1932 down, 48068 to go

Since the last time I posted about my reading progress, I've finished two books, gained a bit on my goal, and have almost hit 2000 pages read.

The first (and by far the better) was The Iron Lance by Stephen Lawhead. It is part of his Celtic Crusades series. I had read another series by Lawhead, The Song of Albion, during high school and loved it, so I thought I would try out some of his others. While it is definitely not a quick read since it is thick with vaguely royal characters with very interchangeable titles, it was a interesting look at the Crusades. While I knew that the Crusades were overall very bloody, I had no idea the magnitude of the carnage involved. Even though I don't feel motivated to dive right into the next book in the series, Lawhead will probably be an author I revisit later in the year.

The other book I tackled was Michelangelo's Notebook by Paul Christopher. The teaser on the back of the book calls it a "breathtaking thriller," so I was motivated. After finishing the book, however, I think it can be relegated to the pile of DaVinci Code wannabes. While the premise seems interesting (young art historian stumbles across smuggled art and delves into a world of danger and intrigue), the entire plot seems very shallow and pointless. The author makes half-hearted connections between events, kills people who barely seem relevant, and leaves you with quite a let down in the end. One of the historical angles that could have been very interesting if developed (Pope Pius XII's illegitimate child) is, for the most part, ignored and simply inserted as a reason to kill off a few more characters. Overall I can't find this book worth the time and effort it took to read it.

Next on my list is The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer. So far I've read the first letter and already been giggling, so hopefully things are looking up.