2026 Holiday Reading Challenge | The Running Bibliophile

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Who doesn’t love a good challenge, especially when it pushes you to read outside your comfort zone or discover a new author? I’ve always wanted to join a reading challenge or reading bingo, but so many of them feel repetitive. So, I decided to create something a little different. It doesn’t mean a challenge like this isn’t out there; I just haven’t come across one myself. Introducing The Running Bibliophile’s 2026 Holiday Reading Challenge, a fun and unique way to expand your reading list while celebrating the spirit of the year. This challenge features 14 books of your choice, with one key twist: each book’s plot must revolve around the specific holiday mentioned. The challenge runs for January 1 through January 31, 2026. To keep things exciting, you may not duplicate any books on the list. By the time you've completed the challenge, you will have read 14 new books to diversify your reading list. To kick things off, the first prompt is simple: choose any holiday-themed book as l...
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Book Review: Takedown Twenty (Stephanie Plum, #20) by Janet Evanovich

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book review of takedown twenty stephanie plum 20 janet evanovich

When Trenton's beloved mobster Salvatore "Uncle Sunny" Sunucchi goes underground after murdering a guy, Stephanie Plum is tasked with bringing him in for his court date. However, no one is willing to turn him in, especially not the Morelli family because Sunny is Joe Morelli's godfather. To top things of, Ranger has given Stephanie an assignment of his own . . . find the murderer of a client's bingo loving mother.

Takedown Twenty (Stephanie Plum, #20) by Janet Evanovich was not one of my favorites. I'm not sure if it's because I've binge reading the series or not, but the book was a bit of a let down. With that being said, it did give me an escape from reality and held my attention well enough.

One of the featured characters was a giraffe named Kevin that roamed the streets of Trenton, New Jersey. I found this to be a bit far fetched, especially when the reason why was given because it made it even more far fetched. Lula was also featured more heavily than she was in the last book, and this particular character is becoming annoying because it seems like her character development has stalled and is almost a caricature of herself. And, once again, Stephanie gets the "eye" from Joe's grandmother Bella and has multiple mishaps with cars. This is getting to be a bit old.

For one brief moment, I thought Stephanie was actually going to make a final choice between Joe and Ranger, but it didn't happen because she was interrupted by Joe's family. However, I did enjoy that we got a better glimpse into his family, which was refreshing. I am seriously hoping that Stephanie and Joe end up together as a married couple sooner rather than later.

I gave Takedown Twenty (Stephanie Plum, #20) by Janet Evanovich three out of five stars. Because this series gives me an escape from reality, I will continue to read on to find out what happens.

 

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