2021 A-to-Z Reading Challenge

What is the A-to-Z Reading Challenge?

Now in its fourth year, the A-to-Z Reading Challenge is a laid-back, year-long reading challenge hosted by Bookstacks & Golden Moms. Readers choose and complete a book starting with each letter of the alphabet.

26 books with optional mini-challenges for each month (12/12)

JANUARY – A book you purchased in 2020 but didn’t read - The Golden Scales (Makana, #1) by Parker Bilal

FEBRUARY – A book with non-romantic love (siblings, parent-child, friendships) - The Chelsea Girls by Fiona Davis

MARCH – A book written by a person of a different race than you - A Rising Man (Sam Wyndham, #1) by Abir Mukherjee

APRIL – A book with an Autistic main character (April is Autism Awareness) - Engage at Dawn: Seize and Destroy (Engage at Dawn, #2) by Edward M. Hochsmann

MAY – A book about a nurse (Nat. Nurses Week 2021 is May 6-12) - The Thursday Murder Club (Thursday Murder Club, #1) by Richard Osman

JUNE – A co-written book (2 authors) - The Little Book of Capital Cities: A Quiz by Peter Keyne and Rudolf Amsel

JULY – A Christmas book (Christmas in July!) - Not A Creature Was Stirring (Gregor Demarkian, #1) by Jane Haddam

AUGUST – A book by an Indie author (self-published or independent) - Skid Kids by Michael Franz

SEPTEMBER – A memoir/biography - The Church of Tango: A Memoir by Cherie Magnus

OCTOBER – A book written by a new-to-you author - Wreckers: A Denver Boyd Novel by George Ellis

NOVEMBER – A book outside your normal genre - The Me Monster by Timothy L. Carver

DECEMBER – A backlist title (published BEFORE Jan 1, 2021) - Zone One by Colson Whitehead

A – Aeverless 3.2 by Jones Harwell (See my review on Reedsy Discovery!)

B – Beneath the Waves (A Kira Hunter Novella, #1) by Nora Cabot (See my review here!)

C – Chelsea Girls, The by Fiona Davis (See my review on Fresh Fiction!)

D – Deadland by Sawyer Hall (See my review!)

E – Elephant Cage, The by Greg Powell (See my review!)

F – Fools Rush In (Lady Vigilante, #19) by Hayley Camille (See my review!)

G – Golden Scales, The (Makana, #1) by Parker Bilal (See my review!)

H – Hope, Faith, and a Corpse (A Faith Chapel Mystery, #1) by Laura Jensen Walker (See my review!)

I – Incomplete Artist, The (Ashley Westgard, #2) by Philip Wyeth (See my review!)

J – Jar of Pickles, A (Lady Vigilante, #18) by Hayley Camille (See my review!)

K – Kicker One (Frankie Scarmazino, #1) by Cy Young (See my review!)

L – Loving Modigliani: The Afterlife of Jeanne Hebuterne by Linda Lappin (See my review!)

M – Murder Off Broadway: A Pet Portraits Cozy Mystery by Sandi Scott (See my review!)

N – Nuclear Midnight (Savage Dawn, #1) by Robert Cole (See my review!)

O – Old Buzzard Had It Coming, The (Alafair Tucker, #1) by Donis Casey

P – Pint of No Return (Shake Shop Mystery, #1) by Dana Mentink (See my review!)

Q – Quench by Xondra Day (See my short review)

R – Rhino Charge (A Kenya Kanga Mystery, #3) by Victoria Tait (See my review!)

S – Shifting Sides (A Shift in Space, #0.5) by Danielle Forrest (See my review!)

T – The Thursday Murder Club (Thursday Murder Club, #1) by Richard Osman (See my review!)

U – Undead Annihilation (Undead, #1) by Matthew Doggett (See my review!)

V – Vengeance is Mine (Red River Mystery, #4) by Reavis Z. Wortham

W – Wreckers: A Denver Boyd Novel by George Ellis (See my review!)

X – The Xyania Project (The Xyania Project, #1) - J.V. Nolan (See my review!)

Y – Yellow Wall-Paper, The by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (See my review!)

Z – Zone One - Colson Whitehead

As of 12/12/2021, I've read 26 of 26 and 12 of 12.

