The thread's been started a bit late, but oh well.

I was looking at my LibraryThing account just a minute ago, and to my utter surprise, I've only actually read ONE book this year!

I thought I'd read more, but it turns out I read all of my Christmas present books before New Year's. Anyway, here's the "list."

-Confessions of a Part-time Sorceress: A Girl's Guide to the D&D Game (Dungeons & Dragons) by Brendan Vaughan

Just out of curiosity, do audio books count as being "read?" Because if they do, then I can add three more right now, and thirty-three within the next month or two--I'm going through Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, and so far, I've listened to:

-The Colour of Magic
-The Light Fantastic
-Equal Rites

I also borrowed paper-back versions of The Colour of Magic (spelled without the "U" in this case) and The Light Fantastic from my local library, but I haven't finished reading them yet. I'd have gotten Equal Rites too, but I didn't feel like going to a whole different branch of the library to get it.

Thanks, Darcy. I'd intended to do this back in January and forgot and was just thinking about it this week, in fact!

Don't see why audio books can't count.

My favourite Pratchett books are the ones featuring the City Watch and the Witches.

With plenty of free time on my hands, I've been reading up a storm this year, as always. So I won't start listing what I've read now.

But a couple of highlights were catching up with John Connolly's last two novels - The Unquiet and The Reapers. Connolly hasn't failed me yet - I've loved every book of his I've read. Each new adventure for Charlie, Angel and Louis is a treat and I'm really looking forward to The Lovers later in the year.

I also recently discovered that the author of one of my favourite books read as a teen, Phyllis Eisenstein's lovely little SFantasy fairytale Sorcerer's Son, had actually written other books. I'd been unable to find anything else by her back in the day, to my disappointment, but recently came across her listed in Amazon and discovered she had three or four more, including a sequel to SS. Snapped it up right away and am looking forward to reading that when it arrives.

I'll be back soon with updates on what I've been reading.

LabRat

I don't think there are "official" rules regarding audio books - but my personal opinion is that audio books do count. Because I know that my dad listens to tons of books in the car (as the only time he has to be able to "read") and those books certainly count in his life/mind/education/etc.

I've been keeping track of my books on LJ. In addition to the 50 books goal, I've set the goal that at least 12 of them (ie, one a month ish) be non-fiction.

1. True Devotion -- Dee Henderson
2. True Valor -- Dee Henderson
3. True Honor -- Dee Henderson
4. Winter of Fire -- Sherryl Jordan
5. Unprotected -- Miriam Grossman (NON-fiction)
6. Ask Me Anything -- J. Busziszewski (NON-fiction)

(this is where I started adding commentary about the books {g})

7. Locked Inside -- Nancy Werlin. (YA character driven, but also suspense. Pretty interesting. Would recommend it, but not with a "drop everything and read it now!" tone. One of her others, though, "Double Helix," I *DO* highly recommend.)

8. A Novel Idea -- Aimee Friedman (YA...romance. Pure and utter cheese, seriously, of no literary value whatsoever, but a fun, mindless romp for spring break.) (I wasn't going to count this kind of book, but you know, hey, it *IS* a book. And as long as the entire list isn't filled with cheese, a *little* bit of cheese never hurt anyone...right?)

9. Wildwood Dancing -- Juliet Marillier (YA fantasy, based on the 12 dancing princesses fairy tale - you know, the one where they disappear at night and come back with worn out shoes? So that's just the barest basis - there's SOO much more in this book. Very well written, very interesting, the kind that you just *have* to keep reading to find out what happens. A couple character things I didn't quite buy - that felt too much like "It's a fairy tale, I can have them do this with no real justification" cop-outs - but overall, VERY worth reading. Highly recommend.)

10. Impossible - Nancy Werlin. (Based on the song "Scarborough Fair." Kind of a dark fantasy, but set in modern times. Very interesting and makes me want to go listen to as many versions of the song as I can, now.)

11. Singer in the Snow - Louise Marley. (Fourth in a "trilogy" - or at least, I thought it was a trilogy, but the author apparently has more ideas to visit the universe. YAY! It's fantasy, set on a planet with winter lasting 5 years. Singers create a bubble of light and warmth to keep the Houses warm (houses as in the style of a Keep, not the modern houses we have). But there's political intrigue and drama and love and FUN and it's marvelous. This one continues the world, but follows the next generation of Singers after the main character from the first trilogy. Whole series = Very much recommended.)

12. Asterix le gaulois - Rene de Goscinny. (It's a comic...it's only about 45 pages...but it's in French. That counts, right?)

YAY BOOKS! (And my wallet says - Yay libraries {g})

Bethy

I've been reading a lot and wanted to join this thread this year. I don't read anything educational or of any value, but...
I broke my ankle in 3 places last week, I thought while I was laying around I'd read but I really don't feel like doing anything. I'm sure I'll reach my 50 for the year though. I've been keeping a list since the first of the year.

Northern Lights - Nora Roberts
Choke - Stuart Woods
Cross Country - James Patterson
Homeport - Nora Roberts
New York Dead - Stuart Woods
Dirt - Stuart Woods
Light of the Moon - Luanne Rice
Cold Paradise - Stuart Woods
Tail Spin - Catherine Coulter
Heart Breaker - Karen Robards
Hold Tight - Harlan Coben
Public Secrets - Nora Roberts
Dead in the Water - Stuart Woods
Blue Smoke - Nora Roberts
The Short Forever - Stuart Woods
Bait - Karen Robarts
The Woods - Harlan Coben
Reckless Abandon - Stuart Woods
Hot Mahogany - " "
Mounting Fears - " "
Swimming To Catalina " "
Worst Fears Realized " "
LA Dead " "
Fresh Disasters " "
Three Fates - Nora Roberts
Midnight Bayou - Nora Roberts
The Run - Stuart Woods
Capital Crimes - Stuart Woods
The Lucky One - Nicholas Sparks
Run For Your Life - James Patterson
The Partner - John Grisham
Fireside - Susan Wiggs
The Brethren - John Grisham
No Second Chance - Harlan Coben
Match Me If You Can - Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Knit Two - Kate Jacobs
McNally's Secret - Lawrence Sanders
Grass Roots - Stuart Woods
Tribute - Nora Roberts

There's 39 of them. I'm having a hard time getting into my current book. Plus reading laying down in bed I fall asleep! I love these lists. I get great ideas from them.
Sue

I've never heard of Louise Marley, but that sounds intriguing. Off to Amazon to check them out. Thanks for the tip, Bethy.

