Category: Magical Readathon

Magical Readathon Final Update

Posted on by Pam

At the end of my second week reading for the Magical Readathon, I’ve read….

E: Book written in past tense


We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal.  This is a Netgalley book for me, and is written in past tense.  I tried to choose one that was due out recently.  

I enjoyed the story, about a visit to a magical island, with the fate of the world in the hands of a few.

You can have a read of my review here!




O: Book that has been on your To Be Read for ages
So, I’ve gone for the oldest book on my Netgalley, which is The Island by Ragnar Jónasson.

It’s a nordic noir, set in Iceland.  Four people visit an island, and one of them dies.  It is tense, with a death ten years ago having an impact on the story.  

You can read my review of it here!





History of Magic

A: Read a fantasy

The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang!  A book that I bought on impulse as it was on offer on Kindle one day!  


E: Read a book that includes a map

The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang.  Another Netgalley book, and the sequel to the Poppy War, so why not!  It does have a map in it, I checked!



You can read my review for both of these books here!

I enjoyed the challenge, but I picked two big books, and started the challenge late, and so when I didn’t manage to read the books in the time in August, I wasn’t motivated to post this, but here we are, finally!

Magical Readathon update 1

Posted on by Pam

Hello from the end of my first week of the Magical Readathon!  If you’re not sure what that is, have a look at my first post on it!

For these N.E.W.T’s, I’m aiming for  O in Ancient Runes, E in Defence Against the Dark Arts, and E in History of Magic, so that I can choose the career of Librarian!

What I’ve been reading!

Ancient Runes

A: Ehwaz (partnership) – read a book recommended by a friend

I’ve read ‘I Kill Giants‘ by Joe Kelly.  It’s about a little girl who talks a lot about killing giants whilst everyone else goes about their normal daily lives.  

This was a lovely graphic novel, and one that made me cry.








Defence Against the Dark Arts

A: Book that’s black under the dust cover

I can’t remember how I found My Favorite Murder, but I’ve loved the podcast ever since, and as I’m up to date on their many episodes, and have tickets for their live show when they tour the UK this autumn, you might have an idea of how much I love it!

I really enjoyed Stay Sexy and Don’t Get Murdered!  This was a look at the hosts, Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, and a little more about them as individuals and as hosts of a podcast that basically exploded due to popularity.  There is also some awesome fan art!



And that’s it for week 1!  I read some other books as well, but they didn’t count towards the Magical Readathon!

Magical Readathon

Posted on by Pam
As you might have gathered, I read a lot.  

It’s my favourite hobby, and when I wake up early, I’m excited to sneak out of bed, make myself a cup of tea, and read!  I have a HUGE to be read pile in the house, and I have the GoodReads as an always open tab on my laptop, and as an app on my ipad and phone, as I might want to add or update a book at any time!

So yes, book addict might be a good description.

I’m telling you (or in some cases, just confirming what you already knew) as even though I love to read, sometimes it can be hard to choose what to read next.

I read for Netgalley, and that means there is an ever present list of books that I should be reading, and yes, I have made my bed by clicking on too many books going ‘oooh, yes please!’.  Maybe book magpie might be a better description?

But anyway, I wanted to tell you about a readathon I discovered on Sunday night that has me excited!

What is a readathon?
It’s an event with a set time, where you have a target for how many books to read.

The readathon I discovered is the Magical Readathon by Book Roast.  This is a twice yearly readathon, with a Harry Potter theme.  And when I say theme, I mean, ooh, you need to look at some of the documents that have been produced!

In April you have the O.W.L’s (Ordinary Wizarding Level’s), where you have prompts for each subject, such as ‘a book with a symbol on the cover’, and you have a look at your to be read pile or list, and choose a book from there to read.  

The second readathon is in August, and it’s the N.E.W.T’s (Nasty Exhausting Wizarding Tests), and for these you are aiming at a career.  Yes, a career in the world of Harry Potter!  What’s not to love?!

For the N.E.W.T’s, each subject has three levels, and you check the career guide for what levels you need.  I’ve chosen Librarian for my first career.  Maybe I’ll manage to do this, and then can look at another career and be a Curse Breaking Librarian, or a Wand Making Librarian! Who knows!

For Librarian, I need O in Ancient Runes, E in Defence Against the Dark Arts, and E in History of Magic.

But, what does that mean?  The levels stand for A is Acceptable (so only 1 prompt), E is for Excellent (2 prompts) and O is for Outstanding (3 prompts!).

That makes 7 books over the rest of August in order to become a Librarian!  Which sounds lovely, but then I need to choose the books!  I’ve chosen from my physical to be read pile, and my kindle/ Netgalley list!

Here’s the list of prompts for the subjects I need to be a Librarian, and the books I’ve chosen and why!

Ancient Runes
A: Ehwaz (partnership) – read a book recommended by a friend

I’ve chosen ‘I Kill Giants‘ by Joe Kelly.  It ‘s a graphic novel that was given to my husband as a present from a lover of graphic novels, so that sounds like a recommendation to me! I’ve had other recommendations, but this is one that we already had!





E: Book written in past tense

We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal.  This is a Netgalley book for me, and is written in past tense.  I tried to choose one that was due out recently.






O: Book that has been on your To Be Read for ages
So, I’ve gone for the oldest book on my Netgalley, which is The Island by Ragnar Jónasson.






Defence Against the Dark Arts

A: Book that’s black under the dust cover

Stay Sexy and Don’t Get Murdered came out this year, and it’s by the hosts of my favourite podcast, My Favorite Murder, Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark.

I pre-ordered it, and it’s sat on my shelf whilst I read Netgalley books, so I’m excited to have a reason to read it!

E: Gilderoy’s memory charm (grab a pen!) first book that you remembered just now from your to be read pile! 

An Edited Life by Anna Newton.  Another book that I pre-ordered and in this case because I enjoy Anna Newton‘s Instagram!  It’s been on my physical to be read pile for a while, and was the first book that I thought of!


History of Magic

A: Read a fantasy

The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang!  A book that I bought on impulse as it was on offer on Kindle one day!  
E: Read a book that includes a map

The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang.  Another Netgalley book, and the sequel to the Poppy War, so why not!  It does have a map in it, I checked!







This is the first time I’m going to be doing a readathon whilst blogging, so I’ll keep you updated, and anything else going on!