#AtoZReadingChallenge

Spacetime Reading Challenge 2021 #spacetimereads

Spacetimereads is the short name for the Spacetime Reading Challenge. This reading challenge is being hosted by Jemima Pett at

http://jemimapett.com/blog/2020/12/01/sign-up-spacetimereads-challenge-2021/

Spacetimereads

The Spacetimereads Challenge is to read fiction books set in space or time… How far you want to go is up to you.

There are four levels:

5 books: Planet hopper

10 books: Interstellar explorer

20 books: Galactic navigator

40 books: To Infinity and Beyond

This is my first try on this challenge and I am going to commit to the 1st level - 5 books - Planet Hopper.

Completed on 4/13/2021 - 5/5

The Reckoning (Calliope, #3) - Scott Mari (space) - See my review at Reedsy Discovery

Assurity: A Supernatural Space Thriller - Anthony Barbera (space) - See my review on Goodreads

Shifting Sides (A Shift in Space, #0.5) - Danielle Forrest (space) - See my review at Guatemala Paula Lives to Read

2240: Return to Planet Earth - Daniela Rincon Morassutti (space) - See my review at Guatemala Paula Lives to Read

Wreckers: A Denver Boyd Novel - George Ellis (space) - See my review at Guatemala Paula Lives to Read

Engage at Dawn: Seize and Destroy (Engage at Dawn, #2) - Edward M. Hochsmann (space) - See my review on Goodreads

Karen's 2021 Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

So again, this year, I'm going to participate in the Finishing the Series Reading Challenge hosted by Celebrity Readers (see https://celebrityreaders.com/2020/11/27/2021-finishing-the-series-reading-challenge/). But this time around I'm going to play it a little more realistically considering my other reading responsibilities.

Update: Even with cutting back, other things took precedence over reading this year. Since I don't think this will repeat this year, I am going to move my plan into 2022. I did read a couple of books from this year's list but that's all.

I'm going to opt in on the B-LIST SERIES FINISHER ⇒ COMPLETE 5-8 SERIES. (Good luck, Me!)

These are my target series this year.

(1) Jimm Juree series - Colin Cotterill (3 books) - 0 completed

(2) Shinobi Mystery series - Susan Spann (4 books) - 1 completed

The Ninja's Daughter (Shinobi, #4)

(3) Bernie Rhodenbarr series - Lawrence Block (3 books) - 0 completed

(4) Kitty Pangborn series - Linda L. Richards (1 book) - 0 completed

(5) Lunar Chronicles series - Marissa Meyer (1 book) - 0 completed

(6) Agatha Raisin series - M.C. Beaton (1 book) - 0 completed

Down the Hatch (Agatha Raisin, #32)

(7) Thistle & Twigg series - Mary Saums (1 book) - 0 completed

This is a total of 14 books. As of December 16, 2021, I have completed 2 of the 14.

#FinishingTheSeries2021

Flask of the Drunken Master (Shinobi Mystery, #3) by Susan Spann

Flask of the Drunken Master by Susan Spann
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It is August of 1565, and the capital city of Kyoto is in the temporary “protection” of the feared samurai, Matsunaga Hisehide, since the seppuku of Ashikaga, the last official shogun. The city is under a veritable lockdown and everyone entering is viewed as a possible spy including Hattori Hiro and his charge, Jesuit priest, Father Mateo Ávila de Santos.

One morning in the city while purchasing noodles for breakfast, Hiro and Father Mateo see their friend, Ginjiro the brewer, being arrested and hauled off by the yoriki, for the murder of Chikao, a brewer from a poorer part of the city. The two had been heard arguing the night before, and the victim’s body was found outside Ginjiro’s home and place of business with the remnants of one of Ginjiro’s custom saké bottles at hand. The victim’s son apparently owed the accused a considerable amount of money and Ginjiro had refused to advance Chikao any further credit. Ginjiro asserts his innocence and his daughter, Tomiko, begs Hiro and Father Mateo to find the real killer and save her father from certain death at the hand of the executioner.

Author Susan Spann has again crafted a compelling murder mystery against the complex background of 16th century Kyoto, Japan. It is a very robust historical tale as, along with the murder investigation, there is the continuing story of the fall of the Ashikaga clan, the impending approach of the fierce warlord, Oda Nobunaga, and the arrival of the Portuguese and Jesuits in Japan. The relationship between Hiro and Father Mateo is great fun to observe as their two cultures and basic natures try to work together and get along as is the side story of Akechi Yoshiko, the female samurai who may have her eye on Hiro for romantic reasons. Additionally, another fun and interesting side story involves Hiro’s pet cat, Gato. The story explains that cats were not considered pets by the Japanese at this time in the past so having a cat in the house is a new experience for the tough, manly Hiro.

