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We are fast approaching the holiday season - a time of joy, family and friends for many but also a very challenging time. It's getting colder. Days are shorter. Not everyone relishes the dark winter months ahead.
This challenge will prompt you to be good to yourself throughout the season whatever your circumstances.

This challenge has nine task sets that are "gentle affirmations" to help you through the day. Each set requires two books to be read. Books should be at least 125 pages long.
Report task completions in your own thread.

Sample completion post:

Book:
Author:
Pages:
Date Read:
Task:
How it fits:

Be good to yourself this season!

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book whose title begins with a letter found in the word HEARD.
2. Read a book where a character is hard of hearing.
3. Read a book with a scene in a kitchen.
4. Read a book where the MC has a pet dog.
5. Read a book set in the American South.

Book: You Will Never Be Me
Author: Jesse Q. Sutanto
Pages: 336pgs
Date Read: 11/4
Task: 3. Read a book with a scene in a kitchen.
How it fits: there are multiple scenes with the MCs each in their kitchens with their kids

Book: A New Lease on Death
Author: Olivia Blacke
Pages: 336pg
Date Read: 11/11
Task: 1. Read a book whose title begins with a letter found in the word HEARD.
How it fits: Title starts with 'A'

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book where the MC has a moment of indecision.
2. Read a book where a character cleans something.
3. Read a book whose author's initials can be found in the word DOUBT.
4. Read a book with a rainbow on the cover.
5. Read a book set in Europe.

Book: Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Author: Mary Roach
Pages: 304
Date Read: 11/15
Task: 2. Read a book where a character cleans something.
How it fits: in the book some people wash/clean bodies/body parts

Book: Dinner for Vampires: Life on a Cult TV Show
Author: Bethany Joy Lenz
Pages: 320
Date Read: 11/17
Task: 1. Read a book where the MC has a moment of indecision.
How it fits: the author/MC has many moments where she waffles on whether or not to do things, like take an acting job, or do things related to the cult.

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book with a confident MC.
2. Read a book with a bright cover (your interpretation).
3. Read a book with an opinionated character.
4. Read a book that has a celebration of some sort.
5. Read a book set in New England.

Book: The Mistletoe Mystery
Author: Nita Prose
Pages: 128
Date Read: 11/20
Task: 4. Read a book that has a celebration of some sort.
How it fits: there's a Christmas party in the book

Book: The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary
Author: Simon Winchester
Pages: 242
Date Read: 11/20
Task: 3. Read a book with an opinionated character.
How it fits: both the professor and the "madman" are quite opinionated

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book where the MC has long hair.
2. Read a book whose title begins with a letter found in the word SPEAK.
3. Read a book a character has to give a speech.
4. Read a book with three 1's in its publication date (January 11, 2020 or March 12 1961 as examples).
5. Read a book set in Canada, Alaska or Greenland.

Book: The Anaconda Downstairs
Author: Amy Award
Pages: 374pgs
Date Read: 11/22
Task: 2. Read a book whose title begins with a letter found in the word SPEAK.
How it fits: Starts with an "A"

Book: Silent in the Grave
Author: Deanna Raybourn
Pages: 509pgs
Date Read: 12/3
Task: 1. Read a book where the MC has long hair.
How it fits: the MC has long hair

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book where the author's initials can be found in the word PAUSE.
2. Read a book where the MC is on holiday.
3. Read a book where someone is packing to go somewhere (to move, to go on vacation, to change schools/office, etc.).
4. Read a book set on an island.
5. Read a book set in the Southeast Asia.

Book: Eye of the Beholder: The Almost Perfect Murder of Anchorwoman Diane Newton King
Author: Lowell Cauffiel
Pages: 660pgs
Date Read: 12/7
Task: 3. Read a book where someone is packing to go somewhere (to move, to go on vacation, to change schools/office, etc.).
How it fits: The main male packs up and moves multiple times

Book: Wrapped Up in You
Author: Talia Hibbert
Pages: 127pgs
Date Read: 12/15
Task: 2. Read a book where the MC is on holiday.
How it fits: MCs are away at their families house for Christmas

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book with a horse in it.
2. Read a book with a MC under age 20.
3. Read a book with a character who goes running for exercise or competition.
4. Read a book in one weekend (Saturday-Sunday only).
5. Read a book set in Africa.

Book: Now or Never
Author: Janet Evanovich
Pages: 320
Date Read: 12/19
Task: 3. Read a book with a character who goes running for exercise or competition.
How it fits: multiple characters run for exercise

Book: The Invention of Murder: How the Victorians Revelled in Death and Detection and Created Modern Crime
Author: Judith Flanders
Pages: 556
Date Read: 12/26
Task: 1. Read a book with a horse in it.
How it fits: multiple horses are mentioned as it's set in the pre/Victorian era when they were the major mode of transport

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book whose title begins with a letter found in the word VALID.
2. Read a book whose MC expresses a lot of emotions.
3. Read a book with a friend (does not need to be a formal buddy read but tell us who you read with).
4. Read a book with at least 5 colors on the cover.
5. Read a book set in the mountains.

Book: The Nightmare Before Kissmas
Author: Sara Raasch
Pages: 357
Date Read: 12/31
Task: 2. Read a book whose MC expresses a lot of emotions.
How it fits: MC expresses a full range of emotions from happiness to sadness to anger

Book: The Trial of Lizzie Borden
Author: Cara Robertson
Pages: 375
Date Read: 12/29
Task: 4. Read a book with at least 5 colors on the cover.
How it fits: according to Tineye there's black, pink, blue, grey, and brown on the cover

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book where the MC makes a big mistake.
2. Read a book where a character changes for the better over the course of the book.
3. Read a book whose author's initials can be found in the word MISTAKE.
4. Read a book with the number 7 in its page count.
5. Read a book set in Texas or Florida.

Book: The Intern
Author: Michele Campbell
Pages: 378 pages
Date Read: 1/3
Task: 4. Read a book with the number 7 in its page count.
How it fits: the book is 378 pages

Book: Guilty as Sin
Author: Meghan March
Pages: 250
Date Read: 1/3
Task: 1. Read a book where the MC makes a big mistake.
How it fits: female MC chooses to marry the wrong man, who's also using her

Tasks (choose 2)
1. Read a book with the word BEST in the title
2. Read a book whose MC is trying their best to do something.
3. Read a book where a character has enough guts to try something new in their life.
4. Read a book with lots of green on the cover (your interpretation).
5. Read a book set in New York or California.

Book: This Girl's a Killer
Author: Emma C. Wells
Pages: 432pgs
Date Read: 1/4/25
Task: 2. Read a book whose MC is trying their best to do something.
How it fits: the MC is trying her best to protect women

Book: Small Town, Big Magic
Author: Hazel Beck
Pages: 411
Date Read: 1/19
Task: 3. Read a book where a character has enough guts to try something new in their life.
How it fits: MC is brave enough to embrace her "new" magic as well as finally admit her feelings to the man she's loved most of her life

Great work - you beat the winter blues!!