Category: Currently Reading Page 9 of 62

December 2023 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

Lookee there, another month is done and dusted (yeah, a year, too…but we’ll get to that later). This month I finished 27 titles (3 down from last month, 6 down from last December), with an equivalent of 7,905+ pages or the equivalent (1,599 more than last month), and gave them an average of 3.78 stars (the same as last month).

There were a couple of picture books in that total, and 2 books I’ve been working on for months, so that’s really a lower number. But…eh, whatever. With one exception, I had a good time with them. I didn’t write as much this month as it felt I did, but I liked almost everything I produced. So…I’m calling it a win.

Here’s what happened here in December.
Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Broken Trust Regeneration and Redemptive History The Secret
4 Stars 3.5 Stars 2 1/2 Stars
The Last Dance The MOST Powerful Christmas
4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 3.5 Stars
Imaginary Numbers Blood Betrayal Alexandra Petri's US History: Important American Documents
3.5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars
Mislaid in Parts Half-Known Gone, Baby, Gone The Lord Bless You and Keep You
4 1/2 Stars 5 Stars 4 Stars
Grandpappy's Corner Logo Like, Literally, Dude Guards! Guards!
3 Stars 4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars
The Curator The Chimes The Mayors of New York
5 Stars 4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars
The God of the Mundane Vicious Dogs Such Sharp Teeth
3.5 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars
The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams The Moonshine Messiah She-Hulk: Jen Again
3.5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars
The Existence and Attributes of God A Mystery Revealed: 31 Meditations on the Trinity The AItheist
5 Stars 3 Stars 3 Stars

Ratings

5 Stars 3 2 1/2 Stars 1
4 1/2 Stars 4 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 7 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 5 1 Star 0
3 Stars 7
Average = 3.78

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2021
9 45 42 144
1st of the
Month
7 47 69 153
Added 3 2 8 1
Read/
Listened
4 2 9 1
Current Total 6 47 68 153

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 18
Self-/Independent Published: 9

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 0 (0%) 25 (8%)
Fantasy 4 (15%) 34 (11%)
General Fiction/ Literature 1 (4%) 26 (9%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 9 (33%) 90 (30%)
Non-Fiction 2 (7%) 22 (7%)
Science Fiction 3 (11%) 34 (11%)
Theology/ Christian Living 5 (19%) 30 (10%)
Urban Fantasy 2 (7%) 33 (11%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 1 (4%) 9 (3%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, and 30th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how Was Your Month?

December Calendar

WWW Wednesday, December 27, 2023

This was supposed to be the 2nd or 3rd post of the day, but you know how things gang aft a-gley sometimes. Hopefully, I can eke out something else, too.

In the meantime, I’ll get to business with this and see you in 7.

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams by Daniel Nayeri, Daniel Miyares (Illustrator)—a book I’m not even going to try to sum up in less than a couple of paragraphs. I’m listening to Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison, Kristen Sieh (Narrator) on audiobook. I’m not so sure about the story as a whole—but it possibly includes the best description of someone becoming a werewolf that I’ve ever come across.

The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of DreamsBlank SpaceSuch Sharp Teeth

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Henry Brock’s Vicious Dogs, a clever PI novel, and the superlative The Curator by M.W. Craven, John Banks (Narrator) on audio.

Vicious DogsBlank SpaceThe Curator

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be The Moonshine Messiah by Russell W. Johnson. Next, I’m going to try the audiobook of The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman—I’m not 100% I can devote the attention to it that it deserves in audio format, but I haven’t been able to find the time for the print version, so we’ll see how I do.

The Moonshine MessiahBlank SpaceThe Blacktongue Thief

How are you closing out the year? Trying to squeeze in a few more books for whatever your goal was?

(I’ve got three more I hope to finish. Will get at least one of them done 🙂 )

WWW Wednesday, December 20, 2023

I almost didn’t get any reading done yesterday, a very uncommon event. I did find myself early to something, so I was able to read most of the inaugural issue of Grimdwarf Magazine, and I can see this becoming a regular part of my reading rotation.

