ANNUAL READING GOAL CHALLENGE for 2015!

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

Finished book #1 - The Magpies by Mark Edwards

Wow, what a creepy book! It's about the neighbors from hell who torment the couple who live above them.

When Jamie and Kirsty move into their first home together, they are full of optimism. The future, in which they plan to get married and start a family, is bright. The other residents of their building seem friendly too, including the Newtons, a married couple who welcome them to the building with open arms.
But then strange things start to happen. Dead rats are left on their doorstep. They hear disturbing noises, and much worse, in the night. After Jamie's best friend is injured in a horrific accident, Jamie and Kirsty find themselves targeted by a campaign of terror.
As they are driven to the edge of despair, Jamie vows to fight back—but he has no idea what he is really up against . . .
The Magpies is a gripping psychological thriller in which the monsters are not vampires or demons but the people who live next door. It is a nightmare that could happen to anyone.

Next book: Everfound (Book 3 of Skinjacker trilogy)

Definitely adding this to my list.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

Pines
Blake Crouch

Secret service agent Ethan Burke arrives in Wayward Pines, Idaho, with a clear mission: locate and recover two federal agents who went missing in the bucolic town one month earlier. But within minutes of his arrival, Ethan is involved in a violent accident. He comes to in a hospital, with no ID, no cell phone, and no briefcase. The medical staff seems friendly enough, but something feels…off. As the days pass, Ethan’s investigation into the disappearance of his colleagues turns up more questions than answers. Why can’t he get any phone calls through to his wife and son in the outside world? Why doesn’t anyone believe he is who he says he is? And what is the purpose of the electrified fences surrounding the town? Are they meant to keep the residents in? Or something else out? Each step closer to the truth takes Ethan further from the world he thought he knew, from the man he thought he was, until he must face a horrifying fact—he may never get out of Wayward Pines alive. Intense and gripping, Pines is another masterful thriller from the mind of bestselling novelist Blake Crouch

This is the best book I have read in a LONG time. The trilogy is set to be a show on FOX in the winter so I wanted to read it first.

I couldn't put it down. I am not one that can sit and read for more than about an hour at a time without getting a headache, but I lived on Tylenol and coffee last night because I couldn't put it down. I thought a twist toward the middle of the book was going to lose my interest but it picked up and now I'm even more intrigued!

 

[Swimnoid]

Goal = 80
2. Wayward by Blake Crouch

This is the 2nd of the Wayward Pines series mentioned above by Soldier's*Sweeties. It was just as good as the first one. It picks up right where Pines left off and keeps the action going. A good suspense thriller with a little sci fi twist. I am in the final book now (The Last Town).

From Goodreads: Welcome to Wayward Pines, population 461. Nestled amidst picture-perfect mountains, the idyllic town is a modern-day Eden...except for the electrified fence and razor wire, snipers scoping everything 24/7, and the relentless surveillance tracking each word and gesture.
None of the residents know how they got here. They are told where to work, how to live, and who to marry. Some believe they are dead. Others think they’re trapped in an unfathomable experiment. Everyone secretly dreams of leaving, but those who dare face a terrifying surprise.

 

[Jafar30]

Finished 3 this weekend had some off time.

1. Wedge's Gamble by Michael Stackpole-Second book in the X-Wing series. Deals with the Rogue Squadron and one of my favorite characters Wedge Antilles. Lot of fun.

2. Insurgent by Veronica Roth-It's okay if you don't have to think about. And truthfully I have trouble two books in figuring what faction is what

3. A Study in Scarlett by Arthur Conan Doyle-A fun introduction to one of the best characters in literature Sherlock Holmes.

Not sure what's next

 

[ronandannette]

Personally, I think you should read it.

I also have watched the TV episodes. I certainly wouldn't jump right into book #2. The series really only covered half of the first book - so much happens beyond where the show ended that you would be absolutely LOST if you went right into book #2.

Read it. Not only do you get a much better sense of the characters in the books, the first series only made it about halfway through Outlander so you'd miss a LOT by jumping into Dragonfly in Amber.

Thanks SO much everyone! This is exactly what I needed to know. I'll definitely be taking your advice.

 

[WDWMom]

Book #2 Disney after Dark by Ridley Pearson.

I am rereading the first several books. I have not read the last two so I need to remember what has happened.

 

[dismom301930]

Book 2 of 52

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

Summary: From the award-winning author of Eleanor & Park, Fangirl, and Landline comes a hilarious and heartfelt novel about love in the workplace. Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. (Everybody in the newsroom knows. It's company policy.) But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives. Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke. When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories. By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself. What would he say . . . ?

Review: This is my third Rainbow Rowell book, and I have really enjoyed reading them. I think Eleanor and Park is still my favorite, but I did like this one as well. It was a light, funny, and quick read.

Next up: We Are Not Ourselves by Matthew Thomas

 

[wvjules]

I'm new to this thread. I'd like to sign up with 12 books. More would be great, but I'll set the bar low.

I'm currently reading All The Light We Cannot See--loving it.

Before that I read Gone Girl (so good, loved every minute reading it), Orphan Train (awful) and The Husband's Secret (also awful).

I'm looking forward to reading Station Eleven.

I think you are the first person I've seen that said Orphan Train was awful. I enjoyed that book a lot.

As for me I fnished Outlander on Dec 30. Right now I am about 75% through Dragonfly in Amber.

I am #558 on my libray list for All the Light We Cannot See. The more reviews I read about it the more I am looking forward to reading it.

