Hello fellow bookworms 💗I’ve already talked about what 2020 Reading Challenges I’m joining this week, but as I made my very own reading challenge this year (still so excited and nervous about that, ahh!!) I decided to post my #outofcomfortzonechallenge TBR separately, so here we go! I picked out 4 genres and one age range out of my comfort zone to read this year and I have dedicated mostly 5 books per category to put on my TBR! Of course – as the year goes on – I’ll also add other books I read that can count towards being out of my comfort zone and add them under the fitting category! Let’s see how much I can do this year 😄 I’m starting with a short reminder of what my challenge is all about (you can still join in anytime this year, I’d love to read together with you! Thank you to everyone who already signed up!) and then it’s straight to my TBR! 💕

What is the Out of Your Comfort Zone Reading Challenge? 💗
The aim of this challenge is to read books that you consider to be outside of your comfort zone. The Challenge itself is tailored to your goals, so it’s going to be really relaxed and individual as everyone has a different definition of their comfort zone. You can set yourself a number of books to read in a particular genre (or subgenre, age range, etc.) or make a TBR with books you hope to get to! There are also fun levels and badges to collect if you’re interested in that!
Get all the information in my announcement post 💗
I’d love for you to join me and chat about our progress throughout the year 🥰
My #outofcomfortzonechallenge TBR 💗
I’ve been hoping to venture outside of the YA age range as I get older, so this was my first priority for my own reading challenge. I love YA a lot but I’m out of the target audience and would love to mix up my reading with other books ass well. That’s why I so desperately wish New Adult was more of a thing (I need those transitionary books, as adult books often feature characters at such different points in their life that it feels a bit alienating) but I have also put some Adult books on my TBR (starting with some Fantasy tomes as it’s my favorite genre)! I have high hopes for all of these books as they got great reviews or are by authors I’ve read before! 💗
- Red, White & Royal Blue (Casey McQuiston)
- Vengeful (V.E. Schwab)
- The Broken Eye (Brent Weeks)
- The Lies of Locke Lamora (Scott Lynch)
- A Court of Wings and Ruin (Sarah J. Maas)
Back in September of last year, I enjoyed a bunch of sci-fi books and it really got me wanting to read more YA sci-fi, as I don’t reach for it that often anymore (my main genres are Fantasy and Contemporary). I even though I’m no expert in the genre, I have some starting points and even more books than listed here in mind that I think I’d enjoy reading. Luckily I started some great sci-fi book series already so I have three sequels on my TBR that feel both heavy with expectations but also not that daunting because I already enjoyed the first book. In general, I’m excited to find some new favorites and especially read book set in space, because space is cool ⭐
- Undying (Kaufman, Spooner)
- These Broken Stars (Kaufman, Spooner)
- This Mortal Coil (Emily Suvada)
- Rogue Heart (Axie Oh)
- Defy the Worlds (Claudia Gray)
I actually really like Historical Fiction, but I so rarely reach for it. I have no idea why, but compared to other genres there never have been tons of books I’d like to read or already have on my TBR, so I want to change that this year. Especially because there are books I’m excited about and I love reading about things happening in the past, be it mixed with fantasy elements or more focused on real-life events. Maybe this is my inner history major from high school but history is cool and incredibly intriguing when retold or twisted by an author! I even put an adult book on my TBR (is this a double win?) because I heard amazing things about it, so here’s to hopefully finding some historical fiction favorites this year! ⌛
- Courting Darkness (Robin LaFevers)
- Something Strange and Deadly (Susan Dennard)
- Salt to the Sea (Ruta Sepetys)
- The Girl in the Steel Corset (Kady Cross)
- My Calamity Jane (Hand, Ashton, Meadows)
We’re slowly getting more out of my comfort zone as the list goes on, as I don’t usually read nonfiction at all. It’s probably the most out of comfort zone genre on my TBR, as I’m simply so busy devouring all the fiction that anything else gets pushed to the side. That’s kind of sad, as I enjoy reading interesting memoirs and have loved reading some writing craft books in the past to improve my own writing. Basically, if a topic catches my interest, I feel like I’m more open to reading about it. This TBR mostly consists of memoirs/autobiographical pieces as this seems to be a good starting point for me 😊
- Becoming (Michelle Obama)
- Reasons to Stay Alive (Matt Haig)
- The Little Book of Bob (James Bowen)
- In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl’s Journey to Freedom (Yeonmi Park)
- Educated (Tara Westover)
I used to be very opposed to reading anything slightly related to mystery or thriller books (I still don’t like most crime focused media), as anything too intense tends to stress me out. However, I’ve rediscovered my love for mysteries (thanks to shows like Dark messing with my mind) and coming up with all of my own theories have been so much fun to me! From time to time I enjoy switching things up and read more thrilling and intense books if I’m in the mood for it. Therefore, I’ve carefully selected some more mysterious books to hopefully enjoy, probably very soon as most of these are library books as I’m not that sure about buying books for myself in such an out of comfort zone genre! 👀
- Jackaby (William Ritter)
- We Were Liars (E. Lockhart)
- Don’t Look Back (Jennifer L. Armentrout)
- Wilder Girls (Rory Power)
- The Naturals (Jennifer Lynn Barnes)
Are you planning on participating in the #outofcomfortzonechallenge? What are some books out of your comfort zone you’d like to read? 💗
Ooh these all seem like such great goals! I think both Red White and Royal Blue and V.E. Schwab’s adult books are great places to start for people who usually read YA but want to venture more into adult, so I hope you love those 😀 And I’m also constantly trying to read more nonfiction, since that is out of my comfort zone as well. I’ve had a lot of luck with nonfiction audiobooks (especially memoirs that are read by the authors) recently, if that’s an option for you! Good luck with all of these! 🙂
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Thank you! 😊 I’m definitely excited for Red, White, and Royal Blue as well as Vengeful because I feel like I could really enjoy both of them 🥰 I don’t have that great access to audiobooks, but it definitely sounds like a good way to get into nonfiction. I definitely prefer memoirs aswell! Thank you so much! 🥰
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I love love love the idea of this Readathon, and I’m seriously considering joining it myself 🙂 ALSO, what a great TBR! I’m super excited for My Calamity Jane, and just like you, I don’t usually read nonfiction at all. Maybe I should try picking up some, though….anyways, great post and good luck!!!
