Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

1. A book that was nominated for or won an award in a genre you enjoy
The Fifth Season
2. A book with one of the 5 W's in the title (Who, What, Where, When, Why)
Jepp, Who Defied the Stars
3. A book where the author’s name contains A, T, and Y
My Lady's Choosing: An Interactive Romance Novel
4. A book with a criminal character (i.e. assassin, pirate, thief, robber, scoundrel etc)
Les Misérables
5. A book by Shakespeare or inspired by Shakespeare
William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope
6. A book with a dual timeline
The Name of the Wind
7. 2 books related to the same topic, genre, or theme: Book #1
The Witch of Salt and Storm
8. 2 books related to the same topic, genre, or theme: Book #2
The Winter Witch
9. A book from one of the top 5 money making genres (romance/erotica, crime/mystery, religious/inspirational, science fiction/fantasy or horror)
Archenemies
10. A book featuring an historical figure
A Night to Remember
11. A book related to one of the 12 Zodiac Chinese Animals (title, cover, subject)
They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
12. A book about reading, books or an author/writer
Little Women
13. A book that is included on a New York Public Library Staff Picks list
Meddling Kids
14. A book with a title, subtitle or cover relating to an astronomical term
Pirate Latitudes
15. A book by an author from a Mediterranean country or set in a Mediterranean country
The Song of Achilles
16. A book told from multiple perspectives
Thunderhead
17. A speculative fiction (i.e. fantasy, scifi, horror, dystopia)
Acorna's Quest
18. A book related to one of the elements on the periodic table of elements
Silver
19. A book by an author who has more than one book on your TBR
Dry
20. A book featuring indigenous people of a country
The Last of the Mohicans
21. A book from one of the polarising or close call votes (zodiac sign)
Aquarius
22. A book with a number in the title or on the cover
A Thousand Ships
23. 4 books inspired by the wedding rhyme: Book #1 Something Old
Ivanhoe
24. 4 books inspired by the wedding rhyme: Book #2 Something New
Mirror, Mirror
25. 4 books inspired by the wedding rhyme: Book #3 Something Borrowed
Lagoon
26. 4 books inspired by the wedding rhyme: Book #4 Something Blue
The Penguin Book of Norse Myths: Gods of the Vikings
27. A book off of the 1001 books to read before you die list
Fingersmith
28. A book related to something cold (i.e. theme, title, author, cover, etc.)
The Winter of the Witch
29. A book published before 1950
The Pursuit of Love
30. A book featuring an elderly character
Circe
31. A children’s classic you’ve never read
The Call of the Wild
32. A book with more than 500 pages
A Crystal of Time
33. A book you have owned for at least a year, but have not read yet
Ruby Red
34. A book with a person's name in the title
Kilmeny of the Orchard
35. A psychological thriller
13 Minutes
36. A book featured on an NPR Best Books of the Year list
The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue
37. A book set in a school or university
Fallout
38. A book not written in traditional novel format (poetry, essay, epistolary, graphic novel, etc)
Daisy Jones & The Six
39. A book with a strong sense of place or where the author brings the location/setting to life
Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom
40. A book you stumbled upon
The Girl King
41. A book from the 2018 GR Choice Awards
To Kill a Kingdom
42. A book with a monster or "monstrous" character
The Creakers
43. A book related to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) [fiction or nonfiction]
Jurassic Park
44. A book related in some way to a tv show/series or movie you enjoyed (same topic, same era, book appeared in the show/movie, etc.)
Part of Your World: A Twisted Tale
45. A multi-generational saga
The House of the Spirits
46. A book with a (mostly) black cover
Reflection
47. A book related to food (i.e. title, cover, plot, etc.)
Dumplin'
48. A book that was a finalist or winner for the National Book Award for any year
Goblin Secrets
49. A book written by a Far East Asian author or set in a Far East Asian country
Rocket Girls
50. A book that includes a journey (physical, health, or spiritual)
The Hobbit
51. A book published in 2019
The True Queen
52. A book with a weird or intriguing title
Off to Be the Wizard

January update

Reading in order is going pretty well but slow going on book 4 (mainly because Les Misérables is soooooo long).

