[pdurrant]

2016 Challenges:

1. To finish 2016 with my TBR below 700
2. To read my 75 unread ebooks bought before 1st July 2008
3. To spend no more than £20 per month on average

1 is going to be hard, but will be helped by 2 and 3.
3. is going to be modified, since I'll be spending my entire unallocated budget in Jan/Feb using up ebook credits. So once I'm out of budget I'm going to still allow myself ONE discretionary ebook purchase per month.



Books read in 2016

1. December 30th, 2015: Lucifer's Crown by Lillian Stewart Carl - £4.53 - 3/5 - 358pp
   OK, but not wonderful for me. I couldn't suspend my disbelief
2. January 2nd: Lock In by John Scalzi - £1.99 - 4/5 - 212pp
   A fun mystery, but I found the villain's motivation hard to believe.
3. January 3rd: David Mitchell: Back Story by David Mitchell - £1.99 - 4/5 - 360pp
   An entertaining memoir.
4. January 4th: A Slip of the Keyboard by Terry Pratchett - Gift - 4/5 - 381pp
   A wonderful collection of non-fiction short works
5. January 7th: Grantville Gazette #63 edited by Bjorn Hasseler - £3.00 - 4/5 - 159pp
   A nice collection of stories, and one splendid one.
6. January 7th: 1635: A Parcel of Rogues by Eric Flint and Andrew Dennis - £6.61 - 4/5 - 385pp
   A good book in the series.
7. January 10th: Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor - Free - 4/5 - 255pp
   An interesting start to the series. I'm glad I've got some more.
8. January 12th: Evermore by Modean Moon - £2.67 - 2/5 - 269pp
   Well written, but not a genre I want to read
9. January 13th: F&SF, January/February 2016 edited by C. C. Finlay - £1.98 - 4/5 - 243pp
   A good issue.
10. January 13th: Information is Beautiful by David McCandless - Gift - 3/5 - 250pp
    Interesting and pretty, but I'll take xkcd's infographics any day
11. January 14th: Skin Deep by Brandon Sanderson - £0.99 - 5/5 - 128pp
    Great fun. I hope he'll write another Legion book.
12. January 15th: A Cruise to Die For by Charlotte & Aaron Elkins - £3.98 - 5/5 - 241pp
    A most enjoyable mystery and characters
13. January 16th: Whispers Under Ground by Ben Aaronovitch - £1.99 - 5/5 - 279pp
    An excellent third book in the series.
14. January 18th: Sharpe's Eagle by Bernard Cornwall - £0.99 - 5/5 - 249pp
    Excellent. The first published.
15. January 19th: The Road to the Rim by A. Bertram Chandler - £1.91 - 3/5 - 117pp
16. January 19th: To Prime the Pump by A. Bertram Chandler - £1.91 - 3/5 - 148pp
    Enjoyable first two books in the John Grimes series.
17. January 20th: Ventus by Karl Schroeder - Free - 5/5 - 560pp
    Excellent SF. Highly recommended.
18. January 21st: Analog SF, March 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 191pp
    A good issue
19. January 23rd: The End of all Things by John Scalzi - £1.75 - 4/5 - 266pp
    Good, but not great.
20. January 24th: Asimov's SF, February 2016 by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 4/5 - 190pp
    A good issue. Two excellent stories and I didn't hate any of them.
21. January 25th: What If? by Randall Munroe - Gift - 5/5 - 304pp
    Excellent. A really fun read.
22. January 26th: Valour's Choice by Tanya Huff - £0.99 - 3/5 - 419pp
    Fairly good MilSF
23. January 27th: A Symphony of Echoes by Jodi Taylor - £1.99 - 3/5 - 478pp
    Close to brilliant, but a miss is as good as a mile
24. January 29th: Laugh Lines by Ben Bova - £2.50 - 2/5 - 468pp
    Two novel-length satires (TV and Publishing) and a few shorts. Disapppointing. Mostly abandoned.
25. January 29th: The Art Whisperer by Charlotte and Aaron Elkins - £1.00 - 4/5 - 228pp
    Excellent art mystery. Most enjoyable.
26. January 31st: Moon Flower by James P Hogan - £2.50 - 1/5 - 316pp
    [ABANDONED The incessant info dumps about the characters was too much]
27. January 31st: The Hard Way Up by A Bertram Chandler - £1.91 - 4/5 - 137pp
    Fun collection of short stories about Lieutenant Grimes
28. February 1st: Earthweb by Marc Stiegler - £2.50 - 5/5 - 242pp
    An excellent near-future alien 'invasion' story.
29. February 2nd: The Black Throne by Fred Saberhagen and Roger Zelazny - £2.50 - 1/5 - 185pp
    A case of two great writers not enhancing but detracting. I'm surprised I finished it.
30. February 4th: Lightspeed, December 2015 - £0.31 - 2/5 - 258pp