The other thing I wanted to mention is that the other day as I was packing to go to work, I grabbed the Guards! Guards! and put it in my coat pocket. I can’t remember the last Mass Market Paperback I read. It’s so convenient! I love a good hardcover, and ebooks are so essential now. But wow…I miss MMPs. We need a resurgence of them.

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett, and am shaking my head at how I stopped reading this series years ago. My current audiobook is the haunting The Curator by by M.W. Craven, John Banks (Narrator) on audiobook.

Guards! Guards!Blank SpaceThe Curator

What did you recently finish reading?

The last book I finished was Mislaid in Parts Half-Known by Seanan McGuire, I talked it up yesterday. The fascinating, entertaining, and often convincing, Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English by Valerie Fridland, narrated by the author and several others was my last audiobook.

Alexandra Petri's US HistoryBlank SpaceLike, Literally, Dude

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be The Mayors of New York by S. J. Rozan (I am so looking forward to it) and my next audiobook should be Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison, Kristen Sieh (Narrator).

The Mayors of New YorkBlank SpaceSuch Sharp Teeth

Are you reading anything that’s making this holiday season happy? Or are you preparing to air a grievance?

WWW Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Hopefully this isn’t the only thing I post today, but I’m having trouble wording, y’know?

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading (and frequently enjoying) Alexandra Petri’s US History: Important American Documents (I Made Up) by Alexandra Petri and the ARC for Mislaid in Parts Half-Known by Seanan McGuire. I’m also listening to Gone, Baby, Gone by Dennis Lehane, Jonathan Davis (Narrator) on audiobook.

Alexandra Petri's US HistoryBlank SpaceMislaid in Parts Half-KnownBlank SpaceGone, Baby, Gone

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Ausma Zehanat Khan’s Blood Betrayal—a very solid sequel—and Imaginary Numbers by Seanan McGuire, Emily Bauer (Narrator) on audio. I liked it more the second time around.

Blood BetrayalBlank SpaceImaginary Numbers

What do you think you’ll read next?

On the advice of some of you, my next book should be Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett. I think I’ll try Like, Literally, Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English by Valerie Fridland, narrated by the author and several others as my next audiobook.

Guards! Guards!Blank SpaceLike, Literally, Dude

What’s grabbing your attention now?

WWW Wednesday, December 6, 2023

I can’t think of anything to blather on about today, so we might was well get right to the point:

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading The Last Dance by Mark Billingham, my first, but not last book by Billingham. I’m listening to the short story collection, Give the People What They Want and Other Stories of Sharp Wit, Cunning Women, and Wild Magic by Alex Bledsoe, narrated by Stefan Rudnicki, with Alex Bledsoe and Gabrielle de Cuir on audiobook.

The Last DanceBlank Space

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Lee Child and Andrew Child’s The Secret, the last Reacher novel I’ll read for a while. The last audiobook I listened to was The Ghosts of Sherwood by Carrie Vaughn, Angele Masters (Narrator) on audio, a quick blast of fun.

The SecretBlank SpaceThe Ghosts of Sherwood

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be Alexandra Petri’s US History: Important American Documents (I Made Up) by Alexandra Petri , because I need a dose of humor after some of the dark stuff I’ve been reading lately (also, I was next on my library’s list), and my next audiobook should be Imaginary Numbers by Seanan McGuire, Emily Bauer (Narrator).

Alexandra Petri's US HistoryBlank SpaceImaginary Numbers

Are you reading/listening to something good?

November 2023 in Retrospect: What I Read/Listened to/Wrote About

I read 24 titles (1 down from last month, 2 up from last November), with an equivalent of 6,306+ pages* or the equivalent (351 down from last month, about the length of that one book I was short), and gave them an average of 3.8 stars (.3 up from last month). Five 4.5 star books is pretty remarkable–and one of those 5 stars books really should’ve been a 7 or 8.

