Nothing But Reading Challenges discussion

I've been eyeing City of Brass for the Anubis connection (set in Egypt) so I guess I'll hold off on it until June then :)

staring into Middlemarch by George Eliot
904 pages, so likely to complete by June, hopefully

Eldarwen wrote: "For those who are interested in reading one of the following:



They are the BOMs for June. The first one starting on 2nd June, ..."

So funny since we were just talking about that! I'll probably pick up 11/22/63 since I know I liked that one and I'll look into the first one!

Eldarwen wrote: "For those who are interested in reading one of the following:



They are the BOMs for June. The first one starting on 2nd June, ..."

I might join in for City of Brass.

Andy wrote: "staring into Middlemarch by George Eliot
904 pages, so likely to complete by June, hopefully"

Uh, cool. I'll be curious to hear what you think!
I've got a copy at home giving me the stinkeye every time I walk past since I've been ignoring it for so long ;-)

Eldarwen wrote: "Uh, cool. I'll be curious to hear what you think!
I've got a copy at home giving me the stinkeye every time I walk past since I've been ignoring it for so long ;-).."

I'm the same with Bleak House, got about 300 pages into it a few years ago, and then just drifted away and it is definitely giving me stinkeye.
tower team could be just the motivation to pick it up and start again

Eldarwen wrote: "For those who are interested in reading one of the following:



They are the BOMs for June. The first one starting on 2nd June, ..."

I'll definitely be getting into The City of Brass it's been on my tbr for quite a while, but will probably hold off on the stephen king book because I read it last year. It was a very long book :)

Completion Post Sample:


Book: Illuminae
Date Read: May 16 23
Pages: 608

Mini Challenge:
Crayola Towers:
I - Title
A - Author Name
J - Author Name
K - Author Last Name
E - MC Name
M - MC Last Name
G - MC Last Name

Cover Color: Bright Orange
Maybe Anubis? Lots of death in the book

Volunteered for 11/22/63

Just volunteered for DQs for 11/22/63 as well.

I'm going to try to join the discussion for The City of Brass, but there's a six-week wait at my library. It'll likely come in earlier than that, but I don't want to volunteer for DQs then end up not being able to actually do it if it doesn't come in in time.

11/22/63 have to put some thought into it. See if I can get because it looks interesting. But I will read The City of Brass.

Completion post

Let It Go by Mercy Celeste
438 pages
Date read: 5/16/2023
Crayola tower: C, D, E, L, M, O, R, S, and T
MC1 Creed Dickson Arapaho last name 'Running Wolf'
MC2 Eli Mason
SC1 Stephen 'Sly' Dickson
SC2 Owen Mason
SC3 Tom Buchanan
SC4 Randy Buchanan

Eldarwen wrote: "Hello and welcome to the team new members! :-)

Fellow Cleaning Out the TBR Closet contender - hopefully the line of shame is kinder to you than it is to me hehe ;-)"

That's a big fat no! 😅 I'm well below that line...just one spot up from you at the last count, actually!

Devann wrote: "i'm also in indiana so i guess we're just all located in the midwest or australia for some reason lol"

Just to blow all your minds a bit more...I live in Ohio but work in Indiana! What are the odds?

Laurie B wrote: "Just to blow all your minds a bit more...I live in Ohio but work in Indiana! What are the odds?"

Hahaha amazing!! ☺️🤯

Laurie B wrote: "Eldarwen wrote: "Hello and welcome to the team new members! :-)

Fellow Cleaning Out the TBR Closet contender - hopefully the line of shame is kinder to you than it is to me hehe ;-)"

That's a big..."


Hahah, we're going to have to change that! I keep telling myself that I'll use challenges to read the books on my list but.. eh.. ;-)

Awesome to see so many of you joining the discussions for the next round of BOMs!! :-D

For the Winners Tower, am I correct that we can use 1 book that was published the year of that TT Challenge, and also 1 book that is that number in a series?
(EX: The Atlas Paradox was published in 2022, and is 2nd in a Series, so it could count toward Electra (2022 challenge) or Moonstone (2nd challenge)?