    Most of the stories were not to my taste
31. February 5th: The Evolution Man by Roy Lewis - Paper - 3/5 - 214pp
    Fun, but not great. Everything except farming in one generation!
32. February 6th: Sidhe-Devil by Aaron Allston - £2.67 - 4/5 - 354pp
    A enjoyable above-average other-world fantasy.
33. February 8th: Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold - £5.99 - 5/5 - 303pp
    As usual, an excellent book in all ways.
34. February 9th: The Wizardry Quested by Rick Cook- £4.28 - 4/5 - 255pp
    An enjoyable continuation of the programming wizards tale
35. February 10th: Oath of Fealty by Niven & Pornelle - £2.50 - 4/5 - 256pp
    Exciting look at an arcology and its inhabitants and enemies
36. February 12: Leviathan by Jack Campbell - £0.99 - 2/5 - 252pp
    My enjoyment spoilt by a scientific error
37. February 14th: Broken Home by Ben Aaronovitch - £1.99 - 5/5 - 250pp
    Excellent, as always
38. February 15th: Wonderful by Jill Barnet - Free - 1/5 - 258pp
    [ABANDONED. Also discarded the other two in the trilogy]
39. February 16th: A Question of Time by Fred Saberhagen - £1.55 - 3/5 - ???pp
    Interesting time stuff, but an unsatisfying ending.
40. February 17th: St Mungo's Robin by Pat McIntosh - £0.84 - 5/5 - 238pp
    This series gets better. Excellent Mediaeval Glasgow mysteries
41. February 17th: The Puppet Master by John Dalmas - £2.67 - 4/5 - 389pp
    Excellent SF, or Fantasy if you don't count ESP in SF
42. February 19th: Deryni Tales by Katherine Kurtz - Paper - 4/5 - 288pp
    A good collection of author-approved fan fiction.
43. February 19th: Dragonheart by Todd McCaffrey - £1.69 - 3/5 - 438pp
    Competent, but not special.
44. February 22nd: Spellbound by Larry Correia - £1.33 - 4/5 - 403pp
    Excellent fun in a magical alternate Earth
45. February 24th: Deeds of the Disturber by Elizabeth Peters - £0.99 - 4/5 - 309pp
    Another excellent adventure - in London this time.
46. February 26th: On Tuesday the Rabbi Saw Red by Harry Kemelman - £1.45 - 5/5 - 257pp
    Rabbi Small is wonderful.
47. February 27th: Spark Joy by Marie Kondo - Paper - 3/5 - 304pp
    A bit mystical, but interesting. How to tidy.
48. February 28th: Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie - £0.63 - 4/5 - 205pp
    Hercule Poirot works it out in the end.
49. February 29th: Séance for a Vampire by Fred Saberhagen - £1.21 - 4/5 - 229pp
    Nicely done, but the ebook cuts off before the end of the epilogue!
50. March 1st: King Kelson's Bride by Katherine Kurtz - £4.04 - 5/5 - 453pp
    Most enjoyable.
51. March 4th: Grantville Gazette #64 edited by Bjorn Hasseler - £3.00 - 4/5 - 154pp
    The usual enjoyable mix of stories in the 1632 universe.
52. March 6th: Analog SF. APril 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 191pp
    A very good collection of short fiction
53. March 7th: Sharpe's Gold by Bernard Cornwall - £0.99 - 5/5 - 228pp
    Excellent, as expected.
54. March 9th: A Wizard Alone by Diane Duane - £1.83 - 5/5 - 205pp
    Another very good tale
55. March 10th: Asimov's SF, March 2016 by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 4/5 - 169pp
    A good edition.
56. Sometime this year: An Excellent Mystery by Ellis Peters - £0.99 - 5/5 - 239pp
    I missed recording this at the time, but certainly read sometime this year. Excellent
57. March 13th: Royal Escape by Georgette Heyer - £1.20 - 3/5 - 355pp
    An OK historical novel, but a bit dull for me.
58. March 17th: Broken Cycle by A. Bertram Chandler - £1.91 - 3/5 - 131pp
    Showing its age a little in its treatment of women
59. Sometime this year: An Honest Answer by Neil Gaiman - £0.58 - 2/5 - 13pp
    Three short graphical stories. Not really my kind of thing.
60. March 18th: Lightspeed Magazine #68 edited by John Joseph Adams - £0.31 - 4/5 - 268pp
    Some good short stories and an excellent novella.
61. March 19th: Star Flight by Andre Norton - £2.50 - 3/5 - 346pp
    Pretty good omnibus of two related novels.
62. March 22nd: F&SF, March/April 2016 edited by C. C. Finlay - £1.98 - 4/5 - 249pp
    A good collection of stories - I liked them all.
63. March 24th: Warbound by Larry Correia - £1.50 - 5/5 - 385pp
    Excellent conclusion to the trilogy.
64. March 28th: Spartan Planet by A. Bertram Chandler - £1.91 - 3/5 - 138pp
