January Recap

January Wrap-up!

The weather here in VA is freaking crazy. 15 degrees and snowing one day, 70 degrees the next, wind and rain storms another. What. The. Fudgenuggets. IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE WINTER! NOW. Out of my system.
I've officially made it to the 3 month mark for my new job.  Which means I now have health insurance! WOOT.  The company went through a restructure on  Monday, so we're in readjustment mode.  BUT so far so good!

This month wasn't too shabby as far as reading goes. I read some greats and I read some duds.

Books read:

 

 

 

 

 

1. Stolen (Lucy Christopher) 3.5/5

2. The Fault in Our Stars (John Green) 5/5

3. Lips Touch:Three Times (Laini Taylor) 3/5

4. Throne of Glass (Sarah J. Maas) 4.5/5

5. Grave Mercy (Robin LaFevers) 4/5

6. Splintered (A.G.Howard) 3.75/5

7. The Lover's Dictionary (David Levithan) 4/5

8. Dragon Night (Stephanie Campbell)- FOR REVIEW 1/5

9. Odd and the Frost Giants (Neil Gaiman) 3/5

 

DNF:

1. Obsidian (Jennifer L. Armentrout) - I read up until page 228 so I'm counting this towards my total reads for 2013. WHAT. 2/5

 

 

2. The Last Timekeepers and the Arch of Atlantis (Sharon Ledwith)- This was supposed to be FOR REVIEW, but after 20% I just couldn't do it. I'm not going to force myself to finish a book in order to write a negative review.

 

 

Favorite Read

 

Favorite Cover

 

 

Personal Challenge Update:

 

Series Catch-up: none

 

Off the TBR (owned prior to 1/1/13): 7/50

 

Classics: 0/5

 

Re-reads: 0/10

 

100 book challenge: 10/100

 

Reviewed:

(Title is linked up)

 

Days of Blood & Starlight (Laini Taylor)

 

 

Stolen (Lucy Christopher)

 

 

Obsidian (Jennifer L. Armentrout)

 

 

 

WELL I think that takes care of January.  The plan is to start posting more reviews. And so I do vow.

 

Bring it on February!

 

Boy Meets World Meets Love Child

 DUDES! Boy Meets World was like one of my favorite shows as a kid (and let's face it, still is).  I have many a fond memory of the TGIF line-up.  I loved Topanga's weirdness and Cory's dorkiness and may have had a slight crush on Shawn. I grew up along with these characters.  WELL they're coming back and I'm soo freaking excited!  The spin-off is going to be called Girl Meets World
and centers around married Cory and Topanga's 13 year old daughter. This show wouldn't have even been a possibility if not for Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel's return! I love when actors actually love the show they worked on. The girl who will be playing their daughter has officially been cast and that's making me even more excited!





 The goal is for this to be a new, fresh show all its own, not a copycat of Boy Meets World.  There's talk of some special guest appearances of old favorites (Hellz yeah!), but I'm looking forward to being introduced to a whole new set of characters. AND seeing Cory and Topanga as grownups! I hope they write them with the same quirkiness and humor as they were in the past.   So. In summary? STOKED.

I leave you thus with one of my favorite 3 second clips:

Make it a Quickie?

I've decided to start having some quickies. Once or twice a month sounds good. Sometimes you just don't have time or feel like spending more then a few minutes devoting yourself to certain activities. But you can't completely give it up. That would be crazy!

Of course I'm talking about book reviews (stop being dirty you sexual deviant).  In the past I've felt like reviewing was an all or nothing thing. I had to post a long-ish  review about every book I read,  which being that I'm not a good writer could def take some time. And then I would get behind and that in turn would stress me out. So instead I just wouldn't post my thoughts at all.

 But then I had a light bulb moment (which let's face it, are rare for me).   For the books I don't write "official" reviews on I will instead do a short quickie post. I still want to be able to share my thoughts on all the books I read!  It will most likely involve several books, once or twice a month and happen on Mondays:  It's Monday! Better Make it a Quickie!

Yes??  Yes. I thinks so.  However, my FOR REVIEW books will continue getting the old-fashioned treatment.

I shall have my first official quickie next Monday! Stay tuned :)

Know Me Better

 

I love this idea! Know Me Better is hosted by I Am A Reader, Not a Writer.  Each week she picks 5 questions off her author interview list to answer. Anyone can participate and she has a place to link up on her page!   OOH yeah!