Going to that Book Faire at the beginning of the month did not help my Mt. TBR at all. I’m not complaining, because I’m really looking forward to diving into those books. But I’m sitting on 30 more unread books that I own compared to last year in my second year of making a concerted effort to trim that number. I realize that math isn’t my strong suit, but I’m pretty sure that isn’t good.

Also, not good was the number of posts I produced. There were several outside-the-blog projects I was working on, but it wasn’t until last night when I started putting this together that I realized just how distracted I was by the outside stuff.

Still, I’m calling this a pretty good/decent month. Here’s the detailed look at November.

Books/Novels/Novellas Read/Listened to

Black Summer The Innocent Sleep The Door-to-Door Bookstore
5 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 3 Stars
Unfolding Redemption Grand Theft Astro Chaos Terminal
3 Stars 3 Stars 4 Stars
Noodle Conquers Comfy Mountain Starter Villain Warriorborn
4 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 3.5 Stars
The Holy Spirit: An Introduction Bookshops & Bonedust Long Past Dues
4 1/2 Stars 4 Stars 4 Stars
Movieland Up on the Woof Top How to Be Eaten
4 1/2 Stars 4 Stars 0 Stars
Things My Son Needs to Know about the World Calico Nerd
3.5 Stars 3.5 Stars? 3.5 Stars
Evil Valley Bea Wolf The Bittlemores
3 Stars 4 1/2 Stars 4 Stars
According to Mark Brokedown Prophets The Ghosts of Sherwood
5 Stars 4 Stars3 4 Stars

Still Reading

The Existence and Attributes of God A Mystery Revealed: 31 Meditations on the Trinity Regeneration and Redemptive History
Broken Trust

Ratings

5 Stars 2 2 1/2 Stars 0
4 1/2 Stars 5 2 Stars 0
4 Stars 8 1 1/2 Stars 0
3.5 Stars 4 1 Star 0
3 Stars 4 0 Stars 1
Average = 3.77

TBR Stacks/Piles/Heaps

Audio E-book Physical Goodreads
Want-to-Read
End of
2022
5 45 42 143
1st of the
Month
6 47 62 153
Added 6 2 14 1
Read/
Listened
5 2 7 1
Current Total 7 47 69 153

Breakdowns:
“Traditionally” Published: 18
Self-/Independent Published: 6 (eep!)

Genre This Month Year to Date
Children’s 1 (4%) 25 (9%)
Fantasy 3 (13%) 30 (11%)
General Fiction/ Literature 5 (21%) 25 (9%)
Mystery/ Suspense/ Thriller 5 (21%) 81 (29%)
Non-Fiction 2 (8%) 20 (7%)
Science Fiction 4 (17%) 31 (11%)
Theology/ Christian Living 2 (8%) 25 (9%)
Urban Fantasy 2 (8%) 31 (11%)
“Other” (Horror/ Humor/ Steampunk/ Western) 0 (0%) 8 (3%)

Review-ish Things Posted

Other Things I Wrote
Other than the Saturday Miscellanies (4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th), I also wrote:

Enough about me—how was your November??


November Calendar

WWW Wednesday, November 29, 2023

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading According to Mark by H.B. O’Neill, and boy howdy, am I going to spend a lot of energy talking about it next year when it’s published. I’m listening to The Bittlemores by Jann Arden on audiobook—which is so much better than I’d expected.

According to MarkBlank SpaceThe Bittlemores

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished the incredible Bea Wolf by Zach Weinersmith and Boulet (Illustrator) and the almost-as-good Nerd: Adventures in Fandom from This Universe to the Multiverse by Maya Phillips (Narrator) on audio.

Bea WolfBlank SpaceNerd

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be Robert B. Parker’s Broken Trust by Mike Lupica, I hope the transition from Atkins to Lupica on the flagship Parker series is smooth. My next audiobook should be Brokedown Prophets by S. A. Cosby, narrated by a full cast—I have no idea what it’s about, really. I stopped reading at “S.A. Cosby.”

