Dedication's what you need: the 2025 reading challenge thread

[imposs1904]

1. "Midnight and Blue" - Ian Rankin. Excellent as ever

I was a bit underwhelmed. I read Rebus books at this point 'cos I've always read them and I always will. I thought the original Malcolm Fox series of novels were really promising, and I was a bit disappointed when Rankin brought back Rebus and his John Martyn LPs.

 

[imposs1904]

1/9 W. B. Yeats, A Packet for Ezra Pound. More a booklet than a book, but hey, it was published as a stand-alone volume.

As long as it has an ISBN number.

 

[hitmouse]

1/60 - Susie Dent - Death by Definition

2/60 - Emily St. John Mandel - Sea of Tranquillity (BC)*

*Book club

That was a book club read for me last year (well, just checked and it was actually 2023) as well, was a good one I thought.

 

[QueenOfGoths]

I was a bit underwhelmed. I read Rebus books at this point 'cos I've always read them and I always will. I thought the original Malcolm Fox series of novels were really promising, and I was a bit disappointed when Rankin brought back Rebus and his John Martyn LPs.

I agree, I liked the Malcolm Fox novels and it is a shame Ian Rankin took the character in the direction he did but I do like Rebus

 

[lazythursday]

Going to try to join in with this for the first time ever. I read a fair bit, but not consistently - I'll binge then forget about it for months. This year determined to read more and more variety.

1. A Death in the Family (My Struggle book 1) - Karl Ove Knausgaard

Have been vaguely aware of this controversial six volume autobiographical work for a while, but it's completely not the sort of thing I usually read. But really glad I did, it's an incredible piece of work, you find yourself completely inhabiting the mind of Knausgaard, and it veers from utter banality to moments that are deeply profound. And the aftermath of his father's death is some of the grimmest yet also bleakly funny writing I've ever read. I imagine people either love or hate this though.

 

[QueenOfGoths]

1. "Midnight and Blue" - Ian Rankin

2. "The Blackbird" - Tim Weaver. Slightly pushing the believability at times but very, very readable

 

[marshall]

1/70+
Ravens – George Dawes Green
A couple of low-life scumbags travelling through small-town Georgia overhear that a local family has just won $300m in a lottery…

2/70+
Gabriel’s Moon – William Boyd
Classic Boyd, travel writer in early 60s Cold War Europe is subtly recruited by British intelligence…

3/70+
The Devil Himself – Peter Farris
Deep dark Southern Noir, trafficked teen girl, grizzled moonshiner, narcotics, out in the boonies, not for the faint-hearted…

 

[May Kasahara]

1. Alex Michaelides - The silent patient.

2. Kit Whitfield - Bareback. Another excellent entry in the canon of werewolf novels.

 

[Voley]

I read nothing but travel guides last year so I've made a better start this year already:

1. Knife - Salman Rushdie. Most powerful bit of writing I've come across in a long while. A memoir about the attempt on his life that is ultimately about love. Jaw-dropping in places, a little indulgent in others, but an incredible book.

 

[Steel Icarus]

I tend to read last thing at night so sometimes get very little reading done before sleep. Going to try and make time for more this year.

1. World Prehistory - the basics - Brian M. Fagan and Nadia Durrani

 

[Me76]

1/45 The Cheat Sheet, Sarah Adams - hc

hc - hard copy
dl - dens library
k - kindle
g - google