Biggs' Zone

A Gamer Geek's Cogitations, Conjectures and other Cortical Experiences

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2023 Goodreads Reading Challenge

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On January 3, 2024

In New Year, Reading Challenge

The reading challenge goal was 12 books and I missed it by about 150 pages. If I hadn’t decided to watch the ball drop on New Year’s Eve I might have finished the last few pages. Oh well, it’s close enough for me to let it go. Be that as it may, here are the eleven books I did manage to finish for the 2023 Goodreads reading challenge (** indicates a book I’ve read before).

2023 Goodreads Reading Challenge badge
  • Storm Front** by Jim Butcher
  • Winter** by Marissa Meyer
  • Throne of Glass by Sarah Maas
  • Eragon** by Christopher Paolini
  • Crown of Midnight by Sarah Maas
  • Eldest** by Christopher Paolini
  • Heir of Fire by Sarah Maas
  • Brisingr** by Christopher Paolini
  • Queen of Shadows by Sarah Maas
  • Inheritance** by Christopher Paolini
  • Tower of Dawn by Sarah Maas

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2022 Goodreads Reading Challenge

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On January 3, 2023

In Reading Challenge

I just came in under the wire for my 2022 Goodreads reading challenge (I literally read the last page of the last book 2 hours before midnight). If you happened to read my 2021 reading challenge recap I read 16 books that year. You will notice the list below only has 12 books. Why so few? Two of the books on the list combined for a total of almost 2,000 pages. I knew, by reading those books, it was going to affect my total for the year. Therefore I decided to be a little more reasonable with my goal.

Here is my 2022 Goodreads reading challenge list (** indicates a book I’ve read before):

  • Traitor by Clare Farrell
  • Kubrick’s Game** by Derek Taylor Kent
  • To Sleep in a Sea of Stars by Christopher Paolini
  • Skin Game by Jim Butcher
  • The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
  • Peace Talks by Jim Butcher
  • Cinder** by Marissa Meyer
  • Battle Ground by Jim Butcher
  • Scarlet** by Marissa Meyer
  • The Big Dark Sky by Dean Koontz
  • Cress** by Marissa Meyer
  • Empire Strikes Back From A Certain Point of View by various authors

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2021 Goodreads Reading Challenge

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On January 4, 2022

In Reading Challenge

I belong to something of an online book club called Goodreads for about 8 years. It’s now owned by Amazon but the essence of Goodreads hasn’t gone away. Every year the websites offers members to commit to a yearly reading challenge. My 2021 reading challenge was to read 15 books. Here are the books I completed.

2021 Reading Challenge - Harry Dresden

Cloak of Deception by James Luceno
Turn Coat by Jim Butcher
Changes by Jim Butcher
Ghost Story by Jim Butcher
King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo
Redshirts by John Scalzi
Fire & Sword by Dylan Doose
Queen’s Shadow by E.K. Johnston
Thirst by Claire Farrell
Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo
Taunt by Claire Farrell
Tempt by Claire Farrell
Cold Days by Jim Butcher
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker by Rae Carson
Taken by Claire Farrell
Taste by Claire Farrell

Sweet Sixteen

If you’re keeping track at home, that list contains 16 books. I finished my reading challenge, exceeded it by one, and all before December 31st. Also, if you have a keen eye, I’m sure you noticed several books by Jim Butcher and Claire Farrell. The books by Jim Butcher shouldn’t be a surprise. I’m still working my way through The Dresden Files; but who is Claire Farrell.

My wife and I each have a Kindle and they connect to the same Kindle library. My wife added several books by Claire Farrell, and six of those books are the Ava Delaney series. Thirst, Taunt, Tempt, Taken, Taste and Traitor make up the series. As you can probably guess, I’m currently reading the last book, Traitor. Ava Delaney is a hybrid; she’s part human, part vampire. If you’re interested in a slightly different perspective on vampire lore, put aside what you know and check out these books. They are decent fantasy.

