Showing posts with label TBR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TBR. Show all posts

Wednesday, 1 February 2023

#bookreview: Storm Front (The Dresden Files) | Jim Butcher

Storm Front (The Dresden Files, #1)Storm Front by Jim Butcher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I didn't want to do anything over CNY so I read this instead.

I got this like a million years ago (I cannot remember which book sale lol) mostly because someone had said that the Dresden Files were a good read. And then I procrastinated because, you know, everything else is a good read. And if I ended up liking it going in, that would be a hefty investment because there are like what, 10+ books in the series? and I only have the one book...

Anyway, it was...okay? Like a crime procedural/thriller but with magic and supernatural creatures/events. Except that Harry Dresden was kind of annoying and rather useless and hopeless. It doesn't help that there are very slight hints about his "tragic background" but hardly anything is revealed in this book, so you don't really feel any sympathy for him either.

I posted this on socmed and immediately got the "you must give him a chance! It gets better in books 5 (or whatever)" And I'm just thinking...no? Like, no one else gives other writers a chance if their first book wasn't great, so eh, whatever. (I'm also thinking that publishing must have been much simpler in the way back when, because similarly, if I'd started on Terry Pratchett with The Colour of Magic I would never have read any of the Discworld books.)

Maybe the later books are a good read, but this one was just okay.

View all my reviews

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This was January's stretch goal for the 2023 Booktempter's TBR reduction challenge! (Read in January, but scheduled for later)

Wednesday, 4 January 2023

The 2023 Booktempter’s #TBR reduction challenge booklist!

Since I've got a hefty TBR and Matt over at Runalong the Shelves is doing a TBR reduction challenge, I figured why not?

Because many of my books are still in boxes after the moves (in 2019 and 2020, ha!!), I'm restricting the books even further to the current 3 open boxes and 1 shelf of unread books, plus unread ebooks on my Kindle. 

The idea is that once I clear these boxes and the shelf, I can move on to the next unopened box. And work from there until there are no more boxes clogging up my office. (Will that actually happen??? Probably not in the next year or so). 

So, here are the books I've lined up so far. I may not end up doing the stretch goals because I DO also have e-ARCS to review and I try not to post more than 4 reviews a month. I also don't think I have the time to read more than that.

I'll be linking the books to their Goodreads page here first, and then updating the links to my review post once I've read them. 


JANUARY: End to end temptation

  • Newest book in Mount TBR = Nusantara: A Sea of Tales by Heidi Shamsuddin. This is the last book I remember buying. Could be wrong, but eh. Review: 25/1.
  • Stretch goal: Oldest book in Mount TBR = Storm Front by Jim Butcher. Not sure if it's really the oldest, but it's from a BBW sale that's coming up to a decade ago so I figure it counts. Review: 1/2.

FEBRUARY: Short steps

MARCH: Fresh starts

APRIL: Open and Shut Case

  • Standalone = Under the Pendulum Sun by Jeannette Ng. Just because it's in the box. Review: 19/4.
  • Stretch goal: finish the last book in a series in Mount TBR = huh, idk. Most of my unfinished series' are stuck in one of the unopened boxes. This isn't technically the "last book" in a series, but I figure Snakewood by Adrian Selby should fit somewhat because I read The Winter Road without reading this one and they're somewhat connected?
MAY: Crowning Glory?
  • A book about revolution or a change of those in power = I'm going to put The Old Man's War by John Scalzi as a placeholder here though I don't really want to start a new series without the subsequent books, because well, it's been in the box for a while now too. Review: 17/5. Huh, not so much revolution, but just war. Eh, whatever. 
  • Stretch goal: A tale with a member of a royal household in a leading role = The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald. Didn't write a full review on the blog, but it's up on Goodreads here.

