The 2026 Annual Reading Challenge List Thread

[pdurrant]

2026 Reading Challenge List Thread

Welcome to our 17th Annual Reading Challenge!

The Annual Reading Challenge is not a race, nor an “exclusive club”, anyone can join! This is just a fun activity that some of us have enjoyed doing in the past. Many of us have found reading challenges to be an entertaining way to set goals for ourselves, get ideas for books, and see what others are reading.

This thread is for you to keep a running tally for your chosen challenge. Please state your goals at the top of your post (in the title line if you can), and then start your list in the body of your post. As you read books, edit your post to update your list of books read, or other challenge status.

Please Remember: No discussion posts in this thread. Please use the other thread for that. Non-List posts will be deleted or moved to the other thread.

Discussions & Ideas can be found here:

2026 Annual Reading Challenge Discussion Thread

Post #2 of this thread is dedicated to a Table of Contents for all participants in this thread. Names will be added to this TOC in alphabetical order with a link to that individual’s post number from this thread.

Previous threads were for
2025, 24, 23, 22, 21, 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11 and 2010

[pdurrant]

Table of Participants

• afv011 - Post #19
• astrangerhere - Post #21
• bdub - Post #24
• BelleZora - Post #7
• bookaho!ic - Post #8
• CAFlanny - Post #9
• Dazrin - Post #10
• DJUNGELSKOG - Post #13
• DrNefario - Post #6
• HLS - Post #26
• Hollow Man - Post #15
• Indio777 - Post #25
• issybird - Post #5
• JSWolf - Post #4
• library addict - Post #14
• Loosheesh - Post #11
• magiun - Post #27
• Musicman - Post #18
• nana77 - Post #12
• pdurrant - Post #3
• sakura-panda - Post #20
• Tarana - Post #17
• ucfgrad93 - Post #16
• WashWest - Post #22
• Waylander - Post #23
  

25 Participants .

[pdurrant]

Last year I failed to reduce my TBR pile. In fact it increased by 55!

I start 2026 with 726 books on my TBR pile.

This year I aim to end with under 670 books on my TBR pile.

