reading-challenge – Sandy's Book a Day Blog

What’s new on my bedside table . . .

Yay!!!! Only three new ARCs arrived in my inbox this week! Excuse me while I do a little dance . . .

My first new title is a publisher’s widget – The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley. I see this isn’t getting great reviews, but I have enjoyed everything else I have read by her, so we’ll see . . . It certainly sounds enticing!

Midsummer, the Dorset coast

In the shadows of an ancient wood, guests gather for the opening weekend of The Manor: a beautiful new countryside retreat.

But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. And the candles have barely been lit for a solstice supper when the body is found.

It all began with a secret, fifteen years ago. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder at…

THE MIDNIGHT FEAST

I have read so many amazing reviews about Goyhood by new-to-me author Rueven Fenton that I just couldn’t resist requesting it.

When Mayer (née Marty) Belkin fled small town Georgia for Brooklyn nearly thirty years ago, he thought he’d left his wasted youth behind. Now he’s a Talmud scholar married into one of the greatest rabbinical families in the world – a dirt poor country boy reinvented in the image of God.

But his mother’s untimely death brings a shocking revelation: Mayer and his ne’er-do-well twin brother David aren’t, in fact, Jewish. Traumatized and spiritually bereft, Mayer’s only recourse is to convert to Judaism. But the earliest date he can get is a week from now. What are two estranged brothers to do in the interim?

So begins the Belkins’ Rumspringa through America’s Deep South with Mom’s ashes in tow, plus two tagalongs: an insightful Instagram influencer named Charlayne Valentine and Popeye, a one-eyed dog. As the crew gets tangled up in a series of increasingly surreal adventures, Mayer grapples with a God who betrayed him and an emotionally withdrawn wife in Brooklyn who has yet to learn her husband is a counterfeit Jew.

And to round out this weeks books is the latest in the Josie ‘nosey’ Parker cosy mystery series by Fiona Leitch – The Cornish Campsite Murder.

Jodie ‘Nosey’ Parker is back in 2024 with a brand new Cornish mystery to unravel…

Just along the coast from Penstowan, the local festival has filled the area with revellers young and old. Former Met police officer Jodie ‘Nosey’ Parker has agreed to step in and help run the Pie Hard food truck, along with her rather reluctant fiancé, DCI Nathan Withers.

As they prepare for a weekend of camping and being elbow deep in shortcrust pastry, Jodie hadn’t bargained on witnessing a fight between members of the lead band.

But when the body of one of the band members is found dead not far from the campsite, Jodie finds it hard to believe it was an accident. Especially when the other members had so much to gain…

I still have 22 pending requests, 2 past publication date but which are not archived until some time later in May.

I have 515 books on my NetGalley shelf, one less than last week. Hey, I’ll take it. It’s a gain, or a loss, however you want to look at it! At least it makes my 72% feedback ratio a little more secure . . .

Goodreads group, All About Books is having another readathon starting at 12.01 am Friday 26 April and finishing at 11.59 p.m. Sunday 28 April for which I have signed up.

I have completed 8/9 books and all four books by Australian authors for my Aussie Readers April challenge. I will read the 9th and remaining book after I have finished my current read. I will easily complete this challenge before the end of the month.

I have just signed up for the May Aussie Reader’s challenge. The featured author is Sophie Green.

I have read 7/14 books for the Autumn Aussie Readers challenge, so I am right on target!

I have completed my first task of 24 for the World Book Day Challenge which I need to complete before 23 April 2025.

When I was at the library recently, our librarian introduced me to Beanstack an online reading library-based reading challenge but I didn’t get around to signing up for it until yesterday. There is a timer where you can log your reading minutes, Book bingo on which I have this morning completed my first square, and a place to publish your reviews. There are several other features that I haven’t yet had time to explore but will do as soon as possible.

My annual goals I am just going to update at the end of each month, and as it is the last Wednesday of the month, here goes –

I have read 87 of my goal of 225 books for my 2024 Goodreads Reading challenge- 18 books ahead of schedule; and 64 of my goal of 150 NetGalley titles. I can always increase my goals later in the year.

I have read 13 of my goal of 20 Backlist titles for 2024. These titles must have been on my shelf for longer than 12 months to qualify.

I have read 22 of my 24 book goal for my 2024 library love challenge, so I may need to reset that goal too.

I selected the My Precious (I had my earbuds surgically implanted) level of 30+ audiobooks for 2024. I have so far listened to 19/30.

Another few days and we’ll be 1/3 of the way through the year!

Dustin and Luke fly back from Perth Thursday night – that week has gone by fast! Luke loved the reptile park so much that they made a return visit yesterday and Luke got to feed a snake! He was so excited. He keeps messaging me telling me what he’s doing. He’ll be spending time with his Australian grandad for the last two days of his visit which will be nice for both of them.

I have a busy morning ahead. I need to tidy up my office desk as I have mislaid two vital bits of paper. My friend Annette is staying tonight after we get back from seeing Dragon in concert so I need to make up a bed for her. Pete’s dinner is simmering away in the crockpot, but I need to get some food in for the weekend, do laundry, and sort out what I am wearing tonight. The day is going to be beautiful, but not that warm. It will be hot inside the event centre but cold outside. What to wear???? Boots, definitely. I hate to have cold feet!

