2025 Pick Your Poison Challenge

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I keep telling myself that I'm going to cut back on challenges (ask me how that's going 😏😂). It doesn't help that folks like Gregory post challenges that I've loved doing and then tell us that this is the last year it's going to be sponsored. I mean, how am I supposed to say no to the last year? Answer? I don't. So...here I go for a last walk down Gregory Road for the Pick Your Poison Challenge. Why don't you come for a walk with me? 

As with previous years, I'm committing to the baker's dozen level. Since it's the final year, I'll probably see if I can manage all of them--but my commitment will be met at 13 from different topics.

Basic Genres

~Western

~Biography

~Travel Book

~Classic

Sub-Genres

~Mundane Science Fiction

~Eldritch Horror

~Alternate History: Lord Darcy by Randall Garrett

~Comedy of Manners

The Interwebs

~About Social Media

~Cute Cat on the Cover

~About Online Shopping

~Written by Internet Influencer

Change Things Up!

~Coin in the Title

~About Switching Places

~Author with More Than One Pen Name

~Genre You Don't Normally Read

Let's Go Small

~About Minimalization

~Fewer than 150 pages

~With Characters That Are Very Small

~Set in a Small Town: The Price of Silence by Kate Wilhelm (1/10/25)

Delve Into the Past

~About Someone Who Could Be Your Ancestor

~By Author Who Has Been Dead More than 50 Years: The Art School Murders by Moray Dalton (1/20/25)

~About an Ancient Civilization

~Word "Classic" in Title: Classic Mystery Stories by Douglas G. Greene, ed

Measuring Up

~With a Long-Distance Relationship

~Includes Recipes

~Word "Height" in title: On Beulah Height by Reginald Hill

~By Author Who Has "Made It Big"

Tired Tropes

~Multiple Timelines

~Love Triangle

~"Chosen One" Fantasy

~Vampire Story

Ticklish

~Feather on Cover

~Makes You Laugh

~By a Comedian: In Such Good Company by Carol Burnett (1/22/25)

~Touchy Subject

That Wedding Tradition

~Something Old (set at least 3 decades before you were born)

~Something New (published in 2025)

~Something Borrowed (from library/friend): The Devil's Flute Murders by Seishi Yokomizo (1/5/25)

~Something Blue (blue cover)

Beach Days

~Towel on the Cover

~By Author Who Lives Somewhere Sunny & Warm: The Cloisters by Katy Hays [from California] (1/24/25)

~Described as "Beach Read"

~Book taken on vacation

Sinners & Saints

~Demon or Devil Character

~Angel on Cover

~By Author Known for Philanthropy

~Cover Reminds You of One of the Seven Deadly Sins

That 9 to 5 Thing

~About Commuting to Work

~By Author Whose Name Is an Occupation: And Then There Were Nine by Jane S. Bakerman OR The Strange Case of Eliza Doolittle by Timothy Miller

~Book You Hope to Discuss at the Watercooler

~Workplace Romance

Just For Adults

~An "Adult Beverage" in Title

~About Group of Friends Reuniting as Adults

~About Mid-life Crisis

~Book You Wouldn't Recommend to a Child

Isolation

~About Being Ostracized

~"Lone" or "Lonely" in Title: Bachelors Get Lonely by A. A. Fair

~Single Person on Cover: Deadly Is the Diamond by Mignon G. Eberhart (2/22/25)

~Hermit Character

State of Mind

~Set in State Where You Live

~About Having a Positive Outlook

~Picture of Brain on Cover

~"Mind" in Title: He Didn't Mind Danger by Michael Gilbert OR Death in the Mind by Richard Lockridge

Mistakes Were Made

~Story of Misadventure

~About Mistaken Identity

~About Righting a Wrong: The Last Resort by Michael Kaufman [victim was lawyer going after big oil for reparations for damage to the planet/climate change] (2/13/25)

~About Leaving a Bad Relationship

Love Those Sitcoms

Cheers (set in a bar)

The Odd Couple (about roommates)

The Simpsons (graphic novel): Murder on the Orient Express: The Graphic Novel by Agatha Christie/Bob Al-Greene (2/22/25)

The Munsters (non-human characters)

Colors

~Hair Color in Title

~Author with a Color Name: Murder in Williamstown by Kerry Greenwood (2/15/25)

~Favorite Color on cover

~Rainbow on Cover

School Lunches

~"Sandwich" in Title

~YA Novel

~Cheesy Cover

~By Someone Who Works/Worked in Food Service

Cardinal

~Cardinal Direction in Title

~Bird on Cover: Dick Van Dyke by Christy Webster (1/25/25) [penguins]

~Main Character Belongs to Religious Order

~Cardinal Number in Title: Bodies from the Library 5 by Tony Medawar, ed (3/2/25)

Elemental

~Ghost, Spirit, or Similar Character

~"Earth," "Water," "Fire," or "Air" in Title: Death in Shallow Water by Miles Burton (2/24/25)

~Author Whose Initials are the same as a (two letter) Chemical Symbol

~Sherlockian Character

Board Games

~Life (epic family novel)

~Trivial Pursuit (nonfiction about obscure topic)

~Twister (hands and/or feet on cover):

~Clue (mystery set in a house party): "Inquest" by Harriet Clandon (2/21/25)

Age Old Tales

~Elderly Protagonist: Behold a Fair Woman by Francis Duncan (2/26/25)

~Fairy Tale/Myth Retelling: The Snow Queen by Joan D. Vinge (2/1/25)

~Book by Someone Older Than You: Dangerous Davies: The Last Detective by Leslie Thomas [born in 1931] (1/11/25)

~Coming of Age Story

Card Suits

~Diamonds (gem on cover)

~Spades ("garden" in title)

~Heart (by author you love)

~Clubs (about exclusive group or club): The Girl from the Mimosa Club by Leslie Ford (2/6/25)

Opening a Can of Worms

~Controversial book

~About creepy crawlies

~Memoir by Someone Known for Outrageous Behavior

~About a Scandal

Wildcards

~About Climate Change

~About a Museum

~Short Story Collection: Capital Crimes by Martin Edwards, ed (2/10/25)

~Book of Nursery Rhymes

~Set in Continent You Would Like to Visit: The Book of Killowen by Erin Hart [Europe] (2/4/25)