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2026 Bookish Books Reading Challenge (hosted by Yours Truly)

My Progress:


27 / 30 books. 90% done!

2026 Cover Lovers Reading Challenge (hosted by Yours Truly)

2026 Cover Lovers Reading Challenge (hosted by Yours Truly)

My Progress:


39 / 50 books. 78% done!

2026 Literary Escapes Challenge

- Alabama
- Alaska (1)
- Arizona
- Arkansas (1)
- California (7)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut (1)
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii (1)
- Idaho (1)
- Illinois (2)
- Indiana (1)
- 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
- New Jersey (1)
- New Mexico
- New York (4)
- North Carolina (2)
- North Dakota
- Ohio (3)
- Oklahoma
- Oregon (2)
- Pennsylvania (1)
- Rhode Island (1)
- South Carolina
- South Dakota (1)
- Tennessee
- Texas (3)
- Utah (1)
- Vermont (1)
- Virginia (1)
- Washington (1)
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin (2)
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.*

International:

- Australia (6)
- Austria (1)
- Canada (2)
- England (21)
- Fiji (1)
- France (1)
- Ireland (2)
- Italy (1)
- Mexico (1)
- New Zealand (1)
- Norway (1)
- Scotland (1)
- The Bahamas (1)
- Vatican City (1)

My Progress:


34 / 51 states. 67% done!

2026 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

My Progress:


24 / 25 books. 96% done!

2026 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge

My Progress:


29 / 50 books. 58% done!

Booklist Queen's 2026 Reading Challenge

My Progress:


38 / 52 books. 73% done!

2026 52 Club Reading Challenge

My Progress:


34 / 52 books. 65% done!

2026 Build Your Library Reading Challenge

My Progress:


22 / 40 books. 55% done!

2026 Craving for Cozies Reading Challenge

My Progress:


24 / 51 books. 47% done!

2026 Medical Examiner Mystery Reading Challenge

2026 Mount TBR Reading Challenge

My Progress


19 / 25 books. 76% done!

2026 Around the Year in 52 Books Reading Challenge

My Progress


44 / 52 books. 85% done!

Shelf Reflection Candy Reading Challenge for Kids (and Adults)

My Progress:


54 / 65 books. 83% done!

2026 Countdown Reading Challenge

My Progress:


55 / 55 books. 100% done!

2026 Series Reading Challenge


23 / 36 books. 64% done!

Dragon Rambles' Law of Fives Bingo

Dragon Rambles' Law of Fives Bingo

My Progress:


70 / 125 books. 56% done!

2026 Southern Literary Reading Challenge

My Progress:


9 / 9 books. 100% done!

2026 Reading Challenge (by Linz the Bookworm)

My Progress:


36 / 60 books. 60% done!

2026 Pioneer Book Reading Challenge

2026 Pioneer Book Reading Challenge

My Progress:


10 / 40 books. 25% done!

European Reading Challenge 2026

My Progress:


7 / 50 books. 14% done!

2017 Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge (retired challenge - doing old boards for fun)

My Progress:


67 / 125 books. 54% done!

2026 Reading Challenge Addict Reading Challenge

My Progress:


4 / 5 challenges. 80% done!

The 100 Most Common Last Names in the U.S. Reading Challenge

My Progress:


98 / 100 names. 98% done!

The Life Skills Reading Challenge

My Progress:


76 / 80 skills. 95% done!
Showing posts with label Mary Roach. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mary Roach. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 12, 2022

Top Ten Tuesday: My Soon-to-Be No-Longer-New-to-Me Author List


As much as I love re-exploring my favorite authors every time they come out with a new book, I also really enjoy discovering new writers. I don't know what percent of my reading every year comes from new-to-me authors, but it's high—maybe 70% or more? Even still, there are a bunch of authors I have been meaning to try and just haven't gotten around to yet, so today's TTT prompt is perfect: Top Ten Authors I Haven't Read, But Want To. The idea came from the lovely Deanna over at A Novel Glimpse. If you're a big romance reader, you're definitely going to want to visit her blog. 

Don't forget to give Jana, our TTT hostest with the mostest, some love as well. While you're at That Artsy Reader Girl, why don't you join in the TTT fun? It's a good time, I promise!

Top Ten Authors I Haven't Read Yet, But Want To

For this list, I'm going to focus on authors who've written more than one book. I included covers for the book of theirs I'm most excited to read. 

Historical Fiction


1. Kate Quinn—Quinn has written a number of historical novels, the most recent of which focus on World War II. Her books have gotten lots of buzz and praise, so I'm interested to see what I think. I picked up The Diamond Eye at my local indie last week. Hopefully, I'll get to it soon.


2. Beatriz Williams—Williams writes historicals on her own and as part of a collaborative author trio. I've read a couple of the latter, but none of the former.  

Mystery/Thriller


3. Sulari Gentill—Gentill is an Australian author who pens contemporary and historical mysteries. I'm especially interested in her Rowland Sinclair series as well as The Woman in the Library, which comes out on June 7.


