Believe in Love
5 Always Forever
6 Never and Always
Series: Secret Lives - Colleen Connally (3 books)
2 Broken Legacy
3 Seductive Lies
Series: The Dukes of War - Erica Ridley (8 novellas)
5 The Brigadier's Runaway Bride
6 The Pirate's Tempting Stowaway
7 The Duke's Accidental Wife
8 All I Want
Series: Cynfell Brothers - Samantha Holt (7 novellas)
3 Sinful Liaisons
4 Sinful Cravings
5 Sinful Possession
6 Sinful Temptations
7 Sinful Secrets
Series: Waltz with a Rogue / The Honorable Rogues - Collette Cameron (6 novellas)
2 A Bride for a Rogue: A Historical Regency Romance
3 A Rogue's Scandalous Wish
4 To Capture a Rogue's Heart
5 The Rogue and the Wallflower
6 A Rose for a Rogue
Series: Bridgerton - Julia Quinn
Prequel 1 Because of Miss Bridgerton
Prequel 2 The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband
Prequel 3 The Other Miss Bridgerton
Prequel 4 First Comes Scandal
1 The Duke and I
2 The Viscount Who Loved Me
3 An Offer From a Gentleman
4 Romancing Mister Bridgerton
5 To Sir Phillip, With Love
6 When He Was Wicked
7 It's in His Kiss
8 On the Way to the Wedding
More series to be added as I think of them, but these should get me started!
Finish the Series ChallengeLike the challenge above, this one's about completing the sets! It's a personal challenge, to help me focus my way through all of those many, many series I'm dabbling in. Some of these have been started in previous years, and I want to reach the ending. Here goes!
Dragon Kin - G.A. Aiken
Last Dragon Standing
The Dragon Who Loved Me
How to Drive a Dragon Crazy
Light My Fire
Feel the Burn
Bring the Heat
Honey Badger Chronicles - Shelly Laurenston
Breaking Badger
Born to Be Badger
To Kill a Badger
Call of Crows - Shelly Laurenston
The Unleashing
The Undoing
The Unyielding
The Dresden Files - Jim Butcher
Dead Beat
Proven Guilty
White Night
Small Favor
Turn Coat
Changes
Ghost Story
Cold Days
Skin Game
Peace Talks
Battle Ground
Side Jobs
Parasol Protctorate, et al - Gail Carriger
Heartless
Timeless
Etiquette & Espionage
Curtsies & Conspiracies
Waistcoats & Weaponry
Manners & Mutiny
Prudence
Imprudence
Competence
Reticence
Daevabad Trilogy - SA Chakraborty
The City of Brass
The Kingdom of Copper
The Empire of Gold
The River of Silver
Protection Inc - Zoe Chant
Colewood MT - Kim Fox
Shadow Walkers - Cynthia Luhrs
Court of Thorns & Roses - Sarah J Maas
A Court of Thorns and Roses
A Court of Mist and Fury
A Court of Wings and Ruin
A Court of Frost and Starlight
A Court of Silver Flames
Lunar Chronicles - Marissa Meyer
Cinder
Scarlet
Cress
Fairest
Winter
Stars Above
Wires and Nerve Vol 1
Wires and Nerve Vol 2
Librarian's Vampire Assistant - Mimi Jean Pamfiloff
The Librarian's Vampire Assistant 2
The Librarian's Vampire Assistant, Book 3
The Librarian's Vampire Assistant, Book 4
The Librarian's Vampire Assistant, Book 5
Vampire Man
Jackaby - William Ritter
The Dire King
The Map
Grishaverse - Leigh Bardugo
Demon in the Wood
Shadow and Bone
Siege and Storm
Ruin and Rising
Six of Crows
Crooked Kingdom
King of Scars
Rule of Wolves
The Language of Thorns
The Lives of Saints
Ember in the Ashes - Sabaa Tahir
An Ember in the Ashes
A Torch Against the Night
A Reaper at the Gates
A Sky Beyond the Storm
A Thief Among the Trees
Quasar Lineage - Pearl Tate
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles - Patricia C. Wrede
Searching for Dragons
Calling on Dragons
Talking to Dragons
World of the White Rat - T. Kingfisher
Clocktaur Wars
Clockwork Boys
The Wonder Engine
Swordheart
Swordheart
Saint of Steel
Paladin's Faith
Tiger's Eye Mysteries - Alyssa Day
A Dead End Christmas
Eye for an Eye
Eye on the Ball
More Than Meets the Eye
Riot MC - Karen Renee
Calming the Riot
Foolish Riot
Respectable Riot
Rough Riot
Dead Presidents MC - Harley Stone
Reckless Bastards MC - KB Winters
Holiday Havoc
Tempted
Wicked
Locked
Loaded
Tied
Wild
The Dark is Rising - Susan Cooper
One of my favorite challenges over the last few years - reading based on cover colors. This appeals to my quirky sense of humor - what librarian hasn't had the "I can't remember the title but the cover was blue" sort of question?1. White (or ivory, cream, bone, etc...)