Hope you get back on your feet soon, Suez. <<<hugs>>>

ETA: Asterix! Oh my, I loved that little guy when I was a teen. Occasionally, I toy with the notion of collecting the books again, but am put off by the fact that they were reprinted in a changed version in recent years. I'd have to make sure I had the originals.

Suez, who would you say Stuart Woods' writing resembles? James Patterson? Coben? Someone else you've read? Amazon keep popping him up as a recommendation and I've been tempted a few times to try him out, so I'd be interested in what you think.


LabRat

I've been keeping my list up. I figured if it didn't start here, it'd be nice to at least see what I'm reading. I'm hoping to actually hit 100 this year.

1. Dead as a Doornail - Charlaine Harris
2. Definitely Dead - Charlaine Harris
3. All Together Dead - Charlaine Harris
4. Bleach Souls - Tite Kubo
5. To Sir Phillip, With Love - Julia Quinn
6. When He Was Wicked - Julia Quinn
7. It's In His Kiss - Julia Quinn
8. On The Way To The Wedding - Julia Quinn
9. Twin of Fire - Jude Deveraux
10. Twin of Ice - Jude Deveraux
11. The Duchess - Jude Deveraux
12. Coraline - Neil Gaiman
13. The Unfortunate Miss Fortunes - Jennifer Crusie, Eileen Dreyer, & Anne Stuart
-- This one has started me on a Jennifer Crusie jag
14. Anansi Boys - Neil Gaiman
15. A Stocking Full of Joy - Mary Jo Putney, Jill Barnett, Justine Dare, and Susan King
16. Foundation - Isaac Asimov
17. The Stepsister Scheme - Jim C. Hines
18. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep - Philip K Dick
19. Trial By Fire - Sabine C. Bauer
20. Sacrifice Moon - Julie Fortune
---- Woo, finally got my hands on some Stargate Fandemonium novels! Now I need more.
21. The Ancient - R.A. Salvatore
22. Many Bloody Returns - e. by Charlaine Harris & Toni L.P. Kelner
23. Bet Me - Jennifer Crusie
24. Once Upon a Tangled Tale - Bronwyn Wolfe
25. Valentine Delights - Meryl Sawyer, Kate Hoffman, & Gina Wilkins
26. Home Improvement - Barbara Daly
27. Dogs and Goddesses - Jennifer Crusie, Anne Stuart, and Lani Diane Rich
28. Faking It - Jennifer Crusie
29. The Boy Next Door - Meg Cabot
30. Shakespeare's Landlord - Charlaine Harris
31. Too Sexy for Marriage - Cathie Linz
32. From Dead to Worse - Charlaine Harris
31. Too Stubborn for Marriage - Cathie Linz
32. Too Smart for Marriage - Cathie Linz
33. Bite - Laurell K. Hamilton, Charlaine Harris, MaryJanice Davidson, Angela Knight, and Vickie Taylor
34. Without You: A memoir of love, loss, and the musical RENT - Anthony Rapp
-- One of my rare forays into non-fiction. Anthony Rapp is the original actor who played Mark in RENT. The book starts as he's running late to the RENT workshop audition due to a friend's wake (reminding me of his character in the show), and follows through Jonathon Larson's death, RENT's success, and the death of Anthony's mother, to the end of his run with the show. I loved this book, even though it kept making me cry.

35. Fast Women - Jennifer Crusie

Labby, I love Stuart Woods. There are a few a haven't liked but that's true of all authors. I'm getting tired of Patterson's short choppy chapters. Coben is good but there have been a few I haven't been able to get into at all. Stuart Woods has characters that have their own books and cross books with other characters. Stone Barrington is every woman's dream man!!!
And like my 82 year old mother says, 'He is banging everyone'. LOL I am trying to find another series of books with someone like Barrington but I haven't yet.
Sue

Karen, run don't walk to the bookstore and make sure you get Sally Malcolm's A Matter of Honour and The Cost of Honour. Best danged SG1 books I've ever read. Sally wrote SG1 fanfic under the name Sally Reeves.

Other favourites are Karen Miller's Alliances (which picks up immediately after the Euronda mission) and Sabine C. Bauer's Survival of the Fittest.

Enjoy!

LabRat

Oh, oh, oh! I love Sally Reeves' fanfic! I had no idea that she also had published SG1 novels!

Those are definitely going on my to-get list! Thanks, Labby!

Bethy

Yeah, Sally's definitely my favourite ever SG1 fanfic author, too. Still go back and read them over and over again when I need a quick SG1 fix.

She's also part-founder of Fandemonium.

LabRat

Okie dokie. I guess I should only include audio books once, even if I read the hard-copy of it too then--just to be fair.

I'm hoping that, with the audio books, this year I'll actually get to 50. I haven't got much patience for reading actual books these days, especially since I've gotten back to reading a bunch of fanfic, plus I have lots of projects--both personal and otherwise--to get done.

Thanks, Labby. Those are several that I've been meaning to get, but I haven't seen them in my local bookstore. I got those two with an Amazon gift card. I loved Sally Reeves' and Doc's (Sabine Bauer) fics, so those are two authors I really really want.

I've read quite a few and have reviews of all of them on my livejournal. Not sure if you guys would be interested or not.

Here's what I've been reading while laying around. Hopefully in a week or two I'll be starting PT and actually have something to do.

