Read Your Shelf 2024

 

 

READ YOUR SHELF CHALLENGE

A new TBR reading challenge that I'm hoping to fit in with my own Mount TBR Challenge--hopefully, I'll be able to move a whole mountain off my mountain range. For my personal challenge tracking, I commit to 30 of the prompts. Once completed, I may count it towards my challenges complete.

📚HOW IT WORKS:
* Starts: November 1, 2023
* Ends: December 31, 2024
* There are 60 prompts (some repeated) to help you pick and read books you already have on your shelves.
* Books must be at least 100 pages
* Books must be middle grade or higher

📚BOOKS THAT QUALIFY
🔹 books on your shelf now (physical, digital, or audio)
🔹 books you put on hold at your library before Nov. 1, 2023
🔹 arcs currently on your NetGalley shelf (new or backlist)
🔹 arcs you have requested before Nov. 1, 2023
🔹 pre-ordered books you ordered before Nov. 1, 2023
🔹 gifts you receive during the challenge at any time
🔹 audiobooks you have already downloaded or saved before Nov. 1, 2023, on apps like Audible, Scribd, etc.

📚BOOKS THAT DO NOT QUALIFY:
🔸 any books you buy AFTER Nov. 1, 2023 (physical, digital, or audio)
🔸 arcs you request AFTER Nov. 1, 2023
🔸 library hold you place AFTER Nov. 1, 2023

 

1. Last Book You Bought: Death of a Dietitian by E. X. Giroux (11/11/24)

2. Shortest Book on Your Shelf: The Dragon Boat Mystery by John Bechtel [88 pages] (6/19/24)

3. Most Intimidating Book:

4. By Indie/Self-Published Author: The Red Death Murders by Jim Noy (11/6/23)

5. Published in Winter (Dec-Feb): Figure Away by Phoebe Atwood Taylor (4/20/24)

6. Bought Because of Social Media: Bodies from the Library 3 by Tony Medawar, ed (1/7/24)

7. Pick 10 Books, Spin Wheel to Pick Next Read: Still Life by Louise Penny (6/28/24)

8. Book Over 500 Pages: Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz (2/16/24)

9. Recommended by a Friend: The Third Policeman by Flann O'Brien [rec by Jeff Wallace] (11/12/23)

10. Flowers on cover: Murder & Mendelssohn by Kerry Greenwood (1/27/24)

11. Blue Cover: The Emperor's Snuff Box by John Dickson Carr (1/3/24)

12. Favorite Genre: Death of a Doll by Hilda Lawrence (11/17/23)

13. Continuation of a Series: The Mystery at Orchard House by Joan Coggin [Lady Lupin #2] (1/13/24)

14. By a Favorite Author: Death Has a Small Voice by Frances & Richard Lockridge (1/31/24)

15. Bought Because of Cover

16. First in a Series: The Four Just Men by Edgar Wallace (11/10/23)

17. Published in Spring (Mar-May): There is a Tide by Agatha Christie [March 1948] (11/14/24)

18. Less Than 200 Pages: The Blue Geranium by Dolan Birkley (188 pages]  (3/3/24)

19. By Male Author: The Passenger from Scotland Yard by H. F. Heard (1/11/24)

20. Published in Fall (Sep-Nov): The Silent Speaker by Rex Stout [Oct 1946] (3/5/24)

21. By a BIPOC Author

22. Close Eyes & Pick Book at Random: The Tenth Life by Richard Lockridge (5/23/24)

23. At Least 4 Colors on Cover: Murder for Two by George Harmon Coxe (11/9/23)

24. Oldest Book on TBR: The Song of Roland (1115 AD) translated by Dorothy L. Sayers (2/2/24)

25. One You've Been Meaning to Get To: Death, My Darling Daughters by Jonathan Stagge [meant to read it last year] (1/1/24)

