My 2012 Reading Challenges:
What's in a Name 5 Challenge
The Goal: Read a book with a title from each category in 2012
1. A book with a topographical feature (land formation) in the title: READ: The One-Block Feast: An Adventure in Food from Yard to Table by Margo True (yes, it's a stretch. . . )
2. A book with something you'd see in the sky in the title: READ: Cloudy with a Chance of Marriage by Kieran Kramer
3. A book with a creepy crawly in the title: READ: The Serpent Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt
4. A book with a type of house in the title: READ: The World of Downton Abbey by Jessica Fellowes
5. A book with something you'd carry in your pocket, purse, or backpack in the title: READ: Love Letters from the Duke by Elizabeth Boyle
6. A book with a something you'd find on a calendar in the title: READ: We Regret to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families - Philip Gourevitch
CHALLENGE: VICTORIOUS!
The Alphabet Challenge (again)
Read: 21/26
A Rogue by Any Other Name - Sarah MacLean
Black Heart Loa - Adrian Phoenix
Confessions of a Little Black Dress - Elizabeth Boyle
Demon's Fall - Karalynn Lee
Enchanting Pleasures - Eloisa James
First Drop of Crimson - Jeaniene Frost
G
Hobbit, The - JRR Tolkien
Iron Daughter, The - Julie Kagawa
J
K
Leopard Prince, The - Elizabeth Hoyt
Midnight - Ellen Connor
Night to Surrender, A - Tessa Dare
Origins of the Specious: Myths and Misconceptions of the English Language - Patricia T O'Connor
Potent Pleasures - Eloisa James
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking - Susan Cain
Raven Prince, The - Elizabeth Hoyt
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers - Renni Browne; Dave King
Touch of Darkness - Christina Dodd
Urban Food Revolution, The: Changing the Way We Feed Cities - Peter Ladner
Vampire Mine - Kerrelyn Sparks
We Regret to Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families - Philip Gourevitch
X
Y the Last Man: Unmanned (graphic novel)
Z
CHALLENGE: Close but no Cigar. Try again for 2013!
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reading. Show all posts
Monday, January 9, 2012
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Books Read in 2011
This has to be one of my favourite posts to do. All about the books I read last year! I read even more this year than ever before (or at least it feels that way). Here's my genre breakdown:
Top Ten Books/Series I Read in 2011
(in no particular order)
Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole (most recent came out in 2011) - Paranormal romance with an amazingly detailed world, and brutal matchups (of the "how will this romance EVER work?" variety). Very, very addictive.
McGee & Stuckey's Bountiful Countainer by Rose Marie Nichols McGee and Maggie Stuckey - "The Bible" for container vegetable gardeners such as myself. I credit this book for the success of my balcony garden.
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie - The twists, the turns, the tension, . . . the ending! If you haven't read this masterpiece (like I hadn't), even if you don't usually read mysteries, DO SO.
The Pirate Lord by Sabrina Jeffries - One of my favourite Regency romance authors has a boatload of convict women captured by pirates. Sound ridiculous? That's the part that's a true story. The rest ends up as a romance with a pirate hero who is one of my favourite across the romance genre. (Book #1 of the Lord trilogy)
The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong (2011) - YA urban fantasy started off a brand new trilogy with a supernatural heroine who doesn't know she's supernatural yet. Likeable characters, suspicious research facility, and so many delightful Canadianisms that pleased me. (Book #1 of the Darkness Rising trilogy - the next is out in April 2012).
Briar Rose by Jane Yolen - A re-telling of Sleeping Beauty. . . during the Holocaust. Beautiful and haunting.
Essex Sisters Series by Eloisa James - Georgian-era romances. Through the 4 books, you get really invested in the lives of the 4 Essex sisters. Eloisa James is a master at putting really heartbreaking scenarios into her books, and also at intertwining her female leads through series. But they always have a happy ending!
Bayou Moon by Ilona Andrews - A second foray into "The Edge" (that place between our world and the "other", magical world), with a gritty alternate Lousiania swampland and an equally gritty heroine who fights for her family and meets a semi-feral fella. This series keeps getting better. (Book #2 of The Edge series)
One Second After by William Fortschen - One second (and then days, weeks, months, and years) after an EMP above North America kills all modern technology. Chillingly realistic apocalypse, and also really engaging.
River Marked by Patricia Briggs (2011) - Another dip into Mercy Thompson's world, VW Mechanic and part-time coyote. This is a bit different in tone from the others, but the development of Mercy and Adam's relationship, the focus on Native American mythology (like seeing Coyote), and the intricacies of the world-building made it another delight to read. (Book #6 of the Mercy Thompson series)
- 75 Historical romance (Regency, Georgian, Victorian, other, Gothic)
- 34 Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance (Urban Fantasy, Paranormal romance, YA urban fantasy)
- 9 Mysteries
- 6 Gardening/Farming
- 5 Travel/Guidebooks
- 4 Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic (2 YA)
- 4 Other Fantastical (Contemporary Fantasy, Steampunk)
- 4 Other Non-Fic (Employment, Writing, Political, Epidemics)
- 3 Historical Fiction (1 YA)
- 3 Foodie Non-Fic
- 1 Graphic Novel
Top Ten Books/Series I Read in 2011
(in no particular order)
Immortals After Dark series by Kresley Cole (most recent came out in 2011) - Paranormal romance with an amazingly detailed world, and brutal matchups (of the "how will this romance EVER work?" variety). Very, very addictive.
