10 January 2016

Sunday recap: 10th January 2016

The Sunday Post is hosted by the Caffeinated Book Reviewer and you can sign up here.

This is the first time I've ever posted any kind of recap post, and for the most part there doesn't seem to be an awful lot to recap this week. 

As part of my Bookish Resolutions I decided to try and organise some kind of blogging routine. As yet this year I seem to have little routine, however this seems like a good place to start! I plan to use these posts to keep track of my progress with various challenges as well as my Bookish Resolutions. 

So for the first time ever here goes!

What I've been reading:

Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
The Eye of The World by Robert Jordan 
  • I've actually been listening to this on audible. It's surprisingly therapeutic to listen and colour, or cook, or clean. I've had whole new realms of reading time opened up to me!
  • The audiobook has set chapters out differently than the paper book, but I have about 9 Audio chapters to go with this book and so far I'm loving it.
  • This will count towards the following challenges:  Alphabet Soup100+ Books Challenge and You Read How Many Books Challenge
What I've Posted This Week:

I've actually extended it this week to include everything I've posted after 1st January.

Reading Challenges:
  • I have read 9/41 Discworld books
  • I have read 1/100 books in 2016 so far
Blogging Challenges:
  • I haven't really established a blogging routine yet, but as this is week 1 and I spent some of it signing up for challenges I feel this is justified!
  • I have made progress towards cataloguing my 'library', here. In some ways this feels like a lot of progress, however since I married the flat I've been sharing with my husband can only hold a small portion of my books, the bulk are at my parents so I can't see myself listing them all until at least mid year. At present the list consists of those in the flat and those I easily remember. I'd also like to amend the list so it is possible to see what I've read and not just what I've reviewed.
  • So far I have not written any reviews of recently read books. 
  • I've written a bit for some backlist books I wanted to review. You'll see some of these coming soon.
Personal Challenges:
  • I lost 1 pound this week and am aiming to lose 6 pounds this month. So I need to try harder next week!
  • I went swimming twice this week. On Tuesday I swam 40 lengths and on Thursday I swam 56 lengths. So not quite a mile either time, but roughly a mile and a half over the two. This could have been better but it came down to timings!
  • I had 6 fizzy drinks this week. An appalling failure!
A Couple of Interesting Articles I've seen this week
  • This interesting article from the Independent on Natural Flood defences in the UK. It appealed to me on a basic human interest level, but also on from a scientific point of view. It's interesting I feel how restoring natural habitats can have impacts on flood waters both good and bad.
  • This article about the trends of publishing in Children's books in 2015 and predictions for 2016. It highlighted some interesting statistics about book diversity that I saw in an article towards the end of last year. 
A quote from the bible for the week

'Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is the Upholder of my life.'
Psalms 54:4

7 January 2016

The Soprano Sorceress - L. E. Modesitt Jr

Image from Goodreads
When Anna Marshall is transported from her boring and frustrating life in Ames, Iowa, to the very different world of Erde, she's angry and confused, but soon finds out that for the first time in her life she's uniquely powerful. In Iowa Anna was a music instructor and small-time opera singer, but on Erde her musical ability makes her a big-time sorceress--potentially.

First she must figure out how to use her ability before the big-time rulers who've notices her arrival kill her just because she's an unpredictable new power....Those rulers may wish they hadn't waited as long as they did.

I read this book during the course of 2015 but I picked up the entire Spellsong Cycle from a charity shop several years ago. I'm a long time fan of L. E. Modesitt Jr's work having enjoyed each book I've read from the Recluce Saga and the one Imager book I have managed to read.

2015 saw us move to a home where I've had access to a very limited selection of my books. I wasn't sure entirely which recluce book came next and I like to read at least one Modesitt book a year, he writes such big books so prolifically I would never be able to keep up otherwise.

The Soprano Sorceress as the first book in the Spellsong Cycle didn't disappoint me. It saw Anna transported to a new planet, she had to learn to handle the overwhelming new powers she had gained. It saw her struggle with the balance of power and control.

The Soprano Sorceress saw me turning page after page desperate to get to the end. As a standalone book I believe it worked reasonably well, but at the end of it enough questions were left unanswered to drive me to pick up the next book in the series. 

5 January 2016

Millie Marotta's Tropical Wonderland Butterfly

For Christmas this year I received four colouring books, following a family holiday this summer where we all jumped on the adult colouring bandwagon.



From my parents I received Millie Marotta's Tropical Wonderland. This is the second colouring book she has released, following on from the success of her first book Animal Kingdom.

From my brother I received the Doctor Who colouring book, a fact I found ironic since I ordered the Game of Thrones colouring book for my sister and had it regularly recommended for me since.