Books removed from TBR

Read and Reading

1. January 1st: You Don't Have to Have a Dream by Tim Minchin - £1.79 - 3/5 - 49pp
   Three speeches, with commentary. Interesting.
2. January 1st: Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones - £0.99 - 4/5 - 195pp (re-read)
   The first written, and an excellent story/
3. January 2nd: Mixed Magics by Diana Wynne Jones - £0.99 - 4/5 - 99pp
   A collection of short stories. Good fun.
4. January 2nd: The Magicians of Caprona by Diana Wynne Jones - £0.99 - 4/5 - 173pp
5. January 3rd: Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones - £0.99 - 4/5 - 204pp
6. January 4th: The Pinhoe Egg by Diana Wynne Jones - £0.99 - 4/5 - 242pp
   Enjoyable magic adventures
7. January 6th: No Friend to This House by Natalie Haynes - £0.99 - 3/5 - 301pp
   Good retelling of Jason & Medea mostly from Medea's POV
8. January 10th: When Gavin Met Stacey and Everything in Between by Ruth Jones and James Corden - £1.99 - 5/5 - 200pp
   Fascinating insight into these two and their work on Gavin & Stacey
9. January 11th: Sharpe's Storm by Bernard Cornwell - £0.99 - 4/5 - 227pp
   Compelling historical Military fiction
10. January 14th: New Under the Sun by Nancy Kress - Free - 3/5 - 162pp
    A novelette that should have had more depth at the end.
11. January 16th: Birds of Prey by David Drake - £3.37 - 4/5 - 306pp
    Enjoyable ancient rome with aliens and time travel
12. January 18th: Slow Time Between the Stars by John Scalzi - £1.00 - 5/5 - 21pp
    Brilliant short story
13. January 19th: Murder in Norfolk - Free - 3/5 - 233pp
    It grew on me, but not enough to get any more.
14. January 21st: The Biography of Florence Nightingale by Lytton Strachey - Free - 3/5 - 26pp
    Feels more like anecdote than biography
15. January 22nd: The Garden Party and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield - Free - 1/5 - 158pp
    Literary Genre short stories about awful people
16. January 25th: Into The Thinking Kingdoms by Alan Dean Foster - £0.66 - 4/5 - 309pp
    Fun fantasy epic journey
17. January 30th: A Triumph of Souls by Alan Dean Foster - £0.66 - 4/5 - 300pp
    A good conclusion.
18. February 1st: The Samurai Detectives by Shōtarō Ikenami - £0.99 - 3/5 - 178pp
    Interesting, but the translation isn't good enough
19. February 3rd: An Amateur Corpse by Simon Brett - £2.33 - 4/5 - 182pp
    Charles gets there in the end.
20. February 4th: Spies by Michael Frayn - Free - 2/5 - 168pp (not on unread list)
    Well done, but not for me.
21. February 8th: Death of a Gossip by M. C. Beaton - £0.89 - 5/5 - 96pp
    Most enjoyable
22. February 10th: Crossfire by Dick Francis and Felix Frances - £0.89 - 5/5 - 259pp
    Excellent
23. February 11th: No Man's Land Volume 1 by Sarah A. Hoyt - £0.66 - 5/5- 288pp
    Really splendid SF
24. February 13th: When the Moon hits your Eye by John Scalzi - £0.89 - 3/5 - 319pp
    A bit of light fun. I'd like more story, rather than scattered incidents
25. February 16th: Reflections by Diana Wynne Jones - £0.89 - 4/5 - 309pp
    Fascinating insight into the author and her work
26. February 22nd: No Man's Land Volume 2 by Sarah A. Hoyt - £0.66 - 5/5- 250pp
27. February 23rd: No Man's Land Volume 3 by Sarah A. Hoyt - £0.66 - 5/5- 285pp
    An excellent middle and conclusion to the story.
28. February 24th: Translation State by Ann Leckie - £0.99 - 4/5 - 280pp
    I found the multiplicity of pronounces confusing. But it was good.
29. February 27th: Fables by Robert Louis Stevenson - £0.02 - 3/5 - 59pp
    Some interesting, many just weird.
30. March 1st: Some of the Best of Tor.com 2020 by various authors - Free - 3/5 - 680pp
    OK to good, but I don't think I like lots of short stories.
31. March 11th: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain - Free - 4/5 - 310pp
    Good boy's adventure
32. March 13th: A Sorceress Come to Call by T. Kingfisher - £1.79 - 5/5 - 299pp
    Excellent pseudo-regency romance
33. March 15th: Empress of Forever by Max Gladstone - £1.79 - 5/5 - 541pp
    Excellent near/far future SF.