    Very much showing its age. Not a patch on Ethan of Athos.
65. March 30th: Analog SF. May 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 192pp
    Another good collection of stories
66. April 2nd: Asimov's SF, April/May 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £3.98 - 4/5 - 278pp
    Another good issue.
67. April 4th: Lightspeed Magazine #69 edited by John Joseph Adams - £0.31 - 3/5 - 258pp
    An average issue.
68. April 6th: A Just Determination by Jack Campbell - £0.99 - 2/5 - 230pp
    [ABANDONED: He should have set it on a US Navy (water) ship.[/INDENT][Also discarded 8 other Jack Campbell space operas]
69. April 6th: Raising Caine by Charles E. Gannon - £2.04 - 3/5 - 563pp
    Somehow I never really got hooked by this one. I don't know why.
70. April 10th: Riddle of the Seven Realms by Lyndon Hardy - Paper - 4/5 - 403pp
    An interesting continuation of Master of the Five Magics and Secret of the Sixth Magic
71. April 13th: The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks - £0.99 - 3/5 - 521pp
    OK, but only OK. Rather derivative and predicatable.
72. April 18th: The Drowning World by Alan Dean Foster - £2.75 - 4/5 - 259pp
    Nice to see the Humanx Commonwealth from a different viewpoint.
73. April 21st: Lightspeed Magazine #70 edited by John Joseph Adams - £0.31 - 4/5 - 249pp
    A good issue.
74. April 23rd: Quantico by Greg Bear - £4.33 - 2/5 - 776pp
    Near-future techno-thriller that I din't enjoy
75. April 27th: The 4.50 from Paddington by Agatha Christie - £0.63 - 5/5 - 205pp
    An excellent Miss Marple mystery.
76. April 28th: No Wind of Blame by Georgette Heyer - £1.20 - 5/5 - 245pp
    Wonderful 20th Century murder mystery
77. April 30th: Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch - £0.99 - 5/5 - 255pp
    Excellent police procedural/urban fantasy
78. May 1st: The Big Black Mark by A. Bertram Chandler - £1.91 - 2/5 - 240pp
    [ABANDONED, and 17 others.]
79. May 2nd: Carnifex by Tom Kratman - £2.50 - 1/5 - 628pp
    [ABANDONED. Approval of torture]
80. May 3rd: The Secret of Sinharat by Leigh Brackett - £1.67 - 2/5 - 81pp
    [ABANDONED, too Edgar Rice Burroughs for me.]
81. May 3rd: Grantville Gazette 65 edited by Bjorn Hasseler - £3.18 - 4/5 - 160pp
    Very good, as usual
82. May 4th: Analog SF, June 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 188pp
    Also a good issue.
83. May 6th: Asimov's SF, June 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 4/5 - 170pp
    Another good collection of stories.
84. May 7th: Thraxas and the Oracle by Martin Scott - £2.99 - 5/5 - 167pp
    Thraxas continues to drink, eat and solve puzzles. While at war.
85. May 9th: F&SF, May/June 2016 edited by C. C. Finlay - £1.98 - 4/5 - 244pp
    I think I like Finlay's story choices more than the previous editor.
86. May 10th: A Feral Darkness by Doranna Durgin - Free - 3/5 - 279pp
    OK, but a bit more to the romance end of things than I prefer.
87. May 11th: Berseker by Steven Jordan - £0.55 - 2/5 - 169pp
    It was OK. A bit laboured. I didn't believe the background.
88. May 12th: Ring of Fire IV edited by Eric Flint - £2.12 - 4/5 - 478pp
    Would have been 5/5 without the Virginia DeMarce story.
89. May 14th: The Right to Arm Bears by Gordon R Dickson - £2.67 - 4/5 - 347pp
    Most enjoyable. Although the title is odd.
90. May 18th: Sharpe's Escape by Bernard Cornwall - £0.99 - 5/5 - 311pp
    Another splendid adventure in the Peninsular War
91. May 20th: The Steerswoman by Rosemary Kirstein - £reread - 4/5 - 228pp
    Remains very good indeed on a re-read.
92. May 22nd: Anno Dracula by Kim Newman - £0.99 - 3/5 - 479pp
    Fun enough to read the next one.
93. May 24th: Skylock by Paul Kozerski - £2.67 - 2/5 - 262pp
    [ABANDONED Too many impossible/implausible events]
94. May 25th: A Girl Corrupted by the Internet is the Summoned Hero?! by Eliezer Yudkowsky - £0.99 - 4/5 - 74pp
    A fun rational examination of a fantasy trope.
95. May 25th: The Spanish Bride by Georgette Heyer - £2.92 - 4/5 - 360pp
    The end of the Peninsuar war to Waterloo. Good stuff.
96. May 27th: Last First Snow by Max Gladstone - £1.52 - 5/5 - 344pp
    Fascinating magic, good characters. Great stuff.
97. May 31st: Serenity by Joss Whedon & Keith R. A. DeCandido - £2.31 - 3/5 - 179pp
