2024 In The Rearview Mirror

The year is ending. Today is the 31st of December so tomorrow is the first day of 2025. That means tomorrow is the start of my new reading goal and I am hoping the start of a new year of some great new books. But I think I need to talk about the books I read this year before we move on to a new year. Other people make goals about changing themselves, because that is what resolutions are for. I don't seem them that way though. I like to make goals for myself that I know I can complete. I don't set goals for working out or eating better, because I know I am not the type to actually follow through with that goal.

So for 2024 I set my reading goal as 100 books, the same for 2023. In 2023, I read over the 100 and in 2024, I reached 100 at the end of the year. I never change the goal, it's always 100. It's a doable number for me, and if I go over it's great. I can reach 100, so I never fall short. I track my reading progress through Goodreads, but I think for 2025, I need to start adding my physical books to the list. I usually only use my Goodreads to track my digital reading on my Kindle.

I was looking over the books I had on my list and of all 100 books listed, my top book for 2024 is going to be Butcher and Blackbird. It was funny, a bit gross a times, but over all I loved the book so much. I read it in one sitting. I will of course never look at ice cream the same way again, but I still eat it. That is all I will say about that, because I think you need to read the book. I love characters that are not always rainbows and sunshine. Give me a morally grey set of characters any day. I like that we aren't always getting the sweet, innocent girls as our heroines in books now. We need something that is less sunshine and more hurricane.

As I looked over the books, I can tell you that I didn't like Allison's Adventures In Underland. I really wanted to like it, because I am always up for someone doing something new with my Alice book. This did not do it for me though. I got about 60% in and just could not finish it. I can usually push myself to finish a book, even a terrible one. I could not do it with this one. The idea was sound, really, but I think it lacked something that kept me wanting to read it. I might try again later, but it was a DNF for me. (Did not finish) It wasn't the reverse harem part, I love those and have read some amazing books that have it in them. No, it was the execution of the book. If I am getting lost in a book that is retelling of Alice in Wonderland you know there is a problem.

So I want to go into 2025 with a plan on what I want to read. I think what I want to do is select a book for each month that I am really wanting to read. I want to of course read all kinds of other things, but I think I can set each month up with one book that I am planning to read. I also think that I need to branch out more, because 2024 was filled with some rather dark and very smut driven books. I love them, and I will not stop reading them, but I think I need to start reading other things as well. I have so many that I think need to be read and learned from. My history section in my personal library is growing so much and I use book sales to get more. So I think 2025 will be about growing in my reading and learning.

I will make my list and my reading goals a page on here so everyone can see how far along I am on my reading journey for 2025. Here's to a great reading experience and growth in this area!