Challenge Check-In: January to March 2023

Welcome to Challenge Check-In.
This post is an attempt to keep track of my reading challenges and bingo cards.

Welcome to my first Challenge Check-In of 2023.
This year I’m attempting a couple of reading challenges that I’ve done before which feature bingo cards, so I thought I’d continue my check-in style posts where I can post updated versions of each card to see how I’m getting on with my challenges.
My reading progress overall has been pretty slow so far, but of the few books I’ve finished I’ve managed to add most of them to either one of both of my bingo cards. So, here’s how my reading challenges are progressing so far this year…

First, a quick glance at my total number of books read this year.

Total Loaned Books Read 2023:  2
Total Own Books Read 2023:  3
Overall Total Books Read 2023:  5

MY BOOK OF THE CHECK-IN

As if choosing my read of the month isn’t difficult enough sometimes, I’ve decided I’ll also try and choose a read of the check-in! My first choice is…

Fairy Tale by Stephen King – A welcome return to fantasy in this latest from Stephen King. I loved the characters and their relationships, there’s a great animal character in the form of Radar the dog, and parts of Charlie’s journey through the fantastical world of Empis reminded me very much of the Dark Tower series.
This is a book that’s stayed with me even after I’d finished reading and I really enjoyed it.

BEAT THE BACKLIST

My total for this challenge is currently 5 books read.  So far I’ve read:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien
Fairy Tale by Stephen King
The Jigsaw Man (Inspector Anjelica Henley #1) by Nadine Matheson
The Six Deaths of the Saint (Into Shadow #3) by Alix E. Harrow
Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot #15) by Agatha Christie

Beat The Backlist Bingo Progress

This year Bingo is back with a great collection of prompts.  There are two cards available, 24 prompts and 52 prompts, and you can view both cards here. I’m working from both cards this year. I have no idea how many categories I’ll manage to complete but it’s a little extra to add to my challenge.  Here is a collection of covers that fulfil a prompt on either of the cards featured:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien – First in a trilogy
Fairy Tale by Stephen King – Protagonist has a pet
The Jigsaw Man (Inspector Anjelica Henley #1) by Nadine Matheson – Point-of-view character is an adult
The Six Deaths of the Saint (Into Shadow #3) by Alix E. Harrow – Less than 170 pages
Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot #15) by Agatha Christie – Meant to read it last year

PICTURE PROMPT BOOK BINGO

You can find out more about the Picture Prompts Book Bingo over at Bookforager, where you can also view the original bingo card. I like that this challenge is so open to interpretation based on the pictures provided. Here’s my progress so far and a list of the titles I’ve used:

The Six Deaths of the Saint (Into Shadow #3) by Alix E. Harrow
The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien
Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot #15) by Agatha Christie
Fairy Tale by Stephen King

GOODREADS

I’ve read 5 books so far this year. It’s been a fairly slow start to my reading year.

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So concludes my first Challenge Check-In of 2023. See you again soon.

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Reading Review: February 2023

Welcome to my Monthly Reading Review.
This post is my attempt to keep track of how I’m doing with my reading challenges and resolutions.

BOOKS I’VE READ

Fairy Tale by Stephen King

Total Loaned Books Read This Month: 0
Total Own Books Read This Month: 1
Overall Total Books Read This Month: 1

Total Loaned Books Read 2023: 0
Total Own Books Read 2023: 2
Overall Total Books Read 2023: 2

MY READ OF THE MONTH

Fairy Tale by Stephen King. I couldn’t not choose this even if it wasn’t the only book I‘ve read this month. I’d been looking forward to reading it for a while and it as just as good as I hoped it would be. I really liked Charlie and Radar (a German Shepherd dog) and the fantasy world they ventured into reminded me at times of some of the places visited in the Dark Tower series.
The story had fantasy, magic, danger, a little bit of horror, memorable characters, and lived up to it’s name as it really did feel like a fairy tale.