From my husband I received two giant colouring pads aimed at young children. This is his joke present to me, and it did amuse me somewhat. I have a feeling it may get used less, but come in handy when we have children come to visit.

I thought I might share some of the colouring I do as I do it, and you can follow my inspiration board for the tropical colouring book here.

The first picture I chose to colour is roughly halfway through the Tropical Wonderland book and is a butterfly.



4 January 2016

You read how many books? 2016


My final challenge this year is the You read how many books? challenge. You can head over to the Engineers Bookshelf to sign up.

As I've not quite managed to hit my target of 100 books for the last few years I will be aiming for level 1, 100 books. This is a challenge I might not have chosen to do, due to the number of books as a target (100 minimum), except that the name appeals to me.

I know I read less than many in the blogging community but that's still a phrase I've heard many times from family and friends!


  1. The Eye of The World - Robert Jordan
  2. Worth the Lies - Mara Jacobs
  3. The Hero and the Crown - Robin McKinley
  4. The Great Hunt - Robert Jordan
  5. The Blue Sword - Robin McKinley
  6. Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery
  7. The Dragon Reborn - Robert Jordan
  8. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
  9.  Call the Midwife - Jennifer Worth
  10. Shadows of the Workhouse - Jennifer Worth
  11. Farewell to the Eastend - Jennifer Worth
  12. The Shadow Rising - Robert Jordan
  13. Her Werewolf Hero - Michelle Hauf
  14. Red Rising - Pierce Brown
  15. Golden Son - Pierce Brown
  16. Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch
  17. Moon Over Soho - Ben Aaronovitch
  18. Whispers Underground - Ben Aaronovitch
  19. Broken Homes - Ben Aaronovitch
  20. Foxglove Summer - Ben Aaronovitch
  21. The Fires of Heaven - Robert Jordan
  22. Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo
  23. A Nice Girl Like You - Alexandra Sellers
  24. Ella the Slayer - A. W. Exley
  25. Henry the Gaoler - A. W. Exley
  26. In Too Deep - Mara Jacobs
  27. In Too Fast - Mara Jacobs
  28. In Too Hard - Mara Jacobs
  29. Storm Front - Jim Butcher
  30. Lord of Chaos - Robert Jordan
  31. Those Above - Daniel Polansky
  32. The Princess Diaries: Bad Heir Day - Meg Cabot
  33. The Princess Diaries: Crowning Glory - Meg Cabot
  34. A Crown of Swords - Robert Jordan
  35. Fool Moon - Jim Butcher
  36. Half a King - Joe Abercrombie
  37. Half the World - Joe Abercrombie
  38. Uprooted - Naomi Novik
  39. Crooked Kingdom - Leigh Bardugo
  40. A Path of Daggers - Robert Jordan
  41. The Lost World - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
  42. Winter's Heart - Robert Jordan
  43. Crossroads of Twilight - Robert Jordan

3 January 2016

100+ Book Challenge


The 100+ Book Challenge is hosted by Freda's Voice and is the eighth challenge I'm signing up to do this year. Don't forget to head over and sign up.

The aim of this challenge is pretty simple. You aim to read 100 books over the course of the year. I'll be listing the books I've read below and linking reviews as I go.


  1. The Eye of The World - Robert Jordan
  2. Worth the Lies - Mara Jacobs
  3. The Hero and the Crown - Robin McKinley
  4. The Great Hunt - Robert Jordan
  5. The Blue Sword - Robin McKinley
  6. Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery
  7. The Dragon Reborn - Robert Jordan
  8. The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde
  9. Call the Midwife - Jennifer Worth
  10. Shadows of the Workhouse - Jennifer Worth
  11. Farewell to the Eastend - Jennifer Worth
  12. The Shadow Rising - Robert Jordan
  13. Her Werewolf Hero - Michelle Hauf
  14. Red Rising - Pierce Brown
  15. Golden Son - Pierce Brown
  16. Rivers of London - Ben Aaronovitch
  17. Moon Over Soho - Ben Aaronovitch
  18. Whispers Underground - Ben Aaronovitch
  19. Broken Homes - Ben Aaronovitch
  20. Foxglove Summer - Ben Aaronovitch
  21. The Fires of Heaven - Ben Aaronovitch
  22. Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo
  23. A Nice Girl Like You - Alexandra Sellers
  24. Ella the Slayer - A. W. Exley
  25. Henry the Gaoler - A. W. Exley
  26. In Too Deep - Mara Jacobs
  27. In Too Fast - Mara Jacobs
  28. In Too Hard - Mara Jacobs
  29. Storm Front - Jim Butcher
  30. Lord of Chaos - Robert Jordan
  31. Those Above - Daniel Polansky
  32. The Princess Diaries: Bad Heir Day - Meg Cabot
  33. The Princess Diaries: Crowning Glory - Meg Cabot
  34. A Crown of Swords - Robert Jordan
  35. Fool Moon - Jim Butcher
  36. Half a King - Joe Abercrombie
  37. Half the World - Joe Abercrombie
  38. Uprooted - Naomi Novik
  39. Crooked Kingdom - Leigh Bardugo
  40. The Path of Daggers - Robert Jordan
  41. The Lost World - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
  42. Winter's Heart - Robert Jordan
  43. Crossroads of Twilight - Robert Jordan

