What are we reading in January?

Happy (belated) New Year, everyone! What are you reading in this first month of 2018? I started the year with Cheryl Honigford's Homicide for the Holidays, then blew through Jesse Mecham's You Need a Budget. Never thought I'd read an entire book about budgeting in one evening! Now I'm turning to A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh. What about you?

It's a snow day here in southeastern Virginia (not that that's all that different for me than every other day except my husband is home), and I'm hoping to finish American Gods. I've literally been reading it for years (started and stopped a few times). I'm down to the last 200 pages, and I am determined to get through it. After that, I'm planning on starting Meddling Kids.

I'm reading The Code Book about the history of codes and ciphers and I've just barely started The man of Property, the first part of The Forsyte Saga.

I've started out with White Cat and Mischling. They're both really, really good, different as they are. I've only got about 30 pages left of White Cat, which I'm positive I'll finish today. The other's going a bit slower because of the serious subject matter. Next up, to offset it, I have Barren - Book 1: War in the Ruins.

I devoured the excellent Darktown, and I am now reading The People vs. Alex Cross. Patterson's writing is not the same as when I first started reading him many years ago, but the Alex Cross character is a good one.

I’m still reading my Nov Random book from last year Turn Right at Machu Picchu by Mark Adams and when I went to the library between errands yesterday, I picked up Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen for this month’s Random Cat.

I've finished Piglettes, a highly enjoyable French YA.
I'm currently reading several books:
Driving to Treblinka: A Long Search For A Lost Father by Diana Wichtel - a memoir
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
The Lost Pages by Marija Pericic - novel about Kafka
The slave dancer by Paula Fox - children's fiction
Doglands by Tim Willocks - children's fiction
The dogs of winter by Bobbie Pyron - children's fiction

Currently, I am reading God Stalk by P.C. Hodgell which is a group read and finishing up The Scalp Hunters by Mayne Reid.

I finished up an excellent book about the Beatles' music (Revolution in the Head, by Ian MacDonald) and will be getting Quick Curtain, by Alan Melville, ready to be my next bus book. Quick Curtain is my January RandomCAT read because it was a book bullet from two LTers.

>9 rabbitprincess: Quick Curtain is a fun one -- hope you enjoy it!

Just started Now That You Mention It by Kristan Higgins, who is one of my comfort authors.

>9 rabbitprincess: & >10 christina_reads: - Agree that Quick Curtain is a fun one!

I'm currently juggling the following:

Otis Redding: An Unfinished Life
The Wit and Wisdom of Oscar Wilde
Blackberry Wine

>10 christina_reads: I'm particularly enjoying the father-son dynamic, and the narration is really funny. The theatre atmosphere is good too. Reminded me of Ngaio Marsh and parts of The Man in the Queue.

I just finished reading The King of Lavender Square, which I started in 2017. Currently listening to the audiobook of Nickolas Nickleby for the 75 Group group read, and about to start Dark Desires as my planned read for the ScaredyCAT - Gothic Fiction.

I've completed Hunger by Roxane Gay, first read of the year and first five-star book of the year, and Cold Moon Over Babylon by Michael McDowell for the ScaredyKIT. I've started Odds Against Tomorrow for the SFFKit.

Last night I started Occupied City, by David Peace. I have to start reading it in the daytime because he's built such a chilling atmosphere.

I'm reading Life After Life.
Next up I have Property and 5 different library books...

Started the year with a nonfiction book, Balthus: Cats and Girls, by Sabine Rewald. Trying to read more nonfiction this year. Followed that with two books I actually started last year: A Murder Is Announced, by Agatha Christie, and Intruder in the Dark, by George Bellairs.

Thinking my next might be Vintage Murder, by Ngaio Marsh, which would be a good January choice for Alpha KIT reading. I've never tried one of the Kits before -- at least, not successfully.

I've read Prairie Fires: the American Dreams of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Caroline Fraser, which I really enjoyed; I used it for the over 500 pages BingoDOG square. Now I'm reading Life after Life by Kate Atkinson and Pachinko by Min Jin Lee for my book clubs and Dark Horses and Black Beauties by Melissa Holbrook Pierson for the fits 2 or more CATs/KITs BingoDOG square (ColorCAT and AlphaKIT). Prairie Fires and the books I'm reading for book clubs are longer than I normally read so that this might be all I read this month.