26. Stand Alone Book: Only the Good by Mary Collins (11/12/23)

27. By "New to You" Author: Black Friday by David Goodis (11/3/23)

28.Close Eyes & Pick Book at Random

29. Recommended by a Friend: The Murder Wheel by Tom Mead [rec by Paul Gutjahr]

30. By a Favorite Author: Twice Retired by Richard Lockridge (5/17/24)

31. By Female Author: Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb (1/21/24)

32. People on the Cover: Death Takes a Bow by Frances & Richard Lockridge (2/24/24)

33. Number in the Title: Man of Two Tribes by Arthur W. Upfield (2/22/24)

34. Your Initials in the Title or Author's Name: Seance for a Vampire by Fred SaBerHagen (4/9/24)

35. Water on the Cover: Zombies of the Gene Pool by Sharyn McCrumb (3/27/24)

36. White Cover: The Penny Detective by John Tallon Jones (11/14/24)

37. Chapters Have Title: Uncoffin'd Clay by Gladys Mitchell (11/2/23)

38. 300+ Pages: Pieces of Justice by Margaret Yorke (9/2/24)

39. Trees on Cover: A Fete Worse Than Death by Dolores Gordon-Smith (2/20/24)

40. By "New to You" Author: Vultures in the Sky by Todd Downing (11/22/23)

41. Favorite Genre: The Cambridge Murders by Glyn Daniel (1/24/24)

42. Published in Summer (Jun-Aug): Q-Squared by Peter David [August 1995] (3/18/24)

43. Two-Word Title: The Hollow (aka Murder After Hours) by Agatha Christie (2/26/24)

44. By Female Author: Winter in June by Kathryn Miller Haines (2/12/24)

45. Pick 10 Books, Spin Wheel to Pick Next Read: Crossed Skis by E. C. R. Lorac (7/31/24)

46. By a BIPOC Author

47. Bought Because of Cover

48. Bought Because of Social Media

49. Use a Poll to Pick Next Read: Dorothy & Jack: The Transforming Friendship of Dorothy L. Sayers & C. S. Lewis by Gina Dalfonzo (3/11/24)

50. 300+ Pages: Inspector of the Dead by David Morrell (2/7/24)

51. Stand Alone Book: Six Queer Things by Christopher St. John Sprigg (5/21/24)

52. Black Cover: Making It So by Patrick Stewart (4/10/24)

53. No People on Cover: Murder in C Major by Sara Hoskinson Frommer (1/15/24)

54. Animated Cover: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame [using Disney animated Toad character] (3/22/24)

55. Animal on Cover: The Unicorn Murders by Carter Dickson (2/28/24)

56. Male Author: The Blood-Dimmed Tide by Rennie Airth (2/16/24)

57. Made into a TV Show/Movie: The New Shoe by Arthur W. Upfield (5/25/24)

58. Published During Birth Month: Never Cross a Vampire by Stuart Kaminsky (10/15/24)

59. Over 500 Pages

60. Use a Poll to Pick Next Book

2024 Mystery Marathon

 

 

 

Rick over at the Mystillery has decided that we need to stretch our mystery-reading muscles and start training for the first-every Mystery Marathon in 2024. [Full disclosure: I've been in training for this since my mom introduced me to Nancy Drew.] Details will be posted at the beginning of the new year (at the link). But my understanding is we'll just need to read at least 26 mystery books plus one short story. That's what I've got my sights set on....who knows, maybe I'll run two marathons next year.