Dream a Little Dream Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Small Vices Robert B Parker (Just found this author. I like him so far)
Santa Fe Rules Stuart Woods
Short Straw Stuart Woods
Plum Spooky Janet Evanovich
Santa Fe Dead Stuart Woods
Loitering With Intent Stuart Woods
Double Play Robert B Parker
The 8th Confession James Paterson (I was happy that this was not one of his short, quick stories. This actually had about 3 different crimes going at once and was written well)


that's 48 so far. I've got a few Parker books to read now.

I'm actually keeping a count of the books I am reading this year too for the first time ever.. so I thought I might start adding my list here. I am trying to branch out this year and read a diverse group of books outside my 'norm'.. although I started the year in the safety of my fanged friends.

I'm a lot slower than the rest of you it seems... but we'll see how I go.

1. Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Book 3) - Laurell K Hamilton
2. Living Dead in Dallas - Charlaine Harris
3. The Lunatic Cafe (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Book 4) - Laurell K Hamilton
4. Prey - Michael Crichton
5. The Light Fantastic - Terry Pratchett
6. The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett
7. To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
8. Magician (Apprentice) - Raymond E Feist
9. Twilight - Stephanie Meyer
10. Fish out of Water - Mary Janice Davidson

So far, Pillars of the Earth has blown me away... I'm one of the most non-religious people you'll meet.. and wow.. amazingly written.
Similarly, I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, but Magician was another great book which had me so captivated with the story of 2 simple keep boys..
I've gone out and found the sequels to both which I can't wait to read.
I didn't enjoy Terry Pratchett. His humour was good. But there was something about his writing style that put me off.
And Twilight. I've been resisting reading this... but peer pressure made me finally pick it up to read on the plane. I'm not sure what all the hype is about with this book. I'm not even sure how it got published. I'm confused as to what has drawn so many people so deep into this series of books. I understand it is a book for adolescents, and the last 1/4 of the book is great. The first 3/4 though looks like something someone took from one of the fanfics in this fandom and placed new names to. *shrugs* I'm a sucker for punishment. I'll read the next book since a friend literally shoved it in my face this afternoon... but I keep wondering what am I missing?
I've also been given 'Guards! Guards!' by Terry Pratchett to read... apparently I shouldn't have started my journey into the discworld with the book I chose according to friends... so I guess I'll be giving Terry a chance to show me something different too.

Updating:

I'll consider the two John Connolly books I mentioned in an earlier post as numbers 1 and 2 and go on from there:

#3 Every Dead Thing - John Connolly
#4 Dark Hollow - John Connolly
#5 The White Road - John Connolly
#6 The Killing Kind - John Connolly
#7 The Black Angel - John Connolly

As you can see, I so enjoyed JC's two latest novels that I went back and re-read the previous ones in the series and had a great time doing so.

#8 Dearly Devoted Dexter - Jeff Lindsay
#9 Dexter In The Dark - Jeff Lindsay

I enjoyed these two further forays into the mind of our favourite serial killer. But I have to say that the more that the plots and characterisations diverge between the books and the TV series, the more I find that I enjoy the TV series more. Especially when it comes to Debs, who I find a much more sympathetic and engaging character on TV than in the books. For all that, I'll be reading the next in the series.

#10 The Black Swan - Phillippa Carr
#11 The Black Opal - Victoria Holt
#12 The Mask of the Enchantress - Victoria Holt

Pure romance isn't the first genre I run to for a good read, although I've not been averse to the odd one here or there and I do have a (very) small collection of favourite that I've kept over the years. And certainly the historical period these three cover is my least favourite of the genre.

But when I saw these three in my local charity shop I picked them up due to a series of connections I'd made a few days previously: watching The Tudors on DVD had reminded me of the wonderful historical novels of Jean Plaidy I read as a teen. So with her on my mind I succumbed to the temptation to get these from her alter egos - although I suspected I wouldn't enjoy them much.

Well, I was wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed all three. So much so that if I see any more in my charity shop in the future I will snap them up. Marvellous entertainment for a rainy day.

#13 Battleaxe - Sara Douglass

I bought this - the first in a trilogy - purely on the basis that I'd enjoyed the first two books in this author's Crucibles trilogy. Which proved to be a mistake. It wasn't a bad SFantasy novel, but I found it fairly mediocre and lacking in anything original to say in the genre and it definitely wasn't good enough to make me want to read the rest of the series.

#14 Shadowplay - Tad Williams

This has to be one of the most frustrating SFantasy series I've ever read. I trudge my way through the majority of the book with much the same feeling as above for Battleaxe and then in the last couple of chapters TW throws me a crumb about the only character that really interests me and I have to buy the next book to find out what happens next. Hate that.

#15 InkHeart - Corneila Funke
#16 InkSpell - Corneila Funke
#17 Dragon Rider - Corneila Funke

Stuart bought me the first for Christmas, saying he wasn't sure if I'd like it or not. I did. I found this an endearing, charming children's tale and I'm eagerly awaiting the final in the trilogy. Dragon Rider I found harder to get into a first, but became engrossed about a third of the way through and by the end heaved the sigh of the satisfied reader as I closed the cover.

#18 Sleepyhead
#19 Scaredy Cat
#20 The Burning Girl
#21 Lifeless
#22 Death Message

With these, I'm now up to date with Mark Billingham's series of thrillers about his cantankerous detective, Tom Thorne. I'm now bereft and hoping a new one will appear soon. Loved every minute.

LabRat

Forgot about this one last night:

#23 The Bone Garden - Tess Gerritson

This was a bit of a departure from the other novels I've read by TG, with a large chunk of the book taking place in the past. But I think I enjoyed it all the more, for that. Some romance, a mystery, engaging characters...and some very disturbing details about the state of maternity medicine in 1830's Boston and the horrors of childbed fever. Certainly made me think about all those young lives ruined and lost because doctors didn't know enough not to go straight from an autopsy to examining their pregnant patients without washing their hands first.