    An enjoyable novelisation of the movie
98. June 2nd: The Raven in the Foregate by Ellis Peters - £0.99 - 4/5 - 232pp
    Very good as usual.
99. June 3rd: Flavia Albia #1 by Lindsey Davis - £0.99 - 4/5 - 329pp
    A good start, with occasional infodumps
100. June 4th: Hardwired by Walter Jon Williams - £0.99 - 2/5 - 300pp
     [ABANDONED. Didn't grab me at all.]
101. June 7th: Analog SF, July/August 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £3.98 - 5/5 - 329pp
     A most enjoyable issue. I really like Quachri's taste (except in poetry).
102. June 10th: Death's Bright Day by David Drake - £2.57 - 5/5 - 300pp
     Excellent MilSF
103. June 13th: Asimov's SF, July 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 4/5 - 169pp
     A good month.
104. June 15th: Hell's Foundations Quiver by David Weber - £1.52 - 3/5 - 1053pp
     It was OK. But the names, the names!!!!
105. June 20th: Deja Dead by Kethy Reichs - £0.99 - 3/5 - 404pp
     Good if a bit explicitly gory in parts.
106. June 25th: Crazy, VA by Shannon Hill - Free - 3/5 - 163pp
     Cozy, but not too much mystery, and cat bites aren't treated seriously enough!
107. June 27th: Black Tide Rising by John Ringo et al. - £2.57 - 4/5 - 257pp
     Excellent spin-off stories for Ringo's Zombie Apocalypse
108. June 28th: Through Fire by Sarah Hoyt - £2.12 - 4/5 - 303pp
     A good continuation of the story.
109. June 29th: The Sword of the South by David Weber - £2.12 - 4/5 - 516pp
     Very good. I'm looking forward to the next.
110. July 4th: Grantville Gazette #66 edited by Bjorn Hasseler - £3.18 - 4/5 - 163pp
     Would be 5* but for Viginiga deMarce's opaque story.
111. July 5th: F&SF, July/August 2016 edited by C. C. Finlay - £1.98 - 4/5 - 239pp
     C C Finlay continues to pick stories I like
112. July 5th: The Mouse on the Moon by Leonard Wibberley - £0.99 - 4/5 - 147pp
     Great fun, let down a little by the science wittering, but then, that's not really the point.
113. July 6th: Three Faces of Asprin by Robert Asprin - £2.57 - 4/5 - 519pp
     Three completely different settings, three good stories.
114. July 8th: Mercury's Light by Leigh Brackett - £1.91 - 2/5 - 108pp
     [ABANDONED. Early to mid-20th century SF doesn't work for me]
115. July 12th: Master and Commander by Patrick O'Brian - £2.99 - 4/5 - 354pp
     And an excellent start to the series it is. I'm looking forward to more.
116. July 15th: Search for the Star Stones by Andre Norton - £2.50 - 3/5 - 375pp
     OK. The ending was a bit naff.
117. July 19th: Wishing on a Star by Jody Lynn Nye - Free - 4/5 - 238pp
     Very good modern fantasy with a good sequel
118. July 21st: Analog SF, September 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 5/5 - 193pp
     An Excellent Issue
119. July 22nd: The Girl in the Spider's Web by David Lagergrantz - Free - 3/5 - 151pp
     Not up to the earlier books.
120. July 25th: The Chronothon by Nathan Van Coops - £0.99 - 4/5 - 501pp
     Not perfect, but a very readable time travel story.
121. July 27th: In Times Like These by Nathan Van Coops - Free - 4/5 - 351pp
     An interesting take on time travel
122. July 29th: Asimov's SF, August 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 3/5 - 170pp
     An average issue
123. July 30th: Undercity by Catherine Asaro - £2.12 - 5/5 - 273pp
     An excellent story set in her Ruby Universe
124. August 2nd: Redliners, 2nd Edition by David Drake - £0.02 - 4/5 - 6pp
     Just the afterword, as I've read the book before.
125. August 2nd: 1636: The Chronicles of Dr Gribbleflotz - £2.80 - 5/5 - 421pp
     Excellent.
126. August 4th: Time Gate by Robert Silverberg - £2.80 - 4/5 - 170pp
     Impausible but fun. More authors than just Silverberg.
127. August 5th: Soldiers Out Of Time by Steve White - £2.80 - 4/5 - 247pp
     A decent continuation.
128. August 7th: Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge by Larry Correia - £2.80 - 4/5 - 300pp
     A most enjoyable romp.
129. August 8th: Godspeed by Charles Sheffield - Free - 4/5 - 310pp
     A good villain, but more of a YA book than I was expecting.
130. August 10th: The Last Camel Died at Noon by Elizabeth Peters - £0.84 - 5/5 - 348pp
     Great fun.
131. August 12th: Death du Jour by Kathy Reichs - £0.99 - 3/5 - 346pp
