50 Books Challenge 2026 Part Two

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the second thread of the 50 Books Challenge for this year.

The challenge is to read fifty books (or more!) in 2026, though reading fifty isn't mandatory. Any type of book can count, and please try to let us all know your thoughts on what you've read.

If possible, please can you embolden your titles and maybe authors as well of books you've read or going to read? It makes it much easier to keep track, especially when the threads move quickly at this time of the year.

The previous thread is

Thank you @Southeastdweller for the new thread. My list so far this year:

1 Desdemona - Toni Morrison
2 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy trans. by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky
3 Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions - Chimamanda Ngozi Adidche
4 Recitatif - Toni Morrison
5 Nutshell - Ian McEwan
6 The Bookbinder of Jericho - Pip Williams
7 Celestial Bodies - Jokha Alharthi trans. Marilyn Booth

My latest read was the International Booker Prize winner Celestial Bodies - a family saga from Oman. It alternates perspectives from the first person voice of Abdullah and third person accounts of other family members, mostly women, from three generations. I wanted to love this as it is my sort of thing but found it a bit difficult to get into. I think it was because of the complexity of the style and the many changes of time and place. Interesting in places though.

All RWYO so far this year.
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You lovely lot continue to amaze me with the number of books you read in (just shy of) a month!
Thanks for the new thread @Southeastdweller

I have (too) many books on the go at the moment, including The Tale of Two Cities for the readalong. Will be back once I've finally managed to finish book number 2 of the year!

Thank you @Southeastdweller

My list:

1: The House On The Strand - Daphne du Maurier

2: Timequake - Kurt Vonnegut

3: The Glassmaker - Tracy Chevalier

4: Murder At The Black Cat Cafe - Seishi Yokomizo

5: Seven Empty Houses - Samanta Schweblin

6: The Burglar Who Studied Spinoza - Lawrence Block

7: Lemon - Kwon Yeo-Sun

Have nearly finished Billy Bathgate by E.L. Doctorow which I think will be a definite bold!

Thank you @Southeastdwellerfor the new thread! My list so far:

1. The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt - how the transition from an outdoor-based childhood to an online one has led to an unprecedented rise in childhood mental illness.
2. The Lady of the Tower by Elizabeth St John - a Jacobean noblewoman survives scandal retreats to become the mistress of the Tower of London.
3. The Ashes of London by Andrew Taylor - a young man meets an heiress when investigating murders at the Restoration Court
4. The King’s General by Daphne du Maurier - star-crossed lovers and a doomed cause in the Civil War
5. The Fire Court by Andrew Taylor - more Restoration crime
6. The King’s Evil by Andrew Taylor - even more Restoration crime
7. After you’ve gone by Maggie O’Farrell - what led to a young woman being in a coma
8. This must be the place by Maggie O’Farrell - a man has a midlife crisis & goes on a journey
9. Invisible Agents by Nadine Akkerman - history book about 17th century women spies
10. The Lady of Hay by Barbara Erskine - medieval spirits create havoc after a young woman undergoes hypnosis

New reviews, which are all from the Dr Ruth Galloway series:
11 A Room Full of Bones by Elly Griffiths - in book a murder takes place in a museum, which also has some complicated issues with historic skeletons / skulls / bones. This was a very enjoyable read although Ruth’s parenting is still dire. She really needs to sort out maintenance payments, stop taking advantage of her childminder & take some advice from the parenting board on blending families.

12 Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths - more enjoyable crime in book 5, as Ruth & co. go on a trip to Blackpool & Lytham St. Anne’s and another characters manages to parent even worse than Ruth. This made me want to visit the NW.

13 The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths - even more enjoyable crime in book 6 when Ruth finds the bones of a notorious Victorian criminal.

14 The Ghost Fields by Elly Griffiths - in book 7 a World War II plane is unearthed complete with a body.

15 The Woman in Blue by Elly Griffiths - in book 8 a murder and other skulduggery take place in the pilgrimage town of Walsingham.

