#12hppofxmas Day 2

The greatest challenge of the #12hppofxmas is that the very first day of the readathon is Christmas Day and thus not always conducive to an extended period of quiet reading.

And speaking of which, Merry Christmas!

The stack of books I'm choosing from this year is a lot less ambitious than what I've shown in previous years, mainly because I decided to stick with books I already had on my shelf, instead of going crazy at the library. I also wanted to focus on "fun" rather than anything I might have to write reviews for, so there are a whole bunch of sequels and nothing terribly serious.

From top to bottom:

• Jolis deuils by Roch Carrier - A short short story collection in French that I had originally planned to pick away at throughout the year, but found myself with most of the stories left when I started my Christmas holiday on Friday afternoon. I am determined to finish this by the end of 2018, and I only need to read three very short stories per day to do so. This was a gift from my sister last Christmas.
  
• Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik - The second book in the Temeraire series, which I started reading last night. I'm really enjoying it already at the 25%-ish mark. More on this later, I'm sure.
  
• Elven Star by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman - This is the second book in the Death Gate Cycle series, which I started at my sister's urging a few years ago. This book actually belongs to her, and I'm thinking of trying to read it so that I can send it home with her after her visit early next month. If this book doesn't grab me, I may leave off with the series at this point.
  
• Jo's Boys by Louisa May Alcott - I just finished my reread of Little Men, picked up for the sake of reading something jolly before the Christmas season. It was a little too sweet in parts, but I still have an appetite for the third and final book in Alcott's Little Women trilogy.
  
• HMS Surprise by Patrick O'Brian - After reading Post Captain earlier this year and really, really loving it, I resolved not to wait so long to read the third book in the Aubrey/Maturin series, and therefore added this physical copy of it onto my shelf.
  
• Protector of the Small by Tamora Pierce - I keep waffling on this. I've never read any Tamora Pierce before and can't decide if this is actually where I want to start. I may also send this back with my sister and start with The Song of the Lioness instead.

Pages Read:

Day 1: 46
Day 2: 126
Cumulative: 172
Day 2 Target: 200