McGee & Stuckey's Bountiful Countainer by Rose Marie Nichols McGee and Maggie Stuckey - "The Bible" for container vegetable gardeners such as myself. I credit this book for the success of my balcony garden.
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie - The twists, the turns, the tension, . . . the ending! If you haven't read this masterpiece (like I hadn't), even if you don't usually read mysteries, DO SO.
The Pirate Lord by Sabrina Jeffries - One of my favourite Regency romance authors has a boatload of convict women captured by pirates. Sound ridiculous? That's the part that's a true story. The rest ends up as a romance with a pirate hero who is one of my favourite across the romance genre. (Book #1 of the Lord trilogy)
The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong (2011) - YA urban fantasy started off a brand new trilogy with a supernatural heroine who doesn't know she's supernatural yet. Likeable characters, suspicious research facility, and so many delightful Canadianisms that pleased me. (Book #1 of the Darkness Rising trilogy - the next is out in April 2012).
Briar Rose by Jane Yolen - A re-telling of Sleeping Beauty. . . during the Holocaust. Beautiful and haunting.
Essex Sisters Series by Eloisa James - Georgian-era romances. Through the 4 books, you get really invested in the lives of the 4 Essex sisters. Eloisa James is a master at putting really heartbreaking scenarios into her books, and also at intertwining her female leads through series. But they always have a happy ending!
Bayou Moon by Ilona Andrews - A second foray into "The Edge" (that place between our world and the "other", magical world), with a gritty alternate Lousiania swampland and an equally gritty heroine who fights for her family and meets a semi-feral fella. This series keeps getting better. (Book #2 of The Edge series)
One Second After by William Fortschen - One second (and then days, weeks, months, and years) after an EMP above North America kills all modern technology. Chillingly realistic apocalypse, and also really engaging.
River Marked by Patricia Briggs (2011) - Another dip into Mercy Thompson's world, VW Mechanic and part-time coyote. This is a bit different in tone from the others, but the development of Mercy and Adam's relationship, the focus on Native American mythology (like seeing Coyote), and the intricacies of the world-building made it another delight to read. (Book #6 of the Mercy Thompson series)
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Books Read in 2010, Genre Break Down
For most of the year*, I was keeping track of my reading by genre. Here's the list:
21 Adult Urban Fantasy
21 Regency Romance
11 YA Urban Fantasy
5 Victorian Romance
5 Travel Books
5 YA Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic
4 Food-Related
3 Alternate History
3 MG Fantasy (okay, they were all Harry Potter books)
2 Crafty Books
2 Anthologies (urban fantasy, Regency romance)
1 Mystery
1 YA Historical
1 Graphic Novel
1 Adult Post-Apocalyptic
GRAND TOTAL: 86 books*
Big themes: If I make a couple combinations, I get 32 urban fantasy and 26 historical romance. Unsurprising on the urban fantasy front, since it's been "my" genre for a while. The historical romance? I only got into them in the summer. They. Are. Addictive.
What's Missing? I browsed through more than 2 crafty books, but I wasn't counting them unless I read them cover-to-cover. This is also true with some travel books (like guidebooks). Though I do sometimes read guidebooks cover-to-cover. . .
Predictions for 2011:
* Not incuding February and March, when I was apparently too busy to write down what I read. Who knows what I might have been reading then!
21 Adult Urban Fantasy
21 Regency Romance
11 YA Urban Fantasy
5 Victorian Romance
5 Travel Books
5 YA Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic
4 Food-Related
3 Alternate History
3 MG Fantasy (okay, they were all Harry Potter books)
2 Crafty Books
2 Anthologies (urban fantasy, Regency romance)
1 Mystery
1 YA Historical
1 Graphic Novel
1 Adult Post-Apocalyptic
GRAND TOTAL: 86 books*
Big themes: If I make a couple combinations, I get 32 urban fantasy and 26 historical romance. Unsurprising on the urban fantasy front, since it's been "my" genre for a while. The historical romance? I only got into them in the summer. They. Are. Addictive.
What's Missing? I browsed through more than 2 crafty books, but I wasn't counting them unless I read them cover-to-cover. This is also true with some travel books (like guidebooks). Though I do sometimes read guidebooks cover-to-cover. . .
Predictions for 2011:
- Similar numbers for urban fantasy, historical romance, foodie, crafty, and travel.
- More apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic - I'm on the hunt for some more on the end of the world.
- More mysteries, since I have a list of cozies I want to try (even though murders give me nightmares)
- More non-fiction in general, particularly books on language, writing and international issues.
- A possible dive back into historical fiction and traditional fantasy, particularly fairy tales. I had been burned out on these genres in the past, but it might be time to get back to them.
* Not incuding February and March, when I was apparently too busy to write down what I read. Who knows what I might have been reading then!
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