Library Loot- July 29th edition

Hosted by Eva at A Striped Armchair and Marg at Reading Adventures. We share what we each picked up at the library during the week.

Unfortunately, I haven't finished any books from last week's loot but that didn't stop me from going to the library and checking out a few more. I am currently reading Blindness by Jose Saramago and don't quite know what to say about it yet. It is going to be good, I can tell you that much already but other than that...well, you'll have to wait and see. I am also still going to try and read more books out of my own piles so it looks like I need to get reading :)

A Royal Pain by Rhys Bowen- Earlier this year I read the first book in this series and really enjoyed it. I decided to pick this one up for the 2nds challenge and to continue on with this cozy mystery series.

Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost- This is Jackie's (over at Literary Escapism) favorite series and I decided after hearing so many good things about it that I needed to pick the first book up asap.

Songs for the Missing by Stewart O' Nan- Another author that I have been wanting to try for awhile now...and this book sounds awesome just from the synopsis.

Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs- Love, love, love this series so of course I ripped this one off of the shelves when I saw it waiting there.

Finally, I re-checked out Looking For Alaska by John Green. I've heard amazing things about this author and his books but have yet to read any of them. So there is my library loot for another week...share any thoughts if you like :)

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

From Barnes & Noble:

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. Not for her license -- for turning pretty. In Tally's world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time. In just a few weeks Tally will be there.
But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to be pretty. She'd rather risk life on the outside. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world -- and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally the worst choice she can imagine: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. The choice Tally makes changes her world forever.

My Thoughts:

I honestly felt that I might be the last person on the blogsphere to read this book. But I finally picked it up and am glad that I did. The world that Scott Westerfeld creates is completely new and unique to anything that I have previously read about. Tally begins the book completely obsessed with becoming pretty and the life that comes along with it. As the book progresses though, things change and Tally begins to grow and evolve as a main character. That isn't to say that Tally makes the best choices...in fact, there were times that she frustrated me like crazy. But it was such an interesting take on the importance of beauty to society and I couldn't help but like this book. I can't wait to see where Tally goes from here in the 2nd book and would recommend this to anyone looking for a good YA read!

My Rating: 4 out of 5

Challenges: 100+ Book Challenge, YA Challenge, New Author Challenge, Support Your Library Challenge

Library Loot - July 22nd edition

Hosted by Eva at A Striped Armchair and Marg at Reading Adventures. We share what we each picked up at the library during the week.

You guys would be so impressed with me lately as once again all of my books went back to the library....mostly read! And then I didn't go for a few weeks as life and work sadly got in the way. It worked out though as I read one off of my TBR shelf (this rarely happens) and knocked a review book off of my pile. I finally got to go this week and picked up few good books that I'm really excited to read.

The Girl Who Stopped Swimming by Joshilyn Jackson- I read and LOVED Gods In Alabama by this author so I am really looking forward to this one.

Death Du Jour by Kathy Reichs- I read the first book in this series a long, long time ago and have been meaning to continue on with these.

13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher- Who hasn't heard about this one all over the blogosphere? I HAD to pick it up when I spotted it on the shelves.

The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson- I've been wanting to read this book every since Andi read and reviewed it.

Plus, I rechecked out Blindness by Jose Saramago as I really, really want to read that one. I will read it this time! I limited myself to 5 though as I really need to read more off of my shelves and review pile (and I'm not even currently taking review books). Let me know if you've read any of these :)

That Went Well (Adventures in Caring for My Sister) by Terrell Harris Dougan

That Went Well: Adventures In Caring for My Sister is a memoir about Terrell Dougan's life and how she dealt with having a sister with mental disabilities. Terrell's parents made the choice not to institutionalize her sister Irene which meant life was always interesting to say the least. They ended up becoming advocates for people with mental disabilities and working towards other types of living arrangements for them.

What I liked about this book were all of the stories about Irene and what made her tick. She was a joy to read about and it came across so clearly how much Terrell cares for her sister. Irene was fun to read about and had lots of interesting quirks that make her unique. Terrell was a strong sister and really worked hard for the rights of individuals with mental handicaps. She was the first to admit when something wasn't going well in regards to Irene's care and needs. There were some flaws in the flow of the writing at times but it was interesting to see Irene and Terrell's progression over the years. I'll admit to wanting to have read more about Irene at times but it was an interesting read overall.