Marathon #1

1. Death, My Darling Daughters by Jonathan Stagge [219 steps] (1/1/24)

2. The Emperor's Snuff Box by John Dickson Carr [160 pages] (1/3/24)

3. Bodies from the Library by Tony Medawar (ed) [374 pages] (1/7/24)

4. The Passenger from Scotland Yard by H. F. Wood [295 pages] (1/11/24)

5. The Mystery at Orchard House by Joan Coggin [188 pages] (1/13/24)

6. There Is a Tide by Agatha Christie [175 page] (1/14/24)

7. Murder in C Major by Sara Hoskinson Frommer [214 pages] (1/15/24)

8. Murder by the Book by Martin Edwards [288] (1/21/24)

9. Bimbos of the Death Sun by Sharyn McCrumb [212 pages] (1/21/24)

10. The Cambridge Murders by Glyn Daniel [250 pages] (1/24/24)

11. Murder & Mendelssohn by Kerry Greenwood [327 pages] (1/27/24)

12. A Guilty Thing Surprised by Ruth Rendell [193 pages] (1/28/24)

13. Death Has a Small Voice by Frances & Richard Lockridge [186 pages] (1/31/24)

14. The Final Days of Abbot Montrose by Sven Elvestad [196 pages] (2/3/24)

15. Inspector of the Dead by David Morrell [342 pages] (2/7/24)

16. Miraculous Mysteries by Martin Edwards, ed [351 pages] (2/9/24)

17. Winter in June by Kathryn Miller Haines [320 pages] (2/12/24)

18. Gently Down the Stream by Alan Hunter [248 pages] (2/13/24)

19. The Blood Dimmed Tide by Rennie Airth [341 pages] (2/16/24)

20. When Blood Lies by C. S. Harris [355 pages] (2/18/24)

21. Ellery Queen's Anthology 1966 Mid-Year Edition [320 pages] (2/18/24)

22. A Fete Worse Than Death by Dolores Gordon-Smith [284 pages] (2/20/24)

23. Man of Two Tribes by Arthur W. Upfield [215 pages] (2/22/24)

24. Death Takes a Bow by Frances & Richard Lockridge [253 pages] (2/24/24)

25. Murder After Hours (The Hollow) by Agatha Christie [256 pages] (2/26/24)

26. The Unicorn Murders by Carter Dickson [240 pages] (2/28/24)

Short Story: "Jericho & the Silent Witnesses" by Hugh Pentecost [58 pages] (2/4/24)

Finish Line! (Commitment met)

Marathon #2

1. The Moneypenny Diaries by Kate Westbrook [272 pages] (2/29/24)

2. One by One They Disappeared by Moray Dalton [196 pages] (3/2/24)

3. The Blue Geranium by Dolan Birkley [188 pages] (3/3/24)

4. Death of a Fool by Ngaio Marsh [253 pages (3/4/24)

5. The Silent Speaker by Rex Stout [180 pages] (3/5/24)

6.  Mad About the Boy? by Dolores Gordon-Smith [302 pages] (3/13/24)

7. Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz [608 pages] (3/6/24)

8. The Philadelphia Murder Story by Leslie Ford [157 pages] (3/21/24)

9. Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers [192 pages] (3/21/24)

10. Red Bones by Ann Cleeves [392 pages] (3/24/24)

11. Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney [335 pages] (3/26/24)

12. Zombies of the Gene Pool by Sharyn McCrumb [310 pages] (3/27/24)

13. Grand Cru Heist by Jean-Pierre Alaux & Noel Balen [149 pages] (3/28/24)

14. The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes [376 pages] (3/29/24)

15. Seance for a Vampire by Fred Saberhagen [286 pages] (4/9/24)

16. Unnatural Ends by Christopher Huang [389 pages] (4/14/24)

17. The Puzzle of the Blue Banderilla by Stuart Palmer [155 pages] (4/18/24)

18. Figure Away by Phoebe Atwood Taylor [222 pages] (4/20/24)

19. Mystery at Greenfingers by J. B. Priestley [111 pages] (4/23/24)

20. The House of Dies Drear by Virginia Hamilton [256 pages] (4/25/24)

21. Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer [340 pages] (4/28/24)

22. Cold Bed in the Clay by Ruth Sawtell Wallis [212 pages] (4/30/24)

23. Write Murder Down by Richard Lockridge [186 pages] (5/4/24)

24. The List of Adrian Messenger by Philip MacDonald [198 pages] (5/4/24)

25. Sepulchre Street by Martin Edwards [448 pages] (5/8/24)

26. Bodies from the Library by Tony Medawar, ed [406 pages] (5/13/24)

Short Story: "The Curtain" by Raymond Chandler [31 pages] (3/7/24)