4. Elizabeth Haynes—This English author writes crime fiction and mysteries. Her books sound right up my alley!


5. Alice Feeney—I love me a tense, atmospheric thriller. Feeney's novels sound like just the ticket.

General


6. T.I. Lowe—I have no roots in the Southern United States, but I still love to read stories set there. Something about the sumptuous settings, slow drawls, and easy vibes really appeals to me. I'm always looking for new Southern authors to love and Lowe is one I've got my eye on.


7. Donna Everhart—Ditto for Everhart, whose Southern novels are supposed to be full of "authenticity and grit." I'm down.


8. T.J. Klune—I'm pretty sure everyone has read Klune's magical children's books by now but me. I'm going to remedy that soon, I hope!


9. Graham Norton—Thanks to clips that show up on my Facebook feed apropos of nothing, I know that Norton is an Irish actor who hosts a U.K. television show where he interviews celebrity guests. Until Cath mentioned it, I had no idea he also wrote books. He's penned memoirs, mysteries and family sagas. I'm not interested in his non-fiction, but his novels sound appealing.

Non-Fiction


10. Mary Roach—I've been meaning to read Roach's informative books for years. As we speak, Stiff is sitting on my bookshelf casting meaningful glances my way...

There you have it, ten authors I haven't read yet that I really want to try out. Have you read any of them? What do you think of their work? Who are the new-to-you writers you plan to take a look at soon(ish)? I'd truly love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog. 

Happy TTT!

Tuesday, December 14, 2021

Top Ten Tuesday: It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas



I promised my German book blogger friend, Marianne,
I would send her pictures of my "Griswold" Christmas house, but I decided to go ahead and share them with you all as well. Decorating is not my forté (neither is photography, as you can see). Still, I love this time of year and decking my house out with all my favorite things is a fun way to make things feel festive. You'll see several of my collections on display here: nativities (I especially love those designed by
Jim Shore), nutcrackers (they're lining the windowsills—I've been collecting them since I first saw The Nutcracker when I was about 10), Santas (Did I mention I'm a Jim Shore fan?), and Department 56 village houses (from their Original Snow Village collection). 
My husband's all about the lights, so he festooned the bannisters with glow-y garlands (the strand of leg lamps he strung on one can't be seen from the front door, thank goodness). The lights that hang down from the loft, unfortunately, decided to crap out after he strung them up. Bummer. At any rate, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here! 
 My 13-year-old spent the weekend enthusiastically wrapping presents while I worked on Christmas cards, so those things are done. All I have left to do now is some last-minute gift shopping for our family Secret Santa gift exchange, making homemade doughnuts for the neighbors (my husband and I are getting booster shots on Doughnut Day Eve, so we'll see how we're feeling for this exhausting event—it may get cancelled), getting my dad a birthday gift (our shared birthday is December 22), and shopping for Christmas dinner (ham, homemade rolls, funeral potatoes, etc.). How is your holiday prep going?

Amid the hustle and bustle of the holidays, I'm still working on my goal of reading 200 books this year. I'm six away (really five since I'm halfway through the e-book I'm reading and about the same with the audiobook I'm listening to). This week's TTT prompt—Top Ten Books On My Winter TBR List—asks what's next up on the docket. In addition to those I listed last week, I've got ten more possibilities to share with you. I love these seasonal TBRs, so I'm excited to see what everyone has on their lists today.

Don't forget to click on over to That Artsy Reader Girl and give some love to our gracious hostess, Jana.

Top Ten Books On My Winter TBR List  


1. Poison Lilies by Katie Tallo (available May 24, 2022)—This is my current read. Dark August, the first book in the series, was one of my first reads of 2021. I loved it and have been waiting *patiently* for a sequel. Although Poison Lilies doesn't officially come out for a while still, I got an e-ARC from Edelweiss Plus. Huzzah!

Our heroine, Augusta "Gus" Monet, has moved into an old Ottawa apartment complex. She meets her eccentric neighbor, a blind woman who hasn't left the building since the 1950s. When a corpse from the same era is found in a deep pond nearby, Gus's neighbor pays her to investigate the very cold case. 


2. Hot and Sour Suspects by Vivien Chien (available January 25, 2022)—I'm always up for the newest installment in this fun cozy mystery series, which is one of my very faves. In this one, Lana Lee helps host a speed-dating event. When one of the participant's dates is murdered and she's accused of the crime, she asks Lana to help prove her innocence. 


3. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid—I think I'm the only one who hasn't read this buzzy mystery/thriller yet. Good thing I'm an airhead and checked out two copies from the library! Set in the 80s, the novel is about a house party gone horribly wrong. It's getting great reviews, so I'm in.


4. In the Market for Murder by T.E. KinseyCath recommended this fun historical mystery series. I enjoyed the first book, so I'm excited to read the next installment which promises to be just as enjoyable. This time, it's the murder of a local farmer that has Lady Hardcastle and her maid playing Sherlock and Watson.


5. Ghost Ship by Brian Hicks—When I posted about my love for books about maritime disasters, Lark recommended this non-fiction account of the fate of the Mary Celeste. It's going to come due at the library soon, so I need to read it soon. It sounds fascinating!