BEAT THE BACKLIST

My total for this challenge is currently 2 books read.  So far I’ve read:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien
Fairy Tale by Stephen King

Beat The Backlist Bingo Progress

This year Bingo is back with a great collection of prompts.  There are two cards available, 24 prompts and 52 prompts, and you can view both cards here. I’m working from both cards this year. I have no idea how many categories I’ll manage to complete but it’s a little extra to add to my challenge.  Here is a collection of covers that fulfil a prompt on either of the cards featured:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien – First in a trilogy
Fairy Tale by Stephen King – Protagonist has a pet

PICTURE PROMPT BOOK BINGO

You can find out more about the Picture Prompts Book Bingo over at Bookforager.
I like that this is so open to interpretation based on the pictures provided.  I managed to find a space for Fairy Tale on my card this month. I really wanted to use the unicorn picture but in the end the bug seemed more appropriate, for a couple of reasons (but the unicorn is so much prettier). I will post an updated card at my first Challenge Check In. I’ve managed to fill the picture prompts so far with:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien  |  Fairy Tale by Stephen King

GOODREADS

I’ve read 2 books so far this year.  At this pace 20 overall is looking about right but I do hope I’ll be able to read more.

GOALS

• My Beat the Backlist challenge total has been increased by the one book I managed to finish this month and I found a bingo card space for it too.
• I added another book to my Photo Prompt Book Bingo card as well.
• I continued reading one of the genres I’d like to discover more of this year Fairy Tale was definitely a Fantasy.
• I’m continuing my monthly update posts to record my reading and any challenge progress I’ve made.

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So concludes February’s Reading Review. See you again next month.

Reading Review: January 2023

Welcome to my Monthly Reading Review.
This post is my attempt to keep track of how I’m doing with my reading challenges and resolutions.

BOOKS I’VE READ

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien

Total Loaned Books Read This Month: 0
Total Own Books Read This Month: 1
Overall Total Books Read This Month: 1

Total Loaned Books Read 2023: 0
Total Own Books Read 2023: 1
Overall Total Books Read 2023: 1

MY READ OF THE MONTH

It’s not a hard decision this month as I only managed to finish one book, which is more to do with my slow reading than the book itself, because I did really enjoy The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien, especially in the latter stages when there was plenty of action and danger. I’m looking forward to picking up the rest of the trilogy throughout this year.

BEAT THE BACKLIST

My total for this challenge is currently 1 book read.  So far I’ve read:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien

Beat The Backlist Bingo Progress

This year Bingo is back with a great collection of prompts.  There are two cards available, 24 prompts and 52 prompts, and you can view both cards here. I’m working from both cards this year. I have no idea how many categories I’ll manage to complete but it’s a little extra to add to my challenge.  Here is a collection of covers that fulfil a prompt on either of the cards featured:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien – First in a trilogy

PICTURE PROMPT BOOK BINGO

You can find out more about the Picture Prompts Book Bingo over at Bookforager.
I like that this is so open to interpretation based on the pictures provided, and I’ve managed to find a picture for the only book I’ve read this month, and will post an updated card at my first Challenge Check In. I’ve managed to fill the picture prompts so far with:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien

GOODREADS

My target for 2023 is 20 books, a regular starting point for this challenge. I always set a low target as I enjoy long books so it takes a while to complete a book, and I like taking my time with a good read.
This month I’ve only managed to finish 1 book, so a target of 20 feels like it might be a little bit overly optimistic.  Hopefully I’ll read more next month.

GOALS

• My Beat the Backlist challenge has begun and the first book of the year counts towards the challenge and I’ve found a space on my Bingo card for it.
• Have also made a start on Bookforager’s Photo Prompt Book Bingo.
• I ventured into one of the genres I’d like to discover more of this year as my first read of the year was a Fantasy.
• I’m continuing my monthly update posts to record my reading and any challenge progress I’ve made.

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So concludes January’s Reading Review. See you again next month.

Reading Resolutions 2023

Welcome to my 2023 Reading Resolutions post.

It’s become something of a tradition on my blog to set out a few general reading hopes and goals for the coming year. Nothing too rigid, my Resolutions are mostly ideas and reminders about reading events and books I’d like to read soon.

As always I will participate in the Goodreads Challenge, setting myself a fairly low target. I enjoy keeping track of my reads and this challenge allows me to do that.

Beat the Backlist returns in 2023 so I’m going to attempt the challenge once again. It encourages me to devote time to some of the many books that have been on my TBR list for far too long, and I like the added element of bingo cards to play along with.

