Winter's Respite Readathon January 2018

Michelle @ Season's of Reading is hosting her Winter's Respite Readathon and I thought maybe it would be just what I need to kickstart my reading for the New Year. I'm going to sign up and see if I can read all the books on my "Need to" list by the end of January. Hopefully, I'll get more than that done, but these are what I definitely want to knock out this month. 

The readathon runs for the entire month of January. So, we start at 12:00 am on January 1 and end at 11:59 pm on January 31. Times are set for the central time zone so adjust your times accordingly.  For full details, please check out the site (click link above).

Here's my plan for January:
The White Cottage Mystery by Margery Allingham (1/1/18)
Act One, Scene One by A. H. Richardson
Catalogue of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay
Under Pressure by Frank Herbert
Transit of Earth by Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, & others
The Best From Fantasy & Science Fiction 8th Series edited by Anthony Boucher (1/28/18)
World's Best Science Fiction: 1966 by Donal A. Wollheim & Terry Carr [eds] (1/9/18)

Also read:
A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh  (1/7/18) 
Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay (1/11/18)
Search for Spock: A Star Trek Book of Exploration by Robb Pearlman (1/12/18)
Bartholomew the Beaver by Ruth Dixon (1/13/18)
Partners in Wonder by Harlan Ellison (& others) (1/19/18) 
The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books by Martin Edwards (1/23/17) 
Red Warning by Virgil Markham (1/25/18)

One Foot in the Grave

One Foot in the Grave (1979) by Peter Dickinson is my first entry for the Spring Into Horror Read-a-Thon. Fortunately Michelle is allowing those of us who are horror weenies to count mysteries. I have a few ghost story collections hanging out on the TBR pile--so I may venture into those. But my first book is a straight mystery.

This is the sixth book in the series featuring Scotland Yard's Jimmy Pibble. The now retired ex-Superintendent  is in a fancy nursing home called Flycatchers where he is recovering from a stroke brought on by the death of his wife. He has determined that he doesn't have much left to live for and wants to end it all while he still has all his faculties and having recovered enough to have just enough strength. He waits for a wild and windy night and makes his way out to a tower on the property--with the intention of flinging himself from the top. But his plans are interrupted when he discovers a corpse shot through the back of the head, almost execution-style.

His old instincts kick in and he can't help but be interested, especially when his old friend Chief Superintendent Mike Crewe becomes involved. When he learns that the victim had been acting as added security for the mysterious Mr. X (whom Pibble recognizes as a rather important informer in the underworld), it begins to look like someone is making a move on Mr. X to eliminate him before he can provide major information to the police. But the case is complicated by an elderly woman who claims that someone has been killing off wealthy patients--ostensibly so their heirs won't have to wait so long for their inheritance. Crewe tends to trust Pibble's instincts, even if he's not quite up to his previous standard yet, but the local Superintendent is sure that the killer will be found among the victim's discarded conquests on the nursing staff. Could it be that the truth lies somewhere in the middle?

I have had an on-again, off-again relationship with Peter Dickinson's work. My very first taste (back in the 80s and I don't even remember the book) did not go down at all well. For a long time, his name was on my TBF list (To Be Found) with no titles and simply the comment "NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" --to keep me from bringing more of them home. But then in 2011 I decided to give him another try when I needed another book with a "Y" as the first letter of a title (not counting "The, A, or An" and brought The Yellow Room Conspiracy home with fear and trepidation. As I note in the review (linked), the book did not wow me as mystery but it did have excellent characters and was a good historical period piece. It gave me hope that I might like Dickinson after all.

After reading One Foot in the Grave, I have decided that Dickinson's strength is his characters. It's not his plots or his ability to mystify--the culprit is, quite frankly, glaringly obvious in this one and I don't think that was planned. But it is definitely worth the price of admission to watch Pibble work his way back from a stroke and his interactions with the nurses, previous colleagues on the force, and, most particularly his fellow residents. Lady Treadgold is a hoot--don't get anywhere near her and her walker if you are a nefarious evil-doer, trust me. Two things keep this from being a five- or even a full four-star outing. The first is the aforementioned weakness in the mystery itself. The second is that while the general outline of Pibble's return to strength is good, especially in his interactions with others, the long internal monologues are a bit taxing. The first chapter where he is making his way to the tower is especially so. It is only 32 pages long, but it reads like it is much longer. Overall, a strong showing and good reason to try the other Dickinson books sitting on my TBR pile. ★★★ and a half


**********
This also counts for the "Blood Stains" category on the Silver Vintage Scavenger Hunt card.

Spring into Horror Read-a-Thon

Spring into Horror

Read-a-Thon

April  18 - 24

Hosted by Michelle at Seasons of Reading
For more information and to sign up, click here

#SpringHorrorRAT
Seasons of Reading Facebook group here

Official dates are April 18 through 24, starting at 12am CDT Sunday and ending at 11:59pm CDT the following Sunday. I probably won't start reading until much later on Sunday. 

