Hello everyone,
I found this tag on Misty’s blog and it immediately looked like something I wanted to do. Although I have an Storygraph account, Goodreads is the only bookish app I use and maintain regularly, so many of the prompts here should be right up my street.
I have done similar tags to this one before, in relation to my current reads and my TBR, but the good thing about them is that the answers almost always change depending on when you do it. So without further ado, here are mine!
WHAT WAS THE LAST BOOK YOU MARKED AS READ?
I have finished one or two books since this one, but interestingly I only mark books as read when I am ready to start writing a review. This can be a week or more after finishing the book so Goodreads might say I am slightly behind in my reading challenge when in fact I am slightly ahead! Hostage was an excellent thriller, with such high stakes.
WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?
I am currently buddy reading The Paris Library with my friend Gem. It is a historical fiction that so far I have really enjoyed, connecting with the characters and dual timelines.
Meanwhile, I am also just starting Who Did You Tell? I have had this book on loan from the library for nearly two years, and am finally getting around to picking it up as part of my attempts to beat the backlog. I enjoyed Lesley Kara’s debut The Rumour, so feel confident that this will be a good read too.
WHAT WAS THE LAST BOOK YOU MARKED AS TBR?
As soon as I heard about June Hur’s next book, it was going straight on my TBR. I loved her debut The Silence Of Bones, which showed me that she writes such unique stories with fascinating settings, and I definitely plan to read more of them. As I type, there are 246 books on my Goodreads TBR.
WHAT BOOK DO YOU PLAN TO READ NEXT?
I am planning to start two buddy reads at the beginning of March, and I am very excited for both of them. Pandora is a book I written a lot about on here lately and it seems to contain a lot of the things I love to read about, while A History Of Wild Places sounds very mysterious and intriguing.
DO YOU USE THE STAR RATING SYSTEM?
Yes I do, and I also use half stars which Goodreads seem annoyingly unwilling to introduce despite our constant pleas! The way I interpret the rating system might be a bit different to others, but here is what each one means to me:
1 STAR – An extremely disappointing read which lacked substance and had next to no redeeming features.
2 STAR – Either a book with multiple flaws, or one that I just could not connect with.
3 STAR – A book that I quite enjoyed, but also had a few issues with.
4 STAR – An excellent read. One that I really enjoyed except for the occasional flaw.
5 STAR – A truly exceptional book that is either magnificently written, perfectly plotted, leaves a lasting impact on me, or all of the above!
ARE YOU DOING A 2022 READING CHALLENGE?
Yes! This is my fifth year of taking part in the Goodreads Challenge and have set myself a target of 55. I am confident of reaching it as I been able to reach and surpass that number in previous years. Also, I am taking part in Beat The Backlog, an attempt to get through as many books on my physical TBR as I can.
DO YOU HAVE A WISHLIST?
Only my Goodreads TBR. When I go shopping for books, I am usually quite careful to just buy the ones that are on that list, especially in places like charity shops.
WHAT BOOK DO YOU PLAN TO BUY NEXT?
Apart from a copy of A History Of Wild Places for my buddy read, the book I have really wanted to own for a while now is The Dictionary Of Lost Words, which I have heard amazing things about. However, there is no timeframe to buy it – my unread pile is substantial enough right now!
DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVOURITE QUOTES?
I do like highlighting and picking out quotes from books, especially when using the feature on my Kindle, but I cannot think of any in particular which I can call my favourite.
WHO ARE YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHORS?
I have lots of favourite authors! Here are my current top five, though.
- Jessie Burton
- Chloe Gong
- Lisa Jewell
- Alix E. Harrow
- Elizabeth Acevedo
HAVE YOU JOINED ANY GROUPS?
Just like Misty, I am part of a few groups on Goodreads but do not actively participate in any of them.
So that is everything! If you enjoyed these prompts and would like to have a go at answering them, then consider yourself tagged!
Happy reading :)
Stephen Reads Books 