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I've scaled Pike's Peak and decided to move on to a higher goal. I will assume (unless told otherwise) that the twelve books which make up Pike's Peak can be the foothills of Mt Vancouver.

That being the case, I've just read and reviewed #13, On Chesil Beach, which has been sitting on my bookshelf for about four years.

Yay! Kim's here :-).

Good luck, Kim!

She's powering through them.

Indeed!

Jeannette wrote: "Good luck, Kim!"

Thank you, Jeannette! :)

I'm struggling a bit with my current book, so maybe your achievement will inspire me.

Jeannette wrote: "I'm struggling a bit with my current book, so maybe your achievement will inspire me."

I just read some of the reviews. Seems like people either really like it or find it tedious. I hope it picks up for you!

Kim wrote: "I've scaled Pike's Peak and decided to move on to a higher goal. "

I knew you could do it!

Hayes wrote: "I knew you could do it!"

Thanks for the vote of confidence, my friend! :)

Number #13 done and dusted: Daphne du Maurier's Mary Anne, which was a buddy read with Jemidar.

I should finish Agnes Grey tomorrow and then I'll start The Shadow of the Wind.

Loved that one (Shadow), Kim. Gothic and creepy without being too over the top (just a little).

Finished and reviewed Shadow of the Wind. Still reading L'homme au ventre de plomb, but I should finish it in a day or two. Then I can join you, Hayes, in reading that-book-the-name-of-which-I-can't-remember.

Tomorrow I will start The Life And Times Of The Thunderbolt Kid, just for a change of pace!

I think it had "Blood" in the title....

Excellent review, Kim!

Roman Blood.

I really loved the Thunderbolt Kid... I hope you can appreciate the complete American-ness of it. Will go now and read your review.

Kim, love your review Shadow of the Wind, I appreciate your explaining about the long drawn out letter portion of the narrative. I admit this book has been in my personal cemetery of forgotten books for maybe as long as yours.

I found it interesting when you mentioned if the characters hang around in your head it may change your rating, I feel the same way about the book I just finished but didn't know how to say it as you did.

Am I the only one left who hasn't read this? This would be nice to do as a buddy read.

Thank you Dawn. It's certainly not a book with universal appeal, but I did love it. I've been in the mood for Victorian style novels for a while and this one absolutely fits the bill. I love it when characters stay with me after I've finished a novel, as it shows how real they have become to me.

Jeannette wrote: "I think it had "Blood" in the title....

Excellent review, Kim!"

Thanks on both counts, Jeannette!

Hayes wrote: "I really loved the Thunderbolt Kid... I hope you can appreciate the complete American-ness of it. Will go now and read your review."

I'm loving it so far. It was hard to keep the grin off my face while travelling to and from work on the bus today!

Although growing up in Sydney and on an island in the South Pacific in the 1960s was rather different from growing up in Des Moines in the 1950s, Bryson is such an engaging writer that the fact that I didn't share his experiences doesn't matter at all. What his writing makes me do is reflect on the equivalent experiences of my own childhood. I think he really captures what being a kid feels like.

Kim, when will you be starting Roman Blood? I ask because if I finish Devil's Brood soon enough I wouldn't mind reading along.

I imagine that I'll start over the weekend sometime. I'm 80% through my current book. I don't have to finish reading it before I start another book, but I would prefer to, just because I'm reading it slowly enough as it is!

I'll wait for both of you... I read the first chapter (just to make sure it wasn't going to be a clunker... seems quite fine, actually) but will carry on with my other books instead while I'm waiting. :-)

Kim wrote: "I imagine that I'll start over the weekend sometime. I'm 80% through my current book. I don't have to finish reading it before I start another book, but I would prefer to, just because I'm reading ..."

Sounds good. I'm about the same way through DB so hopefully we'll finish at around the same time.

Hayes, glad to hear it's not a clunker! I've heard good things about Steven Saylor but as yet have never got around to reading any of his books.

Number 16 finally finished and reviewed: L'Homme au ventre de plomb

Hayes and Jenny - I'm ready to start Roman Blood.

Looks like you stayed up to finish it! Sleep well! :)

Sorry ole "lead belly" wasn't more interesting. Hopefully the Romans will be more exciting!

I'm almost finished with Cutting for Stone (love love love it!) and then will get back to Roman Blood.

I'll be starting Roman Blood tomorrow my time.

If you guys like Roman Blood and decide to venture into book 2, let me know.

Dawn (& Ron) wrote: "If you guys like Roman Blood and decide to venture into book 2, let me know."

Will do, Dawn.

Jenny and Hayes, shall we open a buddy read thread here, or shall we have our conversation on one or other of our review pages?

Whatever you think will work best... I haven't done too many buddy reads, so I will leave that up to you.

I don't mind either way :-).

Okay then, executive decision: let's just do it in the comments section of our reviews, given that there are only three of us.

OK :-)

Your review Kim?

Sure. We can start there and migrate to each other's reviews should the mood strike us. I'm going to rely on Hayes to add authentic Roman colour to the proceedings.

Kim wrote: "Sure. We can start there and migrate to each other's reviews should the mood strike us. I'm going to rely on Hayes to add authentic Roman colour to the proceedings."

I was going to say, she's not that old is she? LOL.

No, but I am a Goddess! ;-)

Yep! :D

Of course! Silly me ;-D.

Hayes=Goddess. That is, of course, what I meant to infer. :D

Number 17 finished and reviewed: Bill Bryson's The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: A Memoir.

Wow! I think you're going to reach Everest by the end of the year ;-).

Nah, I will almost certainly run out of unread-books-I-have-owned-since-before-1-January-2012 way before then. Maybe I should buy up big now in order to have lots to read for next year's challenge!

Sounds like good idea. LOL.

That's what I've been doing! :D

Number 18, The Coroner's Lunch, finished. Review to come.

ETA: Now reviewed.

I've started #19, The Dervish House.

Finished and reviewed A Time of Gifts.

Go Kim!