reading goals

Review: They Do It with Mirrors (Miss Marple #6) by Agatha Christie

~ megs14malloy

They Do It with Mirrors (Miss Marple, #6)They Do It with Mirrors by Agatha Christie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Continuing along with my 2023-Reading Goal of reading all of the full-length novels in the Miss Marple series, in order, is the 6th-book, They Do It with Mirrors.

This is the 5th-installment that I have read. For those unaware, there is a collection of short stories that kicks off the series, which I didn’t read. I’m not crazy about mysteries in short story form, therefore, I chose to skip it.

In this one we follow Miss Marple as she travels to Stonygates, a rehabilitation center for young men with, shall we say, emotional and behavioral issues.

Caution: As this novel was penned in 1952, mental health issues are not discussed/handled as they would be in a novel of today. If you think that may be an issue for you, you might want to skip this one.

Anyway, Miss Marple goes there to visit her old school-friend, Carrie Louise, at the recommendation of another old friend, Ruth Van Rydock. Ruth believes something is going on at Stonygates that puts Carrie Louise in danger.

Mrs. Van Rydock knows if anyone is going to be able to get to the bottom of it, it’s going to be Miss Marple. And spoiler alert: she’s right.

I thought this one was a lot of fun. It is quite short, but I like the way it was laid out. Additionally, I loved that Miss Marple was in this one from the very first chapter. That is a first for the series. She generally has been coming into the narrative a bit further along.

The only reason I rated this slightly lower than the others I’ve read was mainly related to the length. I feel like just as I was starting to get connected to it, it was over.

I also felt the reveal was a little rushed. It felt sort of like, yep, it was this person. Shame, shame. Moving on. I would have enjoyed some more time at the conclusion.

With this being said, I still had a blast with this. These books have such a nostalgic and comforting feel for me. I absolutely adore them.

I’m looking forward to continuing on with the next book in the series, A Pocket Full of Rye!!!

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Review: The Moving Finger (Miss Marple #4) by Agatha Christie

~ megs14malloy

The Moving FingerThe Moving Finger by Agatha Christie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Reading an Agatha Christie novel is such a fun experience and comfortable place for me. I enjoy these classic mysteries so, so much. They never get old!

One of my 2023-Reading Goals is to read all of the full-length novels in the Miss Marple series in order.

Even though I am a little behind my initial ‘one-per-month’ goal, I still think I stand a great chance of completing these all this year. The Moving Finger is the third novel in the series and I found it an absolute delight!

In this story we follow Jerry Burton, who after an unfortunate accident relocates himself, along with his sister, Joanna, to the little village of Lymstock to recuperate from his injuries.

The idea is that the quiet village life will be the perfect setting for him to relax and heal. Little do the siblings know that quiet villages often hold the most sinister secrets and dastardly deeds.

Not long after their arrival, the Burtons receive a poison pen letter; basically, the troll comments of their time.

The letter accuses them of terrible things, of living together and not actually being brother and sister…

It’s not true of course and they’re quite curious as to who would hold such vitriol against them. They just moved to Lymstock, after all, they hardly know anybody. Who would be so crass?

Soon it becomes clear that Jerry and Joanna were not the only victims. People throughout the village received similar vicious letters, all accusing the recipients of different horrible things.

At first, it seems more a nuisance than anything else, but then one goes a step too far and a woman ends up taking her own life after receiving one of the letters.

The village is in shock. The letters have to be coming from one of their own, but who?

As the Reader, you follow along as Jerry and Joanna become more ingrained in the town and the families living there. Jerry is determined to weed out the culprit.

This was so much fun. I loved getting to know the people in the town, hearing their stories and watching how they were all connected.

Village life is so interesting to me. There is a deep history in such places and many of the families living there are connected in ways that might not be apparent upon first glance. I love parsing all that out.

It was interesting to me that Miss Marple doesn’t appear until about 75% of the way through this novel. Yet she still plays a major role in the solving of the crime.

It felt like more of a cameo than a starring role, but somehow, Christie made it work. Not only that, she made this feel like a true part of the series. We’re just watching Marple’s crime-solving resume grow and I’m here for it.

Christie fooled me in this one. I had a few different theories, but I actually didn’t guess who was actually behind it all.

It all made sense once she laid it out, but yeah, I definitely didn’t see it coming. I wasn’t working super hard to try to figure it out, but she definitely successfully distracted me while the truth was hiding right under my nose.

I also really loved Jerry as a character. He got more than he bargained for during his period of recuperation, but it certainly turned out well for him in the end.

I am so looking forward to starting the next book in the series, A Murder is Announced. I’ve heard incredible things about it and can’t wait to see what new mystery awaits!!

