Bloggin' 'bout Books: 09/01/23

2026 Literary Escapes Challenge

- Alabama

- ~~Alaska~~ (1)

- ~~Arizona~~ (2)

- ~~Arkansas~~ (1)

- ~~California~~ (8)

- ~~Colorado~~ (2)

- ~~Connecticut~~ (1)

- Delaware

- ~~Florida~~ (3)

- ~~Georgia~~ (1)

- ~~Hawaii~~ (1)

- ~~Idaho~~ (2)

- ~~Illinois~~ (2)

- ~~Indiana~~ (2)

- ~~Iowa~~ (1)

- Kansas

- ~~Kentucky~~ (1)

- ~~Louisiana~~ (2)

- ~~Maine~~ (4)

- ~~Maryland~~ (1)

- ~~Massachusetts~~ (2)

- ~~Michigan~~ (2)

- ~~Minnesota~~ (2)

- ~~Mississippi~~ (1)

- Missouri

- ~~Montana~~ (1)

- ~~Nebraska~~ (1)

- Nevada

- ~~New Hampshire~~ (1)

- ~~New Jersey~~ (1)

- ~~New Mexico~~ (1)

- ~~New York~~ (5)

- ~~North Carolina~~ (2)

- ~~North Dakota~~ (1)

- ~~Ohio~~ (4)

- ~~Oklahoma~~ (1)

- ~~Oregon~~ (2)

- ~~Pennsylvania~~ (1)

- ~~Rhode Island~~ (1)

- ~~South Carolina~~ (1)

- ~~South Dakota~~ (1)

- ~~Tennessee~~ (2)

- ~~Texas~~ (3)

- ~~Utah~~ (1)

- ~~Vermont~~ (2)

- ~~Virginia~~ (1)

- ~~Washington~~ (2)

- West Virginia

- ~~Wisconsin~~ (3)

- ~~Wyoming~~(1)

- Washington, D.C.*

International:

- Australia (7)

- Austria (1)

- Canada (3)

- England (24)

- Fiji (1)

- France (1)

- Ireland (3)

- Italy (2)

- Mexico (1)

- Morocco (1)

- New Zealand (1)

- Norway (1)

- Scotland (2)

- The Bahamas (1)

- Vatican City (1)

~~Twenty~~ Seventeen Books of Summer Challenge Complete!

6:41 PM

While I've been rocking my reading challenges this year, I didn't quite complete this one, the 20 Books of Summer challenge hosted annually by Cathy over at 746 Books. To be fair, I started late. Also to be fair, I changed out several books over the course of the challenge so I could complete more of them. The rules of the challenge are very flexible, which is nice. Here's what I ended up reading:

1. Prairie Fires by Caroline Fraser—This is my current physical book. I've read about 1/3 so far. finished 06.22.23

2. In Myrtle Peril by Elizabeth C. Bunce—I'm listening to this one on audio and am about halfway done. finished 06.23.23

3. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith (re-read) - finished 07.05.23

4. A Sky Full of Song by Susan Lynn Meyer - finished 07.14.23

5. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (re-read) - finished 07.29.23

6. Kim by Rudyard Kipling - DNF

7. I Lived on Butterfly Hill by Marjorie Agosin - finished 06.24.23

8. The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate - finished 06.25.23

9. Lasagna Means I Love You by Kate O'Shaughnessy - finished 08.09.23

10. Simon Sort of Says by Erin Bow - finished 08.07.23

11. Crow Mary by Kathleen Grissom

12. O' Art of Death by Sarah Stewart Taylor - finished 08.05.23

13. A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman - finished 08.30.23

14. The Talk by Darrin Bell - finished 06.26.23

15. Monday's Not Coming by Tiffany D. Jackson

16. Death in Bloom by Jess Dylan - finished 08.05.23

17. Ellie Engle Saves Herself by Leah Johnson

18. The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown - finished 07.18.23

19. The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer - finished 07.16.23

20. Enchanted Hill by Emily Bain Murphy - finished 07.25.23

Seventeen out of twenty isn't too bad! It felt good to cross all of these off my TBR list. I enjoyed most of them to boot. Not too shabby at all.

I enjoyed this fun challenge and will definitely plan to join again next year.

Books Read in 2026 (asterisks denote favorites)

