2026 Reading Challenges

I don't know why I do this to myself, but I overdid it with the challenges again 😅 But they're so fun! I can't help it 😆

2026 Reading Challenge

Liliana has read 0 books toward her goal of 52 books.

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I would like to eventually read 100 books in a year, but I have really been enjoying setting my number low, at 52, for the last couple of years. It's just so low pressure. So I'm going for 52 again. Which is perfect, because I'm doing like a hundred other challenges 😆
January:

1. Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
2. Kindergarten Wars (Vol. 1) by You Chiba
3. Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
4. Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman
5. Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
6. Sakamoto Days (Vol. 19) by Yuto Suzuki

February:

7. All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
8. Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph
9. Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith
10. The Haunted Bookstore: Gateway to a Parallel Universe (Vol. 1) by Shinobumaru
11. Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells
12. The Ragpicker King (The Chronicles of Castellane #2) by Cassandra Clare
13. Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2) by Vincent Ralph
14. Spy x Family (Vol. 15) by Tatsuya Endo
15. Kaiju No. 8 (Vol. 1) by Naoya Matsumoto
16. The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White

March:

17. Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
18. Kindergarten Wars (Vol. 2) by You Chiba
19. The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer
20. Tastes Like Candy by Jessica Lacy
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.

The challenge: Read one book a week, 52 books in 52 weeks.
I really like this challenge, except this year I couldn't find one out there that I wanted to do. Most of them have prompts attached to them, but with the million other challenges I'm doing, it is not necessary for me 😅 I just wanted a simple challenge where the whole goal is to read ONE book a week, for each week of the year, and with zero prompts. So that's what I'm going to do here. Lol. Or try, at least. Lol. Last year I missed a bunch of weeks, but I have managed this challenge before, and I'm sure I can do it again!
Progress:

10/52 weeks (19%)

1. [01/04/26] Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
2. [01/11/26] Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
3. [01/18/26] Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman
4. [01/25/26] Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
5. [02/01/26] All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
6. [02/08/26] Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith
7. [02/15/26] Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells
8. [02/22/26] Spy x Family (Vol. 15) by Tatsuya Endo
9. [03/01/26] Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
10. [03/08/26] Kindergarten Wars (Vol. 2) by You Chiba
11. [03/15/26]
12. [03/22/26]
13. [03/29/26]
14. [04/05/26]
15. [04/12/26]
16. [04/19/26]
17. [04/26/26]
18. [05/03/26]
19. [05/10/26]
20. [05/17/26]
21. [05/24/26]
22. [05/31/26]
23. [06/07/26]
24. [06/14/26]
25. [06/21/26]
26. [06/28/26]
27. [07/05/26]
28. [07/12/26]
29. [07/19/26]
30. [07/26/26]
31. [08/02/26]
32. [08/09/26]
33. [08/16/26]
34. [08/23/26]
35. [08/30/26]
36. [09/06/26]
37. [09/13/26]
38. [09/20/26]
39. [09/27/26]
40. [10/04/26]
41. [10/11/26]
42. [10/18/26]
43. [10/25/26]
44. [11/01/26]
45. [11/08/26]
46. [11/15/26]
47. [11/22/26]
48. [11/29/26]
49. [12/06/26]
50. [12/13/26]
51. [12/20/26]
52. [12/27/26]

The challenge: "To read one book that has a title starting with every letter of the alphabet. You can drop the A’s and The’s from the book titles—The First Main Word Needs To Be The Letter You Are Counting, except for those pesky Q, X, and Z titles, then the word that starts with the challenge letter can be anywhere in the title. Book titles starting with EX for the X prompt are also allowed."
I'm back with the Alphabet Soup challenges. Last year, I got REALLY close to fully finishing them, so I am really going to try to actually complete them this year!
Progress:

15/26 books (58%)

