Read-a-thons
I was reading for three simultaneous read-a-thons over the course of this past week. The first was #FrightFall, which is a month-long scary-themed read-a-thon at Seasons of Reading. I'm not into horror, but I've been trying to read mostly mysteries. On Friday and Saturday, I joined #8inBoo, hosted by @25infive on Instagram. The goal was to read for 8 hours over two days. I made it to 6 hours. Saturday was also my first attempt at joining in for Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-thon. It's hard to accomplish anything when the time limit is 24 hours, you have three small children, and you can't just stay up all night, but I did enjoy jumping in and hopefully I'll try it again when it happens in April.
What I Finished Reading
- Disappearing Acts by Betsy Byars ⭐⭐⭐
- King of Murder by Betsy Byars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- The Black Tower by Betsy Byars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
These three books are the last of the Herculeah Jones mysteries by Betsy Byars. The 7th and final book ended as though an 8th was expected, so that was a little disappointing, but overall I liked the series, and I enjoyed getting back into Byars after a break. I am planning to review the whole series soon. - X by Sue Grafton ⭐⭐⭐
I had heard this book was disappointing, and though I tried to stay positive about it as I read it this weekend, the reviewers were mostly right. It wasn't bad, per se, but it was the weakest of the 24 I've read. I will take a few weeks off before diving into Y is for Yesterday. I'm sad for the end of the series, especially since it will forever remain unfinished, but I'm also excited to go back and reread some of the early ones after I'm done. - Howliday Inn by James Howe ⭐⭐⭐
I read Bunnicula aloud to my kids and realized I had never finished the series. Though I enjoyed this second book, it's a bit sophisticated for my kids just now, so I don't plan to share it with them until they're older, if ever. - Dead Over Heels by Charlaine Harris ⭐⭐
I listened to half of this as an audiobook and read the other half in the ebook edition. It was a pretty weak mystery, and though I like Roe well enough, the other characters, especially her husband, get on my nerves. I'm still sticking with the series, but I hope it picks up a bit.
What I'm Currently Reading
- The Figure in the Shadows by John Bellairs
I fully intended to read this entire book this week, but the Sue Grafton book took me forever, and then I got sucked into a bunch of digital books. Once I sit down with it and focus, it will take me just a couple of hours. - Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
I am really enjoying the writing style in this book (I have always enjoyed Johnson) but I find myself reading it slowly because I don't want it to end too soon. - Deadly News by Jody Holford
I started this ARC last weekend and then forgot about it. It's good, and I'm looking forward to it, and I'm not currently reading any other cozies, so I should be able to make it a bigger priority this week. - Nighty-Nightmare by James Howe
I realize this is the fourth book of the Bunnicula series, not the third, but I've decided to skip ahead because I need a children's book beginning with letter N for a challenge, and I'm trying to wrap those up.
Reading Challenge Progress
There are only ten weeks left in 2018, so I'm trying to really focus on finishing up my challenges. I have mostly stopped linking up because I am behind on writing reviews, but I still want to try to finish as many checklists as I can. Here's how things stand:
- For the A to Z Challenge, I have letters J, N, and X left.
- For Alphabet Soup, I still need Q, U, V, Y, and Z.
- I'm reading Betsy Byars books for the Author Love challenge, and I've read 14 of the required 15.
- I signed up for the Inspector level (26-35 books) of the Cloak and Dagger challenge. I'm currently at 40 and might reach 50 or more by the end of the year.
- For Craving for Cozies, I aimed for the Famished level (11-30), but I've read 31 books and anticipate reading several more.
- For the Family Tree challenge, I'm still missing books published in 1946 and 1959.
- I've read 46 books for the Library Love challenge, surpassing my goal by 10.
- I wanted to complete level 1 of the Linz the Bookworm challenge, but I still need a comedy or satire book and a Nora Roberts book, and I don't think I'm going to get them done.
- My goal for the Old School Kidlit challenge was 52 books. I read my 53rd this week.
- For the Writing Reviews challenge, I planned to review 100 books. I stopped counting at 125.
I want to finish both the Sue Grafton series (I think I'm up to E now?) and the Aurora Teagarden books. I've only read one of those so far. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteMy roundup!
I loved Truly Devious and have already ordered the sequel. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteSheets and Blended look good. My weekly updates
ReplyDeleteI'm finally adding Truly Devious to my TBR list. I keep hearing good things and I suppose it's time to add it to the pile. :) And YAY on exceeding your Old School Kidlit challenge. CONGRATS! Have a wonderful reading week, Katie!
ReplyDeleteI was obsessed with the Bunnicula series as a child, but I haven't thought about those books in years! I really should pick them up again. :-)
ReplyDeleteKudos to you on trying to read for a read-a-thon and being a mum of three littles. I understand how you can be so tired. I've only got two who are older but when I was a young mom I was stressed out or tired. Bunnicula was a popular series when I taught in the early millenium years. I didn't teach that book but a coworker did as one of her differentiated groups.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter grew into reading with James Howe & they are fun books. I am amazed at all you are doing, Katie. Best wishes in all those challenges.
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