There is a whole page of guidelines so check that out but the main goal for this read-a-thon is to read at least one scary-to-you book. Fortunately, for those who are weenies when it comes to horror (like me!), that can include a thriller, mystery, Gothic novel, or something similar. So--I'm in for at least one scary-to-me book and whatever else I can cram into a week's worth of reading. Come join us!

I'll list my books below:
1. One Foot in the Grave by Peter Dickinson (4/18/16)
2 The Chalk Circle Man by Fred Vargas (4/21/16) 
3. Death in Cyprus by M. M. Kaye (4/22/16)
4.The Pocket Book of Ghost Stories edited by Philip Van Doren Stern (4/24/16)
 

Bout of Books Wrap-Up

So....how did I do with the Bout of Books Read-a-Thon? Not too well with the daily participation--I took part in only two of the mini-challenges and didn't get a single update entered.  Boo!  I did (almost) manage to complete all five books as planned--if I hadn't had to go to sleep last night so I could go to work today then I would have finished the Rendell book.  So--Books Read? A  Participation D+  I'll have to work on that next time around.  But--I'm still glad to have joined in...it kept me motivated and on-track as I start out a new year of reading.

1. Shakespeare's Planet by Clifford D. Simak (done! Hope they're all that easy! 1/6/14)

2. The Skeleton in the Clock by Carter Dickson (1/8/14)

3. Shake Hands Forever by Ruth Rendell (90% finished 1/12/14--completed today)

4. Angels & Spaceships by Fredric Brown (1/12/14)

5. Dangerous Visions 3 by Harlan Ellison, ed (1/11/14)

Bout of Books Starting Line

Ooops. I was so into my reading today that I completely forgot to get my starting post up.  So..here we go.  I'd really like to read at least four more books this week.  More would be better--but four will do it for me.  I say four more because I've already got one under my belt today.  Here's the plan:

1. Shakespeare's Planet by Clifford D. Simak (done! Hope they're all that easy! 1/6/14)

2. The Skeleton in the Clock by Carter Dickson (1/8/14)

3. Shake Hands Forever by Ruth Rendell (90% finished 1/12/14--completed today)

4. Angels & Spaceships by Fredric Brown (1/12/14)

5. Dangerous Visions 3 by Harlan Ellison, ed (1/11/14)

Other possibles:

6. Nemesis by Isaac Asimov

7. Triumph by Philip Wylie

8. Other Times, Other Worlds by John D. MacDonald

Haven't heard of Bout of Books? Looking for a read-a-thon to get your reading year off to a good start? Check out the info from the Bout of Books gals...But do it quick...the linky closes on January 7!

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Bout of Books: January Read-a-Thon

It's been a while since I participated in a read-a-thon.  The next edition of Bout of Books is coming in January and I am posting to let our wonderful hosts (and all of you) my intention to join. I'm hoping to use it to jump start my reading in the New Year. Haven't heard of Bout of Books? Looking for a read-a-thon to get your reading year off to a good start? Check out the info from the Bout of Books gals...

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

I will put together a more detailed goal post (and list of books) when Bout of Books begins.

Starting Line Post
 

Tackle Your TBR Read-a-thon Update

Well.........I haven't been doing so very well keeping up with the

sponsored by Laura and Tressa from  Colorimetry and Tressa's Wishful Endings

I've been working away.  And am a little over half-way to my goal of ten.  I'm going to have to do some pretty rapid reading in the next two days to manage that.......Here's the progress so far:


 Books Read:
1. The Yard by Alex Grecian (9/9/13)
2. The End of the Alphabet by C. S. Richardson (9/10/13)
3. Famous Ghost Stories by Bennett Cerf (ed) [9/13/13]
4. The Temple of Death by A. C. & R. H. Benson (9/16/13)
5. The Dreadful Hollow by Nicholas Blake (9/17/13)
6. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (current read)

Tackle Your TBR Read-a-Thon!

Ooooh, look!  Another Read-a-Thon to motivate me to read all those books on my TBR stack (especially the ones that have to be read this year for all those challenges I signed up for)....

Laura and Tressa from  Colorimetry and Tressa's Wishful Endings respectively ask: Does your TBR pile just keep growing? Well, so do theirs! And they think that now is a great time to host a Read-a-Thon and to try and do something about it.  I'm going to join in--how about you?  Jump on the links to see what's up. There are promises of give-aways and mini-challenges!