All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
B
Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman
Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph
E
Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
G
Haunted Bookstore, The: Gateway to a Parallel Universe (Vol. 1) by Shinobumaru
I
J
Kindergarten Wars Vol. 1 by You Chiba
Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
M
Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2) by Vincent Ralph
O
Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith
Q
Ragpicker King, The (The Chronicles of Castellane #2) by Cassandra Clare
Sakamoto Days (Vol. 19) by Yuto Suzuki
Tastes Like Candy by Jessica Lacy
U
Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
Spy x Family (Vol. 15) by Tatsuya Endo
Y
Z

The challenge: To read one book that has an author whose first name, middle, or last name starts with every letter of the alphabet.
And here is the author version. Like the last one, I got really close to finishing this one last year. I think I had maybe 6 or 7 letters left.
Progress:

16/26 books (62%)

Amy Goldsmith [Predatory Natures]
Brandon Sanderson [Warbreaker]
Cassandra Clare [The Ragpicker King (The Chronicles of Castellane #2)]
D
Ellie Marney [All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3)]
F
G
H
I
Junji Ito [Venus in the Blind]
Kiersten White [The Fox and the Devil]
Lynn Painter [Fake Skating]
Matt Dinniman [Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2)]
Naoya Matsumoto [Kaiju No. 8 (Vol. 1)]
O
Pelayo, Cynthia [Lotería]
Q
Ralph Vincent [Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2)]
Suzuki, Yuto [Sakamoto Days (Vol. 19)]
Tatsuya Endo [Spy x Family (Vol. 15)]
U
Vincent Ralph [Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1)]
Wells, Martha [Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2)]
X
You Chiba [Kindergarten Wars Vol. 1]
Z

The challenge: Read a book to fulfill each letter and its prompt.
I just like the idea of this one 🤷‍♀️ Lol.
Progress:

12/26 books (46%)

✅A- A book with an author's first name starting with 'A': Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith
✅B- A bestseller from the past year: Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
C- A classic novel you've never read
D- A debut novel by a new author
E- A book with "End" or "Eternal" in the title
F- A fantasy book that's less than 300 pages
✅G- A book with a green cover: The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer
✅H- A historical fiction set in the 1900s: The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White
I- A book that inspires you to grow or improve
✅J- A book by an author with your initials: Tastes Like Candy by Jessica Lacy
✅K- A book set in a kingdom or featuring royalty: The Ragpicker King (The Chronicles of Castellane #2) by Cassandra Clare
L- A love story that is not a romance
M- A memoir by someone you admire
✅N- A novel set in nature or a small town: Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph
✅O- A book with a one-word title: Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
P- A poetry collection or a novel-in-verse
✅Q- A quick read under 150 pages: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells
✅R- A retelling or a classic fairy tale: Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
S- A sci-fi book with a futuristic setting
T- A thriller that's been turned into a movie or series
U- A book that's uplifting and hopeful
V- A novel with a villain as the main character
W- A book written by a woman in the 1800s
✅X- A book with an "X" in the title or author's name: Spy x Family (Vol. 15) by Tatsuya Endo
Y- A YA novel with a coming-of-age theme
✅Z- A book with a title or theme about sleep or dreams: Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2) by Vincent Ralph

The challenge: To read books with covers every color of the rainbow
I'm modifying this challenge a bit because I want to do ALL the colors. This challenge is also expanded so that you can include title and author names, not just the cover to get your color, but I want to make things harder for myself, apparently, because I'm only doing covers (for now) 😆
Progress:

9/10 books (90%)

1. ✅Red: Kaiju No. 8 (Vol. 1) by Naoya Matsumoto
2. Orange
3. ✅Yellow: Kindergarten Wars Vol. 1 by You Chiba
4. ✅Green: The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer
5. ✅Blue: Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
6. ✅Purple: All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
7. ✅Pink: Tastes Like Candy by Jessica Lacey
8. ✅White: Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
9. ✅Black: Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
10. ✅Brown: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells

The challenge: To read books you have owned before January 1, 2026.
I haven't reached Mt. Vancouver in YEARS. I think it's time I step down a level and try that 😅
Level chosen: Mount Blanc — Read 24 books from your TBR pile.
Progress:

