50 Books Challenge 2026 Part Four

[Southeastdweller]

Welcome to the fourth 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 as this makes it much easier to keep track of books or authors that may appeal (or not appeal) to everyone else.

Some of us bring over our updated lists to the new thread. Again, this is up to you.

The first thread of the year is here the second thread here and the third thread here

So sorry to hear your news @Arran2024

I'm so sorry @Arran2024 . It's so hard to lose a much loved pet .

I’m so sorry @Arran2024 💐

The Pretender is 99p on Kindle so I have bought that following @Stowickthevast's review

I'm about halfway through. It is quite entertaining. The notion that it is like a Copperhead/Wolf Hall hybrid is not far off the mark. It does also remind me a bit of Paddy Clarke HaHaHa.

26 London Rules - Mick Herron More slow horses; more terror attacks; more fart jokes and incompetence. As with previous books in the series, good plot, very funny, and plenty of offensive content. Not quite a bold this time, but still good.

78. Four Seasons in Rome - Anthony Doerr Good but not bold. The author wins a writer's grant to go to Rome for a year, and does so, with his wife and baby twins. Life happens whilst he is there, including the death of the Pope. Lovely descriptive passages but the man REALLY should have taken some more Italian lessons before he went.

79. Code Dependent - Madhumita Murgia
Bold. Fascinating book about AI and its impact on people, largely on women and on people from less wealthy societies. Much reviewed on here.

80. Bookish - Lucy Mangan
Bold. I preferred this to Bookworm (and I enjoyed Bookworm). I felt the interleaving (pun intended) of books with Mangan's life, her feelings about the support and knowledge and escape they provide, were really well conveyed.

28. Bad Actors - Mick Herron

Most of the Slough House team are back - but not all of them. Diana Taverner is in trouble and it's the slow horses to the rescue. No River Cartwright and I did miss him. I felt this one wasn't as good as some of the earlier ones but it won't stop me reading the next one.

Hope you like it @SheilaFentiman and @Piggywaspushed . The responsibility of recommendations sits heavily with me!

42. Dominion - Addie E Citchens. The final Woman's Prize shortlist book for me. It's set in 2000 in Mississippi in a Gospel Church ruled by Rev Winfrey. The book is narrated mainly by Winfrey's wife Priscilla and his youngest son's girlfriend Diamond. The book is about the youngest son ( of 5), Immanuel, Mani, also known as Wonderboy. I thought this was very well done, it gradually builds up a picture of Wonderboy, as the narrators learn more about him. The audio was really good I thought. I think it would be a decent winner but my heart lies with The Correspondent.

I already had it tbh. Got all the Walter Scott books! But I am glad it is good!

I also got The Pretender Thanks

I have also weakened (meant to be doing RWYO) and bought The Pretender. Hoping to persuade my book club to read it so then it falls within one of my exceptions!

Hello @TimeforaGandT I am happy to pretend to be in a book club with you and mandate that you needed to buy this 😀

<enabler>

I shall also temporarily join and leave GandT’s bookshop to make an excuse for getting The Pretender.

Started a thread for non fic recs. no ones replied

I stuck an answer on there of books you’ve probably heard me talk about before but it might help get the thread moving. BTW totally get what you were saying about Abram-oh-vitch

I was watching telly!

<don’t tell the books>

Thanks to @SheilaFentimanand @Stowickthevastre The Pretender (which I have now bought).

Very pleased to hear it is on the Sir Walter Scott shortlist as I want to read some books from that list, but there’s so much to read from the Women’s Prize list that I haven’t got round to working out which titles to look out for.

48 . Elizabeth’s Women by Tracy Borman - biography of Elizabeth I with a focus on the women who served her in her household. This was easy to read and I liked the focus as it was interesting to find out more about women who are often referred to in Tudor fiction and non-fiction. There was a rather tragic narrative arc about how Elizabeth outlived the people who cared for her (although given she was clearly dreadful to work for in several respects its probably not surprising that younger generations were less fond of her). The main problem with the book is that there was too much detail about Elizabeth and not enough about the women especially in the second half.

Really pleased with how The Enabler Book Club is going 😀😀

So when are we scheduling a discussion? I bought The Pretender a few months ago - it was on offer but I think it was more than the current price of 99p (Kindle).

Walter Scott Prize shortlist

THE PRETENDER by Jo Harkin (Bloomsbury)
THE MATCHBOX GIRL by Alice Jolly (Bloomsbury)
BENBECULA by Graeme Macrae Burnet (Polygon)
ONCE THE DEED IS DONE by Rachel Seiffert (Virago)
SEASCRAPER by Benjamin Wood (Viking)

Longlist titles

VENETIAN VESPERS John Banville (Faber & Faber)
THE TWO ROBERTS Damian Barr (Canongate)
EDEN’S SHORE Oisín Fagan (John Murray Press)
HELM Sarah Hall (Faber & Faber)
BOUNDARY WATERS Tristan Hughes (Parthian Books)
EDENGLASSIE Melissa Lucashenko (Oneworld Publications)
THE ARTIST Lucy Steeds (John Murray Press)

I've read 1 shortlist title - Once the Deed is Done - and 2 from the longlist - Helm and The Artist - liked them all and I have several more TBR.

Have read Seascraper (meh) and Helm (amazing, shame it didn’t make the shortlist), have Benbecula and The Two Roberts coming up next, others on wish list. A shame Clear didn’t make either short or long list, as it appeared superior to Seascraper to me.

I've fallen way behind with this thread but lovely to catch up.

I'm so sorry for your loss @Arran2024. I know how awful it is to say goodbye.

Congratulations @GrannieMainland - very impressed you're still managing to read!

And I can't remember who mentioned the book weekends which I never knew existed. Can't make this one - and need to read the others in the series first, but will definitely look out for others. Brilliant idea.

I've managed a couple of books, neither quite a bold but I enjoyed them both.

Wobegon Boy - Garrison Keillor

The story of a man who grew up in Lake Wobegon and how that shaped him and his life on the east coast. Some great characters but the plot, such as it is, meanders a bit and to tell the truth, not much actually happens! It's interesting though, and Keillor always writes well.

Death at the Sign of the Rook - Kate Atkinson

Read by lots of you I think (got it for 50p from a charity shop - they, and our local little library, shape most of my reading tbh!). Latest Brodie investigation after art thefts in Yorkshire. Lots of fun.

I'm not most of the way through Paris Echo - Sebastian Faulks which I'm also enjoying, though it isn't quite what I expected! Will hopefully pop back with a review in a few days.

I'd fallen behind again, and not making much progress with my reading since I last posted. Started The Children's Book A.S. Byatt and making slow progress. I didn't get far with Possession either I seem to recall. This has been kicking around on my kindle for more than a decade, and I really want to clear it off the RWYO list, but currently I'm in a bit of a slump and probably should have picked something a bit shorter I could zip through.

I'm interested in The Pretender now, though am still claiming to be focusing on books I already own. I'll probably fold and grab it anyway.

So sorry for your loss @Arran2024

I can vouch for the Children’s Book @AliasGrapeI loved it and I hated Possession