     OK.
132. August 14th: The Rough Collier by Pat McIntosh - £0.84 - 4/5 - 241pp
     A good mystery, and I like the main characters
133. August 15th: Tale of the Fox by Harry Turtledove - £2.67 - 4/5 - 608pp
     Most enjoyable, and doesn't require the earlier books to have been read.
134. August 19th: Penric and the Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold - £2.49 - 5/5 - 122pp
     An excellent little tale
135. August 20th: Beyond the Doors of Death by Robert Silverberg and Damien Broderick - Free - 2/5 - 199pp
     Not to my taste.
136. August 21st: Empress of Light by James C Glass - £2.67 - 2/5 - 248pp
     Disappointing, with no sense of peril at all.
137. August 22nd: Analog SF, October 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 187pp
     A good issue.
138. August 24th: The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu - £0.99 - 3/5 - 373pp
     More than one impossible thing, and a bit info-dumpy. OK.
139. August 25th: Asimov's SF, September 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 4/5 - 164pp
     An average issue. Nothing too memorable.
140. August 26th: A Second Chance by Jodi Taylor - £1.94 - 2/5 - 245pp
     Just not good enough, really.
141. August 28th: Limbo System by Rick Cook - £2.12 - 3/5 - 259pp
     A bit of a slow start, and patchy in places, but quite fun overall.
142. August 31st: Revelation by C J Sansom - £2.51 - 5/5 - 496pp
     Excellent Tudor London Mystery
143. September 3rd: Grantville Gazette #67 - £3.18 - 4/5 - 157pp
     A quick, fun read as usual.
144. September 4th: Silence by Mercedes Lackey - £3.72 - 3/5 - 317pp
     Not a fun as I'd expected
145. September 6th: The Road to Hell by David Weber - £3.72 - 3/5 - 684pp
     A bit confusing
146. September 9th: The Year's Best Military & Adventure SF 2015 edited by David Afsharirad - £2.57 - 3/5 - 254pp
     OK, but a mixed bag.
147. September 11th: Alliance of Equals by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller - £1.86 - 5/5 - 325pp
     Excellent, as always
148. September 12th: Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny - £1.40 - 4/5 - 143pp
     Still very enjoyable
149. September 13th: The Guns of Avalon by Roger Zelazny - £1.40 - 4/5 - 171pp
     I'm now impatient for the others to be published in ebook
150. September 14th: Seveneves by Neal Stephenson - £0.99 - 3/5 - 693pp
     OK, and fun, but I couldn't swallow the second part.
151. September 21st: Enemies at Home by Lindsey Davis - £0.99 - 4/5 - 327pp
     Most enjoyable.
152. September 22nd: The Dawn of Amber by John Gregory Betancourt - £0.58 - 4/5 - 193pp
     Naturally derivative, but fun.
153. September 23rd: Chaos and Amber by John Gregory Betancourt - £0.58 - 4/5 - 232pp
     Still fun, on to the next!
154. September 24th: Rule Amber by John Gregory Betancourt - £0.58 - 4/5 - 232pp
     Yes, still fun, but now that's enough for a bit.
155. September 26th: Monday the Rabbi Took Off - £4.76 - 5/5 - 316pp
     An excellent mystery set mainly in Israel.
156. September 26th: A Wizard's Holiday by Diane Duane - £1.83 - 4/5 - 278pp
     A odd resolution to one of the plots. But fun.
157. September 29th: Analog SF, November 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 183pp
     A good issue.
158. September 30th: Asimov SF, October-November 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £3.98 - 2/5 - 286pp
     A Halloween Fantasy Issue. Not to my taste. I liked only one of the stories.
159. October 3rd: Artifact by Gregory Benford - £4.07 - 3/5 - 391pp
     It was OK. Oddly, the ending was more the ending of a romance novel than an SF novel.
160. October 5th: The Bloody Red Baron by Kim Newman - £0.99 - 2/5 - 621pp
     [ABANDONED No, I just can't suspend my disbelief enough.]
161. October 7th: Venus Prime by Paul Preuss - £0.58 - 3/5 - 242pp
     OK. I think I'm interested enough to read the next one sometime.
162. October 9th: F&SF, September 2016 edited by C. C. Finlay - £1.98 - 3/5 - 258pp
     OK, but I only like some of David Gerrold's stuff.
163. October 12th: Roman Blood by Steven Saylor - £1.49 - 4/5 - 374pp
     An interesting mystery based on an actual ancient Roman case.
164. October 15th: Beyond Infinity by Gregory Benford - £3.57 - 1/5 - 325pp
