A-Z Author Challenge 2011 - Round 1

Back in January, I decided to participate in a reading challenge on one of the romance message boards I sometimes visit.  The challenge was to read one book for each letter of the alphabet, using the first letter in the author's first and last name to determine the letter it represented.  Difficult letters like Q were allowed to be found anywhere in the author's name, not just at the beginning.

Participants have a whole year in which to finish the challenge, which seems like a lot of time to me since it works out to about 2 weeks per book.  Despite being a pretty fast reader and having ample time to finish each book, at first I thought that it would take me all year to finish the challenge because I tend to be a "mood" reader.  I had a feeling that I wouldn't do a good job of sticking to my list because the ones I had picked might not fit with what I felt like reading when I got around to that letter.  To my surprise, I managed to finish my list in about 4 months.  I found the challenge to be very enjoyable because it forced me to vary my reading and find new authors for some of the letters, so I didn't get stuck in a rut and keep reading the same thing over and over. I still chose to read some books that weren't on my list, and I also switched out books for some of the letters because I found something more appealing than what I had originally planned to read, but the planner in me was very excited about having my reading all planned out in advance. :-) That way I didn't agonize over which book to choose and waste time that I could be using to actually read!

In case anyone actually stumbles across this blog and is interested, here is my completed list:

A - Adele Ashworth - My Darling Caroline - 2/13/2011
B - Celeste Bradley - Desperately Seeking a Duke - 2/26/2011
C - Allison Chase - Most Eagerly Yours - 1/14/2011
D - Jude Deveraux - Forever - 3/22/2011
E - Eileen Dreyer - Never a Gentleman - 4/3/2011
F - Jane Feather - A Wicked Gentleman - 3/9/2011
G - Julie Garwood - Sizzle - 2/18/2011
H - Diane Haeger -The Queen's Rival - 3/30/2011
I - Eva Ibbotson - A Countess Below Stairs - 1/30/2011
J - Judith James - Broken Wing (NOOK) - 4/16/2011
K - Carla Kelly - The Admiral's Penniless Bride (KINDLE) - 4/23/2011
L - Julie Anne Long - The Runaway Duke - 3/13/2011
M - Laurel McKee - Countess of Scandal - 3/20/2011
N - Linda Needham - Marry the Man Today - 3/18/2011
O - Olivia Drake - Seducing the Heiress - 1/25/2011
P - Mary Jo Putney - The Bargain (NOOK) - 4/10/2011
Q - Amanda Quick - Scandal - 4/8/2011
R - Maya Rodale - A Groom of One's Own - 2/15/2011
S - Susan Holloway Scott - The Countess and the King - 2/6/2011
T - Elizabeth Thornton - The Marriage Trap - 3/2/2011
U - Lisa Unger - Beautiful Lies - 4/27/2011
V - Virginia Henley - Unmasked - 5/3/2011
W - Wendy Markham - The Best Gift - 2/22/2011
X - Cathy Maxwell - You and No Other - 4/17/2011
Y - Rebecca York - Royal Lockdown (KINDLE) - 1/28/2011
Z - Laura Zigman - Her (KINDLE) - 2/2/2011

I enjoyed the challenge so much that I've decided to try and do it twice more before the end of the year. I'm already working on my second list, which I'll post soon. I may post reviews of some of the books, too.  Who knows - this is a new blog, so I don't know exactly what I may feel like writing yet!