Reading Challenge/Goals for 2024

[OKW8297]

6. Cocoa Beach by Beatriz Williams. I don’t really know what I think of this book. It’s set during a favorite time period-late 1910’s early ‘20s. But the twists and turns got to be a bit much.

 

[DisneyHardin]

4/32 - "Counting the Cost" - by Jill Duggar. After waiting over 6 months for my turn to come up on the Library reserve list, I finally got the book this week. I thought it was really good - the first half was a little boring because it was so much like Jinger's book - lots of talking about how great her family was and awesome her parents were. It wasn't until the second half when she got more into what happened once she was an adult and wanted payment for all her time filming on the show that it got more interesting. Since I had watched "Shiny Happy People", I knew most of what she wrote about already, but it was still a good read.

 

[Kirby]

#17 - A Court of Silver Flames: Book 5 of the Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Genre - Fantasy/Paranormal Romance
Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive. And ever since being forced into the Cauldron and becoming High Fae against her will, she's struggled to find a place for herself within the strange, deadly world she inhabits. Worse, she can't seem to move past the horrors of the war with Hybern and all she lost in it.

The one person who ignites her temper more than any other is Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior whose position in Rhysand and Feyre's Night Court keeps him constantly in Nesta's orbit. But her temper isn't the only thing Cassian ignites. The fire between them is undeniable, and only burns hotter as they are forced into close quarters with each other.

Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the Continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has settled over the realms. And the key to halting them might very well rely on Cassian and Nesta facing their haunting pasts.

Against the sweeping backdrop of a world seared by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they search for acceptance-and healing-in each other's arms.
I enjoyed this series especially books 2, 3 and 5.

 

[DisneyHardin]

6/32 - Not That Fancy - by Reba McIntire - 4 stars - The book has gorgeous pictures and fun little anecdotes, but I thought it was going to be more like a memoir - it really didn't go deep into any parts of her life.

 

[mgarbowski]

Book 4 of 24 - The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
Book 5 of 24 - Dead Lions (Slough House #2) by Mick Herron

7.5 Deaths is hard to rate. Clever, but a bit too clever. It seems generally well regarded, and nearly all the people who disagree hate the ending. I didn't hate the ending, but it wasn't fully satisfying either. Would be 3 stars out of 5.

The second book in the Slough House series was great. The TV show veered away from it more than it did the first book. I can see the reasons why, but in this instance, I found the book's explanations for some of the plot machhinations more satisfying. 4 or 5 out of 5.

 

[MGMmjl]

8/32 - Maps of the Disney Parks: Charting 60 Years from California to Shanghai. Text by Kevin and Susan Neary, Maps Curated by Vanessa Hunt

Description:
"The maps of the Disney Parks are more than just atlases used by guests to find their way to Big Thunder Mountain. They are snapshots of a place and time, relics treasured by collectors, and gorgeous pieces of artwork. In fact, it was a map- drawn by Herb Ryman and imagined by Walt- that was used to sell the idea for Disneyland to investors. This book will include maps of the domestic parks from 1955 to today, as well as highlights from the international parks. Alongside the maps there will be photographs depicting how the parks have changed over time, explanations of why the landscape was altered, and details on attractions that were added or taken away."

I have mixed feelings about this book. The artwork of the maps was beautiful, but I wish there was more about WDW in it. The text was naturally pretty light as the book was about maps, but I wouldn't have minded more detailed descriptions. Still, overall, I enjoyed the book.

 

[Beezle2]

22/75 The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers. A wonderful space story about found family. Loved it
23/75 A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers. The second book in this series. I actually liked it more than the first one. Peppers story line of survival is right up my alley.

 

[RangerPooh]

8/25 The Grumpy Neighbor's Grave Mistake: A Silver Springs Mystery (Silver Springs Mysteries Book 1) Liz Lamar
9/25 Ex Marks The Murder: A Silver Springs Mystery (Silver Springs Mysteries Book 2) Liz Lamar

 

[bobbiwoz]

14/80
I decided to read another book by a veterinarian. This vet did or does house calls in the Sacramento CA area. “ My patients like Treats: Tales of a House-Call Veterinarian ” by Duncan MacVean. It was pretty good! 4.5/5

A bit of the summary :

 

[OKW8297]

7. Educated by Tara Westover . Outstanding. An account of a woman who was raised in rural Idaho by Mormon survivalists.

 

[bobbiwoz]

7. Educated by Tara Westover . Outstanding. An account of a woman who was raised in rural Idaho by Mormon survivalists.

I decided to borrow this. They had it in Libby.

 

[Kirby]

#18 - Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann. Genre - Historical
In the 1920s, the richest people per capita in the world were members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma. After oil was discovered beneath their land, the Osage rode in chauffeured automobiles, built mansions, and sent their children to study in Europe.

Then, one by one, the Osage began to be killed off. The family of an Osage woman, Mollie Burkhart, became a prime target. One of her relatives was shot. Another was poisoned. And it was just the beginning, as more and more Osage were dying under mysterious circumstances, and many of those who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered.

As the death toll rose, the newly created FBI took up the case, and the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to try to unravel the mystery. White put together an undercover team, including a Native American agent who infiltrated the region, and together with the Osage began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history.
This is my book club's pick for this month. It's horrible what people did out of greed. DH and I watched the movie last night. I'm glad I read the book. There is so much that they couldn't put in the movie, the FBI part was small.

 

[Simba's Mom]

9/52-"Level 13", Gordon Norman-YA fiction, humorous, about a kid obsessed with video gaming and earning money by getting followers. It was just OK for me, but I'm sure I'm not the target audience for this book. 3 stars.