 

[threeboysmom]

Updated through here!

May I please join? I'm aiming for 10 books this year. Need to read more.

I'm a long-time disboards lurker and have decided to dip my toe in and test the waters. This forum seems like a good place to start, especially since I took my screen name from one of my favorite books.

A WARM welcome to 2 new DIS'ers! So happy you found us here!

 

[threeboysmom]

Finished #1 out of 30! Yay!

The House We Grew Up In by Lisa Jewell

Meet the Bird family. They live in a honey-colored house in a picture-perfect Cotswolds village, with rambling, unkempt gardens stretching beyond. Pragmatic Meg, dreamy Beth, and tow-headed twins Rory and Rhys all attend the village school and eat home-cooked meals together every night. Their father is a sweet gangly man named Colin, who still looks like a teenager with floppy hair and owlish, round-framed glasses. Their mother is a beautiful hippy named Lorelei, who exists entirely in the moment. And she makes every moment sparkle in her children's lives.

Then one Easter weekend, tragedy comes to call. The event is so devastating that, almost imperceptibly, it begins to tear the family apart. Years pass as the children become adults, find new relationships, and develop their own separate lives. Soon it seems as though they've never been a family at all. But then something happens that calls them back to the house they grew up in -- and to what really happened that Easter weekend so many years ago.

Gosh, I'm not sure how to review this book. It certainly kept my attention - I was always picking it up and reading whenever I had a spare moment, but did I love it? I don't think so. One thing for sure is I will never think my family dysfunctional again after reading about THIS family, lol!

 

[bedillamouse]

I'd like to join also....I found this thread halfway through the year last year and I got a ton of good book recommendations! I think I will sign up for 50 books for this year. I have my books I read but I also screen books for my kids library so I will include those too. I can finish those books quickly.

I am going to go check out Goodreads now based on this board!

 

[WowLookAtThat]

Book #1 The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstein

Book #2 Accidental Love by Gary Soto

Book #3 The Afterlife by Gary Soto

Book #4 Dear Henry by Judith Arnopp

Book #5 A Texas Legacy Christmas by Diann Mill

 

[keiraliz]

I'd like to join! I feel like I have more spare time now than I did over the past few years, so I want to use that time to read more, especially since I'll become an English teacher in only a few months. I love to read, and I'm really happy to see a group of readers here on the DIS.

My goal for the year is to read 20 books.

I'm currently reading The Opposite of Loneliness by Marina Keegan.

 

[Colleen27]

#1 of 52 - Hand To Mouth by Linda Tirado

The book-length work that started as a blog post gone viral, the book is essentially a collection of incidents and reflections on the author's experiences as working poor in America. Alternately funny, thought-provoking, and downright annoying I'm not quite sure what to say about it... There are parts where the author really makes some good points and makes them very effectively, and others where she's so off-putting that you start to lose sympathy for her broader message. I think it is an important book in the sense of opening up a conversation about things we don't particularly like to acknowledge in the American experience, but it could have been done better.

#2/52 - Voyager by Diana Gabaldon

I was late to getting into Outlander but it has taken over my life. I have made it through the first three books in about two weeks and just picked the fourth up from the library today. The real challenge with these is resisting the impulse to stay up all night to read "just one more chapter".

 

[portia9]

Summer holidays here and I have read 5 books already. Nothing terribly high brow.

#1 Prisoners in the Palace by Michaela MacColl. Fiction about young Queen Victoria and her maid. It was pretty fanciful but ok.

#2 Pistache by Sebastian Faulks-very short collection of essays which are hard to describe. If you like literature and British humour I would recommend this.

#3 The Taste of Sorrow by Jude Morgan-I loved this. A fictionalised version of the Bronte family. It felt really authentic.

#4 Midnight in Austenland by Shannon Hale-this is the sequel to Austenland. These are wonderful books. Characters go and immerse themselves in the world of Austen. There is a movie version of Austenland starring Keri Russell which is great-very funny,

#5 A Weekend with Mr Darcy by Victoria Connelly-characters go to a historic English country house for an Austen weekend. Romantic fiction but quite well written for the genre.

piglet'spal-there are a whole series of Austen themed modern books by Victoria Connelly. Some are short novellas but who cares!? I am currently reading the second one.

 

[portia9]

I read that in 2014 and really liked it. It can get wordy though. I still have not read The Joy Luck Club although I have had it from Half Price Books for a long time!

The Joy Luck Club is a wonderful book. Been a long time since I read that one.

 

[wvjules]

Finished #1. Dragonfly in Amber....starting Voyager. Can't wait to read what happens next.

 

[Colleen27]

I've been seeing a lot about Oyster lately. Do any of you subscribe? If so, how do you like it? How is their selection? I've been buying too many books again - all e-books so they aren't adding to the clutter but still hard on the budget - and was thinking of subscribing to have access to more than our local library offers.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

I've been seeing a lot about Oyster lately. Do any of you subscribe? If so, how do you like it? How is their selection? I've been buying too many books again - all e-books so they aren't adding to the clutter but still hard on the budget - and was thinking of subscribing to have access to more than our local library offers.

I was looking at it, as well.

I'm wondering how many new releases they have.

 

[tinkerbellandeeyor]

3/52

https://www.oysterbooks.com/book/8SN2UpL3LeVHtknPxUabmS/75-habits-for-a-happy-marriage

I got some good tips some I am already doing