6/24 books (25%)

1. Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
2. Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman
3. All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
4. The Ragpicker King (The Chronicles of Castellane #2) by Cassandra Clare
5. Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
6. The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer

The challenge: Read your Netgalley/Edelweiss books.
I am actually going to try on this challenge this year! I swear! 😆 I have a couple of backlog books that have been there for years, and I'm quite embarrassed about it 😅 This past year, I only read 4 books, so we will see how things go. Lol.
Level chosen: Bronze — 10 Netgalley/Edelweiss books.
Progress:

2/10 books (20%)

1. The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White
2. The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer

The challenge: Finish series. That's it. Lol.
Last year, the series challenge I did included both finishing series and catching up on series, and let me tell you, I did SO bad! I think I only finished like 3 series! It was crazy! So this year I really need to buckle down and focus on actually finishing up some series. But because I did so bad last year, I'm going to start easy and set my goal to 5 series.
Progress:

1/5 series (20%)

1. All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney

The challenge: "A not-too-serious reading challenge hosted by Curiosity Killed the Bookworm. (Interpret the prompts however you like, the notes are just for ideas.) It’s mostly orientated towards science fiction, fantasy, and horror, but there’s nothing stopping you from reading about the fishing industry for scaled creatures, or contemporary romance for creepy cover. Sorry, did I say creepy? I meant pretty. Though seriously, why do so many have faceless people on the cover?"
The sassy writing of this challenge immediately sucked me in! Plus, sci-fi, horror, and fantasy?? I am SO in!
Progress:

15/25 books (60%)

1. ✅Scaled creatures: Reptiles, fish, dragons, mermaids, dinosaurs (depending on who you ask), etc, on the cover, in the title, or contained within the book: Kaiju No. 8 (Vol. 1) by Naoya Matsumoto
2. Dark academia: You know those schools where bad stuff happens, but let's be honest, we still kinda wish we went there.
3. Faeries are bad: Cruel, evil, mischievous versions of the fae.
4. Faeries are good: Kind, cute, fun-loving, cosy versions of the fae.
5. ✅Artificial stupidity intelligence: AI, the cool kind from science fiction, or the more real kind, here to take all our jobs: Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman
6. ✅Set far, far away: The other side of Earth or across space and time: Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
7. A book by T. Kingfisher: 
8. ✅A pretty cover: The Ragpicker King (The Chronicles of Castellane #2) by Cassandra Clare
9. ✅A creepy cover: Faceless people, creepy dolls, spooky shadows, creepy crawlies. Whatever creeps you out: All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
10. ✅Space travel: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells
11. Cosy fantasy: 
12. Such a fungi *groan*: Mushrooms, fungal zombies, the mycorrhizal networks of trees. Or you could just read about a fun guy.
13. ✅There’s probably a deity involved somehow: Mythology and meddling gods, or something about real-world religion: Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
14. ✅A fun book: Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
15. The great British pastime of commenting on the weather: Weather in the title or on the cover, cli-fi, books set during extreme weather, etc.
16. ✅Witchcraft: Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
17. ✅Retail therapy: Set in a shop or use this prompt as an excuse to treat yo self: The Haunted Bookstore: Gateway to a Parallel Universe (Vol. 1) by Shinobumaru
18. Working in STEM: A character probably works in science, tech, engineering or maths.
19. The end of the world… or is it?: Apocalyptic fiction or, you know, read about the mess that is the world out there.
20. ✅Bookish: A book about books, set in a library or bookshop, about writing, or the next Thursday Next novel: Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2) by Vincent Ralph
21. ✅Bargain: A bargain with the devil or a book you got for cheap: The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer
22. ✅It’s a mystery: The genre, a mystery within another genre, or a book you just don't quite understand what the F happened: Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph
23. ✅Back in my day, we called it paranormal romance: A.K.A. romantasy: The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White
24. ✅Beware of the woods: Set in the woods, about a dodgy family called the Woods, or maybe there's nothing to be wary of at all: Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith
25. Water works: A book that makes you cry, oceans, rivers, underwater worlds. I suppose you could also read about urinary tracts...