34. March 19th: Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher - £1.79 - 5/5 - 224pp
    An excellent fantasy
35. March 20th: Bones in the Blackout by Emma Jameson - £0.66 - 4/5 - 273pp
    A nice rural early WWII murder mystery
36. March 21st: War Games by Christopher Anvil - £2.50 - 4/5 - 399pp
    A good collection of classic SF short stories
37. March 22nd: James by Percival Everett - £5.99 - 4/5 - 231pp
    Interesting retellling
38. March 23rd: What If He Were To Pick Me? by Sarah A. Hoyt - Free - 4/5 - 65pp (re-read)
    Amusing short retelling of Pride and Prejudice
39. March 23rd: Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett - £0.89 - 5/5 - 440pp
40. March 25rd: Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett - £0.89 - 5/5 - 441pp
41. March 27th: Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett - £2.99 - 5/5 - 489pp
    Splendid non-Earth fantasy trilogy.
42. March 28th: Déjà Doomed by Edward M. Lerner - £0.00 - 4/5 - 423pp
    Very good near-future space SF
43. March 29th: The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood - £0.99 - 4/5 - 277pp
    Fun cosy mystery.
44. March 30th: Death Comes to Marlow by Robert Thorogood - £0.99 - 4/5 - 276pp
    And another
45. March 31st: The Queen of Poisons by Robert Thorogood - £0.99 - 4/5 - 259pp
    Great fun.
46. April 1st: The Honourable Schoolboy by John le Carré - £0.99 - 2/5 - 510pp
    [ABANDONED. Got 1/3 in and I just couldn't make myself care about any of it.]
47. April 1st: The Demon Overlord's Retirement Plan by M. H. Foster - £0.99 - 3/5 - 168pp
    Great fun.
48. April 2nd: DragonGirl by Todd McCaffrey - £0.99 - 3/5 - 383pp
    Some poor naming, but OK
49. April 3rd: Dark Horse by Felix Francis - £0.90 - 4/5 - 270pp
    Nice to see Sid Halley again
50. April 3rd: The Wizards and the Warriors by Hugh Cook - Free - 2/5 - 435pp
    [ABANDONED. I don't believe the characters]
51. April 4th: No Reserve by Felix Francis - £0.99 - 4/5 - 259pp
    The expected enjoyable cosy thriller
52. April 5th: Bones at the Manor House by Emma Jameson - Free - 4/5 - 366pp
    Murderous fun in WWI countryside.
53. April 6th: Enquiry by Dick Francis - £0.89 - 4/5 - 172pp
    The expected cosy thriller
54. April 6th: The Killing Time by Elly Griffiths - £0.99 - 2/5 - 280pp
    Not enough thought given to the time travel element
55. April 7th: Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler - £0.99 - 5/5 - 277pp
    Absolutely brilliant Vampire SF
56. April 8th: Quartet in Autumn by Barbara Pym - £0.99 - 2/5 - 167pp
    A dull story of everyday life
57. April 10th: Echopraxia by Peter Watts - £0.99 - 3/5 - 330pp
    Fascinating, but I can't say I really enjoyed it.
58. April 11th: A Comedian Dies by Simon Brett - £2.33 - 4/5 - 179pp
    Good, but I felt the motivation was a bit weak.
59. April 12th: Love Triangle by Matt Parker - £0.89 - 4/5 - 232pp
    Some fascinating stuff. A few typos.
60. April 13th: Swordheart by T. Kingfisher - £0.99 - 4/5 - 374pp
    Delightful fantasy romance.
61. April 14th: The Margarets by Sheri S. Tepper - £2.75 - 5/5 - 464pp
    A Splendid SF Fantasy
62. April 18th: Merlin's Mirror by Andre Norton - £0.89 - 3/5 - 189pp
    Mixing Merlin with SF-ish. Sort of works.
63. April 20th: The House of Saints by Derek Künsken - £0.90 - 4/5 - 373pp
    Follow-up to The House of Styx. Very good SF
64. April 22nd: Femina by Janina Ramirez - £0.99 - 3/5 - 448pp
    Interesting, but I didn't find it compelling
65. April 26th: Darksight Dare by Lois McMaster Bujold - £2.63 - 5/5 - 113pp
    Great fun with Penric & Desdemona
66. April 27th: The Wedding Hitch by Claire McCauley - Free - 4/5 - 248pp
    A well-done light rom com.
67. April 28th: Phoenix Rising by Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris - £0.72 - 2/5 - 176pp
    It was OK-ish. Perhaps I just don't like steampunk
68. April 30th: Total Eclipse by John Brunner - £0.99 - 4/5 - 152pp
    Sad but good
69. May 1st: The Shockwave Rider by John Brunner - £0.89 - 4/5 - 226pp
    ebook typography bad but story great.
70. May 2nd: City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Burnett - £0.99 - - 426pp