16 The Chalk Pit by Elly Griffiths - in book 9 bones and mysterious tunnels are found under Norwich.

I have really enjoyed my Norfolk crime binge (especially as I didn’t enjoy the 2 previous books), but I do find Ruth & Nelson’s “relationship” a depressing one. Neither seem happy with their choices, which also cause misery & disappointment for several other characters. Ruth also really does not treat her childminder well - the poor woman is always having to work late (until 8!!) & at weekends. I hope she gets paid double time for the many extra hours.

Change of mood for my next read as that Butler book has arrived on BorrowBox (mainly so I can decide if he is boring or not). I don’t do audiobooks, but do get book recommendations from podcasts.

Thanks for your thoughts @Frannyisreading- you’ve all convinced me to read Huckleberry Finn now!
My January reads:
1- Wax Child by Olga Ravn
2- The Story of a New Name by Elena Ferrante
3 - James by Percival Everett
4 - Nothing to Envy by Barbara Demick.
Some great books so far this year, started strong! Nothing to Envy is a non fiction book about the lives of North Korean defectors, mostly of their time in NK but also about how they escaped and their life afterwards in South Korea and China. Really terrifying look at the hideous conditions the people of NK are forced to live under and of how they are brainwashed so successfully by the regime. The accounts of the family members lost to famine was very upsetting. The most disturbing part of it is how when it was published in 2010, some of the defectors were waiting for the regime to fall so they could go back and see their children or parents again, but 16 years on from then and the dictatorship is still going strong, with no obvious end in sight. Not an easy read, but one that really humanises the population of a country which we know very little about and I’m glad I read it.

Thank you Southeast! I checked back to compare my reading progress against last year (I’ve read about half the number of books so far 😅) and noticed our second thread of 2025 started on 17 January!! So we’ve been much more reasonable so far this year 😂

My first list of 2026:

1. The Umbrella Murder - Ulrik Skotte
2. There is nothing for you here - Fiona Hill
3. In a good light - Clare Chambers
4. The White Darkness - David Grann

Yes, I thought Nothing to Envy was fab, @laddersandsnakes16.

My last few reads:
4 Children of Paradise by Camilla Grudova. This was long listed for the Women's Prize for Fiction in 2023. It's set in a cinema, the Paradise, and narrated by Holly, one of the eclectic group of young shift workers selling tickets, working behind the bar, cleaning etc. It is rather a weird book and I hope not representative of how the general public really behaves in the cinema!? I did enjoy it though.

5 Red Clocks by Leni Zumas. I guess you would call this speculative fiction, it is set in present-day America but with a few changes, principally that abortion is illegal to the point that someone who has an abortion (or performs one or helps a woman to have one) can be charged with murder. It is narrated by four different women (the Biographer, the Wife, the Daughter, the Mender) who are affected by this in different ways. They are all excellent, well-drawn characters and I absolutely loved this - a definite bold for me.

6 Seascraper by Benjamin Wood. Many of you read this last year when it was long listed for the Booker. It's set in a coastal town in the 1960s. Thomas is a young man living with his mother, working as a shanker (trawling for shrimp in a horse-drawn cart), and dreaming about playing the guitar and asking his friend's sister out on a date. His quiet repetitive life is disturbed by the arrival of Edgar, a film director. It's beautifully written and I enjoyed this, but not as much as I was expecting to (based on the reviews I'd heard).

7 White Fang by Jack London. This is a classic, written in 1906, but it wasn't for me. A whole book about a wolf is too much! I finished it because it is quite short.

Thanks for the new thread @Southeastdweller

Here’s my current list, all but one (a kindle unlimited book) are RWYO, and I haven’t bought any books so far this year - a record for me!