     [ABANDONED - I was just bored.]
165. October 18th: Victoriaby Daisy Goodwin. - £0.99 - 4/5 - 341pp
     A most enjoyable book, companion to the TV series, but concentrating on Victoria.
166. October 20th: Eater by Gregory Benford - £4.07 - 3/5 - 338pp
     It was OK, Great concepts, but I wasn't interested in the characters.
167. October 23rd: Galactic Games edited by Bryan Schmidt - £2.57 - 3/5 - 281pp
     A mixed bunch
168. October 25th: Wizards at War by Diane Duane - £1.83 - 3/5 - 337pp
     It was a mistake to have the menace be a form of astronomical Dark Matter
169. October 27th: Four Roads Cross by Max Gladstone - £1.56 - 5/5 - 488pp
     Another excellent novel. Gods and Magic and Lawyers!
170. October 30th: Ordeal by Innocence by Agatha Christie - £0.41 - 5/5 - 207pp
     An excellent murder mystery.
171. November 1st: Shadow of Victory by David Weber - £4.69 - 3/5 - 883pp
     Lots of recapping from another viewpoint.
172. November 4th: Penric's Mission by Lois McMaster Bujold - £3.27 - 5/5 - 144pp
     Penric and Desdemona. Wonderful.
173. November 5th: Grantville Gazette #68 - £3.18 - 4/5 - 161pp
     Most enjoyable, as usual.
174. November 6th: F&SF, November 2016 edited by C. C. Finlay - £1.98 - 3/5 - 252pp
     Some stories I loved, some I didn't like. A more mixed bag than lately.
175. November 8th: Castaway Odyssey by Eric Flint and Ryk E Spoor - £4.69 - 4/5 - 316pp
     A most enjoyable adventure
176. November 9th: At the Sign of Triumph by David Weber - £6.26 - 4/5 - 1035pp
     VERY long, but ultimately satisfying.
177. November 14th: The Gun Seller by Hugh Laurie - £0.99 - 3/5 - 285pp
     An OK thriller/comedy. Less comedy than expected.
178. November 16th: Analog SF, December 2016 edited by Trevor Quachri - £1.99 - 4/5 - 177pp
     An average issue
179. November 17th: Asimov's SF, December 2016 edited by Sheila Williams - £1.99 - 4/5 - 194pp
     An average issue
180. November 19th: Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz - £0.99 - 5/5 - 350pp
     An excellent supernatural thriller
181. November 21st: Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman - £0.99 - 4/5 - 322pp
     Good, but I prefer his longer works
182. November 24th: Rogue by Michael Z Williamson - £2.88 - 3/5 - 316pp
     And only just 3/5.
183. November 26th: Mythology 101 by Jody Lynn Nye - Free - 3/5 290pp
     A solid 3/5, but I'm not interested in the rest of the series.
184. November 28th: Old Venus edited by George R. R. Martin - £1.09 - 4/5 - 488pp
     A mixed bag, bug overall most enjoyable.
185. December 1st: The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwall - Free - 5/5 - 284pp
     Which was excellent. A coming of age story set in late 9th Century England. As with Cornwall's Sharpe, we have a fictional hero who is involved in mostly historical events.
186. December 5th: The Long Utopia by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter - £0.99 - 4/5 - 336pp
     A quick read, following the further adventures of our heroes, including some back story.
187. December 7th: Dreams from my Father by Barak Obama - £0.99 - 4/5 - 462pp
     An interesting and enjoyable memoir, covering his life , family and career up until his marriage to Michelle. Occasionally there are bits of purple prose, but nothing too awful. He very sensibly resisted the urge to edit his words when they were reissued in 2004.
188. December 13th: Necrochip by Liz Williams - Free - 1/5 - ???pp
     Disappointing short story
189. December 13th: Twelve from Tomorrow by E.C. Tubb - £0.99 - 4/5 - ???pp
     A fun mixture of SF from the 1960s. The prevalence of smoking is amusing. But the stories stand up rather well.
190. December 15th: Kindred by Octavia Butler - £0.99 - 3/5 - ???pp
     With no explanation for the Time-travel, a rather unsatisfying SF story, although it seemed very good on the reality of USA slavery
191. December 17th: Envious Casca by Georgette Heyer - £1.20 - 4/5 - 253pp
     An excellent 'modern' mystery. If only I'd studied late 19th century European history more!
192. December 22nd: Asimov's SF, Jan/Feb 2017 edited by Sheila Willliams - £3.98 - 4/5 - 310pp
     An average issue
193. December 29th: Analog SFF, Jan/Feb 2017 edited by Trevor Quachri - £3.98 - - 334pp
     