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 and recommended to those who enjoy memoirs

Challenges: 100+ Book Challenge, New Author Challenge

A Couple of New Challenges :)

So I was cleaning out my sidebar and realized that some challenges had come to an end that I hadn't finished. I'm too lazy to do a challenge update yet but I have been able to finish a few including the Once Upon a Time III challenge (except I only reviewed 2 of my reads for it so far), the Historical Reading challenge, the Winter Reading Challenge to name a few. I failed spectacularly on some other ones including the Spring Reading Thing where I read maybe 2 off of my list. But I decided to join two more challenges just because :)
The first challenge I joined is the perpetual Printz project. I'm beginning to read more YA and this seems like the perfect way to get some quality reads out of this challenge. In fact, I've already read one book off of the list, Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, but it didn't win the award for that year. It is still on the honorable mention list or whatever so when I get around to reviewing it (and I will) I'll be able to use this for my 1st read for this ongoing challenge.
The second challenge I joined was the Book Awards III challenge that goes on until December of this year. I've failed on this challenge both times that I signed up for it but I still can't resist trying again. It requires me to read five different award winners which should be interesting.
I also need to focus on a couple of challenges that I have been neglecting including the Orbis Terrarum challenge and the 1% Well Read challenge. The World Citizen challenge and the TBR 2009 challenge need some love as well. I am reading The Glass Castle which is on my TBR list but I still need to work on this one if I plan on finishing it.
Huh, guess this did turn into a bit of a challenge update after all... :)
P.S.- Just wanted to share a 4th of July pic with you

Kitty Raises Hell by Carrie Vaughn

Provide a brief summary of the book:

Kitty Raises Hell brings Kitty back to Denver and trying to protect her pack from an evil that was unleashed back in Las Vegas. Filled with action and suspense, the reader goes on another wild ride with Kitty that doesn't disappoint.

Likes?

What isn't there to like about this series? Kitty has become such a strong female character that I like more and more. She is learning more about what goes into being the leader of her pack while staying true to herself. I love the action and suspense that goes into each of these books and feel that each book has a fresh and original storyline.

Dislikes?

Hmm...I can't remember any. That is one of the problems when you get so far behind in book reviews. I do know that I felt that this book was better than the last one but other than that...sorry!

Additional thoughts?

This part is easy: I WILL definitely be continuing on with series and waiting impatiently for the next installment to come out. If you like paranormal and urban fantasy than this will be a series that you will enjoy. I cannot wait to see what Kitty gets herself into next :)

My Rating: 4 out of 5 and recommended

Challenges: Series 3 Challenge, 100+ Book Challenge

P.S.- Sorry this review is so short but it has been awhile since I read it and I've already passed this one on to my sister to read. I'm thinking that with some of these books (not review books) that I am behind on reviewing I might just post mini reviews. We'll see...some of them deserve a full review.

The Sunday Salon- Summer Reading

Good morning everyone and happy Sunday! I haven't posted on a Sunday in awhile as life seems to get so much more hectic in the summertime. I finished a couple of good books this week which brought my total number of books read to 59 so far this year. I'm on track to reach 100 books which is very exciting :) I know some of you have already surpassed 100 books but I'm doing really good so far. Now on to the books I read this week:

The first book that I finished this week was Summer Knight by Jim Butcher. This was the 4th book in the Dresden series and Harry was as enjoyable as ever to read about. The stuff that he gets himself into...I find myself captivated with this series when I am reading it and I fly through the books. I've spread out the first four books though as I really just want them to last :) Anyways, it was a great read and I'll be posting a review eventually.

I also finished Where Are You Now? by Mary Higgins Clark. It has been SUCH a long time since I read anything by this author and it was nice to read her again. I still prefer her earlier books to her later ones but I enjoyed this book alot. It ended up being a fast-paced mystery and although I figured out part of the whodunnit, I didn't figure it out entirely which kept me turning the pages. Another good read :)

I'm now reading To The Power of Three by Laura Lippman who is a new to me author. I went on a mystery/thriller kick while I was at the library and picked this one up because of a review that I recently read for another of this author's books. It sounded so good and of course I couldn't remember the title so I decided to give this one a try. I've just barely begun it but I'll let you know what I think about it soon. That's it out of me and hopefully I'll see you all next week :)

The Last Queen by C.W. Gortner

The Last Queen is a novel of historical fiction based on the life of Juana of Castile. It begins with Juana's childhood and leads into her struggle to become queen of Spain. Juana faces heartbreak, love and betrayal among the pages of this story and the reader cannot help but root for her. Throughout the story she faces all hardships with strength and courage as she works to become the rightful queen of Spain and to protect her beloved country.

What an amazing read this was! I've begun to read more historical fiction this year than ever before and this trumps everything I have picked up so far. I was instantly attached to Juana's character and couldn't help but hope for the best. The pages of this book were filled with suspense and I found myself reading it long after I should have put it down. But Juana was such a strong main character and she faced such evil at times. And the ending blew me away...I didn't see it coming whatsoever. I cannot say that I'm a history buff and so I didn't have a clue where the ending was going. It was so sad but so perfect in the end. Suffice it say that I LOVED this book! One of the better historical fiction reads that I've picked up so far and I'll be looking for more by this author.