General Goals

• My own books – I want to give attention to books I already own by reading at least one of my own books per month.
• Readathons – I hope to participate in reading events and readathons and update my blog regularly throughout. In particular I’m looking out for Reader’s Imbibing Peril. I’d also like to find more readathon events to participate in, and know there are such as Wyrd and Wonder and Sci-Fi Month.
• Genres – I’d like to continue reading a variety of genres, and in particular this year I’d like to read more Fantasy.
  I’d also like to continue exploring what I’m still calling my Under-Explored genres – Science Fiction, Crime and Historical.
• Blog Updates – Continue monthly update posts to record my reading and any challenge progress.

Particular Authors…

Read at least one book by any of the following – Agatha Christie, Chris Carter, Stephen King, Blake Crouch, Donna Tartt, Laura Purcell.

Series…

The Dark Tower series- I want to resume my series re-read. The next book for me is Wolves of the Calla, after which I’d like to carry on and read the rest.

The Robert Hunter series – The Night Stalker, the third book in the series by Chris Carter, is next up if I continue to read the series in order, which I think I will.

The Poirot series – I read a couple of Agatha Christie books over the last year, but haven’t returned to reading the Poirot series, so I’d like to get back to reading about this detective and his adventures.

Reading Challenges:

The Beat the Backlist Challenge including Beat the Backlist Bingo

Bookforager Picture Prompt Book Bingo

Goodreads

I’d like to read 20 books during the year

Possible Books to Read:

I created a list of potential reads for the year which I’ve included in my Beat the Backlist sign up post so I’ll post that here too…

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King
The Robert Hunter series by Chris Carter
The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley
The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub
Red Dragon by Thomas Harris
Dark Matter or Recursion by Blake Crouch
The Poirot series by Agatha Christie

There are many more books that I would like to include in my Backlist challenge but don’t want to make this list too exhaustive.

Beat The Backlist 2023

Overview

A new year, a new TBR pile, and a new set of readers tackling their backlist!

Welcome to Beat the Backlist (the 2023 edition)!
The Beat the Backlist reading challenge is designed to help you tackle all the books you keep meaning to read and still haven’t. Head over to AustineDecker.com for full details.

Guidelines

The guidelines are simple:

The book must be published in the previous year or earlier (for the 2023 challenge, anything published in 2022 or earlier counts).

You have to start and finish the book in 2023.

And that’s it!

The challenge runs from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023

Any format, any genre.

Re-reads count, and you don’t have to own the book.

It’s open for the entire year so you can join in at any time.

BEAT THE BACKLIST BINGO

Bingo is back! I enjoyed this last year, and for 2023 Bingo is back, with new cards packed full of reading prompts. This year, there are two bingo cards available. You can find both at AustineDecker.com.
Bingo is an additional element to the challenge and finding books to meet each category is fun. I’m attempting both the 24 and 52 prompt cards and so have included both in my challenge post for reference. I doubt I’ll manage to read 52 books over the whole year, but I’d like to see how many prompts I can complete.

Potential Reads

2023 marks my seventh time participating in Beat the Backlist. As I did last year, I’ll set an initial target of 10 books to read, but hopefully will manage more. My TBR pile is still HUGE so there’s no shortage of books to choose from! Here is a short selection of potential reads for this challenge…

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King
The Robert Hunter series by Chris Carter
The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
The Kingdoms by Natasha Pulley
The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub
Red Dragon by Thomas Harris
Dark Matter or Recursion by Blake Crouch
The Poirot series by Agatha Christie

There are so many more books I could have mentioned, so I look forward to seeing how many books I manage to read for Beat the Backlist.

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Monthly Progress

January

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien

February

Fairy Tale by Stephen King

March

The Jigsaw Man (Inspector Anjelica Henley #1) by Nadine Matheson
The Six Deaths of the Saint (Into Shadow #3) by Alix E. Harrow
Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot #15) by Agatha Christie

Beat The Backlist Bingo Progress

This year Bingo is back with a great collection of 24 and 52 prompts.  Here is a collection of covers that fulfil a prompt on either of the lists featured:

The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings #1) by J. R. R. Tolkien – First in a trilogy
Fairy Tale by Stephen King – Protagonist has a pet
The Jigsaw Man (Inspector Anjelica Henley #1) by Nadine Matheson – Point-of-view character is an adult
The Six Deaths of the Saint (Into Shadow #3) by Alix E. Harrow – Less than 170 pages
Cards on the Table (Hercule Poirot #15) by Agatha Christie – Meant to read it last year