I came across this book tag on Peat Long’s Blog and decided to see what my own answers to the questions would be.

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HOW MANY BOOKS IS TOO MANY BOOKS IN A SERIES?

It’s not a number, it’s a feeling. I know it’s too many when:

• I can feel the author’s boredom
• I can feel my boredom
• The characters I used to like have been through so much that I neither recognise nor like them anymore
• The plot of book 32 only makes sense if you get the references to books 7, 13 and 24.
• The hamster that the main character kept as a pet should now be a teenager.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT CLIFFHANGERS?

It’s like finding a slug at the bottom of a bowl of salad I’ve just eaten. I am not pleased.

HARDBACK OR PAPERBACK?

My eyesight means I can’t use either anymore. My choices are now between ebook and audiobook. I choose audiobooks unless I don’t like the narrator or when the formating (footnotes, diagrams, maps) doesn’t work in audio.

FAVORITE BOOK?

It’s in my TBR pile somewhere. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself.

I find the idea that I’ve already read my favourite book and that nothing else is ever going to match it, deeply depressing.

I’d rather keep looking forward and hoping than be looking back and longing.

LEAST FAVORITE BOOK?

In answering this, I excluded any book that I set aside unfinished and concentrated on the ones that I wished I hadn’t read. These tend to be books that have lodged things in my imagination that I don’t want to give houseroom to. The one I remember most and therefore my least favourite, is ‘Tripwire‘ the third Jack Reacher book.

It’s been ten years since I read ‘Tripwire‘ and I’m still annoyed at the book for violating my expectations and I’m angry at myself for not having set it aside when I saw what it was about.

LOVE TRIANGLES: YES OR NO?

THE MOST RECENT BOOK YOU JUST COULDN’T FINISH?

‘Latency‘ by Chris Coppel. The writing style didn’t work for me.

A BOOK YOU’RE CURRENTLY READING?

‘The Daughters’ War‘ by ChristopherBuehlman. I think it’s going to be one of my favourite reads of 2024. It’s beautifully written and deeply engaging.

THE LAST BOOK YOU RECOMMENDED TO SOMEONE?

‘You Like It Darker‘ is Stephen King’s latest short story collection. I’d recommend it to anyone, especially in the audiobook format.

OLDEST BOOK YOU’VE READ BY PUBLICATION DATE?

Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales‘. I read Coghill’s modern English version, which wasn’t published until 1952 but the original version was from 1400. The stories still work and the people still seem real. I’d loved to have watched Chaucer deliver this as standup comedy during a meal at court.

NEWEST BOOK YOU’VE READ BY PUBLICATION DATE?

‘Broken Bayou‘ by Jennifer Moorhead, published 1st July 2024. It’s a good thriller set in Louisianna.

FAVORITE AUTHOR?

I don’t think I can get that to just one author but, if pressed, I’d pick Tanya Huff for speculative fiction and Dana Stabenow for crime fiction.

BUYING BOOKS OR BORROWING BOOKS?

I’m a fan of libraries, especially my own. I’m happy to borrow but I love to buy.

A BOOK THAT YOU DISLIKE THAT EVERYONE ELSE SEEMS TO LOVE?

Jeffrey Eugenides is a Pulitzer Prize winner, so it’s no surprise that ‘The Virgin Suicides‘ is well-written. Even so, I set it aside in disgust halfway through. It seemed to me that it set out to eulogize a male view of the world that I despise. Life is too short to spend on well-expressed ideas that curdle the soul.

BOOKMARKS OR DOG-EARS?

These days, my phone or my iPad remembers where I’m up to but I’ve always regarded using dog-ears as a criminal offence.

A BOOK YOU CAN ALWAYS REREAD?

I don’t normally re-read books. The risk of finding I no longer love something that I once thought wonderful isn’t worth taking. I make an exception for Terry Pratchett’s ‘Hogfather‘. It’s really an exploration of a set of ideas. Each time I read it, I see the ideas a little differently (maybe because I’m a little closer to death, sorry DEATH, each time) but I always laugh.

CAN YOU READ WHILE HEARING MUSIC?

I can if I have to but I prefer silence. I’ve been known to switch my noise-cancelling headphones even when I’m reading an ebook.

ONE OR MULTIPLE POVS?

That’s for the author to get right and do well. If I’m noticing the POV, it’s probably because the author hasn’t quite sorted it out. I enjoy audiobooks with multiple points of view and with a narrator for each. Probably the best example is Nick Hornby’s ‘Juliet Naked’.

DO YOU READ A BOOK IN ONE SITTING OR OVER MULTIPLE DAYS?

I like to flip between books. I usually have at least one audiobook and one ebook on the go at the same time. I do occaisionally snack on novellas in a single setting, especially if have a long drive.

A BOOK YOU’VE READ BECAUSE OF THE COVER?

I love a good book cover. A shelf full of newly released hardbacks with great cover art is a thing of beauty that captures my attention every time.

I rarely buy books because of their covers, especially now that I’m reading ebooks and audiobooks where I mostly don’t see the covers while I’m reading them.

The last book that I’ve read where I was lured by the cover to try something new was ‘Ebony Gate‘ by Julia Vee an Ken Debelle. Unfortunately, I enjoyed the cover more than the book.

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I hope you enjoyed these 20 Questions. By reading this far, you’re tagged if you want to be. I’d love to read your answers if you decide to post them. Please use the comments section of this post to share a link to your 20 questions.