Books added to TBR in 2016

Freebies (21)
Few Are Chosen by M. T. McGuire
Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor Read
When a Child is Born by Jodi Taylor Discarded
In Times Like These by Nathan Van Coops Read
Between Two Thorns by Emma Newman
The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwall Read
A Feral Darkness by Doranna Durgin Read
Wishing on a Star by Jody Lynn Nye Read
Mouse on the Moon by Leonard Wibberley Read
Crazy, VA by Shannon Hil Read
The Girl in the Spider's Web by David Lagergrantz (Steig Larsson) Read
The Devil in the Marshalsea by Antonia Hodgson
Beyond the Doors of Death by Robert Silverberg & Damien Broderick Read
Godspeed by Charles Sheffield Read
Pursuit of a Parcel by Patricia Wentworth
Servant of the Crown mysteries by Denise Domning
The Hope That Kills by Ed James
The Shape of Silence by Stephen Leigh
Mythology 101 by Jody Lynn Nye Read
Over the Wine-Dark Sea by Harry Turtledove
Necrochip by Liz Williams

Paper Books!
The Evolution Man by Roy Lewis - £7.47 (not counted in budget)
Deryni Tales by Katherine Kurtz - £3.39 (not counted in budget)
Spark Joy by Marie Kondo - £9.09 (not counted in budget)
Riddle of the Seven Realms by Lyndon Hardy (bought ages ago)

