Here it is - the OFFICIAL 2014 READING GOAL CHALLENGE THREAD

[tiggrbaby]

#19 Skinny Dip by Carl Hiassen, I'm working my way through his books, they are so over the top, you have to be in the right mood for one of them.

#20 Help for the Haunted by John Searles. Read this because of hearing about it on this thread. I enjoyed it, didn't think it was the best book ever, but it was a good read.

#21 Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. Again, read because of this thread. Obviously a great book, it just grabs you right at the start and never lets go. Highly recommend, although of course there is quite a darkness in it.

I agree about the Hiassen books, although I am usually in for a laugh! I think that was one of my favs of his.

And Unbroken still haunts me! I think it is my #2 for the year.

 

[CallieMar]

#37 - Simply Unforgettable by Mary Balogh

This started out quite well although I think it lost momentum towards the end. I've been on the lookout for a good historical romance author I can turn to when I want easy reading and I like Mary Balogh's writing so far.

 

[portia9]

#83 The Sweet Dove Died by Barbara Pym

#84 The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18498569-the-miniaturist

Really like this.

 

[Kinziepoohsmom]

#22 The Girls of Summer by Anne Rivers Siddons Story of 3 long time friends and the summer vacations they spend together. Enjoyed this book very much and plan to read more from this author.

 

[BonnieF]

An update -
17. Me Before You - terrific story, very well written
18. The Cuckoo's Calling - a good story, interesting characters, easy reading. (Currently reading the sequel, The Silkworm)
19. Orphan Train - very good story, based on real events. Gives meaning to the old adage about the road to hell.

I highly recommend all three of these. All different, but equally worth reading.
Back to school now, so reading will slow down. Hoping I make my goal!

 

[Deffenm]

#13/30 - Piggly Wiggly Christmas
#14/30 - Blue Christmas
#15/30 - Dogs Christmas

I was in the mood for some easy, light hearted books so I grabbed a few Christmas novels. I enjoyed reading them all.

I finally made it to halfway to my goal. Good thing it is soccer season as I take books to practices and games to read. So I should easily meet my goal.

I have several books reserved, I am just waiting for them to be available.

 

[nemofans]

Finished book #65 - Good Girl by Mary Kubica

I enjoyed this book til the end. A 24 yr old girl gets kidnapped. The chapters go back & forth between before she was rescued & after she was rescued while you are trying to piece together what happens. The mystery is finding out why she was kidnapped & what happened when they found her that she now has amnesia. Most of the story is intriguing & kept me wanting to find out what happened. What I didn't like about it was the very end when why she was kidnapped was revealed. I can't go into detail w/o giving it away, but the reasoning is stupid & made me really dislike the girl.

"I've been following her for the past few days. I know where she buys her groceries, where she has her dry cleaning done, where she works. I don't know the color of her eyes or what they look like when she's scared. But I will."
Born to a prominent Chicago judge and his stifled socialite wife, Mia Dennett moves against the grain as a young inner-city art teacher. One night, Mia enters a bar to meet her on-again, off-again boyfriend. But when he doesn't show, she unwisely leaves with an enigmatic stranger. With his smooth moves and modest wit, at first Colin Thatcher seems like a safe one-night stand. But following Colin home will turn out to be the worst mistake of Mia's life.
Colin's job was to abduct Mia as part of a wild extortion plot and deliver her to his employers. But the plan takes an unexpected turn when Colin suddenly decides to hide Mia in a secluded cabin in rural Minnesota, evading the police and his deadly superiors. Mia's mother, Eve, and detective Gabe Hoffman will stop at nothing to find them, but no one could have predicted the emotional entanglements that eventually cause this family's world to shatter.

Next Book: Acceptance

 

[3Gsandme]

I'm at 41 for the year, so far. I my defense, I started reading the A Song of Fire and Ice Series (aka Game of Thrones) by George R. R. Martin and they REALLY should count for more than one book each.

The fourth and fifth books can be read in an alternating fashion (by chapters) that tell the story in chronlogical order and while it's fascinating to read it like that it takes such a long time.

I've added a lot of YA books to my list, so I should make up ground once I start reading those.

To save some time, my 2014 shelf at Goodreads is here...

https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/3405699-jamie?shelf=2014

 

[WowLookAtThat]

Book #68 Peter Pan and Wendy by J.M. Barrie

Book #69 The Bride and the Beast by Teresa Medeiros

Book #70 The Marriage Test by Betina Krahn

Book #71 Silent Stars by Jeanne Basinger

Book #72 Evening Stars by Susan Mallery

Book #73 Appetite by Phillip Kazan

Book #74 The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Homburg

 

[willowsnn3]

Goal 72

#63 The Boy In The Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbol & Agnete Friis

Someone here just reviewed this one a few days ago & sounded good so I checked it out from the local library. I agree it is a very good read.

 

[Pig Pen]

#29 - The Fault in our Stars by John Green.

I won't rehash the plot because I am sure it has been covered many times. This was in my library queue for months and just became available. It was a quick read, but didn't really meet expectations. It was a lot like "Me Before You" but I didn't like it as much. I didn't "get" the whole Amsterdam plot thread and some of the dialogue was over the top trying to be clever and witty.

"We Were Liars" just became available so I will be starting that next.

 

[cousinbb]

Book 8/13

BORN OF PERSUASION by Jessica Dotta

This is a good read! It's my first Christian Romance book and I am thoroughly enjoying it. The main character does get on nerves alot!! but the plot of the story makes me wanna to keep reading. I am reading the second book of the series now.

 

[jenny105]

Finished book 27/30 - The Second Summer of Sisterhood. Saw the movies, never read the books. I like them!

Starting The 5th Wave today...

