Ani's Book Abyss

I've got 18 books read and 15 squares actually completed (called and read), and TWO BINGOS!  Of course, I could have had two Bingos a long time ago if I had just made myself read for the 'Genre: Horror' square--every square on my card in the second column from the left has been called, and I had read for all the squares but 'Genre: Horror'.

I just put it off for the longest time.

I had originally intended to listen to Neil Gaiman's Smoke and Mirrors, a short story collection, narrated by Gaiman, himself.  But then I decided that I wasn't really wanting to sit through 10 hours of horror short stories.  So then I thought about maybe just listening to a handful of the short stories and calling it good... but that didn't quite appeal to me either.

So then I thought of the Edgar Allan Poe collection I have, a large tome I picked up at a library sale months ago called The Essential Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe.  For some reason, this appealed to me more, and so I went through the book and decided that I would choose one or two short stories to read for this square.  My final decision ended up being The Murders in the Rue Morgue... just because it sounds like my kind of book even though it's horror--it's also a murder mystery, and apparently claimed as the first detective story... ever?

As a short read, it didn't take long to fill that last square in the column... although, as I said in my review of the short story, it didn't really exhibit a whole lot of horror-like quality, but it is tagged as 'horror' on Goodreads.  I might read another short story by Poe to make up for it.

Anyway, I also made a choice on the last two squares I had yet to choose a book for: 'Classic Horror' and the 'Creepy Raven Free Space.'  I will be reading The Turn of the Screw by Henry James for the 'Classic Horror' square, and Deep As The Dead, Kylie Brant's newest Mindhunters series installation, for the Free Space.

Six more squares to finish reading for, and I will Blackout my card!  I hadn't really been planning for a Blackout this year with the book selections I made and my recent mood, but I guess I underestimated myself a bit.  A Blackout is going to happen!

 

 

Updated Marked Card:

 

Called Square:  Green Square Border
Read Square:  Red Eyes Penni
Called and Read Square:  Red Eyes Penni in a Green Box
Bingos:  Multiple Red Eyes Penni in a Green Box in an Orange Box

See also the table below for some spreadsheet goodness.

Reviews pending:  Just Past Midnight, Protecting His Witch, Hit and Run, Jaxson

 

Squares/Books/Called Dates/Other Links:

Progress:  18 squares called || 19 books read || 17 squares completed || 2 BINGOs
(on my card only)

Squares called that I do not have:
9/17 - Modern Masters of Horror
9/27 - Terror in a Small Town
10/5 - 80's Horror
10/9 - Chilling Children

Bingo Calls Thread
The Best and Worst of Halloween Bingo 2017
Report Your Bingos!

September Group Read | Discussion Thread -- The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
October Group Read | Discussion Thread -- Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

 

 

Currently Reading:

 

 

 

Tentative Bingo Hopefuls:

Magical Realism:  The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
Classic Noir:  The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
Ghost:  Blue Dahlia by Nora Roberts
Supernatural:  The Nightmare Charade by Mindee Arnett
Diverse Voices:  The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin

Cozy Mystery:  The Camelot Caper by Elizabeth Peters
Witches:  Protecting His Witch by Zoe Forward
Vampires:  The Dead Travel Fast by Deanna Raybourn
Country House Mystery:  The Decagon House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji
Haunted House:  Black Rose by Nora Roberts

Aliens:  Canyons of Night by Jayne Castle
Genre: Horror:  The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe
Free Space:  Deep As The Dead by Kylie Brant
Monsters:  Her Fierce Warrior by Paige Tyler
In the Dark, Dark Woods:  On the Night of the Seventh Moon by Victoria Holt

Amateur Sleuth:  Just Past Midnight by Amanda Stevens
Werewolves:  Jaxson by Alisa Woods
Gothic:  Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart
Romantic Suspense:  Hit and Run by Allison Brennan and Laura Griffin
Darkest London:  Garden of Lies by Amanda Quick

Murder Most Foul:  Every Secret Thing by Emma Cole (a.k.a. Susanna Kearsley)
Serial/Spree Killer:  Dear Maggie by Brenda Novak
Classic Horror:  The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
Terrifying Women:  Red Lily Nora Roberts
Locked Room Mystery:  The Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Soji Shimada