Apachecat gallops down the straight in 2014

Back again just stacking out my little corner of the 75 Challenge world.

Welcome, Jess! I'm Mamie. I see form your profile that we share a lot of books, so I am looking forward to following your thread!

My god I have just realised this will be my fifth year in the 75 book challenge and I can safely say I have loved every year in the groups. I am not very chatty on other people threads..I do prefer to lurk and post the occassional comment but I am on my own thread pretty regularly.

In case you missed it my name is Jess, I live in Australia, I am a cartographer by trade (Yep I make pretty maps), I am owned by two oriental cats and a very large horse.

I mainly read Fantasy, Paranormal, Murder Mystery's and the ocassional Autobiography.

If you are deeply bored here is a link to my 2013 thread

And below is a list of the best and the worst of 2013 reads.

Best reads of 2013
1. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
2. Love with a Chance of Drowning by Torre DeRoche
3. Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold
4. The Map of the Sky by Felix J Palma
5. The Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

Notable mentions this year also go to...
Anything by J. D. Robb in particular Immortal in Death I love this series
Anything by Jim Butcher. Dead Beat is my favourite book so far and also wins the award for best use of a T-Rex in a novel, a big one considering I also read Jurassic Park in 2013

Worst reads of 2013..and boy were there some whoppers
The Mongoliad by Neal Stephenson
Tarnsman of Gor by John Norman
Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice
The Man Within by Lora Leigh

1. Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs...review to follow

Last year my aim was too demolish my to be read pile...but again my pony got in the way...sooo this year I have banished my kindle and I am not allowed to open it until I have read the 40 odd books that occupy the space beside my bed.

However this does pose a problem..a few of the books I have to read are part of rather large series and to read the new books I need to re-read all of them. So I will be treating those re-read books as one book until I get to the new ones.

#3 Hi Mamie yes it does look like we have similar tastes will be interesting to see what books you read this year.

Welcome back!

Looks like we might have some common interests, so I'll be keeping an eye on here. Happy belated holidays and happy reading :)

Hi all, it is good to be back in the land of the 75 challenege....So i joined the group yesterday and then spent the day starring people I usually follow and my wishlist of book has grown by 5 already sigh..I am sensing this is going to be a bad year for reducing my wishlist.

Hi, Jess. You caught my attention with your Oriental Cats (I have had a couple, tho no longer) and your large horse! Wow! I have two dogs now, and living in Washington State. Its raining here now, no surprise.

I saw that we share quite a few books and so I thought it would be fun to read your thread this year. I don't know how regularly I'll post something, but I'll probably lurk my way through relatively often.

Happy 2014!!

Hi all thanks for stopping by my thread. Well it looks like I will have some reading time coming up. I just spent the last two days in hospital after coming off my large horse he got a fright and suddenly there was no horse beneath me. I have some bruised ribs and bruising around my heart but am ok and on some nice meds.....if only I can stay awake long enough to get some reading done.

Oh, dear. So sorry to hear that, Jess. I'm so glad that you are doing okay. Sending healing thoughts your way. Please take care of yourself.

Glad it wasn't worse. Get better soon and happy reading

Hey all, well I have surfaced from the land of drug induced sleep pleased to report some reading has actually happened whist I have been resting and developing bruises the colour of eggplants.

I seem to be on a small Kathy Reichs reading spree at the moment.

1. Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs
2. Grave Secrets by Kathy Reichs
3. Bare Bones by Kathy Reichs
4. Monday Mourning by Kathy Reichs

phew that's a lot of dead people and bones packed into a few days reading....anyway all of the books would get 3 1/2 stars from me. The plots are always engaging and the characters are continuing to develop over time...yes it driving me nuts how slowly Tempe and Ryan are getting together but then i can always switch on and watch Bones and be happy. There are a few minor things that are starting to grate on my nerves...Tempe always ends up in personal danger...and she seems to to do a lot more detecting than the actual police. Its not enought to turn me off the series just something that makes me roll my eyes every now and again.

I think I need to delve back into the land of fantasy for a while and forget about cut marks on bones.

*snerk* loved that last line!

