~Andrea~

I'm with these

Wow you're off to a great start this year Kay. I love how organised and neatly colour-coded your lists are! I also love the sounds of Mystery In White. Congratulations you are the first person to inspire me to add to my wish list this year Have a great reading year

Wow great lists Sari! Have a great reading year in 2015.

Thanks Sari and Kay I haven't read Beyond Ugly but I think I probably will one day. I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on it.

Thanks Gaia Well I finished it last night. What a very sad story What a world we live in. Next I think I'll start Godric, which I had for Christmas.

No I haven't Janet. I don't think I'll be reading many more of these books in the future. Just the odd one - possibly by the same author. Thank you too

Diane, your reading totals seem to be on a par with mine. I rarely make it above 25 in a year. Last year I managed 19 and a few of those were audio books I listened to in the car, so went in parallel with my 'real' reads. Haha I love this image Pontalba. Yep - so true

Yea hers are interesting because she's a foster carer so they're written from her point of view rather than that of the child. I expect I'll read some more of hers at some point. Gaia yes they are definitely books you need to be in the right mood for!

Thanks everyone. I'm currently reading Damaged by Cathy Glass - one of those misery memoirs. I've only read one other - Ugly by Constance Brisco which I found a really powerful (and difficult) read but it made a real impact on me. I bought this one soon after but it has been languishing on my shelf for years - probably because I knew the subject matter would be even harder this time (this is very severe sexual abuse involving a paedophile ring). It is a harrowing read but it's also fascinating (I don't mean the details of the abuse but the story of the child's psychological issues and recovery). So I'm glad I decided to finally read it. I'm about two-thirds through. I know a lot of people don't like these kind of books (and the way the genre has blossomed over the last decade or so doesn't sit comfortably with me, as they are not IMO entertainment reads) but I do think they have value (at least those I've read) to help understand what kinds of things happen in our society. Sexual abuse of children is one of those horrors that angers people (rightly so) but that they don't want to think about. But the thing is - it happens, people have to live with the consequences, and other people have to go in and face the monumental task of picking up the pieces. And the people who have gone through it walk among us living with this terrible taboo that nobody wants to talk about or face except to vent anger on the perpetrators. I wonder if we were less squeamish and willing to understand more it would lead to more willingness to understand those people in society - or our own lives - who are difficult or have issues, because we don't know what they have gone through. I don't know, books like this one certainly make me think twice about judging people anyway, because you never know what a person has gone through to make them what they are.

I only read the last two HP books. I'm a bit dubious about reading the others now as I love the films. I tried the first book years ago and couldn't get on with it. I agree her writing leaves a lot to be desired but I think her story-telling and imagination are great. Happy reading in 2015 Noll

Haha thanks Steve!

Thanks both Haha I sometimes think I enjoy organising my book list more than actually reading from it Well I finished Gone Girl and really enjoyed it. I wasn't overly keen on the ending though.

I've just started watching this too. I had the box set for Christmas and have just got season one under my belt. It's awesome!!

So I'm about 90% the way through Gone Girl and it's so gripping! I'm hoping to finish it tonight then probably move on to Robin Hobb's The Golden Fool. Happy reading in 2015 everyone

Thanks all Frankie I'll definitely check out Dark Places then. Thanks!!

Oh wow!! Gone Girl is just amazing. I'm about two thirds in. It's so gripping. And what great characters!!

Goals for the year Read at least 2 books from pre 2009 TBR Finish Philosophy of Mind Finish all other books acquired in 2014