Oh and Asterix and Cleopatra! Yes, I succumbed to temptation and treated myself to this one in a fit of nostalgia. Perhaps inevitably, so many years down the line, I found it had slightly less depth than I recalled, but still chockful of LOL moments and quiet chuckles.


LabRat

I've just finished all but one of the 37 Discworld novels by Terry Pratchett. (I didn't know about Making Money until just this afternoon.) That brings my current "reading" total up to 37. Any book without a "by ______" on it is a Discworld novel, and therefore by Terry Pratchett:

1. Confessions of a Part-time Sorceress: A Girl's Guide to the D&D Game by Shelly Mezzanoble
2. The Colour of Magic
3. The Light Fantastic
4. Equal Rites
5. Mort
6. Sourcery
7. Wyrd Sisters
8. Pyramids
9. Guards! Guards!
10. Eric
11. Moving Pictures
12. Reaper Man
13. Witches Abroad
14. Small Gods
15. Lords and Ladies
16. Men at Arms
17. Soul Music
18. Interesting Times
19. Maskerade
20. Feet of Clay
21. Hogfather
22. Jingo
23. The Last Continent
24. Carpe Jugulum
25. The Fifth Elephant
26. The Truth
27. Thief of Time
28. The Last Hero
29. The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents
30. Night Watch
31. The Wee Free Men
32. Monstrous Regiment
33. A Hat Full of Sky
34. Going Postal
35. Thud!
36. Wintersmith
37. Strata
38. Making Money (I'm including it because I will be reading it.)

It's looking like I'll actually make (and probably surpass) the 50-book goal this year--yay!

ETA: I just found out this morning that Strata was actually written BEFORE the rest of the Discworld series, and isn't technically part of the series, but does describe a trip to a world shaped like a disc where the people believe in magic--and Death (the anthropomorphic personification, not the state of being, that is) is there too. Given that, I can give it a little leeway in the sci-fi vs. fantasy department, I guess.

Updating with:

#24 The Eyes of God – John Marco

I'd picked up the third book in this SFantasy series and figured I'd take a leap of faith and buy book one. As it turned out it was a reasonably entertaining novel, but not enough to make me want to buy book two or read book three. Although the characters were interesting, the plot was very derivative in parts and it suffered from the most appalling dialogue I've read in a long time, which struck me as neither believable or logical and so continually pulled me out of the story.

#25 Definitely Dead – Charlaine Harris

There's such a glut of vampire authors on the market these days, that I almost passed this one by. So glad I didn't. A thoroughly enjoyable romp with a wonderful heroine in Sookie Stackhouse and a host of interesting and intriguing characters. This book is quite a way into the series, so I'm quite looking forward to catching up with the rest.

#26 Double Cross – James Patterson

If you've read my other book posts, you'll already know that I have a like-hate relationship with Patterson. This was one of his less irksome works. I still get irritated by the short chapters and 'Janet and John' writing style, but it passed a couple of hours fairly painlessly.

#27 The Queen of the Night – Paul Doherty

This was an interesting murder mystery set in Ancient Rome, with some interesting characters. I found myself a little lost here and there as historical detail of the everyday lives of the denizens of Rome was tossed in without explanation, but other than that, I enjoyed this one.

#28] The Crippled Angel – Sara Douglass

After the disappointment of Battleaxe, I put off reading this third and final novel in the author's Crucible series. But I really liked it and found it a very satisfying read. The originality of the plot, in marrying and reworking historical fact with a tale of cruel, malicious angels and loving demons locked in an apocalyptic war made for an intriguing setting and the characters were easy to have empathy with. (Well, except for the angels of course. Boo! Hiss! ) I still find it hard to believe that the same author wrote this series and Battleaxe.

#29 The Crystal Palace – Phyllis Eisenstein

As I mentioned in a previous post, this author's Sorcerer's Son has always been one of my favourite SFantasy novels and it was only recently that I discovered there was a sequel to it. I wasn't disappointed – the same blend of magic, romance and fairytale were here and I'm looking forward to reading the other books still available. My only disappointment is that the author's website has an excerpt from a novel which was clearly intended as a third book in this series, but it has obviously never been published.

#30 Dolores Claiborne – Stephen King

Having caught the movie on late-night TV recently, I gave in to the urge to read the novel again. I was quite ambivalent about it first time I read it – which would have to be a good decade or so ago – but enjoyed it much more second-time around. A fascinating character study.

Updating with:

#31 Gone, Baby, Gone - Dennis Lehane

I picked this one up in the charity shop mainly out of curiosity, having recently seen the movie (which was quite good). As a thriller, there's not much that makes this stand out of the pack - which isn't to say that it isn't an enjoyable read, because it was. A keeper, in fact. But what lifts it is Lehane's ability to pose a difficult question and get you thinking. I have to say that I was in disagreement with the protagonist's final decision, but it's a dilemma that's had me thinking since.

#32 The Last Innocent Man - Philip M. Margolin

I've only read one novel previously from this author, which was firmly in the Harlen Coben territory. This one was much more in the territory of Richard North Patterson or John Grisham. I don't think this author is quite in the same league, but it was a good read anyway and, actually, really picked up for me in the last third when the author strayed away from the courtroom battle aspects of the plot and into what I think is more familiar territory for him - the mystery thriller.

#33 House of Echoes - Barbara Erskine

I haven't read every novel by this author, but I've read a few. Generally I've enjoyed them, despite having issues with some of the unfathomable choices made by her characters. In this, she's often the literary equivalent of those horror movies that have you yelling at the TV "No, no, don't wait till dark to go up to that spooky house and stake the vampire! What are you, morons?!"

This was her most enjoyable yet, though, where that irritation was kept to the minimum and everyone behaved - for the most part - logically. I did think that the ending was somewhat rushed, but that was a minor quibble.