 

 

1. Top 5 Songs on Your Playlist - I'm a BIG music lover, all different types.  These are some of my newly discovered favorites.

 

Sara Bareilles- Sittin on the Dock of the Bay (Best version I've EVER heard of this song! The girl can SANG!)

 

Clare Bowen & Sam Palladio- If I Didn't Know Better (I just discovered the TV show Nashville and as soon as I heard this song I HAD to download it!)

 

Mumford & Sons- I Will Wait (I mean, these guys ROCK)

 

 

Zac Brown Band- Colder Weather (I'm FREAKIN OBSESSED with this song!)

 

The Weepies- Little Bird (I LOVELOVE this song.)

 

 

 

 

2. How much time do you spend reading each week?

 

- Well. I would say in the average week I probably read between 7-12 hours. I usually read at least an hour a day, and more on the weekends. Averagely.

 

3. What is the last thing you googled?

 

-I don't google, I yahoo.  The last thing I yahooed was a highlight on their main page which was Cringeworthy Glamour pics. You should yahoo it too. Or google if you prefer. They are quite hilarious.

 

4. Favorite Places to Travel?

 

-The beach is an old favorite (preferably in the fall when I don't have to risk my vampire skin frying off).  Disney World is good. I like zoos. And aquariums.  I haven't travelled that much actually. So I'll list a couple places I'd like to visit:  South Africa, New Zealand, New York, England, and California.

 

5. What is your favorite way to spend a rainy day?

- Ideally it would be with some friends kicking back playing board games, eating good food and listening to awesome music. But I'll settle for being in my jammies and reading an ole reliable book (such as Harry Potter)  or watching a movie (Bridget Jones' Diary is a favorite of mine).

 



 If you make a list leave your link in the comments! And don't forget to link up at the reader, not writer :)

 

 

Book haul!

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.


I haven't bought any more actual hold in my hands books. I have plenty to keep me busy and there's going to be lots of new releases coming up in the next couple months so I'm trying to hold off.

BUT I just can't resist a good e-book that's ON SALE. I don't use my Kindle very often. I might read 1 book a month on it for fun. I just don't like it nearly as much as the real thing.  I use it for most of my FOR REVIEW books.  BUT as I'm sure most people know, every month Amazon posts a new listing of 100 books that are $3.99 and under and I always find something to buy. I mean, ON SALE. I can't resist!

 Purchased Amazon E-Books (all for cheap!)

 

 

 

 

 

*This one wasn't on the list I was talking about above, but it was only $3.99. AND I LOVE Colleen Hoover's writing. I highly recommend her other books Slammed and Point of Retreat! I can't wait to read this one!

 

Netgalley FOR REVIEW

 

 

 

A HUGE thanks to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and Disney Hyperion for the approval! I'm SOO freaking STOKED to read these!!

 

 

WELL that's it for me this week! Leave your haul link in the comments and I'll check it out!

 

 

 

Massive Christmas Book Haul!

This post is LOONG overdue. I originally wanted to do a vlog of my giant haul, but well, yeah.
These are all books that I've collected since Christmas, it's a LOT. AND they make me happy! 

In My Mailbox is hosted by The Story Siren and Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews.


First up:

 

Eleanor & Park (Rainbow Rowell)- I WON this from Goodreads giveaway!! It's my first ever ARC! WOOT! I've been excited for this book forever and I can't wait to read it! It's due to be published end of next month I believe.

 

Obsidian (Jennifer L. Armentrout) - I received this one from my bookish secret santa! Thank you!!

I attempted to read this one but alas, it twas a DNF. Boo. You can read my review HERE if you'd like.

 

 

I received all of the following books as Christmas gifts from my mom and grandma. I asked for these specifically, cause they would have no clue what books to buy for me.

 

 

Casual Vacancy (J. K. Rowling)

Second Chance Summer (Morgan Matson)

Bunheads (Sophie Flack)

 

I also got that handsome owl from my mom! I have a recent obsession.

