N.E.W.Ts Readathon | Week #1 Update

If you saw my TBR at the end of last month then you know I'm taking part in Book Roast's N.E.W.Ts Readathon this month, with the subjects Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, Charms and History of Magic. 

I've never done update posts on my blog for readathons before, although I am tweeting regularly here if you're interested, but I thought it would be fun to do for this one because it's such a great idea for a readathon and my TBR has already changed quite a bit.

My challenges (and the books I've read so far) are:

Ancient Runes

1. Read a book set in the past Riddle of the Runes by Janina Ramirez
2. Read an ancient book on your shelves that you've not yet read
3. Read a book translated from another language

Arithmancy

1. Read a book of at least 300 pages The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
2. Read a book that ends on an even-numbered page
3. Read a book that isn't a first in a series

Charms

1. Read a book with magic in it The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin
2. Read a book with a cover that charmed you
3. Read a book that you think will leave a mark

History of Magic

1. Read a book that looks as though it would fit in at Hogwarts Library
2. Read a book published at least five years ago
3. Read a book over 400 pages long

As you can probably tell if you saw my TBR, I've been tweaking it a little.

Originally I planned to read Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend, On the Front Line with the Women Who Fight Back by Stacey Dooley and The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin for Arithmancy. However, right at the beginning of the month I finished The Beautiful Ones, which I thought I'd finish in July, and because I finished it in August (and it was one of the books on my big End of the Year TBR) I decided to count it towards this readathon.

It easily could have been my A in Charms, but because I'm on such a fantasy kick I wanted to save the 'book with magic in it' challenge for more of a high fantasy read than a fantasy of manners, and as the first challenge for Arithmancy was simply to read a book at least 300 pages long then I thought I might as well count it!

Then recently I had such a craving to return to the Broken Earth trilogy that I couldn't wait. Luckily The Obelisk Gate has magic in it, so it could go towards my A in Charms!

Originally I was planning to read Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi, Circe by Madeline Miller and Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik for Charms, but right now I'm not quite in the mood for Circe, despite it being one of my most anticipated books of the year, and I'm worried I won't like it if I make myself read it just so I can read Spinning Silver which I'm very in the mood for right now. I'm also planning to buddy read Spinning Silver with Natalie @ A Sea Change this month, so the sooner I can get to it the better and now I can move on towards my O in Charms.

As I was planning to read The Obelisk Gate for the final Arithmancy challenge, now I can simple pick any book off my shelves that ends in an even number and then read the final book in the trilogy, The Stone Sky, to get my O in the subject.

I'm also planning to rejig my TBR for History of Magic, as it's proving a little trickier; particularly the first challenge which involves reading a book that looks as though it would fit in at Hogwarts Library. The only one I could initially think of is my copy of Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb, which has a very medieval parchment look about it, but I don't know if I'm in the mood for Assassin's Apprentice right now and if you hadn't already guessed I am very much a mood reader. This is particularly a problem when the second two books on my TBR for History of Magic, The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch and The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu, are both books I'm really looking forward to and I can't read them and get an O unless I've read something to fulfill the first challenge.

I know many of you are probably thinking 'Jess, just read the damn books - it's only a readathon!' and part of me thinks that too, but as I said before it's such a fun idea for a readathon and I'd love to complete as many challenges as I can just to prove to myself that I can.

So, instead of Assassin's Apprentice I'm now leaning towards Heart of Thorns by Bree Barton. I hadn't even heard of Heart of Thorns until I received it in a Fairyloot box, but it feels like the kind of fantasy story I would have loved when I was a teenager - there are dark elements to the story, but more than anything it feels like an adventure and I love that - and because fantasy is where I'm at right now I'm excited for it. Plus it has thorns on the cover that immediately made me think of Devil's Snare, so I think it's a cover that would definitely fit in at the Hogwarts Library!

Are you taking part in this readathon? How's your progress going and what are you reading at the moment? Let me know down below and I'll be back next week with another update!