6. Futureface by Alex Wagner—I'm hoping my quest to become a professional genealogist will take a step forward in 2022, as testing has been stalled for the past couple years by COVID. In the meantime, I always enjoy an intriguing family history/DNA story. This one, about a woman's search for her true identity, sounds like just the ticket.


7. I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys (available February 1, 2022)—I love Sepetys' historical YA novels, so her newest definitely earns a place here. Set in Communist Romania in 1989, this book features a young man who is forced to become an informer, but uses his unique position to undermine a dangerous government.


8. Tips for Magicians by Celesta Rimington—I enjoyed this author's debut middle-grade novel. Her newest is about a grieving boy who moves to a strange town in middle-of-nowhere Utah. The residents believe in a "magical entity" that grants wishes. The boy hopes it's true because he really, really needs his wish to come true...


9. The Last Daughter of York by Nicola Cornick—As much as I love historical fiction, I don't tend to read books set before the 19th Century. Still, this dual-timeline novel set in York (which I loved when I visited England a few months ago) sounds like a good one. 


10. Stiff by Mary Roach—I've been wanting to read a Roach book for forever, so I finally bought this one. It sounds absolutely fascinating!

There you go, ten books on my Winter TBR list. Have you read any of them? What did you think? What are you planning to read this winter? I'd truly love to know. Leave a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on your blog.

Happy TTT!
Tuesday, August 23, 2016

TTT: And Still They Languish ...


Believe it or not (not!), I started this blog ten years ago this month.  Crazy.  It's evolved a lot since then, as have I.  Weirdly enough, in all those years, my enthusiasm for book blogging has not waned.  I still think it's a grand old time.  Will I still be doing this ten years from now?  Probably.  Here's to another decade of BBB!

I've been inhaling books for a lot longer than ten years so you'd think that I'd have read every book on my TBR list mountain mountain chain by now.  Yeah, not quite.  It's still crammed full of titles I'm hoping to get to someday.  Plenty of them have been on my radar for more than ten years, which makes this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic a cinch.  I could make several TTT lists of Books That Have Been On My TBR List Since Before I Started Blogging.  I'm guessing you could, too, so why don't you join in the fun?  Cruise on over to The Broke and the Bookish for the rules of the game, then make your own TTT list, and share it with the book blogosphere.  It's fun!

Top Ten Books That have Been On My TBR List Since Before I Started Blogging:



1.  Atonement by Ian McEwan (2003)—This Booker Prize-nominated novel seems to be about many things: writing, a crime that changes people's lives, war, and I'm not sure what else.  Lots of people love it and I've yet to read it or anything by McEwan for that matter.


2.  Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick (2006)—I bought this book at Borders back in the day.  I've been meaning to read it ever since.  My Bailey (Bayley) ancestors did not come to America on the Mayflower, but they arrived in Plymouth soon after the famous ship docked.  Mayflower is supposed to be a fascinating account of the Pilgrims and their journey to the New World.  Philbrick's In the Heart of the Sea has also been on my TBR list for some time.


3.  The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (2004)—This story about an autistic teen investigating the death of a neighborhood dog sounds quirky and interesting.  I've seen lots of praise for it over the years.  And yet, still it languishes on Ye Olde TBR ...


4.  Gilead by Marilynne Robinson (2006)—A sweeping multi-generational tale about fathers and sons, this novel came out the year I started blogging.  Still haven't gotten around to it.


5.  The Dogs of Babel by Carolyn Parkhurst (2004)—This tale about a man who tries to make sense of his wife's death by performing experiments to teach his dog to speak sounds ... unusual.  Also heartbreaking.  I'm still curious about it.  One of these days I'll finally get to it.  Maybe.


6.  Eragon by Christopher Paolini (2001)—Admittedly, I'm not a huge dragon/fantasy fan.  Still, so many people love the Inheritance Cycle series that I need to at least give it a go.  The fact that Paolini wrote the first book when he was just 15 is another reason to check it out.


7.  I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak (2002)—Like many people, I've only read one book by Zusak—The Book Thief.  Some of my most trusted book blogging friends (I'm looking at you, Suey and Jenny) think he's written more than one great novel.  I need to see for myself.  This particular Zusak has been on my TBR list for far too long.  It's about time I just read I Am the Messenger already!


8.  The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (1998)—I love post-apocalyptic books, but for some reason I just can't ever get very far in this one.  Not because it's not intriguing, just because I always get distracted by newer, shinier books.


9.  Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach (2004)—I've heard so many great things about Roach's books, this one in particular, that it's a wonder I still haven't read her.  I need to remedy that right away.


10.  Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon (1992)—I was completely swept away by Outlander when I read it way back when.  Why I didn't grab this sequel immediately I'm not sure.  I'll have to read Outlander again before I can continue on with this series, so who knows if it will ever actually happen?  I like big books (and I cannot lie), but re-reading has never been my favorite thing.

So, there you have it.  What do you think?  Have you read any of these?  Do you consider any of them must-reads or can they linger on the TBR list?  I'd love to have a look at your list.  Leave me a comment on this post and I'll gladly return the favor.

Happy TTT!  

(All book images from Barnes & Noble)
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2024 - Elementary/Middle Grade Nonfiction

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