Discarded (2)

• April 2nd: Smiley's People
• April 2nd: The Secret Pilgrim

Books added to TBR

Freebies (Unread)

1. January 1st: The Rings of Grissom by Julia Huni
2. January 1st: The Garden Party and Other Stories by Katherine Mansfield
3. January 2nd: The Biography of Florence Nightingale by Lytton Strachey
4. January 16th: Murder in Norfolk by Sadie Norman
5. February 10th: Bones at the Manor House by Emma Jameson
6. March 6th: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
7. March 9th: The Wizards and the Warriors by Hugh Cook
8. March 17th: Déjà Doomed by Edward M. Lerner
9. March 22nd: Luna City Limited by Julia Huni
10. April 24th: The Wedding Hitch by Claire McCauley

• February 16th: The Voyage Out, Two Stories, Night and Day, Monday or Tuesday, Jacob's Room, Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Brown, Mrs. Dalloway, The Common Reader by Virginia Woolf (not added to TBR)
• March 3rd: Flim-Flam, Encyclopedia of Claims, The Truth about Uri Geller, The Faith Healers by James Randi (not added to TBR)

Bought (Unread)

• January (7/£9.22): Agatha Raising and the Love from Hell, Planetary Spin Cycle, Waxing the Moon of Lewei, City of Blades, Birds of Prey, Slow Time Between the Stars, The Samurai Detectives
• February (12/£19.12): Death of a Gossip, Crossfire, Reflections, When the Moon hits your Eye, No Man's Land v1, Translation State, Bones in the Blackout, A Sorceress Comes to Call, Nettle and Bone, No Man's Land v2, No Man's Land v3, Locklands
• March (9/£14.61): Crampton Hodnet, Femina, Swordheart, The Marlow Murder Club, Death Comes to Marlow, City of Stairs, Empress of Forever, The Queen of Poisons, James
• April (26/£25.85): The Demon Overlord's Retirement Plan, The Mysterious Affair of Judith Potts, Quartet in Autumn, Dragongirl, Dark Horse, Second Wind, Field of 13, Come to Grief, Bonecrack, Enquiry, Bolt, The Killing Time, Fledgling, Love Triangle, No Phule Like An Old Phule, The House of Saints, Merlin's Mirror, Total Eclipse, The Compleat Traveller in Black, The Shockwave Rider, The Sheep Look Up, Darksight Dare, Death in the House, Phoenix Rising, A Hole in the Sky, The Computers That Made Britain
• May (6/£11.86): Bell, Book and Murder (Speak Daggers to Her, The Bowl of Night, Book of Moons), The Carpet People, Raising Hare, Dreamweaver's Dilemma
• June (0/£0.00):
• July (0/£0.00):
• August (0/£0.00):
• September (0/£0.00):
• October (0/£0.00):
• November (0/£0.00):
• December (0/£0.00):

Analysis
TBR: 728
Books read: 69 (includes 12 freebies, 1 not on TBR, 2 re-reads)
Books otherwise removed from TBR pile: 2 (0 duplicates, 2 discarded, 0 already read)

Books removed from TBR pile: 68
Books added to TBR pile: 70 (includes 10 freebies, 1 omnibus counted as 3)
Removed/Added: 0.99
Net reduction for 2025: -2

Non-free books read: 57 (includes 1 re-read)
Total cost of books read: £73.21
Average cost of books read: £1.31

Non-free books bought: 60 (includes 0 not added to TBR, 1 omnibus counted as 3)
Total cost of books bought: £80.66
Average cost of books bought: £1.25

Rating System:
1: Bad
2: Only OK-ish (Or not to my taste.)
3: OK to good
4: Excellent
5: Wonderful

Pages are as given by the ADE algorithm in Calibre, or from the Amazon web page.

[JSWolf]

To be edited later

[issybird]

I'm struggling to get started this year, so I think I'll set a goal of nine apiece for history by the ancients and the dark ages plus two doorstops. As ever, I'm setting a benchmark of 120 books total on the year. I'm linking to my shelves at Goodreads for my goals.

History by the ancients

Dark Ages

Doorstops

120 books

This year has been an absolute disaster as far as goals go. I hope to regroup, but in the meantime, I've knocked off everything except total books read.

[DrNefario]

Read more than I buy.

Bought: 17
Bundles: 1 (40 books)
Free: 30

Read: 30

Books read:
1. The Thief of Legacy - Andrew Simpson (k) - 590 b
2. Charmed Life - Diana Wynne Jones (k) - 215
3. Facing the Music - Hannah Spearritt (p) - 223
4. The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood (k) - 522
5. Zero Car - Alex Knowles (k) - 352
6. The Warrior Who Carried Life - Geoff Ryman (k) - 214
---
7. Mage Tank - Cornman (k) - 736
8. The Mammoth Book of Warriors and Wizardry (anthology) - Sean Wallace (ed) (k) - 504
9. Warrior: En Garde - Michael A Stackpole (e) - 342
10. The Magicians of Caprona - Diana Wynne Jones (k) - 213
11. Why Can't I Just Enjoy Things? - Pierre Novellie (k) - 291 b
12. Bloodmage - Stephen Aryan (k) - 482
13. The Warhog Paladins - Jer Patch (k) - 350
---
14. The Bride of the Blue Wind (novella) - Victoria Goddard (e) - 56
15. The Warrior of the Third Veil (novella) - Victoria Goddard (e) - 80
16. Antimage - Alexander Olson (k) - 530
17. Doctor Who: The Wheel in Space - Terrance Dicks (k) - 143
18. The Sentinel Mage - Emily Gee (e) - 509
19. The Magician of Tiger Castle - Louis Sachar (k) - 296
20. The Grand Game - Tom Elliot (k) - 327
21. The Tokyo Zodiac Murders - Soji Shimada (k) - 279
---
22. You - Austin Grossman (k) - 380
23. Xenos - Dan Abnett (e) - 314
24. Witch Week - Diana Wynne Jones (k) - 218
25. Shadeslinger - Kyle Kirrin (k) - 634
26. Buried Deep and Other Stories (collection) - Naomi Novik (k) - 427
27. Victories Greater than Death - Charlie Jane Anders (e) - 318
---
28. Death Among the Undead - Masahiro Imamura (k) - 297
29. Under a Colder Sun - Greg James (k) - 176
30. Titan Hoppers - Rob J Hayes (k) - 461