I am here, nursing my broken ribs, and sore RA shoulder, sending you best wishes for a happy recovery. I've fallen from a couple horses, many many years ago, and would not want to do that again.

Have people told you of the trick to hold a pillow to your sore side if you need to cough or sneeze. It help stabilize everything and the pain can be lessened dramatically in that fashion. I have a friend who says her teddy bear does the same when she hugs him while sneezing (she is 78 years old).

I'll be waiting to see what fantasy you read.....

Hey guys...thanks for the well wishes.

Hi Maggie...a sympathetic wince and ouch for you and your ribs...Luckily mine was only bruising and I am well on my way to recovery, even back at work...not back on a horse yet. Thanks for the tip about the pillow...sneezing still hurts especially at work.

In an earlier post I said I was giving the Kathy Reichs books a bit of rest...well that all ended with the fall from horse and bruising of ribs and heart...the easiest thing to grab and read was the tower of Reichs books. I won’t go into reviewing each book as some of them passed in a bit of a pain killer blur...though I do know I enjoyed each and every one of them and I still do.

5. Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs 3 1/2 stars
6. Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars my favourite so far
7. Break No Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars

I did however remember that I said I was going to delve back into the world of Fantasy...I need some elvish relief.....so the book I am currently reading is Daggerspell by Katherine Kerr. I am going to blame the pain killers a little bit but when I picked it up and started reading it the other day I almost shed a tear it was like running into your best friend who you haven’t seen for 20 years....the writing, the familiar world and characters, I could see it all so clearly just like when I last picked up the series..it felt like coming home. The book even has the beautiful old book smell and the pages are so light and well thumbed...ahh now I am rambling..it’s the pain killers.

As I mentioned this is one of the big series that I am going to re-read this year in an effort to finish them (along with Raymond E. Fiest's Magician series). I am going to count the series as one book until I get to the ones I haven’t read. So it begins............

8.1 Daggerspell by Katherine Kerr currently reading

Also I am going to join in the fun of Reading Bingo and have checked of my first square "A book that is more than 10 years old" with Daggerspell first published in 1986 the book is now 28 years old!!!

I've got the Kathy Reichs on my TBR. Hopefully this year :)

9. The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly simply one of the best books I have read in a long time....a huge contender for my personal book of the year. Its is a YA book but I thoroughly enjoyed it. Its a dark book and at times a bit scary, not sure if any of my young nieces or nephews would sleep after reading it. John Connolly is a brilliant writer, I just love the discussion about why books are better than newspapers and the whispering of books on the bookshelves made me look at my books more than once and lean in a bit just to make sure they weren't talking. The re-telling of the much loved fairy tales from a different angle was fantastic and I am sure the Brothers Grimm would have approved.

4 1/2 stars

Oh and I get to cross another square of my bingo card as this book fits the "A book your heard about online' category .... someone here in the 75 challenge reviewed it last year and raved about it.

10. Night Season by Eileen Wilks This is the fourth book in the series. It has been a while since I read the previous three books but I slipped back into the series quite well...remembering who everyone was and the rules of this story. I wasn't sure if I was going to like this story as it was focussed on Cullen and Cynna but it turned out that was not a problem...the characters became more fleshed out and the plot was interesting, even if the ending did get wrapped up a bit fast.

3 1/2 stars

And joy of joys this book crosses another square of my reading bingo card " A book with a blue cover" woot...my bingo card is in post 18

>20 apachecat:: I've got that one on my wishlist already - glad to see that you enjoyed it so much!

11. Personal Demon by Kelley Armstrong This is book 8 in the Otherworld series, and its been a looong time since I ventured into this world. I struggled a bit to remember who all of the major were and their connections and who the current big bad is...but a few chapters in and it all came flooding back. The major character in the book is Hope who is half chaos demon, and her on again off again boyfriend hope. Hope is employed to investigate a gang of youths who might be planning to topple the Cortez Cabal or are they in fact the victims of the Cabal. The plot is twisted at the beginning but about half way along you start to figure out what might be going down. Still enjoyable, not my favourite in the series but still pretty good.

3 1/2 stars.

Well have been absent for quite a while...work has been crazy and I have been working 20 hour shifts...plus trying to find time to ride my pony and have a life....but somewhere in there I have managed to read quite a few books so here they are in no particular oder....

