2019 Recap and 2020 Reading Goals

Another Happy New Year to you all! It doesn't feel so long ago that we were here discussing my reading and blogging goals for 2019 and now we're looking forward to 2020. 

I had a really positive reading year in 2019, I read a lot and enjoyed a lot of what I read. I was also pretty good at keeping up with my challenges and with blogging, even if I have got a bit lax in the last few months. 

In today's post I will be recapping my 2019 goals and looking at how I did and sharing with you all my goals for this year. 

Goodreads Goal

In 2019 I set my Goodreads goal to 50 books, as I usually do, and I'm pleased to say I managed to exceed this and I actually read 69 books. 

In 2020 I will be setting my goal to 50 books again and hopefully I'll manage to exceed this once more. 

Reading Challenges

Last year I signed up to the AtoZ Reading Challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company. I didn't manage to complete the whole alphabet but I did manage to read 19 letters and I'm really pleased with this, you can see my final wrap up post here. This challenge is happening again this year for anyone wishing to take part however, I'm choosing a different challenge for 2020. 

This year I'm taking part in the TBR and Beyond Yearly Reading Challenge which is hosted over on the TBR and Beyond Facebook group. My plan is to pick a couple of prompts out of a bag every month in the hope of encouraging me to get through my backlist TBR. Along with the yearly reading challenge TBR and Beyond also host monthly challenges and I plan to take part in as many of these as I can. 

Blogging Goals

In 2019 I set myself a blogging schedule where I planned to post regular content on a Monday, Wednesday, Friday and then one weekend day. I did really well with this schedule for most of the year and then I returned to work after maternity leave and my blogging time was severely limited. 

This year I'm not setting myself any super restrictive blogging goals as I know I'm not going to have a massive amount of time. I plan to regularly post a monthly TBR, reading wrap up and haul along with any reviews of books I received for review. If at any point I find myself with some extra time, such as the school holidays, then I'll schedule in some extra posts.  

Social Media Goals

I didn't have any of these last year but for 2020 I've decided to set myself the goal of being more active on social media. I actually spent quite a lot of time on Twitter and Facebook (too much probably) and I really want to become more active in the book communities on these platforms. 

So that's it. I'm really pleased with what I managed to achieve last year as it was definitely a busy year for me. Lets hope 2020 fairs just as well. 

What reading goals have you set yourself for this year? Did you manage to achieve everything you hoped to in 2019? I'd love to know. 

A to Z Reading Challenge Wrap Up

We made it to the end of 2019! The year was a good one for me both in a reading way and a general life way. As you may be aware I signed up to the A to Z reading challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company at the beginning of 2019 and I want to wrap this up and let you know how I did. 

Below is a list of all of the books I've read this year that count towards this challenge and any reviews I've posted for these. I managed to complete 19 letter which I'm really pleased about. 

A. A Blade So Black by L. L. McKinney - Review

B. The Beckoning Shadow by Katharyn Blair - Review 

C.

D. Damsel by Elana K. Arnold - Review

E. Enchantee by Gite Trelease - Review

F. Final Girls by Riley Sager - Review

G. Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff - Review

H. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

I. In Fallen Woods by R N Merle - Review

J. James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra by Colm McElwain - Review

K.

L. Lord of Secrets by Breanna Teintze - Review

M. Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell - Review

N. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff - Review

O. Origin by Dan Brown - Review 

P. Poppy Haviland and the Secret of the Lively Widow by Micheal Barra - Review

Q. The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black

R. The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons - Review

S. Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly - Review

T. Tangleweed and Brine by Deidre Sullivan - Review

U.

V.

W. The Wicked King by Holly Black - Review

X.

Y.

Z.

Did you take part in any challenges this year? I'd love to hear about how you did. 

A to Z Reading Challenge Mid Year Check In

So who can believe we've reached half way through the year already. I'm not sure if it's just me but the years seem to be moving more quickly than ever. Anyway, here I am today with my mid year check in for the A to Z reading challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company. 

Below is a list of all of the books I've read so far that count towards this challenge and any reviews I've posted for these. I'm actually doing rather well however, the letters I have left for the remainder of the year are definitely a little trickier so I'm open to any book suggestions for these. 

A. A Blade So Black by L. L. McKinney - Review

B.

C.

D. Damsel by Elana K. Arnold - Review

E. Enchantee by Gite Trelease - Review

F. Final Girls by Riley Sager - Review

G. Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff - Review

H. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

I. In Fallen Woods by R N Merle - Review

J. James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra by Colm McElwain - Review

K.

L. Lord of Secrets by Breanna Teintze - Review

M. Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell - Review

N. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff - Review

O. Origin by Dan Brown - Review 

P. Poppy Haviland and the Secret of the Lively Widow by Micheal Barra - Review

Q.

R. The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons - Review

S. Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly - Review

T. Tangleweed and Brine by Deidre Sullivan - Review

U.

V.

W. The Wicked King by Holly Black - Review

X.

Y.

Z.

I really hope I can complete this challenge by the end of the year. As I said before I would love any suggestions of books to fit the missing letters. 

Are you taking part in any challenges this year? I'd love to hear about them. 

O.W.Ls Magical Readaton Mid Month Check In

I don't often follow TBRs anymore but when I do they seem to be quite unrealistic, oops! This month I'm taking part in the O.W.Ls Magical Readathon, you can see more information about this readathon and see my TBR here, and I thought I would check in with you now that we are half way through the month and let you know how I'm getting on. 