2. Pink (rose, magenta, salmon, etc...)
3. Red (maroon, brick, scarlet, etc...)
4. Orange (apricot, ginger, carrot, etc...)
5. Yellow (blond, chartreuse, canary, etc...)
6. Green (sage, lime, jade, etc...)
7. Light Blue (teal, sky, cerulean, etc...)
8. Dark Blue (indigo, denim, navy, etc...)
9. Purple (lavender, plum, orchid, etc...)
10. Brown (tan, mahogany, coffee, etc...)
11. Black (grey, slate, coal, etc...)
12. A Metallic color (gold, silver, bronze, etc...)
13. A book with at least 5 colors on the cover
14. A book with a color in the title
15. A book with a word describing colors in the title
Found this one a few years ago and loved it. Appeals to my mythology-loving heart. Worth a repeat!MYTHS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
GoodReads 2020 Challenge Group
1. Janus - Roman god of beginnings and transitions.
Read a book set in Italy, or a book with a character that starts out on a fresh beginning.
2. Fenghuang - Chinese bird, also known as the Chinese Phoenix, is a mythical bird that signifies high virtue and grace.
Read a book set in China, or a book featuring a character full of grace and virtue.
3. Brownie- Scottish mythical creature that inhabits houses and aids in tasks.
Read a book set in Scotland, or a book featuring a character that does work that is unseen.
4. Enenra - Japanese smoke creature. It inhabits bonfires and legend says can only be seen by the pure of heart.
Read a book set in Japan, or a book with a pure-hearted character.
5. Cyclops - Greek mythical one-eyed giants.
Read a book based on a Greek tragedy or a book featuring a short-sighted character.
6. Lang suir - Malaysian ghost of a woman who died in childbirth.
Read a book from Southeast Asia, or a book featuring a character who dies from a broken heart.
7. Finnish water spirit who will capture unmindful children.
Read a book set in the Nordic countries, or a book about a captured child.
8. Hippogriff - European medieval beast that is half eagle and half horse, known for being extremely fast and able to fly long distances.
Read a book about medieval Europe, or a book featuring a character who flies.
9. Wandjina - Australian aboriginal wind and cloud spirits.
Read a book set in Oceania, or a book featuring an important weather event.
10. Jumbee - Caribbean malevolent entities.
Read a book set in the Caribbean, or a book featuring a malevolent character
11. Deer Woman - a half-deer half-woman creature in Native American lore.
Read a book that features a Native American protagonist or a forest setting.
12. Anansi - trickster spider.
Read a book set in Africa or one in which one or more insects play a conspicuous (but not necessarily major) role.
13. Encantado - shapeshifting dolphin in Brazilian myth.
Read a book set in South America or about any type of metamorphosis.
14. Leprechaun
Read a book with a green cover, a book set in Ireland, or about a character who experiences very good luck.
15. Merfolk
Read a book that features a mermaid or takes place at sea.
16. Nightmare
Read a book in which dreaming or dreams play a central role, or a book which features horses.
17. Phoenix
Read a book about rebirth, or a book that features fire (because a phoenix rises from the flames).
18. Nine-tailed fox - a magical fox with nine tails that appears in East Asian legend.
Read a book about foxes or read a manga (because the epononymous Naruto manga stars a ninja who transforms into a nine-tailed fox).
and many many more!19. Baba Yaga - a supernatural being in Russian fairy tales who appears as a fearsome old woman.
Read a book set in Russia or a book featuring a witch.