I read two books I’ve been wanting to read for a while: Redshirts and the novelization of The Rise of Skywalker. I always enjoy reading the books that accompany the films because they help provide more details and answer some questions. If you are a Star Trek fan then I would encourage reading Redshirts. I was pretty lazy this year and did not review all of these books, but I did write one for this book. If you’re trying to decide, I encourage you to check out my review.

That’s all for now. I will discuss my 2022 reading challenge plans in another post.

/cheers

diablo3-reading“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” 
– Dr. Seuss

Book Review: Force Collector

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On July 30, 2020

In Book Review, Science Fiction, Star Wars

Book Review of Force CollectorForce Collector by Kevin Shinick
My rating: [rating=5]

In my last book review I talked a bit about the young adult genre and I hardly qualify as a “young adult” (however I’m not exactly “old” either) but I digress. I won’t turn down a good young adult novel but, I’ll admit, I wasn’t sure about this book. This is another book in the “Journey to Rise of Skywalker” series and I’m eager to learn more about the lore that brought us to that epic conclusion. Therefore, regardless of my age and how it corresponds to “young adult”, I read it and I was not disappointed. This is my book review of Force Collector.

Brief Synopsis and Biggs’ Review

Karr is a thirteen year old child on Merokia who suddenly discovers he’s Force sensitive. The Force allows him to see the history of the Jedi whenever he touches an artifact that, at some point in the past, encountered the Force. Now he’s determined to discover the truth about the Jedi. His journey will take him across the galaxy, to many familiar places and faces. He will learn not only about the Jedi but about his own past and his destiny.

I think what I enjoyed the most about this book is the different ways it links all the movies together. I’m a sucker for subtle references and Easter eggs. They are like the Force itself, binding the galaxy together. I know, that was corny. I’ll be honest, when I first started reading I was confused about where it occurred in the timeline. The last book I read, in this series, takes place just a few months after The Last Jedi. Naturally I assumed this book would be somewhere in the same time period. It is not. So, for future readers, it takes place BEFORE The Force Awakens; that is extremely relevant to the events of this book.

Unlike Spark of the Resistance, this book doesn’t add any context to Rise of Skywalker. It’s a fun stroll down memory lane. It’s sole purpose, in my opinion, is to advance the lore of the Jedi. It provides an idea of how and why the Jedi may have become so mythical and elusive after Return of the Jedi.

I definitely recommend this book for Star Wars fans. I had a hard time putting it down.

diablo3-reading“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
– Dr. Seuss

 

2019 Reading Challenge – Redemption!

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On January 4, 2020

In General Cogitation, Reading Challenge

My 2019 Reading Challenge was 15 books. The past couple of years I struggled to meet a 15 book reading challenge. My theory that I will be reading the Harry Dresden books this year will help. It was an absolute success! In fact I came within 30% of 16 books. I’m still setting my goal to 15 books again this year since I might choose a couple of longer books to read.

While I wasn’t a slacker on reading books this year, I was terrible about writing reviews. In fact of the 15 books I read, I only wrote reviews for a couple of them. I’ll try to be a little more diligent about writing reviews for new books I read. Granted there may be a few books I will re-read this year and I rarely write a review about books I’ve already read.

My 2019 Reading Challenge Book List

Below is my list of books I read for the Reading Challenge. You can click on those that are links to read the review of the book. If I did not write a review and/or you have a question about a book or want to talk about a book on this list, please leave a comment. Also, below the list, is my 2019 pick for the Best Read.

  • “The Straggler’s Mask” by Juho Pohjalainen
  • “The Phoenix Project” by Gene Kim
  • “Summer Knight” by Jim Butcher
  • “Star Wars: Leia, Princess of Alderaan” by Claudia Gray
  • “Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View” by Ben Acker
  • “Six of Crows” by Leigh Bardugo
  • “Before the Storm” by Christie Golden
  • “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkein
  • “Crooked Kingdom” by Leigh Bardugo
  • “Death Masks” by Jim Butcher
  • “Star Wars: Last Shot” by Daniel Jose Older
  • “Extinct” by R.R. Haywood
  • “Blood Rites” by Jim Butcher
  • “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” by Jason Fry
  • “Night Train to Rigel” by Timothy Zahn