 

[PigletsPal2]

Goal: 100 books this year.

#51 - The Time In Between by Maria Duenas. This beautifully told story spans the years between the Spanish Civil War and WWII, telling the story of a seamstress who rises to become not just the most sought-after couturiere in Madrid and Morocco, but an undercover spy who passes information about the Nazi regime to the British Secret Service by means of a secret code hidden in the patterns of her dresses.

I'm fascinated with this period of history, and this story seems very real. Many real characters are woven into the story and it held my attention from the first page to the last. Highly recommended.


Queen Colleen

 

[Pig Pen]

#30 We Were Liars

Each summer the wealthy, seemingly perfect, members of the Sinclair family gather on their private island. We Were Liars is the story of those annual reunions; in particular what happened during a summer that protagonist Cadence is unable to remember. Prejudice, greed, and shifting patriarchal favoritism among the three adult sisters contrasts with the camaraderie and worldview of the teenage cousins and their dear friend Gat. Lazy days of sticky lemonades on the roof and marathon Scrabble games give way to twisty suspense, true love, and good intentions gone horribly wrong.

After I finished this book I was surprised to learn that is was a YA novel. It didn't read that way. I seem to be on a roll with amnesia plots lately but this one has a great twist at the end. I liked it and recommend it.

Next up is "Beautiful Ruins."

 

[willowsnn3]

Goal 72

#64 Bad Move by Linwood Barclay

"In the too quiet town of Oakwood, only the lucky die of boredom....and new homeowner Zack Walker isn't feeling lucky. Whoever said the burbs were boring will think twice after reading Barclay's hilarious debut mystery. In which Dad learns the hard way that he doesn't always know best."

I've been reading Barclay for awhile now but apparently missed the first series (Zack Walker) that he wrote. A little mystery, a lot of humor, this was a delightful book and I think there are 3 more in the series that I will probably read when I want something light. His later books are more intense which is what I like best, lol.

 

[wilma-bride]

I've been on hold for what seems forever for this book (really just a couple of months I think).

You've been on a "liar" kick - going to keep the streak going? lol

Sorry to disappoint but I broke my liar streak with...

Book #40 - Baby Proof by Emily Giffin

Ever since their first date, when they discovered neither of them wanted children, Claudia and Ben's relationship seemed destined to succeed. They envisaged a life filled with freedom, possibility and exploration and their married life starts out exactly that way.

But things don't always stay the same. When Ben's best friend and his wife announce they are having a baby, suddenly Ben changes his mind. He realises he does want children after all.

But Claudia hasn't changed - and now she finds herself facing the most difficult decision of her life...

There is something very enjoyable about Emily Giffin's books. Maybe it's that the characters are so endearing, maybe it's that the stories are real but yet just different enough to keep the reader interested, maybe its her writing style. Whatever it is, I just love reading her books. So easy to read and enjoyable but still emotional and well written.

Despite the inevitable predictable ending, I still thoroughly enjoyed this. I have another two of hers on my 'to read' list and am tempted to go straight on to another since I am in the right mood for light and fluffy

 

[rigs32]

My goodness I really slowed down. Apparently I started lots of books that I then didn't finish. Oh well.

#25 - The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling. Truth telling time - I did NOT enjoy Harry Potter, but I loved this book. The characters were well written and I couldn't put it down - I wanted to know what happened next. I definite recommendation.

#26 - Melissa Explains it All: Tales from My Abnormally Normal Life by Melissa Joan Hart. I'm a fan of celebrity biographies. This was mostly engaging. Some chapters gave a decent insight into the life of a young star and others skipped over information for privacy reasons. It was a fun, quick read.

#27 - Angels & Demons by Dan Brown. I reread the illustrated edition in anticipation of my quick stop in Rome on a Mediterranean cruise next week. Just as fun a read as the first time. It had been years, so I remembered some details and not others. I did enjoy the pictures in the book so I didn't have to read next to my computer and google the places he describes.

#28 - Pint Sized Ireland: In Search of the Perfect Guinness by Evan McHugh. I'll also be spending a couple days in Ireland. This was a quick beach read type of travel book. Not sure I'll remember much about it as time goes by.

Perhaps I'll breeze through a few YA books during my travels this month.

 

[Glynis]

Goal - 70 books

Book #47 - "The World According to Garp" by John Irving

From Goodreads: This is the life and times of T. S. Garp, the ******* son of Jenny Fields--a feminist leader ahead of her times. This is the life and death of a famous mother and her almost-famous son; theirs is a world of sexual extremes--even of sexual assassinations. It is a novel rich with "lunacy and sorrow"; yet the dark, violent events of the story do not undermine a comedy both ribald and robust. In more than thirty languages, in more than forty countries--with more than ten million copies in print--this novel provides almost cheerful, even hilarious evidence of its famous last line: "In the world according to Garp, we are all terminal cases."

My review: I have to admit that I was really disappointed with this book. I absolutely loved "A Prayer For Owen Meany," and I really wanted to like more by the same author. I was just really creeped out by a lot of the subject matter in Garp. I would not recommend this book, at all.

Next Up: "The Bean Trees" by Barbara Kingsolver

 

[rigs32]

I think I should be able to count the travel guides I've read preparing for my trip since they took time away from traditional reading.

#29 - Rick Steves Dublin
#30 - Rick Steves Northern Ireland

I didn't realize these were each excepts from the Ireland book so I should have just bought that and saved money.

#31 - Rick Steves Rome - lots of good self guided walking your info

#32 - Rick Steves Pocket Barcelona - My favorite of the bunch. Glossy color pages, small, perfect amount of info.

Going forward I'd buy a similar pocket RS book but get the others from the library.