First Quarter Reads – Demolishing Goals

Every year I set a Goodreads challenge and every year I fail miserably.

This year I was tired of hearing my mom fuss at me for making my goal so high and me scrambling to read a ton of books in December.

I keep saying I am going to dig into my comic collection to win the challenge but I never get around to it.

Also December is my slow month at work.

But still… I was tired of getting picked on and fussed at.

I know how I can devour books.

This year, I decided to prove to myself I can still devour them the way I used to.

So I set my goal to 55 books. That is about half of what it was last year and way more than I have ever accomplished but I was on a roll from reading in December so I figured I could squash that in a year.

January was going to set the tone. I was focused and I had my secret weapon… my love of romance novellas.

JANUARY READING LOG

• A Tale of Two Cities: A Thanksgiving Novella by Alexandra Warren
• Tikka Chance on Me by Suleikha Snyder
• Leslie’s Curl & Dye by DL White
• Second Time Around by DL White
• A Tale of Two Cities: A Christmas Novella by Alexandra Warren
• Beach Thing by DL White
• The Zahir by Paulo Coelho
• The Night Before by Jacinta Howard
• A Thin Line by DL White
• Noelle The First by Nicole Falls
• Brave Hearts by Nicole Falls
• Started From A Selfie by Nicole Falls
• The Illumination of Ginger by Nicole Falls
• Sugar Butter Flour Love by Nicole Falls
• The Games We Play by Alexandra Warren
• The Lessons We Learn by Alexandra Warren
• If Only For The Summer by Alexandra Warren
• Let Us Dream by Alyssa Cole

So yeah… 18 books.

I discovered my favorite book by one of my favorite authors. A Thin Line by DL White hit me so hard I still haven’t returned in on Kindle Unlimited. This is primarily because she removed it from Kindle and I don’t want it to disappear. One day I will ask her if she has a print copy in the corner somewhere that I can buy. But until then, I am keeping it.

I also discovered a love for a few new authors with backlogs that make my mouth water and give me a mean case of writer envy. This was when I decided that I would not be publishing anything this year because… wow. I feel a bit inferior. These ladies can write their asses off.

I also noticed that this year’s challenge wouldn’t be that difficult and I might possibly meet it by the summer even with a bit of a slow down.

So in comes February. The shortest month of the year. Of course I won’t get many books in this month.

FEBRUARY READING LOG

• Hint of Spice by Christina Jones
• Love Grind by Shelly Ellis
• A Dash of Heat by Christina Jones
• A Touch of Sugar by Christina Jones
• Forbidden Rendezvous by Mel Blue
• Sweatpants Season by Danielle Allen
• Ariana by Ash Dylan
• A Girl Like Her by Talia Hibbert
• Untouchable by Talia Hibbert
• The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
• A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole
• A Duke by Default by Alyssa Cole
• Once Ghosted, Twice Shy by Alyssa Cole
• One Bed for Christmas by Jackie Lau
• A Perfect Holiday Fling by Farrah Rochon
• Between A Rock and a Hot Mess by Phyllis Bourne
• Between A Honeymoon and a Hot Mess by Phyllis Bourne
• A Good Night’s Sleep by Stefanie Simpson
• Adjacent by Alexandra Warren
• Replacement by Alexandra Warren
• Displacement by Alexandra Warren
• Home by Jezz deSilva
• A Tale of Two Cities: A New Year Novella by Alexandra Warren
• Cindra: A Paranormal Fairytale by Siera London
• All I Want for Christmas by Nicole Falls
• Relationship Goals by Christina Jones
• Everything She Never Wanted by Tasha Harrison
• In Her Wildest Dreams by Farrah Rochon
• A Little Bit Naughty by Farrah Rochon
• Feud by Phyllis Bourne
• Just A Little Taste by Farrah Rochon
• I Dare You! by Farrah Rochon
• All You Can Handle by Farrah Rochon
• Anyway You Want It by Farrah Rochon
• Anytime You Need Me by Farrah Rochon

35 books.

35 BOOKS!!!!

So clearly I killed my goal in under two months. Clearly I have a book addiction. No I don’t need a support group. My Twitter Loves are all the support I need.

I upped my goal. Decided to got to 105.

Because clearly, I am going to slow down at some point. I know me. I am a turtle. I am a sloth. I will slow down.

Onto March.

MARCH READING LOG

• Haunted by Christina Jones
• You Out of Nowhere by Jay E. Tria
• A Tale of Two Cities: A Valentine’s Novella by Alexandra Warren
• Valentine Rush by Stephanie Norris
• Be Mine by Savannah Frierson
• As Sweet by Holley Trent
• So Sweet by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• Syx Whole Weeks by Grey Huffington
• So Right by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• So For Real by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• The Way Home by Stefanie Simpson
• Love Notes by Christina Jones
• Being Neighborly by Meka James
• Layover by Katrina Jackson
• Grow Something by Christina Jones
• Rouge Acts by Molly O’Keefe
• A Taste For Temptation by Phyllis Bourne
• Sweeter Temptation by Phyllis Bourne
• Writing Her In by Holley Trent
• An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
• Spice and Smoke by Suleikha Snyder
• Last First Kiss by Nicole Falls
• Pushing Thirty by Necole Ryse
• Coveted by Christina Jones
• Keeper of Keys by Bernice McFadden
• Soft on Soft by Em Ali
• Cuffing Season by Danielle Allen
• Can’t Escape Love by Alyssa Cole
• Extra Extra by Chris Stevens
• Getting Schooled by Christina Jones
• Pulling Doubles by Christina Jones
• Bending the Rules by Christina Jones
• Christmas With The Wrights by Christina Jones
• Love at First Spite by Alexandra Warren
• In Spite of it All by Alexandra Warren
• Accidental Arrangements by Alexandra Warren
• Adore You by Nicole Falls
• Smitten by Nicole Falls
• Then Came You by Nicole Falls
• Blizzard Bliss by Kelly Maher
• Damaged Goods by Talia Hibbert
• Happily Ever After by Turtleberry
• The Holiday Inn by Phyllis Bourne

43 Books.

So yeah… I am on a roll.

That is 96 books in the first quarter. I have read more books than there are days in the year. I feel like a superhero.

Addressing a few points:

1. Yes, yes I know I read a lot of novellas and they are half the size of novels. I still get some novels in. I figure eventually I will have read all the romance novellas out there and be stuck with longer books. LOL
2. Clearly, I have a few authors I am now addicted too. I will read the entire backlog of Christina C. Jones, Alexandra Warren, and Nicole Falls before the summer. I only have one more book by DL White to read and that is on deck for this week.
3. Yup. You read it right. I read one of my own books. They bring me joy. I am a fan of myself.

I know I will be upping the reading goal this week. I am not sure where I will take it. Stay tuned for more on that.

Check me out on Goodreads to see how I rated the books. I will say now that no book rated less than three stars because I would have tossed it in the DNF pile. I don’t force myself to read books I don’t like. I will be posting a post about what my rating system means.

Until then… I got books to read.