1 Murder At Martingale Manor by Jodi Taylor
2 Factfulness: Ten Reasons We’re Wrong About The World - And Why Things Are Better Than You Think by Hans Rosling
3 Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths
4 Black and British by David Olusoga
5 The Outcast Dead by Elly Griffiths
6 Queen Victoria’s Youngest Son. The Untold Story of Prince Leopold by Charlotte Zeepvat
7 The Ghost Fields by Elly Griffiths
8 The Witch’s Egg by Donya Todd
9 84 Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
10 Step Aside, Pops by Kate Beaton
11 Stolen In The Night by Patricia MacDonald
12 Menopause. A Comic Treatment ed. MK Czerwiec

My list so far:

1 Cuddy - Benjamin Myers
2 Falling Animals - Sheila Armstrong
3 Hangover Square - Patrick Hamilton

@Benvenuto I'm a fan of Elly Griffiths and loved the Norfolk landscapes so much that we had a trip there a few years ago. I actually like to read a book set in a place I'm visiting so made sure to have a Rebus on the go when in Edinburgh and so on.
@campingwidow Thanks for the tip on speeding up borrowbox.
My list so far

1.A Town Like Alice by Neville Shute.
2.Take a Chance on me by Beth Moran
3.Holes by Louis Sacher
4.A Secret Escape by Sarah Morgan A bit too introspective but will try more of
hers.

Thanks for the new thread. My list:

1. So Long, See You Tomorrow - William Maxwell
2. Goodbye to All That - Robert Graves
3. Nine Perfect Strangers - Liane Moriarty
4. The Sense of an Ending - Julian Barnes
5. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - JK Rowling

I’m currently on All the Lives We Never Lived by Anuradha Roy which I’m enjoying so far.

I read Huckleberry last year and really enjoyed it - will look out for James as a retelling.

@NotWavingButReadingThe first book in the Ruth Galloway series was a bold for me as the description of Norfolk was so evocative. I’ve really enjoyed the rest, but they haven’t quite matched the power of the first.

I do like your idea of reading a book set where you visit. One thing I’ve really noticed since joining this group is how much I enjoy good setting descriptions (the word “evocative” occurs in quite a lot in my reviews).

Thanks for the new thread. My list so far:

1 The Third Gilmour Girl - Kelly Bishop
2 Girl Alone - Cathy Glass
3 Undoctored - Aday Kay
4 The Golden Oldies Bookclub - Judy Leigh
5 Nella Last’s War - Nella Last
6 A Child Called ‘It’ - Dave Pelzer

No bolds yet

@laddersandsnakes16 Nothing to Envy sounds fascinating. If you haven't read it, you may like Flashlight which has some parts about North Korea.

@Tarahumara I remember really liking Children of Paradise. For anyone who knows Edinburgh, apparently it's based on the Cameo!

My list so far:

1) Leonard and Hungry Paul – Ronan Hession
2) The Eyre Affair – Jasper Fforde
3) Araby – Gretta Mulrooney
4) Coming Clean – Kimberly Rae Miller
5) The Mercenary River – Nick Higham
6) Free Country – George Mahood

5) The Mercenary River – Nick Higham
A history of London’s water companies from the foundation of The New River Company in the seventeenth century to today. On the face of it the subject is a bit niche (even for me!) but I heard the author give a talk a couple of years ago and he really brought it to life. As a former BBC journalist he can spin a good tale too, and this was quite readable.

It goes into the business of water, though in laymans’ terms, but also strays into social and local history, and the mechanics and architecture involved in bringing water to a major city. The individual characters who headed up these ventures, from the engineers to the capitalists, bring a human element. It’s scary to read about the bad practices, wastage and misuse of both public and private money that have characterised the water industry periodically over the last 400 years; proving there’s nothing new in history. Not quite a bold yet, but I might rethink.