I'm struggling to find correlations to some of them so I was looking to see what others are doing for those towers and didn't want to assume. Also - Looks like a lot of teams are using Kings of the Wyld to cover Team C - since Clay Cooper is a CC character. :)

Ok - I'll stop snooping and get back to my book. LOL

PLANNED READ



Book: The Help - Kathryn Stockett
Date Read: TBR
Pages: 522
Rating: TBD

MINI CHALLENGES:
Mod Towers Kelly

COMPLETION POST



Book: The Guest List - Lucy Foley
Date Read: 16 May 2023
Pages: 336
Rating: 4 / 5

MINI CHALLENGES:
Crayola Towers
Title: "G"
Author: "L,F"
Characters: "A,H,C,M,J,O,F,D,P,W" Aoife/Angus, Hannah, Charlie, Mattie, Jules/Johnno, Olivia, Femi, Duncan, Peter, Will

Completion post

Guarded by Cat Grant and L.A. Witt
521 pages
Ratings: 5 stars
Crayola Tower: A, C, D, G, H, J, K, L, M, R, and W
MC1 Jordan Kane
MC2 Jason 'Jase' Hewitt
SC1 Daniel
SC2 Milo
SC3 Andy
SC4 Greg
SC5 Martin
SC6 Renee

Completion Post


Book: Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames
Date Read: 16th May
Pages: 528
Rating: 5 stars

Mini:
Mod Tower:
- read by Cat in 2018 and reread for BOM 2023
- read by Shannon in
Winners Tower:
- Team C: character Clay Cooper
- Palpatine: the mercs are fighting for a good cause against the (supposedly) evil Heartwyld Horde)
Crayola Tower:
A/M - character: Arcandius Moog
B - character: Barrett
N/E - author
G - character: Gabriel
K - title
L - character: Lastleaf
T - character: Tiamax

BOM Links:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
DQ written Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7

Andy wrote: "Eldarwen wrote: "Uh, cool. I'll be curious to hear what you think!
I've got a copy at home giving me the stinkeye every time I walk past since I've been ignoring it for so long ;-).."

I'm the same..."

If you can wait with picking up Bleak House for a month, we can do a buddy read in June. Will probably do good to keep me on track as well :D

Michael wrote: "For the Winners Tower, am I correct that we can use 1 book that was published the year of that TT Challenge, and also 1 book that is that number in a series?
(EX: The Atlas Paradox was published i..."

I think that might work for Team C, but I'm not sure about the others. @Eldarwen?

Insiyah wrote: "If you can wait with picking up Bleak House for a month, we can do a buddy read in June. Will probably do good to keep me on track as well :D..."

great idea
think I'll need all the motivation i can get

Andy wrote: "Insiyah wrote: "If you can wait with picking up Bleak House for a month, we can do a buddy read in June. Will probably do good to keep me on track as well :D..."

great idea
think I'll need all the..."

I've also been using a audiobook on Google Podcasts to read along with my paperback for Anna Karenina. It's been somewhat helpful to have that progress bar as well. There's one for Bleak House so if you use Google Podcasts, I'd definitely recommend that. It's by Loyal Books from Librivox, so it's copyright-free books.

Michael wrote: "For the Winners Tower, am I correct that we can use 1 book that was published the year of that TT Challenge, and also 1 book that is that number in a series?"

Finally getting round to this - sorry, work decided to get in the way this morning and keep me busy until now ;-)

The idea is to be creative. So basically, as long as you can somehow explain why you think a certain book fits for a certain winning team name, it is perfectly acceptable! Year of publishing, series number, or character/author names are just an example. Word(s) in text you can use as well or something on the cover that can be related in some way to the team name. Or some completely nutty explanation connecting the team name to something that happened in the book would also work just as well :-)

Completion Post


Neon Gods by Katee Robert
386 pages
5 stars
Date read: 17/05/23

Winner Towers:
- Anubis: features Hades and both Hades & Anubis are associated with the Underworld
- Electra: Greek myth retelling

Eldarwen wrote: "Michael wrote: "For the Winners Tower, am I correct that we can use 1 book that was published the year of that TT Challenge, and also 1 book that is that number in a series?"

