50 Books Challenge 2026 Part Three

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the third 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 first thread of the year is here and the second thread here

12 Earth To Moon - Moon Unit Zappa

Brilliant, raw and compelling autobiography from Frank Zappa’s oldest daughter, about her childhood growing up with a brilliant but distant father and frankly unhinged mother. Definitely a bold.

13 The Traitors’ Circle - Jonathan Freedland

This wasn’t quite what I expected- I kind of assumed it would be about one of the plots to kill Hitler but actually it was about individuals whose only ‘crime’ was to be critical of the Nazi regime. The book highlights the many small (and some not so small) acts of great courage by Germans who opposed the regime and the heavy price they paid. Thoughtful and moving.

@Frannyisreading I read Under Another Sky by the same author a year or so back and would recommend if you like her stuff. Very tempted to add Red Thread to my wishlist, thank you.

17) Charlotte Street – Danny Wallace

Jason Priestley (not that one) has just met The Girl, but only briefly. He helped her into a cab in Charlotte Street, London, but she left behind a disposable camera. Jason, failed teacher, ex-boyfriend and wannabe hero, has a choice. Does he try to track down The Girl using the photos she left behind, and his contacts with his new job at a London listing free paper? Or does he forget about her and try to pick up the pieces of his unfulfilled life to get to the next level?

This was an easy read, heartwarming and undemanding. Written in 2011, some of the references are of its time, and it needed quite some suspension of disbelief in places, but overall it was an enjoyable read.

Earth to Moon sounds interesting @MegBusset. Added to my Goodreads ‘Want to Read’ list.

24. The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey - set in 1920s Bombay, this historical mystery features Perveen Mistry, India's first female lawyer. Being female allows her to enter the women's only section of a deceased Muslim client's home and interview his 3 widows about their inheritance. It turns out the widows are not being honest with each other and the male agent they depend on is taking advantage of their seclusion. The mystery is interleaved with Perveen's backstory, which I found much more interesting than the mystery. Well written characters and good context setting more than make up for a competent but slightly underwhelming mystery. The social history is fascinating. I don't like cosy crime and I don't like violent crime but this walks the margin very well. Not quite a bold but definitely recommended if you would like to try a historical mystery.

12 The Siege - Ben Macintyre This might be the best of Macintyre's books that I've read so far, an absolute bold. The story of the 1980 hostage-taking in the Iranian embassy in London, by a group of individuals from an Arab minority in Iran whose aim was recognition of Arabistan (also known as Khuzestan) and the release of 91 Arabs held in Iranian prisons. I knew absolutely nothing about this (except that it had happened), and this book draws on extensive written records and personal recollections to tell a clear and compelling story, day by day through the six days of the siege, which explains the detail of what happened and the politics behind it while focusing on the human stories. Excellent.

Revelation - CJ Sampson

This is the second in the Shardlake series I've read (I started on no 3 as I saw them in a second hand bookshop) and I really enjoy them - the historical element with a bit of crime works really well for me.

In this one a mad serial killer is on the loose, killing people in ways aligned with the book of Revelation, against a backdrop of religious turmoil as Henry VIII prepares to marry his sixth wife. Not sure it's quite a bold but I definitely enjoyed it and will be trying to get hold of the others - in order this time!

6 . There Is Nothing For You Here by Fiona Hill
Sad to say I found this a bit of a curate’s egg.
I really enjoyed the initial part focusing on her life in the deprived North East of England. My heart broke for her when she described winning a full scholarship to an outstanding private school that was declined by her parents due to the cost of the uniform. (I’m sure Andrea Ashworth describes the same dynamic in her biography Once In A House On Fire, obviously those authors have made it against the odds but it does make me wonder how many children don’t go on to achieve their potential after a major set back like this.)
it came alive again when she describes her time in Russia and the White House, and the destructive and narcissistic behaviour of Trump (terrifying to think he’s back in the position of POTUS and is now more powerful than ever having dispensed with whatever checks and balances he could.)
But I did find the final part a bit repetitive and dare I say dull.

30 Black in White by JC Andrijeski

I saw this billed as a psychic detective book, a genre which I quite like, but this very quickly veered off into a paranormal romance thing, which is not a genre I’m especially fond of. Miriam is a psychologist (I think) who works with the police and uses her psychic abilities in her job. When she’s asked to interview the suspect in a serial killer case, who was literally caught red handed, she is surprised when he speaks to her in her mind. I read to the end and it wasn’t bad, easy to read which is what I needed as I’m still ill, so I went into the second book. That book I had to DNF as the slightly creepy sex scene from the first book morphed into areas that required trigger warnings and it was not for me. At least this was a kindle unlimited. P.S. I was convinced at this point that the author must be a man, but nope it’s a woman.