Marathon #3

1. Twice Retired by Richard Lockridge [192 pages] (5/17/24)

2. Crows Are Black Everywhere by Herbert O. Yardley & Carl Grabo [247 pages] (5/17/24)

3. The Owl in the Cellar by Margaret Scherf [203 pages] (5/18/24)

4. Death in Five Boxes by Carter Dickson [239 pages] (5/20/24)

5. Six Queer Things by Christopher St. John Sprigg [222 pages] (5/21/24)

6. Who Cries for the Lost by C. S. Harris [368 pages] (5/21/24)

7. What Cannot Be Said by C. S. Harris [368 pages] (5/22/24)

8. The Tenth Life by Richard Lockridge [201 pages] (5/23/24)

9. The New Shoe by Arthur W. Upfield [189 pages] (5/25/24)

10.  The Mystery of the Ivory Charm  by Carolyn Keene [179 pages] (5/25/24)

11. Murder in Brass by Lewis Padgett [214 pages] (5/29/24)

12. Tied Up in Tinsel by Ngaio Marsh [264 pages] (5/30/24)

13. The Best English Detective Stories of 1928 by Father Ronald Knox & H. Harrington (eds) [420 pages] (6/2/24)

14. Doom in the Mindnight Sun by Eunice Mays Boyd [223 pages] (6/4/24)

15. The Rocksburg Railroad Murders by K. C. Constantine [196 pages] (6/5/24)

16. The Haunted Bridge (Original text) by Carolyn Keene [220 pages] (6/6/24)

17. The Haunted Bridge (Revised text) by Carolyn Keene [180 pages] (6/6/24)

18. Black as He's Painted by Ngaio Marsh [222 pages] (6/8/24)

19. Old Hall, New Hall by Michael Innes [202 pages] (6/12/24)

20. The Phantom of Pine Hill by Carolyn Keene [176 pages] (6/13/24)

21. The Golden Eagle Mystery by Ellery Queen, Jr. [272 pages] (6/14/24)

22. A Vacation to Kill For by Eunice Mays Boyd (w/Elizabeth Aden) [178 pages] (6/22/24)

23. Fer-de-Lance by Rex Stout [191 pages] (6/25/24)

24. Still Life by Louise Penny [337 pages] (6/28/24)

25. The Secret of High Eldersham by Miles Burton [367 pages] (7/3/24)

26. The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn & Janie Chang [391 pages] (7/4/24)

Short Story/Less Than 100 pages: The Dragon Boat Mystery by John Bechtel [88 pages] (6/19/24)

Marathon # 4

1. Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers [383 pages] (7/14/24)

2. Murder on Deck! by Rosemary Herbert (ed) [330 pages] (7/17/24)

3. Death in a Small World by Laura Colburn [207 pages] (7/20/24)

4. My First Murder by Susan Baker [216 pages] (7/21/24)

5. A Body at a Boarding School by Benedict Brown [243 pages] (7/23/24)

6. Passport to Crime by Janet Hutchings, ed [420 pages] (7/28/24)

7. Murder Aboard the Flying Scotsman [264 pages] (7/29/24)

8. Crossed Skis by Carol Carnac [233 pages] (7/31/24)

9. Murder Rides the Campaign Train by The Gordons [172 pages] (8/2/24)

10. The May Week Murders by Douglas G. Browne [216 pages] (8/7/24)

11. What Rhymes with Murder? by Jack Iams [256 pages] (8/7/24)

12. Murder at the Boat Club by Lee Strauss [248 pages] (

13. The Widow of Bath by Margot Bennett [254 pages] (8/18/24)

14. Dance of Death by Helen McCloy [238 pages] (8/21/24)

15. Castle Skull by John Dickson Carr [251 pages] (8/25/24)

16. The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton [354 pages] (8/28/24)

17. The Mirror Crack'd by Agatha Christie [216 pages] (8/29/24)

18. Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine Feb 1965 by Ellery Queen [161 pages] (9/1/24)

19. Pieces of Justice by Margaret Yorke [309 pages] (9/2/24)

20. Nothing Like Blood by Leo Bruce [192 pages] (9/4/24)

21. Reading Up a Storm by Eva Gates [324 pages] (9/7/24)

22. Thin Air by Ann Cleeves [389 pages] (9/8/24)

23. Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine 32nd Anniversary Issue March 1973 [159 pages] (9/14/24)

24. The Rising Tide by Ann Cleeves [374 pages] (9//17/24)

25. Death in a Pheasant's Eye by James Fraser [190 pages] (9/18/24)

26. Think Twice by Harlan Coben [354 pages] (9/22/24)

Short Story (less than 100 pages): "A Routine Night's Work" by George Harmon Coxe [19 pages] (7/9/24)