My goal is to knock out at least ten books in the next few weeks.  Let's see how that goes.  Possible reads: 
The Haunted Doll's House by M. R. James
Famous Ghost Stories by Bennett Cerf (ed)
The Temple of Death by A. C. & R. H. Benson
The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
The End of the Alphabet by C. S. Richardson 

The Dreadful Hollow by Nicholas Blake  

A Love Worth Giving by Max Lucado 

A Pound of Paper: Confessions of a Book Addict by John Baxter

Death Knocks Three Times by Anthony Gilbert

The Bamboo Blonde by Dorothy B. Hughes

Whatever Goes Up by Bertram Millhouse  

 Books Read:
1. The Yard by Alex Grecian (9/9/13)
2. The End of the Alphabet by C. S. Richardson (9/10/13)
3. Famous Ghost Stories by Bennett Cerf (ed) [9/13/13]
4. The Temple of Death by A. C. & R. H. Benson (9/16/13)
5. The Dreadful Hollow by Nicholas Blake (9/17/13)
6. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson (current read)
7.
8.
9.
10.

Bout of Books: Wrap-Up

The Bout of Books read-a-thon was organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It ended at midnight Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone we were in. 

 

So....due to circumstances out of my control (detailed in the last update, I won't subject you to it again)...I did much less reading than planned.  I always enjoy doing the Bout of Books read-a-thon because it helps me stay on track for all the challenges I sign up for.  I was hoping to finish at least four books--but that just didn't happen.  Here are the final stats:

Books finished:  

Andersen's Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen  (343 pages)

The Door by Mary Roberts Rinehart (381 pages)

Paritals:

Poems and Prose by Christina Rossetti (260 pages)

Death at the Bar by Ngaio Marsh (We'll call it about 130 pages--my husband, the math-whiz, figured up how many pages = how many tapes I managed to listen to).

 

I have had my usual good time--participating in about half of the mini-challenges.  Thanks to Amanda and Kelly for organizing this again!

Bout of Books Update

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Each day there are challenges for those who signed up by Tuesday and we are called on to do an update.

Here's my progress update for Friday and Saturday, August 23-4:

 

So....my whole read-a-thon train got derailed.  I had to make a weekend run up to my parents house and my car died and they had to bring me back home so I can be at work tomorrow morning.  Which means I got very little reading done.  My intentions were to listen to a book on tape while traveling up and back (half-way accomplished) and to read my physical book-in-progress after the parents had gone to bed (I'm a night-owl; they're not).  That so did not happen.  So--as of Saturday night, here are the stats....

Books finished:  

Andersen's Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen  (343 pages)

The Door by Mary Roberts Rinehart (381 pages)

Currently Reading:

Poems and Prose by Christina Rossetti (232 pages so far--all progress on Friday before I left)

Death at the Bar by Ngaio Marsh (We'll call it about 90 pages--my husband, the math-whiz, figured up how many pages = how many tapes I managed to listen to)

I was really hoping to have one if not both of these done by now....but it's not looking good.  

Bout of Books: Progress Update #4

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Each day there are challenges for those who signed up by Tuesday and we are called on to do an update.

Here's my progress update for Thursday, August 22:

Books finished:  

Andersen's Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen  (343 pages)

The Door by Mary Roberts Rinehart (381 pages)

I'm still not making quite the progress that I had hoped.  I blame it on the craziness at work...

Currently Reading:

Poems and Prose by Christina Rossetti (19 pages so far)

Challenge:

Bookish Mad Libs @ The Space Between

You can copy and paste this list into your entry, then replace each item with your book title and author:

A. Place name or type (from a book title) can be a proper name or noun like Italy or mountains: 84 Charing Cross Road {London} from the book
84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (read earlier this year)

B. Fave Villain (from a book - list title/series): Professor Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes stories

C. Adjective (from a book title) (hot, cold, dark, etc.): Careless from
The Case of the Careless Kitten by Erle Stanley Gardner (read last month)

D. Number (from a book title): Twenty from
Twenty First Century Blues by Richard Cecil (read last month)

E. Noun (from a book title): Circus from
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (read earlier this year)

F. Fave Hero/Heroine you wouldn't mind spending a LOT of time with (from a book - list title/series): Lord Peter Wimsey (from the detective series written by Dorothy L Sayers)

G. Dessert (from a book title): Plum Pudding from Plum Pudding Murder by Joanna Fluke (read last year)

My Mad Lib:

Help! I'm being held captive at 84 Charing Cross Road {London} by Professor Moriarty!
It is very Careless here!
He is demanding Twenty Circuses to set me free!
I have just discovered that Lord Peter Wimsey was captured too!
On second thought, please send Plum Pudding, and don't worry if you don't hear from us for awhile!