20. Shahbaz - a fabled bird in ancient Persian mythology.
Read a book set in Western Asia or that takes place in a desert region.
A variation on the Round The World reading challenge from the EVERYONE Has Read This But Me group. I'm not as picky about the order that "travel" is happening; I'm just looking to see if I can read in more state and more countries than I might normally do without consciously making the effort. Not going to list every book per country/state, either - just the first one that checks it off. Here we go!US
visited 16 states (32.00%)
https://douwe.com/projects/visited?re...
CA - A Different Kind of Hooker
CO - Gunner
FL - Starting the Riot
GA - The Billionaire's Secret Heart
ID - Beastly & Bookish
IL - Vampires Drink Tomato Juice
LA - Bridge of Souls
MA - From the Desk of Zoe Washington
MT - Julius
NY - Come To Her Rescue
ND - Accidentally Kidnapping the Biker
OK - Dragon Chained
OR - Dragon Hunted
PA - Down & Dirty: Zak
TX - The Wall of Winnipeg and Me
WA - Crossing the Lines
THE WORLD
visited 8 countries (3.69%)
https://douwe.com/projects/visited?re...
Australia - Christmas Wombat
Belgium - The Day of the Jackal
England - The Dark is Rising
France - Basil and the Big Cheese Cook-Off
Germany - La dame aux livres
Japan - Mr. Villain's Day Off 02
New Zealand - A Deal with the Devil
Scotland - The Earl & the Fairy, Vol. 1
US - Train
Wales - The Grey King
ONE WORD CHALLENGEThis was one of the March Challenges for the 2021 GoodReads Challenge Group, highlighting books with one-word titles. No, I'm not counting titles with "The" or any other article, or volume numbers in one-word manga series - truly just one word! Harder than you think!
Axel
Firelight
Greenwitch
Gunner
Julius
Leashed
Lunch
Mystery
NanoBots
Poodlena
Pooh
Supernova
Train
Wilfred
NEWBERY 100The Newbery Award celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2022, and while I've read a good number off this list, I'm aiming to eventually them all (or as many as I can). There's quite a number that are older or younger than when I was in the "right" age for the Newbery, so there's a good reason to see what I missed! Eventually, I'd like to read as many as I can, so this is a good place to keep track of my tally.
I've read a number back in school, but I won't list them here until I reread them as an adult - recent enough to "count" and leave a review. On the other hand, some I've read and won't be rereading, but will still count here. I've read them recently enough that I have tracked here (and reviewed), but didn't enjoy enough to bother rereading (looking at you, A Wrinkle in Time!)
1963 - A Wrinkle in Time
1976 - The Grey King: The Dark is Rising sequence
1979 - The Westing Game
2004 - The Tale of Despereaux
2016 - Last Stop on Market Street
CHINESE ZODIAC - Year of the SnakeThis one will read books featuring the animal of the current zodiac year. 2025 is the year of the snake, so while harder than last year's Dragon, there should still be a fair few that appear!
Rat
Ox
Tiger
Rabbit
Dragon
Snake - 2025
Horse
Goat
Monkey
Rooster
Dog
Pig
The Ultimate Reading ChallengeYou might have seen it - that Advent-ish sort of set up with prizes to unwrap as you read books meeting the different prompts. I got mine from Amazon, if you're curious yourself. I did this last year, and have carried over the ones I liked from last year.
Read a novella (a short novella typically under 200 pages).
Read a book about a person with a disability.
Read a graphic novel [my note: not manga].
Re-read a book you loved as a child.
Find and read a book that is much longer than your usual reads.
Read a book you selected based purely on its cover design.
Re-read a classic you hated in high school.
Sorry, nope. Life's too short for books I hated.
Attend an author event, in person or virtually.
Read a book by an author whose ethnicity is different from your own.
plus lots and lots of manga
Read a book that's been sitting on your shelf, unread, for more than a year. (for me, yes, rereads count, if it's been a while)
Read a book that features an indigenous person.
Read a book published this year.
Read a book currently on a bestseller list.
Participate in a book club, either virtually or in person.
Tween Book Club (work)
The 52 Book Club’s 2025 Reading ChallengeAnother GoodReads group-driven challenge. Each year, there is a list of 52 prompts to help inspire readers to read 52 books in a year. While I definitely read more than one book a week, it's always good to have new prompts getting me out of my usual reading ruts!
