Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge

 

I've been anxiously awaiting the new Pick Your Poison Reading Challenge for 2023. I first found Gregory's challenge in 2020 and have enjoyed the prompts that he devises.  As I have in the past, I'm going to commit to a Baker's Dozen (13 books). I'll probably do more, but my commitment will be met at 13.

Standards

~A classic: The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (3/14/23)

~A mystery: Here Come the Dead by Robert Portner Koehler (2/5/23)

~A historical fiction book: Wild Seed by Octavia E. Butler (3/4/23)tr

~A thriller: The Genesis Secret by Tom Knox (3/29/23)

Lost & Found

~Book about a missing person: Mysterious Invitation by Bernice Bloom (1/27/23)

~Book about a civilization that no longer exists: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (4/20/23)

~Book about self-discovery: My Pocket Meditations for Self Compassion by Courtney E. Ackerman (2/22/23)

~Book you find on your TBR list: Garden of Deadly Delights by Cynthia Manson [ed] (2/7/23)

Hobbies

~Book about a hobby you do or would like to do: Packing My Library by Alberto Manguel (4/26/23)

~Cozy mystery with hobby-related pun title

~Memoir/Biography about someone with unusual hobby

~Book from your "collection": The Crimson Clue by George Harmon Coxe (1/30/23)

Who Wrote That

~Twofer: two books by same author using different names (counts as two books)

 It Walks by Night by John Dickson Carr (2/24/23)

 Nine--And Death Makes Ten by Carter Dickson [Carr] (4/11/23)

~Author you have always wanted to read: Death & the Conjurer by Tom Mead (10/26/23)

~By a local author: Phi Beta Murder by C. S. Challinor [from Bloomington, IN] (2/20/23)

Series or Not

~Read (or reread) the first book in a series: Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper (1/25/23)

~The Second book in a series: The White Priory Murders by Carter Dickson (1/7/23)

~Any book from a series: Swing Low, Swing Death by R. T. Campbell (1/17/23)

~A standalone book: Tom O'Bedlam by Robert Silverberg (5/16/23)

Cuddly & Cute

~Book by an author you'd like to hug: The Red Death Murders by Jim Noy [because that means, since I've met him in person, I've finally made it to England!] (11/6/23)

~Book with a toy on the cover: Murder in Miniatures by Sam Merwin, Jr. [toy soldier] (4/15/23)

~Book that makes you think of warm fires & cozy beds: Little Men by Louisa May Alcott [a lot of cozy by the fire scenes] (4/14/23)

~Book with a pair of slippers on the cover

Regarding the Moon

~Book with word "tide" in the title

~Book with a moon on the cover: Murder R.F.D. by Leslie Stephan (2/9/23)

~Book about a werewolf

~Book with word in title that rhymes with "moon" or "moony"

The Number Four

~Book published in a year that includes a 4: Beauty Marks the Spot by Kelley Roos [1948] (1/7/23)

~Book about a cult

~Book by author whose name (first or last) is only four letters: The Dante Game by Jane Langton (1/13/23)

~Book with a four-word title: Wings Above the Diamantina by Arthur W. Upfield (2/3/23)

Preparing for the Robot Uprising

~Book with word "machine" or "mechanic" in title

~book about rocket science

~Book with robot/cyborg/AI character: Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (4/27/23)

~Steampunk Book

Road Trips

~Book with name of a street or highway in title

~Book with luggage on the front cover: Blood on the Tracks by Martin Edwards (ed) [in luggage rack on the train] (3/20/23)

~Travel Memoir: Nala's World by Dean Nicholson (5/6/23)

~Book with car/truck/bus on cover: Gone West by Carola Dunn (4/6/23)

Initial Impressions

~Choose a book because of its cover

~Book by author with initials in their name: Where Serpents Sleep by C. S. Harris (4/3/23)

~Book that your initial reaction is I know I'll love this": Who Cries for the Lost by C. S. Harris (7/4/23)

~Book you expect will expand your initial knowledge of a subject: Soldiers Don't Go Mad by Charles Glass (7/28/23)

Weather or Not

~Book with picture of foggy street on cover: The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold (4/4/23)

~Book with word "chill" in the title

~Nonfiction book about a natural disaster/weather event

~Book set in winter: Death Demands an Audience by Helen Reilly (4/17/23)

Not As It Seems

~Fiction book with real person as protagonist: Dead, Mr. Mozart by Bernard Bastable (3/15/23)