I’m Sorry You Feel That Way by Rebecca Wait
Having enjoyed Havoc so much I didn’t resist the call of my Kindle wish list for very long with this one!
Two timelines, two sets of sisters. Celia has to take a back seat for just about everything when her sister Katy develops schizophrenia. Or that should be more of a back seat as she’s always uncomfortably aware that she is not her parents’ favoured child. Still, she carves her own niche as The One Who Goes To University and, using rather a mean tactic, ends up with a husband and three children.
The other timeline is about Celia’s twin girls, Hanna and Alice. This generation the favoured child appears to be the boy, Michael, but then the spectre of mental illness again arrives in the family,
We see all the multiple viewpoints, revealed without authorial bias. I haven’t experienced mental illness, parental disengagement or family break up but I did recognise the tendency of parents to pigeon hole their children, the alliances siblings may make to navigate situations they don’t fully understand and the ability of sisters to infuriate as well as support.
Shot through with the author’s trademark often quite dark and vicious humour, I really enjoyed this book.

Sheepishly noting my number 13 - The Heir by Elodie Hart. Trying to own my romance habit loud and proud, and include them in my count. However, it’s made more difficult by this being a not great example of the genre, this is an author I usually really enjoy but this one wasn’t good.

I think it’s great to have lots of different genre’s on the thread @AliasGrape- it doesn’t all have to be great literature 🤷‍♀️

I fell into reading the romance stuff when I was really struggling to read much of anything at all. I still find them helpful in between the worthier stuff, because I’ll finish something and have the hardest time motivating myself to move onto the next, but a quick easy romance read can at least stop me from just going back to doomscrolling for days!

I do need them to be relatively well written though, I get a lot of recommendations from online spaces and many of the ones I start I end up abandoning. This latest wasn’t a DNF, but came close.

@AliasGrape I enjoy a Jenny Colgan when I'm looking for something cosy, comforting, easy to read but well written.

I also love a romance book sometimes and I include them in my total. I’ve said before I refuse to consider my less literary choices as guilty pleasures. I like a bit of variety according to my mood.

I'm not a fan of romance but I happily read mysteries, YA, fantasy when I need a break from the more literary stuff. The mind needs it's Maltesers as well as its steak!

13) The Names by Florence Knapp
I am late to this one, but loved it and read it all in one day. It has made me think - my mother wanted to name me and my brother after her siblings, who both had old-fashioned names that had been used over and over in her family for generations. My dad wanted modern names, and, well I got my aunt's name as a middle name, and my dad got the first name he wanted. My mum never took to me and I was very touched by the first Gordon section, where the mother doesn't want to breast feed him. It has really got me thinking....

14) Point Zero by Seicho Matsumoto
Another murder mystery by one of Japan's leading crime writers. I bought a bundle from Amazon - this is my fourth and so far my favourite. It covers the so called pan pan girls, basically post war prostitutes who serviced the American soldiers stationed in Japan. It is full of details about Japanese life, including arranged marriage. A definite bold.

I read lots of romance too! And expecting my reading to get particularly light when the new baby arrives shortly…

I’ve missed a lot on the thread so sorry to everyone who has been having a hard time.

Lots of reviews to catch up on so I will be brief…

Ordinary Saints by Niamh ni Mhaoileoin. From the Women’s Prize list, about an Irish family with an older brother training to be a priest. After he dies tragically young, his parents and the church start campaigning for him to be made a saint, to the horror of his sister who is now living a non-religious life in London. I thought this was really great, a very sensitive look at how grief is handled by different family members and a fascinating insight into the process of sainthood, something I would have assumed was in the distant past.

Love in Colour by Bolu Babalola. Nice collection of short stories reimagining mythological love stories from around the world, a sweet and easy read.

Jean by Madeleine Dunnigan. About an outsider at an unconventional boarding school around the 70s who forms a secret relationship with another pupil. Very dark and psychological, I thought it was v well written and insightful.

Nothing Good Happens After 2am by Niamh Horgan. Great fun novel following young people working in a trendy cocktail bar in the early noughties up to the present day. I liked the history of how the cocktail industry has changed alongside, naturally, a love story.

Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash. Not sure how to categorise this! A satirical look at a dysfunctional family mid-breakdown, but also a thriller uncovering a scandal about an evil billionaire. It was definitely funny and engaging, though all quite over the top.