#34 The World According To Clarkson Vol. 2: And Another Thing... - Jeremy Clarkson

Not the kind of book I'd normally choose to read - I usually find them fairly superficial. But - despite having zero interest in cars - I am a huge fan of Top Gear and the antics of The Hamster, Captain Slow, The Stig and Jeremy (don't call him Jezza). So I thought I'd give this collection of Jeremy's thoughts from his weekly newspaper column a go.

First of all, I found it to be thicker than most of its ilk. I couldn't say that it was thigh-slapping amusing as the cover blurb promised, but I did LOL more than once and although I don't always agree with Jeremy's POV, he's always witty and thought-provoking when presenting it. He even changed my mind on a couple of occasions. Highly entertaining and I'd read more.

LabRat

Updating with:

#35 Daniel Easterman - The Judas Testament

I picked this up on the basis that it seemed to be in The De Vinci Code territory. As it turned out, it had those elements and was a pretty darn good thriller, to boot. I'd read more from this author and I'm keen to read his horror novels, under another pen-name now.

#36 Peter Straub - Floating Dragon

I swear that I have an unconscious desire, going back many, many years, to succeed in getting all the way through a Straub novel before I die. I've tried over the years, I really have, but I've never gotten beyond the first few chapters. Finally! I did it! Yay me! This wasn't the best horror novel I've read, but it was free of the irritations that normally vex me in a Straub novel to ensure I made it to the end. I enjoyed it.

#37 Dean Koontz - The Taking

Koontz has usually served me well over the years (I still say Watchers is one of THE best horror novels out there) but he does come up with a clunker or two, now and then. This wasn't exactly one of them, but it wasn't his best either. Firstly it had very odd pacing - the first third was taken up with the two main characters driving into town, during which journey not a lot happened. Secondly, I had problems with the main premise which involved me having to accept that 99% of the world's population are bad/evil people. I think most people are just ordinary - neither very good nor very evil - so I couldn't really buy into it.

#38 Stephen King - Cell

I haven't really enjoyed King's novel for over a decade now, but the blurb on this one looked interesting, so I decided to give it a go. I enjoyed it - in many ways it was a harking back to his earlier works. Not terrific, not his best, but a good story all the same.

#39 Brian Keene - The Rising

I bought this on the basis of several reviewers of Cell on Amazon saying it was a better novel covering the same premise/plot. Plus, by that point I was in the mood for a really good zombie apocolypse novel. And, boy, did I get it! This is the best horror novel I've read in years. A real harking back to the best of King and McCammon. Any book that gives you a zombie fish and a zombie baby has to be doing it with style. You can kill as many people as you like, including zombie babies, but don't touch the dog.

#42 Katherine Kerr - A Time Of War

I forgot to add this one in earlier. Let's see...I read it last week and can't for the life of me remember a single, solitary thing about the plot. Which probably tells you everything you need to know.

Having a bit of a mini heatwave here today, so I'm off to have a lovely salad, a long cool glass of Pepsi and settle down with the rest of the new batch of reading I got today. Yay!


LabRat

Updating with:

#43 Elizabeth Haydon - Rhapsody

I bought this one on the strength of reading the first few chapters of the first book in the second trilogy in the series. Sadly, it proved a disappointment. I really liked the main characters, but the writing style and plot were plodding and boring. I found myself quickly skimming over each new interminable section of exposition. An author who needs to learn the golden rule - show, don't tell. Too much of this one was people sitting around talking.

#44 Brian Keene - City of the Dead

I was somewhat disappointed with this sequel, too. The flaws that were evident in the first book but which I was prepared to ignore because it was such a fun read, just irritated in the main, here. The new characters were bland and most of all I was depressed by the totally bleak ending, which was unexpected. I know it's a zombie horror romp, but even so... although I've enjoyed his work, in the main, I doubt I'll be able to read many more of his novels if they all end so depressingly.

#45 Bernard Cornwell - Fallen Angels

I'd never heard of this one from one of my favourite authors, so it was a delight to pick up in the charity shop. Thoroughly enjoyed it, too.

#46 Lisa Gardner - Hide

One of the pleasures in raiding charity shops for books is finding new authors you might otherwise never know. Gardner definitely comes into that catagory. I loved the originality of the plot in this one. Coupled with interesting characters and a mild romantic subplot, it was easy reading.

#47 Sidney Sheldon - Are You Afraid of the Dark?

I went through a kick of reading Sheldon when I was a teen, but can't remember much about them. So this had a tinge of nostalgia to it. An undemanding plot of the kind that requires movie-of-the-week thriller-type huge coincidences and implausibilities to work, but that's part of the fun.

#48 Mary Higgins Clark - The Cradle Will Fall

Clark is in the same category as Sheldon. An author whose books I read in my teen years. This was a standard thriller - the author is definitely on my C list - but, again, the huge plot holes you can drive a tractor through and the coincidences and implausibilities didn't detract from it being a few hours enjoyable reading.

#49 Michael Moore - Stupid White Men

Self-explanatory. You either love him or hate him or...actually, I'm fairly ambiguous. I've read funnier ways to point to the hypocrites in our world. But didn't disappoint - at least with Moore you get what it says on the tin.

#50 Dean Koontz - The Face

After the disappointments of the last Koontz book I read, this was a return to the master of the genre I know and love. Absolutely wonderful psychological thriller with a genuinely creepy villain and two central characters you really wanted to win through. Nice twist at the end, too.

LabRat

I like to read series. Or a lot of books by the same author. I'm up to 100 books for the year so far, oh course, laying in bed for months helped with that. A couple authors I've been reading lately are:

Jennifer Chiaverini - she has written a dozen or so books with a quilting theme.

Debbie Macomber - I have read a couple of her series. The Dakota series I really liked. About a town that was dying and how they bought it back. And she has a knitting series I enjoyed.

I'll throw in a Nora Roberts every once in a while, she has written so many you can't keep track of them. I've gotten away from the mysteries for a while.

I just finished the last Janet Evanovich book. I think she needs to end the Stephanie Plum stuff and get on with something else.