So far this month I have read 4 books and I'm nearly done with my 5th and managed to gain O.W.Ls in Potions, Charms, Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures and I'm working on Muggle Studies. 

Here are the books I've read so far this month. 

O.W.Ls Prompt - Potions - Next Ingredient, Sequel

O.W.Ls Prompt - Charms - Age-Line, read an adult book



O.W.Ls Prompt - Arithmancy - A book written by more than one author



O.W.Ls Prompt - Care of Magical Creatures - A book with a land animal on the cover

Currently Reading

O.W.Ls Prompt - Muggle Studies - Read a contemporary (contemporary isn't really my genre so I'm counting this one as it's a Thriller and set in the present day).

So two weeks into the month and I've nearly read 5 books which is fantastic for me. I hope that I can keep this momentum up for the rest of the month. 

Are you taking part in the O.W.Ls? I'd love to hear about what you've been reading. 

O.W.L.S Magical Readathon TBR

I've seen lots of people take part in the various Magical Readathons over the past year and it's that time again where lots of people are getting ready to take their O.W.Ls. 

This round of the Magical Readathon takes place from 1st April - 30th April and the idea is to choose a wizarding career and then take the required O.W.Ls for that career. I am planning to choose a career but I'm going to set a TBR for all of the subjects as I'd really like to push my reading for this month. 

So here are the 12 books I'm hoping to get to in April and their respective challenges. 

Ancient Runes - Retelling
Scarlet by A. C. Gaughen

Arithmancy - Work written by more than one author
Poppy Haviland & The Secret of the Lively Widow by Michael Barra with Annabel Lively Barra

Astronomy - The word "star" in the title
Even the Darkest Stars by Heather Fawcett

Care of Magical Creatures - Land animal on the cover
Music and Malice in Hurricane Town by Alex Bell

Charms - Age-Line, read an adult work
One Word Kill by Mark Lawrence 

Defence Against the Dark Arts - Reducto, title stars with an "R"
Riverkeep by Martin Stewart

Divination - Set in the future
Nyxia by Scott Reintgen

Herbology - Plant on the cover
Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton

History of Magic - Published at least 10 years ago
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones 

Muggle Studies - Contemporary 
The Anomaly by Michael Rutger

Potions - Next Ingredient, Sequel
James Clyde and the Tomb of Salvation by Colm McElwain 

Transfiguration - Sprayed edges or red cover 
Final Girls by Riley Sager

This is quite an ambitious TBR for me but I'm hoping to get through as many as possible. 

What are your reading plans for April? I'd love to hear about them. 

AtoZ Reading Challenge 2019

This year I'm planning on taking part in the AtoZ Reading Challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company. The aim of this challenge is to read a book to match each letter of the alphabet. You can find out more about the challenge and how to sign up here. 

This post is to keep track of my reading for this challenge. I will be updating it and sharing it regularly throughout the year and hopefully this will help me stay accountable for this challenge. 

A. A Blade So Black by L. L. McKinney - Review

B.

C.

D.

E. Enchantee by Gite Trelease - Review

F.

G. Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff - Review

H.

I. In Fallen Woods by R N Merle - Review

J. James Clyde and the Diamonds of Orchestra by Colm McElwain - Review

K.

L.

M.

N.

O. Origin by Dan Brown - Review 

P.

Q.

R. The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons - Review

S.

T. Tangleweed and Brine by Deidre Sullivan - Review

U.

V.

W. The Wicked King by Holly Black - Review

X.

Y.

Z.

2019 Reading Goals

Happy New Year everyone! Who can believe we are in 2019 already. 2018 was a great year for me, even though I didn't read as much as I normally do, and I've already talked about this in previous posts which you can check out if you'd like. I'm hoping that 2019 will be just as great if not better, with a whole host of great reading and blogging experiences to boot. 

In today's post I will be talking about my reading and blogging goals for 2019. Last year I discovered that I don't do well with restrictive goals. I can't stick to specific TBRs or challenges as I like to have freedom in what I read, so this year I'll only be setting myself a couple of loose goals that I hope I'll be able to stick to for the duration of the year. 

Goodreads Goal

Every year I set myself a Goodreads goal as I know most readers do. I usually set my challenge to 50 books and can often meet this or even exceed it. As discussed in previous posts last year I didn't quite make it but I'm still setting my goal to 50 books as I'm hoping I'll do better in 2019. 

AtoZ Reading Challenge 

This year I'm planning to take part in the AtoZ Reading Challenge hosted by Ginger Mom and Company, you can find out more about this challenge and how to sign up here. My aim for this is to read a book for each letter of the alphabet. I'm not setting myself a TBR I'm just going to fit my reads in where I can and then become a bit more specific as we near the end of the year to fill in the rest of the letters. I'll be listing my reads in a separate post and updating it throughout the year.

Blogging Goals

Finally for my blogging goal I'm just hoping to keep up with my current schedule as a minimum amount of posts. Any extra would be a bonus. I would really love to take part in a blogging challenge such as Blogtober or Blogmas but I'm not going to commit to that just yet as my maternity leave would of finished then and I'll be back at work. My current schedule that I'd like to keep up with is as follows...

• Monday - Mailbox Monday Meme
• Wednesday - Top 5 Wednesday
• Friday - review of some kind
• Saturday/Sunday - other post e.g. wrap up, tag etc. 

So there we have my reading and blogging goals for 2019. Nothing to ambitious or restrictive but something to aim towards. 

What are your reading or blogging goals for 2019? I'd love to hear about them.