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February Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy

Hello, my lovely book friends! Long time, no post!

Where have I been? What have I been up to?

Long story short, I went on a mini-vacation with my best friend, down to Tennessee and read nothing that entire time. Then upon arriving home, I came down with the cold of the century and have basically been out of commission for a week.

Luckily, today I have only blown my nose 400 times versus 4,156,220. That’s an improvement.

I feel like life is returning to my body and soul, hence the post! I actually have the energy to form coherent thoughts and sit at my laptop to type.

So, let’s talk February reading plans. I have not done my January wrap-up yet, as it is a big one, and I don’t have that much energy yet. I figured this post would be a good place to start.

February is Women in Horror month and there is a month-long readathon hosted by the Ladies of Horror Fiction — look them up on Instagram and they also have a GoodReads Book Group — which I am participating in.

There are five challenges involved, but the overall goal is to read Women Horror Authors. There aren’t enough of them, so it is nice to shine a light on their work.

The group book for the month is, The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring. I have wanted to get to this one for a while now and am stoked to finally be picking it up. Hoping to start that one tomorrow.

Other than that, I have a lot of backlist titles that will fit the challenge prompts so will be happy to check some of those off my endless TBR. These include two of my current reads, Blood Countess by Lana Popovic and The Dark Beneath the Ice by Amelinda Berube. 

In addition to this, I also hope to read one ‘new to me’ Stephen King, which I planned to do in January but didn’t get too, as well as read, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark as a Instagram readalong.

That’s it for solid plans. Other than that, I will be continuing to make my way through my 2020-ARCs and mood read. 

What are your February reading plans? Are you participating in any readathons or readalongs? I want to know. Leave a comment down below or contact me through any of my social media links!

Until next time, Cheers & Happy Reading!

((Phew, I’m exhausted))

2020 Reading Goals

~ megs14malloy

Now that 2020 is in full swing, it’s time to let y’all know my reading goals for the year.

My biggest take away from 2019 was that I am putting to much pressure on myself to read certain things at certain times and was causing unneeded stress in my life.

I’m not sure when or why I started taking what I was reading so seriously but moving forward, I am going to get back to reading for me.

All joking aside, at my heart, I am mood reader. One of my favorite feelings in the world is after I finish one book, picking out a new book to start. With some many things to choose from, the possibilities seem endless, like the world is my oyster, and I love that feeling.

I have decided to forgo my monthly TBR challenges for this year (I was failing at them terribly by the end of 2019, anyway) and also give up on my monthly theme reading.

Someday, maybe I will go back to this type of format, but for now, it just wasn’t working for me.

I also am going to try to slow down on the number of review copies I request and accept. I feel like all I read lately are ARCs. While they are all books I am excited for, I still have a ton of books that I purchase that I am also excited for that I never get around too because, well….ARCs!!!

I always, always appreciate the opportunity to read a book early and will continue to follow through with the obligations that I have made to publishers and hope to continue working with many of them going forward. I’m looking at you St. Martin’s Press, Disney Book Group and Berkley Books, to name a few!

This isn’t the end of ARCs for me, just a scaling back, let’s say.

I also want to continue to scale back on the number of books that I am purchasing. Last year, I allowed myself to pre-order 2 books per month and that worked pretty well. I am also down to one book subscription box per month, Book of the Month, with an occasional Book Outlet haul thrown in for good measure.

Lastly, I want to continue to strive to write full reviews for every, single book I read. Currently, I am going back through all the books I read in 2019 and trying to get full reviews up for the ones I missed. So, you may see an uptick in book reviews over the next week or so.

What are some of your reading goals for 2020? Were you successful with your 2019 goals? I want to know. Leave a comment here or contact me through any of my social media links.

Until next post, Cheers & Happy Reading~

December Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy

The last month of the year is upon us! My theme for the month is…

DIVERSE BOOKS!!!

That’s right! It’s time for Diverse December. My goal, as in previous months, is to complete 10-books that can comfortably fit within this category. I am classifying any book as diverse if the main character of characters has an identity or lifestyle different than my own.

This can be race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health or disability representation, anything like that. Obviously, the books I could read to fit into this category are plentiful, therefore, I am confident I can meet my 10-book diversity goal!

I’m so happy with how my reading year has gone so far. Just today I completed my 171st book of the year!!! I cannot even believe that. Just a few years ago I was happy when I read 70-something. We’re in all new territory now!

What are your reading goals for the end of the year? I want to know! Leave a comment here or contact me through any of my social media links. Until next time, Cheers & Happy Reading!

November Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy

Hello, my beautifully bookish friends!

Let’s chat about November reading plans. As many of you may know, beginning in August I started a themed reading month plan for a full year. Basically, I have a set theme per month and I try to read ten books within that month that match the theme.

Thus far, I have been successful two out of the three months. This month’s theme is: NEW RELEASES!!!!

I am classifying ‘new releases’ as anything published from January 1, 2019 forward. This will include books that haven’t yet released. I have a ton of books to choose from that will fit this theme so I am fully anticipating another successful month.

I am participating in one readathon this month, the Buzzword Readathon, but I will post more info on that, including my TBR, closer to the start date.

What are you planning to read this month? Do you have a theme or are you participating in any readathons or readalongs? I want to know. Drop a comment down below or contact me through any of my social media links!

Until we meet again, cheers & happy reading!

2018 Bookish Goals

~ megs14malloy

Good morning bookworms!  Well, I am finally home and back with all of my books, which makes me very happy.  I watched a lot of ‘booktube’ while I was away on vacation and really enjoyed hearing about everyone’s book goals for the year, as well as their most anticipated reads. I wanted to put down my bookish goals for the year here; mainly so that I can hold myself accountable to what I write.

1. My Goodreads reading goal for the year is 62 books.  I should have no problem with this as my goal in 2017 was 50 books and I ended up reading 77. One of the things that boosted my number for the year was my introduction into audiobooks which I mentioned in an earlier post. My reason for not selecting a higher number for this year is that I have a lot of really large books on my TBR (to be read list), including It by Stephen King, continuing the Dark Tower series (next up, book 5 which is 700 pages), reading book 4 in the Song of Ice and Fire Series and a possible reread of The Stand. I know those will all take up a lot of time so I didn’t want to set my overall goal too high.

2. Focus more on my blogging and reviewing every book I read instead of just rating them. It is easy to fall into the trap of just assigning a rating to a book once you finish it on Goodreads, thinking you’ll go back at a later time to write a review and then forgetting about it.  I did that a lot this year so I would like to get better at being sure to review all of my books upon completion. I have started carrying a notebook where I take notes while reading if I have any thoughts or feelings on a story that I want to be able to remember. I am hoping this will help me come review writing time.

3. Book ban and #unreadshelfproject2018 – so this is a big one and will probably be my most difficult goal. I have put myself on a book ban until I clean up my unread shelves (see photo above for example of my cluttered bookshelves)! I buy so many books but then get distracted when new releases come out – I am participating in the unreadshelfproject2018 on bookstagram to try to help me clean up this issue. I have put myself on a book buying ban until April 1st to help this process along.  It is so hard, you guys! I want all the books! A friend of mine had given me a Barnes & Noble gift card for Christmas so I allowed myself to use that yesterday (that was my one exception) and now I am done until April (sheds tears of sorrow…..).

4. Start booktube channel by the end of the year! You read right, I am planning to bring megsbookrack to YouTube with my very own booktube channel. I need to get a studio space set up for that, etc., so am hoping to be able to begin on October 1, 2018. That is the current goal – mostly because I need to be able to do a Spooktober TBR video! Everyone knows the best month to read is October!

So, those are the goals I have set for myself for this year. What are your bookish goals? I would love to hear them!

Cheers and happy reading!

40th birthday King Project

~ megs14malloy

Sooooo, my 40th birthday is next year.  September 18, 2018 to be exact.  I have been thinking about a King project to commence on that date.  I have only mentioned it to one other person (a friend of mine on Instagram) and I am pretty nervous about it.  It is a huge undertaking should I wish to proceed.  Well, I am ready to reveal it now to the universe.  Once you put it on social media, you know it’s true!  My plan is to read all of Stephen King’s published novels in order of publication date (except for The Dark Tower series, which I am reading currently and is an entity unto itself).

A lot of these will be rereads for me as I have read 33 of his books and I am sure I will be reading more before the 9/18/18 date.  I haven’t decided if I want to include short-story collections in this read.  I would use his website, “The Library” section, organized by publication date to get the correct order.  First up, of course would be Carrie and that would be a reread (as a matter of fact, the first 8 books would be rereads but they’re some of the best so who cares!?).  The way he writes, this may be a project that lasts the rest of my life!  I hope he continues working as he has been the past few years – although how he is doing it without using a body- or brain-double, I have no idea!  A lot to think about between now and then – I just wanted to get the idea down somewhere to mull over further!

Cheers to the weekend, booknerds – I hope you get a lot of pages read this weekend!

Side note: the photo above is one that I took for my bookstagram page featuring four vintage King paperbacks from my collection and my tarot cards.  I just love how it came out – nerdy pride for that one.