Finally getting round..."

Thanks!! That helps a lot!

Kaley wrote: "Just volunteered for DQs for 11/22/63 as well.

I'm going to try to join the discussion for The City of Brass, but there's a six-week wait at my library. It'll likely come in earlier than that, but..."

I noticed The City of Brass is on kindle unlimited, but unsure if you have that?

You're welcome :-)

Haley wrote: "Kaley wrote: "Just volunteered for DQs for 11/22/63 as well.

I'm going to try to join the discussion for The City of Brass, but there's a six-week wait at my library. It'll likely come in earlier ..."

Oh, perfect! I do have that! I'll go volunteer for that one as well then.

Hi everyone! I have just been added to your team and checking in now!!

Here is my shelf: Keri’s Shelf

I had two crazy work days but am now off today and tomorrow so I’m hoping to get caught up on the thread and also get some reading done!!

I just finished Confessions at my oil change while waiting and I’m 78% done with Immortality: A Love Story.

I’m about halfway through Valor which I’m loving it’s just a beast of a book lol.

PLANNED READ



Book: In the Lives of Puppets - TJ Klune
Date Read: TBR
Pages: 432

MINI CHALLENGES:
Rainbow Towers Cover Color: Green/Bright Green

Michael wrote: "
PLANNED READ




Book: In the Lives of Puppets - TJ Klune
Date Read: TBR
Pages: 432


MINI CHALLENGES:

Rainbow Towers Cover Color: Green/Bright Green"

I'd love to hear what you think about his book!! I'm such a big fan of The House in the Cerulean Sea & Under the Whispering Door I recommend it to everyone.

Haley wrote: "I'd love to hear what you think about his book!! I'm such a big fan of The House in the Cerulean Sea & Under the Whispering Door I recommend it to everyone. "

I loved both of those books too! So excited my Libby hold became available finally so I can read Puppets! I need to go back and read some of his “pre-Cerulean Sea” books, I’ve heard good things.

PLANNED READ



Book: Bad Feminist - Roxane Gay
Date Read: TBR
Pages: 320

MINI CHALLENGES:
Rainbow Towers Cover Color: White

Roger - president of NBR United - wrote: "11/22/63 have to put some thought into it. See if I can get because it looks interesting. But I will read The City of Brass."

Had extra time after medical appointment before ride home so went to half price books and was able to get hardcover of 11/22/63 will be reading it. Too be clear I will be doing both BotM books in June.

Completion post

Beauty and the Bookworm byNick Pageant
107 pages
Rating 3 stars
Date read: 5/17/2023
Crayola Tower: B, C, G, L, M, N, P, R, S, and T
MC1 Mason 'Cardigan guy' Leery
MC2 Shane 'Running Man' Beaumont
SC1 'Gran'
SC2 Twyla

Roger - president of NBR United - wrote: "Had extra time after medical appointment before ride home so went to half price books and was able to get hardcover of 11/22/63 "

Gotta love finding good deals like that! :-)

Keri wrote: "Hi everyone! I have just been added to your team and checking in now!!

Here is my shelf: Keri’s Shelf

I had two crazy work days but am now off today and tomorrow so I’m hoping to get caught up on..."


Hello and welcome! :-)
John Gwynne, yes! They're beasts and take a while to read but the first one I loved! Is the second one just as good?

Planned reads
1.

Sloe Ride by Rhys Ford
Pages: 260
Rainbow Tower: Bright purple?
Winners Tower Remus Lupin: Quinn morgan is a college professor of history.
Crayola Tower: A, F, M, Q, R, S
MC1 Quinn Morgan
MC2 Rafe Andrade
Possible SCs
Morgan Family
B Brigid
C Connor
D Donal
K Kane

2.