Have a wonderful week, and read on!

What’s new on my bedside table? . . .

Happy hump day!

Until a few moments ago I only had three new ARCs on my shelf, but as I was looking, feeling quite pleased with myself I have to admit, up popped another! But as it was a Kate Robards book, Only the Guilty Survive, and I loved her first book – The Three Deaths of Willa Stannard – I’m not going to complain. And what a beautiful cover!

The mass suicide of a cult known as The Flock sent shockwaves through the small rural town of Iola, Michigan. Led by the charismatic Dominic Bragg, The Flock camped at an abandoned bird sanctuary before their sudden and shocking demise. The deaths came just weeks after one of their members, Laurel Tai, a local pageant queen, was abducted.

The town turned its blame and fear onto the sole survivor, Claire Kettler–Laurel’s best friend. Burdened by grief and unanswered questions about her friend’s murder and her fellow cult members’ deaths, Claire can’t help but wonder what really happened, especially when the cult leader is nowhere to be found.

When podcaster Arlo Stone begins poking around ten years later, determined to uncover the truth about the cult and Laurel’s murder, Claire is propelled back into action. In a desperate attempt to puzzle out the past and keep her secrets from being spilled for the entertainment of thousands of listeners, Claire must dig into a tangle of unanswered questions before time runs out and history repeats itself.

This weeks ARCs are all by authors whose previous books I have loved. I am trying to be a little more picky about my requesting. My second title is Guilty Mothers, the 20th title in the Kim Stone series by Angela Marsons.

In a quiet kitchen, where two mugs wait by the kettle to be filled, Sheryl Hawne lies in a pool of blood. Her only daughter, Katie, is found at her side, still clutching the murder weapon and apparently incapable of speech. To Detective Kim Stone, the case seems open and shut. But Katie is in no state to be questioned, so Kim and the team must dig deep to understand what triggered this brutal act.

Soon, they learn that Katie participated in beauty pageants as a child, and her mother kept a shrine to her achievements. As Kim gazes at the golden trophies and shiny rosettes, she is forced to wonder if this was what set Katie on the path to murder…

But then Kim receives a shocking call. Another woman is dead. And with Katie safely locked up, she cannot be the killer. The second victim also entered her daughter in pageants, and a broken tiara is found thrust down her throat. Someone clearly feels that these mothers are guilty – and that they deserve to die. Forcing back the memories of her own monstrous mother, Kim vows to find justice for these women, no matter what pain they caused.

Now more than a day behind their killer, Kim races to learn more about a competitive world where appearances are everything and mothers will go to any lengths to ensure their daughters triumph. Buried somewhere in this dark past is the key to unlocking the case… but will Kim be able to find it before another family is destroyed forever?

I read my first book by Australian author Leoni Kelsall earlier this year and so was excited to see another offering from he so soon. The Homestead in the Eucalypts is her new title and is due for publication 02 July.

When student doctor Taylor Lawrence’s city life is turned upside down, she seeks sanctuary on her grandparents’ farm in the South Australian countryside.

During the lonely nights, she fantasises of a time long-gone; of Anna, who, rising at dawn to milk the cows and fetch water from the well, is caught in a bushfire that threatens to leave her reputation as blackened as the surrounding bushland. And of Anna’s rescuer, fellow settler, Luke Hartmann.

Reality blurs as Taylor repeatedly escapes into Anna’s world, and she realises she must discover whether her dreams are pure fantasy—or if they recount a story more familiar than she could ever imagine.

Either way, it seems she’ll end up with a broken mind or a broken heart. The problem is, Taylor is no longer sure which she would prefer.

I posted a review of Caro Ramsay’s The Suffering of Strangers yesterday, and here today I have her new title – Out of the Dark, #3 in the DI Christie Kaplan series.

A young woman is missing, but has she run away – or been captured?

A dying cop asks DCI Christine Caplan to fulfil her last wish: to investigate a cold case that’s still preying on her mind. The naked body of a young man that was found in a lonely wood, dismissed as a down and out by her superiors. Caplan connects the case to other victims left to die in the bleak Scottish forests, injured and unable to escape. As the scent grows stronger, the cold cases suddenly seem dangerously hot.

In this thrilling hunt for the missing girl, Caplan must trace where love and control get out of hand, and question where power lies in any relationship. Meanwhile, the dark nights of Scotland conceal a terrifying game of cat and mouse . . .

So, I now have 516 unread books on my NetGalley shelf, one more than last week – a definite improvement! And I have 21 pending requests.

My feedback ratio remains on a very shaky 72%.

Next Tuesday I will be starting the

Challenge on The Perks of Beng a Book Addict group on Goodreads.