The Wish List Ambrose, David - Superstition Alexander, Denis - creation or evolution: do we have to choose? Beah, Ishmael - Memoirs of a Boy Soldier Bradbury, Ray - Farenheit 451 Bradbury, Ray - Something Wicked this way comes Barker, Clive - Weaveworld Brother Lawrence - The Practice of the Presence of God Bugan, Carmen - Burying the Typewriter Challis, Sarah - Footprints in the sand Chalmers, David J - Philopsphy of Mind - Contermporary and Classic Readings Chamberlaine, Diane - The Midwife's confession recommended Chesterton, G K - Orthodoxy Conran, Shirley - Savages Coupland, Douglas - Microserfs/JPod Coben, Harlan - Six Years recommended Du Maurier, Daphne - Rebecca Du Maurier, Daphne - The House on the Strand Dunant, Sarah - Transgressions (recommended) Dick, Philip K - A Scanner Darkly Faber, Michael - The Crimson petal and the White recommended Foster, Richard - Celebration of Discipline Gaarder, Jostein - Sophie's World Greene, Grahame - Brighton Rock Greene, Grahame - The Third Man & The Fallen Idol Haugen, Gary (IJM) - Just Courage Highsmith, Patricia - The Talented Mr Ripley Hinton, Susan- Rumble Fish Hodgson, Burnett Frances - The Secret Garden Hodkin, Michelle -The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer Humphries, Alistair - Microadventures recommended Jerome, Jerome K - My Life and Times Jefferson Farjeon, J - Mystery in White recommended Kasasian, M.R.C. - The Mangle Street Murders recommended (read by Emma Gregory) Kempis, Thomas - The Imitation of Christ Krauss, Nicole - Man walks into a Room recommended Koontz, Dean - The Mask Koontz, Dean - From The Corner Of His Eye Koontz, Dean - False Memory Lennox, John - God's Undertaker: Has Science Buried God? Lennox, John - Seven Days that Divide the World. London, Jack - White Fang Mandel, John - Station Eleven recommended Marion, Issac - Warm Bodies recommended McKinley, Robin - Sunshine Mercer, Jeremy - Books, Baguettes & Bedbugs Mitchell, Margaret - Gone With the Wind Moran, Caitlin - How to be a Woman recommended Moss, Sarah - Night Waking recommended Moyes, Jojo - Me Before You Moyes, Jojo - The Last Letter From Your Lover recommended Neville, Adam - Apartment 16 Semple, Maria - Where'd you go Bernadette - recommended Phillips, Caryl - A Distant Shore (recommended) Pargeter, Edith - The Heaven Tree Penny, Stef - The Tenderness of Wolves recommended Rayner, Jay - The Oyster House Siege Sachar, Louis - There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom - recommended Taylor, Jodie - Just One Damned Thing After Another - recommended Tolkein - LOTR Tremayne, S.K - The Ice Twins recommended Trueman, Terry - Stuck in neutral Trigell, Jonathan - Boy A Wheatley, Dennis - The Haunting of Toby Jugg Winter, Tom - Lost and Found recommended Wyndham, John - The Kraken awakes Watson, S J - Before I go to sleep Ruiz Zafon, Carlos - The Shadow Of The Wind Ruiz Zafon, Carlos - The Angel's Game Ryan, Carrie - The Forest Of Hands & Teeth Wroblewski, David - The story of Edgar Sawtelle Zevin, Gabrielle - The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry recommended

Unread books on the bookshelf: Acquired pre 2009 1 Minnette Walters - The shape of snakes 2 Logic - A very short introduction 3 Wilkie Collins The Woman in White 4 Chaucer - The Canterbury Tales (modern translation) 5 Damaged - Cathy Glass 6 The French Lieutenant's woman 7 The Essential tales of Chekhov 8 A Winter's tale 9 Othello 10 The Merchant of Venice 11 Julius Caesar 12 Twelfth night Begin year size: 12 End year size: 11 Acquired 2009 1 Collected works of Tennyson Begin year size: 1 End year size: 1 Acquired 2011 1 Clean Code - Robert Martin 2 Blodwen Jones a'r aderyn prin - Bethan Gwenas (a novel for welsh learners Begin year size: 2 End year size: 2 Acquired 2013: 1. The Four Loves - C S Lewis 2. Pilgrim's Progress - John Bunyan 3. The Trial - Franz Kafka (audio) Begin year size: 3 End year size: 3 Acquired 2014: 1. King Solomon's Carpet - Barbara Vine 2. Philosophy of Mind: Classical and Contemporary Readings - Edited by David Chalmers 3. The Asylum - John Harwood 4. Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn 5. Godric - Frederick Buechner Begin year size: 5 End year size: 2 Books acquired 2015: The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins Gillian Flynn - Sharp Objects Gillian Flynn - Dark Places Ian Rankin - A Cool Head Ian Rankin - Watchmen Fern Britten - A Seaside Affair Pam Rhodes - Letting Go Susan Hill - The Various Haunts of Men Charles Dickens - A Tale of Two Cities JoJo Moyes - The Girl You Left Behind The Book Thief - Marcus Zusak The Road Less Traveled End year size: 8 Total Begin year size: 23 Max size: 29 Min size: 22 Current Size: 27 End year size: 27

Previous logs: 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 Read: Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn (05/01/14) Damaged - Cathy Glass (12/01/14) The Trial - Franz Kafka (audio) unfinished The Golden Fool - Robin Hobb (26/02/14) King Solomon's Carpet - Barbara Vine (24/03/15) The Girl on the Train - Paula Hawkins (05/04/15) Sharp Objects - Gillian Flynn (28/06/15) A Seaside Affair - Fern Britten abandoned The Asylum - John Harwood (07/15) Dark Places - Gillian Flynn (30/12/15) Currently reading: Philosophy of Mind: Classical and Contemporary Readings Godric - Frederick Buechner The Book Thief - Marcus Zusak The Road Less Traveled

Hmm struggling with The Trial (audiobook). I really enjoyed Metamorphosis but this - well - it's in a league of it's own for strangeness. But it's all so strange that I'm losing interest because I just don't get what the hell is going on. Gone Girl is going well on the other hand.

Oh it's awful waiting to hear if you've got something you really want isn't it? I hope it all goes swiftly and smoothly for you. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Well instead of The Golden Fool I made an impulse buy with my birthday vouchers of Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl and started reading it last night. I like what I've read so far.