Sue

And we think we're doing well.... From the BBC News website:

Although, is it just my cynical nature to wonder if she actually reads them all or just leaves them lying on the hall table and then remembers to return them before the due date....?

LabRat

LOL! I bet she reads them. I've known people that are that voracious a reader.

I've been a little lax. I went through a few weeks where I'd pick up a book, read a few chapters, then decided I wasn't in the mood for it and went for another book. Several books went through this process.


36. Turn Coat - Jim Butcher
37. Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Isle Witch - Terry Brooks
38. Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Antrax - Terry Brooks
39. Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Morgawr - Terry Brooks
40. Anyone But You - Jennifer Crusie
41. Wolfsbane and Mistletoe - e. by Charlaine Harris and Toni L. P. Kelner
42. Catch and Keep - Hannah Bernard / The Maid of Dishonor - Tanya Michaels (Duets)
43. If the Shoe Fits - Samantha Connolly / Designs on Jake - Dorien Kelly
44. Sweet Talk - Susan Mallery
45. Sweet Spot - Susan Mallery
46. Sweet Trouble - Susan Mallery
47. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
48. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
49. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
50. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
51. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Yes, I'm re-reading the series. Meant to have HBP done in time for the movie, but it didn't work out that way. It's okay, though. 42 and 43 are Harlequin Duets. I didn't think they should count as separate books.

These are actually part of the last update.

Lisa Gardner - Three Great Novels:

#51 The Perfect Husband
#52 The Other Daughter
#53 The Third Victim

Having been so impressed by Gardner's Hide, I snapped up this three books in one package secondhand on Amazon.

I didn't actually enjoy The Perfect Husband. Although it had some nice moments, the plot was pedestrian and I found the central characters hard to like. I'm sure that Gardner believed she was writing scenes of sizzling UST, but all I could think of was that any guy who acts like a sexual predator, threatening repeatedly to sexually assault a woman (this passing for flirting), whom he knows is hiding out from an abusive husband, and aggressively and repeatedly invading her personal space because he fancies her is just a jerk. For me, not one of her best.

The Other Daughter and The Third Victim were much more in sync with Hide - original plots with lots of twists, great characters, a smattering of romance and all in all a great read. The main premise of the plot in The Third Victim was a bit hard to swallow and some suspension of belief was necessary, but what the heck, that's par for the course with this type of thriller and no bar to the fun so long as the author does it with flair as Gardner tends to.

#54 Jodi Picoult - My Sister's Keeper

This isn't the type of novel I'd normally pick up. But when I saw it in my charity shop I'd just read a review of the movie and so curiosity won out. And I have to say that I did thoroughly enjoy it. The writing style was easy to get into and I liked the device of switching between the characters and their viewpoints. Nor was it overly sentimental or mushy.

My only issue with it would be the ending, which was just a smidgen too convenient for me. Yet, having said that, it didn't spoil the novel for me and it was handled as skilfully as the rest of the book. Moving without being mawkish, this has to be one of my favourite reads this year.

I enjoyed it so much in fact, that I've put several more of Picoult's novels on my wish list.

LabRat

I read the Tales of Beedle the Bard, but I'm not putting it on my list, since it's not novel-length. I also read a couple of comic books, but they're not really prose.

Anyway, here's my update:

39. Mind Meld (Star Trek: The Original Series #82) by John Vornholt
40. GURPS Discworld (RPG manual) by Phil Masters
41. The Ashes of Eden (another Star Trek novel) by William Shatner (technically not finished yet, but getting there)

I'm getting pretty close here. I expect to be going to the library a lot in the next few months (at least until next April, when my car is paid off), now that I'm on such a strict budget and can't actually afford to buy any books or other frivolities whatsoever.

Anyway, my list update. All of these three books are from The Belgariad, a series by David Eddings. I got the first book as a birthday present from the GM of an RPG I've been playing on Thursday nights for the last few months, and as soon as I finished it, I went and got the next two from the library. I'm almost finished book three (which is on the list below), so I'm going back to the library on Monday.

42. Pawn of Prophecy
43. Queen of Sorcery
44. Magician's Gambit

Only 6 to go! I haven't gotten so close to 50 books for a single year since a year or two before I started doing these challenges. Whee!

45. Castle of Wizardry
46. Enchanter's Endgame

Glad to hear you're enjoying The Belgariad, Darcy. It's one of my all-time favourite fantasy series. The sequel set - The Mallorean - isn't quite as good imo, but still good reading and has been read more than once and still has some fine moments.

Strangely, I was never able to get into Eddings' other big series - The Elenium. Not really sure why. And some of the other sequels using the Belgariad characters were very repetitive to my mind, covering ground already well covered in the other books.

But you've got me in the mind to go revisit some old friends now...

LabRat

Updating with:

#55 Robert Goddard - Closed Circle

This is a re-read for me. One of my favourite novels from this author. Reminiscent of a Hitchcock movie. As the blurb from The Independent on the back cover puts it: "A splendidly old-fashioned affair, full of thuggery and skullduggery, cross and double-cross, plot and counter-plot." Which sums it up perfectly. Wonderful.

Terry Goodkind - Sword of Truth series

#56. Wizard's First Rule
#57 Stone of Tears
#58 Blood of the Fold
#59 Temple of the Winds

I currently have a real love/hate relationship with these novels. I am irritated by the fact that a large amount of characterisation and plot are so closely modelled on the works of other authors (mostly from Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, but there are others. Like the character of Samuel, who has more or less been lifted wholesale from Smeagal in LotR). And by the fact that despite this copycatting and the fact that they are highly derivative, the good man himself and many of his more intense fans constantly claim that these books are the most original fantasy books to emerge for decades.

So, that bugs me. Secondly, I find a lot of the writing, in plot and especially in dialogue, to be trite, clunky or melodramatic - a lot of the dialogue makes me wince to read it.

And yet.... So far I've enjoyed them. To the extent that - for the moment - I'm continuing to buy and read them. Perhaps it's because they are so close to Jordan at times that I almost feel that I'm reading a new novel by him.