2 January 2016

Goodreads Award Challenge

Another slightly unique challenge that I feel plays to me is the Goodreads Award Challenge. Head over to sign up.

The basic principle of this challenge is that you choose a category or two from the Goodreads Choice Awards and try to read a number of last year's finalists. The reasoning behind this challenge is that when it comes to voting time so many of us have only read the odd book or two listed.

On the basis that the books nominated one year are very often in the same series as books nominated the next this should at least give us some kind of grounding to vote from in 2016. The Challenge allows that we may read first books in series in place of the book listed if we have not started the series.

I'm going to be aiming for tier 3 (6-8 books) in the Best Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction Category and in the Best Fantasy Category. The books I'll have to choose from are listed below and I'll link up my reviews as I manage to read them.

Best Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction

The Heir - Keira Cass (book 4)
                The Selction
                The Elite
                The One
                The Crown

Six of Crows - Leigh Barry to (book 1) [read]
               Crooked Kingdom

Carry on - Rainbow Rowell (standalone)

Queen of Shadows - Sarah J. Maas (book 4)
               Throne of Glass
               Crown of Midnight
               Heir of Fire
               The Assassin's Blade

Fire fight - Brandon Sanderson (book 2)
               Steelheart
               Mitosis
               Calamity

An Ember in the Ashes - Sabaa Tahir (book 1)
              A Torch against the Night

A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J. Mass (book 1)
             A Court of Mist and Fury

Winter - Marissa Meyer (book 4)
              Cinder
              Scarlet
              Cress

Red Queen - Victoria Aveyard (book 1)
              Glass Sword

Uprooted - Naomi Novik (standalone)

Best Fantasy

The Aeronaut's Windlass - Jim Butcher (book 1)
                The Olympian Affair

Magic Shifts - Ilona Andrews (book 8)
                Magic Bites
                Magic Burns
                Magic Strikes
                Magic Bleeds
                Magic Slays
                Magic Rises
                Magic Breaks
                Magic Binds

Trigger Warning - Neil Gaiman (Standalone Short story collection)

Fool's Quest - Robin Hobbes (book 2)
                Fool's Assassin
                Assassin's Fate

Vision in Silver - Anne Bishop (book 3)
               Written in Red
               Murder of Crows
               Marked in Flesh

The Fifth Season - N. K. Jemisin (book 1)
               The Obelisk Gate

Shadows of Self - Brandon Sanderson (book 5)
               The Final Empire [read]
               The Well of Ascension [read]
               The Hero of Ages [read]
               The Alloy of Law
               The Bands of Mourning
               The Lost Metal

Dead Heat - Patricia Briggs (book 4)
                Cry Wolf
                Hunting Ground
                Fair Game

Burned - Karen Marie Moning (book 7)
                Darkfever
                Bloodfever
                Faefever
                Dreamfever
                Shadowfever
                Iced
                Feverborn
                Feversong

A Darker Shade of Magic - V. E. Schwab (book 1)
                 A Gathering of Shadows

1 January 2016

2016 12 Months Classics Challenge

For Challenge number six of 2016 I've gone for something a little different than the other challenges I've selected for myself. Where the other challenges have pretty much revolved around reading a target number of books or series the 12 Month Classics Challenge offers some guidance on the book we're choosing each month. 

January - "A Classic you've always wanted to read."
               - Anne of Green Gables - L. M. Montgomery

February - "A Classic you've always dreaded reading."
               - The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde

March - "A Classic you've been recommended."
               - The Lost World - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

April - "A Classic you've seen the movie/tv series of."
               - Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray

May - "An American Classic."

June - "A British Classic."

July - "A Non-British European Classic."

August - "A Modern Classic."

September - "A Children's Classic."

October - "A Classic by a female Author."

November - "A Classic by a male Author."

December - "A Classic written under a pseudonym."

Don't forget to head over to You, Me and a Cup of Tea to sign up.