Here it is - the OFFICIAL 2014 READING GOAL CHALLENGE THREAD

[Momof3dogs]

It has been forever since I updated!! So here are all the books I've read since my last update!
Bridesmaid Lotto---Rachel Astor
Gamble on Engagement--- Rachel Astor
The Wedding Wager---Rachel Astor
**all three were decent reads. Quick and held my interest.
The Husband's Secret---- liane Moriarty
*** great read. Still thinking about it to this day.
Cinderella Screwed Me Over--- Cindi Madsen
*** super cute and the author tweets back when you send her a tweet!
My Life Undecided----Jessica Brody
Confessions of a Teen Nanny---Victoria Ashton
coatn: Rich Girls---Victoria Ashton
Coatn: juicy secrets--- Victoria Ashton
**** these 4 were read to make sure they were appropriate for a younger cousin
Driving With the Top Down----Beth Harbison
**** love this author.
Shopaholic to the Stars---- Sophie Kinsella
**** totally not as good as the others in the series. But I had to read it because I'm invested.
Taking the Lead: lessons from a life in motion--- Derek Hough
**** love Derek! Interesting book!
Attachments----Rainbow Rowell
**** the ending of the book completely ruined the entire novel.


This should bring me up to 47/50 for the year! One month left... Can I do it?!!

 

[mmouse37]

Goal - 70 books

Book # 53 "The Light Between Oceans" by M.L. Stedman

From Goodreads: After four harrowing years on the Western Front, Tom Sherbourne returns to Australia and takes a job as the lighthouse keeper on Janus Rock, nearly half a day’s journey from the coast. To this isolated island, where the supply boat comes once a season and shore leaves are granted every other year at best, Tom brings a young, bold, and loving wife, Isabel. Years later, after two miscarriages and one stillbirth, the grieving Isabel hears a baby’s cries on the wind. A boat has washed up onshore carrying a dead man and a living baby.

Tom, whose records as a lighthouse keeper are meticulous and whose moral principles have withstood a horrific war, wants to report the man and infant immediately. But Isabel has taken the tiny baby to her breast. Against Tom’s judgment, they claim her as their own and name her Lucy. When she is two, Tom and Isabel return to the mainland and are reminded that there are other people in the world. Their choice has devastated one of them.

My review: I really liked this book. I had a hard time getting into it, but once I did, I finished the book in one sitting! I had to find out what was going to happen. I just couldn't see how the book could end in a way that would make me happy! I really felt for all the characters involved in the story. This is a story about a hard decision that had to be made, and the consequences that resulted. I would have a hard time saying that anyone made a "wrong" decision. Really recommend this book!

Next up: The 7th book in the Kingdom Keepers series. Don't have it by me, so I don't have the whole title!

I loved that book (the light between the oceans)!!!

I just started reading The Red Tent in anticipation of the mini-series.

MJ

 

[rigs32]

#47 - I Heart my Little A-Holes by Karen Alpert

Humorous essays about life as a mom. A quick read.

#48 - Forever by Judy Blume

I somehow never read this as a teen. It's a pretty accurate description of how young love can play out but I do wish there was a bit more emotional substance.

I'm so close to my goal, I'm sure I can hit it by the end of the month.

 

[willowsnn3]

#81 Revival by Stephen King

From the jacket:
'This rich and disturbing novel spans five decades on its way to the most terrifying conclusion Stephen King has ever written. It's a masterpiece from King, brilliantly illustrating why he "is right at the center of an American literary taproot that goes all the way down... to Hawthorne, to Poe, to Melville"'

I disagree. It was a good book as most of King's books are, but nowhere near 'the most terrifying conclusion SK has ever written'. Worth reading but a little drawn out in spots.

 

[CourtasanSatine]

Currently working through a pile of graphic novels thanks to Gotham, The Flash, Arrow and Constantine.

 

[zippitydoo]

Book #70 of 75: Tuesday’s Child by Dale Mayer

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

#14
Who Am I by Pete Townsend
Brother lent me. Read this and the Keith Richards book so far. This was good but if I had to recommend one would go with the Keith Richards book.
Some cool stories I never heard before especially about is car early on, liked that story the most.