~Book with animal on the cover that is not about that animal:  Bats in the Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac [Edith Caroline Rivett] (2/19/23)

~Book with title that begins "how to" that is not a "how to" book

~Book written by an author using a pseudonym of the opposite gender: The Final Appointment by Marcia Blair [Marc Baker] (7/16/23)

Take a Flying Leap

~Book with a person jumping on cover: Blind Man's Bluff by Baynard Kendrick (12/12/23--finished; review coming 12/16/23 for ROY Awards)

~Book you want to dive into

~Memoir/Biography of a "daredevil": 12 Impossible Daredevil Stunts by Samantha S. Bell [mini-bios of 12 daredevils] (8/7/23)

~Book about taking chances: Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn (3/30/23)

Sparkles & Glitter

~Book with a gem in the title

~Book whose cover makes you think of a middle school girl: Mystery of the Hidden Hand by Phyllis A. Whitney (5/7/23)

~Memoir by someone who might use glitter regularly

~Book with gold writing on cover: The Becket Factor by Michael David Anthony (1/9/23)

Matching

~Book with a cover that matches your shirt (on day you start it): A Gentleman's Murder by Christopher Huang (1/22/23)

~Book about marriage: Pride of the Peacock by Victoria Holt (4/23/23)

~Book about twins: The Distant Hours by Kate Morton (6/29/23)

~Book with something that can be lit by a match on the cover: Fatal Enquiry by Will Thomas [gas lamp] (4/9/23)

Love Them Critters

~Book by an author who has a pet listed in their bio: The Black Cat Murders by Karen Baugh Menuhin [has a dog & a cat] (3/7/23)

~Book with the word "lion," "elephant," or "mouse" in the title: The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian (2/12/23)

~Book with a house pet on the cover: Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog) by Jerome K. Jerome (2/27/23)

~Book you would wrestle from the jaws of a tiger to read

Shakespeare Inspired

~Romeo & Juliet: Book with a balcony on the cover: Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson [Lincoln's balcony box seat] (9/18/23)

~Midsummer Night's Dream: Book about fairies

~Sonnets: A Book of Poetry

~Macbeth: Book set in Scotland: The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley (5/11/23)

Bucket List

~Book with an elderly protagonist: Marple: Twelve New Mysteries by various (2/15/23)

~Book you definitely want to read before you die: Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally (8/6/23)

~Book with a beach on the cover: Beverly Gray on a Treasure Hunt by Clair Blank (8/31/23)

~Book about a place you want to visit: The Mystery of the Yellow Hands by Jake & Luke Thoene [England] (8/16/23)

Spirits

~Book about alcoholic beverages

~Book about ghosts: Ghostwalk by Rebecca Stott (7/16/23)

~Book you hope will soothe your soul: Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke (5/26/23)

~Book with a super cheerful person the cover

Museums

~Natural History: Book with dinosaurs in it: The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (8/9/23)

~Art: Book with a well-known painting on the cover

~Children's: Book with a protagonist 12 yrs old or younger: Madeline & the Gypsies by Ludwig Bemelmans (1/30/23)

~Maritime: Book about ships or sailing: Murder on the Purple Water by Frances Crane [murders take place aboard ship] (10/8/23)

Dinner Time!

~Book with a restaurant on cover

~Book you'd skip a dinner date for

~Book off a "Sizzling Summer Reads" list

~Book you've been waiting to gobble up

The Darkness Around Us

~Book that employs dark humor: Hopeland (aka Skippy Dies part one) by Paul Murray (1/19/23)

~A "noir" book: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler (9/9/23)

~Book set someplace that has a "long night" during winter

~Book about finding hope when life is challenging

Ain't That Sweet

~Nonfiction book about sugar

~Book with an adorable cover

~Book with "ain't" or "sweet" in the title

~Book set in a bakery or sweet shop

Music

~Book with an instrument in the title: The Bell in the Fog by John Stephen Strange [7/29/23)

~Book with a title that is a song name: The Angry Heart by Leslie Edgley (1/21/23) [song by Rob Thomsett, 2017]

~Book with musical notes on the cover: Murder in Burgundy by Audrey Peterson (5/17/23)

~Memoir by singer or musician: Number One Is Walking by Steve Martin [banjo player/sang "King Tut"] (3/.9/23)

Wild Cards

~Book set in the 1800s: Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield (4/7/23)

~Book you can read in a day: Mrs. Frisby & the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien (1/1/23)

~Book you wish you'd written

~Book translated from a different language: Tintin in America by Hergé  (3/10/23)