12. Every Which Way But Dead by Kim Harrison 3 1/2 satrs
13. The Lions of Al-Rassan by GuyGavriel Kay 3 1/2 stars
14. Bones to Ashes by Kathy Reichs 4 stars
15. Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars
16. Kiss and Tell by Fiona Walker 4 1/2 stars
17. Dark Serpent by Kylie Chan 4 1/2 stars
18. Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs 4 stars
19. The Beginning Dressage Book by Kathryn Denby-Wrightson 4 stars

oh and I also finished another book in my re-read of my favourite series which I am counting as one big book so...
8.2 Darkspell by Katherine Kerr 4 stars

I wish I had time to write reviews for them but I dont so will just have to judge by the number of stars I gave them...catch you all soon : )

eeeks just checked my progress with last year and I am about 10 books behind...I had better get a move on and start some serious reading...I might have to give up sleeping...I am still reading real books and my kindle is gathering dust but the unread real book pile continues to grow until then no kindle...sigh.

20. Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart 3 stars

21. 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars.
This would have to be one of my favourite books in the series. It was a return to the Tempe of old, the plot was exciting and had several twists..I didnt figure out the real bad guy until Tempe did which is good...it was fast paced and I just really enjoyed it.

Hi Jess...

Since you came to visit me recently and de-lurked I decided to come and pay a visit. It looks like we share a few interests, so I'll be starring your thread and attempting to keep up here! I fall behind quite a lot these days, so I'll go ahead and apologize in advance. :)

Patricia Briggs is one of my favorites. I also enjoy Kim Harrison. I've only read one Kelley Armstrong and remember liking it, but I didn't continue past the first; I do think I have the second in the Otherworld series on a shelf around here though if that counts for anything at all. ;)

22. License to Ensorcell by Katharine Kerr Oh dear friends I am bitterly disappointed with this book. I struggled with it the entire way, praying it would get better....it has to doesn't it? Not so my friends.
Katharine Kerr is one of my all time favourite authors for me she is up there with Tolkien... I love her Deverry series I am currently re reading the whole series, I enjoyed her other books like Snare or Palace but this book ohhh.
This is Kerr's first attempt in the paranormal urban fantasy field and it felt like she struggling, forcing herself into this genre its contained cliches of the genre and they weren't hidden. The conversation was forced, the characters unlikeable, and I couldn't seen the attraction for either of them. And my biggest peeve was the horrible use of technical agency terms for normal powers eg. LDRS = long distance remote sensing ......really ??!!! I am sure it was meant to make this series stand out from others...it didn't work it just annoyed me to tears. And the eating disorder thing was unnecessary, added nothing to the story and again by the middle of the book it was just annoying.
This book and its sequel (which I can't bring myself to read) are going to the second hand bookstore.
2 stars

After the horror of the book above I decided I would throw myself straight back into the world of classic Katharine Kerr and continue in my reading of her classic Deverry series, which I am counting as one book.

8.3 Dawnspell by Katharine Kerr 4 stars

23 Mortal Remains by Kathy Reichs
I think 2014 should be renamed Reichs year cause that's all I seem to be reading...which isn't s bad thing I love reading them. There is only one thing I wish would hurry up is the resolution of the relationship between Tempe and Ryan......hurry up and get together!!!
4 stars

I give in...I cry for mercy....book 24 was meant to be To ride Pegasus by Anne McCaffrey but I just can’t do it. To be fair it’s not really the books fault more the cover art and my lack of reading the back cover...I saw the cover with a beautiful horse on it...the title contained the word Pegasus and me being the horsey girl that i am presumed to think it would be about horses....not so dear reader not so.
I struggled through the first 20 pages before finally accepting it had nothing to do with horses and everything to do with people who have special talents....combine the disappointment of no horses and me having a horrible cold at the moment and I just can’t do it, I give up its going back to the book shop and I am starting something else.....to do with horses lols.