Monthly Breakdown:

Spoiler:

January
Bought: 1 (£0.99)
Free: 4
Read: 6 (£4.62)
Pages: 2116

February
Bought: 5 (£4.73)
Bundles: 1 (40 books @ £13.02)
Free: 4
Read: 7 (£9.69)
Pages: 2918

March
Bought: 5 (£9.15)
Free: 11
Read: 8 (£5.16)
Pages: 2220

April
Bought: 5 (£11.22)
Free: 3
Read: 6 (£10.68)
Pages: 2292

May
Bought: 1 (£0.99)
Free: 8
Read: 3 (£8.25)
Pages: 934

Achievements:

1. Buy It, Read It. Start at least 50% of the books I buy.
Current total: 4/17 (24%)

2. King of the Mountains. My 5 longest books should total over 3000 pages.
Current total: 3012 - COMPLETED

Spoiler:

736 - Mage Tank - Cornman
634 - Shadeslinger - Kyle Kirrin
590 - The Thief of Legacy - Andrew Simpson
530 - Antimage - Alexander Olson
522 - The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood

3. Paper Chase. Reduce my unread paper book collection.
Out: 1
In: 0
Net reduction: 1

4. Never Gonna Be Respectable. Read a classic or literary-award-adjacent book. COMPLETED
The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood - Booker winner

5. He Scores. Read a book by Nevil Shute. This is a bit of an annual tradition since I inherited my father's collection, so I thought I would make it official.

6. Bundleer. Ongoing attempt to get value-for-money from bundles by spreading the cost over books read. OK is under £5 (the price of an average ebook), Good is under £2 per book.

Spoiler:

Storybundle Video Games (Dec 2020) - £23.24 - Read: 12 - Cost per book read: £1.94 - Value: Good
Storybundle Video Games 2 (Feb 2022) - £11.50 - Read: 5 - Cost per book read: £2.30 - Value: OK
Humble SF (Jul 2014) - £7.24 - Read: 3 - Cost per book read: £2.41 - Value: OK
Humble 1 (Oct 2012) - £9.66 - Read: 4 - Cost per book read: £2.42 - Value: OK
Humble Post-Apocalypse (Mar 2015) - £10.43 - Read: 4 - Cost per book read: £2.60 - Value: OK
Poisoned Pen (Feb 2012) - £5.94 - Read: 2 - Cost per book read: £2.97 - Value: OK
Humble 2 (Jul 2013) - £6.87 - Read: 2 - Cost per book read: £3.44 - Value: OK
Humble Battletech (Apr 2024) - £23.78 - Read: 4 - Cost per book read: £5.95 - Value: Poor
Young Wizards (Jan 2012) - £21.55 - Read: 2 - Cost per book read: £10.78 - Value: Poor
Humble Martha Wells (Aug 2025) - £13.37 - Read: 1 - Cost per book read: £13.37 - Value: Poor
Humble Dragonlance (Mar 2025) - £14.27 - Read: 1 - Cost per book read: £14.27 - Value: Poor
Humble Modesitt (Sep 2023) - £14.42 - Read: 1 - Cost per book read: £14.42 - Value: Poor
Humble Forgotten Realms (Feb 2026) - £13.02 - Read: 0 - Cost per book read: infinite - Value: Poor
Humble Tchaikovsky (Dec 2025) - £13.63 - Read: 0 - Cost per book read: infinite - Value: Poor

7. The Wonder Years. Re-read 1 formative SF/F work published in each year from 1970. An exercise I am doing elsewhere that I think I will also track here.
Last completed year: 1987

Spoiler:

Read in 2024:
1970 - Nine Princes in Amber - Roger Zelazny
1971 - Trillions - Nicholas Fisk
1972 - An Alien Heat - Michael Moorcock
1973 - Rendezvous with Rama - Arthur C Clarke (not reread)
1974 - Doctor Who and the Auton Invasion - Terrance Dicks
1975 - Crisis on Conshelf Ten - Monica Hughes
1976 - Gate of Ivrel - C J Cherryh
1977 - Gateway - Frederik Pohl
1978 - The Moon Raiders - Patrick Moore
Read in 2025:
1979 - The 2000ad Annual 1980 - Various
1980 - Starstormers - Nicholas Fisk
1981 - Downbelow Station - C J Cherryh
1982 - Pawn of Prophecy - David Eddings
1983 - On a Pale Horse - Piers Anthony
1984 - Dragons of Autumn Twilight - Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman
1985 - The Postman - David Brin
1986 - A Blackbird in Silver - Freda Warrington
1987 - Wolf in Shadow - David Gemmell
Read in 2026:

