My December TBR is out of control

I didn’t finish any books in November. I tried to read a little bit, but between NaNoWriMo and the election, I just couldn’t make much progress reading anything except Twitter. As a result, I have quite a bit of catching up to do if I hope to meet my 2016 Goodreads challenge goal of 50 books.

Current status:

I have 6 books to go, and I’m 2 books behind schedule. And let’s just ignore the fact that some of those 44 books read have actually been novellas and comics trade volumes. For some purists, those wouldn’t even really count. But, I’m counting them. And, with Christmas vacation coming up, I think I’ll be able to achieve my 50 book goal.

However, I’ve definitely given up on my other 2016 reading goal, the Book Riot Read Harder 2016 Challenge. It’s just not happening. I wasn’t officially participating this year, anyway. So, no big disappointment there.

What have I learned from all this? Oh yeah, the same thing I learned last year. No. More. Reading. Challenges.

But, I mean it this time. Seriously.

Well… except I will maybe still do the Goodreads Challenge next year… but I’m dialing my goal back to 3 books per month, average. More on that when I post about my 2017 goals.

This post was supposed to be about my December TBR. So, let’s get back to that.

It should come as no surprise that I have an enormous TBR pile at this point. There are SO MANY books that I really want to be reading right now. I made myself narrow that list down to 12. There is no way I’ll read that many books in December, so I’ve prioritized them into two batches.

These 6 are at the top of my list:

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi — I started this book, loved the first chapters, then had to put it down to do other stuff. I am dying to get back to it, and I am determined for that to happen before the end of this year.
Obelisk Gate by N. K. Jemisin — I’ve not done my “best of 2016” list year, but I think it’s safe to say that book one in this series is definitely going to be on my top 5 list for books I read this year. I am so excited to dive into this next book.
Alterations by Stephanie Scott — This one just released today, and it’s a modern, YA re-telling of the movie Sabrina. I love that movie (the original more than the re-do), and I can’t wait to read this book. Plus, I know the author from Twitter, and she seems super cool.
The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi — I’ve wanted to read this book for a while, but it’s recently been moved to the top of my list due to reasons that shall be explained later…
The Magician King by Lev Grossman — I am rediculously, crazy excited for season 2 of The Magicians on the SyFy channel (starts in January). If you liked this series and aren’t watching that show, you should be. I’m determined to at least read book 2 before season 2 starts, even though I think there are major deviations between the books and the show (in a good way).
Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff — This is the sequel to Illuminae, which I loved. I pre-ordered this one, and I’ve had it for almost two months now, but I haven’t had a chance to read it yet. Because of how the story is told (through found documents, same as the first book), I bought the hardcover edition (again, same as the first book). But (like the first book) the hardcover is enormous, and I haven’t wanted to drag it with me on the bus. So, it’s coming with me on Christmas vacation instead.

As if that wasn’t enough end-of-year reading, I also really want to read these:

The Year of the Crocodile by Courtney Milan — a Christmas themed novella featuring the hero and heroine from her novel Trade Me that I read earlier this year and highly recommend.
Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton — I’ve owned this for months and it’s been on my TBR even longer. It’s a dance book. I can’t believe I haven’t read it yet.
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo — This went on sale recently, and I bought it. I still haven’t read her first series, but I’ve heard such great things about this book, I may start here.
Nuts by Alice Clayton — I grabbed this one when it was on sale after hearing great things about it. Seems like a fun diversion.
Bedmates by Nichole Chase — I loved her Suddenly Royal series, and I’ve heard good things about this first book in her new series.
Rebel’s Honor by Gwynn White — There’s a really long story behind this one… Short version is, this is by the wife of Andrew St. Pierre White of Overland Expo and 4xOverland fame. My husband is a big fan of Andrew’s videos, and we met Andrew and Gwynn back in April. I am really curious to read this book because it’s a strange coincidence Gwynn and I apparently write in the same genre.

But before I do any of that, I need to finish the book I’m currently reading:

Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho — I started this in November, but haven’t made much progress. It’s good, but it’s just not capturing my attention the way I thought it would. I can completely understand why this book is getting so much attention. It’s good. It deserves all the praise it’s getting. It’s just not quite what I’m looking for right at this moment. But, I’m enjoying it, and it’s on loan from the library (I had to renew it). So, I’m going to finish it before moving on.

Beyond all those, I still have the remaining stack of books that I either pre-ordered this year, or that I received from my Indiespensible subscription, but haven’t read yet:

Poseidon’s Wake by Alastair Reynolds — This is the third and final book in this series that I am really enjoying
Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas — This is book five in this series. Normally I would have devoured this one already, but early reviews were less than gushing. So, I’ve been letting it sit for a while.
City on Fire by Garth Risk Hallberg — This book is enormous. I got it from my Indiespensible subscription box and probably wouldn’t have otherwise picked it up.
Best Boy and The Boy Who Went Away by Eli Gottlieb — Both of these also came from Indiespensible and probably weren’t ones I’d have picked up otherwise.
Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg — Also from Indiespensible and also something I probably wouldn’t have selected on my own, but the blurb and reviews have piqued my interest.
Mr. Splitfoot by Samantha Hunt — Another Indiespensible selection, but one I am really looking forward to reading.
A Doubter’s Almanac by Ethan Canin — More Indiespensible that I probably wouldn’t have noticed but the blurb and interview with the author make me really want to read it.
Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee — I’ve heard this one is really hard to get into, but every review I’ve read puts this squarely into my sci-fi wheelhouse. So, I’m determined to give it a shot.
Barkskins by Annie Proulx — Recieved this from Indiespensible and my husband grabbed it to read. I think he’s only halfway through, but enjoying it.
Here I Am by Jonathan Safran Foer — Another Indiespensible pick. I worried this was yet another “white guy literary book,” but the blurb and the reviews have me thinking that may not be the case. So, I’m tentatively interested.
Hold Me by Courtney Milan — This is the second book in this series and everything I’ve heard about it so far makes me really want to read it. I just haven’t had a chance to get to it yet.

So, yeah. I need more reading time. And I probably need to stop buying new books. To that end, I’ve canceled my Indiespensible subscription. It made me sad to do it, but I just can’t keep up (clearly). I do have some books on my Christmas list (more about that in a future blog post). But I’m going to try even harder next year to stick to reading what I have or getting books from the library.

Given that I have so much to choose from here — and really, this only scratches the surface of what I have unread on my Kindle — is there anything jumping out at you? Anything you’ve already read that you’d highly recommend me pushing to the top of my list? Anything you want me to read so I can report back and let you know if it’s any good?

If you have thoughts, let me know in the comments…