Sanja's 13 in 13

Considering how poorly I'm doing in my 12 in 12 challenge, I'm not going to attempt a true 13 in 13. I'm thinking more along the lines of a pyramid. So, here goes!

This is my 13 in 13 list:

I. Poe collection
II. Rest of Gaslight Chronicles series - Done!!!
III. Girl with a Dragon Tattoo series
IV. Recommendations - Done!!!
V. TBR lifers - Done!
VI. Rest of Song of Fire and Ice series
VII. Agatha Christie Books
VIII. Overflow - Done!!!
IX. Classics - Done!
X. Non-fiction
XI. Mysteries - Done!!!
XII. Rest of Hunger Games series - Done!
XIII. Re-reads - Done!!!

I. Poe Collection

1.

II. Gaslight Chronicles Series - I've read the first book, now to finish the rest.

1. Photographs & Phantoms
2. Kilts & Kraken

Done!

III. Girl with a Dragon Tattoo series

1. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
2.
3.

IV. Recommendations

1. Gone Girl
2. A Discovery of Witches
3. Bossypants
4. Inferno

Done!!!

V. TBR Lifers - anything that I've had for over a year and haven't read yet.

1. Dead Man's Folly
2. What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw
3. Cat Among Pigeons
4. The Pale Horse
5. The Mirror Cracked

Done!

VI. Song of Fire and Ice Series - Again, I've read the first book, now to finish off the series.
1. A Clash of Kings
3.
4.
5.
6.

VII. Agatha Christie Books

1. Mrs. McGinty's Dead
2. Murder with Mirrors
3. After the Funeral
4. Destination Unknown
5. Hickory Dickory Dock
6. Ordeal by Innocence
7.

VIII. Overflow - In case I just can't stop reading Agatha Christie books. :)

1. That's Life, Snoopy
2. The Adventures of Tintin and the Picaros
3. The Governess Affair
4. The Duchess War
5. A Kiss for Midwinter
6. Moonlight & Mechanicals

Done!

IX. Classics

1. Anna Karenina
2. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
3. Great Expectations
4. The Jungle Book
5. Anne of Green Gables

Done!

X. Non-Fiction

1. Omnivore's Dilemma
2. 15 Minutes Including Q&A
3. Drucker on Leadership
4.

XI. Mysteries

1. Cover her Face
2. Unnatural Causes
3. Death of an Expert Witness

Done!!!

XII. Hunger Games Series - Yet again, I've only read the first book.

1. Catching Fire
2. Mockingjay

XIII. Re-reads - I have to limit myself

1. The Great Gatsby

Done.

Hello there! I have an Agatha Christie category too! Can't wait to see which ones you read. Also intrigued as to how you'll fill the other categories as we have similar categories.

Welcome! Looking good, it'll be interesting to see what books you end up picking. I'm thinking of reading A Song of Ice and Fire as a year-long read, so will definitely follow your thoughts on that.

LittleTaiko & PawsforThought, hello! Thanks for the welcome and for stopping by.

Looks like a good pyramid-scheme! :) Yes, an overflow category is a necessity, if nothing else than for the bookbullets that'll come flying!

Only four recommended books? I'm guessing you aren't counting recommendations from LTers! The Larsson books are thick but, like the Fire and Ice books, they read very fast. Good luck with your challenge.

It is always fun to start a new challenge - scrap the old, in with the new! Glad to see you will be joining us with this one.

I have the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy scheduled for my 2013 reading as well..... maybe we can encourage each other to make it through them.

I also have an Agatha Christie category :) I also mean to read the millenium trilogy and Fire and Ice every year. Can't wait to see how you do!

Mamzel, I also have the overflow section. But I really should focus on reading at least some of the gazillions of books I own and have yet to read. And thanks!

Lkernagh & kiwiflowa, it's nice to see that I'm in good company with my categories. :)

welcome - I like the TBR lifers category, think I need one of them too!

Love your reason for the overflow category:oD
I've been listening to Agatha Christie mysteries on audio and having fun with them, especially the ones read by David Suchet or Hugh Fraser. Good luck with your challenge!

Thanks, sandragon! Hope you enjoy your Christies!

1. Photographs & Phantoms (II.1)

I read the entire book on my lunch break. It's very short, but it's amusing. It has some of the same characters as Steam & Sorcery but not enough to prevent understanding the action. I guess I'm not used yet to how romance novels work, but everything seemed to get resolved a bit too quickly and neatly.

2. Mrs. McGinty's Dead (VII.1)

God, I've missed reading her books. I love Poirot books and I love anything with Mrs. Oliver in it.

I'm with you -- I love Mrs. Oliver!

3. Omnivore's Dilemma (X.1)

It seems whenever I read books like this I wind up with a longer list of foods I really shouldn't be eating.

