Make it social, or at least witnessed
Reading is solitary but finishing is social. Tell one person you're doing it. Better still, find someone to read it alongside and agree on a loose checkpoint — the end of a section by the end of the month, with a phone call or a coffee to compare notes. Nothing keeps you turning pages like knowing someone will ask.
If a film or series adaptation is on the horizon, use it as a deadline rather than a spoiler. Having a date that the reading is pointed towards converts a vague intention into a plan, and there is a specific pleasure in walking into a cinema already knowing what happens and watching for how it's handled instead.
How many pages a day do I need to finish a long book?
Divide the page count by the number of days you want to spend on it, then halve your ambition — most people overestimate what they'll manage on a Wednesday in winter. For a typical long classic, ten to fifteen pages a night finishes it comfortably inside a season, and twenty gets you there considerably faster without ever feeling like an effort.
Is it cheating to listen to the audiobook instead?
No. Comprehension and enjoyment are what you're after, and a skilled narrator can carry difficult prose, verse and dialect better than your inner voice can. The only real caution is that it's easy to drift during a long stretch while doing something else, so pick tasks that don't need much thought, and don't be shy about rewinding a few minutes when you realise you've been thinking about the shopping list.