6) Free Country – George Mahood
In 2012 George and his friend Ben took on the challenge to cycle from Lands End to John O’Groats, but starting off in literally their underwear and relying on sourcing everything from the generosity of the public. It was a fun, quirky tale and refreshing after becoming frustrated reading underprepared travel writers last year, to find a pair who were deliberately starting with nothing. An easy read, unlike their challenge which sounded completely mad.

1 The Bear and the Bird by Katherine Arden
2 Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami. Translated by Allison
3 The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
4 The Giddy Limit: Fifth Anniversary Book by Alex Leonard

Don't think The Bear and the Bird is a bold but it's definitely my favourite so far. Now reading Seascraper.

Thanks for the new thread @Southeastdweller !

Here’s my list:
1 Psyche - Kate Forsyth
2 The Forgotten Forest - Robert Vennell
3 Did I Ever Tell You This? - Sam Neill
4 Raising the Sen-betweeners - Lisa Lloyd
5 What We Fear Most - Ben Cave

6 A Tale of Two Titties: a writer’s guide to conquering the most sexist tropes in literary history - Meg Vondriska
She makes valid points about the misogyny inherent in the writing of bestselling male authors, and why this matters - women are being sold a male gaze version of themselves that doesn’t match their lived reality. But it’s an overlong muddle, badly edited and off-puttingly vitriolic in its attempts at humour.

No bolds yet but now reading The Night Circus which might be a contender.

My very short list so far

1 The Sleepwalkers by Scarlett Thomas
2 Hitler's People by Richard Evans
3 Malice by Keigo Higashino
4 The Rest of Our Lives by Ben Markovits
5 Never A Dull Moment 1971 by David Hepworth

6 Murder at Mount Fuji by Shizuko Natsuki
Apparently known as Japan's Agatha Christie, this is one of the author's most famous books. It was written in 1982 - Waterstones had a big display of it when I went in with my Xmas book tokens, so I wonder if the plan is to release more translations in the future.

Really well plotted detective/ murder story, with lots of interesting Jspanese detail. Not remotely demanding, but I enjoyed it. I have bought several Japanese detective books - this was my 2nd read and I much preferred it to the first, Malice.

I was in a rush posting my list earlier and completely forgot to add a couple of bolds. I'll do it next time. Meanwhile…

9. The Man Who Ate His Boots - Anthony Brandt

More tales of Arctic derring-do. It’s taken me so long to read this that at times I’ve felt it was outlasting some of the epic expeditions it describes, but it was excellent. The eponymous boot-eater is Sir John Franklin, who eventually met his terrible fate, along with the entire crew of both his ships, in attempting to find the North-West Passage which the Admiralty stubbornly insisted must exist, despite much evidence to the contrary by then.

What makes it all the more heartbreaking is that Franklin had narrowly escaped death on a land expedition 20 years earlier when he was sent to Northern Canada charged with mapping the coastline there. Members of his team died, the rest very nearly starved to death, and he did indeed eat his boots when the leather was literally the only thing they had left.

Brandt tells all this and the story of many other 19thc voyages in great detail and very well. The tragedy is that many, many avoidable mistakes were made, usually due to British arrogance. And despite the plethora of would-be rescue expeditions being launched to search for the lost Franklin and his men (many of whom, Brandt speculates, died of scurvy), not one of them went to the right place, ignoring the arguments of the person who turned out - eventually - to have been completely right.

However, you can’t deny the incredible courage and fortitude of the men who set off to explore parts of the map that were literally just huge blanks at that point, knowing that they’d be away for years and stood a good chance of never coming back. Gripping stuff.

My latest two rwads...
6 The Women. Kristin Hannah. Loved Part One of this book and was completely transported. I felt Part Two lost it's way artistically in order to cover a wide ranging subject matter. I am so happy to have read this book and learned so much that I would never have sought out otherwise. Recommended but not quite bold.
7 Leonard and Hungry Paul. Ronan Hession. A lovely book of course, but I don't quite get the love for it. That said, I'd definitely read a sequel (there is none) and will also likely watch the TV series
I have no bolds yet this year!
.