A Family Matter by Claire Lynch. Reviewed by others recently, this was a slight but heartbreaking book about custody battles in the 80s and the impact on women proven to be unsuitable mothers. It felt very real and not overly sentimental, I admired it a lot.

I’m not a big reader of romance but do read loads of crime and fantasy.
i finished Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy from the WP for fiction list. I enjoyed this one. The story is told primarily from 2 PoVs- Dominic- the widowed father of 3 children living on an island that is about to be evacuated due to rising sea levels. Prior to this, the island was a repository of seeds and a scientific base but everyone else has left at this point. The second POV is Rowan who is washed up on shore. It was tense with strong writing and the theme on climate change was well handled. I don’t see it as a Women’s Prize winner particularly but wouldn’t be surprised to see it win something for climate fiction perhaps?

I also have a DNF- The Nights are Quiet in Tehran by Shida Bazyar This is the story of different generations of a family who end up fleeing Iran for Germany, told in 4 different POVs. I only made it to 17% on audio- the first POV a man involved in the revolution of 1979, but from the Communist side of things rather than a supporter of the Ayatollah. This had potential but the prose was flat and the audio narration poor. I might try the physical book or ebook some time but only if I can get it from the library.

31 The Woman in Blue by Elly Griffiths

The next in the Ruth Galloway series. There’s a serial killer, female priests, and all kinds of religious symbolism. I quite enjoyed this one, despite disliking the two main characters, Ruth just seems so miserable and takes offence at EVERYTHING, while Nelson’s selfishness and sexism are getting ever more jarring. Still the whole “I’m so fat” thing was a bit less prevalent in this book.

@DesdamonasHandkerchief I agree Fiona Hill’s book was a bit of a slog at times - an important message but could have been conveyed in a better way. Her own personal story was definitely the most interesting part of the book.

Oh William! by Elizabeth Strout

Oh William! What a covert narcissist you are! (Does anyone else think this or is it just me?) 😆

I really enjoyed this study of how our upbringing can affect our later relationships in life.

There was one paragraph towards the end of the book - when the protagonist talks about her children - which brought a lump to my throat. Those moments where you have to pretend something is in your eye and temporarily put the book down in case anyone sees you crying at a book?!

11. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

This is the first of Maya Angelou’s autobiographies, and covers her childhood and adolescence in southern USA in the 1930’s.

It’s very emotional, with a lot of adversity and traumatic experiences. This did make it difficult to read the book in some parts (particularly the part with her mother’s boyfriend).

20. The Wordhord - Hana Videen

Recommended on here by a couple of 50 Bookers iirc. An engaging look at Old English and its words - many of which survive in our modern language. This had the potential to be quite scholarly, and I wouldn’t say it’s a quick or very easy read, but Hana Videen has a lively style and certainly knows how to make what could be a daunting subject very enjoyable. Lots of Beowulf content, if that floats your boat.

@Terpsichorethat sounds interesting. Im currently on a week long training course for Welsh for Business and the tutor is a language geek who keeps drifting off into language geekery. I think im the only one enjoying those bits .

Just finished another RWYO which had taken me a while to finish.

32 Four Sisters. The Lost Lives of the Romanov Grand Duchesses by Helen Rappaport

Four Sisters looks at the lives of the Grand Duchesses Olga, Tatiana, Maria and Anastasia. Although the sisters collectively referred to themselves as OTMA this book did a good job of showing a balanced view of the very different characters of all four sisters. OTMA generally came across as lovely, and pretty unspoiled, and I found the section on their work as nurses / in hospitals during WWI particularly interesting.

I did feel that the middle section could have benefitted from some enthusiastic editing - I don’t think the author needed to include, what felt like, every single mention ever made of how lovely, pretty, and unpretentious the sisters were. Or every mention of their crushes on army officers, and I have to admit I was pretty surprised by how much interaction OTMA were allowed to have with these army officers.

The closeness of the family, along with their deep religious conviction, and willingness to embrace physical labour and hardships with good humour made it all the more poignant, and although Nicholas and Alexandra were absolutely loving and devoted parents, their breathtaking idiocy and naivety was incredibly frustrating, as each stupid decision took the Imperial family nearer to their doom.

Even knowing how the story ends this was a difficult read, and regardless of the political situation, the murder of the sisters, along with their parents, brother, loyal attendants (both with the Imperial Family and afterwards) is a stain on Russian history. It wasn’t quite a bold, because of the bloated middle, but I am glad I read this.