#15 Reigning Cats and Dogs
My latest book that I just finished writing. I figure it counts as reading since I have probably read 40 times by now.
Don't think going to keep title but for now it is all I got. Dog comes to earth seeking a family descendant.

As always I will send gift version to anyone with kindle or nook interested in reading (Three Twigs for the Campfire, Cemetery Girl, or Written for You). Just PM me if you are interested.

 

[wilma-bride]

Book #55 - Accidents Happen by Louise Millar

Kate Parker has had so much bad luck in her life, she's convinced she's cursed. But when she tries to do her best to keep herself and her son safe, people tell her she's being anxious and obsessive. Just when her life starts to spin completely out of control, an Oxford professor she meets offers to help. But his methods are not conventional. If she wants to live her life again, he will expect her to take risks. When a mysterious neighbour starts to take more than a passing interest in her, Kate tries to stay rational and ignore it. Maybe this, however, is the one time Kate should be worried.

This was a really enjoyable, although a little unnerving, read. Kate's family (what's left of it) are convinced that she is being over-cautious to the point where her behaviour is affecting her son. But is she imagining what is going on? The story starts slowly but builds really well to a fabulous climax. Another great book

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

I can't wait until this challenge is over. I sucked this year! There is no way I can finish my goal between work and all of the holiday plans we have. I'm done pressuring myself in this year's challenge. I'm still reading of course though. And readying my list for next year.

 

[zippitydoo]

Book #71 of 75

The Best Medicine by Tracy Brogan

From Goodreads:
Everyone in Bell Harbor thinks career-minded plastic surgeon Evelyn Rhoades needs a husband. Everyone, that is, except for Evelyn . . . sort of. Even if she did want a husband (which she doesn't . . . most of the time), she'd never let something as intangible as fate determine who she marries. No, if she's going to find someone to spend her life with, she'll do it scientifically: with a carefully crafted list of criteria and an Internet dating site. But when intoxicated, law-breaking Tyler Connelly crashes into her life by way of a stolen Jet Ski, unruly emotions defy common sense. Sure, he's sexy, charming, and determined to win Evelyn's affection, but all evidence points to him being the worst possible choice. He's too young for her. Too irresponsible. Too underemployed. And, oh yeah, he's her patient. But Tyler knows firsthand how the best-laid plans can crumble under the weight of destiny. Now all he needs to do is to teach Evelyn that, in matters of the heart, love often supersedes logic.

 

[Glynis]

I can't wait until this challenge is over. I sucked this year! There is no way I can finish my goal between work and all of the holiday plans we have. I'm done pressuring myself in this year's challenge. I'm still reading of course though. And readying my list for next year.

I totally get where you are coming from! I am nowhere near my goal. What with starting graduate school, and a new job, I'm far from finishing! I thought that working in a library would give me ample time to read, but no such luck! Still, I'm reading and enjoying what I'm doing.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

Relic
Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child

Just days before a massive exhibition opens at the popular New York Museum of Natural History, visitors are being savagely murdered in the museum's dark hallways and secret rooms. Autopsies indicate that the killer cannot be human...

But the museum's directors plan to go ahead with a big bash to celebrate the new exhibition, in spite of the murders.

Museum researcher Margo Green must find out who-or what-is doing the killing. But can she do it in time to stop the massacre?

LOVED this book! Everything about it, from the mystery, the action, the setting...Definitely going to be in my top three books of the year, if not number one. Can't wait to continue this series!

 

[nemofans]

Relic
Douglas Preston, Lincoln Child



LOVED this book! Everything about it, from the mystery, the action, the setting...Definitely going to be in my top three books of the year, if not number one. Can't wait to continue this series!

I enjoyed the whole Relic series. I am currently reading another book by those authors which has the same 3 characters (Margo Green, Agent Pendergast, & D'Agosta) called Blue Labyrinth which takes place much later than the Relic series.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

I enjoyed the whole Relic series. I am currently reading another book by those authors which has the same 3 characters (Margo Green, Agent Pendergast, & D'Agosta) called Blue Labrynth which takes place much later than the Relic series.