4. Murder with Mirrors (VII.2)

I saw a Masterpiece Mystery production before reading this book, so I already knew the ending. But I still like how well the book's written. While reading, you forget that one of the characters is a murderer and just wonder who possibly could have committed the crime.

5. Kilts & Kraken (II.2)

Some logic leaps, a slightly unconvincing sex scene, but... Kraken! Magic! Steampunk!

6. After the Funeral (VII.3)

I'm not sure I liked this book as much as I'd hoped. The motive behind the murder didn't make sense for me at all.

And I'm only 1/4 of the way through Anna Karenina. It's interesting and well written, of course, but I just want to find out what happens to everyone, not how they feel about dresses, and fans, and horses. And I'm at a loss as to what to read next to break up the book.

7. Gone Girl (IV.1)

Holy sweet pickles. WTH did I just read...

Okay - holy sweet pickes might just be my new favorite phrase. So appropriate for that book too!

Is that a good "WTH" or a bad one? :)

I don't know yet, Eva. I'm still processing it. The book was a quick and interesting read and I wanted to know what happened to the characters. I'm just not sure I like them.

I'm in line for it at the library and I've heard such disparaging words about it that I'm interested to hear what every new person who's read it thinks. Doesn't sound like it's easily forgotten, at least.

Like Eva, I am also in line for a copy from my library. Makes me very curious to see what my reaction to the book will be......

Y'all should definitely read the book. It's meant to have you rethink the characters.

8. That's Life, Snoopy (VIII.1)

I love anything Charlie Brown related.

9. Tintin and the Picaros (VIII.2)

I used to read these all the time. I'm not all that impressed this time around.

10. Anna Karenina (IX.1)
*spoiler alert*
I really enjoyed this book, thought it did drag in certain places. People commenting in the discussion thread were right, the ending was more about Levin than Anna. Instead of Levin's religious awakening, I really wish that the last part had been about how Anna's husband and son are dealing with her death.

11. The Governess Affair (VIII.3)
12. The Duchess War (VIII.4)

In seems that instead of Agatha Christie, my overflow category is being taken up by romance novels. I feel slightly guilty about how much I'm enjoying my mindless fluff.

13. Cover her Face (X.1)

This is my second P.D. James book and I like it a lot better. I think Adam Dalgliesh is a much better character than Cordelia.

The only P.D. James book I've read is Death Comes to Pemberley, but I don't think that one's representative. I've watched a few TV adaptations of course, and I have The Black Tower on Mt. TBR, so I'll at least give that one a try. Thanks for the reminder - I had kinda-sorta forgotten about her. :)

14. Unnatural Causes (XI.2)

And I'm back to not liking P.D. James books. There was not a single likable character in this book. And a completely psychopathic killer.

If you haven't read it, An unsuitable job for a woman is really very good if you want to give P. D. James another shot.

Bjace, I read it last year and wasn't a fan. Thanks for the suggestion though. I still have Death of an Expert Witness to try.

15. A Discovery of Witches (IV.2)

*Spoilers ahead! So many spoilers!*

I really enjoyed this book. Enjoyed it in a 'the dinner is burning, but let me get to the end of this chapter' sort of way.
However, I have a few quibbles:

1. The similarity to the horror that is the Twillight books. He's a vampire, she's not. He's old, wise, rich, and ridiculously good looking. She apparently does not care at all how she looks. He's ridiculously protective in a very, very suffocating way. He decides who talks to her, what she should be told (even about her own darn body and safety), and what she should do. And she's ok with it. Gag me.
2. The similarity to the awesomeness that is the Harry Potter books: She's a witch. Her parents died leaving her in the care of her aunt. And she's, without knowing it, the only one who can save us all.
3. Random stuff that drives me crazy, but doesn't seem to faze anyone else: I really don't understand this, but maybe someone can explain. I've seen it in tons of books, tv shows, and movies and I just don't get it. There's a woman who's ridiculously accomplished. She's really well educated, she's smart, hardworking, and she's at the top of her field, and for some reason she's just falling apart. If she were having a breakdown due to stress of her field or due to some personal matter, I'd understand. But these women fall apart because they're just so darn fragile and it's a hard world out there.

Now that I've vented, I just want to say that I really did like this book. A friend lent me this one, but I might actually go out and get the next one in the series. I figure, I'm already 580 pages into this story, what's a couple of hundred more? :)

16. A Kiss for Midwinter (VIII.5)

This was really cute. A very quick read.

17. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

This is a really weird book. Much shorter than I imagined. And I'm not quite sure I understand Dr. Jekyll's reason for his actions.

Why do you think it's "weird"?

It's weird because I don't buy Dr. Jekyll's reason for unleashing this evil onto the world. Everybody keeps saying how he's such a good person, and I disagree. If he were such a good person, he wouldn't have a created a version of himself that's purely evil and let him romp around London.

18. 15 Minutes Including Q&A

As part of some training, I have to give a couple of presentations. And I'm terrified of public speaking. Terrified. So, I'm hoping that implementing some of the pointers in this book will make things easier.