1. A Pun In The Title
2. A Character With Red Hair
Abby
Dave the stupid vampire
Emily (and Leon?)
Robin
The Sorceress, The Animal Queen & Goblin Minion
Stark the Human Warrior -
Vanessa Gans -
3. Title Starts With Letter "M" / 4. Title Starts With Letter "N"
full alphabet challenge is above, instead of listing them again here
5. Plot Includes A Heist
6. Genre 1: Set In Spring
7. Genre 2: Set In Summer
mystery -
8. Genre 3: Set In Autumn
9. Genre 4: Set In Winter
fantasy -
10. Author's Last Name Is Also A First Name
Susan Cooper
Jordan Quinn
Karen Renee
Jan Thomas
11. A Prequel
12. Has A Moon On The Cover
13. Title Is Ten Letters Or Less
14. Climate Fiction
15. Includes Latin American History
16. Author Has Won An Edgar Award
17. Told In Verse
18. A Character Who Can Fly
19. Has Short Chapters
20. A Fairy Tale Retelling
21. Character's Name In The Title
22. Found Family Trope
23. A Sprayed Edge
24. Title Is A Spoiler
25. Breaks The Fourth Wall
26. More Than A Million Copies Sold
27. Features A Magician
28. A Crossover (Set In A Shared Universe)
29. Shares A Universe With Prompt 28 (and shares list)
30. In The Public Domain
31. Audiobook Has Multiple Narrators
32. Includes A Diary Entry
33. A Standalone Novel
34. Direction In The Title
35. Written In Third Person
36. Final Sentence Is Less Than 6 Words Long
37. Genre Chosen For You By Someone Else - there is no list for this one, but once you have your genre feel free to check our Summer 2022 genre lists for ideas. I'll be counting my Tween Book Club reads, since the kids steer the choices!
38. An Adventure Story
39. Has An Epigraph
40. Stream Of Consciousness Narrative
41. Cover Font Is In A Primary Color
42. Non-Human Antagonist
43. Explores Social Class
44. A Celebrity On The Cover
45. Author Releases More Than One Book A Year
46. Read In A "-Ber" Month - there is no list for this prompt. Take a look above and below for summary and break-down for books read per month
47. "I Think It Was Blue"
Full rainbow of covers in another challenge above - inspired by exactly this sort of patron request!
48. Related To The Word Puzzle
49. Set In A Country With An Active Volcano
50. Set In The 1940's - Includes WWII
Set In The 1940's - Not Including WWII
51. A Book With 300-400 Pages
52. Published in 2025
POPSUGAR READING CHALLENGE 2025Duration: January 1, 2025 - December 31, 2025
The Popsugar Reading Challenge is back for its 10th year! I've done this one on and off over the year, and with it being an anniversary year, why not participate again? This popular challenge has 50 total prompts to work on during the year. For more information, the Challenge is linked here: https://www.popsugar.com/books/popsug...
1. A book about a POC experiencing joy and not trauma
2. A book you want to read based on the last sentence
3. A book about space tourism
4. A book with two or more books on the cover or "book" in the title
5. A book with a snake on the cover or in the title
6. A book that fills your favorite prompt from the 2015 PS Reading Challenge
7. A book about a cult
8. A book under 250 pages
9. A book that features a character going through menopause
10. A book you got for free
11. A book mentioned in another book
12. A book about a road trip
13. A book rated less than three stars on Goodreads
14. A book about a nontraditional education
15. A book that an AI chatbot recommends based on your favorite book
16. A book set in or around a body of water
17. A book about a run club
Ooh, motivation to read the Track series by Justin Reynolds!