My Pick for the 2019 Best Read

I didn’t know which book I want to pick for 2019. I really enjoyed nearly all of these books (“The Straggler’s Mask” being the lowest one on the list). The book I re-read this year was “The Hobbit”, which I haven’t read since high school. Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows series is really great and, allegedly, she has confirmed there will be a third book. Anyone that works in the IT field either as a developer, operations, or project management, “The Phoenix Project” is a must-read. The final book of RR Haywood’s Extracted Trilogy was very satisfying and I’m loving Harry Dresden.

So where does that leave us? I really wish I had read “Before the Storm” before the Battle for Azeroth expansion launched. “Night Train to Rigel” is the first book in Timothy Zahn’s Quadrail series so I’m still getting into that. I know it comes off as favoritism to pick a Star Wars book considering how much of a Star Wars fan I am. Despite all that, I think I have to go with “Leia, Princess of Alderaan” as the 2019 Best Read. We already know how much of an amazing character Leia is, and this book fuels that idea.

I also picked this book because it is now 3 years since we lost Carrie Fisher, and The Rise of Skywalker closes a chapter on Leia’s story. Therefore this choice also pays homage to one of the most extraordinary characters of the Star Wars Universe.

diablo3-reading“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
– Dr. Seuss

 

Book Review – The Straggler’s Mask

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On January 28, 2019

In Book Review, Fantasy

The Straggler's MaskThe Straggler’s Mask by Juho Pohjalainen
My rating: [rating=2]
Link to the review on Goodreads.

It’s been a while since I had the opportunity to review a First Reads book that I won from Goodreads. In fact this is perhaps my third book since creating my Goodreads account. Be that as it may, let’s get on with my book review of The Straggler’s Mask.

Since this book is an ebook I had no idea how long it was; although I rarely check. The length of a book is hardly a factor as to whether or not I’ll read it (although it might be a factor as to when I read it). Good books that are long rarely feel long, for example the first couple of books in George R. R. Martin’s Song of Fire and Ice series (aka Game of Thrones). Unfortunately for this book, there are parts where it feels like it drags on. I’m actually going to skip the synopsis this time, and the reason for that will become clear shortly.

Biggs’ Review

Based on a few Amazon and Goodreads searches I couldn’t find any other book written by this author; therefore I’m going to assume this is their first book. I know it has to be hard to publish your first book not knowing how its going to be received by readers. As much as I don’t like giving mediocre reviews to a debutante author, I did struggle with this book, a lot.

This is a bugbear from Dungeon’s & Dragons

I found it difficult to keep track of all the characters as well as the story. Sometimes I forgot where they are as they traveled. I honestly forgot what their ultimate goal was (until I got to the actual face off with Nirvana). There are times when the point of view of the storyteller would change, without notice and I had no idea who was speaking in the first person. I went through about a 3 week dry spell where I didn’t pick the book up at all because I was bored. However, I still finished it because I refuse to leave a book unfinished, but it felt a little arduous.

Peal is an Interesting Character

I did enjoy the concept of the story (an unsuspecting creature picking up the mantel of a legendary hero). Peal is an interesting character, though his skittishness and small stature don’t really correlate to what I expect a bugbear to look like or behave. Granted that’s based on an old D&D reference point. The world the author created felt pretty imaginative and thought out. However I don’t know if I would have used Earth; otherwise you are setting the readers up to identify familiar areas of the planet which they’re not going to find.

I guess I’m more disappointed that I didn’t like it as much as I wanted to. I feel like this book could have been broken up into two novels. If you’re an aspiring new author, perhaps a 600+ page book with a complicated list of characters isn’t the way to start. This, by no means, deters me from reading more by this author, unless the next novel is equally as disappointing. Honestly, I may go back eventually and try to read it again to see if a second time will more easily capture my attention.

View all my reviews

diablo3-reading“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” 
– Dr. Seuss

 

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