Whatever the reason, despite their flaws and the fact that, contrary to Mr. Goodkind's ego he is outclassed and outwritten by peers like Eddings, Hobb, Martin, Jordan and many others, I'm finding these a decent enough place-holder to read until Martin comes up with A Dance of Dragons (FINALLY!) or one of my other favourite authors brings out something new.

LabRat

You've hit the nail on the head with that series, Labby. There are a lot of comparisons in my little group between Jordan and Goodkind, and the Wheel of Time series and the Sword of Truth series. The problem with both is that they borrow so heavily on other genre-building books such as LotR, and also on historical storytelling such as King Arthur. The one thing I can say about Goodkind is that he's not *quite* as verbose as Jordan was, with the books a bit shorter, and the series actually finished in 11 books. My husband's currently reading the SoT series, and he's gotten further through that than he ever did with WoT.

I really did enjoy the Belgariad, Labby.

I meant to start on the Mallorean once I finished the Belgariad, but before I could get back to the library, my sister lent me a book from the Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries series of novels (the series that the True Blood television show is based off of), and I got sucked into the series. I'm on book three right now, but once I finish this series, I might check out the Mallorean.

The following novels are all by Charlaine Harris, and are part of the same series.

47. Dead Until Dark
48. Living Dead in Dallas
49. Club Dead

Only one more to go! Of course, I'm not going to stop there, since that'll be smack in the middle of the series, but hey--it's the first year I've done this challenge (out of the three that I've done it so far) that I've actually reached 50 before New Year's!

Ooh, another goodie. I picked up Definitely Dead a bit back from the charity shop and really enjoyed it. It was a bit far into the series, though, which means it had spoilers for quite a few of the earlier ones. Still, wouldn't mind reading more in the future.

LabRat

50. Dead to the World

51. Dead as a Doornail
52. Definitely Dead
53. All Together Dead

Once I finish All Together Dead, I only have two left in the series. Then, I'm thinking I might try watching the show.

Hope you have better luck than me there, Darcy. I was really looking forward to it, but tuned out after two episodes. Thanks mostly to the - as I see it - totally superfluous and quite unnecessary soft porn sex scenes they kept dropping in. I don't mind such scenes, if they add something to the plot, but I do get irked by them if they seem to just be a ploy to boost ratings among teen males and have no other merit to them than that.

There was also the fact that neither leads appealed to me at all and there's this weird thing they keep doing when Sookie reads minds, a vocal distortion, which, coupled with an already hard-for-the-Scottish-ear-to-decipher Louisiana accent, made those portions of the dialogue almost impossible to make out. I had to go searching for transcripts online to find out what had been said.

But it's apparently a top rater in the US, so with luck you'll be with the majority and not me.

Karen - somehow managed to miss your post last time I was in here! I definitely agree that Goodkind's series is easier reading than Jordan's. Goodkind's plot is much simpler and the fantasy world his characters inhabit much less complex.

And there's that weird thing going on with him finishing the plotlines in one book and then starting fresh almost in the next, which always leaves me wondering when I pick up the next book in the series how on earth he's going to find enough plot to fill another. And I'm only on book five! How he's done 12 is currently a mystery to me.

But...I have to say, so far, he seem to manage it. Just. I'm just about to start book five, and once again I'm wondering if this will be the one where I give up. <g> But, still looking forward to it.

LabRat

54. From Dead to Worse
55. Dead and Gone (last one in the series so far--the copyright inside the book says May 2009--then I can start in on the T.V. show, after I've finished catching up on N.C.I.S. with my sister first, of course)

An incomplete list based on the later stuff added to my book database that I know I've read. It misses rereads of stuff I already own.

Wes Boyd
Alone Together
Blue Beauty

David Weber
Mutineers' Moon
The Armageddon Inheritance
Heirs of Empire

John Birmingham
Weapons of Choice

Donna Andrews
Swan for the Money
Six Geese A-Slaying

Wen Spencer
Endless Blue

Rachel Caine
Ill Wind

Gurps Powers, Fourth Edition
GURPS The Vorkosigan Saga Sourcebook and Roleplaying Game
Eberron Players Book

Joanne Fluke
Key Lime Pie Murder
Lemon Meringue Pie Murder
Fudge Cupcake Murder

These four books are all in the same series by Anne McCaffrey.

56. Freedom's Landing
57. Freedom's Choice
58. Freedom's Challenge
59. Freedom's Ransom

Updating with:

#60 Robert Goddard - Dying To Tell
#61 Robert Goddard - Set In Stone

The first, Goddard's usual blend of twists and turns in an oddly old-fashioned thriller reminiscent of the best of Hitchock, I thoroughly enjoyed.

The second, I was curious about as Amazon's reviews had revealed its not a fan favourite. As it had a supernatural plot element to it I was intrigued though and decided to give it a go. I can see why his fans have problems with this one as it was an oddly unbalanced book. The supernatural elements to the plot - along with some characters connected with it - seemed to be entirely irrelevant to the main plot. In fact it seemed to me you could pretty much have excised that entire strand and it would have made no difference to the story at all. Not entirely a dub, but definitely not one of this author's best.

#62 Brian Keene - Dead Sea

Having enjoyed the author's two zombie schlock novels, I was very disappointed with this one. The plot was non-existent - even for this kind of book - the characters so thinly drawn that when they died you couldn't feel much empathy or sympathy as you didn't know enough about them to care.

#63 Terry Pratchett - Lords and Ladies
#64 Terry Pratchett - Night Watch

It's been a while since I've read anything from Pratchett, so I took the chance to check out two books featuring some of my favourite characters. I found the first a little disappointing to be honest, but really loved Night Watch.

#65 Terry Goodkind - Soul of the Fire

Continuing my confusing journey with this series. It followed the usual path - I was bored rigid for the first one hundred pages or so then, just as I was starting to think about giving up, Goodkind introduced something that perked up my interested and I enjoyed it.