Therefore book 24 will be The Silver Brumby by Elyne Mitchell it’s the centenary edition which means it combines four novels from the series The Silver Brumby, Silver Brumby's Daughter, Silver Brumbies of the South and Silver Brumby Kingdom. This series takes me back to my childhood where my dreams would be filled with the sounds of thundering brumby hooves and snowy mountains. I live pretty close to where this story is set so my imagination ran riot with it as a kid. Later in life I went on a horse trek through the same areas described by Mitchell and even got to chase a brumby herd and come within metres of a wild brumby stallion.

So I am off to read this book and then go and visit my own pony and convince him that he is a brave stock horse of brumby decent and he shouldn’t let things like sheep frighten him.

Well I have run completely of the rails this year with keeping this post up to date with my reading. Work has been crazy so I have mostly been reading old series that I haven't read in a long time and I wanted to finish them.
At the start of the year I said I wasn't going to count the series as individual books...but stuff that I have read heaps of books this year. On that note here is the actual and true representation of what my reading habits have looked like for the last 11 months. Sorry for the repetition but I had to get its straight how many books I have actually read.

1. Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs
2. Grave Secrets by Kathy Reichs
3. Bare Bones byKathy Reichs
4. Monday Mourning by Kathy Reichs
5. Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs 3 1/2 stars
6. Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars
7. Break No Bones by kathy Reichs 4 stars
8. The book of Lost Things by John Connolly 4 1/2 stars
9. Night Season by Eileen Wilks 3 1/2/ stars
10. Personal Demon by Kelley Armstrong 3 1/2 stars
11. Every Which Way but dead by Kim Harrison 3 1/2 stars
12. The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay 3 1/2 stars
13. Bones to Ashes by Kathy Reichs 4 stars
14. Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars
15. Kiss and Tell by Fiona Walker 4 1/2 stars

16. Dark Serpent by Kylie Chan 4 1/2 stars
17. Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs 4 stars
18. The Beginning Dressage Book by Kathryn Denby-Wrightson 4 stars
20. Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart 3 stars
21. 206 Bones by Kathy Reichs 4 stars
22. License to Ensorcell by Katharine Kerr 2 stars
23. Mortal Remains by Kathy Reichs 4 stars

24. Daggerspell by Katharine Kerr
25. Darkspell by Katharine Kerr
26. Dawnspell by Katharine Kerr
27. Dragonspell by Katharine Kerr
28. A Time of Exile by Katharine Kerr
29. A Time of Omens by Katharine Kerr
30. A Time of War by Katharine Kerr
31. A Time of Justice by Katharine Kerr
32. The Red Wyvern by Katharine Kerr
33. The Black Raven by Katharine Kerr
34. The Fire Dragon by Katharine Kerr
35. The Gold Falcon by Katharine Kerr
36. The Spirit Stone by Katharine Kerr
37. The Shadow Isle by Katharine Kerr
38. The Silver Mage by Katharine Kerr

39. Magician by Raymond E. Feist
40. Silverthorn by Raymond E. Feist
41. A Darkness at Sethanon by Raymond E. Feist
42. Prince of the Blood by Raymond E. Feist
43. The Kings Buccaneer by Raymond E. Feist
44. Shadow of a Dark Queen by Raymond E. Feist
45. Rise of a Merchant Prince by Raymond E. Feist
46. Rage of a Demon King by Raymond E. Feist
47. Shards of a Broken Crown by Raymond E. Feist
48. Krondor the Betrayal by Raymond E. Feist

49. Krondor the Assassins by Raymond E. Feist

50. Krondor Tear of the Gods by Raymond E. Feist
51. Talon of the Silver Hawk by Raymond E. Feist

52. King of Foxes by Raymond E. Feist

53. Honoured Enemy by Raymond E. Feist

On a side note...I am getting ridiculously excited about being part of SantaThing again....the fun of trying to pick books for someone and the absolute excitement of receiving books for Christmas!!! Best presents ever!! My family usually just buy me gift vouchers for the book store or horse shop...so getting actual present under the tree will be awesome!!

54. Murder in LaMut by Raymond E. Feist

55. Jimmy the Hand by Raymond E. Feist

56. King of Foxes by Raymond E. Feist
57. Exile's Return by Raymond E. Feist
58. Flight of the Nighthawks by Raymond E. Feist
59. Daughter of the Empire by Raymond E. Feist