Please don't be disheartened if you feel your reading is slow! Any number is welcome.

Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty

My first time reading this author after a few recommendations of this book last year.

A lady stands up on a plane and starts predicting the cause and year of death of her fellow passengers. Everyone brushes it off, until the first couple of deaths...

This was a great page turner, the reader follows quite a lot of different characters and the style of writing matches the character which I quote enjoyed. I also found myself giggling quite often, I particularly enjoyed the dry wit of the narrator, the women on plane. She had a great turn of phrase.

4.5 stars, will look for more Moriarty.

@RazorstormUnicorn glad you liked it! Was a bold for me.

I’m halfway through Plain Bad Heroines and am really enjoying it apart from the fact that I can’t stand bloody Merritt. If anyone has to die horribly, I hope it’s going to be her!

I'm really enjoying the variety of books that people are reading.

@LadybirdDaphne the Vondriska books sounds sounds interesting - pity the execution doesn't match the idea, but I've ordered the free sample to take a look. @Arran2024 , my library has the Natsuki book, so I've put in a reservation.

My books so far:

1. The Parallel Path, Jenn Ashworth
2. Chinese Parents Don't Say I Love You, Candice Chung
3. Overwhelmed, Brigid Schulte
4. Destination Lapland, Mark Wallington
5. The Hard Way, Lee Child
6. Hamnet, Maggie O'Farrell
7. Patricia Brent, Spinster, Herbert Jenkins

And most recently:

8. The Cutting Room, Louise Welsh. This is a Glasgow-set crime fiction novel, centred around an auctioneer who uncovers some unpleasant photos during a house clearance and starts asking unwelcome questions. It's very atmospheric, very Tartan noir - set in Glasgow's seamy underbelly, but lightened by some snappy dialogue. The author waited 20 years to write a sequel, which by the magic of literary time travel, I have next in line to read.

Alongside this, I'm also working my way more slowly through How the World Made the West: a 4000 Year History, by Josephine Quinn. It's a Big History book - if you want to know what the Hittites were doing during the Bronze Age, this is the book for you. I have to interleave it with some quicker reads as I have a full complement of library books on loan and new reservations due to arrive.

Thank you @Southeastdweller

@palegreenstars – I loved the Cynthia Herod-Eagles books and was amazed to find quite a few that I hadn’t read about 10 years ago? (the World War I ones)

@ÚlldemoShúl – I love the Wyndham and Banerjee series. I think the first book is set in 1920, but it might be 1921. I managed to not realise that Winter in Madrid was written by CJ Sansom!! I also didn’t know that he was born in Edinburgh. I also have Dominion still to read, although I don’t think I own it.

@dontgoJasonwaterfalls – I enjoyed Val McDermid’s Queen MacBeth. IIRC, it was quite a short book, but very enlightening.

@elkiedee – thank you for that! I thought that I had read that the series wasn’t being renewed, so I’ve just realised that I have The Gathering Storm to read. I’ve just reserved it from my library.

@NotWavingButReading – I read all the Mallory Towers and St Claires and various others, but the Chalet School was the school I really wanted to go to! Initially set in Austria, the school has to leave after Hitler invades. The school then relocates to Guernsey, Wales and then finally Switzerland. There are 58 books in total. The earlier books are great, especially the Austrian ones. The laters ones, not so much.

@Iamnotaloggrip – Re the Chalet School. It was a pleasant wander down memory lane for me. I do have to put in a content warning though. The author has favourite phrases which she repeats often. One of the phrases uses the n word. I was really shocked at the thought of a 14 year old girl using that particular word, however, later books do not use it.

@nowanearlyNicemum – its not a race 😊We are all at different life stages. I certainly couldn’t have read more than a couple of pages when DD was little.

@Benvenuto – is Ruth still fat shaming herself in those later books? Really drove me batty