18. A book containing magical creatures that aren't dragons
19. A highly anticipated read of 2025
20. A book that fills a 2024 prompt you'd like to do over (or try out)
21. A book where the main character is a politician
22. A book about soccer
23. A book that is considered healing fiction
24. A book with a happily single woman protagonist
25. A book where the main character is an immigrant or refugee
26. A book where an adult character changes careers
27. A book set at a luxury resort
28. A book that features an unlikely friendship
29. A book about a food truck
30. A book that reminds you of your childhood
31. A book where music plays an integral part of the storyline
32. A book about an overlooked woman in history
33. A book featuring an activity on your bucket list
34. A book written by an author who is neurodivergent
35. A book centering LGBTQ+ characters that isn't about coming out
36. A book with silver on the cover or in the title
37. Two books with the same title (1)
38. Two books with the same title (2)
39. A classic you've never read
40. A book about chosen family
Advanced Prompts
Easy
41. A book by the oldest author in your TBR pile
42. A book with a title that starts with the letter Y
43. A book that includes a nonverbal character
44. A book you have always avoided reading
Medium
45. A book with a left-handed character
46. A book where nature is the antagonist
47. A book of interconnected short stories
Hard
48. A book that features a married couple who don't live together
49. A dystopian book with a happy ending
50. A book that features a character with chronic pain
Three (or More) Books by the Same Author A-KAkumi Agitogi
Shouko Akira
Candace Ayers
Ayuko
E.D. Baker
Mac Barnett
Patricia Briggs
Lindsay Buroker
Eric Carle
Zoe Chant
Cameron Chittock & Amanda Castillo
M.E. Clayton
Susan Cooper
Anna Dewdney
Maureen Driscoll
Sarah Beth Durst
Lois Ehlert
Denise Fleming
Kim Fox
Valeri Gorbachev
Heather G. Harris
Kevin Henkes
Ryan T. Higgins
Mitsu Izumi
Joumyaku
T.S. Joyce
Kazu Kibuishi
T. Kingfisher
T.J. Klune
Tite Kubo
Three (or More) Books by the Same Author L-ZEve Langlais
Lynnea Lee
Alex Milway
Akiko Miyokoshi
Yuu Morikawa
Nekokurage
Tomu Ohmi
Louise Penny
Karen Renee
Jordan Quinn
William Ritter
Haley Ryan
Victoria Schwab
Chad Sell
K.M. Shea
Shiroinu
Yuki Shiwasu
Jessie Sima
Rei Toma
Winter Travers
Mo Willems
Lola Wright
Bella Young
JANUARY TOTALS14 books
12 graphic novels
20 picture books
Total Titles: 46
Group Challenges & Book Club Reads
none finished this month, but a few almost there for February!
FEBRUARY TOTALS11 books
12 graphic novels
28 picture books
Total Titles: 51
Group Challenges & Book Club Reads
none finished this month, but a few almost there for next month (yeah, I know I said that for January too...)
Great challenges! I hope you are enjoying your 2025 reads as you progress toward your goal. 👍
MARCH TOTALS20 books
30 graphic novels
11 picture books
Total Titles: 61
Group Challenges & Book Club Reads
Tween Book Club - City of Ghosts
Hi Lara! I loved scrolling through your challenges. How fun! You are making amazing progress on your goal. I hope you are enjoying lots of fantastic books along the way. And there's nothing wrong with there being more Mo Willems — as he is quite awesome. Happy reading!
APRIL TOTALS10 books
16 graphic novels
17 picture books
Total Titles: 43
Group Challenges & Book Club Reads
Newbery - The Grey King
Tween Book Club - The Cardboard Kingdom
2025 Reading Challenge
Books mentioned in this topic
Supernova (other topics)Firelight (other topics)
Mapmakers and the Lost Magic (other topics)
The Very Clumsy Click Beetle (other topics)
Mapmakers and the Enchanted Mountain (other topics)
More...
I'm a public services librarian, so I read. A lot. That pretty much sums it up.
Most of my reading is picture books and mid-grade, because of work, but I always have a Kindle book on the go, an audiobook or two for my commute and for working out, and a physical book or two to top it off. Plus two book clubs I run for work. It adds up - 600+ each of the last seven years. Granted, more Mo Willems than Tad Williams, but still, a lot of pages each year.
For 2025, I'm starting out with what has become my standard starting goal over the last few years: 520 (10 books per week). I'll adjust my goal again as needed (again, same as the last few years). Sounds huge, but remember: lots of graphic novels, picture books, and mid-grade works in there. My bigger goals, more than just the numbers, are to read new books (breaking out of my usual ruts - I'd like to read a nonfiction book each month, for example), and write more reviews. I'm hoping to write at least 104 reviews, so 2 per week.
I always look forward to the monthly challenges, etc. here to help with achieving these goals. I use this thread as a centralized Challenge Hub, with personal challenges as well as ones from other GR groups I'm in.