Broken TrustBlank SpaceBrokedown Prophets

What are reading as the year heads into its home stretch?

WWW Wednesday, November 22, 2023

It’s a weird week here in the States–a day off on Thursday (for most of us) followed by that “why did I bother to show up?” day on Friday. Thankfully, I have plenty of things to hide in/distract myself with. I hope you all have the same. Or that you live somewhere that the rest of the week is just Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. That seems like a good alternative.

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading–and should be finishing soon—Calico by Lee Goldberg, a heckuva stretch for Goldberg—I’m impressed with it (still not sure how much I’m enjoying it) and am listening to the funny, geeky, and insightful Nerd: Adventures in Fandom from This Universe to the Multiverse by Maya Phillips (Narrator) on audiobook.

CalicoBlank SpaceNerd

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Spencer Quinn’s Up on the Woof Top, and Things My Son Needs to Know about the World by Fredrik Backman, Santino Fontana (Narrator) on audio—a quick hit of humor and heart that I really needed after DNFing a mess last week.

Up on the Woof TopBlank SpaceThings My Son Needs to Know about the World

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be Evil Valley by Simon Hall, in a (surely vain) attempt to catch up on the series. My next audiobook should be The Bittlemores by Jann Arden, because it looked strange enough to deserve a look.

Evil ValleyBlank SpaceThe Bittlemores

What are you reading while preparing for/staving off the effects of tryptophan?

WWW Wednesday, November 15, 2023

I’d expected to come home last night excited and full of energy so that I could write up a post or two, catch up on comments and whatnot. Instead, I came home and went to sleep early. So, only step 1 of my plan was achieved (probably the most important one). Tomorrow will be different!

Probably.

But for now…let’s just get this WWW taken care of and I can start thinking about other things…

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading the expectedly charming Up on the Woof Top by Spencer Quinn, and am listening to Movieland by Lee Goldberg, Nicol Zanzarella (Narrator) on audiobook.

Up on the Woof TopBlank SpaceMovieland

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished James J. Butcher’s Long Past Dues (and that guy knows how to write an ending) and the very sweet Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree (Narrator) on audio.

Long Past DuesBlank SpaceBookshops & Bonedust

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be Calico by Lee Goldberg and my next audiobook should be How to Be Eaten by Maria Adelmann, Lauren Ezzo (Narrator). Both look intriguing, but I’m not really sure what to expect (although, really, it’s Goldberg, I’m probably going to have a blast)

CalicoBlank SpaceHow to Be Eaten

What are you reading this week?

WWW Wednesday, November 8, 2023

So apparently, November is my month of over-committing—and boy howdy, is it catching up to me the last week or so. There’ve been 2 days since my last WWW where I’ve read for less than 20 minutes, which is not doing my psyche a lot of favors, either. But, this isn’t time for my therapy, it’s time for a WWW, so let’s move along to it.

This meme was formerly hosted by MizB at A Daily Rhythm and revived on Taking on a World of Words—and shown to me by Aurore-Anne-Chehoke at Diary-of-a-black-city-girl.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Easy enough, right?

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading (and hopefully finishing tomorrow) Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty, which isn’t the sequel I was expecting—and is maybe better for it. I finished an audiobook this afternoon, and not starting another until tomorrow, so I’ve got nothing in this spot.

Chaos Terminal

What did you recently finish reading?

I just finished Seanan McGuire’s The Innocent Sleep and Grand Theft Astro by Scott Meyer, Elizabeth Evans (Narrator) on audio. I didn’t know it was legal for a Scott Meyer novel to be recorded by anyone other than Luke Daniels, but it worked.

The Innocent SleepBlank SpaceGrand Theft Astro

What do you think you’ll read next?

My next book should be Starter Villain by John Scalzi and my next audiobook should be Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree (Narrator).

Starter VillainBlank SpaceBookshops & Bonedust

Are you reading anything good?

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