You & Me by Tal Bauer
384 pages/ Amazon requested update by librarians
Rainbow tower: Bright blue
Crayola Tower: B, E, H, L, T, and Y
MC1 Luke Hale
MC2 Landon Larsen
SC1 Emmet Hale
SC2 Bowen Larsen

Eldarwen wrote: "Keri wrote: "Hi everyone! I have just been added to your team and checking in now!!

Here is my shelf: Keri’s Shelf

I had two crazy work days but am now off today and tomorrow so I’m hoping to get..."

Yes I’m loving the second one also!! Now that I know the characters I feel even more invested, and we get some new character perspectives which I love also. There’s already been a lot of action and I’m just about halfway!

Also today I was lucky enough to find copies that look basically new at my local used bookstore for books 2-4 which was an amazing deal!!

COMPLETION POST



Book: The Help - Kathryn Stockett
Date Read: 17 May 2023
Pages: 522
Rating: 5 / 5

MINI CHALLENGES:
Mod Towers Kelly

Eldarwen wrote: "Laurie B wrote: "I'll wade through the previous posts here and the spreadsheet and see if I can get my bearings."

If you have questions, you know the drill! :-)

Also, any books you have started i..."

So in being added, is it ONLY books finished May 14th or after for us newbies to the team? Or am I able to use any books I finished since the challenge here started May 1st?

Also what all counts toward a spellout? I read through the rules a couple times and didn’t see that? I can’t remember from the other years…

Keri wrote: "Also what all counts toward a spellout? I read through the rules a couple times and didn’t see that? I can’t remember from the other years…"

For spellout from mini challenges thread:
SPELL-IT-OUT RULES
Spell out the word(s) using the first letter in the book's title, the first letter in the author's first or last name, or the first letter of a character's first, last, or nick-name, or the first letter of the series name.
As always, if the first letter of a title starts with an indefinite or definite article ('A', 'An', 'The', etc.), you may use the first letter of the second word in the title to spell out your chosen word.
If the first letter of a title is a numerical digit, then you use the first letter of that digit for your spell out (i.e. 1984 is N; 2046 is T; 1Q84 is O)
If you are listening to an audiobook, the first letter in the narrator's first or last name also can be used.
We're also allowing for Translators names, as long as the edition you are reading is a translation version.

Completion post

Sloe Ride by Rhys Ford
Pages: 260
Date Read: 5/17/2023
Ratings: 5 stars
Rainbow Tower: Bright purple?
Winners Tower Remus Lupin: Quinn Morgan is a college professor of history.
Crayola Tower: A, F, M, Q, R, S
MC1 Quinn 'Q-bert' Morgan
MC2 Rafe Andrade
SCs Morgan Family
B Brigid, Braeden
C Connor
D Donal
I Ian
K Kane
R Riley

Planned read

In the Wreckage by Hailey Turner
344 pages
Crayola tower: A, B, C, D, E, H, I, J, K, M, N, O, R, S, T, V and W
MC1 Jamie 'Apollo' Callahan
MC2 Kyle 'Reaper' Brannigan
SC1 Richard Callahan
SC2 Annabelle 'Icarus' Brown
SC3 Madison ' Nova' Chan
SC4 Amir Nazari
SC5 Ekaterina 'Katie' ' Viper' Ovechkina
SC6 Trevor 'Bones' Sanchez
SC7 Ranisha Sterling
SC8 Donovan 'Tank' Williams
SC9 Alexei 'Inferno' Dvorkin

Keri wrote: "So in being added, is it ONLY books finished May 14th or after for us newbies to the team? Or am I able to use any books I finished since the challenge here started May 1st?"

Only books started in May (so since the challenge started) but finished AFTER the 14th, so basically anything you completed since 15th May.