This is the third entry in the Shinobi Mystery series which currently numbers at seven total. Flask of the Drunken Master could be read alone but I highly recommend starting at the first in the series because they are just that good and worth looking for. I recommend this series to historical mystery fans especially those with an affinity for stories set in old Japan.

View all my reviews

#FinishingTheSeries2020

The Thistle & Twigg series by Mary Saums

(1) Mighty Old Bones (Thistle & Twigg, #2)

#FinishingTheSeries2020

The Southern Ghost Hunter series by Angie Fox

(1) The Haunted Heist (Southern Ghost Hunter Mysteries, #3)

(2) Deader Homes and Gardens (Southern Ghost Hunter Mysteries, #4)

(3) Sweet Tea and Spirits (Southern Ghost Hunter Mysteries, #5)

(4) Murder on the Sugarland Express (Southern Ghost Hunter Mysteries, #6)

(5) Pecan Pies and Dead Guys (Southern Ghost Hunter Mysteries, #7)

(6) The Mint Julep Murders (Southern Ghost Hunter, #8)

#FinishingTheSeries2020

The Agatha Raisin series by M.C. Beaton

(1) Beating About the Bush (Agatha Raisin, #30)

Raisin Investigations has been called in by Morrison’s, a local engineering company, to look into the possibility of industrial espionage at their plant. The R&D division had recently experienced a fire of a suspicious nature that gutted their building and hampered their ability to move forward on developing a revolutionary new automobile battery.

Agatha Raisin and her business partner, Toni Gilmour, take on the case and immediately get the feeling that something is just not right at the place. Their primary contact, Mrs. Dunwiddy, Mr. Morrison’s right hand, is knowledgeable and helpful but is oddly afraid of the plant security detail. And when leaving the facility one afternoon, Agatha and Toni discover a severed leg, wearing a stocking and shoe similar to the ones worn by Mrs. Dunwiddy, tossed into the brushy undergrowth on the side of the road. Although the leg turns out to be a fake, the true meaning behind its being left for Agatha to find is clear: someone wants to discredit Raisin Investigations and frighten Mrs. Dunwiddy. But, rather than scaring anyone away, the incident only spurs Agatha on to greater effort.

Then one evening at the plant’s welcome back reception for the owner’s wife (she’d been at a facility to break an alcohol problem), Agatha finds Mrs. Dunwiddy’s body in the stable yard, apparently bashed in the head by the wife’s pet donkey. But Agatha, charmed by the frightened animal, realizes it didn’t trample the woman, and this is a case of murder.

Well, I put off reading this book because there aren’t going to be any (or many) more, and I am just not ready for the series to be done. I admit that my reading experience is probably colored by the reality that M.C. Beaton is forever gone. This author, in all her pen names, has been my all-time favorite from the first book I picked up by her (a Regency romance, no doubt). But of all her characters, Agatha Raisin became my best “book” friend over time, and I cry to think she, too, will not be having any further adventures or misadventures. However, I see that there is at least one more Agatha book in the making with an expected publication date of December 25, 2020. (Happy Christmas.)

However, Agatha is on her game in this adventure. She has all her quirks, but there’s a bit more reflection in her dealings with Toni (who shares many of Agatha’s traits) and Sir Charles Fraith. James Lacey is mentioned a few times, but it felt like Agatha has really come to terms with the real James and not the dream man she’s kept on a pedestal all these years. In addition, there are appearances by other well-known faces such as Mrs. Bloxby, Bill Wong, and Roy, and the introduction of a new nemesis and a new romantic interest as well.

The story is a solid what-the-heck-is-going-on one, and as usual, Agatha susses out some of the details and blunders into the others, making for a delightful book from start to finish. The things that happen to this woman go from funny to harrowing but never stray from being plausible. This is one of Agatha’s better cases. I recommend this series and this installment, and I especially enjoyed the Audible Audio narrated by Penelope Keith. (She’s terrific.)

#FinishingTheSeries2020

(2) Hot to Trot (Agatha Raisin, #31)