I'm reading Snowblind by Ragnar Jónasson, which will work for the MysteryCAT and the RandomCAT, as several people on LT recommended it to me!

I'm (still) reading Black Lamb & Grey Falcon for January's ColourCAT - I started it in mid-December and have just about made it to 1/3 of the way through. This is a chunkster and a half, and I can't imagine finishing it in January, but I will keep going till it's finished - I'm not going to let it defeat me! I'm finding it in turn interesting and really annoying, but just when I get to my most annoyed with it she drops in a sentence or an observation which is just so sublime it spurs me to keep going.

I'm also reading Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair, the first of the Thursday Next series for January's RandomCAT, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Fforde has been compared favourably to the likes of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett, and on the strength of this (his first published novel) I can see why. I have 3 of the 7 books in the series, and will definitely be looking out for the others.

Once I've finished that (likely in the next day or two), I will return to The Memory Keeper's Daughter, which I was reading for December's CATWoman but got a bit bogged down with lots of unhappy people - I just wasn't in the mood for that! It's a former book group book that I didn't finish the first time, so I'm determined to finish it this time round - eventually!

>21 Jackie_K: So glad you enjoyed The Eyre Affair! I'm a huge Fforde ffan. :)

I am reading When We Were Animals by Joshua Gaylord for the January RandomCat and just starting The In-Between World of Vikram Lall which will fit the AlphaKit for "V".

I'm reading The Life to Come by Michelle de Kretzer.

I finished Quick Curtain and, in something of a change of pace, started The Black Arrow, by Robert Louis Stevenson.

I'm really struggling through Wolf Winter. I'm intent on finishing it, but the further in I go, the more it seems torn between being suspense, horror, drama, and historical fiction... and it's just not working for me. I've come so far that I'm curious where it will end up, and I want to finish it as the one Nordic mystery I have on hand... but, yeah, it's a struggle.

On a much easier note, I've started Barren: War in the Ruins. I'm not far in, but it's got me interested. I can't say the writing stands up to the more recent writing I've seen from the author, J. Thorn, but he delivers a good story :)

I've finished my first book of the year Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen which was also a Bingo Block and a book form the Random Cat.

Finally finished The Life to Come, which seemed much longer than it really is, and have started Submission by Michel Houellebecq.

I'm loving Magpie Murders.

I finally got done with other reads and picked up Song of the Orphans last night. It's the sequel to Flight of the Silvers, which I devoured in late December (reading something like 600 pages in three days, while traveling!). It's going to be harder to fit in reading time this week than it was on the first, but already, I want to forget about work and just go read all day... Much as my wrist is going to start hating it, I'm kind of glad the book is over 700 pages long. More to enjoy!

I've just started A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab.

Now reading Curse of the Narrows, by Laura M. MacDonald, which is about the Halifax Explosion. I'm up to Chapter 4, which explains the chemistry and horrendous effects of the explosion.

>32 rabbitprincess: I read an article about that and it has stayed with me. I'll look forward to finding out from you if I need to read a book about it.

I've got a bunch of books going. I'm reading The Book of Joan by Lidia Yuknavitch and Savage Theories by Pola Oloixarac for the upcoming Tournament of Books and they're both hard going for me.

I'm also finally reading The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton, which will probably take awhile, The Egg and I by Betty MacDonald as a little light reading and A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories by Flannery O'Connor for my real life book group.

I am reading The Weight of This World by David Joy and Nemesis by Jo Nesbo. I am also listening to The Black Dahlia by James Ellroy. Enjoying all three.

I'm reading a couple of books right now: The Last Temptation by Val McDermid, Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan, From Here to Eternity by Caitlin Doughty, and Dear Cyborgs by Eugene Lim.

>33 RidgewayGirl: I would say yes, even though I haven't finished this book yet :) It's very good so far.

21- I loved The Eyre Affair. About time for a reread!

I just finished The Man Who Would King by Rudyard Kipling. My copy was just a little Diver edition of five stories. It has My favorite of his, Without Benefit of Clergy. Now I'm reading The Boy on the Bridge, which I was supposed to review last year but forgot about.

I'm reading The Girls, my guilty pleasure Concealed in Death, The Wicked Girls, and a library hold that just became available yesterday, The Woman in the Window.