The challenge: "There are 40 prompts and 10+ bonus prompts— which, admittedly, is a lot of prompts… but no candy left behind! Set your own goal and pick whatever combination of prompts you’d like to do!"
I am really overdoing it with the challenges this year, which is me every year, let's be honest 😆 But this one sounded SO fun! And I love the fact that you can pick your own goal, because I definitely do NOT think I can do all 50+ prompts. Lol. I think I'm going to go for 25, because that's basically a bingo board right there. And it's at least half the prompts! Maybe I'll even do more, who knows!
Progress:

20/25 books (80%)

1. NERDS: A book with a STEM character.
2. REESE’S: A book from Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club.
3. ✅TWIX: A book with twins: All Shall Mourn (None Shall Sleep #3) by Ellie Marney
4. SKITTLES: A book with a character whose name is a color
5. M&M’S: A book by an author with the initials M.M.
6. ✅WHATCHAMACALLIT: A book with words not in a standard dictionary (like nonsense words or words from a made-up language or fictional world): The Ragpicker King (The Chronicles of Castellane #2) by Cassandra Clare
7. PAYDAY: A nonfiction book about work.
8. ✅SOUR PATCH: A book with a character who starts off sour but then turns sweet: The Haunted Bookstore: Gateway to a Parallel Universe (Vol. 1) by Shinobumaru
9. LAFFY TAFFY: A book with a title that has rhyming words.
10. HERSHEY’S: A book set in Pennsylvania (the location of Hershey’s).
11. ✅NOW & LATER: A book with a dual timeline: Predatory Natures by Amy Goldsmith
12. ✅GUMMY WORMS: A book where a character goes underground (other than just the basement): Carl's Doomsday Scenario (Dungeon Crawler Carl #2) by Matt Dinniman
13. KIT KAT: A book with the word ‘break’ in the title.
14. JOLLY RANCHER: A book set on a farm.
15. ✅MILKY WAY: A book that takes place in space: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells
16. THREE MUSKETEERS: A book about three friends.
17. MILKY WAY MIDNIGHT: A book with a clock on the cover.
18. STARBURST: A book featuring a character’s fall from fame.
19. ✅100 GRAND: A book with a number in the title: Kaiju No. 8 (Vol. 1) by Naoya Matsumoto
20. SWEDISH FISH: A book that takes place near a river.
21. MAMBA: A book with a snake on the cover.
22. MIKE & IKE: A book written by two authors.
23. ✅SOUR PUNCH: A book with a showdown: Kindergarten Wars (Vol. 2) by You Chiba
24. BABY RUTH: A book with a new mom.
25. YORK PATTY: A book set in New York.
26. FUDGE: A book with the word ‘lie’ in the title.
27. ✅GOOD & PLENTY: A book with two adjectives in the title: Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph
28. MOUNDS: A book set in the mountains.
29. ✅REESE’S PIECES: A book with something broken on the cover: Night Terror (Bleak Haven #2) by Vincent Ralph
30. MR. GOODBAR: A book with ‘Mr.’ or ‘Mrs.’ in the title.
31. PIXY STIX: A book with imaginary creatures.
32. RUNTS: A book with a character who is an outcast.
33. SYMPHONY: A book where music is a main theme.
34. TOBLERONE: A book set in Switzerland.
35. WONDERBALL: Book with a mysterious character whose identity is not revealed until later in the book.
36. CANDY CANE: A Christmas book.
37. ✅HOT TAMALES: A book written by a Latine author: Lotería by Cynthia Pelayo
38. ICE BREAKERS: An enemies-to-lovers story.
39. MARSHMALLOWS: A book with a character who survives fire.
40. RING POP: A book with a wedding or proposal.
41. BUTTERFINGER: A book with a clumsy character.
42. ✅BAZOOKA BUBBLE GUM: A book with a weapon on the cover: Sakamoto Days (Vol. 19) by Yuto Suzuki
43. DOVE CHOCOLATES: A book with a character who has a pet bird.
44. ✅WARHEADS: A book with a war: Spy x Family (Vol. 15) by Tatsuya Endo
45. ✅LIFESAVERS: A book with a rescue mission: Kindergarten Wars Vol. 1 by You Chiba
46. ✅AIRHEADS: A book about a character who has to fix a mistake: The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer
47. ✅CRUNCH: A book about/with a bodily injury: Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
48. ✅JELLY BEANS: A book with multiple stories in it: Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
49. ✅SPREE: A book about an obsession: The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White
50. ✅COOKIES ‘N CREAM HERSHEY’S: A book with a black and white cover: Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
51. HERSHEY’S MINIATURES: A book about a group of kids.
52. ✅JOYRIDE: A book with an amusement park or carnival: Tastes Like Candy by Jessica Lacy