 

Sweet Evil (Missy Higgins)

Twilight: The Graphic Novel Vol. 1 (Stephenie Meyer, Young Kim)

Crewel (Gennifer Albin)

Rootless (Chris Howard)

Black City (Elizabeth Richards)

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking (Susan Cain)

The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories (Maggie Stiefvater, Tessa Gratton, Brenna Yovanoff)

 

Lips Touch: Three Times (Laini Taylor) Finished this, 3.5/5

Throne of Glass (Sarah J. Maas) Finished this one too 5/5

Stolen (Lucy Christopher) - I actually bought this one with some xmas money- Also read 3.5/5

 

Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone Audiobook- narrated by Jim Dale

 

 

OKAY. So the rest of my haul are books I bought myself from Barnes & Noble or Amazon with Christmas money.

 

 

Easy (Tammara Webber)

Meant To Be (Lauren Morrill)

My Life Next Door (Huntley Fitzpatrick)

Pushing the Limits (Katie McGarry)

Beta (Rachel Cohn)

 

 

Grave Mercy (Robin LaFevers) - Reading now, so far so good!

Splintered (A.G. Howard)

Under the Never Sky (Veronica Rossi) - already read this on my Kindle but needed the hard copy

Through the Ever Night (Veronica Rossi)

 

Opal (Jennifer L. Armentrout) - WHAT WAS I THINKING??

Onyx (Jennifer L. Armentrout) - See above.

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight (Jennifer L. Smith)

 

 

Now for a couple non-book gifts!

 

Blu-rays of:

 

Pitch Perfect- I watched this for the first time after I got it and have to say it wasn't nearly as good or funny as I was expecting it to be. It was okay.

 

The Hunger Games - I've watched this like 5 times. Loves it.

 

NOW. For my most awesome-est gift I got for Christmas from my Dad:

 

 IPAD!!   I love it so much! Still learning how to use it and stuff. I'm always the last person to get any type of new technology.

SO. That's my Christmas book haul. I still have Christmas money to spend but I want to try and save it so I can use it to buy new releases that are coming out this year that I'm excited for.


Leave a comment with your haul link and I'll check it out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

My UNofficial Thoughts: Obsidian (Jennifer L. Armentrout)

My Thoughts:

 I've put on my blog before that I don't believe in posting official reviews on books I'm not able to finish. WELL. I take that back. It's my blog I do what I wants.

I couldn't stop myself from reviewing a book that was SUCH AN UTTER disappointment! I just need to vent it on out.

SO. I saw SO MANY 4 and 5 star ratings for Obsidian (Lux #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout that I asked for and received it from my bookish secret santa. I skimmed about the first 5 pages as I normally do with books and thought, hey! This is gonna be good! So I proceeded to order and buy the next 2 books in the series. WHAT WAS I THINKING! Bad move. This is one of those rare times that I wanted this book SOELY because of the hype it received. It's not something I would probably have picked up otherwise. (Although I'm def open to reading more books about aliens).  But seeing as people were going gaga over it I though: OMG everyone is loving this series, it MUST be amazing, I just HAVE to read it too!!

As I stated above, I did not finish this book. I gave it a good ole try and got to page about 228 before I called it quits.  This book has one main problem, and unfortunately, there's no getting around it or ignoring it or pretending it doesn't exist.

What is the problem with this book?  THE WRITING!! Oh man. Not good. I felt like it was someones first draft for nanowrimo if you get what I'm saying. I'm not trying to be evil, just trying to get my point across when we all know I'm not good at the words. The writing is very sub-par, there's no depth, lots of repetition and LOTS of correlations to the Twilight series and NOT in a good way (and I LOVE Twilight). The characters were not likable. The main dude Daemon is a bad boy but not in the redeeming kind of way. He was like a badly written inferior version of Edward Cullen (WHOM I'm in love with).  The main dudette had no depth. So. that my friends is why I could not finish this book. The writing was just not good. And I just couldn't keep plowing through it. BOO.

Positives? Oh yes, there are some. If not for the writing I think I would have liked this book quite a bit. I loved the main story-line premise about these aliens called Luxen who came to Earth because their planet got destroyed by the big baddies. They are manipulators of light and have all these awesome powers! I haven't read many alien books and they do interest me. There were a small few moments that I did snortle a little because of something a character said or did and that make me happy. There were moments of romantical awkwardness and hot tension but because I felt the characters weren't well developed or consistent this didn't really do it for me. Another positive is that I really dug the fact that the main girl Katy is a blogger! And the author mentions Waiting on Wednesday and some other stuff that did help make her a little bit more relateable and I enjoyed that little bit.