I've been indulging in a big fat read: Sleeping Beauties by Stephen and Owen King.

>32 rabbitprincess: - I think this is one I’ll have to add to the list of potential books for my husband. He loves those boat disaster books. I think I bought a different one for him about the same subject another time.

We traveled out to Arizona earlier today to visit friends and I’ve managed to read about half of Nemesis by Jo Nesbo.

I finished my audio of Unfamiliar Fishes. It's a non-fiction about the history of Hawaii. It was fascinating stuff, but the author has such an annoying voice that I would recommend reading this one instead of listening.

>40 dudes22: @mysterymax would recommend it as well!

I remember we discussed The Finest Hours one year. Did he end up reading that one?

He says no, so I must have lost where I wrote it down. Back onto the list it goes.

I'm insanely trying to read 200 books this year. Fear I'm already falling behind, but so far have read: The Midnight Line by Lee Child; London Falling, Severed Streets, and The Lost Child of Lychford by Paul Cornell; Loki: Agent of Asgard Vols 1-3 by Al Ewing; The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett by Chelsea Sedoti, and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley.

Next up - The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.

Wish me luck!

I'm struggling with The Wicked Girls, I will be happy when I finish it. The plot line is kind of obvious, and it's not what I expected. Not a bad book, just so so. I guess I expected more because it won an Edgar Award? I think I was looking for a little more suspense.

>45 lsh63: Yeah, the book was a disappointment to me. It started full of promise and then because really predictable.

Just finished The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny that was my 3rd five-star read this month! Can't wait to get to the next in the series and hope to find the evil Superintendent Francoeur suffering from something abominable!

I heard Peter Mayle died a few days ago. I happen to have The Corsican Caper on the shelf that I'll read in his memory.

Currently I am reading A Man of Property the first book in the Forsyte Saga, I struggled getting into this book with so many characters to remember, but now I am really enjoying it. I am about to start Magpie Murders which finally came in after I ordered it from the library last September. Trying not to have too high an expectation for this one.

I'm working on about five books at the moment, I want to see if I can finish them all by month end. I suffer from a bad case of library greed haha. They are :The Girls, The Scarred Woman, Concealed in Death. The Wife Between Us, and The Woman in the Window. I'm trying to become current with the In Death series, and I really enjoy the Department Q series. I've been wanting to read The Girls for a while and was waiting for the popularity to decline. As for the other two, I am a sucker for the "new thriller" of the month!

>48 DeltaQueen50: Hi Judy, I hope you enjoy the Magpie Murders, I really enjoyed it and had a hard time putting it down. With all of the Agatha Christie influences, I think you will like it. After such a long wait, it would be such a let down if you didn't like it.

I just finished a short novella called Come Closer by Sara Gran, which is about a woman who's slowly being possessed by a demon. Creepy and psychological.

I'm currently reading The Redbreast for the MysteryCAT and Altered Carbon just for fun. I'm enjoying both so far.

Still reading Frankenstein and am well into Packing for Mars.

Hoping to finish up Those Who Walk Away, by Patricia Highsmith. Interesting how both she and Daphne du Maurier set suspense stories in Venice.

I tried to read Curse of the Mistwraith but I couldn't get into it enough to want to read 600 pages. I'm not sure why but it was just a slog to get as far as I did, so I put it down.

I am reading The Black Tulip for the ColorCAT and Money from Holme for the AlphaKIT. I am also doing a buddy read with some non-LT friends of Infinite Jest.

Finished Nemesis, by Agatha Christie, and just started Norse Mythology, by Neil Gaiman.

Just finished The Blood Card by Elly Griffiths. I absolutely love this series! Set in the 1940s-50s in Brighton, the south of England seaside resort and featuring variety show performers.

56- I loved both of those!

Finally getting into Gods of Gotham for the RandomCAT read. Also reading The Animators from the ToB list.

>58 cmbohn: I liked Norse Mythology more than Nemesis. It was especially fun to read Norse Mythology a week after finishing American Gods.

Continuing my myths and legends theme with Arthurian Romances, by Chretien de Troyes, complete with my Post-it notes from a university class on King Arthur.

Picked up Framley Parsonage, which should keep me busy for a while. And I just started my Early Reviewer book Rowan and Eris by Australian author Campbell Jefferys that really grabbed my attention from the first page.

