Reading Challenges: 2015

Despite the fact I only completed about half the reading I set for myself in 2014, I plan to participate in challenges again in 2015. Here we go:

2015 TBR Pile Challenge

Hosted by Roof Beam Reader, this challenge will once again be the lynch pin of my project. The goal is to read twelve books from my “TBR” pile over the course of twelve months. The challenge stipulates that the books must be at least twelve months old—released prior to 2014. With over two hundred qualifying titles on my current, physical TBR shelf, this will not be a problem.  Two alternates are allowed, just in case one of the twelve ends up in the “DNF” pile.

Last year, a few of my selections were books that had been on the shelf for too long and reading them felt more like an obligation than a pleasure. Therefore, this year I’ve tried to pick books I’m really excited about reading.

My selections:

The Heroes, Joe Abercrombie

(This is only holdover from last year’s list. I really want to read this book, I just know it’s going to consume a week or two. It’s long and involved and it’s an Abercrombie, which means I’ll need to read every gloriously gory word.)

Hounded, Kevin Hearne

The Archer’s Tale, Bernard Cornwell

Spherical Harmonic, Catherine Asaro

The Lost Fleet: Fearless, Jack Campbell

People of the Book, Geraldine Brooks

Salt, Maurice Gee

Thunderer, Felix Gilman

When We Were Orphans, Kazuo Ishiguro

Twilight Falling, Paul S. Kemp

Way of the Wolf, E.E. Knight

Chindi, Jack McDevitt

My alternates:

The Red Wolf Conspiracy, Robert Redick

Wake, Robert Sawyer

For more details regarding participation, check-ins, mini challenges and giveaways, visit Roof Beam Reader.

The Digital Library

I don’t know how many titles I have in my digital library. I’m too afraid to properly count them. What I do know is that they date back to 2009, which is when I bought my first Kindle–and that I haven’t read a lot of them. Tsk, tsk.

Choosing twelve digital titles to read isn’t going to reduce the pile by much. I know I’ll buy more than twelve ebooks this year. But hopefully it will encourage me to read and/or toss some of the stuff that has been collecting virtual dust. So here is a second list, a challenge I have devised for myself.

Empress, Karen Miller

Manifold Time, Stephen Baxter

The Demon Awakens, R.A. Salvatore

Trading in Danger, Elizabeth Moon

Gray Justice, Alan McDermott

Star Fire, Mike Lee

Heart Shaped Box, Joe Hill

The Old Man and the Wasteland, Nick Cole

The Speed of Dark, Elizabeth Moon

Rule, Jay Crownover

The Unsung Hero, Suzanne Brockmann

The Red Knight, Miles Cameron

My alternates:

Storm Glass, Maria V. Snyder

Odalisque, Fiona McIntosh

My reviews for all of the above books are going to be short (and hopefully sweet). I have a lot of writing to do this year.

In addition to TBR Challenges, I’ll also be participating in:

The Sci Fi Experience

This one spans two months, December and January. I haven’t chosen any specific titles as this is less a challenge than an opportunity to connect with my first love, science fiction, and share it with others. I’ve already posted two reviews:

Undercity, Catherine Asaro

The Fortress in Orion, Mike Resnick

I expect I’ll read another couple of eligible titles in the coming weeks.

The featured image for this post is ‘Idiom’ is by the Slovakian artist Matej Kren. It was first exhibited at San Paulo’s International Biennial in 1995 and is now a permanent instillation at the main branch of  the public library in Prague.