8. Return of Alphablast. Read a novel whose title begins with each letter of the alphabet, in reverse order, Z-A.
Last completed letter: T

Spoiler:

Z - Zero Car - Alex Knowles
Y - You - Austin Grossman
X - Xenos - Dan Abnett
W - Witch Week - Diana Wynne Jones
V - Victories Greater than Death - Charlie Jane Anders
U - Under a Colder Sun - Greg James
T - Titan Hoppers - Rob J Hayes
S
R
Q
P
O
N
M
L
K
J
I
H
G
F
E
D
C
B
A

9. 2025 Catch-up. I failed my main purchase goals for 2025, so I'm going to attempt a catch-up in 2026. Read 25 books purchased in 2025.
Books read: 14/25

Spoiler:

Charmed Life - Diana Wynne Jones
Facing the Music - Hannah Spearritt
The Blind Assassin - Margaret Atwood
Mage Tank - Cornman
Mammoth Book of Warriors and Wizardry - Sean Wallace (ed)
Magicians of Caprona - Diana Wynne Jones
Bloodmage - Stephen Aryan
Antimage - Alexander Olson
Magician of Tiger Castle - Louis Sachar
Tokyo Zodiac Murders - Soji Shimada
Xenos - Dan Abnett
Witch Week - Diana Wynne Jones
Shadeslinger - Kyle Kirrin
Titan Hoppers - Rob J Hayes

2026 changes: No longer recording Borrowed and Expired counts, and will instead mark borrowed books with a b when read.

Legend:
(p) paperback, (h) hardback, (k) kindle, (e) epub, (i) ibook, (f) pdf, (a) audio, (w) web, r reread, b borrowed
On target, Off target, Completed

[BelleZora]

In 2026 I plan to read at least 60 books set around the world starting with Africa.

1. Morocco - The Spider's House by Paul Bowles 4/5
2. Algeria - The Stranger by Albert Camus 4/5
3. Tunisia - The Ardent Swarm by Yamen Manai 4/5
4. Libya - The Bleeding of the Stone by Ibrahim al-Koni 3/5
5. Egypt - Woman at Point Zero by Nawal El Saadawi 4/5
6. Sudan - Lyrics Alley by Leila Aboulela 4/5
7. Morocco - Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits by Laila Lalami 3/5
8. Algeria - The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles 3/5
9. Benin - The Viceroy of Ouidah by Bruce Chatwin 2/5
10. Nigeria - The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré 5/5
11. Nigeria - Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe 4/5
12. Ghana - His Only Wife by Peace Adzo Medie 3/5
13. Burkina Faso - American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson 4/5
14. Cabo Verde - The Trade by Chris Thrall 3/5
15. Ivory Coast, Liberia, Sierra Leone - Allah is Not Obliged by Ahmadou Kourouma 3/5
16. Gambia, US - Roots by Alex Haley 5/5
17. Guinea-Bissau – The Ultimate Tragedy by Abdulai Sila 2/5
18. South Africa - Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee 4/5
19. Uganda, South Sudan - All the Glimmering Stars by Mark Sullivan 4/5
20. Nigeria - Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche 4/5
21. Mauritania - The Desert and the Drum by Mbarek Ould Beyrouk 3/5
22. São Tomé and Príncipe - Native Dance: An African Story by Gervasio Kaiser 1/5
23. South Africa - When the Lion Feeds by Wilbur Smith 3/5
24. Egypt - Palace Walk by Naguib Mahfouz 5/5
25. Republic of the Congo-Brazzaville - Black Moses by Alain Mabanckou 2/5
26. Botswana - The House of Unexpected Sisters by Alexander McCall Smith 3/5
27. South Africa - The Sound of Thunder by Wilbur Smith 4/5
28. Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) - The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing 5/5
29. Russia - City of Thieves by David Benioff 5/5
30. Netherlands - The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden 4/5
31. Venezuela - It Would be Night in Caracas by Karina Sainz Borgo 3/5
32. Sweden - When the Cranes Fly South by Lisa Ridzen 4/5
33. South Africa - Devil's Peak by Deon Meyer 4/5

[bookaho!ic]

Count me in wont hit my 2025 100 this year. So 2026. Let's set it at 75

May
Lies to tell by Marion Todd
What They Knew by Marion Todd
Next In Line by Marion Todd
Old Bones Lie by Marion Todd