I don't think you're really understanding the story at all. It's an allegory, it examines the duality of human nature--we all have "good" and "bad" desires. The Jekyll was a very good man, but he felt like he was living a lie due to having impulses "not fitting to his stature," impulses we all have. So he tried to make two separate entities, one pure good, where he would no longer have to suffer these "evil" desires, and one that wouldn't care about whether things were good or not. He had no idea Hyde would cause actual harm to others and that was not remotely his intent. And while you may not fully grasp his intent, I still don't see how that makes it "weird."

Thank you for your opinion. However, I disagree. Jekyll may not have thought that Hyde would cause any harm at first. But Hyde ran down a child, and all Jekyll did was create an accound with Hyde's name on it so no one would connect them. He knew that Hyde hurt someone, and instead of stopping him, Jekyll covered up a connection so his own good name would not be sullied. And instead of getting help when he no longer controlled the transformation, he created a will so that Hyde would be well funded if anything happened to Jekyll.

19. Moonlight & Mechanicals

These are adorable. *SPOILERS* I feel so bad for the poor people kidnapped and forced into the army. The horrible pain they must have felt and the fact that they had no control over their actions are beyond description.

Um actually the will was created early on in case he couldn't turn back, so he (as Hyde) wouldn't be penniless. And after he realized the extent of the danger he tried to stop changing and told Utterson he wouldn't have to worry about the will, or Hyde, any longer.

Yes. He did say that. After Hyde killed a man.

20. Destination Unknown

This was more of a thriller than a murder mystery, but I liked it.

21. bossypants

This book is absolutely hilarious. I love Tina Fey.

I have that in one of my piles to read. Thanks for reminding me.

22. Hickory Dickory Dock

Miss Lemon's sister runs a student hostel. After several petty thefts and mean tricks, she asks for Poirot's help.

23. Death of an Expert Witness

I think P.D. James and I are just not a good fit. I had to force myself to finish this book. It's a well written book, very descriptive and full of scientific jargon, but I didn't care about a single one of the characters or what happened to any of them.

24. The Great Gatsby

This is my 3rd time reading this book. It's amazing how one's perspective changes as you grow up. Gatsby seems so sad now and Daisy seems meaner and more unkind every time I read it.

25. Great Expectations

The edition I own had two endings. I think I like the original ending better than the one in the newer books.

I had to think about it for a minute, but I seem to remember reading two endings when I read Great Expectations. Like you, I preferred the original ending.

26. A Clash of Kings

Whyyyyyy? Why must everyone I like suffer or die? This series is ruining my life.

@ 68 -- I have to admit, that review made me laugh (sorry!). I hope it's ruining your life in an "I can't wait to find out what happens next" kind of way!

Christina, a little bit. A bit of it is also that Martin makes you love certain characters and then tortures them.

->68 sanja:
LOL! Yep, that is exactly what I've heard about the series. Perhaps if you pretend to dislike the characters you like, they'll stay alive. :)

27. Dead Man's Folly

I had read this book before, but had forgotten the ending. People's cruelty sometimes surprises me.

28. Inferno by Dan Brown

I don't know how to respond to this book without being all spoiler-y. But words! Lots of words! And some feelings!

"But words! Lots of words! And some feelings!"
Had to LOL @ that!

That is my favorite review ever!

> 73 - Perfect! ;-)

29. What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw

This review will not be nearly as good as my previous one was, apparently. Another good Agatha Christie mystery. I really enjoy her books and will be really sad when I'm done with all of them.

30. Catching Fire

I had forgotten how much I love this series. I ended up finishing the book in less than 24 hours.

Now I can't decide if I want to finish the series or read something else to prolong the fun.

31. The Jungle Book

I'm always a little sad when I don't like classics. This book was nothing at all like I expected. Granted, my expectations were formed by the Disney movie.

32. Ordeal by Innocence

Another good Christie mystery. I have no idea what I'm going to do once I fill out this category.

Do what I do and keep reading more Christie's!

33. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

I had to skip a couple of scenes. I really can't handle violence against women and children well.

I can't believe it's been over a month since I posted, though. I guess the longer books accumulated.

34. Cat Among Pigeons

>82 sanja: But I do so love how she gets back at the men!!!

35. Anne of Green Gables

Excuse me while I cry over Mathew's death.

36. The Pale Horse

I wasn't really a great fan of this book. The story is good, but there seemed to be a lot of repetition. As soon as a character figured something out, he'd repeat it to at least 2 other people.

37. Drucker on Leadership

I have so much to learn...

38. Mockingjay

I just can't even right now...

I'm distraught.

39. The Mirror Cracked

Another re-read. I semi remembered who the killer was, but not enough to ruin the story for me.

One of my favorites! I saw a TV version and thought the murder was quite clever.

I missed my goal by 9 books. It turned out to be a pretty good year for me, reading-wise.