Overall, very sad. And now I own books 2 & 3. Maybe I will come back some day to this book. MAYBE the writing gets better down the line?? MAYBE??  

I learned some very valuable lessons from reading this book:

1.  Don't believe in the hype. Sometimes the hype comes through. But it's prolly safer to hype it out at the library.

2. DON'T buy anymore books in the series UNTIL i read the first one. DUH.

Favorite Quotes:
haha yeah none

Bottom Line: While this book may be loved by many, it's not going to be invited to my party. 2/5 (maybe even less but I HATE writing negative reviews)

To everyone who loved this book: YAY! I mean that.  The same books aren't for everyone. And that's awesome because how boring would that be? 

Top Ten Tuesday...errrr Wednesday?

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and The Bookish.

I realize this is a day late. Whoopsies. 

ALSO. Back in December I did a similar list of new releases I was looking forward to in 2013. So as not to repeat myself I'm going to list 10 different ones and leave the link to my prior list.


Without further ado, this week's topic (rephrased) is:

Ten 2013 Releases I'm Stoked For

(Book title links up to Goodreads)

 

1.  Dear Life, You Suck (Scott Blagden) (3/26)

 

“The shrinkadinks think I have a screw loose. Ain’t playing with a full deck. Whacked-out wiring. Missing marbles.”

Irreverent, foulmouthed seventeen-year-old Cricket is the oldest ward in a Catholic boys’ home in Maine—and his life sucks. With prospects for the future that range from professional fighter to professional drug dealer, he seems doomed to a life of “criminal rapscallinity.” In fact, things look so bleak that Cricket can’t help but wonder if his best option is one final cliff dive into the great unknown. But then Wynona Bidaban steps into his world, and Cricket slowly realizes that maybe, just maybe, life doesn’t totally suck.

 

 

 

 

2. School Spirits (Rachel Hawkins) (5/14)

 

-I enjoyed her Hex Hall series, I imagine this one to be along the same lines writing style wise

 

 

3. Invisibility (Andrea Cremer & David Levithan) (5/7)

 

-I'm a big fan of co-authored books and these two in particular have proved to be winners.

 

 

4. Dr. Bird's Advice for Sad Poets (Evan Roskos) (3/5)

 

“I hate myself but I love Walt Whitman, the kook. Always positive. I need to be more positive, so I wake myself up every morning with a song of myself.”

Sixteen-year-old James Whitman has been yawping (à la Whitman) at his abusive father ever since he kicked his beloved older sister, Jorie, out of the house. James’s painful struggle with anxiety and depression—along with his ongoing quest to understand what led to his self-destructive sister’s exile—make for a heart-rending read, but his wild, exuberant Whitmanization of the world and keen sense of humor keep this emotionally charged debut novel buoyant.

 

 

5. Poison (Bridget Zinn) (3/12)

 

-Another strong, kick-ass heronie? Yes please! And I do love a good poison.

 

 

6. Icons (Margaret Stohl) (5/7)

 

 

7. The Ocean at the End of the Lane (Neil Gaiman) (6/18)

 

-Everyone should read at least one book by this author. This one sounds like a winner.

 

 

8. This Is What Happy Looks Like (Jennifer E. Smith) (4/2)

 

-I still haven't read her other book, though I own it. This one sounds cute and I love the cover.

 

 

9. The Moon and More (Sarah Dessen) (6/4)

 

-One of my favorite contemporary authors. (Although her covers kinda suck)

 

 

10. That Time I Joined the Circus (J.J. Howard) (4/2013)

 

Here's the link to my other list:
Top Ten Most Anticipated Books for 2013

Feature and Follow

 

Feature & Follow is hosted by Alison Can Read and Parajunkee's View
Visit their blogs to join in and link up! :)

F&F is  basically a way to get new followers, meet some new bookish peeps and find some awesome new blogs!

You follow me, I follow you and vice versa.

This week's question:

What New Years Blogging or Writing resolution have you placed on yourself?
-This year I resolve to write more reviews and not be so serious about them. I'm in no way trying to be a professional reviewer here. I've accepted I'm not an eloquent writer/speaker/blogger. I make up words and abbreviate a lot and love run-on sentences. I is who I is. And if other people are down with that then yay! If not, that's okay too.

I also resolve to post more then I did last year (which shouldn't be too hard) and research ways to improve my blog.  So that's that!