April 9 Read
Six Graves by Angela Marsons
See Them Run by Marion Todd
Hidden Scars by Angela Marsons
Deadly Fate by Angela Marsons
Bad Blood By Angela Marsons
Guilty Mothers by Angela Marsons
36 Hours by Angela Marsons
Little Children by Angela Marsons
In Plain Sight by Marion Todd


March 7 Read
Dead Memories by Angela Marsons
Child's Play by Angela Marsons
The Final Vow by M W Craven
Killing Mind by Angela Marsons
Deadly Cry by Angela Marsons
Twisted Lies by Angela Marsons
Stolen Ones by Angela Marsons

February 7 Read
Play Dead by Angela Marsons
Blood Lines by Angela Marsons
Their Deadly Truth by Carla Kovach
Dead Souls by Angela Marsons
Broken Bones by Angela Marsons
Dying Truth by Angela Marsons
Fatal Promise by Angela Marsons

JANUARY 9 Read
Long Shadows by David Baldacci
The Book Club Killer by Ross Greenwood
Hold your Tongue by Deborah Masson
Out For Blood by Deborah Masson
From the Ashes by Deborah Masson
First Blood by Angela Marsons
Silent Scream by Angela Marsons
Evil Games By Angela Marsons
Lost Girls by Angela Marsons

[CAFlanny]

Goals for 2026:

• Read 20,000 pages

• StoryGraph Mobileread Reading Challenge

• Reduce TBR: 50% of read books from owned TBR - 14/24

• 12 Nonfiction books - 4/12

• 6 Classics - 2/6

I start the year with a TBR of 265.
Pages Read: 6,732/20,000
Current TBR: 254

TBR: 14
Kindle Unlimited: 1
Kobo Plus: 4
Library: 3
Borrowed: 0
Freebie: 2

Books Bought: 3

MR StoryGraph Challenge:
January: COMPLETED
February: COMPLETED
March: COMPLETED
April: COMPLETED
May:
June:
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:

[Dazrin]

Same goal for 2026 at 12,000 pages. This has worked well the last few years, although if I meet this as early as I did last year I will probably increase it.

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Page Goal: Read 12,000 Pages in 2026
Status as of April 29: 5,401 pages read, 21 books/short stories completed (16,566 projected)

2026 Stats:

• Novels/Novellas (>50 pages): 15 (71% books / 98% pages)
• Short Stories (< 50 pages): 6 (29% books / 2% pages)
• Audiobooks: 15 / 141h 45m (71%)
  • DarkGreen indicates hybrid e-book/audiobook.
• Library Books: 11 (52%)

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Current and upcoming books:

• Platform Decay (Murderbot Diaries 8) - Martha Wells

Completed books, ordered by finish date:

Spoiler:

January: 7 book(s), 1,551 pages
Total: 7 books, 1,551 pages, 18,262 projected

• Halcyon Afternoon (Mongolian Wizard 10) - Michael Swanwick
• Dragons of Paris (Mongolian Wizard 11) - Michael Swanwick
• The Ministry of Time - Kaliane Bradley - Read by George Weightman, Katie Leung
• Nettle & Bone - Ursula Vernon - Read by Amara Jasper
• The Wee Free Men (Discworld 30) - Terry Pratchett
• Replaceable You - Mary Roach - Read by Mary Roach
• The Day of the Triffids - John Wyndham

February: 6 book(s), 1,127 pages
Total: 13 books, 2,678 pages, 16,568 projected

• Leviathan (Leviathan 1) - Scott Westerfeld - Read by Alan Cumming
• Wend-Way-Go - Pratt. Tim - Read by Wil Wheaton (Link)
• Swarm X1048 - Ethological Field Report: Canis Lupus Familiaris, '6' - F.E. Choe - Read by Wil Wheaton (Link)
• Lily, The Immortal - Kylie Lee Baker - Read by Wil Wheaton (Link)
• The Andromeda Strain - Michael Crichton
• Twelve Months (Dresden 18) - Jim Butcher - Read by James Marsters

March: 3 book(s), 1,412 pages
Total: 16 books, 4,090 pages, 16,588 projected

• The Relentless Legion (The Divide 3) - J.S. Dewes - Read by Andrew Eiden, Nicol Zanzarella, Anthony Rey Perez
• Antihero (Orphan X 11) - Gregg Hurwitz - Read by Scott Brick
• The Fifth Gospel - Ian Caldwell - Read by Jack Davenport
  • Abandoned - 1632 (Assiti Shards 1) - Eric Flint & David Weber

