Annual reading challenge 2018- Join in on the Fun

[dolewhipdreams]

Two more!

#12/30 Fair is the Rose by Liz Curtis Higgs (5/5). The second in the series set in the 18th century in Lowland Scotland that is loosely based on the story of Jacob, Leah, and Rachel in the book of Genesis.

#13/30 Whence Came a Prince by Liz Curtis Higgs (5/5). The third in the series. I find the whole series to be riveting, if a little cheesy.

 

[disneychrista]

#24 - Treachery in Death by JD Robb

#25 - New York to Dallas by JD Robb

#26 - Chaos in Death (Novella) by JD Robb

 

[SallySkelington]

12/30: The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory
13/30: Lady in Waiting by Denise Domning
14/30: A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
15/30: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by JK Rowling

Next up: Still reading Farewell, My Queen by Chantal Thomas lol

 

[Tiggerish]

Honeymoon in Italy by Jen Carter - Five years after the sudden deaths of their parents in a boating accident, three sisters trace their parents honeymoon in Italy using their Mother's journal.

Sharpe Mind by Lisa B. Thomas from her Maycroft Mystery Series. This was a third book in the series. I have lost interest in the little town of Maycroft so probably won't read any more of them.

38 and 40/52

 

[willowsnn3]

#38 E is for Evidence by Sue Grafton

Another in the alphabet series. Altho I did read the "F" book before the "E" because it was available first.

I think I saw at my library that they have G-H-I in one book so have to put that on hold.

 

[Tiggerish]

The House of Five Fortunes by Amanda Hughes. Historical fiction set in San Francisco and centered around an opium smoking house. It begins in 1865 when the main character, a Chinese girl being raised by an American pastor and his wife (a former prostitute and actual owner of the opium house) is 11 years old. It contains over the next 15 plus years as she inherits and runs the house until fleeing anti-Chinese rioting. The story ends with a set up for the next book. Although the details about the Chinese immigrants and subculture were very interesting, it was a writing style I enjoyed so will not be following the series.

41/52

 

[tiggrbaby]

#55/90: The Stowaway: A Young Man's Extraordinary Adventure to Antarctica by Laurie Gwen Shapiro (3.5/5) (nonfiction)
Instead of going to college, this young man decided to try to join Admiral Byrd on his expedition.

#56/90: White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht (4.5/5) (historical fiction/Comfort women)
A young Korean woman is captured by a Japanese soldier and forced into becoming a comfort woman. The story is told from the viewpoint of the young woman and her younger sister.

#57/90: Last Bus to Wisdom by Ivan Doig (5/5) (fiction/coming of age)
A young orphaned boy is sent by bus to live with relatives he has never met while his grandmother recovers from surgery. The story is funny, sad, and heartwarming.

#58/90: One Summer by David Baldacci (3/5) (fiction)
A terminally ill man loses his wife and then suddenly recovers. He then takes their children to her childhood home. I much prefer his thriller novels.

 

[Tiggerish]

Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution by Ji-Li Jiang. Autobiography. Set in communist China and cover two years, 1966-1968, the author tells of her and her family's experiences as Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution began. At the start, at age 12 she is a rising star who believes her future is limitless. She is the head student at her school, gets the best grades and is being offered an audition for a prestigious dance troupe. Slowly her world comes apart as her family's "black" background is revealed. Her great-grandfather was a landlord, owner of a large amount of land which he rented to peasants in return for the major portion of their crops thus an "exploiter" of the people. As part of purges of the cultural revolution, she loses her standing in school, her father is imprisoned and all of their household goods are taken away. She reaches a point where she contemplates suicide but her loyalty to her family prevents that. The book ends when her father is released and her family starts making do in their new circumstances. In the epilogue, it states that she came to the United States in 1984 with other family members and tells what became of some of the people from her childhood.

42/52

 

[willowsnn3]

#39 Her Final Breath by Robert Dugoni

 

[dolewhipdreams]

#14/30 Grace in Thine Eyes by Liz Curtis Higgs (2/5). I can't commend this one as much as the others. It deals with the sensitive topic of sexual assault and I don't think it's handled very well. I agree with the overall themes of forgiveness and grace, but I think the series is complete without this novel.

 

[tiggrbaby]

#39 Her Final Breath by Robert Dugoni

I enjoy this series! I have A Steep Price downloaded for my August borrow.

 

[tiggrbaby]

#59/90: A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea by Masaji Ishikawa (3/5) (memoir)
Very sad story of a Japanese/Koren teen brought to North Korea in 1960.

