January/February 2020 Reading Wrap Up

I had a slow but enjoyable start to the new year. Real life and a new project meant that I had less reading time than usual the last few months. Having less time to read means that I am being more intentiaonal in what I am picking up and it is also making it very easy for me to decide if I am going to DNF something. I did have my first DNF of the year in February. I tried reading Negroland by by Margo Jefferson and from the response I received on Instagram I wasn't alone in not initially getting along with that book but I may try it again another time. Other than that one hiccup I mostly enjoyed everything else that I picked up except for Wool. I found Wool a little tedious but I was able to finish it and ended up giving it 2 stars in the end so I won't be picking up the next book.

I continued to read in several series that I have going and none of the installments disappointed.  I won't go into reviews for the Handler, Penny, Robb, Neely, and Mosley books. It goes without saying that I enjoyed them and that I will be finishing out all of those series. Reading Charcoal Joe means that I am caught up in the Easy Rawlins series. I now have to wait for the next book and that just makes me sad! 

I read Bed & Breakfast Bedlam by Abby L. Vandiver which is book one in her Logan Dickerson series. I really enjoyed the story but was disappointed in the lackadaisical editing. The editor of a writer that good should have been more attentive. Because I really enjoy Vandiver's writing I will not hesitate to continue on to the next book soon. 

I am a big fan of N.K. Jemisin and I will admit when I first started listening to Emergency Skin I was a little nervous that I wouldn't like it. I shouldn't have even concerned myself because Jemisin in her brilliantly unique way turned weird into fascinating and I ended up loving this very quick audio book and naturally wished that there were more. 

Finally, I participated in the 2020 #ReadSoulLit group read of The Last Thing You Surrender by Leonard Pitts Jr. It was such a good read and if you are like me and have been sleeping on Pitts' writing please correct that quickly! This story is so very good and everything about it drew me in and had me emotionally invested. The live chat was fun and there was a special guest that made everyone's afternoon. Here's the link to the video and you can watch it for yourself: https://youtu.be/5RKNvkfYmxs 

So all in all I had a good start to the year and I hope that I can meet my Goodreads goal of 75 books this year. My only real reading plan for 2020 is that my reading will be backlist heavy. I have a lot of books that I have picked up over the years at thrift stores, library sales, and other bargain places. I know that I am sitting on at least 60 % unread books in my house and even I have to admit to that being ridiculous! I love a good book bargain but I need to read and appreciate or let go of my many stacks of books. That doesn't even include all of the sales that I have taken advantage of on Amazon for my Kindle and my backlog of Audible books. Y'all know I'm hoping that I am going to love the majority of them so that I can justify keeping most of my books around. This read my own books project will take a few years because I know without a doubt that I will still add more book bargains and there will be new releases slipped in from time to time as well. I have come to accept that about myself. 

Let me know how the start to your reading year is going and if you have any specific goals.