April: 5 book(s), 1,311 pages
Total: 21 books, 5,401 pages, 16,566 projected

• Pockets - Amal El-Mohtar - Read by LeVar Burton
• The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook (DCC 3) - Matt Dinniman - Read by Jeff Hays
• The Apocalypse Codex (Laundry Files 4) - Charles Stross - Read by Gideon Emery
• The Lightning-Fast Field Guide to the Bible - Matt Whitman - Read by Matt Whitman
• Darksight Dare (Penric 16) - Lois McMaster Bujold

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My lists: 2011 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 - 21 - 22 - 23 - 24 - 25 - 2026

[Loosheesh]

I'm only listing counts with genres ...

Jan
0 F
3 NF

Feb
7 F
0 NF

Mar
6 F
0 NF

Apr
8 F
1 NF


Key

Spoiler:

F - Fiction
NF - Nonfiction

[nana77]

Inn.
I'll keep my personal goal low, so any book readed more feels a plus.
My challenge is to read the Urania (Mondadori) sci-fi monthly (3-4 ebooks), keep a reading on a comic/manga serie, and add something from others' lectures.
Thanks in advance.
Ps: some lists in there are abominable (not in a negative meaning), commends!

January
"Ascension", by Nicolas Binge (2023)
"Austral", by Paul McAuley (2017)
"Dream Dancer", by Janet Morris (1980)
"Aliens 4", by Sturgeon (from 1944 to 1962 in this translated edition)
"The Cosmic Rape", by Sturgeon (1977 edition)
"The Continent Makers and Other Tales of the Viagens", by L. Sprague de Camp (1953)
"The Genocides" by Thomas M. Disch (original was 1965, in here a new translation from 2025)
"Infinite Stars" (2017), by Bryan Thomas Schmidt
Tower Dungeon #2

February
Tower Dungeon #3
"Skaith!" by Brackett
[The Ginger Star (1974), The Hounds of Skaith (1974), and The Reavers of Skaith (1976)]
"Zothique" (1970) by Clark Ashton Smith
"Cloak of Aesir" (1977) by John W. Campbell, Jr
"Davy" (1954) by Edgar Pangborn

March
"The Green Odyssey" (1957) Philip José Farmer
"Rogue Moon" (1960) by Algis Budrys
"Who Goes There?", by John W. Campbell (1977 transaltion)
"1Q84" (Book 1&2), (2009) Haruki Murakami
"The Sword of Rhiannon", (1953) Leigh Brackett

April
"The Long Tomorrow", by Leigh Brackett (1955, translated in 1978)
"The Secret of Sinharat and People of the Talisman", by Leigh Brackett (1964, translated in 1975)
"Tower Dungeon #4", by Tsutomu Nihei (2025)
"1Q84, Book 3", by Haruki Murakami
"Alpha Centauri or Die!", by Leigh Brackett (1963, translated in 1978)

[DJUNGELSKOG]

Placeholder

[library addict]

Planning to take it easier in 2026 after reading a lot in the past few years, but still put more of a dent in my TBR. My goals include:

• Start two "in progress" series still being published (books released so far already in TBR).
• Pick 10 “Must Read” books for the year from my huge digital TBR mountain (not including any new releases)
• Keep up with all new releases by my favorite/autobuy authors

January 2026
Read 11 books.

February 2026
Read 13 books.

March 2026
Read 16 books.

April 2026

Completed the Tried-and-True Challenge ~ Round One.

May 2026

June 2026

July 2026

August 2026

September 2026

October 2026

November 2026

December 2026

[Hollow Man]

Completed:

• The Last Unicorn - Peter S. Beagle
• Pet Semetary - Stephen King
• The Fires of Heaven - Robert Jordan
• East of Eden - John Steinbeck
• Young Zaphod Plays It Safe - Douglas Adams
• Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut
• A Scanner Darkly - Philip K. Dick
• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
• Pattern Recognition - William Gibson
• The Restaurant At the End of the Universe - Douglas Adams
• All Flesh Is Grass - Clifford D. Simak
• Life, the Universe and Everything - Douglas Adams
• Just Friends - Haley Pham
• So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish - Douglas Adams
• Mostly Harmless - Douglas Adams
• And Another Thing... - Eoin Colfer
• The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
• Infinite Jest - David Foster Wallace

Currently Reading:

• Persuasion - Jane Austen