My Rating/Recommendations: 5 out of 5 and highly recommended!
Challenges: New Author Challenge, 100+ Book Challenge

**Woohoo, I finally reviewed a book. It has been weeks...literally. I'll catch up eventually but I'm going to work on getting review books posted first.

Library Loot and a Reading Slump

Library Loot is a weekly event co-hosted by Eva and Alessandra that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library. If you’d like to participate, just write up your post-feel free to steal the button-and link it using the Mr. Linky any time during the week. And of course check out what other participants are getting from their libraries.

I took EVERYTHING that I had checked out from the library back. And I mean everything. I just decided that I needed a fresh slate and some new books to go with it. While we were there I signed my son up for the summer reading program for the 1st time :) He just finished kindergarten and I want to make sure that he continues to read throughout the summer in the midst of all of the summer fun. He's excited about it and we came home with a bunch of superhero books to check out. Later on I went to the library by myself (such an unexpected pleasure) and picked up some new books since I didn't have any. I went for comfort reads and thrillers but I'll explain about that later :)

Absolute Fear by Lisa Jackson- New to me author but I've heard good things. JKaye even had a challenge to read as many of this author's books as possible which means she must be good.

The Dead Girl's Dance by Rachel Caine- 2nd in her YA series and one that I cannot wait to read as I really enjoyed the first book.

Four To Score by Janet Evanovich- I was in the mood for some fun reading and this will hopefully fit the bill. The first three books sure did :)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling- I'm ready to reread this series...plus the new movie is coming out sometime next month I think so this will be enjoyable to delve back into.

What's A Ghoul to Do? by Victoria Laurie- I've read this author's other series and enjoyed the first two books so I decided to try this series as well.

No One You Know by Michelle Richmond- I know, I know...I just had her other book checked out and I returned it unread. But this sounds so good and when I saw it sitting there on the shelf I had to bring it home with me.

Death on Demand by Carolyn G. Hart- The beginning to a new cozy series that sounds like fun. Plus, I'm trying to finish up the themed reading challenge and my theme is cozies so I'm gonna give this one a try.

Blood Dreams by Kay Hooper- It has been such a long time since I read a book by this author...I can't wait to visit these characters again.

You all know that I've been in a bit of a blogging slump but with everything going on it was a bit to be expected. What I didn't expect was to be struggling with reading as well...but I have been. Happy to say that I've snapped out of it with a few great reads including the second installment in the Fable series titled Animal Farm. I LOVE this series and am dying to pick the next volume up as soon as it comes in at the library. It is such fun! I realized I needed comfort reads which is why I picked up and finished An Ice Cold Grave by Charlaine Harris. And after that I read and enjoyed Visions In Death by J.D. Robb which is my all-time favorite series! Just like that I was hooked back into reading with a few of my favorite authors. I'm hoping that these library books keep me hooked into reading and keep the stress at bay :)

Randomness and Then Some :)

Hey everyone! It has been awhile since I last posted so I thought I would catch everyone up on what has been going on. I took a much needed blogging break as I've just felt a bit burned out lately. I've got a lot going on lately and blogging just got pushed to the wayside. And I'm going to admit to being a bit glad as I needed a break. I am SO far behind on reviews that it is not even funny but I couldn't even get myself to sit down and type anything up. Can we say slacking? I am happy to say that I'm back now and ready to knock out a few of these reviews. But be patient as it is going to take a bit...I'm seriously like over 15 reviews behind! Aack!

In other news, I changed my TBR list up a bit. I usually keep a notebook by the computer where I write down titles and authors. But I wasn't using it when I went to the library and I was never knocking books off of it that I had already read. Plus, books were getting written down multiple times. So I started an Excel spreadsheet and I think that is going to be what I use from now on. It will keep me more organized and if I take the time I can add the books from my notebook on to the spreadsheet eventually. It'll be a project that I work on when I find the time :)

Also, Kara from World According to Books is the winner of Wild Highland Magic. Kara, congrats and I will be sending you an email soon asking for your shipping info.

Finally, I'm currently reading Behold, Here's Poison by Georgette Heyer and enjoying it. I really liked the first book I read by this author and am thinking that I am going to like this one just as much. Library-wise I have been taking my enormous stack back to the library slowly but surely...I just had too many checked out at once. I saved a few that I am dying to read and then at some point this week I will go back and get a few more books. I just hate when all I am doing is returning the books back unread-especially when I really want to read them. Anyways, just wanted to catch up with all of you...talk to ya soon!