Follow me and I'll follow you back and I look forward to seeing everyone's answers! If you're an old follower, welcome back and thanks :)

My Thoughts: Stolen (Lucy Christopher)

(Goodreads Summary/Link)
A girl: Gemma, 16, at the airport, on her way to a family vacation.

A guy: Ty, rugged, tan, too old, oddly familiar, eyes blue as ice.

She steps away. For just a second. He pays for her drink. And drugs it. They talk. Their hands touch. And before Gemma knows what's happening, Ty takes her. Steals her away. To sand and heat. To emptiness and isolation. To nowhere. And expects her to love him.

Written as a letter from a victim to her captor, STOLEN is Gemma's desperate story of survival; of how she has to come to terms with her living nightmare--or die trying to fight it.










Genre: YA
Published: May 4, 2009
Source: Bought

My Thoughts:

Stolen is a story about a 16 year old girl, named Gemma,  who gets abducted at an airport by a man several years older then her. He smuggles her away to an isolated desert in the middle of nowhere.  The book is written as a letter from victim to captor.  It's a good, solid captivating read that held my interest until the end.

The writing was very descriptive. I felt as though I was inside Gemma's head and was experiencing her fear and anger and confusion.  I could feel the brutality of the desert sun. I could feel the terror of not knowing what this man was going to do next.  The man who stole her, Ty, is not your straight-forward evil, easy to hate monster.  He's not a murderer or rapist. He allows Gemma to roam the house and go outside. Brings her food and water. Tries to care for her.   He's complicated and sure, a little crazy. But as the story goes on and Gemma reveals more insight into her captor and how he came to steal her, feelings start to change a little. And maybe you don't hate him as much as you should. And then you feel crazy yourself for not hating him.  Because he is a monster. He took a girl against her will and psychologically crippled her. But sometimes the author makes you forget.

You read the struggles Gemma goes through and it makes you think about what would you do if you were in a similar situation? There's no way you could know. Sitting here now, I could logically think of a plan but in that moment of sheer terror there's no telling what my mind would do to survive. Or what would be left in the aftermath.

While I was very invested in this story and read it quickly,  it didn't take me all the way.  It didn't take me to that raw, emotionally used up place that I was expecting and wanting it to. I don't know why. There's nothing wrong with this story.  Maybe it's just me.  I wasn't emotionally spent. And for some reason I was expecting at least one tear to form in my eye. But alas, my eyes are dry. 

AND I'm going to go ahead and give a shout out to the camel. I wants one.

Favorite Quotes:
"I pressed my hand to my chest. I could feel my heart. Boom, ba-boom, ba-boom.It was going to beat right through my ribs, cracking them all. I tried slowing my breathing. To do this, I tried to determine exactly where my heart was. Left side, or right? We'd learned that at school once. I pressed around, trying to find it, but it felt like my whole chest was made of heart. My whole body was beating. And it was getting faster. It felt like I was going to explode."

Bottom Line: Stolen is emotionally confusing, heartbreaking and real. A solid must read.  3.75/5

My Thoughts: Days of Blood and Starlight (Laini Taylor)

Daughter of Smoke & Bone #2



Genre: Young Adult
Published: November 6, 2012
Source: Bought

Cover: GORGEOUS! LOVE IT!

My Thoughts:
So basically this review is going to go like this. If you haven't read Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Book #1) WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR!?!? GO! NOW! The little reader inside of your brain is dying a little bit more every day that you pass that book up. Do you want to be a murderer? I think not. Then, when you finish that masterpiece, go pick up Days of Blood & Starlight!

If you've read Daughter of Smoke & Bone, you're probably wanting to know if the author succeeded in writing a worthwhile sequel that lived up to the brilliance, beauty and awe of the first. All I have to say is YES YES A MILLION TIMES YES!!! This book was JUST as good, dare I say better??  Twists, turns, laughs, cries, heart crushing devastation, tortured love, surprises around every turn, magic like you've never seen before... this book has EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING I SAY!! Laini Taylor's writing is unlike any I've ever read. The beauty of it is unparalleled.

Ahem. I liked it just a little.

Favorite Quotes:
I don't have one specific favorite quote. Every word of this book is my favorite.

Bottom Line:  5/5 I would give this book 10 stars if there were such a thing. Amazeballs. LOVED EVERY.SINGLE.WORD.