I'm still reading Song of the Orphans, and trying to limit myself to a few chapters per day in order to make it last. I know the author's working on the finish of the trilogy, but, well, I wish it were in my hands now! Of course, then I'd disappear and read all of this one and the next, and then have the world's worst book hangover, and, well... self control, right? Anyhow, it's still really, really good. But, heavy at 750 pages, which makes it easier to parcel it out, I admit. If you love fantasy/sci-fi/suspense/X-Men type mash-ups, though, wholly cow, look up the first book in the series, Flight of the Silvers.

Meanwhile, to distract from that book, I've picked up Sandman Slim, which a friend suggested I read ages ago. And, already after the first chapter, I'm totally sucked in.

I am reading The Amber Fury, which was recommended on the 100 Books Challenge group. Going well.

Next up for me is Katherine Arden's The Girl in the Tower, but I may sneak in a little poetry first with W.H. Auden's For the Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio.

I’ve finished Nemesis by Jo Nesbo but haven’t had a chance to post to my thread yet. (We’re having too good a time in AZ.) and I’ve started Tapestry of Fortunes by Elizabeth Berg. And I need to start Black River by S.M. Hulse for the Jan Color Cat.

Just finished Framley Parsonage by Anthony Trollope which was excellent although it was so frustrating to see Mark Robarts get into financial problems. Trollope had similar problems, to a lesser extent, so I expect he was trying to expose how easy it could happen.

I just finished Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton and I started Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell. I am also reading Reasons to Stay Alive by Matt Haig.

>66 VivienneR: I was recently discussing Framley Parsonage with a RL friend -- I think it might be time for me to revisit the Barchester series as I don't remember that one very well.

I am listening to the audiobook of Very Good, Jeeves, a set of short stories early in the Jeeves series. In print I am reading Moving Pictures, the 10th Discworld book. On my Kindle, I continue with Infinite Jest...

Preparing to start Girl Waits with Gun, by Amy Stewart -- yay!

Where did this month go? I am closing out the month with A Long Walk Home by Judith Tebbutt and This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman, which I am reading for the SFFFKit.

67- What do you think of the Matt Haig book? I follow him on Twitter. He's great and I love all the mental health positivity he posts.

I reading Gone With the Wind. I'm halfway through and hope I can get it finished by Monday.

>71 cmbohn: I follow him on Twitter too, and that is why I ordered his book. I just started it yesterday, read about 100 pages, and so far I'm really liking it.

Currently enjoying How to Build an Android: The True Story of Philip K. Dick's Robotic Resurrection by David F. Dufty. It's a very interesting book so far and I'm learning about the challenges of building A.I. and the complexities when they are modeled on real people.

Just finished Tomorrow, when the War Began which was good enough to look for the next one. I'm a little ways into The Man Who Knew Too Much about the life and work of Alan Turing.

I'm still ploughing my way through Black Lamb and Grey Falcon (now at about 47% read, sigh - am expecting it to take at least another month), and racing my way through Walking the Woods and the Water, following in the footsteps of Patrick Leigh Fermor's epic 1930s gap year walking through Europe, but in 2011-12, which I am really enjoying.

My current library book is Nicola Sturgeon: A Political Life, and I've also started Liberace: An American Boy, both for the 75ers February non-fiction challenge (biographies). I think it's fair to say you can't get two more dissimilar characters!

I'm starting Don Quixote. It's quite long and February is a short month!

I think I may be reading too many books with women drinking too much wine, I must ahem read something more substantial in February haha. I'm reading The Wife Between Us, I can't seem to stay away from the new thrillers at the library every month! I also finished Concealed in Death and The Wicked Girls.

I have to say I am about halfway through The Wife Between Us and I am intrigued because I know there's a good plot twist coming, I can sense it.

I haven't grown tired of the In Death, series, some are better than others, but I think all are good and addictive.

I was a tad bit disappointed with The Wicked Girls, maybe I had higher expectations because it won an Edgar Award, but that doesn't always mean the book is top notch.

Not sure what's going on with the touchstones, but then it's Monday.

Should be wrapping up Raven Black in the next couple of days and then I'll move on to finishing The Animators.

I am reading The Unbearable Bassington. We need humour in 2018!