Bought

• January (196/£153.48): Lightspeed January 2016, Grantville Gazette #63, David Mitchell: Back Story, Stranger in a Strange Land (uncut), The Eagle of the Ninth, The Silver Branch, What If? (already on TBR in paper), The Drawing of the Dark, A Cruise to Die For, 6xConfederation novels, Declare, On Stranger Tides, 5xMurdoch Mysteries, 4xValdamar Collegium, 2xElemental Masters, 1635: A Parcel of Rogues, Neuromancer, The Fuller Memorandum, The Client, Rule of Evidence, The Scandalous Duchess, H is for Hawk, 4xChronicles of St Mary's, Analog SFF March 2016, Asimov's SF February 2016, The Sorcerer's House, Ratking, Vendetta, Cabal, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, 150 buffy comics
• February (18/£47.92): Lightspeed February 2016, Mortality, Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen, The Wizardry Quested, Anniversary Day, A Short History of England,The Chronothon, 8xAurelio Zen, The Summer Book, Jamaica Inn, Mr Penumbra's 24-hour Bookstore
• March (44/£43.60): Lightspeed March 2016, Grantville Gazette #64, F&SF March 2016, 20 from Humble Bundle SF Classics, Analog SFF April 2016, Asimov's SF March 2016, 10xFalco books, A Darker Shade of Magic, Thrones Dominations, first two Harry Dresden books, The Three Body Problem, The Elfstones of Shanarra, Analog SF May 2016, Asimov's SFF April/May 2016, A Girl Corrupted by the Internet is the Summoned Hero?!
• April (30/£15.17): Lightspeed April 2016, 25xBuffy Comics, Anno Dracula, The Bloody Red Baron, Gai Jin, Dark Eden
• May (17/£33.16): Grantville Gazette #65, F&SF May 2016, Lightspeed May 2016, Analog SFF June 2016, Asimov's SF June 2016, May Baen Bundle (RoF IV, Shadow's Blade, The Sword of the South, Through Fire, Undercity, Limbo System), Crossing The Line, Thraxas and the Oracle, Our Kind of Traitor, The Ides of April, Hardwired, Last First Snow, Hell's Foundations Quiver
• June (18/£30.24): Lightspeed June 2016, Analog SFF July/August 2016, Asimov's July 2016, Enemies at Home, Baen June Bundle (Galactic Games, Three Faces of Asprin, Year's Best MilSF, Black Tide Rising, Death's Bright Day), Polychrome Futures, 8xTemperance Brennan Mysteries
• July (25/£30.80): Grantville Gazette #66, F&SF July 2016, Lightspeed July 2016, Asimov's SFF August 2016, Analog SFF September 2016, Master and Commander, 11 from StoryBundle (The Emperor's Agent, The Armor of Light, Steel Blues, Between Worlds, The Death of the Necromancer, Pillar of Fire, Lord of the Two Lands, Daughter of Mystery, The Virtuous Feats of the Indomitable Miss Trafalgar and the Erudite Lady Boone, Stag and Hound, The Orffyreus Wheel), 8 Buffy Comics
• August (14/£27.39): Analog SFF October 2016, Asimov's SF September 2016, Baen's Monthly bundle (Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge, On to the Asteroid, 1636: the Chronicles of Dr Gribbleflotz, Redliners 2nd ed, Soldiers out of Time, Time Gate), The Day the Rabbi Resigned, Alliance of Equals, Four Roads Cross, Seveneves, Penric and the Shaman, Dreams From My Father
• September (10/£27.12): F&SF September 2016, Grantville Gazette #67, Nine Princes in Amber, Guns of Avalon, The Road to Hell, Silence, Glorious Angels, Monday the Rabbi Took Off, Analog SFF November 2016, Asimov's SF October/November 2016
• October (14/£18.16) Old Venus, Roman Blood, A Perfect Spy, Girl on a Train, 8xOdd Thomas Series, Victoria, Castaway Odyssey
• November (15/£33.16) Shadow of Victory, Grantville Gazette #68, F&SF November 2016, Penric's Mission, Fragile Things, Trigger Warnings, At the Sign of Triumph, The Gun Seller, Kindred, Rogue, The Late Scholar, Calamity, Long Utopia, Analog SFF December 2016, Asimov's SF December 2016
• December (25/£43.07):People of Colo(u)r Destroy Fantasy, Living in Threes, The House of Silk, Twelve From Tomorrow. H Bean Piper Megapack, The Coming Of Wisdom, Perilous Seas, The Destiny Of The Sword, Magic Casement, Faery Lands Forlorn, Emperor And Clown, Ring Around the Sun, Way Station, Time and Again, Rats and Gargoyles, Golden Witchbreed, Grunts, Lyra Ombinus, Analog SFF January/February 2017, Asimov's SF January/February 2017, The Long Cosmos, The Bands of Mourning, Shadows of Self, Firefight, Words of Radience
  

Wishlist books (when on offer)

Spoiler:

• The Just City (& sequels)
• The Hanging Tree
• Ancillary Sword
• Ancillary Mercy
• The Shepherd's Crown
• The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine (Alexander McCall Smith)
• Dumarest Novels
• Harper Hall trilogy
• Chronicles of Amber, vol. 3 onwards
• Earthsea books

Analysis
TBR: 820
Books read: 192 (10 freebies, 3 gifts, 4 paper, 11 abandoned, 1 re-read)
Comics Read: 158
Books otherwise removed from TBR pile: 62 (3xJodi Taylor, 2xModean Moon, 4xJill Barnet, 8xJack Campbell, 17xA. Bertram Chandler, 11xLeigh Brackett, 2xEdmond Hamilton, 1xDarrell Bain, 11xSteven Lyle Jordan discarded, three previously read)

Books removed from TBR pile: 411 (1 re-read not counted)
Books added to TBR pile: 451 (including 20 freebies, 4 paper books)
Removed/Added: 0.91
Net reduction for 2016: -40

Non-free books read: 174 (including 8 abandoned)
Total cost of books read: £358.83
Average cost of books read: £2.06

Non-free comics read: 158 (including 8 abandoned)
Total cost of comics read: £77.86
Average cost of comics read: £0.49

Non-free books bought: 244
Total cost of books bought: £414.51
Average cost of books bought: £1.70

Non-free comics bought: 183
Total cost of comics bought: £88.76
Average cost of comics bought: £0.49

Non-free books and comics bought: 427
Total cost of books bought: £503.27 (over budget: £220) (including £88.76 on comics)
Average cost of books bought: £1.18


Rating System:
1: Bad.
2: Poor. (Or just not to my taste.)
3: Satisfactory.
4: Good.
5: Excellent.

Pages are as given by the ADE algorithm in Calibre.