JUNE: long reading days or longest nights

  • The largest tale on Mount TBR = The Neverending Story by Michael Ende. I cannot remember if I've ever read this before or if I only remember the story from watching the movie, but this is a pretty long one. Is it the longest? idk. Review: 28/6
  • Stretch goal: The shortest novel in your pile = Well, the Goodreads page says it's a short novel (163 pages) so I guess Songs in the Night by Laura Frances. Review: 26/7

JULY: Holidays are coming!

  • The author who lives the furthest from you on the globe = The Princess Bride by William Goldman. Mostly because USA is further than the UK (from Malaysia), and I feel like I should get around to reading this. Review: 6/7 (because I finished reading it on the way to USA lol!! And it's currently Weds here, but Thurs on the laptop)
  • Stretch goal: A tale with an empire featuring heavily in it = Maybe The King's Sword by C.J. Brightley unless something else comes up. Don't know if it's exactly empire. Am open to suggestions. Review: 19/7.
AUGUST: Holiday treats
  • Free read! = Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan. Mostly because I met the author at SRFC and got the book signed so I really should read it. Review: 9/8
  • Stretch goal: A translated work / a character on holiday = I might go with Muara by Pauline Fan, (ed), Badrul Hisham Ismail (ed), Izzudin Ramli (ed) and Hafiz Hamzah (ed) on this. Not exactly translated, but a mix of works in English & Malay. Changed my mind and read The Epic of Bidasari and other tales instead. Review: 13/9
SEPTEMBER: Seven deadly tempts
  • A book linked to one of the seven deadly sins = Fatal Greed by John W. Mefford, just because it has "greed" in the title. DNFed because I don't really like it. So I read Lust by Mike Wells instead, which was kind of 1/3 of a book (so I guess a Novella?). Review on Goodreads.
  • Stretch goal: An author who has published more than seven booksSet in Darkness by Ian Rankin. Finished reading this, added a star rating, but will be skipping the review. 
OCTOBER: Spooky season cometh
  • A book with a spooky or dark theme: Hantu Macabre by Jill Girardi. Review: 20/10.
  • Stretch goal: A book connected to nighttime in some way = Apparently, I have previously downloaded a book called Midnight Marriage by Lucinda Brant. I have just read the summary and I have no idea why I have it on my kindle but okay! We shall find out!!! Edit 15/12: I read this, left a star review, but not going to do a blog review. 
NOVEMBER: Small press, big stories

  • A book published by a small/indie press = The Girl with Ghost Eyes by M. H. Boroson. Published by Talos Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing. I'm gonna cheat on this one and replace it with Wings of Truth by Aaron DeMott, published by Onicranium Dragon Books so that I can merge my reading list. (Cheat because it was just published on 1 Oct 2023 and I won an ebook copy in a giveaway lol). Review: 15/11
  • Stretch goal: A book where peace is the end result = Huh, how would I know this if I haven't read it? I'm gonna assume that Steampunk Cleopatra by Thaddeus Thomas is going to end in peace. lol Also open to suggestions for this one.
DECEMBER: Don't forget to say thank you
  • A book someone else gifted you = In Defence of Doubt by Val Webb. My sister sent this to me from Australia last year.  31/12 update: Ended up reading a bunch of novellas from Bookiut, does that count as books someone else gifted me, since they were given to me at GTLF? In that case, I guess this review.
  • Stretch goal: A wintry-based tale = Umm maybe The Satanic Verses by Salman Rushdie, since the blurb starts "Just before dawn one winter's morning..." I'd love to read The Winter's Tale, which I know I own, but I just don't know which box it's in, so it's not in the scope, lol. 


I'll probably update the list further on in the year if I decide that something else in the box/kindle fits better. Or if I cave and open another TBR box. 

Friday, 15 June 2018

Down the TBR hole

Time to kinda go down the TBR hole again. I found it off one of the blogs I've been following sporadically, and since my "to read" shelf on Goodreads now stands at 444, it might be time to pare it down a little.