#66 Bernard Cornwall - A Crowning Mercy

I was looking forward to this prequel/companion piece to Fallen Angels, which I'd enjoyed hugely. Wasn't disappointed. Great characters and sense of period.

#67 Harlan Coben - Hold Tight
#68 Harlan Coben - Long Lost

It's been a while since I've read anything by Coben. I was delighted to find that Long Lost was another outing for Myron, Win and Co. as I'd thought that Coben had given up writing with those characters. Didn't disappoint.

#69 Richard Montanari - Play Dead
#70 Richard Montanari - The Skin Gods
#71 Richard Montanari - The Devil's Garden

The first two were the usual fare, featuring his detective duo and I enjoyed those. I enjoyed the last a little less. A stand-alone novel with a slightly different slant to his usual fare, which didn't really work for me. It was just missing a spark somehow and never really achieved a sense of tension.

#72 Michael Marshall - The Intruders

Something slightly different from this author, a thriller with a supernatural undertone. I enjoyed it, although it wasn't as good as his other novels for me.

I still have a ton of books to read. I've been treated recently to some cash to run amok in Amazon with. As a result my wish list has been decimated and I have a shelf full of my favourite authors to visit. I need to slow down though! I've been reading a book a day in the past few days - they won't last long at that rate!

LabRat

Updating with:

#73 Brian Keene - Dark Hollow
#74 Michael Marshall - Dark Things
#75 Robert Goddard - Days Without Number
#76 Stephen King - Skeleton Crew
#77 Terry Pratchett - The Truth
#78 John Connolly - Nocturnes
#79 Lisa Gardner - The Next Accident
#80 Lisa Gardner - The Survivor's Club
#81 Lisa Gardner - The Killing Hour

#82 Dodie Smith - 101 Dalmatians
#83 Dodie Smith - The Starlight Barking

No idea why I woke up one morning with the sudden urge to revisit these old childhood classics, but the charm and delight of them hasn't diminished any with the years.

Tad Williams - Memory, Sorrow and Thorne Series:

#84 The Dragonbone Chair
#85 The Stone of Farewell
#86 To Green Angel Tower: Siege

#87 Brian Sanderson - The Final Empire

I bought this out of curiosity, purely because Sanderson was given the contract to complete Jordan's Wheel of Time series and I wanted to find out if his writing style appealed to me. I enjoyed it, found it okay but not startling, but by the last few pages had become fond of the characters, so I'll be reading the rest.

One truly puzzling thing, though is why the hardback edition of book 3 costs £27+ on Amazon. Frankly, there's no way I'd pay that for a fantasy novel! And as the paperback edition, out this time in 2010 is averagely priced at £6+, I'm mystified as to why they think they can get away with it.

Okay, off to start the final book in TW's Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series, which I'm enjoying quite a lot.

LabRat

Updating with:

#88 Nothing To Lose - Lee Child
#89 Gone Tomorrow - Lee Child

It seems like an appallingly long time since I've read a new Jack Reacher adventure, so I thoroughly enjoyed these two. Had some more good news today when I realised that there's a new one out soon, too.

#90 The Dragon Keeper - Robin Hobb

I had been disappointed with the author's last trilogy, so I really wasn't expecting much out of this. Especially as my least favourite section of the Liveships Trilogy before this was the stuff with Tintaglia. But I adored this. I was hooked right from the get go - a whole new host of wonderful characters, dragon, human and strange things inbetween to root for. Cannot wait for book two to be released!

#91 Faith of the Fallen - Terry Goodkind

Well, he worked his strange, bizarre magic on me again. It all went to a very familiar pattern. I was bored by the first part (I'm tending to find Richard and Kahlan very boring characters when they're together) and then Nicci came along and I was swept along to an enjoyable end. I'm baffled as to how Goodkind does this. I've ordered the next book in the series.

#92 Memory, Sorrow & Thorn Series: To Green Angel Tower - Storm - Tad Williams

This book illustrates perfectly the love/hate relationship I often have with Tad William's work. OTOH, it was full of wonderful characters that I grew to have great affection for (I thought the end scenes of the court with it's Arthurian overtones of a wise king and a host of Companions was wonderful and it left me with a warm glow). But OTOH, he does have a liking for filling page after page after page with unnecessary, boring detail. Every time one of the characters went on a journey it was the cue for chapter upon chapter of boredom. Simon in the tunnels was excruciatingly long.

LabRat

The next six books are part of the Petaybee series by Anne McCaffrey.

50. Powers That Be
61. Power Lines
62. Power Play
63. Changelings
64. Maelstrom
65. Deluge

I am currently reading The Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum. I've had the book (as well as Supremacy and Ultimatum) for years now, but haven't gotten around to reading it until now. I've seen all three movies though, and loved them, even though I had to see the first one twice before I really understood what was going on. The other two were easier to follow the first time, after having seen and understood the first.

I didn't get anywhere near my personal goal this year. I hadn't been reading as much, sadly. I finally got to the point where I was reading during my lunch break again, but not always any other time. It doesn't help when people in the break room insist on trying to talk to me despite my nose obviously being in my book!

52. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
53. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
54. Interview With A Vampire - Anne Rice
55. Winter's Heart - Robert Jordan
56. Crossroads of Twilight - Robert Jordan
57. Heat Wave - Richard Castle

I picked up the last few of the Wheel of TIme books so I could read the latest. I finally finished Knife of Dreams, but since I finished that on the 1st, I'm going to add it to my 2010 list.

The Richard Castle book is a tie-in to the tv show Castle, the book that he was writing in the series. It's nowhere near the size it is in the show, but it's an entertaining read. Though I still say that the guy in the book is nowhere near the way Castle would write him.

All right, everyone, it's a new year, so you have to post on the new thread!

Well, I officially ended 2009 with 66 books (I finished The Bourne Identity, but only started The Bourne Supremacy before New Year's). I haven't finished a book for the new year yet, but when I do, I'll be sure to post in the new thread for 2010.