Mountaineering Checkpoint #2

So....the beginning of July came and went in a Montana-vacation-blur and then my laptop died. Finally got it back today and now I realize that the year is half-way over....Wait! What? How did that happen so quickly? I must have lost track of time just concentrating on the mountain trail ahead of me. But--it's that time again. Your mountaineering guide is calling for a second quarterly check-in post. Let us know how your climb has been so far. Seen any mountain goats? [I saw some in Montana!] Any particularly pretty wildflowers? How about the abominable snowman? For those who would like to participate in this checkpoint post, I'd like you to do two things:
  

1. Tell us how many miles you've made it up your mountain (# of books read).  If you're really ambitious, you can do some intricate math and figure out how the number of books you've read correlates to actual miles up Pike's Peak, Mt. Ararat, etc. And feel free to tell us about any particularly exciting adventures you've had along the way.

At 69 books read (not all reviewed yet), I'm a little over half-way up Mt. Everest. I should make my stated goal--but it still doesn't look like I'm going to plant a flag on Mt. Olympus.....

2. Complete ONE (or more if you like) of the following:

 A. Choose two titles from the books you've read so far that have a common link. You decide what the link is--both have strong female lead characters? Each focuses on a diabolical plot to take over the world? Blue covers? About weddings? Find your link and tell us what it is. 

Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Robert Maturin (no review yet) and Go Down, Moses by William Faulkner. Both are classics that I am glad are done and I'm glad I won't ever have to read again. Maturin goes on forever and, quite honestly, isn't as interesting in his story about the Wanderer as one might hope. Faulkner is being Faulkner and had me wading through his stream of consciousness....I don't care for wearing waders when I'm reading. :-)

 B. Tell us about a book on the list that was new to you in some way--new author, about a place you've never been, a genre you don't usually read...etc. 

Murder at Midnight by C. S. Challinor (no review yet)--the first book I've read by Challinor. This seems to be a very well-done cozy series. I look forward to reading more.

  

 C. Which book (read so far) has been on your TBR mountain the longest? Was it worth the wait? Or is it possible you should have tackled it back when you first put it on the pile? Or tossed it off the edge without reading it all?

Women Sleuths by Martin H. Greenberg & Bill Pronzini (eds) [on TBR since 11/29/08] Good short stories--unfortunately two of them appeared in other collections that I read this year as well, so I got a double-dose of them. But I'm glad to get this one off the stacks.

OR (Counts as both part 1 and 2)

Use titles from your list to complete as many of the following sentences below as you can.  If you haven't read enough books to give you good choices, then feel free to use any books yet to be read from your piles. I've given my answers as examples. Feel free to add or change words (such as "a" or "the" or others that clarify) as needed.

My Life According to Books

1. My Ex is/was The Trouble in Hunter Ward (by Josephine Bell)

2. My best friend is [a] Partner(s) in Wonder (by Harlan Ellison)

3. Lately, at work [I've had to deal with the] The Wrong Box (by Robert Louis Stevenson & Lloyd Osbourne) [We've been moving offices]

4. If I won the lottery, [I'd go] Around the World in Eighty Days (by Jules Verne) 

5. My fashion sense [is a] Terror in the Town (by Edward Ronns)

6. My next ride [will be in] The Time Machine (by H.G. Wells) 

7. The one I love is [reminds me of the] Odor of Violets (by Baynard Kendrick)

8. If I ruled the world, I would [make everything a] Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude (by Ross Gay)

9. When I look out my window, I [do so] By the Light of the Study Lamp (by Carolyn Keene)

10. The best things in life are [found through] The Sign of the Book (by John Dunning)

Please post your answers on your blog and link up your post in the linky below. And what do you get for all that hard work (and distraction from the actual climb)? The link will close at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, August 1.  On Thursday,  I will crank up the Custom Random Number Generator and pick a winning climber. He or she will have the chance to add to their TBR stack via my gently-used book vault (prize list will be sent). Just think, if you win a book you can start up a pile for next year's Mount TBR Challenge.

Even if you're not in the mood for a prize or if you've only got one leg of the journey under your belt, I'd love to have you check in and tell us how your climb is going!

***Please note--the linky is for Checkpoint posts only.  The link must be to a specific Checkpoint post (not your blog's home page in general). Links that are not Checkpoint-specific will be removed--to make it easier for me to track a winner.