1. Such a Clever Girl by Darby Kane (Jan)
2. When No One Else Will by Amanda Skenandore (Jan)
3. Atomic Habits by James Clear* [re-read] (Jan)
4. Murder on the Farm by Kate Wells (Jan)
5. Murder at Ochre Court by Alyssa Maxwell (Jan)
6. Not Dead Yet: The Memoir by Phil Collins* [audio] (Feb))
7. The Women in White by Sarah Pekkanen (Feb)
8. The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers (Feb)
9. One Big Happy Family by Jamie Day (Feb)
10. A Tour to Die For by Michelle Chouinard (Feb)
11. Bluebird by Sharon Cameron* [re-read] (Feb)
12. The Lake Escape by Jamie Day (Feb)
13. Treacherous is the Night by Anna Lee Huber [audio] (Feb)
14. The Last Resort by Erin Entrada Kelly (Feb)
15. The Missing by Kristen Landon (Feb)
16. Dark and Bright by Catherine Lyon (Feb)
17. The Wild Robot by Peter Brown* [audio] (Feb)
18. Boiled Over by Barbara Ross (Feb)
19. Some of Us Are Looking by Carlene O'Connor (Feb)
20. Coach by Jason Reynolds* [audio] (Feb)
21. The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey (Feb)
22. The Claiming by Jasmine Warga (Feb)
23. Dark and Deep by Catherine Lyon (Feb)
24. Ours is a Tale of Murder by Nora Murphy (Feb)
25. Zoom With a View by Jess Cannon (Feb)
26. The Nowhere Child by Christian White (Feb)
27. An Ordinary Kind of Evil by Kelley Armstrong* (Feb)
28. Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater (Feb)
29. Murder at 30,000 Feet by Susan Walter (Feb)
30. Dive Bar at the End of the Road by Kelley Armstrong (Feb)
31. You Were Always Mine by Nicole Baart [audio] (Feb)
32. In Case I Go Missing by R.N. Swann (Mar)
33. A Lie for a Lie by Ren DeStefano (Mar)
34. Local Gone Missing by Fiona Barton [audio] (Mar)
35. Murder is a Piece of Cake by Valerie Burns [audio] (Mar)
36. Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon (Mar)
37. Death at the Dinner Party by Ellie Alexander [audio] (Mar)
38. The Secret Lives of Murderers' Wives by Elizabeth Arnott (Mar)
39. A Holiday Homicide by Elile Alexander [audio] (Mar)
40. Summer's Never Over by Darby Bozeman (Mar)
41. The Body in the Woods by April Henry [audio] (Mar)
42. Every Borrowed Beat by Erin Stewart (Mar)
43. First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston (Mar)
44. Please Enjoy Your Stay by Tara Goedjen (Mar)
45. This Weekend Doesn't End Well for Anyone by Catherine Mack (Mar)
46. A Victim at Valentine's by Ellie Alexander [audio] (Mar)
47. Rock-Solid Relationships: Strengthening Personal Relationships With Wisdom from the Scriptures by Wendy Watson (Apr)
48. A Body at the Book Fair by Ellie Alexander [audio] (Apr)
49. Our Marriage is Murder by Carol Goodman (Apr)
50. A Spy in the House by Y.S. Lee (Apr)
51. Dear Mrs. Bird by A.J. Pearce [re-read] [audio] (Apr)
52. Live and Let Chai by Bree Baker (Apr)
53. Talking to Strangers by Fiona Barton (Apr)
54. The Rush by Beth Lewis* (Apr)
55. Not If I Save You First by Ally Carter [audio] (Apr)
56. Angels & Demons by Dan Brown [re-read] (Apr)
57. The Cry by Helen Fitzgerald (Apr)
58. Heiress of Nowhere by Stacey Lee (Apr)
59. The Murder at World's End by Ross Montgomery (Apr)
60. Weightless: A Doctor's Guide to GLP-1 Medications, Sustainable Weight Loss, and the Health You Deserve by Rocio Salas-Whalen (Apr)
61. Dust by Alison Stine (Apr)
62. What I Mean When I Say I'm Autistic by Annie Kotowicz (Apr)
63. The Cartographer's Secret by Tea Cooper [audio] (Apr)
64. A Cute Little Murder by Molly Harper (Apr)
65. Pretty Dead Things by Kelsey Cox (May)
66. Stabbed in the Baklava by Tina Kashian (May)
67. The Chambermaid's Key by Genevieve Graham* (May)
68. The River Knows Your Name by Kelly Mustian (May)
69. This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum (May)
70. Dissection of a Murder by Jo Murray (May)
71. The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth* [re-read] (May)
72. Meet Your Baker by Ellie Alexander [re-read] (May)
73. Last One Out by Jane Harper (May)
74. Missing Molly by Natalie Barelli (May)
75. Family of Spies by Christine Kuehn (Jun)
76. A Map to Murder by Michelle Chouinard (Jun)
77. How to Kill a Crime Writer by Sarah Lotz* (Jun)
78. What We Did to Survive by Megan Lally (Jun)
79. Devils at the Door by Tessa Wegert (Jun)
80. The Chow Maniac by Vivien Chien (Jun)
81. My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney (Jun)
82. The Secret Thread by Eve Chase (Jun)
83. Suddenly a Murder by Lauren Munoz [audio] (Jun)
84. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown [re-read] (Jun)
85. The Hike by Lucy Clarke (Jun)
86. The Foundling by Ann Leary (Jun)
87. Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen* (Jun)
88. Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth* [re-read] (Jun)
89. 100 Rules for Living to 100: An Optimist's Guide to a Happy Life by Dick Van Dyke (Jun)
90. You Let Me In by Lucy Clarke (Jun)
91. Anatomy of an Alibi by Ashley Elston (Jun)

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Twenty Seventeen Books of Summer Challenge Complete!

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2026 Goodreads Reading Challenge

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2024 - Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction

2023 - Middle Grade Fiction

2022 - Middle Grade Fiction

2021 - Middle Grade Fiction

2020 - Middle Grade Fiction

Books Read in 2026 (asterisks denote favorites)