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**I meant challenge, not readathon …derp
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Thank you so much, Kat – that means a lot to me 🥰 I love my TBR! I’m also eagerly anticipating My Calamity Jane as I love the humorous take on history! I’m slowly easing myself into nonfiction, starting with topics that interest me 😊 Thank you for your lovely comment! 💛
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ahh, you’re amazing for organizing this challenge, Caro!! not sure if i can officially join because challenges stress me out a lot, no matter how easy they seem to be :(( but i wish you and the participants all the luck with this challenge!
if i were to join this challenge, i think my tbr would be the same as yours, actually 😂 i’d love to read more books that aren’t YA, sci-fi, and mystery/thrillers! i’m definitely gonna be reading this mortal coil and wilder girls this year (i’d love to buddy read either of them with you, hehe) ❤
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Thank you so much! You definitely don’t need to join in, I know reading challenges are not for everyone – feel free to tell me if you’ve found any out of your comfort zone books that you enjoyed 💛
I’m definitely excited for This Mortal Coil and Wilder Girls! I’d love to buddy read them as well if you have the time 🥰
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Ahh, I just finished This Mortal Coil, and it’s SO GOOD, Caro!! You should really read it! I’m also not much of a sci-fi person, but This Mortal Coil may have sold me on the entire genre, and though the science part is a little complex, it’s easy enough to follow, and it’s so cool to read about!!
Ahh, yay, I would love to buddy read more books with people! Message me when you get around to Wilder Girls ❤
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I’m so happy to hear that!! 🥰 I’ve been hearing so many good things about the book, so I might need to get to it asap! 📚
That sounds like a good plan! 💗
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I want to read Vengeful so badly! I’m almost finished reading Vicious and I love it so much, I just want the sequel right now, but I have to wait for it because I have other things to read first. And I love a good mystery/thriller, especially We Were Liars! I hope you enjoy it 😀
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Same here! I loved Vicious so much and definitely hope to finally read Vengeful 🥰 Though, I have other books on my priority TBR to get to first. Thank you! 😊
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Some great target genres here Caro. And a really smart way to get out of your comfort zone. I love the idea of this challenge and will be joining in heart if not in expression. It’s still harder for me to read adult books than YA and I’m not in that range anymore either. I feel like it’s a lot harder to gauge whether I’ll enjoy an adult book than a YA. I need to think about which books I want to read that make me uncomfortable. 😉
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Thank you so much! 🥰 I also feel the same way about getting into adult books, it’s usually hard for me to tell if a book is for me. Meanwhile, I can usually figure out if a YA book is for me. Hopefully, I’ll find some books to enjoy 😊
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I sure hope you do. 🤞🏻
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I loved reading your TBR and I really hope you enjoy all these books!!
I have been craving Adult books lately too because I’ve left the YA age range and I think it has been a great decision because I love the complexity and the way the writing can get more intricate and deeper. I loved The Lies of Locke Lamora, it is a wonderful fantasy and the plot is great and so are the characters. I really hope you love it!!
Historical Fiction is a genre I want to try out more as well. I heard a lot of good things about Ruta Sepetys’s books so I hope you enjoy her books!!
I hope you enjoy trying out non fiction as well!!
Wonderful TBR and best of luck!! ❤
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Thank you so much! 💗 I’m definitely looking out for Adult books as well, especially those that are more transitionary. So happy to hear that you like The Lies of Locke Lamora, it gives me hope that I’ll enjoy the book as well 🥰
I love Historical Fiction and I really want to read more of Ruta Sepetys books as I have heard that they are amazing as well 😊 Thank you!! 💕
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I wish New Adult was more of a thing too! I love YA, but I also want more stories about people in college or in their twenties or something that I can really relate to
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It’s such a shame that New Adult gets ignored by traditional publishing 😦 Same here! I wish there were more stories set in college and in the transitionary stage of life!
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Yeah, publishing companies need to get the memo
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