Much Love,

(Bev@My Reader's Block)  

Bout of Books: Progress Update #3

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Each day there are challenges for those who signed up by yesterday and we are called on to do an update.

Here's my progress update for Wednesday, August 21:

Books finished:

 Andersen's Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen  (343 pages)

I'm not making quite the progress that I had hoped.  I blame it on the craziness at work...

Currently Reading:

The Door by Mary Roberts Rinehart (138 pages so far)

Quote: If I looked strange to Joseph when he admitted me, he said nothing. Once Judy had said that Joseph had no capacity for astonishment, and the thought supported me that night as, certainly nervous and probably bulging, I entered my own house.

Challenges:

Book Road Trip @ In Wonderland

Stephanie is asking us to come up with a list of the top 5-10 states/places you'd love to visit and find a book (you either read or want to read) that takes place in that state/place or a book by an author who lives or is from there.

My Bookish Road Trip:

1. The Penguin Book of Victorian Women in Crime by Michael Sims, ed [England] ( read 11/5/12)

2. Death at Crane's Court by Eilis Dillon [Ireland] (read 5/23/13) 

3. The Sparrow (Wings of the West #3) by Kristy McCaffrey [Grand Canyon, Arizona]

4. Once on This Island by Gloria Whelan [Makinac Island, Michigan]

5. Sixth Column by Robert A. Heinlein [Rocky Mountains, Colorado] (read pre-blog)

6. Murder & Blueberry Pie by Frances & Richard Lockridge [New York City, NY]

I Spy... @ Paperback Dreamer

I Spy…

 ...Snowflakes

A lovely, leather-bound copy of The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge

 ...Flames

The Fire Engine that Disappeared by Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö

 

...A City Skyline

A very stylized view of NY City's skyscrapers on Catch as Catch Can by the Lockridges

 

 ...The Moon

The First Men in the Moon by H.G. Wells

 ...A Sword

 

The Eight of Swords by John Dickson Carr

...A Wedding Dress

 

White Orchids by Grace Livingston Hill
 

...High Heels

 

Nancy's rocking her high heels in The Secret of the Old Clock

...Fog

London Particular (aka Fog of Doubt) by Christianna Brand

 ...A Christmas Tree

Mistletoe Mysteries by Charlotte MacLeod

 ...Sunglasses

 

The Laughing Policeman by Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö

...Lightning

 

A Dark Time by Dennis Bradford

...A Tattoo

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury

 ...Combat Boots

Into the Valley by John Hersey (my copy shows both boots)

 ...Handcuffs

 

The Secret Life of Houdini by Kalush & Sloman (now those are some handcuffs!)

...A Road

 

Last Bus to Woodstock by Colin Dexter [and the road it took :-) ]

Bout of Books: Progress Update #2

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, August 19th and runs through Sunday, August 25th in whatever time zone you are in. Each day there are challenges for those who signed up by yesterday and we are called on to do an update>

Here's my progress update for Tuesday, August 20:

Books finished:

 Andersen's Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen  (343 pages)

Currently Reading:

The Door by Mary Roberts Rinehart (74 pages so far)

Quote:  And then suddenly the whole carefully woven fabric was destroyed. Strange and mysterious and bitter that must have been. Everything provided against, and then at the last to be destroyed by a door, a thing of wood and paint with an ordinary tarnished brass knob. (p. 7)

Today's Challenges:

 

TBR List Challenge @ Musings of a Bookship Girl

Five Books at the Top of My TBR Pile: 
The Dreadful Hollow by Nicholas Blake   
A Love Worth Giving by Max Lucado  
Poems & Prose by Christina Rosetti
A Bullet in the Ballet by Caryl Brahms & S. J. Simon
Rules for Murder by Julianna Deering

If Given a Wad of Cash, What Five Books Would I Add to the Stack (you'll have to send me to a used bookstore for these):

Panic Party (aka Mr. Pidgeon's Island)  by Anthony Berkley

Only a Matter of Time by V. C. Clinton-Bradley

Death & Letters by Elizabeth Daly

Spin Your Web, Lady! by Francis & Richard Lockridge

Busman's Honeymoon: A Detective Comedy in Three Acts by Dorothy L Sayers & M. St. Clare Byrne (the play version)

AND

Book Spine Poetry @ Such a Novel Idea

Grab books from your stack and use the spines to create a poem.  
Take a picture and post it.

Rules of Murder:

Suspicious Circumstances [and an] Appointment With Death
A Nice Class of Corpse....Good Blood

[there's] Crime on My Hands

Detection by Gaslight [leads to a] 
Case With No Conclusion

The Perfect Crime!