Favourite book of the month: Jepp, Who Defied the Stars. I bought the book for £1, mainly because the cover was so pretty, so my expectations were pretty low but I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

Biggest disappointment: My Lady's Choosing: An Interactive Romance Novel. This was fun, but very corny and there was a lot more "bodice-ripping" than I was expecting.

Currently reading Les Misérables (still) and going to start William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope next

February update

So reading in order went out of the window in February. Partly because Les Misérables took a long time and partly because library holds came up unexpectedly. I'm back on team in order for March now.

Favourite book of the month: The Winter of the Witch. Probably my favourite book out of the whole Winternight trilogy actually.

Biggest disappointment: DNF both Silver and Vengeful, both of which I was so excited to read, but just were not for me.

Up next: I still haven't started William Shakespeare's Star Wars: Verily, A New Hope so I better get cracking with that this month.

March update

So reading in order has been cancelled until further notice. *shrugs* Maybe I will try again once all of my library books have been read.

Favourite book of the month: There's a lot of good contenders this month but I think The Song of Achilles is my number one.

Biggest disappointment: Lagoon and They Shoot Horses, Don't They? were both pretty blah. Interesting premises but lacklustre execution.

Up next: I have a mountain of library books to get through but priority is going to The True Queen

April Update

I'm finally ahead on the challenge! Go me!

Favourite book of the month: A Night to Remember. This was so interesting. It was my first non-fiction of the year so maybe it's a sign to read more non-fiction

Biggest disappointment: The House of the Spirits. I hated the main character, I didn't care about any of the secondary characters and I would have DNF'd it if I wasn't desperate for a family saga. I have no idea why this has such a high average rating.

Up next: I have two holidays this month so I am planning on getting through a lot of books if I can. Just hoping I can judge the number of books to pack properly

May update

A little bit late with this update but I managed loads of books whilst I was on holiday

Favourite book of the month: The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue - I loooooooved Monty and Percy so much. I really want to read the sequel about Monty's sister

Biggest disappointment: Off to Be the Wizard. There was nothing wrong with the book but I accidentally ordered the wrong one so it wasn't what I was expecting.

Up next: Currently reading Ivanhoe. It is not a great start. I like classics but this is not going great

June update

I flew through a lot of short books during the read-a-thon but then slowed down a bit towards the end of the month, but still doing well.

Favourite book of the month: Daisy Jones & The Six. I am not normally a fan of "gimmicky" writing but the interview style really worked for this book. I was totally immersed throughout.

Biggest disappointment: Part of Your World I liked this book, but I read this series as a bit of lighthearted, fluffy entertainment but this one draaaaaaaagged.

Up next: Speaking of fluff, I have A Crystal of Time from the library. I haven't had much time to read much more than a few pages yet though

July update

Where did this month go? It seems to have flown by! I'm getting nearer to the end of my challenges and starting to get a bit less enthused about the books I have left. I might need to look for some loopholes :D

Favourite book of the month: A Crystal of Time. This series has it's ups and downs but this was one of the better ones. I can't wait for the next one!

Biggest disappointment: I had quite a few DNFs this month. The King Must Die was probably the most disappointing. I hated the style of the writing and really found it hard to connect to Theseus as a character

Up next: I really need to finish Ivanhoe. I put it down in May and haven't picked it up again since.

August update

I'm a couple of days late with my update but the good news is I've finished the challenge!

Favourite book of the month: 13 Minutes I had inadvertently left a prompt I was looking forward to until last (psychological thriller) and I ended up loving the book. It was one of those books where when you're not reading it, you're itching to get back to it.

Biggest disappointment: Ivanhoe. I promptly removed all of Walter Scott's books from my TBR because of how much I hated it.

Up next: Challenge over I have that feeling of "I'm free! I can read whatever I want!" Problem is I haven't decided what I want to read yet lol