Marathon #5

1. Seven Keys to Baldpate by Earl Derr Biggers [190 pages] (9/24/24)

2. Wycliffe & the Guild of Nine by W. J. Burley [201 pages] (9/28/24)

3. Coronation Year by Jennifer Robson [390 pages] (10/2/24)

4. The Final Deduction by Rex Stout [140 pages] (10/2/24)

5. The Queen's Awards 8th Series by Ellery Queen, ed [260 pages] (10/7/24)

6. The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff [385 pages] (10/10/24)

7. Never Cross a Vampire by Stuart Kaminsky [182 pages] (10/14/24)

8. The Mystery of the Coughing Dragon by Nick West [167 pages] (10/15/24)

9. Find a Crooked Sixpence by Estelle Thompson [191 pages] (10/16/24)

10. Wicked Uncle by Patricia Wentworth [264 pages] (10/22/24)

11. You'll Die Today by Marjorie J. Grove [175 pages] (10/24/24)

12. Murder on the Moor by C. S. Challinor [205 pages] (10/26/24)

13.  Eleven Came Back by Mabel Seeley [270 pages] (10/31/24)

14. Heberden's Seat by Douglas Clark [185 pages] (11/3/24)

15. Death of a Dietitian by E. X. Giroux [182 pages] (11/11/24)

16. The Case of the One-Penny Orange by E. V. Cunningham [159 pages] (11/14/24)

17. The Penny Detective by John Tallon Jones [165 pages] (11/17/24)

18. Nightmare at Noon by Stewart Sterling [225 pages] (11/20/24)

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

26.

Short Story: The X'ed-Out X-Ray by Ron Roy [85 pages] (10/26/24)

2024 Six Shooter Mystery Reading Challenge

 

I'm heading out to the shooting range again with Rick and his Six Shooter Mystery Reading Challenge in 2024. The goal is pretty straight-forward--read six books on the same target (by the same author) to complete your round. Any targets started in 2023 but not yet complete will carry over to the new year, so Rick's page won't be fully updated for a while. Once it's updated, you can check out the full details at the link above.

As with his other challenges, Rick doesn't ask for a commitment. But I will set a personal goal in order to claim the challenge complete for 2024. I've been setting it at four targets--and I will be aiming for the same in the new year.  Most likely targets will include Agatha Christie, the Lockridges, and Carolyn Keene. Other authors TBD.

 

Carolyn Keene (carried over from 2023)

1. The Clue in the Jewel Box (12/7/23)

2. The Quest of the Missing Map (12/22/23)

3. The Secret in the Old Attic (12/30/23)

4. The Mystery of the Ivory Charm (5/25/24)

5. The Haunted Bridge (6/6/24)

6. The Phantom of Pine Hill (6/13/24)

 

John Dickson Carr/Carter Dickson

1. The Emperor's Snuff Box (1/3/24)

2. "Grand Guignol" (1/7/24)

3. "The Silver Curtain" (2/18/24)

4. The Unicorn Murders (2/28/24)

5. Death in Five Boxes (5/20/24)

6. "The Footprint in the Sky" (7/9/24)

 

Agatha Christie (Complete)

1. "The Incident of the Dog's Ball" (1/7/24)

2. There Is a Tide by Agatha Christie (1/14/24)

3. "Poirot Indulges a Whim" (aka "The Adventure of the Cheap Flat") (2/4/24)

4. "Miss Marple Tells a Story" [listened to a Youtube reading] (2/4/24) 

5. Murder After Hours [The Hollow] (2/26/24)

6. "The Supernatural Murder" (3/7/24)

 

Frances &/or Richard Lockridge (Complete)

1. Death Has a Small Voice  1/31/24)

2. "Dead Boys Don't Remember" (2/18/24)

3. Death Takes a Bow (2/24/24)

4. Write Murder Down (5/4/24)

5. Twice Retired (5/17/24)

6. The Tenth Life (5/23/24)

Ngaio Marsh (Complete)

1. "A Knotty Problem" (1/7/24)

2.  "Chapter & Verse" (1/20/24)

3.  Death of a Fool (3/4/24)

4.  "Boots" (5/13/24)

5. Tied Up in Tinsel (5/30/24)

6. Black as He's Painted (6/8/24)