LIST OF TASKS

📖 Read a book with a character who is a writer
📖 Read a book with a character who loves reading
📖 Read a book with a character who is a librarian
📖 Read a book with the word “typewriter” in the text
📖 Read a book where the main setting is a bookstore
📖 Read a book with the word “LIBRARY” in the title/series title
📖 Read a book with the letters B*O*O*K in the title/series title and/or the author’s name
📖 Read a book with the letters P*E*N in the title
📖 Read a book with the author’s initials in the word “READING”
📖 (Re)read a book by a favourite author
📖 Read a book from a favourite genre
📖 Read a book of fiction where reference is made to a real book
📖 Read a book recommended to you by a GR Friend
📖 Read a book recommended by a favourite author
📖 Read biography about or the memoirs/autobiography of an author
📖 Read a book with an author using a pen name
📖 Read a non-fiction book connected to reading in some way (your explanation)
📖 Read a book where the main setting is one of the countries listed in the post above
📖 Read a book where one of the cities listed in the post above is mentioned
📖 Read a book from this list Portal
📖 Read a book with a title that starts with a letter from SHAKESPEARE (the/a(n) can be ignored)
📖 Read a book with a character or written by an author called William (or any of its variations)
📖 Read a book whose author was born in April
📖 Read a book that was first published between 1995 – 2024
📖 Read a book that is a retelling of one of Shakespeare’s plays
📖 Read a book that contains (parts of) a poem or a collection of poems
📖 Read a play or read a book where a character is an actor/actress
📖 Read a book originally written in a different language than your own
📖 Read a book you have borrowed from a Library
📖 Read a book you own and haven’t read yet

ABOUT THE CHALLENGE:

📖 This is an individual challenge

📖 You can complete all tasks, but it’s not necessary, however, you need to finish a minimum of 12 tasks to consider your challenge accomplished.

📖 You can start any time from 23 April 2024 and need to finish before 23 April 2025.

📖 You can use 1 book to cover a maximum of 3 tasks if you’d like to do so, but you can also use 1 book/task. Up to you.

📖 For this challenge, there are no restrictions/special conditions on page numbers, genres, etc… :), feel free to read whatever you like!

I am going to try and use only one book per task.

For the Aussie Readers April challenge, I have completed reading 4/9 titles and the first of the 4 Australian authors I selected. I have got the biggest read, Moth to the Flame by Joy Dettman 592 pages, finished but have yet to write my review. I am only a little behind on this challenge.

And for the Autumn Aussie Readers challenge I have completed 6/13 books including 3/4 Australian authors I selected. I am one book behind where I should be with this challenge.

We have been having very foggy mornings this week and cool evenings. Our cat is no fonder of this weather than I am and isn’t straying far from home. She has claimed the chair beside the fire for her own in the evenings.

We were meant to be going to the NZ SuperCars round in Taupo this weekend but someone (that would be me!) forgot to book the tickets and they sold out weeks ago. So I guess we will be watching on TV. No biggie – at least I’m warm, comfortable and can see everything!

We’ve a friend’s birthday on Saturday but, other than that, the rest of our plans are weather dependent. Pete wants to finish painting the exterior basement walls, and I have a few jobs to do in the garden that I need his ute for.

Have you any plans for the weekend?

Happy reading my friends and stay safe.

2024 Library Love Challenge

Hosted by Angel’s Book Nook & Books of My Heart, this is a favorite challenge. I love libraries and so many of the books I read are sourced by them. This will be my second year participating in the challenge and I’m signing up for Thrifty Reader (24 books) which is what I read in 2023, but I am hoping to do better this year.

Details

Runs from January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2024.
You can join anytime.
The sign-up will remain open until Dec. 31, 2024.
The goal is to find your love of your local library and to read at least twelve (12) books from the library, but you can read more. While twelve is the minimum; there is no maximum limit. See the different levels below and pick the one that works best for you.
Any format will work for this challenge (prints, ebooks, or audios); as long as you checked it out from the library, it counts.
Books can be any genre (fiction, nonfiction, romance, fantasy, mystery, thriller, horror, etc.).
Crossovers from other reading challenges are allowed, including re-reads.
If you’re a blogger grab the button and do a quick post about the challenge to help spread the word. If you’re not a blogger you can help by posting on Facebook, Tweet, or Instagram about the challenge. Please link back to both hosts: Angel’s Book Nook & Books of My Heart
As an added bonus: We’re offering up a GIVEAWAY with this Challenge. Winner will be picked at the end of the year!! There are a few freebie entries just for signing up to join the challenge and then the main entries throughout the year will be the direct links to your book reviews. You will have until Jan. 4th, 2025 to enter your reviews in the Linky/Rafflecopter.
Write a review to enter the giveaway – 2 sentences or an essay, whatever works for you, but there is a minimum of 2 sentences. Not sure what to write? How about something like, “The plot was a delight, but the characters didn’t capture me.” “I enjoyed the story and really liked the characters.”
Please use #LibraryLoveChallenge when sharing your reviews, library pictures, etc.

Review Linkup

Levels

Dewey Decimal: Read 12 books
Thrifty Reader: Read 24 books
Overdrive Junkie: Read 36 books
Library Addict: Read 48 books
Library Card on Fire: Read 60+ books

Tag: reading-challenge