Reading Challenge 2019!

Hello

안녕하세요 

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは 

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

I'm wanting to keep continuing to set myself reading challenges each year, to get myself back into a routine of reading on a regular basis, attempting to break myself away from social media and flicking through TV channels for entertainment, last year I decided on 12 books, making it a book a month, but sadly I "failed" in this challenge. So this year I'm setting myself the challenge of 9 books, some books were part of last years challenge that I never got round to reading.

This years books included in my challenge are: Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell and The Land of Stories: The Enchantress Returns, Max Brooks' World War Z, H.G.Wells' The War of The Worlds, Elizabeth Lim's Reflection, Patrick Suskind's Perfume, Carrie Hope Fletcher's When The Curtain Calls. Giovanna & Tom Fletcher's Eve of Man and Robert Galbraith's Lethal White.

I'm going to be starting with Robert Galbraith's Legal White as I've been wanting to get stuck into this book since completing the last one, but before I do let's see how I did in last years challenge.

I completed a grand total of 5 books last year, all of different genre's, if I had to pick a favourite of the 5, it would have to be, Giovanna Fletcher's Some Kind of Wonderful, even though it was the first book a read, it's still a book I continue to think about it from time to time.

As I said the first book I read was Some Kind of Wonderful by Giovanna Fletcher, this took me one whole day to read, I really struggled to put it down.
When the love of your life says you're not The One, who are you?
Lizzy and Ian have been a couple since the first week of university. Now, after celebrating a decade together, everyone thinks they're about to get engaged.

Instead, a romantic escape to Dubai leaves Lizzy with no ring, no fiance and no future.

Lizzy is heartbroken - but through the tears, she sees an opportunity. This is her moment to discover what she's been missing while playing Ian's ideal "better half".

But how much has Ian changed her, and who should she be without him?


Determined to discover who she is at heart, Lizzy sets out to rediscover the girl she was before - and, in the meantime, have a little fun...

My second book was Demian by Hermann Hesse, While I enjoyed this book, I did struggle with this book and it took me longer than the rest to read, not only because it's translated but also because of how long ago this was written, but I think I was able to make my own interpretation of the story.

Emil Sinclair is a young boy raised in a middle class home, amidst what is described as a Scheinwelt, a play on words meaning "world  of light"as well as "world of illusion". Emil's entire existence can be summarised as as a struggle between two worlds: the show world of illusion and the real world, the world of spiritual truth. In the course of the novel, accompanied and prompted by his mysterious classmate 'Max Demian', he detaches from revolts against the superficial ideals of the world of appearances and eventually awakens into a realisation of self.

My third book was Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith, I love the Cormoran Strike series and my first book of this year is the next instalment for this series, I always struggle when I come to the end of a chapter to not continue on.

When a mysterious package is delivered to Robin Ellacott, she is horrified to discover that it contains a woman's severed leg.

Her boss, private detective Cormoram Strike, is less surprised but no less alarmed. There are four people  from his past who he thinks could be responsible - and Strike knows that any  one of them is capable of sustained and unspeakable brutality.

With the police focusing on the one suspect Strike is increasingly sure is not the perpetrator, he and Robin take matters into their own hands and delve into the dark and twisted worlds of the other three men. But as more horrendous acts occur time is running out for the two of them...

A fiendishly clever mystery with unexpected twists around every corner, Career Of Evil is also a gripping story of a man and a woman at a crossroads in their personal and professional lives. You will not be able to put this book down.

My fourth book was Chimera By Mira Grant, I'm a big fan of Mira Grant, I'm always kept in suspense and holding my breath when I read her books, I can't wait to get my hand on her new series.

THE TERRIFYING CONCLUSION TO THE TRILOGY THAT BEGAN WITH A HUGO-NOMINATED PARASITE.

The outbreak has spread, tearing apart the foundations of society, as implanted parasites have turned their human hosts into a seemingly mindless mob.

Sal and her family are trapped between bad and worse, and must find a way to compromise between the two sides of their nature before the battle becomes large enough to destroy humanity...

WARNING: THIS THRILLER IS HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS!

My fifth book was House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones, which is part of the Howl's Moving Castle book series, my favourite Studio Ghibli film is Howl's Moving Castle, so when I realised there were books, I had to have them in my possession.
"You are rather lost, my dear. Turn round once, clockwise. Then, still turning, open the door with your left hand only. Go through and let the door shut behind you. Then take two long steps sideways to your left. This will bring you back beside the bathroom."

Charmain Baker is in over her head. Looking after Great Uncle Williams tiny cottage should have been easy, but he is the Royal Wizard Norland whose house bends space and time. It's single door leads to any number of places: the bedrooms, the kitchen, the caves under the mountains - even the past!

In no time at all. Charmain becomes involved with a magical stray dog, a muddled apprentice wizard and a box of the king's most treasured documents, as well as irritating a clan of small blue creatures.

Caught up in an intense royal search, she meets a sorceress named Sophie. Can Wizard Howl and Calcifer be far behind?

That was 2018's book challenge results, it's time to starts 2019's.

CHALLENGE START!!

See you soon!

안녕
(Annyeong)
さようなら
(Sayonara)
再见
(ZaiJian)

Bye