The challenge: To read 12 different books (1 per month) that fit each of the 12 prompts in order.
I love a flow chart because each book prompt plays off the previous prompt.
Progress:

2/12 books (17%)

1. ✅JANUARY: Read a book that was GIFTED to you: Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito
2. ✅FEBRUARY: Read a book from an author that has at least 1 INITIAL the same as the person that gifted January’s book to you: Artificial Condition (The Murderbot Diaries #2) by Martha Wells
3. MARCH: Read a book that has the same COLORS on the cover as February’s book.
4. APRIL: Read a book with the same Number of CHAPTERS as March’s book.
5. MAY: Read a book that has a PAGE COUNT within 26 pages of April’s book. (Example: April = 250 pages, so May = 224-276 pages)
6. JUNE: Read a book whose main character is the OPPOSITE GENDER of May’s book.
7. JULY: Read a book from the same PUBLISHER as June’s book.
8. AUGUST: Read a book that has a FIRST LINE that matches the mood of July‘s book.
9. SEPTEMBER: Read a book from the same SHELF as August’s book.
10. OCTOBER: Read a book published in a different DECADE than September’s book.
11. NOVEMBER: Read a book that has a WORD in the title that can be found on page 122 in October’s book.
12. DECEMBER: Read a book that is set in a different COUNTRY than November’s book.

The challenge: Enter and complete reading challenges.
At the time of writing this post, I have only finished THREE 2025 reading challenges 😅😂 So I'm also stepping down a level and hope to get to at least 5 in 2026. Lol.
Level chosen: Easy as Pie — 1-5 Challenges (Entered & Completed)
Progress:

0/1-5 challenges (0%)

1. Goodreads Reading Challenge
2. 52 Books in 52 Weeks Reading Challenge
3. Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge
4. Alphabet Soup Reading Challenge: Author Edition
5. A-Z Reading Challenge
6. Color Coded Reading Challenge
7. Mount TBR Reading Challenge
8. Netgalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge
9. Finish the Series Reading Challenge
10. This Challenge Killed the Bookworm Reading Challenge
11. Candy Reading Challenge
12. Go with the Flow Reading Challenge

The challenge: Write discussion posts.
Last year, I was a couple posts short of completing the challenge, but I think I may be able to do it this year, so I'm going to stick with the same level!
Level chosen: Gift of the Gab – 41+ discussion posts
Progress:

10/41 posts (24%)

1. January 2025 TBR (And End of the Year/Vacation TBR Update)
2. My Year in Books: 2025
3. 2025 Reading Stats
4. 2025 Reading Challenges Update
5. Looking Back at Books I Wish I’d read in 2024 & Anticipated Books of 2025
6. Favorite New-To-Me Authors of 2025
7. Did I Read the Books I Bought in 2025?
8. February 2026 TBR
9. 2026 Bookish Prediction Tag
10. Winter Olympic Book Tag

I think that's it (for now lol). Let me know what reading challenges you'll be joining in 2026!