So yeah, it works like this:
  • Go to your goodreads to-read shelf. 
  • Order on ascending date added. 
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 (or even more!) if you’re feeling adventurous) books. Of course if you do this weekly, you start where you left off the last time. 
  • Read the synopses of the books 
  • Decide: keep it or should it go? 

Picking up from where I stopped the last time:

The Silence of the Lambs  (Hannibal Lecter, #2)The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris

There's a killer on the loose who knows that beauty is only skin deep, and a trainee investigator who's trying to save her own hide. The only man that can help is locked in an asylum. But he's willing to put a brave face on — if it will help him escape.As famous and classic as this one is... I don't think I'm really that interested in it.

Verdict: Delete


EnchantmentEnchantment by Orson Scott Card

In Enchantment, Card works his magic as never before, transforming the timeless story of Sleeping Beauty into an original fantasy brimming with romance and adventure.

I probably added this when I added everything of Card's. Still, it sounds pretty interesting. I'd like to read it, but I won't go so far as to start tracking it down, so I guess I'll keep it off the TBR for now.

Verdict: Delete


Red Prophet (Tales of Alvin Maker, #2)Red Prophet by Orson Scott Card

Come here to the magical America that might have been and marvel as the tale of Alvin Maker unfolds. The seventh son of a seventh son is a boy of mysterious powers, and he is waking to the mysteries of the land and its own chosen people.




Prentice Alvin (Tales of Alvin Maker, #3)Prentice Alvin by Orson Scott Card

The Tales of Alvin Maker series continues in volume three, Prentice Alvin. Young Alvin returns to the town of his birth, and begins his apprenticeship with Makepeace Smith, committing seven years of his life in exchange for the skills and knowledge of a blacksmith. But Alvin must also learn to control and use his own talent, that of a Maker, else his destiny will be unfulfilled.


Alvin Journeyman (Tales of Alvin Maker, #4)Alvin Journeyman by Orson Scott Card

Alvin Miller, a gifted seventh son of a seventh son, utilizes his skills as a Maker to help create a brighter future for America, but his task is further challenged by his ancient enemy, the Unmaker, who plots to end Alvin's life.

Doing this as a set because I have read book 1 and skipped to like book 5 or something, because I couldn't find these three. I probably have them in one of my shelves by now (not sure if all, but at least some) so I guess I should get round to reading this set soon just so I can mark it as read.

Verdict: Keep all three!


The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (Millennium, #3)The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

The stunning third and final novel in Stieg Larsson’s internationally best-selling trilogy

Lisbeth Salander—the heart of Larsson’s two previous novels—lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge—against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

Once upon a time, she was a victim. Now Salander is fighting back.


I also see the rest of the series in my TBR and I actually bought the set a while back with the intention of reading it. When... is just the issue here.

Verdict: Keep all three!


A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, #1)A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister and supernatural forces are massing beyond the kingdom's protective Wall. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the land they were born to. Sweeping from a land of brutal cold to a distant summertime kingdom of epicurean plenty, here is a tale of lords and ladies, soldiers and sorcerers, assassins and bastards, who come together in a time of grim omens. 
Here an enigmatic band of warriors bear swords of no human metal; a tribe of fierce wildlings carry men off into madness; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to win back his throne; and a determined woman undertakes the most treacherous of journeys. Amid plots and counter-plots, tragedy and betrayal, victory and terror, the fate of the Starks, their allies, and their enemies hangs perilously in the balance, as each endeavors to win that deadliest of conflicts: the game of thrones.

A little ambivalent about this. It was never high on my to-read list, but you know, it's one of the "big names." Kinda.

Verdict: undecided.


Water for ElephantsWater for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Beautifully written, Water for Elephants is illuminated by a wonderful sense of time and place. It tells a story of a love between two people that overcomes incredible odds in a world in which even love is a luxury that few can afford.

This got on my list because of the nanowrimo thing. Without that link, I don't know if it will really pique my interest.

Verdict: Delete? Maybe? Yeah, I guess.

AAANNNDDD my TBR is still at 441. LOL