10/52-"The Lost Book of Born", Brianna Labuskus. Story told in 3 different times about a book which had been confiscated by the Nazis, and the attempt, after the war, to return it to its owner. Good idea, but the writing style didn't enthuse me, and was too confusing. 3 stars, and that's a very low rating for me when it comes to historical fiction.

 

[willowsnn3]

11/50 Promise Not to Tell by Jennifer McMahon
Forty-one-year-old school nurse Kate Cypher has returned home to rural Vermont to care for her mother who's afflicted with Alzheimer's. On the night she arrives, a young girl is murdered—a horrific crime that eerily mirrors another from Kate's childhood. Three decades earlier, her dirt-poor friend Del—shunned and derided by classmates as "Potato Girl"—was brutally slain. Del's killer was never found, while the victim has since achieved immortality in local legends and ghost stories. Now, as this new murder investigation draws Kate irresistibly in, her past and present collide in terrifying, unexpected ways.

12/50 Gone by Mo Hayder
Evening is closing in as murder detective Jack Caffery arrives to interview the victim of a car-jacking.
He's dealt with routine car-thefts before, but this one is different. This car was taken by force. And on the back seat was a passenger. An eleven-year-old girl. Who is still missing.
And Caffery knows that he's going to do it again. Soon the jacker will choose another car with another child on the back seat.
Caffery's a good and instinctive cop; the best in the business, some say. But this time he knows something's badly wrong. Because the jacker seems to be ahead of the police - every step of the way...

Both of these were just ok for me.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Well I finally made some reading progress for this year but it sure has not been much. I got radiation burns and I was miserable. Also lots of drs. Visits and tests. Reading is a good distraction from all this cancer stuff when I feel up to it.

1/25 - Christmas Ranch Rescue by Lynette and Lauryn Eason
Doctor turned ranch owner is accused of possible drug smuggling. Her former high school crush who is a former dea agent helps her find the true smugglers.

2/25 - Her Christmas Healing by Mindy Obenhaus.
Library director finds herself pregnant after brutal attack. She moves near her grandma and reconnects with former veterinarian boyfriend. They work together on church project and reignite their relationship. Cute service dog and grandmas.

 

[Kirby]

#19 - Deadly Cross by James Patterson, #28 in the Alex Cross series. Genre - Thriller.

I enjoy reading the Alex Cross series.

 

[OKW8297]

8. Sydney Chambers and the Shadow of Death by James Runcie. The first of 6 in a series about a mystery solving Anglican vicar. I liked it but I would have loved it if it were on,y one mystery instead of a few.

 

[Wood Nymph]

7/30 - Master and Commander - by Patrick O'Brian

This was a really hard book for me. It is filled with nautical language that I couldn't understand. And I was too lazy to look up the meaning of the words I didn't know This would have been a good book to read on a Kindle or other device that had a built-in dictionary. But I forced myself to finish it, anyway. I won't be reading any more books in this series.

from the library website:
"The classic first novel of the epic Aubrey/Maturin series, widely considered "the best historical novels ever written" (Richard Snow, New York Times). Ardent, gregarious British naval officer Jack Aubrey is elated to be given his first appointment as commander: the fourteen-gun ship HMS Sophie. Meanwhile-after a heated first encounter that nearly comes to a duel-Aubrey and a brilliant but down-on-his-luck physician, Stephen Maturin, strike up an unlikely rapport. On a whim, Aubrey invites Maturin to join his crew as the Sophie's surgeon. And so begins the legendary friendship that anchors this beloved saga set against the thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars. Through every ensuing adventure on which Aubrey and Maturin embark, from the witty parley of their lovers and enemies to the roar of broadsides as great ships close in battle around them, O'Brian "provides endlessly varying shocks and surprises-comic, grim, farcical and tragic...

 

[mgarbowski]

7/30 - Master and Commander - by Patrick O'Brian

This was a really hard book for me. It is filled with nautical language that I couldn't understand. And I was too lazy to look up the meaning of the words I didn't know This would have been a good book to read on a Kindle or other device that had a built-in dictionary. But I forced myself to finish it, anyway. I won't be reading any more books in this series.

from the library website:
"The classic first novel of the epic Aubrey/Maturin series, widely considered "the best historical novels ever written" (Richard Snow, New York Times). Ardent, gregarious British naval officer Jack Aubrey is elated to be given his first appointment as commander: the fourteen-gun ship HMS Sophie. Meanwhile-after a heated first encounter that nearly comes to a duel-Aubrey and a brilliant but down-on-his-luck physician, Stephen Maturin, strike up an unlikely rapport. On a whim, Aubrey invites Maturin to join his crew as the Sophie's surgeon. And so begins the legendary friendship that anchors this beloved saga set against the thrilling backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars. Through every ensuing adventure on which Aubrey and Maturin embark, from the witty parley of their lovers and enemies to the roar of broadsides as great ships close in battle around them, O'Brian "provides endlessly varying shocks and surprises-comic, grim, farcical and tragic...

I found the first 3-4 books in the series really tough to get through, then it got easier. It's not even because I became familiar with the arcane nautical terms. I paused the series for 10-12 years and when I came back it was still easier even though I doubt I retained any memory of them. I think his style just becomes a bit less dense.
Anyway, I'm not suggesting you continue to slog through. I just did want to put this out there.

 

[bobbiwoz]

15/80
“All Things Wise and Wonderful “ by James Herriot. 5/5.