Mount TBR Challenge 2024 discussion

Aiming slightly smaller in 2024 as Kilimanjaro has sent me into a small panic mode in the later months of 2023.

1. Water for Elephants (2014), 16Jan24
2. Age of Myth (2019), 25Jan24
3. Millennium Approaches (2018), 31Jan24
4. Red Seas Under Red Skies (2016), 2Feb24 *reread*
5. Hild (2014), 8Mar24
6. The Lightning Thief (2014), 28Mar24 *reread*
7. The Sea of Monsters (2014), 2Apr24 *reread*
8. Perestroika (2018), 5Apr24
9. Anna Karenina (2014), 24Apr24
10. Shades of Grey (2015), 13May24 *reread*
11. Julius Caesar (2008), 28May24
12. The Prince (2014), 29May24
13. Code Name Verity (2014), 2Jun24 *reread*
14. Palestine: A Socialist Introduction (2022), 8Jun24
15. Neverwhere (2014), 19Jun24
16. Project Hail Mary (2021), 24Jun24
17. Othello (2008), 6Jul24
18. The Creation of Eve (2015), 9Jul24
19. Dancer (2016), 10Jul24
20. The Quest Begins (2020), 31Jul24
21. Poison or Protect (2017), 8Aug24
22. Mansfield Park (2017), 19Aug24
23. The Pillars of the Earth (2015), 30Aug24

Defy or Defend (2022), currently
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (2014), currently

Welcome back and good luck with your climb next year! Hope you make it to the top!

Welcome back, Ashley Marie!

Good luck with your 2024 reading goals Ashley Marie!

Thanks all! :)

Water for Elephants (2014, print/audio) - 2.5 stars
I don't understand the people who say this is their favorite, or even a good book. Between the animal abuse, the domestic abuse, and the bizarre sexual content, this was a weird book. The final chapter was a sweet ending, but Rosie and Marlena were the only likeable characters.

Age of Myth (2019, print/audio) - 3.5 stars
A bit uneven in terms of wording/phrasing but I loved the characters!

Millennium Approaches (2018, print) - 5 stars
Still not sure I've wrapped my head around it. Tony Kushner is a visionary.

Red Seas Under Red Skies (2016, print/audio) - 5 stars, reread
Last year I noticed the first book felt a touch bogged down in minutiae; enjoyable minutiae, but slow nonetheless. The second one has none of that. Ugh I love these books so much!

Hild (2014, print/audio) - 5 stars
This lived on my shelf for a full decade before I was finally ready to read it. Engrossing and brutal and gorgeous.

The Lightning Thief (2014, print) - 4.5 stars
*reread*
Can't believe how much of this I forgot in the five years since I last read it. And the new tv series does such an excellent job with the adaptation!

The Sea of Monsters (2014, print) - 5 stars
*reread*
And if I'd forgotten a bunch of TLF in five years, imagine what it felt like to reread this after a decade+ away! Riordan does a brilliant job weaving friendship, mythology, and danger together with some of the most wholesome characters in fiction.

Perestroika (2018, print) - 5 stars
Fantastic. Now I'm watching the National Theatre at Home's filmed revival :D

Anna Karenina (2014, audio) - 4.5 stars
Large and a bit slow bc slice-of-life but certainly not a dull novel. I was engrossed from beginning to end, although I'm not sure it was good for my mental health for a hot minute.

Shades of Grey (2017, print/audio) - 4 stars
*reread*
This is one of the coolest, weirdest, most unsettling fantasy worlds and I love it so much.

Oh gracious, I haven't updated here in months 😱

Julius Caesar (2008, print/audio) - 5 stars
Brilliant. I've taken to immersion with Shakespeare, reading along while I listen to the BBC audio productions. Phenomenal stuff.

The Prince (2014, audio/print) - 4 stars
A well-written treatise, although both audiobooks I tried had myriad mispronunciations; annoying.

Code Name Verity (2014, print) - 5 stars
*reread*
Still in my top 10 favorite books of all time. Possibly top 5. The characterizations are flawless.

Palestine: A Socialist Introduction (2022, ebook) - 5 stars
Incredible.

Neverwhere (2014, print/audio) - 5 stars
Utter magic.

Project Hail Mary (2021, audio) - 4 stars
A ton of fun, and I definitely cried toward the end. Ray Porter is an excellent narrator.

Othello (2008, print) - 5 stars
Ugh it's so good I can't

The Creation of Eve (2015, print/audio) - 3 stars
Meh, fairly run-of-the-mill for Renaissance fare.

Dancer (2016, print) - DNF
One of these days I'll realize HF biographies are not for me. Nonfic bios all day every day, but fictionalized... nah.

Ashley Marie wrote: "Oh gracious, I haven't updated here in months 😱"

Yeah, that happens to me with this challenge too 🤭

The Quest Begins (2020, print/audio) - 3 stars
I think I would've liked this more if I was younger. A few tiny continuity things took me out, but I like the general concept.

Poison or Protect (2017, print) - 4 stars
Cute, spicy fun! There's never enough Akeldama for me but I loved getting Preshea's POV here.

Mansfield Park (2017, audio/print) - 4.5 stars
The fact that none of my (Jane Austen-obsessed) friends told me to start with this book is a CRIME because it's definitely top 3, possibly even top 2 of her works.