I'm going to check those out. Thanks!

 

[willowsnn3]

#82 Damaged by Alex Kava
#83 Hotwire by Alex Kava

Books 8 & 9 of the Maggie O'Dell series.
These two were good, but I felt like both of them had too many story lines going on and all didn't get 'solved' so left me wondering why they were there, lol.
Both were quick reads, not as intriguing as most of the O'Dell series but still good.

 

[WowLookAtThat]

Book #96 Shopaholic to the Stars by Sophie Kinsella

Review: Its so bad. Not so bad its good. Just bad.

Book #97 Christ the Lord:Out of Egypt by Anne Rice

Book #98 Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Book #99 The Christmas Cookie Club by Ann Pearlman

Book #100 Wishin and Hopin by Wally Lamb

Book #101 When Sparks Fly by Sabrina Jeffries

Book #102 A Quilt for Christmas by Sandra Dallas

Book #103 O Little Town by Don Reid

Book #104 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson

Book #105 My Autobiography by Charles Chaplin

 

[nemofans]

Finished book #89 - Blue Labyrinth by Preston and Child

Good mystery. You don't have a clue what's going on tip a major clue is revealed. If you like Agent Pendergast & the Relic series, then read this. Although, I think I missed a book or 3 in between the series & this though b/c this book referenced previous incidences I didn't know. It does mention the Relic incidents too.

A long-buried family secret has come back to haunt Special Agent Aloysius Pendergast.
It begins with murder. One of Pendergast's most implacable, most feared enemies is found on his doorstep, dead. Pendergast has no idea who is responsible for the killing, or why the body was brought to his home. The mystery has all the hallmarks of the perfect crime, save for an enigmatic clue: a piece of turquoise lodged in the stomach of the deceased.
The gem leads Pendergast to an abandoned mine on the shore of California's Salton Sea, which in turn propels him on a journey of discovery deep into his own family's sinister past. But Pendergast learns there is more at work than a ghastly episode of family history: he is being stalked by a subtle killer bent on vengeance over an ancient transgression. And he soon becomes caught in a wickedly clever plot, which leaves him stricken in mind and body, and propels him toward a reckoning beyond anything he could ever have imagined....

 

[PigletsPal2]

Goal: 100 books this year.

Well, much to my dismay, I'm not going to meet my goal this year (I didn't meet my FINAL goal last year either, but I met my original and two follow-up goals). In my defense, I spent a lot of time crocheting afghans for Christmas gifts since July. I can multi-task many things, but reading and crocheting are not two of them!

I did manage to read just over half of my goal:

#52 - After the Funeral by Agatha Christie. I thought I had read all of the Christie mysteries, but if I read this one, I forgot all about it.

From the back-of-the-book-cover summary: When Cora Lansquenet is savagely murdered with a hatchet, the extraordinary remark she made the previous day at her brother Richard's funeral suddenly takes on a chilling significance. At the reading of Richard's will, Cora was clearly heard to say "It's been hushed up very nicely, hasn't it...but he was murdered, wasn't he?" In desperation, the family solicitor turns to Hercule Poirot to unravel the mystery.

As usual, Christie had me baffled until the last couple of pages, when I smacked myself on the forehead and said "of course!"

Good story, entertaining to the end.

Queen Colleen

 

[zippitydoo]

Book #72 of 75: Castle Cay by Lee Hanson
Book #73 of 75: Hidden Secrets by Carolyn Brown

 

[portia9]

My goal was 100 and I have exceeded it.

#100 Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil by Nancy Atherton

#101 Aunt Dimity's Christmas by Nancy Atherton

#102 Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan

#103 Fatty O'Leary's Dinner Party by Alexander McCall Smith

#104 Let's Just Say it Wasn't Pretty by Diane Keaton

#105 Prada and Prejudice by Katie Oliver

#106 Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon

#107 Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris

#108 Love in a Cold Climate by Nancy Mitford

#109 Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling

#110 The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion

#111 We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler

#112 The Children Act by Ian McEwan

#113 Agnes Grey by Anne Bronte

The best of all those was the Mindy Kaling autobiography, it was really funny and I also liked The Children Act and We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves.