Friday, January 1, 2016

Mystery Reporter Challenge



MYSTERY READER'S CHALLENGE 2015 
Sponsored by Ellie at Dead Herring 
Thru Goodreads Group: The Challenge Factory

The challenge runs from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016.

REPORTER CHALLENGE:
Who? What? Where? When? How?
Why? – because it’s fun to read!


Read books that fulfill the various categories under the reporter's standard questions.

Cub reporter: 5 books (1 from each category)--fulfilled 2/916
Columnist: 10 books (2 from each category)--fulfilled 2/28/16
News Anchor: 15 books (3 from each category)--fulfilled 4/12/16
Editor: 20 books (4 from each category)--fulfilled 5/29/16
Newspaper Mogul: 25 books

BONUS CATEGORY: Pulitzer Prize Winner (Newspaper Mogul plus Bonus Category): 30 books


As last year, my declared commitment will be for Cub Reporter and I can consider the challenge fulfilled at that level. My ultimate goal will, of course, be to try for all thirty books--but I can see some tricky ones on the list, especially since I want to fulfill all my challenges with books I own. Not sure I have anything set in Nevada or with a three word title (with all the same letter). We'll see... 

WHO

Protagonist is a forensic specialist: Good Bones by Aaron Elkins (5/23/16)
Protagonist is a crime-solving duo: The Calcutta Affair by George S. Elrick [Napoleon Solo & Illya Kuryakin] (2/28/16)
Protagonist is a dead person: The Warsaw Anagrams by Ricard Zimler (7/17/16)
Protagonist works with animals: The Doberman Wore Black by Barbara Moore [vet] (2/9/16)
Protagonist is a legal professional: The Case of the Black-Eyed Blonde by Erle Stanley Gardner [Perry Mason--Lawyer] (4/12/16)


WHAT

Number in the title: Four Against the Bank of England by Ann Huxley (1/25/16)
Poison in the title: A Pinch of Poison by Frances & Richard Lockridge (7/5/16)
Weather in the title: The Paper Thunderbolt by Michael Innes (5/29/16)
Color in title: Red for Murder by Harold Kemp (1/13/16)
Title starts with the same letter as your last name: House of Darkness by Allan MacKinnon (3/7/16)

WHERE

Set in a little town: Hunt With the Hounds by Mignon G. Eberhart [little village of Bedford, VA] (1/3/16)
NOT set on land: The Fifth Passenger by Edward Young [submarine & schooner] (2/10/16)
Set in Nevada: The Poet's Funeral by John M. Daniel (7/12/16)
Set on foreign soil (not America or England): The Bachelors of Broken Hill by Arthur W. Upfield [Australia] (2/24/16)
Historical novel (pre 1930): The Limehouse Text by Will Thomas [Victorian] (4/13/16)

WHEN

One book set during a party: The Norths Meet Murder by Frances & Richard Lockridge (6/30/16)

One that centers around a holiday: Line Up for Murder by Marion Babson [takes place over the New Year's holiday] (4/28/16)
One Dark & Stormy night: The Spiral Staircase by Ethel Lina White (2/20/16)
One where the protagonist has to beat the clock (time is crucial to solving mystery): Hardly a Man Is Now Alive by Herbert Brean (1/16/16)
One set during a courtroom trial:
The Third Encounter by Sara Woods [barrister] (4/1/16)
 

HOW

(Method of Murder)
Poison is murder weapon: Who's Calling by Helen McCloy [strychnine] (1/31/16)
Knife/stabbing is murder weapon: The Bridal Bed Murders by A. E Martin [Chinese dagger] (2/13/16)
Gun/shooting is murder weapon: The Girl in the Cellar by Patricia Wentworth [girl shot in the cellar] (1/9/16)
Blunt object is murder weapon: Which Doctor by Edward Candy [lead pipe] (1/28/16)
Rope/strangulation is murder weapon: Murder at Arroways by Helen Reilly [strangled with a silver necklace] (1/7/16)

BONUS CATEGORY

WHO - Protagonist is a child (under the age of 18): The Bobbsey Twins at London Tower by Laura Lee Hope (5/13/16)
WHAT - 3 word title (title is only 3 words and they all start with the same letter): Chili Con Corpses by J. B. Stanley (4/28/16)
WHERE - “Locked Room” mystery (not necessarily a room, as long as the scene is contained): The Obstinate Murderer by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding [all action at a country house] (3/17/16)
WHEN – Death occurs during a natural disaster (hurricane, avalanche, tsunami, etc): The Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: The Titanic Tragedy by William Seil [iceberg!] (6/28/16)
HOW - At least 3 different people killed by 3 different means, all in one story: The April Robin Murders by Craig Rice & Ed McBain [death by poisonous fumes; throat cut; run over by car] (2/17/16)

 

1 comment:

Dead Herring said...

Hey Bev! Great reading list. I'm so glad you enjoyed my challenge. Check back throughout the year for the contests I'm running. And of course, I'll be doing the challenge again next year.

Ellie