#60/90: My Dear Hamilton by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie (5/5) (historical fiction)
Eye-opening information not taught in history class! Eliza Hamilton was a very strong woman in a very challenging period of history.

 

[willowsnn3]

#40 Beasts by Joyce Carol Oates

At Catamount College in the druggy 1970s, Gillian Brauer has fallen in love with poetry, with her charismatic professor Andre Harrow and his sculptress wife, with their bohemian lifestyle, their secluded cottage, their nocturnal mysteries. Gillian Brauer is about to enter hell.

Well, just let me say I did not like this one. Only 138 pages, so a quick read but a waste of time in my opinion. Waiting for a few books I have on hold to come in.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

#15/30 The 39 Steps by John Buchan (5/5). A short novel set in the UK just before WWI, in which Richard Hannay becomes part of a political plot and must live on the run. It's the novel that inspired Hitchcock's film (and all the subsequent renditions). It's clever and quick and I really enjoyed it.

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

#17 Game of Thrones #1 by George R.R. Martin

Hoping to get through them all before it comes back on HBO.
Enjoyed it more than season 1 which I binged watch.
Felt much more connected to Ned and Khaleesi in book.
Took me considerably less time than I thought it would.

If anyone is interested, I would gladly send a kindle gift version of any of my works “Written for You”, “Three Twigs for the Campfire”, “Cemetery Girl” or “Reigning”. You can see them all reviewed at Goodreads. If you are interested in reading any just message me.

 

[bobbiwoz]

45/50. The World is My Home by James A. Michener, A Memoir

I lived in Bucks County PA for awhile, read many of his books, and decided to read this memoir which was Copyrighted in 1992. I am glad I did. What a varied life he led.

 

[tiggrbaby]

45/50. The World is My Home by James A. Michener, A Memoir

I lived in Bucks County PA for awhile, read many of his books, and decided to read this memoir which was Copyrighted in 1992. I am glad I did. What a varied life he led.

Put in a recommendation to my library for this!

 

[Tiggerish]

Playing With Matches by Lee Strauss. Historical fiction. Set in German between 1938 and 1945, the book starts when Emile, age 11 is gung ho to be part of the Hitler Youth movement causing some unease within his family. As the years progress, Emile begins to secretly listen to BBC broadcasts on a forbidden radio and learns that Hitler is lying to Germany about the war. He and three friends start hand transcribing the broadcasts and distributing their leaflets around their town. Eventually, one of the friends gets caught and deliberately provokes the SS soldiers into shooting him so they cannot torture him into revealing the others. As the war progresses, younger and younger men are pressed into service as soldiers. Reluctantly, Emile serves at the Soviet front and later is training to be a pilot as the war comes to its bitter end. Far from home, he literally walks across Germany to get back to his town and restart his life.

I really liked this book. The author's basis for the book is from stories family members told him about their individual experiences as children, teens and young adults during Hitler's regime. And much well done research.

43/52

 

[FlightlessDuck]

Book 9 of 20: Most Wanted by Rae Carson

Set before the events of Solo: A Star Wars Story! Han and Qi'ra don't have a lot in common other than not having a lot. They're street kids on the industrial planet Corellia, doing whatever it takes to get by, dreaming of something more. They each jump at a chance to prove themselves in the perilous world of Corellia's criminal underbelly, only to discover they are on the same mission for the same unscrupulous boss. When the job goes disastrously wrong, Han and Qi'ra are on the run--from pirates, a droid crime syndicate, the Empire, and their boss--and will have to learn to trust each other if they are going to survive.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Another Star Wars book. Shocking, I know.

Sluggish read through the first 2/3, then got pretty excited at the end. Nice introdoction to Qi'ra and Han's relationship and adds some backstory to the White Worm gang.

 

[Tiggerish]

Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover. Autobiography. Tara tells the story of how she obtained her PhD. That does not sound all that interesting, except that she was raised in small, very remote, Mormon community in Idaho. By a father who believed in living off the grid and that his children should not be corrupted by the government forcing them to go to school among other insane beliefs. In theory, she and her brothers and sisters are homeschooled by their mother but in actually, her mother did very little in the way of actual learning. Tara self teaches herself enough to get into Brigham Young University. She actually gets to study in Cambridge, England earning her PhD. The book details the craziness that was her family and the extraordinary efforts she took to make it out from under their influence. It was a fascinating story.

44/52